Disclaimer: Wish I owned Numb3rs, but I don't, so I just borrow the characters and put 'em back on the shelf when done for others to play with. Adam Archer, nasty boy that he is, is mine.

A/N: OK, I struggled with this chapter. I've done some research, but I've also taken some liberties with the storyline, some may not find it realistic, if you have any constructive suggestions on how to make it more so then am happy to listen. (My beta is buried under a pile of Uni work, and rather than make you wait 3 or 4 weeks I decided to go ahead, so this chapter has NOT been beta'd.) Here's hoping you enjoy.

Chapter Three – New Acquaintances

"We meet again." Said Adam Archer.

"Observant." Retorted Colby.

"You got a smart mouth Fed." The gang leader got up from where he had been sitting and pulled himself to his full height, which was still a couple of inches shy of Colby's.

"So I've been told by better men than you, and that's ex-Fed, if you don't mind."

"Once a Fed, always a Fed." Sneered Archer.

"You'd think so, wouldn't ya, but apparently not if you break one of their rules. Do that and they kick your arse out!" Colby gave a one shouldered shrug, managing to make it look like he didn't care one iota about losing his job.

Just as Archer was about to approach Colby, and possibly start something, the cell door opened again. "Archer, you're out of here." Came the guard's voice.

"Well, that's interesting, the ex-Fed has to stay and I get to go. Be seeing you around, Fed."

"Whatever." He replied and lowered himself onto a bench that was bolted to the wall, he would have to stay for a while, he was waiting for his lawyer who had been called before he was locked up.

Colby was released, without charge. His lawyer was incensed that he had been held at all, but he managed to calm him down. They stood on the steps, shook hands and went their separate ways. He stood on the steps and looked around, he needed a cab, but they weren't easy to come by in LA. Stepping on the pavement he suddenly saw movement out the corner of his eye. He turned to face Archer.

"Told you I'd be seeing you around." He stated, stepping out of the shadows.

"What do you want? It's been a long day." Colby sighed inwardly, he really hoped that the other man wasn't about to start something right outside of the LAPD building.

"I'm told that the reason I was released is because you refused to press charges, so all they had was the concealed weapons charge. I wanna know why?"

"'Cos I don't need the Police to sort my problems out for me."

"They protect their own."

"Yeah, they do, I'm not one of them any more, I'm not going to help them put someone away, not my job." He allowed a little bit of resentment to creep into his tone.

"You know not many people stand up to me. Why did you get fired?" Adam had been genuinely surprised by Colby's fight with him.

"I stood up to you because I never back down from a fight. I got fired because I tried to help out a friend who found himself on the wrong side of the law." This was said in a matter of fact voice, no sugar coating, just pure facts.

"Cold."

"Yeah, especially considering I did 2 years undercover and helped the FBI bring down a mole in the Department of Justice, damn near getting myself killed in the process. This is the thanks I get."

"Man, that was you? I read about an Agent that did that." He found himself feeling a degree of respect for the ex-FBI Agent standing before him.

It was on the tip of Colby's tongue to comment on the fact the other man could read, but figured it wouldn't be the best time to say it. "Yeah, that was me. Now perhaps you understand why I have no time for Law Enforcement, any of 'em."

"So what's your name? Something already tells me that you know mine."

"Colby Granger. Yeah, you're Adam Archer."

Archer eyed him carefully. "Perhaps you and I got off on the wrong foot. Fancy getting a beer?"

Knowing that he shouldn't because of the pain meds he was supposed to take, but he had to for his job, he agreed. "Yeah, alright. Bury the hatchet, just not in each other eh?" Trying to lighten the mood slightly.

"Come on, I know the perfect place and I have a ride waiting for me."

Colby hesitated for a split second, one because it would be expected, after all nobody in their right mind gets into a car with a guy that stabbed them earlier in the day, second because he really wasn't sure it was the smartest move, but in the absence of his own transport he'd roll with it and see what happened.

"Hey, they confiscated my knife, I'm unarmed dude." Assured Archer.

"Some habits are harder to break than others."

"Nothing wrong with a healthy dose of suspicion."

Colby nodded and followed the man to a black SUV parked just down from where they were talking.

Neither man realised that they were being watched on two fronts. Don, David and Gary from an upstairs window, out of sight, two of them worrying about their friend and what he had got himself into, the other unsure as to what was going on, he knew that there were dirty cops, of course he did, but he had never noticed anything suspect amongst the people he worked closely with, he found it hard to believe that anyone working at LAPD HQ, that he knew, would be dirty. He barely knew Colby Granger in comparison, he could simply be spinning them a yarn.

A man was also watching them from a different window, a few floors above the others, worrying about his operation and wondering if Colby Granger, ex-FBI was on the up and up as far as changing sides went. One thing he knew was that he would speak to one of his men and get them to check into it, closely.

They found a quiet booth in the back of the bar Adam had decided on, it wasn't one that Colby would ever have entered, except to arrest someone, previously. The man who had driven them there disappeared into a back room. Two bottles of beer were placed before them. Adam raised his bottle in a toast. "New acquaintances."

"I'll drink to that." Colby responded, knocking his bottle against the other man's.

