One of the men shouted, "Good job luring her in Jessie. We'll take it from here."
The little girl came out from her hiding spot and ran as fast as she could down the corridor.
Susan was becoming very nervous. She was berating herself for losing sight of Marcus. But she was angrier at herself for getting into this mess.
"Damn," she muttered under her breath. "What do you want?"
The four men moved closer to her and started slapping the pipes against their hands. "We want you and your money."
"I don't have any money! I don't have a credit chit yet," Susan stammered.
"Oh come on now. Someone who looks as pretty as you doesn't have a credit chit? Come on sweetie, tell us another one," the fat, ugly one said.
"We'll just have to take it out some other way then," another one said as he licked his lips and winked at Susan.
Susan shuddered. *Now would be a really, really good time for Marcus to find me. Oh please God, let him find me,* she silently prayed.
They moved in closer to her, but she kept backing away from them.
Suddenly one of them made a move towards her. "MARCUS!" she screamed.
She heard one of the men say, "Shut up bitch" as they smacked her. The force was so great that she fell to the ground, hitting her forehead in the process. She put her hand to her head and groaned. When she looked down at her hand it had blood on it.
She heard a voice coming from the front of the corridor and instantly recognized it as Marcus.
*Thank you! Oh thank you God!* Susan thought to herself.
"Why don't you pick on somebody your own size? Oh, that's right. There isn't anyone as fat and as ugly as you lot are," Marcus said as he extended his pike. He didn't wait for any reply as he took the advantage and landed the first blow.
When Susan saw the other three men rush towards Marcus, she slid over and propped herself up against the wall out of harms way.
The fight lasted all of one minute as Marcus quickly and easily rendered them senseless.
Quickly he rushed over to Susan, his concern rising. Crouching down in front of her, he cupped her chin and carefully brought her face around towards his. "Are you okay?" Marcus brushed a bit of hair out of her face so he could get a better look at her injury.
She tried to smile. "Yea. Yea, I'm okay."
Not believing her Marcus said, "We'd better get you to MedLab."
"I'm a Doctor, Marcus! Really, I'm fine," she said.
He took out a handkerchief and placed it on her forehead to stop the bleeding. "Which is why you have blood running down the side of your face."
"Head wounds always bleed a lot. It's just a superficial cut. I won't even need stitches."
"You're going to MedLab. Are you walking or am I carrying you?"
"I can walk. Just help me up please."
Marcus helped her to stand and began leading her towards MedLab.
Once they were in the lift Susan said softly, "Marcus ... thank you. You saved my life."
"You're welcome. I'm just glad I found you in time. You shouldn't have gone off on your own though."
"I know, I know. Feel free to yell at me later, okay?"
Marcus smiled at her.
=
*Not exactly the way I wanted to meet Dr. Franklin,* Susan groaned to herself.
"Stephen," Marcus called out. "I have a patient for you."
Stephen put down his work when he saw Marcus with a young woman with blood on her face. He waved for them to go into the first room. "Well, who do we have here?"
"Dr. Franklin I'd like you to meet Dr. Barry," Marcus said. "Dr. Barry, this is the prestigious Dr. Stephen Franklin."
"It's an honor to meet you Dr. Franklin," Susan said. "I've been following your work closely."
Stephen took some gauze and gently placed it on her forehead to stop the bleeding. "Well now, a fan of mine, huh? In that case, please call me Stephen," he said proudly. "But your name sounds familiar. I just can't place it." Snapping his fingers he pointed at her. "Would you be the Dr. Barry that had the article in the The Journal of Xeno Medicine about the Pak'ma'ra immune system?"
"Yes, that's me. You mean you actually read it?" Susan was in shock that he actually heard of her.
"Absolutely. Fine work if I may say," he said to her.
"Thank you."
"Now tell me, how did this happen?" Stephen asked, pointing to her head.
Before Marcus could recount the story Susan said, "It's all my fault. I insisted that Marcus show me Downbelow."
Marcus chimed in, "Is she going to be alright Stephen?"
He turned to Marcus and nodded. "She'll be fine. Head wounds always bleed alot. It's just a superficial cut. She doesn't even need stitches."
