Brother Mine

by Blackstar1979

"Brother Mine" Mark is preparing to retire from wrestling so he can keep a promise he made to Nina his dead first wife in a drug-induced dream. The bonds that were forged and those that were almost broken play a part in book three. This is a partial summary see Chapter 1 for full.

9. Chapter 9 You're Not Immune

Chapter 9

You're Not Immune

Jackal showers and calls a part of the DCC to make sure this house was handled. They said the house was set for a controlled burn at 6:15 a.m. He asked who was setting it. They said Danny. He looked at the floor that hid the dead woman. "Good call, he's one of the best." He set the photo of her to be delivered tomorrow night. He then put the tablet under the couch she died on. Putting his wedding ring back on, Jackal listened to Elation's message and raced out to his car. He was going to be a father. He called her back but got no answer after the third time, he says to her voicemail "I'm coming home baby." His mind raced at almost the speed of his driving. His first child he'd sold to a black-market adoption ring to gain his entrance into the DCC. You got in the clan either by birth into a legacy law enforcement family, he was a first-generation cop, so that option was not afforded to him. The second way was, they gave you a mission. His, was selling his first born. He hadn't wanted to, but the payoff afforded him the money to take control of his life and change it for the better. He'd felt bad for telling his Elation's happy face, that he didn't believe it was his child. But how else was he to get her in position to help him get into a club she could know nothing about? He'd said it wasn't his kid to himself to cope with what he'd done so much that at times he believed the dark thought. He'd made her keep quiet and then took her to a DCC run clinic claiming that the doctor was his friend. As they'd waited in the room he'd watched for when the drug in her IV had started to take her under. She'd heard their baby cry as the doctor took it for the room. Elation tried to get up, that's when his anger at himself struck her as he'd told her that she hadn't heard their baby cry because the baby was still born. She deflated into tears and he flipped the switch to send sleeping gas through the oxygen mask she tried to push it off her face. The nurse that he'd slept with hours before taking Elation to the clinic, happily strapped her hands to the bedrail. Jack moved into Elation's line of sight and held the mask in place until her bleary-eyed focus softened in sleep. Now that he had power within the DCC he could have his wife and child and wouldn't have to lie to her trusting face anymore.

An hour before Jackal came home, Elation woke in a cold sweat clutching her throat. This baby would be different than the crying one in her nightmare. Looking at the clock checking for a missed call from her lover and finding 3 she realized hours passed and called him again. Her phone rang. A man that claimed he worked for Jack asked was he home yet. "Not yet, how may I help you?" the guy says she could scream for him. Elation hung up. She then heard, what sounded like herself screaming "no" at Jack. She hadn't done what the weird guy asked of her. To prove to herself that she wasn't making the noise, she put her hand to her mouth. She then heard her father calling her name. "Father?" Opening the door seeing no one she closed the door. She then heard her mother knocking on her door asking was she ok. "Stop it, you are in the hospital." Elation screamed as she went back to her door whipping it open finding not a person but a phone on the floor at her feet. Someone was in her house. She backed in the room and went for the gun in her underwear drawer. Jackal was right they should get out of here she was hearing things. The door opened and she fired at the intruder. Her eyes widen as recognition dawned as she sees Jack slide down the wall and hit the floor. "Oh no, oh god, Jackal I'm sorry baby." Looking for where she hit him, she'd hit him hi in the chest. He wasn't responding to tap and shout though. She called his desk Sargent at his station. "Hi Justin, this is Mrs. Elation Oxendine I accidently shot Jackal Oxendine; my husband please send him help." In minutes she heard her front door close. "There is someone else here. I don't know who. That's why I shot Jackal." Justin tells her not to shoot the med crew or the officers coming up to her bedroom. She put the gun down and the med crew worked fast to get Jackal on the gurney. She gave her story to the female officer that was leading this call. The woman spun her around and slammed her into the door, "Ouch you cow I'm pregnant, and if you hurt me Jack will get you." The woman cuffs her wrists tightly and read Elation her rights. "It was a mistake." The female tells her if she killed him, she wouldn't make it to prison. Elation started crying "I didn't try to kill him, I told you what happen." As she sat in the back of the police van her mind raced. She'd shot her husband thinking he was an intruder. When she gets to the station Justin makes sure she gets her call. At least he seemed to believe her. She called Joy and was more grateful than she had ever been to hear her little sister's voice. "Hello Joy, I need your help. I shot Jackal and he may die. Joy, I'm pregnant and I don't want to be here this lady officer already slammed in into my door. I know they are all friends, but I didn't shoot him on purpose. Oh god what if he? I have enough ghosts in my head." Joy told Elation firmly that she would see if she could get her help, but for right now Elation is not to answer any more questions or tell anyone else that story until she had a lawyer. Elation sobs "Okay." Joy tells her to not cry that she would figure something out. "Ok (sniffle) Joy, (sniffle shuttering breath) Thanks."

Joy gets off the phone and put her head down on the desk of their penthouse suite, everything was just so fucked up right now. She'd saw the text message with Robert and her picture as they got off the plane in what is a private hanger. Even with their security team. Danny was able to get pictures of them. He knew they were here 48 hours before he called to tell her about her mother. Her mother was stable, but still had not woke yet. Bobby had insisted they not stay overnight in the waiting room. Now if Elation's story was truth, her sister was being mistreated in jail for shooting Jackal her lying, cheating, abusive brother in law, while thinking him an intruder. Her dad was conscious and afraid for her. So much was happening, if Joy was honest with herself, that texted picture that traced back to nowhere, but had to come from Danny scared her. From that angle she could tell that it wasn't a person on the ramp. Danny, or whoever he sent to take that pic, was above them and far away. Danny's admission about pulling strings to get her into VICE hurt her pride. She'd been proud of herself for accepting the position and he misunderstood her role on VICE, with the learning from hookers' comment. She was bait, she didn't sleep with any of the perps. He'd got her in that position because she was so unsexy that he figured she could learn something. Tears ran from her eyes. This afternoon after Danny's call she'd called in to Grandville South PD's headquarters to find out what she needed from the hospital to return to duty, only to find out that she may not have a job to return to because a few of her own team had told lies about the Joshua case and claimed that is why she'd encrypted her work computer. Internal Affairs wanted a meeting with her. The department therapist wanted a meeting. The acting Chief that was holding Patterson's spot was now Lainie Borne Captain of the G-South metro division. The woman that threatened to make Joy's detective test disappear if she filed her full report against Danny even after more than likely saving Joy's life by walking into the locker room and catching Danny choking her. Though Joy was the Captain of the Cyber division acting Chief Borne could still make it difficult to impossible for Joy to return. Bobby walked in with food and asked what was wrong. Joy looked up at him and everything just spilled from her, her fears for her parents, her fear that she couldn't help her sister, her fear for Robert's safety with Danny out taking pictures of them from high elevations. She told him about her job.

Stunned into silence and hurting for the upset that was ripping his lover to pieces, Bobby put down the bags of take out, sat on the desk pulling Joy into his arms telling her, "Let it out, babe, I'm here." He rubbed her back and kissed her, trying his best to calm her down. He knew some of this was the hormonal effects of her being pregnant, but she'd also been battling a lot even before getting stabbed.

Joy says into his chest, "All I wanted was for you to meet my family, so they could meet you and stop thinking you are anything like Jackal. Everything is falling apart. Nothing is as it seems, I don't know who I can trust, Jackal is now at the same hospital, even though I just know he had something to do with dad getting hurt. Elation is in jail, Kindred keeps sniping at you, and my father has moved to insulting you to make you mad enough to take me home. I'm so sorry. One part of me wants to leave, but another part says I brought this shit here. I also may have no job to return to. With my old boss now the acting chief. I don't know if I can face her. She helped Danny keep me in my place. Hell, I caved because her and higher ups manipulating me, that and Danny threatening to show the video." Bobby let her go pulling his own hair and asked, what video, and why she never said anything, why she didn't at least tell him that Danny was the ex-partner she spoke of when she slipped and told him while thinking she was still a detective. "Bobby I'm sorry." He then blamed himself for not asking more about it after her accident when she did speak of a bad relationship. Standing inches away from him hugging herself she feared telling him anything else. He'd told her about his past dating, and she'd tried her best to not speak of Danny at all. Bobby looked so hurt and angry. "I'm sorry, I didn't tell you sooner." Bobby spoke of Danny telling him that she'd forgave him and asked why the fucker would think she'd forgive him. She cast her eyes down away from Bobby's face and grabbed his sweater holding it to her chest like a stuffed animal. "I forgave him in front of a group of our peers. I'm going for a walk."

