Mac and Jack watched Nikki put the cuffs on Thornton and escort her out of the office. Then she looked back at MacGyver and Jack took his cue to leave, taking Riley and Bozer with him. He waited outside the office for Nikki to leave, then locked eyes with Mac, offering the kid a short nod and soft grin.

MacGyver waited inside the cottage Jack had directed him to, pacing back and forth with impatience for his friend to join him. Finally, the door opened. "Were you followed?"

"No," Jack confirmed. "You?"

"Nope."

"You okay," Jack asked, voice filled with sympathy.

"I'm fine," MacGyver said, acting like he had no idea why he wouldn't be.

But, as always, Jack saw through the act. "Hey, now, don't you go blaming yourself. You were the one who realized at the last minute what was really going on."

"Yeah," Mac conceded, running his hands through his hair. "Okay, so, now what?"

"You're sure no one at the Foundation knows about this place?"

"Positive. My dad and I used to come out here to fish but I haven't been here since he passed away," his voice softened when speaking of his dad. Mac watched him with sympathy, wishing he'd had a similar relationship with his own father. Jack cleared his throat and continued. "That was nine years ago. Long before I started with DXS, much less the Foundation."

"Okay, good. Then this is where we'll meet from this point on. What about Riley and Bozer?"

"Are we sure we want to read them in on this? It's gonna be dangerous."

Mac sighed. "I know, and I don't disagree. But how upset do you think they'd be to find out that they helped put Thornton in prison but weren't given a chance to help prove her innocence?"

"Good point," Jack said, shuddering at the thought of what Riley's retaliation might be. "I'll text Riley now."

"Don't send her directions, though. Her cell may be being monitored."

"I don't need to send directions. I took her and her mom out here one weekend to meet Pop."

"Ahh," Mac said knowingly.

"Shut up," Jack told him without heat. "What are you going to do while I'm texting Riley?"

MacGyver immediately headed to the bathroom he had scoped out earlier. "I'm going to wash my mouth out with soap," he admitted, voice tinged with sadness.

Jack followed the kid's movements with his gaze as he pulled out his phone. Nikki had really done a number on him. And Jack could not WAIT to be given the chance to slap the cuffs on her wrists, once and for all.

A few hours later, a confused Riley and Bozer joined them. "Wow, cryptic much, Jack?" Riley asked, as soon as they stepped into the cottage. "All you said in your text was for me and Bozer to meet you guys here, to tell absolutely no one, and to make sure we weren't followed."

"Did you follow the instructions," MacGyver asked her.

"Of course, we did," Bozer interjected. "What's going on?"

Jack stepped over to a closed bedroom door. "Okay, it's safe to come out now."

A moment later, Patricia Thornton opened the door and stepped into the main living area.

Shocked, Bozer grabbed a butcher knife from the nearby kitchen counter, then stepped solidly in front of Riley, earning a half-hearted glare from the beautiful computer hacker.

"It's okay," MacGyver assured them.

"Okay?" Bozer exclaimed. "The woman we just had arrested for trying to kill all of us is now standing right in front of us. No bars separating us from her. No handcuffs. I'm not seeing how this could possibly be okay, Mac!"

Stepping up to his friend, he gently eased the knife out of his hand. "It was all a ruse," he told them. "Thornton's not the mole, and Oversight agreed to us orchestrating a little sting."

"We figured having me arrested, and allowing Nikki and the real mole to think their frame up worked, would make them… relaxed."

"Yeah," Jack added. "And a relaxed mole is a sloppy mole."

Riley suddenly darted around Bozer and rushed forward, hugging Patricia tightly. For her part, Thornton was stunned at first, then returned the embrace, though not with as much vigor. "I've never been so happy to be wrong. I'm so glad you're not a traitor!" She pulled away. "Sorry for, you know, doubting you."

"It's okay, Riley," Thornton said sincerely. "You were supposed to. It was all part of the plan."

"A plan we were not privy to," Bozer said, a bit offended.

"Sorry about that," Mac offered. "You two aren't experienced agents yet and, in order for our plan to work, we had to make sure Nikki believed we were fooled."