Part 2

JD fidgeted restlessly as he tried to listen to the smooth voice of Mark Perkins.

"The point, my friends, in learning to be open and honest with each other and yourself, is to create an environment of peace and harmony. Yes, there will always be conflict, but with the right avenues to work though that conflict, the ultimate can be achieved. Our goal here at the center is to create a community in which this type of interaction is the norm. What begins with us reaches the world at large."

JD glanced at Casey as the professor droned on. She sat in rapt attention, jotting down notes and nodding in agreement with Perkins' statements. Inwardly he groaned and looked at his watch for the thousandth time. He felt so out of place here. 24 more hours of this stuff and they'd be on their way home. He couldn't believe he'd already spent two days here. It felt like an eternity. He looked at Casey again trying not to be jealous of the attention she was devoting to Perkins. She seemed to dote on his every word even between seminars and sessions. Everyone here did and it made JD question if there was something wrong with him. Maybe he just hadn't paid enough attention in his psychology courses to get into this.

JD looked up realizing that people were moving around. Perkins' assistants were helping put chairs in a large circle. "Oh hell," he whispered, another blasted session. He felt like he'd go insane if he had to listen to another person spill their life story in front of the group. Not to mention he was tired of hearing rich people whine. He'd never been among so many wealthy young college students in his life. Must be nice to be born with the proverbial silver spoon.

At moments during the last two days he'd wished for his gun. At least that way he could put himself out of his misery, maybe take a few of these folks with him.

"Come on JD." Casey grabbed his good hand pulling him towards the imposing circle. He let himself be led to a chair and smiled absently at the thin, dark haired man who sat next to him.

"Isn't this the most wonderful weekend?" The man's eyes seemed to shine brighter as he spoke.

"Sure," JD tried to politely shrug the man off, realizing he was the man who'd broke down in tears yesterday afternoon when Perkins had plied him with questions about his failed marriage and overbearing parents. JD had to admit the man looked like he felt better now, but didn't understand how.

Mark Perkins was walking around the circle now, patting a shoulder here and there. Getting people settled so he could begin. Casey looked at JD and smiled. `She does remember I'm here,' he thought, reaching for her hand. He intertwined his fingers with hers and squeezed lightly. She returned the affection before letting go and turning her attention back to Perkins. JD sighed. He could feel his heart beat speed up as Perkins began wandering around the circle talking softly. It was like a deranged game of duck, duck, goose to JD. Perkins would circle them all and then place his hand on someone's shoulder asking them to sit in the lone chair in the center. JD held his breath every time praying this would not be his time. Perkins was getting closer to him and Casey and talking about the importance of honesty with the group repeating his theme, "What begins with us reaches the world at large." JD was so sick of that saying.

"JD" He felt the hand on his shoulder and wished for the ground to open up and swallow him whole.
"You've been awfully quiet this weekend. I think it's time we learn a little more about you."

"I'd rather not." JD tried to be polite as his voice wavered.

"JD!" He felt Casey poke him. "Come on." She looked shocked that he would even consider saying no.

"It would mean a lot to Casey I see." Perkins smiled down at him.

"I know, I just..." he paused looking at the floor. 'calm yourself Dunne,' he thought, 'you've handled worse situations than this before.'

"Don't you care about Casey?"

His head jerked up at the professor's question, anger flooding him. "Of course I do."

"Then show her you'll do anything for her." Perkins motioned to the center chair again.

"She knows I'd do anything for her," JD's voice was sharp now. He didn't like being manipulated.

"Does She?"

Casey was watching him expectantly. He had no choice now, and he could taste his anger towards this man. Stiffly he rose from his chair and made his way to the lone chair in the middle of the circle. He felt the eyes of the world on him, even though there were only 30 some people here. His eyes locked with Perkins' as he took his seat.

"Thank you Mr. Dunne." Perkins' countenance seemed to relax. He was glad that JD was now complying. The older man could sense the walls surrounding this youngster and it intrigued him. Most of the people here he'd invited because of their interest in psychology, that and their wealth. Casey he'd invited because he thought her intelligence would be an asset to the project. This JD, though, hadn't opened up enough to get a good read on yet. He smiled pleasantly at the dark haired boy and began.

"Tell me JD how did you break your arm?"

