At lunchtime that day, Joey decides to visit Watson.

"Hey Joey, haven't seen you around much lately."

"Yeah sorry about that; been a bit busy."

"Too busy to keep your invalid best friend company."

"You're hardly an invalid Georgina."

"Joey, I moved in with your brother because I couldn't manage on my own. My wing's still clipped, I can't work, I'm stuck here going out of my mind."

"Ok, ok, I get the point; I'm a bad friend."

"I was joking Joey."

"Sorry." Joey rubs her hands over her face. "I'm just tired."

"I would have thought you would have gotten plenty of rest on your holiday."

"Charlie and I didn't exactly get a lot of sleep on our holiday." Realising what she had just said, Joey puts her head down in embarrassment. "Oh god, I can't believe I just said that."

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone that you and Charlie barely saw the outdoors," grinning at her friend's embarrassment.

"Stop it! Charlie will kill me if she finds out I said anything."

"Your secret is safe with me," unable to wipe the grin off her face.

Joey finally lifts her head, choosing to ignore her friend's pleasure at her embarrassment, "I heard your transfer has come through."

"Yeah, it came through two days ago; it's just too bad I can't actually work yet."

"You'll be back at work causing hell in no time," Joey assures her. "So how are you enjoying living with Brett?"

"I really was wrong about him; he's been very helpful since I've been here."

"Too bad his girlfriend wasn't so welcoming."

"I suppose I can't blame her, having another woman living with your boyfriend. I feel kind of guilty that they broke up because of it."

"They were only together for two weeks and believe me, he's better off without her," Joey says, having never been a fan of Brett's girlfriend. "You seem a little down Georgina, is everything ok?"

"It's just my sister," Watson sighs. "Did you have to tell her about the shooting?"

"She's the only family you have and I thought she should know what happened."

"Yeah, well, now I have to deal with her dead beat boyfriend being arrested."

"He was released as soon as he sobered up this morning."

"Well that's one good thing I suppose."

"Cat picked him up. She seems like...um," Joey hesitates.

"Like trouble? Believe me, she is."

"I was going to say a handful, but trouble works. Did you two have a falling out?"

"You could say that," Watson says. "I arrested her."

"You arrested your own sister!" Joey blurts out in surprise.

"When she was 16, she was at a rave when we raided it. She was drunk and I found ecstasy on her, so I arrested her," that night still painful to Watson. "I didn't think I had a choice, Joey. Cat had been off the rails since our parents died when she was 12; stealing, causing fights, constantly in trouble, she even got kicked out of school. It didn't matter what I said or did, she was determined to rebel and do the opposite. I tried to bring her into line, but she just resented me even more. A week before I arrested her, I found out that some of my colleagues thought they were doing me a favour by letting her skate on previous drug offences; that was one of the reasons I applied for a transfer to the Police Integrity Commission. Anyway, this had been going on for a while and it certainly didn't do me any favours, because it only encouraged her more. Cat was getting worse, so when I caught her red-handed, I thought if I arrested her, gave her a good scare, she'd see that she was throwing her life away."

"I take it that it didn't quite work out like that."

"No. Because she had been allowed to skate the other times, she had a clean record, so the magistrate gave her a slap on the wrist and told her not to do it again. He'd barely said she was free to go when she packed her stuff and moved out. She left the country as soon as she turned 18, and other than the odd postcard or birthday card, I haven't heard from her, unless she needed money. I just wish I knew why she came back."

"You nearly died Georgina, maybe that made her realise she had to sort things out between you."

"It's never that simple with Cat. She hadn't been in town that long when Charlie arrested her boyfriend and Cat turns up on my doorstep drunk, wanting me to get him out. 10 years and I'm still expected to bail her and her loser friends out," her frustration obvious to Joey.

"Georgina, she came all this way to see you, just give her a chance and maybe she will surprise you."

"I wish I shared your optimism Joey."

"Look, I've got to go and meet someone, are you going to be ok?"

"Yeah, I'll just finish this crappy novel and sit here twiddling my thumbs."

"And I thought I was a lousy patient. I'll see you later."

"Bye. Oh and Joey?"

"Yeah."

"Be careful of Cat; people tend to get hurt when she's around."

"Don't worry, I kind of already guessed that."

Frankie O'Grady, still nervous around Joey after she slammed him against the wall on his boat, sits fidgeting in his chair as he waits for her to turn up.

"You heard anything about these burgs Frankie?"

Not having heard her approach, Frankie lets out a squeak as he launches to his feet in fright, "Jesus Collins, don't do that to me."

"Sorry, I'll be sure to wear bells the next time."

"No need to be snarky."

