Bad Behavior

Rats

"Joe, let's go!"Saul was yelling to Joe as they peddled through the aftershocks that rippled through the garage.

"I'm not fucking going anywhere except out of here!"Joe said, tailing Saul at a snail's pace.

Saul turned around, "Sophie's in that warehouse!"

Joe was pale. He was scared. He was too scared to go in and look for his future wife.

"I cannot fucking believe you! This is the woman you're going to spend the rest of your life with and she could be hurt—or worse!"Saul grabbed him by the shirt, "Fucking coward."

Joe's heart was beating through his chest, but he followed Saul until they were out on the sidewalk. A few dozen bystanders were staring from across the street and it looked like part of the building had caved in due to the blast.

Joe stopped, "She's your ward."

"You're an asshole,"Saul kept going, re-holstering his weapon before entering through a side door. He expected Joe to follow anyway, but he didn't. Sophie was shit out of luck if she thought she was marrying a man who would protect and save her.

"Sophie!"Saul called out into nothingness. There was a dustup that made him cough and the sound of silence was eerie. He could hear some beams shift and knew he had to get a move on.

It wasn't long before he spotted the red hair.

"Sophie!"He ran to her side, evaluating the situation. Her face was covered in ash, but it looked like the blast knocked her across the room. Klaus stirred, cradling his daughter, "Sophie.."

He got a pulse and could see her breathing.There were some scrapes and abrasions welling up on her, but other than that, she looked OK. He prayed there were no internal injuries. He looked to Klaus and Sasha who were wobbling through the fallout. Saul picked Sophie up gently and carried her back outside where Joe was standing.

"Let me,"Joe pushed at Saul and grabbed Sophie, pulling her into his arms, "Is the Jeep fucked?"

Saul was livid that he'd taken Sophie out of his arms. What was he driving at?

"No, I can manage to get it out,"Saul said, "Get her in the back seat and let's get her to the hospital."

"What about Kramer?"

"He's on his own."

At the hospital, Sophie was admitted. She didn't rouse for quite some time even when her sisters and mother popped in to visit. The extent of her injuries were mostly external and surprisingly mild, save for a mild concussion due to being thrown.

Joe and Saul sat by her side while the doctor and nurses came in and out. Both of them were triaged, as well, but they seemed to be OK.

Both Joe and Saul reported what had happened to Hal and Alexander who then had an emergency conference meeting with the heads of the families. They would begin their own investigations immediately because a Crane, DeMarco, and a Swann were targeted—or so it seemed.

Sophie moaned, her eyes fluttering open as she slowly looked around the room. As tempting as it was for Saul to comfort her, Joe stepped in first. The son of a bitch.

"Hey there,"Joe stroked her hand, eyeballing Saul who was leaned up against the oppostie wall now. His arms were crossed and he knew the look and what he had to do.

"Hi.." Sophie smiled, "What the hell happened?"

"An explosion in the warehouse,"Joe told her, and then proceeded to tell her about her injuries and the visitors she'd had, "I got you out as soon as I could." He glared at Saul whose poker face could have fooled anyone.

"You did?" Even Sophie was surprised at Joe's valiance.

"Yeah he's a real fucking hero," Saul mumbled, pushing off the wall and leaving the room.

He made his way to a vending machine for a drink and spotted Suzy, "Hey, Saul! I'm so glad you're OK."

"I'm glad Sophie's OK."

"Did you get her out?"

"Joe did."

Suzy didn't buy that, "Joe?"

"Yep,"Saul opened the can of soda and chugged it, "Sure did."

Suzy narrowed her eyes, "She'll know the truth one day, Saul."

He smiled, "Not today."

Joe emerged from Sophie's room just as Alexander and Hal showed up, but there was no sign of Eddie.

"Fucking figures,"Saul muttered to himself.

"Are you both OK?"Hal asked the boys as they stood near Sophie's room.

"We're fine,"Saul nodded behind him, "Sophie will be."

As if she was simply forgotten, Hal and Alexander didn't comment. It infuriated Saul to know his father had grown so cold over the years, especially when it came to the innocent Swann's. Hal stepped into the room with Joe.

"Were you two able to get in there?"Alexander asked his son as they stared into Sophie's room through the window. She was talking to Hal, but it was if she was being reprimanded.

"No,"Saul shook his head, "She said she was trying, but Klaus was hanging on to that idea and then the explosion happened."

Alexander frowned, tapping his chin, "Well, it's either Garcia, O'Grady, Reynolds, Hamilton or the blue."

Saul nodded, "If it's a DeMarco,-"

"They'll pay dearly for it, Saul."

"I don't think it's Kramer or Garcia,"Saul said, "Garcia likes Sophie. He wouldn't have put a hit out."

"I don't think it was Reynolds or Hamilton, but I don't know,"Alexander was still lost in thought, "Certainly not Swann."

"No,"Saul agreed, "Kramer will definitely haul ass now."

Alexander nodded, "He will. And that's exactly what everyone wanted."

Saul couldn't imagine a rat in their family or someone who would try to hurt Sophie. They'd be trying to hurt a Swann, not her. She didn't have a real enemy. The only thing that was wrong with Sophie was her uncle and his goons.

Alexander and Saul noticed Jack coming down the hall and even he bypassed them, cutting his eyes at Saul before heading into Sophie's room. A few words were exchanged with Joe throwing his hands in the air, Hal leaving immediately and Sophie closing her eyes as if tuning them all out.

"Did you get her out?"Alexander asked, watching the Crane's walk away from them and down the hall.

"Yes, but she thinks Joe did."

"Hmmm."

"What?"

"I suppose it's better that way,"his father said, "She needs to believe in Joe."

Saul scoffed, "Sure."

Jack emerged moments later. He didn't even look at Saul or Alexander before heading in the direction of Lorraine and her daughters.

"I'm going in,"Saul said.

"Saul..." Alexander didn't want his son to get too close to Sophie. He knew what it was like to be young and dumb, and he could see how much Saul cared for the enemy.

"Just find out who did this,"Saul said, before entering the room and settling himself in a chair next to Sophie's bed.

"Hey, Sparks..." He said, softly, but Sophie had already drifted back to sleep.

Alexander watched as his son took Sophie's hand in his own and wondered if it was too late.

Maybe Sophie had already taken Saul's heart.