Out of Place Chapter 18

[galadriel1010]

“Interesting Commander, you didn’t even blink.” Peter Hilona lowered his gun without taking his eyes from the young woman in front of him

She shrugged one shoulder, “Did you expect me to?”

Her aggressor smiled grudgingly and looked over her shoulder, “And what do you have to say Mr…” The moment his attention left her, Jazz had moved and found the point in his neck that made him crumple silently and ungracefully to the ground.

The blonde secured him quickly and efficiently, tears now streaming down her face. She didn’t dare look around, didn’t dare see if Nick was safe and silent or just… silent.

A hand landed lightly on her shoulder and she dropped her head, heaving a huge sigh of relief and closing her eyes against the fresh flood of tears. Nick rubbed gently at her shoulder and crouched down with her, “You did the right thing.”

“Doesn’t stop me hating myself for it.” She puffed her cheeks out and dashed her tears away, then pulled Hilona up to dump him unceremoniously in the remaining chair. He wasn’t a big man, but still bigger than Jazz, and Nick realised just how deceptively strong she was.

“You were just doing your duty.” He pointed out softly as she secured the man to the chair with quick, spare, brutal movements. “And I’m still here.”

“Yeah.” The smile failed to meet her eyes, “I guess you are.” Between them they went through his pockets and pulled out keys, another gun, mobile… Everything they found really

“You looking for anything in particular?”

“Don’t know until I find it if I’m honest. Doesn’t seem to be here, whatever it is. No surprise there.” She brushed a stray strand of hair out of her face and held it on top of her head, “No PDA even, he wasn’t taking any chances on me getting hold of it.”

“What do we do now then?” Nick watched her as she sorted through the contents of his pockets and glanced out of the window, “We’re on the second floor.”

“I know.” She found a paperclip in the bottom of one of his pockets, “We’re going out the window.”

“We’re still on the second floor. Haven’t moved since I last spoke.”

She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, “Relax, you’re with the commander.”

---

Ianto noticed movement in one of the upper windows and focussed in on it through the binoculars. This got a lot easier when the window opened, removing the reflected dawn light from the equation, and revealing a familiar blonde head. Jasmine scanned the surroundings and froze, staring straight at the point where they were concealed. The Welshman hesitated only a moment before raising his head for the briefest second, just enough for Jazz to see him and recognise him. She relaxed and waved slightly, then turned away from the window. After a couple of minutes she returned and swung herself out and onto the roof. They had been held in a room close to the roof, with a dormer window, which gave her easy access to the sloping tiles. Now she was there she was easily visible, her white vest top practically glowed and her skirt kept catching in the wind (practical, not exactly), so he checked back to the window. With a smile he lowered the binoculars and passed them to a twitchy Greg, "The window she just came out of."

The Californian looked at him questioningly, and then did as he was bid. His face lit up as he saw the man watching nervously out of the window, trying to see where Jazz had disappeared to without leaning too far out. Greg bit his lip to keep quiet and looked at Ianto with his eyes shining, "He's alive."

"Yep." Ianto muttered, distracted with sending a message to Jack, "What's she up to?"

Jazz had moved around the roof to where, although Ianto couldn't see it, there was a skylight set flat into the roof. She crouched down and bent her paperclip carefully, slipping it into the lock (how many skylights had locks, really? That was just paranoid) and turning it gently. The wind picked up slightly and tugged at her skirt lightly, blowing it out behind her and pulling her slightly off balance. She swore and grabbed onto the edge of the skylight, then changed her paperclip lock pick slightly and went at the lock again. This time it caught properly and she was able to unlock the window and open it, with great difficulty as it stuck repeatedly, and slip inside. Her skirt, bane of her life at the moment, caught on the edge and flashed her knickers at a, thankfully empty, landing. Only two rooms led off this landing, and one door was already open, which left only one room as the one where Nick and Hilona were still imprisoned.

After a quick hunt, the key turned up on a shelf close to the door, and after tapping on it gently she unlocked it and opened it slightly. Her hesitance was justified when her chair leg glanced off the edge of the door and Nick’s grunt of annoyance, “It’s only me.”

Her friend was silent for a moment, so she pushed the door open fully and slid into the room, grateful but guilty at Nick’s relieved smile, “How did you manage that then?” He asked with a huff of laughter, chucking the chair leg into the corner

“Like I said, you’re with the commander.” She forced a smile, “Now let’s get you out of here.”

They went down to the first floor and hesitated there, hearing the sounds of movement from the ground floor. Jazz pulled Nick back into what appeared to be a storeroom as they heard someone coming up the stairs. They listened to the footsteps with baited breath and didn’t relax until they had gone back down the stairs, “We need to get out of here.”

