Special (9/?)
Title: Special (9/?)
Summary: All over the world, people are waking up with extraordinary abilities. Not knowing how they got them or what to do, they will soon discover that they are not alone. They are all connected. They are all special. Based on NBC’s Heroes. Various Pairings.
Wow I feel like I haven't updated this in forever. But I finally feel like I've got the ball rolling in regard to where I want this story to go. So that's good :)
Links to previous chapters inside.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8
Disclaimer: I’m not making any money off of writing this story. It’s entirely fictional and based on the performances given in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers and not the actual soldiers. Any ideas or phrases borrowed from the NBC show Heroes belong to the writers of that show, not me. I don’t own anything…so please don’t sue me. I wrote it for your enjoyment so…enjoy!
Company Headquarters, Philadelphia, PA
Bill stared at Dick not sure what to say or what to do with the hard look in his partners eyes. Dick looked cold, and it didn’t sit well with him at all.
“Dick- you can’t be sure. We don’t know everything. Before we jump to conclusions we need to get all the facts.”
Dick pushed his chair away from Bill roughly, “Because I’m sure they’re just going to leave evidence of my parent’s death around for me to dig up. They’re smarter than that and you know it. The pieces are all there Bill. I just never had any reason to think about it until now. But with Babe’s dream…”
Bill took a deep breath, trying to settle his thoughts. If what Dick believed was true...it raised multiple questions.
Just how long had the company suspected Babe was special? Why not take both Dick and Babe at once? Would Babe be susceptible to Dick’s ability? And most importantly….how long could the Company expect Dick to be ignorant of the fact that his own flesh and blood was living under his partner’s roof?
“What exactly do you plan to do about it Dick?” Bill asked knowing that the red headed man hadn’t thought it through.
Dick stood up quickly, and walked over to look at the hallway through the window in Bill’s office. He crossed his arms and just stared at the employees walking back and forth. He didn’t know what he was going to do…but the more he thought about it…the more sick the whole thing made him feel.
He sighed, closing his eyes and turning his head to the side, “How many more people Bill? How many more people are going to die and have their lives ruined by this company?”
Bill frowned and silently crossed the room to stand next to Dick, who still had his eyes closed. He lifted a hand to reach out and touch him but paused. Instead he let his hand ghost down the side of Dick’s arm before pulling it back altogether.
He couldn’t cross that line. Not now, not again…
Dick opened his eyes as if he knew that Bill was next to him and turned to look him in the eyes, “Our families were destroyed by these people. We were destroyed by these people.”
At that Bill actually did reach out and touch him, seizing his shoulders with both hands and giving him a small shake, “We are each other’s family now Dick. You, me, Babe…they’re not going to ruin that. I won’t let them. Do you understand me?”
Dick nodded, looking lost…and in that moment Bill couldn’t breathe.
Because suddenly-he could see it. Forget all the obvious similarities….
It was in the way that Dick pursed his lips to the left.
Just like Babe.
The realization hit him hard and he froze.
The door to his office was pushed open and Liebgott stuck his head in, “Hey- Sobel needs Winters. Like right now apparently.”
Bill glared and let his hands drop from Dick’s shoulders. Dick gave him one more nod and Bill watched the turmoil melt off his face.
Dick turned to Liebgott with a smile, “Thanks Joe. You wait here okay?”
The kid shrugged but let Dick usher him into the office as he left. Bill gave him a dark look, “What does Sobel need to see him for?”
Joe just shrugged, not looking intimidated in the slightest, “How the Hell should I know? I’m the new guy remember?”
Bill frowned as he thought, not for the first time, that Joseph Liebgott was still a wild card.
Dick knocked on the door lightly before pushing it open. Sobel was at his desk, staring at his computer screen intently but looked up when Dick walked inside.
“So Dick. Are you ready for your assignment?”
No. “Yes sir.”
Sobel nodded, “Good. However I have one more assignment for you and Guarnere before you take our recruit to New York for your solo mission.”
Dick smiled slightly and nodded. The reaction didn’t go unnoticed by his boss.
“You seem happy to hear that.” Sobel remarked.
“Well sir…it’s just that we’ve been given a lot of separate assignments lately. I was wondering if you weren’t going to split us up.”
Sobel shook his head, “I thought maybe you were feeling apprehensive about New York. I know how you feel about children Dick.”
They could fill oceans with all the things that Sobel didn’t know about him…but Dick figured it was best not to say anything.
So Sobel continued, “You have no reason to worry. You and Bill are the best team we have. But you’re both more than capable of handling missions on your own now. Sometimes the occasion simply calls for it.”
Dick nodded, “So what’s the assignment? Rather short notice wouldn’t you say?”
Sobel smiled, “Short notice? Yes. But it’s also very important. This was emailed to me from the Manhattan branch. Come take a look.”
Dick walked cautiously over to Sobel’s computer. He could never fully trust the man. He was always too interested. Too interested in Dick (both personally and professionally) and too interested in Babe. Dick had a feeling that he knew of their relation.
Looking at the computer he frowned when he saw a video playing.
A young man was lying in a pool of blood on the side of the road. Only Dick’s years with the Company helped to keep his reaction in check.
But even he was shocked when he saw what he thought was a dead man begin to move.
Then the man on screen sat up fully and Dick gaped as he began to slowly piece himself back together as he stood. Cuts and gashes closing and broken bones snapping back into place.
A blood streaked face looked straight into the camera.
“That didn’t go as planned.”
Dick couldn’t believe it. Spontaneous regeneration? They all knew it was possible but the Company had long stopped expecting to discover the ability…assuming it had gone dormant…
He stepped back and looked at his boss, “This won’t just be a bag and tag will it?”
Sobel shook his head, “No. We’ve got a cell with his name on it.”
Carwood Lipton, Los Angeles, CA
Hopefully the ambulance and his back up would arrive soon. Because being the caretaker of two unconscious FBI agents left him in a torn state.
Although his first instinct had been to ensure that Agent Speirs was okay, he knew that the man at his feet, Speirs’ partner, was still a threat.
Speirs didn’t strike him as someone to go down without a fight and yet there he was, lying on the hotel bed, bruised and battered.
The man who had hurt Speirs- he’d told Lipton that he wasn’t in control of himself and Lipton believed him.
Because he had heard what the man was thinking….and it sounded like two different people arguing. Maybe Carwood didn’t understand how he had heard what he heard, but at this point- he trusted it.
But if the man woke up under the influence of what the officer assumed was an alternate personality, Lipton wasn’t sure if he would be able to put him down without shooting him.
After talking with his superiors about his brush with the Feds that day, he had been let off of his shift early in the hopes of catching up with Speirs and talking to him about the case.
He certainly hadn’t expected to hear the sounds of breaking glass outside the man’s hotel room and interrupting what could have potentially been a murder.
The point was that he was still packing heat, and he was still carrying cuffs. Which he used to restrain Agent Speirs attacker.
When he felt he’d properly secured the threat he finally allowed himself to look over at the man he had only met earlier that day.
He grimaced when he saw the dark hand prints on Agent Speirs neck. But even more concerning was the blood that was coming from multiple cuts that seemed to be all over his body.
Blood on his face, seeping through his shirt…
“Shit,” Lipton cursed, not knowing what to do. He rushed to the bathroom on the other side of the room and grabbed a few towels to stop the blood that was flowing from the more obvious cuts.
Sitting on the bed he used one hand to press a towel to the gash on the back of the FBI Agent’s neck, the other hand was still holding his gun firmly- refusing to let down his guard.
He was wondering where the ambulance was when a cell phone started ringing.
His first assumption was that it was his, but the noise was coming from the unconscious man beneath his fingers.
Startled-he reluctantly sat the gun down and saw the cell phone sticking out of the Agent’s front pocket.
He grabbed it quickly and checked the screen. Whoever Christenson was…they probably needed to know what had happened.
He pressed talk and put the phone to his ear, “This is Officer Carwood Lipton, I’m with the LAPD. May I ask who this is?”
“LAPD? What are you doing in possession of a federal agent’s phone?”
“Agent Speirs has been seriously injured. I’m with him right now awaiting an ambulance. I’m going to ask again…with whom am I speaking?”
The line was silent for a moment.
“Shit. Is-is he okay? He’s alive right?!”
Just then there was a flurry of activity as two police officers busted the door in and a team of paramedics came in behind them.
