Author's Note: Thanks to all for the reviews and guesses about Davi the Devil. One of you guys correctly guessed who is bankrolling this nefarious operation but I'm not ready to reveal which country it is yet. Special shout out to ChasingPavements7 whose comments/reviews are funny, entertaining, brilliant recaps of each chapter. I get a kick out of reading your comments on this entire forum.

P.S. I'm suffering a mild case of writer's block with the chapter(s) related to Huck surviving the highway ambush and Fitz finding out Olivia has been kidnapped, so in this chapter I kind of avoid both issues to buy myself some time. :)

Chapter 13: Under Lock & Key

A year earlier

It was a week after the election and President-elect Fitzgerald Thomas Grant III had retired to his ranch in Santa Barbara, Calif. for a little R&R (rest and relaxation). The euphoria of election night had worn off and had been replaced by a simmering excitement and anticipation of what was to come in the months ahead with the move to Washington, D.C. and the installation of a new Republican administration.

A few days after his arrival in Santa Barbara several key members of Fitz's transition team, including Cyrus and Olivia, joined him at the ranch so they could start to plot out what his administration would look like. Being at the ranch afforded the team with a level of privacy that they couldn't have gotten if they had holed up in a hotel somewhere. Mellie and the kids had gone to spend time with her parents.

It was mid-afternoon on a Friday when Fitz called it a day and told his team that they could take the rest of the afternoon off. Most of the team said they were going to go into town for dinner and drinks but Cyrus and Olivia said they wanted to stay at the ranch and keep Fitz company. Then Cyrus got a call from James who had flown in to surprise him, and Cyrus left to go meet his husband at the airport.

It was just Fitz and Olivia, alone at the ranch. Fitz was glad because he and Olivia hadn't really been alone together since election night and there was so much he wanted to tell her that he hadn't yet had a chance to say.

Fitz went to tell the housekeeper that there would only be two people for dinner that night. As he was walking back from the kitchen and passed the french doors that led out to the backyard, he saw Olivia walking down toward the huge chestnut tree that punctuated the land behind the ranch. Fitz smiled because Olivia had previously remarked that that was her favorite spot at the ranch. He would join her shortly, but first there was something he had to do. He went to his study, opened the safe and took out what was inside and put it in his shirt pocket.

When Fitz came outside, Olivia was sitting idly on the swing attached to the chestnut tree. Her back was to him but he could see that she had changed out of her business casual attire into something more relaxed. She was wearing a sleeveless cotton shirt with a flouncy skirt, and she was barefoot. She dug her toes into the sandy soil to give herself a gentle push.

Fitz smiled as he approached her. Sitting there on the swing in the late day sun with the smell of lavender and honeysuckle in the air, Olivia was all sweetness and light. There was an innocence about her in that moment that Fitz found utterly captivating. God, she's so beautiful, he thought. He stopped, wanting to sear this image of her in his memory.

Olivia, sensing his presence, turned around in the swing.

"Mr. President! You can't sneak up on a girl like that!" she said laughing.

Fitz walked that walk of his, with a little bit of swagger, and stood right in front of her. He tilted his head to the side and said, "You know, this is the exact spot where I had my first kiss."

"Who was the lucky girl?" Olivia asked.

"Her name was Becca Finley. We were about 12 or 13 years old. Her dad was good friends with my dad. One day Roger, my best friend at the time, dared me to kiss Becca. I think he liked her more than I did."

"So, it wasn't love at first sight, then?" Olivia asked, teasing, slowly rocking back and forth in the swing.

"No, definitely not. Becca was a stuck-up brat," Fitz said, as he walked behind Liv to give the swing a gentle push. "Most definitely not love. Not at all."

Olivia turned to him, smiling, "so, when was the first time you fell in love?" Her face was bright and her eyes were dancing.

Fitz looked down at her and said in a serious tone, "Do you want the truth?" Olivia nodded yes.

Fitz reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a small box in robin's eggs blue tied with a white bow. The name TIFFANY & CO. was embossed across it. Olivia's heart leapt into her throat. She hopped off the swing.

"Oh my god, Fitz, you shouldn't have…." she started to say.

"Relax, it's not what you think," Fitz said laughing.

Olivia slid the bow off and opened the box. Inside was a Tiffany key pendant in 18K rose gold with lavender amethysts and a round brilliant diamond at the center. It was tastefully understated in its elegance.

"It's beautiful," she said, taking the pendant out of the box and marveling at it. She started to put it on when Fitz reached out to help her. Olivia turned around so that he could easily clasp the pretty pendant around her delicate neck. Fitz then turned her around so that she was facing him once again. He wrapped his arms around her waist and said, "A very wise person once told me that a soul mate is someone who has locks that fit our keys and keys to fit our locks. Olivia, for me, you are that person. You are my key. You have my heart."

Olivia looked up at Fitz. Her eyes were blinking rapidly and she felt herself tearing up. She was so happy, she could hardly process it, but she didn't want Fitz to know just how much his gesture had touched her heart. She felt exactly the same way about him, but she didn't want him to know how completely, entirely, utterly head over heels she was for him. She had to do something to break the seriousness of the moment.

"Pres. Grant, you are such a dork," she said, grinning from ear to ear.

Fitz gave Olivia a look of mock surprise and slapped her playfully on the behind. "You know, I have a mind to put you over my knee and give you a good spanking right about now…"

Olivia shrieked and then took off running. Fitz laughed and took off after her. He caught her and swept her up in his arms and said, "not so fast" before setting her feet back down on the ground.

Olivia giggled like a schoolgirl and looked up at him. His beautiful grey eyes were scanning the features of her face. Then their eyes met. The playful, mischievous look that had been in his eyes moments before had been replaced by one of pure longing and desire. The look of love in Fitz's eyes was unmistakeable and true.

"Lock and key," he said, softly, before passionately kissing her. Then he gently picked her up and carried her back up to the house. Olivia leaned her head against his broad firm chest and inhaled deeply his warm, wonderful, masculine scent. She then contentedly closed her eyes and allowed herself to feel enveloped and protected by his love.

Present day, somewhere in the hills of Pakistan

"What's this?"

Olivia's interrogator touched the gold pendant that she was wearing but had tucked inside her shirt. He pulled it out of her shirt.

Olivia stared straight ahead but flinched slightly when the man's hand momentarily grazed her skin.

"It's a key. But a key to what?" the interrogator asked.

Olivia looked up at him, hatred filling her eyes. "None of your damn business," she spat out.

The man ripped the necklace from her neck and held the pendant up to the overhead light. A few feet away a tiny red light was blinking. A video camera was recording the entire proceeding.

Author's note: If this chapter feels unfinished it's because it is. I'm going to stop this chapter here but this scene with Liv and the interrogator is important because it will begin to reveal the kidnappers' reason for taking Olivia. I plan to narrate the remainder of this scene in a different chapter from Fitz's point of view when he sees the video.

Writing the "Fitz finds out Olivia is kidnapped" chapter is kind of hard for me to write. It's not flowing like the other chapters. I think it's because I want to convey Fitz's anger in a way that feels realistic and authentic to the character and I'm finding that to be a challenge. Be patient with me.

Thanks as always for reading and reviewing.

Ciao!