Intersecting Lines Book 3
99 Loose Ends
Los Angeles San Quentin Penitentiary
Jane's viewpoint
We had a few loose ends to tie up; Liv, Ana and I, so we'd taken the drive up to San Quentin to take the measure of the two people who'd tried so hard to destroy our lives.
We'd spoken to Brenda and in turn she'd had a chat to the Warden, the upshot was we were now standing in an interrogation room, contemplating the stark white-washed brick walls and equally stark metal furniture, when the door on the opposite side opened and two guards marched in a cuffed Danny Wynter. He stared at us as they led him to the table and ran his cuffs through a ring fixed to the table and secured him to it, then stepped back to stand behind him, one of the guards nodding to us. I nodded back and took a couple of steps closer. He didn't look much, he'd put on a little weight, lost some of that muscle tone, probably from being away from the gym while he'd recovered from his injuries, plus the orange jumpsuit took away some of his individuality and a little of his humanity too, not that he'd had all that much to start with anyway.
"Danny Wynter, you may remember us" I tipped my head Liv's way. "Her and I were the ones who beat the shit out of you at your arrest" Recognition flared in his eyes as he looked from Liv to me.
"I remember you bitches" He stared at Liv. "You were the cunt who fucked up my shoulder" he snarled, drawing a nod from Liv.
"You're welcome" His scowl darkened as I continued.
"Our friend here wasn't there…"
"Unfortunately" Ana interrupted as I glanced her way and continued.
"But our other friend, the one from New York, who helped take you and your people down, she sends her regards"
"Fuck you, and fuck her too" I smirked slightly at the expected abuse.
"Well, we all know that's not going to happen, unless you can come to some arrangement with your fellow inhabitants on death row" Liv baited him, backed up by Ana.
"Yeah, there's some real charmers there, I'm sure they'll have a good time, you though…" She looked him over dismissively. "…not so much"
"Why the fuck are you bitches here wasting my time?" Liv shrugged.
"We wanted to get a good look at the two losers who thought they could take us on and win"
"And mess with our families" I added. He screwed up his face.
"What?" Liv answered that.
"Simmonds, with your connivance, kidnapped our partners to exchange them for your freedom" She shook her head as she waved around the room. "And didn't that work out so well for you and him?" I joined the pile on.
"At least you're getting a trial. Simmonds won't even be getting that, he's being shipped out tonight for a date with the hangman in Iraq in a couple of days, but I'd happily see you dancing at the end of a rope right next to him" I saw that hit him, he obviously hadn't known how quickly Simmonds' fate would arrive.
"You cunts think you're smart" he growled. "This isn't over" Given the mess he was in, that desperate bravado drew tight smiles from us all.
"I understand the public defender's office had to draw straws to find someone to represent you" I smiled. "Such a shame"
We'd heard that from Alex and Andrea, After Simmonds' arrest Irene Simms had wasted no time dumping Wynter and telling her bosses exactly why. When no one at her company would take the case on, they'd told him to find another law firm, only for Wynter to discover his name was poison in the industry, word had spread like wildfire and no one, not even the usual bottom feeders, would touch him, no matter how much he offered, instead he was reduced to an assigned junior lawyer from the LA Public Defender's office, someone who was reportedly very unhappy with their unpleasant new client and his even more unpleasant attitude.
"We're looking forward to having the chance to testify at your trial, doing our bit to send you away for the rest of your miserable existence on this earth" Ana stated, drawing a nod from me.
"You'll be spending the rest of your life on death row, and given we've put enough psychopaths and sociopaths in there, you'll fit right in"
"You think you can frighten me? I've survived worse than you can possibly imagine" Liv shrugged at his attempted bravado.
"Keep telling yourself that, it might help you sleep at night, listening to the screams and threats of the serial killers and psycho killers you're sharing the rest of your life with"
"Fuck off cunts" he grated. Unimpressed I nodded.
"You may think you're a tough guy Wynter, but let me tell you, you'll have plenty of chances to prove it on death row, locked in with the rest of the killers" I thought back to some of the monsters I'd help put there, the Yakuza enforcer Homoru, the Sinaloa Cartel contract killers, the killer cops from the WitSec case we'd put away and all the others; Wynter was in for a very rough time, not that he realised that, yet. "Good luck with that"
"This isn't over" he ground out, drawing a collection of shrugs, smiles and head shakes from us.
