Chapter 12

Matt left the engine of his car running as he bolted through the front door of his house. Natasha hadn't picked up the phone, it happened occasionally and she had this bad habit of leaving her cell phone at home. So in his mind she could be anywhere.

"Tash." He called out as he caught his breath and tried to calm his voice. All the way he pictured in his mind Galactor green clad goons turning up on his door step and kidnapping them.

He spotted her cell phone sitting on the kitchen bench as he ran up towards the stairs leading up to the bedrooms. The silence told him they we're in that part of the house.

They had given him one day to change his mind or he would never see his wife and son again.

"Honey…Dyami…"Matt walked out into the back yard to see if they were playing on his swing set.

The yard looked to be deserted. Pursing his lips he walked back into the house, impatience taking over from his frustrations of earlier that morning. He could wait around he figured, pack some bags…

A note on the blackboard caught his attention, striding over quickly he read it again.

Luncheon- Tiny feet prints day care 12am today. Pick grandpa up along the way…Don't forget.

Of course! Matt kick himself for forgetting something so simple, she had briefly mentioned the luncheon at her old work place. The centre had been closed for the day especially for some celebration she mentioned. He was too busy playing games with Dyami to hear all the details.

He picked up the cordless phone and dialled the number-it went straight to a messaging service.

"Hi Brenda… If you get this message can you tell Tash to call me on my cell, it's urgent." Then he hung up, quickly he ran up the stairs and into Dyami's bedroom and threw a few clothes into his travel bag and some nappies. The he raced into the main bedroom and packed some practical clothes and general items for the both of them. If his instinct rang true, they need to run as fast as they could from Galactor. He hoped Tash's clothes matched-he could see the glares of he picked the wrong shirts to jeans and shoes…let alone what he packed for his son in his rush. Money he thought quickly…he needed money- they could track a credit card.

"I'll withdraw some before we leave town…he thought running out the front door he threw the bags into the back of the waiting car and dove behind the steering wheel his wheels squealed as he raced out of his driveway to find his family before Galactor did.

* * * *

Natasha Butler rounded the corner of the "Monkey play room" to look for her wayward son. She knew the game he liked to play, and she also knew he would see her before she saw him.

"Dyami…come on…where are you?" She said in a hushed tone. "They're serving out lunch soon…"

A rascally giggle gave him away- quietly she headed towards the table with a cloth thrown over it on the other side of the room. Dyami it seemed had his own strategy at play. He waited until she was close enough and he dashed out from under the table almost knocking her off balance as she tried to catch him instead he flew across room giggling the whole way and out the door. She could hear his little shoes squeaking up the hallway towards the room where the tables had been set up for the centres tenth birthday celebration.

Hide and seek is a game the little boy who would be turning two in just a few months loved to play.

"Dyami… I should nick name you the white shadow after Gatchaman…" Shaking her head she knew his stomach must have been winning out when she mentioned lunch.

Heading out the door she saw his grandfather scoop him up playfully into his arms and take him into the other room.

"So I hear…little Dyami's adopted…so sad for his real mother don't you think, to lose her son like that." An unfamiliar female voice drifted to her ears as she approached the kitchen to see if they needed some help with serving out the lunch.

"… that little boy is so lucky Natasha and Matt saved him…" She heard one of the ladies she used to work with Kelly-Anne say. "Well, any woman who'd give up a child has to be bad news… she must have been on drugs or in gaol."

The other woman grunted an agreement- Natasha felt the hairs rise up on her arms in defence of the woman they spoke so naively about.

"Natasha would never say of course why his real mother didn't want him, only that she has a meeting with her, why she would keep contact with his mother I don't know, I couldn't it would be too hard to know your child isn't really yours-" Kelly-Ann whispered in a quieter tone.

Natasha hastened her pace and stood in the doorway as the two women abruptly stopped their conversation. Kelly-Anne recovered fast and turned a smile towards a furious Natasha. Her smile dropped as she looked into Natasha's eyes.

"I came to see if you needed any help." Natasha's flat tone wasn't lost on them.

Kelly-Anne battered her 'innocent' her eye as she lightly tried to explain her conversation that Natasha had obviously overheard. "Marie was just asking about Dyami-"

"So I heard as I walked up to the door…" Natasha turned her eyes towards Marie. "I don't believe we've met."

Quickly Marie introduced herself. Natasha didn't trust herself to say any more, feeling sick on the stomach for the way her former workmate talked about her family behind her back left a sour taste in her mouth.

"Did I upset you?" Kelly-Anne put her hand in Natasha's arm.

"Please don't talk about my family that way. You have no right to judge his birth mother in any way shape or form. Dyami's my son…I'm his mother so lets just leave it at that."

Taking the salad bowl Natasha left the room and headed towards the rest of party fury still rallied inside of her.

She put the bowl down on the serving table and walked over to her father and crossing her arms protectively she looked over towards her son, with her heart on her sleeve. "Lets go…I don't feel I can stay here any more."

Concern for his daughter washed over his weathered strong features. Pulling her away from the crowd he waited for her tell him why she wanted to suddenly leave.

Natasha repeated the conversation she overheard with her father listening the whole time. He didn't respond straight away.

"Natasha, you can't run or become angry every time someone makes a stupid assumption about Dyami or Jun. Yes they were rude, but it's not good for Dyami if he grows up seeing you becoming over sensitive to comments made in ignorance."

