Title: The Devil You Know
Author: Morgan72uk
Pairing: DeWitt/Dominic
Rating: R I think - for some violence, some sex, language
Spoilers: For season 1
Disclaimer: Yes, well – clearly I own nothing. Not even my house.
Summary: Sometimes rescue is a relative concept.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Part 4

She took an instinctive step back and Dominic almost laughed outloud at the expression of shock that rippled across her face when she realised who she was facing. But the moment of his victory was short-lived, she regained her composure as quickly as he remembered.

"I see Mr Langton is selective about which of my orders he follows."

"Well, it's difficult to get good staff these days." He replied sardonically.

"Oh, I think that's been true for some time Mr Dominic." Her words stung more than they should have done. For all that he wanted to strike out, to hurt her, he could also feel the need to defend himself, to convince her that their agendas were the same, bursting to escape. But he swallowed, remembering bitterly that the defence had done him no good last time.

He'd never allowed himself to wonder would happen to him if he were caught. That wasn't the way that undercover operations worked; you couldn't function if you were constantly worried about saving your own skin. It was the reason that agencies such as his own were careful to ensure there were similarities between the agents they placed undercover and the personas they needed to adopt. The less acting involved, the less the risk of getting caught or so the theory went, of course the Dollhouse technology made that particular precaution irrelevant.

The same convenient lack of foresight had extended to wondering what she would do if he were caught. In the years they'd worked together he'd learnt that she was ruthless, capable of ordering deaths when she had to and he certainly wasn't the only person she'd had sent to the attic. But she'd used such punishments sparingly; although he supposed in his case she couldn't do anything but make an example out of him.

He wasn't sure that either of them would ever admit it, but between the two of them the betrayal was personal.

This was the first time he'd ever seen her looking less than immaculate; there was blood on her arm and her dress was torn and dirty. He guessed they'd beaten her before he got here and he knew that she'd been knocked unconscious at the house. But still she held herself with grace and elegance and, he noticed with a slight edge of surprise, the arm pointing the gun at him hadn't wavered for a second.

"What are you doing here?"

"Langton and I came to an agreement - he thinks you're too important to just be abandoned and I had some time on my hands."

"Apparently he didn't consider that you aren't to be trusted."

"I don't know if you've noticed ma'am but I'm out of the attic and I don't much care what happens to you - so if you want to go back and try your luck with those guys, I won't be standing in your way."

"Presumably you have a plan to get us out of here?" She raised an eyebrow and for a moment the sense of deja vu was overwhelming. The past and the present merged, creating a dynamic that was familiar and at the same time completely different. But he knew he couldn't trust these feelings, he was a mixed up jumble of a person and she'd been the one to fracture the pieces.

They stared each other down and he didn't know for sure how the moment would have ended if there hadn't been a loud explosion from the direction he'd planned as an exit route. He cursed, knowing that the time he'd bought them was gone, squandered on a moment of conflict that could get them both killed.

Fortunately there was always more than one way out of a building.

He pivoted quickly, shooting out as much of the old glass and timber from the warehouse windows as he could. Before she could react he closed the distance between them, gripping her arms firmly. He could feel the silk of her dress and beneath that the warmth and strength of her body. It was the first thing that had really resonated with him since being awakened; the first thing that provoked a response in him that wasn't anger. She stiffened instinctively - always keeping her distance from people; he was so damn tired of distance. But he didn't give way, tugging her closer, knowing his clothing was a more effective defence against the glass.

As he jumped he realised that pulling Adelle DeWitt out of a window with him was a crazy idea; even if they were less than a storey from the ground. But didn't they say, it wasn't the fall that killed you.

The air was forced out of her lungs as she hit the ground, but it wasn't the first time she'd had her breath stolen today - it wasn't even the first time in the last five minutes. But even though she hadn't fallen far she hadn't been prepared and the impact jarred her already injured body, no matter how much he tried to shield her.

She landed on top of him and struggled to push herself to her feet as the shattered glass bit into her exposed skin. Inevitably the gun had been jolted out of her grasp - although of course he had kept hold of his. She hated her former Head of Security in the moment when he rolled easily to his feet, plucked the gun from where it had fallen and offered it to her.

Actually she wasn't having very charitable thoughts about her current Head of Security either. What on earth had Langton been thinking, using this as an opportunity to release Dominic? But as angry as she was with Langton, she was more furious with herself. Even now she could hear herself speaking the words that he had apparently decided gave him with a loophole in following her orders. How could she have been so careless!

When she looked up Dominic's eyes were guarded, as though he wasn't allowing himself to think about this situation in anything other than functional terms. She wondered how long it was reasonable for him to maintain that control. But she wasn't stupid enough to refuse the proffered gun.

Her head was pounding as she let him draw her to her feet and although she wavered she pushed him away after the first few steps. She was relieved to discover that the somewhat unlikely exit route he had fashioned delivered them straight to a vehicle. Which was just as well since the gunfire had started to get close once more.

He was already revving the engine as she slid into the passenger seat and the screams of the tyres were an indication that he was very serious about getting them out of here. But then she'd always believed him to be very serious about his job; it had just turned out not to be the job she was employing him to do - or perhaps it had been, she wasn't sure any longer. She closed her eyes and it occurred to her that she had no idea what was going to happen next.

Her reaction to this man was profoundly confused; everything she'd thought she'd known about him had been turned upside down by his betrayal and in any other circumstances it would be impossible to conceive of trusting him ever again. But she had no real choice - her life was in his hands whether she liked it or not. She would of course try to wrest that control back, although possibly not while they were fleeing armed gunmen.

Things had never been simple between them - she was too wary to give her confidence easily and the knowledge of her miscalculation when it came to him had cut deep. But there had been other aspects to those complications - she'd just pretended not to notice them and assumed he had done the same.

