Disclaimers: I own nothing or anyone associated or affiliated with TNA. I own only the original characters. This is just a fictional story that came from my imagination.
Chapter Content & Trigger Warnings: Mentions of planned rape

Chapter 17

Furious at the thought of such a thing being done to Ella, Joe fought to keep his composure. She had gone through enough—more than enough. Feeling as though he had been punched in the stomach, he took a deep breath and spoke. "Over my dead body," he growled.

"The guy has to be anywhere from twenty-five to twenty-eight," AJ said, anger evident in his blue eyes. "What would he want with someone so much younger than he is?"

"Trust me," Detective Smith said grimly, in response to Joe's reaction. "If he gets her, she will do as he wants. He'll make sure of that." His attention shifted to AJ then. "And don't let Fournier's appearance fool you. He's thirty-five. And he doesn't care about the age gap—it's not love or companionship he's after. It's revenge and retribution."

"Would Fournier really risk being discovered and getting arrested when it would mean him losing any ties to Ella," Jeff interjected, speechless up to then.

"You don't understand," Smith answered. "Fournier has no intention of being discovered or getting arrested. He's gotten into a heavy life-style and possibly even has mafia connections. He's got the means to keep Ella hidden away somewhere no one can find her—ever. She's merely a possession to him—a trophy. It's definitely not that he feels love—or even lust—for her. In his mind, she has an obligation to him because of what her father 'did' to him. He's completely obsessed. The whole thing was set up. Right down to the call Dr. Roberts got from the organ bank… It wasn't legit. We checked with the hospital Ella's father worked at, and there's no record of any of his patients having an organ come in for surgery."

Joe felt sick, and powerless. And that made him all the angrier.

While they were conversing about the situation, the object of their discussion had slowly approached the dining room's swinging door.

Ella's head had grown fuzzy, so she had decided on yet another cup of coffee. She halted in her tracks when she heard her name, and listened silently as Detective Smith explained Fournier's grotesque plans for her.

Horrified, she clapped her hand over her mouth to keep from crying out.

He wants me to get pregnant for him, she thought, growing even more nauseous. Please, God, no

She forced herself to stay quiet as she heard Detective Smith inform her loved ones about the fake phone call to Nathan, in which he was told an organ had arrived for one of his patients.

The phone call was fake, she realized in horror, her chest rising and falling rapidly in an attempt to breathe. Fournier even did THAT?

A sharp ache reverberated through her chest and she clutched at it, crying out in pain. She felt her heart racing and skipping beats, and wondered if she was having a heart attack. She was vaguely aware of chairs scooting along the kitchen floor then and she swayed, the latest shock being too much for her to handle. She caught herself however, and grasped at the wall. With a loud shatter, her empty coffee mug slipped from her hand and hit the floor. The kitchen's swinging door opened and she could hear several people coming to her aid.

"Ella," she heard AJ's voice initially, and then arms closed around her, supporting her weight.

Ella whimpered weakly as her chest seemed to cave in. Struggling to pull in air, she heard a whistle ring in her head, growing louder and louder until she could barely hear the worried voices which surrounded her.

"Ella! Give her to me," she heard Joe's voice order from what seemed like a long distance. She was shifted over to his embrace and then his muffled voice spoke in her ear. "Sweetheart, you're okay. Calm down…you're safe."

"Joe…I-I can't…breathe…" she managed to gasp out. "Chest…hurts...

Vivid lights invaded her sight so strongly she had to close her eyes to dim the brightness. The whistle in her ears grew louder as her knees buckled.

She felt his strong arms holding her up, and his voice whispering to her that everything would be okay. Managing to open her eyes a fraction, Ella made out his form through her tunnel vision.

Joe eased her down until she was lying on the floor, and spoke softly. "Ella—breathe, honey. It's going to be okay, I promise. Just please, please breathe for me." He placed the palm of her hand against his chest. "Feel my breathing? Follow it, Ella. Breathe in…and out…in… ELLA!" He watched as her eyes glazed over then, and he panicked.

