Bumbled Burglary

~ Bumbled Burglary ~
by Larisa

Disclaimer: Yada yada yada, they're all mine! Well, some of them may resemble one WP and three amazons but the other's are all mine!!

Sex, bad language and all of the other stuff: Yeah there is and if you're not old enough? like me telling you to go away is gonna do anything. And if you don't like my Wrecking Crew, my warped sense of humor or anything else that I write about, go to Hell!

Hecate3366@frontiernet.net

Bumbled Burglary
By Larisa
Hecate3366@frontiernet.net

Sun beat down through the windshield, shinned off the dashboard and blinded Remi. She used one hand to block what the visor couldn't and swore under her breath when the semi in front of her moved and even more sunlight came in. Brushing her long dark hair off her sweaty neck, she then turned up the AC. Waving a hand in front of the vent, she slapped her palm against it and yelled. "FUCKING WORK ALREADY!" Giving up on the useless AC, she rolled down all the windows and stuck her head out searching for a tiny breeze. She was on her lunch hour and only had a half hour to get to the bank and back before the afternoon rush at the store. "I should just get direct deposit and not have to worry about this shit!" She laid on the horn and flipped off the driver in front of her. "IT'S FUCKING GREEN MOVE YOUR ASS!" Giving up on the truck driver, she cut off the man in the other lane, shot past and ran the red light.

*******************

Green eyes twinkled and took in the bright smile before her; Jostyn O'Flannery grabbed the large shopping bag from under her desk at the Daily Spirit and shook her head. "Go to Hell Jen, I'm not going out on one of your blind date hook-ups." She rolled her head on her shoulders and ran one hand through her short blondish hair. "Who in there right mind would want anything to do with me anyway," She ran a hand across her swollen stomach and gave Jen a small grin. "Except maybe someone who's a fan of Shamoo the whale."

Jen pulled her into a small hug and kissed her temple. "There are certain things that pregnant women give off that drives other's nuts look at all the men out there that get turned on by preggies." She stepped back and brushed her long curly blonde hair over her shoulders. "Ya know Petry drools every time she sees you."

Jostyn chuckled and slapped Jen in her stomach. "Your wife drools because I've gone up four cup sizes since I got pregnant and the next time she tries to measure my tits by seeing if they over flow her hands, I'll smack her up long side her head with one of them."

"Believe me, that would make her day and she'd run back to the lumberyard to show off the bruises." She turned her and pointed her towards the door of the newspaper. "Now go get your check cashed, go home and put your feet up for the rest of the night. I can handle anything that comes in, not like a whole bunch of people are gonna die in the next few hours."

"That would make my day; I'd have something to do then. One thing though when I deliver this little bundle of perpetual morning sickness, I want out of the obituary business!"

"While you're taking it easy tonight me and Petry are gonna find you a good woman to take care of you!"

She waved over her shoulder and went out the door, the bank was only a block away and the walk would help with her swollen ankles. Her doctor told her to put her feet up when they swelled, as if she could just throw them up on her desk. She found that if she walked around a little that they felt better and the swelling went down. The only problem that really bothered her was her fingers swelling like sausages, it was hard as Hell to type and not hit two keys with one swollen digit. "Two more weeks and I'll be up to my ears in baby bottles and dirty diapers." A small grin came to her face with the thought of her baby and what it would be like to have a small thing depending on her for everything.

****************

"Where's my mask?" A dark clothed figure asked from the back of the messy van parked along side the First Union Bank of Martinsburg.

"How am I supposed to know, I didn't have it!" The other person ducked in the front seat when all kinds of stuff flew from the back and landed all around her. Grabbing a pair of Tweedy bird boxers, she held them up and yelled. "Why are my boxers in here?" Dark brown eyes pinned the other where she stood bent over amongst a huge pile of clothes. "Tell me you didn't wear my boxers."

"I didn't?well not really?I had them on but they clashed with my wonder woman sports bra." Jumping up and down as far as she could in the cramped space, she then kicked stuff around. "Where's my mask, how am I supposed to disguise myself with out it?"

"Pea brain what's on top of your head?"

Long fingers reached up slowly to find the missing ski mask. "Ohh now I know I didn't put it there, you had to sneak it on my head when I wasn't looking!"

"Come on you idiot, the guards lunch time is almost over. There's no way I'm going in the bank with a gun toting Barney Fife right at the door." She opened the vans door and then went around sliding the other door open to let her cohort out.

Greenish gold eyes squinted in the bright light; Peanut searched her pockets and found the weapon she had hidden. "Uuhhmm Laalaa, what's our fake names gonna be?"

Dark brown eyes rolled to show just whites and then even white teeth showed with a snarl. "What difference would it make, you wouldn't remember two seconds after I told you. Now come on and let's get this over with before I change my mind, have you locked up in the mental ward and collect my fifty bucks!"

"We could turn each other in and both collect fifty bucks, we'd be rich!"

**************

Remi wiped the sweat from her face and sighed with relief when she walked into the air-conditioned bank, pulling the front of her shirt away from her body, she lifted the hem to let the cold air caress her heated skin. Looking to where two tellers were standing behind the counter, she walked to the furthest one. It would take longer to get there and mean that she was in the cold bank that much longer. She pulled her check from her back pocket and waved it in the air to try to dry it, it looked similar to having just come out of the washing machine and she hoped that the ink hadn't smudged. She gave the teller a small grin when she took the check between two fingertips and grimaced. "It's hot as Hell out there, I think my underwear melted, that is if I had any on to begin with." She leaned against the counter, tried to look down the young teller's blouse, and jumped back when a hand with a very large diamond ring accompanied by a gold wedding band flew up in front of her eyes. "OK, I get your point you don't have to choke me with the rock." Looking around the bank, she jumped again when something ran into her legs and then pulled on the hem of her shirt. A garbled voice came to her ears from the area of her feet; she looked down and felt her heart slam in her chest.

"Hey lady?got any candy?" A little boy asked and then wiped his chocolate covered hand on her tan pant leg. She shook her leg and tried to get away from the little monster. "Well do ya?mom says I can't have no more because I get hyper I'm not hyper am I?" He jumped up and down on her toes and grabbed at her shirt smearing more chocolate on her. "I want candy?I want candy!"

"Get off me before I strangle you with your shoe laces!" She shook her leg, slapped at his filthy hands, and was in panic mode. Sweat broke out on her brow, her face turned ashen and she could feel her pulse racing.

"I don't have shoe laces I have Velcro mom says it's easier that way and she doesn't have to wrestle with me to get them tied and I can't tie them in knots and waste her time. I want candy I want candy!" He continued to scream at the tops of his lungs and waved his hands in the air. Kids scared the Hell out of her and sent her into seizures; she broke free of his grappling hands, jumped up onto the counter and pulled her legs up out of his reach.

"Go away you have kid germs and I don't want any!" She jerked and let out a loud yell when he jumped up and tried to grab her foot. Her breathing became rapid to near hyperventilating, her sight was starting to narrow and then it started to ease when he ran off in another direction.

Jostyn looked over when she heard the yell from where she stood at the other teller, she narrowed her eyes when the tall dark woman smacked at the little boys hands and tried to shake him off her leg. "That woman needs slapped, treating her child like that." The teller leaned over the counter and shook her head.

"If I was her, I'd knock the little bastard out, that's the bank managers brat and all he does all day is scream and run through here like a lunatic. My kids would never have dreamed of acting like that when they were little and now with them both in their late 30's all I have to still do is raise a finger and they tremble with fear." She gave Jostyn a smile and nodded towards her swollen belly. "You'll find out soon enough, when are you due?"

Jostyn ran a hand across her belly and sighed. "Two more weeks, I will never get pregnant again so that I'm carrying in the middle of summer. I can't wait, I'll be able to get around better and not feel like a whale."

"I know how you feel, I carried my oldest during the summer months and I was never so glad when she decided it was time to get out and cause her father some pain." She handed Jostyn the envelope with her money in it and groaned when the little boy came running over to her.

"I want candy I want candy!" He yelled even louder when she threw a dog bone at him and growled. "I'm telling my ma on you, you're mean grandma!"

Jostyn looked at the snarling teller with a raised eyebrow. "He's your grandson?"

"Unfortunately, I'm going in the back right now and smack the shit out of his mother. Damn laws won't let me smack him but there's nothing they can do about me smacking her."

*******************

Peanut and Laalaa walked into the bank with their ski masks over their faces, Laalaa stood guard at the door while Peanut ran towards the teller counter. Pulling the large pillowcase from her pocket, she jumped, missed and fell over the rope that closed off certain areas of the counter. Getting to her feet, she crawled up over the counter and fell on her head. Laalaa covered her face with one hand and swore to herself that if they made it out of the bank alive; she was going to kill her friend. "OK PEOPLES?THIS IS A STICK UP!" She waved the pillowcase at the older teller and threw it at her. "Fill it up and then hand it to the other teller and make it quick!" She pointed to Jostyn and then to Remi. "You two over there where I can watch you and no funny stuff or my partner will shoot you!"

"Just a God damn minute here?!" Remi yelled and then shut up when Laalaa tapped the bulge in her jacket pocket. "Over there right?" She pointed, crawled down off the counter and moved slowly towards Jostyn while keeping an eye on the bank robber. Jostyn placed a protective hand over her stomach and backed towards the wall, she wasn't about to cause any problems and risk her unborn babies life. She looked up at Peanut and then over to the door where Laalaa was blocking it, she hoped that someone outside saw what was happening and called the police. "I can't believe this shit, just my luck to end up in the middle of a bank robbery." She sank to the floor beside Jostyn and then saw the little monster running towards Laalaa. "Ohh is that one in trouble that kids a monster, maybe she'll shoot him?"

"What is your problem, he's just a little boy and no one deserves to be shot." Angry green eyes drilled down into pale blue, Jostyn felt her heart stop and then pound erratically against her chest. The only thing that came to her mind was cornflower blue, she had never seen eyes that blue before and forgot all about the bank robbers.

"Come on hurry it up!" Laalaa yelled from the door and panicked when she saw the old guard standing on the other side of the street. "Let's go the guards coming!"

"And so are the police," the older teller said under her breath and leaned against the wall with a smug smile on her face. "Dumbass hit the counter button all on her own." She winked at Remi and Jostyn and then nodded her head towards the camera over their heads.

"Get off me kid or I'll throw you out the door!" Laalaa shook her leg and tried to pry dirty hands from the bottom of her jacket. "Come on we have to go NOW!" She waved a hand at Peanut and groaned when she fell over the counter with a thump. "Get your ass up," She ran over to Jostyn and Remi. "You're coming with us, when we're clear we'll let you go."

"The Hell I am! I'm pregnant and due any minute now!" Jostyn pointed to her belly and pleaded with her eyes. "Please, just leave and I won't tell the police anything."

"Not a chance, we need hostages and you two are it." She grabbed the bulge in her pocket, took Jostyn's arm and moved her towards the door while Peanut stuck an object in Remi's back. Laalaa shoved the door open, smacked the guard with it and steered a waddling Jostyn around the corner to their van.

"You two get in and don't even think about screaming or we'll shut you up." She growled and waited for Peanut to get in the back of the van before running around to climb in the drivers seat. With a quick glance over her shoulder, she saw that they were all sitting down. She pulled away from the curb and shot across the street to take side roads to avoid the police cars that she heard in the distance. Remi reached under her hip and pulled out an old worn work boot, she tossed it to the side and leaned back on her elbows.

"Ok, so when are you two gonna let us go?"

Peanut scrubbed her face through the mask and groaned. "As soon as Laalaa says so, God damn mask itches like Hell." She pulled it off and tossed it on the floor; she cringed when she heard her friend scream from the front and covered her ears. "Like they're gonna remember what I look like after we let them go."

"You stupid shit!" Laalaa yelled. "We can't let them go now, they can identify you!"

"How can they do that, I look just like everyone else."

Jostyn tapped the spot above her breast pocket and grinned. "Maybe we won't remember every detail of your face but your name is something I won't forget. Peanut Meyers who works for Carnegie Electrical, pretty unforgettable if you ask me." Remi gave the small blonde a wide grin and then turned to a confused Peanut.

"I'd say she has ya there hot shot, you guys are new at this bank robbing thing aren't you?"

Peanut shook her head and stuttered. "Ahhh?nope?robbed?lots of places, ain't that right Laalaa?"

Jostyn shook her head and pulled a notepad from her shopping bag. "So we have Peanut Meyers, Caucasian female, mid thirties, brunette, what would you say about five foot nine?" She watched Peanut nod her head and grin. "And Laalaa?"

