A/N: Not too long to wait, right? Don't forget to let us know what you think.

Chapter Twenty Four – Day Eleven, Early Morning - Continued

"Then I guess I've got bad news for ya Babe…" He begins.

Nyet! He cannot! I thought for a moment he understood. I stare at him unable to speak.

"Sounds like the only solution to your problem is for me to always be with you. So I guess you're stuck with me."

He tightens his grip around me and I am so relieved, I could sob. Instead I bury my head in his shoulder and sigh as my tension begins to ease.

He presses his lips to my temple and then rests them against my ear as he whispers. "And for the record, my nightmares stay away when I'm with you too."

I pull back so that I can look into his lovely eyes, and smile at him. "Then we will protect each other." I tell him decidedly, sounding more like myself than I have in so long. Then spoil the effect somewhat by adding shyly, "You would probably be more comfortable in the bed though."

He hesitates for a moment, a shadow crossing his eyes and I guess he is worrying about taking advantage again, but then he nods and gets up. We are only apart for a moment before he resumes his position, this time under the covers, but I feel the chill of his absence and immediately snuggle back into his warmth.

I had meant us to sleep again but my mind is working overtime and since I can tell he is also still awake, I ask something that has been playing on my mind. "Wheeler… what do you have nightmares about?"

Again he hesitates and I wonder if I should not have asked, but then he starts speaking. "You know when I was telling you about James, the night I was staying at my grandparent's and my Pap had to go pick him up, and I said that when I overheard the phone conversation that I thought they were talking about my dad?"

"Da. And you said that you spent the summers at your grandparents' because it was 'a polite way' for them to keep you away from your dad. I did not ask then because I did not want to interrupt, but I did wonder what you meant by that." I say softly.

"It was because my dad had a drinking problem." There is steel in his voice when he says that, like he has just announced that he has some deadly contagious disease and is expecting a bad reaction.

"Oh." What else can I say? I knew his parents had problems but…

I am amazed by his openness as he tells me of the abuse he and his mother suffered at his father's hands. I can see it is not easy for him to talk about it and I am honoured that he trusts me with his confidence… especially after I tried to use what he told me about James against him.

He takes a deep breath, "Anyway, he'd get angry over little things and he'd take out his anger on my mom…and me. When he was yelling at her, I'd do my best to get him mad at me, say stuff to him, get in between him and my Ma…if he was wailing on me, at least he wasn't touching her. He'd beat me pretty good. He'd split my lip, make my nose bleed, slap me upside the head…that explains a lot huh Babe?" He jokes.

I shake my head and say sadly. "Shhh. Do not even joke about that. The only thing it explains is why you are so strong, and so willing to stand up for others. It started at a young age."

"I guess. Never really thought of it that way." He says almost shyly, and I free one of my hands from around his waist to reach up and stroke his hair soothingly.

How could anyone treat someone they love that way? Beat them for their own mistakes and make them feel worthless? It is not fair! I want to cry, I want to scream, I want to punish Wheeler's father and make him see what he did… and then let him do the same to me for all I have put my best friend through.

Now I know why my Yankee puts up with so much, he is used to being treated that way.

My heart is sad as I ask. "So your nightmares are more like memories? About him hurting you and your mother?"

"Sometimes, yeah. Sometimes they're memories. Sometimes they're distorted memories…almost like what really happened, but with different outcomes. Sometimes he ends up killing my mom…or me…and sometimes I think they're what I wished had happened…I kill him."

I do not know how to respond but I want to comfort him, to let him know he is not alone anymore. I replace my arm around him and hold on as tightly as I can, nuzzling my cheek against his chest.

"Does your father still drink?" I prompt.

"No. At least, he says he doesn't, and my mom says he's quit. I think he got a reality check after James died. I would've never left my mom to come here if my dad was still drinking like he used to."

"And we would have never met," I say matter-of-factly.

He agrees. "No. We wouldn't."

"And I would probably be dead. Strange how things work out." I muse.

