A/N: Greetings all. I am updating this chapter because I realized I had left something out of it. It's not necessary to re-read it, but later you may go, "Wait... how did he get it...?" and that was what I forgot... The Quarter.

Also, I feel a need to apologize. Chapter 8 has been slow to publish for many reasons, one being the amount of hours in the day and the amount of hours I work during the holiday season. It's been a bit rough. BUT, I have not forgotten you guys, nor have I forgotten Shana. I've just not had time to TYPE up what I have written during my lunch breaks. Of course, I could find all the time in the world to write if say one of you could find me a Daddy Warbucks? Hmmm...?

Chapter Eight will be arriving soon. Sometime. Sometime really soon, I hope.

Dedication: For this chapter, I want to dedicate it to my dearest friend in the world who has begrudgingly agreed to let me use him as a new character. Of course, I had to change his name a bit Otherwise "They will know who I am! They will be able to Google me!" So, When he arrives on the scene, one name is fake, and one name is the one I use whenever I think about him or talk to him. I love you, you crazy fruit!

oOo

Chapter Seven: Found

Fall asleep to dreams of home,
Where the waves are crashing.
The only place I've ever known,
Now the future has me.

~ Hold Me Now by Red

We rushed down to the eighth floor where Welch's temporary headquarters were located. We crowded into a quiet conference room awaiting any and all news as it slowly came in. Christian paced on one end while I paced on the other. Information came in as a slow trickle. Like molasses from a maple tree in the middle of winter. We waited.

And Waited.

And waited.

Time ceased to pass in the over lit room with no clock. I glanced over at Grace and Carrick often, checking to make sure if she was all right. Carrick held her close, one arm around her shoulder, his other hand holding hers. Every once-in-a-while I would catch him placing a light kiss on her temple. They had one of those great romantic lives where, in the end, they didn't have to use words to communicate their love and they knew each other by heart.

The sound of a door opening drew all eyes and in the doorway stood two ghosts; Luke Sawyer and Jason Taylor. They were dead on their feet, each using the door jambs to help hold them up. Their eyes were sunken in as if they hadn't slept in weeks and their skin had an unhealthy shade of grey to it. Christian and I stood and walked over to them. Christian turned, gave his mother and father a nod before turning back to leave the waiting room.

We walked quietly to another waiting room and I couldn't help but notice the stagger in Taylor's walk. Sawyer was dead on his feet, sticking an arm out to the wall as we walked to help keep him on his feet. I opened the door to the new room, ushering in the other three men. Christian walked over to the standard coffee maker in the corner of the room and prepared two cups.

"Jason, Luke, please. Sit down." Both men collapsed and Christian returned, handing each a cup. "Have you slept yet?"

"Thank you," Jason said to Christian before turning to me. He shook his head no as he did. "No. Not til she was safe."

We joined both men at the table and I watched the two with a careful eye. Luke hadn't said a word and his hands only wrapped around the paper cup as if warming them. He hadn't sipped any yet. I wasn't even certain he knew it was there. He kept his gaze forward, towards the window behind me, but his eyes were empty.

"What will you tell us," Christian asked quietly.

Jason slowly sipped at the coffee, his eyes focusing on some distant image not in the room. He was haunted and quiet, signs that I did not want to hear what he had to say. I had to, of course, but I didn't want to. Christian, he was like a chained pit bull, his chain tight, but his teeth remained sharp and ready to sink into flesh. The words Jason kept with were the words that would unleash the beast.

The empty cup rattled in the garbage can across the room, a swiftly aimed throw that brought my attention back to Jason and Luke. I sat in front of them, waiting. I could feel an ache in my jaw and realized I had clenched down on my teeth, possibly grinding them again. A bad habit Shana likes to point out too often. I was trying very hard to restrain myself and demand answers. We haven't been told anything of Shana's and all I can picture are what I had seen in my nightmares.

In her past she lived through a hell that lasted three days. But those three days and what she endured left scars on both her mind and her body. She'd been tortured sexually, physically and mentally. After that, she ran from her family, trying to protect them. Shana is a very strong woman. One of the strongest I have ever known. She tried to not let it bother her. She tried to not let it change her. But it was always there, always waiting to haunt her.

That had been three days.

What of these twenty-one days? What horrors has she had to suffer through? How much pain has she endured? How close to death has she come to this time? Will... she survive?