"Told you the other day, I had a motorcycle accident." JD wondered where this was going.

"What happened?"

"Brakes were cu...brakes failed," he amended mid-sentence, shrugging.

"Was it really an accident then?"

"Pardon?"

Perkins smiled faintly, "You started to tell us that your brakes were cut. Honesty JD," he reminded. "Was this an intentional attack on you?"

"I guess," JD frowned.

"So, someone intentionally cut the brakes on your bike to cause you harm." Perkins moved a little closer, still remaining on the outside of the circle.

"That's what I said, yeah."

"How do you feel about the person who did this to you?" Perkins crossed his arms casually and waited.

"Didn't appreciate her." JD shifted trying to get comfortable in his chair. He didn't actually remember much about the accident itself, just the worry over Buck before hand, and the events that followed.

"Did you know this person?"

"Not personally," JD smiled, the professor wasn't doing a very good job of keeping his questions `open' like he'd lectured about the day before.

"Why the attack then?"

"Dunno," JD shrugged.

"Seems a little odd, don't you think, to attack someone in such a manner with no reason? What happened to this person? You obviously know who it is since you referred to 'her'." Perkins frowned wishing he had a background on this man. Sessions were so much easier with accurate backgrounds.

JD sighed again. "She's dead," he said calmly. There was a collective gasp around the room. Perkins looked startled but recovered quickly. Only Casey looked unsurprised by JD's answer.

"How did she die?"

"She accidentally went over a cliff. Look what does this have to do with a stupid broken wrist?" JD had no more patience for this. To him Perkins was just being morbidly nosey.

"Well everything JD," Perkins answered smoothly. "How do you feel about this woman now?"

"I don't," JD answered automatically.

"But you must. I mean were you able to confront her about what happened before her death?"

"No," JD answered flatly.

"JD!" Casey's voice was sharp and she sounded exasperated as she jumped into the conversation.
"She was stalking your boss and attacked you and the rest of the team just to get to him!"

JD glared at Casey. He didn't want to go into this here. Turning back Perkins he explained briefly.

"Look we tried to catch her. She ran, it was dark and she went over a cliff. End of story."

Alarm bells blared inside Perkins' head at the words team and catch. He swallowed and re-examined the young man in front of him. At most, he couldn't be any older then his mid twenties, though he looked like a teenager.

"What do you do for a living, JD?"

For some reason JD remembered a time right after he had moved in with Buck. Buck had been sharing different aspects of ATF work when he told JD "Never volunteer that you are ATF. Always stay as vague as possible. You never know, besides it never fails to add mystery and ladies love mystery."

"Law enforcement," he answered plainly.

Perkins saw his assistant tense, but ignored it and kept his voice calm as he replied. "I see, dangerous line of work. Must be a lot of feelings you have to work through everyday." There was no way this man could be undercover, Perkins thought, or he wouldn't have so freely given up the fact he worked in law enforcement. Even so, as soon as they broke for lunch he was going to start a thorough background check on this JD Dunne.

JD sat calmly as Perkins continued to ask him questions about the way he felt towards Kara Billings. Seemed to JD that Perkins had even lost interest with the short answers JD continued to give. He was not about to open up to these people. Hell, he hadn't even told Buck how he felt about the whole thing, not yet. He wasn't ready yet.

Perkins passed his office as night fell on the peaceful campground. He pressed the phone to his ear and growled into it.

"I don't care what you do! I want to know everything there is to know about JD Dunne and I want to know now. Nothing is going to get in the way of this plan." He'd been intercepted at lunchtime by a very different phone call. A psychologist from the south was in the area doing some research for a book and wanted to come by the center in the morning to interview him. The thrill of seeing his name and theories described in print was more then he could resist. But talking to the man had made him unable to get the check on Dunne started until now. Frustrated by the delay he was now taking it out on his contact on the other end of the line.

"Listen Dan, tomorrow I'm informing these people they are not leaving the center. If there's trouble I'll deal with it, but until I get the ransom I'm demanding from each and every family no one is leaving this property." He slammed the receiver down and looked around the dim room. He'd worked too long and hard organizing this to have something like a kid playing cop ruin things for him now.

