A/N: The next chapter should answer most of the questions people had about who knew Mike was alive and when. And just to clarify the timeline, it's been 3 days since Mike died. It wasn't my intention to drag out his death that long, but I wanted to flesh out the story and include scenes with other characters when Paige wasn't around, and the extra flashbacks I added bumped the reveal about Mike for a few chapters. Curious to know what people think...and in case you missed the announcement, Season 3 premieres on Thursday, 06/25!

Paige pulled away from Charlie, backing away from Briggs and she shook her head as the tears fell faster down her face. "I don't know what kind of sick game you're playing, but he's gone. Mike's gone."

The time of death was 7:14pm.

Time of death.

7:14pm.

"Paige - "

"That nurse, she told me - she told me that Mike..."

"I told her if she didn't lie, I would arrest her. Paige, Mike's alive, I'm sorry - "

"You were there! You saw him. You told me..." Paige's voice trailed off as tried to make sense of what Briggs was saying.

The room fell silent as everyone's attention was focused on her and Briggs.

"I lied," Briggs apologetically said, moving to sit across from her.

Afraid to believe Briggs, she met his eyes, trying to see if he was telling the truth or not. He lied so often about so many things, she didn't think he would lie about this. But either he lied that Mike died or he was lying that Mike was alive. Searching his eyes, she could see the regret. Not pity. Regret that he lied. Not pity because he was telling her a lie that he was somehow convinced would help her cope. She lunged at him, slapping him, as she stood over him. The sound of her hand hitting his face, echoed throughout the stunned silence of the room. Briggs stood up, rubbing his face. "You fucking bastard! YOU TOLD ME HE DIED!" She continued hitting him, pummeling her fists into his chest. Briggs didn't make a move to defend himself. He let her hit him, probably hoping she would tire herself out. But she poured all the grief and pain she had felt over the past few days into her fists and repeatedly hit him.

"Paige, settle down," Charlie said.

"I'm okay, let her get it out," Briggs said as she continued hitting him.

"How could you? How could you?" Paige cried, slapping him again.

Briggs tightly wrapped his arms around her to still her movements as Paige struggled in his arms.

Charlie stepped back and motioned for Jakes and Johnny to intervene. Jakes gently pulled Paige away and her anger gave way to hysterical crying. "He's not gone, Paige. He's not gone. Mike's alive," Jakes whispered in her ear. "Levi's alive."

Mike was alive.

Alive.

Jakes' words sank in and she relaxed against him. Her legs nearly gave out, but Jakes was there to steady her as he led her back to the couch.

Mike was alive. He wasn't gone. She didn't kill him. She needed to see him. See him with her own eyes. See that he was really okay. Make sure that this wasn't part of some plan that Briggs had to make her think that Mike was alive when he was really dead. If only she had insisted she see Mike's body at the hospital, the past few days would've played out differently. She made that mistake once, but she wouldn't make it again.

"I want to see him," Paige said.

Briggs reached for her hand and squeezed it. "Are you sure?"

"It's Mike," Paige whispered. "I - I - I have - "

Briggs wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly as she broke down in his arms. "I know. Tell me what you need."

"I need this not to be true. I need to say goodbye."

Briggs sighed, "You don't want to see him like this. Just know that, Mike - he's in a better place now. He's all around us."

She squeezed her eyes shut as she picture Mike. Still. Lifeless. Cold.

The last time she saw Mike, she didn't want it to be on some slab in the morgue. She wanted to remember him how he was, not some shell of the man he once was. "Get me out of here."

Briggs called her bluff and she played right into his hand, when she changed her mind about seeing Mike.

Johnny pushed Briggs further away from Paige, "You good?"

"I'm fine, JT."

"Good," Johnny said, before punching him in the face.

Briggs staggered back and rubbed his jaw, "I deserved that."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Charlie asked. "You told Paige Mike died and you knew he was alive? You told all of us that he died! You let me plan Mike's memorial service and you knew he was alive? Are you insane?"

"You better start talking," Jakes demanded.

Paige wrapped her arms around herself, wishing Mike's arms were wrapped around her. Even though she pushed Mike away so many times, shut down their relationship before it even got started, she wanted his arms around her. Wanted to feel his heart beating. Feel his breath upon her skin. Feel his lips pressed against hers.

Right now she didn't care about the lies he told. The secrets he had been keeping from her. None of that mattered anymore. At least not right now. In a few weeks, she might feel differently. But right now, the only thing that mattered was that Mike was alive. She would gladly put up with all of his annoyingly endearing habits, if it meant he was back in her life. If only he could find a way to forgive her for what she did. Because maybe if he forgave her, she could start to forgive herself.

"I want to see him. Where is he?" Paige asked.

"You can't see him right now," Briggs said.

