Incest/Taboo Lady in Red

Steve had been taken totally by surprise when the gunman appeared from behind the car. He cursed himself for being so careless, and for endangering Lisa. Her fear was obvious, but it forced Steve to remain calm. The situation was tense and he knew that he needed to remove Lisa from danger.

As soon as he realized that he was the man's real focus, Steve decided that he'd go with him if Lisa were allowed to leave unharmed. Steve was also certain that if Lisa was hurt in any way, he would find some way to wreak vengeance on the gunman.

As the man secured his hands, Lisa was allowed to slip away. Steve was under no illusions about what was facing him, but with Lisa safe, he would be able to face it without concern for her.

They drove a couple miles with his hands strapped to the car door. Then the gunman turned into a driveway as the garage door opened. He pulled alongside an SUV, shut the motor off, and closed the garage door. Steve's abductor then walked around the front of the car. As he did so, he picked up what appeared to be a rake or shovel handle that was propped against the wall.

The man opened Steve's door quickly and slammed the wooden handle into Steve's head behind his ear. Steve slumped with his hands still bound to the door. The man pulled out a knife and severed the plastic tie that had immobilized Steve. He placed handcuffs on Steve's wrists and dragged him from the car. He hooked a chain through the handcuffs and then went to the wall and pressed a button. Slowly the chain rose and Steve's hands followed it upward.

When Steve was suspended so his toes touched the floor, the man began circling him. Then he would curse Steve in Farsi and slam the handle into Steve's torso. He kept that up until he was too winded to continue. The man then opened a bottle of water and sat down to rest. After half an hour, he stood up and pulled on a pair of leather gloves.

Steve was groggy but conscious for the first few blows. The man laughed as he promised he wouldn't kill Steve, yet. He wanted him softened up for easier transport. He explained to Steve that he was taking him to a place where he had video equipment set up to record Steve's execution. He laughed even harder as he spoke about how he was going to broadcast that event on the internet, much like the 'Lady in Red' dance Steve and Gwen had performed. He continued to hit Steve long after he had lost consciousness.

When Steve woke up, he was unable to open his left eye and his right allowed him little more than a squint at his surroundings. His hands were once again strapped together with another plastic strap binding him to the door of the vehicle. It was daylight and snow was falling heavily. Steve remained still, wanting his captor to believe that he was still out of it. After reading a few road signs, Steve was able to determine that he was in the mountains north of Sparta, not far from a winter ski lodge.

They were driving through six or eight inches of snow with more falling rapidly. The driver appeared to be traveling a bit fast for road conditions. Steve realized that the driver was probably not very experienced in winter driving. They were approaching a curve in the road when Steve made his decision.

Just as they reached the start of the curve, Steve pushed his knee hard against the steering wheel. The driver was confused for a few seconds when he was unable to turn the wheel. Seeing Steve's knee pressing against it, he violently jerked it just as Steve withdrew his knee. The result was a full 360 degree spin, followed by a 180. The ass end of the SUV hit the guard rails.

The vehicle jerked as the safety device greatly reduced the speed it was traveling. Then the rails gave way under the impact and the SUV dropped off the edge of the road and began crashing down a very steep embankment. Desperate, Steve was just barely able to reach the handle to open the car door. It swung open with his hands still attached. Suddenly a large tree sheered the door from the vehicle and Steve was yanked from his seat. The vehicle kept plunging down the embankment as Steve hung suspended from a large pine tree. The limb holding the door snapped and he was dropped to the steeply sloped, snow covered ground, still attached to the car door. It began sliding down the hillside in the wake of the SUV with Steve bouncing along with it.

The vehicle struck a large rock outcropping at the bottom of the slope with tremendous force. Suddenly an explosion shook the earth as a huge fireball spewed from the crumpled SUV. Steve tried desperately to brace his legs to slow his descent and he was partially successful. He slowed the door down somewhat as debris began landing around him. He felt several burning sensations as the door he was bound to began to drift to the right. Too tired and hurt to fight it any longer, Steve allowed himself to be carried along with the door. It finally came to rest about twenty feet from the wreckage.

Steve forced himself to roll over on his back to suffocate the small fires flaring on his back and legs caused by the burning debris that had fallen on him. He hunkered down behind the door to escape the intense heat from the fire and took stock of his situation. Nearby was a piece of the steering wheel with a partial hand still griping it, leading Steve to conclude that his captor had been a victim of the explosion.

Steve knew that cars seldom blew up in accidents of any sort, so it seemed likely that the man was transporting explosives. He was probably hoping to recruit more suicide bombers, or he just liked living on the edge. Regardless, his days of terrorism had ended quite permanently.

