Aaah...There is no way I can explain how much I love the reviews I've gotten so far for the last chapter. Strong reactions, whether good or bad, mean everything to me. It's interesting to see how some people are like, "Yay, Matt!" and some people are like, "%#*@ Matt!" Myself, I'm kinda like, "I put Matt in this story? Huh?" Like I said, blame my other personality.
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Lita looked over Matt's shoulder at the rest of them, her team. Justin and Lance were shifting uncomfortably, looking anywhere but down at her. Stevie didn't try to hide his bewilderment, staring at the scene before him and running a hand through his hair. Bubba and D-von glared down, all business, showing no emotion. Spike tried to imitate his big brothers, but his bottom lip trembled with rage. Tommy leaned on his kendo stick, an unspoken threat. Raven sat slumped back against the screen on the stage, tapping the back of his head softly again and again on the metal, eyes closed. Rey only stared down at her, arms crossed, demanding an explanation. Kane stood, shoulders slumped, head down, hands clenching and unclenching into fists. But it was Rob who caught her.
Rob's eyes, wide and wounded. He looked at her, betrayal breaking his face, opening a floodgate of tears and he stalked away, pushing through the others to hurry backstage. Lita pulled back from Matt, confused.
He smiled down at her, happy just to have her in his arms again. She faked a smile up at him, nodding when he asked if she was all right. He wrapped an arm around her and they walked back up the ramp.
ECW parted for them as they went by. Lita looked around at them, asking for an explanation for their coldness, but none would meet her eye. Matt seemed oblivious to all of it, wrapped up completely in the two of them.
Shaking her head, Lita walked with him backstage.
She didn't see or hear from any of the rest of ECW for the entire week. So she spent it with Matt, catching up. He was a better listener than before, begging her to tell him all about what it'd been like, leading such a powerful team.
So she told him everything, from recruiting the guys one by one, to especially things he was interested about, like how they'd subdued Kane. He was congratulatory on all the right points, sympathetic at the proper moments, and laughed at all the correct places, like her retelling of Bubba and D-von's apologies to Spike in the hospital.
The following Sunday, Lita lay snuggled in Matt's arms on their hotel bed, watching "Heat". Things had come about so quickly, gone back to normal so soon. Matt was ten times better than she'd remembered him. He was gentler, sweeter, more considerate, nowhere near as jealous as he once was. "He's really trying to make it up to me," Lita thought, leaning up for a quick peck. He smiled at her. "What was that for?" She shrugged. He leaned down, pressed his lips more fully against hers. She responded desperately and he rolled over on top of her, deepening it. They were interrupted by a knock on the door.
"It could be one of the guys," Lita tried to sit up, and Matt pushed her gently back down. "Don't worry, I'll get it."
She lay there, watching the t.v., listening to the sounds of him opening the door, and his rich Carolina drawl. "I was wondering when y'all 'ud be here."
"Is she here?"
"Yeah, she's right in the other room."
Lita sat up, panicking. She knew that voice.
Triple H and his acolytes walked into the room, Matt behind. Lita sprang up, backing into the corner, her eyes trying to take in all her enemies at once and the fastest route to the door. "Never make it; I'll never make it," she thought wildly.
"Li," Matt tried to calm her. "It's okay; we've struck a deal. No one's going after you anymore."
"What deal?" she asked hoarsely.
"You're safe. No one's going to hurt you."
"WHAT DEAL?"
Triple H sat down on the bed, smoothing his coat down. "It's nothing drastic, no need for such concern. Merely information and the promise that none of ECW will go after my title in exchange for your protection."
Lita glared up at Matt. "What information?"
"Look, it's nothing that's going to get you in any trouble."
"What information? What's he talking about?"
Triple H answered her questions on Matt's behalf. "It was smart of you, to think of using something new, an 'opposite element', perhaps, to deal with Kane. And it certainly helps me out, to assure that big red freak never tries to interfere in any of Evolution's plans ever again."
"No," Lita shook her head, sinking to the floor. "No. You couldn't give them Kane. How could you?"
