Ralph swung open the driver’s side door of the station wagon and got out. He leaned with his elbows resting on the roof of the car. It would’ve taken a major catastrophe to remove the smile from his face.

And Pam realized that. She’d taken a step back after getting out the passenger side and finding him awe-struck by the humongous banner draped across the main doors of the Anaheim Convention Center.

After all, Ralph had only talked about this particular convention for years, but had never been able to make it simply because he never knew about it until it was too late to sign up.

However, this year by miracle or sheer luck, Ralph’s name was first on the sign-up list, written in two seconds after the sheet of lined paper had been posted. Mr. Knight hadn’t even walked away from it yet. Knight gave a small smile and shook his head as Ralph had walked away down the hall that day practically beaming. Even though Knight was wary about the younger teachers, he had to admit that despite wondering about Hinkley in the past, he knew that Ralph was there for the long run and his attitude proved it.

Ralph was beaming once again. "I can’t believe I’m actually here..."

Pam had barely heard the comment as it had been whispered. She figured he probably wasn’t even aware he said it out loud. She hated to end his moment, but they still had to check in at the Radisson hotel just down the street, get their luggage inside, and return to the Convention Center to check in their and begin getting prepped for the convention itself, which began in the next morning.

"Ralph?" Pam began, easily, just trying to reclaim his attention. But Ralph didn’t even blink, however his jaw did fall slack. Pam grinned and nearly laughed, "Ralph!" To emphasize, she wrapped her palm twice against the roof of the station wagon.

"Huh?" Ralph shook himself and finally turned his attention back to her. "Pam, what did you do that for?"

"Because I was getting afraid that I’d lose you to a convention center." Pam gave him a wink and he blushed slightly.

"Sorry about that. I guess I got lost in my thoughts," Ralph responded, his cheeks still a bit flushed.

"It’s okay, hon, just don’t let it happen again," Pam teased. "Come on, we have to get over to the hotel for check in, then we can return and you can stare slack-jawed some more."

Ralph grinned. "I have permission this time..."

They both got back in the car, Pam swatting Ralph’s arm as they got settled.

Ralph and Pam arrived at the hotel about five minutes later and went inside to the lobby. They checked in and Ralph went back outside with the bellhop to gather the luggage. Once the luggage was on its way up to the room, they went back out to the car and returned to the Convention Center.

Ralph parked the car and they got out, Pam chuckling and Ralph trying not to gawk again.

The structure of the Center consisted of metal and glass and encompassed quite a large piece of land. Palm trees lined the area leading up to the main doors.

Ralph and Pam made their way to the entrance and went in, stepping into a large lobby that was wide open with plenty of people already milling about. They made their way through the throng of people up to the check-in desk.

The woman at the desk smiled. "How may I help you?"

"I’m checking in for the teachers’ convention," Ralph replied as Pam glanced around, taking in as much as she could.

"Okay, sir, I just need your city, school, and name, please."

"Los Angeles. It’s Whitney High School..." he paused a moment as she typed in his information, "and the name is Ralph Hinkley."

"Thank you, sir. It will be just one moment." The woman watched the screen for a moment, then moved across the reception area to a printer. She tore off a newly printed page, along with a plastic tag. The woman fit the paper into the tag and picked up another piece of paper, plus a folded pamphlet. She walked back to the desk and handed all of the items to Ralph. "Here’s your name tag, a pamphlet with a map of the grounds, and our sign in sheet. I just need your signature by the X on the first line. You’ll sign once more upon check-out."

"Okay, thank you." Ralph took the pen the receptionist offered and signed the paper. He handed both the pen and paper back. "Here you go."

The receptionist smiled again. "Thank you, sir. I hope you have a wonderful experience here."

Ralph returned the smile. "Thanks, I hope so, too." He turned and draped an arm over Pam’s shoulders. She grinned. "Now, we just have to find where we’re set up."

Pam took the pamphlet and unfolded it. "This doesn’t look too bad. I noticed some of these signs already." She pointed ahead of them. "It should be this way."

A man entered a business office and walked up to the desk of another man.

"What is it, Matthews?"

"Mr. Franklyn, the Convention Center is holding a teachers’ convention beginning tomorrow morning. Shall I alert the men?"

The man behind the desk tapped an index finger to his chin, his forehead creasing in thought. He looked up at the younger man and nodded. "Yes."

Matthews nodded. "Right away, sir." He turned and left.

Franklyn clasped his hands on the desk. "That should’ve been my Convention Center. It was mine, dammit! So what if I tried to steal it out from under my competitor’s nose. I had plans for that center long before Murphy did. I’ll show that upstart. After tomorrow night, I’ll put ahead plans for the purchase of that center. It will have my name on it, earning me money!"

At the Convention Center, people continued milling about, which was making it hard for Pam to stay near Ralph, who’d struck up a conversation with a couple of professors from his alma mater, Orange Coast College, that’d remembered him.

Ralph was grinning. He nodded, "Thank you so much. It was nice to see you again." He shook the professors’ hands again and they headed off to another portion of the room. Ralph turned back to Pam. "I love this, you know?"

Pam couldn’t keep from smiling, seeing his. "I can tell, Ralph. You’re still beaming ear to ear."

"I can’t wait for tomorrow." He motioned to a table with a Whitney High banner. "They’re all set up here already. What do you say to dinner and a quiet evening, since I’m sure it’ll be a few days before we get another quiet evening."

"I’d say that I would love to."

Ralph put his arm around her shoulders again, and Pam put an arm around his waist as they began to make their way out of the center.

Less than ten minutes later, Ralph and Pam were making their way across the hotel lobby, headed for the stairs. Their room was on the third floor, but they both decided to simply walk.

The hallways were done in shades of red, with red roses, pink vases, maroon carpeting... and pink walls, which Ralph promptly pointed out and made a face at. Pam laughed as he shrugged.

"Who in their right mind would choose that color? That’s awful!" Ralph commented, quietly, but almost breaking out laughing.

Pam chuckled. "Come on, hon, lets just find our room."

"Alright," Ralph agreed, still laughing a little.

A little ways down the hall, they stopped in front of a door and Pam pulled the room key from her purse. She put the key in the lock and turned the knob. Ralph pushed the door open and Pam flipped the light switch as she entered.

It was a generously sized room. The bathroom sat directly to the right of the door, with a closet across from it on the left. The bed was made with a red-shaded quilt. A wooden cabinet was set at the end of the bed, which Ralph opened.

"Found the tv," he announced.

Pam passed behind him, pausing momentarily to lean over his shoulder. "I doubt we’ll need it." When he turned his head, grinning, she gave him a wink, and continued across the room to check the climate vent.

Ralph closed the doors on the cabinet and went to the closet. He pulled a luggage rack out and set their suitcase on it. Next, he put the two smaller bags on the bed. He pulled out the key for the suitcase from his pocket and opened the lock.