Susan looked at Marcus and gave him a sort of 'I told you so!' type smile.
Stephen continued, "She may have a little headache later on tonight. But that's about it. You're free to go."
Susan hopped off the exam table. "Thanks for patching me up Stephen."
"You're welcome. Say, how would you like a tour of MedLab?" Stephen asked.
"Are you kidding? I'd love one. You really don't mind?" Susan said, totally surprised.
"Not at all. I'd be honored Dr. Barry," Stephen said.
"Please, call me Susan."
For one brief second, Stephen's stomach sank, remembering briefly Susan Ivanova and how much he missed her. He and Marcus locked eyes for a moment.
Returning his gaze to her Stephen said, "I'll see you tomorrow then Susan."
As she turned to leave MedLab, she grabbed hold of Marcus' arm to steady herself and swore that she felt him flinch ......
=
After they arrived back at Marcus' quarters, Susan found herself sitting on the couch again.
"Well, go ahead," she said.
"Go ahead and what?" Marcus said from the kitchen.
"You're dying to do it. So just go ahead and yell at me. Just get it over with."
Marcus smiled. He couldn't yell at her; she was only trying to help someone. He walked over to Susan and handed her a cup of tea.
Sitting down next to her he said, "I'm not going to yell at you. But I do think that we need to talk about your security."
She nodded in agreement.
"I don't mean to bring up any unpleasant memories," Marcus began, "but Delenn had mentioned that you think you might be a target for a pro-Clark movement."
Susan stared at the cup in her hand. "Even though Clark is dead, he still has many supporters." She took a sip of tea and then continued. "At the time, I was working in the Center for Disease Control in Geneva and was privy to a lot of sensitive information."
"What kind of information?" Marcus asked.
"Let's just say certain ... experiments ... that Clark was having some of the scientists do. All of this, mind you, was in secret - the public had no idea what was going on. Hell, most of the medical community didn't have a clue. One day I stumbled across these files and I was horrified. It had a lot to do with cloning and genetic experimentation. And I know for a fact that the Psi-Corps was involved. To what degree, I'm not really sure."
Marcus just listened patiently waiting for Susan to continue.
Susan put the cup down before continuing. "I tried to get them to stop. I tried to leak the information to ISN, hoping that the public would be outraged and demand a stop to the experiments. But as we now know, EarthGov was censoring ISN. Once they knew that I had found out about their experiments, they wanted me to join the team. They said that if I refused, they would have me killed."
"Dear God," Marcus said.
Susan just kept talking. "So I packed up all my findings, whatever clothes and books I could carry and escaped on a transport that night for Mars. I met up with the head of the Mars resistance, and they protected me until it looked like Mars was going to fall. I was on Mars for 2 years before I had to leave again."
"I still don't understand why you are worried about a pro-Clark movement?"
"You know about the plague that is engulfing the Earth?"
Marcus nodded. "Yes."
"I've been studying nothing but the Shadows and the Drakh for the last 3 years; their ships, their homeworld, their molecular structure." She turned to look at Marcus, "and I believe that I may have found the cure for the plague."
"You're serious?"
"I said MAY have found a cure. I need a place where I can work to test my theories. Some place secure. Where I can work without being afraid. The people loyal to Clark, and believe me there are quite a few, would love to see me dead. To see the cure die with me and to see the Earth suffer. I've backed up all my work, and secured my findings with sophisticated passwords and firewalls just in case something should happen to me."
"So why haven't you been spending all your time in MedLab?" Marcus asked.
"Because we're not sure that Babylon 5 is entirely secure. I need to be sure that no one knows that I'm here. Then I can begin to test my theories," Susan replied. "President Sheridan is doing extensive background checks on everyone associated with MedLab, since that's where I'll be spending most of my time."
"That's a lot to have on your shoulders," Marcus said to her.
"What has me worried though is, what if I get into a situation like earlier today in DownBelow and you're not around. I've never fired a PPG; I have no martial art skills. I don't know if I could defend myself," Susan said.
