Chapter 55: Best in Show (Part Two)
MacGyver, Joanna and Frog arrived at their upscale Minneapolis hotel early the following afternoon. They settled into their connecting rooms and grabbed a bite to eat before heading to the exhibition hall next door where the Greater Midwest Dog Show was being held. While Jo, with Frog on a leash, wandered around the nearly empty space to get the dog comfortable in the strange environment, Mac took a more structured approach to his tour, trying to think like a criminal dog-napper hoping to find where they would most likely be once the show started. However, with basically no background information to go on, he found his task all but impossible which frustrated him immensely.
"You okay?" Jo asked, meeting up with him just as he was blowing out a breath and jamming his fingers through his hair.
"No," he confessed. "I was hoping to get a step ahead of the dog-nappers but I don't even know where to begin!"
"Look," she began, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder, "We just follow the plan and everything'll work out. Right?"
"Right," he agreed as they headed back to the hotel.
That evening the trio returned to the arena for the performance event competition. This time, the entire building was alive with anticipation as owners, handlers, and on-lookers prepared for the first event. A young woman wearing an armband that identified her as part of the show's production team intercepted Joanna and Frog and led them backstage while an older man wearing a matching armband approached MacGyver and led him to a seat in the section reserved for owners. Mac politely greeted the older woman next to him, but kept his senses on high alert as his eyes scanned the audience. Yet again, he realized how futile his effort was since he had no idea what the dog-nappers even looked like. Feeling helpless, he decided to study the program he had been handed upon arrival. He was glad Bannister had managed to fix the contest because the competition looked fierce.
After sitting through numerous performance events designed for different breeds, MacGyver's pulse ratcheted up when Frog's group was announced. His gaze quickly found Joanna, as if drawn by a magnet, and his heart swelled with pride. He knew she was out of her comfort zone, yet she looked calm and in control as she followed the other handlers in a brief canine parade before taking a seat with Frog at her feet while they awaited their turn in the agility challenge. His heart rate had just returned to normal when the master of ceremonies introduced Frog as the next contestant. Mac found himself holding his breath as Jo led his dog to the beginning of the obstacle course before bending to release his leash. They both took a moment to focus and then Frog took off, Joanna beside him. He easily belly-crawled through a long, colorful tube before weaving his way through a row of poles. However, as usual, he stopped short when he got to the plastic gate. MacGyver's blood pounded in his ears as he desperately hoped they had chosen the right strategy for this challenge. He watched carefully as Frog pushed the barrier down with his front paws and pranced over it toward the finish line. The crowd laughed, cheered, and gave him a rousing ovation as Jo waved to the audience before leading the dog back to their seat. Mac felt a wave of relief wash over him. It worked!
The next morning, the exhibition hall was once again packed, but the audience was much more sedate as today's events centered around the conformation competition and a winner would be crowned. Just as Joanna was about to lead Frog backstage, MacGyver reached out to stop her, guiding her to an unoccupied corner.
"I have a little something for you," Mac explained in response to Jo's questioning gaze. Having decided to wear a suit and tie, he reached into his jacket pocket and handed her a small box. "Consider it a good luck charm."
Joanna, wearing a navy knee-length skirt and matching blazer with a cream colored blouse and navy flats, gingerly opened the gift and smiled as she gently removed a gold brooch in the shape of an English bulldog with two black onyx eyes staring back at her.
"Oh, Mac, I love it!" she exclaimed. "But where did you ever find it?"
"I have my sources," he replied with a grin. He watched as she quickly glanced down at her lapel. "Do you want me to put it on for you?" At her nod, his agile fingers deftly secured the pin to her jacket. "Do great out there," he whispered huskily before lowering his mouth to capture hers. All too soon they heard Frog, sitting at Jo's feet, begin to whine. They broke apart, each chuckling. "That goes for you, too," MacGyver said, crouching down to give his canine friend a kiss on the snout.
