Disclaimer: I own nothing associated with the WWE.

Author's Note: Thanks to jcott3, Sofa King We Todd Did, Mattaggot, Renna33, stephiexo95, and x0allisonqt0x for your reviews for the last chapter! Yep, Shane Helms is alive. This chapter is going to be more of a transitional/explanatory chapter to answer most of the questions from the last chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter 12

Taryn gasped loudly as she quickly sat up on the cot the nurse had set up for her, not able to see anything around her in the dark room as tears rolled down her cheeks. Then, she flinched when she felt a pair of arms wrap securely around her.

"It's okay, Taryn," a calming, familiar voice said quietly, close to her ear. "It's okay."

Not able to stop the nearly silent sob that escaped from her, Taryn wound her arms around the man as she took a deep, shuddering breath. "I had this... terrible dream," she whispered, burying her face in his chest. "Drew didn't... didn't wake up, and..."

"It was just a dream, Taryn, it's okay," the man gently repeated, his calm tone comforting.

After a moment, Taryn got her tears under control. "What are you doing here, Jay?" she asked, keeping her arms around him as she wiped at her eyes.

Jay gave her a small smile as he pulled away a little. "Well, I'm here for Adam, but I thought I'd check up on you since he's in surgery," he answered, the worry for his best friend clear though he tried to hide it as he brushed a couple stray strands of blonde hair behind her ear.

Taryn looked at him with surprise. "Adam's in surgery?" she repeated. "Is he okay? What happened?"

"The doctors assured us he should be fine," Jay told her with a sigh. "We found out who's behind Lexie's kidnapping and all the attacks... One of them shot Adam."

"You know who did this?" Taryn looked at him with shock. "Jay... who is it?"

Jay sighed as he let go of Taryn, running his hand through his hair. "Amy was one of them," he muttered. "She was going to help us get Lexie back... but she was killed. I don't know how, but Shane Helms is a part of this. And... Matthew. He seems to be the one in charge. We think he's the one that took you and attacked Drew..."

Taryn stared at Jay with wide eyes, mouth slightly agape. "You're telling me... Amy was partly responsible for this? And... Shane! How the hell... Matthew? Our Matthew? Matt did this to Drew?"

"No, not Matt," Jay said, placing his hand on her arm. "Matthew. He's not the same person."

"You've lost me, Jay," Taryn muttered, calming down slightly as confusion crossed her face.

Jay sighed. "Matt's a multiple personality," he explained. "We have our Matt, who wouldn't hurt anyone... and then there's Matthew, who's the exact opposite. We're thinking he was the one who helped Shane McMahon all along, not Matt. As for Shane Helms... we're wondering about him ourselves."

Taryn slowly shook her head. "A multiple personality?" she repeated quietly. "Do you know how that happened? As long as I've known Matt, he's been fine..."

There was clear hesitance on Jay's face. "We don't know for sure, but Adam and I are assuming Matthew surfaced due to the head trauma he received from his feud with Drew..."

Her breath caught in her chest as Taryn thought over Jay's words, but the incident at the arena suddenly started to make sense to her. "That... that's why he used the steel steps to attack him..." she said, running her hand through her hair. "Oh, God..." Then, she sighed. "I haven't told anyone this, Jay, but Matthew was going to shoot Drew. I put myself over him, pleading with him not to. Then, he hesitated and ran... Do you think Matt slipped through to stop him?"

Jay shrugged. "He very well could have surfaced long enough to stop Matthew from shooting you," he replied. "Or at least was able to influence him enough to make him leave."

Taryn nodded before she rested her head on Jay's shoulder. "I can't believe this is happening..." she whispered, grateful when he wrapped his arms around her. "What are we going to do about Matthew? If we hurt him... we hurt Matt."

It was a fear Jay hadn't wanted to voice, but it was one that was prominent in his mind. Matt had been a close friend of his for years, and the last thing he wanted to do was risk hurting him. But in order to stop Matthew so no one else would die and they could get Lexie back, it was one they had to take.

"I don't know," he finally muttered with a sigh. "I don't know."

Taryn sighed as well, closing her eyes. "Hey, Jay?" she asked.

"Yeah?" Jay looked down at her.

"Would you... stay with me for a little bit?" Taryn wondered in quietly. "After that nightmare..."

Smiling slightly, Jay nodded as he tightened his arm around her. "Sure, Taryn. I understand," he told her. "Of course I'll stay."


"Thank you for agreeing to help, Shane," Shane McMahon said with a slight smirk, holding his hand out to him. "Like the rest of us, I know you're frustrated with how far you've fallen in this company."

Shane Helms returned the smirk as he shook the younger McMahon's hand. "You've got that right," he agreed. "We deserve more... So, what do you want me to do?"

