Washington…

Garrett was away for another few days, so it was up to Dimitrius to put out the fires at the office. It had been three days since Elke's arrival, and Bobby was still refusing to get along with the woman. He was sour, and Elke was starting to retaliate. Dimitrius understood why Bobby was upset, but his negative attitude was starting to affect the team, and that had to stop. Bobby got angry sometimes, but he shouldn't take that anger out on the newcomer who had no say in the matter; instead, he should be writing a nasty letter to Garrett and the bureau.

Dimitrius and Bobby were in Garrett's office with the door closed. With his arms folded across his chest, Dimitrius started, "Bobby, your current behavior towards Elke has to stop. It's been three days; Elke isn't going anywhere until Myles comes back."

"I know that D', but I don't have to like it," replied Bobby, who was sitting hunched in a chair and feeling cornered.

Dimitrius said with a little more force, "But it's not Elke's fault that she's in this position; she was forced to, she was the most qualified, and we are lucky to have her. Again, I understand that you're unhappy about Garrett's decision - so am I - but we can't vent out our frustrations on our teammates, especially new ones. Now, I've already talked to Elke, as her nonchalant attitude had to be addressed. She has no intention of staying on the team permanently; she has her own team to go home to. So, what you need to do right now is be nice to her until Myles comes back. Your behavior is a reflection on our unit, and it affects how others in the bureau perceive us. I want an A++ rating."

"Fine," Bobby said while raising his hands in surrender, "I'll be nice. It's just shocking to see someone at Myles' desk when he's still employed and a part of this squad. Plus, we're good friends and desk mates, and I have his back. If the bureau pulls any stunts against him, they will be hearing it from me."

Dimitrius exhaled. "I understand, Bobby. Just…get through these two weeks, and hopefully Myles comes back on time and everything will go back to normal. But…don't be surprised if he doesn't come back right away."

Bobby pouted. "Oh yeah?"

"After Myles told us about his condition, I had my eye on him. I know guys with severe PTSD, and he's high up on the list of 'the worst PTSD I've ever seen'. I then talked to Sue, and asked her how bad his condition really was, and after her telling me all of the stuff that's been going on after hours, my regret is not saying something to Garrett and having Myles on forced vacation earlier. He's lucky he didn't shoot one of us when he shot that teenager."

Bobby tried to lighten the mood. "Well, I guess we can thank his training agent who taught him how to be an excellent marksman."

Dimitrius chuckled, then smiled. "You're right…he did a good job. Anyway, my prediction is that Myles will either be back in a month, or be put on short term disability. I'm crossing my fingers that I'm wrong."

"D…"

Dimitrius quickly interjected, "Believe me, I want Myles back too; it's boring and too quiet here without him. All I'm saying is be prepared for the worst. Besides, like you said, you're good friends with him; you'll see him after working hours."

"B-but this is all Myles knows…and he loves his job."

"I know. Now, I need you and Elke to make amends…immediately. Go out there and play nice, alright?" He shooed away Bobby.


Lucy approached Elke, who was busy signing requisition forms. She could tell that despite Elke's protests, the woman was in dire need of a friend, so Lucy thought that inviting the newcomer for lunch would be a good idea. Lucy started:

"Elke?"

Elke stopped what she was doing. Without lowering the pen in her hand, she looked up and stared daggers at Lucy. "What?"

"Tara and I are going out for lunch. Come and join us. It'll be an all girls thing; no boys allowed."

Elke continued to glare at Lucy; she was trying to figure out whether what Lucy was saying was trustworthy, or if it was just a ploy to embarrass her in some way. She heard that this unit was notorious for hazing and pulling pranks, and being the laughing stock was the last thing a veteran like her wanted. Lucy continued, "I'm assuming that's a no."

"What? Why do you say that?" replied Elke.

"Because the expression on your face is telling me that I should go away and never ask again. Look…I'm just trying to be nice. Whether we like it or not, you're on our team now, and I want to be your friend; despite what the kangaroo man says. Also, Myles isn't going to be here for two weeks, so I might as well take advantage of the silence before the relaxing atmosphere is taken away from me."

After a couple of seconds of deep thought, Elke put down her pen. She then closed her laptop, put the forms away, and grabbed her jacket. She said, "Sure…I'll come along. Where are we going?"

Lucy grinned. She replied, "There's a new salad bar just down the block that Tara and I are dying to try. Let's go quickly, so we can beat the line."


And with that, Lucy, Tara and Elke went out for lunch and got to know each other. They each told their backstories, and as their discussions continued, it was apparent that Elke's hard exterior was starting to crack and she was showing more of an authentic personality. Elke told the ladies that she was originally born in Germany, but moved to Minneapolis when she was six. As the years went by, she found that she had a knack for languages and tactics, so naturally, she thought she would be suited for the FBI, and moved to D.C. to snatch a career opportunity eight years ago.

