A/N - Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed favorited and followed this story. It means a lot and I will do my best to make this story into something you will want to read and enjoy. This is all fiction and from my imagination so some things may not fit real world scenarios so please forgive any discrepancies. Let me know if things are moving to slow or to fast with the story line and with the brewing romance. I can slow things down or pick up the pace – let me know what you all think.

Tamsin POV

"Who are you?" The man asked as he tried to move his body away from the wall. I pressed harder against him and ignored his question, "Your name is Daniel Michael Morris. Your son is Matthew Morris age seven and wife Cheryl Anne Morris age thirty three. Your son attends Shepherd Elementary School and your wife is employed with John Hancock Investments. You live at 2000 Edward Street apartment B. I know everything about you. I know everything about your family. Do you understand what I am telling you?"

He stopped struggling for a moment and said, "I understand."

I went on, "I don't know what Michael Hanson would do if he found out you lied to him but I can guarantee that you will not like what I do if you inform him that I was here. When you report back you will tell him you found nothing in this apartment. You searched but if there was anything of value it was not at this location. Again do you understand me?"

"Yes I do. It was a dead end just please don't do anything to my family." He begged me and I felt a pang of guilt wash over me. I would never actually hurt his family but I really needed him to believe that I would and it appeared he did. I brought my left hand up and smashed my weapon against the back of his head causing his body to go limp. I slowly let off the pressure I had against him and he slid to the floor. I could see he was bleeding where I hit him.

I quickly searched his pockets and dug out his phone. I flipped it open and went back to the desk. I wrote down the number assigned to the phone and all the incoming and outgoing numbers on a clean sheet of paper. I folded the paper and shoved it into my pocket. I grabbed the notebook and went back over to the unconscious man on the floor. I put his phone back where I found it and left the apartment.

I took the stairs two at a time and when I reached the first floor I exited the building that lead to the street. I half ran half walked back to my car. The phone Mr. Morris was using was a burner and I wanted to get to the NSA listening post as soon as possible and put the numbers I gathered under electronic surveillance. I needed to ensure he took my threat seriously as well as determine who else he may be talking to and see what information I could gleam from him or the people he reported to or spoke with. I hoped I could get something from this before he trashed his phone.

As I headed back to my car I looked around to see if I could figure out which vehicle was Daniels. I didn't see anything that led me to believe any of the vehicles parked on the street were his. I cursed myself for not paying better attention to what was around me outside before I entered the building earlier this morning. I could memorize a personnel file in five minutes but I made no effort to keep track of my surroundings when I was about to go information hunting.

I arrived at the office twenty five minutes later. I was grateful it was Saturday and my section of the building was virtually empty. SIGINT was a huge department and the group that worked a schedule that had those working weekends did not sit in my area.

I placed my weapon under the driver's side seat and then proceed to lock the notebook I found in the trunk of my car. I entered my building and even though the area was essentially deserted I felt like all eyes were on me. I knew it was the adrenaline wearing off and the weariness creeping in but it was a feeling I couldn't shake. I sat down at my desk and booted up my workstation. I logged in and brought up the SIGINT/Defense Cryptologic platform and entered the phone number for Daniel's burner phone along with all the numbers that were listed in his call history. I pulled on my headphones and waited.

I was fighting off sleep when dialing and then ringing screeched through my headphones. I checked my system and found that Daniel was reaching out to a number that was in his call history. I didn't know who the number belonged to. After four rings the other end of the line answered and I heard a male voice.

"What have you got for me Mr. Morris?"

"Uh….I stopped by David's second apartment and took a good look around but I didn't find anything of importance. Just some clothes and old food in the kitchen."

"Mr. Kagen was using an alias for the sole purpose of holding that second residence and storing any pertinent information he gathered regarding Senator Lewis. She was snooping a little too closely to one portion of our operation and the fact that Mr. Kagen is now dead and whatever he was keeping is missing, I believe we have attracted some unwanted attention."

"Do you think the Senator killed David and took whatever information he had?"

