Greetings! I'm back with another chapter!
Let's see now, only one warning for this chapter. !Angry mother alert! As if I'd let Nina get by without some harsh consequences. The tide is beginning to change in this little story, and they begin now.
I'd like to give special thanks to Mertmidnightangel for getting this chapter back to me so quickly! Also, I'd like to give special kudos to fanficrulez for helping me along with the sappy parts of the chapter. I couldn't have done it without him!
Let's see, I think that's all the special announcements, so I'm just gonna sit back and enjoy the show. LOL. See me at the bottom!
Nina sat at the big dining room table. She wasn't sure what she'd expected when she was found by the big beefy guy staring at her, but this wasn't it. He wore a basic black T-shirt with the logo for the silver guardians, accompanied by a black baseball hat with the same logo on it. Upon entering the kitchen, she was met by another guy who was leaner though no less muscular, who wore the same kind of clothing as the first guy, though he did seem to be nicer than his partner. This man, whom called himself Agent Wes, approached her with a black duffle bag that sported the medicine logo, out of which he pulled a stethoscope and a blood pressure monitor. Though it wasn't required to join the Silver Guardians, Wes had chosen to take a basic medical course. He felt, that should a person under their protection suddenly be harmed or suffer a medical emergency, he would immediately be able to treat them, while waiting for the ambulance.
"What are you doing?" she asked as her heart sped up. She really didn't want this stranger touching her.
"Take it easy Miss Rickshaw. The driveway is almost a mile long, and you were passed out at the gates. You're most likely dehydrated and if Mr. McKnight was right, you're in a delicate condition. I'm just making sure you're in good health when Mrs. Oliver gets here."
Nina narrowed her eyes as Wes put the cuff on her arm. "But I wanted to talk to Mr. McKnight!"
Eric approached her and put a paper plate with a delicious looking sandwich in front of her, along with a cold bottle of water.
"Well, we don't always get what we want, do we? Mr. McKnight and his fiancée are in a meeting. Despite all the trouble your dad is causing, we fully intend for their wedding to go forward...and though he's trying to force us out of Angel Grove, we're not going anywhere."
"I had nothing to do with that! And how did you even know who I was?" Nina sputtered.
Eric looked steadily at her, hiding his internal satisfied smirk. This canary was singing really well for him. "We know everything about you. Your MySpace page told us everything." Eric paused tilting his head at her. "Is your dad aware of all those naughty pictures you post of yourself?"
Nina scoffed. "As if he cares! The only time he even talks to me is when The Clarion does an interview. It's all about image for him."
The older man opened his laptop and typed in something. "Ah yes! There you are, looking so pretty and obedient...you play your part pretty well. So, my question now is, which Nina is the real you?"
"The one who's pregnant...I came here because my dad allowed a monster into the house and he..." She paused not being able to say the word...
Wes raised his eyebrow. "I see. And how long ago was this?"
Nina clammed up right then. She didn't want to tell these men anything more. Instead, she switched to her haughty tone. "What is this? Good cop, bad cop?"
Eric chuckled and closed his laptop. "It's a lot better then what you'll get when Mrs. Oliver shows up. You're very lucky she's on her way here and not Kyle or Autumn's mom. They won't be so compassionate."
That shut her up. She'd forgotten all about the flier thing. The plan to embarrass Autumn had been a really stupid idea thought up in a fit of jealousy. The pictures had been obtained easily enough. That nerd from the yearbook club had been easy to persuade. He'd had a crush on her forever. All she had to do was compliment him on his Detonation Man t-shirt and he was putty in her hands. She'd gotten what she wanted, just like she always did, and the subdued look on Autumn's face had made it all worth it. Until now that was. But why would their moms do anything?
Wes raised his eyebrow at her. He didn't think she meant to voice her question but that one statement told him a lot more then she realized. It showed him that perhaps, there was more going on than either of them realized.
He stood up and closed the medi bag. "Moms like Kyle and Autumn's are extremely protective. For your safety, they aren't showing up here and neither are your classmates. We persuaded them to stay in a hotel for tonight. We don't want bloodshed here. Not until we know exactly why you came all the way across town to seek asylum with us."
