"A Heart of Gold"

Shakespeare's Lemonade

Rating: T

Genre: Friendship/Romance

Summary: Billy has a heart of gold, just as hard and just as cold. Or does he? Is the ODS operative really as aloof as he wants the others to think? He has a hard time convincing Rick especially, when Olivia Drummond shows up unexpectedly.

A/N: In Song of the North, when everyone is saying who they would die for, Billy brings up Olivia Drummond. She's not really an OC, but since we know nearly nothing about her, I suppose she kind of is for my purposes. Still, I think this story will be largely "canonical." Oh, and I know next to nothing about the SIS or MI-6 or anything like that. I just looked it up on Wikipedia.

Chapter One "Separation"

Rick wasn't quite sure what was going on. There were a lot of unfamiliar faces around the CHAOS offices that morning, and everyone he did know seemed sort of quiet. When he finally got to the ODS office, Michael and Casey were staring at Billy who was trying to ignore them.

"What's going on?" Rick asked.

Michael nodded at Billy who still would not acknowledge any of them.

"Does this have something to do with all those people out there?" Rick said.

"Yes," Casey replied. "All those people. Those SIS people."

"SIS?" Rick said.

"Secret Intelligence Service," Michael said. "Billy's former employer."

"You know why they're here?" Rick asked Billy.

Suddenly, Billy stood up. "I'm gonna go get coffee; you guys want some?" Then he walked toward the door as if that were the end of it. But the other three got in front of him.

"What's going on?" Michael said in his no-nonsense, I'm the boss voice.

"Well, in spite of the face that the stuff tastes like swill, I've grown rather fond of it."

"Not the coffee," Casey said. "The SIS."

"You know, my former employers don't apprise me of their dealings? I mean, I think that's the whole idea of being decommissioned and deported."

"We're not asking for an official opinion," Michael said. "What do you think they're doing here?"

"How should I know?" Billy shrugged. "Maybe they like the coffee too."

Billy pushed past the others and they let him go.

"You think he knows something?" Rick asked.

Michael shook his head. "No, but I think he suspects. Martinez, you go after him. See what he's doing."

"Why me?"

"Because of the three of us, you are the least suspicious," Casey said.

"Uh, thanks?"

"Get going," Michael said, pushing Rick toward the door.

Rick stumbled out into the hallway, realizing that he had once again been forced into a mission he didn't like. He did want to know what was going on, though. Billy was strangely quiet and it had Rick worried. He couldn't imagine what it was like for Billy to be kicked out of his home, and all these reminders wandering the halls must have made it worse.

Rick found Billy right where he said he would be. The look on his face said that he wasn't enjoying his coffee in the least bit.

Rick didn't go over to him immediately, but got himself a cup of coffee, doused it with cream and sugar, and walked slowly over to Billy's table.

"They sent you to fetch me, did they?" Billy asked as Rick sat across from him.

"No." Rick shook his head. "They just wanted me to see what you were doing."

"Well, you can go back there and tell the bloody sneaks that I'm doing exactly what I said I'd be."

"You know they're just worried about you."

"No." Billy took a long drink. "You're worried about me. I know that. They just want to know what's going on and I don't know anything, but if I did, I'm not sure I'd be sharing. It's probably above our clearance anyway."

"You really don't have any idea why they're here?"

"Well, I can conjecture, but what good would that do, eh?"

"I guess you're right. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry if this is hard for you."

"What? Oh, no, don't worry about that. I'm in a much better place now."

Rick nodded slowly. "I hope so."

Billy smiled and slapped his shoulder. "Let's get back, then," he said. "I'm sure there's all sorts of work to do."

As they walked back down the hallway, Rick wondered if Billy were really okay. He hoped he had helped, but he could never be sure.

As they walked down the hallway, Billy walked more slowly that Rick had ever seen him walk. Usually, Rick had a hard time keeping up with the others, especially the six-foot-one Scot. But Billy was off today. As much as he said it didn't bother him, the memories must have been flooding his brain.

Someone bumped Billy's shoulder as they passed and Rick could tell it wasn't an accident. He turned around to see a man of average height walking away. Rick could read his body language, even from behind and it screamed contempt.

"Hey," Rick said. Both Billy and the other man turned around. "You got a problem?"

"Not with you," the man answered in a pronounced British accent.

Rick angled his chin up, knowing he wasn't very intimidating, but needing to defend his friend anyway. "Watch it," he said.

The other man looked down at him, as if trying to decide whether to squash Rick or not. Then he turned to Billy.

"Seen Drummond yet?" he asked with a smirk.

Rick saw Billy's face pale and then the usually loquacious man turned and walked away. Rick followed, once again having trouble keeping up.

"Who was that?" he asked.

"Harrington," Billy said quickly. "The man's an ass and not worth the wasted energy."

"And Drummond?"

Billy stopped in the hallway and Rick almost ran into him. "No one," he said, almost inaudibly. Then he kept walking toward the ODS office.

CHAOS

Michael looked up as Rick and Billy entered the room again. Rick shook his head and Michael nodded back. Something was obviously wrong, but it seemed Billy needed time to explain it to them. If he ever would explain anything.

Casey, however, was not so sensitive. "What's going on?" he asked, in the voice that said, if you don't tell me, I will murder you with my little finger. But there was no time for Billy to answer, even if he had wanted to. The door of the ODS office opened, and everyone except Billy looked to see who it was.

"Excuse me," came the clearly Scottish voice, "My name's Olivia Drummond, I'm looking for Michael Dorset."

Olivia Drummond. Rick connected the dots. The one woman Billy would die for. It seemed that everyone else did too.

"What can I do for you?" Michael asked calmly as Billy tried to make himself look busy at the filing cabinets.

"I'm sure you are aware of the current situation," Olivia said.

"You mean the presence of the SIS? That's all I know."

Everyone noticed Olivia's furtive glace at Billy. "I see," she said. "Then I will apprise you of the situation. Since it appears you haven't been told anything, I'm MI-6. I've been sent here to work with your office on a matter that presents dangers to both our nations."

"What matter exactly?" Michael asked.

"We have been tracking the activities of a terrorist cell that we believe is operating on both sides of the Atlantic. In the past few months, my superiors and yours have been cooperating on this and now they think it's time to send in the big guns. From the Intel we've gathered, there will be an attack in the next week. We don't know where, but it's our job to prevent it."

"Sounds like the usual jobs we get," Rick said.

"And you are Martinez?" Olivia asked.

Rick nodded.

"One of the reasons your office was chosen was for your knowledge of Arabic, and of course for the propensity of the ODS to get results."

"This isn't going to be a problem, is it?" Casey asked, looking at Billy.

There was a long pause. "No," Billy finally said. "Not a problem." Then he moved toward the door, not looking at anyone.

"Run away like always," Olivia muttered.

Then Billy turned around and looked at her for the first time. "I'm not the one who left." And then he did leave.

"Didn't end well?" Casey asked.

Olivia looked at him, almost confused. "It didn't end," she said. "We're separated, not divorced."

Everyone stared at her, knowing that it had to have been something like ten years ago before Billy was deported. And they were still married.