He could feel his upper arms being freed but his forearms were still tied tightly together and he knew he wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight. She leaned close to his ear and whispered, "If you even think about doing anything to, you know, get away or try to overpower me, I have this." She moved slightly to her left so he could see the revolver in her hand, his revolver. She jammed it into his ribs and he winced involuntarily. "I knew you'd bring it. And I also know you didn't bring a back-up piece." She placed her lips very close to his ear and whispered. "I patted you down…"

He stiffened, closing his eyes.

Chuckling derisively, she straightened up. "I know you know this already, but I just want to… reassure you. I will use it." She took a step back. "Stand up."

He frowned. He knew his arms were still pinned behind the back of the chair.

She sighed heavily. "I said stand up. You can slip your arms off the top the chair, I untied you."

"My feet are still tied," he growled through clenched teeth.

She sighed again. "What, you don't think I know that? It's a slip knot. A tight one, mind you, but a slip knot. I want you on your feet before I undo it."

He knew what she meant; she really didn't miss a trick. If she had undone his legs first, he could have kicked out and maybe have dislodged the chair while she was undoing the twine around his chest. He took a deep breath and awkwardly got to his feet, feeling the chair slip away between his back and his still secured forearms. Free of the chair, the strain on his shoulders suddenly disappeared but the ache and stiffness remained.

Pressing the barrel of the .38 into his back as he swayed slightly, trying to maintain his precarious balance, she leaned over and pulled at the long end of the slip knot, undoing it then pulling the rope free of his legs. He looked down; the chair was sitting on a couple of wooden pallets. He raised his right foot slightly, putting his heel against the leg of the chair and tried to move it. It didn't budge, and he knew she had bolted it to the pallet.

She poked him with the gun. "Move."

"Where are we going?"

"Where do you think? Your car."

He heard a jingling sound and turned his head slightly. She was holding up his car keys with a mocking smile. She poked him with the gun again and he stepped unsteadily off the pallets onto the office floor. His eyes were now fixated on Linda, who was still in his line of sight. He paused at the office door; Linda hadn't moved and he was straining to see her breathe. Finally he saw movement as her head came up slightly and she moaned.

"Move!" Nicole snapped as she dug the barrel of the gun deeper into his back, almost pushing him out the door. He tripped down the two steps to the garage floor, and she grabbed his upper arm to keep him on his feet. He tried to pull out of her grasp but she held on. He took another step, his eyes back on Linda, and his gaze travelled to the floor beneath her chair; there was a small pool of what looked like fresh blood. He froze and tried to pull out of Nicole's grip again but she dug her fingertips viciously into his flesh.

"I told you she was alive. I never mentioned anything about her being all right." She paused dramatically and from the corner of his eye he could see her shrug. "She put up a fight…" she said nonchalantly, "and my knife slipped… a couple of times." He started to shake and she grabbed him even tighter. "Like I said, what happens to her depends on how much cooperation I get from you in the next couple of hours… Remember that…" She pulled him and he reluctantly allowed himself to be led across the dark garage to the door, the sound of their footsteps drowned out by the pounding of his heart.

It was still damp and overcast but the rain had finally stopped when they left the building and started towards the LTD. She wasn't surprised he had parked so far away; she was actually expecting it and made no comment as she propelled him along the broken concrete of the crumbling sidewalk. His eyes darted from side to side, hoping to see someone, but the area was deserted.

When they got to the unmarked police car, she opened the driver's side back door then took a few steps away. She gestured at the car with the gun. "Get in." Steve stared at her with a frown. "I said get in. I'm driving."

With his arms still pinned behind him, it was awkward and he banged his right knee on the door before he could throw himself on the back seat and wriggle deeper into the car. She slammed the door then got in behind the wheel. She slipped the key in the ignition and adjusted the rearview mirror so she could see him lying across the backseat. "Not that you can, all trussed up like that, but if you try to do anything, like try to get away, I'll just come back here and finish the job I started. Just remember that." She started the car and shifted into Drive, throwing another smug glance into the rearview mirror as she drove out of the small parking lot.

Trying to stop his mind from taking him through scenarios that didn't bode well for either Linda or himself, he was surprised when he felt the car slow to a stop less than a minute later. From his vantage point, he couldn't see anything. She got out and opened the back door. "Get out."

