Monday morning. She refuses to go to work, and calls in sick. Says she has come down with something horrible; probably because of the rain and weather. Since that phone call, all Maddy has managed to do is pace her apartment, swear at no one, and cry out loud. She is sure that at this point, her neighbors above her probably think she's losing her mind. They aren't too far off. Eating has been put on the back burner, as well as sleeping, bathing, and anything that does not involve thinking about Danny Archer. She keeps the phone with her at all times, waiting for him to fulfill that promise. She knows he will call again, she just doesn't know when. In the three or four times the phone has rung so far, she has never picked it up past the first ring. There will be no chance of voicemail getting the calls, now.

It's 8 AM. She's already been up for three and a half tiring hours when the phone finally rings for the first time today. In a panic, she snatches the phone away from the coffee table and stands upright, handset pressed hard to her ear.

"Hello?" Her voice is strained.

"Ja, hi. It's me."

She breathes a deep, but shaky sigh and a feeling of relief washes over her like a wave. It's him. Hearing his voice is like music, and though she forces herself not to gush and bawl like a baby at him, she feels that familiar knot rising once more. It's difficult to suppress and makes talking very hard.

"H-Hi."

"Hello Maddy."

She isn't sure what to say to him. "So. You called."

"I said I would, huh?" There's an almost happy tone to his voice, and it's maddening.

After the greeting, there is another moment of silence. She slides down to the floor against the wall, knees buckling close to her chest. She shuts her eyes and just listens. She can hear him breathing. She can imagine the rise and fall of his chest. Another sure sign that he's alive, and most definitely not dead. It's so good to hear him breathe.

"So anyway, I've got a minute or two to talk now; I'm not on a pay phone."

She bites her lip.

"Where… where the hell have you been? What happened?"

"Ah. Much as I would like to tell you, I can't just yet. I'm not out of the woods yet. I wanted to tell you I'm gonna be going on a trip soon, so you may or may not hear from me for a while, huh?"

"You planning on dying again?"

Another stretch of silence. A silence so deadly serious she thinks for a moment that it might actually be a possibility.

"Ja, well. I can't really say. I'd like to stay alive at least long enough to get where I'm going, huh? You understand."

"Not really, no."

"Well. You will in time."

The two remain on the line with one another, just listening. Not wanting to say anything to ruin this awkward reunion. Maddy is gripping a handful of her hair and tugging on it, eyes shut tightly, trying desperately to push the tears back. Her head is on her knees. She wants so badly to be able to put up a front, but she is finding it exceedingly difficult. Her heart wells up with so much emotion she can hardly bear it, and all the while, the most painful silence continues between them. She can't hold it back anymore. She chokes, loudly. A gasp. She sniffles into the sleeve of her arm and wipes away the tears as best she can, mostly smearing them all over her face.

"I missed you," she manages. "I thought… I don't know. I don't know what I thought."

"Shh, it's alright, now." He tries to comfort her, but it's never been his strong suit. "I'm alive and well, huh? I'm okay, I told you. Don't cry, you great big baby."

Maddy can't help but smile at that, and she lets out a loud, childish laugh before sniffling again, rubbing her cheeks red. He's still such an asshole.

"You can't tell me about this… trip?"

"Not yet, no."

"Are you leaving Africa?"

He is silent, but she can imagine him setting his jaw and giving her a steely glare. She probably shouldn't have asked that.

"I told you Maddy, I can't say. Everything's gonna make sense in time, I promise. I said I'd call you, huh? And I did. So please trust me, I'm gonna tell you everything when I can."

"But when-"

"Soon, alright? I said soon now, so don't push it. You ask a lot of questions, you know that?"

"I am a journalist."

"So you have been, and so you are." He laughs coolly. "Listen, I'm sorry I didn't call you sooner."

"Well, you called on Saturday."

"I know, I meant sooner than that, huh? I've been off the map."

"You were dead for two years."

"Ja, well as far as anyone but you, me and a few others are concerned, I am still very much dead, you understand? I am not around."

"Yeah."

"Good."

