Chapter Six

"That's it, Nancy," encouraged Paul, her physical therapist.

He was guiding her to walk on a beam without the use of her cane or help from someone else. Frank was right beside her, his hand near hers though not touching. She grimaced ever time she took a step on her bad leg, wobbling slightly but she willed herself forward.

"You're doing great, Nan," Frank said. She was almost to the end of the beam when her left leg gave out on her. Nancy began to tumble though both men caught her before she hit the ground.

"Dammit!" she yelled frustratingly. "I was almost there!"

"And that's the furthest I've seen you walk, Nancy," Paul smiled letting go of her. Frank continued to support her as the physical therapist continued. "You have come a long way in such a short amount of time. You should be proud of yourself."

"I won't be proud until I make it to the end of the beam without help," she sighed shaking her head. "Let's do it again."

"Nan, I think you should take a breather for now," Frank pleaded guiding her as she went back to the other end of the beam. "You haven't stopped since we got here and I don't think you should overextend yourself. You could seriously hurt your body."

"Frank, I need to do this," Nancy stated. She stopped and looked directly into his eyes. He was stunned by her determination but worried as well. "I want to be ready for anything."

That was when Frank realized why she was so determined. Hidden beneath her strength he could see the fear she possessed and he knew where it was coming from.

Frank turned to Paul. "Would you mind giving us a minute?"

"Sure," the man shrugged then walked away.

Frank turned his attention to Nancy who was stepping on the beam once more. "I know why you're doing this, Nan," he replied in a low voice. "I get it. We don't know when Davenport will strike but you also can't push yourself to exhaustion. What good would that do?"

"You know why I do this, Frank," she sighed. "I don't want him near me again. He could have killed me after my surgery but he didn't. He wanted me alive so he could do it himself. You saw how he was in Florida. Davenport wanted to kill me then and he would have if it hadn't been for your dad. I…I just can't, Frank. I can't stop until I know I can defend myself from him."

"Nancy, he's a bitter man who's angry at us for putting him away," Frank said softly rubbing her arms. "The best thing we can do is to not live in fear of him. We are safe for now and we will deal with Davenport when he shows his face."

"Are you sure, Frank?" Nancy asked gazing into his brown eyes. "I mean…really sure? I…I just have a bad feeling that we're underestimating him. What if he…"

Frank sighed bringing her closer to him, stroking her long hair. "Nancy," he said softly, "I am not going to let anything happen to you again. I should never have left your side in July. Davenport proved then that he was capable of anything. I just should have seen it. I'm sorry."

"And I should never have pushed you away," she sniffled. "There's something I didn't tell anyone, not even Dad. I started receiving letters when I returned to Chicago. They were obviously from Davenport. He still hasn't forgotten what I did to him."

"What?" Frank looked at her confused. "How…what…why didn't you say something? Your father, Nancy…he could have done something."

"Frank, it was my mistake for not saying anything." Nancy pushed him away and hugged herself. "The letters meant nothing though."

"What do you mean?"

"They were ramblings," she said staring at the floor. "He…he sounded insane. He said what he was going to do to me…to all of us."

Nancy shivered and looked away. Why she didn't say anything before was beyond her. Maybe it was just her fear that what Davenport wrote would come true. She didn't want anything to happen to her friends or family.

"Nancy, I made the mistake of not telling Dad about the emails Melody was sending me. I let it get to my head and it was stupid of me to do that. Our relationship could have started then if it hadn't been for those stupid emails. I'm telling you now what I should have realized then: you can't let him get inside you head." Frank paused and looked around the room. He smiled when he saw something in the corner and turned back to Nancy. "I have an idea."

Frank took her hand and guided her over to the corner where a punching bag hung from a low ceiling. He picked up a set of gloves and threw them to a confused Nancy.

"Hit this," he ordered pulling the bag in front of him.

"What?"

"Hit. This."

"I don't know, Frank," Nancy said warily.

