Callie was about to leave the next morning when her phone rang. She picked it up, thinking that it might be Carter. "I'm just walking out the door," she said.

"And here I thought you'd be waiting by the telephone for news," George Piper said.

"I was going to call later," she told him. "Did you catch Bonner yet?"

"No. We found the motorcycle - ditched out in Oak Cliff. There are several reports of stolen vehicles, we're looking into those. What I wanted to tell you is that you and your friend might want to be careful - Bonner's not his name, by the way."

"Don't change gears so quickly, George," she told him. "Why should we be careful?"

"You both got a look at Bonner, right?"

"When he came out of the house, I saw his face. I'm sure Carter did as well. No one with his description has taken a flight out of town?"

"Not as far as we've been able to tell."

"How do you know that Bonner's not his name?"

"Elmer Bonner is an alias. He and Billie Smith were a team."

"A team?"

"They're contract killers. A couple that matches their descriptions has reported to have killed at least three men and two women."

"You don't seriously think that Bonner - or whoever he is - would try to kill us? What about the diner owner? Or the other waitress?

"The two of you can place him at the scene of a murder," George pointed out. "If you want police protection -"

"No, no thank you, George. Do you know his real name?"

"Not yet. We had to send the one fingerprint we found in Billie Smith's room to the Feds to get what we have. I'm going to say this, but I have a feeling that it's a waste of breath - it might be a good idea if you and Mr. Jankowski lie low for awhile."

"In other words, back off the case."

"You have no standing to be *on* the case, Callie," he said in a firm tone. "I appreciate what help you've given to the department, but now your life could be in danger. And your friend's life."

"Thank you for letting me know, George," Callie said as her cell phone began to ring. "Hey, I have another call - I'll talk to Carter and see what he thinks. Keep me in the loop?"

"Against my better judgment," George replied.

Callie hung up and grabbed her cell, taking note of Carter's name on the screen. "Hey," she said. "How are you this morning?"

"Wondering where my ride is," he said. "But I'm okay. Is everything okay on your end?"

"I'm about to leave - sorry it took me so long to answer. Are you waiting on the sidewalk?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Go back inside the building and watch for me, please?"

"Why?"

"I'll explain when I get there," she promised.

"I was afraid of this," Carter said once Callie had told him about George Piper's call.

"You knew he was a hired killer?"

"Of course not. But it makes sense. If he and Billie killed Jonas, then someone probably hired them to do it."

"The question is: who hired them?"

"Wayne knew the answer to that question. That's why Elmer Bonner killed him."

"But why kill Billie?" Callie wondered. "If they were partners -"

"She told us that Wayne was looking for Elmer, remember? I think she fell for Wayne, and wanted out - but Elmer wasn't going to let that happen."

"That makes sense. So, do we hide out until Elmer's caught or leaves town, as George wants us to do?"

"We should be safe at the warehouse," Carter told her. "If we park in the loading area, it will give Elmer less chance of a shot at us." Callie smiled as his answer.

"I had the same idea," she told him.

"Great minds think alike," he said, lifting his coffee toward her.

"When I get home later, I'm going to dig out my gun -"

"Your gun?"

"It's just a small .38, and I haven't carried it except to practice a few times at the range. I'll clean it -"

"You have a permit to carry?"

"Yes. I renewed it and kept the gun at the restaurant in Dad's office for awhile - there were some robberies in the neighborhood, and I wanted to make sure that Dad had some protection. I took it home a few months ago and put it away."

"How good a shot are you?"

"I qualified expert every time," she informed him.

"I'm impressed."

"Do you disapprove of my carrying it?"

"Not at all. I had a permit in Colorado, but I don't -"

"You -have a gun."

He chuckled. "A nickel-plated .38. It belonged to my uncle. He carried it because -."

"Investigating crime is dangerous," she said.

"Something like that."

Cecilia was in the office when they arrived. "How are you today, young man?" she asked Carter, looking at the butterfly bandages on his forehead.

"Oh, I'm fine," he assured her, leaning down to tell her, "In fact, I didn't really need to put these on - but I thought I'd get some sympathy out of Callie if she thought I was still wounded."

Cecilia giggled. "Is it working?" she asked.

"I haven't decided yet," Callie answered. "Where is Neal?"

"He's in the warehouse. We decided that it would make more sense for him to take over Wayne's job and I would stay up here and tend to other business matters. Poor Wayne. I still can't believe that he's dead." Carter reached across the desk to grab a tissue to give her. "Thank you," she said, sniffling and dabbing at her eyes.

"I was wondering, Cecilia," Callie began, "when Jonas' funeral might be? I need to make arrangements at work -"

"Oh, there won't be a funeral," she said. "Jonas was very insistent, made me promise not to have one if he were to - to go before me. He said that he didn't want all of that attention from people. No, he's going to be cremated and placed in an urn."

"No service at all?" Carter asked.

"No. I think, when I die, I'm going to ask Neal to burying his father's ashes with me. That would be a nice touch, don't you think?"

"You're not going to die for a long, long time yet, Cecilia," Callie said.

"Oh, I'm not planning on it happening, but I've just been thinking about when it *does* happen."

"Would it bother you if Carter and I start looking through the files?"

"Not at all. Anything you need, just ask."

"Safe?" Carter reminded Callie.

"Oh yes. Cecilia -"

"Callie, dear, why don't you call me 'Cissy' like Jonas did?"

"I didn't think you liked the name."

"Oh, I just pretended that it bothered me. I really don't mind it. Now, what were you going to ask?"

"Is there a safe here in the office or at home where Jonas might have kept important papers?"

"I know there's one at the house, but as for here -" she looked around the room. "Neal might know. I know that Wayne would have known - and probably had the combination as well."

"What about the one at the house? Do you know that combination?" Carter asked.

"I'm sorry, I don't. I doubt that Neal knows it, either. Jonas was very secretive about such things. What do you think you might find in a safe that wouldn't be in the files?"

"It could be something that would give someone a reason to have him killed," Carter pointed out.

"Would you mind if Carter and I went out there later today to look in Jonas' office and see if we can't find the combination?"

"As I said, whatever you need - Oh! I almost forgot!" She opened a desk drawer and pulled her oversized purse out. "I brought something for you, Carter. You remember that photograph of Jonas and his Army platoon that you admired?"

"Yes."

She drew that photo out of her purse and held it out to him. "I even copied the names that were on the back of that one onto this one -" she turned it over. "See? There wasn't one with your name, though -"

"My father's name was Robertson," Carter told her, looking at the names, then turning it over again. "That would be him, there, I think. Nick Robertson."

Callie peered over his shoulder at the solemn-faced young man, standing ever so slightly apart from the rest of the men in the photo. "He doesn't look happy, does he?"

"He was very handsome," Cecilia said. "I suppose that where you got it from. Poor Neal looks more like me than his father."

"Thank you, ma'am," Carter said, taking her hand for a moment before slipping the photo into his shirt pocket and turning back to the file cabinets.

"I'll go down and ask Neal about whether or not there's a safe here - and if he knows the other combination," Cecilia told them.

"There's not need to bother him, C- Cissy," Callie said, but her friend simply smiled and drifted out the door.

"I think she enjoys bothering him," Carter said. He took the photo out again. "Look at the names, Callie."

She took it and turned it over, silently reading the names. Suddenly she stopped. "Steven - Maricopa? Could he be the SM that both Jonas and Wayne were making notes about?"

"I'll run a check on my computer when I get home, and see what comes up. The name does ring a bell, but I can't quite put my finger on why."

"You should have all evening to find something," she told him. "I got lunch off, but I really do have to be there tonight. Saturday's our busiest night, and after having been closed for remodeling, and then what happened to Jonas -"

"Makes sense. Let's see if there's any mention of Maricopa in these," Carter told her, opening the drawer marked 'M'."

There was a soft knock on the door, and Miss Key entered. "I'm sorry if I'm disturbing you, but -"

"Not at all, Miss Key," Callie told her. "Mrs. Wittlebaum is -"

"In the warehouse," she nodded. "I know, I saw her. I wasn't in the office when you came in, and I thought you'd like to know that I found the appointment with Mr. Tate that you asked me about - " she held out an old appointment book, and Carter took it from her. "I'm sorry I didn't let you know yesterday, but after we got the news about Wayne Stapleton, I guess I went to pieces again."

"Perfectly understandable, Miss Key," Callie said.

"As you can see, he did have an appointment to speak to Mr. Wittlebaum, but he didn't keep it. We had no idea why - when I tried to call the number he left, there was no answer."

"Thank you," Carter said, handing the book back to her. "I wasn't sure that he'd made the appointment. That says he wanted to discuss Mr. Wittlebaum importing some items from Southeast Asia for him."

"That's right. He said he would discuss what was being shipped when he met with Mr. Wittlebaum. I'd better get back to my desk," she told them, glancing around at the file folders scattered around the room.

"Don't worry, Miss Key," Carter assured her, "We'll make sure everything's back where it belongs before we leave." He smiled as the door closed behind her.

"So Uncle Simon did plan on talking to Jonas," Callie said.