The fire quickly began to die since there was very little left to burn. With great effort, Steve dragged the door over to a piece of the axle with some jagged steel attached. It took some time, but he eventually managed to situate the door so he could sever the plastic that was binding him to it.

Steve was concerned with his situation. He had struggled to get the door where he wanted it because his chest hurt with every move he made. His vision was limited to a small area with his right eye. His left eye was swollen completely shut. His back ached and his ass hurt. Running his hands over his backside, he discovered a piece of metal embedded in his upper leg, near his butt. He briefly attempted to remove it, but the pain that created was more than he cared to endure.

It occurred to him that pulling the metal from his body could cause him to bleed a great deal. It didn't appear to be bleeding at all at the moment. That surprised Steve until he concluded that it must have been so hot that it cauterized his flesh as it entered, thus preventing serious bleeding.

It was snowing extremely hard and the wind was beginning to whip the flakes around in all directions. For the first time, Steve realized that it was also very cold. He would need shelter and heat before long or he'd perish. He had often listened to his father and his SEAL friends discuss some of their survival training and what they had endured and what they had learned. The important thing was to never give up!

Waiting in the open by the burned out wreckage seemed foolish. With visibility so low, no one would find the wreck until far too late to do him any good. Looking around, Steve saw a piece of metal with a very sharp ragged edge on one end. He kicked snow over it to be certain that it was no longer hot and then picked it up. Judging from how much that movement hurt, Steve realized that he was in for a bad day or two. Seeing nothing else of interest, he turned and began walking.

It was almost dark when he saw the overhang. He had fallen a few times along the way and had trouble getting back up. He was wracked with pain, his breathing was labored and he was very cold.

Years ago, an old pine tree had collapsed against the rocky ledge that was now in front of him. Moving in close, he was able to see a small cubicle carved into the rocks under the dead tree. Slowly, he crawled under the tree limbs and into the rock cavern. It was void of snow and extremely cold. Steve took the jagged piece of metal and gouged out part of the old tree that was rotting. He managed to gather a couple hands full of small tinder and placed it on a flat rock. He then pulled off tiny pieces of dry wood and bark and placed it by the tinder.

Steve then pulled out his wallet and found a slip of paper with addresses. He tore the paper in very tiny pieces and placed it by the tinder. He looked around and found a flat rock and placed it near the tinder and paper. They he took the jagged piece of metal and began striking it against the rock. Ten minutes later he was still striking the metal against the rock. An occasional spark would fly to land harmlessly near the paper. Knowing he had no options and very little time, Steve kept striking the rock.

Finally a spark landed on the small paper strips. Steve gently blew on it and the paper erupted into flames! Steve quickly added the tinder to the paper and it began burning. Then he placed the small pieces of bark and wood on the tinder. Once that ignited, he began adding larger chunks of the old tree. Gradually, the grotto began to warm up. Steve pulled his shoes off and placed his feet near the flames. Once they were warm, he put his shoes back on. He gathered fuel until he was simply too tired to move. He lay down near the fire and listened to the wind howl.

Steve woke to find the fire almost extinguished. He slowly moved to the old tree and chopped some dead branches of it. He fed these pieces of wood to the fire and nursed it back to a healthy state. Then he gathered more wood and placed it near the fire. Sweating and exhausted, Steve once again curled up by the fire and slept. It became his routine. When he awoke, he'd gather wood until he was too exhausted or sore to continue and then lay back down.

Steve knew he had to have been in his shelter for several days, but was unsure exactly how many. He was beginning to feel cold, regardless of how large the fire was. He was having trouble breathing and he was coughing frequently, which hurt his chest. He knew he had a fever, some very sore ribs, and a bad cold. His back and ass were throbbing constantly and he was finding it difficult to collect any more firewood. He had burned all but the biggest pieces of the tree.

Steve considered trying to find his way back to the road but had no idea what direction he had come from. It had been snowing hard that day and he had not been paying close attention to his wanderings. It was still snowing hard and Steve began to realize that he was trapped in the small grotto until the weather improved, and then he was not likely to have the strength to go very far.

He thought about Gwen and how much she had come to mean to him. He smiled as he remembered her climbing into the shower with him and how well they washed each other. He was saddened that things hadn't turned out better, but eventually decided that what he had been given was far more than he would have dreamed of a year ago. Once again, he fell asleep.

Jason and Brad Hunter had been dropped off near the wreckage of the SUV just as the snow began in earnest. They strapped on their snowshoes as the helicopter raced back to base. Although they were no strangers to snow and cold, they were concerned by the harshness of the elements. They were fully prepared for the weather and still had difficulty moving very well. Visibility was low and the wind was sucking the warmth from their bodies.

