Barek got out of the car and stretched. She looked around at the surrounding wooded area, then up the slope from the parking area to the cabin. It was a large, well-kept cabin, with a huge screened-in porch, not that mosquitoes were likely to be much of a problem at this time of year, but it would be a nice place for the kids to play. She stepped away from the car and looked through the naked trees toward a lake several hundred yards from the cabin. There was a bite to the air that had not yet reached New York and she shivered. She was surprised when her fleece-lined jacket settled over her shoulders and strong arms wrapped themselves around her. Warm lips pressed into the side of her neck and she shivered again, though not from the cold. Leaning back into his embrace, she said, "It's nice here."
"You expect anything less from the chief? Of course he'd have a sweet vacation home."
She tipped her head back to look at him. "You don't like the woods."
He moved his head down to nibble at her neck and she laughed. He spoke into her skin. "I don't like being in the woods. That doesn't mean I don't like looking out a window at the trees."
"And what makes you think Maggie and Tom are not going to want to play in the woods? I certainly can't take them out to play right now."
He pulled back from her and gave a resigned sigh, his face reflecting his displeasure at the thought of playing out in the woods. "You know...if I actually collected on everything that guy owed me since we became friends, I'd live like a damn king for the rest of my life."
"Give it up, cowboy. You'd do as much for these kids as he would."
"Yeah, yeah...I'm wrapped around so many damn fingers it's not funny."
He kissed her and stepped back to the car, opening the back door to unbuckle the baby from his car seat. The kids had slept for the last half of the ride, which he knew meant they'd be up half the night asking for their parents, but Barek refused to let him stop anywhere and wake them. It didn't take a genius to guess who was going to be staying up with them, either. As he pulled Tom into his arms, Maggie's eyes popped open and she looked around. "Where are we?"
He straightened out of the car as Barek leaned in to unbuckle Maggie. "We're on a little vacation, sweetheart," she answered.
"But where are Mommy and Daddy? An' I gotta go to school."
"Don't worry about school, bunny." He kissed Tom's head when the baby snuggled into his chest, looking around at the trees in wide-eyed wonder. "You'll be back there before you know it."
"But where are Mommy and Daddy?"
He looked at Barek for help and she answered, "Mommy and Daddy are just going to spend a little time together, Maggie. They're fine and you can talk to them later, okay?"
Maggie hopped out of the car and looked around. Then she rested a hand on Barek's stomach and said, "But what if your baby wants to come out? He can' come out inna woods."
"There's nothing any of us can do about that. He'll come out when he's ready, and he won't be born in the woods. Don't worry. Everything will be fine, baby."
She met Logan's eyes and prayed that she had not just lied to this trusting child. He was hoping the same thing as he set Tommy down and walked to the back of the car to get their bags from the trunk. "Unna My?"
"What is it, buddy?"
"Wanna twinnie, pees."
Logan laughed; he couldn't help it. "After dinner, pal."
Barek smiled at the little boy who resigned himself to a Twinkie-less afternoon. "Come on, Tom. Let's go inside. It's cold out here."
"'Mon, Unna My! Is cold! Brrr..."
"I'm coming, buddy."
Maggie had climbed onto the bumper beside him and reached into the trunk. She grabbed a bag of groceries and slid down to the ground. She smiled at Logan. "I'm a big girl," she explained.
She carried the bag toward the cabin and Logan watched her sadly. It was a good thing that she was growing up, he supposed, but he was totally with Goren on this one. They were both going to miss the little girl she was leaving behind.
Eames sat at her desk with her coffee—decaffeinated—and her danish. She drew comfort from the long-standing routine. She looked across the desks at her partner. He had felt somewhat better last night after talking to the kids and then receiving Logan and Barek's reassurances that everything was fine and she was not in labor yet. With all that was going on, she was surprised by his concern for Barek, although she should not have been. She had not missed the connection he seemed to have with her. Both were brilliant and intuitive, and Barek's profiling skills were much better honed than hers or Logan's. They had improved over time as Goren worked with her to sharpen them. Aside from that, she was soon to be his best friend's wife and the mother of his child.
