Author's Notes: Hope those of you who have been following the story are enjoying, I would love it if you would review. Sorry if I sound like a review monger, but I put in between 2 and 3 hours on every chapter and I really do appreciate knowing that people are reading and enjoying.
Part 49
Age 34 Years 7 Months
Jack held out his arm for Grace to draw blood in the interrogation room under the watchful eye of his lawyer Erikson and John Grant. Almost conversationally, Jack remarked to Grace, "You realize that even if I were Jack-Of-All-Trades, you wouldn't get a DNA match with when Jack was shot a few years back. The only DNA match you'll get is with the blood in my vehicle that Samantha drew during a consensual act near the cabin. But you already know that don't you?"
As Jack smiled and Grace sighed, John argued, "DNA doesn't change pal."
"Actually, Mr. Newquay here is right," Grace agreed reluctantly. "The blood in the SUV found near the cabin, while being O-Negative didn't match the small sample we had left from when Jack was shot. If Mr. Newquay is indeed Jack and he's had any bone marrow treatments for Gauchers since the shooting, his DNA would be altered just enough that it wouldn't hold up in court."
"Son a bitch!" Grant cursed. "Isn't there some test you can do to prove it's him."
Grace sighed, "Sure, if the blood samples from Jack's shooting hadn't disappeared from Quantico last year just before Lucas was arrested. All we have is one small sample that has already been tested and it's too degraded to retest. Paul Sterling was lucky on the Lucas case that his lawyer didn't try to clear him by contesting the DNA evidence. While Lucas was a type match, blood type alone is no longer enough to convict."
Jack winked imperceptibly at his lawyer and John snapped, "I bet your loving this!"
"Not really," Jack answered. "It seems my second wedding night is going to be spent away from my bride."
"Second wedding? You've been married before?" John demanded, anxious to find any possible way to prove who Jack really was.
"Yes and no," Jack responded. "Samantha and I got married when we were teenagers using fake ID's and our parents pulled us apart. Our marriage today was merely a formality, I never looked at another woman and as far as I'm concerned her marriage to Tom was a sham."
"Is that why you stalked her?" John pushed.
Laughing, Jack countered, "One doesn't stalk one's wife. When I reached adulthood I had a private investigator, legally locate her and then followed her career in the newspaper. In Otis, as you saw we renewed our acquaintance and continued seeing one another through the trial."
Bailey had been watching through the one way mirror and listening in as Grace and Grant spoke to Jack. Fury coursed through him that Jack would have a chance of getting off through a legal loophole. Earlier after he'd gotten off the phone with the director of the FBI and been yelled at, John had told him about catching Sam and Jack kissing in Otis. Angered and unable to bear standing back another moment, Bailey stormed into the interrogation room where Jack sat.
"I don't know how you brainwashed Sam, but you won't get away with it!" Malone yelled, leaning over the table and getting in Jack's face.
"I can smell the scotch on your breath, Agent Malone," Jack observed. "Although in light of recent events I can understand your compulsion to imbibe, I think it's ill-advised given your DUI and the implications Branton made in the press conference."
"The DUI is going to be overturned," Bailey retorted.
"Well, I would ask how you were going to accomplish that, but I suspect it would merely bring forth your oh so over used retort that you would have to kill me if you told me."
Irritated, Bailey inquired, "How do you-"
"Samantha," Jack interjected. Then he smirked, "Would be a shame if your coworkers discovered that your CIA contact you like to pretend is so impressive is actually just a male secretary to someone who was actually important."
At that Grant stifled a slight grin as Bailey turned red and grabbed Jack by the lapels and spluttered, "You- I- You'r a dead man Jack!"
"Agent Grant, I suggest you get Agent Malone under control immediately," Erikson commanded. "I will not stand for this sort of treatment of my client."
Bailey moved away towards the door muttering under his breath as Jack murmured, "Just because I pointed out your inadequacies is no reason to be uncivil."
The soft comment set Bailey off and he launched himself at Jack. Knocking Jack out of his chair, Bailey punched him hard in the face a couple times and as Grace screamed at him to stop and Grant tried to pull him off. Erikson opened the door of the interrogation room and shouted out in the hallway for help. Several agents came in and pried Bailey off of Jack. Injured, but amused, Jack rose painfully with his lawyer's assistance.