"No, you'd be fine because I wouldn't have upset you so much that you felt you had to…" There is still pain in his voice.

"Nyet." I say quickly, wanting to spare him any more self-recriminations. "I mean the Bliss would have killed me in DC. You were the one that got through to me."

"If not me, it would've been someone else. Who knows…maybe Gaia would have chosen a sophisticated Englishman or a cool surfer dude Aussie with a cool accent to replace me." He is joking again.

I do not really find it funny though. "I like your accent…and you ARE a 'cool surfer dude!'"

"What? You're not gonna argue the point about my sophistication?" He is teasing now, that is much better.

"Nyet…I will leave that one alone!" I respond and we both chuckle.

I feel warm and cosy tucked up in Wheeler's arms. I like the way they feel around my new hoodie, though I cannot help but hope to get his old one back – the one he first gave me – I was growing very fond of it. My new one is a thicker, newer material but somehow it is not quite as warm, even when I was trying it on in the shop I realised… I realise something else, I was not wearing it when I got into the bath! I was probably soaking but… "Wheeler… did you…?"

"What Babe?" He asks warily, sensing my change of mood.

I swallow. "My clothes…?"

"I umm…was hoping you wouldn't notice. I uhh…you were…in the tub…the water…your clothes uhh…since they were soaking wet, they were in the way and interfering when I was doing CPR…"

"I needed CPR?" No wonder my chest hurts.

He sounds a little guilty. "Yeah Babe…you weren't breathing…your lungs were full of water. I had to do it."

"And you had to remove my clothes?" I ask, because I have done first aid training and I do not remember anything about changing their clothes. I lift the covers and inspect the rest of me "Even my trousers are different."

"Well, yeah, like I said, the shirt was in the way…and I hope it wasn't a favourite because I sort of ripped it open."

I cannot remember which one it was but still… "Sort of?"

"Ok, I definitely ripped it open. Time was a factor and I was panicking!" He explains.

I cannot just let it go. "And the trousers?"

"Were soaking wet. I couldn't put you into bed like that…and you needed to get warmed up. I couldn't risk you going into shock AND being in wet clothes…on top of the chills you've been feeling…I needed to keep you warm. That wouldn't have happened if you'd stayed in those wet clothes. And my shirt was soaked as well, so I had to take it off too. And trust me Babe…the last thing on my mind was…uh, you know…my main focus was getting you breathing again, then dry, then conscious."

He does mean that, I can tell. "I know…I trust you…I just was surprised…and embarrassed."

"You have nothing to be embarrassed about," He assures me.

I raise an eyebrow, I guess he could not help seeing, but still!

"No, I mean…I wasn't looking. I tried my best to keep my eyes averted. But I'm not gonna lie, that wasn't always possible."

I nod in acceptance, after all I brought this on myself, and he did save my life. I can feel my cheeks beginning to burn, both at the thought of his looking at my naked body and because my rebellious heart is relieved that he wasn't disgusted with it.

"If it'll make you feel better, I'll strip down, you can have a look, and we'll call it even?" He offers, obviously trying to lighten the mood.

For a second I actually consider it, but that really would make things awkward. "Nyet, that is ok," I laugh, trying to cover my further embarrassment.

"Geez, why you gotta laugh about it?" He says with mock offence, which I ignore because if I tried to reassure him I would only dig myself a hole.

Instead I say what I should have said in the beginning. "Thank you….for taking care of me…for being honest and caring and being a perfect gentleman…thank you for everything."

"You're welcome…and I want you to know that not once did I consider…looking. That…moment…wasn't enjoyable at all for me. I was scared I'd lost you," He pulls me closer. "And I guess maybe I learned something from those romance movies I HAVE to watch when you and Gi pick the movies… but I just think that when a guy sees a girl… REALLY sees her for the first time…well, she should be fully conscious and aware of the way he's looking at her, adoring her…she should see the look in his eyes when the full affect of her beauty hits him, and when he realizes that he's the luckiest guy in the world."

