Fire & Ice By: Demonheart (JJ)

"Why the hell isn't he answering?" Lauren questioned while she paced up and down outside the sports centre.

"They could be down at the scene talking to the police." Karen suggested with a quick shrug.

Carlos shook his head. "Urs would still answer and say he would call back."

"You're sure you've dialled the right number?" David questioned while he held a sleeping Stephanie tight against his shoulder.

"It's the number you gave me." Lauren snapped quickly in reply. "Sorry. I'm just worried because we haven't heard anything from either of them. It isn't like Franky to leave us hanging like this."

"I'll give him a try." Sébastien shrugged as he pulled his mobile from his pocket. He listened as it rang then smiled once it was answered. "Urs. Where the hel.....Who am I speaking to?" He asked when he heard a voice that was not his friend's on the line.

"My name is Jack Milligan. Who are you?"

"Never mind who I am? Why do have my friend's mobile?" Sébastien questioned angrilly while he shook his head and held his free hand up to his questioning friends.

"I've only just found it. I heard it ringing but couldn't locate where the noise was coming from."

"Found it where?"

"The car park.....at the cemetery."

Sébastien's eyes flew wide. "He's made it to the cemetery." He shrugged again as he informed the others. "Tell me Jack, is there a black motorbike in the car park?"

"There's two of 'em. One parked up in a space, a really old looking thing. The other one is lying on its side near the gates with a crash helmet nearby."

"Lying on its side?" Sébastien questioned the man again knowing that Urs would never intentionally leave his motorbike like that.

"Yeah! I've tried to lift it twice, damned thing weighs a ton."

"A large black Harley Davidson motorbike?"

"Yes and there's skid marks here that weren't here when I opened up this morning as well."

"Opened up?" Sébastien quetioned.

"Aye. I'm the head caretaker of this cemetery."

"Yes!" Sébastien clenched his free hand quickly. "Jack, please stay where you are. We're on our way." He instructed as he closed his mobile.

Sébastien informed the others of what Jack had told him then waited for their responses. After deciding that they needed to check the cemetery to see if they could find out why Urs's bike was lying on its side, why he didn't appear to have realised he'd lost his mobile and that the girls should stay put in case they showed up at the sports centre, Sebastien smiled and watched David hand Stephanie off to Lauren then give them both a quick kiss. Carlos looked at Karen quizically when she told him to be careful and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I've just got a bad feeling about all this." She whispered as Carlos pulled back and watched her nod slightly after he'd mouthed 'Jamie' to her.

Sébastien turned to Emma and returned the smile she gave him before he dropped a kiss on her lips. All three men nodded as Lauren asked them to call police and let them handle things if they found anything important.

"Let us know." Karen shouted after the three men who ran as fast as they could back down the road to David's car.

___________


She could feel someone shaking her roughly as she started to wake. Her head hurt like hell. Much worse than it had the last time she could remember getting drunk.

"Come on. Wake up. I want to play." She heard a husky male voice breathe into her left ear while a left hand carressed her stomach.

"Not now Urs. I've got the mother of all headaches." Franky informed without opening her eyes.

"Franky! It's not............"

Her eyes flew wide open and she almost threw-up when she saw the face that leered at her. She shoved him hard away from her and heard him laugh as she scrambled to her feet. She tried to run for the door and gasped when the chain around her ankle pulled tight, arresting her movement. Her right hand flew to her mouth as she turned and saw the sight before her.

"Anthony Strawson what the hell are you playing at?" She asked without taking her eyes off Owen Stamp who had a struggling Urs pinned to the wall by his throat. She watched in horror as Urs's face started to turn bright red and the panic that seized him as he fought for every breath while he tried to pull the huge fingers off him. "Let him go Owen!" She yelled.

"Sod off!" Owen snapped back.

"Let him go. You're killing him." Franky yelled once more as tears started to stream down her face.

"Owen, let him go." Anthony instructed while he brought himself upright.

Owen released Urs and laughed loudly as he crumpled to the floor. Franky wiped her eyes roughly and looked at Urs while he coughed and gasped for air on his hands and knees.

"Urs. Look at me." Franky requested while she stepped towards him. The chain stopped her getting as close as she wanted to.

"I'm ok." Urs croaked as he shook his head and raised his hand to his throat.

"Look at me." Franky asked again.

"No." Urs sniffed and shook his head then turned his face towards the wall.

"What have you done to him?" Franky screamed while Owen stood laughing over Urs.

Franky tried to get close to Urs again but the chain yanked hard once more. She yanked and yanked at the chain until her ankle started to feel very sore. She startled when she heard Anthony's voice in her ear again, this time from behind. She swallowed hard when he pressed himself against her.

"You really want to get to him don't you?" He whispered slowly.

Franky closed her eyes and swallowed hard again as she nodded slowly.

"Hmm. Ok." He moaned. "I'll unchain you from here and chain you up next to him if......." Anthony informed while he moved himself around to stand in front of Franky, his right hand trailing across her back and round to her stomach and his tongue licking his lips very slowly while he spoke. "...if you let me kiss you." Anthony finished as he snatched his head to the left to look at Urs, who had moved to a seated position with his back against the wall.

Urs's eyes flew wide with anger as he leapt to his feet.

"Franky! No!" He managed shout just before he started coughing again. "Don't. I'm all right." He begged with each cough.

Franky turned to look at him and gasped when she saw Owen pushing him back down and the redness on the left side of his face.

"Don't. Don't do it." He requested again as he shook his head vigorously and allowed the tears that had filled his eyes to escape. "Don't. Please. Not for me." He pleaded while he wiped his face roughly with the back of his hand.

"Shut him up!" Anthony commanded Owen.

"No! Leave him alone!" Franky yelled as she watched Owen ball up his fist.

She watched Urs stand up and clench his own hands into tight fists while he waited for Owen to get a little closer. She smiled wryly as he swung with all the force he could muster to strike the big man twice. Once on the nose with a loud crack, the second time square on the jaw, sending him sprawling to the floor.

"God damned sonofabitch!" Owen yelled while he brought himself upright.

He balled up his right fist and swung it hard into Urs's abdomen, forcing him to release his breath in one very quick huff. Owen drew his arm back ready to strike again but stopped when he heard Anthony shout behind him.

"Franky! No!" Urs yelled while he held his stomach and raised his head to see Anthony holding her tightly against him while he covered her mouth with his own, kissed her long and hard and ran his hands up her back underneath her clothing.

Urs's anger flared once more when Anthony looked at him with a triumphant smile as he released the kiss. He swallowed hard and watched Franky's body shaking as she turned her face away from him.

Anthony reached into his pocket and sneered at Urs while he released the chain from the radiator. Owen wrapped his arms around the tops of the fuming Swiss man's arms and chest and lifted his feet off the ground while Anthony dragged Franky across the floor then connected her chain to the one that was secured around Urs's ankle. Owen laughed as he released Urs and allowed him to drop to the floor.

Urs scrambled to his hands and knees and crawled quickly over to a balled up Franky. He wrapped himself protectively around her after raising her face, looking at her rapidly swelling lips and seeing a small trace of blood on the bottom one.

"Swine!" He yelled when he realised she'd been bitten and glared furiously at the two men as they moved towards the door.

His eyes flew wide and he felt Franky shudder as the door was opened and a female voice spoke.

"Having fun boys?" Jamie questioned with a smile while she stood on the threshold with her arms folded across her chest.

Urs cursed profusely and swore revenge in German as the door was pulled shut and a laughing Jamie, Anthony and Owen made their way downstairs. He tucked Franky's head under his chin, cried silent tears and held her close while she wrapped her arms around him and sobbed as she held tight to him.

Once they had both calmed down they adjusted their positions so that they lay close together on the floor. The right side of Franky's face pressed against Urs's chest while his arms remained around her with her head still tucked under his chin. He swallowed hard and breathed deep while his right hand cupped the back of Franky's head and his fingers curled in her hair.

"I'm sorry. I could have fought harder. I could have. I could have. I could have." He whispered as tears welled again and a few escaped.

He sighed heavily and screwed his eyes together when he felt Franky stroking the right hand side of his back while she made a soothing shushing sound and mumbled something about getting out of their situation.

"I know." Urs nodded, though he couldn't even begin to imagine how that was going to happen.

"Did he say what he wanted?" Brandie asked as she took the cup from Honey's hand and turned on the television before curling herself up on a large over-stuffed couch.

"He said he wants to talk to you about last night." Honey shrugged whilst sitting in the chair next to Brandie.

Brandie thought for a moment while she flicked through the channels.

"What are you thinking?" Honey questioned when she saw the devious look spreading across Brandie's face.

"Ok. Call him back, tell him to come to the house and I'll see him." Brandie nodded while keeping her eyes focused on the television. "Then call the restaurant and tell Antonio to make sure all those people at that scene get fed." She pointed at the television as she stood up.

"That'll cost Bran."

"It's already cost Honey. Someone has lost their business and, I should imagine there will be a few people unemployed as of today. And just look at the state of the homes across the road."

Honey sighed heavily as she nodded and picked up the phone.

__________


"Please tell me those are what I think they are?" Sébastien demanded with a beaming smile as he grabbed Jack around the top of his left arm and pointed skyward.

"What? Them cameras you mean?" Jack asked as he shrugged the Frenchman off him.

"CCTV Cameras?" David questioned while Jack nodded. "Then we'll be able to save time. Show us where the screens are."

Jack nodded reluctantly then indicated for the three men to follow him into what looked like a small house but was actually the building from which the cemetery was run. He lead them down a short passageway and into a small room in which stood a bank of television screens each connected to its own recordable DVD player.

"They've only been up and running since yesterday morning." Jack informed while he watched them scanning the televisions.

"Where's the one that covers the car park?" Carlos questioned after he, David and Sebastien had seen nothing of Urs and Franky after looking at the screens.

"Bottom right corner." Jack nodded.

David stepped forward and stopped the recording.

"Hey! You can't do that." Jack protested as David pressed the play button.

All four men watched carefully what had been recorded then three stood back and looked at each other.

"Why wasn't anyone keeping the eyes on what was happening?" Carlos fumed as they ran through the images again.

"Someone should have been here but...." Jack shrugged. "….he was taken ill and had to go home." He huffed. "At the time this lot was going on, we were waiting for a replacement to arrive." Jack shook his head while he reached for the phone and immediately called the police.

Two officers soon arrived and looked at the appropriate section of the DVD. They ummed and ahhed as they watched the large man grab the black leather clad female around her waist and force something over her nose while another man, also dressed in black leather, dropped his bike and helmet to the ground as he entered the car park and tried to pull the man off the woman. They both hissed and rubbed at the back of their necks as they watched a third man strike the second motorcyclist hard across the back of his head with a large chunk of wood.

Six men watched again as two unconscious bodies were thrown into the back of the van and the doors were slammed shut. The younger of the two officers pressed the pause button and stared hard at the images of the two assailants. He blew out a long breath as he pulled back.

"Something wrong?" David asked when he saw the slightly unnerved look the man wore.

"Owen Stamp and Anthony Strawson." The young officer nodded at the screen.

"Merde!" Sébastien yelled and blanched on hearing the two names and dropped down hard onto an office chair.

"You know them sir?" The older offer questioned.

"We erm...We haven't been formally introduced. Non." Sébastien shook his head while he subconsciously scratched at his left thigh.

The play button was pressed again. Everyone leaned in once more and agreed on what they were looking at. Four men listened as the younger of the two officers asked for a check on the licence plate of the van and for all vehicles and foot patrols to keep an eye for the vehicle.

David, Carlos and Sébastien eventually nodded after a minor quarrel with the two officers and agreed they would let the police handle things.

"Are we really going to hang back and let them handle this?" Carlos questioned while they watched the police car drive away.

"I don't see that we have much choice. We don't know where they've gone from here" David shook his head.

"Do you really want to try tackling those two, now you've seen what they can do?" Sébastien queried with a hard swallow.

Carlos furrowed his brow and shook his head.

"Besides which, the girls would kill us for being so stupid" David shuddered and shook his head as he spoke.

"Good point." Carlos flicked his eyebrows and gave David a sideways glance.

The three of them thanked Jack for his help then jumped back into the car. Carlos called Karen and told her that they would tell them what they had found out once they were all at David's home.

"You ok?" David questioned as he listened to Sébastien draw in several deep breaths and slowly blow them out.

"Fine." Sébastien confirmed very quietly while he nodded.

He closed his eyes and nodded again when he felt Carlos give his left shoulder a gentle squeeze.

They had both been man-handled as they were yanked apart and dragged roughly to the lower floor of whatever building they were being held in. They now sat on the floor, chained face-to-face to a large metal ring that had recently been twisted into the floorboard. An old couch stood just behind the door that gave entrance to the room and on one end of that sat Jamie busily manicuring her nails.

"You ok?" Urs whispered towards Franky.

"Fine." She replied without making eye contact.

"Look at me." Urs whispered again.

Franky drew in a deep breath and chewed on her bottom lip as she turned to face him. She gasped when she saw the bruise on the left side of his face and looked at him quizically when she noticed a fresh-looking graze on his right cheek.

"I kind of slipped down the stairs and caught myself on the wall." Urs shrugged.

"Kind of?" Franky furrowed her brow.

Urs nodded. "After I gave Owen a good kick in the shin."

"Oh." Franky grunted a laugh and smiled as she nodded.

Urs returned the smile quickly then pulled his face into an angry frown when he saw the finger bruises on Franky's cheek and the small cut on her lip. He turned his head and glared hard at the two men who sat next to Jamie. He snatched his head round when he heard Jamie speaking.

"You're not taking this very seriously are you?" She hissed as she rose elegantly to her feet.

"Why are you doing this Jamie? What have you got against Urs and me?" Franky asked with heavy sigh as she pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

"Other than than what happened at 'Senoritas' you mean?" Jamie asked while she inspected her nails.

"For God's sake get a life woman. Grow up." Franky huffed and flicked her eyes upwards.

"I had a really good life until you ruined everything." Jamie screeched into Franky's left ear.

"You can't blame her for Seb dumping you." Urs huffed a laugh. "He'd already realised what you were like and had made up his mind to dump you before any of that stuff happened at the nightclub."

"Liar!!" Jamie yelled as she slapped Urs hard across the face. "That's not the only reason I'm doing this anyway." Jamie laughed.

"What other reason could you have?" Anthony questioned from behind his sister.

"How about keeping my real father away from me for years? Taking everything that should've been mine." Jamie smiled sarcastically at Franky.

"That wasn't my fault. He tried to see you, it was your step-father that put a stop to that." Franky hissed in reply.

"You knew?" Jamie questioned. Her eyes widening as she spoke.

"My parents told me just before I started senior school that I had a half-sister." Franky nodded. "Why do you think I tried so hard to get to know you when I started there? You were the one who didn't want to know. Why do you think I've never hit you back whenever you've slapped me?" Franky questioned with a strong tone of harshness in her voice.

"Because you're scared of me. That's why." Jamie spat back.

Franky grunted a laugh. "Pfft! You wish!"

Jamie seethed as her right hand connected with Franky's face once. Franky licked the blood from her lip and glared hard at Jamie. She nodded at Urs when he asked if she was all right.

"I'm fine." Franky informed while leaping to her feet and bringing herself face-to-face with Jamie. "Try that again, I dare you." She hissed at her.

Jamie fumed and moved to strike Franky again. Franky blocked the move and returned the slap she had been given, making Jamie's head snap back to the right.

"You'd get a lot more than that if I wasn't chained up like a dog." Franky hissed while Jamie glared at her.

Jamie huffed and swung her free hand, which connected though not with as much force as her right. Franky knew she had the advantage. She seized hold of Jamie's left arm, released her right and manouvered Jamie so that her back was facing her. Franky quickly wrenched the arm she held up Jamie's back and pushed her with all the force she had to the floor. Franky huffed a small laugh as the left side of Jamie's hit the wall of the fireplace leaving a vicious looking graze on her cheek.

"Well don't just sit there you two, do something. Stop her." Jamie screeched at Anthony as she turned over and faced him.

Anthony groaned as he grabbed Franky and held her in a full Nelson. "What are you two on about anyway? I don't get this."

"That's because you're still as thick as you ever were." Franky sneered while she tried to wriggle out of his grasp.

He merely sucked in a breath through his teeth when she kicked backwards and connected with his shin.

"Bitch!" Anthony snapped.

"Lamebrain!" Franky sneered in reply.

"I think you'd better stop struggling if you don't want Owen to hurt Urs anymore." Jamie suddenly hissed as she faced Franky and flicked her eyes to the right.

Franky turned her head to see Owen sitting astride Urs's legs while he tried to land punches into the prone Swissman's ribs. Urs had reacted quickly and had wrapped his arms around himself which offered pretty good protection against Owen's assault. Owen suddenly lowered his head. Urs took the chance and slammed his forehead hard onto the top of Owen's nose. Owen screamed as he rolled off him and held his nose.

"Is it broken again?" Anthony asked as he looked down at a moaning Owen.

"No." Owen shook his head while he gently felt the injured facial feature. "Just bruised."

"Damn!" Urs spat as he kicked his legs at a re-approaching Owen.

He smiled wryly when one particularly hard kick caught the huge man in the groin. He shrugged and smiled at Franky as they watched a wide-eyed Owen drop to his knees whilst cupping both hands over his manhood.

"All right. That's enough." Jamie huffed. "Anthony, say hello to my half-sister. Francesca Gibson." Jamie sneered whilst glaring hard at Franky and slapping her again.

"Half-sister?!" Anthony and Urs exclaimed almost together.

Franky and Jamie nodded.

"My father had a short relationship with Jamie's mother and she was the result." Franky nodded at a disbelieving Urs once Anthony had forced her roughly back to the floor.

"And I never got to see him. I was the one that never got a thing from him." Jamie sneered again. "You got everything."

"Only because your step-father wouldn't let him see you." Franky yelled in reply. "He blocked him at every turn except when it came to making sure you were comfortable. Who do you think paid for that house you lived in? Your parents never made enough to have a place like that. Who made sure you got the presents you wanted every Christmas and for every birthday? Certainly not your mother and step-father. My father made sure you got those things. Remember the time he smiled at you when you saw us playing in the park and how he took a couple of steps towards you?"

Jamie scowled but nodded that she did remember.

"He was going to tell you the truth that day, but all you could do, was what you did every time you saw him. All you could do was give him that evil stare as your step-father dragged you away."

"Lies! It's all lies."

"Oh believe what you want Jamie. Be the selfish little bitch you've always been." Franky snapped. "You weren't the one who had to listen to him cry at night every time he saw you."

Jamie huffed and continued to sneer as she walked over to a small battery operated television and switched it on.

"Well you won't have anything left of him after today." Jamie screeched again as she turned the television around.

Franky and Urs leaned forward. Urs's mouth dropped open and his eyes flew wide when he saw Franky's garage on fire.

"You stupid cow." Franky laughed as she raised her head to look at Jamie. "You stupid, stupid cow."

"Woohoo! Look at it burn." Kevin giggled as he and Kie stood outside a local electornic shop watching local news coverage of Franky's garage burning to the ground on the televisions in the window.

"Do you think Anthony's gonna be happy with what we done?" Kie laughed as he bent double with laughter.

"He should be. One of my better ideas." Kevin nodded.

"Anthony who is going to be happy with what?" A deep voice questioned behind the pair.

Kevin and Kie's eyes flew wide and they both swallowed hard as they looked at each other.

"I'm waiting."

Kevin and Kie turned around to find themselves face to chest with a tall, dark haired, green-eyed police officer and his almost as tall, blond-haired, blue eyed partner.

"Did you two have something to do with that?" The blond-haired officer asked with a nod towards the shop window.

"Umm. Err. No." Kevin shook his head quickly in denial. "No. Nothing at all."

"Didn't sound like it from the way you were talking just now." The dark-haired officer flicked his eyebrows.

Kevin and Kie looked at each other again and suddenly moved to try and run.

"I don't think so."

Kevin almost fell to ground as the blond-haired officer grabbed his arm and pulled him back upright, Kie was seized in a similar fashion by the dark-haired officer.

"I think we need to have a word with you two at the station." Kie's apprehender informed as he started to lead him across the road to the local police station.

"Don't say nothing." Kevin shouted over his shoulder as he was lead up the steps.

"Kev, shut up!" Kie yelled in reply.

____________


"Well! What do you think?" Brandie asked as she walked into her lounge.

Honey's eyes flew wide and she sprayed coffee over her paperwork as she looked at her.

"My God! What the hell are you are you wearing?"

Brandie laughed. "It's my new look. Don't you like it?" She asked as she twirled round and showed off the very short, very low cut white halter-neck dress that she'd matched with a pair of three inch white heels.

"You're not serious? You look like a........You know......Whore."

"Of course I'm not." Brandie giggled. "It's all part of my little plan."

She winked at Honey when they heard the bell ringing in the hallway.

"What are you going to do?"

"Wait and see." Brandie smiled and tapped her nose. "Take this." She asked as she handed over a large designer shopping bag. "Go and wait in the car. This shouldn't take long."

Honey looked at Brandie a little confused, but followed her instructions. She frowned and huffed loudly at the man that entered the room as she was leaving.

"Honey." He nodded politely.

"Marius." She replied. Her contempt for the man obvious from the tone she used.

Honey turned her face back into the room to see that Brandie had moved herself to sit with her back to the entrance to the room. She watched the lustful look spread across Marius's face as Brandie stood and allowed him to greet her with a deep kiss. She knew Brandie was up to something underhanded, but couldn't understand why Brandie had let Marius greet her in that fashion. She shrugged and made her way to the car where she waited.

She flipped down the small television screen and switched to a local channel. She shook her head as cameras showed the mess and devastation the explosion had caused. The building had almost totally collapsed in on itself, leaving just a few rows of bricks standing with a piles of twisted metal scattered throughout.

