(A few days later)
"Come on. You got this."
Clara applies the hair trimmer towards the last bit of hair she needs to remove from her head. She knows it's risky to even think about cutting her own hair, but she has already had experience with cutting her own hair and even though it's been along time since then, it still feels freeing to do it.
She has always been stuck with the same hair, not being able to do anything with it. With each stroke and bits of her hair falling down towards the towel sitting in her lap, she feels like she can breathe again just by hearing the familiar buzzing.
As Clara does this while being in her car and using the rear view mirror for visuals, she is currently parked at a close enough distance away from Connie's pub while being silently tapped into the Dedsec channel, knowing full well that Rachel will try to put spies into different well-known groups to try and sniff out Aiden. So far, Clara hasn't picked up on anyone that sounds familiar from Rachel's group. She has only been hearing things about the deaths of powerful people such as Skye Larsen, Nigel Cass, and Mary Kelley. In the meantime, she continues to try and bring her old hairstyle back while listening in.
After a few tries, Clara gets through the last pieces of hair that need to be clipped and sets the trimmer down in the passenger's seat with a pile of makeup and other items such as weapons she stole from smaller Clan Kelley hideouts. She figures she needs other weapons aside from her crossbow and pistol, so she managed to snag some non-lethal guns and a bullet proof vest. She only stole the trimmer and makeup out of spite.
She studies herself in the mirror and views the work she did on her hair. She is pleased to see that her hair looks to be the way it was many years ago. Clara runs her fingers across the shaved side of her head. It feels surreal to her. She was always used to having a full head of hair while being imprisoned, so it'll take some getting adjusted to. At the same time, however, it feels liberating to have her old hair back.
Her fingers reach through her grown hair. She tosses it to the side. She catches sight of her white birthmark in the corner of her hair and a genuine grin reaches her face without her knowing it. Seeing her hair and makeup on her face, she is briefly reminded of her old self for a moment. She is reminded of a time when she was free.
A time when she felt happy.
Once she notices the old scars on her face and the ones on her bulky shoulders from the bullet wounds she endured, her lips falter and she is reminded of the dark side of her past.
"Hey, it's good to have you back," she hears the voice of an aussie woman come through, interrupting her thoughts.
"I'm always happy to help," she hears another voice, specifially a man's. It sounds smooth, deep, and strangely familiar to Clara. She listens closely as he continues to speak. "I think it serves Nigel Cass right to get what's coming to him. It's all part of the plan, right?"
All part of the plan...she's heard that somewhere. But who-
She stiffens.
"Jonas," she mutters.
Clara leans forward intending to listen more carefully.
"Fuck yeah. I'm with you there," the Dedsec member says. "We did a pretty good job, didn't we?"
"We certainly did. It's about time we took the city back," Jonas says enthusiastically.
Clara can obviously tell it's all just an act, but it still makes her blood boil none the less.
Thet continue to boast about the death of Nigel Cass and it seems like there some sort of party going on judging from the music in the background. Eventually, Clara doesn't hear Jonas anymore and it only makes her desperate to find out what he's really up to. This almost seems too good to be true for Clara to stumble across one of Rachel's allies so quickly. Still, she finally has a lead on one of Rachel's partners and she can't pass this up. She still needs to tread carefully. She has to at least tap into Jonas's phone to keep tabs on him, but she would have to be within proximity of him.
She spots people going in and out of the bar and an idea pops in her head. She could hack into their phones in order to give her a view of the inside, but it would have to be a Dedsec member. From her knowledge of Dedsec, they use firewalls to protect their bases. There also has to be a hideout inside the pub since that is where the source of the channel is coming from. Her guess is that it's located underground. She can't just stroll in there. She would have to wait for a Dedsec member to come along. The profiler definitely helps with identifying who's with Dedsec and who isn't.
Clara rests her arm across the steering wheel as she waits anxiously, her eyes continuously scanning the area. She catches sight of a few people heading towards the pub. She profiles them, but there's nothing about Dedsec. She sighs and continues searching. She goes through profile after profile and she becomes more impatient as time passes.
She considers coming up with a new plan until her profiler latches onto someone approaching the bar while looking down at their phone. Their info showcases them being potentially affiliated with Dedsec.
Clara's eyes light up. She is swift to hack into his phone camera allowing her a view of the bar entrance. She hunches foward and watches through his camera as he makes his way up to the pub and enters through the doors. The recruit walks around the bar until Connie briefly appears into view on the right.
"Ey there, Connie!" He calls to her and the camera is pointing downwards towards the floor.
"Hey," she greets him back.
Hearing Connie's voice again causes Clara to feel unsettled by memories of their last interaction. She shakes it off, however, and keeps her ears open.
"You here for the party up here or downstairs?" She asks.
The recruit laughs. "I'm just here to have a good time with my mates!"
She hears footsteps that she assumes are Connie's heading somwhere.
"Well everyone is downstairs celebrating Nigel Cass being gone."
The man's phone moves back up and Clara sees Connie unlock the bypass. The door opens for the recruit and it shows a small room filled with chairs and barrels cluttered around.
