"Choices made, whether bad or good, follow you forever and affect everyone in their path one way or another." ― J.E.B. Spredemann
X. Bittersweet
DIA Operations Center…Bethesda Maryland…Sunday…6:00PM
Frost watched as the analyst pulled up all the information they had on Jocelyn from her time in the military to the time she joined the DIA. He was brought out of his thoughts as the picture of a young teenage boy was pulled up on the screen.
A smile drew across his face as he read the name 'Taylor Carter' affiliation: Biological son. He flicked his phone open and walked out of the room telling Emerson he had a personal call to take.
Once he was in the hallway alone he dialed out to a number after two rings the line opened up.
"Change of plans there's a boy in New York named Taylor Carter, pick him up and take him to 'The House' and leave a message for Ward and Ross. I'll send you the address to where he lives, he's just a kid so he shouldn't be a problem, and I don't care what you do to the father."
After giving his orders he hung up. Highly trained operative or not, Jocelyn Ward was a woman and a mother. As the old saying goes there's nothing a mother won't do for their child.
New York… Finch's safe house…Sunday…6:00PM
The room was dead silent as they all stared at each other. Joss felt her eyes begin to water as she stared at John. The look on his face was breaking her heart, he looked like he was going to have a mental break down.
She opened her mouth to say something but her words were stuck in her throat. Her thoughts were interrupted by the clicking of a gun.
"Alright somebody better start talking or I am going to start shooting." Shaw stated as she stood with guns aimed at both her and Ross.
"Gladly… I'm a unemployed mercenary, she's a government operative turned traitor to her country and we need the dude with the glasses help to find and stop Michael Frost from potentially getting a bunch of US soldiers overseas killed." Ross replied as though she was commenting on the weather.
"Unfortunately Ms. Ross we need a little more detail than that." Harold replied as he walked through the door with Bear.
Joss finally found her words and tore her eyes off of John and towards Harold.
"That's a long story Harold."
"Well then I suggest we all sit down and talk. We all have a lot of questions for you Detective.. Ms. Carter."
Joss moved toward the table and sat down next to Ross. She watched as Harold sat down across the table in front of them and John and Shaw stood to their right.
Joss felt something wet touch her wrist she reached down and scratched Bears ear before he licked her hand and went to lay down by Harold's feet.
She had a sense of Déjà vu. The last time a person was interrogated in the safe house it was a corrupt DA who was framed for murder by her husband, now it was her on the other side about to be put in the hot seat.
"I suppose I should start at the begging." Joss stated
1 hour later
They all sat in silence as she watched Harold, John and Sam digest all the information she told them.
Harold was the first to start asking questions.
"I don't understand how were you able to anticipate that Simmons was going to show up at the precinct."
"We didn't, Simmons surprised my extraction team. The original plan was for me to leave and die in a car 'accident'. No one was supposed to get shot that night, Simmons surprised us and my extraction team improvised. They used a hollow point small caliber bullet that had a mix of Organophosphates in it.
"Small bullet and good marksmanship aside, how'd you survive getting shot in the heart?"Shaw questioned
"I have Dextrocardia Situs Inversus" Joss replied
Harold scrunched his eyebrows together.
"What's that mean?"
"It means her hearts on the opposite side of her chest."Shaw stated
Joss looked up at John, the entire time he hadn't said a word before she could say anything to him,he turned from the table and stormed out of the safe house and before she knew what she was doing her legs carried her after him.
Ross watched as Joss followed the man named Reese out of the door. She turned her eyes back to Finch and Shaw and watched as they exchanged concerned glances.
Ross cracked her neck and drew their attention towards her.
"Alright now that you know everything are you going to help or not?"
Harold raised his eyebrow at her
"I wasn't aware that you cared about the plight of others Ms. Ross."
Ross smiled at Finch
"I don't, I just want Frost dead. You providing help is only a way to keep the body count low."
John was furious, as he marched out of the building into the early night air. He didn't know what he was madder at, the fact that she lied to him, the fact that she faked her own death, or the fact that she let him go all this time believing she was dead because he failed to protect her.