Marcus shifted on the couch so that he was looking directly at her. "I've done some thinking about that too and I have an idea. How would you like me to teach you how to defend yourself?"
Susan was touched. "You would do that for me?"
He nodded, "Absolutely, we could work out a little every morning."
She softly smiled at him. "I'd like that. Thank you." *That is so sweet of him,* Susan thought to herself. She could feel herself beginning to be comfortable around Marcus. And she liked that feeling a lot.
=
Later that night, around 21:00
Susan sat at the kitchen table with her notepad and 3 thick hard covered text books. She had thought of another possibility for a cure and wanted to get her theory and formula down on paper before it escaped her.
Marcus walked out of the bedroom and over to her. He observed her for a moment before he spoke. All three books were spread out across the table and she was writing like a mad woman, her hair glistening in the light. *Glistening in the light? Oh no, no, no! You have to stop this right now. Remember Ivanova? Remember how painful that was? Never again,* he said to himself. Clearing his throat he said, "I don't mean to interrupt ... "
Susan looked up from her notepad and smiled at him. "You're not interrupting. What's up?"
"Delenn has called for an emergency meeting and I must attend. Zack has dispatched 2 security guards that will be stationed outside the door. I've also been instructed to give you this link," he said handing it to her. "If there's an emergency - if you're in danger - contact me immediately. Do you understand?"
She took the link from him and firmly placed it on the top of her right hand. She nodded. "I understand. I'm sure I'll be alright."
"I should be back by 23:00. Help yourself to anything you want."
"Thanks Marcus. I think I'm just going to finish up here, take a quick shower and then get some sleep. It's been a long day," she said, wincing as she touched her forehead.
"If your head starts bothering you, contact Stephen via the BabCom."
Susan nodded. "I remember how to use it. Don't worry, I'll be fine. You'd better get going."
"See you later," Marcus said as he walked out the door.
=
22:00
Susan needed a break. She pushed herself back from the table and poured herself another cup of tea. Sitting on the couch she placed the cup on the table. *Boy, it sure is quiet around here,* she thought as she looked around Marcus' quarters.
*I wish I could get out and take a walk. Can't do that though. I promised Marcus I'd stay here until he returned.* Susan stretched out on the couch.
"You miss him," her conscience said.
*I do NOT miss him. Well, alright, maybe a little. He's my bodyguard. I feel safer when he's around.*
"Is he just a bodyguard to you?"
*He can guard my body any day. Stop it! Where did that come from? Marcus is your friend!*
"But you'd like him to be something more."
Susan started examining her feelings toward Marcus. Just how DID she feel? She liked being around him, that was a given. He definitely had a kind heart and he made her laugh. And those muscles - oh boy! A woman would be lucky to have him.
She took a sip of tea. All right, so maybe she did have a crush on Marcus Cole. A woman would have to be crazy not to. But so far, he hadn't shown any signs of returning it. Besides, didn't he have that photo of a beautiful woman on his coffee table when she first arrived? He said she was just a friend. Maybe she was just a friend; or maybe that was his way of telling her to mind her own business. Either way, there was nothing she could do about it right now.
Sighing, Susan rose from the couch and headed back into the kitchen. She still had some more work to do before she could call it a night.
=
23:15
Being careful not to make too much noise, Marcus enter his password and stepped into his quarters. Quietly walking over to the living room, he could see that Susan was asleep. She was sitting at the end of the couch with an opened book, the pink highlighter still in her hand.
He took his cloak off and placed it on the chair. Walking over to Susan he slowly took the book and marker away from her. "Textbook of Biochemistry with Clinical Correlations. Better you than me Doc," he said as he placed them on the coffee table. Then he gently slipped his arm around her waist and under her legs and carried her into the bedroom, tenderly laying her on the bed. Marcus sat next to her watching her sleep. He could see the bruise that had formed on her forehead. Reaching out to her he traced the outline of the bruise, which in turn caused her to stir. Not wanting to disturb her any further, Marcus retreated into the living room.
=
03:30
Marcus was sleeping on the couch when a piercing scream woke him. Quickly activating his pike, he went running into the bedroom.
Susan was thrashing in the bed screaming, "LET ME GO!"
