Chapter 10

XoXoXoXoX

"Good evening, Agent Spade," Ricky greeted as Samantha walked past his security office.

"Hello Ricky," she replied with a forced smile, picking up the pace. She wasn't in the mood to make polite chit-chat as she was already nervous enough about having to be around Martin after today's earlier fiasco.

She reached the elevator and pressed the call button when she heard the tell-tale sound of footsteps jogging her way. She steeled her nerves and turned around just as Ricky reached her.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you a question." He was panting softly, winded from the short sprint from his office to the elevator. "Is the change permanent? I asked Agent Eakman and he told me to ask you."

"I, um," she stammered, hitting the call button again in a desperate urge to flee. Unable to face Martin so soon after basically accusing him of being a hypocrite and a fraud, she asked Mike to switch shifts with her. Realizing that no matter how much she hit the button it wouldn't speed it up she turned to look at Ricky. "I, uh, I don't know," she replied at last, surprised at her own uncertainty. Thankfully at that moment the elevator arrived and she hurried inside. "I'll let you know in the morning, okay?"

"All right." Ricky gave her a big smile as the doors closed. "I'll go ahead and call Agent Reeves and let him know you're on your way up."

She nodded at him as the doors closed. She leaned back against the wall, her stomach queasy as she rode up to Martin's apartment. She hoped that Martin was already in bed so she wouldn't have to face him.

XoX

"What was that about?" Elena asked as they exited the YMCA and headed to the car.

"What?" Sam asked feigning ignorance as she hit the button on the keychain, unlocking the doors. She hurried to the driver's side and got in.

"Como que what?" Elena asked as she pulled on her seatbelt, clicking it in place. "The way you were acting in the gymnasium when we were talking to Fitzgerald."

Sam shrugged as she inserted the key into the ignition and turned, starting up the car. Not willing to look at Elena she pretended to check her rearview mirror to check for on-coming cars before pulling into traffic. "I don't know what you mean."

"Samantha," Elena gently said with a gentle, warning tone. "You acted like…" she trailed off, shaking her head.

"Like what?" Sam asked, shifting in the driver's seat to look at Elena.

Sighing and giving her a soft look, she replied, "You acted like it was personal."

Sam's stomach churned but she tightened it up and argued, "It was personal. One of the main reasons I voted for him because he was an advocate for the environment. I was upset thinking that he was a phony." She turned away, checking her mirror again. There was a line of cars passing by so she would have to wait. "I might have been mistaken but it doesn't change that I was upset."

"That's not what I meant," Elena quietly said. "You acted like… like he broke your heart or something."

Turning around to face Elena, Sam asked, "What? Don't be ridiculous."

"Samantha, I know you," she replied, giving her a friendly but stern evaluating look. "You like him." Sam began gearing up to argue when Elena held up her hand. "Don't bother lying to me and pretending you don't." Sam scoffed but stayed quiet. "You weren't upset as a voter. You were upset because you felt let down by someone you are starting to care about."

"I, uh, what?" she stammered before looking away, staring out the windshield.

"Sam, whenever you start liking someone you do the same thing," Elena explained. "You look for any faults you can find so you can use that as an excuse to break up with them. You broke up with Eric because you said he wasn't supportive or understanding of your career. You broke up with Dr. Fred because you said he was too unavailable and there are a whole bunch of guys in between that you broke up with for a whole lot less. Or better yet, you don't let yourself get too close to begin with."

Sam bit the inside of her cheek, knowing that Elena was right. But in this case, she also knew there was something more about why she needed to distance herself from Martin. A reason she could barely admit to herself much less anyone else. Gripping the steering wheel tightly, she shook her head and said, "I can't like this man, Elena."

"Why not?"

Sam shrugged. "You wouldn't understand."

Elena crossed her arms. "Try me."

