TITLE: Weakest link

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Disclaimer: seaQuest and all the characters in it belong to Amblin Entertainment, Sci-fi Channel and anyone else with a legal claim to them. I am writing this for fun and I am not making a profit.

Notes: The Outriggers are figments of my imagination, so I claim ownership of them. Please consult me if you wish to use them. Any resemblance to people, living or dead, or places, real or fictional, are purely coincidental.

This is a sequel to Temporary Duty, the story which introduced the Outriggers. However, while it does refer to events that happened in that story, it is not necessary to have read it in order to follow this one. Those interested in reading can find it at Chance's Ultimate seaQuest Fanfiction Archive at:
http://www.angelfire.com/wa/seaquestarchive
or
Maureen and Riana's Fanfiction Archive at:
http://www.angelfire.com/mo/moandriana .
My thanks to both sites for posting it.

I know that O'Neil should be O'Neill, but it's a habit I can't break.

I received editing help, but all errors, grammatical, factual or otherwise are my own. Constructive criticism, suggestions, advice and comments are encouraged and welcomed and can be sent directly to me at outriggerblue@yahoo.com.

Finally, I have to thank Alexia, who once again coaxed, encouraged, and threatened until I finished it. As well, as Diena and Jackie who offered invaluable advice. Plus, the numerous other people who wrote to ask if there was a sequel to Temporary Duty.

Rating: PG-13/R for scenes involving mild swearing, violence and bloodshed, although nothing is graphically described. I will provide specific warnings for sections that warrant it when I post them.

Copyright: A.T. Jackson 1999.

Prologue

Lucas Wolenczak and Lieutenant Tim O'Neil stood in front of Captain Nathan Bridger, each privately wondering why they had been summoned and afraid that they already knew the answer.

The captain, for his part, studied the two carefully. The last several weeks, he had been hearing reports, from the rest of the crew, that both seemed unusually preoccupied. At the moment, the duo looked rather nervous and tense, which made no sense to him.

"You wanted to see us, Sir?" Tim prompted nervously.

"Yes. The UEO has ordered me to send representatives to a personnel enhancement seminar," Bridger explained. "I'm sending the two of you and Commander Ford."

Lucas hoped the relief he felt did not show on his face. Attending a seminar with the commander was not high on his list of fun things to do, but it was much better than he had expected. "When is the class?" he asked, hoping his voice sounded normal.

Bridger looked at him in surprise; this was not the response he had anticipated. He had fully expected Lucas to object to being required to attend. "It starts on Monday and goes all week, then you'll have two days extra leave," Bridger replied.

"Bribing us?" Lucas inquired, realizing that Bridger was giving him a funny look. Lucas figured the captain expected him to complain, so he wanted to make up for lost time.

"I prefer to think of it as an incentive," Bridger told him.

"When do we leave?" Tim questioned, glad that Lucas had jumped in first.

"You'll have to speak to the commander for those details."

"What is the topic of this seminar?"

"I believe it's teamwork," Bridger replied.

"Teamwork? I'm afraid to ask what they're going to make us do," Lucas grumbled.

"Mr. O'Neil, you many go," Bridger informed Tim. "I want a word with you," he added to Lucas.

"Uh, I'll see you later," Tim mumbled to Lucas.

"Yeah, sure," Lucas agreed.

"You are going to behave yourself at this seminar, aren't you?" Bridger questioned Lucas.

The teenager had a feeling it was more a statement than a question. "Of course," Lucas assured him.

"Good. I don't want Commander Ford reporting anything about you being uncooperative."

"If you're worried about my behavior, why am I going?" Lucas asked.

"I have to send three representatives and I thought you might like to get off the boat," Bridger responded.

"In other words, you couldn't think of anyone else?" Lucas interpreted.

"Not completely. It's been observed that you've been rather quiet lately. I thought a change of scene might help," Bridger remarked carefully, watching Lucas for his reaction. The captain had learned that, often, Lucas said more through his body language than actual words.

"I've had a lot on my mind," Lucas answered vaguely.

Bridger nodded his head. "I know. However, distancing yourself from your friends is not the best way to deal with it," he pointed out, thinking that Lucas was referring to his recent assignment with Outrigger Blue.

Lucas shrugged his shoulders. "I talk to Tim," he told him.

"All right." Bridger sighed a little. It was obvious that he was not going to learn any more. Lucas could be remarkably closed-mouthed when he set his mind to it.

******

Lucas found Tim in the mess. He grabbed some food and joined his friend, glad to see no one else seated at the table.

"Well?" Tim queried.

"He just wanted to remind me to behave myself," Lucas sighed.

"And?" Tim prompted.

"And to make the observation that people have noted I've been kind of quiet lately."

"To which you replied?" Tim questioned.

"That I'd had a lot on my mind," Lucas responded. "He assumed that I meant what happened in Tarsinia and I let him think he was correct. Then he subtly suggested I talk to someone, so I said I talked to you."

"Gee, thanks. I suppose I'll get another summons before we leave to make sure you're all right," Tim informed him.

"I had to tell him something, Tim," Lucas pointed out. "What was I supposed to say?"

"I know, I know. Maybe things will cool off while we're gone."

******

"Nathan, are you sure sending them on this trip is such a good idea?" Dr. Kristin Westphalen asked the captain.

Having decided to send Lucas and Tim, but especially Lucas, to the conference, Bridger realized that he had better tell Kristin before she heard it somewhere else. He knew that she would have some objections. "Both are recovered from their injuries," he pointed out. "We have to let them off the boat some time. Sending them to the conference with Commander Ford seems like a good trial run."

"I don't know," she said. Kristin knew she was probably worrying over nothing. However, the thought of what had happened to both on Tarsinia scared her more than she had imagined. The doctor wanted to keep it from happening again. "It just seems a little soon. I know the commander is responsible…" Kristin did not complete her thought, not sure what point she was going to make. Ford would keep the two out of trouble, but he was not the most sensitive man she had met. She worried that this trip could be emotional for both Lucas and Tim, both of whom avoided talking about their feelings with others. The commander was certainly not one who encouraged sharing confidences. Kristin understood it was not that Ford did not care; he did. He just did not express it very well.

"I thought it would be a little obvious if I sent you or if I went," Bridger observed. "And they're not likely to talk to anyone but themselves if they get uncomfortable anyway. Both have been preoccupied and isolating themselves lately. I think getting off the boat might be a good idea. I think they find all the attention stifling."

"Both have made that quite clear," Kristin agreed dryly. "Have they reconsidered the idea of counseling? It could help."

"They still refuse to see it as an option," Bridger replied. "And we can't force them. Time away might be all they need."

"You're probably right. I just can't help worrying."

******

Lucas stared at Lieutenant Commander EJ Rodriguez of Outrigger Blue on the vid-screen. "Anyway, we have to attend this UEO seminar, so we'll be gone about a week. Captain Bridger gave us two days leave after that. I think it was a bribe."

"Really," Rodriguez remarked, studying Lucas and trying to figure out what was wrong. He felt like he knew the teenager fairly well, probably almost as well as anyone. Even from the long distance call, Rodriguez could tell there was something on his mind. "Everything okay?" he inquired.

"Sure. It's just fine. Why?" Lucas asked nervously. Lucas wished Tim was here with him, but the lieutenant had been in the middle of work when Rodriguez had called.

"You seem a little tense."

"I'm going to spend all week at a UEO personnel seminar with Commander Ford. This means that I will actually have to attend every single class. I mean, if someone else was going along, I'd at least get to skip. And I've heard horror stories about these seminars," Lucas informed him. Lucas realized he was babbling, but he hoped Rodriguez would not pay attention.

"Taking Blue with you?" Rodriguez questioned, knowing it would provoke a reaction. He decided there was no point in pursuing the other topic of conversation.

"Why are you so obsessed with what I do with the bear?" Lucas growled referring to the stuffed bear the Outriggers had given him as a souvenir.

"Ryan wants to make sure you're taking care of him properly," Rodriguez responded, keeping his expression innocent.

"Yeah, right," Lucas muttered. "You just like to be nosy. I'm sure if you asked, they'd get you one."

"I'll pass," Rodriguez told him. "Listen, the commander wants to talk to you, so I'll talk to you later. Call me if you need to talk," he reminded him.

Lucas smiled at the other man for the first time in the conversation. Rodriguez never ended the call without telling him to call if he needed someone to listen. Lucas had talked a lot to Rodriguez since their return from Tarsinia. Being held hostage together had given the two a powerful bond. "I will. Tell the rest hi and tell Ryan that I'm sorry she couldn't be here to fill me in on the gossip."

"All right. Tell O'Neil to stay out of trouble."

"Bye," Lucas told him. "Hi, Commander," he greeted Commander Hunter McKinnon as she appeared on screen. "Hello," McKinnon returned his greeting. "Where's O'Neil?"

"He got stuck training on the bridge," Lucas replied. "What do you need?"

"Well, since your captain has not called, I'm assuming you have not told him about Section Ninety-nine."

Lucas flushed at that. "Not yet. We're, uh, still waiting for the right time. Besides, I thought Sullivan was supposed to take care of it."

McKinnon gave him a dark look. "You know that he'll wait until it actually becomes necessary. I thought some advance warning would be wise."

"We'll do it soon," Lucas assured her, hoping she would not press him for specifics.

McKinnon recognized that the teenager was being vague, but opted not to pursue the issue. "How is everything?" she inquired.

"Just fine," Lucas responded, not sure he liked the way the commander was studying him.

"No problems from your assignment with us?" McKinnon persisted.

"Uh, no," Lucas answered, a slight hesitation in his voice.

"Listen, make sure you tell your captain about Ninety-nine. I have to go. We're still looking for replacements. Are you sure you and O'Neil don't want to consider becoming permanent members?"

"I think that would happen over Dr. Westphalen's dead body," Lucas observed.

"I see your point," McKinnon conceded. "Talk to you later."

"All right, Commander," Lucas said. The call ended, leaving Lucas with the feeling that he had missed something.

******

"Well?" Rodriguez prompted his superior officer, when she had ended the transmission.

"I'd say you're right. Too bad O'Neil wasn't there. I would have liked to have observed him too."

"He was the same way last week," Rodriguez commented.

"Well, do you think you could get Wolenczak to talk to you face to face?" McKinnon inquired.

"Maybe. Why?"

"Because I think it's time we sent a representative to the UEO personnel training. It's for a good cause," she added, when Rodriguez groaned. "Who do you think could get O'Neil talk? In case your charm doesn't work on Wolenczak," she explained.

"Ryan or Karneering. Possibly Chandler."

"Well, even though we're on downtime, I can't afford to have you, Ryan and Karneering gone. I'll send Karneering with you."

"You sure? I mean, I could be wrong," Rodriguez pointed out.

"The worst that will happen is you and Karneering will spend a week at a class that will most likely drive both of you nuts. I agree that Wolenczak seemed a little uptight today. It could be nothing more than the two of them needing time off." McKinnon knew that a long distance conversation was not much to base their feelings on, but working with the Outriggers had developed their ability to read people. When Rodriguez and Ryan had approached her last week with their concerns, McKinnon had taken them seriously. In her short talk with Lucas, the commander sensed the teenager was being careful about what he said. In her opinion, it was worth further investigation.

******

"Mr. O'Neil?" Bridger stopped Tim as the lieutenant walked down the corridor. "I'd like a word with you," he requested.

"Yes, Sir," Tim replied. Tim had a sinking feeling he knew what the captain wished to discuss. He followed Bridger into the wardroom.

"Is everything all right?" Bridger asked him, as soon as they were seated.

"Yes, Sir," Tim responded, feeling slightly nervous.

"You've seemed kind of preoccupied lately. I wondered if something might be on your mind," Bridger observed. He found talking to the lieutenant almost as difficult as talking to Lucas.

"Some days are easier than others," Tim commented. He knew how the captain would take the remark, but it seemed better than telling an outright lie.

Bridger nodded his head. "If you need anything…"

"I'm fine, Sir," Tim reassured him. "Lucas and I talk. And we speak to the Outriggers regularly. Rodriguez and Karneering have been especially helpful."

"One more thing, I'm concerned about Lucas," Bridger told him. "He's been quieter than normal. He mentioned that he talks to you."

"Uh, I, uh…" Tim stammered, not sure what to say.

Bridger sensed his dilemma. "I'm not asking you to tell me what you talk about. I just wanted to make sure he was talking to someone. I've learned with Lucas that he's very good at misleading people," the captain explained.

"He does talk to me," Tim confirmed. "It's hard to talk to the others about some things. They tend to get tense when the Outriggers are mentioned."

"The others are still coming to grips with your assignment with them," Bridger agreed.

"So are we," Tim remarked dryly. "And I know he talks to Rodriguez," he added, which was true.

"Yes, I know," Bridger remarked. It was the regular calls that had helped him change his mind a little about the Outriggers. During their first two weeks back, Rodriguez had called every night. He also knew that Lucas had made a couple of late night calls to the other man. It had been obvious that the Outriggers felt responsible for the two. "Just keep an eye on him at the conference," he requested.

"I will," Tim promised, grateful that the captain seemed willing to let the subject drop.

"Thank you."

******

Lucas spoke as soon as Tim entered his room after a quick knock. "It's about time," he informed him, not even turning around.

"I got waylaid by the captain. He wanted to know if everything was all right," Tim responded, taking a seat next to Lucas.

"Rodriguez asked me the same thing. Then McKinnon got on and wanted to know if we had mentioned Ninety-nine yet," Lucas grumbled.

"Sorry, I missed that," Tim said, not sounding sorry at all. "You tell her no?"

"Of course. She knew we hadn't. She expects a phone call from Bridger when we do."

"She'll probably get one," Tim agreed. "Well, shall we check our mail?" he inquired.

"Sure, why not?" Lucas sighed. He entered his password and waited for his mail to pop up. "When you least expect it," he read out loud.

"Oh gee, I can't wait for the punch line," Tim commented. "Let's go look at mine," he sighed. Lucas waited for the proper screen to appear, then quickly accessed the lieutenant's mail. The fact that the teenager knew his password did not bother Tim. With Lucas' abilities, he could have known it a long time ago. The fact that he had waited for Tim to give it to him said a lot about his character, at least in Tim's mind. "I'll be there," Tim muttered, looking at the screen. "We have to figure out what all these means," he told Lucas. "This is starting to get annoying." Actually, Tim felt more than irritated; he was scared.

"Tell me about it." They had started receiving the joint messages two weeks ago. The sender split them up; Lucas received half, while Tim got the other half. They had no idea who was sending them, although Lucas hoped to figure it out. They had tried to send replies, but the address was never the same one twice.

Reporting the messages never really occurred to the two. At first, they thought it might be some kind of prank. Recently, the UEO had experienced a problem with an unhappy employee sending out embarrassing messages to a host of superior officers. In fact, Lucas had found himself questioned about the incident. Fortunately, Bridger had believed him and told the investigators to look elsewhere. There was nothing sinister about the messages, they were just unsettling.

Tim sighed. "Maybe we'll have some time to work on it at the seminar," he remarked. Lately, they had both been kept too busy to spend a lot of time investigating.

"Perhaps, although we're going with the commander."

"I see your point. You know, of all the people, Bridger could have decided to send, why Ford?"

"Just lucky, I guess," Lucas told him.

"We could use some of Chandler's luck," Tim observed, referring to Lieutenant Nicholas Chandler of Outrigger Blue.

"Why is Rodriguez sending me e-mail?" Lucas mumbled, having switched back to his own mailbox. "Oh great," he said.

"What?"

"He just wanted to remind us that we should make sure we take our gear with us when we go. Just in case. He added that he wasn't kidding."

"I could have done without that reminder," Tim sighed.

"I know," Lucas agreed. "It's bad enough that Ben almost spotted my stuff under the bed," he commented. "I don't want to have to explain it to the commander." "Don't worry. I'm sure the commander will have his own room."

"Yes, but the last time I went upworld, the captain made me share a room with him."

"Lucas, you went with him and Ben. Did you honestly think Bridger was going to let you room with Ben?"

"I see your point."

A knock on Lucas' door made both jump. "It's open!" Lucas called. The door opened to reveal Commander Jonathan Ford. "Oh hi, Commander."

"Lucas, Tim," Ford greeted the two. He wondered briefly if he should be concerned about their nervous expressions and then decided Tim was too sensible to be doing anything wrong. "I'm glad I found both of you. We're going to leave Sunday afternoon, since the first seminar activity starts at oh-eight-hundred."

"Lovely," Lucas grumbled. "What time are we leaving?"

"Fifteen hundred. Try not to be late," he instructed the teenager. Lucas was well known for losing track of time.

"I won't be."

"Commander, do you know exactly what a teamwork seminar is?" Tim inquired.

"No, I'm afraid that I don't."

"Does the thought frighten you as much as it does us?" Lucas questioned.

"I'm sure the UEO feels that there is a valid purpose to the class," Ford responded.

"Of course, Sir."

Ford shot him look, trying to decide if the teenager was being disrespectful or just making a general comment. Lucas kept his expression blank, recognizing that annoying the commander before departure was not the wisest move. "If you'll excuse me," he finally said.

"We'll see you later, Commander," Tim told him, before Lucas could say anything more.

"It didn't come out quite like I intended," Lucas said, not wanting Tim to lecture him.

"Just be careful. He won't tolerate as much as some."

"I know." Lucas got along all right with Ford; he just didn't know him particularly well. The commander made him nervous.

"Well, you know, Ford isn't going to tell us that he thinks this seminar idea is a bad one. It's against his nature."

"Too bad he couldn't spend some time with the Outriggers. It sure would loosen him up."

Tim looked at him, thought a moment and then laughed. "They would drive him nuts inside five minutes."

"You're probably right."

"I'm tired, I'll see you tomorrow," Tim said, standing up.

"All right. 'Night, Tim."

******

Two days later, Lucas was finishing up his packing when Bridger stopped by. "Hey Captain," he greeted the other man, spotting him in the doorway.

"Waiting until the last minute as usual, I see," Bridger commented, nodding at the bag.

"We don't leave for another two hours," Lucas pointed out, shrugging his shoulders.

"Please don't give the commander a hard time."

The teenager looked at him. "I'm not planning on getting into any trouble," Lucas assured him.

"I'm reasonably sure that you rarely 'plan' to get into trouble," Bridger observed.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Lucas sighed.

"I didn't mean it like that."

"It's all right; I know what you meant."

"Have a good time. Relax; enjoy yourself."

"Everything will be fine, Captain," Lucas told him.

"I can't help but worry. I remember what happened the last time you left seaQuest," Bridger reminded him. Bridger did not want to relive that incident any time soon.

"I'm fairly certain that Tim and I will manage to get through the seminar without either one of us getting shot," Lucas commented dryly. The teenager appreciated the concern; he even welcomed it. He just did not know how to accept it gracefully.

Bridger gave him a smile. He was slowly starting to understand how to read between the lines with Lucas, especially when the conversation centered around emotions. "I'm sure we'd all appreciate it. I'd better let you finish packing. Commander Ford wants to leave on time."

"I've been apprised of that fact already."

"Behave."

"Yes, Sir."

******

"All set, Commander?" Bridger inquired of Ford, nearly two hours later.

"Yes, Sir. Don't worry; it will be fine," Ford reassured him. Ford knew this was the first time that both Lucas and Tim had been off seaQuest since they had gone to help the Outriggers. Everyone on the ship felt a sense of apprehension about the two leaving.

"I'm sure it will be," Bridger agreed. "It's just that both seem preoccupied lately."

"It hasn't been that long," Ford pointed out. The XO decided not to mention that he had seen them up late at night, visiting Darwin, several times over the past two weeks. On those occasions, Ford had gotten the impression they were trying to hide from the rest of the crew. He did not think it would ease the captain's anxiety, so he kept quiet. "And they seem to be handling it okay." "That's what worries me," Bridger sighed. "Both have a tendency to internalize their problems. They turned down Dr. Westphalen's suggestion of counseling," he added. The captain shook his head at the memory of that conversation. Neither one had taken to the recommendation kindly.

"That's not surprising," Ford remarked. The commander could not see why anyone would want to talk to a counselor. However, he kept his opinion to himself.

"Well, I just hope getting off seaQuest for a few days will help."

******

Lucas and Tim arrived promptly at the appointed time, accompanied by Lieutenant Benjamin Krieg and Chief Miguel Ortiz. "Have fun," Miguel told them with a smirk. He was grateful not to be going; everyone on the boat was happy to have avoided selection.

"And don't anything I wouldn't do," Ben added. Lucas and Tim looked at the lieutenant and then at each other. "That gives us broad latitude, Ben," Lucas commented.

"I wouldn't let the captain hear that piece of advice," Miguel observed.

"We have to go now," Tim said. "We'll be back next week."

"Just be careful," Ben muttered.

"It's a seminar; what could go wrong?" Lucas inquired. "All that's going to happen is we're going to be bored out of our minds."

"Yeah, well, last time it was only a simple translation and a computer problem," Ben pointed out darkly.

"It will be fine," Tim insisted. "Last time was an unusual situation."

"Just stay out of trouble, please?" Miguel requested. "You guys scared us last time."

"Good bye," Lucas and Tim told them in unison, both feeling slightly exasperated. They appreciated the concern of their friends, but it was getting smothering.

"I'm just glad Ford's going with them," Miguel informed Ben in a low voice.

"He'll keep them out of trouble," Ben agreed.

******

Lucas and Tim found themselves sharing a room, which had a connecting door with the commander's. "You'd think we'd never left the ship before," Lucas grumbled to his roommate, as they got settled for the night.

"They just remember the last time we left," Tim reminded him patiently.

"Yeah, well, this is a personnel seminar. What do they think is going to happen?"

"I know, I know. They just worry and they want us to be safe."

"I understand that, but it's kind of overwhelming at times. That's the only good thing about coming on this trip. It means that the captain and the doctor have finally accepted that I'm fully recovered," Lucas commented. Bridger and Westphalen had made it clear that Lucas was not going to be leaving their sight until they were sure he had completely healed from his time with the Outriggers.

Tim nodded his head. He thought Lucas had a harder time dealing with the concern expressed by everyone on board seaQuest than his physical injuries. "They can't help it. And you would like it less if they didn't care at all," he pointed out.

"You're right," Lucas conceded reluctantly.

"I may have to write this down. Lucas Wolenczak admitted I was right," Tim teased.

"You want me to check our mail?" Lucas questioned, ignoring Tim's comment.

"Might as well."

"Nothing," Lucas reported.

Tim heard the relief in his voice. "Maybe we should tell someone about these notes," he suggested.

"We've talked about this, Tim," Lucas reminded him. "First, who do we tell?"

"Captain Bridger?"

"If we take this to the captain, he'll look at us like we're nuts. He'll say it's likely some kind of prank. There's no outright threat."

"It's more than a simple prank."

"You and I both know that, but how do we know it? What proof do we have? Nothing has happened. In fact, our names are not even on them. They could argue it's entirely some bizarre coincidence and not even meant to be directed at us."

"Just because we're paranoid, doesn't mean they're not out to get us," Tim joked weakly.

