They said nothing until in the van and several blocks away from the restaurant. "How many did you lose, Fawkes?"

Darien knew instantly what Bobby was referring to, pulled up his sleeve and took a gander at his wrist. "One, which brings me to three full. I'm fine."

Bobby nodded, his knuckles white on the steering wheel. "You hid it well, I'll say that much, but you need to be more careful in the future."

Darien didn't argue, given it was quite true. "Well, it wasn't like I planned it, y'know."

"I figured." Bobby carefully released his fingers from the wheel, the knuckles popping they'd been clenched so tightly. "What triggered it?"

"Anger," Darien told him seeing no reason to prevaricate.

Bobby sighed. "I was afraid of that." He made his way through the maze of streets at speed, blowing through yellows and around any vehicle moving slower than the van. He didn't stop until at the tiny park off Marina Park Way behind the convention center.

"Hobbes..."

"Yes, Fawkes."

"Why are we here?" Darien felt good and confused. He figured they'd drop the jump drive off at the Agency for Drake to play with and then head out to Leavitt to give the blow dart bit to the Keeper to run tests on. And then... then he'd spend some time with a hopefully conscious and healing Alyx.

"What? You don't like the view or something?" Hobbes snarked, as he climbed out of the van. He walked around the front to Darien side, opened the door, and grabbed the bag of food from the floorboard. "Out."

Darien unbuckled and complied, feeling somewhat bemused. "Hobbes..."

His partner held up a hand for silence as they walked over towards some permanent picnic tables under the trees. He set the bags down and began unpacking the repast. "I don't want to take a chance the van is bugged," he finally explained.

"Oh," Darien muttered, wondering why he hadn't thought of that. "You really think they'd do that?"

Hobbes shrugged. "I would. I'll go over the van before we leave just in case." He placed the various containers on the table after a quick glance into each. There was salad and garlic bread, the ravioli, and the wine, of course, which Darien realized they couldn't open until Hobbes pulled out his knife, stabbed it into the cork and wiggled it out. He gave it a sniff and actually smiled for an instant. He divvied up the food, pushing the real silverware provided at Darien along with the cloth napkins. Then Hobbes poured a generous amount of wine into the glasses, handing one to Darien before downing half of his own in one long swallow.

"Bobby, I'm not really hungry right now." True enough after what he had just seen in that building.

"Eat anyway. You need your strength." Hobbes dug into the salad, eating methodically, in between gulps of wine. At that rate they'd be going nowhere for a while.

"Bobby..."

"Fawkes," Hobbes sighed, setting his fork down and rubbing his face in his hands. "You got angry enough to go see-through without planning it, there's no way I'm letting you anywhere near the kid until you get some sort of control back. So eat, drink some of this very fine wine, and let the alcohol wash away what you saw."

"That will never happen," Darien stated flatly. "I'm pretty fucking sure those images are burned into my brain permanently." He violently stabbed a cucumber with his fork and shoved it into his mouth. He chewed, aware on some level that the dressing on the salad was exquisite, but the bitter burn of anger churning in his gut left everything as tasteless as sawdust. He ate a few more bites in silence then grabbed the glass of wine, gulping it down quickly. "It was fucking blast zone in there, Hobbes. What they did to her... What she did to get away..." He shook his head wishing the wine were something much stronger. "No wonder she doesn't remember. I certainly don't want to and all I got to see was the aftermath."

"Which is why we're here instead of Leavitt," Bobby pointed out, gesturing with his fork, before stabbing a ravioli. "At this point I don't dare go near the kid, she's just as likely to pick it up from me." He poured more wine into his glass. "She did what she needed to do, I believe that, but seeing the results..." He shook his head. "I know the kid is dangerous, we taught her to be, I just... I never thought I'd be afraid of her."

