Did he...am I...

"Okay. Sounds good to me." Gage grins and leans over for one last kiss. "Thanks for spending time with me. I might go stir crazy otherwise."

Still smiling, he pries himself away and gets out of the car, waving and watching as Sapphire drives away. Then turning, he heads inside and up the two flights of stairs to his apartment. Once there, he kicks off his shoes and flops down on his mattress. But try as he might, sleep would not come. Lonny had helped him out, and it was great for being up and about, but now that he wanted to get some rest, he was still too wired.

Sighing, he rolls over and flips on the television to find some cheesy afternoon movie to watch. But by the time Sapphire would come later, he'd only dozed for for a short while.


"Ten seconds?" Leo scoffs. "You kidding? I don't need no ten seconds."

Going over to his own car, which was certainly no race car, he pats the hood lovingly. "Miles! Help us out."

Miles rolls his eyes, though grins and wanders to the edge of the parking lot. "Leo, why do you like to embarrass yourself?" he wonders aloud.

Once the two cars were facing the street, Miles looks both ways to make sure no traffic was coming, raises his arm, then lets it drop. Cringing at the squeal of tires, he stands still as both cars shoot around him. Coughing in the exhaust, he watches them zip down the street, noting that Ryan was already half a block ahead of Leo. He shakes his head and wanders back to the others. "Does Leo really think he has a chance?"

"No." Axel starts towards his own car. "He's just smarter than some people."

Miles furrows his brow and looks to Ron, then Jed, but only receives shrugging shoulders. "Why does he always have to be so cryptic?"

Jed laughs. "I'm too hungry to think about it. C'mon, you can ride with me."

It was only a short while later that the three man arrive at the Pizza Box to find Ryan already inside, with no sign of Leo. "You mean we even beat him?" Miles can't help his laughter. "So much for that race."

No sooner had he spoken, than Leo walks through the door, wearing a quiet grin.

"Leo!" Jed bows to him. "Congratulations on receiving last place. Somebody had to win it."

Leo just shakes his head, twirling his keys and stuffing them in his pocket. He'd made a turn not long after leaving the auto shop, making his drive longer than necessary. He holds up his palms, then lets him drop. "I guess that means I owe Ryan a pizza."


"Alec..." Reese enters Dalton's office, finding Alec at the second desk.

Alec looks up skeptically, tilting his head to down the rest of the Mountain Dew, to which he'd quickly become addicted after spending too much time in here. "What?"

"Stand up, please."

Alec rolls his eyes and stands. "What now? Do I get to go to the firing line?"

Reese doesn't answer, but instead, comes forward with a special key and kneels in front of Alec, lifting his pantleg to unlock the ankle bracelet. After a moment of working with it, it releases and Reese takes it, standing back up. "I have the key to your apartment," he informs. "When the day is over, come see me before I leave and I'll take you."

Alec blinks, stunned as Reese leaves the office. Turning to look at Dalton, his eyebrows are still raised. He'd gotten wind that Chance was their man for both the hacking and the murders, but he hadn't expected this kind of response. "Did he... am I... did that just happen?"


"Alright, Chance, come on."

Chance looks up in surprise as Reese comes into the room with Hal. He didn't know how long he'd been sitting there, but he was pretty sure it had been a couple of hours. What was going on now?

Hal uncuffs him. "Get up."

Chance does as he's told, squinting a little with his sore eyes.

Reese sighs deeply. "Hal will be taking you to the airport, where you will board an Elite jet and be flown back to Arizona."

Chance was sure there had to be more. "Then what?"

"Then you're free to go."

That was just too simple. "What's the catch?"

"Nothing." Reese shakes his head. "You're right. TJY started out undercover and as a vigilante group. Whether or not I agree with the Underground's methods, I owe you the same respect that I desired when defending myself for going around the law."

"So that's it? You just let me loose at risk of causing trouble?"

"We let you loose without the honor of the Elite to do as you please. But should we ever catch you involved with the Underground again, you will be arrested and taken to trial."

Chance studies Reese's eyes, feeling very uneasy about this whole thing. "You're going to track me, aren't you? You know I won't give up any more information, so you're gonna track me and hope that I lead you right to the Underground."

Reese doesn't reply, though it was as good as saying yes. "Hal, please escort him."

As Chance is being pushed to the door, his mind races. Reese was smart. He'd gotten out of drawn-out legal proceedings and had successfully cornered Chance - for if he stayed out of trouble, then that was good. And if he went to the Underground and was caught, that was good for the Elite too. For them, it was a win-win situation. And for Chance, he was being stripped of all dignity and left jobless to fend for himself. "What about my things?"

"They'll be on the plane with you," Hal informs.


Back at the safe house, it was Jason and Gunner who went through Chance's things, gathered them up and packed them, except for Chance's computer which would remain so that he couldn't retain any Elite information. Gunner was the one to meet the other team at the airport, and it was Jason who would remain here, at least for now.

Once Jason knows Gunner is on his way, and the security system had been double-checked, Jason settles down in the living room, stretching out on the couch, but the television remains silent. He had yet to see Destiny. He was sure she was still upset, but he wouldn't rouse her unless she didn't show up by bedtime.


Con stands at the long window, his arms folded as he looks through the glass at his little nephew who was struggling in his big new world. The wires and breathing tube made him look even smaller than he was as a nurse moved about the room, constantly checking on him.

On a different floor, Laura was also under constant watch, one minute stable, and the next surrounded by nurses, trying to keep her from leaving the world her son had just entered.

Con's jaw muscles tighten and relax, tighten and relax. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Laura had been scared from day one, and everyone had assured her that it would be a piece of cake. And now this. After an emergency delivery, now both Laura and the baby were in critical condition and Con had never felt so helpless. He'd always protected his little sister and now there was absolutely nothing he could do.