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“Well that was a bust,” Rufus says as he climbs out of the Lifeboat, throwing his jacket over the railing in front of the computers. “Who thinks Emma sent us on a wild goose chase to be funny?”
“Maybe she just wanted a vacation?” Jiya asks, walking over to the computer bay and punching in a series of codes. “At least we got to have a little break.”
“They changed something,” Lucy replies with a huff of annoyance.“I’m going to do some reading.” Her historical knowledge was failing her at the moment and even as she tries to make some connection between a little town in Kentucky and Rittenhouse, nothing is coming to mind.
The trip had been strange and confounding since the moment they’d landed. The small town the Mothership had traveled to was happy to have visitors but nothing of importance seemed to occur and the team stayed an extra three days just to be sure. They’d watched a barn go up, the celebration of a child's birth, and more celebrations around livestock being born, but no one died and no one in the town looked or acted like a Rittenhouse sleeper agent. In the end, they left because the settlement seemed like an idyllic farm town and nothing more.
Lucy had missed Flynn on the trip, more than she thought she would, but Jiya had begged for another chance at time travel and the whole mission was confusing as Lucy hadn’t turned up anything of significance about the date. Flynn had agreed to stay behind, earning a hug from Jiya for his sacrifice. Between Rufus and Jiya acting like the trip was a surprise date and Wyatt staring at her but never saying anything, she’d missed Flynn’s snark and proclivity for trouble.
The phone rings at the back of the bay and each of them turns to look at the ancient rotary phone. It rings again. Rufus and Jiya look at each other, Wyatt looks at Lucy, Lucy looks at Rufus and the phone keeps ringing.
“Oh for fuck's sake.” Lucy walks over to the phone and picks it up. “Hello?”
“Well hello there, princess.” Emma’s mocking voice sends chills through Lucy’s body, followed quickly by rage. “So nice to know you got back safely from our little jaunt through the wilds of Kentucky.”
“What did you change Emma?” Lucy says, making sure the rest of the room can hear her. “Trying to cause a hurricane with a butterfly this time?”
“Princess, why must everything be about history with you? Maybe I just wanted to have a little fun.” Emma sounds smug and Lucy wishes she could punch her through the phone.
“I’m going to stop you.” Lucy’s beyond being scared of Emma, all she wants is a chance to finish what she started in Chinatown.
“Not if I stop you first.” Emma laughs and the phone line crackles. “Have to go, sorry, but you know, not really.”
The line goes dead and Lucy looks at the phone with confusion. She hangs it up and turns back to her team. “She hung up.”
“What was the point of that?” Wyatt asks, crossing his arms and leaning against the railing.
“The point of what?” Flynn asks, coming from around the corner to greet the newly returned team.
Lucy looks at him, unable to stop her eyes from sweeping over his tall frame as she answers. “Emma just called and it sounded like she was gloating about something but I can’t figure out what.”
Flynn tilts his head and furrows his brow. “Um, how would she know the number to call here?”
Lucy looks around the room, her confusion turning to panic as she realizes he’s right. Emma having a number could not be a good thing.
Wyatt wiggles against the railing and looks behind him where Rufus’ jacket is digging into his back. “What do you have in here?”
“Um, nothing? It’s just a jacket.” Rufus walks over as Wyatt starts rummaging through his pockets.
He pulls out a small box and a slip of paper. “What the hell?”
Lucy runs over and grabs the slip of paper. “It says, found you, you’re it.”
Wyatt shakes the box and something rattles inside. Looking around at the group, he carefully pops the lid up and they all lean in to look inside. Sitting in the box is what looks to be a garage opener with a ribbon tied around it. Flynn recognizes the device first and he steps away with a curse.
“We need to go, now.” He backs away from the group.
“What is it?” Lucy follows suit and she only makes it a few steps before a loud beep sounds through the room.
“It’s a remote detonator.” He looks panicked as the beeping continues. “There’s a bomb somewhere.”
Rufus and Jiya turn and run for The Lifeboat, sliding the door open as fast as they can. “We need to get The Lifeboat out of here! Everyone in!”