The camera turned and panned up the street showing most of the homes and other businesses with their windows blow out. She shook her head when the cameras turned again to show those who had been injured by flying glass. Luckily no-one had been seriously injured or so it was reported. The cause of the fire was, as yet, unknown but arson had not been ruled out and police were in the process of looking for the owner of the property.

She startled and switched the television off when she heard her employer and her husband entering the car. She watched scornfully as Marius sat close beside his wife and wrapped his arm around Brandie's almost naked back.

Almost half-an-hour later, the couple were sitting snuggled very close in the private dining-room of 'Ramone's' restaurant.

"You're sure he's ok? He's been very quiet since we arrived." Karen questioned Carlos as they sat watching Sébastien who had placed himself at David's dining table and sat staring into nothingness while he twirled a teaspoon around in a now cold mug of coffee.

"He's just worried about Urs and Franky, like we all are." Carlos nodded. "None of us know what to do or what to say to each other." He shrugged.

"Same here. I don't have a clue what to say to Lauren." Karen nodded then quickly switched to a shake as she turned her attention to the couple who sat on the floor in front of the television playing Playstation games with Stephanie in an effort to distract her from the morning's events.

"I can't stand this. I'm going for a walk." Sébastien informed as he sprang to his feet and headed towards the front door.

"The police asked us all to stay together." David reminded without turning away from the screen.

"I have my mobile, you can call me if anything happens. I won't go too far." Sébastien informed as he looked at Emma and nodded his head towards the door indicating that he would like her to join him. He managed a small smile when she nodded and smiled her compliance gently at him.

They walked in silence for quite a while before Emma spoke.

"You're worried about both of them aren't you?"

Sébastien gripped her hand a little tighter and turned his head away as he nodded. "I want to do something to try and find them, we all do, but there's really nothing we can do is there?"

"Not really. No." Emma shook her head. "I'm sure something will turn up. The television appeal about the van is going out soon. Someone out there is bound to have seen it or knows where it is."

Sébastien drew in a very deep beath and nodded. "I'm just worried about what those two guys are going to do to Franky. I'm not sure if David and Carlos noticed when we watched the DVD, but Anthony Strawson had his hands all over her before she was thrown into that van."

"Oh God! You don't think he would rape her do you?" Emma questioned as her hand flew to her mouth.

"Oui I think he would given the chance." Sébastien nodded and sniffed.

He suddenly let go of Emma's hand and turned away from her. He rammed his hands into his pockets and dragged his feet as he walked a few steps ahead of her.

"What's wrong?" Emma asked once she'd caught up with him. "What are you thinking?"

"Just....." Sébastien closed his eyes and huffed. "Just that if I hadn't ended it with Jamie none of this would be happening. Franky and Urs would be safe and......"

"Don't do that. Don't you dare blame yourself. None of this is your fault Seb." Emma interupted. "You can't hold yourself responsible for Jamie's actions. She's a grown woman, even if she does behave like a spoiled child. From what Lauren and Karen have told me about Franky and Jamie's relationship, something like this could have happened at any time. It seems Jamie's had it in for Franky for years."

"But why?" Sébastien shrugged. "Franky's a good woman. There's no way Urs would have let get so close so quickly if she wasn't." He continued as he took hold of Emma's hand again.

Neither of them had noticed that they had entered the park and they both smiled at each other as they sat down on a nearby bench.

"No-one knows why they've never got along. That's just the way it's been since they were young." Emma shook her head as she looked at him. "From what I've heard, I don't think they will ever see eye-to-eye."

"But if......" Sébastien began again.

"But if nothing Seb." Emma shook her head in an exasperated fashion. "There's something seriously wrong with Jamie if you ask me. Spoiled or not, these reactions she's had, they're almost psycotic in nature. Something wrong with the wiring I think." She continued as she tapped a finger at her forehead. "She needs to see a psychiatrist before it's too late. If it isn't already."

"So you think there's something wrong with my wiring too." Sébastien stated as he snatched his hand from Emma's grip. "You were the one who said I should see a psychiatrist." He informed when she looked at him quizically.

"Not for that reason." Emma shook her head and took hold of his hand again. "You need to see one to get you through what happened to you and what's happening now."

Sébastien closed his eyes and nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry." He apologised while he moved his arm around Emma's waist and pulled her close.

He sighed heavily then took a few deep breaths when he felt Emma's arm move around him to hold him tight. Emma rested the side of her head against his shoulder and smiled as he pressed his cheek to her forehead.

"Anyway, there's not much wrong with you that a certain tub of ice-cream wouldn't fix." Emma blushed as she gave his shoulder a gentle nudge with her head.

Sébastien huffed a little laugh and held her a little tighter while they watched two other couples walking hand-in-hand through the park.

"Franky, are you seeing this?" Urs questioned as he pointed to the television. "That's your business that's gone up in flames."

"I know." Franky nodded whilst wiping laughter induced tears from her eyes. "But it wouldn't have been all mine in two week's time."

"What do you mean?" Urs questioned with a shake of his head and a confused look on his face. "Were you planning on selling it or something?"

"Or something." Franky huffed a quick laugh. "Remind me Jamie, how old are you in two weeks?" She asked with a serious expression on her face.

"Twenty-four." Jamie hissed.

"The truth." Franky demanded.

"Thirty." Jamie whispered and scowled at Urs when she heard him grunt and watched him shake his head. "Why?"

"Well, half of that business would have been yours in two weeks time." Franky smirked as she nodded at the television.

"Liar!" Jamie snapped.

"No I'm not." Franky shook her head. "It was never written down in any legal document, more of a promise I made to my father on his deathbed. I promised him that if I could get the business back on its feet and into a healthy profit I would give you half of it on your thirtieth birthday."

"Yeah! Right! How dumb do I look?" Jamie huffed.

"You really want me to answer that one?" Franky huffed a laugh.

"You wouldn't?" Urs questioned in total shock. "To her?"

Franky shrugged. "I promised."

"Did anyone else know you promised?" Urs questioned again.

"No." Franky shook her head.

"Then I don't know why you would want to give her half of anything. She's done nothing to deserve it!" Urs yelled and flicked his head in Jamie's direction.

"Because I promised my father I would. It was his dying request. That's why." Franky snapped.

"It was a stupid promise to make if you ask me." Urs huffed.

"I don't recall that I did ask you." Franky hissed back.

Urs glared hard at her while they sat still face-to-face on the floor.

"What?" Franky questioned angrilly. "Oh! So your promises are supposed to mean everything, while mine mean nothing. Well you can get that idea right out of your head for a start Urs Buhler. I promised my father and it was a promise I was perfectly willing to keep." Franky informed as she folded her arms across her chest, turned sharply away from him and swallowed hard to prevent her tears from falling.

Jamie squatted to Franky's left-hand side and scrutinised her face carefully before she spoke.

"You were telling the truth weren't you?"

Franky sighed heavily, closed her eyes and nodded. "But now you'll get nothing."

"What about the insurance?" Anthony suddenly questioned. "Surely you had the place insured."

"I did. For a fair bit too." Franky nodded as she glanced at him. "But I only promised I would give her half of the business. Not my fault you decided to do that. She'll get nothing now."

"I'll sue for my share." Jamie hissed.

"Good luck." Franky shrugged then shook her head. "You have nothing in writing, therefore, no proof. You could try and sue me, but that would probably take years, cost you thousands and you would more than likely lose." She smiled slightly as she heard a grunted laugh from behind her.

"You can give her half when you re-build." Anthony stated.

"Who says I'm going to?" Franky shrugged.

"You have to." Jamie insisted. "I want what's mine."

"Now there you go again. Me, me, me. I, I, I." Franky sneered. "If I did decide to re-build, that would be classed as a new business. My business and mine alone. I wouldn't feel obliged to give you any part of it." She finished with a sharp nod and a sarcastic smile.

"You greedy bitch!" Jamie screeched as she launched her hand and Franky's face again. "Get them out of my sight." She snapped at her brother as she moved away from Franky to stand herself near the window.

"Think you're pretty clever don't you?" Anthony questioned once he'd released her chain and pulled her to her feet by the tops of her arms.

"I'm not the asshole that set fire to the garage am I?" Franky shrugged and gave him a sarcastic smile.

Anthony turned her around sharply and she saw Urs turn his smiling face to hers as he was yanked roughly to his feet by Owen. She could only fix him with a steely glare as they were pushed towards the door and back up a wide staircase to the room where they had first been held.

"Take your jackets off." Anthony instructed once they were re-chained into their original positions.

Urs and Franky glanced at each other then at Anthony questioningly.

"You heard me. Take your jackets off." He repeated and held out his arms. "Or I'll do it by force. You know I'd quite enjoy that." He smiled while he looked Franky up and down

He watched Franky carefully as she unzipped forearms of her jacket then groaned as she slipped it off before she dropped it hard into his arms. He raised his eyebrows questioningly as Urs threw his jacket into his arms while glaring hard at him.

They stood side-by-side and watched Anthony leave the room. Urs sat down first, close to the pipe, which meant he had some slack on his chain. Franky moved away from him and stretched her chain as far as it would go before she sat down with her legs curled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them.

"Don't you trust me?" Urs asked with a sideways glance at Franky.

"Yes. Why?" Franky sighed.

"Then why didn't you tell me that bitch was your sister?"

"Because I didn't want to and she's my half-sister." Franky shrugged. "No-one knows, not even my closest friends."

"Would you really have given her half of the business?" Urs questioned again as he turned to face her.

Franky breathed deep, closed her eyes and nodded. "Like I said I promised a dying man I would."

"I still don't see why you should keep that promise after everything she's done to you recently." Urs grunted.

"It's got nothing to do with you. Keep out of it." Franky snapped.

"Fine, I'll shut up about it then." Urs snapped in reply.

"Good. That might be the best idea you’ve had today." Franky snapped again then sighed heavily.

She couldn't understand why he was being like this with her. His promise to Sébastien had meant so much too him but hers to her father was supposed to mean nothing.

"Are you going to re-build?"

"I don't know." Franky shrugged. "Not sure if I can afford to."

"But you said......." Urs exclaimed as he turned round to face her.

"The truth is, I was bluffing. I'm not sure if what I said to Jamie is even true. I just said most of it to piss her off."

"It worked." Urs nodded as he lowered his head.

He sat in complete silence in that position for a few moments before he looked at her again. She still sat with her legs curled up against her chest, her arms wrapped tightly about them, but her forehead now rested on her knees.

"Your promises mean a lot to you don't they?" He questioned while he shuffled a little closer to her.

"As much as yours do to you, yes." Franky nodded without raising her head.

"I'm sorry if what I said upset you." Urs apologised as he turned his face away from Franky. "It's just that...." He sniffed and quickly wiped his eyes. "It's just that I can't stand the thought of you working as hard as you do just so that she can get her hands on half of what you make for doing nothing. Half-sister or not, it's not right.........I'm sorry. It just isn't right in my opinion."

"It's ok." Franky whispered as she moved herself to sit by his side. "I do understand what you're saying and it's a promise I regret making now, but I couldn't bear seeing my father in that much pain........waiting to hear those words. Wa......Watching my mother suffer was bad enough. That's why I did it, so that he could die in peace."

Urs closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths before he turned round towards her and saw the tears welling in her eyes. He continued to breathe deeply and nodded in understanding as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. Though both his parents were still alive and he couldn't even begin to imagine Franky's pain, he could recall watching his maternal grand-mother dying slowly from stomach cancer and remembered that pain. Just thinking about going through what Franky had brought the sting of tears to his eyes and he could honestly say that he did understand now why she had made that promise.

"Do you have any idea where we are?" He asked as he looked around the room.

Franky nodded and dried her eyes. "We're in the old mental hospital."

"How do you know that?"

"My old school is just up the road. I used to walk passed this place twice a day, every day. When I turned away from you downstairs, I could see the gates at the end of the drive. All that scroll work makes them quite distinctive, I'd know them anywhere. I've certainly never seen another set like them." She sighed and closed her eyes.

"Problem?" Urs asked as he pulled his head back to look at her.

Franky nodded and sniffed. "They're supposed to start demolishing this place tomorrow."

Urs breathed deep again and held her tightly once more. Both sets of eyes flew wide as the door flew open, the old brass handle leaving a deep dent in the plasterwork of the wall behind it.

"I ain't saying anything until my dad gets here. You can't question me without him." Kie smiled confidently as he put his feet up on the desk he had been placed at.

"Actually we can." PC Adam Foster informed. "You had a birthday recently didn't you Kie?"

"So what if I did?" Kie shrugged and sneered at the dark-haired man. "Don't mean nothin'."

"Really. Turning eighteen means nothing special?"

"No." Kie shook his head.

"Now see that's where you're wrong." PC Martin Cooper laughed in reply. "As the law sees it you are an adult now. We can question you without an appropriate adult present."

"But......but......but.." Kie floundered.

"Yes Kie." PC Foster questioned.

"Am I under arrest?"

"Not at the moment." PC Cooper shook his head. "You're just helping us with our enquiries. But I feel I should warn you that Kevin sang like a lark a few moments ago. We know what Anthony Strawson asked you to do."

Kie gulped audibly as he looked from one man to the other.

"Get me a brief and I'll tell you what I know." He nodded as his feet dropped from the desk and his shoulders slumped.

____________


"Here?!" Marius beamed while Brandie climbed off his knee and smiled at him.

"Mmm. Why not? It's my place, I can do what I like." Brandie smiled sweetly as she pulled him up to stand in front of her.

Marius moaned as nimble fingers worked at undoing his shirt buttons. 'This is more like it.' He thought to himself as he slowly licked his lips. He shuddered when Brandie's lips brushed lightly over his chest as she pushed his shirt to the floor. He raised his hands to hold her around her slender waist only for her to quickly bat them away.

"Ok. This is something different." Marius whispered as her hands moved to his belt and other trouser fastenings. He quickly stepped out of them and his underwear before Brandie pushed him gently back into the chair.

Brandie continued to smile sweetly as she knelt down in front of him and slowly, teasingly removed his shoes and socks.

"Close your eyes." Brandie commanded whilst running her hands slowly up Marius's thighs as she stood back up.

Marius did as she requested and groaned as Brandie's hands continued their journey upwards. He growled as she took her time running her fingers through the hair on his chest and teasing his nipples by tweaking them quite hard. He moaned a little more when he felt his arousal becoming much harder.

"Stand up." Brandie whispered in his ear.

"Oh Boy! This is so good Bran." Marius shuddered as felt a featherlight touch move across his shoulders, slowly down his spine to caress his buttocks.

"Enjoying it aren't you?" Brandie whispered huskily in his ear.

Marius swallowed hard and licked his lips lightly while he nodded enthusiastically.

"Good. Ah Ah! Keep them closed." Brandie asked when his eyes started to open.

Marius re-closed his eyes and groaned as she took his hand and started to lead him across the room. He pursed lips lightly when he heard what he thought was the door that lead to the passageway down to Brandie's office open. His eyes flew wide when he heard the noise of people eating.

"Antonio, please escort Mr Ramone out of the building." Brandie instructed as she smiled at the Italian.

Marius quickly covered himself with his hands and blushed bright red as he turned to his wife.

"What about my clothes?"

"You mean those clothes?" Brandie indicated the pile in the middle of the floor.

Marius nodded.

"I believe I paid for those, so technically speaking they're mine." Brandie smiled. "Antonio." She nodded and flicked her hand towards the entrance.

"Bran! At least let me leave through the back." Marius requested.

"Oh! You can parade your barely clothed whore through my restaurant, but you balk at the idea of me doing something similar." Brandie smiled. "No. You're going out through the main entrance darling."

Marius continued to protest at the indignity of the situation while a smirking Antonio pulled him through the restaurant.

"Bye Marius darling. Don't bother trying to contact me again unless it’s through a lawyer." Brandie smiled and waved as she watched him go.

Once he was pushed unceremoniously through the door, Brandie turned back into the private dining-room and buried her face into her hands as she closed the door by giving it a quick bump with her hip.

"I can't believe you just did that." Honey laughed hysterically as she pointed at the door. "How did it feel?"

"Bloody marvellous." Brandie laughed whilst wiping laughter induced tears from her eyes. "Come on let's go to my office and see what happens to him on CCTV." She continued as she pulled Honey towards the other door.

They were soon comfortably seated in Brandie's office watching what was happening to Marius. They both laughed hysterically when they spotted a female police officer approaching him and started questioning him. Brandie started to change into her normal attire as they watched a hightly embarrassed Marius having his hands cuffed behind him while a male officer covered what he could with his helmet.

"I think that's a keeper." Brandie laughed as she stopped the recording and removed the disc.

"Bravo! Bravo!" Honey laughed while she clapped loudly.

Brandie smiled broadly and continued to laugh as she gave a gracious courtesy.

"Now, let me have a look at those plans for the Ottawa restaurant." Brandie requested with a cough to compose herself while she held her hand out.

____________


"What was wrong with him?" David requested as he and Carlos followed Emma into the kitchen.

Emma smiled and shrugged then told them of the conversation she and Sébastien had had in the park.

"Idiot." Carlos exclaimed with a quick flick of his eyebrows.

"Who's an idiot?" Sébastien asked as he entered the kitchen.

"You are." David informed with a gentle slug on the Frenchman's arm.

Emma made her excuses and smiled as she left three men to talk.

"She reads you pretty well already doesn't she?" David questioned while he watched how Sébastien followed Emma's every move.

Sébastien nodded. "I don't have to say a word. She just seems to know what I'm feeling and what to say to make everything all right." He laughed. "I just can't seem to keep anything from her."

"Good." Carlos nodded. "Maybe she can make sure you don't keep things from us too."

Sébastien smiled as he nodded.

All three men startled while they heard loud screaming coming from the front door and quickly made their way into the hallway to see what was going on.

Sébastien gasped audibly when he saw Emma being swung around in circles by a man almost as big as Owen Stamp. His hair a very light blonde and his skin almost as tanned as Carlos's. His eyes widened as Emma dropped quick little kisses all over the man's face. He listened carefully while she launched her questions at him in quick succession.

"What are you doing here? How did you know where to find me?"

"Whoa! Slow down." The man demanded as he set Emma back down on her feet.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm just so excited to see you." Emma informed as she flung her arms back round the man's neck. "What are you doing here? You weren't due back yet."

"I know. I'll explain everything as soon as you've introduced me." The man smiled. "Someone looks a little anxious." He whispered in her ear when he spotted Sébastien subconsciously biting his lower lip.

Emma smiled and shook her head as she moved over to Sébastien. "Idiot." She whispered as she dropped a quick kiss on his cheek. "Come and say hello to my brother Brett." She asked as she grabbed hold of his hand and pulled him towards the still open front door.

Sébastien smiled while he shook hands with the man then sat beside Emma as she re-launched her questions while David closed the door.

"I'm back earlier because I swapped tickets with Nathan. He noticed how worried I was when I read that email you sent me about Chris. He insisted I come back. So here I am. As large as life and twice as ugly."

"But how did you know where to find me?" Emma queried again while she laughed.

"Someone's going a little deaf I think." Brett laughed. "I saw the pair of you coming out of the park and shouted your name twice. Didn't you hear me?"

Emma shook her head.

"Brain otherwise engaged, huh?" Brett teased as he pursed his lips and blew a kiss.

Emma blushed slightly as she shrugged.

"I followed after you as quick as I could with my bags. It took me ages to get across the road, there are fire engines, ambulances and cop cars everywhere. What the hell is going on here?"

Emma took a deep breath and told him everything.

Brett nodded. "Any news on either of them yet?" He questioned while he looked at Sébastien.

"Non. Nothing." Sébastien shook his head.

He smiled softly as Emma gave his hand a gentle squeeze. Emma turned to look at her brother and furrowed her brow when she saw the look on his face.

"Brett, is there something wrong?"

"No, just trying to think ." Brett replied. "Not working though. Jet lag." He shrugged.

Emma watched her brother as he stood and stretched himself out. She had seen that look before and knew he was hiding something and, whatever it was, it was serious.

Urs and Franky held tight to each other as they watched Anthony and Owen storming over to them with Jamie trailing not far behind.

"Get him away from her." Jamie instructed , keeping her hands in position behind her back.

Anthony grabbed hold of Franky and yanked her out of Urs's arms while Owen unlocked the padlock that connected her chain to Urs's.

"No! Get off her! Leave her alone!" Urs demanded as he leapt at Anthony.

Anthony pushed his hand into Urs's face and forced him hard away from him. Urs hit the floor on his right side and slid across it until the back of his head connected hard with the pipe he was chained to. He raised his head to see Franky struggling against Anthony with everything she had.

He jumped quickly to his feet again but was soon brought crashing back to the floor when Owen rugby-tackled him to the ground. Owen quickly flipped Urs onto his back and straddled his chest.

"What are you doing with that?" Franky asked when she spotted a hypodermic syringe in Jamie's hand.

"Just going to send him on a lovely little trip." Jamie smiled with a nod towards Urs. "You should know how that feels."

"I don't know what you mean." Franky shook her head and continued to struggle furiously in Anthony's grip.

"Don't lie." Owen sneered. "I know all about you and your nasty little habit. Kevin told me all about what happened in the garage."

Franky's eyes flew wide as she realised what he was inferring. "That wasn't drugs in that syringe. It was medicine. I have an allergy."

"Bull!" Owen laughed as he struggled to pin Urs's arms down.

After considerable struggling and several close punches, he had Urs's left arm pinned to his side with his muscular right leg while he held Urs's right wrist tightly against the floor. Stretching the limb as far as he could, Owen nodded when Jamie asked if he was sure he'd got him.

"What are you doing?" Urs asked as Jamie knelt by his hand and tapped a finger at the syringe.

Owen moved his right hand over and gripped the top of Urs's arm tight. Urs started to struggle again when Jamie stroked a finger down one of the veins that rose through his skin as pressure built.

"Are you sure you remember how to do it?" Anthony laughed.

