We would like to thank ALL our loyal readers for your support while we have been away. In the next few weeks, you will see our stories being reposted here for all of you to read along with several NEW stories we've written while we've been away.

We appreciate all the kind messages we've received for our readers...we didn't realize how many of you were reading our stories, lol. It has brought HUGE smiles to us and we hope you'll continue to stick with us as we re-post some old favorites and hopefully new favorites. Thanks again!

CaineSpeedle & Speedfanatic05

Now for the good stuff!

**WARNING: STRONG SEXUAL CONTENT AND LANGUAGE! You Are Warned**

"But as in ethics, evil is a consequence of good, so in fact, out of joy is sorrow born. Either the memory of past bliss is the anguish of today, or the agonies which are have their origin in the ecstasies which might have been."

From "Bernice" from Edgar Allan Poe

Sitting in the passenger seat of the car, Emma hugged her bear close and looked over at the older man as he drove. Since leaving Miami, she had tried to keep track of where they were, but without knowing how to read some of the larger cities names, she didn't really know where they were. The need to use the bathroom caused her to wiggle in her heat and she looked back over at him.

"I have to go to the restroom," she said, her voice sad and soft.

Rolling his eyes, he sighed heavily and glanced at her, through the passing street lights. They'd been on the road for hours, nearly to their destination, and he wasn't interested in wasting any time. Spotting a sign for restrooms ahead, he scowled, "At the next stop, but you're not going to give me any problems are you, princess?" Pulling out the blade, he showed it to her, "Cause if you do, I'll be forced to slice you up good. And you'll never see your Daddy again."

Crinkling her eyes at him and glaring, Emma spat back, "You're a bad man. You're mommy should spank you."

Christopher laughed and turned to her, "I probably would have liked it better from her. But I had to settle for the type of love she gave. Does your Daddy love you like he loves your Mommy? My Mommy did that…"

"My daddy hates mommy. She's bad...just like you," Emma replied as she glared more. "I hope you get caught and go to jail."

"I'm too smart to go to jail." Veering the car to the exit, Christopher laughed and shook his head. "Nothing has to come to violence, little one. All I want is Calleigh, and after that, I'll leave you and your Daddy alone."

"Bad men like you lie too. You're a liar!" she replied harshly as he got off on the off ramp.

Grinning at the game that they were playing, he arched his brow and chuckled, "You're right little miss. Bad men do lie, but I'm not a bad man. I just have to have someone…she means the world to me." Focusing on getting to the gas station, his expression faltered, "Your Daddy took her away from me, I will pay him back for that. Just like I did the red head."

Clenching her jaw and pursing her lips, Emma huffed, "My daddy will kick you're butt and then arrest you."

"Unless your Daddy can out run a bullet," Christopher said as he pulled the gun from under his shirt, "I think he'll be going on his back. I'm sorry sweetheart, but you'll be a fatherless child after tonight."

Seeing the gun and remembering how he'd said he didn't like guns, Emma stared at it, a new fear coming to her. Tears began to rim her eyes and she looked back up at him, "My daddy will fight you and win."

"Remains to be seen, my dear." Coming to the first gas station, he pulled in and the shut the engine off, looking towards her. Giving her a hard look, he turned to her completely, "If you give me any problems, Little Miss, I'll kill your Daddy. Slowly."

Scooting back some against the door, she eyed him before repeating, "He'll get you."

Instead of replying, he gestured to the door, "Didn't you say you had to use the bathroom? You have two minutes and then we're leaving." Getting out, he went to her side and opened the door, "Do you want anything?"

Climbing out, Emma looked up at him and nodded, "Yes..." Moving fast, she drew back her foot and then kicked it forward hard, kicking him in the shin. "That's for being a bad man!"

Bouncing up and down on one foot, Christopher scowled and reached out for her, grabbing her by her hair. Pulling her close to him, he stopped bouncing and limped and snatched the car door open. Picking her up, he tossed her in and glared at her, "Piss yourself for all I care. You're walking a thin line, Little Miss."

Rubbing her head where he pulled her hair, Emma yelled back, "I HATE YOU! I'll pee and poop and you can smell it and then my daddy will kill you."

"SHUT UP!" Christopher retaliated forcibly. Reaching back, he struck her across the face and stared at her, the fury evident in his glare. Breathing heavily, he snarled, "Maybe that will keep your mouth shut. And if it doesn't I'll throw you back in the trunk!" Gripping the wheel, he turned the ignition and peeled off throwing the little girl into the door. He had wasted enough time with her, if he didn't get to St. Petersburg, he couldn't be sure what he would do with her.