Nina only nodded and ate her food, wondering if the risk she took was a good decision or not.
"So, where's your mom at?"
"She left a long time ago. Mom and Dad got into a fight years ago. He annulled the marriage and he paid her a small fortune and sent her away. He only keeps mistresses now. They'll do anything for the money he's paying them."
Kimberly frowned as she'd heard the soft spoken words. She'd been standing there for a few minutes...and she was glad she did. Now she saw that just simply interrogating her wouldn't work. There were many secrets buried that would need to be unearthed before she allowed the girl to stay under her protective wings. She bit her lip and thought hard. And then an idea came to her.
Tommy closed the door behind them. They'd just dropped Kayla off at the hotel that their friends were staying at. When Kim had gotten the call, they both knew that the confrontation had a chance of becoming ugly. So, just to be safe, he'd packed her little pink suitcase and they'd headed for the hotel once she'd been picked up from school. He'd make sure that his daughter was as far away from this ugliness as possible.
At first he'd been wary of the idea of Kim playing this role. He'd opened his mouth to protest but shut it again at the memory of what happened last time he'd even suggested that his pregnant wife stay out of anything even remotely dangerous. She'd exploded on him and then made him sleep on the couch for the night. It had taken major sucking up and kissing up and making intense love to her to get back in her good graces...hormones were funny that way. This time around, he'd simply just told her how sexy she was when she went into warrior mode and then drove her to the manor. He hated having to sleep anywhere without her...and he was not gonna do that again!
So instead, he just followed her into the kitchen and stood in the door way while Kim made her presence known.
"Well, that explains a lot." Kimberly said as she walked into the kitchen. Nina whirled around and looked at her and the two sized each other up. Mrs. Oliver sure didn't seem scary...
"Come with me. We've got serious talking to do." She turned to her husband and held out her hand. Tommy looked at her questioningly but at her raised eyebrow, he nodded and handed over the duffle bag. Sometimes, especially with Kimberly, it was best to just play along. "Just call me if you need anything."
Kimberly smiled at him and pecked his lips. "I promise, Handsome." Then she turned back to Nina. "Alright then. Grab your bag and walk."
Any pre-existing assumptions vanished at her harsh tone. So Nina only swallowed, picked up her bag, and then remembered the chip in her jean's pocket. She put the chip on the table and then headed for the door Mrs. Oliver had indicated.
They walked in silence until they reached a small terra-cotta building that stood between two towering trees.
Kimberly walked up to the door and opened it. Pausing to take off her sandals, she turned to see the Nina's confused face and said, "We honor the heritage of the Parks. Whenever we enter a building on this property, no matter if it's the dojo or this building, the shoes come off."
Nina paused and watched while Kimberly toed her shoes off before removing her own. Once they were inside, Kimberly flipped the switch and closed the door. She led the way to the inner room and turned on another switch which, to Nina's everlasting surprise, started up the big jacuzzi in the middle of the floor. She looked in Kimberly's direction in confusion.
"The jucuzzi is for my use only. I'm 8 months pregnant and my feet and ankles are killing me. She pointed to the stool across the room that they used when giving each other pedicures. Bring that stool over here and have a seat. She watched as the girl did as she was told and then took off her clothes leaving only her maternity bathing suit on. With a groan she slid in to the warm water.
When Nina returned with the chair, she gestured to the opposite side of the tub. When she sat down, the two females sized each other up again.
Kim didn't say a word as she sat in the tub and gave Nina an appraising look. She was of course the stereotypical cheerleader rich girl. Not a touch of innocence...it was already known that she was no stranger to a boy's bedroom. From what she'd overheard, her parents weren't ever there to guide her or to tell her that in some things, especially those things involving sex, it was best to wait. She glanced at the girl's ankles. They were a little swollen which made sense since the tramp...girl had the stupidity to wear high heels on a long walk. Her feet had to be killing her. Her gaze traveled up the girl's body to her waistline. She wasn't showing yet, which could mean anything. If she'd just found out she was pregnant, she wouldn't be showing for a little while.