"Right now... nothing much," Shane told him. "Keep an eye on the rest of the guests to make sure they don't catch on to us. That Evan kid and I will set up the bomb."

"Sounds good to me."


"Evan's dead and Jay's been discovered... We're running out of people," Matthew muttered as he met with Shane Helms in one of the demolished hallways. "If you, me, and McMahon are found..."

"We won't be," Shane tried to assure him. "One of us has to make sure to avoid suspicion."

Matthew nodded. "Do you have any ideas?" he wondered.

Shane smirked. "Yeah, I have an idea."


Shane Helms put a look of fear on his face as he stared down Matthew, who had a piece of concrete in his hand. He noticed Jeff watching them with shock out of the corner of his eye, and even though he felt a little bad about betraying the younger Hardy, he knew this had to be done.

When the hotel shook a little as something deeper inside of it fell, he quickly raised his right wrist and ran it over his throat, feeling the small razor blade he had hidden inside his wrist band make a cut. Matthew stumbled forward with the piece of concrete, pulling back slightly before it went into his skin so it only grazed him as he fell to the ground, making sure it still rested on his neck to cast the illusion it had punctured it. He made sure his breathing was very light so it wasn't noticeable, trying to keep his eyes open for as long as possible.

But then, he noticed the change in Matthew's eyes as he suddenly looked down at him with horror, knowing that Matt had surfaced. He inwardly sighed, finding it a little frustrating that he never knew exactly which man he was going to deal with, but he figured if Matt truly showed remorse, it would help him a little since he had been discovered.

He quickly blinked a couple times once Jeff's attention was off him and on his brother, knowing that he would have to wait for a bit longer so everyone could see he was "dead" before he tried leaving. At least now, the suspicion was off of him and he could keep the younger McMahon's plan going.


Shane heard the doorway of one of the last two ways out of the hotel collapse, hearing the many voices and knowing he couldn't leave that way. He slowly sat up, taking off the piece of concrete and tossing it aside as he got to his feet. Everyone still alive had seen him- he was in the clear. Stretching out his muscles a bit since they were a bit sore from not using them for some time, he began to run down the hallway in the opposite direction to get to the exit he and Matthew had planned out.

The plan had worked perfectly.


Shane Helms pulled into the parking lot of a motel, seeing by the sign they still had a vacancy, and got a parking spot near the back. He turned the car off as he glanced at Matthew in the seat beside him, sighing quietly when he saw the blank look on his face as he stared ahead of him. After what the other man had said, he hadn't been too surprised that Adam was alive, but what did shock him was Amy had been kissing him. Matthew had said he had an idea about why she hadn't been able to kill the Rated R Superstar, and clearly, she had still had feelings toward him that had stopped her. But after he had shot her when she had taken the bullet for Adam, Matthew had become a lot more withdrawn...

"Hey, Man, about Amy..." Shane cautiously began.

"Don't even," Matthew muttered, opening the car door and stepping out into the night.

Sighing, Shane did the same, seeing a light drizzle had begun. He watched as Matthew opened the back door and picked up a now sleeping Lexie into his arms, her head resting on his chest, before he shut the door and began to walk toward the motel check-in. Shane followed after him, both men entering the building and approaching the desk.

The young woman watched as they stopped in front of her, blowing a bubble with the gum she was chewing in disinterest. "How can I help you?" she asked, her tone flat.

Shane glanced at Matthew, wondering what he would tell her. Matthew stared back at the girl with dark eyes for a minute before he forced a look of sorrow to cross his face. "My brother and I need a room for a few nights," he answered, effectively sounding as though he could be on the verge of tears. "We're on our way out of town. You see, I just lost my wife, and this has been hard on my little girl... She misses her mommy. We're trying to take a family trip, but the travel is exhausting for her."

"I'm sorry for your loss, Sir," the girl said, brushing some of her red curls behind her ear as she looked at the sleeping Lexie sadly. "I'll get you a room."

"Very nice," Shane muttered as the girl turned around to look for a key.

Matthew gave him a dark glare, but he didn't have time to say anything since the girl was turning back to them.

"Here you go. Your room is right out the door and three doors down to the right," she muttered, handing Shane the key since his hands were free. "Have a good night."

"Thank you. You too," Matthew told her before he and Shane left the office to go find their room. Once they reached the door, Shane unlocked it and stepped inside, turning on the light. Matthew followed after, seeing it was a pretty small room, but it fortunately had two beds.

"We won't stay here long," Matthew muttered as he walked forward and placed Lexie down on the bed closest to them. "Just long enough to rethink our plan since Amy is no longer with us."

Shane nodded, sitting in the single chair. "Sounds good to me," he said. "What should we do with the girl? We can't just keep bringing her around everywhere..."