JD stood in front of the mirror towel drying his hair with a vengeance. "Thank God it's Tuesday," he whispered, tossing the towel over the provided rack, and looking around the small room for a shirt. Since yesterday afternoon's events in 'the session' he'd been counting down the minutes until he and Casey could take off. His thoughts wandered to Casey. There was something different about her this weekend. He hated the way she seemed to hang on every word the professor said. Half of it didn't even make sense to him.

"Should have paid more attention during psych," he muttered, shrugging on a flannel shirt. He couldn't wait to get back to work. His fingers ached to touch a keyboard. He would give anything for a little bit of technology right now. He'd even managed to lose his cell phone. JD ran his fingers through his damp hair and concentrated on where he'd last seen the phone. He could have sworn he left it in the car, but after searching it three times he still came up empty. A nagging thought pulled at his mind, and he wondered if it had been stolen. Instinctively, he reached for his wallet reassuring himself it was still in his back pocket. He could only imagine all the red tape involved in getting his I.D. replaced. A knock on the door made him jump. What was with him? This entire weekend he'd been feeling guarded and antsy.

Casey opened the door before he could answer her knock. "Morning handsome," she smiled and moved forward kissing him gently before beginning to button his shirt for him.

"I can button my own clothes, Case."

Casey stepped back, her eyes clouding, "I-I was just trying to help," she stammered.

JD sighed heavily and reached for her hands. "I'm sorry, really," he pulled her a step closer, "I didn't mean to bite your head off, I'm just tired I guess. I'm sorry." His eyes searched hers.

She nodded, but pulled her hands from his. "We need to get to breakfast," she sounded okay.

"We could always skip breakfast," JD grinned playfully and tipped his head to the side pouting slightly. Casey frowned and moved further away from him resting her hands on her hips in defiance.

"You know JD that's just plain manipulative. If you can't respect me enough to ask me for something straight out, then don't bother to ask at all!" Her last words were shouted, as she spun on her heels and slammed out the door.

JD stood there, his shirt hanging half-buttoned, hair askew, and mouth open in shock. "I was only teasing," he whispered softly, staring at the closed doors. Finally he shook off his confusion, clumsily pulled on his boots and buttoned his shirt. Grabbing his coat he headed out after her.

Chris shifted and adjusted his position in the tree careful not to jostle around too much. All he needed now was to lose his balance and fall twenty feet to the cold ground. Shivering slightly, he pulled his hunting jacket tighter around him. He balanced his rifle across his lap and peered through his high-powered binoculars. He scowled as he watched the retreat center begin to come alive. He hated being this far away, but if they set up any closer, it would be too suspicious. He was already worried about their camp drawing too much attention. Five guys out for a week of hunting didn't seem too unusual, but he was sure Perkins would question everything.

Chris glanced over at Buck and Josiah perched in a fairly elaborate tree stand.

"Serious hunters," Buck grinned and struck a pose for him. Chris just smiled and adjusted his ear piece. "Everything working?"

"Just right. Everybody hear me okay?"

Nathan and Vin replied through the radios, letting Buck know the equipment was working fine. They were in separate trees, off to Chris' left. Though the team was well above the Retreat Center, they still needed to be in the trees for a better view into the place.

"You okay Josiah?" Chris hadn't wanted the agent to join them on a stake out so soon after returning to work, but he'd insisted, arguing "If Buck can go with his mouth full of tin and his cans of slim fast then I can go sit in a tree."

"I'm fine," the older man assured.

Chris shifted uneasily again reaching for the binoculars. There was another team on the other side of the retreat he could hear Josiah conferring with. They were further away though. Damn he wished he could get closer.

"You can hear Ezra?" He checked with Buck.

"Oh yeah, where does the man come up with this stuff?"

"God only knows," Nathan's voice was tinged with amusement.

The five of them could communicate together, but only Buck and Josiah could hear Ezra. Chris focused on the retreat and waited. There was no telling how long this was going to take. He thought he spotted Casey making her way across the camp and focused in on her. He couldn't see her expression, but could read that body language anywhere. Sure enough there was JD running after her. Chris smiled. At least some things were normal. Those two were always bickering about something. He watched the other retreat members as many made their way to one building.

"Must be breakfast," Buck commented.

