Weathered 22
xxx
Sunday–5:00 am
Phoenix, AZ
The fire alarm blares as smoke fills the bedroom.
They climb out of bed quickly and pull some clothes on over their nightclothes.
Fortunately, they started getting ready to leave last night, but with too much smoke in the hallway, any items remaining in the bathroom, the guest room, or the rest of the house would be left behind.
Their best escape route seems to be through the bedroom window, which is on the side of the house. Leaving by the window could send the flames in their direction, so they'll have to hurry once it's open.
There's a dresser that partially blocks access to the window, so they move it out of the way.
Alex opens the window, shoves the screen out, and then quickly climbs out. Bobby tosses bags to her, which she drops on the ground. Bobby climbs out last.
Once they're outside, Alex's eyes pan left and right, checking for anyone who might have been observing the house, but she sees no one.
They know who did this. It's not even a question.
"Let's get these in the car," says Bobby. They grab the bags, take them to the car, and toss them into the trunk.
As he latches the trunk, he turns to her. "I have to get back into the house to retrieve something from the guest bedroom."
"No!"
"I'll break in through the side window. It'll be fine."
"No! Bobby, stop!"
"It'll just take a second." He hands her the keys and rushes to the side of the house again to climb into the guest bedroom window.
Alex shakes her head. Dammit, Bobby! Probably went after his binder.
Soon, the shrieking call of the fire alarm inside the house is drowned out by the fire truck sirens.
She hurries to the guest bedroom window. Bobby had removed the screen and broken a section of the window to climb inside.
It's dark and hazy inside.
The wall separating that room from the hallway is on fire. It's hard to see much, but she scans for any sign of movement. She braces her hands on the window ledge, prepared to climb inside and drag his ass out of there.
Fortunately, he surfaces. Just the dark T-shirt is visible. He's bent over and coughing, but he's close to the window.
"Bobby!"
He hands something to her through the open window, then he climbs out.
It's a computer tablet, which she sets on the ground. She also sees that he tucked his binder inside his shirt. Bobby's almost outside as the fire truck pulls up. A firefighter jumps out of the truck and rushes over to where they are.
"Anyone else inside?" asks the firefighter.
"No," says Bobby. He continues coughing once he's outside and reaches down to grab the tablet. Alex puts her arm around him and they walk to the car.
The firefighter follows them. "Do you need to be checked out, sir?"
Alex turns back to answer him. "I've got it."
"I'm fine. I'm fine," Bobby mutters to her, between coughs and gasps. His clothing is a mess. There's soot on his skin. His face is also a little red from being exposed to the heat and he's sweating.
"You need to be checked out, Bobby!"
"You know why we can't, Eames!"
"Escaping the feds won't matter if you've got smoke inhalation or 3rd degree burns!"
"Just need water. There's some in the car."
Stubborn pain in the ass! She thinks to herself.
They're back at the car. Bobby immediately goes to the driver's side and gets in. He sets the tablet and his binder in the backseat. Alex gets into the passenger side and hands him the keys.
Bobby starts the car, backs out of the driveway, and steers around the fire truck that blocks part of the road, and a couple of security cops who are just pulling up.
She and Bobby are leaving the scene, which is going to piss off about half a dozen officials. She wonders how long they'll be able to avoid any fallout.
"Eames, check the back seat. Should be some water," he prompts.
She looks back and finds four bottles of water and one Gatorade bottle. She grabs a water and hands it to him.
He unscrews the cap, tosses it behind him, and chugs down half the bottle.
"You should drink some too, Eames."
She ignores him. She doesn't know if the plan is still to head to Tucson, or if Bobby has some other destination in mind. She sits back and stares out the window. Too upset to say anything.
xxx
5:50 am
Twenty minutes into their drive, the sun still hasn't risen, but the skies are a little brighter near the horizon. Only a few people are out early on a Sunday morning.
Bobby turns onto a road that goes around the city with a lot of hills and curves.
He suddenly stops at an overlook, parks, and gets out of the car. He goes to the trunk to retrieve his bag.
Through the car's side mirror, she watches him clean his face with a towel he had in the back. He takes his shirt off, pulls another one from his bag to put on, then closes the bag and the trunk.
Bobby walks a few paces from the car. He's distressed and begins pacing. She recognizes his behavior. This is usually the point when she has to step in and settle him down so they can get back to the job.
She's still trying to settle herself down.