Darien didn't know what to say. Bobby had always had an issues with some of Alyx's abilities, especially her telepathy/empathy, what with his "Big Brother is watching" issues, but once she had firm control he'd never worried about her, had been unfailingly impressed by her self-control and ability to use just the right amount of force to get the job done. She only killed if absolutely necessary, but when it was necessary never hesitated to do so. There had been trust issues in the past, Bobby trusting in her abilities far more than the woman in charge of them, which had admittedly been deserved at times, but these days... Bobby would take a bullet for her should it be needed and Alyx would return the favor without hesitation. So, for Bobby Hobbes to say he was afraid of Alyx the world must have truly tilted upon its axis.

"Me either," Darien said at a hoarse whisper. It was difficult thing to admit, to being afraid of the woman you loved. Nothing he'd ever experienced with her could have prepared him for the sheer destructiveness of what he'd seen. He could easily find a dozen justifications for what she'd done, but all of them would seem hollow, excuses for not wanting to admit to the reality: she hadn't just freed herself, but enacted an immediate and deadly vengeance upon the perpetrators, one so vicious that she'd blocked the act from her mind.

"What the hell do I do now, Hobbes? I can't... unsee that." He waved a hand around vaguely, wishing the alcohol would kick in and put that lovely coating of blur on reality.

"You bury it, Fawkes. Bury it deep and never let it see the light of day when you're near her," Hobbes told him frankly, making it clear that's how he planned to handle this.

Darien poured more of the wine, filling his glass, which he then promptly made a valiant effort to drain. He didn't quite manage it, leaving two fingers worth behind. "It's more than that. I know I need to forget, least when around Alyx right now, but I also want to understand. I mean, I know she's got a temper, but she's also one of the least violent people I've ever met, and considering the hell her life has been that's amazing. She can and has taken fucking huge amounts of abuse without batting an eye." He rubbed the back of his neck in consternation. "What could they have possibly done to push her to do that?"

"Now, that, is an excellent question, my friend. I'm thinking that this wasn't random," Bobby said, filling his glass with the very last of the wine.

"Duh."

Hobbes waved a hand. "Hear me out. Rape is damn personal, for the kid doubly so. Whoever set this up knew this would be a trigger for her, and used it for that reason."

"Rape is about control, Hobbes, everyone knows that," Darien pointed out, grabbing a piece of garlic bread and taking a huge bite of it. Now that the wine had dulled the angry edges his hunger had come storming back, and with the unplanned Quicksilver use, he needed food and badly, his stomach nothing but an aching void.

"Usually," Hobbes countered. "The kid's reactions aren't the norm, even the Keep has said so. No, this wasn't about control."

Around a mouthful of garlic bread Darien asked, "Then what was it about?"

Hobbes snorted. "Now if I knew that, we'd be halfway to solving this case."

"And instead we're the same place as before: nowhere." Darien closed his eyes for a long moment, wondering how many snipe hunts it would take before something broke. "I s'pose we could head back and check out Mom's..."

Hobbes shook his head. "I think we'll have more luck with this." He pulled the jump drive from his pocket.

"How? You heard 'em, someone hacked the signal."

"Yup, but I'm betting he gave us the digital files, not just a copy of the video. I'm betting this has all the data, which would include the frequency they use to run the system." He set the jump drive on the table, the small red rectangle suddenly far more important than its tiny size would suggest.

It took Darien a second to catch on. "Wait, you saying we could find and trace the signal the hacker used? "

Hobbes glanced at his watch. "Not bad, took you half the time I expected. Hanging out with the kid has been good for your geek-fu."

Darien actually laughed aloud. "That she has, my friend." He sobered after a moment. "We need to sic Drake on them."

Hobbes nodded in agreement. "Kid would be better, but I doubt the Keep will let her work... Scratch that, no way the Keep would want her to see what's on this. Not yet, anyway."

"No shit. Drake'll get the job done. Even Alyx thinks he's good at his job, just not in her league."

"Ain't no one in the kid's league," Hobbes pointed out, poking a tomato with his fork. "You better?" He asked after a few minutes of companionable silence and eating.

"Yeah," Darien answered, kind of surprised to discover it was true. "I... this is just one of my things."