The group rushes for the time machine and Flynn stands at the bottom of the ladder, holding it steady as everyone else climbs aboard. Lucy turns to see him still standing there, a look of concentrated acceptance on his face.
“Get up here, come on!” She’s waving him forward but he shakes his head and pulls the ladder away.
“There’s only room for four in there.” His voice is quiet but it still chills her to the bone.
“We’ll make it work. We’ve done it before.” Her voice raises in alarm. “Flynn, come on!”
“Go! I’ll find Connor and get us out of here!” He pushes the ladder all the way to the other end of the room and turns around, running for the door.
Rufus must have heard him because the door slides shut on Lucy’s face and she’s staring at solid metal while her heart shreds into pieces.
“Open the door, we can’t just leave him!” She sounds hysterical, banging against the door until Jiya pulls her down into a seat.
“We have to jump, Lucy, now!” Her eyes are sad but she looks determined and Lucy slides her seatbelt on as tears gather in her eyes.
She feels the shock of the explosion just as The Lifeboat finishes its sequence and they go swirling away from the exploding bunker.
Flynn.
They land in a field, somewhere north of the bunker with corn swaying from the impact of The Lifeboat. Lucy barely makes it out of the machine before she hits the ground and pukes what little is in her stomach. Jiya rubs circles on her back and Rufus and Wyatt stand awkwardly to the side.
“We left him there,” Lucy says, at last, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. “We let him die.”
“He knew the Lifeboat couldn’t handle five,” Wyatt says and quickly throws his hands up as Lucy glares at him. “He saved us, I know.”
“I can’t, I -” She wants to curl into a ball and cry but Rufus is already sending their coordinates to Agent Christopher (luckily at home with the flu) and there will be plenty of time to mourn once they’ve followed protocol.
She looks at Rufus and Jiya, both of them silent and solemn and she feels a stab of guilt. “I’m sure Connor was safe in his room. That bunker was built to withstand a lot.” She wants to comfort them even as her heart aches with the pain of Flynn’s sacrifice.
Jiya puts her arm around Rufus and gives Lucy a nod of thanks. “I guess we’ll find out when Agent Christopher gets here.”
There’s nothing else to do but sit and wait for contact from Agent Christopher and Lucy soon feels as if her body is going into shock as the adrenaline fades away.
Waiting is unbearable and Lucy paces in circles, unsure of what to do with herself. Wyatt keeps watch on the nearby road while Rufus and Jiya check to make sure the time machine didn’t suffer too much damage from the blast. There are scorch marks along the back of The Lifeboat and Lucy feels the need to throw up again.
He’s dead. There’s no way he managed to get to safety before the blast. I’ve lost him. I didn’t even get a chance to-
“Lifeboat come in, over.” Agent Christopher’s voice springs crisp and clear from the inside of The Lifeboat and the group scrambles to their feet.
Rufus manages to reach the comlink first. “This is Lifeboat, we read you, over.”
“Hang tight. We’ll be there shortly. Over and out.” The comlink dies and Lucy crosses her arms over her chest.
“Someone should go get Wyatt.” She doesn’t want to, she can barely think.
Lucy watches Jiya head to the road and cups her face in her hands. Her mind keeps replaying all the moments she’s shared with Flynn, their inside jokes, the books they’ve traded, the way he kept checking in on her after her mother’s death.
When did I start needing him around? Why didn’t I realize sooner? Why couldn’t I have just trusted?
“Lucy, you holding on?” Rufus’ arm drops over her shoulder and it’s almost enough to send her crumpling into a ball on the ground.
“We should have tried to save him,” she whispers, keeping her hands clasped to her heart.
“I’m sorry, Lucy,” Rufus says, dropping his arm and staring at the swaying cornstalks. “The Lifeboat was the most important thing and I know it sucks to hear it but we can survive this fight without most of us. Without our time machine, Rittenhouse would run rampant through history and we couldn’t do a thing to stop it.”
