A/N: I hope you enjoy this story as much as I've enjoyed writing it for you. A special thank you to all of you for reading and reviewing. I love hearing from you all, so please keep them coming. I don't own Leverage and make no profit off of any of this. I don't write slash. Thank you.

Chapter 10

Conrad woke to a pounding headache and a bright light in his face. He groaned as he moved his head to look around him, and found himself secured to a chair inside the circle of light, and unable to move more than an inch in any direction. Most everything outside that circle was darkness and shadows. He heard the sound of metal scraping metal, and swallowed hard as he saw Eliot Spencer leaning against a pole next to his chair, sharpening his knife with a whetstone.

"Where's your friend?"

"He's around. You have other things to worry about." Eliot's thoughts traveled to what was, even now, happening at the bar. If everything went to plan, of course, but with Vance and Eliot, it usually did.

Vance had gotten the address of the building from Eliot, and now he sat in his black SUV, two blocks down the street, and called in a bomb threat to the local police precinct from an untraceable cell phone. He joined the police as they answered the call, and went into the building dressed in plain clothes, and masquerading as an explosives expert from the FBI. He led a fast and thorough search of the building, and when they finally found the bomb, he couldn't help but admire the person who set it, and their choice of location, at least a little. It was in the elevator shaft, which, though not wholly original, made it a pain in the ass to find and remove. It was also one of the more difficult bomb he had ever had to disarm, but finally, it was done. The sweep had continued while they were working to disarm the bomb, and he resumed leading the team searching. They swept the whole building completely three times, and finally, Vance pronounced himself satisfied. Vance reasoned that Eliot's team would be safer inside than out, so he lifted the evacuation, allowing everyone back inside, and then posted guards at the doors with orders to identify anyone going in or out as someone who lived there. For now, the bar was closed. When Vance was sure the threat was neutralized, and Eliot's team was safe, though he didn't know them, he headed back to Eliot.

Eliot smiled slightly as his focus shifted back to the present. A moment later, Spencer spoke, "I'll make this simple for you, Conrad. You can sign this confession, in which you will admit to everything you've done, you will tell me what you did to me, you will step away from the CIA and turn yourself in to the police, and maybe I won't carve you like a Thanksgiving turkey. Should you choose not to cooperate, rest assured I know many ways to encourage your cooperation," and on those last words, his voice was dangerous.

"You're a dangerous man, Eliot Spencer, but right now, you are in no position to make threats. If I don't report in to my associates within the next 30 minutes, they are under orders to blow up McRory's bar, and the building above it. While that is happening, another team will simultaneously be traveling here, where they are under orders to shoot anyone who is around when they arrive. So it appears we are at a stalemate."

Eliot smiled a smile that didn't reach his eyes, and said, "Stalemate? Hardly." His eyes traveled up to above the other side of Conrad's chair, and Conrad couldn't help it—he followed the man's gaze. There was a glass bottle he hadn't noticed before hanging there. He swallowed hard.

"In case you're curious, that's a hypnotic drug I acquired from a friend. With it, I can make you say anything I want you to say to anyone. They won't even realize you've been drugged. I've picked up many skills during my time as a soldier, and even more in the time after. There are many, varied ways I can torture you or even kill you if it comes to that. It would be far better for you to cooperate with me."

Conrad didn't say anything, and Eliot put his knife away and began preparing his medical equipment. When he saw the needle, Conrad said, "All right. You win. Untie me and I will do what you ask."

Eliot took out Conrad's cell phone, of which he had apparently relieved the other man when he tied him up. "No, you will do as I ask while tied up, and if you make a good show of it, I'll consider releasing you. Report to your team. If you try to play games, I'll kill you."

Conrad's throat went dry as he told Eliot which number to dial, knowing that that, in and of itself, was dangerous, but not really having much choice, presently. As he waited for a member of his team to answer, he glanced down, only to see Eliot's knife at his throat. He swallowed hard again. When the voice on the other end answered, he faltered, and felt the tip of a knife cutting into his throat. With effort, he got himself under control, and called off his team. Eliot hung up the phone before he had a chance to say more. Holding the confession before the bound man, he watched as Conrad signed it, knowing he wouldn't be released otherwise.

