On Monday morning, Harry arranged a meeting with Towers and he was still a little unsure about what he was going to say. "So, it can't be a disaster," Towers said, sitting down behind his desk heavily. It looked like it'd been a long weekend for him, which probably wasn't to Harry's advantage.

"No, not an imminent disaster," Harry said, forcing a smile. "But I still need to speak to you."

"About what?"

"Before you came into office, there was an incident. Cotterdam fire?"

"Oh, I remember that," Towers said. "The torture scandal. Involving members of the JIC, 5, 6 and the cabinet. Got a lot of press when it went to trial."

"Yes," Harry said, treading carefully. "Well, one of my officers was falsely accused of being involved."

"Ruth Evershed," Towers said. Harry raised his eyebrow in question. "I have my intelligence sources too, Harry."

"Well, she was falsely accused and there was a hunt going on for her," Harry said. "And…"

"Mm," Towers said. "Her body being dragged from the Thames was a little too convenient at the time. But no one wanted to investigate further, what with the mess the security services were in at the time. Where is she?"

"I can't tell you that." Harry spoke firmly

"What do you want from me?"

"Honestly, I'd like her name cleared, her passport and British citizenship restored and her to be free to come back to the UK if she wishes to."

"You don't want much do you?" Towers said sarcastically. "How do you know she's innocent?"

"Ruth is one of the most trustworthy and honest people I've ever met. She has more integrity than anyone I know, and she would not condone torture, even passively."

"You have no proof she's innocent," Towers guessed.

"I don't need proof, Home Secretary." Towers watched him for a moment critically.

"You're in love with her." Harry wasn't expecting Towers to be that astute, and if he had worked it out, Harry certainly wasn't expecting the Home Secretary to say it out right. To be so blunt surprised Harry. He raised his eyebrows, wondering what to say. Unfortunately, Towers broke the silence first. "You make more sense to me now Harry. Most of us are on our second or third wife by now. In this business… you know how it is. But I've never heard of you being involved with a woman. Not in years. You make more sense to me now."

"My feelings towards Ruth are not relevant."

"Of course it's relevant," Towers said. "You're not asking me to revive other agents from the presumed dead. And I know there'll be more scattered around."

Harry shrugged slightly, not knowing what to say. "Look Harry, you're a friend. And I know of Miss Evershed by reputation if nothing else. I can't do it though."

"Can't do what?"

"I have some power," Towers continued. "I can reinstate her citizenship, make her death certificate vanish and reissue her passport so she can return to the world of the living. But I can't remove the stigma of her crime. I can't tamper with the evidence, falsified though it seems to be."

"Home Secretary…"

"Listen," Towers interrupted. "I can't tamper with it. I can't intervene in a criminal case with no evidence to back me up. But I can turn a blind eye if others want to look into it. And uncover the truth."

Harry nodded in understanding. "Thank you Home Secretary."

"The less I know, the better," he said. "And I'll have her passport with you by the end of the week." Harry smiled, grateful to a politician for the first time in years.

6 months later.

Harry made sure the door was locked and went into the kitchen, file clutched in his hands. He'd made sure there were several copies before leaving the grid, as he couldn't bear it were any of the information to get lost. Not after all of the hard work both he and Malcolm had put in.

He spread the papers on the kitchen table and systematically read through them all, checking for loopholes, and double checking Malcolm's work. After two hours he sighed, pleased but exhausted. He made himself a mug of tea and put the file back together in order. The evidence against her had vanished and the original transcripts from that bloody meeting had been found. The unedited ones, with Mace's incriminating words. Even just written on the transcripts, Harry could hear Oliver's disdainful tone.

"What about section D?"

"No. Harry Pearce considers himself above such distasteful activities. If he knew, he would most certainly try to stop us."

"How do we contain him then? His team are good, they will find out if we proceed."

"Add an insurance policy. Make it look like one of them will be at the meeting, even though they aren't. Harry Pearce is a loyal idiot. He won't sacrifice one of his team, and we can keep going uninterrupted for a little longer."

Harry shrugged slightly, trying to shake the uncomfortable feeling that Mace always gave him. He looked at the wall to distract him, admiring a painting Ruth had sent him. It was a beautiful painting of the spring cherry blossoms over the river, and he loved it. It reminded him that while Ruth wasn't here in London with him, she was safe and in some place beautiful. He smiled at the painting and then picked up the phone to make a very important call.

"Yes, I need to book a plane ticket to Osaka please."

Thank you for the reviews so far. They make this so enjoyable to write. And yes, a reunion is coming up soon...