"Davies, that's with an i.e.s at the end. Black female, same height and age." Peanut leaned forward to make sure that she was spelling it right. "We work at the same place, you want the address?" Remi rolled her eyes and fell back on the clothes that seemed to be everywhere.

"How about your Social security number, phone number and address to go with it?" She looked to the front of the van and yelled. "Hey Laalaa, how about pulling over and letting us out, you can take off and be a long ways from us before we get back to town?"

"NOPE! You're staying with us until we're far enough away." She mumbled under her breath. "May throw Peanut out on her head and then leave the country for the rest of my unnatural life."

***************

Twenty minutes later, she pulled the van up a long driveway and into the garage of a ranch style house. "OK, no fast moves or you'll be sorry." She crawled over the counsel and picked up a long chain with two shackles attached to it. "Put the shackles on, Peanut you get the basement door opened and I'll bring them down."

Jostyn pointed a finger at her and shook her head. "I am not putting any shackle on or going in your basement, let me go and I swear I won't say a word about this. If you keep us, it's kidnapping on top of a bank robbery charge. Cut your prison time short and let us go."

"What are you a cop or something?" Remi asked and then looked at Laalaa with the shackle dangling in her hand. "You could be in serious trouble here ya know, lawyers are infamous for racking up all kinds of false charges, especially when you assault a police officer. So what do ya say about letting us go?"

********************

Remi rubbed the swollen area above her eyebrow and growled at Jostyn when she pulled on the chain that connected their ankles. "Will you stop already; you're driving me nuts with the pacing!"

"Ohh shut the Hell up; this is all your fault. If you hadn't tried to be a hero and tried to wrap the chain around Laalaa's neck, I could have talked us out of being held hostage!" She stopped in front of her and tried to look over her stomach and down into pain-filled blue eyes. "You're lucky she only hit you with a boot and not something heavier like the gun in her pocket."

"She didn't have a gun that was one of those wire striping things in her pocket." She sat up on the floor and looked around them; the basement was finished and had everything that any economy apartment would contain. With the exception of two women chained together at the ankle. She then followed the chain to see it padlocked to a large ring at the top of a concrete block. "Nice place they have here, it's better than my apartment and it has air-conditioning." She got to her feet and wobbled a little. "How long was I out," She rubbed her sore eye and forehead. "And what the Hell kinda boot was that?"

"About 30 minutes and it was steel toed," Jostyn walked over to the bathroom and yanked on the chain. "Will you move your ass so I can reach the bathroom?"

"Are all pregnant women as nasty tempered as you?"

"Only when we have to piss every five minutes, are starving to death, chained like a prisoner and held captive in someone's basement." She closed the door on the chain and then realized that she couldn't reach the toilet, she opened it up and gave Remi a glare. "Get in here; I can't reach the toilet with you out there."

"Ohh this is just great, I feel like I'm on a chain gang." She walked into the bathroom and turned her back to Jostyn. "Here I am chained to cop and I don't even know what your name is."

"Jostyn O'Flannery and I'm not a cop, I work for the Daily Spirit. She dropped down onto the toilet and sighed with relief. "So who are you, I'd like to know who I'm chained to and have to share every personal moment with while we're here?"

"Remi Winchester and for your information, I'm not enjoying this either."

*************

Laalaa dumped the pillowcase out on the kitchen table and roared; she grabbed a bundle of papers and smacked Peanut over the head with them. "What the Hell is this, you were supposed to make sure they filled it with money!" Peanut picked up the deposit slips and shrugged her shoulders.

"I saw the old teller put the money in there before she handed it over?"

"And then you stood there and looked at the other ones tits and she switched it for blank deposit and withdrawal slips!" She smacked her again and fell into a kitchen chair. "No money and two hostages chained in the basement, now what the Hell are we supposed to do?"

"We could hold them for ransom; I bet we could get a good price for the mama to be."

Laalaa sat up in her chair and grinned at Peanut. "For once I think your brain is working, now all we have to do is find out who to send the ransom notes to." She grabbed one of the blank forms, a pen and unlocked the basement door. "You start supper and I'll get the information we need." She went down the steps slowly and peeked under the railing, when she saw that they were sitting on the couch watching TV, she went the rest of the way down but stood at a safe distance. "We decided that we're gonna hold you two for ransom, who do we send the notes to?"

Remi rolled her eyes and then looked to Jostyn. "Looks like they'll only be getting money for you, there's no one who would pay a red cent to see me returned." She shrugged her shoulders when green eyes latched onto her. "I'm an orphan and I've got a whole $120.00 bucks to my name."

"OK Blondie, how about you?" Laalaa asked and waved her pen in the air. "Who do we contact so we can get some money?"

"How about the police, I think they would be more then happy to come get me?" She gave her a smug look, got up from the couch and glared down at Remi.

"What?not again?" She got up and followed her into the bathroom.

"Hey wait a minute here!" Laalaa yelled.

"You'll have to wait until she's done and after I beat the shit out of you for chaining me to a pregnant woman!"

"What has that got to do with you going in the bathroom with her?"

Remi sighed, closed her eyes and yelled from behind the closed door. "The damn chains not long enough you dumbass, if you haven't noticed, there's only like three feet between us! Take the damn thing off and let us go!"

"Sorry no can do now I need a contact for mama to be."

Jostyn sighed and rubbed a hand over her face, she had no idea who they could contact and then it came to her. She could give them Jen and Petry's phone number; they would raise the ransom money to get her back. After washing her hands, she dragged Remi out of the bathroom and stood there with her hands planted on her hips. "Call this number and talk to Jenny, she'll raise what ever amount of money you want to get me back." She gave her the phone number and dropped down onto the couch beside Remi. "Are you going to feed us or watch us starve to death?"

"Peanut's up stairs making supper, she'll bring it down when it's finished. There's Coke and juice in the refrigerator and I think there's some milk in there. Ohh and I need your wallets for proof that we have you." After getting their wallets, she looked at their driver's license and laughed. "Remington Winchester, I thought my parents' naming me Laverne was bad." She went back up the stairs and over to where Peanut was making spaghetti. "We got one orphan but the little one gave me a phone number, when you go down there with the food, stay near the stairs and use the TV tray thingy on wheels. Slide it across the floor to them," She tapped her on the forehead to make sure she was listening. "Don't let them get near you, ya got it?"

"Yep, use the TV tray thingy. How much money we gonna ask for?" She brushed her long dark hair off her shoulders and scratched the irritated skin on her cheeks. "After all we went through and the rash I got from that mask, I wanna lot of money. Ya think a couple hundred is too much?"

***************

The police officers looked to the bank manager and rolled their eyes, they had spent over two hours with the woman and were ready to pull their weapons and shoot her screaming kid. He kept screaming that he wanted candy and climbing all over the desk between them. Every time one of them tried to ask her a question, the brat screamed louder. "OK, since we're not getting anywhere, we're going to take the security tape and just go with the statement from your teller's and the security guard. If you have any questions call the police station and tell the desk sergeant who you are and that it concerns the bank robbery." The senior officer yelled over the screaming and then got up from the chair in front of the desk; he left the office and rubbed his aching ears. "God damn screaming is enough to make me run over to the hospital and have a vasectomy." He walked over to the older teller and handed her one of his cards. "The hostages that were taken, you said that one of them was pregnant?"

"She's due in about two weeks but with this stress it may be sooner. I hope they let them go and she's all right."

********************

Remi and Jostyn sat on the couch with their plates of spaghetti; Remi chuckled when she saw that Jostyn had the plate balancing on her belly. What she wondered was why she hadn't given a husband or boyfriends name a s a ransom contact. "So, isn't your husband going to be worried about you?"

"Don't have one," She answered and took a bite out of her garlic bread. "What about you?" She asked with a full mouth.

"Nope, I live alone and my dating life is limited. Limited to the point of not a date in about six years, what about your boyfriend won't he miss you?"

"Don't have one." Jostyn grinned up at her knowing that she was going to get to the main question that everyone asked when he or she found out that she had neither a husband nor boyfriend.

"OK, then that leaves the baby's father, what about him?"

"Don't know him, I had a sperm donor. You know the artificial insemination procedure?" She put her spotless plate on the coffee table and looked to Remi's. "You want that?"

"Nope, help yourself." She sat and watched Jostyn finish what she had left on her plate and then polish off her glass of milk. "You're going to raise the baby alone?"

"Yep, a lot of women do it these days. I saw you with that little boy today; you don't like kids do you?"

"No I don't, I have no idea what to do with them and when they act like that kid I go nuts." She looked down at her hands and played with her thumbs. "I get panic attacks when they get around me; I've even passed out a time or two?three?four."

"I get the point," She gave her a grin. "So you can't go to parks, stores, restaurants or anyplace that there might be a kid?"

"I go to those places; I just stay clear of the kids." She got up from the couch and held out a hand to Jostyn. "This is a real bitch, what are we gonna do about showers if they keep us down here for a few days?" They headed to the bathroom and Remi spun her finger in the air for Jostyn to give her some privacy.

"Here's another problem, there's only one bed and it's a twin at that."

*************

Laalaa dialed the phone number that Jostyn had given here and waited for it to be picked up, when she heard the voice on the other end, she placed a dishtowel over the receiver and spoke in a deep voice. "I have Jostyn O'Flannery and unless you bring us a thousand dollars you'll never see her again."

Jen looked at the phone and then waved a hand at her wife to join her, hitting the speakerphone on, she spoke. "Who is this?"

"Doesn't matter just get us the money, meet us at McDonalds on Winchester Ave at six am and if we see any cops ya can kiss her goodbye."

"Is this some kind of joke, how do I know that you have her?"

"She's pregnant, nasty tempered and I took her hostage after we robbed the bank." She hung up the phone and gave Peanut a thumb up. "We're all set, you go get the money tomorrow morning and I'll stay here to make sure they don't escape."

She scratched her head and looked to Laalaa with raised eyebrows. "One problem, how do I know who to look for?"

"SHIT!" Laalaa redialed the phone and waited for it to be picked up again. "Peanut will be standing near the dumpster at the back of the building." She hung up the phone and smacked herself in the head. "I just gave her your name!"

"Uhhmm Laalaa, the two in the basement know our names so what difference does it make?"

Laalaa clamped her hands over her eyes and groaned she knew they were screwed the second they came up with the idea to rob the bank. What she couldn't figure out is why they had come up with the idea in the first place, one thing she did know was if they were caught, she was pleading temporary insanity.

**********

Jen looked to her wife and dropped down onto the couch, she ran a hand across her face to stop over her mouth. "Tell me that was a joke and Jos is playing a nasty evil I will kick her ass joke on us?" Petry came around the couch and dropped down beside her; she took her wife's hand in hers and shrugged her shoulders.

"Call her house and see if she's there, if not, then call her moms and see if she's heard from her." Her golden eyes blinked a few times and then she jumped up to turn the TV to the local station. "If the bank was robbed it should be on the news and they'll say if anyone was taking hostage." When the newscaster came on and started to talk about the weather, they both sighed. "Baby, call work, someone would know if the bank was robbed." Jen smacked her self in the forehead and then grabbed for the phone.

"I'm such a genius sometimes, what would I do without you?" She held out her hand and when Petry dropped down onto the couch, she ran her fingers through her long hair.

"Don't wanna find out," She lie down on the couch and put her head in her wife's lap. "I get lost when ya go to the bathroom."

************

After flipping around on the small bed, they finally found comfortable positions; Remi looked over at Jostyn and grinned. She had been near pregnant women before but never this close. The small woman looked so uncomfortable with her huge belly and swollen ankles, she was thankful that the shackle was large enough that it came nowhere near her skin. "Ya know this is really a ridicules situation, we know our kidnappers names, we know how we got here and I have their license plate number off their van. Do they really think that they can get away with this?"

"They could knock us off and no one would ever find out," She turned to look into clear blue eyes and grinned. "They're too stupid to do that, besides, Jen has caller ID on her phone and she'll come to our rescue." She chuckled and turned her head back to close her eyes and take a deep breath. "When I get out of here, I'll have one Hell of a story to write."

"Aren't you even the little bit scared about all that's happened?"

"Nope, those two are harmless; they haven't a mean bone in their bodies. No brains but that's about it?"

"OK, just wondering and you're right about them. But I'll have to find another job, I know that my boss isn't gonna believe that I was kidnapped. He fired me the second I didn't show up after my lunch break."

"Where do you work?"

"At that little coffee house on Queen Street, I make all the pastries and grind all the specialty coffees. A real grown up job huh?"

"Could be worse, you could work at McDonalds or Burger King as the birthday planner." She laughed at the groaning coming from Remi and reached over to pat her arm. "Night Remington and if I snore, don't tell me, it'll blow the perfect picture I have of myself in my head."

