May walked excitedly down the small dark alleys. She had received word that he would be at small run-down boarding house on the Pont Saint-Michel. It would be nice to be alone with him and hear his voice in the low, quiet tones that had endeared him so strongly to her. She could still feel the burn from his searing glance at their last meeting. As she came upon the place in question, she smiled to herself. It was a horribly dilapidated hovel, crammed awkwardly amid two others just like it. Even in this filthy city, one would be hard-pressed to find a more unsuspecting rendezvous point. He was always very good at finding the best places to be unseen. She beat on the door, whispered the line his note had instructed and without question was let in. She gave the old wench a coin for the room and went to the room where she was to meet him.

He waited looking out the window at the river, black in the moonlight. The sound of her entrance caught his attention. Turning, he smiled at her, then looked down in confusion as she entered. "What is that?"

"It's a goat."

"A goat."

"Yep" Pleased with herself she walked lightly to the bed, taking off her cloak.

"Why?"

"Why not." She could no longer hold the smile that had been sitting just behind the mask of her face. She released it now, no longer guarded. Once she was in the room, she immediately walked the perimeter checking the walls for holes and the soundness of the doors and windows. "You think I don't know how to check a room?"

"Never hurts to be sure, cap." She smiled satisfied at him. Waiting.

For a moment both were still and silent as statues, just looking at each other. Captain crossed the room to bolt the door and moved confidently toward the fiercely beautiful woman. "Just to be sure." He said in that low husky voice he rarely used. She couldn't help but smile broader as he came slowly closer. "Hey May." He said softly.

"Yes, captain." She replied coyly.

"We're alone in a locked hotel room."

"I know. It's Reno all over again." She grinned and moved her arms slowly to his shoulders. He stopped confused. "Reno?" She giggled sweetly, still in his arms.

"Oh, Captain, you're so much more fun when they don't transmit you ahead of us."

"OH shut up. Everyone gets the fog." He grumped, the moment lost.

"Oh but you get it longer and even loose memory with it." May all but giggled.

"I don't loose that much memory." He said turning out of her embrace.

"Oh don't be so modest. That first night in Reno was quite a memory to loose."

"Would you quit shitting me. You know I was only joking. Nothing happened in Reno."

All she did was laugh, letting her hands lightly trail down the back of his uniform before sitting down on the bed. Back to work. "So the target is in Notre Dame. Suspects?"

"It has to be someone with some rank to authorize the promises of the artwork and architecture."

"Like how much rank? A pope or cardinal?"

He sighed with resigned frustration. "No, May. Popes and cardinals are only in Rome. The highest at the cathedral will be the archdeacon. But there are deacons and ministers with specific duties that might include caretaking of the cathedral's various treasures."

"Aren't there records for that?"

"The records only track the items of value. Not who was responsible for them."

"Why are organized religions always so. . . convenient?"

"hmm." He sat pensively beside her, his mind obviously not on the mission. Without thinking he scratched the furry head that put itself on his knee.

"Like having rules that conveniently allow you to brush me off when it suits you." She teased.

"huh" he looked at her confused a moment despite the look in her eyes that should have explained everything.

"I mean, we're not just in a different zip code. We're in a different time. Never mind different bodies. That pretty much blows the Bro Code out of the water. Devil really won't mind."

He jumped off the bed and paced briskly around the tiny room. "No, May. We can't use borrowed bodies for personal gain. These people have lives to live when we leave. That's just immoral."

She just looked at him with irritation. "Aliens."

"No."

"Every alien abduction theory for the last two centuries is your fault and you want to lecture me about a little liaison that is neither out of character or damaging for these people?"

Captain closed the distance between them. "That guy was a jerk. And the scientists wanted to know what would happen."

She heard a loud crash and they both looked in the direction of the closet just in time to see a black shape moving inhumanly fast toward them. Captain dropped to tackle the shadow and May dove for her dagger on the bed. The two men grappled noisily, but as she turned, dagger in hand, to confront the specter she saw Captain fall and the black cloaked figure holding a bloody dagger. What little she saw of the face was just enough to recognize. That face had been following her. She lunged at it, but he sidestepped and she only grazed his side rather than gutting him as she'd intended. He threw her headlong into the wall and as she tried to force her head to clear, he disappeared through the window into the ink black night.

"Damn. Why do I always get stabbed?" Captain grumbled on the floor.

"You're guard is too low." She offered him a hand to stand.

"I didn't see your guard up."

"I had a meat shield."

His irritated glare only made her laugh. But that sweet laugh lightened his heart despite his aching side.

Watching the window, he asked, "Think that was him?' Tearing a strip from her cloak, she answered "That's the second time he's attacked me. Either he's the target and he's made us or he's the weirdest admirer I've ever had."

"Worse than Devil?"

"Okay, second weirdest." She smiled and unbuttoned Captain's jacket to better access the wound.

"Why hasn't he made contact yet?"

"He's probably a lot closer than we are and can't give himself away."

"He would have that kind of luck. Ow!"

"Sorry, cap." She said tying one more not in the bandage to hold it.

They stood together looking into the night a moment, sharing the same thought. Turning their heads to meet each others eyes, captain said what they both thought. "Yeah. That probably was Devil." He looked down at his blood starting to dot the bandage on his side. "Bastard."

"Well, he made contact." She said optimistically.

"Bastard."