Please

Looking into the room Reese words were still in Thirteen's ears. The room, she wasnt even in it yet and she could feel it closing in around her. It was hard to breath, suffocating her she couldnt go back in there. Yelling rang in her mind as she tryed to push it out.

Fear flashed in her eyes as she looks to Ryder and than to the door than back to Ryder again as she trembled. Backing up a few steps she moves away from the room door. Her voice soft and full of fear.

"No, ple....please don't make me go back in there. I don't want to be in there anymore. Ryder please don't keep me in there anymore."

Letting another laugh escape her Alec's words dont really phase her. She's delt with people like him and even worse at the races. Her shell had been built to repell the words, the taunting, and the racy comments by the other drivers. Her ears hurd, and she might reply, but they no long hurt.

And Alec, he was...someone who had alot to learn about the world.

"Dont stress yourself about the coffee."

Ryan just shakes her head for a moment.

"You got alot to learn kid, alot to learn."

Finally pulling away Ryan's car starts down the road again. She needed to get back to the auto shop she had left her paper for the race tonight laying on the counter and she needed it. Not to mention she had to do a few last ajustments to her car before the race.

Looking straght ahead at the road Ryan trying to hold her focus as she whispered her lesson learns along ago.

"Never look back."

Finally not being able to take it Ryan looks into the rearview mirror and rolls her eyes, before continuing down the street. Something told her because of this she would see him again.

You have alot to learn kid.

On second thought

Ryder understands, and says no more as he exits the car and waits for Thirteen, to exit her towards the building.

Once inside, it's back across the main floor and to Reese's office...

"I said no, Ryder. End of discussion."

"But can't you just-"

"No!" Reese tries to keep his voice down for Thirteen's sake as the two stood in his office on the other side of his desk. "I will not tolerate Trooper's behavior, whether he was trying to do his job or not. I want him out. If Jason can convince me it won't happen again, I might let him come back, but until then, the dog goes."

The conversation was over. There was nothing more that Ryder could do. He'd tried his best to explain, but Reese had made up his mind.

Taking Thirteen's hand, Ryder pulls her along with him out of the office, as he tries to keep his temper cool. Something not understandable is muttered under his breath. They walk past the cubicles and down the hall, stopping at the little room once more. It looked smaller than normal. Ryder wished he could offer Thirteen more than this.

Letting her go, he prompts her towards the door. He needn't go over what Reese had said, since she'd been there. This was it. They'd both had supper back at the house, so it was time to say goodnight once more.

"Go on. You'll be fine." Ryder isn't sure what Thirteen will do, but he tries to act as though he assumes she really will be fine. He saw her eyes and knew that behind them panic was just waiting to erupt. What if she did? What then? He purses his lips. "You know you can call me if anything happens, okay?"


Carson chuckles and shakes his head at Katie. "You just get better, okay? I better get out of here. You two take care of yourselves."

"Yeah, thanks." Jason watches him leave, then turns back to Katie, offering her a small smile. "You've got a lot of people who care about you, ya know. Who would have thought tough ol' Carson would have such a soft spot for you?"

He leans forward a little in his chair, taking Katie's hand once again. "Not that it's hard having a soft spot for you."


Alec's eyes narrow as he receives Ryan's responses. His slight pity for himself was quickly being replaced by irritation.

"You know what..." He holds his arms out to the side and looks into the car through the open passenger window, his tone remaining calm. "I never said I was trying to get anyone to like me. As far as the know-it-all act goes, you're doing a pretty good job at it yourself, so you can quit pointing a finger at my "macho" behavior and look in the mirror."

He shakes his head and lets his arms drop. "I might let people boss me around when I'm drunk, but not when I'm sober. I though I'd take you up on your offer, but on second thought... I really don't want to be ordered around, so... thanks but no thanks. I'll get you back for the coffee sometime."

Giving a half-hearted wave, Alec turns on his heel and heads down the sidewalk with no destination.

Alone

Looking to Alec Ryan shakes her head and lets out her own mocking laugh. He was being an idiot. And was treating her like some little kid that in itself annoyed her.

"You have no idea about what I do, and what kind of dangers I put myself in. So why don't you knock off the macho know it all act thats not a way to get a person to like you."

Moving her glasses to her head again A flam seemed to flicker in Ryan's eyes but not one that held anger, maybe a hit of annoyance, and showed just how much spunk she had. The flame aganst the hunny color in her eyes made them shine and only enhance them a little more making them stand out.

