A/N: Sorry to all for the last chapter. I know, it's too graphic for most. I'll try to tone it down next time. But thanks, anyway, for the reviews. I really, really appreciate ALL of them. Big hugs, love and a lot good vibes to those who took the two seconds or more to comment/review: Dizzien, LiveLoveLaugh18, alkmin5, Holding Infinity, xXDreamWriterXx, oohapoo, Moonlight16, booky-true-false-identity, JasperSaysChillax, cOn Bites, StxrStrvk, Sarah strider and anonymous.

To those who chose to bypass the last chapter, here's a little recap:

Rob watches Andrea as she mopes in front of the monitors.

Wanda and Ian finally slept together. (Although most won't consider it 'sleeping')

Wanda reveals she's sterile.

Rob makes a move on Andrea.

That's it in a nutshell.

To LiveLoveLaugh18, Sorry I wasn't able to come up with an update in time for your birthday. I hope this special shout out will do for now. Hope you had a great birthday!

To everyone else…here's a special treat inside Rob's head.

One side of his mouth curled up to an attractive grin. "I've come to rescue you."

Rob POV

Andrea shot me an indignant glare. "What makes you think I need rescuing?"

The fact that she was able to say that, while her eyes were beet red and she had practically gone through the entire contents of the tissue box in a matter of seconds, almost made me laugh. But knowing her current state-of-mind, I definitely wasn't dumb enough to point that out to her. Besides, with what I had planned, that really wasn't the best way to start things off with her.

Curbing the pull to give her a caustic reply, I shrugged and took the chair beside her.

"Everyone needs rescuing – one way or another. Especially when the rescuer has this in his hands," I said, pulling out a pint of 'Chunky Monkey' from behind me. "Meet my two best friends – Ben and Jerry. They never fail to put a smile on my face. Grab a spoon and let's make it a foursome."

"And that's probably the closest you'll ever get to an orgy, kid," Wolf quipped from behind us as he jerked the container from my hands.

"Hey!" I protested, trying to snatch it back from him. "Give that back, you dick!"

"Didn't your mama teach you not to steal someone else's food from the freezer?" he tsked.

"For a Soul, you're such an asshole. Ever heard of community property?"

"Community property would only cover things that-" he flipped the container over to show his name scrawled on the bottom "-don't have someone else's name on it. Come near my ice cream again and I swear, you'll be seeing pork chops for dinner," he threatened.

Oh, he did not just try to bring my precious pig into this. "I have half a mind to tell you to 'Fuck Off!'" I said with a glower.

He cocked an I-dare-you-to-do-so brow at me. "And?"

I chose to simply flip him off. The way I figured it, it would take more muscles to tell him to screw himself than it did to raise my middle finger. He just wasn't worth the effort. But perhaps I was lazy like that which sort of explained why I had chosen to steal his ice cream rather than taking the long trip down to the kitchens to procure one.

Wolf rolled his eyes and actually had the audacity to laugh as he walked away with the one thing I was sure to have loosened Andrea up.

Guess it was time for Plan B.

Which, by the way, was still non-existent at the moment.

With a sigh, I turned an apologetic grin to her. "Sorry about that. I can still go and get us another one, if you want. I had no idea that pint already had an owner," I lied casually.

She gave me a half-smile then shook her head.

That was a small triumph to see another expression on her beautiful face other than a frown. Granted, it wasn't a full smile that reached her eyes; but something close to that, nonetheless.

I inclined my head to the monitors. I knew she had just turned off the feed from the gym the moment that rank bastard started kissing Wanda. I've been watching her the whole time this evening, making sure she didn't interfere with the yoga class – per bossman's orders – so I had a fairly good idea exactly what had made her cry. But I'm sure she didn't want anyone to know she was still hurting for the asshole.

"What were you watching on the screens? I take it there was another tear-jerker episode of Extreme Home Makeover? Or were you watching Romeo & Juliet? I don't know about you, but sad stories like those always made me cry too," I said, giving her a genuine smile.

Andrea gave me a look that clearly said she didn't believe a word I just said. Smart girl. "You cried when you watched Romeo & Juliet?"

"No. I didn't say I watched the movie. I cried when I read the Cliff Notes of the book. My ADD wouldn't allow me to sit down long enough to read through long novels so I opted for the shortened version of it. It still made me cry though." Then I leaned closer to whisper in her ear. "But don't tell anyone I told you. You're brother's not going to let me live it down if he knew."

