Obsession

Disclaimer: See Prologue

A/N: I really appreciate your reviews.

Sun-Tzu The Art of War

O divine art of subtlety and secrecy! Through you we learn to be invisible, through you we hold the enemy's fate in our hands.

Chapter 10

Monday

Don passed through the metal detector in the lobby of the FBI headquarters on auto-pilot. Out of habit he retrieved his gun, cuffs and keys from the conveyor belt as it exited the x-ray machine. He made his way to the elevator while he was still sliding his gun back into the holster on his belt. His bruised body still reminded him that he wasn't completely over the effects of the explosion so he was dressed casually today, just jeans and a pull-over shirt and a jacket to wear just in case he needed to dress it up a bit.

The lobby was crowded and the elevators were quite busy. Don glanced at the door to the stairwell but quickly dismissed that idea; the stairs were not an option today, he was just going to have to wait for the elevator.

"It's good to see you up and around Agent Eppes."

The feminine voice was familiar to him and Don turned around until he could see the speaker's face. The petite woman smiling at him was one of the bureau's top computer specialists and his team had worked with her on many of their toughest cases.

"Trust me, Agent Stendhauser, it feels good to be up and around." He said returning her smile with one of his own.

The ding of the elevator interrupted them and Don stepped back as the door opened to give the people exiting room to get through. He motioned for the petite agent to step in front of him and quickly joined her before the elevator was filled to it's capacity. Once again, he had to control his impatience because it appeared that they were going to stop at every floor between the lobby and his level.

Finally they stopped at his floor and with a "see ya later" to Agent Stendhauser he quickly exited the elevator and strode purposefully toward his cubicle.

After hanging his jacket on the back of his chair, Don carefully eased himself down and switched on his computer. The rest of his team hadn't arrived yet so he decided to tackle a small pile of folders that someone had left on top of his desk.

The first one contained a set of car keys and forms for him to fill out for the bureau-issued SUV that he would be driving. There were also insurance and report forms for the vehicle that had been destroyed by the fire. He stuffed the keys in his jacket pocket and closed the folder; he would come back to that one later.

The next one contained a report on the explosion and he had just started to read it when two familiar voices could be heard coming in his direction.

David and Colby were arguing over who had to fill out the forms for the vehicle that they had driven to the warehouse but they hurried over to his desk when they spotted him.

"Hey, good to see ya man."

"Thanks, Colby, it's good to see you guys too." Don smiled back at them but let it fade when he asked. "How are you guys, any after effects from the fire?"

David sat on the edge of his desk. "We're fine, just a little stir crazy from having to sit around all weekend."

"Where's Megan?"

"She's going to be a little late. The doctor wanted to take another look at her shoulder this morning. " Colby answered.

"What about O"Connell. Why isn't he here?" Don asked with a nod at the man's empty desk.

David spoke up. "He called in and said he was going to be late, something about having to report to the Irish Embassy this morning."

Don's brow furrowed. "He was checked out at the scene, right? He wasn't hurt?"

"He's fine Don." David shrugged his shoulders. "Somehow he managed to breathe in less smoke than the rest of us, the paramedics checked him out and let him go. He didn't even have to go the hospital."

Colby crossed his arms and leaned back against his desk. "Yeah, he was lucky."

Don raised an eyebrow at the tone of the younger agent's voice. "What are you getting at Colby?"

"Look, I just think it was very convenient for him to be outside when you discovered the bomb and if my memory is correct, and it is, he asked you if he could have a look around outside."

David sat up straighter. "You think that he was in on it , don't you?"

"I'm just saying that it looks a little strange."

"It's still just speculation, Granger." Megan tossed out as she entered the room and headed for her desk.

"Hey, welcome back." Don greeted her with a smile. "What did the doctor have to say about your shoulder?"

"Just a bruise, how about your ribs?"

"Same here." He looked around at them. "Well, it looks like the whole team is back in business."

"Yeah." David added as he moved around to his own desk. "I'm ready to get these guys, so where do we start?"

"Haven't really had a chance to review anything yet." Don shifted around in his chair to give his ribs a little more relief. " All we've done so far is speculate on a few things."

"So I heard." Megan glanced at Colby. "You have any hard facts about Patrick?"

