It is with respect for the artists that I quote "Ghost," by the Indigo Girls, "The Letting Go," by Melissa Etheridge and "Fool To Fall" by Pearl River. An excerpt from Sarah McLaughlin's song, "Hold On," is also being used without permission or knowledge of the artist.

Violence Disclaimer: This story contains scenes of violence, implied rape, and graphic crime scene detail. While this is necessary to the plot and tastefully done, if this sort of thing bothers you, you might not want to go any further.

Tenderness Disclaimer: This story also contains scenes of extreme love and tenderness that may force your knees to go weak or your heart to pitter and then patter. In some cases, you might even find yourself exclaiming... "Awwwww… ain't that sweet?"

The author wishes to thank: Jennifer for giving me the courage and the inspiration to start this project and see it through. Pati, Jess and Gin for reading this in the beginning and then allowing me to use them in the story. I hope I portrayed you all as you want to be seen. Thanks too to the dogs for jumping on the bed and drooling on the keyboard during all the crucial parts, trust me, eight really is enough!

Thanks to My Warrior, who has become my wife; your beta reading talents were sorely tried during the writing of this book. I still haven't mastered comma placement, periods or dangling participles and I doubt I ever will *G*, but thanks for loving me and keeping me well fed anyway. You believed in me when I didn't believe in myself, I'll never be able to thank you enough for all the love and encouragement you've given me.

Comments and feedback are welcomed and appreciated at : mac10k@earthlink.net

Part 2

Morgan jogged along the stony beach, running the dream through her mind once more trying to analyze its meaning.

She knew she missed Megan so it wasn't uncommon for her to appear in Morgan's dreams but for Kathryn to appear was unexpected. She liked the woman and she wasn't above admitting that when she'd undressed her she had appreciated Kathryn's figure. She had been breathtaking naked and it awakened Morgan's dormant libido. She noticed her hands shaking as she forced herself to redress the woman. What she'd wanted to do was bury her face between Kathryn's breasts. Her smell was intoxicating; a blending of some subtle perfume mixed with wine.

Maybe she was just horny. It had been awhile since she'd been with anyone. Almost a year now, when things started going bad Megan had cut her off and Morgan wasn't the type to just crawl into bed with the first person to show any hint of interest. The more Morgan thought along those lines the more she felt she was wrong. She was attracted to Kathryn and that was bad news; Kathryn had told her at dinner that she'd left a boyfriend back home. Straight women were nothing but trouble and Morgan wanted no part of that no matter how attractive she found her to be.

The problem, she decided, was that she felt comfortable with her new friend. More comfortable than she'd ever felt with Megan. She would have never taken off her gun for her no matter how many times she'd asked her to. And the mess she'd found in Kathryn's suitcases! Morgan was a neat freak and instead of being dismayed at the jumble of clothes and junk she'd found it endearing. She had chuckled to herself, and watching Kathryn sleep she had folded the clothes neatly before leaving.

Kathryn finished her shower and once dressed, headed for the kitchen to start a pot of coffee before heading to the bedroom to hang her clothes.

She'd hung all the clothes, made the bed, and drank almost the whole pot of coffee before she'd decided she'd stalled long enough and headed over to Morgan's.

Shielding her eyes from the sun reflecting off the water she made her way to Morgan's front door and rang the bell. When she rang it again and received no answer she made her way to the open door of the metal building.

Reaching the door she leaned her head in and saw what looked like a complete medical lab. She walked in the door when she saw Morgan sitting at the table. Getting no response to her greeting, she walked around the chair thinking the woman had fallen asleep. She barely recognized the scream coming from her mouth before the blackness overcame her and she slumped to the ground.

Morgan heard Kathryn's scream as she stepped onto the deck and changed direction for the lab. Running through the open door she saw the woman lying on the ground before she noticed the figure in the chair. Leaning down she scooped Kathryn in her arms and raced for the house.

Taking the stairs two at a time she keyed the code for the study and flipped the monitors on for the lab. She wished she'd left the VCR's taping all night but it hadn't occurred to her. Walking to the desk she nudged the chair out with her foot and shifting the unconscious woman in her arms sat down. She was worried about Kathryn. She looked so pale and she wasn't moving. Reaching for the phone she dialed Bones' number and pulled Kathryn tighter against her.

"Bones…. This is Morgan…I need you at my place. We've got another one and it's in my lab. I haven't called the locals so bring everything you'll need. We might just get a break out of this one."

"You mean we're going to get it first? The locals aren't going to like this one bit Morgan."

"I don't give a shit if they like it or not, it's on my property and we may get something before they trample the scene. When you get here secure the lab; I've got a small problem on my hands right now. Once you've got it secured come up to the house."

"I'm on my way. I'll see you in about 20 minutes."

"Step on it Bones; use the siren if necessary."

Hanging up the phone, she pushed the hair from Kathryn's face and pressed her lips softly against her forehead. She was cold to the touch and Morgan recognized the signs of shock. Shifting her weight Morgan stood and walked to the closet for a blanket. She stretched out on the couch, laying Kathryn on top of her and covering them both she wrapped her arms tightly around her.

Morgan felt the woman in her arms start to stir. Leaning up slightly, Kathryn met Morgan's eyes and promptly passed out again. Sighing, Morgan wrapped her arms tightly around the woman again and pulled her close. Lying back against the sofa arm, she closed her eyes.

The insistent beeping of the perimeter alarms alerted Morgan to Bones' arrival. Scooping Kathryn into her arms, she walked downstairs to meet the forensic pathologist.

"Nobody's been in there since me, Bones. Leave it for a minute. I need your help."

Bones looked to the figure standing on the deck holding an unconscious woman in her arms. "Is that another one?"

"No. She thought it was me in there and she passed out. I'm worried about her. She's been out for a long time. Can you take a look?"

"Yeah let's get her inside."

Bones pried open Kathryn's eye and shined a pen light at the pupil. Noting the reflex he probed her skull for bumps and finding one, waved smelling salts under her nose. Two or three passes brought Kathryn to a state of semi-consciousness; blinking rapidly she locked eyes with Morgan and lapsed into the blackness again.

"Morgan, you're going to have to stay out of her line of sight until I can get her up and coherent. She seems to have a slight concussion, but I can't find anything else physically wrong. The concussion shouldn't be keeping her out this long so you must be the cause. What's her name?"

"I kinda figured as much; Her name is Kathryn."

"Is there someone who can stay with her while we finish up outside?"

"I'll get a neighbor to come over, then I'm going to get started in the lab."

"As soon as I get her stable I'll meet you outside."

Morgan walked out of the room as Bones started running the smelling salts under Kathryn's nose again.

"Mildred can you do me a favor? I need you to come over and sit with a friend for awhile."

"Sure I'll come sit with your friend. What's wrong Morgan?"

"Can I explain it when you get here?"

"Why yes I guess so; I'll be right over."

"Do me another favor Mildred and walk over by way of the beach. Come in through the patio. I'll leave the door open for you."

"OK dear, I'll be right there."

Morgan called up the stairs and told Bones that she was going out to the lab and to call her on the intercom when Mildred arrived.

Morgan pulled her forensic kit from the rear of the Land Cruiser and checking to see that the camera had film, started walking the perimeter of the metal building. She clicked off several pictures of footprints she knew didn't belong to her or Kathryn. The sand made it hard to determine size and weight but she had several excellent tread patterns to work from. Finishing the roll she removed it from the camera and dropped it into the pocket of her shorts.

Replacing the camera she pulled the fingerprint kit from the case and slipping on a pair of surgical gloves walked to the open lab door.

Morgan studied the silver knob critically and pulled the black powder canister and a large round bristle brush from the kit. Swirling the brush in the powder she applied a light coat to the inside and outside knobs. The outside knob revealed several prints and taking wide clear tape from the kit Morgan tore several strips from the roll. She applied the strips one at a time to the knob and easing each off she secured them carefully to a 3x5 white index card. She dusted the jamb where the door had been forcibly pried open and pulled a few more latent prints from the door above the lock. Putting the fingerprint kit away she loaded the camera and took pictures of the pry marks for later tool identification. She'd measured and marked all the visible tool marks on the door and was stripping off her gloves when the intercom buzzed signaling Mildred's arrival.

Brushing the white powder from the gloves onto her shorts, Morgan reached up and pulled the ponytail holder from her hair, letting the raven locks spill across her shoulders as she walked into the living room.

Bones was appraising Mildred of Kathryn's situation when Morgan walked in.

"She conscious now but very disoriented and quite shaken." Looking at Morgan he said, "She thinks you're dead, and even though I've told her differently she persists in believing it was you she saw in the lab. Why don't you go up to her and Mildred and I will fix her some tea."

"Is she going to pass out again when she sees me?"

"I doubt it, but try not to startle her too much."

Morgan walked up the stairs, trying to make as much noise as possible before entering the study.

She saw Kathryn sitting on the sofa, her head hanging low and supported in her hands. She could tell by the shaking shoulders that Kathryn was crying. Morgan took three long strides across the room and folded Kathryn in her arms, making the shushing noises that Kathryn had used on her the previous night. It took a few minutes before she felt the sobs subside under her and she pulled Kathryn's still huddled form onto her lap.

"Hey Little One, shhh, it's okay, I'm right here. Look at me Kathryn, It's me Morgan. I'm fine; there's nothing wrong with me. Come on Kathryn, look at me."

Kathryn buried her head deeper into Morgan's shoulder and refused to look up; placing a finger under her chin Morgan tilted Kathryn's face up to look into hers.

"See Kate it's me, I'm here. I'm fine, really, it's all going to be okay."

"Mor… Morgan it's really you?" Kathryn sobbed. "But…but I saw you, your guts were hanging out you were … you were dead Morgan. I know you were dead I saw you dead I saw you I know I did."

Morgan placed a finger against Kathryn's lips to stop the hysterical babbling coming from the shaken woman.

"It wasn't me you saw Kathryn; I was jogging on the beach when I heard you scream. I promise Kate it wasn't me. I'm right here and see," she said pointing to her exposed abs, "My guts are right where they're supposed to be."

Kathryn ran a trembling hand across Morgan's stomach, needing to verify that all was as it should be. Satisfied, she took Morgan's face in both hands and pulled her close, brushing her lips across Morgan's so briefly that she wasn't sure it had happened.

Pulling away, Kathryn looked Morgan in the eye. "Don't you ever scare me like that again you hear me?"

Laughing, Morgan pulled Kathryn against her for a hug. "Yeah Little One I hear you. I promise to never come around you with my guts hanging out."

"Morgan?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm going to be sick all over you if you don't let me up."

Morgan jumped to her feet, Kathryn still firmly in her arms, and dashed down the hall to the bathroom, depositing Kathryn in front of the toilet as a full pot of coffee left her stomach.

Wetting a washcloth in the sink, Morgan knelt down and pulling Kathryn's hair away from her face she ran the cloth across her forehead and flushed the toilet.

"Are you done?"

"Yeah I think so, sorry about that."

"Nothing to be sorry for, I did that for days after I saw my first dead body." Morgan reassured her, rinsing the rag out and kneeling again by her side.

"Do you want to hang out here or go back to the study?"

"I'd like to go back to the study but I think my legs want me to stay here, they don't seem to be very cooperative right now."