"I gave gran her injections often enough." Jamie huffed then nodded.

"No! No! Don't do this." Urs yelled loudly as he tried to pull his arm from Owen's vice-like grip. "Please Jamie don't." He begged as the needle slowly passed through his skin into his vein. He winced when he felt the scratch. "Don't. Don't"

"Please Jamie don't." She mocked while her thumb moved to the plunger.

"Jamie! No! No please don't" Franky yelled. "I'll rebuild the garage. I'll give you half of the business. Please just don't give him whatever you've got in that syringe." She pleaded.

"Too late for deals now." Jamie sneered at Franky as she slowly pushed the plunger all the way down.

"No! No!" Urs yelled while he wriggled underneath Owen. "Why?" He asked the man just before his entire body relaxed. "Wooooohoooooo. That feels so good." He laughed as Owen released him.

"What did you give him?" Franky asked once she was reconnected to Urs's chain.

"Just a little something to make him very happy." Jamie shrugged nonchalantly as she headed towards the door. "I'd make the most of him being there if I were you, he's going back to his friends in a little while."

"You're letting him go?" Franky questioned as Anthony released his hold.

"Sure." Jamie shrugged. "He's never going to want to be with you again after this, is he now?" Jamie smiled as she left the room closely followed by Anthony and Owen.

Franky knelt by Urs's side and ran her fingers through his hair and watched his facial features as the drug kicked in. He giggled and smiled continuously while he looked around seemingly in amazement. She soon realised he must be hallucinating and wondered what Jamie had given him.

Urs suddenly sprang to his feet and pulled Franky roughly up into his arms.

"I want to dance." He informed with a grunted laugh and a look skyward as his head wobbled on his neck. "Dance with me." He commanded as he started moving very quickly and very unsteadily, humming a very fast tune as he did so.

"No, I don't want to." Franky sighed, wriggled out of his grip and pushed him away from her.

If he was drunk she was sure it wouldn't feel so bad being held in his arms, but he was on a drug induced high and he was rough and uncaring in his handling of her.

"Well you're no fun. I'll dance with this beautiful lady instead." He informed as he gave a courtly bow to whatever it was he saw in front of him.

Franky shook her head and watched him while he continued to dance around her in a most exaggerated fashion with his invisible partner for what seemed like hours. He gradually slowed to a stop then turned to face her.

"Urs! What's wrong?" She asked when she saw the dark, lustful look in his eyes.

Urs shook his head as he stalked towards her, licking his lips slowly and speaking in a husky voice.

"Guess what I want to do now?" He growled in her ear as he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulled her close and held her so tight that she could feel his arousal making it presence felt. "I want sex. Right here, right now."

"No Urs. Stop it!" Franky shook her head and swallowed at the crude things Urs was saying he wanted to do her, knowing that it wasn't the real him speaking.

"No! Now!" Urs insisted while he kissed her roughly.

"No!" Franky yelled as she pushed him away.

"I said now!!" Urs yelled and pulled her sharply back to him.

"And I said No!" Franky drew in deep breath as she looked him square in the eyes and slapped his face hard. She continued to struggle in his grasp while he tightened his hold on her.

Eyes that she knew didn't portray his true feelings looked back her for a second or two, before they dropped to the deep v-neck cut of her t-shirt and a lustful look took over his face while he tugged at her clothing. Franky closed her eyes as his hands started to move roughly over her abdomen, quickly moving towards her braless breasts, squeezing them hard and feeling the swelling in his trousers throb against her own sex. Breathing deep once, she clenched her right fist, then smiled as she leaned forward to kiss his cheek.

"I know this isn't the real you." She whispered as she pulled back.

Urs looked at her quizically then widened his eyes as a fist connected hard with the left side of his face. He blinked just once before he fell to the floor in an inelegant unconscious heap. Franky was soon kneeling down by his side, making sure that he was all right.

"I'm sorry. I had to do something." She whispered as she gently kissed his lips. "I love you." She quickly adjusted her position and just managed to lift the upper half of Urs's body so that she cradled him in her lap. She sniffed back her tears while she held him close and curled her fingers in his hair.

"Awww! You've spoiled my fun." Owen huffed as he re-entered the room and saw the new red mark on Urs's face.

Franky held Urs tight to her and looked up at Owen.

"Let go of him." Owen commanded whilst grabbing hold of Urs's left wrist.

"No. Leave him alone. Leave us alone" Franky shook her head.

"Don't make me hurt you to make you let go." Owen closed his eyes slowly and swallowed hard. "I'm not like Anthony. I don't like hurting women, but I will hit you if you don't let go of him." He continued, still holding on to Urs.

Franky kept hold of Urs while she thought for a moment. She had seen what Owen had done to Sébastien and David and realised he would do some serious damage if he hit her. She placed a gentle kiss on Urs's forehead and whispered 'I'm sorry' before she slowly allowed him to fall away from her.

"Good." Owen nodded.

"Just tell me one thing before you leave." Franky requested as Owen bent over her.

He looked at her quizically and cocked his head questioningly to one side.

"What did she give him? What was in that syringe?"

Owen gulped audibly and closed his eyes then bent a little further and whispered in her ear. "I'm sorry. It wasn't my idea."

Franky's cupped her hands over her mouth then watched through tear-filled eyes as Owen dragged Urs upright then threw him over his shoulder. Her eyes closed slowly while she listened to him leave. She opened her mouth to say something then thought better of it. She swallowed hard and pursed her lips tight together as she started to plan her hoped for revenge.

"I can't. I can't tell you." Brett insisted quietly as he walked away from Emma. "It makes me feel sick just to think about what that man is capable of." He shook his head.

"Brett please, tell us what you know about him." Sébastien pleaded.

Brett blanched as he looked at the six faces that stared expectingly at him. He had already asked them if they knew anything about Anthony and had been quite surprised when they all replied that they knew nothing. He drew in a deep breath then quickly huffed it out before he started to speak.

"You remember that trial I attended a few weeks before I left for Australia?" He asked as he looked at Emma.

"The one you wouldn't talk about?"

Brett nodded quickly.

Emma closed her eyes and nodded. "How can I forget? You came home every night as white as a sheet and I think I remember you throwing up a few times."

"I should imagine a few people who attended that trial did much the same thing." Brett nodded and swallowed hard.

"Whose trial was it?" Sébastien questioned.

"Anthony's."

"Not the same fella that has Urs and Franky?" David questioned, shaking his head.

Brett simply nodded his reply.

"What did he do?" Carlos asked with closed eyes, hoping that it wasn't as bad as he was thinking.

Brett looked at them all again as they anxiously waited for him speak again.

"I ca....Not in front of the kid anyway." Brett began.

He smiled as Emma took hold of his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, the pair of them watching while Lauren asked Stephanie to go upstairs for a few moments, watching the little girl look at her mother puzzled for a moment, before doing what had been requested of her.

"Please Brett."

He closed his eyes and breathed deep again. "Anthony Strawson was convicted of a serious sexual ass........Oh let's it call it was. He was convicted of rape over two years ago. He should still be in jail but got out a few months early because he'd been kept in jail on remand for nine months while the case against him was prepared. What he did to that poor woman still makes me feel sick to my stomach. He hurt her so bad Emmy, so bad." He managed to force out before tears began to stream down his face.

All three Divos exploded at once and began cursing loudly and profusely in their native tongues while Emma stepped forward to comfort her brother.

"Can't we do something to find them." Carlos asked as he looked at Karen's concerned face.

He watched her carefully while she breathed deeply, closed her eyes and nodded lightly. He gently pulled her into his arms and held her tightly when she started to cry.

"Like what?" David snapped.

"I don't know, something, anything." Carlos sniffed.

"We don't know where they are. We don't know anything." David sighed as his arms flew round Lauren's shoulders and he held her tight while she held her hand at her mouth and cried.

"We know the registration number of the van. Would it hurt to go and see if we can spot it?" Sébastien shrugged as Emma looked at him through tear filled eyes. He closed his eyes and nodded as she did the same.

"It could be a rental and be back where it belongs by now or the plates could be false." David shook his head.

"So there would be no harm in looking would there?" Sébastien shrugged again.

David huffed out a breath. "I suppose not."

"I'll come with you." Brett insisted as stood then turned his head towards the front door and listened carefully. "What the hell is going on out there?" He questioned as he pointed his thumb over his shoulder.

Everyone listened carefully then looked at each other when they heard the long loud shout of David's name coming from the front garden. David ran to the door and flung it open with such force that it bounced off the wall and hit him on the arm.

"Urs?! Oh my God! Urs." David yelled disbelieving that he was watching his friend stagger his way up the path. "How? What happ...? Where's Franky?" He asked as Urs propped himself up with his back against the wall and looked at him with very wide eyes.

"Never mind that just now. Go get him! Get him!!" Urs commanded while he pointed towards the white van parked a few yards down the road that Owen was making his way back to.

David looked to where Urs indicated, recognised Owen from what he'd seen at the cemetery, then quickly looked to the van and saw a different registration.

Urs dropped to his knees, sat back on his folded legs and allowed his tears to fall while he watched David, Carlos, Sébastien and a man he didn't know tackle the big man to the ground. He sniffed loudly and blinked rapidly as he watched them all give him various punches and kicks to keep him down. He almost laughed while he watch the stranger truss a protesting Owen up like a Christmas turkey before they gagged him and all four men dragged him unceremoniously back into the house.

He moved his legs from underneath him and held them tightly against his chest while he rocked back and forth as he cried. He snatched his head up when he felt a hand on his left shoulder.

"Come mon ami, you can't stay out here like this." Sébastien smiled as he offered a hand to help him up.

Urs nodded, took the hand and pulled himself up from the ground. Tears continued to course down his face as he looked at the Frenchman.

"I...I...I tried to...st...stop.." Urs began as he nodded towards the house. "I didn't see..."

"We know what happened. You couldn't have done anything to stop them." Sébastien nodded.

He breathed deep as he slipped a hand around to the back of Urs's neck and quickly pulled his forehead against his shoulder. He closed his eyes and swallowed hard while he listened to his friend crying for a few moments.

Urs pulled back slowly and wiped his eyes roughly once he started to calm down.

"Let's get you inside." Sébastien smiled as he slipped his arm over Urs's shoulders and lead the bedraggled figure into David's home.

Urs didn't look at anyone as he slumped down on the couch and with very little reluctance allowed Emma to give him a quick examination.

"Urs, How come you didn't help Franky escape?" Lauren questioned.

"I didn't escape. I wouldn't have left without her." Urs closed his eyes and shook his head. "Jamie......Jamie decided to let me go and told him to take me to whoever's home was furthest away. I couldn't do anything to.......to help her because he had me bound in the back of the van until a few minutes ago. I tried to get free but the ropes were too tight. Franky's still being held."

"Jamie!!" Lauren fumed. "She's behind this?"

Urs nodded.

"Where she's being held? Do you know?" Karen questioned.

Urs pursed his lips tight together. "The old mental hospital on the other side of town."

"The place that's due for demolition tomorrow?" Karen queried again.

Urs nodded again. "But I didn't seen any machinery or anything there."

"They'll probably bring it tomorrow." David shrugged.

"Erm....No they won't." Emma shook her head. "They're not using a wrecking ball. They're imploding it, using explosives."

"How do you know that?" Sébastien asked as his eyes flew wide.

"Erin's fiancee Glen works for the company that's bringing down. It's nearly all he's talked about for weeks."

"They'll search the building again before they start won't they?" Carlos queried.

"I should imagine so." Emma nodded while she checked Urs's eyes and ummed loudly. "But they could be gone by morning, there are signs all over the place telling everyone it's coming down tomorrow."

"You don't seriously think I'm leaving her there with that bitch a minute longer or overnight?!" Urs yelled as he moved to stand up.

"Urs, did they inject you with something?" Emma asked as she pushed him gently back into his seat then pointed to the needle mark at the crook of his right arm.

Urs closed his eyes and nodded slowly.

"What was it? Did they say?" Emma asked while she checked his other wounds over.

"I don't know." Urs shook his head and roughly wiped his face with the palms of his hands. "But I erm...I erm....I keep having these visions run through my head. I think I....I....Oh Gott! No! Please tell me I didn't do that to her." He asked as his hands flew to his mouth.

He stood quickly and bolted up David's stairs so fast that none of the others could keep up with him.

David arrived at the bathroom door first to find Urs on his knees in front of the toilet fighting hard to stop himself throwing up. Carlos and Sébastien soon arrived at David's shoulder.

"Urs, what do you think you've done?" Sébastien questioned gently from the doorway.

They watched as Urs drew in a very breath while he wiped his mouth. "I'm not sure." He gasped for his breath as he tilted his head backwards and ran his eyes around the ceiling. His jaw shook uncontrollably when he spoke again. "I...I...I think I..." He closed his eyes and gulped. His entire body started to shake and he rocked backwards and forwards slightly as he looked at his three friends. "I think I might have forced myself on Franky. I think I......I think I raped her. Oh No! Gott No!"

"Non." Sébastien shook his head and looked at him through tear filled eyes. "You wouldn't do that. You couldn't ever do anything like that."

"You don't know that! You weren't there!" Urs spat. "I don't know what was in that syringe, I can't remember what I did or didn't do. I can't remember anything clearly. Nothing. Just flashes . I don't know which ones are real and which aren't." He sobbed again

All three men moved up slowly to stand in front of their distressed friend and spoke in a comforting tone, telling him that because he didn't know what he'd been given and couldn't be sure what he had done, they were sure Franky wouldn't blame him if he had hurt her in any way while they helped him slow his breathing down. Once he had regained some measure of control, Urs stood and slowly made his way back downstairs.

He made his way over to a still bound Owen, crouched down beside him and removed the gag.

"What did that bitch give me?" He questioned shakily.

Owen shook his head.

Urs grabbed him hard by collar of his shirt and rammed his fists hard under his jaw forcing his knuckles at Owen's windpipe.

"Tell me what she gave me or so help me, I'll kill you." He questioned agrilly, applying more pressure.

"Cocaine. Cocaine" Owen croaked. "It was cocaine in the syringe."

"No!" Urs's eyes widened as he fell backwards and landed on his backside.

"Don't worry. It wasn't much." Owen coughed and shook his head as he looked at Urs. "You didn't do what you think you did to Gibson either. She saw to that. Knocked you spark out with one punch she did." He continued as he nodded at Urs face. "You were just a little rough with her while you were high, that's all. I saw it all through the spyhole in the door. You were really funny, can't dance a step mind."

Urs stood quickly made his way over to the mirror that hung in David's hallway. He smiled and touched his face lightly when he how red it was and looked back to Owen when he saw the bruises on his neck. He drew in a deep breath then quickly huffed it out as he headed for the front door.

"Where are you going?" Carlos questioned from the lounge doorway.

"Where do you think?" Urs snatched his head round to face him and smiled wryly.

"You need to rest Urs. Get some sleep." Emma informed from just behind Carlos's right shoulder rest. "Let the police handle it."

"I know! But do you really think I can sleep, knowing where she is?!" Urs yelled. "It could take the police ages to get there. God alone knows what Jamie's going to do to her. They could be leaving while I'm standing here talking to you. I heard Jamie telling him........" He paused and flicked his head to where Owen lay. "......to hurry up because she wanted to get going. I'm sure I saw a car when I was thrown into the back of the van. I have to try........do something to stop them. Don't I?"

"Then I'm coming with you." Carlos nodded in return.

"Me too." David beamed as he stood beside Carlos.

"And me." Sébastien insisted. "Don't you even think of trying to stop me from going." He shook his head when Urs opened his mouth to say something.

"I'll keep an eye on the girls and our 'guest'. We'll give you a bit of a head start before we call the police." Brett smiled from behind Sébastien. "Introductions later." He continued as he nodded towards the door.

"Thanks." Urs smiled and nodded, then turned to follow his brothers to David's car.

"Get up!" She heard Anthony's voice demanding as he flicked his foot hard at her feet.

Franky stood bolt upright and glared at him while she adjusted her clothing. She wrapped the fingers of her left hand around the fingers of her right and rested them on her stomach. Her eyes were the only part of her that moved while she watched Anthony slowly stalk his way around her upright form. She bit her lip hard and closed her eyes when she felt him stop behind her, pressing himself close to her. His hands moved down slowly from her waist and over the cheeks of her bottom then moved back up for a another feel of her waist before they slipped down over her outer thighs.

"What do you think your boyfriend would be doing if he were here now?" He whispered in her ear as he rested his chin on her left shoulder.

"For one you wouldn't be enjoying yourself like you are." Franky sneered. "Second, if he wasn't chained up, he'd be kicking your ass all over this place."

"Oh you're so funny." Anthony laughed. "Him, kick my butt. Yeah right."

Franky held her breath as he moved round to face her. She closed her eyes to avoid looking at him and swallowed bile when she felt his arms snake around her waist. He pulled her close and she immediately felt how excited he was on the back of her left hand.

"You know I usually take what I want from any woman I want." He whispered in her ear again.

Franky nodded. She had just remembered about his trial for rape, or, as the legal profession liked to put it, sexual assault, and had recalled how disgusted she had been at the sentence he'd received. Two and a half years for what he had done to that poor woman was not enough. The bastard should have been castrated as far she was concerned.

"And I'm going to really enjoy doing y......" He began.

He screwed his eyes tight together and cursed under his breath as the door swung open and he heard Jamie's voice.

"What's taking you so long?"

"I was just making sure she was going to behave herself for our little trip." Anthony smiled outwardly but seethed inwardly.

"And is she?" Jamie asked as she dropped her right hand to her side.

Franky swallowed hard when she saw the needle. She had an idea what was in that damned thing, knew it would incapacitate her and that was the last thing she needed to happen right now. She closed her eyes and nodded that she would comply.

"Looks like we're going to have to take your car." Jamie huffed. "Owen isn't back yet."

"Are you bothered.? Me and you can handle her between us I think." Anthony smiled.

"No, let's get moving." Jamie shook her head. "There's something about this place that gives me the creeps."

"Probably because the pair of you should be locked up somewhere very similar." Franky whispered as quietly as she could.

"Did you say something?" Jamie asked as she snatched her head up to face Franky.

"Me? No." Franky denied quickly with a headshake.

"I suppose you would like to know what I'm going to do with you." Jamie flicked her eyebrows and smiled. "Truth is I was going to give you what I gave Urs but a much stronger dose. Enough to......." She laughed and showed Franky the syringe. "But after what I've done today and what you've told me, I changed my mind. I'm pretty sure he won't want anything to do with you again, not that he's even going to get the chance. See I want you out of my life for good. As in dead. I've had enough of you wrecking everything. Sooooo, we're all going on a nice little trip to Lake Windermere and then you're going to have little accident, once Anthony's had a some fun with you of course. It'll take them a long time to find your body, 'cos the lake is very deep. I seriously doubt you or the car will ever be found."

'She's completely off her rocker.' Franky gulped audibly as Jamie finished speaking, knowing that there would probably be no escape once she was in Anthony's car and trying to think of what to do to escape. She swallowed hard while a chuckling Anthony crouched beside her, removed the chain around her ankles and tossed the padlock and key to one side, leaving her unrestrained.

Anthony pushed her hard, forcing her right shoulder forward slightly. She walked towards the door while Anthony and Jamie walked behind her. She made her way carefully down the old wooden staircase and listened to the chatter passing between her captors before she made her move.

Pretending to trip, she grabbed hold of the handrail and stumbled down a couple of steps. Anthony, who had been walking almost directly behind her, wasn't paying attention as Franky stuck her foot out and tripped him up. She watched as he fell forward and went tumbling down the stairs to slam hard into wall on the ground floor.

"Yesssss!" Franky punched the air.

Both women turned to face each other. Jamie's eyes flew wide and she swallowed hard when she saw the dark, brooding, furious look on Franky's face. The same look she'd seen on the dancefloor at 'Senoritas'. She dropped the handbag, where she had placed the syringe, to the floor and started to shout for Anthony while making her way slowly back up the stairs.

"Somehow I don't think he'll be much help for a while." Franky laughed as her left foot crushed the syringe.

"Y-y-you said you wouldn't hit me." Jamie stuttered.

"Don't think I did." Franky shook her head as she stalked after her. "What I actually said was that I have never let you wind up to the point where I would hit you. Guess you've done it now though."

"I can handle you any day of the week." Jamie hissed as she raised her hand ready to strike.

"Forgotten what happened earlier have you?" Franky questioned with a flick of her eyebrows and a wry smile. "Come on then, show me how you can handle me."

"Not in these clothes. I refuse to soil Gucci with your blood." Jamie shook her head as she turned on the stairs and quickly ran back up them with Franky in hot pursuit. She flew into the room where she had kept Urs and Franky chained up and slammed the door hard.

"Shit!" Jamie cursed out loud while she held the door closed and realised the key was on the outside.

She swallowed hard when she heard the key being removed on the other side. Her eyes flew wide as the door shook once while her hands were pressed against it. A second hard thump against the door sent Jamie crashing to the floor on her backside.

"Franky please." Jamie begged as she scooted backwards whilst holding her right hand up.

Franky laughed as she locked the door then tossed the key across the room. She pulled her face back into a cold expression as she stalked towards Jamie again.

"What are you going to do?" Jamie whined as Franky grabbed her outstretched hand and yanked her to her feet.

Franky didn't speak while she pulled Jamie across to where she had been chained. After pushing her harshly to the floor, Franky retrieved the chain and padlock. Jamie took a chance, quickly turned herself over and stumbled to her feet. She was occupied with yanking at the locked door when she felt Franky's fingers grasp deep into the hair at the back of her head.

Franky grunted and groaned as she pulled a desparately struggling and screeching Jamie back to the chain. She pushed her down hard once more and sat on her stomach with her back towards Jamie's face while she fixed the chain tightly around her ankle.