She got up grabbing his sweater that he'd just taken off hugging it and walked towards the door. Bobby got in her way, she backed up refusing to look up at him. Her tone brushed that professional neutrality she used when trying to distance herself from a topic. She was hurting and shutting him out. When she did look up at him the look in her gaze pushed his words from him in a rush. "No, I'm not letting you out of this penthouse. Be pissed at me but there isn't anything for you to be sorry for. Joy, this isn't back home where you can just run off to Angel and Sophie's place and still be safe. It's after midnight and I don't trust anyone here except for you. I won't have you putting yourself in danger, I couldn't take it if you got hurt again, I lost my shit when you got stabbed don't run from me." When she spoke, it hit him like a truck, that him letting her go was why she misread his anger's true target. "No, I got mad because that fucker sat right next to me and told me that the woman that walked in and caught him hurting you, and that later shamed you and threatened to stop your advancement is now the acting chief was who he was cheating with. That's why he got a slap on the wrist in the form of a demotion. There is more, Joy, Elation told Danny you were coming." Joy sat back down. "It is your decision but truthfully I don't want you to go back to Grandville South PD. With parts of your team trying to hurt you by lying on you, that could escalate to physical too fast. The DCC seems to leave their tag all over the fucking place. We both have dangerous jobs, but your own department isn't supposed to be a part of that threat. If that department hurt you, or worse took you and our child from me. Joy I'd "One shot, one kill" their asses until they either took me out, or until I hunted them all down. You don't even understand how much restraint it has taken for me to let dad and Joey handle Patterson."

He wasn't mad at her. A relief seeped into her. She was once again wounded by her sister's actions. Elation telling Danny where she was coming into town felt like a huge betrayal of trust. Then there was Robert's fear that he'd lose her to interdepartmental corruption. Joy remembers Angel speaking about Bobby's scary episode when Andrew called him to tell him she'd been stabbed. Joy had seen Robert near that level of breakdown before, and she didn't doubt that he'd do exactly what he said. Her fear was that if his mind flipped that switch without her to calm him, that he'd end up dead. She should have known that her old Lieutenant was the owner of the thong. It was in that moment that she didn't want to return to Grandville South P.D. She didn't want to get hurt again or killed by the people that were supposed to be her work family, she also didn't want Robert losing his life over her if she had a choice. "I don't know what I could even do for work if Internal Affairs flips my case. With her at the controls now that I know she was who he cheated with, it all fits. If she is still in contact with Danny, I don't want you to be surprised or hurt by them shredding my reputation." Taking a breath Joy then told Bobby about Danny, and about the party video how she'd been stupid. She told Bobby about Danny and her relationship from start to finish, the emotional, physical, and sexual abuse. She didn't want anything Danny gave the new acting chief of G-South PD to use against her to come back and put the look that was on Bobby's face right now there ever again. By the time she stopped speaking with all that was bottled up inside of her all this time she couldn't stop crying.

She went to the bathroom. Bobby watched until she walked in and closed the door. He got up and started setting their plates. He had to do something constructive, because right this minute, he wanted to beat, not shoot, but beat Danny into the ground for all he did to Joy. Danny had played the role of Joy's savior and then when she fell for him, he made her fear him." If Bobby had been a police officer Joy's past would not have let her date him. When Joy used the detached tone that was her coping mechanism, he heard the pitches in her tone when she spoke of the psychological, physical, and sexual abuse. What had Bobby almost breaking the damn plate he now held, was Joy speaking of the night she found the thong. Her telling Danny to leave and him choking her until she kicked him, him knocking her out and then her waking to Danny raping her at gunpoint, until she told him to kill her which Bobby suspected was what took Danny by surprise and made him let her go that night. Bobby thinks of when Joy and he first got together. The thought that Joy wasn't just playing hard to get, but was scared that Bobby would end up treating her like Danny did, explained why it took Joy three years to let him stay the night, and it took her almost four years for her to accept a key to his place, both depressed and angered him. The sadness was for what Joy went through the anger was at Danny for putting her through so much shit. He had to calm the fuck down.

After getting herself under some veneer of control, and washing her face, Joy walked back in the main room to their plates set. Bobby was on his laptop with her phone attached. He was running one of his programs. Numbers in different colors run across his screen looking to locate the device that sent the picture. Joy feeling cold, put his sweater on and sits at the table. She ate some of the rice and put her fork down. Not hungry anymore. She looks over to see what program he was running and says "I checked that one, and that signal ends at a house that was control burned yesterday shortly before that message hit my phone. That's why I think it's Danny." Bobby comes over and asked was she feeling any better since she got that out. Thinking about it, she did feel better and nodded.

After the hardest 17 months that she ever endured with Danny, she'd sworn off dating, until 2 years later after the case Robert and she closed. Robert had already playfully pointed out that her no dating coworkers' rule didn't apply to him because he was a federal officer, not a not a citizen on patrol. After one of their last debriefings, she mentioned going to the fair and getting a big ice-cream as she'd nibbled on a store-bought popsicle sitting on the tailgate of his truck at Grandville PD. Bobby asked first to take her to the state fair and get her that ice-cream. Her past made her very hesitant to allow any man to take the choice of escape from her if she needed it. Her face grew hot and she'd stammered about not being comfortable with being a passenger with a man she didn't know. Robert didn't laugh at her, he just said he understood, then asked her to meet him there. Meeting him there, gave her an escape if she needed one. She went, and not only did she not need her "going to the bathroom, and run" back-up plan, but she had a great time. He made her feel like a big kid, they laughed and talked about more than crime as they'd rode rides, and he won her a huge bear, and a second date which was their deal if he could hit the target when she couldn't. What made her want the second date, isn't the bear that is sitting at their house on the sofa right now. That night as he trailed her back to Grandville South and spoke to her on the phone Robert gave her an out by telling her she didn't have to really date him because he managed to hit a target, because that would be cheating, since he was a trained marksman. She thanked him for his truth and agreed to still go on their second date. He shared so much of himself with her, they went to the firing range and he fixed her shot. A smile played over her face as she remembered other little things that meant so much to her. Robert managed to not only crack the armor around her heart, but he moved in and pulled it around himself. Six, almost seven, amazing years later they were getting married and having a baby. Her appetite returned as he engaged her in meaningless small talk filled with his corny jokes that only he could make funny with a facial expression or a tone of voice.

After finishing their meal, she gets up and cleans their trash away. Climbing in bed under the covers, she asked Bobby to hold her, and he walked over with sunglasses on claiming her glow was taking up the entire bed making her laugh at his corny humor. He then climbed in and pulled her back against his chest and held her. Tonight, Bobby had again helped her shed more of her self-doubt that had caged her for so long. She soon turned over and he kissed her mouth and sent aroused warmth throughout her entire body as only he had ever been able to do. She kissed him trailing a line to his ear, knowing what it did to him, she rejoiced in his moans of pleasure as she lightly nipped his earlobe. He said in gruff a tone that if all she wanted was for him to hold her, kissing him like that was making him want way more than a cuddle. His comment in that tone made her feel sexy, and right now that was best feeling in the world. They hadn't had sex in months due to their injuries. The sounds he made as she pleasured her mate rung through her like a bell. He pulled her up and kissed her tasting himself on her lips and said he wanted her surrounding him when he let go. She climbs on top and before long he brought her to tears as he filled her, and she climaxed harder than she ever had. She lay on his chest listening to his thundering heartbeat. She went to move so she wouldn't hurt him, and he held her there telling her he was fine unless he was hurting her. After a time, he went to sleep. Joy moved off him and even in sleep he followed her and hugged her to his side in his classic protective way. Feeling sated and safer than she had in weeks she drifted off to sleep.

Danny got up early the next morning and went to Jackal's house and no one answered the door, Jackal's truck was in the driveway. He called and got voice mail "Jackal look if you're in there still pissed that I had Elliot play a prank on Elation. Dude she doesn't know what it is. Jackal answer the damn phone." Danny went to the hangout and grabbed a coffee. Last night as he'd watched his tracker to make sure his trouble making stepsister stayed her ass at home, he'd called Elliot, Jackal's newly admitted DCC partner who ranked lower than Danny. He had the newbie put the phone in the hallway. One-minute Danny was drinking coffee the next he was on his ass. Looking up at who had knocked him off the bar stool. He got to his feet and into Elliot's face. "You got a death wish?" Elliot tells him about Elation freaking out so bad she shot Jackal. "She what, who knew that dumb broodmare could shoot? He had on his vest right." Elliot shook his head. "Where is Jack now?" Elliot tells him that Jackal is in the hospital that he sent the target's parents to. "Oh great, just fucking great." Elliot says Jackal was alive but not really all that alert. "Where is his wife? She's covered through him. You know Jack has to have the biggest plan the most expensive contacts." A female officer name Charisma Wills tells him that she'd just put Jackal's wife in a cell in the old building. Danny pointed at her and crooked his finger. She was a member; he knew that she and Jack had an ongoing thing. When she stands in front of him, he leans down and softly says. "You don't call that shot. If he survives and finds out you had his wife killed, trust me Jackal isn't the forgiving type." Looking at his watch he was going to be late to the burn site they were torching a farmhouse today that would have some stolen paperwork, and computers along with a fucking van in the garage from Portland that had been in a bank robbery. Putting money on the bar. Danny says, "Elliot, you're my Jackal today, I still need a cop on scene." They head out Danny makes sure the van was covered in gasoline. He walks into the den and sees the computers that would melt like candy. He walks into the bedroom and saw no homeless people, no pets and walked out and hit a button and the house went up like turning on a stove. Fire broke windows. The alarm sounded then slowed down and stopped. He makes a joke about how the fire must have found the alarm and ate it. When he hit the alarm that would ring at the station now that he'd given the fire long enough to take out all the evidence. He waits and is pissed when his lazy ass sister isn't on the truck with her crew. He then then called Dina it goes to voice mail." Don't think I won't fire you if you don't show up in the next thirty minutes consider yourself canned. I'm not in the mood for your poor me shit today."

