Part Eighteen
"Ouch! Ow, man, watch where you stick that. It hurts," Jeff swatted the bandage away that Edge was trying to affix to a
particularly nasty cut over his right eye.
"C'mon, Hardy, suck it up. It's just a little scrape. Want me to kiss it and make it better?" Edge asked, smiling widely. He knew
from his own experiences that those types of little scrapes tended to hurt like heck when antiseptic was applied. And Jeff's wasn't
really a scrape anyway. It was a full blown cut that had finally stopped bleeding, thanks to the gauze pads the EMTs had left behind
for them. The younger Hardy had begged off any treatment, saying he was fine.
"Don't you even think about it," Jeff retorted. "Don't you think I've been through enough torture today?"
The team had reassembled in Stephanie's office, although right now the office looked more like a makeshift mash unit. The EMTs had
just left, having tended to the Hardys, Edge, and Shane. Shannon and Rey hadn't been too hurt, they'd both left to go back to get
ready for their matches more than an hour ago, as the pay per view was well under way. Stephanie had just left with the two police
detectives, escorting them out of the arena. They'd spent the better part of the last hour and a half recounting their stories and
giving their statements to the officers.
Matt cast a glance over at Lita, who sat quietly on the couch. She appeared to be really into looking at her fingernails at the
moment. She hadn't said much of anything, except giving her version of what happened to the officers. She had choked up a little when
she told them about how Eric had kidnapped her, attempted to attack her, and how he ended up plummeting over the edge to the cold
concrete below. But to her credit, she hadn't cried anymore since he and Jeff had helped her down from the catwalk and away from the
scene. He finished pulling his t-shirt over his taped up ribs and walked over to his sullen friend.
"Mind if I sit here?"
She looked up and half-smiled, then patted the seat beside her. Matt sat down gingerly beside her and lifted his arm and placed it
around her shoulder in a comforting move. Lita leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder, accepting his gesture. Matt winced
a little at the slight jostle to his sore ribs.
"Oh, Matt," she said, sitting upright instantly, "I'm sorry. Are you hurt bad?"
"Nah," he said. "It's ok. Nothing a couple days off won't take care of. I've had worse."
Lita turned to look him in his eyes. "You scared me to death, you know," she said. He looked a little puzzled. "I looked down from
the top of that walk to see you laying unmoving after that big crash. I didn't know if you were ok or not. Don't ever do that,
ever again. Ok?"
Matt chuckled slightly, then reached out to squeeze her shoulder. "Ok, I promise. But, you know, I could say the same for
you, you know. No more Spiderman moves from you and we'll be even."
"Ok," she simply said, then settled back in the couch again, content to lean her head against the back of his arm. It made her feel safe
after so much chaos.
Stephanie came back in the room then. "Ok, gang," she said, getting their attention. She looked around, missing someone. "Where's
Shane?"
"He went to check on," Jeff started, glancing at Lita, then changed his words. "He went to make a couple phone calls. He'll be back in
a minute."
Stephanie nodded, accepting Jeff's answer. "I think everything's squared away now with the police. They are satisfied with all your
stories and will be able to use your information to press charges."
"What was the end result, Steph?" Edge asked, settling into the chair behind her desk.
"Well, Flair and my wonderful ex-husband will be spending the night and hopefully more than that with our friends at the county police
department. They are being charged with assault, conspiracy to embezzle and as accomplices to kidnapping," she said, looking
towards Lita. The word "kidnapping" seemed to make Lita very uncomfortable. Stephanie continued, "And of course, they will both
be collecting unemployment in the very near future."
"What about the others?" Jeff asked. "Were they arrested too?" Jeff got up from his position on the floor and moved to make himself
more comfortable on the couch beside Lita. He reached out and took her hand in his.
"Well, Bischoff will face the same charges, once we know…" Stephanie began, but stopped, looking carefully for the right words.
"Once we know if I killed him or not," Lita said with a guilty tone. She put her free hand over her eyes, pushing on them as if to
relieve pressure of some sort.
"Lita," Matt said, reaching out and pulling her hand away from her face. "Look at me. You don't know that."
"I don't know that I didn't" she countered.
"Li," Jeff said. "What happened to Bischoff isn't your fault. The man was trying to hurt you. You acted in self defense, which is
perfectly normal."
"Exactly," Matt said. "Please don't blame yourself for this. If you do, then he still wins."
"They're right, Lita," Edge added. "Please listen to them."
