"How are they doing?... Roy?... Hellooo…" Haseejian's singsong voice finally cut through the torpor and the gray-haired lieutenant looked up distractedly with a deep frown.

The sergeant's smile disappeared as he dropped heavily into the adjacent chair. "What happened? Are they okay?" There was a sudden tinge of fear in his voice and he glanced up at his partner standing over them. Healey's face reflected his own unanticipated concern.

Devitt seemed to shake himself back to the moment. "Oh, ah, no no, they're fine, both of them, really." He tried a slight smile. "Sorry, I was, ah, I was just thinking about something else." His colleagues continued to stare at him, frowning. His smile got wider. "Honest to god, fellas, they're both fine, I promise. You can go see them for yourself, if you want."

With another glance at Healey, Haseejian said slowly, "Okay…"

Taking a quick look around the almost deserted waiting room, Devitt leaned forward, determined to change the tone of the uncomfortable conversation. "So what's happening with you guys? What happened, ah, back at the ranch?" he finished with an ironic chuckle that the others shared.

Healey snagged an empty nearby chair, pulled it closer and sat. "Well, turns out our early morning raid was perfectly timed. Nobody seems to have had any idea we were coming, let alone we were onto them, and we seemed to have… cut the head off the snake, so to speak."

Devitt looked from one sergeant to the other. "You mean whoever was running the whole operation was there, in the house?"

Haseejian nodded with a big smile. "Well, from what Manley and Ryan have figured out so far, the titular heads, yeah. They've still got a lot of digging to do – I think the Humboldt County District Attorney's office is going to be up to their eyeballs in this case for years – but we arrested two of the Crocker daughters and their husbands, who share that ranch house, by the way – it's a big house - and who seem to be the hands-on bosses of the heroin operation."

"The other bunch we corralled were members of the biker gang who were going to be heading out with the boats and trucks today to pick up the H coming in on that boat."

"Oh, which, by the way –" Haseejian interrupted almost excitedly, "the Coast Guard has spotted but it's still out in international waters. They're hoping nobody has the ability to get in touch with them – we found a ship-to-shore radio in the ranch house – and they're just gonna wait till they cross into our space tonight and then nab 'em."

"How far out is that again, the international waters?" Devitt asked with a frown.

Healey bobbled his head. "About fourteen miles."

"So anyway," Haseejian continued, "they were heading off to arrest Sheriff Lassiter when we left, and Ryan's working with the D.A. to get warrants for the rest of the Crocker family."

"Aren't they worried about them fleeing the jurisdiction?"

"Yeah, they thought of that, but from what we heard, it's a close family and they just wouldn't do that kinda thing. Besides, they've got enough money to get themselves the best lawyers in the state… probably the entire country… and fight this tooth and nail."

"When we left, Ryan was talking about getting in touch with Interpol, and they were arranging for one of those new drug sniffing dogs to come in and figure out exactly where they were storing the heroin. They have a dog in Vegas, of all places. We gotta get us one of those dogs," Healey finished quietly, and his partner shot him a double take.

"You're not in Narcotics anymore; what do you need a dog for?"

Healey turned slowly to the Armenian sergeant with a scowl; Devitt chuckled at Haseejian's innocuous expression.

"Five'll get you ten it was in that…dungeon or whatever it was they were holding Steve and that Steen kid in?" the lieutenant offered, trying to get the conversation back on track.

"Yeah," Healey said quickly, "so how's the kid doing? Do you know?"

Devitt shook his head sadly. "Not yet. He's, ah, he's pretty messed up, mentally, from what I've been told. They've given him something to calm him down so they can examine him… that's the last I heard."

"Has his family been notified yet?" Haseejian asked with a frown.

Shrugging, Devitt shook his head again. "I don't know… I've, ah, I've been a little tied up with Mike and Steve… I guess maybe Sheriff Manley should be the one to do the notification." He exhaled loudly. "At least it'll be good news for a change."

"Yeah, for that family…" Healey said quietly. "We still don't have any idea about those other young guys, do we?"

"I don't even want to think about it," Haseejian sighed, shaking his head. "We were lucky we got there when we did… it coulda been Steve…"

The three detectives looked at each other soberly, nodding.

Devitt sat back and almost smiled. "Listen, ah, Steve and I just finished eating and I think he might still be awake. Why don't you guys go in and see him? I'm sure he'd love to see you."

The sergeants brightened. "Yeah," Healey said with a curt nod, starting to stand. "What room is he in?"

Devitt pointed down the corridor to the right. "332."

"Where's Mike?" Haseejian asked as he got to his feet.

"He's on another floor. They want to keep a close eye on him overnight; he's going to be under till tomorrow morning. But, as bad as it looked this morning, he's okay," the lieutenant assured them again. As the sergeants began to walk away, he stopped them. "Listen, fellas… fantastic job this morning and… all week really. You guys have done a helluva job up here and nobody here is gonna forget it, believe me, especially the Steen family."

Both sergeants smiled grimly, remembering the young men who were still missing.

