It was late afternoon and William was tired, hungry, and aching. He hadn't had this much of a workout in many years and he wanted to go home. It was getting late and he felt like he'd traveled forever, up and down the hills, never seeming to get anywhere. He prayed he wasn't walking in circles, but was fairly certain he was maintaining a relatively straight line. When he came to a small pond, he decided to stop for the night and make his camp there. As he rested for a few minutes before trying to build some kind of shelter, he heard a not too distant roaring. Frowning, he rose and followed the stream, which led in the direction the sound was coming from.

Reaching the place where the noise originated, he groaned. He could see a highway from there, but feared he couldn't get to it from this cliff. It was probably a hundred feet straight down, and he was too old, too weak, and too out of shape to even consider trying to climb it. He turned to go back to his little pond, when something caught the light of the setting sun and gave him a glimmer of hope. It was a fire ring. He went closer to examine it, and smiled. He found a little cave-like shelter under the trees and next to some rocks. Inside, there were the remains of an old plastic tarp. It wasn't much, but it was more protection from the cold. He went back to the pond to see if there were any fish, but was disappointed to be unable to see or catch anything bigger than a minnow. Returning to the cliff, he filled up on water and crawled into his makeshift shelter, wrapped up in the ratty old tarp, and dropped off to sleep, lulled by the sounds of the waterfall.

Jim and Blair finished up their work for the day and were heading out when they spotted what could only be the Feds coming off the elevator. One of the men spotted them and spoke softly to his partner, who turned his attention to the two detectives, frowning. Jim's jaw set grimly, having overheard the cutting remark of the agent. He forced himself to pass the two men without even acknowledging their existence, much to Blair's puzzlement. Seeing his partner's expression, he decided he didn't want to know what the man had said and simply avoided looking at them and followed his partner to the elevator and got on the minute the doors opened, only looking back as the doors were closing. The one who had made whatever comment that had Jim fuming was grinning at him.

Once the doors were closed, he turned his worried gaze on his partner. "Do I even want to know?"

"No," Jim ground out; then sighed and shook his head. "Typical crap. They don't know their... never mind."

"Got it. So, what do you think Sally's fixed for dinner?"

Jim blinked. "Huh?"

"Sally, she's making dinner, remember? Steven and Mr. Sugihara? Your dad's house?"

"Oh, yeah. I haven't a clue. Tempura, maybe? I have no idea, but I'd guess it'll be Japanese."

"Cool. I like Japanese food." Understanding Jim's mood, Blair remained silent for most of the journey to William Ellison's house. Funny thing that he didn't think of it as William's 'home', but merely his 'house'. Come to think of it, Jim always referred to it as his 'dad's house', too. Obviously it still wasn't (and would probably never be) 'home'. Sad, really. He glanced over at his friend and hoped that they found William alive, and soon. Jim was starting to fray at the edges of his control. He didn't dare think of what would happen if Jim's dad weren't found, or if he was found dead... he swallowed hard and looked out the window at the traffic, desperately trying to think of something else.

Jim glanced over at Blair and seemed to read his mind. "I've been working on accepting the fact that he might already be dead."

Blair looked over in surprise. "You have?"

Jim nodded and glanced over at his friend. His blue eyes showed the grief he was working through. "Yeah. Yesterday. When we still hadn't gotten a ransom note. I don't know why, but I think maybe someone wanted him dead." He turned his full attention back to driving. "I don't understand why, though. I don't know if we'll ever find out either."

Blair lightly touched Jim on the shoulder. "We'll find out. One way or another, we'll find out. You aren't alone, you know," he added, watching his friend closely.

Jim smiled. It wasn't much of a smile, but it showed he knew his friends hadn't abandoned him. "I know. That's the only thing that's keeping me from going over the edge at the moment."

Blair nodded. "Good. That you know, I mean."

