Rene pulled up to the curb just down the street from 4247 Maplewood. He was later than he intended, so it didn't take long for Sarah to come out to her car and leave for the Metro station. Wearing a baseball cap pulled low over his sunglasses, he had packed his suit in a bag. No need to attract further attention if it is those cartel thugs and they recognize me. He followed at quite a distance, hoping that he would notice if anyone else tried to follow her as well, but he saw no one. He parked his car and hustled to the platform, hoping he make it onto the same train as Sarah. He spotted her boarding and got on himself. He worked his way to her car.

Sarah noticed Rene, but didn't realize it was him. She thought of the man on the platform the evening before. Trying to remain calm, she casually rose from her seat and made her way to the next car. After a moment, Rene got up and followed her. Stifling a feeling of panic, she tried to keep her pace slow as she made her way through the cars.

Damn this disguise! She doesn't recognize me and she's trying to get away. He was wondering how he could get to her without creating a scene when the car jerked suddenly and she lost her balance. Sarah had no trouble righting herself, but Rene rushed to her side. "Are you okay, miss?" He lowered his glasses and looked at her. Sarah nervously avoided his gaze and did not look at his face. He whispered in her ear. "Sarah, look at me. It's Rene."

Sarah felt such a wave of relief that she almost sobbed out loud.

Thankful there was a seat nearby, Rene guided her to it. They did not say anything until they had emerged from the Metro station near the museum.

"I'm sorry I frightened you back there. It's a long story, but I have to lay low for a few weeks. I can't let anyone see my face."

Sarah briefly wondered if Matt ever had to "lay low." "Well, it works. Why are you shadowing me? Does it have something to do with that guy who tried to get on the train with me last night?"

"What? Matt just said he was worried because you were working late. There's been a little suspicious activity…"

"He doesn't know. Nothing happened, and I'm not telling him. He doesn't need to be worrying about me while he's on a case ten or eleven time zones away."

"Sarah, I need you to tell me what happened. Can we use your office?" Sarah nodded her assent as they reached the side entrance of the museum.

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In Sarah's cubicle, Rene put his notes away and got up. "Sarah, I'm going to ask you not to go out in public without a shadow until we figure out what's going on. Do you have lunch plans today?"

"No." Sarah wasn't sure whether to panic or be relieved that Rene was going to watch out for her.

"Call me when you're ready to leave tonight. If you're going to work late, I'll come here and hang out."

"There's a security guard."

Rene snorted. "I think Matt will string me up if I trust the security guard to take care of you after hours. Keep in touch if you see anyone suspicious milling about the museum. And try not to worry. That whole situation with the guy may have been a coincidence."

"What about Matt's concerns?"

"You probably have one paranoid boyfriend. But nevertheless, don't leave the museum today without calling me."

"Don't you need to be home with Patti tonight?"

"No worries. She has a thing going on with her girlfriends. I told her I'm working overtime this week. Just go with me on this, okay?"

"Okay. I'll text you. I'm not going anywhere for lunch." Sarah could not help fretting, despite Rene's attempts to reassure her. After she escorted Rene out of the offices, she went back to her desk. She sat there for several minutes, trying to put the images of the man at the platform out of her mind. Then she remembered the pastor's message from church on Sunday. She prayed for her parents and Matt, and then pulled out her laptop and got to work.

Sarah's boss, Deborah Rivers, approached her desk. "Sarah, who was that man speaking with you?"

Engrossed with her work, Sarah had not noticed the woman until she spoke. She looked up, surprised. Thinking quickly, she replied, "He's a liaison from the agency where I procured some of those materials. Mr. Gomez has offered to help me with some of the placards I'm working on this week when he isn't needed at his office. I was just giving him a list of the ones that were incomplete." Sarah held her breath.

"Very good. I'm impressed with your diligence on this project, Sarah. You are quite thorough. Since I know you have a lot left to do before Friday, I'll let you get to it. Please tell me if you need anything."

"Thank you, Deb. I appreciate it." Sarah smiled at her boss as she turned away, then sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. This may be a long week in more ways than one. At least Deb is a supportive boss. She focused on her laptop once again.

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Rene knocked on Francine's door. She looked up.

"Hello, Enriquez. Come in."

"Mrs. Beaman."

"What is it?"

"You'll remember that Granger submitted a report about suspicious activity. I even spotted one of the tails, but we have no evidence on them."

"So?"

"Granger contacted me last night and asked me to keep an eye on Sarah Stetson."

