Elias POV
The truck lurched sideways, and I instinctively grabbed the oh-shit handle above the door, side-eyeing Tendo.
He was still tense, his eyes flicking between the road and the mirrors. Even after we'd put a solid mile between us and the compound, he kept driving like we were being chased, racing down the road long after we'd left the vicinity.
Not that distance would truly help if we had persistent pursuers, I thought darkly. We'd gotten lucky, really lucky. A lot could have gone wrong. Still, I glanced in the rearview mirror and let out a small smile at seeing Ruby and the other girl safe.
Ruby was whispering softly to the girl beside her, who was finally starting to come around from whatever they had drugged her with.
"Are you okay...?" Ruby asked, her voice barely above a breath.
The other girl stirred, blinking slowly and wobbling on the seat. Her gaze drifted forward, landing on me and Tendo in the front seats. Her whole body tensed immediately, and she tightened her shoulders.
Ruby, noticing this, gently touched her arm. "Hey, it's okay. They're not one of them. Eli's a family friend. He came to get us out. And the other one driving is his friend. We're safe now."
The girl relaxed a fraction, but her eyes still flicked nervously between us. Then, almost as if someone flipped a switch, her expression brightened.
"Hi Eli," she said, her voice surprisingly bubbly and warm, with a soft Japanese accent. "I'm Yukio~!"
She even added a little wave, a cheerful greeting that felt completely out of place after what she'd just been through.
I couldn't help the small smile that tugged at my mouth. "Hey, Yukio. Nice to meet you."
Tendo glanced over at me, then back at the girls in the mirror. The corner of his mouth twitched too, greeting the girls. The truck kept racing down the dark road, trees blurring past the windows, as Tendo asked me,
"So where to, man...?" I thought about it for a moment. We couldn't really go to the police, so the only option we had, especially with another person...
"Home..." I said, glancing at the girls through the rearview once more. "Get us home, Ten."
"Works for me..."
Some time later.
The familiar old brick apartment building appeared under the glow of the streetlights of Astoria as we turned onto the street. A wave of quiet relief washed over me. We'd actually made it back without getting pulled over. That would've been a nightmare: two grown men driving around with two barely-dressed and clearly drugged girls in the back seat. We'd been lucky—stupidly, dangerously lucky.
I reached back and gently shook Ruby's shoulder. "Hey... we're home."
Both girls stirred slowly. Ruby blinked, still groggy from sleep, while Yukio rubbed her eyes and looked around in quiet confusion. Tendo parked right in front of the building. I got out first, then helped the girls down from the truck, helping them keep the blanket wrapped tightly around them.
We guided them carefully up the steps to the front door of Ruby's house.
"Gloria!!" I called out, hitting the bell, still keeping my voice low so as not to wake up the entire apartment. The door flew open almost instantly.
Gloria stood there in her robe, looking frazzled. The moment she saw her daughter, her face crumpled and brightened at the same time in relief.
"RUBY!" she cried out, her voice breaking as she rushed forward and pulled her daughter into a crushing hug. Ruby let out a small sob and clung to her mother. Tendo, who was supporting Yukio, and I shared a small look at the heartwarming scene.
After a long moment, Gloria looked up, her eyes landing on Yukio, who was standing there awkwardly next to Tendo.
"This is Yukio," I said. "She needs a safe place tonight."
Understanding my words, Gloria reached out without hesitation and gently pulled Yukio into the hug as well, wrapping both girls in her arms. "You're safe now, sweetheart. Both of you. Come inside now."
We helped them in. Gloria fussed over them immediately, getting water, blankets, and other comfort items. Tendo and I stood apart near the doorway, watching everything with tired eyes. Eventually, he turned to me and gave me a small nod.
"I'll head out," he said quietly. "Call me if you need anything. I'll be in touch."
"Thanks, Ten. For everything."
He clapped me on the shoulder once, then disappeared down the stairs.
I lingered for a moment longer, then signaled to Gloria, who walked over.
"Eli... who was that man with you?"
I blinked, realizing only now that in all the chaos, I'd never actually introduced him. "That was Tendo. My friend from junior high. He's the one who helped me find Ruby tonight."
A small, warm smile broke through the exhaustion on her face. "Well, you tell Tendo I said thank you. And that he's coming over for dinner soon. No excuses." She stepped forward suddenly and wrapped me in a fierce bear hug. "You brought my baby home," she whispered against my shoulder, her voice thick with tears. "I don't know how to thank you enough."
I hugged her back, a little awkward but genuine. "You don't have to. Get some rest, Gloria. We can talk about everything tomorrow. All of it."
