Work Text:
Egypt-Sudan Border:
The border crossing between Egypt and Sudan was maybe two dozen buildings set smack in the middle of nowhere. Sarah had asked why they were crossing officially rather then just sneaking across the desert, and Frank had explained that this way if they got caught they would just be detained, rather then shot on sight.
Their current job was to smuggle a clay tablet to a professor waiting in Chiro. Supposedly the tablet was the key to understanding some dead language. Frank hadn't given it much thought once he'd assessed that it wasn't likely to blow up, get anyone sick or break unexpectedly. Sarah had tucked the tablet into her bag wrapped in his spare shirts and watched raiders of the lost arc on her phone as they drove.
It should have been routine. A false bottom in the bag. metal detectors but no X-rays. Sarah playing the Humanitarian Aid worker, and him as her more sceptical escort, ready to step in if anything got to serious. Even with the molasses speed of the average border crossing, it shouldn't have taken more than an hour.
"Mr. Hall?" One of the Egyptians asked in broken english. Frank was pretending to only have broken Arabic in the hopes that someone might slip up.
He looked up at the sound of his Alias. "Yes, that's me."
"It seems there may be something wrong with your passport will you please pull your car to the side and step out?"
Sarah glanced at him and he shook his head, just a tiny gesture. It wasn't time to start shooting yet. Maybe the guard just wanted a bribe. He followed directions, pulling their beet up geep into a side lot, and stepping out. By then the guard had two friends each of them armed, with their weapons pointed at the ground.
"Is there a problem?" Frank asked, sticking to english.
"Frank, do we need any water?" Sarah was asking if they were okay. Their current code word was ice.
He shook his head again, "I think we're good for a while, these guys just want to talk."
"You can stay with the car miss, or wait in the cantina." The guard pointed to a building with a small crowd around it.
Sarah ran a hand through her hair and looked from Frank to the cantina, to the car. Frank caught her patting her leg where the taser was hidden. A gun would be a red flag to these people, even the pearl handled pistol he's gifted her.
"I'll refill the cantiens, just in case."
Frank nodded and turned to follow the guards.
It had been six months since Moscow. Since they'd started working together as partners, not just him constantly keeping an eye out desperate to protect her. By now he was confident she could case a room. She knew when to call for backup and when to take a risky shot. Right now she'd be counting people with weapons, obvious escape routes and vehicles.
He trusted her. It was still hard to focus on the task at hand knowing she was walking into an unknown location.
The guards led him into an office with a desk, cracked plaster on the walls and an air conditioner that rattled as it failed to keep up with the desert heat. There were two men in the room. The first was behind the desk. He was a tall black man in a sargent's uniform, but it was the second man that Frank zeroed in on.
He swallowed, licked his lips and said, "Han."
Han Cho Bai was looking well all things considered, a bit thinner, a bit tanner. He was wearing the pants and shirt from a nice suit, but had forgone the shoes in favor of combat boots and gone without the jacket entirely.
"Frank. If I remember correctly the last time I saw you I swore to kill you," he said evenly.
Frank shrugged, "I know you didn't mean it. This line of work, we all say things." He glanced at the soldier behind the desk, and wondered who was working for who. He'd given up a long time ago on wondering at the coinsidences of running into people in strange places. Their business was an insular one at their level.
"You know it doesn't work like that. Maybe if you had stayed out of my sight, but with you right here in front of me?" Han pulled a gun out of the small of his back, zeroing in on Frank. "The honor of my position is at stake."
Frank slowly raised his hands, licking his lips as he glanced around for an exit. Han was a good shot, but no one was perfect. If he could get behind the desk maybe? OR it might be better just to close the distance. They'd been evenly matched last time they went hand to hand. This time Han had the home field advantage. These soldiers would probably listen to him, and Frank was unfamiliar with the compound--
"Stop. I agreed to let you handle this, but not in my office." The sargent said in Arabic. "If you're going to kill him do it outside, and make sure it looks like an accident."
Han rolled his eyes but gestured with the gun.
Frank took his time, exiting the building the way he had come in. He kept his eyes out for anything that could give him an advantage. the one consolation was that Han was a professional and even if he saw Sarah he wouldn't go after her just to silence her. Frank started to turn towards his car, but Han tapped his shoulder and motioned for him to cross the compound towards the desert.
