Special Thanks: To Mary for her proofreading prowess, friendship and excellent advice during the creation of the story. To Stoley, for her unwavering friendship and support. To my beautiful Peruvian Princess Monica, thanks for all of your love and support for my writing obsession.

Comments are happily accepted at Cruise1313@aol.com.

Part XVIII

"Tom, what are you doing?" Lark asked, struggling to break free from him as he led her towards the door and was quickly flanked by other Secret Service agents who appeared from their posts in the crowds.

"Let me go." The woman demanded and struggled to get away from Rayne as she was quickly escorted into the theater before she could do so.

"I will when I get some answers from you." Rayne angrily shouted and led her to the side of the theater away from the doors. Once everyone was inside, the other agents quickly cleared the lobby of bystanders, reporters and cameramen. "Just what in the hell were you doing trying to attack Lark?" She angrily asked, and sniffed the moisture she felt running from her nose.

"What are you talking about? All I wanted was her autograph and moved closer to get it, but some idiot shoved me and that's when I felt you grab me." She explained, confused by the line of questioning.

"Rayne! What's going on?" Lark worriedly asked as she approached. "Damn Rayne, your nose is bleeding, profusely!" She gasped as Rayne wiped her nose and saw the blood on her hand. "Hurry, I need a napkin!" Lark ordered as Tom grabbed one and handed it to her. "Tilt your head back." She instructed Rayne, holding the napkin to her nose. "Come here and sit down." Lark ordered and led Rayne to a chair who held her head back as Tom began to question the shocked woman. "Rayne, what were you thinking? How did you get this bloody nose?" Lark worriedly asked, wiping the blood from Rayne's nose.

Rayne leaned her head down to explain; "I think her head hit me in the face." She didn't have time to concern herself with the bloody nose as her thoughts were only of Lark's safety. Her adrenalin was highly charged and she didn't feel any pain when it happened. She probably would later, but not then. "I thought she was going to attack you Lark." Rayne answered, in a serious, concerned tone.

"That's ridiculous Rayne. Put your head back until it stops bleeding." Lark incredulously replied and pushed Rayne's head back, holding the napkin firmly against her nose. "Nicole, could you please get me some more napkins?" Lark cordially smiled at Nicole who returned the smile and walked over to retrieve the said items.

"Lark, look…" Rayne attempted to explain, but was interrupted by Lark.

"No you look! You created a mob scene out there because of your crazy obsession that someone or something is going to harm me. Your anxiety has gone too far. We talked about this earlier and it has to stop!" Lark angrily demanded. She really had no clue the danger she was in. She thought Rayne was overreacting…as usual.

"Lark, are you okay?" Elaine worriedly asked, out of breath as she approached. "I didn't think I'd ever get in here. It's a huge mob scene out there."

Lark turned to face her agent, still holding the napkin over Rayne's nose. "I'm fine, but my fanatically overprotective superhero here decided to tackle a fan who she thought was attacking me." Lark tersely explained, pushing the napkin farther up her nose.

"Owww! Thanks, but no thanks; I'll hold it myself. I thought you were in danger Lark, I'm sorry!" Rayne answered, hurt and perturbed by Lark's condescending remarks as she took the napkin Nicole had offered, moving away from Lark who still held one out.

"Let's hope she doesn't want to press charges or sue us." Lark snapped aggravated, as she looked back at Rayne dropping her hand that held the bloody napkin.

"No need to worry about that." Tom confidently replied as he approached. "She understood the situation completely and only asked for an autograph and a picture with you Lark." Tom warmly smiled at the unnerved actress.

"You're kidding?" Lark asked surprised and looked past Tom at the woman who excitedly waved back at her. Rayne lowered the napkin and looked at her partner who winked at her. "Put that back up while I go and do some damage control." Lark replied before walking away.

"Well, I'll see if I can put a positive spin on all of this with the reporters and hope the woman agrees to what I tell her to say when the cameras are on her." Elaine replied with a smile, wondering just what in the hell she was going to say to make this entire situation look good. That was her job and yes, she would solve the problem…she hoped.

"Oh, she'll agree." Tom mischievously and confidently smiled.

"And how do you know that?" Elaine inquired, turning to the confidant agent.

"He threatened to do a thorough background check of the woman who obviously has something to hide and he probably assured her that a Secret Service agent would pay her a visit at home if she didn't agree to it…right?" Rayne sarcastically smiled and looked up at her partner knowingly.

"Well, I didn't put it that bluntly my dear partner, but I did hint something similar to that to her and apologized for any inconvenience that my hotheaded partner might have caused her." He chuckled cockily and rocked back and forth on his heels happy with his resolution.

"Alrighty then. Let me go make you look like a hero for trying to catch the woman who fell to save her from grave danger." Elaine sarcastically chuckled offering an acceptable explanation and patted Rayne on the shoulder before walking over to join Lark.

"Tom, I'll be right back. I'm going to wash my hands and freshen up." Nicole smiled and headed off to the restrooms.

"Rayne, man. What the hell?" Tom worriedly asked, looking down at his partner.

"I saw the hooded person from earlier in the crowd and I got nervous when I saw this chick moving towards Lark the way that she did. Are you sure she's legit?" Rayne suspiciously asked and glanced past him at the woman who reveled in taking pictures with Lark, then looked back at him.

"You have got to get a grip on yourself Rayne. You're totally acting out of the normal and it's affecting your judgment. It's not like you to act this way, even if it is personal." He worriedly replied and patted her on the shoulder as she nodded her head, knowing what her partner said was true. "I think she's legit, but we'll check her out and send an agent by her home to see if anything looks out of the ordinary just in case. It doesn't hurt to take precautions." He soothingly reassured her.

