"Hi, Helen", said Ranger as my mother answered the phone. He put it on speakerphone so that I could hear. "I'm just calling you with an update. This is on speakerphone so that Steph can hear. She cannot speak clearly yet as she has on an oxygen mask, but Kai has said that her lungs are already better than yesterday, so we are thrilled that she is recovering as fast as she is. We are hoping that she is on a cannula before the kids come tomorrow to visit."

I could hear my mother sniffle. "That's great", she said. "How is the rest of her?"

Kai looked at me, and I nodded. "Hi, Helen. It's Kai. Steph just said that I can give you a detailed overview." He went over everything. I could hear my mother shudder in a breath.

Ranger took over on the phone. "I have asked some people to come over from Rangeman to identify and find the people responsible for what has happened. This means that Steph's elite team is coming over, and I have a strike team of soldiers coming as well. They are coming by private plane, and they are flying out tomorrow night. There is space on the flight for you and we have a room for you in the castle if you would like to come. You will have to realize, however, that Val and Edna are not invited. Steph said she would love to see you and Frank and that she misses the two of you, but she cannot handle the drama with Val and Edna. Also, you will have to give Steph lots of time to rest and she will need time to work with her team. I think if she is part of the takedown, she will recover faster from the trauma associated with the rescue she did. There are a number of vehicles, and you and Frank are welcome to the keys and the ability to take one sightseeing if you want. The castle will be full of people, so it is going to be more of a party atmosphere, it will be chaotic, and there will be lots of kids running around, lots of people working together to make meals. If you are up for that, we'd love to have you. If you'd rather wait for a while, Steph will be better and it won't be so chaotic, but it was my impression that you might like to see her yourself and know that she will be okay as soon as you can."

"What will I do with Ma?"

"I would suggest that Val takes care of her. Val isn't working right now anyway, and it would be good if she did something to contribute to the family for a change. You and Frank are always doing things for her. That's my best suggestion. However, if Val unfairly causes you grief, you could see if Annie could recommend someone to cover the week or two. That person would be, of course, someone that Steph and I would pay for. I'll leave that up to you and Val to work out though."

"Do you think that I am being unfair in asking Val to take her grandmother?"

"Is it her grandmother?"

"Yes."

"Do you do things for Val?"

"All the time."

"Then I don't see what the problem is. Families are meant to work together, and that's been the problem all along. You are trying to get everyone working together and Val needs to do her part. Just ask her outright."

My mother paused, and we all gave her time to think about it. "There is no reason Val can't look after her grandmother, is there?" she said finally. I could hear her smile on the phone. "Somehow, I think Frank is going to love this. He is so frustrated with Val." She paused again. "I'll go talk to Frank and get back to you."

"That sounds great", said Ranger. "I hope you can come. When you get back to me, would you please text me and let me call you back? It is one in the morning here but, more importantly, I don't want the phone to wake up Steph and I don't know when she'll be sleeping."

"Fair enough. What's the weather like in Scotland right now?"

"Cool and potentially rainy. Definitely bring your raincoat and be prepared to wear it daily."

I could hear the pleasure in her voice. "This is exciting. I'm glad we got our passports updated about five years ago. We had been planning on going on a trip – and then Ma was diagnosed with FTD, and our plans to travel went out the window." She paused. "Frank just came in after gassing up the car. I'll get back to you soon."

"Good luck with Val", said Ranger. He hung up the phone and looked at me. "Happy?" he said softly.

I smiled. I was very happy. I was looking forward to seeing my family. The only problem would be holding Lindsay and Angus and my team back from scratching my parents' eyes out.

I started to fall asleep, and I jerked myself awake. Ranger sat on the side of my bed and smoothed my hair back from my face. "Sleepy?" he said. I nodded. "Then go to sleep, babe. You'll need it to recover and, if you sleep lots and we are really lucky, you'll be on a cannula when the girls come in." I smiled, and he continued brushing my hair back. Several minutes later, I was asleep.

I slept until my breakfast was brought in. I looked at the tray and sighed. When Ranger looked at me in question, I pointed at the jello. Apparently yellow and green jello were the de facto standards for all hospitals around the world. Ranger laughed, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a parfait size container of red jello. I made the sign language gesture for 'I love you'.

Ranger looked at me in confusion. "Rock on?" he said.

Kai laughed. "It means 'I love you'", he said. "I was teaching Tia and Grace and Alix sign language. Steph was in the room at the time, and she said the only two that she'd remember would be thank you and I love you, and Tia told her that those were the most important ones anyway, and once she had mastered those she was doing well."

"Of course, that's about all I know in Spanish, and she said the same thing to me then", I said.

