Arianna woke slowly from the deepest sleep she could ever remember. The arm curled under her pillow was all pins and needles and the stiffness in her back told her she'd been laying in one position for far too long. She rolled over and found Julian's side of the bed empty. Closing her eyes again, she tried to locate him with her thoughts but he was nowhere in the house. When sitting up made the room spin, she leaned back against the headboard until it settled down rubbing her eyes and thinking to herself *that's the last time I let Gervase fix the drinks*.

They'd had dinner with Gervase Blue and a new Cabal operative last night then come back to the house. Gervase had accepted coffee; but had conjured up a special night-cap for them to taste test. She remembered being very tired and saying goodnight to go upstairs around 10pm, leaving the men downstairs talking.

After a long, hot shower her eyes were somewhat more focused and she was a bit less off balance, but she couldn't shake the feeling that she'd been asleep forever. Wrapped in her thick terry robe, she went downstairs in search of food and a cup of tea and switched on the television. They were out of milk and Julian's car was gone.

When the voice on the Today show said "and here's the weather forecast for this Tuesday morning" and she nearly dropped the tea canister. Tuesday? Dinner with Gervase and what's his name had been on Sunday night. Switching to another channel's news program confirmed she was indeed missing a whole day.

By the time the toaster gave up it's burnt offering her stomach was already in so many knots she couldn't bring herself to face the singed muffin. Their resident squirrel scampered off happily with it while she drank her sweetened tea.

Deciding to go back up the stairs and get dressed, she entered the walk in closet and stopped dead in her tracks. One half of the room was empty - all Julian's suits and shirts, normally so neatly arranged by colour and style, were gone. His luggage was gone, the pairs of shoes that were always carefully matched and lined up along the shelf below the suits were gone.

In the bedroom she checked the bureau drawers, most of them were empty. Even the armoire in the guestroom that usually held a rainbow of silk shirts and the one brown flannel, was bare. Adding to her distress, her favourite bang around shirt, the green plaid rugby he'd given her, was missing.

Arianna ran a hand through her hair, the same gesture she'd seen Julian use a hundred times when frustrated. Mechanically, she pulled on a sweater, then began looking for the note. He had to have left a note.

After two hours of going through the house with a fine toothed comb she'd found no trace of a note, or anything out of the ordinary for that matter, except that everything personal of Julian's was gone from the house. Calling his cellphone had resulted in a recorded message that no such number was currently in service.

Her next thought had been the computer - but when she switched on his desktop model, all its files had been sanitised and the hard drive reformatted. She tried to download their Cabal mail from her laptop but the account denied her password. She'd tried to phone headquarters but had been disconnected after the third attempt at keying in her passcode.

Next she'd tried to call Jacob, on the odd chance that he might know where Julian had gone, only to find from his teaching assistant that he was on sabbatical for a six month trek to Nepal. Maddy Grant was similarly away at a medical conference in Utah, and Dawson's shop phone lines had been disconnected.

"I don't believe this," she muttered to herself as she hung up the phone after listening to Anne's answering machine message that she was off on a photo shoot and wouldn't be back until Friday.

Trying headquarters once more, she ignored the recorded request to press one if you were calling from a touch tone phone and finally got connected to information services where an unfamiliar voice stonewalled her from speaking to anyone directly.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Blue is not available at present," the voice answered tersely.

"Let me talk to the Quartermaster then."

"That's not possible."

"Look, my liaison Julian Seven is missing - something strange is going on and I need to talk to someone." Arianna winced at the sound of panic creeping into her own voice.

"I'm sorry, but I show no records of a Julian Seven in this department, I think you have the wrong number." After that there was a loud click and a dialtone on the other end of the line. She tried to fight back the lump rising in her throat, but failed, remembering how she and Julian had spent a week eradicating any trace of Hamilton after he'd been killed.

Still feeling weak and disoriented, and now too stunned and confused to think clearly, she went back upstairs and flopped face down onto the bed, burying her face into his pillow and let her emotions get the best of her.

* * *

Julian thought he smelled tea but cursed when he rolled over and bumped his elbow on a wall that shouldn't have been beside their bed. He opened one eye and peeked around at the unfamiliar room, big window covered with miniblinds, a potted fern, entertainment centre, writing desk, small table and two chairs, all the trimmings of the company 'spa', a place not well rated in his memory.

