For the next two days, the FBI team and Mark, Steve, Amanda, and Jessie spent their time going over White's and Lance's rap sheets, hoping to spot some sort of new clue they hadn't noticed before. But so far, it seemed that the same old texts on the papers just kept staring them in the face.

Dimitrius spent the extra free moments he could talking with Donna on the phone. He regretted not being bale to bring her with him on this trip, but even if he had, they wouldn't have been able to spend a lot of time together. He promised himself that he'd plan to take her here on their next planned vacation, and that he'd try to get any cases dropped on him at that time reassigned to someone else.

There was a sense of anticipation mixed with dread in the air. Mark and his gang plus Jack and his task force were glad that they'd made some progress with the case, but what were they missing that would help them conclude the facts and locate Jeff White? It had been three days since Missy Frazier had turned up dead, and that made them all uneasy, especially the police department: according to what they knew, frequently a random woman would go missing every few days, then turn up dead in a few more. Which meant? Since Missy Frazier's murder, there hadn't been any reports of women gone missing. They all knew that this meant it could happen at any time, but who would be targeted next? And they had no way of knowing so they could protect whichever females in southern California were in the danger of White's bloody path.

On the lighter side, while they were in the area, Amanda gladly offered to take the FBI females on a tour through the famous landmarks in their sunny state. They gladly accepted. Jessie offered to show the guys the best food joints. "So, do you guys ever meet any famous celebrities?" Lucy asked eagerly on one of their field trips. That was a question she'd been dying to ask since they first arrived.

"Not as often as you'd imagine." Amanda smiled as they drove along. "Yes, we get to meet some, but not everyday as you East coasters may think. But, hey, have you guys ever met the President of the United States?"

"We didn't," Tara sighed. "But Jack and Bobby did. He gave them Wizards/Lakers tickets."

"Wow! From the President himself?" Amanda gasped. "I am in the wrong line of work."

"Then Bobby turned around and sold them." Sue remarked, grinning.

"What?!" Amanda's jaw dropped. "Is he crazy? Does he have any idea how much those tickets cost? Someone ought to tell him that those little babies do not grow on trees!"

"We were in the middle of a critical, high-profile case," Sue explained, "and Bobby thought they wouldn't get the chance to use their tickets, so he scalped them."

"I'll bet Jack was mad." Amanda gulped, remembering the time with the major busload crash and how a false patient had tried to bribe Amanda in getting Lakers tickets for Mark and Steve so Amanda wouldn't expose her scam. Then when the real Lakers coach had come to personally present tickets to Mark and Steve, Amanda had told the guy off and ripped the tickets up...'til the guys spilled that that had been the real coach! She was still so embarrassed about that mistake.

"Oohh," Tara grinned at the memory. "By the way, Amanda, have you ever met Adam Kinsey?"

"You mean Adam Kinsey in Final Flight?" Amanda asked.

"Mmm-hmm."

"Not yet. But I'm just dying to." Amanda cooed with a faraway look.

"Well, we have." Tara said smugly. Amanda's jaw dropped and her eyes nearly popped pot of her head.

"You WHAT?!" She blurted out, taking her eyes off the road for a second. Sue, Lucy, and Tara giggled. "How in the world...but he lives here...how is that I live in the same state he does and our paths have never crossed, but you live on the other side of the continent and you met him in person?! How does that happen? That's not fair!"

"He was chosen to play an FBI agent in his next movie," Sue explained. "So, they sent him to us to get some knowledge and experience up close and personal."

"Not fair." Amanda muttered.

"He showed up right in the middle of one of our most crucial cases." Sue added.

"Did he help you solve it?" Amanda asked hopefully. Sue bit her lip, not sure how to answer. Though all three women had been thrilled to meet him, they all remembered how much of a pain in the neck Adam had made himself out to be while they were urgently trying to save the country.

"Ahem. You could say he played his part." Tara answered in a rush, and rolled her eyes to Sue and Lucy who nodded, indicating she'd given a good answer.