Realizing that she wasn't in danger, Marcus deactivated his pike and put it down on the nightstand. He sat next to her on the bed and tried to wake her. He shook her gently. "Doctor come on, wake up. It's okay," he said in a smoothing tone.
Her forehead had beads of sweat on it, and he could see that she was trembling. "No. I don't want to see anymore. Please let me go!"
A little louder he said, "Hey now, come on, wake up."
Suddenly Susan bolted upright in bed, breathing hard, her heart pounding in her chest. With tears streaming down her cheeks she said, "Oh God. Oh God."
"It's okay, you're safe. You were just having a bad dream," he said, tenderly stroking her hair.
Susan closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. "I'm sorry Marcus."
He pulled her into an embrace. "It's alright. It was just a bad dream. You're safe now."
Susan nodded as she buried her face into his shoulder.
"Do you want to tell me about the dream? It might help?" Marcus asked.
A cold shiver ran up her spine. Pulling back from him she said, "Remember the experiments I told you about before? The ones that had to do with cloning and genetic experimentation?"
Marcus nodded.
"The experiments were being done on humans."
"In Valen's name....," Marcus gasped in horror.
"I feel the same way," she paused. "It makes me sick."
Marcus felt so bad for her. She has probably seen horrific scenes that no one should be subject to. "You're safe and everything's going to be alright. Try to lay back down."
"I can't go back to sleep, I can't." Susan shook her head.
He wiped a stray tear away. "How about if I stay here with you?"
"Would you? You don't mind?" she said.
He brought her face up to meet his. "Not at all."
Before she knew it, Marcus was in the bed and her head was resting on his chest; his strong arms around her. *Maybe there is hope. Maybe he does care about me,* Susan thought to herself before finally falling asleep.
Marcus watched as Susan's breathing became regular. He was glad that she was able to get back to sleep. It felt so good to hold her in his arms. It felt good to be close to someone again. Looking down at her he thought to himself, *she is so beautiful.*
He glanced at the picture of Ivanova he had placed on his dresser. He instantly felt as if he was betraying her; betraying the love he had for her. All his guilt returned and he began to wonder if he would ever be able to love again.
=
The next day, 09:00.
They both agreed that after breakfast, they would head down to the gym for Susan's first self-defense course. Marcus was clearing the dishes while Susan was changing.
She emerged wearing heather grey sweatpants and a matching sports bra. Her hair loosely pulled back into a ponytail, the remaining strands falling softly around the frame of her face.
Putting down her gym bag she said, "Well, I think I'm ready to go." She turned to Marcus, "How about you?"
"I just finished the dishes. I'll be ready in one minute. I have to get my gym bag," was his reply. As he walked past her, he noticed a scar on her upper left arm. He immediately wanted to ask her what had happened, but decided against it. He also wondered if it would be a problem when she trained.
=
After arriving at the gym, Marcus sat down across from her on the mats. "First off," he began, "criminals prefer easy targets. You stand a much better chance of preventing an attack if you make yourself difficult to prey upon. That means you must have an overall personal safety strategy in place before you need it." He added, "You're not going to become and expert right away, but at least we can get the fundamentals in place. With practice it will become easier."
For about half an hour, Marcus went over a lot of principles. Then he began slowly and patiently to show her the basic moves.
After 1 hour Marcus decided it was time to put everything she learned into practice. "You stand there," he began, "and I'm going to attack you from behind. I want you to try and defend yourself."
She nodded in understanding.
Marcus began by sneaking up behind her and putting his arm around her neck in a grip. Susan tried her best to escape, but was getting confused. Was she supposed to step on his toes or try to kick his leg out and throw him off balance? Or maybe she was supposed to jab him in the ribs? She wasn't sure. In her confusion she ended up tripping them both up. She felt herself falling and grabbed onto Marcus - to no avail. She ended up flat on her back....with Marcus on top of her.
They were just a hairs breath away from each other. Both were breathing heavily. Susan could feel the hardness of his body against her.
Tenderly, Marcus traced the outline of her soft, moist lips. Then he cupped her face and with a feather light brush of his lips, he kissed her.