Sam shook her head, thoughtfully looking out on the busy sidewalk as people walked by carrying shopping bags, walking their dogs, or on their way to work or lunch; people doing ordinary things in their ordinary lives. Tilting her head to the side, she sighed heavily. "I can't like him because of who he is," she turned to look at Elena, "And because of who I am."

Elena frowned. "You're right, I don't understand."

She looked over at her friend and explained, "He's a U.S. senator. He has dinners with people from city council and Congress. He grew up in a family with money, access, power; his father is the Deputy Director of the bureau." She worked her jaw and finished, "And I am a girl from the middle of nowhere who had to take out student loans and work two jobs just to make it through college."

Elena shook her head and smiled sadly. "Samantha, why are you so hard on yourself? You are very accomplished, smart, funny, and pretty foxy."

Sam laughed. "Thanks." She released a heavy sigh. "I just don't think we fit into each other's lives. We're too different," she admitted at last.

"I think he would disagree," Elena breathed, sliding back into her seat.

"Why do you say that?"

Elena smiled coyly. "Because he looked as upset by your accusations as you did making them."

XoX

What felt like seconds later, Samantha arrived on his floor and on shaky legs she made her way to Martin's apartment. She found her steps moving a little slower as she inched her way to the door when it swung open and Mike appeared.

"Great, you're here," he said, shrugging on his jacket. He stepped back so she could enter but didn't pause long enough to even give her a chance to talk. "Martin and Danny are in the study and every thing's locked tight. You're good to go."

Sam cringed inwardly. Not only would she have to face Martin but it looked like she was going to have to see Danny, too. Not ready to face them alone, she grinned at Mike and said, "What's your hurry? We never hang out. Why don't you stay a bit so we can catch up?"

"Sorry, no way. I have a late date," he replied with a grin and a wink.

"I think after midnight it's called a booty call," she quipped as she removed her coat and hung it on the rack mounted to the wall.

"Sheez, Spade, what a filthy mind you have," he laughingly replied as he moved to the door. "I'd argue but I have to stop and pick up some whipped cream on my way." He laughed, winked and exited, shutting the door after him.

As soon as he was gone she locked the door and slid the chain into place. Resting her forehead on the cool wood she took a deep breath and turned around to face the inevitable.

She stepped into the kitchen to find Danny standing in front of the refrigerator, his back to her as he stared inside.

Taking a deep breath she squared her shoulders and greeted, "Hello."

Danny abruptly turned around, looking caught off guard by her presence. "Hi." He glanced at the clock on the oven. "Wow, I didn't realize it was so late." She nodded as he looked around and asked, "Where's Mike?"

She thumbed in the direction of the door. "He just left."

He nodded and turned around, grabbing a Snapple from the shelf and shutting the refrigerator door. He unscrewed the lid, looked over at her and said, "About today…"

"I'm sorry for my behavior earlier," she quickly interrupted. "I was out of line. It won't happen again."

Danny smiled and set the lid down on the counter top. "It's alright. You were just doing your job." He smiled at her. "Besides, I think we both suffer from saying what we think," he paused and pointedly added, "Without thinking."

She smiled back, relieved that there was no lingering animosity but still feeling the urge to clear the air she continued, "I appreciate your saying that but it was inappropriate. So I am sorry."

"Tell you what," he replied, taking a seat on one of the stools. "You take my apology, I'll take yours."

"Deal," she sighed and started to take a step back to move down the hallway. "Well, I'm just going to check up on things. Excuse me."

"Agent Spade," Danny called.

She stopped and turned to look at him, lounging on the stool at the island. "Yes?"

"Do you know what makes me and Martin a good team?" he asked, a gentle expression on his face.

She shook her head and stepped up to where he was sitting. "What's that?"

"We balance each other," he replied, taking a quick swig of his Snapple. "He sees the good where I see the bad and vice versa." She nodded, unsure where he was going with this conversation when he continued, "Did you know that we never would have met if it hadn't been for the prison system?"

"Excuse me?"

