Wednesday Afternoon
Jim's Truck, headed for the Cascade Police Dept.

"Whew. That was interesting." Blair commented as Jim maneuvered his truck into its usual parking space in the police department garage. "No one suspected that he was so unbalanced."

Jim shut the engine off before he answered. "Unbalanced enough to commit two murders. Just because he thought they were government spies sent to watch him when the aliens came to take him home. We'll do well if the case even goes to trial. I wouldn't be surprised if the DA goes straight to having him committed." He got out of the truck, wincing as he and Blair closed the truck doors at the same time.

"Not so hard on the door. Okay, Sandburg?" The Sentinel asked, rubbing at his forehead.

"You okay, Jim?" Blair asked, watching his partner with concern.

"I'm fine, just a bit of a headache. The door just sounded really loud when you closed it. Probably because the sound echoes down here."

"You've had the dials cranked up most of the day, haven't you?" Blair asked, knowing the answer before Jim said it. Between checking out the building for the conference and then at Tillman's apartment, the Sentinel had been going most of the day without a real break.

Jim nodded, stepping into the elevator.

Blair followed. He punched the button for the seventh floor waiting for the doors to slide closed. "Now, we've got seven floors to get the dials down a bit." His tone didn't leave room for argument and he was pleased when his partner quickly agreed. "You know the drill, man. Close your eyes and even out your breathing."

Jim allowed the voice of his Guide to wash over him, leading him through a short but effective exercise to get his senses under control again.

As the elevator stopped and the doors opened, Jim took a deep breath willing the last pangs of his headache to fade. "Thanks, Chief." He said gratefully.

"You're welcome."

Wednesday afternoon
Major Crimes Bullpen

"While we have a few spare minutes, I'm going to check the Yahoo account for the Rothchild case." Blair told his partner.

"Good idea, Chief." Jim nodded as he paged through a thick file of his own. "We should have an answer back on where the next drop is, right?"

"Hopefully. If our contact got back to us." Blair turned his attention to his computer while Jim continued to fight with another report.

"Ellison! Sandburg!" Simon's loud voice unexpectedly cut through the office noises causing several people, not just Jim and Blair, to look up sharply. The police Captain didn't sound angry, but his detectives responded quickly to his summons.

Once in Simon's office, both men propped against the large conference table that took up a portion of the room. "How did it go at Tillman's?" Simon asked without preamble.

"Fine, Sir." Jim answered, glancing at Blair and seeing that his partner had noticed the worried look on Simon's face. "He was there and was quite cordial to us. The only problem we had was when we told him it was time to go." Jim paused.

"It seems as though he was waiting for something." Blair took up the story.

"Waiting for what?" Simon asked.

"The aliens who were supposed to be picking him up to go home." Blair answered, pleased that he managed to keep from laughing out loud.

"What?"

"Aliens." Jim confirmed. "He said that he didn't kill the two neighbors, that the aliens from the ship killed them because they were government agents sent to prevent him from returning home."

"You're not serious." Simon asked, amazed at the tale.

"Well at least he was serious. The uniforms took him in and I imagine that he's going to need lots of mental testing before this one even goes to trial."

"Oh... the DA is going to love it." Simon sighed. "At least it's out of our hands. We've got enough evidence to pin it on him without a doubt.

"I still need a report on your check of security preparations for the Tech Conference, but first you have to see this." Simon handed the two detectives several pages of a fax.

The room was silent for several moments as they read the contents. Then the silence was broken by a soft gasp from Blair followed by an outburst from Jim.

"What? Lee Brackett, a rogue CIA agent, disappears from his cell and no one thinks to inform the authorities until two weeks later?" Jim demanded.

"Read on." Simon encouraged, his agitation clear in his voice. "It gets better at the part where the Feds are reluctant to call it an escape. But they're saying he wasn't officially released either." The captain shook his head with a sigh. "You should have heard the conversation I had with several Federal agents. When they weren't shuffling my call from office to office, the agents I did talk to performed a tap dance to rival Riverdance."

"Where do they think he's headed?" Jim asked, putting the report back on Simon's desk. "Or did they say? To admit that might be admitting that they let him get away."

Simon sat back in his chair. "I was assured that he had no reason to come back to Cascade," he said, a hint of sarcasm coloring his voice.

"So is that why the Feds didn't tell anyone? They didn't think he'd come back here?" Blair asked. "Although I like the idea that they just didn't want to admit that he got away from them, that sounds like the FBI we know and love. Do they have any idea how he got out?"

"No." Simon shook his head. "Or if they do, they're not telling."

"He does have a reason for coming to Cascade." Blair said quietly.

"You think he'll be looking for revenge for what happened when he used Jim to go after the fighter plane?" Simon said. "I don't see him as the revenge type. As I remember, when we took him into custody, he didn't seem to place blame on you or Jim for his failure, he seemed almost respectful that you'd gotten the better of him."

