Disclaimer - still not mine
Kill Squad
Harry glared out of the window as Adam drove. He was furious. Ruth had placed the mobile phone back in her pocket, just as scared and angry as Harry was. Adam remained quiet as they approached Thames House. It was Zaf that broke the silence.
"What was the text?" He had noticed the change in atmosphere since the little phone had bleeped. Ruth sighed before answering. She really didn't like the message that had come through. There was no way of knowing where Ros and Andrew were but at least they knew she was still alive.
"It was from Ros" She glanced at Harry unsure of what she should say. He nodded as Ruth wrung her hands together. He nodded.
"What did it say?" Zaf asked as Ruth sighed.
"Kill Squad" Ruth looked out the side window as Adam pulled the car in to the car park beneath Thames House.
"Oh Shit" Adam swore as he realised what Ros had been trying to tell them. "She thinks there is more than one assassin after her and Andrew. Anything else? Did she say anything else?" Adam was really worried. He knew she had faced down a kill squad with Harry and Lucas before. All he knew about that was Connie James' treachery had been revealed and she's died. He didn't know how, he's been the other side of the world at the time.
"No nothing else." Ruth stepped out of the car, brushing broken glass away from her top. Harry and Zaf walked to the entrance of Thames House as Adam hung back with Ruth.
"You ok?" He watched as she shook her head.
"No Adam. I am not ok. We have to find Ros" She walked on ahead as Adam followed her. He knew she was right. If Ruth was this worried he had no idea what Lucas was going to be like.
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Ros walked slightly ahead of Andrew. He had stopped offering 'helpful' suggestions a little while ago. She was leaning against the wall of an alley as she realised they were no nearer the Grid than they had been. She felt sick at the thought of Malcolm stood in the safe house doorway holding his arm. She had no idea how injured he really was. She swore under her breath as Andrew waited to see what would happen next.
"What are you looking at?" She pushed her blonde hair out of the way as he opened and closed his mouth.
"Ros, what are we doing?" Andrew was growing inpatient. The summer sunshine was fading to a colder evening. Neither was dressed for a night out in the cold.
"Andrew" Ros was tired. She really didn't want him to keep asking her stupid questions. All she wanted to do was get them back to Thames House. It should have been straightforward but having to stick to the back streets and alleyways was making things difficult. She considered taking him on the underground but knew her already limited means of communucation with the Grid would be non existant if she did that. Ros desperately wanted to get out of the firing line. The longer they were away from Thames House the more likely they were to be killed.
"I've sent a message to the Grid. They know why we're still out. They know we are still alive. All we have to do is get back to base" She leant against the wall as Andrew nodded.
"Look I feel I should say something" Andrew started as Ros narrowed her eyes. She didn't want to hear anything Andrew said. It felt like they had been running for hours in reality it wasn't that long. Every moment she was in the company of Andrew Lawrence made her feel uneasy. She couldn't believe she had once felt they could be more than friends. She sighed as she thought of Lucas and Amy and was pleased nothing had really happened between her and the former Home Secretary.
"Andrew don't" She sounded tired. She was, Andrew had not said a civil word to her since the explosion where she had saved his life and she was tired of it. . It was clear he blamed her for not getting him out of the building before the bomb went off. He blamed her for the time he had spent in the Intensive Care Unit and in rehab after. She thought he probably blamed her for his party being voted out of office. She didn't need this discussion right now, not when she was trying to get him to safety for a third time.
"Ros, the bomb"
"Andrew I said don't. Whatever happened before the bomb happened. Its history. All I have to do now is my job. That means I have to keep you alive, so just let me do my job. C'mon" She stalked down the alleyway furious with herself for showing how angry she was. Andrew obediently followed her as her phone quietly bleeped.
