Chapter Text
When they left that hospital, Jubal spent the night at Isobel’s home, by her side, in her bed. In just two days, he takes her out on their first official date, as if they could even consider themselves dating when they are already in love, when they have already been in love for so long. He took her to a pier overlooking the water, a silly reference to all they have survived that Isobel finds endearing. She meets his children in a week’s time, and they excitedly welcome her into their family. They’re amazed by how strong she is and how many cool things she has accomplished. They meet Angelica soon after when they all have dinner together, and Abby couldn’t be more happy to have a big sister. Tyler’s a little more reluctant, but when she plays video games with him, he thinks she’s an "alright" big sister. (It’s assumed pretty quickly by all three kids that they will be siblings soon enough.)
After jumping through a series of hoops, the FBI lets them keep working together. After all, their work chemistry certainly doesn’t suffer from them vocalizing, and acting on, the feelings that they have had for the majority of their time working together. Six months after they survived the bombing that was supposed to kill them both by jumping into the water a hundred feet below, he proposed to her on the same pier that they had their first date. About a month later, they bought a home close to work with enough room for all of their children, decorated it all together, and threw a house-warming party.
Nearly six months later and just a few weeks before Angelica is set to begin her first week training at Quantico, they hold their wedding. It’s a beautiful affair, set up on that pier, everyone from the team and their family is gathered all together. If she really wanted, one carefully placed bomb on a single pillar of the pier and all those that knew those two pesky, desperately in love agents would be dead.
Rina considers it. She more than considers it. She draws up plans for it. Orders some C-4, some detonators, but she sends them all off to other projects around the world. It certainly would not help her reputation as the badass crime boss of the Durango Cartel—that infiltrated the FBI to its highest levels and then murdered her own father to get the reins of the family business—if she went and killed her ex-lover and his new wife and everyone they cared about.
Maybe, it would ease her a little bit, given how they were supposed to die before and how they outsmarted her by being incredibly insane. It was supposed to be 3 birds, one bomb. But damn, they jumped and survived a hundred foot drop into the water below as a bomb sent that decrepit building at them. Freaking insanity. Or maybe, it’s something else. Damn fate. As her father always said, “Two principles to succeed: you must always do whatever is necessary, and you must accept your fate.” His fate was his death at his daughter’s hands, and her fate was getting her hands on the cartel, and Isobel and Jubal’s fate is a long and happy life together, not that she didn’t consider ruining that.
They had searched for Rina, and they still are searching, but she hardly matters to them now. She definitely doesn’t want to give them any reason to unleash a full-fledged hunt against her. Rina has even gone so far as putting out the word across the entire crime network that Isobel and Jubal and all those they care about are to be left untouched unless she personally harms them. It’s saved their lives, and the lives of those on their team, a few times, but they would not believe that. She’d prefer they not know. Watching from afar, Rina has come to the conclusion that she played a role in their getting together. It’s almost beautiful to her. She isn’t even bitter anymore, well she isn’t even that bitter anymore. A little jealous of Isobel’s life, sure, but Rina is now a crime boss of a massive cartel that she is expanding masterfully. Like her life is pretty cool too.
Anyways, it’s been Rina’s guilty pleasure of sorts to keep an eye on them, to decide whether to kill them or not, and to keep some connection to the life that she had wanted for so long, the life she still hates her father for preventing her from having. A life of law and order rather than crime and chaos. With his death though, with her murder of him, the anger has faded more and more. Her deal with herself as soon as she saw Jubal bending down on one knee in front of Isobel six months prior was that once the wedding happened, whether with an explosion or a kiss, she would stop. She would leave her bitterness in the past and move on, whether that meant Jubal and Isobel moving on in their marriage or moving on into their graves side by side.
She chose the former, rather last minute indeed. But now, from where Rina perches on the second floor of the building closest to the pier, she sees, through her binoculars at the open window, the wedding processional begin. Angelica is the maid of honor, Tyler is the best man, and Abby is the flower girl and she stands on the bride’s side when she has thrown the flowers. A real and lovely family affair.
