Wednesday

On her first day as a profiler at FBI headquarters Liz woke up too late and had to hurry. When she and Tom finally left the house, a black SUV stopped in front of it and a man got out. "Agent Keen?"

"Yes?" Another delay and she would never make it in time.

Don got closer and showed her his ID. "Donald Ressler, Washington field office. I need you to come with me right away."

Liz and Tom looked at each other in surprise. "Does the FBI escort every new agent to work at the first day?" Tom joked, but he felt distrustful. Is this somehow connected to the stranger I met in front of the hospital?

"At least, I won't be late for work," Liz said and walked towards Don. Her first impression of him was; uptight, dutiful, reliable but boring.

"Do you know Raymond Reddington?" Don asked when he was driving down the road towards the Post Office.

Liz had to think a moment before she remembered where she had heard that name before. "He's on the most wanted list."

"He surrendered himself to the FBI on Monday, and it turned out that he wants to speak only with you." Don had a brief glance at her. She seemed to be a nice girl, with her sweet face and blue eyes, and right now she looked honestly surprised.

"With me? Why is that?"

"We don't know. Perhaps you have an idea?"

"No. Absolutely not. I don't have a history with Reddington." Liz was stunned. Her first day and she was asked to speak with No. 4 on the most wanted list.

"What do you know about him?" Don tried to test her, but she obviously only knew what every FBI agent knew about Reddington.

He and Cooper had agreed not to ask her about her past. They wanted to see Red's and her reaction first. Instead, he just gave her some information about Reddington and about what had happened in the past two days.

"Ask him about Zamani," Don advised her. "We need to know what this guy is up to."

Liz nodded, still confused. "What is this place?" she asked when Don drove into the garage of a big building, tightly watched by surveillance cameras and armed guards. This is definitely not FBI headquarters!

Don told her about the history and usage of the Post Office while he was leading her to the war room where they met Cooper who shook hands with Liz.

"Did Agent Ressler tell you what this is about?"

Liz took a glimpse down the hall, to the box in which a man was sitting, chained to a chair. It reminded her of Hannibal Lector, and it made her shiver. "Yes, sir."

"Do you find it odd Reddington surrendered himself two days before you start working as a profiler?" Cooper asked.

Liz shrugged. "I think that suggests he was waiting for me."

"Why you? Specifically."

But she had not the slightest clue. "Because I'm new and he thinks I can be easily manipulated." It suggested itself. Why else he should be interested in her?

Don smiled about that answer. "Be careful. He seems friendly, but he's dangerous. And you are probably right that he is good at manipulating people."

"If you need anything, we are right here," Cooper added and opened the door for her. It was like sending a slave into the arena with a wild lion.

"Agent Keen, what a pleasure," Red said when they had finally sat face to face.

He was really acting as if they knew each other, but, to Liz, he wasn't familiar at all. "Well, I'm here."

"You got rid of your highlights," Red noticed, "you look much less Baltimore."

Has he been watching me for years? She felt uncomfortable. "Tell me about Zamani."

"Is a child really what you want?" he asked instead.

Liz stared at him, surprised and confused, didn't know how to respond. How does he know that? "Why involve me? I'm nobody. It's my first day... There's nothing special about me."

"Oh, I think you're very special." Red put on a broad smile. When she didn't react he explained, "Agent Cooper wasted valuable time. So you have only two hours left to save the girl."

"Which girl?"

"The daughter of U.S. General Daniel Ryker. There'll be some kind of diversion, communications will be scrambled, and Zamani will grab the girl. If you don't move quickly, she will die. That's what I know."

"And I'm supposed to believe you?" Liz asked, trying not to show him how nervous she was.

"No, of course not." Red laughed. "I'm a criminal, and criminals are known to be notorious liars. On the other hand, why should I come here and tell you about Zamani if it wasn't true?" He smiled artfully. "You know, if anyone can give me a second chance, it's you. The two of us have overcome so much. I mean, look at you. Your parents were career criminals. And yet you are about to make a name for yourself-about to capture Ranko Zamani. I'm gonna make you famous, Lizzie."

"What did you tell him?" Liz asked out of breath when she came back to the war room. "Private things about my family?"

"Nothing," Don replied. "I told you he was the one who asked to speak with you. And the only possible connection we could find was your past. You were found only a few days after Reddington had murdered his best friend and disappeared. Maybe he knew you as a child. What do you know about your early childhood?"