"No, we can't," Matthew agreed quietly, sitting down on the second bed as he ran his hand through his dark curls. "She's our leverage, but there's only so much we can do. We also need to finish what Shane started by getting rid of them."

After a moment, a smirk appeared on Shane's face as he looked at the sleeping Lexie. "My guess is most of them are at the hospital now because of what you did to Drew and now Adam," he told him. "I'm sure you could think of something there... But I have a plan for Phil."


John quickly entered the hospital waiting room, spotting Phil sitting against the back wall with his head in his hands. He hurried over and sat down next to him, placing his hand on his shoulder so he hopefully wouldn't startle him too badly. "Hey, Phil. I got your message," he said. "Is Adam okay?"

Phil didn't respond for a long moment, but then he slowly raised his head and looked at his friend through distant hazel eyes. "Doctor said he should be," he replied quietly with a sigh as he straightened up completely. "You didn't happen to see Maria on your way here, did you? I tried calling her too, but she didn't answer..."

"No, I didn't," John told him, shaking his head. "But I'm sure she'll be here soon."

"Maybe," Phil muttered. "I hope she at least listens to the message... She might still be mad." But then, he ran his hand through his dark hair. "When Adam was shot... Lexie was there. She was so close, John. She was right there. And even when she was missing, she was in the hotel the entire time. But now... Now I have no idea where they've taken her. How can I get her back if I don't know where she is?"

John sighed, not really knowing what to say. Phil hadn't mentioned any of this when he had called him and left a message. "We'll find her somehow, Phil," he tried to assure him. "I'm sure we'll hear from them soon with another clue to lead us to her." Then, he tightened his ponytail. "I still can't believe Matt is the main person behind this... And Helms?"

Phil slowly shook his head. "Jay was explaining it to me on the way to the hospital. It's not Matt," he said. "It's Matthew. Matt's a multiple personality. Everything that's been happening lately is because of that alter ego, and Matt has no idea. As for Helms... We don't know either."

"Still," John replied. "With Matt and Matthew being in the same body, it's going to make things a bit more difficult."

"Yeah..." Phil sighed as he put his hand to his head. "I don't know what we're going to do. But somehow, I am going to find Lexie. You can count on that."


Jay left Drew's room and stepped out into the hallway, closing the door quietly behind him. He had stayed with Taryn until she had fallen asleep again since she was such a nervous wreck with her uncertainty about Drew, but he knew they had to remain positive that he would wake up.

But he had his own worries to put to rest. Jay walked down the hallway, spotting a nurse he recognized to be one that had helped Adam when they arrived at the hospital walking a small distance ahead of him, holding a clipboard in her hand. He sped up a little, placing his hand lightly on her arm. "Excuse me?" he said, stopping when she did as she looked back at him. "I was wondering if you could tell me how Adam Copeland is."

"Adam Copeland?" the nurse repeated, looking down at her clipboard and biting her bottom lip thoughtfully. "He got out of surgery an hour ago and has been moved to his own room. Should be waking up soon."

"Could I see him?" Jay asked.

The nurse looked at him for a moment, recognition in her blue eyes as she nodded. "Yes, I remember you from when he was brought in. He's in room 118. Around the corner, first one on your right."

Jay sighed with relief, a small smile appearing on his face. From what the nurse was saying, it sounded like his best friend was going to be all right. "Thank you so much," he muttered before he began to walk down the hall in the direction she pointed him in. He found room 118 and quietly pushed the door open, his eyes moving to the single bed to check on him.

But he was surprised to see that Adam was sitting up, his back to him as he looked out the window into the night. "Hey, Man, you okay?" Jay asked, shutting the door behind him before slowly starting to walk toward the bed.

Adam glanced over his shoulder at him before looking back out the window. "Fine," he answered quietly, resting his chin on his hands. "My chest and shoulder are a bit sore, but that's to be expected..."

Sighing, Jay sat down on the bed next to the other man. "What's wrong then?" he wondered.

"Nothing," Adam replied, though he didn't look back at the other man. "Nothing's wrong, Jay."

"I know you better than that, Adam," Jay muttered, placing his hand on his best friend's shoulder. "Something's bothering you. You know you can trust me."

Adam sighed, dropping his gaze from the window. "I'm just thinking about Amy," he told him, his tone hardly audible. "She couldn't kill me because she still loved me, Jay. She made that clear..."

Jay looked at Adam carefully. He knew he had moved on from his past relationship with Amy, but clearly, she hadn't. "What happened before Phil and I got out there?" he asked. "What happened to her?"

