NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: I'm currently taking a hiatus from writing to give my muses a much-needed vacation, but I decided to put my entire Angel In The Dirt series into one easy to read story. I'll keep the originals up so that readers can go through them individually.

This series is a continuation (sort of) of a series of stories written by theytalktome on FFDN (AKA valiumforaviper on Deviant Art, AKA ItsBeckettBitch on Twitter), featuring Luke Harper and Jay (Christian) as the main pair. Don't worry, I asked permission and made sure I got it first before putting ANY of this down.

There's a lot of flashbacks and POV in this story, so I've tried very hard to make things easy to follow. Book One is Jay's story. Book Two is Luke's story. Book Three is Bray's story.

DISCLAIMERS: First and foremost, NOT MY CHARACTERS, with the exception of my OC's. They're the property of the WWE. Avatar/book cover is courtesy of nerii5963 on Deviant Art, and it is used with permission as well. Sermons, promos, etc, are courtesy of a great site called cagematch dot net, which is run by Phillip Kreikenbohm, and contains tons of promo transcripts. Online onslaught dot net and Wikipedia provide play by play when needed. Other sources will be quoted when necessary.

SIDEBAR: I'm not on the bandwagon of writing someone as evil outside the ring just because they're portrayed as heels in the ring. The Wyatts are a complex and fascinating group in and out of the ring, and I hope I can write them as such in this story. So, without further adieu...

Angel In The Dirt: The Complete Series
By Debwood-1999

Break Me: Chapter One

"The 3 things that pro wrestlers become after ring work over. They are - become a preacher, do bad standup (comedy). And bitch that they did not get used right!"
Dusty Rhodes via Twitter

I guess I should start this story the day after Wrestlemania 30. I was still angry over being excluded from the card, but Bray convinced me that it was a blessing in disguise. And he was right, as usual. After seeing what happened with poor Damien Sandow, I was actually relieved to sit things out.

Anyway, the day after Wrestlemania 30, Bray, Luke and Erick faced John Cena, Sheamus and Big E. in a six-man tag team match. The Wyatts won after Bray planted Big E. into the canvas with the finishing move he named after Sister Abigail. I was surprised at how much the crowd was behind them. It was obvious that the bloom had come off the rose long ago where John Cena and his band of Homogenized Funsters was concerned. The WWE Universe wanted something new and different...and the Wyatts fit the bill.

To be honest, Wrestlemania 30 was when I finally saw the writing on the wall. After over two decades of putting my body on the line for the entertainment of the masses, it was time for me to step away. I'd taken my career as far as Vince McMahon would allow it to go, and now it was time for me to cut him loose and take the next step in my life journey.

The only problem was that I'd have to leave everyone that I loved behind.

Everyone thinks that Bray Wyatt is a monster. And that's right. He is one, and he can be exceptionally cruel. But he's also the bravest man I know. He's a monster because he's willing to go toe to toe with this world and take the fight to those who thumb their noses at him. And if he's being cruel, it's only because he loves you. Sometimes, like that Nick Lowe song goes, you gotta be cruel to be kind.

I should know all about Bray's cruelty. If it wasn't for him and his cruelty, I wouldn't be writing this. I'd be six feet under.

In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm part of the Wyatt family.

And brace yourselves...Luke Harper is my lover.

It's been that way for the better part of a year. Joining the Wyatts wasn't by choice at first. I screamed and kicked and fought at every turn. But after a while I realized that I was part of the family for a reason.

A year ago, I was planning to kill myself. Bray, Luke, and Erick literally pulled me off the ledge I was planning to jump off of. They made me realize that I really didn't want to end my life. I wanted someone to save me. The Wyatts saved me. Though it wasn't in the way that I'd imagined.

Everyone thinks that Bray's message is nothing but a pack of lies, and the ravings of a lunatic mind, and that all he and his family want to do is watch the world burn down. And yeah, that's right too. He wants to watch this world burn...the same way a farmer watches his spoiled crops burn so that they rise up again. This world, this poisoned, sick, twisted world must be burned down so that it can be reborn, into something more vibrant and godly.