Joy wakes to Bobby speaking on the phone, as he got dressed. Joy get out of bed and Bobby mouths Sophie. Joy says, "Hi Sophie" Bobby hits speaker phone for a second for Sophie to reply, he then went back to his conversation. Joy heads into the bathroom, and showers and dried her hair. When done, she sees Bobby put the clothes, she'd picked out on the bath chair and tells her that the teams were out in the bedroom and the main area so she wouldn't come out of here and give them all a show. She grabs her bra and put it on saying "More like you don't feel like pitching bodyguards out the window." Joy says smirking at him in the mirror as she put on the matching low-rise underwear.

Bobby pulled her against him running his hand down her backside and kissed her "As long as you know." He says only half kidding. The clothes she'd picked out and set on their bed were a pleasant surprise the top hugged her growing breast and tapered down flowing over her small baby bump. She put on the dark pants that fit her nicely. For most of their relationship she'd dressed in jeans or cargo pants and large tees some of them his, or her department shirts. He liked when she dressed for her not for a part she was playing like when she was a Vice detective. Last night she'd shed light on why she dressed as she did. That fucker, Danny, made her feel she was sexually awkward and unattractive which was total bullshit. When they started dating, she was sexually conservative, not awkward. Their first time now sadly made a lot more since. As for her looks, by today's standards she wasn't a centerfold, but hell centerfolds weren't centerfolds either. To him she matched and exceed the list of physical attributes he loved in a woman. She was average weight and height, with long dark hair, had dimples, and an olive complexion that made her appear years younger, and just like his baby sister Sophie, the intelligence in Joy's gaze could light your blood on fire of freeze you in place.

His phone rung and he answered, "What's going on Mark?" Mark asked if he and Joy wanted to meet up for breakfast since he was in the area for a show later. Bobby asked Joy and she liked the idea. Mark said that Janet, Tony, and Rapture would be with him since they were staying at Ivey Suites Seattle. "We are in the penthouse did you want to meet in the eatery downstairs, or did you have a specific place in mind?" Mark said no the food at the eatery was good and he also got a discount card from Sophie. Bobby thought with as much as Sophie charged for a retainer a year, a discounted anything was a plus. "Well then ok, we'll be down in a few minutes."

They meet up and the guys talked about the show tonight, Rapture asked if they wanted to come. Bobby looked to Joy and said it was her call, she said with everything that is going on she just wanted to get up the hospital. Mark, Rapture and Bobby put away heaping amounts of food while Janet, Tony and Joy talk. Joy asked how Joshua was doing and Janet told her about Joshua going to the club and how it didn't go so well. "He's trying to do too much too soon." Bobby looked over at her words and said nothing. He'd asked her was she sure she wanted to travel this far so soon after getting out of the hospital and she'd said yes, for two reason really one, she wanted him to meet her family, and the second reason was if she was truthful with herself the stuff with Patterson scared her, she'd wanted out of Grandville South for enough time to just take a breath. With everything that was going on here, she now felt as if she'd jumped out of the frying pan and into the flame. Joy gets a call from Kindred and excuses herself and takes the call.

Over at the hospital Kindred dozes in his mother's room. She made it through the night and briefly woke about three hours ago. Kindred was calling the fact that she woke at all, a gift from modern medicine. She'd been hurt before tumbling down the hill if the handprint on her face that was older than the scrapes from her fall was any sign. Last time Kindred studied plant life tree shrubs and bushes, on a hill didn't have hands. The doctors were able to remove the part of her rib from her lung and inflate it. They'd stopped the internal bleeding and the swelling in her brain by calling in a team of specialists. The doctors had to go in with a microcomputer through her nose because cutting her open was too dangerous since her blood pressure kept falling. After asking where Joy was and Kindred telling her that Joy was safe with her mate, his mother went back to sleep. Kindred had made himself take a nap so he wouldn't look like the cat dragged him into work the next morning. He is suddenly brought awake by his mother crying Elation's name in her sleep. Kindred touched his mom's hand that wasn't in a splint and spoke to her until she opened her eyes. The marks around her neck, stood out like beacons against her pale complexion. His mother asked how she got here because the last thing she remembered was running from Jackal and his work friends, and then falling into the water unable to move, and she knew that Jackal didn't save her because he wanted to kill her. Kindred's vision swirled as he sat down. He had so many questions, before long he had most of his answers.

Life weakly and slowly spoke of what happened at the house. Kindred asked why Jackal would want to hurt or kill her or Joy. "I don't know. All I know for certain is that Joy was right Kindred. Jackal is very violent. I should have listened to my baby. Long ago. I don't know what either of us," Life looked out the window. "Joy or I could have done to anger Jackal so. Joy just got here, and I believed that I had not mistreated him. He wants to hurt my baby something about not being untouchable." Her medicine was making her words foggy again. "I'm sleepy Kindred, I think I'll…"

Armed with his mother's information overload, Kindred was glad this room was secure. He walked out into the hall and found a room he could use his phone. Jackal, the same guy that took him fishing at a friend's lake house after his divorce. Jackal, his sister's mate. A man that called him brother, had lied about being at work because he'd being chasing his 58-year-old mother in law down a hill. Kindred went into the single use men's room and punched the wall. He had never really wished anyone ill but right now armed with the fact that his brother in-law had put his hands on his mother Kindred hoped Jackal died from his gunshot wound. Kindred calls Joy. "Are you on your way here, because we need to talk and not over the phone." Joy says her and Robert were on their way. Put your brand of Ivey on the phone please." Joy refuses" fine, I'll speak to him in person."

"Danny was not having a good day his prank had put his friend in the hospital. Jackal had got under his skin with the rank comment. But if his friend died, he would have a chance to gain rank. It was time to clean up after his mistake. Pulling rank Danny looks over and orders the officer to go deal with the firefighter that was claiming that a person was in the back. Elliot gets out and ran towards the back of the house. Danny hit another button and the back of the house exploded hitting the officer turning him into a torch. "Report," his fire crew reports that they are all accounted for and working on the new flare up at the rear of the house. Danny watched Jackal's partner burn for a time then pushes the button and says "man down" into his mouthpiece. Part of the fire med crew tries to save the officer while the rest of the team put out the fire. He watched as they manage to put the fire that had engulfed the officer out. One of the firefighters sadly does the done signal. "Good work boys and girls." Danny says to himself and gets backs in his car. When the male firefighter runs to his car after the body is loaded Danny gets out. The guy says he just didn't get why the cop would run towards the fire. "You just witnessed your first suicide via fire. The guy was Jackal Oxendine's partner and got Jack shot last night. He insisted on coming to fill-in for Jack. I should have known he wasn't ready to come to work. Write it up. Looks like you got paperwork to do. Hey, have you seen Dina Talbot?" The guy shook his head. Danny had other shit to do. He headed towards Dina's place. She wouldn't answer the phone and wouldn't come to the door. He was done playing nice with her. He looks around and threw a brick through her front window and entered. She wasn't home. He knew where she wasn't, his dad had said she'd been stood up by whoever was supposed be her date. He checked and Jackal had been at the hangout but according to his chief his phone was ringing so much he left. Danny knew that Jackal had other women he visited but didn't know who they were. All Danny knew right now was that Jackal wasn't with Dina. Danny headed to the jail to get Elation's story and possibly get her out of there.