Tim paced the expanse of the darkened living room relentlessly. In all of his life, he'd never been one to panic; even now, he found that he had moments of clarity in where he recognized that his plan would work, but there always was the unpredictable side of things. Not that he didn't have all the bases covered, he had called three of his friends and six had come and all of them were camped out in the proximity of his home with two monitoring the street leading into the neighborhood and two more in the back of his home. Two of his closest friends were in the house with him to cover him when things went down, but even then, he was still worried. This person was the essence of unpredictable and short of the knife he didn't know of any more weapons that he might have used against his daughter. His own aversion to guns had him at a disadvantage, the only thing he could rely on was his intelligence and his hands. If it came down to it, he would do anything in his power to save both Calleigh and Emma.

Coming to a standstill, he heard a small snicker from the corner of the living room and sighed heavily. If not for their skills as efficient police officers, he would've let them be. His friends were notorious pranksters, and him being at the butt of many of their pranks, he learned very quickly around them.

"Can you guys cut it out? They'll be here any minute now. I want your heads in this, you can cut cute after the bastard is out for the count."

Shaking his head, Joey sighed, "You need to relax, Speed. We've got it covered. This guy ain't gonna be leaving here the same as he came. But uh...I do want to know, this girl...Calleigh...is uh...is she single?"

Relaxing somewhat, Tim laughed lightly, "That's a question you're going to have to ask her, Joe." Turning to her, he arched a brow, "Are you single, Calleigh?"

Still unsure how she should answer, Calleigh shrugged, "Does it really matter? I don't think I'm here for relationship purposes, guys." Seeing the look Tim was giving her, she huffed, "Yes, I'm single...and no..." she replied looking at Joey, "I'm not looking either."

"I guess you got your answer then, Joe." Tim exhaled and turned to the other corner and arched a brow, unsure on how to take his other friend's silence. Usually, Jasper was the one to run to a prank but right now, he seemed more pensive, as if waiting for something that he already knew was coming.

"Jasper, you okay?" Tim asked as he started pacing again. He ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes, the thought of his daughter in the stalker's clutches wearing on him. His tone reeked of desperation as he implored, "C'mon, Jasper, say something."

"I don't like this Speed. You don't have a piece…what if he does? What are you going to do then?" He turned to look to Joey and quirked his brow," I don't want a repeat of last year, we almost lost you there because you didn't want to carry."

"I'm smarter now," Tim responded as he rubbed his shoulder. The shot that sent him back to St. Petersburg wasn't the one that quite taught him to hate weapons. It was the shot a year after that got his attention. Waving his friends off, he surmised, "It's not going to get that far anyway, Jones and Kripke have the outside, they'll get him before he has a chance to get the drop on us."

Pulling her gun from under the back of her shirt, Calleigh armed it and cocked a brow, "I'll be his back up if need be." Seeing there looks, she shrugged, "They don't call me Bullet Girl for nothing. Right, Tim?"

"That's right," Tim responded humorously. He glanced to the two friends and shook his head, "Careful, Calleigh, I think you just got yourself two invites to dinner."

Jasper chuckled and nodded, "What are you packin', Belle?"

"Glock 17 Global...you?" she asked with a raised of her brow.

"Colt 38 special revolver," Jasper responded with a knowing nod. He smiled widely and looked to his partner, "The best there is, in my opinion, but to each his own."

Licking her lips and looking around, Tim's phone began to ring and Calleigh looked at him. They made contact with each other and she nodded, "I guess it's time."

"I guess so." The phone rang again and Tim sighed, "Boys, this is my daughter, my heart that he's dealing with here. Let's keep it as clean as possible." Seeing them nod and fade into the darkness of the living room, he sighed and pulled the phone out of his pocket. Flipping it up, he sighed heavily and closed his eyes, "Hello?"

"I see I have you waiting on bated breath, good. I don't have time to waste," Christopher responded as he glanced to see her sleeping. After the fiasco at the gas station, she'd remained quiet and complacent for the remainder of the ride. Refocusing, he grinned more, "I'm within the city limits. Directions, precise, directions. If I can't find your place in twenty minutes, your daughter loses a digit."

Cringing he closed his eyes, "When coming into town, on the 275, you follow the interstate until you get to 34th street. Follow 34th to 5th avenue, making a right on to 58th. There is a park called Bear Creek, you'll pass that and come to 1st Avenue. We're going to be on that block. Fourth house on your right."

"This better not be the wrong address, Speedle."

"I brought you in on the easiest stretch, it will have you here in fifteen minutes."

"Good, have her ready. She won't need anything, I'll provide for her," Christopher answered almost blissfully. He was a step closer to his goal of holding her in his arms and taking her away from everything.

"Things will be ready." Hearing the dial tone, Tim turned to them all, "He's going to be here in fifteen minutes. I didn't hear her in the background."