"Get off me you fat, ugly bitch!" Jamie hissed as she reached up under Franky's t-shirt and quickly dragged her long nails down the skin of her back.

Franky hissed loudly and arched her back. Moving quickly, she spun around to face a furious Jamie.

"How dare you do this to me?" Jamie spat in Franky's face and flayed her clawed hands wildly while she screeched at her.

Franky huffed a laugh as one nail caught her left cheek and left a long, narrow cut in its wake. Franky swung her right hand and slapped Jamie hard across the face. Grasping both of the still screeching woman's wrists in her hands, Franky pinned them to the floor and lifted herself off her.

"Where are you going?" Jamie asked while she watched Franky search for the door key. "You can't leave me like this." She screamed when Franky found what she was looking for.

Franky turned to look at her and smiled. She fumbled in the pocket of her leathers and pulled out the padlock key. She took a few steps back towards Jamie, crouched and placed the key on the floor. She made sure that she placed it far enough away that Jamie would have to lie on her stomach on the dirty floor and stretch herself out as far as she could to retrieve it, somehow knowing that she wouldn't do that.

She stood erect once more, breathed deep and turned towards the door. She paid no attention when Jamie started screaming at the top of her voice.

"Franky Gibson, get back here and let me go. Do you hear me? I said get back here. Gibson! Gibson!! Gibson!!!"

Franky unlocked the door and huffed a laugh as she stepped over the threshold. She shook her head when she heard Jamie's feet rapidly hitting the floorboards. She made her way quickly down the first half of the stairs and smiled when she saw Anthony still lying at the bottom. She pulled on the large wooden doors that gave acccess to the building once she'd reached them. Her eyes flew wide when she heard moaning and groaning behind her. Glancing over her shoulder she saw Anthony beginning to move.

She drew in a deep breath and started to run as fast as she could down the driveway to the gates. She smiled when she saw one side was open and ran through it. Without stopping she turned to the right and ran several metres before she found the road she was looking for. Without checking the traffic she ran into the road, not seeing the car that was fast approaching until it was too late.

"Her sister?" Carlos bellowed from behind Urs. "Jamie is Franky's sister?" He questioned disbelievingly once Urs finished telling them what had happened while David drove his silver Mercedes Benz S-Class saloon as fast as he could towards their destination, following Urs's directions.

"Half-sister." Urs corrected. "They have different mothers."

"And no-one knew?" Sébastien questioned.

"Next left David, then straight on for about two hundred yards." Urs instructed while shaking his head. "No. No-one knew. Not even Lauren or Karen. Would you admit to being related to her?"

"Nunca." Carlos shook his head.

"Jamais." Sebastien shuddered.

"Was she really going to give Jamie half of the business?" David asked as he shook his head, straightened up and put his foot down slightly.

"She promised her father she would." Urs nodded. "The gates are a little further down on the left."

David nodded as he glanced at his friend. Suddenly a shout went up from the back seat.

"David! Look out!!" Sébastien yelled loudly.

David moved his foot from the accelerator to the foot brake very quickly and a long loud screech could be heard but his car still impacted with a black form, sending it rolling onto the bonnet and shattering the windscreen. Urs, Carlos and Sébastien all closed their eyes and cowered in their seats when they heard the loud thumps as the form rolled up and over the front of the car before it was deposited with a bone-crunching sounding crash onto the road.

David turned to look at Urs just in time to see him scrambling from the passenger seat, his features deathly white and his eyes wide and filled with tears. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as David watched Urs make his way around to the front of the car then turn his head to the right before he broke into a sprint. David looked in his wing mirror to see the crumpled form lying a few yards behind his vehicle and Urs approaching fast.

"W-W-What did I hit?" David stuttered as he closed his eyes.

Silence answered him.

"Carlos? Seb? Are you ok back there?" He asked.

"Fine." Carlos swallowed hard as he replied.

"I'm ok." Sébastien gulped.

"I hit something. Did you guys see what it was?" David questioned again.

"Franky." Carlos and Sébastien informed together.

"You hit Franky, David." Sébastien gulped while he and Carlos unclipped their seatbelts and left the car.

"Oh No!" David's eyes flew wide as he struggled to unclip the seatbelt. "God No! No! No! Please don't let it be her." He begged as he scrambled out of the car to find Urs crouched over a lifeless looking leather-clad, flame-haired female form.

He approached cautiously. Tears streamed down his face as Urs's tear streaked, wide-eyed furious face jerked up to look at him.

"She's not hurt bad is she?" David questioned swallowing hard and touching Urs's right shoulder as he spoke.

"Get away from her." Urs snapped his head back down to look at Franky. "Get away from me." He continued as he shrugged David's hand off.

Urs raised his fluttering hand to Franky's neck and tried to find a pulse. His eyes closed and a small howl escaped from the back of his throat as he moved his hand to gently stroke her face. He shook his head at the voices he heard offering help.

"No. No. It's...It's too late." Urs shook his head and choked the words out.

"Urs, How is she?" Carlos spoke softly as he crouched at his side.

"She's gone Carlos. She’s….Oh Gott no." Urs shook violently and clenched his jaw tight. "She's dead."

"She can't be. The car didn't hit her very hard. Not much more than a glancing blow." David shook his head as he crouched on the other side of Urs and moved his violently shaking hand to touch Franky's neck.

Urs quickly seized hold of his wrist and pushed it harshly away. "Don't you touch her!"

"I was only going to...."

"No." Urs glowered at him. "You get your hands off her and keep them off. You've done enough damage. You've killed her. After everything she's been through. You're the one......" Urs sobbed as he raised his dispondant features to meet David's again. "…the one that's killed her. She’s dead David. Franky's dead. You killed her because you weren't watching the road."

_____________


"Thank God for that. I'm glad to see the back of him" Emma exclaimed as they watched four large police officers escorting a handcuffed Owen to a waiting police van.

Owen's muscles were that big that he found it impossible to bring his arms behind his back so that the police officers could cuff him in one pair. They had had to use two pairs to limit the man's movements. The force's four largest officers had turned up to handle him and they looked small at the side of him.

"Amen to that." Karen nodded slowly as she stood at Emma's side. "He's put some mass on since I last saw him."

"No wonder Seb couldn't fight him off, he's huge." Lauren shuddered.

All three women blew out a long breath and returned to David's lounge.

"There you go ladies." Brett beamed as he set a plateful of sandwiches and drinks down on the coffee table. "Sorry it took me so long, I had a bit of trouble finding what I wanted." He rolled his eyes. "Not the most organised fella in the world your guy is he?" He teased Lauren as he sat down next to her.

"You think he's bad, you should see me." Lauren shrugged with a smile as she pulled a giggling Stephanie onto her lap and gave her a cuddle. "You ok honey?"

Stephanie nodded. "Are we still going to Disneyland mummy?"

"Once this nasty business is all over with and I know Franky is all right, yes we are." Lauren nodded.

"Yay!" Stephanie yelled then started dancing round the lounge.

Lauren laughed as she watched her then made her sit down and have something to eat and drink.

All three women startled when they heard a mobile ring.

"Mine." Emma smiled as she felt the vibration against her hip. "Fingers crossed girls, it's Seb."

She drew in a deep breath and answered.

"Hi Seb. How's it going?"

"Erm...Not good Em."

"Why? What's wrong?" Emma asked as she heard Sébastien sniff then swallow hard.

"There's been an accident."

"You're not badly hurt are you?" She questioned as she slumped down onto one of the couches.

"We're all ok. None of us is hurt."

"Thank God for that. Who is then?" Emma asked when she heard him sniff again and indicated for Lauren and Karen to wait one minute by raising her right index finger to them.

"Franky. Franky's hurt." Sébastien sniffed.

"What? What happened? How bad is....?" Emma shook her head then listened carefully as Sébastien launched into the details of the accident.

"I'm not sure how bad she is. Urs is saying something, but I can't make out what it is. We're waiting for the ambulance to arrive. Can you get down to the hospital?"

"Uh-huh." Emma nodded. "Ok. We'll meet you there." She huffed out a breath as she hung up.

"Emma?" Karen questioned as she watched her knock the tears from her eyes.

"We have to go to the hospital. There's been an accident. Franky escaped from where she was being held only to be run down when she went to cross the road."

"What? Who ran her down? How bad is she?" Lauren asked as she leapt to her feet.

"They don't know how bad she is. They're waiting for an ambulance." Emma shook her head and moved quickly towards the front door.

"Who ran her down?" Lauren repeated as she lifted Stephanie from the floor and hitched her onto her hip.

Emma remained silent and looked at Lauren through her eyelashes.

"Not David?" Lauren mouthed while she shook her head.

Emma nodded and closed her eyes while Lauren and Karen clamped their right hands over their mouths.

"Come on." Emma sniffed. "Let's get going." She managed a quick smile as Brett came to her side and ran his right arm over her shoulders.

He took the mobile she offered him and called a taxi. It arrived after what felt hours and three women, one man and a small child made their way to the local hospital to wait for the news. Good or bad.

"It wasn't my fault Urs. It wasn't. She ran out in front of me." David shook his head vigorously.

"She did not. You were looking at me." Urs hissed in response.

"It was only a quick glance."

"You should have been watching the road, you asshole." Urs screamed loudly as he leapt to his feet and launched himself at the American sending the pair of them crashing to the ground.

He'd thrown several punches at David's face and connected with most of them before he heard Sébastien shouting his name and felt Carlos and several passers-by pulling him away.

"Urs stop it!" He heard Sébastien's voice as he was shaken roughly. "Stop it and look at me. Look at me and listen." Sébastien shook his head as he brought himself face-to-face with the Swiss man. "She's not dead."

"Yes she is! I couldn't feel a pulse." Urs yelled.

"Non. You felt in the wrong place, stupid. Look." Sébastien pointed to where Franky lay. "She's quite banged up according to the off-duty doctor who is taking care of her while we wait for the ambulance, but she's not dead."

Urs looked at him in disbelief then slowly turned his head to look at the woman who crouched over Franky. She raised her face to meet his and smiled.

"She's alive?" He questioned quietly.

"Yes. She's breathing on her own and slowly coming to." The doctor closed her eyes and nodded. "Come on. Come and talk to her." Crooking her finger at him she motioned for him to approach.

He moved quickly and knelt by Franky's side, he flinched slightly when the doctor took hold of his right hand and placed Franky's left hand gently in it .

"Franky can you hear me?" Urs closed his eyes and nodded when he felt a gentle squeeze.

Franky opened her eyes slightly and smiled. "Guess knowing how to take a fall came in handy after all."

Urs buried his face into her neck and took several deep breaths. He swallowed hard and a second small howl could be heard when he felt her fingers curling in his hair.

"Sssssssssh. I'm ok." Franky sniffed.

He pulled back slightly and wiped her eyes while he looked at the nasty graze on the right side of her face. He winced when he saw the finger bruises on her arms and tried to remember if he'd done something to cause them.

"I'm sorry for what I...for what I...I'm sorry for what I did in there Franky." Urs closed his eyes and nodded back toward the derelict building as he apologised. "I didn't mean to." He managed to huff out between sniffs and swiping the back of his hand quickly across his eyes.

"Urs look at me." Franky requested.

He breathed deep and gulped audibly while he opened his eyes slowly.

"You didn't do anything except handle me a little roughly while you were high." Franky smiled through her pain and shook her head. "You couldn't help that after what Jamie did to you. How are you anyway?"

"I'm all right. Just some bruising, that's all. You're sure I didn't......?" Urs looked up at the faces that had gathered round them before he leaned down to Franky's right ear and whispered what else he thought he had done to her.

"No." Franky smiled and shook her head slightly. "No you didn't do that."

"You're sure?"

Franky nodded and smiled as they heard sirens in the distance.

"Where are Jamie and Anthony?" Urs questioned his face suddenly serious.

"They were still inside the hospital when I left." Franky laughed. "Anthony was unconscious at the bottom of the stairs and I chained Jamie up in the room where she held us."

Urs shook his head and huffed a quick laugh. "That's my girl." He dropped a quick kiss on her lips then stood. He smiled down at Franky as she grabbed hold of his leather trousers. "You're not going to stop me this time."

"Ok. But be careful." Franky nodded unwilling, knowing that he'd been pushed that one step too far today and there was nothing she could do or say to stop him. "But if you're going to do what I think you're going to do, give him a couple from me will you?"

Urs nodded quickly then looked around for his brothers. He closed his eyes and apologised as he looked at David's face.

"It's fine." David shook his head.

Sébastien and Carlos joined David and Urs and listened as Urs told them that Anthony and Jamie should still be in the hospital.

"Time for a little payback then don't you think?" David questioned with a beaming smile as he hooked his arms over Sébastien and Urs's shoulders and nodded towards the gates.

Urs shook his head.

"What?!" Sébastien yelled.

"Why not?" Carlos fumed.

Urs laughed. "Time for a lot of payback." He corrected David.

All four men nodded then smiled as they looked down at Franky then at each other. Their faces dropped into serious expressions as they made their way through the hospital gates. Urs took the lead as they marched up the driveway with David, Carlos and Sébastien walking close behind. Once they reached the doors, Urs slowly pushed them open and all four of them stepped over the threshold together.

"Hello Anthony." Urs hissed at the man who sat on the bottom step holding his head in his hands.

Anthony raised his head and opened his eyes. He gulped audibly when he saw the four furious men standing in front of him.

"Oh crap!" He stood quickly, turned and tried to run up the stairs.

Urs moved quickly, taking the stairs two at a time, managed to get ahead of him and blocked any further upward movement. He smiled as Anthony raised his head to look at him.

"Going somewhere?" Urs questioned ruefully.

"I...I...I.." Anthony blustered as he moved to try and get passed Urs on the right.

Urs grinned, slid across the step and blocked him. Anthony made several similar attempts only to be blocked each time.

"Look, none of this was my idea." Anthony huffed eventually. "It was all Jamie."

Urs shook his head and pouted his lips. "I don't care." He whispered as he balled up his right fist and launched it at Anthony's jaw sending the man tumbling back down the stairs again. He snatched his head upwards when he heard a loud scream from a little higher up.

"Anthony! What's going on out there? I need help." Jamie screeched.

"She's not wrong there." Urs shrugged to his friends as he ran back down the steps.

Sébastien's hand flew to his mouth to stifle his laughter, Carlos just shook his head, David threw his head back and laughed loudly at the comment.

"That's my sister you're all laughing at." Anthony fumed as he picked himself up off the floor.

"Half-sister." Urs corrected.

"Whatever! She's still family." Anthony hissed as his right fist swung towards Urs's face.

Urs pulled his head out of range and quickly forced his fist into Anthony's stomach, bending him double. Urs swung one more time and connected with another part of his face. Anthony crumpled to his knees and Urs smiled at Sébastien as he stepped forward.

"What are you going to do? Wimp!" Anthony hissed.

Sébastien kept a straight face as he looked at his three friends in turn. He smiled then turned away from Anthony.

"I thought so. Nothing." Anthony huffed as he struggled to his feet and straightened himself up. He flew backwards and landed hard on his backside when Sébastien's foot connected with his stomach as he quickly kicked his right leg backwards.

"I'll tell you later." He shrugged nonchalantly while he smiled at his astonished friends.

Anthony scrambled to his feet and tried to bolt for the door. He gasped when David grabbed hold of him and pulled him back.

"What's your problem?" Anthony gulped as David loomed over him. "I haven't done anything to you."

"True." David nodded as he smiled. "But you're the closest I'm gonna to get to that gorilla you call a friend and I bet you gave the order for Franky's garage to be burnt down."

"So what if I did?!" Anthony grunted.

"So what?" David seethed as he grabbed his shirt, lifted him off the ground and pinned him to the wall. "The explosion the fire caused, scared my girl and her four year old daughter to death, that's what." He informed as he moved his left forearm against the man's throat, keeping him pushed against the wall while his right fist connected hard with the left side of Anthony's face.

Anthony slipped to the floor in an inelegant heap as David released him. He closed his eyes and touched his bruised jaw lightly. He winced then opened his eyes slowly to see Carlos crouching in front of him.

"Now I know I've done nothing to you." Anthony stated with a sharp nod of his head as both men stood upright together.

"It's true what he says." Carlos shrugged and smiled at his friends. "He hasn't done anything to me. I really have no reason to hit him." He huffed as he stood and stepped away from the man.

Anthony blew out a long breath.

"But..." Sébastien began.

Carlos looked at him quizically.

"But he does like to hurt women." Sébastien shrugged.

"Ah si . Thanks for reminding me Seb." Carlos nodded then looked at his two balled up fists, one in a splint, the other fine. "For all the ladies you've ever hurt."

He cursed something foul in Spanish and quickly punched both sides of Anthony's face. He cursed again, held his right hand under his left armpit and sucked air through his teeth. He shrugged and smiled when David laughed and said that maybe he shouldn't have hit him with the right hand.

"Come on now guys four on one is hardly fair." Anthony pleaded as the four of them surrounded him.

"He right you know." Urs folded his arms across his chest and shook his head. "It's not fair."

"Non. It's not is it?" Sébastien queried while he scratched the back of his head. "But neither is two on one." He nodded as he reminded them about how he had been injured.

"Nah, it isn't." David beamed a smiled and shook his head.

"Whoever said we played fair?" Carlos questioned with a quick flick of his eyebrows and wry smile.

A loud knock at the door and more screeching from high above stopped them lashing out. David opened the door and smiled at the two police officers who stood waiting to be admitted.

"What's going on in here?" The first officer to cross the threshold questioned as he stuck his head round the door and looked at Anthony.

"He fell down the stairs." Sébastien smiled.

"Think he's had a little too much." Urs informed as he gestured that Anthony had been drinking.

"Messed yourself up haven't you Anthony?" The same officer questioned as he crouched in front of the prone man.

"It was them." Anthony hissed in reply. "They beat me up."

The officer turned to the four men who simply shrugged and shook their heads. They barely stifled their laughter as Urs gestured again and widened his eyes. The officer turned back to Anthony and quickly searched him. He pulled a silver hip flask from Anthony's trouser pocket and removed the cap.

"Whiskey and it's empty." The officer nodded.

Urs smiled wryly when he spotted the flask. "Later." He whispered when David, Carlos and Sébastien looked at him questioningly.

"What the hell is that noise?"

"I'll go and take a look." The second officer cringed as he headed up the stairs. He soon returned with Jamie firmly held in his grasp, her wrists cuffed together behind her.

Sébastien shook his head as he listened to her turn on the charm.

"There's no point trying that." The officer smiled. "You obviously don't recognise me."

Jamie looked at him again and huffed when she recognised one half of the gay couple she had seen in 'Ramone's'

"But this was all his idea." Jamie sniffed as she nodded towards Anthony. "I never wanted any part of it." She shook her lowered head.

"My idea!" Anthony yelled as the first officer handcuffed him. "Listen." He spoke into the policeman's ear. "If you need someone to testify against that bitch you can count on me."

"You!!" Jamie hissed loudly as she attempted to kick her brother.

"Now then children play nice." The officer who held Anthony commanded. "I think we have all the evidence we need. You won't be testifying against anyone." He informed as he pushed his prisoner towards the door. "Gentlemen, officers will be around later to take your statements." He nodded at Urs, David, Carlos and Sébastien as they left.

The four of them nodded then ran back down the driveway together. They arrived at the gates just in time to see Franky being loaded into the ambulance. Urs approached quickly and couldn't help but blush a little as the paramedic spoke to him.

"You again as well?" She laughed when she recognised Urs. "Come on, let’s be having you." She instructed as she flicked her head at the ambulance.

Urs climbed in quickly and smiled as he took hold of a smiling Franky's hand. He gasped when he saw the whole of her right leg strapped into thick, orange-coloured stiff padding and the pipe she was sucking on.

"It's ok. Only the lower half is broken. The rest is just bumps and grazes. Pain relief," She informed when she saw the very concerned look on his face, holding up the pipe with a silly grin on her own.

"How bad?" Urs sniffed.

"Don't know until we get to the hospital?" Franky shrugged and squeezed his hand lightly. "Well?"

"A couple of good ones. One to the jaw, one to the stomach and one to his left eye." Urs laughed as Franky nodded.

Urs turned to look out of the back of the ambulance and shook his head as he watched a shrugging and smiling Carlos move his right arm behind his back.

"Later." Carlos mouthed as the doors were closed.

Urs nodded and turned back to Franky.

"I suppose life is going seem a little dull for us all now this is over." He sighed as he looked at her.

"Really! Is that what you think?" Franky smiled as she raised her eyebrows suggestively.

"Got my hands full with you haven't I?" Urs questioned just before he kissed her gently.

"You're only just figuring that out?" Franky wrinkled her nose.

"You two." The paramedic shook her head and blushed.

Urs smiled then huffed a laugh as he looked at her. He held Franky's right hand tight in both of his and continuously dropped soft little kisses on the back of it while they were driven to the hospital.

Franky closed her eyes and breathed out a long breath allowing the ambulance's motion to slowly rock her into a light sleep.

"I beg your pardon." Franky spluttered as she batted away the water she had just sprayed over the bedclothes.

"What?! I've never kept a secret from you." Lauren shook her head.

Franky looked at Karen then back to Lauren. "What about Stephanie?"

"Ah. Good point." Lauren blushed.

"I'm sorry I never told you Lauren........maybe I should have."

"It's ok Franky." Lauren shook her head. "Your father was a very proud, private man. Hell he didn't even turn to your mother's family when the garage was in trouble, tried to sort it all out himself even though they would've been more than willing to help. He must have been so embarrassed when he told you about Jamie." She finished and watched Franky nod quickly with tears welling in her eyes.

"Where is she anyway?" Franky questioned.

"With David, Brett and Gabe and the rest of them down the corridor. I think Gabe has a new admirer." Lauren laughed.

"How so?" Karen queried.

"Stephanie says he looks like one of her favourite game characters." Lauren shrugged. "Have they said how long they're keeping you in and how long you've got to wear the cast?"

