"I wanted you, and here you are. I knew that you would see reason eventually."

Sharon had fired the only bullet in her linguistic arsenal already and wasn't sure what her next step should be, so she simply stayed where she was and remained silent.

Voice back and up. Cadence and inflection.

"Did you come all this way just to give me the silent treatment?"

no guts, no glory, Sharon thought before she turned around.

She knew from her bio that Ekaterina was 60 years old, though Sharon would never have guessed it by her appearance. She had blond hair, green eyes, and full cheeks. Curvy but not overweight, just lacking the gauntness and sharp angles that seemed to be in vogue in Russia the past few years. She wore a black knit top with a high turtle neck collar, a skirt with wide horizontal black and white stripes, and a pair of open-toed black shoes. If she was wearing earrings they were hidden by her hair.

"I came so no one else would die," Sharon said, keeping her eyes on the woman in front of her, and willing herself not to look at the four women who were silently entering the bedroom.

That didn't sound that bad. Maybe she'll think I'm just upset.

"You came because you knew that any further resistance was futile."

"Who the fuck are you, the Borg queen?" Jessica asked.

Katya turned around at the sound of an unfamiliar voice in her home and looked at the four women who were currently blocking her path to the safe room.

"What is the meaning of this?"

Sharon stepped up behind Katya and spoke softly to her as her hands closed gently but firmly on the woman's biceps.

"My friend Rita will explain."

"Ekaterina Sokolova, I'm Captain Rita Ortiz of the New York City Police Department," Rita began as her hand went to her leather handcuff case, "You're under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder."

"This is ridiculous," The woman said imperiously as Rita was placing her in handcuffs. Sharon's face was only six inches from hers when she realized that the woman standing next to her might not be who she thought.

"You wanted me here. Here I am. You never said I couldn't bring friends," Sharon said.

"You don't know who you are dealing with," Ekaterina said as she turned and looked at each woman in turn, "I'm not going anywhere, and neither are you."

"Time to go," Trish said, "are you going to walk, or do we have to carry you?"

"Don't touch me! You're all going to regret this!"

"Shut the fuck up and move," Jessica said as she put her hand on the woman's back and pushed her.

Jessica's push had been hard enough for Rita to lose her grip on the woman's arm, and it seemed that this wasn't Ekaterina's first rodeo, because as soon as that happened she used her freedom, and the added momentum from the push, to sprint to the bathroom door, which swung open as her shoulder hit it, and locked behind her when it closed.

"Fuck," Jessica said, "my bad."

"Goddammit!" Rita yelled.

"Ruh-roh," Beth said.

"Have to assume she's already pressed the panic button," Trish said calmly just as Jessica started to punch the door with her right fist.

No one in the room besides Trish had ever seen Jessica use her full strength before now, and as her fist hit the door like a sledgehammer Sharon, Beth, and Rita could only watch in amazement.

Jessica was breathing heavily when she stopped punching the door.

"Fucking thing is stronger than it looks," she said to the door that was dented, but holding firm.

"No way that guy at the end of the driveway didn't hear that," Beth said.

"We need to move, and we need to do it soon," Trish said, "the cavalry's on the way and we need to be gone when it gets here."

Rita could feel it begin to well up inside her, as the mixture of frustration and rage at the thought that they might have to run for it, and leave Ekaterina Sokolova behind, pushed her farther and farther over the invisible line. It was when Jessica began to kick at the door that Rita felt that part of her mind, the part that had reached out for a set of notes on that windy day, flex its muscles, and reach out again.

As the lines on her hands and arms blazed to life Rita had the presence of mind to kick off her shoes, just before she stepped up to the door, her left foot planted firmly on the expensive flooring as her upper body leaned back and her right knee came up, her eyes focused on the dent that Jessica's foot had made in the door.

When her foot hit the door it sounded to everyone in the room like an explosion going off. The other four women instinctively covered their ears at the sound as the door buckled inward and broke free, taking the door frame and the twelve inches of surrounding reinforced concrete with it. The room began to fill with dust and powdered debris as Rita stepped through the ruined doorway to find the woman who was lying stunned at the far end of the room. None of the glass that made up the exterior wall that Sharon had been looking out only a few minutes earlier shattered, but the sound of the large panes rattling in their frames was still vibrating through the room

what just happened? Aric asked her.

minor hiccup, no worries. Rita answered.

we can discuss the worries part when you're back.

"Sure, after I loosened it up for you," Jessica said to Rita before looking down at the right shoe that she had been wearing as she kicked the door, a shoe which in many ways resembled the door and wall.

"Fuck," Jessica said as she continued to look at her disintegrated footwear.

"Remember that line you were talking about? The one you weren't supposed to cross?" Trish asked Rita as she helped her carry the stunned, handcuffed woman back into the bedroom.

"Pretty sure you just crossed it big time," Beth said.

"I think we've overstayed our welcome," Sharon said, "we need to leave. Now."

"Give her to me," Jessica said before picking Ekaterina up in her arms.

"Fine by me," Rita said as she put her shoes back on.

"You've done this before?" Trish asked as she watched Rita slip her dress shoes back on.

"I've ruined shoes before, but that? No, that's new."

"We really, seriously, need to move," Beth said, "They probably heard that in Moscow."

"Let's go," Trish said as they exited the ruined bedroom and entered the hallway.

It was Beth who happened to look at the security station that was nearby.

"Fuck," she said as she looked at the monitor.

Trish stepped closer to get a better view of the man who had greeted them at the end of the driveway, who was now banging on the locked door of the security station one floor below them and yelling what Trish assumed were the names of the two unconscious men inside.

"Fuck," Trish said in agreement.

23:50

Aric decided against putting his phone away and just placed it on the bench between himself and the woman named Abby, who had assumed tennis ball duty, as well as ear-scratching duty.