"I won't pass up a chance on that," the man says excitedly as he makes his way towards the room.
The phone camera shifts upside down and she can only assume he is holding it to his side. The door closes behind him as he walks towards a small lever positioned in front of a blank wooden wall and pushes it down. The wooden wall suddenly moves sideways revealing a black door which reads, "Dedsec London."
The man opens the door and Clara is greeted to what looks like an underground base with stairs leading downwards. She watches the man trot down the stairs. Once he reaches the bottom, Clara catches a view of all the tech in the hideout ranging from servers and computers to their AI, Bagley.
With the graffiti on the walls and the amount of people coming together to celebrate what they've achieved, Clara can't help but admire Dedsec for what they've done for others and how far they've come the past several years. When she first joined Dedsec, she could have only dreamed of these accomplishments.
The man continues venturing into the hideout seeming to take in his surroundings of people drinking, dancing, and talking themselves away. Clara finds herself taking in the environment until a familiar voice makes her ears perk up.
"I see you made it finally," Jonas's voice comes through.
Clara readies herself to tap into his phone once it's in view. The man talks to Jonas while moving his phone around. She finds it difficult to get a latch on Jonas's phone with all of the movement, but he eventually stops and gives her a direct view of Jonas's phone. She promptly hacks into his phone. Having successfully tapped into his phone, Clara leans back in her seat and settles down a bit. At least now she'll know if there's any plans from Rachel.
They both finish their conversation and the recruit goes off to get a drink somewhere. She doesn't pay much attention to the man's phone anymore. She is more interested in what Jonas has to say. So far, she only picks up more chatter about Dedsec's celebration. Clara sighs.
The best thing she can do now is wait.
"Welp, this is it," Aiden thinks to himself.
He is currently parked close enough to St. James Park which is the one place Nicky wants to meet him at. He takes a deep breath as he contemplates getting out of the car.
Is he truly ready to see her again?
Aiden tries to think back to what Jacks told him.
"She probably wants to talk to you because she wants to make peace," his nephew's words echo in his head.
Aiden taps his fingers on the steering wheel and tries to get himself together. He has to do this. He needs to see her again and he can't run away now. Even if the conversation gets awkward, he owes it to Nicky, Jackson, and even himself to try and make things right.
After some times passes, he finally steps out of his car and a cool breeze brushes against his face. He shuts the door and makes his way towards the park entrance. Nicky has let him know prior that she would be sitting on one of the benches by the path to the right.
Upon reaching the entrance, Aiden sees two paths leading foward or to the right into the park. He follows Nicky's directions and heads towards the right. As his eye scan the park, he's drawn to the sight of the colorful orange and red leaves falling from the trees surrounding the park. The wind rustles through the trees and he gets a slight chill from the breeze as he tucks his hands inside the pockets of his brown jacket.
Aiden wonders why Nicky wanted to meet here instead of her own home, but when he thinks about it, she probably doesn't want to run the risk of trouble showing up at her doorstep because of him. He can't blame her. She's been through enough already because of him.
He continues searching for his sister until he spots one of the benches. He makes a out a blonde woman sitting on it with her legs crossed while looking out into the lake in the middle of the park. It's difficult for Aiden to see her face from the distance he's at. He starts to walk closer while mentally preparing himself for the possibility of it being his sister.
As he gets closer, he gets a look at the woman's face and releases a breath once he realizes it isn't Nicky. The woman doesn't pay any mind to him as he walks past her and continues his search. He listens for any voices that sound remotely similar to Nicky's, but all he can hear is the laughter of children running around the park and the birds singing as they fly by.
"Aiden?" He hears an all too familiar voice come from the left of him that stops him in his tracks.
His heart skips a beat. He turns to see another blonde woman with loose straight hair and blue eyes staring up at him. Lines are visible on her face from age and she dresses herself with a loose grey sweater with a golden necklace resting over it and dark blue jeans.
"Nicky..." he breathes out.
It doesn't take long for Aiden to recognize her. They both take each other in for a few seconds with Aiden not knowing what to say. Nicky continues to look up at him with raised brows before breaking the silence.
"Okay. I have to admit, I did not recognize you at first because of that beard," she says while pointing at him with a small grin forming on her face. "Never thought I'd see you with that look."
Aiden chuckles softly.
"Yeah well I thought I'd try it out," he returns a smile.
They grow silent. Aiden swallows and he is at a loss for words again. He doesn't know how to begin the conversation or whether or not he should just let Nicky be the first to speak. Luckily, his sister continues the conversation.
"Well, you look older," she notes while trying to defuse some potential tension.
Aiden scoffs and resists the urge to playfully nudge her.
"Hey, you don't look much younger yourself."
They both smirk at each other. Normally with greetings like this, they would give each other a hug, but it doesn't feel right for either of them, so they decide to keep to themselves.
Nicky clears her throat. "Let's walk," she gestures towards the path in front of them.
Aiden nods as he and Nicky start walking down the path. He only now notices Nicky holding a cup of iced tea. She takes a sip before turning to Aiden.
