Connor knocked on Achilles' door, bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet. He was excited to tell the old man about meeting Faulkner.
"Come in," Achilles' soft voice said from behind the door.
Connor let himself in and found Achilles sitting in his living room. A knowing grin was on the old man's face. "How was meeting Robert?" he asked, setting the book he was reading aside.
Connor blinked in surprise. "How did you-"
"Believe it or not, I still keep in touch with him," Achilles replied with an amused chuckle.
Connor shook his head in amusement before taking a seat on the couch. "He seems like a good guy."
Achilles nodded. "He was one of the best men I have ever worked with. I used to be his commanding officer before I got injured."
Connor tilted his head a little. "How did that happen anyway?"
Achilles let out a long sigh. "My Achilles tendon just snapped one day while I was exercising, all of those years of training in the army got to it. It never did heal correctly after I had surgery, so I had to move onto a different career."
"That must have been hard," Connor said quietly, wondering what he would have done in a situation like that.
Achilles shrugged. "I never would have met Abigail, my wife, if that didn't happen. It was a blessing in disguise Connor."
Connor rubbed the back of his neck. He remembered seeing some old photos up in the attic of Achilles and what appeared to be his family. That one fact about the old man had always bugged him. "A-Achilles?"
"Yes?"
"Why don't you talk about your family more often?"
Achilles stared at him for a few moments and Connor started to instantly regret asking. That must have been a painful subject, obviously.
The old man finally sighed and pushed himself up, leaning heavily on his cane as he made his way to the kitchen. "Come, it's about time I told you about that."
Connor followed him into the kitchen, helping Achilles sit down in a chair.
"Can you start a kettle Connor?" Achilles asked quietly, letting his cane lean against the table.
Achilles only spoke after the kettle was done whistling with a warm cup of tea in front of him. "I used to have a wife and son, who also was named Connor. They both died in a car accident 25 years ago. A truck driver had run a red light. I was told that they died on impact and they felt no pain."
Connor felt sorrow, and surprisingly, surprise. Achilles seemed very calm, despite what he was talking about.
Achilles grinned sadly, wrapping his hands around his mug. "I see that you have a question on your mind."
Resting his arms on the table, Connor wondered how to ask what he was wondering. "How can you be so calm about it? I don't think I'll ever be that way about my mom," he said quietly.
"I wish I could say that it was because I decided to keep living as happily as possible, like Abigail and Connor would have wanted me to. But, I am ashamed to say that I didn't. I closed myself off from the world. I didn't see my friends besides Robert. I almost lost my job because I stayed home frequently and my health kept declining because I believed that cigarettes and alcohol would help."
He paused and took a long drink from his tea. He set the cup down again and looked up at Connor again.
"It was actually your mother that helped me, after she and your father moved in next door."
Connor blinked in surprise. "What?"
Achilles smiled. "Yes. She always managed to talk to me whenever she could. I can't tell you how many times I found handmade mugs on my porch with notes taped on them. Her kindness brought something back that I thought had died. I started going to work regularly after that. I tried to cut back on the nasty habits and I tried to talk to some of my friends again."
He paused again and held up the mug. Connor suddenly recognized his mother's handiwork. "You remind me of her. You always put others before yourself, just like she did."
Connor stared down at his hands. "I'm glad to know that," he said past the lump in his throat.
Achilles placed a hand on his shoulder, giving him a reassuring squeeze before pulling it back toward his mug.
"You helped me immensely as well. Because of you, I can invite my old friends like Robert over again. I didn't before because of the shape the house was in, obviously."
Connor couldn't help but smile at that.
A warm feeling started to fill him and he couldn't help but imagine his mother leaving the mugs for Achilles now.
She used to do things like that all the time at the Reservation.
For once, the empty feeling he usually felt when he thought about his mother wasn't as strong.
That little voice in his head wasn't whispering the hard reality this time.
Lucy put her hands behind her head as she tried to get her breath back. Ellie collapsed to the ground beside her, spread-eagling on the track. Lucy could only remember one time she ran this much in her life, and she preferred not to think about it.
Luckily, they were done and could go home now. Lucy collapsed to the ground next to Ellie, watching their fellow sprinters and hurdlers run by them. They were one of the first ones to complete the workout today. Lucy didn't have to be there, since she wasn't going to state, but she liked to stay away from the hideout as much as possible.