"Nothing." Liz shook her head in despair. "But how could he know about Baltimore? Or that we are going to adopt a child?"

"The core of his business is information," Don explained patiently to her. "He had probably checked your background closely before he turned himself in. But now we have to go get the girl before Zamani does."

Liz agreed, "He's establishing value. - Can I have a minute? I have to cancel an appointment."

Don nodded, and Liz rushed into the hallway to call Tom and cancel the appointment for the adoption meeting.

On the way to the school Bethany Ryker was attending, Liz calmed down, and when they arrived, she had come to the conclusion that she was the right person to get Beth out of her classroom. She was the only woman, surrounded by heavily armed guards, accompanied by a senior agent who looked as if he was born an adult and married to his job.

"Let me handle this," she said sharply when Don was about to get out of the car, "and hold back the guys with the guns. We don't want to scare the kids."

Don stared at her in disapproval when she was walking into the building. Pretty cheeky for a junior agent on her first day! Maybe his first impression of her being nice had been wrong.

On their way back they were attacked on the bridge and little Beth was abducted.

"So, you are going to tell us now what Zamani is up to," Don said resolutely and lead Red into the war room where they had collected everything they knew about Zamani and General Ryker so far.

"I told you all I knew was that he was going to abduct the girl," Red insisted, but when he saw Liz he smiled. "But I might show you how to look at it differently."

"How should we look at it?" Liz asked in the knowledge that he would only speak with her. She had to take over the lead.

"Like a criminal. It might come to you easier than you think."

Following that, he gave her a lesson in "thinking like a criminal", and they were able to figure out that Zamani was going to detonate a bomb somewhere in D.C. using the General's daughter to settle the score.

Red told them about The Chemist and The Inkeeper, but when they asked him for the address he asked to stay at one of his favourite hotels in return.

While The Innkeeper was arrested and brought in for interrogation, Don escorted Red to the hotel the criminal had chosen, then set up surveillance. Although Red had an Alpha Chip in his shoulder, Don felt uncomfortable with bringing him to a hotel.

"Hey, live it up, pal. Soon as this is over, you're headed back to a black site." It was a childish remark, he knew that, but he felt angry at the development. Two days ago, Cooper had been fine with having Red sleep in a box tied to a chair, now he allowed him to stay at a luxurious hotel.

Red ignored the remark, just smiled, then had a conversation with the page-boy before he turned to Don. "Tip the gentleman, will you?"

Okay, I earned that, Don thought. Nevertheless, it increased his anger.

The Innkeeper gave in pretty soon so they could arrest The Chemist. In the meantime, Red was having an early dinner in his suite, watched by a still confused Liz in the room next door. When Don informed her that they had found The Chemist, she decided to go home.

Don gave her an angry look and was about to say something, but she was already out the door. What the hell is she thinking? "Don't go too far," he said under his breath.

When Liz came home Zamani was there and injured Tom badly.

After Tom had been rushed to a hospital and was undergoing an immediate surgery Liz headed back to the hotel to talk to Reddington. When he didn't react as she wished, she took a pen and punched a hole in his carotid.

Don had left the hotel about an hour after Liz and had gone home. Then, he got a call that Zamani had been in the house of the Keens and had injured Liz' husband. When he had been on his way to the Keens' house, he got a call that Liz had injured Reddington. He decided to have a look at Red first to make sure he wouldn't disappear from the hospital.

Now, he was standing next to Red's hospital bed, feeling tired and confused. His impression of Liz wasn't that good anymore. An official review right on her first day. Wow! And his impression of Red wasn't that bad anymore. Was he really just a good manipulator, a good actor, or was there a good side in him? But how did this good side correspond with the crimes he had committed?

"You were right about the pen," Red said with a smile. "Pens are definitely dangerous and can kill you."

"What happened?"

"Oh, she thought I was the one who sent Zamani into her house."

"Did you?"

Red still felt obligated to the rules of the Naval Academy and decided not to answer. Instead, he said, "I'm fine by the way, thanks. And I won't file charges against Agent Keen." He grinned before he said softly, "Go back home, Donald, and get some sleep."

Somehow he liked the young agent. Maybe because he reminded him of himself when he had been his age. Or maybe because Donald was like the son he never had.

