"Uncle Oscar, are you sure you don't want some breakfast?" Robin asked Oscar as he sat in the ranch living room, going over a file.

"No, honey. Thank you. How did your mother sleep last night?" he asked, seeing the door to her's and Rick's room closed.

"Not good, Uncle Oscar, Mom dozed on and off for a while, until Uncle Rudy gave her an aspirin. I think she woke up about five o'clock, and she's been on the phone and making breakfast ever since." Robin explained, her own eyes sad.

"We'll find him, Robin. Your dad's tough." Oscar put an arm around the girl, then smiled briefly as she scooped up Petey from his bouncy seat and handed him the baby.

"Thank you, Uncle Oscar. Could you hold Pete for a moment, I'm going to make sure Mom ate some breakfast herself."

"Sure, honey." Oscar put the little boy on his lap, then saw him make a sleepy face.

"Petey, you shouldn't yawn like that, you'll get me started." He chuckled.

As if on cue, a yawning Laurie came into the living room.

"Morning, Dad. Any word from Ron, or, or Rick?" she asked, a hopeful tone in her voice.

She saw her father wince, then put Petey in his bouncy seat where he fell fast asleep.

As he stood up, he reached out an arm to her.

"Oh, Dad." She went to hug him, then let him sit her down on the sofa.

"Baby, there's been no sign of Rick, no ransom notes or threats, nothing. Plus, I got off the phone a little while ago with the Secretary. I need to tell you something, and I want you to promise me you'll listen all the way through." Oscar said, his voice firm.

"I promise, what is it." Laurie was anxious as he took her hand in his.

"Due to the fact that the FBI has jurisdiction over Carlos, we are going to have to drop our search for him in conjunction with Rick's kidnapping. The Secretary told me we are to let them look for Rick as a simple abduction, and turn over any more leads we receive."

She stared at him, her mouth trembling. "We are supposed to stop looking for Rick, just to protect this, this criminal?"

"Honey, this Carlos is supposed to be the key to the whole drug scene in the border towns. I did question why we are to trust the FBI to find Rick, but it seems they think Rick is being held in exchange for the drugs he turned in to Rob. And," Oscar found it hard to repeat, but he took a deep breath, "that Carlos may trade him for information, that it's just a matter of time."

"No!" Laurie was on her feet, then she steadied herself. "Dad, that is wrong, how do they know this guy has Rick, huh? What if it's someone else, or if this Carlos even plans on letting Rick go, what if he's going to be killed after this guy gets his stuff?"

Oscar stood and faced her, then put his hands gently on her shoulders.

"I won't lie to you, Laurie. I don't think letting Carlos bargain for his drugs is going to get Rick back, nor do I trust the FBI to deal information for his return. But it's all we've got."

"No, Dad, it's not." Laurie looked him in the eye. "I'm going to see the Secretary, he's at the office in Phoenix still, right?"

"Yes, honey, but I don't think it's going to do any good, he's already dismissed me from the case." Oscar explained.

"I'm sorry, Dad, that's not right. But I have the right to face him when he tells me he's abandoning the search for Rick over their deal with a killer." She told him.

Oscar saw her determination, then sighed. "I can't tell you no, honey, but I can ask you to wait a few hours, just give them a chance."

"No, Dad, I have a feeling I go now or it'll be too late. Don't worry, I want Robbie to go with me, I won't get too nasty with the Secretary. But we have the right to demand Rick's safety be protected." Laurie insisted.

Suddenly she had the feeling Rick was near, and she automatically called "Rick, darling, where are you?"

Very faintly she felt a response.

"Laurie, don't trust him, don't…"

"Dad, he's alive!" Laurie caused him to jump by her sudden cry.

"Honey, are you sure?" he asked, worried she might be "wishful thinking."

"Yes, I felt he was near, then I called to him, and he relayed back, "Laurie, don't trust him, don't.." then he faded." She exclaimed, then frowned as she realized Rick was warning her about someone.

"Dad, who do you think he's warning us about?"

"I don't know, Baby, but we'll find out." Oscar promised.