"If we show these to Bridger and tell him we think they're serious, he will send us to counseling."

Tim looked at him, hearing the edge in the teenager's voice. Tim did not like the idea of talking to a stranger about his life any more than Lucas, but he had the impression there was a specific reason Lucas did not like the concept. "You're right," he concurred. "He did leave the impression that, if he or the doctor thought it was advisable, it would no longer be left up to us. What about Rodriguez?"

"What could he do?"

"Well, we know it started after we got back."

"Yeah, but that could be coincidence. There's nothing in them that suggests it might be related."

"You know, I'm supposed to be the logical one; you're supposed to be the emotional one," Tim remarked with a smile, recalling a conversation they had overheard between Ben, Miguel and Lieutenant Commander Katie Hitchcock.

"I hate being predictable," Lucas said with a quick smile. "Until we can trace the origin of the notes, or something happens, we have nothing. I'm used to people looking at me like I'm nuts, but it won't help your career if we report this with only our feeling that something is wrong."

"I'm not too worried about that," Tim informed him. "My record is clean, and neither Bridger nor Rodriguez would report it."

"If Bridger forced us to go to counseling, it would go in your file. And you know that McKinnon would insist we tell him."

"She wouldn't have to know."

"You think Rodriguez wouldn't tell her? He likes us well enough, but he would report it. I don't think they keep too many secrets within the team. The Outriggers might be unorthodox, but she would feel obligated to inform Bridger."

"You're right."

"We just have to hope it goes away."

"That would be nice," Tim agreed with a yawn. "We'd better get to bed. We have to register tomorrow."

"And I'm sure the commander will want to be early."

part two

"All right, because you need five or six people for some of the exercises," the woman at registration informed them, "and you only brought three, you've been paired up with another group. They'll also have number thirteen on their nametags."

"Name tags?" Lucas mumbled to Tim; they were standing behind Ford. "We have to wear name tags?"

"Apparently. I want to know how we got to be group number thirteen?"

"Just lucky, I guess," Lucas remarked with a straight face, while Ford turned and glared at both of them. "Sorry, Commander."

"Write your names," Ford told them, handing them each a sticker. "Legibly," he instructed, having heard the grumbling about the name tags. "Then, while I finish up here, why don't you see if you can find the rest of the group?"

"Okay," Tim agreed.

*****

"I feel like an idiot," Lucas groused, as he and Tim looked through the crowd for someone else with their group number.

"It's probably part of the seminar," Tim pointed out. "Some kind of character building experience."

"Oh no," Lucas groaned suddenly.

"What?"

"What are the odds?" Lucas asked.

"Lucas?" Tim queried, looking at his friend in some concern.

"Look," Lucas said, pointing to two men standing in the corner, one of them holding a piece of paper with the number thirteen written on it.

*****

"I think we've been spotted," Dr. Joshua Karneering murmured to Rodriguez .

"Yeah. I think you're right."

"What exactly are we going to tell them?"

"I'm not sure yet."

"You have about two seconds."

"Don't worry, Karneering; it'll be fine."

*****

"What are you two doing here?" Lucas demanded, as he and Tim joined the two members of Outrigger Blue. "And how did we get paired with you?"

"It's just your lucky day," Rodriguez responded. "As for why we're here, the Outriggers always send a representative to these things. And it was our turn. The Blues, in general, I mean. I'm afraid that Karneering and I lost the drawing. I still say it was rigged," he grumbled.

"He's been saying that since McKinnon gave us the news," Karneering informed them.

"Commander!" Tim called, raising his arm to get Ford's attention. "He's going to love this," he muttered. "You remember Lieutenant Commander EJ Rodriguez and Dr. Joshua Karneering from Outrigger Blue? They're the other part of thirteen."

Ford had only met the two Outriggers once, while Lucas and Tim had been in the hospital. He acknowledged each with a nod.

"We probably should go get seated," Rodriguez recommended. "They're going to start soon and I'd hate to miss anything."

Ford looked at him, unable to tell if he was being sarcastic or not and decided that it was going to be a long seminar. For the moment, he kept silent and led the way to the conference room.

*****

"They want us to do what?" Lucas inquired, two hours later, after they had completed a lengthy introduction.

"Lead each other around the building blindfolded," Rodriguez explained patiently.

"And the purpose for this activity is… what?"

"To build trust," Karneering interjected. "The person who can't see has to trust their guide not to let them come to any harm."

"The frightening thing being that the UEO probably paid a lot of money for someone to come up with this," Tim muttered under his breath.

"The fact remains that we have to do it," Ford reminded them, even though he could think of things he would rather do. "The book says we're supposed to pair up, but there are five of us."

"Then we'll have to split into three and two," Rodriguez said with a shrug. "How do you want to divide?"

"Why can't the two of you pair up?" Lucas queried, referring to Rodriguez and Karneering.

"Because that would defeat the purpose of the exercise. They already know one another," Ford pointed out.

"So do the people who sent enough along," Tim commented. Tim did not really want to get left alone with either one of the Outriggers.

"No, the commander has a point," Karneering interrupted. "Why don't you, Rodriguez and Commander Ford make one team and I'll pair with Wolenczak," he suggested.

"That's all right with me," Lucas responded. If he had to be with one of them, he would rather it be Karneering. Rodriguez would not question Tim with Ford present. Lucas did not trust the sudden appearance of the Outriggers at the conference, especially since Rodriguez had not mentioned it during the phone call.

Ford thought for a minute, not sure if he liked the idea of leaving Lucas alone with the other Outrigger, mainly because he knew, at some point, he would be explaining this seminar to Bridger and he did not want anything to go wrong. He wanted Lucas where he could keep his eye on him.

Rodriguez saw his hesitation and decided to use it to his advantage. "No, why don't you and O'Neil pair?" he recommended. "Wolenczak can go with the commander and myself."

"That's acceptable," Ford agreed.

Lucas and Tim both had a feeling that, somehow, they had been trapped, but to object would look strange.

"This is supposed to take an hour, so we'll meet back here at eleven hundred?" Karneering questioned.

"Good."

*****

"What do you think?" Karneering asked Tim. "How long before those two start at one another and drive your commander nuts?"

"Five minutes tops," Tim replied, smiling at the thought. He had a feeling this would be the last time Ford paired with Lucas and Rodriguez.

"There's a step there," Rodriguez told Lucas, who had, reluctantly, agreed to go first.

"Where is there?" Lucas inquired.

"Down," Ford interjected quickly, not wanting to listen to them get into another discourse about word choice.

"I can't see, Rodriguez; you have to be more specific than that."

"I figured you knew I meant down."

"It could have been up."

Ford glanced at the time and wondered how it could be passing so slowly. "Perhaps I should take my turn now," he suggested.

"If you're sure," Rodriguez said. "Ford is going to take over now," he informed Lucas.

"I'm blindfolded, not deaf, Rodriguez," Lucas informed him.

Ford took Lucas's arm and finished leading him down the steps. "Time's up. You want me to go next or do you want to do it?" he asked Rodriguez .

"I'll go," Rodriguez told him. "Just don't let him shove me down the stairs."

"He might help me," Lucas commented.

*****

"So, how are things?" Karneering questioned Tim, as he lead him through parts of the convention center. "There's a tree to your right."

"Fine," Tim replied, feeling one of the branches brush his cheek. "I'm surprised you guys are here. Thought you'd be too busy."

"McKinnon's still reviewing recruits."

"Really? I thought she would have found replacements by now."

"The first batch washed out," Karneering responded.

"Why? I thought if they were eligible for getting a team assignment, they were qualified."

"They probably are. It was a personality problem," Karneering explained. "They weren't what we were looking for in teammates."

"Oh. I can see where that would be important," Tim remarked, wondering what the problem had been, since Karneering seemed unwilling to elaborate further.

"Things are slow right now anyway. Oh, there's the rest of our illustrious group. It looks like Mr. Ford is now the lucky victim."

"Does he look like he still has his sanity?"

"He's not screaming, so I'd say yes," Karneering answered. "We're going up stairs now."

*****

"There are five steps down, Commander," Rodriguez informed Ford, as they returned to the general lobby of the convention center.

"Why couldn't you have been that specific for me?" Lucas grumbled.

"Probably for the same reason you let me walk into the door," he responded.

"I told you about the door," Lucas protested.

"Wolenczak, 'watch out for the door to your left' is not helpful as I hit one on my right."

"Are we almost back to the meeting place?" Ford asked.

"Yes, Sir. Only about ten more feet. Looks like we beat the other two back," Rodriguez replied.

"I still say this exercise makes no sense," Lucas observed, as they stopped and Ford removed the blindfold. "After lunch what are we doing?"

"Some kind of group activity for all of us," Rodriguez answered. "Didn't you pay attention to the introduction?"

"I suppose you have it memorized?"

"No, but I know what's next," Rodriguez told him smugly. "Commander Ford, are you feeling all right?" he queried; he thought the man looked like he was in pain.

"I'm just fine," Ford assured him, wondering what he had done to deserve being with the two of them.

"You guys are all in one piece; that's good," Karneering greeted the trio cheerfully.

"Not for lack of trying by some people," Rodriguez remarked with a glare at Lucas.

"I sense some hostility," Tim commented to Karneering.

"It's time for lunch," Ford announced. "They're serving it the other conference room."

Tim and Karneering looked at one another and hid their smiles. "Let's go," Karneering agreed. "I'm anxious to see what kind of food one serves at a teamwork seminar."

"Apparently, you have not read very far ahead in your handbook," Rodriguez informed him. "Tomorrow, during lunch, we're supposed to feed each other," he added, glancing up from his copy.

"Oh dear," Tim muttered.

"That sounds like a lot of fun," Lucas groaned.

Ford kept his expression blank, but inwardly cringed at the thought. He also made a mental note to make sure he was not paired with both Lucas and Rodriguez for that one.

*****

After lunch, the activities involved problem solving as a team, which went smoothly. "What exactly do they think people are doing together?" Lucas asked, after they had finished the last scenario. "The average person is never going to encounter these situations."

"It's the teamwork concept," Tim explained. "The idea is we're supposed to use it to our advantage even in unfamiliar situations."

"Why are you guys here?" Lucas inquired. "I wouldn't think you all needed teamwork lessons."

"Yes, well, sometimes our definition of working together is not quite the same as everyone else's," Rodriguez observed. He waited for a moment, fully expecting Lucas to make a comment and was surprised when the teenager remained silent. "It's an effort on the part of the UEO to remind us we're all one big happy family," he continued.

"You mean we're not?" Karneering questioned him.

"Depends on who you ask," Rodriguez pointed out. "Listen, do you three want to join us for dinner?" he invited.

"I'm meeting with some friends of mine," Ford responded. "But you two should feel free to go," he told Lucas and Tim.

"Uh, sure," Tim accepted, not liking the idea of going to dinner alone with the two Outriggers.

"You're staying at the hotel next door?" Karneering asked them. "Good. We are too. What room? We'll stop by and get you."

"Eight-twenty," Tim answered. "What time?"

"Eighteen hundred. Gives us plenty of time to have a long dinner, catch up on old times and not keep you out late."

"All right," Lucas agreed, knowing there was no way they could refuse. He had the feeling that Rodriguez and Karneering were well aware of it too.

*****

"Well?" Karneering asked Rodriguez, once they had parted company with the seaQuest trio.

"Something is definitely up. He missed several opportunities to insult me today," Rodriguez responded.

"Only you would see that as a problem, Rodriguez."

"You know what I mean. Ever since we've gotten to know each other, we spend the better part of our time together picking on each other. It just happens. During the trust walk, he was normal. That's because he hates to feel like he's lost control."

"Neither one seemed eager to dine with us tonight. You think they suspect?"

"A little, but they have no reason to think we're here for any other reason than our stated purpose."

*****

"I can't believe Rodriguez and Karneering are here," Lucas grumbled to Tim, back in their room. "I mean, what are the odds? And why didn't he mention it on the phone the other day?"

"Sounded like it came up rather suddenly. Why? You think they have an ulterior motive?" Tim questioned him, dropping on to the bed.

"I don't know. This whole thing has made me suspicious of everything," Lucas sighed, as Ford knocked on the communicating door. "Come in."

"Just wanted to remind you that there is a curfew," Ford said, as he opened the door.

"We'll make sure to follow it," Tim assured him. Tim knew that the curfew was in place more for Lucas, but he knew that the teenager hated to be reminded of the fact he was not considered an adult.

"Good," Ford told him, surprised when Lucas did not make his routine protest over the matter. "I'll be back later," he added.

"Have a good time, Commander." Tim waited for the door to close. "You have to start acting normal, Lucas."

"What do you mean?"

"The curfew thing. Ford was waiting for your normal complaint about not being a child."

"Oh. I'm trying not to annoy him. I think Rodriguez and I got on his nerves a little during that trust walk. I didn't like that activity, I might add."

"Shall we check our mail before or after dinner?"

"After," Lucas replied. "If there's anything there, I don't necessarily want to think about it until later."

"True. I have a feeling we're going to need all our wits about us tonight."

*****

"If Ryan were here, she'd have a list of restaurants prepared," Karneering remarked, when the two Outriggers had joined Lucas and Tim.

Rodriguez looked at him and shook his head. "She doesn't have to be here for that," he said dryly, pulling a sheet of paper from his pocket. "She sent along her top ten for the area and even made sure they all served vegetarian meals, since she assumed we would run into the two of you," he reported.

"Well, then, let's pick one and go," Karneering recommended. "I'm hungry."

"You're always hungry," Rodriguez observed. "Looks like there's a wide variety of styles. Any requests?"

"No," Tim answered. "Whatever you want is fine."

"Okay, but I don't want any whining when we get there if you don't like it."

"We don't whine," Lucas informed him tartly.

*****

Lucas had the sinking feeling that Rodriguez had selected the small, unpopulated French restaurant for a reason. "So, how come you haven't found replacements yet?" Lucas questioned the two Outriggers, hoping to forestall their interrogation for a little while.

"We've been having trouble finding the right personality for the group," Rodriguez responded.

"What do you mean?"

"We're a small team. The ability to get along is part of being able to work together. We tried some out, but it just wasn't going to work out."

"Why not?" Tim queried, still curious from his earlier conversation with Karneering.

"It's complicated," Rodriguez evaded. "One of them hit on Adamsen, Ryan and McKinnon," he offered with a slight smile.

"McKinnon likes to let Rodriguez run the first day of training to see how some of the men act around women, since some of them have problems with women in charge," Karneering explained.

"Oh dear," Tim murmured, imagining how the three women must have reacted. He doubted it was favorably. "What happened?"

"Well, Adamsen politely refused. Ryan informed the guy that one of her specialties was security and suggested he did not want to get on her bad side," Karneering began.

"And McKinnon?" Lucas prompted.

"Took the guy down on the ground and told him that, in his current position, she could cause him a great deal of pain, so perhaps he should take a moment to decide if he wanted to pursue this line of discussion or offer an apology and take a walk," Rodriguez finished. "It was a sight to behold."

"I'm sure it was. What was the guy thinking?"

"Who knows?"

"Still, it seems like there's been plenty of time for someone to be found."

"We've been together a long time; it's going to take the right people to fit into our group. We've got one McKinnon's going to start trying out next week. Her file looks good," Karneering commented.

"The other files looked good too." Rodriguez sighed. "But we're doing all right. How's work on seaQuest?"

"Okay. We just completed a mapping mission, so it's been kind of slow," Tim answered. "Is McKinnon serious about us having to attend the annual refresher training when you guys go?"

"If she mentioned it, yes," Rodriguez confirmed.

"What exactly does it involve?" Lucas interjected.

*****

Rodriguez and Karneering let the conversation drift until the food arrived. "Here, this is yours," Karneering told Tim, passing him the entrée he had ordered. "I think Wolenczak has mine."

"I don't even see mine," Lucas mumbled, handing the doctor the plate, as Rodriguez took the food Tim had originally been given.

"I think our waitress is a little out of it. You want to send it back?" Rodriguez inquired, handing Lucas the extra plate.

Lucas eyed it carefully. "Doesn't look like it will kill me," he commented. "I'll try it."

"That's the spirit," Karneering encouraged him.

"So, you two want to tell us what's going on?" Rodriguez asked Lucas and Tim bluntly.

"What do you mean?" Tim asked, keeping his expression blank.

Lucas was grateful he had a mouthful of food and had an excuse for not answering.

"We've talked about every inane topic the two of you have been able to dredge up since we arrived here," Rodriguez observed. "Every time we get remotely personal, one of you jumps in with some question that takes us back off track. And, while you two are an impressive team together, it's fairly obvious that the two of you have something on your minds."

"You're nuts," Lucas told him.

"I'm an Outrigger; it comes with the job," Rodriguez responded. "Don't try to sidetrack me."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Tim stated. "Our only problem is being stuck at this teamwork seminar, which is enough to drive anyone crazy."

"Except perhaps Commander Ford," Lucas pointed out. "Of all the people that could have come with us on this thing, it had to be the one person who will make us participate in every single activity without fail and probably not see the humor in any of it."

"He's doing it again," Karneering whispered to Rodriguez , loud enough for the other two to hear. "He's quite good at it. I'd say he's had lots of practice."

"I think he could teach a class," Rodriguez agreed. "Maybe we should have McKinnon think about adding it as part of training. You know 'how to evade questions without telling an outright lie'. I think it could come in handy."

"Did you know that O'Neil can't sit still when he's nervous?" Karneering questioned Rodriguez.

"I'm not nervous," Tim commented. "

"Then why is your leg jiggling the entire table?"

"It's a habit."

"I ate a lot of meals with him before and I never noticed. I think I would have," Rodriguez told Karneering. "But I think we're digressing from the topic at hand."

"Which is what? Your paranoid delusions?" Lucas queried.

"His sarcasm gets worse when he's bothered by something," Rodriguez explained to Karneering.

"Are the two of you having fun doing a running commentary on our personality quirks?" Lucas inquired.

"We'd like it more if you'd tell us what's going on," Karneering replied. "In the absence of that, we'll settle for the running commentary," he added.

"There's nothing going on. I think you two have spent too much time in the field," Tim commented.

Rodriguez shook his head, but recognized they would get no further pursuing the topic. He had been afraid that tackling them together would not work. They backed each other up too well. "You bring up Ninety-nine with your captain yet?" he asked, changing the subject.

"No. I told McKinnon that already," Lucas responded. "Is she obsessed with this?"

"McKinnon likes to have all the bases covered; you know that," Karneering reminded him.

"Mentioning the Outriggers in any form around seaQuest has not been exactly easy," Tim observed.

"That bad, huh?" Rodriguez questioned. Both had intimated as much in previous conversations, but he had never been inclined to delve too deeply into the subject. He knew the topic made them uncomfortable.

"It would have been okay, except for the whole getting shot part," Lucas answered dryly. "That really upset everyone."

"They weren't too keen on the hostage part, either," Tim interjected.

"Well, I can see how they might find it disturbing," Rodriguez agreed. "You're both leaving out part of the story, though."

"I think you need to work on your perception. You're not doing so well tonight," Lucas informed him.

"I can't be perfect all the time," Rodriguez said with a smile. "You guys ready to go?" he inquired, reluctantly conceding that he was not going to get any information from the duo.

"I think so. Tomorrow is another fun and exciting day," Tim sighed.

"Yes, and we have to check in with McKinnon," Karneering grumbled. "We're supposed to be on downtime, but she makes us check in twice a day to make sure we're still in the same status."

"Other commanders just call if there's trouble. McKinnon likes to be different," Rodriguez explained.

"That's why you like her," Tim pointed out.

"You may be right about that."

Part 3

"That was fun," Tim groaned, half an hour later. He and Lucas were in their room, reviewing their dinner with Rodriguez and Karneering. "They definitely suspect something."

"That much was obvious. I didn't think they were going to let it go."

"Unfortunately, I think it was just temporary retreat."

"I agree. But what can we do? It's not like we can avoid them. Plus, if we're not careful, Ford will get suspicious," Lucas pointed out, waiting for the appropriate screen to appear on his computer. "Are you ready to see what we have today?"

"No, but I guess we'd better take a look."

******

"Then, you think, there's something going on?" McKinnon questioned Rodriguez and Karneering.

"Definitely," Karneering responded. "They were not overjoyed to be paired with us."

"At dinner, it was just the four of us, and they were definitely doing their best to keep us from getting too personal," Rodriguez added.

"Anything else you noticed?"

"Tell her what you told me," Karneering encouraged Rodriguez.

"What?" McKinnon prompted.

"Well, this afternoon, except when we did the trust walk, Wolenczak didn't really give me a hard time," Rodriguez told her, knowing McKinnon would understand the significance.

"That is certainly out of the norm," McKinnon agreed. "What next?"

"Well, I figure, tomorrow the commander is not going to want to be paired with Wolenczak and me again," Rodriguez remarked. "I'm going to try to get him to let Wolenczak pair with Karneering. He'll be expecting me to question him; he might not expect Karneering. Together it's no good, Commander. It's like they have a routine going."

"They probably do, subconsciously anyway," McKinnon pointed out. "If you and Ryan noticed it over a vid-link, then someone on that ship has noticed it, too. If you don't have any luck with them, then that might be your next plan of action. Get one of you alone with Commander Ford. We didn't see much of him around the hospital, so he's not as close to them as some of the others, but it might be worth pursuing."

"It's something to think about."

"Keep me posted," McKinnon ordered.

"All right. We'll talk to you tomorrow."

******

"Tim? Are you all right?" Lucas inquired, noticing that Tim looked decidedly unsettled by the note. "Some secrets are better left in the closet," he repeated. "What does that mean."

"When I was a kid one of my cousins locked me in a closet and left me there for about eight hours. He forgot he had done it," Tim replied, his voice wavering. "When I went through training, it came out that I experienced claustrophobia from the experience. They almost kicked me out because of it. I mean, how can you serve on a sub if you're claustrophobic? I got some counseling and passed all the tests, so they let it slide."

"But how did our note sender know any of this?"

"I don't know," Tim sighed. He looked at Lucas with concern. "This is getting personal. Maybe we should talk to Rodriguez and Karneering."

"Do you really want to? Once again, we have no proof. Until we do, all anyone is going to say is that we're overstressed and have overactive imaginations. I agree that it's personal, but there's no proof that it's meant that way. It could be any secret, not something directed at you."

"I know. But I don't want anything to happen to you," Tim admitted. Seeing the note had shocked him. Tim had no doubts that Lucas had something in his past that could be used to rattle him. In fact, Tim had a suspicion that Lucas had a lot in his past that they did not know about and could be used to evoke unpleasant memories.

"I'll be fine," Lucas assured, hoping he was right. "I think he's using it to make a point. To show that he knows us."

"Probably," Tim agreed. "I just don't like the idea of the guy digging around in our personnel files. Or at least mine."

"I don't either. But, until we have proof, it comes down to the same thing. It's just our feelings about the notes against what they actually say."

"And who would want to threaten us, right?"

"That's right. We've already gotten enough attention since we came back from TDY with the Outriggers. I think this would bring us more than we could possibly want."

