Fic - Call it Fate (part 3 of 6)
Title: Call it Fate
Author: prehistoriccat
Rating: PG
Characters/Pairings: Abby/Connor, Matt
Genre: Gen, angst, romance
Disclaimer: Characters not mine, no copyright intended
“Who are you?” Connor demanded. “And what do you mean? This was planned?”
When Connor woke there were two things he was certain of. He wasn't in his own bed and this wasn't the ARC's medical bay either. Every inch of his body hurt and when he glanced down he realised that there was an IV attached to his left arm and electrodes fastened to his bare chest.
“Abby?” She had to be here; even before they were a couple she'd sat at his bedside when he'd been injured. When there was no answer, he tried to sit up and get a better look at the room he was in. He was clearly in some kind of medical facility, but it didn't have that distinctive hospital smell. As he moved, a pain shot through the entire length of his body, taking his breath and making him lie back again.
“Nurse?” Surely he wasn't here alone? Someone must have got him here from the wreckage of the car and tended to his injuries. There was movement at the far end of the room and a young woman came into view. She had a kind smile, but wasn't in a nurse's uniform.
“Hi,” she said softly. “I'm glad you're awake. How do you feel?”
“Like I've been hit by a bus.”
“You were a bit battered when they brought you in. I'll go and tell them that you're awake and I'll ask the doctor to sort you out with some pain killers.”
Before Connor could ask who 'they' were, she had disappeared, but reappeared a few moments later with two men. Connor thought one of them looked vaguely familiar but couldn't place him and the other appeared to be the doctor. He shone a light into Connor's eyes and checked the monitors at the side of the bed.
“Mr Temple,” the first man said. “I first of all should apologise for the unconventional methods my employee used to get you here. He was told to use any means necessary; I should have specified that I needed you in one piece. It was not my intention for you to be harmed in this way.”
“Who are you?” Connor demanded. “And what do you mean? This was planned?”
“All will become clearer in time, Mr Temple. Right now, we need to concentrate on you getting better.”
Connor winced as the doctor prodded him. “Sorry,” he said. “Your injuries aren't life threatening. A couple of cracked ribs, a few cuts that needed stitches and a blow to your head that will probably give you one hell of a headache for a while.”
“Nothing that I'm not used to then,” Connor tried to smile. “Has anyone called Abby? She's probably worrying about me by now. I should have been home hours ago.”
“I'm afraid not,” the first man said. “We couldn't find a contact number for her. I'm afraid your mobile phone was badly damaged in the accident.”
“Can I have a pen? If I write her number down, could one of you call her and tell her where I am?
“Of course. Alice?” The young woman brought Connor a notepad and pen and waited whilst he scribbled down Abby's mobile number. She took it from him and promised she'd call as soon as possible.
Then Connor felt a sharp pain in his arm as the doctor injected him with something and it all went blank.
-o-
When Abby awoke, she was initially disorientated. Then she remembered where she was and grew annoyed with herself. Some help she would be to Connor asleep. As she tried to stretch out the stiff knots in her neck and shoulder from sleeping in an awkward position, she noticed Matt's jacket covering her. Her anger shifted from herself to him. How could he allow her to fall asleep at a time like this?
She eased herself out of the car and strode over to where Matt was stood talking to a police officer. She glared at him. “Why didn't you wake me?”
“There was no reason to. You need to rest. I'd have woken you if there'd been any developments.”
Abby looked at her watch, it was approaching mid-afternoon. She'd hoped there would have been at least something to go on by now. Matt told her about the conversation he'd had with Mr Greg and she felt a little more positive, her anger subsiding. It was a tiny shred to cling to. “Do you think an anomaly could have pulled Connor's car off the road?”
Matt shook his head. “It would've had to have been huge to have the strength to drag a fast moving car away. Besides, it would've been picked up on the detector at the ARC. I have Jess doing some checks but if there'd been anything obvious she would have called me by now.”