Tara asked Elke, excitedly, "So, what languages do you know?"

Elke answered, "Um…I know German, Spanish, French, English, Russian, Mandarin and Arabic."

Lucy nodded in approval. "Seven languages! That's Impressive! She knows three more than Myles. He has some serious catching up to do."

Elke grew uncomfortable at that statement. She hated being compared to their teammate who was on leave. She knew who Myles was; they were alike in some ways, but she was her own separate person. "Remember, I'm not a replacement. I'm just filling in what was lost. Anyway, this salad bar is really good. We should come here again."

Lucy smiled. She was pleased to hear the word 'we.'


Before they knew it, lunch was over and the ladies were back at the bureau, ready to get back to work. Elke saw Bobby at his desk, looking miserable. She didn't blame him for not liking his boss' decision to replace their friend while he was on temporary leave. If she were in his shoes, she'd be cold towards others too. Then, she had an idea. She asked the ladies at lunch how she could win Bobby's friendship, and they told her to bring him some Slappys. Once she reached Myles' desk, she placed a familiar paper bag in front of Bobby. Immediately, the man grabbed the bag and looked inside to find two sloppy joes. Maybe she wasn't so bad after all. Maybe she'd buy lunch for him every day if he decided to be difficult.

But before Bobby could think about eating, Dimitrius came into view and said, "Bobby…Elke…I've got a small job for you. There is a drug investigation going on in a unit that's shorthanded and they need someone to interview a couple of people. I have the address."

Bobby grumbled. He was annoyed that he couldn't eat the best food in town, but he was also annoyed that Dimitrius was forcing him and Elke to work together; he knew this was just a ploy made by Dimitrius to force them to get along. They didn't need to do this. Truth be told, Bobby wasn't normally this kind of person. He knew that if Elke had been brought aboard if Myles was let go, he'd have a much different relationship with the woman.

"Alright," Bobby said, grasping his jacket, and reluctantly leaving his piping hot sloppy joes, "Let's roll."

Elke did the same.


Lake Moomaw…

Myles said goodbye to Jack and Sue over two hours ago; he told them to call Wanda's living room phone when they got back to D.C. as the roads at this time of year were infested with deer, elk and moose. Before their departure, they went for an afternoon snack at the local tavern, and talked about everyday things, including Jack and Sue's wedding. They finally made a decision that they would hold their wedding in Bermuda, and were in the process of booking a venue; luckily, they got Myles' short stamp of approval instead of a long winded explanation as to why the Cayman Islands were better. After, when they were pleased that Myles was in good hands, they finally left, and wouldn't see him again for the remainder of his vacation in Lake Moomaw. He was now alone with his illness, and he had to find a way to come to terms with it, and become one with it instead of fighting it.

Currently, Myles was going out for an evening walk; it was quite cold, and windy, so he dressed in layers. He planned on going to the department/grocery store in town, and buying some fishing items, along with some of his favorite snacks. It was an emotional day, and he needed some sort of comfort tonight.

As Myles neared the town, he looked down the vast hills, and observed a cluster of people at the bottom. He counted at least thirty, they were all evenly spaced, on mats and stretching. What was going on? Was that…yoga? Suddenly, a quick flashback of Diana rolling down the hill appeared, then, as quickly as it came, it suddenly dissipated. When Myles came to his senses, curiosity got the best of him, and he decided to venture down the hill and near the water to observe their activity. Maybe what they were doing would intrigue him, and he could give it a try himself.


"Breathe in…count to ten…and breathe out," said a young woman who was leading an evening yoga class in the cat pose. She was short, redheaded, dressed in a tight blue shirt and black leggings, and had a microphone headset attached to her face. Most participants in her yoga class were dressed like her, but were retired middle aged folk who lived at the lake. "Alright, new pose. Let's be a cobra…I want you to shapeshift into the king cobra…be the cobra who is intently watching the danger in front of you." After showing the class the cobra pose, she allowed time for the others to follow, and she could hear a few backs crack in the process. "Now close your eyes…"

Everyone did as they were told except for her. She turned her head, and watched everyone intently. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a tall, dirty blonde man watching from the distance…this was interesting. In the city, some people liked to watch yoga to ogle the young ladies or muscular men, but these were all older people in the bush, so he must be interested for another reason. Maybe he wanted to join. It would be nice to have a younger man in her class. Hopefully, he was still around when they finished, so she could approach him and start asking questions.

Luckily, the man was still hanging around when she dismissed everyone, and they were all in the process of rolling up their mats and cleaning up their area. Before the mysterious man could think about running away from her sights, she approached him, and started:

"Who's more interesting? Me or the older women?"