"So, how's life been going for you?" She asks. "I mean I haven't seen you in how many years?"
He thinks about his answer. Not knowing where to begin with his previous ventures, he replies, "Let's just say it's been eventful for the past several years."
"I can imagine it is for a vigilante," Nicky lightly chuckles.
"Yeah, I'm uh...I'm trying to put it all behind me."
She glances at him. A part of her feels skeptical that he'll follow through with what he's saying. She sighs, knowing she has to give him some benefit. With everything Jackson told her about their reconciliation and Aiden's willingness to change, she has to at least try to believe Aiden.
"Are you doing it for Jackson?" She asks out of curiosity.
Aiden presses his lips into a hard line. He admittedly is doing it partly because of Jacks, but he knows that isn't the only reason.
"Not just for him." He draws his attention towards the pond that centers the park. "I've been trying to retire for a long time, but it doesn't come easy."
"I can imagine it doesn't, especially with all the attention you've drawn to yourself," she notes before taking another sip of her tea.
Aiden wants to chuckle at that, but then remembers that being the reason his family had to leave their home.
"But..." she starts, "you're trying and that's what matters. I'm...honestly glad you came here today. It's nice to see you again."
Aiden relaxes a little with there not being any hostility from Nicky. He takes a deep breath.
"I'm glad to see you too," he says with sincerity.
Although Aiden doesn't show it, speaking with Nicky again means everything to him. It's been too long since he's seen her.
They continue to walk down the path in silence as Aiden thinks of a question to ask her.
"So what about you? How's life been?" He asks.
Nicky thinks about his question.
"Well, it's been okay I guess. Getting used to the changes in the city with all the extra security and drones flying around, even in parks, feels weird." She points towards one of the Blume drones hovering beside one of the park lights to prove her point.
"Yeah, I can see that. Seeing the city you live in change overnight has to feel strange," he says, thinking of Chicago.
"Yeah. It does irritate me sometimes, but with the bombings and all the people being persecuted and sometimes being found missing, I've learned to not involve myself in any of it," she frowns. "Jackson, on the other hand, wants to throw himself into it."
Nicky grips her cup a little tighter.
"I keep telling him not to go to those damn protests, but he never listens. I mean he recently got arrested because of it." She sighs. "I worry about his stubborness. I get what he's doing, but he could get himself hurt. As far as I know, there isn't proper protection for street medics."
Aiden catches on to the slight shakiness in her voice. He's tempted to place his hand on her shoulder to calm her down, but after thinking about it, he thinks it's best to avoid any physical contact. Instead, he sticks with his words.
"He's a smart kid. I'm sure he knows when to back out of trouble when it gets bad," he says, trying hard to not give away any of their recent escapades with Rempart.
Nicky glances at him and a small grin appears on her face for only a second before fading.
"He's always been the peacekeeper and I know he tries to help people as much as he can, but I'm still worried that he'll be dragged into trouble. I want him to take my warnings more seriously, but I guess you can't fix a stubborn boy." She lightly chuckles. "I swear he gets that from you."
He smiles. "It couldn't have all been me. I think I remember you talking back to mom when we were kids."
Nicky scoffs. "Nuh uh. You were always the one who never listened to her when you would try and sneak out all the time."
His smile grows wider knowing that what she's saying is true as he thinks back on his youth.
"Yeah right."
"It's true!"
They both laugh it off and turn direction back towards the path. Aiden misses taking little jabs at Nicky to tease her. It's a sense of familiarity that makes him feel normal. He hasn't felt this way in a long time and it feels nice.
Little does he know that Nicky feels the same way.
They both continue until they reach a small bridge hovering over the calm water. Nicky is the first to stop walking. She leans against the railing with her back turning to Aiden. He follows suit. Nicky takes in the breeze and the orange hues of the sky as the sun sets.
Aiden shifts his eyes around the park and ponders on what has been bugging him ever since he first heard that Nicky wanted to meet which is him breaking his promise. For all the years he's been isolated from his family, he has always beaten himself up over Lena's death and forcing Nicky and Jackson out of the city. He always thought of how it all affected Nicky personally and he feels no different now.
He wants to bring it up somehow because God knows he owes Nicky a raw an honest apology, but the thought of it makes his stomach churn. Where can he start? Is it too abrupt to bring it up right now? If not now then when? Will he ever bring it up in the future or will he just shy away from the issue like he always has with his issues? The more he thinks about it, the worse he feels.
"You okay, Aiden? You look stiff."
Aiden bolts his head towards her and notices her staring at him with a concerned frown. He gazes at her for a moment and is reminded of being in front of Lena's grave on that chilly rainy day. He recalls those familiar blue eyes pleading him to stop thinking of revenge. Those are the exact same eyes of the woman who believed in him.
But also the eyes of a woman who was betrayed by him.
He takes a deep and steady breath and gulps. He turns his full body to her. He has to talk about it even if it's awkward.
"Nicky..." he flattens his lips before speaking. "Are you okay? You can be honest."
