Alex survived the explosion at Barkov's gas factory. S64 found him and brought him to a place to recover. There he meets Nicolette Walker for the first time and learns her name as promised. Set after the events of Scars of Duty 2019.
Second Chances
The charges were set. The detonator was shot. That meant he had to set the charges off manually. There was no walking away from it. He was prepared to do that. It was the one mission that he fully believed in. Then she came over the horn.
So, what is your plan.
He thought it was a trick question when she asked. Even he said it was a one-way trip. Yet, she told him that he wasn't the type to think that.
You are not the type to say it's the end.
There was a plan. He made a makeshift detonator. It bought him thirty seconds at most for a head start. He could hear the explosions coming from behind him. The door was ahead, but it seemed to get further and further away. He ran faster, but he was no closer to the exit. The flames were coming closer. He made a lunge and fell.
He fell down a dark hole. He could feel the heat of the flames and pain engulfed his body. Then he blacked out. There was nothing.
I know that you will wake up, Alex.
The pain was intense as his senses came alive. The fact that he could feel meant he was alive. That was impossible, was it? He slowly opened his eyes and squinted as his eyes adjusted to the low light in the room.
It was a cabin. At least he thought it was. All he could see was the ceiling and it was sloped. He studied it for a moment when he heard a slight sound. He lowered his head and thought he could see someone sitting at the desk. He started to try and sit up, but the pain decided to make itself known and he groaned from it and dropped his head. It only made it hurt more and his groan got louder and he shut his eyes.
"You know, for someone that manages to get out of trouble, you sure forget the easy things."
He recognized that voice. He slowly opened his eyes and moved his head to get a better look. His eyes focused to see a woman that was a bit on the short side with auburn hair that was pinned up, but she had some loose tendrils. She was looking at him with a smirk that made him feel like she caught him doing something he wasn't supposed to. He managed to grunt, "I got blown up."
"I'll give you that," she agreed. She came to him with a glass of water. She looked at him like a curious puppy would before holding the glass of water towards him. "Have some water, Alex."
Alex shot her a look as he attempted to sit himself up. She only helped when he almost lost his balance. When he was in a sitting position, she held it closer. He had to ask, "Are you going to make me do everything?"
"More or less," she replied with a shrug. She held the glass to his lips and started tipping it. "But I'm not that cruel."
Alex took a sip of water. The liquid felt good on his throat. He made a gesture with his hand when he was done. "I'm good."
At first, he thought she was going to leave. It surprised him when she took the chair at the desk and pulled it close to the bed after setting the glass on the nightstand. He raised his brow at her. "What are you doing?"
"We're going to have a conversation. I think you're lucid enough now. Unless you need a pain killer?" She asked it innocent and almost pouting. She studied him to gauge his reaction.
Alex could feel every sore spot, but he wasn't about to admit just then. He had just woken up and within five minutes made to feel like everything was more or less normal. It was… refreshing, and he rather liked the owner of the voice that had been with him in the factory. "I'm good. For now."
He almost squirmed when she raised her brow to make sure that everything was good. He blinked when she sat in the chair and automatically crossed her legs like she was there for a social call. If he didn't know better, he'd have thought she was a little crazy, but he was getting the impression that she did things for a reason. He cleared his throat and asked, "How long was I out?"
"About a week," she replied. "Kept telling me you weren't going to wake up. That you would be dead, but I basically said fuck that." She shrugged her shoulders and looked at him. "Your record says it all. You have a tendency to walk away from things that most people wouldn't."
"Are you usually right?"
"Not always, but I make pretty good guesses. You're here," she replied with a smirk. She took a breath and gestured at his person. "Just don't be disappointed."
Alex looked down at his legs or rather what was left of his legs. He saw the void and stared long and hard. "Thought you weren't cruel."
"I'm not. I'm a pragmatist."
Alex looked up at her. He was ready to growl at her, but he didn't. He managed to control his reaction. "Then why did you pull me out? Why bother to help me at all?"
She shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Always that reaction. Wishing you were dead instead of grateful that you are alive." She looked at him and her hazel eyes took a hard glint. "You lost something, yes. I lost something too and I could have said fuck it to the world. But it takes too much energy to be bitter. Energy best spent on other things."
"Like what?"
"Getting back into shape. You still have use in what you did," she pointed out.
"Not operating."
"Yes, you can." She reached over and pulled a tablet off the desk. She tapped a few keys and then flipped it to show him schematics of the latest prosthetics. "I made arrangements for evaluation. They'll have you kitted up in no time. It'll be up to you to make progress."
"Why bother?" Alex looked at the tablet. He realized it was the type of thing that was in experimental to early implementation. In other words, expensive. He looked at her like she was insane. "Are you shitting me on this?" He gestured at the tablet.
