At the time, Wyatt hadn't even noticed that they'd come back to a future where Flynn's family was still murdered, he had still taken the Mothership and Christopher had still called them in to track him down. His mind had been focused on finding Jiya and getting her to track the machine's power so they could find out where the bastard had gone, so they could just get Lucy back. It had taken almost an hour for Rufus and Christopher to get him calm enough to sit through the debrief. The threat to remove him from the search party may have helped as well.

After all was said and done, Denise could only say one thing:

"We'll do what we can to get her back but tracking down Flynn is still our best bet."

Jiya spent days on her computer trying to get a hit on their location but the Mothership rarely stayed in the same place for longer than an hour, too short a time for them to change and prepare the Lifeboat let alone go after him. Wyatt and Rufus had started sleeping in the conference rooms at Mason Industries, always on call, ready should they finally have a chance.

Rufus spent most of his time with Jiya working on new, more effective ways of tracking the Mothership. They almost had a way to track his location in the present without relying on strange power drains, a means that no longer worked since Anthony had given Flynn what might as well be an infinite power source for the time machine. It was more a way of keeping their minds off their missing friend than anything else but they were making good progress and everyone else was concerned enough not to call them on it.

Wyatt probably struggled more than anyone. He was in a building full of scientists, men and women who were working around the clock to try and get back his missing team mate. But what could he do? There was nothing for him to shoot, no raids to plan, no leads that needed to be run down. It was his job to protect Lucy and he had let her be taken away and now there was nothing he could do to help her but to wait.

After the fourth day of his endless pacing, Mason had taken Wyatt down to one of the subbasements and led him to a room in the furthest area of the facility. It was long and bland concrete, the floors covered in scuff marks where shelving units once stood. It had been outfitted as some kind of gym; there was weight lifting equipment and treadmills to one side, punching bags and training dummies to the other. At the far end of the room a firing range had been constructed facing a table loaded down with dozens of weapons from every century.

"I had thought," Mason began, "that you might want to teach Lucy and Rufus how to protect themselves when you got back from the last mission."

Wyatt felt his jaw tighten and his nails bite into his palms. He nodded woodenly. Mason clapped him on the shoulder and left him to his own devices. Nobody saw Wyatt for almost a day when he reappeared and headed to medical with two stress fractures and knuckles that were more bone than flesh.

It had been almost a week and the atmosphere around Mason Industries was heavy with hopelessness and desperation. Flynn's movements were still erratic and untraceable, Lucy was still missing and Wyatt was… well…

Rufus and Jiya were sitting in the control room with coffee, their sixth cup each, and two barely nibbled sandwiches. Neither of them could find the appetite to eat.

"The new algorithm?" he asked quietly, already knowing the answer.

"We have no way of know until Flynn lands back in the present," she sighed. Rufus leaned back in his chair, pressing his mug against his temple to absorb the heat.

"It's been a week…" Jiya leaned forward, taking his hand.

"I know but she's a fighter. She'll find her way back to us." Rufus squeezed her fingers, remembering when Lucy had done this for him after the Apollo 11 mission. Her name had almost become taboo around the building, like the very mention of it would cause something precious to break, like their hearts or their hopes.

Rufus stared at Jiya and wondered how he could have survived this week without her. He imagined he would have been just like Wyatt, tearing himself apart in the basement and wondering what he could have changed. Jiya was like the ground under his feet, keeping him steady. He leant forward to kiss her gently, hoping to convey all he felt for her in that one simple movement.

Their lips had barely brushed when alarm sounded through the complex.

"Intruder at the south gate!" a voice yelled over the PA system. Rufus shot up and ran down the hallways following in the path of the security personnel. A few months ago, he would have put his headphones in, turned up the volume and gotten back to work. His time in the time machine had changed him, his team had changed him.

Somewhere along the way, Wyatt had met up with him and they exited the building together. Three guards stood with their rifles up and pointed at a young man in hospital scrubs, his face pale and eyes wide.

"Who are you?" one of them demanded as Christopher joined the assembled group.

"I-I'm Jay Carter, I'm a resident at St Anne's Hospital?" he stuttered.

"And what can we do for you, Mr Carter?" Christopher asked without a shred of emotion in her voice.

"There's this woman in my ward. S-she said she didn't have any family but she asked me if I could find her friends for her." The kid was practically shaking under the gaze of the guards, the FBI agent and one incredibly stressed Master Sargent who was just looking for someone to hit. Rufus was impressed he hadn't peed himself yet. "She gave me this address and, well, she wouldn't really say anything else but-"

"Who gave you the address?" Wyatt interrupted what was surely going to turn into a nervous rant. Jay flinched at his harsh tone but he managed to meet his eyes.

"Her chart said Amy Flemming but she told me to call her Lucy."

The yard was silent in shock, not even a whistle of wind in the mid-December air. Rufus felt the words rattling around in his skull as he tried to fit them in the right place. Lucy. Their Lucy was here, in the present at a hospital not ten minutes away. He wanted to scream and cheer in glee but the weight of crushed hopes held him back. What if it wasn't her? What if this was some other woman with Lucy's sister's name who knew where the Mason Industries lab was? What if this was some kind of trap?