"Put your arms around my neck." Morgan said, lifting the woman from the floor and carrying her back to the sofa.

"You have to quit carrying me around all the time you know. People will think I can't walk."

"I don't carry you around all the time!" Morgan protested.

"Oh no? Then how did I get in the bed last night? How did I get in here earlier? How did I get to the bathroom and back?" Kathryn asked, trying to hide the smirk she could feel on her face.

"Well, that doesn't constitute all the time, besides you were asleep or unconscious most of the time and it was quicker for me to carry you to the bathroom than to give you directions."

"Thank you for doing all this for me," Kathryn said, tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes.

"Shhh it's ok Kate don't cry, everything's going to be alright, you'll see." Morgan cupped Kathryn's face gently in her hands and brushed the tears away with her thumbs before resting her hands on the smaller woman's hips once again.

"I know. It was just that seeing that woman out there and thinking I'd lost you. I know we just met and all but I think of you as a friend and I don't want to lose you. Especially not like that."

"You're not going to lose me, don't worry about that. I'll be here to carry you around for a long time." Morgan reached out to ruffle Kathryn's hair.

"I'm going to leave you with Mildred for awhile; Bones and I need to see what's going on in the lab. If you need me push this button and tell me to come up, okay?" Morgan pointed out the intercom system.

Kathryn wiped the tears from her eyes and running a hand under her nose said, "Okay I'll try not to bother you. Will I be able to see you on those?" she pointed to the rows of monitors on the wall.

"Yeah you can see me in those, but if you need me or just need to see me in person to reassure yourself, you call. Don't worry about bothering me."

"Okay." Came the somewhat dejected reply. Morgan walked over to the shaking woman and gathered her briefly in her arms for a short hug. She released Kathryn and watched her walk to the sofa, noting that the shakes had somewhat subsided.

"Seriously Kathryn if you need me for any reason you call. Promise me."

"I promise."

"Good. Do you want Casey in here with you?"

"Oh yeah that'd be great." Morgan smiled at the change that came over Kate at the mention of her pup.

"I'll get her and send Mildred in with some tea to settle your stomach." Walking over to the seated woman, Morgan leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "Now don't forget your promise."

"I won't."

Joining the duo at the counter, Bones asked how Kathryn was doing.

"She's okay. Like you said she's pretty shaken up."

"I'll go check on her and meet you outside in a few minutes." Bones said, heading for the stairs.

"Mildred, did Bones tell you what was going on?"

"He said Kathryn had a concussion and she'd seen a dead woman that she thought was you. Was there something else?"

"No that's about it. I don't want you to talk to Kathryn about this okay? Even if she brings it up you change the subject. I need to question both of you later and I don't want either of you comparing notes."

"Now Morgan dear, you know that poor child has just been through a very bad experience and she's going to want to talk about it. How am I supposed to stop her?" The older woman stood with her hands on her hips.

""It's pretty easy to change the subject on her; try talking to her about Janice. She's Janice's niece and she doesn't remember her. Tell her stories to keep her occupied until I get back. I told her if she needed me to call; if she needs to do that let her."

"Well I guess you know best, Morgan."

"Thanks Mildred, I really appreciate you doing this for me. I'll be back in an hour or so unless she needs me before then."

Stepping to the back of Bones' car, Morgan reached into the trunk extracting a cotton/paper jumpsuit like the one Bones was wearing. Zipping the jumpsuit she pulled her hair into a pile and slid a paper hair cover on her head. Leaning over they both ran their fingers roughly through their eyebrows and lashes to remove any loose hairs and taking strips of tape from the roll in the trunk they taped the sleeves of the suit to their wrists and repeated the action on their ankles. Bones grabbed the portable vacuum and Morgan, slinging the camera strap over her shoulder, took gloves, tape, and their booties and followed him to the door of the lab. Usually precautions like these weren't necessary but for the most part they had a clean crime scene; Morgan and Bones both secretly hoped they'd find something to break the case this time.

At the door Morgan leaned against the building, putting on a pair of the gloves as Bones did the same. They'd go in one at a time with Bones going first to run the vacuum around the doorway. Gloved, Morgan handed Bones his booties and steadied his shoulder while he jumped on one foot into the doorway and keeping his other foot outside the scene slipped the other bootie over his shoe.

Morgan entered the lab when Bones gave the clear signal. This was the first glimpse of the crime scene she'd had since rushing Kathryn out. From her position by the door she could understand why Kathryn thought the body was hers. It was sitting in a chair facing the table and from this distance all you could see was a female profile and long black hair.

Bones had finished vacuuming and was taking pictures of the body and surrounding areas when Morgan walked over for a closer look. From the front the corpse really did resemble her. The hair was shorter as was the dead woman but the features were sharp and angular like Morgan's; the nude figure also showed a similar musculature. From what Morgan could see the woman had to be a body builder of sorts or at least a long distance runner. The gaping wound in the abdomen showed almost no traces of body fat.

"I'm done here Morgan, are you ready to do the body?"

"Yeah, there's a box of gloves in the cabinet over the microscope. Change yours and do a nail scrape. Looks like there's something under the nails on the right hand. I'm going to do a once over on the clothes."

Morgan pulled a sheet of butcher's paper from the roll and spread it over the counter. Putting the shirt on a hanger above the paper she ran a comb over the shirt in slow, even strokes, a half smile forming on her face as pieces of debris fell onto the paper. After going over the shirt several times she dumped the contents of the paper into a plastic bag and labeled it with a felt tipped marker. She repeated the process on the other articles of clothing and placed them into another bag for the police.

"Hey Morgan come look at this."

Bones handed the penlight to Morgan and pulled the victim's eyelid back, palpating the eyeball he pointed out the swollen red vessels lining the eye. Pointing to the high cheekbones he indicated the faint traces of bruising and broken capillaries.

"Petechial hemorrhages?"

"Yeah that's what it looks like to me; she wasn't alive when she was gutted."

"You think she fought back?"

"It's possible. I got some good scrapes from the nails, looks like skin but we'll see on those. I think the hemorrhages will point towards her being smothered. What do you think, is our guy getting sloppy on us?"

"Seems to be on this one, loads of fibers on the clothes and the tracks outside. It doesn't fit with the usual M.O. I think we have him rattled. What are your thoughts on bringing the rest of the team in?"

"It's your call Morgan, but if you think it's one of us I'll bet you dinner there's going to be some marks on someone and if you let it ride we may lose a chance on seeing any evidence."

"I agree with you on that one Bones, but I need to call Baxter first. I want to keep the locals out of this one. They're not going to like the FBI taking jurisdiction over a case they haven't seen."

Morgan tore another piece of the butcher's paper from the roll and walked over to the corpse. Turning the chair around she laid the paper on the floor and leaned it backwards so Bones could brush out the hair.

"Could you fix time of death?"

""Not with any degree of certainty, rigor's come and gone. With the liver sitting in the lap I can't take an accurate internal, and the thermostat in here's been set to 50 degrees. Probably the closest I can get is 12 hours."

"That's what I figured. I closed up the lab at 7 last night, Kathryn and I left for dinner at 9, we got home a quarter after 3, and Kathryn found the body at 8:30. The lab was locked before I went to bed but I didn't notice if it was opened when I went jogging this morning. Kathryn said the door was open when she came over and the alarm lines were cut before the door was jimmied."

"Depending on where the body was picked up and how long it was kept before they brought her here, we could probably say roughly eight hours. Once I autopsy the body I'll be able to tell more but I think she was killed somewhere else and brought here then gutted. There's a small amount of blood pooling under the body, but not in the amounts I would expect to find if she were killed here." Bones furrowed his brows in thought.

"Let me call Baxter and see if we can yank this from the locals and if he approves it you can do the autopsy here. I have everything you'll need except for a gas chromatograph but we can get Bax to fly us one in if you need it." Morgan glanced from the body to Bones and back again.

"I'm going to need one, from the bruising around the nose and mouth I have a hunch she was chloroformed."

Morgan stripped off the jumpsuit and gloves as she walked into the office at the back of the lab. Reaching for the phone she pulled the cotton cap off her head and pushed the button to turn the scrambler on as she dialed Baxter's direct line.

"Baxter."

"Hey big guy, it's Morgan; we've got a situation here."

"What kind of situation?" Baxter's deep voice filtered through the line.

"I've got a body in my lab."

"Jesus Mary and Joseph on a raft, Morgan! What the hell's going on up there?" The velvet overtones shot up several notches as the director yelled into the receiver.

"I think we've rattled our guy, but that's not the situation. Bones is here and we've done the prelim on the scene. I haven't called the locals to report it yet and that's the situation. I want to keep them out of it, beyond letting them know we've got a homicide, I don't want them involved. No one on the scene and no reports filed on this one. We've got a clean scene here Bax and a shit load of trace. This could be the best chance we'll ever get for catching the perp; if the locals get involved they could mess this up."

"So what do you need from me?" Bax was back to his no-nonsense demeanor.

"I need a gas chromatograph for Bones and a call to the locals to clear us so he can do the autopsy," Morgan explained.

"Are you going to need access to the morgue?"

"No. I have everything he needs here but we'll need transport of the body when he's done."

"Alright, I'll make the arrangements and get back to you. Stay close to the phone."

"Thanks, Bax."

"You'll owe me for this one Morgan."

"Put it on my tab. I'll talk to you soon."

Morgan replaced the receiver and leaned back in her chair. This one was getting to her, she realized, taking a deep breath. It wasn't just that the woman looked like her and was found on her property. It was getting personal now and anything could happen. She wished Kathryn hadn't stumbled on the body. She liked the smaller woman and felt connected to her on a deeper level. It was a feeling she hadn't had in quite some time; she didn't feel that with Megan, hadn't felt it in fact since Mel had died. It was a feeling of having known someone all your life, maybe even beyond.

An unexpected feeling of dread washed over Morgan and she struggled to breathe. "Kathryn!" She didn't realize she'd said it out loud until the silence enveloped her again. Reaching across the desk, Morgan flipped a switch on the monitor mounted on the wall and watched as the video feed to the study linked. Mildred was standing over her desk hollering into the intercom box but nothing was being received in the lab because she wasn't pushing the talk button. Fingering the small joystick, Morgan panned the study but didn't see Kathryn anywhere. Angling the camera downward she spotted the crumpled heap lying below the video wall.

Morgan exited the lab at a dead run, not slowing down she took the stairs two at a time and burst into the study. Glancing at Mildred, she slid to her knees in front of Kathryn's limp form and pulled her into her arms.

"How long has she been out Mildred?"

"Since she couldn't see you on the screen anymore. I tried to call, Morgan, but you didn't answer. The poor dear… she's so pale. Is she going to be alright?" Mildred peered down at them both with motherly concern.

"She'll be fine; she's just had a bad shock and the concussion doesn't help any either." Morgan answered, standing and carrying Kathryn with her to the desk chair. "We didn't hear you because you have to hold down the talk button to make the intercom work." Morgan demonstrated by calling Bones.

"Bones, I need you to come check on Kathryn. She's been out for about 30 minutes."

"Open her eyes and see if the pupils dilate with the light."

Morgan peeled back each of Kathryn's eyelids and noted the pupils restricting.