"No I don't think she was involved but again I do believe someone is somehow obtaining information and searching out more. I will look into it. In the meantime just try and find what you can about Kagen's murder. I will speak with Ms. McMann about turning up her timetable."

"Are you going to continue to have Senator Lewis followed? Someone to take David's place?"

"No I don't believe that is necessary at this time. The Senate is about to let out for the fall session and she seems to have stopped nosing around. I don't think we need to waste any more resources there."

"Yes sir."

The call disconnected and I wrote down the archive number so I could copy it and erase the recording from the NSA back up system. I assumed the number that Mr. Morris called belonged to Michael Hansen but I could not be sure. The only thing I did know for certain was that Daniel heeded my warning – at least for the time being. It worried me that Mr. Hansen seemed so adamant that someone was looking into RNC and other portions of the operation. He didn't seem to believe that the death of his contractor was random and the fact that Hale was digging around RNC files and personnel yesterday did not bode well. The only good news I found from the call was that RNC or anyone else for that matter were no longer interested in Lauren at this time.

I was pulled out of my thoughts when I heard a new call being initiated by the unknown number that Mr. Morris had just dialed. The line rang and was answered almost immediately and I heard a female voice.

"Hello?"

"Ms. McMann. Are you able to speak freely?"

"Hold on."

"Yes I can talk now."

"I need you to turn up the time table and get the information we need."

"Mr. Hansen I can try but you know that if I push too hard I could get shut out or blow my cover completely."

"I am aware of the added risk of pushing this up but we need the information sooner rather than later. Once we have what we need from the Secret Service I can make arrangements with other parties to get the next step in motion."

"I understand. I will do what I can and report back."

The call ended and again I wrote down the archive number so I could pull the call, copy it and erase it from the archives. I also noted which number belonged to Michael Hansen and Katie McMann. I decided to check on the number Kenzi had given me from Kagen's phone. Once I loaded it into the system I wasn't able to ping it or trace it. It seemed Kagen was calling a burner phone that has since been discarded. It appeared we were at a dead regarding that phone number but my gut told me that the number Kagen was calling belonged to Michael Hansen and he got rid of the phone once he found out Kagen was dead.

I shut down my workstation and headed down to the archives in the basement. I nodded a greeting to the security guard and flashed him my badge. He waved me through and I continued down the hall. I swiped my badge and entered the archive room and it was empty with the exception of server banks, routers, switches and cabling. I quickly pulled out the archive numbers I had written down for the two calls I had just listened to. I went up and down the rows and found the server bank I needed to access. I inserted the thumb drive I had in my pocket and copied both calls and once that was completed I erased the evidence from the NSA server. I had no way of covering the fact that my badge placed me in this room at this time or that I had to enter my access code to bring up the calls. I had no way of erasing my tracks. I would talk to Kenzi and see if she could possibly dig in and delete my footprints in the system. It wouldn't take long for the higher ups to flag my activity and question me about it.

I left the building and headed over to the safe house. I called Bo and Kenzi and asked them to meet me there.

Lauren POV

I woke when the first morning light started to peek its way into my bedroom. I looked down and saw Bo curled up against me. I thought back to last night and smiled. I was happy we were able to spend some time together that didn't involve digging through files or deciphering recordings. It wasn't much but it was a start. We got to know each other just a little bit better. I felt like Bo opened up to me in a way she had not done with anyone else in a long time and I did the same. I shared all sorts of things about myself that I usually just kept locked away because I assumed no one would really care. I found it refreshing to share the little tidbits about my life and the way Bo looked at me and listened to me – she made me feel like the most important person in the world. She had such an intensity about her. We found that we were quite different in some ways but at the same time there were things we shared in common. I thought it was exciting to find someone that could introduce me to new things. I loved fine wines and cocktails while Bo enjoyed beer and expensive scotch. I relaxed by reading books or walking along the beach while Bo took to the road on a motorcycle to feel free. I found interest in documentaries but Bo had not seen a movie in years. My musical tastes were for classical and Bo loved rock and alternative type music from the 80's and 90's. We shared a passion for American classic cars, travel, languages and cooking. I looked forward to learning more about the woman that was sleeping next to me.

