Kim lay in bed listening to the steady beating of her heart, the only sound breaking the stillness in the room. It had been over an hour since Shane had angrily stormed out and Kim was fighting the sickening feeling that had come over her. For a while, she could hear him pacing downstairs and grimaced each time a drawer or cabinet slammed shut. Finally, Kim heard a door bang shut followed by an uneasy silence. She was certain Shane had left.

Tossing back the covers, Kim slung her slim legs over the side of the bed. Her restful night's sleep and the romance of the morning now seemed a distant memory. Suddenly Kim felt very tired, the events of the morning having drained every ounce of her energy. Stepping across the room, Kim reached for the matching pink satin robe that lay draped over the damsk-covered chair by the door. For a moment she looked back at the rumpled bed and the remains of the breakfast tray. Sadly shaking her head, Kim slipped out the bedroom door into the upstairs hallway.

She shakily crept down the staircase, holding onto the railing for support, the thick carpeting muffling her footsteps. Although certain Shane had left, Kim still called out his name. She was relieved to hear no response, not yet wanting to face him, leery of another argument. Postponing the inevitable confrontation till evening was for the best, Kim thought to herself. Then she'd have a little time to think and maybe come up with a way to make Shane accept or at least understand her decision.

Midway down the curved staircase, Kim spied Shane's black suitcase tossed haphazardly in the corner by the door. It lay opened with his clothes uncharacteristically strewn about. This was so unlike Shane who was always meticulous about his attire. Kim would tease him relentlessly about the way he folded and refolded everything as he packed. This disarray was an obvious sign to Kim that Shane had dressed and departed in a hurried frenzy.

When Kim reached the bottom step, she stopped short. Her eyes immediately fell upon the champagne bottle chilling in the silver bucket. She slowly walked towards the entry table, her gaze drifting downward, settling upon the velvet ring box. Kim felt tears come to her eyes and an awful pain clutched at her heart. With her hand slightly shaking, she reached for the tiny box. Taking a deep breath, she opened it and slowly exhaled. Inside was the most exquisite ring she had ever seen, a large oval diamond set low in a platinum setting encircled by a band of smaller diamonds. Her nimble fingers grasped it, taking it from its velvet resting place and bringing it to her face. She felt the coolness against her lips as she whispered, "Oh Shane."

********************************************************************************************************************

Across Town

Shane intentionally parked his car several blocks from the Salem Police Station. He needed the walk in the fresh air to clear his head and come to some understanding of the morning's events. He kept replaying the scene over and over again. Shane regretted losing his temper but he couldn't help it. If he hadn't earned Kim's trust by now, then he feared he never would. Mixed with his anger at the situation was an overwhelming sadness. It all seemed so hopeless.

Shane, walking but still distracted by his thoughts, didn't notice the dark sedan blocking the crosswalk until he reached the curb. Pausing at the last instance, Shane decided the car had actually stopped to let him pass and started to step in front of it. The car crept forward, its obvious intent was to block Shane's path. Momentarily forgetting his earlier anger, Shane now directed his fury at the driver. But before he had a chance to raise his voice, the driver, hidden behind a pair of Ray-Bans, spoke first, giving Shane a firm order. "Get in the car."

Shane was incredulous. "What?"

Still looking straight ahead, the driver repeated his request. "Get in the car."

Just as Shane was about to inform the driver he had absolutely no intention of getting in any car, the tinted rear passenger window rolled down revealing a familiar face from Shane's past.

"Shane, please get in the car," the back seat passenger said calmly. "We need to talk."

Shane blinked his eyes in disbelief and then without hesitation, opened the rear door and slid in. ISA agent David Halpern was one man that Shane trusted implicitly and if he said they needed to talk, then Shane would unquestioningly comply. "David, what's this about?"

David seemed to ignore Shane's query as he leaned over the front seat to confer with the driver. "Tyler, go west on 1-45 towards Brookville," he instructed and then turning to Shane, assured him, "We'll talk, just not here."

Shane knew better than to push David into talking. Whatever he had to say to him, Shane realized he would have to wait until David was ready to talk. He leaned back in the seat and looked over at his old comrade and friend. He hadn't changed much since Shane first met him, nearly thirty years ago. Back then Shane was the dashing young field agent determined to save the world while David had been the oh-so-serious man-behind-the-desk ready to provide the necessary facts and information Shane required to complete his assignments.