"Yeah they restrict equally."

"She'll be okay. Give me a few more minutes here to finish up the fingerprinting and I'll come check on her. Just keep her warm in the meantime."

"Okay Bones, thanks."

Mildred piped up. "Why do you call that man Bones? He's not skinny you know?"

Morgan chuckled, "His real name is Leonard McCoy like the Doc on the old Star Trek shows. Captain Kirk always called the Doc Bones so we just picked up his nickname."

Mildred took the blanket from the couch and tucked it around Kathryn, looking into Morgan's worried face.

"You like her don't you?"

"She's a nice person."

"No, you like her, like Megan."

"It's not like that with Kathryn, Mildred. I can't explain how I feel about her right now, but I think we'll end up being good friends. Listen, while she's out I may as well question you. Did you see anyone around here this morning?" Morgan unconsciously reached out a hand and ran it gently over Kathryn's forehead.

"No. I didn't see no one; but then again I was working my flowers out behind the house. But I didn't hear no cars coming down the road." Mildred looked thoughtfully at the agent and scratched her chin as if it might help her concentration.

"What about really early this morning, say between 4 and 8?"

"No didn't hear nothing. I took a sleeping pill last night and turned in round bout 8. Didn't turn a hair 'til nearly 6 this mornin."

"Damn. Well there's nothing else you can do here so I guess you can head on back home. I need you to do something for me though; you can't talk about this to anyone okay? Not to Delores and not to any of your cronies at the post office. If you have to talk about it come to Kathryn or me, but no one else for the time being. Once we wrap this up you can be the first to fill everyone in." Morgan watched Mildred's face light up as she uttered the last statement.

"I understand but I'll be expecting you to keep your word; this is the biggest thing to hit the Island since Billy Joel was here last. She's not a local you know?" Mildred stated, pointing at the woman on the screen.

"I didn't think she was, she doesn't look familiar." Except she looks like me, Morgan added silently.

"She looks like she could be your sister. No wonder the poor dear was so frightened for you."

"It is spooky isn't it? She has brown eyes and she's a little shorter than me, but other than that we do resemble each other," Morgan agreed.

Bones walked into the room and Mildred excused herself to go home, saying she'd call later to check on Kathryn.

Shrinking away from the smelling salts, Kathryn was embarrassed to find herself once again held in Morgan's strong arms. She wrapped her arms around the taller woman's neck and hugged her with all her strength.

"I'm sorry Morgan I don't mean to be such a pain in the ass." Kathryn said, burying her face in the raven tresses, mixing them with her own blonde locks. Inhaling deeply, she recalled memories of her childhood. Morgan's scent reminded her of her Grandmother's kitchen on Christmas morning. Cinnamon and nutmeg mingled with a musky scent she'd come to recognize as purely Morgan. She found it comforting and wanted to stay right there forever, but realizing she might be making her uncomfortable she pulled away.

"You are most definitely not a pain in the ass, Little One." Morgan said, a little more emphatically than she intended. She pulled Kathryn's head back to her shoulder.

"I must be squishing you; I should get up." Kathryn sighed; she didn't really want to get up.

"You're not squishing me you're fine, now stop squirming around and relax. You've had a bad shock and I'm not letting you out of my sight until I know you're going to be okay." Morgan tried her best stern look.

Bones finished examining Kathryn and Morgan had just leaned back and settled her deeper in her lap when the phone rang.

"Sumners."

"Morgan it's Baxter; you've got the green light from the locals, they don't have the resources to cover a case like this. Just send over some pictures so they can help identify the victim. The gas whatever machine is on its way. Should be there within the hour."

"Great, thanks again Bax. I don't know what I'd do without you. I need the reports on everyone's activities for the last 36 hours and then I want the rest of my team here. Can you call them in?" She ran her fingers absently through the blond locks.

"Yeah that's the easiest thing you've asked for today. Let me know what turns up; I'll send the files over as soon as I get them."

Morgan hung the phone up as Kathryn yawned loudly.

"Bones is it okay for her to take a nap?"

"Only if someone stays with her."

"Do you need my help with the autopsy?"

"Naw I can handle it on my own."

"Okay then I'll stay with her, but call if you need anything." Morgan relaxed as she felt Kathryn settle in more comfortably next to her.

"Make sure you wake her every two hours; ask her what her name is and if she knows where she is. If she can't answer correctly come and get me." Bones said over his shoulder as he left the study.

"Think you can walk or do I need to carry you to bed?" Morgan asked with a smirk.

"I think I can make it home," Kathryn gave Morgan a playful punch.

"Nope you're not going home tonight; I told you I wanted you where I can keep an eye on you. Concussions can be nasty things, I've had a few myself."

Kathryn extricated herself from Morgan's arms, stood, and immediately fell to her knees.

"Guess that answers that question," Morgan said, smiling, and scooped Kathryn into her arms yet again.

Morgan nudged the door to the spare bedroom open and seeing no linens on the bed changed direction for her own bedroom.

"Looks like you'll be sleeping with me unless you'd be more comfortable in the spare room."

Surveying the room as Morgan laid her gently on the bed, Kathryn couldn't think of any place she'd rather be than here. It was done in deep blues and pale mauves. The seascapes hanging on the walls gave the room a nautical feel that went with the gentle motion of the waterbed. Kathryn stretched across the king-sized bed and told Morgan she couldn't imagine being any more comfortable than she was now.

"How about in a night shirt and out of those jeans?" Morgan raised a quizzical eyebrow in Kathryn's direction.

"Okay so that might make me more comfortable. Do you have a shirt I can borrow?"

"Nothing that would fit you. I usually sleep nude but I've got a T-shirt that will probably fit."

"Like a gown," Morgan added with a grin.

She rifled through the dresser and tossed a shirt at Kathryn.

"Marvin the Martian? I love him! He's my favorite cartoon character; I have a whole collection of Marvin stuff at home!" The younger woman looked delighted.

Kathryn swung her legs over the side of the bed and bent over to remove her tennis shoes, swooning she laid back and tried kicking them off her feet.

Morgan laughed as she watched the woman on her bed try to coordinate her feet enough to push her shoes off. Taking pity on her, she walked over and removed her shoes and socks. She reached for the button on Kathryn's jeans when she felt a small hand cover hers.

"Uh, I think I can do that part, I uh. I don't… "

"You don't wear underwear, yeah I know, I dressed you for bed last night remember?" Morgan grinned teasingly.

"Oh God I forgot about that!" She put her head in her hands but not before Morgan caught the mortified look and blush that crept up from Kathryn's shoulders to cover her face.

"It's okay Little One, it's not like I've never seen a naked woman before." Morgan laughed as she removed Kate's jeans and pulled the woman to a sitting position and undid the buttons on her shirt. Morgan's hands stilled for a second as the parting shirt revealed bare breasts; shaking a little she pulled the shirt off Kathryn's shoulders and slid the T-shirt in place. Reaching around Kathryn she pulled the covers back and settled the sleepy figure under the sheets.

"I'm going to take a quick shower. I'll leave the door open, you holler if you need anything."

"Mmrph." Came the muffled response from the figure huddled under the covers.

"I'll take that as an Okay." Morgan said, stripping off her own clothes and heading for the shower.

Morgan stood under the cool spray, trying to get her hammering heart under control. Kathryn affected her in ways she was sure would shock the woman if she knew. She wasn't conscious of her hands moving across her body until her nipples responded to her fingers, sliding her left hand lower, she slid through the wetness she found, stroking the heat into a raging fire and calling Kathryn's name silently in her head as she climaxed against her fingers.

"This is not good Morgan; you can't fall for a straight woman. You're going to get your heart broken, she's going to return home and you'll never see her again." Kathryn had told her about the boyfriend she'd left in Texas last night, Derek, a pilot for Continental Airlines. He wasn't around much but Kathryn said she thought she was in love with him.

Morgan continued berating herself as she lathered her sated body with the cinnamon and nutmeg soap. Rinsed, she stepped from the shower, dried off, and padded naked back to the bedroom. She set the clock for two hours and slid into the sheets next to Kathryn. She leaned over and kissed the woman on the forehead, lips lingering a few seconds longer than politeness called for and laid back, falling into a deeply troubled sleep.

Kathryn awoke as Morgan's lips brushed her head. She reveled in the feeling but maintained the premise of sleep until she heard the older woman begin to snore softly. Satisfied that Morgan was out she leaned up on one elbow and observed the woman lying next to her. This woman had brought feelings to the surface that Kathryn had never felt before. Derek was her first real boyfriend and even he had never made her feel as loved and protected as the woman lying next to her.

Sliding quietly closer she inhaled the scent of Morgan's soap and reached out a tentative hand to stroke the raven hair sprayed across the pillow next to her head. "So soft, and so beautiful, just like you." Kathryn whispered to the sleeping form. Mimicking Morgan's earlier movements she leaned over to kiss her. Instead of the forehead Kathryn wanted to know what it felt like to kiss the full lips slackened in sleep. As she lightly touched her lips to Morgan's she froze as long arms enveloped her, pulling her closer and deepening the kiss.

Kathryn's heart pounded as she felt Morgan's lips part, her tongue seeking entrance into her mouth. Her lips parted involuntarily allowing the probing tongue to circle her own. A rush of desire flowed through Kathryn as Morgan rolled her over and ran her hands across tightening breasts. A frustrated moan slipped unheeded from Kathryn's lips as Morgan pulled her lips away and rested her head on Kathryn's shoulder. Soft snores reached her ears and she realized that Morgan had slept through the entire encounter.

Kathryn wrapped her arms around Morgan's nude body and wondered how far she could explore that long frame before she would awaken. With thoughts of the kiss and what she wanted to do to her new friend running through her mind, Kathryn joined Morgan in the land of dreams.

Kathryn awoke to the hum of the alarm clock in the bookcase headboard. Reaching over her head, she silenced the buzz as Morgan wrapped her lanky form more firmly around her.

What was it the doctor said? Name and location? I'm Kathryn Dawn Peterson and I've come home.

Home? Yeah that's what this feels like. A feeling of peace and security that I've never felt before. Like the last piece of the puzzle has clicked into place. The kiss she had shared with Morgan had set sparks off in her body like nothing she had ever experienced before. She'd kissed a few men but none had touched the core of desire that one kiss with Morgan had ignited in her soul. Was this what she'd been missing all her life? There was a feeling of completeness that she felt while wrapped in Morgan's arms.

Kathryn thought back to other women friends she'd had over the years. She would not consider sleeping with any of them. Probably the closest she would have come to was in college. Her roommate, Tracey, was gay and very open about it. They talked about having an affair once, but Kathryn didn't have the same feelings for her and it would have ruined what was, today, a solid friendship.

With Morgan it was different. She was attracted to her on so many different levels that the feelings were scary. It wasn't so much the instant attraction she felt, as it was the sense of having lived this life with her before. She knew at that moment, with absolute certainty, that she was falling in love with Morgan Sumners.

Snuggling in closer, she rubbed her hands up and down Morgan's naked back, pulling the woman as close as possible without sharing the same skin. When Morgan shifted and tilted her face, Kathryn could no more resist kissing the soft lips before her than she could resist taking her next breath. It felt like the most natural thing in the world to her.

