"So where exactly is this place again?" Becky asked as they headed out to Donnie's new car.

"It's just north of downtown," she said. "The area's kind of seedy but the club is really hot, and they're having a teen night. No alcohol." She walked to the driver's seat and pulled open the door. "Okay guys, find your seats! First come, first serve, or else one of you is going in the trunk!"

The others dashed for seats. Katie took the passenger side in the front, while Becky ended up between Luke and Marya in the back. Callie reluctantly agreed to climb back into the trunk. When everyone was secure Donnie started the car and pulled out onto the street, eventually turning east onto Santa Monica Boulevard.

It was a Friday night so naturally the city was busy. People were heading out for the night, seeking the entertainment of their choice to take their mind off their troubles. But away from the bright lights the teens glimpsed shadowed alleyways where the homeless resided, or furtive drug deals took place.

"Who in their right mind would open a club in this part of town? I hope no one steals the car," Callie said as they walked towards the warehouse building where the club was located.

"Yeah, I really don't want to be stuck here," Katie added. Donnie just sighed and walked faster, leaving the others to catch up with her.

Becky stayed behind with Luke and Marya, easily matching their long-legged strides thanks to her hikes in the mountains with MacGyver. "I don't think it's going anywhere. Can't say the same for the tires, however," she quipped.

"The amount of alarms she's got programmed in there should be enough to terrify any would-be burglars," Marya agreed.

Inside the club was full of loud music, gyrating bodies, and flashing lights. Becky felt a headache coming on as she began to cough on the smoke, smelling cigarettes and something she figured was marijuana. Oh great, she thought. Unc's gonna kill me when he smells this on my clothes. Hope he'll be asleep when I get back home.

Their progress was slowed as they skirted the dance floor. Becky was bumped by someone who was pushing their way through and Luke's hand grasped her arm as she stumbled.

He looked down at her in concern. "You all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." He kept his hand on her elbow, steadying and guiding her through the crush until the six were able to find a free table near the back of the club.

Katie waved a hand in front of her face to clear away the smoke. "Well if nobody here can drink they certainly have other vices to choose from," she said dryly.

"Are you sure this was a good idea?" Callie nervously glanced at a tattooed punk who was staring at them.

"Look, it's just an experiment," Donnie said. "If it doesn't work then we'll leave and find somewhere else to go."

"Sounds good," Katie said with a grin. "Now who wants to dance?"

"Not me," Becky said.

Donnie frowned. "Why not?"

"Because I can't. I'm left-handed and I got two left feet."

"Me, too," Luke admitted. "I'm pretty awful. I'll stay with Becky."

Katie turned to Marya. "What about you?"

She shrugged. "Sure, I'll give it a shot."

"That's good enough for me," Donnie said. Katie and Callie followed them onto the dance floor.

Luke turned to Becky. "Why don't you get out there with the rest of them?"

"Like I said, I can't dance. I'm too clumsy, people would laugh." She felt her cheeks flushing with the revelation.

He shrugged. "It's your birthday though, don't you want to give it a try?"

"Not if it means making a fool of myself."

"Not even slow dancing? It's easy. All you really have to do is sway back and forth. Let's try it."

"Here? Are you kidding?"

"No, I'm not," Luke said, turning to her and holding out his hand. "C'mon, dance with me."

Becky regarded his blue eyes, floppy blond hair and charming dimples. There was something about him that reminded her of her uncle; she felt she could trust him. "You're nuts," she laughed, but put her hand in his anyway.

"Yeah, I know," Luke said, pulling her close.

The loud, pounding beat of the music provided an odd background for the slow dance. Becky had to crane her neck up to look at him, he was so much taller than she was. It reminded her of how she felt when Mac was holding her, so warm and protected in his arms. She wondered if he and Nikki had ever danced together in such a way.

She had just rested her cheek against Luke's leather jacket- enjoying the feel of his arms around her and the steady beat of his heart- when suddenly the doors to the club burst open and cops in riot gear came swarming in.

"Police! This is a raid!" Panic immediately broke out.

"Unbelievable," Becky muttered under her breath.

"Let's get the hell out of here," Luke said. They let go of each other, but soon after he grabbed onto her hand, guiding her as they slowly made their way through the jostling crowd.

He paused a moment and looked around, trying to locate the others. "I can't see them anywhere."

Becky spied Marya- her towering height and long blonde tresses apparent even at that distance- and the others near the entrance. "There they are."

Donnie nodded to them once everyone was together. "What the hell's going on?"

"I'm not sure," Callie said, "but I think I heard someone mention drugs."

"Oh, great," Katie muttered. "Let's get out of here before our parents have to bail us out of jail in the morning. My dad's really gonna love that."