Colby shook his head. "Naw, just thinking out loud. You have to admit that his behavior hasn't been exactly normal."

"That's true, but that could mean he's just out of his element here." She met Don's eye. "Are you buying into this?

Don leaned forward and lowered his voice. "I'm not convinced that it's O"Connell but Colby's right about one thing. Someone had to let this guy know that we were coming." Frowning, he flipped over a page in the report folder. " Think about it, evidence and narcotics were already finished with the site and the only reason the LAPD was even there was to wait for our arrival."

"So why even blow up the warehouse?" Colby muttered. "Did they expect us to find something that the others missed?"

Megan inclined her head. "Maybe there wasn't anything to see, maybe we were the target."

Don closed the file and stood up, moving slowly around the room until he came to the board containing the messages. He turned to face his team and posed the question. "How many people knew that we were going to be at the warehouse on Friday?"

"Hendricks knew and he wanted to know what time we would be going, remember?"

Don nodded at David. "That's right and I notified dispatch when we left."

Megan sat down on the corner of her desk. "Don't forget, LAPD knew that we were coming too."

"Well, I'm still not ruling out O"Connell." Colby stubbornly added.

David glanced around the glass walls at the busy office. "So were seriously considering a mole in this office or with the LAPD?"

Don scrubbed his hands through his hair as he walked back to his desk and sat down. "I don't think we can afford to rule out the possibility."

The agents grew silent and shared nervous glances as they thought over the possibility of one of their own working with the elusive bomber.

Don had re-opened the file while they were talking and quickly read over some of the details. "Did you guys know that both of the LAPD officers were killed?"

"The blast got them both." David said quietly.

Don shook his head. "No, they found the body of Sgt. Sam Newell buried under the rubble near the rear entrance to the warehouse." He paused and let his gaze touch all of them. "The blast didn't kill him, his throat was cut."

"Our bomber waited until we got there to set the timer and then had to get out fast." Megan mused. "He didn't have time to wait until Sgt. Newell was out of the way."

"Right." Don nodded his head in agreement. "The ATF is still sifting through the debris but I'm betting that it will be the same type of explosive used in the Ventura bank robbery."

Don's phone rang and he quickly answered. "Eppes…..right, we're on our way." He stood up and grabbed his jacket before turning to the others. "The AD wants to see all of us right now."

It was a little unsettling to think that one of their own could be working with someone that had tried to kill them so it was a subdued group of agents that headed for the elevator.

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The elevator door opened and Charlie tiredly stepped out just avoiding an agent rushing to get in before the door closed. With a mumbled apology she quickly pressed the floor button that she wanted and was soon lost to sight.

The tired mathematician scanned the room but was unable to find his quarry. He had given his last test that morning and now he could take his time grading them. Feeling more than a little guilty that he had been unable to help his brother with any cases lately, he had decided to make amends and treat him to lunch. Charlie was really hoping that Don didn't need his help with anything because what he really wanted to do was to go home and just sleep for about two days straight.

He walked slowly through the active office responding to the various greetings and nods from people on phones or busy tapping away at their computers. He was passing by Colby's vacant desk when a chart happened to catch his attention and his eyes widened in surprise as his and Amita's name appeared at the top of the chart. Casually, he raised his head and scanned the area, no one was taking any notice of his actions so he moved some scattered files out of the way and studied the chart. A slow smile crossed his face as an idea suddenly began to develop. He removed a twenty dollar bill from his wallet and placed it and his mother's initials on an empty square. Quickly replacing the folders he turned away and headed for his brother's desk.

Charlie frowned, it didn't look like any of the team was around . "So much for lunch" he thought dispiritedly. He had hoped to discuss their Dad's recent behavior with him. His father's metaphor had been unsettling and he was certain that Don felt the same way too. Alan had stuck to the two of them like glue last night and had driven Don to work this morning so the two of them had not had an opportunity to discuss the matter.

He sat down at his brother's desk to leave him a note and his eyes fell on the case file that Don was working on. Even though he had a top level security clearance Charlie resisted the urge to open the folder, after all, it was up to Don to bring him in on a case; as the SAC that was his call. Charlie hastily wrote out his note and stood to leave when his eyes fell upon the board with the photos and the scribbled notes.

