Same day...
hours later
 

Christian managed to get a few hours of good sleep, after which he worked in his study.  He had an early dinner with Gwen and then left the penthouse, telling Gwen he had to meet with his a business associate regarding the Japanese market.

By 5:50 p.m., he had made it to Sean's small house, which was surrounded by tall trees and a winding driveway.
 
 

"She's getting emotionally involved." The first man stated, looking over pictures taken of Gwen.

The one he was speaking to regarded him for a long, hard moment before giving The order "Shut down The experiment."

The first man nodded and then left The room, taking a team with him.
 
 
 

Less than an hour later.....

Gwen had gone out when Christian had left, needing to get out for a breath of fresh air.

She was on The highway when The first flash of lightening struck overhead...... and she never saw The car in The rain until it was already slamming into The side of her car, sending it careening out of control.
 
 

Damn, what a shift -  Taylor thought, pushing her bangs from her forehead as she left The last patient and heading toward The nurses' desk.

"Doctor Morgan, paging Doctor Taylor Morgan to Emergency, STAT."

What the --? she started to think, only to get a sick gut feeling and sprinting toward The ER.
 
 
 
 

Christian paced around Sean's living room nervously.  The longer he waited the more nervous he became.

"She changed her mind." He said finally "This was all too much for her."

"Calm down man, she's a doctor.  Those guys can never get out of work on time.  She's coming."

Christian shook his head.

"Hey now, stop that.  I know people." The short dark-skinned man told him firmly "That lady is coming.  I can tell."

Sean Carter was a former CIA operative specializing in covert operations.  He'd seen a lot in his time and considered himself to be an excellent judge of character and people in general.

The only reason he could think of for her not showing, was if something stopped her.

However, he couldn't bring this possibility up to his friend.

The man was as nervous as a cat already.
 
 
 
 

Taylor made it to the emergency room and pushed her way through the small crowd already there.  She didn't know why, but she knew who it was she would find.

And she was right.

"Get these people out of here!" she yelled over the den of noise, grabbing hold of an intern and pushing him toward the needless people trying to crowd in on Gwen as she made it to the woman's side and helped Ross in pushing the stretcher the woman was on into a solitary operation room.

"Taylor - !"  Gwen gasped, grabbing hold of the doctor's wrist.

"Hold on, Gwen." She said, pulling the stethoscope to her ears and pressing the small metallic disk to Gwen's bloodied chest and then down.

"I can't - Taylor - argh!" Gwen started to roll up on her side, more blood pouring from her wounds.

"Save.. The baby!" The woman said, forcing herself to speak even against the pain and shock that was creeping up on her.  She forced herself to turn toward Taylor "I won't make it."

"Of course you will -" Taylor said, just as Ross worked frantically to try and save the woman's life and stop the bleeding.

Gwen pulled her down with more strength than either woman thought possible, her voice equally strong "You can do it - take the baby... you're the same blood type - it can work!  It knows you care about it - "

The woman grimaced as another wave of pain hit and her hands loosened their tight grip on Taylor.

And Taylor's mind was spinning.  Gwen knew about her research although Taylor hadn't ever told her about it.  Maybe Christian had?  And what she said about the baby... that she knew...?

Everything was happening at a whirlwind pace and she felt hot tears running down her cheeks.  She couldn't explain it but she knew Gwen wasn't going to make it, she knew that what Gwen said was the truth - and she found herself knowing it somehow had to do with the baby.

"It should have been you..." Gwen whispered, referring to her pregnancy and being married to Christian "Make it.. right..."

"Gwen!" Taylor tried to get the woman to respond, at the same time working with Ross to try and save her "Gwen, wake up!"

But Gwen had closed her eyes and seconds later, took her final breath.

Oh god... The baby, Taylor thought numbly, her hands bloodied as she looked over at the monitor.

Take The baby.

The words resounded in her mind, even as she found herself doing the math in her head and realizing that..... there was a chance.

"Taylor, what are you doing -?" Ross asked, his hands still pressing against one of Gwen's wounds as Taylor snatched up the chart someone had managed to put on the end of the stretcher during all of the chaos of minutes ago and read.  Then she turned to him and slapped the board onto his chest, her mind made up.

"Do it." She said, blue eyes determined.  Time was running out.

"What?!"

"Do the procedure, Ross or I'll damn well do it on myself."

It would work.  It had to work.

"You realize what you're asking me to do?" Ross asked, The monitor automatically shutting off and the sound of the flat line fading away "I could lose my license.  Taylor it may not take - hell I've never actually done the procedure before, that's your expertise!"

"It'll work." Taylor promised him, going to the sink to scrub her hands.  It was amazing and yet frightening how fast her mind was churning along with reasons and excuses "I haven't been sleeping and something burst so you had to rush me to surgery.  You didn't even have enough time to alert the nurses.  I'm running a fever, my appendix burst."

"Of course it's going to look damn suspicious when you're examined later and your appendix is still there."  Ross pointed out, coming up beside her and scrubbing his hands without even realizing it until he was done.