The chaos provided the perfect means for them to slip out unnoticed past the cops stationed at the door. As soon as they arrived at the car everyone silently piled in; the vehicle sped away and no one looked back.

Nikki wrinkled her nose at the lingering odor of potato chips that pervaded the living room as she relaxed on the couch a few hours later, every last file reviewed and sorted. Sitting on the opposite end the troubleshooter shifted uncomfortably in his seat while they watched the eleven o'clock news, checking the time occasionally and frowning. "MacGyver, calm down. You'll drive yourself crazy if you keep doing that."

He offered her an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Nikki. Guess I'm a bit worried about Becky. You think she's having fun with her friends? That they're not getting into trouble?"

"I'm sure there's nothing to be concerned about. You know she can take care of herself."

"Yeah, I do. Still can't shake the feeling that something bad's gonna happen to her, though." He leaned his head onto the back of the couch and sighed heavily, running a hand through his unruly brown hair. "Comes with the territory, I guess. You know what's really weird?"

"What?"

"My niece is turning sixteen today. I'm only thirty-seven, yet somehow I feel a lot older. I never expected this, you know, never thought I'd become legally responsible for someone else, to make a commitment to care for her." He frowned slightly. "Never thought I'd worry this much when she went out with friends, either."

"I think you're lucky to have her. Adam and I were too busy working in D.C. to even talk about raising kids. Then the bomb went off and it was too late..." Her voice trailed off and she shrugged helplessly. Mac reached over and rubbed Nikki's arm sympathetically, remembering her revelation during last year's post office bombing scare and his really bad head cold.

"Maybe it's just something that happens with having kids," she continued. "No matter what happens, you can't stop worrying about them. Probably how our parents felt about us, when we were growing up."

"So you're sayin' I'm supposed to be feeling this way?"

"I think you are, Mac."

"You're probably right." The corner of his mouth turned up in a wry grin. "Nice to know I can do something that's normal, huh?"

"Are we there yet?"

"Shut up, guys."

After searching for other places to go- every last one of which long closed by the time they got there- the group decided it wasn't worth the trouble and decided to drive up into the mountains to hang out. A couple of hours later they ended up in the parking lot of an all-hours convenience store with a map spread out over the hood of the car.

"I think we're here," Donnie said, jabbing with the spoon from her frozen yogurt.

"And where is here?" Luke asked, leaning over the map.

"Fernwood. Somewhere in the Topanga Canyon, I think."

Becky sighed and walked over to lean against the side of the car, munching on a cookie. "How on earth did we wind up so far from town?"

Donnie glared at her. "If that's your way of complaining about my sense of direction, Grahme, then keep any further comments to yourself."

Becky held up her hands in apology. "Sorry."

Katie joined her, finishing her own snack. "Man, she's uptight. Some way to spend your birthday, huh?"

"It's definitely one I'll remember for a while. First time I've ever spent most of my birthday party in a car, anyway." She shivered slightly, the night was cool for the end of February. "I'm just wondering what happens now."

"Hey Donnie!" Katie called out.

"Yeah?"

"About how long would it take to get home from here?"

"Optimistic guess, about an hour. That's assuming absolutely nothing goes wrong, or we don't get lost again."

Becky rolled her eyes. "That's it. Let's get outta here. If we're lucky we'll be home by midnight and our folks won't ground us all for a week."

They climbed back into the car and drove out of the parking lot. The route they decided to take led them along a road somewhere deep in the Santa Monica Mountains- complete with forest on each side flanked by tall cliffs, the trees kept only from growing out onto the road by a metal guard rail and a solitary streetlight every few hundred feet.

Sitting on the right side of the car instead of in the middle, Becky sighed and rested her head against the window, feeling the coolness of the glass on her hair. She looked up at the winter sky and remembered the last overnight stargazing trip she and Mac took the previous summer, in the very same mountains. The stars were so different then...

"Not the birthday you expected, huh?"

Luke's voice in her ear startled her out of her thoughts; she leaned back against the seat, turning her head up to meet his gaze. "Definitely not. But I don't think I'll forget this night anytime soon, in any case."

He smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. With a sigh of contentment Becky leaned into him, feeling her eyes slowly close.

Just as she was about to drift off to sleep she heard Marya say, "That car behind us is coming awfully close."

Katie twisted around in the front seat to look over them. "You're right. Donnie, do something."

"Like what? I can't speed up; too dark to see where I'm going beyond the headlights and too many twists and turns in the road."

Becky turned her head around, squinting at the bright pair of headlights through the back window. The car seemed to be approaching at an alarming speed. She dug her fingernails into Luke's arm. "I have a bad feeling about this," she muttered.

Suddenly there was the screeching whine of metal on metal and everyone screamed. The car lurched forward, then there was a sharp drop downwards.

Then darkness.