"Lucy who?" Christopher asked, her voice noticeably less steady.

"She didn't say, she just gave me this note and told me to give it to someone named Wyatt," he explained holding out the small slip of paper. The soldier's spine stiffened at the mention of his name but he didn't make any move to accept the letter.

Rufus walked between the guards and took it carefully in his hands. His palms were covered in sweat as he unfolded it. The message was short but its meaning and the handwriting were unmistakable.

I know how to stop Flynn.

"It's her," he breathed. And just like that the courtyard exploded into motion. Wyatt charged through the crowd, grabbed the man by the arm and began dragging him toward the cars. Christopher shouted at him to wait, trying to catch up to him. Rufus felt his foot stick out and trip her of his own accord. Before he knew what he was doing, he was charging off after the soldier.

Wyatt had stopped next to his truck and was fishing his keys out of his pocket as he spoke low and dangerous to the resident.

"You said St Anne, right?" Jay nodded shakily, his eyes wide and afraid at whatever look was in Wyatt's eyes. "When we get there, you take me to Lucy." It was an order, not a request. He wrenched the door open and shoved Jay into the passenger seat before he climbed into the driver's side. Rufus wasn't even sure Wyatt noticed him scramble into the back as they tore out of the parking lot but he didn't really care.

Lucy was within reach and they weren't going to let her slip through their fingers again.

The hospital hallways were long and winding but Wyatt's legs ate up the distance as he forced Jay ahead of him. He was lucky he was walking slower, if only so that they wouldn't draw undue attention to themselves.

He couldn't believe Lucy was here, so close to them. For how long? Why was she in the hospital? What had Flynn done to her? A million questions were trying to cram themselves into his mind but he had nowhere to let them out. He couldn't speak freely with Jay there but he wouldn't let him out of his sight until he had Lucy within arm's reach.

They turned a few more corridors and Wyatt felt his shoulders tense with every step they took. What would he find when they opened that door?

"This is it," Jay told them, looking between Rufus and Wyatt hoping they were about to let him go. He handed him to the pilot and turned back to the door.

They were in a private ward, the name 'Flemming, A' was written on the label above the room number. There was no window. Wyatt wasn't sure he would have looked any way, he just would have appreciated the option of knowing what he was going to be walking into. Then again, if she could ask a random resident to come find them, how hurt could she be? Not comatose at least.

"Wyatt?" Rufus called. He took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

Laying on the bed was a woman with hair the colour of black coffee, the roots a shining grey where it had grown out of its dye. Her skin was pale and wrinkled with age, the lines deep set but staring out at him were olive green eyes that held recognition and so much sadness.

"Hello, boys," she said, her voice roughened by the years, "been a while."

"Oh my god," Rufus breathed.

Wyatt was frozen his eyes locked on those eyes, the only familiar thing in a sea of insanity. This woman was so familiar, so like Lucy but with a frailty about her that was a million times worse than what he had seen in Nazi Germany. This was a woman who had lived decades but wasn't likely to see another month.

"How?" he managed but he knew the word was strangled. He was supposed to be strong but this…

"When Flynn took me, he hid me in time. He would take me to a year and leave me with money and a guard. Sometimes he would come back in a couple of hours, sometimes a couple of years. One day, he just never came back," she explained. A small smile spread on her lips, long formed laughter lines deepening with the movement. "I was waiting until it was safe to see you again."

"What do you mean 'safe'?" Rufus asked.

"I couldn't come into contact with myself. Who knows what that would have done to the world? So I had to wait until Flynn took me again, until I was the only Lucy Preston in this timeline."

"You've been gone for a week!" Wyatt yelled. Lucy blinked owlishly at him.

"Oops. It was a long time ago; I couldn't remember the exact date."

She reached a shaky, wrinkled hand to her mouth and coughed weakly, the movement wracking her whole frame. Wyatt wanted to scream and rage and cry but he didn't have that luxury. Instead, He handed her the glass of water from the side table and helped her straighten up so she could drink. She patted his cheek affectionately.

"Still helping me," she smiled. Wyatt swallowed down the lump in his throat and forced a smile.

"Yes, ma'am."

"We can fix this, right?" Rufus asked, eyes darting between Wyatt and Lucy, hope and despair warring for dominance behind them. "I mean you know where Flynn's going to be, when he's going to be, so we just have to get there first and save you."

Lucy turned her eyes to the pilot and shared her smile with him, this one sad and all too wise.

"You've always been so smart, Rufus, and you're right. You could save me if I told you where I would be but there's something else you have to do first."

"What could possibly be more important than saving you?" Wyatt demanded.

"Stopping Flynn."

Wyatt felt his jaw snap shut at the fierce determination and complete immovability in Lucy's face. He's only seen that look on her face two times: once when she told Agent Christopher that she wouldn't cooperate if they replaced Wyatt and once when she made the bargain with Flynn to save his life.

Nothing anybody said would convince her that this could wait.

