The office of Doctor Donaldson, chief of staff at the Massachusetts General Hospital, was strangely impersonal. There were no pictures, no work of arts, not even a potted plant. Every object in the room had a practical purpose.

"Looks like a lively man," Roger said to Holly while they waited for the doctor to come back from a meeting. It was decided that Susan should wait for them at the hospital's cafeteria, because Roger feared that too many people in the room would make the doctor even more uncomfortable.

Before Holly could reply, a man in his mid-fifties came briskly into the room. Tall and with steely grey hair, he looked like an efficient but not an unkind man. He shook hands with both Roger and Holly and sat at his desk.

"I have to say, Mr. Thorpe, that when I first received your request, I was inclined to turn it down, but then curiosity got the best of me. What can I do for you?"

"I know that the death of your wife must still be a very painful subject to you, and so I would like to thank you first of all for agreeing to meet with us."

The doctor nodded.

"We would not be here unless we had a very good reason," Roger resumed, "and I'll go straight to the point since I know that you are very busy. Daniel St. John is now living in Springfield, Illinois, which is where Mrs. Lindsey and I both come from."

At the mention of Daniel's name, the doctor fell back in his chair, his face closing up instantly. The change did not escape to either Holly or Roger. "Go on," he eventually said.

"There have been rumours that he might have been involved in your wife's accident, and so –"

"The police concluded to a suicide," Doctor Donaldson interrupted curtly.

"Do you agree with their conclusion?" Roger asked just as bluntly.

"Doctor Donaldson," Holly added, "I am engaged to be married to Daniel. If you have any doubts that he played a part in your wife's death, I would really appreciate if you could let me know."

The man looked at Holly and his features relaxed slightly. He let out a sad sigh and seemed to make a decision. "Daniel was one of the most promising residents that this hospital ever saw. He was my protégé. I thought he was extremely ambitious and eager to learn from me, qualities that I admired a lot in him. That is, until I discovered that he was having an affair with my wife."

He rubbed his face wearily while Holly and Roger exchanged a quick glance.

"How did you find out about the affair?" Holly asked softly.

"Carol, my wife, told me. She came home one night and came clean about everything."

"Why did she decide to tell you? Couldn't she just end to affair and keep quiet?" Roger said, wondering aloud.

"She told me because she was starting to be afraid of him. He was becoming possessive, telling her that everyone should know about their love and that they should be able to be with each other out in the open. "

"Did you forgive her once she came to you?" Roger asked.

The doctor cleared his throat. "I want to make something clear. My wife has been good to me, even if I know that it was not always very easy for her. I was almost never there and running this hospital was my priority. If she felt the need for male companionship once in a while, who was I to punish her? I loved her, and I know that she loved me, so I looked the other way. These other men never meant anything to her, certainly not Daniel."

"So you don't think that she would have killed herself when he supposedly tried to end things with her," Roger said.

The doctor only scoffed dismissively.

"But what about the pills that she overdosed on? She was on antidepressants, wasn't she?" Holly inquired. She hoped against hope that Daniel might still be innocent. The alternative was just too horrible to contemplate.

"Mrs. Lindsey, all people that are depressed are not automatically suicidal. Besides, my wife was taking antidepressants for her anxiety, not depression. She would never have killed herself."

His tone was so decisive that Holly did not dare ask any more questions.

"If you're so sure that your wife did not commit suicide, then how come you did not go to the police?" Roger asked.

"Don't you think I did? Oh, they listened to me, and then they did their little investigation and that was that. What else could I do? I had no proof, and I still don't."

"Just a gut feeling," Roger muttered.

The man got up, signalling that the meeting was over. He kept Holly's hand in his for a few seconds and looked her straight in the eyes. "Flee. That's my advice."

Holly stumbled blindly out of the office and took a few unsteady steps in the corridor. She felt panic constricting her chest and found it hard to breathe evenly.

"Are you beginning to believe me now?" Roger asked as he followed her.

She turned to him and burst into frantic tears. Roger closed the distance between them and took her into his arms. "I'm sorry, Holly, really I am," he whispered as he stroked her hair.

"No, you're not," she blurted out between two sobs. "You've been trying to convince me for weeks. You must be happy now!"

"I'm never going to be happy to see you hurting, Hol, never!" He held her at arm's length to make eye contact. "Look at me. I will keep you safe from him, I promise."

