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Warning: A little language.

For Her Sake

Chapter 20 - Surprise

One year later

Better Soon

The day in late April was the perfect wedding day. A soft, pure, endless blue sky and golden sunshine colored it. A warm breeze embraced the day and dozens upon dozens of birds chirped sweet and happy odes to it. Inside, the church was decorated to the hilt. White ribbons of silk and bundles of white and lavender roses adored the sides of the pews. An archway stood at the alter, decked with long, white candles and strands of flowers. The bride and groom, both glowing with love, gazed at one another adoringly.

He wasn't looking at them.

She looked different. Fuller. Not heavier, but more womanly. Still beautiful, her skin tanned by the early touch of spring. He couldn't take his eyes off her.

"Come on. We have to go."

He turned away from the window with a glare. "It's not over yet."

"I don't care. If anyone sees you, everything's ruined."

He closed his eyes. He wasn't ready. He'd only gotten a partial look at her face, and it wasn't enough. He'd hoped for more, just enough to let him know that he was doing the right thing.

An impatient sigh came from his companion. "For God's sake, you'll see her again soon enough. Now come on. We've gotta get ready."

He nodded and looked back into the church. She stood with her back to him, behind the bride. When she turned her head towards the pews, the wedding guests, his heart skipped a beat. He saw the profile of a small smile, but even in profile, her eyes looked heavy.

He smiled. Don't worry, Jackie. Everything will be better soon. It will all be better soon.

He Should Be Here

While Eric and Donna exchanged vows, beautiful words of love that perfectly suited them, Jackie's gaze moved past Eric. Michael stood there, Eric's best man. His eyes found hers and he winked. She did her best to smile, did her best to swallow the bitter anger threatening her throat.

Steven should be standing there. He should have been Eric's best man. He should have walked her down the aisle.

As she did so often now, she reached to her chest and clenched her precious pendants between her fingers. The dress she wore was lavender with silver trimming; her gold necklace clashed. But it didn't matter. At all. She never took that necklace off.

She'd even worn it while giving birth.

"And I promise, Eric, to love you forever, or at least until I get sick of finding your action figures in the bathtub. Just kidding. Eric, I loved you yesterday, I love you today, and I will love you tomorrow. Every yesterday, every today, and every tomorrow, I will love you."

Jackie's eyes filled with tears, both happy and embittered. She was so happy for her best friends, for their endless love. She was bitter for herself, for what should have been endless love but now only lived in memories.

He should be here.

She turned to look at the wedding guests, her eyes instantly latching on Mrs. Forman and the baby girl she held on her lap. My baby girl. Steven's baby girl. She smiled, her heart swelling as it did each time she saw her child's face. The baby was awake, her wide, blue eyes peering around the church with such curiosity. When those eyes found hers, Jackie blew a kiss towards the little one. She smiled and flirtatiously looked away.

Her baby. Steven's baby.

He should be here. Damn it, he should be here!

Ain't Gonna Hurt You

Forty-five minutes later

The gang stood in a half-circle, making an impulsive stop before heading to the Point Place Hilton for the wedding reception. No one said a word, and all six pairs of eyes rested on the marble headstone they stood in front of. Jackie closed hers. She didn't need to look. She knew what was carved into that stone. His name. The date of his birth. The date of his death. "Beloved son, devoted friend." A carving of a pair of sunglasses just like his. And underneath it all, much smaller, four more words. Always Jackie's Puddin' Pop.

She'd insisted on it.

The baby began to whimper, and Jackie's eyes opened. She leaned down to the carrier sitting on the ground in front of her. "Come here, baby," she cooed softly as she lifted the three and a half month old, dressed in a tiny dress nearly identical to her own. She brought the little girl's head to her shoulder and rubbed the tiny back. "Shhh. It's okay. Momma's here."

Donna looked at her maid of honor and goddaughter, and smiled. She gently touched the head full of light brown curls. "She's gonna look just like him." Her eyes filled with tears as the marble of Hyde's grave caught her eye. "He would have loved her so much."

Jackie nodded, squeezing her eyes closed, trying to hold in the tears. He'd been gone a year. She shouldn't cry every single day.

