A/N: Just like I promised, regular updates! I should probably spin it out a little until I've done more on the next one but seeing as I have absolutely no plot in mind that might take a while. Thanks to cynically optimistic for being an amazing beta. Thank you to everybody for all the reviews and referrals, they mean a lot to me. Enjoy!

FBI Headquarters
20.5 hours missing

"I want a lawyer," Colin Masters repeated.

Jack shot Danny an exasperated glance. Colin Masters hadn't said anything else since he arrived at the Federal building.

Danny ignored Jack's glance by checking his watch. He was concerned that if he returned it he might convey more feelings than he intended. Whether Martin realised it or not, he'd put him in a very awkward position by confiding in him. He was now in possession of only a third of the facts, a circumstance that he was well aware of. He sympathised with Jack, Sam and Martin. Martin because he was hurt, Sam because she was confused and Jack because his family life had just been stripped away from him. He felt for each and every one of them, consequently he didn't want to take sides. However, Martin had unwittingly made the choice for him. He was now, whether he wanted to be or not, firmly on Martin's side and involved in something that could in all likelihood not be resolved peacefully. There was going to be fall out and he'd accidentally reserved a piece of it for himself.

"Your lawyer will be here soon," Jack told him, completely perplexed by Danny's behaviour.

Danny had been the only member of the team with whom things had not changed. His relationship with Vivian, and quite possibly Sam, was beyond repair. Martin seemed to be harbouring some resentment towards him, although just why he hadn't quite worked out yet. Danny had been, Jack realised, his rock. Perhaps presumptuously, he had been certain that, whatever happened, Danny would still be there, cracking jokes and keeping the situation within the realm of normality. But something had now changed, and Jack found himself wishing fervently that it hadn't.

"I'm not saying anything until my lawyer gets here," Colin Masters added unnecessarily, staring defiantly at Danny. "I know my rights."

Neither Jack nor Danny bothered to reply, each lost in their own thoughts.

Just then a knock came at the door, a moment later it opened and an agent showed Colin Master's lawyer in. Any slim hope that Jack had held out, on getting Colin Masters to talk, evaporated as fast as a drop of water in the midday sun.

Master's lawyer was none other than Eric Powell - the highest-priced, smartest-talking lawyer in town. Eric walked over to the interview table noticing everything there was to notice about the room, from where Jack and Danny stood to the number of cracks in the paint. Jack knew from experience that Eric Powell used the simplest of facts to destroy the most rock-solid of cases. Many years ago he'd been an ambulance chaser and he still hadn't lost that slimy attitude that had served him so well. If Jack hadn't known who he was, and he'd seen him on the street, he would have put money on him being involved in drugs or possibly prostitution. He dressed seemingly unashamedly like a pimp in designer silk suits and highly polished leather shoes. It was all Jack could do to conceal his disgust at having to deal with him – today of all days.

Eric Powell set his briefcase down on the table with an understated thump before asking in a quiet voice which Jack almost had to strain to here,

"Have you charged my client yet, Agent Malone?"

"Not yet," Jack replied keeping his voice even and making sure to emphasise the word yet. He knew the nuance wouldn't be lost on Powell.

"Do you have evidence of a crime?" Powell turned his whole body to face Jack, his steel blue eyes staring intently at the agent.

"We have evidence that Mr Masters lied to a Federal Agent. We could charge him with impeding a Federal Investigation."

Danny looked between Eric Powell and Jack, feeling as if he was witnessing a battle of wills. He knew of course that Jack had dealt with Eric Powell before but he didn't know that there was something personal between them. There definitely had to be something personal, there was no other way to explain it.

"I believe Agent Malone that the emphasis is on the word could. If you had been going to charge my client then you would have done so already."

Jack bit his lip. Powell was right as always. Colin Masters was one smart cookie. He'd refused to say anything without a lawyer and now he had a lawyer he wouldn't be saying anything at all. He'd proved by his unwillingness to cooperate that he had something to hide, but then they already knew that by the CCTV tape. They had nothing on him yet and he would walk for now.

"That is true yes," Jack admitted finally through gritted teeth - noticing with annoyance that Powell had permitted himself one of his rare smiles.

"Then my client is free to go. Mr Masters." Eric Powell gestured for Colin Master's to walk out in front of him. He picked up his briefcase and walked to the door. He paused just before leaving and turned to Jack.

"Nice seeing you again, Agent Malone."

Jack barely managed to make himself acknowledge the statement. As soon as the lawyer had left, Jack breathed a small sigh of relief. Ignoring Danny's curious glance, though grateful, in part, that Danny was curious, Jack counted to ten to make sure that Eric Powell was long gone before leaving the interrogation room and heading to the unit.

FBI Headquarters
21 hours missing

The air was gloomy and the mood was dismal as everybody sat at the conference table. Mercifully, both Jack and Vivian were too lost in their own thoughts to dwell on what happened earlier, thus rendering the atmosphere no-where near as awkward as anticipated.

Martin, unable to help himself, kept shooting Sam curious glances. It was obvious to anyone who knew her that she was unhappy. Part of him, while not knowing what he'd do if this was the case, hoped that she was unhappy because she regretted breaking it off with him. The other, more reasonable, part of him knew that it was because of Jack and the confusing situation that he had created.