He yanked his car keys from his pocket and stormed to his car in the ally. He had to get away before his anger made him do something he would regret later. He sped up his pace when he heard her voice call to him from behind.
"John please wait" Joss pleaded for the second time as she hurried to catch him before he got to his car.
He ignored her and started walking faster. She ran up to him put herself in front of the driver's side and touched his arm. He yanked his arm away from her like her touch was acid and turned his back on her and faced away from the car.
"John please talk to me."
"And say what. How glad I am to see you, that I'm happy you're alive?" He questioned with his back still to her.
"John…I know" Joss started to say but was interrupted when John turned around and glared at her.
"You know what? How I'm feeling. What I've been dealing with for the past 213 days or the fact that I can barley sleep at night because every time I close my eyes I see you dead in my arms."
Joss lowered her head to hide her tears he was ripping her heart out and she deserved it.
"How could you do this? John questioned
He let out a half hearted laugh
"I guess I don't know you at all, to be able to know what you can and can't do"
"Was everything out of your mouth for the past two and a half years a lie? Was everything you ever told me and did to try and help me a lie? Did you even mean what you said to Donnelly? Did you even care at all?"
Joss snapped her head up
"Of course I cared John and I meant every word I ever said to you and I still do."
John stared at her for a moment.
"I don't believe you"
Joss sighed "John I'm sorry I did what I had to do. What did you expect me to do?"
Joss was taken aback by the look on Johns face, for the first time since she ever meant him, she was afraid.
He smashed his fist through the glass of his back window and stalked towards her.
"You're sorry, sorry and what did I expect you to do? I expected for you to not fucking lie to me."
"You know Harold was right the first time, I should have cut ties with you when you got me shot by Snow, for all I know you were working with him all along."
Then he stepped into her personal space and got in her face.
"For all I know you were working with Kara too. You know what? I actually prefer Kara over you, at least I knew what type of person she was from the start. The DIA did a good job picking you, because who would have known that behind your eyes was a two faced lying heartless bitch."
Before Joss could control herself she cocked her fist back and socked John in the face and starting yelling back at him.
"Fuck you John. You don't get to judge who I really am. I had been doing my job for 13 years before I even met you. You know the world we operate in, telling the truth to anybody can get yourself and innocent people killed. What was I suppose to do give up national secrets and blow my cover to a rogue CIA operative, just because you say so. I didn't know who you were and I still don't know who you really are."
Joss squared her shoulders and continued.
"I am sorry that I lied to you and everyone else, but I did what I thought was right to make sure that I did my job and to make sure that you ,Sam, Harold and his machine stayed off the governments radar."
She saw Johns eyes widen when she mentioned Harold's machine.
"Yeah John I know about Harold's machine. You can hate me all you want for lying to you but don't think for a second you can stand here and degrade me for doing my job. You can't judge the choir when you were in the fucking stands with us."
Joss watched as John straightened up and walked back to his car he looked at her over his shoulder.
"This is your mess, you're on your own, and I'm not coming to save you."Joss watched as he yanked open the car door and sped out of the ally.
"So Ms. Ross how were you able to find Ms. Carter?"
Ross smiled at Finch
"Funny you should ask." Before she could finish her statement Harold's phone watched as he answered and begun writing a number on a piece of paper.
As soon as he put the phone down Shaw questioned him
"New number, do we need to go figure out who it is?"
They both watched as Harold got to his feet in haste.
"No need Ms. Shaw, I know who the number is."
Just as Finch replied Joss walked back into the apartment.
Harold turned to her
"Jocelyn, your son's in danger." Finch frantically stated.
AN: Well hopefully that was intense enough. I know that John would never put his hands on a woman in anger, so I settled for some heated cursing.
For some clarification on terms
Dextrocardia with situs inversus is a condition in which the heart as well as other organs such as the lungs, liver, stomach, and gallbladder are a mirror image of the normal.
Organophosphates is an insecticide poison that can trigger bradycardia which is a slowing down of ones heartbeat.