"What??" He snapped. KD opened the door and stepped through it. He smiled
weakly and got to his feet, but stopped when he saw the grave look on her face.

"Hey, are you okay?" He asked softly. She shook her head and moved to sit down
on the couch. He moved towards her but she held up her hands in a stopping
motion and tried very hard to breathe evenly.

"Stay there. Please, just stay there." She said softly. He stopped where he was and
watched her, not liking what he saw.

"Are you okay, Katy?" He asked softly.

"No, I’m not. I . . . Toby, I have to go." She said softly. He frowned.

"Go? Go where?" He asked softly.

"I don’t know yet. I have to leave. I can’t stay here anymore." She replied weakly,
staring at the floor.

"What are you saying, Katy?"

"I can’t stay here. It’s not . . . I can’t stay here. I have to go." She repeated. "I’m
sorry."

"I don’t know what you’re trying to say, Katy, but I know I don’t like it." Toby
admitted. KD got up and walked over to him. She took one of his hands in hers and
refused to look him in the eye.

"I can’t explain it. I’m sorry." She said softly before turning and walking away. Toby
looked at the ring in his hand and then looked after her, tears coming to his eyes.
He stormed out after her.

"Katy!" He called as she moved quickly down the halls, moving away from him as
fast as she could. She arrived back at her office and pulled David in before shutting
the door.

"What’s going on?" David asked. "What’s Toby yelling about? Why are you
crying?" KD shook her head as she started to grab papers and put them in her
briefcase.

"Never mind that right now. David, I need you to do me a favor, and it’s an order in
fact." She added as she looked around randomly trying control herself. She wasn’t
doing a very good job.

"What? What is it?" David asked softly.

"I need you to swear to me that you will not tell anyone that Andrea Wyatt came to
my office today." KD said, looking directly at him. David frowned and then looked at
the door as Toby arrived and banged on it.

"Katy, open the door." Toby said sharply.

"Is that what this is about? Boss, what did you say to him?" David asked as he
pointed to the door to indicate who he was talking about.

"David, promise me. Not Ginger, not Toby, not even the President. Promise me." KD
pleaded. "You have to promise me this."

"No, I won’t. I’ll go out there and tell him right now." David retorted sharply.

"Katy, open the damn door!" Toby snapped as he attracted concerned stares from
the people around him. Josh leaned out of his office with a confused look on his
face.

"David, please. Just trust me on this. I’m trying to do what’s best for everyone, the
best thing I can do. It’s hard, and it hurts, but you have to promise me this or this
whole thing is for nothing." KD insisted, tears in her eyes. "I will deal with Toby, but
first you have to promise me."

"Why??" David asked.

"Goddamn it, David, promise me!" KD snapped. "Trust me now and promise me."

"Fine, I promise. What is going on?" David asked again. KD shook her head and
closed the briefcase.

"I can’t explain it. I’m leaving for the day. I’ll call in later once I . . .once I get my
bearings. Keep your promise, David. You have to." She insisted before opening the
door and moving past Toby who was quickly on her heels.

"Don’t you walk away from me. You owe me more than this, Katy." He said angrily
as they moved down the hallway.

"Toby, I’m sorry. There’s nothing I can say." KD said softly as she arrived at the
elevator and hit the key. Toby moved in front of her, but she averted her eyes to the
floor.

"Why won’t you look at me?" Toby asked softly but sharply. KD breathed in sharply
and shook her head.

"I can’t do this with you now. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Toby. But I can’t do this. Things
happen, things change. I just can’t . . . I can’t do this." She said softly and moved
into the elevator. He moved in with her and held the ring up in front of her eyes.

"This? You can’t do this? Kind of short notice, don’t you think? This morning, not
two hours ago, you were perfectly willing to do this." He snapped, more hurt than
angry. "What changed? Talk to me here."

"Toby, there are so many things that even I don’t understand. But the fact of the
matter is that I was given a choice. I had to make it and no one else. This is what I
decided." KD replied, looking away from him and the ring. Toby watched her with
tears in his eyes.