"I told you that he had." He closed the file drawer. "Nothing with Maricopa's name in there."

She nodded. "You know, this is a big haystack."

"As in finding a needle?" he asked.

"I think we need to look for a smaller haystack."

"Wayne's office?" he suggested.

"Or Jonas' study at the house. Once Cissy comes back, I'll tell her that we need to go check it out."

"In the meantime, we might as well keep looking through these," Carter told her. "You never know, we might find *something* that points us in the right direction."

Carter glanced over the printouts that he held as he and Callie drove out to the house in Highland Park. "Nice of Neal to print out these financials for us," he said.

"Since he's working out of Wayne's office now, it would make sense that he had them. Still, I'm surprised that there's not a safe of any kind in that place."

"Apparently Jonas didn't do much business in cash. That would make it easier." He frowned, flipping back a few pages. "Interesting."

"What?"

"I need a little more time to examine these before I say anything," he said. "But it looks like most of Jonas' business was with just one company out of California."

"Which company?"

"US-SEA Imports, Limited."

"I remember seeing that name on the list that the accountant gave me," she told him. "I found several phone numbers for it as well."

"I'll add that to my list of things to investigate this evening," he told her, looking around at the high-walled estates on either side of the street, then behind them. "Any sign of someone following us?"

"Not that I've seen," she told him. "And I've been watching."

"I can't imagine living in one of these places," he said.

"Why not?"

"I guess I just prefer my little loft -" he fell silent as she pulled up to the Wittlebaum gate and pressed the code that Cissy had given her. "I checked out another warehouse conversion in town, and they had a code that you had to enter to gain access to the building - and another to get into the apartment."

"So you opted for a sliding metal door instead," she said with a grin, pulling the Jeep up to the front door. "But I understand. I don't think I'd be happy living in something like this. It's just too - much. Let's go, shall we?"

The safe was a pretty standard wall model, hidden behind a wooden panel. Neither Wayne nor his mother knew the combination, so Callie and Carter spent two hours looking through the desk.

They found another address book - only this one looked like it was in some kind of code. While the numbers were there, the names that went to them were unintelligible. "We can pick up the numbers I found the other day," she told him, "and maybe you can use them to figure out the code." Carter nodded, running his hand over the edge of the desk top. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"I just remembered a case that Simon told me about - the criminal hid some incriminating evidence inside a secret compartment in his desk. I doubt Jonas would have left anything in his desk at work - but we'll check there if we don't find it here -"

A young housemaid opened the door to the room. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I didn't realize that anyone was in this room."

"It's okay," Callie assured her. "Do you always clean this room?"

"Yes," she answered. "Mr. Wittlebaum never let me come in when he was here, so I cleaned and dusted during the day. Even if it's not being used, the dust still collects -"

"What's your name?" Callie asked the girl, who was clearly nervous being questioned by strangers.

"Elena."

"Well, we're trying to find something that could be very important to Mrs. Wittlebaum, Elena. We were wondering - did you ever accidentally open a secret compartment in the desk?"

Elena looked frightened. "I -"

"It could be vitally important, Elena," Carter said. "No one will be angry with you if you tell us."

"Well, I came in here one day, and was in the washroom - over there," she pointed to a door to the right side of the desk. "I didn't hear him come into the room. I opened the door just as he -"

"Why don't you show us?" Carter suggested, indicating that she should come behind the desk. "Do exactly what you saw Mr. Wittlebaum doing."

Elena still looked nervous as she sat down in the chair and opened the center drawer and the bottom right drawer. "Then he did something here in the center -" she ran her fingers along the top drawer's upper frame, and there was a soft sound. All three looked into the other drawer to see that the bottom had flipped up.

"A false bottom," Carter told Callie.

"I tried to move back into the powder room, but he saw me and yelled at me to get out and never tell anyone what I'd seen or else he would see me fired," Elena explained in a soft voice. "And later, he apologized for losing his temper and gave me a five hundred dollar bill to forget what I'd seen and never mention it again."

"Thank you for your help, Elena," Callie told her.

"I'll come back later to finish my work."

Callie closed the door behind the maid and turned the lock before returning to where Carter was taking something from the hidden compartment. "What's in there?" she asked. "There has to be something important for Jonas to have given the maid that much money to keep quiet."

"A few pieces of paper," he told her. "This one looks like it could be the key to the code in that book - and this one is the combination for the wall safe. I'll have to take the time to read the rest -"

Callie took the second paper and went over to the wall safe, turning the knob. "Maybe we should wait for Cissy to open it," she was saying when there was a loud click.

"Might as well go for it," Carter told her, "since it's open now."

She nodded and pulled the silver handle down and pulled the door open. "Oh my goodness," she gasped, pulling several stacks of money from the safe. "This can't be good," she told Carter as he placed the bundles of cash on the desk.

"Did I say that Jonas didn't do a cash business?"

"You did. Apparently you were wrong."

"Not necessarily. Maybe he kept the cash here on hand in case something happened. What else is in there?"

"A file folder," she told him, handing it to him. She pulled a few more items out. "Looks like his will -" she scanned it. "Leaving everything to Cissy - and putting Wayne in charge of the business - not Neal. There are a few bequests - he was very generous to the runaway shelter," she noted. "And I always thought he resented Cissy's involvement there."

"Anything else?"

"Another bequest to a veteran's organization. But that's to be expected."

Carter took the will and looked at it. "It's dated ten years ago - so he probably had a will that superseded this one -."

"Let's take the will back to the warehouse," she said. "But let's put the cash back first - how much do think is here?"

"Ten bundles of $100 bills. Each bundle is $10,000."

"That's -"

"A hundred thousand dollars," he nodded. "Until I can go through this file, I'm not sure it would be a good idea to tell anyone else about the money."

"Maybe Cissy knows that he kept cash for emergencies?" Callie suggested.

"Why don't we go find out?"

"Oh, yes," Cissy confirmed upon being told about the cash in Jonas' safe, "Jonas was always worried about not being able to get to the bank, or something happening, so he kept money on hand in case it was needed. What else did you find?" she asked.

"First, did Jonas leave a will with an attorney or -?"

"Mr. Emerson said that he had a copy of Jonas' will. He said he had tried to get Jonas to update it, but Jonas insisted there was no reason to do so."

"How old was the will that he has?" Carter asked.

"I believe he said - ten years. Yes, that's right. Why?"

"There was a copy in the safe as well," Callie said, holding it out for her to take.

Reading it, she nodded. "This is what Mr. Emerson told me about."

"Cissy -" Callie asked, "Why would he have left control of the business to Wayne? Wayne had just started working for him. Neal said that he worked in the warehouse on the docks when he first started."

"I have no idea, dear. I know that he didn't trust Neal to run it - I suppose now there's no choice, though, since Wayne is dead."

"Wayne's wife might have something to say about that," Carter pointed out. "Technically, she would inherit any interest in the business, since Wayne died after Jonas."

"Oh, I doubt that she'll be in the least interested. She's never liked living here in Texas," Cissy confided. "I need to talk to Mr. Emerson about that. He said that he was going to start probate on the will as soon as possible."

"You said that she's from California?" Carter asked.

"She and Wayne were both from there. We didn't socialize very much - Jonas said that he had to see Wayne every day at work, he didn't care to talk to him outside of the office. Neal told me once that he overheard Wayne on the phone with her, apologizing for their having to live here."

"About the cash, Cissy," Callie began.

"I have no intention of touching it," she said. "Once the will is done, I'll probably just deposit it back into the account - or maybe donate it somewhere. That would be a good thing, don't you agree?"

Carter's next question surprised Callie. "How long has Mr. Emerson been Jonas' attorney?"

"Oh, for several years."

"Why don't you hold off asking him about Wayne's wife?" Carter suggested. "For a few days, at least."

"I suppose I could," Cissy told him.

"Why, Carter?" Callie wanted to know.

"I need to check into something, that's all. I'll tell you about it once I'm sure," he told Cissy. "I promise."

Callie took a slip of paper out of her purse. "This is the combination for the safe - in case you need to get into it."

"I doubt that I will, but thank you."

They got burgers and took them back to the loft, quickly entering the building. "I'm beginning to think that Bonner left town instead of worrying about us," Carter said as they rode the elevator to the third floor.

"So you'd prefer it if someone took a shot at us - I think you were lucky to have escaped with only a graze."

He paused as he opened the door into the loft. "'Only a graze'?" he questioned, reaching up to touch the wound. "I lost consciousness, remember?"

"For all of five seconds - or so you said," putting the food onto the coffee table again while Carter went around and began to close the blinds on the two windows that looked outside.

"And no, I'm not advocating for either of us to be shot at. But at least we'd know where he is instead of always looking over our shoulders." He grabbed two bottles of water out of the fridge and brought them over as he joined her. "Here."

"Thanks."

"Does Gino's deliver?" he asked, and Callie shook her head in amusement.

"We're still eating lunch, and you're asking about pizza?"

"For dinner tonight," he told her. "So I don't have to go out. I have a lot of research to do, remember?"

"Yes, Gino's delivers. Pizza, pasta, even sandwiches. Albert makes all of his deliveries. He looks like he's fifteen, but he's twenty-four and always wears a red and white stocking cap - even in the middle of summer."

