Ugh long time no see. I'm still trying to finish Mind Thief but don't hold your breath.

In the meantime here's a little fic inspired by the Ryder - McCluskey interaction in 2x10.
This is set sometime after 2x03 / 2x04. Just a little writing exercise to try and get my mojo back.

Enjoy

"We have good reason to believe that the man we picked up an hour ago is part of a viable plot to bomb specific targets at the protests."

There was a shocked silence in the Major Incidence room and Ryder felt his gut clench. He had 22 full crews out there from his station alone, and as many others and support staff as the shifts would allow. Some of the training scenarios he'd been involved in flashed through his mind and he knew instantly they could be facing a major disaster.

The head of the Major Incident Unit raised his hand to silence the murmur that had broken out. "At this point we have no clear intelligence on locations or targets and we have close to 15,000 people out on the streets already. We are working on containing the crowds but..."

He talked on but Ryder, like the rest of the emergency personal gathered there, didn't need telling, there was no way to stop things now. The centre of Toronto had been engulfed in a wave of anti-globalisation protesters, and while the police and emergency services could work to control and manage the situation, they couldn't turn back the tide.

The hastily gathered meeting was short and ended abruptly with a set of carefully worded instructions that amounted to, 'carry on and cross your fingers'.

Ryder lent against the wall of the emptying briefing room and sighed heavily. If it was up to him the march would never have been given the go ahead. But that's why he was only a shift supervisor for the EMS service, the bigwigs – intelligence specialists, and IIB hotshots – understood these situations, saw the big picture. For Ryder the fact was he had people out there, all of who were suddenly at much higher risk than when he'd sent them out this morning.

It took him more than a moment to get a grip on his anger and get ready to get back out there and help 'co-ordinate'. The room was nearly empty by the time he started towards the door. Of the few people left his eyes were drawn to the top end of the room where a familiar face was talking in hushed tones to a group of black suited men.

Sergeant McCluskey had become a regular visitor to his ambulance bay and to say he was curious about her would be an understatement. He found his feet dragging slightly as he tried to listen in and leave the room at the same time. He couldn't make out much, just the snippets of harshly whispered words, but she flipped her phone open as she brushed past him on the way out of the conference room and he heard her clipped tones, "Hey... yeah. We could use your - er? - talents... right now."

Not for the first time Ryder found himself cursing whichever higher up had decided that it would be a good learning exercise for him, and several other shift supervisors, to sit in on the tactical unit set up in the IIB offices, rather than be back at his station where he could get a real feel for the situation. Fighting had broken out between protesters and the police in Queen's Park and the 5 ambulance crews that were dispatched needed their original locations covering, not an easy job with major routes blocked and small groups of protesters breaking away from the main march all over the city.

Finally when the crews were reassigned as best as possible Ryder leaned back in his chair and peered over the borrowed computer screen – just in time to see Toby Logan stepping out the elevator.

It should have been a surprise, but it wasn't. After all he knew that all the sneaking around and weirdness of last year had started up again with Logan right in the middle. He watched with open curiosity as he navigated the open plan office with practised ease, and reached Sergeant McCluskey unchallenged.

The IIB and Toby Logan were no strangers.

Ryder tried not to look obvious as he watched a brief interchange and then the Sergeant, his paramedic and a third man head into the interrogation room where, 2 hours earlier, a suspected bomber had been taken.

For close to 20 minutes Ryder juggled trying to do his job in unfamiliar circumstances, learn something from the experienced group of coordinators around him, and purposefully ignore the door that one of his paramedics had walked through. He was failing miserably at the last task.

One of his boys was watching - or helping with - the interrogation of a suspected anarchist bomber?

Ryder had theories about Logan's interaction with the police. He knew enough from the his records, the rumour mill, and the kid's behaviour on certain calls to know he'd had a troubled childhood in and around the streets of Toronto. And though Ryder had no details, it had made sense for a metro cop – Charlie Marks – to pull on that experience in the right circumstances. But it seemed that every bit of solid information he got contradicted his theories. Metro was one thing but the IIB needing the services of a paramedic? And while the thought of Logan having links to anarchists was perhaps not too much of a stretch - he and Bey had about as much respect for authority - anarchists ready to use bombs?

Not Logan. No way.

It was close to the 30 minute mark when the door first opened, not that Ryder had been clock watching.

It wasn't Logan or the Sergeant but an other man - the computer geek - who came dashing out and started gathering together some of the waiting task force cops. Ryder's eyes flickered between his screen and the growing group of police in front of him, something big was about to happen.

Five minutes later the door opened again. Logan looked tired as he trailed McCluskey back into the main office. Ryder watched as she paused outside her own office and turn to him gesturing with a casual flick of her wrist. Logan said something and shook his head, and McCluskey's response was a firmer hand gesture and a shake of her head. Ryder smiled, not even pretending to look at his screen now, he was glad he wasn't the only one who had that problem with the kid.

It was only after Logan's final refusal ended in him following the large group of police out of the IIB that Ryder's amusement faded. He didn't like the idea of Logan running around with cops in the field.

Time should have dragged with his curiosity and the knowledge that Logan was out doing god knows what with a team of specialist police, but in the mean time a shit storm had blown up.

Not big time with bombs exploding, or full scale riots, but enough trouble to put two of his boys in the ER. The minor scuffles with police were escalating and one of the ambulance crews called into take out injured riot police had been brought to the front too early.

It wasn't serious. At least not as injuries go. But if the police were getting injured in a situation like this then things are going very wrong, if paramedic's were getting injured then it was a major fuck up. Ryder swore again at his screen, this was the problem with command centres like this. Yeah he was completely up to date with the movement of the protesters and the police, and he could see the deployment of all the EMS, Fire and Rescue medics and volunteers round Down Town Toronto in one go, but there was no 'feel' to it.