"No, not revenge." Blair pushed away from the table and walked over to the window before turning to look at his partner. "But he does have a reason for coming to Cascade. Especially if he still has an interest in high-tech items."

Jim watched his partner. "You're thinking he'll hit at the conference?"

"I think it's a good possibility. After all, Tech-Pros will be announcing their newest chip, more powerful and faster than anything anyone else has. Of course he'll be interested.

"And not just that one chip." Blair continued walking around the police captain's office. "For the next four days, Cascade is playing host to what has been called a high-tech Comdex that features the latest and best in computer world. Not only a powerful new chip, but there are other companies expected to unveil their newest products. The FBI and CIA don't think that a rogue CIA agent would be interested in that?"

Jim agreed. "He's good a point, Simon. Four years ago Brackett was after a prototype military plane and was willing to take out a city to get it. It's a very real possibility that Brackett could be headed for Cascade again."

Simon studied his best detective team. "Do you really think Brackett would come back to Cascade and go after the Tech-Pro chip?"

The Sentinel and Guide looked at each other, silently asking themselves the same question. Blair gave his partner a small nod and turned back to the window that overlooked Cascade.

"Yes, Sir." Jim answered for the both of them, his voice serious. "We do."

Wednesday Night
The Loft

"Here, Chief. You look like you could use this." Jim handed his roommate a cup of hot tea and then settled down on the other end of the sofa, his hands wrapped around an equally hot cup of coffee.

Blair took a cautious sip of the hot liquid. "Thanks, man." He closed his eyes and let his head rest against the soft cushions. "So do you think Simon really believes us?" He asked, breaking the silence between them.

"About Brackett? Maybe. He'd rather not believe us. I know I'm hoping we're wrong. I tried to explain to him later that it's just a really strong feeling that he's going to try for the chip at the conference."

"It's too coincidental and I'd rather not believe in coincidences." Blair said, sitting up to drink some more of his tea. "Everything has a purpose. Like your mom showing up a month ago."

"Blair, please. I don't want to talk about that tonight." Jim sighed.

In the six weeks since Grace's appearance, Blair had tried to talk to Jim about the older man's strong reaction to her arrival. She had claimed to want to get to know her sons and Jim had all but shoved her out the door of the loft. Since then she had seemingly disappeared.

"But what if she really wants to make up for leaving?" Blair asked. "She may have had her reasons and wants to explain them."

"Then she's several decades too late. Where was she when Steven or I was sick or hurt? When Dad had business meetings and Sally looked after us? When we needed a mother, she was nowhere around. I'm not interested in her excuses." Jim took a drink of his cooling coffee and stared out the glass doors into the growing darkness.

The silence between the two men stretched out over several minutes.

"I'm sorry, Jim." Blair's voice was soft as he spoke. "I shouldn't push and didn't really mean to." His voice trailed off.

"It's okay." Jim turned so that he was facing his friend. "I'm sorry I snapped. It's a sore topic with me and always has been. Maybe someday it won't hurt so much, but it's been a long time and the pain is still there."

Early Friday Morning
The Loft

The shrill ring of the telephone woke both members of the loft. Blair finally gave up on ignoring the intrusive sound and moved to crawl out of bed. Just as his feet touched the floor the ringing stopped. Deciding that either his roommate had answered it or the caller gave up, he slid back under the warm covers.

"Get up, Sandburg!" Jim's voice called out. "No sleeping in today!"

"You're no fun." Blair grumbled. "I bet you never slept in when you were a kid. Every morning you were up at the crack of dawn. Even on Saturdays."

"Of course not, I'd miss the Saturday morning cartoons if I did." Jim grinned at Blair who was not quite stumbling out of his bedroom. As Blair settled on a stool at the counter, Jim pushed a coffee cup towards him. "Here. You drink while I shower."

"So what's the rush?" Blair asked, then took a sip of the hot liquid.

"That was Simon on the phone. Alderman arrived at the convention center this morning and we're to meet him and Simon there as soon as possible."

"Why?"

"Someone broke in last night after his speech and stole the new Tech-Pro 2001 chip." Jim answered as he closed the door to the bathroom.

Blair stared at the closed door then gazed into his coffee cup. "Oh yeah. It's going to be a grand New Year's."

"Sandburg!" Jim Ellison called out, impatience coloring his voice.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Blair dashed out of his room, pulling a red flannel shirt over a long sleeve Henley. "Can't a guy finish getting dressed before you shove him out the door?"

Jim watched his partner button up the layers of clothing. "You are dressed. Several times over, in fact. Simon said he wanted us there as soon as possible."

Blair stopped to put his jacket on over the layers of shirts and scooped up his backpack. "I'm ready!" He announced with a grin.

