"What the bloody hell does your husband have to do with anything?"

Christina sighed again and shook her head, "I don't know. Patterson wanted me to sleep with that boke, the one that bought the champagne. He said it was about making sure that 'nice' men came to his club. When Ryan was trying to force me up the stairs, he said that maybe he would have a go at me after I'd been with the punter and that that would make Stewart mad. Then he said it was payback time and that they couldn't let Stewart get away with what he had done."

"And you've no idea what he was referring to?"

"No! Not only that…Patterson knows I'm a police officer."

"How?" Frank frowned.

"Well, I…eh…told him."

"You did what?"

"Ryan threw me against the wall and I just came out with it! But the thing is…he already knew, and he knows Ryan's on the job too, said he was his inside man. And then Ryan said that the whole thing was basically all about getting me into a situation where I had to sleep with someone. He said that they knew I was a good copper and that I wouldn't want to ruin the operation and that he wanted to be the one to tell Stewart what had happened."

"So, he thought you would just lie back and think of England?"

"Yes, but then he pulled out a knife and Patterson told him to take me out the back. That's when I said I would do it, but only if I got to pick who I did it with."

"And you picked me?"

"Yeah, well…" she felt herself redden at the implication, "We weren't going to actually do it, were we? It was the only way I could think of to get to speak to you. But, anyway, what are you and Ted even doing here?"

"You should be bloody glad we are here!"

"I am, but why are you here?"

He paused and she thought she recognised a flicker of regret cross his face. "I told Ted about the job you were doing for Vice. When I mentioned Patterson's name, he told me some things about him, bad things."

"What sort of bad things?"

"That he's into hurting girls, raping them, perhaps even killing them. Apparently, AMIP have been all over him for three murders dating back the last few years."

"Oh my God…"

"Driscoll never told me any of that when he asked for you to take the job. If I'd known…"

She met his gaze. "You would have said no?"

"Well, I would have been a bit more discerning about it. Looked into all of it myself rather than just take his word for it." He paused again, clearly battling with what to say. "I'm sorry about that. I'm sorry about putting you in this situation."

"Oh, well…" she felt flummoxed by his apology and yet overtly aware that it was really the last thing she should be concerned about at that moment. "It's not your fault that this seems to be all about something other than catching Patterson running underage girls. So, what do we do now?"

"Ted's whistling up the troops. We'll raid the place. There has to be something we can get Patterson on, even if it isn't what Vice were looking for."

"But what about Ryan? He's clearly bent and the way he flashed that knife at me, if anyone's been hurting girls it's probably him." She shivered at the memory and wrapped her arms around herself. "Not to mention…"

"Not to mention what?"

"Well, he tried it on with me in the stairwell, said maybe he should have a go first rather than waiting until I was done with the punter. He…eh…well, put his hand up my skirt." She saw his jaw clench. "I mean, it was nothing really. I managed to push him off and get away. That's how I ended up back in Patterson's office."

"Did he touch you? Intimately, I mean?"

She felt her cheeks flame again. "No. I mean…he touched my underwear, but he didn't get any further than that. Really, it was nothing. I'm not bothered about that. I'm more bothered about everything else."

"Has Stewart ever mentioned Ryan to you? Or Patterson?"

"No, never. At least, not as far as I can remember. I mean, I don't doubt places like this would be on the squad's radar, but I'd never heard the names until I took this job." She paused, a sudden wave of anxiety washing over her. "You don't think Stewart's involved in anything dodgy, do you?"

"He's your husband, not mine. What do you think?"

"No," she shook her head, pushing away the creeping feeling of doubt. "He might be a lot of things but he's not like that."

"You sure?"

"Yes," she replied angrily. "You don't know him, not really. He's not a bad person, despite how he's maybe come across to you in the past. He's a good officer."

"I'll take your word for it." He turned back towards the door. "Maybe we should go out, say that we're done."

"Already?"

"Oh, I see. You'd like to think I'd take a bit longer over you, would you?"

"No," she rolled her eyes. "But if you want to give the impression you can't hold it in, then that's up to you Guv."

"Very funny. We could go down and nick Patterson now for brothel-keeping."

"Without any backup, I wouldn't put it past Ryan to try and do away with the two of us. Do you think they guessed who you are?"

"I doubt it," Frank replied, reaching for the door handle, and then rattling it impatiently when it refused to turn. "But then again, I could be wrong." He turned back to face her. "It's locked."