Morgan shifted; pushing her leg between Kathryn's as she drifted deeper into her dream.

She was standing in the kitchen making coffee when two slender arms captured her from behind. Turning her around, she pulled her head down for a kiss. Lips met as hearts beat a rapid staccato against chests molded together. Pulling back, Morgan gazed into Kathryn's eyes as long seconds passed in the green pools of desire. Sliding her arms around Kathryn's waist, Morgan picked her up from the floor and felt the shorter legs wrapping around her waist. Kathryn tightened her arms around Morgan's; neck pulling her lips in for another long, soul searing kiss as Morgan blindly walked the halls to the bedroom.

Setting Kathryn's legs on the floor, Morgan took a step backward and reached for the buttons on her shirt. Small hands clasped hers as Kathryn voice reached her ears in a breathy whisper.

"No, let me do that for you."

Morgan stood helpless as Kathryn's fingers undid the buttons of her shirt. One by one they opened, revealing more of Morgan's body to Kathryn's piercing gaze and curious mouth. For every button there was a kiss on the exposed skin; Morgan felt tingles running up her spine as Kathryn took an exposed nipple into her mouth. The shirt fell to the floor unheeded as a seeking mouth captured the swollen nipple neglected for its twin. Running her tongue around the hardened flesh she nipped with her teeth as moans of pleasure slipped from Morgan's mouth. Knees gave way and they found themselves on the cold tile of the bedroom floor. Neither cared as light met dark in a dance as old as time.

Morgan rolled Kathryn onto her back and straddled one of the shorter legs she found between her thighs. Never had she needed contact more than at this moment. Leaning up on her elbows, she offered her breasts to the waiting mouth below her as small fingers found the waistband of her shorts and slid them from her hips. Not wanting to break contact, but needing more than she was getting, Morgan stood and removed the shorts, leaving them in a heap by the forgotten shirt. She gazed down from her height above the sprawled form lying below her and saw unbridled lust glazing the green eyes raking her exposed body. Sinking to her knees, she once again captured the leg between her own as Kathryn's mouth devoured hers. She felt warm hands kneading her hanging breasts and then sliding lower, seeking entrance into the warm murky depths of her passion.

Parting her legs for the exploring fingers, Morgan gasped as Kathryn slid through her wetness finding and stimulating the bundle of nerves screaming for release. Morgan rolled to her side reaching between them to capture the hand, bringing her closer to where she wanted to be and guided the willing fingers inside her. Pushing Kathryn's shirt up with her free hand, Morgan suckled the inviting flesh that was scant inches from her face only moments before. Never letting up on the wrist she held, Morgan pushed Kathryn deeper inside her as she rode the wave of pleasure that finally broke inside her.

Kathryn pulled her lips away and froze as the arms encircling her released their grip. She was about to move away and feign sleep when her wrist was captured in the larger hand. Startled, she fought the urge to pull her hand away as Morgan guided it between her legs. Feeling the wetness and heat coming from the still sleeping form beside her, Kathryn surrendered to Morgan's desire. Gently, she explored the new territory opened to her. Sliding her fingers through the soft curls, she felt a jolt run through her own loins as Morgan gasped and moaned.

She had never touched herself the way she was now touching the sleeping woman lying half on top of her. Curious, she explored the depths of the opening beneath her fingers, feeling her own body becoming aroused as Morgan rode her arm and wrist.

Fingers stilled their motion as Kathryn felt Morgan raising her shirt and sucking her newly exposed nipples. Bringing her hand to her mouth, she tried to stop the groan she felt rising in her chest. She never wanted this feeling to stop and thought it couldn't get better, then she felt the hand around her wrist let go and slide between her own legs. All the blood in her body raced to meet the questing fingers stroking through the molten desire running from her throbbing center. Her hips matched rhythm with Morgan's as lips met and willing fingers completed their mission.

Kathryn rolled away from Morgan, petrified at what had just taken place. This whole thing had been entirely her fault. She had kissed Morgan. She had let it go farther. She knew Morgan was dreaming and still she let it go on, taking advantage of the obviously erotic images running through the sleeping woman's mind. How could she have done something like that? She wasn't the type of person to take advantage of anyone. What if Morgan had woken up? How could she possibly explain what was happening to the unsuspecting woman? Sorry Morgan you were dreaming and I kissed you and we had sex even though you didn't know what was going on. Hope it was as good for you as it was for me. She just hoped Morgan had slept through all of it. She didn't know how she'd face her if she didn't.

Morgan stirred as she sensed the loss of heat that was Kathryn's body against hers. Stretching, she opened her eyes and turned her head to look for her sleeping companion. Kathryn was on the other side of the bed with her back to her. Morgan lifted the sheet and slid up against Kathryn and ran her hand over her back, wanting to awaken her without startling her.

Emerald green met sky blue as Kathryn turned to face Morgan.

"Hey Little One. What's your name?"

"Kathryn. What's yours? Kate replied, trying to ease the anxiety that was building in her chest.

"Are you serious?" Morgan asked, her brows furrowed with worry.

"Naw, I was just kidding you Morgan. I know my name and where I am." Unable to resist she asked, "How did you sleep?"

"Like a baby. What about you? Did you have nightmares or anything?"

"No, no nightmares. I really didn't get any sleep. I dozed for a minute but something woke me and I couldn't go back to sleep. Did you know you snore?" Kathryn giggled.

"Oh God! No, I didn't know that. I must have been really tired. I hope that wasn't what kept you awake. You should have punched me or something to make me roll over."

"You rolled over on your own a few times. Don't worry, you don't snore that loud. Not enough to keep me awake anyway. I think I just had other things on my mind that kept me too occupied to sleep." Other things indeed, Kathryn thought.

"Umm, happens to me sometimes too. Listen, why don't you stay here and try to sleep while I finish up things outside? You can always call me if you need something. Just make yourself at home. I shouldn't be more than a few hours and if you want, after that, we can grab a bite to eat then catch a movie or something." Morgan tousled the platinum locks.

"Sounds like a plan." Kathryn smiled at Morgan, relieved that she didn't seem to know what had transpired.

"Good. I'll be back in a little while to check on you. Remember to call if you need anything." Morgan embraced Kathryn quickly then stood, dressed, and headed for the lab.

Kathryn lay contemplating the ceiling for awhile after Morgan left, once again running the stolen moments of passion through her troubled mind. Raising her hands to brush the hair from her face, she caught the scent of Morgan on her fingers. With a sigh, she left the bed and headed for the shower. Sooner or later, she was going to have to talk to Morgan about her feelings, but for now, later was soon enough.

Walking into the lab, Morgan smiled at her team. It was the hottest part of the day and yet the agents were all wearing suits and ties. Even Gin was wearing the stereotypical black FBI suit seen so often in the movies. Morgan imagined how uncomfortable they must be while she, on the other hand, was wearing her shorts and tank from earlier. She was going to have to put in a call to the surveillance team supervisor; she needed pictures of these people with their arms exposed. The skin she had found under the fingernails of the victim could belong to any one of them.

She had stopped in the study on her way over and was pleased to note that the agents had taken her talk to heart. No one mentioned the case; they were all waiting for her to get the ball rolling. This newest victim threw a wrinkle on the case she hadn't anticipated. She was going to have to fill them in as a group, and that meant possibly giving the murderer inside information. Even though she loathed doing it, she had no choice this time.

"Okay guys, here's what we have," She said, moving to the head of the table. "White female approximately 26 years of age. Time of death can't be established. Time of discovery 8:30 this morning. Bones thinks, and I agree, that she couldn't have been dead more than 8 hours before she was found. The body was left in the lab between 3 A.M. and the time it was discovered by my neighbor. The victim appears to have died from suffocation but was disemboweled here. We have quite a bit of trace evidence and even some fingerprints to work from. What I have in mind is splitting us up in teams of two. I want this worked as quickly but as accurately as possible." Morgan moved to the head of the table.

"Bones, I want you with John Stevens, working the autopsy results and victim identification. She's wearing a college ring. Notify the school and try to get a positive I.D. on her pic. Get them to send an annual if they have one with her in it. I want school records as well; we may have to use those to find her family."

"Gin, you and I will do the crime scene photos and fingerprint analysis. Contact Albert Grayson and have him give you access to the NCIC computers. You can do the search from the computer in the lab office." She nodded at the only other female agent.

"Walt, you're with Douglas Evans. I want the two of you doing hair and fibers. Send me any results no matter how insignificant you think they are." Morgan tapped her pen against the table.

"The same rules still apply here folks. You can talk to your partner, but no one else on the team and no media. I've contacted Baxter and the locals are out of this one. If they try to contact you, send them to Baxter or me. If you need to bring anyone else in, call me first. I'm going to turn this over to Bones and let him explain what was found in the autopsy."

Morgan stepped back as Bones took her position at the head of the table. Signaling Walt to follow her, she walked into the lab office. From the reports filtering in from the surveillance teams, she knew Walt wasn't her man. He was so predictable it was almost laughable. The man had no life to speak of. He ate his meals at the same time everyday. Wore suits by the same designer. Purchased gas at the same station. He even used the same stall in the men's room every time.

Closing the door behind him, Walt took the seat opposite the desk.

"Walt, I'm sorry if I was abrupt with you the other day. I know it pissed you off, but I need your help on this one. Do you have any idea what we've got here?"

"Yeah, we've got a wolf in FBI clothing."

"How long have you suspected that?"

"I thought about it with the last victim, but it really hit home with this one. You yanked someone's chain and they're letting you know about it."

"I have to ask you to do something for me, and I hope you'll understand my reasons. Will you remove your shirt?"

"I understand," Walt said, standing and removing his jacket and shirt. "You've ruled me out as a suspect but you haven't ruled me out."

"Yeah, something like that. No offense meant though."

"None taken. I'd probably do the same if I was in your position." Walt turned in a circle, holding his arms out for Morgan's inspection.

"Thanks. You can get dressed again. You have to find some way to get Douglas to expose his arms to you while your working. Bones and I will do the same with our crew. And watch the evidence, I don't want any of it to disappear. We've got scanned images of the fibers and fingerprints, but I want to have the originals when we go to trial."

"Who do you suspect?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I know who I don't."

"Who?"

"You, me and Bones."

"Why are you ruling out Bones?"

"He didn't try to cover up any of the trace when he did the initial examination. He pointed out the signs of chloroform, and the petechial hemorrhages that come with suffocation. All the stuff I wouldn't know to look for, he showed me. I watched him gathering the hairs and fibers, and he was extremely careful not to cross contaminate anything. I think our guy would take an opportunity like that to hide the evidence, not preserve it. Besides, he took his shirt off to put on the jumpsuit and he didn't have any marks on his upper body."

"Then Bones knows about the possibility of defensive wounds on one of us?"

"He knows what you and I know. That's why I split the teams the way I did. Each of us needs to watch our partners closely."

"I agree. We done here?"

"Yeah, let's get started."

Morgan and Walt re-entered the lab as Bones was wrapping up the autopsy summation.

"Thanks Bones. Okay guys, let's call this meeting to an end and get started. I want be updated daily. Gin, we'll be staying here to work. The rest of you are free to go."

Morgan waited until the others left before handing Gin the stack of scanned fingerprint pages.