Time crawled by for Mac as group after group of dogs pranced around the show ring. Finally, Frog's 'non-sporting' group was announced and MacGyver's boredom was quickly replaced with anticipation. He had checked the odds on his dog before coming over to the arena and they were astronomical which meant the ransom would be even higher, making him glad they would catch the perpetrators without having to complete the transaction.
Mac watched, transfixed, as Joanna and Frog demonstrated their gaiting and stacking skills. They looked as good as any other team in the competition, but then again, he might be slightly biased. MacGyver held his breath as the head judge approached Frog and ran his large hands over the dog's back, haunches, and legs before lifting his jowls to inspect his teeth. Mac breathed a sigh of relief when his dog happily cooperated. In a matter of minutes, Frog was proclaimed Best in Group and, after another round of gaiting and stacking, he was officially named Best in Show. MacGyver stood and clapped and watched as several others in the audience did the same, but he took special note of those who frowned and whispered apparent disappointment to their friends. He felt a lump of emotion form in his throat as Joanna graciously accepted the prize of a silver platter and bouquet of flowers. He would have given anything to be standing next to her at that moment to offer his congratulations so he hurried backstage to do just that.
Later that evening, MacGyver and Joanna sat at a cozy table for two in the hotel's restaurant, the tracking monitor Cheryl had given them before she left lay on the table between them. About the size of Mac's hand, the black rectangular screen was superimposed with a map of the city and a blinking red dot indicated Frog's location. Throughout the restaurant, undercover Phoenix agents as well as a couple local plain clothes police officers posed as diners and waitstaff, all ready to move on MacGyver's command.
"Now remember," he reminded Jo, "We need to wait until they get to their hide-out so they think they're in the clear, but when stuff starts happenin', you need-"
"To stay put," she finished for him with a sigh, absently fingering the brooch he had given her that morning. "I just wish there's something I could do to help."
"You've already done it. You made Frog look like he belonged in the show. The next move is up to the dog-nappers and if Cheryl's information is correct, it shouldn't be too long."
Mac watched as Joanna's gaze slid from the monitor to the contents of the small clutch purse on her lap, a frown puckering her brow.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"This whole thing has given me a migraine and I must've left my meds in the room. I'll be right back."
MacGyver reached out quickly and snagged her arm. "You can't go back there."
"Look, we've only been gone for fifteen minutes and Frog hasn't moved," she gestured to the monitor with one hand while massaging her temple with the other. "It'll only take a couple minutes and if I see anything even slightly suspicious I'll come right back," she practically pleaded.
Mac knew her reasoning was sound and by continuing to argue they were wasting precious time. "Okay. Fine," he agreed, releasing her arm. "But be careful and don't do anything stupid." His command was met with a side eye glare.
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With a snuffle and a sigh, Frog rearranged himself on the doggy bed the hotel had provided as he regarded MacGyver's earlier instructions: Remember, let them kidnap you. Don't raise too much of a fuss. We'll come in and get you once they stop at their secondary location. That pretty much went against every instinct Frog owned, but he understood the rationale behind it. Being too difficult or having Mac move in too soon could spook the dog-nappers and ruin everything they had worked so hard to set up. So Frog did the only thing he could do. He waited.
His humans had barely been gone fifteen minutes when Frog's keen sense of hearing picked up the sound of a keycard sliding into the electronic door lock. Seconds later, two men disguised as armed security guards entered the room, closing the door tightly behind them. So that's how they move around so easily, Frog thought to himself even as he growled low in his throat at the would-be dog-nappers, memorizing their scent as well as their features. Thug One was tall and lean, his long nose and beady eyes reminded Frog of a weasel. Thug Two was much more muscular, his face resembling that of a pug Frog had competed against that day.
"How did an ugly mutt like you manage to win Best in Show?" Weasel scowled. Frog cocked his head and whined in reply.
"Shut up!" Pug commanded. "Let's get this show on the road." He grabbed the leash from the dresser and had Frog secured before the canine could protest.
They were just about to lead him away when they heard footsteps outside the door and the click of the lock. Frog watched in horror as Joanna entered the room.
