With no way out of the country now other than to help Ray and get a ride with them, we head to a warehouse. Ray had texted Jackson the address to it and knew we had no other options.

"All right, so we've hit up a couple of zoos before. We found what works best for us is two-pronged assault, as four of us are gonna go in and four of us in here." Ray explains the plan to us as we are all gathered around a small table. "Toss in a couple of flash-bangs, and the rent-a-cops won't know what hit 'em."

I shake my head and lean forward onto the table. "Flash-bangs? Seriously?"

Mitch clears his throat and shrugs his shoulders, "The etymology of the term "Gung Ho," comes for the Chinese meaning "work together," but I find it can also mean: Excitable morons groping for a cause."

One of Ray's men steps toward Mitch, "You kidding me, man?"

Abe shakes his head and crosses his arms, "My friend, I wouldn't if I was you."

The man leans in closer to Ray, "Who are these guys again, Ray?"

"These are some old chums of mine, who are presently of the mind set that animals are uniting against us. Which we deserve by the way."

"Good for them." The woman at the table in Ray's group nods. "I mean, we have been eating 'em and keeping 'em in cages since the dawn of time."

I scoff, "I'm guessing you didn't do well in history did you."

The woman straightens up and looks toward me, offended. "What did you say, shrimpy?"

I shake my head and chuckle, "The first zoo opened to the public in 1847. I don't know what the rest of you, but that sounds closer to recent times then the dawn of time to me."

The woman tries to step around Jackson and Ray to get to me. When she does I try to move around them as well, but Jackson and Ray stop us. "Hey, hey, hey. Everyone relax."

"You better get your girl under control, buddy." The woman points toward me as Ray holds her back.

Jackson pulls me away, as Ray does the same with the woman. "Okay, okay. Everyone calm down."

Mitch takes a deep and loud inhale trying to change the subject and get everyone back on track. "All right, how about we just focus on what it is we're trying to do here. Okay?"

Ray nods towards Mitch, "Look, once we're in, one of your people can go fetch the, uh, velociraptor thing from the path-lab."

"Electroporator." Mitch looks to Ray annoyed.

"Yeah, that. Rest of us are gonna free the animals, load 'em into the truck. We're in and out in under 30 minutes."

Jamie shakes her head, "why if we try a different approach?"

Jackson nods, "Yeah, like one where we don't break into the zoo to free the animals."

The woman who had fought with me turns to Mitch, who is laughing softly, "What, you think this is funny?"

Mitch nods, "Oh, there's nothing funnier than adrenaline junkies trying to mask their thrill-seeking in altruism."

"Zoos are an idea whose time has come and gone."

"Tell that to the dozens of endangered species who have benefited from captive breeding programs."

Ray puts his hands up. "All right, relax. Relax. Anissa did a couple of tours in Afghanistan, took some mortar fire. Unfortunately, doctors couldn't save her sense of humor, as you guys can see."

I shake my head and place a hand on Jackson's shoulder since he is prepared to break up another fight. "Jackson, you were saying?"

"I was thinking that maybe we try more of a stealthy approach. One where we get in and out without security even knowing we're there."

Ray nods, lifting a hand from the table. "And how do you propose that?"

"We have a secret weapon."

"Oh, you do?"

"We do." Jackson points over to Mitch, "Him."

Anissa shakes her head, "You gotta be kidding me."

"Well, as it turns out, Miss Jarhead, I know a thing or two about zoos." Mitch nods as he gestures over to Jamie, "And Jamie's knows a thing or two about getting information from people."

I nod, "Yeah, Jamie do you think you could get the rent-a-cops to allow us into the system?"

"Yeah, I can try," Jamie nods, "just give me a little while to try."

The group nods and breaks up. Once everyone does Jackson turns to me. "Hey, I want you to stay here."

I sigh softly, "Why?"

"It's safer here, plus Jamie will need help looking over the cameras… and having you and Anissa separate is for the best right now." Jackson places his hands on my shoulders, before running them down my arms. "Especially, if we are going to be breaking the law. Something tells me even though we talked them out of the flash-bangs, they'll still bring something."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

After a little while, I walk over to Jamie working on getting access to the security system. "Hank and I are old friends. His wife and I are in a book club together. She just… she loves her John Grisham. Should I call him?... Thank you, thank you. I really appreciate this. I will make sure that I tell Hank how helpful you've been."

"Did you get it?"

Jamie looks up at me with a smile. "I did. See how many phones or iPods you can get."

I nod and head off, finding a handful of phones and iPods. "I could only find three…"

"That's fine, I found three too."

The two of us sure a little laugh and sitting them out of a map of the table we had our meeting around. As Jamie gets the cameras lined into different cameras we go about placing them on the map in the area the camera is located.

Jamie shakes her head as she and I place the cameras around the map, "I don't know about this."

I look up to her from the other side of the table. "About what?"

"This, the cameras, everything." she gestures towards the table.

I scoff softly, "But this part was your idea."

"I know, but... it should work, it should work… but what if it doesn't."

Mitch walks ups to the table and leans his palms against the table next to Jamie. "Well, if it doesn't, we're gonna be breaking into a zoo with a bunch of nut-job radicals, and nobody's gonna have our backs. But I'm not worried about that, you know why?"

"Why?"

"'Cause I have faith in you."