But she did.

"Maybe we should give Jackie and Stephanie a few minutes alone," Brooke suggested, her arm laced through Kelso's.

Jackie smiled gratefully at her ex-boyfriend's new fiancée. Brooke had been terrific to her the past year, especially during the pregnancy. Donna had as well, of course, but Brooke had been through it. She understood. "Yeah, if you guys don't mind. I just…" She paused. "Actually, why don't you just go on to the hotel? I'll meet up with you in a little while."

Donna frowned. "But Jackie, you didn't drive."

Jackie shrugged. "The hotel is only a few blocks away, Donna. Stephie and I can walk." She smiled at her baby. "The fresh air will be good for us."

After convincing the others, especially a reluctant Donna, that she'd only be a little while, that she needed the time alone with Steven and his daughter, after waiting for the others to shuffle away out of earshot, Jackie sighed and kneeled down on Steven's grave, something she'd never done before. Grass stains, before, had been intolerable, especially on a fancy and surprisingly beautiful dress like the one Donna had picked. Or rather, the one Donna had let her pick.

She smiled.

Her friends had done so much for her. Been so generous, even as their own grief controlled them. She knew she hadn't been that way, but then, she'd been pregnant. The combination of grief, hormones, and utter fear hadn't been easy to deal with.

She looked at the grass where she pretended Steven's head rested. "Hi, Puddin' Pop. I brought our baby." She looked at Stephanie, who's small eyes were focusing on the headstone. Black and white marble, shining in the sunlight. Like Steven's sunglasses used to do. She took a shuddering breath and bowed her head. The tears rushed out.

IT was just too much. She'd had his daughter, and he wasn't here. His best friend and her best friend had just been married, and he wasn't here. As the sobs became racking, she nuzzled her nose in Stephanie's downy hair. And she cried for Steven. For her daughter. For her friends. For herself.

Something small and hard, round and cold, pressed into the side of her neck. A roughened hand covered her mouth and squeezed. The yell in her throat retreated to her chest. She tried to struggle, tried to squirm, tried even harder when a huge man, dressed all in black, pulled her baby out of her arms. Her heart raced, adrenaline rushed through her body like quick fire, but it was useless. Whoever was holding her from behind was stronger than her.

He pulled her to her feet, and she could barely stand. His grip was the only think holding her up. Her knees were gone.

The man's hand slipped down from her mouth to clasp her neck, and she gasped, still trying to fight. "Don't…." Her words were choked. "Don't hurt my baby. Please…she's all I have of him…Don't hurt her!" Stephanie had been crying, but to Jackie's surprise, the man holding her seemed to have a way with her, and her sobs quieted. He rocked the girl, who stared at him with those wide eyes.

He smiled gently at her, now bouncing the baby a little bit. "Jackie, I won't hurt this precious thing. I promise."

She stopped moving, stopped struggling, and the man's hold loosened just a tiny bit. Her throat no longer felt crushed, though he still held the gun to the side of her neck. "You…you know me? How?" She shook all over. What in the hell was going on? How did he know her name?

Things around her were moving so fast, too fast to comprehend. Her heart….god, she couldn't even feel it!

"I do know you. In fact…"

The man behind her cleared his throat. "Sammy. Later! We gotta go before someone sees us!"

Jackie shook her head and winced when the other guy's hold once again tightened. "Wh…wha…"

Sammy smiled again, reassuringly, it seemed to her. "Don't you worry none, Jackie. We ain't gonna hurt you, or your pretty baby. In fact-" He looked at the baby. "We got a real good surprise for you."

Jackie didn't fight, didn't try to keep her feet attached to the ground.

A surprise?

Am I going to die?

My baby…my baby….

"MY BABY! MY BABY! GIVE ME MY BABY!!!!!"

The hand smashed her mouth closed, stifled her screams.

And then everything went black.

I Wanna See Her

He paced the room, breathing heavily, unable to stop. He glanced at his watch. An hour. It had been an hour, and Sammy told him it would only be half an hour. Fuck Sammy. Probably screwed it all up. Probably gotten caught. He ran his fingers through his hair and walked to the window. Nothing. Saw nothing except blue sky, daylight and green grass.