"I see your point," he agreed. "You still can't trace it?"

"Not enough time or the right equipment," Lucas sighed. "I mean, he hasn't used the same e-mail address twice. It comes from a different location each time. If we were on seaQuest, I might be able to trace it. But then we'd have to make sure we didn't trigger anything he had set up to check on us."

"I guess you're right. So what do we do?" Tim queried.

"We be careful and hope we can figure out what's going on, or that it stops."

"Not much of plan, is it?" Tim remarked dryly.

"Come on; we'd better get some sleep. Commander Ford will probably want to do a bed check," Lucas commented.

"Lucas."

"Hey, I didn't say it to him. You're the one telling me I'm not acting normal."

"Now you listen to me," Tim groaned, throwing a pillow at him.

******

Ford had no problem letting Lucas pair with Karneering the following day, mainly because he wanted to avoid being stuck with Lucas and Rodriguez together. The whole idea of having to eat blindfolded did not sit well with him in the first place; he did not want to listen to any bickering while he was doing it.

"This is worse than yesterday's activity," Lucas grumbled.

"Oh well, it could be worse," Karneering assured him.

"How?"

"Ryan could be here telling us exactly why we should give it a chance."

"You make a good point," Lucas conceded. "I guess we should be thankful she didn't lose in the lottery."

"Rodriguez tried to trade with her, but McKinnon vetoed the idea," Karneering responded. "You ready to start?"

"No, but I guess we don't have a choice."

"You're right," Karneering said with a smile that Lucas could not see. "We'll start with the soup."

"Just don't spill it on me."

"Trust me."

"Very funny, Karneering," Lucas groaned.

"You know," Karneering began, as he started the feeding process, "Rodriguez and I only want to help you two."

"With what?" Lucas queried, coughing a little when he swallowed too fast. "Water," he requested.

"No water, how about apple juice?"

"What are my other choices?"

"I think it's tea, but I'm not sure."

"I'll take the juice."

"With whatever is on your minds," Karneering responded, going back to his question.

"The only thing on my mind is getting through this lunch without wearing any of it," Lucas informed him.

"Talking about something can help you sort it out: make the problem seem not quite so big," Karneering remarked. The doctor had never realized someone could glare with their eyes covered, but Lucas was definitely giving him a dark look.

"Are you the local advocate for the mental health association?" Lucas inquired heatedly.

"It was just an observation: both as a professional and as your friend," Karneering interjected, deciding he had obviously pushed a button with his remark.

"Why are you so obsessed with this?"

"Let's try the salad now," Karneering told him. "Because we like both of you and you're both tense about something. We want to help."

"Of course, we're uptight! Everyone keeps watching us like we're going to around the bend at any second!" Lucas hissed. "You'd think we were the poster children for a breakdown."

"Everyone?" Karneering questioned, figuring this was a topic that might be wise to follow. "Everyone in general? Or just those people that are concerned about your well-being?"

"You're starting to talk like a shrink," Lucas said tightly.

"I'm just trying to figure out why this topic makes you so edgy," Karneering observed, hoping he did not go too far. "Needing some help through a difficult time is normal."

"I'm tired of being under a microscope and having everyone analyze everything I do or say. You have a bad day and everyone wants to talk about it. If you say you're fine, they don't believe you. Why ask if you already know the answer?"

"I think it's your turn now," Karneering informed him. The doctor prided himself on knowing when to retreat.

"Good," Lucas responded shortly.

******

"I sense that things did not go well," Rodriguez mumbled to Karneering when the five reunited after lunch.

"I think I hit a nerve," Karneering replied.

"These people are nuts," Lucas pronounced, having just read the next activity.

"I'm with Lucas on this one," Tim agreed.

"It's another trust building exercise, just like the others," Ford interjected, even though he did not like the idea any better.

"Does that mean you'd like to go first?" Rodriguez asked him.

Ford sighed inwardly and realized he had to agree. "That's not a problem."

"Good."

The other four formed a circle around him and waited for him to fall back. Since the idea of the activity was for the four of them to push the commander from person to person without letting him fall. His job was simply to trust them not to let him hit the ground.

"If you drop me, I'm not going to be a happy camper," Rodriguez muttered as he took his place.

"And that would be new?" Lucas inquired.

"You have yet to take your turn, just remember that," Rodriguez threatened him.

"That has nothing to do with your personality defects. I would never describe you as a happy anything," Lucas retorted.

"Lucas," Ford warned in a voice low enough to be heard only by the teenager.

"Don't worry; I know in your heart you care," Rodriguez assured him.

"You're not that special."

"Lucas!" Ford spoke sharply, still keeping his volume down so no one else could hear.

Lucas kept quiet after that, sensing a lecture from Ford in the future if he was not careful. He suffered through his turn in silence, glad he had gone last and that there was not much time left.

******

"You want to eat dinner with us? We still have nine restaurants on Ryan's top ten," Karneering invited the trio.

To Lucas and Tim's surprise, Ford accepted. "What time?" the commander asked. Ford had decided it was a good time to get to know the two Outriggers.

"Eighteen hundred is good for us," Rodriguez replied, glad Ford had spoken up before the other two could refuse. "You?"

"That's fine."

"We'll meet you at your room," Karneering told them.

******

"I'd like a word with you," Ford informed Lucas, when they were back at their rooms.

Tim shot him a look of sympathy, but had enough sense not to make any comments.

"Yes, Sir," Lucas said, trying to keep the sigh out of his voice as he followed the commander into his room. He took the seat Ford pointed at and waited.

"I'm not sure what kind of relationship you have with Lieutenant Commander Rodriguez, but you need to curtail your penchant for arguing with him."

"But he isn't exactly silent," Lucas protested.

Ford gave him a stern look. "I can't direct his behavior. Just because he does it, is no excuse for you to respond."

"Yes, Sir," Lucas replied. The teenager had decided he was better off not pursuing the topic.

"Also, did something happen during your lunch with Dr. Karneering?"

"Sir?"

"You did not look too pleased when you rejoined us," Ford observed, watching him for his reaction. "And you were rather short with him."

"Nothing happened. I just didn't care for the exercise."

"That's no excuse for having a bad attitude."

"Yes, Sir."

******

"What happened with Wolenczak?" Rodriguez quizzed Karneering. "He was not happy with you."

"You noticed?"

"He sent you a glare worthy of McKinnon."

"Well, I hit a sore point. When we talk to McKinnon tonight, remind me that I want to have her check his file," Karneering requested.

"What for?"

"I want to see if he underwent any kind of counseling in the past."

"Why?"

"He definitely didn't like it when we even passed near the subject. It just makes me curious; usually someone isn't that touchy about a subject for no reason. I have a feeling that someone has recommended it since they went back to seaQuest. I know that I certainly would have advised it."

******

"What did Ford want?" Tim queried, when Lucas entered.

"To remind me to behave myself. He's not appreciative of the finer points of my relationship with Rodriguez."

"Oh. What happened at lunch?" Tim questioned, having been waiting to ask him about it.

"Karneering was bugging me again," Lucas answered.

"That all?" Tim inquired. "You seemed rather annoyed with him."

"I'm just frustrated. Why do you think Ford agreed to dinner with them?"

"I have no idea," Tim answered, accepting the change in subject. "It surprised me. I was hoping he would say no."

"Me too."

******

"Just how does Ryan know where to eat?" Tim asked Rodriguez and Karneering, once they were seated in an Italian restaurant.

"She reads restaurant reviews," Karneering replied. "It's her hobby."

"Her father and brother are both chefs," Rodriguez elaborated. "They often send her recommendations. Besides, she hates to cook, so she eats out a lot."

"When we're on assignment, she uses it to get a feel for the situation."

"How?" Ford questioned, genuinely curious.

"I don't claim to know how her mind works," Rodriguez told him. "It seems to work for her, at least, in certain situations. Many of our missions are not designed for the long term, so she doesn't always use the technique."

"Everyone has their personality quirks," Karneering added with a shrug. "Rodriguez likes to throw his alarm clock."

"Like you're the picture of normalcy," Rodriguez retorted.

Lucas and Tim looked at each other, each considering how the commander would react if Karneering gave him a lollipop after a medical exam. "I think being abnormal is part of being with the Outriggers," Lucas commented.

"You would know," Rodriguez agreed. "You're supposed to eat your food, not play with it," he informed him.

"I'm not playing with it."

"You're not eating it either. You're cutting it up into increasingly smaller pieces and eating about every fifth piece."

Lucas flushed as Ford and Karneering both turned their attention to his plate. Rodriguez looked back at him innocently. Lucas had no idea what Rodriguez was up to, but he was fairly certain he did not want to play along. "Not everyone can eat as fast as you," he remarked.

"How much longer before you guys absolutely have to have replacements?" Tim interjected quickly. "I mean, they won't keep you out of the line up indefinitely, will they?"

"When we return from this seminar, we're supposed to go back on active duty," Rodriguez answered, "whether we've found the new members or not. We can go with eight and there's always the reserves," he said with a shrug and a small smile.

"McKinnon would really like to lure you two away from seaQuest, but she fears the wrath of your captain and your doctor," Karneering teased.

"I don't think they'd be the only ones with objections," Ford told him.

"Yes, but they're really the only ones that scare McKinnon."

"I didn't know Outriggers were allowed to get scared," Lucas remarked.

"At least once a year," Rodriguez responded.

"Is that per person or for the entire unit?"

"Per unit, we take turns. My year is coming up pretty soon."

"It's okay, Commander," Karneering reassured Ford. "This is the way they show they care about each other."

"How nice."

******

"I thought you were on another floor," Lucas commented to Rodriguez and Karneering, when the duo stepped off the elevator.

"Oh, we wanted to ask you guys a favor. McKinnon wants to test this new program out. So, we wanted to call her from your room," Rodriguez explained. "She doubts that it will really work, so she wants to test it before we rely on it."

"Sure, no problem…" Lucas' voice trailed off. "Hey!" he yelled, as someone ran out of their hotel room.

"I don't think he's part of housekeeping," Rodriguez told Karneering, as both moved toward the door. "Stay there," he ordered the other three. "High or low?"

"Low," Karneering answered shortly. By now, both men had their weapons in hand, and were approaching the door cautiously, although neither believed anyone remained inside.

"I'm calling security," Ford said.

"It's clear," Rodriguez called out moments later.

"Ford called security," Lucas mentioned to him, as he and Tim surveyed their hotel room.

"Good," Rodriguez responded. "Anything missing?" he questioned.

"Doesn't look like it."

******

"Maybe the two of you should take the manager up on his offer to change rooms," Rodriguez told Lucas and Tim, after hotel security and the manager had left.

"Why?" Tim questioned. "It was probably a random thing anyway."

"You might feel safer," Ford commented. The incident concerned him on several levels. It was disconcerting to realize that someone had broken into the room, through hotel security. There was also his sense of responsibility. He was nominally in charge of the two. On a more emotional level, the commander worried about the two. They had been preoccupied and somewhat distant before this seminar; he did not see how this could help matters any.

"I feel safe here," Lucas responded. "You're next door. What exactly do you think is going to happen? I don't think the guy is going to return."

"What about your peace of mind?" Karneering inquired. "It may not bother you right now, because we're here, but later tonight you might not feel so safe."p> "Better yet, what about our peace of mind?" Rodriguez interjected swiftly. He could tell that Lucas was dangerously close to losing his temper and Tim did not look far behind. "I think we'd all sleep better knowing you weren't in the same room."

"The captain will feel better too," Ford added.

"The captain?" Lucas repeated.

"Yes. We have to call him," Ford informed him. "I'm not waiting to tell to him until we return."

"All right, all right. You're just going to bug us until we agree," Tim gave in.

"I'll call the manager," Rodriguez said. Rodriguez wanted to make sure that they ended up on the same floor with him and Karneering. "I assume you want to change as well, Commander?"

"That's fine," Ford told him.

******

"Are you all right?" Bridger asked Lucas. Having spoken with him already, Ford and Tim had disappeared into their new room, to give the captain a chance to talk to Lucas.

"I'm fine. We weren't here when it happened," Lucas reassured him, exasperation tingeing his voice.

"It's hard not to worry about people you care about," Bridger observed, reading between the lines. He knew how Lucas hated anyone making a fuss over him. He had the impression that Tim didn't like any better.

"We're in a new room; we're perfectly safe. And we have plenty of protection," Lucas added. "We have the commander on one side and Rodriguez and Karneering on the other."

Bridger looked at him, recognizing the names. "From the Outriggers?" he questioned, surprised.

"Yes. They got sent to the seminar as well," Lucas responded. The teenager decided not to mention that they were paired with the Outriggers for the conference.

Bridger nodded. "Just be careful. I'd like to speak to the commander again. Get some sleep," he instructed softly.

"I will," Lucas told him. "Good night," he added, before summoning Ford. "He wants to talk to you again," Lucas told the commander.

"All right. I'll see you two in the morning."

"I'm glad you called tonight. I trust they didn't offer too many protests?" Bridger commented when Ford reappeared.

"Not really. They didn't want to change rooms though.

"That figures," Bridger said. "Just make sure you keep an eye on them. If necessary, you can come back early."

"I don't think that we'll have to. Hotel security thinks it was random and it is unlikely that the person will come back. Besides, I think that would bring more attention to the matter than either one wants."

******

"Well, that was the perfect ending to a good day," Lucas sighed, laying down on the bed.

"No kidding. You think it's related?" Tim queried.

"I don't know, Tim. I don't know."

"Hotel security seems to think it was random."

"I'd certainly like to think so."

******

"Why didn't they take anything?" Karneering quizzed Rodriguez, while they waited for McKinnon to appear. "By the way, I liked the testing a new program story."

"I wish I knew," Rodriguez responded. "But I don't like it. I was hoping to get a chance to talk to them again, maybe they'd relax their guard. The break in sure ruined that plan."

"You're late," McKinnon greeted them.

"We've had an exciting night. Someone broke into the hotel room," Rodriguez informed.

"Yours?"

"No. Sorry. Wolenczak and O'Neil's."

"They're okay?"

"We were out to dinner. None of us really saw the guy."

"Anything stolen?"

"No."

"Really?" McKinnon questioned, thoughtfully.

"What is it?" Rodriguez questioned, recognizing the pensive look.

"I'm not sure. Just keep an eye on them."

"We convinced them to change rooms. They're next to us now," Rodriguez reassured her.

"Good. Let me check on a few things and I'll get back to you," McKinnon instructed.

"Uh, Commander?" Karneering interjected quickly.

"Yes?"

"Check Wolenczak's file. I want to know if he's ever been any kind of counseling," he requested.

"How come?"

"Well, he seems to have a strong aversion to the idea. Kind of like he had a bad experience with it in the past. I'm just curious."

"I'll see what I can do," McKinnon promised.

"Okay. We'll talk to you tomorrow," Rodriguez told her.

******

"What do we have tonight?" Tim asked Lucas, waiting for the teenager to check their mail.

"Don't look back," Lucas read to him, before quickly opening Tim's mail. "I'll always be one step ahead of you."

"That's helpful."

"No kidding," Lucas agreed. "I just wish they made sense. Then we would have a place to start."

"I think that's the idea behind it. He doesn't want us to have a place to start."

"I know. He's trying to make us paranoid."

"It's working," Tim informed him, sitting up on the bed. "Every time I check my mail, I wonder what I'm going to find. Then I worry about what's going to happen if he stops sending threats."

"Me too," Lucas confessed. "But I don't want anyone thinking we're delusional."

"I know. And, unfortunately, I can see them shaking their heads and murmuring quietly about being under stress recently."

"No kidding."

"You think there's any chance that Rodriguez and Karneering will get tired of asking us questions?" Tim inquired. "

"Probably not. I don't think the Outriggers allow the word 'quit' in their vocabulary."

"Great.

Part 4

"I cannot believe this," Lucas stated the next morning. "What possible purpose could this serve?" he asked rhetorically. The five stared up at the rope bridge that extended between two platforms. It was just high enough to scare him.

"It's another one of those teamwork building things," Rodriguez answered. "Since you have to stabilize it on both ends to get someone safely across."

"Great. I feel fairly confident this is not a skill I'll need in the near future," Lucas mumbled.

"It's the concept, not the actual exercise, that you're supposed to gain from it," Ford pointed out.

Rodriguez glanced at Ford and realized that the commander had no clue as to the real source of the problem with this activity.

"Let's get it over with," Lucas sighed. He thought he could handle it, though just barely.

"Who wants to cross the thing first?" Tim asked.

"I will," Ford volunteered. He did not like the idea any better than any of the rest, but he saw no reason not to complete it.

"All right. O'Neil and I can anchor it from one side. You can go up with Wolenczak and Rodriguez," Karneering suggested. Like Rodriguez, he had figured out Ford had no idea that Lucas was afraid of heights. Karneering thought Rodriguez might be able to talk the teenager through it, but not with an audience.

"I'll go after Ford," Tim added, understanding the reasoning Karneering was using.

*****

"I don't think I can do this," Lucas informed Rodriguez fifteen minutes later.

"Do you want to try?" Rodriguez asked him.

"I don't know."

"Well, if you don't want to do it, don't force yourself," Rodriguez told him. "This is not something you have to do."

"But…"

"But nothing. If you don't want to do it, then don't put yourself through it. This is just something some idiot dreamed up. It has nothing to do with whether or not you trust us," Rodriguez continued.

"This is embarrassing."

"Why?"

"I should be able to do this. It's not that high."

"It's okay. You have to pick your battles and this one may not be important enough," Rodriguez pointed out softly. "You came through when you had to. In the greater scheme of things, nothing is going to change if you don't cross this bridge," he added, giving Tim a hand for the last few steps. "Do you want to do it?" he questioned.

"No."

"All right, I'll go over and send Karneering over and we'll be done. I'll explain it to Ford."

"Thanks."

"Just don't jiggle this while I'm going across," Rodriguez instructed with a smile.

*****

"You all right?" Tim inquired, noticing that Lucas kept growing paler.

"I'm fine," Lucas assured him, deciding not to mention that he would be much happier to be back on the ground.

*****

"Your turn," Rodriguez told Karneering cheerfully. He waited for Karneering to get started. "He's going to be the last one."

"What about Lucas?" Ford queried.

"Wolenczak is afraid of heights, Commander," Rodriguez responded.

"Oh. How did you know that?" Ford inquired, curious. "I've never heard him mention it."

"It became fairly apparent during his temporary assignment with us," Rodriguez answered, sensing that Ford might not know all the details about the Tarsinian mission.

"If he had said something…"

"I think he was hoping to be able to do it and not make a huge fuss."

*****

Having completed the exercise involving the bridge, the group then had to tackle the outdoor trust walk. "How do we want to divide up?" Tim questioned.

"I think we should let Wolenczak and Rodriguez go on their own," Karneering suggested. "That way they can snipe at each other to their heart's content and the three of us won't have to listen to it."

"That's not nice. We don't snipe at each other," Rodriguez protested, even though he wanted to be partnered with Lucas.

"What would you call it?" Tim inquired. "And I agree with Karneering."

"That's fine with me," Ford interjected before anything more could be said.

*****

Rodriguez led Lucas along the trail until they were out of sight of the rest of the groups and he found a bench. "All right. I've really had enough of this particular activity. Sit," he ordered.

"Should I roll over and play dead?" Lucas questioned, pulling the blindfold off. "I think they ran out of activities to run a full week, so we're recycling old ones."

"You could be right," Rodriguez agreed. "You okay?"

"Yes."

"You still look kind of pale."

"Well, it's stupid that I couldn't…" Lucas started, staring straight ahead.

"You're afraid of heights; you can't help it."

"I jumped out of a helicopter and I can't cross a dumb bridge?"

"Different circumstances," Rodriguez pointed out. "No one's life changed because you couldn't cross that bridge. Things could have been different if you hadn't jumped out of the helicopter." "I was referring to the five hostages we rescued, not the other parts," Rodriguez explained. "The whole team could have been taken if you hadn't gotten us past the locks. You never did explain how you were able to do that."

"It's a long story."

"That's usually the best kind," Rodriguez teased, but did not press the issue. "I'll get it out of you yet," he concluded.

"The commander probably thinks I'm an idiot."

*****

"You knew he was afraid of heights, didn't you?" Ford quizzed Tim.

"Yes, Sir," Tim answered.

"Perhaps you should have mentioned it before we got started. He could have stayed on the ground."

"He doesn't like to admit that it's a problem," Tim sighed. He wondered if Lucas realized how much his fear got Tim lectured. The Outriggers had not been overly pleased when he had not told them either. "And I thought you knew," he added.

"Why?"

"The first sign was on seaQuest. I sort of assumed it went all over the boat after he panicked on the ladder," Tim explained.

"No, I never heard about it."

"That's odd. There were a couple of witnesses, at least at first," Tim mused. "The captain cleared the area pretty quick though."

"Maybe the witnesses decided to be nice," Karneering offered.

"You've obviously never been on a sub," Ford remarked dryly. "That's usually the kind of thing that spreads like wildfire."

*****

"Come on; we'd better go back. They should be done by now," Rodriguez sighed. "I'll even let you lead me back. Just stay away from the edge of the cliff."

"It's a trust walk, Rodriguez, you're supposed have faith in me."

"Yes, but I know you too well for that. You never told me if you brought Blue with you."

"No. I really wish you'd stop bringing the bear up."

"Well, we could talk about what's on your mind if you prefer," Rodriguez offered, not surprised when he received no response.

*****

They met up with the other three, everyone anxious to be done with the outdoor activities. Ford noticed Lucas was avoiding him, which was why he made sure that he sat next to him on the bus ride back to the convention center. Even though the noisy ride was not the best place to carry on a conversation, Ford knew they could not complete the seminar if Lucas would not even look him in the eye.

For his part, Lucas was supremely embarrassed. He had thought panicking over the jump off the Tower in Hawaii had been bad; this felt even worse. He glanced at the commander and waited for the lecture to start. Lucas could not imagine Ford being afraid of anything.

"You can't spend the rest of the week not looking at me," Ford commented quietly.

"I'm sorry," Lucas mumbled, still not looking at him.

"Why?"

Ford's question caught him off guard, forcing him to look up. "Because I didn't, you know…"

"That's okay. There's nothing wrong with being afraid of heights."

"I should have…"

"No one can do everything, Lucas. And I'm not mad at you nor do I think any less of you."

"Thanks." Lucas muttered.

*****

"I'm just glad they didn't try to serve us lunch out there," Rodriguez remarked, as they arrived back at the conference center. "And at least we're done for the day."

"No kidding," Tim agreed.

"Uh, guys, why are those people pointing at us?" Lucas inquired, noticing a man and woman talking to the clerk at the front desk, who was, indeed, pointing at them.

"I think we're about to find out," Rodriguez responded, as the two walked over.

"Lieutenant Timothy O'Neil, Lucas Wolenczak?" the man queried, stumbling over Lucas' last name.

"What do you want with them?" Rodriguez spoke before anyone else could.

"Inspector Daniel Crewes and my partner, Emily Stanton. We have some questions for them."

