LONDON CALLING

Angus came back upstairs after supper, and he changed into his workout clothes. Then he looked in on Jessie.

"I'm ready to go whenever you are," Angus said, chomping at the bit to workout.

"Absolutely," Robert said to Jack. "I'll have to run a little faster to keep up with you simply because you outstride me if I let you." Robert didn't have werewolf speed either, but that only made his runs more beneficial. He did actually enjoy watching some of the younger folks struggle to keep up with Jack, and since Robert knew how to do it, it always seemed to impress them when they thought of him as an old man and then he would show them up. He had no desire to lose that.

He changed into workout clothes and then went downstairs to meet Jack outside the kitchen door.

"How far do you want to go, Jack?" Robert asked, doing some stretches to limber up a bit. "The long trail or the short trail?"

Jessie looked up as he head Angus and transphigured his clothes to work out ones " okay let go, I'l spot you if you want to work off that problem you seem to have" he said grabbing a towel and heading out the door to the gym.

Jack saw Robert and smiled " Long trail sounds good right now" he said " you know I can go further right and Im glad you can keep up gives me a running partner when Jessies not around but even he is some what slower than I." he said stretching out his mucles ready to run.

"No, go ahead and enjoy your workout," Angus smiled. "I'm fine." He hit the treadmill, wanting to do a good hard run. He set the pace up on it to make him run a little faster, especially since it was going to be a short workout. They hadn't been there more than a few minutes when a couple of older looking guys came in and headed for the pool. Well, Angus sometimes like a late night swim himself, so he couldn't blame him. Besides, from what he could see from here, the hotel pool was enormous, and that was a rare treat. His view of the pool was somewhat blocked by the weight lifting area. That area had two full sets of smaller hand weights and two full racks of barbells and two full sets of weight plates, along with two deluxe weight lifting machines. With the exception of the large fitness center in St. Mungos, Angus hadn't seen a finer gym, and certainly never in a hotel. He wanted to do a little weight lifting because he didn't want the first workout his shoulder got to be mountain climbing, but only wanted to do a few repetitions. Noting strenuous. He knew better than to blow it out before the mission got tough.

"I was hoping you'd say that," Robert grinned at Jack. "Of course I know you can go further. That was why I asked. Besides, I refuse to give you any sort of advantage. It isn't a competition, though. I don't need to defeat you. However, I refuse to be left in the dust by you or anyone else. I'll settle for a friendly draw, though. Alright, let's go." He started with an easy, well regulated pace, figuring when they got warmed up, he would have to speed up a bit, and that was fine with him.

Jessie watched the people pass by heading to the pool then nodded to Angus " alright" he said and moved to the dumbells. Picking up one that he knew would give him a workout he started doing arm reps all the while keeping his eye on the pool area door. Somthing bout the couple bothered him.

Jack loked at Robert and laughed " I would not expect any less Robert" he said and slowly started to run down the trail but gradualy picking up his pace as he went untill he reatched his cruising pace and glanced back happy to see Robert running level with him.

Angus gave it a good hard run on the treadmill, and then, he glanced towards the pool. The two men seemed to have gotten their fill of the pool, and they headed to the mens' locker room. He decided that a swim in the pool might be enough of a test, so he headed to the pool. It felt wonderful to hit the water again. It had been entirely too long since he had had a swim. He often avoided it during the day because most of the time he would need to take Abbey with him, and he had yet to see her be able to have a swim and not morph into her labrador form. So, it had been awhile. Now, he felt that perhaps it had been too long.

Robert had no trouble keeping up with Jack, and he was ready for Jack's increase in speed, so he met his pace without much trouble. He remembered Nigel's remarks at his last physical that he felt Robert was in exceptionally good health and was more fit than most of the men that Nigel had evaluated, even a good portion of the men who were younger than Robert was. Robert didn't intend to let that slide.

In the house, Kate had put Abbey to bed. Then she had showered and was in her room, in bed, reading a good mystery novel. Simone and Edward had showered and had decided to turn in early since that had been up before daylight. Marcus and Khaat had showered, and they were in their pajamas, and, with the bedroom door open, they were reading in the sitting area of Khaat's room. It was a quiet night so far in the house. They knew Ruby was still up, and if she felt like joining them for awhile, they hoped that the open door would, in itself be a welcoming sign. Gabe and Mira were outside, with mugs of chamomile tea, star gazing.

Jessie watched Angus head to the pool he headed to the punch bag and began hitting it untill he could feel the sweat drip down the mucles on his his back he held back using his full strength not wanting to explain to the hotel staff why their punch bag was in peices on the floor.

Jack ran feeling the wind against his face but he was aware Robert was behind him " you doing okay?" he asked glancing back at him " when you want to stop just say " he said with a chuckle just as a bug hit him on his cheek " bleth" he said wiping it off.

Ruby stood up and walked up the stairs seeing the sitting room door open she stood at the door " mind if I join you?" she asked Khaat and Marcus. " its got kinda quiet and.. well, I miss Angus" she said looking at Khaat hoping she could give ehr some advice as to how to not feel so lonly.