Finally, Kimberly looked into the girls eyes. Her eyes were lovely, but the moment their eyes met, the girl dropped her gaze to her lap. While the girl was no virgin, there wasn't a hint of haughtiness. She was nervous and even scared...not what she was expecting.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The angry mother bear tones her friends used when they'd called her on the way over still resonated with her.
"Kimberly, don't you dare let that tramp off easy. She messed with my baby girl, you better run her through the gauntlet before you let that hussy into my house!" Tanya had all but screeched into her ear.
Aisha had been a little calmer, but her voice had carried a threatening tone in it. "Pinkie, the safety of our children is in your hands. The girl is bad news and you better make for damn sure that she's not a threat. We didn't survive Rita, Zedd, Mondo and Mesogog just to run afoul of that bitch. Don't you dare go soft on her...you better not let me down."
Any other time, Kim might have flinched at her best friend's words, but she completely understood. She had her own precious daughter as well as the baby she carried to think about. Still, if the girl before her really needed her help...well she would soon know everything.
"How did you find us?" She snapped, causing the girl to startle. "We're not listed in the phone book. The location of this house is a closely guarded secret. How did you even know we lived here?"
"My d...dad. He's had his eye on the house for years. The Grand Dragon, the guy my father answers to, had planned to buy this house to use as headquarters. But when my father tried to buy it, it was already off the market. He's really mad that this house has fallen into 'half breed hands'. His words."
Kimberly arched an eyebrow. "The Grand Dragon? I didn't think the KKK stretched this far."
"It's not the KKK. It's the TSA. True Sons of America. They're not as big as the Klan, but they're trying to put themselves on the map."
Kimberly nodded. "I see. Now, tell me why you came here. You really did a lot of damage to Autumn and Kyle. Those posters really messed up their heads. I have no reason to help you out...so unless you want me to throw you out-"
"No! Please don't throw me out! I'm not safe at home! Dad's gonna kill me when he finds out I'm pregnant! He's gonna force me to abort it!"
Kimberly eyed her. "Not my fault you laid down and spread your legs for every guy at school. Maybe you should go find that baby daddy and ask him for help."
"I was raped!" She cried out.
Kimberly gave her a look. "Is that what they call it now? Back in my day, having sex was referred to as getting laid, popping the cherry, and doing the horizontal mambo. You girls cry 'rape' way too easily."
Nina face contorted into a bitterly upset expression and angry tears streamed down her eyes. "I didn't want to have sex with him! He's big and scary. He was brought in by my dad to scare you into leaving! I wasn't even supposed to know about him...but he found me. He snuck into my bedroom and raped me! He was too heavy to fight off!"
The former ranger fought to control her maternal instinct. She itched to reach over and comfort the girl...but she finally managed her emotions and looked up at the girl who was furiously trying to wipe her tears away.
"It can only take two weeks after unprotected sex for the symptoms to show up. How do you know that beast got you knocked up? Couldn't it have been one of your many boyfriends?"
Nina shook her head. "No, the last boy I did it with was Nick Steward and that was almost 4 months ago."
"It's not as sweet as you thought it was, right?" Kim asked.
"No, but I didn't expect it to be. I had an itch to scratch...and it's not like I expected him to stick around. They never do."
"You girls start younger and younger every year." She said after a few more moments. Logic told her that if it had been this Nick boy, she'd have been showing by now...and that was only if she was telling the truth.
"It's a sad epidemic that more and more teens are getting pregnant these days, isn't it?" said a new voice. Kimberly looked towards the door to see Kat standing there.
Kimberly smiled at her. "Hey PC, did ya bring what I asked for?" PC had become Kat's nickname between her, Kimberly and Aisha.
"Of course," she said as she knelt down next to her friend and handed over a Starbucks latte. In her other hand was paper bag. She sat cross-legged on the ledge of the Jacuzzi and dropped her feet into the bubbling water.
