Two down

Con and Laura's conversation is halted, and the coffee is accepted gratefully. Con takes a sip and lets the warm liquid slide slowly down his throat. "Mm... thank you."

He reaches out and pulls Jamie close, leaving his arm around her shoulders. "No... nothing yet."

Laura shakes her head. "There just isn't anything to go on. Scott finished retrieving all the satellite pictures, but he's still trying to zero in on them and try to figure out the make and model of the cars that were there. It'll be nearly impossible to distinguish license plates though."

Con grits his teeth, trying not to let his worry show. Of all people, why did it have to be Katie?


Alec doesn't resist Misty's medical care, though by his body language, it's obvious that he's not happy - his scowl remains. The only time he flinches though, is when Misty comes with the needle. Looking away, he lets her finish, gritting his teeth against the pain.

Finally when he's all stitched up and wrapped, he looks up at Misty, the look that could kill, fading into one resembling something more sly. "You got a lot of pull around here, don't you? Access to the cell... telling off Hal there."

He quirks an eyebrow looking oh-so-much like Carson. "They're all so busy with this case of theirs, they probably wouldn't even notice if you let me stay up here for a while."

In all reality, Alec's hand was killing him with the screaming pain, but to be out of the holding cell was something he couldn't help but find as a relief. His eyes stare into Misty's, the question lingering. "Besides... if he's the only company you got..." He gestures to Rick. "...then maybe you wouldn't find my presence too repulsive. Or would you? Having a dastardly criminal breathing down your neck."


Hal flops down in his chair again, the irritation showing on his face. He hadn't answered Misty, though a part of him was a little sorry for treating Carson like he had. But how was he to have known what would happen? Sure, Carson seemed to be a good guy now, but when pushed, he was also one that could easily cross the line. Hal was here to do his job and he would keep doing it. The next time he found out Misty was helping cut corners, it would be Reese knowing about it.


The television drones on in the living room, casting light and shadows around the dark room. As the remote slips from Ryder's hand onto the floor, his eyes pop open. How long he'd been dozing, he wasn't even sure. But it was getting late.

Yawning, he rolls over on his side, thinking about getting up and calling TJY to see if Laura or Katie were just working late. But Henry crawling up to lie on his hip makes him stay a few minutes longer. The cat's purring was enough to start putting him back to sleep again.

The sound of squealing tires though, makes Ryder jump. He hears a loud engine roaring up the street, and for a moment, his pulse quickens. There was always traffic, but it usually wasn't quite as rowdy as this sounded.

Getting up from the couch, he wanders to the window, just in time to see a van speeding around the corner. It puts on its brakes, laying rubber, and there are several men just visible under the street light.

Ryder's heart leaps into his throat and he has just enough time to throw himself onto the floor before the gunfire rips through the house. Bullets whiz through the room, slicing through the front door and shattering the windows. Ryder stays on the floor, covering his head with his hands. He hears Henry wail in fear and looks up just fast enough to see the cat race down the hall, escaping the barrage.

Suddenly, the gunfire stops. Ryder breathes heavily, his heart pounding in his chest. What was going on?! Who were these people? What were they after?

Crawling on his stomach, he makes it over to the end table where he'd stuck his handgun up underneath. Pulling it out, he checks to make sure it's loaded before rolling over and around the corner. He could hear footsteps on the porch. Two men? Three? He wasn't sure. But one thing he was sure of was that if they caught him, he would be dead.

He hears the door open and hears the clicking of guns. He closes his eyes for a moment, trying to catch his breath. He counts in his head, waiting for the right moment to show himself. It was risky. There were no lights on, and whoever was there might very well have night vision equipment. The bullets that had entered the house weren't from any normal gun off the street. These were professionals.

Making it to ten Ryder rolls out from his hiding place in the hallway. Gunfire echoes in his ears as he makes a somersault into a kneeling position in front of three adversaries. One goes down. Two go down. The other turns to flee.

Ryder ignores the two downed men for now and rises to his feet to sprint after the third. He didn't take the time to think about how strange it was that the third one didn't stick around. But a chase to the van is futile. Ryder doesn't dare fire any more shots into the neighborhood, and the enemy gets to the van just fast enough to burn rubber as he speeds away. Whoever it was, certainly wasn't loyal to his partners.

His pulse still pounding, Ryder stands in the street, only now realizing that he was still in his bare feet. Wincing, he slowly walks back towards the house. Sirens could already be heard. A neighbor had called the police.


The TJY phone rings, answered by Susanne. But several minutes of searching proves she can't find Reese anywhere. Finally she calls Nate's phone. "Nate? Chief Brown on line two. He asked for Reese, but you're up."

Once Brown hears someone's voice, he quickly explains his call. "We got a situation down here at the resident of some of your agents." He rattles off Laura and Katie's address. "The place is shot up, we got two people dead, and one Australian guy claiming to be Elite too." He pauses to speak to another officer who was out on the sidewalk with him. Red and blue lights illuminated the small portion of the street, five officers were picking up evidence and two more were inside checking the bodies and trying to get answers from Ryder. "I need someone down here to figure out what on earth is going on before anything else can happen."