"Frankie, get to the point, you called and said you had something for me."

"It's not about the burgs, it's about that unknown stiff you dug up; I think I know who he is."

"Who?"

Returning to the station some time later, Joey fills Charlie in on what she has been able to discover about the body. "According to Frankie, Wazza, otherwise known as Warren Hunt, was an informant for Bolton. He got into a bit of trouble and in exchange for his help, Bolton had his record expunged, which is why his fingerprints weren't in the system."

"Why does Frankie think it's him?"

"Apparently Wazza had been disappearing for weeks at a time for the past year, but he's never been gone this long. There's also been whispers that the reason he hasn't come back was because something had happened to him."

"Yeah, but Frankie's not exactly reliable."

"I got a little heavy with him the last time and I think he's too scared to lie to me."

"Does this Wazza have any distinguishing marks that we can use to identify him?"

"Frankie said that he had a tattoo on the back of his right hand."

"The body that was found didn't have a tattoo."

"Actually it did, we just couldn't see it. The tattoo was done with a special ink that is largely invisible, but glows when you put it under a UV/black-light, which is why the ME missed it the first time. Luckily for us, as the body was unidentified, it was still at the morgue, so the ME was able to go back and have a look; she found a tattoo which matches the one Frankie described."

"Maddi said she killed him because he was a problem that needed taken care of, but she never told me his name because he had so many. I guess now we know."

"Not quite," Joey says, enjoying Charlie's confusion. "Warren Hunt doesn't exist."

"He doesn't?"

"No, so I ran the details of the tattoo and turned up this." Handing Charlie the print out, Joey continues, "His name is Dallas Craven. He has arrests for fraud and specialised in fake passports and identities. It looks like Bolton destroyed his fingerprints, but forgot about his distinctive tattoo, either that or he didn't know about it. All prisoner tattoos or marks are recorded, so once the ME had a name to go with the body, she was able to track down his prison medical records. Blood type matches, so does a scar he has on his left shoulder. She's still to run a DNA test, but she's almost certain that it's him."

"Bolton went to an awful lot of trouble to try to hide his identity, only for Maddi to kill him."

"Maybe he'd outlived his usefulness or knew too much, I mean, we know they don't like loose ends."

"Good work Joey, I'll pass this onto the taskforce; they'll almost certainly want to look into his connection with Bolton and Maddi."

"Well I'm off home," Joey stands.

"Lucky you."

"Hey, you're the one who chose to do an extra half shift."

"Don't remind me. What?" Charlie asks.

"Nothing. Um, I'd better go, I'll see you at home," she says, rushing out the door. Charlie grins, looking forward to getting home as soon as she could, knowing full well what Joey had been thinking just moments ago.

Three days later, while jogging along the beach, Joey tries to ignore the unease she feels when she spies Ana approaching her, wondering what it was about her that unnerved her.

"Good morning Const. Collins."

"Morning," Joey says, coming to a stop. "I thought you would have been long gone by now."

"My friends had to leave for a family emergency, so I thought I would stay here for a bit longer. It's so beautiful and relaxing here."

"Yeah, it is."

"I wanted to thank you again for the lift the other day; it was very kind of you."

"It was Ned's idea and it's all part of the service."

"Are you ok Constable, you seem tense?"

"Not at all. It was nice seeing you again, but I really have to finish my run before work."

Without waiting for a reply, Joey jogs away from Ana, feeling the tension in her body lessening with each metre she puts between them.

Arriving back home, still unnerved from her encounter with Ana, Joey ducks into the shower. Feeling better after her shower, Joey finds Charlie preparing coffee in the kitchen. Walking up behind her, she puts her arms around her waist, before resting her chin on Charlie's shoulder.

"How about dinner tomorrow night at the Sunset," she suggests.

"Last time I was there I got stuck watching you with Maddi."

"Unless you plan on taking me out of town when we want to eat at a restaurant, you're going to have to get over that. Maybe we could invite Brett and Georgina."

"I don't know if that's a good idea."

"Charlie, you and Brett need to get through all this."

"Joey, he ran me over and then he shoved me against a wall."

"He didn't mean to run you over."

"But he did mean to slam me against the wall."

"He apologised."

"Look Joey, I don't think Brett and I will ever see eye-to-eye."

"Aside from the odd awkward meal together, neither of you have even really tried. Please Charlie, for me," Joey pleads. Turning in Joey's arms, Charlie links her arms around Joey's waist. "Don't Joey, you know I can't say no when you give me the puppy dog eyes."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

Smiling at the look of innocence on Joey's face, Charlie leans forward, intending to give her a quick kiss, only to find the kiss deepening. Pulling away reluctantly, Charlie rests her forehead against Joey's. "If we keep this up, I'm going to be late for work."