************
The next morning, Jen stood by the dumpster behind McDonald's waiting for one of the kidnappers to show. She looked down at her watch and saw that it was past the meeting time, she was about to give up when a body came running around the building and slammed into her. She grabbed onto the dumpster to keep her balance and then helped up the woman at her feet. "What's the big rush?" Peanut brushed off her pants and looked into hazel eyes; she looked around them and moved in front of the dumpster.

"You know Jostyn?"

"Yeah, are you the one I'm supposed to meet about?you know?"

"Yep, that would be me, ya got the?uuggg!" She struggled against the dumpster and gave up when she saw the evil look on the other women's face.

"Might as well stop struggling my wife has a Hell of a grip and she won't let go until I tell her to." She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned her head back to look down her nose. "Where's Jostyn and why did you take her to begin with?" She raised an eyebrow at Petry and wiggled a finger at her. "Ease up baby, she's turning purple."

"She's at my house?Laalaa's with them?ya gonna kill me?"

"Nah, we don't kill people but I may let Petry kick the shit out of you." She walked forward, slapped a handcuff on her, and then put the other one on her own wrist. "Now you're gonna give us your address and we're going to go get Jostyn and the other woman."

"But Laalaa's gonna be really mad, she's gonna kick my ass." She moaned and then jumped when Petry crawled out of the dumpster. "Ohhh boy?if it's between letting you beat me up or my housemate, I'll let Laalaa do it." She reached out with a finger and jabbed Petry's bulging biceps. "You could really hurt me bad." She shivered and then stumbled after Jen.

*****************

Remi curled up on the couch with her head resting in Jostyn's lap, after being dragged to the bathroom during the night for what seemed to her every five seconds, she fell asleep right after they ate breakfast. Jostyn turned the volume on the TV down and then took in her tall companion's appearance, she ran gentle fingers through the hair at her temple and smiled when a soft snore came from her. Her eyes traveled from perfectly arched dark brows down her aquiline nose to soft moist lips. Trailing warm fingertips across her high cheekbone, she let them trail all the way down her neck to tangle in silky hair. During the night, Remi and shed her work shirt and now wore only a blue tank top t-shirt. Jostyn ran her fingertips across the detailed tattoo of a strange war mask that covered her upper right shoulder and stopped at her elbow. Tracing one of the long colorful feathers, she finally figured out where she had seen such a mask. It was on the Discovery channel and they were talking about the Amazon women from ancient times. In the intricate details at the bottom, she saw a small golden lambda. If the suspicions about the Amazon's didn't clue her in, the lambda did. A small smile came to her face with the knowledge; she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

************

Petry stood by the back door to Peanut and Laalaa's kitchen; she squinted through the screen and opened the door slowly when she saw no one. Moving quietly through the kitchen, she stopped at what appeared to be the living room. She heard the drone of the TV and then a horrible snorting and growling noise. The hair on the back of her neck stood up and shivers ran down her spine. She had never thought of a dog, she prepared herself to either be mauled or run like hell. Then it all changed when the snorting turned into a raspy voice. "Banana split with extra whipped cream." A grin came to her face; she walked over to the back of the couch, leaned over and tapped a sleeping Laalaa on her forehead.

"Excuse me!" She shook her shoulder and watched brown eyes pop open and try to focus. "I believe you have someone locked up and I'm here to get her." She grabbed Laalaa's arm and kept her from jumping up off the couch. "Hold on there, Jen has your cohort out in the car any funny business and I'll let her smack her around, ya got me?"

"Uhh huuhh?they're down in the basement?we didn't hurt them." She moved slowly to a sitting position and then stood when Petry pulled on her arm. "You're not gonna call the police are you?"

Petry gave out a deep laugh that had Laalaa shivering; she leaned in close and narrowed her golden eyes to mere slits. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't, you robbed a bank and kidnapped two women one of which is pregnant."

"We fed her and her and the tall one Remi, seem to get along OK?" She never finished because Petry dragged her towards the kitchen where she had seen a door with a slide lock on it.

"You had better hope that she's OK or I'll just bury your body in the back yard and forget all about calling the police. Now open the door real slow and no funny stuff or you'll take a header down the steps." Laalaa did as she was told and then went down the steps as quietly as she could; she stopped midway and pointed to the couch. "Ohh Hell." Petry whispered and pulled Laalaa back up stairs.

***************

Jen looked over to Peanut and rolled her eyes, she couldn't believe that the woman was completely enthralled with a rubber band. She had it around her index fingers and was moving them in sync with each other, doing all of this without blinking a single time. "Give me the reason why you guys took Jos and the other woman?"

"Doesn't everybody take a hostage at a bank hold up?" She looked up and cringed when she tried to blink. "They were the only ones in the bank, so we took 'em." She gave her a toothy grin and went back to playing with the rubber band. "Match made in heaven, tiny little blonde and a tall dark Amazon."

Jen gave her a funny look and then saw her wife coming over to the car with Laalaa in handcuffs. She got out of the car and looked at her with a confused expression. "What's wrong; tell me that Jos is here."

"Ohh she's here and you'll have to see this to believe it." She pulled a chain out of the car, attached it to Laalaa's handcuffs and locked her to the front bumper; she did the same to Peanut and took Jen into their house. "Ya know I had this image of them being in a dark and creepy basement, tied to a wall and rats running all around them."

Jen grabbed her hand and pulled her to a halt. "You mean it's worse than that?"

"You'll just have to see it to believe it; maybe we can get them to kidnap us next." She led her to the basement door and placed a finger over her lips before she walked quietly down the steps. She stopped part way down and pointed to where the women were asleep on the couch. Jen took in the finished basement apartment with its carpeted floors, kitchenette with tiled floor, twin bed with nightstand and lamp and then back over to where the living room was. The large over stuffed flowered couch, glass topped coffee table and large TV sat at an angle to where they were hiding on the stairs. They moved over to where they were looking down at the two women, grins came to their faces and they looked to each other and nodded. They saw the way Jos had a protective arm over the dark woman's shoulder and how she had her arm wrapped possessively around Jos's thigh. Going back up the stairs, they dropped down at the kitchen table and sighed. "Ok Jen, what do we do?"

Jen ran her hands through her hair and looked over to her wife. "I have no idea, I know they were kidnapped but I don't see where they're being mistreated. It looks like they're comfortable with each other and this may be a good thing if you catch my meaning."

Petry grinned and leaned back in the chair. "You mean instead of us setting her up on blind dates and all, we leave her here chained to that other woman?" She ran a hand across her chin and winked at Jen. "So ya seen the Amazon mask tattoo huh?it couldn't be this easy?could it?"

***************

Laalaa rubbed her eyes and looked to the other two women that were sitting in her living room; she couldn't believe what they had just asked her and Peanut to do. "You want us to keep them down there together?why?we thought you wanted Jos back?"

"Ohh let's just say this is a match making thing, Jos hates when we set her up on blind dates and this way, she has no choice but to spend time with Remi." Jen gripped her wife's hand and continued. "The only problem is she's due to have her baby in two weeks, if she goes into labor you have to get her to the hospital, understand?"

"Twooo weeks!" Peanut choked on her tea and wiped at her chin. "She's due in two weeks and that means she could go into labor at any time between now and then."

Laalaa gave her a horrified look and shook her head. "Ohhh nononono, we can't do this. What if she goes into labor and has it here before the ambulance comes?" Petry held up a hand and then gave Laalaa a funny look when she covered her ears, shook her head and started chanting "LAALAALAALAALAA"

"That's why I call her Laalaa, every time I come up with an idea, she does that."

*******************

Laalaa sat staring straight ahead stuck in a comatose like state, Peanut was watching TV and Jen was reading the newspaper while they waited for Petry to come back from getting groceries and some other things for Jos and Remi. She had to laugh at what they were doing and she knew that once Jos was released, they would have to move to Brazil to keep her from killing them. However, it would all be worth it if her small friend found what she had with Petry in the tall dark Remi. At the sound of her car pulling up to the house, she got up and went out to help Petry bring in the bags. With the first eye contact they had, she knew that Petry was close to murder. She gave her a bright smile and pushed her up against the trunk. "I know you hate going to the store but I'll make it up to you when we get home." She kissed her lips gently and then nipped her chin. "For let's say?the rest of the day, night and until we have to go to work in the morning?" She had never seen her wife move so fast before, she had her arms loaded down with groceries bags and into the house before she could even grab her share. "Maybe I can get her to do all the shopping?" She grinned and took the last of the bags into the house.

*********************

Peanut picked up a bottle of lotion with vitamin E and Aloe Vera in it, it was a jumbo size bottle and she was amazed that they came that big. "What's this for?"

"You know how big Jos's stomach is, that's the only stuff she'll use. It'll keep her from having stretch marks." Jen said and then pulled out some other toiletries that Petry had gotten. "I'm glad you thought of these." She laid the box of tampons on the table and searched the rest of the bags.

"I know it's a personal thing but I figured that it would be safer to have them down there for Remi just in case?ya know?" Petry knew that her face was bright red, she hated buying the things and always made Jen do it. "Why do the check out people gotta plop that damn box right on top after they scan it and why do I always get a young guy for a bagger who gives me a stupid grin when he sees 'em?"

Laalaa opened her mouth and decided it was safer to just say nothing; Peanut on the other hand had no brains. "He probably saw all your muscles and wondered why ya needed 'em; ya know the butch thing and all."

Petry raised a dark eyebrow and looked to her grinning wife. "Is that why they do it, I mean it's not like I was buying a case of Trojans or something and who doesn't know about that time of the month when we should be allowed to drop kick a guy in his nuts?" She grabbed her aching forehead and dropped down into a kitchen chair. "I think I over did the thinking thing, my head hurts." She whined and dropped her head onto the table.

"See that!" Peanut pointed a finger at Petry and grinned. "I ain't the only one that has that happen when I think." Two sets of eyes connected one brown the other hazel. Shaking their heads at the other two, Jen and Laalaa went back to sorting the bags.

*************

Remi woke up to hear a pitter-patter in her ear, she blinked open one eye and looked up to see nothing but blue. She eased her head to the side and then placed it back once she figured out where she was. She pressed her ear back to Jos's belly and listened to the small heartbeat of the baby. A small grin crossed her face and then she felt a slight press against her face. "You moved," She whispered and then placed her face tighter to the spot to see if it happened again. "Do it again, I wanna feel."

"Who are you talking to down there?" Jos's raspy sleep-filled voice asked. She moved her head to the side and rolled her eyes when she saw what Remi was doing.

"I felt it; I felt your baby move in there." She moved slowly from where she was lying with her head on Jos's lap and rubbed the sleep from her face. "I've never felt anything like that before; I even heard the baby's heartbeat." She looked from smiling green eyes down to a swollen belly; a small grin came across her features when Jos placed her hand where her face had been. "It feels like a little foot or maybe a hand."

"That's probably a foot because I think its little butt is right on my bladder." She held out her hand and had Remi pull her up from the couch; they went into the bathroom and then heard footsteps coming down the stairs. "I hope that's food coming down those stairs or I may just chew through my ankle and get my own food."

"Ohh you won't have to do that, I'm about ready to pick that concrete block up and carry it up the stairs." She pulled a butter knife from her back pocket and waved it behind her. "I got this, maybe we can use it to try and get the shackles off and then we can escape." Jos took it from her hands and then stepped beside her.

"So ya gonna use it like a file and cut through the chain or something or maybe cut my pants off me so I can take a shower." She turned her back when Remi started to unfasten her tan chinos and went over to the sink to wash her hands.

"I could do that but then you'd have to sit around half naked." A wicked grin came to her face but disappeared when Jos turned back to face her.

"Ohh go ahead and grin, you've never seen a naked pregnant woman before. You'll fall over from shock and then I'll have to drag you around by your ankle." She ran a hand over her belly and grinned. "It ain't a pretty sight, stretch marks, saggy tits and I have no idea what's below the baby. I haven't seen anything in that area for months now."

Remi gulped and stood up from the toilet, when they were finished, they went out into the kitchen area and saw all the bags on the table. Jos looked through them and grinned at Remi. "They brought us food and stuff," She looked in one of the bags, pulled out the big bottle of lotion, and found a note taped to it. She pulled the note off, started to read it and felt Remi lean over her shoulder to join her.

Jos, it'll take a few days to get the ransom money together for your release. Laalaa and Peanut have promised to take good care of you guys so don't worry, don't hurt them either, Petry has already showed them what she can do with pop cans. We'll hurry and get you guys out of there and those two really aren't that bad. A little dense in the head but they're harmless.

Jen and Petry

"So that means that they're getting us both out of here, why, they don't even know me?"

