I promise

As her phone vibrates in her pocket Ryan closes her eyes for a moment. Before she even looked she new it would be her brother. If he hadn't called after getting her letter she would of wondered if it had gone over looked.

Not wanting to answer it Ryan finally get it from her pocket before glancing at Carson for a moment seeing Alec's down face in him and than turning to look out the window. She never noticed till now how much they did look a like.

Ryan can't even say hello before Eli lays into her and Ryan just lets him. Not arguing back, and not trying to get any words in. It was Eli's right to be angry with her. Once he was done Ryan lets out a long sigh.

"You might very well be right. We could be wrong about Alec, but I'm not turning around Eli. I have to find out for myself, and I have to look into Alec's eyes and see. I'll be back soon...I promise. I love you Big Brother."

Not letting anymore words be exchanged Ryan closes the phone and puts it back in her pocket. Leaning her head against the cool glass she looking out at the passing scenes. Everything wized by her mind just seeming to wonder. The rain that started to fall splatted on the window and made there long path down ward the weather seeming to match the mood.

Standing up a little straighter once Susanne comes into the room Chuck can't help but smile as he looks at her. His eyes seeming to twinkle. He'd never really though of birds as a pet he would want but he'd never scoff at someone else who did. Susanne liked them and they were a part of her so he likes them now too.

"Hey, I'm a little mad remember? I think we even each other out."

Giving a small laugh Chuck found humor in the whole thing even if some would be offended for being called mad it didn't bother him any. Seeing Susanne was ready he gives a smile again making note to himself at just how pretty she did look.

"I like your little family, even if they are birds, and there owner is even better. Shall we travel onward now?"

Picking up the phone and hearing Wyatt's voice and about how Domino was doing Hope lets out a sigh and leans back in her chair. It had been a few days since she had gotten the letter from Scott but she just wasn't feeling like herself yet. Maybe she had something in common with the little dog.

"Yeah, I can take her for you. Maybe right now...we both need each other because we are missing something."

In a way Hope couldn't wait to get back to work. It would keep her mind off everything but her last visit to the dr has said not yet. She still needed more strength and he didn't want her to over do it and get sick again.

"When did you want to bring her over? I pretty much am home all the time."

If she could help little Domino, maybe Domino could help her too. She'd always liked the little dog and new how close her and Scott were. Maybe this would be the only thing she had left of the man she loved so dearly so it was worth it.

A favor

"I'm always safe." Carson grins at Misty. Both knew that every time Carson went out on a case, he was far from safe. But he was as careful as he could be, and that's the most anyone could do. "I'll come back in one piece... I promise. And if Ryan tries anything, I'll lock her in the trunk and you can have her when we get back."

Eyes twinkling, he leans over to give Misty a long, slow kiss. Drawing back, he sighs. "I gotta go," he whispers. "Pray for me... and Alec."

Standing up, he heads to the bedroom for a few last-minute items and too quickly, he's gone once more. After stopping for gas and a few things to eat and drink, Carson makes it to Ryan's apartment right when he said he would. Leaving the car running, he waits until she comes out. And without any words exchanged, they hit the road.


...Eli enters the dark apartment, finding it a little odd Ryan wasn't still up. It was late, for sure, but she was usually a night owl anyway. But maybe she still wasn't feeling so good after the whole Alec thing. It had been a couple days, but Eli knew she was still pretty down about it.

Tossing his bike keys aside, he flips on the living room lights before throwing his jacket over the back of a chair. Feeling a bit thirsty, he wanders to the kitchen and aims for the fridge, but stops when he sees a piece of paper on the counter. Picking it up, he immediately recognizes Ryan's handwriting so he starts to read. When he's finished with the note though, it goes slamming back down onto the counter, followed up by an angry curse hurled into oblivion.

Digging for his cell phone, he immediately dial's Ryan and waits. Once he hears her answer, he waists no time. "Are you crazy?! Alec's running with one of the most dangerous groups on the planet and you wanna just walk right in there, take his hand and lead him out?! Carson's wrong, Ryan. He's wrong about Alec and he's wrong to take you with him. Do yourself a favor and turn around now before it's too late."


Hearing Chuck talking to the birds in the other room, Susanne smiles to herself. If he didn't mind the birds, that would be a plus.

Rummaging quickly through her closet, she finds the light sweater she wants then digs to find her comfy but nice jeans. A quick trip to the bathroom and she runs a brush through her hair before pulling it back at the nape of her neck, then freshens her makeup... but just a little... she'd figured out that Chuck liked her just as well without being dolled up.