"Out of curiosity what are you doing all the way out here?" Frank asked as casually as if they'd met in the supermarket. Then again Han would have tried to kill him in a supermarket too so maybe that wasn't a great comparison.
"Gun runners. Amateurs, but the pay is good. No idea you were here if that's your concern. What about you? You still running around with that crazy guy and the girl? What was her name again?"
"Sarah, yeah. She's really taken to the life. Marvin, sometimes depends on the job." Frank glanced to the side and caught sight of Sarah, she was holding a three gallon canteen in her arms, the wind plucking at her hair under the scarf she had tied it in. Their eyes met and he gave her a little wave with one of his upraised hands.
"You want me to make sure she gets out of here? It's not the best area for a woman traveling alone." Han asked.
Frank planted his feet deliberately as he climbed up the side of a rocky hill. The sandy soil gave way with every step. He briefly considered if he could use it, but Han was keeping out of reach...
"We'll see. She's more capable then you'd think. A lot of people underestimate her."
Han shrugged, "That's far enough. On the ground." He gestured to the ground.
Frank shook his head as he slowly lowered himself to one knee, "I'm getting old," he laughed.
"We're all dying, some just a little faster than others," Han thumbed back the hammer of his gun, and an ear shattering explosion cut through the air.
It was all the distraction Frank needed. He launched himself up, grabbing at Han's wrist. The gun went off. In the distance people were screaming. Han lashed out. Frank turned into the punch. He shoved his shoulder into the shorter man. They both went down, landing hard on the sand. The gun tumbled away. Han tried for a pin. Frank got his legs up, kicking at any target that presented itself.
Frank didn't try to focus on technique, that was one area Han would always outclass him. Instead he played dirty, tossing a handful of the sandy soil into Han's face before going for the eyes. Han ducked his head and brought up his guard. Frank rolled away, trying to get some distance. Han let him, both men climbing back to their feet.
Han smiled and spit a mouthful of blood into the sand. "Come on, you can do better than that."
Frank shrugged, and raised his fists, "You gonna go for the gun or try to hit me again?" There was a smile on his face.
Han cracked his knuckles.
Both men instinctivly ducked as a car came rocketing over the hill. the geep skidded in the sand, throwing up a cloud, and Sarah yelled to them.
Frank was closer. He glanced at the gun, then at Han. Han rolled one shoulder. They both moved. Frank went for the car door that Sarah had thrown open. Han went for the gun. Sarah already had her foot on the pattal and they were moving as soon as Frank grabbed the door. He ducked as a pair of shots rang out. One pinked off metal, but nothing was broken.
"Are they coming after us? I don't know where I'm going." Sarah babbled. Her eyes were wide but she had a faint smile on her face.
Frank shook his head, trying to catch his breath as he scrambled for his seat belt. "No, it's personal. He wouldn't send goons after us, he'd come himself. Besides, he's under contract. This was just a friendly hello."
"Friendly? I blew up the kitchen!"
Frank smiled and he clicked the buckle into place and focused on not hitting his head on the ceiling when the geep went over a rough patch. "Yeah, I saw that. What's you use?" There was clear fondness in his voice.
She glanced over at him, blushing a bit. "Well they were cooking with this greasy stove right under a window. I may have emptied my cantine through it."
Frank smiled, settling back in his chair and glancing behind them in the mirrors. Sure enough, the pursuit had broken off. He'd always known that Han had a soft spot for him.
"Head left a bit. We'll loop back to the highway."
Sarah nodded with a smile.
Peru -- Northern jungle:
"So when I was here last time we helicoptered in to that ridge over there." Frank pointed to a shelf of rock that could just be seen through the canopy.
Sarah squeezed his hand. "God that must have been amazing. How many people?"
He lifted a hand and tilted it back and forth. "Just a small squad. four people, plus Ops back in the city."
Sarah sighed, "I am so glad we decided to take this vacation. So what happened next?"
Frank wrapped an arm around her and led her through the jungle, outlining the operation as he remembered it. After their last few missions He'd decided they should lay low and Sarah had pointed out that she'd never gotten to go to Peru. He'd promised her the grand tour and now here they were.
The drug lord's house was still there, overgrown now. From his scouting the last few days it had become something of a local legend. A house of glass and steel out in the forest where no one dared to go. The bad men who had once lived there had made a deal with the devil and on one silent night he had come to collect, killing everyone inside.
Frank had been called worse things then the devil.