Almost as if on cue, Matt's mobile rang. He pulled it out of his pocket expecting to see Jess's name on the screen, but it was Becker calling. “What have you got for me?”
“Jess said to tell you that she couldn't find anything out of the ordinary on Connor's computer and that there was definitely no anomaly anywhere near your co-ordinates yesterday. The only readings she picked up could have come from mobile phones or electricity pylons in the vicinity.”
Matt frowned. Whilst he hadn't really expected Jess to find anything on Connor's computer, he had thought she'd find a least a small indication that an anomaly had opened in the area as that seemed the most likely explanation for his disappearance. Something was wrong though. Something in the tone of Becker's voice un-nerved him and the fact that the soldier had called him and not Jess told him there was more to come. “Anything else?” he prompted.
“I thought the town name sounded familiar whilst Jess was running her diagnostics, so I got the co-ordinates from her.” Becker sighed and his usually confident voice cracked. “It's a place I know too well, Matt.”
“In what way?”
“There's been several anomalies in that area previously. They used to open on a fairly regular basis until about 18 months ago.”
“And you've investigated them?”
“When we were searching for Abby, Connor and Danny... those anomalies lead to the same place as the one they'd disappeared through at the race track.” Becker paused for a moment, trying to find the words he had to say. Matt waited patiently, sensing that Becker needed the time to compose himself.
“The co-ordinates you gave Jess,” Becker continued. “That's where the last rescue attempt was made.” Matt closed his eyes as the realisation hit him and he knew why Becker was struggling. “It was where Sarah was killed.”
“Mate, I'm sorry.” Matt wished he was at the ARC at Becker's side so that he could at least offer a friendly hand on his shoulder to let him know he wasn't alone. Matt knew that, like Abby, the soldier rarely showed emotion in public and would be bottling up everything until he could be on his own.
“I'm fine.” Becker cleared his throat and the air of professionalism was back. “I have masses of data on that area; anomaly readings, dates, times, predictions... I can send it all to you if it'll be of any use? Do you have internet access?”
“Not here, but I suspect Abby won't want to go home tonight so we'll find a hotel nearby. I'll pick it up on my laptop later.”
“Do you think Connor's disappearance has something to do with an anomaly?”
“I don't know what to think, Becker. Look, thanks for the information. I know it can't be easy. I'll call you as soon as we have any kind of update.”
The call was ended and Matt waited for a moment before turning his attention back to Abby. She was looking at him questioningly, waiting for him to tell her what Becker had said. Matt had no idea how much Abby knew about the events surrounding Sarah's death. He doubted Becker would have gone into detail, but it was likely that Abby and Connor had read the files when they returned.
“There's no sign that an anomaly opened here yesterday,” he stated. “Mr Greg and his wife must've just seen a freak lightning bolt or some kind of electrical activity in the air.”
“What else did Becker say?” Abby was no fool. She knew a lot more had been said than that.
“He has some information about previous anomalies here. He's going to email it to me, so we need to find a hotel for the night that has Wi-Fi access.”
Abby sensed Matt was still holding something back from her, but she decided not to push him. She was tired and frustrated that there was still nothing positive to go on. It did seem slightly odd that Becker would remember previous anomalies at this location when she didn't. She was certain that if they'd been to an anomaly this close to Connor's childhood home, they'd have taken a detour to go and visit his mum. At the far end of the field, she could see some of the search party returning and she nudged Matt. They were calling it a day, at least as far as the search in the immediate surroundings was concerned.
Abby marched off to find the officer in charge that they'd spoken to earlier in the day. She wanted to know why they were giving up so early in the day when there was still several hours of daylight left.
“Miss Maitland.” DS Walton was already anticipating her question when he saw her approach. He was an experienced officer and searches like this, whilst few and far between, were a part of his job he was sadly very familiar with. Dealing with concerned relatives who felt they should be doing more was difficult. “We're simply shifting the focus of the search. It's clear that there is no sign of Mr Temple here, and we need to regroup and explore other possibilities.”
