A/N Thank you for the reviews. I never stop being surprised at how excellent they are. I still own nothing.

Leonard once again returned to consciousness. This time he recovered more quickly. But before the despair of what happened to Penny hit him, he was stunned to hear her voice. Wondering if he was hearing things, he saw her lean over the bed, smiling and crying at the same time.

"Penny, you're alive!"

Penny laughed, "Very good, Hofstadter."

"But how, I saw Cheryl pick up the gun."

She said sadly, "Cheryl's dead. But before I tell you about that, I need to do this."

She leaned down and careful not to put her weight on him pressed her lips and chest against him. She felt him put his good arm around her and return the kiss.

After some time, they split apart and she told him what happened after he was shot.

Leonard stared at her in amazement, "How did they find us?"

Penny smirked, "Sheldon says he was going to wait until he could tell you."

Leonard smiled, then turned serious, "I know I shouldn't, but I do feel sorry for Cheryl."

Seeing Penny nod, he went on, "I guess we owe Kurt our lives." After a pause, "How is he? That must have been difficult for him."

"It was. He was pretty shook. But he seems to be handling it now."

Leonard answered, "How about Sheldon?" He smiled, "I guess he cares about me after all."

Penny leaned down and kissed him softly, "We all do."

She stood up, "Well, I better go let them all in. I am sure they are getting awfully anxious to see you."

Before she left, she smiled, "I love you, Leonard Hofstadter."

"I love you too, Penny Andrews." He smiled broadly, "And as soon as I get out of here, I will show you how much."

"Easy, Cowboy. You have been shot. We'll see what the Doctor has to say."

After she left, the Doctor came in first. "Well, Mr. Hofstadter, you look a little happier now."

"Much happier, Doctor. It's like a miracle."

"Well, let me take a look."

After checking him out, he left and soon Sheldon, Penny, and Kurt came in.

Sheldon looked at him a little nervously, "I am glad to see you have apparently survived. I would have missed you at the office."

Leonard wanted to rib him about how he had said he loved him, but just said, "Thank you, Sheldon, I am too."

Kurt came over and laid his hand on Leonard's good shoulder, "You had us worried there for a while. Penny told us how you charged Cheryl. Not a real bright move there, Lenny." Then he smiled, "But I am really proud of you."

Leonard smiled, "Thanks for that, Kurt. It means a lot coming from you." He hesitated, "I'll never be able to thank you enough for saving Penny's life, but I am sorry for what you had to do."

Kurt patted his shoulder and took back his hand, "Thanks, Leonard, it has been tough, but I'll be all right." He smiled, "And as for saving Penny's life, you did that as well. If you hadn't charged Cheryl and got her to fire, we would have not got there in time."

Leonard nodded and then said, "How did you find out where we were so fast?"

Everyone looked at Sheldon. He smiled and said, "I think you will be impressed." He then told the story. He was right, Penny and Leonard stared at him in amazement.

When he finished, Leonard said, "That's amazing, Sheldon. That was great detective work." He smirked, "I guess you do deserve to be a Doctor of Detectiveology."

The others smiled when Sheldon, not seeing any sarcasm, said, "It is as I told you from the beginning."

Before anyone could say more, the Doctor came in, "The Police are waiting, they want to talk to Miss Andrews and Mr. Hofstadter."

Saying they would see him in just a few minutes, the others left.

When Harding and Rachel came in, Leonard greeted them and said, "Sheldon told us how you found us. We both owe you two a lot." He smiled, "I admit I am kind of surprised you took a long shot like that."

Harding smiled, "Me, too." He smiled, "But you should thank Cooper, he can be pretty persuasive."

Penny smirked, "You mean he can be awfully obnoxious if he doesn't get his way."

Rachel smiled back, "Yeah, that too."

Then Harding turned serious, "If you two feel up to it, I would like to get your statements." When they agreed he took out a tape recorder and started by introducing their names and the case.

Penny and Leonard then told them what happened.