She shook her head. "Nope." She gave a slight smile as if she anticipated his reaction. "I have people that owe me favors and I have a slush fund." She smirked as if it were a joke. "Don't worry about that part."
"How can I not? I remember you saying something about making me your bitch," Alex retorted, not convinced at all. This was insanity and he wondered how David even trusted this woman.
She chuckled and responded, "It's good you remember that." She sobered quickly and became serious. "Let me lay it down to you, Alex. You essentially deserted. You are considered a deserter, traitor maybe because you decided to help my friend, which was a good cause and I approve. The explosion could be a good excuse to say Echo 3-1 is dead and allow you recovery time."
Alex was quiet for a moment. He could tell she had this pretty well figured out. "Why couldn't you let them find me then?" His voice went low and almost defeated.
"You remember what I told you?" She looked at him until he looked up at her. She then said, "I deeply believe in the mantra of leaving no one behind."
Alex looked down at his hands. He remembered that. He heard the chair scrape and looked up to see her getting up. He watched her and it looked like she was going to clear out of the room. "Going back on that?" He couldn't help himself and ended up with a stare that made him feel like he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
"I'm going to let that one slide," she said as she put her laptop away. "However, when you're on your feet and you say something that stupid again… be ready for an ass kicking." She shot him a look to say that it was serious.
Alex took in the look she was giving him. He could tell she really was thinking he was going to get back on his feet. Like she made up her mind and nothing was going to stop it. Not even him. He didn't have trouble believing that she could do what she threatened. She had to be capable since she helped Price get the intel in Moldova. He sat and watched her quietly clean things up. Finally, he said, "Do you always assume things will happen as you say?"
She looked at him and gave him a slight smile, "I expect people under my orders to follow them. But you're not really under my orders, are you?" She came close and leaned in, looking at him with a knowing look.
"But I'm here. This is your place and from what I can tell… your rules."
She laughed at that. "You say the funniest of things, Alex. It's why I like you," she said as she gestured at him. She came back and sat in the chair she vacated. "I'll tell you the plan that I would like to happen. I want to get you back on your feet. That includes healing wounds, being kitted up and learning to walk again. Now you're not really an asset, but to get your feet wet, I'd be willing to take you on a few ops. You could say that you are a free agent on my payroll. Until something better comes up."
Alex listened to her. The way she was talking, she sounded like she was former CIA. She spoke the same way when pointing out loopholes and the cover stories. Though he did have to admit that she had better word usage. He looked at her and could tell she was someone of intelligence despite looking nothing what he expected from the voice he heard. He looked at where his missing leg was and then at her, "And you really think I can do that?"
"I know you're going to do it," she said with confidence. She sat back and then gestured at him saying, "But then again, that is up to you. Are you going to be the Alex, known as Echo 3-1, that doesn't go down without a fight? Or are you giving up before the fight begins?" She crossed her arms over her chest as she leaned back in her seat to watch his reaction and crossed her legs.
Alex made a slight face at that, "Put like that, you make it seem like I have no choice."
"Oh, you do. I'm just telling you what the reality is. I'm a fucking pragmatist," she replied.
Alex blinked at the profanity. He rather liked that she was blunt in her delivery. Thinking about it, he knew she was right. He was not the kind to go down with a fight and the shaming part was the kind of thing he would do to himself if he said no. He looked at her and said, "Say I'm in. What are you looking at in a timeframe?"
She grinned at him like the Cheshire cat. It was enough to make Alex wonder if he had said the right thing or got himself deeper into this. He squirmed a little until she replied, "I have the feeling you'll be ready to go in about… six months on conservative side though I think you'll make it in five."
Alex looked at her like she was crazy. That was like beyond reasonable. "You must be joking!"
She just looked at him calmly like she expected the reaction. She then smiled and shook her head slightly, "I never joke about something like that." She became serious as she moved her head much like an inquisitive puppy would. "I think once you get kitted up, you'll be eager to get on your feet and either meet or surpass my prediction."
Alex shook his head, "That doesn't sound…"
"Reasonable? Realistic?" She shrugged her shoulders, "Maybe it sounds crazy but not entirely unreasonable," she admitted, "But I think you can make it. You are not the type to not rise to a challenge." She sat back in her chair and put her hands in her lap. "Thing is, the only person that can answer the question of whether or not you can… is you."
Alex stared at her. She kept putting the ball back into his hands. She saved his life, but she was telling him that it was essentially up to him to decide if he was going to get back up after falling down. She told him what she thought he could do but telling him that was the one who could decide was him. He knew she was right, deep down. He knew that while he could wallow in self-pity, he wasn't going to do that, and he doubted she would let him once he decided to get back up. He looked down at his lap and at the void that was his leg. Taking a breath he nodded and looked at her, "Alright. I'll bet back up. I have serious doubts I will do it when you say, but I'll do it."