"What was he like?" Amanda asked.

"Eh, he was very nice and eager to learn." Sue said.

"You lucky girls." Amanda shook her head, then turned stern again. "That's still not fair!"


"So, what do we do from here?" Myles asked with a sigh, folding his arms across his chest. He and Dimitrius were having lunch with Steve at Sami's.

"I'm open to suggestions." Steve remarked, throwing his hand up in the air. They still had no clue where to look or what to look for next. It was like they were all sitting on borrowed time, waiting for something to happen.

"We've gone over the profiles a hundred times," Dimitrius said lowly. "Feel as though I've been dragged to an abstract art museum and someone told me to find the origin of the title."

"I'm getting frazzled just sitting around, no knowing what to do." Steve huffed. "Though I noticed in the newscast on TV this morning that lots of women having been buying strong locks for their doors and windows."

"Just might cut down our work schedule to a fraction. I'm sure the lock industries are extremely grateful to us for not doing what we've been played up to do in our line of work." Myles said dryly. Dimitrius frowned and rolled his eyes.

"Real ray of sunshine, aren't you?" He retorted.

"Try." Myles shrugged. Dimitrius shook his head.

"Dad might be able to think of something." Steve stated. "I wish. He can usually come up with an impractical but undeniable theory, and right now I just wish he'd whip up something nifty."

"We've been praying for answers," Dimitrius sighed heavily. "They've got to be closer than we think."

"They usually are." Myles chimed in.

"Yeah." Steve added.


Mark was sitting thoughtfully in the doctor's lounge, taking a break and deep in concentration on what could possibly lead them to White. He took another sip of coffee. Amanda was occupied in her pathology lab, so he couldn't ask her at the moment for any suggestions. Jessie popped in at that very moment. "Hey," he yawned, opening a can of Sprite. Mark didn't seem to notice him or to have heard what he'd said. Jessie shook his head and shrugged. "Okay, if I'm gonna talk to the wall, I might as well get acquainted." He took a sip of his soda.

"Huh?" Mark asked with furrowed brows. "Oh, hi, Jess. When did you come in here?"

Jessie frowned. "Pfft. Forget it. Aah..." his voice trailed off in another yawn.

"Long morning, huh?" Mark grinned.

"Boy," Jessie shook his head in fatigue. "So, what's got your brow so furrowed?"

"Hmm?"

"What magic rabbit are you cooking up now? A good one, I hope." Jessie plopped down onto the sofa and leaned his head back. He'd been on his feet since ten the night before, with several cases to keep him hopping, and he was bushed.

"I don't know, Jess." Mark sighed. "I'm not even sure if I am cooking right now. I just wish we could find something irregular and just so obvious in Jeff White's bio."

"He likes fast food, and clothes, and...aah, he...he obviously has serious issues with members of the opposite gender. What...aah...what more do we want?" Jessie breathed heavily. Mark stared at him and made a face. Jessie must really be tired not to try and come up with his own 'bright' ideas on catching a killer.

"So, you don't have anything to offer?" Mark asked. Jessie popped his droopy eyes back open, but they immediately turned to slits again.

"W-what?" He sputtered groggily, and slowly sank down into the couch.

"I wonder if Jack or his friends have turned up anything." Mark stated, staring out the window as he took another sip of coffee.

"...ey...ould...et...ow..." Jessie muttered incoherently.

"I sure would like to know Jeff White's taste in clothes, besides jogging jackets and baseball caps." Mark went on. "Does he always buy them from the same place, or does he go to several different branches of the same company? You know, if he bought them from the same company, but different locations, it could maybe give us an idea as to where he's hiding out! He may or may not be using his disguise. I wonder if..." Mark rambled into space while Jessie just lay on his back down in the couch, sleeping away.

"You have a special guest or are you talking to your false self?" Norman Briggs interrupted Mark's deductive reasoning. Mark turned and chuckled.

"Oh, I didn't know you were there." He smiled, standing up.