Everyone in the WWE Universe assumes that everything Bray and his followers do is for themselves. Well, that's where they're wrong.

Bray does what he does for the children. Children are the foundation of what tomorrow brings. Their eyes and ears are open, and so are their minds. And they can separate the truth from the lies. Get them early, teach them true, and there's no stopping them.

Bray does what he does for the poor man that stands day and night begging on the side of the street starving because the masses didn't think he was smart enough to eke out an existence in this world. He does this for the teenage girl who wakes up crying very morning when she looks in the mirror because they didn't think she was beautiful enough to be the prom queen.

Bray Wyatt does this for each and every one of you.

All you gotta do is stand by the Eater of Worlds and believe, and you'll never be alone. Stand with him and believe, and you won't remember him as a liar or a lunatic, but you'll remember Bray Wyatt for what he really is:

An angel in the dirt.

~~~ANGEL~~~

Jay twined his fingers through Luke's hair and rested his hands at the back of the younger man's head. "Do I really have to go back home tomorrow? I'd like to spend some more time with you."

"You have to," Luke told him, gently. He and Jay were back in their hotel room following the RAW taping. Erick and Bray had gone out for a quick bite to eat, leaving the two of them to spend some quiet time with each other. "Bray says it's the next part of your life journey. In order for you to spread his message properly, you have to immerse yourself in the culture, get acquainted with everyone. And what better place to start than back home?"

"He does have a point. And I of all people should understand the rigors of this business. This is your job, you have to go. But not traveling with you for a while...just feels kinda weird."

"What's weird about it? The fact that you're going back home, or that Bray and Erick and I are going without you?"

"Neither of those, really," Jay admitted. "It's weird in the sense that Vince is all crazy about the three of you, and he hates my guts."

"The way he treats you? He can go piss up a flagpole as far as I'm concerned." Luke shrugged. He and Jay broke up laughing. When the mirth died down somewhat, he added, "Don't tell him I said that."

"I won't."

A pause. "I'm not ready, Luke." Jay sighed, resting his head in the hollow of Luke's shoulder. He inhaled, breathing in his lover's scent. He liked how Luke smelled; like wood smoke and leaves, faint musk and slight sweatiness. If Jay could stay here all day, he would. "I haven't finished the Seven Diamonds Plus One study. I have so many questions I want answers to, and not enough time to ask them. It'll take me years before I'm even close to Bray's level of understanding."

"Don't be too hard on yourself. Bray's light years ahead of you, and he still asks a lot of questions."

"I just don't wanna seem like I don't know what I'm talking about."

"You'll do fine."

"You think so? Or is Bray just blowing smoke in my face?"

"I know so. Bray knew from the moment he first lay eyes on you that you were destined for something special."

Bray knew from the moment he first lay eyes on you that you were destined for something special. The words had been pounded into Jay's head so much, that he couldn't find a reason not to believe them. They'd given him a purpose, a motivation, a life.

"You're wearing your necklace," Luke grinned, running his big fingers across the hematite Zuni bear that dangled from its cord at Jay's throat. He'd given Jay the necklace as a Christmas gift. It was nothing fancy or expensive, but what it meant to the older blonde made it priceless.

"I never take it off." Jay grinned back. A sly look entered his eyes as he let his fingers glide up his lover's massive chest. Luke sensed Jay's intentions and arched a glossy eyebrow. "Perhaps we should get a bit more...comfortable?"

"I thought we were comfortable enough already," Luke shrugged, a twinkle in his eyes.

"Well.." Jay slipped his hands beneath Luke's flannel shirt in an effort to remove it. "I thought since you and the others are heading out tomorrow, that you and I could give each other a parting gift. And if we do that, then we should get very, very comfortable."

"You do have a point," Luke chuckled as Jay removed his vest and eased him down onto the bed...