"Thanks man. I appreciate it." She appreciatively smiled looking up at him.

"We'll meet you in a few once you've had a chance to talk to Lark." He smiled and winked before walking away to join his wife who had stepped out of the ladies room.

Rayne smiled and watched as he walked away, then looked at Lark who was walking her way. She felt bad, embarrassed and stupid by the way she acted. She was about to be made into a hero by the press for something she shouldn't take credit for because she overreacted. She pushed that thought out of her head, as she would rather have overreacted than to have done nothing and have Lark injured because of her hesitation. She looked at the napkin that indicated her nosebleed was slowing down by the decreased amount of blood on it and glanced up at Lark who stood before her. "I'm sorry." She apologized and looked up at her, then back down to the napkin in her hand.

"Don't be. I'm sorry for getting angry. I shouldn't have. I know that all you were trying to do was protect me from harm." She softly replied and pushed Rayne's long hair back. "Let me see your nose." Lark lovingly asked and tilted Rayne's head up to look at her injury.

"How does it look?" Rayne asked with a slight smile as she peered into the emerald greens she loved so much.

"As cute as ever. A little swollen, but cute. It looks like the bleeding has finally stopped." She advised Rayne with a loving smile as she held her face in her hands. "Thanks for caring so much." She softly whispered and lightly kissed Rayne's injured nose. "Come on, let's go inside and clean the rest of the blood off of you." Lark smiled and held her hand out for Rayne who grasped it and stood up.

"My nose really hurts, do you think you could kiss it again and make it feel better?" Rayne grinned, leaning down to Lark who laughed and kissed her nose again.

"I'm going to have two children here very soon." Lark chuckled, and escorted Rayne into the restroom.

"Can I help it if I love your attention and affections?" Rayne grinned, teasingly.

"It's just because you are so damn cute!" Lark chuckled and patted her cheek lovingly.

"Did you apologize to that poor woman I used as a tackling dummy?" Rayne asked with a snicker.

"Yes, but you can do the same at the after party. I invited her to watch the premiere and to the party. It was the least I could do." Lark chuckled and entered the bathroom with Rayne following close behind.

After the movie they headed into the party. Tom and Rayne quickly sidled up to the bar to order drinks. Rayne took a sip of her jack and coke before turning to Tom. "Holy shit! It's Tom Cruise!" She excitedly informed her partner.

"Where?" Tom eagerly asked, looking around.

"Aaah…right behind you." She softly informed him as the talented actor stood behind them.

"Very impressive display of heroism. Rayne Donovan right?" The actor asked, with a toothy grin looking up at the tall star struck agent. He held out his hand and Rayne finally began to shake it.

"Aaah…yeah, that's right…that's me." She stammered, very impressed that her favorite actor approached her. She had always bugged Lark to introduce her to him, but the opportunity never arose, until now.

"Do you do any acting by any chance? I could use someone like you in one of my upcoming movie's."

"Acting?" Rayne asked, stunned.

"Yeah, we both are in Lark's new movie. We play detectives." Tom interjected as it was obvious Rayne was confused. Maybe it was the blow to her nose.

"Great. Give my agent a call when you get a chance or have your agent call me." He smiled and released his handshake. "Thanks for helping that woman out too. Sometimes the fans get way out of hand and too many people get hurt. Have a good night." He smiled and turned to leave.

"Oh, thanks and you too!" Rayne smiled and watched him leave, as did Tom.

"Damn…you are one lucky bitch!" Tom replied with a chuckle after the actor was out of sight.

"Did what happen what I thought just happened?" She asked, still in disbelief over their conversation.

"It happened my friend!" He smiled and patted her on the shoulder. "Let's get these back to the girls." He motioned towards them with his head.

"Oh, yeah. Wait until Lark hears this one!" She laughed and grabbed Lark's drink as they walked away.

"Uh-oh, here comes trouble." Nicole sarcastically alerted Lark who turned to see Tom and Rayne sporting mischievous grins on their faces.

"They are definitely up to something and I can bet it's not good." She laughed as Nicole joined in.

"Here you are my love. One tall, cold glass of milk." Rayne snickered and handed Lark her drink. "You are never going to believe what just happened to me." Rayne excitedly informed Lark.

"You're right, run it by me and I'll see if I can do it." Lark sarcastically replied as everyone else chuckled.

"Tom Cruise just told me to call his agent that he might have a part in a movie for me." She explained with a proud smile.

"No way. Really?" Lark asked skeptical and thought that they were putting her up for some kind of a joke.

"It's true. He asked her to call him or have her agent call him." Tom concurred and took a drink of his beer.

"Wow…that's excellent. Are you going to do it?" Lark asked, excited by the prospect that Rayne might consider a safer line of work. 'Oh, what am I thinking? It's a Tom Cruise movie which is probably packed with action and dangerous stunts.' Lark thought, realizing it might not be any different from her current job.

"Oh, I don't know. We'll see. It would be cool to be in one of his movie's though." Rayne laughed and shrugged it off. The smile faded when she saw the woman she tackled earlier step up to the bar. "I'll be back in a few. I have an apology to make." Rayne sheepishly smiled and winked at Lark before heading over to the bar. Rayne tentatively approached the woman with an embarrassed smile. "Can I buy you a drink?" She asked, sidling up to the bar next to the woman who turned to her.

"As long as you promise not to tackle me." She chuckled, as did Rayne.

"It's a deal." Rayne laughed and motioned towards the bartender for a drink. Rayne laid some cash down on the bar after he poured the woman's drink. "I just wanted to apologize for what I did earlier and I appreciate your cooperation in this matter."

