The blindfold was pulled roughly off Jillian's head. She shook her head and glanced around. They were in a dark room, and she could tell what time of day it was. She wasn't sure how long ago she had been kidnapped. There was a point where she fell asleep, she knew that. Had she been here all night? She had asked for coffee earlier, but they did not give her any. What kind of place is this anyway? They kidnap you, then they don't give you any coffee. See if I ever answer any of their questions.

She glanced around the room. She could make out the dim shadows of a bed, a nightstand, and a bookshelf, or was it a dresser? She shifted in her chair uncomfortably. Her hands were still zip-tied and the lower half of her legs were duct-taped together.

She looked the other way and realized that a person was standing next to her.

"Okay, what do you want? This had better be worth missing my mani-pedi appointment!"

A voice grunted, "She's a smart talker. Charles told us she might be like this." he said to another person who was in the room.

"I'm completely serious about this, you, uh, weird voice in the shadows!" Jillian answered indignantly.

"Put it on our tab." Replied another voice.

Things were quiet for a few moments, before the second voice asked, "So, should we get out the black box, or what?"

"No, the boss said not to use it until he came in and had a talk with her first. He'll be here in a minute."

"Aw man, why does he gotta ruin our fun like that? I was looking forward to seeing what it could do. I've heard some pretty wild stuff about this little black box."

A door opened up, and in walked another person, a balding man who was shorter than the other ones. There was a light on in the hall and Jillian noted that there was a sign that said: "Welcome to the cabin." The man closed the door behind him, sealing off light from the room once more.

I must be at Trickle Lake then. She thought. It was only a fifteen-minute drive up here.

"Well, it appears we have met again, Monica." A smarmy voice spoke up. "How do you like our little operation central here?" He gestured around vaguely.

"Who is Monica?"

"Very funny. Your wit is just as quick as it always was."

Jillian blinked several times. "Wait wait wait, you mean Monica, the one who keeps trying to literally steal Jason?"

A flashlight beam shone in her face. She blinked and squinted. "Hey! Don't do that!"

"You idiots!" Charles roared. "This isn't the person I needed! I told you to get Monica!"

The two men held up their hands defensively, "Hey she came out of the same place Stone was located, and she had red hair."

"What else were we supposed to do, ask for her driver's license to ensure proper verification?" The first one said sarcastically.

"I can't believe this isn't your first job." Charles huffed. "I knew I should have waited for Rolland to get back!"

The silence that followed was incredibly awkward.

"So," Jillian said, breaking it, "Are you going to let me go?"

"No. It's too late for that."

"Then what are we gonna do, boss?"

"That's what I'm going to figure out. I'll be back." Charles slammed the door behind him.

Cooper stood at the door of the Meltsner household. He had rung the doorbell several times, but there was no answer.

"Well well well, if it isn't Cooper Calhoun, live and in person." Jay approached him. He was back to his usual outfit and did not speak with a nondescript accent.

"Hey, Jay." Cooper turned to look at him. "Have you seen Buck today?"

"No."

"I didn't see him or Katrina at school today and I thought he might be sick or something."

"I've been at school today too, thank you for noticing." Jay rubbed his chin, "Word may have gotten around faster than I expected. He might have faked being sick today."

Cooper raised one eyebrow. "Why would he do that?"

"Because he didn't want to face me of course! Once he heard the news of my breakthrough he was stricken by my genius." Jay put his hands in his pockets and looked around as though there were invisible crowds of fans cheering around him. "I have that effect on people. Sometimes they just can't handle it."

"What breakthrough? You mean the case you were trying to recruit me and Buck on a few days ago?"

"The one you flatly refused to go on, yes."

"What happened?"

Jay recapped the story of the old building.

"...And then I said "No! You'll never take any of our comrades alive! Then, with gunfire blasting all around me, I picked up Buddy in a fireman carry over my muscular shoulders and I ran to J and J Antiques, where we called in special reinforcements," He shrugged, "Y'know, just all in a day's work."

Cooper squinted at Jay. "Words fail me."

"Struck dumb, I know. It's a heroic tale that will stretch the ages I'm sure."

"Oh, it's already stretched."

