When Peter arrived, he found his father packing a small bag and wearing traveling clothes. Exasperated, the younger Caine looked around and exclaimed, "Why do I feel like I'm always the last to know?"

Confused, Caine simply replied, "Because you do not ask?"

Peter rolled his eyes at the statement, then pulled out a cell phone to make flight reservations. "Yes, I need two tickets for the next available flight to Cascade, Washington."

At that point, Kermit tapped Peter on the shoulder and interrupted, "Three tickets." In response to Peter's confused look, Kermit replied, "Backup, remember? Besides, I have a friend in Cascade who can help us."

Peter's eyes widened as he exclaimed, "Why didn't you tell me this before?"

Kermit simply smiled, then, in a perfect imitation of Kwai Chang Caine, replied, "Because you did not ask?"


Blair made one more attempt at getting a positive ID on the John Doe downstairs. Even though the two men had barely spoken for the past hour, Jim could tell that the stress of the day was getting to his partner. The younger man had tried every major local source of information he could think of, and absolutely, positively nothing had turned up. Blair propped his head on the desk with his arms and ran his hands through his hair, as if he was trying use his hands to will his brain to come up with something. Breaking the silence, he asked Jim, "Tell me again why -we're- handling this case and not homicide or missing persons?"

Not looking up from the paperwork he was pouring over, Jim replied, "Because of the unusual cause of death. Homicide won't take it because we can't be sure it was murder, and missing persons isn't taking it because the guy's dead." He put his pen down and looked over at his guide with sincere sympathy. "Find anything yet?"

The frustration evident in his voice, Blair replied, "Nothing. Apparently the guy didn't exist in Cascade prior to the day he died in that alley."

"Check any national stuff yet?"

"Yeah, but none of the databases carry pictures. God, I just wish we had a name to go on..."

"Me too, Chief. Me too."

Simon took that moment to conveniently drop by the desks of his best team. "Hey guys, find anything yet?"

Jim and Blair shook their heads. Blair asked, "any word from the CDC?"

"They asked the ME's office to send them a blood sample, so they'll get back to us sometime tomorrow with the results of their tests. Hopefully it'll turn up something." At that, Jim and Blair both nodded their agreement. They had so little to go on - they needed -something- to work with.

Rhonda called Simon from across the room, effectively ending the conversation between the three men. When they heard Simon's curse of frustration from across the bullpen, though, they realized that talk would soon change to action, and they got up to get their coats. Before Simon could even get back to them, the two men were ready to leave. Blair asked the captain, "What's up, sir?"

Simon replied, "We found a name for you guys."

Blair's eyes brightened for a moment. "That's good news!" Then remembering Simon's earlier outburst, he questioned, "Isn't it?"

Simon shook his head. "Not this time, Blair. This name is connected to a different dead body. Do you remember Arlo Madison?"

Jim nodded. "Small time thug with a talent for getting really good lawyers?"

Simon nodded his response. "They found his body fifteen minutes ago. The officer on site just called in a request for a HazMat team."


While the flight from Sloanville to Cascade had been blessedly quick and uneventful, the information that passed from Caine to Peter and Kermit was causing its own disturbance among the two cops. Starting off the 'business end' of the conversation, Peter described the way that Jason Shin had died.

Although Kwai Chang Caine remained his normal, passive self through the graphic descriptions, all three men noticed the sounds of the poor souls seated behind them reaching for airsickness bags. Peter winced inwardly, feeling a little guilty at the obvious discomfort their conversation was causing other passengers. Setting those feelings aside, he then asked his father, "Pop, when I read the description of the cause of death it struck a chord with me, but I can't remember why. Did something like this happen at the temple?"

Caine nodded, having recalled the incident immediately. "Do you remember Martin Cho?"

Peter tensed for a minute, concentrating on trying to remember the names of some of the many people he had known from the temple. Moments later, realization dawned on him, and he exclaimed, "Yeah...wasn't he a couple of years older than me?"

Caine nodded as Peter continued to recall everything he remembered about the boy from the temple. "He told me about an old book that he had discovered, and something he had found in the book..." As he continued to recall the conversation from the temple, he hit his hand on the armrest in excitement and declared, "The Curse of the Serpent's Bite! That's it, isn't it, Pop?"

Solemnly, Caine nodded. As the memories continued to flood back to Peter the younger man grew quiet, realizing the depth of their current problem. "Martin tried the inflict the curse on one of the younger children who was giving him trouble...if you hadn't reached the boy in time he would have died, right? Even still, the kid ended up losing the use of one of his hands. But wasn't Martin killed when the temple was destroyed?"