He backed off from the bed and let them take over, “The paramedics just arrived. Tell me your relation to him and I’ll call back with an update on his condition.”
“We work together. I’m his partner- Burton Christenson. Look- what hospital is he going to?”
“There’s no way to know for sure. I have to go. When I can tell you- you’ll know.”
He knew it wasn’t enough. But he had work to do.
Hanging up the cell he pocketed it instead of handing it over to the paramedics and went over to help his fellow officers handle the cuffed assailant.
Eugene Roe, Philadelphia, PA
By the time he had exited the airplane he was exhausted, his ass hurt and he wasn’t sure exactly what city he was in.
He looked down at his printed out E-ticket. Oh right…Philadelphia.
Well he had plenty of time to kill before his next flight- which would take him directly to New York. He wasn’t planning to leave until tomorrow morning. He needed the break from all the travel.
He still wasn’t sure where in New York to find Renee’s family. If they were even still there. He would have to…to what? Go to the police he supposed. Maybe he could find a private investigator or some other such thing.
All of his hours stuck on an airplane had given him plenty of time to think about what he wanted to say when he found these people.
He knew he wanted to tell them about how wonderful she was. He of course wanted to give this George guy her letters. He deserved to know how much she loved and missed him.
But he knew they would have questions. Questions that he wouldn’t be able to answer. Gene still didn’t know why she died or who she was running from. Or why those people were chasing her exactly.
Not to mention the little fact that he himself should have died right next to her. How he so often wished he had.
Although he highly doubted that would come up.
Who knew when he would actually see them? He only hoped he got the opportunity to give them all a little closure.
Right now- he wanted a hotel, a bed…and possibly a sandwich.
To get those things- he’d need a taxi.
Eli Luz, Brooklyn, NY
He watched Agent Christenson stare at the hospital floor intently, his phone clutched tightly between his hands.
He’d looked worried ever since he’d finished his call. Eli knew it was because of his friend.
The things that Eli saw….they scared him. Like seeing Burton’s friend getting beaten up.
But his visions weren’t always like that. Sometimes….sometimes he just knew things. Even though he’d never seen either of the men in his vision…he had known that the one in danger was Burton’s friend.
He could see things, sense things…and sometimes just know things. It was scary…but he had learned to embrace his ability. He was pretty sure it scared his Dad more than him these days.
His Dad….the thing with his Dad made him so mad. It wasn’t fair! He knew and saw so much with his powers. Why couldn’t he have known that someone was going to hurt his Dad?
Finally he looked over at the FBI Agent with a determined stare. They were both outside of his Dad’s hospital room while a doctor talked to him inside.
“You should go.”
The agent looked up at him quickly, “What?”
“You should go and check on your friend. I’m sure you want to. Dad’s okay…we’ll be okay.”
The man shook his head and Eli knew that he was about to do the same thing all adults did. Tell Eli he didn’t understand. “Eli…it’s not that simple. You have to understand- your father’s life is still in danger until we catch the man who did this to him. With what you told me…about the both of you? You’re in danger as well.”
Eli frowned, not surprised by what he was hearing, “You like my Dad- I get it. But this is your friend and you’re worried. You should go and check on him. Besides…we’ll see each other again.”
Burton looked like he wanted to address a lot of the things that Eli had eluded to; instead he just gave him a small smile and asked, “Is that something you see?”
Eli shook his head, “Yes…no. It’s more like a feeling.”
Christenson nodded, “Okay then.”
Philadelphia, PA
Joe was getting kind of sick of Bill sizing him up. He knew that the guy not only didn’t trust him- but he didn’t understand him. Guarnere obviously liked to be in control of a situation- so not knowing what Joe’s intentions were, that had to be frustrating.
Because Guarnere could read whatever file he wanted, bring up any painful memory or secret of Joe’s he desired and he still wouldn’t be any closer to understanding what motivated Joe to be in that room.
Joe couldn’t let what happened to him at this Company’s hands happen to anyone else. Sure the whole situation had been sprung upon him rather quickly- but that didn’t dampen his desire to help those out there that were like him. To protect them from these people and their oh so obvious bullshit.
Even if that meant putting himself in danger. He had a lot to atone for and this was as good of a way to do that as anything else he could think of.
What did Guarnere know about sacrifice and atonement?
All of those things aside-Joe felt better now that it was just the two of them. For reasons he still couldn’t explain, anytime that he was within Dick Winters immediate vicinity he felt powerless and off balance.
So when the red headed man walked back into the office with a strange look on his face, Joe sat up a little straighter. Winters hardly took notice and instead plopped a file down onto the room’s single desk absent mindedly.
Then he looked over at his partner, “We’ve got an assignment.”
Guarnere frowned and glanced at Joe, “What about New York?”
“This takes priority.”
At that Guarnere became curious, “Really?”
Guarnere was about to reach for the file when a voice came from the hallway, “Winters! Guarnere! The system got a lock on your target.”
The two didn’t hesitate and quickly shot out the door without giving Joe a second glance.
Surprised to find himself in the office alone, Joe looked over at the file on the desk. What was so important about it- he didn’t know.
But they shouldn’t have left him alone with it.
Slipping his hand into his pocket he pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open. Looking out at the hallway he didn’t see anyone coming back, so he switched to his camera setting and rushed over to the desk as quietly as he could manage.
Flipping the file open he studied the image of a young man with jet black hair. It was the picture of a driver’s license.
Eugene Roe-New Orleans, Louisiana-24 years old.
Joe started taking pictures quickly and took notice of the scribbled notes below the picture.
Rapid cellular regeneration? What the Hell?
Hearing the approach of voices and footsteps, Joe hastily closed the file and pocketed his phone. Sitting back down he tried his best to look bored and certainly not like he had been snooping.
When the two Company men came back, they were not alone. With them was a man around Guarnere’s height with a very unpleasant frown marring his face.
Winters gave Joe a warm smile, “Joe this is Johnny Martin.”
Joe sighed, “Lemme guess…he’s my babysitter until you get back?”
Winters nodded slightly as Bill walked over to his desk and scooped up the file, “That’s one way of looking at it.”
“What’s the other way of looking at it?” Joe asked.
Bill shook his head, “There is no other way. Martin-keep a close eye on him.”
“You got it.” The man promised, giving Joe a hard look. The two men nodded to each other and Winters and Bill left.
The door to the office was then shut and Martin leaned against it, not taking his eyes off of Joe.
“Something you wanna say?” Joe asked, wondering what the fuck the guy’s deal was.
Martin pushed away from the door, “Yeah. I don’t trust people like you.”
“You trust Winters?”
Martin actually laughed, “Dick Winters? Was made for this job. What you can do and what he can do? Not comparable.”
“Yeah? What the fuck do you know about what I can do?”
“I know enough. And you need to know this- if you screw us? It’ll be the biggest mistake you ever make.”
Joe glared, “As you can see- I’m shaking.”
But suddenly the cell phone felt a lot heavier in his pocket.
God…he was so fucking bored!
How could they expect him to just sit around in the apartment all day doing nothing?
Babe very much hated being cooped up. He was a social person, he liked being around people! Not to mention he was 16 years old! He should be out doing shit, not be confined to his room like some sort of delinquent.
He was a good kid damn it! He shouldn’t be freaking locked up, besides…he deserved some downtime every now and then.
His mind made up, he went in search of his phone. Hopefully Chris would still be up to hanging out.
They had pulled up to a motel not far from where Bill himself actually lived. Roe wasn’t traveling under the radar, making it easy to locate his accommodations after their tracking system in New York had gotten a general lock on him.
The two of them had parked their company vehicle, a black SUV with appropriately tinted windows, to face the young man’s room.
Now it was just a waiting game.
They knew he was most likely inside at this point, but the best option was to wait until the young man left his room, which he’d have to do eventually because Bill knew firsthand that shit hole motels like this one didn’t do room service.
Once he was gone it was only a matter of slipping into his room. Then when he was back they’d subdue him and wait until nightfall to take him out to the car.
“So?” Bill broke into their easy silence, “How well do you think a taser will work on him? What with his…”
Bill just wiggled his fingers to indicate he was talking about the kid’s powers.
Dick looked over at him, “Pretty well considering I’m here.”
Oh…right. He’d almost forgotten about that.
