Authors Note; Thank you to all those who not only reviewed but added me to your lists. If you have opinions or suggestions, leave a comment, I am always happy to hear from you guys.

Slowly Rebecca began to come back to the world of the living from the black void she had been sucked into. The first thing she began aware of was her arm was burning, and her nose was tingling from the strong scent of bleach. Where was she? Hadn't she gone to her brothers? Ah, no, Philip had called and . . . .

Well crap, she couldn't remember.

She groaned when she tried to stir and her head began swimming as if someone were putting pressure on it from all sides. When she opened her eyes everything was spinning and swirling, and she quickly covered them to stop the sicking sight.

"Ah, you are finally awake." Philips voice reached her ears, but it took a moment for her scrambled brain to decipher what it was he had said.

"I think I am going to be sick," was her slightly strained response.

"No, your not," he assured on a laugh, and she felt his hand pat her right arm, the one that wasn't burning. "Especially since I know you have nothing in your stomach. I think the best thing you could manage would be to dry heave, and that is never pleasant, so I don't suggest it."

"You speak as if I can prevent myself from puking." she huffed, sucking air in through her mouth so that she didn't have to deal with the overwhelming bleach smell, and it helped settle her stomach a little bit.

"Of course you can! GIRD YOUR LOINS!" he laughed when she weakly slapped at him for yelling, taking her hand to help comfort her.

"What the hell is with the bleach smell anyway?" she demanded as she removed her hand to experiment with her eyes again. The ceiling didn't do a swirling vortex spin, so she assumed that meant it was safe enough to sit up from the lying position on the examination table. She glanced down at her left arm, finding just above her wrist was covered with a bandage. "And what is with this?" she demanded and went to tear the bandage off. She was never one for patience.

But he caught her hand, meeting her eyes, letting her see that he was now serious, and she better listen up.

"Do you remember what happened before you blacked out?" he asked, his voice level, his eyes not leaving her.

"You mean before I was sucked into the black vortex of doom? No, but I assume it may be important." she joked, attempting to smile but letting it fall flat when she saw that his expression did not change. She swallowed heavily, biting her lip nervously, for she had never seen him like this in her whole life.

"Your blood production levels have been enhanced three fold, Rebecca. Now more than ever you need to avoid stress and strain on your body, for it may have disastrous results like it almost did. You need to avoid becoming angry, upset. . . "

"Hell, can I feel any emotions?" she snapped, irritated.

"I am sorry, Rebecca. I wish I could take this from you, but I can't."

"What does it mean, though?"

"It means that from now on, you will have to come in to have your blood drawn once a week instead of every month to a month and a half."

"Wait, are you saying I am basically going to be overproducing four extra pints of blood a month instead of just one?"

"That is what it seems like, so yes. I am really sorry, Rebecca." he let her hand go, rubbing the back of his neck in what seemed to be an uncomfortable gesture. She took the advantage to take the bandage off, finding a cut running vertically up her arm, and even though it was stitched up neatly if was somewhat jagged and angry looking. It shouldn't have been jagged or angry looking, if it were done with a scalpel. She tenderly touched it, and Philip spoke again.

"I had to do that in order to save your life. I didn't have enough time to set up an IV, and you would not have bled fast enough."

"Why is it jagged?" she questioned, looking at him. He looked a little perplexed, and she was surprised when she realized it seemed like he was looking for an excuse.

"I-I had to do it with the needle I had in my pocket, my apologies. It will scar." she laughed at that, trying to lighten the suddenly solemn mood. Yeah, this sucked, but it wasn't Philips fault, and she would just have to take better care of herself from now on.

Yeah right.

"I don't care if it scars, I will just make up a cool story for the kids about it." finally, Philip gave a tentative smile, seeming a little sheepish.

"You do love those kids." he admitted.

"You know what I do not love though?" she asked with a blank face.

"What?"

"Bleach." and he laughed.

(***)

Rebecca was roused by the knock on her door. She had been sitting at her kitchen table, staring down at her sketch pad with a blank expression that spoke volumes. She loved art, she really did, but she could not come up with something on the spot, she had to have had it on her mind for awhile before on or seen something inspiring. She was passing her art class with an A only because when she did manage to draw she could draw in large quantities and in wonderful detail, and it made up for her missed work. All of her others classes were easy, which meant art was the only one she was going to have to worry about since Philip had called the school to tell them she was not allowed in any of her classes for the next week.

Frigging doctors orders.

The knock on her door came again, harder and more demanding, and it grated on her. Yesterday had sucked, and she had gotten little to no sleep the night before so she had snuck into the dance classroom in order to get in some practice and to help tire her body out.

"Answer the fuckin' door!" she jumped when the demand was followed with the door being struck. She leapt up and yanked the door open with a simple twist of the knob to find Kalin and his two guards standing in her door way.

"Here." the one on the right snipped, shoving Kalin with enough force to send him stumbling into her dorm room.

"What the hell," she snapped, catching his arm to steady him, noticing he was slumping heavily, and his breathing was labored. Worry spiked for him, and she glared at them, helping him to support himself. "Did you guys hurt him?"

"Nah, he hurt himself," one snorted, and the laughed together until she slammed the door in their faces and locked it with a click. Kalin managed to lift his face slightly, and she saw his worried gaze on the door and understood.