"Sorry to disturb you, buddy, but I forgot my-"
Quick as lightning, Weasel snaked out an arm and grabbed her by the waist, propelling her into his grasp as his other hand closed around her mouth. She squirmed and kicked at her captor, but Weasel was stronger than he looked and held her firmly in place. "What do we do now?" he asked his partner, a hint of panic in his voice.
Pug thought for a moment. "She's seen us and can identify us. We'll have to take her along and see what the boss wants us to do." He then unholstered his weapon and waved it in front of her face as he addressed her, "Now just do as I say and no one gets hurt...at least not yet."
Minutes later, Joanna was leading Frog through the hotel lobby toward the main entrance, a dog-napper on either side of them.
"Congratulations on your win today, Ms. Fairfax!" the desk clerk called from his post.
"Thank you," Jo replied with a pasted on smile.
"I see you have your personal security detail," the man observed.
"Can't be too careful these days," she explained. "Not with a brand new celebrity."
"You have a good night, now."
"You, too," she called over her shoulder just as they headed through the door.
After walking about half a block, the little party halted beside a black panel van. Weasel opened the two back doors and snarled, "Get in."
Joanna hoisted Frog into the cargo area, but before she could climb in, Pug once again grabbed her, forcing her hands behind her back and slapping on the handcuffs from his utility belt before she crawled inside. "And if you try anything to escape, I'll tie your ankles and gag you, too," he warned, before slamming the doors shut.
Frog hurried over to where she sat and pressed his weight against her side in what he hoped would be a comforting gesture. Although her face was pale, her jaw was set firm. "Don't worry, baby," she whispered to him. "We just have to do as they say until Mac and the others come rescue us."
The ride seemed interminable to Frog until, at last, the van came to a complete stop after a sharp turn. When Pug opened the back doors, ordering them out, Frog saw that they had been taken to a cheap, one-story, run-down motel on the outskirts of town. Weasel had already opened the door to one of the rooms and soon they were all cramped in the small space that smelled of mold, mildew and cat and dog if Frog's nose wasn't mistaken. So much for the "No Pets Allowed" policy he had glimpsed on the sign. Weasel bent down and fastened Frog's leash to the surprisingly sturdy leg at the foot of the bed while Pug undid one of Jo's handcuffs only to secure it to the wrought iron headboard with one bracelet still clamped on her wrist.
Apparently satisfied that their hostages wouldn't be leaving anytime soon, the dog-nappers opened the inside door to the connecting room before closing it half-way. Frog's ears perked up as he heard the muffled rumble of Pug's voice with long spaces of silence in between signaling the man was talking on the phone.
"What'd the boss say?" Weasel asked in a hushed tone that still wasn't quiet enough for Frog and Joanna not to hear as the dog noticed Jo straining to listen.
"We follow the plan and collect the ransom as usual," Pug told him.
"But what about the girl?"
"Boss says to keep her around as long as she's useful and then take care of her."
"Whoa, man, nobody said anything about hurtin' anyone when I signed on," Weasel protested.
"Yeah? Well, plans change!" Pug shot back. "If you can't handle it then walk out that door and forget about your cut of the ransom."
"I didn't say I couldn't handle it," Weasel quickly clarified. "I can handle it. I can handle anything."
"There's something about this that doesn't feel right," Pug mused, apparently already having lost interest in Weasel. "They're not even trying to escape."
"That's good, right?" Weasel asked.
"It's like they're waiting for something," Pug continued, ignoring his partner's question. "I don't like it."
"C'mon man, don't get paranoid now," Weasel prodded. "Let's play some cards 'til it's time to go."
Pug must have agreed because suddenly both men were silent.
Frog looked up and met Joanna's gaze. "They expect us to try and escape," she whispered. "Let's not disappoint them."
He watched as Jo first tested the strength of the handcuffs and then tried to wriggle her hand free. A look of defeat fluttered across her face before she took a deep, fortifying breath. "What would MacGyver do?" she mumbled.