Lucy looked around the track, enjoying the slight breeze as she leaned back on her palms. Her blood turned to ice in her veins when she saw Daniel by the fence. He nodded at her and walked away toward his car on the other side of the parking lot.
She gulped and peeked down at Ellie. She only had a couple more weeks to stall. She wished the FBI would find out what was going on faster. That was the only way she and her family were going to get out of this without any harm. She knew her boss had no intention of letting her go after he got his 'revenge'.
She wished the FBI, CIA, or anybody would burst through his door right this moment. She wished she could go back to her family in Albany. Lucy just wanted to see her parents again more than anything. She only got to see glimpses of them the past couple years. She bit her lip, wondering what she could do.
"Lucy!"
Lucy jumped and looked at Ellie, who was now waving a hand in her face.
"You okay?" Ellie asked, pulling her ponytail over her shoulder.
"Yeah, just lost in thought," Lucy said, trying to frantically think of a good lie to tell. She hated lying. She hated the fact that she was good at lying even more.
"Well, do you want a ride? Or is Desmond giving you one?" she asked with a wink.
Lucy felt her cheeks heat up at the mention of Desmond. "A-actually, I was wondering if I could hang out at your house sometime soon."
Ellie cocked her head and narrowed her eyes a little.
Lucy wished she wasn't so smart sometimes. "Lucy, you know you can tell me is something is wrong right?"
Wrapping her arms around her legs, Lucy shook her head. "Nothing's wrong. I'm just thinking about a lot right now, that's all."
Ellie's face told her that she didn't believe her.
"I am! Honestly," Lucy said with a laugh, hoping she would buy it.
Ellie didn't look like she did, but she dropped it. "Well, I have a lot going on during the week so maybe you can after finals this weekend before we head out to state."
Lucy nodded. That would have to do. This was the last week of school and this could be her last chance to make things right.
Kenway was most likely the only chance she had.
Connor had to stop himself from tapping his foot as the Umpires discussed a call on a tag out Desmond did on a runner trying to steal second. It was the final inning of the championship game at State and the air was full of tension. They were the visiting team and the tying run was on third and one of the best hitters in the state was up to bat. There was only one out.
Desmond looked at Connor apologetically. Connor waved it off. His throw down to second was a little high so the tag wasn't as quick. The umpires finally called the runner safe and the Saratoga crowd groaned in response.
Big Dave nodded to Connor at the mound while everyone ran back to their spots. Connor glanced at Coach Jefferson in the dugout. He called a curve. Connor gave Dave the sign and set up. Dave threw and the batter swung. The crack of the bat sounded out and the ball sailed toward Petruccio.
Connor threw off his helmet and waited at the plate, yelling for the ball. As soon as Petruccio caught it, Connor bellowed, "Throw home!"
Petruccio wound up and crow hopped, chucking it toward home. Desmond caught it halfway and threw it to home. Connor caught the ball and barely brought his glove around in time to have the runner coming home barrel into him. He landed on his back, feeling the air fly out of his lungs. He saw the runner roll to the side.
The umpire waited a moment before shouting. "OUT!"
The Saratoga crowd roared and before Connor knew what was happening, his teammates were dog piling on him.
"You mother-"
"Kenway saves the day!"
"Suck it bitches!"
"State champs! State champs!"
"Petruccio, you little shit, get over here!"
Connor and Petruccio were fighting to get out of the crowd. Connor finally managed to stand up in the dog pile right as Putnam and the other coaches walked over.
Putnam finally pulled everyone away and they lined up to shake the other team's hands. Connor could barely remember that and Putnam's speech. He felt like he was on a high from the victory. He never won something like this before and he couldn't help but feel proud.
They gathered on the field and got ready for a picture. Connor threw his arms over Desmond's and Dave's shoulders and gave a small smile for all of the cameras. He blinked in surprise when he saw his Ahkso and Josh there. They were beaming and Ahkso was taking pictures with her old camera.
Putnam gave one final speech at the end, thanking the seniors and how sad he was to see some of them go. Connor felt embarrassed when everyone looked at him.
They finally broke off and everyone sprinted to the dugout but Connor. He sprinted to his Ahkso instead. She laughed when he wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
"You did great," she said, pecking him on the cheek as he stepped away.
Josh punched his arm. "You jerk! You just had to not play when you went to our school," he laughed.
Connor opened his mouth to retort, but Ellie yelling his name stopped him. He looked to see her and Haytham walking onto the field. Jenny, surprisingly, was behind him. Ellie wrapped an arm around him. "Congrats!" she chirped, beaming up at him.