“I know, I know.” She rakes a hand through her hair and watches Wyatt and Jiya join them in the flattened out circle. “But, I just, there wasn’t time and-”
“We saw the cars, Denise is on her way,” Jiya says, walking back to Rufus’ side. “Hopefully she’s got a new safehouse for us.”
“One not rigged with explosives,” Rufus snarks.
“Someone came while we were back in time,” Lucy reasons. “ They came to the bunker and planted bombs before we even moved in.”
“Why didn’t we see them before?” Wyatt asks, his face scrunched in annoyance. “I mean, explosive material is pretty recognizable.”
“Hidden I guess, buried where we couldn’t find them?” She’s tired and holding back her tears is getting harder. “It wasn’t until the remote arrived that they activated, I guess.”
Wyatt kicks the ground. “Great. So that’s what the strange jump was, a way to lure us out so they could put the remote in Rufus’ jacket.”
“Hey, it could just as easily have been yours, man,” Rufus says, defending his jacket.
“I know, I wasn’t saying they singled you out.” Wyatt crosses his arms and takes a deep breath. “I don’t like how easy they played us, even up to that phone call from Emma. That must have been how they got the number and how they delivered the right frequency to the detonation device.”
Listening to Wyatt, Lucy watches the tall corn and tries to focus on anything but the thought of Flynn burning alive in that forsaken bunker while they jettisoned to safety.
The rustling of stalks draws her attention and she watches Agent Christopher, looking a little pale and worn out, walk into the small flat clearing made by The Lifeboat.
“Is everyone alright?” Denise asks, looking around the solemn group.
“We all are, yeah,” Rufus says, his voice breaking a little on the last word. “Have you seen the bunker?”
“We won’t be able to go back there,” Denise says, wrapping her arms around herself and looking at the fallen faces of her team. “I have another safe house set up near Camp Roberts. Let's get The Lifeboat safe again and regroup.”
“Have they found anyone at the bunker?” Rufus asks softly.
“Not yet,” Denise says with a gentle voice. “I swear you will all be the first to know.”
Lucy feels a coldness settle in her bones and she turns away, climbing back into The Lifeboat without a word. The rest of the team joins her, Rufus putting in the coordinates he’s received from Denise, and silence falls over the four as the machine whirs to life.
“Guess this farmer is going to think he’s been visited by aliens,” Jiya says with an awkward chuckle.
Lucy doesn’t say anything, simply stares at the wall and waits for the machine to jump.
***
The safehouse near Camp Roberts isn’t a bunker, more of a rambling farmhouse with a couple of sheds attached, and Lucy is at least pleased that there is more than one bathroom. They store The Lifeboat in one of the connected buildings and Jiya and Rufus stay there to set up the computers and recharge the machine.
Lucy wanders the house, unsure of what to do or where to go now that the danger had passed. There’s a small room connected to the main living space with shelves full of books and she pulls one off the shelf, brushing the dust from the binding. A Room With a View is the title and she slides it back on the shelf with a shudder.
“Lucy, are you doing okay?” Wyatt enters the room and looks around. “Leave it to you to find the library first.”
“What do you want Wyatt?” Lucy slumps down into one of the large overstuffed reading chairs.
He moves to stand beside the chair and then crouches down to be level with her face. “We’ll get through this, alright?”
She laughs, a hollow sound without any humor, and tilts her head up to look at the ceiling. “I don’t want to talk right now.”
“He’d want us to keep fighting,” Wyatt says, placing his hand on the chair.
“You don’t know what he’d want,” she bites out, trying to keep the tears from pouring down her face. “You don’t know him, you didn’t even try to know him.”
His face falls and he sits on the floor next to her chair. “I’m sorry, Lucy.”
“And I know we lost Connor too and it’s all gone so wrong.” She can’t stop the tears now and she lets them stream down her face. “I hate her, Wyatt. I want to kill her.”
There’s a commotion in the other room and Lucy looks over at the doorway, wondering if she can make herself go check on what's happening when it opens and Flynn steps through.