"Don't worry, solid oak, I doubt even their fat asses could break it down."

"Wanna repeat that!" one yelled from outside, the other muttering agreement.

"Fuck off jackass before I call campus security."

"Fine, whatever, hes your damn problem now." and she heard them snicker again before their retreating footsteps.

"Finally," she huffed, and gave a gasp when one of Kalin's legs gave in and she had to struggle to keep him upright. She lead him over to the chair she had been sitting up, hearing him groan in pain.

"Kalin? Kalin, are you okay?" without thinking she grabbed his face, tilting his head back so she could look. His left eye was swelling, obviously from being struck, and she could tell from his unharmed eye that his pupil was dilated, a sign he was drugged.

"Oh my God, they drugged you and beat you. Oh god," from the sound of his labored breathing, she was worried on how badly they had hurt him, and without thinking, she pushed him forward and began to undo the clips on the back of his straight jacket. She heard him mumbling weakly, and she figured he was telling her to stop, or ask what she was doing. The clips were fairly simple, easy to quickly put together but strong. Finally, when the last clip came loose and his arms fell free she reached for the clasps on the back of his muzzle.

And he fliped the fuck out.

He yelled, and leapt away from her, knocking over the table and all the chairs, and stumbling and hitting her nightstand.

"Kalin! Stop, I am just trying to see if they did any damage to your face." but he began shaking his head hard, panic in his eyes. She approached slowly, pausing a few feet away from him, studying him with interest. "Did they hurt your face Kalin? Do you think I am going to be frightened by what I see?" without a pause he nodded, and then shook his head. Yes and no. Ooooookay.

When he held out his arms, as if asking her to retie the straight jacket, it clicked.

"Are you afraid of hurting me, Kalin?" he froze, and when his emerald eyes met hers they were tormented. Helplessly, he nodded, and her heart broke for him. She took the last two steps towards him and threw her arms around his torso, hugging him fiercely. He froze, then seemed to try to step away from her, but she held him even more tightly. His arms dropped to his side, as if he didn't know what he was supposed to do, and she spoke.

"I trust you Kalin. I know I don't know you, but I trust you not to hurt me, it is gonna be okay, you just have to trust me, okay?" there was a pause, and then he sighed, before nodding. She pulled back, reaching to pull off the straight jacket, finding a plain white T shirt underneath. It was stained with spots of blood, and it made her breath hitch.

"Sit, please." she indicated the side of the bed and didn't wait for him to comply before she made a dash for her cellphone, pressing the button for Philips speed dial. He picked up on the second ring, greeting her friendly, but she broke in.

"Philip, I do not need you to ask questions on anything I am about you ask you but I need your help desperatly."

"You sound stressed, you know you are not supposed to get stressed!"

"I know, but-"

"If you don't stay calm you blood levels-"

"Fuck the blood levels, Philip! I have a man here who may have broken ribs or fractures to several other bones and hell maybe internal bleeding! Now either fucking help me or put another goddamn doctor on who will." she glanced at Kalin, seeing him slumping and swaying, knowing he must be in a lot of pain.

"Okay, describe everything to me step by step."

"Okay," she sighed in relief, kneeling in front of Kalin, putting a hand on his jeaned knee reassuringly. "He seems to be heavily drugged, and in a lot of pain. His pupils are dilated and he seems like he is swaying back and forth, almost like he is trying not to sleep."

"Okay, you have those needles I gave you in case of emergency's? Well, now is one of them, I need you to quickly take a blood sample, hurry!" she did as instructed, noting that Kalin did not stir as all from his stupor. Great, the one time she had his arms untied and he was beaten to hell. She put it in her fridge and continued on with her examination. Half way through, Kalin passed out, and she had to lay him on the bed to continue. His ribs were bruised, not broken, and he did not have any internal injuries. But Rebecca could not help but admire his body, strongly muscled and sun kissed to absolute perfection that she wanted to run her hands over him in a more intimate way than just examination.

"The only thing I would worry about is brain damage, since you said that his eye is swelling up as if he took a hit. He may have a concussion, but you will not know until the drug wears off and you are able to look as his eyes properly." he sighed wearily before speaking again. "This is they guy I told you to stay away from, isn't it?"

"Yes," she said quietly, she was sitting on the floor, her back against the bed, and she was tired.

"God sakes, Rebecca!"

"They beat him, Phil. They beat him so the point where there was blood on his shirt and everything. How can you ask me to stop seeing him now when coming here may be the only way to prevent this." her voice was so quiet he knew she had already made up her mind. He sighed again, and she heard him rubbing his face.

"I need you to bring me the blood sample when you get a chance, so I can take a look and see what they are giving him."

"I will bring it as soon as they take him. Are you working the late shift?"

"I always do, you know this is my life."

"Yeah," she gave a forced dried laugh. "Get a wife."

He went quiet for a moment, before speaking again.

"I have to go, Rebecca. Watch him, I have a strange feeling he is not going to remember much was he wakes up."

"What makes you say that?" she asked curiously.

"Just a hunch."

"Okay, well, I will see you later then."

"Oh, and Rebecca?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't do anything too stupid, kay?"

And with a click he was gone, leaving her alone with Kalin once again. She sighed, twisting to look at him sleeping on her bed, wishing things were different, that she knew what to do.

"What am I going to do with you?" she said softly, and stood to straighten up her room.