Eerily calm, she slowly surveyed every inch of the room. Frog did the same, but both came up empty. Even the telephone was gone. He was just about ready to give up on the idea when Joanna gasped. He looked to find her clumsily unfastening the gold bulldog brooch Mac had given her before the competition that morning. "Why didn't I think of this sooner?" she scolded herself, Frog assuming it was a rhetorical question. He continued to watch as she slid the straight pin into the handcuff lock, gently twisting and probing. "Mac makes it look so easy," she muttered, frustrated at her lack of success.
While Jo continued to work on freeing herself, Frog started tugging on his leash, which only tightened the collar around his neck, the material biting into his skin. Sensing a losing battle, he changed his strategy and began to nip and bite at the knot Weasel had fashioned. It was too tight and he wondered yet again at the skinny man's unexpected competence. His final option, he decided, was to slip his head out of his collar. He backed up and the collar slackened. He then sat down and, using his hind leg, began to push the collar over his ears. At that point, he let his front paws take over. He was almost free when the connecting door slammed open, startling both him and Joanna causing her to drop the pin she was holding.
"So, you two decided to make things interesting after all," Pug snarled. "I don't know what kinda game you're playin', but I think it's time for a change of scenery.
With that, Weasel readjusted Frog's collar to fit tighter and Pug once again restrained Joanna's hands behind her back. The dog-nappers loaded their captives into the back of the van, only this time Pug sat with them, his gun trained on Jo's chest, as he commanded Weasel to drive.
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Back at the hotel restaurant, MacGyver glanced at his watch for the third time. Every minute Joanna was gone felt like an hour. His only comfort came from the fact that, according to his monitor, Frog was still in his room, but five minutes later his heart was in his throat as the little red dot began to move. Knowing he had to keep his emotions in check and stick with the plan, he waited impatiently for the dot representing Frog to clear the building. Once he was certain the dog-nappers were gone, he stood up and went to stand in the hallway where, at short intervals, the undercover agents and police officers joined him.
"They're on the move," he told them. "Everybody stick to the plan. We don't want to spook them. When we have a definite location we'll move in."
His instructions were met with a chorus of "yes, sirs" before he continued. "There's just one thing. Joanna went up to the room and hasn't come back. I'm gonna go check things out."
When he arrived at the room where Frog and Jo had been staying, the door was ajar and his stomach tightened. When he entered and saw her purse on the floor, its contents strewn about along with what appeared to be a ransom note, his stomach sunk to his toes. Not yet willing to assume the worst, he hurried into his room on the other side of the connecting door and rooted through his duffel until he found the second monitoring device he had stashed there. This one, however, was designed to track the microchip he had Phoenix solder into the brooch he had given Joanna. The brooch she had still been wearing in the restaurant. He turned it on and his heart ceased beating. The blue light representing Jo was on the move, but thankfully on the same path as Frog. The chances of rescuing both of them increased exponentially as long as they stayed together.
While it took all of Mac's self-control not to jump in his car and chance after them, he instead gathered his small team in the lobby, informed them of Jo's capture, and began to tweak the plan that would bring her and Frog to safety and the dog-nappers to prison where they would hopefully turn state's evidence and betray their boss for lighter sentences.
MacGyver was practically cross eyed from staring at the two monitors when both the red and blue dots came to a sudden stop at the very edge of the screen. When he was certain movement would not resume, he took the monitors over to the desk clerk.
"Can you tell me what's in this area?"
The desk clerk eyed him suspiciously but must have sensed his anxiety. "There's not much out there anymore except for a rundown motel and a couple vacant buildings."
Figuring that the criminals were most likely holed up in a motel room, he mobilized his team and headed out. With the lights of the city well behind him, MacGyver doused his headlights as he pulled into the parking lot of the seedy motel. Though it was absent of vehicles, he couldn't assume that he was alone. Now he had to figure out which of the twenty-some rooms the dog-nappers were hiding in. Not in the mood to play games, he parked his car and proceeded to the main office. No one was at the front desk so he rang the bell. When no one arrived to assist him, he rang again, this time a bit more insistent.
"Hold your horses, I'm comin'!" a voice from the backroom called.