~~~ANGEL~~~

You feed the fire that burned us all
When you lie
To feel the pain that spurs you on
Black inside
No one plans to take the path that brings you lower
And here you stand before us all and say it's over
It's over
- Alice In Chains, "Your Decision"

Jay sighed and pried his eyes open. Dammit. Middle of the night and he was suddenly wide awake. It didn't happen often, but when it did, Jay ended up cranky and irritable in the morning because he couldn't get back to sleep. Well, since I'm awake, he thought in slight annoyance, I might as well get up. Maybe if I went outside for a walk, I'll feel a little better.

He glanced over at his lover, who lay on his side, completely down for the count. Luke looked too peaceful to wake up, so Jay climbed out of bed, wincing slightly. The fact that Luke had driven a truck before joining the Wyatts wasn't the only reason why he had the nickname of Big Rig, and Jay chuckled to himself at the thought.

After throwing on some underwear, some pants, a shirt and his shoes, Jay dashed off a quick note for Luke before grabbing his card key and heading out of the room.

The lobby was quiet, and Jay made his way outside rather quickly. The street he was on was remarkably quiet this time of night; Jay half expected it to be jumping with excitement and activity, especially with it being the middle of travel season. No matter. Jay actually appreciated the peace and quiet. It gave him a chance to be alone with his thoughts.

These days, suicide was the last thing on Jay's mind. It was a selfish act and an unforgivable sin, and whenever Jay thought of how close he'd come to taking his own life, he shuddered. His life was too valuable to literally throw it out a window. Thank God (and Sister Abigail) for bringing the Wyatts into his life when he needed them the most, though he'd been kicking and screaming when he first encountered them.

Jay glanced around and noticed that he'd walked much further than he'd intended. He chuckled and shook his head as he stopped to rest. How'd I wind up on the banks of the Mississippi? he wondered silently, sitting down on a metal bench that looked out over the water. I need to pay more attention to where I'm going!

It was so quiet and peaceful. The New Orleans skyline twinkled like gemstones set against black velvet. A cool breeze ruffled through Jay's hair. To Jay's right was the Crescent City Connection Bridge that arched across the water, connecting US Hwy 90 from the central business district to the residential parts of the city. No boats were out on the water, and the only sound Jay could hear was the flowing of the river. So peaceful, Jay thought, crossing his feet and stretching out his wiry frame so as to make himself more comfortable.

He didn't know how long he sat there taking in the scenery, but a nagging voice in his mind told him that he needed to get back soon. Jay yawned, his eyes squeezing into slits, before he climbed off the bench and began his trek back to the hotel.

As Jay headed back the way he came, he was suddenly aware of a roaring sound that reminded him of the surf back in Florida. There was no possible way that the surf was up, perhaps a boat was on it's way down the river? Curiosity got the better of Jay, and he turned around to look.

He suddenly wished that he hadn't.

The sound he heard was the roar of a giant rogue wave. It rumbled and rushed at Jay, a moving wall of white-capped water. Panic slammed through Jay, and every nerve in his body screamed RUN! He turned back and tore down the street, his heart racing, and his pulse pounding as he attempted to flee.

Faster...FASTER! Jay was running as fast as he'd ever run, but the wall of water continued to pursue him. Suddenly, he got tangled up in his own feet, and he crashed to the pavement in an undignified heap. Frantic, he tried to stumble to his feet, but they wouldn't cooperate.

Gasping for breath, Jay glanced up and felt his heart sink to his stomach. The wave was right on top of him.

The mountain of water crashed over Jay, so cold that it felt like a thousand knives were being driven into his body. The sheer weight and magnitude of the water forced out what little air was left in his lungs. Pain and panic set in as Jay struggled to breathe, to pull some precious air into his body, but all that surrounded him was water. A cold rush slammed through Jay like a skewer and his body began to shut down...

...And Jay sat up in bed, gasping for breath, his heart racing. The nightmare felt so vivid and intense that he could almost feel the cold water on his skin. He wrapped the blankets around his body and willed his heartbeat and pulse to slow down. Thank God that was only a dream, he thought, raking his fingers through his sleep and sex rumpled hair.