Perhaps if he held onto his anger and disgust tightly enough for both of them then it wouldn't be difficult to carry on seeing him as the enemy and she'd get through this.

"Down!" he barked abruptly, reaching across the seats to push her down as gun fire exploded across the side of the car. Her bruised ribs protested vehemently and when he slammed the brakes on she was flung back and couldn't quite hold in the low cry that escaped her as her head hit the back of the seat. The sound made him look over at her in alarm. "Hold on," he told her.

"I'm fine, keep driving," she ordered, her voice infused with a determination that he was sure was more bravado than anything else - especially given how pale she was. He nodded shortly and concentrated on getting them out of there. The car was more manoeuvrable than the vans pursuing them and he was a ruthless driver, but there were two vans to contend with and he couldn't drive and shoot at the same time.

It didn't help that he was worried about the woman in the passenger seat. Angrily he flicked the emotion away, this was just a job, nothing more. It was a deal he'd struck with Langton to secure his freedom from the torture of the attic. This had nothing to do with Adelle; it could have been anyone.

The car span and skidded, moving in bursts of speed with the piercing screech of brakes as an accompaniment. Adelle couldn't decide if it was better to see what was happening or not, but she forced her eyes open and focused on her companion. His expression was intent, the muscles of his jaw were clenched in concentration and it shouldn't have been anywhere near as arresting as it was.

Dominic knew they couldn't carry on like this, if they hit traffic the cops would be all over them, not to mention the risk to other vehicles. The vans clearly had a strategy to take them out and he wasn't sure how bothered they were about getting DeWitt back - or at least not in one piece. Just as he was thinking about ditching the car and taking their chances on foot he got lucky. One of the vans connected with his front bumper and he was able to shunt it into the side of a building with enough force that he knew it wasn't going to be able to continue.

It gave him an opening and he took it - slamming on the brakes, spinning the car into the path of the remaining van. He was out of the door a split second later, letting loose a volley of shots that took out the tyres, the windscreen and then targetted the men stumbling from both vehicles.

He was so focussed that he didn't immediately recognise that he wasn't the only person doing the shooting - and that the shots in question weren't directed at him.

Intellectually he'd known that she must have at least a passing acquaintance with firearms - but knowing something and witnessing it were two very different things. Watching her easy stance and careful aim told him that at some point she had taken the time to develop more than a basic competence.

"I need that one alive," she said when they ceased fire and he moved to ensure that all of the men were incapacitated. He nodded and kicked a gun out of the reach of the injured man she gestured to. He watched her walk forwards, looking down at the man in question as he lay panting and bleeding at her feet. "It's unfortunate you chose not to accept my offer," she told him, as though they'd been discussing a business deal. "Don't make the same mistake twice. I need to know who hired you."

"I don't know!" The man spat, angrily wiping away blood and grime. "We didn't meet - I got instructions by phone and the initial payment was sent electronically."

"Convenient," she commented. "Who gave you details of where I'd be this evening?"

"He did."

Dominic covered the man's hand with his foot as he pressed down. "What else?"

"I didn't know who she was - I still don't! It was just a job!"

"He's an idiot, but I don't think he's got anything else to tell us. What do you want to do with him?" DeWitt nodded, glancing away for a moment before looking back at him. 

"Leave him," she said turning away and heading back to the car.

"He's seen us - and the car."

"The man who hired him knows what we look like and we can dispose of the car." He couldn't fault her logic, but before following her he slammed the barrel of his gun into the man's skull. It wouldn't hurt to make sure he didn't wake up anytime soon.

There was a hint of a smile on her lips as he slid into the driver's seat - as though his actions had amused her. He didn't say anything as he started the car again, only beginning to accept that they were clear when they found their way onto busier roads.

He let his gaze slip to the woman beside him. Her face was lit by the passing cars but shadowed by the night. The play of curves and angles intrigued him; his reaction to her was visceral - but perhaps that was the case with all his reactions these days. He didn't even know if it was 'his' reaction.

"Where are we going?" He asked bluntly, rather than dwell on the subject of his identity and what he thought about Adelle DeWitt.

"Is the House shut down?" He was surprised it had taken her this long to ask.

"Langton had set the lock down in motion when I left."

"And the Actives?"

"As far as I know they were fine, I was just with Sierra and there had been no attempt to interrupt her engagement. Langton was taking precautions."

"Echo is out on engagement as well."

"Then I'm sure he's taking additional precautions." The edge of bitterness couldn't quite be held at bay, but she didn't react. "Probably necessary if Alpha is behind this."

"If?"
 
"You don't think this is Alpha anymore than I do. This is about you Ms DeWitt - you've been making enemies again." Her expression showed her displeasure at his analysis, but she didn't argue the point which meant she'd already concluded much the same thing. "The house is out of reach for the next 48 hours, we need to find somewhere safe in the interim."

"We?" He shot her a look which clearly communicated she shouldn't push her luck.  "Perhaps this would be a good moment to fill me in on the details of your deal with Mr Langton?"

"Well, obviously I'm here - not rotting away in the attic. We agreed that if I returned you to your rightful place all copies of my imprint would be destroyed. I believe Langton is a man of his word, though you could always overrule him." She didn't comment on that, not that he'd really been expecting her to.

"And I suppose you want me to believe that you are also a man of your word?"

"I don't expect you to believe that, I don't even believe it myself - but I want that imprint gone." He felt the weight of her stare, but he didn't know what she was looking for, what she expected to see. "So, you're stuck with me Ms DeWitt, until I can deliver you safely back to your ivory tower - or whatever you like tell yourself it is."

"Turn left up ahead." She replied, characteristically ignoring his dig. "I know a safe house we can use."

TBC