She had to laugh at Logan's sense of timing. Knowing his Irish Catholic background, Barek had suggested they get married before the baby's birth, but he had balked at that, insisting they wait. He assured Barek that he wanted his long-dead mother to turn over in her grave. But he had naturally confided in Bobby the real reason for his delay.
"What the hell's the sense of getting married if you can't really enjoy the honeymoon?"
Goren laughed. "You're an idiot."
"As I recall you didn't even have a honeymoon."
He shrugged. "Didn't need one. All I ever needed was her."
"Yeah, well, I'm looking forward to a damn honeymoon."
"You gonna take the kid with you?"
Logan gave him an odd look. "Sometimes I really wonder about you, man."
Now, Eames watched him as he turned over page after page in the file they had on Nicole Wallace. She had asked him not to get into this perp's head, not knowing that he was already deeply there. But this time simply could not be as bad as the last one had been. There was no way. The kids were safe, and they'd have FBI backup. They'd get her with no blood shed...except maybe Wallace's. Every time that psychopath showed up, she felt that she lost a piece of Bobby to her, and she was no longer willing to sacrifice him. But her pregnancy was an added complication for them both. Although she was not willing to sacrifice any more of him than Wallace had already taken, she was also not willing to place any risk on their unborn baby, who was being threatened, in both their minds.
She studied his face, intense, concentrating...and she knew he was thinking the same thing. But in his mind, she was certain, Wallace was also threatening her. Telling him not to worry, that she could take care of herself, was pointless. Those were among the few words she spoke that he never heard.
The door to the captain's office opened. "Goren, Eames, come in here."
He followed her into the office and stopped at the sight of the two men seated in front of the captain's desk. "Oh, good," Deakins said at his reaction. "You remember Agents Mahoney and Gordon."
"Uh, yes, I do."
He accepted the hands extended toward him by each agent. How could he forget the two agents he and Logan had ditched in Massachusetts to go chasing after the ghost of a threat that had proven all too real? Mahoney smiled. "It's been almost two years now, hasn't it?"
"Uh, yes, it has."
Gordon grinned. "Your little guy's getting big, huh?"
A smile drifted across Goren's face. "Yes. Both kids are."
Deakins said, "Gentlemen, this is Goren's regular partner, Alex Eames."
They shook her hand, both of them eyeing her pregnant stomach. "Uh, Captain Deakins," Mahoney began.
Goren moved to the other side of the room, leaned back with his arms folded over his chest and waited for the fireworks to start. He'd already seen this show, but it would be a pleasure to watch it from the position of a spectator and not a participant.
Deakins feigned innocence, but he knew as well as Goren what was coming. "Yes, Agent Mahoney?"
"Um, Detective Eames is pregnant."
"You noticed...very good, agent."
"Um, given the nature of the crimes, do you think it's wise..."
"Agent Mahoney."
Uh-oh... Goren had been on the receiving end of that tone before and it was never a good thing. His relief at not being the target did not prevent him from generating sympathy for the man who was about to be. "Mahoney..." he began, shaking his head in warning.
Eames turned toward him. "Shut up, Goren," she snapped.
She was going to nip this particular problem in the bud and she did not need his help to do it. He raised his hands in surrender and motion for her to continue. She glared at him, not missing the amusement in his eyes, and she gave him a look that promised she would deal with him later. She looked at Deakins, who had leaned back in his chair and made no motion to stop her. She turned back to Mahoney. "Agent Mahoney, given the nature of the suspect, I am very much expected to be a part of this case. To fill you in...Nicole Wallace has been a thorn in the side of the NYPD for too many years. She first came to our attention back in late 2002, and she has chosen to pit herself against my partner periodically over the years since then. Last year, she kidnapped our children and almost killed him. So do not expect me to take a back seat or to sit on the sidelines. If you have a problem with my involvement, the FBI can send another agent to take this case. Do you understand me?"