Dinner was subdued. Mr. Sugihara willingly told them all about his company and the plans he had for William's company. Neither Jim nor Blair was all that up on business practices, but, to them, it sounded like a winning proposition for all involved. Steven agreed, and explained how and why SugiCorp was so successful. They studiously steered clear of their real concern, the whereabouts of William Ellison. Who had taken him, and why?

When Jim announced that they were going to be spending the night, Steven and Sally looked relieved.

Unfortunately, all they had were questions, and no answers but several suspicions. No one slept well, worrying about William and the company vote the next day.

Doug Roberts had his first day off in almost a month. The previous five weeks had had a higher than normal incidence of illness and injury in the uniformed ranks and, being single, Doug had done much more than his share in covering for his missing colleagues. He'd had a good night's sleep and was up early, getting ready for his date. The lady had agreed to join him for the day. She hadn't even balked when he told her what he wanted to do. Sure, she was a little nervous, never having done anything like this before; but he assured her that he was very good at it and would make sure she didn't get hurt.

She'd thought about it for the past two days, and last night, just at end of shift, had stopped him on his way to the locker room to tell him that she was game. He shivered in anticipation. This was going to be great!

Serena Chang was having second thoughts, until Doug showed her his climbing gear. Most of it was obviously used, but very well maintained. Seeing the new equipment he'd gotten for her, reassured her to the point that she began looking forward to the adventure.

"We're just going up the canyon to the falls. It's an easy climb, with permanently set carabineers and pitons. I'll go up first and then you come up behind me. You'll be linked to me, and I'll be tied off to the permanent fixtures. You'll be wearing pads and gloves and a helmet, so you should be okay," Doug tried to boost her confidence.

"Unless I trip and fall and sprain my ankle or break my wrist," Serena replied sardonically.

Doug chuckled. "Nah. You're much too graceful for that."

She grinned. She'd been surprised when Doug had asked her out. Even more surprised when she heard what kind of date he had in mind. She'd never climbed a rock or mountain in her life; but he seemed very confident and, as she watched him put his gear on and helped her on with hers, she realized he was very knowledgeable, too.

She'd never been to the falls before. In fact, she hadn't even known that they existed. She looked around and smiled. It was beautiful. The two-lane road was seldom traveled during the week, and the scenery was magnificent. The waterfall was enough to make her glad she'd come, even if they didn't ever try climbing.

Of course they were going to climb. Doug gave her the particulars of how to climb, demonstrating and then watching closely as she practiced.

"Looking good, Serena. You ready to try the real thing?"

He'd made it look easy, and then made it feel comfortable. She nodded, looking forward to making it to the top. "Let's go."

Voices. Laughter. William woke up, confused. It was full daylight, and he really was hearing voices. A woman was laughing, somewhere nearby. He crawled out of his shelter and cautiously made his way towards the voices. He frowned when he saw the couple sitting on the edge of the cliff, looking down at the waterfall. They certainly weren't his captors, and from their climbing gear, they obviously had climbed up from the road.

"Ex-excuse me?" The man and woman spun to look at him, startled. Both of them frowned.

"Yeah?" the man asked.

"Could you help me, please? My name is William Ellison, and I was--"

"Mr. Ellison?" Both chorused as one, casting quick startled looks at each other. "Jim's dad?" Serena added.

"Yes! Do you know Jimmy?"

"Yes, sir. I'm Patrolman Doug Roberts, and this is Serena Chang. She works in the Police Lab. Everybody's been looking everywhere for you. Are you all right?"

William sagged with relief. "Yes. I've been kidnapped, locked in the trunk of a car with a leaky muffler, left to bake and freeze in there for a day or two, and then taken to a cabin, back that way." He waved in the direction he'd come. "I managed to escape and spent the night here. I heard your voices..." he started shivering. "I'm sorry, I'm a little..."

Doug, realizing that Mr. Ellison was shivering from cold, had to be hungry, pulled off his backpack and climbing harness, and then removed his jacket, handing it to the older man. "Here, put this on." He cursed himself for not bringing his cell phone on the climb, but there was nothing to be done. He dug in his pack, pulling out several energy bars and a bottle of Gatorade. William gratefully accepted it all, eating two of the bars and drinking half of the Gatorade.