Meanwhile, Pam started to empty the smaller bags. The first bag she grabbed was the one that Ralph had insisted that he carry. She pulled the zipper and dumped out its contents.

"Ralph!"

Ralph spun around and his eyes widened. "Uh, Pamela, let me explain...!"

Pam held up the tunic of his magic jammies. "So help me, Ralph, Bill had better not show up here--"

"Pam, I only brought the suit as a precaution. I told Bill that if he interrupted this trip that I would turn him into 170 pounds of dog chow and that I really meant it this time." He gave a small grin. "Then I pulled the tire iron out of his car and bent it to prove my point. If he even tries to contact me, he can’t. I left the communicator at the house. So it’s just you and me, Pamela. The suit is just... here... for decoration and as a really big just in case precaution, that’s it."

Pam considered it, then replaced the tunic, along with the rest of the suit to its bag. "Okay, Ralph. That’s fine. I guess I was just remembering what happened the last time..."

Ralph took her hands in his. "Pamela, I promise that will not happen this time or any other time we’re on a vacation." He smiled. "Now, what do you say to a nice dinner? When I made the reservation here, I asked about their restaurant and it sounds great!"

Pam nodded, smiling. "Lets go have dinner."

They made their way to the restaurant and stopped at the podium.

"Reservation for two, under Hinkley," Ralph said.

The maitre d’ checked his list and nodded. "Would you follow me, please? Right this way..." He grabbed two menus and led them into the dining area.

Pam couldn’t believe her eyes. It was indeed a fancy restaurant, plus it had a dance floor and a live band playing. There were couples out dancing already. Ralph grinned, seeing the look on her face.

The maitre d’ stopped by a two-person table against the wall on the right side, with the dance floor directly in front of them. He slipped away the "Reserved" card, folded it, and nonchalantly slipped it into his inner coat pocket. He placed their menus, then turned to Ralph, who nodded. The maitre d’ also nodded and headed back to his podium.

"Oh wow..." Pam was stunned. She finally came out of it when Ralph nudged her. He was holding out the chair for her. She sat and he pushed her in.

"So does that mean you like this?" Ralph asked as he sat down across from her.

"Like this? I love this, Ralph!"

"I was hoping you’d say that."

Franklyn was once again at his desk when a dozen men entered his office, led by Matthews.

"Excellent." Franklyn nodded his discharge to Matthews, who left. Franklyn stood to address the twelve men in front of him. "Men, you know why I called you here. What I want you to do, is tomorrow evening, when that convention is in full swing, go in and hold it up. I have weapons waiting for you. Take everything of value. Then starting shooting out over people’s heads. If anything goes wrong, you know what to do." He gave an evil smile. "If that doesn’t get Murphy to make me an offer, we’ll just do it all again. And again and again, until he gets the message."

The band began playing "Save The Last Dance For Me." Pam already had her head resting on Ralph’s shoulder as they continued dancing. She’d decided that this was the next best thing to Heaven, slow dancing in Ralph’s arms, with no worries... and no Bill or magic jammies to get between them.

Pam couldn’t help her smile, thinking about it, and her smile grew when she heard Ralph softly singing the lyrics to the song playing. Sure, she’d teased him before about singing along to almost every song on the radio, but she did have to admit he had a great voice.

Eyes closing, Pam let her thoughts drift, only letting the music and Ralph’s voice reach her consciousness. The song ended and a new one started. Pam couldn’t pick it out right away, but Ralph did, as he began singing the words to "Stand By Me."

They swayed back and forth, moving very little. Pam didn’t care, she wasn’t even still standing for all she knew. She gave a slight smirk at the thought that she wasn’t standing on her own anymore, that it was Ralph holding her up. Pam knew he could do it, too. He was quite strong, though by a quick glance he might not look it. Her nose wrinkled as the word "skinny" floated through her brain. Ralph was not skinny; thin, yes... with well-toned muscles, oh hell yes. She smiled again and shifted slightly to move one of her hands so it rested flat on his back.

The movement didn’t interrupt his singing, but Pam could hear a slight change in his voice. She knew he was smiling, with a pretty good idea she was thinking about him... and only him.

The song ended and she was jolted by the obvious strains of "Tequila." Pam pushed off of Ralph’s shoulder and started laughing when she saw the grin on his face.

"What?" Ralph asked, feigning innocence.

"Don’t give me that innocent act, Ralph. You asked them to play this!" she chuckled as he started dancing again, moving away from her slightly.

He put his hands out, looking for hers. "Yes, I did. I didn’t want you falling asleep on my shoulder." He gave her a wink.

Pam took his hands and let him twirl her around. Ralph twirled her so she had her back pressed to him. She glanced up and replied, "So I take it you have some plans for us later tonight?"

"You bet I do." And Ralph spun her out again.

The room door opened and the light switch was flipped. Pam made her way to the bed and sat down heavily on the end. She watched Ralph close and lock the door, then sit next to her.

"This has been the best evening I’ve had in a long time, Ralph. Thank you."

"You’re welcome, Pam. You deserved it."

"I especially liked being serenaded," Pam said.

Ralph’s cheeks flushed slightly. "It was nothing."

"If you insist." Pam stood. "If you don’t mind, I got a little warm from all the dancing, so I’m going to wash up a little, then you may continue to amaze me with your plans." She gave him a wink, then crossed in front of him.

Ralph kept his eyes on her as she stopped by the suitcase and grabbed a few things, then headed into the bathroom. After she closed the door, Ralph set into motion. He slipped off his suit jacket and hung it in the closet, then pulled the "Do Not Disturb" sign off the knob, opened the door slightly and hung it on the outside, then closed the door. He sat back down on the edge of the bed and pulled off his shoes, then his socks, dumping them in a heap under the luggage rack.

Ralph got up again and headed for the windows. He pulled the curtains closed and re-checked the climate on the vents. He straightened and glanced around the room. He went over and turned on the lamp over the bed, then crossed to flip the light switch off.

Ralph returned to the bed and untucked the quilt and blankets, pulling all of them to the foot of the bed. He nodded, then laid himself out and waited for her.

It wasn’t long before Pam came out of the bathroom. She wore a long, red, silky robe that practically reached the floor. She stopped at the end of the bed and watched Ralph’s reaction. His jaw dropped.

"Oh my..." Ralph shook himself. "That’s new, isn’t it?"

Pam nodded. "I had a surprise of my own in mind for this trip."

"Definitely." Ralph grinned as she climbed on the bed and moved beside him. "You are so beautiful..."

Pam responded by unbuttoning his shirt. She ran her hand over his chest. "And you are so handsome."

They leaned in and met in a kiss. As the kiss deepened, Ralph reached a hand up and clicked off the light over the bed, sending the room into darkness, with just a hint of moonlight coming through the top of the curtains.

The convention was in full swing the next day. People milled about in throngs. Booths and tables were scattered all across the main hall, plus two of the smaller halls. Ralph sat at the Whitney High table, while his co-workers made their rounds.

