Previously...

"It's a ... little more than usual. We're not sure yet if it belongs to James. It could be a scare tactic - designed to put us off our game so it's easier to breach our defenses - "

Ressler sighs, putting the bag of peas in his lap and preparing himself for bad news. "Reddington, what was it?"

Reddington meets their eyes, his arms wrapped protectively around Sammy, covering his ears as if the baby could hear and understand his words.

"It was a heart. We received a human heart this afternoon after you left."

Liz gasps, and Ressler purses his lips. He's angry, she can tell (angry at himself, she's sure, because it's Ressler and he blames himself for a lot of things that are out of his control).

Reddington finishes, "We're afraid Anton might be killing James' family off, and Sammy will be next on his list."

June 15th, 10:45 PM (The Post Office)

It is little more than an hour later when Ressler, Liz, and Sammy walk into the Post Office. Liz had wanted to wait until morning (the heart wasn't going anywhere) because of Ressler's injury, but of course Ressler had demanded that he was fine (and he seemed to be doing okay, except when he stood up too quickly and looked a little green around the edges). The rest of the team is waiting for them, having been called in from their warm beds to discuss recent developments - the arrival of the unknown heart.

Ressler is holding Sammy when they walk in, and he shifts the baby to his left arm, tucking his face inside his suit jacket to hide the baby's curious eyes from the most recent development in their case - the (still warm) human heart. They are in the lab, the heart enclosed in a glass container. Aram is circling it uncertainly, wincing each time his eyes fall on the red mass. Ressler feels his stomach turn, but he's seen worse (more blood, more gore, more pan and suffering and, really, the heart is nothing compared to some of the things he's seen befall people) but Liz hasn't. She gags immediately, turning around to get herself under control. Ressler wants to reach out and comfort her, but just then Samar begins talking.

"It came in two hours ago," she confirms. "Blood type does not match James. It does, however, match Sherry's blood type. We're running DNA now to confirm," she recites, and leans against the counter containing the heart. (Ressler would venture to say she's seen her fair share of blood and destruction, as well. Aram and Liz seem to be the only uncomfortable ones).

Ressler frowns, tucking Sammy's head back against his shoulder when the baby registers the voice of Samar and tries to get a look at her. He doesn't want to give Sammy nightmares, or scar him for life during the few short weeks he has him, if he can help it. "Why would Anton kill Sherry?" he asks, confusion coloring his tone. His eyes flicker to Liz as she moves to stand by his side, still a little green (and avoiding looking at the heart as much as she can) but more composed than before. "Surely killing Sherry makes it harder for Anton to get what he wants from James."

Reddington shifts from one foot to the other, and Ressler thinks that the expression on his face looks like embarrassment, but no, Raymond Reddington has probably never been embarrassed in his entire, Godforsaken life. But there's a tiny tinge of pink on the older man's cheeks when he begins speaking.

"I must apologize. I believe that I ... incorrectly interpreted Anton's intentions."

Ressler is shocked, but ever-so-slightly less so than everyone else, so he has the pleasure of taking in everyone else's surprise at Reddington's apology. He grins a little when Aram drops the pen he is holding and Samar chokes on an intake of breath.

"How so?" he finally asks, because he is the only one capable of speaking. He wants very badly to mock Reddington (payback for the years spent making jokes at Ressler's expense). But then his gaze flickers to the heart on the table and Sammy squirms in his grasp, and there are more important things at stake.

"I was operating on the assumption that Anton wanted something from James. James caused Anton to lose his business - his livelihood, his fortune, his everything. I made assumptions based on what I knew of him, which was admittedly very little. It caught me by surprise when I had Dembe run James' finances and history. There was nothing... " Reddington pauses and purses his lips. He frowns, shaking his head. "There was nothing to suggest that James had anything of value to Anton. No money, connections, history with anyone Anton might want for his own personal reasons. There was nothing for Anton to torture out of him, or his family."

Ressler puzzles over this for a second, then frowns. "Wait. Are you telling me you've had us operating under a false assumptions for... what, two weeks?" He can feel his irritation growing as he realizes that his life, Liz's life, and Sammy's life have been in danger for the past dozen or so days and Reddington was holding back information.

"Now, Donald - "

"No! Don't you 'Donald' me," he growls, cutting the older man off. The fact that he has his hands full of baby is probably the only thing that keeps him from clocking their confidential informant. "Reddington. We help you, you help us, that's the deal. But we can not do our jobs to the best of our ability if we don't have all the information. You can't hold back anything! Liz and Sammy could have died, I could have died - "

This time it's Reddington cutting Ressler off. He's smiling, which only serves to fuel Ressler's fire.

"Donald! Do calm down," he admonishes, and he chuckles. "I'm amused and ... have this strange, warm feeling blossoming in my chest at the fact that you care so much for Lizzy and Samuel." He's grinning and enjoying himself far too much for Ressler's liking.

"Boys," Liz cuts in, rolling her eyes as she walks between them, and it's not until that moment that Ressler realizes how close he'd gotten to Reddington. "Cut it out. Reddington, tell us everything, or so help me..."

Reddington holds his hands up in surrender, chuckling. "As I was trying to say, I didn't have Dembe gather this information until yesterday. I was going to tell you when the time was right."

Ressler relaxes a small amount as Reddington motions toward Aram. The younger man moves to the computer in the room, clicking a few keys. He pulls up a file, and as he's navigating, Reddington continues talking.