"See, my brother Rafi is an ex-con," he said, his voice even and unemotional, like it was just a matter-of-fact. "He got mixed up in some stuff that I'm not going to get into with you but he was in prison waiting for his trial to come up. Now, I wasn't particularly close to him, we had some issues to say the least. In fact, I did everything I could to distance myself." He hung his head, almost embarrassed by this confession but continued, "So one night his fiancée came to see me when she was pregnant with my nephew. I was pre-law so she figured I could help with his trial or whatever but I was still mad at him so I said no."

Danny shook his head, shrugging at the memory and continued, "One night I am at the library studying when this preppy kid comes walking up to me and says he's Rafi's teacher. I told him he must be mistaken, my brother's in the joint. He goes on to explain that his name is Martin Fitzgerald and he's doing an internship at the prison where my brother is, that he is teaching accounting and helping the guys get their GEDs, etc. But I'm not in the mood to hear it, so I tell him to hit the road."

Sam smiled, images of a college aged Martin and Danny flashing in her mind.

Danny set the Snapple bottle on the counter and picked up the cap, flipping it in his hand like a coin. "Now he was a persistent pain in the ass and he kept hounding me until he said the magic words: I'll buy you a drink." He shook his head, a wry smile on his lips as he picked up his Snapple again. "Back then, that's all it took to get my attention. I would have had a sit down chat with Fidel Castro if he offered to buy me a drink."

Sam smiled. "I can see it now. You and Fidel discussing politics over a cuba libre."

"Right." Danny chuckled and leaned forward on the island. "So we get to talking and I'm thinking this guy doesn't have a clue what its like to be me. Rich white kid, given all the opportunities in the world while I had to fight my entire life for everything I have." He tilted his head side to side. "But he's buying drinks so I'm willing to let this thing draw out. Funny thing is, turns out we had more in common than I thought. We were both doing our best to not be like our family, to not let where we came from define us."

Sam nodded, uncertain. "So what happened with you and your brother?"

"I still don't know how he did it but Martin convinced me to go see Rafi. He was a persuasive SOB." He sighed and shook his head, looking bemused by the memory. "Rafi still had to serve time but it did start me getting to know my brother again. And I made a friend for life in Martin."

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked, quizzical.

He smiled at her and answered, "The thing is, I'm always looking for the con inside of people, to see what they are made of. While Martin is always holding out hope for that person who wants more in their life and always looking for a second chance."

"A pessimist and an optimist."

"Yeah, sorta," Danny replied with a shrug. "Except I happen to think we both are optimists. Only difference is I am pleased when I am proven wrong while Martin gets disappointed."

Sam nodded. "I see."

"The thing is he's a good guy and he is always giving people the benefit of the doubt, no matter what," Danny replied, standing up and slowly walking to doorway to enter the hallway. He paused, met her eyes and said, "He likes you, you know." Sam felt a hot blush rise in her cheeks so she lowered her eyes, feeling embarrassed and guilty under Danny's watchful gaze. Chuckling softly, Danny said, "Well that answers my question."

She lifted her chin. "Excuse me?"

"I was wondering if you felt the same way but judging by your beet red face it's clear you do." He nodded at her and quietly asked, "So how about you do me a favor?"

She gave him a questioning look. "What's that?"

He looked at her pointedly and grinned. "Give him the benefit of the doubt, too."

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A/N: Thanks so much for all your kind reviews. I'm glad you guys are enjoying this alternate universe. It's been fun to write and I hope to keep you interested in what lies ahead. I just wanted to give a few quick shout-outs. TheNaggingCube, fear no, more casefile stuff to come very soon. I just needed to establish some things and you know I drag that stuff on and on. LOL. And to BumbleBee: Spyglass is in fact the author, Inelastic, on this board who is writing the wonderful fic, Undertow. While she is busily editing my fic I have no idea if and when she will return to writing her own work. I'm sure she could use a PM to nudge her along. ;-) (I'm sorry to do this in public but I couldn't send you a PM since you posted as anon. Sorry.)