Again Caine nodded. Quietly, he stated, "If we do not know find out who is inflicting this curse on others in Cascade, then I fear that more, too, will die."

Kermit had acted like he was sleeping during most of the conversation, not wanting to interrupt the two Caine's trains of thought. His mind, though, was working overtime. Was this another one of those strange sects that he kept running into ever since Kwai Chang Caine had walked into his life? Or was this a lone killer, working with a far more perverted agenda? He hoped they would be able to get some answers when they arrived in Cascade.


When the plane landed, Peter wanted to try and find a hotel, but Kermit insisted on going to see his source first, and his father, to Peter's displeasure, seemed to be taking the side of the ex-mercenary. Kermit insisted, "If this is as important as you say it is, Caine, then we shouldn't waste any time. Besides, she'll probably be able to find us a place to stay anyway, once we talk to her."

At the mention that Kermit's 'Cascade Connection' was a woman, Peter's face immediately lit up. "She? She wouldn't happen to be attractive, would she?"

Kermit's face lit up in one of his trademark grins. "Oh yeah. And it doesn't hurt that I told her we'd head straight to her place from the airport, either."

As they got into the waiting rental car, Peter crowed, "Well, then we best not keep the lady waiting!"


Peter couldn't help but stare as he got out of the car at the place Kermit had directed them to. Grateful that the rental had a high-tech security system, he locked up the car and joined the two men as they went to the door. [What a lousy neighborhood! And Kermit's attractive, female contact lives -here-? If I were her, I wouldn't want to leave my house...]

For Peter, the ride up the freight elevator was filled with a mixture of hesitancy and anticipation. This didn't seem like much of a neighborhood, but he trusted Kermit. What he wasn't prepared for, though, was the spacious, beautiful apartment that came into view as the elevator reached the top floor. He had to resist the urge to gawk at the high ceilings, hardwood floors and hundreds of windows. He could no longer resist the urge to gawk, though, when his eyes rested upon the blond-haired, blue-eyed knockout that was the owner of the apartment. [-This- is Kermit's contact in Cascade? Wow.]

As Kermit opened the elevator's steel grate, he called out to his old friend, "Share? We're here!"

The classical music they had been enjoying from two floors below ended as a delighted squeal erupted from the woman at the piano. "Kermie! It's good to see you again."

As Kermit went to embrace his long-time friend and surrogate kid sister, Peter mouthed to his father behind Kermit's back, "Kermie?!" The younger man was in shock that someone could get away with calling Kermit that without fear of gross bodily harm.

Once Sharon released Kermit from the embrace so that he could breathe again, he commented, "It's good to see you, kid. God, you look great! How have you been?"

"Oh, you know me, Kermit. Insanely busy as always. I've been working on the album so much lately I've hardly had any time for myself."

Kermit's eyebrows raised above the top of his glasses in surprised recollection. "That's right! I had almost forgotten about that. Congratulations, by the way."

Graciously, Sharon smiled and nodded, replying, "Why, thank you." Then she noticed the other two men with Kermit and chided him, "But shame on you, Kermit, for not introducing me to your friends yet!"

A small joking gasp escaped Kermit's lips as he exclaimed, "Oh, forgive me, Share. How rude of me! Sharon Driver, these are my friends, Detective Peter Caine and his father, Kwai Chang Caine."

Sharon smiled at Peter, who chivalrously bent down and kissed her hand. Then, turning to Caine, she gasped in amazed recognition, placing the face with the name she had heard so often growing up. Sharon exclaimed, "Oh my God, you're Caine, aren't you?"

Confused, Caine bowed, replying, "I am?"

Sharon continued, "You're a Shaolin priest, right?" Again, Caine nodded, still confused.

Composing herself, she drew to her full height and closed a hand over her fist, bowing in a traditional Shaolin salute. "As a young girl, I was a student of Ping Hai's when he came to our town after your temple was destroyed. He spoke much of your wisdom. I am honored to finally make your acquaintance."

Deeply humbled by Sharon's comments, Caine returned her salute. "I am honored to meet one who so clearly learned her lessons well."

Backing away slightly, she invited the three men, "Please, come in. I was just sitting down to some dinner. Would you care to join me?"

Caine humbly replied, "If it is not too much trouble..."

