Guilty?

Chapter One

The phone call at 3am barely registered with Jaime at the time. She had been more than half-asleep when she'd answered it. The caller had asked for Steve, and she poked him awake with the receiver, mumbled "It's the Secretary, for you" then rolled over and re-closed her eyes. Steve finished his phone call, got out of bed, dressed and leaned over the bed to kiss his nearly-asleep fiancee'.

"What?" she mumbled, sounding a bit cranky.

"I have to go to work, Sweetheart."

"What time is it?"

"3am." He kissed her gently. "I love you."

"Love you, too," Jaime said, not really awake. It was only after Steve had left the house that the phone call actually registered in her mind and Jaime sat up in bed, suddenly fully alert.

The Secretary...that was the Secretary - Oscar's boss. What did he need Steve for, especially at 3:00 in the morning? Had something happened to Oscar?

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Jaime was unable to go back to sleep. She was too worried about Oscar...and Steve. She was on her third cup of coffee when the phone rang again, just after 7:30am.

"Jaime? It's Peggy Callahan." Her voice quivered with emotion, and Jaime realized Oscar's secretary was crying.

"What's wrong, Peggy? Is it Oscar?"

"I - I can't talk about it over the phone. We really need you to come down to the office. Can you come right away?"

"Of course. I'll be there in 20 minutes."

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A death-like silence seemed to surround OSI Headquarters as Jaime walked quickly past the Tranquility Fountain, up the sidewalk and through the front entrance. The receptionist's eyes were red-rimmed and her face a ghostly shade of white. She didn't answer when Jaime said a tentative 'Good morning' and seemed unable to even look at her. Ok, I am officially spooked, Jaime thought as she walked down the nearly deserted hallway, punched in her security code and got on the express elevator to Oscar's office.

She opened the glass door to the outer office and found Callahan with her head down on her desk, pillowed by her arms, her shoulders trembling with silent sobs. Jaime placed a hand on the secretary's shoulder. "Peggy?"

Callahan didn't look up. In a voice muffled by the desk and her arms, she told Jaime "He's in there. I'm supposed to send you right in."

Jaime patted her friend's back as reassuringly as she could manage, given her own growing fear. The door to Oscar's office was open, but Jaime knocked anyway, on the doorframe. Oscar's chair was swiveled around with its back to the door.

"Come in, Jaime," a soft, familiar voice - that wasn't Oscar's - told her. "Close the door, please."

She did as requested, but remained standing just inside the doorway, virtually paralyzed. No way, she thought. Then the person in the OSI Director's chair turned to face her and she saw that she was right.

"Steve...?"

"Sit down, Swee - Jaime. Please?" She did so, very uneasily.

"Where's Oscar?"

"Remember the blow-up we had with Jack Hansen yesterday morning?"

"Kinda hard to forget. I've never seen Oscar so angry."

"Jaime...Hansen's dead."

"Stupidity's suddenly fatal? Oh, God - you're serious."

"They found him last night," Steve said quietly. "Shot once in the back, once in the chest."

"He was - murdered?"

"The Feds came here just before midnight last night, and of course Oscar was still at his desk -"

"Oh, no -"

Steve nodded. "Oscar's been arrested for First Degree Murder."

"Oscar would never -"

"I know," Steve agreed.

"Are you...his replacement?"

"According to the Secretary, yes. But in my mind, I'm just holding Oscar's place for him until he comes back."

This was too much for Jaime to process all at once. "Hansen's dead, Oscar's in jail, and my fiance is my new boss. Could life possibly get any better?"

Steve took a deep breath, trying to steel himself before telling her the rest. "The FBI investigators are downstairs in the conference room. They wanna talk to you."

"No."

"What?"

"A simple word, not hard to understand: NO. I'm not gonna do it."

"Jaime -"

"Look, what we saw and heard yesterday is enough to put Oscar away, and you know as well as I do that he's innocent. I won't incriminate him for something he didn't do."

"They already know," Steve said slowly.

"Wonderful." Jaime glared at her fiance, who was apparently also her new boss. "How could you do that to Oscar?"

"You know how many people saw or heard at least part of what happened? I couldn't exactly lie. And you'd better not either."

"I told you - I'm not doing it."

"Jaime...you don't have a choice. If you refuse to talk to them, they'll lock you up until you change your mind."

"Do I need a lawyer?" she asked.

"No. You're a witness, not a suspect. I'm supposed to go in there with you, as Director."

"But you're a witness, too -"

"That's why I had to give my full statement first. I'm not allowed to influence your testimony in any way, but I'm there to make sure they treat you fairly. And to make sure you behave." Steve stood up. "We have to go now."

"Steve, please...don't make me do this."

"C'mon; let's go." he took her arm and gently but firmly forced her out of the office and down to the conference room. Jaime was scared out of her mind,but also mad as Hell.

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