While he waited, Mac glanced at the board that held the keys to all the units. He smiled to himself, glad that electronic locks hadn't made it to this side of town. He smiled even wider when he noticed the only key absent was to unit ten.
Slipping out of the office before the manager even appeared, MacGyver motioned his people into place. He quietly approached the door displaying the number ten and knocked. Nothing. He checked his monitors which indicated Jo and Frog should still be in the room. He attempted to peer through the gap in the curtains that covered the picture window, but it was too dark and all he saw was his own reflection. He pounded on the door, harder this time.
"Open up! Police!" he called. Obviously, he wasn't the police, but there were officers nearby so he figured that was close enough. Unfortunately, there was still no answer, no movement. With the others still hiding in the shadows, he pulled out his Swiss Army knife and picked the lock, slowly easing the old door open. He took a few seconds to allow his eyes to adjust to the darkness and then moved in, followed closely by the others. The room, along with the one next to it, was empty.
"No!" Mac yelled as he hit the doorframe with the side of his fist. "They have to be here!" he insisted, studying the two monitors.
The lights were flipped on as agents and officers spread out to look for evidence. Defeated, Mac sat down on the side of the bed and allowed his head to fall into his hands. He had failed them. The unfamiliar sting of tears surprised him. He had to think! Just as he was about to push himself to his feet, light from the overhead bulb glinted off a shiny object on the floor by his foot. He picked it up. Jo's brooch. No wonder he was getting a false reading. But what about Frog? Mac suddenly remembered Cheryl's warning about compromising the chip. If Frog's collar had been too tight, or he had been roughly handled while on the leash it could have been jarred loose. MacGyver immediately hit his knees and swept his hands back and forth across the faded carpet until he finally felt it. There lay Frog's tracking device a few feet from where he had found Joanna's.
"What do we do now, sir?" a young Phoenix field agent asked him.
MacGyver didn't even pause, "We give 'em the ransom."
Back in his own hotel room, Mac listened as Craig Bannister barked at him through the telephone.
"You need how much?! By when?!"
Mac reread the ransom note out loud.
"Fine," Bannister sighed, "I'll see that you have what you need."
A couple of hours later, MacGyver was meeting with his team, setting out a new rescue strategy, when a police officer entered the room holding a black leather briefcase.
"I got it, sir," he declared.
"Great. Put it down on the bed." Mac lifted the lid and examined the stacks of bills, greatly relieved that Craig had come through for him. There was just one more thing to do before delivering the ransom. MacGyver removed a neat pile of money before taking his knife and slitting the cloth lining the bottom of the case. He then carefully tucked in the bulldog brooch before smoothing the fabric and replacing the cash. In case things went sideways, he needed a way to track the criminals, especially if they arrived without Frog and Joanna.
At the appointed time, MacGyver made his way to the center of a large, public park and stood beside a granite monument as the dog-nappers' note had instructed. Moments later, a black panel van pulled up on the service road and stopped. The back door opened and a skinny man wearing a dark ski mask jumped out, holding a leash with an anxious Frog on the other end.
"Put the briefcase down, step away, and you'll get your dog back," the skinny man instructed.
"No way. Where's the girl?"
"She's not part of the deal!"
Mac's blood turned cold. If Joanna wasn't part of the deal, then what was their plan for her? "You're not getting a dime until I know she's safe."
He heard a scuffle from inside the van before a more muscular man, wearing a similar ski mask, appeared with Joanna, hands behind her back, held firmly in front of him as a human shield, a gun pointed at her temple. The hope and trust in her eyes when she saw him was almost his undoing.
"Let her go!" MacGyver commanded.
"You heard my partner. She's not part of the deal. Now either you hand over the money and get your precious dog back or you don't see either one of them ever again!"
Knowing he had to win the battle before continuing to fight the war, Mac put the briefcase on the ground and stepped away. The skinny guy with Frog in tow grabbed the case, opened it to inspect the contents, and then let go of the leash. The bow- legged dog bounded to MacGyver's side looking up at him before looking back at Jo as she was pushed back inside the van and whined.
"I know buddy. We'll get her back."
