Thursday and Friday were busy days and evenings for both Ray and Liz, neither of them able to find a mutual time they could meet up. However, Ray called Liz Thursday night to arrange their next date for the Saturday. He told her he'd pick her up at nine-thirty in the morning and to wear comfortable shoes. Liz had no idea what he had planned but she was already looking forward to it.

Come Saturday morning, Liz had just finished a bowl of cereal when her doorbell rang. Glancing at the clock, she saw it was only nine-fifteen. She couldn't believe Ray was turning up early again but quickly ran down the stairs to let him in. However, when she opened the door, he wasn't there. Instead, on the doorstep, was an envelope with her name on it. Frowning a little, she bent down to pick it up and opened it. Inside was a picture of her and Ray from the concert on Wednesday night. Liz knew it was right at the end of the evening as she could see the muddy stain on the back of her dress from her impromptu lovemaking with Ray behind the store sheds. It was a hazy picture, probably taken on a phone. She flipped it over and saw that on the back was written, 'SLUT' in a somewhat childish scrawl.

Ray pulled up at the kerb near Liz's house and shut off the engine. He knew he was early again, a habit he was aware was pretty annoying to most people, but he just couldn't wait to see his girl. Hopping out of the car, he walked briskly towards her apartment and turned onto the pathway. He grinned as soon as he turned the corner as he saw her standing at her front door. However, his smile faltered when he saw the expression on her face.

'Lizzy, what's wrong?'

Liz jumped at Ray's voice and took a sharp inhalation, 'Oh, Ray, you scared me'.

'What is it, sweetheart?'

Ray drew level with Liz and looked down at what she was holding. He immediately recognised the photo but couldn't work out why she had it. She then flipped it over for him and he read the word on the back. Ray's face darkened instantly and he felt his fists clench. Looking up at Liz's face, he saw she was near to tears and he pulled her into his arms, holding her tight against him. Neither of them spoke for a few seconds before Ray asked, 'Do you know who sent this?'

Liz snuffled against Ray's shoulder but managed to get out a weak, 'No'.

He pulled back and looked her in the eyes. The tears had started to fall now and he pulled his handkerchief from his pocket and gently wiped them away.

'Hush now, Lizzy. I have no idea who may've sent this or why but I'm sure it's just some idiot who thinks he's funny. Someone may've deduced what we got up to on Wednesday night and thought they'd play a practical joke on you or something'.

Ray wasn't convinced by his own theory but he wanted to remove the look of fear from Liz's eyes. She nodded slightly at his words and bit her lip, trying not to cry any more.

'Come on, let's go inside and sit down for a bit. The place I want to take you today isn't going anywhere'.

Ray led Liz up the stairs to her apartment and once they got inside he made her sit on her couch whilst he fetched her a glass of water from the kitchen. When he came back she was still staring at the picture. He took it from her hands and replaced it with the glass.

'No need to give that any more attention than it deserves. We'll keep a hold of it for now but let's not worry too much, eh sweetie?'

Liz looked up into Ray's eyes and then leant towards him, allowing herself to be wrapped in his embrace again. He stroked her arms and nuzzled his nose into the hair above her ear, gently rocking her from side to side. After a few minutes of this, Liz felt much better and pulled back a little.

'Okay, you're right. This was probably one of the students at the school. They may've seen or at least guessed what we were up to and thought it'd be hilarious to do this. Screw 'em!'

Ray beamed at her, 'That's my girl', he said as he kissed her firmly on her lips. 'Well, they may think they were being funny but they were sadly mistaken. If anything else like this happens, I'll track down the little punks and give them what for, don't you worry'.

Liz smiled at Ray and squeezed his arm. 'Okay, mister. We going on a date or what?'

Ray stood up and offered his arm to Liz, 'Hell, yeah, we're going on a date. Grab your stuff and let's get going'.

Within minutes they were in Ray's car and heading out of town. Ray still hadn't told Liz where they were going but he had said it'd take an hour to get there. As they left the town limits he glanced at her and saw that she still had a frown on her face. Reaching over to the stereo, he turned it on and pumped up the volume a little. One of Ray's weaknesses when driving was music you could sing along to, rather than the kind of music he'd actually go to see live. As Queen's Greatest Hits started blaring from the speakers, Ray took hold of Liz's hand and began to sing along in what was, all things considered, a pretty terrible singing voice. However, his enthusiasm and the range of ridiculous facial expressions he was pulling soon cheered Liz up. After the first couple of verses she even joined in for the chorus. They were so distracted by singing along, trying and failing to reach the range of Freddie Mercury's voice, that neither of them noticed the car that was following them from a distance.