"Anyhow, I was here for…. what was I here for…. Oh yeah! I came for the same reason you came here, to find Buck."

"But he's not here. And neither is Eugene or Katrina."

"We could check at Campbell College or Whit's End."

"I already checked at the College, they said Eugene hadn't come in that day."

Jay cocked his head to the side, "And you say neither Katrina nor Buck was at school?"

"Yeah! No one had seen or heard from them."

Jay gaped, "Crikey! Another mystery! The case of the disappearing Meltsners! I have to get out of here!" He started running down the sidewalk.

"Wait, where are you going??" Cooper shouted after him.

"Back home! I need to get my trenchcoat and hat!"

Cooper scratched his head, "What is going on around here?"

Connie adjusted her hard hat as she walked out of the little theatre. The sounds of drills and other tools sounded from the main soda fountain area. Her forehead creased in worry. She had been feeling concerned all morning. Connie had noticed she hadn't heard from Eugene, Katrina, or Buck for a couple of days. That was unusual. Cooper had mentioned earlier that he hadn't seen any of them either. Deep inside she couldn't shake a feeling that something was wrong. She made a mental note to check at their house when she got off work. Connie entered the library to get to work sorting the various books, and seeing if she could salvage any of the books that were damaged.

She had only been working for five minutes when one of the construction workers opened the door. "Excuse me, lady? There's a guy here to see one of the employees."

Connie's head snapped up. "Oh, okay, uh send him in."

A man walked in. "Hey Connie."

Connie stood up in shock. "Monte! It's good to see you again." She hugged him.

"It's good to see you again too. Have you seen Grandpa anywhere?"

"He went to go get some groceries, can I help you with anything?"

"Yeah, do you know the address for Eugene and Katrina Meltsner?"

"Oh, yes I do. 1193 22 cloveridge street."

Monte pulled out a notepad and pen and quickly scribbled it down. "Perfect, thank you."

Connie glanced over and saw he wore his secret service badge pinned on his shirt. "Are- are you on a case?" She asked tentatively.

"Uh I can't go into details, but yes."

"...And it requires you to get Eugene and Katrina's address?"

Monte paused. "You didn't hear it from me."

Connie's heart leaped in her throat. "Okay," she answered, trying to keep her voice from cracking. "Uh, well, I'll be praying for you."

He looked at her gratefully. "I appreciate it." He opened the door and walked out. "See you around."

"Yeah, see you." She shut the door. God, please keep Eugene, Katrina, and Buck safe.

"Alright, just down here." Agent Sharp pointed to Cloverridge street through the windshield.

Monte turned into the street. Their eyes scanned the houses for the correct house number.

"Ah, found it. 1193." Said Monte.

Agent Sharp leaned forward to get a better view of the house. "It doesn't look like anyone is there. There's no car in the driveway."

"Why is the backdoor open?" Monte observed.

"How did you see that?"

"The blinds aren't shut, you can see the door in the back is open."

"Oh, I see now."

"If that's the case, the alarm system probably isn't set. We could go in."

"Is that legal? What if someone's in there and they call the authorities?"

"We are the authorities. Besides, we're running out of time. The clock is ticking, and with what we know, I think we should take that risk."

"Okay."

The two agents got out of the car, went around through the gate, and peered in through the screen door.

Monte opened the door and looked in. "Hello?" he called out cautiously.

The house was as silent as a graveyard. They both took a couple of steps inside and scanned the surrounding rooms. . No one was around.

"I'll go check upstairs." Agent Sharp muttered. She walked up the stairs silently.

Monte glanced over at the kitchen. The dishes were neatly stacked by the sink. There were two dog dishes by the door, but they were empty, he noticed. He couldn't hear a dog anywhere. He also saw a dog bed in the living room, but it was empty. The house was fairly clean. On the breakfast table, there lay a couple of textbooks and some Algebra homework. He glanced down at the sheets. The second page was only half-finished and the last equation wasn't solved. "Interesting." He whispered.

He walked into the living room. There was a copy of National Geographic laying on the couch with a bookmark inside it.

"It's really strange," Sharp answered as she descended the staircase. "It doesn't look like they're out of town."