After they were done, Rachel shook her head, "That was one messed up girl. But you know, I can't help but feel a little sorry for her." Penny and Leonard told her they agreed with her.

Then Leonard asked, "How about Kurt? Is he in any trouble?"

Harding answered, "There will be a Coroner's Inquest, but I can't see where it will be more than a formality. It is apparent he had no choice and he has a permit for his gun."

They told them goodbye after telling them it was possible they would be called to be witnesses at the Inquest. As the got to the door, Harding stopped, "Oh, there is one more thing." He smiled at Penny, "The murder charge against you has officially been dismissed. As far as the District Attorney is concerned, this case is closed."

Penny and Leonard smiled as Penny said, "Thank you."

Harding nodded and they left.

The Doctor came back in. "If it meets with your approval, Mr. Hofstadter, I have arranged for you to be transferred to Pasadena General. They will probably want to keep you overnight for observation, but as it looks now, you should be able to go home tomorrow."

As Leonard and Penny thanked him, he went on, "But you are going to be pretty sore for a while. You will have to take it easy for a week or so."

Penny blushed but needed to ask, "How about sex?"

The Doctor laughed, "I think that will be all right as long as you aren't too wild." He smiled broader as she blushed more, "You might want to be on top."

Before he left, he assured Penny she could ride in the ambulance. When the others came back in, they were all pleased he would be getting out the next day. Telling them they would see them later at Pasadena General, they said they would check out of the motel.

Penny decided she could get along without her luggage but went along with them to pack it up. She then told them goodbye as they dropped her back off at the hospital.

They discovered that apparently reporters had got wind of the story and they quickly left to avoid them.

Penny was confronted by them, but then the Doctor came out and ushered her into the hospital.

While waiting for them to get Leonard ready, Penny called her parents, telling them the good news but leaving out most of the details, deciding she would wait until they were together to talk about some of the gory details. She did tell them Leonard had been shot but quickly assured them he was all right and that they would talk to them later.

They were able to avoid the reporters by entering the Ambulance within a garage, but knew there would likely be more in Pasadena.

During the ride to Pasadena, Penny checked out the internet site for the Pasadena Star-News to see if there was anything on it. She quickly shared what she found with Leonard.

State Police troopers were sent to an abandoned farmhouse near Moorpark, California last evening. They were soon joined by Detectives Harding and Reynolds of the Pasadena Police Department. Working with a local detective agency, Cooper and Hofstadter Detective Agency, they had reason to believe that a local waitress, Penelope Andrews and a member of the detective agency one Leonard Hofstadter,were being held after being kidnapped earlier in the day.

Soon after they arrived, gunshots were heard inside the house. They immediately entered the house and in the ensuing action, Cheryl Cummings of Pasadena was killed by one of the private detectives, Kurt Adams.

Mr. Hofstadter suffered a gunshot wound at the hands of Ms. Cummings and was rushed to a local hospital, where it was discovered the wounds were not life-threatening. Ms. Andrews was unharmed.

It has been determined that Ms. Cummings was the murderer of Steven Baxter, a crime for which Ms. Andrews had previously been charged. It has now been verified that all charges against Ms. Andrews have been dropped.

This story will be updated as further information is obtained.

Penny smiled, "I have a feeling it is a good thing you asked Kurt to join the Agency, I think your business is about to pick up."

"You may be right, but I hope they don't involve any more physical violence. Working on a computer looks pretty good right now."

"I don't know, you guys were all pretty impressive. Your like famous detectives." She smiled, "Except you two are Dr. Holmes and Mr. Watson."

"Hey, why does Sheldon get to be Sherlock Holmes instead of me?"

"Because he's the weird one and you are the loving one."

Noticing the Medic was not looking, she leaned over and kissed him. "Well, we did the first step, you proved me innocent. Now we have to be thinking about getting married and having those 2.5 kids."

Leonard smiled, "I'd like that." Then he leered, "But maybe we should get lots of practice in first. You know, just to be sure were ready."

