Copyright: Jericho isn't mine. This is your only warning.

Warning: M-rated language. Elizabeth's responses are in British spelling/grammar just for the heck of it. This is also primarily an "I love Jonah, so I'm making myself happy" fic…you have been warned!

Requests: No military-picking, please. (For those of you that aren't aware, the additional designation is usually stripped from titles during conversation; thus, both first and second lieutenants are referred to as "lieutenant", while every form of sergeant is merely called "sergeant".) No show-picking, either, please—apparently, I missed a few of the things that Tomarchio repealed after becoming president.

Background: Jericho is a city-state, much in the manner of Ancient Rome. The military has been able to gain enough funding and supplies to build a wall; within it is a gate that is patrolled from sunset to sunrise and treated somewhat like a customs border from sunrise to sunset.

One

"I'm sorry, but there won't be any trial. I had to step out for some business and when I returned, one of the residents had already killed him."

"Have you caught the culprit?"

Major Beck nodded. "Mr. Richmond returned to his farm at the end of a short sentence."

"You gave a murderer a short sentence?" the young captain echoed in disbelief. "Why wasn't he sent to Cheyenne for further punishment?"

"I was appointed Chief Administrator after Goetz was removed from office," Beck replied, leaning over his desk. "It's my discretion and if I say that Stanley Richmond deserves a slap on the wrist for executing the embezzler that murdered his sister, then that's what he gets!"

"Of course, sir," Elizabeth bowed her head, subdued.

"Now," Beck continued, straightening up. Do you have further orders, Captain Shaughnessy, or will you be on the first humvee back to wherever you came from?"

The young woman produced an envelope. "Colonel Potter said that I wasn't supposed to open this until the trial was over."

"Now would be as good a time as any," he replied, handing her a letter opener.

Flashing a grateful smile, the captain removed the letter and reviewed it with impressive speed. "I've been detached to serve as the Assistant Administrator of the City-State of Jericho."

"An Air Force officer?" Beck asked, accepting the proffered pages.

"While you're off asking questions, be sure to inquire why they sent me to perform an execution at an Army garrison."

"My best guess is that you were the finest rifleman to hand when they found out about Mr. Goetz's…problem."

Elizabeth flushed. "I was promoted to sharpshooter the last time I qualified on the M16."

"Then you won't mind being assigned to patrol for a few nights, will you…ah…" Beck looked down at the letter. "Elizabeth? Just until I get your paperwork sorted out?"

"Hi."

Elizabeth looked up from adjusting her helmet, somewhat startled. "Good evening, ma'am."

"Are you new here? I don't think I've seen you before." The young woman stopped underneath a street light, giving Elizabeth the chance to take in her glossy blonde curls and smiling gray eyes.

"Captain Elizabeth Shaughnessy. I was just assigned to Jericho as the assistant administrator, but I'm patrolling the wall for a few nights to get a feel for things."

The other woman's smile spread to her lips as she came forward to shake Elizabeth's hand. "Emily Sullivan. I'm a teacher around here…or at least I will be, when things settle down a little more."

Elizabeth returned the smile, secretly thinking of how to get out of the conversation so that she could relieve Specialist Parr.

"It's so nice to see someone close to my age assigned to help run Jericho!"

"I hope I can run things to your satisfaction, Ms. Sullivan. I must apologize, however," the captain replied. "I have to get up on the wall and relieve someone from duty."

"One more thing before you go?"

"Yes?"

"There's this guy you should watch out for. He usually hangs around his place, about ten miles outside of town, but the other female soldiers have been talking a lot lately…I guess he's getting tired of prostitutes."

Elizabeth made a slightly disbelieving noise and shook her head. "There are still prostitutes after all this?"

"Apparently there have been a whole slew of women coming to the compound in the last several years…and the bombs did nothing to slow the trade. Between twenty-five and thirty men live there, so there has been some argument as to whether the women are all for him, but…"

"But the…sexual habits…of those who live on the compound have brought enough riffraff to town that the effect has been noticeable."

"Exactly."

"Interesting," Elizabeth said after a moment. "And how do you know all this?"

"Like I said…the soldiers have been talking…more so since it became obvious that this guy intended to approach all of them. Besides, anyone who's been here a while knows that nothing good happens when he's around."

The captain was quiet for a moment. "What is this gentleman's name?"

"I think they said it was Jonah Prowse." Emily put on her best "I don't know" face and sort of shrugged. "Evidently he has blue eyes that you just can't miss. Don't bother to go looking for him, though…as soon as his pirates get word, he'll come looking for you."

He stopped a few yards from the wall and drew a pair of small binoculars…only to find that there was already a full-sized pair looking back at him, ruby lenses winking in the dim light of the perimeter.

Dammit! he thought, shoving the binoculars back into his pocket. So much for being stealthy!

Jonah waited for the call to identify himself, but none came.

Wonder what the odds are that I can get in to see the new girl tonight?

With rotating duty shifts, he'd had the chance to talk to every woman stationed in Jericho. They had all turned him down at least once…some so often that he was beginning to wonder if the Army had some secret manual for getting each other off.

"Jonah Prowse," said an amused English voice. "I heard you might be stopping by."

He hadn't realized that he had unconsciously kept moving toward the wall until the beam of an LED flashlight burned into his eyes. After a moment, the beam jumped to his forehead, so that when his vision cleared, Jonah could see a young officer with a Smith & Wesson trained on him in the classic law enforcement stance.

"I didn't realize that I'd sent a messenger," Jonah replied, holding up his hands.

"Let's just say that 'the pirate with the sultry blue eyes' is a hot orientation topic around here." The young woman turned off the flashlight and stowed it, but kept the pistol trained on him as she reached back for her assault rifle.

He allowed a tiny smile to creep onto his face. "I didn't think any of the other ladies had noticed…they all took off so fast."

"Apparently, they stick around long enough to decide against having a drink with the devil for themselves."

"And what fearless young thing stands in front of me? Surely not an import from Cheyenne?"

"Captain Elizabeth Shaughnessy, Allied States Air Force. All you need to know is that I came over from Sheffield, England when I was thirteen."

"I…" Jonah's thought was cut short by the captain taking off her helmet. In this light, the color of her hair was just like his own. Nevertheless, he was sure that sunshine would reveal a French twist the color of old gold, just as he was sure that her eyes were an unusual shade of bluish-gray.

Suddenly, the hair on Jonah's arms prickled and he began to sweat. He backed away as his stomach turned over and his heart began to pound.

"I have to go!"

Author's Note

1. James Remar actually has gray eyes...I have a couple of pictures where they appear blue, so that's why I got confused.