"All right, so we all know what the fuck we have to do, right?" The lieutenant stared around the desk, eyeing the other two intently. "As soon as that fucking auction goes live, we get in, grab her, then get the fuck out."

"It isn't going to be that easy," the android warned, corners of his mouth aiming for the floor. "If the location is guarded, the chances of getting out with Nove and avoiding injury are slim at best."

"Which is why we're not going in alone, Connor. We're getting a group of specialists, and we'll all have bulletproof gear as well. This ain't just about her, though that's our goal. But we gotta shut these fuckers down for good." Sighing and grumbling under his breath, Hank pointed to a specific place on the map. "Look. Warehouse is here, right? Her tracker stopped moving?" The android nodded, indicator still yellow. "Fine. There's a street a few blocks down, lots of abandoned houses. We get there, stake out, then go in on foot just before that auction starts."

"You've gotta be fuckin' kidding me..." Gavin uttered, shaking his head. "It was right there this whole time?"

Both Connor and his partner eyed the other human. "What do you mean?" the prototype asked.

"That fucking house, right there. It's across the street from a convenience store. N--..." He winced, swallowing hard. "Nove and I stop there every couple of days. There's an android that stays there, he's pretty damaged. Name's Ralph. He... actually helped us out a lot, telling us about the clues and shit."

Hank's eyebrows raised high. "You think he can help?"

"Well, if you consider lifting an entire AP700 android by the neck and pinning him to the wall with one hand, while also cracking the wall, is helpful... then yeah. He might help. But he's damaged and skittish. He has a soft spot for her, though, and hopefully that extends to me. So... maybe he'll let us stake out there. Might know more."

Heaving a sigh, the map was folded up. "One way to find out. Get a hold of Kamski, set up a meeting place and time. He'll know when this shit goes live." The lieutenant eyed Reed closely, his gaze soft. "We'll be right beside you. When you go home tonight, she'll be with you. You have my word, all right?"

Your boyfriend nodded, trying to smile but the gesture was twitchy. The RK800 grasped his shoulder as support, chiming in: "Channel your upset and anger into your concentration. That is a gift you have always shown, Gavin. When you focus, you are dangerous."

◇___#$&!___◇

Like last time, Reed knocked at the door before calling out: "Hey big guy, it's me! I know it's late again, but... this is important!"

Ralph walked rather quickly into the living room, finding the detective in heavier black gear. "Why has the Detective come so late? Has he gotten into trouble?" The blond tensed. "... gun. Detective promised Ralph he would not have guns when he visits. No guns."

"I know, Ralph, I'm sorry," he explained, one hand up to try and ease the android. "Listen, I don't have a lot of time, man. Someth--"

"Miss Nove is in trouble. Bad trouble. Followed clues, followed h-hunters. Bad, clues were bad." The broken male shook so bad Gavin could see it from damn near across the room. "Ralph saw the van. He always sees the van when someone is in trouble. M-Miss Nove followed the clues and Ralph shouldn't have said anything."

"Whoa, whoa, come on, big guy," the human urged, voice quiet as he took a few steps closer. "Yeah, she's in trouble. And that's... actually why I'm here. She's close, Ralph, and we're going to get her back. I wanted to see how you were doing, and to tell you what was going on. Ralph, is there any way we can set up here? So we have a place to meet up if something goes wr--... in case we get separated. It's me, my brother, and a bunch of my friends in law enforcement. But I won't let them in here unless you're okay with it, big guy."

Gavin had gotten close enough to the blond to touch him, but he kept his hands to himself. Ralph looked away, one good eye and one damaged, both narrowed as he tried to process the request. "Detective's friends... hide here. Hide from the hunters. From t-trouble. Bad trouble." The android lowered his head, eyes squeezing shut. "..... y-yes. Yes, stay here. Hide in Ralph's house. Safe. Hide and be safe." When the human started to leave the blond grabbed his arm with strength that Reed did not want to experience personally. "I want to go with you."

........ whoa.

◇___#$&!___◇

"Can everyone hear me?" Eli had one hand at his ear, the earpiece inserted there was connecting to everyone a few blocks away. Given confirmation, the male pressed his mouth thin, typing furiously for a few seconds. "All right, I have the auctionhouse site up, there's a timer about to run out. Almost ten minutes." He was set up in Ralph's house, by himself. Chloé was minding both Biscuit and Sumo at his home, just as an extra precaution. "... please be careful," he added quietly. "I'll be in the auction while you infiltrate. Good luck."

_____

Hands clenching tightly, he needed a long moment to close his eyes, feeling his heart beating the rhythm of a swan song.

Cara mia... I am getting you out of there. I don't have time to debate or wonder if this will work; I'm not losing you.

"Five minutes on the timer," came Eli's voice through the earpiece.

"Better move now," the lieutenant added, signaling discreetly to the rest. There were nearly two dozen officers, all in bulletproof SWAT gear, standing at the ready to sneak into the warehouse. Hell, even he wore the gear, along with Reed and Connor. Better safe than sorry.

The group had spread out around the warehouse, using scattered debris and storage containers and the like as cover.

"Remember, as soon as this timer hits zero, the auction goes live. That deactivates the C4 planted around the perimeter," Kamski explained. "Connor, are you able to pinpoint where the explosives are planted?"

A black-haired head peered out from around a storage unit for one brief second. "Yes. I will set their proximity limits to zero once the auction begins to prevent accidentally triggering them. Disabling them permanently cannot be done remotely."

"What about the guards at the doors?"

"Ralph sees them. Ralph sees them and will make sure they do not see Ralph." The blond android, the only one not in black gear, was closest to the doors. "Guards will go down. Not get back up. Ralph is good at this."

"From what Gavin says, I believe you." There was a sigh on Elijah's end. "One minute. Focus. The shortest auction was four minutes, but the android self-destructed almost immediately. Nove knows we're here. She'll stall them." A pause. "... Gavin?"

Tensing up, Reed frowned deep. "Yeah?"

"Anything you wanna say?"

Wanted to say? Hazel eyes narrowed, honed in on the double doors, guarded by a pair of idiots unprepared for a furious android. You were somewhere within; time was not on their side, but your boyfriend was stubborn above all else. "Fateli pagare.... Make them pay."