"Connie would have told us if they were."

"Then...do you think the CEO's goons got here before we did?"

Monte pursed his lips. "It's looking more and more like it."

Richard Maxwell bounded around the corner into Jason's office, wearing an eager grin. "Hey Jason, I finished the final touches on the computer system!"

Jason stood up. "Awesome! Let's see it."

They both walked down the stairs and sat down at the front counter. Jason looked through the program and nodded, impressed. "This is amazing! It's better and more efficient than it was before."

Richard beamed.

"I had been meaning to run through this and to fix the bugs in it for a while but never found the time. It turns out Jillian's blunder the other day was a blessing in disguise." Jason remarked.

"What do you know about that?" Richard nodded. "Speaking of which, where is she? Did she have the day off?

Jason rolled his eyes. "No. Connie said she didn't come back last night, so she probably stayed at a friend's house and forgot."

"And Connie wasn't concerned?"

"No, she's used to it by now. I'm still adjusting."

Richard gave a rueful smile. "I hope Jillian knows how lucky she is to have a boss like you. Most would have fired her a long time ago."

Jason rubbed his forehead. "To be honest, I'm surprised I haven't yet. I'm not even sure why I hired her. The only thing she was that helpful with was decorating the shop, but I don't need that all the time. Every quarter at most." he paused, "I guess I felt bad for her."

"That's not all bad, but she needs to learn to pull her weight as well. There'll come a point where she has to have a cold slap of reality and take responsibility."

"There comes a time where everyone learns that lesson." his eyes narrowed slightly, "Though, most people learn it earlier in life."

Richard smirked, "Yeah. And I thought I learned it late in life! Now I don't feel so bad."

Jason chuckled, "Well, I may want to reevaluate my employee choices soon."

"Oh great, I'll be fired for sure!" Richard quipped.

Jason laughed, "I don't think you'll be the one getting fired. Once we know where Jillian is, I'll talk with her. I hope she'll understand."

At that moment the phone that sat by the cash register rang. Richard picked up the receiver and put the call on speaker. "Hello, this is J and J Antiques, how can I help you?"

"Hello, is this Jason Whitaker?"

"No, but he's here with me if you wa-"

"Tell him that we have one of his employees."

Richard and Jason exchanged wide-eyed glances. They could both hear an irritating voice in the background. Richard's eyes narrowed. "This employee wouldn't happen to be a double L Jillian, double L Marshall, would she?"

"Yes."

Deadpan, Richard answered. "Good. Now she's your responsibility."

"Wh- Hey! Wait!"

*Click* Richard hung up the phone.

Jason's jaw dropped, "Jillian has been kidnapped and you seriously hung up?!" He sounded like he was on the edge of panic and laughter, "I mean we both know how we feel about her, but-"

Richard shrugged. "Hey, he kidnapped Jillian, he was asking for it."

Jason opened his mouth.

Richard held up a hand, stopping him. "I'm just joking, I'll call him back, I just wanted to give him a heart attack first."

Jason picked up the receiver. "Nah, I'll call him. I get the feeling that he wants something specific from me. I have a hunch."

Richard looked at him sideways, like he didn't quite understand.

Jason picked up the phone, went to the caller history, and dialed the recent number.

The phone picked back up. "Ah, you're back."

"Yeah," Jason answered coyly.

"Let's make a deal. We'll bring her back, if you bring us one item."

"What would that be?"

"The flash drive that Agent Forbes sent to you."

At that moment, a battle raged inside Jason. He knew what was inside the flash drive would put the world in immediate danger if it fell into the wrong hands. And this was Jillian, for crying out loud. It was the security of the world at large, or the life of his annoying, flighty employee. Then, his conscience pricked him. If this was Tasha, he'd cross the ocean if he had to. Jason knew what he had to do. He took a deep breath, and his grip tightened on the phone. "Where will we meet?"

"Whit's End. Midnight. Don't bring the police or Ms. Marshall will suffer. "

"Fine. Who will we meet there and how will we know we've met the right person?"

"He will be going by the name Jellyfish."

Jason and Richard looked at each other.