He stepped over a fallen log and offered a hand to help Sarah. She took it and then stepped past him, awe on her face. "Oh my god, this is it, isn't it!"
He looked past her. What had passed for a road twenty five years ago was now ferns and creeping vines., but the gates were still there, Heavy wrought iron hanging open on their posts. Beyond them the building was a mass in the gloom. The white stone walls were cracked and covered in Ivy, while the metal that braced the roof now held strings of moss and cobwebs.
"We came in through here at just after two am," Frank said. He gestured to the front door and what had once been a big picture window next to it. Now it was just a hole in the wall. There were signs that animals, birds for certain and likely other things as well, had taken advantage of the shelter. When he stepped forward he was careful where he placed his feet and wary of anything that might still be lurking. Sarah followed in his footsteps, still clutching his hand.
"We met the first round of guards right over there." Frank gestured to a hallway. The now faded wallpaper still showed old blood stains that had never been cleaned up. The bodies were gone, dragged off or picked apart by scavengers most likely.
Something shifted deeped in the house and for a moment the birds calling outside went silent, leaving the wind the only sound. Sarah glanced up at him. She was biting her lip, and her grip on his hand was as tight as ever, but there was excitement in her eyes. The birds slowly started calling again and Frank relaxed a fraction.
"What happened next?" Sarah whispered.
Frank turned, looking around, trying to remember the specifics. He'd done half a dozen strikes like this one all over the world and they tended to blur together.
"This way," he said after a minute, leading her further into the building. "The guy we were after knew were coming by this point. He had all his guys on alert and locked himself in his safe room. That's where we blew open the door." He gestured to the vault-like door, laying on the ground. It was covered in moss and rust now. There was some kind of insect nest in the corner of the doorway. "After that, the job was done. We got out of here and headed home." He shrugged.
Sarah squeezed his hand, and went up on her toes for a kiss. "This is so nice."
Frank wasn't sure he agreed but he would be the first to admit that his sense of normal was screwed up, so what did he know.
They headed back out the way they'd come in, at least until they made it to the entryway. Frank held out an arm, a finger on his lips. Sarah went silent, eyes darting around for the danger that he'd sensed. Frank tilted his head. There was something about the shadows outside.
"Are you done with your trip down memory lane?" A familiar voice called from outside.
"Is that Han?" Sarah asked in a whisper.
Frank nodded.
"What's he doing here?" Sarah sounded more confused than scared.
Frank pressed his back to what remained of the door frame. He tilted his head slightly, considering, then called out, "Han?"
"Frank Moses, it's been too long." Han called back.
"What are you doing here?" Sarah asked in a loud voice.
"So the girl is there with you. I hope you do not mind Sarah, but I've come to kill Frank."
Frank glanced heavenword. "Again, really?"
"Well I did make a vow to kill you. If men didn't keep their word then the world would just fall apart."
Frank wished he could see Han's face, see if he had that little smile and the laughter that showed in his eyes, or if his teeth were bared in anger.
"Are you going to kill Sarah too?" Frank hated to ask, and he was almost certain of the answer but he had to hear it.
"Sarah didn't blow up my plane. She can leave at any time." The words were light. Frank just bet that Han had one of his big revolvers trained on their location.
"What are you even doing here Han? I mean I'm flattered that you'd hike through the jungle for my sake but I didn't even know you were in the country." He'd been trying to keep track too, ever since Egypt.
"I had some time between jobs, and you know how boredom can ruin a man."
Frank silently gave him that one. He looked around trying to figure out the angles. The house was a mess. There might be another way out, there might not. If Had had gotten there before them and scouted the place they could be walking into a trap. If Han was serious he was probably using infired. Frank was taller then Sarah, but in the heat of the jungle he might not be able to tell which of them was which. On the other hand if what he really wanted was a fight, then he was probably standing out by the gate posts, just waiting for Frank to make a move.
Frank honestly wouldn't mind if it was the latter. As nice as this vacation had been, he hadn't faught anyone in over a week, and hadn't killed anyone in a month. He had mammed five guards two weeks ago in Panama though so it didn't really count.
"Come on, Frank don't get cold feet on me now," Han called.
Sarah rolled her eyes, put her hands on her hips and stepped around the corner. Frank grabbed at the air, but it was too late, she was in the open. HE stopped himself just before he stepped out after her. After all Han had said he wasn't going to kill her and if today had proven nothing else it proved that man kept his word.
"Really?" Sarah said, standing there in the blown out doorway. "You're really going to interrupt our date? For this?"
