Previously: One of the boots came crashing down hard on her hand, a cruel and unnecessary gesture but one that set the tone for the days to come.

Kate Harper was pacing in the Roosevelt Room. It was now five in the morning, an hour and fifteen minutes since she'd spoken to CJ about the missing British plane. An hour and fifteen and still there was no CJ Cregg to be seen in the West Wing.

Nancy McNally, Miles Hutchinson, the CIA director, the Chairman of the JCS, everyone who was anyone was already in the Sit. Room except the President himself who was presumably still asleep.

Kate called CJ's cell five times, yes maybe the calls were a little excessive but the more time passed the more Kate's worry grew. This thing with the United Britannia plane could escalate fast if it really was shot down by the Iranians like they suspected. Maureen Grady had called once already but there was no Chief of Staff to take the call, and the President was unavailable. This couldn't happen again but Kate wasn't sure she wanted to be the one to inform the President of the goings on at such an ungodly time.

Once more, she tried CJ's cell and on the ninth ring, she hung up. Kate's last resort was placing a call to either of the agents assigned to CJ's security detail and when no one answered any of her calls, she resigned herself to going to the Residence to wake her Commander in Chief.

"You can't get a hold of her? What do you mean you can get a hold of her?" Jed roared as soon as he could comprehend what the young Commander was saying.

He pulled on his robe over his pajamas and ran a hand over his eyes, glancing at the clock on his bedside table that read 5:15 am.

"Sir, I called CJ at 3:45, it shouldn't have taken her this long to get here. I've called her cell phone seven times since and she hasn't responded at all. Her agents haven't picked up either."

"Any chance she could be sleeping? An occupation I myself was quite enjoying until it was interrupted."

Kate looked unsure, skittish. He'd never have thought she'd be one to fidget under sarcasm when she'd faced automatic weapons fire in hostile zones in the third world.

"Something is wrong, sir. I don't know what, but this doesn't feel right."

Leo stood in the Oval, aware that as of 7:00 am that morning, CJ Cregg was officially a missing person. He was waiting for the President to arrive. Kate went to wake him up but it had been nearly half an hour. Leo himself was soundly asleep in his hotel room when his nurse told him he had an urgent phone call from the White House operator.

He came in right away, CJ's disappearance at the forefront of his mind. He spoke to Ron Butterfield about getting in touch with her detail and he had just left the White House to go to CJ's place.

"What the hell is going on?"

Ah, Jed had made his presence known. He walked briskly toward Leo and the two of them sat in the armchairs in front of the Resolute desk.

"CJ is MIA. Ron's on his way over with some men to investigate."

"What's this I hear with Iran and Britain possibly going to war while I was sleeping?"

"Yeah, a British commercial airplane was shot down mistakenly by the Iranian air force. They shot down a commercial plane carrying a hundred French and English civilians because they thought it was a US spy plane. Prime Minister Grady is chomping at the bit even though Nancy took the call because no one else was available."

Jed looked murderous.

"Why did no one wake me when this all went down?"

"If you'd been listening earlier, it's because the woman in charge of getting your ass out of bed every morning is currently missing in action."

There was a knock on the door and Jed yelled "Come in!"

It was Margaret, looking like a deer caught in headlights. She came in but didn't speak immediately. Leo prompted her, relying on her nearly Pavlovian response to the authority he exuded.

"Ron called and said that there was no sign of a struggle or break in at the house…But they talked to her neighbor, Mrs. Morrison. An elderly lady living alone with cats probably…"

When Margaret trailed off, Leo snapped, "What else?"

"She said she heard noises from outside the corridor of the apartment building. She looked out the peephole of her front door and saw some men dragging CJ out. She was hanging from their arms like a rag doll."

Leo and the President sat in horror struck silence.

"They must have drugged her." Leo said, looking at his hands.

"Ron will know more later—"

"Thank you, Margaret."

That was a clear dismissal from the President so the secretary turned around and headed back to her desk to await more information.

"Leo, tell me this isn't happening."

"Sir—"

"Tell me she did NOT just come in here and tell me that CJ has been taken by God knows who!"

"Let Ron do his thing—"

"God damn it! God DAMN IT! How can this be happening again?" "

Leo leaned forward intently, his eyes blazing.

"Mr. President! Right now, they are doing everything they can to locate CJ! They've probably shut all of DC down! Right now, you have to focus on this England-Iran crisis. You have to do your job, sir."

Jed nodded, knowing that he had responsibilities but he felt as he had when he heard of Zoey's disappearance. Maybe even worse this time, because CJ was his right hand and a close friend. She had recently become privy to a lot more top secret intel. That obviously made her a prime target for attack especially when one considered how she took pleasure in shaking her security detail.

"Sir. Right now you need to get to the Situation Room. I bet they know a lot more in there than we ever will sitting here and yelling at each other."

Jed was out the door first, Leo at his heels.

Teaser: "Don't give them anything. Because the moment they get what they want from you, they will sell you to the next person who wants a piece and those people tend to be worse.