"How?"

"I don't know yet, but I'll find a way." He wiped a tear from her cheek and smiled. "Let's go find Susan and then we'll pay a visit to Jean Wetterill, okay?"

Holly shook her head. "You go without me, I need to take a break from all this."

"Are you sure?"

Holly looked into his eyes. "Yes, I trust you now. I know that whatever this woman tell you, you'll tell me, even if she has proof that Daniel is innocent after all."

Roger squeezed her hands and nodded. "What are you going to do in the mean time?"

"I'll go look into that equipment deal that I told you about. The station is not too far from here."

"Alright, but please lay low and go straight to the hotel afterwards. Susan and I will go meet the police officer, Ray Bellevue, after the sister, but we'll be back in time for dinner."

Holly sniffled and smiled weakly. "I'll meet you at your suite."

Once outside, she put her sunglasses on and walked the few blocks separating the hospital from CKWT, one of the city's local television stations.

The brisk walk did her good but did not totally succeed in calming her frayed nerves. She had no definite proof of Daniel's guilt, but little doubt subsisted in her mind. Somehow, the doctor had sounded too sure for her to question his judgment.

She entered the station's reception area and asked for the manager, a certain Cassie Kennedy. She was then ushered into the station itself and told that Mrs. Kennedy would be with her shortly. The room was bustling with activity and the familiar atmosphere instantly soothed her. Minutes later, a tall blond woman made her way towards her, extending her hand to greet her.

"You must be Holly Lindsey. I'm Cassie Bellevue," she said.

The name made Holly flinch. Had she not just heard it earlier that day?

"I thought your name was Kennedy," Holly said as the woman led her across the newsroom to her office.

The woman smiled and opened the door for her. Hers was a corner office with a breathtaking view of the harbour. "Kennedy Bellevue," she explained. "I got married two months ago and my colleagues aren't used to it yet I'm afraid."

"Is the name very common in Boston?"

Cassie tossed her curly hair and seemed to think for a few seconds. "Not that common, but then again Boston is a big city, so my guess is that we must be a few thousands at least."

"Of course," Holly said.

Cassie handed her a bound document and kept a copy for herself. "These are the technical specifications for every piece of equipment that we want to part with. How about we go through the document and then you can tell me if you're interested?"

"Sounds great."

They spent the best part of the next hour discussing the material and after some bargaining, Holly opted to buy two cameras. They were agreeing on the shipment logistics when the phone rang, interrupting them.

"Cassie Bellevue. Oh, hi, sweety!"

She smiled and Holly could tell from her tone of voice that she was speaking to her husband. She zoned out, her mind wandering back to Roger and Daniel until she heard Cassie hung up the phone.

"You sound very in love," Holly remarked with a smile.

"I am. I don't want to gush or anything, but I feel so blessed to have this man by my side. And to think that I almost didn't meet him!"

"What do you mean?" Holly asked, suddenly intrigued.

"We met at the hospital while I was visiting my sister who just had a baby four years ago. He was recovering from a gunshot wound that almost got the best of him." She shuddered at the memory.

"How terrible!"

"Indeed, but he was very lucky. He got caught in a crossfire in a bad neighborhood and nobody lifted a finger to help him even though he was bleeding to death. If it hadn't been for that young doctor who happened to pass by, he was a goner."

"So the doctor saved his life?"

"Singlehandedly! He was amazing, and I think he was still a resident at the time. My husband wanted to introduce him to me when we started dating, but by then the man had quit the hospital and moved to India, so I never got the chance."

Holly blinked several times, as she had received a blow. "India?"

"Yes! It's rather a long way to finish your residency, don't you think?"

Holly swallowed hard. "Why did you say that your husband was shot again?"

Cassie shot a loving glance at a picture on her desk which Holly could not see. "He's a police officer! Didn't I mention that before?"

The rest of the meeting was a blur to Holly. She walked out of the station in a stupor and took a taxi straight to the hotel, where she lay on her bed as she waited for the others to come back.

Hours passed and she fell into a light slumber which was punctuated by nightmares about crashing cars. The phone finally rang, waking her up abruptly.

"Yes?" she said, out of breath.

"We're back," Roger replied. "Can you come to my room?"