He couldn't help himself, with just that one glance something started tugging at his brain. The mathematician perused the data that the team had gathered . He rubbed his chin thoughtfully and without even realizing what he was doing his fingers automatically closed around a marker and the equations just naturally began to flow across the white board.

The crimes were forming some kind of pattern. The data wasn't complete though, he needed more information to work out the pattern.

Charlie changed his focus and moved to another empty white board and wrote out the seemingly random numbers that were written on the scraps of paper.

8 5 20 16 12 4 4 14 1 9 6 2

9 12 23 12 25 1 16 18 6 15 18 5 20 9 8

He stepped back to survey the board and immediately recognized the cipher. It was similar to one that he had he had decoded on another case so he quickly wrote the translation below the numbers.

20 8 5 12 1 16 4 1 14 4 6 2 9

T H E- L A P D- A N D- F B I

23 9 12 12 16 1 25 6 15 18 29 8 5 8 18

W I L L- P A Y- F O R -T H E I R

He scanned the area for some more numbers but was unable to locate any others. Apparently someone had a personal vendetta against the police and the FBI. Charlie found himself suddenly angry at his brother. Why hadn't Don asked him to help out on this case? Some lunatic was going after them and Don hadn't even thought to ask him to decode the message. Scowling , he re-traced his steps to the first board and reviewed the information again. A bank robbery with an explosion that killed two police officers and injured two FBI agents. A drug raid at a warehouse and two drug runners dead at the scene. Nothing was written about the warehouse explosion yet, but it was obvious to him that it wasn't an accident. He frowned, upset at the thought of his brother keeping this information from him.

Charlie was so focused on the data that he didn't realize that someone else had entered the room but out of the corner of his eye he caught a flicker of movement. He glanced to his left expecting to see his brother but instead saw the face of a stranger, a stranger who seemed to be in awe of what he had just written.

The man came closer to the boards and then turned excitedly toward the mathematician.

"I can't believe how fast you translated those numbers. I was watching you from the outer office." The man rambled on. " Your Charles Eppes, aren't you?

Charlie extended his hand and flinched when the other man eagerly grabbed it and began to shake it furiously. "Ah…..yes I am."

"It is such a pleasure to meet you. I was beginning to think my time would be up before I got the chance to talk to you." He paused briefly to catch his breath. "Wow, you know you look even younger in person."

"I'm sorry, I don't understand. Your time would be up?" he asked as he tried unsuccessfully to free his hand.

"Forgive me Professor, I should have introduced myself first. My name is Patrick O'Connell and I'm with the PSN Special Branch. I've come over here to see if your mathematical applications could help us in our investigations." Smiling broadly he added. " I've been assigned to your brother's team."

"If you have a specific scenario, I would be happy to run a few equations for you." The young man offered while still trying to disengage his hand.

Charlie was beginning to get a little uncomfortable with the man. He either didn't care or was oblivious to the fact that the young man had been trying to get his hand released. O'Connell was a lot taller than Charlie and he was finding it more than a little disconcerting to look up at the man and be in such close proximity to him.

"Look, Mr. O'Connell, do you mind?" he asked as he looked pointedly at his hand still engulfed in the larger man's gloved hand.

O"Connell looked down and seemed genuinely surprised that he was still holding on to the mathematician's hand. He released it immediately and stepped back offering an apology.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I got a little excited." he mumbled looking away in embarrassment.

"Hey, Charlie. I didn't expect to see you here."

Charlie's head swiveled around and his face broke into a grin. "Don, I've been waiting for you."

Don watched as relief flitted across his brother's features and glanced sideways at the Irishman as his brother hurried over to his side.

"I actually came down to invite you to lunch but that was about an hour ago and then I got caught up in your investigation and lost track of time." He shrugged and looked back at the board, but his face darkened almost immediately and he turned back to face his brother with a scowl on his face.

"Don, why didn't you tell me about this case?" Charlie admonished him heatedly. " You guys are a target and you didn't think to even ask me to help?"

He was startled when his brother grabbed his arm.

"Charlie, you translated the numbers!" Don ignored his rant and rushed over to the board running a hand through his hair as he read the message.