Sighing Frank went over to her and started putting the gloves on her hands then looked up at her. "Trust me. Hit the bag."

"Okay…" She took a stance as best she could, leaning on her good leg. Nancy took a deep breath then jabbed lightly at the bag, barely moving it.

"Oh, come on," Frank scoffed. "You can do better than that. I've seen you knock down men twice your size. Now, hit it!"

Nancy jabbed again only harder this time, a loud noise erupting from her.

"Good," he said encouragingly. "Now pretend the bag is Davenport. Put all your frustrations out on this bag."

Nancy began punching the bag in earnest, screaming at the top of her lungs after each lunge. Soon she was kicking, using both legs, each throw getting stronger. Frank began having a hard time holding onto the bag after awhile but knew it would be a bad idea to let go.

The others in the room stopped what they were doing, listening to Nancy cry out. Tears flowed down her face until she let out one loud cry and kicked out with her left leg, knocking Frank to the floor from the blow. Nancy's eyes went wide, her gloved hands covering her mouth in shock. Frank looked up at her with pride then he scrambled to get up.

"That was amazing, Nan!" he cried pulling her towards him.

Applause and cheers erupted from those around them. Nancy looked embarrassed, her face turning a dark shade of red.

"You did it!" Frank beamed at her. "I knew you could. Do you think you can tackle that beam again?"

"Hell yeah," Nancy grinned broadly, her chest heaving from exertion.

The couple walked over to the beam where Paul stood smiling at them. With Frank on one side and Paul on the other, Nancy started along the beam and within minutes she walked along without once needing help though she did sway slightly.

Paul whooped loudly as Nancy stepped off the beam while others in the room applauded. Nancy hugged Frank tightly as he lifted her in the air.

"Thank you," she whispered into his ear.

"You're welcome," he replied modestly. "Thank you."

"For what?" Nancy pulled away looking at him quizzically.

Frank smiled sheepishly. "For helping me out of my own funk. I guess we both needed the time together in order to get ourselves back on track."

"That was fantastic, Nancy!" cried Paul, patting her back. "You should be walking normally in no time. I knew you could do it!

"Thanks, Paul," Nancy smiled. She stood on her toes and kissed the man on the cheek.

The physical trainer blushed before turning toward Frank. "Hey, maybe you should be a physical therapist too. You're a natural."

"Nah," Frank shook his head. "I'm good with what I'm doing and I'm happy."

"Well, if you ever want a change in scenery," Paul laughed, "let me know. Well, I think that's a good way to end our session today, Nancy. I look forward to our next one in a few days."

"Okay, Paul," Nancy waved as the man walked away. She wrapped her arms around Frank once more and looked up at him. He beamed down at her. "Thank you again."

Frank leaned in and kissed her on the lips. "Anytime. Now go get changed. Mom and Joe are expecting us home soon for lunch."

She nodded then headed over to the women's locker room. Frank watched her go, happy that she was able to accomplish so much in such a little amount of time. Sighing, he pulled out his cell phone as he headed toward a bench nearby. Just as he was about to sit down, the receptionist motioned for him to come to her.

"Ms. June," Frank replied as he came up to her. Ms. June was an older woman of about 50 with platinum blonde hair and a usually chipper personality but at that moment, she seemed concerned, almost upset about something. Frank noticed it immediately. "What's wrong?"

"You have a phone call," she stated urgently. "A man by the name of Sam Radley is asking for you."

"Did he say what he wanted?" he asked confused. Ms. June shook her head and then beckoned for Frank to follow her to the front desk area. She handed him the phone then went to her computer. "Sam? What's going on?"

"Are you and Nancy okay?" the man immediately asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't we be?"

"I got a phone call from your father," Sam said then went on to explain what happened. As he listened, Frank's face paled, a sick feeling growing in his stomach. "I don't know where he is right now. I went by the house and there was an officer knocking at the door but no one answered."

"What?" Frank cried. "Where are Mom and Joe? They're supposed to be at home."

