Skin Deep II - Chapter 12 free porn video

Chapter 12 One Dance Ends While Another Begins A moment can be expressed in many different ways. Strictly defined, one might see it as a period of time delineated by the start of an event and the end of an event linked by a common thread or emotion. Michelle had seen and felt many moments in her life, some better than others. There had been moments of great joy and moments of deep fear or sorrow. She was having one of the latter moments now. This one however, was turning out to a spectacularly bad one. She knelt on the floor of the MediHOV next to the gurney that carried the unconscious body of her husband. She tried to remember a moment in all her life worse than this one. None came to mind. Not the death of her sister. Not attending her father's funeral as a person that could not express the grief she truly felt without exposing herself and her trap. Not even losing her previous identity had been this bad. She felt as if she might be losing her soul. Even worse, she felt she was powerless to stop it from happening because the man she depended upon to fix things like this was what needed fixing. It was hard for her not to think of this in terms of good and bad. It was impossible for her not to search for a time worse than this. If she could find one moment that towered above this one for all its pain and suffering...if she could find just one where the result was positive, then she had justification to reason that Gary might survive this. Michelle tried to move closer to her husband by slipping her knees under the gurney to get her body as close to Gary's as possible. The floor was tacky with Gary's blood. Michelle was dimly reminded of it each time she shifted her weight. It mattered little to her that she was kneeling in the gore. She was concentrating on her love and his need right now. She stroked his hair and talked soothingly to him though he gave no indication that he could hear or feel her near. His eyes were swelling from the impact his face had taken on the floor of the police station when he fell. His nose was broken and lay askew from its formerly noble line. She had done her best to clean away the blood from his face without touching what she feared might be painfully tender or the injured spots on his face. She occasionally stopped speaking and gently, lovingly kissed his cheek or forehead allowing a restrained tear to splash off of his cheeks.. She shifted her position again and felt the tackiness of the blood on her knees and legs. God there was so much of it! She wondered what kind of job they thought they had done in stopping the bleeding with everything leaking out of him like that. The thought made her tremble with fear. She wanted to ask, to let the NEOMed know that this couldn't be right, that there shouldn't be this much blood. Each time she was about to her mind would stop her. What if you do and they say, 'We know that. We can't stop the bleeding.' Or 'What do you expect with a hole big enough to put your fist through, Geeze!' It was enough to keep her silent. Whatever answer they gave her it would scare her and that wouldn't do Gary any good either. She decided to do what she could for him and just be here and let him know how much she loved him. She stretched again to kiss his forehead and when she resumed her kneeling vigil she was surprised to find his eyes open. He seemed to be staring off far away and she assumed he was not cognizant of her presence next to him. She continued to coo to him and stroke his blood-splattered hair when she realized that he was now looking at her and trying to smile. "Gary?" "Mumph," he growled. "God, you just don't know how painful being shot can be until you actually do it. I don't recommend it as a party trend." She laughed a ropy spit laugh through the saliva that had thickened in her mouth as she knelt there and wept for her husband. "Oh God I thought you..." she trailed off not wanting to alarm him. She was uncertain how much he suspected about his condition. He tried to lift his hand to touch her face and grimaced at the pain it caused. He did not call out or complain. Instead, he continued to try until Michelle grasped his hand and eased it back down next to his side. Once there, she continued to hold it. He seemed satisfied with this and did not struggle again to lift his arm. "Are you alright?" he croaked. "You didn't get hurt, shot?" "I'm fine, you're fine. The whole damned world is fine. Now please rest," she begged him. "There's blood all over you!" he observed concerned. "You hit the floor and got a bloody nose." Gary tried to laugh at her words, but instead he coughed up foamy blood. Michelle wanted to run in horror at the fountain of red froth that erupted from her husband. She fought the urge. Instead, she found a sterile towel and wiped away the blood as the froth settled. "Please, please... Gary. Rest... Be quiet and just rest." She could not control the tears now. She had never seen anything so horrible in her whole life. How was he living through this? It seemed that he would start bleeding from his fingernails soon; he was bleeding from everywhere else. He was quiet for a bit, his eyes closed for a moment, but Michelle knew he was still conscious and alert, his breathing was labored and he was concentrating on pain. Then his eyes were open again and there was a determination in them. A knowing if you will that something was changing. The looked filled Michelle with dread. She didn't want the knowledge that Gary appeared to be ready to share with her and yet, she could not speak to stop him. "I love you Michelle. I want to say that now. Do you understand?" Michelle was silent but nodded in short quick nods, a signature gesture at times of great stress. "I was..." Gary coughed and winced as pain shot through him like another bullet contorting his already disfigured face in to something nearly inhuman. "Gary, don't try to talk. Just lie still, please!" His wife put her wonderfully soft hand on his forehead and eased him back down on the stained and blood wet pillow. He lay there for just a moment basking in the luxury of her touch for what he felt was surly the last time in his life not wanting the sensation to fade or stop. At length he opened his eyes and continued. "I was so happy you came back to me. I thought I'd lost you." Michelle cracked a tired but loving smile and said, "How could I stay away from one as loving as you? You are my whole world Sir. You and this family we have. So you have to lie still until we get to the hospital where they can get you all better." Gary looked away from her at that and Michelle wept bitter tears. She understood that Gary believed he would not survive the day. "Don't you dare think about leaving me Gary? Don't you dare!" He looked back at her with a look of sympathy in his eyes. She wanted to slap him for that look. It said, I would stay if I could but the choice is not mine and has already been made. "I thought you were gone. Your sister told me there would be a sacrifice." Now Michelle was shaking her head wildly to indicate the negative. "No. You didn't see her. She's dead Gary." "Yes my love, just like you wrote in that lovely journal." "No Gary, stop it, please." She pleaded. She bent her head to his forehead hoping he would be silent. But Gary didn't stop, he plodded on unabated. "I didn't believe you. I questioned when you knew that your Dad had died. Do you remember that night?" Michelle nodded. "Erin likes me now. Who would have thought, huh? She thinks I've done a good job protecting you. Loving you. Have I done that Michelle?" "Gary..." "No, let me finish." Michelle was silent. "She told me about a sacrifice. It was after you had... left. I was devastated. I knew I had lost you. After all my praying that I would not out live you. I could see you were not aging. I