Wrath

As Nate was hit, Garret's instincts sent him flat to the ground as well. Who was shooting? Why? He was out in the open with nowhere to hide, but obviously Nate was the target, not Garret. That meant there was a good chance it was Agency. And if it was Agency, that meant there was a good chance they were here to get Garret out.

His eyes jumped to Nate's bleeding form. He was still breathing, but was in obvious danger, as blood was already soaking his shirt. And this right here could be what sent Garret to prison. His fault or not, who would believe him? Reese would blame him, and all this would be over. The smartest thing for him to do now would be run. Run and lie to the Agency, and at least he wouldn't rot behind bars. It wasn't what he wanted, but his plan had very obviously failed, and in a big way. He should have known the Agency would kill to rescue him. He'd been a fool to think he could handle this.

All of that went through his mind in but an instant. And it only took another split second for him to act. Moving to Nate, he first dug the keys out of Nate's pocket and released a wrist and an ankle, freeing his limbs.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Aaron glared at Victoria, not caring anymore whether or not she was in charge. "I just gave Garret his chance, and you want to stop that?! What is wrong with you?" He grabbed his binoculars to check on the scene. "See?" He pointed. "Our boy is letting himself loose, no thanks to you." 

Seeing how badly Nate was bleeding from his chest, Garret immediately put pressure to the wound. He growled his frustration with a curse under his breath. Risking to release him for only a moment, he tore into Nate's shirt sleeve, wadded it up and stuffed it underneath him where the bullet had gone through, before returning pressure to his shoulder. No one was coming outside. No one had seen what happened. If he and Nate stayed, whoever had fired would be here and things would escalate. Thinking quickly, Garret felt around Nate with one hand until he found his cell phone. It was simple to get in and find Reese's number. "Get out here now," he ordered, "and call an ambulance."

He tossed aside the phone and both hands went back to Nate, the blood pressing out between his fingers. "You're not gonna die on my watch," he muttered. He hadn't wanted anyone to get hurt, and though he had no proof, he knew this had to do with him. He knew someone had just tried to free him. And whoever it was...they would see him now, put two and two together, and he'd be a marked man much sooner than expected. But something stopped him from running. Something held him here. And watching Nate now, he had the same churning in his gut as he'd had when pulling the trigger on Victoria's mother. It was a feeling he didn't like, and didn't want.

"Stay with me, Nate, come on," he coaxed.

Still peering through the binoculars, Aaron swore before waving a hand in frustration. "What is he doing? Why is he staying and helping that agent?" Forgetting he was mad at Victoria, he looked over at her again. "I can't believe I'm seeing this. They're gonna come for us now, and all because he didn't make a move."

Receiving the call from Nate's phone, Reese immediately called Hal and made it quickly outdoors, gun drawn. Seeing Garret - free and leaning over Nate's bloodied body - he stopped and raised his weapon. "Garret! Back off now!" he ordered.

Garret didn't budge, and only lifted his eyes, speaking very calmly. "I will, but only if you want Nate to bleed out. Otherwise, I'm not moving my hands until the squad comes."

"You expect me to believe that? What happened? Who shot him?"

"If you want your agent to live, don't make me move. As far as who shot, I don't know." He glanced back across the street. Did he dare try to expose the shooter? If they were smart, they'd be gone by now anyway. "But I'm pretty sure the shot came from that building, so if I were you, I'd send someone over."

It took Reese a moment to decide what to do, but he finally lowered his weapon and ordered Hal to call for an ambulance before he knelt next to Nate and checked his pulse. "Nate? Nate, can you hear me?"

"He blacked out," Garret mentioned, still refusing to move his hands. "Bullet hit above his heart though, so he's got a chance..."

...It felt like an eternity, but in reality, the squad arrived quickly. Garret never moved until the paramedics were fully ready to take over, and as the ambulance drove away, he was left standing still half-cuffed, blood on his clothes and hands, watching the vehicle leave. There were so many unanswered questions now.

"Back inside." It was Hal ordering him around now, and once again, a gun had appeared.

Garret sighed, but did as he was told. If he escaped prison now, he'd be the luckiest person in the world. It was back to his cell to wait for Reese's wrath...

"...Come on." Gunner waved Katie behind him as they carefully but quickly crossed the street on foot, ready for anything. He motioned around the corner to the fire escape stairs that led to the roof. "If I were a sniper, that's where I'd go. What do you think?"

By now, it was obvious the Elite was coming, and Aaron was already packing up. "You coming?" he asked Victoria. "I'm certainly not going down here."