... Of mice and men ...

Jim had been to see Barney and found him to be enjoying his time as a 'Secret Agent'. Not wanting to endanger the boy, Jim had been taken there by his colleague and friend, Bob Freemore - he still didn't know where he was being kept. When he got there, the boy was very pleased to see him.

"Daddy Jim!" he said, running into his open arms.

"Hey Barney! It's good to see you. Are these guys treating you OK?"

"Yeah, it's good here. We have lots of fun and I get my teachers all to myself."

"Well, I'm glad you're fine."

"Are those nasty people still after you?" the boy asked with all due seriousness.

"Yes Barney. But don't worry, because me and my friends are after them, too!"

********************************

After he had left the safehouse, Jim headed back over to St. Vincent's to check on all the invalids. He met Vanessa outside and so went in with his Tactical Ops partner.

When they went to Chris's room, two people who turned out to be his parents were there. Jim felt rather awkward, but introduced himself and allowed them space to be together for a while. He was surprised when Vanessa, after getting an update on her fianc�'s condition, left again to continue her duties.

********************************

Jim only spoke again when they had left the hospital.

"You all right, Vanessa?"

She looked at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. What's wrong?"

"Well, if you want to keep him company a bit longer its alright. We don't have to leave so fast if you don't want to."

Vanessa smiled at Jim. "Its alright. The earlier we catch her, the better."

********************************

Back at HQ, Jim and Vanessa started to do some research into all aspects of the Crosses, Ericsons and CrossTech Inc. After wading through the screens and reams of information, both the agents decided a more relaxed environment was in order and decided to head off to Vanessa's apartment.

<< NRPG: Use "Paperwork" to fill in any blanks >>

"Martial status : single." Jim read from the paper. "This is interesting. They seem to be rather adept liars, either at covering their tracks or pretending to be some 'perfect couple'. But I guess we knew that."

"She plans to kill all of us. She must know we're close, but to what? I mean there must be more to it than some cult worship."

"Well, you know what the say about 'the best laid plans', they often go wrong. We'll catch her and her *husband*. I've a good mind to throw her off a roof."

"Barney must have been very upset."

"Yeah, but he bounces back really quick. He's tough."

She didn't go down that road any further. If Jim had wanted her to know about Barney and the times they shared together, he would tell her on his own.

"You're right about this. There is something more. One thing is for sure - the normal records aren't going to tell us about it. All this information is highly suspect. I'm sick of being stuck under a paper mountain."

At that moment, Jim's cellphone began to ring.

"Yeah, she's here. What's up?"

"I'm on the Whitehurst Freeway heading towards Key Bridge. I think we're heading into Arlington, possibly Dulles. Get yourselves in the car and keep the 'phone line open. I'm following Rebecca. We're going to run that bitch down."

They were already on their way when Leo began the sit. rep. Jim took the wheel and spun the car away from the apartment block and started heading for Key Bridge.

NPRG:

Well, I'm back from holiday and this is just a short one to get me off and running in ZULU again. What is the deeper agenda here?