By force of habit, Jay glanced over to the other side of the bed. His heart sank when he found it empty. Then he remembered the conversation he and Luke had the night before and he shook his head at his forgetfulness. "You're losing your mind in your old age, Jay," he thought out loud, glancing over to the nightstand. There was a piece of paper with Jay's name on it sitting there, waiting to be read:

Jay -

Didn't want to wake you up. We're heading to the Smackdown taping. Bray's sent someone to fetch you to take you home. They should be here around eight. Have a safe trip.

Love, Luke.

Jay set the note down and lay back down on the bed. A year ago, home would have been a perfect house in Florida with years worth of memorabilia and his cats. No outside job, no family, no friends to catch up with, no other interests. Just him, his cats, and an excruciating depression that would have killed him had nobody intervened.

Nobody understood his attachment to the Wyatts, and it was likely that nobody ever would. He'd heard the whispers and snide remarks backstage: Can you believe it? Jay Reso and Luke Harper are an item! What does Jay see in that overgrown freak? Well, maybe it's not outside the realm of possibility. After all, Reso's mental state's been suspect for years. If you have more than two cats, you're a little touched in the head. That's what they say anyway. And the only reason he got a job here is because his best friend got him a tryout.

Jay felt his heart ache slightly as he recalled the last conversation he'd had with Adam, his former best friend and brother from another mother. He was at the Hall of Fame ceremony to induct Lita, another longtime (and now former) friend. After the festivities, Adam and Jay went to a coffee shop near the hotel they were staying at to catch up on old times. It was then that Jay finally laid things on the line with his longtime friend.

While Adam's career zoomed, Jay's had stagnated, and it was that fact that gradually pulled them apart. It was only when the Wyatts had taken him that he finally faced-unwillingly at first-his jealousy and anger and depression. Of course Bray's methods had been unorthodox, but he did more in the course of a few weeks to fix Jay than months or years of therapy ever could.