I was still a little shocked with myself for asking her to stay with me last night but I didn't regret it. I had not planned for anything sexual to happen and I still didn't but I couldn't stand the thought of her leaving. I didn't want to be alone and I craved her company.

I was brought out of my thoughts by Bo's cell phone ringing on the nightstand. She didn't move and I could tell she was still sleeping heavily. I reached over her and answered the phone. It was Tamsin asking that Bo and I head to the house as soon as we could. I put the phone down and tried to wake Bo again.

She stirred a bit and then opened her eyes with a smile, "Good morning. How did you sleep?" Her voice was still heavy with sleep.

"Morning. I haven't slept that well in a long time. Thank you for staying last night." I replied as she moved away a bit so she could look at me with ease.

"You don't have to thank me Lauren. I was happy to. It was nice to just be with someone. I was glad it was you." She said and looked down and away from me.

I put my index finger under her chin and lifted her head so she was looking me in the eyes, "Why so shy all of a sudden?"

She laughed a little and said, "Not shy really….more scared than anything."

I looked at her a moment before responding. I could see it in her eyes and I wanted to know what had her so troubled, "What are you scared off?"

She sighed and shook her head, "Lauren I am just worried that once you get to know me, once you find out some of the things I've done, you will turn away from me. You won't like what you see."

"I like what I have seen so far. This is still so very new. Please understand Bo that I am not completely oblivious to what our Intelligence assets do on a regular basis. I may not know the details but being a part of the Senate committees that overlook such things I have a good idea. I can promise you that if something does bother me, I will tell you and we can talk about it. I won't just turn my back on you."

I leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead, "Deal?" I said.

Bo smiled and her whole face lit up, "It's a deal Lauren and thank you." I could see her whole body relax and the concerned look in her eyes was replaced with relief and something else I couldn't quite place.

I dreaded my next statement, "Tamsin called your phone. I tried to wake you but I couldn't get you up. I answered it. She wants us at the house."

Bo closed her eyes and ran her hands down her face, "Did she say when?"

"As soon as possible." I answered as I sat up and Bo followed me.

"Duty calls." She said as she pulled the covers back and got up from the bed. I sat for a moment and just stared. Seeing her in just a shirt while the light poured in from the morning sun took my breath away. She was so very stunning and it aroused me. It was difficult for me not to just grab her and pull her down to the bed but I knew now was not the time. We had places we needed to be and I didn't want to rush things – in more ways than one.

I got up and grabbed some cloths from the closet and went to take a quick shower. "I am going to shower. I won't be long. Help yourself to anything you want if you are hungry."

Ten minutes later and I was showered and dressed. I walked out into the living room and Bo was waiting for me on the couch. When she saw me she stood up. "Are you ready? If you're hungry we can eat at the house if you like. I figured it was best if we got there sooner rather than later. Is that ok with you or do you want me to fix you something now?"

I walked over and gave her a kiss on the cheek, "Let's go. We can eat there."

Bo POV

I climbed into my truck and started it while Lauren made sure her house was locked and secure. She got in and we started the journey back to the safe house. I had wanted to get up this morning and make Lauren breakfast but it didn't work out that way. I would make sure the opportunity didn't slip by if I ever got the chance to stay with Lauren again. It had been six years since I spent the night with anyone and until last night I didn't realize how much I missed the feeling of having someone close to me. Feeling their warmth and holding them in my arms. Lauren gave that to me last night. It was something I didn't want to bury away again. I wanted to enjoy more nights with her. Talking and laughing. Eating dinner together or watching a movie – one of those documentaries she loved so much. I was relieved that she wasn't afraid of me or my past though she didn't really know much from my years in the CIA. Regardless the things she said to me this morning calmed me and gave me hope that I wasn't too far gone.

