"Fashion Foe"

Safehouse 1
June 14, 2004

Rebecca's office

Gray sat silent for a moment contemplating all that had happened in
the last 36 or so hours. Too much, he thought to himself, way too
much. A bad meet, a dead agent, another exposed (which is why he was
sitting there), and a New York City detective he had yet to
interview. Hell in a hand basket…that was about where he was going.

"I think it's a fairly simple solution," Rebecca said staring at him
with her piercing blue eyes.

"I do, too. But Bella won't be happy." Giving up her job would not be
taken lightly. In fact, if any of the Agents were told they
couldn't `work' anymore, each of them would have a few choice words
for him.

"I didn't know we were here to make the Agents happy," she challenged
him.

"I'll talk to her and see where it goes."

Rebecca arched an eyebrow at him in doubt but let the issue
rest. "The rest of them?"

"Safara and Jordan will be leaving Sunday to meet with the CTU
agents. Bella…well, she's here. Paige is at home with Brian, doing
some light work for Reilly."

"And the new agents?"

"They're in, just getting accustomed to the great white north." He
had to grin at that a little. Phase II training was never a favorite
amongst the agents.

"Speaking of up north…" Rebecca shuffled some papers on her desk.

"I'll be bringing them in next week."

"So the restructuring of the teams is almost complete then?"

"Yes, we have a new agent coming in, Declan McGullen, we'll put him
on the hunt for Bella's brother."

"Good, I like that group," Rebecca nodded her head in
approval. "Anything else?"

"I don't think so. I have some more intel on the detective, I plan on
speaking to him in a little bit."

"Very good, keep me updated."

"Will do," Gray said softly before exiting the office. He tracked
down Bella in the rec room adjacent to the Baha Bar. She glanced away
from the tv for a moment as he entered but said nothing.

"Bella," Gray said sitting in one of the big couches that lined the
walls.

"I'm bored out of my skull," she said evenly.

Gray took a small breath ignoring the complaint, after all, it wasn't
his fault she blew her cover. "Yes, well, there's this small matter
of your cover being blown."

"Technically, only one person blew it."

"That you know of." She shrugged. "You know we can't allow you to
continue working at the store."

"What?"

Gray held his ground, "you let yourself be photographed and published
in a magazine that's on every corner of the city."

"By one person who knows me. Who else would recognize me or even
notice me with all those models?"

"It only takes one," Gray said evenly.

"No, Gray, that's unacceptable. I mean, how about I work from home or
from here until we bring Him in. Then we'll find out exactly who he's
told and reassess from there. We can do that can't we?"

"I don't think that's a wise choice."

"Please Gray, it's a good outlet for me…the job. Fashion is meant for
me."

She pouted her lip the slightest bit. God, he hated when women did
that. "You're an Agent."

"Not all the time," she said.

"No, that's where you're wrong. You are an Agent and you are so all
the time. There are no exceptions." She just stared at him saying
nothing. "We'll reassess after we find your brother."

"Thank you," she said with a small smile.

"When do we go after him?" she said sitting forward eagerly.

"I have Simon running some logistics. We'll meet in a couple hours to
put something together."

"Alpha team then?"

"Uh…no. Paige will be on the team as well as a new Agent." Bella
raised her eyebrows but said nothing. "I'll get you when we're ready."

"Ok," she said sinking back into the couch and looking once again at
the tv.

Gray got up and made his way to the door.

"I'm still bored out of my skull," Bella said to him without moving.

"Yes, yes," he muttered before exiting and going into the bar.