She nodded, tears still shining in her eyes. "Of course, Eli. I don't know how to... just...thank you."
I stepped back into the hallway and closed their door softly behind me. I walked the few steps to my own apartment, unlocked the door, and stepped inside the dark room. Leaning back against the door, I sighed, feeling the strain and tiredness in my own body.
This day could have been a complete disaster...
I thought about all the close calls, the way my body had reacted in every situation, and the encounter with Emma at the end. If the Codex hadn't reacted the way it did, she would have had unfiltered access to my mind. That would have been an absolute disaster, especially with the company she kept around her...
Something to do tomorrow, when I'm well rested...
Shaking my head, I rolled my shoulders and made my way inside, looking forward to a hot shower and a date with my bed.
The Next day
I sat behind my dining table in my pajama bottoms, shoveling cereal and scrambled eggs into my mouth. My appetite had been growing steadily worse since the augmentations; my body was burning through calories at an insane rate. I had the morning news playing quietly on the TV in the background.
The anchor was talking about a reported military training accident over the skies of Afghanistan. Two fighter jets had apparently crashed during a routine training exercise; both pilots had ejected out safely.
So Tony's already built the suit... I thought. Good. Means I didn't fuck up the timeline too badly.
A soft knock came at the door.
I glanced over, already knowing who it was. I quickly pulled on a plain t-shirt and walked over. When I opened the door, Gloria was standing there, looking happier and livelier.
"Hey," I said softly. "Come on in. Or... you want me to come over?"
She gave me a smile. "Come on over, dear. The girls just woke up..."
I nodded without saying anything, knowing the woman needed to be brought up to speed, and stepped out, closing my door behind me and following her.
Gloria handed me a steaming mug of coffee without a word. I took it gratefully and settled onto the old floral couch. Matt had already been sent to his room—smart move. The kid didn't need to hear any of this.
Yukio was sitting quietly at the dining table after greeting me with a smile and a wave. She was petite, not more than 5'5", with straight black hair that fell just past her shoulders and sharp, delicate Asian features. Gloria sat down across from me on another couch, with Ruby sitting next to her mother.
I kept my explanation as gentle as possible. I told Gloria how we'd tracked the party, how we'd found both girls in the lower levels of the estate. I left out the worst parts; some things were better left unsaid.
And the part on how to tell the woman why the girls were taken in the first place... Did she know about her daughter's powers...?
Almost as if reading my mind, Ruby shifted uncomfortably, then spoke, her voice small but steady.
"Mom... there's something else." She swallowed hard. "The people there... they were keeping us because they said we were going to be given to some group. They knew we were different."
Gloria's brow furrowed. "Different how, baby?"
Ruby hesitated, then looked at me for support. I gave her a small nod.
"I have powers, Mom," she said quietly. "I have... a certain control over smells... I think... I can do things with it..."
Gloria stared at her daughter, her face slowly going pale. She looked more and more lost, her eyes flicking to me like I could somehow make more sense of it.
Before I could say anything, the doorbell rang.
Gloria startled, then stood up quickly, wiping her hands on her skirt. The moment the door opened, I recognized her.
She looked like a younger Elizabeth Olsen same soft features, same wavy light-brown hair falling loosely around her shoulders. She wore tight black leather pants that hugged her curves sensually, a short cropped top that showed a smooth strip of her soft belly.
She stepped inside without waiting for an invitation, exuding confidence, even as Gloria blinked in confusion and started to ask, "Excuse me... who are you?"
I tensed immediately. Without making any sudden movements, I stood up slowly from the couch, already on high alert. This wasn't how I pictured my morning going, I thought tensely.
Wanda gave Gloria a polite but distant smile, her voice carrying a soft, warm accent that sounded vaguely Eastern European.
"I'm here for the girls," she said calmly. "My father sent me to... collect them. He told me an associate had offered them to him. Honestly, I don't really care if they come with me or not. But I do need to be able to tell him that I at least tried." She shrugged lightly, as if this was all just a minor inconvenience. "It makes things easier at home."
Magneto...
Before I could open my mouth to respond, a high-pitched whine cut through the air from outside. It sounded like an aircraft. I moved quickly to the window,
still keeping Wanda in my peripheral vision. I pulled the curtain aside just enough to look outside towards an open area behind the building.
Hovering silently above, transparent and shimmering like heat haze, was something that definitely wasn't supposed to exist in 2008. A sleek, angular aircraft, invisible except for the faint distortion in the air and the soft blue glow of its engines.
I heard Wanda let out a sigh and mumble something about "goody two shoes..."
Fuck...