After forty-five minutes on the freeway, Ray pulled off and Liz suddenly twigged as to where they were going.

'Ray, are you taking me to the zoo?', she asked, peeking over at him.

'I am. If that's okay, obviously?'

'Definitely', Liz grinned back at him. 'I've not been to the zoo in forever. And this is a really good one; I know they do tons of conservation work for animals in the wild. And the cages and tanks are all huge and the animals all look well cared for'.

'I had no idea you were such a zoo aficionado, Lizzy?', Ray asked, happy that he'd chosen well.

'Well, I'm not really. I just went to a really horrible zoo once when I was a kid and ever since then, I've made a point of checking up on the reputation of other ones I go to. And this one is excellent. Thank you, Ray. Great choice', she said as she playfully punched him on the arm.

They pulled into the parking lot and found a space not too far from the entrance. After they'd bought tickets and a guide book, Ray handed the book to Liz and asked her what she wanted to go see first.

'Well, we should check if there are any public feedings or shows going on. Look, we can feed the elephants in twenty minutes!', Liz said as she grabbed hold of Ray's hand and started dragging him in the direction of the elephant enclosure. They got there in under a minute and Liz headed straight for the barrier so they'd be at the front. Ray excused himself for a moment and went to buy them a couple of coffees from a nearby stall. When he returned he noticed a tall, thin man standing on his own who appeared to be looking in Liz's direction. However, just after he noticed him, the guy turned and walked away behind a bathroom block. Ray shook his head at himself and carried on towards Liz. Hold it together, sailor, you need to keep reassuring Liz there's nothing to worry about just because of that damn photo.

'Here you go, Lizzy. Cappuccino? That's right, isn't it?'

'Perfect, thank you', Liz said, immediately taking a sip. 'Ooh, that's hot'.

Ray laughed at her, 'Yes, my dear, that's kind of the idea'. This remark earned Ray another punch on the arm from Liz and he winked at her, 'I'm gonna have to invest in some kind of padding, aren't I?'

'Sorry', Liz said, looking up at him a little ruefully. 'I'll try to refrain from beating you up quite so often'.

Ray slipped his free hand around Liz's shoulders and pulled her in close, kissing her temple, 'You can punch me on the arm whenever you like, Lizzy. Just know I'll find some way to make you pay'.

Liz looked up at Ray and saw he had pulled a decidedly lecherous face and was waggling his eyebrows at her. She burst out laughing and had to stop herself from punching him yet again. Just as she was about to make some lewd comment, the elephant keeper started his opening spiel over the speakers and they both turned to watch the elephants being led in and to listen to what he was saying. As he was telling the audience about the elephants they had here at the zoo and about the ones the zoo paid to keep safe in the wild, a second keeper was walking along the barrier where Ray and Liz were standing, handing out some feed. Liz held out her hands and took as much as she could hold and Ray mimicked her. He'd already decided he was going to give his portion to Liz so she could have lots of turns feeding the animals, seeing as she was almost giddy with excitement beside him.

After the keeper had finished his talk, the elephants were slowly led along the barrier, stopping every few feet to let the next group of people feed them. Liz giggled as a huge trunk was lowered towards her and held her hands as steady as she could as the tip of the trunk grasped most of what was in her hand before carrying it to the elephant's mouth. Before she knew what was happening, another trunk came in from the side and finished off what was in her hand, leaving a small puddle of dribble in place of the food. Liz laughed and turned to smile at Ray. He then placed the food he was holding in her hands and when a slightly younger elephant was next up along the line, Liz was once again the first choice for it. By the time all the food was gone, Liz's hands were absolutely covered in the elephants' drool. They turned and walked away from the railing, heading towards the bathroom block. Liz left her purse with Ray and went in, eager to clean up her hands.