Now, if there ever was a man for confusion it was Jack. In hindsight, Martin realised, he should have known that Jack's move to Chicago wouldn't work out. The way he'd told them should have set alarm bells ringing. 'My wife was offered a really good job in Chicago and she took it, so she's moving there and I've decided to go with her.' His wife had taken a job a thousand miles away, a decision that hadn't involved Jack. No, the decision that involved him was whether or not he would go with her. He hadn't exactly grown up with the world's most happily married parents, but he knew that that was not the normal way for that situation to go down in a marriage. He should have realised then that this charade that had become their lives was far from over.

"Suggestions?" Vivian asked suddenly breaking into Martin's contemplative thoughts, Jack's unwanted trip down memory lane and Sam's distracted examination of Anthony's notes. Danny was the only ready for the question.

"Colin Masters isn't going to give us anything," Danny stated. He knew that everybody already knew that, but it was a comment, a starting place. He knew that as a unit they were falling apart, no longer pulling together as they should. Consequently every session like this, he tried to start off a discussion because everybody now needed a basis to work from. They couldn't just throw out comments, opinions and ideas anymore. The atmosphere didn't allow it, that saddened him more than he'd ever let on. As a unit they'd always had the best of working relationships. He guessed that the working relationships had suffered when it had got personal. That was one of the reasons why he was always so careful not to mix business with pleasure. While he enjoyed the friendship of his colleagues he still preferred to stay mainly colleagues. The expression 'don't piss where you work' was an expression for a reason, something they'd all do well to remember.

"I'm no further on the notes," Sam contributed suddenly. "All I've got is that the notations refer to specific files, but then we could have guessed that."

Vivian sighed, saddened beyond belief that her last case in command was going to end this way. She felt this drive, this urgency, this need to find this missing person. She had to close this case. It wasn't that she had something to prove exactly, she just needed to finish this case the right way. The way it was supposed to be, with Anthony Bates at home with his family and friends, where he belonged.

"It's a start though," Martin interjected, reading Vivian's dejected expression and wanting, no needing, to give her back some hope.

They needed hope to do this job, to find their missing person because missing didn't necessarily mean gone. They were, as Jack had told him once, people's last resort. If they gave up hope then missing people would stay missing, lost forever; families would stay incomplete, unable to move on because of the not knowing and a little piece of him, a little piece of everybody who worked missing persons would stay missing forever. It was often said that people who worked a unit for a long time embodied that unit. Martin thought it was the other way round. That people chose to work in a unit, probably subconsciously, because there was something about them that was that unit. For homicide it was the need to avenge people's senseless, premature deaths. For counter terrorism it was the need to protect one's country, the patriot that was inside everybody making its mark. For missing persons it was that part that the investigators themselves were missing. Everybody in the unit had their secrets, their little boxes of issues that nobody would ever see. Martin had his just as Danny had his and Sam and Vivian and Jack. In every missing person they found, a little piece of them was restored. In every missing person they didn't find, a little piece of them was lost forever. Such was the way of the world.

"Yeah," Danny agreed. "If we have individual files to look at then maybe we won't need Anthony's notes. We'll just have to discover for ourselves what he found. When we do maybe we'll find him." Danny looked across to Martin and cracked an evil grin. This was just the opening he needed to brighten this place up. "The time has come for our resident white collar guy to prove his worth."

"Haven't I already?" Martin smiled, pretending to be upset at Danny's insinuation. Danny looked sceptically at him, a small smirk playing across his lips. As the light hearted banter began the atmosphere lightened erasing even some of Sam's worry lines.

"Oh yeah, for a rookie you've done . . . ok I guess."

Jack turned his head from watching the playful interaction that had taken long enough to arrive but had never truly gone away. When Martin had arrived it had been touch and go for sometime as to whether or not he would fit in - the deputy director's son, always a difficult person to place. After all, it just screamed trouble. Co-workers thought that if you upset him he'd run crying to daddy and they'd end up writing traffic tickets in South Dakota. Thankfully Martin hadn't lived up to the stereo-type. He didn't even have the tendencies. Once Danny had managed to cast his suspicions away he'd realised that fact and they'd been friends ever since. Right now though, he wasn't in the mood even for a 'Danny poking fun at Martin special'. Eric Powell had got under his skin, bringing Master's with him. That made Jack need to nail him and consequently he wasn't in the mood for wasting time. Clearing his throat loudly he stared at Vivian. After a long moment she realised what he was getting at, feeling only a vague stab of annoyance that he'd pointed it out.

"Martin, Danny. You and I are going to go through these files. If there's something to be found then we're going to find it. Jack, Samantha. I want you two to interview Anthony's mother. She probably won't be able to tell you much but maybe her Carers will. Whatever the case we need to check that box," Vivian ordered.

Feeling grateful for the physical activity Jack almost sprang out of his seat and out the door. Sam followed at a slower rate.

"I guess you're going to find out first hand exactly what I did in Seattle," Martin grinned at Danny. He knew that when Danny had suggested this course of action he hadn't, in a million years, considered that he might have to pitch in. Danny just smiled sarcastically at him as he started to sort through the files.