"I should have figured," Richard muttered under his breath.

"Jellyfish will first pull out front, then park in the back."

"We'll be there."

"You are expected to cooperate fully. If you don't you will suffer as much as Ms. Marshall." The punk ordered.

"Understood."

"Good."

The person on the other line hung up. Jason clomped the receiver heavily onto the cradle.

Richard shook his head. "What have we gotten ourselves into? And what on this flash drive would they want?"

"I should probably explain that to you."

"Okay, if you think it would be smart."

"Yeah you might want to sit down, it's a weird story."

"Uh, okay." Richard sat down in the desk chair. Jason sat down in the one next to him.

"Do you remember that package I received about a week ago that didn't have any return address?"

Richard nodded. "Yeah."

"I later learned that the package came from an old coworker from my agency days. Tasha Forbes. We were, uh, close."

"I see."

"Anyway, she and my Dad worked together to create programs for the department of defense."

"Cool. I forgot your Dad did that."

Jason took a deep breath. "Richard, the flash drive contains the Applesauce program."

Richard jumped to his feet. "What?!"

Jason remained seated. "Believe it or not, it's true."

"I thought Applesauce was destroyed years ago!"

"That's what I thought, but, as Tasha told me, information is never lost. She restored the program and remade it to be even more powerful than it was in the first place."

Richard collapsed back into his chair and ran his hand through his hair. "I'm at a loss for words." his eyes widened, as he remembered what they were about to do. "And we just agreed to give it to them." he nodded his head in the direction of the phone.

Jason nodded. "Mm-hm."

"We can't let that happen, Jason! I know what Applesauce is capable of-" he corrected himself, "Actually, I'm sure I don't even know the half of it."

Jason leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk, lacing his fingers together. "I have a plan."

"Uh oh," Richard paused, then shrugged. "Oh whatever, I'm coming with you."

"Perfect." Jason grinned and stood up. Richard did the same. The former glanced at his watch. "Let's see, it's almost five o'clock now, so that gives us about seven hours before midnight." He walked over to the shop window and flipped the We're open sign to the opposite side that read, Sorry, we're closed.

"Alright," He started up the stairs. "Let's get to work."

"Right behind you."

Jason sat at his computer, intensely focused on his work. The hours were slipping away, and he was trying to make the most of them. Richard had gone to a friend's house to go and pick up an important item and wouldn't be back for a while.

Tasha should be here any minute. She was an important part of the plan too. He just hoped she would be willing to go along with it.

There was a knock on the door that led to the fire escape. Jason walked over and turned the knob. The door swung open with a creak.

"Hello, Jason." Tasha greeted him.

"Hi. Glad you could make it. I was kind of worried you wouldn't come."

"I've kind of let my guard down, otherwise, I might not have."

Jason raised one eyebrow, "You have?"

Tasha nodded. "Rolland has been nowhere to be found. From the investigation I've been doing, she's not in town anymore."

"That's weird."

She changed the subject. "So, what did you call me here for?"

"Well…" Jason turned to the coat closet, opened the safe, and got out the small box that contained the flash drive. "I want you to have this."

Tasha reached out, then stopped herself, as though it would burn her if she touched it. "Why?"

"It's like this," Jason began to explain, "an employee of mine is being held hostage right now, and they know I have it."

A look of alarm flashed in Tasha's eyes. "How did they find out?"

"I don't know. Anyway, I agreed to meet with them, and give this to them in trade for my employee."

"Jason, that was a reckless decision." She scolded, "Do you know what you've just done?"

"Yes, which is why I'm giving this one to you. They won't know the difference between the one I have, and the one they will see. Since they know I have it, that takes you off the hook. They've ruled you out as someone who has it."

"They have for now. But what about when they know it's not the right flash drive? Won't they rule me back in?"

"Then you can bring it back to me and I'll keep it here." Jason in a confident tone.

"I wish I felt as sure as you sound about this…" Tasha said uncertainly.

"I agree that my plan isn't perfect and that there is some risk involved, but it's the one with the least risk that I can see right now. At this point, we need a plan now. I think we've underestimated the people we're up against here. The person, or people, who are after this program have their every thought bent on it. They'll do anything to get it. They're making their moves and we need to act."