When the van was out of sight, Mac pulled out the monitor that tracked the briefcase with the hidden brooch, hoping that Jo didn't get separated from it once again. He watched as the blue dot traveled further and further in the opposite direction.
"What's our next move?" another young field agent asked.
MacGyver handed him Frog's lead. "Get him back to the hotel and make sure he's okay. Get him something to eat."
"But what about Ms. Fairfax?"
"I'm gonna go get her back."
"All by yourself?"
"That's the plan," Mac replied, his tone clipped and no-nonsense. He wasn't taking any chances with Jo's life. Others would only slow him down and get in his way.
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MacGyver sat in his car, staring at the blue dot on the monitor, willing it to stop. When it finally ceased moving, it was back in the area of the old motel. Surely the kidnappers weren't stupid enough to return there. Then he remembered what the desk clerk had said about there being other abandoned buildings in the area. Turning the ignition and putting the car in gear, Mac once again headed toward the blue dot afraid of what he would find when he reached his destination.
It was well after midnight, the full moon shining bright above, when MacGyver spotted the kidnappers' van parked beside what appeared to be a small, shuttered diner. He slowed and parked his own vehicle a couple blocks away so as not to be noticed and then, after grabbing a flashlight from the glove compartment, quickly made his way back to the diner on foot. Keeping to the shadows, he crouched down and stealthily crept beneath a broken window, his back pressed against the cool brick facade. Did he hear voices, or was that the sound of blood pounding in his ears? He strained to listen.
"What are you doin'? The boss said to get rid of her. She's a witness."
"Yeah? Well, plans change. If those show dog people are willing to fork over this much cash for a pooch, imagine what we could get for her."
Mac breathed a silent sigh of relief. Joanna was still alive. Now all he had to do was get her outta there and capture the bad guys. Piece of cake. Since he was alone and unarmed, except for the flashlight, he quickly dismissed the idea of a frontal attack. Instead, he skulked around to the back of the building and rose just high enough to see through the grease-stained window of the kitchen area. He carefully raised the sash and climbed through, only to find himself in an industrial sized sink. He slowly crawled out of the metal tub and approached the swinging door, a bit crooked on its hinges, that separated the kitchen from the dining area. He pushed the door open just enough for him to get an idea of the layout of the place. A row of ripped and dusty booths occupied the front wall while worn and battered wooden tables and chairs were haphazardly scattered about. The two kidnappers, sans ski masks, whispered to each other and paced back and forth in front of the main entrance. He caught the slightest glimpse of movement out of the corner of his eye and his heart tripped when he saw Joanna sitting on the dirty floor, handcuffed to a cold radiator. There was no way he could free Jo and get her out of there before the bad guys caught them or worse, shot them. He needed a diversion.
Turning his flashlight on, he kept it pointed toward the floor as much as possible lest the kidnappers see it. Being in a commercial kitchen had certain advantages and MacGyver quickly found ingredients that would cook up a very nasty recipe. Pulling a pair of latex "lunch lady" gloves from the box on the counter, he grabbed the jugs of bleach and vinegar from the supply closets and filled each glove with a fifty-fifty ratio. He then carefully blew air into each before tying them both off at the wrist, essentially making a water balloon that, when popped, would emit chlorine gas. The only problem he had was that he could not protect Joanna from its effects.
Before putting his plan in motion, he used his Swiss Army knife to cut out a portion of the lining of the suit jacket he still wore and fashioned it into a bandana to tie around his nose and mouth. He once again approached the swinging door, but this time he opened it wide and, after taking a deep breath and holding it, hurled the bloated gloves at the feet of the two men standing across the room. They exploded upon impact with the floor and within seconds, both kidnappers were coughing and clawing at their burning, watery eyes.
MacGyver ran to Jo, who was already coughing, and slid to his knees. Using his knife, he deftly picked the lock on the cuffs. Once her hands were free, he grabbed a handkerchief from his pocket and shoved it into her grasp. She immediately covered her nose and mouth with it as he helped her gain her feet and, with an arm around her waist, hurried her through the kitchen and out the back door. Tears streamed down her cheeks, but he didn't know if it was due to the gas or crying.