"It's ok, I know the boss."

"Unfortunately, your boss likes to set a good example." Not daring to tempt fate again, Charlie moves completely out of Joey's arms. "I think I'd better go."

"Charlie, haven't you forgotten something?"

"Huh?"

"Your coffee," holding up her cup.

"Oh, right, I'll grab something on the way. Oh, um, tea tomorrow night sounds good, and um, I'll see you at work later."

Joey smirks after her flustered partner, loving the effect she has on her.

Finally making it to the office, Charlie is just sitting at her desk when Watson walks in.

"Watson, you're supposed to be on sick leave."

"I'm going nuts sitting around doing nothing; can't I do some filing or something?"

"You know the rules Watson; until you're cleared by a doctor, you can't work."

"This is so unfair," she complains as she slumps into the chair. "My shoulder's not even sore anymore." Charlie gives Watson an incredulous look. "Ok, so it's not hurting as much. Come on, there must be something I can do?"

"You can go home, rest and get better."

"Been there, done that." Realising she wasn't going to get anywhere, Watson changes the subject. "Has there been any developments on Samuels?"

"No, he's gone to ground. Go home Watson."

Sighing in frustration, Watson reluctantly gets to her feet.

"Watson, are you doing anything tomorrow night?"

"Besides sitting on my butt going nuts? Not a thing."

"Good, because Joey wants you and Brett to come out with us to the Sunset."

"If I say yes, can I come back to work?"

"No. But if you don't say yes, you'll have to explain it to Joey."

"I'd better say yes then," Watson says, before muttering on her way out, "I can't stand it when Joey does that puppy dog look."

Shortly after lunch, Joey brings news for Charlie. "Charlie, we just got word that the body was definitely Dallas Craven. Members of the taskforce also managed to track down where he used to stay when he disappeared; looks like he was up to his old habits. There were blueprints and equipment for producing multiple identities, including passports, birth certificates and licences for at least 5 different countries. There was plenty of evidence to suggest that he had already supplied at least a dozen people with new documents just before he died; unfortunately though, they have no idea who received the documents."

"It could be anyone; criminals, people who wanted to disappear, new arrivals. You know what though, Joey, we're getting closer, I can feel it."

"Let's just hope we're allowed to finish the job. Georgina was shot because she got too close to someone."

"Hopefully with the taskforce breathing down their neck, they'll be too scared to act."

The next evening, Joey has to drag a still reluctant Charlie to the restaurant.

"Come on Charlie, we're going to be late."

"I don't know about this Joey."

"Brett doesn't bite."

"I'm not so sure about that. He's the only family you have; I don't want to be the one who comes between you again."

"Charlie, Brett's accepted that I'm gay and that I'm with you. Relax ok."

"I am relaxed."

"Really, so that's why I've had to practically drag you here. You don't want Brett to think you're scared of him, do you?"

"Nice try Collins. It's not just Brett, it's Watson. You know I don't socialise with other officers outside of work."

"Yeah, right. Charlie, have you forgotten that we live together and sleep together; I don't think you can socialise any closer than that."

"I can't get out of this can I?"

"Nope."

"You owe me big time for this."

"I'll give you your reward when we get home, now come on, before they think we've bailed on them." Joey grabs her hand, dragging her the rest of the way.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Joey asks Charlie a few hours later when they arrive home.

"I didn't get hit by a car or a wall," Charlie says, before admitting that she actually had an enjoyable night.

"You and Brett seemed to get along all right."

"Yeah, he's actually not such a bad guy."

"Even I will admit that he's changed a lot in the past year. I think it really knocked him about when I left like I did."

"I know the feeling." Charlie still feels the pain of losing Joey like she did. Placing her hands on Joey's waist, Charlie looks around the lounge room. "So where's this reward you promised me?"

In reply, Joey pushes Charlie until she falls onto the couch, before straddling her waist.

"Joey, what about Ruby," Charlie asks a little worriedly.

"Oh, didn't I tell you?" Joey says as she takes her top off, "Ruby's staying with Nicole," her hands now working on Charlie's clothes, "so we have the place to ourselves."

"Yeah, but with her timing, you never know."

"Good point," Joey accedes, pretending to start to move off Charlie.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Charlie grabs the front of Joey's bra and tugs her down on top of her.

Feeling blissfully content lying in a tangle of limbs with Joey resting half on top of her, Charlie looks over at the clock. "Joey."

"Mmm," snuggling closer into Charlie without opening her eyes.

"I think it's time we moved to the bedroom."