"Well, okay." Tasha looked him in the eyes. "I will trust you on this."

"Thank you."

That evening, after making sure that Morrie and Suzu were in bed, Whit picked up the phone.

After Tom's death, and when Jack and Bernard moved away, he often felt lonely. Of course, he had Jason, Eugene, and Connie to make up for that, and he thanked God for them every day, but sometimes he still felt sad. Most of his friends from his childhood or the first half of life or his early days were gone now. That's why he was so happy when his childhood friend, Wilson Knox moved to town. Well, he was a childhood enemy then. However, they had made up and became friends when they were adults. He just wished it didn't have to be Charlie's death that made them come together. Whit pushed that out of his mind as he dialed Wilson's number. He hoped he would still be up. It was only 10:00, but Wilson was a creature of habit, and might already be asleep.

To Whit's surprise, the phone only rang once, before he picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Wilson, this is Whit. Sorry, I'm calling so late."

"No, that's alright. You know, It's the strangest thing. I had this strong feeling that I needed to stay awake for a while longer. Is this why?"

Whit paused, "Maybe. I need you to pray, Wilson. Something is going on here that's bigger than we think it is, and I've been so busy that I only realized recently that I needed to have someone partner in prayer with me."

"I can do that. Anything specific, if you can tell me?"

Whit began to relay all that had been going on for the last few days, sparing only a few details.

"Wow, that's a cause for prayer alright. It's hard to believe all this has happened in the last few days."

"It may sound hard to believe, but it's true." Whit's mind flashed back to when Mitch had said something similar when he had first been back in town with Richard. So much has happened since then.

"Hmmm." Whit could almost hear Wilson thoughtfully rubbing his chin and nodding his head as he took in this new information. "Thank you for telling me, Whit. I'll be praying."

"Thank you, Wilson. It means a lot."

"If anything new happens let me know."

"I will."

"Remember Whit, "There is power in persistent prayer"."

Whit smiled. "That's a comforting thought. I'll keep praying."

"So will I." Replied Wilson.

"Thank you again, Wilson."

"It's what friends do."

"Goodnight."

" 'night."

Whit put the phone down on the coffee table and sat down on the couch. He glanced at the clock. Midnight was ticking closer.

Whit leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He folded his hands together. "God, please watch over Jason, Richard, and Jillian tonight. Let them find the truth. Give them discretion, and let them know what to do. In your name, I pray, amen."

Richard and Jason sat in the soda fountain area of Whit's End. Jason glanced at his watch. 11:55. It was only five minutes until their rendezvous with Jellyfish. He could barely sit still. He hadn't felt this old rush of excitement and adrenaline since his agency days. He didn't even need coffee.

Richard hummed listlessly, then took a sip of his coffee. Jason might not have needed it, but Richard claimed he did.

Out the front windows, they saw a car drive past the front of the shop, then go around to the back, just as they had been told it would. "This is it," Jason muttered. He got up from his seat.

Richard clapped his hands together. "Let's do this thing."

They both got into their positions.

The newly installed bell above the door jingled. Three shadowy figures entered the shop. The first one was Jellyfish's assistant, Jellyfish walked in behind him, guiding Jillian by the arm. Her mouth was taped shut and her hands were zip-tied together like they had been when she was originally kidnapped. In his other hand, he held his .38 caliber pistol. "Hello? Whitaker, you in here?"

Richard came out from where he was hiding. "He'll be here momentarily."

Richard could see Jellyfish's surprise, even in the dark of the shop. "Maxwell? What are you doing here?"

"Just a little business."

"Are you here with Whitaker?"

Richard shrugged. "Maybe. Maybe not."

"Whatever, you're doing, don't move until Whitaker comes in here."

"Give me one reason why I can't."

Jellyfish held up his pistol. It looked like one of those revolvers in old west movies. "I can give you six reasons why."

Richard snorted. "Oh please. If you were to shoot me with that thing-" he took a step toward him and cocked his head, "-and I was to find out about it-"

"I'm not kidding, Maxwell," Myron growled through clenched teeth.

