"You haven't said a word since we left the hotel." There was no question in Nacho's voice. He didn't even look away from his computer screen as he spoke. It was just an observation. An observation that sent a chill down Ramos' spine.

"I just feel like we owe him something, that's all," said Ramos. He tried to play it off as a casual thought, but there was a tightness to his voice that he knew Nacho would pick up on.

"It's not like you to invest to so much interest in a criminal." Again, just an observation. Ramos couldn't help but feel like there was a hidden accusation behind those words. Then again, he might have just been projecting.

"It's just that he was helping us out. There was virtually no benefit to him, but he was doing it anyway. Most of the scum we work with aren't like that." Ramos looked over at the pile of files on his desk in disgust. The arrest of the forgers had generated more paperwork. Paperwork that could've been handled by anyone else in the department, but the task force had insisted that Detectives Fuentes and Pescado be the ones to handle it. No doubt it was punishment for barging into their meeting yesterday.

"Mhm..." Nacho's eyes didn't waver from the work he was doing. Ramos couldn't help but feel that his partner's hyper focus on work made him look bad.

There was too much going on in Ramos' head right now for him to think. He wasn't in a position mentally, or emotionally, to fill out forms and process interview transcripts. He rose from his chair abruptly.

Nacho glanced up at him quizzically.

"I'm going for a walk," muttered Ramos. "I need to get some fresh air. Do you want anything while I'm gone?"

"Nah." Nacho shook his head slowly and turned back to the computer screen.

Ramos was grateful for the cool breeze as he set foot outside. The sun was shining, seagulls cried over head, and the murmur of the crowds on main street served as a backdrop for what would have been a beautiful day.

He set out from the station without a plan in mind. His thoughts were a mess.

After their illicit rendezvous the night before, Ramos had felt both better and worse than he ever had. Being intimate with Logan had been fulfilling for him both physically and emotionally. Some part of him that he had been denying was at peace now. Satisfying that portion of his soul, however, had set the rest of him into turmoil. This was only made worse by Aguado's announcement that morning.

He wanted to go back to Logan and spend more time with him. Not just sex, but actually getting close to him. He felt like he'd been searching for something his entire life and Logan was it. Ramos had originally intended to slowly explore this new part of himself under the guise of their relationship as detective and informant. Things would remain secret and no one would suspect a thing.

Figuring out exactly who he was, what he wanted, and if he was prepared for the changes his life would undertake were all things that he had hoped to do over the next several weeks. Now, however, Logan was in the wind. The entire foundation of his plan had been shattered. He felt lost.

It was an unsettling realization. They had only slept together once. Well...they'd had sex multiple times, but it was all in the same night. Still, one night of intimacy had lead to him feeling strangely possessive of the little omega. Is this what it meant to be an alpha? Or was this just a side effect of being a, sort of, virgin and growing too attached to the first man he'd ever been with?

He was second-guessing everything and it was exhausting.

When he finally looked up and took in his surroundings, he found he was standing on the beach. The palm trees swayed in a gentle breeze. Several people had a game of volleyball going on down near the water. Children played in the waves.

"Shouldn't you be filling out paperwork?" a familiar voice asked, approaching from the side.

Ramos glanced up at Aguado as she approached. "Needed some air. I think we need to get the department AC serviced. It gets pretty stuffy in there."

"I wanted to apologize," Aguado said as she stood beside him. "I've been kind of a bitch the last few days."

"I'm sure you have your reasons," said Ramos. He knew better than to smart off to someone that could get him fired. No matter how much he actually wanted to.

"Yeah, actually, I do." Aguado folded her arms and sighed. "But I shouldn't have been taking it out on the people around me." She shook her head before continuing. "I came out here to try and figure out what I'm going to do next."

Ramos didn't look her way. He got the distinct impression that she was about to unburden herself onto him and he really didn't want to deal with another person's issues right now. He couldn't even figure his own out.

"The thing is, we're pretty much done with the Romero case. Julio's organization has been pretty much dismantled. The names we've gotten from the forgers will lead to a series of arrests over the next few days. That's it, he's done. He'll go on trial before the end of the year." The wind shifted and her hair blew across her face. She shoved it back with a frown.

"I joined the task force to help my brother," she continued. "I'm sure everyone knows the story by now. He was under Julio's thumb and couldn't get out. The task force recruited me because of my ties to the organization. They thought I could help. So I did what I could. I thought I'd be able to keep my brother and his boyfriend safe while ridding the island of a tumor."

Ramos nodded his head. He was familiar with the story. As annoyed as he was by the way she'd been acting, he did understand her original motivations.

"The thing is, there was way more pressure within the task force than I had anticipated. I found myself in a leadership role that I was neither prepared for, nor wanted." Aguado reached down and picked up a broken seashell from the ground. As she straightened, she dusted the sand off of it and frowned. "Then people started talking about fast tracking me for detective and how great of an opportunity it was. All this praise was coming my way and I wanted to be worthy of it. Then, yesterday, I missed my meeting with you because I overslept. I treated you and your partner like you didn't mean anything.

"After our meeting with Logan I spent the rest of the day trying to figure out who it was I was becoming. I looked in the mirror and I didn't recognize myself. This morning, I tried to speak up for Logan and encourage the task force to keep him on as someone that could corroborate the information we were getting. It was a losing battle."

