Chapter 26
Riley and Liz are on high alert during the short dive back to their bunker, watching for any sign of Scott’s soldiers. They speed along the winding road as fast as they are able without wrapping Riley’s truck around a tree, only slowing once they pull onto the dirt trail leading home.
Every horrid thought of what is happening to their friends hangs in the air as they jump out of the truck, sprinting back inside.
Liz watches, her anxiety growing by the second as Riley rushes to Tyler’s room, loudly trying to find what he is looking for.
When he finally finds it, he runs back to where Liz is waiting for him.
Now isn’t the time for questions, instead, she stays quiet, sitting herself at the table, silently supporting him while he does what he needs to do.
Minutes feel like hours while Riley messes with the computer in front of him.
Eventually, the tension in his shoulders ease, the computer is shut, and the small hard drive attached to it is removed.
Liz slips her hand into his, outstretched to help her from her seat. The silence is heavy as they drag their feet to the couch. Pulling her into his lap, Riley finally starts explaining.
“We were right, and I am so fucking angry that we were. It’s worse than any of us thought. Before I tell you anything, I need you to be honest and let me know if you want out. This is a lot, even for me, and I won’t put more on you unless you want it.”
“I’m with you, my love. Whatever is happening, I will stand with you through it all,” she says, placing a tender kiss on his forehead.
“I only got glimpses when I was moving everything over, but Scott is up to something. I could be wrong, but I swear I saw something about getting rid of us. All of us.” His voice is solemn when he says it, leaving out what they are both thinking.
Their team isn’t being held for punishment, they are being held to die.
“We need to get them out,” Liz shouts, jumping up from her perch on Riley’s lap. “I told them he was trying to kill you. I saw him do it. He will kill them, Ry.”
“We will. It’s not going to be easy. I usually have a whole team behind me, but it’s just us now, and no offense, princess, but you’re not ready for making mission plans,” he says, tracking every step of her panicked pacing, cracking a smile when she halts to glare at him.
“No shit. I have been doing this for like… eight-ish months. I have been training nearly fourteen hours a day everyday since the moment you asked me to join the team. I have been watching you guys plan, and I have been brought on multiple missions to rescue your ass. I know I’m not ready, but I’m also not useless,” she snaps.
“I know. I didn’t mean it like that.”
“I think we can handle it, but if we need a team, why not just make one?” Liz asks, picking her pacing back up.
“I was at the base for weeks. I know there are plenty of people who trust and respect all of you, and I’m sure at least a few of those people also don’t trust Scott.
Lauren can’t stand him and adores Mikey, I bet she would help. ”
His eyes go wide. Riley climbs over the back of the couch, scrambling into her path. His hands grip her cheeks, squeezing them until her lips pucker. Her eyes search his, wondering what brought on his sudden burst of energy.
“Remind me to kick my own ass for underestimating you,” he says, tilting her head up and kissing her deeply before running to his own room, leaving Liz dumbfounded.
Down the hall, more sounds of objects being shuffled around have Liz more confused than ever. It only takes a minute for him to come striding back out, phone in hand. One she hasn’t seen before.
“Wanna tell me what’s going on big guy?” she asks, ignoring her heart beating wildly in her chest. He is up to something, and she is not about to let him keep it from her.
“Sometimes I forget this is the whole point of having you trained exclusively by the spec ops team. You might not be there yet, but you see things we miss. I don’t know why I didn’t think of calling in some favors, but I am glad you did,” Riley says, punching numbers into the screen, starting his own slow, methodical pacing around the kitchen, waiting for whoever is on the other end to pick up.
“Are you at the base yet?” he asks, skipping right over the pleasantries.
“Good, I need you to come to my house first,” he stops for a moment, opening and closing the cabinets before he adds, “And if it’s not too much trouble, can you bring some groceries?
You know how Mikey is,” he gives a quick thank you before hanging up and starting all over again.