"Oh, no problem. Wow, it was worth it." She chuckled, looking around the room star struck.

"I hope I didn't hurt you in the fall. I'm Rayne Donovan by the way." Rayne smiled, happy the woman was so understanding as she held out her hand to shake.

"Nah, only my pride, but my back does hurt from that hooded jerk who shoved me." She replied, perturbed by the memory of the person who pushed her as Rayne's ears perked up. "Lauren Crawford…nice to get properly introduced to you." She smiled, shaking Rayne's hand.

"Hooded?" She asked, intrigued and stood upright from her slouched position and released her hand. "Did you get a good look at this person?"

"Not really. I kept feeling people pushing and shoving me, so I stepped on the opposite side of the rope to get away from them. I saw the hooded person when I turned around to cuss them out and the person shoved me. That's when you entered my life." She explained with a sarcastic chuckle.

Rayne chuckled with an embarrassed smile and asked, "Do you think you could identify this person if you saw any mug shots of them?" She hoped the woman could make a positive Id and help their case.

"No, I'm sorry. The person wore a hat pulled way down and their jacket was zipped all the way up their neck. So, I couldn't really identify anything distinct about them."

'Damn.' Rayne inwardly cursed, hoping she might have a lead. 'This person has to be fucking around with me for them to take a huge chance by making appearances at crowded places. They are really enjoying themselves by taunting me.' "Well, thank you for your help and again, I apologize for the inconvenience." Rayne cordially smiled and shook the woman's hand again.

"Oh, you're welcome and you're very lucky to be the object of Lark's desire." She smiled and glanced over at Lark as did Rayne while Lark candidly spoke with Tom and Nicole.

Rayne smiled and turned back to Lauren replying, "I'm the luckiest," as she walked away. She moved in close to Lark and leaned over her shoulder. "Care to come home with me?" She asked, whispering in Lark's ear.

Lark smiled when she felt Rayne's soft breath tickle her senses and turned around. "Wow, you're cute and that's the best offer I've had all night! I'd love for you to take me home." She replied with a laugh shared by Rayne who lightly kissed her lips.

Rayne broke the kiss and looked at Tom and Nicole. "Do you two want to stay longer?"

"Nah, we've had enough excitement for one day. Besides, we have an early call to the set tomorrow, remember?" Tom grinned, as the group headed for the doors.

"Oh, yes. The movie just can't go on without us!" Rayne sarcastically replied as the group exited the building and waited for their limo.

"You do realize that you have created two huge monsters by giving them a part in your movie right?" Nicole asked with a chuckle looking at Lark.

"I know, please don't remind me." Lark laughed and climbed into the limo as Rayne held the door for her.

"Ladies." Rayne sarcastically grinned motioning with her hand towards the seats as the two women climbed into the limo. "Age before beauty." She chuckled when Tom approached and climbed in before her.

"Very funny smart ass!" He chuckled and sat inside the limo, followed by Rayne.

Rayne and Tom's acting job had come to an end after a couple of days of filming without any academy award nominations. They found no foul play with the accident on the set. Rayne was able to stick close to Lark, which she didn't mind at all, but the suspense and stress of just sitting there waiting for a lead was driving her nuts. She put her pent up frustration to good use and feverishly worked on her task of arranging the nursery, the guesthouse and the garage…as ordered by Lark…of all the presents she had purchased. She laughed when she looked at everything she had purchased and realized it was pretty foolish to buy some gifts so early. What can she say? She was an excited expectant parent to be and an exhausted one. Between working on her assigned Lark task, the stress of hardly sleeping a wink at night along with her work duties, birthing classes and Lark's insatiable sex drive, she was ready to drop. She never thought she'd ever be so worn out by sex with Lark, but she was spent. She was out of gas and running on fumes. No, she was beyond empty and she showed it. The dark circles under her eyes and her ragged look had worried Lark. Rayne didn't want her to worry and blew it off, saying she was coming down with a cold. Well, that led to an onslaught of various vitamins and cold remedies ordered by Lark…all of which tasted nasty, of course! Rayne knew better than to fight Lark on that one especially now that she was pregnant. It wouldn't have been a pretty sight if she had and after all, Lark could be very persuasive. Rayne did have to admit that they were the only things keeping her going.

After making love to Lark for most of the early evening, she was finally lost in a wonderful dream and was peacefully sleeping with both eyes closed. She normally slept with one eye opened and if she heard a noise, she was out of bed in a shot to investigate. Not tonight. She was dead asleep and didn't hear the low warning growl of Max the first time. He nudged her with his cold, wet nose and growled again, alerting her to a noise he heard. One blue orb quickly popped open. She quietly slid her nightstand drawer open and reached in for her gun. She pulled it out as she rose from the bed and motioned to Max to be quiet as he continued to growl. She quickly slipped on a pair of sweatpants and a shirt. Max followed her to the door and she whispered, "You stay here and protect Lark." She watched as he protectively sat next to Lark's side of the bed and watched Rayne disappear behind the door.

She quietly moved down the hall and stopped when she heard a noise in the kitchen. Her heart raced with adrenaline and the anger coursed through her veins as she wondered just how in the hell the agents outside missed the person that was lurking in her home. She made a mental note to make their lives a living hell for this one. She crept down the hall and stopped when she saw a shadow on the wall. She waited to see if they would come towards her and when the person didn't move she headed towards them. She got to the corner of the kitchen door and peeked around the corner, seeing a dark figure standing in the middle of the kitchen. She looked back, inhaled deeply and quickly moved around the corner and dropped the person face first on the ground. Before they knew it, her gun was firmly planted against their temple, her knee was pinned against the back of their neck and their arm was painfully pulled around to their back. "Don't shoot, it's me…Jayce." He breathlessly pleaded, nervous that he was about to be killed.