They had formed a plan for searching while in the copter and moved out to follow that plan. Two days later they still had almost half of the area they wanted to search untouched. The snow was well over three feet with drifts eight and ten feet high. They felt a real urgency as they pushed through the snow. It was not likely that anyone would survive for days in this environment without proper equipment. They feared that their window of opportunity for finding Steve alive was rapidly closing.

They were not looking for a body. They searched likely areas where a man in distress would look for shelter during a storm. They looked for caves in the hillside, smoke in the air, tracks in the snow, and deadfalls where downed trees could offer some protection from the elements. By Friday afternoon, they were tired and discouraged, but in agreement that they would not end their search until they found Steve. Neither brother wanted to return home from this mission they had undertaken empty handed. It was far easier to face the weather than the women waiting for, and depending on them.

The storm had finally dissipated and the sun was breaking out when Jason suddenly stopped in his tracks. He sniffed the air and then called to his brother.

"I smell smoke! The wind is coming from the east, so let's head that way, and hurry!"

So it was that the Hunter brothers came upon Steve's little cavern in the rocks. They feared he was dead when they first crawled into the shelter. The fire was nearly gone and Steve was motionless. Brad moved in and felt his neck.

"He's alive! We need to call in a chopper as fast as we can. He's damn close to dying here! I'll check for injuries while you call in our coordinates. We need help here now!"

Less than an hour later, they had Steve boarded on a National Guard helicopter headed for Sparta. There was a better trauma center north, but the weather in that direction dictated that the hospital in Sparta was to be their destination. As they flew, Brad made the call to Gwen.

"Gwen! Steve's alive, but he's in pretty bad shape. We have him in a chopper and we're headed for the Sparta hospital. I promise you that we'll do our best for him! I can't talk now but I'll see you at the hospital.

Ashley and Charlotte gathered Gwen in their arms as she cried uncontrollably. Both women feared the answer to the question that was on everyone's mind, so they simply held her and waited. After about minute, Gwen wiped her eyes and turned to her friends.

"My boyfriend's back!" was all she managed before tears once again raced down her cheeks and sobs wracked her body once again.

Uncertain of her exact meaning, Charlotte and Ashley Summers looked at each other with questioning eyes. "He's alive!" gasped Gwen between sobs.

That was all the two had to hear as huge smiles broke across their faces. The kids sitting near enough to hear Gwen clapped and cheered. Soon the entire room was involved. Cell phones came out and calls were placed, much against the policy of the school.

"I need to get to the hospital! He's in bad shape! He's going to need me. I'm sorry, Ms. Summers, but I'm leaving now," stated Gwen through her tears as she stood up and grabbed her books.

"Tell the principal for us, will you Ms. Summers?" requested Charlotte as she hurried toward the door with her friend. "We don't have time to report to anyone and Gwen's in no condition to drive. Her boyfriend's back!"

As Charlotte drove them to the hospital, Gwen called home. "Mom! Jason and Brad found Steve! He's alive, but in pretty bad shape. I'm on my way to the hospital right now. Tell Lisa and call Amber. I'm too worried to talk to people now. I'll call when I know more."

As Charlotte was approaching the hospital, Gwen was filling in Uncle Joe on the situation. Charlotte suddenly pointed to a helicopter landing in the parking lot. Several men were placing cones and directing any traffic away from the area. By the time Charlotte found a parking space, Steve was being lowered to a waiting gurney. Gwen raced toward the scene only to have Brad intercept her.

"Now is not the time, Gwen! He needs immediate medical attention. Go around to the waiting room and we'll join you there in a few minutes. Trust me. It has to be this way for Steve," insisted Brad as Gwen watched attendants rush Steve to the emergency room entrance.

"He isn't moving! Did he die? Tell me!" yelled Gwen as Brad held her to his chest. "I need to know. Is he dead?"

"No, he isn't dead. He's had a hard time of it and he's in pretty bad condition, but he's alive. Let the doctors take care of him and decide how he's doing. Go to the waiting room, Gwen. We'll all be there in a little while."

By this time Charlotte had caught up to Gwen and heard Brad's last words. "Let's get to the waiting room. We've spent a lot of time there the last few weeks, so a few more hours won't hurt us. Come on, Gwen. Brad's right."

Friends and relatives quickly arrived to join Gwen and Charlotte in the waiting room. Paula and Lisa were among the first to arrive. "How's he doing? Can I talk to him? I need to apologize."

"If you try that, he'll be angry with you, Lisa! Men don't want apologies from women for trusting them and relying on them. They want you to thank and appreciate them. But right now, Steve isn't able to see anyone. He's in pretty bad shape according to Brad. We have to wait to find out how bad it is."