"Thank you, Detective Roberts. Now, how do I get down from here?"

"It's just Officer. I'm a uniformed patrolman." He frowned as he looked at William, wondering how he was going to do this. Chewing his lower lip, he glanced at Serena. "Well...." Then his countenance cleared and he began adjusting the straps on his harness. "OK, let's get you into this harness, and I'll lower you down, then you take the harness off, I'll pull it back up, and we'll climb down to meet you. How's that sound?"

William grinned in relief. "Sounds like fun, but can you hold my weight?"

"Between us, we'll manage, Mr. Ellison." Serena smiled at him.

Just as they were about to lower him down, Doug suddenly scrambled for his pants pocket. "Wait a second. Mr. Ellison, when you get to the bottom, after you take off the harness, here's my keys, go get in my car. It's warmer there, and my cell phone is in the glove box. Why don't you call Jim?"

William smiled gratefully. "Thank you. I'll do that."

Jim grumbled when his cell phone rang, and pulled it angrily from his pocket. He'd been officially introduced to the two Feds and he was, as usual, unimpressed. They were the usual pompous jerks with no idea of how to talk to real people.

"Ellison!" he barked into the phone. "Dad?" He looked around wildly, spotted his partner and frantically waved him over. "Where are you?"

Blair came over, looking worriedly at Jim, who looked to be in shock.

Jim covered the mouthpiece and hissed, "It's my dad! He's okay." He was grinning in relief, then he frowned again and spoke into the phone. "You're where? With who?" Jim listened and sagged against the edge of his desk. "Thank God. What happened, anyway? Sure, I can wait until you get here. Do you need to go to a hospital or anything? Are you sure that you're all right?" He listened for a few more moments and finally disconnected the call.

Turning to Blair, a broad grin on his face, he said, "He's okay. He's a little cold, a little hungry, and we owe Doug Roberts and Serena Chang the biggest and finest meal in town."

Blair looked confused. "Doug and Serena? How come?"

"They found my dad and rescued him. He was up on top of the falls, that place Doug likes to go rock climbing? He took Serena out for her first climb, and my dad was there. He escaped his kidnappers and he's okay." He couldn't restrain himself and pounded Blair on the back. Blair hid the wince the bruising blows caused, deciding the bruises were worth it.

"So, let's go tell Joel, Megan, Simon and the Feds the good news."

"Well, Joel, Megan and Simon, maybe," Jim agreed, no longer grinning.

Blair thought about it and nodded. "Agreed. Let the 'super sleuths' find out on their own." With a grin and a light punch to Jim's arm, Blair headed for Joel and Megan, who had just come out of Simon's office.

Grabbing each of them by an arm, the four headed out of the bullpen and down the hall to the break room. Once inside and with the door closed, Jim made his announcement. "My dad's okay. He managed to escape his kidnappers and Doug and Serena found him. They're bringing him in."

Joel and Megan exchanged relieved glances. "Better tell Simon," Megan said, grinning.

"No. I just now got a call from him. They should be here in a couple of hours. I thought I'd wait until the Feds were gone before letting Simon know," Jim said.

Megan chuckled. "Lovely idea. Those two were acting like the evil stepsisters. I seriously wanted to smack them both." Joel nodded his agreement.

"Meanwhile, we should let Brown and Rafe know, and take the APB off of your dad. It wouldn't do to have them stopped by a Sheriff's patrol on their way back now, would it?" Joel headed for the door to follow through on his plans. Just before he left, he turned back. "I'm glad your dad's okay, Jim."

"Thanks, Joel." Jim couldn't wipe the relieved grin from his face if he had to.

"Yeah, mate. I'm glad he's all right. You on your way to meet them?"