End Pt 4
The little girl came out from her hiding spot and ran as fast as she could down the corridor.
Susan was becoming very nervous. She was berating herself for losing sight of Marcus. But she was angrier at herself for getting into this mess.
"Damn," she muttered under her breath. "What do you want?"
The four men moved closer to her and started slapping the pipes against their hands. "We want you and your money."
"I don't have any money! I don't have a credit chit yet," Susan stammered.
"Oh come on now. Someone who looks as pretty as you doesn't have a credit chit? Come on sweetie, tell us another one," the fat, ugly one said.
"We'll just have to take it out some other way then," another one said as he licked his lips and winked at Susan.
Susan shuddered. *Now would be a really, really good time for Marcus to find me. Oh please God, let him find me,* she silently prayed.
They moved in closer to her, but she kept backing away from them.
Suddenly one of them made a move towards her. "MARCUS!" she screamed.
She heard one of the men say, "Shut up bitch" as they smacked her. The force was so great that she fell to the ground, hitting her forehead in the process. She put her hand to her head and groaned. When she looked down at her hand it had blood on it.
She heard a voice coming from the front of the corridor and instantly recognized it as Marcus.
*Thank you! Oh thank you God!* Susan thought to herself.
"Why don't you pick on somebody your own size? Oh, that's right. There isn't anyone as fat and as ugly as you lot are," Marcus said as he extended his pike. He didn't wait for any reply as he took the advantage and landed the first blow.
When Susan saw the other three men rush towards Marcus, she slid over and propped herself up against the wall out of harms way.
The fight lasted all of one minute as Marcus quickly and easily rendered them senseless.
Quickly he rushed over to Susan, his concern rising. Crouching down in front of her, he cupped her chin and carefully brought her face around towards his. "Are you okay?" Marcus brushed a bit of hair out of her face so he could get a better look at her injury.
She tried to smile. "Yea. Yea, I'm okay."
Not believing her Marcus said, "We'd better get you to MedLab."
"I'm a Doctor, Marcus! Really, I'm fine," she said.
He took out a handkerchief and placed it on her forehead to stop the bleeding. "Which is why you have blood running down the side of your face."
"Head wounds always bleed a lot. It's just a superficial cut. I won't even need stitches."
"You're going to MedLab. Are you walking or am I carrying you?"
"I can walk. Just help me up please."
Marcus helped her to stand and began leading her towards MedLab.
Once they were in the lift Susan said softly, "Marcus ... thank you. You saved my life."
"You're welcome. I'm just glad I found you in time. You shouldn't have gone off on your own though."
"I know, I know. Feel free to yell at me later, okay?"
Marcus smiled at her.
=
*Not exactly the way I wanted to meet Dr. Franklin,* Susan groaned to herself.
"Stephen," Marcus called out. "I have a patient for you."
Stephen put down his work when he saw Marcus with a young woman with blood on her face. He waved for them to go into the first room. "Well, who do we have here?"
"Dr. Franklin I'd like you to meet Dr. Barry," Marcus said. "Dr. Barry, this is the prestigious Dr. Stephen Franklin."
"It's an honor to meet you Dr. Franklin," Susan said. "I've been following your work closely."
Stephen took some gauze and gently placed it on her forehead to stop the bleeding. "Well now, a fan of mine, huh? In that case, please call me Stephen," he said proudly. "But your name sounds familiar. I just can't place it." Snapping his fingers he pointed at her. "Would you be the Dr. Barry that had the article in the The Journal of Xeno Medicine about the Pak'ma'ra immune system?"
"Yes, that's me. You mean you actually read it?" Susan was in shock that he actually heard of her.
"Absolutely. Fine work if I may say," he said to her.
"Thank you."
"Now tell me, how did this happen?" Stephen asked, pointing to her head.
Before Marcus could recount the story Susan said, "It's all my fault. I insisted that Marcus show me Downbelow."
Marcus chimed in, "Is she going to be alright Stephen?"
He turned to Marcus and nodded. "She'll be fine. Head wounds always bleed alot. It's just a superficial cut. She doesn't even need stitches."