"Good afternoon, I was beginning to think you were never going to wake up." He sat up and turned to see Gervase Blue standing in the small kitchenette with a teapot in one hand and a plate of biscuits in the other.

"What the hell am I doing here, and where's Arianna?"

"All in good time, I'll explain when you've woken up completely. I'd recommend a hot shower, you've been out for nearly a day and a half."

"What are you talking about? We all had dinner together just last night. Where is she?"

"She's quite safe. Check the date on your watch, or on this." Gervase tossed him the newspaper and he squinted to read 'Tuesday afternoon edition'.

Julian ran a hand through his hair and rubbed the side of his forehead. "Just what *did* you put in those night-caps?"

"Oh just something experimental we wanted to test," he grinned slyly. "Trust me, it's for your own safety. Go get cleaned up and I'll tell you what's going on over some food."

"Oh right, how many times have I heard that before." Julian muttered as he reached to the coffee table to retrieve his wallet and the black drawstring pouch he'd had in his trouser pocket.

As much as he hated to admit it, Gervase was right, the hot shower did help him clear the cobwebs out of his head, but he couldn't untie the knots in his stomach worrying about Arianna, safe or not, it made him uneasy being separated from her without knowing why.

"Your clothes are in the bedroom." Gervase nodded to the partly open door to the other room of the suite. When Julian entered the room he saw all of his luggage and several cardboard boxes piled in the corner. As he tucked a blue chambray shirt into his black denim jeans, he could feel his blood pressure rising.

"What the bloody hell have you done?" was all he could say when he returned to the living room.

"Sit down and have a spot of tea while I fill you in."

"I'm not interested in tea, I just want an explanation, and it better be a damned good one."

"All right, there's been a breach of security in information services. Someone has hacked their way into the Cabal archives and downloaded some top level files."

"What files?"

"That doesn't matter, they were well protected files and their security net has been compromised - they think they've found out who broke into the network but we need to find out who they were working for."

"And just what does this have to do with us?"

"Some of your files were compromised."

"And?"

"That's all."

"You know I detest liars Gervase, tell me the rest."

"All right, there's a possibility that it may have been Arianna that hacked into the system. It's believed by some that she's working for the Opposition."

"That's a damned lie. I know about Klaus' research files, she hacked into them a while back to try and help me."

"There are other files as well. Look Julian, I know you're fond of her, but we have to find out whose side she's on before we can go forward."

"I'm not just 'fond' of her, we've been together more than a year, and I know precisely what she would and wouldn't do. She's risked her own life to save mine time and again. Now tell me exactly what you've done!"

"We just removed you from her life - when she wakes up, she'll find no trace of you in the house. If she tries to call headquarters, they'll deny knowledge of a Julian Seven, and her access to the company will be monitored. Think of it as an experiment, we want to see where she'll turn for help when the usual channels are closed."

"This is intolerable - I won't let you do this to her."

"I'm sorry to say you don't have a choice old boy, I'm not the one in charge, I was just nominated as the messenger, and if you try to leave here, you'll be signing her termination order."

"You can't be serious."

"You either co-operate with this little experiment, or chose a new partner. If she passes the test, things will go back to the way they were before, if not, you'll have a new partner anyway. Sounds like a no lose situation for you, besides isn't it about time for you to be moving on anyway? You've never kept a partner this long before."

Julian clasped his fingers into fists and tried to fight back the urge to wipe that smug look off the other man's face. "You don't know what you're talking about Gervase."

"I never thought I'd have to say this to you, but you're letting your emotions cloud your judgement, she's just another one of your many conquests." That was the last straw, before he realised what he was doing, Julian was on his feet and had grabbed Gervase by the throat, knocking him out of his chair and pinning him against the wall in a choke hold. With one arm trapped behind him and the other held firmly in Julian's grip, Gervase could do nothing but struggle to breathe against the hand that was crushing his windpipe.

* * *

"This isn't accomplishing anything, get a grip," Arianna whispered to herself as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. When she rolled off the bed and reached for his pillow to remove it's now soggy case, it tumbled out of her hands to the floor. Bending down to pick it up, she noticed something wedged between the bed and the nightstand. It was a bit of a struggle, but she finally managed to get a hold of it, and found the Chinese puzzle box Julian had kept from the library in his family home in England. Taking the box with her down to his study she flipped through her address book one more time trying to find anyone that might be able to help solve the mystery of the disappearing Julian with no luck.

