Present Day

It was dark down here. Dank and dirty. And soon to be bloody.

Multiple offers had been made to come with her but not only did she not need help, there were only four guards around the corner, Alexei may think he'd gotten one over on her but he wasn't that confident, their numbers were needed elsewhere. Upstairs. Where all of Intelligence, and a shit ton of the rest of the department were going to breach as soon as she'd killed these men.

Liam had wanted to be involved too, more ardently than she'd expected but apparently he too was getting tired of sitting on the sidelines. But with Drew's help they'd been able to convince him that he should, at least for a little longer; they all knew this wasn't going to be the last time someone came out of the woodwork looking for her and right now it was more important that he had all his connections firmly on his side. Most of them already knew his side was hers but if someone was trying to sway them then they needed as many reasons as possible to be the more appealing choice. And, as Drew had pointed out, the more people like Alexei and Ang turned against their own the more the people who saw the repercussions should be inclined to act differently. Tess debated if it was pragmatic or pessimistic to wonder whether that may have the opposite effect but she quickly realized it didn't matter. They would make their choices, just as she had.

To fight.

And she was ready.

The beast beneath her skin was almost purring as she gave her neck one last little stretch, twisting out the knots in her back before she rolled her shoulders, elbows and wrists, the flourish as she whipped out her knives entirely for herself. But that was okay. She was starting to remember how good it felt to do things for herself.

The sense of righteousness she got when she killed people who genuinely deserved it, like the men who started laughing when a muffled shout sounded from above them. She knew that sound. The drawn out scream of someone who had tried to hold it in, to not give the satisfaction of sharing your pain; wasn't how she handled torture but it didn't surprise her that was what Jay had chosen. She surprised those men when she rounded the corner, slitting the first two throats before the others had time to realize she was there, then theirs before they could react. Quick and easy. And painless. At least for her.

And wasn't that what they were all afraid of?

Feeling more certain of this in-between state she'd found herself in, enjoying the steam metaphor she came up with she stepped around their bodies and set up the charges in each corner of the trapdoor that led to the basement. She wasn't going to risk Volya noticing her lifting it up, though she made a mental note to explore these tunnels later. Thanks to the prohibition Chicago was teeming with them, she already had a map but clearly it was a partial one and that was saying something with how intently she'd done her research. But that was for later. Now it was time to get Jay back. Taking out her gun she crouched down in the corner to avoid any debris then turned on the countdown, waiting five seconds after the blast that all but disintegrated the concrete door to hear the distant sounds of PD breaching the main level before she pointed her barrel at the opening and pulled the trigger.

As she'd thought Volya was still waiting for her, he was a quick son of a bitch, she'd give him that but he'd been expecting a bullet not a grappling hook so the shock on his face as she flew over his head filled her with warmth. As did Jay's startled but bright laugh when Tess kicked him in the face.

He was a big man so he didn't go as far as she'd wanted him to, she'd been hoping to swing herself at Jay to knock him off the meat hook he was hanging from but it turned out she didn't need to. As if he'd been waiting for a distraction, waiting for her Jay grabbed hold of the rope binding him and lifted himself up until he was free, her pride warring with fury as she watched him quickly drop to the concrete. Because he was naked, just like she had been, and covered in dozens of razor thin slices, just like she had been. With a jagged slice on his thigh, just like her. Almost. His was on his right side, not matching but… Complementary. Volya's laughter as he stood bolstered her rage and Jay's ragged but fierce breath as he rolled so he could trip the man centred it, his hands as steady as her own as he briefly, effortlessly dislocated his thumb to slip out of his bonds completely.

As one they stood, all three of them, Volya still laughing as he spread his arms in invitation.

And they took it.

He took more shots at Jay because he was injured, because he knew it would piss her off and it did but watching him take them, avoid them and give his own back was worth it. It was healing to hear his shouts of rage whenever one landed on her, so loud they nearly drowned out the gunfire from upstairs, a fight she could not allow any part of her mind to focus on right now. All she knew was what was in front of her, fists, feet and blades each one of them swiped from wherever they could, almost trading them as they armed and disarmed each other. And then it came. With a fearsome backhand Volya knocked Jay to the ground as he went to charge him once more, quickly, and wisely, turning to her next but she avoided his blow by dropping low and sliding her knife across the floor. Where Volya had just enough time to watch Jay snatch it up and slice through his calf muscles.