Then he looked at them, amazed "Shit, I'm actually doing this.  I must be insane."

Taylor turned and pulled off her top, an off-white muscle shirt underneath the scrubs she had been wearing "Of course but you were insane before too."

Hold on, hold on. She thought to herself, looking at Gwen's abdomen and wishing the baby could some how hear her thoughts.

It was then that she felt something tickling the edge of her consciousness, and one solitary word formed. Except it was more of a feeling than a word, but there noneless.

Hurry.

The monitors that had been set up to regulate the child's vitals was still going and showing that they were fading as well.

"Now Ross and I'm not taking no for an answer so get it in gear." Taylor said, pulling the gurney after her as she went through a set of doors into another operating room and beside the operating table there.

Ross followed and started prepping.

"You're going to owe me big time for this, Tay.  Big damn time."

"I know."

He put a mask over her face and she fell asleep to more of his complaining.
 
 
 

His cell phone rang and Sean answered it "Hello?"

He listened for a moment and looked at his friend, barely keeping from biting off a curse.

"What is it?" Christian asked, feeling a bit panicked by the look in his friend's face "Did something happen to Taylor?"

"No," Sean said firmly "Gwen.  She was run off the road and taken to the hospital in really bad shape."

"The baby?" Christian asked.

"I don't know.  You better get over there."

Christian was already on his way out of the door.  He drove at a break neck speed all the way to the hospital his mind swimming.

If they went after Gwen, they might go after Taylor too.  He couldn't lose both the baby and Taylor, He just couldn't.
 
 
 

Ross took Gwen's body down to the morgue and put her in a shelf, calling himself seven kinds of fool and ass for what he had done over an hour ago.

And the damn thing of it was - the hospital was buying the story he fed them about Taylor.

Security sucked here, He thought as he closed the metallic door to the drawer he had put Gwen in.  He looked at the door he had just shut and bowed his head, saying a little prayer for the woman.

"I don't know the whole story but I knew that, in the end, you wanted to make things right.  I hope you're at peace now."

Then he looked up and started back toward the hallway and elevator banks beyond "I just hope all of this isn't for naught."
 
 
 

Across town....

The sky lit up with a series of lightening streaks that slashed across the sky, lighting up the city scene below and the clouds in which the force of nature fell from.

The traffic was horrendous, not only because of the storm but the accident had made a rubber necking spree out of the area.  It was almost at a stand still.

At least for most.

"Did you check to make sure they were both dead?" The man in the back seat asked the one that had just come and delivered the news about the 'accident'.

He had gone to wait for word at the nearby public park but out of the traffic so that he wouldn't be stuck in place.   The driver had the
patrician between the front and back seats closed so as not to hear what was being said.  The driver had been in the Organization's employ for years, knew when not to listen in on conversations but could always be relied on to give his boss information when it concerned others that had used the car service for whatever reason they had at the time.

His boss was drinking a snifter of brandy and listening to the report.

"She was wrapped around the steering column when we left.  Someone saw the accident and called the cops.  We just got out of there before they showed up."

The man's expression remained the same - cool, calm, composed and emotionless.  But his gaze, when he turned it to the agent, was cutting and exact.

"Get to her body and find out.  I don't care who you have to kill to do it.  We cannot let anything slip by us.

The agent nodded once and straightened, shaking off his trench coat from the rain, and turned to leave, his usually clean black patent leather loafers now soaked and even making mud impressions in the ground he walked on as he made his way to his car.  Because of the popularity of the area they were in and civilians that usually trekked the area, there was no worry that his foot prints would be distinguishable, much less last past the storm.
 
 
 

Hospital, Emergency Room....

Christian pulled into the parking lot of the hospital and hurried inside the emergency area looking around.  He hurried to the nurses station.  "I'm Christian DeWitt.  I heard my wife was here?  Gwen DeWitt?  She's pregnant."

The nurse's aid there did not recognize him, but after looking up the woman's name said.  "I'll be right back."

She rushed off to find the doctor, however she was not able to locate them. When she returned all she could to was ask DeWitt to wait in the waiting room until she could find him.

Christian did just that for over twenty minutes before his temper got the better of him and he returned to the nurse's station  "I've been waiting for the doctor, but he hasn't shown up and I want to know about my wife NOW."

"I'm sorry sir, but you have to talk to the doctor." The young girl told him.

"Then you find him this instant!" Christian roared.

"Damn it, DeWitt!" Ross was there suddenly and hissed, pulling him over to a curtained off area and inside, pulling the green fabric closed to give them some privacy.

Christian hissed right back at him.  "How dare you take that tone with me!  I've been sitting around here waiting for word of Gwen and the baby and you didn't even have the decency to come when you were called!"

"I was checking on Taylor!" Ross roared before catching himself and cursing again.  Damn, damn, damn!

Christian paled visibly "Taylor?"

Oh God, they got to her too, what have I done? He thought frantically, What have I done!?

Ross looked at the man in front of him, sympathy in his gaze as he admitted in a much more subdued tone "Gwen... didn't make it."

How in the hell was he going to tell DeWitt the rest of it?
 