I wasn't ten minutes later that she was ready to go and comes back to the living room. Grinning a little, she wanders over to him by the bird cages. "Now you've met the rest of my family," she muses. "They're a pretty chipper bunch once you get to know them." She laughs. "And it's a sure sign that I spend way too much time with them if I start treating them like family members. Are you really sure you want to know me more?"


Wyatt looks down to the corner of the kitchen where the little dog was curled up on her soft bed. Her toys had gone untouched for days and she hadn't been eating well either. A trip to the vet had concluded that physically, there was nothing wrong with her. Wyatt worried he knew what was wrong, but unfortunately, there wasn't much anyone could do.

Picking up the phone, he leans back on his counter and waits for Hope to answer her phone. "Hey, Hope... it's Wyatt. Sorry to bother you. Listen um... I heard you'd be back to work soon - we all miss you around the office." It was true - everyone was excited for her return.

"I didn't want to bug you with anything else to think about, but I got a little friend here that might be able to use your company again." He goes and squats down next to Domino, reaching out to scratch her behind her ears. She looks up at him and sighs but doesn't lift her head.

"Katie and I took turns taking care of Domino while you were in the hospital. I've got her again at the moment but... she just isn't happy. I'm guessing it's Scott she wants but, you're the closest thing to him so I guess I just wondered if you were feeling up to taking care of her again."

Letter Goodbye

Taking the helmet back and giving a smile to Susanne Chuck gives a nod. It did make more sense for her to drive him and than have him go from there to the movies. Why he hadn't thought of that himself beat him.

Shaking his head a little and pushing his helmet down Chuck starts up the bike and follows Susanne. It doesn't take long for them to get to her house and when she offers him inside he is a bit surprised. It must have really taken her a lot of courage to ask him in. He would of been happy just waiting out here for him but not that she was offering why not.

Heading inside with Susanne Chuck looks around the room once she disappears. The room was big and bright. Very clean and one could tell great car had been taken in every detail. Coming in a little more Chuck see the bird cages and can't help but smile. It looked like Susanne took great joy in the birds.

"Well Hello there, you must be the kids. Susanne told me a little about you all but she never mentioned how cute you all were."

Chuck smile at himself for talking to the birds like they could understand them but they really were pretty and it was nice to look at all there colors.

Heading inside Ryan takes a quick look around the room. Eli said he was going to be out late with Scarlet tonight as they took there rain check and went to a concert that was right outside town.

Heading to her room Ryan went to her room and grabbed her backpack. Throwing in some jeans, shirts, and a few other items she would need she new to pack light. Looking around her room Ryan lets out a small sigh. It was hard to look anywhere and not see Alec. He'd been such a big part of her lift over the last few months that now his mark was just left everywhere.

Heading into the kitchen Ryan opens the cupboard and grabs some snack bars throwing them into her back along with her clothing. Than taking a peace of paper and a pen from the counter she sits at the small kitchen table and writes.

Eli,

I wont be home for a few days. I have deiced I need to see whats going on with Alec myself. Nothing adds up, and yes everyone thinks maybe he didn't change after all but there was no way he could of fooled me that well. No...I saw him, I saw the change and I saw the look in his eye when he said he loved me.

Don't worry big brother I am not going alone. Ty saw to that on and told Carson what I was planning on doing. So now I will be travailing with him. Please don't be angry with Carson. If he hadn't have let me gone than I would of gone alone and that would be more dangerous than it is now.

Carson said we are going to see if Alec will come back with us because he believe Alec is there against his own will. If he makes it clear he does not want to come back than we will have to walk away. I will have to walk away. I know how hard that will be for me to walk away from Alec once I see him again but at the same time I know how easy it will be too.

Wish me luck Eli, and I will see you again soon.

With all my love,
Speedy

Placing the letter in the counter Ryan new Eli would see it when he got home and went for a beer. She hopped he wouldn't be to angry with her. This was just something she had to do.

Looking at Carson as he comes into the living room Misty new he would be leaving soon so she herself didn't want to get to comfortable. But coming a little closer she places her hand on his arm and gives it a loving rub.

Hearing Ryan was going to go with Carson Misty gives a little nod. She'd guessed that she would say she wanted to go. Misty could see the look in the young woman's eye from the short days she had bumped into her when Alec was still at TJY. It had been the same look of a strong will that Misty had, had at that age.

"Yes I'm still ok with that. I trust you Carson. Just let he know if she does try anything She'll have to answer to me."

Giving a little sassy grin Misty leans in and gives Carson a kiss. She loved Carson and though the past had been rough she trusted him now. He's changed a lot since than and she'd seen every step.

"Just be safe and don't get yourselves into trouble. I want you to come home to me."

Misty gives a smile though on the inside she wish she was coming with Carson this was not her battle and she had to stay behind. As long as Carson was safe and did come home in one peace it would be ok. She'd get to fight along side him another time.