He's getting angry. Perfect. Richard locked eyes with him and took a defiant step forward.

At that moment Jellyfish lost his cool and pulled the trigger. The sound was deafening. The bullet whizzed right into Richard's chest. Jillian screamed. But it was barely heard over the gunshot. Richard looked down. "Oh no, I've been shot," he said flatly. I still need to get him to empty his gun. He then turned around and bolted in the other direction. Jellyfish unloaded the remaining five shots into him. Another muffled scream escaped from Jillian.

Richard fell to the ground, writhing, clutching his chest, and practically screaming in pain.

Jellyfish walked up to Richard and crouched down next to him, grinning smugly, enjoying watching his enemy's suffering. "And those - are my six reasons. It looks like I've not only accomplished getting the flash drive, but I've also got my revenge as well." He bragged.

"You'll never get away, Myron," Richard said, breathing raggedly. He writhed more, and clawed at his chest.

"Yeah, strong words for the guy in his last moments, watching me take the flash drive. By the time the police and paramedics arrive, I'll be long gone, and so will you."

Maxwell shook his head with a look of resignation and his body relaxed, like he was giving up fighting the pain. "That's not what I mean," he gave a weak smile and closed his eyes. Richard's form faded away, as though he had been turned to dust and suddenly, he wasn't there anymore.

Jellyfish's satisfaction changed to bewilderment. "Huh? Where did he go? What is going on here?!"

He stood up. Then something cold and hard shoved into his back. It was a gun barrel. "Drop the gun, Jellyfish." It was Jason.

The pistol clattered to the ground. "O-okay, okay, you got me." He grinned slyly, "But you failed to get the second person who was with me. He already has the flash drive, and is on his way to our operation center."

"Wh- shoot! How stupid of me to leave the USB on the counter." Jason gave a look of irritation. "How did I not see that guy?"

"Oh no. That's terrible!" A muffled, but familiar voice called from the other room.

Richard emerged from the closet, smiling cheerfully. He did not look like a man who had just been shot through six times.

Jellyfish swore loudly. "Are you Maxwell's ghost?"

Richard shook his head, "Nope. You actually shot my ghost. Well, my hologram."

"WHAT?"

"Seriously, Myron, you were so caught up in your revenge that you didn't notice that I wasn't bleeding? Or that I was still standing after you shot me at close-range with a .38? Or the six bullet holes in the wall?"

"You put on a good act I guess." Jellyfish said irritatedly.

Richard walked up to Jason and high-fived him. "It was a stroke of genius to harness the EduLink. With Jason's knowledge of his father's technology,"

"And with Richard's acting skills-" Jason cut in.

"We eliminated a huge risk in this plan."

"I'm so confused." Jellyfish mumbled. "You just have a hologram caster randomly laying around the shop in case someone gets held hostage or something?"

"Well, EduLink was created to teach kids around the world, but we used it a little - unconventionally." Richard explained.

"We'll explain it all in detail, as we escort you to the police station," Jason answered calmly.

Jillian squirmed and tried to make noise to remind them that she was still there.

Jason did a double-take. "Oh, right. Richard, will you please untie Jillian?"

"Sure."

"You know, you guys are awfully calm for some people who just let government security into the hands of people they've been trying to keep it out of." Jellyfish remarked.

"Yeah, it would be...if it was the actual flash drive." Richard said as he cut the zip tie binding Jillian's wrists.

"We had a friend who had a 3-D printer." Explained Jason.

They heard police sirens in the distance. "Okay, they got to us before we could."

They saw the two cop cars pull into the front of the shop.

Detective Polehaus walked out of the interrogation room, and into the waiting room at the police station. "Hello Jason, Richard. Isn't this a pleasant surprise?"

"Hey."

"Hi."

"What has Jellyfish told you?" Jason asked.

"Well, he wants a lawyer, for one thing. He won't admit to much, but he did say he has a computer with dirt on a place called Revolution Enterprises, and some of the employees there as well. It also has a lot of information about the people he's working with here in Odyssey. If we could get a hold of it, it would blow this case wide open for us."

Jason and Richard exchanged glances. "Just like Blagaard."