He wasn’t entirely in his head at the moment. Everything that they felt they had discovered about Babe and the demise of Dick’s parents had left him drifting in and out of memories he’d just as soon forget.
“Dick…I gotta ask you something.”
Dick shot him a sideways glance, “Anything Bill.”
“All the years you been doing this…it doesn’t bother you? I know you hate the Company…but I’m talking day to day. Does it get to you?”
His partner frowned, “Which part exactly?”
“Going after your own people?”
Dick turned his head to fully look at Bill, “Of course it does. But we’ve discussed this. We do this job because we have to protect Babe- now more than ever. And we can’t do that on the outside. What even brought this up?”
“I was thinking about Joe.”
That statement was met with silence.
Finally Dick said, “ I take it you don’t mean Liebgott?”
Bill shook his head.
Dick just sighed, “Living in the past isn’t healthy Bill. You did the right thing…”
But there was no conviction in his voice as he tried to convince Bill of it. Because they both knew it wasn’t true. Dick had never known Joe, only what Bill told him. He was the only other partner the Company had ever given him.
“There he goes.” Dick leaned forward in his seat and Bill was snapped out of his thoughts as they watched Eugene Roe exit his motel room.
Right…they had a job to do. Besides Dick had a point, dwelling on his past mistakes wasn’t healthy. But given the situation- they seemed to keep creeping up on him.
Memories that reminded him everyday…that he had become a hypocrite.
Either way….he hadn’t allowed himself to think about Joe Toye in a long time.
“So you finally made a break for it huh?” Chris joked to Babe as he slid into the passenger seat of Chris’s truck.
“Yeah, I couldn’t take it anymore. I just needed to get out y’know?”
Chris nodded as he merged with the traffic outside of Babe’s apartment complex. He ran a hand through his short blond hair, before he began to fiddle with the radio.
Babe smirked as he observed him. Chris was pretty cool he decided. Maybe not the best lab partner- but Babe supposed it would be a bit much to ask for him to smart and hot.
“So where we headed?” Babe asked as they took another turn.
Chris laughed, “Remember how you thought you could beat me at pool?”
Babe chucked, “I think my exact words were ‘I will OWN you at pool’. What’s your point?”
The other teen shook his head, “Well it’s a little early for a movie. My brother owns a bar- figure I’d buy you a drink and then you could put your money where your mouth is.”
Babe had no doubt that Chris’s brother was morally flexible enough to allow underage drinking so he just laughed and said, “You’re on.”
Lewis Nixon, Los Angeles, CA
He had finally woken up a couple of hours ago with a split lip and a throbbing headache and Lewis had to admit- that cop had a mean left jab.
He’d been sitting in an interrogation room by himself for who knew how long. His hands were cuffed to the table so he knew he wasn’t going anywhere.
That was a good start.
But he could still feel it. The anger and the presence of Jonathan were just on the outer reaches of his mind. How long could he really keep him at bay?
There was a loud bang as the door behind him slammed open and two detectives walked in. Lewis didn’t recognize either of them and figured that was probably for the best.
“How’s Ron?” was the first question out of his mouth and he couldn’t even really let himself think about what he might have done to him.
However despite the tone of his plea, the two detectives ignored him. One of them- a woman- was carrying a file. Opening it up, she pulled out a series of pictures and carefully laid them out on the table before him.
“Agent Nixon- these are the murders that you told Officer Lipton you committed.”
Lewis grimaced and sucked in a breath as he looked over the photographs.
The first three were crime scene photos of the murders from downtown. The poker game that had been so violently interrupted.
The unhinged door, the mangled bodies and the bullet holes. They were all burned into his memory.
His stomach did an uneasy flip when his eyes took in the next set of photos. The De Lucca brothers.
Jesus Christ.
They were images he had only seen in his nightmares. Long before his worst fears had been realized, before Jonathan had revealed that they weren’t nightmares at all.
The bodies in the photograph were beyond recognition. The blood alone made the job of identifying the victims increasingly difficult. But the way they were...
Oh God…they were torn apart…
Lewis bent his head and slowed his breathing, not entirely sure that he wasn’t about to vomit.
Finally he opened his mouth to speak, “I…it was…”
The male detective frowned at him, “It was what?”
His partner cut in, “Are you going to retract your statement?”
The agent in Nixon wanted to scoff and say that he’d hardly call it a statement. But frankly he was too horrified to even speak.
“Now at first glance,” the man began to speak-shooting a glare at his partner for offering Nixon an out. “At first glance you don’t have much of a connection with any of these victims. But Agent Speirs on the other hand…”
Lewis raised his head, “Is he okay?”
The woman sat down in front of him, “Let him talk, answer our questions and then we’ll answer yours.”
Her partner continued, “Speirs has a history with a few of these men. Seems he had a close encounter with the De Lucca family awhile back. You wanna tell me about it?”
Lewis frowned, “It’s all in the reports.”
“That’s true,” the man nodded, “But you know what isn’t in those reports? The nature of your relationship with Agent Speirs. We know he’s close with your father. But why don’t you tell us?”
Nixon sighed, “We are- we were-in a relationship.”
The female detective just nodded, “And when did that end?”
“I would say about three hours ago-when I almost killed him in our hotel room.”
His two interrogators exchanged a look.
"Why did you attack him?” she asked.
God…how did he explain this? How the Hell was he supposed to explain all this!?
“I didn’t want to!” he snapped, “I did everything I could to keep him safe- I would never intentionally hurt him. I didn’t want to kill those people. But it’s not…it’s not just me in here!”
They both stared at him.
One of them spoke so softly Nixon couldn’t recognize them, “What are you trying to say?”
Lewis gazed at his reflection in the metal table, only to see that it was glaring angrily back at him, “I’m not alone in my head…there’s someone else. He…”
He didn’t want to look up and see their skeptical faces so instead he focused on the cuffs on his hands, noting how strange and alien they felt around his wrists.
“How’s Ron?” he asked once more.
Finally they answered, “He’ll live.”
Buck Compton, NYC, New York
His borrowed desk was a mess of files, notes, pictures and theories. He was scanning the list of Ron’s abduction victims for the next potential target and wondering why he hadn’t received any kind of update from California.
That was when his cell phone began to ring.
“Speak of the devil.” He muttered to himself, fully expecting it to be Nixon or Ron.
Eyes still roaming the list, he put the phone to his ear, “Compton.”
“Buck? It’s Christenson.”
Buck rolled his eyes, not entirely surprised to hear the young agent’s voice. “Hey, how’s Luz?”
“Wow… I’m not sure how to begin to answer that one. Look- he’s fine, he’s also not why I’m calling. It’s Ron…”
Buck paused and felt the dread start to build in his stomach, “What?”
“There’s been some kind of incident- I don’t know all the details but he’s in the hospital. He’s in bad shape I think.”
“Well what the HELL HAPPENED!?” Buck didn’t mean to sound so pissed but he couldn’t help it. Shit. It was always something with Ron. That man couldn’t keep himself out of trouble.
“I DON’T KNOW!” the kid shouted right back and Buck was reminded of why Ron liked him in the first place. He had spunk. “Were you not listening to me? I don’t know the details! But look- I’m grabbing the next flight to LA. You want to come and I’ll get you a seat.”
Buck put a hand to his forehead- feeling a headache coming on, “I’m sorry- I just…yeah get me a seat.”
“Fine. Get your shit together and meet me at the airport in 3 hours.”
“Fine.”
Once he was off the phone, Buck started gathering up all of their case files and putting together his suitcase in his mind.
His hand was on the speed dial for Nixon, but in all likelihood his partner already knew about the situation and was with his boyfriend. Not to mention it would take up time. So Buck didn’t bother and shot out of the office to go to his apartment.
And he’d just gotten back to New York the other day…
Philadelphia, PA
Well Babe learned something new every day.
For instance today he learned that winning a game of pool is pretty fucking easy if the person you’re playing against is drunk off their ass.
Babe had taken advantage of their unique situation and had one drink. ONE!
How many had Chris had? Enough for Babe to tell that the guy had a serious drinking problem.
It was getting dark and the bar was starting to fill up. The night was seriously not going the way that Babe had hoped it would and he wanted to get the Hell out of there.
“Hey,” he poked Chris in the stomach and the other teen turned to him with- surprise, surprise- a drink in his hand.
“What’s up?” Chris slurred although he was still grinning.
Babe sighed, “This place is getting old. Let’s scram, kay?”
