Fight

Neither man knew how to respond to Ryan, and both watched helplessly as she went to her room. Only then did Eli look back at Tal, irritation in his gaze. "Really? That's how you decided to handle it?"

"Hey, don't blame me." Tal held up his hands. "I'm not the one who pretended to like someone, all while I loved another."

"It wasn't like that!"

"Wasn't it?" Tal shook his head. "Her and me...it's been an uphill battle from the beginning. Sue me for being tired of constantly competing with another man. She wouldn't have reacted this way to his death if she hadn't still been in love with him - you know that."

By now, Eli was glaring at him. "So the honorable thing to do is kick her when she's down then, is that it? Wait until she has a breakdown, then call things off."

"I didn't know before! I should have, but I was an idiot, okay? If you found out Scarlet loved another man, would you stick around?" 

"That's not fair."

"Why? Just because Ryan is your sister? She can lead me on all she wants and it's okay because you can beat up anyone who challenges her intentions?"

Eli's hands clenched into fists at his sides. "Don't push me, Tal," he warned. "You should have talked to her before storming out, and you know it."

Tal scoffed. "So she could say what? That I had my 'own spotlight'? Sure, I did. On a stage with Alec's name all over it."

"She cares about you, and you're throwing it away."

"My love means nothing to her!" Tal's voice finally rose. "She has been in love with someone else this entire time - not only that, but with a man who wanted me dead. How is that supposed to make me feel?! I know he's dead, but none of this has been real! So tell me what I'm throwing away!"

"You're throwing away a woman who has been hurt, and I cannot believe you have such poor timing!"

"It's not my fault she's been seeing a ghost!"

Eli held up a warning finger, pointed right at Tal. "Make light of what she's going through, and so help me..."

"What? You gonna slug me?"

Eli ignored the question. "Ryan can't help how she feels and you're punishing her for it. That's not something that sits well with me, so get your head out of your butt."

Tal straightened in order to distance himself from Eli. Anger and hurt burned in his eyes. "I never said it was her fault," he hissed. "But that doesn't change the fact that I've been made a fool...by her and by you, because you knew, yet said nothing. I guess counting on you to have my back was my second mistake."

Eli's hand reached quickly for the door and he yanked it open. "Don't stick around for a third one."

Tal could hardly believe this was happening. He was losing his girl and his best friend all at once. He held Eli's icy stare with his own before finally giving in and walking out. He didn't slow until he'd reached his car, and only when he was safely behind the wheel did he let a tear run down his face. 

Back inside, Eli closed the door and just leaned against it for several  moments, trying to regain control. He had no idea what would happen now. How this would affect Ryan. What this meant for him and Tal. Any of it. How had things gotten so messed up?

Supper was completely forgotten as Eli ambled down the hallway. He tapped lightly on Ryan's door before gently pushing it open. Leaning on the doorframe, hands tucked in his pockets, he just looked in at her and sighed. "You okay?"


Reese had a hard time determining if Victoria was telling the truth or not, and wished Justin was here. But all he could do tonight was work from a distance. As if on cue, Reese's cell phone buzzed in his pocket. A quick look revealed a text from Justin:

Tough call. No distinctive body language on Victoria tho that I can see. Lying? Can't tell. I'd guess genuine confusion at Garret's visit tho, and genuine affection. Garret - my observations stand. Think he's telling the truth. Multiple visual cues when asked about his past tho, so heads up on possible hidden intel.

Reese sent a quick thanks, then a short text to Nate:

Beware Garret's truthfulness. Stay sharp.

He then pocketed his phone again and returned his focus to Victoria. "You say to do what Aaron wants, and what he wants is to be given you and Garret in exchange for our agent. Seems a pretty handy way for you and Garret to get out of here with stolen intel. So since we're backed into a corner here, just be honest - was this your escape plan?"


Garret looked up quickly as Nate entered the room, hoping to finally be let in on what was going on. Nate's apology for the cuffs made one of his eyebrows arc. He knew Nate wouldn't have put him in cuffs himself, but he hadn't expected anyone to take note. 

Hearing about Aaron, his lips pursed. This wasn't good. He'd been afraid of something like this. At least it was Aaron and not Victoria trying this kind of scheme, but it was no less dangerous for whomever he'd taken.

"I don't know anything about this," he answered steadily. "I don't know about Victoria, but I think she would have told me if she'd been in on a further plan, and she didn't." He cocked his head. "Aaron is most likely just trying to get us back. He doesn't know I brought myself here, so he's trying to rescue us, and save his hide in the process. If he went back without us, he'd pay dearly."

