Disclaimer: I really should just copy and paste this bit! I do not own Numb3rs or any of the characters. Jasmine is from my imagination.

Hope you enjoy.

Chapter Thirteen – Nuisance

Megan and Liz walked into Colby and David's room to find them talking with Don about what was going to happen when Colby was released from the hospital.

"We don't know yet when you're getting out of here."
"Today." Growled Colby.

"I don't think that's up to you dude." Said David nodding his head towards the door where Doctor Vassen stood listening.

"Oh, er, afternoon Doc."

The others in the room exchanged amused glances.

"Afternoon Agent Sinclair, Agent Granger. How are you both feeling today?"

"I'm good to go, Doc, already got my discharge papers." Responded David somewhat smugly since his partner was still in bed whilst he was up and dressed.

"Good to hear Agent Sinclair." Turning to Colby she raised an eyebrow questioningly. "I'm good, can I get out of here?"

"I need to examine you first, can everyone please step out for a moment."

The others gathered in the hallway whilst the Doctor examined him.

"If she discharges him where is he going to go?" asked Liz.

"Safe house." Replied Don immediately.

"He'll never agree to it."

"David, he is going to have to, anywhere else is just too risky for him now."

"What about Jasmine?"

"Liz and I checked her house and the boutique. Her partner hasn't seen her but will call if she hears from her. I figured we'd ask Colby for some suggestions and if he can't help we'll have to speak to Rutherford."

Just then the door to the room opened and Doctor Vassen stepped out. "He's all yours, just make sure he follows my previous instructions." She started to walk off down the corridor. "Oh and good luck, I think you might need it."

"Thanks Doc." The four agents entered the room again.

"Colby, can you think of anywhere other than her house or the boutique that Jasmine would go?"

"No, sorry, I've been trying to think of somewhere she may have mentioned, but I can't come up with anything."

"OK, Megan and I will go interview Rutherford. David and Liz take Colby to that address I gave you."

"What address?"

"We're not telling you, just trust me. The only people that are going to know where you are will be the rest of us and the AD, that's it. We're taking no more chances." Replied Don. "Look, I'm sorry, but you have no other choice."

"I know." Stated Colby resignedly. "I don't have to like it though."

A short time later the five agents left the hospital together, Megan and Don left in the direction of the Federal holding facility, whilst David, Colby and Liz headed to the safe house that Don had secured.

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Don and Megan entered the interview room and waited for Rutherford to be bought to meet with them.

"Do you really think he'll tell us anything?"

"I dunno, he has a controlling personality and Jasmine has taken that control away from him by getting Colby's help. He probably cares about her in his own twisted way." Replied Megan.

"I hope he is feeling co-operative, I don't fancy telling Colby we still have nothing to go on."

"I'll toss you for who has to tell him."

Before Don could respond the door to the interview room opened and Rutherford was led in and sat down opposite them.

"Whaddya want?" he snarled.

"Information." Stated Don.

"Why should I give you anything?"

"Because it involves Jasmine, and any help will be looked upon favourably."

"What's that crazy bitch done now?"

"She's missing." Megan replied.

"Missing huh? Don't tell me you wanna know if I know where she might go?"

"Yes. Look Jason, despite your posturing and your, shall we use the phrase poor treatment, of her at your last meeting it's clear that you still have feelings for her."

"Maybe, but she made me look like a fool. Having her FBI buddy arrest me for harassment."

Don's phone rang and he answered it, stepping in to the corner of the room furthest away from Rutherford so the other side of the conversation could not be overheard. After a few minutes he thanked the person on the other end of the line and finished the call, turning back to Rutherford. "Now there's an interesting turn of events." He said.

Jason simply raised an eyebrow.

"It seems the man that delivered the rather explosive package that injured two of my agents works for you." There was a steely glint in Don's eyes.

"Who? I dunno what you're talking about."

"Let me refresh your memory. A guy by the name of Jack Bonner, he got himself all dressed up like a delivery guy to deliver what we now know to be a letter bomb to an address where two agents were staying. It seems that Jack wasn't all that good at his job since the bomb blew up in his face, quite literally. He is now laying in pieces on a table in the morgue."

"I don't know nothin' about no bomb. Jack stopped working for me about a year ago. Professional differences."

"Is that right? So it's just a coincidence that he happens to attempt to deliver a bomb to the agent that you so recently tried to kill?"

"Agent Granger? Hey, that was business, it wasn't personal. I'm already facing an attempted murder charge, do you really think I'd be stupid enough to use one of my employees, past or present, to carry a hit out on him? Give me some credit."

"Well, you see Rutherford, everything about you tells me that you're not quite bright. Kidnapping an FBI agent, for starters, is kind of a red flag on that front." Megan chimed in.

"I admit that wasn't my finest moment, however this was not me."

"OK lets try another subject. Jasmine. Do you know where she might go? There was no sign of a struggle so we think she left of her own volition."

"I'm telling you if your Agent is mixed up with her, he is in a whole world of trouble. She comes across as all sweetness and light, but she's a devious minx. She'll wrap him around her little finger, use him, chew him up and spit him out."