"Do you think there's enough ridge detail to get a good tracing from these?"

"Do you have tracing paper here?" Gin asked, removing her jacket and reaching for the prints.

Morgan's eyes narrowed and she grasped Gin's arm.

"What happened here? Cat get you?" Morgan peered intently at the marks now exposed to her view.

"No, I was out taking some pictures and got tangled up in a mess of thorns." The woman answered immediately and seemed unaffected by the inquiry, but that didn't mean a damn thing as far as Morgan was concerned.

"Must have been a hell of a shot to risk getting this scratched up. We need to put something on these. It looks like an infection is starting." Handing Gin the tracing paper, Morgan told her she was going to the house to get bandages.

"You don't have to worry about it Morgan. I have some antibiotic spray at home. I'll clean it later."

"It's no trouble, and if you wait, the infection is going to get worse. I'll be right back. Why don't you get started on the tracings?" Morgan headed for the door.

"Okay."

Gin leaned back in her chair as Morgan exited the lab. Calling up an image of Morgan in her mind, she sighed, thinking of her boss. They had worked together on a few cases in the past and Gin had been attracted to her almost immediately. She'd been pleased that Morgan always requested her as a member of her team. Morgan's opinion of her work had become paramount to her self-esteem. If Morgan thought she was good, then she must be the best. Secretly, she hoped Morgan asked for her because she liked her, not her photography skills. Gin did some checking and found that Morgan's taste ran to the female sector and that meant she had a chance with her.

All of her fantasies centered on Morgan asking her out on a date and then taking her to bed. In her fantasy life, Morgan was the consummate lover; attentive to her every need and desire. She was always satisfied, and Morgan professed her undying love every time.

She knew that was the reason Morgan chose to work with her on this victim. They would spend all their time together, and Morgan would confess her attraction to her. Gin just knew Morgan would sweep her up in her strong sinewy arms and kiss her until she was breathless. That had to be the reason. Of course! It was so obvious now. Morgan wanting to treat her wounds was just an excuse to touch her. As if she needed an excuse! No, she didn't need an excuse. She was more than willing to have Morgan touch her anywhere and at any time. If she's too nervous to make the first move, I'll make it for her, Gin thought as Morgan walked back through the door.

Morgan walked into the study, her face brightening at the sight of Kathryn sitting at her desk watching the monitors.

"Hey Little One. Whatcha doing?"

Kathryn swiveled her chair to face the door, a smile lighting up her eyes at Morgan's unexpected arrival.

"I was getting bored waiting for you to come back, so I thought I'd see what you were up to."

"And now you're even more bored, huh?" The agent grinned.

"Not really. Who is she?" Kathryn asked, pointing at the monitor.

"Virginia Joseph. She's our crime scene photographer." Morgan answered, adjusting the camera angle and zoom to capture the scratches on Gin's arms.

"Why are you looking at her arms?"

"See those scratch marks?" Morgan pointed to the monitor and Kathryn leaned in for a closer look, her own arms brushing Morgan's lightly.

"Yeah."

"Well I suspect the killer we're tracking is a member of my team. The woman you found in the lab had skin under her nails."

"What difference does that make?" Kathryn looked up into the taller woman's face. She was still looking intently at the screen.

"When you find skin under a victim's nails, you think defensive wounds. Then you look at your suspects to see if they exhibit any such wounds." She glanced down and her eyes met Kathryn's inquisitive ones.

"So, that automatically makes her your killer?

"No, but it does make her a suspect."

"How do you prove it isn't her?" Morgan smiled. Kathryn was nothing if not curious, and she seemed genuinely interested in the answer.

"That's the tricky part. I have to get a blood or tissue sample to compare to the scrapings. If I do this next part just right, I may get lucky."

"What's the plan?"

"See that short gash close to her elbow?" Kathryn studied the monitor for a second before answering.

"Yeah?"

"I'm going to pick some of the skin away from it and stitch it closed. Hopefully, I'll get enough of a sample to do a comparison."

"Ugh. I think I'll try to miss that scene."

"Probably be for the best. Don't move the cameras though, okay? I want to catch all this on video in case we need it for a trial."

"Ok."

"How you feeling anyway? I forgot to ask."

"Much better. I took a shower and played with the pups a little, but I am getting hungry. How much longer are you going to be?"

"Probably at least an hour, but I can get her to come back tomorrow. There's nothing that we're doing that I can't put off overnight."

"Don't put it off; I can wait another hour or so." Kathryn's stomach rumbled loudly in protest and she looked sheepishly at Morgan. "No matter what my stomach says."

Laughing, Morgan reached over and patted her arm. "I'll make it quick, I promise. If you want, there's stuff in the pantry to snack on. Like I said earlier, make yourself at home. Be back soon."

Morgan grabbed her medical bag from the closet in the study and raced back to the lab.

Hopping up on the table, Morgan moved the tracing out of the way and placed Gin's arm on her lap.

"This looks bad Gin. It's going to need a few stitches. Are you allergic to Zylocaine?"

"Not that I know of, but I can get that done at the hospital. You don't have to bother. Really." It was a weak protest, as Gin was more than happy that Morgan wanted to bother with it.

"I've done this many times. It's no trouble, so stop worrying about it." Morgan positioned the arm where she thought she'd need it and waited for the other woman's consent before continuing.

"Many times, huh? You aren't going to hurt me, are you?"

Do you trust me?"

"Honestly? I don't know. I want to though." In more ways than just this, Gin thought ruefully.

"Go with that feeling. Just don't look while I deaden and stitch. It will be over before you know it."

Morgan knew the fates were with her as she watched Gin slump unconscious in her chair. The sight of the needle going in her arm had effectively solved Morgan's dilemma of taking a tissue sample. Grabbing a slide and fixative from the shelf over the microscope, she carefully cut three sections of flesh from the arm. She set the glass covers gingerly over the sample, slipped the slides in her pocket and tossed the bottle of fixative across the lab as Gin began stirring.

"Welcome back. Are you okay?" She looked down at the disoriented woman.

"Are you done?"

"Nope, I was worried about you. I didn't think to finish while you were out. Don't look this time, and I'll try to make it quick."

Gin groaned as Morgan finished stitching the wound and bandaged the arm.

"See? It wasn't that bad now, was it? I did such a good job that you won't even have a scar when those come out." Morgan smiled.

"How long is that going to take?"

"I can take them out for you in a couple of weeks."

"What can I do to make this up to you?"

"You don't have to do anything. It was my pleasure." In more ways than one, Morgan thought, quite pleased with the way things had turned out for her.

"Still I feel obligated. How about I take you out to dinner?" Gin held her breath, hoping for a favorable response from the beautiful woman in front of her.

"That would be nice. Let me know when you want to go. You ready to get started on the photos?"

"Sure, point me in the direction of your darkroom." Gin was elated, Morgan had agreed to go out with her. Her plan would work after all. And maybe, just maybe, after dinner her fantasies would come true as well.

"Actually, I was hoping you could teach me how to do the developing. I've had the darkroom since I built the lab but I've never learned to use it."

"Sure. It's not all that complicated really. You just have to watch what you're doing." They entered the small room, closed the door, and went to work.

Morgan leaned against a table opposite Gin and watched as she selected several bottles of chemicals and started mixing them in the black tubs on the bench. She knew all about developing pictures, but she wanted to keep the dialog to safe ground. She was waiting to see Gin's reaction to the pictures, especially the footprints.

"So, you said you were taking pictures when you got hurt. What do you shoot?"

"Mostly nature scenes. I like unusual rock formations and I have some really great pics of malformed trees."

"I usually take my camera along when I sail. I love the storms that come up on the ocean."

"I wouldn't have guessed that you liked photography."

"It's not a serious hobby for me; I prefer to paint. I usually take the pictures to paint by later."

"Painting, huh? Oil or watercolor?" Gin was inwardly pleased that the conversation was becoming somewhat personal.

"Mostly oil. Watercolors are harder to master and messier. What about you? Have you always been interested in photography?"

"Pretty much. I picked it up in high school and seemed to have a knack for it. Then in college, I decided to make it a career. I wanted to be a photo journalist, but soon found out that writing wasn't my forte."

"How did you get started with the FBI?"

"An agent came to my school to give a lecture, and afterwards we talked. I was intrigued by the stories he told and asked if there were any photography jobs with the Bureau. He put me in touch with Walt and the rest, as they say, is history."

"Right place, right time, huh?"

"Pretty much. But I'm glad he talked to me. I love this job and it's a much better career than photo journalism."

"Where did you go to college?" Morgan found the woman to be quite easy to make small talk with and hoped to glean some sort of an unintentional personality profile from the conversation.

"Southern Illinois University. How about you?"

"I went to Harvard."

"Have you always wanted to be a criminal psychologist?"

"No, actually I always wanted to be a singer."

"You're even further from what you wanted to be than I am. Not much call for singers at crime scenes."

Morgan laughed. "No, haven't had anyone ask for a singer on a scene yet."

"So, why profiling?"

"Long story. My brother was murdered by a serial killer that was never caught. Back then, I was more idealistic than I am now. I thought if I went to school and learned the trade, I could do what the Bureau couldn't do, and catch him. Didn't work out that way though. As far as I know, he's still at large and unidentified." For a moment Morgan was lost in her own thoughts and nearly jumped when Gin's voice broke the silence that had elapsed.

"So, why don't you work for us full time?"

"I don't want to be tied down to one place. I like having the freedom to roam when and where I want. If I had a full time job, I couldn't do that."

Morgan walked up behind Gin as she started to process the footprint pictures and placed her hands on her shoulders, leaning over her. She was amused at Gin's reaction. A slight gasp escaped her lips and then she'd relaxed against Morgan with a sigh. Curious, Morgan thought, Wonder if I can play this angle. If she's attracted to me, I can get her to open up. Kathryn popped into her mind as she wondered about the best way to seduce the red headed photographer. Why did she feel like she would be cheating on Kate with Gin? They were friends, not lovers. There was no reason she should feel that she was cheating. She didn't want Kathryn to know about her lifestyle, and that was a problem. She would ask questions if she started dating Gin. Morgan wasn't in the closet by any means, but she wasn't a flag waver either. Not knowing how Kathryn felt about gays, she didn't want to broach the subject and raise suspicions.

The phone ringing in the lab interrupted her thoughts and, with a sigh, she patted Gin's shoulder and walked from the room.

"Sumners."

"Morgan, it's Bones. I have some good news and some bad news for you. We ran the skin samples through the lab, and it belongs to the victim. Dead-end on that one. The fibers are more promising, though. We have several carpet fibers that are definitely from a vehicle. We're trying to match them to a manufacturer now."

"Damn. Well, thanks for the update. We're about finished with the pictures; I'll scan them and send them over. Try to identify the tread pattern from the shoes. Maybe we can catch a break there. Any more bad news?"

"Nope, that's it. I'll be in touch."

"Okay. Talk to you soon."

Morgan replaced the receiver and walked back to the developing room.

"Bad news. The skin matches the victim's."

"Too bad, but maybe we'll catch a break on something else." Gin was busy putting the caps back on the bottles and replacing them on the shelves.

"Yeah maybe. Hey, you want to do dinner tomorrow night?" Morgan thought she might as well get the ball rolling as soon as possible.