His eyes closed. He just wanted to see her…them. Sammy told him about the baby. His baby. It had to be his baby. His baby. Her baby. Their baby.

It must have been the night before he left. They hadn't even bothered with condoms.

The door opened, and he jumped, turning around. Jesus, Hyde, get a fucking grip.

He stared at Carl, swallowing hard. "We…is.she…" His voice cracked. His heart heaved.

Carl smiled faintly, which for him was an extreme expression of feeling. "She's here." He lifted an eyebrow. "They're both here."

Hyde closed his eyes. A year. He hadn't seen her in over a year. And the baby…he knew nothing about the baby, not even the sex…Sammy hadn't told him anything except that there was a baby. His head suddenly felt light, and he had to grip the windowsill behind him in order not to collapse. His kitten. Just a few rooms away from him. Her tiny, sexy body; those soulful eyes that constantly revealed her. Those sweet lips that could be erotic and comforting, sometimes all at once. That voice that drove him nuts and soothed him like no other.

His kitten.

His head jerked up, his eyes flipped open. "I wanna see her," he demanded gruffly. "I wanna see her now."

His fists clenched. God forbid, but he was willing to kill to see his chick. And his baby.

Carl nodded. "I know. Come on."

It Can't Be

Jackie stood in a daze, looking around her. She was in a bedroom, a well decorated bedroom, with a four- poster mahogany bed dressed in a lovely floral spread. Matching dresser and armoire, nightstands. Golden hued lamps on each nightstand, and there was a crib at one end of the room. The walls were painted a soothing shade of blue, and the carpeting was just a shade or two darker. The room was gorgeous and her taste, though the heavy, dark blue curtains were tied closed.

She sank down on the edge of the bed, confused as hell. Stephanie was asleep on the bed, nestled against the pillow where the guy named Sammy had settled her. Lucky girl. She's not aware of any of this. She's not wondering what in the hell is going on…or how I'm going to get us out of this.

It appeared to be a hotel, or maybe a mansion. The room was lavish, and at least she knew she'd be comfortable. There was even an attached bathroom.

She stood up again, hoping that maybe walking around a little bit would clear her mind.

She'd been kidnapped. By two men who apparently knew her.

Her eyes closed, she stopped walking. They seemed decent enough, had even stopped at McDonalds and bought her the hamburger and fries that were sitting on one of the nightstands.

But…

That could change at any moment. They could decide to kill her. And her baby. Steven's baby.

She turned and rushed back to the bed, flouncing down on it and curling herself into a quivering ball as she cried.

The knock on the door startled her, and she jerked up. "Who…who is it?"

"It's Sammy, Jackie. And I got that surprise I promised you. Can I come in?"

She had to smile as she wiped away the wetness on her cheeks. Odd, how he had the power over her, she was locked in here and yet he was asking to come in. "Yeah, go ahead."

Sammy opened the door, his grin wide. "Good. You're sitting down. I think you might wanna keep sitting down." He glanced over his shoulder. "Go in. She's in there." He turned and smiled again at her. "Surprise."

Jackie held her breath, closed her eyes. She guessed it was probably her mother or her father. Her old maid? Her old nanny?

"Hey, Jackie."

Her eyes opened. His voice…no…no, it couldn't be…but it was his voice…that low, husky tone he only used with her…

But he's dead…I know he is…I found his glasses…they found bones…his shoes…clothes…

He stood there. Steven stood there. He was there. His hair, his tee shirt, his jeans. His body. His boots. All of him. In one piece. His blue eyes, unblocked, staring at her, entering her.

"It….can't be…" She wasn't sure how she was speaking. How she was existing. She couldn't feel the floor, or the air around her, or her own body. Was she standing? Still sitting? Was her heart functioning at all? Her mind?

Was she going crazy?

Was she dead, too?

Why was the room spinning so fast? Colors blending together…faster and faster…streaks of light….

"Jackie? Oh, god, Jackie…"

Faster and faster….

Dark….

Black.

Author's Note: I know most of you saw it coming. :)