Chris watched stoically, hoping that Ezra could find Perkins' true motives quickly and that JD and Casey wouldn't blow his cover on sight.

Ezra watched as Perkins scanned the resume and book summary he'd been given. The undercover agent had no doubt the work was believable but his thoughts were distracted. 'Focus,' he told himself, 'you'll handle seeing JD and Casey when the time comes.' He just hoped he wasn't too late.

"Impressive," Perkins' voice brought him into focus quickly. Ezra merely nodded. "What brings you to me?"

Ezra flashed a charming smile. "Well I've heard of your counseling techniques and wanted a chance to observe them before I tried to write about them," He leaned forward letting his voice fill with excitement, "I'm anticipating seeing how the group counseling and your combined questioning, effect the interpersonal process and social behaviors of those in the group. "

Perkins was nodding. "It is a very interesting process as you will soon see." He laid the papers on his desk and smiled broadly. "Let's head over to the cafeteria for breakfast. I'll introduce you to the group and you can get to know them some before the morning session."

"Sounds delightful."

Perkins stood and came around the desk as he put his coat on. "Your resume says you received your doctorate at the University of Georgia. Are you originally from that area?"

Ezra stood and gracefully slipped into a long black overcoat as he answered, "From Atlanta, yes."

"Bet you love this weather." The professor opened the door of the cabin letting the cold air blast in on them.

"No sir, I rather prefer a Georgia winter to this." Ezra smiled genuinely at the truth in his statement, pulled his collar up around his neck, and followed the professor out into the cold. There were only five buildings on the small retreat grounds. Ezra took mental notes as they walked. The main lodge, a second smaller lodge, the cabin they had just come from, and two other medium sized buildings set up parallel to the first three. He assumed the one they were heading for was the cafeteria.

"Casey wait!" JD's voice caught his attention and he looked over to see the younger agent just catching up to a very displeased looking Casey.

"Oh dear," Ezra whispered under his breath. As they drew closer to the couple he could hear JD apologizing and explaining. Casey appeared to be listening and softening, as JD spoke. Ezra smiled. No one could stay mad at JD for long. Casey hugged JD as Perkins stopped beside them. Ezra held his breath.

"Casey, JD " Perkins enjoyed his timing. "I'd like you to meet Dr. Ezra Harrington."

JD turned, again frustrated with the professor and looked up at the stranger he had no desire to meet. As his eyes met Ezra's his heart began to race. He heard Casey start to speak, but tightened his grasp on her arm and rushed in before she could say anything.

"Nice to meet you Dr…Harrington was it? I'm JD Dunne and this is my girl friend Casey Wells." He extended his hand to shake Ezra's.

The southerner smiled. "My pleasure," he squeezed JD's hand tightly and nodded once in greeting.
Then he turned to Casey. "Truly my pleasure indeed." He took her gloved hand and kissed the back of it winking at her before letting go.

"Dr. Harrington is writing a book and is here to observe how we do things," Perkins spoke again, oblivious to anything going on between the three. "Casey here is a student of mine."

"Nice to meet you," Casey found her voice finally. Ezra could see her confusion and tried to smile reassuringly.

"We'll see you inside," JD motioned toward the building in front of them. He held Casey back as Ezra and Perkins proceeded into the cafeteria.

"What is going on?" Casey's eyes were large as she turned to him.

"I don't know Casey, but Ezra's obviously undercover. No matter what we do we can't let on we know him."

Casey nodded. "I get that, but J.D why? Why would Ezra be here?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. "Maybe Professor Perkins is under investigation for some reason."

"No." Casey was emphatic. "Professor Perkins would never do anything against the law." She shook her head.

"Casey, this guy is weird, he's manipulative...and…"

"You just don't like him!" Casey protested.

"Casey," JD reached for her with his good hand, his fingers catching her neck, his thumb on her cheek. Gently he pulled her closer tilting her head up to look at him. "You're right, I don't like him. I don't know why, I just don't. But what matters now is taking our cues from Ezra. You have to trust me on this, please?" His voice had fallen to a whisper.

Shivering Casey nodded and let herself be pulled into a hug. She didn't want to believe the nagging doubts that maybe JD was right about Professor Perkins, but JD was good at his job and right now for her own safety as well as his and Ezra's, she had to trust him.

tbc...