Chapter 10

Their group made it to the dock without incident and easily found the boat. The island ferry was gone, leaving it the only craft tied to the dock. Virgil sat at the helm waiting for them to return, and he smiled and waved as they approached.

"Hey Mike, Fiona! You're looking well rested and relaxed...sort of." His eyes lit on the baby. "Mike, what's with this woman of yours? Is she always findin' babies, or what?"

Michael replied, his face set in a grim expression. "Just untie us and get us out of here!" He dropped his load onto the deck out of the way of the seats, and Fiona sat next to him on one end of the bench at the back of the boat. Michael put his arm around her, and together they shielded Amani. Gina got in and took a seat that faced backwards, her purse on her lap with easy access to her gun if necessary. Sam dropped the suitcase next to Michael's load and joined her.

"We're all aboard, Virgil!"

"Okay, Sammy!" He untied the boat, hopped in, and started the motor.

Some people on the beach shielded their eyes from the sun and watched them leave, but no one made a fuss or started shooting. Virgil turned the craft and headed for the ocean. Soon they were cruising at full speed and the island became a tiny blip on the horizon. The main island slipped away to their left and before long there was nothing but open water all around them.

Gina got up and approached Fiona and Michael. "Fiona, don't you think it's a little windy out here for the baby? Why don't we go below deck with him."

"That sounds like a good idea." They had to shout to be heard over the loud engines. She got up and carried Amani down into a nicely decorated lower deck that was equipped with a bedroom, galley, eating area, and a bathroom. "This is nice."

"Thanks." Gina replied. When Fiona stared at her she added, "It was my late husband's boat. Good thing I didn't get rid of it. I was thinking about it, but in this economy, unless I sold it to a drug runner, I doubt I'd get what it's worth." The corner of her mouth tipped up. "Now, after this, I'll definitely hang onto it for awhile. It may come in handy for some other rescue mission."

"Where were you when the men were out on the ocean dealing with pirates?"

She frowned and sat at the table across from Fiona. "Unfortunately, I was working. I had no idea what had happened until Sam called me. And then I cut a meeting short so I could pick him up. Not that I like working on Saturdays anyway." She got up, opened a small cabinet, and said, "We don't have anything to eat except maybe some crackers or something, but I think there's soda and bottled water in the fridge. I haven't been on this boat since before Trent died over a year ago."

"A water would be nice. Thank you."

Gina pulled out two and twisted off the cap for Fiona, since she had her hands full with a squirmy baby. She smiled at him with sadness in her eyes. "He is so adorable. It's a shame he's an orphan."

"I know. I bet he's thirsty, but I don't think he's going to drink out of a bottle like this." She tried, but it quickly became evident that he didn't have the motor skills to make it work.

"Sorry, I don't have any baby bottles on board, little guy," Gina said as she gently tweaked his cheek. He squealed, giggled, and wriggled even more. "What's going to happen to him?"

"Michael said we might be able to get him a new identity and birth certificate, but after that, I have no idea."

"My son is all grown up and gone to college in New York. He was an only child. I can't imagine becoming an only child and an orphan in one day. It's so sad. My heart just goes out to the little guy, but... my circumstances... it just wouldn't work." She sniffled and blinked away the tears in her eyes. "Otherwise, I would take him in a heartbeat!" She reached out a hand and lightly caressed his soft curls.

"I'm thinking that maybe Michael and I could keep him, at least for the time being. We're trying to start our own family, but Amani wouldn't be a bad way to begin." She smiled.

"I suppose, since you had Kira with you for awhile, you're feeling up to the challenge, huh." Gina grinned as she leaned her chin on her hand, her elbow resting on the table. "It seems like ages since Trent Jr. was so little!" She sighed deeply, and in her eyes Fiona saw the years of good memories pass through her mind. "One piece of advice, Fiona... they grow up way too fast. When they drive you nuts and you think you can't take any more, just remember that, because some day you'll be wishing they could be in diapers again." She laughed.

"If you don't mind me asking, why did you have only one child?"