Adam, of course, didn't understand, and deep down Jay knew that he wouldn't...

~~~ANGEL~~~

"What the hell are you thinking, Jay? You've sold your house, you re-homed all of your cats—you're giving up twenty years in this business just so you can join a cult?!"

"It's not a cult!" Jay tried to explain, leaning up against the rental car. "It's my home. For the first time in years, I actually have a home, and people who love me. You and Chris, Dreamer, Styles, everyone...they all get to come home to a family, or a business, or friends, or other projects. You know what I came home to when I got off the road? An empty suitcase and my cats. That's what!

"I spent the better part of my two decades in this business giving and giving and giving. I busted my ass for Vince McMahon and everyone else in this industry. I did everything I could to try and prove to everyone who seemed to care that I was worthy of their attention. And I spent that time being everyone's friend, caretaker, rock, compass, counselor, whatever the hell anyone needed me to be, I was. And what did I get in return? NOTHING! I had nothing left to give myself, let alone all of you."

Jay paused, and his voice softened. "The Wyatts, they...they gave me a purpose. They gave me direction. They gave me love. Luke especially. He's got the patience of a saint. And he nursed me back to health and sanity when I needed it the most."

"HARPER?" Adam looked at his longtime friend like he'd just spoken in Arabic. "That overgrown, hairy-faced freak? What'd he do to you? What did he and Bray and Erick do to you?"

"That overgrown, hairy-faced freak is someone I love very, very much!" Jay fired back, angrily. "And if you must know, Bray and Luke and Erick loved me enough to take control and keep me from making the biggest mistake of my life."

"Biggest mistake? The biggest mistake you made was not pressing kidnapping charges against Bray Wyatt and his band of kooks!"

Jay smacked the hood of the rental. "NO! My biggest mistake was wanting to kill myself!"

The words dropped between Jay and Adam like bricks. Two sentences. Nine words. It was enough to change everything.

"Kill yourself? That's preposterous, why would you want to go and do a dumb thing like that?!" Adam exclaimed, in shock. "That's got to be a sick joke! You couldn't possibly want to do that! You can't be serious..." Adam's voice trailed off when he saw the somber look on his longtime friend's face. A cold numbness spread through his body. "No...no, don't tell me you were even thinking about that!" Adam whispered, pacing back and forth. "You've always been the stable one, why would you even think of offing yourself?"

Jay shrugged, sarcastically. "I don't know. Maybe the years of being called ugly, irrelevant, worthless, and unimportant finally caught up to me."

Adam gently placed his hands on Jay's shoulders. His voice was soft and full of disbelief. "Jay...my god, you're none of those things-"

"Tell that to Vince McMahon and upper management and the rest of Vince's Bullying Funsters!" Jay exclaimed, shrugging away from his best friend's grasp. "I'm not gonna go into details, but long story short, I was planning to jump out of my hotel window in Baltimore. July of last year. Then Jericho invited me to breakfast, and I went. I had a good time, and later I decided to lace my boots up one last time and give the fans one more match. One last happy memory because I wanted the fans to remember me for something good. Afterwards, Bray found me...you can figure out the rest."

Adam shook his head as he paced the length of the rental car. The very idea that Jay, his friend for nearly three decades, the man he loved like a brother, was hurting so much that he'd wanted to die was almost impossible to get his head around. "Jay...God! Jay I didn't know," Adam gasped, his voice cracking with emotion. "Why didn't you say anything? You could have talked to a therapist, or gone to Vince-"

"Vince McMahon never gave a fuck about me!" snarled Jay. "He wouldn't have helped me. He probably would have shoved me out the window himself, and then put out some insincere press release and move on like I never existed! Don't take this the wrong way, Addy, but the only reason why I was treated half decent here was because of you. I owe you so much, Addy, and I'll always appreciate that. But once you retired, everything went downhill." Jay wrapped his arms around himself and stared down at the pavement. His voice was thick with emotion as well. "Nobody-nobody backstage, nobody in management, no agents, no friends, nobody!-was brave enough to stick up for me. I was at the mercy of Vince McMahon, and it tore me apart."

Adam sat on the hood of the rental next to his longtime friend, completely devastated by the confessions he was hearing. "I'm...I'm so sorry-"

"You don't need to apologize for anything. No sense in apologizing after the fact either, Addy. What's done is done. You and Chris and Dreamer and all of them, you have your own lives now. And I have my own now as well, odd as it may be."

"Life? You call what you're doing now life?" Adam knew deep down that he had to tread delicately over this next topic, and he chose his words carefully. "Jay...Luke and Bray and Erick...there's no easy way to say this, but they're criminals. You have to press charges against them. What they did to you was against the law! They kidnapped you. They held you hostage and brainwashed you. You know that, I know that, everyone around you knows that too, though they don't say anything. The Wyatts kept you prisoner for three months. Just because Luke tucked you into bed a few times doesn't mean he that he loves you!"

He continued, unaware of the venomous look Jay had just given him. "Jay, everyone sees the Wyatts for what they really are, and here you are, like some lovesick little puppy falling all over yourself to protect them. It's not love, it's not loyalty, and it's not life, it's Stockholm Syndrome! They brainwashed you! There's no other way to describe it!"

"It's not Stockholm Syndrome, and they didn't brainwash me! The Wyatts saved my life!" Jay spat in fury. Why couldn't anyone (Adam especially) understand that what the Wyatts did to him was done out of love? "And Luke took care of me every step of the way, when I was at my lowest and most broken, he helped heal me! He bathed me, he dressed me, he made sure I ate, he held me at night when I cried, which wasn't very often, and he held me, even when I didn't cry. And more importantly, he made sure I knew I was loved. He protected me, he loved me, and he still loves me!" Jay paused, and his expression grew wistful. "And I love him. For the first time in years, I'm actually happy. I have a purpose, I have a life, I have people in my life who genuinely care about me. I thought you'd be happy for me, or at least try to support me and understand. Out of everyone in my life, Addy, I thought you'd be the one."

Adam shook his head, his voice honest. "I can't support this, Jay. I'm sorry. The man sitting next to me is Jay, but it's not Jay. The man sitting with me looks like you, he talks like you, all his mannerisms are the same, but he's not you. We've been friends, almost brothers, for the past three decades, I thought I knew everything about you, but now...you've changed so much, inside and out, that I...I don't know you anymore."

"Maybe you never knew me at all," Jay said, simply. He paused, his heart aching. What he was about to say would be the hardest words he'd ever have to utter. "Addy, you're my brother from another mother, and you'll always have a place in my heart. But if you aren't willing to support me, or at least try... then I'm afraid we can't be friends anymore."

Adam felt like he'd just been hit with a board. His voice got stuck in his throat, and he was barely able to choke out, "Jay..."

Before Adam could say anything more, Jay reached up and cupped his face. "I love you, Addy," he said, kissing Adam gently on the cheek, and then on the lips. Jay's voice was husky and Adam could hear the tears in his voice. "That'll never change. But it's over." He paused, and then he ran the tips of his fingers gently across the cheek of his best friend. "I want you to turn around and count to one hundred."

"Count to one hundred? Why?"

One sentence. Nine words. Enough to end everything:

"I don't want you to see me walk away..."

