Welcome to Miami

Disclaimer and Note: I own nothing, the OC is mine however. Enjoy the story, just an idea I had. Plus, it's a little something to sustain myself considering that the season finale is coming up. Enjoy and please review.

Miami was a nice enough place, but the summer heat was strangling. Lily Layfield despised the weather, climbing off the airplane was like being slapped in the face. The private jet had been kept almost frigidly cold, much like the beer that had been stocked in the small kitchen on board. Lily sighed and pulled off her dress jacket. Despite being out of the business, she had kept fit. After all you never knew when you would have to chase someone down. The heat was getting to her fast and she found herself wishing that she had pulled her long brown hair up in a ponytail. In a city full of beaches and sun, Lily stuck out. She was pale, although she did have dark features that would be accentuated by a tan.

Lily had never been one for flying but she had the private jet all to herself. It had arrived at the small airstrip that was hidden in the outskirts of the small Canadian town she had been living in for the past 5 years. After things went wayward during a job in France Lily made a choice to get out of the spy business. Her handler had been a fairly decent guy; he set her up with a new ID and a comfortable apartment in Canada.

She hadn't even considered returning to the states until an older co-worker sent her a coded message she had never expected. The aforementioned co-worker, who would probably prefer to remain nameless, got a message to Lilly in a code that they had established long before. The one person that she had been searching for had finally surfaced, in Miami of all places. It was one phone called before a familiar voice was informing her that a plane would be arriving soon.

"Miss Layfield?" A woman dressed in black greeted her on the tarmac. "You're expected." Lily just nodded and watched as the woman picked up her light blue suitcase. "If you'll follow me please."

Lily let the woman lead the way, keeping a few steps behind. To the untrained eye it would appear that Lily was merely following her driver, looking around the small airport, fixing her shirt after a long plane ride. In actuality; she was maintaining a safe distance from someone she didn't know, checking the building for enemies and emergency exits, and double-checking the gun stored in the back of her jeans.

"Miss." The woman said, opening the door to a black Lincoln. Lily did one last scan of the area before sliding into the back seat.

"Lily."

"Lucy." The women smiled at each other before the door slammed shut. They waited as the driver loaded the suitcase into the trunk. "What's with all the cloak and dagger?"

"A new protocol of mine after a little incident last year. Plus, two ex-spies meeting in the open, does that sound like a good idea to you?"

"Good point." Lily nodded. "So, what do you have for me?"

Lucy opened her briefcase and pulled out a manila folder that seemed rather thin.

"This is all I've been able to get, but it didn't come from me, understand?"

"Yes, thanks Lucy."

"Glad I could help." Lily tucked the folder securely into her own bag. They chatted about random things for the rest of the ride. When the car pulled to a stop at Lily's hotel the two women said goodbye. Lucy considered asking if Lily wanted to grab some dinner but quickly thought better of it. She knew that the next couple of hours would be spent scrutinizing every piece of information in the folder.

Lily checked in, found her room, ordered a sandwich and a beer, and then waited impatiently for it to arrive. She knew that once she started to read she wouldn't be able to stop. With a sigh, she glanced at the clock… maybe just a peek. She opened the folder and began to skim the pages.

"Oh my God…" She muttered, her eyes fell upon a black and white surveillance photo of two people she knew far too well. A woman and…

"Room service."

"Fucking eh." She griped standing up from the bed.

For some reason she didn't think to look through the peephole before opening the door. Her tray of food had arrived, but it wasn't a hotel employee.

"What are you doing here?" Lily asked, moving back against the wall, carefully moving her arm behind her.

"Heard you were in town, thought I'd stop by for a chat. No need to reach for that gun." Her hand froze just as it brushed the handle sticking out of her jeans. Before she could ask how he knew, he answered. "Some things never change Lil. I really am just here to talk… well not here. We should talk somewhere else."

"Can I bring my lunch?"

"Sure, wrap it in that bag they put in the ice bucket, you can eat at my place." She eyed him closely for a moment before giving in and taking the tray from him. Before the door could swing shut he followed her into the room.

"So… how's Miami treating you?" She asked, turning to wrap up her lunch.

"Oh just delightful." He replied sarcastically, reaching for the open folder lying on the bed, the picture still resting on top. She turned, unnoticed by him.

"That's a good picture of you Michael."

"An even better shot of Carla. You ready?"

"Yeah." Michael closed the file and handed it back to her. With that, they left her hotel room and headed for his loft. Already things were not going as Lily planned. And she had absolutely no idea what was waiting for her.