It had finally happened. A skip had gotten the best of her. About ten minutes ago, her panic button went off. By the time we got there, the skip was nowhere to be found and Steph was on the floor with a syringe in her arm. We rushed her to the hospital, calling Joe along the way. They weren't together, but he still likes to know what's going on.

By the time we got there, the emergency crew was ready and Joe was getting out of his old Crown Vic. She wasn't breathing. Her monitor let out a steady screech. They tried to shock her back to life, without success. My Babe was gone.

-Steph-

Everything was black. Then the blackness was transformed into a meadow. I knew what had happened. I was dead. "Crap!" I yelled out to the trees. Then someone laughed behind me. I knew that laugh. I spun around to face Diesel. He smiled and said,"It's your lucky day, sunshine. My superiors decided you would be better alive." I stared in disbelief. Then Diesel said, "You've been given another chance. Apparently they admire your skills, but, really, I think they just get a kick out of all the crap you get into." I rolled my eyes. He reached out to touch me, then I slowly drifted into unconsiousness.

When I came to, I was in a car with Diesel. Was that all a dream? What the heck happened? I looked at Diesel and simply said, "Explain."

He pulled over to the side of the road and stopped the car. Then, he turned to me and asked, "You remember what happened with Cazar?" I nodded and said, "He burst into my apartment yelling, cursing. I tried to go for my gun, but he shoved me into a wall. I had the panic button Ranger gave me in my pocket. I pushed it. Cezar jammed a syringe into my arm and ran. Then, I blacked out, was in the meadow, and now I'm here. Did that all really happen?"

Diesel sighed and said, "Yeah, all of it's true. Even the meadow. Cezar is an Unmentionable. He has a knack for opening doors, as you saw, and all the usual parlor tricks. Unfortunatly, he has some very powerful friends. He gave you an injection to stop your heart. Lucky for us, only enough to do it once."

I shook my head. I was still very confused. "How did I get here?" He replied, " It was assumed you were dead. You had no heartbeat. They sent your body to the morgue. I went there claiming I was from the CDC. I took your body and left. This actually works quiet nicely. I wouldn't think your family would have a funeral without a body. Cezar thinks you're dead, so no more death threats."

I shook my head and grinned. Trust Diesel to think of a crazy scheme that actually might work. " But what now? I can't hide forever."

"Way ahead of you. I made some calls. There's ameeting set up to figure out the next step."

"Who's going to be there?" I asked, though I knew the answer.

"Morelli and Ranger. Morelli's coming ten minutes before Ranger. He'll see that you're alive and I'll find out what he knows while you and Batman have your reunion. Then we'll go from there."

I sighed. This'll be interesting.