Steve smiled at the children playing as he walked through the park on his way back to his car. He had managed to track down a bottle of expensive whiskey which was now on its way via special (and expensive) delivery to his Merchant Marine buddy. He just hoped he got word about the Special Forces unit soon.

He shook his head as he thought about Shane's insistence that the soldiers be left out of it. Shane did not think Steve understood his position, but that was not entirely true. Steve understood that Shane did not want anyone else getting in trouble. Steve did not want to get the soldiers in trouble either. It was just that Steve was not willing to accept that there were no other alternatives - even if he did not yet know what those alternatives might be.

If - and it was still just an if - he got word that Nowicki and Deakins were back in the States, Steve would talk to them and let them know what was going on. Maybe they would agree to help Shane, or maybe not. But even if they would not agree to testify, they might still have some information that could help. It certainly could not hurt to ask, right?

Steve could not help but wonder what he was going to do if the unit did not return stateside before Shane's trial. He shrugged his shoulders. He would just have to cross that bridge if he got there - and hope he never got there.

The smell of Italian food caught Steve's attention. He looked to his right and realized he was just about to pass one of his favorite little restaurants. He and Kayla had made a habit of getting take-out from that place at least once a week before he had been taken away.

Steve checked his watch and realized it was already late afternoon. He had been gone longer than he had intended, but it had taken some effort to track down the bottle of whiskey. Hopefully, Jamie wasn't too upset with him yet.

Deciding Italian would make a good dinner, Steve ducked into the restaurant. As he did, he caught site of two men about 50 yards behind him. They appeared to be simply strolling through the park, just as he had, but something caught his eye. He looked at them again, but they did not appear to be looking his direction. He shrugged and entered the restaurant.

Ten minutes later, Steve left with all the fixings for a good Italian meal. He had pasta and salad and some of the best garlic bread in existence.

"Damn," Steve said, as he dropped his car keys on the ground. Readjusting the bags in his arms, he bent down to retrieve them - and froze. The same two men he had noticed earlier were still there, only closer now. If they had just been strolling through the park, they should have been well past him by now.

"Dammit!" His voice was intentionally loud as he pretended to fumble with his keys. He kept his eye on the men behind him. They never even looked his direction.

Gotcha.

Steve had learned long ago that the key to avoiding detection when you were trailing someone was to act like you had no interest in them whatsoever. But that also meant looking natural and normal, and nothing looked more unnatural than ignoring somebody doing something that would naturally attract attention - like cursing while trying to pick up a set of keys.

Smiling now, Steve picked up his keys and headed for his car. He never once looked behind him, knowing it was unnecessary. When he reached his car, he went around to the other side and put the bags in the passenger seat. That allowed him to see that the two men were now stopped not far from where he had dropped his keys. They appeared to be discussing whether to go into the Italian restaurant, but Steve knew better.

Moving his head as little as possible, Steve looked around the street where he had parked. Just a few cars away was a nondescript sedan with a man inside. The man's face was covered by a newspaper, as if he were waiting for someone. Steve had no doubts about who the man was waiting for.

Steve got into his car and pulled away. He kept an eye on the rearview mirror and just before he turned the corner, he saw the sedan pull out on the street as well. Steve knew he was definitely being followed.

As he drove, he contemplated taking a few unscheduled turns to lose his tail, but decided against it. They were taking care to stay fairly far back, which meant they were more concerned with being discovered than with keeping him in their sights. This was reconnaissance. If he lost them, they would just pick him up again at home - and they would know he had spotted them.

Steve had not recognized any of the men, but he was sure they were ISA. The only other person who might be remotely interested in tailing him was Lawrence, but he had made no move before this. There was no reason he would start tailing Steve now. The ISA was a different story. Based on what Shane had said, the ISA did have a reason.

Steve pulled into his parking place at the apartment building. He got out, went around to the other side, and removed the bags of food. He fumbled around for an extra moment or two and was rewarded when he saw the sedan pass the entrance to the apartment building.

Sighing, he headed inside the building and walked to the apartment. He unlocked the door and entered, smiling as he saw Jamie on the couch, reading a story to Stephanie.

"Sorry I'm a little late," he said as he closed the door behind him.

"It's no problem, Mr. Johnson. I got my studying done while Stephanie was napping and I always enjoy sitting for her."

"And we really appreciate you being so flexible with your time. And, please, call me Steve."

Jamie nodded and smiled. Steve walked into the kitchen and deposited the bags and then returned to the living room where Jamie was gathering her things.

"I brought some Italian food home for dinner," Steve said. "Kayla should be home soon if you would like to stay and join us. There's plenty."

Jamie shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm meeting some friends later. I'll see you on Monday."