Angus was in the pool minding his own business, when the men came out of the locker room. It didn't register with him the danger he was in when they shapeshifted in front of im back to the form of the man and the woman he had seen in the dining room. One of them fired a spell at him to force his body down to the bottom of the pool and to stick him to the bottom of the pool. He wasn't able to free himself. He saw them apparate out and leave him there, and within a moment or two, unable to breathe, unable to get out, his last thoughts before things faded were of home, of Edward and the people that he knew loved him, and of Abbey and Ruby.

"I'm fine," Robert said, falling into step right beside Jack. "You aren't used to someone keeping up with you, are you?" It made him laugh.

"Of course," Khaat said, motioning to Ruby, "come in. I know how you feel. I miss Brian like crazy when he's gone. The only thing I've found that helps is to do my best to stay busy.

Suddenly, without warning, the silence of the night was broken by Abbey shrieking out in what Marcus felt sounded like absolute terror, and he heard very clearly what she was saying. She was screaming, at the top of her lungs, repeatedly calling for Aggie. Marcus instantly was on his feet and he apparated into her room, and found her still in her bed. He sat down on the bed and wrapped her tightly into his chest, muffling her screams in his pajama top. Kate had left her room and had dashed down the hall to Abbey's room, and Khaat had leaped up from the sofa in her room to do the same. It had also uprooted Edward and Simone and Mira and Gabe. They had all come on the run.

"She was dreaming," Marcus said, looking up at them.

Jessie was working out when he saw two people different to those who'd gone in walk out of the pool area. feeling something off he dove into the pool area and at first didn't se Angus untill he looked down at the bottom of the pool. kicking off his shoes he dove in and swum to Angus and grabbed hold of him casting a wandless counter spell. He then with all his strength pulled him free and swum to the surface pushing Angus up onto the side of the pool the side before slimbing out to check he was breathing befroe starting chest compreshions untill he was breathing on his own. Now he sent word up to the others. "Okay, now thats got me annoyed." he said now annoyed " no one does that to my brother in law." he said wringing his clothes out and kneeling to check on him while he waited for michael and Brian.

Jack chuckled and continued to run "Nope only Jessie can push me" he told him " you too, come on" he said picking up his pace a little more.

Ruby heard the scream and Abby calling for Angus her heart went cold " that didn't sound like a dream, more like a nightmare." she said her own body drawing a cold shiver as she moved with then to check Abby. She looked at Khaat " you don't think something happened , do you?" she asked now starting to pace and thinking of ways she could get to romania to check on them all.

Brian and Michael got Jessie's signal and they ignored the no-magic-around-muggles protocol and apparated to the gym. It took them a moment to find them, but they both saw Angus lying motionless beside the pool and Jessie there with him. They flew into the pool area to them, and Brian knelt immediately and started to check Angus.

"His lungs are full of water," Brian said quietly, "but he's alive." Michael looked at Angus' hands, at his fingertips, and he saw broken fingernails. He understood what he was seeing. Angus had tried to claw at something to escape something.

"What the hell happened?" Michael demanded. So far as Michael was concerned, he was the extraction expert, and if the mission needed to be scrapped, Michael was more than willing to face Robert's wrath by calling it off.

Upstairs, Kate had felt something going terribly, terribly wrong with one of the mission's members. She didn't know who, but Abbey had clearly seen that part. She hit the alarm on her medallion now, paging Robert at once.

"Jack," Robert stopped running abruptly. "My emergency alarm--its from Kate. We've got to go." He apparated back to the house, and not finding anyone in the kitchen or the dining room, he raced up the stairs.

"I don't know," Khaat said. "Angus has never been gone overnight on a mission since she's been born. She's not used to him not being here. It could just be that." Edward already knew better, and he believed Khaat knew better too. Edward had felt the same ice cold terror that Abbey had. Something had gone terribly wrong, and Budapest was just too damned far away.

Robert found them easily in Abbey's room, and Marcus was soothing Abbey. Abbey was an absolute mess. He walked over to Abbey quietly.

"Give her to me," Robert said softly. Marcus let go, and Robert picked her up. "Come to Papa, Sweet Pea." He soothed her. "Come with me. Let's walk." He walked with her out into the hallway and he saw Jack and spoke very softly, not wanting anyone else to hear what he was saying to Jack. Since Jack had enhanced hearing, Robert didn't need to speak very loudly at all for Jack to get the message. "Something's gone wrong in Budapest, clearly. Do not let anyone go rogue. Keep a handle on them until we know more. Michael or Brian will try to reach us as soon as they can. Let me get her steadied and maybe by then, we'll know something."

Jessie was glad when Michael and Brian showed up at the pool he let them take over and sat down close by. " it was two people two men went in and two diferent people came out, shapeshifters I think." he said hoping it wasn't too late but he knew he'd kept Angus alive as much as he could do.

Ruby heard Khaat but saw Jess move from her room to Abbys folowing she saw Robert appear and knew something was wrong. Now she was sure. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't see Jess move to stand close to her, her arm around her shoulders. This did two jobs one to keep her there with them and two to reasure her.

"he'll be fine" Jess said sending a calming energy into her. Ruby strangly felt calmer when Jess spoke to her and nodded as Jess made her sit down. " Im sure we'll know if something went wrong, they'd send word." Jack stood close but Jess looked at Robert and Abby " she's good, I have her."