Rina puts the headphones to her ear (she had planted a bug rather than the bomb she had considered). Here Comes the Bride plays, and Rina watches as Isobel appears clutching her father’s arm in a truly magnificent flowing gown and long veil of lace. She is beautiful, smiling brightly. She looks like an angel. Rina is overwhelmed by her beauty, and she kinda hates Isobel, no wonder Jubal is crying. They come to stand side by side as the officiant—dear god, that’s Scola!—begins his introduction of the couple and then a reading. It’s honestly perfect. Damn, Scola, who would’ve known he’s such a romantic, she can’t help but laugh.
Then, it’s time for the vows. “I, Jubal Valentine, pledge my love to you, Isobel Castille,” Jubal begins and Rina sucks in a breath as she listens closely. “We've endured so much, survived so much, experienced so much to bring us here today. From the first day we worked together, I felt pulled to you. I could see your thoughts in your eyes, and though you hardly ever needed it, I came to the realization that, no matter what, I will do anything to protect you and that whatever you request of me, I will do. I will go into any place, I will do anything, I will jump and fall another hundred feet if you ask that of me. As long as I am holding your hand, Isobel, I will go anywhere you go. I’m so excited to join you on every journey along the way. With all my love, I vow my future to be shared with you,” he finishes the vow, and Isobel is crying now. She’s wiping the tears from her pretty eyes.
“I, Isobel Castille, pledge my love to you, Jubal Valentine,” Isobel begins, and she pauses a little, choking on joyful tears. Jubal squeezes her hands, and Isobel continues with a smile that they share. “I spent so much of my life running for anything and everything. So much fear that whatever I gain, I may then lose. I walked headstrong and intentionally alone through so many stages of my life, but then I walked into my new job and I found you there. I was pulled to you too. It scared me. I tried to run from it, from you, but I never could. No matter what happened, I was only drawn more to you. Fear made me hesitant, but I could never truly neglect your love, and I certainly could not go hiding from my love for you. I won’t have to go alone any longer. I have you by my side and holding my hand no matter what happens next or where we go. I am so happy I fell in love with you, and I am so excited to keep falling. With all my love, I vow myself and my future to you.”
Beautiful. Utterly and totally beautiful. It draws a rebellious tear from Rina’s eyes as she leans closer to the window, clutching tight to her binoculars, fully enthralled as the rings are then exchanged. She is so distracted that she doesn’t hear the door open or the floorboards creak.
As Scola says, “I now pronounce you husband and wife,” Rina sucks in a breath of air. Little does she know, that will be the last time she ever does. The gun, equipped with a silencer, is raised behind her head. The trigger is pulled, and she collapses to the ground.
“You may now kiss the bride,” Scola announces. Jubal pulls Isobel into him, clutching to her waist as he leans her back, kissing her passionately.
The crowd cheers and music plays as the gunman drops a bow and a card claiming credit, and congratulating the fated couple, atop her body.
The bride and groom walk back down the aisle, a reception and then a honeymoon, and then a beautiful future, awaiting them. They have a life ahead of them together and with their family and friends. They truly have endured far too much, but it has brought them to this moment: husband and wife joined by their children while friends and family clap excitedly.
The first time they worked together—hell, even when they walked into that prison after Vargas’ nondescript threat—they couldn’t have known it would all lead them here. But it did. Pain and suffering and struggle threatened to take them to hell, but instead it brought them together. Perseverance, strength, and reckless continuance brought them through it all, and love made them indomitable. Their foes are gone, and if more appear, they will survive them too. They will survive anything, if only to return to each other every night.
Vargas and Rina are dead because of their own actions. They descended into madness and were dragged to hell. Jubal and Isobel fell in love and trusted in one another. At the end of the night, when they leave the party behind to enjoy each other, they descend the steps, slide into the car, and kiss passionately.
A future is before them, and they will hold hands as they glide into whatever they get to face next. Nothing is impossible if they are together.
After all, if they go down, they go down together.