"We've caught a case. Gear up!" Coulson yelled into the lounge from his office. Everyone looked up except Ward and Amber, who were sat facing each other. He was testing her reaction time by playing 'slaps'. Her hands were bright red, his were not even blotched.
"Where are we heading?" May asked, grabbing the flight control pad from the side.
"Topeka, Kansas."
Amber looked at Coulson. She was from Kansas, so at least she might be helpful for a change. It was a big mistake. Ward launched at her hands and Coulson could feel the sting from his balcony.
"What happened?" Fitz asked.
"A room full of people burned to death."
"That isn't what we investigate." Kain said.
"The room was untouched by flames." Coulson added, perking their curiosity.
"Mass Spontaneous Human Combustion?" Simmons asked.
"Flight planned, landing in Topeka Regional Airport in two hours."
"Best get ready for action."
The team arrived in Topeka and climbed into their Jeeps. Coulson, Fitz, Simmons and Kain were in one. May, Ward, Skye and Amber were in the other.
"I think you should make a move" Ward baited May in the front seat as they followed the car Coulson was driving.
"I'll make a move in a minute. You right out the door!"
"He has a valid point." Skye pointed out from the back.
"Skye's right, he does." Amber added.
May stomped on the brakes, halting the car.
"I am not going to make a move on Coulson. He doesn't like me in that way so I am not going to make a fool of myself. Are we clear?" She almost shouted at them, face colouring.
"Then what exactly happened in the kitchen the other night?" Ward whispered to May loud enough so the only other person that could hear was Skye.
May shifted the car back into Drive and headed off towards their destination.
She was pointedly not looking, or rising to Ward's bait any more. But he made her think. What did exactly happen between them the other night?
"May's stopped the car." Simmons told Coulson as she peered out of the back of theirs.
"What?" Fitz asked, confused.
"Why would she do that?" Kain asked.
Coulson smirked to himself, knowing the reason why May had stopped the car.
"Ward is clearly baiting her and she's rising to it. She's stopped the car to threaten him."
"What's she gonna threaten him with?" Kain asked.
"Probably threatening him with physical violence." Fitz told him.
"She hasn't done that since she realised he let her win all of their fights."
"She's threatened to kick him out of the car." Coulson told them, his tone indicating they should perhaps change the topic. He realised then that Ward was right. He had been paying a lot of attention to May. He just didn't realise it.
They got to their destination and climbed out, waiting for May to catch up. She did within minutes and the rest of the team climbed out of the car. Ward was gently rubbing a spot on his right arm and May one on her left. Clearly his predictions had been right, Ward had been baiting her.
They all got the equipment out of the cars and Ward and Skye opened the doors to their scene. It looked like a grand dining room, except there were piles of ash everywhere,and nothing else had been touched. Skye's hand flew to her mouth to try and keep her breakfast down. Even Ward had turned a little green at the distinct scent of burnt flesh. They filed into the building and started working.
Fitz and Simmons were flying the dwarves around the room scanning all of the piles of ash, the measurements of the room, the locations of all of the furniture, etc. Coulson and May were talking to the people who found the remains and Ward and Skye were attempting to hack into the building's security cameras. Amber and Kain had gone to ask for them manually at the security reception for them.
Coulson looked at Ward and Skye in time to see Skye turn green and run from the room. They had found what they were looking for and it didn't look good.
He saw Ward straighten up from Skye's laptop, look around the room to get his bearings and traipse slowly over to one side of the room. Curious, Coulson followed him. He saw Ward drop to his hands and knees and look under the dresser that was against the wall. He sat back up, looked around, grabbed an ornamental sword off the wall and returned to the dresser. He swiped the sword under the dresser a couple of times and just as Coulson reached his side a small object that looked like a circular cage rolled out from under it. The middle was empty.