Persevere

Chapter12

"Penny?" Luke said. "What's wrong?"

"I know Brixton." I whispered.

"How?" all four of them asked.

"When I was traveling after Brazil I met him. He found me in Paraguay, just before I relocated to Puerto Rico. Said he had heard of me and his boss wanted to meet. We got interrupted, he received a call and said he'd be back. He found me, tried to kill me when I rejected his offer. I barely made it out alive and when he aimed his gun at me, I thought it was over. For some reason he stopped, there was an odd smile on his face and he said that wasn't our last meeting. I never saw him again and I booked it out there the next day anyway." I told them.

"Eteon tried to recruit you?" Luke asked. "And you never told me."

"You made it out alive is the big surprise for me." Deckard said.

"I kept my ear to the ground over the years to make sure that I could protect my family if need be. They never came looking for me and I put it out of my mind until I heard that name again." I said, looking down at the screen with worry instead of fascination now.

"Penelope . . . you're going home." Luke said to me.

"I'm not going anywhere, I'm gonna finish this. So, what exactly is a Mick Jagger?" I asked Hattie, making Luke sigh.

"Right, so when Deck and I were kids, we used to spend our time comin' up with these grifts. A Mick Jagger was a job that required one person to showboat, draw all eyes while the others made the music . . . your typical inside job. Guys, you heard Andreiko, they have to use the extraction machine so they'll take me right to it. Now, I can do it, we can do it." she said looking at me.

"He'll come for both of us." I told them.

"No." Luke said.

"No choice." I told him.

"Now, the only question is how to ring Eteon's dinner bell." Deckard worriedly said.

"Oh I can handle that part but first let's get you geared up." Marguerite smiled.

She walked away with the guys and I just stood over the table looking down at the image of the research labs. What the hell did I walk into this time?

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Hattie asked me.

"This is for my girls, my nieces, and nephews, the future generations, I have to do this." I replied.

"We'll figure it out."

"Or we'll die trying." I smiled.

"Your sense of humor is . . ."

"Dry as the Sahara desert, I know. Here we go again."

About 20 minutes later the men walked back into the room and I can't deny that my husband looks like a whole meal right now. Not the time Penelope! I've gotta get my head clear and focus on getting myself out when they get me in. Gotta focus on my girls, on my baby, I can't tell him now. Luke needs to be focused, I need to be focused.

"How do I look?" he asked me.

"It looks a little tight." Deckard said.

"I like it, that's for sure." I smiled when he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close.

"I don't want you to do this." he said.

"That's not out of the normal but I'm gonna do it anyway."

"No respect." he chuckled.

"Be careful."

"You be careful." he said, lowering his head to brush his lips over mine.

"No shows please, if I didn't get one neither do you." Deckard said.

"We're married, what's your excuse?" I asked him, stepping away from my husband.

"What about you? How you holdin' up?" Luke asked Hattie.

"You know, if things go south in there, you can't leave me alive." she told both men.

"I'll do it since neither of them will." I said, winking at Hattie and smiling at the glare from both men.

"We're gonna get you outta there. Both of you." Luke said.

"She's not wrong." I told him.

"Not funny." Deckard said, watching me intently.

"Let me tell you somethin' else. The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering." Luke told Hattie.

"Is that one Nitzsche?" she smiled at him.

"Nah, that's Bruce Lee." he replied and when he looked at Hattie I could see that glimmer of attraction.

It's the same way he used to look at me when we were in the office. Seconds after being super cute and romantic he's over flirting with her. What exactly does that say about the state of our marriage?

"Are you okay?" Deckard whispered.

"I'll be fine."

"Maybe you should sit this one out, both of you."

"Hush up."

"Penelope, he needs to know." he insisted.

"I can't, not now, he needs to be focused." I said.

"What are the two of you whispering about?" Luke asked.

"Difference between marital PDA and non-romantic PDA." I said with a smile.

"I'm into it." he smiled back.

"I know you are." I told him as I held up my hand and pointed to my ring while looking at Hattie. "That's why you put a ring on it."

"Yup, to get all the PDA." he chuckled.

Before he could kiss me again, I sidestepped him and smiled at his pout.

"Now what?" I asked.

"Now we go." Marguerite said when she walked into the room.

"Come on." Luke said.

Marguerite had food made for us and after that, we just waited for about two hours until it was dark enough. She had already reached out to Eteon and dangled something interesting in their faces. When it was time, Luke grabbed onto me tightly and almost didn't let go. I let him kiss me because I am scared as fuck this time, but I'm here and I have to do my part.

"No." Deckard suddenly said.

"No what?" Luke and I asked.

"I can't let you do this." he insisted.

"Deckard . . ." I warned.

"Penelope, I'm not going to risk . . . I can't let you do this." he said.

"What's going on?" my husband asked.

"You tell him or I will."

"Deckard, please . . ."

"You or me, you're not going." he insisted.

"Fuck . . . Marguerite, how many tasty treats did you dangle in front of Eteon?" I asked, rubbing my temples.

"Just one, I wanted to surprise him." she said, confusion written all over her face.

"Penny, lo'u alofa what's going on?" Luke asked.

"I'm pregnant." I whispered.

"You're what!?"

"I'm preggers . . . surprise!"

He just stood there, his face and the look in his eyes unreadable even to me. Luke's silence is honestly killing me, legitimately scaring me. My husband is never silent.

"Luke, say something please." I said, placing my hand on his cheek.

At that soft touch, he flinched away from me. The look in his eyes now is one that I recognize, anger. He's angry at me for putting myself in this situation and I don't blame him at all but I'm not going home either.

"You're leaving." he growled.