She looked at him and nodded at that, "Alright. As long as you decide to get back up, then we go from there." She then chuckled and said, "Though I still think you can. In fact, I think we might need your help further down the road."
"You say that like you can see everything."
"I don't see everything. I see the tendencies; based on patterns of behavior, the situation… I look at the whole picture," she explained. "I am an analyst. How I got in the field… that is a story for another time." She grinned as she stood up and made to get her things. "I'll have Misha come in to help with cleaning up. You'll feel better and some food."
"That's it?"
"Yep. We had a talk. You made a choice so…" She shrugged her shoulders. She made sure her things were gathered.
Alex blinked at that. It was a bit shocking since she was there and having gotten her answer, she was done. In a way, it was like how spec ops operated when they were sent in, did the job and left. It was a little disconcerting, but it told him she was a bit no nonsense about things. It contrasted from the voice that kept him company during those moments that he thought he might not make it. He watched her quietly pack up her things.
"I'm just moving down the hall. I know men need their privacy as much as women do," she said when she turned to look at him. "I just decided to stay here until you woke up. Keep an eye on you."
Alex felt a little sheepish about that since he felt like she was leaving for good. He cleared his throat slightly as he looked down. He blinked when he felt a finger hook under his chin and pull his head, so he was looking up at her. It was a little unnerving, but when he looked up at her, he could see the kindness in her eyes. It was weird, but he could see what he heard and he relaxed a little.
She looked at him and gave a slight smile. "It'll be fine. You'll see." She released his chin and gave a gentle ruffle of his hair.
"I'm not a kid."
"No, but it is fun," she replied with a smirk. "So… are you good?"
Alex took a breath and nodded. He understood that she was just putting into motion what they discussed. He felt better about the whole thing though he still thought it was crazy that she thought he'd be up and running within five or six months. That was… He said, "I'm good."
"Good," she replied with a smile. She hitched her gear bag on her shoulder. "I'm half tempted to make this into a bet. But I don't think it'd be fair."
Alex looked at her, "Why don't we? What are the terms?"
She looked at him and gave a smirk. Alex was certain he stepped into a situation that could bite him in the rear. Yet he was not sure why he was compulsive with that. Thing was, he didn't feel apprehensive about the potential consequences.
She stared at him and then replied, "If you meet my predictions, I will personally call Laswell myself and tell her you're alive. If you make it on what you think you might, I'll still call her, but I will do it in person."
"It doesn't sound like much of a bet."
"I could bet you this C-note," she replied holding up a US hundred dollar bill. She then tore it in half and handed half to him.
"What the hell? That's a hundred-dollar bill!" Alex looked at the torn bill and then at her like she lost her mind.
"We each get half. I win, you give me that half plus a hundred dollars. You win, I'd give you my half and a hundred dollars, but that's not going to happen. This is one bet I'm going to win," she said as she folded her half and put it in her pocket. She looked at him and said, "So, if you plan to win, I think you better start figuring out how to prove me wrong."
Alex knew a challenge when he saw it. He didn't have a hundred dollars unless he got back on his feet and started working his ass off. He looked at her in the eye and said, "I look forward to the challenge, Ryan."
She chuckled at that and held a hand out for a shake. Alex took it and shook hands with her. She said, "I'm up for that. Points for you in remembering one of the names I go by." She turned to leave and said, "I'll send Misha in. Andrei will be extra help if you need it, but I think Misha will be enough."
"I believe you. You don't seem to be the type to make things up when its serious. Even when you want something."
"Oh, I can lie," she replied, "But you're right. I don't lie when it comes to people that I would consider more like a friend." She regarded him for a few moments. "Perhaps we can earn each other's trust to friendship?"
Alex thought about her choice of words. He then nodded, "I think we can do that."
She nodded, "Good." She turned to leave but paused and then turned around. "Just so you know I keep my word, I'm going to tell you my real name."
Alex remembered that. She said that if he lived, she would tell him her real name. "You don't have to do that," he said.
"Word is my bond," she said. "Besides, it's a little unfair that I know your name and call sign and you know only my call sign and number designation. Don't you think?"
"I thought you were just giving a pep talk."
"Maybe, but you lived." She looked at him with a shrug. "So proper introductions maybe?"
Alex thought about it. He sensed that he was going to get her name no matter what. Then again, she seemed to believe he could bounce back even though most would say he wouldn't. He looked at her and said, "Hi, I'm Alex. Formerly Echo 3-1."
She smiled and gestured at her person, "Nicolette Walker."
Alex nodded, "Pleased to meet you."