Calling her son, she made arrangements to pick him up at home, then drive to the OSI office. Not wanting Robin and Petey to be by themselves, Oscar called Chief Joseph, who agreed to stay with Robin and monitor the search for Rick from there.

"I'm going to follow you to town, Laurie, then I'll go talk to Ron at headquarters, maybe we can come up with something." Oscar said reassuredly after he got off the phone, then she put her arms around him, her emotions starting to slip.

"Dad, I love you, thank you for backing me up. I have to find him."

Within minutes Robin was watching her mother and uncle drive off, holding on their assurances that her father would be coming home.

As Laurie arrived at her son's home, she found Robbie and Ramona very upset over a crank phone call.

"Mom, we have to take Andy with us, some guy called and said for us to drop the search for Pop, or Andy was next!" Her son told her, his calm tone belying his worry..

"Of course, darling. He'll be safe with us." Laurie smiled, then traded places with Robbie as Andy climbed into the back seat and buckled in.

As the three Simons came to the guard gate of OSI's nondescript complex on the outskirts of town, Laurie gave her name to the security personnel and was allowed to drive in.

When she and Robbie entered the main building with Andy in tow, Laurie saw Gregson in the lobby, and immediately went over to him.

"Craig?"

He straightened, then a surprise look crossed his face. "Laurie, are you all right, is there any word on Mr. Simon?"

"No, Craig, and I need your help. Dad told me of the Secretary's decision to hand over Rick's case to the FBI, and I want to explain to him how wrong they are. Can you take me to see him?" Laurie was polite but firm.

With a deer-in-the-headlights look, the man nodded then asked them to wait a few minutes. As the OSI Chief left the lobby, another man put his paper down and followed.

Arriving at the visitor's room outside the Secretary's office, the receptionist informed them that only Laurie could see the Secretary.

"That's okay, Mom. Andy and I will wait right here." Robbie smiled confidently at his mother.

As Laurie entered, she saw the Secretary at his desk, who nodded and cleared his throat.

"Mrs. Simon, I'm sorry we had to see each other again under these circumstances. I was told you had some concerns on the way we are handling the search for your husband."

"Yes, Mr. Secretary, I was informed that the FBI wants us to stop looking for my husband, and I want to know what possible reason there could be for abandoning the search."

The older man stiffened, then he tried to answer her.

"Mrs. Simon, we are not going to abandon your husband, we just have to let the FBI take over the search. I'm sorry, but this is not a negotiable transfer of duties. You need to back away from the investigation and let the FBI find your husband."

A door opened to the left of the government official, and Gregson came in, then took a seat at his right hand.

Laurie stood facing the two men, her eyes defiant.

"If you refuse to help me find my husband, I'll have to do it myself, sir. The government I served so proudly would not let an innocent man die just to make nice with another agency."

"Mrs. Simon, Laurie…" Gregson stood up, then glanced at the older man before continuing. "It is just too much of a risk to their informants to stop an operation at this time. Please understand…."

"I understand that for the sake of an agreement with a known killer, you would sacrifice my husband. That is not going to happen." Laurie interrupted, then picked up her purse and turned to go.

"Mrs. Simon, you will not interfere with our business." The Secretary got to his feet and sternly warned her. "You will stay out of this or.."

"Or what, sir. I'll end up dead?" Her legs shook, but her chin went up and unconscious admiration flickered in the older man's eyes.

"If it takes my life to save my husband, the man who I love more then almost anything in the world…, " she choked, "then you just try and stop me."

Taking a deep breath, Laurie walked away from two very uncomfortable men.

Outside the office, she looked for Robbie and Andy, only to see her son's jacket on the floor.

"Robbie." She called, thinking he was down the hall in the men's room with Andy.

"Mom…" a low moan sounded and Laurie immediately turned on her transmitter as she looked around the outer room.

Seeing another door, she opened it to find Robbie slumped inside a storage closet. "Robbie!" she cried, kneeling down to his side.

"Mama, Andy, where's Andy?" he moaned, his eyes flickering.