His brow furrowed as he tried to calculate what Aaron might do. "Has he made any demands? Who does he have? If he asks for a trade, you should say yes. He'll kill without blinking in order to prove a point. He's not a murdering maniac - he's just a loyal soldier doing his job. I'm not saying what he's doing is right, I'm just saying that's what his frame of mind is."


Troy nodded at Stacy, though still felt a strange sense of stress that kept him alert. "Thank you." He followed her to the office where he was introduced to Mick and Rosetta - Eric's sister. "Oh good, I'm glad there is some immediate family here since I was just told Eric is away on business." He proceeded to give them the same speach he had to Stacy, presenting the paperwork even before being asked, since he sensed the same disbelief in this couple. 

Mick's eyes had gone wide, and his surprise only intensified as he read over the papers. Standing next to the desk, he then looked to Rosetta and just blinked. Eric...had two children? He looked back to Troy. "So you're telling us you have these two babies with you now? Dana actually hired you to bring them so she wouldn't have to?"

Troy cleared his throat. "Well, there are many situations where a mother may not want direct contact with the father, but still would like to offer full custody, as in this case." He paused and looked at the three again, trying to read their faces. "I'm...sorry. My client didn't give me many details, but I guess I assumed Eric knew about the babies."

Mick's surprise turned into a frown. "No...no he didn't. None of us did. So what's keeping Dana from changing her mind and reporting a kidnapping?"

"Oh, that's what these documents are for. They ensure Eric's innocence...as well as mine, for that matter. I do apologize for what must be a shock. I really didn't know, but... I do need to be told what to do now. Since Eric didn't know, I guess there's question as to whether or not he would want to keep them?" His eyes continued to try and read their reactions. "If he or a family member can't or won't sign for them, my next stop is social services where I'm sure they will be adopted in no time."

Mick gazed at Rosetta once more. There was always a chance this was a ploy - either Agency or just Dana's way to ditch unwanted children. And Eric wasn't here to make the call, nor could he make such a decision over the phone. But...could they really let his man take two innocent babies to social services? Could they really let that happen? He didn't need to voice anything to his wife - he knew she'd be able to read his eyes. They couldn't send two children to such a risky fate, let alone their own family, if this were indeed true, which it appeared to be. "What do you think?"

Failure

Tal's words hurt and she had no idea where there came from. They cut through her heart like knife leaving nothing but devastation more than what was already there. She'd hoped that Eli and Tal would be there for her but it looked as though that would not be the case now.

   "I'm sorry I cant just turn all my emotions off, I'm sorry that I'm broken and I'm sorry you dont like it. You were not in anyone's shadow, you had your own spot light."

Tears sprang into Ryan's eyes. This was all her fault, Tal felt less than Alec because of her. Though her words blamed him really she blamed herself. Why did she ever think she could be happy? It was a crazy thought but after all she was crazy.

    "This is all my fault. I'm sorry, for everything, and I'm sorry for not being better."

Standing herself Ryan puts her plate down that had hardly been touched and heads to her room. Closing the door behind her. She didn't want to hear anything else. She just wanted to shut out the world. Sitting down on her bed Ryan pulled out the journal from Justin and jots down one word Failure!

Hearing about what happened to Susanne Angelica put her napkin down on the table and was already getting her jacket on. This was urgent and she new it. No life was worth losing time from taking another bite of food.

Getting into the car and putting on her seat belt Angelica turned so she could look at Reese, her own heart pounded in her chest. This was a mess and it must be connected to Victoria and Garret.

Looking up at Reese Victoria's face was emotionless. Why was she here again? Hadn't they already gotten the point she wasn't talking? Garret must have told them about Aaron but what did that have to do with her being here now? 

Her question was soon answered hearing that Aaron had kidnapped someone. A bref moment of anger shown in Victoria's own eyes. Not only had Aaron not listened to her, but now he was messing with what Garret had worked hard for. She might not agree, and might not follow but that didn't mean she wanted to rune it for him.

   "His name is Aaron and he can't follow directions. This was not in the plain to kidnap anyone.You can believe me or not, but thats all I know. If he said he'd kill her than she is either already dead, or he will if you don't do what he says."

Getting to the office and getting the low down on what was going on Nate ran a hand over is face, He was happy Reese has called him to talk to Garret but at the same time it was hard to be pulled from home when he had been comfortable. He was lucky though the Laura understood and just wanted Susanne back too. 