"I know, Fawkes, but you gotta rein it in for now," Hobbes admonished, if gently. "If we get the opportunity, I might join you in some of that medieval vengeance I know you're contemplating, but it's gonna depend on where the trail leads. If it ends up being Chrysalis or Changeling we'll have to rethink our tactics. No way the two of us are gonna go tilting at windmills."

Darien snorted in amusement. "If it's them, we're fucked. I just can't see them using this kind of tactic."

Bobby raised his eyebrows.

"All right, so I can't see Chrysalis using this kind of tactic. Changeling, especially if they hired some creepy Jess clone, might, but this was kinda overkill, even for them," Darien corrected, the wine finally relaxing him enough to discuss this without wanting to throttle someone right now.

"Could we be off on the wrong track? Kid's pissed off more than a few people over the years, probably more than we know about with her loan jobs." Hobbes drummed his fingers on the table. "Lawson or that CIA mook, James, both a'them took her trouncing personally and had full access to her files. Connecting some of those dots after the fact wouldn't have been too hard. Those two have dirt on enough people to blackmail the info if they really wanted it."

Darien dropped his head, blowing out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding thanks to Bobby's pronouncement. "You just upped the suspect list exponentially, Hobbes."

"Sorry, but we gotta start thinking outside the box. Assuming the kid was the sole target..." he paused, thinking. "Or maybe Carmen is on the right track. Maybe the kid was the target but the message was for you. How many want both of you out of commission?"

Darien actually brightened a bit at that simply because that list would be far shorter, than a list of those who'd like to see Alyx out of the game. "Fewer, but not exactly a short list. I guess it would depend on the message." He pondered for a few minutes then shook his head as he answered, "Too many variables, and too much wine." He laughed softly, Bobby joining in after a moment. The guilt hit then, if softly; the blow a pillow instead of a cinder block. How could he be laughing, enjoying this bright afternoon while Alyx lay battered and broken in the hospital?

"Fawkes, stop with the moping. The kid wouldn't begrudge you a few stinkin' moments of pleasure, especially now." Bobby's tone was direct and forceful. "Focus on the work. Forget revenge, forget hunting the son of a bitch down, do the job and nothin' else."

"Hobbes, I can't-"

Bobby cut him off with the flat of his hand slapping the table top, making everything jump with the force of the blow. "Damn it, Fawkes, for once listen to me." He sucked in a deep breath and blew it out slowly. "I understand, really I do. If it had been Claire..." his voice cracked on the Keeper's name, emotions boiling over as he obviously put himself in Darien's place. "This is your out, my friend. If you can't focus on the job, if taking care of the kid is more important to you... I'll understand. No lectures, no arguments, but if you back out, you're out for the duration."

Since Darien had already considered this, he took Hobbes' words to heart. He had to make this choice, had to pick one or the other to focus on, 'cause splitting his attention was tearing him apart. He lacked that perspective that Hobbes and other agents had. Darien couldn't easily disassociate his feelings from the job, especially when the job involved Alyx. That brought him up short. He had managed before when the job turned out to involve Alyx, even when it involved her being injured; like when Changeling had drugged her and gone after everyone else to get her to bolt from the Agency. He'd been worried as hell, but kept it together and worked the job without the emotional quicksand he found himself mired in this time. With that realization, he tried something. Closing his eyes he focused inward, clearing his mind, he then went through a basic grounding routine. The emotional storm eased immediately so he took it one step further and built a wall in his mind directed specifically at Alyx's unconscious influence. Instantly, he felt a difference. Oh, he was most certainly still upset and in need of finding those who did it, but the overriding anger that he'd thought was all his faded to something more like he would expect. He made some slight adjustments, not wanting to cut her off completely, as it would freak her out for him to suddenly cut off his connection with her, at least until he could talk to her about the situation. With a sigh, he opened his eyes to meet his partner's concerned gaze.

"Fawkes?" Hobbes questioned, truly sounding worried.

"Bleed over from Alyx," Darien explained.