thought... hoped, hell prayed that I could have you all my life and go before you. Pretty selfish huh?" Michelle shook her head no and gently ran one hand down the side of her husbands face. "I was wrong, it was me. I was the sacrifice. And I'm glad Michelle. I can't live without you. I know how selfish this sounds. You put the family back together and now it's time for you to move on." "What are you talking about? No! I won't do it. You can't listen to her Gary! She lies!" "Michelle, I'm sorry." Gary breathed. "For what my love?" Gary didn't answer; he simply closed his eyes. Michelle knelt there at his side in silent surprise for a moment. "Oh no." Michelle whispered as she ran her hand over his face To the NEOMed she seemed so lost. He would have held her if it had been appropriate. He ached at her display of pain. "Don't go, please Gary. Don't ... don't go!" Michelle quietly pleaded. She trembled over him. Her hands shook as she touched his face. "Please..." she looked up at the NEOMed, the tears formed deep pools at the bottom of her in the deepest green eyes the young technician had ever seen. "Please Sir, he..." she looked back down at the still body of her husband releasing the pools of tears. They splashed on Gary's battered and lifeless face where they ran off his cheeks. "He can't die, can you do something? Please." The NEOMed offered a strangled cry and told her he was doing everything he could. The man checked Gary's vitals and told Michelle that he had just passed out. He tried to hide the fact that nearly the entire blood reservoir for Gary's blood type was lying on the floor under her. He failed to tell her that he didn't think Gary would make it to the hospital. He wanted only to calm her and it did. The half-truth had worked some because she thanked him hand placed her lovely head on his chest and rode the rest of the way to the hospital in silence listening to the shallow breathing of her husband as he slipped into a coma. -*- When the MediHOV's doors open at the entrance of the emergency ward. The glare of lights for the VID cameras and the crowd of reporters that blocked the doors to get a shot of Rouston's first family in their moment of tragedy were unbelievable. Through the narrow doors the HOV, Michelle could see no end to them. They were a threatening crowd. Each fought the other for a glimpse of the shattered body that was her husband. The frightened her with their ferocity and aggressiveness for images or a statement. She could hear her name being called over and over again. "Michelle?" "Mrs. Shipley, please?" "Michelle, Michelle, Michelle!" "Are you going to sue the police department for the murder of your husband?" "How does it feel to be a widow Mrs. Shipley?" "How are you..." "What are you..." "When are you..." "Who are you..." The worst part for her was that she could see a smile on each and every face in the crowd. Michelle wanted to scream in fear and anger. The NEOMed and the driver prepared to move Gary from the MediHOV to the hospital emergency room pleading for the reporters to move but they only crowed in closer when the realized they might be able to get a clear shot of what they thought was the body of one of the states wealthiest and most popular men. Michelle understood that these people had no interest if Gary lived or died. It was not good news. What sold news chips were the image of the dead bodies of the wealthy and the envied. Michelle anger took hold of her and just as she was preparing to dive into the crowd of reports and thrash them, the crowd parted from the rear. There was a shouting that was coming closer from behind the reporters and then the top of a head came into view. The top of the brown-haired boy marching through the crowd was that of Randall Benton. He was shouting and shoving cameramen and reporters, men and women alike to the left and right of the line he was walking forming a wake behind him as he passed. They flew from their feet and landed in awkward positions on the concrete patio of the emergency receiving deck. "OUT OF THE WAY!" he shouted. "GET THE HELL OUT OF THE WAY!" he shoved and bullied his way up to the rear doors of the MediHOV. His eyes went to the gurney, Gary was now strapped into and there was the sound of sucking wind as Randy gasped between his teeth when he saw Gary's condition. She saw a look of pain reflected in Randy's eyes that could only be shared by a member of ones family. A single tear fell from his eyes and then she saw him struggle to recompose himself and be strong. He looked up to her and, in spite of her pain, she smiled to him, "I didn't know you were so forceful Randy." "Only for my family." He whispered. Michelle crouched and touched Randy's face tenderly with one hand. "How is he?" Randy asked. But Michelle didn't answer. She simply didn't know. It was best to say nothing at all. "You," he asked. "Are you OK?" "No." she said. It was a selfish moment, but one she felt Randy would understand. He had become such a strength for this family and she needed just a moment of it. She felt he would not mind if she imposed a bit of self-pity on him for a moment. "But I didn't get shot," she admitted. "Good. That's something at least." "Hey buddy, give us a hand!" The driver of the MediHOV was saying. Randy turned and out of the corner of his eye he could see the mass of reporters moving in again. He quickly turned to face them. In unison the two hundred or so people all visibly flinched back almost two feet with an audible gasp. It wasn't' far enough. "I said TO GET BACK!" Randy shouted at the crowd. He picked out the closest and biggest man he could find and landed a right-cross on the jaw of the man. He collapsed to the ground like a felled tree. With him he took down two other reporters, one a woman that became pinned under the huge man's dead weight. "OK Who wants some?" Randy cried and the crowd moved back two more feet. "Well?" He asked. No one responded. "Then GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Most of the reporters fled to a safe distance clearing the way for the gurney to enter the building. There behind the safety of the glass doors of the hospital, Michelle's girls were all waiting for their parents to arrive. The gurney with Gary's limp body was quickly removed from the MediHOV and trundled past the children. They gasped and looked on in horror as the man with the disfigured face was wheeled down the hall and out of site. Each of the girls were visibly shaken, none had known how serious this had truly been. All Beth had heard while on her sisters HOVVID as Erin came home was that their father had been injured and was on the way to the hospital. Erin turned and walked to the wall carrying Shelly from the grisly scene. They all turned back to the HOV when they heard Michelle say in a weak voice, "Hello girls." She stood there soaked in blood from the waist down. If it had been one hundred and forty years earlier one might have been struck that this woman look like a reenactment of a warm November Dallas afternoon in 1963. Erin gasped in horror believing that there was no way her mother could not be hurt covered with all that blood the way she was. "Mom?" Michelle could see the concern and fear in each of their eyes, "I'm OK. I'm fine." She rushed after the gurney as the NEOMeds hurriedly pushed it inside the building and down the hall. She raced up behind the gurney ignoring the feeling of the blood drying on her legs "Please... How is he?" Michelle asked one of them. He didn't answer, apparently busy with some other function. She turned to the man that had been in the ambulance with her, the one that had cared for her husband during the trip from the police station. "Please Sir, can you tell me how he's doing." "He's alive!" was all he said. "That's it? He's alive? I have to know how he is. Please help me?" she