Kai laughed. "It's always good to be surrounded by positivity." He checked my pulse ox numbers, then smiled at me. "I think we should try a cannula. Your oxygenation numbers are doing really well. If we have to, we can put you on a mask again. However, I'd like to try you on a cannula and see how you do. What do you think?"

I grinned and gave him a double thumbs-up. Kai smiled, retrieved the tubing, and switched over the delivery system. "Better?" he said.

"I'm certainly more comfortable", I said.

Kai laughed. "How are your throat and nose?"

"Okay. They are sore, like the tissues were damaged and slightly stretched too far, like they have lost their elasticity. But it is a manageable soreness. It's no worse than having strep."

"That makes sense, because your nasal passages and the inside of your throat were burned and although it wasn't a bad burn, those tissues will be uncomfortable for a few days. When we go home, we can give you lemon and honey to soothe the tissues and let them heal." I smiled. I remembered the first time that I had lemon and honey. Ranger had made it for me when I had strep throat, and I fell in love with it. I was looking forward to having another mug.

"When do you think that I will get to go home?"

"But Steph, you haven't tried the yellow and green jello yet!"

"Smartass. Why do you think that I want to go home?"

Kai laughed. "Seriously, what is slowing you down is the need for oxygen. If you can get off the oxygen successfully today, I would assume that you'll be going home tomorrow."

"I just don't think that it will be good for the kids to see me in the hospital again. They are going to be terrified."

"I know", said Kai, "but them seeing you will be the best therapy for them. They apparently didn't sleep well last night."

"Oh boy. Did Julie have company?"

"Grace cuddled with Julie. The other two slept in your bed and cuddled each other."

Tears came to my eyes. I could hardly wait to give them a hug.

"Lindsay said that she and Heather were coming with Julie and the kids", said Ranger. "They thought that they would be here to corral the kids in the hospital, but they would also be able to buy anything special that you need on the way home."

I smiled. "That is so nice of them."

"Sometimes you make your family, babe, and each of those people have adopted you into their family just as much as you have adopted them." He paused. "So think about what you want to eat. If there is anything special, we'll let Lindsay know."

I finished my breakfast – and the red jello – and I looked around for more. Although my breakfast had been good, it had been largely liquid. My stomach was a bit upset, and I somehow thought that some solid food might help.

Kai smiled. "I ordered liquid meals for you for today to get you drinking lots. It will help those tissues in your nose and throat to heal and will help you breathe and get home faster. However, Ranger or I can go to the cafeteria to get something else for you to eat. I have to say that I am happy that you are hungry." He paused and looked at me. "I'll go now. Just to warn you, I'll be getting you something soft so that it doesn't irritate your throat."

"Thank you", I said.

He leaned down and gave me a hug, smiled at Ranger, and left the room. Personally, I thought the break would be good for him.

Ranger sat down on the side of the bed. "Is the pain reliever controlling the pain?" he said.

"Enough", I replied. "It's manageable."

Ranger smiled. "Good", he said. He sat for a minute, then grinned. "How many pictures do you think that you'll get?"

I laughed. "The walls in here are a bit plain."

Ranger laughed. "Don't say that to the kids, or they will be decorating the whole damn hospital."

I giggled.

"Kai said that you are getting better exceptionally fast, and he doesn't know how you are doing it."

"Good. Ranger, how do my feet look?"

"Red, blistering and weeping."

"It feels like there are large patches of it."

"Yes. Basically, your whole legs from your knees down. Knowing what you walked through, I'm surprised that it wasn't worse."

"Was my dress affected?"

"Yes. With it being a maxi dress, the bottom third was burnt, and Kai and I cut it to get it off you."

I nodded. "That's good, as I don't think that I would want to wear it again."

Ranger smiled. "I'll buy you another one."

"I have an idea for that."

"What's that?"

"I would like to have a dress made in the Black Shadow tartan so that I could wear it into court with a dark black blazer. I thought that would look good." The Black Shadow tartan was the tartan that Colin had designed for himself. It was a subtle plaid created with two different intensities of black. "I was thinking that, in an 'up yours' gesture, I would wear it when I went into court with Val. It would be like taking Colin with me, and I think he would like to see her lose in court very much."

Ranger laughed. "Perhaps we could ask Lindsay where to go to get that made."

Lindsay, Heather and Julie walked into the room, each carrying a child. Each child had a thumb in their mouth and I grinned at them. "Hey, guys! Am I ever glad to see you!"

"We couldn't wait any longer to come", said Julie as she put a bag down. "We brought you clothes for when you break out of here."