She vaguely saw Joe look at the others. "Someone get a paper sack—and a doctor. She's hyperventilating."

In the next instant, however, Ella slid into the comfort of the darkness with a shaky sigh of trepidation.

}i{}i{}i{}i{

Jeff felt helpless as he watched his niece lose consciousness. His heart leaped into his throat when he saw her crumpling toward the floor. Luckily, Joe had a hold of her. In the next instant, he was also by Ella's side helping Joe to check on her.

At Joe's urgent request, Nina hurried to find a paper sack for Ella to breathe into, but the girl fainted before she could return with it. She hurried to go call their family doctor then.

"Ella…baby," Jeff spoke softly as he patted her cheek, realizing she had heard enough information to frighten her to death. Together, he and Joe began checking her over to make sure she was in no visible danger.

"Check her pulse," AJ said. "Make sure her heart is holding up."

"I'm calling Dr. Hollister to come out and examine her," Nina said, as she punched in the phone number on the handset. She headed back into the kitchen so she'd be able to hear the doctor over the commotion.

Joe lifted one of Ella's limp wrists to feel her pulse. It seemed strong—a bit faster than it should have been—and a little irregular, but strong enough. Her face was as white as a sheet, and her red-rimmed, shadowed eyes made her appear even paler. He gently dabbed at her tear-drenched cheeks with a napkin, and at that moment he wished he could administer an excruciating death to Fournier. "Her pulse isn't perfect, but I don't think it's dangerous."

"I think we should get an ambulance," Detective Yandell said, as he and Smith made their way over to Ella.

Jeff shook his head, "Her breathing has regulated since she fainted, and Joe says her pulse is doing okay. I think she's fine except for the information she heard—which consequently scared her to death. She just had a panic attack."

"Still," the detective tried to insist. "We should get her to the hospital."

"No," Jeff said more firmly. "Under any other circumstances, I'd agree with you. But she is not in any mental state to wake up in that hospital again. Our family doctor will come over and take good care of her. If he sees that she definitely needs to go to the hospital, then we'll most certainly take her."

The detectives nodded in defeat. "Okay, we're going to stay till the doctor gets here. We'd like to make sure she's okay. If she is, we'll get to the hospital and check up on our guy and see if we can make the report today."

Jeff didn't acknowledge what the detective said as he continued to check Ella over. At that moment he was too worried to think about anything but her health.

Nina stepped through the door then. "She hasn't come to yet?"

Jeff shook his head. "No. She's just had too much to deal with. I think she fainted due to the stress and exhaustion. And lack of food," he added, at seeing how gaunt she had become.

"The poor baby," Nina said softly. "It's a wonder she hasn't dropped before now."

The Jarretts and others in the room all watched as Joe tenderly cupped Ella's face, stroking his thumb over her cheekbone.

"He won't touch her," he uttered distinctly. His black eyes lifted to stare into Jeff's. "I swear, Jeff. He'll have to kill me to get to her." He situated his arms underneath Ella's back and knees, then lifted her limp frame up into his arms, speaking again, with authority in his tone. "I don't want anyone outside of our wrestling family in charge of protecting her. I'll talk to Dixie about the time off and stay with you guys to help keep her safe, or she can go on the road with us so she'd be with one of us at all times. But one thing's for sure…I'm not leaving her side till this sicko is caught and put away. Or killed." He looked down at Ella when she let out a slight whimper. "I'm going to put her to bed. I hate that it's happened this way, but at least she'll get some sleep." With that, he turned and carried her toward the stairs with AJ and the cops following behind.

Nina and Jeff began picking up the large shards of broken coffee mug as they heard the sound of little footsteps rounding the corner. Their two little girls hurriedly entered the room, their faces full of questions.

"Stay back girls," Jeff said cautiously. "There's broken glass here."

The two sisters looked down at the floor where they stood to make sure they weren't standing in any, then unleashed their query.

