Kris rolled her eyes. "I hear you. Maybe you'll get lucky next time."

Shelby nodded. "I hope so, or there isn't going to be much sense in bugging her apartment." She wrapped her arms around Kris and laid her head against her chest. "Hurry back."

The tall woman smiled and returned the embrace. "Count on it."



*  *  *

Ten minutes after Kris left; Shelby ventured out into the hallway again and headed for the vending machines. She grinned inwardly when she saw Maggie walk out of her office, headed in the same direction.

"Hey, Maggie."

"Hi, Shelby. I haven't seen you for days! Did the cops ever catch that guy that took a shot at you?"

The analyst paused, surprised that Maggie had even mentioned the incident. "You know about that?"

"Yeah." Maggie grinned conspiratorially and shrugged. "It's all over the grapevine."

Shelby knew that wasn't true, but played along. "I should've guessed. Hear anything good lately?"

"Not really. Oh wait. Yes I did. Dennis is getting reassigned to Strategic Ops."

Snorting, Shelby said, "You've gotta be kidding me!"

Maggie grinned. "That's what I thought, too, but it's true."

Since Maggie was now in full gossip mode, Shelby decided it was the right time to plant her own rumor. "Hey, guess what I heard?"

Looking at Shelby, surprised, Maggie asked, "What?"

"You remember when you told me Blue was at headquarters?" When Maggie nodded, Shelby continued, "Jet and Silver are here now, too."

Maggie sucked in a breath. "No kidding. Wonder why?"

"I don't know, but it seems funny all three of those operatives would be here at the same time. Must be something big getting ready to go down. We'll probably never know, though."

Trying not to appear too interested, Maggie nodded. "You're right, but I'm still going to put out some feelers. If I find out anything, I'll let you know."

Shelby smiled. "Thanks. You always hear a lot more than I do."

"That's because you hardly ever leave your office."

Shrugging, Shelby said, "I know, but Dennis has really been piling on the work."

Maggie nodded knowingly. "Well, I'm sure glad I don't work for him."

"You're lucky. Speaking of which, I'd better get back. See you later."

"Okay." Maggie watched Shelby walk back to her office, uneasy about the fact that three wet operatives had been recalled at the same time. She wouldn't be able to go straight home tonight after all.



*  *  *

Kris took one last look around the apartment. It was apparent that Maggie was used to living luxuriously. All the furnishings and electronic equipment were top quality and the computer sitting in the spare bedroom was a brand new Dell. The operative snorted derisively. The woman was obviously being well paid for her information, but she hadn't even bothered to have a security system installed. Not that it would have stopped any agent from getting in, but it would've taken a few extra minutes.

Satisfied with the placement of the bugs, she glanced at her watch and hurriedly left the apartment. It had taken her longer to get to Maggie's than she'd intended because the traitor's apartment was not easily accessible from the beltway, so she had taken the slower main thoroughfares and would be returning the same way. She had no intentions of worrying her partner unnecessarily, and was going to have to hustle to get back within the hour she'd allotted.



*  *  *

The operative sat in the car impatiently tapping her fingers on the wide bar across the center of the steering wheel. "At this rate, we'll never beat her to the drop."

Reaching over and laying her hand on the tall woman's leg, Shelby said, "Hey, relax a little. She probably comes this way, too, and she doesn't even leave work for another half hour."

Kris forced herself to relax. Shelby was right. It just seemed that everything was working against them today. Normally, it only took 25 minutes to reach Georgetown on the beltway, even in rush hour traffic, but today they hadn't crawled above 10 mph. Kris sighed inwardly. The gridlock wasn't likely to improve until they exited the highway, because the traffic bulletin on the radio had indicated that the accident was just this side of their exit. "The camera's all set?"

Shelby gently squeezed the leg her hand was resting on. "Yep. New roll of film, and I've got such a high powered lens it should pick up her nose hairs. But you knew that already."

Kris quickly glanced at Shelby and found herself finally relaxing as she returned the warm grin directed at her. "Busted, huh?"

"Yep. Just think, by the end of the evening, we'll have everything we need on Maggie and on Michael, too, I betcha."