Connor couldn't stop a blush from crawling up his neck. He seemed to do that more than ever whenever Ellie smiled now.
"Hello Connor's girlfriend!" Josh said, throwing a teasing look at Connor.
"Hello Connor's best friend!" Ellie giggled.
Connor rolled his eyes, focusing on his Ahkso again. "I thought you weren't going to make it," he said, hugging her again.
He really missed her.
Ahkso grinned. "We couldn't miss your last game! I finally bullied Josh's father into fixing the truck in time. It broke down after we got back from your Graduation."
Connor rolled his eyes. Graduation was three days ago and he was just glad to be done with high school. Now, he could relax and enjoy a summer before having to go to college.
Haytham suddenly cursed.
Everyone looked to see him glaring at his phone. "How do you send bloody videos with this thing?"
Jenny swiped it out of his hands, pressed a few buttons, then dropped it back into his hands. "You're welcome," she said dryly, smirking.
Haytham frowned at her. "You're feeling smug right now, aren't you?"
Jenny shrugged. "For being a smart lawyer, you suck with electronics."
Haytham's lip curled a little. "I know the law, not cell phones," he grumbled, looking down at the said device.
Connor peeked at the phone. "Where you sending those, to Grandma?"
Haytham nodded. "I wouldn't have even got them if Miss Johnston wasn't here. She took most of them."
Ellie nodded. "I got some of your at bats and that last play. I can just see your grandma now," she said, grinning.
Connor smiled at the thought of Tessa watching the videos.
They all started to make their way back to the dugout and Connor quickly grabbed his things, throwing his gear into his bag. He dragged the bag out of the dugout just in time to see the team loading up on the bus.
He talked to everyone for a bit longer before finally climbing on.
He sat next to Desmond, who was practically halfway out the window as he waved to Lucy.
Connor wondered how Desmond was going to deal with Lucy not being there most of the time next year. He furrowed his brow, thinking about what Ellie said to him after his visit. He grabbed the back of Desmond's jersey and pulled him back in as the bus moved into motion.
"Des, I have a question," he said calmly.
Most of the boys were jamming out to a song on the radio; Desmond was one of the more rabid of the group.
Connor punched his arm.
"Ow!" Desmond yelped, glaring at Connor.
Connor arched a brow, not feeling sorry. "I have a question," he said.
Desmond rolled his eyes. "What is it?"
"Have you and Lucy talked about next year?"
Desmond looked confused. "What do you mean?"
Connor shrugged. "Ellie was worried about us next year…so I was just wondering."
Desmond shook his head. "Dude, you and Ellie are going to be fine. Why was she worried?"
"I really don't know. I think she worries about silly things sometimes."
"Girls, man. I'll never understand 'em."
"Agreed."
They spent the rest of the bus ride home celebrating their win with the rest of the team.
Lucy bit her lip as she rode in the front seat of Desmond's SUV. He had just picked her up from Ellie's house before Ellie and Claudia left to head to state. Unfortunately, she never got a chance to talk to Kenway and she was almost ready to give up.
Her parents' faces flashed in her mind and she steeled herself. She could do this. Today was her final chance. She knew she would never get this again and she was going to be damned if she didn't try to do the right thing.
"Desmond?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you head back?"
Desmond glanced at her before looking at the road again. "Did you forget something?"
She shook her head. "No, I need to ask Connor's dad a question. Is he there?"
Desmond shrugged. "What do you need to ask him?"
Lucy decided to stick as close to the truth as she could. "It's about that problem I told you about."
Desmond stopped at a stop sign and gave her a worried look. "Luce, are you sure you want to tell him and-"
"He's the only one that can help me. I know it. Please," she begged.
Desmond didn't look too sure, but he made a U-turn and headed back toward the neighborhood Connor and Ellie lived in.
Lucy felt like her heart was in her throat and she could feel her stomach roll as they got closer to the cul-de-sac. She kept picturing her parents and the boy she cared about beside her to give her strength.
Desmond finally pulled in outside of Connor's house and Lucy leaped out. She quickly walked up to the door and knocked.
Luckily, Kenway opened the door. A hard look came across his face. "Miss Stillman?"
"Mr. Kenway, I can tell you who the leader is," she quickly said before Desmond could get close enough to hear.