Sharon cut him off. "It's no trouble at all. Matter of fact I prepared enough for four, since I figured you would be hungry after your flight. Come, sit down."

Graciously, Caine accepted, "Thank you."

After dishing up several plates of the Chicken and Rice Bake she had prepared, Sharon got down to business, declaring to the group, "So, Kermit tells me that you're coming here on a case, more or less?"

Peter looked to Kermit who looked to Caine, wondering who should speak first. Finally Kermit explained to Sharon everything that both Caines had told him about Jason Shin's disappearance, his death and the Curse of the Serpent's Bite. Sharon asked a few leading questions as they ate, and each man took turns answering her questions to the best of their knowledge. Finally, she came to her own conclusions, and she remarked, "Well, I haven't heard anything about something like this, but that could mean it simply hasn't caught the attention of the Bureau yet."

Peter nearly choked on a mouthful of rice. "The Bureau? You work for the FBI?" He took another look around the apartment, thinking, [She can afford - this- on a G-Woman's salary? And she's working on an album? Unbelievable...]

Not even turning around to acknowledge Peter's surprise, Sharon simply nodded and continued her conversation with Kermit. "-However-, I do have some friends in the Cascade PD, so I could try to pull a couple of favors and see if anyone knows something."

Caine responded, "Thank you. It is very kind of you to help us out like this."

Sharon shrugged it off, replying, "Hey, no problem. I don't like to see nutcases running around in my city killing people, anyway."

After a few tense moments, Peter wanted to let the conversation change to something lighter. It was then that Peter remembered Sharon's unusual 'greeting' for Kermit. Grinning wickedly, he asked his old friend, "So how'd you two meet, -Kermie-?"

If looks could kill, Peter would have died a hundred painful deaths at that exact moment.


The next morning, Jim and Blair walked into the bullpen to discover a basket of fresh-baked apple cinnamon muffins on their desk. Skeptically, Jim looked around, first to the guys in the bullpen, then to Simon's office, to see if any of them were showing the slightest hint that they were trying to play a practical joke. When he noticed nothing unusual about the guys in the bullpen, he opened his senses a little further, the Golden incident immediately coming to mind. [After all, better safe than sorry...]

It was at the exact moment that he realized the muffins were perfectly safe to eat and Blair asked, "Wow, who are these from?" that Jim heard a familiar heartbeat behind him, one that belonged to the woman who more than likely baked the muffins. So just before his partner reached for one of the muffins, Jim stopped him with a hand on his chest. At Blair's confused look, Jim put a finger to his lips, then tilted the same finger behind him, indicating that the answer to Blair's question was standing at the entrance to the bullpen. So, following his Sentinel's lead, Blair turned around to find his girlfriend hesitantly waiting for them to notice her.

Skeptically, Jim asked, "What do you want, Share?"

Nervously, Sharon grinned sheepishly as she replied, "Gee Jim, what makes you think I want something?"

Blair rolled his eyes and grabbed a muffin, knowing that Sharon would get down to business soon enough. True to form, as soon as both men were sitting down, Sharon got up the courage to ask her favor. "Okay guys, a couple of friends came by last night and asked for my help."

Jim nodded. "Uh huh. So you need our help to help them."

Nervously, Sharon nodded. "Now, I know you're not supposed to go snooping around in other people's cases..."

Blair led her on, wanting her to get to the point. "But..."

Sharon decided to just come out with it. Not wanting to let on as to just how much her friends knew about the missing man's plight, Sharon began, "The son of a friend of my friends is missing. Cascade was the place where he was last seen. It's not a Bureau case, but I told them I'd ask around a bit, maybe see if any info had come in..."

Skeptically, Jim nodded again. "Uh huh."

Blair asked, "Do you have anything on their friend?"

Sharon nodded, and handed Blair the picture Kermit had given her the night before. "They gave me this picture last night. Their friend's name is on the back."

Within moments of the point when Blair took the picture from Sharon, all the color drained from his face. When Jim looked over at his now stricken partner, Blair handed him the picture and commented, "Well Jim, I guess we have a name for our John Doe now."

Jim's jaw clenched as he took a look at the picture of Jason Shin, the man he now easily recognized as their Asian John Doe from the day before. Looking up at Sharon, who was waiting in anticipation for her friends' response, Jim suggested to her, "I think it might be a good idea if we met those friends of yours."

Sharon's eyes widened slightly, as she asked, "So you recognize this guy?"

Jim took a second look at the picture and nodded.