She sighed and then looked at Nina. "I once saw a documentary about the lionesses over in Africa. They're the only species of wildcat in the world that club together. They all cooperate with each other for the safety of their cubs and each other. In the documentary, there was a part where the lionesses discovered that a cobra had snuck into their den where all their cubs were hiding. So the wise lionesses set up a guard to watch the snake while the other lioness calmly took the cubs one by one out of the den till all of them were in a safe place. Then they returned and killed the snake."
Nina flinched as Kat's eyes flashed. "We're very much like the lionesses. All our children are at stake...and we all work together to raise them...and if I should find out that you're lying...your ass is mine...Kimberly won't even half to lift a finger. I'll destroy you in half a minute."
"I'm not lying." Nina said softly. "My dad doesn't even know I'm here. That chip I left on the table has proof that he's financing the TSA."
Kat nodded. Billy had snatched it up and already taken it down to the lab in the basement.
"There's one question that hasn't been asked yet." Kat stated. "What gave you the idea to come here?"
"I ran into Mr. McKnight at Wal-Mart. I didn't want my dad to know I'd bought a pregnancy test. So I tried to lift it. Then the manager came after me. But Mr. McKnight saved me and paid for the test so I could leave. I know he hangs out with Kyle and Autumn. I thought that he might be able to help me."
"And what exactly do you think he'd do for you?" Kimberly asked.
Nina lowered her head again. "I'm pregnant...and I know it happened because of the rape. I'm not heartless, if this baby survives and is born, I don't want it to suffer my fate. I want it to have a life with a mom and dad that love it. All I'm asking for is somewhere to stay till it's born and then find a home for it. I'm not safe at home. I don't care if you guys hate me or not. I just don't want to be the one that killed it."
Kat looked at Kimberly...and then back at Nina. Finally Kat got up and walked over to Nina. "Very well, but you'll have to prove you're pregnant. If this comes back positive, then I want you to understand that you'll be fed and clothed and receive pre-natal care. But you'll be expected to apologize to Autumn and Kyle to their parent's satisfaction and you will be expected to pull your weight for as long as you can. And you will be expected to show utmost respect to Kimberly, and myself. Because once The Parks and DeSantoses return, we'll be the ones keeping those angry mothers at bay."
Nina wanted badly to ask about Conner, but she kept silent.
"Now, there are three separate tests in this bag. You're to use all of these tests the right way and then come out as soon as you're done. Don't tamper with them in any way or I will know."
Nina nodded solemnly and let Kat lead her to the rest room.
Meanwhile, in the garage...
Conner pulled into the garage, and slowly maneuvered his mustang into its space. Behind them, he could hear the other SUV pull into another space that Adam had allowed them to use while they were there. Pretty soon, the garage might need to be expanded. But that was the last of his thoughts as he heard the other car's engine go silent.
Taylor and Jen got out of the SUV and both looked over in the younger couple's direction. Jen only smiled at them and shot her companion an amused glance before they hurried to the house where they knew their husbands waited for them.
Conner watched them leave and then got out of his seat, closed the door and walked over to Kira's side. He leaned in and kissed her cheek causing the other to turn her head and kiss him back, though it only lasted for a moment. Smiling, she let him open the door for her and accepted the hand he held out, smiling up at him as he helped her to her feet.
They had both enjoyed their early dinner and the impromptu walk they took by the beach, though they'd asked their escorts if it would be alright to take the walk. The older ranger veterans and waved them on and followed them to the beach. The whole time they'd been shadowed, though neither Kira, nor Conner had missed the removal of their shoes and the light hearted banter and even girl talk that had gone on during their walk. After about an hour, just as the sun started to set, they'd walked back to the car. After they'd dusted their feet off, shoes had been put back on and after a late night stop at the Dairy Queen, they'd come home in a happy mood.
Conner closed the door and then kissed Kira again, both still in their bubble of happiness. It was a nice change to how they'd been before, and though both had a feeling it wouldn't be long before more drama found them, they were happy to exist into their little bubble for as long as they could.