Han didn't seem to know what to do with that, or at least it took him slightly longer to answer. "This was a date?"
He could hear it in Sarah's voice that she was rolling her eyes, "Ah, yeah. Why else do you think I'd hike all the way out here? Did you think there was some kind of old intel or something?" She scoffed.
Frank heard Han mutter something but it wasn't quite loud enough to pick out the words. At least he couldn't pick out the words, Sarah answered without pause.
"Really? You think so?"
Han said something else and Sarah laughed. Frank was slightly out of his depth here. He didn' know if Han was going to start shooting or if Sarah had somehow managed to turn him without even trying. ?Before he could make up his mind about what to do next a trilling series of notes rank through the mostly silent jungle.
"Sorry, that's mine." Han said, loud enough for Frank to understand. He started talking in some asian language, and Frank took a chance and peeked around the doorway.
Han was standing out by the gate posts like he'd thought, but he was turned half away, one hand holding a cellphone to his ear while the other gestured with his gun. Sarah was slightly closer. She'd dropped the angry stance but had stood firmly between the two men so she certainly wasn't out of danger.
"How do you think he gets cell service all the way out here?" Sarah asked. He knew she wasn't oblivious to the danger, she was just ignoring it as unimportant.
Frank leaned halfway around the doorway, ready to step back if the need arose. "Don't know, ask Marvin he next time we see him."
She hummed in response. A second later Han ended his call and glanced in their direction.
"Looks like you're getting off easy today. I've got another job. It's a rush order." He shrugged with the arm holding the gun, but the nozle was never quite aimed in their direction.
"Well, it was nice seeing you." Frank stayed where he was, just in case. Han met his eyes, nodded and stepped back. A moment later he was lost in the jungle.
"Huh. You think this is going to become a thing?" Sarah asked, turning to face him.
"Once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, three times is enemy action." Frank said with a shrug. "I wouldn't mind seeing him if it wasn't for the killing thing.
"Same." Sarah stepped up to his side and he wrapped an arm around her. "We don't get to see everyone nearly often enough. Oh you know what? We should look up Victoria! We haven't seen her and Ivan in ages!"
"True." Frank nodded.
They waited a few more minutes just to be sure they wouldn't cross paths with Han somewhere in the jungle, before heading back themselves.
Philippines -- east of Mindoro:
"Did you know the number of islands out here changes depending on the tide?"
Sarah was sitting out on the deck of the yacht. She was wearing only a bikini, a surang, and a wide brimmed hat, he sunglasses slipping down her nose as she held up the guidebook to block the sun.
Technically they were on the job but she had said that if she could go shopping in the middle of Paris when there were at least three hit men after them, then she could sunbathe on the deck of their own boat in full view of both Frank and Marvin, who was driving. Frank hadn't really had any objections given that he got to admire his girlfriend as he kept lookout.
"That's nice." He raised the binoculars again and scanned the horizon. The ship carrying the person they were after, and more importantly his briefcase full of the very powerful jellyfish toxin that was being used to kidnap and/or kill certain high placed people, was supposed to be somewhere along this route. Unfortunately, due to the paranoia of everyone involved, how near or far was still to be seen.
A wisp of something crossed his sight line and Frank drew his binoculars back around.
"Marvin, I think I've got it. Their boat's the Summer Song, right?"
Marvin grunted affirmation, squinting in the direction Frank was looking.
"Take us twenty degrees starboard, We'll intercept them."
Marvin turned the wheel.
"Does that mean I have to move?" Sarah called up from the deck.
"No, you're our cover. If anyone sees us you're an attractive heiress from one of those countries no one can pronounce." Frank said with a smile.
"Oh good, I always wanted to play an heiress. It'll be just like in My Kingdom Come."
Frank couldn't remember if that was the book where the princess was seduced and then betrayed only it turned out the secret treasure was never there in the first place and they were both framed for treason before unveiling the true culprit, or if that was the one where the unclaimed daughter of the duke fell in love with the youngest of the princess when he was investigating the murder of the general who also happened to be her uncle. Either way Sarah knew what to do.
It always seemed to take longer then it should to get close to ships on the open sea. The distances stretched when there were no landmarks. Frank spent the first twenty minutes watching the other ship for any sign of a course change. They were flying neutral colors, or what the target would perceive as neutral colors. When he was pretty sure they had been spotted and the other boat hadn't changed course he spent some time checking his knives. He never used guns on boats. The shifting waters always threw off his aim, and anyway it was a hassle to keep them dry.