"How?" he asked through grit teeth. She must have seen the understanding and resignation in his eyes because the grin returned to her face, tinged with mischief and victory this time. She reached under the blankets over her lap and pulled out a small worn notebook.

"I know you said not to, Wyatt, but I had to write a journal. It was the only way I could remind myself that I wasn't insane, that you both were real." Wyatt squeezed her hand comfortingly. "I started it after my first year with Flynn when I realised I might be stuck with him for a while. I kept a record of everything, what he said, where he went and when and who he targeted. About a month after he took me, we went to Brooklyn 1953. There was a man there named Arthur Gelding. He ran a second-hand book store near the Manhattan Bridge."

"And Flynn killed him? Was he a part of Rittenhouse?" Rufus wondered.

"That's the thing," Lucy said, shaking her head, "Flynn didn't kill Gelding. He saved his life."

"What? Why would he do that?"

"Who knows why Flynn does what he does? But Gelding was supposed to drown in the East River on the 10 of December 1953. You don't remember, but history changed because he lived. In 1954 Gelding shot Gerald Pearson and stole his research, passing it off as his own. Arthur Gelding was heralded as the inventor of the first practical solar cell. He sold Pearson's work under the table to the Soviets. They almost won the space race with the technology he provided."

"But they didn't win," Wyatt stated simply, "So why is this important?"

"You'll just have to trust me," she frowned, her jaw set. Wyatt squeezed her shoulder and Rufus took her hand.

"You know we do," he promised. She looked at them for a moment, her eyes suspiciously damp.

"Well then what are you still doing here?" she sniffled. "The sooner you get Flynn and make sure Arthur Gelding dies the sooner you can save me and make sure I never have to spend fifty years waiting for you to show up."

"We can't just leave you here," Rufus protested.

"I've been in this bed a month, another couple of days can't hurt. Besides, if you do this then I won't even be here when you get back," she said matter-of-factly.

"How can you be so calm?" Wyatt wondered, "Knowing that you're basically sending us to erase you from history." Lucy's smile was worn and fractured as she took their hands but her grip was sure.

"I was never supposed to live this life. I was supposed to come home to my sister and my mother, have drinks with my friends and know that history is safe and I can live in peace. I lived a good life here and it won't be gone." She tapped the journal in her lap. "It's all right here so you can remember me and know about all the adventures I had without you. But she deserves to live a real life. So it's only fair that I give it to her. I'm running out of time anyway and I don't really want to die. Better to just vanish, I think."

Wyatt couldn't believe this woman was still so strong after all that she'd been through. She was ready to let her life end so that someone, who at this point was an entirely different person, live a life free from all her troubles. How he had gotten lucky enough to meet two women this amazing in a single lifetime he will never know.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Rufus asked, eyes full of worry. Lucy patted his chest gently.

"Of course. I've been on my own for forty years. I'll be just fine." And just like that, with her message delivered, all the energy seemed to drain out of her. Lucy settled back against the pillows, her shoulders sagging and eyes drooping.

"We should let you rest," Rufus said and straightened.

Wyatt knew he was right; Lucy was clearly exhausted and they needed to start preparing for their new mission but he was reluctant to leave. After all the worry and the fear, they'd finally found her again and he was supposed to just walk away and leave her here. He wasn't sure he was strong enough for that.

The door to the room open with a bang and Agent Christopher walked in, a reprimand on her lips, when her eyes caught Lucy. She froze in the doorway, gobsmacked. Rufus gave Lucy's hand one last squeeze and turned to Wyatt.

"I got this. Take your time," he smiled gently and turned to herd Christopher from the room.

Lucy was close to sleep but her eyes were fixed on Wyatt's face.

"You look exactly as I remember you," she smiled, "still so handsome." He chuckled and settled down on the edge of the bed.

"Handsome? Are you sure you haven't gone a bit senile after all these years?" Wyatt grinned and it was worth it to hear her gentle laugh.

"Maybe I have but I'm pretty sure I thought the same last time I saw you." The smile vanished from his face as he looked down at her and tried to see the face he knew in the wizened features before him.

"We'll make this right, Lucy," he promised, "We'll stop Flynn and we'll get you back."

"I know you will," she sighed, her features carefully blank, "and when you do, I want you to do something."

"What?" he asked. She took his hand and placed the journal on his palm.

"There's a letter in here; It's got your name on it. Promise me you'll read it but only after you save her. Once everything is done and you've all made it back home safe, read it." Her eyes never wavered from his as she spoke and her voice was low, sombre.

"I promise," he told her, hearing the seriousness and knowing that nothing less would satisfy her.

"Only after you get back," she insisted.

"Only when we get back," he assured. Her smile was so heartbreakingly tired as she closed her eyes that Wyatt wasn't sure he could make himself leave her side long enough to keep his promise.

"You're a good man, Wyatt Logan, and you deserve peace too," she mumbled as she passed into sleep.

Wyatt's fingers tightened on the journal full of a life that he was about to both erase and save as a new determination filled him.

Lucy, he thought, We're coming.