"Who gave you that choice? Who said you had to make it?" He asked softly. "What
could anyone have possibly said to you in order for you to do this to me. I love you,
Katy. Don’t walk away fro me here." KD closed her eyes as tears streamed down
her face, but then shook her head.

"Please. Just let me be." She whispered before walking out of the open elevator
doors and heading for her jeep. Toby stood in the elevator and watched the doors
close again. The last sound he heard were those of a car engine starting and tires
squealing as KD pulled out of the garage. The elevator moved back up again and
the doors opened to an empty hallway. Toby shoved his hand, ring still inside, into
his pocket and stepped out into the hallway only to feel all the eyes on him. He
looked around, trying to appear gruff and started to slowly walk back towards his
office. He passed Josh, who was still confused, and kept going. He reached his
office, went inside and slammed the door behind him. He collapsed into his couch
and pressed his fingers to his temples as he tried to figure out just what the hell
had happened.

Josh looked at David and then walked towards the young man. "What just
happened here, David?" He asked softly. David shook his head and sighed.

"I’m not even sure." The young assistant whispered. "She just went to his office
for a few minutes and when she came back, he was following her yelling. She said
she had to go and she did. I don’t even know." He explained, a little bewildered.

"Do you know what she said?" Josh asked. David shook his head.

"She just said she had to go." He said softly.

"Damn it." Josh muttered before patting David on the back and heading for Toby’s
office.

"Josh, where are you going? You have a meeting with Congressman O’Dwyer in
five minutes." Donna called. Josh stopped in his walk and cursed. Torn between
his friend and his job, he walked back to Donna.

"Can it wait?" He asked.

"I don’t think so. He’s been calling for weeks, Josh. He’s gonna be pissed if you
blow him off." Donna informed him. Josh cursed.

"Okay, okay. Where is he? Where am I going?" He said softly. "Let me just make a
phone call first" He interrupted her before she started and dashed into his office to
grab the phone.

Leo stepped forward and then looked at Ginger who was glancing worriedly at the
door he was going to knock on. He nodded to her and then knocked gently. No
response came. He opened the door and leaned in. The blinds were closed and the
lights were off. The only light in the room was from Toby’s computer screen, but
the man wasn’t at his desk. He was sitting on his couch, tapping his pen to a legal
notepad and staring at Leo with eyes that wanted nothing other than to be left
alone.

"Toby?" Leo asked softly.

"You know, I heard this song once." Toby started randomly. "I don’t really know the
tune and I’m not a good singer."

"Toby." Leo started again.

"But it was something about someone leaving, and the person being left felt like he
was wrecked in a split second. I never thought I’d understand that feeling again,
and yet here I am, with her ring sitting on my desk." Toby said quietly. Leo looked at
the desk and sure enough, there in the center of the papers, was a small golden
ring "You want to explain that to me?" Toby asked, almost pleading. Leo looked at
him.

"I don’t know how. I’m as confused by this as you are." Leo admitted.

"Really? Cause I’m pretty confused." Toby snapped.

"Don’t yell at me, Toby. I had nothing to do with this. I know I’m nowhere near as
upset as you are; that would be impossible. But I’d like to think I’m as eager for
answers." Leo retorted.

"Funny. Your daughter, my fiancée. The same person, affects us with one action,
and we don’t know why." Toby said softly. "And the truth is that, no matter what, I
can’t do anything about it. So I have to sit here and wonder what happened while at
the same time, I have to try and figure out a way to get past it. Do you think I can get
past it, Leo?" Toby asked.

"I don’t know that I want it to go that far." Leo replied honestly. "I’ll find her, Toby. I’ll
talk to her."

"Thank you, Leo." Toby said weakly, his voice near cracking. Leo nodded and took
the ring in his hand.

"Hang on to this." Leo said softly and handed the ring back to Toby. Toby took it
and looked at it with tears in his eyes.

"Yes sir." He said softly.