The cellblock John was in was buzzing with activity for the last couple of hours. The red headed scientist was throwing orders around fast and furious. It was kind of strange, with the exception of a routine cell visit by the redhead earlier in the day the other one didn't come in to check on him, and Iwa was absent as well.

But seeing that they were preparing the cell diagonally to the right of his, made John believe that it was highly likely that Iwa had condemned another poor soul, he wondered though who it was. As if in answer there was a new flurry of activity from the entrance and it had infected the med-techs just outside his cell. They were wheeling someone in.

He felt someone watching him and turned to the right, the red headed scientist was watching him with a smile, noticing his attention to the activity she scribbled down something in her notebook. A stretcher appeared his view as the med-techs wheel their latest test subject to the cell. 'Iwa' appeared to be accompanying the team of med-tech, her back to John as she spoke with the red head, allowing the med-techs to install their latest subject into her cell. Her brown hair had obscured her face and all she wore was hospital garments. In his mind John tried to narrow down the fighters who could possibly fit the description but whoever she was, he feared the worst for her.

Doctor Yalana halted the Med-techs at the cell gates. She produced a syringe and began drawing blood from the unconscious fighter. After that she too got out two syringes, one filled with a green serum and the other with a blue one. Finishing her injection Doctor Yalana allowed the med-techs to continue their job.

"Where's Yamada?" The red head was heard asking

"He is upstairs attending to things." There was a touch of Japanese accent in the streaky hair Doll's voice.

"Where is your little sister? I didn't expect you to be here."

"The detective has her. Master said not to worry."

What was that suppose to mean? Since when did Iwa have a little sister?

Seeing that everything was in order the duo proceeded to leave, but as if they remembered something, they stopped by John's cell. The streaky hair Doll faced him now, she was squinting at him in a manner almost similar to Iwa and yet she didn't seem to recognize him.

Had something happened to her in the course of one day?

"He knows who I'm not. The G2s will be quite an interesting team indeed." She laughed and headed upstairs with the redhead leaving John to wonder just who the Iwa look-alike really was. And more importantly, who his unfortunate neighbor was.
 
 

==

Lahaina, Maui (12:30AM local time)

"Take my hand, take my whole life, too. For I can't help... falling in love with you..."

Meliza sniffed into a tissue as June Panaloa took a napkin from the bar and dabbed her eyes before blowing her nose. June promptly handed her another napkin.

Locke stood center stage in the lounge, a microphone in both hands, halfway through 'Can't Help Falling in Love' as the pianist behind him played the musical accompaniment to his baritone voice.

Clasping her hands against her chest, June released a deep sigh. "He sings beautifully..."

Meliza swiped at the tears from her lashes. "So you'll keep your end of the deal? You'll give us the information we need?"

"Yes. We have a deal." She glanced at Meliza. "Tell him he can stop now."

"Are you kidding?!"

When he finished, Locke made his way off the stage and towards the bar, as audience members clapped. He stopped once he reached Meliza.

"I must have heard Kozue sing that song a hundred times as long as I've known him," Locke admitted, shoving his hands in his pockets.

Meliza shook her head, smiling. "Cheers for karaoke. You really are the most versatile man I know." Her eyes danced with amusement as he frowned.

"What?" he demanded.

"Nothing," Meliza coughed, biting her lip to keep from laughing.

"I'm glad this whole situation is funny to you," he said dryly.

"You have to admit... it kind of is." Unable to help herself, a few laughs escaped, causing her to hold her sides. "Someone like you... had to resort to singing to get information!"

A wry smile came to his features. "I don't plan on making it a habit."

"That's too bad."

June stepped out from behind the bar, after the supervisor gave her an update on business for the night. "If you two will come with me to my office..."

They followed her inside the room they had just occupied, with June cutting right to the chase as she moved to her desk.

"Sasha was abandoned by her parents when she was sixteen," Panaloa said, showing Meliza and Locke an old photograph of her and a young blonde woman hugging each other, smiling at the camera. "She was out on the street, trying to steal from one of my girls."

"Girls?" Meliza repeated.

"Before I bought this place... I ran an escort service," Panaloa shrugged. "I still do. The girls stay off the streets, and they meet rich, successful men with connections. Anyway... my girl brought her in and I pretty much took care of her. She started working for me... met some people... they trained her... and she quit working for me since she knew she could get paid more to do other things."

"Such as being a contract killer?" Locke inquired.

A sad smile came to her features. "Yeah..." She shook her head. "We still talk. I don't approve of her lifestyle, but that's her decision."

The three were in June's office - the older woman sitting behind her desk, Locke and Meliza on the opposite side of the desk, facing her. Locke sat back in his chair while Meliza perched at the edge of her seat so she could see the photograph more closely.

"One of her clients calls on her several times a month," Locke spoke up. "His name is Thad?"

"Thaddeus Keenan," she confirmed. "Or at least that's what he says his name is. He said that he was a business broker here on Maui, so I thought he'd be a good influence. He owns a few hotels, so he stays in whichever one he feels like for the day. Rumor has it that anytime anyone needs a job done here on islands, he has a network of people who can handle it."