There’s dirt and blood smeared across his face and he’s breathing hard as he leans against the door but he’s standing there, alive and intact and staring at her with relief on his face. She’s running to him before she can process her actions, throwing herself into his arms and clinging to him for dear life. Lucy feels his arms go around her, his fingers digging into her back as he wraps her tight in his embrace.
He’s alive. He’s alive. He’s alive.
He’s solid and real in her arms and her heart feels like it could burst from her chest for how happy she is. She doesn’t want to let go but she hears shuffling behind her and remembers that Wyatt is in the room as well. Pulling back, she looks up into his face and it’s as if a wall crumbles in her soul. She needs this man, this sarcastic, smart, broken and dangerous man who’s captured her heart with his tender ways and breathtaking smiles. It's too much to take in and she pulls away, wrapping her arms around her stomach.
“How?” She asks as Wyatt walks up behind her. “We almost didn’t jump in time. I felt the explosion.”
Raking a hand through his grimy hair, Flynn steadies himself on the door. “That damn shower saved my life. Got into the bathroom in time to close the door and dove for the shower stall.” He gives a small smile and waves at his body. “I feel like a walking bruise, but I’m fine.”
“What about Connor,” Wyatt asks, moving towards the door.
“He’s with Rufus and Jiya.” Flynn points behind him. “Something fell on his leg and they think it’s broken but other than that, he’s alright.”
“How did you get out of the mess?” Lucy asks, grateful beyond belief that they didn’t lose anyone to Emma’s machinations.
Flynn groans and moves into the room, taking a seat in one of the nearby chairs. “Once the shaking stopped, I crawled out of the bathroom and dug out Connor’s room. I managed to clear enough rubble to open the door when Denise’s crew showed up.”
“And they didn’t arrest you on the spot?” Wyatt looks suspicious and Lucy wants to push him out of the room.
“I was covered in dirt and blood,” Flynn says, gesturing to his still filthy appearance. “They weren’t exactly looking for me either.”
Lucy looks at Wyatt. “It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that you’re alive, you’re both alive.”
Wyatt clears his throat and nods in an awkward jerky motion. “Yeah, good. I’m uh, going to go check on Connor.” There’s a slight pause and then he looks at Flynn. “Glad you’re not dead.”
Flynn gives him a thumbs up and leans his head against the back of the chair. Lucy watches Wyatt leave the room, grateful that he’s not insisting she come to see Connor with him. She’s relieved that Connor is alive, that Rufus and Jiya don’t have to mourn a mentor and father figure, but her heart is pounding in her chest and she can’t let Flynn, can’t let Garcia out of her sight.
“You alright, Lucy?”
She turns to see Garcia with his eyes closed, resting in the large chair that still looked too small for his frame.
“I don’t know,” she says, the honest answer slipping out before she can stop it.
He opens his eyes and looks her way. “I’m sorry for making you worry.”
Anger surges through her and Lucy stalks over to the chair. “Worry? That’s what you’re sorry for? You thought I was worried? I thought you were dead!” Tears gather in her eyes again but she doesn’t care. “I thought you were a smoldering corpse under a pile of rubble and I didn’t know how I was going to survive!”
He pulls her down into his lap as she finally breaks down, the sobs wracking through her body as Garcia’s arms cradle her against his chest. For a long moment, all she can do is cling to his shirt and cry.
The soft drag of his fingers over her back calms her and Lucy feels her anger fading away, leaving behind an ache and a need to never move from this spot.
“Lucy, I’m sorry.” His words are whispered and she wonders if he even meant for her to hear them.
Looking up at him, Lucy is sure her face is red and splotchy from crying but he’s staring at her with a soft, fond expression and before she can panic her way out of the decision, Lucy reaches up and cups his cheek in her hand.
“Garcia.” Her voice catches as she watches his eyes light up from the simple sound of his name. “I can’t lose you.”
He turns his head and kisses the palm of her hand. “I don’t want you to.”
After that, there’s nothing to do but draw his head down and press her lips to his. It’s a gentle kiss, more comforting than passionate, but it sends a thrill through Lucy and her chest aches with the revelation of what this man means to her.
They draw apart and his eyes are sparkling with light and adoration and she wants to bottle up that look and keep it next to her heart. She shifts on his lap and the look changes to one of pain.