"Ah," Hobbes said, brows knitting together as he tried to figure out exactly what that statement meant. "Oh, you were getting the kid's emotions as well as yours. Shit, no wonder you've been such a barrel of laughs."

"Cute, Hobbes, real cute." He picked up his fork, intending to finish the quite fine meal now that he wasn't being manipulated emotionally. "I'm in for the duration."

"Good. I have a feeling this trail on this one is gonna be as twisted as the mind that came up with it." Hobbes picked up the jump drive and tucked it back into his pocket, then also returned to his food. "This is why I don't fish off the company pier," he stated wryly. "I'm just damn glad Claire don't go out into the field much, makes her less of a target in some ways."

"But only in some ways. There's a reason she stays locked up in a lab ninety percent of the time. Only way to keep her even vaguely safe." Darien knew exactly how true that was, and how true it wasn't. Just a few months back the Keep and Lab Two had been severely damaged by concussion explosions. Claire had been in Lab Two just moments before the bomb had gone off and if not for the intervention of Alyx, would have died. "Hell, Bobby, as far as the world knows Claire is the one and only go to gal for detailed info on Quicksilver, that there paints one giant target on her back."

"That it does, but so far we've kept her safe. I'd like to continue to keep it that way." There was an odd mix of concern and promise in Bobby's voice. He planned to prevent anything from getting to his girl. Too bad, that would probably be impossible if push came to shove. If the bad guys really, really wanted to get to Claire, they would. It was just the nature of the beast.

"Bobby, if we really want to keep our girls safe we need to get out of this biz," Darien told him with only a touch of facetiousness in his tone. If he could walk away without losing all his friends, he'd do so, but after weeks of the same dream, one where he had walked away, ending up essentially all alone, he'd said no to his one and only chance to leave. He had chosen to stay at the Agency with the gland, for now anyway. Things could change in a heartbeat. The future that particular dream had showed had been washed away with his decision. There were times he'd regretted it, wondered if things in the here and now would have been better for his friends had he walked away. His decision had been somewhat selfish, wanting to save Alyx from some potential future danger, without having a clue about all those possible ones in the interim. Would this latest fiasco never have happened had he walked away? Would he have saved her all the heartache and pain he knew to be coming as she healed if he had said yes to the gland removal?

"And that ain't gonna happen any time in the near future. Unless you've changed your mind about having your better half removed?" Bobby sounded almost as disappointed as he looked, as if he really thought Darien was going to just blow this pop stand after all this time.

Darien shook his head, swallowed the mouthful of ravioli, then answered. "Not yet. Still have things I want to accomplish."

"Plus you don't want to walk away from Alyx," Hobbes stated, making it obvious he knew it was the truth.

"A'course not, I'm getting laid. What idiot would walk away from that?"

Hobbes snorted into his wine, almost performing a classic spit-take. Once he managed to swallow the mouthful of red, glaring at Darien all the while, he wagged a finger. "You ain't fooling no one there, pal. You've been crazy about her since day one."

Darien ducked his head, feeling heat rise to his cheeks. Bobby had no idea, he'd met Alyx two days after Darien had, and by that point, he'd already been lost. He was damn glad she turned out to be a full adult and not the teenager he'd thought she was or he'd've had some real problems. Though, god knows, with how hard he'd fallen he might very well have waited, if not exactly patiently, for her to come of age.

"Now, the kid, on the other hand took her time deciding about you." Hobbes grinned and Darien could only hope his friend was teasing, no matter how much truth there was to the statement. Alyx had taken her time, but she'd been just as lost as he at that first meeting, or so she'd claimed on a several occasions, which only made certain personal issues more difficult to deal with.

"Hobbes, you ever not tell someone you loved them?"

Hobbes blinked. "Uh, lots of people, why?"

Darien rubbed the back of his neck for a moment, trying to figure out how to better phrase the question. "You and Claire, you tell each other, right?"

Hobbes coughed into his hand, face tingeing pink. "Actually, that hasn't come up yet."

