Flimsy

May didn't return to check on them, which then lead to the girls leaving Mick and Ward to piece together the puzzle while they went off to investigate other things. The two men dug through the debris pile near a rather large crater, when Ward looked over at Mick curiously. "You've only been picking up those small bits, why?" 

"Either they were inside the bomb as shrapnel, or they were the casing. I was really hoping if I gathered enough of them I could figure it out. Sort of like putting together a puzzle," Mick tried looking smart, but Ward snickered. "It makes sense in theory!" 

"Since when did you study explosives?" Ward teased as Mick shook his head. 

"Sam loves those CSI shows and they do stuff like this all the time, so I figured I could use some of that logic too," Mick said with a sarcastic grin. 

"Really?" Ward sounded exasperated, as Mick turned to see him smirking. "I thought for sure she'd be more the Grey's fan, or worse the Bachelor. Skye eats that crap up, so don't feel bad." 

"Sam likes that too, I just tend to zone out for it," Mick groaned as the two pressed on. "Sam is the brains of our operation, I just sneak around punching and webbing things," Mick admitted as they laughed. This was the typical Ward, he was relaxed when May wasn't around, usually a very pleasant guy once you get past the intimidating muscular appearance. However, he was also the most serious one when it came to getting the job done.

Mick had begun holding pieces of metal together, piecing the few that fit together with webs, the two men staring at the almost shaped cylinder like object before them. "Huh, I didn't think that would work," Mick held it up, pretty in impressed with his handy work.

"Neither did I," Ward said just as shocked. 

"Awe, look at that, he figured it out! I'm so proud of you babe!" Sam said waking out of the door charred door, tossing a canned soda at Mick, Skye doing the same for Ward. 

"We figured you'd be making soot castles or throwing it at each other because you were upset we left you alone," Skye smirked as Ward shook his head. 

"No, we were working while you two were running your mouths," Ward said as Skye shot him a look, before sitting down pulling out her mini laptop from her bag she was carrying. 

"Actually; we were running simulations of the explosion using pictures I took before the medics showed up. Using those and the footage we have from the security camera we have a pretty solid idea theory of what happened," Skye gloated as she showed them the animation, which was quite impressive. "Also, it we much prefer to work in the AC that this heat." 

They watched as a hooded person walked into the crowded center of the garden like area, dropped a backpack pretty suspiciously, then pressed a few buttons on some kind of device on their arm, causing the camera to go into a fuzzy screen. The video shifted into a rendering of the area, when the backpack exploded it showed the large area of shrapnel as well as a large mushroom cloud of fire, turning all of the make shift people red that would've been injured, which was more than Mick could even count.

"But wait, if the blast was that big, how come there aren't any scorch marks on the buildings?" Ward asked as he pointed at the bricks of the surrounding buildings. 

"And a lot more casualties," Mick added.

"That's the part we were stuck on, we wanted to see if you two could help work that out," Skye responded. 

"Maybe it didn't go off quite as planned?" Ward suggested as Mick stood up walking to the edge of the crater before jumping down, then brushing his fingers in the powder that he once assumed was concrete mixing with who knows what at this point. He smelled his fingers, then crinkled his nose as the bitter smell of unfamiliar chemicals burned his nostrils. 

"They didn't use typical explosives. I don't know what this stuff is, but I know that it's not gunpowder," Mick called as Sam walked over curiously. 

"Can you get me a clean sample? Maybe we can test it at the lab," Sam suggested then tossed Mick a sealed test kit handed to her by Skye. 

"Ward, you said it was a team, but that guy, he didn't look like SHIELD to me, what about you?" Mick asked as he swabbed the area around him that he didn't touch yet. 

"It's too messy for them, they attack in much more calculated manners," Ward stared as Mick frowned. "As much as I'd love to have an easy target to point this at, I don't think we have one with this evidence." 

"If it wasn't SHIELD, then who would do something like this?" Skye asked as she glanced between Mick and Ward. Neither of which seemed quite sure how to answer. 

"Maybe this stuff can tell is," Mick said tossing the pack up to Ward.

"Hydra does have a lot of enemies, like SHIELD, the Rising Tide, Inhumans, but why attack a school and not a Hydra base?" Ward asked as Sam took the pack, sliding it into her purse. 