"Two days." Franky nodded.

"Oooh! Urs won't like that." Karen giggled before Franky could say anymore.

Franky shrugged and smiled. "I've got to have this damned thing on for anything up to eight weeks." She huffed while she tapped at the offending cast. "That means no ice-skating, climbing or bike riding." She pouted.

"There's one consolation." Lauren laughed with a suggestive smile.

"I'd like to know what." Franky furrowed her brow.

"Well obviously you won't be able to take a bath or a shower." Lauren beamed a smile. "So someone is going to have to give you a bedbath and it ain't gonna be me. Might be a job Urs will enjoy though." She shrugged still smiling broadly.

"Lauren!!" Franky cupped her hands over her mouth and laughed loudly with her childhood friend. "You're soooooo bad."

"You're going to need lots of physio-therapy when it’s removed to help build your muscles up again." Emma nodded while she wiped her eyes.

"So they said." Franky nodded as she looked at Lauren and Karen with a playful smile. "You wouldn't happen to know of a really good one, would you?" She questioned Emma.

"Not a really good one, no." Emma shook her head while she smiled and scratched behind her right ear. "There's this one woman who works here though. I've heard she's not bad."

"Mmmm. I really did want someone who was absolutely fantastic at her job." Franky wrinkled her nose as she teased Emma again making all of them laugh loudly.

"Have you decided if you're going to rebuild the garage?" Karen questioned as they all wiped their eyes.

"If the insurance pays enough for me to do it, yes." Franky nodded. She smiled when she saw concerned expression spread across Lauren's face. "But not in the same place."

"Where then?" Lauren questioned with a shake of her head.

"The industrial park on the other side of town. I've been looking into it for the past few weeks." Franky shrugged.

"So you-know-who has kind of forced your hand?" Karen smiled.

"Karen, you can say her name you know. It doesn't bother me at all." Franky shook her head.

"Ok. I'll remember that."

"You three really are like sisters aren't you?" Emma questioned with a smile as she headed for the door.

"Where do you think you're you going?" Franky asked as she folded her arms across her chest.

"I thought you would like some time alone with them." Emma shrugged, indicating Lauren and Karen with a nod of her head at each woman.

"So you don't want to be our sister then?" Lauren smiled.

Emma's face broadened into a huge smile as she nodded enthusiastically. She headed back into the room and gave each of her new sisters a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek.

_____________


"Man you're a mess. Did you get into a fight with them?" The short, bald-headed man who sat on the bunk queried as Anthony turned into the cell.

"No. The cops didn't do this." Anthony shook his head while he looked at his face in the mirror that hung above the sink.

"Who did then?" The man questioned again.

Anthony growled in the back of his throat and launched into the story of what happened to him.

"Il Divo." The man tutted. "Where have I heard that name before?" He asked while he tapped his left index finger at his lips.

"It's that group Mum and Eva are nuts about." Came a deep voice from the bunk above Anthony.

The man nodded. "Why would they do this to you? Aren't they supposed to be very polite young men?"

"Are you calling me a liar?" Anthony hissed as he grabbed the middle-aged man by the collar of his shirt.

"Take your hands off me." The man blinked slowly, not showing any signs of feeling threatened.

"And if I don't?" Anthony laughed.

"You'll have me to deal with." Another voice stated from above the man.

Anthony laughed then gulped as the two forms jumped down from the top bunks at the same time. They were identical in looks. The same height and build, almost as big as Owen, with dark hair and green eyes. Only the different tattoos on their forearms indicated any difference between the pair.

"Now then fella..." The man began. "..tell me why these men should want to do such a thing to you and we might be able to arrange a little payback for a price."

Anthony smiled then told him the reasons he looked like he did. He gulped as he watched the man's face change from one with a broad smile to one of complete and utter fury.

"What's the problem?" Anthony shrugged.

"Franky's Garage? Isn't that the place big Frank Gibson used to own?"

One of the big men nodded. "His daughter owns it now. You know, the ice-skater."

"Not that slip of a thing who had almost had me in tears last Christmas, the one who nearly ended up in your lap?"

"She's the best bike mechanic around." The second voice blushed slightly as he nodded.

"And she's the one you two take your bikes to when they need fixing isn't she?" The man questioned the two large men.

"Yeah. What the hell are we gonna do now?" Voice one questioned.

"There's other garages around." Anthony shrugged again.

"Not like hers." Voice two grunted as he seized hold of Anthony and pushed him against the cell door.

"Now then young man, I suggest you leave Franky Gibson and her friends alone in future and that you forget your little confrontation with those gentlemen if you don't want to tangle with Floyd and Colt." The man smiled sadistically.

"And just why should I be afraid of them? Who the hell do Floyd and Colt think they are?" Anthony huffed.

"You've erm....You've never heard of the Kendrick twins then?" The man questioned with a cock-eyed smile.

Anthony gulped and looked wide eyed from one man to the other. He had heard of the Kendrick twins, had never seen them but knew better than to mess with them. He had never heard them talked about separately, whenever they were talked about around town it was always together and only as the Kendrick twins. He swallowed hard again and watched the one that held him ball up his fist and rammed it hard against the cell door, making it vibrate in its metal frame.

"Oh crap!" Anthony whimpered in a much higher pitched voice than usual

"Well! What's the damage?" Urs questioned as Carlos came into the room where they were all waiting to pay a visit to Franky.

"I've actually broken the bones now. Six weeks I have to wear this." Carlos smiled and showed them the new cast on his hand. "How's Franky?"

"She'll be fine." Urs nodded then yawned loudly. "Both the bones in the lower half of her leg are broken. The doctor said she was very lucky it was a clean break and not a compound fracture."

"What's the difference?" Sébastien shrugged. "It's still broken."

"If it had been a compound fracture she would have needed surgery. They would have pinned and screwed the bones back together which would have been a little more painful for her." Urs informed.

Sébastien nodded. "What about her skating? Will she be able to skate again?"

"She might need to wear a brace or some other form of support, but she should be fine." Urs smiled and nodded.

"How long are they keeping her in?" Carlos asked.

"Two days." Urs huffed and wrinkled the right side of his nose. "Two whole lousy, rotten stinking nig...days."

"Who taught you that kick?" David questioned Sébastien, rubbing at his bruised face while watching Gabriel give Stephanie a piggyback ride. He laughed when he heard her shout 'Faster' as she whooped loudly and twirled an imaginary cowboy hat in large circles.

"Emma did." Sébastien smiled. "She said she's going to show me a few more moves when this is fully recovered." He nodded and tapped at his thigh.

"I bet she is." Carlos smiled and flicked his eyebrows suggestively.

Sébastien glared at him playfully and shook his head while Urs and David laughed.

Stephanie jumped off Gabriel's back as he sank to his hands and knees and ran over to David who looked down at her with a huge smile on his face.

"What's up honey?"

"David, can we take Gabe and Brett to Disneyland with us?" Stephanie beamed. "They're so funny."

"Someone get me some oxygen." Gabriel sighed as he slipped to the floor to land on his stomach.

"She's harder to control than any croc I've had to deal with." Brett huffed from where he'd flopped just moments before, after spending what seemed like hours spinning the energetic four year old around. "Do her batteries ever run out?"

David looked at the man and laughed as he shook his head. "Nope." He replied with a huge smile then turned his attention back to Stephanie. "I don't think so honey, Franky's probably going to need Gabe's help with the new garage and Brett hasn't seen his mother in over two years. Don't you think he would like to spend some time with her?" David shook his head.

"Oh, I forgot about that." Stephanie huffed then nodded. "'S'pose I'll have to put up with your piggyback rides then." She shrugged as she walked back over to Gabriel and gave him a pat on the shoulder and whispered 'Good horsey'.

"How did you know about that hip-flask that Anthony carried?" Sébastien questioned Urs.

"Franky told me. She felt it when he......when he was tou...."

Sébastien nodded and smiled as he cut him off.

Urs turned to look at David and sighed heavily then stood and walked over to him.

"I'm really sorry." He smiled as he took hold of David's chin and turned his face from side to side. "I should have checked better."

"Stop apologising." David shook his head. "It was an easy mistake to make considering what you've been through."

Urs smiled a little broader and nodded. He twitched his head to the left side as he walked away.

"Urs, are you ok?" Carlos questioned.

"Fine." Urs nodded and twitched again. "It's just a side effect of the cocaine. It'll stop soon."

"You're sure?" Sébastien questioned.

Urs nodded as the door opened and Emma's mother poked her head round the door.

"The girls are on their way out now so you can go and see her, but not for long she needs her rest." She smiled and shook her head at Brett while she counted six men and one child. "Three at a time I think."

Urs nodded as he watched David, Stephanie and Gabriel leave to pay their visit first followed by Carlos, Sébastien and Brett ten minutes later, recalling that he'd told Franky what Emma's brother had done to help and that she wanted to thank him personally.

He listened while they sorted out who was going to sleep where once they'd returned. Obviously Lauren and Stephanie couldn't go back to the house because of the damage the explosion had caused. Sébastien said he would sleep on David's couch and let Stephanie have the bed, which earned him a kiss on the cheek from Lauren.

Carlos and Karen were going back to either his place or hers. They hadn't decided yet.

Sébastien smiled and nodded when Urs tossed his keys at him and told him to use his place as he wouldn't be staying there for a few nights.

Urs smiled as he watched the couples leave hand-in-hand and huffed a quick laugh watching Brett and Gabriel leave whilst swinging Stephanie between them. He nodded when Stephanie turned her head over her shoulder and beamed a smile almost as big as David's.

He grunted when his head twitched again while he turned right and headed in the opposite direction to his friends. He pushed the door open quietly and almost gasped when he saw Franky's angelic face illuminated by the nightlight above her bed. She yawned and turned her head towards the window. He walked quietly into the room, across to where she lay then made his way round to face her. He closed his eyes when he heard her sniff and saw the tears running down her face as she looked at him.

Tired and emotionally drained, no words were spoken between the two while Urs removed his motorbike boots, t-shirt and leather trousers. He slipped under the covers, wrapped his arms around Franky, held her tight and gently stroked her head while she cried herself to sleep with her face resting on his chest.

"Huh?" Karen questioned as she turned to face him.

"I asked if you were watching this?" Carlos smiled while he nodded quickly at her television.

Karen shook her head. "Busy wondering how Franky has held it all together this past year. She's been through so much."

"More than her share." Carlos nodded.

"She really could have done with that break in Rome. Or was it Paris Urs had planned to take her to?"

"Neither." Carlos shook his head.

"You told me Rome or Paris." Karen furrowed her brow and shook her head again.

"I know." Carlos sighed. "It was supposed to be a surprise. He was actually going take her home."

"You mean home to Switzerland?"

Carlos nodded. "He had everything planned, the jet, flowers waiting, champagne, the best room in Zurich's top hotel, everything. He had planned on spending a day or two alone with her, before taking her to meet his parents."

Karen shook her head and breathed hard. "Have you got any idea what I would like to do to Jamie?"

Carlos raised one eyebrow and smiled. "Something similar to what we did to her brother I would imagine."

"No worse. Much, much worse." Karen glared at the floor and smiled evilly which made Carlos laugh.

"Revenge will have to wait mi amor." Carlos informed as he leapt to his and gently pulled her into his arms. "It has been a busy and emotional day for both of us. Time for bed I think." He continued as he scooped her into his arms and started to head for the bedroom. "Do I smell or something?" He asked when he saw her wrinkling her nose.

"Well you're not the only one." Karen shrugged while Carlos sniffed at himself then her.

"Smoke and oil. Might be something that turns Urs and Franky on but not me." Carlos huffed and set her back on her feet in the hallway. "I need shower, si?"

"Me too." Karen nodded then watched Carlos raise his injured hand with a frown on his face before she reached into her bag to retrieve the waterproof cast cover she'd purchased.

"While I was being treated?" He queried while listening to Karen release a heavy sigh as she nodded. "Worried about something?"

"That they'll all get out on bail, well Jamie at least. She doesn't have a criminal record."

"I know. Urs was muy worried about that too." Carlos nodded and gently wiped away the tears that had made their escape from Karen's eyes. "But you heard what that police officer said. It doesn't look good for either of them, considering the seriousness of their crimes and they'll be watched should that happen."

"I know." Karen nodded as she was pulled into a tight, comforting embrace. "I'll put those worries to the back of my mind until we know for sure."

"Bueno." Carlos smiled before placing a kiss on her lips, slowly lowering the zipper on the dress she wore while he deepened this kiss, feeling his own body react of its own free will as she responded in kind.

The two of them breathing fast as they pulled apart and headed for the bathroom hand-in-hand. Removing each others clothes, kissing passionately and exploring with hands and mouths while they rid each other of the smell smoke and oil. Carlos tossing the cast cover to the floor before scooping a naked Karen back into his arms and transporting to the bedroom.

Depositing her gently on the bed, lightly licking at her wet skin and feeling her fingers curl deep into his hair while she contracted hard around the two fingers he'd slipped inside her. Moving tortuously slowly down her body until he reached her pubis. Listening to her moan his name while he drove her onward, stopping as soon as he heard her breathing becoming ragged.

Hearing the small yelp she allowed to escape as he pushed himself deep within. Gasping himself when she wrapped her legs around him, locking them at the ankles and using them to drive him on. Dropping them back to the bed after a few moments with Carlos feeling them quiver as she came again and hearing her moan his name once more as he followed her over with a quiet groan of Karen's name against her neck.

The two of them settling down once they'd regained their breaths, curled up against each other, kissing gently. Karen twirling her fingers in his chest hair while Carlos ran his fingers lightly up and down the path of her spine. Both of them continuing to do so until their eyes started to grow heavy and they drifted of to sleep, with Karen held protectively in Carlos's embrace.



_____________


"Nice place." Emma smiled at Sébastien as they stepped into Urs's apartment.

"It's ok if you like the minimalist look." He shrugged while he made his way to the kitchen to make coffee.

"Wouldn't juice or water be better than that?" Emma questioned from her position in the doorway watching him move.

He was still limping a little, almost imperceptably, but her well trained eyes had picked up the slight hobble.

"Decaf." Sébastien wrinkled his nose and held up the cannister.

Emma nodded. "You are still going to see the counsellor tomorrow aren't you?"

"I'd better." Sébastien laughed and shot her a reluctant glance. "Otherwise I'm going to be in trouble again."

"Oh, who with this time?" Emma teased as she took the mug from his hand.

"Besides you?" He rolled his eyes. "My mother, Urs, David and Carlos."

"Mmmm. Four on one. I like that." Emma laughed as she teased him again and made him scowl playfully at her. "How did it feel when you kicked Anthony like that?"

Sébastien sat at one end of Urs's couch and pushed back so that it slipped into its reclining position.

"It felt marvelous, though I could have done it a little harder I think." He closed his eyes and laughed while he shook his head.

"What's so funny?" Emma questioned as she sat down close beside him.

"The looks David, Urs and Carlos had on their faces when I did it. I still can't get over it." Sébastien grunted then laughed a little louder.

He laughed for a few minutes then smiled when Emma turned herself so that she was facing his right side.

"Don't forget you've got to sign those papers tomorrow as well." She reminded.

"For the house?" Sébastien questioned then smiled again as Emma nodded. "Emma, why didn't you want to spend time catching up with Brett tonight?"

"Thought I would give him, mum and Erin chance. I had him to myself most of the afternoon and he told me what he'd been up to in Australia to distract me from what was happening." She shrugged as she replied.

"No other reason?" Sébastien yawned through his question.

"Well, that and I didn't want you to be left on your own in a place you're not totally familiar with."

"I've been dreaming again haven't I? That's what you and David were whispering about when I came out of the bathroom at the hospital."

"Yeah." Emma nodded. "But only a couple of times and nothing like as bad as you did when I first saw you."

"I thought I had." Sébastien nodded.

They talked for a little while longer and both laughed loudly when they recalled the story Brett had told them about the crocodile that swallowed his house keys, how he'd turned up at the house to find it locked and had spotted them coming out of the park while he made his way to the hospital to try and find either Emma or his mother. He had already been to the bank looking for Erin, but her fiancee had whisked her off for a romantic lunch and no-one knew where they had gone.

Sébastien drained the last of his coffee then turned to look at Emma after he had put his mug down on the coffee table. Touching her gently, he cupped her face in both his hands and spent a few moments just looking into her loving eyes and at her gently smiling face before he pressed his lips against hers in the gentlest of kisses.

"I love you Emma." He informed with his forehead lightly pressed against hers. "I just erm.......I just need to get over what's happened to me before you and I take the next step."

"I know that." Emma nodded and took hold of his face between her hands. "I love you too Seb. I understand that your emotions are all messed and you're probably unsure who you can trust at the moment." She paused to watch Sebastien nod after feeling him swallow hard. "I'm not in a rush to sleep with you. Take as long as you need. Just know that I'm here for you no matter what. Ok?" She smiled as she stood up. "I won't be long, I just need to use the bathroom."

Sébastien nodded and indicated which door she needed to head for with a soft smile. He settled back into the couch again and yawned once more as he turned the television on and quickly found something to watch.

Emma smiled as she made her way to the bathroom. She did what she needed to then quickly returned to the lounge just in time to see the television remote falling from Sébastien's hand. She took a quick look around, found a blanket large enough to cover the both of them. She turned the television off, snuggled up close to a slumbering Sébastien and dropped a quick kiss on his cheek before she wished him good night. She quickly fell asleep with a gentle smile on her lips.

"You ok?" Lauren questioned as she sat on the two-seater sofa, wrapped in his bathrobe with her legs straddled across David's shoulders, running her fingers through his still well hair. The three of them having taken a shower as soon as they'd walked through the door.

He sat on the floor in short pyjama bottoms with a Playstation control in his hands, twiddling the controls in a disinterested fashion and paying little attention to the game he was playing.

"Fine." He nodded, blinked quickly and swallowed hard. "Steph?"

"Sound asleep. No you're not fine." Lauren sighed as she leaned forward, wrapped her arms around his shoulders and rested the right side of her face against the left side his. "Tell me what you're thinking."

David breathed deep and closed his eyes before he started speaking.

"I wanted to kill him Lauren. When I had him pinned against that wall I really wanted to kill that sonofabitch for what he'd done. Everything, all of it. For you and Stephanie, Franky, Urs, Seb. Even that woman he ra...." He swallowed hard again and shook his head. "I've been angry with other men before, but never to that extreme. At that moment I could have cared less if I had killed him. If Urs hadn't tugged at my arm I.......I don't know......maybe I would have"

"Anthony you mean?" Lauren questioned with a deep breath.

"Yeah. It's not like me Lauren. Kinda scared myself." David nodded then quickly turned to face her. "But I'm telling you now, if they do get bail, I won't be responsible for my actions."

"Hey! Don't you talk like that. They aren't worth it. Not one of them." Lauren requested through tear-filled eyes.

David stayed on his knees while he looked at her. He looked down at her hands as he held them in his large ones. Hers looked so small, almost childlike. He raised his face to meet hers and just managed a small smile.

"I know. Sorry."

"It's ok. Gabe said almost the same thing and I feel exactly the same. Hearing the explosion shook you up too didn't it?" Lauren questioned as she watched tears well in his eyes.

David nodded after coughing quickly and taking a deap breath. "I thought I'd lost you, both of you, when you didn't answer for all that time. What happened?"

Lauren huffed a laugh. "I dropped the phone and it went sliding under the tumble dryer."

"So that's what that funny noise I heard was?" David smiled.

Lauren nodded. "Add to that the fact that Stephanie was screaming that she didn't like fireworks it was a little chaotic in there."

"Fireworks?" David shook his head.

"That's what Stephanie thought the explosion was. She's not very keen on them, especially the loud ones."

"Oh." David nodded and smiled. "How are you staying so calm?"

"I don't know." Lauren shook her head. "Maybe those relaxation exercises I learned a few years ago are subconsciously kicking in." She laughed, wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her nose against his. "Believe me if Jamie was in front me right now, your lounge would not be the lovely coffee colour it is now."

David nodded as he began to undo the robe, watching Lauren's face for any indication that she wanted him stop before pulling it open. Smiling softly when he saw that she was naked underneath and slipping his hands under the fabric. Kissing her lightly and feeling a shiver run down his spine when he felt the tips of her fingers carressing the nape of his neck, his body reacting immediately.

Breaking the kiss and moving her arms from around his neck so that he could push the robe off her shoulders and gently pulling down to the floor with him. The two of them laying on the rug in front of the roaring fire, pillows from the couches tucked under their heads while they kissed and touched each other.

David taking long, shallow breaths while he kissed throat, hearing Lauren moan his name when he reached the hollow between her collar bones. Moving upwards and, somehow, managing to divest himself of the shorts while their mouths made love to each other. Hearing her moan each time his tongue flicked inside her mouth.

Moving his hands over her breasts, squeezing them gently and tracing small circles around the nipples, delighting in the fact she shuddered violently when he did so, a small smile gracing his face, somehow knowing that he'd tipped over the edge already and he'd barely touched her.

Neither of them saying the words but each of them knowing what the other wanted as the opened their eyes. David rolling himself onto her, supporting himself on his knees and toes as he pushed his length into her welcoming warmth. Moving his hips slowly and taking a sharp breath when Lauren pulled him down to her and kissed him hard with her fingers curled deep into his hair, moaning his name over and over again, all of it spurring him on until he couldn't hold back any longer. Both of them reaching the pinnacle together with loud yells of each other's names, gasping for their breaths and shivering, though not from cold, as they snuggled up together to watch the flames for a few moments before heading up to bed on very weak feeling legs.

"Take your hands off me." Jamie shreiked as she was pushed, none too gently, into a police cell.

"Hey come on now." A small woman with shoulder length dark brown and blue eyes yelled through the door.

"What's the problem Stratton." The police officer who had forced Jamie into cell questioned through the small opening in the door.