As Liz was in the bathroom, Ray spotted the man he'd seen earlier standing just the other side of a hedge. He still seemed to be on his own. He knew he was probably being paranoid but he decided he wasn't going to let Liz out of his sight until they were back in the car. Something about the guy seemed off and, coupled with the photo, Ray was a little on edge, even if he was trying not to show it.

When Liz reappeared Ray smiled at her and handed her back her purse, 'Better?'

'Yes, much. That stuff was gross', Liz said. 'But it was worth every drop of it. Those elephants were beautiful'.

'Yes, they were. Now, what would you like to go see next?'

Liz consulted the guidebook. 'Well, there are no other shows or anything for a bit so let's just have a wander round, shall we?'. She linked her arm through Ray's and they headed off towards the big cat enclosures.

After a couple more hours of looking at the big cats and then the penguins and other water loving animals, they decided it was time to stop for lunch. 'So, Madam, what can I treat you to for your luncheon?'

Liz had another look at the guidebook, 'Ooh, there's a Mexican food café. Do you like tacos?'

'I do indeed. A splendid choice by the lady'

The café turned out to be pretty big and was very full but they found themselves a table right at the back. Ray pulled back Liz's seat for her and then sat opposite. After the waiter had come and taken their order, Ray happened to glance up and he saw the man from earlier come into the restaurant and sit right at the far side. He was still on his own. Ray frowned a little. He decided he would keep a close eye on the guy just to see if he was trying to watch them. Once their food arrived, they both tucked in hungrily and wiped out all their tacos quickly. They both then sat back and groaned.

'Oh, man, that was too much. And I'm not sure I even paused for breath whilst eating', Ray said as he patted his belly.

'Well, if you're worried about the calories, I'm sure we can think of a way to work them off later', Liz said as she made a point of pursing her mouth to suck up her drink through her straw.

Ray's eyes were glued to her lips and he felt something stir in his pants. 'Lizzy, let's please, er, not start that again. Much as Wednesday night was a lot of fun I'm not really sure a zoo full of kids is the place for a repeat'.

Liz winked at him and they stood up to go pay at the counter. Just as they got to it, Ray saw the man get up and walk out the door in a bit of a hurry. It was almost like he was avoiding being walked past by them as they would have come pretty close to his table on the way out. Ray paid their bill and then took hold of Liz's hand, suddenly feeling the urge to keep her very close.

'Right, then, shall we go see the monkeys?'

'Oh my god, yes. They're my absolute favourite. They're such little rascals'.

'I had a feeling you might have an affinity for monkeys, Lizzy. Can't imagine why'.

Liz laughed at Ray and squeezed his hand as they set off towards the far side of the zoo. Once there they spent a lot of time watching the gorillas and chimps playing in their enclosure before they went into a special part where they could actually walk amongst the ring-tailed lemurs. As soon as they got inside, a lemur landed on Ray's shoulder and nearly made him jump out of his skin. Liz couldn't help herself and burst out laughing at the look on his face. However, her glee was short-lived when the lemur jumped from Ray's shoulder to Liz's, making her jump. She stood perfectly still and allowed the small creature to play with her hair. Ray pulled out his phone, eager to take a photograph, but as soon as the phone was in his hand, the lemur jumped back across to his shoulder again.

'He likes you, I think. Although, aren't sailors supposed to have parrots on their shoulders, not monkeys?'

'I think you'll find that's pirates, Lizzy, not all seafaring people', Ray said as he watched the animal a little nervously.

Eventually the lemur spotted a new victim and jumped off Ray's shoulder, back into the branches of a tree and headed off towards a group of people who had just come in.

Ray swept lightly at where the animal had been sitting and Liz rolled her eyes at him, 'Come on, it's no worse than holding a dog or a cat, Ray'.

'I've seen the film 'Outbreak', I know what these things can carry'.

Liz snorted and reached out to take Ray's hand, 'I'm pretty sure these animals are very safe and healthy. Come on, I wanna go see the wolves before we go'.

Once they got to the wolf enclosure, they were delighted to see that there was a litter of wolf cubs there. They only looked about eight weeks old or so and both of them were soon lost in delight watching their antics as they played with each other and ran around on wobbly legs.

'This makes me want to get a dog'

'They're not quite the same, Lizzy'

'I know that, silly', Liz prodded Ray in the ribs, 'But I love dogs and I've always wanted one. Ah, well, maybe one day. Anyway, the zoo's closing soon isn't it? Shall we head back?'