"As soon as we got the co-ordinates, we stormed in." Jason's voice was low and harsh, as if he'd chain smoked a case of cigarettes. "I thought we were too late. That the co-ordinates were wrong. There was no sign anyone had been there. We used the thermal image detector... The signal... It was so faint. It... couldn't have been her... But I had to.." He paused, looking down into his clasped hands that were in front of him. After a moment, I stood and went to the door and opened it, finding two guards there.

"Whiskey," I said. One looked at the other who shrugged. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a flask. I looked at him but didn't raise an eyebrow at him.

"It's for emergencies only sir. I've never- not once-"

"Enough," I interrupted him. Now was not the time. "Later." I took the flask, inhaling a hot breath through my teeth. I should be furious that a man on guard duty for my family, protecting the people most important to me, had alcohol on him. Alcohol that I needed this very moment. "What's your name?"

"Douglas, sir," he said with a gulp.

"We'll discuss this later, Douglas." He nodded and I closed the door, turning back to Jason. I opened the flask and took a sip from it. It wasn't good whiskey, but it would get the job done. I poured some into the still untouched coffee of Luke's and then handed it to Christian who took a small swig of it before handing it to Jason. Jason shook his head, waving it off.

"Take it," Christian said.

"I don't..."

"Jason, take it," I said softer. He looked at me, and then the silver flask. He slowly took it from Christian and then took a long, hard swallow before re-capping it and tucking it into his jacket pocket. "Take your time," I said, half hoping he would ignore me and tell us everything as quickly as was humanly possible. After a moment, he spoke again and I hadn't realized I had been holding my breath.

"We searched every fucking room. Then we started tearing down the walls. The FLIR gear was helpful, but somehow it kept... If we didn't have all the geek tech..." He looked over at Luke who was now grinding his own teeth. He raised his cup, drank long and hard from it and then spoke words that made a chill run through my spine.

"No one would have found her."

"It took hours before we found the hidden door. It was solid steel, but the tech gear couldn't see it. It read like normal wood. It was like a vault door though! Multi-coded locks, that were supposed to be un-hackable. It took another two hours to get through it."

"Who the fuck had her," Christian asked, his hands balled so tightly I could see the shadows of his bones through his skin. Jason shook his head and then stood unsteadily and walked to the coffee maker. I give the man credit for not taking another sip of the whiskey, but I was jonesing for it now. Maybe with some coffee. But, there was a time and a place for that and this was neither. I waited for him to return to the table we sat at, but he stayed in that far corner, his back towards us, his hands gripping the counter tightly.

"She was caged..." I almost didn't hear the words Luke said and turned to face him. His words were having a hard time processing in my brain, but Christian didn't seem to be having the same issue. As soon as the words were out of Luke's mouth, Christian had jumped to his feet, picked up his chair and threw it through the window that led out into the hallway. He ran out of the room and I hoped that he was heading to find out everything he can on everything we had; clues, locations, etc.

Jason came back and sat down, his eyes dark with pain and sadness. I had to wait. He would continue in his own time. Or Luke would. Either way, I had time. I didn't have much patience, but I had time. Until I was allowed to see her, I had time and I wasn't going anywhere.

"I think it had been a wine cellar at one time, but... the floors... were dirt. There was no heat, no light, no windows... There was... a voice. On tape. We have it. Welch is trying to get it analyzed, but..." He stopped, his words just hanging there. I wanted to push him. Yell at him to make him tell me everything, but I held back. It took every ounce of control I ever had to let him take his time and find his words. He looked up at me, his eyes were rimmed in red, and were blood shot. "G, I don't think they were going to let her live, but the voice... the recording..."

"What? What did it say?" I had to know. I didn't want to know, but I had to know.

"You don't exist. He doesn't care about you. They'll never find you. He never loved you. He used you to get your companies. How do you think he knew what to look for? He played you like a toy. He hated you for breaking his heart and this was his revenge. Who do you think has the resources to hide you like this? You don't exist. He doesn't care about you. They'll-"

"Enough!" I felt the air vibrate with my shout, cutting Luke off. His words, cold, static and all lies. She wouldn't believe them. She could never think...

I got up and walked around the table, trying to compartmentalized things like Shana says she had done in the past. just so that I could... deal in the right here and now. I placed a hand on both men's shoulders, my heart breaking for not only what Shana went through, but also for what they had both seen. "Thank you. Thank you Jason. Thank you Luke. Thank you for bringing her back to me. I know you probably wont leave, but go. Get something to eat... If you want-"

"A shower," Luke said. "Please, I... need a shower." I nodded, patting his shoulder.