"Paul Briggs, I swear to God, if you're lying about this, I will kill you myself," Charlie threatened.

"I need to see him," Paige begged. "Take me to him."

"It's better if they believe," Mike murmured, barely conscious at this point.

"Believe? Believe what?" What the hell was Mike talking about?

"That she's happy. That she's in a better place. It's better for them."

She remembered everything that happened after that moment. How betrayed she felt. How alienated she felt from him. As if she didn't know him at all. His actions didn't excuse what she did. She would have to find a way to make him understand. She needed to apologize. Beg for forgiveness. A few turns on the chore wheel weren't going to fix this. She wasn't sure if anything could fix this. But she needed to try.

"You can't see him right now," Briggs said.

"Where is Mikey? Why can't Paige see him?" Johnny asked.

"You have every reason to doubt me right now, but Mike is safe. He's in a different hospital, under a different name. FBI Agents are stationed outside his hospital room for protection and the hospital staff thinks he's under arrest."

"What happened to MIke?" Charlie asked.

Paige kept her eyes trained on Briggs, looking for any sign that he was lying or keeping something back from them.

"Sid tried to kill Mike. Sid would've succeeded if Mike hadn't been in a hospital. Sid wrapped his hand around the tube on Mike's ventilator and cut off his oxygen supply. Mike, he - he was flatlining when I got to his hospital room. Something seemed off. The blankets were askew as if he had been struggling. The hospital staff entered the room and they got Mike breathing again. I started looking at the scene like a crime scene, looking for evidence that Sid was responsible. I knew - I knew Sid knew where Mike was. I had Mike moved to another room and arranged for Mike to be transferred. I weighed the pros and cons of having Mike on the FBI's radar, but even if Mike was framed, he was innocent. Mike needed to be alive to fight."

Paige was pissed at Briggs for lying to her, yet grateful that he had been there to make sure Mike was safe. Something she hadn't been able to do. She was the reason he had been in danger. "Why can't I see him?"

"Sid knows everything. He was in this house - "

"The house is burned?" Charlie asked.

"Why are we staying here?" Johnny asked.

"I have some friends watching the house."

"So basically, we're sitting ducks," Jakes said. "Perfect."

"Let me get this straight. There's a dirty cop out there. He almost killed Mike - twice. He murdered his team, Carlos Solano and a bunch of Solano guards. And he knows who we are and where we live?" Charlie asked. "Why the hell are we staying here?"

Mike didn't do it. He wasn't responsible for the bloodbath at the Solano compound.

"We're safer here if we don't tip our hand," Briggs explained.

"Okay, fine, we'll stay here. But let me see Mike," Paige desperately pleaded, her voice trembling. "Just let me see him." She was just waiting for someone to lash out and blame her. She deserved it. She was the reason Sid was in Mike's hospital room. She lost faith in Mike and turned him over to a killer.

"You can't, not now. Sid is probably watching all of us," Briggs said.

"Mike's alone! He's all alone! If Sid tried to kill him and he knows who we are..." Paige's voice trailed off as she realized that Mike knew she betrayed him. That she was the one that sent Sid after him. "I have to see him. I'll be careful. I promise." Everything with Miike spiraled out of control. He never set out to betray her. Things snowballed, but he lied and that's what made her turn him in. But she couldn't blame him for her mistake. She needed to take responsibility for what she did. For not trusting him. He lied about Lina, but that was a far cry from massacring the LAPD's gang task force.

Everything with her and MIke was so twisted and broken, but she loved him. The day she found out he lied, she thought she'd never be able to get past what he did, but when she thought he was dead, she felt like she couldn't breathe. Like there was nothing worth living for. It took Mike dying for her to realize she forgave him, but the question was - could he ever forgive her?

As much as she wanted to see him to try and explain things, she just needed to see him. She needed to know this wasn't another dream. Wasn't a hallucination. Needed to know that she wasn't going to walk out that door only to have Mike fall into her arms, bloodied and beaten. Again.

"If Levi went through all that, he's gonna want to see Paige," Jakes said.

"I agree, there has to be a way," Charlie said.

"Mike was perfectly clear about not seeing anyone in the house until it was safe," Briggs said.

"But he didn't mean Paige," Johnny said. "You and I both know - "

"I asked him about Paige. He said, 'Especially Paige.'" Briggs sighed heavily, "I'm sorry, kiddo."

Determined, Paige shook her head, refusing to take no for an answer. "You don't understand, I need to see him. He can hate me forever, but until he tells me he never wants to see me again, I'm going to see him."

"I'll take her," Johnny said. "Come on, Briggs - this past week has been hell on all of us, but look at her. She needs to see him. If Mikey flips out, I'll take the heat. You can either tell me where Mike is or I'm going to start making calls. You owe her this."

check my bio page for updates