Bailey and Grant argued as they walked away from the interrogation rooms and stopped as they were greeted by, Saul Baxter, deputy chief of the FBI. In the conference room, were a pair of men from the Federal and State Attorney Generals' Offices. Baxter informed Bailey and Grant that they were to assemble the team and bring Sam and Jack both to the conference room, that things were going to be resolved before they got any further out of hand.
Nearly half an hour later, the group was assembled in the conference room. Jack was still handcuffed and Samantha was seated beside him tending his injuries with some supplies Grace had provided her with. When Bailey sat down, Samantha scowled angrily at him and put her arms around Jack. Raising his hand cuffed wrists over his wife's head, Jack held her against him and murmured soothingly. Although Samantha had held up through many crime scenes and stresses of her job, seeing Jack battered brought painful memories to the surface and she was distraught.
"Dr. Waters, what were you thinking disappearing like that?" Baxter inquired.
Pausing to remember the answer Jack had suggested when the question arose, she responded, "I wasn't thinking and that was the whole point of getting away from it all. After years of being at the mercy of Donald Lucas' obsession, I was able to act impulsively like any woman in love."
One of the dour men from the Attorney General's Office, pressed, "Then why, Dr. Waters did you keep your relationship and subsequent marriage a secret from your friends and coworkers? Wouldn't it make more sense to include them in your newfound happiness?"
"It would under other circumstances," Samantha answered. "Agent Grant had made his disapproval of my husband clear back in Otis and I felt uncomfortable with regard to Agent Malone."
"What do you mean?" Bailey demanded angrily.
Jack moved his arms from around Samantha and she replied, "I care a lot about you as a friend, but I also suspect you would like more than friendship. I didn't wish to hurt you and frankly your conduct regarding the cabin seemed out of character. So I arranged to meet Jack at the cabin after you had left."
Rachel gave Bailey a sympathetic look, she knew he had feelings for Sam. When their leads hadn't panned out, she had read the affection in his eyes and mentioned it. As he watched Jack and Sam, Bailey felt ill. This seemed unreal as his friend was cozied up to the man who was her worst enemy to the best of his knowledge.
"How did you find Agent Malone's conduct out of character?" Branton prompted his client.
"Shortly before I was to leave for his friend's cabin, he insisted that he drive me and drop me off at his cabin. Common sense would dictate he give me a map and directions. When I pointed that out he continued to press the issue and also refused my suggestion that I drive in a separate vehicle and follow him," Samantha answered.
"What kind of man would leave a woman alone without a vehicle in the wilderness?" Jack added.
Annoyed, Bailey growled, "She had a cell phone and groceries, you make it sound like I abandoned her in the middle of nowhere!"
"My client's concerns for his wife seem to have sound foundation," Branton argued. "If my wife or sister were to spend time alone in a cabin, I would wish them to have a vehicle in case they needed to go into town for some supplies or if something happened that they needed help. Suppose the cell phone died?"
"Fine," Baxter sighed. "I'll grant that Agent Malone's insistence on delivering Dr. Waters to the cabin was unusual and will even cede her interest in keeping her rendezvous secret. But if indeed they were together consensually and he is in fact the fine upstanding citizen you claim, where were they that there's no record of their stay and that they didn't hear the news?"
Before anyone could respond, a flustered agent came into the room, "Uh sirs, I'm sorry to bother you, but there are a couple people who showed up and are insisting they see Mr. and Mrs. Newquay immediately."
"They can't have visitors," Bailey snapped.
The man looked to Baxter and said helplessly, "Uh, they are very very insistent."
Before Baxter to respond, Sofia and Konstantine pushed their way past the agent and marched over to Sam and Jack. As she moved to embrace Samantha, Sofia gave her a meaningful look.
"Mamma? What are you doing here?" Jack asked incredulously.
"I am thinkings you and daughter are needing us, yes?" Sofia responded. Looking at Jack's injuries, she demanded, "Who has been hurting my boy?"
"Ma'am when we arrested him, he resisted," Grant answered.
Frowning at him, Samantha yelled, "Liar!"
At that, Sofia moved to Grant and began to hit him over the head with her handbag as everyone stared in shock...