"Doesn't matter to Jen and Petry, they're my best friends and know that I wouldn't leave you behind even if I don't know you that well." She handed the note to Remi with a bright smile. "Knowing those two, this will save them from trying to set me up on a blind date."

A dark brow rose above a pale blue eye and buried its self in dark shaggy bangs. "Find you a date, why in the world would they be trying to find you a date. There's no way I would go out on a blind date that's for sure." She held up a hand when she saw sparks shoot through green eyes. "Why can't you get your own date, I just can't see you not having all kinds of men chasing after you and being seen with me is not gonna help you in that department at all." She raised her hands around their temporary quarters and grinned. "Not like anyone would see us down here but you get my point don't you?I hope?where's the butter knife?" She tried to back up and then remembered the chain.

"It's not men that they keep setting me up with; it's their goofy ass women friends or friends of friends of friends." She invaded Remi's personal space and bumped her belly into her. "Get it now and the more I think about it, I think that they don't want to get us out of here but hope to make a love connection." She stood there gazing up into blue eyes until they widened with knowledge. "Now you see what I'm saying huh, I think they were here and we're stuck with each other."

"Ohh noooo would they really do that?now we're kidnapped by four people and two of them are your FRIENDS!" She slapped her hands over her eyes and groaned. "Nononononno! They can't do this?it's not right, we have to get out of here!" With panic filled eyes, she looked from Jos to the block and back, her breathing became ragged and sweat started to pour down her face. "We have to get out, you're gonna have a baby and I?we have to get out!" She walked a few inches and looked over her shoulder at Jos. "Are you coming or do I have to pick you up and carry you?"

"And where exactly are we going to go?"

Remi pointed to the concrete block. "To that thing, maybe I can pick it up and I can get up stairs and beat the hell out of whoever's up there."

Jos shook her head and laid a hand on Remi's arm. "You can't pick that thing up; you'll get a hernia or put your back out or something."

"If I can get it to move just a little bit towards the stairs I don't give a damn if I stretch my arms a foot or two." She reached down, wrapped her arms around the block and strained. Her face turned a deep red, the veins in her neck and temple bulged and then she fell over on to her side with a low moan. Jos bent over as far as she could and looked into her strained features.

"You don't look so good and I don't think it's all a panic attack over me and my baby."
In a voice similar to Mickey Mouse, Remi mumbled and let out a louder groan. "Where do ya get hernias?" She rolled into a ball and pressed both hands to her crotch. "Think I hurt myself?really bad."

***************

Four sets of eyes watched through a small basement window, Petry clamped a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing and then felt Jen nudge her with an elbow. "Is she hurt?" She asked a snickering Petry and saw her shake her head.

"Nahh?she probably just strained her groin and stomach muscles, if she's hurt bad, we'll no in a few hours."

Jen crawled over the top of her wife and stopped beside Peanut and Laalaa, in a whisper she asked. "Can you go down there and take the shackle off Jos, as long as Remi is still chained, she won't leave her. She's one of those caretaker types, maternal instincts ooze from her."

"Are ya sure she won't beat one of us up?" Laalaa asked with a scared tone to her voice. "I've heard of those raging mama hormones, she could be really mean and hurt me."

"Take her some ice and some aspirins for Remi and she'll be happy."

"If she hurts me I'll?never mind, come on Peanut you can help me."

*********************

Jos sat beside a moaning Remi and brushed her sweat soaked hair back from her face, she couldn't wrap her mind around the reason behind her phobia with children. She had seen plenty of bad children but they never sent her off the deep edge, maybe brought out feelings of homicidal mania but not the way Remi reacted. "You'll be OK Remi, I'll have Peanut or Laalaa bring you some aspirins."

"How about a shot of morphine?" She rolled onto her back and moaned. "Why'd you let me do something stupid like that?"

"Ya know the old tale about baby and fire, sometimes we still learn the same way when we think we're all grown up." She slipped a leg under Remi's head and placed a hand on her chest. "We're gonna have a long talk about your panic attacks and see what we can do about them."

"Why, it only happens around kids."

"Or when you think of kids, the very thought of me having my baby had you thinking you were Hercules."

"Did not, it was?" She looked up when she heard feet running down the stairs and then Peanut and Laalaa running over to them. "Hi guys, come to terrorize us with some more notes or what?"

"Nope, no notes," Laalaa said and leaned over Jos to unlock her shackle. "We were watching through the basement window and seen you hurt yourself, Jos can go without the shackle but we're leaving yours on because you're dangerous to yourself."

"Ohh gee thanks for being so kind, it's your fault for all of this."

"Yeah and we'll all pay for it in the next lifetime, right now, we need to get you in bed." Between Laalaa and Petry, they were able to pick Remi up and carry her to the bed. After returning from the bathroom, Jos took the ice bag from Peanut.

"Thanks for taking the shackle off but what I want to know, are Jen and Petry helping you guys now?" She looked to see two pairs of eyes grow wide and then Laalaa and Peanut ran for the stairs. "Guess that just answered my question," She flipped the ice bag in her hand and saw the key taped to the top, palming it, she slipped it into her pocket and sat down on the side of the small bed. "I don't know if this is going to help or where exactly to put it?" She handed the bag to a still moaning Remi and then went to get the aspirins that Peanut had left. "Are you hungry, I can cook us some lunch?"

"Can you wrap the chain around my neck and pull really really tight?"

"I could but then who would I have to torture with my mood swings, here take these and if the pain gets worse you tell me." She looked for the ice bag and noticed it inside the fly of her chinos. "You know a hot bath might make you feel better."

"Uhh huh and wash my dirty clothes at the same time." She closed her eyes and opened them when she felt hands pulling at the waistband. "What are you doing?"

"You can slide your one pant leg over the chain, that way they won't get wet."

"How about if you just slide them off and I lay here and suffer for a while before moving?" She whimpered when she lifted her hips up and Jos slid her pants down, a loud groan came from between clenched teeth when she lifted one leg to let Jos pull it over her foot. Once done, she relaxed on the bed and let her eyes drift closed.

********************

"How long do we keep them down there?" Peanut asked around a mouthful of ice cream.

"I figure a week should do it," Jen said. "Then you can let them go, we'll bring Jos's car over tomorrow afternoon so they have a way of getting home."

Laalaa gave them a nod and then asked a question that had been bothering her. "What happens if she goes into labor while we're at work?"

"Don't worry," Peanut held up her hand and grinned. "Jos has the key to the shackles?a little voice told me to do it, ya know in case of an emergency."

Laalaa growled and bared her teeth at her grinning housemate. "And I know for a fact that your voices get us into deep shit!"

Petry chuckled and wrapped an arm around her wife. "Come let's go home, you owe me remember?"

"And I'll pay up," She waved at the arguing housemates and walked towards the front door. "You guys have any problems, you have our phone number."

"Yep, don't worry, as long as Remi stays down there we won't scream bloody murder." Laalaa said and then smacked Peanut in her head. "And if she gets loose, I'm throwing this idiot down the stairs and running like Hell."

*****************

Remi was up and walking around but it looked more as if she was creeping, her stomach was killing her and she felt like her legs were going to fall off. She knew that she had pulled some muscles in her legs and she would be feeling it for a few days. She went over to the kitchen table and looked through the stack of clothes that sat there. She found a clean t-shirt and switched it for a double X white button down. Grabbing the small pair of toenail scissors that lay on the table, she cut the side of her underwear on the leg with the chain and then slipped them off. Going over to the bathroom door, she tapped and waited for Jos to answer. "You OK in there?"

"Yeah but I could use some help stepping over the tub." She didn't want to take the chance of slipping and falling while getting out of the shower. She just hoped that Remi didn't freak when she saw her swollen stomach, she knew that some people found a pregnant woman attractive but she didn't see it at all. She stood holding onto the towel rack and offered a blushing Remi a small smile when she came in. "It scares me to step out of the shower?"

"It's OK, I understand, I've fallen a few times getting out." She grabbed a towel, handed it to her and waited for her to fasten it around her body. She couldn't help but grin when it didn't cover her belly at all. "Maybe they'll bring us some bigger towels or maybe a robe you can use."

"It's OK, another week or so and I won't have to worry about it." She held out her hand and grabbed Remi's forearm as she wrapped an arm around her back. "I'll be so glad to be able to see my feet, be able to actually tie my shoe laces and not have my doctor looking at a certain area and say 'looks normal'." She looked up to find Remi's eyes on her stomach, she looked down and then back up again. Feeling self-conscious, she squeezed Remi's arm and left the bathroom to get dressed.

"How could ya tell if it didn't look normal?" She scratched her head and groaned at how greasy her hair was. "While I'm in here, might as well take a shower, I hope the shackle and chain doesn't rust on me over night. Go ahead and talk to yourself some more, it'll be different from talking to pastry shells and coffee beans."

*****************

The next morning, Peanut went down to check on them before she and Laalaa went to work, she crept down the stairs and over to where they were sleeping. She looked down and smiled at the way Remi was laying spooned against Jos's back. She looked to the ceiling, gave a thumbs up sign and a wink. She turned when she heard Laalaa hiss at her, she stuck her tongue out and then made her way back to the stairs. "I hate when you do that, gives me the creeps."

"Why do you think I do it, are they OK down there?"

"Yep, all snuggled up against each other and snoring up a storm. If this love connection works, we better get brownie points!"

"Ohhh I'm sure we will, now let's get going before we lose our jobs."

***************

A few hours later, Jos woke from the grumbling in her in stomach. She rolled over, took in a sprawled out Remi, and felt her face heat up. The shirt she wore was up around her ribcage and strong stomach muscles flexed with each breath. She let her eyes travel downward to a thin strip of dark hair and had to close her eyes. It had been so long since she had looked upon a naked woman that she knew she would do something stupid. Getting out of bed, she rubbed her eyes trying to get rid of the image of a half-naked Remi from her brain. "Sex and touching Remi is the last thing you need to be thinking about right now." She mumbled to herself. Remi opened her eyes and grinned; she had felt Jos looking at her but pretended to be asleep. Stretching was a bad thing to do; she groaned and grabbed her lower stomach.

"Face it Remington, you're an idiot and you shouldn't have even tried to lift up that block." She rolled over, hugged Jos's pillow to her face, and inhaled her soft scent before closing her eyes. "Wonder if she'll let me touch her belly so I can feel the baby?"

"All you have to do is ask."

She opened her eyes and blushed; she hadn't heard Jos come back towards the bed. "I thought all pregnant women hated people always touching their stomachs?"

"Ohh it drives me nuts when complete strangers come up and paw me or the people I work with touch me like a damn Buddha. Sometimes I think they're making wishes when they rub my stomach. She handed Remi the bottle of lotion, pulled the huge t-shirt up to rest above her belly and crawled onto the bed to rest against the headboard. "You're different?I saw complete amazement in your eyes the first time you felt the baby move. And that's different because the very thought of kids sends you off the deep edge." Remi took the bottle and poured some of the lotion into her hands, rubbing them together, she gave Jos one last look before she started to apply the lotion with gentle hands. Jos closed her eyes and sighed at the gentle touch, she could swear that her skin tingled and the baby tried to press upward into Remi's hands. "Why do you panic when kids are around?"

"Ever been to an orphanage, hundreds of kids screaming, crying, running around loose, stealing what little bit of personal items you have. You live in a ward that is full of kids of all ages; you can't sleep at night because of the noise. Kids got sick and sneezed all over the place, threw up on the floors or their beds. When I got older, they gave me younger kids to watch out for, take care of. We ate at the same tables with them, had to take care of all their needs even when they got sick. We all got sick once, I lost some of the little ones. Someone had mumps and passed it on to the rest of us; I ended up in the infirmary for two months. I almost died?" She looked up with tear-filled eyes and saw the same. "I spent sixteen years in that orphanage before I was old enough to be on my own." She lay down beside Jos and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "I'm not afraid of the kids because of what they can do to me; it's because of what I can't do for them." Jos slid her arm under Remi's head and pulled her closer to her body; she used her fingertips and wiped the tears from her face.

"You were a kid, there's nothing you could have done for them. They were wrong to put that kind of responsibility on you kids, it was their job to take care of you." She laid her head on Remi's and felt her tears course down her cheeks to soak into dark hair. "How could they let that happen, it's not supposed to be like that anymore."

"We're talking over 20 years ago and a private run orphanage, they didn't care how we were taking care of as long as they got state funding. "I'm lucky, with almost dying; I only lost a little bit of my hearing." She ran a hand across Jos's belly and felt a slight movement beneath her hand.

"She must like you, she only moves like that when you touch me."

Pale blue eyes moved up to meet with smiling green, a lopsided smile came to Remi's face and stayed as she moved her hand over Jos's belly. "You know it's a girl for sure?"