"Thanks, Roy," Healey answered for them both. "Appreciate that."

Devitt smiled back, but it wasn't reflected in his eyes. "Go see Steve," he urged quietly.

# # # # #

"Yeah, so when you're feeling better – maybe tomorrow? – we want to bring you back to the Crocker ranch and you can talk us through what you remember. How does that sound?" Haseejian was sitting on the end of Steve's bed, Healey perched on a tall stool nearby.

They had been greatly relieved to see the young inspector looking as well as he did when they had knocked softly on the door and entered on his invitation. They were pretty sure he was still unaware of how close he had come to disappearing from their lives, and his own, forever, so they were choosing their words carefully. That information sharing would need to come from Devitt, or possibly his own partner at some future appropriate time.

"Yeah," Steve agreed, nodding, "I think they're only keeping me in till tomorrow morning anyway, so… yeah, that sounds good." He frowned slightly. "Does someone have my clothes?"

"You mean from the motel?" Healey asked and the younger man nodded. "Oh, ah, yeah, your suitcase is still there. Norm and I took over the rooms. I'll bring it first thing tomorrow morning. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, that'll work. Ah, listen, have you guys heard about Craig Steen? Roy didn't know anything."

Haseejian shook his head. "No, we just know what Roy told us. I guess the kid is having a rough time."

Steve exhaled heavily and looked down. "I'm not surprised. He was there a lot longer than me, but…" He cocked his head slightly as he strove to remember details. "They seemed to be going pretty easy on him… I mean, I was handled kinda rough a few times, and I was tied up… but they never did anything like that to him. He was in that cell so he could move around, and they brought him regular meals and all that. But they didn't say anything to him, just like they didn't say much to me." He looked up at his colleagues. "Do you have any idea what they wanted him for?"

The sergeants resisted the urge to look at each other. Haseejian shifted position on the bed slightly. "We've heard a couple of theories but nobody's confirmed anything yet so we want to make sure we get your statement first before we share anything, okay?"

Steve knew it was protocol, of course, but something suspicious twigged in the back of his mind. He decided to let it pass.

Haseejian glanced at Healey. "Look, ah, we better get out of here and let you get some rest. We're gonna head back to Colville and see what's been happening. So we'll stop by here sometime tomorrow morning and pick you up, okay?"

Smiling warmly, Steve nodded. "Ah, just one thing, if it's okay. They're keeping Mike sedated overnight so he can, you know… get some sleep," he paused and took a deep breath "and I'd kinda like to be there when he wakes up in the morning. Can, ah, can we go to Crocker after that? I'd just like to talk to him for a few minutes after he wakes up…"

Healey looked at his partner and grinned. "That's not a problem at all. As a matter of fact, I'd like to see him too."

"Yeah," Haseejian chimed in, "that'd be great." He got up from the bed and slapped the young man's leg lightly. "You get a good night's sleep and we'll see you in the morning, okay?"

Steve nodded.

Healey was staring at him, his smile quickly disappearing. "I'm glad we got you back," he said quietly with a bit more gravity than he had intended and he tried to cover it with another smile and a wink. "See you in the morning," he said loudly as he joined Haseejian at the door and they exited quickly.

Steve continued to stare at the door long after it closed. Something was being withheld from him, he was absolutely sure now; the trouble was, he couldn't figure out what it could be. He knew Mike was going to be all right, he had seen so himself.

He let himself sink deeper into the pillows, hoping that his racing mind would eventually allow him to get some much-needed sleep.

# # # # #

"Well, good morning…"

The bright deep voice reached his ears before he even had time to open his eyes. When he finally managed to get his lids to cooperate, Doctor Cavanagh was leaning over him with a big, toothy grin. "How do you feel?"

Mike blinked a few times, running his tongue over his lips as he struggled to focus. "Woozy…" he managed to get out softly.

"That's to be expected. It'll wear off soon. Other than that, how do you feel? Any pain in your belly?"

The lieutenant's eyes glazed over momentarily as he took stock of his body. He shook his head slightly. "I feel pressure but no pain…"

Cavanagh nodded. "That'll be the stitches… that's normal, and it's good. Anything else?"

Mike shook his head slightly.

"Excellent. Okay, well, you were lucky, by the way. Your little… adventure yesterday could've ended a lot worse. As it is, you're not going to be going anywhere for the next several days if I have to tie you to the bed, just so you know." Cavanagh smiled slightly but something in his tone told Mike that the threat held merit. He didn't even try to object. "A nurse will be in shortly to help you sit up a bit and arrange for your breakfast. How does that sound?"

Mike managed a small smile. "That sounds good."

"Okay." Cavanagh grinned, patting his patient on the arm before he turned and headed to the door. "Oh, ah, someone wants to see you. You up for a visitor right now?"

Mike nodded, closing his eyes. "Sure."

Cavanagh opened the door and took a step back. Steve, dressed in his street clothes, his head still bandaged and moving slowly and carefully, walked haltingly into the room. As the door closed softly behind the exiting doctor, he leaned over the bed.

Sensing a presence, Mike opened his eyes.