Quaranteam - AU Ch. 09

Quaranteam: Alternating Uncertainties

Chapter 9

Blood, Bullets, and Bonds, what's an Aussie soldier to do?

One of the other writers, I won't name names, suggested I should have called this story 'Tiberius Marshall and the Consequences of his Actions'. Yeah, that probably would have been more on point. But this was more fun.

I expect Opinions on this chapter. The kind that justifies the capital letter. Oh well. As always, thank you for your support, and do check out the other spinoff writers. They're putting out amazing content. - SR

Dramatis Personae,

-House Marshall-

Tiberius Marshall - 35, Lt. Colonel Australian Army SASR. Black Hair, Grey Eyes. Big teddy bear.

Charlotte Valiant - 35, Captain Australian Army SASR, Red hair, long hair, service submissive.

Leticia Valiant - 35, Captain Australian Army SASR, Red hair, shoulder length hair, tomboy.

Talia Becker - 27, Major Israeli Defence Force, Black hair, long hair, braided, wilful, but devoted.

Alice Rai - 31, Doctor of Medicine, Black hair, blue eyes, partial Indian descent, complete submissive.

Elizabeth Connors - 21, younger sister of Jaxson Connors. University Student -- Finance

Béatrice Martin -- 32, French DGSE. Tech expert and hobby tinker. Blonde, Blue eyes.

-House Valiant-

Rayne Valiant - 28, 6'10, fit and muscular. Scientist, younger brother of the twins and head of AUS Quaranteam Project R&D.

Simone Jennings -- 22, 2nd Lieutenant, Black hair, blue eyes, African descent, one of Rayne's dedicated security.

Patricia 'Trish' Barclay -- 23, Lieutenant, Blonde hair. Girl next door vibes.

-House Morgan-

Benjamin Morgan - 36, Doctor. Was acting (under duress) on behalf of the same Shiekh as Connors. Ex-wife and daughter kidnapped. Deceased.

Grace Lawry - 33, Captain, USAF. Tiberius' old friend. Partnered with Benjamin Morgan and the person who involved Ty in the Quaranteam Project.

Theresa Miller - 28, Latest addition to House Morgan. Details currently unknown. Critically Injured

-Other-

Zoe Evans - 19, daughter of Tiberius' good friends Toby and Matilda Evans and Tiberius' 'niece'. University Student.

William 'Bill' Anderson -- Colonel. Somewhat stiff, but very capable officer.

Barry 'Baz' Davis -- Brigadier. Good friend of Tiberius. In charge of personnel at Victoria Barracks.

Jaxson Connors - Major, currently under arrest for abuse of authority and attempted murder. Was working with a Sheikh to develop the Assassin Variant of DuoHalo.

Juno Claudius -- Lawyer friend of Tiberius and the Evans'. Has two children; Bellona(Bella) and Mars, twins, 6 years old.

--

[REDACTED] Hospital, Melbourne Southeastern Suburbs, Victoria, Australia - October 30, 2020 - 2:10 PM AEDT

--

Ty regained consciousness and immediately decided that it was the biggest mistake of his life.

His head hurt. His side hurt. His...ok, everything hurt. But he supposed pain was a good sign. It meant he wasn't dead.

That said, he was going to find whoever it was that had told him his brain had no pain receptors and put a bullet in him, because that was clearly a fucking lie.

Fuck. He let out an involuntary groan and tried to open his eyes, only to find that light had been weaponized in his absence. Blinded and disoriented, he squeezed them shut again, and the groan deepened, eliciting a gasp from his side.

"Tiberius, chéri. You are awake." The voice was silk personified. He knew that voice; he'd heard it only recently. If only his head didn't feel like it had been kicked by a mob of roos, he might even be able to identify it. "Tiberius? Are you alright?"

Finally, it clicked.

"Béatrice."

He could actually hear her smile as she spoke again. "Yes, darling. How are you? I was disappointed when you were unable to come to get me yourself, but I do understand why."

"I'd say it's good to see you, but I can't actually see you yet. How long have I been out?" his voice came out rougher than usual, and there was a rustling beside him before the back of the bed began to slowly rise.

"Two full days, from what I understand, Tiberius. And please, call me Béa. Here, drink."