“Other possibilities?” Matt was at Abby's side by now, resting his hand on her shoulder, both in support and as a calming restraint.
“I'm sorry to have to ask you this, but is everything OK between yourself and Mr Temple? No arguments or unresolved issues between you?”
“Absolutely not.” Abby was firm.
“And his work. Is everything there fine? I can see from the files my team pulled up that you all work for the Home Office, I imagine that must be quite a stressful...”
“Are you suggesting that Connor has staged his own disappearance?” Matt said, feeling Abby's shoulder tense up.
“It wouldn't be the first time I've dealt with something like that. Martial problems, relationship issues, work stress, money worries... sometimes the only way some people think they can cope is to simply disappear and make sure they can't be found.”
Abby shook her head. “Not Connor. He wouldn't do that to me. We're supposed to be getting married in a couple of months time, and our work... we did have a difficult period a few months ago, but that's passed and it's all sorted.”
“OK, like I said, I do have to ask these things. It's routine.”
“I understand,” Abby said softly. “What now?”
“I'm going to send the team off on a wider search now. Knocking on doors in the village, asking people to check their sheds and outhouses, checking in with local pubs, guest houses and hotels - anywhere he might have turned up seeking somewhere to rest. I suggest the two of you find somewhere to stay for the night. Try to get a decent meal and some sleep. I will call you as soon as I have any news for you at all.”
“We will,” Matt said, jumping in before Abby could protest. He gave her a look and he could see that she had resigned herself to another night without Connor, the fight slipping from her body.
-o-
The hotel was pleasant enough. Abby and Matt had managed to get adjoining rooms with a door that connected the two. Abby had decided that taking a shower might help to revive her and clear her mind, but she kept turning it off, convinced she'd heard her phone ringing. After she'd dried her hair, she slipped her phone into the pocket of her jeans and went through into Matt's room. She needed the company. He was busy on his laptop and hadn't heard her come in, so she silently moved behind him to see what he was doing. When he realised she was there, he hurriedly minimised the document he was reading.
“Matt?”
“It's nothing. Just something Becker wanted me take a look at for him.”
“He was going to send you some information about anomalies in the area. Anything of interest?”
Matt sighed. It was pointless trying to keep anything from Abby. She had a right to know, even if it had no bearing on the current events. He opened up the document again and turned the screen so that Abby could see.
She expected to see the familiar sequences of numbers and calculations that accompanied all of the anomaly reports alongside maps and satellite images. This was different; it was text. “This is Becker's field report about the mission where Sarah died.”
Matt nodded solemnly. “That happened here.”
Abby's mouth dropped open. “The field where Connor disappeared? That anomaly led to the same future where we went after Helen Cutter?”
“Well, it did back then. The anomaly used to reopen regularly, but there's been no sign of it for 18 months. Something's changed. It doesn't exist any more.”
“Perhaps not,” Abby said. “That driver described an anomaly perfectly. Connor has to have gone through.”
“But the ARC didn't pick up anything at all, not even a tiny trace, Abby. There was no anomaly, unless we have a completely new kind of anomaly that we can't detect.” As he said it, he knew what Abby was thinking, and it did make sense. Connor had said that after the convergence there was every possibility that the very nature of the anomalies could change and that their equipment would slowly become obsolete unless they adapted it. Matt knew deep down that Connor had to have gone through an anomaly, there was no other explanation for his disappearance.
“Suppose I'm right,” Abby began.
“What difference does it make? It won't reopen for months.”
“It led to the same place as the anomaly at the race track, right?”
“Pretty much. From Becker's reports it opened about a kilometre away from where they'd found the smashed artefact and the remains of the computer and a version of the ARC.”
“Then we can go and look for Connor.” Abby smiled. Matt looked at her with a puzzled expression. “The anomaly at the race track is still open, just sealed inside a concrete bunker. Call Becker and get him to get in a demolition crew. He should have the bunker open by the time we get there and we can go through and find Connor.” She was already on her feet and heading back to her own room, presumably to get ready to leave.
