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Kidnapped
*banner done with help from cooltext.com*
*story used with permission from RogueTiger*
Chapter One - Abduction
It was late at night and Mark was just exiting the arena after yet another gruelling session with the doctor. He had hurt his back slightly during his match that night, but the doctor had insisted on doing painful physio on him rather than let him go home to rest. Mark could swear that that man wasn't satisfied unless he got his patients to scream in pain.
Mark rubbed his lower back ruefully as he walked towards his rental car. The one good thing out of the punishment he had just taken was that the fans wouldn't be waiting for him demanding photos and autographs.
"Well so much for that idea" he thought as he spotted a group of about six people standing near his car. "At least there's not too many of them, the one advantage of turning `heel'."
He was busily signing photos and magazines for them when he felt a sharp jab in the top of his right leg. He looked down just in time to see the hypodermic needle being removed from his leg. Already he could feel the effects of whatever had been pumped into him working through his already exhausted body.
He tried to walk back to the arena but by now he was seeing, at the very least, double of everything. His limp body collapsed to the ground, his head striking the concrete, opening his head up. The last thing he saw before darkness totally engulfed him was the blurry faces of the people he had thought of as just normal fans as they reached down towards him.
"Was that stuff supposed to work that quick?" asked one of the women.
"Should be, there was enough in there to knock out a bull elephant."
"Will you two shut up and help move him before anyone comes." Whispered the leader of the group.
Doctor Petit was just making his way out to his car when he heard the squeal of tiers. He looked over watching as a van drove off the car park with its lights off. He turned to head towards his car then turned around again "What is Mark's car still doing here? He left half an hour ago." He walked over towards Mark's car, his walk turning into a run when he spotted Mark's gym bag sitting on top of the car. He walked around the car, reaching for his mobile phone when he saw the front of the car. Written on the bonnet, in what looked like blood, was "Undertaker is ours".
The police arrive shortly, followed by Vince and Shane McMahon, who Petit had phoned as soon as he finished phoning the Police. They watched in stunned silence as the Police gathered evidence from around the car, taking pictures as they went.
"Mr McMahon, I'm Detective Daish." They shook hands "has anyone tried to contact you yet with any demands?"
"Not that I know of. We came here as soon as we heard. Do you think it's a kidnapping then?"
"We hope it is. With a kidnapping we stand a excellent chance of getting Mr Callaway back." He waved a hand over the crime scene "But with what I've seen so far, I don't think it's anything as simple as a kidnapping."
"What have you found?"
"We've found some blood, were having it tested, but we think its his not theirs. It looks like they used the blood to write the massage on the car, but we'll know better when the lab results come in. We found a hypodermic under the car; they must have injected him with something. Again we'll know more when the lab has had a look at it."
"Could I have a quick look at the syringe?" asked Petit.
"He's a Doctor, a very good one, he might be able to tell what was in it."
The Detective had the syringe brought over to them. Taking the syringe out of the bag with a pair of tweezers he let the Doctor inspect it.
He told them what had been in it and pointed out where it had been filled too.
"How can you tell how much was in it?"
"I could be wrong, but the top part of it is dry. With the drug they used I would say that he would be out for at least five hours."
"We'll let you know if we find anything else" the Detective walked away then turned back "Oh before I forget. What your policy on this if it is a kidnapping?"
"Mark is like family to us Detective Daish, I will do whatever it takes to get him back safe and in one piece." The Detective nodded and walked away.
Mark awoke. He had absolutely no idea of where he was or what time it was. All he knew was that he was in pain. His head was throbbing and he couldn't remember having anything alcoholic to drink. He opened his eyes, but could see nothing. He felt panic when he realised he couldn't even move.
"He's waking up."
"Well give him another shot then."
The voices brought back everything that had happened. Then a needle jabbed him in the arm "Not again" he thought as the black waves pulled him back under.
Several weeks passed without any word from Mark's kidnappers, everyone was starting to loose hope. Vince had security beefed up around anyone remotely involved with his company. Jim Dotson spent weeks blaming himself for not staying late that night. Everyone went around saying the biggest word in the human language `IF'.
"If only I hadn't made him stay for physio."
"If only I had hadn't thrown him into the steps so hard."
"If I had insisted he come to dinner with us."
"If only…."
Chapter Two - Rescue
Mark awoke to something different for the first time in weeks. Something wet was touching his cheek. He opened blurry eyes wondering what new torture his captors had in store for him. His eyes meet with warm dark brown ones, then a big pink wet tongue licked his face. Mark drew back slightly in puzzlement. It was a dog, more precisely it was a golden retriever, it stepped closer placing its front paws on Mark's legs and gave him another `kiss'.
"Josh, where the hell are you? I'll swear, if you've found a bear you can damn well take it on yourself this time!"
Mark would have shouted for help, but as usual he was gagged. The dog, Josh, gave a little bark.
"Josh?!"
Mark heard the sound of heavy items being moved. Josh rushed off barking. He heard a small cry of "Damn missed" then Josh returned to sit by his side. He heard a click then he could make out light coming towards him. Relief washed through his body in waves. The torchlight passed over his eyes blinding him.
I had got up to find that my radio had self destructed during the night. When I reached for the box of spare parts, I found that my dog had demolished it without my noticing. I had been planning on heading down to the village to get spares with Josh when he had decided to go wondering off after, what was to him, some wonderful something. I trekked after him, following his tracks. I just hoped he hadn't found something dangerous like a bear again. I'd lived in this area for some time now with no trouble from any wild animals. Then I got Josh, now I had met just about every kind of wild animal there was up here.
I tracked him to what looked like to entrance to a cave, the mountains were full of little hiding places. Calling him didn't work so I started to go in, hoping with all my heart that I wouldn't find a bear. Josh came running towards me as I was moving crates, "what are crates doing in a cave", I made a grab for his collar and missed. With a sigh I switch on my torch, resigned to that fact that I was going to have to go get the fool dog. I walked along the narrow passage noticing from the tracks on the floor that quite a few people had been through recently. The passage opened up into a wider chamber. I swept the torch around looking for Josh. What I found had the torch falling from my limp hand in shock.
"Oh my god!" I picked the torch back up. A man was sitting against the far wall, chains dragging his arms above his head. I walked over to him, running my eyes over him taking in more details as I went. I recognised who he was as I had been to a number of live events and I watched wrestling as often as I could on TV, mainly to see this very man. He looked terrible, his long hair matted around his face, clothes covered in dust. As I knelt beside him I could see the bruises, some of them fresh, covering his face. I looked into his piercing green eyes, seeing the hope and pain in them. I removed the gag from his mouth, his lips were dry and cracked so I gave him some water from my canteen.
"Thank you." He sighed.
"How long have you been here?"
"What date is it?" I told him. "That makes it just over two weeks then."
"I really aught to start reading newspapers more often." I jiggled the chain attached to his wrists "I don't suppose whoever did this was kind enough to leave a key?"
"No"
I looked at the lock, it was a big old thing designed to look tougher than it was "Shouldn't be too difficult." I rummaged around the floor finding a hefty enough rock "Close your eyes." A couple of good strikes later and the lock fell broken and useless to the floor. I removed the chains.
Mark groaned in agony as his arms were released. They had been above his head so long that it hurt to bring them down.
I rubbed his shoulders helping to get the blood flowing again. I talked to him as I rubbed trying to take his mind off the pain. I introduced myself and asked him who had done this to him.
He described what had happened to him when he left the arena that night "They kept saying that they were trying to `save' me."
"Save you from what?"
"I think they were confusing my character with the real me."
I gave him some food while I had a look around. Finding some whips hanging up I shivered in horror. "How often do they check on you?"
"Normally every couple of days."
I walked to the cave entrance, looking out over the landscape with my binoculars. I spotted a couple of people some way down the valley, heading in our direction. "When was the last time they were here?!" I shouted back.
"Probably a couple of days ago." His voice came from right behind my shoulder making me jump into the air in fright.
I spun around staring at him in surprise. Knowing how tall he his just doesn't prepare you for the reality, he was huge, the ceiling was well over six foot and he was having to duck. After all he had gone through he shouldn't be able to crawl, let alone walk. Though if the people coming up the mountain were the same people that had done this to him, then his walking was a good thing. I passed the binoculars to him "Do you recognise any of them?" I pointed him in the right direction, watching the fear and then anger pass over his face. Boy was I glad that the anger wasn't directed at me.
"It's quite a way to my house. Do you think you can make it?"
"I'll make it." By the tone in his voice I didn't doubt him.
I ran back into the cave to grab my backpack and to make sure I'd left nothing behind. "Josh, come on."
I set a slow but steady pace, letting him get the hang of walking again. I made him stop regularly whether he wanted to or not. He needed to take regular dinks of water and I needed to keep a watchful eye out for company. We had a good head start on them with the added advantage of my house been on no maps whatsoever, all we had to do was make it there in one piece.
