Viki pokes her head in, and sees them...she smiles, sadly. Todd looks over and sees her, then plants a kiss on Starr's forehead. She stirs, turning over...he peels himself away from her and gets up. He makes a lame attempt at straightening himself up, brushing his clothes off and running a hand through his hair as he walks out into the hall, closing the door behind him.

There's a silence as they just look at each other for a moment...then Viki whispers softly.

"Bo just called...he's sending a car for you in about half an hour."

He nods, shifting around. "I, uh...I'm gonna jump in your shower, if that's alright."

Viki smiles at him, nodding. He turns and heads for the bathroom...she stares after him, wishing she could do something more.

*****************************************

Roseanne sits on a chair facing Tea, who sits silently, head down and still. Dean runs around hurriedly, packing up their car, now sitting parked inside the warehouse with them. Roseanne glances over at him, then back at Tea. She puckers her lips, then reaches down into her bag, lying on the floor by her feet. She takes out the tiny voodoo doll stained with Tea's blood and a little satchel of pins. She glances over at Dean again to make sure he's not watching...then takes one of the unusual-looking pins out...long, with a beautifully ornate head. She stares at Tea intently as she holds the doll with one hand and the pin with the other...she runs her tongue along the pin to the tip...then closes her eyes and mouths something to herself. She opens her eyes, looks down at the doll...

...then spears it, right in its belly. She looks up at Tea, expecting her to react. She waits...and waits...but nothing happens. Tea just sits there, quietly, moving her head around occasionally. Roseanne looks back down at the doll, then back up at Tea, waiting another moment...still nothing.

Her temper flares...she clenches her teeth and tosses the doll across the room...Tea's head turns with it, feeling the rush of air as it flies past her head. It makes a little skittering noise as it hits the floor. Roseanne buries her head in her hands, furious.

******************************************

A little while later, Todd sits in the meeting room of the local Jersey PD, as Bo goes over the strategy and last-minute details of the operation. He stares at a miscellaneous spot on the wall, half-listening, too racked with worry to really pay attention. Finally, the huddle breaks up, and the officers head out to their assignments. Bo and West talk for another moment, then she leaves too. Bo sees Todd sitting alone in the back...he grabs something bulky off the desk and walks over to him.

"Okay...looks like we're all set. Just one more thing."

Todd looks up, to see Bo holding a bulletproof vest out to him. He looks at it strangely.

"What's that for?"

"You."

Todd stands up, slowly. He reaches out and touches the coarse material covering the Kevlar.

"You're makin' me nervous, Buchanan. Your sharpshooters have a tendency to miss?"

Bo smirks at that, shaking his head. "The last thing Tea needs is a dead husband."

Todd looks between him and the vest, anxiously. Bo tips his head slightly.

"Humor me."

Todd sighs...then takes his jacket off, reluctantly.

*****************************************

About five minutes before seven, Bo and West crouch low on the roof of one of the warehouses near the meeting area. He looks around through his binoculars...then speaks into the radio.

"This is unit one...all units report in."

Group by group, all of the local cops and sharpshooters stationed around the other neighboring rooftops and buildings radio in, confirming their positions and readiness. As the last group reports in, West looks through her binoculars and spots Todd's car, coming up along the docks and approaching the meeting area.

She taps Bo's arm. "Here comes Todd."

Down on the ground, Todd pulls up outside the warehouse and shuts the engine off. He turns around and looks at the cases in the backseat. Then he turns back, looking out the windshield at the dismal, deserted area. He looks up, knowing Bo and the other local cops are all over the place, just waiting for this guy to show his face. Todd shuts his eyes...feeling his pulse racing and his stomach tied up in knots. He takes a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Then he gets out of the car.

From their rooftop, Bo and West watch as Todd walks around to the front of the car and leans back against the hood, shoving his hands in his pockets, waiting. Bo looks through his binoculars and sees everyone, ready to go.

As the minutes pass, Bo, West, and all the other cops scan around for any signs of the suspect. Todd looks all around...unnerved by the silence. He can feel the weight of the Kevlar, pushing his chest down as he inhales...he just wants to rip it off and go tearing through every one of the warehouses until he finds Tea. Finally, one of the officers on the far end of the perimeter spots something through his binoculars. He grabs his radio.

"Unit one, this is unit five...car comin' in, headed right for us."

Bo and West look through their binoculars and spot it. Bo radios out to everyone.

"Roger that, five. Okay, people, here we go. Look sharp. Unit two, keep your sights on Manning AT ALL TIMES. DO NOT leave him unprotected, is that clear?"

"Roger one, understand."

On the ground, Todd sees the car in the distance, heading toward him. He stands up.