Darien's eyebrows rose on his forehead in surprise. "You're kidding, right? Mr. Romance hasn't told his girl he loves her? You feeling all right there, my friend?'

"Fawkes," Bobby growled, though there wasn't any real anger in his body language. "It is private." His prevarication notwithstanding he seemed to catch on to where Darien was going with the conversation. "I take it you and the kid ain't said the words either?"

Darien ducked his head for a moment, now kind of wishing he hadn't started this conversation, but who else could he talk to about this? "I have, a few times, usually when Coocoo for Cocoa Puffs."

Hobbes shook his head sadly. "I wouldn't believe you either when flying the red-eye. What about the kid? She ever say the words?"

"Not once," Darien told him flatly. "Don't get me wrong, I know she cares, know she needs me, but sometimes..."

"Sometimes what?"

"Sometimes I wonder if she loves me." Darien found it difficult to meet Bobby's eyes, but did so, feeling oddly stupid for admitting his fears out loud.

"Huh."

Darien pouted. "That's it? 'Huh'?" He'd expected a lot more, even if it was his friend informing him his fears were dead on and that Alyx probably did not care for him the way he did for her.

"What did you expect, Fawkes? Reassurances that it's true love everlasting between the two of you?" Bobby grinned, clearly amused. "I can't do that, and wouldn't anyway. Not my place. I will say this: the kid does care for you, maybe more than she wants to admit and I don't see her looking anywhere else for a... partner."

The tightness in Darien's chest eased only slightly at the response. "But? I hear that but in your voice."

"Don't you think this is question you should be asking her?"

"How can I ask her that without admitting that I do, and then if she doesn't..." Darien shook his head. "I don't want to deal with that."

"Gonna have to sometime, else it'll just keep eating at you." Bobby stabbed a finger in Darien's direction. "And you know it."

"Crap," Darien muttered, knowing very well it was true. Luckily, he wouldn't have to deal with it today. Alyx was in no condition for a round of Twenty Questions: The Relationship Edition. "Why couldn't I just find a nice, normal girl to settle down with?" he mused aloud.

Bobby burst out in laughter. " 'Cause you'd be bored in no time flat, my friend. You like the kid 'cause she's a challenge all the way 'round, exactly what your above-average needs."

Hard to deny the truth of that. He would tire of a piece of fluff, no matter how beautiful, quickly and then move on to another. Sex was one thing, pieces of fluff were perfect for that, but he liked the brains, maybe more than the beauty. That had always been true if he really thought about it. Yeah, he'd dated a lot in high school, but the long term relationships were always with the smart ones, they were just a hell of a lot more interesting. Alyx, though, she had one thing those others didn't: no expectations. And he didn't mean relationship-wise. A lot of his other girlfriends no matter how serious or not all had those little things they tried to change about him, wanting him to conform to some nebulous standard that lay locked in their heads. Alyx didn't, not really, she expected him to be Darien Fawkes no more no less, foibles and all. She didn't try to talk him out of his forays into thieving, offered advice or outright helped instead. No subtle asides to change his clothes or hairstyle. No admonishments for his penchant to sleep in late on those rare occasions such an opportunity arose. Not that she didn't occasionally let fly with a well-deserved upbraiding when it was warranted, but those often happened when her temper had frayed beyond easy repair.

He had to wonder if he'd done the same. Yes, he liked her just the way she was, but... and there was the rub, a big ol' but that meant he probably had, whether subtly or directly. Some of the changes he longed for were obvious: moving in together for example. He wanted that like crazy, wanted to know when he came home after a long day that she, provided she was in town of course, would be there waiting for him at their place in their bed. He understood and even agreed with her reasons against, but that didn't mean he didn't want it anymore. In fact, being told no often made him want it even more. Yes, sometimes he had all the maturity of a petulant six-year-old. He'd grown though. Learned when and when not to push, when to let things be and for her to come to him about something in particular. She had her issues, just as he did, but she was far more closemouthed about her past and how it affected her present. She excelled at separating the different parts of her life and never allowing the twain to meet. For certain portions, it was out of necessity, her kids being a prime example. Her interaction with them minimal and only through reports sent to her via her brother and their now guardian.

