Taker strolled into the room, looking more menacing than her really was. He pulled up a chair and straddled it. Propping his arms casually on the back of the chair, he gave Melony a look that she couldn't interpret. He didn't utter a word, as he sized her up. Glaring at the bruise on her face, he shook his head in disgust. Taker was the one man whose opinion of her mattered most. She couldn't bear being a disappointment to him. She respected him tremendously, as did all the superstars. The man was wise beyond his years. When she first made it to WWE, he took it upon himself to work one-on-one with her, honing her ring skills. He pushed her beyond her limit. When she was ready to give up, he pushed her harder. He was responsible for the majority of her success. Taker saw in her what no ne else did, her passion, desire, strong work ethic and her out right love for the business. Under Takers direction, she had made a huge impact on the women's division. She even tied up with a few of the guys in the ring, completely humiliating them. He had taught her well and was extremely proud of her accomplishments.

"So... Do I need to ask?" Taker's deep monotone voice made her shiver. She refused to meet his gaze, feeling that she was a failure in his eyes.

"Um, no I guess you don't Mark." Mel said, as she got up to get him a cup of coffee. Handing it to him, she walked back to the mirror and stood there, staring blankly at her image.

Taker glanced over at Torrie with a look of confusion. Torrie shrugged her shoulders and whispered, "It's pretty bad Mark."

Taker got up from his seat. "Torrie, do you mind giving us a few minutes alone?"

"Sure Mark." Torrie walked over and hugged Mel. "Sweetie, I'll be back later. Ok?"

Torrie picked up her coffee and placed a hand on Taker's arm. "Go easy on her, she's going through a lot. A lot we probably don't even know the half of." Taker nodded, as she walked out the door. As long as he had worked with Mel, he had never seen her so sad and lost. Being the veteran backstage, he made it his business to keep everyone in line and keep things flowing smoothly. He had seen it all, petty feuds, cheating spouses, politics of the business, fumbled matches, you name it. But this, this was different. He had to be gentle with her, yet get his point across that it was time for her to move on. He would take care of her first, then deal with Bubba. Walking up behind Mel, he put his hands on her shoulders and turned her around. He tipped her chin up, forcing her to look at him. Her eyes began to water, and he pulled her into his strong arms, embracing her tightly. In the safety of his hold, she let lose all the tears she had been holding in. She cried until she had nothing left in her. Her knees buckled and she crumpled in Taker's arms like a rag doll. He scooped her up, took her over to the couch, and gently laid her down. He pulled a chair closer to the couch, and sat down. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Mel, this isn't you. I have never once seen you cry. Not even after you broke your ankle in the ring. Hell, you just kept on with the match. Even though afterwards, you ended up getting pins put in your ankle to hold it together. But the point is, you kept going and never shed a tear. You are a strong woman, stronger than some of the guys I know. What's happened to you?"

Melony sat up on the couch, taking a drink from her bottle of water. "I don't know Mark. I can't believe I let things go this far. It just happened so quickly. One minutes things are fine, then Bubba's jumping on me for ever little thing. You know he's a good guy. His temper is just uncontrollable at times."

Taker reached into his pocket and took out his tobacco. He took a pinch and put it in his lip, as he thought about what do about this situation. "Well, this shit can't happen on my watch. You have a match tonight, but you can't damn well go out there looking like that. Have you talked to Long yet?"

"No, I haven't seen Teddy yet. I came straight to the locker room."

Taker reached into his pocket again. "Here's the keys to my car and hotel room. It's a good distance from where everyone else is staying, so I'll write down the directions. Now I want you to go there and get some rest, and get yourself together. I'll talk to Long, you know he'll understand why you can't have you match."

Melony shook her head. "I can't Mark. Bubba will be furious and I need to be here. If I can't have my match, then I'll at least work out."

Taker took Mel's hand, and placed the keys in her palm. "You need to put yourself first. Quit worrying about Bubba. He's the reason you're in this shape. I plan to have a little talk with Bubba, don't worry. Now GO!"

Melony knew he was right, she did need some time for herself. "Thanks Mark. I appreciate this more than you'll ever know." She gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek, grabbed her bags and left the arena.