Line of Duty

Eli nodded numbly as he stood up. No matter the reason for what had happened tonight, just knowing they needed to evaluate Ryan's mental state was hard to accept. "Yeah...yeah, okay. Thank you."

After asking where Ryan's room was, he found his way, and entered quietly. It was hard seeing his sister lying there in the bed. It always made her look so much weaker than she really was. Approaching slowly, he eased down in the available chair and just looked at Ryan, feeling utterly helpless. 

He pulled his phone from his pocket and hivered his thumb over the buttons a moment before finally forming a text message. He knew Scarlet was out of town and busy, but...he just couldn't bear this alone. 

Didn't want to bother you. Ryan was in an accident. She's going to be ok but I just wanted you to know. Details later.

He hit send, then sighed. Tal. He probably wouldn't even get the message til he got up in a few hours.

Ryan was in an accident. At the hospital but ok. I'm with her. Call me when you get this.

Pocketing his phone, Eli looked back to Ryan's still form. "What's going on, Speedy?" he asked quietly, not wanting to disturb her, but desperate to solve this mystery. "What really happened out there tonight?" Surely it hadn't been on purpose. God, please don't let it have been on purpose.


Enjoy doing something "just because"? What was the point? Garret's eyebrows furrowed in almost a slight confusion as he genuinely tried to imagine living that kind of perspective. He finally shook his head. "In my line of duty, there wasn't exactly time for doing something without reason, and laughter...was a polite formality reserved for social gatherings." True enjoyment of anything - aside from brief moments with Victoria - was rather foreign to him. Sometimes the guards would have late night card games and would carry on, but even that was limited, and Garret never entered in. He took his job too seriously to be caught in that position.

He gave Nate a sidelong glance, knowing full well that they were from completely opposite worlds. And this one...with as little as he'd seen so far...made very little sense. His own world had always been dark. From day one with the Agency, he'd been pushed beyond his limits, and had learned very quickly to set aside all emotions. If he hadn't, he would have been broken years ago. But he'd developed iron walls instead - walls that were now sunken firmly in place. 

"All it takes is one moment with your guard down to bring disaster. I'm not sure I could live without taking things seriously twenty-four/seven."


Aaron's eyes widened. Victoria was actually going to take his idea? Without even a slam to his level if intelligence? Maybe miracles really did happen. As she turned her back in him though, he smirked. "Oh, I wouldn't dare miss out." As if. Did she really think he'd never been in a case before? 

He sighed and reached over to turn his light off before settling down on his back. His eyes drifted back to Victoria's form though. This trip didn't have to be so obnoxiously tense. If she'd just loosen up, they could... He rolled his eyes at himself before turning his gaze to the dark ceiling. As if. No, this was strictly business. Which it probably should be anyway if they were going to succeed in extracting Garret from the clutches of the Elite.