.
Author: prehistoriccat
Rating: PG
Characters/Pairings: Abby/Connor, Matt
Genre: Gen, angst, romance
Disclaimer: Characters not mine, no copyright intended
“Who are you?” Connor demanded. “And what do you mean? This was planned?”
When Connor woke there were two things he was certain of. He wasn't in his own bed and this wasn't the ARC's medical bay either. Every inch of his body hurt and when he glanced down he realised that there was an IV attached to his left arm and electrodes fastened to his bare chest.
“Abby?” She had to be here; even before they were a couple she'd sat at his bedside when he'd been injured. When there was no answer, he tried to sit up and get a better look at the room he was in. He was clearly in some kind of medical facility, but it didn't have that distinctive hospital smell. As he moved, a pain shot through the entire length of his body, taking his breath and making him lie back again.
“Nurse?” Surely he wasn't here alone? Someone must have got him here from the wreckage of the car and tended to his injuries. There was movement at the far end of the room and a young woman came into view. She had a kind smile, but wasn't in a nurse's uniform.
“Hi,” she said softly. “I'm glad you're awake. How do you feel?”
“Like I've been hit by a bus.”
“You were a bit battered when they brought you in. I'll go and tell them that you're awake and I'll ask the doctor to sort you out with some pain killers.”
Before Connor could ask who 'they' were, she had disappeared, but reappeared a few moments later with two men. Connor thought one of them looked vaguely familiar but couldn't place him and the other appeared to be the doctor. He shone a light into Connor's eyes and checked the monitors at the side of the bed.
“Mr Temple,” the first man said. “I first of all should apologise for the unconventional methods my employee used to get you here. He was told to use any means necessary; I should have specified that I needed you in one piece. It was not my intention for you to be harmed in this way.”
“Who are you?” Connor demanded. “And what do you mean? This was planned?”
“All will become clearer in time, Mr Temple. Right now, we need to concentrate on you getting better.”
Connor winced as the doctor prodded him. “Sorry,” he said. “Your injuries aren't life threatening. A couple of cracked ribs, a few cuts that needed stitches and a blow to your head that will probably give you one hell of a headache for a while.”
“Nothing that I'm not used to then,” Connor tried to smile. “Has anyone called Abby? She's probably worrying about me by now. I should have been home hours ago.”
“I'm afraid not,” the first man said. “We couldn't find a contact number for her. I'm afraid your mobile phone was badly damaged in the accident.”
“Can I have a pen? If I write her number down, could one of you call her and tell her where I am?
“Of course. Alice?” The young woman brought Connor a notepad and pen and waited whilst he scribbled down Abby's mobile number. She took it from him and promised she'd call as soon as possible.
Then Connor felt a sharp pain in his arm as the doctor injected him with something and it all went blank.
-o-
When Abby awoke, she was initially disorientated. Then she remembered where she was and grew annoyed with herself. Some help she would be to Connor asleep. As she tried to stretch out the stiff knots in her neck and shoulder from sleeping in an awkward position, she noticed Matt's jacket covering her. Her anger shifted from herself to him. How could he allow her to fall asleep at a time like this?
She eased herself out of the car and strode over to where Matt was stood talking to a police officer. She glared at him. “Why didn't you wake me?”
“There was no reason to. You need to rest. I'd have woken you if there'd been any developments.”
Abby looked at her watch, it was approaching mid-afternoon. She'd hoped there would have been at least something to go on by now. Matt told her about the conversation he'd had with Mr Greg and she felt a little more positive, her anger subsiding. It was a tiny shred to cling to. “Do you think an anomaly could have pulled Connor's car off the road?”
Matt shook his head. “It would've had to have been huge to have the strength to drag a fast moving car away. Besides, it would've been picked up on the detector at the ARC. I have Jess doing some checks but if there'd been anything obvious she would have called me by now.”
Almost as if on cue, Matt's mobile rang. He pulled it out of his pocket expecting to see Jess's name on the screen, but it was Becker calling. “What have you got for me?”