Moving closer to him on her crutches, Calleigh tilted her head and reached out, rubbing his arm with her hand, "It's late, Tim. She could have just fallen asleep or she's too scared to say anything."

"I can only hope." Taking a breath, Tim let it out lightly, "I don't know how he's going to want to do this…I just…I hope she's okay."

"Keep positive, Tim," Calleigh replied, trying to take her own advice. Slipping her gun back under her shirt, she looked at him, "I can slow him down some with being on these...that'll give you guys time to do what you need to and get her out of harm's way. But Tim, no matter what happens...Emma is first and foremost. If this doesn't work, get her and go."

"This is going to work." Hearing the phone ring once, he nodded, "He's entered the neighborhood, Jasper, Joey…"

"Ready, Speed." Jasper said as he filled his hand with his gun. He glanced to Joey and asked, "Ready to rock and roll?"

"Ready. Let's knock this son of a bitch down a few pegs," Joey said as he armed his gun, ready for whatever lay ahead.

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Calleigh looked at Tim, a slight shiver of fear running through her. So much was on the line now and she hoped they'd be able to get away without anyone getting hurt.

Hearing the car come to a stop in the driveway, Tim exhaled lightly and walked to the door. Opening it, he saw a figure lean in and pull something into his arms and his heart stopped. Fear gripped him and he forced himself to take a step as the figure stepped closer as well.

"Hand her over," Tim said as he stopped a few paces in front of him.

"Where is Calleigh?" Christopher asked, looking behind him. Placing the little girl down, he pulled out the knife, "Bring her out or I'll filet her right here."

"Calleigh's coming…"

Closing her eyes, Calleigh took in a deep breath and moved on her crutches to the door. Hearing Joey whisper to her, she cleared her throat and breathed out, "I...I'm here." Making it look like her leg was hurt more then it was, she flinched as she took another step, "Don't hurt her, please."

Looking behind him, he saw her moving slowly, the anxiety growing, "Calleigh…wait… just…wait…"

Stopping, she looked at him and then towards the man holding Emma at knife point. Crinkling her brow and recognizing him from the college, she glared at the man. A shadow moved behind the man, but her focus stayed on him, "Professor Larken...I should have known from the cards you left."

"Poe is such a romantic, his quotes are just the right way to say... I love you." Satisfied, he moved closer, "Things will be just fine, Calleigh, I'll take care of you."

"I can take care of myself just fine without you," she replied as her eyes drifted down to Emma. Looking back up at him, she nodded to the little girl, "Let her go. She has nothing at all to do with this."

"She doesn't but she's good to have around. Although, really, Speedle, you should teach her some manners. She was very disrespectful. I took care of that though."

"What…what do you mean? If you've touched her…" Tim started as he watched him lift her chin. He seized when he saw the blade at her neck and glanced behind them, shaking his head. With her being so close to danger, he couldn't risk it. "You're gonna wish you never laid a hand on her."

"Well, I had to shut her up, but that's neither here nor there. Calleigh…c'mon, come closer."

Looking at Tim and them back at Christopher, Calleigh grimaced as she moved, making it look like it was painful for her. Taking one more step she groaned, and bite her lip, hoping she was convincing, "Please..." Looking up at him, she shook her head, "if you love me like you say you do, let her go...for me. I can't run."

"You may not run, but scruffy here has something up his sleeve. He's anxious…a bit too anxious. I'm not stupid, quite the opposite actually. It's only logical that you've brought her here to protect her. You have friends, you called them so that you could tip the odds…but you didn't count on me having this." Holding her by the neck, he pulled the gun out and aimed it directly at Tim. Smiling deviously, he arched his brow, "I had no quarrel with you until you became an obstacle. I took care of one…and now I'll take care of you."

Squeezing the trigger, Christopher moved quickly, watching him go down and turned to pull the trigger again, hitting one of the men behind him. As that one fell, he could hear a flurry of action as he was pushed to the ground, the knife skittering away from him.

He held on to the gun as he grappled with three other men, the anger becoming almost unbearable.

"GET OFF OF ME!" he bellowed as he struggled against them. He was so close to her, he could practically taste her and all that stood in his way were three obstacles. Closing his eyes, he growled and pushed against them, able to maneuver his hand with the gun. Positioning it against flesh he pulled the trigger and heard the bellow of pain from above him and being loosened just that much more. Struggling more, he yelled, "CALLEIGH!"

Waving Emma over to her, Calleigh knelt down to the little girl as she ran over crying. Holding her close, she whispered, "Your daddy is fine, sweetie...I promise he's okay. Run in the house and hide in your old room, in the closet." Letting her go and watching as Emma took off running inside, Calleigh stood back up, pulling her gun out. Walking over to the struggling men, she bent down to him, her gun going to his neck and pushing into his skin, "I have never been and will never be yours, Larken."