XXXX

Having rank bestowed on a person was meant to be an acknowledgment of the fact that those in charge felt such a person to be capable of dealing with situations in such a way as to ensure the safety and wellbeing of more junior officers. And yet, in that moment, Frank couldn't help but admit that he wasn't entirely sure what to do. He didn't have a radio on him, though there was one in the car that Ted would hopefully have used to alert the station, and there was no other apparent way out of the room other than through the locked door which, if she was right, had a knife wielding maniac waiting on the other side.

"Maybe they lock everybody in," Christina opined. "I'm guessing you only get a set time with a girl anyway."

He glanced at his watch. "It's been fifteen minutes. How long do they think the kind of bloke who frequents these kinds of places needs?"

"I wouldn't know. Maybe they're big proponents of the girl getting her end away too."

"Well, that should only take a couple of minutes maximum."

"Oh, really?"

He turned back to look at her, as a slow smile spread across her face, despite the circumstances in which they found themselves. "Yeah, well I suppose it depends on the bloke, doesn't it? I've never had any complaints in that department. Oi!" he banged the door before she could reply. "We're done in here! Can you let us out?!" For a moment, there was no response then, the sound of a key clicked in the lock and the door swung open revealing Ryan on the other side.

"Finished already?" he asked.

"Oh yeah well, I don't like to hang around," Frank replied.

"How was she then?"

"Top notch. Worth every penny."

"Good, "Ryan stepped back. "Well, I'm glad you enjoyed the experience. I do hope you'll pay us a return visit and tell all your friends, of course."

"Oh, of course," Frank replied, sliding his arm around Christina's waist and feeling her flinch slightly at his touch. "I'm looking forward to chatting a bit more to this little beauty downstairs."

"I'm very sorry," Ryan replied, in a tone that indicated he was anything but. "I'm afraid that our little Tina has another engagement." He stepped between them, forcing her to step backwards into the room. "I have to fulfil a little promise that I made to myself earlier. But feel free to speak to any of the other lovely girls we have in the bar. Any one of them would be happy to accommodate you."

"I'd prefer this one actually. I have paid for her after all."

"Yeah, and you've had your money's worth," Ryan turned back to look at him, his eyes hard. "Like I said, she's got another engagement."

"I'd rather go with him," Christina spoke up and when Frank met her gaze, he could see a flicker of fear in her expression.

"I'm sure you would, darling, I'm sure you would. But the fact is, you're mine now." Before he could say anything further, Ryan stepped fully into the room and slammed the door behind him, the ominous sound of the key in the lock sending a jolt of anxiety through him.

"Shit…" he muttered to himself. Should he announce who he was and try and break the door down, or go back downstairs and hope to God Ted had managed to alert the cavalry? If Ryan did have a knife what were the chances of being able to disarm him without causing injury? The few seconds of procrastination seemed to stretch for hours before he settled on the fact that, regardless of what else was going on or what else happened, his main priority had to be potentially saving the life of his colleague, saving her. He turned back to the door and pounded it with his fist. "Police! Open the door!"

XXXX

"Oh, I get it," Ryan said, advancing towards her across the room as Frank's voice came through the door. "That's why you picked him. One of your own."

"One of your own too," Christina replied, backing away from him towards the wall. "You're a police officer too, Ryan, or have you forgotten that? How did you get so drawn into all this? What does Patterson have on you?" The loud thumping of her heart almost seemed to drown out the sound of her own voice and yet she was savvy enough to realise that if she could keep him talking then, somehow, it might help prevent him from doing what he clearly wanted to do.

"What do you care?" he asked. "It's not like you're going to be telling anybody anything anyway."

"So, you're just going to kill me, and my DI too?" The door thumped again behind him. "Come on Ryan, you won't get away with that."

"Kill you? Who said anything about killing you? I'm going to have you and then I'm going to tell your wonderful husband all about how I held you down and gave you a seeing to." Before she could react, he lunged for her, gripping her by the arm and throwing her over onto the bed. She had no time to move, no time to escape, before he was suddenly on her, pulling her around onto her back and frantically pushing up her skirt, the door thudding in the background the entire time. "I guess it just makes it all the more exciting, doesn't it?" he breathed, pushing his body down on top of hers so that she could barely breathe, one hand tearing at his own fly whilst the other hooked around her pants and attempted to drag them down over her leg. "Having someone out there, desperate to come inside. You reckon your DI would get off on seeing me take you?"