The entire ride back to the house we sat in silence. It wasn't uncomfortable or negative. We both seemed happy to just be in each other's presence. I pulled in to the driveway and hopped out. I walked around the front of my truck and opened Lauren's door for her. She smile and whispered a thank you and we headed into the house.

When we walked in the smell of bacon hit us full force from the kitchen. My stomach grumbled and I finally realized how hungry I was.

I called out, "Is there enough for everyone?"

Tamsin yelled back, "Yes but hurry before Kenzi eats it all."

I turned to Lauren and told her to go ahead and that I was going to get cleaned up and changed into some clean clothes. I watched as Lauren walked into the kitchen and Tamsin handed her a plate filled with bacon and her infamous Spanish omelet. I wasn't sure if there were any foods that Lauren didn't like but she seemed content with what Tamsin gave her.

I went into my bedroom and pulled out a clean pair of jeans and a t-shirt along with a pair of panties and a comfortable bra. I took everything into the bathroom, brushed my teeth and jumped into the shower. I wanted to lounge and let the heat from the water pull the tension from my shoulders but I was hungry and I knew that Tamsin had called us here for a reason.

I dressed and walked back into the living room. Kenzi was sitting on the couch with Tamsin and Lauren was occupying the chair at Kenzi's computer desk. I went into the kitchen and grabbed a plate that was already fixed for me and brought it back to the couch. I kicked Kenzi to move and she got up along with Tamsin. I sat down and began eating while Lauren moved from the desk to sit with me. Kenzi headed back to her usual spot at her computer and Tamsin pulled a chair over to sit next to Kenzi.

In between bites I asked, "What do you have Tamsin?"

Tamsin looked at me and then at Lauren, "I checked out your parent's neighborhood and from what I could see and from what I ran past Kenzi there isn't anything to worry about. No one is watching them."

Lauren visibly relaxed and sank back into the couch a little further and exhaled audibly, "That is some of the best news I could get right now. Thank you for checking Tamsin."

"Hey it isn't a problem. You are one of us now. It's the least I can do. After I got back into DC I went by the apartment that was being rented by Joseph Kaegen and I found this," Tamsin stood up and placed a notebook down on the coffee table, "it is full of pictures of you Lauren and detailed notes on all your movements for about a three week period."

I put my plate down and reached for the notebook. I opened it to the first page and shifted it over for Lauren to see.

She looked at the first line item and said, "The first date listed in this notebook is the same date I went to Director Long's office and pointed out the discrepancies I found in the budget. Bringing that to his attention must have triggered the threat I received and warranted the surveillance they put on me."

I let Lauren take the notebook from me while I pondered aloud, "What I am wondering is how did this all come about. I mean people in government don't just one day decide to assassinate the leader of the free world and negotiate with countries for oil and nuclear programs. That isn't something these people would plan if they didn't know each other prior. Otherwise how would you know who to trust to go through with it? Kenzi can you look for any personal connections between Michael Hansen, Robert Long, Vice President Hill and his Chief of Staff Mark LaGrone?"

Tamsin continued, "That is a good idea Bo. I didn't think about that. This would have been something that has been in the works for a while and carried out among friends. Anyway while I was at the apartment Daniel Morris with RNC showed up."

I leaned forward and rested my elbows on my knees, "What the hell happened Tamsin?"

"I heard him coming in and I managed to get the jump on him. I didn't want to kill him. It would have raised too many red flags and drawn too much attention. Besides I don't think I could have taken his life. I mean I am analyst. I sit at a desk all day listening for threats and monitoring people of interest. I have never been in that position before; where I had to make that choice but thanks to those files you brought over I managed to pass on a credible enough threat to keep him quiet. At least for now. I left him unconscious on the floor. I wrote down his cell phone number and all the numbers from his call history and I headed over to my office to see if I could get lucky and catch any calls. I managed to record two. The first call was between Daniel and Michael Hansen even though Hansen's name wasn't mentioned and the second call was between Hansen and Katie McMann. I also checked on the numbers from Kagen's phone but I really think that is a dead end. I couldn't trace or track anything. I know for sure that they are using burner phones to communicate though. They probably switched out phones after they became aware of Kagen's death. At least for the time being we now have the phone number Hansen, Morris and McMann are using to interact with. Kenzi can you play the recordings for them? "

We all sat quietly and listened intently to the recordings of the calls that Tamsin managed to capture. Once both recordings were finished I spoke, "Tamsin, what did you say to this Daniel guy that made him blatantly lie to his boss?"

