Chas took the call from Drug squad that one of their men had been taken out by Cortez. He spoke to Spikings on the phone and then to Dempsey "SI10 have been called in to see this one through now, Spikings wants you and Fry to pick up the tail and watch these South American interlopers .

"Me and Fry?" Dempsey questioned

"Well Harry's not due in till this afternoon" Chas was always giving Dempsey basic explanations that he was sure he knew

"Remind me why we're taking this case on Chas" Dempsey obviously had a point to make

"Because drug squad have just lost their main tail to Cortez"

Dempsey pulled Chas aside "And you want me to go out there with Fry?" He glanced around making sure the room was still empty "I wanna live to see tomorrow"

"Boss says to take Fry" Chas thought Dempsey over reactive.

Fry walked back in the office and Chas shouted over "Fry you and Dempsey are on a shout out"

Dempsey glared at Chas then turned to Fry "This is big and dangerous Fry – you go and get a pool car and I'll meet you down there in five"

"Any car in particular?" Fry asked

"Yeh one with four wheels and an engine" Dempsey picked up a phone and started to dial, as soon as Fry had left the office he call was answered "Hi ya Princess I'm on my way to pick you up, seems Spikings has a death wish on me"

"I'm not in till two – you know that Dempsey"

"Yeh I know that but we're going fishing for sharks, big man eating sharks, and you're my partner"

Makepeace sighed and Dempsey took that as acquiescence and hung up. He followed Fry into the car pool and noticed Fry had some keys in his hands "so let's go" he yelled. Fry stood motionless, he still had to do all the paperwork; Dempsey came up to him "You got four wheels and an engine" he asked.

"Er yes" he stuttered "The gold one over there"

"So what are we waiting for? Lets go cowboy, we've got some rodeo riders to catch"

Fry wanted to say they should go over and sign the book but Dempsey was already shouting at him to be quick as they had to pick up DS Makepeace en route. He hated that he feared Dempsey, but fear him he did so he jumped in the drivers' seat and started the car, with Dempsey telling him the quickest route to the Sergeants address.

The three follow a known van carrying the drugs, but are spotted and during an ambush Cortez and his men get away after destroying the car tailing them.

Dempsey was frustrated down at the hospital and without Harry he reverted to his sullen withdrawn state Sometimes, Dempsey thought Harry was getting better, better in the sense that she bucked the procedure more often. At least she had pushed Fry to keep close to the Lorry carrying the cocaine, she was damn right this was his enchilada and he knew he had been right to pursue the lorry. Fry sat next to him and waited to be checked over, his mind and stomach both churning; he hadn't signed the car out, Spikings had told them to stay back, Dempsey had made him go forward – he wondered where he stood, what the consequences would be - apart from a definite bollicking which he didn't think he deserved, as far as he was concerned it wasn't his fault. Dempsey's silence was driving him mad and making him feel sick at the same time, he was glad when they got back to the factory – that was until he saw the car arrive back on a tow truck. He went pale. Makepeace he had always thought more understanding but even she seemed to think he had some blame to take, he had pinned his hopes on her talking to Spikings and all she could do was side with bloody Dempsey who miraculously seemed to have turned human at the sight of her.

Following behind Dempsey he listened as he spouted his opinionated theories to Makepeace. Kill or be killed, the law of the jungle; he so wanted to stand up for his rights but Dempsey was, in his opinion, rather like the 400lb gorilla and he decided to ask Chas about backdating the log book instead.

Fry scuttled away like a mouse when Spikings walked through just after Chas had agreed to fixing the log book. Spikings hadn't even registered him on his Radar. "Is that Dempsey back?" he asked Chas "Yes Sir"

Spikings pulled himself up to full stature "I want to see him" he threatened "And DS Makepeace" he walked round the corner and into the office, as he passed the first desk on his left he beckoned to Makepeace to follow him, he glanced around for Dempsey who was playing the hero of the hour and showing his bust fingers to the guys in the far corner. "Dempsey" his pitch raised as he spoke the second syllable. Dempsey read the warning signs and turned towards the challenge; he put on an innocent look which ignited Spikings anger and Harry groaned. She wondered why Dempsey had to be so bloody awkward and difficult when it really wasn't needed.

"I want to talk to you Dempsey, in my office, where there will be no static, no interference and I know you can hear me. NOW Lieutenant"

Dempsey turned and grinned at the boys, Harry thought he might just as well light a match; any spark would set the inflammatory situation alight.

Dempsey came into the office and Harry shut the door behind them both.

Spikings turned to her "And what the bloody hell are you doing here at all Sergeant - I thought you were on a late?"

"Dempsey asked for back up Sir"

"Back up, more like bloody collusion if you ask me. It was your voice that I heard telling Fry to keep in the lorry's blind spot was it not sergeant?"

Fry had crept back in and stood at the back of the main office listening, waiting for his name to come up.

Harry at least kept quiet, she knew it was better to let Spikings rant than defend herself; she hoped, to no avail, that Dempsey would do like wise. "If Fry had held his position - then we would have got them"

No you wouldn't Dempsey - they had the jump on you what ever." Spikings took a breath "And now thanks to your over zealous defiance of MY instructions Lieutenant we have a gang of Colombian drug runners running around London, lost to us and even worse - they know we know nothing."

"Wrong, they know we know something, they know we had someone at the docks, and we knew when they were due in. We know something!"

"And they know you made an incompetent attempt to follow them and lost them so we know nothing! I'm telling you Lieutenant that they have the upper hand"

"But this is our territory, our patch and we know it better than them, they're in our jungle now"

"Well Dempsey you'd better bloody find them. You and Sergeant Makepeace lost them and so the pair of you had better find them and when you do I want to know. I want no more crazy action" he looked at the pair standing in front of him, they frustrated him so much; their result the best of anyone's, their methodology the worst. His protégé DS Makepeace so much stronger, accurate, quick thinking, and ready for promotion since she'd work with Dempsey but as well as brave she had become foolhardy. She still paid lip service to regulations but seemed to flout them with the same repeated regularity as Dempsey and her fire arms record was second only to Dempsey and sky high compared to any other officer. He rubbed his head "It might be a bloody jungle out there but let me tell you: you Lieutenant Dempsey are not Tarzan and you DS Makepeace are not Jane but me" he pointed to himself "I am the king of the jungle and you will report back to ME." He emphasised the word will.

Fry smiled it seemed he was in the clear: He'd survived.

Harry looked to escape, Dempsey couldn't leave without the last word "Let's go swing through some trees" he looked at Harry "you have got some leopard print to wear?"