A/N – Thanks for the comments. Regarding some comments about the mental illness, yes it does make a difference and Elizabeth is acknowledging that but it doesn't make the pain they suffered go away and Carolyn had plenty of times when she was stable and could have told the truth or made things right and she chose not to, so she has to deal with the consequences as well as Jeff who helped enable her. If they had been honest about her mental illness, that would have made a huge difference too. Thanks!

Chapter 48

Elizabeth and Jason rushed towards Kelly to see Epiphany and Francis. When they got there, they spotted them and Nicole, Johnny, Ali, Stan, and Diane about to enter the diner.

"Piph is glowing," Liz said.

Jason smiled. "Yeah."

Francis went to grab the door handle and a man appeared a few feet away.

"Nicole put the baby down and come with me."

Everyone's attention went to the man and Jason pulled Elizabeth to the side since they hadn't reached the group yet and pulled out his gun.

Johnny stared him down. "You know I can't let you take her."

Several men flanked the gunman. "You don't have a choice unless you have a death wish."

An off-duty cop moved forward across from Jason with his gun drawn. "Lower your weapons now. Backup is on the way."

A shot rings out, making the officer fall to his knees as he shoots wildly. Francis dives in front of Nicole, taking her and the baby down to the ground as Johnny drops to his knee and starts to fire.

Several guards get involved as everyone takes cover the best they can.

The men run and police swarm the area.

The baby is crying as Johnny wiggles her out from under Francis and hands her to Diane.

He spots blood. "Are you hit?"

Nicole's eyes tear. "No. Francis, talk to me."

Piph gets on her knees and Jason helps her turn Francis onto this back.

He gasps as pain radiates through him. "I'm sorry," he said to Piph.

"It would have hit the baby if you hadn't done what you did." She looks up. "Where is the ambulance?"

The off-duty cop looks around. "They should be here any minute."

"You shot me," Francis said.

The cop's eyes grow wide. "No…"

"Yes, you did. You idiot."

Nicole glared at him as Taggert runs towards them.

"What happened?"

Jason is applying pressure to Francis's wound. "That idiot over there started shooting wildly and almost took out the baby. Francis dove in front of them and took the hit."

"Who was it?"

"They didn't say," Diane said as she rocked the baby. "They wanted Nicole."

Taggert is surprised she is offering the information.

Lorenzo, who had been running late, ran towards them just as the paramedics arrived.

They quickly stabilized Francis, who had passed out, and got him on a gurney.

Johnny is livid. He pulled Nicole off to the side. "You can go to the hospital, but you'll be safer at the compound."

She nodded. "Be careful.

"I will.

"Once he's out of danger, I'll go home."

"I'll call when I can."

He gave his statement and then called Dominic. "Sal's men just tried to take Nicole and Francis ended up getting shot when the cops showed up."

Dominic stood and moved into his office. "Is he alive?"

"Yes. He's on the way to the hospital."

"I'll send my men to patrol the perimeter."

"Thank you. I'm going after Ronnie."

"I'll take care of Sal."

"If you don't, we will." He ended the call and ran to his car as everyone else headed to the hospital.

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A doctor approached the concerned group. Frank had just gotten off the elevator and no one had seen him yet.

"Francis needs surgery. The bullet did go through, but not before causing substantial damage. He has lost a lot of blood. Is there family here who can sign off on the surgery?"

Piph stepped forward. "I'm his wife and I have his power of attorney."

You could hear a pin drop until the silence is finally broken by Nicole as Piph signed the paper and Leo ran off.

"You're his what?" Nicole asked.

"We were going to tell you at Kelly's. We flew to Chicago for the weekend and it was just so romantic. He asked me to marry him and then we decided we didn't want to wait." She is barely holding it together which Jason recognizes.

"Please sit," Jason said before directing her to a chair.

"Wow," Elizabeth said as she spied the huge diamond ring on Piph's left hand.

"We were going to have a party with everyone to celebrate. Please don't be mad."

Nicole wiped a tear away. "I'm just disappointed. I would have loved to see you exchange vows."

"Me too, but I'm happy for you," Liz said.

"If he makes it through this, maybe we can renew them in the gardens behind the house," Piph said.

"He's going to make it. He has too," Nicole said.

Lorenzo had rocked the baby to sleep. "Why don't I have the guards take me back to the house. I'll stay there until you come home."

Nicole got up and kissed the baby on the forehead. "Are you sure?"

Diane hugged her. "I'll go with him. I'm so glad you're okay." She knew about the power of attorney but not about the wedding which means there was no prenuptial agreement.

"Just text me when you're there."

Nicole tracked them until the elevator doors shut and then Jason grabbed her hand.