Pam was also going from one to the next, chatting with people. She crossed to one wall, over to a water fountain for a quick drink. Leaning in, she paused hearing whispers from a room around the corner. She straightened and inched her way toward the corner to hear better.

"--and no one is getting in our way. Franklyn wants this job done and done right the first time. We’ll give it five minutes, then go in--"

Pam’s eyes widened and she moved away from the wall quickly, headed back in the direction of the Whitney High table. She returned as Mr. Knight was offering to take over for Ralph. She watched Ralph nod, then he met her a few steps from the table.

"Isn’t this great, Pam?" Ralph said, practically beaming.

"Hon, I think we’ve got a problem here."

"What do you mean?"

"I went over to get a drink of water and overheard someone talking about a job being done in about five minutes. Ralph, I think there’s some crooks on the way in."

"Pamela, this is a teachers’ convention, what could they possibly want from us?" Ralph asked, not wanting to believe what he was hearing.

"I don’t know. All I know is what I heard. And now there’s only four minutes before it happens." Pam paused, then asked quietly, "Are you wearing the suit?"

Ralph grinned. "I told you, Pam, I wasn’t going to wear it unless absolutely necessary."

"Ralph, I just have a really bad feeling about this."

"Well..." Ralph thought a moment. "Okay, so that’s what you heard. Maybe you misunderstood. You didn’t hear the whole conversation, did you? Maybe you missed the context around it--"

"Ralph, would you stop trying to rationalize this! I’ve been around you and Bill and scenarios long enough to understand how it works and I just know--"

Suddenly, some shots rang out overhead. People began scattering, running for cover as twelve men wearing ski masks came into the hall, guns poised just slightly overhead.

"They’re early..." Pam said, eyes widening.

Ralph’s eyes closed. "Damn." He shook his head and opened his eyes again. "We have to do something before they ruin the convention completely."

"They have guns, Ralph, and you don’t have the suit!" Pam reminded him.

"I know that!" Ralph exclaimed. "Still, I have to do something!"

Pam sighed as Ralph started glancing around the hall. His gaze landed on the long curtains behind where most of the ski-masked men now stood. Half of them spread out to each side, while the other half stopped in front of the windows. All of them were taking money, jewelry, and anything else of value.

"I think I have an idea..." Ralph said.

"What can I do?" Pam asked, realizing it was futile to argue with him anymore.

"I’m going to try to pull down one of the curtains and throw it onto them. Follow me and stay close. Go to the same curtain I go to."

As the men spread out further, Ralph and Pam slipped past three of them in the confusion and over to the windows. Together, they tugged on the long, heavy curtain. After several tries, it came free and fell to the floor with a soft thud. They each grabbed an end and eased their way up behind the three men. Ralph held up three fingers, then nodded once, twice, and after the third nod, they threw the curtain over the men’s heads. With the men startled, Ralph ran and jumped into the heap, knocking them over.

Ralph jumped off again in case they began shooting and headed closer to the middle of the room. He glanced around for Pam.

"Ralph!"

He spun around hearing Pam’s yell and found her being held by one of the other gun men, with another flanking him. The rest of the people were either against the opposite wall or almost there, emptying nearly half of the hall. It looked just like a showdown with an audience.

"Bad move, pal," said the second man.

Without thinking, Ralph moved forward, closing the gap between him and the two men holding Pam. He got within approximately ten feet and the second man waved his gun.

"I wouldn’t get any closer if you want your lady friend to continue breathing."

Ralph held his hands out in front of him to show he meant no more harm. "Listen, I just don’t want to see anyone hurt, okay?"

"Well, you shoulda thought of that before playing hero." Two more men came up on either side of him and the man holding Pam. He nodded to them. "Get him. We’re bringing them both with us."

The other two men did as told and walked up to Ralph, each grabbing an arm. Ralph didn’t fight back, as he didn’t know what might happen to Pam if he did, so he went along with them.

The gun man that seemed to be in charge waved on the one holding Pam. They went back out through the room they came in. The rest of the gun men pulled the curtain off the other three, who followed after. The two men pulling Ralph along followed next, leaving the rest of the men to cover them.

Ralph’s brain was already moving on auto-pilot, thinking up various possible scenarios of what these guys had in store for them. When the group reached the rear door, leading out into an alley, Ralph noticed a black van and a black sedan. He watched their leader put Pam in the back and got in next to her. The doors slammed closed, the car started up, and pulled away.

One of the men opened the back doors of the van and jumped inside. He reappeared moments later with two lengths of rope and a roll of duct tape. Ralph rolled his eyes, and the man walked up to him.

"This is my favorite part of the job," he said and gave Ralph a grin as he tore off a strip of tape. Even though Ralph could’ve gotten off a last comment, he chose not to, and then no longer had a chance to comment as the gun man plastered the piece of tape over his mouth. One of the two men holding him tied his wrists, the other covering him, while the man that got the rope and tape tied Ralph’s ankles together.

The biggest gun man, who’d been felled by the curtain, then hoisted Ralph up in a fireman’s carry and climbed into the back of the van. Two jumped into the cab of the van while the others climbed in the back.

The van started up and began moving. One of the men pulled out a walkie talkie. "Joey, we’re on our way. Our trouble maker’s been gift-wrapped." He grinned in Ralph’s direction.

"Joey’s" voice came over the walkie talkie and Ralph recognized it as their leader. "Good. Keep him that way until you hear otherwise. I need to report in so’s we can find out what to do with these two." There was a pause. "Ya know, this broad is gorgeous!"

Ralph’s eyes widened at the comment. Then there was an obvious "smack" sound, followed by a "Damn!" Ralph would’ve grinned if he’d been able to.

"I hope the boss lets us decide what to do with these two. Out." And the walkie talkie went to static. The man pushed a button to turn his off.

Unable to move, Ralph had no choice but to wait out the drive. Again, he tried to come up with at least one plausible scenario, but being tied up hampered them.

It wasn’t a long drive, which Ralph was thankful for. The van came to a stop and one of the men opened the doors. The big guy hoisted Ralph up again and jumped out the back. The man’s landing jarred Ralph, causing him to give a slight groan. The big guy smirked and headed into the building.

The building was an old manufacturing plant, with old, large, metal machinery scattered about. The big man carried him across the room and into another, which held large rolls of paper and big, empty, wooden spools. The man unceremoniously dumped Ralph onto the floor, by a wall. Ralph became painfully aware of the wall immediately as his head clunked into it. The big guy smirked, then left the room, leaving Ralph alone.

Ralph shook his head lightly, trying to refocus. He shifted himself to sit upright the best he could and glanced around the room. Anything sharp enough to cut the ropes would be of great use... but there was nothing there.

Ralph really wished he had the suit. When Bill found out about this, he’d never let him live it down. Assuming he’d still be alive. He rolled his eyes at the thought and decided to try listening, maybe he could find out what these goons were up to... and where Pam was.