"What's the problem?!" Stratton exclaimed with her hands on her hips and glare in her eyes. "You know the law, only four to a cell. With her in here it makes five."

"Extenuating circumstances." The officer returned. "The toilet in the other female cell is blocked and all the male cells are full. Not much I can do." He continued just before he closed the flap.

"Extenuating circumstances." The woman huffed and turned back into the cell.

"Hi, I'm Stratton." She smiled while holding her right hand out.

Jamie gave her the briefest of smiles but refused to shake hands. Stratton stood before her dressed in a short black mini-skirt that she had teamed with a low cut gold lurex halter-neck waistcoat that finished just above her navel and a pair of high-leg boots with three and a half inch heels.

She turned her head upwards when someone moved on one of the top bunk.

"What time is it?" A slender woman with long light brown hair and green eyes questioned as she dropped to the floor.

Jamie watched her as she brought herself erect. She stood a fair bit taller than the first woman. Jamie calculated about a foot had both women been in their stocking feet. This woman wore a red and black animal print boob-tube and a similar black mini-skirt to Stratton. She wore red high leg sixties style boots with a one inch heel to compliment her outfit.

"No idea Sissy." Stratton smiled at her. "Must be getting on though, it's dark outside."

"Hi, I'm Sissy. You are?" The tall woman introduced herself.

"Jamie." She informed with a nod and a straight-mouthed smile.

"Oh Lord." Another voice stated from the other top bunk.

"Finally! She's awake." Stratton nudged Sissy while they watched the average height, brown haired, brown eye woman slowly lower herself to the ground and stretch herself out.

She wore a short black fitted bustier dress that she had teamed with silver evening sandals. Stratton and Sissy laughed as they watched Janice grab the top of the dress and wriggle herself back down into it.

"Told you you should have left the straps on." Sissy giggled.

Janice quickly stuck out her tongue at her tomentor before she introduced herself.

"Hi Jamie, I'm Janice." She smiled while Jamie nodded. "How much did I have?" Janice queried while holding her head in her hands.

"Before or after you started table dancing?" One more voice queried from the bunk below where Janice had been sleeping.

"I didn't?!" Janice questioned with mortified look on her face.

"No." Stratton laughed out loud. "Laray is just teasing as usual."

"I can't help it" Laray shrugged and smiled as she stood dressed in a short ocean-green Ted Baker drop waist dress that she had teamed with silver jewelled t-bar sandals that had at least a three and half inch heel. "She such and easy target. Hi, I'm Laray."

'That dress is so obviously a rip-off.' Jamie said to herself while she nodded at the women.

"So, What are you in for?" Sissy queried.

"That's none of your business." Jamie hissed then perched herself on the edge of one of the lower bunks.

"Ooooh touchy aren't we? Pardon me for asking." Sissy oozed sarcastically. "Thought we might be able to help you, that's all."

"I don't need your kind of help." Jamie hissed again with a sarcastic smile and a shake of her head.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Stratton questioned angrilly as she brought herself face-to-face with Jamie.

"Now calm down Stratton." Janice insisted , shaking her head while she pulled the feisty woman away. "Its obvious Jamie has never been arrested before and she's a little nervous." She continued while she sat beside Jamie and placed a comforting arm around her shoulders.

"Take your hands off me, you filthy tart!" Jamie yelled as she jumped to her feet. "The last thing I need is help from a bunch of whores, what I need is a lawyer and a good one."

"What did she just call us?" Laray questioned with her head cocked to the left and looked at the other three women.

"Tarts and whores." Sissy nodded.

"As in Prostitutes?" Stratton queried open-mouthed.

"Uh-huh." Janice nodded.

"You cheeky bitch!" Stratton snapped as she launched the palm of her right hand at Jamie's face.

"Well, it's pretty obvious what you are from the way you dress." Jamie glared at Stratton and rubbed at the left side of her face as she spoke.

"Now that's a case of the pot calling the kettle black if I've ever heard one." Laray hissed just before her left hand connected with the right side of Jamie's face.

"At least I look good in what I'm wearing." Jamie sneered. "I don't look like ten pounds of crap that's been forced into a five pound bag."

"Is she calling us fat now?" Sissy asked watching Janice becoming rapidly angrier.

Janice glared at Jamie and nodded before speaking. "Well at least I don't look like a lollipop." Janice snapped.

"Bitch!" Jamie hissed as she swung her right hand at Janice's face.

Janice moved quick and raised her hand to stop the hand connecting. "That's Mrs Bitch to you." She hissed at Jamie's just before she slapped her hard and pushed her away.

"Well that's three offers of help gone down the swanny. Going to make it a full set?" Sissy beamed as she crouched down by Jamie's side.

Jamie swallowed hard and shook her head as she stood back up. She perched herself on the edge of the bottom bunk again and told the four women her story. All four remained impassive while she spoke.

"But I didn't do anything." Jamie sniffed. "It was all my brother's idea. All I want is for her to leave me alone."

Laray shook her head and sucked air as she looked at the other three women once Jamie had finished speaking. "Uh-uh. No way."

"Me neither." Janice held her hands up and shook her head.

"No way, no chance, no how. Not if my life depended on it." Stratton closed her eyes and shook her head.

"And I'm not sure I would be able to even if I wanted to." Sissy scratched her head.

"What the hell are you four on about?" Jamie shook her head and looked at the women in confusion.

"Oooh let me tell her." Laray clapped her hands together and jumped up and down excitedly.

Sissy, Janice and Stratton laughed and nodded their compliance. They stood together impassive again as they watched Laray step back in front of Jamie.

"Oh enough with the crocodile tears hon, we see that every day in our line of business. We can all tell when someone is lying." Laray laughed and shook her head. "Now the mistake you made, was to piss us all off like you just did. We are not what you implied we are. We are all partners in a highly successful legal firm. We all have degrees in Criminal Law."

Jamie grunted a laugh through her nose then laughed loudly. "You really expect me to believe that. What are you doing in here if your so good?"

"We were celebrating winning a huge case and things kind of got a little out of hand. Those lovely boys out there brought us in here so that they could keep an eye on us while we sobered up."

Jamie grunted another laugh, disbelieving what she'd just been told.

"Do you remember them unlocking the door when they bought you in?" Sissy questioned with her arms folded across her chest.

Jamie thought for a moment then slowly shook her head.

"After listening to what you've told us, yours is not a case any of us would ever want to touch." Laray shook her head. "I pity the poor soul who gets lumbered with you as a client."

"But you can't repeat what I've told you." Jamie shook her head and started to panic.

Laray scratched her head at the comment then looked at Janice questioningly. Being the senior partner and the most experienced among them she would have an idea if they could or they couldn't repeat what Jamie had said them in court.

"Not sure at the minute." Janice rubbed at her forehead. "I would have to check."

All five women snatched their heads up as the cell door was unlocked and it swung open. The police officer who had pushed Jamie into the room stood there smiling.

"Come on then, now you four have sobered up you can go." He laughed as Janice, Laray, Stratton and Sissy smiled and shrugged at him. "Next time you want to celebrate, try a meal at 'Ramone's'." He suggested.

The four women nodded and moved toward the door. Sissy stopped and raised her right index finger to the other three. She turned on her heels and walked back over to Jamie with a smile on her face. Still smiling she raised her left hand and slowly ran her fingers into the hair at back of Jamie's head then suddenly gripped it tightly making Jamie suck air as she yanked her head back so that she had to look at her.

"Don't recongise me do you Jamie? I recognised you as soon as I woke up."

"I've never seen you before." Jamie denied with a headshake and furrowed brow.

"Oh you have." Sissy nodded and grinned. "It's been a while though, I will admit that. Remember the slightly overweight girl you used to pick on in your first year at senior school, before she left to go to a private school? That was me. I haven't forgotten what you were like back then or what you used to do to me and it seems you haven't changed one bit. Still think you're something pretty special don't you? However, unlike you, I don't hold grudges so I won't be plotting any sort of revenge."

"Now." Sissy whispered in her ear very quietly "If any more harm comes to my cousin before your trial, I will have no hesitation in sending one of my very good friends to have a quiet word with you."

Jamie looked at Sissy questioningly and shook her head. "I don't know what you mean."

"Franky Gibson is my father's neice. His sister's daughter." Sissy smiled sweetly as she spoke. "My friends all know Franky quite well and, believe me, they would never believe her capable of what you've told us today. She's more of a woman than you will ever have the capability of being. I'm warning you, leave her alone in future unless you really want one of Eva Kendrick's little 'talks'."

Jamie gulped and her eyes flew wide when she heard the surname. She hadn't heard of the name when Brandie Ramone mentioned it, but had had a very long conversation with Anthony about them and realised they were not the kind of family you upset.

Sissy released Jamie and smiled once more. "I think we understand each other now?"

Jamie nodded then felt her head snap back and to the left.

"Just to make sure you remember." Sissy hissed as she watched Jamie rub at the cheek where she had slapped her.

"You saw that. You saw that." Jamie stamped her foot on the floor while she looked at the police officer.

"Sorry, I saw what?" He shook his head and shrugged before he closed the cell door and locked it.

Four women and one man started to walk to the exit but stopped and laughed when they heard a loud scream and the sound of Jamie's heels rapidly connecting with the concrete floor of the cell.

Tuesday

Tuesday is passing peacefully for everyone except Jamie who is questioned for quite a while but remains unrepentant about her actions. When her mother tried to visit her, she refused to see her. She rolled her eyes, paid no attention and only inspected her nails when the police officer charged her with a long list of offences.

The only time she reacted was when another officer entered the interview room and told her lawyer that her home had been broken into and ransacked, almost none of her clothing has been found intact. This news sends her into an unparalled hissy feet in which she ended up thumping her lawyer in the mouth. She was physically dragged back to her holding cell and allowed to calm down before a psyciatrist paid her a visit. He informed the officers handling her case that, although Jamie shows some psychotic tendancies, she is fully aware what is going on around her all the time, is just excessively self-obsessed and exhibits some signs of Narcissistic Personality Disorder. There is no reason, in his opinion, for her to be sectioned under the Mental Health Act and her case can go ahead.

Sébastien had a very good session with his psyciatrist and is feeling a lot more relaxed when he comes out of the office than when he went in.

"How did it go?" Emma smiled as they left the office building.

"He listened while I talked then he taught me a couple of coping strategies for when things get to me." Sébastien smiled and grabbed hold of Emma's left hand.

"Such as?"

"How did go it again?" Sébastien looked skyward then nodded. "Focus on venting of emotions, an increased awareness of one’s emotional distress, and an associated tendency to ventilate or discharge those feelings. Positive reinterpretation and growth. Making the best of the situation by growing from it or viewing it in a more favorable light, was how he put it I think"

"Oooooooooookay." Emma nodded. "That lot's gone right over my head. How can you view what's happened in a more favourable light?"

"Well for a start I would probably never have met you." Sébastien laughed as he spun Emma into his arms and kissed her gently. "And I might never have got an introduction to your favourite ice cream."

Emma threw her head back and slapped his arm lightly while she laughed then blushed bright red.

Sébastien pulled her close and held her there while they made their way down the road to a solicitor's office. He walked out with a huge smile on his face then made his way to his doctor's office where he has the stitches removed. He sighed heavily as he looked at the scar then smiled when the nurse told him that it would fade in time.

He signed several autographs and even posed for a few photographs before he left to pay a quick visit to Franky. His jaw almost hit the floor when he opened the door and saw all the flowers that she had received. The aroma of Lillies, Roses and other highly scented blooms could be smelled a long way down the corridor and hung so heavily in her room that she had to have the window open.

She shrugged and blushed while she thumbed through the large collection of cards and mouthed a 'Thank you' to him with nod towards a Rose and Freesia hand-tied bouquet that sat at the bottom of her bed. She groaned when a nurse entered with another display. This time with a beautiful display featuring twenty-four sweetly scented yellow, large headed Roses, Dracaena Tips and Pannicum Grass set off by a stylish black waisted vase. She smiled and shook hear head when Urs appeared, fully-dressed, from the bathroom that served her room.

She reddened even more when he perched himself facing her on the bed, lifted her left hand and gently kissed the back of it.

All three of them snapped their heads round when they heard Stephanie's laughter coming down the hall accompanied by two men. Carlos and David entered with the little girl closely followed by another nurse with two more flower displays. The one she held in her right hand was a collection of pink Roses, Gerbera, Freesia and Carnations carefully hand-tied with choice foliage and presented in a stylish gift bag. The one in her left hand, an elegant hand-tied of Roses, Gerbera, Lilies and Bloom Chrysanthemums. Lauren, Karen and Emma were at work and would come to see her when they were on their lunch breaks.

"Dios! I have never seen so many flowers in one place." Carlos exclaimed while he scanned the room.

"You think this is a lot, you should see what's in Lauren's office. She can barely move around in there." David laughed.

Franky's eyes flew wide as she looked at him. "I hope you're joking."

"Nope." David laughed a little harder and shook his head.

"Oh frick. Are there any left in the shops?" Franky asked while she shook her head and covered the top half of her face.

"The odd bunch of wimpy looking things here and there, but not much else." David shrugged with his usual smile.

Franky laughed and nodded her thanks to the two men once she'd read the cards then batted David's right arm and told him to shut up when he apologised for the umpteenth time for running her down

Urs, David and Carlos asked Sébastien how his session had gone and all smiled when he told them how well it he'd done. He smiled even broader when he told them he had signed the papers for the house and had his stitches removed, but he really had to be leaving so that he could get ready for his date with Emma.

They were off to see the final film in the Hitchcock season at the cinema they were supposed to have gone to the night before. The film tonight would be 'Vertigo.' Sébastien informed with a smile as he left.

The remainder of the day was spent giving their statements to the police with Franky and Urs having photographs taken of the injuries that had been inflicted while they were held captive.

"Please go home, Urs. You need some proper rest, a shower and some clean clothes." Franky demanded, smiling at Urs once the police had gone.

"Ok" Urs unwillingly nodded his compliance and gave Franky a gentle kiss and a hug. "I won't be long. I love you." He whispered just before he moved to leave her room. He turned and blinked slowly at her as he opened the door.

"Love you too." Franky closed her eyes and curled her lips into a gentle smile while she nodded and made herself comfortable in the bed.

She watched Urs leave then turned her head slightly. She didn't hear the door open again nor did she open her eyes to see Urs standing in the doorway with a soft smile on his face and his eyes closed while he breathed deeply and slowly.

Urs took one more look at her and whispered "Schlafen sie gut mein Engel." as he moved away from the door and let it close quietly behind him.

Wednesday

Judge Ramona Buckingham looked at the charges on the sheets of paper in front of her then at the woman who stood in the dock to her left. She removed her glasses, folded them up and tapped them against her pursed lips while she pondered the request the accused's lawyer had made. She noticed how the woman sat with a smug look on her face, huffing lightly as if to ask her to get a move on so that she could go home. She narrowed her eyes and looked at the woman carefully before she shook her head.

"No." Judge Buckingham shook her head and turned her attention to the woman's lawyer. "No. Your request for bail is denied Mr Taylor. These crimes......they're much too serious for me to even consider granting bail despite the fact that they are the first she has committed. Your client will be held on remand at Westholme prison pending her trial in......."

"Twelve weeks your honour." The clerk nodded after carefully checking the diary.

"What?" Jamie screeched. "You said I was going to get bail." She glared at her lawyer.

"Silence in court!" Judge Buckingham insisted while she rapped her gavel hard.

"But he said...." Jamie began.

"I said silence." The judge glared hard at Jamie while she spoke then watched Jamie fold her arms and dropped them hard against her chest. "Mr Taylor, Did you tell you client she would definitely get bail?"

"No your honour. I said that it didn't look good for her getting bail even though these are her first offences. She obviously misunderstood." Keith Taylor shook his head and glanced at Jamie while he addressed the judge.

"Very well." She nodded and turned her head back to Jamie. "Be aware Miss Strawson that I will hold you in contempt of court if we have any outbursts like that during your trial."

Jamie huffed, then nodded and gave the judge a sarcastic smile. Moments later she was escorted into the back of the ultra-modern court building. She glared hard ahead of herself when she heard her brother's voice in front of her.

"Didn't get bail then Jamie?" Anthony hissed through the bars of his cell.

"That judge is a bitch." Jamie sneered in response.

"She ain't the only one." Anthony huffed a laugh.

Jamie turned her head over her shoulder and gave her brother a foul look at which he laughed a little harder.

Twenty minutes later Jamie was securely locked in a prison van to be driven the two hundred miles to Westholme Prison for Women. She was strip-searched, allowed a shower and given the uniform remand prisoners who hadn't brought their own clothes with them wore. Faded baggy old blue jeans, a white t-shirt and a pair of heavy boots.

"I can't wear these." Jamie smiled at the officer who had handed her the clothes.

"Why not?"

"Because they're cheap and nasty. Nothing but the best quality clothing has touched this skin in years." Jamie shook her head and spoke seriously.

"Well it's either those or you walk around the prison butt-naked while we wait for Mr Gucci to arrive with your special order." The officer smiled sarcastically.

Jamie glared at the woman whilst snatching the clothes back. She headed to the dressing area where two other women sat giggling between themselves. She plonked herself down on the rough wooden bench and started to dress.

"Hi I'm Esther" The tall black-headed woman smiled broadly while she wriggled into her Gucci jeans.

Jamie looked at the jeans she had been given and swallowed bile as she nodded.

"Eva, Eva Kendrick" The other woman informed while bending to tie her Nike trainers.

Jamie's eyes flew wide on hearing the name.

"No need to look so scared." Eva laughed. "Being on remand is a breeze. What are you in for?"

"I...I...I'd rather not say." Jamie shook her head and gulped.

"Fair enough." Eva shrugged. "Shy one, are you?"

Jamie smiled a straight-lipped smile and nodded.

Once the women were dressed they were lead through a door that allowed access to the remand wing of the prison. Jamie shuddered when the large metal door clanged shut behind her. They were taken across a large courtyard, into another building where Jamie shuddered once more when the door slammed closed. She and Eva were stopped outside an empty cell while Esther was taken a couple of doors further on.

"Looks like we're going to be cellmates." Eva smiled as they entered the cell.

Jamie gulped again and watched the woman lift a small bag onto the little wooden desk that sat in the room. Eva smiled at her and took a bunch of papers from the side-pocket of her holdall.

"Time for some decorating." Eva shrugged and smiled again as she started pinning pictures on the large pinboard that hung above the desk. "Don't worry I'll leave room for yours." She nodded.

She pinned a large picture in the middle of her half of the board. It showed her with a small, elderly man and woman and two large men who looked very much alike.

"Family first." Eva nodded.

She stuck the tip of her tongue out between her teeth whilst she smoothed the remainder of her pictures out. Jamie's eyes flew wide when several pictures of Sébastien and Urs were pinned to the board.

"Gorgeous aren't they?" Eva questioned while she climbed to the top bunk, leaving Jamie to make herself comfortable on the bottom.

Jamie turned onto her stomach and buried her face into the pillow while she screamed long and loud.

Eva hung the upper half of her body over the edge of the bed and looked down at quizically at Jamie. She decided to leave the woman alone and returned to her original position. She inserted the headphones of her mp3 player into her ears and pressed play.

Jamie screamed again when she heard......

"No me abondonas asi
Hablando solo de ti
Denide vuelve al fin la sonrisa que se fué"

or words to that effect coming from above.

Thursday

"Erm...David. You're going the wrong way. My place is that way." Franky informed, pointing to her left while David turned his car to the right out of the hospital entrance.

"I know." David beamed a huge smile and nodded. "You're not going home yet."

"What do you mean I'm not going home yet? I have loads of things I have to do. I have to....." Franky stopped speaking when she heard muffled laughter coming from the back seat and turned her head over her shoulder. "What are you lot up to?" She asked, looking at all three men suspiciously as she spoke.

"We're taking you somewhere first." Urs leaned forward and whispered in her ear making her shudder.

"Where?" Franky demanded as the car turned in the town's High Street.

David drove a few yards down and pulled over. He smiled and waved out of the windscreen as he turned the engine off. He watched Franky turn back around and laughed when her eyes flew wide.

"Ah-ah! No way!" Franky shook her head as she looked up at the shop's sign then down to the man who stood waiting with a pleading smile on his face. "Non."

Sébastien laughed, stepped forward and opened the passenger side door. "You agreed to let me replace the dress you ruined so haul butt Madamoiselle Gibson." He laughed as he cocked his head towards the shop doorway.

"I know I did, but not from there." Franky shook her head and glared playfully at him. "The cheapest dress in there costs four times what I paid for the one I ruined. Non!" She folded her arms across her chest, continued to shake her head and stubbornly refused to leave the vehicle.

Sébastien leaned against the open car door with his arms folded and kept moving his head so that Franky couldn't avoid looking at his smiling face. She pursed lips together, bit her top lip, her tongue and the inside of her cheek in an attempt to stop herself from smirking. Sébastien cocked his head towards the shop one more time then laughed out loud when Franky finally left the vehicle while mumbling something rather profain in French at him, making him blush and Urs crack up laughing while he translated to English for David and Carlos. Leaving Carlos looking at her stunned and David with a very red face.

Franky huffed a breath as she took her crutches from a smiling Urs and made her way into Angelique's Boutique. She watched as Sébastien was greeted by the assistant and they spoke for a while. The assistant introduced herself to Franky as Colette then gasped as her eyes flew wide.

"What?" Franky shook her head.

"Are you....?" Colette shook her head while she circled around Franky and inspected her hair. "Are you related to Serena Hartford at all?"

Franky smiled broadly and nodded. "She was my mother."

"I thought so. No two women should have such colouring and not be related in some way." Colette beamed her smile.

"You knew her?" Franky questioned.

"All my life." Colette nodded and smiled softly. "My mother is Angelique, she made all of her costumes. I was sorry to hear of her death. I was on honeymoon at the time."

