"So someone had the nerve to talk back to my Chrissy, huh? And lived to tell?"

The youngest Austin giggled as her father teased her over dinner. Steve Austin never missed an opportunity to both rag and praise his daughter, and tonight was no exception.

Except he too, caught the weariness in Chrystal, and insisted on loading an extra piece of chicken on her plate.

"Here you go, honey. I think you need some protein." He grinned, then waved off her "Daaad."

"Seriously, Chrissy. You look tired, what time do you have to be at school tomorrow?"

Chrystal sighed. "Not until 7:15, Dad, but I'm going to bed early, don't worry. I just have a lot of catch up work to do before Christmas break starts next week."

"Good idea, honey….as a matter of fact after dinner, if you like, I'll help you with your grading." Jaime chimed in.

For a moment Chrystal was frustrated. "I don't need your help, Mom, I can do it myself." She started, then saw her parents faces, and tears filled her eyes.

"That's not true, I love you, Mom, for wanting to help me. And Dad…what would I do without you two?" she sniffed.

In a minute Jaime and Steve were embracing her. "We love you too, Chrissy…you'll never get rid of us." Steve cleared his throat noisily as Jaime continued "I know you can do your work yourself, but we don't want you to overdo it."

"I won't, I promise." She wiped her eyes with her sleeve and immediately her father laughed. "You never change, honey. Here.." he handed her a Kleenex.

The next few days went a little smoother, as Chrystal managed to get her students ready for their mid-term exams, coached a drama presentation and still had time to arrange a surprise or two for the last day of class.

It was actually fun working with her mother on correcting papers, and having her father show up to deliver a misplaced file seemed to impress the "bully four" (as she soon grew to know them.)

The week before school let out, Chrystal was waiting for her students to finish a pop quiz, when Tommy Stone raised his hand.

"Yes?" she asked, then quickly nodded when he flushed and asked, "Can I be excused, Miss Austin?"

As he left the room, a snicker erupted from the back of the room, and Chrystal stood up.

"Didn't I ask for silence during this quiz?" she asked firmly, then saw four shoulders hunch and there was quiet.

Making a note to request a parent conference with Ben Hope and the others, she sat back down and continued reviewing papers. As the minutes passed, Chrystal noticed Tommy hadn't returned to the room, and started to get up to check with the hall monitor.

Just then the door opened, and an out-of-breath Tommy came back in, then rushed back to his seat. Before anyone could make a remark, the boy quietly said, "Sorry, Miss Austin."

"That's all right." She answered, then raised her voice. "Ten minutes to the end of class."

As the passing bell rang, all the students filed up to her desk and dropped off their exams. Tommy was the last to turn his in, and she smiled at him, seeing his nervous manner.

"Is everything okay, Tommy? I was beginning to wonder." She asked.

"Uh, no…Miss Austin…could I talk to you at lunch…it's important." The boy asked, and Chrystal gave him a relieved look.

"Of course, Tommy. I'll see you at 12:15." She promised, sighing inwardly at another "desk" lunch.

As she hurriedly finished the half-sandwich her mother had packed for her, Chrystal grinned at the cookies and fruit at the bottom of her lunch sack. "Always looking after me." She thought.

"Miss Austin?"

Startled, she looked up to see a disheveled Tommy at the door.

"Come in, Tommy, just close the door behind you." She asked, then moved her chair from behind the desk to opposite the one he sat in .

"Miss Austin….I have something…um…I heard something…you have to promise me you won't tell anyone unless something happens." He started, in an agitated voice.

Puzzled, Chrystal asked, "What is it that you heard, Tommy? Is it one of the students? Did someone threaten you?"

"No…but I heard…I heard my dad…he was outside in the parking lot….Someone was telling him that he had too much to lose if he ….if he didn't' do what he was told. At first I thought it was some enlisted man, specially since he's a really strict supervisor. Then my dad told them he'd not "let them hurt my son, that he'd get them the stuff." That's when I got out of the hallway."

Chrystal put an arm around the boy, "You did the right thing, Tommy. Not hanging around is a good idea. But..are you sure what you heard wasn't a bad joke or something? What time was your dad supposed to pick you up?"

"Not until 1 pm, ma'am. But..it wasn't a joke, I..I know my dad. I don't want anything to happen to him, Miss Austin….what should I do?"

