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Joshua followed Sandoval to Floor 6 - the Major Crimes division. Sandoval briskly entered the area, and knocked on an office door - apparently to the head of the division, Captain Simon Banks.



The door opened and Captain Banks appeared, irritation written on his face. Obviously, he didn't like be disturbed. Not that Joshua could blame him. Sandoval had a most inconvenient sense of timing.



Joshua was out of his element, out of his "comfort zone," so he remained silent, no expression on his face as Sandoval interrupted what was apparently a departmental meeting.



"What is the meaning of this?" Captain Banks bellowed as he stepped out of the meeting. Joshua winced, glad Sandoval was receiving the brunt of Banks' ire. "Agent Sandoval?"



"Mr. Banks, this is Joshua Doors." Banks included Joshua in the glare he sent at the Agent. "As I'm sure you recall, Mr. Doors was kidnapped a couple of months ago. I have a hunch that the two cases are related. Mr. Doors has agreed to come look at the list of suspects you've compiled, as well as the few I'm adding."



Simon looked confused, "How are the two cases connected?"



Sandoval looked at him, "You have no evidence about what truly happened. I have a hunch that they are indeed connected. Is that not worth pursuing?"



Banks didn't want to follow this bossy agent's orders but he knew Sandoval was right. They had no better leads to pursue. And unfortunately, whatever led Sandoval to suspect a connection did not have to be explained to him, as Sandoval was a companion protector. "I suppose it's worth a shot." he finally said.



Simon turned back to those sitting in the meeting, eyes fixed on the confrontation. "We'll finish this later." Then he said to Sandoval and Joshua, "Come with me." Sandoval briskly followed the captain, Joshua a bit behind.



They entered an empty room and Banks grabbed a binder full of pages and sat it on a table.



Banks opened his mouth to speak but Sandoval spoke first, "I have other matters to attend to, I will get a report from you later." With that, Sandoval turned and left, leaving a fuming Simon Banks in his wake.



Joshua gave a weak smile of amusement at the obvious irritiation in Banks' eyes. Sandoval certainly had an interesting way of dealing with people.



Finally, Banks turned back to Joshua, "Well, Mr. Doors, let's get started shall we?"



Joshua nodded, "Please, call me Joshua."



"Then I guess you should call me Simon. I don't, for the life of me, see how Jim's disappearance could possibly be connected to yours but as much as I hate to agree with Agent Sandoval, I have a feeling that could be the case."



"I don't really see how they could be connected," Joshua admitted, "But Sandoval is used to getting his way, right away. Problem is, he's got the authority to do most of what he wants."



"I wish someone would teach him a thing or two about authority."



"Would you want to be his boss?" Joshua asked.



Simon laughed, "Not really. He's a royal pain in the ass. Want some coffee?"



"Sure. It's been a rough morning."



"Hanging out with him? I can't imagine." Simon handed Joshua a steaming cup.



"Thanks."



"Your welcome. I imagine it's been a rough couple of months for you?"



"Yeah." Joshua said softly.



"Yeah," Simon echoed thoughtfully, realizing he had touched on sensitive ground. "You should talk to Sandburg sometime. He could write a book on how many ways a person can get kidnapped." A long, uncomfortable pause followed, "Do you remember anything else about your kidnapping?"



Joshua recognized the look Simon was giving him. It was the famed police 'lie detector' stare. Studying his reaction, what he said, how he said it. Looking for anything amiss. "No," Joshua said softly, "I don't."



"I'm sorry," Simon said, "But I had to ask. If it helps find Jim and Blair . . ." he trailed off. "I'm just worried about finding my men."



At that moment someone stuck their head in, "Captain Banks? We need you, Sir."



Simon sighed, "I'll be right there." Turning back to Joshua, he said "Go ahead and look through that. Then fill out this form, detailing what you do remember from that day. Just leave it with my secretary when you're done." He then exited, leaving Joshua alone with the binder.



Joshua paged through the book, plus the additional suspects Sandoval had added. Between the two, he was able to add names to the faces of the three thugs that had beaten him up. Shaken, he copied down the names and put the paper in his pocket.



He then began filling out the report. He included as much detail as he could about the events of that morning - what the meeting immediately before had been about, how long it had lasted, who his bodyguards were, the fact that he had snapped at them moments before he was kidnapped. The memories came flooding back:



Joshua Doors exited the Doors International Office and began walking down the street toward his car. His two bodyguards followed behind him, a few paces back, far enough to be somewhat out of range of his wrath. He had snapped at them just a few minutes ago. Ever since his father had died there had been a need for tighter security. Joshua had hated the security anyway but was twice as frustrated now that more was required. He sighed as he slid into the backseat of his waiting car. He wearily laid his head on the back of the seat and gave a frustrated sigh. The car began to exit the parking lot at its usual pace. Joshua's mind was wandering. He was thinking of the events of the past weeks. Suddenly he realized that the car was somewhere it didn't usual go. "What's going on?" he demanded, his anger suddenly flaring up again. The driver didn't respond, making him even angrier. "Stop the car," he said.



Suddenly, someone popped up in the passenger side of the front seat and turned around putting a gun to Joshua's forehead. "You are no longer in control of the situation Mr. Doors." The man pushed the button to activate the divider between the front and back. Joshua tried to stop it but was forced to withdraw his fingers in order to keep them. He banged on the glass and finally realized the danger of his situation when he heard a hiss. //They're filling the back with gas!!//. He struggled against it, trying to not breath in the gaseous substance but eventually was forced to do just that. And the as he faded into darkness he heard them saying something . . .



Joshua sighed, and wrote down as many of those details as he could. At that point he had had no idea who was behind it, so those details were safe. After that he stated that he didn't remember much after that -- just a few images and feelings. Joshua knew that lying in a police report was not the best way to go about things but he had no choice. Sandoval would see this and he could not know. He listed a few isolated memories and added the story he and Renee had made up about how he was found. Agent Sandoval surely would not be pleased if he found that Liam was behind that.



When would this mess end? Would it ever?



***********************



Joshua entered the conference hall lobby. Renee spotted him and hurried over.



"You're running late. I was starting to get worried. What happened? You look like you've seen a ghost."



"Come on, let's talk somewhere less public." he said quietly, looking around at the crowd of people, "I don't want anyone overhearing and asking questions."



They walked awhile in silence, and picked up lunch at a nearby fast food restaurant. After paying, they walked to a small park with a fountain. Renee never asked a question, knowing it was important for Joshua to control this conversation.



After finishing his burger, Joshua spoke, "Sandoval took me down to the police station. He wanted me to look at some photos of suspects the police had put together. He said he had a hunch that my case is connected with Detective Ellison's disappearance."



Renee gave a short laugh, "Did you recognize anyone?"



Joshua nodded, then reached into his pocket and handed her a piece of paper. "I told them that I still didn't remember anything. Sandoval's afraid, Renee, he's afraid that I do remember. And I'm scared to death of what he'll do if he finds out that I DO." He pointed at the paper, "These are the names of the three guys that kidnapped me and beat me up." Joshua's face was shadowed with the painful memory.



Renee read the names out loud, "Keith Harkins, Sam Norris, and Garrett Kincaid . . ."



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