"There are four guards with them. The five families sent guards to place around the building and there are more at the house. We have it covered."

Johnny asked him to stay at the hospital and help guard everyone.

Monica approached them. "Francis is in surgery. It will be several hours before they finish. Why don't you move to a family room so you're not out in the open."

"Okay."

They headed there and Jason placed a guard down the hallway and right out in the front.

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Five hours later, Leo opens the door and a weary Piph stands.

"Did he make it?"

"Yes, but due to his injuries, we are keeping him heavily sedated. I didn't want to take any chances. He barely made it. The bulleted lacerated his liver and then struck a rib which fragmented and ruptured his spleen which we had to remove. He'll be in a lot of pain when he wakes up but if all goes well and no serious infections occur, he'll eventually heal."

"Thank you for saving him."

Leo gives her a hug and then goes to check on his patient.

Nicole starts to sob with relief and Evangeline, who had just joined them, held her.

"I want to go to the chapel," Piph said.

Jason moved towards her. "I'll take you." Before exiting, he turned to face everyone. "There is a guard outside the door. Please don't leave this room." He led Piph to the chapel and she sat and started to pray.

Jason shut his eyes and said a prayer too.

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Ronnie stopped at a light. Apparently, Francis had been shot protecting Nicole and the baby and his men were unable to take her. Plan B was set in motion and this time, Nicole will be his in the end. He just has to be patient and wait for her to leave the hospital.

Right as the light changed, two SUV converged on him, one parking in front and the other in back to prevent him from leaving.

"Shit." He reaches for his gun and the window is smashed and then Johnny puts his Glock against his skull.

"Put your hands up."

Ronnie slowly holds them up and Johnny jerks the door open and drags him out, throwing him up against the side of the car.

"You fucking piece of shit. Did you really think you'd get away with it?"

"I almost did."

"I can't wait to kill you slowly."

Ronnie laughs. "You can't stop what is about to happen. No one can and once it is done, if I don't call within an hour, she dies."

Johnny punched him in the gut and then shoved him towards a guard. "You know what to do." He ran back to his car and made a call to Jason, but he didn't answer, so he called one of the guards.

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Elizabeth hugged Jason. "We're going right home. I'll call you when we get there." Piph decided to stay the night and made everyone go home.

"I love you."

She smiled. "I love you too."

He watched as she got into the SUV and then turned to one of Dominic's men to get a briefing. When the car was about two blocks away he heard a crash followed by gunfire and took off running.

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The SUV stopped at a light and when it turned green, it headed into the intersection and a truck careened into the front passenger side door, sending Elizabeth flying through the air before she slammed into the other door.

Nicole had hit her head and was struggling to stay awake as the driver opened the door and then started firing until he is struck.

The door is opened and Nicole is dragged out as she tried to fight.

"Stop it, you bitch."

She bites his hand and he strikes her to make her stop as Elizabeth starts to regain consciousness, spotting the guard's gun on the asphalt.

A town car pulls up and another man gets out and they start to drag a screaming Nicole towards it.

Liz lifts her arm and shoots, hitting one of the men in the leg and he goes down. The other drops Nicole and starts to fire at the car.

Jason pulls out his gun and takes him out as Nicole crawls towards Elizabeth.

A few of Dominic's guards arrive and they quickly access the situation. The guard in the passenger seat is dead, but the one on the ground isn't, so they drag him into the truck first.

"Nicole, are you alright?"

She nods. "Elizabeth…"

He looks at the car. "Get her inside now." He can hear sirens, so they need to get out of there." More help arrives and they help get the dead guard into the SUV and it takes off.

They put Nicole in the car.

"Elizabeth?"

"Jason?" He moves inside, finding her on the floor. "Where are you hurt?"

"My head hurts."

"Were you shot?"

"No."

He pulls her out and carries her to the car and they take off.

"Where am I going?" the driver asked.

He rattles off the address of Crimson Point and then calls a doctor to meet him there. Elizabeth is on his lap and Nicole is shivering next to him.

"Nicole, talk to me."

"Can't stop shaking."

A few seconds later, he feels her body go lax. "Shit." Quickly, he dialed his phone.

"Hello?"

"Diane, it's Jason. Have Lorenzo meet us at the door. A doctor is on the way."

Her heart dropped. "Who is hurt?"

"Elizabeth and Nicole."

"We'll be waiting."

Liz gripped him tighter and he wishes he could say something to comfort them. He made one more call before they pulled into the driveway.

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Evangeline moved into the hallway after telling Epiphany what Jason had told her. It had been a hard night for the Corelli family and friends and she hopes that Johnny is out there putting an end to it.