"Da. That is how it should be," I agree, but my thoughts have returned to my nightmares and the things I have not told him. It should always be like that but sometimes… I push the thought aside.

We do not need to sleep, this is relaxing enough, though I guess the others will come and disturb us at some point… not yet though it is still early. He presses his lips to my temple and rubs my head absent-mindedly. Wheeler is naturally affectionate, even when he is not trying anything he unconsciously feels the need to touch. I am very different with other people, but with Wheeler, I like it. It is reassuring and pleasant and considering all that has happened, I do not think I could be happier than I am right now.

"So you said that you needed to forget the things that you saw…is that what your nightmares are about? You wanna tell me about them? You don't have to if you don't want to…I mean, just because I told you, doesn't mean you have to tell me…but if you think it'll help to talk about it…" He blurts out suddenly, stammering his way through.

"Did it help you?" I ask, not really wanting to voice the things I saw.

"I don't know. It doesn't change what happened…" He tells me, and for a moment I think I will not need to say anything, but then he continues. "But I'm glad I was finally able to talk to someone about it…and I'm glad that someone was you."

Oh, then I owe him the same and who knows? Maybe it will help.

I take a long moment to collect my thoughts. "Skumm set himself up as a ruler and he expected his people to put on entertainment, which they did. He had them compete for the Bliss."

I explain some of the contests, gulping slightly as the sick feeling returns, but Wheeler gently rubs my tummy and hugs me, kissing my head and saying soft words of comfort as he wipes away my tears.

After a while he asks softly, "What else did he make people do?"

I can do this… Wheeler will understand, he has to! I take a deep breath and begin, unable to prevent the tears welling in my eyes as images fill my mind.

"The girls…they did not fight…not often anyway. They had other ways of pleasing ." I swallow hard, hoping he does not need me to spell it out.

"Other ways…as in…?" I guess he does not want to say it either, he looks as sick as I feel.

I swallow the bile again and force myself to reply. "Da. At night, girls would come to him. It started with just a few, but then once the word got out that these girls were getting more Bliss, more and more would show up. It got to the point where he would have to turn them away…He would share them with his henchmen…and Boris. I was there."

"There? Did you?"

"Nyet!" I say quickly, "He wanted to keep Boris and I close, in case we came to our senses and left. We slept in the same room as … Boris was on the floor… I was in the bed."

"With him?" He asks clearly appalled.

"Da…but I never…" I did not, he has to believe that…

I can see his relief, oh Wheeler! "Good. I'm glad he kept his filthy paws off you."

This is the moment I have dreaded. My tears are falling unchecked, I feel sick and I am terrified of what he will think of me. "I never went all the way with him…"

As I explain the things Skumm did I can feel Wheeler's anger grow. We are so close that I cannot miss the way his muscles have tensed, and his hands were laying flat against me but now I think he has balled them into fists. His eyes have a dangerous look in them too. I am not afraid of him though, I do not think I could ever be really afraid of him, what scares me is that he might leave. If he turns his back on me now, if the anger turns to disgust? I will end up right back where I was earlier…

"So, when I do those things, does it bring back bad memories? Does it remind you of him…cuz if so, I'll stop." He offers out of the blue.

Where did that come from? It is not what I was expecting. Surely it is obvious by now that I like it when he does those things? "Nyet. I do not want you to stop…I want…I need you to continue doing those things to comfort me…because it reminds me how those actions should make me feel. Not disgusted, but appreciated. Respected. Valued. Not like property. Not like I need to obey in order to get something in return."

"I'd never expect anything in return, I'm just trying to be here for you." He assures me.

Did I not just say that? I guess we both need reassurance, I will try to explain though I can feel the warmth rise in my cheeks. "I know. And it is so very different when it is you. Even when I was out of my mind with the Bliss, I still knew that what Skumm was doing was sickening…but I needed to suffer through it…I could not risk not getting more Bliss. And the only thing that worked for me was…was pretending he was someone else. It was someone else's hand on my cheek, someone else's finger twirling around my hair, someone else's breath on my skin. Someone whose voice was sweet, whose hands were warm, whose touch was tender…I pretended it was you."

