The rear window shattered and I could hear the metal crunching as we collided. I let go of the steering wheel and all I could do was try to protect my head and face with my arms since everything happened in a blink of an eye. The impact was so quick that my back and head smacked against the seat then proceeded to get slammed against the steering wheel when the airbag didn't deploy.

Feeling a little dazed, I rummaged around my feet in search for my gun and when my fingers grazed against the cool metal, I wrapped my hand tightly around the grip. I knew I would get shot the moment I stepped out of this car, so I sat crouched in my seat and made myself as small as I could. Taking a deep breath, I held the gun close to me with my finger on the trigger, and focused on listening to any approaching footsteps. My life depended on seeing the enemy first.

Everything was silent. There was no sound of people moving, groaning in pain, or even a car moving. However, that only lasted a short moment. Soon, it started raining bullets as they flew from all different directions.

Chomping down on my curiosity to take a peek, I kept my head down to avoid getting hit, and simply waited. But, as fast as the firing had began, it quickly ceased and silence fell upon us once more.

Suddenly, I felt the driver's seat door open and a cold gust of wind blow in. I immediately whipped my head towards whoever it was, aimed my gun and I was about to fire, but abruptly ceased my action when familiar dark greys caught my attention. Realizing that it was Alexander, I closed my eyes and took a small moment to calm my nerves, but I could feel the pure fury radiating off of him. As I opened my eyes to face him, I came to regret it when I saw that his lips were pulled to a thin line and fire seemed to burn behind his dark greys.

He didn't say anything as he stared me down, so I did the same, staring straight back at him with no regret.

"Vita." Alexander greeted through clenched teeth and looked as if he wanted to say more, but decided to stop after my name.

When he leaned towards me, I braced myself, but realized that he was simply clicking off my seat belt. Then, he scooped me out of my seat and up into his arms. No more words were exchanged between us as he carried me with one arm under my knees and the other around my shoulders.

"What the hell are you doing?" I growled as I tried to get off, but he only held me tighter.

It was moments after that I felt myself being put down and I realized that I was at the back of one of the military grade vehicles from headquarters. Mr. Blades was lain on the ground of the car with a man tending to him while Mrs. Blades sat down on one of the side benches in the vehicle.

"This will take you along with my parents back to headquarters for medical assistance. Two of the men that came with Victor will go with you to ensure your safety." Alexander's voice was gruff with displeasure.

"Son..." Mrs. Blades looked up at Alexander and I saw a glimpse of worry before her face became impassive.

"The rest of us will wait for a second vehicle."

I frowned at him. "I'll stay."

"No."

I couldn't help but flinch from the harsh edge in his voice since he's never spoken to me like that before. He must have seen my shock because his features softened just slightly.

"Go. I'll see you in a bit."

I glared at the ground, trying to think, when I felt a soft kiss at my temple. Knowing it was him, I didn't bother to look up.

"That was stupid Simmons, but you bought us time." I saw Victor's boots in my vision before I saw his face.

I looked up at him and saw him shake his head in disbelief.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. You knocked out the two at the front from impact and we got the others as they came out. Everyone is taken care of."

Giving him a weary smile and nod, Victor suspiciously looked from Alexander to me.

"You okay, though?" Victor asked as he scanned me up and down for injuries.

"Yeah, I'm good," I assured him, hoping that I sounded confident enough.

"Okay." He bent down slightly to my level and I saw concern in his baby blues. "Don't be stubborn and get checked by a doctor, okay?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah. Go."

He tossed me a small smirk and ran off to finish checking the damages.

"Don't do anything I would do." I joked lightly, trying to ease this tense atmosphere between us two.

Alexander gave me a small, wry smile and pushed me closer towards the vehicle. "Get in."

With a brisk sigh, I climbed onto the vehicle and sat down on the bench opposite of the one Mrs. Blades was sitting on. "Stay safe, Red." I told him quietly as looked over at him, not concealing that fact I was starting to get worried.

"I'll see you in a bit." He held my hand for just a moment before letting go and closing the doors.

As the driver drove off, I watched Alexander's form became smaller and smaller until I couldn't see him anymore.