She bit back a laugh. "The Rob we all know as Hell's Incarnate cried over R&J? You're playing with me, right?"

My mouth quirked up into a sheepish grin. "Yeah. I am. But at least I made you laugh, right?"

A twinkle appeared in her eyes an instant before the expression on her face fell again. "I know what you're doing, Rob, and I really appreciate it. I do. But...I'd rather be alone right now, if you don't mind."

She went back to staring at the black screen in front of her. Sadly, that was probably how she figured her future looked like right now – one, big blank screen. If only there was some way to help her. Genius that I am, I can't even think of a way to pull her out of this bullshit. There was a reason I never let myself fall in love with anyone. Case in point: this fallen angel in front of me.

But if she needed the space, I can definitely respect that. Wouldn't be wise for me to jump right in when she was obviously still in the mend. Besides, I can hear her brother's footsteps, along with two other sets, entering the room. Best to skedaddle before he suspected anything. Paranoid bastard wouldn't even let me breathe near his sister even though it was his smart idea to have me keep an eye on her.

Before I could leave my seat, Andrew barked from the doorway, "What are you doing here, Rob? Weren't you supposed to be helping Ian with the equipment in the gym?"

What did he think I was? Mr. Multiplicity? Watch over his sister and be at the gym at the same time? Even I wasn't that good. And like hell was I gonna stay around and help Ian with his equipment. Sex may be on my mind twenty-four seven, but a voyeur I definitely was not.

"Obviously, I decided to come back here and jack off to your porn. What does it look like to you?" Okay...so maybe that didn't come out right at all. Oh, screw it. I've already been dubbed the proverbial perv anyway.

Andrew rolled his eyes. "Heaven forbid you'd actually do something more productive with your time."

"Speaking of Ian," Melanie said, ignoring our banter, "do you know where he is?"

I knew where he was but I wasn't about to tell them about his whereabouts. Only the person who had been monitoring the surveillance cameras would have known where he was. And it wasn't supposed to be me. Besides, I couldn't so much as give Andrea any indication I'd been spying on her. Andrew and I were supposed to be oblivious of what's going on in the gym. So I kept my mouth shut about it and shrugged. "Not a damn clue. Last time I checked, I wasn't his babysitter."

Andrea had been slumped against the tall leather-back chair beside me. The moment she heard the other woman's voice, I could tell she'd automatically stiffen. Apprehension and indecision played in her face. Taking a deep breath, she swiveled her chair around to face them. "He's still in the gym."

"You!" Melanie screeched. Before she could lunge at Andrea, Jared immediately grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back. She almost punched him in an effort to be free of his hold.

Andrea curled her lips at her in repugnance. When she spoke, her voice was laced with enough venom to make a few centuries' worth of snake-bite antidotes. "Get off your sanctimonious high horse, Mel. You would have done the same if it had been you and Jared instead of us."

Mel's nostrils flared at her accusation. "Stay the fuck away from them. If you so much as blink in their direction, I'll make sure you won't live long enough to regret it."

Clearly the other woman towered over Andrea and had the physical attributes to easily pummel her to the ground. She was an indomitable force to be reckoned with. A lesser woman would have backed down at that. But not Andrea. She stood her ground without even flinching. "Empty threats mean nothing to me."

"That wasn't a threat, little girl. That was a promise."

"And you can just stuff that where the sun doesn't shine. Lucky for you, I'm done with all of this." With that, she stood and left the room; bumping against Melanie's shoulder on the way out.

"That bi-"

Jared stopped her before she could curse Andrea out in front of her twin brother.

Surprisingly, Andrew took it all in stride. "Take it easy on her, Mel. She hasn't had a good life."

"She hasn't had a good life? Puh-lease! She doesn't know shit how good she's got it compared to what we, plebeians, had to go through. What, the harshest thing that's ever happened to her in her life was probably getting caught and turned into a Host? Or that Ian left her for Wanda? Wanda's past year alone makes a mockery of that. Has she ever been beaten and threatened time and time again by the people she thought she could trust? Worse, by the same people she had risked everything for?"

I swear I saw Jared cringe. I wonder what the story is behind that. Whatever it is, it must be pay-per-view worthy.

