I was awoken in the dead of night by a loud bang. I bolted upright out of bed, my wrench in my hand.

Granny was awake too. "Come on, Winry. Let's see what's going on." She had her little handgun aimed at the door.

Cautiously, we opened the door. We didn't see anyone; the moon was covered and the sky was overcast. Then we noticed a shadow moving at the edge of the garden.

Granny shouted, "Come into the light! I'm armed. Put your hands up and move slowly."

The shadow moved into the light, revealing a familiar human figure.

"Mr. Kimblee!" I exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to see you, Miss Rockbell. We have… things to discuss." He smirked, and some long buried instinct told me, "RUN!"

I turned to do so and met a huge body in my path. He grabbed my hands and pressed that chemical cloth stuff to my face. My struggles ceased, my wrench dropped, and the world went black.

When I woke up, I was chained to a metal wall. The room was rattling; I was in the back of a truck. I pulled at the chains; no luck.

"It's useless," and oily voice said. "Those chains are of my own design. They won't break without alchemy." Kimblee crept closer.

"What's going on?" I demanded. "Where am I? And what do you want?"

"You are in the back of a moving truck going to a secret auction. You are valuable property. And I want you, Miss Rockbell. I will be the highest bidder tomorrow." His eyes roved over me in a way that made me feel violated, like I'd already been raped. "And then you and I…"

I caught my breath. "No way in HELL!" I screamed, kicking him in the nuts.

He grunted, falling to his knees. "Keep up your fiery spirit," he rasped. "It turns me on."

A wave of sickening horror rolled though me. "You'll never get away with this. Ed—"

"The Fullmetal Alchemist is across the country. He'll never reach you in time. You'll be long gone before he even hears about this. That is, assuming he cares enough to come for you." My face stung like I'd been slapped. "Oh, and by the way, we didn't hurt your grandmother. We simply knocked her out and left with you." He rose to his feet. "Edward Elric isn't coming for you, Winry. And he never will."

He put another cloth to my face and I thankfully knew no more.

I woke up in a circle of light. I was naked, and I couldn't see anything beyond the edges of the light. I heard voices and assumed I was in the auction room.

"Now, this girl is a lovely young lady from the countryside called Winry. She is still 'fresh' and has a feisty fighting spirit. She'll be very fierce during certain activities."

There was a collective snicker around the room. I got mad. "You damn right I'm a fighter! You let me go right now or I'll rip your heads off!" I was just fanning the flames, but I couldn't help it.

"Well, that confirms it. Bidders? Do I hear twenty thousand? Thirty? Forty? Seventy?"

"One hundred thousand," a familiar oily voice called. Kimblee…. I growled.

"Going once, going twice, SOLD to Mr. Crimson!"

I was knocked out again and dragged off the stage. And I woke up in the back of a van, blindfolded. I just sat there, chained, too drugged to do much else.

"You're mine now," Kimblee said, wrapping his arms around me. "I can't wait until tonight."

Nausea curled through my stomach. Ed, save me! I thought. Hear me. Please, Ed, help me!

And somewhere out there, in the vast realm of thought, I could have sworn I felt a response.

And then Kimblee started biting my ear, and I knew I was alone.

I knew I was doped to the gills as I was dragged across grass and mud into a little room. The blindfold was taken off, and for a few blissful seconds I felt sunshine on my face. Then I was forced inside, with only a lamp for light. The rude person chained my hands above my head and to the wall and then I was alone again.

Food came, bread and cheese with milk. I ate slowly, my strength returning. I could think clearly again.

I knew I was doomed. I was Kimblee's new little sex slave and there was nothing to be done but wait for death, which would take far too long to reach.

Kimblee came at nightfall, or so I assumed. The door squeaked open, and in stepped a fully undressed Kimblee. I almost lost the bread and cheese at the sight.

"Ready, Miss Rockbell?" Kimblee's oily voice crawled through me like poison. Maybe I'll die that way, I thought. It's better than this.

"Relax, you'll enjoy this. I promise to be… gentle." He grinned insanely. He moved his hand over me, removing clothes and touching places I was too numb to feel. I could do nothing but stare up at him blankly.

In the back of my mind I saw Ed, smiling at me. "Don't cry, Winry. I've got you. It's all right." His voice echoed through my soul.

I came back to myself with a vengeance. I would NOT give in to this. Never!

I kicked my leg upward, catching Kimblee in the sweet spot. He groaned in pain. "That's the way, Winry. It's always more fun when they fight."

"GO TO HELL!" I screamed, kicking out as hard as I could in all directions. The bolts in the wall were loose; they fell free with my struggling.

"If I'm going to hell, I'm taking you with me," Kimblee rasped. He grabbed for my ankle. I crunched his hand under my heel, hearing his cry of pain as I ran for the unlocked door.

"No you don't!" Kimblee grabbed my wrist and hurled me back to the bed. In a flash he was on me, pinning me under his greater weight. "I've got you now, Miss Rockbell. There's no getting out of this. Now be a good girl and settle down!"

I fought. Believe me, I fought. He was hurting me. This is wrong! My mind told me. It's not supposed to be like this!