The man was taken aback. Why would she jump to the conclusion that he was checking out the ladies? "I beg your pardon, miss. I was just intrigued as to what was taking place here tonight."

The woman smiled. "I'm a pretty woman, and most people around here like to watch me, including dirty old men who attend my class just to check me out."

It was apparent that the man was starting to get uncomfortable with this engagement. He said in a sassy tone, "My apologies if that's what you think of me. You don't even know me. I just thought that yoga might be something I'd like to try, but I'm starting to have second thoughts if it's you I'm paying for."

"I'm sorry. Sometimes I'm a bit brash," the woman said confidently. She held out her hand to gesture a handshake. "My name is Lydia. Yours?"

He took her hand. "Apology accepted. I'm Myles."

"Nice to meet you, Myles. So, are you interested in my yoga class? It's a great place to meet people, be one with your inner self, and with nature."

"Is it relaxing?"

"Of course it is! We have morning class at 8:00am tomorrow at this very location. It's still nice enough to participate outside, but after tomorrow, we're going to have to move to my studio until the spring. Come…give it a try."

Myles looked a little overwhelmed and unsure.

Lydia asked, "I've never seen you around. Are you new?"

Myles shrugged. "I am, but I'm only here for two weeks. I'm on vacation with some acquaintances, and I'm getting tired of fishing. It's nice and tranquil, but unless you're constantly catching something, it's not the most engaging activity in the world, and can make for a long day."

Lydia chuckled. "Oh-you're at the wrong place if you don't like fishing. So what kinds of things do you like to do?"

"Skiing? Sailing?"

"I see…hmm…those things seem kind of boring to me too."

"Have you tried them?"

"No."

"Well…don't judge until you've tried it."

Lydia said, "The class is $10 if you plan on attending. It'll be chilly, but you'll warm up once we start. Wear shorts, T-shirt, bring a jacket, water bottle and a mat."

"Oh…uh…I don't have a yoga mat," Myles said.

"That's no problem; you can use one of mine. And if you want to continue, yoga mats are sold at my studio here in the village. Nice to meet you."

Myles nodded. As he watched Lydia walk away, he thought about his decision. Yoga…this was going to be interesting. He could hardly sit still at work and home, so how was he going to sit still for this?


Washington...

Elke and Bobby were walking side by side down the busy streets of Washington D.C. with an ice cream treat in hand. Their interview regarding possible street drug smuggling was located at an ice cream shop here in town. Sources stated that cocaine was being transferred inside 11L ice cream buckets belonging to a place called Al's Creamery, but they needed proof. They interviewed the owner, manager and a couple of employees at the shop, but their answers were shady, and they looked nervous. Something told Elke and Bobby that they'd have to get a warrant in order to retrieve the answers they were looking for; however, to stay on the store's good side, and giving them an indication that nothing was wrong, the agents wound up buying a couple of ice cream cones, and they were delectable.

Bobby said, "Nice interviewing skills, sheila. I didn't think the task force had it in them to get someone shaking in their boots."

Elke responded, "You guys don't give us enough credit. So, do you think any of them will squeal, or should we issue a search warrant asap?"

Bobby answered, "A search warrant definitely. We need to search those buckets."

"Well," Elke said, "We might have scared them off. Even if we get a search warrant tomorrow, nothing is saying that those buckets will still be in the back of the shop."

"You're right," replied Bobby, "but our unit likes risks. I don't always like to take them, but they are sometimes necessary. Plus, there's a lot of stupid people in this world."

"I suppose," said Elke.

Then, there was an awkward pause before Bobby admitted, "Listen, I feel bad for how I've been treating you. I apologize for my behavior. I was just in shock and denial…and still am."

Elke waved him off. "It's okay, I pardon you."

Bobby acknowledged her words with a smile. She accepted his apology, so why should he explain himself further. "So…now that we're square with the house…tell me about you? I'm sorry, I'm…sure you're sick of introducing yourself by now."

Elke said, "Well…I was born in Germany, I moved to Minneapolis when I was five, and moved to D.C. nine years ago to get a job with the FBI. I've been on the task force for eight years, and my fiancé and I take part in mixed martial arts in our free time. Well…my free time. My fiancé is an instructor at the place I go to, so it's his day job, and I get free admission. How about you?"

Bobby shrugged. His story wasn't very interesting and informative, so he kept it simple. "I'm originally from Australia and came here to work for the FBI. I've been with the FBI for ten years now, training to be team leader, and…I'm dating a fabulous woman."

Elke responded, "Good for you, so….tell me about this…Slappys that Lucy and Tara keep talking about. I know I went there to buy you some food to win you over, but I've never actually eaten there, so I don't see what's so special about it."

"Oh," Bobby said, "It's the best fast food place in the world. Listen up…"

Chapter 18 is next…