"Why did Uncle Joey carry Ella upstairs," eight-year-old Kayla asked. "Is she okay?"

Jeff nodded. "Yes, pumpkin…She's okay. She's just not feeling well, so Uncle Joey took her up to her room."

"Has Ella got a 'code," Four-year-old Jennifer asked. "Maybe we should bring her some chickem' soup."

"No, honey," Nina said with a chuckle, picking up the last of the broken glass. "Chicken soup isn't enough to help her get well. Doctor Hollister is coming to the house to see her."

The girls gasped at the mention of 'doctor'.

"He won't give us another foo shot, will he, Mama," Jennifer asked, her eyes wide. "We already got 'ars."

"No sweetie, he won't. He's just going to see Ella."

"Why don't y'all go watch some more TV while Mommy and I talk some more, okay," Jeff asked, bending down and kissing both little girls on the top of their heads. "Then I'll come down and we'll play some Candy Land. Deal?" They nodded with an excited giggle, and then headed back down to the den. Jeff sighed after they left, and ran his hand over the back of his neck. He was obviously troubled about something. "Nina, I think there's something we need to consider."

"What is it," she asked, as she went to dump the broken glass in the trash container.

Jeff followed her and began telling her what he was debating on, afraid his wife would think he'd lost his mind.

}i{}i{}i{}i{

Are you sure about this," Nina asked, as she poured Jeff and herself some coffee. She added a splash of brandy to the two cups. "It just seems so extreme." She handed him one of the cups of coffee. "Here…I think we could both use this."

They both sat down at the dining room table then.

"I know it seems extreme, Nina. But we have to face the facts—this is an extreme situation." He twirled the cup between his hands slightly before raising it to his lips and taking a sip of the burning hot liquid.

Nina nodded, worry etching her forehead, "Yes, I know. But what will we do if that man decides to come here? What if he tries to hurt the girls because we won't tell him where Ella is?"

Jeff reached over and squeezed her hand. "Don't worry, baby. You and the girls will have to take a trip to your parents' house till this all blows over."

"Leave you," Nina asked. "I couldn't leave you behind, knowing that lunatic could hurt you. I agree with sending the girls away for their safety, but I'm staying with you."

Jeff smiled softly. "That's why I love you so much. You're such a Mama Bear," he chuckled affectionately, kissing her hand. "But no, honey. There's no way I'm putting you in harm's way. And if something were to happen to me, those little girls would need their mama to help them get through it."

"But-"

She was cut off as the doorbell chimed.

"That's Doctor Hollister," Jeff said, standing up from his chair. They both headed through the foyer and to the front door. Jeff looked through the peephole to make sure it was indeed their family doctor. A second later, Jeff pulled open the huge oak door and ushered the physician inside.

"Hello, Doctor Hollister," Nina smiled softly. "Thank you so much for coming so quickly."

"It's not a problem, I assure you," the older man said. He allowed Jeff to remove his coat, and then turned back to Nina as Jeff hung the coat in the hall.

"So, what exactly is wrong with your niece," he asked. "You sounded a bit frantic over the phone, and I only caught that she'd fainted. But I could tell by your voice I needed to get out here soon."

Nina nodded as Jeff spoke up. "Yes, Nina was very worried. We had a couple of cops here, giving us some information about Ella's…situation. I'm sure you've heard about it on the news and in the paper."

"Yes," Doctor Hollister replied, frowning. "I was very sorry to hear about it."

"Well, I'm sorry to say," Jeff continued, "that Ella came downstairs as the cops revealed that her parents were set up and she was the true target. However, it gets much worse than that. But it's personal and I don't care to get into it all. Suffice it to say—she heard some very crucial details and passed right out. So, we wanted you to come out and check her over and make sure we don't need to get her to a hospital."

The doctor nodded. "Well, you did the right thing by calling me. If you'll take me to her, I can assess the damage, if any."