'If you'd like? We can stay another half an hour I think?'

'Nah, it's okay. My feet are killing me, comfy shoes or not. But I've had a fantastic day. I just wish I could've gotten a picture of your face when that lemur was on your shoulder'.

Ray scowled at Liz and took her arm, 'Hmm, perhaps not my bravest hour, I'll warrant. He could have ripped my throat out though. Did you see his teeth?'

Just as they got back to the entrance, Ray realised he really needed to use the bathroom. He told Liz to go into the gift shop and that he'd meet her in there. She headed in, already determined to find a lemur soft toy with which to torment Ray as he went off into the men's.

Just as he got to the urinal and unzipped his fly, he heard footsteps behind him. Before he knew what was happening, someone had hit him hard in his back, right in his kidneys. He gasped and fell to the floor, trying to draw in breath. A foot then connected with his back again and he cried out in pain.

'You stay away from her, you hear me. Or next time I'll break bones'.

Ray managed to open his eyes and look up but the guy had gone. He only got a fleeting glimpse of his back as he ran out the door. He saw enough though to know that it was the guy he'd been trying to keep an eye on all day. After a few minutes, he stood up and tossed some water over his face. With shaking hands, he managed to finished using the bathroom and then made his way outside.

'There you are! You've been gone so long…. Ray, what is it?'

Liz could tell instantly that something was wrong. Ray was as pale as a ghost, drenched in sweat and was bent over to the side, unable to stand up straight.

'Some guy jumped me in there', he managed to gasp out.

'Oh my god, let me get security'

'No, no, Lizzy, don't go anywhere. Stay by my side'.

'Why?'

'Because he knew me. Or, at least, he knew you. He told me to stay away from you'.

Liz gasped and stepped forward to take a hold of Ray's hands, 'Here, sit down for a moment. Have some of my water'.

Ray slumped onto the bench Liz had pointed him towards and grimaced. His kidneys were throbbing terribly. He was pretty sure he'd be pissing blood later. He took a long gulp of Liz's water, his hands still shaking.

Liz sat down right next to him and put her arm around his shoulders, her other hand on his leg.

'Are you gonna be okay? Shall we see if there's a First Aider somewhere?'

'I'll be fine, sweetheart. I've been punched in the kidneys many times in my military training. Although I think this may've been the first time I've been kicked there'.

'Oh, Ray, you poor thing. Let me help you somehow. Shall I drive back?'

'That would be good, yes. Sorry, Lizzy, today's outing wasn't meant to end like this'.

'Why on earth are you apologising? You're the one who was attacked!'

'Yes, but I should've seen it coming. I'd seen the guy a few times today and already thought he was acting suspiciously. I should've been more on my guard'.

'What do you mean? Why didn't you say anything to me?'

'I should've, I'm sorry. I'd almost convinced myself I was just being paranoid after that photo this morning. And I was determined not to worry you and for you to have a good day. I decided just not letting you out of my sight would be enough. I'm sorry though, I should've said something'.

Liz sighed and pulled Ray as close as she could without hurting him, 'It's okay, I understand. My poor boy', she said as she kissed his temple. 'Do you think you'd recognise him if you saw him again? And what did you mean he told you to stay away from me?'

'I'd definitely recognise him again, yes. And that's exactly what he said, to stay away from you or next time he'll break my bones'.

Liz tightened her grip on Ray's leg a little more and rested her head on his shoulder. 'I hope I'm wrong but I've got a horrible feeling who this guy might be. If only because I can't think of another single person who would act like this regarding me. We need to go back to my house so I can show you a photo'.

Ray looked up at Liz questioningly and then realisation washed over his face.

'You think it's Tom, don't you?'

'Yeah, I think it could be. Sucker punching you is just the way he'd operate. Come on, let's get you home and maybe put some ice on your back'.

They made their way back to the car and Ray tenderly got into the passenger seat. Liz took the keys and started the engine. Pulling out of the parking lot, she reached over and took hold of Ray's hand, squeezing it lightly. If Ray had looked up and seen Liz's face at that moment, he'd almost have been worried. She looked furious, her eyes flashing with anger. There was no way Tom was going to get away with it this time.