"Job?"

"Hit, theft, anything." She took a deep breath. "He frequently calls for one of my girls on Fridays. They'll go out to dinner, they'll go back to his hotel, and she'll give him an hour-long massage then she'll leave."

"What kind of girl does he usually request?" Meliza asked.

Locke narrowed his eyes at her question.

Panaloa shrugged. "It doesn't really matter to him. I just make sure that whoever goes can give a decent massage."

"We need to ask him a few things," Meliza announced.

Panaloa glanced at her desk calendar. "I have one of my girls meeting him at five p.m. tomorrow."

"How much is your fee?" Meliza asked.

June studied her carefully. "Three hundred cash and I'll tell you where he's going. He's calling me tomorrow with the name of the restaurant."

Ten minutes later, after exiting June's office, Locke grasped Meliza's elbow before she turned down the hallway leading to the restrooms and main lounge area.

"You're not going through with this, so you can get that idea out of your head," he said in a low voice.

"Too late. You heard her yourself. He floats between his hotels so if we want to find him right away, our best chance is tomorrow."

They made their way to the exit, his hold still on her. To the average onlooker, they looked like any couple anxious to leave and be alone.

"So that's your plan? Pretend you're an escort?" Locke demanded when they were outside and away from anyone's hearing range.

"Pretty much."

"And then what? 'Why did you order the hit on my cousin?'"

Meliza shot him a look. "Of course not."

"I should do this alone," Locke muttered.

"Somehow I don't think you could pass off as a woman." At his dark look, she sighed, pushing a strand away from her face. "Look... I'm not just going to stay on the sidelines for this one. And we need to get our answers where we won't be bothered."

"You're suggesting he take you back to his hotel?"

"You know of a better way we can get him alone?"

"I can handle this-"

"This isn't a one-man show, Locke."

He said nothing for so long, just glaring at her, his arms crossed over his chest. She recognized that mannerism. The this-discussion-is-closed look. It wasn't very often she and Locke squared off against each other. But he was so damn autocratic sometimes. Honestly, she hated fighting with him because their time together was always so limited until recently.

But no matter what he said or did, she wasn't backing down on this one.

Apparently he could tell she had no plans of giving in, because he set his jaw and headed towards the car. "You want to help, fine. But we'll do this my way."

==
 

Somewhere in Tibet (5:00PM local time)

His shouts and the shifting rope were the only warnings Esperanza had before she felt herself hurling towards the side of the bank she had just left. She held on tight to the rope, twisting so that her backpack and back took the force of the hit, causing her to cry out in pain.

She looked down just to see Jacob drop into the water.

"Mr. Turner! Ms. Rios!" Kundu's ashen face appeared at the top of the bank. He was about a good fifteen feet above her.
Esperanza tightened her grip on the rope and stared at the water. "Turner!"

No sign of him. The water churned below, rushing over rocks and other waves as it hurried to its destination.

"Ms. Rios! Are you all right?" Kundu's distraught voice could be heard over the water.

"Yes..." Fear knotted her stomach. Where is he??

A few moments later, Turner surfaced about ten meters away, sputtering water. As he was pushed through the water, he reached out to grab a rock, raising his free arm to let them know he was all right. Esperanza looked further down the river, spotting a flat boulder in the distance that was high enough so that its surface wasn't touched by rapids.

Kundu spoke up, "If he can get to that, I can drop down a rope and he can come up."

"Over there!" She and Kundu pointed to the boulder meters behind him and to his right.

Jacob turned around slightly to see what they were wildly gesturing at.

"Turner, look out!" Esperanza screamed as a group of large rapids beat over him, causing him to go under.

She and Kundu waited for what seemed like five minutes. When he resurfaced, Turner was several meters from his previous location, his body limp.

"There!" Kundu cried out.

Esperanza took a deep breath. "Kundu! I'm going after him."

"Ms. Rios! You can't!"

Keeping her backpack attached to the rope, she unhooked herself and dropped into the water.

"Ms. Rios!"

When she emerged, the water had pushed her further downstream. Even though she considered herself a strong swimmer, she knew better than to fight the rapids. It seemed like a lifetime before she reached her partner. She grabbed him around the back and began to move towards one side, away from the middle. She gritted her teeth, her limbs already exhausted thanks to the weight she carried. Her throat went dry and she tried to ignore the anxious butterflies forming in her stomach. Esperanza managed to reach the rock she and Kundu had spotted earlier. Drawing on all her strength, Esperanza crawled up on top of the flat boulder, dragging Turner's body with her. When he was flat on his back, she moved his head so that he faced the sky. Her right fingertips grazed a small goose egg above and behind his left temple. She patted his cheek, hoping the action would stir him awake.

"Turner?"

She placed a hand on his chest, shaking him.

"Turner?" A sliver of panic shot through of her.

Esperanza leaned forward, placing her cheek above his mouth and nose, her eyes trained on his chest.

He wasn't breathing.