Gina's smile fell away. "I wanted to have more, but my husband and I had a rocky patch where we knew it wasn't fair to put one, let alone two, through that period. By the time we worked things out, it was too late. I had some issues that prevented me from getting pregnant again. Age'll do that to you, so the sooner you can do it, the better off you are."

Fiona thought about her own biological clock. It was nearly a time bomb, and there were occasions where she wondered if she was even capable of conceiving. She'd been preparing for it for the past few months. She was in the best shape and health of her life, and only something out of her control could prevent her dream from coming true.

"I think that because I waited as long as I did with Trent Jr., I was able to bring a maturity to motherhood that I wouldn't have otherwise had if I'd had him when I was in my twenties."

Fiona gaped at her. "I'm sorry, but... how old are you now?" She didn't look a day over forty, forty two at the most.

"I don't mind spilling the beans. I'm fifty two. I was thirty two when I had Trent Jr., and his father and I were married eight years before he was born." She smiled and chuckled a little. "We got all the wildness and selfishness out of our systems first, so we could focus on our son. And my husband's business was doing quite well by then, so he had more freedom to be a hang around kind of dad. Those are times that we'll never forget." Her eyes grew misty as she told her about the good times.

Fiona watched the parade of emotions cross Gina's face as she told both funny and sad stories. The woman was intensely proud of her son and supported his decision to go to college for medicine instead of business like his father wanted. In a way, Fiona was glad they were forced into this situation, because she doubted she would have otherwise had a chance to see this side of the mysterious woman in Sam's life. I wonder if Sam's even heard these things! If he has, he must know how lucky he is to have found her.

While the women talked, Michael and Sam remained with Virgil, watching for anyone following them. They were all alone out on the water, but as they neared Miami they came across a couple of cruise ships going into port. Virgil avoided them and aimed the boat toward the marina where Gina kept it docked. He cut the engines and let the craft slip into the empty space.

"Do you fellas think you'll need me," Virgil asked "I've gotta tie up this baby and secure it if we're done."

"No, we'll be okay now," Michael replied. "Thanks for coming to get us."

"Not a problem! Anything to help that poor little kid. If there's anything else you need, you just let me know, Mike."

Michael nodded and went down to get Fi and Gina. He heard laughter and then entered the galley where the two women sat. Amani gnawed on a saltine, but he didn't look too thrilled with it.

"Michael, are we taking Amani home with us?" Fiona looked up at him with an expectant sparkle in her eyes.

"Yeah, for now," he answered as he took in the sight of the two women entertaining Amani. Up to now, their interactions with Gina gave him the impression that she was standoffish and reserved, but she and Fiona seemed to be getting along very well.

"It's a good thing we didn't get rid of all that baby stuff, although the clothes are for a girl."

"I talked to Sam about that." Michael turned toward Gina. "Sam said you two would take us home and then you'll go to his storage place to get the baby stuff. Amani will just have to make do with girl's clothes until we can go shopping."

"Oh, nonsense!" Gina exclaimed, the smile on her face widening. "Sam and I can pick up a few things! If I still had Trent's stuff, I could just bring that all over, but that's okay. I'll drag Sam along and I'll find some really nice stuff for Amani." Gina paused, only now realizing that the boat wasn't moving. "Are we in the marina?"

"Virgil just tied us down. He'll get the boat closed up for you."

"Wonderful! Let's go get this sweet baby settled into his new home!" Gina popped out of her seat and led the way up to the deck.

"Wow, you'd think he was her kid," Michael remarked as he watched her practically dance up the stairs.

"She likes children. And I really like her, Michael. I think Sam's found a genuinely good woman this time." She smiled as she stood and walked past him with Amani.

While they traveled across the water, Michael filled Sam and Virgil in on what happened on the island, and they all agreed that it was safest for him and Fiona to keep Amani until his identity could be changed. Then it was anybody's guess as to what would happen.