"I know," the detective answered. "You father told me to get you, Nancy, Joe, and your mother to safety but I was too late for the others. I'm on my way to the clinic now. Are you done?"

"Yes, we just got done. Nancy is in the locker room changing. We were going to leave when she was done."

"Okay, Frank. I need you to listen to me. I will be there soon to get you and Nancy. I want you both out front the moment I arrive. We need to find a place for you two to hide out until this passes over."

"What about my family, Sam?" Frank asked angrily. He had no intention of sitting on the sidelines while his family was being held hostage. "I'm not leaving them."

"I'll be there soon, Frank," Sam repeated curtly. "Right now we have to plan and not do something stupid that will get you caught. Get Nancy and be ready. We'll discuss more when we leave."

"Fine."

"I know what you want to do, Frank," he said cautiously, "but you need to trust me on this. Your father asked specifically to make sure you all were safe and I intend to keep that promise. I'll see you soon."

The phone call ended and Frank handed the phone back to Ms. June who was still a little nervous about something.

"Thanks, Ms. June," Frank smiled though she didn't smile back. Her eyes quickly moved to something behind him and he knew there was someone behind him. Frank ducked just as an arm flew through the air, missing his head by inches. Ms. June quickly ducked under the desk.

Frank whirled around to see a large man looming over him. The man's beefy arms came down again but Frank was ready. He ducked and scrambled out of the way then parried around to punch the man in the stomach. All it did was make him madder while a pain shot through Frank's fist. A beefy arm snaked its way around his neck cutting off the air supply. Frank desperately tried to get the man's hands off of him but he could feel his strength waning. His knees buckled and he knelt to the floor just as the man let go only a little.

"I'm not supposed to kill you, Monsier Hardy," he replied, his French accent thick and deep. "Just incapacitate."

Frank frantically searched the lobby. There was no one around, not even the security guard. He wondered what happened knowing that the clinic had top-notch security. The Sasquatch behind him put him into a sleeper hold. Frank soon felt his energy drain and knew that if he didn't get out of the situation, he was done for. He also had to get to Nancy. His lasts thoughts were of her as darkness began to envelope him.

Nancy stood under the shower for a few minutes, letting the hot water run down her aching body. She knew she shouldn't dawdle but she also didn't want to feel crumby. Just before she went into the shower stall, she checked the locker room only to find one other person with her. Still, she took her duffle bag into the stall with her including Frank's gun that was still sitting at the bottom of the bag. Nancy wasn't taking any chances even if it was only to be a few minutes of blessed peace.

After a few minutes of the shower, Nancy turned off the water and dried her body. Although her session went well and she was able to walk normally for the first time in months, the pain in her leg never went away. In fact, it was worse than it normally was with the pain ripping through her. It took her longer than it usually would for her to change her clothes, pulling her jeans on being the hardest. Still she worked her way through it then stepped out with her button-down shirt open revealing the bra beneath.

Plopping the duffle bag on the counter, Nancy looked at herself in the mirror, running her fingers over the scars on her body that she'd accumulated over the years. She stopped at one in particular and smiled slightly as she looked at it. Although the bullet nearly killed her, Nancy reminisced at how she was saved the day she got the scar. Actually, of who had saved her.

Frank had pulled the bullet from her body on a rocking boat and she still didn't know how he kept his cool. He still didn't like talking about the ordeal either but Nancy also never pressed him. Frank saved her life that day and she was forever grateful. The shirt he gave her was still neatly folded in the back of her closet though she didn't fully understand why she kept it for so long. Nancy had begged the nurses to give it back to her, all to keep that memory alive.

At Wyvern Manor, Frank had done it again in saving her life by practically sacrificing his own. Nancy knew she had feelings for him before but after being in the manor, she knew she loved him. She just didn't have the courage to tell him just yet.

Hours earlier, Nancy wanted to say yes when Frank asked her to move in with him but it was his own mouth who stopped her from saying it. He told her to think about it and although she knew what she wanted, Nancy obliged. Frank was everything she ever wanted in someone to spend her life with and more. Sighing, she gave one last look in the mirror at herself and nodded. She knew what she was going to do the moment she saw him and nothing was going to stop her.