"What kind of questions?" Ford asked.

"I'd like to speak to Mr. O'Neil and Mr. Wolenczak," Crewes said impassively.

"And we'd like to know why," Rodriguez persisted.

"About a break in that occurred last night at Nicholson Technology," Stanton interjected. "We're curious as to how their fingerprints ended up at the scene of the crime. We'd like them to come down to the station."

Lucas and Tim looked at one another and swallowed nervously. Ford felt distinctly out of his league with this one.

"Why can't you talk to them here?" Rodriguez questioned.

Stanton glanced at her partner. "Very well," she conceded. "Their room?"

"All right. It's room ten-fifteen."

"The desk said ten-seventeen," Crewes corrected.

"We traded last night, for security reasons," Rodriguez lied. He decided it was better to keep them out of Lucas and Tim's room until they knew for sure what was going on.

"Then let's go," Crewes ordered.

*****

In the elevator, Rodriguez slipped Lucas his key, and took the one for ten-seventeen.

"We'll need to question them alone," Stanton instructed them, when they arrived at the rooms.

"No," Ford said firmly. "Lucas is a minor. You can't question him without the presence of an adult." Ford had let Rodriguez take charge downstairs, mainly out of surprise.

"Lieutenant O'Neil is an adult," Crewes pointed out.

"Mr. O'Neil has other things on his mind right now. Either I'm present or you don't question either one."

"And you would be?"

"Commander Jonathan Ford," Ford introduced himself. He would not back down on this one. He did not want to face Bridger's reaction if he allowed either one to be interrogated without some kind of protection.

"Very well."

*****

"What's going on?" Karneering asked Rodriguez, who was making an emergency call to McKinnon.

"I have no idea, but I think we know why nothing was taken last night."

*****

"Now, which one of you is which?" Stanton questioned.

"Lieutenant Timothy O'Neil."

"Then you must be Lucas Wolenczak," Crewes remarked to Lucas.

"Yes."

"Now, can you explain how your fingerprints ended up at Nicholson Technology?"

"No," Tim replied, trying hard to keep his voice even.

"Mr. Wolenczak?"

"No."

"Someone broke into their room last night, could it be related to that?" Ford interrupted, getting a glare for his efforts.

"Why?" Crewes challenged.

"A security guard was killed during the robbery," Stanton added. "This is very serious. You need to cooperate with us."

"You can't honestly believe that we had anything to do with the break in. What do we know about that kind of thing?" Tim queried.

"The building was protected by an alarm system designed by Aegis Security. Mr. Wolenczak's familiarity with their product is well-documented," Crewes announced.

*****

"All right," McKinnon said, thinking. "Invoke Ninety-ninety and use Eighty-six to pull O'Neil and Wolenczak out of there," she ordered swiftly. "Retro it to last night."

"What about Ford?" Rodriguez inquired, curious about McKinnon's reaction.

"I'll get him assigned to us as well," she responded. "Until I can get orders transmitted, you'll have to stay with him and keep him from answering questions. We can't let him contact seaQuest either. Your inspectors will take their inquiry there next; we need Bridger and company to remain ignorant until then. Karneering, you have to get Wolenczak and O'Neil out of the hotel. Follow standard protocol," she instructed. "I'll assemble the team and we'll be there as soon as possible. Whatever you do, do not let Wolenczak and O'Neil have any time alone."

"Commander?" Rodriguez queried, sensing McKinnon knew more than she was revealing.

"We can't let them have any time to come up with a story together."

"You know something."

"We'll talk when I get there; just keep them away from the police. If the authorities object, tell them to contact the admiral."

"Sullivan going to okay this?"

"Sullivan won't be a problem," McKinnon assured him. "Check in later. I'm sending you the orders for Wolenczak and O'Neil now. I'll have the ones reassigning Ford transmitted within the hour."

*****

McKinnon waited for Admiral Christopher Kincaid to appear on screen. "Sorry to disturb you, Admiral," she greeted him, giving a quick salute. Kincaid had joined the Outrigger organization when Admiral Walter Ramsey had been ousted.

"What can I do for you, Commander?" Kincaid inquired politely, keeping his tone professional.

"I need to reactivate two reserve team members and get another person temporarily assigned. I also need permission for an emergency deployment."

"Why?"

"I think someone is setting up my reservists," McKinnon informed him, quickly reciting the details.

"Proof?"

"None. That's why I need to do this."

"Not good enough, Commander."

"Do it for Jordan then," McKinnon requested. "There are similarities," she added, before Kincaid could speak.

"You sure?"

"Not until I can investigate."

"Your captain know you called me?"

"I need you to cover that too."

"All right. I'll need names. I'll tell Sullivan you're on special assignment, strictly need to know and he's not considered part of the loop."

"Thank you, Sir."

"Don't make me regret it, Hunter," Kincaid said quietly.

*****

"Shall we be polite or abrupt?" Rodriguez asked Karneering.

"Your call."

"Let's make an entrance; give me your key."

*****

"This is supposed to be private," Crewes pronounced when Rodriguez and Karneering entered the room.

"This interview is over," Rodriguez told him. "Lieutenant Commander EJ Rodriguez, Outrigger Blue. This is Lieutenant Commander Joshua Karneering," he added, opting to use Karneering's rank. "And there will be no more questioning of Wolenczak or O'Neil at this time."

"You can't end this interview. We'll take it to the station if necessary," Crewes threatened.

"Section Eighty-six, paragraph one of the Outrigger Code of Conduct, states that no member of an Outrigger unit can be questioned out of the presence of their commanding officer or legal affairs officer. Commander Hunter McKinnon will arriving as soon as she can, but, until then, you cannot question them or hold them. That's covered under paragraph two, subsection C, which states you violated their rights by not allowing them to have appropriate representation at the initial inquiry," Rodriguez explained.

"Your rules don't apply to them," Stanton reminded him triumphantly. "They are assigned to seaQuest."

"Section Ninety-nine, paragraph two," Rodriguez quoted, "establishes that any non-organization member that has participated in a successful deployment is considered a reserve member, subject to recall at the discretion of the team. Commander McKinnon reactivated Wolenczak and O'Neil last night. They are members of Outrigger Blue and therefore all rules and regulations associated with the Outrigger Code of Conduct apply to them," he elaborated. "This interview is over. If you have any questions, you can contact Admiral Christopher Kincaid. Here's a copy of the orders establishing the validity of their assignment."

"Commander Ford is not excused," Crewes pointed out. "He's not mentioned here," he added after examining the orders.

"Commander Ford's orders will be here within the hour. Until then, I'll wait with him to make sure that you don't violate his rights."

"Don't worry, Inspectors; we'll be in touch," Karneering assured them. "Once Commander McKinnon has arrived."

"I'm contacting headquarters," Stanton informed him. "You're not going anywhere until I get verification."

"That's fine," Rodriguez told her, trusting that McKinnon would have already taken care of the details by now.

Part 5

Bridger stared at Admiral Kincaid with a growing sense of horror about what he was hearing. "What do you mean they're reserve members?" he demanded.

"That should have been explained to you after they completed their previous mission with the Outriggers, Captain," Kincaid explained impassively. "Any individual who proves himself in the field automatically joins as a reservist."

"No one told me. Did they know?" Bridger questioned, referring to Lucas and Tim.

"According to the report filed by Commander McKinnon, it was part of their debriefing and was duly witnessed by Lieutenant Commander Rodriguez."

"One of them is only sixteen and not even a member of the military."

"Mr. Wolenczak is an active participant on seaQuest, which makes him eligible for assignment under our rules. You'll receive confirmation of the orders for them and Commander Ford very shortly."

"I am not happy with this at all."

"I can see that, Captain, and I'm sorry. But we need their services at this time." "And that's all you can tell me? I'm don't know if you're aware of this, but the last time your rules were invoked, both of them were shot!"

"I'm sure Commander McKinnon will endeavor not to repeat that particular performance," Kincaid assured him. "If you'll excuse me, I have other business to attend to."

******

"All I know is that it was an emergency deployment, Nathan," Admiral Bill Noyce told Bridger, less than ten minutes later. "Rumor has it that Kincaid ordered it without even consulting Sullivan."

"They could have been killed last time, Bill," Bridger said angrily. "Now, I'm informed that they're reserve members!" he yelled, making a mental note to have a long talk with the two about that piece of information. "Do they make up the rules as they go?"

Noyce decided it was safer to assume that the question was rhetorical. He knew any answer he gave was likely to rile the captain. "I'll keep looking into it," he promised.

"Thank you. Now, I have to explain this to my crew," Bridger sighed, imagining the response he was going to get.

******

"What exactly are we doing?" Lucas asked Karneering, as he ushered him and Tim into their room.

"You brought your gear with you?" Karneering questioned, more for something to say, since he knew the answer.

"Yes. Rodriguez said we had to," Tim confirmed.

"Good. Grab it and anything else you absolutely need," he ordered. "We're going to be leaving the hotel now."

"The inspectors aren't going to like that," Lucas observed.

"Probably not, but, by the time they realize it, it'll be too late," Karneering commented.

"Why did McKinnon activate us?" Tim questioned.

"I don't know," Karneering replied. "She'll explain when she gets here with the rest."

"Ford isn't going to be pleased by this," Lucas remarked.

"McKinnon will deal with him. You ready? Just leave the rest of your stuff here. It'll give them something to think about."

******

"Where are Lucas and Tim?" Ford quizzed Rodriguez, when they were finally released by Crewes and Stanton.

"Karneering took them to a safer location," Rodriguez replied.

"That's not good enough. These are serious charges that are being made. I need to contact the captain."

"You'll have to take that up with Commander McKinnon. But right now you are an Outrigger. That means no contact with anyone off the team until she approves it."

"What?"

"I just follow orders, Sir. Failure to do so gets me in a lot of trouble. Right now, we're waiting so I can go back and get my things and Karneering's."

"Why did you tell them that was their room?"

"To keep them from taking a quick look at Wolenczak and O'Neil's. Someone's taken care to get them involved; we don't need to help them."

"If we're not here, they can look."

"I know. Karneering and I already examined it and took pictures. If anything appears after the fact, we'll know it was planted."

"You honestly think that…"

"It looks that way. In my line of work, it pays to be suspicious everything. Okay, let's go. We're going to go out the fire escape after I get what I need. They'll be watching the main entrance."

******

"What's going on?" Miguel asked Ben, as they took seats in the wardroom.

"I have no idea," Ben responded. "But I don't think it's good news," he added. "Captain looks a little tense."

"I was in the middle of an experiment," Dr. Kristin Westphalen grumbled to Bridger, taking a seat next to Katie.

"I'm sorry," Bridger apologized. If he could have avoided this meeting, he certainly would have. The four, along with Chief Crocker, waited for him to speak. "I just had a call from Admiral Kincaid," he started, wishing there was some other way to make this announcement.

"Who's he?" Kristin interrupted. "I don't recognize the name."

"Admiral Kincaid took over Admiral Ramsey's position," Bridger explained. He watched as the information sank in. "It would seem that the Outriggers have need of Lucas and Mr. O'Neil…"

"What?!" Kristin shouted, not bothering to keep her voice down. "And just what was the commander doing during all this?" she demanded, not wanting to hear any more.

"Commander Ford has also been temporarily reassigned to the Outriggers," Bridger continued.

"Why?"

"The admiral did not care to enlighten me."

"How could they use them again, after last time?" Ben inquired, unable to bring himself to actually say the words.

"The Outriggers apparently reserve the right to recall anyone who has previously served with them," Bridger evaded slightly. He did not think this was the best time to add that it was likely Lucas and Tim had known they could be reactivated.

"Is it the same unit?" Katie questioned.

"Yes."

"That group is insane! Why didn't Commander Ford contact you?" Kristin queried.

"The orders came from Kincaid himself; I don't think the commander had much choice," Bridger told her. The captain hoped for his sake that the commander had not have any alternatives. If the doctor suspected he could have prevented this in any way, his XO was in big trouble. He ignored the sanity issue, understanding that he was not going to persuade her otherwise.

"I don't suppose they told you what they were doing?" Ben asked, his voice filled with resignation.

"No. I'm afraid that, as usual, everything is top secret."

"So we just have to wait until they come back?" Miguel questioned.

"Yes."

"I'm sure they'll be fine," Crocker offered hopefully. Like the rest, he worried about what might happen. "And the commander is with them."

******

"Why this place?" Lucas inquired, after Karneering had checked them into a hotel.

"Standard protocol for this kind of thing," Karneering replied, "so everyone knows where to go in case of separation. We go six blocks south, turn right, go five miles and take the first left, proceed for nine blocks and start checking hotels until we find one with a vacancy. We always have a check in name ready. We'll change it when we leave and it will remain in place until we use it again."

"That's very confusing," Tim commented.

"It's the Outrigger way, O'Neil," Karneering reminded him with a smile. "We won't stay here long, just until we can hook up with McKinnon and figure out what's going on."

"What is going on?" Lucas questioned.

"I don't know. Right now, we want to keep you away from the police so we have time to figure it out," Karneering explained. For the moment, he had only checked them into one room, figuring it was the easiest way to follow McKinnon's instructions about not leaving them alone.

******

"You contact McKinnon yet?" Rodriguez asked, when he and Ford arrived twenty minutes later. "Nice place, by the way," he commented. "But I don't think this is really going to work for five of us."

"That's your job, not mine," Karneering informed him, referring to the call to McKinnon. "As for the accommodations, I figured you'll get another room."

"Let's see what McKinnon wants us to do first," Rodriguez sighed. "You two okay?" he asked Lucas and Tim.

"We're fine, considering that they seem to think we were involved in a major break in that resulted in someone getting killed," Lucas responded sarcastically.

"Well, can't be doing too bad. You still have your attitude," Rodriguez observed cheerfully. "Let me see if I can reach McKinnon. Then we'll see about dinner and starting to sort this mess out."

"I'd still like to know why I can't contact Captain Bridger," Ford interrupted.

"McKinnon said no outside contact," Rodriguez replied. "That means your captain. I just follow orders."

"I outrank you," Ford pointed out.

"Technically yes," Rodriguez agreed. "However, you forget, I'm an Outrigger; we go by our own set of rules."

"Excuse me?"

"Section two, paragraph one, subsection B states that a lower ranking officer is not obligated to follow the orders of a superior, if the officer issuing the order comes from outside the organization, and the officer in question is disobeying the order in order to follow the orders already given by a superior within the organization of equal rank," Karneering recited for Rodriguez.

"In other words, you and McKinnon are both commanders, so he doesn't have to listen to you because she gave him an order that is opposite of yours," Tim translated. He and Lucas had already been subjected to repeated drilling on the Outrigger Code of Conduct in their phone calls with Rodriguez and Ryan. McKinnon had explained she expected them to memorize the regulations as reserve members.

"And I should also remind you that Wolenczak and O'Neil are, for the moment, in our chain of command," Rodriguez added.

"But I'm also temporarily assigned to your unit," Ford argued.

"Yes, but you're only a temporary duty, so your rank has no status."

"Tim and I are reserve members of the unit; you're an outsider," Lucas clarified.

"Yes, and does the captain know this particular point?" Ford inquired.

Lucas and Tim looked at one another and back at Ford, who was standing with his arms crossed, his command face on. "Uh, we hadn't, uh, gotten, uh, around to, uh, telling him just yet," Tim confessed, nervously.

"Why not? When were you planning on telling him?"

"He knows now," Rodriguez interjected. "I'm sure McKinnon had Sullivan contact him."

"You two are going to have a lot of explaining to do," Ford told them. "So, you might want to start with me."

The two looked at each other again, knowing he was right. Neither one looked forward to going to back to face Bridger, especially when he found out they had omitted this detail. "We were hoping it wouldn't become an issue," Lucas explained, although judging from the look on the commander's face, it was not a sufficient explanation.

"I think I'll make my call," Rodriguez mumbled, moving to the corner of the room. He felt a certain amount of sympathy for the two seaQuest members. He recognized the look on Ford's face; he had seen it on McKinnon's more than once. However, Rodriguez knew better than to get involved.

"You," Ford spoke to Tim, "should know better than to keep something like this quiet. How long have you known?"

"Since the end of our last assignment," Tim muttered, his voice barely audible.

"You've had how long?" Ford questioned. Both had the sense to recognize the question was rhetorical. "I can't believe that you two didn't mention this," he repeated. Ford could only imagine the captain's reaction. "I assume no one else on the crew knows either?"

"No, Sir," Lucas answered.

"I can only imagine how they're going to react. Especially after what happened last time."

Lucas and Tim both looked down at the floor, not sure how to respond and deciding that, in this instance, silence was the best option.

******

"McKinnon and the rest will be here in two hours," Rodriguez announced, "so I'm going to wait to get another room until she arrives."

"How about Commander Ford and I go get some food?" Karneering suggested. "I'd go alone, but I can't bring it back myself and I don't think we want these two out wandering the streets."

"All right," Ford agreed, although he did not like the idea of leaving them alone, even if Rodriguez was there.

"We'll be fine," Tim assured him.

"What do you want us to get?" Karneering questioned.

"I don't care," Tim replied.

"Don't ask Wolenczak; all he does is play with his food," Rodriguez told him.

"Thanks a lot," Lucas said. "But I don't care either."

"Good. Looks like we get to pick. No griping when we come back," Karneering admonished them. "Come on, Commander. Rodriguez will keep them safe while we're gone."

******

"Well, I'd say you guys ticked someone off," Rodriguez remarked, after the other two had left. "Or you just have incredibly bad luck."

"It could go either way. I haven't felt lucky in awhile," Lucas responded.

"I don't think the commander is real keen on this situation," Tim observed.

"He does seem rather uncomfortable with us," Rodriguez agreed. "But we'll grow on him."

"Somehow, I don't think he wants to hang around that long," Lucas pointed out.

"Ah, you guys took to us pretty quick. We're not that hard to love," Rodriguez said with a quick smile.

"If I were you, I'd worry about acceptance before going for love," Tim informed him. "He's only going along now because he's in shock."

"In two more hours, he's McKinnon's problem," Rodriguez reminded them. "She'll take care of it."

The other two thought about it for a moment. "You're probably right," Lucas conceded.

part 6

"Lucas, what did Crewes mean?" Ford questioned the teenager, while they ate dinner.

"Excuse me?" Lucas responded, knowing what the commander meant, but wanting to buy some time.

"What he said about you and Aegis Security?" Ford elaborated.

"What did he say?" Rodriguez inquired, his interest piqued by the mention of the security company.

"He said that Lucas' 'familiarity with their product was well documented'," Tim quoted. "You interrupted before he explained himself."

Rodriguez grew more alert both at the question and the look that crossed Lucas' face. He saw from the way Karneering leaned forward that the doctor was interested as well.

Lucas was grateful that McKinnon chose that moment to arrive with the rest of the team. He recognized he was only avoiding the inevitable, but he did not mind the delay. It gave him more time to think of an explanation that would answer the question without him having to lie about it.

"Nice hotel you picked out, Ghost," Lieutenant Nicholas Chandler greeted the group, as Rodriguez let them in the room.

"You have complaints, take them up with Einstein. He picked it," Rodriguez retorted. He wondered what McKinnon had told them; the team was obviously in mission mentality though.

"It's not that bad. The rooms are clean. And no one thought it odd that we arrived together," Lieutenant Commander Jenna Ryan observed.

"Thank you, Sunshine," Lieutenant Philip Hallowell said, from the back of the group.

Ford listened to the exchanges with growing confusion, noting that Lucas and Tim seemed to follow it with great ease.

"I'll cover the details with you later," McKinnon muttered to Rodriguez, knowing her second in command was bursting to hear details. "Right now, I need to have a private chat with Commander Ford."

"Better you than me."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence. Afterwards, I need to talk to Slick and Indy. The rest will wait until tomorrow. I'll have to contact Kincaid and see about getting us into some place we can use for a base of operations. We can't work out of here."

"You're the boss."

"Try and remember that as time goes on," McKinnon requested dryly.

*******

"If you missed us, you guys could have just come for a visit," Ryan teased Lucas and Tim.

"This is a bit dramatic," Lieutenant Maxwell Dawson added.

"It got your attention, didn't it?" Lucas pointed out.

"Yes, but a phone call would have had the same effect," Lieutenant Sara Adamsen observed. "And probably created less trouble it the long run."

*******

"What is going on?" Ford demanded of McKinnon, once she had led him to one of the other rooms.

"If I had the answers, we wouldn't be here. We would be down at the police station," McKinnon informed him. "But I'd say someone wanted to get Slick and Indy in trouble."

"Excuse me?" Ford queried, puzzled.

"Sorry. I forgot," McKinnon apologized. "Wolenczak and O'Neil. We use nicknames," she explained. "It's a habit."

"How interesting," Ford commented, making a note to get more of an explanation from Lucas and Tim. "Why can't I contact the seaQuest? Captain Bridger should be informed of this."

"I'm sure the inspectors will take care of that," McKinnon told him. "Once they can't get in touch with us, they'll go to seaQuest. And we need your captain and crew to be unaware of this when they start asking questions, because in the morning, Inspector Crewes and Stanton are going to be told that the three of you are on assignment with us and unavailable for questioning until further notice. We're Outriggers; we can get away with it," she remarked, when he gave her a startled look. "Everyone knows we don't play by the rules. Your captain and friends on seaQuest need to be able to honestly tell them this is the first they've heard. Besides, it won't take the police too long to get transmissions tapped if they're serious about thinking Slick and Indy are involved."

"I still don't understand why you're involved?!"

"They're part of my team and no one messes with my team," McKinnon stated bluntly. "Now, you can work with us or I can have Admiral Kincaid park you somewhere safe so that you can't interfere. It's your choice. But if you stay with us, we do it by my rules."

Ford could tell the commander was serious. "All right," he assented. "Just don't expect me to follow everything without question. I'm interested in their welfare too." Ford did not care for the deal, but he was not about to leave Lucas and Tim alone.

"If I thought otherwise, I wouldn't have given you the choice," McKinnon noted calmly. "Now, I'm going to talk to Slick and Indy and see what they can tell me."

"I want to be present."

"Not this time," McKinnon responded. "I want to talk to them alone."

"Why?"

"It doesn't really matter why, but I've found some things are best discussed in private. I've been around both long enough to know that they don't like being pressured. And I wouldn't worry too much, Commander. They'll protect each other. Besides, I haven't killed anyone from my own team," McKinnon commented with deliberate precision. "At least not recently," she added, opening the door and rejoining the others. She figured that would give Ford plenty to think about.

*******

"What did you say to him?" Rodriguez asked, noticing the shocked and horrified expression on Ford's face.

"Nothing much. Just let him think some of the rumors are true."

"Oh dear. Ice, what's going on?"

"Not yet, Ghost. I need to talk to Slick and Indy."

"Alone?"

"Yes."

"All right," Rodriguez agreed, feeling like he was missing something.

"Okay, Slick, bring your computer," McKinnon instructed Lucas. "I think we may need it," she added obliquely.

*******

"Okay, we're going to start with the easy questions and then move on to the hard ones," McKinnon announced to the duo. "I need to know what happened starting with the break in last night and your questioning today."