"I guess we'll get answers soon. Want to grab lunch before we head to the lab?" Sam asked as Skye nodded. 

"Sounds good to me," Mick said as Ward helped him out of the crater.

For a moment while on the road Mick could've sworn he saw Jerren and Davis in a passing car, but he wasn't sure enough to say anything. He debated on turning around and chasing them to find out for sure, but he didn't want to worry Ward who was following him with Sam and Skye in his black Jeep. If it is them, then why would they risk getting caught now? They have to know Hydra would be investigating. Patten is too smart of a strategist to lead a team into such a dangerous situation. Mick knew his old friends better than anyone would, or he wanted to believe that. Something just wasn't sitting right, Skye said a SHIELD recruit was shot in all of the chaos, why would they not only injure, but leave one of their own? Mick shook his head, giving up on solving the situation for the moment, instead focusing on getting a juicy burger from Big Easy Sports Bar.

As Mick walked in, he grabbed a booth, only for Sam and Ward to run to the restrooms, leaving only Skye to join him for the moment. He looked at her, his heart fluttered for a moment. He knew Skye fairly well after all of their time spent working together over the last few years, but something felt off, he could have sworn there was an unusual attraction he felt toward her. It was extremely off putting considering he had never looked at her in that way before, or at least not that he could remember. He had the perfect girl already in Samantha. What were these odd intrusive thoughts and where were they coming from?

"Why are you staring at me? Is there something on my face?" Skye asked pulling Mick back from his strange thoughts. 

"I-uh," Mick stammered as he shook his head unsure of how to answer. 

"Thinking about last night I'm sure," she said with a sly grin and wink. 

"What?" Mick blurred out, turning as red as the ketchup bottle on the table as Skye laughed.

"Don't worry she didn't give me all the juicy details, just that you were super romantic about everything," Skye teased as Mick slumped down in his seat.

"Are you two ready to order?" Mick had never been so grateful for a waitress to arrive in his life.

Mick watched as Sam worked, he was fascinated by her sheer brilliance. In the lab she seemed at peace, whereas in the field she was clearly uncomfortable. That wasn't always the case though. She was always quick to use her powers and fight by Mick's side until one mission, the one mission she hates talking about. The Doctor had sent them to destroy what was supposed to be an abandoned SHIELD facility, but it turned out to be a stronghold. They had kids of varying ages, which were presumed to be SHIELD operatives, some were much worse, they were Inhumans seeking asylum with the enemy. 

Mick and Sam were chosen to go due to their unique powers along with a black ops team to clear the place, only for it to be a slaughter. The SHIELD numbers were overwhelming combined with their team of Inhumans put them extremely outmatched. Mick and Sam barely escaped the bloody bath when the reinforcements arrived. The worse part of it all, the part that haunted both Mick and Sam, there was a girl with bouncing brown hair, sweet brown eyes, and about their age, begging Mick and Sam to join SHIELD and stop Hydra. Refusing to kill the girl despite her threatening demeanor, Sam urged her to come with them not even join Hydra, just leave the facility. The girl then tried to fight them, it was clear she wasn't trained for combat, but Sam still tried to save her until the girl surprisingly got the upper hand. She had Sam on the ground a holding a knife to her throat threatening to kill Sam if they refused to join her. Mick didn't have a choice, as bad as he wanted to save this girl, he had to save Sam. It was the last time he fatally shot a person. Sam was upset for weeks, the whole thing had shaken her to the core, Mick as well. That was his biggest regret since joining Hydra, her name was one he'd never forget; Jemma Simmons.

Sam began to cheer as she looked over her work. "It wasn't meant to be a fireball! This was designed as an injury inducing bomb! This powder must've been in the backpack!" Sam exclaimed as she pulled up results on the hologram. She then began spouting things that were very much over Mick's head using chemical formula's and such. "Sorry, I know, I get a little carried away when I get excited. Can you grab Grant and Skye, I need to run some more detailed simulations with her info." 

With a nod Mick left the lab, only to see Skye standing in the large foyer. "Where's Ward?" Mick asked as Skye spun around trying to hide her cup behind her back. 

"He's following a lead, said he'd be back later," Skye said as Mick shrugged. 