Sam's new car, a mocha colored Cadillac, was full of baby things with barely any room for himself and Gina. With Michael's help they unloaded the car and brought up everything that had been in storage, plus new things that Gina insisted on buying for Amani. The baby slept in the middle of Michael and Fiona's bed with rolled up towels around him to prevent him from falling off an edge. The men set up the brand new crib and Fiona transferred him into it. When he woke, she fed him, changed his diaper, and then laid him down again.

"It's getting dark outside," Fiona said. "I wonder if he'll be able to sleep through the noise downstairs when the club opens."

"I guess we'll find out," Michael spoke as he watched the little boy sleep.

Sam put an arm around Gina's waist. "Hey, G, we should probably leave these two alone with their new family."

"I was thinking maybe we could go get some dinner, bring it back here, and it'll give them a chance to get acquainted with me." She smiled at Michael and Fiona. "Even though Fiona and I had a great time talking earlier, I don't know anything about Michael, other than what you've told me, sweetheart. And we can talk about..."

"Yeah." Sam interrupted her, glanced at Michael and Fiona, and moved his arm to curl around Gina's shoulders. "We've got something to tell you two."

"We'll be back soon. Chinese sound good?" Michael and Fiona nodded, and Gina waved. "See you all in a little while!"

Fiona thought she would bust if someone didn't say something soon, but Gina and Sam took their time setting the table, for the time being a discarded cable spool, while everyone chatted about the newlywed's trip. When she didn't think she could take any more, they all sat around to eat.

Sam noticed the look on Fiona's face. It was time to completely introduce Gina to his friends. "Well, I suppose we better tell them, G. Fi looks like she's just about ready to jump out of her skin."

Gina laughed and tucked a lock of her shoulder length dark hair behind her ear. "It's nothing really exciting. You know how Sam and I met, right?"

"Hmm, no, he never mentioned that," Michael said as he looked back and forth between the two. "He said it was a long story, but that's about it."

"We met at Mystique," Sam said. "Remember when we had that case with the con artist who was smuggling..."

Michael and Fi nodded, and she said, "Oh yes, I remember, shortly before the Rollins couple left Kira on my doorstep. The case that required a lot of stake outs." She smiled at Michael and leaned into his shoulder. "And a lot of dancing."

Michael interrupted her thoughts. "Yes, I remember. So you met at Mystique, and..."

Gina leaned forward and looked deep into Michael's eyes as she said, "You destroyed my case."

"What?"

"You busted the guy that I'd been keeping an eye on for six months. I thought I was getting close enough to nab him myself, and then this guy came in...this Chuck Finley." She jerked a thumb toward Sam, but the look on her face was anything but annoyed. "That threw me for a loop." She glanced at Sam. "In more ways than one." She let out a short laugh, then sobered and returned her attention to Michael and Fiona. "When 'Chuck' started coming in and he appeared to be working with the owners, I thought I had something even juicier, but next thing I knew the case was closed. I had no idea that Chuck was really Sam and that you were all working together."

"So you work with the Miami PD?" Michael asked, sizing her up. She looked too wealthy to be a detective.

"No. I'm with the FBI. I know, I don't look like an agent," she said as she leaned back against Sam's arm. "I'd been in the bureau a couple of years before I married. Now, I pretty much work because I like it. I certainly don't need the paycheck." She paused and added, "My late husband owned a plastics company. Well, he was part owner, and I sold his share after he died. We were set before that, but... anyway, that's not really important."

Michael asked, with a hint of betrayal in his eyes, "When did you find out about this, Sam, that she was working for the Feds?"

"While you guys were gone."

"But how did you two get together after that mission?" Fiona asked as she kept her attention on them. Their story intrigued her.

"After the whole thing was over, I was ticked," Gina replied. "It didn't help when I found out some private investigator team was responsible for solving in a week what I'd been working on, alone, for so long." She glanced at Sam. "The only name I had was Chuck Finley, so I did some digging of my own and found out who he really was."

"She found me at Carlito's, we got to talking, and we went out a couple of times. But I swear, I had no idea she was FBI." Sam nodded at Fi. "Then you wound up with Kira, so I got busy and we didn't really have much time together."