"It's ok Babe. He's never gonna touch you again. I'll burn his fingers off, and then I'll kill him if he tries." He kisses my forehead… was there hesitation there?

I might have imagined it, I am still afraid, he could still change his mind but I need to be completely honest with him now, if he is really going to help me he deserves that. Finally I blurt out my greatest fear. "...How far would I have let him go? Would I have given in and let him…do whatever."

"NO!" He yells suddenly making me jump. "No, you wouldn't. You wouldn't have let it go that far."

I look up at him, wanting to know that he really believes that and needing to believe it myself. "How can you be so sure, when even I am not so sure?"

"Because…because…, Because I just am! I know you. The sensible, logical Linka was still inside you. She would've prevailed. I know this because I've seen how strong you are." He wants to believe it but his evidence is seriously flawed.

"I was not very strong last night." I say, my voice coloured by my shame.

"Last night never happened. Last night doesn't count…the bad parts anyways," He says, his lips against my ear. "As for what happened with Skumm, you'd remember…and you don't remember doing anything more…right?"

"Nyet. I do not remember doing anything…but I also do not remember Boris crashing through the window at the Capital Building…Wheeler…if I did not remember that…what else do I not remember?" There, I said it. I tried to bury it, I tried to ignore it… I dreaded Wheeler finding out, I dreaded how he would react…

His answer is to wrap himself around me as securely as he can as if he is frightened that someone is going to take me away. The knots in my stomach finally begin to loosen. He won't send me away to the clinic or anywhere else, I am sure of that now, he is claiming me… just as friend of course, but it still makes me feel better knowing that I have not lost him for good.

I do not think I will ever feel better about the Bliss though… or whether there are any gaps in my memory, but I do not know what to do.

As if in answer to my thoughts, Wheeler begins. "There's ways to find out…to be sure."

Yes there is, but I am not sure if I am ready for him to… "You could go to the doctor and be examined."

Ohhhh! Nyet, a stranger checking would be worse than letting you.

"Or maybe Ma-Ti could use his ring to scan your memories…" He continues

A momentary panic sets in. "NYET! Not Ma-Ti! No one else can know Wheeler!"

"Ok, ok…I know…he's the only one I can think of that can get inside people's heads though…other than a hypnotherapist. And we can do that if you want. There's places that I know of in New York…we can go there for a few days. Tell the others that we're going on a mini vacation…" He is trying to help but I really do not want to be around strangers, I cannot trust them. It is not like he wanted a real holiday with me, that was just a cover.

"What about Gaia?" She would help if I actually asked her, I think. "She could get into my head just as Ma-Ti could." And she could deal with what she might find a lot better than he could. He understands so much about people, from his own instincts as much as from his power, but he is still basically a child and he should not have to deal with this.

Wheeler seems to agree, though just for a second I think I see disappointment in his eyes. "That's a good idea. Maybe you can talk to her tomorrow…if you're feeling up to it. And I'll come with you…if you want…you know, for support."

"Da, of course I want you there." I say quickly. I think he needs to know the truth too and I do not want to have to go through it twice. "And we will see how I feel tomorrow…if I am ready. I want answers…I just do not know if I am ready to hear them."

"Is there anything else you want to talk about?" He asks.

"Nyet. That is everything that happened. Those are the things that I dream about. Those memories…and then possible scenarios…if he did try…and I let him." And if there was anything else, I have forgotten that too!

He tries to reassure me but I think maybe he is trying to convince himself too. "That's one nightmare you WILL NOT be having tonight. It's me tonight. I'm the one holding you. Even in your sleep, I'll protect you. Just think about that every night before you go to sleep…"

Oh I do Yankee, even before all this happened, I have thought about that. I have shared enough of my private feelings with him tonight though, so I will keep that to myself for now.

