Chapter Two

Steve growled his displeasure when the phone forced him out of his cocoon of sleep. It was only 8pm, but he had just returned from a long, grueling mission and it was the first time he'd been prone in a bed in almost a week.

"What?" he groaned, in lieu of a greeting. Greetings required civility and civility required rest.

"Jack Hansen here," the voice on the other end began. "I need to see you in my office; it's urgent."

"Yeah?" Steve was not enthused. Hansen was not on his list of 10,000 favorite people. "I'm at the ranch. I'll catch a plane and fly East – first thing in the morning."

"I know where you are," Hansen retorted. "And you don't need to fly anywhere; I'm in California. Be at my office in an hour."

Steve opened his mouth, ready to say Just a damn minute – you're not my boss! But he'd have been arguing with a dial tone.

--

"Alright, Jack," Steve grumbled, after making it to the office in just under an hour, "what's so all-fire important that you had to steal the first sleep I've had in days?"

"Why are you in Los Angeles, Colonel?" Hansen shot back with a slight sneer.

"Everyone has to be somewhere; I happen to be here. Prefer to be back in my nice, warm bed though – so get to the point."

"When was the last time you spoke to Oscar Goldman?" Hansen demanded, not amused.

"Did something happen to Oscar?"

"I'm asking the questions, and you'd better stop dodging and start answering."

"Last night – about 22 hours ago, if you want me to be precise – I called to let him know I was on my way back to the States. I'll be meeting with him here tomorrow morning."

"We can only hope," Hansen said cryptically. "What about Jaime Sommers?"

"Jaime? What about her?"

"When did you last see or speak with her?"

Steve shrugged. "A couple of weeks ago, when she was in DC."

"And what did you talk about?"

"I'm not going to answer that," Steve said, glaring at the man on the other side of the desk.

"Oh, believe me – you'll answer. You can either tell me now or I can drag you into the Hole and force you to answer."

"We talked about the trip my parents have been on. Jaime had some new pictures."

Hansen scowled. "Nothing else?"

"Small talk, I guess. The weather, how she was feeling -"

"Why would that come up – how she was feeling?"

"She was out there – at least in part – to see Rudy, and I was worried so I asked."

"And?" Hansen probed.

"For God's sake, Jack, get over yourself!"

"Just answer the question."

"She's fine. I'm fine. The whole damn world is fine...with the possible exception of one very annoying NSB Director."

"Sommers turned in her resignation this morning," Jack told him abruptly.

"Oh, no..."

"You don't know anything about that?"

"No...she...never mentioned it. I had no idea."

"Our agents were dispatched to – ah – retrieve her, and her apartment was empty. Car still parked in front, but she was gone."

"Does Oscar know?" Steve asked.

"There's our other problem," Hansen said grimly. "Goldman's missing, too. You are going to help us find them"

--

Oscar carried both suitcases into the cottage. In spite of Jaime's ability to have lifted them both with one finger, chivalry was important to him...and right now, Jaime was a wreck. Reality had hit her just outside of Ojai, when they had switched cars. They wanted to lock her away like a criminal – like an animal! Her tears cut Oscar to his core; he wanted nothing more than to pull the car over and hold her in his arms until she felt calm and safe again, but they were on borrowed time. All he could do was take her hand in one of his own, caressing her palm with his fingertips as he drove.

"You'll be alright," he assured her in a tender voice. "I won't let them take you."

"Oscar...you have to go back. Please..."

"We're in this together, Babe."

"It's not too late! You could tell them you were out looking for me, and -"

"No, Jaime. On your own, you might have a decent chance, but together – as a team – we are unstoppable. You are going to be safe...and you're going to stay free."

As Oscar led Jaime over the ridge and into the cottage, he kept a firm but gentle arm around her waist. If it weren't for her bionic legs holding her up, she looked like she was ready to faint. Once they were inside, he helped her find the only bedroom and got her settled into the bed. He gathered her into his arms, holding her until her trembling subsided before kissing her tenderly on the forehead and tucking her in.

"You'll feel a lot better once you get some sleep," he said softly.

"What about you?"

"There's a sofa bed in the other room. I have a few phone calls to make first, though, so I'll be up for awhile if you need anything." When he looked in on her just a few minutes later, she was already sound asleep. Oscar knew in his heart that he'd done the right thing, but he couldn't help worrying about her safety. Now that he'd made Jaime into a fugitive (and himself, as well), the NSB might have no qualms about ordering them both shot on sight.

--