Franky sniffed and nodded her thanks.

"Now, let's have a look at you." Colette continued as she circled Franky again and tapped her right index finger at her right cheek while she cupped her elbow in her left hand. "I think I have the perfect dress for you. Size eight?"

"No." Franky shook her head and huffed a quick laugh when Colette gave her a slightly shocked look. "Ten."

Franky followed Colette back to the changing rooms and waited patiently while the woman disappeared off into another room. She soon returned with five dresses still in their plastic covers.

Colette opened the first cover and held the material of the dress against Franky's skin.

"No." Colette shook her head. "Not white. Something to bring out those lovely eyes of yours I think."

She continued the process with dresses in red, midnight blue and black. She opened the final cover and held the material against Franky again.

"That's the one." She smiled while she completely removed the cover and held the dress in front of Franky. "Are you ok on your own or do you need help to try in on?"

"I think I can manage thank you." Franky nodded with a dazed smile while she admired the jade green satin dress, knowing that it would accentuate her hourglass figure perfectly.

Keeping her weight on her left leg, she leaned her crutches against the wall of the roomy cubicle and removed her own clothes. She took the dress off its hanger and carefully slipped into it. She removed the band from her ponytail, gave her head a quick shake and fluffed her hair just a little. She smiled while she looked at her reflection in the mirror.

She opened the door to see Colette waiting and smiled even broader when the women gave her comfirmatory nod.

"Looks and fits like it was made just for you." She smiled while Franky picked up her crutches and hitched them under her arms.

She followed after Colette once more as they made their back to the front of the shop where all four men waited patiently. They soon reached the doorway and Franky paused, balanced herself on her left leg, tucked her right one slightly behind her left and stood bolt upright as she coughed.

She watched each individual face as they turned from looking out of the window to face her.

"Wow!" Sébastien exclaimed with a broad smile when he saw Franky dressed in a dark green modestly low-cut form-fitting asymmetric halter-necked short cocktail dress that complimented her skintone, hair and eyes beautifully.

David gulped audibly before he managed a long "Whoa!"

"Verrrrrrrrrrry nice. Maybe you and I should do the switching of the girlfriends amigo." Carlos growled playfully, which earned him a quick elbow in the stomach from a dumbfounded Urs and a giggle from Franky.

"You look......you look....." Urs shook his head as he took Franky's hands in his and spread her arms wide while he looked her up and down. "I erm......I don't have the words." He swallowed hard while he spoke then quickly wiped his eyes.

"Kinda like it then huh?" Franky whispered into his ear whilst dropping a quick kiss on his cheek.

"Uh-huh. You look amazing." Urs nodded quickly and sniffed as he smiled at her.

"Yeah right? With this?" She laughed and shook her right leg at him.

He shook his head and watched her as she took the crutches from Colette and made her way back to the changing room. In the short time they had been together he had never seen her look more beautiful, even though her bruises were still evident, the colour suited her perfectly and it made her eyes shine even brighter. He smiled once more when she turned her head over her shoulder and gave him a huge smile and a slow blink.

Sébastien smiled while he paid for the dress and laughed as Franky protested at the price.

"Five hundred pounds." Franky shook her head and blew out a long breath while Colette bagged the item and handed it to Urs with a smile.

"That's nothing compared to what I used to pay. Une goutte dans l'océan vraiment." Sébastien joked with a shrug and wry smile, which made everyone chuckle.

Moments later they were all back in David's car and heading back to Franky and Lauren's home. Franky smiled and nodded politely while she blushed at the people who waved as she was driven through the town centre. She settled back into her seat and lowered her window once they reached the other side of town. Just to be able to breath fresh air again felt so good and she took several deep breaths.

"You ok?" Urs asked when she felt a hand on her right shoulder.

"Fine." Franky nodded, raised her left hand to cover his and gave it gentle squeeze.

She took another deep breath as the sun appeared from behind a dark cloud and smiled while she delighted in the warmth of the sun's rays hitting her face. David checked the road then turned carefully onto the street where Franky's garage had once stood. He had only driven a few yards when he heard Franky ask him to stop the car.

"But we're almost there." David shook his head.

"Please. Stop the car." Franky nodded.

David did as she requested and watched as she struggled from the front seat. Urs left the vehicle as well and the couple started making their way slowly down the road.

"I thought you said most of the windows had been blown out." Urs said to David while he drove slowly beside them.

"They were." David nodded. "It was a terrible mess and a good job no-one was seriously hurt."

"Brandie Ramone got most of the local business involved in replacing all the glass and cleaning up. She made sure everyone got fed too." Sébastien informed after he'd wound his window down.

Franky and Urs looked at each other and shook their heads. Apart from what little remained of the garage and the few marks on the walls where metal had impacted into them, the street looked like nothing had happened. Franky reached the boarding that had been placed around the destroyed building and drew in deep breath. She looked at her watch and quickly calculated that she had an hour to spare before she would be allowed through that boarding to see the damage for herself. She huffed a quick breath out and made her way back over to her home.

She sighed when she entered the lounge and saw all of her mother's trophies and her father's collection of model motorcycles stored in cardboard boxes. She shook her head when she saw the flowers that filled the room.

"There are more in the kitchen and in your bedroom." Lauren smiled while Franky sat down on her couch and took the welcome cup of coffee Emma handed to her.

"Did you find out what happened with Jamie?" Franky questioned Karen. knowing that she had connections at court.

Karen couldn't help but giggle while she nodded then informed her friend of Jamie's fate.

"What's so funny?" Franky shook her head again.

"She's....." Karen giggled then coughed. "She's got Eva Kendrick for a cellmate."

"What's Eva in for?" Franky asked.

"Criminal damage to her boyfriend's car. Smashed all the windows out and poured battery acid over the bodywork."

"Oh boy. He must have done something really bad for her to do that." Franky nodded before she burst into hysterical laughter on recalling the news about Jamie and sat rocking herself backwards and forwards while Urs and the others looked at her quizically.

"I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't laugh, but......You...." Franky snorted. "You explain." She instructed a giggling Lauren.

Lauren coughed to compose herself while Franky continued to roar with laughter and Karen giggled.

"Eva Kendrick is Clayton Kendrick's daughter. The whole family has......let's just say a reputation around here and they're not the sort of family you mess with. You hurt one of them or one of their friends, then you'll have the whole family to deal with, that sort of thing. Franky knows her and her twin brothers pretty well because Colt, Floyd and Eva all refuse to take their bikes anywhere else but Franky's garage when they have problems. I've met Eva once or twice and I saw her at your final concert. She's a huge fan, especially of you Urs and you Seb. She's a nice enough woman until someone pisses her off. I can't help but get the feeling if Eva ever finds out what Jamie has done, well.......I hate to think what she would do to her. The last person I know of that made her angry ended up with her clothes in tatters and her fingernails bitten off. "

"Awww poor Jamie." Franky coughed as she wiped her eyes.

"I'm not laughing. Honnêtement je ne suis pas." Sébastien shook his head while he pursed his lips tight together in an attempt to stifle his laughter, knowing how fanatical Jamie was about her clothes and her nails.

He held out for almost a minute before he turned away from Franky, buried his face into hands and shook his head once more as he cracked up.

Urs, David and Carlos looked at each other then at the laughing women and Sébastien before they started giggling. The room was quickly filled with the sound of laughter coming from four men and four women.

ONE WEEK LATER

Alarice Richmond looked at the woman who stood before her and tried not to laugh. She took her job as the Governor of Westholme Prison for Women very seriously.

"Now then Strawson give me one good reason why I should move you to another cell?"

Jamie huffed a breath. She hated being called by her surname, it felt like she was back at school. "Because my cellmate Eva Kendrick is driving me nuts. She does nothing but screech along to her mp3 player all day and it's driving me crazy."

"Really." Alarice scratched near her right temple. "I thought Kendrick had a lovely singing voice?" She turned her head to the guard who had accompanied Jamie up to her office as she spoke.

The guard nodded and closed her eyes lightly. "She does. Remember that benefit concert we did for the local hospital a couple of years ago?"

"Pfft! Another goody-two-shoes." Jamie hissed quietly.

"What was that Strawson?" Governor Richmond asked.

"Nothing." Jamie smiled sweetly in reply.

"Do you have any other problems with Kendrick other than her singing and her choice in music?"

"Erm....No." Jamie shook her head and raised her eyes to look at the ceiling.

Governor Richmond smiled to herself. "The only other prisoner I could put you in with is Harris, but she's not very sociable and her personal hygiene standards leave more than a little to be desired."

Jamie blanched and quickly shook her head at the offer.

"Then I'm going to deny your request. I'm not going to disrupt the other prisoners for the sake of one."

Jamie huffed again as she was lead out of the office and back towards her cell. Her first week on remand hadn't been that bad, if you discounted the fact that Eva snored and snored loudly. The food wasn't up to the standard she was used to and most of it swam in grease. Recreational facilities were pretty good, a new television and DVD player had recently been installed in the lounge room at the farthest end of the cell block, but those items seemed to be currently under the control of a very unsociable and the slightly whiffy Mary Harris.

At least her cellmate hadn't managed to make her tell her what she was in for and her singing was the only problem she did have with her.

Frowning, she managed a straight-lipped smile at Eva as the guard pushed her back into her cell.

Eva sat on the edge of her bunk and gave her a smile in return though her eyes seemed to glare malevolently at her.

Jamie gulped quietly when she saw the look and slipped quietly onto the lower bunk. She knew Eva had had a visitor and hoped against hope that it wasn't who she was imagining it was. She listened as Eva laid herself back on her bunk and started to sing 'My Way'.

"This is going to be a long eleven weeks." Jamie shook her head while she wrapped the tissue thin pillow around her head to cover her ears against the clear, sweet, gentle voice coming from above.

____________


"You ok?" Emma asked as she moved to Sébastien's left side and gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

Sébastien nodded and shot her a quick smile before he replied. "I'm..." He breathed deep. "I'm still having a little trouble with erm...." He gulped slightly as he nodded at the tray full of raw steaks that sat on the side of the barbeque and the pool of bright red blood that had formed under them. "Do you think I'll ever get....?"

"Just relax and take your time." Emma smiled before he finished speaking.

Sébastien nodded and returned the hand squeeze Emma had given him. He took a couple of deep breaths before he picked up the first steak. Humming nervously in an effort to make himself relax he laid it gently on the grill. He continued in the same manner until had four steaks cooking. He smiled when Emma gave him an encouraging wink then snatched his head round on hearing David's voice on his right side.

"Need some help?" David beamed while he tried to take the tongs Sébastien was holding. "I need rescuing. Pleeeease tell me you need help." He whined playfully while he listened to Stephanie shouting his name again.

Sébastien and Emma looked at each other and laughed.

"Scat! Get out of it." Emma shouted as she shooed David away. "We don't need any help. We have things well in hand."

She laughed out loud when David kicked at the ground and pouted playfully as he slowly walked away. She smiled as she watched David swing Stephanie onto his back to play horsey for the umpteenth time. She returned to Sébastien's side and smiled when he slipped his arm round her waist and she continued with helping him with the cooking.

"You think he's going to survive a week?" Emma asked.

"Non." Sébastien laughed as he shot her another smiling glance. "He's got no chance."

"Do you think Franky will like where Urs is taking her?"

"She'll love it." Sébastien nodded. "It's a beautiful place."

"You've been?"

"A few years ago. Well before we were put together." Sébastien nodded. "It was beautiful even then. Just like where I'm taking you."

"As long as they sell my favourite ice cream there, I'm not bothered where I go as long as I'm with you." Emma blushed as she looked up at him.

Sébastien nodded and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. He sighed contentedly as he held her a little closer, rested his cheek against her forehead while he closed his eyes and quickly knocked a stray tear from his right cheek.

"The onions." He nodded when he sniffed loudly and Emma raised her head to look at him.

"The onions my foot." Emma whispered as Sébastien shrugged and gave her a sheepish grin then couged.

__________

"Really? They're charging them with attempted murder?" Carlos questioned wide-eyed as he glanced up from the board where he and Karen were player chequers.

"Think about it." Karen nodded. "Owen used Chloroform on Franky and that's a really dangerous substance in the wrong hands." She shook her head and swallowed hard before continuing. "He could have killed her if he had held that cloth on her face much longer according to what the police officer investigating the case told her. Then you have Jamie giving Urs the Cocaine. Same thing there, she's had no real medical training and didn't know how much she'd given him or how he would react, so they're charging Owen and Jamie with attempted murder amongst other things." She finished with a smile as she jumped her white disc over four of Carlos's in quick succession and quickly removed them from the board.

"What about Anthony?" Carlos scowled playfully as he hopped his black disc over two of hers and removed them.

"It's possible they can make a case for attempted murder, but they'll more than likely charge him with assault with a deadly weapon." Karen smiled when she felt his shoeless foot sliding gently up and down her right leg. "That whack he gave Urs with that piece of wood could easily have broken his neck." She continued as three more of Carlos's pieces left the board.

Carlos blew out a long breath and scratched his head near his temple while he tried to concentrate. He glanced up, saw the smirk and the quick flick of her eyebrows that Karen gave him while her left foot slipped up and down his right leg.

"Has he stopped the twitching thing yet?" Karen asked with a quick glance towards where Franky and Urs sat in the most secluded spot of the garden. She smiled when she how engrossed in conversation they were and how attentive Urs was being towards her friend.

"Si he has. Thank Dios. We were starting to get worried he wasn't going to. He seemed to do it for such a long time." Carlos nodded and smiled while he swept four of Karen's pieces from the board. "Think you're pretty clever don't you Miss Clarke?" He questioned as he sat back with his arms folded across his chest and a satisfied and very confident smile on his face.

Karen re-focused her attention on the board and tapped the index finger and thumb of her right hand at her lips for a moment. She set her face into a good-humoured smile and jumped her piece over Carlos's final two then shrugged as she pushed them off the board leaving only her white discs.

"What the....? How the....?" He spluttered as both hands hit the table and he quickly scanned the board. "That's seven times in a row you've beaten me."

"I did tell you I was pretty good." Karen shrugged while Carlos pouted playfully after releasing her from a long but gentle kiss.

They whispered between themselves about the separate trips that had been planned for each couple while they set the board up for another game.

"Where are we going again?" Karen asked nonchalantly as her last piece was placed on the board.

Carlos growled quietly whilst shaking his head at her. "This time I beat you." He informed while wagged his finger at her.

"Maybe." Karen smiled and shrugged.

Lauren laughed when David dropped to his knees with Stephanie still on his back. He wore a look of almost complete exhaustion on his face and smiled inanely as Lauren lifted Stephanie off him.

"That's enough for now honey. Let David get something to eat." Lauren laughed a little louder as he fell forward, the left side of his face landing gently on the lawn.

"Too....tired." He moaned quietly as he battered his right hand weakly at Lauren. "I'll just go to sleep right here." He laughed, clapped both hands together, tucked them under his cheek and smiled as he closed his eyes and pretended to go to sleep.

"David, you so silly." Stephanie shook her head and smiled.

Lauren shook her head and slipped a giggling Stephanie to the ground. She moved over to the prone man and whispered in his ear.

"Seb says the steaks are almost ready."

"Wake me up when they are." David nodded with a silly smirk on his face.

He quickly jumped to his feet when he heard Stephanie questioning Lauren.

"Mummy, what are those tiny black things crawling over David?"

"Ants honey. They're only ants." Lauren replied.

"Where?" David asked he looked himself over and started batting himself down.

"Nowhere." Lauren and Stephanie laughed loudly. "We just said it to get you up."

David huffed playfully then offered a hand to help Lauren back up. She took hold of it and yelped playfully when he pulled quickly upwards and into his arms.

"I don't know who's worse, you or Stephanie." He smiled before dropping a quick kiss on her lips.

"We're as bad as one another. Kinda like a tag-team. You don't stand a chance Yanky Boy." Lauren giggled then shook her head as she watched Stephanie chasing a brightly coloured butterfly around the garden. "She's just excited about tomorrow. Did you check what the weather is going to be like for the week?"

"It's going to be great all week." David nodded with a beaming smile.

"You're sure? 'Cos that's not what I saw when I checked. It said to expect torrential rain by Wednesday." Lauren shook her head as she looked up at him.

"Sure, I'm sure." David smiled again.

Lauren pulled her face into a suspicious look and folded her arms across her chest.

"What are you up to David Miller?" She questioned.

"Nothing." He shrugged just before they heard a shout from the barbeque that the first steaks were done. "Honest."

He continued to smile as he trotted over to where Sébastien stood serving up. He smiled and shrugged as Emma handed him his plate then made his way back to a seat.

Lauren continued to look at him suspiciously while she waited to be served.

He waited for her to turn to face Sébastien and Emma before he whispered what he was thinking. 'You're going to Disneyland all right Missy, just not the one you think.' He chuckled to himself then swallowed his first mouthful.

"What?!" He shrugged again when Lauren sat down beside him and continued to look at him suspiciously whilst shouting for Stephanie to come and get something to eat.

_________


"You are a very sneaky young lady Miss Gibson." Urs whispered in Franky's ear as he dropped a quick kiss on her cheek and handed her the burger he'd offered to fetch for her.

"Me! I don't know what you mean." Franky's smiled and shook her head while she swallowed the first mouthful.

Urs sat down close beside her in the arbour seat that stood at the farthest end of the back garden of Sébastien's new home and wrapped his left arm around her waist. He laughed as he watched Emma chasing David away from the barbeque whilst telling him that she and Sébastien had everything well in hand.

"The ice-skating lesson last night." Urs shot Franky a sideways glance as he laughed. "I wondered how you were going to teach me how to skate backwards all day."

Franky laughed. "Ron offered his services while I'm laid up like this." She smiled and tapped at the lightweight stiff plastic cast that had replaced the plaster one on her leg. This made it a lot easier for her to move around and she didn't have to put so much weight on the crutches. "So I took him up on the offer. He owes me a few favours anyway."

"Like what?" Urs questioned.

"You saw the red Honda parked up when we arrived?" Franky questioned.

Urs's eyes widened as he swallowed a mouthful of barbequed chicken and nodded.

"That thing was a wreck when he found it four years ago. A complete rust bucket. I spent hours restoring it to its former glory but only ever charged Ron for the parts."

"Did that include the paintjob?" Urs questioned.

"You mean the gold dragon wrapped around the petrol tank?"

Urs nodded.

"No." Franky shook her head and smiled. "That's Gabriel's handiwork. Why? Did you like it?"

"It looked great. The detail in each scale was amazing." Urs's eyes widened.

"I know. Hours of work went into that." Franky nodded "How's your thigh?" She sniggered as she recalled how hard he'd hit the ice on one fall.

"Sore from that hard smack onto the ice." Urs pouted and rubbed at the offending left leg.

"Aww poor baby." Franky smiled and patted his face gently. "You'll have worse than that before you're ninety."

"Think I'll give up now then." Urs huffed a laugh.

"You wouldn't?" Franky's eyes flew wide. "I thought you were enjoying your lessons."

"I am, but only when you're teaching me." Urs flicked his eyebrows but flushed slightly while he nodded. "What do you think?" He asked while he held up what little remained of his chicken.

"It's good. You were right, he really can cook." Franky smiled coyly as she nodded and looked back up the garden to watch the other couples.

Sébastien still had his left arm lightly around Emma's waist and continuously shot her smiling glances while they cooked.

"Can't take his eyes off her for five minutes can he?" Urs whispered when he noticed that Franky was watching everyone.

"No." Franky shook her head. "Where's he taking her tomorrow?"

Urs leaned in a little closer and whispered in her ear again and Franky nodded after she shuddered.

She turned her head to watch Carlos and Karen still staring intently at the chess board whilst playing footsy under the table. Franky laughed and shook her head at the couple who always seemed to be touching in one way or another.

"And Carlos is taking Karen to......" Franky leaned into Urs's ear and whispered. She laughed when he shuddered and nodded.

"That's right. Lauren, David and Stephanie are off to Disneyland." Urs laughed as he watched David collapsing to his knees while he held a giggling Stephanie on his back.

"Do you think he'll survive the week?" Franky giggled.

Urs sucked air just before he laughed out loud and shook his head.

"So where are you taking me?"

"S....." Urs began but stopped himself just in time. "There you go with that sneaky thing again."

Franky laughed as he pulled her head round and looked at her for a few seconds before he kissed her long and deep.

"What did the insurance man have to say?" He asked after he'd released his hold on her.

"I'm covered for everything, even the other three bikes. The ones belonging to my customers. I can set up a new garage." Franky smiled. "I should have the money to do it in about three weeks time, but I'm going to use some of my own money to get things moving before then."

"Great." Urs smiled. "You err...You have packed the dress haven't you?"

"Sorry, what dress in particular are you alluding to?" Franky teased as she rolled her eyes into the back of her head and turned her face away from him.

She laughed out loud when she felt Urs's hands at her waist and threw her head back as he started tickling her.

Friday - Rome, Italy

"Well don't just stand there, go in." Sébastien laughed while he gave Emma a gentle push into the luxurious penthouse apartment he had rented not far from the Spanish Steps. He watched he face carefully as he took hold of her hand and they explored the place together.

The apartment was on the third floor of a nineteenth century building and could be accessed either by the wide magnificent marble staircase or the elegant early twentyieth century lift. The entry door opened into a living room that was large and elegant with three couches arranged around a large marble fireplace. In one corner stood a complete entertainment system and a connection for the internet. A dining-room with a marble table that could seat up to ten people had been constructed to the left of that. The walls of this room were decorated with artwork from the eighteenth and nineteenth century.

Emma looked at Sébastien wide-eyed and blew out a long breath while he pulled her gently down a long hallway to the bedrooms. They found the master-bedroom suite quickly and spent several minutes arguing back and forth about who should have the use of it. Sébastien insisted it should be Emma's while she argued the opposite.

Sébastien laughed loudly when Emma finally relented and blushed as she took in as much detail of the room as she could.