Rayne's heart raced and her breathing was labored. She blinked rapidly as what he said registered in her brain. "Jayce?" She asked, surprised and moved the gun from his head. "I could have killed you. What the hell are you doing creeping around in here?" She angrily asked and helped him up. She was more fearful of what she could have done to her brother than really being angry with him.

"I was trying to keep quiet so I didn't wake you and Lark. I'm sorry." He nervously apologized and pushed his sweat soaked hair back.

"What's that smell?" Rayne asked, sniffing the foul air.

"Probably me. I think I shit myself after you dropped me." He answered with a nervous laugh, shared by Rayne.

"No, it's food." Rayne laughed and turned the light on. She saw a sandwich strewn across the floor.

"Oh, that's my midnight snack…a Reuben sandwich." He answered, looking at his destroyed sandwich.

"Was your midnight snack." Rayne laughed looking at what was on the floor then looked at him. "I'm really sorry, but you can't go sneaking around here like that Jayce." She admonished him and helped him clean up his sandwich.

"Since when? I always sneak around here and come here unexpected without this type of a reaction from you." He answered, looking at her.

"Since someone put out a hit on Lark and the baby." She replied, her look turning serious. She didn't want too many to know about it, but she needed to talk to someone close to her.

He was flabbergasted and looked at her with shock consuming his features. "What?" His heart raced with fear that anything would happen to Rayne, Lark or the baby.

"Someone put out a hit on all three of us Jayce. It's a criminal that is holding a grudge against me. I have teams of other agents posted about the grounds of the house in case anyone makes an attempt on us. I'm glad to know that the agents were doing their jobs and recognized your mug from the pictures I submitted to them of family and friends in case someone decides to unexpectedly shows up here…like you just did." She explained and picked up the remainder of the food from the floor. She stood up and tossed it in the trash. She threw a dishrag to her brother who cleaned up the rest of the mess.

"Does Lark know about this?" He worriedly asked, looking up at her before standing next to her.

"No and I don't want her too. This will worry and stress her too much. I don't want that for her, so I decided it was best to keep it from her until I nail this bastard." She explained, the venom spewing from her mouth to emphasize her distain for the person she was searching for. "You're the only one in our family who knows and let's keep it that way.

Got it?" She adamantly inferred, indicating he needed to keep his mouth shut.

"Aah…sur…sure. No problem." He nervously stammered and saw the look in his sister's eyes. She wasn't kidding around with this one.

"You didn't answer my question as to what you're doing here? Aren't you supposed to be doing your internship?" She asked, sitting at the dining room table.

"I'm still on my internship, but I got a reprieve from the torturous work for a long weekend. So, I decided to come and hang out with my favorite babes." He grinned, sitting opposite of Rayne.

"More like your drinking buddies." Rayne chuckled and looked at her brother knowingly. He was quite the party animal and never missed an opportunity to do so.

He sheepishly grinned, "Well, them too."

"I'm going back to bed. Try to alert me the next time you attempt to sneak into the house so I don't come so close to blowing your head off!" Rayne laughed and stood up, patting his back.

"Oh, trust me. I will no longer be sneaking around your house. I should go clean my boxer shorts." He laughed and looked up at her.

"Sorry about your sandwich bro. Night." She grinned and padded down the hall to their bedroom suite. She slowly opened the door and noted Max was still dutifully standing guard next to Lark. "It's okay buddy. It was my little brother. Get in bed." She whispered and motioned towards his bed. He trotted over to his bed and lay down satisfied that everything was fine. Rayne sat on the edge of the bed and gazed upon her sleeping beauty. She chuckled, realizing that Lark didn't hear a thing of what happened and would be able to peacefully sleep through a category five hurricane! Rayne yawned and lay prone on the bed. She quickly fell asleep for a change.

Lark awoke to the bright light streaming through the curtains as the sun was rudely greeting her to a new day. She wiped her eyes and yawned. She was surprised to find Rayne still asleep when she rolled onto her side. Lark lovingly smiled and snuggled in close to Rayne. She put her hand on Rayne's warm arm and delicately kissed her neck. 'That's strange, normally she wakes up.' Lark thought and slowly slid her hand down Rayne's arm as she rested her head against Rayne's back. Lark's head shot up when her hand moved under the pillow to cover Rayne's and she found the shock of her life. Rayne was still clutching her gun. "Rayne! Rayne!" Lark replied, trying to wake her.

"Yeah, are you okay?" Rayne worriedly asked, with sleepy blue eyes and turned her head to look at Lark unable to move, as she had her pinned down by still laying on her.

"No, I'm not okay." Lark retorted upset by what was under Rayne's pillow.

"Why? What's wrong? Is it the baby?" Rayne worriedly asked and was finally able to move to face Lark who had shifted her body.

"No, what are you doing clutching your gun under your pillow?" She worriedly asked, looking down into concern filled blues.

"Huh?" Rayne was caught off guard momentarily and felt the gun. She put the gun in the drawer and looked back at Lark. "I'm sorry honey. I heard something last night and checked it out. It was Jayce coming in and I guess I was so sleepy that I fell back to sleep with it in my hand."

"Rayne. I can't believe you slept with the gun! What if it had inadvertently gone off?" Lark admonished her. She wasn't fond of guns, especially in their bed.

"Honey, I have the safety lock on it. There is no way it will go off." Rayne reassured her and lovingly stroked her tousled blonde hair.