"We're supposed to believe this because….?"

"Don't take my word for it, check it out for yourselves. I met her whilst taking a vacation in the UK. She was hot, still is to be truthful."

"Get on with it. I would like to get out of here today." Sighed Megan.

Rutherford glared at her but carried on. "She told me that she'd just broken up with this guy, that he was a real piece of work. Used to knock her about and stuff. Apparently she had filed countless reports with the police, but there was nothing they could do, her word against his, right? Anyways she carried on the sob story with a tale about how the neighbours hated her and were abusive because they thought this guy was great and that she treated him badly. I fell for it, hook, line and sinker. Before I knew it I was paying for her to fly to the US with me and we were engaged."

"OK, not hearing anything to overly point at her as a crazy person to be wary of."

"I found out, years later when I was in too deep to really care, that she had lied. She was the abusive one. Not physically, but verbally. If her neighbours upset her then she would damage their cars and property. I'm telling ya, this woman is a real bunny boiler. She made a real nuisance of herself, that's why she set her sights on me, she could get a fresh start in the States."

"You have proof of this?"

"Nah, but a reliable source told me there were lots of reports filed by people against her, including the so called abusive boyfriend."

"You stayed with her out of the goodness of your heart once you found this out?" snorted Don.

"What can I say? I was one hundred percent, head over heels, blinded by love for her."

"Well that's all very well, but still doesn't tell us where she might go."

"Got a pen and paper? I'll write some places down for you, but only because I wanna make sure my girl is safe from anyone who might be trying to get to me through her."

"Oh, you're a prince among men." Don rolled his eyes and handed the man a pen and pad, not believing one word of his story. He'd have agents and LAPD check the locations provided, but he'd ensure they went slowly and carefully in case any of the places turned out to be a set up by Rutherford.

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David and Liz carefully checked the street before getting out of the car in front of the address Don had given them. Liz went to the door of the house and unlocked it, whilst David remained by the car. Once she was happy that the house was safe she returned to the car and opened the rear door, allowing Colby to step out. The three hurried into the house, ensuring the door was locked behind them. They quickly scanned the downstairs, their minds taking in the layout of the house and storing it away in case they needed to get out in a hurry.

They all headed in to the open plan kitchen / sitting area. David located the fridge, pleased to see that it was fully stocked. He grabbed himself a bottle of water and looked questioningly at the others, both of them nodded and he grabbed two more bottles and handed them over.

"Dude, you look done in, why don't you head upstairs and lay down?" David said to Colby.

"Yeah, that's probably not a bad idea. I'll see you later." He disappeared up the stairs to claim one of the three bedrooms and sat on the bed. He removed the painkillers the doctor had prescribed and emptied two into his hand, taking them with some of the bottled water. He then laid down with a sigh and closed his eyes, falling asleep within moments of his head touching the pillow.

When Don and Megan arrived at the house Colby hadn't long come back downstairs after a long, dreamless sleep. Everyone was glad to see some of the colour had returned to his face, though there was still a haunted look in his eyes. Don would give anything to be able to remove that look, the last time he had seen it was when Colby returned to work after they rescued him from the Chinese freighter and David wasn't speaking to him, he had hoped that he would never have to see that look again. He knew, as before, that only time would heal that particular wound, the guilt that he felt, the best thing Don could do was give him the facts, like ripping a plaster from a wound. That decided he proceeded to fill them in on what the ERT had found, the identity of the would be bomber and what Rutherford had said.

"He isn't the most reliable of people." Stated David.

"That's true. It does warrant some looking into though. I have a couple of calls in with various contacts, but it will be a while before we hear anything back." Said Megan.

"What about the locations he supplied?" asked Liz

"I have LAPD and other Agents checking them out right now." Don looked at Colby. "You've not said anything, you OK?"

"I just can't believe what I'm hearing. We're taking the word of a crook? If I had to make a decision based on what I know now then I'd believe Jasmine over him any day."

"Colby, I realise this is difficult for you, but we have to look at this from every angle. We need to get to the bottom of who has targeted you. Looking into Jasmine's past may be the best way to do it." Megan told him softly. Her phone started ringing, she answered it, and a look of surprise crossed her face. "OK, can you get the techs to put a trace on and then patch her through." Looking at Colby she passed him the phone. "It's Jasmine."

"Jasmine?"

"Oh Colby, I'm so glad you're alright. I was so worried."

"Where are you?"

"I just wanted to let you know I'm safe, it really is better this way, at least for the time being. I just know Jason is behind this and my friendship with you is putting your life, and that of your friends, in danger. I can't let that happen."

"Don and Megan spoke to Rutherford. He denies having anything to do with the bomb."
"Well he would, he's not going to admit to trying to kill you again."

"There's something else Jasmine."

"What?"

Colby told her what Rutherford had said about her previous boyfriend and neighbours.
"Oh god, that's not true, you have to believe me. I'd never lie to you Colby."

"You need to come in and we can sort this out."