As Gwen was speaking to Lisa, she saw Amber O'Leary enter the waiting room and rushed over and hugged her. "Your man and his brother saved my guy! I'll never be able to thank you enough! To think I was ready to fight you the first time we met and now you've practically saved Steve. Thanks so much!"

Kate arrived a short time later with Paula's parents. They were followed by Diane and Stephanie. Amber Stahl approached Gwen a little later. "Can you tell me anything I can report, Gwen? Is there anything you want me to tell our viewers?"

"You should tell them that Brad and Jason Hunter, two of West Point's finest, went into the mountains in a raging storm, searched tirelessly for three days in arctic like conditions and found Steve and brought him back to the hospital. Mention Amber and her dad, the Governor, for not giving up and for sending the helicopter that flew Steve back to the hospital," responded Gwen. "Please don't mention that he's in pretty bad shape and we're really worried about him. We want to emphasize the positive right now. Thanks, Amber, for being a real friend and a great reporter."

Amber left the room to file a report as the rest settled in to wait. After about an hour, Jason and Brad entered the room. They were clean shaven and showered.

"We just had to get cleaned up. Wearing the same clothes you've sweated in for three days is no way to greet ladies," offered Brad as he hugged Amber O'Leary while Lisa found herself in Jason's strong arms.

"You know how much I appreciate what you guys did for Steve, which means you did it for me as well," began Gwen. "What can you tell us about Steve's condition?"

"Do you want me to talk about it in front of everyone," questioned Brad. "I don't know everyone in the room and some of it's not easy to hear."

Gwen looked around the room at those gathered to wait for news about Steve and then turned back to Brad. 'Everyone here loves him and is genuinely concerned so they might as well find out now. It'll save me the trouble of repeating everything."

"What about the reporter?" asked Brad as he gestured toward Amber Stahl. "This is personal and some of it doesn't need to be repeated to millions of people."

"Amber won't report anything she learns this way without asking first. She's a personal friend of ours, as well as a very good reporter. Please let us know what's going on."

"Steve was unconscious when we found him. He had found a small cave type area in a rock ledge. It was shelter and a good place to ride out the storm. He had burned about all the wood he was able to gather, cut, or break off a big dead pine tree that had fallen against the ledge years ago.

"We called for the chopper and gave him some water. He had a high fever and a bad cough. He held his chest and winced when he coughed, so I worried about injuries from that crash and explosion. This is where it gets hard to hear.

"I decided to check out his chest area for any injuries or punctures. His chest, stomach, and back were all covered with horrible long black bruises. It's pretty apparent that the guy must have beaten Steve with some sort of club!"

Cries and moans filled the room at Brad's statement. He waited for the ladies to collect themselves. "He also had shrapnel buried in his back, buttocks, and legs. One large fragment and several smaller ones appeared to be infected. He's quite ill. I have no idea what sort of internal injuries he may have suffered from the beating and the wreck. His face is badly swollen, with one eye totally closed. There you have it as far as I can report. Obviously, the doctors will have much better idea of the extent of his health problems."

No one had expected to hear that Steve had been badly beaten before crashing and then enduring several days in a blizzard. Everyone wore shocked expressions and tears flowed freely. Paula hugged Gwen and cooed into her ear much as she had done when Gwen was a small child. Lisa cried into Jason's chest while Stephanie and Kate held each other with tears streaking their cheeks. Then Steve's uncle stepped through the doorway and took a seat.

"I heard everything, so don't worry about repeating it. It's a hell of a thing, but I'm looking at the bright side. Steve's alive and in good hands. That's a lot better than he was a few hours ago!"

It was almost three hours later that a grim Laura entered the waiting room. She looked at the people gathered and nodded to them. "I guess there's no sense trying to speak to one or two of you, so I'm going to tell all of you how Steve's doing.

"He's in intensive care. We're treating him for pneumonia and a very nasty infection in his buttocks and back. We removed a large piece of metal and numerous smaller ones. Several of those pieces of shrapnel had caused infections. X-rays show several cracked ribs, apparently the result of being bound and then beaten. He has many bruises on his torso and face. He has one eye swollen shut and the other is pretty puffy. He's dehydrated and exhausted.

"All of that said, he's in remarkably good health for what he's been through. His face should heal completely, so his good looks will return. His bruises will eventually heal. We feel that we've got a good start on his treatment for the pneumonia and the infections. If he keeps responding as he has been the last few hours, he'll be out of intensive care within a couple days.