"Then Rodriguez came in and said they had to stop and that's where it ended," Tim concluded. Lucas had remained silent for most of Tim's narration.

"We'll get back to the interview momentarily," McKinnon commented. "Now, you want to tell me what's been bugging the two of you?" she inquired.

Lucas and Tim glanced at one another, realizing, for the first time, that this could all be related, but not completely sure.

"Let me rephrase the question. How long have you been receiving the notes?"

"Notes?" Lucas repeated, surprised.

"Yes. The ones that make you think you've been threatened, but are just vague enough to make you think you're wrong."

"What do you know about it?"

"Not much," McKinnon admitted. "However, I'm familiar with the pattern. It happened once before. So, I think you better tell me."

"About two weeks ago, we started getting them. He sends half to me, half to Lucas."

"You ever get any alone?" McKinnon questioned.

"I got two, before the first one with Lucas," Tim replied.

"Lucas?" McKinnon prompted.

"Mine started about two weeks before that," Lucas confessed reluctantly.

"Two weeks!" Tim shouted. "You never mentioned that detail."

"I thought it was part of that prank," Lucas mumbled.

"Well that tells us one thing," McKinnon interjected.

"What?" Tim asked.

"Slick is the primary target," McKinnon responded. "You were drawn in to pull him in further. He didn't react as the sender expected, so you started receiving the notes."

"How do you know?"

"I've seen the game played before," McKinnon answered. "Now, why didn't either of you mention these notes?"

"We didn't think much of them," Lucas explained. "They're vague. No proof of a threat. They're already watching us for signs of strain over our assignment with you guys. We didn't want to add more fuel."

"More fuel?"

"They thought we weren't dealing with it properly, because we didn't talk about it with anyone," Tim elaborated. "They wanted us to get counseling. And everyone's been kind of overprotective, especially of Lucas."

"Why wouldn't you talk to anyone?"

"I talked to Bridger and Tim," Lucas corrected. "It wasn't like I was ignoring it. And I talk to Ghost. But the rest, they don't understand; it just upsets them. They feel guilty. Everyone seems to think they should have been able to stop it from happening," he added. "Talking about it seems to add to their pain."

"That doesn't mean they wouldn't have taken the threats seriously."

"But when nothing happened, they would have thought we were paranoid. There were times when we thought we were paranoid," Lucas replied.

"Well it's safe to say you're not," McKinnon pointed out dryly. "Someone's trying to set you up. And they must have a reason, which is what we're going to work on tomorrow."

"What about the inspectors? They are going to want to question us."

"The admiral is going to buy us some time on that end."

"And Bridger?"

"He was notified you've been reactivated and Ford has been assigned. From what Kincaid told me, you're going to be having a long talk with your captain upon your return."

"Great," Tim sighed.

"Hey, I told you guys to let him know."

"Thanks for the support, Commander."

"Any time. Okay, Indy, you can return to the room. Tell Ghost to come on over," McKinnon ordered. "You can stay right there, Slick. We still have a few things to discuss. I also want to see the threats; I assume you saved them."

"Yes," Lucas replied, wondering what else she wanted to talk about and why Tim couldn't stay. He had a feeling that he was not going to like the answer.

*******

"You lose someone, Indy?" Rodriguez inquired, when Tim returned alone.

"No. Ice wants to see you now. Lucas is still with her."

"Oh. You might want to reassure your commander that we have retained some of our sanity," Rodriguez suggested.

"Why? I don't want to lie to him."

"Great, now you're starting," Rodriguez groaned. "Sunshine?" Rodriguez tapped Ryan on the shoulder.

"What?"

"I guess Ice wants a word with me, so I'll be back."

"All right. Should I send in rescue party if you don't come back soon?" Ryan asked him. "She was a little uptight earlier."

"Hey, I've been at this conference. I haven't had time to get into trouble," Rodriguez defended.

"True."

"Besides, she still has Slick in there with her. I figure I'm safe."

"Sure, hide behind the rookies, Ghost; that's classy," Chandler observed, having heard the last part.

"Thank you, Irish. I learned it from you."

*******

"They act like this to relieve stress," Tim remarked to Ford.

"Really?"

"And when they have an audience."

"I don't see how it can be productive."

"It seems to work rather well for them," Tim said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Great. By the way, want to explain the nicknames?" Ford inquired.

"Well, McKinnon is Ice and Rodriguez is Ghost, and Karneering is Einstein…" Tim answered, knowing full well what the commander wanted to know.

"That's not quite what I meant," Ford told him. "I'm more interested in why they call the two of you 'Indy' and 'Slick'."

"Uh…" Tim did not really want to explain the nicknames accurately. He swallowed as it occurred to him that it was likely the Outriggers would give the commander a nickname at some point.

*******

"You wanted me?" Rodriguez questioned McKinnon, when he entered.

"Yes. Now, Slick, why don't show us the notes? Let's start with the ones you got first," McKinnon instructed.

"Notes?" Rodriguez queried.

"Yes. Slick and Indy have been receiving threats together for about two weeks now. It would also seem that Slick has been getting them for about four weeks."

"This what's been bothering you?" Rodriguez asked Lucas.

"What do you think?" Lucas retorted.

"I think you should have talked to someone a lot sooner," Rodriguez informed him, sitting down next to him, so he could look at the computer. "But what do I know? I'm just the concerned friend," he added.

"We didn't think they were serious."

"You thought they were serious; you just didn't think anyone else would listen to you," McKinnon corrected. "They've had the two of you jumpy since they started."

"What was Indy thinking?" Rodriguez questioned. "This is not something you ignore."

"Well, Slick neglected to tell him about the earlier threats," McKinnon said. "I think if he had known, Indy would have spoken up quicker."

"Yeah, well, Slick's good at keeping secrets," Rodriguez observed.

"Do you have to talk about me like I'm not in the room?" Lucas inquired.

"No, but it's more fun."

"Anything specific you can tell me about the notes?" McKinnon interjected, not wanting the two to get started.

"Well, the one about the closet, Tim thought it was a specific reference to something from his past. I mean it's not obvious or anything, but he took it personal."

"Any thing from yours show up yet?"

"No. Last one we got was just generic again. They're just vague enough to be innocuous. And there wasn't one tonight."

"Okay. We'll study them more tomorrow, see if we can't get any clues from them. I assume you've tried to trace it?" McKinnon quizzed him.

"Yes, but I haven't had much time or luck."

"You're going to have plenty of time soon."

"I have a question," Rodriguez interrupted, deciding it was time to find out the answer and knowing McKinnon would not allow the teenager to avoid it. "What is the deal with you and Aegis Security?"

"What do you mean?" Lucas asked, stalling for time.

"Indy said that, in the interview, Crewes indicated that you had an intimate knowledge of their systems. In fact, he said something about it being documented. Why?"

"Yes, I've been wondering about that since Tarsinia," McKinnon remarked, curious to see how he would explain it. She had seen the brief look of resignation that had crossed his face when Rodriguez brought the subject up. Obviously it was not something he wanted to discuss. "You were rather familiar with the alarm systems."

"A lot of security firms hire people to try to break their systems, so they know how well they work," Lucas evaded, not wanting to get into precise details. "I used to test their prototypes," he admitted, reluctantly, hoping they would not want the rest of the story.

Rodriguez studied him closely, waiting for the rest. "And?" he prompted. "You said this was a long story when I asked you about it before," he reminded him. "Right now, it's not very long at all."

"That's it. I tested them for awhile and then I stopped," Lucas hedged.

McKinnon noted that Lucas was not looking at either her or Rodriguez and that his breathing pattern had altered. Something had the teenager distinctly upset. She shook her head at Rodriguez when he acted like he was going to pursue the subject. McKinnon's instincts told her that, whatever the rest of the story was, for she had no doubt that there was more, it was not related to the current situation. "How long ago was this? How current is your information?"

"It's current," Lucas admitted. "I keep an eye on the product line. I stopped testing right before going to seaQuest. Their engineers and programmers found it to demoralizing that I could crack their codes and security measures."

"Why?" McKinnon questioned. "Why keep up on the current systems?"

Lucas sighed and thought about how to answer the question. In general, the teenager tried to avoid outright lying, particularly to his friends. "I'm curious," he said, realizing if he did not say something soon, it would make them more interested. "I like to see what they've upgraded, what they haven't, if they ever took any of my suggestions," he elaborated.

"All right," McKinnon accepted his explanation, although she had a feeling there was more to it than simple curiosity. "We'll talk more in the morning. You can rejoin the others. Ghost, I need a word with you before I call the admiral."

"He left something out," Rodriguez stated, once Lucas had left.

"No kidding. He's extremely agitated about it."

"He ducked the question earlier when Indy and Ford brought it up. Same thing when I mentioned it earlier in the conference."

"I don't think the rest of the story is related to this case. At least, he honestly believes it's not important."

"You're willing to take the chance?" Rodriguez questioned. "I mean, they kept the threats a secret."

"That's another emotional web," McKinnon sighed. "I think both were afraid that they were making a fuss over nothing. For now, we're going to leave Aegis alone, although we may have to come back to it."

"You going to tell me what it is that you know about this situation?" Rodriguez quizzed.

"I've seen it play out before," McKinnon responded, still not giving many details. "Or very similar. I think they were right to be hesitant about reporting the initial notes. It probably would have gotten them discredited."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because I think if they had made an issue and reported it, the threats would have been revealed as some kind of joke gone bad. I think Slick's the original target. Indy got drawn in when Slick did not respond the way the originator intended."

"What do we do?"

"We're going to try to turn the tables on him. I want you to stick close to Slick."

"Why?"

"Because he trusts you and I don't think he's dealing with this as well as he'd like us to think."

"You think he's going to share with me?" Rodriguez inquired.

"He and Commander Ford do not have that kind of relationship. Indy is already under enough stress; he won't go there. That leaves one of us. You're the likely choice."

*******

"Ford asked about the nicknames," Tim muttered to Lucas, upon the teenager's return.

"And you told him?"

"Nothing specific. I'm hoping it won't come up. What did Ice want?"

"Just to look at the threats and ask a couple of questions," Lucas replied. "Did you tell him that they're likely to give him one?" he inquired.

Tim glanced at him, but accepted that the teenager did not want to talk about his conversation with McKinnon. "No. I thought that should wait for another time. They will too, won't they?"

"I think that's a given. I'm afraid to think what they might come up with," Lucas commented.

"I'm kind of hoping I'm not around to see it. You look tired," Tim remarked.

"I'm fine."

"He's right," Ford interjected. Lucas did look tired and stressed.

"I'm okay," Lucas insisted. "Besides, I'm sure Ice will start sorting people out pretty quickly. You know how she is about getting plenty of rest," he reminded Tim.

"How are you guys doing?" Ryan asked, joining the trio.

"We're fine, although I could do without being considered part of a crime," Lucas informed her.

"Well, that's true for most people: even those that are guilty. Don't worry about it. We'll get to the bottom of it."

"I wish I had your confidence," Tim sighed.

"No one has Sunshine's confidence," Adamsen told him. "But that's why we like her."

"Thank you, Brook," Ryan said.

Ford listened to the conversation and wondered how this chaos formed one of the elite groups of the UEO.

Part 7

Rodriguez returned to the room and sat down next to Lucas. McKinnon had told him to stick close to the teenager; he might as well start now. Plus, he wanted the chance to study the younger man and this seemed like the time to do it. With the rest of the team around, Lucas was less likely to notice his scrutiny. Rodriguez also wanted the chance to observe Ford; he could tell they made the commander nervous. Rodriguez had no doubt that McKinnon had issued some kind of threat to get his cooperation. He knew his commanding officer well enough to know that she was taking this situation personally.

******

"Commander McKinnon," Kincaid greeted her politely. "What do you have?"

"Scenario is similar enough," McKinnon responded, getting right to business. "Tomorrow, we'll get to work on what kind of evidence they have against the two. I'm fairly certain it'll be circumstantial, but just enough to make it look bad for them."

"Keep on it. Sullivan is not very happy that this assignment was made over his head."

"Sorry, Sir."

"No, you're not," Kincaid said dryly. He had known McKinnon long enough to know that she rarely worried about the chain of command and then only when it suited her purposes. "I made it clear that I contacted you, not the other way around."

"Thank you, Sir."

"Now, do you need anything?"

"We need some place to set up operations. We can't do it from a hotel room. It's too hard to secure the area and restrict access. Plus, we need computer equipment. Given enough time, I'm confident that Wolenczak can dig up some information for us."

"Yes, I'm familiar with his reputation."

McKinnon noted the amusement in his voice, but did not comment. "For now, Commander Ford is cooperating, but I have a feeling that's not going to last forever."

"I imagine he finds your methods a little unorthodox."

"That's an understatement."

"Call me in the morning and I'll have an address for you. I know of a place or two that will serve your purposes. Do you need anything else?"

McKinnon thought for moment, wondering about having him check on Lucas' story about Aegis Security, then decided not to worry about it for the moment. "Not right now."

"Oh, I meant to tell you that when I spoke with Captain Bridger, he expressed a certain amount of concern for his crew. In particular, he mentioned that the two were shot the last time," Kincaid told her. "I told him you would endeavor not to have a repeat performance."

"I imagine he liked that."

"Yes, well, he did seem a bit perturbed. However, try to make sure that you don't make me a liar," he requested.

McKinnon looked at him. "I'll tell the team that if anyone is going to get shot it should be anyone but the three from seaQuest," she offered. Kincaid glared at her. "I'll do my best to make sure they don't get shot this time, but it's not like I can offer a guarantee," she observed.

"Just do your best."

******

"You doing okay?" Rodriguez asked Lucas quietly. The teenager had been silent since he had returned to the room.

"I'm fine."

"You seem kind of tense."

"Gee, I wonder why? I mean, I start off my day panicking over a stupid bridge. I'm questioned by the police about a crime I know nothing about, but they seem to have good reason to believe I do. I'm suddenly reassigned to you guys. No offense, but the last time I did this, I got shot. And I'm going to face the wrath of the captain when we return for not mentioning that we could get recalled, not to mention anyone else who finds out about it!" Lucas hissed. "This has not been a particularly good day."

"I really think you need to start considering taking a nap in the afternoon. You'd be less cranky if you had more sleep," Rodriguez recommended, knowing he would get a reaction from the boy. He knew there was not much else he could do to change the situation.

"Thank you for the advice, Ghost. I've had so much time for one lately."

"You always have an answer," Rodriguez sighed.

"Are you trying to irritate me?"

"I don't know. Am I having any success?"

"What do you think?"

"Is it time to separate you two?" Karneering asked, joining them.

"No, we're doing fine," Rodriguez assured him.

"Besides, Einstein, if they're bugging each other, Ghost isn't bothering one of us," Ryan pointed out.

******

"They actually work like this?" Ford asked Tim, having overheard the exchange.

"Yes, Sir," Tim replied, deciding this was not time to add that it only got worse.

"How?"

"I've found it much easier to accept it and not to try to understand it, Commander," Tim advised. "It's just simpler that way."

******

McKinnon entered the room, having finished her call. "All right, gang, we're going to get to work in the morning. There's nothing we can do for now," she explained. "Let's do room assignments so everyone knows where they're sleeping."

"We're going to be crowded," Chandler observed.

"Yes, well, it's a good thing we're all friendly," Hallowell remarked.

"Sunshine, Brook and I will stay in one room. Ghost, Slick, Indy and Ford will go ahead and stay in this room. Einstein, Irish, Casanova, and Columbus will take the one on the other side."

"Yes!" Dawson yelled cheerfully. "Hey, I was afraid we'd get Ghost," he explained when everyone stared at him.

"Cute, Casanova. Very cute," Rodriguez responded.

"I get the alarm clock," Tim told him.

"You have no sense of adventure," Rodriguez sighed.

"Ghost likes to throw the alarm clock," Lucas mumbled to Ford.

"Really?" Ford muttered in a strangled voice.

"It's a habit," Rodriguez commented. "And it's not like I hit anyone with it."

"Not for lack of trying," Lucas remarked.

"If I was trying, I would hit you. I have good aim."

"Should I be scared?"

"Probably."

"You know, you two sound like you're related," Adamsen interrupted.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Rodriguez inquired.

"That you two can't spend five minutes in each other's company without engaging in some kind of verbal battle," Chandler elaborated. "Just like kids."

"Coming from you guys, I'll take it as a compliment."

"You take everything as a compliment, Ghost," Ryan pointed out.

"He has to take what he can get," Lucas mumbled.

"Watch it, Slick," Rodriguez warned him quietly.

******

Karneering moved to where McKinnon was sitting. "You look up what I asked?" he asked.

"Yes. There was nothing available," McKinnon answered him. "However, I see what you mean about his reaction."

"Maybe I was wrong."

"Or maybe it's just not there."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, first, if his father has the pull to get him put on seaQuest, he has the pull to clear his file. Second, it's a touchy subject with him. He has the ability to fix his file any way he wants," McKinnon observed. "But I don't see it helping us with this situation. Somehow, I don't see him thanking us for digging around in his personal life."

"You're right," Karneering agreed. "I was just curious more than anything. I thought it might give us some insight in to what's been bothering them."

"Probably not," McKinnon responded. She ignored the look he gave her and changed the conversation.

******

Since there were only two single beds in their room, Lucas and Rodriguez volunteered to sleep on the floor. "Just don't trip on us," Lucas grumbled.

"We'll try hard not to," Tim assured him. "But, if we do, would you rather we trip on your head or your feet?"

"Oh good, his personality is returning," Rodriguez mumbled. "Why are we so lucky?"

"I'm just trying to act in your best interests," Tim protested.

"Good night," Ford stated, fearing where the discussion would go if someone did not end it.

******

Rodriguez sat up, immediately alert, looking for something out of place. Then he realized that Lucas was thrashing around on his makeshift bed and had kicked him. Rubbing his leg, he watched the teenager for a few minutes, wondering what had his friend's sleep so disturbed. Rodriguez knew that, when he woke the boy up, he would not get an answer, but he could not leave the young man in this state. "Hey," he spoke softly, "we've got to stop meeting like this," he murmured, as Lucas came awake.

"Why are you always waking me up?" Lucas complained, rubbing his eyes. He hated when he dreamed; he always woke up disoriented and feeling vulnerable.

"You kicked me," Rodriguez informed him.

"Well, I get kind of restless…" Lucas started.

"Come on, Slick; we've progressed beyond the 'I'm a wild sleeper' story," Rodriguez interrupted. "When you're stressed, you have dreams. Want to talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about," Lucas hissed. "Except the fact you like to wake me up."

"Sure there is. You are one complicated individual, Slick," Rodriguez observed quietly, refusing to rise to the bait for the moment. "Something tells me you have more secrets in your past than the average person twice your age. Besides, you get defensive when you feel threatened," he added, referring to the last comment.

"You woke me up to give me a character study?"

"No, I woke you up because you weren't sleeping well," Rodriguez corrected. "Tell me, do you give your captain this much trouble when he tries to talk to you?"

"He doesn't wake me up."

"He would if you kicked him. But I'll take that as a yes," Rodriguez sighed. He wondered briefly if Bridger found the boy as frustrating as he was finding him to be at the moment.

Lucas shot him an exasperated look. "Can I go back to sleep now?"

"Sure. Just remember, sometimes it does help to talk about it."

Lucas did not respond and Rodriguez let the conversation end, although he lay awake for a long time listening to Lucas' breathing, able to tell the teenager had not gone back to sleep.

Rodriguez sighed softly, wishing he knew how to get the teenager to talk. Experience had taught him that people often said they did not want to discuss something because they wanted someone to pursue it; it was a test to see if anyone really cared. Rodriguez had no doubts that Lucas meant what he said and that the teenager would only become more entrenched in his position if pushed. Rodriguez had seen his stubbornness in Tarsinia, when the teenager had insisted Rodriguez could not protect him at the expense of the rest of the team. In fact, Rodriguez had figured out in the time since that it was one of the reasons Lucas trusted him. Besides accepting him as an equal, Rodriguez had not lied before or after. Unfortunately, the relationship they had formed while being held hostage and afterwards did not seem to be helping much. Rodriguez suspected that Lucas retreated inside himself whenever he felt threatened. He just wished he knew what had the teenager scared.

Part 8

'First, we're going to move to a new location," McKinnon announced in the morning. "We can't work here. Kincaid's found us a building we can use where we won't attract too much attention. While we're moving, Sunshine, you and Casanova are going to find out what's going on with the police. We need to know what evidence they have."

"How are you going to do that?" Ford inquired.

"We're going to invoke Twenty-three," Ryan replied, following McKinnon's train of thought. "Are we with OID or Outrigger Gray?" she queried.

"OID," McKinnon replied. "Outrigger Investigative Division. Handles all investigations of personnel under suspicion of criminal wrongdoing," she explicated for the benefit of Lucas, Tim and Ford.

"Isn't it illegal to impersonate someone from another section?" Ford questioned.

"I am part of OID," Ryan informed him. "And, as such, I'm allowed to deputize anyone I need to in order to complete my investigation. Thus, Casanova is covered. I'd take you with us, but they've already seen you."

"Exactly how often does this happen?" Lucas asked. "That you would need an actual division?"

"Not often, actually, which is why no one is assigned to the division full time. All members are part of other units. I'm also a member of OID; all commanding officers are. However, I don't want to see them in this capacity. I'm the only legal officer Outrigger Blue has, so I'll be representing you."

"You're going to meet with them?" Tim inquired.

"Of course. I have to meet with them at least once, so that they believe we're cooperating. I'll call and make an appointment for the afternoon."

"And do you have legal experience?" Ford questioned.

McKinnon looked at him before answering. "I took the three day seminar that authorizes me to be the legal officer," she admitted with more candidness than Ford would have liked. "I'm not going to appear in court or anything like that. I'm just to represent their best interests. Which, as I see it, involves keeping them from getting railroaded for a crime they were not involved in."

"What about the rest of us?" Chandler asked. "You'll be going with me as my assistant," McKinnon answered. "After Sunshine and Casanova are finished at the police station, they'll meet Columbus and Brook at the scene of the crime. Sunshine and Casanova, you will be there officially. Columbus and Brook, I want you there to get the gossip."

"Why do I always get gossip detail?" Adamsen complained.

"Because you can get anyone to talk," Hallowell responded. "If only to make you be quiet."

"Yeah, well, at least I don't get lost."

"What about us?" Lucas queried, referring to himself and Tim.

"We're going to let you do what you do best," McKinnon told him with a smile. "Try to get information on the computer. We need to find out why Nicholson Technology was robbed; was it random or was there any purpose to it? We also need to see if we can trace the notes."

"Notes?" Ford interrupted.

"Slick and Indy will explain that to you after we get situated at the new site," McKinnon informed him, noting his expression as she did. The commander did not look very happy. She understood how he felt, but she also was not going to change her position. Her main concern was getting Lucas and Tim out of this mess and figuring out exactly who was threatening them. "Right now, we have to move quickly because we're only going to be able to move in the open for so long."

