A brief reminder: for the majority of the story, Nancy will refer to Frank and Joe by their pseudonyms—a refresher: Frank is otherwise known as Jake Fitzgerald, and Joe is otherwise referred to as Corey Barnes. Their alternate identities are not brothers, but roommates. That said, please enjoy! –rosa lunae

To Protect and Serve

Chapter 1: Conflict of Interest

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Though a flurry of emotions threatened to overwhelm Agent Drew, she remained completely calm. Her friendly smile did not widen as she wished it to, and she didn't leap into their arms like she would have done a decade ago. But, her mouth twitched and she shifted her weight, and the observant detectives noticed.

But, for their own safety, she couldn't reveal anything. "I understand that the two of you refused to be separated. That takes a little more work, but if it will help the adjustment, the FBI will be glad to provide. However, we must change both your appearances before we land. And I will brief you as to your new identities along the way. For now, you should know that we've established a secure apartment for the two of you at your destination. It will not be much, as we will not be providing your income, but we have, based on the skills listed, secured jobs for you both."

Thick windows dulled the hum of the plane's flight, and all of the windows were covered and blocked. None of the other Agents spoke.

"The rest of my team you will not interact with much—they will be working in security at the apartment complex, at your workplaces, and at the nearest Bureau headquarters. Two of them will be working directly from another apartment in the building, and I will be living in the apartment next door. You will be under constant surveillance, and very well protected. Six of the seven of us are officially under cover, including myself. Agent Shuler will be our liaison. He will be working full time at the FBI headquarters nearest us, and will provide us with all information regarding Krutin's activity in your hometown. We will try to keep you updated as much as possible, but after we land, the only agent you will see on a regular basis is myself. We don't want you to feel like prisoners or that you need a babysitter. You are both capable, intelligent, and logical detectives, and you know exactly what is at stake here. Do you not?"

"Yes. We do," Jake answered solemnly. He gazed unblinking at her face.

"I want you both to know that I am not protecting you simply because its my job, or because I want to keep you alive as witness against Krutin. You are now more to me than that."

They both nodded appreciatively, catching her double meaning. "I am on your side. And you should know that I was put on this case because I've dealt with Krutin before. In fact, while on this flight, I too will be changing my appearance, as he knows my face as well. But do not be uneasy; my team and I are the best of the best."

Though both men seemed fascinated with new piece of information and bursting with questions in general, they looked like hell.

"I will explain thoroughly later. For now, I urge you both to get some sleep. We have a long flight ahead of us."

"Corey" seemed very receptive to the idea. In fact, he had dozed off some during her lectures. She wanted to roll her eyes at him, but resisted. Jake, on the other hand, looked ready to explode with questions; he kept eyeing the scar she had on the left side of her face, trailing from the center of her forehead, brushing the outer tip of her eyebrow, and stopping at her high cheekbone. It bothered him, Nancy realized. She only smiled at him, as she pulled out her laptop. "All will be explained in the morning."

With that, he too, succumbed to slumber.

Certainly, she would explain thoroughly. About the program. About the need for their cooperation. But what could she say about how her heart fluttered at seeing them, especially "Jake"? What could she say about the truth about her meeting with Krutin? The rest of it?

She wasn't even forward with herself on that subject. She remembered her partner taking a bullet meant for her; she remembered watching him getting the stitches in the hospital without even blinking as the needle went in and out. She even remembered the circumstances surrounding the new distinguishing mark on her face. But that wasn't the only thing that had happened that night. Not by a long shot. But she had managed to dissociate so completely that she hardly remembered it at all when thinking of Krutin. Not on the surface. But deep within her, in the darkest place, it festered.

But with a glance at Jake and Corey, her new charges, she shoved the thoughts and the self-loathing and the vicious desire for revenge from her mind. From now on, she would protect them. She would make up for her mistakes. Through them… she might be atoned. With this thought in mind and no other, she took a blanket from the overhead compartment and draped it over both of them, trying to keep her eyes from lingering on Jake's face.

With that taken care of, Nancy began to type furiously into her computer as she searched the Bureau's databases.

Can anyone say conflict of interest? Anyone? Even a prosecutor would crucify me on the stand if they knew that I remained lead on assignment to protect two of my old friends from high school! God forbid the ass in a five thousand dollar suit that Krutin was sure to hire if they were able to catch him as they planned. Man. She sighed, and caught her head in her hands. You're taking a big risk here, Drew. Word of this gets out, and you could blow the case. But she looked around at the agents under her command. She was personally acquainted with all of them, and all of them were familiar with her reputation and respected it. She was sure they wouldn't turn her in if it got out.

But it won't, she decided. I won't put my team in the position to commit perjury. They can't lie or be forced to reveal something they don't know, just like Jake and Corey's real names. Or even the fact that they're brothers. It will fall on me.

This didn't bother her. Already, she was used to taking the rap for mistakes, both hers and others. The mark on her face wasn't the only scar she carried. She stood, with a sigh, and walked up the aisle to the cockpit. She knocked four times, then let herself in.

"How's the air, Jamison?" she asked, sliding in to the co-pilot's seat. But on a plane this small, a co-pilot wasn't necessary.

"Looks good, Drew. Where're we headed?"

"Set a course for Phoenix. There's a private airstrip outside the city owned by the Bureau… the Basset strip, I think."

