Thomas paced back and forth. They had every agent in the area on the Lux Atlantic case. Unfortunately, their top suspect and their prize witness had disappeared. Someone would lose their job for this. Thomas felt a bit guilty for thinking about his career over what was most likely happening to Lisa Reisert. Or maybe, what had already happened. Being realistic, she was most likely already dead. They would find her body along a roadside and Rippner would vanish for good. He didn't relish the idea of delivering the news to her father. It was never an easy task to talk to the families of victims but in Joe Reisert's case it would be explosive.

Thomas' cell phone vibrated. He walked casually into the hall, "This is Thomas."

"I found a trail, not much of one but something," came a slightly garbled voice.

Thomas sighed, thank god. "Let's have it."

"There was an accident out on highway eighty four. A rented van ran off the road, two dead."

"And?"

"And they didn't die from the wreck. One had a gutful of hollow points and the other had his neck twisted clean."

Now that got his undivided attention. "That's gotta be him. Any sign of the girl?"

There was a pause. "Nothing. We searched along the roadway coming and going about ten miles. If they dumped her body before the wreck, it wasn't there."

"Damn it. Well, it hasn't shown up around here either. We checked alleys and dumpsters for five miles around the hospital." Thomas' pace increased as he stalked the hall in frustration.

"Think she's still alive?"

Thomas mulled it over, "I don't see how she could be but since we don't have a body let's proceed like this is a hostage situation until we find otherwise." It was the least he could do given the situation. If Lisa hadn't intervened as she had, there would be a dead family and a vanished killer.

"I'll send the file to your phone. How soon will you be here?"

Thomas looked at his watch. Food and rest were highly overrated. "Give me an hour to set a few things in motion. I don't have to tell you what's at stake here. We don't have much time."

"Understood." The line went dead.

o-o-o-o-o-o

Lisa sat glaring daggers at her captor. Maybe if she concentrated hard enough she could cause him to burst into flame. She was glad that he turned out to be an assassin, it saved her from a dating nightmare she was certain. She scoffed at herself. She was so tired, she was getting goofy. Whatever possibilities ran through her head when they first met, were nothing more than a fantasy. One created by the man beside her.

"Well, are you going to let me in on the big secret or not? I think after all you've done that I deserve some straight answers. What's going on, Jackson? What has got someone like you so spooked?"

Jackson scoffed, "I'm not spooked."

"Sure."

"I don't owe you any explanations. You want to believe in your black and white world? Go right ahead but things aren't always as they seem." He gasped slightly and pressed his arm into his chest.

Lisa frowned, "We should change the bandages. You were bleeding earlier." Her knowledge of first aid was only the most basic. If Jackson needed more than fresh gauze, he was going to be out of luck. "How bad is the pain?"

"Bad enough to keep me alert."

"It's not an angle," Lisa sighed. "Bleeding out isn't going to help either one of us. Find a place to stop and let me take a look at your wounds."

"If we don't get far enough away, treating my wounds won't matter." They crested a hill on the two lane highway. There wasn't a car for miles. He turned the headlights on, the last rays of sunset disappearing on the horizon.

And if they find us and you can barely move? How is our safety served by that?

Jackson shrugged, "You handle them. You're quite accomplished."

"Now I know you're not well." Who said she couldn't snark with the best of them? "Are you seriously suggesting a mere woman handle such a clearly male dominated scenario? I might break a nail."

A smile graced Jackson's lush lips. "I was thinking you could confuse them with rhetoric and then hit them over the head with your purse."

"My purse? Seriously, you went there?"

"You stabbed me with a high heel shoe. That not cliché enough for you?"

"Hm. Point taken. But I'm only giving you that one because you're wounded. Wouldn't want to take unfair advantage when you're so... fragile."

"Fragile? I'd like to see you walk miles in the sticks while you're full of holes." The banter stopped up short when he hissed in pain. "I could go for a couple... bottles of ibuprofen though."

It was the first time that Jackson had made concession to the fact that he was human and he was in pain. Lisa looked at him then out at the highway. The road curved in and out of the hills. It was impossible to tell what was more than a few miles ahead of them but there were no lights in the distance. "Maybe the next gas station will have a mini-mart. We could grab food and bandages. Inconspicuously."

"You really want to stop at the local gas station in a stolen truck? I'm sure none of the locals will recognize it. And anything more than a band-aid will be remembered."

"Ok, Mister Professional, then what do you suggest? Drive until you pass out? Because you've already done that once. And since you no longer have any cuffs, I would think you would want to keep an eye on me." What the hell was she saying? Clearly, she had lost her mind. Now she was reminding the assassin that he needed to be on guard. This strange flirtation was going too far. It needed to stop. Now.

"There's not a lot of choice."

"If I ask you something. Would you be, could you be, human enough to answer it for me?"