"At my dad's house. Doug's taking him home and we're going to make sure he's all right and get him ready for his meeting. I wonder how big a surprise that will be?"

"Someone's sure to react. Did he say if he knew who was behind all this?"

"I didn't push." Jim blushed at having forgotten his job in the excitement of hearing from his father. "I will, though. I'll let you know."

"We'll be waiting. Go on, we'll take care of everything here." As Megan followed after Joel, Jim and Blair headed for the elevator and Jim pulled out his cell phone to call Sally and his brother.

Once Doug and Serena had climbed down and joined William at the car, Doug packed away their equipment, while the others watched. Seeing the expressions on their faces, he shrugged and grinned. "Habit. If I don't take care of my equipment immediately, I might not see if there's any wear, and that could be dangerous, so I always check when I finish a climb. It won't take but a few more minutes. Why don't the two of you get in the car and start the engine; get yourselves warm?" Serena, seeing the look he gave her, nodded and urged William into the front passenger seat, then got in herself and started the engine, turning the heat on high and turning the blowers to point at the shivering William.

When she was sure he was warming up, she got out of the car and returned to Doug to help him finish packing his equipment. "He's in shock. Do you think we should take him to the hospital?" Serena asked.

Doug paused for a moment and then shook his head. "Nah. He'll feel better just getting home and relaxing. Let Jim decide if he needs a doctor. I do think we need to stop for some hot cocoa, though."

Serena looked at him in surprise and then smiled. "Great idea."

A few minutes later they were on their way back to town, stopping at the first gas station/convenience store for hot cocoa and some more energy bars for William, and themselves.

Jim and Blair were waiting in the driveway when they pulled up. William, now recovered from his shock, quickly got out of Doug's car and practically ran to his son. Jim gave his father a bear hug, holding him tightly as he reassured himself that his father really was all right.

Blair watched, grinning, and when Doug and Serena came up, greeted them. "So, bucking for cop of the year, huh, Doug?"

Doug looked surprised. "Who? Me? We just got lucky, is all." Serena came up and took his hand.

"It really was. Pure, dumb luck."

"Well, as you can see, luck or not, it was great work. On behalf of Jim, thanks."

Doug grinned. "You're more than welcome. I didn't question him, by the way. He was kind of in shock, so we just got him warm and stuffed him full of energy bars, Gatorade, and hot cocoa. He stopped shivering about halfway here." He looked over to where Jim was still hugging his father. "I guess he's gonna be okay."

Blair glanced over his shoulder. He grinned as he turned back. "Yeah. Looks like it. Thanks, Doug. And you too, Serena."

"You're welcome, Blair. I'm just glad we were there and could help." Serena patted him on the shoulder.

Blair couldn't stop smiling. "So, you guys going to go back and finish your climb?"

Doug looked over at Serena. "Uh, I think our climb is over. What would you like to do now, Serena?"

"Well, how about a movie, followed by a late lunch?" She took his arm and smiled up at him.

"Uh, sure. Sounds like a great idea. What do you want to see?"

"How about something with a lot of gunfire, explosions, and chases?"

Doug's smiled broadened. "Yeah? Coolness." They headed for his car. He paused a moment and looked back. "Uh, I'll catch you guys later, huh?"

"Yeah. Just get Captain Banks your report. Thanks again."

Doug waved and turned back to open the passenger door for Serena. Circling around to the driver's side door, he got in, started the car, put it into gear, and beeped 'hi' in Morse code as he drove away.

Shaking his head, Blair turned back to Jim and William.

"Are you all right, Dad?" Jim asked, totally oblivious to anything but his father.

"Yeah, Jimmy. I'm okay."

"Uh, I have to ask you, do you know who kidnapped you?" Jim left his hands on his father's shoulders, not yet wanting to relinquish the tactile reassurance that his father was really there and really all right.

William's face went hard. "I can't believe it. George Blackburn. He's one of the partners in the old firm, the one that SugiCorp wants to buy."