"Yeah it is" Liv stated. "Your organisation's smashed, your tame killer's going to swing from a rope soon enough, your buddies are either dead or in custody awaiting trial while most of your employees have been arrested or are on the run and we found your customer files so they're mostly in custody as well" Ana jumped in, hammering home just how total his failure was.
"You'll face trial for literally thousands of cases of conspiracy to kidnap and transport across State lines" Ana said. "And that's not counting the hundreds of cases of aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter for each and every case where someone you delivered up to a customer has died, you'll be prosecuted for those, right across the country" I nodded.
"Your friends, the ones that died, they're the lucky ones; they're already answering for their crimes to a higher authority" I said. "But you should get used to fronting court; pretty much every state in the union wants a piece of you'
"I don't give a fuck, you can all go fuck yourselves, you stuck up cunts" I glanced at the others, seeing them nod.
"You're just like pretty much every other piece of crap we arrest, no matter how shit-hot important they might think they are, get them in here and they all revert to the same tired old clichés" Liv said, backed up by Ana.
"You're nothing but a punk who got rich on the misery of others; well I hope that you enjoyed that life Wynter, because this is your future, for the next 30 plus years"
"You think you're so high and fucking mighty, so fucking smart…" Wynter growled, rattling his restraints and drawing a smile from me as I replied.
"Smarter than you anyway, after all we get to turn around and walk out of here and get on with our lives, while you get to wear orange for the rest of your days" Ana smiled.
"Not the most flattering colour, but on the other hand you fit in perfectly with all the other convicted losers in here" Wynter's growl was low and feral; our baiting was getting to him.
"I'm going to kill you bitch" We couldn't help it, we all grinned at that.
"And how exactly are you going to do that, you obviously haven't been keeping up with current events" I said.
"Let me spell it out for you Wynter" Ana stated. "You made the mistake of coming after cops, here in our patch. We tore down you and your entire organisation in a couple of weeks, more than a decade's work, poof, gone, just like that"
"You can contemplate just how completely your house of cards fell for the next few decades, while you stay here as a guest of the California corrections system" Liv said as I nodded.
"You're about to learn a whole new game in here Wynter, it's called survival" I shrugged. "If your real good at it, you get to spend the rest of your days behind bars, if not, well you get to face judgement that much sooner" Liv jumped in on that.
"Good luck with that" I looked over to the guards and nodded.
"Thanks guys, were done with this piece of trash, he's all yours" Ana backed me up.
"You can have him with our blessing" Looking down at Wynter who was staring up at us, radiating sullen hatred I smiled as Liv spoke.
"See you in court Wynter; we're looking forward to it"
Miami Metro Dade Police Department
Calleigh Duquesne's viewpoint
It was getting late, the first week back had been a nightmare of backed up paperwork and cases, the second and third not much better, this one had been marginally better still, I was starting to see gaps in the paperwork, enough so I could start to see my desktop. I looked up at a quiet knock at my door to see Horatio standing there, smiling a little and drawing a smile from me.
"Hey" he said.
"Hey back" I said, watching as he took a couple of steps into the office and nodded at the files in front of me.
"How's the case load coming?" I shrugged as I dropped my pen on the offending paperwork and levered myself off my elbow.
"There's light at the end of the tunnel" He smiled, a little sardonically.
"As long as it's not the…"
"…light of an oncoming train" we finished together, drawing smiles from each other. He looked at me and looked just a little uncertain.
"You think you'll be able to get out of here at a reasonable hour?" I smiled sadly.
"Maybe, there's a bottle of red and a comfortable hammock waiting for me at home" I said, drawing a small smile.
"Now that's an offer hard to beat on a Friday night" he said. I shrugged then leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms.
"I don't know, I haven't had an alternative offer yet" He nodded, all serious-like, then smiled.
"Fair enough, How about another then; there's a bar down on South Beach that does great spirits and fabulous cocktails, I was wondering if you might want to have a wind-down Friday night drink" I gave him a sceptical look.
"A bar, a South Beach bar, that isn't going to be overrun with tourists and partygoers on a Friday night?" I tipped my head to regard him a little dubiously. "Tell me more about this heaven on earth" Horatio shrugged a little as he played it off.
