Jack smiled down at the little girl who was staring up at him.

"That's funny!" the little girl said with a beaming smile. "You got the same name as the hurricane."

"Cyclone, honey," said the little girl's grandmother. "It was cyclone Jack… Hurricanes are what we get back home."

"Are you as scary as the big wind, mister?" the little girl asked, ignoring the older woman that stood protectively beside her.

"I can be," said Jack.

"We should continue to help with the cleaning up," suggested the grandmother.

"Okay, Grammy," said the little girl. "Nice to meet you, Cyclone Jack."

"Nice to meet you too," Jack lied, flashing a convincing grin. "He hated kids, and he hated Americans… American kids were at the top of his list of pet hates."

This was the third hotel he had checked, looking for Lisa, and so far, he had found no sign of her. He wondered if he had gotten it wrong, if his hunch about the girl he thought he knew was way off. Turning away from the pair he had been questioning, he noticed two ladies heading through a swing door marked KITCHEN STAFF ONLY.

"Lisa!" he called out, somewhat surprised, certain he had found who he was seeking.

Neither of the ladies turned around, but Jack was sure as sure he witnessed one of them freeze for just a moment.

"Hey… Lisa!" he called again and made to go through the same door.

"Mate, you can't go back there unless you're Emergency Services or staff of the hotel," said a voice from Jack's left.

A guy dressed in a firefighter's uniform, stepped in front of him.

"I think I spotted a friend," Jack pleaded.

The fiery looked to Jack like they were about the same size.

"And I think I just spotted a troublemaker, mate," said the firefighter. "Piss off and go find somewhere you can be useful."

Jack glanced about and saw the kid and her grandma were elsewhere. In fact, the room was empty for now, just Jack and this good Samaritan.

"I need to borrow your clothes," said Jack, His grin hinted at something, but the firefighter was too slow to think what.

"What the hell?" the firefighter replied, just as Jack's sneaky uppercut caught him on the chin.

The man's eyes rolled back showing whites as he flopped to the floor. Jack caught him just before the crash. Quickly he dragged the man behind a section of fallen ceiling. It took a little while for Jack to get the uniform off and then his own clothes, leaving them for the man to dress in when he came too.

"You should have just given me the suit when I asked for it," Jack stated. "Instead, I guess you got what you deserved… Mate…"

"They've found me," Lisa gasped. "They've actually found me…"

"Calm down," replied Bella. "Nobody is helped by panicking."

Lisa turned around to look behind her and noticed that the coast was clear.

"Do I go back? Do I confront him?" she asked.

Bella was not sure if the question was rhetorical or if her friend wanted an answer. What she did know was that Lisa needed to hear an answer, and a quick one at that.

"Hell… No…" the Queen of the Kitchen replied. "Don't you dare go back and talk to him… That bloke is bad news…"

"You've seen him for five seconds and you already get that?" asked Lisa. "How, Bella?"

"From listening to you," Bella replied. "And from just looking at him… With some men, one look is all a girl needs."

Lisa laughed at hearing that, a dark, dry chuckle.

"Yeah, I should have paid attention to those instincts," she said. "But I was too young and stupid to know what my mind was trying to tell my heart."

"You're not the first girl to have that happen to them," said Bella. "And I'm certain you won't be the last."

"If we don't get a move on out of here though I won't get to appreciate the lesson long," added Lisa. "So which way is the safest way out?"

"In my experience running from a bad man, any exit is a good exit," said Bella. "Go this way."

The passage that Bella suggested led to a fire escape. When Lisa got to the door she hesitated.

"Won't this set off an alarm?" she asked Bella. "Won't Jack know exactly where I've gone?"

"Don't worry," said Bella. "The cyclone wiped out the power, no alarm if you've got nothing to power it with."

"I guess that sounds right," Lisa agreed.

She shoved on the door. A loud beeping ensued, like a car horn, faulty and switching on then off, on then off, repeatedly.

"Oops," said Bella. "I forgot about the backup generator for the emergency stuff."

"Bella, what do we do now?" said Lisa, panicked.

"Run, girl, run to the closest taxi and get them to drive you to Alice…" urged Bella.

"Who is Alice?" asked Lisa.

"Not who… Where… Go South from here… You'll be safer there…" said Bella.

Lisa did not need to be told twice. Giving Bella a quick hug and whispering her thanks she exited through the door that was still screaming, her eyes immediately scanning the streets for a cab. The streets looked empty, and Lisa made to turn back.

"You can't stay here," Bella said, and then the door was shut.

The alarm continued to scream, which caused Lisa to hurry away, panicked that Jack was already around the next corner. If there were no taxis running due to the clean up, then someone had to have a working car. Better still, Lisa remembered how it was that she arrived in Darwin. A big truck, plenty of those around surely. They would be delivering supplies, food, water, building materials needed for repairs. Lisa took another quick look around to make sure that nobody was watching. When the coast looked clear she took off at a jog, headed for the closest hardware store, planning to hitch a ride.

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