"I was still raw from losing that big case, so I kept an eye on his activities, because I wasn't sure what he was up to or who he was working with." A slow smile crossed her face. "When you spend a lot of time spying on someone... things happen. I wasn't expecting to fall in love with him, but I got over myself and that case, and... and I'm glad I did." She leaned closer and kissed his lips, and he pulled her head to rest on his shoulder.

"She's good, Mike. All that time I thought she was unhappy about the stuff we got into because she was a civilian and didn't understand. In reality, she knew better than anybody what I was doing."

"And I'd been hoping that he would retire from it all. Especially after the bachelor cruise." Sam's hand draped over her shoulder and she covered it with hers. "But he made it quite clear that he had no intention of quitting. And that's when I came clean about what I did."

"I see. This could get...interesting," Michael said, understating the fact. With Sam seeing an FBI agent, and his working with the CIA, plus jobs on the side, they could easily have a jurisdictional nightmare on their hands one day. Michael didn't like it, but he couldn't see a way out without causing a rift in his relationship with Sam, or bringing on a heartache if his friend had to break up with Gina. It was obvious from the affection that passed between them that they were in love, and somehow they appeared to be working things out. Yet the real test would come when they had an actual case.

Gina looked at Michael. She knew exactly what he was thinking. "If you're worried about a conflict of interest, forget about it, Michael. I've already assured Sam that unless you guys are working on something that the FBI has already had a hand in, I won't get involved. However, if it turns into something that the FBI should know about, things may change."

"That could be a problem."

"I know." When Gina locked onto his eyes, Michael saw the genuine concern in hers. "That's why I wanted to get this out in the open right now. From what Sam has told me about you two, I feel like I already know you. Like we're already friends. I don't want my other life to infringe on that, and certainly not on my relationship with Sam. But the bottom line is that what I do, I do for my country. If what you do goes against that..." She lifted a hand and let it drop onto her crossed leg. "You understand, don't you?"

"I have no problem with that." Michael took a sip of his drink. "I think we'll just have to take it one step at a time."

"Good to hear, Mike. Because while you were gone, Gina helped me out with a little case." He grinned at her.

"Oh, it was nothing, just a one day and done little thing." She leaned in and planted a short kiss on his lips. "But we were a great team, if I must say so." She turned to Michael. "If you ever need an extra hand, you know I'll be happy to help."

"We'll let you know, Gina." Maybe having an FBI agent on the team wouldn't be such a bad thing after all!

That evening, after Michael and Fiona were tucked away in bed, they discussed Sam's new love and the possible impact she might have on their jobs. Fiona burrowed herself into the crook of Michael's arm and snuggled closer.

"I like her. I think she could be a real asset."

"I'm not so sure."

"Why?"

In the dark, she felt his smile. "She reminds me of me a little."

"Oh, like that's a bad thing?" Fiona laughed and settled in deeper.

"I think she could be a strong ally, but what if she all of a sudden decides that her agency has jurisdiction in something we're working on as a side job?"

Fiona sighed. "No need to be borrowin' trouble. That's what my Ma always used to say. If it happens, maybe it's a sign that you need to slow down. I mean, if we really want to start a family, you can't go running off at all hours working on cases."

She was right. He spent some time talking with other agents, both men and women who had families, to see how they handled things. It came down to deciding whether he wanted to be a hands-on or hands-off father. No one seemed to have a happy medium. The agents in the field were in the field more than at home, and the ones at home spent their days chained to a desk. That wasn't his style of spy work.

He sighed heavily. "There's just too much to work through yet. And we have to figure out what we're going to do with Amani." In the dim light coming from the street lights and the club's neon adornments, he could see the surprise on her face.

She rose and leaned on her elbow. "Are you saying you want to keep him?"

"I'm thinking about it."

"I'd like to keep him, too." She kissed him deeply and ran her hands over him. "But let's worry about that tomorrow."

"Yes." His lips met hers and they continued where their abbreviated honeymoon left off.