"There's a hotel a block away. I'll have one of the guys get you there. You can shower, change, nap if you think you can...?" Both men nodded slowly. They were very near the wall of exhaustion. They'd make it to the room, but the shower may not happen.

I escorted them to the door of the room, and handed Luke off to one of the two guards that were there. (Neither of them were Donaldson.) Before letting Jason go, I pulled him aside, placing both my hands on his shoulders and made him look at me. His eyes were dark and haunted and he looked like he had aged ten years. "Jason, listen to me. You found her. She is safe because of you." He nodded wearily and I worried he may not make it out of the hospital before collapsing. I reached into my pocket and felt for the charm that has been slowly rotating between the three of us. It was cool to the touch, and such a simple item, yet there is so much that the quarter means. So much that it has gone through... I pulled it out and placed it in his hand, wrapping his fingers around it. He tightened his grip and looked at me. There was a touch of life in his eyes now, that momento striking through his desolation. He brought his clenched fist to his lip, resting it there and then nodded at me again. "Okay?"

"Yeah, G." A small smile found it's way to my lips and I escorted him to the door again, handing him off to the last guard. I gave him explicit instructions on making sure the two men got to their rooms and at least found a bed or a couch. They left without another word and I went back to the waiting room the family was in. Hopefully there was news on Shana.

She was alive. She was found and she is near and she is alive. My heart felt a little lighter. Not much, considering what I was told, but still, a little bit lighter.

Mia was here, having flown in with Elliot. She stood apart from the family though, standing at the window that looked out to the parking lot below. Her eyes were blind to the view as she was lost deep in thought, or grief. I approached her quietly, placing a hand on her back for support. I was unprepared for her response.

She spun around quickly, her arms gripping me like a vice as she wept into my chest. I held her as she cried and when her sobs softened down into whimpers and hiccups I loosened my grip on her. I reached into my pocket and handed her a handkerchief.

"Thank you," she whispered, her voice rough from crying. She dabbed at her eyes and wiped her nose. "This is becoming a bad habit, crying on you."

She tried to hand me back my handkerchief but I held up my hand, stopping her. "Keep it. I'm sure the waterworks aren't shut off yet." She smiled and looked around the room, a frown creasing her eyebrows.

"They said you were talking with Jason and Luke...?"

"Yes," I said with a nod, not wanting to think about the conversation. "I sent them to go get some rest. They haven't slept in days."

"How was he? Luke, I mean?" I looked at her, trying to offer her some reassurance.

"He's... haunted." She nodded, twisting my handkerchief in her hand before turning back to look out the window. "He needs rest and he'll be back to himself." She nodded again, wrapping her arms around herself. "He's at the Continental. The Presidential Suite. I'll make sure you can have a key. If you... want to check on him that is."

She spun to face me again, hugging my tightly. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Excuse me," a quiet, unfamiliar voice said, breaking the silence in the room. We all turned as one to find a young doctor standing in the doorway, slightly nervous as he looked around the room. I approached him, leaving Mia at the window. I watched him carefully, hoping for any sign that he had good news. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly and I feared the worst. I heard Grace inhale sharply behind me but I refused to take my eyes off of the man. "Are you the family of Shana Cross?" He asked and then swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing loudly.

"Yes," Carrick answered. My voice was frozen in my throat, fear wrapped around my heart.

"I'm Doctor Parnell. I have been assigned to her care."

"Her... care? She's alive? She'll be okay?" Kate asked the questions we were afraid to ask and I found myself glad she was in the news media field. Thier hearts and minds work to ask what others can't. It's not always a good thing, but right now, it is.

"She is alive. She is dehydrated and malnourished... She will recover, but it will take some time."

"Injuries?" Grace's voice was firm and cool, he stance changing as she put on her more controlled physician's persona.

He nodded and waved his arm, indicating we should all sit . He seemed more in control now, more "doctor-like" then he had when he had come through the door moments ago. We sat among the furniture, crowding together as he pulled up a chair towards us.

"Shana's injuries are both physical and mental. Most of the physical are easier to heal. The mental will take some time. Nothing is in her records, but you said she had gone through something similar before?"

Grace nodded, and I watched as she wrung her hands together. "We only found out about it recently. She was... held against her will for three days and suffered... abuse."

"If you could," the doctor started thoughtfully. "It will help the on-staff psychiatrist that's been assigned to her case if she knows what Shana has already survived."