"No, but I'm hoping it's a girl. I wouldn't have the slightest idea of what to do with a boy. I have brothers but they're all older than me and the trouble they caused when we were growing up I don't want to relive."

"What did they do, get into fights like all boys do?"

"That and sneak out at night even thought they were grounded but the biggest thing was when my younger brother of four got his sixteen year-old girlfriend pregnant. I thought my dad was going to cut his balls off."

"What was wrong with using Trojans or was he afraid to go and buy them?"

"That's one of the reasons dad was pissed, he bought all my brothers boxes of rubbers to prevent them from becoming fathers. My stupid brother Tommy said that he didn't need them because he always pulled out before and I quote the idiot. 'Before I shoot my load.' Dad made sure that he couldn't shoot anything for a month." She chuckled when Remi sat up and her eyebrows rose up into her bangs.

"What'd he do to him?"

"My dads six foot three and weighs over two hundred pounds; he dwarfs everybody so you can imagine him up against a scrawny sixteen year-old boy. He grabbed Tommy by his nuts and picked him up off the floor. He gave Tommy a choice, either marry the girl or join the girl's choir."

"So your brother got married when he was sixteen?"

"Nope, but he looks damn good in a skirt." The look on Remi's face was priceless; she pulled her head down onto her shoulder and snorted. "Just kidding, they've been married for 28 years and have four grown kids. In fact, I'm a great aunt."

"How old are you if he's?" Remi counted on her fingers and gave Jos a raised eyebrow. "44?"

"I'm 34 but I feel 64 today, I have feet and ankles the size of an elephants." Remi got out of bed, looked around their living area and brought over a small footstool that had been sitting against one wall. She lifted Jos's feet, placed the stool under her calves, and then started rubbing her feet and ankles. "Maybe this will help and maybe you should stay off your feet."

Green eyes twinkled and a small smile came to her lips, she never took Remi for being a nurturing person. "Are you gonna wait on me hand and foot?"

"Yep, I owe ya." She kept her eyes downward and refused to lift them when Jos asked. "I could have over powered both Peanut and Laalaa in the bank the other day and kept them from taking you hostage."

"And if not, they could have shot you for trying. Remi, this isn't so bad being here, granted you lost your job and found out you're not Hercules but at least you're not dead."

"I knew they didn't have guns from the beginning, I just never thought we'd be taken hostage and kept even after they said they'd let us go. But you're right, it's not bad here. I don't have cable at home, air conditioning and I sure as Hell don't eat this good."

"Does me staying in bed mean that you're gonna cook for us?"

"I can do that and I can guarantee that it'll be close to gourmet." She winked and then headed for the kitchen with green eyes taking in her long muscular legs. "Wish ya had legs as long of mine huh?"

"Shut up and cook Remi."

**************

Peanut sat on the floor of their latest electrical job; she had all kinds of wires in her mouth while she punched out the holes in the back of a metal junction box. She turned her head and grinned at Laalaa who was struggling with a huge wooden roll of 16-gauge wire. "What the Hell are you doing with those wires in your mouth, those things are HOT!" She reached over, pulled the wires from Peanuts mouth, screamed, and then shook until she dropped them. "You ignorant ass," She shook her numb fingers and kicked Peanut in her ass. "How come you didn't get zapped?"

"Got used to it after a few minutes, is my hair still standing up?" She reached over her head and felt her long hair standing on end. "Pretty cool huh?"

"Are you almost done there, its ten minutes to four and I wanna stop and get fried chicken for supper."

"Figures, it's your turn ta cook and we're gonna stop and get chicken. Can I get extra crispy and some of that black cherry cheese cake and corn bread muffins and fried livers and?" Her eyes grew wide when she saw the electrical wires getting close to her ear. "Time ta go?this can wait until morning!" She scampered away on her hands and knees all the way to the fuse box, she jumped up and hit the switch and sent the room into pitch-blackness.

"HEY I CAN"T SEE!" Laalaa yelled and tripped all the way to the door. "You wait until we get home; I'm locking you in the basement for the rest of the week!"

"I'll go willingly if ya take Remi out, she scares me!" She grabbed Laalaa's hand and pulled her from the dark room. "Think we should get them some chicken and stuff?"

"And how do we know if they haven't already cooked supper?"

Peanut pulled her cell phone from her pocket, dialed their home number and waited for it to be picked up. "Remi, it's Peanut, you guys want fried chicken for supper tonight?" She watched Laalaa's eyes roll back in her head and then she fell straight back on the floor. "OK, extra mashed potatoes and gravy, c-ya in a little bit." She hung up the phone and kicked Laalaa's foot. "Come on I'm hungry and I want some spicy chicken wings to!"

*****************

Remi had been reading Baby Talk Magazine when she heard a phone buzz; she looked around the living room and saw a cordless phone sitting on a bookshelf that she had paid little attention to. She looked quickly to where Jos was sleeping in the bed and ran over to grab the phone, she was shocked when she heard Peanuts voice. Going into the bathroom, she spoke to her in a low voice. "Sure, can we have extra mash potatoes and gravy, Jos really likes them." She hit the off button and grinned; they had a phone down there with them the whole time and had never seen it. She searched for the ringer switch and flipped it off. "Where can I hide this thing?" She looked around the bathroom and then went into the living room and slipped it under the couch. "I want more time with her is that so bad?" She asked herself and then went back to reading about taking care of newborns. Among the bags that their kidnappers/friends had left for them, they had come across the bag that Jos had with her when they were taken hostage. She had some new baby clothes, magazines and other items that she had bought going into before work in there. The magazines are what Remi had been reading most of the time that Jos had been sleeping; there were things in there that she had never known about. Who knew that there were different sizes of bottle nipples? What really amazed her was the breast pump, after reading how you would use it; she crossed an arm over her breasts and shivered. It reminded her of what they used on cows and there was no way she would ever use one of those. "Like you would get pregnant anyway." She flipped back to the page that she had been reading when she felt Jos lean over her shoulder.

"Learning anything?"

"Yeah, that I would rather have my tits slammed in a desk drawer than use a breast pump." She tilted her head back and looked into sleepy green eyes. "Are you gonna use one of those?"

"I have one, I may use it if I'm unable to breast feed, you know like in a public place or something." She went into the bathroom and heard Remi moan. "I don't think too many people would like to see me whip out a tit so I could feed my baby." Remi had never seen anything like that and it made her feel like she had missed out on something in life. She would love to see Jos breast-feeding her baby and was shocked that there wasn't anything sexual about it. "How would you feel if a woman did that at say a restaurant or while sitting on a park bench, would it gross you out?"

"I've never seen a woman breast feeding her baby but I know it wouldn't gross me out or anything, it's a natural thing. Now if I saw a man and woman having sex on that bench then I'd be grossed out."

Jos sat down next to her on the couch and watched her flip through the magazine. "Why because it's a male and female having sex?"

"Nope because it's in public and not the proper place to be doing something like that," She looked to Jos and groaned. "I have no problems with public displays of affection, some are better for when you're behind closed doors though. I may have been raised in an orphanage but I was taught morals, some of the people today don't have any."

"You mean like the john getting a blow job in the alley?"

"EEEWWW, thanks for that nasty picture in my head."

****************

"I can't believe you called Remi; I also can't believe that we forgot about the phone down there!" Laalaa smacked Peanut in her head. "What if we get home and they're gone and the police are waiting for us?"

"Naaah, they'll still be there. I think they like it there, Jos has the key to the shackles and she hasn't let Remi go."

"You better be right and you better not say the voices are telling you all this." She shot a glare at her and almost put the van on the sidewalk.

"OK, I won't tell ya it was the voices. But they said if you ain't nice ta me they're gonna put me in charge from now on." Before the van stopped, Peanut was out the door with half of the food in her hands. She ran into the house and went right to the basement door, taking a deep breathe; she opened the door and went down the steps. "Hope you guys are hungry, I got lotsa food for ya." She put the bucket of chicken, bag of side orders and a two-liter of Coke on the kitchen table. She backed up when Remi got up off the couch and walked towards her, she was ready to run until she saw a twinkling blue eye wink at her.

Jos patted her arm and gave her a bright smile. "You didn't have to bring us food; we have all kinds of stuff we could have made."

"Well, it's Laalaa's night to cook so we stopped and got chicken. She hates cooking," She gave them a conspirital grin. "She sucks and can't cook worth a damn anyway, plus this way you guys don't have ta cook tonight." She gave them a toothy grin and started for the stairs.

Jos gave her a nod of her head and pointed to her hair. "Hey Peanut why's your hair standing on end?"

"Ohhh that's from putting hot electrical wires in my mouth, that way I know where they are and don't grab a hot one with my fingers." She ran up the stairs and before she closed the door, they heard her yell at Laalaa for taking the breast meat and wanted to know where the fried livers were.

"No wonder she's a little off in the head," Remi mumbled and started pulling food out of the bag, she grinned and handed Jos the huge container of mashed potatoes and the other container of gravy. "They brought us cheese cake and apple cobbler for desert." After they had eaten, washed, and put away the dishes, they sat down on the couch to watch TV. Jos handed the remote control to Remi and stretched out as best she could.

"You go ahead and find us something to watch."

"But what if what I want to watch you don't?" She took the remote and looked at the buttons before looking to Jos.

"As long as it's not the shopping network or sports, I'll watch it."

"You don't like sports, I figured with you working at the newspaper that you would cover all kinds of stuff, including the local sports stuff?"

"Since I blew up like a house, my boss took me off my normal assignments but even before that, I let Jen take the sports pieces." She tilted her head to be able to look up at Remi. "I write the obituaries and unless someone dies, I don't have anything to do at work."

"And here I thought my job was depressing," In a monotone voice, she droned. "Time ta make the donuts." She grinned, switched the TV to the Lifetime channel and then patted her leg. "Move closer and put your head on my leg or I can get you a bed pillow."

"Your leg will do, how's your stomach, does it still hurt?"

"Yeah but not as bad, I'll never do that again." She leaned back into the cushions and let her fingers brush through Jos's short silky hair. She looked down to see green eyes flutter and then close, her breathing became deep and even as Jos drifted, off to sleep. "You'll make a good mother Jos, you care for everyone whether you know them or not." She forgot all about the TV and just watched her small friend sleep.

*****************

Jen crawled up onto the bed and dropped across Petry's chest; she traced the line of her jaw with a fingertip and grinned. "You will not believe what happened today?"

"With the way our lives have been for the last couple, yeah I will. What happened this time?"

"Peanut called Remi at their house and asked her if they wanted fried chicken for supper." She laughed at the wide-eyed, dropped jaw expression on her wife's face.

"Are they still in the basement or do they have full run of the house now?"

"Ohh they're still down there, Laalaa forgot about the phone down there. She thought for sure that the police would be there waiting for them but when Peanut took the food down, Remi winked at her."

"So Jos has the key to the shackles and Remi knows there's a phone, doesn't seem like either one of them wants to go anywhere. Could Remi be the one for her, I know she always says that she doesn't need anybody in her life but?"

"Ohh I think she's finding out she was always wrong when she told us that, Peanut said they still sleep in the bed together and she was spying on them before she called and they were all cuddly on the couch." She rolled over, rested her head on Petry's wide shoulder, and wrapped an arm over her stomach. "I think she's falling for tall dark and sneaky."

"She's no more sneaky than Jos is, they're perfect for each other." She reached over and flipped the nightstand light off. "Wanna see how sneaky I am?"

***********

Laalaa walked into Peanuts bedroom and stood over her where she was lying on the floor with her eye to the heat register. She leaned over and spoke in a deep voice. "I can see you!" Peanut jumped, slipped on the floor and landed on her back looking up into smiling brown eyes.

"Asshole, I thought it was Remi!"

"You're lucky it wasn't, she might've poked ya in your eye. Sooo?whatcha see down there?" She dropped down, put her eye to the heat register, and moaned. "This just ain't fair, the last time I slept with someone, it was six someone's and we were all toddler size."

Peanut's mouth dropped open; she shoved Laalaa until she lifted her head. "You slept with someone when you were a toddler?"

"Not like that you dense moron, we only had one bed so me and all my brothers and sisters had to sleep in it."

"I slept in the dog's bed, her pillow was softer and she had nicer toys then me."

"Peanut, you still sleep in a dog's bed." She got up off the floor and pointed to Peanut's bed. "Only you would sleep on Scooby Doo sheets and have squeaky toys." She went to the door and looked back over her shoulder. "I'm going to bed, don't lay on the floor spying all night or it'll take months ta get the register lines off your face.