After hearing what happened from Jackal's wife. Danny gets a DCC lawyer to tap danced for the local judge, Elation was free. Danny drove her home. She thanked him. Danny smiled and said he was just helping a friend. Elation says she was so afraid in there. "Well, that is kind of the point can't have it feeling like a country club, now can we. So, before I drop you off at your house all alone, was there anywhere you wanted to go?" She said she wanted to go visit her parents and Jackal. "Jackal mentioned that you were closer to your dad than your mom." She looked guilty and spoke confirming it. Her dad was the first after two years of them being married to welcome Jackal into the family after they had run off and got married. She says she was going to dress nice for her visit with Jackal. "I'd have to come with you to visit him." She says she understood. "Good, now go in there, shower and change you smell like a trash can. I'll try to see if I can find you something to eat Jackal would skin me if I let you starve his kid." She looks alarmed and asked how he knew. "I can read." He points at the papers in her hand in her bag from jail. "Congratulations, I always wanted a child with Joy, I think we would have made beautiful kids, but Joy was so busy trying to get me fired that children never came up." That got her every time. "I even tried to talk to Joy but she tossed me off the phone and I'm the one that was willing to ignore the past and call her to tell her about her mother. I just want to love her properly; she even took back her thanks for me helping her in her career. She moved on to richer pockets. Like you said they flew here in a private jet, I can't swing that kind of money."

Elation felt so sorry for Joy's ex he was truly smitten with Joy for some reason. "Oh, my goodness, poor man. You still love her after all she's done to try to destroy you. Of course, you aren't as wealthy as her trust fund hubster to be, you had to rebuild your life from the stones. You can do better than her." He says he wished someone liked him. "I like you as a friend. You are a firefighter what's not to like? You're a hero." He tells her that she was just saying that because he knew she was taken. He says for her to go shower. She thanks him and goes upstairs.

Up in her room Elation calls Joy. Joy answers, saying she is on her way up the hospital because mom has awaken and Kindred is not telling her anything over the phone. "I told you he's paranoid, well anyway, I won't be needing your help after all. Your Danny Boy just got a lawyer to tell a judge a few things and I'm a free woman. I'm on my way up there to visit mother and daddy." Joy tells her no. "What do you mean no? They are my parents and were my parents before they were yours, we will see about that. You are the one that moved away and are too far away to be even a med contact." That shut her little sister up as it usually did. Joy tells her that she'd just speak to Kindred. "Oh, so Kindred suddenly is going to listen to you? Little sister, I didn't want to have to tell you, but Kindred can't stand you or your man." Joy asked what she or Robert ever did for them to dislike her or her mate. "I like you just fine. Kindred thinks you had something to do with Marie divorcing him because he heard what you told Marie about how she could do better." Joy's tone rose as she says she never spoke more than two words to Kindred's wife and those weren't them. "it didn't help that the rancher she married went to school with you, and Kin found out you introduced them. Joy accused her of doing that. "I never played with underclassmen. Kin was so upset when you showed up with a man that is a part of the family that Marie used to rip everything away from him including the kids." Her sister asked why she told Danny they were coming in town. "He deserved to know; he loves you. He even spoke about how cute your kids will look one day" Joy says no he doesn't love her he attacked her and is now stalking her thanks to her big sister telling him where to look. "Danny got you a better job, even when you lied on him trying to ruin him." Joy hung up on her.

Elation called Kindred. He told her that her husband attacked their mother. "Oh no. I'm on my way." She lies on Joy telling him that Joy was planning on getting them both pushed off the med contact sheet for their parents. Kindred went from a little agitated into full on anger. When he started to doubt her words, Elation used the best trigger she could pull on her brother when she says, "Joy has Ivey money now, you know she can do it. We have to stop her, Kin." Kindred says Joy thinks she's untouchable. "Huh? No, she just wants to outshine us and then leave mom and dad all hurt when she leaves again." He says what he said was what Jackal had told their heir mother. "Well right now, I can't even ask him what that was about he's on life support." Kindred reacted to her tone and told her it was them against the world again. "Thank you, brother, mine. Joy told me she was going to bar us both from seeing mother and daddy." Kindred says not without a fight she wasn't. He said dad didn't want Joy here because he's afraid somebody did that to him to send a message to Joy. "So just like we said Joy brought this dark cloud that now hangs low over our family with her. She first introduces the rancher then waited until another holiday smiling in your face and giving Marie the legal help, she needed to take you down." Kindred says he was such a dumb ass. "No brother you were blinded by your love for our baby sister. Thank you." Elation went in and showered, she dressed in one of Jackal's shirts and a pair of jeans.

Kindred paced outside the hospital, So Joy thought she would come here and just take over. Last night she'd went all "don't you touch me" on him and never really told him what the hell was going on. He thought they had come out better by the end of the night. When Elation mentioned what Joy had said about him not being good enough for Marie that just didn't sound like their baby sister and Kindred had said what their mom said Jackal said about Joy. Elation had no clue what he was talking about. At least he once again believed her not a part of Jackal's plans. Joy did have a sharp tongue and now she'd managed to get their parents moved. Kindred had been such a dumbass he fell for Joy's "I'm just as concerned about our parents as you brother mine" act. just throw her money and new connections around and then hop back on her broom taking his med contact rights, with her not gonna happen.

Downstairs Danny fixes Elation a sandwich palming the med he'd found when he searched Jackal's home office, he sprinkles it on chips and in her juice. She was nothing like Joy but with Jackal on life support. He would do his best to be a stand-in. He walked back in the living room and waited for her to come down. When she did, he offered the simple sandwich and chips. She gobbled them down and drank the juice like it was a fucking race. He asked her if she wanted a massage, she said sure then they had to get to the hospital. In the police shirt and jeans, she looked more like Joy. Danny stood behind her and started rubbing her back. He moves his hand lower; she didn't object. He tells her to get up, she says yes sir and stands. "So, Jackal had her trained. He told her to go in the kitchen sit on the table. She walked in and sat on the table. He tells her to close her eyes. She complies, he tells her to take the shirt off. She does and tips off the table, Danny catches her. "Looks like I saved you." She says thank you sir. "Call me Danny Boy." She says yes Danny Boy. Once Joy heard the song, she called him Danny Boy, before that he'd always went by Dan, or Danny, some people assumed his name was Daniel but nope just Dan. "Since I saved you, you owe me". She repeated that she owed him. "Lay back you look tired. She says it must be the new med and laid back on the table. Danny put his hands on her pants, she unzipped them and unbuttoned them. He walked in between her legs and pulled her pants down so that they held her feet together as she lay half on the table. "Just rest you are tired." He kissed her mouth. She kissed him back. He went back to her legs and pulled the pants off letting them hit the floor. When he slipped inside her she smiled with eyes closed. He drove himself into her and held her on the table until he finished. Wiping her up, he put her pants back on and carried her into the living room where he'd been giving her a massage. She put her hand on her midsection when he sat her on the couch. As she slept, he searched her and Jackal's bedroom. Walking back down the stairs armed with a few things that he stashes in a bag and slide under the couch; he puts his hands back on her shoulders as she starts fully waking. Her eyes fluttered open and he asked her did she enjoy her massage. She says yes, she must have dozed off. When she looked at the time, she said she had to get to the hospital. "Okay you don't look like you should be driving you want me to drive you?" She says that's fine. They get in and head for the hospital.