Jackson rolled his eyes, "We were doing so well too. But then you just have to go and remind me…"

"Shut up. No bullshit, now. I just want to know. Is there even a slim chance in Hell that we're going to make it out of this?"

Jackson stared ahead and didn't answer. She was just about to call him a bastard when he began, "It's not good. I suppose, there's always a chance. I mean, I've lived through some impossible shit. But if you're asking me if your life will ever be the same?" he glanced over at her, "If you make it and that's a big if, then no… it won't be the same. Just take it from someone who's been there. You can't go back."

She stared out the window, unable to move a muscle. She wanted to scream and rage at the man next to her, at God, and even at the police that had failed to protect her. But what would be the point? What was done was done and Jackson was right. There was no going back and she had always known that on some level. He'd, of course, been telling her that all along but this was different because this was the man beneath the mask talking to her now. She knew it as sure as she knew her own name. There was no agenda, no threats, no games, and she was more glad for it than she could possible say. "Thank you."

He looked over at her and they locked eyes. There was a moment of complete understanding. She didn't need to clarify her gratitude. He didn't need to offer a flip response.

"When we get a safe distance, you need to let me check the wounds. You know it needs to be done so let's get it done."

He raised a single brow then nodded.

They drove on for another hour before they started to see lights that indicated houses on acreage. Soon they should hit a suburban area or a small town. The truck was too old to have any kind of GPS and Jackson was still refusing to even put the battery back in the phone so they only knew their general area.

Finally, they saw a sign for gas and lodging. "I hope you're planning on stopping."

He nodded, "No choice. We're gonna need gas."

"How much longer?"

"That depends."

"On?"

He looked over at her like he was trying to decide something then offered, "I need to decide whether there's a chance in hell that Renauld will listen to reason or not. If not, then I have to go to plan B."

"There really is a Plan B? It's not some movie invention then?"

"Not if you want to stay breathing in this profession. You better have a B, a C, and maybe even a D."

Somehow she wasn't surprised that Jackson had schemes within plans within plots. Like he said if you wanted to stay alive… "How do you even do all this? I mean live on a razor's edge? When do you ever have a chance to just...be.

He looked at her like she was crazy for even thinking such a thing. "If you want to do metaphors then let's put it like this, you have to keep moving because if you don't dance on the razor's edge then you're cut by it. Clear enough?"

"Yeah, I got that, way back. But that's not what I was asking and I think you know it. Don't you ever want to get off the blade?"

"Since I got stabbed by a little girl with a pen, I've been thinking it might be time to retire."

She threw him a look. "Funny... But forced retirement isn't the same as wanting to change your life for the better."

There was no smile on Jackson's face now. "Did you ever consider that perhaps I just like to kill? I mean, you seemed pretty invested in my being a monster yesterday. What a change one day can make, huh?" She started to respond but he cut her off, "Look." He pointed ahead where there was a neon sign announcing a Fill & Go stop.

It was a small station with only four pumps. There were two cars at the pumps and what looked like several people moving around inside the small convenience store. Nothing stood out, all was as it should be at a quiet pit stop on a rural road.

"Let's get something straight right now, Leese. The Glock has nine rounds, if you do anything, and I mean anything, that I think is suspicious… no one will leave that place alive. Are we clear?" his voice was smooth, steady, and utterly devoid of emotion.

Her eyes went wide. He meant what he said. God help her she was starting to be able to read him and she knew without a doubt that if she gave him the slightest reason he would do just as he said. It wasn't a threat, it was a statement of fact. "We're clear. I won't try anything, you have my word." She couldn't believe she could offer her word to this man and mean it but she wouldn't be the reason anyone got killed.

He studied her face for a moment and then nodded, "You walk in ahead of me. I want to check the place out. If it looks good, I'll let you know. Get some peroxide and bandages. Probably need a ton but don't be conspicuous."

"Should we meet in the bathroom?"

He paused again, staring hard at her… "Ok." He reached into the leather jacket and pulled out a couple of twenties. Jackson pulled the truck into the farthest pump and scanned the area. His eyes logged every detail, once satisfied he looked back at her. He pointed down to her feet. "Grab the hat."

"What?" She looked down and noted a ball cap at her feet. The man didn't miss anything.

"Tuck your hair under it and keep your head down. They always have surveillance. Don't walk like a criminal though, be casual, like you don't have a care in the world."

"Really?" Lisa sighed, "Bonnie Parker, I'm not. I'll do my best." She piled her hair under the hat.

"I don't know. You do ok." A small smile played on his lips and was gone, "Does that make me Clyde?"

"We aren't partners. I'm your hostage, remember?" She opened the truck door and started walking without a backwards glance. She flinched when she heard the other door slam. Get a hold of yourself, it's not like he would shoot you in the back. No, he'd just shoot everyone else.