"Get off me!" she managed to shout, though she had no strength to be able to physically resist. "Stop it!"

"I bet she said that to him too," he said. "I bet she begged him to stop…" he wriggled the material as far down as he could. "I bet that made Stewart all the more hot for her…" he broke off as the door suddenly crashed open, his hesitation allowing her the opportunity to push hard against him as uniformed officers rushed towards them and pulled him from her. Instinctively, she rolled over onto her side and over the edge of the bed, crashing down onto the floor and sliding back against the far wall, watching as Ryan was pinned on his front on the bed and Pete handcuffed him.

"Are you all right?!" June's face suddenly swam in front of her. "Chris, are you all right?!"

"Yes…" she stuttered, suddenly realising she had been holding her breath. "Yes…" She felt herself being pulled to her feet and propelled backwards across the room towards the table that bore the condoms and lubricant before being forced into a chair.

"Look at me…look at me!" Frank's voice snapped into her consciousness and, when she focused again, saw that he was crouched in front of her. "You all right?"

"I'm all right," she murmured, "I'm fine…" Out of the corner of her eye, she watched as Ryan was dragged from the room, kicking and protesting, shouting words that she couldn't even begin to understand. The noise grew fainter as he was taken down the stairs and, eventually, there was an uneasy silence and she realised that she and Frank were alone. "I thought you'd done a runner on me, Guv," she said shakily.

"Didn't you hear me banging on the door?"

"Yeah, I heard you." She shook her head. "He's deranged. He knew you were outside, and he still thought he could…"

"How far did he get?" he asked bluntly.

She glanced down to see her knickers halfway down one side of her leg and suddenly felt overcome with a mixture of relief and embarrassment. "Not far."

"Right…" he got to his feet and moved away from her, turning his back to allow her to adjust herself. "Well, whatever he's getting nicked for, we'll be tacking on attempted rape. You up to making a statement?"

Letting out a long breath she nodded, "I just wish I knew what all this was about."

"Don't worry," he reassured her. "We're going to find out."

XXXX

"How is WDC Lewis?"

"She's a bit shaken up, sir, but she'll be all right. She's made of tough stuff." Frank hovered in front of Conway's desk, waiting for the recriminations to start.

"What the hell went wrong?" the other man demanded. "You assured me that this was a safe operation and that she wouldn't come to any harm. Next thing I hear, Patterson's in the frame for a couple of murders and one of our officers is almost raped by a rogue member of the Vice squad!"

"I know that sir, and I take full responsibility for not doing the appropriate due diligence. I should have looked into what Billy Driscoll told me about Patterson before I let Chris go under."

"Did Driscoll know about what this Ryan character was up to?"

"That's not entirely clear yet. He's been a bit cagey in interview." To be fair, it was an understatement. Ted and Jim had questioned Ryan and reported back that he had essentially talked a lot of nonsense, focusing solely on 'something' that he suggested Stewart Church had done to 'someone' as yet unidentified. "In any event, it's my fault that she ended up in that situation and I've apologised to her for that."

"Yes, well…what's all this about her husband?"

"We don't know yet. From what Chris said in her statement, Ryan appears to believe that Stewart was responsible for something that he, Ryan, couldn't let him get away with. He wanted her working at the club in order to force her into a situation where she would either have to blow her cover or end up having sex with someone."

"He actually thought she would prostitute herself for the sake of an operation?" Conway looked at him doubtfully.

Frank paused. "She's a good officer, sir, and he knew that. I think if Ted and I hadn't been there, the thought may have briefly crossed her mind."

"Yes, well…I suppose it's a good thing that you were there, even if it wasn't sanctioned."

"We just went for a drink, sir," Frank replied innocently. "No law against that."

"No…in any case, I hope you told WDC Lewis that under no circumstances should any officer, male or female, end up in bed with anyone during an undercover operation."

"She knows that and, for what it's worth, I don't believe she would have gone through with it."

Conway shook his head, "It's all a bit of mess, Frank, isn't it?"

"Yes sir, but Billy Driscoll's on his way in. Hopefully he might be able to fill in the blanks."

"Yes, well let's hope so. I suppose Christina realises that she'll have to talk to MS15 too?"

"She knows, but I don't think she's too keen on the idea, especially given what Ryan has said about her husband."