"Don't want to," kissing the bare skin closest to her lips, "I'm comfortable right where I am."

"It's just that I think I hear Ruby coming."

"What!" Joey sits up, suddenly alert, "Why didn't you say something earlier?" Jumping off the couch in a panic, Joey looks frantically at their clothing scattered around the room. "Oh god, we've got clothes...you rat!" Joey slaps Charlie playfully on the arm as she realises she's been had.

"The look on your face," Charlie chuckles at her.

"That wasn't funny Charlie."

"I'll make it up to you."

"Not here you won't," she says, pulling Charlie to her feet and toward their bedroom. "I keep thinking Ruby's going to walk in any minute now."

"What about our clothes?" asks Charlie, a little worried that Ruby might see the evidence of what they had been up to.

"Charlie, we'll clean up later." Charlie spares a backward glance at their clothing strewn over the lounge room and then back at the naked form of her girlfriend, their clothes suddenly forgotten as she closes the door behind them.

Ruby arrives home while Charlie and Joey are enjoying a quiet brekkie. "Morning guys, did you have a nice evening last night?"

"Yes, it was a very pleasant evening," Charlie tells her, sharing a grin with Joey.

"So what have you guys got planned for today?"

"We haven't really thought that far ahead, but you can start by picking up the bag you just dumped in middle of the lounge room floor."

"Ok, if you insist." As Ruby leaves the room, she turns, smiling sweetly at them. "Oh, and Charlie, you might want to check under the couch; I think you missed something last night."

"Oh god," Charlie covers her face in embarrassment as Joey laughs at her horrified expression.

"She's joking Charlie; there's nothing there, I made sure of that first thing this morning."

Pushing her chair back, she stands behind Charlie, draping her arms around her neck, kissing her cheek. "But one look at your face pretty much told her what you thought might be under there. You got played sweetheart," giving Charlie's cheek another kiss, "like mother like daughter. I'm going to have a shower." Laughing again as she leaves Charlie to her humiliation.

Once she is alone, her face still flushed from her embarrassment, Charlie pulls out the box she had in her pocket, holding it open as she admires the contents. Hearing someone coming, she tries unsuccessfully to hide it from view. "Wow. Is that what I think it is?" Pulling the box out again, Charlie lets Ruby have a closer look. "Charlie, these are gorgeous," Ruby says, watching the way they sparkled in the light. "When are you going to give it to her?"

"On our 6 month anniversary."

Ruby and Charlie sit there admiring the contents of the box, unaware of the danger 100 meters away as he lines the sight up, his finger tightening on the trigger, while he waits for the phone call that will allow him to finish it this time. Looking at his watch, he sighs as he lowers the rifle, winding the car window back up as he sits back in the seat.

"Would you just relax Sam; you're getting on my nerves."

"I've been cooped up in that tiny place for ages and now I'm stuck in a car with you playing the waiting game again."

"Do this, and you'll be set up with a new identity, free to go anywhere you want and never having to look over your shoulder."

"If I was able to finish this the last time, I wouldn't have had to keep looking over my shoulder; I could've been on the other side of the world."

"Buckton's getting too close, so this time you will be allowed to finish her off."

"What about Collins? It's her I really want." Still furious with Joey for embarrassing him in front of his co-workers in the locker room, he wants his revenge.

"No one is to lay a finger on her."

"What! Why not?"

"Those are our orders."

"I don't get this; one minute he wants her dead, the next she's untouchable."

"That's because they're not his orders; this comes from higher up."

"Since when?"

"That's really none of your business."

"Yeah, well, accidents happen."

"Unless you want to end up in bits and pieces scattered throughout the Bay, you stay the hell away from her. Other plans have been made for her."

Fuming, Samuels turns away from him, staring back towards the house, watching what looks like a happy moment.

"Mum, do you want me to make myself scarce that night?"

"We both have the day off the next day, so I was thinking of taking her away for the night."

"You might want to put that away before she gets out of the shower."

Samuels' finger twitches as his companion's phone vibrates.

"Well?"

"Take her out, Sam."

"My pleasure."

"And Samuels, Buckton only."

"I know that Ivan." Smiling a predatory smile as he once again lines up the sight.

"Before you put it away, can I have another look mum?"

"Sure. Just leave them in the box."

Samuels takes his time, waiting for the right moment, tightening his finger on the trigger, he starts to squeeze.

"Ruby!" Charlie cries out.

"I'm sorry!" Charlie watches as the box which Ruby had dropped, goes bouncing across the floor just as the their quiet morning is shattered by the loud crack of a gunshot, the echo merging with the sound of shattering glass and screams of terror.