Peanut rubbed her face, felt the indentations from the register on her face, and groaned. "Who would notice anyway?" She shrugged her shoulders and put her eye back to the register. "Come on Remi do somethin already, all ya do is lay there and play with her big belly. Go lower Remi?," She dropped her voice octaves and repeated the word thinking that Remi would hear her. "Lower?lower?low?" She jumped back from the register when pale blue eyes looked directly at her and white teeth flashed.

************

"Ya little freakazoid, I can't believe you Peanut." Remi moved out from under Jos and gave her shoulder a gentle shake. "Come on mama time for bed." When Jos continued to snore, she slid her arms under her, lifted her up and carried her to their bed. When she bent over, she felt a little twinge in her stomach but that was all. "Guess I'm not hurt as bad as I thought." She climbed into bed and curled around Jos after pulling the sheet over them. She rested her hand on her belly and moved it in slow circles, occasionally; she felt the baby move and could tell that it was getting lower. From what she had read in the magazine, that meant that Jos was getting closer to her delivery time. "What am I gonna do if?if?if the baby starts to come?," She felt her pulse start to race, her heart speed up and sweat form on her upper lip. She took a deep breath to try to calm her suddenly racing nerves, just the thought of being in the same area during a birth had her going into panic mode. She was ready to get up and pace the floor, jump up and down or flush her head in the toilet when a small hand settled on her head and massaged her scalp.

"Go to sleep Remington." Jos whispered and then rolled part way into her body and held her close. "Go to sleep?" A loud snore and then grumbling rumbled against Remi's head, she closed her eyes and placed an arm over Jos's ribs. In seconds, she was calmed and drifting off to sleep with her head resting on Jos's shoulder.

A few hours later, Jos had to untangle them so that she could go to the bathroom, she felt like she spent a good majority of the last nine months sitting on a toilet. On her way, she pulled her t-shirt up and rubbed her belly. A wide grin came to her sleepy face when she remembered falling asleep with Remi holding her possessively and occasionally rubbing her belly. "It'll be OK Remi, hopefully my baby will decide to come after we're out of here and you won't have anything to worry about." Her eyes filled with tears and trailed down her cheeks to drip off her jaw. A low sob escaped her trembling lips and echoed in the small bathroom, she dropped her face down into her hands and cried.

Remi rolled over and felt around on the bed searching for Jos, what she found was the spot cooling from where she had once been. She sat up and can saw the light on in the bathroom, getting up; she stumbled with the chain and stopped outside of the bathroom door. "What's wrong Jos?" She stepped into the bathroom and dropped to her knees beside her. "Come on Jos, let's go back to bed."

"What am I gonna do?" She sobbed into her hands and leaned into Remi's body. "When my baby comes?what am I gonna do?" Remi wrapped her arms around her and placed a lingering kiss to her crown. She helped her up and then pulled her shorts up for her.

"Let's go back to bed and you can tell me what you're worried about." She helped her to lie down and then sat on the edge of the bed holding her hand. "What are you worried about Jos, you'll make a great mama?" She wiped tears from reddened cheeks and felt her heart thump against her ribcage; she hated to see Jos crying.

"I don't know?mood swings." She broke down, rolled over, and placed her face against Remi's side.

"Who's your birthing coach, ya know the one whose gonna be in the delivery room and help you afterwards?"

"Jen said if I?needed someone?she'd come, otherwise I don't have anyone."

"Why not Jos, everyone needs someone in there?for support." She couldn't believe what she was about to do, it scared the Hell out of her but she would do it for Jos. She had strong feelings for the smaller woman and it surprised her that it had happened in just a matter of days. "I'll be your coach Jos, I won't know what I'm doing but I'll be there." She closed her eyes, wrapped Jos in a tight hug and rocked her until she fell back to sleep. "Hope you know what you've just gotten yourself into Remington." She whispered.

********

Jen held up a hand to her and Jos's boss, she had been listening to him for the past 20 minutes and couldn't get it through his head that Jos was OK, that she was taking it easy at home and not to worry. "I called all day yesterday, the day before and the day before that! She doesn't answer and I can't help but worry about her!" He flung his arms in the air and ran his fingers through his thin hair. "Come on Jen, you're her friend, where is she?"

"She's staying with a friend, you know she's close to her due date and this way if she goes into labor someone will be there."

"OK I can understand that," He dropped down into his chair and pushed his bifocals up onto his forehead. "I just worry about her, ya know with her living alone and not having anybody?Ohhh Hell you know what I mean." He blushed when she wiggled her brows at him.

"If everything is working the way I hope, she won't be alone." She gave him a wink and left him to sit and try to figure out just what she meant by her last remark. "You're worse than a nurse maid boss man; it's good to know you care about us." She went back over to her desk and pulled the files she had been working on from her in box. "Wonder what you two are doing right now?" She leaned back in her chair and let wicked images rush through her head, closing her eyes; she missed the two women drop into chairs across from her desk.

"Ohh sittin here watching you grin like a lunatic." Peanut grinned at Jen and then slid up in the chair to lean on the edge of her desk. "I checked on them before we left for work and they were still sleeping?actually?that's all they seem to do is sleep." Jen leaned closer to Peanut and pointed a finger at her.

"What's wrong with your face?"

"That's from the little pervert looking through the heat registers in the floor, that's how she knows that Remi and Jos sleep a lot." Laalaa gave her a wink.

"So you came to tell me that Peanut's a pervert?"

"That and ta thank you for not turning us in." She dropped hers eyes to her boots and continued. "We feel really bad for doing all of this and hope that you guys aren't mad. We didn't need the ransom money or anything; we just get bored and do stupid things."

"Don't worry, no ones mad at you guys," She leaned back in her chair and looked between the two women. "So what other things have you two done because of boredom?" She saw a wicked grin cross Peanuts face and knew she was in trouble.

"We switched the labels on some movies at Video Den, bet there were a lot of confused kiddies." She snickered and slapped hands with Laalaa.

"Lady and the Tramp took on a whole new meaning for them, if ya know what I mean." Laalaa said and wiggled her eyebrows.

Jen crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. "Ohh so you two are the reason I ended up watching a Disney movie instead of porno. Ya know I didn't get any that night because Petry cried through the whole damn movie."

"Uuuhh Ohhh?sorry Jen," Peanut grinned and slid a video tape across the desk to her. "That's not porno but it'll let ya know what Jos and Remi are doing in the basement, besides sleep, they talk a lot. And Remi's been reading those parenting magazines and asking Jos questions. Kinda funny since she's?"

"Terrified of kids and has panic attacks." Laalaa completed Peanuts sentence and saw a frown form on Jen's face. "Don't worry though, they're helping each other." She got up from the chair and waved at Peanut. "We gotta go; we'll let ya know how they're doing once we get home after work."

****************

Remi was lying on the couch with her legs up over the back, head hanging off the cushion and reading one of the parenting magazines. They had talked most of the morning about all kinds of things, some personal, and some just daily observations. When Jos heard the grumbling in her stomach and felt a small hunger pain, she decided to make them some lunch and a pot of Ginseng tea. She kept taking glances of Remi and shaking her head in thought, what had started out as being total strangers stuck together in a strange situation had changed to friendship and now was something deeper. Remi knew things about her that not even Jen knew. She felt comfortable with the tall woman enough to tell her of her deepest fears and hopes, each time that she looked into her clear blue eyes; she felt her heart skip a beat. When the baby kicked, she placed a hand on her stomach and moaned, all that morning she had been kicking up a storm and was more active than usual. "You OK Jos, something I can do?" Remi asked from where she had given up reading and was now watching TV upside down.

"I'm OK, baby is just doing little tap dances, she must be hungry."

"Let me know and I'll take over lunch, you shouldn't be up moving around so much anyway."

"I'll go nuts if I have to sit around; I'm not used to being so inactive." She pulled the pot from the stovetop, grabbed her stomach and then heard a splashing sound. She looked down, saw a huge puddle around her feet, and gasped. "REMI!" She gripped the counter top in tight fingers and groaned when another pain shot through her stomach. She started to slip to the floor, then felt strong arms grab her, and led her to a chair. "My water broke."

"As in baby's water and she's coming?" At Jos's nodding head, Remi's eyes widened, she tripped over the chain on her way over to the couch. Crawling on hands and knees, she reached under and grabbed the phone. Crawling back into the kitchen, she looked up to Jos and waved the phone in front of her. "What's the hospitals phone number?"

"Where did you get that?"

"Uhhmm?I found it the other day?sorry?I?what's the number?"

"I don't think the ambulance will find us since we don't know where we are," She took the phone from Remi and dialed Jen at work, when there was no answer, she called her home and sighed when it went unanswered as well. "We have to get upstairs and find the address."

"Can you make it up the stairs?" Remi was rushing into panic mode; she could see the twinges of pain going though Jos's eyes.

"Not by myself, go over to the bookshelf and run your hand across the top shelf." Remi did as Jos said and came across a key, she looked at it and then to where Jos was pointing at the shackle. "It's the shackle key, Peanut gave it to me." She saw the smile come across Remi's face and shrugged her shoulders. "Guess we're even then, you had a phone and I had the key." She moaned and grabbed he stomach in pain.

"I'll be right back." Remi dropped the shackle and ran up the stairs; she slammed into the door with her shoulder and let out a yelp from pain.

"Remi, the doors not locked." Jos chuckled at the soft 'Ohhh' that came from Remi and then moaned with another contraction. "Guess I have one secret up on her." She had checked the door days ago when she had first been released from the shackle, she had kept that a secret to keep Remi from trying to be Hercules again or try to convince her to escape on her own. At the sound of footfalls and cussing as Remi tripped down the stairs, she looked over her shoulder and saw her grabbing a bag that she had prepared in case she went into labor. "Do you have an address?"

"Better, there's a blue Eclipse in the driveway, I couldn't find the keys upstairs so I'll hot wire it." She went over to Jos and helped her stand, wrapping an arm around her back, she helped her towards the stairs.

"That's my car; the keys should be on the floor and remind me to kick Jen and Petry in their asses after I have the baby."

"I'll do it for ya and I'm gonna get Laalaa and Peanut to." Once outside, Remi slid the driver's seat all the way back and still felt as if she was smashed behind the steering wheel, she looked to Jos with a raised eyebrow and saw her grin. "Short person."

"Hey, little cars are for little people." She moaned and closed her eyes with another contraction. "Have any idea where we are in relation to the hospital?"

"Yep, just hold on for me."

"Ohh I will, I just can't wait until we get to the hospital and everyone sees that you don't have any pants on."

Remi looked down, lifted the tail of the button down shirt, swore and shrugged her shoulders. "Ohh well, it's not like the doctors haven't seen a bare ass before."

**************

Peanut came flying up from the stairs, waved her hands and jumped up and down. "They're gone!"

"No shit! The cars gone so that means they're gone and that could only mean that?THE BABY'S COMING!" Laalaa ran over to the phone, juggled it and cussed when it hit the floor with a clatter. She picked it up and dialed Jen and Petry's, as soon as it connected, she yelled. "Hospital?baby's coming!" She hung up the phone, grabbed Peanut by her hand and dragged her out the door and to the van.

*********

Petry looked at the phone after the beeping noise started and then into concerned hazel eyes. I think that was Laalaa, she said hospital and baby's coming?Ohhh shit, Jos's baby!" They ran for the front door and out to their truck, they hoped that they made it to the hospital in time. They were 30 minutes away and with the way traffic was, it would take them longer. Petry looked to her wife and shook her head. "I don't know baby, Jos is gonna kick our asses for all of this."

"No she won't, she'll be mad?maybe. Remember the video tape we watched, I think she's falling for tall dark and extremely buff." She grinned when Petry gave her a narrow eyed look. "But she's no where near as buff as you." She ran her fingertips up the rippling muscles on her wife's forearm and all the way to her flexing bicep.

************

Remi had pulled the car right up to the ER doors; she looked over to see that Jos still had her hands covering her eyes. She had broken every rule of the road on their mad dash to the hospital and poor Jos was still shaking from it. She ran over to the doors, grabbed a wheelchair that was sitting there and pushed it back to the car. After helping Jos into the chair, she started yelling for a nurse as soon as the doors slid open. When eyes turned to her and ignored her, she grabbed the first white lab coated figure, lifted her up so that their eyes met and yelled. "SHE NEEDS A DOCTOR NOW!"

"Calm down Remi, I'm OK just don't kill anybody." She held out a hand to her. "Put the doctor down and come here," When Remi put the terrified doctor down, took Jos's hand and dropped to her knees beside her. "Go park the car and come back in, don't run anybody over or punch anyone OK?" She ran a hand across Remi's cheek and gave her a smile. "I have a while before the baby comes so calm down."