"Sounds interesting."

"He's Gino's nephew. Why did you ask Cissy not to talk to the lawyer about Jonas' will?"

The change of topic didn't seem to phase him. "There has to be a connection between Jonas and whoever had him killed. A lawyer would be a good choice -"

"So would an employee that was willed control of Jonas' company after just having been hired," she pointed out.

Carter nodded. "Very true. I think I'll check out the accountant as well. I'm beginning to wonder if Wayne's advent into Jonas' life was the reason for his decision to stop doing his accounting in-house. As I said, I have a lot to keep me busy this evening while you're slaving away at the restaurant."

"Being bored out of my mind is more like it," she sighed, then winced. "Did I really just say that out loud?"

"You did. But I'll pretend that I didn't hear it if you'd prefer."

"Just promise me that you won't tell Dad."

"I promise," he told her, raising his hand. "Don't you think that once all of this is over, you'll be happy to get back to your nice, quiet life?"

"To tell you the truth, I've been enjoying that quiet life less and less." She laughed. "Allie suggested that I look into getting a PI license," she told him.

"Why not? Unless you'd rather go back to being a cop."

"Allie asked about that, too. No. That's not an option for me."

"Sounds like either being a PI or private security are the only options, then. Unless you want to keep doing what you've been doing."

"I'll wait until we finish with helping Cissy -" she giggled. "You know, I never thought I'd be able to call her that - something about the way Jonas always said sounded like he was talking down to her."

"Knowing that she really didn't mind it makes a difference, doesn't it?"

"I suppose so." She began to gather up the trash from lunch. "I need to go home and take a shower and change into a swan," she said.

Carter's hand captured hers. "Don't do that."

"Don't do what?"

"Put yourself down. I happen to think the woman who's sitting here at this moment is most definitely a swan. At the risk of mixing metaphors, all you can possibly do is guild the lily." He ran his thumb over the back of her hand as he spoke, and Callie kept her eyes focused on that until he finished.

Finally, she looked up and said, "Carter -"

"Don't worry," he said. "As much as I want to, I won't kiss you until you're ready for it happen. I know that you still don't trust me -"

"I do," she said. "I was angry after I found out you lied, and I considered keeping you around just to see how far you would go - but when you got shot -" she lifted her hand to his forehead, "I refused to believe that you would have taken that risk if you weren't on the level."

"That's good to know, anyway."

Very slowly, Callie lowered her hand and grabbed the trash she had been collecting. "I really do need to go. The dinner run starts earlier on Saturdays."

"Do you have to work tomorrow?"

"No. The restaurant is closed on Sunday. It's unusual, but Dad says he'd rather be open on Monday when several of the other places are closed."

"If I find anything tonight, I'll let you know."

"I'll have my cellphone with me, but I won't get home until around 1 am. We're open until midnight."

"Just a minute and I'll walk you down to the front door," he told her, going over to the desk and opening a drawer to pull out the aforementioned nickel-plated .38 revolver. Double checking that it was loaded, he put it into the pocket of his blue jeans.

"I'd put it away again once you get back up here," she told him. "Especially since you don't have a permit for it here."

"I fully intend to do that. And next week I'll start the process to get that permit. The one from Colorado is still valid, but I'm not sure if there's a reciprocal agreement."

"The laws have been changing so fast, I'm not sure, either. You don't really have to walk me downstairs, you know."

"But I want to," he told her, ushering her into the elevator. "After you."

At the front door, they both looked outside. "I don't see anything unusual, do you?" he asked.

"No. Just your normal, everyday street. I'll talk to you later," she told him.

"Be careful. I'll be here - you'll be out and about until you get to the restaurant."

"I plan on getting my weapon out and cleaning it before my shower," she assured him. "So I won't be totally defenseless."

Callie finally opened the door and stepped out onto the sidewalk, looking around nonchalantly as she went to the Jeep and got inside. Starting the engine, she turned and waved at Carter, who waved back, before pulling away from the curb.

The knowledge that he was concerned enough to have seen her downstairs and watched for her to leave made her smile as she drove toward home. It was nice to have someone other than her dad and Allie who cared.

The restaurant was busy, with Callie having to send several couples and groups into the bar to wait for a table to clear. By the time midnight arrived, she was more than ready to lock the doors and turn off the sign. Sighing, she slipped off her tight high heeled shoes, wiggling her toes.

"You should do what I do when I work your spot," Maria told her, pausing as she came out to help clear tables.

"What's that?" Callie asked, slipping the shoes back on.

"Bring another, more comfortable pair to change into after closing."

Callie looked thoughtful." That's a very good idea, Maria. I have an extra pair of slippers I could bring up here and leave to use. Thank you." She gathered several tablecloths from empty tables and carried them into the kitchen to toss them into the dirty linens bag, then grabbed several new, clean ones, intending to carry them out. But the telephone in Marty's office began to ring, and, being closest to it, she called out, "I'll get it!" Flipping on the light, she grabbed the handset. "La Via Roma, how can I help you?" she answered, fully expecting it to be someone inquiring about what time they closed.

"Callie. Thank God you're still there."

"Carter? What's going on?"

"Whatever you do. Don't leave. I'll be right there."

"What? Carter, you're not making sense."

"Please don't ask questions, Callie," he said. "Promise me that you won't leave."

"I won't leave," she told him. "But I still -" Her words were met with silence as he hung up on his end of the line. Frowning, she hung up the phone and left the office, shaking her head.

"Who was it?" Marty asked as he watched Leon cleaning the griddle.

"Carter," she told him. "He made me promise not to leave until he gets here," she said, picking up the tablecloths again.

"Maybe he found something of interest," Marty suggested. She had told him the gist of what they had already found, glossing over the fact that she and Carter had almost been eye-witnesses to a murder the previous day. "Oh, well, I'll go put these on tables until he gets here."

She kept watching the front door for him to arrive, but when she finished the tables that she had brought cloths out for, she went back into the kitchen as one of the busboys opened the back door to take out the trash - only to jump back. "There's someone out here!" the young man called, probably worried about thieves.

But it was Carter who entered, accompanied by George Piper. Marty's eyes narrowed upon seeing Piper, but Callie ignored the response and turned to Carter. "What's going on?"

"Where's your car parked, Callie?" Piper wanted to know.

"In the parking area in front of the restaurant," she told him. "Near the street, where I always park it unless it's raining. Why?"

"I need your keys," he said, holding out a hand.

"My keys? Why?" He just stood there, staring at her.

Callie turned and went into the office, grabbing the keys out of her purse, then went back to slap them into his hand. "You make an awful Sphinx, Piper," she told him.

Piper turned to Carter. "Both of you stay in here until we check it out," he said, and left via the back door again. "And don't let any employees out of the front door until I get back."

"Would you please explain what is going on?" Callie demanded of Carter.

"I'd like an answer as well," Marty said, hovering close by.

"I'm not the one that found the information," he told them. "Piper sent someone to my loft, and they brought me to the police station. Elmer Bonner is only one of the aliases the man has used." He glanced around at the gathered employees, and Marty turned around to look at them.

"Let's finish getting the place ready to close," he told them. "When you're done, go to the bar and wait." To Callie and Carter, he said, "Let's talk in my office."

"Dad -"

"You're not leaving me out of this, Callie. Not when I know your life could be in danger."

The three of them went into the office, and Marty sat down in the desk chair, focusing on Carter. "Now why does this Bonner character need aliases?"

Carter looked at Callie, and she sighed, then nodded for him to answer. "He's a paid killer, sir," he answered. "Works for drug cartels and organized crime, mostly."

"A hit man." He shook his head, sitting back in the chair. "Let me guess: this is the guy who killed that waitress and took a shot at you?" he asked Carter.

"Dad -"

"I'm not angry, honey," he told her. "I had a feeling that you were carrying your gun in your purse, when I heard how it sounded when you dropped it onto that file cabinet over there. I also knew that you'd tell me about it when you were ready - What did Piper tell you, Carter?"

"That Bonner used several methods to complete his contracts: poison, strangulation, a gun - and explosives," he finished.

"Piper thinks that there might be a bomb on my car?" Callie asked.

"It makes sense," Carter told her. "Think about it. He wouldn't have known who we were - but he might have recognized you from the tv and newspaper reports about Jonas' death. So he knew that eventually you'd be here -"

"And he could plant a bomb in my Jeep without my knowing about it."

The back door opened again, and Marty saw Piper enter the kitchen area. "In here, Piper!" he called out.

"I didn't hear an explosion," Callie said hopefully, "So does that mean -?"

"There's one on it," Piper informed them. "We're waiting for the bomb squad to get here now."

Callie drew a deep breath, grateful for Carter taking hold of her elbow. While she wasn't in danger of passing out, the knowledge that she had been that close to being killed was a shock.

"Marty, do you have any brandy out there?" Carter asked as her father stood up.

"Sit down in my chair, Callie, honey," Marty said. "I'll be right back with the brandy."