Jim shook his head not wanting to slow them down by pointing out that Blair's long hair was falling from the leather tie. If he said anything, he figured Blair would stop and get the curls under control before he left. Deciding to wait till they were in the truck, Jim pulled open the front door.

"Good morning, gentlemen." A familiar voice pleasantly greeted them.

Jim and Blair stared at the man in front of them, hesitating only a fraction of a second before reaching for their weapons. The movement stopped as Lee Brackett held up a hand holding a gun, covering the two of them.

"Careful Detectives." Brackett motioned them back into the loft, following them in and closing the door behind him. "I just want to talk."

Blair stood slightly behind Jim, a vague sense of deja vu running through him. The first time they had a similar talk with Brackett, the three of them had stood in almost the same positions. Only this time there wasn't a convenient lamp to cover their movements. Besides, the rogue agent would most likely expect such a move.

"What do you want, Brackett?" Jim asked, his voice low and dangerous.

"I'd like to propose a business deal."

"A business deal?" Blair repeated incredulously.

"Yes, Mr. Sandburg. A business deal." Brackett stood at ease, the gun aimed steadily at the two roommates. "Or rather, I should say Detective Sandburg. I heard all about the dissertation circus a year and a half ago. That was quite a stir, even where I was staying."

The one time CIA agent smiled at Blair. "Oh yes, quite the story. Only I know what the real lie was. We both know that Detective Ellison here is a full-fledged Sentinel. I actually thought about coming forward to support your thesis."

"So why didn't you?" Jim asked, watching Brackett and the gun carefully.

Blair stared at his partner. "Jim!"

"No really, I want to know." Jim pressed, anger in his voice. "Although I can guess why he didn't come forward. Like any good agent he knew he might get out someday and that when he did, he could use us again, holding his secret over us."

Brackett smiled. "You used to be Covert Ops, you know how the system works. Of course I didn't want to use my special trump card. I knew someday I'd have need of it and that day is now."

"No."

"No, Detective Ellison?" Brackett asked, his amusement in his tone.

"No. I won't let you hold that over Blair. He's been through enough over that business and I won't let you use it against him."

"Jim." Blair stepped closer to his partner. "Don't do this."

Brackett stepped forward, motioning with the gun. "I hate to break up this highly touching scene, but I don't want to overstay my welcome."

"Too late." Blair muttered.

Brackett continued, as though not hearing the young man. "I'm interested in a laser. A particular high-powered laser, I'm told, that requires only a single computer chip to arm and control it. The chip comes from only one source and I already have a source for the chip. What I need is the laser."

"The Tech-Pro 2001 Chip." Blair said.

"You've heard of it then?" Brackett took a step backwards towards the door. "Efficient design. Very powerful. So is the laser that's designed to operate with the chip."

"What are you talking about?" Blair asked, ignoring Jim's look of annoyance. "The Chip isn't designed for laser weaponry. It's a computer chip or at least that's what I thought."

"It's a multi-purpose chip, Detective, and can be configured for various uses. It's very powerful and once programmed, it cannot be erased. That's the beauty of it, it's very dependable and quite indestructible." Brackett took another step backwards so that he stood right at the loft door. At the same time he reached into his pocket and pulled out a round object. "I'm sorry, that's all the time I have at the moment. Detectives Ellison and Sandburg, I'll be in touch."

He threw the object in his hand and it hit the floor with a burst of light and smoke. Jim cried out as the bright light momentarily blinded him. Blair moved towards his partner.

"Go!" Jim shouted as he sank to his knees. "Get Brackett!" At his partner's urging, Blair dashed out the door to find that Brackett was gone and there was no trace of which way he'd gone.

With a muttered curse, Blair went back inside the loft to check on his partner. Jim was sitting on the floor, his hands covering his face.

"You okay, Jim?" Blair knelt on the floor, easing Jim's hands away from his face and looked closely at the watering blue eyes. Not seeing any immediate damage, he helped Jim stand and maneuvered him to the sofa. Once the Sentinel was settled, Blair quickly retrieved a wet washcloth from the bathroom.

"I'll be fine. Brackett get away?" Jim took the washcloth. "Thanks." He gingerly wiped at his eyes.

"Yeah, I'm sorry. He had vanished by the time I got to the door. How are the eyes?"

"They're okay. At first everything was cloudy, but my vision is clearing now." Jim leaned back on the sofa and looked up at a frustrated Blair. "It's not your fault, Brackett caught us both by surprise."

"At least this means we know where Brackett is. Think we should call the Feds?" Blair sighed.

"Why, so they can let him go again? Although we will have to call them, but first I want to report it to Simon." Jim pushed himself up off the sofa. "Come on, Sandburg. Simon's going to think we went back to bed."

"Jim? Are you sure you're okay to drive?"

"I'm fine. Let's get going. We'll call Simon from the truck and report this."

As they walked out the door, Blair mumbled something about stubborn Sentinels, not caring if Jim heard him or not.