The black sedan pulled up in the rear of the office building. Three of the four doors opened and three men got out. The one in the rear leaned back in, however, and pulled Pam out. She glanced around, looking for Ralph, but didn’t see him.

Pam decided to test her luck. "Where’s Ralph?" She figured they must’ve tied him up, but also that they’d both be brought to the same place. She remembered the black van, but didn’t see it now.

Joey grinned. "He’s safe, for now."

Pam was at least thankful for that tiny bit of information. She hoped he’d remain safe as they started moving her to the rear doors of the building.

The small group headed for the elevator. When everyone was in, Joey hit the six button. The doors closed and the elevator began its ascent. After they reached the sixth floor, the elevator dinged and the doors opened. Joey escorted Pam out of the elevator, taking her arm the way a normal date would. They passed many people, walking down several hallways. Pam just kept telling herself to remain calm. She could figure a way out as soon as there seemed to be no imminent danger for her, or Ralph, she hoped.

Pam caught the name Henry Franklyn on the door before they went into the office. She thought the name sounded familiar and tried to think of where she’d seen it before.

They entered the office of a well dressed man in his late 40s, maybe early 50s, looking all the gentleman. A younger man stood off to one side of the desk. Both men smiled upon seeing Pam. Pam, meanwhile, was feeling a little nauseous from all these men looking at her... most of whom she could run legal circles around and still have enough left in her for a more than nice evening with Ralph... Again, she wondered what they did with him.

"So she is half of the reason why my plans did not go down completely and not without a hitch today? Amazing." The older man clasped his hands, laid on the desk in front of him. "And the other?"

"He’s at the manufacturing plant with the others," Joey replied.

It took a moment, then Franklyn nodded. "Let them know to go ahead with their plans." He stood, hands still clasped, and eyed Pam. "Take her out to one of the rooms, then I want you to take at least some of the men and go back to further stake out that convention."

Joey nodded. "Right." He wrapped his arm around Pam’s again and tugged her along. They went back out in the hall, the men following behind. Joey stopped in front of a door and pulled a ring of keys out of his pocket. He slipped one into the lock and turned, opening the door. It was simply an empty office, its only furnishment being a desk and chair.

Joey pushed Pam into the room and pulled the door closed after her. She didn’t go back to the door as he locked it from the outside. After a few moments, she did go to the door to inspect the handle. She found no lock on it. Next, she glanced at the space between the door and the frame. The thinnest line of light came through, not enough room to stick something in to pry the door open.

Pam sighed and sat in the chair. She needed to think.

Meanwhile, at the manufacturing plant, the rest of the men had been waiting for word on what to do next, when a phone call came in.

The man who picked up the phone nodded. "Alright, Joey. I’ll send most of these guys back to the convention." He grinned in the big man’s direction, who was currently bench-pressing 300 pounds. "I’ll let Steve know he can have some fun and I’ll hang around to make sure he doesn’t make a mess. Bye." He hung up the phone and went to the others. "Alright, everyone back to the convention center for a stake out, except Steve."

Out in the back room, Ralph’s eyes widened slightly. All he caught was that almost all of the gun men were going back to the convention center. He shook his head, but paused hearing footsteps coming in his direction.

The large man and the one that grabbed the phone appeared in the doorway. The smaller of the two stepped forward and jerked his thumb at the big guy. "Did you know this guy can bench-press 300 pounds?"

Ralph’s eyes rolled to the ceiling. Great, I’ll probably get pounded into 150 pounds of dog chow.

"Awe, Mark, didja hafta tell him that?" Steve asked, then smirked.

Mark returned the smirk. "Listen, I’m going out to get some food for when the guys get back. You have some fun with the little hero here." He turned and left the room.

Ralph groaned audibly. He had an idea and he hoped this guy was as dumb as he looked. He winced and groaned again.

Steve paused, confusion crossing his face. He hadn’t even touched the guy yet and he was already looking like he had!

Ralph groaned again and leaned forward, resting his forehead on his knees. Come on, big, dumb, and ugly, take the bait!

Steve crossed over to Ralph and grabbed a handful of his jacket and lifted him up, one-handed. Ralph did all he could to not noticeably gulp at this action. Instead, he groaned again and shook his head the best he could. "All right, all right," Steve said, then ripped the tape off Ralph’s mouth.

"Owww..." Ralph made a face.

"What’s your problem?"

Ralph sighed and looked Steve in the face. "I need to use the bathroom."

The big man blinked, then smiled, then laughed. "Is that all?" Steve was nearly going hysterical.

"I’m serious! I really need to go!" Ralph pleaded.

"Fine." Steve heaved Ralph over his shoulder and carried him to a smaller closet-like room in the corner. He set Ralph down on his feet, then untied the rope around his wrists. "Two minutes." He grinned. "I’ll be back." The big man left the room.

Ralph waited a few seconds, then crouched down to untie his ankles. It took a few moments, but the rope finally came loose and he pulled it off. He glanced around the small room. No windows. He stepped back out into the main room. He paused, glancing around the room.

There were no windows there, either... He needed some leverage or a vantage point to get around Steve. There were towers of paper rolls and huge spools. He considered climbing up one of them and maybe pushing one off onto the big man...?

Then he noticed the tower right by the door. The top roll of paper rested about a foot from the wall, slightly off the rest of the pile. He had another idea. He dropped the piece of rope by the door, then walked to the side of the room.

Ralph climbed up the back of the piles, making his way to the space. Half way up, he heard footsteps coming closer. Damn... He climbed as quickly as he could and was almost in the space when...

"Hey!?" Steve exclaimed, looking around. He went over and picked up the rope off the floor. He growled. "Little piece of...!" He went to the bathroom and slammed the door open.

Ralph took advantage and jumped down, landing in a crouch. He stood and headed out the door, into the main room of the plant. He headed for and out the main door, into an alley. He looked to the open end of the alley and saw the smaller gun man headed back, with food more interesting than watching where he was going.

Ralph sprinted for a fire escape ladder and jumped up to it. He climbed a few rungs, then waited until Mark got close enough... Ralph jumped off, landing on Mark, knocking him and his food to the ground.

"Hey--? You!" Mark looked up at him with wide eyes. "How’d you get past Steve?"

Ralph grinned. "I flew." He grabbed two fistfuls of Mark’s shirt. "Now, where’d you boys take my lady friend to?"

Mark smirked. "What’ll you do if I don’t tell you?"

Ralph thought for a moment. He actually didn’t have a lot of options at the moment. So he did the only thing he could thing of and clunked Mark’s head against the pavement. "That. Over and over until you lose consciousness."

"Ow, man! Damn, I don’t get paid enough for this crap." Mark groaned. "Man, she’s at Franklyn’s office building."

"Where’s that? Help me out, I’m not from around here," Ralph said, clunking his head against the pavement again. He hoped this punk would give him all the information he wanted soon as he’d prefer to see the punk in jail instead of the hospital.