"Thank you. I am looking forward to when I come home so that I can see you all the time." I turned to Ranger. "Do you think the kids could sit up near my head? I would really like some cuddles."

Ranger smiled and turned to the girls. "Mommy's abdomen is sore again, and her feet and the bottom of her legs are very sore. However, even though her chest and throat and nose are sore, it won't hurt her for you to cuddle her there. What I am going to do is put two people on the bed near Mommy, and I'll hold the other person on my knee and get a cuddle. Just like Mommy, I have missed you and need a cuddle. Who wants to sit on my knee first?"

The three girls looked at Ranger solemnly and didn't say a word.

I laughed. "Okay, new plan. Two people sit up near me and the other person sits by my thighs, and Daddy times it so that no person gets more of a hug. Deal?"

The three girls nodded. Lindsay and Heather plopped the two youngest up near my head and Julie put Tia down near my thigh.

"Thank you for taking the thigh position, Tia", I said. "That is the trickiest place to sit and I am glad that you are showing your sisters how to do it." Tia smiled around her thumb, then she popped it out and looked at me.

"Mommy? What happened?"

"There was an explosion in the auditorium. Lots of people were knocked unconscious, and Heather was taking care of everybody to make sure that everyone was carried out and wasn't left behind in the fire. Daddy and I ran to the front to help. Only, because my lungs were already sore, they became sorer and I was having trouble breathing again. Also, I walked across something hot and was just wearing my heels, and heels aren't particularly good for protecting your feet from something that is burning hot. So I burned my feet. And then, the person I picked up to carry out wasn't little like you. The only problem was that I reinjured my abdomen when I was trying to lift him up and when I couldn't, I had to drag him out. However, I hope to be coming home soon. When I do, Daddy is going to have to carry me around like a baby simply because my feet will be too sore. Also, I'm hoping to ask Lindsay and Heather to buy me some diapers to wear, because if I have to go to the washroom and Daddy isn't there to carry me, I don't want to wet my pants. I also have to eat lots of liquids and soft things for a while, because my throat is a bit sore from being in the hot auditorium. Soft things that don't scratch the inside of my throat will be nicer for me to eat. So no bones for me."

"Bones!" said Tia. She grinned. "You don't eat bones! Bob eats bones."

"Bob eats everything else as well. Sofa cushions, Auntie Tracy's underwear..."

The girls giggled.

"So you know what is going to happen over the next few days?" The girls looked at me. "We have some people coming. We have invited Granny and Grandpa. You know how Granny worries, and we thought she'd feel better if she saw that I was okay."

"Val?" said Alix.

"She's not invited, and neither is Great-Grandma. I don't know if Granny and Grandpa will be able to come, but I hope they do. I miss them."

Grace smiled. "Me too. I'll hug Grandpa. He likes hugs. We haven't seen them in a long time."

"Yes, he does like hugs. Both Granny and Grandpa have been upset by me getting hurt, just like you, and they have been upset by what Aunt Val and Grandma have been saying. The problem is that they have to spend a lot of time with Aunt Val and Grandma, and they want the problem to go away. They asked me to make the problem go away and I refused, but about a month ago Granny and I had a conversation and we talked about how she wasn't being fair. And she agreed. Like Daddy and I have decided not to take any crap from Aunt Val, so have Granny and Grandpa. It is hard for Granny and Grandpa, because now Aunt Val and Grandma are making Granny cry. They are being mean to Granny, just like they were being mean to me, and that is never the right thing to do."

"Poor Granny", said Alix.

"Yes", I said. "I feel bad for her. So we have invited Granny and Grandpa to the castle for a couple of weeks to sightsee and help out. But we have also invited a few other people."

"Who, Mommy?" said Tia.

"Let's see...Nick, Ethan, Edie, Evan, Dirk, Cindy, James, Becca and Hannah, Hal, Miguel, Kate, and a whole strike team."

"You invited people to play?" said Grace with a grin.

"And people to help take care of me, so that if Daddy is busy someone else can carry me where I need to go. But more importantly, all those people are very good at identifying bad guys and figuring out where to find them. And the strike team is excellent at picking up the bad guys and taking them to jail."

"Are you going to get the bad guys that caused the explosion?" said Tia.

I grinned. "That's the plan. Isn't it great?"

Tia and Grace and Alix grinned.

"So I was thinking that perhaps you could make everybody feel more welcome at the castle. I don't know if you have enough time to do this, but could you work together to draw a picture for each of the bedrooms, so that everybody is greeted by one of your great pictures in their rooms? I think our guests would really like that. What do you think?"

The three little girls grinned. "Yeah!" they said.

