Ian and Sammi spent Saturday and Sunday doing the normal things that married couples do on weekends, running errands, shopping, church, and finally, relaxing by the pool. That was when Ian began to tell Sammi about his side business.

"Sammi, it's time we had a talk about my other business. If anything happens to me, you need to know how to survive and move forward."

"Ian, you're scaring me. Are you in some kind of trouble?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure. I think I'm being followed. At least twice this weekend I'm sure I saw the same car behind us. The business has had its troubles recently and that is adding to my concern. My partners don't always play by the rules when they think they're in danger of being caught with their fingers in the cookie jar, so to speak."

"I suspected as much. Some of your associates that I've seen over the years didn't strike me as solid citizens. Should I be afraid, Ian?"

"No, Sammi, I don't think so. However, I think it may be time for me to exercise my insurance options. I have a meeting with the Sherriff of Greene County and the Mayor of Oakdale on Monday. My information says that they will ask me to help them stop the flow of drugs into their area. That request puts me in the hot seat, since my associates are the one who are putting the drugs on the streets up there."

"Oh, wow! I guessed that you're consulting job had something to do with drugs. What are you going to do?"

"First, let me explain that I handle the prostitution end Of things, not the drugs. Although they both use the Same network, I have no responsibility for the drugs. "

"Second, I'm going to supply you with two flash drives, one of which has all the details of our private bank account in the Caymans. I've been very careful with the money so it's all clean at this point and only the person with the account number and the key code, you, can access it. The flash drive has all the details on how to access the account and move the money here."

"The second flash drive has all the details of our operations on it. Places, routes, times, contacts, the works. I kept it for my own safety. Even tho I don't directly deal in the drugs, I set up the network for the movement of the money. If the Feds had this information, they could shut down the Greene County operation in a flash. If anything ever happens to me, make sure that the drive gets to them but also make sure you get full immunity from prosecution before you turn it over to them. I think your boating pal, Rick, can probably help you with the turnover when the time comes."

"Ian, what do you mean, Rick can help me?"

"Sammi, Rick is an undercover operative for one of the federal agencies, I just don't know for sure which one. My associates tagged him about a year ago and have passed bogus information to him from time to time. I'm sure they already know that he has made contact with you and that fact alone will worry them."

"Rick has already offered me and you full immunity for information on the drug trafficking. I just didn't know what to say to him or how to tell you."

"Good. You're safe for now and Rick is the one to pass that flash drive to if anything happens to me." "After I meet with the Sherriff, I may make some changes to the flash drive, depending on the conversation but for now, it's complete."

"Ian, Rick has promised me full immunity for both of us. I have it in writing. Can't we just pass the flash drive to him now and get it over with?"

"Sorry, sweetie, it doesn't work that way. I have to still be involved up until the last minute or I'll be suspected of selling out my partners. Immunity from prosecution is one thing, our physical safety is something entirely different. For now, just keep the flash drives in a safe place and be prepared to hand over the black one to Rick. Keep the red one someplace separate for your own protection."

"Alright, Ian, if you say so. Can we please not talk about this anymore? I'm really getting scared."

On Monday morning, Ian kissed Sammi good-bye as usual. Fortunately, Sammi didn't have a class until 10 am so she had time to settle herself down. As for Ian, he began his drive to Oakdale with one eye on his rearview mirror. His suspicions were confirmed about half way there when the car he suspected was following him made the same turn onto a side road for no reason at all. Arriving at City Hall, Ian watched as his tail drove past.

Once inside the building, he was directed to the Mayor's Office. Both the Mayor and the Sherriff were already in the conference room when Ian arrived. After formal Introductions were made, the three men got down to Business.

"Ian, the Sherriff asked me to request this meeting on his behalf. Larry King suggested that you may be able to help us solve a problem due to your skill at analyzing tough situations."

"I'll have to thank Larry for the complement, Mr. Mayor. How can I help?"

"Mr. Quinn, we have a drug problem here in Greene County. We don't know how it gets distributed but we do know that a lot of it gets around. We make regular busts of folks with a gram or two of cocaine and other drugs but nothing big. I'm convinced that there is a distribution ring operating here that has so far gone undetected. Frankly, we would like your help in finding these drug dealers and putting a stop to the local trade."

"That's a tall order, Sherriff. May I ask what steps you've already taken in this regard?"

"Of course. To date we have had undercover agents go to about twelve bars and several motels looking to buy drugs. In a few instances, they have been able to buy small quantities of drugs but nothing that would indicate a wholesaling operation. In other cases, even tho the agents are buying drinks in a bar and sitting with known prostitutes they have been unable to buy more than a tiny bit. When we raid these places, we always come up empty. It's almost like they know we are coming even tho I keep the raid information secret until the last minute."

"Sherriff, when your agents go in undercover, do they still carry their guns and their badges?"

"Yes, of course, why?"

"One of the ways that an organization can tell when someone is carrying a firearm is with metal detectors hidden in the doorstop. If the metal detector goes off, it warns the folks inside that armed men, likely police or a rival gang, are about to enter the building. Next time, have your men leave their badges and weapons in the car or someplace safe. In other words, have them go in as normal patrons and just observe what's going on. That won't cause an arrest but it will give you information you don't yet have."

"Ok, I'll try that. Any other suggestions?" "What you're up against is an organization. In this case, the product they are selling happens to be illegal but it is an organization nonetheless. Every organization, no matter how small or how big, has rules. Without rules, the organization can't survive. What you need to do is to find the patterns that the organization uses to operate. Delivery schedules, collection schedules, distribution methods, banking, even recruiting schedules, all organizations have to have these things well controlled or there is chaos."