"One thing I cannot determine is his mental state. This young man has had a very traumatic year. He lost his father while defending civilians, and Steve killed three men at that time. He came within a whisker of drowning in November. A couple weeks ago he engaged in a shootout with terrorists, in which he killed five men and lost several friends. Then he was abducted, bound, and tortured before being in a crash and explosion. Badly injured, he struggled to survive through a couple of hellacious snowstorms. Can you see why I'm worried about him?

"He'll need a lot of patience and understanding, as well as old fashioned love. He may be fine, but my feeling was that he was worried or depressed when I just spoke with him. That could hinder the healing process. As I said, he was conscious just now and he's asked to see Lisa. Would you come with me, please?"

Lisa looked to Gwen in surprise and quickly stood and followed Laura out of the room. Gwen felt everyone in the room look at her as she struggled to determine the meaning in this turn of events. Unable to reach a logical conclusion, she decided to simply keep her faith in Steve and wait.

"Steve, it's my fault that you've been hurt so bad!" cried Lisa as she neared the bed and saw Steve's bandaged face.

"That's why I wanted to see you, Lisa," croaked Steve. "I need you to help me get well. Will you do that for me?"

"Of course, Steve! What can I do to help?"

"I'm trying to get that bastard out of my head. He tried to take something from us, and I'm worried that he may have succeeded. I heard Jason and Brad talking on the chopper ride back. They didn't know I was conscious. I heard that you're wracked with guilt and now I see it's true.

"Lisa, you know that I love you, but I doubt that you know how much. We'll never be lovers, but that just makes what we have even better. We are joined in other ways. I need you to know that I never blamed you for texting me that day. I am honored that you had the faith in me to respond in your time of need. I would give my life for you. If I'm ever called on to do that, I want you to know that I did it because I love you and want you to be safe and well. I want to hold your children, to love your kids and play with them. I want you to feel that I'll give my life for them and I want you to be proud of me for doing it.

"You have to be the Lisa I've known and loved if I'm going to be able to get over the pain that guy inflicted. I have to know that he lost, and you and I won. Don't look for blame. Look for the pride and honor I felt that you would allow me to help you. I fear that in the future you will allow yourself injury or harm rather than seek my help. I can't live with that. Guys like Jason, Brad, and me have a purpose in life. That purpose is to help good people, and hold bad people accountable. You have a purpose, too. Lisa, you bring joy to men like us with your smile, your humor, and your selfless love of family. Please tell me that I won't lose that Lisa, the one I've fallen for so deeply. Tell me that you'll always be willing to lean on me in times of trouble and allow me the pleasure and honor of helping you any way I can."

Tears streamed down Lisa's cheeks as she listened to Steve speak. "Oh, Steve! I do love you like no other. I promise I'll always look to you for help in times of trouble. We do have a special kind of love and we'll have it even if we're both married and have a dozen kids between us. Gwen will understand. She already does. If Jason turns out to be the guy for me, he'll understand, too."

"That's the Lisa I know and love! Now do me one more favor. Express to Jason and Brad how much I appreciate their efforts to rescue me. Put some feeling in it for me, if you would."

"I think I can do that! I know it isn't manly to get all weepy and soft, so I'll take care of that little task for you. Then I'll tell them how proud I am that they'd think enough of you, and Gwen and me, to go to such extremes to save you. I think I'll like feeling loved and pampered a lot more than frightened and guilty. You're amazing and we really do have a very special and different type of love affair going, don't we?"

"I'd say it's one of the best possible and I hope it lasts another sixty years. I hope we're always close and you're always teasing me. I expect your daughters to be just like you, and I'll love them, too."

Lisa bent over and quickly kissed Steve's bruised lips. "We'll always be in love. Now get well. I promise that I'll do my best to tease you mercilessly, so plan on it!"

All eyes were on Lisa when she returned to the waiting room. Lisa looked at Gwen to judge her temperament. She knew it had to sting when Steve asked to speak to her first. Gwen seemed curious, but not angry. Lisa hurried over to her.

"Gwen, that boyfriend of yours was worried about me! Can you believe that? It seems that on the helicopter ride to the hospital he overheard a couple of Rangers discussing how pathetic a certain blonde was behaving. For some reason, Steve thought that they were referring to me, so he just gave me a pep talk. He's been beaten, blasted, and blown around by a blizzard. He's got pneumonia and cracked ribs, can only see out of one eye, and he's worried that I'm unhappy! Can you believe it?"

"So that's what that was all about? I was a little curious, but I knew there'd be a good reason. He heard that you were down in the dumps and wanted to correct that problem right away? He really does love you, Lisa. It just makes me so proud of him! How did he look?"

"Honestly, Sis? He looks like hell. He's battered and bruised to beat the band, but I think I cured his depression, and I didn't even have to take my clothes off," joked Lisa.