Francine leaned back in her chair. "Oh? Why Sarah? Why did he contact you, and not her parents? In fact, why did they not contact me directly?"

"I don't think the Chief and Mrs. Stetson know about a possible threat to Sarah."

"Possible threat? I am little confused here, Rene. We all think that these cartel people may want to strike again, but Sarah was not on the roof when you two were attacked. Why would she be threatened?"

Rene swallowed. "I think I'm going to be in a lot of trouble here, so before I continue further, may I close the door?"

"Go ahead. I'm dying to hear what this is all about."

Rene closed the door and came over to Francine's desk. "Matt is seeing Sarah. She was with him on more than one occasion when he was followed. He texted me last night because she told him she was working late at the museum this week."

Francine's reaction went from one of surprise to grave concern. Sarah was almost like one of her own daughters. It took her a moment to respond.

"Do the Stetsons know you are telling me this?"

"No. In fact, Matt doesn't either. He texted me last night and asked me to shadow Sarah when she went to work this morning. I saw no reason to tell you, since he's my partner and I was just helping him out. However, when I talked with Sarah, she told me that she had been tailed last night. She didn't realize it until she was getting on the train. Thankfully, the guy wasn't fast enough to get on with her."

Francine let out a breath. "This guy could have just been a mugger, but you did the right thing, Enriquez. I want you to continue to shadow Sarah. I'll work on getting you some backup—and I will put another call in to Homeland to see what's going on with their investigation. Let us know immediately if you suspect anything this evening. Does she have lunch plans—is she going out?"

"She said she didn't plan to go anywhere during work today." Enriquez started to go, and then stopped. "Mrs. Beaman, I'm the only one besides the family who knows they're dating. They're keeping a tight lid on the relationship."

"Why am I not surprised?" Francine frowned a little. Sounds familiar—Lee and Amanda kept me out of the loop for months when they got married. But she couldn't blame them for wanting to protect Sarah. "I think that's a wise decision. There's no reason for this conversation to go beyond my office. The way people gossip around here, I can imagine the Chief wants things shut up tight. And don't worry, I'll talk to the Chief about your excellent reason for my finding out." Although I may be quizzing him about letting a freshman agent date his daughter.

"Thanks, Mrs. Beaman. I have a feeling I am going to be in very hot water for telling you."

"Once the Chief finds out you were helping keep Sarah safe, he'll be fine." Francine smiled at Enriquez as he left her office, but grew serious again. I just hope nothing happens while her parents are on the other side of the planet. She checked the duty roster to see who was on for the evening before picking up the phone to call Homeland Security.

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Matt reached over and turned off the alarm clock on his phone. Six a.m. He could get to the hotel gym before the other guests, if he was lucky. It had been a good thing that the Stetsons had wanted to call it a night rather early. He was starting to feel a little more human, although he knew he was not over the jet lag yet.

After his workout, Matt was glad to find that the shower was warm. He suspected that hot water might not always be available in Atyrau, so he enjoyed it while he could. His thoughts went to Sarah. He was anxious to call her, but he needed to wait, hoping she would be at home by the time he called. There was an eleven hour time difference.

At seven-thirty he dialed her number.

"Hello?" The connection was clear, despite the great distance between them.

"Hi Sarah. It's so good to hear your voice."

"Oh Matt, I'm so glad you called. Are you okay? Are my parents okay?"

"We're fine, other than some jet lag. You sound worried."

"When you send your partner to tail me, I worry."

"I'm sorry. I should have texted you."

"I'm glad to know you care. Why the shadow, if everything's okay?"

"It's hopefully nothing. Rene and I saw a little suspicious activity before I left. When you told me you were working late last night, I asked Rene to watch out for you. I hope you're home now. I didn't hear from Rene."

"I'm still at work."

"Oh, Sarah."

"Matt, there's only so much I can bring home. I'm not going to make it to dance class tonight—not that I would want to go without you. I have a major deadline on this exhibit. I need to work late all week."

"Please don't stay too late. It's already going on seven o'clock there."

"I'll be leaving in a half hour or so—and Rene will be looking out for me, don't worry."

"Is your project going well?"

"Yes! I'm excited."

Matt smiled at her enthusiasm. "Good. I can't wait to see the new exhibit." He was quiet for a moment.

She spoke softly. "How are things going?"

"It's going well, I guess. Yesterday was a long day. I was glad to get some extra sleep last night." Matt did his best to steer the conversation away from the case.

"How is my mom? She'll never tell me."