"What you need to discover is at least one of these patterns. Once you determine a pattern, the next step is to disrupt that pattern. Find the next pattern, disrupt it, and so on. When you use the patterns of a business to disrupt its normal flow, you begin to destroy the business. If enough disruption occurs, the business will eventually move to another place where it can operate without the disruption."

"Thank you, Ian, that's great advice. Now it's up to us to implement it. Thanks again, you've been a great help."

"You're welcome, Sherriff, Mr. Mayor, I'm glad I could help. Good day, gentlemen."

As Ian was walking down the hall towards the front door, he reached into his jacket pocket and switched off the voice-activated digital recorder. This is one conversation he wanted to pass on to his partners, partly to clear himself and partly to set the ball in motion to change their current patterns. After he left the Mayor's office, Ian drove to the local motel he often frequented in Oakdale.

"Good afternoon, Max."

"Hey, Ian, I didn't expect you back so soon."

"Max, I need you to copy what on this tape, put it in the pick-up bag tonight, and return the original to me." "Yes sir, no problem. Will you be staying with us tonight?"

"Yes, Max, but I have some business at the local office first. Alert the boys at the bar that the Sherriff is ready to send in undercover men again, this time without their id's or weapons. Let's let them see what's happening but don't let our guard down. This could get interesting."

During the week, Ian went about his regular duties and Sammi taught her classes as usual without making any contact with Rick. Ian seemed to have lost his tail but he wasn't entirely sure. On Friday, Ian got a call from one of his partners concerning the activities in Greene County. After discussing the contents of his taped meeting, Ian called Sam and told him to let Jed have a party this weekend as the Sherriff's men would likely be in attendance.

Friday evening it was business as usual at the Ponytail Bar & Grill when Jed, the bartender, noticed a few new faces in the crowd. After checking his id sheet, he signaled the band leader to play a particular song. All of the regulars got up to dance when the song started, leaving the newcomers seated. After a few minutes, the dancing began to get wilder and wilder and Jed was grinning like the Cheshire Cat. Less than ten minutes later, the place was in a complete uproar with semi-naked girls dancing on tables, men grabbing at the girls, and music bouncing off the walls.

When the twenty minute set ended, more than a few of the women were topless and had men attached to their breasts. Jed rang a bell behind the bar to call the partygoers to attention, then announced that a wet t-shirt contest would begin in ten minutes. The girls immediately moved away from their admirers to get ready for the contest.

The Sherriff's men didn't know what to do at this point. Their orders were to observe the activities at this bar but without their badges and weapons, they were in no position to make any arrests. In the end, the three of them decided to wait and see what happened and generally enjoy the show. What they didn't know was that their drinks had been laces with drugs that would cause them to more than enjoy the show and that they would be video-taped when the drugs took effect.

When Ian's cell phone rang with a message, he noted the short message and grinned. The Friday Night frenzy had begun and the Sherriff's men were involved. He reported this information to his partners and told them to await the outcome in the next few days. By Sunday morning, the local newspaper was trumpeting the Sherriff's disgrace. Several of his officers had been seen at a wild party in one of the local bars and later were found passed out in the street. Even the Mayor was calling for his head.

What they didn't realize was that Ian was simply following the advice he had given them, except it was their patterns that he was disrupting. When Ian received a "well done" message on Sunday, he began to relax his vigil.

When Sammi went down to the river on Sunday, she found Rick's employee minding the booth. Introducing herself as Sam, she asked what had happened to her scull and was informed that Rick had finished varnishing it yesterday and was now taking it out for a test run. She sat on the edge of a bench waiting for Rick to return. A few minutes later she saw him gliding effortlessly along.

As he slid up to the dock, his employee went to grab the rope to tie the scull to the dock and mentioned that "Sam" was waiting for him. Rick quickly jumped from the boat and approached her. "Good afternoon, Sam, are you ready for another rowing lesson?"

"Yes, I am, Rick. How did the scull handle?"

"It's just perfect. Come along and we'll get started."

Rick helped Sammi into the scull, then leaned over to push her away. When he leaned over the scull, Sammi opened her palm and dropped the flash drive on the floor of the scull. Rick noticed her movement and quickly scooped up the flash drive as he pushed her away from the dock. He slipped the drive into his pocket as he stood to watch her begin to row away.

Monday morning came as usual and Ian and Sammi went to their respective jobs. Ian wasn't scheduled to do any traveling this week but he did notice that he was once again being followed on his way to work. This time, he reported to his partners that he was being followed. They cautioned him to be wary since the FBI was now watching their operation very closely.

When Ian left the office that day, he was certain that he was being followed. Rather than go directly home, he called Sammi on his cell and asked her to meet him at a local restaurant. They enjoyed a very pleasant dinner together and sauntered out to their cars, holding hands. As they approached Ian's car, he pressed the remote start and within seconds the car exploded and burst into flame.

Shaken by the explosion, Ian and Sammi quickly ran to her car, pressing the remote start and hoping that it wouldn't blow up. It didn't and they quickly left the parking area and went directly to the boat launch in search of Rick. Upon hearing their story, Rick made a quick phone call, then ushered them into his car.

The headlines in the paper the following day stated that both Ian and Sammi had been in the car and were killed in the explosion. If you run into a red-headed art history teacher somewhere in the country, keep walking.