"I don't need -" Callie began to object, but she sat down in the chair. "But - it wouldn't make sense for him to kill me and not kill Carter, too," she said. "And he could be out there, right now, watching a bevvy of police around my car-"

"Then he'll have to try again - but this time he'll have to get through a wall of police protection - which I offered earlier today, remember?"

"And which we're still refusing," Callie insisted. "If Carter wants -"

"Refusing what?" Marty asked, returning with a balloon glass containing brandy. "Here you go," he told Callie, handing her the glass.

"She's refusing to be sensible," Piper said.

Knowing that it wouldn't do her any good to argue about it, Callie took a drink of the brandy, gasping from the potency of the liquid. "Whoa."

"About what?"

"I'm trying to convince your daughter and Mr. Jankowski to accept police protection until get catch this guy, Mr. Cantwell."

"Callie?" Marty questioned.

"Dad, I can take care of -"

"Like you did tonight?" he asked. "Finish the brandy," he told her. Callie's eyes narrowed, but she drank the rest of it. "Now, I think both of you need to be practical here. This nutcase clearly knows who you are, Callie, so it won't be difficult for him to find where you live, possibly endangering other people who live in your building. Carter's new in town - It shouldn't be too difficult for the police to get both of you back to his apartment and keep an eye on that neighborhood."

Callie shook her head. "You're suggesting that I -"

"He might be right, Callie," Carter told her.

"If we leave now, before the bomb squad -" Piper stopped as his walkie-talkie came to life.

"They're here, Sergeant."

"10-4," Piper replied. "About to make a security run." He looked at Callie. "If we leave before they finish, and take the back roads, we can get you back to the loft before Bonner has a chance to follow us."

"Say yes, Callie," Marty told her.

"I don't need protection," she insisted as Marty pulled her out of the chair and handed her off to Carter. Marty reached over and grabbed her purse from the top of the file cabinet. Instead of Callie, he handed it into Carter's keeping as well.

"Allie will be calling -" Callie said.

"I'll call Allie, honey, and let her know what's happened - "

"Don't tell her where Callie is, Mr. Cantwell," Piper said. "The fewer people that know, the better."

"Allie won't spill the beans," Callie said, the brandy clearly having an effect on her.

"Doesn't drink much, does she?" Piper asked.

"A glass of wine every now and then, but that's it," Marty answered, following them out of the office and into the alley behind the store, where Carter put Callie into the back seat of Piper's unmarked car. "Take care of her."

"I will, sir," Carter told him.

"Sir makes me feel old. Call me Marty."

Carter grinned and shook his hand. "Marty."

"Piper -"

The detective paused as he opened the door. "Sgt. Powers of the bomb squad will come in and let you know when it's safe for your people to leave. You might want to go out of town tomorrow - it's possible that this nutcase could try to get to Callie through you."

"I hadn't considered that," Marty said. "We're closed tomorrow, so I'll leave tonight. But I have to be back Monday morning -"

"As for these two - they'll be safe. Even if we have to fight Callie to do it."

Marty watched the car drive away, then returned to the restaurant. Piper was right - once Callie recovered from the brandy, then they would have to fight her to keep her safe. But somehow he believed that between Carter and Piper, they'd manage.

But Callie probably wasn't going to be happy about it.

"Com'on," Carter said as he placed an arm around her waist as he opened the door into the loft. Callie's ingestion of the brandy on an empty stomach had left her more than a little woozy, and she was having problems standing on her own two feet.

"I need to sit down," she said, but Carter steered her around the sofa, shaking his head.

"You get the bed," he told her, helping her up the steps leading to the raised bedroom area. He pushed aside the heavy curtain. "Do you think you'll be able to take the dress off? I doubt you want to try to sleep in it," he commented as she sat down on the side of the bed. Going to the chest of drawers, he pulled out an old tee shirt. "You can sleep in this."

She reached behind her back and unzipped the strapless dress just as Carter turned back toward her with the tee-shirt. He averted his eyes, focusing on her face as she smiled at him. "Arms up," he said, and slipped the tee over her arms and head to cover her bare breasts. Taking her arms, he pulled her to her feet so that the dress would fall to the floor - and Callie wrapped those arms around his neck.

"You planned this, didn't you?"

"Planned what?"

"My being here. In your bedroom. You said you wanted me to be ready - I'm ready," she said, slurring several words as she spoke. A part of Callie's brain kept telling her to be quiet and go to sleep, but another part - the part affected by the brandy - and possibly something else - was telling her to kiss him.

So she did.

Callie woke, immediately aware that she wasn't in her bed in her apartment. Sitting up, she realized that she was wearing an oversize teeshirt and practically nothing else. The walls were brick, and one wall was a curtain - laying back, she studied the curtain. There was something familiar about it. Listening, she thought she heard a soft clicking sound - and she definitely smelled fresh coffee.

Slowly, her memory began to return, and she remembered coming in with Carter. He had brought her up to the bedroom - and she had practically thrown herself at him, even kissing him. After that, her memory was too hazy to recall details. Her dress was hanging in the open closet next to his clothes, she noticed, glad that he hadn't just left it on the floor.

The tee-shirt was long enough to cover her, falling close to her knees. A set of narrow steps led down to a bathroom, and Callie made use of the facility, wishing she had a toothbrush and hairbrush. The room smelled like Carter, she realized, and smiled as she saw the aftershave on the counter. Using her fingers, she made an effort to straighten her short curls.

Finally, she realized that she couldn't find reasons to put off having to face her host any longer, and she opened the door out into the loft, trying not to be self conscious about her attire - or lack of such.

"Coffee's ready," he told her as he worked at the computer keyboard. "And one of the officers brought some doughnuts up earlier."

"Thank you," she said, going over to the kitchen and pouring herself a cup of the dark liquid. Taking a drink, she sighed. "Mmm. That's good."

He stopped typing and turned to look at her. "Did you sleep well?" he asked.

"Like a log," she told him. "I don't remember very much about what happened after we left the restaurant," she said.

"You don't remember kissing me and trying to drag me into sharing the bed?" he asked.

Callie felt her cheeks redden. "I remember - kissing you, but - Please tell me that I didn't - that we didn't -"

"We didn't," he assured her. "Not that I didn't want to," he continued, standing up and coming over to her. "But I didn't want to take advantage of your condition."

"Condition? The brandy," she realized. "I *never* drink it," she said, holding her ground as he came closer, only to sigh with relief when he moved around her to refill his own cup. Deciding it was safer to talk about the case, she asked, "Did they disarm the bomb on my car?"

"They did. It's still sitting in the parking lot at the restaurant under covert observation."

"I didn't hear the phone ring -"

"I turned down the ringer - Piper called my cell. I figured you needed to sleep."

"How long does he think we'll have to stay here?"

"He's not sure -"

"This is crazy," she muttered. "It's not resolving anything. And I need some clothes. And a toothbrush. Where's my purse?"

He nodded toward the coffee table. "Over there. Why?"

"I have a comb in there. And I want my cellphone so I can call Dad. And Allie."

"Marty took a day trip," Carter said. "On Piper's advice."

Callie sank onto the sofa. "I can't believe that I hadn't considered the possibility - Allie could be in danger, too. She's my neighbor - everyone in the building knows that she's my best friend. That's another reason why we can't let this drag on, don't you see?"

"Piper told me to have you call his office and let them know what you need and they'll have it delivered. As for letting this go on, I'm not sure what else we can do. As long as Bonner is out there, waiting for a chance to kill us, we need to stay out of sight. The research I've been doing -"

"That's it," Callie said.

"What's it? I haven't told you what I found -"

"In a minute. Don't you see? We need to give him what he wants."

Carter frowned, then his face cleared as he began to understand what she was saying. "You mean set him up."

"Why not? He wouldn't expect it."

"You have a death wish, you know that?" he asked. Callie gasped and stared at him. "I'm sorry," he said. "But I think you do. You blame yourself for your husband's death - and believe that the only way to atone for that is to endanger yourself. You did it at Wayne Stapleton's, trying to get me to let you take the lead. And you're willing to expose yourself to Bonner, knowing that you could end up dead."

"I thought you were a reporter, not a psychiatrist," she said, her voice strained.

Carter sat down beside her on the sofa. "I am sorry, Callie, I shouldn't have said that. But you have to know that I like you. A lot. I think I could fall in love with you given half a chance." She looked at him as he continued. "I don't want to risk losing you before I get that chance." He leaned in and gave her a kiss. "Can you understand that?"

She nodded. "I'm not looking to kill myself," she insisted. "But I can't let this go on - there's no reason to when all we have to do is give Bonner a chance to trap himself."

"Call Piper," he told her, "and tell him your plan, and then I'll tell you what I've found out about who might have hired Bonner."

"It's a crazy idea," Piper said after hearing Callie's plan, and she opened her mouth to argue with him, then stopped as he added, "But it just *might* work. Tell you what, let me make some arrangements on this end and then we'll get back to you." Carter shook his head upon hearing the comment through the speaker phone, but remained silent.

"George, I'm going to need a few things - clothes, shoes - And my car keys."

"I'll switch you over to Officer Belton. Give her the information and we'll get it to you."

