A/N: End of the experiment, I think so anyway. I hope you enjoy it.

In The Bag

They arrived at the station a couple of hours later. Shaheena wasn't handcuffed, but Spike had a grip on her upper arm. She wasn't struggling, and the two were still talking. He couldn't help talking to her, he found her intriguing. Most of what she said and insight, and was generally interesting. That aside, she was certainly very beautiful.

He reported into the station, and accepted the money on his card as the police man took down her details as well.

"This is good bye," Spike muttered, as some coppers came to take her away.

She shook her head. "Think of it more as… au revoir," she smirked, "I'll be seeing you, cowboy."

She was lead away by the police men, into a back room, for interrogation. They would be taking mug shots till later, there was too much information she had before they could even allow her the phone call yet.

Spike headed out of the police station, and wandered back to his racer. It was time to go home. But in the back of his head, he could not help but wander what had drawn him to her? He still couldn't answer that… moreover… why did he feel so bad about turning her in?

Shaheena was lead into a sanitised back room, an interrogation room, with a large mirror against the wall. She sat back, lighting up a cigarette, and made faces at the people she knew were standing behind the screen observing her.

Finally, after an hour, a police man walked in. He switched on a recording device, and muttered his name, her name, the date and time into the machine.

"Hello, miss Jaaved I believe," he commented.

"Oh call me Shaheena, please," she grinned, "miss Jaaved is so formal. I don't like it. What should I call you?"

The man looked taken aback. "Officer is fine."

"Well then, hi officer."

He blinked a couple of times, then launched into the questioning, about her past deeds. She made no real comment about them, all her answers were inane, almost insane considering the situation she was in. The officer was getting very frustrated, with her. An hour of this went by, and still they had made no head way.

"Are you waiting for a lawyer?" he snapped.

She shook her head. "I don't need one. I've studied law."

That stunned him. "How old are you?"

"Don't ask a lady such a question! I'm old enough…" she paused, "twenties… I'm saying no more! Besides… you should guess… what would you say… twenty one?" she fluttered her eye lashes at him.

He scowled. He could quiet easily do her for obstruction, but it was so easy to obtain a birth certificate these days they should know soon any way. They should have already found out a lot about her, he wasn't sure what was taking them so long. He half allowed himself a moment of worry, that this person had been thorough enough to do a way with official certificates of identity… it was hard to do… but not impossible. At the same time- what criminal thought that far in advance?

"Very well… we'll play it your way…" an idea struck him. The only things she had not openly taken credit for, were the murders. "Shaheena… why don't you tell me about those people."

"What people?" she sung.

"The ones you killed."

There was silence in the room. Absolute silent. Her carefree attitude fell away. The eyes fixed on the officer were cold and angry. He suddenly felt very afraid, but he didn't let on.

"What about them?"

"Why did you murder them?"

"It was not murder."

"Oh, so all three of those were in self defence?"

"Of coarse!"

"How so?"

"What do you mean how so?"

"The first for example-"

"They came at me! I didn't know I shouldn't have been in that side of town. He had a gun in his hand, I just didn't realise I had broken his neck till afterwards."

"The second?"

"She was after my sister."

"Your sister is on Europa."

"She was on Ganymede at the time. The bitch tried to hold Zarmina to get at me. It was either her or my sister."

Strangely the officer found himself sympathetic to both cases. "And the third one."

"More complicated. You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

She sighed. "I had lost a bet. I paid the money but he wanted more… if you get my drift."

The officer paled a little. He was still a little green, the very idea made him feel ill. The fact that she was so casual about it made it all worse.

"There was no way I was going to pay more than what I owed, I even paid interest… and there was no way in hell I was going to use my body for something like that. So while he had his knife to my throat ready to rape me stupid, I shot him. Understood? Self defence, every single one. Not that someone on this side of the law would understand."

"There is a reason I stayed this side of the law."

"You can't help the way things turn out…" she looked away.

The officer paused. "Why did you let yourself get caught?"

"I was careless. Spike's a good looking man, I didn't realise he was a bounty hunter."

"The truth?"

She paused, picked up a pen are started scribbling a note. "That is the truth officer." The note read, 'off the record'.

He nodded. "Pause in the interview, as the witness wants a glass of water." He switched off the recording device. "They can't hear you in there. They left fifteen minutes ago."

She nodded. "There's a coup in the gang. I'm not a leader, but I am up there. If I hadn't gotten caught, I'd probably be dead."

"Is that why so many of you have been caught recently?"

"Yeah. I figured at first I should get the main players out of the way, but it isn't going to work. So if I got caught because the guy I screwed was a bounty hunter, I wouldn't be put down as a coward."

"Understandably… has the coup gone down."

"Nearly. And these bastards are blood thirsty. I know my lot were criminals, but we didn't kill anyone, not on purpose, and you know it."

He paused. "How about a deal?"

"I'm listening."

"We put you down for murder three for one of those and GBH for the other two, no intent to kill, that will be recorded as manslaughter, and if you give us the information to catch these people, and the evidence to put them away, we can have your jail time cut down a lot."

"I want immunity."

"What?"

"Not for the killings. What ever I was involved in with the people on the information I give you, I want immunity from those cases. And I will not appear in court."