"Well, she's just going to have to lump it, isn't she?" Conway grimaced. "Like we all have to. Yes, come in!" he called in response to a knock at his door.

"Sorry to interrupt," Ted said, "but DI Driscoll's downstairs."

"Right," Frank replied, "if we're finished sir?"

"Yes, go on," Conway waved him away and he left, closing the door behind him.

"Has he said anything?" Frank asked as he and Ted made their way downstairs.

"Not a lot. He's doesn't look very happy though."

"No? Well, that makes two of us."

"You want me in on this?"

"No, you're all right. I can handle Billy." He pushed open the door of the front interview room to find the other man pacing on the other side of the desk. "Nice of you to make an appearance."

"Don't you give me that!" Driscoll raged, glaring at him. "I want to know exactly what the hell you thought you were doing going to that club!"

"Saving the dignity, not to mention the life, of one of my officers," Frank replied harshly. "You've got a bit of explaining to do Billy."

"Me? I reckon you're the one needing to explain himself Frank. This was my operation, and it was going fine until you waded in with your size twelves and blew the whole thing wide open!"

"Oh, going well was it? Having one of your officers working for the man you allegedly want to convict? Threatening my officer with a knife? Forcibly attempting to rape her? You call that going well? I call it a bloody shambles!"

Driscoll stared at him, "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about your man Ryan! Didn't you know he was working for Patterson?"

"I…"

"Patterson's known all along he's a copper and he knew Christina was one too, right from the moment she walked through his door. You want to explain that to me? Or better still, would you like to explain that to her seeing as she's the one who got hurt?"

Driscoll paused, "Is she all right?"

"She's fine. Fortunately, I was there to stop him from having his way with her and then probably doing worse." Frank folded his arms and leaned back against the wall. "Did you know?"

"No," Driscoll pulled out a chair and sat down heavily. "I mean…no."

"Was it Ryan who suggested you use Christina for the undercover operation?"

"Yes."

"And you didn't think to question it?"

"Everything I said I knew about her was true," Driscoll looked up hastily. "I knew she was a good officer, people at Catford said so…"

"What about her husband?"

"Like I said, I'd had a few run ins with him, but that didn't have anything to do with…"

"We have information that Ryan knew him too, that he held a grudge against him for something and that that's why Christina was requested for the operation." He waited whilst Driscoll looked away uncomfortably. "Billy…she almost got raped."

"I was aware that there had been an incident involving Ryan and Stewart Church last year."

"What sort of incident?"

"We had a joint operation going with the Drugs Squad, sharing information that sort of thing. Ryan had a snout, a good one. She had close ties with our target at the time and she was full of useful information. Somehow, Church got a hold of her and she started clamming up, wouldn't talk to Ryan anymore, wouldn't give him any information, said she would only talk to Church. The rumour was…well…the rumour was that Church was sleeping with her."

"So?"

"Well…Ryan was sleeping with her too."

"And you knew this?"

"It was only a rumour…"

"He's your officer!" Frank exclaimed incredulously. "If you suspected something like that was going on, you should have confronted him, put a stop to it!"

"By the time I knew anything about it she was already, apparently, sleeping with Church! What was I supposed to do?"

"You should have realised when Ryan suggested you use Church's wife for this job that there might have been something more behind it. You should have questioned it. You should have told me about it! You really think I would have let her do the job if I'd known? Not to mention the fact that you also failed to tell me what sort of things Patterson was into."

"You never asked."

"I shouldn't need to ask! The onus was on you to make full disclosure of all the important details and Patterson being in the frame for the murder of three girls was one of those details! Only now…" he paused. "Well, let's just say I reckon AMIP will be wanting to take a closer look at Ryan in relation to some of that."

"Oh God…" Driscoll leaned forwards and put his head in his hands. "I'm sorry, Frank, really I am."

"Yeah well, it's not me who's owed the apology, is it?"

"Can I see her?" he looked up again. "I'd like to explain."

Frank felt his stomach contract at the thought. "I'm not letting you anywhere near her Billy. I'm sure you'll see her at the trial, not to mention the disciplinary hearing." He turned for the door. "I'm sorry it's come to this, really I am."

"Why did you go there?" Driscoll asked suddenly. "Why did you go to the club?"

Frank turned back to look at him, almost amazed the other man even had to ask. "Because I care about my officers."

"You care about her."

He paused and then opened the door. "Same difference."