"What about Grigsby?" Blair asked as he came up. Mr. Kostmayer said he was acting weird that morning, and that you had called him and backed out of the game."

William frowned. "Grigsby? Really? That's a surprise... Although, I suppose they could both be involved. Between the two of them, they don't have enough votes to have their way. They'd need either my vote or Kostmayer's to swing anything. I haven't spoken to any of them about the proposed sale, although George did keep sending me requests for my proxy for the vote. I told him that I was perfectly capable of making my own decisions and voting them without his help."

"Who came that night, Mr. Ellison?" Blair asked as they headed for the front door.

"George and his son. It was very late and they just showed up at the door. Foolish me, I let them in." He sounded disgusted with himself.

"Don't let it bother you, Dad. You had no reason to suspect that they'd kidnap you. So, how'd that note requesting a meeting get into my old room, anyway?"

William chuckled. "I'd been in there earlier in the day and I guess I just forgot it there. Did it help?"

"Well, there weren't any prints on it but yours, but whoever used too much hair gel left the scent and a short, black, curly hair behind."

"Greg Blackburn. The other man was Rob-somebody. I didn't know him, but he was probably in his fifties, younger than me or Blackburn, but older than Greg. Gray hair with black eyebrows. Almost looked fake, but I'm sure they weren't."

"That's the description we got of the driver of the car, from your neighbor's son across the street." Blair frowned. "I need to call Joel and get him directions to that cabin, if you can give them?"

William looked confused. "I don't know that I can. When I escaped yesterday afternoon, I headed away from the road because I was afraid that if I stuck to the road they might find me. I headed pretty much due west from the cabin, though. Oh, there was one thing, there's a lightning-struck cedar by the house, if that helps?"

Blair grinned. "Yeah, that might be enough, especially if they're still there. Did you happen to notice what kind of car it was?"

"Old Ford, late 70's model. License plate was..." he frowned in concentration. "TIHZTOH."

Jim snickered. When they looked at him oddly, he murmured, "Imagine it in a mirror." Both Blair and William frowned for a moment and then smiled.

Blair chuckled. "I'm surprised it got by the censors."

Just then, the front door opened and Sally and Steven came running out. William was again engulfed in a monstrous bear hug, this time from his younger son, while Sally chattered about how worried they'd all been. When Mr. Sugihara came out to watch the reunion, Jim and Blair moved over to him.

"It is good to see that you were successful in finding your father safe," Mr. Sugihara noted. He watched, keen-eyed, judging the family relationships here, then nodded his approval. "Your father is a fortunate man, to have two such sons to worry about him."

"The kind of man you like to do business with, Mr. Sugihara?" Blair asked, a knowing look in his eyes.

Mr. Sugihara smiled and nodded. "Oh, yes. One may learn much by watching a family in times of duress. We were just getting ready to go to the meeting, do you think your father would like to go?"

William heard him and looked over. Steven pulled away and blushed, then awkwardly introduced them. "Dad, this is Mr. Sugihara, of SugiCorp. He's here to take a look at the company and decide if he really wants to buy it or not."

William frowned and looked at his sons. "Is that what all this is about? Selling the company?"

"It looks that way, Dad," Jim admitted, wishing it were otherwise.

William's face froze into an expression that both of his sons knew only too well. It definitely did not bode well for whomever had caused all this trouble. Mr. Sugihara read the expression and nodded. "Perhaps Steven and I should go ahead, to get things started, then you, your other son, and his colleagues might come later, during the actual vote, perhaps?"

William smiled, and it was obvious that the old shark was ready to take on the boardroom. "That sounds like an excellent idea. Give me half an hour and I'll be ready to go, Jim. If that's enough time for you to do whatever it is you need to set this all up?"

"I'll call my captain and they can get our end covered," Jim said softly. Turning to Blair, "So, you think Grigsby and Blackburn are in cahoots, Chief?"

Blair frowned for a moment, then nodded. "Could be, Jim. Could very well be. Why don't you take care of your dad and I'll call Simon?"