We made it to my house as it was getting dark, by then I was having to support some of his weight, no easy task. He'd refused at first, saying that he would too heavy, after I told him that helping him now would be better than dragging him when he was unconscious, he accepted my help. I led him in dragging him straight through to the bedroom, he was asleep almost as soon as his head touched the pillow. I brushed his hair away from his forehead, noticing that his head was hot to the touch. I removed his boots then went to secure the house.
I gathered a few things together and went back to check on Mark. I stood looking at him for a few seconds, watching him sleep. He started to toss and turn fitfully on the bed, drawing my attention back to him. I walked over to his side, his face was wet with sweat, I knew from touching his head earlier that he was getting a fever, things were going to get a lot worse before they got better.
I spent the night sitting beside the bed making him comfortable giving him water and some herbal medicine that I made up. When I wasn't watching him I was checking that we weren't getting any unwelcome company. Josh stayed by his side; he seemed to have grown very attached to our large guest.
The following day was no better than the night had been. The fever showed no signs of breaking. I cleaned him up a bit during one of his more lucid periods, washing his face and arms to help get rid of the dirt and sweat. I found the gash on the back of his head, it was dirty, red and oozing so I put some cream on it. I got him to sit up long enough to remove his top and washed his chest and back, putting cream on the whip marks on his back. With a struggle I got him out of his trousers as well. By the time I finished washing him and giving him some soup he was exhausted and soon fell asleep again.
I sat by his bed again that night reading a book and keeping an eye on him, I must have drifted off to sleep. Mark's shouting awakened me. I talked to him, the sound of my voice calming him down slightly. I was reaching over to check his temperature when his eyes snapped open. He grabbed my arm, pulling me off balance. I fell against his chest the breath knocked out of me by the landing. I tried to scramble off him but with a sudden movement he rolled us both over, now I was under his considerable weight. He started kissing me, his lips travelling down my neck, sucking and nibbling on the flesh making me shiver. His hands tugged on my tee shirt pulling it from the waistband of my sweatpants. Gaining access he ran his hands over my stomach and sides, his touch was fever hot. Looking into his eyes I realised by their glazed look that he didn't even know what he was doing. I stroked his back in a soothing motion, calming him down. Before long he was asleep again, unfortunately for me I was still under him. Remembering some advice my mother had given me for if I ever got married I poked him in the ribs, hey if it works on snoring husbands.
It worked, sort of, he rolled over but he didn't let go of me. I had to spend the night there tucked against his side. All in all I could think of much worse places to be.
Mark awoke wondering where he was. His throat and mouth were bone dry and his body felt like it had been run over by a truck. He was lying on one side so he checked out the part of the room that he was facing, it made a nice change to find that he was lying on a normal bed, in a normal room instead of being in a dark cave. He felt an arm creep around is waist. He held his breath, turned quietly onto his back and looked at who was sharing the bed with him. Seeing who it was he breathed normally again and relaxed for a few minutes.
He tried to say her name when he found that his mouth was too dry to do more than croak he settled for shaking her by the shoulder.
I came awake instantly. Seeing that Mark was awake I jumped out of bed feeling heat creep into my face. I put a hand on his forehead, relieved to note that it was a normal temperature again. "Thank God, your fever must have broke during the night. How are you feeling?"
He made a `need a drink' motion with his hand. I got a glass of water and a straw and let him take a few sips. "Don't take too much. Little and often is what you need." I sponged his face, chest and arms again. I made him some soup, helping him eat it and after quickly changing the top sheet on the bed I let him drift back to sleep.
The next day, at his insistence, I let him have a shower. I also found him a pack of razors, so by the time he came out of the bathroom he was looking more like the man I remembered watching on TV. Having the shower exhausted him so I made him get back into the freshly made bed and brought him a tray of food.
Seeing as his fever had broken I no longer needed to stay at his bedside. I grabbed some blankets and sheets out of the wardrobe and a pillow off the bed. I could feel Mark's gaze following my every move.
"Blankets I can understand, but why do you need the pillow?"
"There's only one bedroom and now your fevers broke I'll sleep on the couch instead of the chair." He opened his mouth to speak but I interrupted what I knew he was going to suggest. "No you can't sleep on the couch. It's only just long enough for me." I smiled as I imagined his near seven-foot frame squashed on a five-foot couch.
"Sleep in the bed with me then." My mouth dropped open at his suggestion.
"I can't do that." Heat was creeping up my face again as I looked at him lying on the bed looking exceedingly gorgeous after his shower.
"You did last night."
"You were ill last night."
"So?" He had an innocent, puzzled expression on his face.
Not wanting to explain myself, and also feeling very confused at what I was feeling, I threw the pillow back on the bed. "So I guess I'm sleeping with you."
The first night I tried putting a pillow between us, telling him that I liked to have something to rest my arm on. By morning I was spooned up against his back, my arm locked around his waist and a leg tucked intimately between his. I found the pillow on the other side of the room with Josh resting his head on it.
The second morning he was spooned up behind me, leg tucked up between mine. His hand had worked its way under my tee shirt and was squarely planted over a breast. I tried to move his hand being careful not to wake him. He just moaned and tightened his grip as his leg pushed up firmly between my thighs. Sweat broke out over my body and a moan escaped my lips at the feelings he was creating. Trying my mum's trick again, I poked him in the ribs. "Thank you mum" I mouthed as he turned over with a sigh. I was about to slip out of bed when he woke up gave me a quick good morning kiss and beat me to the bathroom, throwing the pillow back on the bed as he went.
During the day I asked him about the kidnappers, trying to find out how many of them he had seen and how professional they had been. The more I heard the more anxious I became. It sounded like they were very professional and very deranged. Not a good combination. He had built his strength up enough so I let him have access to the rest of the house.
"Just don't go outside."
"They must have given up by now."
"With a normal kidnapping they would have, but if they think they're `saving' you. They might not give up as easily as that."
I gave him a tour of the house showing him all the routes around in case of an emergency. All the rooms were designed with more than one access even though some of them didn't look like it. I showed him all the hidden doors. It was a two-storey building, but one of the levels was underground and only accessibly through the hidden panel in the bedroom. I'd designed it to be invisible from the air and unless you knew where it was it was difficult to find from the ground as well. The only people that knew my location lived in the village, it's hard to build a house unnoticed.
We took a break from the tour and sat in the kitchen for a breather. As I made a drink I noticed that the cupboards were getting rather bare, I normally only had to provide for Josh and myself. "I'll have to go into the village, I'm running out of supplies. Have you got the number of anyone you want me to call?" He gave me Vince McMahon's phone number.
"How long are you going to be gone?"
"Just a couple of hours. If you hear anyone coming at all take Josh and head for the bedroom." I took him into the bedroom and showed him how to open the secret door. I led him down to the hidden room. It didn't contain a lot just a couple of camp beds and chairs, but it did have it's own water supply and power.
"Does that radio work?"
"It's an emergency beacon. I'd rather try to get through this without involving them." I shivered at the thought of the people that would turn up if the beacon were activated.
Mark watched as I left on my motorbike, it was a trail bike and ideally suited for the small dirt road I was navigating. I'd planted my hands on hip and given him a long list of reasons why he couldn't come with me. "You're not up to the journey yet. My bike won't support both our weights. If you go on your own you wouldn't know who was a local and anyway they'll be looking for you not me."
"Okay mum."
I'd stuck my tongue out at him and left.
He sighed as he watched her ride down the path, patted Josh on the head and went in search of something to pass the time.
I made it into the village in record time. Parking up, I did all my shopping at the general store, packing essentials into my rucksack and arranging for a delivery later. I greeted people that I knew, taking time out for the occasional chat. I ordered the spare parts for the radio, unfortunately the part that had broken was out of stock.
"My you're ordering a lot today, stocking up for a siege?" I laughed telling him that Josh had gone on the rampage. "How's it going up there in the wilds?" Although I had been living alone for some years now, everyone was convinced that I would get lonely all by myself.
"Fine Frank. I have noticed quite a few hikers lately, has someone put us on the map at last?" I knew that if anything strange were going on then Frank would be able to tell me all the details.
"Seems that way. A couple of groups turned up some weeks back and rented a couple of houses. They go hiking up the mountain every couple of days or so, some of them leave for a while, then they come back. They keep to themselves mostly, don't seem to talk to many people."
"I need to make a call but my mobile won't work unless I hang off a cliff. Could I use yours?"
"Sure help yourself."
I walked into the backroom, unaware that I was been watched. I dialled the number Mark had given me. A woman, probably Vince's secretary, answered the phone.
"Hello Vince McMahon's office."
"Could I talk to Vince McMahon please?"