"Thank you." While she told the young female officer what she needed, Carter got up and went over to the computer. After hanging up, she went over to stand behind him after grabbing a donut from the box. "So, what have you found?"

"I've called in more than a few markers from my newspaper friends - some of them were Simon's markers, too." He clicked on a link. "US-SEA Imports, Limited is one of the largest importers on the west coast. It was started by Steven Maricopa when he got out of the Army after his return from Vietnam."

"Let me guess: the same Steven Maricopa who was in the same platoon as Jonas and -"

"My father," he nodded, turning his head to find hers very close as she put her hand on the desk. "Remember the photo?" He held up the photograph that Cissy had given to him. "It's very likely that the SM Jonas and Wayne made a note of was Steven Maricopa."

"But other than the business, what connection would Wayne have had to Maricopa?"

"I thought you'd never ask." Another click of a link. "Wayne Stapleton was married to Steven Maricopa's only daughter. And Wayne was from the same area in California. He was probably sent to Texas to run Jonas' company and keep an eye on things for Maricopa."

"Why? That's the big question. I didn't see any sign of anything being shipped in or out that -"

"According to my sources, Maricopa's company has been under investigation for importing illegal drugs for the last few months," he told her.

"Wow. What about that coded address book we found in Jonas' desk?"

"I was right about the slip of paper. It was the key. All of the names of platoon members and their contact information are in there. And there was a letter written in the code inside the hidden compartment." This time, he clicked on a document, then sat back for her to read it.

"It was Maricopa who killed your father?" Callie questioned.

"According to Jonas, yes. My father had discovered that Maricopa had recruited the rest of the group to help him sell drugs to other soldiers. He was going to go to the authorities, but Maricopa found out and tossed a grenade into his tent. He was using the fact that the others knew about it as a means to keep them all in line."

"Do you think that your uncle was on the same trail?" she wondered.

"I'm sure he was. He talked to the federal authorities about Maricopa and Jonas. They told him that Jonas was the weak link, and that they'd been trying to get an appointment with him, but kept getting refused. They had no evidence to use to get a search warrant or to arrest him. I think somehow Maricopa found out who Uncle Simon was, and sent someone to stop him."

"Bonner possibly?"

"I don't know. At least now I know who ordered the hit, and who killed my father."

Callie put her arm around his shoulders. "So you have your story."

"Not until he's under arrest and convicted," Carter told her, placing his hand over hers on his shoulder. "But I have you to thank for what I've gotten so far."

"Me? You could have found all of this yourself -"

He shook his head and pulled her into his lap. "You agreed to let me help you. Some of this I would have been digging for for some time."

Callie was surprised that she didn't fight his move, sliding both arms around his neck. "I think we make a good team," she told him.

"So do I," he agreed, capturing her lips with his.

Sighing, Callie deepened the kiss, feeling frustrated by the fact that the desk was too close for her to move. Carter must have sensed it, because he pushed the chair back from the desk and pulled her closer still. She didn't care that all she was wearing was one his tee-shirts and panties - her only thought was that she wanted this man - "Oh, Carter," she breathed as the kiss finally ended, burying her fingers in his hair.

The incessant ringing of the doorbell made them break apart with great reluctance. "I'd better get that," he said.

"I suppose so," she sighed, slowly standing up and going to get her gun from her purse to stand out of sight as Carter went to the door.

"Who is it?" he called out.

"DPD Delivery for Callie Harris," replied a voice from the hallway.

"Bonner would have said Calista," Callie told him. "Callie wasn't in any of the articles or TV reports."

Carter nodded and opened the door, taking the box the young officer in plainclothes held out. "And Sgt. Piper asked that Mrs. Harris call him as soon as she was ready, sir."

"Thank you," Carter said as the young man walked away. He closed the door as Callie put her gun back into her purse and took the box.

"I'll go get dressed," she told him, but stopped and looked at him. "But we're not done."

He smiled. "I didn't think we were."

"This isn't your car, is it?" Callie asked as Carter drove the Ford Taurus.

"What makes you ask that?" he asked, grinning. "As a matter of fact, it belonged to my mom. She kept refusing my offer to buy her a newer one - they were in Pop's truck when the accident happened," he explained. "I figured this would get me around town while I figured out what car I want to buy for myself. It might not look new, but it's still in good shape." He started looking around as they neared La Via Roma's neighborhood. "I don't see any police around," he commented.

"You're not supposed to," she told him. "But they're here."

"Are you sure this is going to work?"

"It should. But there will be a very short window for him to take his shot."

"Nice way to put it," Carter grumbled.

"Just being truthful. Once he realizes that we're both here, he'll have to -"

"Take his shot," Carter repeated.

"Before I get into the Jeep, and you drive off in your car," she nodded.

"This presupposes that Bonner is also here somewhere, still watching your car. I would have thought, after the bomb was removed - maybe he put that back -"

"No, Piper's had someone out here since last night to keep an eye on the car. Bonner's here, too. The question is: where?"

"I think we're about to find out," Carter said, pulling into the parking lot for the restaurant.

"Don't park too close to the Jeep," she reminded him, taking her gun from her purse to double-check the clip. Instead of her purse, she leaned forward to tuck the gun into the waistband of her jeans, making sure that the tail of her shirt covered it.

"Yes, ma'am," he replied, pulling into a parking spot and putting the Ford into park. "Are you ready?" he asked, reaching for the door handle.

"Let's go," she said, opening her door.

At the front of the car, Callie reached out to take Carter's hand. "He probably thinks we spent the night together."

"We did, in a way." Reaching the Jeep, Callie turned and leaned against it, putting her arms around his neck.

"I could get used to this," he told her, "if it wasn't for the fact that I feel like I have a target on my back right now. What's taking so long?" he wondered.

"He's probably trying to decide if there's anyone else watching," she said. "Why don't we convince him that we think we're alone here and give him a real target?" she suggested, her hand caressing the back of his head.

The retort of a gun came just a second before the side glass in the Jeep shattered, just missing the couple - because Callie's action in pulling Carter closer pulled them away from the track of the bullet.

Both of them dropped to the ground, and Callie pulled her gun, scanning the direction from which the shot had come. "Stay down," she told Carter.

Another shot hit the side of the Jeep, and Callie's jaw tightened. "If we didn't need him alive, I'd happily kill him myself," she muttered.

There was another sound, more like a deep thud, and Callie watched as smoke appeared on a nearby rooftop. Several police vehicles appeared from out of nowhere, and a moment later, George Piper's car pulled to a stop and he got out. "We got him," he told them as Carter got up and then helped Callie to her feet. "Once he took that second shot, we fired a canister of tear gas in that direction."

"We're bringing him down, Sergeant," a voice said over the walkie-talkie.

Callie tucked her gun away, ignoring the detective's curious gaze. "George, I have a huge favor to ask -"

"Let me guess," Piper said. "You want to question him."

"Just one question," she said. "He doesn't even have to answer it. I just want to see his reaction to a name."

"What name is that?"

"Can it wait until I ask?"

"How come I think you know more about all of this than you've told me?"

"We'll tell you everything, Sergeant Piper," Carter promised. "Once she talks to Bonner."

The man they knew as Elmer Bonner appeared with several SWAT team members, his hands secured behind him with handcuffs. He glared at Callie and Carter, sneering, as Piper asked the officers, "Has he been read his rights?"

"He has."

"I'm not saying a word," he growled. "Not til I make a phone call."

"To Steven Maricopa?" Callie asked. "I don't think he'll be at all happy that you failed to clean up the loose ends of the contract to kill Jonas Wittlebaum, do you?"

"And killing his son-in-law probably hasn't earned you any points," Carter pointed out.

Bonner's eyes widened for a split second, and he went a little pale before he turned to look at Piper. "She can't ask me questions. She's not a cop anymore."

"Take him to the station," Piper told his men. "I'll be right there." The three of them watched as Bonner was put into the back of a police car and driven away. "Okay, I was promised the full story."

"It began in Vietnam," Carter began...

"So you think that Maricopa hired Bonner and the girl to kill Wittlebaum to keep him from talking to the authorities?" Piper asked as they finished telling him the story.

"It would make sense, George," Callie said. "Carter's uncle was convinced that Jonas was the weak link. That's why Maricopa sent Wayne Stapleton, to keep an eye on Jonas."

"So why kill Stapleton? Or the girl, for that matter."

"Stapleton said that he'd fallen in love with Billie. It could have been jealousy on Bonner's part."

"The man who called Mrs. Stapleton in California said that he spoke to her father - I'd have to look at his report for the name. This actually makes sense," he told them. "We got an alert from the FBI about Maricopa a few weeks ago. If you want to drop by the station, I'll let you watch the interrogation once Bonner makes his phone call and his lawyer gets there."

"I have to call a wrecker to get my car, and then call Dad," Callie said.

"I'll call you when we're close to starting the questioning," Piper told her.

"Thank you, George," she said.

"I hope you still have a permit for that gun," he said.

"I do. Would you like to see it?"

"No, I'll trust you. Just make sure you leave it at home before coming to the station." He nodded at Carter and turned toward his car, only to pause as he opened the door. "Callie -" He waited for her to look at him. "It was nice working with you again."