"I hope so, because we're running out of time. I've got to contact Sergei and set up a meet. I'm just wondering what kind of double-cross he has set up. He's not going to just walk away happy."

A cold chill ran down Shelby's back. "Are you saying..."

"I'm just saying that I don't trust him. We've got to be prepared for anything."

Shelby glanced away, her thoughts turbulent. While she wanted an end to this, the analyst knew the possibility of disaster was all too real, and any resolution had the very real potential to separate her and Kris, perhaps forever. There were just so many chance variables. Sergei could kill Kris' mother, the operative could be arrested once she came clean with Earl, the meet could end up being a setup, with Kris the target or... her thoughts trailed off, unwilling to process the last image. Not one of these scenarios was acceptable, some even less so than others. Shelby was finding it harder and harder to lend positive support in what seemed more and more like a no-win situation.

Wondering why her partner had become so quiet, Kris glanced at Shelby and was only able to see a side view of her face as she gazed out the window. What she saw hit her hard. The analyst's countenance was a mixture of worry, sadness and fear. The woman who had become her rock needed some support, and she'd been too immersed in the case today to even see that. She finished formulating her strategy and decided to bounce it off Shelby. It might ease some of her concern. It was chock full of holes, but it was the best she'd been able to come up with.

"Shelby."

"Humm?" Taking a moment to make sure her face didn't reflect her doubts, Shelby briefly met the blue eyes before they turned back to the road.

"You're worried, aren't you?"

Shelby rolled her eyes. "Uh, duh? Aren't you?"

"Yeah." Kris reached over and linked her fingers with Shelby's. "But I think we've got a good chance to pull this off, too. If we get everything we need tonight, I'm gonna call Sergei tomorrow and set up a meet on Sunday. Once that's firmed up, I'll call Earl and arrange for a team to be at whatever location Sergei names."

Shelby gazed at the now confident expression on her partner's face. "You make it sound so simple and it's not. What if Sergei doesn't bring your mother along? And even if he does, how are you going to get her out of there without Earl knowing about her?"

Kris shrugged. "I'll tell Sergei there is no negotiating - I see my mother or he doesn't get the password. He'll go for it because he doesn't have a choice. Besides, he thinks he's in the driver's seat, and in a normal situation, he'd be right. Who could I turn to?" Squeezing, Shelby's hand, she continued, "He didn't count on you. And that's why we'll win."

The confident words and reassuring contact grounded Shelby, and she suddenly felt her confidence and optimism take a skyward leap. "What about your mother?"

"After I go inside, you bring the car around to the back of the house. Once I signal Earl's team, I'll get my mother to the rear of the house and once you and Mom are safe, I'll turn myself in."

"No!"

The operative's brow furrowed, surprised at the vehement response. "What do you mean, no?"

"That won't work. You've got to meet Earl ahead of time and tell him the truth. We do it your way, and you don't have anything left to bargain with. They'll already have Sergei."

"Yeah, but they can't prove he's Sergei. They need my testimony to do that."

Shelby shook her head in disagreement. "Maybe. But that's not good enough. What if they just haul in some of the men that he has with him? Wouldn't be the first time they ignored diplomatic immunity when they suspected someone of being a spy."

Kris carefully considered Shelby's words. She knew her plan wasn't perfect, and her partner's concern was valid. If the Company got what they needed at the time of the bust, she would lose her advantage in the bargaining process. And if she lost that, she could lose everything she was fighting for.

The operative sighed and ran a hand through her hair, glad they'd finally inched their way to the exit. "You're right. I'll have to set up a time to meet with Earl and explain it all to him." Kris gazed at Shelby momentarily before turning her attention back to the road. "You do know that he might ask me to surrender to him right then and there?"

"He could, but I don't think he will. You said you trusted Earl. I've got a feeling he trusts you, too. Even if he did want to take you into custody, all you'd have to do is tell him that my safety would be jeopardized." Shelby gazed into Kris' eyes. "And it would be, so you convince him, okay?"

Kris took a steadying breath at the implications of the frank statement. "He'll agree. Or he'll wake up with a big headache after I leave."