Paula and the others had been listening to Lisa's conversation with Gwen. When Lisa made her joke, Paula knew that she'd be fine. Steve's talk with her had freed Lisa of her guilt about texting him that horrible day. Paula made a mental note to thank Steve and to add yet another reason to the long list of ways Steve had come through for her family.

Gwen was relieved to hear Lisa joke and laugh. She had been concerned about her attitude and had hoped that Steve's rescue would jolt her out of her melancholy. While his return didn't exactly have that effect, it seemed obvious that their little tete-a-tete had restored Lisa's good humor.

"There's one other thing. Steve asked that I personally thank these two Rangers for roaming the north woods for a few days to find him and bring him back. He specifically asked me to put some feeling in it. That's what I'm going to do. Forgive me, Amber, but this is for Steve."

Lisa walked up to Brad and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him long and hard on the lips. Once she released Brad, she moved over to Jason. He was ready for her and pulled her tight to his chest and leaned down to meet her lips with his. They held that position until Kate started yelling for them to get a room.

Paula and her mother were laughing at Lisa's forward behavior. Amber had moved into her fiancé's arms, while Gwen moved behind Lisa with a smile on her face.

"I owe these guys some thanks, too! Let go of that big lug so I can express myself properly," insisted Gwen.

"No, Gwen. That's why Steve asked me to thank these guys. He didn't want his girlfriend whisked away by some handsome, rugged Ranger. I'm the sacrificial lamb here. It's a dirty job, but it's mine to do."

"Just get out of the way," laughed Gwen as she moved close to Jason and kissed him soundly on the lips. "You saved my guy, Jason. You'll always be a brother to me, and maybe more if Lisa does have her head removed from that dark place. I'll always love you for all you've done for Steve and me."

Then Gwen moved over to Brad and pulled Amber out of his arms. "I gave you permission to kiss my boyfriend once. Would it be okay if I kissed yours right now?"

"Just don't do a job on him like Lisa did! He's getting older now and his heart isn't what it used to be. Two Anderson sisters are enough to kill most men, so go easy and if he starts to go down, catch him."

"There won't be anything going down when I get this guy in my arms!" replied Gwen as she kissed Brad long and hard. "You're tops in my book, Brad. Amber is a very lucky woman. You and Jason are the brothers I never had. My sisters have Steve for a brother figure, but I sure don't want him to be act like a brother with me!"

Laura had entered the room in time to see and hear Lisa and Gwen thank the Hunter brothers. She admired their easy sexuality and humor under a stressful situation. She found herself smiling along with the others in the room.

"I was going to ask you if you wanted to see Steve now, but if you're too busy with these brothers, maybe Paula will have the time to cheer up Steve a little. I told you I was worried about Steve getting depressed. Having his girl stolen by a couple of Army Rangers will crush him."

Gwen rushed over to Laura and followed her out of the room. Steve was covered in bandages and once again had an IV plugged into his left arm. Gwen walked up to his bed and took his hand and smiled. Steve tried to smile back and groaned as his split lip reminded him of his ordeal.

"Steve, you know what this means, don't you?" asked Gwen. "I'm going to have to wash your back in the shower again. You know I'm going to make you stay with us and I'm going to smother you in love. I just hope you're healthy enough to survive it because it's going to be constant and intense. Think you can stand it?"

"That's all I could think about when I was lying under that damn rock ledge! I knew if I could just hang on, you'd be rubbing your naked breasts against me again, washing my back and allowing me to wash your front. I had to time to think about my love for you, Gwen. I'll never love another woman the way I love you. I know that."

"Oh, Steve! My heart was breaking when you were taken away, but I never stopped believing that you'd come back to me. My heart told me that you were alive. I'm your girl to love forever. That'll never change."

Gwen and Steve talked about his harrowing ordeal until Laura returned and ushered Gwen out and ordered Steve to get some sleep. When Gwen returned to the waiting room, several reporters were setting up their video equipment. One of the networks had their weekend anchor reporting from Sparta since Monday. He was checking his hair in a small mirror as his cameraman set up.

"Would you like to do an interview now, Gwen?" asked Amber Stahl. "I feel a little intimidated here by these network big shots, but I'll do my best."

"You've no reason to apologize or explain, Amber," replied Gwen. "I have an axe to grind with that pompous ass over there, but you've been great."

About that time, the reporters noticed Gwen had returned and swung their cameras toward her and began asking questions. The network guy was in front of the others and obviously expected his questions would be answered first.

"Let's do this in an orderly manner," stated Gwen calmly. "Let's start with Amber Stahl. What is your question?"

Gwen easily fielded questions about Steve's condition and how he survived the crash, the explosion, and the blizzard.