"The owner, he owes me a favour or two and he has private table looking out over the water" I smiled happily, suddenly realising I was being asked out by Horatio, in that low-key, laid-back way of his, a private table on South Beach…
"This I'm going to have to see to believe" I said, smiling happily. "Does this bar do food?" He smiled and nodded, relaxing a little.
"They do really nice chilli crab, Singapore style" he said as I nodded happily.
"Who am I to say no to crab and a cocktail then?" I got an eye-crinkling smile.
"I'll come back about six to collect you, if that's okay?" I smiled up at him as I leaned forward, placing my elbows on the desk and resting my chin on my palms.
"Best offer I've had all week" That piece of honesty drew a full on happy smile from Horatio, one I didn't see as often as I should. He nodded and turned to go, pausing in the doorway.
"See you at six" With that he was gone as I looked after him then, in the privacy of my office, let out a huge grin, falling back in my chair.
"Yes!"
Los Angeles San Quentin Penitentiary
Jane's viewpoint
Same room, different occupant, this time it was the man we all wanted dead so badly.
"So you're Simmonds" I shrugged and glanced at the others. "For someone who caused so much trouble he doesn't look all that much" Ana pulled a face.
"Jumped up street punk with delusions" At her comment Liv nodded.
"Don't forget he sent most of his time hiding out and running from one cheap motel to another, trying to stay one step ahead of us" she said as Simmonds stared balefully up at us.
"Who the fuck are you sluts anyway?" Simmonds demanded, drawing a mocking smile from Liv before she explained it to him.
"We're the people who beat you Simmonds, we were part of the team that beat each and every one of your schemes, who survived your traps, your bombs, your Columbian hit men and their ambushes, everything" He tried for dismissive but it came out as raw bravado.
"So fucking what?" I spoke up, my voice harsh.
"We came here to look at the piece of low-grade dog shit that thought kidnapping our partners was a smart move" I saw his eyes widen as he suddenly understood, nodding at his comprehension, seeing Ana doing the same.
"You're the…" He trailed off as I confirmed it.
"Yeah, that's us. You kidnapped three people, our partners, plus Rick Castle, who's the partner of our friend Kate Beckett" He sat back and went to cross his arms, only to be pulled up by the cuffs in a rattle of chains, so instead he balled them into fists on the table top and looked up.
"So?" I exchanged a glance with the others and Liv spoke up.
"We wanted to see exactly the sort of mentality that we're dealing with, turns out you're just another street-grade punk, not exactly anything special"
"Easy to be brave when I'm the one chained up" Ana snorted at that as I explained the situation to him.
"Oh, you misunderstand us Simmonds; those chains are for your protection, not ours. If it was up to me, we'd ask these nice men…" I nodded to the two prison officers standing against the wall behind him. "…to unlock you and then step outside, then I'd happily beat you to death with my bare hands right here and now, we all would"
"Kate would probably kick him to death, she's the kick boxer after all" Liv commented drawing a nod from me.
"True"
"You cunts talk a big game, what am I supposed to be, impressed…by you?"
"Why not, we're the ones who took down your boss and his bodyguards with our bare hands…" I saw his eyes narrow at that. "…survived that hotel ambush unscathed and beat three to one odds out in Fullerton" He looked confused for a second before he put it together, his eyes popping open in surprise.
"What!?" I smiled and changed the subject.
"The reason we're here is to take a look at the person who thought kidnapping our partners was a smart play" I crossed my arms. "Not much of one as it turns out"
"His Army psyche file was right on the money though" Ana stated derisively. "A self-centred borderline psycho with no regard for anyone" She snorted dismissively. "He'll die unremarked and unmissed" At Ana's contemptuous words Liv nodded and spoke up.
"Not smart at all, what was it Simmonds? Less than three weeks from trying to bomb cops in the Sheraton to your whole little operation ending up in tatters, despite your best efforts" He snarled at that but she kept going. "We're here because you're being shipped out tonight on a one way flight; your next stop is Iraq where you have a long overdue appointment with the hangman" His face twisted angrily as he went to move his hands and was pulled up short.
"Fuck you bitches, fuck you all" I smiled.
"No, I don't think so" Ana took a half step forward and spoke.
"I used to be a MP, and I still have contacts in the Pentagon so I made a special request and given all you've done, they were happy to deliver" He glanced her way and sneered.