*

Mr. Blades and Mrs. Blades were laid on a stretcher the moment we got back to headquarters and a group of doctors and nurses crowed around them as they got to work. Mr. Blades was immediately wheeled towards the emergency room and an unconscious Mrs. Blades was being taken inside to do some tests.

"Miss?" A nurse came up to me and gently questioned. "We were told that there were three injured on their way. Could you please come inside so that I could check that you're okay?"

"But-" I was unable to finish as I got distracted by both Mr. and Mrs. Blades getting wheeled away.

"Please, Miss. I'll take you to them after you're checked." This female nurse patiently waited for my answer with concern in her eyes.

I gave her a nod, but the moment I stepped closer to the doors, my heart started to pound faster as I felt the dog tag I wore under my shirt become heavier. I despised hospitals and I had a good reason. Being inside one made me extremely uncomfortable, but I simply gritted my teeth and walked with the nurse inside.

A doctor checked for a concussion and he concluded I didn't, however I would still have a little bruising on my forehead from when it hit the steering wheel. He also made me realize that I had a cut on my arm. It wasn't deep enough to need stitches, but it was still slightly bleeding.

When the same nurse came over and I smelt the alcohol, I immediately cringed.

"Just going to clean and bandage it up," she explained patiently as she waited for my permission.

I clenched my teeth and gave her a stiff nod. As soon as she was done, she led to me the waiting area close to where Mr. Blades was being operated and Mrs. Blades' room.

"Any news?" I asked her and she shook her head.

"We'll let you know as soon as we do."

With a kind smile, she left and I sat down on a chair, waiting and hoping for the best, all the while feeling like the walls were closing in and the smell slowly suffocate me.

*

I don't know how much time passed, but Mr. Blades was still in surgery when Alexander arrived to the waiting room with Victor right behind him. As they both came in, I stood up from my seat.

His blank grey eyes met mine and I shook my head knowing what he was asking by looking at him.

"He's still in surgery. Your mom fell unconscious on our way here, and she's still sleeping. Apparently, she should be okay with rest."

"You?" Alexander remained silent as it was Victor that asked me that question.

"I'm good. No concussion, just going to be a little sore," I informed them, throwing in a small smile just for good measure.

"Can you go inform Emmaline what happened?" Alexander asked Victor and Victor gave a quick, solemn nod before exiting the waiting room.

Alexander and I were alone in the room and we stood there staring at each other for a moment.

"Can I..." I tried to mask the vulnerability I was feeling, but I knew he could see right through me. "...have a hug?"

Alexander didn't take a step towards me, so I took one step closer to him, then another.

When we were younger, we had made a pact knowing that neither of us likes to bite down our pride and ask for things, but there was one thing that we promised each other we will never reject from the other. We promised no judgements or questioning. Just ask and it must be offered. It was none other than 'can I have a hug'.

Alexander opened his arms just slightly, offering himself to me, and I felt my bottom lip quiver just as I closed our distance.

"Red..." I trailed off as I waited for him to make a move. Before I knew it, I felt him wrap his arms around me and pull my body firmly into his embrace.

As he leaned in closer, I felt his body shake just for a second and heard his breathing stutter, and I understood that today affected both of us deeply. His arms tightened and he and he bent down considerably to nuzzle the crook of my neck. Slowly, I wrapped my arms around his torso. As much as neither of us want to admit it, we both needed each other, and what happed today only proved that fact.

"Talk to me," I whispered quietly as I rubbed his back.

I felt a soft kiss on my neck, then felt him shake his head.

"Were you hurt, Red?"

I felt another shake of his head at the crook of my neck.

"Good." My eyes stung a little as tears began to well up, but I took a deep breath and quickly blinked them back. "Good."

My arms shook slightly as I held him tighter and buried my face into his chest, finding comfort being with him.

*

Alexander was sitting next to me in the waiting room, my right hand and his left threaded together, as we waited. It was at least an hour later when a nurse came in telling us that Mrs. Blades was awake, but Mr. Blades was still in surgery.

He didn't let go of my hand as we walked to the room where she was resting in.

"You two okay? Not hurt anywhere?" Mrs. Blades didn't even wait for us to close the door before bombarding the both of us with questions.

I glanced at him from the corner of my eye and saw him looking at me. "We're both okay." I answered for the both of us and I felt Alexander give my hand a small squeeze.