This time, Liz knows it’s Lauren. She listens patiently while he gives a recap of what is going on, asking her to figure out who will stand with them.
When the calls are over, Riley brings a blueprint of the base up on Tyler’s computer. The table is scattered with pens and notebooks. Maps of the surrounding area as well as a U.S. map are placed throughout their mess.
Liz sits, watching intently while Riley scribbles notes into one of the books, going back and forth between maps. Unsure of what he is doing, she slides her own book over and begins writing down anything she thinks could be helpful.
Riley keeps a close eye on her, never saying anything or asking what she could possibly be working on, but just seeing her putting in the work next to him makes him proud.
The whirring of the elevator lowering has Liz jumping out of her seat, knowing the ones with access are all imprisoned.
Seeing Riley not budge helps. He would be faster than her if he thought for a second someone had found them.
Heart thumping out of her chest, the doors finally creak open, and a much too familiar woman steps out.
Riley leaves the table, greeting the woman with a hug, sending a wave of jealousy through Liz.
She forces it back, reminding herself how absurd it is to be jealous over an innocent sign of friendship.
Trying not to appear too nosy, Liz continues scribbling her notes into her book.
She looks over every few seconds, trying to place where she has seen the woman before.
Dark brown hair falls just past her shoulders. She’s dressed in a casual, comfortable outfit, no military insignia anywhere. What used to be white, well-worn tennis shoes are paired with plain jeans and a loose-fitting blue t-shirt.
Riley drops his arms, walking the woman over to the table where Liz still sits. When she sees them walking over, she stands to greet the woman, not wanting to be rude. Shock ripples through her when the woman strides right to Liz, pulling her into a tight embrace.
Liz looks at Riley with panic in her eyes.
“It’s so nice to see you not chained to a table,” she says, squeezing Liz a little tighter.
That statement has her remembering exactly who this woman is.
Paula, the one who defended her while she was helpless in the hospital bed, then again when the general screamed at her for the first time.
Liz lifts her arms, returning the hug. They drop their arms and Paula takes a step back, looking Liz up and down.
“Groceries are in the car, so you may want to get them before the cold items spoil,” Paula says in a motherly tone as she turns back to Riley.
His eyes dart between the two women, lingering on Liz, a silent question of if she will be okay without him for a few minutes.
She shoots him a smile, letting him know she will be fine. He backs toward the open elevator, his eyes glued to her until the last second when the doors finally close. Paula turns to Liz when he is out of earshot, laughing to herself under her breath.
“He is still so protective of you,” she says, making her way to the table and looking over the various maps and charts Riley had been working on.
“I want to say he’s gotten better, but I have had to stop him from committing murder more than once since we got him back,” Liz responds with a quiet laugh. “I never got to thank you for treating me like a person when I first woke up, and for defending me.”
“No need to thank me, dear. I just did what any decent person should have done. Not only did those men have orders they refused to follow, but they chose to treat you like a hardened criminal while knowing you were a victim.” Her gaze softens when she speaks the last part, looking at Liz like she can still see the broken woman lying chained to that hospital bed.
Paula turns back to the papers on the table when the elevator sounds again.
Riley emerges, both arms filled with plastic bags bulging with food, effortlessly carrying them into the kitchen.
Liz rushes to his side, urging him to continue his battle plans while she puts the groceries away and makes them all some dinner.
The aroma of sizzling garlic and chicken fills the room while Paula and Riley sit around the table talking strategy.
For the first time in months, their house is starting to feel like a home again, even if half their family is missing.
Liz keeps cooking, trying to hear every word they say while she dumps pasta into a pot of boiling water.
She pulls the chicken from the pan, setting it aside to rest while a glob of butter is melted with more garlic.
Cream and a heaping pile of parmesan cheese are added to the mix, whisking it quickly so she can join the conversation across the room.
As soon as the cheese melts into a creamy alfredo sauce, she dumps the noodles in and tops it with her chicken, loading it onto three plates.