Tamsin smirked and answered, "I threatened the lives of his wife and son. Not that we would harm them but he doesn't know that. As you heard it seems to have worked."

I reached out and grabbed Lauren's hand and held it in mine, "You must have been damn convincing. Some good news is that we now have confirmation that RNC isn't interested in Lauren for the time being but it bothers me that Hansen said he knew someone is somehow obtaining information and I am worried about what this Katie McMann is up to. We need to get eyes and ears on her as soon as possible. From what I understood she is the key to moving their plans forward so I would like to know exactly what Hansen has tasked her with."

Lauren spoke directing her question to Tamsin, "I am guessing that listening in on those calls today and recording them isn't standard practice."

"Correct. I was breaking the law. Every phone number I enter and listen to is logged under my credentials. Analysts are tracked to ensure we are only monitoring calls that the NSA is authorized to put under electronic surveillance. I erased those two calls from the archives so they won't be able to trace what numbers I was listening to or what was said but when I deleted the recordings it was logged that I did so. There is also an RFID chip in my badge that logs every place I have been in the building by date and time."

Kenzi stopped typing and turned to us and said, "I have a tag on Tam-Tam inside the NSA network so if they flag her down for any reason the system will ping me and I can try to warn her. I am still trying to figure out how to erase her footprints on their servers and change the log that tracks her badge. I hope to keep her out of trouble."

I was concerned about Tamsin. She was taking a huge risk every time she walked into that building and worked on our little side project. "I am worried about you Tamsin. I don't want to see bad things happen to you because of the risk you are taking." I said.

Tamsin shook her head and responded, "Well stop worrying. It is my risk to take and I want to do this ok? I'm the one that brought this to you remember? Lauren what do you make of those pictures? Does anything stick out to you?"

I looked over and saw that Lauren had been sifting through the surveillance pictures that had been tucked into the back of the notebook. "All these photos are of me talking with other Senators, interns, assistants. From the written logs and the photos it looks like I was being followed everywhere but there isn't really anything here that is of significance. Work was my life so everything here is just me during an average work day or whenever I went anywhere on my personal time which wasn't much. I mean there are pictures of me getting my oil changed, buying wine at Schneider's of Capitol Hill, and purchasing groceries for the week. "

Tamsin pointed to the notebook, "There were loose pieces of paper on the desk where I found that. At first glance I didn't see anything of importance but I shoved all the papers into the front of the notebook. I thought maybe you could look through them and see if anything rings a bell or maybe add it to Kenzi's growing list of duties and have her sift through it."

Lauren shoved all the picture back into the notebook and placed it on the table, "I will go through them and have Kenzi help me if I need it. I hate that someone was watching me and I didn't even realize it. He watched me for weeks and I never knew. I feel violated. I can't believe I was so oblivious to my surroundings."

I took Lauren's hand again and kissed the back of it and tried to reassure her, "These guys are trained to do this exact thing and he was very good at his job. Don't blame yourself for not noticing him. I know he invaded your life and I can't imagine how that feels. Let's figure this out and make sure they don't get away with it."

It broke my heart that Lauren was struggling with this. I had never been on the receiving end of a surveillance run that I was aware of but I had done exactly what Kagen did on many occasions over the years. I never thought of how I was violating privacy until I heard Lauren speak of it now and the guilt ran through me and burned inside. I only hoped I could lessen the burden she felt and then do what I had to do in order to stop these people.