The commander looked out of the window and scanned the back garden easily. With a slight frown she pushed the window up and leaned out, resting her elbows on the edge to sign vaguely towards where Ianto had been watching them. Nick watched her with interest and confusion, not recognising some of the signs, “Was that very complicated, or am I just not as good at signing as I think I am?” He asked when she’s finished and smiled at an apparent reply

She grinned and waved her hands, “British Sign Language. Some times I think it would be easier with one universal one, but at least no one watching me will be able to understand what I told Ianto.”

“I got the basic gist.” He protested, “Just not the detail.”

“Shh.” Jazz pulled the door open and listened carefully, and then led him across the landing to another room. This room was larger and appeared to have been a bedroom at once, but was now yet another storeroom, this one containing an array of weaponry. They both stopped in their tracks at the sight and stared in shock, “Wow. I just…” She shook her head and pocketed a couple of small guns, “Work with them all the time, but guns never cease to scare me. Especially when they’re in the wrong hands.”

“Same here.” Nick also picked up a gun and shoved it into his back pocket, glancing out of the window, “We’ve got a balcony.”

“Good, then that’s our way out.” She opened the window and looked down the street both ways, “Oh good, there they are.”

The girl stepped back from the window and pointed in the right direction for Nick to look. There, watching the window with an amused, concerned and relieved smile, was Jack. Ianto stood just behind him, and his hand rested on Greg’s shoulder, “They found us.”

---

Ianto pulled out his phone and tugged on Greg’s arm, indicating for him to stay silent and out of sight and dialling Jack’s number. They made their way around the edge of the yard to a point where the fence had been breached for the forces to get in. Hilona’s desire for secrecy had in some ways made it very easy for Liberty Towers to infiltrate.

“Jack.” As soon as they were outside the yard, Ianto was dialling, “Jazz and Nick are going to come out the front; get a force around the back of the building to attempt an entry from there, but let them know about it.” His instructions were short and concise and he knew that Jack would interpret it as well as ever. Why explain what he knew Jack would understand?

They finally reached the front of the house and went around to where Jack stood watching, eyes narrowed against the increasing light and arms folded, “How’s it getting on?” Ianto asked.

“Two squads around the back. Jazz and Nick just poked their heads out of that window. I’ve sent the signal. They should…” Right on cue, as Nick withdrew his head they heard a gunshot from the other side of the house. “They’re on their way in.”

Up above, Jasmine glanced behind her and grabbed at Nick, pushing him towards the window, “Let’s go.”

They scrambled out of the window, Nick first, and paused on the balcony. As the door burst open, presumably someone after weapons, Jazz pushed Nick back against the wall and dropped off the edge, holding on with her fingers until they’d gone. Once the shouting in the room above them had died down, she pulled herself back up just enough to reach out to Nick, “Come on, easy enough.”

“We’re still on the first floor.” He barely managed to whisper

Somehow she managed to shrug, “You know Greg’s behind me, right?”

“Bitch.” He grinned over the top of her head at his lover as she pulled herself up properly, “You’ll have to help me down.”

“Of course.” Nick swung himself off the edge of the balcony and grasped Jazz’s hand, letting her lower him, then pushed off and dropped when she reached the length of her stretch.

Greg watched with baited breath as Nick dropped to the ground, and then couldn’t hold back any longer. As the older man turned towards them he took a step forwards, then another and another. Soon he crashed into Nick’s arms and wrapped his own arms tight around his lover’s waist, feeling Nick doing the same. They held each other for a long moment, but he needed more reassurance. He pulled back slightly and cupped Nick’s cheek, stroking gently and drowning in his soft gaze. Then he leaned forwards and closed his eyes, pressing their lips together softly and tenderly, holding on to that moment. “I thought I’d lost you.” He whispered at long last, “I thought this would be it, that I’d never get to hold you again.”

Tears were flowing from the young man’s eyes, so Nick kissed him once more and tugged him close, threading his fingers through his soft hair and pressing kisses against his temple, “Shh, I’m here, we’re safe.”

“I never want to lose you.”

“You won’t, you haven’t, I’m here and I’m not letting go.” He held tighter, savouring the moment for just a little while longer, then pulled away and led Greg to where Jack and Ianto waited with Jasmine, all watching the house to give them some privacy and all with weapon drawn to give them cover.

Those three weren’t watching, however a group from the crime lab, including Grissom, Catherine and Mandy, were watching them closely. The two girls looked secretly thrilled and quite excited, Grissom looked stunned and Ecklie… Shit, Ecklie was there too. And he looked furious.

Comments

You just lost the game

[potatoe1988.livejournal.com]

Vengeance is mine!

Re: You just lost the game

[fiwen1010.livejournal.com]

...Bother
XD
Thanks for reminding me lol, I have 10 chapters to add to this :S