Extraordinary Rendition Part II

[Silktie]

Monday 6 June 2011
London, just after midnight

As Harry started the car and drove off, he made another call. Ruth’s sleepy voice answered after a few rings.
“Hi, it’s me. I’ve just Red Flashed the team. I’m going to be driving past your flat, so I’ll pick you up.”
“No, I can-“
He cut off her protestation. “I’ll be there in ten minutes,” he said, and disconnected before she could argue.

His thoughts stayed with her as he drove to her flat. For the last couple of months he had avoided situations where he would be alone with her as far as humanly possible. His heart was still fragile after she had rejected his marriage proposal, and what with the events surrounding the Albany fiasco and her reaction to what he’d done, his subsequent suspension and the Inquiry, they had never had time to talk about things properly. Not that they were inclined to do so, in any case, he mused. Both of them were spectacularly bad at talking about their feelings, and since his return to the office about a month ago, they had both preferred to pretend that all was normal. They simply ignored the huge elephant in the room and went out of their way to avoid awkward social situations with each other. But this time he had no choice. He knew that she and Malcolm had been firm friends, and he didn’t want her to hear the news along with the rest of the team. That didn’t mean that her kneejerk refusal of a lift hadn’t hurt, all the same. Apparently the idea of spending time in a confined space with him repulsed her. He shook his head angrily at himself; now was not the time for self-pity. Malcolm needed him, needed them, so all personal considerations would have to take a back seat.

She was standing on the pavement under a street lamp, and the sight of her brought back memories of the dream he’d had earlier. The realisation that he was unlikely to ever experience that with her in real life came to him unbidden, and he had to fight down a wave of sadness as he pulled in next to her. By the time she had slid into the passenger seat, his emotions were back under control and she didn’t notice anything amiss in his demeanour.
“What’s going on?” she queried as she fought with her handbag, trying to disentangle it from her scarf. There was a note of annoyance in her voice, letting him know that she did not appreciate the way he’d forced her to accept the lift.
When he didn’t answer straight away, she stopped fidgeting and looked at him. He glanced at her before returning his attention to the road.
“...It’s Malcolm, Ruth. He was snatched from his house an hour ago.”

That was the last thing she had expected him to say. She stared at him, trying to make sense of what he’d said, before the questions began tumbling from her.
“Why? Who took him? Do you think it’s linked to an operation from Malcolm’s time?”
Harry held up a hand and she fell silent.
“I don’t know anything at this stage. Please hold on the theories until we have the team assembled, yes?”
She nodded and turned her head to watch the quiet streets flash by. Harry’s hands were tense on the wheel and she realised that he was deeply concerned about Malcolm. A thought occurred to her.
“Is that why you offered me a lift? So I wouldn’t hear it with the rest of the team?”
Harry pursed his lips and kept his eyes on the road; it was obvious that the question was unwelcome.
“You and Malcolm were close,” was all he said in response in the end.
Despite the non-answer, she knew she was right, and was moved by his thoughtfulness towards her. Still, after everything that had happened between them.
“Thanks,” she said softly, although she wanted to say so much more. Neither of them spoke for the rest of the drive, their minds occupied by concern for Malcolm. Both were bleakly wondering if he was at that very moment being tortured or mistreated in any way.

As they stopped in front of Thames House, Ruth broke the silence. “He told me once that bravery was something he feared.”
Harry turned to her. “We’ll find him,” he vowed determinedly. Then, wanting to reassure her, he added, “Malcolm is an incredibly brave man, even though he may not think so. Don’t forget that he offered himself up to save the boy...”
She flinched and too late he realised what he was saying and stopped talking abruptly. An uncomfortable silence hung in the air and he berated himself furiously for opening up old wounds.
“Ruth-”
“It’s fine,” she replied brusquely, before getting out of the car and walking briskly into the building without waiting for him.
Harry sat, staring after her sadly, then followed her in at a more measured pace.

* * *

Dimitri had brewed coffee potent enough to wake the dead and they sat around the conference table with steaming cups in front of them. It pained Harry that apart from himself and Ruth, none of the others assembled had been there during Malcolm’s time. It was an unpleasant reminder of how many people he had lost in the last few years, and he wondered dully how long his present team would have together before death ripped them apart too. Although, calling the group of people in front of him a team was probably too generous. He was struggling to build a rapport with the two newest recruits. Since his new Section Chief, Erin Watts, had been forced on him by the JIC, it was understandable that he found it difficult to trust her and take her into his confidence. However, it was harder to explain why he hadn’t taken to Calum Reed, the new techie. There was something about the man’s glib and cavalier manner which he didn’t like, and he suspected those impressions were shared by Ruth. Still, together with Dimitri and Tariq, these were the people at his disposal and he would have to make do.