Taking a deep breath, Adam ran his hand through his hair. "Before Matthew and Shane got there, she told me to stay away from her so Matthew wouldn't see I was alive," he answered quietly, able to see everything clearly in his mind. "But then... she kissed me. I let her do it. I kissed her back, Jay. I don't know why, but I did. I shouldn't have... But then, Matthew got there. He was furious. I pushed Amy away when he pulled out his gun. He was going to shoot me, but... Amy took the bullet. She died in my arms... to save me. That's when you got there, and you know the rest."

"I'm sorry, Adam," Jay said quietly. "I had no idea..."

"Well, I really didn't have much time to talk about it after Matthew shot me," Adam reminded him, the hint of a smirk appearing at the corner of his mouth. "But... what really bothered me more than anything was Matthew's eyes. He and Amy were in a relationship, and after he killed her... he seemed completely unfazed. I've never seen anything like it. It was unnerving."

Jay nodded. "I understand why," he replied. "To kill someone you care about and not be affected... That's terrifying. It could have been you, though..."

"It was supposed to be," Adam whispered thoughtfully. Then, he looked up at his best friend, his voice a little louder. "We need to stop him, Jay."

"I know, but how?" Jay sighed. "Matt, one of our best friends, is trapped in there with that monster. What happens to one happens to the other."

Adam's fist clenched tightly. Even though it had been the face of a man he had known for years looking down at him as he aimed a gun at his forehead, his eyes were those of a completely different person. But Jay was right. Matt was in there somewhere...

"Not sure, Jay," he finally muttered, running his hand through his hair again. "But we have to do something before he tries to hurt someone else."


Maria pushed open the door of her and Phil's hotel room, pausing with surprise when she saw that the lights were off and the room was empty. Eyes narrowing slightly with confusion, she turned the light back on and approached the bed, seeing there was no sign of her husband.

"That's weird..." Then, she reached into her bag and pulled out her cell phone, seeing she had one voice message. She called her mailbox to access it, seeing it was from Phil.

"Hey, Ria, it's me. Just wanted to let you know Adam's in the hospital. That's where most of us are. Hope to see you soon. I'm sorry about overreacting earlier, I didn't mean it. I love you."

Worried about her friend, Maria put her phone in her pocket and grabbed the keys to her and Phil's rental car before rushing out of the room. She ran down the stairs to the lobby, seeing that Jeff was just about to make his way back up them.

"Maria, what's going on?" Jeff asked with alarm, seeing the worried look on her face.

"Adam's in the hospital," Maria answered hurriedly as she continued past him toward the door.

"What?" Jeff turned and quickly ran after him, falling into step beside her as she opened the door and started to hurry across the parking lot. "Is he okay? What happened?"

"I don't know," Maria said, stopping by her rental car as she unlocked the driver's door. "All I know is what I told you. I had a message from Phil."

Jeff was horrified, wondering what happened to one of his best friends, as he quickly made up his mind to go with her. He ran around the front of the car and sat in the passenger seat as Maria started the car, putting on his seatbelt as she pulled out of the lot and began to drive in the direction of the hospital.

The drive didn't take long since Maria was going a little over the speed limit, and she quickly found a spot to park before shutting the car off. She and Jeff stepped out of the car, Maria locking it up behind them, before they began to hurry toward the door.

A man wearing a hooded sweatshirt was sitting on a bench on the sidewalk outside of the hospital, and he slowly got to his feet when the two got closer. Then, he suddenly reached out and grabbed Maria's arm, pulling her close as he took a handgun out of his pocket and placed it against her temple.

"Maria!" Jeff shouted with worry as she whimpered with fear. "Don't hurt her!"

"I don't plan on it if you cooperate," the man told him quietly, ignoring Maria as tears formed in her eyes. "Your job, Jeff, is to help me deliver a message."

Jeff's face darkened with confusion as his heart continued to race. "I know your voice," he muttered. "Who are you?"

Maria whimpered again as the man pushed the gun against her head with more force before he raised the hand he had wrapped around her and slowly lowered his hood. Jeff's eyes widened with shock as he looked at the other man.

"You?"


Phil paced the waiting room anxiously, John sighing as he watched him. "Maybe she hasn't gotten the message yet," he muttered. "I don't think Maria would ignore you."

"I know, but I can't shake the feeling that something's wrong..." Phil replied just as quietly. He took his cell phone out of his pocket, going through his contacts to find his wife's number so he could try calling her again.

Then, the door to the hospital opened, and both men watched as a shaken looking Jeff answered. "What's wrong, Man?" John wondered, getting to his feet as the younger Hardy joined them. Phil watched him carefully.

Jeff took a couple deep breaths before looking from Phil to John and back. "Shane Helms..." he muttered in disbelief. "He has Maria."

Author's Note: But it does pick up a little bit at the end ;) Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! Thank you!