The handsome blonde nodded and slung an arm around Babe’s shoulders, “Right! Besides- I said I’d take you to the movies. Didn’t I?”
Babe chuckled nervously as he steered them out of the bar and onto the sidewalks, “Riiight. How bout I take a rain check? I think we should call it a night.”
“Call it a night? No no no no. I promised you a date.”
Babe rolled his eyes, “And oh how you delivered.”
Chris dropped his arm from Babe’s shoulders and stumbled a few feet ahead before turning to look at him, “What’s your problem?”
Babe gaped, “What’s my problem? Are you serious? You’re wasted!”
Chris glared, “Yeah. So? Maybe I was just trying to get you to loosen up.”
“You were trying to get me to loosen up?” Babe asked in disbelief. “Really? Because you’re loosened up enough for the both of us I think.”
“Oh my God!” Chris ran a hand through his hair and laughed, “Stop being such a stiff. Now come on- let’s try and have fun.”
Babe was interrupted from saying that no one called anyone a stiff these days when Chris grabbed his arm and began to pull him towards the truck.
He jerked his arm away, “Oh Hell no. You’re way too drunk to drive. Give me the keys.”
Chris frowned, “I’m fine! Let’s go.”
He seized Babe’s arm again. Only this time his grip was tighter and Babe actually winced at the pressure.
“Fuck man- you’re hurting me. Let me go. I’m not getting in that fucking truck.”
“Jesus Babe.” He reached out with his other hand and grabbed Babe’s other arm just as roughly before violently dragging him along.
Babe tried to pull away, “Let go of me asshole!”
They struggled for a few moments and Chris shoved him, “Just get in the fucking truck!”
Babe stumbled backwards and hit the truck with a thud. He winced when the side of his head smacked into the window- making him momentarily dizzy.
That was it- he didn’t care how drunk Chris was. He was going to kick his ass!
Chris started towards him again and Babe was 100% ready to sock him in the jaw when a voice came from down the street.
“Hey!”
Babe was distracted by the call and looked over to see an attractive young man jogging towards them with a frown on his face.
While he looked at the newcomer, Chris pulled him away from the truck and unlocked the door.
“Easy there man.” The stranger’s accented and smooth voice was directed at Chris as he held up his hands, “Just relax. The kid obviously doesn’t want to get in the car.”
Chris glared, “Fuck off- this is none of your business.”
The stranger put his hands down and the frown on his pale face deepened as Babe evaded Chris’s attempt to force him into the passenger seat, “Well I’m making it my business. Leave him alone.”
Chris looked like he was about to say something but Babe cut him off by violently shoving him in the chest, “Yeah Chris. Even a complete stranger can see what an asshole you are!”
“Oh goddamn it Babe. Stop your good kid bullshit and get in the truck!”
“What the Hell does that mean?”
Chris slammed the open passenger door shut and rounded on him, the stranger moved forward slightly out of the corner of Babe’s vision. “It means you’ve been pulling this whole fucking ‘Woe is me’ shit forever. Acting like you’re some fucking saint ever since someone capped your folks. Just get the Hell over it already!”
At the mention of his parent’s death Babe saw red and lunged at the other teen- fully prepared to rip his head off. However a pair of arms caught him around the waist to hold him back.
“Don’t you ever talk about my parents you piece of shit! I’ll fucking kill you! You dick! You asshole! You’re nothing but a fucking alcoholic retard!”
Babe continued swinging his fists and violently kicking his legs as Chris shielded his face with his arms and the stranger tried to haul Babe away.
“Fucking let me go! Fuck you Chris!” Babe shouted as he felt himself be lifted off the ground. Furious, Babe kicked out once more and his foot connected with Chris’s face to make a satisfying crunch.
Chris stumbled backwards and fell to the ground. The stranger paused and let Babe go.
Babe whirled around to give the guy a piece of his mind but the man instantly shrank back and held up his hands in surrender.
“Look- I’m sorry. I just- didn’t want you to kill him. Although it sounded to me like you would have been well within your right to do so.” The same unique voice washed over Babe and he felt himself calm somewhat.
Not wanting to appear appeased he glared at the man, “Damn right I was!”
The man nodded his head of spiky black hair, “Um…I think you knocked ‘im out though.”
Babe looked over to see that Chris was unconscious on the sidewalk. “Oh…good.”
“Are you okay?”
Babe felt his cheeks heat up, remembering that the guy had apparently come to his rescue, “Yeah I’m fine. You didn’t need to do that. He was just mega drunk- I coulda taken him.”
The man looked amused, “Uh-huh. Do you….need to call someone?”
Babe briefly considered taking Chris home in his truck, but he really didn’t want to spend another second around the guy-unconscious or not.
“I uh…” He remembered that Bill and Dick had called to say they were working late. They would flip out if they knew he wasn’t at home, “Oh shit…I can’t call them.”
The stranger nodded, “Okay um…look. How about I get us a taxi? I’ll take you wherever you need to go okay? It’s on me.”
Babe frowned. Bill had taught him not to trust anyone- but the guy had kinda just helped him out. “Man…I don’t know you.
The stranger smiled and held out his hand, “Right. Sorry. I’m Eugene Roe. Just call me Gene.”
Babe shook his hand reluctantly, “Gene huh? I’m Babe.”
Gene made a face, “Oh? That’s actually your name? I just thought he was calling you that.”
Babe made a gagging noise, “No…that’s actually my name. Kinda…let’s just say it is.”
“Okay. So what do you say Babe? I completely understand your hesitancy. But I swear- the cab driver will be there and I’ll have you dropped off and then you won’t have to worry about me.”
Babe thought about it for a minute, “Yeah…yeah okay. Thanks.”
Gene kept glancing over at the kid next to him, wondering if he were really okay. He wasn’t all that surprised at himself for getting involved in the scuffle he had witnessed.
It was in his nature to help people. He just wasn’t hardwired to ignore people’s plights.
However he was a little shocked by himself when he offered to share a cab with the guy. But Babe seemed….kind of special and he couldn’t leave him wandering the streets all alone.
Babe had given the cab driver directions the moment he got in and then immediately fallen silent. So Gene took it upon himself to ask, “You’re sure you’re okay?”
The young man sighed and pulled his Eagle’s cap off of his head and Gene smiled at the red hair he’d been hiding.
Of course…Floyd was always saying that Gene couldn’t resist a red head. ‘Well that explains it,’ he thought humorously to himself.
Babe nodded, “Yeah I’m okay. Smacked my head a little...so I’m dizzy. But okay.”
Gene frowned and reached out to touch him- Babe looked at him warily.
“I’m a doctor.” Gene explained.
Babe nodded and let Gene press his fingers to his slightly bruised forehead, “You look kind of young for a doctor.”
“I was part of an accelerated program. I skipped over the BA…I’m just a lowly intern right now. But still.”
Babe smiled- a wide, toothy smile that made Gene a little light headed, “That’s incredible. You must be hella smart.”
Gene ducked his head in embarrassment, “I just knew what I wanted to do for a long time I guess. So I got a head start. What about you?”
Babe’s smile froze, “What about me what?”
Gene laughed and took his hand from Babe’s head, “Are you in school?”
“Oh…uh…yeah.”
He looked young, but he and his- whatever that jerk was-had come out of a bar so Gene figured he was a college kid.
Realizing that Babe wasn’t going to say much more he nodded at his injury, “I’d put some ice on that and take a few pain killers when you get home.”
Speaking of home, the taxi was slowing down in front of an apartment building.
“This is me.” Babe noted and opened the door- getting out of the cab. And honestly? Gene was sad to see him go.
But then Babe leaned back down to look at him and gave him another smile, “Hey doc?”
Gene couldn’t help but smile back, “Yes Babe?”
“Thanks. You know you’re totally my hero.”
Gene watched him go until he was safely inside. Then he leaned forward and gave the driver the location of his motel.
When Gene walked into his motel, he couldn’t take his mind off of Babe. He suddenly wished that he had just had the guts to ask him for his number.
But what good would that have done? He still had a flight tomorrow.
He sighed and flipped the light on in his room. He was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn’t notice the presence of someone behind him.
Suddenly he felt a sharp sting in his shoulder and he gasped, falling to the floor in pain. Rolling onto his back he made out through his pain-induced haze-two figures looming over him.
Then a hand covered his mouth and everything slowly faded to black.