When they were less than half an hour from contact Frank put on his best fake swagger and went up on deck with some virgin drinks as props. Sarah took her drink and set her book aside in favor of draping herself over his shoulder. He had to admit, this was one of the covers he prefered.
She started talking about all the things she'd learned in the guidebook and how they were going to have such a marvelous time once they got to the resort. Frank added things where necessary.
Marvin slowed as they pulled up alongside the other boat. Sarah used her hat to wave at the middle aged, bespectacled man. He had the dark skin of an islander and tattoos over his shoulders. there seemed to be at least three others aboard, but given the various ages and how they were active this was the man in charge. His name was Thomas Selvin, their target.
After a nod from Frank one of Thomas' men threw a rope over and jumped across the gap. He tied the rope in place and pulled the two ships close enough to have a conversation deck to deck. Frank slapped the man on the back, catching the imprint of a gun at the small of his back as his shirt went tight.
"Helloooo," Sarah called in a voice several octaves higher than her normal range. "Oh how exciting! I didn't think we'd see anyone else out here this time of year. Didn't I say darling? I said how unfortunate, You know you meet the most interesting people out on the sea. Except for pirates of course. Well that's interesting in it's own way. You're not pirates are you?" Sarah laughed, high pitched and airy.
Frank nodded solemnly, "You did say that." Then he turned to Thomas, "I'm Frank, and this is Sarah. Would you like to come aboard? We can have a round of drinks!"
From behind them Marvin cleared his throat pointedly, playing the part of the hired help.
"Oh, yes, yes. Maritime assistance, is that what you call it?" Frank laughed, "Do you need any assistance? Short on any supplies? We're headed towards the Sunset Beach Resort so if you need any messages passed along?" Frank waved his drink in the air, gesturing larger than strictly needed.
Thomas barked an order in Mandarin and the man on their boat pulled the gun, holding it to Sarah's head.
"Oh my, they are pirates!" She fake babbled. Her hand came up, as if to cover the surprise on her face. Frank knew it was really covering a smile. A lot of people had tried to hold a gun on Sarah in the last year or so. Most of them had ended up regretting it.
Frank slowly raised his hands, taking a half step closer to the goon as he turned to Thomas. "Now what is all this! We were simply being polite. Offering to help even!"
"Quiet," Thomas barked in accented english. He said something else to his men and two others jumped across. That left one goon on the deck of the Summer Song with Thomas. One of the new goons pulled over Marvin while the other went below deck presumably to confirm there was on one else on board. When he called up in mandarin, Thoman fixed his gaze on Frank.
"Who are you? How did you know I would be here?"
"I don't even know who you are," Frank said. He looked around at the goons shifting to put himself between the one holding Marvin at gunpoint and Sarah. It would look chivalrous to them, but really he just didn't want Sarah to have to deal with more than one of them. She was getting better with the physical side of things but he didn't want to put too much on her yet.
Sarah let herself sway with the boat and wobbled, grabbing for the railing. Her guard barked something in Mandarin shoving the gun at her, and she moved. The gun went off as she grabbed his arm forcing it up, then pulling him down. She got her shoulder under his mass and turned, sending him over the railing. By the time he hit the water everyone was moving.
Marvin twisted something, there was a snap and the goon with the gun on him cried out as his gun slammed to the deck. At the same time there was a cry from below as the door slammed shut, locking with an audible click.
Frank took two steps, and vaulted over the railing. He hit the deck of the Summer Song, and rolled as someone fired a gun nearby. He had his knife in hand as he rose, slicing across the last goon's front. He cried out and blood stained the deck. Thomas lifted a gun of his own but his hand was shaking.
Thomas cursed in his own language, and pulled the trigger. The gun misfired. Frank stepped in, grabbing the gun with his off hand as he pressed the knife against Thomas's collar bone.
"I'd stay very still if I were you."
"Funny, I was going to say the same thing."
Frank went still at the sound of the familiar voice.
"No way." Sarah said from their own ship.
Frank turned twisting Thomas's arm around into a lock and putting him between himself and the new man standing on the deck.
Han was standing by the railing. he was dripping with seawater, beads of it sparkling in his dark hair. He was wearing a short sleeved wetsuit that hugged every inch of his form, and there were half a dozen throwing knives strapped to his belt.