Susan looked at Marcus and gave him a sort of 'I told you so!' type smile.
Stephen continued, "She may have a little headache later on tonight. But that's about it. You're free to go."
Susan hopped off the exam table. "Thanks for patching me up Stephen."
"You're welcome. Say, how would you like a tour of MedLab?" Stephen asked.
"Are you kidding? I'd love one. You really don't mind?" Susan said, totally surprised.
"Not at all. I'd be honored Dr. Barry," Stephen said.
"Please, call me Susan."
For one brief second, Stephen's stomach sank, remembering briefly Susan Ivanova and how much he missed her. He and Marcus locked eyes for a moment.
Returning his gaze to her Stephen said, "I'll see you tomorrow then Susan."
As she turned to leave MedLab, she grabbed hold of Marcus' arm to steady herself and swore that she felt him flinch ......
=
After they arrived back at Marcus' quarters, Susan found herself sitting on the couch again.
"Well, go ahead," she said.
"Go ahead and what?" Marcus said from the kitchen.
"You're dying to do it. So just go ahead and yell at me. Just get it over with."
Marcus smiled. He couldn't yell at her; she was only trying to help someone. He walked over to Susan and handed her a cup of tea.
Sitting down next to her he said, "I'm not going to yell at you. But I do think that we need to talk about your security."
She nodded in agreement.
"I don't mean to bring up any unpleasant memories," Marcus began, "but Delenn had mentioned that you think you might be a target for a pro-Clark movement."
Susan stared at the cup in her hand. "Even though Clark is dead, he still has many supporters." She took a sip of tea and then continued. "At the time, I was working in the Center for Disease Control in Geneva and was privy to a lot of sensitive information."
"What kind of information?" Marcus asked.
"Let's just say certain ... experiments ... that Clark was having some of the scientists do. All of this, mind you, was in secret - the public had no idea what was going on. Hell, most of the medical community didn't have a clue. One day I stumbled across these files and I was horrified. It had a lot to do with cloning and genetic experimentation. And I know for a fact that the Psi-Corps was involved. To what degree, I'm not really sure."
Marcus just listened patiently waiting for Susan to continue.
Susan put the cup down before continuing. "I tried to get them to stop. I tried to leak the information to ISN, hoping that the public would be outraged and demand a stop to the experiments. But as we now know, EarthGov was censoring ISN. Once they knew that I had found out about their experiments, they wanted me to join the team. They said that if I refused, they would have me killed."
"Dear God," Marcus said.
Susan just kept talking. "So I packed up all my findings, whatever clothes and books I could carry and escaped on a transport that night for Mars. I met up with the head of the Mars resistance, and they protected me until it looked like Mars was going to fall. I was on Mars for 2 years before I had to leave again."
"I still don't understand why you are worried about a pro-Clark movement?"
"You know about the plague that is engulfing the Earth?"
Marcus nodded. "Yes."
"I've been studying nothing but the Shadows and the Drakh for the last 3 years; their ships, their homeworld, their molecular structure." She turned to look at Marcus, "and I believe that I may have found the cure for the plague."
"You're serious?"
"I said MAY have found a cure. I need a place where I can work to test my theories. Some place secure. Where I can work without being afraid. The people loyal to Clark, and believe me there are quite a few, would love to see me dead. To see the cure die with me and to see the Earth suffer. I've backed up all my work, and secured my findings with sophisticated passwords and firewalls just in case something should happen to me."
"So why haven't you been spending all your time in MedLab?" Marcus asked.
"Because we're not sure that Babylon 5 is entirely secure. I need to be sure that no one knows that I'm here. Then I can begin to test my theories," Susan replied. "President Sheridan is doing extensive background checks on everyone associated with MedLab, since that's where I'll be spending most of my time."
"That's a lot to have on your shoulders," Marcus said to her.
"What has me worried though is, what if I get into a situation like earlier today in DownBelow and you're not around. I've never fired a PPG; I have no martial art skills. I don't know if I could defend myself," Susan said.
Marcus shifted on the couch so that he was looking directly at her. "I've done some thinking about that too and I have an idea. How would you like me to teach you how to defend yourself?"