Ty felt the gentle brush of a straw on his lips and latched on, taking a short sip of the cool water. It was heavenly. After a moment, he released the straw and spoke again. "Ok, Béa it is. It's nice to hear your voice in person again. I'm sorry I couldn't make it."

"Likewise. You have grown more handsome over the years, Tiberius."

He took a deep breath and tried to open his eyes again, with greater success. This time, there was no optical assault, but that might have had something to do with the fact that there was no longer a light shining directly in his eyes. He looked at the woman beside him and drank in the sight. Tall, probably 6', with straight, ash blonde hair and delicious curves, lovely blue eyes nestled behind a pair of glasses balanced on a cute nose. A quintessential French beauty, refined by a few years since they'd last met. "And you look lovely, as always. I assume you've been introduced to the others. Are Zoe and Liz alright?"

Béatrice brushed a lock of hair out of her face and smiled. "They are both unhurt. Zoe was beside herself with worry when Talia and I arrived, but Elizabeth was calming her. That young woman has quite the level head. Though apparently, you have made a habit of nearly being murdered? I cannot say that is good for you, chéri."

Ty chuckled, feeling it send a small wave of discomfort through his body. "I can quit anytime I want." His expression shifted to all business. "Do you know what happened to the gunmen?"

Talia chose that moment to come around the corner, twirling the end of her braid in one hand. She looked tired, and he realised that she must have been running around all of yesterday, maybe even all of the previous night, too.

"Dead, Tiberius. You got off four shots to centre mass in the time it took either of them to fire twice. And unlike them, you did not miss."

Ty gave her a look. "This is what it looks like when they miss?"

She gave him a small smile but shook her head. "They missed anything vital. The bullets hit you in the stomach, your arm, and your head."

Ty's look turned deadpan. "I'm having trouble reconciling the part where my head isn't vital, Talia."

Béatrice giggled and Talia's smile blossomed into a laugh. "Clearly, you're not using it, so it mustn't be vital, but at least it's hard. Alice said the bullet that clipped your skull actually deflected off it, or it would have blown past and hit Elizabeth." She sighed and then leaned forwards, kissing him gently. "You worried us, my love. How are you feeling?"

"My left side hurts somewhat, but my head feels like it's been trampled repeatedly. I guess I have a concussion?"

"A minor one, probably. There's a small crack in that rock head of yours, but otherwise it's fine. The second bullet found a gap below your ribs and just went through a couple of organs, though fortunately it missed your lungs. They fished it out, stitched you up and there weren't any immediate complications, so all you'll have is another scar. Same for your arm, though that was just a graze. You were incredibly lucky."

Ty nodded, wincing as the action brought forth a wave of pain. "Figures. Where are the rest of the ladies?"

"Zoe was moved to another room. You made a mess of the old one. Elizabeth and Alice are with her, as are a squad of soldiers as guards. They were up most of the first night and all of yesterday, so everyone's getting a bit of extra sleep. Charlotte, Leticia, and Grace Lawry will be here soon. They're just making sure Rayne's and Dr. Morgan's Teams are taken care of."

Ty's voice raised in alarm. "What happened? Is everyone there ok?"

"Dr. Morgan brought some unknown individuals with him and went to visit Rayne yesterday. Those guards turned out to be muscle for the individual behind Jaxson Connors. They attacked Rayne and his Team in their home, causing the death of Dr. Morgan and injuries to several others. No one from Rayne's team is severely injured, but Theresa, one of Dr. Morgan's partners, is at death's door."

Ty felt his stomach drop. "How was Morgan connected to this clusterfuck? I thought the son of a bitch behind Connors wanted...oh fuck. He wanted the variant. Grace was actually telling me that Ben was pestering Ray about getting access to the variant."

Talia nodded, her expression grave. "There were circumstances. We...we can talk about them later. He definitely had a reason to want it, though it was not official."

"I thought it was because the US Government wanted it under the table. Shit, he must have avoided coming to me about it because I'd have been on alert against anyone looking for it. And it wouldn't make sense for them to ask us for it openly, since what we're doing isn't monopolising it but suppressing it entirely." Ty paused, trying to run the line of thought out, but something else hit him first.

"Tal, If Benjamin Morgan is dead, what happens to his partners? If he's gone then they can't..."