Her boyfriend, her Ranger, the love of her fucking life followed it up with a solid right hook to his jaw, sending him from one knee to both before he kicked him so hard in the ass he dropped to his hands in front of her. An offering that she took gladly, not with maliciousness but definitely some pleasure.

How could she not enjoy ripping out the spine of a man who'd tried to do the same to her?

There was still some fear before her eyes found Jay's but the lack of judgement made it vanish, the approval filling her with warmth once more. As strange as the pride when he pushed to his feet, grabbed the still gasping Volya by his hair and slid that knife against what was left of his throat. It was a darker awe than she was used to in his green eyes when they found her again and it made her legs as weak as his as he stumbled towards her, arms shaking as they finally wrapped around each other they before fell to their knees. It was over. They'd won.

Almost. It wasn't until the door to the basement flung open and she heard the worried voices of their team that they fully relaxed but though her throat ached when she laughed at Adam's comment about being glad Jay still had his dick Tess relished it. Because she still had one. And so did he.

They'd won.


But not without sacrifice.

In addition to Kim and Kevin taking bullets in the firefight that killed Alexei, the former to her thigh and the latter to his shoulder three other officers had been injured, including Caminetto. And two had been killed, a sacrifice that was going to weigh on her, and yet… She felt not just strong enough to carry it but ready to.

Look at that growth.

"Alright, if both of you could avoid getting hurt for the next little while, I would personally appreciate it."

She and Jay both smiled at his brother but since he was stuck in a hospital bed she took the initiative to walk over and put her hand on the doctors arm. "We'll do our best. I promise."

That was all she could and the tightening of Will's already pinched face made clear he knew it, didn't like it but was working on accepting it, which was why she lingered in the hug he drew her into. They probably should have thought to give him a heads-up that things were going down but he'd handled himself well, though the look he gave his little brother as he squeezed his hand before leaving said he'd be getting a lecture later. Her too but that was fine.

They had one.

"What're the chances you're going to break me out of here?" Jay rasped once they were finally alone, the aftermath of a fight always lasted longer than the actual battle and when they knew as many people as they did that meant a lot of visitors.

But at last it was just them.

"Tomorrow? Pretty much a hundred percent. Tonight? Not a fucking chance."

He made a face but he didn't seem surprised, just made another one as he hid a wince scooting over before he patted the spot beside him. "Then up you come."

Motioning for him to let her maneuver around him instead of the other way around Tess carefully climbed onto his bed and then very gently laid herself atop him, the last of her tension slipping away when he held her.

At last.

"Are you okay?" He asked after a few minutes, evidently fighting the pain meds that should have put him asleep as stubbornly as she did but she couldn't bring herself to care.

"I've been thinking, about what you said about me putting you on the bench." He made a small noise but didn't push her, just adjusted his grip when she moved to look at him. To stare into those beautiful green eyes and thank the fucking stars that she could. "You were right, that I've been keeping you there. But… I didn't put you there."

She'd been ready to keep going, not an explanation she would enjoy giving but she was getting better at speaking up for herself, but the softening of his eyes told her she didn't have to.

"I did. When I decided not to go after you." Jay said sadly, tilting his head in confusion when she shook her head.

"When you decided not to join the agency. I thought… I thought that meant that you didn't want to fight with me. And I never cared, but I- I used that to convince myself that you didn't want to."

"I have always wanted to fight with you." He said seriously and she told herself she moved closer so he wouldn't strain himself running his fingers through her hair but she knew she just wanted to. "But you're right. I didn't want to be in that fight. But I do now."

"I know. And if I can change my mind then you can too."

"That's my girl." He whispered with that soft smile she loved so much and she rushed to meet it with a kiss, sinking into him when he pulled her closer.

Her boy.

Her everything.

Hers.