"Harbor Boulevard. Out the alley, take a left, then a right at the first intersection. Then it’s four blocks, take a right and go half a block." Mark answered.

"See, that wasn’t so tough," Ralph commented and let him go.

Mark groaned as Ralph started off down the alley. A few moments later, Steve came out and picked up Mark, who rubbed his head, and said, "Come on, we gotta tell Franklyn our hero’s loose..."

Ralph made his way down La Veta. Four blocks... and me without the jammies. Never thought I’d miss them this much. He made a right at the intersection onto Garden Grove Boulevard and began jogging. Fortunately, he didn’t garner too many rubber necks, considering that he was jogging in his suit jacket and pants. The only problem was "The Eye Of The Tiger" was going through his head. Ralph shook his head, all he needed was a set of stairs to run up...

After two blocks, he noticed a familiar black van about a block behind him. He groaned, then ducked into a department store.

The van stopped half a block away. Mark and Steve got out and went into the store.

Ralph glanced up, from behind a rack of shirts and watched them walk along the opposite side of the store. He began edging his way to the door, then quickly went back out.

This time, Ralph ran full speed down the sidewalk. If he knew the area, he would’ve gone down a side street, but he didn’t even have one of the maps Pam had picked up on him. He finally saw the street sign for Harbor Boulevard a block and a half in front of him.

He stopped at the corner and pushed the walk button, waiting to cross, and looked back down the street. the black van was just pulling back out onto the street. Ralph hit the walk button again, willing the lights to change. They finally did and he got the walk signal, causing him to dash across the road and continue down the next block.

Ralph glanced over his shoulder and spotted the black van again, closer than before. He looked forward again and ran as fast as he could, even though he knew he couldn’t outrun them. He only hoped he could outsmart them.

And still, the main thing he thought about was how Pam was...

Pam was actually doing fine, better if she could get the window to pry open. She was kneeling by the only window in the room, with a metal rod she found in the closet in hand. The window wouldn’t budge. She’d considered just breaking the window with the rod, but thought someone would hear and be in the room before she could get half way down the fire escape right outside the window.

Besides, she still didn’t know where Ralph was. She paused and looked out the window, down the street. And she saw someone run around the corner of the building and head toward her. Her eyes widened. She recognized the suit... and the blond hair.

"Ralph..." Pam wanted to call to him, let him know where she was, but had an idea that someone would hear. Instead, she tried lightly wrapping the rod against the window frame.

On the street, Ralph stopped when he reached the building and looked behind him while catching his breath. He expected the van any moment. He straightened and thought he heard a faint knocking sound from above. He turned and looked up at the building. His eyes squinted and thought he saw someone wave at him.

Ralph sighed and shook his head. He jumped and pulled the ladder of the fire escape down and began to climb up.

The van screeched around the corner and came to an abrupt stop in front of the building. Mark and Steve got out and looked around. They didn’t look up and instead went inside.

Meanwhile, Ralph reached the sixth floor and found Pam at the window. "Hang on, Pamela..." He tugged at the window, but it wouldn’t budge. He tried again, still to no avail. Ralph shrugged. "You’ll have to break the window."

He backed away as Pam brought the rod back, then slammed it into the window. It cracked, but didn’t break. Pam hit it again, this time shattering the window. "Ralph, thank God!"

Ralph waved her back. "Hang on." He kicked out the remaining glass shards, then helped her out the window. "Are you okay?"

"Fine. They just locked me in there. You?"

"So far, so good." Ralph gave a slight grin.

The room door opened suddenly and Mark came in, followed by the rest of the gun men. It was getting more than a little crowded.

Ralph groaned and looked down the fire escape. Steve was coming out the fifth story window. "Shit..." he muttered under his breath. He turned back to Pam, "We’ve got a little problem here..."

Pam held up the rod still in her hand. "There’s always the hard way."

"We’ll have to." They went back into the room and the melee began.

Pam wielded her rod like a pro, swinging it at the men, hitting their hands, arms... one she got in the jaw and he fell unconscious.

Ralph was swinging punches. He sent a couple men to the floor... until he got caught by Steve, who swung a meaty hand into Ralph’s gut, doubling him over.

Pam saw it and went over to try and hit Steve with the rod. Steve caught it in one hand and tossed it away. Ralph made his way over to it and picked it up.

"Ralph!" Pam yelled, Steve taking hold of her wrists.

Ralph grabbed the rod, spun, and clocked Steve on the left arm with it. The big guy yelped and let Pam go. "Come on!" Ralph said, grabbing Pam’s hand, still holding the rod in the other.

They ran out of the room and down the hall. A couple men followed.

"We’ll have to take a chance with the elevator. If we take the stairs, they’ll catch us at the bottom," Ralph said, then added, "Where’s the elevator?"

Pam pointed to the right. "Down that hall!"

They reached the bank of elevators and hit the down button. After what seemed like forever, one of them arrived and the doors opened. Ralph and Pam ran in and hit the ground level button, then the close door button. As soon as the doors closed, they both slumped against the walls.

Ralph doubled over a bit again, trying to catch his breath. "Man, that guy’s got a frying pan for a hand..."

Pam rubbed his back, and agreed, "He was huge."

They reached ground level and left the elevator. Glancing around, they ran for the main doors and went out onto the street. Ralph flagged down a taxi and they climbed in. The taxi pulled out, headed in the direction of the convention center.

The hotel room door opened and Ralph and Pam came in.

"At least the police were already at the center," Pam commented.

Ralph walked around the bed and sat at the head of it. "Yes, but they were basically just crowd control. We were gone..." He checked his watch, "We were gone a little over an hour and they still didn’t get everyone out of there."

"No one even seemed to realize that we were gone." Pam sat next to him. "And they’ve closed the convention for the rest of the day."

"Which means those guys will be back again tomorrow, probably madder and more dangerous to everyone there."

"The police should be there tomorrow, though..."

Ralph shook his head. "Even though Bill’s a Fed, he knows alot about how the police work. There might be one additional security guard there. No, I’m wearing the suit tomorrow. We’ll wait for those guys to come back and when they do, I know they’ll be looking for us. We’ll just let them grab us again and as soon as we’re away from the crowd in there, I’ll get the drop on them."

"And have at least one of them take us to their boss, Franklyn. You know, Ralph, that really bothers me. I could swear I’ve seen him somewhere before and I just can’t remember."

"Did you hear anything about what their plans are?"

"No, nothing else. It either has something to do with the convention or the center itself."

Ralph sighed and winced slightly, still feeling the punch from earlier. "It couldn’t be the convention itself. We’re just a bunch of teachers. It’s more than likely the center itself they’re interested in. But why?"

"I don’t know." Pam gave him a look. "Are you sure you’re okay, Ralph? That guy really hit you hard."