"Look, Buddy, we didn't know we were targets until now." The skeptical look on his brother's face prompted him to add. "Okay, we suspected it after the explosion, but we really didn't have any proof."

"Don, do you have anymore numbers so I can finish the message?"

His brother shook his head. "No, this is all we've got until he leaves us another one."

"Okay, let me have all of your data, maybe I can come up with something before he strikes again. I'll try data mining and see if I can find any commonalities."

Megan, David and Colby had come in during the conversation .

"All right, Charlie's back." Colby slapped him on the shoulder.

"Look." O'Connelll pointed to the board. "He translated the numbers."

"I wonder what we did to piss this guy off?" Colby asked sarcastically after reading the message.

Don glanced at Megan. "What do your profiling instincts tell you about a guy who would send a message like that to us?"

"Well, my first impression is that he's someone that is extremely arrogant. He apparently feels that we did something to him and he intends to exact some kind of retribution." she paused, gathering her thoughts. "It's really too soon to form an opinion but judging from his previous actions, he's not going to stop until he finishes his agenda...whatever that may be." Her eyes drifted to the pictures on the board and then back to Don. "And we already know how far he's willing to go."

David's phone rang before he could make a comment about the message and he turned away to answer it. He listened intently for a few minutes, mumbled a thank you and closed it again.

"That was ATF, a yacht that was anchored in the Los Pedros Marina at Port Angeles has just exploded. They found a note addressed to us on the docks."

"Looks like our guys just struck again." Don silently gazed at his team. "Okay, David you and Colby take this one, just watch your backs."

"On our way." David responded.

They left quickly and Don turned to Megan and O'Connell. " Let's get that data for Charlie so he can find us a pattern."

As the other two turned away Don put his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Come on, I'll get you a cup of coffee."

They walked to the break room and as Don handed Charlie a cup he studied his brother's features.

"Are you okay? You seemed a little spooked when I walked in." Don asked, the concern evident in his voice.

Charlie shrugged, "That ah…that detective, O'Connell. He was just a little enthusiastic."

"Yeah, well, he's something of a fan, been chomping at the bit ever since he got here to get a chance to meet you." He grinned at him. "You probably made his day by showing up today."

Charlie rolled his eyes at him and changed the subject "Any ideas how we can get Dad to relax a little?" he asked as he sat down at one of the tables.

Don sat down in a chair opposite him and started stirring his coffee. Finally, he looked up and could see the worry in his brother's eyes. He leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh before answering.

"I don't know Charlie, I'm not sure what to do. He drove me to work this morning and after we got here, he didn't want to let me out of the car." He grinned at his brother. "I had to threaten him with kidnapping a federal agent before he would open the door."

Charlie laughed out loud at his comment and leaned forward. "Last night he actually opened my bedroom door to see if I was still there." he pointed at his brother. "He probably checked on you too."

Don grinned and nodded his head but his levity faded as a thought occurred to him.

"What about you? Did you sense anyone following you around today?'

"You know, it's the strangest thing, I didn't feel like I was being watched or followed at all today." He paused and met his brother's eyes. " Maybe it was just the stress of the finals."

Don wasn't buying it though. "All the same, just stay out in the open and out of the shadows." He raised his hand as Charlie started to open his mouth. "Just humor me, okay?"

Charlie suddenly scooted his chair back and stood up effectively ending the conversation. He wasn't really in the mood to discuss that subject with his brother at the moment.

"A security alarm representative is coming to the house at three-thirty so I'm going to have to leave soon. Do you think they have everything together?"

"Only one way to find out." His brother answered as he stood up. He knew when to let a subject drop and he could tell by Charlie's facial expression that it would be useless to try to talk to him anymore about the unseen watcher. Don wasn't going to give up though, he silently resolved to discuss the matter with him later.

He squeezed his brother's shoulder as they walked back to his desk. "Listen Chuck, we'll think of something to help Dad calm down. I'll come by for dinner and we can work on it."

"That's a good idea." his brother responded. "And don't call me Chuck."

Don was grinning from ear to ear as he opened the door to the bull-pen. Charlie's response to the dreaded name "Chuck" always brought a smile to his face. Teasing his brother was one of the best "perks" of being the "big brother" and he took full advantage of it whenever the opportunity presented itself.