"How could you trust him? He nearly killed you. He would have turned on you at any minute. I'm just looking out for you."
"Don't. I was doing much better before."
"We told you, Matt," Triple H smiled. "She's so ungrateful. Not to mention unloyal. Did you really think she'd be content with just you after all the *various* men whose company she's been enjoying?"
"Shut up; you don't know what you're talking about," Lita snapped from her curled up position on the floor. She wanted to leap to her feet, make a run for it, but with the four, make that five, Matt counted as one of them now, men blocking her way, she knew she didn't stand a chance. Not to mention how badly her head was spilling and the fact that she felt she could be sick at any moment. "Stupid girl hormones that control emotion," she muttered to herself, eliciting some odd looks from the others in the room.
Shaking his head, Triple H continued on. "Matt, I didn't want you to have to see this, but let us show you what your lady has been up to while you were away. Randy."
Randy handed Triple H a plain, unmarked tape. Triple H placed it in the VCR and used the remote to switch it over to the proper channel.
It was surveillance, Lita could see that much. It didn't take long to see what it was of, either. Her.
"You followed me and taped me? You're a sicker bastard than I realized," Lita muttered. Triple H snatched her up by her hair and turned her head to face the television. "You tell me who's the sick one. Whose room are you going in now?"
"Bastardo chengado. Those are my teammates. I'm not allowed to check on them and discuss strategy?"
"Do you honestly think I'm stupid enough to believe that a slut like you is traipsing around that hotel for strategic planning purposes? No one is that naive."
"You expect everyone to believe that the four of you are heterosexual, which seems like far more of a stretch to me. Especially for your little lap dog Orton, there."
Randy shoved her down on the bed. "Do you want me to prove to you how much of a man I am?"
Lita squirmed uncomfortably. "No, that won't be necessary. I'll take your word on it."
Matt glanced away from the t.v. screen to shoot a glare at Orton. "You promised you wouldn't hurt her."
"I thought after seeing this you honestly wouldn't care anymore," Triple H replied.
"I don't," Matt answered coldly. "But I don't want any blood on my hands."
"Fair enough. But we really don't intend to hurt her. She's far too valuable right now as she is. Anyway," Triple H stood up, pulling a fat white envelope out of his inner coat pocket. He handed it to Matt. "The amount we promised."
Matt counted the money, seeming pleased with what he found. "Good deal. Nice doing business with you."
"No," Lita moaned from the bed. "That's not true. Business? Please...it's not true."
Matt leaned down over her, whispering in her ear. "Sorry, Li, but I'll be heading back to my old show now. 'It just scares me how in love I am with you,'" he said in a mockingly sweet voice. "And it really scares me to think what ECW would do to me if I stuck around long enough for them to find out what's happened. So," he kissed her gently. "Bye."
Orton let her up after Matt had left and closed the door. She sat trembling, cornered like a rabbit by foxes on every side. "What are you going to do?"
"Make sure your precious boys meet our demands."
"So I'm a hostage then," she surmised matter-of-factly. Four heads nodded.
"But it doesn't matter whether ECW agrees to your terms or not, you're still going to do to me what you want, aren't you?" she asked slowly.
They nodded again.
"But, even knowing this, the guys will do whatever you say just so they can take every possible chance to assure that I won't be hurt, not that it will help at all."
"You're a smart girl," Triple H complimented her. "And you know how we think. You'd actually make a really nice addition as the first female member of Evolution."
"Go to hell."
"But it's *that* kind of problem with authority that makes you so hard to deal with."
"You have no authority over me."
He had her pinned in an instant, his hands wrapped tightly around her neck. She fought and squirmed as he squeezed the life out of her. Having no better alternatives, she spit in his face.
He reared back from her, wiping his face in disgust.
Lita only remembered the first punch.
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So, I am one sick mofo, huh? Evolution has Lita captive. Obviously, this sucks. They're gonna use her as bait. Even suckier. Now I have to think of somewhere good/new/creative to go with this. The suckiest of all. Oh well. Time for me to mellow out by watching "The Silence of the Lambs" (again). What, you don't think Hannibal Lecter's sexy in a way? I said "in a way". Not even in a little way? No? Well, then try reading the books; he's cooler in that.