"Could I ask who's calling?"
"My name is Catherine."
"Does Mr McMahon know you?"
"No he doesn't. But it's urgent that I speak to him."
"I'm sorry Mr McMahon is very busy, if you could leave your number, I'm sure he will try and get back to you."
"Look I'm sure that Mr McMahon is going to be very interested in talking to me when you tell him that I know where Undertaker is. Now you just hurry your overpaid butt into him and pass the message on… I'll wait!"
In Vince's office there was a flurry of activity. What I had though was Vince's secretary was in fact a FBI agent. All of Vince's calls were been traced as a matter of course to save time in case the kidnappers phoned. Vince picked up an extension phone, taking his time so that the call could be traced.
"Hello this is Vince McMahon."
I was just about to respond when I spotted someone looking at me around the door. I caught a glimpse of a man I didn't recognise him, in a village this small that wasn't a good thing. I had to get back to Mark before they found him.
"Hello?" Vince's only reply was the click of a receiver being replaced. He turned to the FBI agents "Did you get the number?"
She nodded. Vince gave a huge sigh, his wife stood behind him and passed him a drink "Don't worry Vince we'll get him back."
The FBI called up a few records on their computers. The phone was registered to a general store in a small village. There was a working pay phone in the village, so it must be someone local or someone who had become very friendly with the locals. They spent some time going through records looking for the name Catherine. There were only two Catherine's in the village, one of which was eighty-two, the other lived in a house up in the mountains.
I made my way back to the house, taking a long winding route and stopping frequently to check that I wasn't followed. What I didn't know was that after I had left, the man had beaten my location out of Frank. I walked into the house "Mark?"
"In the kitchen."
Josh greeted me as I went into the kitchen. Mark was sitting at the table, drinking coffee and reading one of my books.
"You look pale. Is something wrong?"
"I think we're in for some trouble. A man was listening in while I was trying to get hold of Vince. I didn't see anyone following me, but they might find out where I live."
"What do we do then?"
"Batten down the hatches and prepare for trouble."
Chapter Three - Fight For Survival
I spent the rest of the day getting the house ready. Mark watched in fascination as I boarded up all the windows and doors.
"You've done this before haven't you?"
"Once or twice. When we get out of this I'll tell you all about it."
I wanted Mark to head for the shelter but he refused. I could tell that the thought of spending more time in a small dark room was more than he could stand.
We took it in turns sleeping and keeping watch that night. Company came late the next day as darkness was settling over the mountains. We heard the sound of vehicles pulling up outside, I could make out three separate engines and they all sounded like big vehicles.
I made Mark stay in the bedroom with Josh and made my way out of the room. I'd barricaded all the doors and windows, deliberately leaving the front window the most vulnerable. If they came in they were going to be walking into a blacked out house that I knew like the back of my hand.
I heard the scrape of a glasscutter on the front window, then the sound of bodies entering the study. I moved back stepping into a doorway.
When the first person stepped passed I struck, ramming his head into the far wall. He fell limp to the ground, I struck out at the next person in line with a kick to the head. That person fell into the one behind and I ran into a room and sneaked through a hidden door before they could tell where I had gone. I moved through the house taking them out one at a time, all the while making sure they kept away from the bedroom for as long as possible.
I ended up in the living room. It had two normal entrances and there were people coming in through both of them. One man was coming from the front, one from the rear, in a lightning quick move I punched the front man in the face then brought my elbow back into the other mans nose. I caught a third man, rushing from the side with a roundhouse kick to the head.
I managed to fight my way out of the room leaving a trail of broken and bloodied bodies in my wake. They were getting a few shots in of their own, but I was getting more on them.
I made my way into the kitchen. Pain lanced through my head as I was hit from behind. I was expecting a following blow but none came. I was pushing up from the floor when a blinking red light caught my eye. There was a small bomb attached to the cooker.
"You've spoiled everything!"
I stood up and faced the man who had spoken. I recognised him from the store. As I watched he placed another bomb on the kitchen wall.
"If we can't have him then no one can!"
He turned to exit the kitchen and I threw myself onto his back, spinning him around, smashing him into a wall. I grabbed his arm and twisted it up behind his back.
"How many bombs are there?!!" he stayed silent so I pushed on his arm "Tell me or I'll break your arm!"
"Too many for you to stop them all." He laughed.
I smashed his head into the wall, letting him fall unconscious to the ground. I looked at one of the bombs, the timer display had little over a minute left on it. I switched the ones off in the kitchen and left the room. Just looking around quickly I could see five blinking lights. He was right I wouldn't be able to stop them all, there wasn't enough time left.
I ran for the bedroom, the door was open, several bodies were littering the room. Mark was fighting one man and Josh had another pinned to the floor savaging anything that moved. With one huge punch Mark's opponent went flying across the room.
"Duck!" he threw a punch towards me. I hit the ground and heard the sound of a nose being broken. Looking behind me I saw that it was the man from the kitchen.
"We've got to go." I pushed Mark towards the secret panel "He's planted bombs around the house." I called Josh and he ran to us.
The first of the bombs went off at the front of the house.
Vince, the police and the FBI had just arrived at the house when the bombs went off. They watched in horror as the building collapsed in flames. There was no way that anyone in the building could have survived.
Vince sat in one of the vehicles numb with shock, they had come so close and now it had ended like this. Tears flowed unnoticed down his face.
Chapter Four - Aftermath
I'd pushed Mark and Josh through the door before me hurrying them on. I knew we wouldn't be safe until the blast proof door in the other room was closed. Mark helped me pull the door closed just as the majority of the bombs went off. The sound was deafening and the sudden silence that followed was nearly as bad. Apart from a sprinkling of dust from the ceiling the room stood up to the impact of the bombs.
I sat on the floor stroking Josh, running my hands over his body to make sure he wasn't hurt.
"You're bleeding."
I looked down at my shoulder at the wound I must have been stabbed but I couldn't remember when. The blood was flowing at a steady rate down my arm and dripping off my hand. Mark dampened a cloth, cleaned the wound and applied a bandage from the first aid kit.
"Now what?"
We checked the door but it wouldn't even give slightly. Something big was blocking the other side and I had the feeling that it was my house.
"Well I certainly think that this" I waved a hand around "is a dire emergency." I pressed the button on the beacon. "We've got plenty of food and water, now we just have to wait." I found a deck of cards "Fancy a game of poker?" Mark laughed.
Vince was still sitting in the car several hours later when he noticed some of the FBI agents pointing up at the sky. He looked up seeing three searchlights in the night sky. Helicopters were heading towards them. They hovered overhead their searchlights sweeping over the rubble. Ropes dropped from the side of one of the helicopters and three men repelled down to the ground. The other two helicopters carried on up the mountain, joined soon after by the first.
The three men were wearing army uniforms but they were black uniforms. One of them stepped forward "Who's in charge here?"
"I am."
"Not anymore." He passed a card over to the FBI agent. Vince could swear that he actually paled when he read it. "I need you to get that area cleared of all vehicles then I want all the prisoners and the Police out of here before my men arrive. Clear?"
The FBI agent nodded and rushed off to do as he had been told.
Vince watched the man walk over to him. "It's Vince McMahon isn't it?" Vince nodded surprised when the man held out his hand to shake; the stern army look had been replaced by the usual look of a WWF fan. "What are YOU doing here?"
Vince explained about the call they had received about Mark.
"So it's not only my sister were rescuing then. Tell you what, you can stick around until we get them out, as long as you promise not to say anything about our involvement to anyone."
Vince quickly agreed. Overjoyed that he would be allowed to stay. "How could anyone survive that?"
The man laughed "You'd be surprised at what my sister is capable of."
Not long after the police had gone the area was swarming with more black uniformed men. They were clearing the ground to one side of the house. Working in shifts they dug through the night heading down then working their way towards the house. By morning they had dug a trench leading to a concrete wall.
"Can you hear something?" Mark looked over at Cath when he got no response. She looked pale. He walked over to the bed for a closer look. She was lying on her side unmoving. Reaching out he found that her skin was cold even though she was wrapped up in blankets. Remembering the wound he pulled back the blankets, the sheet and mattress were soaked with blood. He felt her neck for a pulse finding a weak but steady beat he relaxed slightly.
"Hello?"
Mark looked around "What the-?" Josh ran over to a far wall leapt up and barked at something. Mark shooed him away finding a hole in the wall. Suddenly a piece of paper was pushed through the hole.
Mark grabbed Josh and pulled him over to Cath. He put a blanket over her to prevent any dirt getting into the wound then crouched down with Josh and waited. A surprisingly small blast, compared to the last one he had heard, took down the far wall. Three figures appeared from the dust and moved towards him. One he recognised instantly as Vince, not knowing the other two, and remembering Cath's reluctance to use the beacon, he positioned himself between them and Cath.
