Eames watched her partner stroll out into the clearing, drawing his gun, as casually as he did just about everything. She knew him well enough to see the underlying tension in his movements, though she doubted the others did. She slid her gun out of its holster and glanced at Logan and Barek, who had done the same. They walked out of the cover of the forest much more cautiously than Goren did.

"Hello, Nicole."

Wallace looked up from the fire, her look of surprise quickly suppressed. "Bobby. How nice to see you." She looked past him. "And you brought your friends."

"Yeah. They had so much fun last night, they wanted to come back for a second round."

Wallace laughed, but when she saw Eames step out from the shadows behind her partner, her humor faded and the smile left her face. Goren glanced over his shoulder. "What's wrong, Nicole? What? Are you surprised to see my partner?"

Wallace glared at Goren. "She's not supposed to be here."

"No, I guess she's not. But you didn't stick around to see, did you? That was sloppy of you, Nicole."

Her eyes narrowed as he moved around the fire. Logan moved, too, over to stand where Goren had just been. Wallace sneered at the big detective. "You did it, didn't you, Bobby?"

He looked innocent. "Did…did what?"

She shook her head. "But of course you did. You had to save her…again." She looked at Eames. "He'll always be your white knight, detective." She stepped away from the fire, toward Goren, but he wouldn't let her get close. "What's the matter, Bobby? Don't you trust me?"

He laughed softly. "Trust you? Uh, no, Nicole. No, I don't."

She shook her head. "How inconvenient. Come on, Bobby. We are cast from the same mold, you and I. We're…products of our environment."

"No, we're not. We're products of our choices. Yeah, I admit we both had rough upbringings, but you never overcame that. You let it consume you and twist you into something…something evil."

He continued his journey around the fire, until his back was to the water…and her back was to the other detectives. Only then did he feel they were safe...at least for the moment. "And you are not?" she laughed her evil laugh. "You can't have grown up like you did without learning to hate."

"Sure I learned to hate. But I moved past that, and you never did." He shook his head. "But this isn't about me, Nicole." He pointed at her. "This is about you, and the evil you became." His voice rose with his agitation. "Everywhere you go, death and mayhem follow! You killed that couple in Eames' old apartment…for nothing! There was no reason for you to do that!"

"But there was, Bobby. I killed them, and that allowed me to let you live. I'm sure you realize how easy it would have been for me to have killed you, there in your apartment. Just how…drunk were you…and why?"

"That's not…not any of your business."

She just laughed. "So what are you going to do now, Bobby? I am unarmed."

"Yeah, I remember what happened the last time you told me that."

"Oh, there you go, bringing that up again."

He began pacing the shoreline, gun still in his hand. "Then tell me why, Nicole. Why did you do it? Why try to kill me? And then last night...you tried to kill Eames...and this morning, Logan. Have you let your hate get the better of you?"

She studied him. "Your pretty little partner is in the way. I could see it in your eyes, back in that motel, what you feel for her. I saw the fear, not for your life, but for hers. You showed me your true weakness then. You gave me the key to defeating you, the only way to destroy you...and you never had to say a word to do it. But why did I try to kill you? That was an impulsive action, but the truth of the matter is, if I can't have you, then no one can."

He stopped pacing, staring at her. "What?"

"Come on, Bobby, admit it. We are part of one another. We always have been, and we always will be…until…now how does it go? Until death do we part?"

"No, Nicole. You are not a part of me, and you never have been. You're just another criminal mind for me to figure out."

"And have you…figured me out?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I have."

She started toward him, but he still wouldn't let her close to him. She smiled. "Once burned, twice shy?"

"Something like that."

There was a sudden rustle of movement from behind her. She turned around to see what was going on just as Logan bolted from where he was and ran toward them.