Lauren nodded and gave me a small smile though I felt she was doing it for my benefit. One thing I had already learned about Lauren was that she could put on a mask that made reading her emotions impossible. I didn't want her to close herself off but I wasn't going to push her – at least no right away.

"Tamsin we have all of Katie McMann's information here. Do you want me to start checking her out or do you want to take care of it?" I asked.

"Can you do it? I haven't slept in over twenty four hours and I don't think I could stand to follow her around and then try to get ears in her home while she is out." Tamsin said as she stood up and stretched.

"I can take care of it. I just need to grab some stuff so I can tap her landline and figure out if there are any alarms I need to bypass before breaking in and planting any listening devices and uploading the mirroring software on any computers or laptops she has. Kenzi can you check and see if she is registered with any alarm companies?"

I watched as Kenzi shifted her focus to another screen and went through alarm company customer listings faster than I could follow, "Yeah BoBo. She has a system with ADT. It has the digital keypad that covers eight zones with three glass break sensors. It doesn't look like she has any sensors for the doors or windows so you should be able to open them without setting off the alarm. Just don't break any glass."

Tamsin was pacing in an attempt to stay awake. She stopped suddenly and turned to me, "Bo I had a thought earlier while I was at the office. What if Hansen is aware that Hale was digging around yesterday? If he is then Hale could be in danger."

I didn't bother with a response. I picked my phone up off the side table and dialed Hale's number. It rang and then went to voice mail. I tried again but got the same results. It was nine in the morning and he could be sleeping but I had a gut feeling that something was wrong. I didn't even think about Hale being unknowingly thrown into the middle of this until Tamsin mentioned it. Now it seemed only logical that Hansen would believe Hale was investigating since he had accessed all those files. Hale said he was careful but he could have tripped any number of safe guards Hansen had in place in case anyone got too nosy.

I got up from the couch and replied, "You're right. I just tried calling him and there was no answer. I know I could be over reacting but I have a feeling he might be in trouble. Hansen wouldn't hesitate to go after Hale if he thought he was snooping around. Go get some rest Tamsin. I am going to go check on Hale."

I headed for the door when Lauren chased after me and grabbed my arm, "I am coming with you."

There was no way I was going to bring her into a potentially dangerous situation. "No Lauren. I won't risk you getting hurt. Besides you are a public figure. If there is trouble over at Hale's then I don't want to drag you into the middle of it."

She pulled me closer and her gaze never wavered, "I am going with you."

I didn't want to argue or waste time if Hale needed it. I opened the door and motioned for her to follow me. We got in the truck and I took off to Hale's apartment ignoring stop signs, red lights and speed limits when possible. I handed Lauren my phone and asked her to continue trying to reach him but she had no luck.

We reached Hale's apartment complex in record time. I asked Lauren to stay in the truck and wait for me. I got out and headed towards his apartment. As I got closer I could see that his front door was wide open. I felt my stomach drop and a bad feeling washed over me. I placed my hand on the grip of my gun but I didn't pull it from its resting place. When I felt the cold steel against my hand the dreaded feeling which had been coursing through me finally dissipated, replaced by a comforting calmness. I wondered fleetingly if I would always find peace with a weapon. I thought about Lauren and hoped it wouldn't always be this way. I knew I wanted a different way of life.

I slowly climbed the stairs and as I reached the top landing I could see inside. The apartment was torn apart. Furniture was tossed and broken. Papers were scattered everywhere. Hale was lying on the floor and a man was kneeling over him with his back to the door. That was a bad move on his part. I took a slow soft approach forward creating a path to the two men. As I got closer I could see that there was glass all over the floor. I stepped forward preparing myself as pieces of glass broke further beneath my boot; breaking my silence. The man turned swiftly swinging his right arm around and aimed at me. I grabbed his right wrist with my left hand and pushed his arm wide. He fired and the round grazed my side and broke the skin while tearing my shirt and ripping a hole in my favorite leather jacket. I hit him twice in the throat with my right hand and he staggered back from his kneeling position. I pushed forward and knocked him on his back as he continued to struggle for breath. I stepped on his left wrist with my left foot causing him to cry out in pain. He released his hold the gun under my weight and I kicked it away from his reach. I glanced over at Hale and I saw that he was bleeding from a gunshot wound to his stomach. He had already lost a lot of blood. I knelt down and took off my jacket and pressed it hard against his wound.