“Oh my god, I’m sorry,” she says, pulling away. “You’re hurt and I’m not making it better.”
“No, no, you made it better,” he says, flashing her a smile. “Bruises are nothing.”
She shakes her head and stands up, brushing dirt from her clothes. “Still, you need a shower and I’ll see if I can find you some new clothes and I don’t know about rooms yet but you should probably sleep.”
He groans and lifts himself to his feet. “A shower sounds wonderful actually.”
“I’ll see if Denise has anything that might fit you,” Lucy says, turning towards the door.
“Lucy.”
Her name stops her in her tracks and she faces him again, her stomach churning with nervous anticipation of what he might say.
He closes the distance between them and bends forward to kiss her again and this time, it isn’t comforting or gentle but passionate and overwhelming, and she sags against him as fireworks explode behind her eyes.
When they draw apart, she sways in a daze of heated desire and he steadies her with his arms at her waist.
Giving her forehead a kiss, he leans in until his lips graze her ear. “I’ll see you in a bit.”
She can only nod and watch as he walks away. She wonders how long it would have taken to bring them to this point if she hadn’t thought he died and decides she doesn’t want to know. He’s alive and here with her and Lucy will use all her strength to keep it that way.
It’s not hard to find Denise as everyone else on the team is in the kitchen while someone Lucy doesn’t know works on Connors' leg. Rufus gives her a wide smile and she returns it because the outcome of the bunker disaster could have been so much worse.
“Hey, is Flynn alright?” Denise asks, walking to meet her as she enters the room.
“Yeah, he’ll be alright.” Lucy gives everyone a smile. “We got lucky.”
“I’ll say.” Denise shakes her head. “I feared the worst when I got the alarm.”
Lucy nods and shudders with the memory. “Um, Garcia is taking a shower and I was wondering if we’ve got anything that might fit him? His clothes are pretty much trash at this point.”
Denise points to a couple of large cardboard boxes sitting on the other side of the room. “Those are the new clothes. Cross your fingers there’s something in there that fits him.”
“Thanks and yeah, I’ll do that.” As Lucy walks to the boxes, Wyatt falls into step beside her.
“Everything okay?” He asks, his voice carefully neutral.
She opens the first box and sees the pale pink packages of women’s underwear and closes it back up. “Yeah, Garcia just needs new clothes.”
“Garcia does, huh?”
Closing her eyes and taking a calming breath Lucy opens the next box and begins digging through the selections.
“When did he become Garcia?” Wyatt leans against the wall with his arms crossed.
“About three seconds after we landed in that field and I thought I’d lost him,” Lucy answers, not caring if it’s not the answer he wants. “I know this might come as a shock to you, but I care about him and if you don’t like it, suck it up.”
She looks up at him to see a moment of pain cross his face and she wants to feel guilty about it but she’s already spent so much time feeling guilty about Wyatt and his feelings. She refuses to feel guilty about finding happiness with Garcia.
“You can hate me if you want,” Lucy says, keeping her voice soft and gentle. “But I’m moving forward and I suggest you do the same.”
Pulling out a thin cotton t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants that are almost as long as she is tall, Lucy gives Wyatt a look of determined resignation and walks away.
“I’m not calling him Garcia,” Wyatt says at her retreating form.
“Not asking you to,” she calls back, turning and flashing him a smile. “I’ll be using it enough for the both of us.”
The look of horror on Wyatt’s face makes her want to giggle but she holds it in until she’s out of the kitchen. Finding her way to the bathroom next to the main bedroom, Lucy leaves the clothes on the chair next to the door and settles on the bed to wait. She wants to move slow, give them both time to breathe, but it’s still settling into her mind that he’s alive and she doesn’t want to leave him alone.
Not that I wouldn’t mind a little eye candy after the day I’ve had.
A knock at the door breaks her out of her imaginings and she opens it to find Jiya standing there with a tray of medical supplies.
“Hey, um, I thought he might need some first aid,” Jiya says, handing her the tray.