"I'll get lost in that." She joked with a nod at the queen sized four-poster bed covered in its white Eygptian cotton sheets. "Real silk." She ooed after she'd touched the comforter that hung neatly over the footboard.

A little further down the hallway were two more bedrooms, each with their own queen sized brass beds. One had been decorated in a highly flowered design at which Sébastien stuck out his tongue and wrinkled his nose. The other room had been decorated in three different shades of blue. He smiled and nodded at that room. These two bedrooms were served by a large bathroom decorated in classic white Italian ceramics and strips of terracotta.

"It didn't look this big on the internet." Sébastien shrugged and smiled guiltily while Emma continued to look round open-mouthed and wide-eyed.

"Yeah right." Emma flicked her head as they made their way still hand-in-hand back up the hallway, through the lounge and found the completely equipped kitchen at the far end of which was a laundry room. Double doors a little to the left of the entry door gave access to a very large terrace, furnished with sun loungers, a grill and a glass-topped table and chairs.

"What do you think?" Sébastien questioned as they sat down on one of the couches.

"Err.....Wow!!" Emma exclaimed. "It's just a little hot in here." She smiled while looking up at the tall Venice style coffered ceiling.

Sébastien stood quickly and made a quick dash to the kitchen where he found the air conditioning control, turned it to cool and switched it on. He made his way back to Emma who had moved over to the window and stood shaking her head whilst taking in what she could see of the city from this position.

"What's wrong?" Sébastien questioned as he wrapped his arms around her waist and saw the tears glistening in her eyes.

"Nothing." Emma smiled and shook her head. "It's just so beautiful." She informed while she nodded out of the window.

"Certainly is." Sébastien smiled, looking at Emma rather than where she had indicated.

____________


Friday - Vienna, Austria

Karen decided to have a little fun with Carlos while she waited for him to unlock the door to the penthouse apartment he had booked. She kept her face stoic when he smiled at her, held the door open and allowed her to walk in before him.

The door opened into an entrance hall and the visitor was greeted by four doors all of the same four-panel design and painted white with chunky silver-coloured handles.

The first door they opened gave access to a living/dining room tastefully painted in light taupe colour. A caramel coloured six seater L-shaped leather couch sat in one corner and faced the French windows that allowed access to the roof terrace where there was a dining table large enough for six people.

Karen started to tut quietly to herself as they left that room. She opened the door and pursed her lips tightly while she perused the low king-sized wooden bed covered in soft yellow cotton linen. She bit her lower lip slightly to stop herself from laughing when she saw Carlos chewing on his own bottom lip while he watched her movements through his eyelashes. She almost laughed when she heard him whisper a quiet 'Meirda' whilst turning out of the room and walking across to the next door.

This door opened into a large, fully-equipped kitchen. Karen ummed dispassionately when she saw the size of the range and oven, her stomach meanwhile rumbled at the meals she could imagine conjuring up on that piece of kitchen equipment. On leaving that room and making their way through the last door she coughed a little and swallowed noisily.

Behind the final door was a fair-sized bathroom with a very deep bathtub and a shower cubicle that could accomodate two people easily.

They moved back to the lounge and sat next to each other on the couch. Carlos leant forward and sighed heavily while he linked his fingers together.

"You don't like it?" He questioned Karen without looking at her.

Karen laughed out loud then smiled broadly as he turned to face her. "David's right. You are soooo easy to wind up." She giggled while shaking her head. "It's a wonderful place."

Carlos turned to face her with a playful scowl on his face and whispered some extreme profanities in Spanish after he'd kissed her.

"What?" He questioned on seeing the shocked look on Karen's face. "You don't know what I just said."

"Oh yes I do." Karen nodded and repeated his profanity in English. "Planning on getting some payback?" She asked with a nod to his injured hand.

Karen laughed as Carlos nodded, raised his eyebrows and looked at her with playfully evil grin on his face before they curled up together on the couch and slowly drifted off to sleep for a little while.

Friday - Disneyland, Florida, United States of America


"What?" David beamed while he shrugged and held his open hands in front of him. "You wanted to come to Disneyland, so here you are." He continued as they stood in the Ambassador Suite of the Disneyland Hotel.

"You knew exactly where I meant." Lauren laughed whilst wagging her right index finger at him.

"The one in Paris you mean? Pfft!" David waved her off while Stephanie pulled him from the lounge area into a large room that contained two single beds.

Lauren followed after the pair and watched as Stephanie kicked off her trainers, scrambled onto one bed then laughed deleriously while she bounced from one bed to the other.

"Hey that looks like fun!" David beamed as he lifted his right leg and gripped hold of his shoe.

"Don't you dare!" Lauren yelled, grabbed his arm and stopped him. "Stephanie that's enough." She instructed with a laugh.

"You're no fun." David and Stephanie pouted together as they flumped down on one of the beds with their arms folded across their chests.

Lauren snorted a laugh then raised her eyebrows and leaned forward to whisper in David's ear.

"That's not what you said last night."

David's eyes flew wide at the comment and Lauren watched him flush bright red while he shook his head at her. She turned and left the room and quickly found the luxuriously equipped bathroom that had been decorated in a soft lilac.

"Thank God it's not pink." Lauren laughed to herself as she headed towards another door that gave access to the master bedroom.

She gasped when saw the size of the room. The top floor of the house she shared with Franky could have fitted into it with room to spare. Her eyes widened on seeing the king-sized bed covered in navy blue covers. She walked over to the French windows that gave access to a small balcony and shook her head when she saw the view over the Neverland swimming pool.

"Mummy can we go for a swim?" Stephanie asked as she came to Lauren's side and appealed to be picked up by holding her arms up.

"Soon honey." Lauren nodded and started pointing out some of the rides and attractions they could see. She smiled as she watched Stephanie's little eyes light up.

"Will it do?" She heard David whispering in her left ear as his arms wrapped around waist from behind.

Lauren swallowed hard while she nodded and rested her right cheek against Stephanie's now sleeping form.

_______________
Friday - Luzerne, Switzerland

"Well. What do you think of my retreat?" Urs questioned while they lay on the bed in the master bedroom entwined together in the aftermath of their lovemaking.

"Oh! You want me to tell you what I think of your home from the fleeting glance I got as we entered from the garage, passed the small cloakroom and laundry area and into here?" Franky laughed as she recalled how he'd swung her into his arms and crashed through the building whilst kissing her passionately. "From what I've seen so far its very nice. How much more is there?"

"There's a small, fully-equipped kitchen to the right of the bedroom door. The dining-room is separated from the living-room by a six foot sliding glass door. The living-room is pretty big. Thirteen and half feet by twenty-three and half feet if I remember right and it has a vaulted ceiling. That door there....." He paused and nodded over Franky's left shoulder. "....leads to a bathroom with a double bowl sink, a six foot whirlpool and a four foot shower. Beyond that is a large walk-in closet."

"Upstairs?" Franky questioned.

"Two fair-sized bedrooms and a bathroom." Urs shrugged.

"So why did you book a hotel room when you have this place."

"My youngest sister, Merle, was staying here up until a couple of days ago." Urs nodded after remembering that she'd heard him cancelling the arrangements he'd made. "She needed somewhere quiet to study for an exam in modern art. I just hope she passes this time."

Franky nodded. "When did you buy it?"

"I didn't." Urs shook his head and sighed quietly. "My grandfather did, about three years before he died and left it to all of us. I use it more than anyone else. It was his erm.......His place to retreat to when he wanted to remember my grandmother. She loved it up here before the houses were built. I can remember when I was eleven, watching her water-skiing on the lake. Grandpapi always thought she was crazy because the water is never particularly warm, but she loved it. I'll have see if Mami's still got those old cine films. It would be nice to see her doing those tricks again."

"You sound like you were very close to her."

"I was. She was the only grandmother I ever knew. She's been gone nine years now and it's almost three and a half since Grandpapi died. Vater's parents died when I was a baby. What about you?"

"I knew both sets." Franky sighed. "Until I was twenty-six anyway. They all passed away within a year and half. Grandma Hartford went last and left me the house. Sissy and her brother got the lettings agency."

"So how come you're not living there?"

"I did for a while." Franky nodded. "But when I found out how bad the garage's finances were I sold both properties, made sure the second mortgages on my parents's home and........you know."

"Jamie's family home?"

"Yeah. Made sure they got paid off." Franky huffed and shook her head. "It sounds really stupid that I did that now, considering my father left it to Jamie's mother, my solicitor even told me as much but I just wanted to make a new start, with a clean slate. No-one coming after me for what was owed. I made enough on Grandma's house and mum and dad's to pay all the debts, to get the garage back on its feet and to buy my current home with a fair amount left over. I didn't want sell, but there was no way I was going to see the business go down after almost a hundred years of being there and I couldn't bear the thought of Gabe and the others being out of work. It took a lot of hard work and many sleepless nights, but I got there. I only hope I won't lose any of my regular customers because of the move."

"I think your parents would be very........even prouder of you than they must have been before they died. You've got a great location at the industrial estate, perhaps you'll be busier than ever." Urs smiled and nodded while he wiped away the few tears that had made their escape from Franky's eyes.

"Maybe. Now tell me who arranged to hire the jets for each trip." She queried as she snuggled a little closer to him.

"Seb arranged it all via the internet. I paid for our plane, David paid for his and so on."

"And you call me sneaky." Franky giggled and dropped a quick kiss on his lips. "How come you drove so quickly through the town centre?"

Urs rolled his eyes into his head. "I didn't want anyone to spot me. I don't want my family and friends to know I'm here just yet. I want us to have a few days ALONE together before you meet them."

Franky nodded and smiled.

"You are ok with that aren't you?" Urs questioned

"Fine." Franky nodded then started laughing loudly.

"What's so funny?" Urs asked as he pulled back and looked at her.

"The looks Lauren, Karen and Emma had on their faces when we turned up at that private airport." Franky snorted.

"You should have seen yours." Urs informed as he pulled his face into a wide-eyed, open-mouthed expression.

"I did not look like that." Franky glared at him playfully.

Urs closed his eyes and nodded once.

"Didn't." Franky whispered in his right ear, making him shudder again.

"Did." Urs grunted a small laugh as he nodded with his eyes still closed.

He held her closer and they both continued to giggle while they bickered playfully back and forth.

Franky whooped one last 'Didn't' then flipped herself off the bed.

"Where are you going?" Urs asked as he watched her hop towards the bag she'd dropped to the floor on their arrival.

"To wrap a present." Franky returned with a smile before heading to the bathroom and locking the door behind her.

"Who for? It's nobody's birthday." Urs shouted while he looked around the floor, spotted their discarded clothing and wondered how Franky's bra had ended up wrapped around the light fitting. He couldn't recall tossing it that high over his shoulder.

Feeling how crumpled the sheet was underneath him, he stood, quickly straightened it out then lay back down, propped up on his elbows, keeping his eyes focused on the bathroom door waiting for Franky to emerge.

A quick laugh escaped as he recalled how nervous she'd been around him three days after her discharge from hospital. How hard she'd found it to tell him that her period was two days overdue and she was normally regular, taking most of the evening to do it. He smiled as he remembered holding her tight after she'd taken a pregnancy test which had shown she was wrong and how relieved she'd been the following morning when she'd woken to find that she had started. He swallowed hard remembering the pain he'd seen her in and how tired she'd looked for the first three days, because this one had been particularly heavy.

Hearing the door being unlocked and feeling pins and needles begin to creep into his muscles, Urs pushed himself up the bed and rested back against the pillows while he watched the door swing open. His eyes flew wide and he felt the blood rush to his lower half when he saw Franky standing in the doorway dressed in a red lace-up corset, matching tie-side briefs and one red stocking.

"Now tell me this was not how you imagined seeing me a few days ago?" She asked teasingly.

"Not quite." Urs replied with a teasing smile of his own as he stood from the bed and made his way over to her.

His brow knitted together when he saw that the lace fastened at the bottom rather than at the top. He felt pure silk beneath his hands as they slowly slipped around her waist, found their way up her back and into her hair while his mouth found hers and they exchanged slow, passion filled kisses. He stepped back after they'd released the kiss, scooped her into his arms, placed her on the end of the bed then knelt before her.


He ran a hand slowly down the stockinged leg before undoing the suspender and rolling the stocking carefully inch-by-inch downwards, kissing each new area of exposed flesh as he moved, paying particular attention to the inner thigh, the arch of her foot and each of her toes once it was off.

He stood and moved to push her down only to feel her resist him, take hold of his hands and turn him so that he sat on the bed while she moved to kneel before him. Feeling new sensations course through his body when she ran her hands lightly up and down his thighs. His fingers feeling like they were made of butter while he worked at pulling the lace from its loops. Reaching forward and lifting her so that she straddled him, feeling her grind the silk against him while he squeezed her bum and sucked hard on her nipples, nipping gently and giving them a quick tug, making her cry out in pleasure.

Feeling like he would explode again any minute and using every ounce of self-control he had while he pulled at the laces holding the knickers in place., making both of them shudder as he pulled the skimpy piece of material away slowly. Knowing that she'd come for second time as he dropped it to the floor.

Wondering what was going on when she got off then dropped to her knees again.

"Mein Gott. You're not going..........Ooooooooh Gott. That's so good.' Urs moaned as he watched his manhood disappear between the valley of her breasts three times before she dipped and took it into her mouth. "And that's even better." He informed in a trembling voice, feeling her squeezing his balls and gripping the bedsheet tight. "Please Franky. If you keep doing that I'm going to............" He pleaded through breathless moans, though he didn't feel her stop.

Instead she picked up the pace, using her hand to stroke his straining shaft while he curled his fingers deep within her hair, his eyes wide open and gasping for every breath as his hips twitched, he shot everything into her mouth and watched her swallow. Closing his eyes for a few seconds and taking a deep breath, knowing that he'd never been taken all the way like that before.

Lifting Franky back onto the bed and kissing around the small amount of hair she had on her pubis before gently pushing her legs apart and slowly dragging his tongue through her folds. Sucking on and swirling his tongue around her clit and continuing to do so while he slowly and gently using two fingers to bring her close to the edge before adding a third, driving into her hard and fast, lapping enthusiastically at her juices, making her scream his name long and loud while she tugged at his hair, not caring if anyone in the homes around them heard her coming.

"On the ice is not the only place you're amazing." Urs informed breathlessly after moving himself back up to loom over her and give her very deep kiss, tasting her and himself as he pulled back, then lying beside her.

The two of them eventually settling themselves laying spooned together. Urs's right arm wrapped around her chest, cupping her left breast, his other arm wrapped around her waist, his hand resting on her stomach. His face nuzzled into her neck with her hands atop his, fingers linked together as they slowly drifted off to sleep for a while.

Vienna

"You're sure its Thursday today?" Carlos questioned as he stood leaning in the bedroom doorway with his left hand pushed into the pocket of his jeans and his right hanging casually at his side while he watched Karen pack.
"Absolutely positive." Karen turned her head to face and smiled as she nodded.

"It's gone too quick." Carlos huffed whilst moving to sit on the end of the bed.
"Yes it has, but I've had a wonderful time."
"Truly?" Carlos questioned with one raised eyebrow, wondering if she was teasing him the way she had on their arrival.
"Yes." Karen nodded, dropped a quick kiss on his lips and plonked herself down next to him. "Where have we visited in the last few days?"
"We started off at the Naschmarkt." Carlos informed with a nod. "Where you needed my help to buy what you needed for our meal." He teased.

Karen laughed and nodded. "That's right. The following day we spent most of our time at the Danube Tower and Island. Then we went to the Karlskirche, the Hofburg and took a leisurely walk around the grounds of the Belevedere Palace. That's where you were spotted by couple of Austrian fans. What did they say to you?"

"They asked how I'd done this?" Carlos laughed and held up is right hand.
"And you said?" Karen asked suspiciously when she spotted the smirk on his face.

"That David had accidently slammed a car door on it." Carlos laughed a little louder. "Payback." He laughed once more when Karen said that David would kill him when he found out.

"The day after that we had that picnic at the Schonbrunn Palace."

"Don't forget the evening we spent dancing at that nightclub." Carlos smiled .

"Put them to shame in that little Latin club didn't we?" Karen questioned as she returned the smile while Carlos laughed. "There was somewhere else." Karen furrowed her brow and thought for a moment.

"The Prater." Carlos whispered in her ear as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her down to lay on the bed next to him.

"How could I forget?" Karen flicked her head. "That's where you paid the operator of the Ferris Wheel to stop it once our cradle reached the top."

"Si, for a few minutes so that I could kiss you properly." Carlos rolled his eyes into his head while he wriggled closer to Karen, both of them lying on their sides, face-to-face.

They lay that way for a while and just looked at each other. Karen smiled while she turned the index finger of her right hand in the chesthair he had on show and felt herself tremble when she felt his left hand slip slowly down her thigh and back up again before he moved it around to her back to undo the fastenings of the skirt she wore.

"What are you doing? I have to finish packing." She asked with a giggle as she was flipped onto her back and skirt went flying across the room.

"Obtener más vengaza." Carlos returned with a flirty look while he worked at getting her t-shirt off.

"I see. Revenge for the way I teased you when we arrived?" Karen questioned her fingers dealing with the fastenings of Carlos's jeans and pushing them down after feeling him already hard against her thigh. "You don't remember what I told you after the fire?"

"Si I remember." Carlos replied between dropping kisses down throat and quickly dispensing with her underwear. "I guess I have a weak and feeble mind after all." He continued with a smile on his face as he raised it to me Karen's and kicked his jeans off.

"Never." Karen shook her head slightly, her arms wrapping around his neck, pulling him down into a deep kiss.

Hearing the both of their voices moaning while they plundered each other's mouths. Carlos's deep and rumbling, her own much higher and sweeter. Feeling the heat rise deep within her while Carlos moved his hands over her body, her back arching a little as he moved his mouth to her breasts, sucking and nipping gently. Her fingernails digging into his shoulders when she felt a finger glide between her folds. Expertly taking her slowly close to edge, leaving her begging for more as he moved away to dispose of his own underwear. Wondering what he was doing when he knelt on the bed between her legs and gently pulled her close to him. Allowing a long, slow moan to escape as he eased himself inside her, pushing himself as far as he could go and seeing him close his eyes when her body reacted with a fast clench.

His eyes opening slowly, his hips moving purposefully slowly while his hands continued to caress her body. Not increasing his speed until she heard herself pleading with him to so, her hands curled so tightly in the bedsheets she'd felt them come loose as she came twice in rapid succession. Knowing that he hadn't peaked yet as he adjusted his position, keeping himselt inside her while he moved to lay over her and holding her tight against him while kissed her again, his hips thrusting hard while nibbled on her earlobe. Sending violent shudders coursing through her body as she came again. Roaring her name long and loud as he followed her over. Listening to him and herself gasping for breath while womanhood continued to grip around his manhood until she'd squeezed him dry.

"You like the way I payback, si?" Carlos questioned, still breathless once he'd softened and moved to lay on his back with Karen snuggled up tight against him.

"No." Karen returned with a straight-face and headshake. "I love the way you payback."

Realising that she was teasing him again, Carlos shook his head then closed his eyes and huffed a quick laugh.

"Thinking of a way to make me pay again?" He heard Karen whispering in his ear while her fingers returned to playing with the hair on his chest.

"Tal vez, mi amor. Tal vez." Carlos returned, his eyes open, a mischievious glint in them and a flirtly smile on his face again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 120 Part 1

Six days later

Rome

'Where have those six days gone?' Sébastien questioned himself as he stood on the terrace with a glass of red wine in his right hand and his left arm wrapped around Emma's waist, the score from an Italian opera drifting from the lounge.

They smiled while they watched the local shopkeepers begin the process of closing up their stores. Sébastien huffed a small laugh as he remembered how he had tried to get Emma into some of those shops on their first full day their and how she had responded with firm shake of her head. 'Ridiculous prices for ridiculously skimpy clothes' she had said while she shook her head in protestation.

They had walked hand-in-hand down one of the side streets and found shops that had clothes more to Emma's liking and she had chosen a little black dress from Chanel and sunglasses from Ungaro, both of which she paid for by using some the money she still had set aside from her cancelled marriage to Darren. The only thing she had allowed him to buy for her was the small bottle of Ungaro's 'Diva' perfume.

The following days had been filled with doing all the usual touristy things, visiting all the sites of the ancient city. The Colosseum, Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill. The Farnese home, with its beautiful renaissance gardens, had taken Emma's breath away and they had had a quiet and relaxing picnic lunch there. Their visit had been completed by walking around the forum to find Julius Caesar's tomb. Having decided to the follow the Via Sacra out of the Forum they had walked up a staircase and found themselves behind the Campidoglio. Both of them had gasped audibily at the view of the Forum from there, it had been absolutely breathtaking.

Other trips had included visits to the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel. One whole day had been dedicated to visiting Sant Peter's Cathedral and they had stayed their long enough to listen to vespers mass.

Eating out had been tremendous fun for both of them. They had found several excellent restaurants, pizzeria and ice cream shops. Laughter had filled the front of one of the tiny ice-cream shops they found, when Emma said that the traditional, homemade ice-cream tasted a hell of a lot better than anything Ben and Jerry could ever come up with.

The only time they had had a slight problem was when they had paid a visit to the Trevi Fountain, where one rather forceful man had pulled Emma away from Sébastien while his wife insisted on having her photograph taken with him and got his autograph. Emma had smiled as she shrugged and said that she supposed it was something that she was going to have to get used to when Sébastien had looked at her with a concerned expression on his face.

He'd shaken his head and told her that, while he appreciated the attention, he hated the rude way the couple had gone about getting what they wanted, had they approached politely, he would have given them their moment. He would not allow anything like that to happen again especially when he was on private time. She had dropped a quick kiss on his lips and smiled as she grabbed hold of his hand and they had walked sedately back to the apartment.