Opening the door and entering the room Nate takes note to the handcuffs on Garret once again. He couldn't blame Reese really seeing as they had no idea what was going on. He still did feel bad though.

   "Sorry about the cuffs again Garret. Victoria is ok but we do have a problem. It seems the guy you were talking me about Aaron has taken one of our agents. Is there anything you havent told us that could help? Reese is none to happy and any information would be better than none."

Continuing to listen Stacy couldnt help but be on guard the more and more he talked. She new Eric had been married but she didn't know anything about him being a father. She wondered if he even new.
    
   "Can I see the paper work please? Before I let you talk to anyone I need to make sure of what you have said!"

Taking the paper work Stacy tried to say as calm as she could as she thumbed through everything. Sure enough it seemed like everything was in order and true. As much as she didn't want to believe it, she was more worried for Eric. Something just didn't feel right.

     "Eric's family runs this ranch. Follow me."
 

Babies

Ryan's sudden question was so out of the blue that Tal's fork hovered halfway to his mouth as he stopped mid-bite. Her tone made his stomach turn, and he kept his eyes on the television. 

Her second question brought Eli to a halt as well, and he looked between her and his best friend, wondering what in the world was going on. Even small spats were rare for them - what was this?

Tal slowly set down his fork, swallowing his previous bite and hoping it stayed down. Right now, he wasn't so sure it would. He refused to look at Ryan, too upset to even show her his face. And all this....it was just too much. He never should have come over tonight. "You're not crazy," he stated quietly. "I am." He rose to his feet. "For thinking this could work."

As he aimed for the door, Eli quickly set his plate aside and got up. "Whoa, whoa, where are you going?"

"Back where I belong." Tal slipped on his shoes and grabbed his keys. "Thanks for supper."

"You barely ate!" Eli's eyes were wide. "What is going on here?" He looked to Ryan, Tal, back and forth. When Tal didn't reply and simply tried to leave, Eli took him by the shoulder to stop him. "You're not going anywhere until I get some answers."

Tal shrugged off his hand, and finally looked to Ryan. His eyes weren't angry. Just sad. Hurt. Disappointed. "Why should I stay?" The words caught in his throat. This wasn't how he wanted to do this but Eli was backing him into a corner. "I never even really belonged here anyway, did I? All the time in Alec's shadow, just too blind to see it."

Eli recoiled and straightened slightly. The hospital. This had to be about what Ryan said at the hospital. Tal must have overheard. And now... Eli had no response. He looked to his sister, now even more worried about her emotional state.


Halfway through dinner at the nice restaurant, Reese rolled his eyes as his cell phone buzzed. He and Angelica both could never shut off their phones, even for a meal, and they knew that, but just once it would be nice to not have to worry about anything else. Seeing the caller's number, he couldn't remember whose it was, and was tempted not to answer. But something told him he should. 

"Hello?" Hearing Chuck's urgent message, he sat up straight in his chair and gave Angelica a very concerned look. "Ok, just keep cool. It's going to be okay. I'll call Susanne's phone and figure out what's really going on. I'll be in touch - call me back if you hear anything else."

Ending the call, Reese stood up from the table. "Susanne's been nabbed. It's gotta be Agency. Come on." He tossed Angelica the car keys so he could concentrate on calling Susanne's phone...and anyone else he'd have to. "Let's get to headquarters."

He left payment on the table and dialed as he walked outside with her, heading to the car...

Seeing the phone showing that Reese was calling, Aaron quirked an eyebrow. That was even faster than he'd anticipated. He let it ring a few times before finally answering. "Well, if it isn't chief of the Elite. What an honor."

Reese slid in the passenger seat and buckled himself in. He bristled at the man's voice. "What do you want?"

"Mm, right down to business. I like that." Aaron glanced to the basement door. "I've got something you want, and you've got something I want. So the logical solution is a trade, don't you think?"

Reese gritted his teeth. "And what is it you want?"

"Just two warm bodies." Aaron fiddled with a knife, twirling the tip of the blade on the kitchen counter. "Actually, to particular warm bodies. You've got two Agency operatives and I want them back."

Reese glanced at Angelica, worry in his eyes. "And if I refuse?"

"Oh, that's easy. Susanne here dies. I'm not a cruel man - I'll make it quick. But then I'll just have to find my next target and we'll have to start all over again. So for efficiency sake, I'd suggest getting this uncomfortable process over with. Savvy?"