"Sure, want to meet somewhere or should I come here?"

"Why don't you meet me at the Rhumbline, say…seven?"

"Perfect." Gin didn't try to hide her smile.

"Good. If we're finished up here, you can head on home. I'll clean up later."

"I'm done, but I can stay and help you if you want."

"Not necessary. I need to make some calls and finish some paper work. Let's just call it a night."

"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow night then."

Morgan walked Gin to her car then secured the lab before going to the house.

Walking through the house, Morgan looked for Kathryn and found her on the balcony staring at the ocean.

"Hey Little One, what's on your mind?" Morgan's voice drifted on the breeze and settled comfortably in Kathryn's ears.

She turned to see Morgan reclined against the doorway. "You know my dad calls me that."

"Nope, didn't know that, but it fits you. You are pretty little, even considering how much you eat."

Kathryn smiled. Her eating habits had earned her more than a few raised eyebrows over the years and was a standing joke with her friends.

"Must be nice to live right on the ocean like this. It's really beautiful at night." Kathryn sighed. She felt completely at peace and was looking forward to spending a little quiet time with Morgan.

"Yes it is. You ready to grab a bite or do you want to stay in?" Morgan smiled. She already knew the answer to the first part.

"I would say stay in, but you don't have anything to eat except T.V. dinners and I'm starving."

"How about an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet then? Think they'll have enough to fill you up?"

Kathryn brightened at the suggestion. She loved Chinese, but she loved buffets even more.

"Great!"

"Let me change and we'll head out. What do you think about renting a movie to watch when we get home?"

"Sounds like a plan. You aren't the blood and guts type of movie person, are you?"

"Not usually. I see plenty of that in real life; I don't need Hollywood's distorted version. I lean more towards comedies or romantic movies."

"Me too. Maybe they'll have something neither of us have seen before."

Kathryn trailed Morgan to the bedroom and waited as she changed. Sitting on the bed, she wondered if she should ask to sleep in the spare room that night. The sight of Morgan in her faded blue jeans and form fitting T-shirt erased the thought from her mind. She hoped Morgan would pick a romantic movie for the night. Morgan laced her boots and they left for the restaurant.

Morgan smirked at Kathryn as she plopped down on the sofa and unbuttoned her shorts.

"Guess they didn't know when they advertised an all-you-can-eat buffet that you could eat it all. Bet they had to close when we left to re-stock the refrigerators!" Morgan teased her good-naturedly.

"Hey! It's not my fault that you left me here alone all day practically wasting away to nothing. Besides, it was a great restaurant. I haven't had Chinese food that good in a long time."

"It's always been one of my favorite places to eat on the Island. I'm going to change into something more comfortable. Why don't you start a movie?" Morgan turned in the direction of the bedroom.

"Which one do you want to see first?" Kathryn sifted through the plastic boxes in her hands.

"What were our choices again?"

"Step-mom, Beaches or Fried Green Tomatoes. What do you want first? Drama or comedy?"

"Let's go with a drama. Save the comedy for last. You picked nothing but tearjerkers. Are you going to need tissues?"

"Probably."

"I'll bring some with me. Be right back."

Morgan returned, clad in a midnight blue silk robe and handed Kathryn a box of Kleenex. Dimming the room lights, she asked, "Want some coffee? I was going to make a pot, but if you don't want any I'll heat some instant."

"Coffee sounds good. Do you have any microwave popcorn?"

"Yep! Popcorn and coffee coming up."

Morgan and Kathryn sat on opposite ends of the sofa as Beaches started. Kathryn threw a kernel of popcorn at Morgan when she made a crack about the lead child's hair and was surprised when she ducked her head and caught it in her mouth. "How do you do that?" led to "I have many skills." Which led to two kernels coming Morgan's way. Catching two led to three and then to a contest to see just how many she could catch at one time. Four was her limit and the pups cleaned the rest from the floor.

Morgan jerked as Kathryn ran her finger up the sole of her foot. "Ticklish, huh?"

"Nope."

"Oh yeah you are." Kathryn said, grabbing Morgan's foot and raking her nails up and down the bottom.

Morgan squirmed and grabbed Kathryn's wrist. Rolling over, she pinned the blond beneath her and attacked her ribcage.

"Two can play this game," Morgan purred in her ear as she rested the full weight of her body against Kathryn's wiggling frame.

"Stop!" Kathryn sputtered, "I'm going to wet myself and your couch."

Morgan released her and Kathryn rolled them over pinning Morgan beneath her this time. Wrapping her shorter legs around Morgans, she proceeded to return the rib attack. "You are a sucker…did you know that?"

Morgan wrapped her arms around Kathryn and looked into the emerald green eyes now staring seriously back at her.

"I'm only a sucker for certain people."

"Are you now?" The smaller one grinned.

"Of course, I can also be just the opposite. I do have many skills you know."

"I can see that. You can be intimidating, especially with your line of work. You are quite an imposing figure you know?"

"It comes in handy sometimes. Especially when I have a reluctant witness. I just turn the look on them and they spill their guts."

"Oh God, lets don't talk about gut spilling." Kathryn shuddered, remembering the body she'd found that morning.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bring up bad memories." Morgan wrapped her arms tighter around Kathryn and was pleased when she laid her head on her shoulder.

"It's okay. I'll probably have nightmares for awhile, but they'll go away eventually." Kathryn inhaled the intoxicating scent of cinnamon and nutmeg deeply into her lungs. God this woman smelled great. She knew she should move, but it felt so good to lay there and Morgan wasn't complaining. Releasing her hold on Morgan's legs, she relaxed further in the embrace and settled in to watch the movie.

The movie ended and both women stood, heading for bed. Walking to the dresser, Morgan selected drawstring boxer shorts and a tank top for Kathryn to sleep in and went to the closet to hang her robe.

Kathryn's own modesty forced her to the bathroom to change as she caught sight of Morgan's nude body. Evidently, modesty wasn't something Morgan gave thought to. But she admitted to herself that she liked admiring the agent's body, though not nearly as much as she'd liked touching her earlier. She wondered if Morgan would have a repeat of the dream and was shocked as she realized she was hoping she would.

She hadn't been adamant about her sexuality, but she hadn't been forthcoming either. If Morgan had said she was gay, or even bi, Kathryn knew without a doubt that they would be going to bed for very different reasons than sleep. She knew she wanted Morgan, but had no idea how one went about seducing another woman. Maybe a call to Tracey was in order. She could offer some advice in that department. Dressed, she returned to the room finding Morgan already under the covers with her hands behind her head contemplating the ceiling.

"Penny for your thoughts."

"Just a penny? You're an heiress. Surely you can afford a dollar," Morgan smirked, raising the covers for Kathryn to slide into the bed.

"For a dollar, you better have some very interesting thoughts. Otherwise, I'm gonna want a refund."

Morgan didn't know about that. She'd been thinking of the blond and how much she liked her. How much she was beginning to desire her. These were probably not thoughts that Kathryn would want to hear. No doubt she'd race to catch the first flight off the Island. Morgan didn't know how long she'd be able to hide her feelings from the woman lying beside her, but she'd try for as long as possible. She wanted Kathryn in her life, even if they remained nothing more than friends.

Something about the little architect sparked a protective streak in her and she liked caring about someone again. It had been way too long since she'd cared for anyone, including herself. When Megan left she withdrew into herself, shying away from friends and family. She threw herself into her job and had little time for anything else, pushing her reserves to the limit trying to hide from the loneliness. With Kathryn, she found she liked sharing her bed and that was a startling revelation. She'd always preferred to sleep alone. Even Megan preferred it that way. They would meet in each other's bed to make love, but always returned to their own when it was over. With Kathryn, she liked knowing there was someone beside her.

"Yo…Morgan." Kathryn said, waving her hands in front of Morgan's face. "Do I need to run next door for my green lantern secret decoder ring?"

"Huh? Decoder ring? What the hell are you talking about?"

"You're concentrating so hard on the bumps in the ceiling I thought there must be a secret message in the texture."

Morgan chuckled, "Nope, no secret message. I was thinking that sometimes the fates do get it right. Like our meeting. It happened at a time when I really needed a friend. And I think you did too."

"I needed a vacation. The friend was just an added bonus. But it's going to be hard to leave here when my break is over. I'm going to miss you when I have to go back home." Kathryn wiped a tear from her eye before it ran down her cheek, glad Morgan hadn't taken her eyes from the ceiling.

"Yeah, I'm going to miss you too. It's funny, huh?"

"What's funny?"

"That I didn't know you three days ago and yet I've known you my entire life."

"You feel that way too? I thought I was going crazy or something. But I know just what you mean."

Morgan turned her gaze back to the ceiling, knowing if she continued looking into those green eyes she was going to tell Kathryn she was falling in love. She didn't have time for that right now. She had to put the case first. The way she'd been distracted by Kathryn today was very out of character for the dedicated profiler. Under normal circumstances, she'd never take a nap in the middle of the day. If one of her team members had tried that they would have woken up on the unemployment line.

And Gin. What was wrong with her, stopping to consider Kathryn's feelings instead of seducing the woman? She did what the case called for. Every time. No exceptions. Until now. Now she was dividing her mind between the case and the woman she was starting to believe had hung the moon. Could she do both? If worse came to worse, could she choose? Would she choose? She didn't need the job, but she did need Kathryn.

Her safe haven. That's what Kathryn had become, a place to calm the raging storm inside her soul. Without hesitation, she knew that she could lose herself in Kathryn and still remain whole. She'd never experienced that with any woman before. There had been a few women to share her bed, but none had shared her heart. Megan had come closer than anyone had but Morgan thought it was because they both valued their independence. It wasn't until Megan became clingy that the relationship soured. The more she wanted Morgan's undivided attention, the more she'd pushed her away. Reflecting on the end, Morgan wondered if she missed Megan or just missed having someone around. She'd loved her, but she hadn't really loved her. Not the way Megan needed to be loved.

Still, if Megan returned tomorrow, she'd take her back. Megan knew her in ways Kathryn didn't. In ways Kathryn never could. She knew the demons that lived with her, understood the need for vengeance that drove her. Kathryn couldn't touch that core of hatred and remain unscathed. Morgan didn't want her to see the dark places in her soul that thrived on hate. Kathryn was purity and light. Morgan didn't want to taint Kathryn with her blackness.

"Morgan?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you going to answer that or do you want me to?"

The phone ringing finally broke into Morgan's consciousness and she reached for the receiver.

"Sumners."

"Morgan it's Bones. We've got a copycat."

"What?" Morgan asked incredulously. "What the hell happened between here and there to bring you to that conclusion?"

"She was sexually molested."

"Why didn't you bring that up here?"

"I couldn't be sure until I had a gynecologist in to look. But that's not all, Morgan she had something carved into her abdomen. I think that's why she was gutted, to erase the marks."

"Can we piece together what was there?" Morgan was sitting up now, concentration evident in her features.

"No, but it looks like words. Like the killer carved a message in her, then changed his mind and tried to cut them away."

"That's not our guy. He wouldn't do that. The trace concerned me, but this really doesn't fit his M.O."

"The funeral home is coming to take the body. Do you want to look at it before then?"

"Is it going to talk to me?"