Alex gets out of the car and charges toward him. "Do you have any idea how much you scared me back there?!"
"Malik did this! He's going to pay!" Bobby hisses, explaining his sudden need to stop the car and pace.
He looks at her. A heavy sigh comes. "I had to get the binder. It has everything we need! I got out and we're fine. I'm trying to get us back to New York!"
"You could have died!" she yells back, her eyes tearing up. "I'm still not over you nearly getting blown up in that car bomb!"
A heavy sigh. Then his shoulders slump. "I'm sorry."
Alex takes a few more steps toward him. "You made this about you and me when you left New York and came to Chicago to stay close to this case! Stop thinking that whatever happens to you is only going to affect YOU!"
She turns and walks back toward the car, wiping her eyes as the tears fall. While standing at the passenger side, she tries to collect herself.
Bobby follows her to the side of the car. When she turns toward him, he steps up and wraps his arms around her. "You're right. I'm sorry. I'm glad you care about me."
She sinks against him, resting her head on his chest. "It's more than that, and you know it."
"Yes. And I'm grateful."
"I still think you might need to get checked out by a doctor."
Bobby settles back from her and meets her eyes. "I'm fine, Eames. I only caught a little smoke. Besides, the years of smoking have already done their damage."
"You know how much I hate to hear that."
"I'm a tough guy."
She meets his eyes with a glare. "You're not indestructible.
"I get it."
"I don't want to lose you, Bobby. I can't go through that again."
He gives a nod. "I'll be more sensitive to that from now on, I promise. I don't want to lose you either."
A gaze lingers between them. Bobby touches her chin, then leans in and kisses her.
Alex rises on her tiptoes and wraps her arms around his neck to guide him closer. With a brush of her tongue on his lower lips, they deepen the kiss. He lifts her into his arms. Her heart races and warmth rushes through her.
She's in no hurry to stop, but inevitably, they run out of breath. They break the kiss and settle into a hug while catching their breath. She lays her head against his chest.
"Thank you," she says breathlessly.
"Oh, for that?" He smirks. "I liked it too."
They settle back and their eyes meet.
"Once we wrap up this case and go back to New York, I'm done with the feds."
"You're leaving the bureau?"
He nods. "There are some good people in the bureau, but I don't think it's for me. If the NYPD won't take me back when we get to New York, I'll find something else. Write a book. Teach a class on forensics. I'll figure it out."
"NYPD might take us back."
"They'll take you back. Not sure about me. Or if they do, I'll be working the security desk," he chuckles.
"Then I'll get to see you in a uniform all the time."
"Oh, you like that?" He leans his head back a little and gives her a playful grin.
"Let's get this mess figured out. We can talk about our fantasies later."
Bobby chuckles. "Right."
"So, are we still headed to Tucson, or should we skip it and just jump the border?" she teases.
"Let's grab a hotel in Tucson. Get a shower and some breakfast. Get some sleep. Figure out our next steps. I'll call Dunkirk about his cabin."
"What about your director in Phoenix?"
"For what?"
"Do you trust him?"
Bobby ponders it for a moment. "Barely knew the guy. We didn't work together. I reported to Dana."
"The other thing that's bothering me is we're in Witsec and we're missing. They'll investigate the fire. What if it looks like we had something to do with it?"
"I have confidence in Dunkirk. I'll reach out to him and explain. I trust Dana too. They'll have our backs."
"Okay." Her eyes drift back to the car. "We also need to do something about the tracking devices."
"Oh, wait… I might have a detector."
Alex rolls her eyes. "Wish I knew that last night."
Bobby goes to the passenger side of the car, opens the door, then reaches inside the glove compartment. "Here we go. I had one just in case. You never know."
Bobby checks the vehicle's interior with the detector. Moments later, he stops at the dashboard. "Here's one." Alex enters through the passenger side and sees it inside the air vent. Bobby uses a small screwdriver to break it apart and remove it piece by piece.
"Found another," says Bobby after he pulls down the seat in the back. He removes it, examines it, and tosses it on the ground.
They find a third one in the trunk, which is also examined and tossed.
"Done," says Bobby after one last check. "Just one more." He takes his phone out, pushes a couple of buttons, disabling the location finder, and tucks it away. "There. This will give us time to rest and figure out a plan. Dunkirk will know where we are. But the rest of the bureau will have to stand down and let us handle this."
xxx