"Who are you?"
"It's okay Sir, were here to help."
"Cath needs a doctor." One of the men stepped forward holding up a medical kit. Mark stepped aside. The medic ran practiced hand over Cath's still form, set up a intravenous dip then stood up, talking quietly to the other man.
"She's dangerously low on blood but she'll pull through." He talked into his radio calling for a helicopter to come back for a pickup. "Now lets get you all out of here."
The helicopter took them all, including Josh, to a clearing just outside the village where they were met by a car, a few minutes later they were transferred to an ambulance. The man, Derek, changed into jeans and a tee shirt and accompanied them to the hospital. Vince stayed outside with Josh and made some calls to let everyone know that Mark had been found and was okay.
Mark wanted to stay with Cath but the doctors insisted on checking him out first. He was given a clean bill of health, after promising to take it easy for a few weeks. Making his way back to the waiting room he found Vince and Derek already sitting there.
"Who's looking after Josh?" he asked as he sat down.
"Jim turned up, so I gave him the job. I think they're playing fetch in a field out back."
Vince asked Mark about all that had happened, getting the full story out of him. Derek, who had moved closer, threw in the occasional question to get more detail. There was something familiar about him but Mark couldn't place his finger on what.
"Why didn't she want to use the beacon?"
Derek looked at Mark and leant back in his chair with a sigh. "Catherine used to be one of our top operatives. Several years ago she fell out with the people in charge, she didn't agree with the methods being used. We managed to get them removed but she wasn't comfortable working there anymore. She was `allowed' to leave but under certain conditions. I'm afraid that some people still hold a grudge about what happened and starting the beacon could have brought some of them instead of me."
A doctor came over to them "We're taking her up to surgery now, whatever she was stabbed with has severed an artery. The surgery shouldn't take too long but she'll have to stay in for a few days while we get some fluids back into her. We've got a room ready for when she comes down, you're welcome to wait for her there if you want." The doctor led them to the room and they sat down to wait.
Mark drew a chair up beside the bed and sat there holding her hand when they brought her back from surgery. He knew when she was waking up as her grip tightened on his hand.
"Mark?"
"It's okay, I'm here." He squeezed her hand reassuringly and stroked his free hand down the side of her face. She sighed and leaned her face further into his touch pressing a kiss into the palm of his hand. Mark's heart skipped a beat. His lips curved into a smile at her unconscious action.
"She awake yet?"
Mark stiffened when he heard Derek's voice. He had wanted to talk to Cath about Derek before he showed up.
"Derek? Is that you?"
He walked over giving Cath a hug. Mark felt jealousy rip through his body like a knife. He walked away from the bed before he gave in to the urge to rip Derek's head from his body.
"You gave me one hell of a scare when I saw your house. Do anything like that again and I'll tell mum."
I laughed hearing the familiar threat from our childhood. "Do and I'll tell her about you eating all the biscuits that time."
When they both turned and looked at him and he saw identical green eyes looking at him he realised then why Derek had seemed so familiar, they were twins. Derek's hair was blond compared to Cath's dark brown and he was taller and heavier in build. But the eyes were a dead give-away. Mark's body sagged slightly in relief.
While I was recovering in hospital Mark became my almost constant companion. We spent almost all the time talking together, finding out how much we had in common. When he wasn't around I was absolutely miserable. I could hear the nurses breath a sigh of relief when Mark came into the hospital. He had been the main reason for me watching the WWF and now that I had actually met him I think I was falling deeply in love with him. I was dreading the day when we would have to part company.
Chapter Five - Going Home
Mark walked into the hospital a sullen expression on his face. Cath was being discharged today and he didn't want to lose her. He made his way to her room and with a sigh turned the knob and entered.
"For the last time NO!!"
Mark looked at the three people in the room. Vince and Derek were sitting down while Cath was standing over them, hands planted on hips.
"What's going on?"
Cath visibly relaxed at the sound of Mark's voice. Something that didn't go unnoticed by either Vince or Derek, they looked at each other sharing a small smile.
"I'm been discharged today."
"So?" Mark was puzzled.
"I offered her use of a house at the base."
"Why don't I just shoot myself and save them the trouble." Sarcasm dripped from every word. Derek just smiled.
"And I offered her one of the spare family homes."
"Vince, I appreciate the offer but I don't want to feel like a charity case."
"Could you leave us alone for a bit?" Mark locked the door after they left and turned to face Cath "Stay with me."
"If I refused their offers, what makes you think I'll accept yours?" I stood in front of him, arms folded defensively in front of me.
"Because of this." He stepped close and leant down taking my lips in a searing kiss. I never even thought about resisting him. Moaning, I ran my hands over the thickly muscled expanse of his chest as he deepened the kiss. I cupped his face running my fingers over his jaw and neck. Reaching up I loosened his hair, letting it cascade around us. I tunnelled my fingers through the silky strands and held on for dear life.
His lips left mine and travelled down my neck, nipping and sucking as he went. Pushing my shirt to one side his lips worked over my collar bone then back up my neck.
"We'd better stop." He groaned in my ear. I shivered as he kissed me in a particularly sensitive spot just below my ear. "Someone might wonder why the door is locked." He nipped my earlobe, making me jump then took the injured lobe into his mouth and sucked on it.
I rested my forehead on his chest my arms locked around his waist to keep myself upright.
"Come home with me." He smoothed a hand down her back, feeling her shiver in response against him. He felt that for the first time in his life that he was starting to fall in love with someone, he certainly knew that he wanted her and after that kiss he knew that she wanted him too.
I snuggled closer to him feeling the evidence of his desire pressing into me. I decided to take a chance. "Okay, I'll go home with you." I felt like I had taken a step off a cliff. He tightened his grip on me and sighed. "There's something you should know about me though."
He looked down at her wondering what strange new secret she was going to reveal this time. She ducked her head lower refusing to look at him took a deep breath and spoke "I've got absolutely no experience with men."
I chewed on my lip wondering what his response would be. He stiffened against me then shuddered.
"Wow. I never expected to hear that." He pulled me against him letting me feel how my words had effected him. "Let's go home."
Mark's house was an absolutely beautiful two storey white mansion complete with a lake, forest and a huge amount of land. Josh greeted us as we entered the house and followed us as Mark showed me around.
On the ground floor was a kitchen done in farmhouse pine, it was large yet cosy. There was a well stocked gym complete with a wrestling ring, there was even a small library. The living room was beautiful with French windows, which opened out onto a paved area with a full-length swimming pool.
The first floor was mostly bedrooms, "For when any of the guys are in the area." His bedroom had the biggest bed in it that I had ever seen, not surprising considering his height. The room was decorated in dark colours, black duvet with purple and gold highlights, rosewood furniture. Definitely a mans room but I liked it.
"Cath?"
I had been admiring the view of the lake and forest from the window, turning I looked at him. He looked, and sounded, embarrassed. "Do you… would you…" he ran a hand through his hair "Do you want a bedroom to yourself, or would you…" he waved an arm around indicating his room.
I walked over to him and grabbed his shirtfront, pulling him down to my level "I want to be wherever you are." I kissed him.
Chapter Six - Visitors
"Mark where are you?!" called a woman's voice from downstairs.
"Sounds like we've got guests." Mark gave me a quick hug. "Come meet my two best friends. Even though they have got THE worst sense of timing."
Downstairs a man and woman were standing in the hall, Josh was running around begging to be patted. As Mark reached the bottom of the stairs the woman gave a squeal of delight and launched herself into his arms.
"It's so good to see you!" she locked her arms around his waist.
"Good to see you too Jane." Laughed Mark returning her hug.
I looked at the two of them and smiled. I looked at the man who was now crouching on the floor rubbing my softhearted dogs belly. He was nearly as tall as Mark, his hair lighter and curlier. He was watching his wife and best friend a smile of his strong handsome face. I'd never seen him before but he looked familiar. When he stood up and tilted his head on one side I recognised him.
"Jane let the man breath."
Jane let him go after one last hug. The man stepped up to Mark and gathered him in a hug of his own.
Jane walked over to me "Hi, I'm Jane."
"Cath." I shook her hand and found myself on the receiving end of a hug. For a woman about four inches short of my five foot eight she had one hell of a grip. "Jeeze. Remind me never to get you angry." I laughed.
"Sorry" she laughed "I'm just so happy to meet the woman who got Mark back for us."
"It was definitely my pleasure." I whispered in her ear.
"Let me introduce you to my husband." She released her grip on me and grabbed my hand pulling me over to the two men. "Glenn meet Cath."
"Must feel good to be without the mask." Glenn's mouth dropped open.
"You recognised me as Kane? How?" he tilted his head on one side.
"It's that whole cute head tilt thing." He laughed and shook hands with me.