"If the evidence you give is enough, you won't need to. What about the rest of your wrap sheet?"

"A lessened jail sentence, and I won't even go to court about it, if I like the deal."

"If not?"

"I'll go to court."

He nodded. "Deal."

He restarted the tape, and Shaheena sang like a bird. The officer could not help but notice the smirk playing about her lips.

*

Shaheena was waiting for her mug shots when the bastards who had tried to pull off a coup were walked in. All but one looked over her, they didn't recognise her. The last one waited until the end.

"You grassed us up," he hissed at her.

"And you were gonna kill me," she replied, "this way I win."

"You're still going to jail."

Her smirk was back. "That's what you think…"

She waited for them to be lead off, put into cells for over night. That was when they uncuffed her. So far she had been very co-operative, even friendly. One female officer had asked her why, Shaheena pointed out that while she was just doing her job, they were doing theirs. She had no intention of holding something against people who had done her no harm. Thus believing her to be relatively harmless, they dropped their guard. After all, they had never had dealings with her before. But this drop in concentration was their downfall.

As the officer walked her to the photo booth, she stopped suddenly, her hands into her stomach, doubled over. The officer stopped with her concerned.

"Everything all ri-"

Shaheena stood up straight very suddenly, smashing the officer in the nose, he reeled off backwards, crashing against a wall, knocked out cold. Shaheena reacted immediately while the rest of the coppers were too stunned to move. She spun round and ran. People tried to get in her way, they were either jumped over, knocked out and flipped onto their back. They tried shooting, but with so many people in the building it was too dangerous.

She appeared to have memorised the lay out of the building as in about ten minute flat she was out in the open air of Mars, with the coppers still trying to get after her.

She lost herself in the crowd of people trying to hurry home. Untying her hooded jumper from around her waist, she pulled it on, and flipped up the hood, imitating a moody teenager, fairly easy thing to do with her height and stature.

Soon she found her way back to her area and quickly made her way to her flat. She had very little time. She just needed to grab what she needed and get out. They'd be swarming the place soon.

*

Spike was sleeping again. He had told the other loosely what had happened, the main story too abstract for them to follow, but what they did know was that Eagle had been caught, he Spike had the bounty for her. Faye was furious, but happy with the small cut he had given her, considering much of the information she had helped collect, the same went for Jet. Though really what ever bounty was brought in all went to the collective food and fuel that was needed to survive and run the ship.

As he slept, Faye watched his prone form absently. He had come home looking somewhat dejected rather than in high spirits for the bounty he had brought home. He also had stunk of sweat and a woman's perfume. That had gotten her suspicious, that could really only mean one thing. Not that it was any of her business… her mind cast over the story he told… some woman he met in a bar… got drunk… he took her home… found the Eagle tattoo… held her hostage the next day… confession… police… there was something wrong with the story. She just could not put her finger on it. Though it was probably because of his dejected attitude after a catch that should have made him feel on top of the solar system.

She growled to herself and shrugged. What did she care, she mused heading over to the shower, Spike could do what he wanted.

As for Spike himself… Even in his sleep he felt uneasy. He could not help but feel bad for putting Eagle away, and he had no idea why. She was a bounty and a one time fuck, so why the attachment? It made no sense.

He grumbled and turned over.

"Spikeyyyy!" sung Ed suddenly, popping up beside his head.

"What?" he grumbled.

"Spike has telephone call! Ed answered, pretty lady talked to Ed but pretty lady wants to talk to Spike."

"Who is she?"

"She has a birdie name… Ed can't remember."

Birdie… Eagle! He sat up straight. "Where?"

Ed held out the vidphone, and bounded away, singing about birds and dogs for some unknown reason. Spike shook his head and turned his attention to the vidphone. His eyes widened. Shaheena wasn't using a police vidphone… she was using a ship's.

"What do you want?" he asked, "and where the hell are you?"

"Look out the window."

He frowned, running down to the window, where the shoughi board lay. Outside was a nice little pod fighter, a new model, and painted black and red. And he could make out the small figure of Shaheena piloting the thing.

He looked at the phone. "What are you doing here? I arrested you!"

She laughed. "Only because I let you. I've heard a lot about you, Spike, I figured if I was going to be caught you were the best to be caught by."

He scowled. "Thanks that makes me feel a lot better."

"You know… the bounty on my head's been double since my escape. Coppers don't have a record of what I look like, and their sketch artist sucks… you on the other hand are probably better at it… you're welcome to come after me, but I won't make it easy this time."

He studied her face. "Maybe some other time, Shaheena, we've got a mark, and we've got a long journey to go."

Shaheena beamed at him. "It was nice meeting you, Spike."

"I'll see you again," he promised.

She waved, and hung up. A moment later the little ship took off, fast, and over took them.

Spike grinned to himself and wandered back to the sofa collapsing on it. He handed Ed back the vid phone and turned over. He had come to a realisation, the reason why he had been drawn to her in the first place. She reminded him a lot of Julia… that vitality, the recklessness that radiated from her being… how full of life she was.

He could not help but feel better about the fact that someone like that was roaming the galaxy instead of being cooped up in some jail cell wasting away.

And he got to keep the bounty.