Mel continued despite Jared's sudden discomfort at her words. "Most of all, she didn't try to sacrifice herself just so I could have my body back. No, her pampered life does not even come close. So, forgive me if I can't feel the least bit sympathetic for her."

Andrew kept himself composed despite all impulses to lash back at Melanie for her condemnation of Andrea. I know it wasn't my place to do so but I would have if I had been in his shoes. Why? Because I was a prick. And pricks liked doing things like that.

When Andrew spoke, his voice was level. Controlled. "I won't go and say that I don't understand where you're coming from because frankly, I do. But there are always two sides to every story. And trust me; my sister's side isn't the greener pasture you picture it to be. Granted, it's not as bad as what you probably went through but at least you get to have your happy ending. She, on the other hand, only got me. Yup, definitely not the jackpot she was hoping for. Whoop-de-doo for that."

Yeah! You tell them, big man! But of course, I kept that comment to myself. Now where's the popcorn machine? This is getting good.

Melanie scoffed. "Right. Cry me a river and I'll gladly watch her drown in it."

"That's enough, Mel," Jared finally said. "Just leave the woman alone. I'm sure she has her own demons to fight. Let's worry about our own. Right now, there are more pressing things to talk about than something that really doesn't concern us. It's between Ian, Wanda and Andrea. Let them work out their own problems. You're only worried for your sister and that's perfectly understandable. But Wanda is a grown woman and more than capable to make her own decisions. It's time you let her."

"Yes, but-" she started to argue. Stubborn female.

"No buts," Jared interjected with a tone that conveyed he wanted her to drop this discussion already. Damn, and I was beginning to enjoy myself.

Melanie glared at him. "Fine. Be that way. And while you're at it, you might want to ask Ian if you can bunk with him from now on," she snapped before she stormed out of the room.

"Babe-" Jared started to say but she'd already disappeared through the doorway. He didn't bother running after her. Probably from past experience, he knew better than to do so. When he was sure she was out of earshot, he turned to Andrew and mouthed sheepishly, "P-M-S."

"Geez, man. You sure got balls to say that," I quipped.

Jared smirked. "Not really. That's why I had to wait till she left the room. And even then, I couldn't get myself to say it out loud."

Andrew sighed. "If it's any consolation, Jared, Ian is with Wanda right now. Probably using my gym for something else other than…" He let voice trail off. "If you know what I mean."

"Please, I really don't need the visual," Jared said.

"Ditto on that one, bud," I agreed.

A few seconds of awkward silence ticked by (yeah, it tends to happen a lot now that Sports shows have become extensions of the Lifetime channel) as Jared looked uneasily around him. He dug his thumbs into his pockets and said, "Look, I really appreciate you taking us in and showing us how your cell is able to cope with this eff'ed up situation. I'm terribly sorry that we haven't been the most grateful of guests by burdening all of you with our issues. I suppose, being crammed inside a cave with a bunch of other misfits, issues like these are an unfortunate given and sort of brings out the cavemen in us."

Andrew patted him on the shoulder. "Not your fault, man. Shit happens. As long as we didn't lose any more humans to the Souls, I'm a happy camper."

Jared inclined his head. "Speaking of camping, don't you ever go out of this hotel, Drew? You weren't on the raid with Nate and Burns and ever since we got here, you never as much as stepped foot out of Sanctuary and the Penthouse. You're pasty as all get out, too. Don't you ever go anywhere?"

I couldn't help but answer this one. "Why should he? He has a butler, a blowup doll and gigabytes of porn in his hard drive. He's practically set for life!"

Then I braced myself for the expected blow to the back of the head...hold on…wait for it...bam! There it was. It never fails.

Rubbing the sore spot on the back of my head, I said, "Is it just me or does everyone think I'm a fucking bobble head?"

"Bobble head, yes. The fucking part...oh, you ain't that lucky, kid," Andrew said mockingly.

"Har. Har. Shut up."

Andrew chuckled as he took the seat beside me that was previously occupied by Andrea. "Anything interesting on the feeds?"

"Same old, same old - women reading sappy romance novels by the cafe, the Playboy channel going on in the gym, Michael Phelps hogging the pool again, and a couple of Seekers riding the elevator to the Penthouse," I said lackadaisically.