Summary: All over the world, people are waking up with extraordinary abilities. Not knowing how they got them or what to do, they will soon discover that they are not alone. They are all connected. They are all special. Based on NBC’s Heroes. Various Pairings.
Wow I feel like I haven't updated this in forever. But I finally feel like I've got the ball rolling in regard to where I want this story to go. So that's good :)
Links to previous chapters inside.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8
Disclaimer: I’m not making any money off of writing this story. It’s entirely fictional and based on the performances given in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers and not the actual soldiers. Any ideas or phrases borrowed from the NBC show Heroes belong to the writers of that show, not me. I don’t own anything…so please don’t sue me. I wrote it for your enjoyment so…enjoy!
Company Headquarters, Philadelphia, PA
Bill stared at Dick not sure what to say or what to do with the hard look in his partners eyes. Dick looked cold, and it didn’t sit well with him at all.
“Dick- you can’t be sure. We don’t know everything. Before we jump to conclusions we need to get all the facts.”
Dick pushed his chair away from Bill roughly, “Because I’m sure they’re just going to leave evidence of my parent’s death around for me to dig up. They’re smarter than that and you know it. The pieces are all there Bill. I just never had any reason to think about it until now. But with Babe’s dream…”
Bill took a deep breath, trying to settle his thoughts. If what Dick believed was true...it raised multiple questions.
Just how long had the company suspected Babe was special? Why not take both Dick and Babe at once? Would Babe be susceptible to Dick’s ability? And most importantly….how long could the Company expect Dick to be ignorant of the fact that his own flesh and blood was living under his partner’s roof?
“What exactly do you plan to do about it Dick?” Bill asked knowing that the red headed man hadn’t thought it through.
Dick stood up quickly, and walked over to look at the hallway through the window in Bill’s office. He crossed his arms and just stared at the employees walking back and forth. He didn’t know what he was going to do…but the more he thought about it…the more sick the whole thing made him feel.
He sighed, closing his eyes and turning his head to the side, “How many more people Bill? How many more people are going to die and have their lives ruined by this company?”
Bill frowned and silently crossed the room to stand next to Dick, who still had his eyes closed. He lifted a hand to reach out and touch him but paused. Instead he let his hand ghost down the side of Dick’s arm before pulling it back altogether.
He couldn’t cross that line. Not now, not again…
Dick opened his eyes as if he knew that Bill was next to him and turned to look him in the eyes, “Our families were destroyed by these people. We were destroyed by these people.”
At that Bill actually did reach out and touch him, seizing his shoulders with both hands and giving him a small shake, “We are each other’s family now Dick. You, me, Babe…they’re not going to ruin that. I won’t let them. Do you understand me?”
Dick nodded, looking lost…and in that moment Bill couldn’t breathe.
Because suddenly-he could see it. Forget all the obvious similarities….
It was in the way that Dick pursed his lips to the left.
Just like Babe.
The realization hit him hard and he froze.
The door to his office was pushed open and Liebgott stuck his head in, “Hey- Sobel needs Winters. Like right now apparently.”
Bill glared and let his hands drop from Dick’s shoulders. Dick gave him one more nod and Bill watched the turmoil melt off his face.
Dick turned to Liebgott with a smile, “Thanks Joe. You wait here okay?”
The kid shrugged but let Dick usher him into the office as he left. Bill gave him a dark look, “What does Sobel need to see him for?”
Joe just shrugged, not looking intimidated in the slightest, “How the Hell should I know? I’m the new guy remember?”
Bill frowned as he thought, not for the first time, that Joseph Liebgott was still a wild card.
Dick knocked on the door lightly before pushing it open. Sobel was at his desk, staring at his computer screen intently but looked up when Dick walked inside.
“So Dick. Are you ready for your assignment?”
No. “Yes sir.”
Sobel nodded, “Good. However I have one more assignment for you and Guarnere before you take our recruit to New York for your solo mission.”
Dick smiled slightly and nodded. The reaction didn’t go unnoticed by his boss.
“You seem happy to hear that.” Sobel remarked.
“Well sir…it’s just that we’ve been given a lot of separate assignments lately. I was wondering if you weren’t going to split us up.”
Sobel shook his head, “I thought maybe you were feeling apprehensive about New York. I know how you feel about children Dick.”
They could fill oceans with all the things that Sobel didn’t know about him…but Dick figured it was best not to say anything.
So Sobel continued, “You have no reason to worry. You and Bill are the best team we have. But you’re both more than capable of handling missions on your own now. Sometimes the occasion simply calls for it.”
Dick nodded, “So what’s the assignment? Rather short notice wouldn’t you say?”
Sobel smiled, “Short notice? Yes. But it’s also very important. This was emailed to me from the Manhattan branch. Come take a look.”
Dick walked cautiously over to Sobel’s computer. He could never fully trust the man. He was always too interested. Too interested in Dick (both personally and professionally) and too interested in Babe. Dick had a feeling that he knew of their relation.
Looking at the computer he frowned when he saw a video playing.
A young man was lying in a pool of blood on the side of the road. Only Dick’s years with the Company helped to keep his reaction in check.
But even he was shocked when he saw what he thought was a dead man begin to move.
Then the man on screen sat up fully and Dick gaped as he began to slowly piece himself back together as he stood. Cuts and gashes closing and broken bones snapping back into place.
A blood streaked face looked straight into the camera.
“That didn’t go as planned.”
Dick couldn’t believe it. Spontaneous regeneration? They all knew it was possible but the Company had long stopped expecting to discover the ability…assuming it had gone dormant…
He stepped back and looked at his boss, “This won’t just be a bag and tag will it?”
Sobel shook his head, “No. We’ve got a cell with his name on it.”
Carwood Lipton, Los Angeles, CA
Hopefully the ambulance and his back up would arrive soon. Because being the caretaker of two unconscious FBI agents left him in a torn state.
Although his first instinct had been to ensure that Agent Speirs was okay, he knew that the man at his feet, Speirs’ partner, was still a threat.
Speirs didn’t strike him as someone to go down without a fight and yet there he was, lying on the hotel bed, bruised and battered.
The man who had hurt Speirs- he’d told Lipton that he wasn’t in control of himself and Lipton believed him.
Because he had heard what the man was thinking….and it sounded like two different people arguing. Maybe Carwood didn’t understand how he had heard what he heard, but at this point- he trusted it.
But if the man woke up under the influence of what the officer assumed was an alternate personality, Lipton wasn’t sure if he would be able to put him down without shooting him.
After talking with his superiors about his brush with the Feds that day, he had been let off of his shift early in the hopes of catching up with Speirs and talking to him about the case.
He certainly hadn’t expected to hear the sounds of breaking glass outside the man’s hotel room and interrupting what could have potentially been a murder.
The point was that he was still packing heat, and he was still carrying cuffs. Which he used to restrain Agent Speirs attacker.
When he felt he’d properly secured the threat he finally allowed himself to look over at the man he had only met earlier that day.
He grimaced when he saw the dark hand prints on Agent Speirs neck. But even more concerning was the blood that was coming from multiple cuts that seemed to be all over his body.
Blood on his face, seeping through his shirt…
“Shit,” Lipton cursed, not knowing what to do. He rushed to the bathroom on the other side of the room and grabbed a few towels to stop the blood that was flowing from the more obvious cuts.
Sitting on the bed he used one hand to press a towel to the gash on the back of the FBI Agent’s neck, the other hand was still holding his gun firmly- refusing to let down his guard.
He was wondering where the ambulance was when a cell phone started ringing.
His first assumption was that it was his, but the noise was coming from the unconscious man beneath his fingers.
Startled-he reluctantly sat the gun down and saw the cell phone sticking out of the Agent’s front pocket.
He grabbed it quickly and checked the screen. Whoever Christenson was…they probably needed to know what had happened.
He pressed talk and put the phone to his ear, “This is Officer Carwood Lipton, I’m with the LAPD. May I ask who this is?”
“LAPD? What are you doing in possession of a federal agent’s phone?”
“Agent Speirs has been seriously injured. I’m with him right now awaiting an ambulance. I’m going to ask again…with whom am I speaking?”
The line was silent for a moment.
“Shit. Is-is he okay? He’s alive right?!”
Just then there was a flurry of activity as two police officers busted the door in and a team of paramedics came in behind them.