As Kindred stands at the entrance to the waiting room, he sees Joy and her mate pull up in yet a different limo. This one was a stretch Hummer he walks out and greets them. As their team walks with them into the hospital. Kindred walks out of the hall and says, "That's far enough. We need to talk," looking at the now larger team he adds "Alone." One of the guards says that is not how this works unless he wanted to be searched. Looking at Joy then back at Robert who gave him a cool eyed stare Kindred says. "Fine, search me, I've been here all night, so if you come up with vending machine energy bars be my guest but that's about the closest, you'll find to something I'm not supposed to have on me." The guard asked and why is that. Moving more in front of Joy. Kindred rolls his eyes. "So, all of sudden you're afraid of me Joy?" Joy says she is not afraid of him. He turns his gaze back to the guard "I like the rest of the fucking world, am on a diet. I must be at fighting weight for my wedding. Where you want to do this?" They tell him to proceed them into the empty room at his back. He walks in and they file in behind him. Yep, there was at least two more guys on this team. Joy shakes her head saying not to play word games. Kindred pins her with a stare as the guards search him, "I am not one of your fucking criminals, why the hell do you think I want to hurt you? Now you need extra muscle just to speak to me in private? Maybe I should just go, that would make you happy as a clam I bet. Both my parents are in the hospital, my mother has injuries that aren't from the fall. I thought you were here to help, but no you just want to come in and push me and Elation around and waltz back down south. You are the last person I want to hurt. If I were going to hurt someone, he'd be a lot taller and not of blood relation to me." One of the guards pushed him backwards into the wall and asked him was he threatening to bring harm to Mr. Ivey. "I know I don't look my best right now, but do I look like an idiot? Ivey is taller than Joy and not of blood relation to me, but I was talking about my current brother in law not my future one, but hey my sister may have already beat me to it. Besides, Ivey here, has already threaten to put me on the ground a few times, and I'm not into my sister's mate ordering French fries with a side of dead Kindred, whiles she applauds and whisks my parents off to Texas. My mate wouldn't be happy and I'm not ready to die." Joy looked hurt Robert looked pissed and told him that wasn't what this was and that he was mixing everything up. "I wanted to talk to you alone Joy because there is a lot mom and Elation said and I don't want to be overheard. You pay and trust these people I don't." Robert tells the team to please step outside. The 7 men and one woman leaves the room. "You mind on allowing me to talk to my sister alone now?" Robert said yes, he did mind and wasn't leaving Joy in here with him yelling at her and talking crazy about him offing him and then stealing their parents. "Offing me, wow that's a little west for your parts of the country isn't it? Joy puts her hand on Robert's shoulder telling him his Willy was showing. "Not from where I'm standing." Joy laughed at him. "I'm glad to be your jester for the evening." She said for him to grow up she didn't mean what he thought. This short day was getting to him. "You get here, and I ask you for a conversation and get treated like I'm the felonious fucker that got their house burned down, or pushed dad down the stairs, or hurt mom, I haven't done anything, to earn your fear. When they were at my home, they were safe. They chose to go to Jack and Elation's because my house reminds them of when I had two kids and a woman that proved with your help that she could do much better than me." Robert tells him not to yell at Joy and says that tone right there was why he got searched. Kindred flipped his hair out of his eyes, and says meeting Robert's "No I got searched because I like a fool thought that maybe my sister would speak up and tell her team they didn't have to search me because she wasn't afraid of me but what is done is done." Joy says she didn't help or hinder his marriage in anyway. She had tears in her eyes as she walked towards him and said he just had to believe her. She continued and described her interactions with Marie and with the twins. Joy never cried openly. He told her he wasn't out to hurt her and those tears that ran down her face as she looked up at him explaining the 5 interactions, she'd ever had with his ex-wife like she was reading a report, knocked his anger at Joy over like dumping a bucket of snow on your head. He grabbed Joy and hugged her to him. Bobby grabbed his arm and warned him to let go of her. Kindred let go of his sister and she stood as still as a doll not speaking as she stared wide-eyed at him. "Please stop crying. I don't know what is going on." Joy mentions what Elation said about him talking about her and how he couldn't stand her and her mate. "I never said I couldn't stand you. All I've had a problem with is the likes of him. Baby sister I love you fiercely, when dad went on the road for his book signings, I was the one that baby sat you. Elation was busy. I know our bond hasn't been the strongest I haven't been at my best for a while. When Elation told me your plans to take our parents back south, I got heated but I would have remembered saying something like that. Now that I think of it. The actions she accused you of don't sound like you. What you just said fits more accurately. You weren't miss popular in school and rancher boy was a jock with a reputation." Joy says she just found out today that Marie's new husband went to her school. Bobby interjects and says it sounded like Elation was playing them against each other, because he'd only been in Kindred's presences a few times now and the direct basic wording didn't sound like something he'd say. Something hit Kindred as he asked, "Robert um, when did you introduce Joy to your family? They both say in unison a date last year that would have made it impossible for him to have anything to do with helping Marie. He'd got caught up in Elation's tale and let it ride him like the jackass he was being right now to his baby sister and her mate that had nothing to do with his life transition from married to single. "I didn't agree to be searched to talk about this, but I'm glad this door opened, and I've been falsely under the impression that you helped Joy involve herself in my marriage. I owe you both an apology. I was so glad when you made Captain of the police geek squad. I know that's not what it's called. Please don't take offence. I thought I no longer had to worry that some drugged-up whore would jump out and stab you. I nearly lost you Joy, and it sent me into a fog of depression and anger that Robert would let you get hurt. Then Robert tells me what really happened after you left the table. Today I angrily get in your face yelling like I'm a few diamonds short of a ring, in front of a team of guards and am surprised that they act like they should." One of the guards poke his head in and asked were they done. Robert says no. "I won't keep you I'm late for a showing but here is what I had to tell you." Kindred tells them both about what all his mother shared with him. "He hit my mother if he wasn't on life support, I'd beat the living shit out of him. Mom says that she heard Elation scream out no, but Elation was supposedly asleep. I don't know what to believe and now with Elation muddying the waters or trying to muddy our bond as weak as it is. I don't understand what pitting us against each other would accomplish, I don't think she knows about your team. They stayed outside when you guys were at my home, if I had not have been looking to fuel my hypocritical pettiness meter with insult about your lavish lifestyle, I would have missed them staying on the street. Their cars are good cover because they blend well with what is in this area. I don't want to be the one to disallow her to visit mom and dad, but I don't like her games they are dangerous, especially right now. God, I hope they are games, and she is not a part of any of the events that has occurred. Mom has asked for her. Dad has as well. I'd feel like garbage, If I didn't allow her to see them and they got worse. I know how I felt when I thought her words about you disallowing me to visit them were true. Mom is not truly out of the woods yet, as it is. We can be in the room with her. When mom and dad get released from here, I will insist that they stay with me until I can manage to get the house repaired. I sold a sweet lake front house a few weeks ago, and if I can sell this next property to this group, I'll have the money and some." Joy tells him about Elation telling Danny she was in town. Then pulled up the picture and showed him. Kindred reached for the phone and she let it go. Seeing the flicker of fear in her gaze as she spoke made him say, "That was senseless of her, I think it could be a drone, I have taken pictures like this, just not of people when I have an extra-large property or one with lots of outer buildings I drone shot it. It's quick, it's easy and I get to play with the present you programed for me two years ago on my birthday. Pointing at the screen, "see there isn't any buildings for miles at that hanger, unless you count the airport and that picture was taken facing you with the airport at your back." Kindred gets a call from his mate, handing back Joy's phone he says to them both "I really must be going." As he exits the hospital, he says, "hey babe everything ok?" His mate tells him that his fabulous house near WellPoint just accidently got burned down. Getting in his Mercedes Kindred takes a breath then says "Ok Oliver, I must have went slow there for a time, because I thought you just told me that my 800,000-dollar house just accidently burst into flames. I'm on my way. I think I'm going to be sick. No, my mother is awake. No this isn't the time for you to meet them. That has nothing to do with it. Olly I just spent the better half of an hour speaking to Joy. Yes, the baby. Elation has been stirring things between us for what seems to amount to years. It erupted out of control and I ended up getting frisked and getting accused of…" Kindred retells the story from the time he walked into Joy's way until they had concluded that Elation was playing them both against each other.

Over on a site in Grandville, Logan and Bradley are tearing down a balcony from a home that wanted an extra room built on. Bradley drove the machinery and Logan stood on the ground signaling for Bradley to move forward or backwards. He gets a call from his switchboard. Giving the signal to stop, Logan answers his phone. "This is Conner" the person tells him that one of the homes that was named The Farm that he'd renovated was burned to the ground in Washington state this morning by the fire department because his property had been added to the control burn list. "I'll be there as soon as possible." After his call, Bradley and he removed the balcony from the house without damaging anything or anyone. After talking to Bradley, Logan says "There is no way my house should have been on the any burn list. I am taking a few days I need to let Mia know what's going on." Logan calls Mia at work and tells her what happened, she tells him she was going to be home the next two days since the garage was slow this week. "great babe, thanks so much for watching Glenny for me while I am away." Mia says she really didn't think of it like that anymore. She thinks of it as just being home with the kids. Logan smiled into the phone and says, "I love you." She blows him a kiss and tells him if she gets home before he did, she'd pack him a bag.

Ian watched as Nikki ran laps down on the treadmill. She was really moving. With Janet and Tony away with Uncle Mark, Nikki was like the only one that he could hang with. He'd helped her watch all the kids except for Joshua and Angel's baby who was with them most of the time. His cousins the twins were asleep now, and the two boys Nikki watched had just got picked up by Mia. After her run he offered to help her with her homework. Nikki says sure because she hated her geology class. Ian makes jokes and tells her that rocks rocked. She rolled her eyes but agreed that he could help her since she didn't need to get a C and get Chase after her about her studying. "Oh. I didn't know he was your father too. So, we are related?" The thought was kind of unpleasant with how he'd been checking her out. She jogs back up the stairs and says nope. She then says they wouldn't be related even if Chase was her dad already since Chase isn't related to his aunt Paula or uncle Mark. "Oh okay. So where is your old man? Won't he be pissed that Chase is trying to be your dad?" Nikki told him her dad was in hell if it really existed. He changed the subject back to her studies and she seemed to calm down. They sat in the living room laying on the floor with him explaining her science work to her. She beamed up at him when she got a question right.