"It's all Jane's fault" he whispered "she let on one day that it drives her crazy." He yelped as Jane punched him on the arm.
"You two staying for a while?"
"Only if were not in the way."
"The rooms are all made up, so take your pick."
While the two men lugged the bags upstairs Jane and I made lunch. We quickly found that we got on well together. Before long we were chatting and laughing together like long lost sisters. She tried asking questions about what I used to do, seeing me withdrawing she turned the conversation onto a lighter subject, telling me stories about Mark and Glenn on the road.
When she found out that I had lost everything when my house had been destroyed she insisted that we go shopping together after lunch. Derek had set me up with a whole new set of papers before I left the hospital, drivers licence and credit cards included so I had full access to my money.
We left after lunch, leaving the two men drinking beer around the pool.
Normally I absolutely loath shopping, especially shopping for clothes. But Jane made it fun, helping me pick out a whole new wardrobe.
"Mark is going to die when he sees you wearing these." She had dragged me into a very fancy shop, which sold very fancy underwear. Just looking in the window had made me blush.
I decided to go for ignorance "What makes you think Mark is going to see them?"
Jane did a very good impersonation of the Kane head tilt and gave me a look, which had me blushing.
We arrived back at the house laden down with packages, most of them mine although Jane had brought a few items from the lingerie shop as well. The aroma of perfectly prepared steak greeted us. "Why is it the when men get a few drinks inside them they always cook steak?" Mused Jane.
Chapter Seven - Time For Love
Later that night I modelled one of my new purchases for Mark a silky black negligee that revealed more than it hid. He went slowly, stripping the negligee off kissing and touching every inch of my body as it was revealed to him breaking through all my inhibitions. I wanted to touch him but he refused saying "Later". He carried on, working his way up and down my body building me up to the point where I was begging him. He positioned himself and eased the tip of his erection inside, groaning when he felt how tight I was. He rocked slowly letting my body become accustomed to his size as he entered inch by slow inch. The feeling was absolutely exquisite but I needed more, I arched my hips and dug my nails in his lower back trying to take more of him in. He took my mouth in a soul-searing kiss and pushed fully into my body, swallowing my small gasp of pain. He lay still waiting for my body to adjust to him. The brief pain of his entry was soon forgotten under the wonderful feelings his body was creating in me. He gasped when he felt my internal muscles working along his length. He started to move slowly building the pace of his strokes up then slowing down when he felt me getting close to the edge. Then started the process all over again. Eventually I got fed up with the torture, wonderful though it was, I raked my nails along his waist and along his back, arching my hips I whispered in his ear "Please Mark I can't take anymore". At my whispered plea he lost control. I screamed out my love for him as we tumbled over the edge together. Mark turned over, keeping our bodies joined together, stroking his hand up and down my back as I came back down to earth, still shaking with aftershocks.
I awoke first and lay there watching him as he slept a little satisfied smile on his lips. I brushed a kiss over his lips and went for a shower. When I came out I smiled as I saw that Mark had his face buried in my pillow. I gave him another kiss and went downstairs.
I took Josh out for a walk around the grounds. It was still fairly early but it already felt like it was going to turn into a hot day. Returning to the kitchen I found a tired looking Jane sitting at the breakfast bar, a mug of coffee in her hands. I poured one of my own and joined her.
"I hope I didn't wake you when I got up?"
"No. I'm usually up this early. You'd think by now that my internal clock would be set the same as Glenn's. But no matter how late we go to bed I get up early." She gave a yawn indicating that she hadn't got to sleep very early.
"Do you feel like having a lazy day around the pool?"
"That sounds wonderful."
I made breakfast for all of us, after we had eaten ours we took some upstairs for the men. Mark was finishing his when I came out of the bathroom in my new two-piece bathing costume. He was sitting there with the covers pooled around his waist. Looking at that chest I just wanted to crawl back into bed with him. I settled for a kiss, making him refasten the ties on my costume when his quick fingers untied them, and told him our plans for the day. "Why don't you join us?"
"You go on down love, I'll join you in a few minutes."
With that he leapt out of bed and went into the bathroom. Leaving me to pick my tongue off the floor as I watched his nude body walking across the room. I exited the room before I gave into temptation and joined him under the shower. I bumped into Jane on the way, her face was flushed and she was straitening her obviously recently ruffled hair.
Jane and I were sitting on the edge of the pool talking, our legs dangling in the water, letting the sun warm our bodies. Mark and Glenn came out and started doing laps in the pool. Talking slowed, then stopped as we watched their strong bodies cutting through the water. Time after time they passed us. We just sat there like spectators at a tennis match our heads turning from side to side watching them.
"Ever get the feeling you were being watched?"
Mark glanced over his shoulder watching with amusement as the two women quickly looked away, pretending that they hadn't been looking at them. He looked at Glenn "I think it's about time they joined us, don't you?" He dove down out of sight. Glenn smiled and followed at a slower pace.
I turned back. Glenn was slowly swimming towards us but Mark wasn't with him. I looked down to the other end, wondering if he had set off for another lap.
Suddenly Mark's head broke water right in front of me. He placed his hands either side of my legs and with an effortless move he pulled himself up leaning into me, letting the cool water from the pool drip all over my sun warmed body and planted a kiss on my lips. Just as quickly as he had appeared he was off again.
I sat there my fingers touching my mouth. It had been a quick kiss but I could still feel the heat from his lips. I could also feel the cold water running down my body creating goosebumps.
Jane was chuckling to herself at the expression on Cath's face when Glenn splashed water into her face. Before she could do more than gasp in surprise Glenn swam off, joining Mark in the centre of the pool. Both of them were laughing their heads off at the expressions on our faces.
"Feel like creating a diversion for me?" Jane whispered out of the corner of her mouth.
I gave a sleigh nod of my head. Standing up I walked around the pool. As I had hoped, Mark and Glenn kept and eye on me, ignoring Jane. Big mistake, Jane slipped silently into the pool and made her way towards the men.
"How many did she kill that night?"
"Six."
"Do you think she'll hurt us?"
"Only if she catches us." Laughed Mark. He kept an eye on Cath; she was standing at the side of the pool, hands on hips watching them. No, actually he realised she was looking slightly behind them. "I'll worry about Cath, you worry about your wife."
Jane had just reached the right position as Glenn started to turn. With a shout, that drew Glenn's attention back to me, I pulled off an impressive cannonball. Water splashed over the two men.
Mark had ducked beneath the water as he spotted me diving in. Glenn hadn't seen me and caught the full impact. He was spluttering away, brushing the water off his face when Jane struck. Suddenly he was pulled off his feet as his ankle was grabbed. He surfaced and looked around for Jane. She was sitting on the edge of the pool, waving something at him.
Jane watched Glenn's face waiting for him to realise what she was holding. He looked down, then with a yell struck out towards her. Jane waited until he was nearly upon her then she jumped up and ran towards the house waving his shorts over her head, Glenn in hot pursuit.
Mark watched them go, laughing his head off. He felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around, wondering what punishment was in store for him. Her hand tightened on his shoulders and she kept herself hidden behind his back.
"Don't turn around."
"Why not?"
"I've lost my top." I tickled him in the ribs when I felt his shoulders shake with laugher.
"That's what you get for doing a cannonball wearing a swimming suit held together with string."
"I didn't hear you complaining about the string earlier."
With a move that took me by surprise he turned around his eyes dropping down my body. I couldn't tread water and cover myself from prying eyes at the same time, so I latched my arms around Mark's neck leaning into his chest.
Mark felt like he had died and gone to heaven.
"Well can you see it?"
"Well if you move back a bit."
"My top you oaf."
Just then a splash came from the shallow end of the pool. We turned just in time to see Josh climbing out of the pool, using a ramp, with a strip of fabric hanging from his mouth.
"Why that rotten little…" Totally forgetting my lack of dress I swam for the shallow end.
Mark was laughing his head off watching Josh running around throwing the top up in the air than shaking it like a rag while Cath was watching helplessly from the pool. She tried tempting Josh close. Every time she got a finger to the top Josh would jump back just out of reach.
"You could help."
Mark wiped the tears from his eyes, it had been years since he had laughed so much. He swam over "Why should I? I'm enjoying the view too much."
Looking down I realised just how much of me was on view. With a cry of "Yikes!" I covered myself with my hands. Mark pulled my hands away from my body and pulled me against his chest. I shivered at the feel of our bodies pressed so close together with just the water coming between us.
"Don't worry, no one can see you."
We heard a shout from the house. We turned and watched as Jane ran past a window closely pursued by Glenn, bare backside and all. We looked at each other and laughed. After we had calmed down Mark rescued my top from Josh.