“Jess said to tell you that she couldn't find anything out of the ordinary on Connor's computer and that there was definitely no anomaly anywhere near your co-ordinates yesterday. The only readings she picked up could have come from mobile phones or electricity pylons in the vicinity.”
Matt frowned. Whilst he hadn't really expected Jess to find anything on Connor's computer, he had thought she'd find a least a small indication that an anomaly had opened in the area as that seemed the most likely explanation for his disappearance. Something was wrong though. Something in the tone of Becker's voice un-nerved him and the fact that the soldier had called him and not Jess told him there was more to come. “Anything else?” he prompted.
“I thought the town name sounded familiar whilst Jess was running her diagnostics, so I got the co-ordinates from her.” Becker sighed and his usually confident voice cracked. “It's a place I know too well, Matt.”
“In what way?”
“There's been several anomalies in that area previously. They used to open on a fairly regular basis until about 18 months ago.”
“And you've investigated them?”
“When we were searching for Abby, Connor and Danny... those anomalies lead to the same place as the one they'd disappeared through at the race track.” Becker paused for a moment, trying to find the words he had to say. Matt waited patiently, sensing that Becker needed the time to compose himself.
“The co-ordinates you gave Jess,” Becker continued. “That's where the last rescue attempt was made.” Matt closed his eyes as the realisation hit him and he knew why Becker was struggling. “It was where Sarah was killed.”
“Mate, I'm sorry.” Matt wished he was at the ARC at Becker's side so that he could at least offer a friendly hand on his shoulder to let him know he wasn't alone. Matt knew that, like Abby, the soldier rarely showed emotion in public and would be bottling up everything until he could be on his own.
“I'm fine.” Becker cleared his throat and the air of professionalism was back. “I have masses of data on that area; anomaly readings, dates, times, predictions... I can send it all to you if it'll be of any use? Do you have internet access?”
“Not here, but I suspect Abby won't want to go home tonight so we'll find a hotel nearby. I'll pick it up on my laptop later.”
“Do you think Connor's disappearance has something to do with an anomaly?”
“I don't know what to think, Becker. Look, thanks for the information. I know it can't be easy. I'll call you as soon as we have any kind of update.”
The call was ended and Matt waited for a moment before turning his attention back to Abby. She was looking at him questioningly, waiting for him to tell her what Becker had said. Matt had no idea how much Abby knew about the events surrounding Sarah's death. He doubted Becker would have gone into detail, but it was likely that Abby and Connor had read the files when they returned.
“There's no sign that an anomaly opened here yesterday,” he stated. “Mr Greg and his wife must've just seen a freak lightning bolt or some kind of electrical activity in the air.”
“What else did Becker say?” Abby was no fool. She knew a lot more had been said than that.
“He has some information about previous anomalies here. He's going to email it to me, so we need to find a hotel for the night that has Wi-Fi access.”
Abby sensed Matt was still holding something back from her, but she decided not to push him. She was tired and frustrated that there was still nothing positive to go on. It did seem slightly odd that Becker would remember previous anomalies at this location when she didn't. She was certain that if they'd been to an anomaly this close to Connor's childhood home, they'd have taken a detour to go and visit his mum. At the far end of the field, she could see some of the search party returning and she nudged Matt. They were calling it a day, at least as far as the search in the immediate surroundings was concerned.
Abby marched off to find the officer in charge that they'd spoken to earlier in the day. She wanted to know why they were giving up so early in the day when there was still several hours of daylight left.
“Miss Maitland.” DS Walton was already anticipating her question when he saw her approach. He was an experienced officer and searches like this, whilst few and far between, were a part of his job he was sadly very familiar with. Dealing with concerned relatives who felt they should be doing more was difficult. “We're simply shifting the focus of the search. It's clear that there is no sign of Mr Temple here, and we need to regroup and explore other possibilities.”