begged. The NEOMed from the ambulance mumbled something in medical jargon to his contemporary on the other side of the gurney. The other man nodded in return and whisked the body on the gurney through a set of double doors that were marked with a sign above them that read, "Authorized Personnel Only!" The two watched as the doors hissed and swung shut, forced closed by mechanical pumps that insured a smooth transition from closed to open and vice versa. With the doors closed, the NEOMed turned to Michelle who was starting to cry again. "Ma'am, I'm sorry I can't tell you more. I wish I could, and if I knew more I would tell you what it was. The fact of the matter is that we simply don't see wounds like this much anymore. To be honest with you, I've never even seen a gunshot wound before." Michelle's eyes were filling more and more with terror with each word. "Are you telling me you can't fix his wound?" she whispered. "I didn't say that. What I'm saying is that... I'm going to have to call in a surgeon; it may take some time to track one down. The NEOMeds of the day were glorified nurses with background and training in minor to median surgery introduced to compensate for the ever-shrinking pool of qualified MDs. Their roll over the last seventy years or so had been huge on the medical industry. Hospitals seeking to become profitable now staffed eight percent or more of their surgical staff as NEOMeds reducing costs to MDs by better than half. The benefit was far greater than simply monetary. Many of these interim surgeons were seeking medical doctorates. This position could reduce the amount of school a student had to attend by two thirds, offing an attractive middle- income salary and practical hospital experience eliminating the need for internship. The down side was during cases of extreme trauma when an experienced surgeon was needed. Quite often surgeons were kept on retainer much as a lawyer might be, called in only when professionally needed. Only the wealthiest of hospitals actually had two or more on staff at any given time. "I have money. I have lots of money, millions... it's all yours. I?ll sign anything. Please, don't let him die." The NEOMed took Michelle by the shoulders, "Ma'am, believe me. If we can save him we will. I promise you I'll personally make sure that everything that can be done well be done. But I have to get back there with him. Right now, I'm the keeper of this injury's history, OK?" Michelle sniffled and nodded her agreement. The man dashed off. Michelle, left alone in the middle of the emergency waiting area hung her head, pressed her fists to her eyes and wept. Behind her, her children stood not sure what to do. There was only shock and confusion, pain and anger. Gone was the hope the morning had brought. Beth couldn't help but feel she had failed. A disjointed phrase played over and over and over in her head and she could not shake it. The King is dead. Long live the Queen. Beth tried to be strong but the last two weeks had seen an emotional stress of her physical change build and build as new feelings fought with old identities and the science of biology changed internally what had been there before. It had been assumed there was a purpose for all of this madness from which the boy William had been condemned to live. But it was impossible to see if one still existed and if it did, just what it might be. Her father was dying. She looked up at Erin, a vantage point she was rapidly getting used to the longer she remained her mother's daughter, she looked to see if Erin had heard the same dreadful portent from the man that had brought her father in as she had. Erin's eyes were glassy and distant and full of fear. It was this look above all others she had not expected to see on her sister's face. Erin had always been strong and fearless. At times, as her brother, Beth had mistaken it for masculinity. Erin was tough and wild, as demonstrated by the way she dressed and the dangerous people with whom she kept company. Nothing scared Erin, nothing until now. This seemed to be a barometer of the gravity and depth of the seriousness of the situation. Beth began to weep. Erin, watching her mother and knowing that Beth was now loosing control also began to allow emotion to show through the cracks of her armor. "Erin?" asked Shelly. The small girl reached out with both hands and cupped her cheeks. "Erin?" she said with a face marked by deep concern for her sister, "Don't cry Erin. Daddy is fine." The girl was so touched by the young girls concern for her sister that the flood gates poured open for the first time in years and Erin's true emotion escaped from behind the emotional wall that she had placed there to keep it all in. At the sound of Shelly's voice Michelle remembered she was not alone. The girls had been there when she got off the MediHOV. She turned and there they were. All but Shelly were clearly upset. Guilt sank a rusty blade into her heart. She wiped her eyes and walked slowly to her children. "How is he Mother?" asked Erin. It was the most compassion and pain she had seen from her daughter in years. "I don't really know baby. He's hurt pretty bad," Michelle answered. "Where... where..." Beth started, but she couldn't complete the question. "In the chest, Honey. He shot him in the chest," Michelle once again started to cry with the memory of it. "That son of a bitch shot him." She cried miserably into her hands. The children gathered around her put their arms around her until she calmed down some. Randy appeared with a nurse at his side. "Mrs. Shipley?" "Yes?" she lifted her head to acknowledge the inquiry. Randy smiled. "I thought you might feel better if you could get out of those clothes and cleaned up a bit. Joann here says there is a shower you can use. "Yes, it's on this floor, we can get you some hospital Jonnies to wear until someone can get some clothes for you." "I'll do that." Beth said. Randy had other ideas however. "No, you need to be here with your Mom and Dad. Give me your passcard, I'll bring back everything you'll need Mrs. Shipley." Michelle offered Randy a weak smile. "Has anyone told you how wonderful you are recently?" Randy turned to Beth who was still very upset but calming down some, "As a matter of fact, yes. Someone told me that just this morning." Randy took Beth's passcard from her and Beth allowed the palm of her hand touch and gently glide down the side of Randy's face. The shadow of a rough beard was beginning to sprout there, a sign that the day was going to be long. Randy smiled without looking at anyone but Beth and said quietly, "I'll be right back. Help get your Mom cleaned up." He turned to run to his HOV but was stopped when Beth caught his hand and drew him back to her. She mouthed the words, "Thank you." and then kissed him lightly on the mouth. Randy smiled a sad but grateful smile. Given the situation, it was hard to enjoy any emotion they shared for one another. He turned as was gone. She watched until he dashed out the door and the automatic doors had closed behind him. Joann the nurse Randall had introduced to Michelle was gently guiding her by the arm toward a door against the south wall. "Come with me, Honey. We'll get you all cleaned up." Beth started to go with them following Randy's instructions to help but Michelle waived her off. "Stay here, watch after your sisters I'll be right back don't worry about me." Shelly was getting heavy in Erin's arms. She may have been a small four year old but she was still a four year old and it didn't take long for her weight and gravity to take a toll on one's arms. Shelly ran off to the Kiddy Korner, a section of the room where toys, play houses and other children's activities were located. "I hope she doesn't remember much of about this," Erin said as her baby sister ran off to play. The two watched as she talked