Safe?

"Okay." Carson might not agree with Ryan's decision, and he might think she was foolish to want to contact the Agency, but he did trust her word about walking away if it came to that.

"I'll come to your place in about an hour to pick you up then. Pack for at least three days - we might be gone longer than that, depending. We think he and Yvette are about a day away right now, but by the time we get there, they might have moved on and even once we do locate him, we're gonna have to find the right window of opportunity."

Carson nods with decisiveness. He wasn't going to go in half-cocked or without intel. He thought that Alec would want out and if he did, if they could slip in and slip out, it might be a very easy extraction. But if Alec really didn't want to come and Carson had read the signs wrong then it could turn into a mess if they weren't careful.

"Oh, and you might want to just leave your brother a note instead of telling him to his face where you're going." A wry grin avoided Carson's lips and instead, appeared in just his eyes. "I'd rather not have him beat me to a pulp for taking you along." While Carson could handle his own and was very skilled when it came to hand-to-hand combat, Eli knew how to street fight and Carson would just as soon avoid any confrontation.

"So get home and pack. I'll see you in about an hour." Giving Ty one last glance, he turns on his heel and heads for the door.

Ty still leans on his broom handle and watches Carson leave, then eyes Ryan. "Carson thinks Alec's clean. Reese disagrees. Good luck."


Once in his car again, Carson heads back home. He'd already made arrangements to be gone and though Misty knew as well, he wanted to let her know exactly what was happening now that he'd seen Ryan.

Getting home, he parks and goes inside, finding Misty in the living room, despite the late hour. "Hey, Babe." He wanders in and eases down on the couch next to her but doesn't get too comfortable. He needed to stay awake so he could leave in a little while and drive.

"Ryan said she wanted to go, so I'm taking her along." The possibility had been there before, but now that it was a sure thing, Carson wanted to check again to ensure everything on the at home would be okay once he got back. He looks at Misty for a long moment, searching her eyes. He wished it was her going along instead, but as it was, the circumstances called for something different this time. "You still okay with that?" He knew she trusted him, but he didn't want any insecure feelings to surface because he'd be traveling with another woman.


Susanne just shakes her head and laughs. Though she did find his compliments amusing, and though there was a part of her that didn't believe a single one, there was still a corner of her heart that felt oh-so good when he said those sweet words.

"Um..." She accepts the helmet, but hesitates. She had yet to reveal to Chuck where she lived. It had been a precautionary move before... what about now? She really would prefer changing into her jeans and a more comfortable shirt, not to mention she might like to freshen up really quickly after working all day. She hadn't planned on stopping at home, but now that he'd mentioned it...

"I... guess it would be nice to stop by home first. But I might as well drive my car there at least then you can just take me straight home later." She hands the helmet back to him. "You can follow me."

Did he know what a big step it was for her to allow him to her house? She didn't know. But as she turned to her car, her heart began beating just a little faster. She was going to let Chuck a little further into her safety zone... was it wise? Was it safe? There was only one way to find out.

It wasn't long before they were across town and Susanne was parking in her driveway. She gets out of her car and glances back to Chuck, giving him time to get off his bike before going up to the front door. Unlocking it, she steps inside first, flicking on the lights, and turning to let Chuck inside as well. "I'll just be a few minutes..." She gestures to the living room. "Make yourself comfortable... the birds will probably want to introduce themselves." Setting her purse by the couch, she heads down the hall, trying to not make Chuck wait too long.

Though the house was not large, the living room had plenty of space. A couch was angled at once side, close to a small entertainment center for a television and a few movies. A soft gliding chair was also present, next to a small table and lamp where a few gardening magazines were kept.

The walls were cream-colored with a green ivy border around the top, stenciled with paint, proving great care and time. A few pictures that adorned the walls were mostly paintings of flowers or landscapes. Hanging in one corner was a lovely green plant - not alone as there were several more houseplants about the room. The back portion of the living room though, was dedicated to several bird cages. And at the bottom of each cage were handmade nameplates. The birds had been named after variety of flowers, and each also bore the meaning of that particular flower.

On the end was a little red canary named Mallow - the meaning listed was "delicate beauty." Next were two lovebirds, the first yellow one was named Honeysuckle, meaning "bond of love," while the second was green and red, named Gloxinia which meant "love at first sight." In the middle cage was a whitefaced cockatiel named Olive for "peace." And on the far right were two blue parakeets - one named Snowdrop for "hope," and one named Periwinkle for "sweet remembrance." Roomy cages and plenty of toys proved the owner's care for these twittering, whistling pets that cocked their heads and stared at new company with cautious curiosity.