At the command centre they got the dispatch comments but not those of the medics. Being in on the movements of the police cordons first hand had it's advantages but they were out weighed by the fact he was away from his crews. 40% or more of the calls the teams he put out from St Lukes' ended up back there and with each one Ryder got a glimpse of the state of the shift. It could be anything; a tense 'it's a bit hot out there boss', or a crew like Logan and Bey walking in with a silent tension instead of the inane banter they normally settled for. That information was a thousand times more valuable than a few coloured dots on a high-tech plasma screen.

He sighed frustratedly, there would be several debriefs after the dust had settled and the Ryder wasn't known for holding back, even unpopular opinions.

The was a sudden whoop from the far side of the office, and Ryder looked up from his screen sharply. A small group of investigators were on their feet, talking excitedly and backslapping each other happily.

It carried on for long enough to be annoying before the Task Force head left his office and signalled for silence. "We've just raided two locations close to the path of the demonstrations, made fifteen arrests and recovered several explosive devices and bomb making equipment." He paused and glared at the celebrating cops. "This is good news but I must remind you all that it's not over. We still have ten's of thousands of protesters on the streets, and violence breaking out across the city. Lets keep our eye on the ball."

Ryder snorted as he turned back to his screen. So much for positive thinking.

Some time after the 'rousing speech' Bob Turner the EMS shift supervisor from one of the Vaughan station's tapped him on the shoulder and nodded towards the glass panelled meeting room. "Isn't that one of yours?"

He looked.

Logan sat alone in McCluskey's glass walled office, slumped in one of the high backed chairs. Ryder hadn't noticed when they'd come back, but the office was full again, and some of the backslapping and high fives had restarted on the far side of the office.

He tried hard not to stare again but Turner must have noticed as he tapped him again, nodded at Logan, and suggested he took a break.

The coffee was another reason to put a stop to this 'shared resources' idiocy, but Ryder filled two mugs grimacing at the burnt smell.

Logan jumped slightly as Ryder put the mug on the immaculately organised desk he sat at and pushed it under his nose. If he didn't know better Ryder'd say the paramedic had been asleep, though he wouldn't blame him. Bey and Logan were one of several crews that had pulled double shifts before the protests to help with the crew rotation. He couldn't have had much more than 6 hours sleep in the last 30.

"Sir?" Any possible surprise was masked by the weariness in his face as Logan squinted at the mug.

"It's not good I'm afraid." Ryder gestured to the coffee as he pulled out a chair and slumped into it.

Logan sniffed, took a cautious sip, and grimaced, but took another longer mouthful and stared out into the busy office not offering a response.

Ryder wasn't surprised Logan wasn't going to talk, that was Bey's role as the funny man of the duo. "I'm stuck here because some fool at 'Operations' decided that it would be more useful for shift supervisors to help run the show from a central point." He offered as an opener, not hiding his frustration.

"How's that going Sir?" There was a familiar smirk in Logan's voice.

Ryder snorted, "It's not something I want to repeat." He paused, Logan still hadn't turned to face him and it was clear he wasn't going to talk voluntarily. "And you?"

There was a long pause and then he answered hesitantly. "Michelle thought I might be able help out with some... some problems they were having."

Ryder didn't miss the slightly defensive tone and the sideways glance he was given. Every bone in his body wanted to ask 'what', what is it you have that could possible help the IIB? Instead he asked, "How did that go for you?"

"Err sir?" Logan's head jerked round and he seemed genuinely surprised at the question.

Ryder guessed he'd been expecting him to press the issue, and one day he was sure he would have to, easpecially looking at Logan now: the quiet tension; the exhaustion on pale features, and the slight wince at the bright office lights. Ryder shook his head if he saw any other of his boys in this state he'd be pulling them off the shift and demanding answers. But even Ryder knew this wasn't the time or place. Anyway he'd already played his hand, at the Conservative party convention he'd asked to be told, when, was up to Logan. "Could you help?" He asked pushing aside his worries.

"Hmm" Logan grunted a yes but didn't add anything else.

Ryder sat and sipped his coffee for a bit wondering if he should leave it alone or force the issue, at least demand his paramedic got some sleep before his next shift. Before he could make up his mind Logan's eyes flicked across the main office. Ryder followed his gaze in time to see Sergeant McCluskey heading towards them. She did a double take when she saw them sat together 'talking'.

"Hey." She said cautiously as she entered her office perched on the edge of the table across from them.

Logan just nodded, but Ryder figured the look he gave her screamed 'help'. He played ignorant, "So Sergeant how we doing out there?"

McCluskey held Logan's gaze for a few seconds before replying "Good. Okay, I think we've dodged.. I think we have the worst of it covered but you know these things Mr Ryder, it could all kick off again."

Ryder nodded, he did, even if the bomb threats were over demo's like this frequently ended in riots. While he had serious concerns for Logan and what might happen in the future he also had paramedics out on the streets facing immediate threats. He stood and nodded to them both, he was well aware that he'd been played but he did need to get back out there.

Though as he stood he half turned to Logan, keeping one eye on the Sergeant. "You look done in Logan, you should think about getting home." Toby opened his mouth to object but Ryder continued. "And you are back on shift in.." He made a show of looking at his watch. "... seven hours." He met McCluskey's eyes full on as he left the office and she nodded slightly at him.

Ryder walked slowly to his allocated seat while checking all the information on the two large plasma screens. As he sat down he had one last glance across the IIB office. McCluskey was 'putting' Logan into the elevator but as the doors closed she caught his eye and nodded.

Ryder paused and nodded back at her as he put his headset back on, if nothing else came from today at least Ryder knew he now had something of an ally in Logan's misadventures.

End