Dangerous Liaisons

The Aftermath

The drive to the airport was agonising. Pine sat in the front with the driver with Price and Kate in the back. His heart was pounding so hard he was sure he was about to have a coronary, but nothing happened - either to him or to Price. He wondered if Angela had been compromised and began to sweat.

"You ok Pine?" James said in his ear "You're looking a bit peaky my boy. Worried about something?" his voice was light, jovial even but Jonathan wasn't fooled. This was someone who counted Richard Roper as a friend. To say he couldn't be trusted was to say that a Great White had 'a bit of a bite'.

They swung into the hangar where Price's Jetstream was powering up and Jonathan was suddenly very well aware indeed that Angela had NOT been compromised. They felt the stun grenade before they heard it.

The armoured truck rammed into the side of them from nowhere, smashing the windscreen and tipping the car onto it's side. Price and Kate were flung about in the back like ragdolls. Jonathan heard Kate scream but there was nothing he could do.

Police and Army swarmed over the convoy, dragging doors open and screaming orders in French and English. It was pandemonium; shots rang out, smoke grenades flung into the jet adding to the general haze of confusion. He was hauled by the arms out of the stricken vehicle and handcuffed, laying face down on the ground with the others.

He could hear Price shouting and swearing as he was dragged into a Police van and driven off at high speed. A couple of shots rang out as there was some token resistance from Price's men on the plane. Special forces returned fire, more accurately too it appeared and it all calmed down fairly quickly. Jonathan was hauled to his feet and thrown into the back of a Police car and despite him asking repeatedly, no-one would even speak to him let alone tell him what had happened to Kate.

They left him sitting in an interview room for 2 hours. No water, nothing. His phone had been confiscated and he had no way to contact anyone, let alone Angela. This was a disaster. All his training told him not to panic, that it would be sorted out. He only had one thought. Kate. Her scream replayed in his head over and over.

She hadn't been trained for that kind of attack. Was she ok? Was she... he didn't want to think about what might have happened. She was his responsibility. He'd been her mentor. He was supposed to look out for her and now? She could be dead and he suddenly realised why he worried about her so much, why he would happily kill that sick bastard Price.

He loved her.

"Fuck." he shouted out loud, "Fuck.Fuck.Fuck!" He banged his hands on the table in frustration.

"I'm sorry, what was that you were saying?" Angela Burr smirked as she walked in, his perfectly timed expletives acknowledging her presence. She stopped smirking when she saw his expression.

"Where is she Angela? Where's Kate. WHERE IS SHE?" he yelled, half standing, his face twisted by rage and fear.

"Jonathan Pine. I do believe you have a heart after all" she stepped back and opened the door again "I'll pop back in about 20 minutes, need to make a couple of calls. I would say look after her but I don't think that'll be a problem will it !" She got up and waddled away, cursing the fact she still had, in her opinion, too many weeks to go before she and Mr Burr were due to be parents. As she went out, a figure passed her with a small smile and pushed the door shut.

It closed with a solid click, the room now filled with deafening silence. Jonathan leapt from his seat to the smiling woman now standing in front of him, bruised and battered with a black eye to rival any of Mike Tyson's opponents.

Without a word, he crossed over to her and pulled her into his arms. She smiled up at him, her bruised eyes sparkling, her pupils dilating much like his own.

"Oh Kate, thank God you're safe" he murmured, his fingertips gently stroking her bruised cheek. She licked her lips and his thumb tenderly brushed her bottom lip. It was swollen where it had been stitched. Then he hugged her gently, willing himself not to weep.

"I'm so so sorry Kate." he paused composing himself, "So very sorry. All this is my fault... I should have..." he started to say but she put a finger on his lips.

"No Jonathan, this is the job. I knew what I signed up for. You're not to blame, in fact, I have to thank you." She smiled and stroked his cheek, his heart raced again but this time it was for a very good reason. He wanted so much to tell her how he felt, but he was afraid.

"Now you've got me puzzled! " he said, brow furrowed and a twist to his lips.

"Without this job, without being here now, I would never have the chance to do this" and she kissed him. She kissed him like no-one was watching, which truthfully, in a police station was highly unlikely, but she didn't care. He smiled into their kiss and she pulled back, "so I beat you to it then eh?" she whispered and he nodded.

"Yeah, you never shut up do you?" he murmured.

"Oh, I can be persuaded" she giggled, then winced as her lip hurt "maybe you should try again Mr Pine". His hands grasped her waist and pulled her to him. He looked down at her and then his mouth met hers. She moaned softly into the kiss and he smiled as he pulled back briefly.

"Glad to see I can be persuasive" he murmured and resumed persuading her.

Backing her up to the desk, he picked her up and sat her on the edge. Standing between her knees, his hands caressed her neck as they kissed. His thumbs gently rested on the hollow of her throat making her sigh. Her body was responding to him on a subconscious level, he could feel it. He wanted her so badly he could almost taste it. But here wasn't the place. Now wasn't the time.

Soon, though, very soon.