Gwen seized her opportunity when the network anchor asked about Steve's reaction to first seeing his two rescuers. "That's an odd question for you to be asking, Mr. Hardy. Just last night I saw you report that Steve could not have survived the accident, the blast, and the weather. You stated that what was once a search and rescue mission had become a recovery effort. That was a clear statement to your audience that Steve was no longer alive. Now you are asking how he reacted to a situation that occurred after you told us he had died.

"That means you have zero credibility and no right to ask any questions. You don't report news, you try to create it, or guess it. That is a very unprofessional, cruel thing to do. I will not entertain any questions from you. Amber, do you have any further questions?"

Gwen's treatment of the flustered anchor made almost as much news as Steve's miraculous survival. Steve's story made the headlines, but Gwen's handling of Bill Hardy also garnered a lot of attention, especially on internet blogs. Public sentiment was strongly behind Gwen, but Bill Hardy was not one to forgive and forget.

Steve responded to the antibiotics quickly and was out of intensive care by Sunday. His face was still swollen, but he had complete vision in his right eye and his left eye was beginning to open. His pneumonia was improving rapidly. The cracked ribs were extremely tender, making any extension of his arms or sudden movement painful.

Paula was not surprised that Gwen insisted that Steve stay with them again. Gwen and Kate spent Saturday switching rooms. Gwen intended to stay with Steve and neither Ted nor Paula voiced an objection. After school on the following Wednesday, Gwen and Charlotte drove to the hospital to pick up Steve. Once again, Steve was wheeled down the hall with staff wishing him well and joking that he try to stay away a little longer this time.

Steve's arrival at the Anderson home was a festive occasion. Gwen's grandparents, along with Lisa, Will and Stephanie were waiting for him in the living room when Ted and Paula once again helped him into their home. By this time, Steve's face was almost normal in shape but still contained many shades of yellow, blue, and purple. He still kept his arms close to his sides to ease the pain in his ribs. His infections and pneumonia were pretty much defeated, although he was required to take antibiotics for another ten days.

Steve was surprised at the emotion Paula's mother, Caroline, showed when he slowly entered the house. "Young man, I'm so happy to see you walk into this house under your own power. What you've accomplished for this community, and this family is incredible. I don't blame Gwen for moving you into her room. If I were forty years younger..."

"Mom, you're not forty years younger, and I'm not twenty years younger, but Gwen is. Look how you've made the poor boy blush. Gwen, did you mention to him that he was staying in your room, with you as his personal nurse?"

"That was going to be a surprise! I can't believe my own grandmother is trying to put moves on my boyfriend. I suppose I should look at the bright side. You must approve of him."

"Are you kidding? All my friends are asking me if I know him and what's he really like. They asked me if I ever heard him sing, and I haven't. I'm pretty upset about that! As soon as he feels better, I want him to sing that Elvis song for me, except now it's a Steve Hammer song. Have you ever heard a song played so much in a couple weeks time?

"I brag about how much he loves my granddaughter, aka 'The Lady in Red', how you two saved the school, have hit songs and how you're nursing him back to health in your room."

"Grandma! You don't have to tell anyone that Steve's staying in my room. That's personal."

"I'm sure it's going to be, Dear! I was just teasing. I think your dad would have a coronary if I told anyone about that arrangement. I still don't know how you ever convinced him to allow it."

"I think Steve did the convincing when he saved this whole family a few times. It made a very persuasive argument for Gwen's cause," observed Paula. "A few months ago, I would have told you that Ted would have never allowed it in a million years. Of course, Gwen did promise that they would not be having sex. That helped soothe Ted a little."

"You promised what?" asked a surprised Caroline. "You're going to be spending nights with this incredible young man and you're not going to have sex? You've got to be kidding me!"

"Well thanks for that vote of confidence, Mom! If Ted wasn't worried enough about that before your outburst, he will be now. Gwen's mature enough to be trusted and she's promised that she won't be doing anything that could get her pregnant. She just started on the pill and it takes some time to start working."

"Okay, that explains it," laughed Caroline. "There are a lot of fun things a young couple can do without getting anyone pregnant. Treat that boy right, Gwen. He's a keeper and he's head over heels in love with you."

"Grandma, do you have any suggestions for Gwen?" asked Kate with a straight face. "Any tricks you remember that might keep him interested?"

"With a figure and a face like Gwen's, she can keep a dead man interested. She doesn't need any tips from her old Grandma," assured Caroline with a wink.

"Once again, I feel the need to tell you ladies that I'm standing right in front of you and I can hear everything you're saying. I'm quite certain that proper etiquette requires that you wait until I leave the room before you talk about me."