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Lita looked over Matt's shoulder at the rest of them, her team. Justin and Lance were shifting uncomfortably, looking anywhere but down at her. Stevie didn't try to hide his bewilderment, staring at the scene before him and running a hand through his hair. Bubba and D-von glared down, all business, showing no emotion. Spike tried to imitate his big brothers, but his bottom lip trembled with rage. Tommy leaned on his kendo stick, an unspoken threat. Raven sat slumped back against the screen on the stage, tapping the back of his head softly again and again on the metal, eyes closed. Rey only stared down at her, arms crossed, demanding an explanation. Kane stood, shoulders slumped, head down, hands clenching and unclenching into fists. But it was Rob who caught her.
Rob's eyes, wide and wounded. He looked at her, betrayal breaking his face, opening a floodgate of tears and he stalked away, pushing through the others to hurry backstage. Lita pulled back from Matt, confused.
He smiled down at her, happy just to have her in his arms again. She faked a smile up at him, nodding when he asked if she was all right. He wrapped an arm around her and they walked back up the ramp.
ECW parted for them as they went by. Lita looked around at them, asking for an explanation for their coldness, but none would meet her eye. Matt seemed oblivious to all of it, wrapped up completely in the two of them.
Shaking her head, Lita walked with him backstage.
She didn't see or hear from any of the rest of ECW for the entire week. So she spent it with Matt, catching up. He was a better listener than before, begging her to tell him all about what it'd been like, leading such a powerful team.
So she told him everything, from recruiting the guys one by one, to especially things he was interested about, like how they'd subdued Kane. He was congratulatory on all the right points, sympathetic at the proper moments, and laughed at all the correct places, like her retelling of Bubba and D-von's apologies to Spike in the hospital.
The following Sunday, Lita lay snuggled in Matt's arms on their hotel bed, watching "Heat". Things had come about so quickly, gone back to normal so soon. Matt was ten times better than she'd remembered him. He was gentler, sweeter, more considerate, nowhere near as jealous as he once was. "He's really trying to make it up to me," Lita thought, leaning up for a quick peck. He smiled at her. "What was that for?" She shrugged. He leaned down, pressed his lips more fully against hers. She responded desperately and he rolled over on top of her, deepening it. They were interrupted by a knock on the door.
"It could be one of the guys," Lita tried to sit up, and Matt pushed her gently back down. "Don't worry, I'll get it."
She lay there, watching the t.v., listening to the sounds of him opening the door, and his rich Carolina drawl. "I was wondering when y'all 'ud be here."
"Is she here?"
"Yeah, she's right in the other room."
Lita sat up, panicking. She knew that voice.
Triple H and his acolytes walked into the room, Matt behind. Lita sprang up, backing into the corner, her eyes trying to take in all her enemies at once and the fastest route to the door. "Never make it; I'll never make it," she thought wildly.
"Li," Matt tried to calm her. "It's okay; we've struck a deal. No one's going after you anymore."
"What deal?" she asked hoarsely.
"You're safe. No one's going to hurt you."
"WHAT DEAL?"
Triple H sat down on the bed, smoothing his coat down. "It's nothing drastic, no need for such concern. Merely information and the promise that none of ECW will go after my title in exchange for your protection."
Lita glared up at Matt. "What information?"
"Look, it's nothing that's going to get you in any trouble."
"What information? What's he talking about?"
Triple H answered her questions on Matt's behalf. "It was smart of you, to think of using something new, an 'opposite element', perhaps, to deal with Kane. And it certainly helps me out, to assure that big red freak never tries to interfere in any of Evolution's plans ever again."
"No," Lita shook her head, sinking to the floor. "No. You couldn't give them Kane. How could you?"
"How could you trust him? He nearly killed you. He would have turned on you at any minute. I'm just looking out for you."
"Don't. I was doing much better before."