"Keep putting pressure on it." I ordered and Hale nodded grabbing at my jacket.

I looked over at the man on the floor. He was starting to catch his breath. I put my hand on his chest and pulled my weapon. I leaned forward and pressed it under his ear against his skull.

"Did this man do this to you Hale?" I asked never taking my eyes off my potential enemy.

Hale gasped and croaked out, "Yes."

"Do you know him?"

When Hale didn't answer I looked over at him and be shook his head no and that was all the information I needed.

I redirected my attention to the man and asked him, "Who do you work for?"

"Fuck you." He replied in a raspy voice most likely due to how I hit him.

I tried again, "Who do you work for? Why did you do this? What are your orders?"

He stared at me. I couldn't waste my time trying to get him to talk and save Hale at the same time. The agent in me wanted to continue to interrogate this man; the human in me wanted to save my friend. I was split. We needed answers but Hale was precious to me and the thought of leaving him to die in pursuit for information grated against me. Did the end justify the means? Where was that line and how would I know if I crossed it?

I put my gun away and picked up a piece of glass from the floor. He watched me but didn't struggle and I looked him in the eyes as I slit his throat. His hands shot up as blood poured from him. I couldn't allow him to report my existence to whomever he answered to and I knew he would if allowed him to live. I dropped the glass and searched his pockets as he gasped for breath and continued to bleed out. He had nothing on him. No phone or wallet.

I couldn't waste any more time. I turned to Hale and asked, "Do you think you can walk?"

He nodded and I helped him sit up. I put his arm around my shoulder and I stood up bringing him with me.

"Keep that pressed against you." I said as we began to walk to the front door. I glanced back and saw that the man was no longer breathing.

We made it outside and down the stairs. We rounded the corner that led to the parking lot and Lauren saw us from the truck. She got out and started towards us. "Drive. I need you to drive." I yelled out to her.

She nodded and got into the driver's seat. When Hale and I made it back to the truck I opened the back door and helped him inside. Once he was situated I climbed in next to him and helped keep pressure on the wound.

"Lauren get us back to the safe house now!" I said.

She started the truck and exited the complex. She drove as fast as she could while trying not to jar the truck and cause Hale any further discomfort.

"Lauren do you have my phone?" I asked.

"Here." She said and she handed it to me from the front seat.

I used my free hand to dial Tamsin's number. She answered sounding very sleepy and very pissed off. I didn't care that I woke her up. "Tamsin, Hale has been shot. It is an abdominal would. He has already lost a lot of blood but he is still semi-conscious. We are in route to you now. Can you call Vince and get him over?"

She told me she would and then hung up and I slid my phone into my back pocket.

Lauren spoke to me over her shoulder, "Who is Vince?"

"He is a retired NSA police officer that Tamsin knows. He is actually the one that helped us procure the safe house. He has medical training and should be able to help. We can't take him to a hospital."

Lauren pulled into the driveway and got out of truck. She came around to the back and opened the door while helping Hale and me to exit the vehicle. She got on his right side and I on his left and we walked him to the front door. I opened it with my left hand and found Tamsin and Kenzi waiting for us. They rushed forward and guided us into the kitchen. They had cleaned off the table and we laid Hale down on his back.

I moved my jacket and lifted Hale's shirt. The bleeding seemed to have stopped.

I looked at Tamsin, "How long until Vince gets here?"

"Another ten minutes. What happened?"

I looked at my friends one at a time and recounted the ordeal; leaving out the part where I killed Hale's assailant. I was surprised when they didn't ask me what happened to him. I knew once things settled down they would.