'co ordinates needed. Retrieval team on route' she smiled as she read the text. It meant help was on the way. She punched the co ordinates in to the phone and sent it. She knew all they had to do now was wait. She smiled slightly as she hoped it would be Lucas that would collect them. She decided then if Malcolm was ok, if he really was she would have to make some phone calls. He deserved to be happy. She looked out of the alleyway across the main road. They would have to chance it sooner or later. She took Andrew by the elbow and walked across the main street, trying to loose themselves in the crowds hoping to get to where she prayed someone would be waiting for them.
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Lucas smiled at the message as he put the phone back in his pocket. Ros was alive. All they had to do now was collect her. He pushed himself up from the desk he was leaning on as Adam pulled his coat back on. Ruth had gone to make coffee while Tariq filled them in on Malcolm's condition.
"You coming Adam?" He watched as the blonde nodded.
"Tariq tell Harry we've gone to collect Ros" Lucas walked towards the Pods as Tariq nodded. Tariq was trying to get the computer system back up and running. It was proving to be more difficult than he thought. The intranet worm was causing problems, everytime he restored a file another two crashed. He was getting frustrated and missed Malcolm.
"Who's Sarah?" Tariq spoke up as Lucas stopped in his tracks. Harry and Ruth glanced at each other. "Malcolm asked if we knew where she is"
"Who?" Adam knew about Sarah Caulfield but doubted Tariq would be asking about her in relation to Malcolm, especially not after all this time. Lucas glanced briefly at Adam before shrugging. He had only ever known one Sarah and that hadn't gone well.
"Malcolm was asking for her. He asked me to get a message to Sarah Hughes" Ruth sighed as Harry nodded.
"She's a friend of Malcolm's. I'll see she's informed. Don't worry about it Tariq." He turned to Lucas and Adam "Don't you both have somewhere to be?" Lucas nodded as Adam stepped in to the Pods. Tariq watched the exchange between Ruth and Harry, noting how the pair didn't really need to speak to get their message across. Tariq sighed before returning to his computer. He was chasing down various other people that Hans Linnerman had exchanged large sums of money with.
"Follow the money" He whispered to himself as he continued tapping away. He knew it was only a matter of time before Hans Linnerman got too arrogant and led them straight to him. He just hoped the hit man was caught before anyone else got hurt.
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Ruth watched as Harry returned to his office. Sarah Hughes was a name she hadn't heard in years and then it was only when Malcolm had tried to reason with her about her relationship with Harry. He had cornered her in the kitchenete on the Grid before everything with Mace had happened, telling her not to end up with regrets like he had. He'd told her that if she loved Harry then she should make sure he knew it and not end up old, lonely and alone like him. She sighed, it was terribly sad but she had no idea how to contact the woman Malcolm had always been in love with. She pushed herself away from the desk telling Tariq she was going to make coffee. Zaf and Zoe were deep in conversation and didn't really notice Harry or Ruth leave the main Grid.
Ruth stood in the small kitchenette, she was relieved Ros had been able to get in contact. She waited for the kettle to boil as she thought about what Frankie could be planning next. She knew that her and Harry were still probable targets but she really just wanted to go home. Sighing she poured milk in her mug as warm hands wrapped themselves around her.
"Ruth" she smiled slightly as Harry kissed her neck. She knew the rest of the Grid must be occupied for him to behave like that at work.
"Harry" she smiled as she turned in his arms. "What are we going to do? Is there any way we can find Sarah?" She was thinking about Malcolm. Harry sighed he knew she was a hopeless romantic.
"I think so. She should be out of prison by now" He watched as her eyes widened.
"Malcolm was in love with someone who went to prison?"
"Yes, well you can't help who you fall for. You should know that." His arms tightened around her waist as she blushed.
"Look, it was before you came here. I was only just divorced and Malcolm had met Sarah. She was in section K. A little younger than Malcolm but basically had the same job, only she was involved in counter espionage rather than counter terrorism. She was set up, much in the same way you and Zoe were. We couldn't save her. Malcolm nearly got kicked out. I'm surprised he stayed as long as he did afterwards" Ruth frowned as Harry spoke.
"Is there anywhere she's likely to be? I could make some phone calls." Ruth was angry that Malcolm and Sarah had been separated.