"We told you, Matt," Triple H smiled. "She's so ungrateful. Not to mention unloyal. Did you really think she'd be content with just you after all the *various* men whose company she's been enjoying?"
"Shut up; you don't know what you're talking about," Lita snapped from her curled up position on the floor. She wanted to leap to her feet, make a run for it, but with the four, make that five, Matt counted as one of them now, men blocking her way, she knew she didn't stand a chance. Not to mention how badly her head was spilling and the fact that she felt she could be sick at any moment. "Stupid girl hormones that control emotion," she muttered to herself, eliciting some odd looks from the others in the room.
Shaking his head, Triple H continued on. "Matt, I didn't want you to have to see this, but let us show you what your lady has been up to while you were away. Randy."
Randy handed Triple H a plain, unmarked tape. Triple H placed it in the VCR and used the remote to switch it over to the proper channel.
It was surveillance, Lita could see that much. It didn't take long to see what it was of, either. Her.
"You followed me and taped me? You're a sicker bastard than I realized," Lita muttered. Triple H snatched her up by her hair and turned her head to face the television. "You tell me who's the sick one. Whose room are you going in now?"
"Bastardo chengado. Those are my teammates. I'm not allowed to check on them and discuss strategy?"
"Do you honestly think I'm stupid enough to believe that a slut like you is traipsing around that hotel for strategic planning purposes? No one is that naive."
"You expect everyone to believe that the four of you are heterosexual, which seems like far more of a stretch to me. Especially for your little lap dog Orton, there."
Randy shoved her down on the bed. "Do you want me to prove to you how much of a man I am?"
Lita squirmed uncomfortably. "No, that won't be necessary. I'll take your word on it."
Matt glanced away from the t.v. screen to shoot a glare at Orton. "You promised you wouldn't hurt her."
"I thought after seeing this you honestly wouldn't care anymore," Triple H replied.
"I don't," Matt answered coldly. "But I don't want any blood on my hands."
"Fair enough. But we really don't intend to hurt her. She's far too valuable right now as she is. Anyway," Triple H stood up, pulling a fat white envelope out of his inner coat pocket. He handed it to Matt. "The amount we promised."
Matt counted the money, seeming pleased with what he found. "Good deal. Nice doing business with you."
"No," Lita moaned from the bed. "That's not true. Business? Please...it's not true."
Matt leaned down over her, whispering in her ear. "Sorry, Li, but I'll be heading back to my old show now. 'It just scares me how in love I am with you,'" he said in a mockingly sweet voice. "And it really scares me to think what ECW would do to me if I stuck around long enough for them to find out what's happened. So," he kissed her gently. "Bye."
Orton let her up after Matt had left and closed the door. She sat trembling, cornered like a rabbit by foxes on every side. "What are you going to do?"
"Make sure your precious boys meet our demands."
"So I'm a hostage then," she surmised matter-of-factly. Four heads nodded.
"But it doesn't matter whether ECW agrees to your terms or not, you're still going to do to me what you want, aren't you?" she asked slowly.
They nodded again.
"But, even knowing this, the guys will do whatever you say just so they can take every possible chance to assure that I won't be hurt, not that it will help at all."
"You're a smart girl," Triple H complimented her. "And you know how we think. You'd actually make a really nice addition as the first female member of Evolution."
"Go to hell."
"But it's *that* kind of problem with authority that makes you so hard to deal with."
"You have no authority over me."
He had her pinned in an instant, his hands wrapped tightly around her neck. She fought and squirmed as he squeezed the life out of her. Having no better alternatives, she spit in his face.
He reared back from her, wiping his face in disgust.
Lita only remembered the first punch.
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So, I am one sick mofo, huh? Evolution has Lita captive. Obviously, this sucks. They're gonna use her as bait. Even suckier. Now I have to think of somewhere good/new/creative to go with this. The suckiest of all. Oh well. Time for me to mellow out by watching "The Silence of the Lambs" (again). What, you don't think Hannibal Lecter's sexy in a way? I said "in a way". Not even in a little way? No? Well, then try reading the books; he's cooler in that.