Prompt: Where does Red take Lizzie when they leave together? (Some exotic location? Scary cabin in the woods? Ressler's closet?)
Liz never failed to be surprised by Raymond Reddington.
During the long ride in the backseat of one of Red's cars, Liz prepped herself for air travel. It always made her slightly queasy, the trembling and shaking of the plane as it left the ground, and downright nauseated when it started doing the same mid-air. Not a pleasant experience. She considered asking to stop for some Dramamine, but Red had failed to move or speak since she laid her head on his shoulder, so she figured it wise to keep her mouth shut and continue to pretend to sleep.
The stop at a hotel wasn't really a surprise…Liz figured they would be taking off from some remote location far away from Baltimore. The north wasn't safe for them anymore, so it made sense that they were heading south.
She just didn't expect them to head all the way to Florida.
White sand crunched beneath her sneakers as she took in the sight of the modest beach house, hidden from view by enormous rocks that looked like they were strategically placed for that purpose.
"Here?" Liz tried to keep the disbelief from dripping from her voice, but failed miserably.
Red straightened his hat. "Here."
Gripping the bag that had been specially put together for her (she didn't want to know how long this bag had been packed for this particular scenario), she made her way through the front door of the house, taking in her new surroundings. It was small…the kitchen and living room were combined comfortably into one space, and there was a door leading to what Liz assumed was a bedroom. A set of stairs caught her eye, but she wasn't ready to tackle those just yet.
"Quaint, isn't it?" Red materialized beside her, taking in the house as well. "Not exactly my usual fare, but this is an unusual situation, so it'll do."
"We lived in a beach house once, Sam and I. When I was about eight years old, for six months. We moved around a lot, but I guess you already knew that." It wasn't an accusation, not anymore. After the lengths he had gone through to keep her conscience clean and her soul pure, how could she fault him for looking in on her? "Is it yours?"
Red smiled slightly, studying her now as he had refused to do for the past two days. "Borrowed. It's safer this way."
Nodding, Liz dropped her eyes down to the hardwood floors. She really wished he would have waited until she showered to give her so much attention. "So why are we here? I thought we'd be well out of the country by now." She flopped casually on the couch, tucking her feet beneath her.
"They'll be watching the skies for months, Lizzie. Let's give them some time to get themselves good and confused and scouting for caves in Pakistan." Red grinned and took the seat beside Liz. The grace in his movements brought her to shame and she untucked her feet and planted them firmly on the floor.
"But you smuggle people out of the country all the time… gone in thirty seconds."
"I offer that particular package to clients…"
Red nodded. "I do. And I can. But I won't."
He was truly infuriating.
Despite every atom of her being screaming for her to leave it alone, that she had had enough revelations in two days to last her a lifetime, Liz shrugged. "Why?"
There was a gentle weight on her thigh and her hand curled around his instinctively. "Because my clients must be willing to risk everything to reach their destination, and I'm not," Red said gruffly, squeezing her fingers between his. "I can't afford to be brave right now. Not if you're the cost."
There was no way to reply correctly to that…no way to convey the way that made her feel, so Liz went with the first nonsensical thing that popped out of her mouth.
"So… Florida?"
Red grinned. "Florida."
a/n I might actually have to turn this into a multi-chap fic. We'll see.