I calmed down and rested while waiting for news. The EMTs wrapped some ice on the front and back of my shoulder. They also wrapped a cold pack on the right side of my face. I'm sure I looked ridiculous but I didn't care. That ice was fantastic. Now, if they could only do something about my broken heart over being abused and traumatized by my own family, that would be helpful.

I didn't know how much time had passed- five minutes, an hour? I had no concept of time anymore. Steve was back, crouched next to me. He had another FBI agent with him.

"Hi Ryan. I hate to do this to you, and I know this was very upsetting and you're in pain, but can you tell me everything that happened since your parents first contacted you today? We're going to be recording this."

I nodded.

I told him everything, starting with the phone call from my mother. I don't think I had forgotten anything except for when I blanked out during the car ride, and again after falling down the stairs. Steve asked me a bunch of questions, and sometimes the other agent asked me questions too.

"All right, I'm going to let you go now. Marcus has a jet at the airfield. He's going to take you to the hospital. Don't worry, it's not going to be any hospital around here."

Oh thank God.

"He's getting released now and should be with you soon, okay? Just hold on. I'm sorry you had to go through this."

I nodded and then they were gone. Thank God Marcus was okay. He was alive and I would see him soon. I teared up again.

I heard a thudding sound and opened my eyes. Somebody was running toward me. I tensed up, but the EMTs didn't seem concerned. He got closer, and I knew it was Marcus. He knelt down, checking me over, while he rubbed my hair back from my face and put his forehead on mine. His tears were dropping onto my face. They combined with mine and ran down my face, over my chin, and down my neck.

"I am so glad to see you. I was terrified out of my fucking mind when I finally realized something had happened to you. I would have been here sooner but it took a few hours to realize something wasn't right."

I sniffed. "Don't worry. I was too scared to take my phone out and text you. They probably would've taken my phone away. I'm sorry you got tangled up into this. I had no idea my parents could ever do something like this." I couldn't talk anymore, because I was choking on my tears. I still couldn't believe any of this had happened.

Marcus very gently kissed me. That wasn't enough for me, not by a long shot. I wanted him to give me the deepest, hardest, raunchiest kiss I could, but not in front of the EMTs. So I didn't say anything.

Marcus turned to the EMTs. "I've got a Learjet on the airfield. Can we fly him to a hospital in city? He can't be treated around here. The people did this to him are police officers and he wouldn't be safe."

"Yes, we know that. I need to know what hospital you're taking him to, because he needs to be examined further. He fell down the stairs and he may have internal injuries."

Marcus whipped his head back to me with wide eyes. I gave him a little smile, trying to let him know I'm fine. I think it was a good thing that he wasn't anywhere near my parents or uncle right now. He'd probably be facing a murder charge if he was.

The EMTs finally put me on the gurney. They rolled me through the lawn, past FBI agents, next to the helicopter and then to a car. The EMTs helped Marcus get me in the backseat of the car.

"No, he needs to be sitting for the trip to the plane. He needs a seatbelt and he needs to stay upright."

Marcus had been arguing with EMTs that I needed to lay down, but. they weren't even going to let me get in the car unless I was sitting up in the back with a seatbelt on.

"We're not letting you take him until you tell us what hospital you are taking him to. He needs to be seen by a doctor."

Why hadn't he told them he was going to take me to a hospital in the city? Marcus motioned the EMTs away from the car. What was he telling them? Why couldn't I hear what he was telling them? I got nervous, but I knew Marcus would take care of me. I was just concerned as to what the hell was going on.

Eric opened the door and got in the front seat. "Eric? What are you doing here?"

He turned around, smiling. "I joined your boyfriend on his rescue mission." I just stared. Oh my God, I loved Marcus so much that my heart felt like it was going to burst. I blinked away the tears.

"Eric, do you know what's going on? What's Marcus telling them? Why can't he tell them that he's taking me to the hospital in the city?" This is probably the most I've ever talked to Eric in my life.

"I'm gonna let Marcus tell you that himself." He smiled and winked. What the hell? I blinked, not quite believing what was going on. What the hell was romantic about taking me to a hospital?

Marcus

I pulled the paramedics aside, explaining my plan. They both smiled and wished me good luck. They called the hospital in Las Vegas first to let them know they should be expecting Ryan within eight hours, taking in the five and a half hour flight time. They wanted me to take Ryan to the hospital first when we got to Las Vegas. I didn't want Ryan to get stuck in the E.R. for hours. They couldn't do x-rays or CAT scans because it would affect the baby. They could do an ultrasound, but how good of a tool would that be all over the chest and abdominal area? The EMTs had been monitoring Ryan for this long, and all his signs were still good.

That taken care of, I got in the back seat with Ryan. I reached over, squeezing his hand. He smiled at me and I tried not to flinch because he looked like a war victim. There were ice packs wrapped around his left shoulder with white gauze. It's a good thing I hadn't seen Ryan's condition earlier, which is probably why Steve never told me how Ryan was doing or what had happened to him. He knew I would not have hesitated to go after Ryan's dad and uncle. I still didn't know who threw him down the stairs, but I wished I had kicked both of them in the balls when I had the chance.

Bill opened the door and got in the driver's seat. Finally. The FBI agents had been questioning him on removing the wood over the window and cutting through the glass. Apparently the audio wasn't clear or loud enough on the recordings. After Eric had gotten cleared, he called the criminal defense attorney at our firm, Rick Howe. It wasn't the best of circumstances, being on speakerphone and trying to represent a client, but Rick was able to quote law to the agents, and there was an overwhelming preponderance of evidence suggesting that Ryan was in danger. They had all of our contact information anyway, so if they needed to question us further, or arrest us, they knew where to find us.

Since Eric had been in my meeting with Meredith, he knew that Ryan and I were getting married. So after the conversation with the FBI agents was over, Eric explained to Rick to keep absolutely everything under wraps and definitely don't tell Meredith. I owed him and would tell him everything later.

Finally, we were on our way to the airfield. I leaned my head back, closing my eyes. I wanted to keep watching Ryan to make sure he was fine, but I needed some time just to come to terms with everything. There was nothing like sheer and utter terror to bring everything into crisp and clear focus. I finally knew what I was going to do, and I wasn't scared. That didn't mean that I wasn't going to keep a firm hand on myself, and check myself every day to make sure I wasn't turning into my dad, but I was wholeheartedly jumping forward with a future with Ryan. He just didn't know it yet.