 
 
 
 
 

Basement, Morgue....

The two men pulled out drawer after drawer, having learned that Gwen had been brought down but not the specific location.

The first man looked at the limp body of another doctor in the corner "Should have asked him before offing him."

"Shut up and find the body." The other one snapped, only to pull one out and give the sign that he had found the objective.

The other went over and inspected the body, only to curse "It's gone - The damn thing is gone!  How is that possible??"

"Hell if I know but you know the orders." The first one said, closing the drawer and heading toward the doors "We find and destroy it."
 
 
 

Taylor came slowly awake, swallowing against a suddenly dry throat.  Ugh, her patients weren't lying about the after effects of surgery.  She started to close her eyes again.

And then suddenly opened them again as a feeling of danger filled her.  But from where? What was the danger?

Run.  Run away!

She brought her hand up to her stomach and gasped.

She had heard that - in her head and as loud as if it had been verbalized - but knew that it had come from... the baby.

"It's too soon.." She murmured, knowing it had only been a matter of hours since the surgery.  If she moved it could hurt the baby or even herself....

She had to close her eyes again as an even stronger sense of danger overcame her.  As it were she had to grip the side of the bed as images bombarded her mind and the urgency became even greater.

Before she even realized it she was already pulling the I.V. from her hand and getting out of bed before moving over to the closet.

Thank god.  Ross had thought ahead of time and put her change of clothes there that she usually kept in the locker room.

She had no idea how she had managed it, much less had a cognate recollection of really putting on the shirt and loose fitting jogging pants but there she was, moments later, sneaking out of the room and toward the nearby stairs.

She had to get out.
 
 
 

The two men had to work their way around without being spotted but they knew that time was of the essence.
 
 
 

Taylor made it outside and, with the rain pouring down on her, kept her hand to her stomach and stumbled toward her car, finally making it and to the front right tire before reaching under it and getting the hidden box she kept there with the spare key inside.  She wiped her hair from her eyes as the lightening streaked across the sky overhead and finally made it inside before locking the door and starting the engine.
 
 
 
 

Hospital, Learning what happened....

Christian ran his hands over his face, that meant the baby hadn't made it either.

He took a shaky breath as grief began to set in and turned his eyes back on Ross "What about Taylor, what happened?  Is she going to be all right?"

Ross took a good look around them before taking DeWitt by the arm and muttering to him "Come with me."

Ross reached Taylor's room, finished telling DeWitt what they had done.  He put his hand to the door panel to push it open when he met the man's gaze "You better realize how much she cares.  If this gets out it's not only my ass but hers too."

Christian was amazed by what Ross had told him.  His baby was still alive and in the woman he cared about.  The grief from moments earlier was quickly dissipating, though some did remain for Gwen.

"I know." He said, the awe in his voice.  No one had ever done anything this wonderful for him in his life.

Christian followed Ross into the room and looked around, but there was no one there.  The bathroom door stood open and he peered inside, still nothing.

"Where is she?" He asked, the panic from moments ago coming back as he looked around the room for some kind of sign as to where Taylor could possibly be.

Ross was wondering the same thing and went to the closet "She better be nearby.  She's had surgery damnit..."

The chances of something going terribly wrong and Taylor being without help....

"Her clothes are -"

Just then two men entered, only to freeze at seeing them and the one in the lead motioning for his partner to go find the woman as he got a firm grip on the door to block both Ross' and Christian's ways to keep from interfering.  They had gone to Taylor Morgan's room with the plan of snatching her to use against DeWitt.  Now neither of them knew where she was.

The Agent left, running toward the nearby stairwell, while the other one turned his gaze to look at the two men still inside the patient's room.

Ross could only stare at him in shock. What the hell was happening??

Christian looked at Ross and hissed, "Get in the bathroom."

He wasn't going to let this guy threaten the life of an innocent person to keep him from acting.

Ross however just stood there.

Moving quickly Christian grabbed him and essentially flung him into the bathroom yanked the door closed.  Then he turned and moved towards the guy at the door.

"Get the Hell out of my way." Christian said.

The man pulled out a silencer and aimed it at him "You may be immortal but how long will it take you to get up from a gun shot wound to find the girl, hmm?  And how will you explain it to your doctor friend?"

Christian's hands closed into tight fists, but remained at his sides.  It would take awhile.  After the skiing accident it had taken days for him to regenerate.  Of course the process wasn't helped at all by the fact some ER doctor had performed surgery on him.

But he needed to help Taylor -

"How long do you intend to hold us here?" He demanded.

"As long as it takes to find that cute friend of yours -"

"Her car's gone!" His partner was back and calling out to him at the stairwell.

The Agent looked at Christian with a raised eyebrow "Why would a woman just out of surgery leave the hospital...."

Then it struck him.  The bitch could very well have the -

He moved his gun to indicate Christian to move to the right.  Then, as soon as he could, The Agent slammed the door and took off after his partner, who was already running down and back out toward their own car.

Christian hurried to open the bathroom door.  "Are you all right?  Does Taylor have a car phone?"