Chapter Eight - Chocolate Topping
Jane and Glenn had gone to do a taping for RAW, Mark was in the gym having a quick workout and I was in the kitchen baking a chocolate cake, after Glenn had begged. I was busy whipping together the ingredients for the topping when Mark entered the kitchen. He walked over and stood right behind me, peering over my shoulder at what I was doing. I could feel the heat radiating from his body seeping into my back. His hair still wet from his shower.
"What you making?" he reached out a hand, trying to scoop up some of the mixture with a finger.
"Leave." I rapped the back of his hand. "Its cake topping. White chocolate and brandy flavour."
"Chocolate- and brandy?" Mark pulled a face.
I scooped some of the mixture up with a spoon and passed it over my shoulder to Mark "Try it." I was expecting him to take the spoon from me; instead he leant closer scooping the mixture off the spoon. I watched as he closed his eyes and let the cream, chocolate and brandy mixture melt in his mouth.
"Well?"
"Mmmm. I think it needs something." He took my hand and dipped one of my fingers into the bowl and brought it back to his mouth. I jumped when he sucked my finger into the hot cavern of his mouth and cleaned the mixture off. All I seemed to be able to do was stare at his mouth as he ran his tongue over every part of my finger. He took my finger out of his mouth giving it a last quick flick with his tongue. "Yeah, that was better. See what you think."
He reached into the bowl scooping up a large dollop of mixture onto his finger and brought it up to my mouth. I looked into his eyes and opened my mouth with a groan. His finger entered and I closed my mouth on it sucking gently. The combination of flavours was absolutely exquisite, cream, chocolate, brandy and Mark. Waves of heat rushed through my body from the soles of my feet to the top of my head, then pooling in my abdomen where it throbbed in time with my heartbeat.
I kept my eyes locked with Mark's, watching them darken with desire.
We kissed, tasting the cake mixture in each other's mouths. With a groan Mark broke the kiss, grabbed the bowl of mixture and my hand and pulled me towards the bedroom.
After many wonderful hours we were both lying on the bed in an exhausted tangle of limbs. I didn't think I would be able to move for at least a week.
"Shame."
I lifted a weary head looking at Mark, who was peering into the bowl. "Mmmm what's up?" I slurred.
"There's no more cream left." He replied turning to me with a wicked glint in his eyes.
My mouth dropped open in shock as he stalked towards me, his intent written clearly on his face and body. Again… He couldn't… not after what we had just done…
After he proved me wrong a few more times we staggered to the bathroom and took a shower together.
When Glenn and Jane got back from the taping we sat down for a late dinner. Mark and Glenn went over the latest storyline that would lead up to Mark's return in a few weeks. We sat in the living room, Mark and I cuddled up on one couch and Glenn and Jane on the other. Glenn, the bottomless pit was munching his way through the cake while the rest of us were having a drink. I'd managed to get a second batch of topping made after threatening to lock Mark out of the kitchen when he started getting that look in his eyes again.
"You've got to try this Jane." Glenn held a finger full of topping out to Jane for her to try. I promptly started choking on my drink. Mark thumped me between the shoulder blades and innocently shrugged his shoulders as Glenn and Jane looked on in bemusement.
Chapter Nine - Back To Work
The crowd went ballistic when Mark walked down the ramp his first night back. I stood in back wiping a stray tear from my eye. Jane came over wiping away a tear of her own. Throwing our arms around each other we blubbed like babies. Glenn walked over dressed in his Kane outfit and stood watching us, head tilted on one side.
Over the weeks we set up a routine. We travelled to the arenas in the morning, taking Josh with us whenever possible. Jane and I would watch the men going through their routines in preparation for their matches or we worked out ourselves. During the matches we waited backstage watching the monitors or sat in the front row for a closer look at our men in action. At night he showed me what else he could do with that tongue of his. The days spent at home were definitely the best, time to ourselves, no interruptions, just plenty of chocolate topping and loving.
On the night that Undertaker and Kane got back together I was watching a monitor backstage with Vince and Jane. Everything went as scripted.
Undertaker and Big Show had a tag match against the Acolytes. Big Show was busy showboating and lost them the match, `Taker berated Big Show then started to exit the ring when Big Show attacked `Taker from behind, just when it seemed that `Taker was going to be destroyed the lights in the arena went off and the pyros signalled the arrival of Kane.
He walked slowly to the ring and stepped over the top rope, he stood there letting everyone guess as to what he was going to do. Help Big Show destroy `Taker? Or help his fallen brother? He walked forward and stood over his brother, tugging on his glove. In a lightning quick move he turned round and started slugging it out with Big Show. He landed some vicious looking punches and kicks then ended it all with a chokeslam. Big Show rolled out of the ring and staggered back up the ramp. Coming to stand with us, he watched the rest of the show on the monitor.
In the ring `Taker staggered to his feet looking shocked that his brother had rescued him. Kane walked over to `Taker, starred at him for a minute then held his hand out. `Taker starred at the hand, possibly remembering a time when he had done the same to Big Show, then took it. As the brothers shook hands then embraced the crowd went wild.
The show went off the air and they went backstage where they were greeted with applause from everyone backstage.
"Absolutely brilliant guys." Said Vince shaking their hands.
"Vince, where in the hell can I get a bigger truck?" joked Austin coming over to slap the two big men on the back.
After much backslapping and congratulations from what seemed like everyone even remotely involved with the WWF we made our way home for a few days off.
Chapter Ten - Surprise!!
After yet another very pleasurable and exhausting night I awoke feeling slightly queasy. I was on the pill so there was no chance that I was pregnant. The feeling lasted the whole day, all it did was put me off my food slightly, so it wasn't too bad. After all I had been eating way to many `sweet' things lately.
Mark noticed though and after I awoke the next day feeling the same he made me promise to see a doctor. He had wanted to call one out but I had flatly refused to waste a doctor's time on something so trivial as an upset stomach. Calling Jane I arranged to meet her in town for a bit of shopping after my doctor's appointment.
The doctor was a pleasant enough woman in her fifties. She examined me thoroughly then declared the impossible.
"You're pregnant dear."
"No. I can't be. You're wrong"
She sat back behind her desk took off her glasses and placed them in a case on the desk.
"I've been a doctor for nearly twenty years now, trust me, you are a couple of months pregnant."
"But I'm on the pill." I whispered.
"Did you forget to take any? Even missing them for a few days could have done it."
I shook my head. I'd been very careful about taking them.
"I'm sorry but sometimes ever the best contraceptive fails."
I sat there in stunned silence.
"It's not to late."
I looked at her. I was pregnant, what did she mean `it wasn't too late'.
"You could always have an abortion."
"No!" I put a hand over my stomach in protection. "Never!" I stood up and left her office.
I decided to sit in a nearby park before meeting Jane. Wondering around I found an empty bench and sat down pondering my life. I was pregnant and I was keeping it. As soon as the doctor had suggested having an abortion I knew that there was no way on earth I was giving this baby up. Just a few short months ago I'd never even though that I would meet anyone let alone have a baby. Then I had met Mark. A warm glow spread through my body just thinking about him. The thought of a little version of Mark growing inside me had me grinning like a Cheshire cat. I wondered what he would think. We'd never discussed the future; so far we were just content living one day at a time.
Glancing at my watch I left the park and met Jane where we had agreed to meet. If she noticed that I spent a lot of time looking at maternity clothes and cribs she said nothing, at least that was, until we sat down for a drink.
"Okay, spill the beans. Feeling sick, cheesy grin, looking at baby stuff, you're pregnant aren't you?"
I put my coffee down and starred at her in amazement.
"Wow…" I chuckled "You ever thought of becoming a detective."
She gave a squeal of delight throwing her arms around me in a hug.
"Does Mark know yet?"
"Jane, give me chance, I only found out myself a couple of hours ago." I could see that she was fairly bursting from wanting to tell someone. "You've got to promise not to tell Glenn until I get a chance to talk to Mark."
She looked a bit disappointed but cheered up quickly "Okay I won't tell. On one condition."
"Mmmm what?"
"Can you give me your chocolate cake recipe? Glenn has been raving about it for weeks."
At least this time I wasn't drinking. But I did get a few stares from people as I cracked up laughing.
"What IS it you find so funny about the cake?"
I looked around the café. Seeing that we were in a relatively quiet corner I leant over and whispered the short version of what we had done. Her eyes grew wide as I told her.
"You have definitely GOT to give me the recipe."
I grinned "What of the cake or the topping?"
"Better make it both." She pouted "Knowing Glenn he'll be more interested in the cake."
Chapter Eleven - Worse To Come?
We said our goodbyes at the car park. I sat there for a while trying to decide when it would be a good time to tell Mark that I was pregnant. It probably wouldn't be too good an idea to go home and say `Hi honey, I'm pregnant', and if I left it too long he might try and put me on a diet.