Eliot, the man who knew what to do in every situation, found himself facing a quandary. He couldn't call the police without getting himself and possibly the team arrested. He couldn't turn Conrad over to Vance without endangering him, and very likely ending his military career. He couldn't kill Conrad without putting the team in a situation where they were always looking over their shoulders. None of those options were good ones. If he didn't release Conrad, or if he killed him, he might never know what the man had done to him. That option was the worst of all. He made the decision to do the only thing he saw that he really could do—find out what he could from Conrad, and then give him every reason to decide the Leverage team wasn't worth his time. Eliot started working with the plastic tubing hanging from the glass bottle overhead, straightening out kinks and twists, making the sure the needle was properly attached.

He had bent down beside Conrad with the alcohol swab that would clean the site of the insertion, when he heard a clanking sound behind him. The heavy metal door of the old, abandoned storage building they were in slammed open and a voice behind them said, "Eliot Spencer. I seem to have found something you lost. Let him go."

Ignoring the voice, Eliot concentrated on what he was about to do, and had the needle poised over Conrad's arm, when he heard the unmistakable sound of a weapon being cocked behind him. "Do it, or I'll shoot."

Very slowly, Eliot turned his head. He suppressed a gasp when he saw that the stranger, obviously one of Conrad's men, had Parker. She looked angry that he had been able to catch her. He did not allow any of his surprise to show on his face.

"Shoot her. Save me the trouble. She sold us out." His heart nearly broke when he saw the look on her face, but his hard expression didn't change. She wouldn't look at him. The tension Eliot felt in his shoulders relaxed a fraction when he saw that his words had the desired effect on the gunman. Instead of shooting her, the stranger pushed her toward Eliot hard. She couldn't keep her balance or control the forward momentum, and she hit the wall hard, letting out a stilted scream as a jagged piece of metal plating from the wall dug into her leg and sliced it deep, from knee to ankle. Out of instinct, Eliot moved toward her, knowing she might have a head injury or worse, as hard as she hit.

All he wanted to do was get to her and see if she was okay, and speak the words that would make things right between them again, but he kept his movement nonchalant, professional. The stranger pointed the gun at both of them, and circled them to get to Conrad, careful to keep the weapon out of reach. Eliot had determined that Parker's injury wasn't life threatening. She would need stitches, but she would survive. Now, the problem was how to get them both out without Conrad deciding to shoot one or both of them. Eliot's head was pounding, and he was shaking. If he was honest with himself, and Eliot usually was, he had to admit that this was probably not anyone's definition of taking it easy. A moment later, Conrad was free. He looked to Eliot, gloating.

"You couldn't kill me because then you wouldn't ever know what I had done to you. I don't have that problem."

"No, your problem is me. Come after me or my team again, and I will chop you into little pieces and drop you from your helicopter into the Amazon River, and let the piranhas make short work of you. Tell me what you did to me before I decide you aren't going to tell me and there's really no reason not to do exactly what I just said."

"I could shoot you right now, and then you wouldn't have to worry about what I did, but I won't. Your own death would mean too little to you. Besides, I think I'd like to watch what's going to happen."

He nodded at the man standing next to him, and the stranger moved the gun slightly. A shot rang out, and Parker slumped, holding her side. Eliot let out a feral growl, and sprinted toward the man holding the gun. Another shot rang out and hit him, but that didn't stop him from disarming the man and proceeding to pound him into the pavement. Out of his peripheral vision, he noticed that Conrad was no longer standing next to the man whose arms and legs he was now tying together.

At that moment, Parker groaned and he turned to go to her, but his vision went blurry again, and his heart was racing, and his whole body was shaking. He sank to his knees, but he forced himself up and over to her. He felt a hand on his shoulder and a familiar voice spoke quietly in his ear.

"I've got her, brother. Can you walk?" Vance. Eliot nodded.

Vance scooped Parker up in his arms, and headed for the door. Both Conrad and his man were tied up, and the police were on the way. Eliot had left Conrad's confession in his front pocket. Eliot slid the heavy door open, through which Vance carried Parker, who was still refusing to look at Eliot. He really couldn't blame her after what he had said, but he would explain when they were safe.

They were halfway out the door when he heard Conrad's voice behind him. And all hell broke loose.