Talia paused, looking at Ty with an unreadable expression. "Grace has revealed that there is in fact a way for a woman to change partners. I believe Rayne is getting the details and learning the procedure."

Tiberius felt the knot in his stomach tighten a little. "That would have been fucking nice to know before now. Why were they hiding it?"

"Well, Grace says it's something they've learned of only recently, and the only reason they're even telling us is because it's become relevant, since it requires the existing male partner to be dead. That's not something they want widely known."

The big soldier looked mollified. "Oh. Well, that makes sense. It's a rather unpleasant condition and could invite some pretty unpleasant situations if that tidbit became public. What's their plan?"

Béatrice spoke up, patting Talia's shoulder as she spoke. "Chéri, your partners, Zoe, and I, met with Grace last night. She has requested that she be reassigned to you."

Ty schooled his expression. He knew he'd take her in if that's what she wanted, but he'd never disregard his partners' opinions on the matter. "I see. And the consensus amongst you ladies was?"

Talia shrugged. "Charlotte was convinced that you would be ok with it."

"That's not what I asked, Talia. Do you have a problem with it? Do the others?"

Sighing, she shook her head. "No, not really...I just wondered what kind of woman would be able to jump between partners so swiftly. It feels cold. Like she doesn't care. Like...Dr. Morgan was just a stopgap for her. Does that mean you are too? Because I could not tolerate that."

Ty understood at once. It would seem terribly callous, and in the past, it would have been. But the reality was different. The conditions were different. "She doesn't have the luxury of time, Tal. The documentation makes it perfectly clear that she needs to be dosed at regular intervals, so if she holds off for too long, I can't imagine it has good results for her body. I recall it saying that the longer a woman goes without an encounter, the more her cognitive functions will be impaired. How long after that do their biological functions start to be impaired?"

Talia nodded, but her expression told Ty that she wasn't sure she agreed. "The documents said nothing about such things."

"They may not know. It's not something that they can easily test. Well, the exact science is beyond me, but until this revelation, the way I understood it was that a woman who loses their partner has little choice but to accept that she'll die. But it turns out that there is another option and Grace is trying to take it. She and I already have an existing friendship, and we know that we're compatible. It might seem callous, but if she's on a timer, then it makes sense. She's taking the steps needed to ensure her well-being. After that, she can take whatever time she needs to process and grieve."

The Israeli woman took this in quietly, giving no indication of her inner thoughts. Ty decided this was a positive sign, so he continued. "She's probably also working under the assumption that if we accept her into our family, she'll have the leeway to focus on her fellow partners. You said that one was dying? What's she doing for a new partner? What's happening with the other two?"

Béatrice sat herself down on the edge of the bed and put a hand on Ty's arm, being sure to avoid the bandages. "Grace spent most of the day with them, helping them come to terms with the situation. Of the two uninjured women, one wishes to go back to America. The other is fine to be reassigned to someone here. As for the one in hospital, she has not woken yet. Her condition was apparently quite severe. They are considering pulling her Oracle data from the US and running through our system to find a match. If she regains consciousness in time, they will give her the choice. If not...they will go with the highest compatibility. It is a bit heavy-handed, but I think it is a sensible solution."

"I don't know that they have many other options, really, but it's not my call to make." Taking a breath and wincing as the wound on his side protested, Ty swung his legs to the opposite side from where Béa was seated and began to rise.

"What are you doing? You're going to tear open your stitches! You need to rest!" Talia rushed around to his side, trying vainly to push him back. Béatrice made to follow, but Ty held up a hand.

"What I need is to reassure the others that I'm ok. Zoe especially. With all she's gone through, with everyone she's lost, she needs to see me on my feet. After that, I want us all in Zoe's room to address the issue with Grace. I need to hear everyone's opinions before we make any decisions."

"Tiberius!"

He ignored her, finding his uniform pants draped over a nearby chair and shuffling over to them. Putting them on would be an exercise in restraint and skill, what with one arm in a sling and bandages around his midsection. If either of them heard him voice his discomfort, they'd chain him to the bed for sure. He couldn't see his shirt, but then again, he didn't expect to. No matter. Hospital gown and pants would do the trick.

"You stubborn oaf! You could have died! You actually were bleeding out! You need to rest and let your body recover before you go pulling any of this nonsense!"