"I think you're right. After all, the doctor all but told us we should go ahead."

Just then the Medic smiled, "Okay, you two. Cut it out. This isn't a motel."

He looked at Leonard, "You are supposed to be resting not raising your blood pressure."

He smirked and went on making both Penny and Leonard blush, "And I have a feeling that's not all that is rising."

As expected, Leonard was released from the hospital the next day. That night the love-making between Penny and Leonard was extremely intense and as physical as it could be with Leonard's injury. They realized it was a realization of how close they had been to death as well as Cheryl's death. It was an affirmation of life. An expression of being alive, of how much they meant to each other.

Afterwards, as they lay next to each other, they might have been surprised that they shared similar thoughts.

They realized they had not been together before the murder and what happened afterwards. Although they knew they were in love, it was also true that they both, especially Penny, had been on an emotional roller coaster. Penny had been especially vulnerable and dependent on Leonard.

They both wondered where they should go from here. Should they start dating, should they move in together, should they get engaged, should they get married and have 2.5 children?

For Penny, it was also true she needed to return to normality. She had gone through her savings and had lived on help from her Father and Leonard. She needed to find a job, return to a normal routine.

Penny also faced the fact that her long-term relationships had not worked out so well up to now. She was sure about her and Leonard, but she had once felt similar feelings with Kurt and to a lesser extent, Steve. Would this one be different? She smiled to herself, it was true that three was her lucky number.

As Penny snuggled up to Leonard's good side, their thoughts both reached the same conclusion.; that all could wait. Now they would just enjoy being together.

Kurt sat up in bed, sweating profusely. This was the third time he had the same dream in the week since they had returned home. Looking at his watch, he sighed and decided he might as well get up.

After taking a shower, he made himself some coffee and sat down on his couch, taking a sip, thinking back on the past week.

Harding had been right about the Coroner's Inquest. It had just been a formality and he had been cleared of any legal ramifications.

He then turned his thoughts to the dream.

He was making love to Cheryl. But it was just raw sex. He was pounding her relentlessly. At first, she seemed to like it but then she started to scream out, over and over 'Oh God, Kurt, you're killing me, you're killing me!'

Then suddenly, there was blood everywhere. It covered both bodies, but Kurt ignored it, continuing to thrust into her, as her voice got shriller and shriller…

He had then awakened. Even now it caused him to shudder.

It was strange because he and Cheryl had never been together. At one time, before he met Penny, he knew she was interested in him. But in the time since it was hard to say what their relationship was. They were certainly no more that casual friends.

Finishing a cup, he pondered if he should do anything. Maybe he needed to talk to someone. He wondered if he should go to a therapist, but did not feel ready to do that.

Then he thought of what Rachel had said. Maybe he should give her a chance. After all, she had experienced something similar. The more he thought about it, the more he thought he could give it a try. He ignored the little voice that noted how pretty she was.

The next day at work, he gathered his courage and called her.

"This is Detective Reynolds."

"Hello, this Is Kurt Adams."

"Kurt. It's good to hear from you. How are you doing?"

"All right." After a hesitation, "I hate to bother you, but I remembered how you said if I wanted to talk…"

"It's no bother. I would be glad to help. Would you like to meet?"

"If you're sure it's okay."

"It's okay. Are you acquainted with a bar called The Quiet Place on fourteenth?"

"No, but I can find it."

"How about if I meet you there at nine o'clock?"

"I'll be there." Pausing, "I really appreciate this, Detective."

Rachel smiled, "Your welcome, but I'm glad you thought of me. And it's Rachel."

"Okay, Rachel, see you tonight."

"Goodbye, Kurt."

Kurt had spent some time deciding what to wear. In the end, he just settled for jeans and a tee shirt under a light jacket. After all, this was just a meeting between acquaintances.

Rachel had the same problem, but in the end made the same decision, wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. She was just helping someone out. After all, why would it matter that he happened to be gorgeous.