As Reid drove into the parking lot of the restaurant Eleanor had suggested, he noticed that a truck from a local TV station was already parked there with the camera crew standing alongside, assembling and setting up their equipment.

"I wonder what is going on," Christine commented. "I hope no one has been hurt."

"There's only one station here," Reid observed. "It must be a human interest story of some sort."

Suddenly they heard someone call out, "There they are!" And, as they watched in horror, a group of people charged towards their car.

"Spencer!" Christine cried out. "What is going on?"

"I don't know, but we're getting out of here!" Reid turned the car sharply to the left and raced out of the parking lot. About half a mile down the road, he pulled over into a church parking lot and stopped the car.

"Spencer!" Christine was sobbing and trembling. "What were they doing there?"

"I have no idea!" he declared, dismayed. His cell phone began ringing, and he opened it to check the display.

"Eleanor?" he answered it. "You are a little late - We just tried pulling into the parking lot. Yeah, we saw them, too. I got us out of there, but not before they managed to terrify Christine. She's pretty shook up. Okay, good, I'll be waiting."

"That was Eleanor," he reported as he closed the phone. "Telling us not to go to the restaurant. It seems that as she pulled into the parking lot, she was also inundated by the news crew. She managed to get away from them and is now making some calls trying to figure out how they found out about our meeting. She'll get back to me."

"In the meantime," he continued. "Let's get you home. You're shaking."

"I don't care how they found out!" Christine declared. "I just want to go home where I am safe!" She began sobbing uncontrollably.

Reid made the trip back to Rossi's house in record time. After parking the car the garage, he gently led Christine into the house.

"You need to lie down," he decided.

"How about the couch in Dave's study?" Christine suggested, heading in that direction. "I'm sorry, but that was just too much for me to handle."

"I don't know what happened," Reid told her. "It was supposed to be a private meeting with just us and Eleanor."

"From the sounds of it, neither does Eleanor," Christine replied as she settled onto the leather couch. "And, from what I remember of her, it won't be long before she's hanging someone out to dry."

"You need to eat," Reid suggested. "You haven't eaten since breakfast, and that was five hours and 12 minutes ago."

"Well, now that you brought it up," Christine gave him a small smile. "I am kind of hungry. Why don't you see what Sonia has in the kitchen? I know there is some yogurt in the refrigerator and some bananas on the counter."

"You need more than that," Reid argued.

"If you will look further into the refrigerator, there should be a bowl of hard boiled eggs," Christine told him. "Sonia has started keeping some around for me to snack on."

"Let me check," Reid headed into the hallway.

"And, don't forget to bring something for you, too," Christine called after him.

Reid easily found the items Christine had requested, and then made a decision. When he had completed assembling their lunches, he put everything on a tray and carefully carried it back to the study where he found her asleep on the couch. He quietly put the tray down on the coffee table and stood looking at her, undecided about whether he should wake her.

As he stood there wondering, Christine's eyes opened. "Spencer?" she asked.

"Sorry. I didn't want to wake you," he explained. Gesturing towards the tray, he explained. "I decided to make you something for lunch."

"Are the food police back on patrol?" Christine's voice held a hint of laughter.

"Well, it's egg salad on whole wheat bread," Reid explained. "It's Eleanor's egg salad recipe. The twins really like it."

"In that case, I like it already."

They were sitting on the couch eating when Reid's phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, he saw that it was Eleanor DuValle.

"Hello, Eleanor?" he answered.

"Yes, it is I!" was the response.

"I'm having lunch with Christine," Reid reported. "She's sitting here with me."

"Christine is there? Good! Can you put this on speaker?" Eleanor asked. "Both of you need to hear this."

"Alright," Reid pushed the button on his phone. "You're on speaker," he reported.

"Great," the familiar voice came out of the phone. "I found out what happened, and I am furious!"

"What happened?" Reid asked.

"This morning, after I made arrangements with you, I spoke with Sheila McKay," Eleanor told them. "I told her I was having lunch with you and Christine, and I mentioned that I would talk to you two about getting together with the other survivors. I know I specifically told her not to say anything to anyone. However – "

"She didn't listen?" Christine guessed.

"No, she did not!" Eleanor snapped. "It seems her sister is trying to make a name for herself as a TV reporter, and she decided to give her an exclusive – 'Fifth Alphabet Survivor Finally Revealed'. Christine, I am so, so sorry! I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am!"

"It's not your fault," Christine repeated the familiar line. "And, I do still want to see you."

Reid smiled at Christine. "Do you want to try meeting someplace else?" he suggested.

"No!" Christine was emphatic. "Eleanor, why don't you come over here for dinner? Bring your husband so I can meet him."

"Are you sure?" Eleanor asked hesitantly. "I don't want to inconvenience you."

"Yes, I'm sure" Christine was definite. "And, I promise you, it won't be an inconvenience."

"Please come," Reid added his approval to the invitation.

After they had confirmed the arrangements for that evening's dinner, Christine stood up, stretched, and yawned.

"Too much excitement," she explained. "I think I am going upstairs for a quick nap."

"What about tonight's dinner?" Reid wasn't sure what needed to be done in preparation for their guests.

"Sonia made enough food to feed an army," Christine reminded him. "We can just reheat some things and eat family style at the kitchen table. This is going to be very informal."

"Don't we need to get anything?" Reid had a vague notion that preparing for dinner guests involved a trip to the grocery store.

"Not right now," Christine said. She looked at him shyly. "Why don't you walk me up to my room and tuck me in? You can supervise my nap."