Suddenly feeling terribly cold and alone, it reminded her of that night she didn't know where to look when drugged and wounded, he'd wandered off from the hospital after Dr. Klaus had attacked him. At least that time, their ability to sense each other's emotions had led her to find him. Her mood brightened a bit when she remembered Detective Lewis, he'd been a sympathetic ear that night and was experienced enough to know when not to ask questions that couldn't be answered. Rummaging through her collection of miscellaneous notes and bits of paper, she found the business card he'd given her, with his private number scribbled on the back.

"Detective Lewis, it's Arianna, Arianna MacDuff........ Oh good, you do remember us....... well, it's not really official, just very strange ....... that's why I'm calling you, he's gone missing again and all trace of him seems to have been erased, I need someone to talk to - off the record, can I meet you somewhere for lunch?....... Great, one o'clock it is, I'll meet you there."

*At least there's one other person in town that remembers him,* she thought with a sigh as she clutched the inlaid wood puzzle box in her nervously shaking hands. He'd been surprised when she'd figured out how to open it that first day they were at the country house, and had joked about never hiding anything valuable in the box. When she turned it over, she thought she heard a faint clunk and shaking it gently confirmed that there was indeed something inside.

Remembering exactly which panel to press and what design to slide took her a few minutes but finally the hidden compartment at the side released and she opened the drawer to find a small green silk pouch. Inside was a pendant, a thin cylinder of blackish-green tourmaline, unpolished but smooth sided. It was like the ones they'd seen in the gem and mineral exhibit at the British Museum, except this one was gold wire wrapped and embellished with a rainbow moonstone cabochon. Where the crystal was dark and ominous, the moonstone was full of fire and life. Under the pendant was a small bit of folded paper, all it said was ' you found me, well done!' but the handwriting was unmistakably Julian's.

Arianna unclasped the Celtic cross necklace she'd worn since he gave it to her in Eastern Europe and added the dark crystal pendant onto the chain, as she tucked it back inside her sweater she felt a strange warmth radiating outward from the touch of the crystal against her skin. Jacob had once lectured on the power and effects of various types of minerals, but except for visiting the ring of Druid stones with Julian, she'd never experienced anything like this before.

* * *

"Don't you ever talk about her like that." Julian growled through clenched teeth. They'd know each other long enough that he could read the glimmer of fear in Gervase's eyes. There was no doubt he was aware that he'd overstepped his bounds and that he knew exactly what Julian was capable of when pushed too far.

Gervase tried to speak but coughed instead and just nodded before Julian let go and allowed him regain his breath. "I, ugh, I'm sorry, that was uncalled for."

Too angry to speak, Julian took a deep breath and turned his back to Gervase, then went into the bathroom to try and calm down. Times like that when he lost control of his anger sometimes scared even himself. He sat on the edge of the tub and closed his eyes, trying to concentrate, giving up when he realised he didn't even know which of the several company 'spas' he was at. As strong as his connexion with Arianna was, it couldn't possibly traverse however many miles it was to wherever this place could possibly be.

Silently, he chided himself for not having been suspicious when Gervase had shown up and invited them out to dinner. Agents didn't normally just drop in to visit. Residence locations were only available to top level security, but his cover story of wanting them to meet Pierce had been convincing, and he had suggested their favourite restaurant. After some time, when he once again felt in control of his temper, he splashed some cold water on his face and went out to apologise for attacking someone he usually considered a friend.

Gervase was sitting at the table, rubbing his throat. Laid out in front of him was his gun and a pair of handcuffs. "Are those for me?" Julian asked.

"Not yet," Gervase answered hoarsely.

"I'm sorry, I realise you're just doing your job, but you can't know what she is to me.."

"I think you've done a bit to convince me. I'd heard there was a change in you over this past year but I had no idea how strong that change really was... until now."

"I can't stand to think of her being put through this experiment without knowing what's going on. I remember what I went through that night we thought she was dead, I almost ended it all."

"She really means that much to you?"

"She's everything." Julian whispered.

* * *

Det. Louis Lewis was early, he'd told her one o'clock but when he had the chance to duck out of the station at 12:30 he'd gone. Things had been crazy for the last few weeks so when the opportunity came up to take the rest of the week off, he jumped at the chance. Now, sitting in his car in front of the diner, he took another look through the thin folder he'd brought with him. There was no official report filed the night of the 'incident' when he'd met Arianna but he'd done a little digging of his own when they were trying to identify her injured companion. The ownership of the house had tracked back through a spider's web of holding companies and false names, and registration of his car was even harder to pin down. Whoever the guy was, his identity had been cleverly, and thoroughly concealed. He'd been involved in a similar situation once before, when he was still working in Los Angeles.