“Other possibilities?” Matt was at Abby's side by now, resting his hand on her shoulder, both in support and as a calming restraint.
“I'm sorry to have to ask you this, but is everything OK between yourself and Mr Temple? No arguments or unresolved issues between you?”
“Absolutely not.” Abby was firm.
“And his work. Is everything there fine? I can see from the files my team pulled up that you all work for the Home Office, I imagine that must be quite a stressful...”
“Are you suggesting that Connor has staged his own disappearance?” Matt said, feeling Abby's shoulder tense up.
“It wouldn't be the first time I've dealt with something like that. Martial problems, relationship issues, work stress, money worries... sometimes the only way some people think they can cope is to simply disappear and make sure they can't be found.”
Abby shook her head. “Not Connor. He wouldn't do that to me. We're supposed to be getting married in a couple of months time, and our work... we did have a difficult period a few months ago, but that's passed and it's all sorted.”
“OK, like I said, I do have to ask these things. It's routine.”
“I understand,” Abby said softly. “What now?”
“I'm going to send the team off on a wider search now. Knocking on doors in the village, asking people to check their sheds and outhouses, checking in with local pubs, guest houses and hotels - anywhere he might have turned up seeking somewhere to rest. I suggest the two of you find somewhere to stay for the night. Try to get a decent meal and some sleep. I will call you as soon as I have any news for you at all.”
“We will,” Matt said, jumping in before Abby could protest. He gave her a look and he could see that she had resigned herself to another night without Connor, the fight slipping from her body.
-o-
The hotel was pleasant enough. Abby and Matt had managed to get adjoining rooms with a door that connected the two. Abby had decided that taking a shower might help to revive her and clear her mind, but she kept turning it off, convinced she'd heard her phone ringing. After she'd dried her hair, she slipped her phone into the pocket of her jeans and went through into Matt's room. She needed the company. He was busy on his laptop and hadn't heard her come in, so she silently moved behind him to see what he was doing. When he realised she was there, he hurriedly minimised the document he was reading.
“Matt?”
“It's nothing. Just something Becker wanted me take a look at for him.”
“He was going to send you some information about anomalies in the area. Anything of interest?”
Matt sighed. It was pointless trying to keep anything from Abby. She had a right to know, even if it had no bearing on the current events. He opened up the document again and turned the screen so that Abby could see.
She expected to see the familiar sequences of numbers and calculations that accompanied all of the anomaly reports alongside maps and satellite images. This was different; it was text. “This is Becker's field report about the mission where Sarah died.”
Matt nodded solemnly. “That happened here.”
Abby's mouth dropped open. “The field where Connor disappeared? That anomaly led to the same future where we went after Helen Cutter?”
“Well, it did back then. The anomaly used to reopen regularly, but there's been no sign of it for 18 months. Something's changed. It doesn't exist any more.”
“Perhaps not,” Abby said. “That driver described an anomaly perfectly. Connor has to have gone through.”
“But the ARC didn't pick up anything at all, not even a tiny trace, Abby. There was no anomaly, unless we have a completely new kind of anomaly that we can't detect.” As he said it, he knew what Abby was thinking, and it did make sense. Connor had said that after the convergence there was every possibility that the very nature of the anomalies could change and that their equipment would slowly become obsolete unless they adapted it. Matt knew deep down that Connor had to have gone through an anomaly, there was no other explanation for his disappearance.
“Suppose I'm right,” Abby began.
“What difference does it make? It won't reopen for months.”
“It led to the same place as the anomaly at the race track, right?”
“Pretty much. From Becker's reports it opened about a kilometre away from where they'd found the smashed artefact and the remains of the computer and a version of the ARC.”
“Then we can go and look for Connor.” Abby smiled. Matt looked at her with a puzzled expression. “The anomaly at the race track is still open, just sealed inside a concrete bunker. Call Becker and get him to get in a demolition crew. He should have the bunker open by the time we get there and we can go through and find Connor.” She was already on her feet and heading back to her own room, presumably to get ready to leave.
.