Darien had pieces of her, and only pieces. Maybe she didn't find him deserving of the whole of her. Maybe he was just another carefully delineated part, kept dutifully separate, forgotten about when out of direct contact.

He brushed that thought away as foolish. Those journals she'd been filing up, every word to and for him. He was never far from her thoughts. But it was those same journals that had made him realize there might be a problem with their relationship as they were as sadly lacking that one ever important four letter word, not written or even hinted at anywhere in any of the many pages. Knowing how she felt, literally, when she unavoidably shared her emotions with him still did little to ease the concern.

"You okay, Fawkes?" Hobbes asked sounding worried.

Darien sighed. "Good 'nuff. We about ready to hit the road?"

Hobbes glanced at his watch. "Should be. I'll check the van for bugs if you take care of this." He waved at the assorted take out containers littering the table.

"Done," Darien agreed. "I'll hang onto the real stuff, we can clean it and keep it in the van for stakeouts."

"Good idea, my friend. Give me fifteen and we'll be ready to rock'n roll." Hobbes got to his feet and made his way over to the van, the headlights blinking as he unlocked it with the key ring.

Darien set aside the napkins and silverware, then stacked the various containers for easier transport to the nearest trash can. As he made several trips - there had been a ton of food - he pondered their next move. Get Drake the security data, head back to Cabrillo to pick up the security vids and detailed staff info and research them, hit Mom's to check out the local color and, if possible talk to the survivors of Alyx's instant karma. Oh, and somewhere in there chat to the responding officers and EMTs. Too much for just two agents, they needed help on this. Whether the bossman would agree was another question entirely. Probably not, which meant dividing the limited resources they had and hit the important points first. First on his list was seeing Alyx and getting some real sleep. Maybe he could talk Claire into setting up a cot in the room? Then again, maybe he should head home and sleep in his own bed. Alyx wouldn't want him to put himself out more than necessary, he knew that and she would heal whether he was there or not.

His final trip completed, he grabbed the napkin wrapped silverware and headed for the van. Hobbes had this mirror on a stick combo and was scanning the underside of the van with it, looking for who knew what. "You looking for bugs or bombs?"

"Both," Hobbes answered honestly. "With the mob it could go either way. Or both ways, really."

"I doubt Lenny would bother, Hobbes," Darien pointed out as he reached in the open door to toss the goods into a basket affixed to the desk that ran along one side of the rear cargo area. "Not at the risk of pissing off Alyx."

Hobbes chuckled ruefully. "You may have a point." He collapsed the pole and tossed it into the back of the van, then slid the door shut. "Didn't find anything anyway. You ready to roll?"

"That I am. Agency then Leavitt?" Darien suggested as he opened the passenger door and slid in.

"Agency, shower, then Leavitt, I'm thinking. For both of us," Hobbes said once in the driver's seat. "We'll see how things are then decide our next move. We've got about five different directions we can go in, we need to pick the best one."

Darien chuckled as the van roared to life and backed out of the parking spot.

"What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking the same thing is all. Gang angle might be the best, we can send Franklin to pick up the stuff from Cabrillo." Darien had no clue if Hobbes would go for that, but it seemed to make sense. Yeah, they would have to follow-up in person at the hospital, but getting the info could be done by anyone, why should they waste their very valuable time. Yes, to a degree Darien considered himself and Hobbes better than the rest of the normal human agents on staff. He might not be as experienced in all things spook, but he still had the gland, that kinda put him on a different playing field entirely and because Hobbes was his partner, he got dragged along for the ride will he or nil he. Though Darien was pretty certain Hobbes was having one grand ol' time on this particular, if bumpy at times, ride.

"Good plan. It's been a long day and we both need to recharge." Hobbes merged with the late afternoon traffic, heading into the heart of downtown and the Agency over on G Street.