"She seems great, Sarah. I think both of your parents are enjoying themselves for the most part." For the most part. He grimaced when he thought of the heated conversation he'd had with Lee. Sarah doesn't need to know.

Matt heard her sigh, and he felt an overwhelming yearning for her. I want to hold you so badly right now. "I miss you."

"I miss you, too. I prayed for you this morning."

"Thanks, Sarah. I'm glad you reminded me about the message at church. I prayed for you just now."

"Oh, thank you. You know, it makes me feel closer to you when I pray. I don't feel so far away."

Just say how you feel, Granger. She needs to hear it. "I wish I could hold you."

He heard her sigh again. "Me, too."

"You know, when I think of you, you're wearing that light blue dress. The one you wore when your parents barbecued for us."

Sarah laughed softly. "Really? I guess I think of you wearing different things. But a lot of the time, it's that beautiful blue suit you wore on our first date." You look so amazing in that color. It goes with your light brown hair and grey eyes… I love the photo of us…

"Sarah, things are moving along quickly with the case. Just keep praying and maybe we'll be home sooner than we expected."

"I will. In the meantime, work is keeping me pretty busy."

"Good. Hey, I hope you're not alone there. Did Rene show up, yet?"

"He came at five-thirty. He's just hanging out at an empty desk. The security guard keeps walking through."

"Is that going to be a problem with your boss?"

"No. I told her he is from the agency who donated the materials and he's helping me with some of the information on the placards." She spoke softly in to the phone. "Oh, I hate lying like that."

"I don't like lying either, but hopefully she won't question his presence this way. Besides, he is from the Agency."

"I don't think she will. She seemed to think that was a great idea."

"Good. Just be careful on the way home. No need to test God here."

"I will be careful."

"I think of you all the time, you know."

"I think of you all the time, too."

"I'll call you again tomorrow. Good night." Matt blew her a kiss over the phone.

Sarah laughed lightly and blew him a kiss back. "Have a good day, Matt. Bye."

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Lee lay quietly, not wanting to disturb Amanda. He heard the sound of a deep-pitched male voice coming faintly through the wall. Matt must be talking with Sarah. He strained to hear Matt's side of the conversation, but his voice did not carry well enough. I shouldn't be listening, anyway. He wondered briefly if they had become lovers. I don't want to think about that. Amanda insists that Sarah and Jeff never—. He always felt a wave of relief at that thought. Things are different with Matt, though. He cringed inwardly when he remembered his argument with Matt from the day before. Amanda sure called me on that one. He reached up and ran a hand through his hair. How does she always know what I'm thinking before I even know?

He felt a gentle hand on his arm and turned his body to face Amanda. She was watching him. "Good morning."

"Good morning." He smiled softly at her as he ran his hand slowly up her arm, along her shoulder, and through her hair.

"What were you thinking about? Your face was such a mixture of expressions."

Lee pulled his hand away and turned his head to look up at the ceiling. "I was remembering what an ass I made out of myself yesterday."

"Oh Lee. Forget it. We were all suffering from jet lag and maybe some culture shock. Matt's forgiven you, and Arman understands."

Lee turned back towards Amanda. "You're right. I need to accept that my daughter is going to get married some day and things just won't be the same between us. I think things are already changing. Like I said yesterday, there is already some kind of connection between those two. It's like what we had for a long time before I even told you I loved you." He reached out and idly caressed her arm again.

Amanda nodded. "I noticed it, too. When we saw them together on Saturday, and again at Jamie's on Sunday. Jennifer even said something."

"Did you see the photo she keeps next to her bed? They were all dressed up for a big date. But it was the way they held one another… Oh, I don't know how to explain it." He sighed heavily. "I have to say they make a handsome couple."

"She showed it to me. They went to Mezzo Luna for their first real date. Matt was trying to make it special. I don't know if you saw the flowers that she had in the kitchen. They were still lovely." She caressed his face briefly. "Listen, Lee. Whatever happens with Sarah and Matt, it won't change how she feels about you. You've always been a wonderful father to her, and she won't forget that. Children don't forget their parents. You know I was still close to Mother…" Amanda stopped.

Lee reached over and pulled her to him before kissing her. He smoothed his hand over her hair and down her back. "I love you." His voice was husky.

"I love you, too." She reached up and caressed his face again. She smiled as she whispered, "You know, we have a little while before we need to meet up with Matt and Arman." Her hand moved to his chest.

Lee propped himself up on one elbow. "Oh really, Mrs. Stetson?" Lee grinned back at her before bending his head to kiss her once again.