I was about to start the car when I got a strange creepy feeling. After years of learning to trust that `strange creepy feeling' I adjusted my mirrors and glanced around the car park, looking at everyone in the car park assessing them as a potential threat.
There was a young couple were walking arm in arm back to their car. A man with a couple of kids running around him was waiting for his wife to finish talking to a friend. Just normal people going about their normal lives, but the feeling wouldn't go away.
I was just about to give up when I spotted the woman. She was standing in a shadowy corner of the car park, which is why I had missed her before. The look on her face was one of pure hatred and it was directed at me. Before I could get out of the car to confront her she walked away.
Knowing that there was no use in going after her with so many shoppers around I reached down to start the car. My fingers brushed the keys then stopped as I remembered some of the things I had seen done in the name of peace.
After a few minutes of crawling around on the floor and peering at the engine I was convinced that there was no bomb under the car. There was however a small pool of brake fluid under the car. I picked up my cell phone and dialled from memory.
"Code name?"
"Rogue Tiger."
"Please hold."
"Cath?"
"Hi Derek." I quickly explained what had happened. "Do you think you can spare someone to check my car over?"
"Sure. I'll send someone right over."
Grabbing my bags from the car I called a taxi and went home.
Chapter Twelve - Hi Honey, I'm Pregnant
I was looking out of the kitchen window, sipping on a coffee, when a strong pair of arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me back against a familiar hard body.
"God I've missed you." His voice rumbled against my neck as he buried his face against me.
"I've only been go half a day." I stroked my hands over his arms and leant further back into his embrace as his lips nuzzled along my neck.
"Half a day too long." He turned me around and showed me how much he had missed me.
Some time later I lay watching him while tracing lazy patterns over his chest with my fingertips. "You do realize that's the second thing you've ruined for me now."
His head lifted in shock. "Ruined?"
"Well first it was the chocolate cake, now this. I'll never be able to eat at this table again and keep a straight face."
"Wait `till you find out what other things I plan on `ruining' for you. I think I might start with the washing machine."
Just when I though he couldn't shock me anymore he went and said that. He laughed as I buried my beet red face against his chest.
"I wonder if you'll still be blushing when were ninety."
"Well if you don't let me up I'll have died of exhaustion or starvation long before then." I swatted at his wondering hands and climbed off the table.
"That reminds me…" he had climbed off the table and was pulling on his trousers. "What did the doctor say?"
"The doctor?" I pulled on my clothes, trying to decide how to tell him.
"Yes the doctor... the whole feeling sick thing?"
"Oh. Well that will pass… in about seven months." I tucked in my shirt and started out of the room wondering how long it would take in to put two and two, or seven and two, together.
"Seven months? That's a hell of a…" he trailed off. "Your pregnant?!"
"Yep." I threw over my shoulder as I walked calmly out of the room.
"Come back here woman!" he gave chase.
I didn't get far before I was swept off my feet and slung over his shoulder. Without even breaking stride he started up the stairs. He'd only got up four steps when the front door opened revealing Glenn and Jane.
"Make yourselves at home" called Mark over his shoulder "I'm taking the mother of my unborn child to bed. We may be some time."
I waved to Glenn and Jane as Mark walked up the stairs two at a time.
"Child? Did he say child?"
Chapter Thirteen - Unpleasant Surprise
We were gathering our bags together, getting ready to set off for another RAW taping when there was a knock on the front door. As I was closest I opened it finding Derek standing there with a worried expression on his face.
"Was I right?"
"Right about what love?" Mark wrapped his arms around Cath and nodded a greeting to her brother. "Derek."
"We need to talk."
I introduced him to Glenn and Jane then we all sat down in the living room. I told Mark and the others about the woman in the car park.
Derek confirmed my suspicions about the brake lines "They were cut so that they wouldn't fail straight away but they probably would have gone before you made it back. Can you think of anyone who would want to kill you? That is anyone new?"
"No I've kept out of trouble since that night at my house. Everyone was captured weren't they?"
"The FBI raided the two houses that they were staying at in the village and also another house they were using. As far as I'm aware everyone was rounded up."
"I'll just have to keep my eye open and get a better description of her next time."
Glenn and Jane went to pack the car; Derek went with them to make sure that nothing had been tampered with. I stood up to follow, seeing the expression on Mark's face I sat back down beside him.
"What's up love?"
"Why didn't you tell me about the woman yesterday?"
"I wouldn't keep anything secret from you, I just forgot. I seem to remember getting distracted by something when I got in, something tall, dark and sexy as hell."
I pulled him close and kissed him. At first he was unresponsive then with a growl he took over the kiss.
"Stay here today." He groaned against my lips.
"If I thought it'd do any good I would. But I'm not having my life ruined by some sicko. Anyway it could be a one off."
He took me face in his hands, staring me deep in the eyes. "You don't believe that do you?"
"No," I sighed "but I'm not staying at home wondering when the next attack will be, this time I want to go on the offensive. Besides, if yesterday was how you act where apart for a few hours, I don't think I could survive what would happen after a whole day."
"How does bed, kitchen table, shower and washing machine sound?" he planted a kiss with each suggestion.
"Like I should spend a day at home." I tugged on his hair, bringing him close for a deeper kiss.
"Come on you two." Glenn walked into the room, interrupting our kiss. "There'll be plenty of time for that later."
Mark held me back until Glenn had left the room.
"Promise me you'll be careful?"
"I promise I'll be careful. I also promise that I'll never leave you." I just hoped that it was a promise I could keep. I certainly intended to try.
After their matches Mark and Glenn were in a meeting with Vince, discussion upcoming storylines. Jane was waiting for Glenn in his dressing room. I headed for the production truck to watch them recording the matches for Shotgun. The truck was full of monitors showing what the cameramen were seeing. Some were showing the action in the ring and others were pointing out into the crowd getting reaction shots. This was so they had something to cut to when Chyna hit someone between the legs.
"Hi. Do you mind if I watch for a while?"
"Cause not. Feel free."
I watched the monitors showing the crowds I had had that feeling again earlier. I caught a glimpse of something on one of the monitors.
"Could you ask camera five to pan back to the left for me?"
"Sure."
"Is this been recorded?"
"Yes."
"Good." There it was, that feeling again.
"Is there anyone you want him to zoom in on?" the director stood with me watching the monitor showing camera fives progress.
"No this is great. Tell him to carry on as normal, then I'll have a look at the recording."
He played the tape back and froze the picture where I told him. It was the woman from the car park; she was here in the arena.
"Do you know where Jim is?"
He pointed him out to me on one of the monitors. He was down in amongst the crowd.
A few minutes later Mark walked into the production truck.
"Hey guys, have you seen Cath?"
"She was here a few minutes ago then she took off to talk to Jim. Look, there she is."
Mark watched the monitor that the producer had pointed to. Sure enough she was talking to Jim, they had their back to the crowd and Cath was making strange gestures with her hands.
"What ARE they doing?" he muttered half to himself.
"She saw that woman in the crowd…" he pointed to the monitor where the picture of the woman was shill frozen, "then she took off- just like you just did." He finished as he turned to find that Mark had left.
Mark bumped, literally, into Glenn on the way out if the truck.
"Have you seen Jane? She said she'd be in the dressing room, but no ones seen her in ages." Glenn's eyes were darting around desperately trying to find his wife.
"First Cath, now Jane."
"Cath? Why what's happened?"
"I think she's going after the woman who cut her brake lines."
"Do you think Jane's involved somehow?"
"I hope not. I really hope not."
Jim and I made our way to where the woman was sitting. As we got near she waved an envelope at us, placed it on the seat and ran to the nearest exit. I ran after her as Jim picked up the envelope.
"Cath, wait!!"
I pulled to a halt at his shout and went back to see what was wrong. He passed me the envelope and I looked at the contents. Swearing I shoved it back into the envelope and passed it to Jim.
"Make sure that Mark and Glenn see this." I ran off.
Chapter Fourteen - Fight To The Death
Jim spotted the two men heading towards him. He passed the envelope to Glenn who went white at what he saw inside. Glenn, his hands trembling, passed a piece of paper and a photograph to Mark. The photograph was a Polaroid of Jane tied up in a car. The paper read:
"Which way?"
Jim passed them his car keys and pointed them in the right direction.
I walked to car park 2J, it was the furthest from the arena and was relatively empty. I dodged in and out of the cars that were there. Trying to make myself as hard a target as I possibly could. I knew that if I died, Jane didn't stand a chance.
I spotted them standing by a car, it was parked in a wide-open area, making it impossible to reach Jane without been spotted. She had a knife to Jane's throat, keeping Jane in front of her and the car to her back.
I stepped into view, arms held out at my side to show that I wasn't carrying any weapons. Her grip tightened on Jane when she saw me. I heard Jane gasp as the knife bit deeper into her throat.