Ralph grinned. "I think I’m just a little worn out from being flung around by those guys." He shook his head. "That, and I’ve realized that I rely on the suit a little too much. If I’d had it on today, I could’ve taken out those guys as soon as we left the building. Instead, we got hauled off, I was tied up and you were locked up. It struck me that I had to rely on just myself to get out of our bind and... I was worried. I’m just a teacher, not a Fed like Bill! I don’t handle this stuff very well."

"You did today," Pam said.

Ralph gave her a dull glare. "You’re just saying that..."

"No, I’m not, Ralph. I’m serious." She grinned. "I especially liked your trick to get away from the big guy, Steve. That was smart and quick thinking."

"I was lucky he didn’t squash me!" Ralph laughed, which made him wince. "I was so scared that he would turn me into dog chow or something."

There were a few moments of silence before Pam spoke up again. "So, now what do we do? We’ve got the whole evening to ourselves."

"Dinner sounds good--"

Pam got up suddenly and went over to the table. She started rifling through the pamphlets she’d picked up the day before. She picked one up and turned back to Ralph. "I think I have just the thing."

"How the hell could you let them get away?!" Franklyn yelled.

His hired men stood around his desk, half hanging their heads while most of the others looked in some other direction.

"Now, all of you listen to me. You’re going back to the convention center tomorrow and you’re going to find them and bring them to me. Not only that, but I want you to rob those people blind! Today’s fiasco isn’t even going to stop that teachers’ convention from continuing!" Franklyn paused, glaring at each of the men, whether they were looking at him or not, and most still weren’t. "Get out of here," he finished in disgust.

"Pamela, really, we could do this back at home!"

Pam was practically dragging Ralph through a mall parking lot. "Ralph, I’ve heard so many people talk about how much they love the Block at Orange and I figured this was the perfect opportunity to experience it first-hand! Besides, I want to do some shopping!" She gave him a grin.

"You know this wasn’t exactly what I had in mind when I said dinner sounded good!" Ralph said, finally keeping up with her.

"I know that, hon. Last night’s dinner was excellent. But that was your choice, and this is mine." Pam gave him a smile. "We’ve got the entire evening to ourselves. We may as well take advantage of it!"

Ralph returned the smile. "Okay, Pam, you’re right.

Ralph glanced over his shoulder at the sign behind him. He grinned. "Cafe Tu Tu Tango. Bill would have a field day with that."

Pam unfolded a map. "He won’t hear about it, Ralph. Lets see... Oh, look at this! Burke Williams Day Spa!"

"A Day Spa? Pamela!"

"There’s a surf shop almost right next to it."

Ralph paused a moment, before nodding. "Now that, I like. Shall we?"

"We shall," Pam agreed, then pointed to their left. "Down this way."

They walked down a concourse dubbed "The Strip" and first came to the Day Spa.

"How long do you think you’ll be?" Ralph asked.

"Not as long as you’ll be." She gave him a wink. "About thirty five minutes. When I get out, I’ll find you."

Ralph grinned again. "Works for me." He gave her a kiss on the cheek, then headed around the corner to the Ron Jon Surf Shop.

As he came upon the store entrance, Ralph was greeted by a stand-up sign proclaiming "No Shirt, No Shoes... No Problem!" He grinned and entered the shop. It looked like a very large Woody station wagon, with the hard wood floors and wall paneling. Ralph glanced overhead and saw several old style model byplanes hanging from the ceiling. He liked this store... alot.

Ralph made his way over to some racks of t-shirts first, which were neatly pushed together, but not overly cramped. He looked through many shirts and looked at one that was a bright yellow.

While Ralph looked through the shirts, Joey and Mark entered the store. They went straight to the counter and, while Mark grabbed some snacks, Joey briefly chatted with a young woman at the register. Mark set the snacks down and ran two fingers over the smooth wood counter. The young woman rang up the snacks and finished speaking with Joey, who thanked her and they went to their left, over to another rack of t-shirts and pretended to look through them.

"He’s across the store," Joey said.

Mark nodded. "When do we grab him?"

"We’re just following them for now. We can grab them at the convention tomorrow."

"Right."

Ralph waded his way through the racks of t-shirts and made his way over to the large wooden racks of surf boards. He glimpsed one in particular, blue with a black stripe sandwiched between two thinner white stripes. He ran his fingers over the finish, then checked the price tag. His eye brows arched as he considered it.

The young woman from the counter walked over to Ralph, seeing that he was interested in the boards. "Hi, I’m Missy. Is there anything I can help you with?"

Ralph smiled. "Well, I was kind of browsing... but now I’m not so sure." He glanced at the blue board and fingered it again. "I really like this one, but I’m not so sure how my wife would like that I bought a surf board when I’m just looking because I didn’t want to go into the Day Spa."

Missy smiled. "I don’t think she’d mind very much. Besides, I can tell when someone’s about to purchase a board and you’ve got that buying look in your eyes."

"Maybe that’s just the reflection off the board," Ralph commented, looking at the board again. He had to admit that he really did want to purchase the surf board.

"How about this? I’ll put a ‘Sold’ tag on it, you can go talk it over with your wife, then come back and let me know what you want to do."

Ralph turned back to her. "You could do that?"

She shrugged. "Sure. We do it all the time."

"That’d be great, thank you!" Ralph checked his watch. "I’m meeting her in about twenty five minutes."

Missy pulled out a tag and a marker. "No problem, uh..."

"Oh, sorry, my name’s Ralph Hinkley."

Missy nodded and wrote his name on the tag, then pulled out a roll of Scotch tape and taped the tag to the board. "All set."

"Thank you again, Missy." They shook hands and Missy went back to the counter.

Ralph grinned, fingering the board once more. "I hope Pamela doesn’t mind."

He continued around the store, looking at various items, all the while still oblivious to Joey and Mark watching him from a distance.

Ralph checked his watch again for the umpteenth time and headed for the entrance way. He was half way back to the Day Spa when Pam came out.

Joey and Mark also happened to leave the Surf Shop at the same time. They watched as the couple met up and spoke briefly.

Pam sighed. "Okay, hon, you can buy the surfboard, but lets finish looking around the mall first. When we get ready to leave, we’ll come back and get it."

Ralph smiled. "Thanks, Pam!"

"You’re just like an overgrown kid sometimes, you know that, Ralph?" Pam said, chuckling.

Ralph shrugged, then slung an arm around Pam’s shoulders. "I try my best."

Several hours later, Ralph and Pam were headed out to the parking lot, Ralph with the surf board tucked under an arm and a plastic bag in the other. Pam carried a handled, brown paper bag and a small plastic bag.

They began loading their things in the station wagon as Joey and Mark came out the same way they had. They crossed over to another aisle of parking and walked towards a dark blue pick up truck, which they then leaned against.

"Are we gonna follow them back to where ever they’re staying?" Mark asked.

Joey shook his head. "No. We’ll get them tomorrow."

Mark thought for a moment. "So... why were we following them, then?"

Joey rolled his eyes. "In case we had a chance to grab them! Or in case they decided to go to the cops." He paused. "Actually, I’m curious why they didn’t go to the cops..."