"Dr. Sloan, we're in trouble." Norman groaned.

"What's the matter this time, Norman?" Mark raised an eyebrow.

"Our annual hospital fundraiser event for the children's ward is in less than two weeks, and we don't even have a creative, outstanding theme to come up with that will just draw in the donors' contributions!" Norman exclaimed.

"Oh, that's right." Mark frowned. "Mph. Well, we still have time to come up with something."

"Easy for you to say, while you're out on the loose chasing serial killers and doing the police's work for them, I'm trying to keep this facility from falling apart at the seams and us denying our patients the care they need! Believe me, amigo," Norman lowered his voice to a morbid tone, "this is all for the children. If we fail them, how can people put their faith in us?" Then he walked out. Mark just shrugged.

"Hello, Dr. Sloan." A smooth, feminine voice greeted him. Mark glanced to his left, and smiled to see Sue enter the lounge with Levi. Jack, Bobby, and Lucy followed her. "Hope you don't mind us dropping unannounced like this."

"No, not at all." Mark protested. "Won't you have a seat?"

"Don't mind if I do." Lucy sighed. "Wasn't that your Mr. Briggs we just saw walking away?"

"Yes, he has a lot on his mind. We don't even have a theme for our annual hospital fundraiser charity event for our children's ward and the big night is soon."

"Really?" Lucy asked in a devious voice. Then she smirked with squinted eyes at Sue, who just stared blankly at her. "If you'll excuse me for a moment." And Lucy left.

"So, what brings you here?" Mark inquired.

"Tara's been keeping a sharp eye on White's shopping list for this week." Jack explained. "Nothing unusual so far, aside from the trash bags."

"I'm sensing a but," Mark finished.

"Doc Sloan, you live here. We wanted to show you the companies and locations of the places where White made his wardrobe purchases." Bobby added.

"We were hoping you could tell us if they're legit or not, or the same brand, or vicinity." Sue spoke up. Mark laughed.

"I didn't know we were that funny." Jack stated.

"No, sorry." Mark chuckled. "You must've read my mind, 'cause I was thinking the exact same thing! Right before you guys came in!"

"Hey, hey," Bobby smiled and gave the older gentleman a friendly knuckle fist. "You see? Great minds do think a like."

"I sure am glad we're all on the same team." Jack grinned. Sue nodded and gestured the Sign Language signal for team.

"What was that?" Mark asked. In the passed couple days when they'd seen each other, Sue had been teaching him Sign Language at his request, but he still had a long way to go. But he was delighted with the new challenge.

"Oh, it means, 'we're a team.' " Sue smiled, and Mark tried to copy her finger movements. He fumbled slightly and she chuckled, then slowed down and showed him the proper way, then he got it.

"So, you want to show me those records?" Mark asked.

"Sure." Bobby nodded, and started fiddling his hands through his jacket. He chuckled nervously, then frowned.

"You did bring them, didn't you?" Jack asked with an edge in his voice.

"Sure thing." Bobby winked, but the more he searched, the more he didn't turn up anything. "Well, what do you? Eh, heh." He grinned nervously. "I, uh...guess I forgot them."

"Agent Manning, how do you expect me to read something if you don't have it with you?" Mark teased.

"How could you forget them?" Jack scolded.

"I told you I was gonna grab a soda, then meet you guys at the car," Bobby said, "I guess my mind trailed off after getting the can, and..."

"And you call yourself an FBI agent?" Sue smirked. Bobby shrugged.

"Sorry, doc. My bad."

"Well, guess I'll just have to look at them later."


"Mr. Briggs? Mr. Briggs?!" Lucy called after Norman as she finally spotted him. He stopped to speak with Amanda and Delores. Lucy scurried up to them. "Hey," she panted.

"Lucy, what are you doing here?" Amanda asked curiously.

"Oh, just helping out. Mr. Briggs, you remember me? Lucy Dotson? I work with the FBI, and we met a few days ago when my friend's dog ticked you off a bit."