Lita blew out her breath and sighed audibly. "I know. It just doesn't feel very good. I mean, we fight people and hurt each other
in the ring all the time, but I'd never want to end someone's life. It's just, I heard his scream as he fell and the sound his body made
when he hit. I don't… I don't think I'm going to sleep very well tonight."
"Lita," Stephanie said, her voice sympathetic. "The guys got you out of there before the EMTs left with him. I was there. He was
alive when they took him out. He's going to live," she said, then added, "and I can't wait to land his ass in jail for what he's done."
"Let's change the subject," Jeff said, attempting to help Lita get her mind away from Bischoff. "What about the other losers?"
"Well, I've suspended Rosie and Jamal. We don't think they were actually aware of what Eric was doing. They were just his hired
thugs. Sean Morley also is getting his pink slip . I don't know yet how much he knew, so I'm not taking any chances."
"What about Brock and Heyman?" Matt asked.
"Believe it or not, Brock's story to the police was credible. And his name or number wasn't in any of Eric's documents, so I have no
grounds to fire him … yet."
"Great," Jeff said. "I'll keep getting my ass kicked by those F5's of his." Most of the room laughed at his comment.
"I don't trust him though," Steph said. "Not at all. I'll be watching him close."
"What about Heyman?" Edge asked. "You didn't say what happened to him."
"Yeah, well, that's cause the slime took off. He's definitely in on it. The police are looking for him, but it seems he bolted when
everything started happening."
"Do they think he's dangerous?" Matt asked.
"With Heyman, anything's a possibility."
Lita's mind swirled as they discussed Heyman. What if he came after her for revenge? What if he attacked one of her friends? Her
brow furrowed as she considered the possibilities.
"Li," Matt said and she turned her attention to the elder Hardy brother. "Don't worry, baby. We're not going to let him anywhere
near you. You're safe."
"I know, I know. But what if he tries to hurt you guys?"
"Lita, we can handle ourselves," Jeff said.
"And, Lita, they have friends who'll watch their back you know," Edge added smiling.
"Ok, ok. You are all right," she said, relaxing somewhat.
Edge looked up at the clock and wall and cursed under his breath. "Ok, guys, I'd love to stay, but I got a match coming up
soon. I need to go stretch."
"What?" Lita said, sitting upright. "You're going to fight tonight?"
"There's a pay-per-view going on, remember? Kurt Angle's expecting me to be there, so I'm going."
"Oh my goodness," she said, a new realization hitting her. "I totally forgot. I was supposed to host Heat tonight with Coach."
She rose to her feet.
"Hey, it's ok, Lita. You were covered," Stephanie said. "D'Lo stepped in for you. Everything was fine."
"Thanks," she said, "smiling somewhat. "I feel really stupid for forgetting about it though."
"You were a little bit busy, Li," Jeff joked with her.
"Well, wish me luck guys," Edge said, excusing himself from the room. He heard a chorus of well wishes as he left. As he was
leaving, Shane entered the room. "Hey," he said, making his entrance.
"Did you find anything out?" Matt asked. Shane nodded affirmatively.
Matt looked at Lita and patted the seat between he and Jeff. He wanted her close by as Shane gave them news, good or bad. The
redhead rejoined the Hardys, sitting down between her friends. Jeff reached out and put his hand on her leg, knowing she was
apprehensive about what Shane was going to tell them.
"The hospital information lines are not staffed by friendly people," Shane said. "You'd think they'd hire people with some semblance of
customer service skills for that type of position…" he rambled.
"Shane!" Stephanie said. "Please, what did you find out?"
Shane looked at Lita, who had an almost scared look on her face. He knew she'd been taking Bischoff's injury hard, although he couldn't
fathom why. The bastard had tried to kill her. She should be happy she'd knocked him off his butt.
"The lady finally put me through to someone who'd tell me something. By the way, the hospital thinks I'm your Dad, Steph."
Steph nodded. "Yeah, ok. Whatever."
"Eric was knocked unconscious by the fall, understandably. But he was stabilized quickly and was even breathing on his own by the time
they got to the hospital. The bastard's gonna live to see his day in court."
"Thank God," Lita said, falling back into the couch. Relief flooded through her whole body. "As much as I hate him, I didn't want to
see him dead by my hands."
"Yeah, well, speak for yourself," Shane said. "There's more though. He does have two severely broken legs and is in surgery as
we speak. We're talking pins, screws the whole bit. He's going to be confined to a wheelchair until they heal properly, and then will
face a couple months of physical therapy to learn how to walk again."