"Well, I don't like it Rayne. I hope you don't plan on having the gun lie around like that once the baby is born."

"Oh, come on Lark. Do you really think I would do that? Give me some credit; I'm more responsible than that. I'm a Secret Service agent highly trained in weapons. Not some yahoo that doesn't know how to use a damn gun!" She angrily retorted, put off by Lark's insinuation. She got out of bed, slipped on her 'top siders' and headed towards the door. "Come on Max." She called out and exited the room.

"Rayne!" Lark replied, surprised by her lover's demeanor. She figured Rayne would be right back, but she was wrong. She crawled out of bed, suddenly feeling like a heel from her comment. She knew that Rayne wouldn't put any of them in danger and that she was highly trained with weapons. 'Damn…that was stupid.' Lark admonished herself, tying her robe around her large belly and feeling guilty about hurting Rayne's feelings. 'Sometimes, I really just don't think before I say certain things.' She chided herself as she slowly made her way down the hall. "Rayne…honey, I'm really sorry." She replied and turned into the kitchen thinking she was there. She wasn't and Lark continued her search. "Rayne?" She called out and didn't hear a response. She looked in the dining room and caught a glimpse of Rayne outside with the dog. She opened the sliding glass door and stepped out onto the back deck. Lark walked to the stairway leading to the yard and slowly made her way down the steps. "Rayne, honey." She regretfully replied and felt a catch in her heart when Rayne turned to her with saddened blue eyes. She stood at the last stair as Rayne approached her. "I'm so sorry. I should never have said that to you and I really didn't mean it the way it came out." She apologized and wrapped her arms around Rayne's neck, looking down at her.

"I know and I accept your apology. I'm sorry I walked out, but what you said hurt. Now, that I've thought about it more, it seems silly for me to have reacted that way. I'm just tired, overworked and nervous about our first child on its way." She lovingly smiled and drew Lark in for a hug, resting her head on Lark's chest.

Lark kissed the top of Rayne's head and lovingly stroked her dark hair as she held her close. "I know that you would never put either of us in danger my love."

"Never." Rayne softly replied. 'I'm such a liar. I've put both of them in harms way because of my job.' She angrily admonished herself. 'That's going to change even if I have to beat the information out of that little weasel we're holding to give me the goods that I want.' She affirmed.

"Shit! I totally forgot that I have to leave! Now!" Lark hurriedly replied as she looked at her watch and gasped at her tardiness. She broke the hug and kissed Rayne as she lumbered up the stairs.

"Where are you going? It's Saturday." Rayne asked, watching her lover struggle to climb the stairs. "Do you need some help?" She asked, quickly scaling them to assist Lark up the remaining stairs.

"Thanks, I have a call to the set that I totally forgot about. I'm so sorry. I won't be all day though." She replied breathless. "I love you." She smiled and kissed Rayne.

"It's a good thing you can dress at the set or you'd be in trouble! I'll pull your car to the front for you."

"Thanks! I've got just enough time to brush my teeth and throw some clothes on!" She shouted before disappearing into the house.

Rayne chuckled and laughed at her punctually deficient lover as she entered the house. She grabbed Lark's keys off the counter and headed to the garage that sat adjacent to their home. No, Lark's car wasn't allowed to park in the immaculate garage and neither was Rayne's, only her toys. They always kept the cars parked just outside the garage, as there wasn't enough room in there for the cars, the motorcycle, the wave runner and the lawnmower…all of Rayne's toys. She looked up to see Max at the edge of the yard looking out over the beach. 'He must see a seagull that he's about ready to eat.' She chuckled and started Lark's car and pulled it to the front just as Lark rushed out of the house. She climbed out and held the door for Lark who quickly filled the driver's seat. "Here you go my lady." Rayne smiled.

"You're so sweet. I'll see you later. I love you." She hurriedly replied, donning her sunglasses and seat belt.

"Be careful." Rayne laughed at Lark's rushed demeanor and closed the door for her.

Lark pushed the button to roll the window down as she put the car in gear. "I'll miss you." She smiled and blew Rayne a kiss as she headed off down the long driveway.

Rayne blushed, smiling and watched as Lark drove away. She waved until she was out of sight and saw the detail of agents assigned to Lark follow behind her. She headed to the back yard, noting that Max was barking very loudly and seemed extremely agitated. She headed down towards him and heard a shot ring out. She dove to the ground and saw Max scurry out of the way. "What the fuck?" She called out angrily and got up, quickly heading towards the beach using the garage as cover to see what was going on. Max was irate now and his barking showed it. Max took off down the sand dune towards the beach and Rayne took off in pursuit of him and whoever fired the gun. She cautiously approached the walkway and looked onto the beach. She saw the young agent down and another man running feverishly down the beach towards a waiting motorcycle with Max in hot pursuit.

Rayne turned back towards the house and saw the other agents running down the yard to her. She took off running towards the garage as they approached. "One of the agents is down, I'm heading off in pursuit. Check on him and his partner." She shouted as she passed them and tried to open the door to the garage, realizing the side door was locked. "Fuck!" She shouted angrily and kicked the door in. She scrambled through the garage and hopped on her dirty bike, quickly firing the engine. She squealed the tires as she turned the bike around and drove it out of the opening she had just created when she kicked in the door. She screamed the motorcycle across the yard and jumped the sand dune, landing with a jolt on the beach. The jar knocked the wind out of her momentarily and she sped the motorcycle down the beach towards the assailant that was ahead of her, finally catching her breath.