Mrs. Blades' eyed us both carefully before her attention strayed to where our hands were still connected tightly. I quickly pried my hands away and shoved them into my pockets, looking everywhere but at Mrs. Blades and Alexander.

"You wanted to tell us something before you were cut off in the car. What was it?" Alexander asked and Mrs. Blades gave a sigh.

"Both of you sit and I'll start." She patted on the bed with a weary smile on her face.

I felt Alexander nudge me and I reluctantly sat on the edge of the bed at her feet and held onto Mrs. Blades' hand. I could feel Alexander's presence from behind me as Mrs. Blades let out a small breath before starting.

"The reason why we were home was because we received an anonymous text that was a series of numbers and letters. We were trying to find a way crack the code when we received your call to leave the house. We believe that the code was sent by your father, Vita."

The moment I heard the word 'father', my heart stopped then began to pound faster. I couldn't tell if it was anticipation, dread or hope.

"Your father was made leader of this group formed of the best agents from all agencies. This was all to find a certain flash drive that contained some highly classified information. A few months ago, they came to the conclusion it was being sold on the black market." Mrs. Blades eyed the each of us carefully. "That's essentially the summary of the unredacted report that I received. Whatever was stolen was important enough for the CIA to gather all agencies and form a group made of best to track it down."

"You said there were other agents. Is there a way we can contact them?" I gazed at Mrs. Blades questioningly, feeling a little annoyed that she had kept so much information away from the both of us.

"No, that is not possible. They're all dead."

My eyes widened. "Confirmed?"

"Yes. Besides, your father didn't trust anyone on this team, felt that everyone had their own hidden agenda. Since rumors say that he was the one that found it, and if that is true, only he would know its location."

"Do you know anything about the people that took him?"

"Just got the scent of their name. Viperidae clan."

"Snake?"

"Yes. I'm sure you must have noticed the tattoo somewhere visible on their body. They're usually very private, always in the shadows. All big three agencies have been trying to catch them for years and never got close, until now. They sell their services to anyone with money and will do anything for a good price."

"So, you think someone wanted them to retrieve the USB?"

"No. I believe that they are doing it for themselves or perhaps they have some vendetta against your father. However, something made them or is making them sloppy. Them killing ruthlessly with no reason is not their usual M.O. I had cross-referenced all the cases that your father and the other agents worked on with mentions of the clan, but I haven't found anything. I think that they want whatever's is on the USB for themselves."

"Do you know what's in the USB?"

Mrs. Blades gave a small sigh. "I reached out to contacts, but none of them would tell me anything."

"Wouldn't knowing what's on it make it easier for us to understand why the clan is after it and hopefully where to find them?"

"I tried, Vita." Mrs. Blades shook her head slightly. "All agencies involved that know what's in it are keeping their mouths shut. They also ordered us immediately give it to the CIA if we find it."

"You're saying they don't care at all about who was killed or captured."

Mrs. Blades gave my hand a small squeeze. "They don't and to them, their first priority is to retrieve the USB. However, our objective has not changed, and it's finding your parents as soon as possible and bringing them home."

I gave her a grateful nod. "Do you still have that text?"

"My phone, pant pocket, take it. Perhaps you'll have a better chance at figuring it out than me."

Alexander silently moved away from the bed, and went to search from the pile of clothes on the floor at the foot of the bed.

"I have another piece of news to share."

The grave tone of her voice froze me over.

"Your father was using an alias while he was on that mission. A full fake identity. The alias had no wife nor daughter. In fact, he was a simple CIA agent that was recruited early into a program when he lost his parents at a young age. However, they captured you from your home, knew your full legal name and the fact that you were the daughter of Luke Simmons. What I say next will remain between us, understood?"

Alexander got up and stood next to my sitting form, both of us stiff as we gave her a nod.

"Either someone hacked into our systems and got a hold of the truth from the outside, or we have a traitor here amongst us."

****

Heyo everyoneee! Another issue has arisen for our main characters D: That was chapter 15 and I hope you guys liked it :)

BIG NOTE: I have made a decision to update every Monday or every other Monday! (A new resolution)

Please don't forget to comment and vote if you liked this chapter!

Until next time dearies,

InvincibleBunny