From their long association, Shane knew David to be a man of few words, one not inclined to small talk. So it came as no surprise the drive out of Salem, towards Brookville, was silent. After driving for quite a distance Shane looked out the window and noticed the cityscape had changed to greenery, tall buildings giving way to the countryside, and he wondered again what David could possibly want to discuss with him. Whatever it was, Shane knew he could trust him. He thought back to that nasty treason charge Emma had concocted with Victor Kiriakis to hurt him and Kim and remembered how supportive David had been during the investigation. David was, and had always been, a man of integrity, one Shane could depend on to be honest and forthright. Unfortunately, Shane had encountered far too many in the ISA who possessed neither one of those admirable qualities, not the least of which was his own ISA mentor, Chief George Nickerson. But Shane knew David to be above reproach and that had made him the perfect choice to lead the Internal Affairs department of the ISA. Shane knew David had passed up many opportunities to work in the field, even passed the chance at assistant director, to remain in his position heading Internal Affairs. In that post, David worked hard and experienced great success, repeatedly exposing and weeding out corruption in the ISA.

After traveling for over an hour, David finally directed the driver to take the next exit. The driver, obviously an up-and-coming agent, dutifully followed the orders and turned off the highway, cruising a bit further until David spotted a small children's park. Deciding this was a good destination, he directed the young agent to pull into the parking lot and the car came to a stop under a low hanging tree.

Even through the closed car windows, Shane could hear the gleeful play of young children with their mothers' voices calling as they chased after them. He and David stepped out of the car and started walking down a trail through the park, neither one still speaking. David was determined to find a place where they could talk without being seen and was not going to say a word, even engage in idle chatter, until then.

Agent Tyler remained in the car, waiting and watching. The ISA was still training good obedient soldiers, Shane thought to himself and then wondered, was he ever that way? As he walked towards a meadow with David, Shane remembered when he joined the ISA, following in Drew's footsteps. That was a first. But there he was, fresh-faced and eager, straight from his studies at Cambridge. It wasn't long before he overshadowed his brother, catching the eye of Chief Nickerson, who immediately took him under his wing, training him, grooming him for greatness. Shane never questioned Nickerson's reasons or motives. Rather, he was driven by his own ambition to be the best the ISA ever had. It wasn't long before Shane was tops in his field, becoming the youngest captain in ISA history. His pride blinded him to Drew's jealousy of his achievement. Shane's only regret at that time, his parent's boating accident and that they died before witnessing all his accomplishments.

Shane and David finally reached a small clearing surrounded by a grove of trees that seemed to suit David's need for privacy. The playground and children were out of their view but their laughter could still be heard. The happy sounds proved to be a stark contrast to the information David was about to share.

Turning towards Shane, he looked him directly in the eye and said matter-of-factly, "Drew has surfaced."

Shane's eyes opened wide at the news. This was hardly what he expected to hear. His initial shock immediately turned to skepticism. It was not the first time Drew had supposedly been spotted. Over the years since his disappearance, there had been other sightings and Shane, along with the ISA, checked every single one out, with all of them leading to dead ends. Shane even hired his own private investigators, fulfilling a desperate need to find his only brother, but they too always came up empty-handed. Intelligence reports concluded that Drew had died. Shane resisted that possibility, insisting he was alive, knowing that Drew, who could be very clever with disguises, was most likely simply hiding. But as the years went by and with so many experienced investigators and costly searches producing nothing, Shane eventually accepted the intelligence reports, accepted that Drew had in fact died. So it was only natural to Shane that now, after so many years, he should question this latest reported sighting. "What? Are you sure?"

"Yes, very sure." David was not one to make a statement like this lightly. "We have had several confirmed sightings."

"Where? When?" Shane tried to hide the growing excitement in his voice. "And why haven't you brought him in?"

"Every time we get close, he disappears," David explained. "We're fairly confident someone on the outside is helping him, ensuring that he stays out of our reach." That bit of information tempered Shane's excitement. He knew his brother was a man without qualms, too often tempted by unsavory forces. If someone was helping him stay out of sight, then it could only mean trouble. "But we do know he's been following someone," David quickly added.

"Who?"

David looked directly at Shane. "You … or your wife."

"My ex-wife," Shane corrected, still stinging from the morning's events.

David reached into his briefcase and pulled out a folder that he handed to Shane. Inside was his and Kim's travel itinerary for the last six months. A second sheet in the folder showed another person's itinerary. Shane couldn't believe what he was seeing. There it was, clearly printed in black and white. Every city he and Kim visited on the book tour was matched by another person's visit, most likely Drew's. Usually the arrival was a day later but sometimes only hours after, like a shadow lurking, a darkness spreading. Sadly, Shane realized this was not good.