Frank glanced at Thomas, then back at Han, "Wait are you here for him or me?"
"Him actually," Han said with a shrug. "I didn't know anyone else put out a contract on him."
Frank shrugged, "Well technically we're here for the cargo."
"Ah," Han said nodding. "That's fine then. You can have it. As long as he's dead when I leave my job is done."
"Sooo, he's not going to kill us?" Marvin asked.
"No just Mr. Selvin. Well, and Frank."
"Han," Frank said, his shoulders drooping. "I thought we were past all that."
Han shrugged, "well it's not like you make it easy to come visit. I have to expense all these travel arrangements somehow."
"Now that you no longer have a plane?"
"Actually I bought a new one. It's really nice. I'd let you see it some time but I'd be afraid you'd blow it up too."
Frank laughed. In his arms Thomas squirmed. Frank wranched his arm up a little higher and he cried out.
"Do you want to do the honors yourself?" Frank asked, "Or do you mind?"
"Oh no go ahead," Han waved a hand.
Frank opened Thomas's neck, waited for him to stop shuddering and then dumped the body overboard. While he'd been at it, Sarah had climbed over the railing. She straightened her surang, nodded to Han and painted at the door to the lower deck.
"I'm going to go find that case."
Both he and Han let her pass without challenge.
Frank looked at his knife, then bent and wiped off the blade on the goon's shirt. "So how do you want to do this?"
"Well we both know how well guns work out here."
"Right? I was telling Sarah. Even the best marksman can't predict the ocean--"
"And that's not even accounting for the wind!" Han said nodding. "These guys. They had no idea."
Frank nodded, "so knives then?"
"Unless you'd prefer to die by fists?" Han took a stance and flexed. Frank had to admit he looked really good in the skin tight suit.
"You probably top me either way," Frank said. He settled into a stance of his own, fingers curling playfully around his blade.
Han took a half step forward, starting to circle. Frank mirrored him. Both of them were grinning, teeth bared, wild and excited.
There was a snap, a buzzing in the air and Han jerked. He twitched, letting out a harsh cry, and fell to the deck. Frank blinked, then looked up at Sarah. She was in the doorway to the hold, briefcase in one hand taser in the other.
"Sarah!" Frank said arms wide. He was sure his expression was a sight to behold.
She rolled her eyes, "He'll be fine. I'm sure he'll wake up in a few hours. and he's got to have some kind of boat or submarine around here somewhere. It's not like he swam all the way out here."
"That's not the point," Frank said.
Sarah stopped and gave him a look. "I'm sorry for interrupting your play time. as soon as the two of you grow up and stop pulling each other's pig tails , I'll be sure to set up a play date." she patted his arm, then scaled the railing to jump back to their own ship.
"I don't-- I'm not-- Marvin help me out here!" Frank waved at the air.
Marvin looked up from dragging one of the goons they had dispatched across the deck. "What?"
"I'm not! Me and Han, it's not like--"
Marvin was already shaking his head. "Nope, I'm staying out of that one. Marital spats need to stay between the people involved. If you want to date two people you need to take it up with them."
"What?" Frank nearly slipped as he lept between the boats. "You think? I'm not. Sarah I swear I'm not." He held up his hands, but she waved him off.
"Don't worry. I know this isn't like with Katja. You have needs. Besides I wouldn't say no to watching a bit of testosterone get thrown around."
Frank gaped. He blinked at her then looked at Marvin just to make sure he hadn't heard wrong but Marvin was heading back to the wheel, and wasn't paying attention.
"I... Really?" Frank really hadn't thought this far ahead.
Sarah looped her arm through his and pulled him back towards the hold. "Sure, we'll talk it over with Han next time."
She unlatched the door. The last of the goons came screaming up the steps at them. Frank swung, hit his collarbone and felt a crunch. The goon screamed, falling back down the stairs.
Frank looked back at Sarah, "You'd really be okay with something like that?"
She went up on her toes and kissed him on the cheek. "Take out the trash and we can figure out the details."
Copenhagen -- American Embassy:
Frank adjusted the dark sunglasses that Sarah had bought him. She said they made him look like a secret agent, which normally he would have avoided but today was rather necessary. They were undercover, Sarah as the daughter of a general and him as her bodyguard. Normally Copenhagen wasn't the first place that sprang to mind when Frank thought of Dangerous art smugglers and forgers, btu it took all kinds. The cocktail party at the american embassy, was just another job when you got down to it.