Elation marched into the hospital. Danny had sadly told her that he'd meet her in Jackal's room since he was sure that Joy would have a cow about him being near her. Elation saw just how well Danny knew Joy. Her baby sister had said that the only condition as of now for her to see their parents was if Kindred or herself went in with her. She balked and called Kindred, he yelled at her and told her take it or fucking leave it because he was busy then hung up on her. They go visit her mother first. Her mom tells her that Jackal attacked her and chased her down the hill. "Mother you just have been through a very traumatic experience. There isn't a table near my bedroom door, that is another guest room." Joy told her she was missing the point. Elation smiled her fake smile and said. "That's enough out of you. Why don't you go get mother a gift from the gift shop?" Joy says then she would have to leave the room too. Their mother tells them to please stop bickering. "I'm am sorry mom, but Joy here thinks that I can't be trusted with you alone in a room that, is in under surveillance." Her mother says that she was just glad her girls weren't harmed. Then threw her a bone when she asked Joy out of the room. Elation left the fake smile in place as Joy walked out of the room.

As Danny walks towards Jackal's room he gets a message. He looked at the screen and saw his stepsister naked on a couch, the setting around her looked familiar, then it hit him what was on her chest. Someone had marked her for death with a wine label, and that was the house they'd just torched. Jackal had killed her. "You're not immune" was at that bottom of the screen. The DCC famous last words. Danny was so angry he temporally went numb. Dina was dead and he'd just torched her remains. "Oh god," bile rose in his throat, he hoped she was at least dead before he'd torched that house. He'd done the walk-through so fast he could have missed her. The entire crew missed her unless Jackal killed her and took her someplace else. He walked in Jackal's room. He leaned on the bed and spoke into the man's ear saying he'd get him back for killing his sister. Jackal flinched but didn't wake. He walked out and looked through his phone. He called a part of the DCC and asked for her help. She says they would have to meet in person for anything she did. He says to meet him at the hangout tonight. She says if she got off tonight.

Elation made quick work of getting Joy dispatched from the room by their dad. After her visit with him she told him she loved him, and she'd be back tomorrow, and he said he loved her always and would like that. Joy going back in the room to check on him was insulting. As they walked down the hall Elation stops and asks. "What are you even accusing me of? I hate to burst your "Elation is bad" bubble but hmm when they got here, I was asleep. When mom woke up, I was in jail. I get it why you are mad at Danny now, it's because he helped me when you wouldn't." Joy rolled her eyes and says "Yeah that's it" and stormed off. Elation went to turn her back around and one of the guards pushed her hand away from her sister telling her do not touch Captain Wildflower. "I didn't even bring Danny Boy with me and you are still mad. There is just no pleasing you."

Joy's head came up as she stopped walking, she asked Elation "Say that again?" Elation repeats herself. "Since when did you start calling him Danny Boy?" Elation asked was she jealous? "Not in the slightest, you guys deserve each other." Joy walks out into the waiting area and waited for Elation to exit. "Elation that was harsh, I can't say that to you, just please be careful, ok," Elation looks over at Robert and says she wondered if he was as tasty as he looked. Bobby scowled at her. A guard tells her not to approach Mr. Ivey. "Don't touch her and don't approach him, fine, I'm going to go see my husband, and none of you are allowed in his room." When she walked in Jackal's eyes were partly open. He was downgraded to an oxygen mask instead of a respirator. She went to his bed. He looks at her belly and says baby. "Yes, we are having a baby." He says Danny mad, stay away. Then drifted off to sleep when the light turned green on his medicine for pain.

Jackal's wife was asking Danny what was wrong. As he dropped her off at her home. "Duty calls, I need to go I'll come check on you later, try not to shoot me ok?" He liked that he made her flinch. He waits until she goes in the house and sped towards the hangout. The woman that he'd called sat in the parking lot in her car smoking a cigarette. She says she wasn't in this deal with the Texas target, "No Ghost Maker, I need an approach that you are used to giving." He hands her an ID and tells her that it would work no more than 5 swipes. She asked anything else. "No, that will about clear my account for a week, but it is part of a bigger plan."

That night after coming back to the hospital and seeing Joy and Robert off for the night. Kindred wondered what the man was called by his peers. Joy called him both. He checked in and talked with his father then headed to sit in the room with his mother. Today had been full of nasty little surprises, his office, the group that he was supposed to sell the property to and the man that was in charge of renovation were going to sue the fucking pants off this fucking county. He'd bitched to Oliver about the family drama this afternoon over lunch. He settled in and watched his mother until he dozed off to sleep.

Over at a Smackdown at a new place called Sheldon Sports Arena over in Spokane, Rapture gets the signal to rush the ring to assist Mark who was getting outnumbered by Daniel Brayan and Luke Gallows since Mark's partner Dave Batista had been taken out with a chair. His music hits, and he ran out, Seth Rollins was supposed to attack him from behind and he was to grab Seth pull him into a punch and continue to the ring. When Seth ran up behind him Rapture let Seth push him forward and spun around to grab Rollins who instead ducked the swing and kicked him hard in midsection not pulling the impact at all, Rapture bent over trying to catch his breath for real, and Seth grabbed him in a head lock. Since they both had long hair, this move set was usually when they could speak with the audience not able to hear them communicating. "I'm so supposed to deflect you and finish my charge to the ring." Rapture says holding Seth's arm mere inches away from his neck. To the crowd it would look like he was struggling to get free. Seth says changes and without warning drove his knee into Rapture's face, Rapture tasted blood before his knees buckled and he passed out. Seth made sure to plant The Rapture face down so the network wouldn't lose their shit about the blood. He'd followed a script all right just not the one they practiced. He hadn't meant to bust the guy open just stun him. That fucking half mask that The Rapture wore hurt his knee. Seth dealt with the pain by slowing his pace as he turns around and rushed the ring. Dean came through the audience and helped Bryan and Gallows attack Mark. Shamus, along with Finn Balor came to the ring and helped Mark clean house.

Mark walked back up the ramp and saw blood where he'd notice Rapture had laid for too long to be just selling up being knocked out. Rapture could sell almost anything but being out for more than a few minutes especially when the crowd was behind him wasn't his strong suit. Heading to the back, Janet and Tony come running to him telling him that Rapture was in the trainer's room. "I'm sure he'll be fine." Mark wasn't so sure when a genuine med trucked pull into the building. There were no backstage segments that would need one so now he was concerned as he hurried his pace. Mark walked in and HHH was standing there looking at the trainer work as Rapture now without his protective mask on lay hassling for breath with gauze up his nose. His eyes were bloodshot, and Mark didn't like the boy's coloring. He looked at HHH "You mind on telling me what happened?" Hunter walks out greets Janet, and asked Tony if he was enjoying the show. Tony said yeah then asked was The Rapture alright. Hunter looks back at Mark and said yeah. Mark followed Hunter down the hall and into his office. "He didn't look alright, what happened? He was supposed to." Seth Rollins came in the office without knocking looks at Mark and backed out of the office. Hunter calls Seth back in. Seth comes in and Hunter yelled at him for breaking script and fined him 25 hundred dollars. Seth said that damn face mask should be illegal his leg was still sore. Mark looks to Hunter then back at Seth. Hunter excuses himself. Mark asked Seth one question. "Why did you break script or did you?" Seth hesitated for a second too long then said he broke script because he wanted to advance. "You don't lie very well on the spot, and the next time you lie to me, you'll be picking your ass up off the ground."

Danny arrived at Jackal's house with lots of ill intent planned. He sits next to her on the couch. "I have some things to tell you and you are aren't going to like them." She says that Jack said that he was mad at him. "No, a misunderstanding. You know how we are; we get pissed at each other and in a day it's all over." She asked what he had to tell her. "That can wait, I'm hungry you want to go grab a bite to eat?" She says she dose like his car. "I need to use the bathroom before we head out." She says ok and he walks back towards the bathroom she heads upstairs saying she was going to as well. When she goes up the stairs, he grabs the bag he'd packed earlier. He wondered how much of the stuff he found had been used on her. They get on the road and she stays quiet. They head out of town toward Jackal's secret hiding place by the lake. He picks up the pizza and Elation asks for a large tea. The person at the window says sure. She drinks the drink about halfway and before long she is claiming to be hot. She holds her stomach and says something is not right and passed out. Danny put his hand on her belly, and she put her hand on his. Grabbing the keys, he takes his hand away and carries her in the house. He'd let her sleep for a time. Jack had taken his stepsister and Danny had to tell his parents that she must have got pissed at him and skipped town. His stepmother lost it and had to be hospitalized, but Dina was her only child.

