Си Паради - Dancing With Shadows

What's wrong?"

Megan had never called at 10pm wanting to stay at her place. Something had to be going on.

"Remember what we were talking about at lunch Friday?" Megan didn't want to elaborate over the phone.

"You mean about Tony’s accidents?" Ashley asked, remembering how distraught her sister had been. "Are you both ok?"

Hearing the worry in her sister's voice, Megan said, reassuringly, "Yeah, we're fine and it’s about that. I’ll fill you in when I get there."

"Ok. See you in a few," Ashley said, before hanging up. At least they were both ok.

Megan turned off the phone, lowered the antenna and put it back in her purse. Looking up at Tony, she said, "I guess you're going to work."

Tony looked at her partner, puzzled. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I just thought with everything going on… you did get punched in the face… and let me see your head. You hit it pretty hard. From what I could see it looked like you almost got knocked out." Megan had reached up and was feeling the back of Tony's head. "Yeah, you got a welt back here, all right."

Tony grinned at her partner. "Nice try, Love. But a little bump on the head isn't any reason for me to call off."

Megan had figured it might be worth a shot and smiled back at her partner. "Wait until you look in the mirror and see that nice bruise on your jaw," Megan quipped, exaggerating the injury.

Tony ran her fingers along her jaw. "It’s not very swollen. Can't be too bad."

Megan’s eyes were twinkling, and she said, "It's not. I was just kidding. I thought maybe I could get you to stay home."

Tony smiled, "Now there’s a thought. Wish I could, but you can bet I’ll be by to pick you up first thing in the morning." Tony paused and then added, "Unless you’d rather sleep in. Ashley could probably bring you home later."

"You better be there when you get off," Megan said, grinning, but only partially joking. Tony had to work evenings tomorrow and would have very little time to sleep, and Megan intended to keep an eye on things while she did.

Tony chuckled, and said, "Yes Ma'am. Let’s go see if Kris can take you to Ashley’s. I don’t want to take any chances just in case he’s still around and follows me when I leave."

"What about you? You still have to get to work," Megan said, worried.

Tony met Megan's eyes. "Don't worry. I’ll have my usual escort. I’ll be fine."

"There’s Kris," Tony said, spotting the policewoman. "Let’s see if she can take you over there now."

SHERMAN LAY STRETCHED out on his bed in the hotel room, his head resting on his hands. He felt invigorated. Damn that had been fun. It had been so long since any of his cases offered a challenge, they had become almost boring. But not tonight. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt so alive. What a rush! He had been set up and they still couldn't catch him. He had to give Viglioni a little credit. She wasn't too bad after all. At least she offered up a challenge. But the local cops were so inept, and talk about out of shape. They had been left in the dust.

His thoughts turned to the tape he had listened to. He knew she was working second shift tomorrow, and she was still being escorted to and from the surveillance site by the local cops.

A plan began to form in his mind. The more he thought about it the more he liked it. Why shouldn't he have some fun with this case? He deserved it. Who knows how long it would be before he found another worthy adversary.

Sitting up, he played different scenarios through his mind. Yep. It was perfect. Chancy and bold, but plausible. This would definitely be a challenge to pull off, and it would make the thrill of the kill so much more satisfying.

Tony unlocked the apartment door and opened it. Once they were inside, she locked it and walked straight into the kitchen. Megan followed her. The kittens appeared from parts unknown meowing loudly.

Megan smiled at them. "Oh. Poor babies. You probably thought we deserted you. Are you hungry?" She took a can of cat food out of the cupboard and emptied it into their dish. Placing it on the floor, she chuckled when the kittens attacked the food with relish. She put fresh water in their dish and after placing it on the floor turned to watch Tony.

Pulling a chair away from the table Tony kneeled down looking under the table. She reached for the tiny bug that had been secured there.

Once she had it, she stood up and walked into the living room and plucked the ladybug off the silk plant. Megan followed her into the bathroom and watched as she flushed them both down the toilet.

"I’m so glad those are gone," Megan said, relieved.

"So am I. I’m going to check and make sure he didn’t put any more in here," Tony said, walking out of the bathroom toward the bedroom. A thorough scan with the bug detector revealed no other bugs, much to Megan’s relief.

Megan walked over and hugged Tony. "You need to get some sleep."

"I will. I’m going to take a shower first," Tony said, meeting Megan’s lips for a fleeting kiss.

Megan made a pot of coffee. She would put off errands until tomorrow when Tony was off. She was not about to leave the apartment while her partner was sleeping.

Looking at her ‘watch,’ she felt better. One press of the small button and help would be on the way. Megan hoped he had been scared off after last night. She knew Tony didn’t think so, but she could hope couldn’t she?

The ringing of the phone surprised her. Who would be calling this early on Saturday? Picking up the phone, she said, "Hello."

Huey had expected to hear Tony’s voice and paused for a moment before speaking, prompting Megan to say, "Hello," again.

"Is Tony there?" Huey asked, enjoying the sound of the pleasant voice.

"She’s a little busy right now. May I take a message?" Megan asked, wondering who the caller was.

"Yes. Tell her to call the shop."

"Ok," Megan said, before hanging up the phone. Tony had explained the phone code to her and when he had mentioned the shop, she knew the caller was Huey.

When Tony got out of the shower, Megan said, "Huey called. Isn't it kind of unusual for him to be calling on a Saturday?"

"Yeah, it is. He must have found out something," Tony said, picking up the phone and attaching the scrambling device before dialing Huey’s number.

When he answered, she said, "Viglioni here. I’m secure."

Huey wasted no time filling Tony in. "All hell has broken loose here. Sarah remembered who pulled your record, and when we put the screws to him, he sang. You have a very deadly wet operative after you. His name is Jess Sherman and he is good. Thought you’d better know whom you’re dealing with. I'll fax his picture to you."

Tony digested the information. She wasn’t really surprised. She knew her assailant was professionally trained, even though he had ceased to be a professional in her mind. "Any idea what this is all about?"

"He doesn’t want you to testify. He has a personal stake in this case. That’s all I can tell you right now." Huey had full confidence in Tony's ability to take care of herself, and knew she would use this information to her advantage.

"Thanks Huey. I appreciate it," Tony said, before hanging up the phone. So it was another agent and not a mercenary. In Tony's mind, the worst thing an agent could do was to turn against one of their own. There was an unwritten code of honor among the operatives.

Megan looked at the far away expression in Tony's eyes, and asked, "What’s wrong?"

Leaving her thoughts behind, Tony said, "It seems our "friend" is a rogue agent. I had hoped I was wrong about that."

Megan looked at the pensive expression on Tony's face. "You seem… disappointed or something," Megan said, watching her partner closely.