"Max, go back!" She shouted as she passed the winded, but dutiful dog that continued his pursuit until he heard her command. She throttled the bike as much as it would go and tucked low on the motorcycle to cut down on the wind resistance in an attempt to gain ground. It worked and it helped that the guy's motorcycle wasn't equipped for the beach, but hers was. Every time he looked back to see where she was his motorcycle would fish tail and he'd nearly fall. 'You son of a bitch, you're not getting away, I guarantee that!' She angrily thought, her resolve to catch this asshole and her adrenaline coursed throughout her as she moved in on him. He held up his gun as she approached him from the side. She easily kicked the gun from his hand and he scrambled to regain control of the motorcycle that nearly crashed. Rayne gunned her throttle and moved closer to him. She jumped from her bike and tackled him to the beach as both motorcycles kept going until they fell to the ground.

Rayne felt her rib crack when she fell on top of him and then rolled over before ending back on top of him. He struggled to get away from her and nailed her in the side. "Fuck!" She shouted when she felt the excruciating pain explode through her side. She gasped for her breath as the guy stood up and attempted to run, but fell to the ground after Rayne did a leg sweep on him. She jumped on top of him and beat him senseless until he submitted to her. Her rage coursed through her as she recognized the bastard. It was the guy who had done so many terrible things to young children, and he was the guy who threatened her very existence…her family. I think he got the hint she wasn't pleased with him as he pleaded for her to stop. She grabbed him around the neck and panted, as she was breathing hard from the fight. She stared into his eyes and wanted nothing more than to choke him to death. He desperately tried to pry her hand away, which had a death grip on his throat.

"Agent Donovan! Stop! Agent!" The out of breath agent replied as she approached and stopped next to Rayne.

Her trance was snapped and she looked at the agent, finally releasing her grip on his throat. "I've got him, it's okay." The agent calmly assured her as she got off the man and tried to collect her breath, her composure. She intently watched as the agent handcuffed him and stood him up. She struggled to stand and felt the pain in her side.

"Shit that hurts." She whispered, holding her side. "How's the other agent?" She asked, motioning to the one who had been shot.

"He'll live." She chuckled looking at her. "You okay?"

"Oh, yeah, never better." She sarcastically answered.

"You roughed this one up pretty good." She laughed, pleased with her handy work.

"He's lucky. I haven't had my cup of coffee yet. I'm still sleepy. Besides, I think he got those injuries when he fell off the motorcycle." She laughed joined by the agent.

"We'll see about that when my lawyer gets a hold of you." The prisoner angrily answered, spitting blood at Rayne's feet.

"The hell we will." Rayne angrily shouted grabbing him by the shirt and pulling him face to face with her. "The only thing you have to look forward to is being someone's bitch in prison for all the deeds you've done to children. I hear you're not supposed to bend over for the soap in prison. You might want to remember that unless you want a little pickle tickle from the rear!" She sarcastically replied and tauntingly laughed at him, seeing the fear consume him. She released the guy as the agent laughed and led him back towards the house. Rayne picked up her motorcycle and checked it over. She revved the engine and climbed on top of it. 'Finally, we are getting somewhere and this whole mess is over with, now that we've got the head honcho.' She thought relieved and steered the motorcycle back down the beach towards her home.

She rode the bike up to where the other agents were congregated around one of the fallen agents. She turned off the bike and parked it. "How is he?" She inquired as she approached.

"He's dead." One of the solemn agents answered when he turned to her.

"You fucking asshole!" She angrily shouted and attempted to grab the assailant, but was held back by the other agents. The female agent holding him didn't attempt to protect him, as she would just have soon seen Rayne kick the shit out of him again. "I'll see to it that you fry in the electric chair for this!" Rayne vehemently guaranteed as the agents struggled to contain her.

"Get him the hell out of here!" One of the agents ordered the other one, who jerked him away.

"Let me go!" She demanded as the agents still held her.

"Are you sure you won't kill the guy if we let you go?" The agent calmly asked, staring at her.

"Yes, now let me go." She asked as they did so. She walked over to the young agent who was being attended by the paramedics. "How you doing?" She asked with a soothing smile, squatting next to him.

"I'm sorry agent. I tried to stop him, but he caught my partner and I by surprise." The agent explained, breathless from the pain.

Rayne smiled and clasped his hand. "You did a great job agent." She stood up as the paramedics raised the stretcher to transport their patient. "You just hurry and get better." She comfortingly smiled.

"Thanks, I will." He appreciatively smiled as he broke the grip on her hand. The paramedics transported him to the waiting ambulance and loaded him in.

"How are you agent?" A paramedic asked, noting her holding her side and grimacing.

"I'm fine, just hurt my side." Rayne brushed off the concern as she looked back and saw them cover the dead agent. She felt responsible and guilty.

"Let me see." The paramedic insisted and lifted her shirt.

"It's a cracked rib. I'm sure there's nothing you can do for it." She answered, never taking her eyes of the dead agent.

The paramedic palpated the darkened area as Rayne winced in pain. "Yep, it's fractured. You should have it x-rayed to make sure it didn't puncture a lung. You're not having any difficulty breathing are you?"

"Not really." She nonchalantly replied, not concerned for her own well-being.

"I'll wrap it up with an ace bandage and it might help ease the pain a bit. I still recommend that you have it examined." He informed her and grabbed a bandage out of his kit.

"I don't have time for that right now. I have a suspect to question." She replied and watched him wrap the bandage around her side.

"Make sure you do it soon." He advised her and walked away, when he finished his task. Rayne turned her head when she heard her name being shouted by Tom who came running down the stairs. She snickered when his momentum took him face first into the sand. "Dude, what in the hell are you doing?" She asked with a grin as she looked down at the embarrassed agent. His fall broke the solemn atmosphere.