"OK, I'll be right back." She stood up and growled when the doctor touched her arm.

"Remi put some pants on you're distracting the other patients." Remi took the scrub bottoms the doctor was holding out and nodded her head before running back through the doors to the car.

"She's a little excitable isn't she?" The doctor said as she pushed Jos towards an examination room. "How far apart are the contractions and do you have a doctor?"

"About five minutes or so, my water broke about 25 minutes ago and my Doctor's Mel Rosenbloom."

"OK, let me call up to OB for her and I'll have someone get you taken care of." She stopped the wheelchair next to gurney and helped Jos onto it. "I'll send your partner in as soon as she comes back into the ER."

"Ohh she's just a friend?"

"It's OK; I think it's great that you two are so committed that you're having a baby. I'll be right back." She gave Jos a smile and left her with her mouth hanging open.

Jos covered her face with her hands and groaned. "What is Remi gonna think about this, they're gonna think that she's my partner no matter what we say?" She uncovered her face when she heard a cheerful voice come from the doorway, in minutes; the nurse had her in a gown, blood pressure cuff on and was writing up her stats. She was getting worried when Remi hadn't returned from parking the car and was about to ask the nurse when she heard a loud bellow coming from the hallway.

*************

"GET OUTTA MY WAY OR ELSE!" Remi had a nurse held up in the air in front of her and was carrying her down the hallway; she stopped when she heard Jos yell at her and turned her head. "See I wasn't lying, she's right there!"

"Remi put the nurse down and come here; you didn't hurt anyone on the way back in here did you?"

"No that man jumped onto the hood of your car, I didn't run into him." She kneeled on the floor beside the gurney and took Jos's hand in hers. "Are you OK, is the baby coming now?"

"I'm OK; now about the man you supposedly didn't run into, where is he?"

"Ohh he's OK, he shouldn't have jumped out of the back of the ambulance like that. Good thing the gurney's wheels come down all on their own to." Jos groaned and closed her eyes, right then she knew this was going to be one Hell of an experience. She moaned when the next contraction hit and gripped Remi's hand. "I'm going to find a doctor?you're in pain and?"

"Remi, I'm going to be in a lot of pain before this is over with. My doctor should be down here in a couple minutes so relax."

"But Jos?I don't wanna see you hurting?I'll go?" She started to stutter, her breathing became uneven and sweat broke out on her face.

"Remi, take a deep breath and listen to me." She turned her head and cupped Remi's face with one hand. "It's OK; it's just a contraction, one of many more to come. Don't flip out on me, no panic attacks, we can do this."

Remi dropped her head down on Jos's shoulder and took deep breathes, what calmed her were the fingers running through her hair and massaging her neck. "OK, I can do this; I won't flip out or pass out."

A small older woman with short white hair stepped into the room and smiled. "Hey Jos, so it's time for the big event." Dr. Rosenbloom walked into the room and gave Jos a bright grin. "We're going to take you upstairs now and get you settled in."

"Good, there's no way I wanna stay down here. Remi's already scared half the people on this floor." She squeezed Remi's hand and nudged her with her shoulder. "Come on tough stuff we're going upstairs, maybe you can scare some women into giving birth." Jos gave her a smile and nodded to Dr. Rosenbloom. "Remi Winchester, this is my doctor Mel, Mel my friend Remi." Mel smiled and held out her hand to Remi.

"Ohh you must be the half-naked lunatic that I heard about?" Her eyes grew wide when Remi stood up to her full six foot height and shook her hand. "Now I see why you scared half the people, you're so damn tall!" She winked at Jos. "Ya got good taste Jos, now let's get you two upstairs, no baby's born down here if I can help it."

*************

Four women ran towards the ER doors from two different directions, Laalaa and Peanut ran right into Jen and Petry and sent them all sliding across the floor into the ER. They struggled to get up and bounced off each other all the way to the elevators, nurses and patients watched and stayed clear of them. After the problems the tall dark woman had caused earlier, they weren't taking anymore chances that day. Petry growled and smacked Laalaa in her head when she tried to straighten Jen's shirt by way of grabbing her breasts. Peanut leaned back against the doors, snickered, and fell out of the elevator backwards when the door opened on the OB floor. "Serves ya right Peanut." Laalaa growled and stepped over her to go with the others to search for Remi and Jos. "Come on or we'll leave you there." Jen stopped at the nurse's station and asked where they could find Jos and Remi; the nurse looked at her computer screen and gave her a smile.

"They're in delivery right now, I'm not sure how far long she is but I can check for you." She got up and went down the hallway after pointing to the waiting area.

"Come on guys settle down before we get kicked out of here," Jen said and pointed to the row of chairs. "The nurse is checking on Jos so we have to wait a few minutes."

**********

Remi turned and let the nurse tie the surgical gown for her and pulled the mask up over her mouth and nose, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a few moments before following the nurses into the delivery room. She hoped that she would be able to hold herself together for Jos, she had no idea what she was supposed to do but would do what she could for Jos. She stepped into the delivery room and felt her pulse start to race; Jos lay on the birthing table with her legs held up by the wings. Her hair was soaked with sweat and the strain from the contractions was showing on her face. She held out a hand and leaned forward with a contraction. "Remi?Jesus!"

"I'm right here?I can do this?Jos what?"

"OK Remi get up there behind her and help her lean forward with the contractions, let her bite, slap, punch, call you names what ever," Mel said with a wicked smirk. "Just no damage to me, I'm a delicate little flower."

"OK Doc and when she hurts me, I'm gonna yell and break everyone's eardrums or pass out from a panic attack."

Jos snarled and squeezed her hand until she saw Remi flinch with pain. "You are not gonna pass out on me!" She fell back into Remi's chest and panted for air in between her contractions. "I'm the only one allowed to?panic here?" She gripped both of Remi's hands and leaned forward with her help with her next contraction, the snarling noise that came from her sent the hairs on Remi's neck on end.

Mel sat down on a stool between Jos's thighs and lifted the sheet up. "OK Jos, we're almost there. You're dilated out to almost nine centimeters, any second now I should be seeing your baby's head. Relax and breathe through your next contraction."

"Easy for you?to say!" She panted and fell back into Remi's chest.

"Hey I did this three times," She gave Jos a wide grin. "I was smart and had a spinal, I hate pain."

Remi gasped and looked down into fiery green eyes. "You're doing this with no drugs?" At Jos's nod, she whimpered and looked to Mel. "Can I have her drugs?" Her breathing started to come in spurts, sweat broke out on her face with her panic attack.

"Remi look at me," Jos wrapped an arm around her neck and pulled her head down to her. "Calm down Remi?oohh God?" She leaned forward and pulled Remi's head tighter against her.

"That's it Jos, I see a head down here, you're doing good but ya might wanna let up on Remi, she's turning colors. Pretty colors but its not healthy for her."

**************

The four women paced the waiting room floor passing back and forth in two different directions, they had been told that Jos was giving birth and that their friend Remi was with her. After that news is when they started their pacing, they knew that Remi had caused all kinds of problems when they came into the hospital and just hoped that she wouldn't cause any in the delivery room. Every time the doors snapped open, they all turned and sighed when it wasn't Remi or Jos's doctor. "What is taking so long?" Petry asked and jumped when Peanut stepped in front of her.

"Try squeezing something the size of one of those cantaloupe things through a little tiny hole and tell us why it's taking so long."

"And what do you know about it?" She leaned forward and brought their noses together.

"That's what my mama said when my dad asked her what was taking so long having me?we'll she did describe it as shoving a telephone pole up his ass but it's close ta the same thing." She grinned at the ashen look on Petry's face and shrugged her shoulders. "So how many kids you gonna have?"

"Uhhmm baby?I am not into pain?" She stumbled over, dropped into a chair with a loud groan and pressed her thighs tightly together. She looked up into smiling hazel eyes and whimpered. "Do you really want kids?" Jen sat down on her wife's lap and gave her a gentle kiss; she wrapped her arms around her neck and leaned their foreheads together.

"I never said you had to have the baby, we'll talk about this, later OK?"

"OK, don't know how you can do something like that though."

Laalaa and Peanut snickered to each other and went back to pacing.

***********

"And we have the baby's head out, one more push Jos and the shoulders will be out and you're all done from there." Mel looked up into her patients exhausted face and then into Remi's exhausted blue eyes. It looked as if she was suffering the same amount of pain that Jos was, they were both soaked with sweat and looked as if they would fall over any second. "You want to cut the cord when we're done?"

"Me?" Remi asked and then looked down into half lidded green eyes. "Jos?"

"Do it Remi?here we?Gods!" She screamed out with her contraction and then dropped back into Remi when the pain disappeared.

Mel stood up from her stool and placed the squirming baby on Jos's stomach; she held out a pair of scissors to Remi and smiled. "Here you go Remi, cut your daughters cord?"

Remi looked down to the baby and smiled; she reached out and touched her small head with her fingertips. "A daughter?a little baby girl?" She took the scissors from Mel, snipped the cord and then watched a nurse bundle up the baby and carry her away. "A little girl Jos, a little girl," She wrapped her arms around her and buried her face against her neck. "You did it Jos," She mumbled against her neck and then picked her head up. "I'm so proud of you."

Jos wiped the sweat from Remi's face and gave her a soft smile. "I'm proud of you Remi, thank you." She pulled her head down, placed a lingering kiss on her lips and rested their foreheads together. They stayed that way until Mel told them it was time to get Jos cleaned up and into a room, she took Remi's hand and pulled her unwillingly from the delivery room.

"Come on Remi, let's go get you cleaned up and then I'll take you to see your daughter."

"But she's not my daughter," She said following the small doctor through the doors and into a locker room.

"Now you listen to me Remi, I brought Jostyn into this world, I've watched her grow up and you're the first woman that she has ever kissed in public. She wouldn't let Jen or her own mother in the room when I was examining her during her pregnancy, so you being in that delivery room is a big deal." She handed Remi clean scrubs and pointed to the shower. "That baby is as much yours as it is hers."

"But I've only known her a week!"

Mel crossed her arms over ample breasts and raised a white eyebrow. "So what, I knew my husband two weeks and on the third we got married. Now take a shower and when you're done I'll take you to see your daughter." She slapped her on the back and walked from the locker room. Remi dropped onto a bench and looked down at her booty-covered feet; she ran a hand through her sweat soaked hair and grinned.

"A baby girl, a little baby girl." She took a deep breath and just then realized that she hadn't panicked when she touched the baby, she jumped up, striped out of the hospital garb and got into the shower.

**************

Remi walked into the waiting room and waved at her friends, she nodded her head towards the doors and waved again. "Come on ya wanna see the baby or what?" She led them down the hallway and stopped outside of the nursery window, a huge grin came to her face when she saw baby O'Flannery in her crib. She pointed and wiped tears from her cheeks. "Isn't she beautiful, she looks just like her mama?" She pressed a hand to the glass and felt a hand on her shoulder.

"You're not mad at us are you?" Jen asked and then smiled when she saw the teary eyes. "We saw you guys that night and were hoping if we left you together you might?" She shrugged her shoulders and smiled.

"Make a love connection?" Remi replied and chuckled when Jen blushed. "Come on let's go check on mama, she's probably sleeping but?"

"You guys have slept enough for all of us, boring damn people." Peanut sighed and rubbed at the creases that were still on her face. "I need a face lift, think they can do that here?"

"Serves ya right, spying on us all the time." Remi pulled her into her side and gave her a tight hug. "So you gave Jos the shackle key?'

"Are ya gonna hurt me?" Peanut asked and then sighed when Remi told her no. The five of them walked into Jos's room, Remi walked over to her bed and sat down on the edge and brushed her hair back from her forehead. She smiled when tired green eyes opened and looked up at her.

"The gangs here to make sure you're OK, we just came from seeing the baby. She's beautiful Jos, she looks just like you." She dropped her head down on her chest and cried softly. Jos looked to her friends and offered them a small smile; Jen nodded her head and then signaled for everyone to file out.

"We'll come see you tomorrow, get some sleep Jos and take care of Remi."

"OK Jen, I will and thank you, for everything." When they were alone, she turned to her side and pulled on Remi's arm. "Come up here before you fall on the floor."

"But Jos?you need to rest?I'm OK?,"

"Just humor me and get up here."

"Ya know I become a complete wimp around you." She crawled into the bed and pulled Jos against her body.

"You're not a wimp; you had every nurse and doctor in this hospital hiding." She leaned back and looked into crystal blue eyes, what she saw there made her blood run like lava and her heart pound against her ribs. She leaned forward, brought their lips together in a gentle kiss, and pulled back.