with two other children roughly her age in unheard tones but her face suggested the negotiation of the rules of play for the three of them. When the negotiation period was over and all were satisfied and understood the rules the three shrieked and giggled with great humor as she played, dashing in and out of a large Polyteck playhouse with her new friends. "She knows more than you believe. Kids always do," Beth said. "How can she not? She saw Mom. I'm surprised she's not screaming and scared to death." "I think she is. She was trembling in my arms. I think she just needs to do something familiar like to make her believe that her world isn't crashing in on itself." Erin paused. "She's really not much different than the rest of us is she?" "No, I suppose not," Beth agreed. Erin and Beth regarded each other for a moment, each wiping tears from their face. Then something happened. A strange peace settled over them. Unbeknownst to the other, each girl felt as if they had been reunited with a long lost sibling. The two had of course known each other all their remembered lives. As far back as their memories went they had each other in focus. But not like this, not for obvious reasons. And yet, here they were as familiar as two sisters could ever be. Each understood the great love one had for the other in this time of family crisis. Yet, each was unaware the other was feeling the warmth of it their love in return. The two fell into each other's arms and cried silent tears for their loss, pain and for the uncertain future a head. As they broke their embrace several minutes later both Erin and Beth moved with methodical slowness to the seats turned and sat down in unison. "So," Erin said with a sigh, "When are you going to tell me what the hell is going on here?" Beth rubbed her hands together and blushed. "To start with it looks like your brother had a fatal accident while skiing in Germany." Erin looked shocked. In truth, she never dreamed that her parents would not be able to reverse what had happened to William. The statement, while revealing was not clear, not in Erin's mind where her ideas had always focused on William's return to the family fold. "What's that supposed to mean William?" It was the first time she'd been called her real name in days. Might be the last time too. Don't get used to it. Beth looked around too see if anyone was listening. "It's means dear cousin, I'm stuck. I got a trump hand and William cashed out. Mom is upset right now and doesn't even know she almost gave me. I'm Beth, Erin. I'm going to be Beth for a long time to come." She reached out and took her sister's hand. "It's OK. Better this way than the alternative." "You're not making any sense. What alternative?" "Trust me, there are some things Erin that..." "Yeah, I've heard that before. Remember the conversation outside your bedroom door, the night I mistook you for a trespasser?" "That was a bad night," Beth admitted and giggled at the memory. "You know something, I meant to ask you... Why were you only half-dressed?" Erin scrutinized her sister's face with a serious look. "Um... don't laugh at me, OK?" Erin lightened up and agreed with a nod of her head. "Uh. I tried to pee standing up." "No!" Erin said surprised. Beth nodded with closed eyes and raised eyebrows. She shrugged and said. "I wasn't used to the equipment." "And now?" Erin asked. "I don't know," Beth admitted. "I didn't grow up with this stuff. I mean. My body works pretty much the way it always did. I have legs, arms, a head, a butt... I'm used to the way it feels for the most part. I'm sure there are things I don't know about yet." "Like having your period. That's always fun." "Ew, Erin! Why did you have to bring that up?" Beth asked disgusted. "You can't tell me you haven't thought about it?" Beth shook her head. "Ok... maybe later. I'm here if you need me. I'll do my best to explain things, as I understand them. And I have some reference chips you can use, stuff from sex ed." Beth looked at her sister for the first time with genuine gratitude. "Thanks Erin. That will be better than talking to Mom about this stuff. I thought about pregnancy for the first time the other day." "You and Randy..." Erin asked pumping her eyebrows up and down in a knowing manner. Beth blushed. "No. We haven't. Oh God this is embarrassing." "Good because if your plumbing is intact, then you can get pregnant. That's not something you want to do until..." The talk evolved into what Beth would remember as her first "girl talk" conversation with Erin, the first of many. It was a welcome distraction from the business of the day. A pleasant moment before the roof caved in again, to borrow a worn out phrase. This time when the roof came down however, Gary was directly underneath it. -*- The shower room was antiseptic clean. The nurse offered Michelle soap, shampoo, clean towels, washcloths and an orange hospital Johnny to use until her fresh clothes arrived. "Anything I forgot?" asked Joann. Michelle touched the woman's arm and shook her head, touched at the kindness the nurse offered. Joann left giving Michelle her privacy. Michelle undressed; stripping off the blood soaked red suit she had borrowed from her predecessor's wardrobe and dropped them in the trash. These were someone else's clothes. It was a disturbing notion that they had been purchased by someone that had looked exactly as she did, with exactly the same body. She undid the blouse and threw it away too. The blood had stained through to her panties and bra. Blotches of it were all over the front and rear of her panties and the bottom of the cups of her bra were lightly stained. She stripped She stood and as she had shortly after what she had always referred to as 'her accident' and she was surprised to see Michelle staring back at her. Hi, remember me? She had been glad to kill Mike, she had too much to lose to allow him back now but now she was afraid of the wager she had laid down. Forever! How long is forever now? She had gambled that the time remaining for her and Gary would be 30 or 40 years minimum, maybe many more. It didn't matter to her if Gary got old and she didn't and she had also gambled that it would not matter to Gary either. But she had no idea that the time remaining would be only a ten-minute embrace that would have to last her, how long? Her metabolism was not allowing her to age as most people do. What did that mean now? Would she have to wait until she was what a hundred years old, two hundred? Please God, just a little longer, give me a few years to get used to the idea of living that long without him. Don't take him now. I love him. I don't want to have to live without him. She looked at herself in the mirror. I told you I was here to stay a long time ago. Just you and me kid. Michelle wailed in pain and anger as she reared back and hurled the container of soap at the mirror. The mirror exploded in a shower of glass and Michelle, nude, slipped to her knees and grieved for her husband whom she felt certain would be dead by the time she was through with her shower. The nurse that had brought Michelle to the shower and a co-worker ran in and with glass crunching beneath their feet were shouting, "What was that?" - "What was that noise." They saw Michelle crouched on the floor limp and weeping and they understood or thought they did. One helped Michelle up and into the shower while the other vacuumed up the shards of broken glass off the floor. The one nurse that was helping Michelle into the shower was speaking to her, telling her to let it all out. "Go ahead and cry, Honey. You'll feel better." And surprisingly she did. She began to numb and eventually just stared at the showerhead not crying, unmoving, only letting the warm water wash over her, thinking about how it will be without him; bracing herself for the loneliness. Every once in a