Sarah smiled, biting her lip as she looked down, then glanced up through her lashes. The man she was flirting with wasn't actually their target, but as his right hand man, he was their way in. His name was Aaric. He was stocky but not much taller than her and there was far too much product in his hair. Also he'd already finished three drinks and was working his way through a fourth.
Sarah leaned in and said something in a low voice, glancing in Frank's direction. It was in the script that she try to slip away before too much longer. With any luck Aaric would take her to his rooms upstairs and she'd be able to slip something in his drink to knock him out. Then she'd clone his phone and they'd have everything they needed.
Aaric glanced in his direction. Frank made a show of scanning the room for potential threats. The fact that he actually found one was almost a shock.
Han was at the bar. He set down and empty glass, and nodded slowly as the man next to him slid a piece of paper over.
This could complicate things.
Frank glanced towards Sarah, but she was already tugging Aaric through a doorway. Frank would have a few minutes at least. There was always a chance Han would try to kill him again, and if that happened it didn't matter what the outcome, everyone would go on high alert including their target. He had to get Han out of the public eye.
A small voice in the back of his head remembered the conversation he and Sarah had had a few months back. Sarah had said she was fine with him stepping out as long as she approved the person. So far Han was the only person on that list. Not that Frank thought anything would happen...
Han tucked the paper away an the inside pocket of his suit, and headed for a side door. If he was leaving then Frank didn't have to do anything, crisis averted. If he wasn't leaving...
Frank circled the room, and slipped through the doorway after him. Han wasn't moving fast and Frank saw him turn a corner down the hall. He was heading towards the back of the building where it let out onto the military cemetery. Frank really hoped Han didn't still want to kill him. Fighting to the death in a cemetery was a little too on the nose even for him.
Han was waiting for him when he turned the corner. He grabbed the front of Frank's suit, and tugged, spinning them both around Frank's back was pressed against a door frame, and Han was snarling in his face.
"Why are you-- Frank?"
Frank's hand found a door handle, twisted, and they both fell back into a dark room. Han let out a sound of muffled surprise. Frank's shoulder hit a shelf. There was a clatter as several things fell off the shelf. Frank managed to continue the turn until he was the one who had Han pressed to the bare plaster.
"Han," It came out lower then he'd meant and slightly breathless.
The door had swung mostly shut behind them, leaving them with only a crack of light to see by. It crossed Han's features like a stripe of gold.
"What are you doing here?" Han growled and Frank really only had one answer for that.
Frank leaned in and Caught Han's lips, pressing his full body against the other man, in a kiss as fierce as any of their other encounters. If might not have been the whole truth, but it was an answer of a sort, and more importantly once Han realized what was happening, he started kissing back.
That was all Frank needed. He slid his hands down the other' man's chest, tugging his shirt out of his pants and clutching at his hips. Han had gotten ahold of his tie, pulling him down to a height that better suited him. Frank was getting hard. He spread his legs rucking against Han's thigh. Han tugged on his tie again and shifted enough to turn them around, pinning Frank to the wall instead.
A million half-formed ideas were running through Frank's mind. He wanted to get on his knees and suck Han off. He wanted to pin Han to the wall and fuck his thighs. He wanted to have Han on his knees, thrusting into his mouth. He wanted to jerk them both off together and have Han walk out of there sex mused and dazed smile on his face.
"Don't think this changes--" Han's sentance ended in a moan as Frank discovered Han liked having his hair pulled.
Frank was just going for his belt when rushed footsteps sounded through the door. Han glanced at it but didn't stop. Frank was inclined to go with that, but then the door actually opened. Sarah stood backlit in the hallway.
"We have to go! Wait, Han? I didn't realize you were here." A shriek came from the direction of the party. Sarah glanced in that direction, "Yeah, I'm sorry but we've really got to go." She grabbed Frank's arm and hauled him out of the closet, and towards the back of the house.
Later when they had made it back to their safehouse, she apologises again and tells him how Aaric had a girl who had come to surprise him and started yelling before she could drug him. He waved off her apology. It was part of the job, and if he jerked off in the shower to the memory of that kiss then no one would fault him for it.
Canada -- approximately two hundred miles north of Vancouver BC:
Frank hauled the cooler out of the boat and followed it onto the dock. Fishing was surprisingly enjoyable, and more importantly it didn't aggravate his leg injury, at least not while he was in the boat. He let out a hiss of pain as he got his crutches under him and grabbed the handle on the cooler. thank god the thing had wheels. The slower rate of healing was the worst part of getting old.