"I'm here. Now what do you want?"
"What do I want? I want you to die."
"Why take my friend if it's me you want?"
"This way I get to take you wherever I want without a fight. Unless, of course, you want her to die."
"I don't know you so why do you want to kill me?" I was stepping closer with each question, looking for an opening.
She dropped something at my feet. Glancing down I saw that it was a photograph, but it had landed picture side down.
"Pick it up!"
I bent down and turned it over. It was that man who had kidnapped Mark. I caught a glimpse of the woman moving towards me then pain exploded across my chest as she kicked me in the ribs. I rolled with the blow climbing to my feet. Before I could take more than a couple of steps she had Jane back in her grip, the knife to her throat.
"What's he got to do with this?" I threw the photo back at her feet.
"He was my brother you bitch! Now get in the car and drive."
Mark and Glenn were crouching behind Jim's car, which luckily for them, was parked in 2J. They had watched and listened to everything that had gone on, feeling frustrated and helpless. They knew that to interfere could have meant the death of one or both of the women. As the car pulled away they climbed into Jim's car and followed at a distance.
At her instruction I pulled up outside an office block. Looking up I could see that it was at least ten stories high. She dragged Jane out of the car, pulling her close, holding the knife firmly against her neck. I could see blood running down Jane's neck where the knife had rubbed against her. I had to get Jane away then I could deal with the woman.
I'd seen Mark and Glenn following us; I just hoped that they wouldn't do anything foolish.
I climbed out of the car, desperately looking for an opening to attack as she forced us to walk into the building and enter a lift. She pushed the button for the top floor then kept her back to the panel and her eyes fixed on me.
Mark and Glenn entered the building just as the lift doors shut. They rushed for the stairs, neither of them willing to wait for the lift to come back down. They took the stairs two at a time, glad that they were in excellent condition.
The lift stopped on the top floor and we were ushered up the last small flight of stairs and out onto the roof. I turned to face her.
"Let Jane go. You don't need her now, you've got me here."
"You're right, I don't."
My feeling of relief as she started to lower the knife, turned to one of dread when she turned the point towards Jane's heart. I rushed her before she could drive the blade home. All three of us struggled for a time. I was trying to pull Jane out of her grasp while holding onto the arm that was holding the knife, preventing its use.
The door to the roof banged open and Mark and Glenn arrived. It distracted the woman long enough for me to finally pull Jane away from her. I pushed Jane towards the two men using both hands on her back. She fell into them knocking them back.
"Cath!!"
At Mark's warning shout I started to turn to face the woman. The knife bit into the back of my right shoulder. She pushed it deep, forcing me to my knees under the weight of her body and the pain. She ripped the knife out with a twist, drawing back for another strike at my unprotected back.
I managed to scramble out of the way before she could strike.
Kicking and punching I forced her back towards the edge of the roof. My right arm was hanging limp and useless at my side. Ducking one of my punches she rammed her fist into the wound, staggering me with the fresh pain that shot through my shoulder. The blow sent me spinning towards the edge. Realising how close I was I turned around and felt a shove to my chest.
I had time to lock eyes with Mark, for one last time, as I tumbled over the edge of the roof hearing Mark's shouting my name as I went.
Chapter Fifteen - The End
The woman was laughing her head off at what she had accomplished. Jane fell to the floor in shock unable to believe that Cath had gone. Glenn cradled his wife in his arms for a while them stood beside Mark.
Mark had been angry before but never had he felt like this. A red, murderous haze settled over his eyes. His mind kept replaying the moment that Cath had fallen over the edge, her eyes staring right at him. Now all he could hear was the woman laughing.
"I'm going to tear you apart limb from limb bitch." He didn't shout. He was just stating a fact.
The woman stopped laughing as Mark and Glenn started moving in on her, expressions of cold hate and rage on both their faces. She backed up waving the knife around in front of her, trying to ward them off. It didn't even slow their progress. With slow, purposeful, steps and murder in their eyes they closed in on her, backing her towards the edge of the roof.
As I had fallen I had managed to grab onto a small ledge a foot below the edge of the roof. The air had been knocked out of me as I had smacked into the building yet somehow I had managed to hold on. Trying to grab hold with my right hand had proved pointless and painful as my arm was refusing to move. My training had kicked in preventing me from calling out. It wouldn't do to survive this far only to have her finish me off as I dangled here helpless. I heard Jane sobbing, Mark speaking in a low dangerous tone and then the woman screaming at them to stay back. I saw her then, she was backed up against the edge of the roof, right above me her left hand resting on the low wall. Gathering all my strength and doing my best to ignore the pain in my right shoulder I pulled myself up, grabbed her by her left hand and pulled her off the roof.
Mark and Glenn stopped in surprise, wondering at first if she had thrown herself off the building. Then they could hear the woman shouting and then a voice they had thought they would never hear again.
"Mark, help me!"
"Cath?"
Mark and Glenn looked at each other then ran to edge and looked over. Cath was there, hanging precariously by one hand from a ledge. The woman was dangling from Cath's right hand, screaming in rage. She brought her right arm up and Cath suddenly cried out in pain, her hand starting to slip from the ledge. Mark reached over and grabbed hold of her arm, supporting the weight of both women.
She was using the knife on my arm, relentlessly jabbing and cutting with the sharp blade. If Mark hadn't grabbed hold of me I would have fallen. I could feel myself blacking out from the pain as she kept raking the knife over my arm. My right arm was already slippery with blood and the more she cut me, the worse it got. She started sliding down unable to get a grip on my arm through all the blood. I couldn't even move to help her, all I could do was watch as she fell from my arm with a scream and tumbled to her death. My body decided that it had had enough and I blacked out.
With the weight of the other woman gone Mark and Glenn easily hauled Cath's limp, unconscious body back onto the roof.
He held her close rocking her gently in his arms and kissing her face. It terrified him to think how close he had come to losing her. The police and paramedics arrived but they had to work around him. Now he had her back, there was no way he was going to let her go ever again. In the ambulance he sat beside her, holding onto her hand. Her grip tightened on his hand as she stirred.
"Mark?"
"I'm here love." He pressed a kiss to her hand, "God, I thought I'd lost you." He closed his eyes against the pain as he remembered just how close it had been.
"I promised that I wouldn't leave you. And I never break a promise."
"I'm still holding you to that promise."
I felt his lips brush over my forehead as I closed my eyes against a fresh wave of pain as the ambulance hit a dip in the road.
At the hospital they let Mark stay with me while they cleaned and stitched my wounds. Not that either of us was willing to let go of the other long enough to be parted. I ended up in surgery again where they checked out the deep stab wound on my shoulder. But within an hour I was recovering quickly from the anaesthetic surrounded by my friends and the man I loved. After assuring themselves that I was all right Glenn and Jane left the room leaving Mark and I to spend some time alone. I knew that it wouldn't take long for Jane to recover from her ordeal not with Glenn around to help her forget.
"How long are you going to be in hospital this time?"
"I'll be out the day after tomorrow. Do you think you can survive that long?" I smiled as I ran a hand over his arm.
He gave me a deep kiss teasing me with his lips and tongue as his hand cupped my breast squeezing gently then relaxing. His thumb brushed my nipple and with a last lick at my lips he drew away.
"I think the question should be. Can you last that long?"
"After that? No." I ran a shaky hand through my hair. I'd gone through hell yet all I could think of was sneaking out of the hospital to go home with Mark. I told him so.
He looked at me for a minute then got up and locked the door and closed the blind over the window, a familiar wicked look in his eyes. The one that had was designed to have me shivering in anticipation. He walked back over to the bed kissing me again as he sat down.
"I want to touch you."
"I'm not stopping you." I breathed against his mouth.
He went slowly, careful not to jar her shoulder. Sweeping the sheet out of the way he gently removed her hospital gown. Kissing her with butterfly soft kisses he worked his way down her face and neck. His fingers busy on her breasts cupping and stroking. His fingers moved down between her thighs as his mouth moved onto her breasts. Her left hand cupped the back of his head while she panted and moaned in delight. His mouth moved between her thighs and his hands moved back up to her breasts. He looked up from his position between her thighs as he flicked his tongue over her lightly. She was biting on her hand to keep from screaming as she climbed closer and closer to the edge. He stroked deep with his tongue, her hips arched off the bed as she came against his lips in a sweet rush. He lapped at her juices until she had nothing left to give, kissing her as she came back down to earth with a happy smile on her face.
"Will you marry me?" Even though he knew she loved him he was still uncertain as to what her response would be.
I opened my eyes and looked at him, the wonderful man that I loved more than life itself. I pulled him close for another kiss, running my tongue around his mouth as I stroked him through his trousers, making him moan in delight. Breaking off the kiss I gave him the answer we both wanted.
"Yes."
The End
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