"Sounds good," Steve said as Jamie headed out the door.

After Jamie left, Steve picked up Stephanie and carried her into the kitchen. He set her in her highchair as he put the pasta in the oven to keep it warm and transferred the salad and bread into serving dishes. He had just finished setting the table when he heard Kayla enter apartment.

"Something smells really good," she said as she entered the kitchen.

"A little pasta, salad and bread from Geno's," Steve replied with a smile.

Kayla walked over for her welcome home kiss and Steve obliged with his usual enthusiasm. When they separated, Kayla smiled and said, "Just let me get my clothes changed and I'll be ready to eat."

"I think you're ready to eat now." Steve's mouth twisted into a crooked leer.

Kayla blushed as she pushed him away. "I was talking about dinner."

"I was talking about dessert," Steve said, still grinning.

Kayla rolled her eyes and walked off. As she left, Steve felt a sudden fear grip him. He had not been scared by the men following him, but what if they were also following Kayla? And what about Stephanie? She and Jamie had been here alone all afternoon. He knew the ISA was not above using his family against him if they thought it was necessary.

"Steve? What's wrong?" Kayla's voice jarred him from his thoughts.

"Nothing's wrong, Sweetness," he said, trying to look unconcerned.

"Then why were you a million miles away just then," Kayla said suspiciously. "I know that look, so don't tell me it's nothing."

Steve sighed, knowing he needed to be honest with her. He hated to worry her, but she needed to be aware and, more than that, she needed to know who was responsible if he disappeared again.

"I'm pretty sure the ISA is tailing me," he said, making it sound as nonchalant as possible.

"What?" Kayla's voice rose. "What happened?"

"Nothing happened," Steve said, trying to reassure her. "I just noticed somebody following me on my way home today. I'd like to say it's all in my messed-up head, but I'm pretty sure this is real." Steve smiled at Kayla, trying to keep the tone as light as possible.

"Why would they be following-" Kayla stopped, then answered her own question. "It's because of what Shane said, isn't it? They want to know what else you know about Lawrence's operation."

"Probably," Steve said. "They are also probably not too happy with me for spilling the truth about the rescue, and . . ." His voice trailed off.

"And what?" Kayla's tone made it clear her question required an answer.

"And they probably know that I've been trying to find the soldiers who helped Shane rescue me. In fact, I'm sure they do. I pretty much planned it that way." Steve braced himself.

"You what?" Kayla said angrily. "Why would you plan to have them find out what you are doing?"

"Because they were probably going to find out anyway, baby." Steve tried to explain. "If they think I'm running into a bunch of dead ends maybe they won't notice when I get some information from some . . . nontraditional channels."

"So what are we going to do now?" Kayla asked. "How do we get them to stop?"

"We don't," Steve said, remaining calm. "Right now, all they are doing is watching and they don't think I know about it." He gave Kayla a reassuring smile. "So we play their game for a little while. We just act normal and pretend we don't know they are watching."

"How am I supposed to act normal when I know the ISA is following us?" Kayla was incredulous.

"Not us, Sweetness," Steve replied. "I'm pretty sure it's just me." He hoped that sounded convincing, even though he was not sure of it himself.

"Oh, that makes me feel so much better," Kayla said sarcastically.

Steve could not help but smile. "It should make you feel better. I know they're there, but they don't know I know. That gives me an edge and I intend to keep it."

Kayla was silent, but Steve could tell by her expression that she was clearly not happy about the situation. Steve walked over to her and put his arms around her. "You have to trust me here, baby. I'm not going to let the ISA take me away or do anything to our family. Can you trust me to keep us safe?"

Kayla looked into Steve's eye and nodded. "I do trust you. You know that. But we've both learned that we can't control everything. What if . . . what if you can't stop them?"

Steve sighed. Kayla was right. He could not guarantee her that nothing would happen or that he could keep the ISA at bay. "I know there are no guarantees, Kayla. But we have to keep the faith that we can figure out how to get out of this situation. Can you do that?"

Kayla nodded slightly. "I'll try. But you'll tell me if anything changes, right? I can't do this if I think you're keeping something from me."

Steve chose his words carefully. He did not want to lie to Kayla, but he knew there might be a time when he would have to keep the truth from her for her own protection. "I promise I'll tell you everything you need to know, baby. We're in this together, after all."

Kayla smiled and pulled Steve close to her. They stood like that for a few moments and then Kayla stepped back. "Now, how about that dinner you promised me? The sooner we get through that, the sooner we get to dessert."

Steve returned Kayla's smile. "Now you're talking my language, Sweetness." He grinned broadly and winked at her. "Let's eat."