"Who the Hell are those men and what have you gotten Taylor into?" Ross demanded, pushing his way out of the bathroom.  He had frozen but being flung into the bathroom seemed to do the trick in snapping him out of it and now he stood glaring at DeWitt.
 
 

Taylor was finding it hard to drive in the weather and ignore the pain of her moving too soon.  But she was somehow able to do it and even tried to reassure the life inside of her, barely able to grasp the fact she was actually conscious of what was happening around her.

"We'll be fine," She said, trying to see where the next exit was and follow the directions Christian's friend had given her.  It was the only place she knew of that was relatively safe "Hold on honey... just hold on."
 
 

"I don't have time to explain that now." Christian said urgently "We have to find Taylor before they do.  Does she have a car phone?!?"

"Yes." Ross growled out, yanking open the hospital room door open and stalking toward a nearby private phone.

"Save your attitude, we don't have time for that either." Christian said as he followed.

"Make time for it." Ross bit out, punching the number to Taylor's cell phone out and glaring at the other man "Because of anything happens to her -"

Taylor was finally getting off on the right exit when the phone rang.  Her concentration on staying conscious, much less trying to get where she was going was so deep that the shrill sound made her jump in her seat, only to groan at the effects of that move as her body screamed with pain.

She looked at the number and saw that it was a hospital number.  Ross. And he probably found out she wasn't in her room...

Damn, She thought as the phone rang again, she should call Christian and Sean !

It was that thought that had her picking up the phone "I can't talk right now and I'm hanging up.  I have to call -"

"Don't you dare hang up on me!" Ross practically yelled before shoving the phone at Christian to make sure he could stop her from doing it "Talk before she hangs up!"

"Taylor, it's Christian, don't go to your place-" The man said in a rush.

"Christian." Taylor whispered, even as she pulled over to the side of the road.  She couldn't chance getting into an accident "Christian, I'm sorry - we tried to save her - I had to leave the hospital, something's wrong there... the baby..."

It was hitting her all at once now and she swiped at her eyes "I - I wasn't going home but there's something trying to hurt the baby..."

God, she probably sounded insane to him.

Christian's heart wrenched at the sound of the emotion in her voice.

"I know," He told her gently "Can you get to our original destination?  Do you need me to come get you?"

"I don't think I can make it." She admitted.  The pain of moving too soon and not wanting to put the baby in any further jeopardy - and she wasn't feeling well either.

It was still storming outside and the rain was making it cold.  Thing was, she was hot, and suspected she had a fever.  Not good.

"Hurry." She said, her voice still low.

"Where are you?" Christian asked.  He hated asking, but if he was going to find her he had to know.

"Just got off on the exit but not to the second light yet." She said, relaying the part of the directions Sean had given her "What if they're watching you?"

It was a possibility and not one she was willing to put him in "I... I can call your friend."

"I'll call him. You stay there. We'll be there soon. Just stay put."

He didn't want to but hung up and dialed Sean's number from memory and gave him instructions to go pick up Taylor.  When he hung up, he turned to Ross.

"Help me find some sort of a hooded jacket, and give me the keys to your car."

Ross gave him his lab coat and keys "I don't have a hooded jacket but wear this.  If the guard sees you going toward my car without it he'll stop you."

Ross heard his name being paged over the intercom for emergency and gave DeWitt a hard look "Just make sure she doesn't get hurt."

With that he turned to go to the locker room to get another one, it being down the hall.  If he could, he would have went with DeWitt - but he had a bad feeling he would be in over his head and no help to Taylor because of that.

It didn't mean he wasn't going to worry like hell until He knew she was safe, even the baby.
 
 

The Agents sped toward the location the woman doctor had given Christian, at the same time Sean jumped in his own car to catch up to her.

Taylor had hung up the phone, her eyelids growing heavy as her body just finally reached it's limit and started to succumb to the effects of the drugs still in her system, the lack of adrenaline that had gotten her this far and the need to recoup from the surgery itself.

Her head dropped limply against the raised window, the phone falling from her now lax hand.
 
 

Sean spotted the car as soon as he turned onto the road.  He pulled up in front of it and jumped out, going over and knocking on the window.

However there was no response.

So Sean moved to the other side and, after jimmying the lock, got the door open.

It took some doing, but the man got her out of the car from the passenger side and carried her towards his own vehicle.

Taylor stirred, feeling someone's hands on her "Chri..ss..an..?"

"He's most likely breaking speed laws to get to you but no, it's Sean." The man identified himself.  He didn't like her response - or more to the point, her barely conscious response.  And she was pale too.

And was that a hospital band around her wrist??
 

The Agents neared the location.......
 

Sean put Taylor in the back seat of his dark car and got into the driver's seat, taking off quickly.  He didn't want to take chances with the Organization or Taylor's help.  Plus, Christian would be irate if he got to the house first.

Christian drove as fast as he could, darting in and out of traffic, taking every precaution to keep anymore from being able to find him.

The black sedan came out of nowhere, slamming into the back of Sean's car.  They had seen the man get Taylor out of the car and were determined to make sure neither one of them escaped, especially alive.