~~~ANGEL~~~

A lump rose in Jay's throat as he replayed his and Adam's last conversation. In reality, he'd given up on Adam, as well as Chris, Dreamer, AJ, and everyone else long ago. They really hadn't cared about him. He'd been such a rock for all of them that they'd taken him for granted, and that spawned his depression and resentment. It wasn't that he no longer cared about them. It was that they no longer cared about him. That revelation made it easier for Jay to give up on them.

It didn't make giving up on his old friends hurt any less, but the pain faded more and more with each passing day.

Jay climbed out of bed and put on his pants, which had been dropped on the floor last night while he and Luke were...getting comfortable. No sense dwelling on what was and what used to be. It was time to wash up, get dressed and packed.

Perhaps after washing up, he could do some studying while he waited for his ride to arrive. Bray's last lesson about the Seven Diamonds Plus One had been very enlightening, and it left Jay wanting to learn more about it. After all, it was the subject that Bray had wanted him to teach. He fumbled through his suitcase and carry-on in search of the book he'd packed with him. Final Quest, Final Quest, I know I packed it-

His search was interrupted by a loud knock on the door. Jay glanced up, the search for his book abandoned. "Hold on a second," he called out, searching for the t-shirt he'd worn the day before. He found it under the bed and slipped it on before he threw open the door. "Uh...hi?"

Standing in the doorway was a pair of identical twin girls. One of them wore a red t-shirt and jeans, and the other wore a black t-shirt and jeans. They were rather tall and slender like ballerinas, and both of them were pretty. Their hair was long and blonde, so blonde it was almost white, and their eyes were almond shaped and a soft blue, like a pair of faded jeans. Briefly, Jay wondered if the two of them were ring rats, and was about to turn them down politely (he didn't swing that way), until one of them-the one in the black t-shirt—spoke:

"Hi, you must be Jay. Bray told us to come and fetch you." Her voice sounded the same way a candied pear might taste. You had to be born hock-deep in hominy grits to get a drawl like hers.

"Bray?" Jay shook his head and stared bewildered at the twins. The fog of sleep was beginning to lift from Jay's mind, and he remembered the note that Luke had left on the nightstand. "Oh, I remember now."

"Yeah. Bina (she pronounced it Beena) and I, we live on the compound with Momma and our brothers. The boys have the Smackdown taping tonight, and since you didn't have anything scheduled, Bray asked Bina and me to come fetch you and take you home." The talkative twin held out a hand in greeting. Jay didn't shake the slim hand, but the girl didn't seem to pay attention. "I'm Violet Beth Pollard, but everyone calls me Violet."