while she would shudder with the fear of a thought or sadness but in time the nurse left to see if she couldn't get a doctor to prescribe a sedative for this poor woman. The other left as well to get an orderly to make sure all the glass was up before Mrs. Shipley had to get out of the shower. Michelle was standing there in a trance when she heard Erin's voice. "My sweet baby sister. I understand what you are going through." Michelle's eyes fluttered open and she looked through the frosted glass of the shower to see a vague figure standing there. "How could you understand?" Michelle replied weakly. "Do you think that when I passed I didn't feel the pain of loss?" Erin asked her sister. "I've discovered I don't care Erin. Do you know how much I loved you in life? Do you? Then you did this to me. You changed me in a way that I could never go home. Left me there to fend for myself without the first lesson on how to do this. ALONE!" she screeched. "Not alone. I left you in the hands of the one man that could help you become who you have become." Erin spoke calmly. "Yes, you did. And in case you hadn't noticed I fell in love with him. I have three children by him. Now you do this! You take him from me; first by sending me back to being someone I don't even know any more. What was that Erin a cruelty joke? Did you want to refresh my memory on why I hated being a woman for that first year of my life, HUH?" "Now Gary is in there fighting for his life. Shot in the chest for God sake." The recollection of why she was here sent her into a new cascade of tears. "God-damn you Erin. God-damn you." "This will be hard to understand, Michelle, but this was done all for you." "Thank you very fucking much! OK, Let me just say that right now before we go on because I don't know what I would have done all these years without your help." Michelle went back to crying. She tucked herself into the corner of the shower stall, covered her face and wept while the warm water fell in sheets off her back. Outside the shower door the slender shadow paced back and forth waiting for a lull in the tears. "I need you to listen to me Michelle, it's important that you not miss what is going on here. There is not much time. "THANKS TO YOU!" Michelle screamed. There was pained sigh from the other side of the shower and Michelle felt the heat of the flame of victory in her heart. Almost instantly she was ashamed it had grown there. Erin sounded weary, "The future is not determined. You have more to do. Do not miss your opportunity to act. It will be too late soon." The words did nothing but kill the guilt she had felt just seconds ago. "You're not done yet? Have you come to orphan my children too? You've tried that already Erin, but I tricked you! I found a way back to my family." Michelle paused then said harshly, "I want you to leave me. Do what you have come to do but I don't want to know about it in advance." "Oh Michelle, I wish you could see the bigger picture. I've not come here to hurt you or your family but to free you from..." "SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!" She slammed her hands against the sides of her head covering her ears. "I'm so tired of playing your fucking games. Who in the hell do you think you are? You destroyed Mom by leading me to being changed into a woman. That damn near drove me insane, but I adjusted. I had a family, and I was fucking HAPPY! But we can't have that now can we? What about my son? What's up with you? Do you hate men or something? You've changed me and now my son into women without ever asking us once how we might have felt about it." There was a long pause and then Michelle sighed. "Just kill me and be gone." "I will go. But I can't go until I tell you this. This is the moment that was foretold to you and to Gary. Do not miss it. The pieces are in place There will be no ... " "You mean for Gary to sacrifice himself for his family? He's done that already. Now GO!" Michelle screamed. "You will not get a second chance. Don't wait too long. The last piece is even now waiting for you to use. Be aware of the time. This is all for you." The figure on the other side of the glass was gone and suddenly Michelle was very afraid she had been too hasty in banishing this particular ghost. "Wait! Erin... I'm sorry." But there was no answer. She plunked her head against the stark white tile of the shower stall and felt sorry for herself. The pieces were in place? What the hell did she mean by that? Michelle realized it might have been a way out of this mess and in her selfishness she had chased away that hope. "Think, think! What could she have been talking about?" She bumped her head on the tile trying to jog her memory. "Don't wait too long... Wait for what?" "Mrs. Shipley?" a voice echoed off the tiles, someone had come in while she'd been talking to herself. Michelle said, "I'm sorry, just thinking out loud." "It's OK, if anyone is entitled you are," said the sympathetic voice on the other side of the shower door. "Your little friend arrived with a bag of things for you. I'll just leave it here. I'm locking the door on the way out to give you some privacy. It unlocks from the inside just turn it to the left when you're ready." "I hope you know how grateful I am for all your help." She sounded weak and beaten but happy to have so many caring people around. "Go now, get dressed. Your kids are waiting for you." The nurse dismissed the thanks. She heard the door close and the lock slide home. Michelle examined the contents of the bag. Inside were three pairs of jeans, a pair of dress pants, three comfortable T-shirts a blouse, two bras, panties, perfume, deodorant, her make-up kit, her tooth brush, tooth paste and hair bands. It was packed for a long stay. God bless you Randy. Michelle dressed, afterward replacing the toiletries back into the overnight bag and zipped it up. She pulled back her hair and twisted one of the hair bands around it making a ponytail. Feeling decidedly better, she grabbed the bag, unlocked the door and stepped out into the hall. To her left the hall opened up to the waiting room of the emergency lounge. Her family had moved into this room and she could see Shelly playing a game of catch with Randy, Shelly's teddy bear being used as a ball. Shelly would squeal with delight when she would catch the bear making Randy laugh deep and hearty. She was so grateful that he was here, for what he had done so far to help out. On a bench of connected seats where her other girls, they seemed to be huddled together out of self-defense. Kit had joined them along with Frank's wife Amanda. Shelly was playing tickle with Uncle Kit, shrieking and giggling with great joy as she tried to tickle the man everyone saw as her favorite playmate. No one saw her as she walked up behind them and placed the bag on the seat next to Erin. "So what's the word?" Michelle asked not sure she really wanted to hear the answer to that question. Surprised at her reappearance; they all turned to face her. "He's in surgery right now. They won't know anything until he's out." Erin said Kit picked up Shelly and kissed her on the cheek, "I'm going to go see your Mama now little one." He set her back down on the floor. Shelly smiled and said, "Kay!" She ran back off to the Kid's Korner as Kit watched and the then stood and came around the long line of connected seats and took Michelle in his arm and hugged her. "How did all this happen?" he asked. Amanda had also come around with Kit. She had her hand on Kit's arm and Michelle reached out and placed hers over the back of Amanda's and smiled. "Callahan finally snapped!" Michelle said. Kit and Frank knew of Callahan's hatred and contempt of Gary. Each of the three of them had always understood they also bore an equal responsibility for that hatred. Kit's face was miserable; Amanda's was full of