Hello again! Thank you so much for the feedback! It's greatly appreciated. I just want to clarify something I noticed while I was proofreading the last chapter. Syracuse is not as bad as I'm making it out to be. It's a pit, yes, but most cities are. The weather, however, is as bad as I'm making it out to be lol. I go to Syracuse University, so believe me, I'm suffering. :P Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy this chapter as well! Constructive criticism is, as always, welcome!

Two

She's still staring at him a full minute or so later and she's surprised her mouth hasn't dropped open. Alex glances down, shuffles his feet a little, and glances up at her again, saying, "That surprising, huh?"

"Well, forgive me, but it's been years," Sara finally answers. "Alex… What are you doing here?"

"Good to see you, too, Sara," Alex says wryly and then adds, "And like I said, we have to talk."

"Right," She notes and then steps back, ushering him over the threshold and into their apartment. "Well, come in. Come in."

He does so, wiping his shoes on the doormat and commenting on the out of season weather. In Washington, he claims, it's been sunny and seventy degrees for the past month. Syracuse, Sara explains, is not like the rest of the country. She then gently sets Zoe down and guides her toward her bedroom, instructing the young girl to dress in her pajamas; she does as she's told but continues to give the stranger in her apartment side-glances the entire way there. If this bothers Alex in any way, he doesn't say; instead he sits in an armchair when Sara tells him to make himself at home and then agrees to the cup of coffee she's just offered him.

"Your home's very nice," Alex compliments and Sara murmurs a thank you. "Where's Michael?"

"That's what we're waiting for?" Sara asks, pouring him a steaming mug of coffee and handing it over, sitting across from him on the couch.

He nods and sips diligently. "I just don't want to repeat myself."

She smiles slowly. "He's at the pharmacy. Noah has an ear infection."

"That's too bad."

"Not really. Kids get them all the time at that age."

There is a moment of awkward silence that is thankfully broken by Zoe reentering the room, clad in a frilly, sparkly nightgown, periwinkle against her downy skin. Her hair is damp and tangled, but she's carrying a thin comb in order to rectify this. Sara pulls her onto her lap and immediately begins working the knots. Zoe stares inquisitively at Alex for a minute or two before asking, "Who are you?"

"My name's Alex," He answers friendlily. "What's yours?"

"Zoe," She answers shortly, toying with the ruffled edge of her nightgown.

"Alex is an old friend of mine and Daddy's," Sara explains, smoothing the comb through her daughter's wet hair. "We worked together a long time ago."

"Cool," Zoe approves. "Did you work with my uncle Lincoln, too?"

Alex chuckles. "I did. How is your uncle Lincoln?"

"He's good," Zoe answers and then whimpers when Sara snags her hair. "Ow, Mommy!"

"I'm sorry, Zo," She bites her lip. "Your hair is a mess."

"Mommy always hurts my head when she combs my hair," Zoe tells Alex matter-of-factly. "Daddy says I should just cut it all off but then I'd look like a boy. No hair's for boys."

"Oh really?" Alex chuckles and Sara smirks, shaking her head.

Suddenly, the front door twists open and Noah tumbles into the apartment, tracking snow and muddy slush onto the hardwood floors. Sara cringes as she watches the droplets of snow and dirt fall onto her clean floor, but she realizes it's a problem for another time. Noah, in a hurried frenzy, sets the CVS bag down on the floor beside him before pulling off his mittens, hat, boots and coat hastily. He turns to face the room, his stunning hazel-green eyes scanning the situation, before coming to rest on the stranger sitting a few feet away. He visibly tenses a bit- stranger danger- glancing warily at his mother.

"Hi Noah," Sara grins warmly. "Where's Dad?"

"Parking the car. There's a lot of snow in the way," Noah states cautiously, glancing over at Alex.

"Hey bud," Alex waves slightly. "How are you doing?"

"Okay, I guess," Noah shrugs. "Do I know you?"

"That's Mommy and Daddy's friend Alex," Zoe explains, still toying with her sparkly nightgown. "He worked with them."

At this, Noah seems intrigued. "Are you the secret agent? The spy? That's what uncle Linc said."

Zoe gasps. "Are you a ninja?"

Both Alex and Sara erupt into laughter. Sara explains, "Uncle Linc said he was a special agent, honey. Not a secret agent."

"Oh," Noah says and therefore he is no longer interested in Alex's demeanor. He turns, instead, to the bag he dropped earlier. "Zoe, look what I got!"

He produces a brightly colored package from the bag- a Ring Pop and Sara's surprised to find these are still in production. "Look, it's twisted- blue raspberry watermelon so it's blue and red!"

Zoe squirms off of Sara's lap and pouts immediately. "That's not fair! I want one!"

"I got you one too," Noah smiles, handing her a similar package. "It's berry blast, see? Pink and blue!"

"Ooh, yummy!" Zoe squeals and then turns to her mother. "Can I eat it now?"

Sara immediately shakes her head. "It's way too late for candy, babe. Tomorrow."

Just then, as the kids are protesting her decision, Michael enters the apartment, shaking snow off his form as he does so. "What is the point of the city paying for plow service if they don't keep up with the snow?"

"You're the one that wanted to live here," Sara tells him cheekily.

He smirks at her and begins a response, but only then notices Alex's presence. "Alex? To what do we owe the honor?"

"We have some business to discuss," Alex answers, no-nonsense once again. "I'm sorry to interrupt like this, but it's important."

Michael and Sara share a glance, the latter saying, "Let me give Noah a bath quickly?"