When Liz came back home, the FBI was still there, processing evidence. When they left, she tried to clean up the blood but finally she gave up. She feared for Tom's life, she couldn't understand what had happened and why. Why did Reddington suddenly turn up, insisting on speaking with her?

She didn't understand herself. Why the hell did she injure him? It could be the end of her career before it had even started. Was Reddington right and her parents were criminals? Did she carry some kind of warrior gene? On the other hand, she had never reacted so aggressively before.

Thursday

Of course, no one slept well that night. In the morning, Liz went to the hospital and begged Don to let her talk to Reddington. She had made up her mind that she had to take the situation as it was and fight herself through it.

Although she was under official review Don let her get in the hospital room, but Red was gone.

"I will initiate a track on the chip," Don said when he and Liz were heading downstairs. "You will go home and stay there until you are told otherwise. Am I clear?"

She knew she had gone too far, so she simply nodded. That night, when she couldn't sleep she read the notes about the Zamani case and noticed that it had been Don who shot the man that stood on the car, over her and ready to shoot her. Without Don she wouldn't have survived her first day as a field agent. She took it as a warning not to be so careless and arrogant anymore. Don was an experienced field agent and had all rights to be strict, even rude to her. And she should be thankful that he had saved her life.

"How is your husband?" Don asked, more friendly now.

"He was in surgery, and now he's in an induced coma," Liz told him, still upset and overwhelmed by the events. "It's uncertain if he's gonna be okay. It was horrifying when I got home last night. There was blood everywhere."

It was no reason to try to kill Reddington, but Don had seen how shaken up she was and felt sorry for her. And hadn't he been in a similar situation five years ago with the same feelings ever since?

"I'm sure he's gonna be okay." He smiled at her before he headed to his car to initiate the track.

While Liz was driving home and Don started to track Reddington down by using the GPS-signal of the Alpha Chip, Red met with Zamani.

"How did things go with Agent Keen?"

"Paid her a visit like you asked."

"And the husband?"

"Like you asked."

"Sorry it took two days longer. I thought they would move faster," Red apologized while they were walking through the park.

"Never mind," Zamani replied ironically, "it was fun hanging out next to an elementary school, waiting for the FBI to arrive."

They walked on and talked about Zamani's plan before they parted and went their own way.

Afterwards, Red called Liz and told her, "He is after children. I saw a stamp on the back of his hand. I think he's gonna bomb the D.C. Zoo. Get there. I'll send a friend to disarm the bomb."

Known ending of the case - disarming the bomb, saving the girl, arresting Red.

Cooper and Don were both aware of that Reddington knew hundreds of criminals. So they brought him back to the Post Office, and they sat down in Cooper's office.

"Who's the Ukrainian?" Cooper started the conversation.

"I won't tell you," Red replied. "He's an associate."

"Are there criminals out there who aren't your associates?" Don asked.

"You want to know if I'm willing to give you any names?" Red smiled broadly. "That's why we're all here, of course. My wish list. A list I've been cultivating for over 20 years. Politicians, hackers, spies... Let's call it the blacklist. That sounds exciting." He grinned before he started telling them his conditions and, again, he insisted on to speak only with Elizabeth Keen.

Cooper and Don looked at each other. Red was pretty arrogant, but this was probably part of his success.

"I've to talk to some authorities and see if I can cut you a deal," Cooper said. "In the meantime, you have the opportunity to visit one of our most beautiful black sites." He put on a mean grin.

"The next name on the list is an absolute snake," Red said, unimpressed, "a mass murderer. I'm sure you and the authorities are interested in capturing him. And you have to move quickly because he's planning an attack that might cost the lives of hundreds of people."

"I guess, you won't tell us his name or his plans until the terms of your deal are met," Cooper assumed, but Red just smiled. The question wasn't worth an answer.

Later that day, Liz started to clean up the house. It helped distract herself from her thoughts. The same thoughts, over and over again. Why Tom? Why did Reddington pick her? Did he know her parents?

When she couldn't clean the carpet she decided to remove it, and she discovered a hatch in the floor. In it she found a wooden box with a red star carved into the top. In the box there was money. A lot of money. And passports with Tom's picture. And at the bottom of the box a gun.

Beta readers / support / bothered with questions about grammar: Ana, Umber (from AWWC), Melissa, and theblacklister23. Many thanks to them. :)