Would have been nice

Carson and Jason both jump at Nate's entrance. Jason is on his feet in an instant, holstering his sidearm and clipping his badge to his belt.

Carson stands too, but feels a bit lost. "Jase..." His words trail off as Jason and Trooper disappear. Jason had a one-track mind tonight. Not that anyone could blame him.

Sighing, Carson ambles out into the hall. Without any direct orders now, he wasn't sure what to do. He'd wrung the only obvious source dry... now what? His body warned him that he was nearing exhaustion. And he still needed to open up the restaurant in the morning. Perhaps he should leave things be here and go home for a while. Though he was just as intent on finding his young friend, he knew that sometimes rest was necessary.

Wandering towards the infirmary, he decides to at least stop in to see Misty and check on Alec. Maybe he'd sack out in there for a while instead of going home - at least he would be right on hand if needed, but he could still get some shuteye before morning.

Arriving at the open door, Carson is about to enter, but hearing Misty's voice, something makes him stop. He didn't usually eavesdrop, but there was a different tone to Misty's voice, and wondering why on earth she'd be talking so casually to Alec, he finds himself pausing unseen outside the door.

"...I ended up falling in love with him..."

Carson's eyes widen slightly, and he leans back against the hallway wall. He blinks, trying to decide if he'd heard Misty correctly or not. He knew he had. It was strange... even though he and Misty spent so much time together and even thought they'd always been affectionate towards each other, hearing her say those words... hearing her say that she loved him... It confirmed that she had indeed already said it a time or two in passing...

Why her words sent chills down Carson's spine, he wasn't sure. It was an unfamiliar feeling and one he wasn't sure if he liked or not. Of course Misty's attention made him feel good, but... love? Was it... was it returned?

Shaking his head, Carson forces himself not to think about it anymore right now. This wasn't even his conversation. Listening for a few more moments, he rolls his eyes. Alec didn't belong on the upper level for any longer than absolutely necessary. No one should be babying him.


Alec's eyes narrow as he realizes that he's not going to pull one over on Misty. Taking the pills grudgingly, he downs them quickly. "Kid," he mutters. "That does it... now I have been dissed as many ways as humanly possible."

He shakes his head. "I shoulda known I'd be following in Carson's wake. He was big stuff at the Agency, I'm not surprised he's big stuff around here too. He's got the ego for it."

"Ego isn't what'll knock your lights out if you don't shut up."

Alec spins his head quickly to see Carson enter the infirmary. He tries to hide the fact that his half-brother did indeed scare him to a certain degree. "Well, if it isn't the Aussie himself."

"It is." Carson glares at Alec, folding his arms across his chest. He glances to Misty, his eyes gentler only with her, though there would be no small talk or banter right now. "He needs to go back to the cell right now," he directs.

"You're not in charge of me," Alec defends, desperate not to go back downstairs yet. "Don't think you can fool me - Hal doesn't want you handling me."

"Hal doesn't have a choice," Carson states flatly. "You're stitched up, you got pain killers, it's time to go back downstairs where you belong."

"Aw come on!" Alec throws Misty a sidelong glance, then eyes Carson again. "I gave you what you wanted! Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"You don't deserve it?" Carson quirks one eyebrow and takes several steps forward. "You can walk, or I can drag you. Up to you."

Alec grits his teeth. His hand was throbbing, his head hurt, and he didn't want to go back down. "Just try," he threatens.


Laura looks up at Nate, her eyes widening. "The house? But..." Then her face pales. "Oh no... Ryder. Is he okay?" Worry courses through her eyes. "He doesn't even know what's going on - I can't believe I forgot to call him. Please find out if he's okay... and make sure he has somewhere to stay too..."

Concentrating on her tasks was harder than ever now. Not only was Katie missing, but their house had been shot up, just compounding the stress.

Once Nate is gone, Laura does her best to work, though she grows weary. A prayer remains in the forefront along with the hope that Katie was okay.


Jason is quick to catch up to Nate and slides in the car with him for a quick ride to the house. There were several police cruisers and already an officer was needing to keep back a few nosy neighbors.

Brown meets both Nate and Jason immediately. "Glad you guys made it so quickly. Thanks for coming." He walks them to the house. "Ryder hasn't been able to come up with any answers - maybe you guys can."

Talking with an officer, Ryder stops as he finally sees some familiar faces. "Am I glad to see you two. This place is a shambles, thanks to some ruffians."

"Do you know who they were?" Jason asks.

"Nope." Ryder shakes his head. "Agency scum I think though." He points to two body bags. "Couldn't identify them but it was their style of a hit and run."

Jason frowns. "You just had to kill them, didn't you?"

Ryder grows a little defensive. "I'd be glad to go back in time and put you in my place to see what you would have done." He holds out a piece of paper a bit grudgingly. "I did get a license plate number if you think that would help any."

Jason snatches it from him. "What kind of vehicle was it?"

"A van. Why?"

Jason looks to Nate. "This has to be connected. That could even be the same vehicle."

"The same vehicle as what?" Ryder throws up his arms. "What is going on?"

"Katie was taken," Jason snaps. "We're trying to find her. A live prisoner would have been nice."

"What?!" Ryder's eyes turn huge. "She was taken? When? Why didn't anybody tell me?!"

Jason doesn't even respond. He's too fast out the door and sprinting for the street to check for any oil spots.

Ryder looks to Nate. "Who do I have to thank for leaving me in the dark over this one?" He didn't really mean to take out his frustrations on Nate, but he was tired of feeling so out of the loop. He hadn't felt this way in Australia.