"I don't know Morgan. I don't pick up the vibes like you do."

"What time is the hearse coming?"

"It'll be here in about 2 hours or so."

"I'll be there. Don't let them leave with her."

"We'll hold her. Just hurry every chance you get."

"I will. Bye."

Hanging up the phone, Morgan turned to Kathryn; "I have to run into town. Get dressed."

"Why can't I stay here?"

"Are you going to use a gun if I give you one?"

"You know I won't."

"Then you're coming with me. I don't want you staying here by yourself."

"Morgan, I'm a big girl. I can stay by myself for a few hours."

"There's a killer out there somewhere. Do you really want to stay here and end up like that woman you found this morning?"

"Enough said. Where are we going?"

"To the town morgue." Morgan answered, tossing a pair of sweats on the bed for Kate. "Put these on, it's going to be cold in there."

"Harvard?" Kate asked. "Didn't know I was keeping such prestigious company."

"I don't think of it that way. They had the best criminal program so I chose them. Nothing about prestige was involved in that decision." Morgan's brow furrowed; did Kathryn really think she would pick a school based on the name alone? Morgan turned from Kathryn and let her long stride carry her down the hall to the closet.

"Hey, I was just kidding. I went to Yale, it's not like I have room to talk." Kathryn had to run to catch up to Morgan. She didn't know what had set her off, but she didn't like the look she saw on her face as Morgan turned her back and fled down the hallway. Placing her hand on Morgan's arm, she saw the determined set to the finely chiseled jaw and wondered if Morgan would change her mind and leave her here alone.

Instead, Morgan turned and wrapped her arms around Kathryn. Burying her face in the honey blond locks she whispered, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you. I have a lot on my mind right now; this case is wearing thin on my nerves. Forgive me?"

"Of course. I'm sorry too. I know it's been a rough day. I didn't mean to make it worse." Kathryn returned the hug, pulling Morgan tightly against her trying to tell her what she couldn't say.

Morgan pulled her black leather bomber jacket on and handed Kathryn a chocolate brown matching one. Megan had forgotten to pack it and Morgan admired the way it fit Kathryn, the brown bringing out the blond in her hair even more. She resisted the urge to whistle in appreciation as she ushered Kathryn to the garage.

"Morgan?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't want to piss you off again, but why did you get mad about the Harvard remark?"

"I wasn't mad at you… I've taken a lot of flack about going there from my family. I didn't come from a wealthy family; I had to work my way through school. If it weren't for scholarships and odd jobs, I wouldn't have made it. I think my family resents that I've done so well for myself."

"I heard you talking to Gin about your brother. He was killed by a serial killer?"

"Yeah, he was one of the few male victims of the zodiac killer."

"They never caught him right?"

"No, they had several good leads and quite a few suspects. I think it was close to 2500 at one time. Once, a cop stopped him right outside a crime scene and he sent them on a wild goose chase. Later, the cop couldn't identify him from a line-up. That was before my brother. If the cop had been paying more attention, he would have seen all the blood on the perp and maybe my brother would be alive now. I was devastated by his death. He was the only one in my family that I was really close to. I was a change of life baby for my mother, and I don't think she wanted me. Matthew raised me until he left home. I was 10 when he died, and from that moment on, I knew that I wanted to work for the FBI."

"God Morgan, I'm so sorry. Do you keep in touch with your mother or father now?"

"My dad died ten years ago and my mother and I were never close. After dad passed away, we quit even trying to keep up pretenses. I hear from her every now and then, mostly when she needs money. She started drinking when Matt died and after dad, it got much worse. During the last year when we were talking, she was never sober when I called. Didn't seem to matter what time it was, she was always drunk."

"Do you have other siblings?"

"I have an older sister."

"Do you ever see her?"

"Not for a few years. She's taken a vow of silence and until that's over we won't talk to each other. She used to write, but that tapered off after awhile."

"A vow of silence?"

"Mmm, she's a nun. She told me she wanted to get closer to God, so she took the vow."

"And you don't write her now?"

"I don't really have much to talk about to her. Our lives are too different. We can't relate to each other. She believes in "forgive and forget" and I believe in "an eye for an eye". There's no common ground for us anymore."

"What about you? Do you have any family besides your dad?" Morgan glanced briefly at Kathryn as the light changed to green and they made a left at the intersection.

"Not that I know of. But, then again, I didn't know about Aunt Janice, so I guess it's possible. I'm an only child and both sets of grandparents passed away a long time ago. I used to wish I had a sister or brother when I was a kid, even made up an imaginary sister for awhile, but I outgrew that phase. I know it hurt my dad while I was going through that. We both missed my mom so much and, I think, he thought he was failing me by not having more children. I'm sure they would have if my mom had lived."

"So, your dad never remarried?"

"No, I don't think he ever will. He doesn't date anymore. Guess he's given up on trying to find someone like mom." A breeze from the open window blew a few strands of hair onto Morgan's cheek and Kathryn resisted the urge to brush it gently away.

"Are you ready for this?"

"For what?"

"We're here." Morgan said, turning into the driveway of a large gray building. The headlights of the land cruiser picked up the peeling paint and faded lettering above the door.

"Whose idea of a joke was that?"

"Was what?"

"Meklenburg's Meat Market? Is that what you Yankee's name your morgues? Meat markets? That's disgusting."

Morgan grinned at the look of horror on Kate's face. "I'm not a Yankee. I'm from San Francisco, and it's just temporary. The morgue burned down last year, so the county rented this building until the new facility is finished. This place already had freezers and floor drains, so it seemed the perfect place. Care to guess what it was before the county took it over?"

"I don't think I want to know."

"It was a singles bar. They left the name the same. Didn't last long."

"I can understand why."

Kathryn slammed the truck door and followed closely behind Morgan as she walked the corridors of the morgue. The building was dark and had a smell Kathryn couldn't place. It was like disinfectant, copper, and something acrid. She put her hand over her nose and mouth trying not to inhale the scent. Her eyes were burning and tears flowed down her cheeks.

Morgan didn't notice the smell; years of walking morgue halls had made her immune to the sights and scents. She rounded the corner and entered the autopsy suite. Bones was waiting with the funeral home attendants and she nodded at him before turning to Kathryn.

"I need you to sit on that stool in the corner. I'm going to ask you not to say anything for awhile. I'm not being mean or anything; I just need some quiet time with her. If you feel faint or anything, signal Bones."

"Okay. I'll be fine though, don't worry. I won't fall apart on you again."

"Thanks. It won't take long. I promise." Morgan wrapped her arm around Kathryn's shoulder for a half hug before sending her to the corner. Walking to the men standing by the table, she addressed the funeral home attendants.

"Can you guys step outside? We'll call you when I'm done here."

Morgan waited until they left before questioning Bones.

"Okay, tell me about the sexual molestation."

"There's no semen present or signs of penile entry. From the tearing and what look to be scratches inside the uterus, it appears she was fisted."

"Fisted? What the hell does that mean?"

""Pretty much what it sounds like, the hand is balled into a fist and forcefully inserted into the vaginal opening. From what the ob-gyn said, the perp opened his hand once inside the uterus and scratched the uterine lining."

"Was she alive during this?"

"She was alive for everything except the disembowelment. That was post-mortem."

"Jesus…"

Morgan pulled the sheet away from the body and took the cold hand in hers. This was the first time she had touched the corpse and sometimes she thought the bodies talked to her. Not literally of course, just some idea of what happened and where she needed to go from there. She had cases where one look told her more about the perp than she sometimes wanted to know. She wasn't getting anything from this woman. Disappointed, she released the hand and studied the face, noting the similarities with her own once again. She wondered if this is what she looked like sleeping. Eyes closed, face slack with raven hair fanned under her shoulders. Letting her eyes travel downward, she examined the caterpillar like stitches in the woman's abdomen.

"What are these Bones?"

"Those are the letters I was telling you about. We pieced them together from the tissue that was cut away. As close as we can determine, the letters travel in a straight line downward from below the breast area to the navel region. Before they were cut away during the gutting, we believe they said L. U. S."

"L.U.S.? What does that mean? Think he was trying to spell out lust?"

"We found what appears to be periods after each letter. Doesn't look like he was spelling any particular word."

"His initials maybe?"

"Could be. Want me to have Gin run them through the known sex offenders database?"

"No, I'll tell her tonight. Was there anything else you wanted to show me?"

"Yeah, we got a partial print from her neck, but I'm going to run that one myself. Here's the toxicology report." Bones handed Morgan the printout and pointed to one item close to the bottom. "See this? That drug paralyzes the body, vocal cords and all, but heightens the pain receptors. This one here keeps the victim awake. She knew everything that was happening to her but couldn't cry out or move to defend herself. Both drugs will wear off within hours but remain in the bloodstream for days."

"So, what we have thus far is, she was tortured while drugged, killed at another location by suffocation, and gutted at my place?" The agent frowned.

"Right."

"We need to find the other crime scene. Anything show up that would give us a clue where to look?"

"We found one blond hair that, on microscopic, shows to be from a wig. It's a synthetic manufactured by Wigs Express. They're a mail order company out of California; Douglas is getting a search warrant for their records. We should get that back in a week or so."

"Good. What about the skin under the nails, you said it was hers. Any ideas on that?"

Bones turned the corpse onto its side and pointed out several deep scratch marks on the back. "She had her hands tied behind her back at one point. I think she may have struggled with the ropes and scratched herself trying to get loose."

"Makes sense. Anything else?"

"Nope that's all we have."

Tell the funeral guys they can have her. I'm heading home. If you come up with anything else, give me a call."

"Okay, drive safely."

"Always do," Morgan answered, looking toward Kathryn's sleeping form in the corner. "Hope I don't have to carry her to the truck. She sleeps like the dead."

"Has she been doing a lot of that since this morning?" Bones inquired, worried about the concussion she'd suffered. Sleeping too much was always a bad sign.

"Not really. She said she didn't sleep long when she took a nap. She's been alert and for the most part lucid all night. The head injury certainly hasn't affected her appetite, she eats like a horse."

"I do not eat like a horse!" Kathryn interjected from the corner; "I just have a healthy appetite."

"If it gets any healthier, Diner's Club is going to issue her a gold card." Morgan whispered to Bones.

"Come on Little One, let's go home. We're finished here."

Morgan waited as Bones looked Kathryn over once again and then made her way through the meat market to the truck.

"What did you mean when you asked Bones if the body would talk to you?" Kathryn inquired as they made their way through the darkened streets towards home.

"It's an old forensic term; the dead speak for the living. Sometimes you can get the corpse to tell you who killed them or how they killed them. Clues to lead you to the next step. I've had cases where the bodies spoke volumes about their killers."

"Doesn't it bother you to look at all those bodies?"

"Sometimes more than others. Like today, I know that woman died because of me. It's a waste of human life to kill someone like that. Knowing she was killed for no other reason than that she looks like me. Wondering if she'd still be alive had I made other decisions? Wondering why a copycat picked me out of the crowd. That's what makes this job so hard. Not knowing if what you're doing is the right thing." Morgan looked troubled.

"You shouldn't beat yourself up over this. There probably wasn't anything you could have done to prevent her from being killed." Kathryn reached over and put a reassuring hand on the agent's arm.