Leaning with her both hands on the front of her car she looks across to Alec as her hair falls around her shoulders.

"As for what they want you for I could really give a rats butt, and I never calmed to know...As for who you are, I am figuring out who you are right now as we talk. Because whats done in the past is the past its here and now that matter. Oh yeah one more thing my club, I dont have a club I stand alone, and sponser myself when I race. So unless you want to stand out here in the blistering sun all day get in the car."

Ryan didnt really apreshate Alec's nonshlont insaults and it put her on edge a little for a moment. She had to deal with enough stuff outside the auto shop.

With a slight sigh Ryan pushes off the car Ryan opens the door and gets in. Starting the car up she brings the engine to life waiting for Alec.

Thirteen looks to the TJY building and than back down at her hands. Her day out went pretty well and she only had one or two panics but it was nothing as bad as before.

Alone....she didnt like being alone, but she new sooner or later is was going to come to it.

Letting out a small sigh Thirteen looked up at Ryder for a moment. He'd said he had been proud of her today and how well she had did out, now faced with being alone she felt like she was going to crumble.

"I'll go with you to talk to Reese. I dont want to be alone yet."

Giving a laugh at Carson Katie smiles grows. It was good to see her friends again. To know people cares but it was even better to have them make her smile even if it hurt a little.

"Mmmm....pizza thats one hundred times better than this food."

Katie looks down at the food on the tray and lifts her good side of her face in a duscusted mannor for a moment before looking up again.

"I dont think ever Trooper would eat this."

When's that friend of yours...

Alec scoffs as he wanders behind Ryan back outside. "The risk of getting caught by the cops for street racing? You call that danger?" He shakes his head, his lips pursed in a look of annoyance. "If that's all I had to worry about, I'd be in good shape."

Leaning against a sign post, he sighs. The whole thing with the Agency turning against him really had thrown him for a loop. He'd wanted to kill anybody at the Elite for trying to take the Agency down, but now... the very place he'd been defending had tried to murder him. He needed to take Ryan's advice and get out without looking back. But now he'd always be on the run. He could trust no one.

He felt stupid. He shouldn't have to depend on anybody else. He'd never had to before. He was used to getting his way, no matter how he did it. Then all of a sudden, he was caught and held prisoner for over a month. Finally getting out, he now was being rejected by those he had belonged to. He knew he couldn't really trust anyone at the Agency - they were all crooks. But he'd at least thought they'd have his back. Discovering they didn't was confusing and hurt just a little too as it angered him. For the first time, he wasn't in control, and as such, he just didn't know how to act.

"You have no idea who I am or what they want me for, Ryan." Alec pushes off the sign to amble closer to her car. "I'm not gonna risk your little club getting broken up by the cops and having them find me. But... I will take you up on your offer for a room... just for tonight."


"So you gonna go later this week?"

Clang
Axel cringes as his wrench is dropped. It was bad enough he was here working past eight o'clock, and now Leo had to be a chatterbox. Axel loved his friend to death, but every once in a while, the talking and hyperactive tendencies were just a bit much. "Go where, Leo?"

Leo leans back against the work bench, watching Axel tinker in the car engine. He fiddles with a screwdriver. "You know... to go see Ryan."

Axel retrieves his wrench and keeps working, even though he could feel his hand going numb for the third time that day. It had progressed to four or five times a day now instead of maybe once. Already he was being forced to work long hours because he wasn't able to get everything done during the day when his hand acted up. So far, his boss had been lenient. "Ryan?"

"Yeah, you know..." Leo hints. "Go watch her."

Oh that. Axel shakes his head, his focus still in the engine. "I think you know my answer to that."

"Come on. I mean, the other guys are going."

"Do I look like the other guys?"

Leo smirks. "Not a bit. But lighten up... you gotta get out and do something different."

"Than what?" Axel straightens, oil and grease stains clear up to his elbows, and a smudge on the side of his face. "Working here, being in a band, being involved in my church and spending time with Jess? There are just twenty-four hours in a day, last I looked... isn't that right?"

Leo rolls his eyes. "Come on. Just once? I hear it's a blast. The other guys say it's quite the deal."

"Leo, no."

"But-"

"I'm not going to go watch something like that," Axel states flatly. "I won't do it."

"Aw, but Ryan's not-"

"Ryan is an ace mechanic, great driver and she's fun to be around." Axel grabs another tool and goes back to work on the engine. "I like her as much as the next guy, and I believe she's loyal to her friends, honest, hard-working and she's got the guts to go after whatever she wants."