"SHIT!" Sean cursed.

Taylor cried out, even if it was a weak one, and barely managed not to fall, curled up on her side and holding her middle protectively.

CHRISTIAN!!

....... CHRISTIAN!! was a joined Thought that screamed out to him as he speed nearer to where they were.

"It's okay kiddo," Sean called to her "We'll get out of this."  I hope.

The way he saw it, there was one way out.  Defensive and then evasive action.  He threw the car into reverse.

"Taylor honey, get on The floor." He commanded as he then stepped on the gas and shot unexpectedly backwards towards the black car.
 

Christian heard the Call and sped up.  I'm coming, Taylor, hold on, I'm coming.
 

Taylor barely made it to the floor board, her palm against her still sore stomach, before the car crashed into the other.  Thankfully she didn't feel the full force of it from where she was at, but that wasn't to say it didn't give her shoulder a good hit.  She just didn't care about it at this point. She just wanted the baby to be safe.

"Hear that baby?" She whispered without really realizing it as she Heard Christian.

It was the last thing she consciously thought before she succumbed to blackness.
 
 

"Crazy bastard!" The Agent cursed as he sped up and got almost parallel with the car the African American was driving.  Wrenching the steering wheel sharply to the left, he rammed the car from the side, making it skid toward the guard rail.

Sean pulled his own steering wheel back to the right, keeping the gas on the floor and slamming into the black car again.

Just then Christian arrived and, as he saw the commotion ahead he swore loudly and speed towards the black car.  Just after Sean's blow, Ross's car barreled into the black Sedan.  The impacts so close sent it careening out of control.

Sean spun the wheel of his battered vehicle and turned around heading the opposite direction, with Christian hot on his trail.  As the flew through the back roads, Christian caught a glimpse of Sean's hand going up in a V sign.

They were going to a different safe house, far out of town.
 
 

An hour later....

Having been careful not to be followed by anyone but Christian, Sean made it to the safe house he had signaled back to him, parking around back so his car wouldn't be seen in the street.

Once the car stopped, the man got out and went to the back door, barely able to get it open because it had been jammed on itself with the abuse it took.

Taylor lay on her side on the floor board inside.

Christian following him and was at his friend's side almost before the car had stopped completely.

"Oh my God." He said as he saw Taylor.

Being as careful as possible he lifted her out of the car and followed Sean inside and up stairs to a second floor bedroom.

"We need her doctor." Christian said, feeling very panicked and inadequate. "God, Sean, he put the baby in her."

"What?" Sean looked at him and then Taylor, remembering then the information he had read about her in a file.

Damn, and it was right up her alley too.

"Who is it?" He asked, referring to Taylor's doctor "I'll bring him back."

Taylor stirred just then, sighing as she moved her head against Christian's shoulder and settled back into sleep.  Somehow, without seeing who it was carrying her, She knew it was him.  The baby knew it was him.

She whispered his name under her breath.

Christian kissed her forehead as he settled her into bed.  "Yes, it's me."

"She's safe..." She managed to whisper before she fell back into a deep sleep, her hand on her abdomen.

Sean looked at the woman with a raised eyebrow.  He knew how rare it was for one of his kind to reproduce, but Taylor was taking it one step further.

Question was, would it work or would it harm her in some way?

"I'll be back as soon as I can." He promised before leaving.

"All right," Christian agreed following him downstairs.  He went to the kitchen and got a bowl, and a clean dish cloth.  He filled the bowl with cool water and headed back upstairs.  Once there he sat on the edge of the bed sponging Taylor's flushed face.

"She, hmm?" He said softly.  "So does that mean we are having a little girl?"

He didn't expect an answer, but talking to her kept him from worrying quite so much.

Taylor instinctively moved toward the coolness and sighed.
 
 

Sean drove as fast as he could without breaking the speed limit, taking a way that would be hard to trace back to the house as he went.

When he finally pulled up to the hospital, he parked the doctor's car in a place in the visitor's parking lot before walking toward the building.

Once inside and the nighttime flow of doctors, nurses and patients filling the hallway with their sounds, he made his way to the directory nearby, looking for the doctor's name.

He then went to the Emergency Room, stopping a nurse on the way to ask curiously "Hello, could you point me to Doctor Ross please?"

The nurse pointed to the one just coming out of a cubical and Sean thanked her.

Looking around to make sure no one seemed out of place or gave any indication of watching, he approached Ross, whispering under his breath loud enough for the man to hear but no one else.

"Taylor needs your help, follow me."

And with that he left, turning down another hallway as if he had only been following the nurse's instruction to get to a room.

Ross was slightly startled, but soon followed the man, grabbing his medical bag as he moved easily past the nurse's station.  He was worried about Taylor.  At least DeWitt had the sense to send for a doctor, but this whole situation just made him angry.

Sean led him out into the parking lot and to a non descript black car before, giving him a warning look not to say a word, he jimmied the lock to the passenger side and then went to the driver's side.  The car was old enough not to have a car alarm and that was one of the things Sean had been counting on.