She hung up without answering and quickly walked down the hall to Roger's suite. She found Susan and him packing up the wigs and other props they had used as their disguises. They both looked discouraged and tired.

"I'm afraid we still don't have anything definite," Susan said to Holly. "The sister was adamant that Daniel was guilty, just like the husband, but she had not concrete proof either."

"The meeting with the police officer was another matter," Roger added. "We passed ourselves off as FBI agents to intimidate him, but he just stuck to his story anyway. I know that he was hiding something, though. I just couldn't get him to spit it out!" He clenched his fists in frustration.

"I agree with Roger, the man was lying," Susan said as she took a small tape recorder from her purse. "Do you want to listen for yourself?" she asked Holly.

Holly took a deep breath. "That won't be necessary. I know he was lying."

Susan and Roger both turned to her. "What?" Roger eventually said, taking a step in her direction.

"He owes his life to Daniel. That's why he's covering for him." She told them in a few words about her meeting with Cassie Bellevue, and they all sat for a few minutes in stunned silence.

"This is it," Susan said. "This is the last piece of the puzzle."

"What do I do now?" Holly asked in a small voice. "I can't go back to him."

"No, but you can't leave him either, at least not before we come up with a contingency plan," Roger replied. "I need to think about this. Do you mind if I call it a night?"

Susan put a comforting arm around Holly's shoulders. "Not at all. Holly and I will eat in my room and spend a girls' night in." She picked up her purse and poked Roger's in the chest before walking to the front door. "In the meantime, you come up with a genius idea. We have to know what to do before when we land in Springfield tomorrow!"

"I'm coming! Keep your pants on!" Roger called out several hours later while he hurried to the front door. He took a step back when he saw Holly on the other side, wearing nothing but her nightgown and a robe she had obviously thrown on as an afterthought. She had a troubled look in her eyes.

He looked up and down the hallway, thankful that it was deserted. "Holly! It's 3AM, what are you doing here?" he said in a low voice.

"I can't sleep. I can't stop thinking about Daniel and what he did. Will you please let me in? I really need to talk right now."

Roger hesitated. "Can't it wait in the morning?"

Holly shot him a desperate look. "No, it can't! I knocked at Susan's door first but she just sleepwalked to the door and told me to put a sock in it. Come on, Roger, are you going to make me beg?"

Roger sighed and ushered her in. "Of course not."

He grabbed a thick bathrobe on their way to the living room and handed it to her. "Put this on, will you? I can see from here that you're shivering." I can also see the outline of your breasts in that nightgown and it's driving me crazy, he added inwardly.

"Would you like something to drink? Herbal tea? Warm milk?" he offered when she was nestled comfortably on the couch.

"I don't think herbal tea would do the trick," she said gloomily.

"Something stronger then?" he suggested.

She shook her head and patted the cushion beside her. "Forget about drinks, will you? I just want to talk."

Roger sat next to her and they both stared ahead. The curtains were still opened and the harbour lay before them, its myriad of lights shining in the darkness.

"My life is a mess," Holly finally muttered.

"It's not good right now, I'll grant you that," Roger retorted flatly. "But look at the bright side; at least you know Daniel's true nature now. It's best that you found out today than after five years of marriage, don't you think?"

"I'd rather he wasn't a murderer at all, Roger."

"Well he is, and now we have to deal with that."

Holly glanced at him sideways. "We?"

"Yes, we! You're not alone in this, surely you know that. Susan and I, we will do everything to get you out of this mess. I think that I have a plan, but I want to make a few phone calls when I get back to make sure that it's going to work."

Holly nodded thoughtfully and they both fell silent again. "Are you feeling at least a little bit better knowing that?" Roger asked a few minutes later.

"A little, but do you know what would really help?"

He was about to ask when she leaned in and kissed him softly on the lips. "This," she said after pulling a few inches away from his face.

"Holly, no," Roger protested half-heartedly. She ignored him and cradled his face with her hands, this time pushing her tongue past his parted lips. They remained side to side for a few minutes, kissing more and more passionately before she straddled him, shedding off her first bathrobe.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Roger moaned when she finally broke of the kiss.

"You said that if I wanted you, I would have to come to you," she whispered as she untied his bathrobe belt and parted the sides away from his chest, "so here I am." She ran her hands up and down his torso and leaned over him to tease one of his earlobes. She could instantly feel his erection against her lap.