The Jarretts both led him upstairs to Ella's bedroom, and found the two cops standing in the hallway.

"That kid's ferocious where your niece is concerned," Detective Smith reported with awe. "We wanted to go in and keep an eye on her to make sure we didn't need to dispatch for an ambulance, and he practically snarled at us, and then slammed the door in our faces."

Jeff scrubbed his hand down his face, "Yes, Joe's very protective of her. He's just trying to shield Ella from some of this."

The detectives nodded understandingly, and stepped aside so the doctor and the Jarretts could enter the room. Once inside, they saw that Ella had not yet gained consciousness. Joe sat on the edge of the bed holding her hand in his, and AJ stood in the corner of the room trying to stay collected.

"How is she," Jeff asked, coming to stand by the bed.

Joe shook his head. "The same. As you can see, she's still out cold and she's not come to once. She hasn't moved a muscle. I of course want her to get some rest, but she looks so…" he trailed off, unable to finish his thought.

Nina reached over and patted his shoulder. "She'll be fine, hon."

The doctor sat his bag on the bed and began pulling out some instruments. Within a few seconds, he was checking her pulse, then listening to her heart and taking her blood pressure.

"Well, her vitals look okay. However, her pulse is a little bit irregular. How has her eating and sleeping habits been," Dr. Hollister asked, looking up at the three.

Joe answered, being as he was the one who had been around Ella the most for the past few days. "She's kept hardly any food down, even when she was in the hospital. And she hasn't been sleeping at all either. She fights it tooth and nail."

"That has to stop. Immediately," the doctor replied. "Be sure she eats. Even if she can't keep anything but light soups and crackers down. A little nutrients is better than none."

"Okay," Jeff agreed.

Doctor Hollister continued, "And she has to sleep. If she keeps herself awake anywhere from eight to eleven days, she could potentially make her body go into a coma."

Nina's hand flew to her mouth, "Oh, my God. She's just come out of a coma a short time ago."

"What can we do, Dr. Hollister," Jeff demanded in frustration. "We've tried giving her Benedryl, and switched the coffee to decaf, and she still fights sleep like it's a plague."

"I'll give her a shot of something that will probably keep her out longer, but she will get some much-needed sleep. And I'll give her something to help regulate her pulse. I'd also recommend giving her a potassium supplement."

He then bent over Ella with his penlight and began flashing the light across her pupils. "I'll give her a shot of Valium and some Tenormin for the pulse." He began loading up a couple of syringes. "Don't be alarmed if she sleeps for over twenty-four hours after all the stress she has dealt with. However, if she's not awake within thirty-six hours, get her to the hospital and call me." He tugged up the sleeve of her baggy sweater and gave her the first of the injections.

"So…she's okay then," AJ asked.

The doctor nodded. "Yes. She is fine. She just really needs to start sleeping and eating."

"Yes, of course," Nina agreed. "We'll definitely make sure she starts taking better care of herself."

After getting the second injection into Ella, Doctor Hollister collected his things and placed them back inside his bag as he spoke. "Feel free to call me, no matter what time, if you have any questions. And of course, if she has any new symptoms arise over the weekend, get her to the emergency room immediately." He stood from the bed then, indicating that his examination of Ella was complete.

"Thank you," Jeff replied as Nina headed for the door, preparing to show the doctor out.

"You're very welcome. Maybe the poor girl will get some rest now."

With that, he stepped out the door followed by Nina. But before she stepped out the door, she turned and cut Jeff a glance full of meaning. Jeff caught her message loud and clear. She wanted him to talk to Joe about their earlier discussion. He heard her telling the cops that she'd see them out as well, and then he turned to Joe. He took a long look at the younger man and wondered if he was doing the right thing. After seeing the love in Joe's eyes as he stroked Ella's hair, and the worry etching his forehead, Jeff knew he had nothing to worry about.

"Joe, I need to talk to you about something. AJ—would you mind leaving us for a little while?"

"Sure," AJ replied. "I"ll go sit with the kiddos and keep them company."