"Who's a good dog, huh? Who's a cute drooly goofy dog? You are, that's who."

"Jesus, you're not one of those baby talkers, are you? Those people sound like they've got a traumatic brain injury," Sax said.

"Well, you would know, wouldn't you?" Abby answered in the same tone of voice she had been using to talk to Tyler while she continued to scratch his neck and ears.

"Bitch."

"Don't swear in front of the dog!" Abby said as she tried to cover Tyler's enormous ears before looking at Aric, "the fucking mouth on her."

Aric was still in the process of spitting a mouthful of iced coffee all over the park when he felt the shock.

25:10

what just happened? Aric asked Rita.

"Are you OK?" Abby asked him, "Did you inhale some coffee?"

minor hiccup, no worries. Rita answered.

"Should I give him mouth-to-mouth?" Sax asked.

we can discuss the worries part when you're back.

"Keep your filthy mouth to yourself, you horny perv," Abby answered.

"Sorry," Aric said as his senses returned to the park, "did you say something?"

"No."

The women turned the last corner and then proceeded down the seven steps that ended in the corridor on the ground floor. In front of them was the man from the driveway, his automatic weapon still in his right hand but partially supported by the sling around his neck and shoulder. His weapon when he saw them was at the ready but not pointed directly at them.

"Help her! Please, help her!" Sharon was saying as she indicated Katya who was still being carried by the woman who was trying her best to act as if the effort to carry the full-grown woman was almost more than she could bear.

"What happened?" the man asked as he approached them. He had gotten closer but was still too far away, and Trish could see that the safety of his weapon was off.

"We were in the bedroom talking, when…," Sharon started before sobbing. She was covered with strategically placed dust and fine debris. Katya had already been covered in it and didn't need the window dressing.

"My byli v koridore posta okhrany, kogda v spal'ne srabotalo vzryvnoye ustroystvo. Vashi lyudi naverkhu raneny," Beth said. {We were in the hallway at the guard post when the explosive device went off in the bedroom. Your men upstairs are wounded,}

"Pomoshch' v puti. Vyvedi yeye naruzhu i zhdi tam," he replied as he headed up the stairs.

"He says help is on the way, and we should get her outside and wait there," Beth relayed.

They were through the glass door and into the night air quickly. They couldn't tell if the only conscious occupant of the house heard their engine start before they backed down the driveway and out onto the street.

We're clear, Rita told Aric, five minutes.

I'll see you there.

Beth turned left onto the highway and gave the Land Rover her head. Trish was looking out the rear window, what she could see of it with Jess sitting in the center of the seat while propping Katya up and against the interior wall.

"Clear. No headlights behind us."

"Nothing in front of us either," Beth said.

"Don't drive too fast," Rita said, "you don't want to get a speeding ticket."

"Yeah, I'd hate to have that on my permanent record."

"Coming up on the right," Trish said after a moment.

"Who's that with him?" Beth asked.

Jessica sat forward to get a better view of the figure as it was illuminated by their headlights.

"Did he bring his fucking dog with him?

"Ladies, it's time to go," Aric said as he stood and threw his empty cup into the nearby trash can, "Tyler, heel."

"How are we doing this?" Abby asked, "Are we going in one car, or are we following you?"

"I've been thinking about that for a bit, and I think it's best if we all go together," he answered to the two women standing next to him as he held Tyler's collar.

It was then that the world dissolved into an infinity of golden light. When it returned a fraction of a second later, day had been replaced by night, and Central Park had been replaced by a barren landscape dotted with piles of trash.

Aric released Tyler's collar, and as the canine revisited the pile of poop that he had dropped only a couple hours before, the two women tried to comprehend what had just happened.

"What did you just do? Where are we?" Abby asked.

"You knew that we were going to take a ride. That was it."

"What the fuck?" Saxon said, more an exclamation than a question, just as a black Range Rover approached at moderate speed before braking quickly.

"Do you take that fucking dog everywhere?" Jessica asked as the women piled out of the vehicle.

"What? I wasn't going to leave him by himself in Central Park. That would be crazy."

"That would be crazy? You just did whatever the fuck it is you just did, but THAT would be crazy?" Abby asked.

"Point taken."

"Abby, Sax, take custody of that woman," Rita said as she approached her two detectives.

"Captain?" the two women asked in unison.

"What happened to her?" Aric asked as he looked at Katya where she rested in Jessica's arms.

"The hiccup happened to her," Rita answered.

Aric closed his eyes momentarily.

"She's got a pretty good concussion. I'll need to do something about that. Soon."

"Does anything that comes out of your mouth ever make sense?" Jessica asked.

"Occasionally," he replied before placing his hand on Katya's head.

"What the fuck?" Jessica asked as she turned her face away from the glowing hand that was only inches from her head.

"She'll be fine," Aric said, "she'll sleep for a while."

"So I guess I'll just hang onto her then, shall I?" Jess asked sarcastically as he walked away from her.

"Leave now, talk later," Sharon said, "They have help on the way and I don't want to be here when it shows up."

"Three vehicles heading this way," Trish said as she looked down the straight section of highway towards Moscow, "two miles."

"You can really see that far?" Beth asked as she looked in that direction.

we're heading your way, Trish texted Paul.

"She has excellent eyesight," Jessica said, "No, goddammit, wipe your fucking face on somebody else."

"Don't be like that," Trish said with a smile as she scratched Tyler behind the ears, "he likes you."

"I already have a boyfriend."

"Everybody stand a bit closer together," Aric said just before noticing Jessica's feet.

"Did you lose a shoe?"

"Oh, fuck you."

"Everybody, say CHEESE," Aric said like he was taking a picture.

"Jesus, what an asshole," Jessica said as the world dissolved again.