"So you were a fucking camo pig, am I supposed to be impressed?" Ana was unfazed.
"You misunderstand me Simmonds, I am simply explaining how you will be dealt with" He frowned.
"I don't know what the fuck you're on about, you cunt"
"In about three or four days, when you walk out to meet the hangman, there'll be a Defence camera crew there to record your execution" Ana stated baldly. "I couldn't organise live coverage unfortunately, but not long after you arrive in hell we'll be watching you jerk and dance on the end of that rope, something I'm looking forward to" He lunged forward, until his cuffs pulled him up short.
"Fuck you, fuck you all you cunts" he yelled even as the guards stepped forward and none-too-gently slammed him back in the chair. Ana gave him a mocking smile.
"You're welcome"
"Normally a death sentence actually means a life sentence on death row, in your case though you get what you paid for" Liv stated as I nodded.
"Give the devil our kind regards" I smiled, "You'll be seeing him soon enough"
Boston Intercontinental Hotel
Maura's viewpoint
I smiled as I prepared for my latest visitor to arrive. I was sitting in the café in the foyer of the Intercontinental where I was staying in for a few days as I got various affairs arranged here in Boston. There were a number of loose ends that needed to be tied up given I was certain that I would be living in Los Angeles for the foreseeable future. Financial matters, legal matters pertaining to the Isles Foundation, the transfer of my Boston residence into Angela Rizzoli's name, so many things to do; some important and some tedious.
One of the most important was due in a couple of minutes, recent events had shown me all too clearly that life could be all too short and that I should make time to deal with things without letting them drag on. One such matter was the occupant of my former role here in Boston. The man was sloppy, lazy and borderline incompetent and it was time to set things to rights.
I sipped my chamomile tea and then took a breath, calming myself as Doctor Burke had encouraged me to do, for a moment concentrating on the many positives in my life, pushing the negatives into the background as I thought of Jane, our friends, our …family, the joys we'd shared and the joys to come. The negative flashbacks were becoming less frequent as time passed; Jane's absence however was bringing home just how far I was from completely healed.
Jane had her own responsibilities and could not accompany me, instead Natalie had joined me on this trip, we had slept together last night, each drawing comfort from the other's presence, we'd each woken from nightmares to find the other there holding us, the reassuring words and comforting embrace bringing us back from our hellish memories. We naturally understood what we had gone through better than anyone and her presence on this trip was a very welcome one.
Now though Natalie was out doing some shopping, chasing a gift for Anastasia while giving me a measure of privacy as I dealt with the final matters of our visit to Boston, one pleasant, one less so, I was anticipating the first and dreading the second but they had to be done.
I looked up at the sight of movement and smiled at Jordan Cavanagh walked towards me, wearing a grey pinstripe pants suit and heels, taking in the wide smile on her face as I stood to greet her.
"Maura" I found myself wrapped in a firm hug that went on for a bit. "Oh my god Maura, it's so good to see you" I returned the hug for a moment then slowly stepped back.
"It is good to see you too Jordan" I smiled. "Would you like to join me?" I waved to the table and invited her to be seated then glanced towards the waiter, who immediately made her way over to the table. "May I offer you a coffee or tea?"
"Yes please" We passed on her order and exchanged pleasantries for a couple of minutes as I got her settled with a coffee, including her enquiries about my health, before finally bringing the discussion around to the reason for our meeting.
"I am sure that you are curious as to the nature of our meeting" She nodded once.
"Oh yes, I mean it's great to see you and you look just like you did before..." She let that subject die off politely. "May I ask what brings you to Boston?" I nodded politely.
"I had a number of loose ends to tie up that were pertaining to my time in Boston" I carefully placed my tea cup down on the saucer and turned my attention to my visitor. "That includes you" She looked slightly nonplussed.
"Yes?"
"My replacement in the Commonwealth Medical Examiner's office has been Doctor Pike" I saw a slight grimace appear at his name, confirming once again what I had already heard from so many others, Suzie Chang, Riley Cooper, Vince Korsak, Barold Frost and Frankie Rizzoli in particular. "He has proven to be something of a disappointment in the role, would you agree?" I saw Jordan hesitate a little, obviously unsure about criticising a titular superior, in the end tact won out.