"You're right."

"Did he say where it was located?"

"He said it was in his hotel room. He gave us the key. Room 348." He held out the key to Jason, "We don't have the officers to go and check at this hour, would you go and see?"

Jason took the key, "Of course."

"He said it was located in the top drawer of the nightstand." Polehaus elaborated.

"Alright. We'll go and get it." Jason got up, "You want to come, Richard?"

"You better believe it." Richard got up and followed him out of the police station.

The two men pulled into the parking lot of the Odyssey Hotel. They got out and checked in at the front desk. The tired clerk asked no questions.

They went up the elevator and walked soundlessly down the hall of the third floor. Jason slid the key into the slot. The tiny light turned green, signifying the door was unlocked. They walked in, and Jason flipped on the light.

They walked in. It was a nice room, all things considered. The suitcase had been dumped out on the floor, scattering clothes all over the floor.

"Weird." Jason remarked, "Jellyfish didn't strike me as a particularly organized person, but he doesn't seem like the person who would just do this either." He gestured to the pile of clothes that lay on the floor.

"Yeah, that is strange."

Jason walked over to the nightstand by the bed. He pulled open the drawer. Nothing. No computer. Only a tv guide and a Gideon family Bible. "It's not here."

"Maybe he meant a different nightstand?"

"There's only one in here."

Richard walked over to the closet and began looking in there. Nothing was in there either, except that it looked like someone had been looking through it before they had.

Jason walked over and looked in the drawers on the desk. Thirty minutes later, they had practically torn the room apart, but the computer wasn't anywhere to be found.

Richard flopped down on the bed. "Where is it??"

"I don't know," Jason said wearily, sitting down on the floor. He was starting to regret not getting coffee when he had had the chance.

"We've gone over everything in here three times, we even looked in the vents to see if there was anything there. Nothing."

"I've got to wonder if someone got hold of this computer before we did, and without Myron knowing."

"Or possibly, Jellyfish told us this to throw us off," Jason suggested.

Richard shook his head. "No, he doesn't work that way. He tells all when he's caught because then he'll get off easier. He knows the system well."

"In that case, we should go back and tell detective Polehaus."

Richard got up. "Alright."

They arrived back at the police station.

"Find anything?" Polehaus asked, drinking coffee.

Jason shook his head. "No. We looked everywhere."

"We are wondering if someone got his computer before we did," Richard explained his reasoning.

"Hmmm, interesting. Come with me then." The detective guided them to the room adjacent to the interrogation room. There was a two-way mirror, giving a clear view of the interrogation room. They could see Myron, but he couldn't see them.

"I'm going to go and ask him about that computer." Polehaus walked in.

Richard and Jason watched and listened intently.

Polehaus sat down in the metal chair across from him. "So, a couple of assistants went into your hotel room, and couldn't find your computer. What do you have to say about that?"

Jellyfish's brow knitted together in confusion. "Is it possible…"

"Is what possible?" Polehaus pressed.

"I think my computer was taken. I kinda wondered if they would."

"What do you mean?"

"It's not the first time I've put things like this on a computer. Things look better for you if you have evidence and will cooperate."

"Ah, I see." Polehaus nodded with a hint of annoyance. "And you told somebody about this?"

"No. That's what don't make sense."

The detective sighed, "Thank you. We'll keep you in a holding cell until we get this figured out."

The detective walked out of the room and into the observation room.

"Well, what do you think?" Jason asked.

"I don't think he was lying. He didn't show any of the signs criminals show when they aren't telling the truth and believe me, I've seen enough to know that. Richard's past experiences with this Jellyfish character confirm this further. So either the men he's working for found out about the computer and took it, or his hotel room got broken into and some punk just stole it. Either way it's inconvenient. That was our best hope at catching these guys and solving this mystery."

"What should we do in the meantime?" Jason asked.

"We'll try to track the computer down. But we'll do that at a decent hour. Thank you for your help tonight, men. That will be all."

"Thank you, detective." Jason said.

"Good night." He stopped and rolled his eyes, "Well, morning."

Richard gave a tired smile.