He backed off from the bed and let them take over, “The paramedics just arrived. Tell me your relation to him and I’ll call back with an update on his condition.”
“We work together. I’m his partner- Burton Christenson. Look- what hospital is he going to?”
“There’s no way to know for sure. I have to go. When I can tell you- you’ll know.”
He knew it wasn’t enough. But he had work to do.
Hanging up the cell he pocketed it instead of handing it over to the paramedics and went over to help his fellow officers handle the cuffed assailant.
Eugene Roe, Philadelphia, PA
By the time he had exited the airplane he was exhausted, his ass hurt and he wasn’t sure exactly what city he was in.
He looked down at his printed out E-ticket. Oh right…Philadelphia.
Well he had plenty of time to kill before his next flight- which would take him directly to New York. He wasn’t planning to leave until tomorrow morning. He needed the break from all the travel.
He still wasn’t sure where in New York to find Renee’s family. If they were even still there. He would have to…to what? Go to the police he supposed. Maybe he could find a private investigator or some other such thing.
All of his hours stuck on an airplane had given him plenty of time to think about what he wanted to say when he found these people.
He knew he wanted to tell them about how wonderful she was. He of course wanted to give this George guy her letters. He deserved to know how much she loved and missed him.
But he knew they would have questions. Questions that he wouldn’t be able to answer. Gene still didn’t know why she died or who she was running from. Or why those people were chasing her exactly.
Not to mention the little fact that he himself should have died right next to her. How he so often wished he had.
Although he highly doubted that would come up.
Who knew when he would actually see them? He only hoped he got the opportunity to give them all a little closure.
Right now- he wanted a hotel, a bed…and possibly a sandwich.
To get those things- he’d need a taxi.
Eli Luz, Brooklyn, NY
He watched Agent Christenson stare at the hospital floor intently, his phone clutched tightly between his hands.
He’d looked worried ever since he’d finished his call. Eli knew it was because of his friend.
The things that Eli saw….they scared him. Like seeing Burton’s friend getting beaten up.
But his visions weren’t always like that. Sometimes….sometimes he just knew things. Even though he’d never seen either of the men in his vision…he had known that the one in danger was Burton’s friend.
He could see things, sense things…and sometimes just know things. It was scary…but he had learned to embrace his ability. He was pretty sure it scared his Dad more than him these days.
His Dad….the thing with his Dad made him so mad. It wasn’t fair! He knew and saw so much with his powers. Why couldn’t he have known that someone was going to hurt his Dad?
Finally he looked over at the FBI Agent with a determined stare. They were both outside of his Dad’s hospital room while a doctor talked to him inside.
“You should go.”
The agent looked up at him quickly, “What?”
“You should go and check on your friend. I’m sure you want to. Dad’s okay…we’ll be okay.”
The man shook his head and Eli knew that he was about to do the same thing all adults did. Tell Eli he didn’t understand. “Eli…it’s not that simple. You have to understand- your father’s life is still in danger until we catch the man who did this to him. With what you told me…about the both of you? You’re in danger as well.”
Eli frowned, not surprised by what he was hearing, “You like my Dad- I get it. But this is your friend and you’re worried. You should go and check on him. Besides…we’ll see each other again.”
Burton looked like he wanted to address a lot of the things that Eli had eluded to; instead he just gave him a small smile and asked, “Is that something you see?”
Eli shook his head, “Yes…no. It’s more like a feeling.”
Christenson nodded, “Okay then.”
Philadelphia, PA
Joe was getting kind of sick of Bill sizing him up. He knew that the guy not only didn’t trust him- but he didn’t understand him. Guarnere obviously liked to be in control of a situation- so not knowing what Joe’s intentions were, that had to be frustrating.
Because Guarnere could read whatever file he wanted, bring up any painful memory or secret of Joe’s he desired and he still wouldn’t be any closer to understanding what motivated Joe to be in that room.
Joe couldn’t let what happened to him at this Company’s hands happen to anyone else. Sure the whole situation had been sprung upon him rather quickly- but that didn’t dampen his desire to help those out there that were like him. To protect them from these people and their oh so obvious bullshit.
Even if that meant putting himself in danger. He had a lot to atone for and this was as good of a way to do that as anything else he could think of.
What did Guarnere know about sacrifice and atonement?
All of those things aside-Joe felt better now that it was just the two of them. For reasons he still couldn’t explain, anytime that he was within Dick Winters immediate vicinity he felt powerless and off balance.
So when the red headed man walked back into the office with a strange look on his face, Joe sat up a little straighter. Winters hardly took notice and instead plopped a file down onto the room’s single desk absent mindedly.
Then he looked over at his partner, “We’ve got an assignment.”
Guarnere frowned and glanced at Joe, “What about New York?”
“This takes priority.”
At that Guarnere became curious, “Really?”
Guarnere was about to reach for the file when a voice came from the hallway, “Winters! Guarnere! The system got a lock on your target.”
The two didn’t hesitate and quickly shot out the door without giving Joe a second glance.
Surprised to find himself in the office alone, Joe looked over at the file on the desk. What was so important about it- he didn’t know.
But they shouldn’t have left him alone with it.
Slipping his hand into his pocket he pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open. Looking out at the hallway he didn’t see anyone coming back, so he switched to his camera setting and rushed over to the desk as quietly as he could manage.
Flipping the file open he studied the image of a young man with jet black hair. It was the picture of a driver’s license.
Eugene Roe-New Orleans, Louisiana-24 years old.
Joe started taking pictures quickly and took notice of the scribbled notes below the picture.
Rapid cellular regeneration? What the Hell?
Hearing the approach of voices and footsteps, Joe hastily closed the file and pocketed his phone. Sitting back down he tried his best to look bored and certainly not like he had been snooping.
When the two Company men came back, they were not alone. With them was a man around Guarnere’s height with a very unpleasant frown marring his face.
Winters gave Joe a warm smile, “Joe this is Johnny Martin.”
Joe sighed, “Lemme guess…he’s my babysitter until you get back?”
Winters nodded slightly as Bill walked over to his desk and scooped up the file, “That’s one way of looking at it.”
“What’s the other way of looking at it?” Joe asked.
Bill shook his head, “There is no other way. Martin-keep a close eye on him.”
“You got it.” The man promised, giving Joe a hard look. The two men nodded to each other and Winters and Bill left.
The door to the office was then shut and Martin leaned against it, not taking his eyes off of Joe.
“Something you wanna say?” Joe asked, wondering what the fuck the guy’s deal was.
Martin pushed away from the door, “Yeah. I don’t trust people like you.”
“You trust Winters?”
Martin actually laughed, “Dick Winters? Was made for this job. What you can do and what he can do? Not comparable.”
“Yeah? What the fuck do you know about what I can do?”
“I know enough. And you need to know this- if you screw us? It’ll be the biggest mistake you ever make.”
Joe glared, “As you can see- I’m shaking.”
But suddenly the cell phone felt a lot heavier in his pocket.
God…he was so fucking bored!
How could they expect him to just sit around in the apartment all day doing nothing?
Babe very much hated being cooped up. He was a social person, he liked being around people! Not to mention he was 16 years old! He should be out doing shit, not be confined to his room like some sort of delinquent.
He was a good kid damn it! He shouldn’t be freaking locked up, besides…he deserved some downtime every now and then.
His mind made up, he went in search of his phone. Hopefully Chris would still be up to hanging out.
They had pulled up to a motel not far from where Bill himself actually lived. Roe wasn’t traveling under the radar, making it easy to locate his accommodations after their tracking system in New York had gotten a general lock on him.
The two of them had parked their company vehicle, a black SUV with appropriately tinted windows, to face the young man’s room.
Now it was just a waiting game.
They knew he was most likely inside at this point, but the best option was to wait until the young man left his room, which he’d have to do eventually because Bill knew firsthand that shit hole motels like this one didn’t do room service.
Once he was gone it was only a matter of slipping into his room. Then when he was back they’d subdue him and wait until nightfall to take him out to the car.
“So?” Bill broke into their easy silence, “How well do you think a taser will work on him? What with his…”
Bill just wiggled his fingers to indicate he was talking about the kid’s powers.
Dick looked over at him, “Pretty well considering I’m here.”
Oh…right. He’d almost forgotten about that.
He wasn’t entirely in his head at the moment. Everything that they felt they had discovered about Babe and the demise of Dick’s parents had left him drifting in and out of memories he’d just as soon forget.