"Thanks, Chief." Jim turned and escorted his father into the house while Steven and Mr. Sugihara prepared to leave for the meeting and Blair pulled out his cell phone to call in.

Using further information from William, the County Sheriff's department used a helicopter to locate the cabin. With Rafe and Brown liaising with them, they crept up on the cabin and surprised Greg Blackburn and Rob, whose last name turned out to be Grigsby, the brother of William's associate.

At the company headquarters, the arrival of Mr. Sugihara with Steven Ellison was quite a shock to several members of the board. Members who were strongly against the sale. Unfortunately, Steven held his father's proxy. Mr. Sugihara had come prepared to sell his business practices to the board. Steven was surprised to see which of the stockholders were against the sale. They would still hold the same number of shares, but no longer be in control, and that seemed to be the problem. Blackburn was obviously nervous and Grigsby was noticeably upset. Steven watched them closely, wondering how much each man knew about his father's abduction. Mr. Kostmayer, on the other hand, was noticeably in favor of the sale. He'd done his own research and was more than pleased with what he had learned.

The vote went as expected. Grigsby and Blackburn, along with some smaller, older investors, were against the sale. Kostmayer and most of the younger stockholders were for the sale. Neither was a clear majority. It came down, as predicted, to the Ellison vote. Before Steven could voice his proxy, there was a commotion. Everyone stopped and stared as the conference room door burst open and more than a dozen police officers entered, their hands obviously hovering near their weapons.

"What is the meaning of this? This is a closed meeting! Who are these people, and what are they doing here?" Blackburn blustered, standing up; Grigsby right behind him.

When William Ellison walked in, his suit and tie sartorial perfection, Blackburn turned pale, while Grigsby frowned. Turning to his partner, Grigsby hissed, "I thought you said he was out of town, George?"

William looked coolly around the room. "Sorry I'm late, ladies and gentlemen, but I was unavoidably detained by a couple of very inept kidnappers." Turning to his younger son, he asked, "Am I in time to vote my own shares?"

Steven smiled. "Yes, sir. You've arrived just in time." Turning back to the shareholders, he apologized. "I'm sorry, but since my father is here, I'll let him decide how to vote." He stepped back next to his brother, ready to watch the show.

William nodded. Glaring at the man he knew had planned on having him murdered, he scowled. "George, I'm very annoyed with you." Turning back to the room at large, he announced, "I'm fully in favor of selling out to SugiCorp. I vote yea on the sale." There were murmurs of confusion as the police officers seized George Blackburn and Joel Taggart announced that he was under arrest for kidnapping and conspiracy to commit murder. Grigsby was arrested as well, as a suspected member of the conspiracy, even though his brother had told them that he wasn't involved. They'd let the detectives ask the questions and then allow the District Attorney's Office decide whom to prosecute.

The entire board was in an uproar. Mr. Kostmayer made his way through the throng to William's side, frowning. "Are you all right, Bill?" he asked in concern. "My God, kidnapping? What kind of idiots are they? This is the best deal I've ever seen! We may no longer own the company, but it's going to be making us fortunes for years to come. I can't imagine why anyone would be against that."

"We aren't sure yet, but it looks like they just didn't want to sell to a foreign company, Tom," William said as they watched the controlled chaos sort itself out, with the police escorting their detainees out while the rest of the stockholders watched in wonder.

Mr. Kostmayer sighed. "That's the dumbest thing I've heard in a long time, but I suppose I really shouldn't be surprised." He smiled at his friend. "So, from now on, if you don't show up for a golf date, I'm going to call you myself and make sure, okay?"

William laughed. "Thanks. I'd appreciate it."

The company lawyers were flummoxed over what to do, until Kostmayer reminded them that they were corporate attorneys, not criminal, and put them to work drawing up the sales agreement.

Jim and Steven flanked their father, one on each side, as the details were hashed out over the sale of the company. No one said a word about their intimidating presence. No one dared.