I turned to Lindsay. "So, I heard that you and Heather were on the buying committee."

Lindsay grinned. "It sounds like we'll be buying a lot of food. Or do you want it catered? I know a great company that would do a good job catering, and their company is just starting up and could use the business. What do you think?"

I looked at Ranger. "I think it is a great idea. They could perhaps bring the food every morning for the day, if possible. Otherwise, you will never get out of the kitchen and, while I know that you would enjoy that, I'll need help and the guys will need leadership." I smiled. "Besides, I always like the idea of helping a starting company."

Ranger smiled. "If you could send me that contact information, I will talk to the caterer right away."

Lindsay smiled and pulled out her phone. She sent the information, and Ranger stepped out of the hospital room to make the call.

"Something else that we were hoping that you could help with", I said, "and it definitely is not a priority." I explained about the dress that I wanted and the fabric that it would be made out of, and Lindsay smiled with where I was planning on wearing it.

Lindsay grinned. "I know just how to go about this", she said.

"Oh, thank goodness. I haven't got a clue."

Lindsay laughed.

Kai came into the room with five coffees and an assortment of creams and sugar, an iced coffee, three apple juices, a large container of trifle, and a slice of carrot bread for each of the girls and me. He handed out the hot coffee and gave me the iced coffee. "I know how much you like coffee", he said, "but the hot coffee would hurt against your throat. Iced coffee is more your speed." I grinned. I loved iced coffee. He also handed me the large container of trifle and passed out the carrot bread.

"What's that, Mommy?" said Grace.

"It's trifle. It's soft so it won't hurt my throat. I was still hungry after breakfast, so Kai volunteered to go down to the cafeteria to see what I could eat and I have to say that this is an excellent breakfast." Kai laughed.

"What's in it?" said Tia. The three girls looked at the trifle curiously.

"Cake, custard, whipped cream and fruit."

"May I try?" said Alix. Her eyes were glowing.

I laughed. "Everybody gets one bite, but since this is my breakfast I'm not going to share too much."

The three girls smiled, but after they'd had their bite they looked at Julie. "Julie, can we have trifle for lunch?"

Julie laughed and turned to Kai. "Now you've started something."

Kai grinned.

"So the other things the buying committee could help with, if you don't mind, are to purchase some tape that would be appropriate for the girls to tape their pictures to the walls, and some diapers for me. I know they have nice ones that can be put on when I am lying down, diapers that are discreet, and if you can get some of those, that would be great."

Lindsay looked at Heather and smiled. "We're going on a shopping spree this afternoon, Heather." I laughed at the joy in Lindsay's face. She turned to me. "What size are you?"

"I don't know UK sizing. In the States, I am a size six and a 34C. I used to be smaller, but I didn't shrink down after the kids were born."

"Lucky", said Lindsay.

I laughed hard. "Yeah, I didn't mind that part. The kangaroo pouch though? It took me months of daily exercising to get that smaller."

"You had a kangaroo pouch, Mommy?" said Tia. Her eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Not really, but after I had you guys my skin was all stretched out, and I don't care what they say, it does NOT go back after the babies are born without a LOT of work. Up until I got sick a few months ago, I did a half hour of exercises every day to try to lose the flab. I won't be doing the exercises for a long time though, so you never know. The flab may come back. If it does, you'll see that it looks a little like a kangaroo pouch."

"Kangaroos keep babies in their pouch", said Grace.

"Yes. Those babies are called joeys. They can have up to four babies in their pouch at the same time. It would be like a game of Tetris to get them to fit. I just keep dirt in my belly button."

The girls laughed. "You're silly, Mommy", said Tia.

"Daddy keeps fluff in his. I think it is so that his belly button doesn't get cold."

The girls laughed again.

Ranger came in and switched the girls' locations. "I got the caterer set up. She sounded quite enthused for the job, and her prices were excellent. I set the menu for the first day already, and she is emailing me samples of menus for the additional days. I had a good feeling about her."

"That's great. What are we having the first day?"

"For dinner, rouladen, mashed potatoes, green beans, carrots, chicken noodle soup, and chocolate cake for dessert. For the vegetarians, there will be a large tray of vegetarian toad in the hole. For lunch, homemade macaroni and cheese and a salad. For mid-afternoon snack, a vegetable platter with dip, and a loaf of pumpernickel bread with a dip as well."

"What's rouden?" said Alix.

"Rouladen? It's thinly sliced meat and bacon rolled up together around some vegetables", said Ranger.

"What's bacon?" said Alix.

I groaned. "God's gift to the world."

Ranger laughed hard. "That's why I picked it for you, babe. Now me? I might be having vegetarian toad in the hole."