“Dick…I gotta ask you something.”
Dick shot him a sideways glance, “Anything Bill.”
“All the years you been doing this…it doesn’t bother you? I know you hate the Company…but I’m talking day to day. Does it get to you?”
His partner frowned, “Which part exactly?”
“Going after your own people?”
Dick turned his head to fully look at Bill, “Of course it does. But we’ve discussed this. We do this job because we have to protect Babe- now more than ever. And we can’t do that on the outside. What even brought this up?”
“I was thinking about Joe.”
That statement was met with silence.
Finally Dick said, “ I take it you don’t mean Liebgott?”
Bill shook his head.
Dick just sighed, “Living in the past isn’t healthy Bill. You did the right thing…”
But there was no conviction in his voice as he tried to convince Bill of it. Because they both knew it wasn’t true. Dick had never known Joe, only what Bill told him. He was the only other partner the Company had ever given him.
“There he goes.” Dick leaned forward in his seat and Bill was snapped out of his thoughts as they watched Eugene Roe exit his motel room.
Right…they had a job to do. Besides Dick had a point, dwelling on his past mistakes wasn’t healthy. But given the situation- they seemed to keep creeping up on him.
Memories that reminded him everyday…that he had become a hypocrite.
Either way….he hadn’t allowed himself to think about Joe Toye in a long time.
“So you finally made a break for it huh?” Chris joked to Babe as he slid into the passenger seat of Chris’s truck.
“Yeah, I couldn’t take it anymore. I just needed to get out y’know?”
Chris nodded as he merged with the traffic outside of Babe’s apartment complex. He ran a hand through his short blond hair, before he began to fiddle with the radio.
Babe smirked as he observed him. Chris was pretty cool he decided. Maybe not the best lab partner- but Babe supposed it would be a bit much to ask for him to smart and hot.
“So where we headed?” Babe asked as they took another turn.
Chris laughed, “Remember how you thought you could beat me at pool?”
Babe chucked, “I think my exact words were ‘I will OWN you at pool’. What’s your point?”
The other teen shook his head, “Well it’s a little early for a movie. My brother owns a bar- figure I’d buy you a drink and then you could put your money where your mouth is.”
Babe had no doubt that Chris’s brother was morally flexible enough to allow underage drinking so he just laughed and said, “You’re on.”
Lewis Nixon, Los Angeles, CA
He had finally woken up a couple of hours ago with a split lip and a throbbing headache and Lewis had to admit- that cop had a mean left jab.
He’d been sitting in an interrogation room by himself for who knew how long. His hands were cuffed to the table so he knew he wasn’t going anywhere.
That was a good start.
But he could still feel it. The anger and the presence of Jonathan were just on the outer reaches of his mind. How long could he really keep him at bay?
There was a loud bang as the door behind him slammed open and two detectives walked in. Lewis didn’t recognize either of them and figured that was probably for the best.
“How’s Ron?” was the first question out of his mouth and he couldn’t even really let himself think about what he might have done to him.
However despite the tone of his plea, the two detectives ignored him. One of them- a woman- was carrying a file. Opening it up, she pulled out a series of pictures and carefully laid them out on the table before him.
“Agent Nixon- these are the murders that you told Officer Lipton you committed.”
Lewis grimaced and sucked in a breath as he looked over the photographs.
The first three were crime scene photos of the murders from downtown. The poker game that had been so violently interrupted.
The unhinged door, the mangled bodies and the bullet holes. They were all burned into his memory.
His stomach did an uneasy flip when his eyes took in the next set of photos. The De Lucca brothers.
Jesus Christ.
They were images he had only seen in his nightmares. Long before his worst fears had been realized, before Jonathan had revealed that they weren’t nightmares at all.
The bodies in the photograph were beyond recognition. The blood alone made the job of identifying the victims increasingly difficult. But the way they were...
Oh God…they were torn apart…
Lewis bent his head and slowed his breathing, not entirely sure that he wasn’t about to vomit.
Finally he opened his mouth to speak, “I…it was…”
The male detective frowned at him, “It was what?”
His partner cut in, “Are you going to retract your statement?”
The agent in Nixon wanted to scoff and say that he’d hardly call it a statement. But frankly he was too horrified to even speak.
“Now at first glance,” the man began to speak-shooting a glare at his partner for offering Nixon an out. “At first glance you don’t have much of a connection with any of these victims. But Agent Speirs on the other hand…”
Lewis raised his head, “Is he okay?”
The woman sat down in front of him, “Let him talk, answer our questions and then we’ll answer yours.”
Her partner continued, “Speirs has a history with a few of these men. Seems he had a close encounter with the De Lucca family awhile back. You wanna tell me about it?”
Lewis frowned, “It’s all in the reports.”
“That’s true,” the man nodded, “But you know what isn’t in those reports? The nature of your relationship with Agent Speirs. We know he’s close with your father. But why don’t you tell us?”
Nixon sighed, “We are- we were-in a relationship.”
The female detective just nodded, “And when did that end?”
“I would say about three hours ago-when I almost killed him in our hotel room.”
His two interrogators exchanged a look.
"Why did you attack him?” she asked.
God…how did he explain this? How the Hell was he supposed to explain all this!?
“I didn’t want to!” he snapped, “I did everything I could to keep him safe- I would never intentionally hurt him. I didn’t want to kill those people. But it’s not…it’s not just me in here!”
They both stared at him.
One of them spoke so softly Nixon couldn’t recognize them, “What are you trying to say?”
Lewis gazed at his reflection in the metal table, only to see that it was glaring angrily back at him, “I’m not alone in my head…there’s someone else. He…”
He didn’t want to look up and see their skeptical faces so instead he focused on the cuffs on his hands, noting how strange and alien they felt around his wrists.
“How’s Ron?” he asked once more.
Finally they answered, “He’ll live.”
Buck Compton, NYC, New York
His borrowed desk was a mess of files, notes, pictures and theories. He was scanning the list of Ron’s abduction victims for the next potential target and wondering why he hadn’t received any kind of update from California.
That was when his cell phone began to ring.
“Speak of the devil.” He muttered to himself, fully expecting it to be Nixon or Ron.
Eyes still roaming the list, he put the phone to his ear, “Compton.”
“Buck? It’s Christenson.”
Buck rolled his eyes, not entirely surprised to hear the young agent’s voice. “Hey, how’s Luz?”
“Wow… I’m not sure how to begin to answer that one. Look- he’s fine, he’s also not why I’m calling. It’s Ron…”
Buck paused and felt the dread start to build in his stomach, “What?”
“There’s been some kind of incident- I don’t know all the details but he’s in the hospital. He’s in bad shape I think.”
“Well what the HELL HAPPENED!?” Buck didn’t mean to sound so pissed but he couldn’t help it. Shit. It was always something with Ron. That man couldn’t keep himself out of trouble.
“I DON’T KNOW!” the kid shouted right back and Buck was reminded of why Ron liked him in the first place. He had spunk. “Were you not listening to me? I don’t know the details! But look- I’m grabbing the next flight to LA. You want to come and I’ll get you a seat.”
Buck put a hand to his forehead- feeling a headache coming on, “I’m sorry- I just…yeah get me a seat.”
“Fine. Get your shit together and meet me at the airport in 3 hours.”
“Fine.”
Once he was off the phone, Buck started gathering up all of their case files and putting together his suitcase in his mind.
His hand was on the speed dial for Nixon, but in all likelihood his partner already knew about the situation and was with his boyfriend. Not to mention it would take up time. So Buck didn’t bother and shot out of the office to go to his apartment.
And he’d just gotten back to New York the other day…
Philadelphia, PA
Well Babe learned something new every day.
For instance today he learned that winning a game of pool is pretty fucking easy if the person you’re playing against is drunk off their ass.
Babe had taken advantage of their unique situation and had one drink. ONE!
How many had Chris had? Enough for Babe to tell that the guy had a serious drinking problem.
It was getting dark and the bar was starting to fill up. The night was seriously not going the way that Babe had hoped it would and he wanted to get the Hell out of there.
“Hey,” he poked Chris in the stomach and the other teen turned to him with- surprise, surprise- a drink in his hand.
“What’s up?” Chris slurred although he was still grinning.
Babe sighed, “This place is getting old. Let’s scram, kay?”