She smiled at him, waving as he drove away. Turning to her car, she sighed. "My poor Jeep," she said. "Not even a scratch before today, and now this."

"Could have been worse," he reminded her. "Why don't we get into my car and you can call someone to come get it?"

"And then I'll call Dad and let him know that we're safe and that Bonner's in custody."

"Need to call Allie, too," he pointed out.

"Allie. Oh my goodness. I hadn't even thought - she's going to be furious that I haven't called - "

"Calm down. Piper told me that Marty was going to call her and fill her in on what was happening, and suggest that she drop out of sight herself just in case Bonner figured out that she was a friend."

"Thank goodness," she said, dialing a number on her cell for the auto club she belonged to and arranged for them to come get the Jeep to make repairs.

The call to Marty went as she had expected it to go - he wasn't happy that she had deliberately put herself - and Carter - in danger to help capture a killer. "We're fine, Dad," she assured him. "My Jeep has a broken window and a bullet hole in the side, but those can be fixed."

"I am glad that you're both okay," he told her. "What happens now?" he asked.

"We're going to go watch while they interrogate Bonner - but his arrest means that the case against Cissy and Neal has been dropped."

"That's good. I'll be home tonight," he told her. "I'll call and let you know when I get in."

"Make sure that you do," she said. "Oh, Dad - did you call Allie?"

"Yes. She was upset that you hadn't called, but understood when I explained what happened last night. She said something about driving down south for the day."

"I'll try to call her. Love you, Dad."

"Love you, honey."

Callie hung up, looking around. "Where is that wrecker?" she wondered aloud.

"I'm sure they'll be here by the time you finish talking to Allie."

"I'll call her later," she told him, turning toward him in the bucket seat. "I have another idea about what I can do while we wait."

"Call Cissy?" he suggested as she placed a hand on his thigh.

"Uh-uh," she said.

He turned toward her as well, leaning ever-so-slightly forward. "What, then?"

"We have some unfinished business," she reminded him. "We were - interrupted, remember?"

"Twice, actually," he said. "Once at my loft, and again when Bonner shot at us."

"Mmm," she murmured, sliding her other hand around his neck to pull him even closer -

Honk! Honk!

They both groaned with frustration and then started to laugh. "Later," Carter promised, running a finger over her lips before opening his car door.

Callie drew a deep breath, then got out of the car to meet the wrecker driver.

"I just realized that I don't have any way to get around," Callie said as they watched the wrecker drive away with Callie's Jeep.

Carter put an arm around her. "Isn't it nice that you have someone who doesn't mind playing chauffeur?" he asked.

"Who is that?" she replied playfully.

He chuckled and let her go, moving toward his car. "See you around."

"Okay, okay!" she said, grabbing the passenger door and opening it as he started the engine.

"I don't usually pick up hitchhikers, lady," he told her.

"I'll make it worth your while," she said, sitting down and closing the door.

"Oh yeah?"

She put her hand on his thigh as she had earlier. "Yeah." When she would have moved her hand further, Carter grabbed it and brought it to his lips.

"Where do you want to go?" he asked.

"That's a loaded question if I ever heard one," she said with a grin. "How about we find something to eat before Piper calls?"

"Where would you suggest on a Sunday?" he asked.

Callie's cellphone rang as they were finishing lunch, so for the first time in two years, Callie found herself at the same station where she had been serving before leaving the department.

Several people greeted her as they walked through to the interrogation rooms where Piper was waiting. He ushered then into the observation room. "Bonner made his call - but the person on the other end of the line apparently didn't tell him what he wanted to hear. As soon as he hung up, he started yelling that he was ready to talk. We had a hard time getting him to shut up before you got here."

Bonner was on the other side of the one-way glass, mumbling and drumming his fingers on the table as he waited. "What did he say?" Callie wanted to know.

"Something about not taking the fall alone and needing protection - I'd better get in there."

Callie nodded, watching Bonner as Piper left the room. "Sounds like Maricopa wasn't willing to help," she told Carter.

"Well, he did kill Maricopa's son-in-law, remember. Even if Wayne had fallen in love with Billie, I'm sure that his father-in-law had plans for Wayne."

"If he expected Wayne to take over for him someday, I think he picked the wrong man to marry his daughter."

"Or maybe the marriage was arranged to keep Wayne loyal to the family."

Piper entered the other room with a stenographer. "Bout time you got here," Bonner said. "I'm ready to talk and everyone keeps telling me to stop talking!"

"No one's saying that now, Mr. - Bonner?"

"That'll work as well as any other."

"You've used more than one," Piper said, referring to his notes. "Leo Shugart, -"

Bonner cut him off. "I know the names. Ask your questions."

"Did you kill Jonas Wittlebaum?"

"No."

"Listen, Bonner -"

"I didn't. I'm not the one who killed those people. I just- kept an eye on things, cleaned up loose ends. Billie - she's the one who did the actual killing. She poisoned Wittlebaum. Put it in his coffee when he came into the diner."

"What about Billie: Who was she?"

Bonner took a breath and tears fell from his eyes. "My - my wife. I l-loved her. When I went into her room, she was wearing a lacy nightgown that I'd never seen before - I asked where she'd gotten it, and that's when he called, told her his wife had left town."

"He?"

"Wayne Stapleton." The tears were gone, now. Bonner's face was hard and angry. "I waited until
she hung up, and then I strangled her. I checked the phone book to find out where Wayne lived so that I could make him pay. Then I had to clean up the last two loose ends - those two that saw me at his place. Finding her was easy. Figured I could draw him out once I'd finished her off."

"Let's go back to Jonas Wittlebaum, shall we? Who hired you and your wife to kill him?"

"Maricopa." Bonner practically spat the name. "Steven Maricopa. He's our biggest client. All five of the people she killed were on his orders. Billie liked working for him, but I knew he was trouble. I need protection. He'll try to have me killed - make it look like I did myself in. I know him."

"Why are you telling us about this?" Piper asked.

"I know I did some bad things - and I figure if I turn - what is it - state's witness? -" Piper nodded. "Maybe I won't get the death penalty. I figure I can manage prison."

Callie had reached over and grabbed Carter's hand when Bonner had spoken Maricopa's name. It was a confirmation of Carter's suspicions.

"The FBI wants to talk to you - and while you'll be tried here for your involvement in the three murders and two attempted murders you were arrested for, they'll likely have more questions."

"I'll answer whatever they ask," Bonner said. "With Billie gone, Maricopa said I was on my own. That wasn't of any use to him. But he told me to keep my mouth shut if I knew what was good for me. I know what that means from a snake like him. He was sleeping with Billie, too, just like his son-in-law was planning on doing!"

"Where to now?" Carter asked as they came out of the police station. Seeing her glance back at the building, he said, "You miss it, don't you?"

"No. Not really," she told him. "I mean, I've enjoyed investigating the case over the last week - but there were too many rules and regulations - half of the information I -" she paused, smiling at him, "that *we've* gathered wouldn't be admissible in a court of law were I still a police detective."

"And would it be admissible now?" he asked, taking her hand as they moved toward the parking lot.

"Only as far as our being witnesses to what we found and what we were told. Now, as for where we're going - why don't we pay a call on Cissy and Neal and let them know that they're officially in the clear?"

"Think they'll let me drive the Taurus in Highland Park?"

"I know a couple of their officers," she told him. "I'll simply drop some names."

"And still no call to Allie," Carter noted as he unlocked the car and opened the door for her to get inside. He went around and got behind the wheel. "You know what? I get the feeling that you don't want me around when you talk to her."

Callie grinned. "You could be right," she admitted. "I'd hate to embarrass you."

"Aha. Girl talk, just as I suspected. Well, let's go see Cissy. Then I'll take you home so you can have some privacy."

"You mean, it was Billie who poisoned Father?" Neal asked. He and Ben were there after lunching with Cissy.

"According to her husband, who worked at the diner as well, yes," Callie confirmed.

"They were hired by Steven Maricopa," Carter told them, watching both Neal and his mother's reaction to the name.

"Maricopa you say?" Cissy questioned. "Why is that name familiar?"

"Father did business with Mr. Maricopa," Neal told her. "He came to town a few weeks ago and met with Father and with Wayne."

"Why on earth would he have wanted to kill Jonas?" Cissy wanted to know.

"They were in the Army together," Carter told the woman. "Maricopa began selling drugs to other service members, and killed my father when he found out about it."

Cissy placed a hand on her chest, her eyes wide. "You don't mean to say that- that Jonas knew about it?" Neal placed a hand on her shoulder. "He wouldn't have had anything to do with murder or- or drugs, would he, Neal?"

"Obviously he did, Mother," the young man said. "Why else would he have set up that trust fund for Carter?"

"If I were you, Cissy and Neal, I'd order a full audit of the company books. With a company other than the one that's been handling the accounting."

"I did that as soon as Wayne was killed," Cissy told him. "I still need to talk to my lawyer -" she prompted.

"You can do that. I found out that he doesn't have any connection to Maricopa. And Cissy, don't be too harsh on Jonas. Maricopa used the rest of the platoon's knowledge about what he'd done to keep them all from going to the authorities."