"She has family, a brother I think in Cardiff" Harry sighed as Ruth spoke.
"Ok. That's a starting point. If I'm stuck here at least I can do is a little digging. Tariq is chasing the money at the moment and has a couple of gadgets for Ros and the others to test. Zoe and Zaf are looking in to the mole. I could look for Sarah, it really needn't interfere with work Harry" She smiled as she realised he wouldn't stop her trying to help Malcolm.
"You really are a hopeless romantic aren't you?" He kissed her briefly as she shook her head.
"No Harry, more a hopeful one" she smiled as she picked up her now lukewarm coffee and headed back to the Grid.
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Ros was angry. There was no sign of the retrieval team that she was expecting to pull them out. She hoped it meant nothing had gone wrong. Andrew had the sense to remain quiet as they ran across the road to the small café across the street. She didn't intend to hide there but realised with the flow of traffic on the street hiding in plain sight may be the best option. The afternoon shoppers ignored them as they crossed the road. Ros' eyes were everywhere as she looked for snipers' sights. The thought that either her or Andrew could be shot dead on the street as they crossed the road just made her angry.
"Ros" Andrew nodded towards a small dark blue Audi that was parked near the café entrance. Ros nodded as she pulled Andrew towards it.
"Bought time too" Ros yanked the door open as Adam smiled.
"We aim to please" He smirked as Ros shot him a death glare as she pushed Andrew in the car in front of her. Lucas glanced at her briefly. He wanted to say so much but with Andrew and Adam there he knew he would have to keep quiet. His blue eyes met hers as he glanced in the rear view mirror. She held his gaze for a moment as Andrew began babbling. She ignored him as Adam drove off. Andrew kept lookong out of the side window wary that someone was out there that wanted him dead. Lucas sighed as he checked the wing mirror. He could understand the paranoia but hated the fact that Andrew had been thrown back in to their lives.
"We have a tail" He stated as Ros swore before she checked her gun. Adam floored the accelerator while weaving in and out of the London traffic. He was getting board of being followed. It was getting monotonous. Tapping his earpiece he spoke to Tariq to check on the computer situation.
"Up and running" Tariq answered as if he couldnt quite believe Adam doubted he could fix the system.
"Have a little fun with the traffic signals then, get us home quick with no tail" Lucas watched the car behind them continue to follow. He cursed as he also checked his gun. He was not happy. Ros shot a warning glare at Andrew to keep quiet as Tariq began turning the traffic lights in their favour and the speed cameras off.
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Frankie sat in a small Nissen Micra opposite Thames House. He had been there since the shooting at the East End flat. He knew at least one of the team were dead, he just didn't know which one. He hoped he'd hit either the Section Chief or Intel Analyst. Either would have had the same effect. If Ruth was dead his brother was avenged, if Harry was then Ruth would be in purgatory - either was fine by him. Andrew Lawrence was next. He smiled to himself as he remembered the shooting at Fenchurch. It had been almost too easy. He watched the doors as he waited. Sooner or later one of Section D would make a mistake, until then he could always rely on his idiot cousin in Section K. However things worked out he was sure he would have earned his money soon. Hans Linnerman would no longer have to deal with the problem Section D were imposing. Nightingale would be able to infiltrate the UK again and this time it didn't matter what Harry Pearce and his friends did, no one would be able to stop them.
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Ruth looked around the Grid. Everyone was absorbed in their work, the atmosphere much lighter now they knew Ros and the boys were on their way in. She smiled as Harry caught her eye before picking up the phone.
"Ah, hello. Can I talk to Sarah Hughes please?" She waited as the man agreed and called out for her to come to the phone. Ruth just hoped that this was what Malcolm really wanted.
author's note - just a filler chapter. Necessary changes made, moral of the story do not update just after working a night shift and on very little sleep! Please let me know what you think. Does Frankie really think he has killed Ruth or Harry? Will Sarah want to see Malcolm again? More soon
