DISCLAIMER:Don't own anything associated with the show… I just like playing with the characters in it.
RATING: T – Teen (language and adult issues)
PAIRINGS: GSR & Yo!Bling pre-established in previous fics of this timeline.
SPOILERS: Sequel to "Displacement" and "Transitions"
SUMMARY: Everything is changing around Nick Stokes. Can he deal with it, and how it will affect him in the end?

A/N: Things should move along pretty quickly now, which means you might see the conclusion of this one in the next two weeks (if not sooner).

REVIEWS: Reviews are the way I know if people are enjoying the work or not. So, if you leave one, THANKS! And if not, I hope you found at least a little something to brighten your day, and thanks for taking the time to read.

Chapter 36
14:30 – 2006.12.15
Lost Gringo Mtn. State Rec. Area: Cormier Trail Parking Lot

From the trail, out came Nick and Boone on his dirt bike and they were quickly followed by several off-road carts carrying the rangers and various law enforcement officers from Clark County and the Nevada State Patrol. When they reached the vehicles in the parking lot, Nick stood back to watch as Brass and his men moved their battered suspect into the car, and the boys from the State Patrol loaded the drugs from the carts into the trucks for transport.

Boone came back to where Nick was standing to talk to him. "Hey, Dude… Danny Boy's gonna drop me back at the cabin, so he can give the good word to the Doc. Which means, you're off the hook, man." Boone gave him a slap on the shoulder and smiled with his surf bum charm.

"Hey, no sweat, man… Not like the Doc'd be interested in seeing me again." Nick had been trying to shake off their last exchange the whole day, with little success.

Boone crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back against his own frame as he asked, "What's that about, Dude? You guys get into it again?"

Nick shrugged off the man's concern with his statement. "Nah, it's nothin', man." When he looked up, Nick could tell that the man was not buying the act. "Look, I think it's just like an oil and water thing."

Boone laughed at his description and said, "No way, Dude… More like aluminum and rust."

He assumed the expression on his face told Boone he had no idea what he was talking about. "Sorry, man… Thermite… You press aluminum and rust together, add a little heat and you get a serious burn. Hot enough to burn straight through an engine block, Dude."

Nick chuckled at his description. "Yeah, that sounds about right." He shook his head with his understanding. However, he was surprised at his candor when the next words came out of his mouth. "What is it about me gets her goin' so bad, man?"

Boone smirked at his honest question. "I wouldn't take it so personal, Dude… She's got a lot on her plate right now. With the holidays, and those jackasses in Congress, and this pissin' match with the boneheads at the school, and Sandi's dissertation comin' up…" He reached up and pulled his hat off and ran his other hand through his moppish hair with his own stress level. "And then this body washin' up at the site and you tellin' her we got drug runners in the area… Man, that stuff really messed with her head."

Nick was shocked to hear that and had to ask, "Are you serious? She's been acting like this whole thing was just a minor annoyance, or somethin'."

"No way, Dude… You know, right after it happened, she made me take her to the sporting goods place to get a gun she could keep in the cabin. And that's like so not her, man… She grew up with hippie parents and all, ya know, so that's like a huge deal." Boone shook his head as he remembered the day at that store. "Dude, I had to laugh though, here's this big non-violence, anti-gun child of hippies and before we even got the thing, she was ready to use it on the clerk at the store. Guy was being this condescending little prick, and if I hadn't been there, I swear she'd have come uncorked on the dude."

"I can only imagine one of her tirades with a gun in her hands." Nick tried to find the humor of the situation.

"Yeah, ya gotta know, though… There's only a few unforgivable sins in the Doc's eyes, and two of 'em are pity and condescension." That was a revelation for Nick, but he did his best to hold it in. "She's got a lot more patience than it shows, but those two things get under her skin so bad, she just can't shake it off."

They were interrupted by the sound of a horn, signaling to Boone that it was time to go. "Look, man… I appreciate you letting me tag along on this one… Not everyday a beach bum, science geek gets a chance to be one of the good guys. Thanks and maybe we can meet up for that paragliding thing you were talking about sometime, man."

Nick shook Boone's hand and smiled, but the moment the truck pulled away all of the air left his lungs. He looked down at his watch and realized he had two days to chew on the events of the day before he went home to Dallas. It was going to be a very long two days.