He'd been on the S.W.A.T. team two boring months when finally they were sent to handle a hostage situation at LAX, some loony was holding seven air traffic controllers in the airport tower. They were all ready to storm the place when some bigwig pulled the plug and made them stand around for hours before they finally got the go ahead to take the guy out. After everything was taken care of, all the records were sealed and everyone reassigned and sworn to secrecy. He never had found out who exactly was in charge that day but he did remember someone complaining about some arrogant Brit. calling the shots.

"Lou, thanks for coming, I just needed to find someone to tell me I'm not crazy, that Julian really does exist." Arianna smiled weakly at him.

"Who?" he laughed until he saw the look of alarm on her face, then he apologised. "I'm sorry, bad joke. Come on, you look like you could use some food. I'll buy you lunch and you can tell me what's up."

"None of it makes any sense Lou, I don't know what I can tell you." She played with the crunchy noodles on her oriental chicken salad while he poured ketchup onto a jumbo sirloin burger with onions and French fries.

"You can tell me anything, I'm off duty the rest of the week and don't worry, this is 110% off the record. Remember when we first met I told you I used to work in LA? I've worked on "No Questions" jobs before."

"I appreciate that, thanks. Well, we went to dinner Sunday night with a friend of Julian's and a new, lets say employee, then we went back to the house. Julian's friend made us night-caps, while I made him a coffee, he's always coming up with new recipes. The next thing I remember is waking up this morning. All his clothes and personal belongings are gone from the house. His computer has been wiped clean and when I tried to phone our employer they denied any knowledge of him. Everyone else I can think of that knows us both is either out of the country or unreachable for one reason or another. It's all just too convenient. Someone's gone to an awful lot of trouble to try and gaslight me."

"I don't know how much help I can be, I never saw him awake remember? All I had was your word that his name was Julian."

"Is Julian, not was please. Julian Oliver S...Seven, Julian Seven." Arianna paused, catching herself from revealing his real last name, even though she felt sure Lou could be trusted. He's British, and we've been working together for over a year." She was trying to stay calm, but she could hear the edge of panic starting to creep back into her voice.

"And?"

"And what?" she asked, pushing a mandarin orange section around the perimeter of her plate and avoiding looking directly at him.

"I've never seen anyone so torn up over a missing partner before, he's more to you than just that isn't he?"

"Yes," she whispered.

"Well the least I can do is take care of you in his absence - we're not going anywhere until you finish that food. Now eat, that's an order."

* * *

Julian had spent the last hour going through the boxes and suitcases to see just how thorough they'd been in removing traces of him from the house. In the box from the bedroom, he'd found everything from his bureau and bedside table except the puzzle box. Hoping she'd find the hidden treasure soon, he smiled slyly and fingered the small suede pouch that was now in his shirt pocket.

"Gervase, just who packed my belongings?"

"Pierce did most of the packing while I sanitised your computer. Don't worry, I've got the backup to rebuild your files. Why?" Gervase appeared at the bedroom door with his cell-phone in hand.

"Did he actually think this was mine?" Julian turned to face him, dangling a white silk sleeping gown by its spaghetti straps.

"Well, some of the drawers he wasn't sure of, so he took all the contents." His phone rang at that moment so Gervase went to the other room to take the call, leaving Julian to continue rummaging through the cartons. When he saw the green plaid flannel rugby shirt, he smiled to himself, at least when she found her favourite shirt missing, she'd know *he* hadn't done the packing.

"Who?...... How the hell did the police get mixed up in this?....... All right then, keep me informed." Gervase put down the phone and turned to look at Julian as he came back to the living room. "What kind of terms are you on with the local constabulary in Hastings?"

"Why?"

"She's at the Sherwood Diner with a Detective Lewis. We don't know anything about him, he's not on any assignment, just suddenly took the rest of the week off."

"Lewis, Lewis, the name rings a bell, but I can't quite place why." Julian ran a hand through is hair and paced across the room. He hated this waiting.

"You haven't gotten any parking tickets, or broken any speeding laws have you?"

