Last minute meetings.

Sheila wasn't tired when they got into LA—Wade had somehow, and she wasn't about to ask how, booked a pair of Navy F-14's on maneuvers, and she and Tom had taken the two RIO backseat positions for a very wild flight into LA. They'd hit Mach 1 minutes after leaving the tarmac and less than two hours later were leaving LAX.

"How'd he swing that?" Tom asked.

"I don't want to know…" Sheila replied. She was an officer of the law, after all. Then, she got her celphone.

"Captain Calculation—how is it going?"

"Fine—I have continual vid feeds of every camera in the vicinity of both the addresses, with additional coverage" Wade paused, "And most of the hits for Dr. Possible are on Friday."

"Shopping day. Good."

"What now?"

"It's Friday—we wait for a bit and see if he gets anything." Tom looked at the slowly lightening sky.

"You think she'll be out?"

"We've had a lot of luck—maybe we'll get another bit."

"What do we do with her when we get her?" Tom paused, "At the very least, she's complicit in a non-custodial parental kidnapping."

"Go back to law 101—they never were officially divorced and since until now, we thought they were dead, there isn't even a missing persons report."

"You think she'd be coming out at this time?"

"Quite possibly… I don't understand all the dynamics working, but if she hasn't gone running to the cops in 12 years, I doubt they're worried she'll do it now."

"So what do we do, arrest her?"

"No. Talk to her."

Cindy stood before Tono. Kim was nowhere to be seen.

"It is best if you shop today." Tono said. Cindy didn't nod. Of course it was best. That way, when Kim woke up, Tono could explain her mother liked shopping more than she did seeing if her daughter was no longer in pain. Of course, Cindy could refuse.

The last time she'd refused… by the time Tono's men were finished with her, she hadn't been able to show her face even with makeup, for the next several days. And Tono had worked it around to how she'd been trying to hurt Kim. Cindy nodded.

"Very well." She said softly, and turned and left. Why fight when you knew you had lost?

"Sheila—we've got something!" Wade said. Sheila muttered and put down her hamburger. They'd been waiting all day, so of course it would come when they'd decided to get something to eat at a Cholesterol refinery.

"What is it?" She said, in annoyance.

"Dr. Possible….er, the lady Dr. Possible." Sheila's annoyance vanished.

"Where did she come from?"

"Not entirely certain—even LA doesn't have a complete network of cameras…if it was London…"

"Yes I know, the entire downtown area is blanketed with Cameras." Sheila paused, "When did you first pick her up." She pulled out her PDA, as Wade put a map on it.

"Ok…good."

"Good how?" Tom asked. "Wade, she's escorted, right?"

"Yeah—at least four big goons… I can't get an ID on them in the FBI or local databases though."

"Bodyguards or keepers?"

"Impossible to say."

"With that many, maybe we should arrest them." Tom said. .

"No…" Sheila said. "I want to talk to the good doctor."

"With her goon squad? Good luck."

"Luck has nothing to do with it—I need to get some things. Hauptman Hacker, are you up for some sabotage…in a good cause?"

"Sure," Wade said.

"Good. I need you to be ready to hack into a building, at very short notice."

"A building?"

"They're not heading to the ware house district—I bet they're heading for a mall…which means…"

"They may use elevators."

"Yep. But we won't know when, and where, so you have to be ready no matter what."

"What about you?"

"Trust me." Sheila said, smiling, "I have a plan."

Cindy was walking, not bothering to look at what was being sold. She would be told what to buy, and since she had no money, no cards, that was it. Of course, if she was bad, Tono might arrange to have some horrifically expensive item shipped in, and tsk over the expense, but admit that it was his fault, because he had permitted her to buy it.

She remembered the last time, her daughter glaring at her, cheeks burning in anger and shame… Cindy's simply burned with shame. It had been a long time since she had been defiant enough to show anger.

She wasn't paying attention when the young woman ran into her, as she was just about to enter the elevator, her minders right behind her. The woman was carrying a dozen boxes, chewing bubblegum with a single minded vapidity, her skin slightly tinted. A halter vest and miniskirt added to the look as her minders were looking at her, smiling at the vision. Cindy blinked, as she pushed Cindy into the elevator.

"Oh, like I'm sorry!" She squealed, and then turned around and looked at the hulking minders. "Um, no room! Have some manners and wait for the next one!" Then the door was closed in their confused faces. Cindy looked at her, mind suddenly poleaxed She was…alone. Alone….

And then the stranger pulled out her celphone.

"Wade— send us up to between the fourth and fifth floors and kill it." And even before she put the clephone back there was a shudder as the elevator started to move, followed a few seconds later by a shudder as it shut down.

"Wha?" Cindy asked, in surprised. What was going on? Then the woman turned to her, and with no sign of her earlier vapidity, smiled.

"Hi, I'm Sheila Go…with the FBI. We need to talk."

Sheila looked at the woman. Red hair, long, if it hadn't been done up in a bun, blue, frightened eyes, and trying to push herself back against the door of the elevator, one hand hitting the OPEN button.

"That won't work," Sheila said, quietly. "The powers out—and we won't be disturbed."

"No…you can't…they'll…"

"Know? Of course they'll know—the entire building's blacked out. They'll know that right now you're having your ear bent by an airheaded wanna be hooker." She paused, "Now, Doctor Cindy Possible, I'd like to know how a dead woman goes from Middleton to Los Angeles, and how her child becomes a suspect in enough murders to get her very own special room on Federal death row." The woman's face turned pale, as she put her hand in her mouth, biting down on it. Sheila didn't say a thing. Cindy just shook her head, frantically, and when Sheila moved closer to her, flinched and huddled, sliding down to hit the floor.

Well. Sheila thought, Interesting reaction…like some wife who's been smacked around enough that her automatic reaction is to get ready for another smack. She remembered the picture of her at her medical schools graduation and at her wedding… a beautiful, elegant woman…and now here she was, trying to shove her way through the side of the elevator. She was…

Beaten. Sheila suddenly realized why Cindy Possible was walking around. Sheila had seen this before—granted, FBI didn't go out on many domestic disturbance calls, but it was amazing how many "tough guys" like to show how touch they were by beating up their wives or girlfriends… Women had gone to jail refusing to testify, because they couldn't fight their tormentors anymore…they on some level though they deserved it.

But are you beaten that badly, or are there still some embers we can fan to life?

"So…" Sheila said quietly. "Are you a prisoner or a conspirator." The redhead shook her head slightly. Sheila continued. "I need to know… and for the last question, I think you need to look at me." Cindy looked up, hopeless eyes looking at Sheila.

"Are you interested in helping me find out if I can rescue your daughter?"

TBC.