"I can do it myself," Noah grumbles from beside her. Zoe's still eyeing the lollipops hungrily.

"You're still too young, bud," Sara disagrees and plucks the Ring Pops out of their grasp, placing them high on the counter and out of reach. "Come on. Let's go."

They head to the bathroom and Zoe looks crestfallen at the missing candy. Michael, in an effort to cheer her up, asks, "Zo-Zo, do you want to watch a movie in Mommy and Daddy's room?"

Her face brightens. "Can I watch Princess and the Frog?"

"Of course," Michael grins. "Want me to come set it up?"

But Zoe's already halfway to their bedroom. "No, I know how!"

Michael laughs, turning back to Alex. "Sorry. Life's a little insane around here."

"No, it's okay," Alex nods. "She's beautiful. Zoe is."

"Of course she is," Michael comments. "She looks exactly like Sara. A carbon-copy, almost."

"Oh, completely," Alex agrees. "But she seems like a great kid. They both do. I can't believe I hadn't met them yet, until tonight."

"You've been busy," Michael observes. "I'm sure being Kellerman's lackey has been draining, to say the least."

Alex sighs heavily. "It's been no picnic, I'll tell you that."

"So what's this really about, Alex?" Michael asks, a little impatiently. "I'm sure you didn't come to Syracuse just to chat."

"No, I didn't. I wish I could say this was a friendly visit," Alex begins. "But-"

"But the government doesn't come for friendly visits," Michael finishes, taking a seat on the couch. "I get it."

From down the hall, they hear the bathroom door open and Noah's animated voice telling Sara about school that day. She's half-listening to him, half-paying attention to the tense situation between her husband and her former colleague as they make their way to Noah's bedroom. Moments later, when he's dried, dressed and settled into the movie with Zoe, Sara closes off their bedroom door and enters the living room, thoroughly dreading what she's about to find out. Alex nods in acknowledgment as she makes her presence known; Michael smiles at her as she sits beside him. He places a warm, comforting hand on her knee and she covers his hand with her own.

"So," She breathes. "What's going on?"

"I don't even know where to begin," Alex exhales. "You know I've been working with Kellerman and multiple members of the United Nations to find a use for Scylla, right?"

At the very mention of Scylla, a shiver of anxiety runs down Sara's spine. Michael tightens his hold on her knee a bit and says, "We were aware of your employment, yes."

"Well everything was going great, for a while," Alex goes on. "We had a list of names and we managed to incarcerate about ninety-five percent of the Company operatives in registration."

"Good. Let them rot in prison."

"That's the plan," Alex continues. "But we don't have an official manifest; the names we did have were from those willing to talk once Krantz was executed. So there's no way of knowing how many operatives we have left. The Company wasn't posing a huge threat to the nation anymore, the crime rate decreased dramatically, and so we let it go."

"Wouldn't be the first time the government didn't finish a job, right?" Michael drones sarcastically and Alex nods his agreement.

"Exactly," He says. "I was always against the discontinuation of our search. The last thing I wanted to do was continue on with my life as if those bastards weren't still out there. But I did, because Kellerman promised they weren't a threat anymore. He said that I could move on, that we all could move on, because there wasn't anything to worry about anymore."

"And I'm guessing, since you're here, that's no longer the case," Sara concludes and Alex hesitates a minute before confirming this.

"Do you remember the six Scylla cardholders?" Alex asks and Michael smirks.

"They're pretty hard to forget."

"The General was executed in prison four years following our public takedown," Alex lists. "Before his death, however, Lisa Tabak resigned from The Company and her whereabouts are currently unknown. She could be dead, too, for all I know. But I do know that The General shot and killed Scuderi and ordered the deaths of both Tuxhorn and Oren before heading to prison and dying himself."

"That leaves us with one cardholder, Nathaniel Edison." Alex states. "And he is our enemy."

"He's the one from the horse race? The day you were arrested?" Sara asks.

"Yes," Alex confirms. "He's the one. But things have changed since then and now. We don't know where he is or how many people he has with him. We don't know what he's capable of or how much manpower he can produce. But we captured and are currently holding one of his men in custody in D.C., so we do know his plans."

"He's going to rebuild The Company," Alex says. "And with enough resources and people to spread the word, he's going to succeed."

"We walked away from this," Michael frowns. "We moved on with our lives. Kellerman said it was over!"

"It's not over," Alex shakes his head. "Not by a long shot."

"It's not over because you didn't end it," Sara counters. "That doesn't make it our problem."

"I had a feeling you might say that," Alex sighs. "Look, the bottom line is we can't do this without you. Either of you, really. We need your minds and your expertise."

"And what do we get out of this little bargain?" Michael asks. "The satisfaction of a job well done?"

"That, and the freedom to live your lives uninhibited," Alex answers matter-of-factly. "For real this time."

Sara catches Michael's eye, then, in time to share one of their many unspoken conversations. It's an option even though Alex hasn't presented it as one, and as much as she wants to decline, to disagree with Alex and pretend everything's still okay, she can't take that chance, not with the kids on the line. Michael's looking at her with an apologetic and pleading look and it isn't his fault so she's not sure why. But she smiles slowly, sadly, as if resigning a bit of life over to The Company once more. She'd do this- they'd do this- if it meant regaining their blissful, carefree life. Michael moves his hand, interlaces it with hers, and turns back to Alex.

"What do we do?"

"We have to crush them before they can rebuild," Alex states firmly. "We have to fight back."