He and Sarah were staying an a little cabin the Marvin had set up for them, completely off the grid. It was a little strange to finally be playing house in a situation like this, after they'd worked everything out.
Frank managed to haul the cooler up onto the back of the land rover and put himself in the driver's seat. The little lake was just as much in the middle of nowhere as the cabin and even with the service roads he'd have to go part of the way through the forest. He clicked his radio twice to let Sarah know he was headed back and set off through the trees.
There was a clearing just big enoucabingh to land a helicopter out back of the cabin so Frank saw that Sarah wasn't alone before he got in range to see exactly who was with her. There wasn't any helicopter on the lawn so whoever it was had come in on foot, or at least by land. His instinct was to kill the engine and circle the cabin. He could sabotage any vehicles he found and catch whoever it was by surprise. Except with his knee the way it was there was no way he could move around as quietly as he'd need to.
He didn't really have a choice but to reveal his presence.
He took cover in the trees, watching the movement behind the mosquito screens around the porch. One figure was seated, while the other was leaning towards them. Franks head filled with images of Sarah tied to a chair. He checked his gun had a full clip and reached for his radio again.
"Sarah, come in, over." There was the static of an open line. The standing figure in the porch moved. A moment later Sarah's voice came through.
"Frank? Is anything wrong? I thought you were headed back?"
Their current code words were fire for danger and south for all clear.
"Yeah, I'll be there soon, I just need to warm up my knee..." There was still a chance whoever it was was a friendly. Maybe a ranger had stumbled across them, or Marvin had come to visit. Even if both those explanations seemed terribly unlikely.
"It's okay," She said through a crackle. "We don't need to head south yet. Han came to visit."
Frank stopped and stared incredulously at the radio. "Han?" he said without pressing the button. They hadn't seen Han since the Copenhagen, and that was over six months ago. They hadn't even had a chance to talk about it, well, he and Han hadn't. Who knew how long Han had been there or what Sarah had been saying.
That last thought spurned him towards the porch more than anything else nervous and excited all at once. He hopped up to the door, managed to pull it open and hip checked it before it could close on him.
Han was indeed sitting at the table. The large first aid kit was set out next to a pitcher of ice tea. Han had patches of red all over his arms and legs. Frank winced.
"Poison oak?"
"And stinging nettles," Han confirmed. He winced as Sarah tore open what had to be a fifth or sixth antibiotic wipe.
"How was your day?" Sarah asked, packing away the supplies.
"Fine, quiet. I caught a trout."
"That's nice, make sure you've cleaned and gutted it before you bring it inside. Is there enough for three or should I defrost something else as well?"
Frank hesitated. His fishing skills weren't all that great yet.
Sarah nodded, "Right, I'll pull something out of the ice box. Where did you leave the rover?"
"About fifty yards through the trees." Frank gestured in the appropriate direction.
She bent, kissed him on the cheek and headed for the door. "Play nice now," she called as the door swung shut behind her.
Frank glanced at Han. He licked his lips, suddenly nervous, "So..."
"Hmm," Han agreed.
"I guess you had some trouble finding us?" Frank waved a hand at the first aid kit and his current state.
"Finding you, not so much, getting here... I did not expect Canada to be worse than Peru."
Frank nodded with a chuckle, and refilled Han's tea as he got himself a glass. He looked at the other man. He looked good apart from the poison oak. There were a few more scars, but nothing worrying. He had the same long eyelashes, the same clever hands, the same quirk at the corner of his mouth.
"Did you come to kill me?" Frank couldn't help but ask.
Han shrugged one shoulder, "Maybe a little death."
Frank snorted out a surprised laugh.
Han waved a hand down at his knee. "I heard you were injured. I let it be known that no one else is allowed to kill you, then I found myself at loose ends so..."
Frank smiled, "Yeah, I missed you too."
Neither of them would ever have a simple life. Frank had learned years ago, to take what pleasure he could while it was within reach. He reached out now, lifting Han's chin, and careful of both their injuries, kissed him.
"You're going to have to do a lot more than that to pay me back you know," Han said when he pulled back. The cocky smile was back, and it sent a thrill down Frank's spine.
"Maybe we can start with dinner?"
"It's a start," Han agreed.
The end.