“Thanks, baby,” Riley says, rubbing the small of her back as she sets a steaming plate of food in front of him, much to Paula’s surprise. Liz hands her a plate and runs back to the kitchen before anyone can see just how red her face has turned.
“Baby huh? Your overprotectiveness makes more sense now,” she says, smiling at Riley.
“Spend ten minutes with her and try not to fall in love,” Riley says, winking at Liz as she strides back over with her own food.
“I’m not surprised. I should have seen it coming the minute she told Scott off in that room,” Paula chuckles. “You look happy,” she adds, reaching over to squeeze his hand. “Now, let’s figure this out so we can get the rest of the family back, shall we?”
“We need to get in. I can get them out, but I need access to the base. If Scott is rounding us up, he must be planning something,” he says through a mouthful of food.
Liz continues to scribble into her notebook, oblivious to Riley watching her. His curiosity peaks.
“What have you been writing?” he asks. Reaching over, he tries to slip the book from her grasp only to have it yanked away.
“It’s nothing you don’t know already. You haven’t been back for long, and I have been on base for a while now, so I know the schedule pretty well,” Liz says timidly, laying her arms on the book to cover the information, embarrassed that’s all she has.
“That’s smart. Things change on bases, so having the current daily schedule will be a big help,” Paula says.
“These are also the people who went to save you. Alex told them that we didn’t have permission and they would most likely end up in trouble when we got back, but they went anyway. I figured if anyone would be willing to help, it would be them,” she says, slowly sliding her book over to Riley.
He flips back and forth between the pages, studying every inch of the schedule she has written before scanning the list of names.
“Lauren, John, Neil, Liam. Can you try and talk to them when you go tomorrow?” Riley asks Paula. “I already know Lauren is on board, but I don’t know the others well enough to get in contact with them.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Paula states, bringing her empty plate to the sink. “I can’t stay, but when you have a plan in place, let me know, and I will get the info to anyone willing to help. Liz, thank you for dinner, it was delicious,” she says walking over to the elevator.
“No need to thank me, it was the least I could do,” Liz says.
“Riley, I’ll be in touch. Make sure you get those plans done. I’m afraid you don’t have a lot of time,” she says before stepping in and pushing the button to close the door.
Silence lingers in the air around them while Liz makes quick work of picking up their plates and dumping them into the sink.
Leaving Riley to think, she washes every dish, dries them, and puts them back in the cabinets.
Anything to keep her mind off what could be happening to her friends.
When the kitchen is spotless and Liz cannot find any more menial tasks to keep her busy, she goes back to Riley’s side, looking over the mountain of maps and information.
Thoughts continue to race as her eyes land on the tiny square labeled “Admin”.
She knows that is where the jail cells are, used for any soldier who steps out of line, or a team trying to simply get their leader back.
“What do we do now?” she asks, chin resting on the top of Riley’s head while her arms wrap around his shoulders.
“We wait,” he responds, reaching up to rub the arms holding him tight.
“Paula and Lauren will gather any help they can find, while we work out what to do once they recruit those willing to help. I promised you some alone time, and I am not breaking that promise. So, until they assemble a team and it’s time to go, I plan on taking full advantage of having the house to ourselves.
Crisis or not, we need to make up for lost time. ”
“We can’t just be all lovey dovey while our friends are being held prisoner, Ry,” she says, pulling her arms from him.
“Why not?” he asks. The chair slides out, forcing Liz to step back.
“I can make all the plans in the world, but we need bodies, and until I know how many I have to work with, no amount of planning will mean anything. I know exactly how we’re getting them out.
I know the best route to take, and what we will do when they are safe.
All of that means nothing when an unknown number of people are added to the equation,” he says.
Riley picks up her hand, leading her to the couch behind him.
He lands with a muffled thud, pulling Liz down next to him.
“Now, if it’s not too much to ask, I would like to have one fucking night where we can forget all the shit brewing out there and just be happy. ”