He had enough sense, Goren was pleased to see, not to argue with her. "Loud and clear, detective."
He looked at Goren, who shrugged, then at Deakins, who smiled. "Any questions, Agent Mahoney?"
"No, Captain."
"Agent Gordon?"
"No, sir."
He motioned toward the door. "Get going, then, and get her back into custody, quickly, so those children can come home."
Goren's face hardened, but he said nothing. He moved past the agents and headed back toward his desk. Eames sighed softly and went after him. Gordon leaned toward Mahoney as they stepped out of the office. "Something tells me this won't be as much fun as it was last time."
"Fun? Did you enjoy Nebraska, Gordy?"
"It wasn't our fault they ditched us."
"No, but it was our responsibility. Let's not lose these two. They are our chance to redeem ourselves."
They followed Goren and Eames to their desks where Goren returned to his file. Gordon motioned his head toward Eames' stomach. "How far along are you?"
"Six months. Enough to no longer fit into my clothes, but not enough to be totally restricted from duty like I was last time you met my partner."
"Partner or husband?" asked Mahoney as he pulled up a chair.
"Both. Do you have a problem with that?"
"No. Just curious."
Gordon reached over her shoulder and picked up a picture of the children from her desk. He showed it to Mahoney and grinned. "So...your little guy is almost two now, isn't he?"
"Yes," she answered, liking the younger agent while still maintaining an annoyance at his partner.
"And the little girl?"
"Five," Goren answered without looking up from his file, just to prove he was paying attention. "She started kindergarten this year."
Eames smiled when he looked up and met her eyes. She felt reassured when a soft smile touched his eyes and played with his mouth, even if it did not come fully forth. With affection in her voice, she said, "It has been a challenge to her teacher, keeping her mind occupied and interested. We have always said she is her father's child, and she constantly proves it."
Goren snorted softly in amusement, but he didn't say anything. Mahoney slid his chair closer to the big detective. "We weren't any better briefed this time around, Bobby. Your captain said you guys were the best ones to tell us what we're facing."
Goren pulled out a file from beneath the one he was studying and handed it to the senior agent. "These two murders are the handiwork of the psychopath my partner was telling you about. Her name is Nicole Wallace, and she escaped from Rikers last week with three other inmates. One of them was found dead. The other two, we are guessing, are under her spell, so to speak."
"Under her spell?"
He sighed softly. "Nicole is a true psychopath."
Eames added, "She murdered her three-year-old daughter in a jealous rage."
"A jealous rage? Jealous of what?"
Goren leaned back in his chair. "She saw her daughter as competition for the affection of the child's father."
"You've got to be kidding me."
"Hers is a...twisted psychopathy...involving jealousy, rage and sex. She is incapable of distinguishing between love and hate, beyond the intensity of emotion each inspires."
Eames took up the explanation. "She has tried repeatedly to sink her claws into Bobby, and it infuriates her more each time she fails. In a way, it makes her more determined to get him, because she knows she can't have him and something unattainable drives her crazy. She likes to think there is no person, male or female, she cannot seduce."
Back to Goren. "She uses sex as a tool to get her way, and gender is no obstacle. She is incapable of feeling positive emotion; she feeds on darkness and misery."
"A devil woman..." Mahoney offered.
"Very much so. Twisted and warped in the worst way."
The senior agent accepted the file from his partner and looked through it. They watched the color drain from his face. "You can't be serious. A woman did this?"
Goren returned to his file. "If you can call her that. She gave her humanity up a very long time ago."
Eames was watching him. She was going to lose him again while they searched for Wallace and her comrades, one male and one female. This time, however, she refused to allow him to retreat entirely into himself, into her head. She was going to maintain a connection to him one way or another. She preferred an intellectual connection, but if she had to resort to a physical one, so be it. Whatever it took to keep him with her and remind him that there was still more to the world than the evil Wallace's soul was saturated with, that was what she was determined to do.