And he had called it right.

It took a little over an hour for them to get back to the house, both Glen and Sean remaining silent during the drive.
 
 

The Agent looked at his partner and grimaced before getting out of tThe car. The hit to the car had been hard and should have killed them both.... but he had survived.

He stumbled away from the wreck and started walking in the dark.  Whoever found the body and car would never be able to trace either.  The Agents were good that way.
 
 

Christian was on his feet the moment he heard a car outside.  He slipped downstairs and peered out to make sure it was Sean.  Once he was certain, he let the two men in.

"She's got a fever," He told Ross.  "And she hasn't woken at all since we got here."

"Damn." Ross muttered, waiting for him to lead the way "And where's my car?"

"Out back -" Christian replied.

Sean cleared his throat behind them, "No...it's at the hospital now."

They reached the room Taylor was in and Ross entered, going to sit on the side of the bed and pulling out what He needed from his medical bag and taking her temperature and blood pressure.  A moment later he cursed again and put the items aside, looking through his bag for something that would bring down the fever and a syringe.

He was filling it when Taylor stirred and managed to focus on him and the shot.

"No." She said, her voice low but clear as she slowly shook her head "It .. might hurt her.."

"We have to bring your temperature down or it'll hurt both of you." Ross said, tapping the hypodermic needle to settle the liquid inside.

"No." Taylor said again "Don't.  I mean it."

"Taylor -" Ross started.

She swallowed hard and put her hand to her stomach, adamant with the one word she spoke and knowing full well that, legally and morally, He shouldn't give her medical treatment "NO."

"What about a cold bath," Christian suggested.  He'd heard that submerging people in cold water sometimes broke a fever.

"Not this soon after surgery." Ross answered, debating ignoring Taylor's insistence but knowing he would probably get his ass kicked by any of them.

"Do you have more towels?"

"Sure," Sean replied.  "This is a first class operation.  How many do you need?"

"A stack," Ross said, nodding at the bathroom door nearby that was sitting slightly open "And stick them in the bathtub to soak in cool water.  We'll ring them out and do a kind of sponge bath wrapping where we can thing."

Sean nodded and did as he was told as he began to soaked and then brought the damp towels in.

Christian helped Ross wrap Taylor up in them.

The only area Ross had to be careful of was where she had had surgery.

Taylor stirred, feeling the coolness against her, but started pushing it away from her lower body.

"Taylor please," Christian pleaded "He knows what he's doing, let us help you, you're burning up."

Ross didn't want to point out that it was Taylor that probably knew more than he did in this realm.  Thing was he wasn't sure if she was coherent enough to know what she was doing or not.  And damn it, he still needed to take a sample of her blood to see if infection had set in.

He looked at both men and stood, first speaking to DeWitt and then the man that had picked him up at the hospital "Try and get her to settle down.  And could you show me to the kitchen? I have to set up for a blood test."

"Right this way." Sean said, leading him from the room and downstairs to the kitchen.

Christian sat down beside Taylor and took her hand, gently stroking her hair with his other hand.  "Hey, you need to stop wiggling around so much. You'll make it too hard for me to catch you."

Taylor's lashes fluttered drowsily and it took her a couple of times to try and speak before she was able to whisper "...baby..."

The baby couldn't take the cold, not right now....

"The baby will be fine," Christian told her.  "But not if we don't get you well."

"Towels...my head." Taylor murmured, meaning for him to just keep them on her head.  That was where the danger lay in having a fever anyway - damaging the brain cells.  She grasped Christian's hand and hoped he knew what she meant.

Christian sighed.

"All right." He agreed reluctantly and did what she said "What about your feet?  Heat goes out of your feet too."

Taylor swallowed and then "Cover."

He did as she asked, hoping she knew what the hell she was talking about.
 
 
 

Ross looked at Sean as he started to set up, finally speaking his mind "You know, I'm not stupid but I know I'm in over my head on this one.  There's something different about DeWitt.  And if there's something different about him that means that chances are, there's something different about the child.

"Not to be rude but that is my best friend in there and her health is at risk.  I need to know what that difference is if she has a fighting chance to make it out of this."

Sean leaned against the counter folding his arms across his chest, his legs crossed at the ankle.  He considered the doctor's words for a moment, trying to decide whether or not it was his place to tell the guy.

Finally, he spoke up.  "Chris can't die...well...he can, but he just regenerates and pops back up again, eventually.  It's his baby.  The
bastards chasing Taylor stole his sperm and made the child in a lab.  So, they could be after her now as well.  I mean that's what they were after in the first place. A woman to give birth to the baby so they could test them?"

The last question was a rhetorical one so he didn't expect an answer. He did, though, expect the man's reaction.

Ross nearly dropped the testing tube he had in his hand as he looked at the other man, ready to ask if he was bullshitting him.

"He was in the hospital.. massive internal injuries.  Taylor stayed with him while he was out of it.." He pointed out, remembering the hours she had spent in DeWitt's room.

"And how many people do you know that actually recover fully from those kinds of massive injuries," Sean asked him reasonably.  "He needed time to heal, that's all."