Mark just nodded and the two men watched the station wagon pull out of its parking spot and head out of the lot.

The next morning, about 9:30, Ralph stood in front of the mirror tying his tie.

"Come on, Pam, we’ve got to be there before ten!" He finished with the tie and grabbed his suit jacket, then slipped it on. "I hope they’ve got the air conditioning on in there today." He picked up the bag that previously held the magic jammies and tossed it, empty, under the luggage rack.

Pam came out of the bathroom, make-up bag it hand. She crossed in front of him and dropped the bag into the open suitcase. She wore a stylish blue pants suit with a white blouse. "Worth the wait?"

Ralph grinned. "Always." Then he spun her around, aiming her towards the door. "Now, come on, we’ve got to get going!"

Both laughed, heading out the door.

Most of the conventioneers were already there when Ralph and Pam walked in, after having come through a newly-added security check-in.

"Well, it’s nice to know I was wrong about how many extra police there would be here today. That’s a good sign," Ralph commented. He then added in a whisper, "Though I don’t think it’s still enough to keep those goons out of here."

Pam nodded and asked, quietly, "Any idea on when they might show?"

"Nothing definite, but I’ll guess early this afternoon."

Meanwhile, a distinguished looking gentleman sat at a desk in an office on the upper level on the convention center. He mulled over paperwork, jotting down notes, and occasionally taking a sip from a coffee mug.

A knock came at his door, but he didn’t look up. "It’s open," he called.

The door opened and Franklyn entered, alone. "Well, Murphy, it’s good to see you again."

Murphy shot up out of his chair and glared at Franklyn. "What the hell do you think you’re doing here? And what the hell was that yesterday? I know that was your doing," he spoke in an even, yet angered voice.

"A taste of what may happen if you don’t turn the title for this lovely little convention center of yours over to me, its rightful owner," Franklyn said.

Murphy leaned forward, both palms resting on his desk. "You’re crazy. I can’t figure out what’s gotten into your head that makes you think this is your building."

Franklyn came right up to the desk and the two men met eye to eye. "I’m the one that came up with the first draft to have a convention center here and you copied it!"

"I did no such thing. I was waiting to get the okay on the construction permit when you came up with that gaudy blue print," Murphy said.

Franklyn put his hand out. "Give me the title."

Murphy glared at the man’s hand, then slapped it away. "No."

"I’m sorry you feel this way," Franklyn said. He turned and left the office, slamming the door after him.

Murphy sighed and shook his head. He sat down, then picked up the phone. "This is Murphy. I want security tripled immediately."

Franklyn made his way downstairs to the convention, which was now in full swing. He entered the main room and began to walk through the throngs of people milling about.

Both Ralph and Pam were at the Whitney High table again. Pam was speaking with another woman, who... had some sort of high position. Ralph wasn’t paying attention to what they were talking about. He was busy watching Franklyn walk around nonchalantly. Ralph pulled at his shirt collar, bringing out the jammies’ collar a bit. He was able to keep his focus on him as he walked... and turned away when it looked as though Franklyn was looking in his direction.

Pam bade the woman goodbye, then turned to her husband, who was now glancing over his shoulder. "Ralph," she whispered, "what’re you doing?"

"It’s Franklyn," Ralph replied, whispered. He gave a slight nod in the direction of the man. "Seems as though he’s alone. I don’t see any of his men in here."

"Perhaps he’s decided to do his own staking out this time," Pam suggested.

"Looks like it," Ralph agreed, then turned to Pam. "What would you say to shadowing him and see if we can get some sorely needed information to put this guy away?"

"I say lets go."

Ralph and Pam excused themselves from the table and began to follow Franklyn as he continued his way through the main hall, then out the entrance way. He headed through the main concourse, while Ralph and Pam waited just inside the entrance way. Franklyn went out the doors, going outside, and the couple began following again. They stopped by the doors and watched Franklyn get into the black Sedan.

"Come on, we’re going to have to hurry if we don’t want to lose him," Ralph said.

The Sedan pulled away from the curb, where it had been parked--and ticketed--in the fire lane, as Ralph and Pam ran to the station wagon, behind the Sedan. They got in and Ralph started the car, buckling in at the same time. Pam did the same, just before Ralph hurriedly pulled out of the parking spot.

"I’m willing to bet he’s going back to his office building," Ralph said.

"Probably to give his men the okay to go back to the convention," Pam added.

They continued to follow in silence. They were the third car behind the Sedan just before it turned onto Harbor Boulevard. The light changed to green and the Sedan turned, and so did the station wagon. The Sedan turned into a parking garage next to the office building, while the station wagon continued down the street a few more buildings. It came to a stop on the street and the two got out.

"Ralph," Pam said, getting his attention, then motioned to the parking meter, "I don’t have any change." The meter read "Violation."

Ralph walked up to the meter, glanced around, then pulled up his right shirt cuff. He pointed his index finger at the red "Violation," making it disappear and moving the little black arrow up to the two-hour mark. Turning, he caught the disapproving look on Pam’s face. "Don’t look at me like that. I don’t have any change, either." He gave a half grin, then reached for her hand.

They crossed the street and headed towards the front doors of the building. "We can go in here. When they brought me here before, they took me in the back way. Whomever’s out front won’t recognize me," Pam said.

Ralph nodded. "Works for me." He pulled the door open, letting Pam in first and following directly behind. "Wait a second, Pam..."

Pam rejoined him, seeing that he was looking at a board noting various people and where their offices were. "Right. We very well can’t go up to the desk asking for Franklyn."

Ralph pointed at the board. "Sixth floor, Snyder." They turned away and walked up to the desk.

The receptionist turned to them with a smile. "May I help you?"

"Yes, we’re here to see Snyder. We don’t have an appointment, but were hoping he’d have a few minutes," Ralph said.

"Sure, let me just ring up there, make sure Mr. Snyder is there." The receptionist picked up her phone and dialed a number. She spoke quietly for a few seconds, then hung up. "Mr. Snyder is actually in a meeting right now, but he should be out in about a half an hour. You may go upstairs and wait for him, if you’d like."

"That’ll be fine, thank you," Pam said. They headed for the elevator banks and Ralph pushed the up button. It dinged and the doors opened. They stepped inside, Ralph hit the six button, and the doors closed.

"I can’t help but wonder how many people working in this building are legitimate, if any are," Ralph commented.

"Hm. I’m still trying to remember how I recognized Franklyn," Pam said.

"I’m sure there will be something in his paper work that will jog your memory," Ralph said.

Pam nodded. "It isn’t that it will really matter if I remember him or not, it just bothers me, though."

The elevator dinged at the sixth floor and the doors opened. They stepped out to find an empty hallway.

"Down this way," Pam said. "I overheard one of the gun men mention Franklyn’s file room. It should be at the end of the hallway."

"Lead the way," Ralph said.

They continued to the end of the hall, then Pam tried the knob on the last door. "Ralph...?"