Danny waited until Elation wakes sitting on the sofa that looked out over the lake. He gave her a slice of pizza and ate with her. She ate most of the pizza. They finished and she looks around and said his new home was beautiful. "I couldn't afford a place like this. He's lied to you so much" she stares around and then back at him and asks who and where were they. "I guess I'll start with the fact that I guess this is your secret home. Well Jackal's player lake house." She says that couldn't be, he only cheated on her once. "He lied and tonight, all will be revealed I care about you, yeah I dated Joy, but I think if I improve myself, she'll want me." Elation surprised him when she said Joy was never going to take him back, but she'd be there for him, and put her hand on his thigh. "I'm just trying to be a better person, but I know things that you need to know. I care about you too Elation. That's why we are here." He hands her the deed to the house after taking it from the safe using their wedding date as the code. She looked sick as he showed her home videos that Jackal had taken with many women here telling them all after everything that he didn't do relationships outside of his marriage. She was crying by the second person. 5 people later she gets up and said she wanted out of here. He says that isn't the worse of it. Her tone sounded small as she said she couldn't watch anymore of his cheating. "That's not what I have to show I must show you what Jackal did to you." She asked what did he do? "He sold your first born." She says no it died. Danny shakes his head no. She blinks back tears. Thumbing through DCC archives Danny brought up the video of her delivery. "I can't lie to you, When I found it, I thought he would have told you by now. Watch this" by the time Jackal handed off the crying baby, Danny watched as Elation cried uncontrollably as she watched as Jackal put the mask on her and scrubbed her clean. She looked so broken he kissed her and rubbed her back. She says no more please and asked him to take her home. He drove her back to her house. Danny speaks as he drives, "I think you should be armed with the truth. Joy is safe because Jackal can't hurt her right now. I helped you get out of jail because, we got into a fight at the bar yesterday before he came home to you because he admitted that Joy's boss in Texas was paying him to threaten Joy to make her quit. Jackal told me he was the one that burned down your parent's home." She shakily spoke of how she now believed that Jackal tried to kill her mother. "He did try, I'm just glad that man was there and was able to pull Life out and call for help. He tried to kill your dad by getting his partner to push him down the stairs. Lucky Moose is stronger than he looks. I was pissed at him for not calling for help and just taking Moose in his truck and dumping him off. That's when he told me about everything telling me to stay out of his way." She asked for his phone and said she had to call the police. "Jackal is the police, and they will see you as guilty of trying to kill his image after failing to kill him." Her tears cam faster as she says she feels trapped. She asked him why he took a picture of Joy. "I didn't is that what he told you?" She says no Joy told her to be careful of him and that he'd taken her picture. Danny explained how ghost texting worked. "I'll help you keep them safe." She walked in the house in a daze and sat on the sofa staring at the wall. He hands her the tea and gets up to leave.

Joy was right not to trust her; Jackal her lover had done so much. Her heart felt broken, she looked up at Danny Boy and the porch light gave him a halo. "Danny Boy, will you please stay the night with me? I've never been with anyone besides Jackal and finding out that he's been so evil I want to get back at him. It's wrong, but he never loved me I wonder what memories are even my own." Her tears came as her voice shook, at the partial memories that she dared not trust, "I just want to feel better, and I don't trust his friend's drugs anymore. I wondered how I could sleep here with all the noise of him punishing my parents, I think the drugs aren't for my depression but simply to put me to sleep so he could do whatever he wanted. He agreed to let them stay here after burning down our home. With a match, he burned all the physical things that was tied to my family's memories. He knew my parents kept their money in that house. It will be months for the government to get everything settled." Elation gets up. Danny says he was attracted to her. "No, you aren't, you just found a lot of unattractive shit about someone that looks like the person you are in love with. I like you Danny Boy, but this is about me breaking the stream of power Jackal holds." She waited on she didn't know what, she was so fucking programed. She thought of the empowerment she felt that she'd won a prize. She won nothing but lies, Jackal had convinced her that she needed no one, but him, and that her parents and her siblings just didn't like him or her anymore. She'd honestly believed so much of his bullshit and acted probably better than he'd hoped in distancing herself and being toxic to people that at one time loved her. Joy told her that she couldn't leave her with the words of she deserved Danny. She deserved nothing, she wanted to call her siblings and, but what would she say? Sorry brother mine, I trashed you to the woman that held your heart, until she believed my friendship was genuine and she broke you. Or sorry sister mine, I've been nothing sort of cruel to you." Danny broke her thought as he seemed to reappear closer than he'd been. He put both his hands on her face. Her mouth opened when he leaned in and kissed her. Her mind fought with her heart she felt bad that she was cheating. A horrible thought pierced her. "Stop." Danny felt her pull away and let her go. "What if the reason that Jackal cheated was merely because I'm so bad at having sex that he needed people he could get that part from? He kept telling those women even the one that pushed me into the wall, that he didn't get into relationships." Danny told her one way to find out and then suggested she take something to calm her down and that he was a trained medic and wouldn't let anything happen to her, or the baby. "I don't want to forget that I'm doing this." He says that's not how it worked. He'd give her a small dose of cannabis. "I don't smoke." He explained that he had it in liquid form for his pain from an old injury. He asked her how much she weighted and pulled his phone and put in the information and other little details then it gave him a dosage. She leaned in moving her hair out of her eyes and tucking it behind her ear. It didn't look like a lot, and at the very least, he was telling her what he was doing, not just shipping her off to a friend of Jackal's. Danny wouldn't take her memory. "Please tell me that you don't get that from Jackal's friends." He smirked and said he and Jackal didn't share doctors, Jackal made way more than he did on a fireman's salary. "Yes, because he sold my child, and tried to kill my parents twice for more money to hurt my sister." Danny asked her did she have anything with citrus in it since he usually mixed his with beer, but she was pregnant she didn't need alcohol. He smiled at her and looked years younger than he had. She walks into the kitchen. When he pulled the little pill bottle out, he popped one. He wouldn't hurt himself just to hurt her. "Did you want water with that?" He says no he's used to it. She cringed and let the shade down so no one could see what she was doing. He laughed at her. "What would the neighbors think? They will see me doing drugs." She stage-whispered as she moved over shutting the other blinds.

Danny laughed, here was a woman that had probably ingested so much shit in the past ten or so years that she could open her own drugstore, and she was worried about someone seeing her drink a drink with medical weed in it. He shook his head, he been worried that his outburst of humor would break the spell because him laughing at Joy sure did, and he'd have to drug her to get her pliable enough to get some. Elation looked like an older rounder version of Joy, but they were as different as night and day. She pulled lemonade from the fridge and asked him was this ok. "Yeah it's fine." He takes it and prepares it. She watched and took it from him and drank it. She says she wanted to call her siblings and apologize. "Joy may not be happy that you are calling, at 2 in the morning. I saw the fireworks between you two in the hallway." She says she'd write her and Kindred letters then. She moved back into the living room. As she sat, she took off her shirt. Looking at him for confirmation. He put his hands on her bra covered breast. She closed her eyes and turned her head. "Don't think of it as cheating he wronged you and you are trapped in his web of lies until he dies. Uncage apart of yourself. He never respected your union." They fucked and she was way more skilled than he would have imagined considering Jackal was always dogging her. The man had captured and trained a sexual blockbuster and slept around; Jackal was an idiot. They finished she thanked him complimenting him. She was surprised that she wasn't fuzzy and could remember everything just relaxed. "Your worry that you were bad uh at it, no you get an a plus. Jackal is a dumbass." She gets up and grabs her phone. She wrote out a long apology message to Joy and one for Kindred. She didn't mention Danny at all or that he'd told her about the plan. She'd just warned Joy that she was in fact in danger, and that she'd found out that Jackal had been behind everything to make her quit so she wouldn't return to work and expose her boss with information that she had on him even though his name was not listed on her file as of yet. She even apologized for making a pass at Robert saying she did it just to get a rise out of Joy. To Kindred she apologized for running his marriage into the ground with her toxic behavior and spoke of how she'd turned Jackal's words into her own. "Why don't you set it to send in a few hours. That way you won't scare them into thinking something is wrong with Life or Moose." She thanks him. "I'm not always as dumb as I look." She set the message for 9 a.m. and showed him. He hit send for her. She got up went to Jackal's den. She looked at him and asked would he screw her in here. Danny smirked at her word choice and said, "You bet princess."

Mark and the girls went to check on Rapture at the hospital and Rapture told him that his mask had done its job and prevented a shatter of his nasal cavity which could kill him. The blood Mark had seen came from the impact of Seth bruising capillaries around Rapture's nose. The hospital made sure to X-ray to make sure the screws and plates that held his nasal cavity together was still intact, they checked him out had him keep his nose packed and told him if the discomfort from the swelling didn't go away in 24 hours or if his nose started bleeding, to return home to his regular doctor, they gave him the concussion instructions and Mark told the doctor that he'd watch out for Rapture, so he didn't have to stay for observation.