"Taylor doesn't know, does she? Of course she doesn't.  She wouldn't have gone sleepless those nights..."

Ross shook his head, wondering if he should have it examined for actually buying this Twilight/Highlander crap.

"No, but he was going to tell her tonight," Sean told him "He didn't want to marry that woman, but they said they'd kill Taylor and the baby if he didn't do it."

"What?"

It was all he could do not to yell that one word out, and it came out barely restrained as it were as he looked at the one telling him all of this.

Did he realize how out there all of this sounded?

"I'm not sure why they went after Gwen first, to tell you truth," Sean said thoughtfully.  "But my people are working on that one."
 
 
 

Once Christian finished covering her and went back to sitting at her side she slipped her hand over his, drawing it over and setting it gently against her abdomen.  Then, with her hand still over his, she sighed and fell back into a deep sleep.

Christian closed his own eyes.

If you can help mommy do it, He thought to the baby.

And as if in answer, an almost visual emotion came to him.  A child, curled up inside of the womb, relaxing and opening herself to the one now giving her life.  Blood vessels began to flow, blood cells started to run it's course through both of them with some of the cells now different than what had been Taylor's before...

That's good, Christian thought, good girl.  Make her better.
 
 

"Perhaps she had a tolerance Taylor doesn't have." Ross suggested, his medical mind kicking in "Is it possible to get her medical files as well as any DeWitt might have - and Taylor's?  I should have brought them with me."

But he had been panicked and hadn't known all the facts until now.

He readied the first set of tubes and needles he needed for a sample of Taylor's blood.

"Oh yeah, I can get those," Sean assured him.  "Other than being in excellent health and good physical condition, I don't think there was anything all that spectacular about Gwen though.  You go on and do what you need to and I'll get to work on that."

Ross looked at him with a raised eyebrow "Unless you had a medical expert come up with that conclusion, the possibility is there.  Please hurry."

With that Ross headed toward Taylor's room and stopping when he saw DeWitt and the cover.

"What's going on?" He asked, going to sit on the other side of the bed and getting the hand not with DeWitt's on her stomach and extending the arm to ready for drawing a sample of blood.

"She wanted her feet covered up." Christian told him, opening his eyes slowly  "And The towels off everything except her head."

"Why?"

"I guess she thought it would be better for the baby." Christian replied.

"She's going to be fine." He added, feeling a lot calmer now.  The baby was like him, he knew that now and she was able to transfer some what she was to Taylor.  The question was whether it was enough to just heal her or enough to change her.  This wasn't exactly explored territory, at least not as far as he knew.

Ross looked up at him as he cleaned the area he had taken blood from, even if there wasn't any blood there.  It was something to do.  Then he looked around the room.  It wasn't bad but it was obviously not a permanent residence kind of place.

"Is she going to have to live like this now?" He asked, meaning the hiding out and being chased.

Taylor was the top in her league, she was making fertility breakthroughs that were leaving some in the dust.  Was she going to have to give all of that up?

"For awhile at least." Christian admitted.

"If she weren't so damned in love with you, I think I would have taken a swing at you by now." Ross admitted, although he did so without heat.  He had known Taylor since post graduate and definitely long enough to know that what she felt for the man was not a passing thing.  The woman had strong convictions and a strong right hook.  He stood and headed toward the bedroom door to go test the blood sample.

"If it makes you feel any better, there have been several accessions when I considered doing the same to you." Christian admitted.

Ross actually chuckled at that "Yeah but that was because I was being protective of Tay and, in some cases, speaking facts you didn't like hearing."

"Only because you didn't have all the facts." Christian pointed out.

Ross shrugged "Can't help that.  All the facts weren't being supplied.  Let's not argue the fine points and just leave it that I was coming from someone that didn't and does not want to see my closest friend hurt okay?"

He put his hand on the doorknob and started to turn it, opening the door to leave.

"Okay." Christian agreed.  Though he had the feeling he might want to punch the guy again at a future date.  He just had this attitude problem.

Ross left and Taylor stirred, opening her eyes enough to smile tiredly at Christian.  Her face was flush with the fever still but even she was feeling a difference inside of herself.

"Good morning, Sunshine." Christian said with a smile "Remember me?"

"Mmhmm." Taylor nodded before swallowing and looking to the side for, hopefully, a glass of water.

"I'll be right back." Christian told her, standing and heading into the bathroom.

He filled a glass Sean had brought up with cool water from the tap and returned.  Then he slipped an arm behind Taylor's shoulders and held the glass to her lips.

She drank, careful not to drink too much even though her body wanted to.  She finished and let him put the glass on the night stand "What time.. is it?"

Christian glanced at his watch.

"Twelve thirty," He told her "a time when most people are sleeping."

Taylor smiled sleepily, her hand settling against her stomach again "So sleep.. with us."

She was getting sleepy again, the healing not near complete but getting there.

And she wanted him near.

They were both safe - the baby and Christian.  That was enough for her.

Christian smiled at her "Well, I'll try though I don't know if your doctor friend will let me.  He might shoo me out."