Ralph grinned. "What would you ever do without me?"

"Don’t you mean what would I do without those magic jammies of yours?" She gave him a wink.

"You got me." Ralph pointed an index finger at the knob. A moment later it turned and the door opened under its own power. "Voila."

They entered the room and found that it had a similar set up to an office, but the room itself held several file cabinets and very little else.

"This could take a while. Ralph, any way you might be able to vibe in on at least which cabinet is holding what we’re looking for?"

"If it’s been touched recently, probably, though I’d guess that other files have been touched recently, too." Ralph paused and shrugged. "I’ll do my best." He walked over to the nearest cabinet and placed his palms flat on the top-most drawer. He did this for every drawer of every cabinet and any time he got vibes from one, Pam placed a sticky note on the drawer. By the time he finished, half of the drawers had sticky notes.

"Well, at least we only have half as many to look through," Ralph commented, then sighed.

Each of them pulled a drawer open and began flipping through file folders. They started a small pile of papers relating to other buildings that caught Franklyn’s interest, including the office building they were currently in.

Ralph pulled a folder out and flipped it open. "Pam... I think I found it. Look."

Pam walked over to him and read the open page over his shoulder. "I remember this case. Murphy owns the convention center and Franklyn was trying to steal it away from him by saying he had the original idea, but he never produced the blue prints he said he had so the court ruled in Murphy’s favor. That’s how I recognized Franklyn. I’d done research for this while one of the firm’s other partners handled it. This was just before I had become a junior partner."

Ralph flipped through the other pages. "It seems as though this file holds all of the different buildings Franklyn’s had an unhealthy interest in. There’s all sorts of notes on supposed dealings, including how to steal these places away from their rightful owners--"

Suddenly, the office door opened and Franklyn stepped in, flanked by Joey. "Well, what have we here? It would seem as though our two heroes have returned for more," Franklyn said.

Ralph handed the file folder to Pam, then slipped off his suit jacket and handed that to her, also. He turned to Franklyn. "I’ve had just about enough of you and your hired goons."

Joey snorted.

"Have you, now?" Franklyn asked. The rest of the men came in next. "Now, what do you think?"

Ralph rolled up his shirt sleeves, so that the red sleeves of the jammies showed. Snickers rose through the men, the occasional comment about long, red underwear making its way to Ralph’s ears.

Franklyn smirked and decided to take the cue from his men. "Do you really think you’re going to scare us with your red underwear?" This caused them all to laugh, including Franklyn himself.

Ralph, trying his best to stay calm, so as to not make human-sized holes in the floor, couldn’t keep from blushing in embarrassment. At least I can hopefully hide the rest of the suit from them. He took advantage of the men’s laughter and advanced on Franklyn. He picked him up by the lapels with ease. He would’ve used one hand, but didn’t want it to be that unrealistic. Still, the men gawked, surprised by Ralph’s display of strength.

"Put me down! Do you hear me? Put me down!" Franklyn called out.

Joey aimed a kick into Ralph’s side. The foot connected, sending Joey to the floor, holding his foot in agony.

"You fool!" Franklyn said, swinging his legs back and forth, trying to make Ralph drop him.

Ralph glanced at the blubbering Joey, then back at Franklyn. "You want to get down? Well, why didn’t you say so?!" Ralph tossed him lightly across the room, where he hit the wall and landed in a heap, unconscious. Ralph dusted his hands off, then waved on the rest of the men. "Who’s next?"

Steve stepped up, grinning. "How about me, little man?" He didn’t wait for a response and simply stepped up to Ralph and swung a fist toward his jaw. Ralph caught the fist in both hands and held it. Steve pushed with all his might, trying to finish the swing, but Ralph kept a steady hold on the meaty fist. Slowly, a grin formed on Ralph’s face and, as it did, Steve’s eyes widened. Ralph pushed Steve’s fist away, spinning the large man around. Once Steve did a complete 360-turn, Ralph stopped his spin by sending a punch of his own into the man’s gut. Steve doubled over, coughing.

This set off a chain reaction among the other men, getting the idea they’d be better off to all charge Ralph at once instead of one by one, seeing as how even Steve had trouble.

As the remaining men advanced on Ralph, Pam slipped out the door and back down the hall until she found an open office with a phone and dialed 911. When she returned, she found many bodies sprawled on the floor, either groaning or unconscious.

Ralph stood in the middle of the room, hands on his hips, surveying the ‘damage.’ He held his arms out and grinned. "Ta daa!" He stepped over a few ‘bodies’ and went to Pam, putting an arm around her shoulders. Together, they headed back down to the main floor to wait for the police.

A few days later, the station wagon pulled into the drive way of the Hinkley home. As the couple got out of the car, the front door of the house opened and Bill came out.

"Welcome back, you two, it’s about time!" Bill said, box of Milkbones tucked snuggly under one arm.

"Good to see you, too, Bill," Ralph said, rolled his eyes, then turned to Pam. "We’ll unpack the car later."

The trio walked into the house and gathered in the living room, Pam and Ralph on the couch, and Bill taking up a seat on the coffee table.

"Anything exciting happen?" Bill asked.

"Not really, we just had several very nice, relaxing days," Ralph said, a knowing grin crossing his face.

"I know that look, kid, you look like you just ate a canary," Bill said.

"Really, Bill," Pam said, the same grin crossing her face.

"Bunk! What a bunch of drivel. Come on, you two, what really happened?" Bill said.

Pam sighed, turning to Ralph. "It looks like we’re going to have to tell Bill all about our adventure after all," she said, grinning.

"Adventure?" Bill echoed, his interest piqued.

Ralph reclined back, propping his feet on the coffee table. "You got us, Bill. We had a scenario."

"Without ol’ Uncle Bill? Why didn’t you call me in for back up?" Bill asked.

Ralph gave a slight shrug. "Truthfully, we really didn’t need you."

"That isn’t what I heard." Bill leaned over and pulled a many-times folded newspaper out from under the coffee table and unfolded it to show them the front page. "Your bust made the headlines."

The couple just grinned at each other.

"Go ahead, rub it in the geezer’s face. You know Carlisle’s been going on about this since it happened? He can’t get over how two civilians were able to bust the head man while half a dozen FBI agents couldn’t figure out heads or tails in the guy’s scheme."

Pam relayed how she recognized Franklyn to Bill, also explaining how it was that they were able to make the bust.

Bill stood. "This is the last time I’m letting you two go on vacation without me. From now one, where one of us goes, the others follow."

"It’s going to be awfully cramped in the bathroom, then," Ralph quipped.

Bill groaned and headed for the door. "I’ll see you later. Maybe then all three of us can work on a scenario together." He closed the door after him.

"That went rather well," Pam commented.

"Yeah, not too bad," Ralph agreed, then paused. He draped an arm around Pam’s shoulders. "How would you like to celebrate our bust?"

Pam grinned. "I’d love to."

They both leaned in and met in a kiss.