With that little comment I see Jamie almost melt, but before I can leave the two of them to have a little moment the group gathers around in the table and we begin talking through the plan. Ray not normally being one to really listen, is having a problem wrapping his head around the ideas "So how's this supposed to work?"

"Well, Kat and I have access to all the security camera feeds at the zoo. We have logged into the camera that looks at the zebra enclosure, the reptile house, and a few others around the zoo." Jamie points to the phone that is logged into the camera as she speaks.

"So we are gonna be your eyes and ears when you're inside the zoo. We'll know where you are, and give you a heads up if there are any security guards coming your way."

Ray shakes his head. "Seems complicated."

"Yeah, it is."

Jackson shakes his head. "No, it isn't. You two got this." The group leaves to load up and head out to the zoo. But Jackson turns to me. "You two got this right?"

I nod. "Of course, we do."

Jackson smiles and gives me a quick kiss before the group heads out. The group had been provided with headsets and Jamie and I had a walkie to hear everyone. It doesn't take them long to get to Clearwater Zoo, once they are there the team gets to work and Jamie and I can see them enter the zoo through the south maintenance entrance.

Abe comes over the walkie, "Hey, how's that?"

Jamie glances up at me. "Good job, all the cameras are still up."

I glance around the table to double check before checking if the security alarms have been deactivated, "okay, tell Mitch and Chloe that the alarms have been deactivated."

"Will do."

The channel goes quiet while Jamie and I watch the cameras. Jackson and Anissa are in the Zebra Enclosure when I notice a guard heading toward them. "Jackson, you've got a guard heading straight for you. Hide now."

Anissa quickly makes her way away from the enclosure, but since Jackson is inside he can't. Instead, he slowly moves around the zebra. Jamie calls out to him as the guard gets closer. "Jackson, the guard is 50 feet away. Jackson?"

I glance up to Jamie, "he's gotta move slow, so he doesn't spook the zebra."

The guard passes and Jackson goes undiscovered. Jamie and I sigh a sigh of relief. "Mitch, Chloe, how you doing?"

Mitch replies over the walkie. "Not terribly well." A few moments later Mitch calls back, "Nevermind."

Jamie and I scoff softly, shaking our heads. I look around the notice that Anissa and Jackson are close to the lion enclosure and there is a guard headed that way. "Jackson, I got another guard heading to the lion enclos…"

"Wait a second…" Jamie cuts me off.

"What do you mean? What's wrong?"

"Oh no. Jackson, we got two of the feeds crossed. You have to get out of there right now!"

I look up to Jamie. "We what?"

Jamie looks up to me, petrified. "Yeah, look. The camera around the lion enclosure looks just like the one by the aviary."

"Shit."

All Jamie and I hear next is an overlap of shouts and something that sounds like gunfire and the channel goes quiet. Thankfully, it doesn't take long for people to get to the warehouse we are hiding out in. When they get back I rush over to Jackson. "What happened?"

Anissa runs into the room, followed by Abe who is carrying Ray, "Ray got shot and Cody is dead because we didn't have the backup we could count on. That's what happened."

Mitch shouts to her as he enters. "Nobody said anything about guns!"

Jackson puts his hands up stepping in the middle of the group. "Everybody calm down. All right? We can point fingers later."

Mitch nods and hurries over to the table, as Anissa swepts everything to the floor. "Kat, come help me."

I nod and rush over to the area where the first aid kit should be, taking my jacket off, "Yeah."

Jamie walks over to us. "Why didn't you take him to the hospital?"

Anissa looks up to Jamie. "Because if he goes to the hospital, then he goes to prison. Besides, your friend says he can help him."

"You can?" Jamie shifts her glance to Mitch.

Mitch nods. "Between Kat and myself, I hope so. Otherwise, GI Jane here is gonna put me down."

I rush over to the table, "He'll be fine, just get us some more first aid supplies, anything else you have around here. Okay?"

Anissa nods and rushes off. "You got it!"

Mitch calls out, "And the sharpest knife you can find. And a lighter to sterilize it."

I take a deep breath, "And some rope or electrical cord, whatever you got."

The group rush around the get supplies as Mitch and I get to work. Jamie stops next to me, looking at Ray, "Oh, God, is he…"

I shake my head and look over to her, "he's passed out from the pain."

Mitch nods as he sterilizes the knife, "Probably better that way."

I nod, as Anissa and Jackson bring over some rope and cords, "Okay, tie him to the table."

"Why?" Anissa questions, while she starts doing as I ask.

"'Cause this is gonna get rough."

The two tie him down and Jackson steps up to Anissa, who is very worried about her friend, "Don't worry. Ray is in good hands. I've seen Kat pull of much worse with much less, and while his bedside manner notwithstanding, if Mitch says he can help him, he can."

The group leaves Mitch and I so we can concentrate. Mitch sighs and shakes his head, "the bullet's in a bad place. This isn't gonna be pretty. You ready?"

I nod and put most of my body weight on Ray. "Yeah."

As Mitch starts to get the bullet out Ray wakes up and gasps in pain. Looking over to in nothing but pain. I take a deep breath. "No, you're okay, you're okay. You're gonna be fine. You're gonna be okay. Ray, listen to me, calm down."

With that comment, Ray passes out again and I sigh, looking over to Mitch, who has pulled the bullet out, putting in into a small bowl we have.