"Sam wants to run her findings with your simulation, I think I'm going to check a few leads as well, you two don't have too much fun while I'm gone," Mick said slyly as Skye walked passed him continuing to keep her cup out of sight. "You know, I don't care if you drink on the job, but just don't get caught by May." 

"What? Me break the rules, never," Skye's tone couldn't have been more sarcastic if she tried.

Mick stepped out of HQ, staring up at the evening sky. He couldn't quite shake the feeling that everything felt off, even the sky seemed wrong in some way. He brushed his hands through his hair, forgetting just how strong his gel was. "I've got to know if it was them, it's going to drive me crazy," he said to himself as his bike roared to life. The school's parking lot was empty now, which wasn't surprising given the time, but a good operative wouldn't park in an obvious spot. Mick followed the fence line until he reached the thicket of woods that Ward had told him about. He then glanced up at the tree's with a sense of nostalgia. He hadn't used his webbing to swing through tree's since he was a kid, but to get a good drop on anyone, he'd have to stay off the ground.

He swiftly navigated through the tree branches, until he noticed a jet black car tucked away with a man staring at a laptop set up on the hood. A warmth filled his heart as he started at the man. His untidy black hair with a hint of grays, his husky build, Mick recognized him with ease. "You can come down now," Patten's deep voice called out as Mick froze. "Yes Mick, I'm talking to you." 

Mick jumped down as Patten turned to him. "How did you know?" 

"You triggered an alarm on my drones when you parked your bike," Patten explained as Mick frowned. 

"Should've guessed you'd have a parameter set up." 

"Yeah, you should have. It's almost like you were warning us you were coming," Patten remarked turning back to his laptop. "What do you want? Here to turn us in to your precious Hydra?" 

"No, I'm here to see why you would attack a school. Depending on your answer, then I'll decide what to do next." 

"We didn't attack the school, we're here trying to figure out who did." Mick was taken back by the statement. He paced around a few times wrestling if that could be true, before groaning.

"Sam said the explosives weren't enough to cause that damage," Mick started only to pause hearing snapping twigs. 

"She's right, the bomb was a decoy," Davis said emerging from the woods with Jerren right behind him. 

"It was a set up, the dust was mixed with terrigen, and I'd bet the messenger was a suspected Inhuman," Jerren said as he refused to look at Mick. 

"But who would do something like that? That stuff is fatal to civi's in high doses," Mick asked as he began pacing once more.

"As if it's even a question Mick! Freaking Hydra!" Davis barked as Mick spun around glaring at him. 

"No! Hydra doesn't just attack like that! We put Inhumans in a facility called Asylum!" Mick growled as he and Davis braced for a fight. 

"Have you been to Asylum, Mick?" Jerren asked as Mick looked at him curiously. 

"No, why would I go there? I'm-" 

"Close enough to Inhuman," Davis interrupted.

"No, I-" 

"Have special powers that set you apart from Hydra's style of goon?" Jerren snapped to Mick's annoyance. "Are married to a woman with special, probable inhuman powers that Hydra overlooks because you're useful?"

"You're just jealous, just like you've always been!" Mick screamed. "I haven't been to Asylum and I don't care to go either!"

"Jealous of what? You and Sam having powers? You being pawns under Hydra's thumb? Your family not being mercilessly slaughtered like they were animals by Hydra? Tell me Mick, what am I jealous of?" Davis shoved Mick backwards then braced himself for a retaliation. Mick lashed out, grabbing Davis by his neck, squeezing tightly.

"Hydra doesn't do that! We protect people from vigilantes and threats like you!" Mick growled, then threw Davis backwards, knocking down Jerren, before he turned to Patten seeing his gun pointed directly at Mick. 

"I don't want to do this Mick, but if you do anything other than leave, I'll have no choice but to pull the trigger," Patten threatened as Mick's heart ached. "I'm serious, leave now. My drones will fire if you try anything but walk back to your bike." 

"Fine, but next time, I'll take you in. Even if it's in body bags. I'll hunt down every last SHIELD recruit and put an end to this pointless fighting," Mick growled as he turned in defeat. He grabbed his face as he walked away curious as to why a tear had fallen, was he just that angry? What was this pain he felt in his heart? None of that mattered now, he was going to return to the lab, maybe seeing Sam could cheer him up. She would probably be grateful for the intel he gathered as well, even if he had to leave out how he acquired it.