"You go have some lunch, Tommy. Let me see if I can reach my dad, or his former boss…I bet they'll be able to see that you and your dad are protected." Chrystal walked him to the door. "I'll meet you where he picks you up each day….it'll be okay."

"Thanks, Miss Austin." Tommy had a relieved look on his face as they stepped into the hall, then quickly went down the corridor and vanished.

Quickly going to the teachers staff room, Chrystal found a phone, then called her father.

"Austin residence."

"Dad, it's Chrystal….can you come meet me at school? I've got a student who's got"
Suddenly a funny click on the line stopped her, and she said, "Can you come? And bring Uncle Oscar?"

"I'll try to reach him, but I'll be there in 10 minutes, honey….I'll see you at the parking lot." Steve said, then Chrystal hung up. Stopping at the school office to sign out, she started to leave, then a strange man stopped her in the doorway. At first glance, she thought he might be a school official.

"Miss Austin, may I speak with you a moment?"

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" she asked politely, seeing that it was almost time to meet her father.

"No, but I think we have the welfare of someone we know in common, ma'am." He replied, then he opened his coat to show he had a gun.

Trying not to scream, she attempted to step back inside the building, only to have the man take her arm firmly, saying, "Don't make a sound, Miss, or I'll be forced to use this. Just come quietly."

Chrystal swallowed back her fear as she allowed him to lead her toward the parking lot. A van was parked at the curb, its engine running, and suddenly she knew she was being kidnapped.

"What do you want? I'm not leaving with you!" she said forcibly, attempting to jerk her arm free.

"Nothing's going to happen to you, Miss Austin…we just want to …never mind!"

At once she was thrown to the ground, as her would-be captor let go of her and ran. As Chrystal started to get up, she saw the man jump into the van and immediately drive off.

"Chrissy!"

Turning, she saw her father running at top speed toward her, and she tottered to her feet.

"Dad!" she cried, then pointed at the van speeding away. "Some guy tried to kidnap me!" Chrystal started to say, only to have her father catch her up in his arms.

"Honey, are you all right? Did he hurt you?" he asked angrily.

She shook her head, trying to catch her breath. "No, Dad…I was just scared. But, he had a gun, he was taking me away. He said he wanted to talk to me, and that we had someone's welfare in common." The former Colonel hugged her then carefully set his daughter back on her feet.

"It's okay, honey. Let me call Chief Johnson from the school office, so we can alert them to this jerk. You can tell me what started all this…" Steve said, trying to control his temper.

"Yes, Dad, but Tommy Stone, the student I started to tell you about…I'm starting to think this is about him." Chrystal said, as her father put an arm around her and walked her back to the administration building. A small crowd of students had gathered around the entrance, apparently witnessing her near-abduction, and a security guard made his way through them to meet the two Austins.

Minutes later, Chrystal waited anxiously as Oscar Goldman spoke with the principal, then came back to the lobby area where Steve sat with her, his arm around her for support.

"Honey, I hate to tell you this, but Major Stone called and pulled Tommy out of school today, saying he was being transferred. Mr. Thompson sees no reason not to believe him, so he's going to close his file. As for that creep who tried to take you…" the older man sighed, and sat down next to her.

"Mr. Thompson will have added security around the grounds, and Ron has pulled the video from the school cameras. He seems to think you may have been a target for ransom from your parents."

"What????" Chrystal got furious and started to stand up, only for her uncle to pull her back down.

"Honey, we have no proof it's anything but. Even the statement your attacker made….it sounds like someone thinks you're worth something. I did persuade Thompson it's safe for you to work here…" Oscar held up his hand as she began to protest, "But you are not to be alone at any time, and your Mom or Dad or someone will always be around when you go home. That's the only reason you'll be able to continue here, okay?"

Both men saw Chrystal was upset by the turn of events, and her father put his hand over hers. "Chrissy, none of this is your fault…I'm sorry that someone's messed up your life like this.. but we're not going to let anything happen to you."

"I'm not afraid for me, Dad, it's Tommy. I can't believe he would make up such a story, I think something's wrong and he and his father are in danger." She declared, then her face softened as she looked at his and Oscar's worried expressions.

"I love you Dad, and you too, Uncle Oscar. And I will be careful, but I'm not giving up on Tommy…something is wrong."

Seeing the determination in her face, Steve nodded reluctantly. "All right, Chrissy, maybe you're right. But let us do the legwork, or …" he looked over at Oscar.

"Why don't we call in your back-up Uncles." The older man smiled as her expression brightened.