He took a sip of the coffee and winced. It really was appalling. “A former member of Section D, who retired two years ago, has been abducted from his home around midnight. Malcolm Wynn-Jones.”
Erin glanced at her watch. It was almost two. “Why are we handling it? There is a special unit for these kind of things, isn’t there?”
This sort of reaction was exactly what annoyed Harry about her. She was ambitious, which was not a problem in itself, but it became one when that ambition caused an unwillingness to do anything that was outside the norm, or anything that would look unfavourable on her file. He didn’t hide his irritation when he responded.
“We are handling it because I’m telling you so.”
Her eyes flashed mutinously, but he stared her down and she swallowed her argument.
Harry continued, “And we look after our own, even when they have retired.”
Dimitri and Tariq nodded agreement, whilst Calum seemed to reserve judgement for the time being.

Harry brought them up to speed with what he knew, then stated, “Our first priority is to determine who took him.”
“Could it be linked to an operation he was involved in whilst working here?” Dimitri was first to ask.
“It’s possible, but Malcolm had almost twenty years’ service. It would take forever to go through every operation he’d been involved in. We must take another approach.”
He voiced the thought that had been forming in the back of his mind ever since walking into Malcolm’s house.
“He was taken by a professional, well-trained snatch team. This was a military operation. Find out which countries have brought Special Forces units to London over the last week or so, and we can narrow the field considerably.”

They dispersed to do his bidding, but he remained seated, using the quiet to think over recent developments. He came back to the same question time and again: why was Malcolm taken now? Why not yesterday, or a week ago, or a year ago? Something must have changed recently to prompt his abduction, but he couldn’t think of any recent operations that were linked to Malcolm’s time in the Section. He blew out a frustrated breath. “Where are you?” he asked the empty room. Unsurprisingly he found no answer, so he got up and went to his office to work his own connections.

An hour later, Ruth was the one who found it. She stared at the screen in disbelief, sure that she had made a mistake, and asked Tariq to check the information. Only once he confirmed it, did she get up and walk to Harry’s office. He looked up expectantly as she came to a stop in front of his desk, and for a second feared the worst due to the graveness of her expression. Then she told him what she’d found.
“It was the Americans.”

tbc

[Sparky]

A great second part as always, I just wish Ruth would give Harry a break at times! Hoping Malcolm is OK, wondering what the Yanks want with him?

[beatrice4ruth]

(29-06-2011 10:00 AM)Sparky Wrote:  A great second part as always, I just wish Ruth would give Harry a break at times! Hoping Malcolm is OK, wondering what the Yanks want with him?

I wish Ruth would get a break from Spooks writers! Let's hope that she is no longer the "baddie" in S10 and that Harry can enjoy again her dimply smiles. Even though the tense relationship between Harry and Ruth saddens me, your dialogues beautifully capture their uneasiness. What have the Americans done this time? I am worried about Malcolm and his poor Mom. I really enjoy your stories written so well.

[A Cousin]

OK. I'm following you. Can't say I am surprised that it was the Americans. Extraordinary rendition is a bit of a political hot button issue. Pres. Obama tried to do something about it. As well he should!

To get a little political (and play the devil's advocate for a minute - please humor me! ), the US may be the "fat kid on the playground" (as Harry would put it) but we got a lot of "help" in the process from all over the world.

Back to the story, still more questions than answers. What country have the taken Malcolm to? There are a few candidates. Why? The way you have set it up, I suspect that it has something to do with the killing of Bin Laden, but can't think how?

Any chance that the only torture they are imposing on Malcolm is taking away his tea and scones.

[Tea Lady]

Those pesky Americans!! Really!!

It's quite obvious what they want with Malcolm though. They want him to sort out a poem for Bin Ladens memorial service.

[pookster]

Terrific chapter. You've got H/R's relationship perfectly - the unease was perfect. And the new team members aren't warming themselves to the team, Harry or me. Malcolm in a orange overalls in a back of a van heading to God knows where. Loved Ruth's and Harry's exchange over his fate. Well done and looking forward to more

Tea Lady - very funny. Thanks for the early morning giggle.