"What do you make of it?" Jason inquired, as they drove home. The headlights shone ahead, pushing back the darkness, lighting up the road in front of them.

"I'm not sure. I do have a few ideas on how to track down that computer though. It wouldn't be the first time I've done it. I might just try them."

"At a decent hour, I hope." Jason quipped.

"Nah, I'm not going to get any sleep for a while, at least," Richard said. "My mind won't stop. I've got to figure this out."

"Do what you want." Jason yawned. "I'll be going to bed ASAP."

The night wore on. Richard sat at the breakfast table, the blue light of the screen dimly illuminated the kitchen. The clock on the oven read 3:45 A.M.

Richard typed furiously at the computer. He had tried several methods already and all of them failed.

The screen flashed and said, "access denied." Richard hit his head against the table and gave an irritated growl.

"Richard?" A tired, but no less kind voice asked from the entryway into the kitchen. Richard looked up and saw Whit standing there in his bathrobe.

"Mr. Whitaker...sorry if I woke you."

"No, no, I was going to get a drink. What are you doing?"

"I was chasing down a few leads on Jellyfish's laptop, but I've only hit dead ends. It's frustrating."

Whit nodded understandingly. "Why don't you sleep on it?" he suggested.

"I don't know if I should." Richard muttered, gesturing vaguely to the computer, "The trail might get cold and-"

Whit looked at him curiously, not quite believing his reasons, "Richard, why are you doing this?"

The young man sighed, and looked down, "Because, maybe then I'll be worth saving."

Whit looked at him softly. "Richard, you already are. You always were."

Richard pursed his lips, "I don't know about that." He sighed again, "You know my past, everything I've done."

"I do. Should that make a difference?"

"Well, no I guess not. But still I feel like I need to do something to make up for everything I've done. It started with trying to take down Blagaard, and well, it never really stopped. I still have it frequently. That restlessness. It comes but especially when I feel like I'm not doing enough." He shook his head, "I've always said, I have too much in my ledger to not try to make up for it."

Whit put a hand on his shoulder. "Richard, it's not the things we do that make us deserving of God's love. Nothing we could ever do could cover for our sins, or make us deserving of his grace. And yet it comes freely from the heart of God because he loves us. The Bible says that "While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Those who you have hurt have already forgiven you. Christ has forgiven you. Now, maybe you need to forgive yourself. Let God's grace be enough."

"Yeah," Maxwell answered. "I have to admit that like Monica, sometimes I've wondered if it's real. If I really can change."

Whit smiled. "Richard, I know many people who could tell you. You've changed so much over the years. You've become a Godly, kind, humble, and hardworking young man. I'm proud of you, as though you were my son."

Richard's eyes filled with tears. Whit had been a father figure since he'd never really had one, but he didn't know he saw him that way. "Thanks, Whit." They embraced.

Richard could feel the caffeine and adrenaline slowly slip away. A sudden weight of tiredness hit him. "Maybe I will go to bed."

Whit chuckled, "Good idea."

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Richard."

That night, a lanky man with thinning black hair sat down at the desk in the office space in the cabin. His bony fingers ran over the flash drive. it weighed so little, yet it carried so much. This small item seemed to exude power and potential. Just like the good doctor said. The nations of the free world would be at his mercy with this. It was all he ever wanted. Power. Money. Revenge. Chaos, in which he would be the only one who had the answer to equilibrium. Would he relieve the world of the chaos he unleashed on the world? Maybe. If they offered enough. Maybe he still wouldn't.

He straightened up and opened his computer. Enough of this. Time to see what this famed Applesauce program can do.

He plugged the flash drive into the port. The computer beeped and whirred.

"Please wait one moment." Said an automated female voice. The man rapped his fingers on the desk impatiently.

"I'm sorry. You have entered an invalid drive."

"Wh- INVALID?!" The man slammed his hands down on the desk. "I can't believe this!"

He began pacing the room, "This doesn't make sense. It looks exactly like the real one but-" He snapped his fingers and muttered a colorful profanity under his breath. "Blast! The real one must be with Forbes then!"

He picked up the phone. "Get me, Rolland. Now. We have a little monkey wrench in the works, and we need to act fast."