"Hi. Who's Bina?"

"My sister," Violet explained, glancing over to her twin, who was looking down at the floor. Gently, she said, "Bina, it's okay. Jay won't hurt you. And Bray said we have to take him home." Bina shook her head. Violet continued. "It's okay. Bina's kinda shy of talking to people she doesn't know very well."

Bina lifted her head cautiously and studied Jay like he was a cloud formation she'd never seen before.

Jay let a kindly smile spread slowly across his face. "Hi. I'm Luke's..." He was about to say lover, but he stopped himself. Something about the shy blonde girl told Jay that she was different. Not retarded or slow or anything like that. But she wouldn't understand the context of lover in this instance. "I'm Luke's special friend."

A full half-minute of uncomfortable silence passed between the three of them. Finally, Bina let out a scream, and her face broke into a megawatt smile. Before anyone else could speak, the shy blonde threw herself at Jay and wrapped her arms around him, practically tackling him as she barged through the doorway and into the room. Violet, with a beleaguered look on her pretty face, brought up the rear, closing the door behind her.

"Look, Violet! It's an angel!" Bina squeaked, the joy rolling off her in waves. She gazed up at the unofficially retired wrestler in wonder. "You're Luke's Angel! Luke talks about you all the time. He calls you his Angel Boy. Oh, by the way, I'm Verbina Jane Pollard, and I'm an Aspie, but everyone calls me Bina, and so should you."

"Uh...okay." Jay wasn't sure how to handle such an introduction. "Aspie?"

"Bina has Asperger's Syndrome," Violet explained. "It's a form of autism. She has some developmental issues and she has trouble socializing. There's a lot of other things that go with it, but those are the two main ones." A pause, and then Violet cautiously approached her sister. "Bina, you gotta let go of Jay. He has to wash up and get dressed and packed. I'll turn on the TV, and you can watch the Weather Channel."

With a whine, Bina reluctantly let go of Luke's special friend and let her sister guide her to one of the beds in the room. "But he looks fine. Just has to put on some shoes. And I don't like Weather Channel. They don't have weather on anymore. Find something else."

Violet got her sister situated in front of the TV. After thumbing through the program guide, they both settled on CNN. Jay watched the girls with amusement and then stepped into the bathroom to wash up. "Make yourselves comfortable," he told the girls before he stepped into the shower and turned the water on. "I shouldn't be too long."

And he was right about that. Jay was out of the shower, dressed, and packed in less than half an hour (he traveled light these days, and he wasn't the type to primp every five minutes), and he and the twins were out of the hotel fifteen minutes after that.

Violet's car was a big, blue twenty year old Buick in need of a wash. After stowing Jay's suitcase and carry-on in the trunk, Violet climbed behind the wheel, and Jay slid into the passenger's seat. Bina curled up in the backseat like a little girl preparing to take a nap, and soon they were on the road.

"Omigod, are the rumors true? Are you really going to retire?" Violet asked, as she wove the big car through mid-morning traffic. "I know you've been getting hurt and all, but I thought you'd have at least one more title run in you before you decided to call it quits."

"I've had a chance to rethink some priorities," Jay said, simply. "I mean, I've been in the business the better part of two decades, so what's left for me? Besides, I need to step away for a while."

"I can only imagine what your retirement speech will sound like. I'll be bawling like a baby when I hear it I'm sure. It's sad that you're leaving, but I hope your friends will give you a nice send-off."

"I can only hope. Vince would rather show me the door without any fanfare and then put out a press release two days later wishing me success in my future endeavors. The rumors about Vince McMahon never liking me...unfortunately, they aren't rumors."

"What?" Bina looked incredulous. "But you're an angel. Why would someone hate an angel?"

"Because there are some people who are mean to others just for the sake of being mean."

"Momma says those are the people who need angels the most," Bina said, matter-of-fact. She glanced out the window and tensed up. Violet had just swung the car into a Walmart parking lot. "Why are we stopping?"