"He hasn't delivered the exceptional results that the office was previously known for, no" I smiled, both at her words and the implied compliment.
"One of the reasons for my visit was to call on the Governor, the office of the Chief Medical Examiner of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is appointed directly by the Governor and I made my concerns about my successor clearly known to him directly" I took a sip of my tea before continuing, seeing Jordan do the same with her coffee. "Fortunately he was aware of discontent with Doctor Pike's performance from a number of sources and I was simply confirming what he already knew" Jordan nodded once and then spoke.
"The Boston Globe ran a story a month or so back about several cases being dismissed due to inconsistent forensic conclusions" She grimaced. "The officers on those cases were pretty angry about it" I nodded agreeably.
"Indeed. I saw that article and it seemed that the issues raised were systemic to Doctor Pike's handling of the situation" I smiled slightly. "Thus convincing the Governor that Doctor Pike needed to go was not hard" I smiled, in fact the Governor had practically begged me to come back, his disappointment obvious as I'd explained that was no longer possible. Jordan broke into my musings.
"That's wonderful, but please tell me Popov isn't going to replace him, that'd be like jumping from the fireplace into the fire" I shook my head, happy to reassure her.
"Oh no, I made it very clear to the Governor that appointing Doctor Popov to the role would be making a bad situation worse, something he fortunately agreed with" Jordan's relief was palpable.
"Oh thank god" She looked me in the eyes as she continued. "He covered for me when I went on leave for two weeks" She pulled a face. "It took me two months to clean up the mess he left" I nodded agreeably.
"As I suspected" I smiled at her. "The Governor agreed that we needed a fresh set of eyes and a new approach in the office and that brings me to you" She looked puzzled.
"Um…sure, do you want me to assist the new M.E. in getting settled in?" I shook my head and smiled happily.
"No, I want you to be the new Medical Examiner for the Commonwealth" The look of surprise was priceless, though to her credit she pulled herself together very quickly, her jaw firming
"Thank you for the offer Maura, but I'm too inexperienced for the role" I shook my head even as I mentally applauded her sense of modesty.
"That was not my experience working with you or that of your peers" I shrugged. "The consensus of those peers was that while you lacked the length of tenure expected of the role, your skills, your background and your attitude would more than make up for any shortcomings in experience" I smiled at the expression on her face; Jordan looked a little stunned.
"I don't know what to say"
"I would counsel you to say yes to the Governor when he calls you in tomorrow" I smiled a little wider. "After the letters of recommendation I delivered he is eager to meet you" Jordan looked puzzled for a moment, then spoke up.
"Recommendations, may I ask from whom?" At her honest puzzlement I tipped my head towards her.
"The Medical Examiner's offices of New York, Philadelphia, Las Vegas, Miami, New Orleans and naturally enough Los Angeles, plus a glowing recommendation from the Jefferson Institute of Forensic Pathology" The look of stunned surprise would have been comical in other circumstances. "The Governor was appropriately impressed" I added. Finally Jordan pulled herself together enough to speak.
"But I'm too young, too inexperienced..." I held up my hand to stop her.
"That was not our determination. Yes you have only been in the profession a comparatively limited period however I will point out that both Doctor's Pike and Popov are very experienced however neither will ever be suited for the role" I smiled as I continued. "We all agreed that you possess enthusiasm, a willingness to learn and a drive to deliver the best, and that taken together you will grow quickly into the role" I could see Jordan was coming to terms with what I was saying. I gave her a few moments as I sipped my tea, watching a series of emotions play across her face as I did, before her jaw tightened and she looked up at me.
"I'll have a lot to learn" Happy with her honest self-assessment, I nodded in agreement then spoke.
"Yes, but you will inherit a good team that has struggled under your predecessor. Lead them, listen to them, ask for their views, take their advice if you believe it to be worthwhile, lead your team and you will succeed, more than that you will excel"
"There's so much I have to learn…" she repeated as I smiled, a little humility was welcome.
"Indeed you do, however you are aware of your shortcomings, acknowledge them and seek to overcome them. Such is not something either Doctor Pike or Doctor Popov would or could do, thus highlighting their inadequacy for the role"
I saw movement and a flash of sky blue as Natalie appeared in the entrance to the café, looking round and seeing us, a smile appearing as she raised an eyebrow to me, asking the question. I nodded that it was appropriate to join us and she walked over, her smile widening as she took in Jordan sitting there, looking slightly stunned.