"If you start to have a nightmare about Skumm, maybe that seed will be planted in your subconscious and I'll show up in your dream. I'll protect you…and he'll stop coming around. Those nightmares will end for good." He says with confidence.

"I hope so." I reply sincerely.

"You should get some more rest. It was a long night," He whispers and then shifts himself to get comfortable, rubbing me gently on my stomach. He is very affectionate but every bit the gentleman and I am exhausted. All I can do is curl up against my protector and let myself drift away into a peaceful sleep.

I lay on my side with my eyes tightly shut and try to ignore what is going on behind me. The noises, the way the bed is moving… I pop a pill in my mouth and swallow it quickly, trusting its soothing effect to wipe away the face of Skumm's latest choice. She came here willingly enough of course, and she will be well rewarded for her service to our Lord but… is there enough Bliss to wipe away the memory?

I grip my bag of pills tightly. It was her choice, just like the one last night and the night before that. At least we are away from the party downstairs, and Skumm's men. Here I do not have to watch.

Skumm's tail flicks against my leg and I put another pill in my mouth, inching a little further towards the edge of the bed.

The Bliss is not helping much tonight but I dare not ask for any more. Boris has passed out on the floor, beside Skumm's bed. If I run out of my own I could take some of his, Skumm is generous to both of us but… I do not want to attract attention to myself.

Even though I am still dressed, I know my figure would draw attention, I have always been beautiful but the Bliss enhances everything, I am lucky to have Skumm's protection because I would no doubt draw the interest of his henchmen.

I hear a thump as the girl lands on the floor, my master is done with her. He throws her a bag of pills and tells her to get out then stretches and settles back comfortably. Hopefully he will go to sleep now and then I can too.

No such luck.

"Linka." He coos softly, turning towards me. "Did you enjoy watching my prowess?"

I do not answer, he might still just fall asleep. Does he really think I watch?

His finger trails a line down my back making me shiver and then leans over to whisper in my ear. "Come a little closer my dear."

I do not dare refuse so I turn onto my back, not really getting any closer but appearing to respond.

He smells my hair and runs a furry hand along my cheek and down my arm so that he can play with my fingers. He is gentle but the feel of him makes my skin crawl. I close my eyes and try to imagine someone else in his place, not just anyone but the one person that has been filling my dreams for the past year.

My master knows the effect he has on me, he knows that he makes me feel sick… he enjoys the power he has over us all. But I cannot risk that he will stop supplying what I need so badly. That is the reason I do not say anything when he wraps his limbs about mine, entwining us and holding me tightly against his bare chest.

I keep my eyes shut… he just wants to hold me while he sleeps, he has had his pleasure tonight… except that I do not think he is tired at all! I begin to struggle, panic rising my chest. Where is Wheeler? Why has he not come to rescue me? He promised!

"Nyet." Oh please. Why would he let Skumm…?

Then suddenly he releases me and someone takes my hand and kisses it. I say someone because it feels different, and then I hear a voice I was beginning to think I would never hear again. "Linka, it's Wheeler. It's not Skumm. He can't hurt you Baby, I won't let him. I'm here."

"Yankee? You came." I open my eyes and look up.

"Yeah. I told you I would. It's me Babe," Wheeler tells me, replacing Skumm beside me as he slips into the bed and pulls me into his arms, kissing my cheek lovingly.

"It is you," I agree, nuzzling his bare chest as I snuggle into his arms.

He strokes my hair soothingly and makes me a promise. "It's me. I've got you, and I'm not going anywhere. No one's gonna hurt you. No one. Especially not Skumm. They've gotta get past me first…and I'll never let you go,"

I cannot think clearly but it does not matter. I know this does not all entirely make sense but if Wheeler says it is alright, it must be. I am safe now, curled up in my Yankees arms as I watch the dead rat slowly be engulfed in flames.

To Be Continued…

And don't forget, to get the full affect of the story, you HAVE TO read Wheeler's side of the story in Chapter 24 of Becks7's Co-Dependents