Susan was touched. "You would do that for me?"
He nodded, "Absolutely, we could work out a little every morning."
She softly smiled at him. "I'd like that. Thank you." *That is so sweet of him,* Susan thought to herself. She could feel herself beginning to be comfortable around Marcus. And she liked that feeling a lot.
=
Later that night, around 21:00
Susan sat at the kitchen table with her notepad and 3 thick hard covered text books. She had thought of another possibility for a cure and wanted to get her theory and formula down on paper before it escaped her.
Marcus walked out of the bedroom and over to her. He observed her for a moment before he spoke. All three books were spread out across the table and she was writing like a mad woman, her hair glistening in the light. *Glistening in the light? Oh no, no, no! You have to stop this right now. Remember Ivanova? Remember how painful that was? Never again,* he said to himself. Clearing his throat he said, "I don't mean to interrupt ... "
Susan looked up from her notepad and smiled at him. "You're not interrupting. What's up?"
"Delenn has called for an emergency meeting and I must attend. Zack has dispatched 2 security guards that will be stationed outside the door. I've also been instructed to give you this link," he said handing it to her. "If there's an emergency - if you're in danger - contact me immediately. Do you understand?"
She took the link from him and firmly placed it on the top of her right hand. She nodded. "I understand. I'm sure I'll be alright."
"I should be back by 23:00. Help yourself to anything you want."
"Thanks Marcus. I think I'm just going to finish up here, take a quick shower and then get some sleep. It's been a long day," she said, wincing as she touched her forehead.
"If your head starts bothering you, contact Stephen via the BabCom."
Susan nodded. "I remember how to use it. Don't worry, I'll be fine. You'd better get going."
"See you later," Marcus said as he walked out the door.
=
22:00
Susan needed a break. She pushed herself back from the table and poured herself another cup of tea. Sitting on the couch she placed the cup on the table. *Boy, it sure is quiet around here,* she thought as she looked around Marcus' quarters.
*I wish I could get out and take a walk. Can't do that though. I promised Marcus I'd stay here until he returned.* Susan stretched out on the couch.
"You miss him," her conscience said.
*I do NOT miss him. Well, alright, maybe a little. He's my bodyguard. I feel safer when he's around.*
"Is he just a bodyguard to you?"
*He can guard my body any day. Stop it! Where did that come from? Marcus is your friend!*
"But you'd like him to be something more."
Susan started examining her feelings toward Marcus. Just how DID she feel? She liked being around him, that was a given. He definitely had a kind heart and he made her laugh. And those muscles - oh boy! A woman would be lucky to have him.
She took a sip of tea. All right, so maybe she did have a crush on Marcus Cole. A woman would have to be crazy not to. But so far, he hadn't shown any signs of returning it. Besides, didn't he have that photo of a beautiful woman on his coffee table when she first arrived? He said she was just a friend. Maybe she was just a friend; or maybe that was his way of telling her to mind her own business. Either way, there was nothing she could do about it right now.
Sighing, Susan rose from the couch and headed back into the kitchen. She still had some more work to do before she could call it a night.
=
23:15
Being careful not to make too much noise, Marcus enter his password and stepped into his quarters. Quietly walking over to the living room, he could see that Susan was asleep. She was sitting at the end of the couch with an opened book, the pink highlighter still in her hand.
He took his cloak off and placed it on the chair. Walking over to Susan he slowly took the book and marker away from her. "Textbook of Biochemistry with Clinical Correlations. Better you than me Doc," he said as he placed them on the coffee table. Then he gently slipped his arm around her waist and under her legs and carried her into the bedroom, tenderly laying her on the bed. Marcus sat next to her watching her sleep. He could see the bruise that had formed on her forehead. Reaching out to her he traced the outline of the bruise, which in turn caused her to stir. Not wanting to disturb her any further, Marcus retreated into the living room.
=
03:30
Marcus was sleeping on the couch when a piercing scream woke him. Quickly activating his pike, he went running into the bedroom.
Susan was thrashing in the bed screaming, "LET ME GO!"