Morgan knew it was her fault the woman died and she had a gut feeling that she could have prevented it if only she'd done something differently. "You're probably right. It's just really hard sometimes to uphold the professional detachment needed to do this job."

"I don't see how you do it at all, let alone stay detached. Human nature has to enter into it somewhere. The need to help those who couldn't help themselves."

"That's a large part of what keeps me up nights. I want to see justice for the ones that need it most. Families and friends always want to see these killers go to jail so they can feel better about themselves, so they can feel the killers get what they deserve. I want to see justice done for the victims; I want to believe they know someone was out there doing what was needed for them."

"Righting wrongs and making the world a safer place for all of us. That's an awesome burden for any person to carry around by themselves."

Morgan pulled the truck into the garage, and shutting off the motor and headlights, she turned to look at Kathryn. She had such a trusting look on her face and it broke Morgan's heart to know that this woman had more faith in her than she had in herself.

"I carry it alone because I can. Let's hit the sack, I'm worn out and you must be exhausted too."

Kathryn let the subject drop, knowing that she'd pushed Morgan farther than she should have. They could have this conversation later when they were both more comfortable with each other. "I passed exhaustion about two hours ago. I'm running on sheer determination right now."

"And just what are you so determined about Little One?" Morgan asked with a smirk.

"I'm determined to stay awake and walk into that house under my own steam. I think I've been carried around like a sack of potatoes more than enough for one day."

"Good, I don't have the energy to carry you up the stairs again. I'd have to drag you up by your feet and that wouldn't be good for your head."

"Probably right about that one." Kathryn replied, handing Morgan her jacket to hang in the hall closet. Silently, they ascended the stairs and undressed for bed. When Kathryn exited the bathroom, she found Morgan already in bed and seemingly asleep. She crawled in beside her, placed a light kiss on her forehead and turned out the bedside light and fell into a dreamless sleep.

Morgan wasn't sleeping, she just didn't want to pick up the conversation they'd had earlier. Feeling Kathryn's breathing even out, she turned in the moonlight and looked at her sleeping companion. I hope you never lose faith in me Little One. I may have to rely on yours when I can't find my own. Morgan returned the kiss to Kathryn's forehead and laid back. Within minutes, she felt Kathryn drape herself across her body. Wrapping her arms around the sleeping figure, she followed her into sleep.

Morgan walked through the fog surrounding her. Holding her arm straight out in front of her, she couldn't see her hand. She could feel her heart pounding as she stumbled blindly for the forest she knew lay ahead. She didn't know why she felt afraid, but shivers of fear ran up her spine as goosebumps broke out on her arms. The fog swirled around her face obscuring her vision and she fell. Hands stretched blindly in front of her, she fell to her knees onto a pile of something slippery. Bringing her hands up in front of her face, she waved the fog away trying to see what she was kneeling upon. As her vision cleared, she saw her hands were soaked in blood. Rivulets of the coppery tinged liquid slid down her forearms and dripped on her naked thighs.

The fog dissipated around her and, looking at the ground, she saw herself. She was naked as she was now, her abdomen ripped open, intestines and organs scattered around her. She screamed and pushed away from the sightless eyes staring at her. Slipping in the gore, she lost her balance and fell backward, hands flung behind her trying to stop the fall.

A maniacal giggle erupted from the woods in front of her and she squinted against the fog blocking her vision. She could barely make out a figure draped in a black cloak briefly illuminated by the full moon. She couldn't see the face, no matter how hard she tried to bring it into focus. She tried to stand, only to be pinned in place by some unseen force. She struggled until her arms gave way from the exertion and perspiration ran down her face in rivers. A hand reached out from the robe and dropped a bloody knife onto Morgan's lap.

"Is this what you were looking for? The knife you killed her with?"

"But I didn't kill her… it wasn't me. You did this! You killed her!"

"I was but an instrument you played. I wielded the weapon, you orchestrated the murder. All for you Morgan, it was always for you."

"I never wanted this. I never wanted anyone to die for me." Morgan pleaded with the figure.

"She was my gift to you, and yet you failed to show gratitude. I left you what you wanted. So many clues for you to follow this time, and still no appreciation falling from your lips. What more do you need Morgan? What else can I give that will make you mine?"

"Nothing, there's nothing more that you can give. If having me stops this from happening again, I'll be yours."

"NO! She will never be yours; she will never be with you. Come with me Morgan, I'll take you home. I can make this disappear forever; I can make you whole again. Trust me Morgan. Take my hand and we'll walk away from here."

Morgan stretched her hand toward the smaller one beckoning her as the black clad figure slipped behind Kathryn and plunged the knife into her heart.

"Noooo!" Morgan screamed as the welcoming blackness enfolded her consciousness and she drifted away.

"Morgan! Morgan let me go I can't breathe!"

Morgan opened her eyes to the darkened room. She felt Kathryn struggling beneath her and rolled to her side, releasing the petite blond from her grasp. The dream had seemed so real. She'd remembered cradling Kathryn's limp form in her arms as the fog swirled around them. Remembered the pain shooting through her heart as she'd watched Kathryn die in her arms. She'd remembered feeling lost and alone once again.

"Are you okay?" Kathryn asked.

"Yeah, sorry about that. Just a bad dream, I have them from time to time. I didn't mean to wake you. I'll be alright, you go back to sleep."

"Want to talk about it?" She'd woken to Morgan screaming her name and then been enveloped in strong arms that wouldn't release her. She'd thought briefly that Morgan was trying to strangle her until she felt the hot sting of the tears coursing down Morgan's cheeks.

"I don't remember much about it. It was foggy, you were there, and someone else. I don't know who, but you were hurt and I thought you were dead. That's about all there was to it." Morgan didn't want to talk about the dream anymore. She didn't want to show Kathryn how much she cared for her. How vulnerable she was to those feelings. It was easier for all concerned if she kept Kathryn at arms length. As long as she kept her heart locked away from the blond sharing her bed she could keep it safe.

"What did the other person look like?"

"I don't know, I didn't see their face."

"Male or female?"

"I don't know that either. All I could see was a black cape with a hood. The voice wasn't gender specific; it sounded sort of hollow, almost an echo. It seemed familiar but I can't place it. There was a laugh too. Kind of evil and high pitched, almost a keening type of sound." Morgan let the memory of that laugh wash over her and felt the goosbumps break out on her arms. It was so familiar; she knew that laugh, that voice. She'd heard it before, if only she could remember where.

Knowing it would come to her eventually she lay back against the pillows and drew Kathryn against her. "Come on Little One, let's try to get some sleep."

Kathryn relaxed into the embrace and was soon sleeping once again. For Morgan sleep wouldn't come that easily, she lay staring into the darkness, her mind turning the dream over and over. Morgan knew the dream was trying to tell her something but she just couldn't see it right now.

Giving up on sleep for the night, she left the bed donned her robe and padded silently to her study. Opening the closet she hefted the Ovation case and removed the guitar. Leaning back in her chair she propped her feet on the desk and let her fingers roam the fret bar at will. Eyes closed in the darkness she let the dream images take her through the fog once again.

Morgan didn't know how long she sat there strumming familiar chords and letting the music soothe her nerves, didn't know exactly when her thoughts had turned from the dream to the dream woman lying in her bed. Kathryn would return to her own house today and Morgan felt a sadness settle over her at the impending separation. She'd grown accustomed to having the blonde near and didn't want to see her go. All she'd ever searched for she knew she'd found only to have it forever out of reach. Straight women were trouble and being in love with a straight woman was one can of worms that she didn't want to open. She knew Kathryn would never return her feelings and she didn't want the heartbreak that would accompany a proclamation.

Kathryn slipped quietly into the study and curled up under the blanket on the couch. She'd woken up when Morgan left the bed and had lain listening to the haunting music until loneliness forced her to seek the source. Standing silently in the doorway she took in the sight that was Morgan. Legs stretched out on the desk played hide and seek in the folds of her robe. The sliver of moonlight streaming through the curtain made the tears falling from the closed lids into silvery streaks against bronze skin.

Morgan knew when Kathryn entered the room without opening her eyes. The air had changed in the room and seemed to crackle with an electricity all it's own. She continued strumming the guitar humming to herself and waiting for Kathryn to break the silence between them. She knew without a doubt that if she opened her mouth first she'd ask Kathryn for what she couldn't give.

Kathryn lay against the sofa arm wrapped in the blanket listening to Morgan play, soon her head found it's way to the overstuffed pillow under her arm and the strains of music lulled her to sleep. She never knew when Morgan abandoned the chair and knelt beside her on the floor. Didn't awaken as Morgan began to sing quietly to her.

3 in the morning I can't close my eyes

A battle is raging in my heart and mind

It's down to the wire I've just got to let her know

Tell her I love her or she's gonna go

All of these changes make me so afraid

Would I be throwing the life I love away

I've always played the part of the one who's free

I'm used to looking out for no one but me

Am I a fool to fall?

I could lose it all

In a single night

She could change my life

Should I turn away?

And not let it show

Am I a fool to fall?

Well here I go

Nobody told me it would be like this

What she does to me how could I miss

I know the feelings I know why the fools rush in

In less than a heart beat I'd do it again

Am I a fool to fall?

I could lose it all

In a single night

She could change my life

Should I turn away?

And not let it show

Am I a fool to fall?

Well here I go

Should I turn away?

And not let it show

Am I a fool to fall?

Well here I go

Morgan set the guitar aside and reclined against the couch watching Kathryn sleep. The blonde's eyes jerked behind her closed eyelids and Morgan knew she was lost in dreams. Reaching out she ran her fingers through the hair on Kathryn's brow. "I love you Kathryn, I wish you knew how much. There's nothing I wouldn't give to hear you say that back to me."

She wondered briefly if she could get by with holding Kathryn while she slept but knowing there would be no way to explain it in the morning she picked her up and carried her back to the bedroom. Laying her on the bed she slipped out of her robe and curled around the sleeping form.

Dawn broke over the bay and fingers of sunlight made their way into the room where a small blond woman lay sleeping alone. She stretched her muscles tight from sleep and reached for Morgan finding instead a note in the empty space where she should have been.

Good morning

I've taken the dogs for a run. There's coffee in a thermos in the kitchen if you want. Don't go off exploring on your own, no repeats of yesterday please. Be home before you know it.

Love,

M

Kathryn's fingers traced the bold strokes across the creamy paper. No repeats of yesterday. No problem! As much as she'd loved spending the day with Morgan she didn't want to find any more dead bodies in her lifetime. She shuddered remembering that this time yesterday she was walking into the lab. Shaking off the memory she crawled out of the bed and wrapped herself in Morgan's robe. Pulling the collar to her face she inhaled the scent of the statuesque agent. With a sigh of contentment she made her way to the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee. She was scanning the fridge for breakfast fixings when the phone rang.

"Sumners residence."

"Is Sumners there?"

"She stepped out for a minute, can I take a message?"

"Tell her that Gin called and I won't be able to make dinner tonight. I'll call later and reschedule."

"Okay, anything else?"

"No that's all. Thanks."

"You're welcome, bye."

Kathryn replaced the receiver and took her coffee out on the deck. Scanning the beach and not seeing Morgan she decided to go home for the things she needed to make her breakfast.

Continued in Part 3.