"Oh, yes, of course." Norman smiled. "I just have some business to attend to."

"What kind of business?"

"Our annual fundraiser." Delores answered.

"Yeah, I heard about that." Lucy said casually. "I understand you're having a bit of difficulty that."

"We have no brilliant motto or even a theme for this year's benefit."

"And the hospital most certainly needs the donations!" Norman exclaimed. Amanda grinned.

"Well, you see, that is what I am here for." Lucy smiled widely, revealing her white shiny teeth. "I believe I have the perfect solution."

Delores laughed skeptically. "Well, honey, unless you can come up with a whopper of a dreamboat, I'm afraid we're out of funds."

Talking about dreamboats, Lucy thought with satisfaction. "Well, if you all care to come with me and listen for a few minutes, I can suggest something that I can guarantee will insure funds, and participation! Believe me, you're gonna love it, and so will your donors. In fact, right now I can think of some very promising prospects that are sure to be the hit of your charity event. You come too, Amanda, you're gonna want to hear this."

"What exactly, did you have in mind?" Norman asked curiously. Lucy giggled and placed her arm around his shoulder.

"Just follow me and I'll tell you!"


Steve, Myles, and Dimitrius had arrived and they'd all gone over the discussion that Jack, Sue, and Bobby had had with Mark. Levi trotted over to Jessie, fast asleep on the couch, and started licking his face. Everyone started laughing. "W-what? Huh? W...hey!" Jessie giggled as he opened his eyes, and Levi continued kissing him. Jessie's looks and reactions reminded them all of a little boy.

"Okay, okay, Levi. That's enough, buddy." Sue smiled. Levi looked back at her and sat down. Jessie sat up and ruffled Levi's fur.

"Nice to see you too, buddy." He said cheerfully.

"Do you have any idea how many germs dogs carry on their palettes?" Myles asked dryly, but Jessie ignored him.

"Aw, yes, who's a good boy? Who's a good dog, huh?" He mushed over Levi, making Sue giggle. Myles rolled his eyes. "Oh! Hi, guys." Jessie's eyes lit up when he realized that the FBI agents were present. "What have you been talking about? Anything new?" He asked hopefully.

"Well, not yet." Steve muttered.

"We would've...maybe." Jack huffed, glancing at Bobby in disapproval. "Thanks, Crash."

"Gonna have to wait 'til later." Dimitrius grinned.

"Well, I guess that gives you all just another excuse to visit the beach house." Mark teased.

"Oh, I get it." Steve said mockingly, "You're acting absent-minded just so you can pawn yourself off on my dad's luxury, is that it?"

"Aw, now you don't really think someone as charming and intelligent as myself would pull a stunt like that, do ya?" Bobby retorted sarcastically. Steve squinted at him.

"I do." Myles answered for the detective.

"Who asked you?" Jack spoke up. "Anyway, to get back in the real world, I guess we'll have to bring you those papers later, Dr. Sloan."

"I could drop by the hotel when my shift is done, before I head home." Mark suggested.

"That sounds fine."

"I hope you guys' hunch is accurate." Steve sighed.

"Believe me, so do I!" Mark agreed.

"What hunch? What am I missing?" Jessie asked eagerly, and Myles winced.


"So? What do you all think?" Lucy asked when she'd finished her suggestion.

"I love the idea!" Amanda clapped her hands together.

"Do you think they'd go for it?" Norman asked with a mixture of hope and worry.

"Ha, ha, ha. Well, whether they do or not, I am personally thrilled with it. And I'm going to vote yes no matter what any sticks-in-the mud say. Speaking for myself, I'm really looking forward to it." Delores declared in triumph.

"Oh, so am I." Amanda grinned evilly.

"So, what do you say?" Lucy stared at Norman with zeal.

"Well, I must admit, it's the best idea I've heard yet." Norman smiled. "I'll present it to the board tomorrow. I think they'll eat it up."

"Good!" Lucy smiled widely.