“Thanks, yeah. That’s probably a good idea.” She takes the tray and places it on the dresser. “He says he’s only bruised but I’m sure he’s just trying to keep me from worrying.”
“Yeah, men are like that.” Jiya gives her a pat on the shoulder as she leaves the room. “I’ll be making dinner in the kitchen whenever you’re all cleaned up.”
Lucy laughs and sits back on the bed. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome and, just between you and me,” Jiya says with a wink. “Good for you.”
Her support warms Lucy’s heart and she smiles wide. “It’s been a day.”
Jiya nods and quietly closes the door. The shower turns off and Lucy’s heart speeds up as she looks at the supplies on the tray. She forces her eyes to stay on the bottle of rubbing alcohol until she hears the door open and feels a puff of warm air drift through the room.
“There’s clothes on the chair and Jiya brought some cleaning stuff to take care of any cuts,” Lucy says as she turns to look at him.
Standing in the doorway with a towel wrapped around his waist, Garcia is dotted with cuts and scrapes and there are bruise patterns already forming on his upper chest and he’s still the most beautiful man Lucy thinks she has ever seen. The grin slowly forming on his face lets her know that he’s noticed her looking. With a blush creeping over her face, Lucy stands up and grabs the tray of first aid supplies, bringing it to the bed.
“Thanks for the clothes,” he says, picking up the pile and retreating back into the bathroom. “Was there something else?”
Yes. I want to jump you like a rope.
“Oh, she’s making dinner so we should hurry up before the rest of the team eats it all.” Her voice is only slightly shaky from the sight of a nearly naked Garcia and Lucy takes a breath to try and calm her nerves.
“Well, I don’t think any of these cuts need stitches so it shouldn’t take long.” He exits the bathroom in just the sweatpants, holding the shirt in his hand as he rubs a towel over his hair.
Lucy catches herself staring and swallows down her desire. We need to go slow. We need to go slow. Damn, he looks too good to be real.
“Are you sure you’re alright?” Garcia asks, throwing the towel onto the bed and sitting down with a groan.
“I’m good,” Lucy says, sitting down and grabbing the bottle of alcohol and a package of gauze. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”
He sits in silence as she washes and bandages his cuts, only wincing when the alcohol hits one of the deeper wounds, and she keeps her focus on the task at hand instead of on all the other ways she’d rather be touching him.
I could have lost all of this and he’d be dead and I’d be alone and we’d never have figured this out.
“Lucy, you’re shaking.” Garcia puts his hand over hers. “I’m right here.”
“I know, I know.” She looks up at him. “It’s just been kind of overwhelming.” She screws the top back onto the bottle of alcohol and places it carefully on the tray. “I went from thinking you were dead to realizing that I can’t lose you and it’s a lot.”
“Take your time,” He says, brushing a hand across her cheek and making her look at him, “I’ll be right here.”
“Damn right you will,” she says, her tone fierce and her eyes blazing. “I’m not jumping through time without you again.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” His eyes crinkle as he smiles and she wants to press her lips to each corner and trace every line on his face until she has him memorized.
How could I have been so blind?
Leaning over, Lucy places a soft kiss to the bend of his shoulder before laying her head there and letting out a long sigh. She feels his lips press into her hair and smiles. This is the man she likes and may even love, though that revelation is still too raw to examine at the moment, and she adores the small ways he shows her that she matters.
“I want to take this slow,” she says quietly, hoping she’s not making a mess of things. “But can I stay with you tonight? I’m not sure I could stand to sleep alone.”
“You can stay with me for as long as you want,” he replies, planting another kiss to her head. “And we can go slow if you like.” His chest moves a little in what she imagines is a huff of laughter. “Though if you keep trying to catch me coming out of the shower, I might start thinking you’re giving me mixed signals.”
Sitting up with a laugh, she picks up his shirt from the bed and throws it at him. “Get dressed and let’s get some food.”
His laughter dies down into a slight smirk and if it didn’t work to their advantage to let Emma think they were dead, Lucy just might think about sending her a fruit basket.
A fruit basket and a bomb of course.