Unwanted Job

Jason shakes his head. “Reese didn’t give any details. He only mentioned something about Con and the Agency. I have to go find out what’s happening.”

He turns to head for a clean set of clothes, when Katie’s hand on his arms stops him as she asks him to be careful. He looks down at her, flashing her one of his old cocky grins. “Always” He takes her hand to give it a squeeze, then aims for his bag.

After only a couple minutes in the bathroom, Jason’s ready for the day and takes a moment to lace up his boots and grab his gear. “I’ll call you as soon as I know something substantial, and if there’s anything you can do, I’ll let you know.”

Jason goes for the door and doesn’t stop until he’s at his bike, then he’s on his way to TJY. Once there, he’s quick to get inside. He aims straight for Reese’s office, though sees Con and Nate off to the side, and wonders just exactly what was happening.

Retrieving the briefing from Reese, Jason not only can’t believe Jamie’s been taken, but can’t imagine that he’s been chosen to tell her parents. But he can see in Reese’s eyes that he’s in no mood to be argued with.

Finally having his orders, Jason heads back out onto the floor and aims for Con. Seeing the circles under Con’s eyes and the bloodshot stare he holds on the files in front of him, Jason is slightly taken aback. He’d never seen Con as weary looking as this. “Con?” Not receiving an answer, he steps closer, raising his voice slightly. “Con?”

Con jerks his head to the side, not having realized anyone had come up behind him. “Jase… Glad you’re here. Talk to Reese?”

“Yeah.” Jason crosses his arms casually. “He said you thought it was the Agency and that they’d taken Jamie to get to you. That doesn’t make sense to me.”

“Well it does to me,” Con states flatly, chucking another folder across the table. “And they’re gonna pay for this.”

Jason raises an eyebrow at the anger in Con’s tone. Something else he’d rarely picked up on. “Hey, take it easy. We’ll find her.”

“Would people stop telling me to take it easy?!” Con looks up at Jason with irritation. “All I’m trying to do is my job!”

“Reese told me about your hearing…” Jason shifts the conversation slightly. “He said he didn’t want you out on this case.”

“Well he can take his advice and shove it.”

“Con!” Jason frowns. “What is the matter with you?”

“This whole thing is my fault, alright?!” Con slams another folder shut. “If I hadn’t….” He rolls his eyes, not even knowing what he’s saying anymore. “Look I’ve got to be on this case. I don’t care what Reese says, and I don’t care what you say.”

Jason simply can’t understand Con’s behavior. This was not like him at all. “But why would the Agency take Jamie to get to you?” Jason searches his friend for answers. “I know Jamie is our friend, but for pete’s sake settle down. We’ll find her. Why has this gotten to you so bad?”

Con finally stops what he’s doing and looks Jason in the eye. His tone comes out quieter, etched with dead seriousness. “Have you ever seen a smile that was warmer than the sun? Or felt a touch that could send an electrical shock through your body, but that was soft enough to calm any fear? Or looked into eyes so deep that you get lost, but you don’t even care about finding the way back out again?”

Jason’s eyes widen at Con’s meaningful words. He was shocked. “You…you’re in love with her.”

Con swallows hard and turns back to his files. “And as such, I put her in danger.”

Jason suddenly comes to a new realization about the whole situation. He could relate…but even with Katie, she’d been on the case, knowing full well the dangers. Jamie had been an innocent bystander of the Agency. Katie was attacked because she was on the case. Jamie was taken in order to get to Con. “Man, I’m sorry…I had no idea. How long have you…felt this way?”

Con flips over another picture, desperate to stay on top of his emotions. “Not long enough.”

Jason has a hard time seeing Con like this. Not only had he never seen his friend having feelings for a woman, but he’d never seen him this distraught over anything either. “Con…Reese is right…you shouldn’t be on this case. You’re too close to it.”

“Don’t give me that,” Con retorts, throwing Jason a glare. “You can’t tell me that if something else happened to Katie, you wouldn’t be the first on the scene.”

“You’re not well, Con,” Jason argues. “You just about died only two days ago, you haven’t had any sleep, and you’re way too involved. Just let Nate, Wyatt and I handle this.”

Con forces a scoffing laugh. “You and Reese wish.”

Disappointed and frustrated, Jason leaves Con alone, not knowing what else he can say. All he can do is as he was told…and that was the worst part of all. He throws a sloppy salute in Nate’s direction as he heads for the door. Mom and Pop’s should be opening right about now…


“Hey, Nate.” Wyatt approaches Nate’s desk quickly. “Dad called me and said what was going on. He said you and I were heading over to Jamie’s. I’m ready when you are.”


Jason parks in front of the small restaurant and takes a deep breath. How had he ended up with this job? Finally he steps off his bike, takes off his helmet and heads inside. Like Con, he almost has to duck to miss the bell above the door, and he slowly approaches the front counter. He knows the look on his face will give away that something is wrong, but maybe that was okay to signal that before he had to speak. “Herb? Mable?”


Mike picks up his phone and dials, fidgeting with a closed cell phone in his other hand. “Hey, Katie! This is Mike…Jason left his phone here last night. You wanna let him know it’s here?”