Gritting his teeth, Christopher bucked against them and stared at her, "You'll never be free, Calleigh. I'm always going to be a step behind you. Always…behind you. Stop this madness now…"

Tim rose to his feet slowly and then moved towards his friends, glancing over at them. Checking on Jasper, he cringed at the blood, shaking his head, noticing that he didn't wear any Kevlar "Jasper…you're hit."

"Yeah, I kinda figured that, Speed. It's probably a shoulder shot…" he closed his eyes and breathed in heavily, his brows narrowing, "I'm tired, Speed. Maybe I can get some rest. I saw someone go down behind him…Go check on him, alright?"

Tim held his hand and dropped his head, reluctant to leave. "You hang tight, Jasper." Letting him go, Tim got up and searched the darkness, hearing Larken bellow out again. He turned to them to see them struggling more and Calleigh being pushed off. Running to them, he helped her up and looked to her, "Get Emma and get in the car. They've got him, but I don't know how long they can hold him from getting to you. Go now, Cal."

Using one crutch as she went, Calleigh moved as fast as her leg would allow, going back into the house. Going to the hallway, she remembered which room Tim had said was Emma's and went to it, Opening the door, she looked around the dark room, "Emma, sweetie, it's Calleigh. It's time to go." Looking around more, she went over tot he closet, opening it slowly and seeing her huddled down int he corner. Bending, Calleigh gave her a smile, "Hi, sweetie. Your daddy wants us to go get in the car now so he can take us away from the bad man."

Emma looked up to her and nodded, "I'm ready. I want to see my Daddy."

Holding out her hand to her, Calleigh nodded, "He wants to see you to." When she took her hand, Calleigh lead her back out the room and to the door. Holding her back and looking out to make sure things were still clear, she then held onto her hand as she led her to Tim's car. Opening the back door for her, she helped her in and the closed the door, making sure it was locked. Getting in the passenger side, Calleigh called out to him, "Tim...ready!"

Watching as the remaining friends began to pick him up, Tim glanced to see Jasper's eyes closed and his chest still. He could feel his own anger as he realized that another one of his friends hadn't joined up either. Nodding to the four still holding him, he approached, "You take my daughter, you come here, kill two of my friends and try to take someone special to me…You don't deserve to live."

Christopher laughed and shook his head as he struggled against them, "Do it now, or risk me following. I will find you, Speedle. When I do, I'm going to make you watch what I do to the ones you love, and then I'm going to kill you."

"Why don't you shut your face," Joey responded, giving him a swift kick in the stomach, doubling him over. The thought of two of his friends now dead incited a feeling of wrath that he'd never known. He glanced to Tim to see that same wrath and then averted his sights back to their captor.

Pulling back his fist, Tim struck Christopher across his face and growled lowly, "Follow us, and I'll kill you."

Spitting blood, Christopher laughed, "You'll die watching your back, Speedle. And then there'll be no one to stop me from getting what I want."

Having heard enough, Tim gave a stiff nod and walked away, heading towards the car. He could hear the punches as they landed hard and wished that he could participate. Knowing that they had to go however, he made it to the car and got in, holding on to the steering wheel. Moments passed before he was able to look to Calleigh and ask, "Are…are you okay?"

Seeing the pain of the loss of his friends in his eyes, Calleigh nodded, "I'm fine." Looking back at the little girl, Calleigh nodded to her and smiled as she moved forward in her seat, her arms going around his neck from behind.

Tears streamed from Emma's eyes, her body still shaking. Hanging onto Tim, she cried, "Daddy..."

Feeling her behind him, he exhaled and felt the tears coming, reaching for her to bring her around. Pulling her into his lap, he moved her curls away from her face to see a bruise, cringing at the sight, "He touched you? Emma…I'm sorry…."

"He hit me and wouldn't let me go to the bathroom," she replied as she moved back forward and hugged him, not wanting to let go. Sniffling, her voice hitched, "I...I kicked him...like you taught me..."

"You did good, baby." Holding her close, he sighed, "We're going to go far away from here. Somewhere where he can't find us."

Nodding, she sniffled, "Don't leave me again, daddy."

"You don't have to worry about it, baby." After a moment, Tim sighed, "Get in the back and put your seat belt. We're leaving." Glancing to Calleigh, he asked, "Ready?"

"Yeah..." Calleigh replied as she looked over to where they had Larken. Seeing him laying on the ground and not moving, she felt no sympathy for the man. Looking back, she sighed, "Let's get away from here, Tim. We need to get to someplace where we can stay for the night and call in."

Nodding, Tim put the car in gear and backed out, leaving the scene behind them. Putting miles between them, Tim felt his anxieties lessen and he began to relax a little more. He thought of places to go, but then realized that only one place was the next step before continuing.