pity. Michelle turned to Amanda and asked. "Frank? Is he OK?" "Oh Michelle. He'll be fine. He's shaken. You know how much Frank just loves Gary. Sometimes I think they're actually brothers. He'll be fine. It's Gary we're all worried about. Frank's on the way however, he was in Maryland buying for the stores when we heard the news." Michelle nodded. Amanda was a sweet woman with a tender heart. She would have done anything for anyone if asked. She was as much a part of the family as anyone standing here with one great exception. She knew nothing of the incident that had created Michelle Donavan in the first place. "How are you?" Kit asked. "You know me..." she said. It was an answer designed to avoid the issue. "Yes, I do. That's why I need to know. How are you? How are you really?" He reached up and took Michelle's face in his strong hands and looked gently into her eyes. "Tell me." "Hey!" Amanda said looking around as if she had some how simply missed his presence. "Where's William?" Michelle had forgotten all about a cover story. She had forgotten that the family was now very much in the public eye again, and that William was not going to be coming home. There were going to be lots of those questions from now on and she was going to have to answer them convincingly until Gary was better. If he gets better you mean... The pain and stress of the last few days came crashing down on Michelle. Her face, beautiful and ordinarily full of life began to shift and wrinkle. Her eyes pinched and she suffused with color. She tried to think of something to say, someway to let Kit know that William was all right. Why not, he was part of their little group, one of the remaining four of the original six left standing. What came out however was her what she had conditioned herself to say at the police station. "He's gone." It was a harsh reality in the face of her current pain. It was a marker of failure to her family and her husband. It burned her heart with its firebrand of shame. "Gone? Gone where love? If you need I'll go and ..." Kit was offering to go and fetch her son for her. She placed her fingers to his lips and he fell silent with a confused look on his face. Amanda too seemed confused. "He's dead Kit." The reaction from both Kit and Amanda was harsh and immediate. Each one was talking at the same time staying different things. "What?" Kit cried in surprise. "NO!" No Amanda breathed. Michelle nodded; she could say nothing. The very fact that she knew that William stood feet behind her didn't make the lie any easier. She had to keep it going. The peril of losing her son as contraband was still very real and very great. Kit could be trusted but no one really knew if Amanda could handle the idea and to this point no one had been willing to test the idea. Once that particular genie was out of the bottle, there was no real way to get her back inside. Michelle was losing her grip on her emotions. She croaked, "Skiing accident in Germany." She then broke apart in his arms. She fell onto his shoulder sobbing and shuddering. Kit wrapped her up in his arms and did his best to shelter her from any further pain. The older girls had heard what was transpiring and both moved off together, weeping just a bit. The wept for all of it, their father, their mother the pain that each knew they had brought to such loving people the fear of possibly losing one of them and most of all the uncertainty of the future. The huddled together and to everyone, they seemed like a family gripped in the throws of incredible loss (which of course, they were.) No one questioned Michelle. Her son was dead, her husband was fighting for his life on an operating table and she had been the subject of an intensive police search for two days. No, no one would question her. Those that loved her wanted only to comfort her. Three hours later after she was done explaining to her friends the alibi she had been spoon-fed, after she had repeated the story for Frank when he arrived and after they had all hugged and cried and hugged. She felt the time had come to send everyone home. Yes, she assured them, she would call the minute they heard anything. Kit didn't want to leave her there to fend for herself. Randy; however, stepped up with Beth by his side, "Don't worry Mr. Garrison I'm here. If they need anything I'll zip off and do it for them." He was still reluctant to leave. "The reporters are still out there, Michelle. Are you sure you don't want me to stay, just to run interference?" Michelle smiled. "You'd be surprised at how convincing Randy can be," she said. "Go home Kit. I'll call you in the morning." "You'll try to get some sleep?" he asked. "No Kit. I won't sleep until I know he's going to be OK." Michelle said. Kit nodded his understanding, smiled a slight smile of embarrassment and kissed Michelle's hand. "Yes... of course." He shook Randy's hand and said, "Make sure you take care of them." and winked. Randy nodded and Kit slipped out the door into the sea of reporters and now fans of tidewater that had gathered outside the door. Michelle exhaled and slipped around to sit down next to Beth. "What have you told your sister so far?" she asked in subdued tones as she sat down. Erin turned around to face the two. "She told me that the attempt to undo what Carry did was a wash. The best this guy could pull off was a switch. You guys really have to bury William? I mean, I know he's really not gone but..." She turned to Beth. "What about your friends?" Erin turned back her mother, "What about Shelly? She adored William, we have to kill him off? Why can't we just make it seem like he's missing? It would be just as easy to explain if he suddenly showed up again. Assuming we ever find a way to undo this." Erin said holding up Beth's hand." "Erin, I may have more reason to stay now. Most of what's been recorded is done. I'm pretty sure that undoing it would really level suspicion at us. There were too many different people working on this from too many sides to safely put a game plan together." Beth glanced behind her at the sounds of Randy and Shelly playing together and she became inwardly excited. It was not something Beth, in spite of the tragic events of the day, could completely control either. Nor could she hide it either. Erin saw her eyes glaze over just a bit and the smile touch the corners of her mouth when Beth looked at Randy. When Beth turned back to her sister, Erin was careful not to tease with a smile or a look. Things were hard enough. Beth's was a complicated issue and Randy had been not only an ace but also a gentleman. Beth could do so much worse in this world. "We can't say anymore about this. Shelly doesn't know and can't, not for a while." Michelle said to the both of them in a serious tone. "As for what has to be done next, I'll take care of that." "Mom?" Erin asked. "Yes Hon." "I'm sorry about all the trouble I've been ... well, over the last few, what, eight years?" She hung her head. "It's alright." "No Mom, I wasted all that time being a spoiled brat, being envious of you." She sighed and exasperated sigh, "I wasted so much time." Michelle leaned forward and took her daughters hand. "If this is a concern to you then don't waste anymore time lamenting over it, move on and learn to live. I'll always be there with you Erin, but we have to move on now." Erin nodded ashamed and her Mother squeezed her hand to let her know that everything was OK. Over the course of the next eight hours surgeons managed to stabilize Gary's condition. In 2021, firearms had been outlawed for use by all except the military. For Michelle, it was easy to see why from the condition of Gary's wound. The entry point was only the diameter of a finger. It was where the bullet had exited that was the concern. The bullet ripped through is pectoral muscle where it began to mushroom, the head doubling