"You don't believe me, do you? I won't come in, as you put it, I will not be responsible for getting you hurt again, or worse, killed. You might as well know that I love you and because of that you won't be seeing me again. Goodbye."

"Jasmine…" but she was gone, she had hung up. He stared at the phone in his hand, not quite knowing what to say to the four people stood watching him. "She says he's lying, that she won't be seeing me again as she doesn't want to put me, or anyone else, at risk."

Don had been on his phone trying to find out how the trace was going. "They didn't get a location. Dammit. Are you OK Colb?"

"Yeah, I'm alright, I er, just need some air." He stepped outside into the tiny garden and closed the door behind him, sitting down on the bench that had been placed there.

David went to follow him out, but Megan laid a restraining hand on his arm. "Give him a few minutes by himself, he needs some time to process what she said before he talks to anyone." They looked out the glass doors to where he was sitting, feeling desperately sorry for their friend and knowing there was nothing anybody could really say at that moment that would help.

Sighing Don said "Well we'll keep Colby here, if at least one of us is here at all times he should be safe enough since nobody but us and the AD know where he is."

"I'll stay with him tonight." David said softly.

"OK, Liz, if you stay too as David isn't 100% fit. Better to be safe than sorry. Megan and I will head back into the office check on the status of the evidence from the apartment and see how the teams got on searching the locations Rutherford gave us. We'll meet you back here tomorrow morning to come up with a plan of action and schedule for the next week or so at least." The rest of the team nodded in agreement. Taking one more concerned look at Colby both Megan and Don left the house.

"I'm going to throw something together for dinner. Don't get used to it Sinclair, you and Granger will have to do your share, I'm not your mother, but right now I think Colby could use a friend and we have to eat."

David nodded and smiled. "Thanks Liz." He opened the door out to the garden and went to sit next to his partner, saying nothing, knowing Colby would speak when he was ready.

"She said she loves me."

"Man, if you hadn't been so distracted by other things you'd have seen that one coming. You've been seeing a lot of each other for the few months since you met."

"Yeah, I know, it's just that I wasn't ready to hear it and now I don't know what to think. What does Rutherford gain by lying about her past?"

"Megan says he has a controlling personality, perhaps its his way of trying to gain a bit of control back over her. Honestly, I don't know. My main concern is the effect this is having on you. Let's be honest ever since you met the woman your life hasn't exactly been plain sailing. In the last 3 months you've helped her when she broke down, been punched trying to get her estranged husband away from her property, a floral wreath was left on your door, broken glass was sent to you through the post, you were kidnapped and beaten almost to death and then caught in an explosion. By anyone's standards that's a lot of trouble, even for you."

Colby snorted. "Yeah, well trouble seems to follow me. Always has."

"That's why you have us, your friends, to keep bailing ya out." This elicited a small smile from both the men. "Seriously, lets see what Megan's contacts come back with, in the meantime we may find Jasmine and get some answers."

"I just want back to my life David. Sitting round waiting doesn't sit well with me."

"I know, but you need to sit around for a while anyway, so that you can heal properly. You aren't going to be back on duty for a while, the doctors won't allow it, even if Don would."

As if to remind Colby that he was in no fit state to do much a spasm of pain wracked his body, causing him to gasp. David was on his feet immediately and standing in front of him. "Come on, let's get you back inside. Liz is putting some food together, you should eat, take some more meds and go to bed."

"Liz is making dinner, are we sure that's safe?"

"You're about to find out Granger, it's ready." Liz had opened the door to the garden quietly so as not to disturb the two men who had appeared to be deep in conversation, only to see Colby's grimace of pain. They slowly followed her back into the house. She had put together a salad and boiled some pasta with a garlic and herb sauce she had found in the cupboard. It wasn't gourmet food, but once they had eaten they all agreed that it had been good, though Colby hadn't actually managed to eat much.

"Right, David you can clear the table and load the dishwasher, that should be easy enough, even with only one good arm. Colby, get yourself to bed, you look like hell." Liz had never been one to waste her time with niceties.

"Just as well it was my right arm that was hurt, if you get too bossy I can still shoot you! Justifiable homicide."

"How do you call that justifiable?"

"Self defence then."

"Nope, that won't work either. Just get on with it, by the time you get through whining the dishwasher could have been loaded."

"You're not gonna win this one bud!" chuckled Colby.

"Laugh it up man, you'll be enslaved in the kitchen as soon as you can stand up long enough." Retorted David.

Liz handed Colby some water and his meds, which he had left on the side and hustled him out of the room towards the stairs. "Go, before you collapse in a heap."

"Alright already, I'm going." He turned at the bottom of the stairs. "Thanks, both of you." Once in his room he stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed, once again grateful for the unwavering support.

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Once back at the office Megan headed to the labs to see if ERT had managed to uncover any more evidence in amongst the debris of David's apartment. Don went to his desk and started checking in with the teams that had checked out the various possibilities for Jasmine's whereabouts. Neither of them had any luck, nobody had heard from the woman and the ERT techs had found nothing new. Once again they were at a dead end, though everything appeared to point towards Jasmine and Rutherford.