Realizing that she wasn't in danger, Marcus deactivated his pike and put it down on the nightstand. He sat next to her on the bed and tried to wake her. He shook her gently. "Doctor come on, wake up. It's okay," he said in a smoothing tone.
Her forehead had beads of sweat on it, and he could see that she was trembling. "No. I don't want to see anymore. Please let me go!"
A little louder he said, "Hey now, come on, wake up."
Suddenly Susan bolted upright in bed, breathing hard, her heart pounding in her chest. With tears streaming down her cheeks she said, "Oh God. Oh God."
"It's okay, you're safe. You were just having a bad dream," he said, tenderly stroking her hair.
Susan closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. "I'm sorry Marcus."
He pulled her into an embrace. "It's alright. It was just a bad dream. You're safe now."
Susan nodded as she buried her face into his shoulder.
"Do you want to tell me about the dream? It might help?" Marcus asked.
A cold shiver ran up her spine. Pulling back from him she said, "Remember the experiments I told you about before? The ones that had to do with cloning and genetic experimentation?"
Marcus nodded.
"The experiments were being done on humans."
"In Valen's name....," Marcus gasped in horror.
"I feel the same way," she paused. "It makes me sick."
Marcus felt so bad for her. She has probably seen horrific scenes that no one should be subject to. "You're safe and everything's going to be alright. Try to lay back down."
"I can't go back to sleep, I can't." Susan shook her head.
He wiped a stray tear away. "How about if I stay here with you?"
"Would you? You don't mind?" she said.
He brought her face up to meet his. "Not at all."
Before she knew it, Marcus was in the bed and her head was resting on his chest; his strong arms around her. *Maybe there is hope. Maybe he does care about me,* Susan thought to herself before finally falling asleep.
Marcus watched as Susan's breathing became regular. He was glad that she was able to get back to sleep. It felt so good to hold her in his arms. It felt good to be close to someone again. Looking down at her he thought to himself, *she is so beautiful.*
He glanced at the picture of Ivanova he had placed on his dresser. He instantly felt as if he was betraying her; betraying the love he had for her. All his guilt returned and he began to wonder if he would ever be able to love again.
=
The next day, 09:00.
They both agreed that after breakfast, they would head down to the gym for Susan's first self-defense course. Marcus was clearing the dishes while Susan was changing.
She emerged wearing heather grey sweatpants and a matching sports bra. Her hair loosely pulled back into a ponytail, the remaining strands falling softly around the frame of her face.
Putting down her gym bag she said, "Well, I think I'm ready to go." She turned to Marcus, "How about you?"
"I just finished the dishes. I'll be ready in one minute. I have to get my gym bag," was his reply. As he walked past her, he noticed a scar on her upper left arm. He immediately wanted to ask her what had happened, but decided against it. He also wondered if it would be a problem when she trained.
=
After arriving at the gym, Marcus sat down across from her on the mats. "First off," he began, "criminals prefer easy targets. You stand a much better chance of preventing an attack if you make yourself difficult to prey upon. That means you must have an overall personal safety strategy in place before you need it." He added, "You're not going to become and expert right away, but at least we can get the fundamentals in place. With practice it will become easier."
For about half an hour, Marcus went over a lot of principles. Then he began slowly and patiently to show her the basic moves.
After 1 hour Marcus decided it was time to put everything she learned into practice. "You stand there," he began, "and I'm going to attack you from behind. I want you to try and defend yourself."
She nodded in understanding.
Marcus began by sneaking up behind her and putting his arm around her neck in a grip. Susan tried her best to escape, but was getting confused. Was she supposed to step on his toes or try to kick his leg out and throw him off balance? Or maybe she was supposed to jab him in the ribs? She wasn't sure. In her confusion she ended up tripping them both up. She felt herself falling and grabbed onto Marcus - to no avail. She ended up flat on her back....with Marcus on top of her.
They were just a hairs breath away from each other. Both were breathing heavily. Susan could feel the hardness of his body against her.
Tenderly, Marcus traced the outline of her soft, moist lips. Then he cupped her face and with a feather light brush of his lips, he kissed her.
End Pt 4