"I now am operating under the assumption that Anton wants revenge. The death of Sherry proves that. We know he has James and we're worried he's coming after Sammy."

"We need to close this case, right now," Ressler sighs, his voice wavering only slightly as he holds Sammy close. The baby is getting sleepy (it's been an exciting day, and it's far past his bedtime). "If we don't, Sammy isn't going to have any parents left to go back to."

The room falls silent, even Aram's shuffling coming to a halt. Ressler's comment seems to sour the mood, and when the talking resumes, it's more hushed.

Reddington speaks first. "We need to draw Anton out. We've caught several of his men, but it's amounted to nothing."

Aram clears his throat, and everyone turns their attention toward him. He grins for a brief second, then his smile falls as he gestures to Liz and Ressler. "Could we just, uh, leak information as to where Agents Ressler and Keen are? He wants Sammy, to torture James before killing him, right? That's what he's going for, revenge?"

Reddington nods, motioning for Aram to continue. The younger man holds up a finger to let them know they should wait a second while he continues typing on his computer. On the screen, he pulls up three photos. "Uh, each time Agents Ressler and Keen were followed, that we know of, we've only seen Anton's men, not him, right?"

Everyone nods. Aram continues. "I was wondering, because Anton doesn't seem like the type to, uh, sit in the shadows? I looked at all the security cameras in the areas where Anton's men were seen, and - " he holds up his finger again, and a few seconds later, new photos fly up onto the screen. "Anton was always there. All three times, just in the background. I think he sent his men first, to clear the area, you know. His men were never able to isolate Sammy, so he never came out of the shadows. But he was there. If we can get him to come after Sammy again, and rig the scene, make it look like his men have gotten the best of Agent Keen, make it seem like Sammy is alone, Anton will come out of the shadows."

Complete silence falls over the Post Office after Aram finishes speaking. He looks around nervously, his eyes wide as he flickers his gaze from one agent to the next. Samar is nodding in agreement, Liz and Ressler are hesitantly wrapping their minds around the idea, and Reddington is grinning like a proud father.

Director Cooper is the one to finally speak up, though no one knows quite when he walked in the room. "Do it," he demands, and as his words wash over the crowd, everyone begins moving and talking at once, pulling a plan together.

Ressler knows it makes the most sense, but he can't help the heavy feeling that settles in his gut as they finalize the plan.

James is all Sammy has left, he worries, and he can't help but wonder what will happen to the boy should his father not make it out of this alive.

June 16th, 7:45 AM (On the Road)

"So let me go over this again," Liz says, shaking Sammy's bottle to mix the formula before handing it into the back seat. Sammy gurgles happily, kicking the back seat. His car seat is rear facing, so Liz has to contort her body around the front seat to make sure he latches on and is suckling correctly. "We're headed up to your cabin in the woods - which Anton should already know about - where we will wait like sitting ducks until Anton and his men find us. Then!" she pauses, holding up a finger to stop Ressler, who has opened his mouth to speak. "Then! We leave Sammy alone so Anton can grab him. Whose idea was this again?"

Ressler chuckles, and Liz slaps his shoulder. "I'm serious. It sounded like a fantastic plan last night at midnight, but right now it sounds crazy. Like, super crazy. I can't believe we're going to put Sammy in danger like that."

Ressler sighs, rubbing his shoulder gently. "He'll be fine, Liz. Reddington, Dembe, and the full force of the FBI will descend as soon as Anton is confirmed on site. It's probable that Anton won't even see Sammy."

"We're using him as bait," Liz growls, re-positioning Sammy's bottle as it slips from his rosy lips.

Ressler can't argue, because they are. "He'll be fine. Neither of us will let anything happen to him, hmm?" he murmurs, reaching out to gently grasp Liz's hand in his own. He offers her a tight lipped smile, and she returns it half-heartedly. He squeezes her hand tightly before returning his own to the wheel.

"He's just lost so much already," Liz whispers, listening to Sammy's happy, sleepy sounds from the backseat. He's still slurping on his bottle, but Liz can tell from how his breathing is evening out and how his little grunts are growing quieter that he's falling asleep. He does that a lot, she reflects, smiling to herself, after his breakfast. "He's such a little man already," she muses out loud, and Ressler turns toward her, glancing at her in amusement as he turns onto a small, dirt road.

"How so?" he questions.

Liz reaches into the back and gently tugs the bottle out of Sammy's hands. He gives one small, sleepy grunt before sighing deeply and squirming into a more comfortable position in his car seat.

"He eats a ton and falls asleep immediately after meal time," she says, and she chuckles as the car slows down. Ressler shifts the car into park in front of a small, homey looking cabin. He leans back in his seat and sighs.

"Come on," he says, opening his door and stepping out, letting it close noisily behind him. "Let's check the perimeter and settle in. Sammy will have someone to go home to if it's the last thing I ever do. We'll keep him safe," he says, and he holds out his hand, letting Liz grasp onto it tightly as she holds the sleeping baby on her shoulder. If she leans into him slightly for comfort, letting Sammy rest between them as his hot breath puffs out onto their necks, neither of them mention it.

3 chapters and an epilogue to go! I'm sorry it's been a while since I've updated, hopefully I'll get back on track now. After I finish this and When I See You Again, I may take a tiny break (until I come up with a new story idea, I'm currently all out - my muse is drying up without Blacklist to encourage me!)

Please Review! (I realize that not updating makes me lose readers, but if you're still reading, please let me know what you think!)