Deep inside she agreed with her father. She had to find other ways of dealing with the emotions that rose up when people spoke of him as being second best because she couldn't have 'her own real children' as some people liked to say. Drawing in a deep breath to quell her anger she felt Dyami wrap his arms around her legs. "Mumma…hungry…"

She ruffled his hair and forced a bright smile across her face. "Anything for you Dyami…do you want a sandwich?"

He returned her smile and nodded like she had uttered the most exciting words of his day. "Wove you mumma…"

"I love you too my son." She raised her voice slightly as Kelly-Anne and Marie walked out. The guilty expressions on their faces satisfied her a little.

"Feel better now?" Her father asked winking at his grandson like the two of them shared a secret and he ruffled his thick dark hair until it stuck out all over the place. Dyami winked back and pulled a funny face lifting her spirits in way only he knew how.

"Lets find you a sandwich." Then she picked him up into her arms and walked over to the end of the table where the bread rolls had just been laid out…

* * * *

Jun and Ken casually walked into the large foyer of the security building of the ISO.

"We can make our way to the office opposite 's, the computers there have more access to the high security networks, I should be able to break into the agencies computer easier." Jun confidently told Ken. The turning of the corners of his lips told her he believed she could do it without any trouble.

"I can't believe the commotion we had this morning you'd think that people would give p trying to break into the building." The disgruntled voice of the receptionist near by caught their attention.

Jun and Ken exchanged sharp glances as they listened to more of the conversation between the receptionist and the security guard.

"Judy it's just a normal day at the office…a few loony reporters after an inside scoop on 's promotion." The guard cast a nonchalant glance in their direction, seeing their security tags he went back to his conversation.

"Well that rude man this morning really made my day…fancy pretending your family is in danger of Galactor when there are so many people out there truly needing our help." Rolling her eyes she picked up her hand bag to leave.

Ken strode over in to them just as Jun spotted Ryu walking through the security gates.

"Good afternoon." She heard Ken say to them as she turned to walk over to the surprised Owl.

"Jun, I thought you and Joe had some things to do today…so whata you doin here with Ken?" Ryu's confusion made her smile.

"Change of plans Ryu- do you know anything about a commotion this morning, a guy being kicked out of here?" Jun quizzed him.

Ryu's face lightened up a little."Yeah, some poor reporter I think…" Ryu's brows knitted together as he recalled the incident. "A tall guy dark hair about late thirties…clean cut good looking fella with blue eyes... I felt sorry for him you know because he looked like a decent person to me. Mmm… something about him was familiar I just couldn't put my finger on it… you know those guards can be rough."

Jun felt the blood drain from her face as he spoke, the man he described fitted Matt very well.

"Did he say why he was really here?" Jun looked closer at Ryu, she didn't know how intently until he began to look unsure of himself and he began to back away.

"What's goin on Jun?" He said looking around suspiciously.

"Ryu… I can't talk about it here…" She glanced over at Ken to see his face beginning to tense up as he walked away from the receptionist and the security guard.

"By tomorrow those two will former employee's of the ISO." Ken's low growl confirmed her suspicions. "Let's get upstairs we have work to do and not much time to do it in…"The Eagle delivered his next order."Ryu, get back to the base, we'll need back up, talk to Joe and Jinpei as soon as you get out of the building."

"Gonna tell me what this is all about?" Ryu backed away only slightly.

"Dyami's in danger…that's all we can say here." Jun's tone became hushed as she spoke. Ryu's eyes widened but he understood they could be under Galactor surveillance as they spoke in this part of the building.

"I'll get back there right away…stay in touch guys." Ryu turned and casually strode out of the building like he had just taken their take away coffee order. Jun knew he sensed the urgency- he just wasn't out to draw unnecessary attention to himself.

Jun followed Ken through security and into a waiting lift. They didn't speak until they reached Doctor Nambu's office suite.

"He's not here." Jun noted looking around at the plush new leather lounges. His office took up the whole floor.

"Ryu described him to me Ken, it had to be Matt." Jun stressed trusting her instincts and what she knew of him.

Ken nodded. "I remember his features when we rescued him from the bridge, he came here for our help Jun, and they turned him away like he was making up stories…" Ken fumed. "The ISO turn him away…If they those pen pushers had listened to him we could have been onto this hours ago…That damn receptionist put our son and his family in danger…"

"I know…I'm angry too Ken…" Jun quickly looked for 's personal computer. "You know he does spend a lot of time in his office these days, I forgot he chose to make it his new home as well." Jun as she sat down at the computer in an office close by the main living room.

Ken didn't say anything as he waited for her to log into the security search engine. She knew the silence meant get on with it.

"I found him in old UN pilot records, but the address looks wrong, since it's in Ameris…" Jun mused.

"If he flew fighter jets then he would have moved around a lot, the records for a pilot who's been out of service for a while may not be up to date information…hack into the agency, with 's clearance it shouldn't be too hard." Ken's voice held and edge to it that made her work faster.

"I've managed to hack into the codes for the agency… "Jun informed him, Ken had pulled up a chair beside her in the meantime.

"Good…" He said.

"Ahhh…" Jun felt the anticipation building up inside of her. "I have it… they live at 25 Curling Road Clydesdale…It's an estate not far outside of Utoland... "

"Let's move…" Ken jumped out of his chair and began running for the door with Jun hot on his heels.