Kenway's eyes narrowed. "Miss Stillman, I don't know what you're talking about." The look in his eyes told her differently.
"Please, just listen to me. I just want it to stop," she pleaded, voice cracking. She knew everyone could hear how loud her heart was thumping now.
Kenway looked around right as Desmond reached the porch. "Hey Mr. Kenway-"
"Inside, both of you," Kenway said curtly. He looked tense now.
Lucy quickly walked in and started to pace around the foyer.
"Miss Stillman, what makes you think I can do anything?" Kenway asked, crossing his arms. Again, his eyes gave him away.
"Because I know that you did something in the past and I know that's the only reason why the FBI even considers your opinion," Lucy retorted. She was surprised with herself. She should really try to stay on this man's good side, considering what she heard about Jerusalem.
"What the hell is going on? Lucy, what are you talking about?" Desmond asked, looking at her and Kenway.
Kenway sighed. "Miss Stillman, we already know what you are and the FBI are closing in on a warehouse right outside of Saratoga as we speak."
Lucy's heart dropped. The plan was already in motion. "You need to get out," she said, looking around frantically. They could be here any moment.
"What do you mean?" Kenway asked, pulling out his cell phone.
That was when the door came off its hinges.
Haytham quickly pressed the first number on his call list and dropped his phone in a pot in the foyer's corner.
Some men in ski masks stood there with guns pointed at them. Haytham held up his hands, sighing deeply. At least Connor decided to go and support Miss Johnston at her track meet today. He had to stop himself from letting a snarky reply escape when one of the men, who he assumed was Cross, ordered them to get on their knees.
He had to remember that there were kids here now.
"Where are they, Kenway?!" Cross ordered, getting in his face.
Haytham scowled. "Perhaps you should clarify on what 'they' are, Mr. Cross. Your grammar surely hasn't gotten better since your trial," he snapped.
Cross raised his arm and swung.
Haytham's world went black as the butt of Cross' gun smashed into his head.
Connor looked at his phone in confusion. Why would his father be calling him? He picked it up. "Yeah?"
A loud shout made him quiet.
"Get on your knees!" a voice bellowed.
Connor quickly pulled to the side of the road and listened closely. What the hell?
"Where are they, Kenway?!"
Everything sounded like it was echoing, but Connor could still make out the words. His stomach dropped when he thought about what could possibly be happening and why his father wasn't talking.
It had to be the traffickers.
"Perhaps you should clarify on what 'they' are, Mr. Cross. Your grammar surely hasn't gotten better since your trial," came his father's snarky reply.
He heard a shout of pain that he knew was his father's and suddenly Desmond's voice shouted, "Leave him the hell alone! It's me you want, isn't it?!"
"Shut the fuck up. My boss told me not to kill you, but he didn't say anything about fucking you up. Now, act like Lucy here and be a good kid."
"Cross, stop! He knows nothing!" Lucy shouted.
Wait, why was Lucy and Desmond there?
Another sound that sounded like a watermelon breaking resounded in Connor's ears. "You were going to give us away, you bitch! We should have killed you when they found you, three years ago!"
"Cross! We need to get out of here. The police will be here any second now, man!"
"Fine. Take them to the truck and search the house for the documents; they've got to be in here somewhere!"
Loud thumps and Desmond's cursing could be heard and then it got eerily quiet after five minutes. Connor held his phone up in a stunned silence for what seemed like an eternity.
What happened to his father? And what were the traffickers doing to his friends? He grit his teeth and ended the call. He sharply turned his wheel and sped back out onto the road, speeding down to the exit leading to Saratoga. He called 911 and answered the questions they asked as best as he could.
He quickly texted Ellie, saying that he wouldn't be able to make it and that it was an emergency. He tossed his phone into the passenger seat and went as fast as he could toward The Den- if anyone knew where Altair was, it would be Kadar and Malik.
Connor sloppily pulled into a parking space and leaped out of the Mustang, hurrying into the coffee shop. He almost collapsed in relief when he saw Altair sitting at a table with Maria, holding half a doughnut .
He strode up and shook Altair's shoulder.
Altair's eyes widened in surprise when he saw Connor. "Connor?" he asked around a mouthful of doughnut.
"I think my dad and Desmond are in trouble," Connor barely croaked. The reality of the situation just hit him. He had reacted so quickly that he didn't really have time to think about it.
He collapsed into a chair nearby and held his head in his hands.
What if he lost his friends and father?
He didn't want to think about it.