"What are you gonna do now you're no longer an FBI agent?" Adam was genuinely curious about the man sat opposite him.

"Dunno, haven't given it much thought. Perhaps I'll just enjoy the novelty of not havin' to get up in the mornings." He grinned, part of him enjoying the thought that he didn't have to get up for work. Then he remembered what he was supposed to be doing and suddenly there was no joy in not being up at the crack of dawn or out till the early hours, or a combination of both. Part of him was going to miss that. "Perhaps I can go into private security."

"Sounds boring." Stated Adam simply. He had been part of a gang since he was twelve, he couldn't imagine doing anything else.

"Yeah well, don't know much else and there's good money in it." Colby shrugged philosophically. "First the army and then the FBI gave me a sense of belonging that I didn't have growing up I guess, problem is I have outgrown the rules and regulations, they're too restrictive."

"All I've ever known is the gang, they're my family."

Colby wanted to ask what had happened to his biological family but didn't want to push things. He wasn't going to be able to 'bond' with this gang banger overnight, though it seemed, for some inexplicable reason, the younger man was drawn to him. Adam couldn't be more than 26. His face showed some scars, as did his hands, but that was to be expected in his line of 'work'.

"Well as interesting as this has been, I need to get home, been a long ole day."

"Let me get Daz to drop ya off man."

"Daz?"

"The guy that picked us up outside PD." Adam pointed to the dark haired, dark eyed man who had just come out from the back room.

"That's not necessary."

"I insist, look at it as my way of saying thanks for not pressing charges." Smiled Adam. "If you're in the area at anytime, drop in for a beer."

"Yeah, OK, thanks." Colby got up as Adam waved to Daz and instructed him to drop the ex-FBI agent wherever he needed to go.

When he got inside his apartment building he walked up the stairs to find his door unlocked, he reached round for his gun, which of course he didn't have, something he was going to need to rectify. He opened the door and gave it a push with his toe, standing to one side.

"Get in here Granger." A familiar voice called out.

Entering he closed the door behind him. "Sir. You shouldn't be here." Colby addressed the AD, not happy at all to see him in his apartment, uninvited. Please, let yourself in and make yourself at home, why don't you? Thought Colby.

"I'm still your superior, as such things like what you did today should be run passed me first."

"How and when was I supposed to do that, Sir? I told you when I took this assignment, a degree of autonomy was going to be required. With all due respect, you picked me because I am damn good at what I do, I can't be expected to check in with you every time I make a decision, if I do my cover will be blown in no time."

"Just be careful you don't cross the line."

"I am all too aware of the lines. Now let me be frank, even though I respect the chain of command I have to say to you now, don't ever come here again, they now know where I live and if they see you here I'm a dead man walking."

"Be very careful with your tone Agent Granger."

"Technically speaking I'm no longer an Agent, Sir. I am on my own here and as such I have to set the rules to protect myself. I hope you understand that."

"I knew we'd picked the right man for the job, not scared to stand up for yourself, good. Keep in touch." Clearly satisfied with the responses he had received.

"I will, now please leave via the back fire exit."

After the AD had left he realised he'd forgotten to ask how the hell he'd got in. He supposed some skills even an AD never lost. Don would spit feathers when he found out that the AD had been so reckless as to come to his home, possibly best not to tell him, he needed his Supervisor to keep his job.

Colby winced as he inadvertently knocked his shoulder as he walked through to his bedroom. He eased himself out of the sling and threw it on a chair in the corner. Then remembering the painkillers in his pocket he went to the kitchen, got himself a glass of water and took one, he'd only had one beer and it wasn't like he had to get up for work in the morning. Going back to the bedroom he stripped down to his boxers, being careful not to pull his stitches, and lowered himself into bed, closed his eyes and fell into a drug induced dreamless sleep.

A few days later Colby made a point of being in the area of the bar and dropped in to see if Adam was there, as luck would have it, he was.

"Colby Granger, what brings you by?"

"Was at a loose end, thought I'd stop by for that beer."

"Cool, come on." He sat down in the same booth as before and a couple of bottles of beer were put in front of them once again. "What ya been up to man?"

"Not much, need to find a job, but not many places hire an ex-FBI agent that has been fired for breaking protocol." He shrugged.

Adam looked at the man opposite him thoughtfully, he had made a few enquiries over the last few days, he was beginning to think that the man could be an asset to the gang. He decided to broach the subject to see what reaction he got. "I might have something."

"Oh yeah?" Colby pretended not to be bothered.

"You've got a background in handling weapons, right? I mean other than the FBI?"

"Yeah, like I said the other day, was in the Army, joined out of college, did a tour in Afghanistan."

"We may be able to work together then. Can you give me a coupla days?"

"For what?"

"Gotta talk to a few people."

"Fair enough. Let me give you my cell number, you can call and let me know when you wanna talk." Colby gave Adam his cell number, one that he had purchased himself a few weeks ago, he didn't want them to be able to trace the purchase back to LAPD or FBI. The two men finished their beers and Colby took his leave.

Three days later Colby's new cell phone rang, there was only one person that had that particular number at the moment, he paused before picking it up. "Granger."