"No, wait, broken - that's it! The night Klaus attacked me Arianna said someone had called the police before she got home. The Quartermaster talked to the officer in charge before any paperwork was officially filed and he took care of damage control." Julian had only snatches of memories from that night but the cuts on his arm from falling through the sliding glass door he did remember.

"How much does he know about the two of you?"

"I'm not sure, I don't think I ever actually met him. Thanks to whatever drugs Klaus injected me with, most of that night is just a blur. I think Ari mentioned he helped her get me upstairs after I'd slugged her and then passed out at the park, so I suppose he was back at the house for some time."

"Can he be trusted?"

"Arianna's got a good instinct for reading people, she seems to sense their true character even though they may be putting up a front, she saw through me right from the start."

"That's a rather impressive talent." Gervase almost cracked a smile.

"If I'd listened to her on that first assignment in San Francisco, we'd have avoided all that trouble with Jackson, she said from the beginning he was lying but I didn't think so. Since then I've learned. If she trusts this Detective Lewis, that's enough for me."

"Well, I want to have research check him out first."

"Meanwhile, I'm supposed to just sit here and wait?"

"No, you can go anywhere on the grounds if you want - just don't try to leave." The other man picked up his cell-phone and started dialling the number of headquarters as once more Julian felt himself wanting to throttle the stone faced Mr. Blue.

"Next time you need help Gervase, you can just go to hell."

"I've already been there, we both have, remember?"

Their separate yet similar experiences with the Opposition were what had created the bond of friendship between the two men. Julian felt a cold shudder go through him when he remembered it was only when the Quartermaster had forced them both to open up and talk to each other about what had been done to them that either of them came back from near the breaking point. He'd told Arianna parts of what happened in South America, but only Gervase knew the full extent of the brutality and degrading humiliation he'd suffered in those two months of hell so many years ago.

Hoping to find some way to work off the urge to take the gun from the table and use it on Gervase, he decided to go for a walk. "I'm going to the gym, I suppose there is one here?"

"Of course," Gervase nodded, then turned back to the phone. "This is Blue...... I need you to run a check for me..... Louis Lewis, Detective, Hastings NY police department." He pointed to the left indicating which way to go when Julian looked back from the outer door after glancing once more at the handcuffs and gun laying on the table.

A quick walk around the perimeter of the place confirmed what he'd imagined, all the Cabal 'spas' were virtually identical. Totally anonymous as far as identifying marks and characteristics. A person could be transferred from one to another and never even know they'd been moved.

The staff was well trained to keep out of sight and avoid any questions if encountered, and the only clue Julian could find was that the trees were nearly bare - given the time of year, and judging from the colour of the leaves, he guessed they were somewhere in New England. He remembered that there were locations in Maine, Vermont, and Connecticut.

Finding a small secluded courtyard he sat down on a granite stone bench and reached into his pocket for the suede pouch. Untying the drawstring, he took out the dark cylinder of stone and held it up to the light.

* * *

"Satisfied now?" she asked as she swallowed the last bit of lettuce from her oriental salad. She'd thought she was too upset for food, but once he'd made her start eating, the salad had tasted wonderful, and it had helped drive away the slightly light-headed and off balance feeling.

"Now we'll have coffee and dessert," he answered smugly as he waved to the waitress.

"I'd prefer tea thanks."

"One coffee, one tea and two slices of that apple crumb pie with ice cream please," he ordered.

"Lemon or milk in the tea?" the young girl asked, looking back and forth between them as if she was watching a tennis match.

"Neither thanks - black is fine," Arianna answered. She began idly fiddling with her necklace while they waited for their dessert to arrive. In her jewellery box, she'd found a longer chain for the tourmaline crystal so that it could hang outside her sweater collar.

"Now, lets go over what you remember one more time. You had dinner with Julian and who on Sunday night?"

"A friend of his that we've worked with before, and a new employee he said he wanted us to meet. I don't remember his name, he pretty much just sat there like a scared rabbit. I think he was a bit intimidated by the two of them, they can get into some pretty heated discussions at times. Ow!" she suddenly dropped the crystal and rubbed her fingers.

"What happened?" he asked with a worried look.

"What?"

"You dropped your necklace as if it had burned you or something."

"Uhm, no, ah, the edge is sharp, I think I may have cut myself. I'll just go to the rest room and wash it off, I'll be right back." She didn't want to tell him the truth. The feeling she'd gotten from the crystal was like a sudden electric shock that had startled her more than it actually hurt. Behind the locked door of the restroom, she cautiously touched it again and found there was a familiar warmth in the sensation. Once she became used to the tingly feeling, she clutched the pendant firmly in her hand and closed her eyes.