"Steve hasn't seen the video where he sang to Gwen at Macy's that Saturday. Let's make some popcorn and watch it with him," suggested Kate as she gently tugged Steve toward the couch. "He may be the only person in the entire country that hasn't seen it."

Steve was surprised at how well his song turned out. Gwen looked stunning as she sat next to him at the piano. Her surprise at his song selection caused him to smile as he watched.

"That's the way to romance a girl!" declared Gwen's grandmother after the song finished. "Sing her a love song on live television with who knows how many people watching. I was all choked up that morning when I watched it on TV."

"Dinner will be ready in an hour and a half, Steve. Would you like to lie down for awhile? You look a little drowsy," commented Paula.

"Good idea, Mom! Come on, Steve. I'll help you get situated. I forget what you've been through, at least until I look at your face. Let's get you in bed so you can rest," prompted Gwen.

"You'd better come back and watch TV with us pretty soon or we'll all know he's not getting any rest," laughed Caroline as Gwen closed the bedroom door.

"Mom, do you think we made a mistake allowing Gwen to be with Steve?" asked Paula in a serious tone.

"Seriously? Not even close. I'm a little old fashioned, but you can't keep those two apart, even if you tried. They wouldn't lie or sneak around, but that boy has a serious dose of testosterone pumping in his veins and Gwen is about as beautiful a woman as I've ever seen. They can't be kept apart and it would be wrong to try. They aren't your average high school kids, not by a long shot. I don't think there's any limit to what they can accomplish together. Your daughter's amazing and she's found her match. We just need to stand back and watch what they achieve," finished Caroline as Diane, Stephanie, and Kate nodded in agreement.

Steve was hoping to simply lie down on top of the bed and rest, but Gwen would have none of it. "You get out of those clothes and climb under the sheets. You need proper rest. Here, let's get this shirt off you. Oh! Steve!" exclaimed a shocked Gwen.

Gwen had pulled Steve's shirt over his head and had her first real look at his torso since the beating. He had always been in bed and covered with a hospital gown when she was with him. She was shocked at the bruises that crossed his back, chest, and abdomen. Suddenly the door swung open and Paula stepped inside.

"We were afraid that Steve had fallen or been hurt when you cried out," began Paula as she suddenly stopped in her tracks with her eyes glued to Steve's upper body. "My God! I had no idea what that man did to you! I'm so sorry!"

Steve and Gwen both turned to face Paula. Behind her were Caroline, Diane, Kate, and Stephanie. They all had stunned looks on their faces as they stared at Steve. Embarrassed, he held his shirt in front of his chest.

"It isn't as bad as it looks," assured Steve as he blushed in front of the women. "It's gotten a lot better already. Maybe I should stay with Uncle Joe."

"Not a chance!" responded Paula as she began chasing the others from the room. "We'll leave you two alone. Gwen, take care of your man."

Gwen managed to get Steve undressed and under the covers. She kissed him gently and promised to wake him when dinner was ready. He fell asleep as she watched. She then returned to the living room, wiping tears from her eyes as she sat down by Kate.

"He'll be okay, Sis. He's lucky he has a family now to take care of him, especially you. None of us realized how badly that bastard beat him until we saw the bruises. If they're better now than they were, I'm glad we didn't see them before. I can't imagine how much he suffered last week, but this week he's going to have all of us females taking care of him all the time. We'll help him get well, you'll see."

Paula was relieved to watch Steve eat. She knew a good appetite was a sign of improving health and Steve ate with gusto. Any time his plate began to empty, Gwen or Kate would scoop up more food to place on it.

After dinner, Steve sat and watched TV for a little while. Then he excused himself and headed for bed. He was obviously still feeling the effects of the pneumonia and infections as he slowly walked across the room. Gwen jumped to her feet, smiled at the others, and then turned to follow Steve. A few minutes later, Steve was lying naked in bed with an equally naked Gwen next to him.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I don't have the strength to enjoy your body tonight, Gwen. I'm just too tired and sore to be any good for anything."

"That's fine with me. That way we'll be quiet and no one watching TV will hear any suspicious noises. I'm here to help you get better, not wear you out. I'll make sure you take your medicines and get very clean in the shower, and take care of any other needs that may arise."

Before going to bed, Paula knocked on the door and then opened it. She looked at the sleeping teens and felt a lump in her throat. They looked perfect together. Paula couldn't imagine a better looking couple. Her daughter had found a man beyond anything Paula could have wished for her and that pleased her motherly instincts. Her daughters deserved the best and Gwen had managed to find it. Lisa seemed quite interested in a very fine young man, and that brought another smile to Paula's face. To think that she had worried that Steve would create a rift between her daughters.​