"This explains why Father did so much business with Mr. Maricopa's company, I suppose. I never understood the reason. The shipments all seemed to be simply pottery and very little in the way of items from Southeast Asia at all." He smiled at Ben. "I guess this means we won't have a lot of money before too long, Ben. It looks like your dream of starting your own gym -"

"Not necessarily, Neal," Callie insisted. "Some of the money your father made could have been legitimate. Don't borrow trouble. And whatever happens will probably take a few years to work through the courts."

"And the first thing they'll have to do is to arrest Maricopa," Carter pointed out.

"When *do* you think they'll arrest him?" Callie asked as they drove away from the Wittlebaum house.

"You heard what I told Neal and Cissy. I'm not sure of the timeline. Sometimes it takes the feds a little time to -" he glanced at her and shrugged. "That's one of the things I'm going to try to nail down this afternoon after I drop you off at your place."

"And how do you plan to 'nail it down'?"

"Well, I opened a line of communication with my uncle's FBI contact. I'm hoping that the line is still open and that he'll give me the information that I ask for. You also have to remember that it's not just the FBI. The DEA and DOJ are probably going to be involved as well."

"It would be nice if they would let you be there when they serve the warrant."

"I doubt that will happen. I just hope they don't drag their feet on this. Once Maricopa figures out that Bonner is singing like a bluebird, he'll probably start making plans to leave the country."

"You mean singing like a mockingbird," she corrected. "This is Texas, remember."

Carter grinned and reached over to capture her hand. "I remember. Dinner tonight?" he asked.

"I think I can clear time on my calendar," she replied. "Should I make reservations?"

"I'll take care of it - if Gino's is okay with you?"

"Sounds perfect."

"I'll pick you up at seven - and just so you know - I'll be wearing a suit again."

"Then I'll dress accordingly," she told him. "You can leave me here at the front door," she suggested, but he shook his head.

"Nope. I'm going to walk you to your door. So that means I'll have to park the car."

"The underground garage - you can park in my assigned spot." As he pulled in, she glanced at a nearby car. "Allie's car is here."

"Then she's at home."

Callie shook her head as they got out of the car and got into the elevator. "Not necessarily. Knowing Allie, she probably went someplace with one of her friends. Or maybe the man she's been seeing for the last few weeks. That's a record for her, by the way. They usually only last three dates, tops, and then she moves on."

"Who is he?"

"I have no idea. She's refused to tell me anything about him. And usually she's always telling me all about her friends. If they're a doctor, or a lawyer, or college professor - But this time, zilch."

"Maybe it's serious," he suggested.

"Allie's not the serious type," Callie told him as they approached her apartment. Taking out her key, she unlocked the door. "Well -"

"Well," he repeated, moving slightly closer. "I guess I'll see you a little before seven."

"For our date," she told him with a cheeky grin.

"Our date," he said, nodding as he moved again, this time lowering her head to kiss her. As the kiss ended, he said, "I think we're probably giving your neighbors something to talk about."

"Probably," she agreed.

"Go call Allie, and we'll continue this after - our date," he said, dropping a very quick kiss on her lips before reaching behind her to open the door.

Callie sighed and let him go, watching as he walked down the hallway toward the elevator. Another sigh, and she closed the door, leaning against it before going to the telephone and dialing Allie's number.

Sitting on the sofa, she kicked off the new tennis shoes and sat back, waiting for someone to answer. "This is Allie. Leave a message at the beep." So she wasn't at home yet, which meant she was with one of her boyfriends.

"It's Callie. I just wanted to let you know that everything's fine. The bad guy's in jail, and I have a date with Carter for dinner this evening. He's picking me up before seven. If you get home before that, give me a call. I'm not sure when I'll get home, so I'll call you as soon as I have a chance if you don't call me."

She hung up with a smile, knowing that her friend would hear the message and probably let out a happy yell at the news. She was still smiling as she went into the bedroom to take a shower.

Callie took her time with dressing for a change. Unless she was going to work, she usually didn't really worry about how she looked. But tonight - tonight her stomach felt like it was filled with butterflies, and she felt like she was walking on air.

Unlike Allie, she hadn't dated very much in high school or college. And she certainly hadn't become physically involved with anyone before - or since - Greg's arrival and sudden departure in her life. What she was feeling now was something totally new in Callie's experience. And it was both exhilarating and frightening at the same time.

She stood looking into her closet for what seemed like hours before pulling out a green silk strapless dress that stopped well above her knees. Pairing it with strappy high heels, she was looking at her reflection and considering that it might be *too* deliberately provocative when there was a knock on the door. Glancing at her watch, she realized that it was only six, so it probably wasn't Carter. She looked through the peephole, and seeing Allie standing there, she opened the door. "There you are!"

"I just got home," Allie said, looking at her. "Wow! I forget how nicely you clean up, girl!"

"You've seen me dressed up at work," Callie reminded her.

"Yes, but there's not usually as much skin revealed in those dresses. You are going to knock him off his feet!" She grinned. "But I guess that's the idea, right?"

"Oh, Allie, why am I so nervous? It's not as if I've never -"

"You already know the answer to that. Two years is a long time to be alone. Now, before we discuss the evening's plans, I want the full story about what happened last night. Marty called and told me that someone put a bomb in your car?"

Callie told her about Carter and Piper's arrival at the restaurant, and admitted that she had spent the night at Carter's apartment. Seeing her friend's grin, Callie shook her head. "Nothing happened. Even though I practically threw myself at him."

"Really?"

"Dad gave me some brandy after I had a bad reaction to the news that there was a bomb in the car. You know that I can't drink brandy." When they were younger, Allie had dared her to drink some of the brandy that Marty had kept at the house. Callie had gotten seriously silly before falling asleep.

"So Carter opted not to take advantage of the situation," Allie said. "How sweet of him."

"We did kiss," Callie admitted. "And we've kissed several times since then. Anyway - back to what happened - I had a brilliant idea. Even Piper said it was. Well, he said it was a good idea, especially after it worked."

Allie listened to her story about giving Bonner the chance to shoot the two of them. "So he's in jail and your Jeep is in the shop. So did Bonner admit to killing Jonas Wittlebaum?"

"He claims that his wife - who worked as a waitress at the diner - did the actual killing, that he's the clean up man, taking care of any loose ends. Apparently he decided that his wife and Wayne Stapleton were loose ends. That didn't please the man who hired him."

"Who was that?"

"A businessman in California that was in the Army with Jonas. I'll tell you that story later."

"So now you and Carter are actually going on a date. A real date. I'm so happy for you."

"It's just a date," Callie insisted. "Maybe I should go change into something less -"

"Less what? You look wonderful in that! I've always said that green was definitely your color. Now, to get you totally ready -"

"I am ready," Callie told her, but Allie shook her head.

"Not quite. What purse are you taking?"

"I have a small bag -"

"No, that won't do." She went into the bedroom, leaving Callie no choice except to follow and watch as Allie went through the small cache of purses and handbags. "That's still too small. That's just too big. It's a suitcase! Ah. Here we go." She pulled out a midsized black purse with a golden chain for a strap. Moving over to the dresser, she opened a drawer, then turned to look at Callie with narrowed eyes before putting something into the handbag. "Do you have an extra toothbrush?"

It suddenly dawned on Callie what her friend was doing. "Allie! I don't need -" she stopped, remembering how much she had wished for a toothbrush this morning. "It's in the top right drawer," she said. "And my hairbrush is on the counter." She heard the medicine cabinet open, and then close before Allie reappeared.

"I'd suggest taking something else to wear home tomorrow, but -"

"I might not go out at all," Callie said, amused by her friend's actions. "I'll call Carter and tell him I've changed my mind -"

"Oh, no you don't! You're not going to do any such thing! I'm just trying to help -"

Callie began to laugh and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"What -? Why are you laughing?"

Callie told her about getting some things from the police department since she had left work without anything but the dress she had been wearing. "The toothbrush and hairbrush are still at Carter's. So is another change of clothes, since I wasn't sure that my plan would work."

"You let me go through all of this for no reason?"

"Well, I didn't realize what you were doing until you'd almost finished," Callie pointed out. "So I'm going to take the small purse with my keys and wallet. That's it."

Allie dropped the handbag onto the bed and retrieved the smaller bag. "There you go."

She led the way back out to the living room, watching as Callie transferred the items from her regular purse to the smaller one. "What about your cellphone?" she asked.

Callie sighed, but stuffed the phone into the purse. "Now, where did you go today?"

"We went to -"

"So you weren't alone. I knew it! Where did you go?"

"There's a little place in Glenrose. We stopped and had lunch, then went to the dinosaur park."

"I still want to meet this guy you've been seeing. Maybe the four of us could -"

"I'm still not ready to go public, Callie," Allie insisted, looking relieved when the doorbell rang.

Callie, on the other hand, felt every nerve in her body go suddenly on high alert as she glanced at her watch again. "That's probably him," she managed to say.

"I'll get the door. You just stand there."

"Allie, I -"

"Take a deep breath. Let it out. Okay." She went to the door and opened it, whistling when she saw Carter. "Talking about cleaning up good. If you don't go out with him, Callie, I just might."