Sue was standing outside of the lounge, looking around for Lucy to return so they could leave the hospital. Then she suddenly felt the inescapable presence of another being nearby. Levi looked behind him, to signal her that someone wanted her attention. Sue turned to see...Steve! "Oh, hi." She smiled shyly. "I'm sorry, did you say something to me?" The tall detective smiled wryly at her and she raised her eyebrows. This wasn't the first time that a guy had looked at her that way, a guy who wasn't...Jack.

"Not yet," Steve grinned, "but I did want to have a word with you."

"Something you wanted to know?" Sue asked casually.

"Yeah," Steve turned his head to make sure no one else was looking. Sue gulped, not sure what he was intending, but she needn't have worried: Levi was right there at her side, intently watching every move Steve made. "I, uh...I've been meaning to ask you something." Steve broke into her thoughts.

"What is it?"

"Well, I wanted to tell you that you're very good, all of you, I mean, the work you do. And you all seem to work well together," Steve began. "And you have a remarkable ability that the rest of us wish we had sometimes. We could certainly use your services at Metro."

Sue's heart began to sink. She'd only just met this guy, but, boy, was he moving in fast! "Look," she interrupted sadly, "thank you for the compliment, but...I'm happy where I'm at, Steve. And I can't imagine doing anything else. So, thank you, but I don't think I could leave my job or friends and transfer out here. I'm sorry, but I just...can't." Steve's brows narrowed in confusion and he snickered.

"What are you talking about?" He sputtered.

"Well, weren't you going to insist on me moving here?" Sue asked.

"Eh, noo. But that doesn't sound like a bad idea." Steve chuckled and Sue frowned. "Sue, relax. Though I'd like that thought, that's a long way from what I was planning to ask you!" Sue nodded in half-relief. "Ahem. You say you're close with all your partners, right?"

"Mostly, yeah." Sue said cautiously.

"I hope you won't think I'm being forward, but...I just couldn't help noticing Tara and what an amazing person she is." Steve confessed, staring at the floor. Sue's eyebrows rose up high and her eyes lit up in relief. It wasn't her he wanted to ask out, it was her friend!

"You have?" She prodded for him to go on.

"Yeah." Steve nodded. "She's smart, she's efficient, she's very laid-back considering the high-profile research she has to do, she can whip up some good comebacks, and...if you don't mind me saying so, she's quite a looker. In fact, I'm gonna take my life into my hands and just say that she's very attractive." Sue smiled warmly.

"You've got good eyes, Lt. Sloan." She stated.

"I don't get to have that said to me, every day." Steve grinned widely. "But, uh...what I wanted to ask you was...is she going out with anybody?"

"Mmm, well," Sue began. This reminded her of when Adam Kinsey the actor had asked the same question. "Well, I can't exactly say for sure. I'm afraid I don't have a direct answer for you." Steve sighed. "But, I know someone who does!"

"Who?" Steve asked quickly.

"You might want to just ask Tara yourself." Sue suggested.

"What do you think she'll say?"

"You'll have to ask her that."

"Hey, thanks." Steve smiled warmly. He was tempted to kiss her lightly on the cheek, but wasn't sure if he should. Maybe she'd appreciate a different approach. "How do you say 'thank you'? In Sign Language?" Sue pulled her open palm away from her lips and mouthed 'thank you'. "Like that?" Steve asked as he tried it.

"You got it." Sue nodded.

"You think you could do me a favor?"

"Mmm, maybe. What do you want now?" Sue inquired.

"If it's not too much trouble, you think you could put in a good word for me?" Steve put on the best little boy pleading face he could muster, hoping she'd give in. Sue touched his shoulder.

"Maybe I can, but look," she explained, "if you really like her, just be yourself. Believe me, it'll save you a lot of pressure."

"You sure?"

"That's the best way I know how to truly get to know someone."

"But...what if it's not enough?"

"Well, I guess that's a risk you'll just have to take." Sue shrugged.

"Not exactly the answer I was hoping for, but..." Steve signed 'thank you'.