Talia was almost screaming the words as she stood there, barely centimetres away, but Ty knew it was coming from a place of worry and stress. Sinking into the chair, he grabbed Talia's wrist and pulled her into his lap. She didn't resist, startled at the suddenness of the action, and the big man wrapped his arm around the beautiful Israeli woman, holding her close.

"I get what you're saying. I also get why you're saying it. I appreciate it, my love. But while my health is certainly on your mind, you haven't said what's really bothering you." Ty felt her stiffening at the words 'my love' and suddenly, everything became clear. "Ah. Well. I got a little sidetracked that day, but I had intended to ask you to join me for a private dinner date, just the two of us. And though I reckon the item I ordered isn't quite ready yet, it was nevertheless going to be a night to remember. Tonight still can be that night, though."

Taking her left hand in his right, he brought it up to his lips and kissed just over where a ring would go. It was an action filled with a great deal of meaning and Talia buried her head in his chest, clearly unable to keep the smile from her face. "Idiot. With you injured as you are, I wouldn't be able to do half of what I'd want to. Nor would I be able to do it with half as much intensity." She turned her head and gave Béatrice a glance, her smile threatening to split her face in half. "Plus, you will likely have two women to imprint today as it is."

The French woman tutted. "Nonsense. I can hold off for another day. I also do have something of a request, if you don't mind, Tiberius?"

The big man nodded, sweeping his left arm out for her to continue before remembering that the arm in question was in a sling and not going to move very fast, or without pain. When he winced, Talia shifted and pulled the arm back to his side before getting up and allowing the French woman to take her place on his lap.

"Would you take me on another date as well?" For the first time, their eyes met, and though he could see the undertones of lust, there were two overarching emotions in her eyes among the myriad others. One was hope...hope he'd agree. Hope she'd make the impression she clearly thought she hadn't before. Hope that the relationship she'd wanted would bloom this time. But it was the second emotion that brought Ty's brain to a crashing halt.

That emotion, in those unforgettable eyes.

I know those eyes.

Rebooting, his eyes widened and he felt a renewed sense of guilt that he hadn't done right by the woman the last time they'd met. He'd agreed to go out with his brother and the two French ladies, but it hadn't been all that long since his last relationship had ended and he'd been distracted. Ty had to admit that with him being summarily abandoned by his previous partner, he wasn't in the right headspace for a date, but he hadn't been able to say no after just reconciling with his brother.

Over the course of that night, Ty hadn't once looked the woman in the eyes. Oh, he'd looked at her, and he'd conversed politely, but that hadn't been fair to her. Sure, he'd been hurting inside, but that gave him no right to hurt others with his casual cruelty. How he wished he could go back and kick himself.

And still she looked at him with those azure eyes. Eyes he hadn't seen during their previous encounter. Because I never looked her in the eyes after that. I'm a bastard.

"Definitely. And this time, Béa, you will get the evening you deserved the first time. The evening my self-absorbed ass should have given you then."

He knew those eyes. He'd seen them once before, long ago. Long before the double date. How had he not put it together in all this time? The borderline obsession she seemed to have with him. Her insistence on him.

"Amsterdam. In the alley. That was you."

At the mention of the city, Béa smiled so brightly she outshone the sun and she leaned in to kiss the man that had changed her fate all those years ago. Unable to believe it, Ty stared into those eyes; those pools of purest azure blue. When he had last seen them, the woman, Béa, Ty had to correct himself, had much longer hair, and it was midnight black, falling in waves around her face, not the straight ash blonde locks she shared with her sisters. She had been drunk, maybe drugged; he didn't know for sure at the time and hadn't been able to stick around for the report. He and two of the guys from the unit had been on leave, crawling through the pubs and nightlife of the famous city when they'd come across the scene. Six men were holding her down while she struggled. Their intent was clear, and the three Australians had intervened.

Three highly trained soldiers against a group of drunks. It wasn't anything as overstated as a fight. It was cleaned up in less than thirty seconds and while his companions had watched over the groaning goons, Ty had checked Béa's injuries. She had seemed dazed, but at the very least she was conscious. He knelt beside her and pulled his jacket off, checking for severe damage before he covered her. He could already see the bruises forming on her face, and scowled, wanting to turn and inflict further injury on the clowns behind him, but he met her gaze and was frozen to the spot.