Nicky is taken aback by his question as she lowers her tea. She gathers herself, however, and thinks of how to answer the question. Deep down, she appreciates him asking.
"I know..." he sighs, "I know I've messed up. I lied to you when you trusted me. I never should've put you and Jacks in more danger and...I'm sorry."
Nicky listens intently, her heart growing heavy.
"And..." he pauses. This is usually the part where he runs away from the conversation, but something in him keeps pushing to continue. "I've always thought of how hard it must have been for you...and I want to try and make things right."
After finishing, Aiden does his best to read Nicky's face. He becomes anxious for any sort of reply from her as she stares up at him in silence. Her chest stings as painful memories resurface in her mind. She almost can't believe that Aiden said those words. She isn't used to him being so open.
After a few seconds of unbearable silence, she finds her words. "Well if you want me to be honest, it's been rough." She feels a lump forming in her throat. "You broke your promise to me and...and that hurt a lot."
Aiden nods along with a frown. Bad memories creep back into his mind.
"And everything with Lena caught up with me to," her voice shakes and she tries to hold her tears back. "You know, I thought maybe if I focused on a new and fresh start here with Jackson then I would get some closure from it."
She swallows her own saliva and attempts to fight off the growing pain in her throat.
"But it wasn't that easy. Throughout the years I was so bitter and angry about it all. I was even starting to rub off on Jacks. I spent so long believing that I couldn't recover from what happened to my daughter. That there was no way out." Her eyes are glossed with tears now. "I didn't know if...if I could forgive you."
Aiden's skin goes cold, her words cutting him like a knife. Her teary eyes burn into his and he finds himself feeling vulnerable. She quietly stares at him and she is yet to say anything. With each second, his heart pounds faster. The silence wears down on him to the point where he feels overwhelmed. This is the moment he has been dreading.
The tension. The pain. The silence.
Aiden shifts uncomfortably. He tries to come up with something. Anything he can say to defuse the tension, but his mind goes blank.
"But," her voice snaps him out of his panic. "I realized that it wouldn't do any good for Jacks, or for me. I needed to find a way to heal."
A tear rolls down Nicky's cheek and she quickly wipes it away, not wanting to break down in the middle of the park. Aiden wants nothing more than to console her and steal her pain away.
"And I did that with Jacks and it's helped a lot."
Nicky shifts her gaze over towards the calm stream of water flowing beneath the bridge. Aiden is relieved to hear that she has gotten better over the years, but there's still a part of his mind that nags at him about everything she's been through because of his actions.
She pulls herself together. She releases a long sigh and wills herself to face her brother.
"Listen, Aiden. I know you want to change and judging from what Jacks has told me about you, it seems like you're trying. I'm not having you meet me here so I can put you on the spot. The real reason I wanted to see you again was because...I..." she hesitates, "I want to try and give you another chance."
His mouth drops open slightly. Wait. Does she really? After everything, he almost feels guilty to even be given a second chance.
"Nik, you don't have to-"
"Yes, I do," she interrupts him. "If Jackson is able to make peace with you then so can I. Plus, I miss making fun of you."
They both manage to smile at each other, making the moment feel bittersweet.
"In all seriousness, I feel like I need to give you another chance for my sake. I can't...I can't let what happened before eat me up. I have to do this."
Aiden takes in what she said. He should be relieved that Nicky wants to give him another shot, or let alone give him the time of day, but a part of him still believes he doesn't deserve her forgiveness. No matter how much he wants to let go of the past and become a better person, that guilt always follows him.
On the other hand, forgiveness clearly means a lot to Nicky and if he wants to help her then he has to allow this despite him feeling undeserving of it.
"Okay," is the only word he can say before falling silent.
They stare at each other without saying another word. Deep down, they both want to disregard their surroundings and engulf one another into a hug with Aiden repeatidly apologizing to her and Nicky expressing how much she missed him, but they stay frozen in place.
"No, it's too soon," they think to themselves.
After some time passes, Nicky grabs her bearings and the uncomfortable feeling in her throat dissipates. She only now realizes that the sun has fully set and it's dark out with only the park lights shining down on the park.
"So," she breaks the slience, "why don't we stop somewhere to eat. Maybe a pizzeria. I know one that has the best Chicago deep dish pizza." She give him a wink. "We can eat it for old times sake."
Aiden can't help but grin at Nicky's attempt to diffuse the awkwardness.
"I'd like that," he decides to accept her offer with the grin never leaving his face.
Afterwards, they exit the park and they head over to the pizzeria close by with the atmosphere being more comfortable than it was prior. Once they reach the pizza place, Nicky orders a sausage and pepperoni pizza for the both of them after taking their seats. After some time, they had gotten their pizza and the two of them chat away.
"No because why did we always feel the need to piss off mom and dad?" Nicky says while stiffling her giggles with a half slice of pizza dangling from her hand.
"We were bad kids," Aiden laughs with her while wiping his lips with a napkin.
"Well you were more of the bad kid than I was, but we did some stupid things."
Aiden plops his napkin down on the table.
"Hey, you were the one who stole mom's jewelry and lost some of it. If I remember correctly, she had to spend thousands to either get them found or for replacements."