"Sorry to interrupt" I smiled as Jordan turned to see who was behind her, a smile appearing as she saw who was there. I smiled and waved at Jordan.
"You were not, Jordan and I were just wrapping up" She turned to my guest, holding her hand out.
"Then congratulations, and good luck in your new job" Jordan stood and shook her hand before being pulled into one of Natalie's exuberant hugs. When they pulled apart Jordan blushed and spoke.
"Thank you, I think I'm going to need it" Natalie shook her head as she took a seat, Jordan doing the same.
"Rubbish, from what I've heard you'll be fine, better than fine actually" Natalie shot me a glance as she continued. "Apparently you're several light years ahead of the guy who's been screwing everything up, so your appointment will bring a ton of good will along with it" She winked. "That'll help you get established and your new team will love having a boss who's capable, effective and a normal functional human being" We laughed at that characterisation of Pike before I reluctantly brought things to a close as I glanced at my watch.
"Unfortunately I have another meeting in less than ten minutes, so we shall have to cut this short, however I would love to have the opportunity to share dinner with you tonight if you are available"
"I'd love to" I nodded at her answer and asked a follow up.
"Do you like Italian cuisine?" She nodded and smiled happily.
"Oh yeah, who doesn't?" I smiled.
"Angela Rizzoli will be glad to hear that, we are all invited to dinner tonight and Angela is busy cooking up an Italian feast" Natalie's smile grew a little wider,
"From what I've heard we're going to need help finishing it, so that's where you come in" she said as I nodded and followed her comments with my own.
"I will text you the address and time and let Angela know to expect another guest" I smiled a little wider at 'Nona' Rizzoli's reaction. "She will be more than happy to have you there" Natalie chuckled,
"Yeah, she keeps saying Maura and I are too skinny and she needs to put some meat on our bones" Jordan nodded.
'I love good Italian" Natalie waved that away as she replied.
"Good Italian is an understatement when it comes to Angela's cooking" I nodded.
"It will also give us a chance to chat about your meeting with the Governor tomorrow and your new team" Jordan's face suddenly fell.
"Oh, I'll need fresh clothes for that, I should head back home tonight and get them" I waved away her objection.
"I am sure your partner, Detective Hoyt I believe?" Jordan nodded. "Would be happy to bring you a change of clothes and you can stay at my house here in Boston tonight" Natalie nodded.
"He can stay for dinner, god knows another will help get through the vast amount of food Angela's making" She shook her head. "I swear that woman is a cooking machine" I smiled at her rather accurate summation and looked to Jordan.
"Then it is agreed, I will send you tonight's details, Detective Hoyt and yourself can join us tonight and you will be refreshed for your meeting tomorrow"
With agreement all round Jordan departed in a round of hugs before Natalie looked to me.
"That went well it seems" I nodded, relieved though I shouldn't have been; based on what I had personally observed and since learned about Jordan, she would quickly grow into the role, as I explained to Natalie.
"While Jordan does lack some of the experience normal for a role of the seniority of the Commonwealth's Medical Examiner, it was agreed that she meets the requirements in all other areas and will quickly rise to the occasion"
We waved for a waiter and the table was cleared, ready for the next, not so pleasant meeting. With a look at the watch on her wrist Natalie looked up and spoke.
"Almost time, so I'll leave you to it" She leaned over and gave me a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. "You'll do fine"
"Thank you, I hope it will not get heated" I said but she shook her head.
"That's why we're in a public location, so it can't" I got a lovely smile. "You've got this, plus I be sitting close by if it does gets nasty, unlikely as it might be" I nodded, appreciating her presence.
"Let us hope it does not come to that" She smiled and stood.
"I'm here if you need me" We exchanged smiles before Natalie moved to a nearby table, close enough to see and hear everything, and ordered a coffee.
I sat back down and checked the time on my phone; I had a few minutes which I used to reply to texts and emails, including one from Jane and two from Alex, when I heard an all too familiar voice.
"Maura" I looked up to see Doctor Pike standing there, smiling in an entirely too lecherous manner even as his eyes ran over me in a way I certainly did not appreciate. I composed my face, banishing any expression as I nodded.
"Doctor Pike; please take a seat, we have much to discuss"