Magical Mystery Tour

Part 3: Chapter Sixty-One: John's POV

Yeah, so it's been like a year since I've even written on this or posted this....I wrote these a yer ago....and I kinda want to keep this going, get it to the end. It's almost there, but no one seems to like it enough to comment or anything....anyway if these next ten chapters do well, I'll think about working on it some more soon. :)

John's POV- 

Lilly wouldn't stop crying. Olivia had her arm around Lilly, but she wouldn't be comforted. I didn't blame her. We were sitting on the couch while George and Serena paced the room. Serena was biting her fingernails, and George was ruffling his bed head. Neal, Dhani, and Midge were searching the area for anything.
Neal came downstairs and shook his head, "Stryker's gone. He's door was broken down. I'm gonna go look at the tapes to see how he got out so quietly." I nodded and Lilly tried to stifle her sobs.
Dhani walked in and he looked angry, "The front door was wide open." He said looking at Serena and Lilly, "He had to have walked right past you." Serena gasped as Midge came back.
"There are tire tracks on drive. He had help." She looked upset. Not as upset as Lilly obviously, but still upset.
"How did you miss him walking right by you?" George asked, looking at Serena. She shook her head and started crying.
"I don't know!" She choked, "We were in the bathroom, or in the kitchen! We've barely spent any time in here!"
"But you were down here!" Dhani started yelling, and that set everything off.
"That doesn't mean we saw anything!" Midge yelled back, "It's a big house, Dhani!"
"He went through the front door, Midge!" George said. Serena cried out and I knew he'd thought that just as loudly as he'd said it.
"None of us saw anything!" Midge responded, "You can't seriously be blaming us for this!"
"Stop it all of you!" Olivia stood up from the couch, "There is a little girl missing, her mother is in tears, and all you three can argue about is who's fault this is? It's Daniel Stryker's fault! So stop yelling at each other and figure out a way to find her before he gets to Bellamy!" Dhani looked at her, the anger fading from his expression.
"I'm going to call Headquarters." He stormed off and Lilly looked at me.
"John, we didn't see anything," She said crying, "How'd he get past us without us even noticing?" I wrapped my arms around her and I hugged her tight.
"I know, Lilly," I said gently, "It'll be okay." She cried for a little while longer, and we all just sat there looking at each other for a long time. We sat there so long, Lilly fell asleep and Serena was dozing as she sat on the floor at George's feet, her head against his knee. Olivia was pacing now and Neal was sitting in the armchair by the door looking worried and bored. I wasn't sure how I could be so calm. My daughter was missing. I rubbed Lilly's arm absently and she moved a little. Midge had followed Dhani, and I was curious as to what they were doing.
I lifted Lilly up off the couch and I carried her upstairs, just for something to do. I put her in the bed we'd been sharing the last week and a half and I covered her up. I kissed her forehead and sighed.
"We'll find Valerie," I whispered, "I promise." Lilly was sound asleep, she didn't even hear a word I'd said. I left her to sleep and went back downstairs. Dhani and Midge were back by then.
"There you are." Dhani said, "HQ is sending a helicopter tonight. Get ready to go now. They're looking for Stryker as we speak. I just hope we can catch him before he gets too far away." I crossed my arms.
"He can't have." I said shaking my head, "Unless Bellamy is hiding closer by than we thought." Dhani nodded in agreement and he put his hand on my shoulder.
"We'll find her, John." He said seriously, "We've got a lot of people looking for her." I nodded and looked at the others. Serena was awake now, and she was leaning against George as Midge told them what they needed to do.
"You need to get all your things, and Lilly's things, and Valerie's things, and you need to meet us outside, okay?" Olivia said gently. I nodded and walked back upstairs. I went into Lilly's old room where Val had been sleeping. Her crib was dark, and I knew she wouldn't be there but I looked inside anyway. There was just her blanket and her bunny. I grabbed them and I grabbed Valerie's clothes before I shoved them in a bag. I went into our room and I packed up the rest of our clothes quickly before I walked over to Lilly. I'd just put her in bed, but I had to wake her up. I brushed her hair back and took notice of how dark she'd made it. She didn't look quite right, but she didn't look bad.
"Lilly," I whispered shaking her shoulder, "Come on, wake up, we've got to go." I could hear the helicopter over the house. Lilly turned over and made a face at me.
"Go where?" She asked sitting up, "Did they find Valerie?"
"Not yet, but we've gotta go." I pulled her arms around my neck and I lifted her up out of the bed. She didn't protest, so I carried her downstairs and outside where the helicopter was landing. Dhani and George helped Midge and Serena inside as Neal loaded their bags onto the helicopter. I hurried over and Neal helped me get Lilly inside.
Neal got in and he helped her sit down. I was about to get in when Serena jumped out.
"Where are you going?" George yelled over the propellers. Serena turned back and held up her hand for just a moment. George looked at Dhani and he shook his head.
"No, George, don't-" Dhani couldn't get all his words out. George jumped out and ran after Serena. Dhani groaned and I got in. He stood outside the copter so it didn't leave without them. They came running out, and Serena had her phone held tight in her hand. Dhani climbed into the helicopter after them and in a second we were off the ground.
"What did you get out for?" Dhani asked loudly. He didn't sound mad, just slightly frustrated.
"I had to get my phone." She said seriously. George was still panting from running, but Serena didn't seem to be phased. She leaned back and closed her eyes, "I'm sorry. I can't leave it here." Dhani sighed and he dropped the subject.
Everyone was unusually quiet, and I wasn't really sure what to do about it. Midge was leaning heavily against Dhani as she fell asleep. Lilly had gone back to sleep and she was leaning against Neal. George put his arm around Serena and she burrowed herself into him, like she was trying to hide. I wish I could hide. I wanted so badly for all of this to have never happened. Part of me wished I'd stayed dead, but the bigger part of me was glad to be here. I was glad to have Lilly, and I was thrilled to have Valerie. Nothing could be better than having them, but was being alive worth all this going on with Bellamy? I hadn't decided yet. I didn't think I'd be able to decide for a long time.
It was too dark to try and track where we were going, and Dhani chuckled as I looked out the window to try and see where we were.
"That's why they transport at night," He said, "No one really knows where HQ is. Not even the man at the top." That was interesting to me. It kept them a secret, and it kept the agents mostly safe when they aren't on a mission.
"And we're going there?" I asked, looking at him instead of out the dark window. Dhani nodded, "Will they be able to find Val?"
"Yes," Dhani said seriously, "They will, John."
"You swear?" I asked, pursing my lips as I leaned forward on my knees. Dhani didn't respond and I raised an eyebrow at him, "Harrison."
"I swear they will do everything they can to find her, John." He said. I sighed and ruffled my hair.
"That's not what I said, but close enough," I said leaning back in my seat. Dhani scratched his face and he sighed roughly.
"I can't say they can most definitely save her John," He said pleadingly, "there's always a chance that they can't, but I personally have never seen a case they didn't get a little kid back." I nodded and looked at Lilly again. She was watching me, sleepily, but she was still awake. I looked back at her and she nudged her foot into mine. She sat up from Neal and yawned. He squeezed her shoulder and she kissed his cheek. I felt a small flare of jealousy, but I didn't let her see that. I put my head on her shoulder and I slid my arms around her waist. She rubbed my back and I took a shaky breath. She ran her fingers into my hair and I closed my eyes. It was my turn to sleep for a while.