"We can't afford to have the two of you out and about; it makes you too visible," Rodriguez added to Lucas and Tim, "which is not a good thing. Last we checked, this story had not gone to the media. However, if it does, it will get big play. I mean, you are assigned to the flagship of the UEO."

"Thanks for the reminder," Lucas mumbled.

"Hey, we won't let anything happen to you," Ryan assured them. "We know what we're doing."

"Most of the time," Rodriguez muttered, just loud enough for Lucas to hear.

"That often?" Lucas inquired, keeping his voice low as well, although, judging from the look McKinnon sent both of them, not low enough.

******

"One more thing," McKinnon told Lucas and Tim, before leaving them to pack. "This is an official field deployment. Section Four applies," she elaborated at their puzzled looks.

"Section Four?" Ford queried.

"It's the armament clause, Sir," Tim mumbled inaudibly.

"What? I didn't hear that," Ford prompted. He had a feeling he did not want to know, but he had to ask.

"It's the rule that requires us to carry our guns, Sir," Lucas informed him, speaking clearly. The look on Ford's face was worth having to tell him.

"Guns?" Ford repeated, not sure he liked the way Lucas had said 'our'.

"We always go armed on deployment," McKinnon stated.

"Unless it involves fire. We've discovered that's not a wise thing to do," Rodriguez offered hopefully.

"Is it really necessary?" Ford inquired, ignoring the whole fire remark. He knew he did not want to find out any more on that topic.

"Yes. We don't know what kind of situation we may walk into. If we get into trouble, I want to know we'll have every chance to defend ourselves."

"But…" Ford glanced at Lucas, not wanting to state the obvious.

"Slick and Indy both have to be able to take of themselves. We get into a situation where we need weapons, there will not be any time for us to protect them and ourselves. Their guns are designed for immobilization only. In fact, that's primarily all we use ours for."

"I still fail to see the need…"

"Commander, if someone starts shooting at us, they aren't really going to care that Slick is a teenager or that Indy normally is a communications officer. The bullets aren't going to discriminate either," McKinnon pointed out bluntly. "Indy has already proven he has no problem shooting and, given some of the other things he's done with us, I have every confidence that Slick will be fine should the occasion arise. There are no exceptions to this rule. Lieutenant Commander Ryan will, in fact, issue you a weapon when she returns this afternoon."

Tim could feel the commander's eyes on him and really wished McKinnon had not made the comment about him being able to shoot. He had omitted that from his report to the rest of the crew. The lieutenant had no doubts he would explaining that one. Lucas did not look any more thrilled at the prospect than he was either. Tim knew that Lucas had not told anyone, except for possibly Bridger, about jumping out of the helicopter.

******

"Well, that went well," Rodriguez commented to McKinnon, having followed her out of the room.

"That's why we did it now. He needs time to get used to the idea that, as far as we're concerned, they are members of our team. He has a strong desire to protect them, which is admirable on his part, but doesn't work for us. We need the them to be active participants."

"It's hard to get past the fact that Slick is just a teenager," Rodriguez reminded her. "Especially if you haven't seen him in anything other than a contained environment."

"I'll remind you of that the next time one of the new recruits makes a smart remark about them," McKinnon said with a smile.

"It was more than a smart remark," Rodriguez defended. "Besides, I didn't hear anyone offering any objections. In fact, I believe you all agreed."

"I never said we didn't."

"Then what's your point?"

"No point, I just like to get you riled up every now and then."

"You're cruel, you know that?"

"I'm a commanding officer; it comes with the job."

******

"You carry that stuff with you?" Ford asked Lucas and Tim, noting that they both were now dressed like the rest of Outrigger Blue, in black jeans and blue T-shirts.

"It's required," Tim replied with a shrug.

"You get used to it," Lucas added.

"How?" Ford questioned.

"You guys ready to leave?" Rodriguez inquired, returning before the other two could answer Ford's question.

"Looks that way," Tim told him.

"Good. If we go out now, you'll get to see a rare sight, indeed," Rodriguez commented.

"What?"

"Sunshine in a dress."

"The only thing rarer would Ice in a dress, is my guess," Lucas remarked.

"And you would be correct. I think it's part of her agreement to serve that she doesn't have to wear one. Never seen her in one."

"Well, she's probably never seen you in one either," Tim teased.

"And if she has, we don't want to know about it," Lucas interjected swiftly.

"It's going to be one of those days, isn't it?" Rodriguez sighed.

"You think the inspectors have contacted seaQuest yet?" Lucas asked Rodriguez, on a more serious note.

"Ice says if they follow true to form, they won't do that until she refuses to produce the two of you. Then they'll look to gather their information the hard way," Rodriguez replied, as they made their way out of the hotel. "So it probably won't be until this afternoon or tomorrow."

******

Ryan looked at Inspectors Crewes and Stanton and kept her expression blank. "Lieutenant Commander Jenna Ryan, Outrigger Investigative Division," she introduced herself, showing her identification. "This is my associate, Lieutenant Maxwell Dawson. We're here to see what information you have on Lieutenant Timothy O'Neil and Lucas Wolenczak."

"We're not releasing any information until we have a chance to speak with them again. I believe you're supposed to arrange that," Crewes informed her.

Ryan gave a short nod. "I'm afraid you have us confused with their commanding officer, Commander Hunter McKinnon. She'll be contacting you when she arrives later this afternoon, I believe. We're here to look into the complaint lodged against the two. We always perform an in-house investigation when any member of a unit is suspected of criminal behavior."

"It's bad for the image as an organization," Dawson offered helpfully.

"I'm afraid we can't help you," Stanton reiterated.

"Section twenty-three, paragraph five states that any law enforcement agency will make available all information in an ongoing investigation of any member of the Outrigger organization, active or reserve, for the purposes of internal review," Ryan recited, carefully hiding her smile. "I don't want to take this to my superior, but I have to be able to do my job."

******

"This is interesting," Hallowell pronounced, when the team arrived at the address provided by Kincaid. The gray building, located on a street of abandoned buildings, did not look very impressive.

"We've stayed in worse," Karneering remarked.

"You've been spending too much time with Sunshine," Chandler interjected. "Although you're right."

"Then why are you giving me grief?"

"Because it's fun."

"Let's get moving, gang," McKinnon called. "We need to get to work."

******

"What do you want me to do first?" Lucas asked McKinnon; while the others looked through the building, he was exploring the computers.

"Start trying to trace the notes; we need to establish where they're coming from."

"Any ideas?" Lucas questioned. "You said you recognized this setup," he reminded her.

McKinnon sighed. She knew there was no way to avoid this. "Start with an investigation of Lieutenant Jordan O'Rourke," she instructed quietly. "See what leads you can find there."

"Anything else you can tell me?"

"It should be in the file."

Lucas nodded and sat down at a computer. "Okay. I'll see what I can do."

"Good. I'll have Ghost and Indy help, along with Commander Ford. They can start looking up the information on Nicholson Technology. I'm sure they can find the surface information, so that, when you're ready, you can start digging around. Admiral Kincaid mentioned he was familiar with your reputation. Do you know him?"

"I've never met him," Lucas replied.

"That's not what I asked," McKinnon pointed out.

"Someone in UEO challenged my abilities. They accused me of having inside information. I proved them wrong by breaking into Kincaid's secure computer files and replacing them," Lucas answered. "Since I did not know Kincaid, he was the target they chose.

"What did you replace his files with?"

"Nothing much. Just some obscure articles from a variety of journals relating to paranormal activity and comic books."

"How creative."

"I thought about using his bank to make a sizeable donation to charity, but I feared I'd get in trouble for that."

"I have a feeling that we're lucky that you're on our side," McKinnon sighed. "I'm surprised he didn't offer you a job." It was the kind of action that Kincaid would appreciate. His general disregard for protocol and politics had left many people shocked when he had actually advanced as high as admiral.

******

"Before you get involved, I want to hear about the notes," Ford informed Lucas and Tim. He knew he was not going to like what he heard, especially when they started looking at each other and at the floor: every where except for him. He also noticed the Outriggers were moving away, like they were trying to avoid trouble.

"Well, uh,…" Tim started, not knowing how to address the issue.

"I have a feeling this is another detail you're going to be explaining to the captain at great length. It's probably wise to practice now," Ford commented, crossing his arms. He was very much in his XO stance, which did nothing to encourage either one to speak up. Lucas always found the commander intimidating when he assumed this position.

"Well, a couple of weeks ago…" Lucas began.

"A couple?" Tim queried, still upset with the teenager for not telling him how long he had really been receiving the threats.

"Okay, about a month ago," Lucas amended, glaring at Tim. "I, uh, received some notes via e-mail," he mumbled.

"What kind of notes?" Ford prompted.

"Threats," Lucas admitted, looking down at the floor.

"Threats? And you didn't report this?"

"Well, they, uh, were kind of, uh, vague. I didn't take them seriously. I mean, there had recently been that incident with the disgruntled employee and uh, I figured someone was playing some kind of joke."

"And your reasoning?" Ford questioned Tim.

"Mine started about two weeks later," Tim confessed. "I got two or three alone, then he started sending them to both of us. Lucas received the first half; I got the second half. The first note of Lucas' that we shared told him to come see me."

"Yet it never occurred to either one of you to report it?"

"We figured it was some kind of prank," Lucas explained. "And after everything that happened, we assumed you'd all look at us like we were nuts. I mean, they weren't specific. It wasn't like they came out and directly threatened us. They just felt weird."

Ford stared at them. "I don't even want to imagine how Bridger is going to react when he finds out about this," he told them, finally. "What were you thinking? Were you even thinking?"

Lucas and Tim glanced at one another and decided to take the question as rhetorical. Neither one had seen the commander lose his temper before, but both felt fairly confident they did not want to witness it now. "It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time," Lucas said quietly. "I mean, people were already talking about us being under stress and watching for signs that we were ready to crack."

Ford looked at them and sighed to himself, realizing how they had come to keep this a secret. Neither one was prone to making a scene or trying to attract a lot of attention. Their return from working with the Outriggers had generated more notice than either liked. He understood why they were reluctant to bring themselves under more scrutiny. However, comprehending their motives did not make him feel any better. "You still should have said something."

"Tim probably would have, but I didn't tell him about how long I was getting the notes before. I let him think that I started getting them the same time," Lucas added, wanting to defend Tim.

Ford nodded his head, not surprised by that piece of information; partially because of the tone in the lieutenant's voice when he had corrected Lucas' earlier statement and also because of something Bridger had once told him. The captain had explained that Lucas was very good at misleading and evasion and that, sometimes, the key to getting at the truth was knowing the right questions to ask the teenager. Given a broad enough question, Lucas could answer it without lying. Ford had never been particularly sure why Bridger had shared this knowledge with him; Lucas spent less time with the commander than he did with anyone on seaQuest.

******

"Need any help?" Rodriguez asked Lucas two hours later, smiling when the teenager jumped.

"Ghost!" Lucas shouted at him, almost falling off his chair.

"That's what you get for getting so involved in your work," Rodriguez informed him. "You need to pay more attention to your surroundings."

"Thank you for the advice," Lucas said sarcastically.

"You know, if you slept better at night, you might be less cranky in the morning," Rodriguez observed.

"Don't start."

"If you two can't play nice, I'm going to separate you," McKinnon interrupted.

"What's up?" Rodriguez questioned.

"Not much. I'm getting ready to contact our inspector friends at the station and break the news that we're going out in the field for a short period and they'll have to wait to question Slick and Indy until our return."

"That should make things go over well."

"Kincaid's also going to send their superiors a detailed letter of what will happen if any of this gets into the media. We can't have their faces splashed all over."

"I knew you'd figure out a way around that problem."

"That's why I'm in charge," she reminded him.

"I've often wondered about that."

"Excuse us, Slick, I need to remind Ghost about the finer points of chain of command," McKinnon said, leading Rodriguez away. "Make sure he takes regular breaks from the computer. I have a feeling the intensity he showed in Hawaii pales in comparison to what we're going to see over this."

"Why me?"

"Because you're good at it. And, as much as you pretend not to care, you really do."

"Sure, throw that back at me," he mumbled.

"I'm sure Commander Ford will be willing to help you."

"Gee, thanks."

******

"You like this," Ford commented to Tim, as they reviewed information on Nicholson Technology.

"What?"

"Working with the Outriggers. You and Lucas are really part of their team."

"It's different than on seaQuest," Tim explained. "Here, they assume we can do the job. No one questions it or puts limitations on it. Most of the time, I like being on seaQuest. But some times it's nice to be able to show I'm more than a communications officer."

"I don't think anyone sees you that way."

"Commander, as soon as they were told we had been reassigned to Outrigger Blue for another assignment, I'm sure everyone panicked and then either said or thought 'at least the commander is with them', like Lucas and I are incapable of managing on our own. It gets old after time."

"What did McKinnon mean? When she said you had proven your shooting ability."

"I shot someone in Tarsinia," Tim replied shortly. Even though he knew he had not caused any permanent damage, he did not like talking about it. Lucas was the only one he had discussed it with, because the teenager understood. His feelings about it, he knew, meant that he would not make it among the Outriggers on a permanent basis. "He was going to shoot Ice, so I shot him."

"Oh." Ford decided not to pursue the topic. "What about Lucas?"

"He didn't have to shoot anyone. Sunshine ran him through some simulations, that was it."

Ford found that piece of news oddly comforting. Ford had only heard parts of what had happened to the pair in the mission to Tarsinia and he had seen both in the hospital afterwards. He knew they had been through a lot, especially Lucas. He was just glad to hear that the teenager had not had to use his weapon. The commander did not fully understand his feelings, and he did not spend a lot of time analyzing them.

******

Lucas read through the file on Lieutenant Jordan O'Rourke, not finding much in it. The lieutenant had filed a complaint about receiving threats via her mail and over the phone. An investigation had turned up nothing and the notes had stopped. Several people suggested O'Rourke had sent them to herself, trying to attract attention. Then O'Rourke had been accused of selling government secrets. Evidence had implicated her in several acts of treason. A special team had been called in to handle the investigation. Their documentation seemed endless. O'Rourke persisted in maintaining her innocence. Then the intensity of the investigation decreased. Reading a bit further, Lucas discovered why. Lieutenant Jordan O'Rourke had committed suicide, unable to withstand the pressures of the investigation. Lucas thought he was going to be sick when he read the last part; O'Rourke had ultimately been exonerated of all charges.

Reviewing the file again, Lucas studied the picture of the lieutenant, wondering why she had given up and wondering if anyone had believed in her innocence. Lucas thought that had to be the worst, believing that your friends had deserted you. The teenager wished the young woman had been able to have Outrigger Blue standing by her.

"You okay?" Rodriguez inquired, noticing that the teenager looked rather pale.

"I'm fine," Lucas muttered, finally noticing something else in the file. He quickly saved the information and changed screens.

"You sure? Maybe you should take a break," Rodriguez suggested, not liking the way he looked.

"I'm all right. If you want to helpful, you can help me check some personnel files."

"Slick, it wasn't really a request. It just sounded like one because I was trying to be polite."

Lucas looked at him. "Why? Trying to shock everyone?"

"Don't change the subject. It's been three hours. It's time for a break."

"I don't need a break."

"I disagree."

Lucas sighed. The tone of Rodriguez's voice told him it was useless to continue arguing with him. "Fine."

"So gracious," Rodriguez teased. "The computer will be here in fifteen minutes, I promise."

******

"Commander," Karneering greeted Ford, as he joined him and Tim. "You and I are on food detail again."

"Really?"

"Yes. It's one of the down sides of being a doctor on a mission of this type. I don't get to do a lot," Karneering sighed. "I end up running a lot of errands."

Ford stared at him, wondering if the doctor meant what he thought he did. "I'm not sure I would see not using your medical skills as a 'down side'," he commented.

"Oh, I didn't mean that I like having team injuries to take care of. But I often get to use my skills in research or in preparation if we're making some kind of rescue," Karneering elaborated. "In this type of assignment, the others are better skilled at the investigative aspects. I end up feeling rather useless."

Ford still was not sure he followed Karneering's reasoning, but he decided against making any further remarks in the matter. "When will we be leaving?"

"About thirteen hundred."

******

"Can I go back to work now?" Lucas questioned Rodriguez .

"I suppose if I say no, you're just going to whine about it," Rodriguez mused out loud. Rodriguez supposed he should try to exercise restraint, but he liked goading the teenager. In the time he had known the boy, Rodriguez had learned what buttons to push.

"I don't whine," Lucas told him.

"No? What do you call it? Complaining? Grumbling? Griping? Fussing? What? You don't like any of those words either?"

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Lucas sighed. "Isn't there someone else you could bother?"

"Not really. I'm fond of bugging you. I mean, the rest of them are around all the time. I can disturb them at a later date. Who knows how long you guys will be with us this time? So I have to make up for lost time and build up for the future."

"Have you had a psych eval lately?" Lucas inquired. "I definitely think it's time for you to have one."

"Why?"

"Because you're logic is a little skewed."

"Slick, I'm an Outrigger; it comes with the job."

"That's certainly comforting. I don't think you should let the commander hear you say that."

"Ah, why not? Do you think he has a problem with our methods?"

"I'd say that's a safe bet."

"We're just misunderstood. Come on, I believe you said something about looking at personnel files. I hope they're interesting. Why are we looking at them?"

"Ice asked me to look at a similar case that happened a few years ago. She seems to think they're related. I thought we might look at the people mentioned in the file. See if there's anything suspicious," Lucas replied, sitting back down at the computer.

"Who's the person?" Rodriguez asked, curious.

Lucas concentrated on the file. "Write down these names for me, please?" he requested, starting to read them off.

"Now, I'm your secretary?" Rodriguez grumbled, scribbling them down. He noted that Lucas had not answered his question about the person he was investigating, but could not tell if it was intentional or because he was distracted.

"I think they prefer personal assistant these days," Lucas retorted.

******

"Did they do this when you were assigned to them before?" Ford quizzed Tim. They were close enough to catch parts of the exchange between Lucas and Rodriguez .

"Well, not at first," Tim replied. "Initially, Ghost did not have a lot of faith in Lucas' computer skills. He thought he was bit on the young side. I think it started changing when Lucas got irritated with his attitude and suggested they wipe the whole computer system and start from scratch. Ghost appreciated the gesture. After that, one thing led to another. They did a lot of the computer research in the first part of the mission. I think the close proximity for so many hours resulted in what you see now," Tim explained. "It's a stress reliever for both of them. You know how Lucas can get; Rodriguez just encourages it."

"I'm surprised McKinnon lets them get away with it."

"I think McKinnon finds it amusing that Lucas gives him a hard time, as long as it doesn't interfere."

"What do you mean, we can't talk to them? This is an ongoing investigation," Crewes said to McKinnon and Chandler incredulously.

"I'm sorry," McKinnon apologized, sounding sincere. "We're being sent on emergency deployment and their services are vital to accomplishing our mission. When we return from our assignment, I'll bring them to your office for further questioning."

"She's legitimate," Stanton informed Crewes, returning from a talk with their superiors. "The Secretary-General said we have to cooperate. And the admiral just quoted some rule that says they can get away with this."

"This is ridiculous," Crewes told McKinnon.

"I just follow orders, Inspector," McKinnon commented blandly. "We do not anticipate this operation taking more than a few days and then we will return."

"I'd always heard you were crazy," Crewes mumbled.

"Are you calling Commander McKinnon insane?" Chandler inquired.

"I believe he was referring to the Outrigger organization," Stanton interjected hastily. She had the impression that angering either one of these two would not serve them well. "However, we're just interested in clearing up some questions. It seems silly to delay it."

"It's not my job to question the judgment of my superior officers," McKinnon remarked. "They just want Lieutenant O'Neil and Mr. Wolenczak to have their full attention for the duration of the assignment. After all, mistakes can be costly. We would hate to have someone inadvertently injured due to lack of proper focus. The Outriggers fully believe that they had nothing to do with this break in and see no reason to pull two valuable members from the field until further proof is provided."

Chandler hid a smile. He always enjoyed watching McKinnon in this role. As much as she acted contrary to rules and regulations, she could act like a very straight and narrow officer when needed. He knew she was doing two things, buying them time not to worry about being questioned by the police and making them think she was a typical officer. McKinnon did not want them to see her as a threat. If they thought she simply followed orders, they would dismiss her.

"Very well. It's not like we can do anything about," Crewes sighed.

"The investigators from OID have been instructed to keep in touch with you and provide updates on when we are expected to return," McKinnon explained. "We are not trying to impede your investigation; it's just that certain things take precedent."

Part 9

"It's lunch time," Rodriguez informed Lucas, exasperation in his voice. "Do you know what that means?"

"You're going to leave me alone for five minutes?" Lucas inquired.

"If you're good. No. What it means is that it's time for you to stop working and take a break."

"I already took a break."

"About two and a half hours ago. See, we allow you to take more than one break in a day. In fact, Ice encourages it. She's already going to be disgruntled that we're eating late."

"Just a minute."

Rodriguez sighed and then walked over to where Ford and Karneering were unpacking lunch. "Does one of you want to try to get him to stop?" he asked.

"Don't look at me," Karneering told him. "That does not fall under my area of expertise."

"Allow me," Ford said.

"This should be interesting," Rodriguez remarked, as Ford headed in Lucas' direction.

*****

"Lucas?"

"What?!" Lucas answered tersely, before realizing who was speaking. "Sorry, Commander," he apologized hastily. "I thought you were Ghost."

"It's time for lunch and Rodriguez has indicated you're being less than cooperative."

"I'll be done in a second."

"Lucas," Ford leaned forward to speak directly into the teenager's ear, so no one could hear him. "If you don't stop working now, I'm going to pick you up and carry you over to the table."

"You wouldn't…." Lucas' voice trailed off as he took in the commander's expression. "Can I save this first?"

"Of course."

*****

"Why wouldn't you come when I asked?" Rodriguez questioned Lucas, curious about what Ford had said to the young man.

"Why are you hovering over me?" Lucas inquired.

"I just asked a question; I'm not sure that qualifies as hovering."

Lucas glared at him and turned his attention to the food on his plate. "You having any luck?" he quizzed Tim.

"Not a lot. There's a lot of information about Nicholson, but I don't know that any of it helps," Tim replied. "They don't seem to be involved in anything particularly specialized that would warrant a break in. How about you?"

"Ice has me looking at a similar case. And, this afternoon, I'm going to try to trace the notes. We should check mail after lunch," Lucas added.

"I guess. I keep hoping they'll go away."

"Pretending they don't exist won't help matters," Rodriguez pointed out.

"Thank you for that bit of insight," Lucas told him.

"Any time," Rodriguez assured him. "And I won't even charge you."

"Gee, don't I feel blessed," Lucas muttered sarcastically.

*****

"Well?" Ford prompted the pair, as they checked their mail.

"I liked this better when it wasn't a spectator sport," Tim grumbled.

"No kidding," Lucas muttered. "How nice," he sighed.

"You going to share with the rest of the class?" Rodriguez inquired.

"You can run, but you can't hide," Tim recited. "I think we've seen that one before," he added.