It was starting to make sense. She couldn't figure out the circumstances of anything, but Maddy did sort of understand, to a point. How he had managed to stay alive was a mystery, and how he had managed to stay hidden for two years was another feat in itself. Despite Van De Kaap suffering significantly for the schemes Archer had helped her uncover, it was still very much alive and well, and was still a very prevalent company with very prevalent powers. She supposed that those powers were none too happy with Archer. Staying 'off the map', as he put it, only made sense.

"…Are you going to call again?"

"Ah, well, that's a tough one. I'm going to say no, not for a long while. I can't say how long that's going to be exactly, but I'd reckon more than a few weeks."

"But… you will call again, right?"

"We'll see." And almost as if he's forgotten the purpose of the phone call in the first place, his voice springs to life. "Oh hey, while I've got you, I need to know, have you got an address I can send something to? Home, if it's possible. I don't trust sending this to an office."

"My address? I… what are you sending me?"

"Christ, I told you I can't answer anything yet. Do you or do you not have somewhere to receive packages?"

"…Yeah. I do." She pauses, rubbing her temples. He is exhausting. "You have a pen?"

"Ja, just a second." The sound of shuffling paper. "Alright, go on."

As she reads the location off to him, her mind is racing. She can't lose him again. She can't let him go and then never hear from him again, and to her, it sounds like that's exactly what he wants to do. It sounds to her like this is just some 'farewell' that he is giving her out of courtesy. But then, why would he have called in the first place? Wouldn't he have just kept silent about being under wraps? None of it makes any sense, and she wants some answers desperately, but knows full well that he is too stubborn to give her any, and his words are too tricky for her to believe them anyway.

"Thanks, huh? Keep an eye out. I'll be sending you something soon."

She swallows her questions. As difficult as it is to accept, she has to.

"Alright."

There is another silent streak. There seems to be a lot of those, when he is on the phone. What a stark contrast to their continuous back and forth when in person. It's almost refreshing, in a way.

"…You know," He begins. "I didn't mean to… I dunno. Worry you, I guess."

She laughs. "You didn't mean to worry me? You called me and I thought you were dying. I was expecting to be asked out on a date or something."

"Hey, I was fucking dying, huh? I was bleeding out." He sighs. "But… I know what you mean. I just… didn't expect to live. If I knew I was going to make it, I wouldn't have given you a ring."

"How gentlemanly. Hey Maddy, I'm dying, have fun dealing with that! Oh, and make sure Solomon's son doesn't get shot or killed or anything." There was a tangible bite in her words.

"Watch what you say, huh? I can't say who might or might not be listening in." His voice had become hushed, and she could practically imagine that hardened gaze of his.

She swallowed her next retort quickly. The last thing she wanted to do was to put him in any more danger than he might already be in, and she especially didn't want to lose him to her sharp tongue. Hopefully, there would be time for verbal lashings later. For now she would have to put her frustration in her pocket, and be content that Archer was not dead, and had time to talk to her.

"Sorry."

"Ja, well, listen Maddy – I better get going. Like I said, you'll be getting something from me soon, huh? I'll try and keep you updated on when it's arriving."

"Thanks. Thanks… for calling me."

Again, the line goes completely dead. Maddy can't move the phone from her ear. She sits there pressing the earpiece to her head, wishing the dial tone would give way to his voice once again, but when it doesn't, and when it inevitably goes silent, she presses the 'OFF' button and is once again left on the floor, reeling.

"Maddy…"

No response.

"Hey, Maddy?"

"Huh?"

"We're gonna go grab some lunch. Do you want to come?"

"Oh. Um, no, I can't. I've got… a few things I'm working on. But thanks, Leah."

The short blonde girl stares at her coworker as she leans against the door frame of Maddy's office. She gives the other woman a peculiar look, and cocks her head disdainfully.

"Alright. Well, I'm going to bring you back a salad anyway, and you better eat it, okay?" She shrugs her shoulders with concern.

"Okay."

She responds by offering Leah a small lie of a smile. She hasn't been eating or sleeping well since she last spoke with Archer, and it is showing. She's losing weight, and there are bags starting to form under her eyes. She looks perpetually exhausted, and no one in the office can figure out why, exactly. Some of them have their hunches, but no one knows for sure. She does know that people have been talking. Not only about her demeanor, but because she has been so distracted. Her work has been late, she's been a complete recluse, and she is a shell of the Maddy they all used to know.