Leo grins. "You certainly know how to be observant."

"All you do is notice her looks," Axel quips.

Leo's face reddens, though his cheesy grin remains. "I can't help it she's gorgeous."

"How many times has she turned you down?"

"Oh..." Leo sighs. "Four? Five?"

"You mean you haven't asked her more than that?"

Leo shoots him an annoyed look. "Okay, so I don't know. But see? She's great. And you won't come watch her drive just once?"

Axel heaves a deep sigh and finally straightens to look at his buddy. "No. Have fun watching, tell her good luck from me, but no."

"But it's just down on-"

"It doesn't matter where it is," Axel returns. "I simply have no desire to go watch races like that."

"Why not?"

"Because. Personally, I think it's too risky a business. The driving and the gambling that goes on. I don't agree with it, and I don't want to be a spectator because I won't enjoy myself watching it."

Leo throws up his hands. "So you're calling Ryan stupid? You're more loyal to safe procedures than your friends?"

"Leo, I didn't say that," Axel states flatly. "You know I'm loyal to my friends, but street racing isn't my thing. There's a reason cops don't like it. If the local authorities could get away with banning it, they would. You know as well as I do that other stuff goes on there, and I don't want to be in that position."

Leo lets his arms fall back to his sides in surrender. "Alright, alright. I know better than to keep arguing with you."

"Who's arguing?" Axel gestures to the tools on the wall. "Go get me that wrench over there."

"Hey, you're on the clock, not me."

"You want to find peanut butter in your locker again?"

Leo's eyes widen and he quickly retrieves the tool, bowing low. "I am your humble servant, oh master of the spreadage of peanut butter through one's locker."

Axel grins, his eyes twinkling. "That's what I thought."

Leo leans over the engine to take a look as well. "So when's that friend of yours coming back?"

"Friend?" Axel furrows his brow. "Who you talking about?"

"You know..." Leo's eyes remain on the engine parts. "Liz."

"Ohhh." Axel chuckles. "I don't know. Why?"

"Just wondering."

"Uh-huh." Axel rolls his eyes. "You're the one that needs a life, bud, not me."


"Alright. Here we are." Ryder parks his car at TJY once more. He looks to the door, then to Thirteen who was beside him in the passenger seat. "I don't know if I can convince Reese to let Trooper stay or not. If I can't, you're gonna just have to take a deep breath and stay in your room anyway."

His eyes show that he's sorry and he wishes there was something more he could do. The spare room was a whole lot better than the holding cell, but that thought didn't do much good. He knew Thirteen was scared to death of being alone.

"You can come with me when I talk to him though, if you want, so you don't have to go to your room just yet."


A light knock at the door makes Jason look up from his chair and spot Carson. "Hey."

"Hi, Jase. Heard the good news and wanted to stop by." Carson enters the room slowly, still in his clothes from work, with his baseball cap on. He knew Katie was probably exhausted, so he wouldn't stay long. "Hey, Kat." His grin is wide. "Welcome back." He'd worried about his little friend as much as anyone else. It hadn't been the same not seeing her around.

Jason nods to him. "Headed home?"

"No. Going to TJY first."

"Still working on that stuff for Scott?"

"Yeah." Carson sighs and leans against the foot of the bed. "I was finally able to access some files that got me a little deeper, but I'm still having a hard time finding the right source. The information has to be there somewhere. I just need one document... but I can't find it."

"What about Dalton?"

"I know the Agency files. I know without getting into some of them what will be of use or not, so it's just as fast that I do it myself. Scott gave me the security code I needed."

Jason folds his arms, shifting his weight in the chair. "What if it doesn't really exist?"

The thought was prominent in Carson's mind. The more days that passed without proof that something had happened with Scott after the assimilation only emphasized the chance that he'd been wrong... that Scott really was a threat. And the more time he spent on this, the more chance there was that his hacking would be found out. Not even Reese knew the extent of his hacking into the Agency system, or how risky it was. "I don't know." His eyes glance to Katie for a moment. He knew that she and Scott were close friends. "But I'm not giving up yet."

"You gonna stick around after the fact?"

Carson shrugs. "Reese is still after me to stay but... I've got the restaurant... I just don't see how it could work." He turns back to Katie and throws her a wink. "Get yourself out of here so you can come down for some pizza soon."