Remi looked to her with half-lidded eyes, her voice a deep purr; she leaned down and whispered against her lips. "That's twice you've kissed me, now it's my turn." She brought their lips together in a lingering kiss that broke when they heard someone clearing their throat. Jos looked to the doorway and blushed when she saw Mel standing there with her daughter.

"Uuuhh huh, just friends," She stopped beside the bed and laid the baby in Jos's arms. "She's been yapping in the nursery and wheeling and dealing with the others for a bottle, so you better feed her before she takes off for the cafeteria." Mel pointed a finger at Remi and then to Jos. "That breast milk is for the nameless one there not you, which reminds me Jos. What's the baby's name so I can get the paper work done?"
"Uhhmm," She looked to Remi and blushed. "Winchester O'Flannery."

"Just friends Remi?" Mel said and laughed all the way out of the room.

"But we are just friends?really?Jos?" She gave up and fell back into the pillow. "How come no one believes me?" She turned and then sat up when Jos moved her gown away so that her baby could nurse.

"Everyone down stairs thinks we're partners," She looked up and saw complete amazement on Remi's face. "They think we're in a committed relationship. You're my sex slave and I keep you chained to the bed for weeks on end. I have a dick and got myself pregnant and I have three breasts."

"It's amazing how a baby knows to nurse from a breast." Remi reached out and ran a fingertip across the baby's ear. "She's beautiful Jos?I just can't believe how small she is."

"I can't believe you haven't heard a word I said." She smiled when Remi lifted her head and looked at her in total confusion.

"Huh?did I miss something?"

"Yeah but don't worry about it." She whispered and pulled Remi to her. "You'll find out soon enough." The kiss they shared was gentle but blood stirring all the same, when they parted; Remi looked into clear green eyes and saw her future there.

"Promise?" She asked in a deep purr.

"Always." Jos shifted in the bed so that she had her head on Remi's shoulder and wrapped both arms around her baby, she sighed and closed her eyes when Remi wrapped them both in her arms. Never before had she felt as safe or complete as she did now, she drifted off to sleep with the last vision of her baby's fingers wrapped around Remi's index finger. A nurse came in a little while later and found the three of them sound asleep, she lifted the baby out of Jos's arms and took her back to the nursery. She nodded to Mel in the hallway and whispered to her. Mel stepped into the room and smiled at the two sleeping woman.

"You may have started out as friends but I see a lot more than that right now." She covered them up, turned off the light and closed the door behind her.

*************

Jos opened her eyes when she felt someone shake her shoulder, she looked around her and saw the nurse holding a wrapped bundle and smiled. Using her elbows to push her self up in the bed, she heard a grunt and snickered. "Sorry Remi," She held out her arms and took her baby. "It's feeding time for baby Winnie." She thanked the nurse, pulled the top of her gown down, and then saw sleepy pale blue eyes watching her. "I'm hungry; wonder when they're gonna feed me?"

"I can go down to the cafeteria and get us some breakfast or?" She looked to the door and grinned. "Just stay right here and eat what they brought." Laalaa and Peanut carried two huge bags with them and then Jen and Petry brought two more.

"We came to feed the army better known as Jostyn." Jen said and leaned over to place a kiss on Jos's cheek then the baby's head. "We didn't want the hospital throwing you out after you wiped out the cafeteria." She ran her fingertips through the sparse blonde hair on the babies head and looked to see Remi watching a small hand pump on Jos's breast. "So what's the baby's first name and don't either one of you say baby?"

Remi gave her a huge toothy grin and answered. "Winnie."

"As in Winnie the Pooh?" Laalaa asked and shrugged her shoulders when Petry shoved her in the shoulder. "Well?"

"As in Winchester O'Flannery," Jos said and gave them all a smile. "What kinda food did ya bring us?"

When a nurse came into the room, Peanut whistled, did squeezing movements with her hands and chased after her. She came back a few minutes later by way of Mel dragging her by her ear. "I found her cornering one of my nurses in the lounge; put her on a chain Laverne." She walked over to the bed, winked at Remi and then checked on Winnie. "Your namesake has an appetite like her mother and you two slept right through two feedings after she was here the first time. Didn't you two get any sleep in the last week?"

"Yeah, but the stress after my water broke and then all work with delivering Winnie wore us out, I've never been that tired before." Remi waved a hand at Mel and pointed to Laalaa.

"How do you know those two?"

"That's easy; those two are accident prone and are here at least twice a month. Ohh and just wait, plan on not sleeping for the next eighteen years or so and then once she's married you get your grandbabies." She laughed at the horrified look on Remi's face and turned to see the same on Petry's. "Have fun girls, it's only just begun."

************

After threatening lives Jos and Winnie were released the next day from the hospital, using the Eclipse, Remi drove her to her apartment. Jos had to practically beat Remi over the head to keep her from carrying them both into her apartment. Once inside, she was forced to sit down on the couch while Remi ran back out to her car and brought in all her bags from Laalaa and Peanuts. Not to mention the bag that Mel gave them at the hospital that was given to new mothers. She was just about to get up when Remi came panting into the apartment and pointed a long finger at her. "Don't you move unless it's absolutely necessary, what can I get or do for you?" She dropped down at Jos feet and placed her hands on her knees.

"Can you go piss for me?" She scooted to the edge of the couch and held Winnie out. "Take Winnie and I'll be back in a minute." Blue eyes shot wide, Remi's breathing hitched and then started to come out in spurts. "Sit down Remi and take a deep breathe, you are going to get over this." Remi sat in the corner of the couch, leaned her head back and took a few deep breathes before looking at Joss. "Now put your arms out and take Winnie."

"Jos?I can't?hold her."

"Bullshit now put your arms out before I stomp on your bare foot." Before Remi could say a word, Jos placed Winnie in her arms and ran to the bathroom. She knew that Remi didn't trust herself with kids but if she showed that she had trust in her, it would help with her phobia. When she was finished in the bathroom, she stood at the edge of the doorway and watched Remi.

******

"I don't know about this Winnie?I'm not good?with babies." She ran a fingertip across a chubby pink cheek and smiled. "Ya know it's been years since I held a baby as small as you, I used to sit all day and rock babies in an old rocking chair. The part I hated were the nasty cloth diapers, I don't care what they say, those throw away ones are better. Who wants to wash nasty diapers?" She used the tail of her shirt to wipe slobber from Winnie's chin and placed a kiss to her small forehead. "You look just like your mama but you have pretty blue eyes, your?"

"Sperm donor had them, one of the reasons he was picked was because he had dark hair and blue eyes." Jos said and sat down beside Remi.

"What all do they tell you about the donors, I have no idea except that they have to have a full STD test?"

"It's like looking at someone's resume, they have everything on their including what school they went to."

Remi wasn't convinced, she knew too many men who just about lied about everything they ever did in their lives. "But what if they lied and the guys a troll or something?"

"They can't, a nurse of doctor takes down all the information." She ran her hand up Remi's arm and smiled at her. "She likes you, she's sleeping." She got up, headed for her kitchen, and came out with her breast pump and empty bottles that she had sterilized the morning before their kidnapping. She chuckled at the dropped jaw look on Remi's face and wiggled the cup that would go over the end of her breast. "In just 30 minutes a day, you to can have a quadruple D cup."

"Just one or can I have two, otherwise I'd walk around with one side lower than the other?" She glanced down at Winnie, pulled the blanket away from her, and opened up the one-piece sleeper she wore. "Still can't believe you're gonna use that thing."

"It's either this thing, nasty formula that I refuse to force my kid to drink, or I learn how to milk my self like a cow." She saw a wicked grin threatening to blossom on Remi's face, she wiggled the cup at her and smiled when she went back to playing with the little bit of hair Winnie had. Pulling her t-shirt over her head, she dropped it on the table and then got up to plug in the small breast pump motor. She dropped back down on her pale blue couch and started to fill the bottles with her milk; she looked to her side and saw Remi watching her with a pained expression. "No it doesn't hurt, it kind of reminds me of a girlfriend I had years ago." She chuckled when blue eyes rolled and she mumbled under her breath. "Well it does, it feels like it's sucking on my nipples."

"Ohhh jeez?did ya have ta tell me that?" Remi covered her face with one hand and moaned. "Now I'll have ta get a breast pump to go along with my vibrator."

**************

Come on mom, it's not like I was all alone at the hospital?" Jos rolled her eyes and flipped the chicken over in the frying pan while she listened to her mom yell at her for not calling when she went into labor. "Mom, Mel was there along with Jen, Petry, Peanut, Laalaa and Remi was in the delivery room with me. I was in labor for four hours, a lot shorter than I thought it would be."

"You had a man in there with you?"

"Mom, now why would I have a man in there with me, Remi is far from being a man."

"I just wanted to make sure you hadn't lost your mind while you were pregnant, I know Jen and Petry but who are the other two."

"Ohh they were our kidnappers, they took us after they robbed the bank where I was cashing my check."

"That's it, I'm coming over right now, you've lost your mind! It must be that?what is that when woman go nuts after delivering? What ever it is you've got it."

"Mom did you take your estrogen pill and all your other drugs today?"

"What the Hell do I need those for, I don't have any plumbing and all the KY-jelly in the world isn't gonna help me when your dad won't take his Viagra. Besides, I'm 67 and my tits swing around my hips. That's from having all you kids, now I'm coming over tomorrow and I wanna meet your girlfriend since you've kept her a secret."

"Mom, she's not my girlfriend?we're just friends and she'll be out looking for a job tomorrow."

"You tell Demi or was it Temi that I want to me her."

"Its Remi mom and you better take your pills before you come over."

"Make me, remember, I'm taller than you!"

"Mom, everyone's taller than me, you starved me and that's why I'm so short."

"You were too slow getting to the kitchen table, I'll see you tomorrow, love you Jos."

"Love you too mom." She sat at the kitchen table chuckling after she hung up with her mom, the woman wasn't right in her head and she had always been that way. It wasn't that she was crazy, she just spoke her mind and didn't give a damn what anyone thought. She was as bad as Jen and Petry when it came to setting her up with women; some of the women that she had found looked like they had just wandered in from a construction site. Which is not saying that woman who work construction are bad, it was the hairy faces that just didn't do it for her. She got up, turned the heat off under the frying pan and went to check on Remi and Winnie. Drying her hands with a dishtowel, she stepped around the couch and sighed. Remi was lying on the floor with Winnie sound asleep on her chest; she took in the hospital scrubs she still wore and her bare feet. With rushing around to get to the hospital, not only did she leave without her pants but boots as well. Slowly dropping to her knees, she lay down beside Remi and rested her head on her shoulder. Rubbing Winnie's back in small circles, she smiled when her small hands gripped at Remi's shirt. "Three days old and ya left me already."

"What can I say must be my tall good looks?" Remi opened one eye, looked down at Winnie, and grinned. "She's a good baby; I fed her one of her bottles while you were on the phone."

"That was mom, she's coming over tomorrow. She's pissed because I didn't call her when I went into labor, I should have done it and screamed over the phone right in the middle of a contraction." She buried her face against Remi's neck and sighed. "She wants to met you; I told her you would be looking for a job tomorrow so you'll be spared the crazy woman."

"Your mom wants to meet me, why?"

"I told her you were in the delivery room with me; I wouldn't let her in for my examinations so?she thinks you're my girlfriend."

"Ya know that's what everyone seems to think." She turned her head and rested it against Jos's. "I'm surprised they don't have us married."

"Remi, they already think that in the hospital."

"Where was I when all this was going on?"

"Running over a paramedic in the parking lot."

"That day is like a complete blur; at least I didn't miss the most important thing. Thank you for letting me be there."

"I couldn't have done it without you, now go put Winnie in her crib and I'll get supper on the table."

***********

Remi placed a soft kiss to a tiny hand and ran her fingertips across Winnie's cheek; she left the room on silent feet and stopped in the living room to watch Jos. At that moment, her heart was so full that it was close to bursting. Running a hand through her hair, she sighed and moved over to lean over the back of the couch. "I'm going to head home and make sure that I haven't been evicted or anything." Jos put her book down on the coffee table and stood up, taking Remi's hand, she pulled her into a tight hug. "Take my car and call me when you get home, that way I won't be worrying that you're sitting out on the curb with all your stuff in garbage bags." She pulled back and grinned up at Remi. "Just no drag racing with my car."

"Are you sure, I could just jog home, it's not that far from here."

"Listen you stubborn bonehead, you don't have any shoes and jogging down the street in scrubs and barefoot will have you in jail as an escaped mental patient."

"Most of the time they wouldn't be too far off, I'll call you when I get there." She leaned down, kissed her gently and pulled her into a hug before letting herself out.

**********

Continued in Part 2

The Athenaeum's Scroll Archive