Chapter 26

"Wait, so you're telling me you don't remember anything after fighting Coulson on Maveth?"

The laughter was hard to miss, and if he smiled in response, it was hidden behind his water glass. Coulson and Lincoln had delivered their lunch meals a few minutes before, during which the male inhuman had detached Daisy from the machines around her bed. Ward wondered where the rest of the team was hiding. But their conversation only paused long enough for them to leave before she launched back into it.

"Not a thing."

She took a bite out of her sandwich, and it was then he noticed she was relieved by this new information. His brow furrowed, and he placed his food tray to the side. Lincoln said Hive had been tormenting Daisy, what had he made his body do?

"What happened while I was... gone?"

He didn't miss the way all the humor seemed to suddenly leave her, but he couldn't take it back. He had to know. What had it made him do? From her somber expression, he feared the worst. But it wouldn't do that to her. Hive had apparently taken quite a liking to her, he wouldn't do something like that. Would he?

"A lot happened. Hive snuck into base, kidnapped me from a training mission with Caleb a couple weeks later. Took me to a winter castle, until S.H.I.E.L.D showed up, then whisked me away to one of Malick's private tropical island getaways. About a week or so later, we were found and brought back to base. I figured out how to save you and voila, here we are."

She didn't look up to meet his gaze once, barely lifted her hands to wave toward the two of them at the end. He hated it. Skye didn't let anything phase her, she'd had everything roll off her back. To see her, like this, it felt wrong. He wanted to get up and comfort her, assure her that nothing like that would ever happen to her again, but was reminded they were not in the same room, when the image flickered. They probably weren't even on the same side of the base.

"A tropical island, huh..." He chose his next words carefully. Already worried of the response she was sure to give. But he needed to know. He'd seen the way her body froze when he spoke, before reminding herself that she'd saved him from Hive. She was terrified of the parasite. "What was that? A honeymoon to make up for taking you somewhere cold?"

He grimaced when she forced a laugh to escape her, that did nothing to prove his theory false, if anything it strengthened it.

"Something like that."

"Skye.."

She frowned, her hands clenching her tray more tightly, and he knew it wasn't because of his slip of the tongue. She was used to it. Apparently he wasn't the only one struggling with the change, Coulson was too.

"You've already figured it out, I don't see why I have to say it." She quipped, moving her own food tray to the side.

He broke her. It was painfully obvious, this wasn't the girl he used to know. She was stubborn, always looking for trouble, not shying away at the first sign of danger. She always took risks, especially if she thought it was for a good reason.

"Daisy..." He got up, approaching the screen. She remained silent though, going as far as to turn her back to him.

'Never turn your back on the enemy'

"What happened to you?" He found himself once again cursing that they weren't in the same room. He could only do so much through a computer screen.

'I just feel so...'

'helpless.'

"He took over my mind! Okay!?" She snapped, when he was jut about to open his mouth to say more. "He made me lie to them. Hurt my friends. He made me fight May... Made me think I wanted what he made me do. Worse, he made me enjoy it."

To say Ward was shell shocked would have been one of the greatest understatements of the year, quite possibly the decade. But it was nothing compared to the face he made at her next words.

"He made me think we were perfect together, even after everything he'd done. That I didn't need to save you to be happy..."

He felt his heart beat accelerate at the thought of having been stuck in that dark memory lane forever. He never wanted to go back to that, it was a fate worse than death and he'd had more than his fill of it.

"How did you break his-.."

"May hit me really hard in the head. I woke up completely clear of his influence."

'When I came out of sedation, I was clear-headed.'

She still wasn't looking at him, so he couldn't tell for the life of him what else was running through her head at the moment. But he knew there was something more, something she herself never wanted to talk about.

Ward sighed, turning back to his unfinished meal. He wasn't really hungry anymore, but he supposed he should eat it, if only to keep up his strength. Though what for? It's not like he was going to get out of here. And in a few days he would be alone again. Daisy would be moving back to her actual room and he would be left alone unless someone came to visit his cell.

Would S.H.I.E.L.D transfer him out again? Or was he going to be left in this hole for eternity? The most he could hope for was that she would visit him. She would wouldn't she? He looked back over to where Daisy had laid down on her side.

'I hope you'll come back.'

Even if they weren't in the same room, he had really enjoyed the last few days she'd been awake. She was talking to him like he was her SO again, not some Hydra killer.

'Just like old times, huh?'

He liked that. Had missed it. But there's no way it would last. Sooner or later they would have to come back to the real world. Where he was a murderer and she was a S.H.I.E.L.D agent/inhuman. Where they were sworn enemies.

"You don't have to be."

If his heart wasn't beating fast before, it definitely was now. How did he do that? He hadn't even heard the door open, yet there he sat in the chair, as though he'd been there all along. Ward wanted to demand he stop reading his thoughts, but knew better. This kid probably couldn't control his powers like Daisy. Caleb smirked a little at that, his gaze locking with his.

"Don't worry about anyone hearing this conversation. Lincoln and Joey -he's a friend of Daisy's. Inhuman- They've set up a prerecorded feed, thanks to Daisy. As far as anyone can tell, you're just sitting there brooding."

Again, knowing what he was thinking before he even had the chance to fully think it. Damn that was really going to get on his nerves.

"Then I assume you have something to tell me?" He would congratulate the kid for letting him actually ask the question, but right now he wanted to know what was going on.

The scaly inhuman stood up a little straighter in his chair, making it so they were about the same eye level. Ward vaguely wondered how it felt to be covered in reptile skin.

"In two days, Daisy is going to be moved back to her room. The day after that, Lincoln will come to bring you your dinner. You'll find an EMP hidden in your napkin. Use it precisely two minutes after he leaves. When you get to the door, knock once. Joey will get you out and Lincoln will take you to where Daisy will be waiting. There will be a quin jet, with it's tracker disabled and two bags of supplies waiting for you. I'll be around to open the hatch, so you can get out."

He got up to leave just as the last word escaped him, but must have paused from the look and thoughts now running through Ward's head. Daisy was going to leave S.H.I.E.L.D. For him? This was insane.

"A really wise man once said, 'when two people really care about each other, they will always look for a way to make it work, no matter how hard it is.' You've lost each other once. She doesn't want to lose you again." With that, Caleb turned and left Vault D.

The specialist wasn't sure what to think now, but his attention immediately went to the quake inhuman that was doing a lot more than he thought she could from a containment cell. She lifted her head a little, enough to give him a small smile.

Caleb was right. He would make it work, no matter what life threw at them. he would do everything he could to make her happy again, to make her feel safe again.