"No," Christian said gruffly. "Her psychiatrist is flying in tonight. He will take care of her." The doctor approved with the bending of his head. I was glad Christian had made the call, but Shana had told me repeatedly that she hated shrinks. It was a surprise to find that she had one.

"Very good then. Her physical injuries are another thing. Her wrist was broken-"

"That happened before she was taken," I said, barely able to hear my own voice. I couldn't look at her family, face their accusing glares. In all honesty, when they asked, I knew I wouldn't be able to deny the harm I had caused her.

"Yes. We could it had been an older injury and well along it's way to being healed. She will need surgery to repair it this time." My head shot up at his words, anger burning my soul. We are going to hold off on the surgery for the wrist. She has some head trauma that is... more worrisome. She is not responding to us."

"What do you mean," I growled.

"We know that she is conscious, but she won't respond to us. I think that, in order to protect herself, she has... gone someplace in her mind, until she is safe."

"I understand," Grace whispered, the words dry on her lips. "It's a self-defense mechanism. It's not something that we can rush. Like everything else she does, she'll come out on her own."

"What do we do?" It was the first time Elliott had spoken in hours.

"For now, let her know she is safe. We want to hold off on the surgery for her wrist until she starts to respond to us. As for her head trauma, we are going over the CT scans now." Brain injury... Non-responsive... These were the words that were shouting at me as he began to go over her other injuries. I admit I didn't pay attention. I just wanted to see her. Touch her. I wanted to know that this was real and not just another nightmare. Oh, it was still a nightmare, but one we all were sharing. "She is able to have visitors, but only one or two at a time."

His words broke through my thoughts and I looked up to see all eyes on me. "Grace, you and Carrick go first." Grace jumped to her feet and came over, placing a kiss on my cheek. Carrick nodded at me and then both left, the doctor walking them to Shana's room. "Christian, you can go next. Elliott?" He nodded and then I looked at Mia, still standing at the window. Her body was making small motions and I knew she was trying to cry quietly.

"Your parents will be a few minutes. We need to go to the cafeteria." Kate got to her feet, dragging Elliott until he got to his feet. I watched as a look passed between Kate and Ana before Ana's eyes lit from within and she nodded.

"Baby, I'm hungry. Can we get something to eat?" Shana had told me about Christian's food issues and Ana was using it to her advantage. He wrapped his arms tighter around her and then gave her a kiss on her cheek before releasing her and stood. She came over to me then, gave me a hug and whispered in my ear, "Let Mia go next. We'll be back." I nodded and watched them leave.

I walked over to where Mia stood, her arms even tighter around her body and her sobs visibly quaking through her. "Mia?" I placed a hand on her shoulder and she spun around, wrapping herself around me again as she released her tears. This time I had been prepared for it and held her until she calmed.

"It's because of me. All of it. The last time, this time... She- she could have d-died!"

"No, Mia," I said as I tried to comfort her. "Listen to me." I pulled her back until she could look at me. Her eyes were red and swollen, her mascara had run down her face and her lip trembled with every breath. I reached behind her for the box of tissues and used one to wipe the mascara from her eyes. "The first time was not your fault. It was that bitch's fault. No one else's. Not Christian's, not Shana's and definitely not yours. Do you understand that?" She shrugged like a child as I tossed the tissue into the nearby bin. "This time, the only person at fault is the one who organized the whole damn thing and hurt her. Do you understand that?" She nodded and I kissed her forehead. "Would you like to see her now?" She nodded, wiping her sleeve under her nose in a very un-ladylike way, but so much like the child she seemed right now.

We walked down the hall together, my arm around her shoulder, giving her support as I would Ireland. I should call her. She would want to be here, I thought. We had seen Carrick and Grace leave the room as we turned down the last hall. They turned away from us, stopping to talk to Christian and Elliott who were further away. Just as we stopped at Shana's door, Mia turned and hugged me again, whispering "Thank you" in my ear. I gave her a smile and opened the door, allowing her in. As the door closed behind her, I turned away from the family and called the hotel as I told her I would.

"This is Gideon Cross," I said to the staff member that answered. "I need to add someone to the list. Her name is Miss Mia Grey. Be sure she is given a key and escorted up to the room. I would also like a breakfast buffet delivered when she arrives." I was told it would be taken care of and hung up.

I turned to face the family, but instead met stars as Christian's fist slammed into my jaw. Shock registered, but only momentarily as my body instinctively fought back. I have been fighting with this man every night for three weeks. I know his actions and his reactions. I never met his blind rage like this.