Nicky rolls her eyes with a smirk.
"Okay, that's true, but you were also the one who stole dad's motorcycle and proceeded to crash it into a parked car all because you wanted to show off in front of your friends. I remember that costed a lot of money to fix too."
They both laugh and continue to eat their pizza. Aiden starts to get full.
After a few minutes, Aiden is the first to get done along with Nicky finishing last. She catches him leaning back in his chair and chuckles softly.
"We're definitely gonna need some boxes," she notes.
"You can have it," he waves her off.
"You sure?"
"Yeah, I'm good," he reassures her, not wanting to admit that he's still living in his car. He won't have a way to store the leftovers anyways.
"Suit yourself then."
Nicky calls over the server to bring them back a to-go box. As she waits, she takes a drink of her iced water and stares at her brother with deep thought.
"So," she stirs her straw in her cup. "Out of curiosity, have you met anyone recently, or throughout the years?"
Aiden squints at her knowing all too well of where she is getting at and he shakes his head.
"You're asking me that?" He cocks an eyebrow.
"Well yeah," she shrugs.
"It's been years and you still want to know about my love life?"
"I mean you can't blame me for being curious. Ever since we grew up, I've never seen you with anyone, or maybe you were secretly dating, but you didn't want to tell me because you didn't want me to embarrass you." She wiggles her brows and he folds his arms in response.
"Maybe I did."
Nicky eyes him for a moment before snorting.
"Alright, alright. If you're so hesitant on telling me about your love life, I can start off with mine if you want. Believe me, it's been a trainwreck."
"You might as well start then," she gestures to her.
She hums. "Okay, so the first person I got with around the time I moved here with Jacks was weirdly sneaky. Like he would never try to talk to me about any problems he had in the relationship. Instead, I found out he was talking trash about me constantly to his friends and family. He was even badmouthing Jacks. Jacks, who was twelve at the time."
"Really? The hell was his problem?"
"Apparently I came off too needy and he thought that Jacks was too annoying," she rolls her eyes. "He didn't really give me a good reason why, but we split shortly after. Another guy I was with not too long after had some major issues and he had confessed to me that...he was in love with his mom," she whispers the last part.
Aiden's eyes widen.
"I'm not kidding. That's why he was interested in me because I reminded him of her or something." Nicky's face scrunches up.
Aiden stares at her with his mouth dropping open. Nicky awkwardly laughs.
"Yep. So, it's been a wild ride for me."
"And you're not joking?" He asks, getting creeped out at the thought of her meeting someone like that.
"Nope," she shakes her head. "And I made sure I cut all contact with him and he hasn't turned up since, so don't worry."
Aiden quietly sighs in relief, still being just as weirded out about the story as she is.
"Anyway," she pushes a strand of lose hair out of her face. "That makes up the majority of issues I ran into in relationships besides a few others which mainly consisted of me having some trust issues about things that happened before moving here." She stares down at her drink and sighs.
Aiden tucks his fingers into his palm resting on the table and frowns with old guilt resurfacing in him.
"I'm sorry, Nik," he says softly.
She quickly glances up at him and senses his guilt. She's quiet for a few seconds, knowing that he is the reason she has to be vigilant of the people she dates due to the possibility of them secretly knowing she's related to Aiden Pearce, but she is aware that not all of her trust issues are because of that.
"I was bound to have trust issues anyways," she assures him. "Especially after the fallout with...you know who."
It takes Aiden a few seconds to realize that she's referring to Jackson's father. His jaw ticks at the thought of him.
"After he just up and left like he did when things got rough, it's also been hard to open up and trust people," she continues.
As much as he wants to be mad at Jackson's father for leaving after her miscarriage, he starts to realize that he shares more traits with him than he is comfortable with. He also abandoned Nicky and Jacks after Lena. He wasn't there when they needed him. He winces at himself for being a coward. He was too focused on himself. That's why his family had to flee to London to begin with.
It's all because of him-
"Aiden." Nicky's voice snaps him out of his thoughts with him realizing he had zoned out for a second. "You're not him, you know?"
His heart stings. He knows where she's going with this and he can't bring himself to believe what she's saying.
"How am I not?" He says before he can hold back. "I...I should have been there."
He gets uncomfortable after speaking. It's surreal to him to express his feelings like this even if it's in front of his sister. He's held those thoughts in for too long.
"Aiden," she sighs. "You still made an effort to be there for the kids. Even if it wasn't too often, you still did what you could. You're here now. As far as I'm concerned, he has not come back at all for us." She reaches out and places a hand on top of his. "And from what I've heard, you've even helped Jacks. Don't beat yourself up, okay?"
She gives him a wink in hopes of lightening the mood. Aiden looks at her and manages a light grin. She pats his clenched hand before pulling away and smiles despite old memories weighing in on her. He softly chuckles after seeing her pat his hand. It reminds him of when Jackson did it.
Like mother, like son.
"Okay?" She asks, making sure he's paying attention.
"Okay," he nods, finally getting his bearings.