Inside the lounge, Jack was watching the two through the blinds, and he felt himself growing hot under the collar. He actually tugged on his neck tie. This wasn't the first time that he'd felt this way, whenever a guy was acting very interested in Sue. The last time she'd let herself get involved with someone, it had been Tony, and he'd turned out to be a great FBI agent, but a lousy, deceitful man and Jack didn't want to see that happen again! Though Jack felt that Steve was absolutely trustworthy and that he'd never hurt Sue, the scene of them standing so close together still made him incredibly nervous. He always had such a hard time sorting these feelings out: he didn't want to see Sue get hurt, but also he strongly felt that taking care of her was his responsibility, that no other guy on earth-maybe save Bobby-could fill that role as good as he could or that any other guy knew Sue the way he did!

Lucy was just walking around the corner and stopped in her tracks as she noticed Sue standing there with Dr. Sloan's tall, robust, handsome son. "Hey, uh...any idea what they're saying?" Steve asked in a whisper, pointing over to Jessie and leaning very close to Sue's face. Lucy saw the exchange and couldn't peel her eyes away from it. Sue just stared the detective curiously.

"Probably." She simply stated. She could easily read Jessie's lips. He was speaking to a nurse about a possibly needed appendectomy for one of his patients, then he also mentioned an MRI for another patient's skull.

"Care to share it?" Steve asked hungrily, eager to see her at work and also wanting to know if Jessie was sweet-talking the girl-just another tidbit he could use to push Jessie's buttons once in a while when the opportunity called for it.

"Probably not." Sue shook her had, grinning.

"Oh." Steve frowned in disappointment.

"Hi," Lucy spoke smoothly as she walked up to them.

"Oh, hi. There you are!" Sue exclaimed. "I think we're ready to go, but we've been waiting for you. Where have you been?"

"Oh, just doing a little assistance for the good of this hospital. So, uh...what are you up to?"

"Us? Nothing, we were just talking." Sue said innocently.

"Eh-huh." Lucy smirked. Steve rolled his eyes.

"Ahem. We're, uh...ready to go." Jack gulped loudly behind them. He couldn't take anymore of this. "I guess we'll be seeing you later this evening, Dr. Sloan."

"See ya then." Mark waved with a smile.

"Will we be seeing you too, Lt.?" Lucy asked.

"Probably not." Steve shook his head. "But I'm sure we'll be gathering together soon." Lucy glanced over to Sue, but didn't find any disappointment there.

"Well, it was nice talking to you." Sue said to Steve. "And good luck."

"Thanks." Steve pursed his lips.

"So, what was that about?" Mark asked Steve as they watched the agents depart.

"A little fem-nine advice." Steve sighed.


"Jack, you all right, mate? You look a bit flushed." Bobby remarked, wrapping his arm around his pal. Jack almost jumped at the voice and the touch.

"Huh? What? Oh, n-nothing." Jack stammered. "I, just hope we can get something out of those records."

"Yeah." Bobby agreed.

"So?" Lucy asked as she leaned in close to Sue.

"So?" Sue repeated.

"So?"

"So what?"

"Aw, don't play innocent with me, girl," Lucy teased. "I saw you and Steve talking together! What was that about?" Sue rolled her eyes: Lucy was on her roll again.

"Nothing. We were just talking." She answered.

"Uh-huh." Lucy retorted doubtfully.

"Lucy, it's not what you think. Really! We were just talking."

"Does Jack know about this?"

"There's nothing to know! Steve just wanted to ask me a question."

"So, when are you two going out together?"

"We're not!" Sue huffed in frustration.

"So, he didn't ask you out?"

"No. Not me."

"Oh?" Lucy's eyebrows rose.


Ho, ho, ho. What is Lucy up to this time? Anyone have any ideas on what she could be planning for the fundraiser event? I can't wait to post that, but it's gonna be a while.

The next chapter is where things get very interesting and the real action begins! Hope you enjoyed this one.