"What the fuck are you thinking?" Jessie berated on the back patio. "You're seriously going to keep that bitch under your roof for the next eight hours?"

"And you have a better plan?" I asked. "I'm taking her with me tomorrow to the station to get some answers out of her and Lorenzo. I sure as hell can't risk somebody getting to her before we make it there."

"Jonny, for the love of God, what makes you think that she can be trusted?"

"I never said she could, Jess."

Jessie sighed loudly and sat down on the glider. Running her hands through her red hair, I could tell she was fighting the urge to march back into the dining room and blow Julia's head off.

"Look," I offered. "If you would rather me keep an eye on her all night, that's…"

Jessie shook her head and interrupted: "That's not the problem."

"Then what is it?"

"I just… I don't know…"

I sat down on the glider next to her.

"I don't know how you do it, Jonny," she continued. "I feel like I'm in over my head and it's not even me that's being targeted. How do you manage to keep it all together? Surely, all the drinking and smoking can't be your secret… can it?"

We started to swing slightly.

I stretched my arm out across the back of the seat and said, "I wish it was that easy. To be honest: after shooting that woman those years ago, I feel like I'm barely holding it together. I cry randomly and can't stand the smell of gasoline. Whenever I have uniform duty and get a domestic abuse call, it takes every ounce of my being to keep from dragging the perpetrator out into the front yard and beating him to death with a tire iron. I've been diagnosed with depression and bipolar disorder. I tried to move into something else but I'm too scared that the next person they would hire to replace me wouldn't be good enough. That… and I'm scared that I wouldn't be able to do anything else."

"Jonny, you're one of the most talented people I know. You're not married to your job…"

"You sure about that?"

Jessie placed her hand on my knee and looked at me with her pleading emerald eyes. She opened her mouth to speak but came up empty. Instead, she scooted over next to me and rested her head on my shoulder.

A few minutes passed before Jessie took a deep breath and stood up.

"I guess I better go tuck your guest in," she said. "Got any duct tape?"

I stood up as well, saying, "Ask Melissa: should be some in the cabinet."

We walked back into the kitchen. Melissa retrieved Jessie the tape that she had requested and proceeded to wrap her torso like a mummy in order to keep her arms from moving. Julia started to object but felt it would be wiser to remain silent and follow the Marine's stern orders. After Jessie was satisfied with her handiwork, she turned to me and asked, "Mind if I take a shower first?"

I nodded and asked Melissa to show Jessie where the linens were. As the two women walked down the hallway towards the bathroom, I returned my attention to Julia.

"Nothing personal, I don't think," I said while scratching the back of my head.

Julia shrugged the best way she could in her new constraints. She followed me into the living room where I prepared her a spot on the couch. My prisoner sat down and scooted up against the pillows and kicked off her worn sneakers before pulling her legs up onto the other cushions. I walked over to my liquor cabinet and poured a glass of whiskey. Sitting down in my easy chair, I asked Julia, "So, are the police actually searching for you since you disappeared?"

"I'm probably on a few missing persons list, but really… I'm not anyone important, Jonny," she said. "They probably wrote me off as dead and forgot about me. It makes it easier to kill me that way."

I drank my first shot.

"So, I must ask," she continued. "Why aren't you with Jessica?"

I gave a slight smirk as I poured another shot.

"I honestly don't think that's any of your business, Miss Horacek," I replied sycophantically.

"Maybe so, but then again, you are going to be my host for the next eight hours, and that's only if 'they' don't kick down the door."

I drank another glass of liquid courage.

"Let's just say that Miss Bannon had a lapse of judgment with 'Mrs. Robinson.'"

"Holy shit," Julia spurted. "I never knew she was… into that."

"I thought all of you girls were up for a little experimentation every now and then."

Julia blushed and didn't say anything.

"Here," I said, grabbing the remote. "What do you like to watch?"

"Investigation Discovery: I love crime shows."

I switched it to the desired channel and put my alcohol back in its place. As I dropped the glass into the sink, I watched Jessie walk into the living room dressed in an old t-shirt and gym shorts carrying her handgun. With her hair wet and lipstick gone, Jessie looked more like your average college dorm denizen than the hardened Marine that she portrayed herself to be. I went to the bedroom where Melissa was sitting on the bed.

As I was unloading my gear onto the dresser, she got up and walked over behind me. Wrapping her arms around me waist, Melissa rested her head into the middle of my shoulder blades. I held onto her hands as she gave me a slight squeeze.

"I'm scared," she whispered.

I took a deep breath and said, "It'll be okay… I promise."

I turned around to face her. She had been crying recently.

"How can you promise me that, Jonny?" Melissa asked. "The way that Jessie put it, you have about as much control over this situation as you would over a tornado. These people… this… organization… what is it all about? Is it government? Is it more than that?"

I brought her in close and hugged her tight.

"I don't know what it is," I said softly. "Regardless, I intend to get to the bottom of this."

"Even if it kills you, right?"

I pulled back enough to look down into her crystal blue eyes and said, "Everyone has secrets. Some are just worth killing for."

She placed her head back onto my chest. I looked into the dresser mirror.

"And I don't intend to be one of the victims."