I was screaming my lungs out. Kimblee blocked my mouth with his own, his tongue pushing past my closed lips. I braced for the worst.

I let out a piercing scream. "EDWARD!"

Kimblee laughed. "He's not coming, Winry. It's just you and me now. Edward can't save you. Edward will not save you!" He reached for me.

"The hell I can't!" A voice shouted from the doorway.

Kimblee looked up sharply. "What the—"

He was knocked flying by a metal fist. I knew that fist. I'd built that fist!

Edward Elric stepped into the room, a look of sheer, pure fury on his face.

"Get—away—from her." Ed growled, scaring me just a little. In all the time I'd known him, he'd never had that look on his face. "You don't touch her. NO ONE touches her!" He sucker punched Kimblee, knocking him out.

My eyes filled with tears. "Ed." I started to sob.

Ed broke the shackles on my wrists with alchemy. "I'm so sorry, Winry." He took off his cloak and put it around me. "Don't cry, Winry. I've got you. It's all right." He took me in his arms.

"I love you, Ed," I told him quietly.

"I love you, Winry," he murmured back.

I was filled with perfect peace.

"Oh, how sweet." The voice came from the corner. "But I paid for this girl's body. I will have her body. I'm not going to let her get away." Kimblee rose to his feet. In a flash he knocked Edward off the bed and climbed on top of me. "Now, where were we?" He put his mouth on mine.

"KIMBLEE!" Ed screamed in fury, tackling him. "I told you. I told you. You don't TOUCH her."

Ed picked me up bridal style and carried me outside. I saw I'd been in a storage shed. Very classy, Kimblee, I thought.

I leaned my head on Ed's chest while he carried me to a waiting car. I knew I was in trouble. I was close to overdosing. There were too many conflicting drugs in my system. But I was content. The whole car ride to the hospital, Ed and I held each other.

"Ed?" I asked quietly. "How—did you—find me?" I gasped. I'd been diagnosed as OD and placed in intensive care. They told me my lungs were closing up, and they told Ed the odds were good, but still, be prepared.

Ed hadn't left my side since. Even when he had to use the bathroom, he transmuted a stone hand to hold mine while he held the other end. His breathing was ragged from fear.

"I got a bad feeling last night, like you were calling for help. I knew you needed me, so I told Al to wait and I went to see Granny. She told me you'd been taken by human traffickers." He shuddered. "I tracked down the men who took you and dragged Kimblee's name out of them." His voice was filled with vindictive pleasure; I decided I didn't want to know the method he used. "Then I drove like a bat out of hell to find you. And the whole time," his voice dropped to a hoarse whisper. "I was so scared. I thought I'd be too late. I thought you hadn't cooperated and they'd killed you. I was terrified I'd find your lifeless, bloody body, or worse, your cold, unresponsive stare. That was my biggest fear. That you'd shut down to the point of no return, until you wouldn't even recognize me." He looked up at me, and his burning eyes reflected the depth of his emotion. "I can't lose you. I can't. It would kill me." He hung his head.

"Ed…" There were no words to describe the feeling inside me. "I'm glad you came for me."

He looked up at me again with renewed vigor. "I will always come for you. You are the single most important thing in my life, Winry. More than alchemy. I've never told you, but it's true."

I kissed him. I don't know what made me do it. But it was the only answer I could give.

Ed held me gently, afraid of breaking the fragile girl in his arms. I broke off, collapsing on the bed.

"Winry?" Alarms went off in Ed's head.

"So that's… what that… feels like…" I breathed.

"Winry!"

The world was fading. "I'll… be okay. Don't… worry…. Ed." I sucked in a jagged breath. "I need… to tell you… I…"

"Shh," Ed hushed. "You can tell me later, Winry. Just sleep now. I've got you."

I smiled faintly and drifted, feeling the pressure on my hand hold true the whole time.

When I woke up, there was a doctor in the room. "-seems to be sleeping out the drugs," he was saying. "She'll wake up soon. Ah, here she is. How do you feel, Miss Rockbell?"

"I'm fine, thank you." I could breathe again.

"Winry." Ed took my hand in both of his.

"I'll leave you two alone." The doctor had a smile in his voice.

Ed and I looked at each other. "Love you," I continued.

He smiled, eyes welling up with tears. One fell on our joined hands as Ed leaned over and kissed me sweetly.

I had a hard time with people touching me, I noticed in the days that followed. Except for Ed. His touch was the one that kept me sane through all the horribly long medical procedures they put me through. After a while, I had no problem with being touched.

When I was finally released Ed took me to dinner (after clothes shopping) and I ate twice my weight in steak, potatoes and chocolate milk. Ed didn't even bat an eyelash when we got the bill, but out of the corner of my eye I saw him touch his wallet and wince.

Granny fainted when I came home. Ed stayed for a few days to make sure I was all right, and then he had to get back to Central. I couldn't say for sure, but I thought that he'd be home soon. We'd both said I love you; things were going to be different now.

He told me to be careful, for God's sake. I told him to come home soon, for my sake.

And then there was a long kiss goodbye.