The minute she enters Manny's room he senses something is wrong.

"What happened?" He is aware of Francis's surgery and hopes his boss is okay.

"When Elizabeth and Nicole went home, they were attacked. A truck ran into their car and some men tried to take Nicole."

Manny gripped the sheet. "Go on."

"Jason was outside and heard the gunshots and ran two blocks. When he got there, Elizabeth had shot one of the men and the others were firing at her. She was still inside the car. Jason took out the rest and managed to get them out of there before the cops came. He thinks Elizabeth has a concussion and Nicole passed out on him."

Manny punched the bed. "I hate feeling so helpless."

"I know. Stan is working on erasing any evidence."

He borrowed her phone and called Johnny.

"It's Manny. Is the situation under control?"

Johnny pulled over. "Yes. He's on ice. I'll deal with him later."

"Jason is on the way to Crimson Point with the girls. Did you hear what happened?"

"Yes." He is beyond pissed off.

"She passed out. I'm sure he'll have a doctor look her over."

Johnny got back on the road. "I'm on my way there. There's a guard outside of your door. If Evangeline has to go anywhere, make sure the other one at the end of the hallway takes her there. I don't trust the five families even though Dominic seems to be helping. I have no idea if they have found Sal."

"If the hospital is breached, I'll fucking roll down the hallway with my gun. There is nothing wrong with my hand or aim."

Johnny smirked. "The hospital is well protected. I will stop by tomorrow."

"Okay."

Manny gives Evangeline her phone back.

"Your blood pressure is up so you need to calm down."

"Okay."

She kissed him and then sat next to the bed. "We got lucky tonight."

"Trust me, when I get out of this bed, no one will mess with us like this again." He will put the fear of God into anyone who comes up against them.

"There will always be someone who thinks they deserve what you have."

"True, stupidity is rampant, but we have ways of showing how lethal we are and I need to make things safe for everyone."

"For now, I just hope everyone will be okay."

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Lorenzo opened the door of the car and grabs Nicole and carries her inside. Jason laid Elizabeth on the shorter couch and Lo laid Nicole on the other one.

The doctor rushed in and he checked out Nicole first since she is unconscious.

"I think she's just in shock. She has some scrapes and bruises and a bump on the side of her head from the impact. Once she awakes, I can tell how bad it is."

He moved over to Elizabeth. "Hello, I'm Doc. Can you tell me how you are feeling?"

"I have a headache and I'm a little dizzy. When the car hit us, I was thrown and hit the door and lost consciousness for a few minutes.

He does a few tests. "You probably have a mild concussion. Someone will have to wake you up every couple of hours for the first twelve hours. Does anything else hurt?"

She starts to connect with the pain in her body. "My shoulder and arm."

He pulls up her sleeve. "You're starting to bruise." He asks her to move and lift it. "You'll probably be sore for a few days. Your body has endured a lot of stress." He pressed on her stomach. "If it hurts, please tell me."

He finished. "Well, I think your head and arm took the brunt of it. I'm going to have you take some Tylenol for your headache. You might be irritable, nauseous, have trouble concentrating, or be unable to remember things. It's important to take it easy for the next week if you can. You don't have to stay in bed, but just light activity."

"I'll make sure she rests," Jason said.

"Good. I'll make a list of symptoms to be concerned with if they don't go away within the next few weeks."

"Thank you, doc."

"You're welcome."

Nicole starts to stir, so he attends to her.

"It's okay. You're safe," he said when she starts to thrash.

"Elizabeth."

"She's going to be fine. I need to check you out. Can you tell me what hurts?"

Nicole groans. "My head hurts and my body aches."

"Were you thrown?"

"A little, but mostly manhandled."

He tests her vision and feels for broken bones. "You have a mild concussion too." He repeated what he had said to Elizabeth.

"Do you have to get back to the hospital?" Diane asked Jason.

"I don't want to."

Elizabeth touched him. "You have to protect Francis." Her eyes filled with tears dreading the fact he needs to do his job.

"How about I wait until you fall asleep?"

"Lorenzo and I will wake them up and take care of them."

Luella and Hector moved inside the room. "I'll help too. I can watch the baby."

Jason stood. "Thank you."

They had stopped to see Manny and came over as soon as they heard what happened.

There are two recliners in the room.

"We'll take the recliners and I'll set my alarm clock," Diane said.

"You can stay in my room," Nicole said to Luella. "The baby is up there." She let Luella know where the diapers are and a guard showed her the kitchen.

Jason sat on the edge of the couch. "Sleep, baby. I'm right here."

She closed her eyes and it didn't take long before she fell asleep.