Dean drives a junky-looking car along the docks and sees Todd down at the other end, waiting. He gets to within about seventy yards...and stops. He puts it in park, and just sits, looking out at Todd through the ski mask he's wearing. On the other end, Todd squints, trying to see who's driving...but the car is still too far away to be able to see clearly.

From the roof of their building, Bo and West see this. They exchange glances...she shrugs.

"What's he doing?"

Bo shrugs back, then radios out. "All units, stand by...this guy's acting weird. Be ready for anything."

Dean looks out, knowing that the rooftops are crawling with cops. He smirks...then picks up the stolen cell phone he just bought. He dials some numbers as he gets out of the car. Down at the other end, Todd takes a few steps forward, seeing a figure exit the car. He squints again, trying to get a good look...but still can't. Just then, the cell phone in his jacket pocket starts chirping. Todd jumps, startled. He takes it out of his pocket, still looking down toward the other car...he suddenly notices that the man is holding a phone to his ear. Todd looks at him strangely, then extends the antenna, and puts it to his ear.

"Yeah."

Dean shakes his head, making "tsk-tsk" noises at him.

Todd starts to walk forward, tired of fooling around. Dean takes one last look around the rooftops, then looks back at Todd, who's walking toward him. He speaks calmly.

"I TOLD you, Manning...NO COPS..."

Todd stops dead in his tracks. Up on the roof, Bo sees this and radios out again.

"All units...can ANYBODY see what the hell is going on?"

All of the groups radio back that they can't see well enough to get a good handle on the situation. Bo curses to himself, looking down through his binoculars.

"Alright, alright...stand by."

Dean grins, his other hand sliding into his pocket...he pulls out a small remote control. "...but you thought I was bluffing, didn't you?"

Having no idea what to do at this point, Todd says the only thing that's on his mind...

"Where is my WIFE, you son of a bitch??!!!"

Dean's grin grows wider, as his finger hovers over the only button on the remote.

"I TOLD you what would happen if you crossed meNow LIVE WITH IT."

Todd's face pales, and his mouth drops open...feeling an odd sensation of time slowing down...

"No...no...TEA!!!!"

He drops the phone and goes running toward the car...

"...the hell is he doing???" Bo yells, as he grabs the radio from West.

"All units...move in! MOVE IN!!! GO, GO!!!"

Dean tosses the phone into the car and makes a run for the water. Todd sees him and pours on the speed.

The sharpshooters try to aim in on Dean as he jumps off the pier, and goes flying out over the water...he has just enough time in the air to turn himself around and aim the remote at the car... ...he presses the button. A sensor inside the car answers the signal with a tiny beep...

BOOM!!!!

The car explodes in a bright, flashing fireball, rocking the entire area. The shockwave picks Todd up and throws him back a good twenty feet. The other officers who had started their approach also get thrown back. Todd lands on his butt, lifting his arms to cover his face as shreds of glass and debris whizz through the air, pelting him.

Bo and West stare down at the scene from the roof, completely dumbfounded. They look at each other for a second...then they both get up and run for the stairs. Bo yells into the radio as they head for the ground floor.

"Dispatch, this is Commissioner Buchanan...we need fire crews and EMT's out here, NOW!! All units...get down there and start fanning out...keep your eyes on the water!!!"

The rumbling dies down...the glass and debris float to the ground, making tinkling and clattering noises. Todd sits up slowly, covered in glass and soot...staring in horror at the burning wreck through the hair in his eyes and the thick, black smoke.

****************************************

A few minutes later, Roseanne pulls up to an abandoned pier...much farther down the docks, away from the warehouses. She gets out of the car, the one they were originally driving, and looks...she sees the smoke from the wreck, and the flashing lights of the emergency vehicles. She bites her lip, looking at her watch. She reaches in through the window and under the dashboard, popping the trunk. She looks all around, making sure no one's in the area...then runs around to the back and opens the trunk...

...where Tea lies, blindfolded, bound and gagged. Tea feels the rush of cool, semi-fresh air and lifts her head. Roseanne gives her the once-over, making sure everything looks okay...then slams the lid shut. Tea hears the awful sound, and sees the light suddenly become dark, even through the blindfold. She whimpers through the gag, dropping her head back down...in a sudden flash of anger, she kicks at the inside of the trunk, as hard as she can, again and again. Roseanne looks back, hearing the dull thumping sounds of Tea thrashing around. She glares at the car for a moment...then continues over to the edge of the pier. She squats down, looking for any sign of Dean. She waits...and waits...her eyes scanning up and down, as far as she can see. As the minutes pass, she starts to get nervous. She checks her watch, glancing back at the car. Tea has stopped squirming, finally. Roseanne looks down toward the warehouses...the activity is still centered there, no one's heading her way yet. She looks back at the water, anxiously.