"I don't know, son, I'm going to call for help. Can you move?" she asked, terrified at the thought of her son and grandson now being victims.

"Yeah, but, have to find Andy." He said, seemingly more conscious as his mother helped him up.

Suddenly the door to the Secretary's office opened and the older man appeared, then he looked with shock at the sight of Laurie half-supporting her son.

"Mr. Secretary, please help us, someone took my grandson and hurt Robbie!" she begged, then he immediately hit a button on the receptionist's desk.

"Security, I need a detail to search for a seven year old child, Andy Simon. He was taken by a suspect or suspects from my office." He ordered, then insisted on helping lift Robbie to a sofa in the outer room.

"Robbie, do you remember what happened?" he asked, as Laurie took her son's hand.

"I..heard my name called, then I got up and looked down the hall, only someone grabbed me from behind and put something over my face. I heard Andy yell, then I heard Mom calling my name." He said, dazedly.

"Sir, where's Gregson." Laurie noticed his absence, then a cold chill enveloped her.

"Oh, no, not him." She gasped.

An angry look crossed the Secretary's face. "He wouldn't dare hurt the boy. I'll take him down myself." Abruptly his voice trailed off as four men rushed into the room. One of them saw the Secretary, and told him, "Sir, we just got word, they've found the body of Carlos Jimenez underneath that burned out van."

As Laurie held onto her son's arm in shock, the older man glared at the messenger, then directed his attention to the others.

"Peters, I need the immediate location of Craig Gregson, he's to be considered armed and dangerous. He may have a little boy, Andy Simon, as a hostage." The official told the men, then delegated the others to search the complex.

Just then Laurie's transmitter beeped, and she turned it to receive. "Dad?"

"Honey, what's going on? Rudy and I just pulled up and found a high alert at the gate, then I saw your jeep still here." Oscar's voice was concerned, then he swore as Laurie told him, "Gregson's taken Andy, Dad, he drugged Robbie and put him in a closet, now the Secretary has his men looking for Andy."

"Let me talk to him, Mrs. Simon." The stern man took her watch in his hand, then spoke.

"I'm sorry, Oscar, I should never had listened to Gregson; too many things were in his control, and too little regard for the lives involved here."

There was a moment of silence, then Goldman's tense voice betrayed his anger.

"We'll have to deal with our cupalbility later, sir. Right now we need to find Andy and his grandfather.Dr. Wellswill be right in to look at my nephew, I suggest we secure the building, Sir."

"All ready in action, Oscar, I'm going to have your daughter wait in my office until we locate Gregson. She'll be safer in there." the Secretary added, then Oscar concurred.

"Let me talk to her."

Laurie was shaking her head. "No, Dad, I want to look for my grandson, Andy must be so frightened."

"Please, honey, do as the Secretary says, we'll find him and Rick, I promise." Oscar's tone was adamant.

"All right, Dad. Just be careful." She sighed, then allowed the Secretary to lead her into his office, where she sat down on his divan. "Thank you, sir. Please find them for me."

"I will, my dear. " he took her hand in his and stared intently in her eyes. "I'm sorry I ever let any of this happen."

Laurie put her hand over his, a small part of her feeling compassion for the guilt-ridden man.

"Thank you, sir. I appreciate it."

"I'll come back for you the minute we have any word." He assured her.

As he closed the door behind him, Laurie buried her face in her hands, . "I can't fall apart now." She told herself, then looking around, noticed a small bathroom just off the spacious office. Getting up, she went to the small room and splashed some water on her face, then she realized something.

How did Gregson get out of the office without her and the Secretary seeing him?

Immediately she started searching the room, opening first one storage closet, then another, which seemed not to be so deep.

As Laurie pressed what seemed to be a bolt into the shelving, a creaking sound made her step back, then a wall slid open and she saw a small figure huddled on the floor.

"Andy!" Laurie cried, then the little boy got up and ran to her, crying.

"Honey, it's all right, everything's all right." She hugged him then led him out of the closet into the office.

Suddenly a voice in back of her calmly said, "Let your grandson go, Laurie, you're going to come with me."

It was Gregson.