It was even more awkward getting out of the backseat than getting in, but she waited patiently till he finally staggered to his feet. Beyond her he could see a telephone booth, the door off its hinges, the plexiglass sides marred with deep scratches and tagged with graffiti. The overhead light was obviously broken. She followed his gaze and grinned. "I know," she crowed proudly. "Hard to believe, but the phone still works." She looked at him and giggled. "That's one of the reasons I picked this location," she said softly, as if sharing a secret.

She raised the gun, pointing it at his chest, and took a step closer. "So these next few minutes are going to be the most important few minutes of your life. You know why? Because you have to convince your partner to come down here and join you, but you can't tell him why, and you can't say anything to make him suspect that anything… nefarious is going on. You know what I mean?" She smiled at him with raised eyebrows.

"So what am I supposed to say to him?"

She shrugged almost flippantly. "Oh, I don't know. I'll leave that up to you. But he has to come alone and he can't suspect anything when he gets here… at least not at first." She took a step towards him and her smile disappeared as she waved the gun slightly. "Because if you tell him anything that I don't like, anything that I think is a clue or a… a code that you two have between you, I'll cut you down right where you stand and then I'll go back to the garage and put a bullet in Linda." She paused and stared at him, her dark eyes frighteningly cold. "And you know I'll do it."

He was staring at her with as much defiance as he could muster considering the circumstances. But he also knew she wasn't bluffing. He closed his eyes with a soft snort and nodded.

She smiled. "Good." She gestured at the phone booth with the gun and he stepped into it. Something crunched under his feet; glass from the light, he assumed. The gun still pressed against his side, she took the phone off the hook and set it on his shoulder. She took a quarter out of her pocket and stuck it in the slot then started to dial. When Steve frowned, she chuckled. "What? You think I wouldn't memorize Mike's phone number? You really have to stop underestimating me, you know…"

When she finished dialling, she picked the receiver up again and held it against his ear.

# # # # #

He opened his eyes, lifting his head from the back of the recliner and, blinking slowly, looked around the living room. The TV was still on, the game long over, and the news anchor seemed to be talking about local politics.

With a snort, he got slowly out of the recliner, crossed to the TV, turned it off then, picking up the dirty plate and one of the Chinese food containers, disappeared into the kitchen. He was on his way back into the living room when the phone rang. Growling in disapproval, he glanced at his watch as he crossed to it. A call this late could only be bad news, he knew.

"Hello?"

"Yeah, Mike, hi."

"Steve. What are you calling this late for? Is something wrong?"

"No, ah, well, no, nothing's wrong. But I need you to do me a favor…"

"A favor? Sure. What do you need?"

"Well, ah, I know it's a bad time but, well, I need you to come meet me down in Hunter's Point -"

"Meet you? What, now?"

"Ah, yeah, sorry. Listen, ah, I got a call a couple of hours ago from an informant and I came down here to Hunter's Point and I think I stumbled on something that, well, it might turn out to be something that could blow the lid off one of the cases that's still open but it could also blow the lid off the department… and to be perfectly honest, Mike, I don't know how to handle it."

"Okay…"

"Listen, ah, I don't want to say anything more over the phone, you know… and I hate to drag you out of the house at this hour but…"

"No no no, I understand. And don't worry, I'm still up. Hunter's Point? Whereabouts?"

"Yeah, ah, it's in an abandoned garage on Spear. There's no signs or anything but you'll see my car. I'll meet you."

"Okay, ah, I'll get there as soon as I can."

"Thanks. But, ah, no lights or sirens, okay? I want to keep this to ourselves until, well, until we can figure out what to do, okay?"

Mike chuckled softly. "I'm driving my own car so you don't have to worry about lights and sirens. Sit tight. I'm on my way."

"Okay, thanks."

Mike hung up, frowning as he crossed to the front door. He took his jacket off the newel post and put it on as he slipped into his shoes. Grabbing the topcoat and fedora from the closet, making sure he had his keys, he left the house, almost racing down the steep familiar stairs in the dark.

# # # # #

Steve was standing stockstill with his eyes closed, his chest heaving.

"You did that just fine," Nicole purred as she hung the handset up, smiling at him benignly. "He bought every word. Poor sucker." She backed a couple of steps away and gestured towards the car with the gun. When he didn't move, she reached out and drove the barrel into his ribs. He flinched, gasping as his eyes snapped open.

She gestured with the gun again and he started towards the car. The back door was still open and maneuvered himself in again. Without a word, she slammed the door, got in behind the wheel and drove them back to the garage. She parked behind Linda's.

As she opened the back door, she began conversationally. "I figure we have about, oh, twenty minutes or so until he gets here, and there's so much I have to do before then, so move your ass… or she's dead."