in size. It then struck a rib splintering the bone and flattening out the bullet. Gary's right lung was in the way so the bullet removed most of the top of the lung where it connected to the bronchial tube. The flattened piece of lead then careened into his shoulder blade vaporizing it and punching it out of his back through a hole that seemed impossibly large. Without advanced technology, there would be no way for surgeons to fully repair the damage. For the most part, beyond a few advancements that were approved by the government for public use, most of the truly beneficial technology was considered contraband and illegal for use. If Gary survived it would be a miracle. The doctors all agreed that he would never use his right arm again and there was a good chance that if infection took hold, they might have to remove the arm after all their troubles to save a useless appendage. As Gary underwent surgery, Michelle and her family, joined by Randall chatted off and on, reminisced about Gary and all the good times they had shared as a family taking great care not to refer to Beth as William. They talked about the time they had to call a rescue team out when Gary, clowning around as he had a tendency to do, got his hand stuck in a poly-jar of olives. The Michelle and the kids had thought it a riot when Gary had tried to pull the jar off, thinking at first it was a joke. But when he spoiled his shirt with olive juice after the jar had slipped out of his hands he became frustrated. Michelle had pleaded with him to stop. She was close to peeing in her pants she was laughing so hard. "God Gary... Stop fooling around," She stopped to let out a bray of laughter that was so harsh it sounded like a donkey braying. "You're ... You're making a mess. The floor is covered with olive juice." With that Gary slipped with a surprised "Whoop!" and vanished behind the counter in the kitchen and landed with thud. Michelle and their two children were silent, surprised at the sudden turn of events. Then from the floor behind the counter came. "Damn IT!" and all three started laughing hysterically again. When Gary got up from the floor, his back was drenched, soaking in olive juice. The jar was still there, stuck to his hand. He looked at the three of them with a scowl and Michelle and Erin tried to put on a serious face but William's laughter broke the poker faces of the other two and the exploded with renewed laughter. "A little help here." Gary pleaded with his family. They pulled and tugged on the jar, olives bouncing around inside making hollow thumping noises, with no luck. Gary smashed it on the counters in the kitchen but the plastic based material would not shatter or break. At one point he even forgot it was stuck to his hand and tried to scratch an itch on his forehead, Boink "OK, that's it... someone call Fire Rescue I don't care what they say... I have to get this damn thing off." "But Honey..." Michelle started, "I really like this new look. Can't you keep it on just for the night?" "That's not funny Michelle. These olives are getting mushy." The jar had come off when Fire Rescue came and cut it off. Everyone got a huge laugh out of it, everyone except Gary. It wasn't until later that Michelle caught him chuckling to himself. When she asked him what it was about he explained he was trying to see in his mind what they must have seen when he had slipped in that juice on the floor. He had to admit that he would have laughed if the shoe had been on the other foot. When the stories became less light hearted they stopped telling them. Each of the women took turns pacing the floor. Each time a doctor appeared they anxiously followed him or her with expectant eyes until they either found someone else in the waiting room or pass out of sight completely. Occasionally, Beth or Erin would drift off to sleep for a few minutes at a time. Randall borrowed blankets and covered the sleeping girls with a blanket, then would run off to get coffee for Michelle. At one point when all three of her daughters were asleep she pulled Randall of to the side and thanked him for all he was doing for her family. "You may already understand this, but I'm going to say it anyway. Thank you Randy." Randall seemed genuinely confused. "For what Mrs. Shipley?" "First of all you need to drop the Mrs. Shipley stuff and start calling me by my name." "Yes ma'am" "No. Not yes ma'am OK? Michelle Right? "Yes ma'am." "Ohhhhhh. You are stubborn aren't you?" Michelle declared. "Yes ma'am." Randall said with a toothy grin. "OK then have it your way. What I wanted you to know was that I want to thank you for all you and Beth did for all of us." "Yes ma'am. I understand. It was my pleasure to be there to help." Michelle smiled, "You know, Gary was my best friend. He had been since I was very young." She paused. "We met in school, second grade." She said with a thoughtful look on her face. Then she said something surprising. "I was going to lose him. Bet you didn't know that." "I assumed as much, from what Beth and I read in your journal," Randy admitted. "I'm glad you and Beth read that, for more reasons than for the clues that helped bring me back. It's a relief to be found out," she said with obvious relief. She reached out and touched his arm tenderly, then resumed her story. "Yes, Gary and I were becoming distant. I was well on my way to becoming a star and Gary was well on his way to the fringe." Michelle sighed. "It was a sad time. Even then, even for us as teenagers it was sad. Guys aren't supposed to be emotional and I was perhaps the most emotionless bastard on Earth or the Luna one, two, three or four. But I didn't want to see Gary and I fall out of touch, but seemed helpless to stop it. I didn't want that to happen." She repeated, "But what I did want was out of this town and away from all the bad memories. But I never saw this happening. I certainly never wanted to fall in love with Gary to prevent it from happening." She laughed. "Or have him fall in love with me for that matter." "I'm confused," said Randy, "I thought I read..." "You did. And I was stubborn, pig headed. What you read was true, but what I didn't know at the time or at least couldn't define was before you fall in love with some one, you should be friends first. I mean really good friends, best friends? you know?" She turned to Randy to get confirmation on this issue. Randy smiled and satisfied, Michelle continued, "I mean it's far more exciting to be in love with someone you really like. Someone you get along with and enjoy doing things with." Michelle cocked her head thinking, "Is that weird?" Randy just smiled. "Randy, life can be very interesting when you spend it with that one, do you understand?" Michelle asked distractedly. Randy took the hand of the mother of his best friend and squeezed tenderly. A passerby might have thought the two a couple. They appeared to be so close in age. Michelle allowed a tear to escape the corner of her eye, one in a parade of many tears thus far. Michelle wiped the tear away angrily. Randy could only guess about what she was angry about, but Randy thought he understood. She was so much in love with Mr. Shipley and now she was facing the prospect of losing him, just like before, and well before she was ready to do so. Then her face softened and she turned to Randy and said, "She loves you." "Me?" he said as if he didn't know what she was talking about but his head swam with the idea that someone so heavenly could feel that way about him. Michelle smiled. "Oh, you know it. You know how she feels. The way she clings to you says it all. I wish I had had the courage to face my feelings the way she seems to be doing." "I'll be good to her." Randy promised. "If you can hold on to her, I know you will." "What do you mean, if I can hold on to her?" he asked puzzled. "It's not over for