�Where�s the chief! I wanna talk to him!� Henry demanded. The lady behind the desk did her best to placate him, saying that the chief was busy at the moment and could not see anyone, and would a deputy do? �No! If it�s not the main guy, I�m not interested. This is my son we�re talking about here!�

Heather entered through a door behind the receptionist and sighed when she saw the visitors. �I�d hoped you wouldn�t come,� she said simply. �You�re going to be wasting your time, you know.�

This time Sandra really did latch on to her husband�s shirt collar. �Easy, there.� He wrenched his shirt from her grasp and scowled. �This is crap,� he said. �You�re denying my son his rights, you�re keeping all this too secret, and, damn it! I could keep going but I�d lose my voice.�

�No swearing, please, sir,� Receptionist warned.

�I�ll say whatever the hell I want, lady!� he shot back. Heather and Receptionist exchanged glances, and the officer reached into her back pocket.

�Please don�t make me restrain you,� she said. �Now, if you�ll sit down, let me see what I can do.� The two made eye contact, and neither one would let the other win. Finally, Henry sat in the nearest chair. �Thank you, Mr. Chapman. I�ll try my best to get you to talk to someone.�

�I want the chief or I want Michael. No one else!� Sandra patted his hand; this couldn�t be good for his heart. His blood pressure was probably through the roof by now.

His was an interesting officer's position. While technically a member of the police department, he spent most of his time elsewhere, which was how he had managed to show up with the rescue workers when his own department was late. He liked it better that way, and no one ever expressed any discontent with his choices. And if they did, they didn�t say anything. They wouldn�t, not to the guy with the most seniority. Now why had he turned down that job offer again...? Oh, yeah. Too much responsibility.

He took another drag on his cigarette. He almost felt sorry for the giant.

Almost.

He still had to get past his firm conviction that the young man was nothing but trouble.

�So we get to see him?� asked Sandra, voice displaying her relief and joy.

�Yes, ma�am, you do. But I�m not leaving you alone with him.� But they didn�t seem to hear that.

The officer, who had refused to leave even after McGan wandered off on other business, poked him in the leg for what had to be the hundredth time that night. �None of yer business,� he snapped. �Now shut up until we find out what to do with you.�

More of the same, then. But then Michael heard a noise, almost like a whine. Was someone nearby? He saw a light coming toward them, then attached the light to a police vehicle. It seemed to hover off the ground, but he�d never paid that much attention to the things anyway. And besides, it was too dark to see anything clearly anyway. The light flickered off, and three people hopped out, two walking from the vehicle as if in a daze.

The shorter one snapped out of it almost immediately. �Michael!� she shouted and ran to him. The officer moved to intercept her, but the third, who Michael now saw was dressed as an officer as well, held up a hand as if to say everything was fine. The giant placed all his attention on the smaller figure, and his breath caught when she embraced his knee. He�d thought so, but...

�Mom?�

�Michael! How are they treating you? What happened? Are you okay? Tell me everything.� She said a good bit more than this, but Michael didn�t catch much more than the gist of what she wanted to say.

�I�m...well...� He looked to the other mystery figure who Michael assumed to be his father. �Dad?�

�I�m here, too,� the griffin said. �How you holding up?� He looked at the female officer and scowled. He must have wanted to say more, but he didn�t feel as if he could.

�Okay. You have twenty minutes, and that�s it. Don�t waste it,� the male officer said. �Vance here will let you know when time�s up, and I�ll be back in a bit.� He threw his head back and let out a silent laugh. �Finally! I need to move.�

Michael wasn�t sure he wanted to know what the guy meant. He smiled down at his parents, trying to hide the pain from the cords and the uncomfortable sitting position. �I�m okay, I guess.� His smile evaporated. �Still trying to get over, well...you know.� He didn�t want to say anything possibly incriminating with an officer of the law present.

�Yeah, we heard,� Henry told him. �I still can�t believe it.� He rested his face in his hands. �Now that I think about it, have they produced any evidence?� Vance rolled her eyes. ��Cause if I don�t see it, I�m gonna have to say I find all this really odd.�

�If you want to see it, Mr. Chapman, I believe I can arrange an expedition to the ruins,� she said sarcastically.

Henry looked the giant in the eyes, which was quite a feat, he noticed for the first time. �No...So it...so it really happened?� Michael nodded his head. �I�d hoped��

�No use crying about it,� Vance said. �Now you�ve had your chance to talk to him. If you don�t have anything else to say, I�d suggest we go back.�

Michael shifted to make his bonds more comfortable. �Dad, I kinda...have a question,� he said. �But...� He indicated Vance with a nod of his head.

�Forget it, giant. I�m not moving.�

�What do you know about Dragon Isle? Someone started talking to me about it,� he explained. �But I think he was drunk, so I don�t know what to think.�

�What�re you saying, giant?� Vance demanded, hands on her hips. �You try to run away and you�ll be dead before you make it halfway across the island.�

�No, that�s not it,� the Risso said. �Dad, do you know anything?�

Henry couldn�t get past the pleading in his adopted son�s eyes. �Yeah, yeah I do, actually. I lived over there for a few years, before I met your mom.� He gave Sandra a squeeze and smiled as he reminisced. �It sure was exciting for me back then. I was a major contributor to the island�s economy,� he explained. He didn�t want to say �thief� although that was the proper term. �Almost got caught once or twice,� he laughed. �Those giants could have put a stop to me real quick! But they never once saw me.� He suddenly remembered where he was. �Uh...so yeah, I�ve been over there. You�re better off here, if you ask me.�

�Thanks, Dad,� Michael said with a weak smile. �I can imagine it. Thanks for not letting me grow up to be like those giants over there on the Isle.� Henry and Sandra exchanged concerned glances, and Sandra gave her husband a clear �I�ll-talk-to-you-about-this-later� look.

Heather tapped her wrist. �Okay, time�s up. Jerry, get back here!� she shouted. �Don�t make me come to you!� she warned as she marched over to where the police officer had disappeared.

�Okay, okay!� Jerry appeared with his hands over his head as if he were the criminal. �Just like you to rob a guy of his pleasure time.�

�You don�t know the meaning of �pleasure time,� Jerry,� Vance snapped. Jerry muttered something that sounded suspiciously like a swearword under his breath. Heather ignored him and clapped her hands together. �All right! We�re going back to the station, unless you want proof that what I�ve been telling you is true.�

Henry gave his son a parting glance as he walked back to the vehicle. �No, I think I believe you.� Michael refused to make eye contact with either of them. �Let�s go, then.