The handsome blonde nodded and slung an arm around Babe’s shoulders, “Right! Besides- I said I’d take you to the movies. Didn’t I?”
Babe chuckled nervously as he steered them out of the bar and onto the sidewalks, “Riiight. How bout I take a rain check? I think we should call it a night.”
“Call it a night? No no no no. I promised you a date.”
Babe rolled his eyes, “And oh how you delivered.”
Chris dropped his arm from Babe’s shoulders and stumbled a few feet ahead before turning to look at him, “What’s your problem?”
Babe gaped, “What’s my problem? Are you serious? You’re wasted!”
Chris glared, “Yeah. So? Maybe I was just trying to get you to loosen up.”
“You were trying to get me to loosen up?” Babe asked in disbelief. “Really? Because you’re loosened up enough for the both of us I think.”
“Oh my God!” Chris ran a hand through his hair and laughed, “Stop being such a stiff. Now come on- let’s try and have fun.”
Babe was interrupted from saying that no one called anyone a stiff these days when Chris grabbed his arm and began to pull him towards the truck.
He jerked his arm away, “Oh Hell no. You’re way too drunk to drive. Give me the keys.”
Chris frowned, “I’m fine! Let’s go.”
He seized Babe’s arm again. Only this time his grip was tighter and Babe actually winced at the pressure.
“Fuck man- you’re hurting me. Let me go. I’m not getting in that fucking truck.”
“Jesus Babe.” He reached out with his other hand and grabbed Babe’s other arm just as roughly before violently dragging him along.
Babe tried to pull away, “Let go of me asshole!”
They struggled for a few moments and Chris shoved him, “Just get in the fucking truck!”
Babe stumbled backwards and hit the truck with a thud. He winced when the side of his head smacked into the window- making him momentarily dizzy.
That was it- he didn’t care how drunk Chris was. He was going to kick his ass!
Chris started towards him again and Babe was 100% ready to sock him in the jaw when a voice came from down the street.
“Hey!”
Babe was distracted by the call and looked over to see an attractive young man jogging towards them with a frown on his face.
While he looked at the newcomer, Chris pulled him away from the truck and unlocked the door.
“Easy there man.” The stranger’s accented and smooth voice was directed at Chris as he held up his hands, “Just relax. The kid obviously doesn’t want to get in the car.”
Chris glared, “Fuck off- this is none of your business.”
The stranger put his hands down and the frown on his pale face deepened as Babe evaded Chris’s attempt to force him into the passenger seat, “Well I’m making it my business. Leave him alone.”
Chris looked like he was about to say something but Babe cut him off by violently shoving him in the chest, “Yeah Chris. Even a complete stranger can see what an asshole you are!”
“Oh goddamn it Babe. Stop your good kid bullshit and get in the truck!”
“What the Hell does that mean?”
Chris slammed the open passenger door shut and rounded on him, the stranger moved forward slightly out of the corner of Babe’s vision. “It means you’ve been pulling this whole fucking ‘Woe is me’ shit forever. Acting like you’re some fucking saint ever since someone capped your folks. Just get the Hell over it already!”
At the mention of his parent’s death Babe saw red and lunged at the other teen- fully prepared to rip his head off. However a pair of arms caught him around the waist to hold him back.
“Don’t you ever talk about my parents you piece of shit! I’ll fucking kill you! You dick! You asshole! You’re nothing but a fucking alcoholic retard!”
Babe continued swinging his fists and violently kicking his legs as Chris shielded his face with his arms and the stranger tried to haul Babe away.
“Fucking let me go! Fuck you Chris!” Babe shouted as he felt himself be lifted off the ground. Furious, Babe kicked out once more and his foot connected with Chris’s face to make a satisfying crunch.
Chris stumbled backwards and fell to the ground. The stranger paused and let Babe go.
Babe whirled around to give the guy a piece of his mind but the man instantly shrank back and held up his hands in surrender.
“Look- I’m sorry. I just- didn’t want you to kill him. Although it sounded to me like you would have been well within your right to do so.” The same unique voice washed over Babe and he felt himself calm somewhat.
Not wanting to appear appeased he glared at the man, “Damn right I was!”
The man nodded his head of spiky black hair, “Um…I think you knocked ‘im out though.”
Babe looked over to see that Chris was unconscious on the sidewalk. “Oh…good.”
“Are you okay?”
Babe felt his cheeks heat up, remembering that the guy had apparently come to his rescue, “Yeah I’m fine. You didn’t need to do that. He was just mega drunk- I coulda taken him.”
The man looked amused, “Uh-huh. Do you….need to call someone?”
Babe briefly considered taking Chris home in his truck, but he really didn’t want to spend another second around the guy-unconscious or not.
“I uh…” He remembered that Bill and Dick had called to say they were working late. They would flip out if they knew he wasn’t at home, “Oh shit…I can’t call them.”
The stranger nodded, “Okay um…look. How about I get us a taxi? I’ll take you wherever you need to go okay? It’s on me.”
Babe frowned. Bill had taught him not to trust anyone- but the guy had kinda just helped him out. “Man…I don’t know you.
The stranger smiled and held out his hand, “Right. Sorry. I’m Eugene Roe. Just call me Gene.”
Babe shook his hand reluctantly, “Gene huh? I’m Babe.”
Gene made a face, “Oh? That’s actually your name? I just thought he was calling you that.”
Babe made a gagging noise, “No…that’s actually my name. Kinda…let’s just say it is.”
“Okay. So what do you say Babe? I completely understand your hesitancy. But I swear- the cab driver will be there and I’ll have you dropped off and then you won’t have to worry about me.”
Babe thought about it for a minute, “Yeah…yeah okay. Thanks.”
Gene kept glancing over at the kid next to him, wondering if he were really okay. He wasn’t all that surprised at himself for getting involved in the scuffle he had witnessed.
It was in his nature to help people. He just wasn’t hardwired to ignore people’s plights.
However he was a little shocked by himself when he offered to share a cab with the guy. But Babe seemed….kind of special and he couldn’t leave him wandering the streets all alone.
Babe had given the cab driver directions the moment he got in and then immediately fallen silent. So Gene took it upon himself to ask, “You’re sure you’re okay?”
The young man sighed and pulled his Eagle’s cap off of his head and Gene smiled at the red hair he’d been hiding.
Of course…Floyd was always saying that Gene couldn’t resist a red head. ‘Well that explains it,’ he thought humorously to himself.
Babe nodded, “Yeah I’m okay. Smacked my head a little...so I’m dizzy. But okay.”
Gene frowned and reached out to touch him- Babe looked at him warily.
“I’m a doctor.” Gene explained.
Babe nodded and let Gene press his fingers to his slightly bruised forehead, “You look kind of young for a doctor.”
“I was part of an accelerated program. I skipped over the BA…I’m just a lowly intern right now. But still.”
Babe smiled- a wide, toothy smile that made Gene a little light headed, “That’s incredible. You must be hella smart.”
Gene ducked his head in embarrassment, “I just knew what I wanted to do for a long time I guess. So I got a head start. What about you?”
Babe’s smile froze, “What about me what?”
Gene laughed and took his hand from Babe’s head, “Are you in school?”
“Oh…uh…yeah.”
He looked young, but he and his- whatever that jerk was-had come out of a bar so Gene figured he was a college kid.
Realizing that Babe wasn’t going to say much more he nodded at his injury, “I’d put some ice on that and take a few pain killers when you get home.”
Speaking of home, the taxi was slowing down in front of an apartment building.
“This is me.” Babe noted and opened the door- getting out of the cab. And honestly? Gene was sad to see him go.
But then Babe leaned back down to look at him and gave him another smile, “Hey doc?”
Gene couldn’t help but smile back, “Yes Babe?”
“Thanks. You know you’re totally my hero.”
Gene watched him go until he was safely inside. Then he leaned forward and gave the driver the location of his motel.
When Gene walked into his motel, he couldn’t take his mind off of Babe. He suddenly wished that he had just had the guts to ask him for his number.
But what good would that have done? He still had a flight tomorrow.
He sighed and flipped the light on in his room. He was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn’t notice the presence of someone behind him.
Suddenly he felt a sharp sting in his shoulder and he gasped, falling to the floor in pain. Rolling onto his back he made out through his pain-induced haze-two figures looming over him.
Then a hand covered his mouth and everything slowly faded to black.