"Making a damn fool of myself! Are you okay?" He worriedly asked, standing up and brushing the sand off of his clothes.

"Yeah, fractured a rib, but we've got one down and one on the way to the hospital." Rayne regretfully answered and motioned towards the fallen agent.

"Damn!" Tom replied saddened by the site. He looked back at Rayne. "I heard the report of what was going on here and rushed over. I thought you were the one down." He answered, the concern etched on his face.

"Shit Tom…you know me. I'm like a vampire, you can't kill me!" She chuckled and walked over to her motorcycle. She pushed the kickstand up and pushed the bike towards the stairs. She lifted the front of the bike and winced in pain, dropping the bike to catch her breath.

"Here, let me take that." Tom offered and took the bike from her. He maneuvered the bike up the steps and stopped winded at the top to wait for Rayne who followed behind him.

"Thanks, let's go get some answers from this scumbag." She smiled as they headed towards the garage to park the motorcycle. "I'm going to grab some clothes and take a shower at headquarters. Give me a minute to get my stuff ready."

"Sure thing." Tom answered with a smile and watched as she headed into the house. "Hey, Max. How you doing buddy?" He playfully asked, rubbing his dog's back who eagerly wagged his tail in response.

Rayne entered to see a terrified Jayce standing by the window watching everything. "What the hell was going on out there? I tried to go out but one of the agents made me come back inside. Are you okay?" He worriedly asked, looking at her holding her side.

"Aah…yeah, just hurt my rib. We nailed the guy who put the hit out on me, but he killed one of our agents and wounded another." She sadly informed him.

"Oh, man. I'm sorry. Is there anything I can do?" He solemnly asked and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, actually there is. I have to go down to headquarters and question this guy. Can you do me a favor and get the door put back on the garage before Lark comes home and don't tell her a thing about what happened."

"Sure, no problem. I'll get it done and Lark won't know a thing." He eagerly answered and watched his sister head down the hall.

Rayne threw some clothes in a gym bag and headed out the door. She got some very strange looks about her attire as her and Tom entered the building. She was normally impeccably dressed so, the sweatpants and t-shirt threw everyone for a loop. She smirked and looked past the people as she headed towards the locker room. "I'll catch you in a few Tom." She replied and pushed the door open.

"Yeah, I'll see if our man has been processed yet." He smiled and headed off as Rayne entered the locker room.

Rayne quickly showered and dressed in black jeans, a gray t-shirt, a black jacket and black boots. She ran her fingers through her wet hair and blew out the breath that she subconsciously, thinking about everything that had happened. She felt responsible for all the lives she put in jeopardy from this whole fiasco. She knew she shouldn't as she was only doing her job, but she did. "It's over." She softly replied and stood up, walking out of the locker room relieved that it was over.

"He's all set to be interrogated." Tom replied, as Rayne approached and stopped.

"Let's get to it." She grinned and entered the room followed by Tom. She sat across from the badly beaten man as Tom sat next to her. She opened the file and smirked as she looked back up to him. "Charlie, I can now add murder to your extensive criminal file."

"Don't forget attempted murder of a federal agent, oh, wait two counts of attempted murder of a federal agent." Tom added looking over Rayne's shoulder at the paperwork.

"Oh, yeah. That's so true. Thanks for reminding me." She arrogantly smiled, looking at her partner then back down to the paperwork and wrote those charges in.

"Any time buddy. That's what partners are for." Tom sarcastically laughed and patted her on the back.

"You two think you are so funny with your sarcastic attitudes!" The man angrily replied, pissed by their smugness.

"Nope just confidant you'll pay for your multiple crimes and happy that we've got the ring leader of your little operation." Tom replied arrogantly.

"Ring leader! You're not pinning all of those charges on me! I'm not the one in charge of the operation!" He adamantly, pleaded, as he was not going to take the fall for everyone.

Rayne was shocked, she thought it was over and she thought he was the ringleader. He obviously wasn't and she tried hard not to show her surprise. "Well, you could always give us some information and maybe we could drop a few charges for your cooperation." Rayne cockily replied, looking back up at the prisoner.

"I want my lawyer before I say anything more and cut a deal." He smugly replied.

"Sure. We'll have someone come in to help you with that right away." Tom sarcastically answered as he rose from the chair and headed towards the door followed by Rayne. They exited the door and stepped down the hallway. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" He mischievously smiled.

"Yes, it's scary. Let's go!" She chuckled and led him down the hall towards one of their holding cells.

"Fuck me. I can't believe he's not the leader." Tom replied surprised as they waited for the doors to open to enter the room.

"He blew me away that's for damn sure. Let's hope this guy sings like a stool pigeon!" She answered and entered the room followed by Tom.

"Hello Norman." Rayne sarcastically drawled with a grin, standing before the holding cell door.

"What do you two want?" He asked, exasperated by the two agents and lay back on his cot, uninterested by what they had to say.

"To see if you've reconsidered your decision to make a deal." Rayne replied, stepping into the cell after the door opened.

"I told you what I want and if you can't give me that then I'm not cooperating with you. I'll take my chances with a good lawyer and a jury." He answered, fluffing his pillow with his hand and tucking it back under his head.

"Jury's don't take kindly to murder's and accessory to murder, especially on a federal agent." Tom informed him with a smirk.

His face turned pale and he quickly sat up. "Murder? I didn't murder anyone or was an accessory to one." He nervously replied, looking at the two agents.

Rayne planted her hands on her hips and looked down at the blanched prisoner. "Sure you were. Because you didn't cooperate with us in the investigation, one of our agents was killed by your ringleader Charlie Phillips who we have in custody down the hall. So, that makes you an accessory." Rayne gloatingly answered.