her. She hasn't begun to face what it's like to lose your identity; to become not just someone with a different name but someone with a completely different body. One that doesn't work the same as the one she was born with. There have been a lot of distractions for her to keep her attention focused on other things. And Randy," she paused until he was looking right into her deep green eyes. "You have been so wonderful to us. I would never have believed that a boy as young as you could be thrown in to this mess and keep his head the way you have. I will never forget what you have done for us." "My pleasure, but honestly, there were five boys about my age twenty years ago that did no more or less than I did. You underrate boys my age." Randy said. Michelle giggled, "Yes, I sometimes forget that I was only eighteen when all this started. I felt so much older." She shook her head as if to clear it. "What was I saying?" she asked Randy. "Beth, she hasn't begun to ..." "Oh yes," she said and touched his knee gently. "You'll have to be patient with her. I don't know if she have problems reckoning her state or not, but if she does she'll need your patience and understanding more than you can begin to know." She paused again but this time for emphasis. "It may cost you your relationship with her. If you love her, you'll let her go if she thinks that what she truly needs. If it's not, she'll come back." "I don't know if I can do that Mrs. Shipley." "I know, I know," was all she said. "So what do I do about the way I feel about Beth?" "If you are asking me to help make her understand what happened to her, make her stay with you? I can't do that Randy. That's her choice. It's her heart. I'll tell you this though, Tell her how you feel, don't make her guess and you'll stand a lot better chance of walking away with her heart than you would if you hid yours from her." Randy considered that for a minute and then nodded as if a seed had taken root and he was satisfied that the plant looked healthy. "Thanks Michelle." Michelle raised her eyebrows and smiled. Randall smiled back and the two hugged each other. As the two broke their embrace Michelle looked him in the eye and with grave concern asked, "You do know that you can't tell Erin or anyone else about what you saw. It would be very hard on my children." "What I saw? I saw you get off a flight from Germany with a box in your hand when we picked up from the Spaceport in Baltimore. Why should anyone have questions about that? As for what Erin knows about William, that's family business and she already knows that. What I know is what I saw and I've already told you what that was." She kissed him on the forehead and he walked away smiling pleasantly to himself. Nothing else was ever said by either of them about that conversation or what Randall had seen in the lab that day. Early the morning following Gary's shooting, time being smudged into a deep blur by that point the family was awakened from a light doze by a doctor from surgery. She introduced herself as Meredith Cole and asked if the family could follow her to a private room for a consultation. Rubbing her eyes, Michelle slowly realized that Gary must be out of surgery. At first her excitement was overwhelming and she was eager to know how he was doing, but the memory of his injury and the doubt on the NEOMed's face plunged an icy dagger of fear into her heart. "How is my husband?" Michelle asked. "Please Mrs. Shipley, if you all please follow me I'll be happy to brief you ..." The dagger twisted in her chest and she felt she couldn't breath. Her fear had now come true, he was gone, she could feel that he was gone by the way this doctor looked at her with pity and sorrow. She hated the woman for her pity. "He died! He's dead isn't he?" "Mom!" Erin said surprised and rushed to her Mother. "Please, let's just go to the room and ..." "No. If my husband is dead then I have the right to know before they shuffle me off to some secluded room." The doctor went to Michelle and took her by the hand and underneath the arm. Michelle looked frightened and miserable. Her eyes were squinted as if expecting a blow to the head from some unseen assailant. Doctor Cole leaned in and gently told Michelle; "Your husband is alive and in the recovery room." Michelle's legs gave out and she began to breathe in great gasps. The doctor was had wisely foreseen and supported her slumped body. Randall too rushed to her side to help support her. Michelle wept tears of thankfulness, as did Erin and Beth as they allow themselves to be led to a conference room. The door closed behind the last of them and Doctor Cole asked them all to have a seat. All sat expect Michelle. Doctor Cole noted this but did not let it interrupt her briefing. She had a seat in a vacant chair and addressed the family. "Hi, as I said I'm Doctor Cole. I assume that you are his daughters and his son?" Randall spoke up. "I'm just a friend of the family. If you'd like me to leave..." But before he could finish Beth reached up and took his hand. "You stay. You're as much a part of this family as any of us." Randall nodded and stood quiet. "Fine then," said Doctor Cole. She looked up at Michelle, "Your husband has suffered a pretty severe wound to his chest." Michelle nodded. "I have to be honest here, we were not optimistic when he arrived." Michelle tried to suppress tears by looking up at the ceiling and swallowing. At length, she looked back at Meredith and the doctor continued; "Let me tell you what's happened and then we'll talk about his chances. It may put things into perspective for you. First there was severe damage to his right lung. So much so that we were forced to remove it." The collective gasp from the family was heartbreaking. "Let me finish before you pass judgment on his chances. I actually think they are much better than you might imagine. But... You need to know what's happened, what you'll be seeing in the next few minutes when I take you back to see him and what you can expect." Doctor Cole took a deep breath as the rest nodded in agreement with what she had said. "I'm afraid that your husband," she said to Michelle, "is going to lose the use of his right arm. And the question of amputation is not dead yet. I can't give you false hope. He's in grave condition. He's lost a lot of blood and his body has been through a huge shock. There is always the risk of hospital borne bacteria or viruses." "Please stop. You make it sound like he has no chance at all." Cried Michelle. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to and I know that the odds seem overwhelming. But having said that, I have every intention of doing my best at preventing anything I can from harming him any further. You have my promise on that. If he can escape any more surgery and starts to heal properly, there's no reason he can't make a reasonable recovery." Michelle let out a hesitant laugh, "You're not serious!" "Oh yes I am. In fact almost every patient runs the risk of some infection from clean room bacteria. But it's not as common as you might think. If we can save that arm, I think he'll be home in about three weeks." Relief washed over Michelle's face. She wiped viciously at her tears trying to dry them and pull her self together. Michelle hitched in breath in shuddering fits of relief. "Can I see him now?" "Yes you can all see him. One at a time though, but yes, if you like you can see him now. He's still hooked up to an oxygen machine and a glycerin drip and a few monitors. He's not conscious and the bandages will show the impression from the surgery. Be prepared for that. It's not pretty, but if you're ready then follow me and I'll take you to him." -*- The old man watched as the boy who had been with Lesee leave the house he knew to be the Shipley home. It's Michelle; remember that! Your Leese is waiting for