"Come on, baby...come on..."

Suddenly, she hears water splashing behind her. She whirls around and sees an arm come up out of the water, grabbing onto the concrete. She runs over as he reaches up with his other arm, and grabs on, pulling him up and out. He falls on top of her as he gets out of the water. They lie there for a minute on the concrete, as Dean coughs and spits, trying to catch his breath. Roseanne slips out from under him, trying to brush the water off her clothes. Dean stays there for another minute, in a soaking wet heap, resting. Roseanne holds out a hand to him...he grabs it, and she pulls him up. They both look down toward the warehouses...Dean grins at the scene...smoke, flashing lights, general confusion. He looks at Roseanne, nodding...she grins back.

"I take it, things went well."

He cracks up. "Ohhhh, yeah. Manning probably pissed himself when the car went up."

Roseanne giggles. "Wish I coulda seen THAT."

Dean starts back to the car...she follows. "So what now?"

"Well, it won't take 'em long to figure out that she wasn't in the car. But we'll let him sweat for a little bit. THEN we'll call."

He gets in the driver's side, Roseanne gets in the other side. They look at each other. Dean runs a hand through his wet hair, then starts the car.

"Guarantee you, he won't try THAT again," he says, then looks back at Roseanne.

"She alright back there?"

Roseanne nods. "Yeah, she's fine."

Dean nods back, looking back at the chaos he left behind. He smirks again...

"Let's get outta here."

The car pulls out quietly...then quickly disappears into the maze of abandoned buildings.

**************************************

The warehouse area is swarming with activity...lights flashing, noise, people running around like crazy. Bo and West finish their conversation with the firemen, then walk over to the ambulance, where Todd sits, getting his cuts treated by an EMT. He doesn't flinch once, even as the young girl swabs out one of the worst gashes, on his hand. She bandages him as Bo and West walk up to them.

Bo smiles at the girl. "He gonna be alright?"

She looks at Todd, sadly...then nods at Bo. "Just some cuts."

She packs up her kit and climbs in the back as Bo sits down next to him, handing him the cell phone that he dropped. Todd feels something on his leg and looks down. He sees the phone and takes it, without a word...his eyes going immediately back to the wreck.

Bo sighs, rubbing his face. "Well, I just spoke to the lieutenant over there, they've checked the entire car. It would seem our friend was having a little fun with us...no one was in the car when it went up."

No response. Bo glances over at West...then gets up and puts himself directly in his line of sight.

"Manning...did you hear me?"

Todd blinks, finally, as Bo stands in front of him, blocking his view. He looks up at him, vacantly. Bo sighs again, and speaks softly to him.

"Listen to me...TEA WASN'T IN THE CAR."

Todd's brow creases slightly, as he takes that in. Bo crouches down in front of him.

"It's obvious the guy came here just to do this. What happened? What'd he say to you?"

Todd opens his mouth, struggling to speak, still reeling from everything. He swallows hard.

"H-He knew you were here..."

Bo does a take at that...then glances up at West, who steps a little closer, listening intently.

"...he said, 'I told you, no cops.' Then he said... 'I told you what would happen if you crossed me...now live with it.'"

Bo's shoulders sink, as he shakes his head. He stands up, angrily, turning away from Todd and cursing to himself. He pulls himself together, taking a few deep breaths. West looks on as he turns back to Todd, who stands up, slowly.

They look at each other for a moment. Then Todd steps closer to him, almost whispering.

"She wasn't in there...?"

Bo shakes his head. "I...I'm sorry. I dunno what the hell happened..."

Todd glances away, off to the side. Bo steps up to him, lowering his voice as well...his anger giving his words a steely resolve.

"...but we WILL find her...and we WILL get this guy, I promise you that."

Todd opens his mouth to say something back...but the words just won't come. He shakes his head...and walks away from them, toward the wreckage.

Bo and West look after him...she looks at Bo, worriedly. "Guess we've got ourselves a leak."

He paces around, furious. "Dammit!"

**************************************

Todd gets as close as he can to the car...he stares at it intently, as the firemen and investigators swarm around it. His vision narrows...entranced by the smoke, steam and heat emanating from the wreck, escaping into the air in wisps and blurry waves of quicksilver. He stares, and stares, for a long time...then shuts his eyes, finally...as the smoke gets in them, stinging, causing them to tear up. A word escapes his mouth...

"Tea..."

It seems to take all of his energy with it, as it floats away from him. Exhausted with worry and fear, he covers his face with his hands...and lets the tears fall behind them.

To be continued...