"We haven't eaten yet. There's a McDonald's here and we can pick up breakfast. And we should get some things to snack on for the trip. It's a four-hour drive home."

"I can't go in there!" Bina shook her head, averting her eyes. "Violet, it's loud, I don't wanna go in there!"

"Bina, we have to eat," Violet admonished her twin, gently, as she parked the car. "We won't be in there too long, and you can't stay in the car by yourself. It's already getting hot outside."

"Noooo," Bina moaned, shaking her head. "I don't wanna go. Don't make me go! Don't wanna! Don't wanna! Don't wanna!"

By this time, Bina was trembling violently and clutching her head as she rocked back and forth. She was like a three year-old throwing a tantrum, but Jay knew a little bit about autism. Many people with the condition had issues with sensory overload. A simple trip to the store would be traumatic; the simple hustle and bustle of a store and its shoppers would sound and feel like a stampede of elephants, leaving them so overwhelmed, they'd shut down to protect themselves.

While watching Bina tremble on the verge of a meltdown, Jay suddenly had an idea. "Violet, pop open the trunk," he instructed her, as he climbed out of the car. "I think I have something that'll help your sister."

Jay zipped open the front pocket of his carry-on bag and fumbled through it until he pulled out a hard plastic case. He opened up the case, revealing a pair of earplugs, which he handed off to Violet, who had climbed into the backseat to comfort her sister. "Stick these in Bina's ears," he instructed her before he closed the trunk lid.

It took Violet almost ten minutes to persuade Bina to take her hands off her ears and another five to convince her to put the earplugs in. Jay marveled at how patient Violet was with her sister; he wasn't sure how he'd be able to handle the situation. "I've been her shadow for as long as I can remember," Violet explained, answering the unspoken question as she climbed out of the car. "Some people are born with infinite patience, and some aren't. I'm one of the lucky ones."

Jay nodded in agreement. He could appreciate infinite patience. Luke was blessed with it as well.

The effect of the earplugs on Bina was quite swift. She gazed around in wonder, her eyes impossibly wide; any wider, and she'd look like an anime drawing. "My ears, they don't hurt anymore."

"Why did I not think to pack earplugs?" Violet admonished herself, shaking her head. She paused, and then ventured cautiously, "Bina, are you ready to get out of the car now?"

Bina glanced around nervously. "I'm...I'm not sure I can," she stammered, and for a moment, she, Violet, and Jay stood or sat around in slightly awkward silence, unsure of what to do next.

It was Jay that came up with another solution. He hunkered down in front of Violet's nervous twin and smiled gently at her. "Well..." he suggested. "How about all of us going in together. I'll even hold your hand, okay?"

Bina pondered the suggestion, and then she let a smile spread across her face. Momma always told her that angels were good, and they protected and helped people. And since Jay was Luke's Angel, well who was she to argue? Besides, she liked the idea of an real, live angel holding her hand. "Okay," she chirped like a little girl, holding out her hand so that Jay could help her out of the car. "Violet, can I have an Egg McMuffin? And I want peanut butter cheese crackers for the trip home..."

The three of them finally made their way into the store. Bina practically skipped along as she held Jay's hand to the point where it almost hurt. Jay didn't mind; in fact, he almost welcomed the discomfort. It helped him get his mind off of the fact that he was entering a wide-open space.

It was almost impossible to think that one of the greatest superstars in WWE history was agoraphobic. But then again, being chained to the floor in the middle of a cold, dark garage without any sort of shelter for days on end can do that to a man.

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: Jay's experience with the Wyatt's was NOT hearts and flowers. It was brutal, it was visceral, and it forced Jay to face some things that he didn't want to face. In spite of the good it did him, it still left him DAMAGED. Agoraphobia isn't the only thing he'll have to deal with. Can anyone say PTSD?

The twins are Violet and Verbina Pollard. If the names sound familiar, they're from Dean Koontz's book The Bad Place. They're the twins by name and description only, and they AREN'T creepy.

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