He stood and moved to the other side of the bed, slipping in beside her, and put an arm around her.  The other hand he put back on her stomach.

Taylor frowned a little, although she put her head in the crook of his arm and shoulder, her hand over his as it now rested against her abdomen "Doctor friend...?"

"Ross," He told her.  "I had to bring him here.  I didn't know what to do for you."

She closed her eyes before murmuring "He won't shoo."

Christian chuckled "Perhaps, but he already admitted wanting to punch me."

That had her opening her eyes again and moving as if she would get up to go punch Ross "When..?"

"Multiple times," Christian said.  "It was mutual, just lie back down."

She did but not without a grunt about the whole situation.  They were just lucky she was so tired and out of it right then.

Then she remembered earlier and gazed at him.

"I'm sorry we couldn't save Gwen.  And I couldn't get in touch with you before I made Ross perform the surgery.  There wasn't time."

"That's all right." Christian told her and he kissed her temple gently  "I'm sorry about Gwen, she never asked for any of this.  However, I appreciate the decision you made and I can't think of anyone I would rather carry my child.  She knows you're her mommy you know."

Taylor suspected that but couldn't help the crooked, albeit tired, grin "Really?  How do you know?"

"She told me" Christian replied "in a way."

After all, Taylor still didn't know about Christian or, in effect, the baby in that regard.

"And," She asked, remembering the feeling she had had at the hospital and later car 'fight' that happened "Why was someone trying to run your friend off the road?"

Christian took a deep breath.  "To get to you and the baby."

She just looked at him, waiting for him to explain, worry in her eyes but also confusion.  No one had known what Ross and she had done - how could they had been after them?

"I'm not sure this is she time to go into this," Christian told her, but seeing the look in her eyes he changed his mind.

"Those men...well not them specifically, more likely the people the work for, created the baby.  Those guys are just muscle."  He smoothed her hair gently.  "When I was in the hospital, they stole my sperm and impregnated Gwen.  They wanted to create a baby like me and they succeeded.  After Gwen died I guess they went to make sure they were both dead and they found out the baby was gone.  They came to your room looking for you, but just found Ross and myself.  They wanted you to get to me, but once they figured out what happened, they wanted you both."

It took a moment for her to find her voice "W..why? Why would someone do something like that? And when did they -?  I was there...."

Although she hadn't been able to stay there around the clock, she had stayed by his bedside many an hour after he had gotten out of surgery.  Unless the doctor that had performed the operation....?  Surely not.

The thoughts were bombarding her and she was working on trying to put them in some kind of logical order, only to look at him with those questions in her eyes.

"I don't know." Christian admitted  "I was pretty out of it for awhile."

He was quiet for a moment.  "Taylor, I'm not sure how to tell you this....other than just come right out with it."

He took another deep breath.  Ross knew, he had to tell Taylor before the doctor did.  "I'm...I'm immortal."

"You're.... immortal." Taylor repeated, quiet for a long moment as she thought about certain things.

The speed of his recovery, the feelings she had literally felt from the baby before and even now -

She looked down at her stomach, where their hands were joined.

"This didn't happen with Gwen." She said finally, referring to what the baby was still doing to her  "And... and I heard her... at the hospital."

Taylor lifted her gaze to Christian, the confusion still there but thoughtful  "But I remember the accident."

And it had scared the hell out of her because she thought - she closed her eyes and bowed her head, pushing that thought away.

Immortal?  As in live forever?

She laid her head back down, back into the crook of his arm as she tried to take it all in.

"No it didn't happen with Gwen," Christian agreed.  "She didn't want the baby, didn't care about it.  The baby knows you care.  I...asked her to help you and she is.  She's like me.  That part of their experiment did work."

He stroked her hair again.

"The accident did tear me up pretty badly," He admitted.  "But I would have recovered even without all the medical care.  My body heals itself. Sometimes it takes awhile, but it does heal on its own."

"I can feel it." Taylor admitted about the healing she felt happening.

"You'll get used to that, I know it feels a bit odd." Christian told her.

She was getting drowsy again with his stroking her hair, but she was still able to stay awake enough to talk - for a little bit at least "And Gwen said something to me one time... during one of the tests."

"What did she say?" He asked curiously.

"She said that the baby reacted to my voice." She added and admitted "I didn't really believe her."

"Probably did," Christian said thoughtfully.  "She said it reacted to mine.  I didn't touch her much, she didn't want me to, so I never really got to do this."

"But you can talk to her... now?"

"Yes, when I touch you like this," Christian explained.  "I can talk to her in my head and she hears me.  I suspect she hears me when I speak too."

Taylor smiled at that, even as her eyelids started to drift closed again.  The fever was finally breaking and she was feeling a little chilly but didn't want to move.  She was right where she wanted to be and liked the thought of Christian there with her, his hand with hers the way they were.

She could even visualize the baby, on its side and sleeping, her little tiny thumb in her mouth.

Christian kissed Taylor once more before closing his own eyes.

Sleep well, He thought to the baby.  You earned it.