His eyes were on fire, every swing making contact with my body. This wasn't grief or stress, this was deeper than that. This was... primal. I fought to fight off his strikes, knowing we could kill each other if I chose not to. Carrick and Elliott were trying to pull him off, restrain him, but that only enflamed him.

Ana was nearby, trying to call to him, call through his rage, but her attempts were failing. It was up to me then. I was his equal in this though I was weakened without the rage.

In the confined space of the hall, I used the rails that ran along it. I braced my body against the rail, lifting to kick and then wrap my legs around his throat. I twisted, pulling him to the ground. He struggled but I had the advantage as I began to shut off the oxygen to his brain. Ana dropped to her knees, calling to him as Elliott tried to get me to stop. I couldn't stop. I had to wait until I saw he recognized her voice. Or passed out.

I didn't hear the words she used, but I saw her hands run through his hair, caress his cheek and then, for a second, his eyes changed. I didn't know if it was from the lack of oxygen or her voice, but it wasn't the blind rage. I released him, Elliott helped pull me away from him. Carrick, Grace and Kate all stood quietly.

"You okay man? What the fuck was that about?" I turned to Elliott as I stood and shrugged.

"Fuck if I know." As we watched, Ana brought Christian down from his raging heights, but when his eyes slipped away from her, he pinned them on me. His lips snarled and he struggled to his feet. "Get Ana," I said to Elliott, the words a mere whisper.

"What the fuck are you doing," Christian demanded as he became steadier on his feet. "My sister nearly loses her life, survives you attacking her, nearly killing her, and now, as if you aren't hurting her enough, when she is beaten... broken... dying... you start making moves on Mia?"

The man has lost his bloody mind.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Elliott demanded, releasing Ana who seemed to have paled at his words.

"I saw him! I saw the way he held her in the waiting room! The way he touched her!" He raised his hand to me, his finger shaking violently as he pointed at me. "He is taking her to the hotel! Arranged a key! A breakfast! What-"

No one saw it coming.

No one expected it.

The slap to Christian's face was so violent and loud it ricocheted down the walls of the hallway like thunder.

"How... dare... you." The words were cold and cool as they left Mia's mouth. Christian stood there, his hand on his cheek, staring at her in stunned silence. "Who. The. Fuck. Do. You. Think. You. Are?" Each word was said in the same controlled coolness. I was afraid to move. Or maybe I was too stunned to move. No one moved. "Shana's husband was making certain I was okay. He would never cheat on her. It's Shana, you ass hole. If he tried to cheat on her, we'd never find his body. What's more, I would never do that to her."

"Then explain the hotel room," he growled, hand still over where her hand had marked his face.

Yep. He's lost his mind.

"I don't have to explain shit to you," she said, her voice rising as she pushed a finger into his chest. "But to save you from your own suicide-by-stupidness, he did that so that after I saw Shana I can go see Luke, one of the men that saved her. If he is awake, I plan on fucking him until he passes out. If he isn't awake, I'll crawl into his bed and wait until he does wake up. Either way, he will be very satisfied by the time I am done thanking him for saving Sha."

I heard a stifled giggle behind me and knew it was Kate. I didn't want to turn and face the looks of Grace and Carrick. I could only imagine their reactions to Mia's declarations. Besides that, there were the other things Christian had said.

"Christian, you owe Gideon and everyone an apology. Then you can go in and see Shana. Then, you can take me to see Luke."

Christian nodded and slowly lowered his hand from his cheek. To say that there was now a red impression of Mia's hand blazing on his cheek would be an understatement. I would bet the entire East Coast was confused with a second sunrise. "Mia, I am very sorry to have thought that of you and I hope you will forgive me."

"Holy fuck," Elliott whispered.

Christian turned to face me, his hand out. I took it, feeling the heat from it that had come from his cheek. "Gideon, I'm sorry. I tend to jump to conclusions and I know you would never hurt Shana by cheating on her." An admission and an omission. I couldn't fault the logic or the truth.

"I would have made the same conclusion, I think." He nodded and turned to the rest of his family, apologizing to them.

When he was done, he turned to enter Shana's room before freezing in place as Mia's cold voice called to him. "When it's time, you'll apologize to her, too." He swallowed audibly and then entered the room, leaving us alone. With Mia.

It was Kate who broke the ice with her question, "So... Luke Sawyer, huh?"

Mia blushed and giggled and the Icy Dominatrix that had cowed Christian was gone. I didn't want to know if she knew what she was or if that's ever happened before. All I knew was that Luke was a lucky man indeed. One way, or another.