"You could be right," Lucas agreed. "I'll look. I'll see if I can trace this one."

"Good luck," Tim told him, remembering their other attempts. While they had not spent a lot of time on it, they had not turned up anything either.

"Can I help?" Rodriguez asked.

"Not right now. Keep with the personnel searches."

"All right," Rodriguez responded.

*****

Bridger stared at the two people on the vid-screen and wondered if he had heard correctly. "How do you think I can help you? Neither one is currently on board seaQuest," he finally told them. "You'll have to contact the Outriggers," he added, realizing this was the first time he liked being able to say that. The thought of Lucas and Tim being involved in anything of this magnitude was ludicrous.

"We're aware that they are with the Outriggers," Crewes informed, irritation in his voice.

Bridger sensed that the inspectors had not come out on top in their conversations with the Outriggers. "Then I really don't have anything else to add," Bridger responded, his mind racing ahead to what to do next. He certainly was not going to sit idly by while they investigated two of his crew.

"We have some questions about Lieutenant O'Neil and Mr. Wolenczak," Stanton explained. "We're trying to establish some background information on both: see if we can't clear this all up. We need to talk to you and anyone on the crew that they associate with," she added.

Bridger nodded, thinking about how this piece of news was going to go over with his crew. If they had been upset by the duo being reassigned to the Outriggers, this was going to outrage them. The captain knew that one of the reasons Lucas was on seaQuest was his father feared that he did not always apply his energy in the wisest manner. However, he knew the teenager well enough to know he would never get involved in something like this. "Very well, Inspector," Bridger conceded. "If you will give me some time to inform my crew of this development…"

"We'd like to talk to them now, Captain."

"Of course," Bridger assented, understanding that they were trying to control the situation. "It will take me a minute to see who's available," he added, already knowing who he intended to have them speak with first. Bridger knew Kristin could keep the two busy long enough for him to warn the other members.

*****

McKinnon returned with Chandler shortly after the others had started back to work from lunch. "Any luck?" Rodriguez questioned.

"You missed Ice putting on an excellent performance as an officer who can't think for herself," Chandler told him cheerfully.

"I wish you'd let me have fun," Rodriguez complained.

"They weren't happy with the news that Slick and Indy would not be available," McKinnon responded, as Ford also joined them.

"But they accepted it?" Ford asked, surprised.

"The admiral managed to get the Secretary-General to back up the order," McKinnon remarked. "I'm sure that, by now, the inspectors are starting to interview the seaQuest crew. They'll try to get authorization to trace the calls. Hopefully, Sunshine and Casanova will be able to tell us if they'll have any luck. Are they back yet?"

"No," Rodriguez replied. "Columbus checked in and said he and Brook will be in by dinner, as will Sunshine and Casanova."

"How's it going here?"

"Indy and Ford have been looking into Nicholson Technology and I've been reading personnel files with Einstein, while Slick tries to track the latest note."

"Personnel files?"

"Slick wanted to check on some of the people listed in a similar investigation that you had mentioned."

McKinnon ignored the question in Rodriguez 's voice. "Good. Maybe we'll get lucky."

"I hope you're not pinning this investigation on luck," Ford commented.

"Why not? It's worked in the past." Just as Rodriguez liked giving Lucas a hard time, McKinnon had to admit to getting a certain enjoyment in getting a rise out of Ford. "Right now, we're just gathering information, Commander," she clarified quickly. "Then we'll figure out where to go. Until we get a better idea of the set up, we can't formulate a plan. Don't worry. We're going to take care of them."

"As much as some of them would prefer we didn't," Rodriguez muttered under his breath.

McKinnon caught his comment and made a mental note to discuss it with him later. She had a pretty good idea what he was talking about, but wanted to clarify it. "Let me talk with Slick and see what he's found out and then we'll talk about the break in. Hopefully, by then, Sunshine and the rest will have returned so we can hear more about the robbery itself."

"Very well, Commander," Ford said reluctantly.

*****

"Didn't we just do this?" Ben asked Katie, meeting her outside the wardroom.

"I'm sure everything's all right," Katie reassured him, knowing what he was thinking.

"We're missing the doctor," Crocker observed, just before Bridger started speaking.

"I've been contacted by two police inspectors from Portland regarding Lieutenant O'Neil and Mr. Wolenczak," Bridger announced. The assembled group looked at one another; the captain only used titles when it was bad news. "No one's been hurt," he continued hastily, realizing what they were thinking. "Apparently, the inspectors feel that the two are somehow connected to a recent burglary."

"Are they nuts?!" Miguel burst out. "Sorry, Sir."

"Their fingerprints were found at the scene of the crime. The inspectors wish to ask you all a few questions."

"What do Lucas and Tim say?" Ben questioned, unwilling to believe that either had anything to do with the matter.

"The Outriggers have informed the police that they are currently deployed on a mission and are unavailable for comment."

"They haven't spoken to the police yet?" Katie quizzed. "That seems like a bad idea."

"I don't understand it myself, but I do plan to contact Admiral Kincaid."

"I can't believe the commander would let them get away with that," Crocker interjected.

"I'm not sure Commander Ford had much say in the matter," Bridger remarked. Every time he thought of his XO being assigned to the Outriggers, he felt a pang of sympathy for the man. Everything Lucas and Tim had said about the group made him believe the commander would find his time with them uncomfortable.

"I can't believe anyone would believe they were involved in a crime," Miguel muttered.

"There is one other thing," Bridger added reluctantly. "A security guard was killed in the process."

"There's no way Lucas and Tim had anything to do with it," Katie protested.

"Dr. Westphalen is talking with the inspectors now; then they want to talk to each of you."

*****

"How's it going?" McKinnon questioned Lucas, approaching the computer.

"All right. I'm trying to trace the notes," Lucas replied. "So far I'm not having much luck. The e-mail accounts are all false and no longer in operation."

"Rodriguez mentioned you had him on personnel files?"

"Yes. I looked at the file you recommended."

"Anything of interest?"

Lucas looked at her. "Don't you know what it says?" he inquired.

"I may not be the best judge of the file's contents, Slick," McKinnon pointed out quietly.

"Nothing much. I just thought there might be a common denominator. Besides the obvious one."

"Anything yet?"

"No, but I'm still looking. I want to look at the rest of the lieutenant's records, see if maybe it was something she was doing that attracted attention."

"Go ahead," McKinnon assented, appreciating the implied request. "How long have you been working?" she asked, studying him closely. The teenager looked rather tense.

"Not long. Ghost has been bugging me to take regular breaks."

"Good."

*****

"I fail to see why you think a sixteen-year-old would have anything to do with such an act. And Lieutenant O'Neil doesn't exactly have a reputation for being a master criminal either, I might add," Kristin informed Crewes and Stanton tartly. "I would think your time would be better spent pursuing other avenues than this."

"We're just trying to clear up some anomalies at the crime scene, Ms…" Crewes stammered.

"That's Doctor Westphalen," Kristin corrected sharply.

"Has either one seemed troubled lately?" Stanton questioned.

Kristin glared at her. "I'm not sure if you're aware, although you certainly seem to know enough other things about their personal lives, they have only recently returned from a rather difficult assignment with the Outriggers," she began, never having imagined she would use what had happened as an advantage. "Both of them were shot, among other things. I'd be worried if they weren't a little troubled. That doesn't normally happen to them."

"Could you elaborate on that, please?"

"Neither one gets into dangerous situations," Kristin answered, purposely misunderstanding the question.

"I meant about the troubled part," Stanton clarified, suspecting that the doctor knew what she meant.

"Have you ever been shot?" Kristin asked them. Both shook their heads. "Perhaps if you had, you'd understand what I mean." Kristin's tone left the impression she liked to help them experience it. "It was out their realm of experience. Particularly Lucas. They've had a period of adjustment, but nothing out of the ordinary," Kristin concluded. The doctor had no intention of mentioning there had been fresh concern the last two weeks about the pair. She knew it had nothing to do with them planning a robbery.

"Are you sure you can't think of anything that might help us? Anything they might have said or done…" Crewes started.

"We live on a submarine and don't have much contact with the outside world. I assure you, if they were planning some kind of heist, the entire ship would know. Gossip spreads through this place like wild fire. Keeping secrets is virtually impossible," Kristin interrupted. "Now, if you don't mind, I have much more important things to do than entertain your ridiculous notions about two upstanding young men who would never hurt a fly, much less do any of things you're suggesting," she concluded, ending the link before they could request to speak to someone else. "Was that long enough for you?" she asked the captain, who had appeared in her doorway.

"Yes, it was. Thank you."

"Do you think they're serious?"

"I'm sure it's a misunderstanding," Bridger reassured her. "It would just help if they were available to clear it up."

"What are you going to do about it? You surely aren't going to let those two inspectors handle it."

"I already have a call into Kincaid and the others are already working on finding out exactly what's going on," Bridger explained. Katie, Ben, Miguel and Crocker had all demanded permission to start researching, unwilling to remain idle when their friends might be in trouble.

*****

"You want to explain your comment earlier?" McKinnon asked Rodriguez; they were still waiting for the rest of the team to arrive back.

"Which one?" Rodriguez responded innocently.

"The one you mumbled when I explained to the commander that we were going to take care of Slick and Indy."

"That one."

"Ghost."

"I just think the whole thing makes Slick nervous," Rodriguez answered. "He's been kind of uptight and tense all day. I think it stems partially from the fact that we're doing all of this for him and Indy."

"A lot of people have a hard time accepting help. You would be one of them."

"We're not talking about me."

"I understand that."

"Why do I have this feeling that this is when you're going to make one of your cryptic remarks that it will take me days, possibly even weeks or months, to figure out?" Rodriguez inquired.

"Because you're naturally suspicious of everyone around you."

"It's only been since I started working with you."

"Then my work here is almost done," McKinnon said smiling at him. "Good, Sunshine's back."

Rodriguez watched her walk away and shook his head. "I didn't even get one of her comments," he mumbled to himself. There were times when McKinnon drove him crazy, and this certainly qualified. He also had the impression that she did it intentionally.

*****

"All right, gang, let's gather around and discuss what we have and where we're going to go from here," McKinnon called out.

Lucas stifled a groan as he found himself sitting between Ford and Rodriguez. He knew it meant Rodriguez could bug him and he would be unable to respond in kind. Ford was not loosening up around the Outriggers, so the teenager knew the commander would disapprove of any response he might offer. Judging from the pleased expression on his face, Rodriguez understood this little fact.

"Where do you want to start?" Ryan inquired.

"What did you learn?"

"Not a lot. There was a break in at Nicholson Technology and they found Slick and Indy's fingerprints at the site. Slick's were on the alarm system and on a couple of computers. Indy's were on the computer and inside the door. There weren't many, but enough to look suspicious. The police are harping on the fact that Slick has a reputation with knowing Aegis Security." Lucas ignored the looks from the rest. "They're also willing to consider that it could be some bizarre coincidence because of the burglary in their hotel room, but, basically, they're not impressed. Still, they can't figure out a motive, although they are willing to consider they might want to sell the secrets. Stanton, however, seems to be leaning toward the fact that perhaps the two of you were coerced into participating," Ryan reported. "So, I imagine they will take their questioning in that direction."

"Yes, and I'm sure that your recent behavior will do nothing to encourage that theory," Rodriguez muttered. He knew their friends on seaQuest had to have noticed something was bothering the duo. Without meaning to, the seaQuest crew could add fuel to the fire.

"Like you would have announced it right away yourself," Lucas shot back quietly, hoping Ford did not hear him.

"I'd like to think I had more faith in my friends," Rodriguez hedged, knowing the teenager was right. "And enough sense to figure out that, after four weeks, it wasn't going to stop."

"Not everyone is blessed with your superior insight."

"Lucas!" Ford hissed.

Rodriguez gave Lucas a mischievous smile, confirming the teenager's initial thought about the seating arrangements.

McKinnon caught the look on Rodriguez 's face and wondered what her second in command was up to, even as she decided she probably did not want to know. "I've bought us some time away from the inspectors by explaining that we're on field assignment and unavailable. I've also promised that the OID officers will stay in touch. That way they won't think we're being uncooperative."

"In other words, we're lying to the police?" Hallowell inquired.

"That's one view," McKinnon agreed. "But we are on assignment and Sunshine and Casanova will keep in touch."

"Thinking creatively has never been a problem for you," Adamsen observed.

"It's a team trait," Hallowell muttered. "And you're one to talk," he added.

"Is this something you should share with the whole class?" McKinnon asked with interest.

"It's nothing," Adamsen interjected hastily. "Speculation around the company itself is that it was an inside job, but no one's naming any names. They know fingerprints were found, but not whose. There's a lot of guessing that it's a disgruntled employee. There have been a few minor security breaches prior to this. All false alarms."

"How did you get this information?"

"I asked."

"Columbus?" McKinnon queried, knowing there was more to the story.

"There were no witnesses to the break in and nothing was captured on the security cameras," Hallowell recited. "We got that from the other security guards, another reason they suspect it being an inside job. They also think that Crewes and Stanton want make this a big case: turn it into some kind of example."

"Why would they tell you this?" Rodriguez inquired.

"Brook put on a convincing performance," Hallowell explained.

"Brook?" McKinnon questioned.

"Well, they didn't seem too friendly, so I, uh, told them that, uh, the dead guy was my brother and started worrying that it was going to swept under the carpet," Adamsen confessed.

"It was a beautiful performance," Hallowell informed the group at large. "She was just sobbing all over the one guy, going on about poor Benny."

"You must have done that before we arrived," Ryan sighed. "I'm sorry we didn't get to witness it."

"It was something," Hallowell agreed.

"Did you do anything?" Chandler inquired.

"No. I just stood there and looked properly concerned for her mental health."

"Well, that's important."

"I thought so."

"So, Ice, what is it that you know about this situation?" Rodriguez asked, deciding it was time to get a straight answer.

"This scenario played out with another individual a couple of years ago," McKinnon explained. "Lieutenant Jordan O'Rourke found herself under investigation for selling military secrets. Before that investigation arose, she received a series of threats, which she duly reported. Nothing came of the inquiry and they stopped. Some figured it was a prank, others thought it was a cry for help. With the specter of treason brought up, even more thought she was trying to divert suspicion. Someone set her up pretty good. The investigators had all sorts of documentation proving she was involved."

"What happened?" Ryan queried.

"O'Rourke collapsed under the weight of the investigation and committed suicide," McKinnon replied. "Four weeks later, the task force cleared her of all charges."

"Why her?" Tim questioned.

"No one knows for sure. There was some speculation was that she had something on her commanding officer and he wanted it buried."

"Who was the commanding officer?" Ford quizzed.

"Walter Ramsey."

"Oh dear," Ryan said.

Rodriguez stared at his commanding officer and recalled her words in the hospital. He had a feeling this what she had meant about him not getting away with it this time. "You think he's behind this?"

"I don't know," McKinnon admitted. "He could be. He has a powerful reason to be annoyed with the team. It could just be someone copying what worked in the past."

"Why Lucas?" Ford inquired.

"Weakest link," McKinnon stated.

Lucas felt himself tense up at hearing the phrase. For a second, he felt like he was back in Tarsinia, hearing Inouye's voice explaining his theory. Ford saw Lucas go rigid and wondered at the cause, noting that Tim shot the teenager a look of concern.

"Easy, Slick," Rodriguez murmured quietly. Like Lucas, he had experienced a brief flashback. "It's okay."

McKinnon mentally cursed at herself for choosing that particular phrasing, but chose not to apologize, knowing it would bring more attention than the boy wanted. No one else had noticed the effect it had on him and it was better not to go over it. "It's a well-known fact that Outriggers are loyal to the organization and particularly their unit. That's how we survive in the field. If we go with the assumption that Ramsey is somehow involved, it would make sense he would go after Slick and Indy. Because of the nature of the ending of the mission, he saw the reports that were filed. He knows that we consider them members of our squad. It's not hard to make the connection that we would get involved. If it's not Ramsey, then it's hard to say. Certainly anyone who knows anything about the Outriggers knows that we have a high degree of loyalty. And, while their involvement with us is not widely known, it's not inconceivable that someone would find out."

"It still seems like a big leap to make," Ford remarked.

"I know. There's no proof, only the suspicion that Ramsey was connected in the O'Rourke set up. Right now, it's the best thing we have. Slick and Indy were not random targets. He took the time to look up personal information on Indy and it probably is only a matter of time before he does the same with Slick."

"We trashed Ramsey's career; it would give him a powerful motive," Rodriguez commented. "But we're going to need more. There's no proof that he's been any where near this."

"I know."

"What do we do?" Ryan questioned.

"We need to spend some time to find out what Ramsey's been doing since his forced retirement. But we can't afford to spend all of our time on that. It could just be a wild goose chase. Slick is going to continue to try and trace the notes. It's possible the sender will escalate now that things are in progress. We'll have to keep working the official investigation as well. I don't want to be blindsided by anything. However, right now, we're going to break for dinner, before going back to work."

*****

Lucas moved next to Tim, who glanced at his friend. "Okay?" the lieutenant asked quietly. Ford made a mental note to ask Tim about it later, not wanting to upset Lucas any more.

"Yeah. Just caught me off guard," Lucas sighed. "I hate it when it happens."

"There's nothing wrong with it."

"I know."

"You don't sound very convincing," Tim observed.

"Sorry."

"Come on, guys; dinner is here," Karneering called out to them. "You know there will be nothing left if you don't come now."

*****

"Two in one day. How did we get so lucky?" Lucas muttered, as he and Tim checked their mail after dinner. McKinnon had insisted they check again. "Lesson number one," he read.

"That sounds interesting," Tim remarked. "What's the end?"

"Just a second," Lucas informed him. Lucas froze as he saw the message that waited in Tim's box.

"Always trust your instincts?" Tim said, looking over the teenager's shoulder when he did not say it out loud. "That makes no sense."

"I don't think you're supposed to understand it," McKinnon commented quietly. She studied Lucas, who had gone paler than normal and seemed transfixed by the screen. "This mean something to you, Slick?" she inquired.

Lucas became aware of the attention on him and forced himself to answer McKinnon's question. "It's a variation of something that was said to me a long time ago." Lucas hoped his voice did not sound as odd to everyone else as it did to him.

McKinnon nodded her head. Obviously the note had been designed to trigger some kind of response in the teenager. She also had to ask him some questions about it, namely, who would know what to say to provoke such a reaction. From the look on his face, Rodriguez was having the same thoughts. She shook her head at him.

Rodriguez recognized that Lucas was upset by the note, but he wondered why McKinnon did not want him to ask for details. They had to know a few things. However, he trusted his commander, so he kept silent and watched as she carefully directed the others back to work, noting that some of the others looked just as puzzled.

Lucas, for his part, did not really notice. He just wanted to avoid answering too many questions. He mentally reviewed the possibilities of who knew about it; unfortunately, there were too many to consider. The teenager turned his attention to the computer, effectively preventing anyone from talking to him.

*****

McKinnon stifled a smile as Rodriguez , Ryan and Karneering all approached her. She knew what was on their minds, but she waited. "What's going on, Ice?" Ryan asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You know, as well as the rest of us, that when notes start getting personal, there are certain questions that need to be asked," Rodriguez stated.

"Like who would know such a thing? The context? And why it made Slick go so quiet? Someone's pushing buttons here and we need to know who had access," Karneering interjected.

"And who among us thinks Slick's going to tell us anything with everyone watching him?" McKinnon inquired mildly. "We're talking about someone who was receiving vague threats for four weeks and did not bring it up," she observed.

"What do you suggest?" Rodriguez questioned. "If that doesn't work?" Ryan queried.

"Then I'll try," McKinnon replied, already walking toward Tim and Ford.

The other three looked at one another. McKinnon was fairly easy going and compassionate, but they understood she planned on pushing if necessary.

"You know, we really need to find a name for him," Ryan mused, looking at Ford. "I mean, we can't keep calling him commander."

"Somehow I don't see him being too keen on that idea," Karneering remarked.

"And we care?" Ryan retorted. "It's just not right. The man needs a nickname. We have to loosen him up a little."

"That I want to see," Rodriguez commented. "I just hope one of them has luck. He's not going to like Ice's methods."

"I think that's why you're not doing it," Ryan told him.

"Probably right about that."

"Come on, guys; surely between the three of us we can come up with something appropriate?" Ryan pleaded.

"Ask Ice," Karneering advised. "You know I'm no good at the nicknames."

*****

"How do you propose we do this?" Ford questioned Tim, willing to follow the lieutenant's lead on this. He did not know much about getting people to talk, but he was willing to try.

"I have no idea," Tim replied. "Getting him to talk when he's not receptive can be difficult."

"We said we'd try."

"I know. I just wouldn't rate our chances of success as very high."

"Think positive, Tim," Ford encouraged dryly.

"I am thinking positive," Tim assured him. "Hey, Lucas," he greeted the teenager.

"What's up?" Lucas inquired.

"Ice says it might be time to see if we can't dig up some dirt on Nicholson Technology," Tim responded, deciding not to address the issue head on for the moment. "There's nothing on the surface that really should make them a robbery target. She figures there might be something under the surface.

"All right."

"She thought you might need a change of pace from tracing the notes," Tim added.

"I'm not having much luck, that's for sure."

"The last message, what exactly did it mean?" Tim questioned, trying to keep his voice casual.

"I told you; it was something that was said to me once."

"Who said it?" Ford quizzed, deciding it was time to jump in. The commander figured Lucas would expect him to ask these questions. "It could be important. If it was something said to you, how many people knew about it?"

"At the time, it was not a huge secret. Any number of people could have known."

"I'm sure you could narrow it down."

*****

"I don't think they're having much success," Rodriguez observed. "Slick is not looking like a happy camper."

"I'd have to agree with you there," Karneering confirmed.

"What are you three up to now?" McKinnon queried.

"Sunshine has decided that the commander needs a nickname," Rodriguez informed her.

"Oh. What do you have so far?" McKinnon inquired.

"Uh, well, I'm kind of going with the fact that he looks very serious all the time," Ryan replied.

"Such as?" McKinnon prompted, genuinely interested.

"Well, actually Ice would probably be a good one for him, but you already have it," Ryan pointed out thoughtfully.

Rodriguez snickered at the expression on McKinnon's face.

"For different reasons, of course," Ryan interjected hastily, noting the look McKinnon was wearing. "I also have Stone, Rock, Granite…" she recited her list. "None of them does much for me."

"Well, I suspect that nothing we come up with will do much for the commander," McKinnon remarked.

"Indy's shaking his head," Rodriguez sighed.

"I figured as much," McKinnon sighed.

"You want me to try?" Rodriguez volunteered.

"No. I don't want to alter your relationship. He needs it to retain some of his equilibrium," McKinnon replied. "I'll take care of it."

*****

"Uh oh," Adamsen mumbled. She, Hallowell and Dawson were reviewing what they had learned from their outings that day and trying to decide the next plan of attack.

"What?" Hallowell questioned.

"Ice is approaching Slick with her 'it's time we had a little chat' expression," Adamsen observed.

"I kind of thought she let the note issue drop a little quick," Dawson commented.