Once AJ was gone, Joe shifted his gaze to meet Jeff's. "What is it?"

Jeff exhaled sharply. Why am I so nervous? Either he'll go for it or he won't. It's not like he's gonna get angry. "I discussed an idea with Nina earlier…she was a bit skeptical at first, but soon realized it may be for the best." He walked over to the armchair next to Ella's bed and sat down. "Tell me, Joe… And I want you to be completely honest. Don't worry about me getting pissed off at your answer."

"Jeff, what is it? You're starting to freak me out."

Jeff took a deep breath and plunged ahead. "I already know you love Ella, Joe. What I need to know is—are you in love with her."

Joe wasn't prepared for that particular question. He knew the answer immediately, he just didn't know—despite Jeff's reassurance—if his friend would like it. He swallowed hard.

"I'm not going to be mad, no matter what your answer."

Joe bravely lifted his gaze and stared Jeff in the eye. "Yes. I'm in love with her."

"And you're sure? It's not just a physical attraction? You're sure feelings didn't just develop because of the situation, and because you've spent so much time with her lately?"

Joe shook his head. "I'm in love with her, Jeff. Okay? I've never been more positive of anything in my life. She's the only one for me." He went on to explain about New Year's Eve when he first saw Ella after three years of no contact, and about the Christmas gift he'd gotten her on impulse. He described the arguments they had and then their kisses. "I know it sounds corny, Jeff, but I swear when I kiss her it's like—I don't know how to explain it—I've just never felt anything like it. It's like…"

"Like heaven on earth," Jeff suggested, smiling softly. "It feels like you're coming home. I know. I feel the exact same thing every time I kiss Nina."

Joe nodded, seemingly amazed by the emotions Ella brought out in him. "I just knew I'd do anything for her. And then she was almost…" he trailed off, overcome with the fear of what could have happened. "I would've died for her, Jeff. I've never been so scared in my life. I was terrified I wouldn't get to her in time."

"But you did, Joe. She is alive because of you. The worst is behind us. Now, we just have to plow forward, and help Ella through it."

Joe nodded in agreement. "I'll do whatever I can to help her, and to protect her."

"Good," Jeff said. "Because I know of a way you can do both."

Joe's forehead wrinkled in confusion. "Really? What do you have in mind?"

Jeff hesitated a moment, not exactly sure how to pitch his idea. "If you truly love her, and she loves you…then marry her."

Joe did not seem quite as surprised as Jeff would have expected. The young Samoan actually smiled, his dimples appearing in his cheeks.

"Well, Jeff…we already kind of thought of that. We—we've talked about it, and when this whole situation is resolved, I'm going to propose to her."

"No," Jeff said immediately, shaking his head.

"No," Joe parroted. "But you just said-"

"I want you to marry her now. Or, as soon as possible," Jeff explained, his blue eyes lighting up. "Like maybe in a week or two…when Ella's had time to recuperate from this a little more."

"Now," Joe cried in shock.

"Yes," Jeff replied. "I want you two to get married and get away from here for a while."

"You've thought about this for a while, haven't you," Joe asked, immediately warming to the idea.

Ella could be my wife sooner than I'd even hoped, he thought, his heart soaring.

"For a short while, but yes, a while. If y'all get married now, you could take her away from here with a new last name. She could even start going by her middle name. As Symone Seanoa, Fournier would be thrown off track—at least for a while. Especially if you go someplace without letting anyone know where."

Joe remained silent for a moment, and then spoke softly, "Okay. I'll propose to her sometime after she wakes up. I don't want to shock her with it right away though."

"Yeah, good idea. Wait a day or two and see how she feels."

Joe nodded. "Would it be all right if I went ring shopping," he asked. "I mean she probably won't wake up before I get back, will she?"

"I doubt it," Jeff said. "Go on out and do what you have to do. She'll be safe."

Joe left the room, and a couple minutes later, Jeff heard the front door close.