There was a knock on the door and Tamsin answered it letting Vince in and leading him into the kitchen. I wanted to stay out of the way and let Vince work so I walked into my bedroom and Lauren followed me. She shut the door and placed her hand on my back and guided me into the bathroom.

In a soft voice she said, "Your hurt."

I had forgotten that I was grazed when the man fired at me. I moved to the sink and spent quite a bit of time washing the blood off my hands and arms while Lauren gathered a first aid kit from the closet. Once I was done she washed her arms and hands as well.

I removed my shirt as Lauren sat down on the edge of the bathtub.

"Let me see." She said motioning to my side.

I moved over to her and she examined my wound. She began to clean the area with a wet cloth and then disinfected and bandaged it. It stung and burned but it was tolerable.

"What happened there?" She asked as she started putting everything back into the kit.

"The man in Hale's apartment fired at me and it grazed me. How bad is it?" I asked while I sat down next to her.

She avoided looking at me, "It isn't bad at all. The cut isn't too deep. It just tore the skin. We need to keep it clean and covered for now."

"Thank you for coming with me. I couldn't have gotten Hale back here as fast as we did without you."

She didn't say anything and I knew something was wrong but I had no idea what it was. "Will you tell me what is wrong Lauren? Are you angry with me?"

She let out a little laugh and shook her head, "No Bo I'm not mad at you. I am just shaken up a bit. Look at what happened to Hale for taking those files and asking around about those contractors. They tried to kill him and it made me realize that the deeper we go the worse things are going to get."

I got up and knelt down in front of her. I gently cupped her face and encouraged her to look at me. "It will probably get worse before it gets better but we are all in this together. You're not alone anymore. You know that right?"

Lauren grabbed my hands and pulled them down into her lap, "I know Bo. When I saw that you were hurt everything just hit me."

I smiled, "I am fine though." I was trying to make light of the situation but I knew Lauren was upset and it would take time for her to work through things. I noticed over the past few days that she didn't often freely share her thoughts. She kept things to herself and processed situations internally. I could almost see the raging thoughts in her eyes as she debated and rationalized things that were happening around her or to her.

She broke me out of my thoughts with a question, "What happened to the man that was in Hale's apartment?"

It didn't surprise me that Lauren was the first one to ask me this question. When I was recounting the events earlier I could tell by the look on her face that she knew right away that I was editing things out of my story.

I took a deep breath and answered her truthfully, "He wouldn't answer my questions and Hale was hurt badly. I chose to get Hale out of there instead of trying to get information out of his assailant. I killed him so he couldn't report back to whoever sent him there in the first place."

She stood up and brought me with her, "I thought so. I just wanted to be sure."

I looked down to avoid her eyes and asked, "Do you think differently about me now?"

She answered me immediately, "Hey hey look at me," I lifted my head and met her gaze, "no I don't think differently about you Bo. I think you were in a difficult situation and you handled it as you saw fit in the time you had. I don't envy you for having to make that choice."

She pulled me into her arms and I relished her embrace. I became acutely aware that I did not have a shirt on and I wondered if Lauren realized it too. She leaned back just enough to look at me and then bent down as she kissed me slowly and softly. I melted in to it. Got lost in it. I nipped her bottom lip and she opened her mouth for me. I deepened the kiss and my heart began to race. She grabbed my hips and pulled me hard against her. There was no space between us. She ran her hands up my back and feeling them caress my skin made me moan. I pulled back and leaned my forehead against hers. My eyes were closed as I blocked everything out but us. I could still taste and feel her lips on mine. I never wanted to leave this moment but I could feel the real world nagging at the edge of my mind.

Lauren let me go as if she sensed the moment was over. We walked back into the bedroom and I grabbed a fresh shirt and pulled in on.

I turned to her and said, "Let's go see how Hale is doing. Then I have to begin looking into Katie McMann. That got pushed to the side when we went after Hale. We need to know what she has to do with the Secret Service and how that will help these people move forward with their plans."