"Hey, it's Archer. I wanna meet."
"When and where?" Asked Colby keeping it short and to the point.

"Same bar, 8pm tonight."

"Alright, see you then." Not waiting for a response he hung up. The game was well and truly on.

That night when he entered the bar he found Adam in the same booth as before, the man was slumped in a corner with a bottle of beer in front of him, as he slid onto the opposite bench a beer was immediately put in front of him.

"So…?"

"Straight to business eh? I can do that. We are an up and coming organisation. Still small with only about 50 members, but we're growing. There are good opportunities for those interested and who have the correct skills."

"Let's cut the crap. You're a small gang, new to the area and you want to branch out into other gang territories. You need local knowledge and muscle to do it. I carried out some checks."

Archer nodded in approval. "Would expect nothing less from someone thinking about going into business with people he didn't know."

"What I was unable to find out is exactly what that business is, though you implied it was weapons based."

"Amongst other things. Guns are currently our main income. As we take over more territory we'll branch out, but for the time being we are sticking with what we know."

"Smart move. The LA gang scene is cut throat, literally. What do you want from me?"

"You clearly know the gangs better than we do, we need advice on which territory is ripe for the picking, which will offer the least resistance to a take over, hostile or otherwise. We have our sights set on becoming the biggest gang in LA, but we need to start out small, we don't have enough members for an all out turf war."

"Man, becoming the biggest gang isn't going to be easy, 18th Street Mexicali have a conservative estimate of 8000 members, just in the LA area." Shaking his head dismissively.

"That's why we need someone like you." Adam was not going to be swayed.

"Going to need to keep this low key to start with, if 18th Street get wind of this we'll all be walking around with targets on our backs."

"Can you help?" Asked Adam.

"Yeah, I know a few people I can talk to, some that may be interested in becoming part of a larger gang."

"Good. How about we get the first one for free?" He asked slyly.

Colby laughed. "Nice try, no way. I'm in need of an income, and LA ain't cheap man."

"Had to try. We need information about the territory covered and the number of members in the gangs and when the merger is complete you'll be paid."
"Half up front, half on completion, otherwise no deal."

"You drive a hard bargain."

"Not really, it's just common sense."

"You have a deal." The two men shook hands.

"Give me a couple of days to make some enquiries and come up with the latest information. Lets meet back here, same time, in two days."

"You got it."

"One more thing, I no longer have a weapon, since mine was provided by the FBI. I feel kinda naked without it. Can you supply me with one?"

"Absolutely. What ya after?"

"Smith and Wesson PC 945, with ammo of course."

"Naturally. I'll have it for you in two days. It will be our gift to you."

Colby nodded, finished off his beer and left to return to his apartment.

Colby had spent the last two days gathering intel on local gangs and had managed to get himself in with one of the smaller ones, with the aide of a previous informant named Jimmy. Colby had arranged for a meet to take place the following day, he was on his way to inform Archer. He made a stop at a payphone and called Don on his new cell phone that Don had bought just for this purpose.

"Eppes."

"It's me."

"You OK?" Came the worried reply.

"Yeah, calling from a payphone. Need to let you know that a meet is happening tomorrow between Archer and the Temple gang. Midday, MacArthur Park. If all goes smoothly then there will be no need to do anything but…"

"Got it." Don didn't need Colby to tell him if this meet went bad then MacArthur Park could be a very dangerous place to be, he also knew the risk the younger man was taking even giving him this information.

"Gotta go, am meeting Archer to give him the good news. Be careful man."

"You too."

Colby hung up the payphone and carried on walking in the direction of the bar where he was to meet Archer. This was all weighing heavily on his mind. He was, after all, trying to help a gang expand their territory. He didn't want to be caught in a situation where he had to injure, or worse, kill someone in order to maintain his cover.

When he reached the bar Adam Archer was once again sitting in the same booth. Colby walked over and greeted the man warmly, maybe I shoulda been an actor, he thought to himself, would have made more money and sure as hell would have been less risky.

"Colby, how ya doing? Beer?" Adam smiled warmly at him.

"Doing good Adam, you? Beer would be good."

Adam nodded to a waitress who immediately placed a bottle in front of Colby. "I'm OK, hoping you have good news."

"Indeed, Sean, leader of the Temple gang, has agreed to meet tomorrow at midday in MacArthur Park."

"Bit public there Col."

Trying not to wince at the familiar tone of using a shortened version of his name he replied "Had to be Adam, best way to ensure no funny business from either side. I'm new to this and if I'm going to be successful then can't have the first meet I organise turning into a bloodbath, can I?"

"Good point. Alright, I'll pick you up at 11:00, want to get there nice and early."

Colby nodded his agreement and raised an eyebrow in question.

"Ah yes, our other business. Follow me." The two men got up from the booth and entered the back room. "A Smith and Wesson PC 945 and the first half of your fee." Stated Adam handing Colby a box with the gun and $5000 in. Opening it he pulled out the weapon and inspected it closely, nodding in approval. He was then handed a box full of ammunition. Satisfied he placed the gun in the small of his back, just where it belonged, then put the ammunition in the box with the cash and followed Adam back to the booth to finish his beer.