"That's not what I meant and you know it," he panted, while she got rid of her second robe, which left only her filmy black nightgown. "God, Holly!" he pleaded, closing his eyes, "Why are you doing this to me?"

"Because I can't help myself," she murmured, echoing his own words from the editing room. She grabbed the back of the couch with both hands and deliberately pushed her hips up and down his lap, feeling his desire literally grow underneath her.

Roger opened his eyes and gazed at her face. She had thrown her head back and her curls fell down her back, her lips were parted and her eyes closed. He wanted that woman like he had never wanted anyone in his life, and there she was, offering herself to him. Chances were she would walk away yet again in the morning, but still he could not find the strength to push her away.

"I know what you're after," he said in a ragged tone. "You want me to make you stop thinking, to take the fear away, is that it?" he said, grabbing a fistful of her auburn air, causing her to snap her eyes open. "Yes," she replied, "that's what I want."

"Then you've got it," he said fiercely. With one hand, he lifted her by the waist while he stripping out of his pyjama bottom with the other. He then lowered her slowly onto him.

"Roger!" she gasped. She tried to lift herself back up his shaft but he held her firmly into place. "You might be on top, Hol, but I'm the one in charge tonight," he said while running his hands up her thighs. He pulled her nightgown over her head and tossed it on the floor. He then brushed the tips of his fingers against her breasts, cupping them briefly before making his way down. He slid a hand between their two bodies and started to stroke her while trusting into her, pushing his hips up and down.

She put her hands on his shoulders for balance and threw her head back as they began to move rhythmically, losing track of time, as if in a trance. Holly's breathing became increasingly ragged as she finally neared orgasm. She bent forward and looked him in the eyes. "Kiss me, Roger, I'm going to come."

Roger groaned but instead of obeying, he pulled out of her and moved aside. "Not yet," he said. He pulled her up the couch and led her to the unmade bed, where he fell on top of her. Pushing her legs apart, he entered her while holding her hands over her head. He began to thrust into her again, lifting her thighs so that he could reach deeper, until he heard her breath running wild in his ears and felt like he was about to explode. "Now," he cried, seconds before they came together.

They lay panting one on top of the other for several minutes until they finally caught their breath. Roger opened his eyes and gazed at Holly. Her eyes were still closed but there was a serene smile on her lips.

"What are you thinking?" he inquired softly.

She half-opened her eyes and winked. "That this sure beats the hell out of herbal tea."

Roger burst into laughter and fell down on his back. "Well, glad I could help."

The three of them met in the lobby the next morning to check out of their respective rooms. Holly appeared last, her tired features betraying her lack of sleep.

"Bad night?" Susan inquired sympathetically while Roger was out of earshot.

Holly cocked her head on one side. "Actually, no. I took a page from your book and decided to live in the moment for once."

Susan raised an eyebrow and looked at Holly, then at Roger. "I see. Just don't overdo it, though, he's not as tough as he looks," she said. Her turn came up at the desk and she left Holly to ponder over her words.

She turned and saw Roger who was coming back with a large coffee. "We're not speaking," he said coldly before she could open her mouth.

"Why not?"

He took a step in her direction and faced her angrily. "Why not? Because you sneaked out of my room last night like a criminal. What is it? You couldn't bear to wake up next to me, is that it?"

Holly sighed. "I kept tossing and turning and I was afraid that I was going to keep you from sleeping, that's all."

"Oh, really?" Roger retorted derisively. "You used me."

"I think I was pretty clear about what I wanted out of you last night."

Roger felt like screaming. "You are TOO much sometimes!"

"Poor Roger," she snapped back, "having hot, sweaty sex all night again. Well, excuse me if I can't find it in me to pity you right now. My fiancé is a psycho and I'm not even sure that I'll survive the upcoming week. I have REAL problems, okay?!"

She walked away toward the exit, not waiting after them, while Roger stood rooted to the spot.

"I heard that," said a voice behind him. He turned to see Susan smirking.

"So you two slept together," she stated in an amused tone.

"She made me," Roger said crossly.

"She MADE you? What, she forced you?" she asked sarcastically.

Roger cleared his throat. "Well, not exactly, but you know what I mean."

Susan patted him on the back. "I know, I'm just messing with you. Don't be too hard on her though, she doesn't know which way is up right now. And who can blame her, really?"