Rapture sat on the sofa talking to Cassandra who'd just seen the show and had been calling him since the match. After confirming that he was ok they talk about lighter topics then get off the phone. To Mark he says, "Man, thanks for getting me out of there tonight. I couldn't call Cassey from another hospital. It was bad enough, that she knew something was up because one of the announcers said something about me going to the trainer but didn't do any replays as WWE are famous for, since in a few of the angles you can tell my eyes were open but sweet lady consciousness took a vacation. You were in the ring how did you know I was in trainer's row you wouldn't have heard the announcers?" Mark spoke about Rap's inability to stay put for very long in a knockout sell without being hurt, and the blood on the ramp. "I guess that would give it away."

Up in the penthouse Joy and Robert sit talking about today's events. "Thank you, Bobby, for shining light on the Kindred, Elation thing. I mean I'm not exactly ready to go back to his house or anything for another dinner, but at least I trust him as much as I am allowing myself to trust anyone. I feared that because of Kindred's lack of response how I would have responded was a signal that he was involved. I am just glad he isn't. After today I believe him." Robert says he does too. They talk about Elation's behavior. "I don't know what else to do. I gave her rules and she threw them out the window in front of my parents. I didn't want to upset them. When father asked me out of the room, I was so nervous I was sick until Elation came out. I went back in to check on dad and I pissed her off, but I could not leave that hallway without making sure dad was ok. It wasn't until Elation asked me what I thought she would do to dad with the cameras rolling that I had no answer. By that time, she'd brought up Danny again and then and accused me of not helping her when he would. Last night…"

Bobby pulled her closer and hugged her, last night shit had gone to hell and when she'd stood to run from this place into the night, he wasn't going to let her out of this room alone. He was either going to stop her or she would have had him and the 8-person team walking or running alongside her. "Last night, with everything that was running through your head you were not emotionally in any shape to help anyone not even yourself. You tried to secure your armor against me for fearing my reaction. You attempted to run from me. Which is something you hadn't done in years. I am glad Elation got out for shooting the bastard. Wish she had of made it count more. At the dinner I tried to like Jackal, but I know why he and I would never get along. He reminds me of Warren. He is clearly abusive, and Elation is spellbound by him. Her words and actions towards you and Kindred and even your parents speak of something I have only seeing when someone that is controlled by someone else. I don't know if he had something on her, or something in her."

Joy knew who Warren was and it spoke volumes about where Robert was if his father was in a side by side with her brother in law. Joy pulled up a digital crime board app and started filling it in. "You said think like a cop. I just wish I knew what Jackal could have on her. She goes all irregular with her speech if she speaks for too long so maybe drugs?" Joy types as she speaks. "Dad said that a man with a mask pushed him down the stairs. Elation isn't built like a man. Mother said that Jack and two other men chased her. Once again, her story doesn't fit the male's description either. Elation is pregnant. But sadly, I still can't remove her because there is something I'm missing."

At 4 am, Ghost Maker walked into the breakroom and when Moose Wildflower's regular nurse walked in, she chatted with her. The woman talked about how this was her first secure room case. After buying her a coffee from the vending machine Ghost Maker sits and has a cup with the woman. She'd used the noise of the machine and her body to block the camera from seeing her add more than sugar into the woman's coffee. She says the woman looked tired. The woman says she was fine just had to pee. Ghost Maker walked into the bathroom and did her markup. Hearing the woman hit the side of the stall. Ghost Maker walks to the stalls outside of camera range, and with her magnet released the slide opening the door. The woman was out cold. Ghost Maker pulled her legs up and rested them on the wall. Pulled the tag from the woman's lapel and put on a dark wig to match the woman's hair color. When she walked out, she moved the out of order sign on the stall that housed the drugged nurse.

Hours earlier after deciding to release Moose Wildflower tomorrow, Dr. Havana Howard-Sheldon enters her home and checks in on her twins. They asked her to read them a story from the big wooden brown book. Feeling guilty as she sometimes did when she came in this late, she picked one of Mr. Wildflower's books and read the one that got him on the bestsellers list, the children repeated the last words sleepily. She kissed them on the forehand and checked on her youngest. Moving into the kitchen to grab whatever smelled so good Pierce Sheldon her husband walked in and hugged her from behind massaging her shoulders telling her to have a seat that he would plate her food. She learned when he was like this to just run with it. He set her plate of strip steak and rice and a glass of her favorite wine. "Thank you," he pulled up a seat he and asked about her day saying he is needing some of her brand of normal today because his firm was going to take the county to court as of now and he was leading the team. She speaks of the Wildflower's ordeal since he'd knew of them from buying Moose's wooden art and grandfather clocks. They finish their meal and head to bed.

Ghost Maker walked to Moose's door and enters, this was the first access of the nurse's card. Click, hiss, thump, the patient watched her as she walked into the secure room. and asked how she was doing. "I'm doing ok. The question of the day is how you are Mr. Moose?" The patient grunted as they moved their hand so that she could let the bed rail down. "The doctor wants you to sit up today. We are going to get you fed and cleaned up. You are to be released." After she safely moved Moose to the chair, she set his tray of food in front of him. She leaves to get supplies for his IV tubing. He asked could she take it out and leave it out. "No, I'm sorry if you were within an hour of release sure but it's still early. Nothing we gave you by mouth, would be as effective to combat the pain." He nods and thanks her. Click, hiss, thump, 20 minutes later she returns and clears his plate. She then pulls the curtain, he looked up at her. "This is just for your privacy while I change your tubing and wash you up." He smiles. The curtain blocked him from sight of the camera and the door. Privacy protocol worked in her favor sometimes. As she peels the tape from his arm and withdraws the needle, she turns and pushes a timer on and then pushed pause the machines went silent. "It will come back on automatically, After I'm done." He turned on the news with his other hand. She put a portable scanner plugged into her wireless ear buds on his finger. He looked at his vitals on her phone. "I hope my re-stick wasn't painful." He says no she had a very delicate touch. "Well thank you. You're and old pro at this by now I'm just going to flush your line ok?" He nods and his gaze returns to the screen. She drew the med into the needle and pushed it slowly into his vein. She then attached the tubing to his regular meds. She glanced at the timer. He grabs his chest as he struggles to breathe, stepping closer to him she says, "Elation Oxendine loves you and wants you all to herself. Any last words?" She puts her phone to his mouth as he painfully pants Why Elation? keeping the video going she says, "You are not immune." The look of pained horror on his face as the non-traceable stimulant pumped through him. Made her shutter, she steps back and watched him though her camera monitor and listened as his heart worked and skipped in rhythm. As he went into his death throws and went still. In her ears she heard the flat note and watched his chance of survival slip away. Looking at the timer she removed her monitor and walked out. Renters the bathroom put the women's legs on the floor with her leaned back against the wall replaces the tag. Someone walks in and Ghost Maker stood on the toilet in between the drugged nurse's parted legs until the other woman left. Stepping down she put the drugged nurse's tag back on her lapel, puts Moose's wedding ring on her necklace, takes off her wig and checks her watch. She heads out makes it to her car and looked up at the window. She had to give the woman a false motive.

She edited the video she'd taken to fit Elation Oxendine's voice as directed and hit send. For once in her life within this Dirty Cop Clan she was not sent to kill a criminal or even a true adversary to the DCC, she was sent to kill a little old man. Danny asked for her to deal with the mother as well. She replied no do it yourself you paid for one and I'm not a fucking Walmart, no BOGO sales here. He says he could wire her the money. In her life she'd made a lot of ghosts, but that old man's face would stick around for a time. After she'd hit the plunger into his veins saving him would comprise her freedom. Checking her watch by this time the woman that had been his sole nurse would wake in a manufactured hell. Her nursing career was over, she was just another innocent taken down. Danny had left her no choice. Those rooms were not easy to access even with a card, and she had to make it look like Moose Wildflower had went on into the great night. Today she'd killed an innocent, and it did not feel good because if you took all the innocence out of the world you were left with only predators. She drives to Jackal's lake home and knew she couldn't beat the DCC and she no longer wanted to be part of an organization that could one day hire her to kill a child. She'd never be accused of having a heart but watching and listening to that man die broke what little she did have. She wrote a long letter with the auditory illusion of that man that could have easily been her own father gasping for breath until he had no more air. She would fly today, only her flight would carry her to hell. She knew this day would come but she promised herself that she would never let those men that she worked with be the one to put a bullet in her brain. She'd grew up with Jackal and when he'd needed sex she'd agreed. Danny was prey in a predator's costume. After walking onto the back deck, she takes one of the needles she'd copped from the room and stuck herself. Images of her latest ghost swam by her mind's eye. Her death was just as violent as Moose's and was over just as fast.

Author's note: I want to thank my betas you guys are super. What a ride into the dark curtain. A few times I weighed the major number of cons in killing him off. But as in life, sometimes the good is extinguished. So, here is a question with all the deception being dealt, will Joy and her brother believe that Elation killed their father? Will their mother believe that her oldest took her lover? Answers, questions, concerns, are welcomed: End Note