"I just hope he has the sense to talk quick, otherwise she'll push," Hallowell pointed out.

The trio looked at one another. All had been on the receiving end of one of McKinnon's talks; it was not something they cared to repeat any time soon.

Part 10

Slick?" McKinnon approached Lucas' computer.

"Yes?" Lucas responded, not sure he liked the expression on her face. The teenager had also noticed that a lot of people were watching them.

"Let's take a walk."

Lucas did not need to be told that the commander was not requesting his presence. He did not bother to protest. Instead, he stood up and followed her with a sinking sensation that he was not going to like whatever McKinnon had planned.

McKinnon led the way in silence, having enough sense not to try to start a discussion until they were out of the room. McKinnon took Lucas upstairs, wanting to create some distance between them and the rest of the team.

*****

"Relax, she's not going to torture him," Rodriguez reassured Tim and Ford, who were feeling anxious about the whole thing. "But she needs the answers to the questions."

"How does she plan on getting them?" Ford inquired.

"Ice is something you have to experience," Rodriguez replied. "When they finish, she'll have her answers."

"At what cost?"

"She's not going to hurt him, I promise," Rodriguez told him. He understood Ford's concerns. "I know we're not quite what you're used to, Commander," Rodriguez explained. "But we do care about each other. If we didn't, we wouldn't be here. However, Ice knows that, no matter how much we may not want to discuss a topic, we don't always have that luxury. She purposely set it up so that neither one of you would have to push him. The same with me. Ice knows if she upsets him, he'll go to one of us. She's made sure that we're still considered accessible."

"That doesn't make me feel any better."

"Didn't figure that it would. At some point, you're going to have to trust us. Indy and Slick do and you're going to have to learn to trust their judgment, because I can assure you, if Ice thought there was a chance she could get either one to join us full time, she'd recruit them in a heartbeat."

*****

"Okay, you want to tell me what that note means?" McKinnon asked Lucas, getting straight to the point. The room had a table and two chairs, which they both now occupied.

"What are you asking?"

McKinnon sighed softly and realized they could be at this for a little while. "Whoever sent that note wanted to get a reaction. I think he did."

"What do you mean?"

"You couldn't even read it out loud. You went paler than I've ever seen you, including when you were shot, and you shut everything out immediately," McKinnon observed.

"So, besides legal training, they train you as a counselor too?"

"I'm an Outrigger; I have many skills. This diversion technique may work with Ghost and Indy, and possibly even your captain, but it won't work with me," McKinnon stated firmly.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"When you don't want to talk about something, you get defensive. Generally it makes people back off."

"Is it some kind of game you all play? Offering instant analysis of someone's personality?" Lucas inquired. "I've already done this with Ghost and Einstein."

"And now you're going to do it with me," McKinnon informed him, refusing to back down. "I can't afford to ignore this for you. I let the Aegis Security answer slide, even though we both know you left part of the story out on that one."

"What else is there to tell you?" Lucas quizzed.

"I don't know. If I did, we wouldn't be having this conversation. And don't try to change the subject. I let that one go, but not this one. Someone got into your personal life and dug up something that obviously upsets you. I need to know what it was and how they found it."

"Like you're the paragon of full disclosure," Lucas retorted.

"No one's messing with my life," McKinnon reminded him. "I'm not the one that is being framed for robbery."

Lucas stared at her and knew that he should not have made the comment. McKinnon was right; he was defensive. "I told you; it's something someone said to me once."

"Not good enough. Who said it? Did someone overhear it? Who knew it was said? I have to know, Slick."

"A lot of people knew. The remark was made in front of a lot of people."

"Where at?" McKinnon persisted. McKinnon figured she would either wear Lucas down or get him so upset that he would explode without thinking about it. She was not sure which one she would prefer; she had elicited both types of responses from various crew members. "What kind of people? I need specifics."

"I don't know who all was there. I didn't exactly take a poll."

*****

"They've been gone a long time," Tim remarked to Rodriguez and Ryan, who were working with him and Ford.

"Don't worry. I've known some people to take hours," Ryan responded, sending a pointed glance to Rodriguez.

"Be subtle, why don't you?" Rodriguez groused. "Like you're always Miss Talkative."

"I never went all night. Ghost holds the record for holding out the longest," Ryan explained.

"Somehow I think Lucas could top it if he set his mind to it," Tim commented. "He can really dig his heels in."

"Well, Ice likes a challenge."

*****

"Slick, you and I can go around and around this thing for the rest of the night if you want," McKinnon sighed. The commander had let things drag on about as long as she intended for the moment. "But I can't let this drop, as much as we'd both like for me to. I'm trying to help you and Indy get out of this mess that someone created."

"I don't recall asking for your help."

"That's because you're too stubborn to admit you need it. And, if you think you're going to convince me that you don't want us here, think again," McKinnon informed him.

Lucas had the grace to blush at that. "It's not that I don't appreciate you guys coming…"

"Then perhaps you could demonstrate it by giving me a straight answer."

"I said it is not important."

"I can't take your word for it."

"In other words, you don't trust me," Lucas shot back. McKinnon was pushing him close to an edge he did not want to approach.

"I could say the same thing to you," McKinnon retorted. "After all, I'm not the one refusing to talk."

"I'm talking."

"Not about what you need to be talking about," McKinnon pointed out.

"Why it was said is simply not significant!" Lucas shouted, frustrated.

"Someone knew that remark would get a rise out of you. From where I'm sitting, it worked. I'm sorry if it's a painful subject, but I will not risk the team over this," McKinnon informed him coldly. "I'm not asking because I've suddenly developed a sadistic streak. I need to know so that two days from now we're not completely blindsided."

"It has nothing to do with this!" Lucas declared. "And it's not something that needs to become common knowledge."

McKinnon sighed again, realizing she was probably going to have to push every button she could find in order to get him to talk to her. "I can't take that chance."

"So you get to keep your life private, but I have to explain mine?"

"We've already done that battle, Slick. If I thought there was anything to be gained by telling people Jordan was my half sister, I would."

"Why are you the judge of what's relevant? You have some special power?" Lucas did not particularly care that he was being unfair. He just wanted to avoid discussing this note.

"I'm not the one being threatened. You are," McKinnon reminded him. The commander understood Lucas was doing his best to avoid the subject. However, she knew she could not afford to let him.

"And that makes it okay to pry in my past?"

"It's not like I went looking for this, Slick. I'm simply addressing an issue that came up. It's related to this case. We are not discussing me. We are talking about you."

"How did I get so lucky?"

"I wish I knew. As for your private life, right now, you don't have one. If you think I'm prying, what do you think the police is doing? They're looking into everything they can find to prove you had a motive for being involved."

"So that makes it okay for you?"

"You don't have to like it, but if you want to get out of this, you're going to have to start talking," McKinnon told him. The commander had decided it was time to start trying to make him lose control. Wearing him down was not going to work. However, if she angered him enough, she might get him to let go.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lucas asked. "You think I like being a suspect in a robbery investigation?"

"I'm starting to wonder. You don't seem inclined to give out the information we need to get to the bottom of this."

"You should know better than that."

"I thought I did. Now, I'm not so sure. Understand this, Slick: I'm not walking away from this one. Something tells me, I've had more experience at this game than you."

"You going to keep me here all night if I don't talk?" Lucas challenged.

"If necessary," McKinnon replied, her face impassive. The commander did not mention she had no intention of letting it last that long. "This is not something I can just let go."

"Why not? What do you think knowing this is going to tell you?"

"Who's behind the notes, maybe. If it's something only a few people knew, it could narrow the search."

"I thought Ramsey was behind it."

"He's only a possibility. I won't take chances. I'm not going to overlook something because it makes you uncomfortable. Life is hard, Slick, and sometimes you have to face stuff that isn't pleasant."

"Thanks for that piece of comforting advice! I might not have figured it out on my own!"

McKinnon nodded and decided it was time to end this conversation. "You don't want to tell me that's fine. But if something happens to anyone on this team, because you didn't, then you have to live with it," McKinnon stated icily. "You may not care for yourself, but what about Indy and Ford and Ghost and the rest? Are you willing to risk their lives? I think you owe them more than that." Usually McKinnon tried to avoid emotional blackmail, but sometimes she had no choice.

"That is unfair!" Lucas yelled at her. "I can't believe you would say such a thing!"

"Why not? I'm only asking so that I can be prepared to face anything that might happen. You're withholding information. I just can't believe you'd risk your friends' lives over it." McKinnon recognized she was pushing Lucas hard, but she knew she could not afford to back off.

Lucas stared at McKinnon and wondered if she knew exactly how close to the mark she was with this.

"Fine!" the teenager shouted, standing up, too angry to stay seated. "Several years ago, I got caught in a bad situation," he started, forcing his voice to stay even. "I was in a store looking at computer magazines when a guy walked in. I thought he looked kind of off; I don't know what it was. He just made me nervous. I told myself I was being silly, so I stayed. He held up the store. One of the other customers got shot. Later, when I told the police officer about my feelings, he told me I should have trusted my instincts. Are you happy now?"

"And?" McKinnon encouraged, cringing as she realized how he must have taken the words. That somehow it had been his fault for getting caught in the situation. However, the commander knew that he was not going to listen to anything she had to say on the matter.

"Afterwards, the counselor said the same thing. It was probably in my file."

"Counselor?" McKinnon prompted.

"Yes. They had me undergo counseling to deal with the problem."

McKinnon knew she was in a difficult position. When she had checked, there had been no record of him ever going to counseling. While she needed to know when that file had disappeared, asking meant admitting she had gone looking in the first place. The commander suspected that Lucas would not be happy with the news.

Lucas looked at her coldly, knowing what she was thinking. "The file did not go missing until after Tarsinia, which is why you didn't find anything when you went looking," he informed her. "I had it set to let me know if anyone checked," he explained, before she could ask.

"Why did you remove it?" McKinnon inquired, deciding not to confirm or deny his statement. It seemed like the wisest course of action, even though it was fairly obvious he already knew.

"I knew that the idea was bound to come up at some point. Some people seem to think that talking about your problems is a good way to resolve them." McKinnon winced at his tone of voice, guessing, correctly, he was not one of those people. "And I didn't really want people prying around in my personal business and deciding that somehow it was all related. In general, I figured my past is not anyone else's business," he said pointedly.

"Someone else already made it their business; I'm just running damage control. As for looking in your files, people have to get answers somewhere, Slick. They do it because they care, not to distress you," McKinnon observed quietly.

"Some of them sure have a funny way of showing it," Lucas retorted.

McKinnon asked Lucas several more questions before accepting that he had told her everything he planned to; she recognized that it was time to retreat. "For the record, Slick, I can tell there's more to this story than you're telling me. However, I'm going to trust that you're telling me everything I need to know to make sure we're not caught off guard by any of this."

"Gee, that's generous of you."

"Don't make this personal. I'm doing my job. And I'm trying to keep you and Indy out of jail."

"You do your job well, Commander. Are we done? Or do you want me to share other childhood memories?" Lucas questioned bitterly.

"That's all for now."

"Then I'd like to get back to work."

McKinnon watched him leave, knowing the last thing he needed was to go back to work. She would have to count on Rodriguez to realize that, since she could tell that any suggestion she made to the teenager would not be given much merit for a little while.

*****

Rodriguez looked up from where he and Ryan were conversing as Lucas returned to the room. "Oh dear," he muttered. "I don't think things went well," he added. "If anyone asks, we went for a walk," he instructed Ryan. Rodriguez could tell the teenager was on the verge of exploding and he did not think it needed to be done in front of the entire team.

"No problem," Ryan told him. It seemed fairly obvious that the talk between Lucas and McKinnon had not been pleasant. They had all been there, not that it did much good during the process.

*****

Rodriguez intercepted Lucas before he made it halfway through the room.

"What do you want?" Lucas asked sharply. He was not in the mood to deal with anyone, especially not Rodriguez , who always seemed to see more than he should.

Rodriguez decided it was best not to answer his question. Instead, he gripped the teenager's shoulder and turned him around. "I don't think you're ready for this just yet," he said firmly, leading Lucas out of the room.

*****

"Let Ghost handle it," Chandler advised both Tim and Ford, who had made moves toward Lucas before the other man had interrupted.

"He didn't look too happy," Tim commented.

"McKinnon has that effect on people. She needed the information. Whatever it was, she did not want to have to push to get it, but she had little choice," Chandler responded. "Right now, Slick is angry. Ghost is the right person to let him work it out."

"Personal experience?" Ford inquired, curious.

"Actually, yes. Ghost will let him vent as long as he needs and hopefully get him to be a little less annoyed with our commander. The best thing we can do is keep working and act like we have no idea that this is going on."

"You're probably right," Ford admitted reluctantly.

*****

"Wait here," Rodriguez ordered Lucas, stopping at the room where their gear had been stored.

"What's that?" Lucas asked, when Rodriguez returned carrying a bag.

"You'll see."

"I'm not interested in whatever you have in mind, Ghost."

"Too bad. I'm not letting you around people in your current mood. Some of them are less understanding than I am," Rodriguez told him, leading up the stairs.

*****

"Ghost took Slick for a walk," Ryan informed McKinnon, who had rejoined the team just after Rodriguez had left with Lucas.

"Probably not a bad idea."

"Things did not go well?" Ryan queried.

"That's an understatement," McKinnon replied. "I had to push pretty hard."

"You had no choice, Ice. You had to know the answers. What now?"

"Keep working on the investigation. I'm going to check out what Slick told me," McKinnon answered. "I owe it to him not to broadcast it if it isn't necessary," she added, seeing Ryan's confused look. "It killed him to tell me; I don't think it needs to be a team concern until I get some more information."

"That's why we like you," Ryan said quietly. She figured McKinnon kept more secrets than anyone on the team. "Ghost will get him to calm down, maybe even understand."

"Perhaps," McKinnon responded, although she was not sure of that. The whole thing was obviously very upsetting to the teenager, which concerned her: not because she thought he was endangering the team, but because McKinnon hated to see anyone on her team hurting, particularly when she felt responsible. It also left her wondering what Lucas had not told her.

*****

"Here," Rodriguez said, handing Lucas an alarm clock.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Lucas questioned, turning the clock over in his hand, wondering if Rodriguez had lost his mind.

"Throw the thing. How do you think I developed the habit? It's very cathartic. Trust me," Rodriguez told him. "You'll get rid of some of your anger and then we'll talk."

"I've had quite enough talking for one night, thank you very much."

"All right. Then maybe I'll talk. Just throw it. I guarantee it will help."

"This is stupid."

"So, who's watching? Aim for the wall; pretend it's Ice," Rodriguez suggested. The teenager had too much pent-up emotion to try talking to him now. He wanted to get Lucas to the point where they could talk. "I'm going to bug you until you do it."

"Persistence is an Outrigger trait, isn't it?"

"Pretty much. It works in our favor most of the time. Come on; you know you want to. Here, I'll throw one, so you'll see how it's done," Rodriguez offered, picking up another alarm clock and throwing it. "See it's easy. It's a great stress reliever."

Lucas looked at Rodriguez and shook his head and then decided he had nothing to lose. "It wasn't a compliment."

"You've got quite the arm," Rodriguez noted, as the clock went flying. "Did that help?"

"No," Lucas said shortly.

"Obviously you need something more destructive," Rodriguez mused, thinking.

"I need you to leave me alone."

"I don't think so."

"You and Ice have a tag team thing going? You both think you know what's best for me?" Lucas questioned angrily.

Rodriguez shook his head at the hard edge to his voice. This was worse than he expected. "I'll be right back," he informed him. "Stay here."

"If I don't want to?"

"I'll handcuff you to the chair."

"Are you nuts?"

"I'm an Outrigger; what do you think?"

"Does it matter?"

"Let's just say that I don't think you want to test me on this," Rodriguez observed. "You are in no shape to be with anyone right now."

"Then why are you bugging me?"

"Because if I leave you alone, you'll never release all that anger that's welling up inside of you. Stop arguing with me and I'll be right back. Or do I have to break out the handcuffs?"

"Fine. I'll stay."

*****

"You lose someone?" Karneering inquired, as Rodriguez approached him.

"Not yet. Listen, you know the souvenirs you got for your nieces? I'd like to borrow them."

Karneering eyed Rodriguez nervously. "Why?"

"My clocks don't have enough destructive power. I need something that will shatter and make a big mess," Rodriguez explained.

"So, I won't be getting them back?"

"I'll get Ice to pay for it. She's the one that ticked him off."

"That bad?"

"Makes him look positively happy with you the other day."

"Sure, why not? It's for a good cause."

"Thanks, Einstein."

*****

McKinnon stared at the computer, reading the newspaper article she had located. There were times when she hated her job; this was definitely one of them. She wondered if Lucas still felt guilty. Thinking about his reaction, she realized he probably did. Hearing footsteps behind her, McKinnon blanked the screen. There were some things that did not need to be common knowledge.

"Hey Einstein," she greeted. "What's going on?" McKinnon had seen Rodriguez speaking with the doctor.

"Well, we're still moving forward. Irish is trying to see what he can find out on the accounts that were used to send the notes. He thought it might help Slick. Indy and the commander are still working on Nicholson Technology. Sunshine, Casanova, Brook and Columbus are plotting their next foray into the investigation. I assume you're verifying the information Slick gave you."

"Yes. And, if I were you, I wouldn't bring up counseling any time soon. He knows I tried to get a look at his file. But that wasn't what I was asking."

"I'll let Ghost give you the details. How did he know?"

"Apparently he had it tagged."

"Interesting."

"He's been to counseling in the past. I don't think it was pleasant."

"Unfortunately, that can happen."

*****

"Now what?" Lucas asked, exasperation in his voice.

"Try this," Rodriguez said, dropping the snow globe in his hand.

"You want me to throw this? Can I throw it at you?"

"That's not a good idea, Slick. Throw it at the ground, the wall, I don't care. But you are way too uptight to do anyone any good right now."

"Is this your professional opinion?"

"I'm a concerned friend, Slick. That's all. I understand that you have a hard time accepting this concept, but try."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"If you're trying to pick a fight with me, I'm not buying," Rodriguez informed him, suddenly realizing what the teenager was doing. "But this is precisely why I couldn't let you stay in there."

"Great, so now you know what's in my best interests too?"

"No. I leave that for other people. I'm just minding my own business."

"I wish other people would."

"Come on; you're making this harder than you need to. Throw it; it's going to help."

"Where did you get this?" Lucas questioned, turning it over in his hand. He could not imagine Rodriguez buying a figurine with a girl sitting on a bench reading a book.

"It doesn't matter."

"This is a bad idea."

"I can call Ice back in. I'm sure she'd like to talk with you some more," Rodriguez pointed out. He figured it would be just enough to goad the young man. "I thought we agreed you weren't going to throw it at me!" he shouted, ducking as the globe shattered against the wall.

"Reflex. Besides, I knew you'd duck and I never agreed to any of this!"

"Do it again and you will regret it," Rodriguez warned.

"I already regret enough other things right now," Lucas said, automatically accepting the next snow globe Rodriguez pressed into his hand. This time, the teenager did turn away from Rodriguez. He had to admit he got a certain amount of satisfaction at hearing the shattering glass and seeing the contents flying everywhere.

"You know, if you wanted to yell, maybe call Ice some names while you did this, it might help," Rodriguez suggested, passing him another one of the souvenirs. If McKinnon refused to reimburse the doctor, Rodriguez knew he would; it looked like this might be working.

"I've had quite enough talking for the evening."

"Okay," Rodriguez told him, handing him another one and hoping there were enough to get him reasonably calm. McKinnon must have opened an extremely difficult topic to provoke this type of reaction. He resisted the urge to ask about it. Rodriguez knew he would only alienate the teenager if he pushed.

*****

"So, if you had to give Commander Ford a nickname, what would it be?" Rodriguez inquired, after Lucas had thrown the last snow globe, deciding it was a better question to broach at the moment.

"You're going to give him one?"

"It's a team thing; you know that. He may be kind of tense about being around us, but he's not a bad guy overall. What would you call him? Sunshine's not happy with the ones she's come up with so far."

"I have to work with the commander when we go back to seaQuest. I don't think I'd call him anything," Lucas informed him, sitting down on the floor next to Rodriguez, "because I don't think he's going to be too keen on a name."

"Like that's going to stop any of us. Describe him for me. You know him and maybe that will help."

"He's calm under fire. Always handles himself well. He's not as inflexible as he appears. He likes to be ready for the situation," Lucas recited, recalling all the times he had seen Ford in action. "Why are we discussing this?" Lucas questioned suddenly, trying to figure out Rodriguez's motivation.

Rodriguez shrugged his shoulders. "This is my attempt to gently ease you into the real reason why we're sitting here after you've destroyed all the snow globes Einstein bought for his nieces."

"I don't want to talk about it."

Rodriguez studied the teenager's rigid profile. "I don't know what you and Ice talked about, but she had her reasons for needing that information. It's standard procedure when notes start getting personal. Someone wanted to pull your chain and they obviously succeeded. She didn't insist because she's cruel. Ice cares about every person on this team, but some times that's just not enough. Just trust that whatever it was you told her, it will stay that way unless absolutely necessary. She will keep it out of the mission files as long as it doesn't become involved. She won't tell anyone. It'll be between the two of you."

"I don't find that comforting."

"Didn't figure you would. I don't usually when I'm on the receiving end of a grilling by her."

"At least you're honest."

"Slick, Ice cares. We wouldn't be here otherwise. I mean, let's face facts here. Do you honestly think Einstein and I just happened to attend the conference?"

"I thought it was a bit contrived."

"We were worried about you. Ice wanted to make sure you were okay, so she had us come. She pulled some strings to get them to let her bring the team out. I don't what she said or how she managed it, but she did it. She cares, even when you want to smack her a good one."

"This is supposed to make me feel better?"

"I don't know about that. How about help you understand? You can be mad at her, just don't hold a grudge and don't let it interfere."

Lucas leaned back against the wall, closed his eyes and did not speak. Part of him wanted to tell Rodriguez the whole story; the other part was afraid of how the man would react. Thus, he did what always did in this situation: he kept quiet, figuring it was the easiest way to protect himself.

Rodriguez watched him in silence, figuring the young man needed the time to process everything. He resisted saying any more himself, because he did not want to cross the line.

"I hope you're getting Einstein replacements. And why do you have so many clocks?" Lucas finally asked, still keeping his eyes shut.

"I collect them for occasions like these," Rodriguez replied.

"Where did you learn this trick?"

"My sister. It used to be baseballs, but Ice got a little annoyed after I broke the window out of my room the sixth time. She said I had to find something else. There's something satisfying about alarm clocks."

"Get angry a lot, do you?"

"Comes and goes, Slick," Rodriguez sighed. "So, you think you can go back to work without choking Ice or biting anyone's head off?"

"Guess we'll just have to see."

Rodriguez looked at him and caught the smile that flitted across his face. "Very funny, Slick. Just remember that Ice has quick reflexes; she'll take you down and probably draw her weapon at the same time."

"Sounds like fun."

"Let's clean up and get out of here."

Part 11

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