"Wow," Jeff said, "Look at the irony in that. Bischoff caused Lita to lose her ability to walk and be forced to learn to walk again.
Now, thanks to her ability to defend her life, he's going to have to go through the same pain and suffering she did. There is poetic
justice in this life."
Matt noticed the blank look on Lita's face and reached out and took her hand, squeezing it softly. "You ok, Li?"
She turned to look at him. "You know," she said, squeezing his hand back, "I am. I'm going to be fine. He deserves what he's about to
get. I hope it gives him a new appreciation for how he treats people."
"I think it will," he said.
"Well," Stephanie said, "I for one am very happy with the outcome to this little escapade. I can't thank you all enough for what you've
done for the company. But I'm going to try, starting with the appropriate celebratory dinner for everyone. What do you say?"
"I think it sounds great!" Shane grinned. "When do we leave?"
"I think it sounds good, too," Lita said. "But count me out tonight. I just want to go back to the hotel and try to sleep. I'm
exhausted."
"Understandably," Stephanie said. "I'll make arrangements for another day. And now, if you'll excuse me, I need to check with the
production folks on how our show's going. You are now looking at the general manager for both Raw and Smackdown. I'll see you all
tomorrow."
"Good night, Steph" Jeff said on behalf of the remaining members of the room.
"You want to go to the hotel, Lita? You do look tired," Matt commented, pushing a few stray hairs away from her face.
"Yeah, do you mind?" she asked.
"I'll go get your stuff for you Lita," Shane volunteered. "I live for any opportunity to enter the Diva's locker room.
Lita laughed softly. "Be careful, Shane. The diva's aren't very keen on unwelcome guests."
"I do love a challenge," he said smiling. "You guys go on. I'll meet you back at the hotel and drop off Lita's stuff for her."
"Ok," Matt said. "Thanks, man. Bring it to our room. She's staying with us tonight."
Jeff turned to Lita and Matt. "I'll go get our stuff too, Matt. You take Lita on to the car. I'll meet you there." Matt nodded to
his brother. "But, before I go," Jeff said, a sly grin coming to his face, "I have a bone to pick with Miss Thing, here."
"Who, me?" Lita asked innocently, knowing he was joking with her.
"Yes, you. I seem to recall you telling Bischoff that, and I quote 'Jeff's a sweet boy, but he's clueless really.' In the words
of our friend Shane, What'supwithdat?'"
Lita laughed out loud at her friend. "You heard that? Oh, silly me, I guess you did hear that. I'm sorry, Jeff," she said covering
her mouth to stifle a giggle. "I had to come up with something to tell him."
Jeff rose from the couch and leaned back down, kissing the redhead softly on her cheek. "Uh huh," he said, heading for the door. "You
just better be glad that I love you so much." He paused at the door, "and I'll be thinking about how you can make it up to me
too." He turned again and exited.
At that moment, Lita realized what the young man was referring to and yelled after him, "Oh no you don't Jeff Hardy! You better not
EVEN be thinking about sponge baths!" She and Matt heard laughter echoing from the hallway.
Matt rose to his feet, pulling the redhead up with him. "Lita, I'm so glad you're ok," he said, his tone turning serious once again.
"Me too, Matt. I was worried about you guys too. I still am. Heyman's still out there you know."
"Remember our conversation a few weeks ago about protecting each other Lita?" She nodded.
"Just remember it works both ways. You look out for me and Jeff, and we'll look out for you. Heyman is not going to be a threat.
You understand?"
"Yeah, thanks Matt." She leaned in and gave him a long hug. He held her in his arms, cherishing the way she felt. He reluctantly
let her go.
"Matt," she began hesitantly. "About us…"
"I know, Lita." He said, making what he thought she wanted to tell him easier for her to say. "One day at a time, starting with
friendship. I'm perfectly ok with that."
"Thanks," she said, "thanks for everything. I don't know what I'd do without you." She started to tear up again, thinking about how
much both Hardys meant to her.
"Hey now, none of that. You know what that does to me. Let's just focus on the future, ok? There's a great big one out there for you
now. Let's go get it started."
Lita reached up on her tiptoes and kissed Matt softly on his lips. "I'm ready," she said. "I can't wait to see what my future
holds." With that, they headed for the door to go meet Jeff, their hands intertwined.
Lita turned around one last time, looking at the empty office. "Yes, I'm definitely ready to face the future."
Fin.