"What?" Andrew and Jared both exclaimed at the same time; mirroring panic on both their faces. Funny how identical their reactions were. If I didn't know any better, I'd think they were both woven from the same cloth.

"Yeah, could you imagine that? Five nights in a row now that that Phelps guy has monopolized our pool. You'd think by now he'd learn to share."

Andrew shot me a glare that only someone missing half the marbles in his brain would dare cross. "Not about Phelps. The Seekers, you idiot!"

Since someone had obviously ran off with the last of my marbles a long time ago then decided it was a good idea to play 'Ring Taw' with them, I guess you can consider me nuts. Or maybe because I just enjoyed tormenting Andrew way too much that I live and breathe to annoy him. Besides, our verbal sparring was practically the only amusement I get nowadays.

I gave him a look that was as good as a billboard sign with the words 'Gotcha!' and 'Psyche!' graffitied all over it.

"Asshole," he snarled.

I gave him my most shit-eating grin. "Did you actually expect me to be anything but?"

Jared shook his head. "You, my friend, are the most bizarre person I've ever known. Glad to know the Souls haven't taken you yet. It would be a shame to lose an oddity such as yourself. I'm actually surprised they haven't given you a special corner over at Ripley's Believe-It-Or-Not vault."

"That really makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside knowing you think so highly of me," I said with much sarcasm. "Not."

"No, Jared," Andrew piped in, "the Souls haven't taken him but I'm thinking some other alien form might have and they just forgot to take out his anal probe. That's why I try to stay away from him. If I didn't, I might need to start wearing those tin foil hats on my head lest he infects me with his idiosyncrasies."

"And I love you too, boss," I said, blatantly rubbing an eyebrow with my middle finger.

"Damn, kids. When are you all ever going to grow up?"

We all turned to see Nate shaking his head as he made his way towards us.

I inclined my head to him in greeting. "'Supp, old man?"

He jutted his thumb to the door where he came from. "Can one of you care to tell me why Melanie is storming down the hallway with steam billowing out of her ears, doing a damn good impression of Thomas the Tank Engine?"

Our collective response was automatic. "P-M-S."

Nate groaned. "Figures."

I chuckled. "Yeah, you would know. Since you hang around Andrew way too much, you should easily be able to tell the signs by now."

"And I vote we ignore the little annoying voice in the room before I decide to just gift wrap his ass over to the Souls," said Andrew. "Anyone in favor, say 'Aye!'"

It was a unanimous 'Aye!' from the other two.

I rolled my eyes and stood up. "Whatever. I'm outta here anyway. Gonna head to the kitchens to get me something cold and sweet. And don't ask me to bring your lazy bums some coz I ain't yo' maid."

That really was just my excuse to leave. I knew these three were going to be knee-deep in planning for the assimilation of Jared's cell back into society. And though I'm kind of excited for it too, I much preferred going straight to the execution phase of it. Tactical planning always gave me a headache.

Among all the rebel groups in Northern America - excluding Sanctuary - the added number of thirty-nine survivors in Jared's cell had given Andrew a renewed hope to somehow take over another Hotel. Our number here was just enough to run Waldorf-Astoria. Even if we banded together all those other cells, we still wouldn't have come up with a force great enough to be able to infiltrate the one in Orlando.

But if and when we do, things will definitely start looking up for us, humans – even though these were mere baby steps in recapturing the world back to humanity. As one famous guy had said, 'One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.' Any Souls dumb enough to cross us will be singing a different tune – one they haven't even heard of back at the Bat planet.

I should ask Andrew to allow me to be based there once the assimilation is complete. I definitely could use the tan and a change in scenery. And maybe he could send Andrea there with me. I know…it's completely wishful thinking on my part. A guy can only dream.

Before I got to the hallway, Nate called out to me. "Don't you be detouring to our fridge and be stealing Wolf's Chunky Monkey. You know he's gonna skin your hide if you do."

I snickered to myself. Kinda late for the warning there, bud.

Now where did Andrea go? I really hate having to do a 'Where's Waldo' on the surveillance monitors just to look for her.

Inwardly, I prayed to God that she didn't go anywhere near the gym.

A/N (again): Since I technically can't beg for money to support my writing, I'll just settle for your reviews. Regardless of what others might say, I can definitely live off of those. LOL

Please let me know what you think. Love it, Hate it, Meh it, and 'Please Update Soon'. You know the drill. ;)