Smiling, Nancy finished getting ready, stuffing her clothes into the bag. That was when she felt the gun against her hand and reality came back to haunt her. Davenport was out there and her family and friends were in danger. Her happiness was going to have to wait and it broke her heart.

"Oh, I'm sorry," replied a voice interrupting the silence. "I didn't realize someone was in here."

Nancy looked over to see a woman in a physical trainer's shirt and khakis standing near the bathroom entrance. The woman had a bucket in her hand along with paper towels as if she were going to clean.

"I can come back," the woman stated quickly turning around to leave.

"Wait," Nancy called to her. She closed the bag and hefted it onto her shoulder. "I'm done. You can come in."

"Oh, okay."

Nancy went to leave the room but the woman stepped in her way at the last minute.

"Excuse me," Nancy apologized and tried to move around the woman.

The woman, on the other hand, gave her a strange smile that sent a chill down Nancy's spine. When she was finally able to go into the locker area, Nancy couldn't get rid of the feeling of unease about the woman. There was something about her that was familiar.

Nancy quickly got her shoes on, wanting to get out of the locker room as fast as she could. Something was not right. Frank hadn't come back to check on her which made her more uneasy. She checked her phone though there was only a voicemail waiting. Maybe her father had finally called. Before she could check the voicemail though, a shadow loomed beside her. Nancy looked to her left and was startled to see the woman standing next to her.

"Hello," she said cautiously. "Can I help you with something?"

"Oh, yes, you can…Nancy," the woman smirked then cocked her head.

Nancy's heart pounded as she slowly rose from the bench. "Who are you?"

"Isn't that a shame," she tsked, pouting slightly. "You don't even remember me but we were so close back in July."

"You!"

"Ah, now you remember," the woman said cheerfully. She advanced as Nancy stepped back. "Oh, I'm so glad you do. Martin told me all about you and I have really wanted to get to know you more. I'm Gidget and we're going to be good friends for a while. My husband would really like to see you again too. He has some…unfinished business with you."

"I'm not going anywhere with you, Gidget," Nancy growled. She looked over at the door behind the woman, wanting Frank or anyone to open it.

Gidget noticed the look and laughed. "Oh, if you're waiting for someone to rescue you, you'll be waiting a while, sweetie. The rest of the people in the building are locked away while Frank is being dealt with by an associate of mine." The woman pulled something out of her pocket as she continued to advance on Nancy. "Now, I really don't want to have to use this so we can make this easy or hard. Your choice, sweetie."

Nancy's heart dropped when she saw that it was a syringe in Gidget's hand. She needed to get away and she desperately searching for anything to help her. Then the duffle bag came into view. The gun! That was the only way.

"I don't think so," Nancy finally said taking off running though she didn't get far as her leg caused her to slow down.

Gidget laughed advancing slowly. "Did you forget about that, hon? You can't get far if you can't walk very well." Nancy went around a corner and leaned against the lockers cursing her injury. "Now, be a good girl and come here. Your father is looking forward to seeing you too, Nancy. He's been such a wonderful guest and so handsome too! I'm sure you'll want to have a family reunion with him and with the Hardys."

Nancy stopped, her heart dropping. They had her father. They had the Hardys. What else could she do?

Author's Note:

Thank you so much for the awesome reviews of the last chapter! That last chapter was intense, wasn't it? This one I had written awhile back and was looking forward to getting it out. Happiness doesn't last, does it? Well, I wanted to respond to a previous chapter's review. Someone had said about Davenport killing off Carson. I can assure you that it won't happen. I know I'm giving that away but I have already killed off that character rather abruptly in another series so I have no intention of killing off Carson. He may be hurt but not killed. I don't know if I can say that for the rest of them though. I'm evil, I know. Anyway, I hope that you all have a wonderful week and God bless!