She's right. He can't back away.
After a short silence, Nicky takes a deep breath.
"Alright. Didn't mean to get too personal there," she laughs softly and clapses her hands together. "So, back to you. You've had plenty of time to think about it, so have you met anyone?"
Knowing that Nicky won't let up, he eventually finds himself thinking about it. Being in love and having relationships isn't exactly Aiden's strong point. Throughout the years, he hasn't been with anyone. He has never had the time or lifestyle to be in a relationship.
"Well there's not much to tell because I haven't been with anyone," he answers truthfully.
Nicky doesn't want to be surprised, but a part of her is.
"You weren't interested in anybody at the very least?" She furrows her brows.
Aiden stares off for a moment and tries to recall if he has been interested in anyone. After some time passes, he is prepared to say no to Nicky.
Then a familiar face pops up in his mind. An all too familiar face that has haunted him throughout the years and even to this day.
Clara.
His heartbeat quickens at the thought alone of her face. Why is she coming up? He couldn't have been in love with her. Was he? He could never figure it out. His feelings back then were conflicted between anger and something else?
After her death, he came to accept that he did have some fondness to her and he ended up forgiving her. That's all there was. So why is her face glued to his mind? He tries to shake it off.
"Nope," he finally answers.
Nicky eyes him skeptically. "It took you a little bit to answer. You sure?"
Aiden attempts to bring his breathing back to normal which he only now realizes starting to get out of control.
"Yeah," he nods.
Nicky isn't buying it, however, as she leans foward.
"There was somebody," she says in a hushed tone.
"No. There was noone," he says, feeling irritated all the sudden.
"I can tell when you're lying, Aiden."
His lips flatten as he attempts to keep his previous thoughts at bay. The only other person who appears in his mind briefly is Connie, who he only has a slight interest in. Admittedly, Connie does remind him of Clara in some ways. He grows irritated with the himself the more Clara resurfaces in his head.
"I'm not lying," he fakes a chuckle. "Nicky, do you really think I'd have the time to worry about relationships with the lifestyle I had? It's not cut out for guys like me."
"Oh come on, Aiden. You seemed like you were thinking of someone."
"Well I'm not, so you can stop asking."
They both have a stareoff, trying to see who would crack first. She squints at him and searches for any cracks. When he refuses to show her any, she sighs and leans back.
"Fine," she says, deciding not to pry any further.
It's evident Aiden is withholding something, but she doesn't want to bring out any heavy baggage. She understands that far too well.
Afterwards, there aren't anymore conversations regarding relationships, or any other ghosts of the past, but rather simple topics about Nicky's career. Aiden can't help but be proud of her for living a stable life with Jackson.
The more they chat, the more relief seems to wash over him. Nicky has found different ways to heal and she has stayed safe along with Jacks for more than a decade. Maybe everything will be fine.
All those years of being alone, he desperately wanted Nicky and Jacks to be free of any emotional or financial burdens. It has always been his principle. Take the hits so his family doesn't have to.
But now it's different.
There isn't some impending danger just waiting to arrive any second. The more he thinks about it, the more he realizes Jacks is right.
"Mom doesn't need you to protect her anymore. I don't need you to protect me anymore. We just want you to be there."
And if Nicky wants him to be there then he sure as hell will be. That's a promise he will never break.
Clara has been in the car for the past half an hour waiting for any suspicious conversations on Jonas's phone or for him to leave the pub. Much to her disappointment, there has only been the same chatter about the death of Nigel Cass.
She continuously taps her fingers on the steering wheel and does her best to stay patient. With Jonas still remaining in the building, she wonders if she's wasting her time. Something feels off about this though. It seems way too easy for her to tap into Jonas's phone and pinpoint where he is fairly quickly despite Rachel being as cautious as she is.
Clara still gets paranoid about Rachel potentially finding a way to gain control of the device stuck to the back of her neck and enslave her once again. She wonders if all of this is still just a test for whatever reason. She's bewildered that she was set free so easily.
Could this all be on purpose? Is Rachel lingering around the corner waiting to trap her again?
She shudders as she reaches her hand behind her neck and glides her fingers across the metal. She shakes her head. No. Why would Rachel risk setting her free and jeopardizing her deal with the Kelley's? She seemed hellbent on getting Clara back, so the thought of her setting her free on purpose isn't holding up. The whole idea sounds ridiculous now that she thinks about it. Still the question remains.
Who freed her?
Was it someone she knew from Dedsec or from some other time in her life? Are they setting her up too?
Her head tenses from all these overwhelming questions. She shifts her attention back to the Dedsec network after realizing she is trailing off.
"Come on, Clara. Focus," she says to herself.
She continues listening and only the semi interesting conversation she has picked up on is a convo between one of the recruits talking to one of their captives, Richard Malik. He only criticizes the group for not looking deep enough into who Zero-Day is. Nothing too special to Clara.
She takes a breath and gazes out into the city lights. She notices small drops of rain tapping against her car window and whether she like it or not, she is reminded of the last time she was in a car surrounded by rain. She doesn't like to think about it too much. Still, there's a part of her that wonders what truly stopped her from pulling the trigger.