* * *

Julian smiled when he opened his eyes. The resonant vibrations he'd felt holding the crystal meant that she'd found the half of it he'd had made into a pendant and hidden in the puzzle box for her. It had been waiting there for three months and he was extremely glad she'd found it now. Jacob had been right when he'd theorised that tourmaline might amplify their connexion. Though still too far away to be able to read her exact thoughts, he at least knew she was all right, although still very upset. Depositing the crystal back in its pouch, he turned and walked quickly back to the bungalow to put an end to this little 'experiment'.

"I've had enough of this Gervase, let me talk to the Quartermaster." When Julian came back from his walk, Gervase had been in the kitchen making a cup of tea, now Julian was between him and the table where he'd left his gun and the handcuffs.

"I can't officially *let* you."

"At the moment you don't have much of a choice do you?" he kept his eyes on Gervase pouring the hot water into the teapot while he reached back with his left hand to pick up the handcuffs.

"I was hoping eventually you'd think of that, I'm surprised it's taken this long old boy."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see when you call in, just cuff me to the radiator or something first so I can claim I couldn't have stopped you." He offered the cell phone to Julian as he sat back at the table with his mug of tea.

"Still up to your old tricks Gervase? Blanks in the gun as well?"

"Of course, with your marksmanship qualification you don't think I'd risk that do you?"

"Why?"

"This little experiment was as much a test for you as for her. We had to find out just how far you'd go for her, just how close the two of you really were. I had my suspicions after Vermont, but no proof, and nobody has seen that much of you two in the last few months to be able to confirm, or deny, the rumours."

"What rumours?"

"Come on," Gervase laughed, "Julian Seven keeping one partner for over a year, and you ask me what rumours? People started talking behind your back when you'd been with her only a couple of months. Keeping her Manhattan apartment was a good decoy, what did she do crosswire the phone to transfer incoming calls to your place?"

Julian quirked half a grin and chuckled. "Well, that is one of her many talents."

"Don't worry, the Q has been known to 'bend' the rules on occasion, and it's quite apparent the two of you belong together, we just needed to be sure." Julian seemed to relax a bit as he turned the handcuffs over and over in his hands. "Oh, and Lewis is clean by the way. In fact, he's worked with you in the past."

"That's not possible." Julian scowled slightly, shaking his head.

"Do you remember a hostage situation in Los Angeles? When you were on loan to the Committee that last time?" Gervase asked.

"No, I've remembered odds and bits, but thanks to the good doctor, most of that year is still a blank."

"Well, it seems Lewis was part of the S.W.A.T. Team you kept twiddling their thumbs waiting for the go ahead. After his wife died of cancer, he transferred to Hastings for a quieter lifestyle. I spoke to a friend on the force, he's a good man, and he understands the concept of 'no questions'. We may actually try to recruit him."

"I told you she had good instincts." Julian smirked.

"Go on, make the call, we've got a long ride to take you home."

* * *

"Do you think she'll be angry when you tell her about the experiment?" Gervase asked as they turned onto the throughway.

"I'm not going to be the one to tell her, you are Gervase." Julian smiled wryly.

"Will she be angry?"

"I'll tell you when we get closer to Hastings."

"What do you mean?"

"Nevermind, just step on it, it's getting late." Julian sighed and closed his eyes, enjoying every minute of making Gervase squirm with worry at facing Arianna's wrath.

When they pulled into the driveway, there was a black Taurus parked next to Arianna's car. Julian recognised the look of an unmarked police car immediately. He'd finally been able to communicate telepathically with her for the last 5 miles of their trip and had already told her what happened, but this opportunity was too good to pass up. The surprise she was going to have waiting for Gervase would be worth any reprimand they'd have to face later.

"Well?" Gervase asked nervously.

"Well what?"

"What sort of mood is she going to be in?"

"I'm not really sure, you'll have to go in and see - let me know when the coast is clear, I'll be unloading the car."

"You bastard, you're going to let me face the lioness alone?"

"That's right, it's been nice knowing you old boy." As Gervase cautiously went up to the side door of the house, Julian had to look away to keep from laughing at the image of Ari and Det. Lewis both sitting inside with their guns aimed at the door.