"Yeah...yeah, I understand. So what do..." Reese's voice trailed off as the call was abruptly ended. He knew the kidnapper was just toying with him, and giving him time to work things out before offering up any more details. He growled in frustration. "He wants Garret and Victoria in return for Susanne. Otherwise he's gonna a kill her." He dialed a new number on his phone. "Nate - it's Reese. We've got a situation. Meet me at headquarters asap. I need you to interrogate Garret..." 

...It was an hour and a half later at the Elite. Reese stood inside Victoria's holding cell, while Pete was just feet away with a readied shotgun, just in case. Reese folded his arms and stared at Victoria, anger flashing in his eyes, though he was trying to keep his cool. "The agent you say shot Nate - he's still out there, isn't he? I want to know everything about him, and I want to know the real plan here. I don't like being blindsided, especially when it involves kidnapping one of my own agents. So start talking."

Upstairs, Garret paced the interrogation room. All he knew was they wanted him distanced from Victoria while they talked to her, and something bad had happened. Bad enough that he was back in the hated cuffs and shackles. He hadn't fought, but he'd thought they were past this. It must be only Nate who thought of him as a human being. Reese had told him Nate would be here soon, but he had no idea why. He hadn't done anything but beg to see Victoria again, and it was strange to be handled after normal hours. 


Sitting at his desk at home, Justin's eyes were glued to his computer screen. He'd just been in the middle of a pizza and movie with Beth at his place, and had just gotten super comfortable on the couch with her, when Reese had called. Now the movie was paused and he'd had to leave Beth on the couch while he worked in his office. But Susanne's life was on the line, making it far less of an inconvenience.

Dalton had sent him all video footage from the last few days of Garret and Victoria both. Reese wanted him to go over it and see if there were any hidden clues or any mal-intent or lies. It was hard not being onsite, and some footage had no audio, but Justin would do his best.


Troy frowned at Stacy's response, his eyes showing he was trying to work something out in his mind. “Oh. Well...maybe you can help." Her coolness had put him on edge, but he had a job to do. "My colleague and I have a couple month-old babies that we were hired to leave with Eric - their father. If we can’t leave them here with a family member, we’ve been directed to take them to social services instead." 

He sifted through some papers in his hands. “I’ve got a statement from the mother, giving up her rights, in case anyone should question the legitimacy of this situation... Ah, here it is." He glanced over the paper. “Is this something you're authorized to handle, or do I need to speak to someone else?”

Fear

Letting himself into Susanne's apartment Chuck new something wasn't right. He'd found her belongings outside all over the place, and no inside peering through the dark the hair on his neck stood on end. It was not normal for her to not be home on time, and even more abnormal that she wasn't on time for one of there dates without calling. He'd texted her, and called a few times and got nothing. This was not right.

Feeling his phone buzz in his pocket Chuck can't help but jump. He'd been so focused anything would of made him jump. Pulling his phone from his pocket Chad's heart beats faster seeing it was Susanne.

   "Susanne? Where are you? Are you ok?"

Hearing a voice that was not Susanne's on the other line the hair on the back of Chad's neck stands on end. His heart raced for a whole new reason as he listened on the other end of the phone. Susanne had been kidnapped and he felt helpless as the line goes dead.

Quickly thumbing through his contacts Chuck's hand shook finding Reese's  number. Dialing it Chad starts to pace the floor stopping when Reese answers.

   "Reese its Chad. Susanne has been kidnapped by someone. I dont know who but I just got a phone call from them and they told me to call and tell you. He said to call phone and do it fast,"

Watching the car that pulled up Stacy was on guard. There wasn't anyone booked to be coming to the ranch today so her guard was up. Walking twords them Stacy stops seeing the man change his own root and come to her. Something wasn't right and she could feel it.

   "Hello. Eric is away on a business trip right now. I'm the head of security here at the ranch, is there something I can help you with Mr. Dexter?"

Stacy looked at him straight in the eye. Her answer was short and sweet with very little information given. She didn't feel comfortable giving out more than she needed to, to a stranger. Not to metion when the were looking for Eric.

Ryan hadn't touched much of her steak which was really rare. But something seemed off. More than her normal right now anyways. Tal was being strange and keeping space between them. There was no hug, and hardly any words. She wanted to at least try to have a conversation but when she would try it was just cut off. She felt bad and this was just making it worse.

    "If you don't want to be here than why did you come?"

Her comment seemed out of no where but she had, had enough. Ryan had so much to worry about she just didn't need anymore. Not to mention if Tal had a problem why didn't he just say it and cut this awkwardness off.

    "Is there a reason you are not acting yourself or am I crazier than everyone thinks?"