All she really knew at the time was that she needed to help Aiden and his family, but was that all? Did she only stop for Aiden? For herself?
Her thoughts are cut short by a sudden alert in the Dedsec network from Bagley informing the group about an uninvited guest downloading all of their tech and uploading it somewhere else. The sound of static fills her ears and a filtered voice takes over the channel.
"Dedsec. The name is Zero Day. We've met before, in a past life. This city needed a villain and you were perfect for the part."
Villain? Clara doesn't know the full details of Dedsec's recent activities, but from what she has gathered, they've been tracking down Zero-Day. As the filtered voice continues to threaten Dedsec, Clara keeps her ears open for Jonas. The voice goes on to tell Dedsec that they have been unknowingly arming Zero-Day for a war.
The voice cuts off shortly after and the chatter from Dedsec members consist of people saying 'what the fuck' and plain confusion. Bagley urges one of the member's to track the signal and they go on their way.
Clara notices that Jonas is still remaining inside the safehouse. Maybe this will make him leave the safehouse at some point. Still, she has to be patient.
After some time passes, the recruit manages to find a bunker where the source of the data is being collected. They search through the bunker and they find their data being collected from Brocatech, SIRS, The Kelleys, and Themis. More conversations stir between Dedsec and Bagley about who can potentially be behind all of this.
Bagley urges the recruit to check a data source within the bunker that can have more information. Upon looking through it, everyone on the channel is shocked at what they've discovered.
"Sabine?" The recruit says.
Listening to the amount of anger and disbelief from other Dedsec members makes Clara's gut turn.
"She's been manipulating us this whole time?"
"She's sick!"
"How could she kill Dalton like that?"
She shifts uncomfortably in her seat. She knows that this Sabine woman has done some twisted things while realizing it, but she can't shake off the feeling that these people aren't screaming at Sabine, but rather at her instead as if she feels like she is Sabine.
The recruit searches through another source of data and discovers that Sabine is uploading some sort of ctOS patch and isn't sure if it can be stopped.
"Noone can stop it," Sabine's voice can be heard through the channel. "That's the whole point."
It doesn't seem like she is actually speaking through the channel, but rather in person.
"While Dedsec runs around fixing bugs, I'm deleting the source code. Frying the hardware too...all of it. It's actually a beautiful thing you've done by helping to steal all that tech," Sabine continues.
"It's sick that what you think you're doing is right!" The recruit fumes at her. "And when do the rest of your Zero-Day buddies show up?"
Sabine can be heard chuckling. "Oh, it's just me. I learned a long time ago that noone is willing to fight for real change."
As Clara listens, she notices that Jonas has gone silent. Almost everyone except for him has said at least something negative about Sabine.
A loud bang is heard from a distance and a man's voice shouting, "Spread out! Search the area!"
Clara can only assume it's Albion. Sabine says her farewell to Dedsec before seemingly scurrying off. As the recruit tries to fight off Albion inside the bunker and escape, she hopes that they do make it out okay. She wonders what the ctOS patch is for. Judging from Zero-Day's previous actions with the bombings, it can't be good.
There's sudden chatter in the network about Albion chasing after other Dedsec members around the city. Apparently, Sabine has leaked every Dedsec member's location to Albion. Wait, if she did that then does she know Jonas's whereabouts? No. Jonas had to have given Dedsec a fake name and address.
She has to give the asshole some credit.
"We have to get out of the safehouse!" She hears a Connie's voice. "Follow me! I'll get you out safely!"
"I'll get myself out, Connie." Her ears perk up once she finally hears Jonas's voice. "If she's leaked our locations, my family could potentially be in danger."
"It's too dangerous. Just stick with us. Albion could be waiting for you," Connie pleads.
There is brief silence along with some shuffling noises.
"I'm sorry, but I can't allow this," he says.
She hears footsteps and she can only guess he's walking away. She looks up from her phone to keep an eye out for Jonas to leave the building while refraining herself from rolling her eyes at his good guy act.
She eyes the pub entrance with so much focus and determination that she is on the edge of her seat.
"Come on. Come out already," she mutters.
Finally, she sees the doors open and Jonas appears in front of it. He glances around causing Clara to lean back a bit, being cautious to avoid detection. He turns his attention away from her direction luckily and starts walking towards a parked car nearby. He enters the vehicle, but doesn't start it.
Still having access to his phone, Clara listens in. He dials on his phone and it starts to ring. She fully expects him to be calling Rachel and she turns out to be absolutely correct.
"Jonas?" Rachel's voice comes through.
Goosebumps erupt around Clara's body from hearing her voice again.
"Rachel, I've just left Dedsec's hideout. One of the members, Sabine, backstabbed them. She plans to upload some sort of ctOS patch. Turns out she's responsible for the bombings that happened not too long ago."
Rachel sighs. "Jesus. You think she's planning another bombing?"
"I don't know, but whatever patch she is uploading, it's going to spread throughout the whole city."
Clara takes the opportunity to trace the call to see if she can track Rachel's location.