Carter chuckled at her comment and pulled on his ear as he entered the apartment. Upon seeing Callie, he stopped and said, "Wow."

"Too much?" Callie asked.

"Just right," he assured her.

"Well, I'm going to go," Allie said. "You two have fun. Don't do anything I wouldn't do - Oops. Forget I said that - on second thought, enjoy yourselves." Her smile was positively wicked as she closed the door behind her.

"I'm sorry," Callie apologized. "She's -"

"Callie," Carter said, looking at her. "You're nervous, aren't you?"

"Terrified is a better word," she told him. "I haven't - not since, well, and -"

He held out his hand. "Come here." She somehow managed the four or five steps to take his hand. "There's no reason for you to be nervous. Nothing's going to happen unless you want it to. There's no pressure." He brought her hand up and kissed the knuckles. "Now. Are you ready to go?"

"Let me get my wrap," she told him, going into the bedroom and grabbing a black and green lace shawl. Carter took it from her and placed it over her shoulders before opening the door into the hallway.

"Did you reach your contact?" she asked as they drove toward Gino's.

"I did. Why don't we wait until we're at the restaurant and I'll tell you what he said?"

"Okay."

"Did Allie go somewhere with her friend, as you thought she had?"

"She said they went down to Glenrose. But she still won't tell me who it is."

"Not even his name?"

"No. I'm sure she'll tell me when she's ready, but it's just so strange. She's never been so secretive about one of her friends. She tends to be *very* open about her love life," Callie told him. "I've been embarrassed more times than I want to admit by the things she's told me over the years."

"Sounds interesting," was his comment, and then he laughed softly as she blushed. "Sorry," he said, reaching over to take her hand. "I couldn't resist."

"You'd think, that, after being a cop, I would have stopped blushing," she sighed.

"I think it's adorable," he assured her. "How on earth did you manage to do any work in vice, though?"

"I think it was because it wasn't - real, somehow. I was able to separate my feelings from what I was saying - or what was being said *to* me, if that makes any sense."

"It does, I think. A good cop should be able to shut those emotions down so that he - or she - can do the job without getting tangled up in feelings."

Once they arrived at Gino's and were seated, Carter told her, "I did talk to my contact. He said that they had been keeping an eye on Maricopa for the last two weeks - just in case he decided to take off. He has his own plane, by the way. A Gulfstream."

"Then why did Wayne's wife fly out there via a commercial flight?" Callie wondered.

"Possibly to keep the jet ready in case he needed it."

"Did he say when they might move to make an arrest?"

"He said that with the information that the DPD sent via fax and my information, they should be able to get a warrant by tomorrow morning west coast time. He said that he'll call as soon as Maricopa is in custody."

"So it will be over."

"Not completely. There will still be a trial."

"I wonder if his daughter knows what her father is?" Callie said.

"Not sure. I'm not sure we'll ever know."

Callie toyed with her fork as they waited for their food. "I suppose you'll go out there for the trial when it happens."

"I haven't really thought about it," he told her before reaching over to capture her hand. "But if I do, I'd like for you to go with me."

Callie blinked in surprise. "To California?"

"It's not the other side of the world, just half a continent."

"I've - never been out of Texas. Well, except to Oklahoma and Louisiana."

"Then it's high time you did. Just think about it. I don't need an answer right now."

She nodded as their food arrived, and the conversation faded while they concentrated on the meal.

He took her hand as they walked to the car. "Should we go to my place or should I take you home?" he asked.

"Which would you prefer?" she asked, unable to look at him.

At the car, he lifted her head with his finger, shaking his head. "This is your decision, remember? If you'd feel more comfortable in your apartment - I understand."

She took a deep breath, sliding her arms around his neck. "Your place, I think. After all, I still have to pick up my dress from last night -"

"And the rest of the things you ordered this morning," he reminded her.

"I left those for a reason," she said. "I figured I'd make use of them at some point. You know - Dad's wrong about one thing."

"What's that?"

"My cooking. While I don't cook lunch or dinner - I'm pretty good with breakfast."

He smiled and opened the door of the car. She waited until he got behind the wheel and put her hand on his thigh. Carter grinned at her as he started the car, then picked up her hand. "Easy, Tiger," he said. "We want to get there in one piece, don't we?"

Callie hovered between sleep and wakefulness as she snuggled against the warmth beside her in the bed. She felt wonderfully sated, totally relaxed and content as she considered what might happen when she finally opened her eyes.

Carter had let her into the loft before pulling her into his arms and telling her, "Just so you know, if you decide you're not ready for what might happen - all you have to do is say so and I'll drive you home with no anger or recrimination -"

Callie silenced him by kissing him, pulling him with her up the steps into the bedroom. Now, several hours later, she smiled, touching his chest with her fingertips. "Mmmm," he murmured, pulling her closer. "I thought you might be awake."

"I was hoping you were," she told him, sliding her arm around him as his cell phone began to ring. "Augh!" she groaned, dropping back onto the bed while he reached across her to find his phone on the nightstand. "What time is it?" she asked, turning to look at the alarm clock. "Four-thirty?"

Carter found the phone and answered. "Hello? . . . So early? What -. . ." she put her hand on his back and felt the sudden tension in his muscles and sat up, resting against the headboard while she listened to his side of the conversation. "I see. . . Yes. Thank you for letting me know. I'll talk to you later."

"Maricopa?" she questioned, and he nodded. "Please tell me that he didn't escape -"

"No, he didn't," Carter said, putting the phone on the nightstand before laying back in the bed, pulling her close. "They were minutes away from getting the warrant when they found out that Maricopa had called to have his plane ready to take off for South America."

"He knew they were coming for him?"

"Apparently. So they converged on his mansion. His daughter met them at the door, telling them that she and her father were about to leave on a trip. Said he was in his study, getting some papers gathered. When they went to the door and asked him to come out, there was a single gunshot."

"Oh my."

"When they got into the room, they found Maricopa slumped over his desk. He put a bullet into his brain." He sighed. "There was a note - that he couldn't consider spending the rest of his life in prison."

"Maybe it's for the best," she told him. "The trial would have dragged on for years. At least this way -"

"I still would have liked to hear him admit to killing my father and Uncle Simon," he said. "But you're right. It's probably for the best. And it's a good ending for the story, I suppose."

"I still say you should write a book - there's no way you could do justice to the story within the restrictive space of a column."

"I'd still have to do the weekly column, while writing the book," he told her.

"Are you telling me that you can't do two things at once?" she asked with a sexy smile.

"Oh, trust me. I can."

"Prove it."

"With pleasure," he told her, sliding them both back down in the bed.

"Welcome to La Via Roma," Callie told the couple that had just entered the dimly lit restaurant. "Mr. Carson. It's good to see you and your wife. I have your table ready." She picked up the menus, pausing as someone else came in. Callie smiled as she saw Carter. He pointed toward the bar and she nodded. "The special tonight is fresh linguine with chicken or shrimp. Your server is Maria. While you're waiting, may I get you something from the bar?"

She glanced at the lobby as she told Joe the order, then went over to where Carter was sitting. Looking around, she gave him a quick kiss. "You're early," she told him.

"I got the packet from my contact at the FBI this afternoon," he told her. "They have proof that he killed Simon as well as my father." She took his hand in hers. "I went and talked to Bonner - by the way, he's finally given them his real name. Andrew Davis."

"What did he say about your uncle?" she asked, still watching for new arrivals.

"He remembers the 'job'. Billie pretended to be a hitchhiker, and Uncle Simon picked her up because she told him that her last ride had tried to - you know." She nodded. "And when she wouldn't do what he wanted her to, he had tossed her out on the road. As she got into the car, she stabbed him with a knife she was carrying. Bonner - or Davis - pulled up and helped her push the car over the cliff."

"I'm sorry," she told him.

"I figured it was something like that, from what the ME had told me about the condition of the body, but having it confirmed -"

"I still don't understand why he killed Simon. Maricopa couldn't have known who he was - if, as you said - he was so careful about his identity."

"Davis said that Maricopa didn't like the questions that Simon was asking. Maricopa told the others in his organization to keep an eye out for any attempt at contact by Simon Tate. Wayne likely saw the name on the appointment book, and so Simon was killed."

"And Jonas was killed because Maricopa finally realized that he was the one who would break if questioned about their connection," Callie nodded.

"I was wondering who had taken my hostess away from her post," Marty said, and they both looked up.

"Hello," Carter said.

Callie double-checked the lobby. "I've been watching, Dad," she told him.

He chuckled. "I know you are, honey. I couldn't resist teasing you. After all, tonight's the last night I'll be able to do that."

"Are you sure you don't mind that I decided to get my PI license?"

"Why would I mind? I think Maria will be able to handle the job very nicely. I always knew this was only a stepping stone until you found what you really wanted to do. Besides, you have other interests to take care of, don't you?" he asked as he looked at Carter.

The lobby door opened, and Callie stood up. "Duty calls," she told them, moving out of the bar to greet the couple who stood waiting. "Welcome to La Via Roma."

The End