It was short after 9 AM the next morning when Judson entered Mary Sue's kitchen. For the first time in days he had been able to sleep again and he could see by the look on Mac's face that she likewise had a good nights sleep. She was chewing piece of toast while at the same time eagerly shoveling some of the delicious looking bacon in her mouth. When she saw him, she picked up the thermos carafe and filled the empty cup across from her with steaming coffee.

"Hey, sit down sleepyhead, we thought you never going to wake up today!" she teased him.

Mary Sue who was sitting beside her just smiled. She was glad that her new friends started to feel better. The worry of the last few days had been a tough burden on all of them.

After Judson had sat down and filled his plate it was quiet for a while. Finally he broke the silence, "It was good to see Gabe last night! I can't even imagine how he must have felt before. Lying there, just having received some of the worst news someone can get, already being on an emotional roller coaster ride and then having to think your best friends abandoned you!"

Mac's face turned serious, "I know, I think this was what made me feel the worst, thinking that we couldn't be there for him!"

"This isn't going to be easy for him or any of us but I was serious when I said we would remodel the 'Explorer'. I got a friend that remodeled several houses to make them handicapped accessible. I'm going to give him a call today, see what he can come up with!"

Mary Sue smiled, "I like the way you think!"

"Hey, we are like family, no one is ever left behind!"

"Yeah, and don't forget, we still have to figure out the next step in finding out Gabe's past!" Mac reminded him.

"I haven't forgotten about that either and I have an idea how to start!" Judson assured her, "I know some people that might be able to find out who the lawyer was Ellie Miller worked for when Gabe was born."

"Ooh, secret connections? I thought I was the specialist there? Tell me about it!" Mac grinned.

"There is a lot you don't know about me my dear!" Judson countered.

Their bantering went on for a while relieving the tension that had held them for the last few days. When the phone rang, it didn't even seem to get through to either one of them. Mary Sue, who had been sitting silently, watching them with a smile on her face, picked it up. She listened for a moment without saying a word.

Mac and Judson could feel a sudden change in the atmosphere and interrupted there playful conversation. Looking at Mary Sue they could see her face turning white. When she finally spoke into the receiver the tone of her voice was shrill and disbelieving.

"He did what?"

Again she listened, then she finally hung up, almost slamming the receiver down. Her face expressed an anger that neither of them had ever seen in her before. She got up and paced the room several times before she stopped.

"He moved Gabe!"

Noticing the total confusion on Mac and Judson's face she explained, "Senator Patterson had Gabe moved this morning. Nobody knows the location. He had his own people transport him!"

Suddenly the room felt icy, the positive attitude that had just filled them had disappeared into thin air. Another blow was being dealt to them when it just had seemed liked things would look up.

But once again it took only a moment before the true spirit of the Adventure Inc. team came through.

"I will find him!" Mac's eyes were almost black with anger, "I swear, I will find him and make sure he knows he is not alone! Senator Patterson you are messing with the wrong people here!"

Judson did not say anything, he did not have to, the look he shared with Mac expressed the same determination that she felt. The Senator had no idea what he was in for.

+++++

September 21st, 1978

The smile on Thomas Jameson's face spoke of satisfaction. He was sitting a corner booth at a small restaurant just outside of Boston, waiting for James Patterson to show. If everything would go as planned, and there wasn't any reason for him to believe it wouldn't, he would leave with another hefty sum of money in his pocket. Reward for services rendered!

He wiped the smile from his face when he saw the older man approach and rose from his seat.

"Sit down Jameson", the other waived him off, "I don't need any attention here!"

He slit inside the booth and sat down before he continued, "What have you got for me?"

"Everything is set up as you wanted it to be. Dr. Newman got his payment and took his place at the clinic. He had his first meeting with our expectant mother 5 days ago!"

"Good, did anyone talk to her about giving the child up for adoption?"

"No, I had my people find everything out about her they could and they all came back with the same results. She will never give this child up! It is what kept her going after she lost her husband!"

"Too bad, that complicates things!" Patterson mused, "It would have been a whole lot easier to get the child by legal adoption but I guess it doesn't matter. Here is what I want you to do!" He lowered his voice to make sure no one in the vicinity would be able to listen to what he was telling the sleazy lawyer.

When he left 15 minutes later there was no doubt in his mind that his instructions had been understood and would be carried out exactly as he wanted it. The light feeling on the inside of his jacket pocket assured him of it. After all James Patterson understood the power of money.

+++++

Present Day

Three weeks after Gabe had been transferred it seemed like Senator Patterson had finally accomplished his goal. It seemed like he had been swallowed by the earth and all clues Mac and Judson pursued lead to dead ends. Not even Mary Sue was able to help this time.

The mood of the remainder of the Adventure Inc. team was continuing to spiral downhill without stopping. Judson, who was sitting at the desk in the living room going over some documents, looked up from his work when the door slammed and Mac stormed into the room. She threw the car keys on the table and flapped into one of the chairs. Her arms crossed, her feet still firmly pressed onto the floor, the expression on her face showed anger and frustration. Her nostrils continued to flare for a moment until she finally calmed down enough and took a deep breath.

"Darn it Judson, he has to be somewhere!"

"He is Mac and we are going to find him eventually!" Judson assured her, trying to hide the disappointment he felt himself.

"You know what the worst thing is?" she asked, her voice revealing a slight vibration, "It's not that we don't know where he is, it's not to know how he is! He is somewhere out there dealing with never being able to walk, not knowing who he really is and there is no one on his side!"

"I know!" Judson had gotten up and crouched down in front of her, now gently putting his hand onto hers, "But we are going to find him, you have to believe it! And in the meantime, remember Gabe knows we will not give up looking for him!"

He wiped a tear off her face that had started to roll down her cheek. She stopped him before he was able to also wipe a second one away, rubbing both her hands over her eyes.

"I'm okay, sometimes I just loose it!"

"Hey, I understand, I can't help feeling that way my self at times! That's why I think we need to change our tactic!"

Mac looked at him without understanding, so he continued to explain, "We are stepping on each others toes here and don't seem to be able to accomplish anything! I think it would be better if you and Mary Sue would concentrate on finding Gabe!"

"What about you?"

"I am going to pursue some leads I have in regards of Gabe's past. Hopefully by the time you find him, I will be able to tell him more about his birth parents."

"You sound pretty sure that we can do it!" Mac was still not quite convinced.

"I have every confidence in the both of you! I have seen you work too many times before. Mac, you always get what you want and I have the feeling Mary Sue doesn't stand far behind you."

Judson grinned seeing the look on Mac's face change. He knew he had accomplished what he wanted.