there are prizes all around you if you're wise enough to see

[praevaricatio]

Comments

[abad_influence]

[He does, pulling down the notification so he can see the text.]

It's your husband. Everyone's clear, they're heading back to base.

[Which Lucas does not want to know where that is, so hopefully they're not heading there.]

[praevaricatio]

They're on the inside now. We're on the outside.

( He'd have given something to keep Lucas outside as well, but Hernandez made that impossible. )

Do you have any objections to going back to Lawrence?

[abad_influence]

[He shakes his head.]

Probably makes the most sense until I figure out what my family's doing next.

[praevaricatio]

Then that's where we'll go.

( Lucas' burner comes to life, vibrating, screen illuminating MOM )

[abad_influence]

[He takes a deep breath, before reaching for the phone and lifting it to his ear.]

Hey, Mom.

[The anxiety and tension still hasn't ebbed away yet, but it probably won't until he's safely out of Mexico.]

[disputable]

You answered. ( she wasn't expecting him to! ) Honey, hi. I'm sorry, I was just calling to - to leave a message. I didn't think you'd pick up.

( she's not going to ask, she's not going to ask, she's not going to ask )

[abad_influence]

We're in the car. Everything's fine. It's done.

[She won't ask, but he'll tell her.]

We're on our way back.

[disputable]

Really? It's done, it's over.

( She looks to Michael sitting across from her, taking his hand with her free one. )

Are you okay?

[abad_influence]

I ...

[No, he's not. Not emotionally. He doesn't like it when the line is blurred between hunter and assassin. But he's alive. He's free.]

... I'm not hurt.

[disputable]

Come back. Come back to us.

( She speaks volumes. )

[abad_influence]

We're working on it. I'll let you know when I have more details.

[He's not sure about anything more than that, but he's still working through a lot. He'll get better. He'll figure it out. He just has to get his life back.]

[disputable]

Yes, you will.

( he knows they love him, so she doesn't say it. he knows. and they're here for him when he needs them. come back. )

[abad_influence]

I'll see you soon.

[He doesn't know if he'll be much better. He kind of wants to get really drunk. But that can be when he gets back to the bunker.]

Are the Gilberts okay?

[disputable]

They're alive. Thanks to you they're alive. And Jeremy and Elena are - we're all feeling our way through it.

( But because of her son, they can. )

[abad_influence]

[He exhales slowly, releasing that little bit of tension. They're fine, he's fine. Anything else they can figure out later.]

I'll see you tomorrow, probably. If not, day after. Depends when the flight is.

[disputable]

You know where we'll be. And, let us know if you need anything else.

( Or, maybe if he has any kind of greatest hits wants, not that his mother or father were really... cooks. That was definitely a grandparent thing. )

[abad_influence]

I will. See you soon.

[And with that, he'll hang up and lean back in the passenger's seat.]

How long to the airport?

[praevaricatio]

An hour.

( But, it's a straight shot. He turns on the radio as he drives past smaller houses, going in the direction of one of the main highways. )

[abad_influence]

[He nods, before shifting down in his seat and closing his eyes.]

Wake me up when we're fifteen minutes out?

[praevaricatio]

Can do.

( He lets him drift off, contemplating calling Elena. Or his husband. But, instead, he listens to the radio and drives them to salvation and the next step. )