Aguado sighed and tossed the sea shell back to the ground. She dusted off her hands and looked at Ramos. "Everyone expects me to transfer to the regular police after the task force finishes its work. But part of me just wants to go back to driving a tour bus every day. I miss just being plain old Lacey and not Aguado the task force bitch. I don't want to go through with these changes and become someone that I hate."

She lapsed into silence and the pair of them looked out at the water as it rolled in and crashed against the shore.

"It sounds like you already know what you want to do," said Ramos after a moment. "What's stopping you?"

"I'm scared," Lacey said with a brief sigh. "My brother and his boyfriend are expecting twins apparently. There's no room in the house for me anymore. Going back to being Lacey means going back to a life where I'm not sure I still have a place. If I stay, I have a place. I know there are people here who appreciate me and respect me. I've got a job if I want it and I'll be helping people."

"But you'll be miserable." Ramos felt a strange tugging at his heart as he spoke. Despite the fact that he hadn't wanted to listen to her, he was beginning to feel like he might be able to relate to Aguado's struggle a little

"I might be miserable either way," she countered with a mirthless chuckle.

Again, they lapsed into silence.

Neither of them seemed to know how to continue, or end, their conversation. They were clearly both struggling with massive uncertainties in their lives. If only they had some sort of advice for one another.

"Look," Lacey said after a moment. "We're going to be picking up a lot of Julio's thugs over the next few days."

"So you've said."

"Yes, but..." her voice trailed off and she turned towards Ramos with a serious expression on her face. "I shouldn't be telling you this. The task force agreed to remain silent on it because they didn't want anyone to think they were taking Julio's threats seriously."

"What threats?" Ramos' blood ran cold.

"Just...listen, we're going to be busy. The entire department is going to be busy processing the thugs we're picking up. We're going to be stretched thin. I can't say much else just...keep an eye on Logan. If he calls for help, we're all going to be too busy to answer." Aguado's tone was ominous. Without waiting for a response, she turned and made her way back across the beach.

Ramos stood in stunned silence for a moment as he struggled to catch up with what she had said. Julio's threats? Logan calling for help? Had the drug lord somehow learned about Logan's betrayal? Why would the task force just keep this to themselves?

Digging in his pocket, he quickly fished out his cell phone as he walked back towards the road.

"What's up?" Logan's voice sounded cheery as he answered his phone. Ramos thought he heard the sound of dishes clanking together and Lupita's voice in the background.

"Are you at the soup kitchen?" asked Ramos as he reached the road.

"Hello you to you too," muttered Logan. Ramos could practically hear the grin in his voice.

"Dammit, Logan, give me a straight answer," Ramos snapped. There was an urgency surging through him. Everything he did felt too slow, too muddled. He felt like he was moving through quicksand and wouldn't be able to reach the shore before he sank.

"Geez, what the hell? Yes, I'm at the soup kitchen. Where else would I be?" Logan sounded annoyed. Ramos found that he didn't particularly care at the moment, there were more important things to worry about.

"Just stay there. In fact, go upstairs to the room we were in before and lock yourself in. I'll be there as soon as I can." Ramos seized on a course of action and began jogging back towards the station.

"What? I'm not doing that. Are you running?"

"Don't worry about me, just do what I said." Ramos was getting tired of arguing with him. "I swear to God, Logan, if you don't listen to me and you're dead when I get there, I'm never going to forgive you."

"Ramos, this isn't funny." Logan's voice had become serious.

"Good, because it's not a joke." Finally he seemed to be getting through.

"I'm going upstairs. Will you please tell me what's going on?"

Ramos thought he could hear the sound of Logan climbing the stairs to the second floor of the soup kitchen. "There's no time. I'll be there as soon as I can. Stay safe until then." He hung up the phone before he could hear Logan's reply.

He breathlessly slowed to a walk as he reached the front doors of the station. He willed himself to breathe normally, but his face was still flushed with effort as he entered the bullpen. Thankfully, his entrance didn't attract much attention. Most of the police inside were far too busy with their work to notice him.

His eyes swept across the room and locked onto Nacho. His partner was right where he had left him.

"I need to borrow your car," breathed Ramos as he approached the desk and leaned across it.

Nacho looked up at him with a serious frown. "No."

Ramos' heart plunged into his toes. He didn't have time for this. "Look, I don't have time to explain. It's important."

His partner closed his eyes and sighed. He dug into his desk drawer and retrieved his keys. "I'm driving," Nacho said as he rose.

Ramos felt even more frustrated by this turn of events. Never in all their years of working together had his partner ever broken a single traffic law. He found it difficult to imagine Nacho was even capable of pushing the speed limit in the interests of saving time.

"You don't understand," said Ramos as he followed Nacho to the front door. "We have to get there as quickly as possible."

Nacho said nothing. He lead the way across the parking lot.

Resigning himself, Ramos climbed into the passenger's seat and silently prayed that Logan would be safe until they arrived.

As soon as they cleared the parking lot, Nacho slammed on his horn. The sound sent the Main Street crowds scrambling out of the way. With a clear path ahead of them, Nacho glanced towards Ramos with a grin and revved the engine.

"Where to?"