"Hang in there baby," he pleaded. "I got you now. You're safe."
When he had gotten her far enough away, he lowered both of them to the ground and pulled her hand away from her face, encouraging her to take slow, deep breaths of clean air. He used the handkerchief to wipe the moisture from her cheeks. Behind him, he heard the two men yowling in pain.
"Stay here," he commanded before he ran back to the diner. Back in the kitchen, he realized the chlorine gas had dispersed throughout the small building and was beginning to dissipate. He had to get to the kidnappers while he still had the advantage. Grabbing a fire extinguisher from the wall by the stove, he headed into the dining room where the two men continued to cough and gasp for air. The muscular one saw him first and lunged toward him, but Mac slammed the metal canister hard into his solar plexus and he immediately collapsed on the floor. The skinny one was still screeching in between coughing fits and rubbing his eyes with his fists. MacGyver grabbed him by the arm and propelled him toward the radiator, quickly cuffing one of his hands before dragging the larger man over and doing the same. He then quickly returned to Joanna who welcomed him with sobs and a hug.
Mac held Jo close, rocking her gently and murmuring soothing words against her silky hair while her coughing and tears subsided. In less time than he had anticipated she pulled herself together and drew away from him, though not completely out of the circle of his arms.
"The kidnappers?" she asked.
MacGyver grinned. "They won't be going anywhere for a while. I handcuffed them to the radiator."
A watery giggle escaped her lips before her eyes turned hard and she punched him in the chest. "What took you so long?! And why did you pay the ransom?"
"Why don't we go back to the hotel and get cleaned up and then I'll tell you everything?"
"No," she retorted. "I wanna hear about it now."
Knowing resistance was futile once she had her mind made up, MacGyver began a play-by-play narrative of everything that had happened from the time she left the restaurant. When he got to the part about the false location reading from Frog's tracking chip she nodded.
"It must have happened when he tried to slip out of his collar," she clarified, then understanding dawned. "You had to go through with the ransom because you couldn't track Frog!"
Mac nodded, anticipating her next question and knowing she wouldn't be thrilled with the answer.
"But how did you manage to find me here?"
It was time to come clean. "You know the brooch I gave you for good luck?"
"Yeah, I lost it in the motel room."
"Well, I found it and hid it in the briefcase with the money."
Jo's brow puckered and she tilted her head in confusion.
"I had the techs at Phoenix outfit it with a tracking device just in case." He winced and waited for the verbal explosion to come. He knew how much Joanna hated being kept in the dark about things, especially when they concerned her, so he was sure she would not take kindly to being secretly monitored. He involuntarily jerked when her soft hand cupped his cheek and gingerly sought her gaze which was surprisingly warm and gentle.
"Why didn't you just tell me about it right away?" she asked.
"You mean you wouldn't have argued about wearing it?"
"No," she shook her head. "You are very good at what you do and I love that you want to keep me safe. I realize that everything you do is in someone else's best interest, including mine. I love you and I respect you, but most of all, I trust you."
The hand that had been resting on his cheek slipped to the nape of his neck. He lowered his head, met her lips with his, and let his soul drift into sweet oblivion.
Back at the hotel, MacGyver placed a phone call to the local police letting them know where to find the dog-nappers and then he called Bannister and relayed what had occurred during and after the ransom drop. Dawn was breaking by the time he showered and changed. He tapped on the door that connected his room to Joanna's. He thought she might be asleep, but instead she appeared freshly showered and dressed for the day. Frog, however, snored loudly from his doggy bed.
Mac gently caressed her cheek with the back of his index finger. "You wanna try and get some rest before we head out?"
She shook her head. "If you feel up to the drive, I'd just as soon go home."
After all that had happened in the past twenty-four hours he really couldn't blame her. "Get packed and wake up the champ," he said before pressing a kiss on her forehead. When he backed away, it was to find her looking up at him.
"Hey Mac, when we get home, could you do me a favor?"
"Anything you want," he replied fervently.
"Could you teach me how to pick a lock?"