He nodded, his long brown hair bouncing. "I know it."

"Instead of landing in the airport, we'll travel into the city in rental cars waiting for us there. But we've set up the secure apartment in downtown Phoenix."

"Really? We're not going to a safehouse first?"

Nancy shook her head vehemently. "Even I hate those things. Besides, Jake and Corey have had their share of safehouses. Plus, I've learned over the years that sometimes the best place to hide is in huge city where you can blend into the other faces. In the suburbs or rural areas, there are less people, fewer faces to cloud the puzzle."

Jamison nodded absently, his eyes focused on the sky, his hands making tiny adjustments unconsciously.

"Let me know if you need a breather. It's a long way to Arizona. And as for breathers, I insist that you take one."

As an emergency precaution—and, secretly, for the fulfillment of an old dream of hers—Nancy had been trained by the FBI in flight. She had a private pilot's license.

"Will do, ma'am."

Agent Drew took her leave from the cockpit, and stepped back into the aisle of the small craft. She surveyed the scene as she was trained to. Her agents were huddled in the back of the craft, going over their tasks as quietly as they could. She smiled dryly as she approached.

"There will be plenty of time for that, guys. In fact, we're going to be in the air for 5 or 6 hours."

They all looked as if they wanted to groan, but didn't. "We're en route to Phoenix, Arizona, truth be told."

"Are you kidding me!" cried Agent "Andy" Anderson in a stage whisper. Her short, black hair framed her face, accentuating her almond eyes. "And I packed all these warm, heavy clothes for Maine!"

Nancy grinned. She saw Amelia Anderson as a strange mix of herself, Bess, and George. She was feisty, dramatic, with a sharp mind for detail, and only a year and a half younger. She had a knack for catching the things everyone else missed, along with the talent for making the most boring stakeout amusing without compromising their work. Despite her age and tendency to exaggerate, Nancy had no doubt of Andy's abilities to lead a group. "Well, Andy, I never said we were staying in Maine, did I?" she told the younger woman good naturedly.

"I don't think you did, Drew," Agent Griffin "Bomb" Bombay said snidely, leering playfully at Anderson, his shaggy blond hair flopping over one eye. He leaned back in the plane seat, one ankle resting on one knee, arms crossed. Nancy had been a bit doubtful about letting the headstrong young man on their op, but he was a technological genius. The man could hack his way into Fort Knox. "But we all know about Agent Amelia Bedelia's tendency to jump to conclusions."

"Hah!" Agent Samuel "Go-Go" Gates huffed, pointing vehemently at his coworker. "You're one to talk, Bomb! You've yet to stop hitting on Andy despite the many times she's rejected you." Go-Go was in his mid thirties, and his sense of humor was blunt and bit scathing at times, but he was beyond loyal. And he didn't have the name Go-Go for nothing. He was a master of several forms of martial arts, and his lean, toned form made him the fastest sprinter in the Bureau… not to mention his shocking IQ. He picked up his nickname during a friendly FBI sparring match, when the crowd didn't know his name, so they changed "Go! Go! Go!" and, sadly, it stuck. He won the match.

"Geez, lay off, Gates!" Agent Rachel "Ray" Matthews scolded. She was 40 and single, as she'd dedicated all of her life to the FBI. She was a trained forensic psychiatrist, who specialized in profiling criminals. She was still currently working on her full, written profile of Vladislav Krutin to publish through the law enforcement branches of America. Her braided dark hair was developing streaks of silver, which was actually attractive against her ebony skin.

"For real, Go-Go!" Bomb joined in, amused. "We can't all be happily married to our high school sweethearts."

"Bomb." Agent Reed "Pop" Shuler, the most experienced and decorated agent on their team—not to mention, Nancy's unofficial mentor—who specialized quite somberly and efficiently in information trafficking, sent his colleague a warning glare, checking Nancy's reaction from the corner of his wrinkled eye. As an older agent, he'd quickly acquired the nickname; though he was not amused by most things, he put up with it tolerably well. Now, his fatherly gaze was alternating sending the young man a scathing glare and Nancy a concerned gaze.

Nancy only sighed, the smile draining from her face. Her clear eyes took on a darker hue. "It's okay, Reed. It's true, after all." She turned away, and took a seat across the aisle and several rows behind Frank and Joe… no, she corrected herself, Jake and Corey.

"Try to get some sleep guys. We can go over assignments when we're closer than three hours from the city. The jet lag will be killer."

She could hear Shuler and Matthews chiding Bomb for the remark, but she blocked it out, along with the memories.

Just feet away, Frank Hardy sat awake, his mind whirling. First, Krutin. Then, Witness Protection. Then, Nancy as their protector! He thought he couldn't handle any more shocks, but he'd overheard… everything. What could she mean?

I bet Ned dumped her because she neglected him for cases, Frank thought angrily. But, of course, he didn't know. After high school, they'd seen each other only a few times in college, and then completely gone their separate ways.

But whatever had happened with Ned, Nancy was not unchanged. She carried a distinctive hardness in her eyes, a hidden burden on her shoulders. Even despite the briefness of their meeting before takeoff, Frank noticed it immediately. Even if the fire in her eyes blazed all the brighter, the flames were definitely several shades darker.

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That's it for now! I'm on a roll! Please review!

-rosa lunae