"He's not the ringleader. He's that sick bastard that has a thing for kids and he's not the head of the operation. I don't want any part of that and I don't want to have accessory to murder pinned on me. I admit to helping out with the computer crimes, but I didn't do anything else. I'll tell you what you want and sign the original deal." He nervously replied as Rayne turned to Tom with her hand out.

He handed her the paperwork they drew up for the deal he would receive for cooperating with them. She opened them, purposely taking her time to make him sweat a little more. "Oh, do you have a pen?" She asked, turning to Tom with a smirk.

"Sure…here you go." He smiled and handed her the pen.

"Thanks." She smiled and turned to the anxious prisoner. "So, what else do you have to tell me?" She asked, glaring at him. She was eating it up inside that she had this guy nailed and would soon get the information she needed.

"The ringleader is Katy Diaz and she's pissed that you have wreaked so much havoc with our operation."

"That's not a reason to put a hit out on Rayne and her family." Tom interjected.

"It seems she's after you and your family for another reason. She holds you responsible for the death of her brother during one of the raids you led." He explained and stood up.

Rayne thought back to the different raids they had done and looked at Tom as they realized which one his death had occurred at. "He fled from us and was hit by a car." Rayne informed him.

"Yep, and she still holds you responsible." He answered.

"Where can I find this woman and what does she look like?" Rayne asked.

"She's blond, has brown eyes and about your height. She's been arrested before so you might have a picture of her on file. She doesn't use aliases. She's too arrogant for that." He explained.

Rayne turned to another agent who stood in the doorway and motioned towards the computer. She turned back to him as the agent quickly pulled up the mug shot. "And where can she be found?" Rayne asked, hoping he would hurry up and tell her what she needed to know, the longer she was free the harder it would be to find her.

"She's probably heading for one of our safe houses in Germany right about now. I can give you the address' of all of them there." He eagerly offered.

"Is this her?" Rayne asked, as the agent handed her a printed copy of the mug shot picture.

He stared at the picture of her. "Yeah, that's her. She's one crazy bitch." He affirmed as Rayne took it back, memorizing everything about her.

"Sign these and we'll get the ball moving." She explained and handed him the paperwork. She turned to the other agent, "Jim, send this picture to Interpol and our other agencies in case she tries to make it out of the country." Rayne handed him the picture and turned back to Norman who gave her the signed paperwork. "You did the right thing Norman." She smiled and waved the paperwork before exiting the cell.

"I hope so." He replied, writing the information down about the safe houses and handed it to Rayne.

"Thanks." She replied and exited the cell followed by Tom. "Get this sent out to our international offices right away." Rayne instructed the agent who quickly scanned it and handed Rayne the paper. They quickly headed back down the hall to talk with their other prisoner and see what kind of information he could give them. "This is good news, now let's hope we can find this bitch very soon." Rayne smiled and opened the door. "Talk to me about your boss Charlie. I know who she is. Tell me where to find her and I'll see what kind of help I can give you." Rayne bluntly demanded. She loved being in control…especially with assholes like him. She relished it.

He looked at her with a smirk, "You'll never catch her. She's gone. We had a plan that if I didn't contact her by now, she would get to the safe house and try to connect with me later."

"Which one in Germany?" Rayne asked, glaringly looking at him.

"How'd you know about that?" He asked, surprised.

"I can be very persuasive when it comes to gathering information." Rayne gloatingly answered, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I want to talk to my lawyer. Have fun trying to find her!" He angrily answered.

"Suit yourself." Rayne nonchalantly answered and exited the door. "This is good news and bad news." Rayne replied, looking at Tom.

"How do you mean?" He asked confused.

"The good news is that we have a substantial lead at nailing this bitch and the bad news is, that I have to tell my wife that I have to go to Germany. She's not going to take it well considering it's so close to the due date." Rayne's emotions ranged from elation to regret for having to go out of the country.

"You stay here. I can handle it." Tom offered.

"No way. I'm going by myself. Nothing against you Tom, but I've already put too many people that are close to me in danger. I'm going over there and I'm going to bring her back kicking and screaming. Besides, I would feel more comfortable knowing that you are here protecting Lark and the baby in case she has some other person out there who will fulfill her orders." Rayne sincerely answered.

"You mean you're trusting me to protect Lark and your child?" He asked with a smile.

"Yes, with their lives and I wouldn't want anyone else to do so other than myself." She answered smiling.

"I'm touched." He appreciatively smiled, happy that she trusted him enough. He knew it was a tough decision for Rayne to do and she only trusted herself with Lark, until now.

"You better hope that nothing happens to them." She warningly teased as they headed down the hall.

"You can be safe in the knowledge that neither of them will be harmed. I promise you that Rayne." He assuredly confirmed and patted her shoulder. "I'm not sure I can say the same about you when you tell Lark you're leaving a few weeks before her due date."

Rayne looked at him and cringed at the thought. "Thanks for bringing that up again. It's a scary thought dude. Wish me luck." She smiled and stuck her hand out to him.

"Good luck." He smiled and hugged her. He patted her on the back before breaking the hug. "Be careful on the trip. I want you back here in one piece so we can both retire from this joint together." He chuckled and looked around the building.

She was surprised by the hug and smiled. "You got it. Can you arrange a flight for me ASAP? The director shouldn't have any qualms about me going over there. Now all I have to do is make it through the talk with Lark. It won't be easy." She chuckled and headed towards the door.

Tom smiled and watched her walk out of the building. "No it won't my friend." He softly replied and headed back to work.

To Be Continued…

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