Kira leaned against the car as Conner kissed her back, though it didn't last nearly as long as she wanted it to. His eyes were shining with happiness as he pecked her lips again.
"Did you get enough to eat, Rockstar?" He asked as he reached between them and rubbed her stomach.
"I should be asking you the same question, Mr. Red Ranger. You bought the biggest lobster they had! That thing was nearly 3 feet long! And then bought yourself your own basket of cheddar biscuits!
Conner chuckled at that. "Yes, and I'm sure we made our waiter very happy too. I left him a tip that was two times more than the normal 20%. He should be able to get her some nice barbies or outfits or whatever for his daughter with the tip alone."
When Kira look at him in confusion, he added, "I saw the little snapshot of her on the outer cover of the order book."
Kira kissed him again for that and he slid his hands from her belly to her hips, pulling her closer and pressing yet another kiss to her lips. When Kira pressed into the kiss he slid his hands to her bottom and gently hoisted her up onto the car door and groaned when she wrapped her legs around his hips. They stayed like that, each working the other up until at last they had to come up for air. Conner groaned when he realized that his body was fully awake and Kira looked at him breathlessly.
"Let's get upstairs. It's getting kind of cold out here."
Kira pecked him once more on the lips and then led them out of the garage.
The house was quiet when they slipped inside and headed up to their room. Kira only took a few minutes and washed the remainder of the sand off her feet before heading back to the room where Conner had gone to change into his sleep pants.
He kissed her lips as he passed her and headed to the bathroom.
He hummed happily to himself as he took care of his business and finished readying himself for bed. As he cleaned his own feet off, he let his thoughts wander more as he had done while he'd shed his clothes and put on his sleep pants. Kira had been kind of quiet while they were in the car headed to the restaurant. She seemed to be kind of un-Kira like during lunch and had only snapped out of it during their walk on the beach.
That thought scared Conner a bit as he didn't want Kira to become as moody as she was when she'd kicked him out of their room. No, he wouldn't let that happen again. He'd get to the bottom of this before it could part them again. He dried his feet and hands and then walked back to the room prepared to love on his girl and soothe whatever needed soothing. He'd do all in his power to- he paused mid-thought when he saw Kira laying in their bed with her back to him.
He gently pulled back the bed covers and slipped in, spooning Kira and wrapping his arms around her. He leaned in and kissed her neck. Normally, she'd turn over and kiss him back, but this time she only sighed. Conner frowned, "Okay, Rockstar, spill it. What's wrong?"
Kira sighed again and then turned over and Conner pushed himself backwards giving her room. "Conner, are you really happy with today?"
Conner frowned, "Of course I am...why wouldn't I be?"
"Don't tell me you didn't want that soccer cake. I know you."
He raised his eyebrows. "That's what has you upset?"
Kira nodded,
Conner sighed. "I won't lie, I'd love to have that cake, but I'm really okay with the one we picked out too."
Kira was quiet for a moment. "I'm glad we have a security team, to keep us safe, but we shouldn't need it for a wedding. It's supposed to fun for everyone, not a tense standoff waiting to happen." She looked back at Conner. "I love you and can't wait to be yours, but this isn't the way either of us wants it to be...to have to fake everything!"
She sighed, feeling relieved to get everything off her chest. Her fiancé had a thoughtful look on his face. He softly muttered the word fake...and then he got a look on his face as the proverbial light bulb turned on in his head.
"Conner?"
He focused on her again and pressed another kiss to her lips. "Kira, you're an absolute genius!"
Kira looked up at him in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
"We've got to wake the others!"
Kira moved instantly and grabbed his hand. "Conner, don't even think about it, everyone is asleep right now, they'll kill you for waking them up!"
Conner looked at her frowning.
"Stay with me and tell me your wonderful idea. I promise, we can tell the Guardians tomorrow."
*Pulls on battle armor and waits for the hoard of angry reviewers!* I don't apologize for this, not one bit! I will however promise that all of this will be worth it!
In the mean time, leave me a review, and let me know your thoughts! Catch ya on the flip side!