Steve slowly hung up the phone and let out a deep breath. After his talk with Abe at the police station, Steve had realized that, if he was going to get information about Lawrence Alamain, it was not going to come through conventional channels. So he had put some calls out to his Merchant Marine sources.

Alamain was well-known and Steve had figured that he could at least get confirmation that Lawrence was still in Alamania. After hearing about the videotape in Carly's possession and the testing being performed, Steve's had become even more desperate to find Alamain.

Today, Steve had finally got his break. One of Tony's old shipmates was serving on a ship that ran the North Africa route. The guy had been in a bar in Alamainia and had overheard a pilot talking about having just returned from another trip to "paradise." The pilot had been identified as one of Lawrence Alamain's personal pilots and, after a few drinks, he'd revealed that he had been making frequent trips to Mauritius, a small island off the African coast.

According to the pilot, the place was wonderful. He did not know why his boss was making frequent trips to the island, but the pilot was enjoying the beach life and the availability of "female companions" at a reasonable rate.

Steve knew exactly why Lawrence was making those trips. There was no question in Steve's mind that Lawrence had set up his new testing facility in Mauritius. Now, the only question was what to do with that information.

The sound of a key in the door interrupted Steve's thoughts. He glanced at the clock as he headed for the living room and wondered why Kayla was home earlier than expected.

"Hey, Sweetness," he said as he walked into the living room. His eye narrowed as he realized Kayla was carrying a large box and he moved quickly to help her.

"What's this?" he asked, taking the box from her arms.

Kayla looked around the room and apparently ignored his question. "Where's Stephanie?"

"She's baking cookies with your mama," Steve said with a smile. "I stopped by earlier and they were having so much fun, I figured she could stay for a few hours and we'd pick her up later."

Kayla nodded, but said nothing as she hung up her coat.

Still wondering what was going on, Steve asked his question again. "What's with the box, baby?"

Kayla took a deep breath, but Steve did not miss the glint of anger in her eye. Finally, she answered. "It's my personal things from work."

Steve felt the dread spread through his body at her answer. Hoping that somehow he was wrong, he tentatively asked, "Why are you bringing your things home from the office?"

Any hope Steve had was dashed by the withering glance Kayla shot at him. "Because once you've been fired, they like you to clean your things out of your former office space." Kayla's voice was soft, but the anger was unmistakable.

Steve put the box on the floor and faced his wife. "What happened?" he asked, though he was pretty sure he already knew the answer.

"It seems the ISA suddenly decided that I was a 'security risk.'" Kayla stared intently at Steve. "They wouldn't tell Neil why, but we both know the answer to that question, don't we?"

Steve looked down, unable to hold Kayla's angry gaze. He mentally kicked himself for being so stupid. He should have known the ISA would have some kind of security at the lab that was unknown to the hospital. But he had been so desperate to get more information, he had convinced himself that nobody would find out.

"I'm sorry," he finally said. Steve cringed at the inadequacy of his words.

Kayla chuckled humorlessly. "I know you're sorry. Neil's sorry. Julie's sorry. Jordan Bishop is sorry. But none of that changes the fact that I'm no longer allowed anywhere near the lab that I helped build." Kayla ran her hand down her face and took another deep breath. "Poor Neil. He was so outraged at the ISA, I thought he might explode."

"He knows how good you are at your job," Steve said, finally looking up.

"Yeah, he knows. And he thinks the ISA is just being arbitrary and ridiculous." Kayla shook her head. "The funny thing is he was so upset that I wanted to tell him the truth, just so he wouldn't feel so bad. But, of course, I couldn't do that without getting my husband arrested."

Steve flinched at both the anger and truth in Kayla's words. He searched his mind for something he could say or do to fix this, but he knew there was nothing. He had screwed up and Kayla was paying the price.

"I never meant for any of this to happen," he said quietly. "I just thought-"

"I know what you thought, Steve," Kayla interrupted. "You thought you could get information and protect me." She sighed in frustration. "I know you had good intentions, but I'm still out at the lab."

Steve stepped over to the couch, sat down, and lowered his head into his hands. When he finally looked up, he said, "I know how much that job meant to you, Kayla. . . . If I could make it all better, I would. But I know I can't fix this."

Sighing, Kayla sat down at the other end of the couch. "No, you can't fix it. It's just something we'll have to deal with." She shrugged. "Besides, it's not all your fault. I knew I was taking a risk when I told you about Carly's project. It was top-secret and I promised not to say anything to anybody. I broke that promise and now I have to face the consequences."

"This isn't your fault, Kayla," Steve insisted. "I'm the one that screwed up and got caught."

"And you'd have never been in that lab if I'd kept my promise to Carly, so I guess we both made mistakes." Still, the anger crept back into her voice.

Steve felt a sharp pain at Kayla's words. "So you're saying it was a mistake to tell me the truth about what was going on? A mistake to trust me?"

Kayla stared at Steve for a moment. "You're my husband. I trust you with my heart, with my soul, and with my life. This is not about me not trusting you."

Steve felt the guilt replace the hurt he had felt moments earlier. He knew she was right. She had trusted him and he had blown it. She had a right to regret her decision.

They sat in silence for a few moments before Kayla said, "I guess I should consider myself lucky. At least I still have a job."

Steve looked at Kayla curiously. "What do you mean? I thought you got fired."

"Oh, I got fired from the lab," Kayla said. "But Neil felt so bad that he offered me a full-time position at the Trauma Center. I guess that's another good reason not to tell him the whole story."

Steve felt a small measure of relief that his actions had not cost Kayla her entire career at University Hospital. "I know you've enjoyed working there on a part-time basis," he said, looking for some silver lining.

Kayla nodded. "Yeah, I have. I went to nursing school to treat patients and I missed that while I was with the lab." She gave Steve a pointed look, clearly signaling she was not in a mood to forgive just yet. "But I always thought I'd make the decision about when it was time to go back to full-time nursing."

Steve remained silent, knowing nothing he said would help matters. After a few moments, Kayla stood up and gathered her coat and purse.

"Where are you going, Sweetness?" Steve asked, feeling concerned.

"I'm going to go pick up Stephanie," Kayla replied. "I haven't seen my folks for a few days, so this will be a chance to have a short visit."

Steve nodded and stood. "I'll come with you."

Kayla shook her head. "That's not necessary. I won't be that long. Stephanie's going to be ready for her dinner soon anyway."

Steve nodded, covering his hurt at Kayla's rejection of his offer to go with her. "I'll get dinner started so it's ready when you get home."

"Sounds good." Kayla turned toward the door.

As she reached it, Steve could not stop himself from calling out. "I love you, Sweetness."

Kayla paused and looked back. "I know you do. And I love you, too. See you in a little while."

Steve stared at the door for a few moments after Kayla left. He kicked himself for his stupidity, but then stopped. It was too late to go back and fix things. He had broken into the lab - for good reasons - without thinking through the consequences and, now, Kayla was paying for his stupidity. With a sigh, he shook his head and headed for the kitchen to start dinner. At least that seemed to be one thing he could do without screwing up.