"If I were to guess what it is, I'd say she is going to use ctOS as her weapon," Jonas continues.
"You think there's a way to stop it?" Rachel asks.
If Clara doesn't know any better, she'd think Rachel actually sounds worried. Why should she be worried about others? Unless it's worry for herself.
Clara peaks down at her phone and notices her signal is blocked from tracing Rachel. She furrows her brows.
Something definitely isn't right.
"I don't think we'll be able to do anything about it. Dedsec is already trying to stop the potential attack, and I hate to be insensitive here, but I see an opportunity here, specifically to get Aiden out of hiding."
Clara can picture Rachel leaning closer to the phone.
"What do you mean?"
Jonas clears his throat. "Ever since the bombings, Jackson's college has been closed throughout the week. It's been difficult to catch him there, but I've been monitoring their cameras and they're finally back open today. Guess who is currently at the campus library right now?"
"Wait. Are you suggesting...?" Rachel says hesitantly.
"Using the potential attack as a distraction to take Jackson without anyone noticing," Jonas finishes that thought.
Pent up anger lingers within Clara after hearing Jackson's name. Rachel is silent for a moment.
"I can gather a team and be there in just a few minutes," Jonas says. "It's your call."
Clara glances around the seats of her car to make sure she has all the weapons she needs as she anticipates Rachel's response.
"Fine. Do it," she caves in.
Clara readjusts herself in her seat, her heart pounding.
"Alright. I'll contact the team."
She takes a deep breath and wants so desperately to shoot Jonas's car down and try to stop him, but given the way this entire situation is set up, they're making it too easy for her to discover all of this. There can be several soldiers hidden and waiting for Clara to come out. She has to tread carefully, but at the same time, she can't allow this to happen.
Static noises suddenly fizzle in Clara's car radio before a filtered voice starts speaking.
"London, this is Zero-Day. Nice to finally meet. Those little bombings a few months back were my way of saying hello. Now, we'll really get to know each other."
Clara notices some of the large TV's around the city being disrupted by a hooded blue figure appearing on their screens.
"All that technology you've come to love so well. Texting your nan, driving your car, pumping your heart. It's all about to turn against you."
Clara gets worried. Judging from what Jonas said, it sounds like Sabine is going to try and pull a similar stunt to what Damien did back in Chicago with ctOS all those years ago.
"Tonight, your modern world will become a living hell. I don't expect you to understand this, but what I'm doing is good. Destruction is always the cure."
The figure disappears and the TV's return back to their original state. She gulps.
Something terrible has to be coming.
"Did you catch that?" Jonas asks.
"Yeah."
Clara sees one of the drones flying above the roads abruptly stops and aim towards someone standing at the sidewalk. A red beam appears in front of it as the person being targeted looks at the drone confused for a second before ducking down in panic when it fires at him. Clara watches the man run away as more drones start to do the same to others. Her mouth gapes open as she starts to worry for Jackson's wellbeing.
"Looks like the attack is starting now," Jonas says. "You still alright with this?"
"Erm...yeah...yeah I am. It's just a shame people are probably going to die."
Jonas starts his car.
"Yeah, I know, but we can't lose sight of what we're here for."
"I know...I know."
They don't speak for a moment. Clara puts her hands on the wheel and readies herself to start her car. Best she can do now is follow him and try to sneak up on him when he least suspects it.
"Well, Jackson is still at the library studying like normal, so it looks like the attack hasn't gotten to him yet, so I need to get moving."
"Okay. Keep me updated."
The call ends and Jonas starts to pull out of his parking spot. Clara waits for a moment to start her car. She spots more people running down the sidewalk with more and more drones chasing after them. She feels sorry and is tempted to help them, but with Jonas starting to drive away and Jackson and Aiden's lives being put on the line, she doesn't have time.
She starts her car once Jonas is at a certain distance and she starts to follow him. Keeping a steady pace, she prepares herself for what's coming. She wonders if Jackson really is at the campus, or if they're just bluffing in order to bait her. Regardless, this could be the only chance she has of having a lead on Rachel.
The screeching of an oncoming car to her right catches her offguard as she hits the brakes. The car collides with a building and an explosion erupts. Clara winces at the impact and presses her hand on her chest while trying to catch her breath. She blinks a few times and snaps back to the reality of the task at hand.
Once she glances back towards the road, her heart drops. Jonas's car is gone.
Her forehead creases and she knits her brows while searching for his car. No way did she lose him that quickly. With more cars behind her ramming into themselves, Clara picks up speed again all the while searching for Jonas. After some time looking, she groans.
"Damn it."
The best she can do now is head towards the campus in the midst of the chaos. Clara marks the location in her GPS device which shouldn't be impacted by the attack.
She takes off towards the campus in hopes that she can get there in time. If it is a trap, she has to be ready. With all the descruction happening around her, it's hard for her to think. She focuses her attention on the road and keeps Jackson's safety in mind. She can't take the chance of not stopping Jacks from getting kidnapped. She has to make sure.
If it's all bait then fine. She'd have to take the bait.