Today, she busies herself with catching up on late projects. She was writing an article for the Times about her travels in Africa, but every other sentence she manages to jot down seems to be peppered with remnants of Mr. Danny Archer. She begins writing about the wide, beautiful savannah and finds herself wondering in her words about what he must have seen as he lay there, wherever he was, dying.

She stares scornfully at the screen, and jams down the backspace key until the words disappear.

Another sigh. She leans forward, head in her hands, still stressed. She just wants to know where he is. If he is okay. What the hell he is sending to her. There are far more questions than answers, and for once, she finds herself uncomfortable with that. Strange, for a journalist.

She watches the cursor blink against a white field, and her mind is a whirlwind and blank all at once. There are so many things she wants to write, but nothing that she thinks anyone will be willing to read.

BEEP BEEP. BEEP BEEP.

The phone startles her. Her eyes widen and she feels her pulse quicken, though she knows it is most likely not Archer. Quickly, she picks up the receiver.

"This is Maddy Bowen."

"Hello, Miss Maddy."

She slumps back into the chair and heaves a sigh. The voice is male, and it is familiar, but it is not Danny.

"Oh my goodness, Solomon, hi. It's, uh… been a while. Nice to have you call."

"Yes, it has been some time and it is nice to hear your voice. I wish I had called simply to talk, but ah, I was… I have some information I was asked to give to you, but I am not sure if a phone call is the best way to… tell you. Is… do you have a… ah… a fax… machine?"

"Oh, a fax? Yes, we have one." She pauses and knits her eyebrows thinking seriously about what she is being told. There isn't a question in her mind that Archer is using Solomon as a delivery boy, and though that strikes a nerve in her, she knows that he is doing it of his own volition. His arm isn't being twisted this time. "Um. Solomon..." She leans forward in her chair. "Can you tell me who asked you to contact me?"

Silence.

"…He is… a friend."

She pauses, contemplating what that could mean.

"Do I know this friend?"

"You have known him. This is all I can say. He will tell you whatever else you need to know by himself."

"Ah. I see."

After a quick exchange of numbers, she manages to get him to talk for a few moments about his family; his son. She asks how Dia is doing, and is more than happy to find out that he is in high school now, and he is an excellent student. He still has aspirations to be a doctor. Despite all that they have been through, they are all happily living in London, and are living a modest but comfortable life with the money from the pink. Things are well for them. She wishes she could say the same for herself. There is an unspoken tension between them; it is as if Solomon wants to divulge more than he is allowed to, but he has learned of Archer's anger in the past, and has no desire to stoke it again.

After they hang up with one another, Maddy is left to sit in her chair and ponder. She thinks seriously about what he could possibly be sending her, but has little time to think too deeply, as her fax machine sounds off with a high pitched whine behind her. She spins around in the chair and watches intently at it prints.

Inch by inch, black toner forms words on the paper, and as soon as the print heads stop, she snatches the sheet from the output tray. Her eyes scan the paper intensely. It is hand written.

TO MADDY BOWEN

PLEASE SAVE THIS NOTE

SOLOMON SENT THIS FOR ME TELL HIM THANK YOU FOR ALL HES DONE - AND I WILL CONTACT YOU SOON PLEASE DO NOT TRY TO REACH ME OR CALL SOLO AND ASK ANY QUESTIONS

JULIET FOXTROT KILO 11 NOVEMBER 2002

NUMBER 2339

9PM

D.A.

She stares at the paper, reading it over and over again. Juliet Foxtrot Kilo… what does that mean? It makes no sense to her. She narrows her eyes at it and scans it once more, but fails to make heads or tails of it, despite how hard she's trying. There's one thing she does know, though. D.A. is Danny Archer. That is his handwriting. She suddenly wishes so badly that somehow, Solomon had sent the actual note, if only it meant having a piece of him closer to her. He is so frustrating that she can barely express it.

With a final, decisive sigh, she folds the note and slips it into her pocket, alongside that cherished cell phone. She'll have more time to look it over once she gets home – once her head has cleared a bit.