Bethany's pov***

I can't sleep after hanging up with Demo. I get up and go for a run. I don't have my meter on me so I just guesstimate on the distance according to the time. I figure that I have run five miles. At least!

I head back to the truck. I can change before everyone starts waking up. It is still barely dark. My favorite time of the day. But I don't think that anyone would be getting up for another half hour.

I quit running and start walking to cool down. The truck is in sight. I have an eerie feeling. No birds are singing, no crickets are chirping as they were just a minute ago. I am totally defenseless. All I have is my hand- to- hand skills. I know that there is a pistol in the truck. If I can get that far, I'll be good.

I get the key fob out of my pocket and unlock the door. As I reach for the door, I hear some footsteps running behind me. I swing my head around to see Kevin as he slams my temple with the handle of a pistol. I stumble back against the truck.

"I told you to watch your back! Now you're a dead bitch!" He sneared.

"What? You're going to shoot me? Here with about thirty people around? You think that you can get away? That is stupid thinking."

"You think that I'm stupid? You had a chance to go home and never see me again. You stayed here. Out in the open!"

"I thought that you'd still be in jail for the drugs at your apartment." I tell him. I'm trying to come up with a plan. Hoping that someone will hear us talking and wake up. Call the police. Or something..... anything! I hate having a gun pointed at my chest!

He laughed. "Hayley won't call the cops on me! I have her fooled and under my control. Hell! She even called me from her parents house and begged me to come get her. So I did. After I fucked her good, then I beat her ass again!" He smiled.

I'm in deep shit! This fucker has no soul when it comes to women. There is no talking him out of shooting me. No talking common sense to him. He has his mind made up on killing the woman who has beat him twice.

My only recourse is to fight him and his gun with my bare hands. I say a quick prayer that I can live through this. Maybe I can make him mad enough to start him screaming and wake people up.

"Why beat her? Because you can't beat me in a fair fight? Because you aren't man enough to fight a man? You have to control a woman. Because you can't control yourself? Does it make you feel big to know that you hurt a woman?" I raised an eyebrow.

"I don't have to feel like a man! I am a man!" He raised his voice a little.

"A man who got his ass kicked last night by a woman. In front of a lot of witnesses. A man who can't fight without a gun. Not even an unarmed woman." We start circling.

I want to stay with my back to the truck. At least then, if he pulls the trigger, only the truck or myself will be hit.

I see a couple guys come from their tents.

"I don't have to have a gun. But at least it will keep you from coming back at me. You are like a fucking disease! You keep coming back!" He yelled. "Now you won't come back! You'll be dead!"

He raised his arm. I throw a blocking punch and hit his arm. I hear a shot and feel it rip through my lower abdomen. I can't stop. I hit him in the jaw as I hold the gun. He was trying to get the gun away from me so he can shoot again. I kick his balls as hard as I can. He goes down as he lets the gun go. I kick him in the ribs. We are now surrounded by men who flip him to his stomach and tie his hands and feet together behind him. My brothers are on each side of me. Braden is calling dad as Jaden is calling the police.

"She's bleeding, dad! Lower right stomach. What do we do?"

I am led to the tailgate of the truck and made to sit. Instead, I lay down. Someone brings something to put over the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. I realize that I am still holding the gun. I put it in the truck bed. Away from everyone. "Has anyone found my phone?" I ask.

"Its in the truck, shorty. I put it in there. Dad said that he's on his way with mom. She said to keep pressure on the bleeding." I have bled through the small towel that someone was using.

"I need another towel. On my cot is a clean one." I tell them.

"Baby, how are you feeling? Diagnosis?" I hear dad ask. Apparently he is on the speaker.

"Gun shot lower right abdomen. It isn't through and through. Still bleeding. The gun is a twenty- two Smith and Wesson, currently in the bed of the truck. The asshole is named Kevin Smith. He said that he beat Hayley again last night. She had told me that he has drugs and stolen property in their apartment."

"Ok, baby! Are you feeling faint? Have trouble breathing? Cold or hot?"

"I'm laying down. Not faint, breathing ok, a little chilly. The single shot didn't hit anything vital. As far as I know."

"We're almost there. Conserve your energy. We are about two minutes away." He kept talking while I listen to his voice.

I hear him hang up as he gets out of the car. He runs to me and mom takes over the first aid as dad helps her. "Morning mom and dad." I try to smile.

"Morning, baby."

"The bleeding is slowing. How ya feelin darlin?" Mom asked as she looked at my wound.

"I've been better, mom. But I'll make it. A stupid bullet can't stop me. I'm a soldier." I tried to grin at dad. "Right, dad?!"

"Right, baby."

He looks up as the police pull up with an ambulance. That is when he saw Kevin still on the ground. He started towards Kevin. I grab his hand. "Daddy! Don't leave me."

Dad looks down at me. "I'm here, baby." He holds my hand.

I am loaded into the ambulance and dad rides with me.

Within an hour, I answer all the questions from police and I am wheeled into surgery to remove the bullet.

I don't know how long I'm out. I wake up to dad, mom, and both brothers sitting around talking quietly. I must have moaned. Every eye turns to me and a collective breath is released from all of them. "Hey! What time is it?"

"Almost noon. How are you feeling, baby?" Dad asked.

"Like I've been shot."

They all chuckled. "Well that about sums it up. But are you hurting?"

"No, not really. Just a little uncomfortable. So when can I get out of here?"

"Gonna be a day or a few days. We need to talk, darlin." Mom said as she held my hand.

"It must be serious if you are saying darlin instead of sweetie. Tell me straight."

"The bullet hit your right ovary. The doctor had to give you a partial hysterectomy. Your ovary and fallopian tube are gone on the right side. I'm sorry sweetheart. But there was no way to save them."

"So I can't have a baby?" I paused a moment, thinking. "But you only said the right. I still have the left. There's still a fifty percent chance in the future. Right?" I ask as I try to stay calm.

"Yes! There's still a great chance of you getting pregnant and having a baby in the future." She answered. I squeeze her hand and smile. Even if it doesn't make it to my eyes. But I have to put them at ease.

"Ok, I can live with that." I look at dad. "Daddy, is Kevin in jail this time?"

"Yeah, baby. He is in jail. They went to his apartment after talking to you and found Hayley with a black eye and broken nose. Along with a couple pounds of marijuana and several grams of meth. They also found a couple thousand dollars worth of stolen property. Which links him to several burglaries of businesses. He's in some pretty deep shit right now."

"Hayley won't press charges against him. But I sure as hell will!"

"Yes you will!" I hear a different voice from the doorway. I look and see Demo walk closer to me.

Dad starts to get his cop attitude. "Dad, this is Demo, my c.o., Demo, this is my dad, Brian Adamson." They shook hands. "This is my mom, Sherri, and my brothers, Jaden and Braden." They all shook Demo's hand.

"Nice to meet you all."

"So what is your m.o.s.?" Jaden asked.

"Special ops." My eyes widened as dad's head jerks to me.

"Seriously, Bethany Michelle Adamson?"

Oh shit! He said my full name. I'm in really deep shit now! "Dad! Don't be mad. Please! I just break codes. I'm not in danger. Honestly! I would never lie to you!"

"I know that you never had before. You just decide to omit information. But special ops, is not something that you should ever hold back from me!"

"It just recently developed."

"How recent?" He asked, not believing me.

"The day before I came home. It was the first time that I ever spoke to Demo."

He turned to Demo. "She's telling you the absolute truth. I had her called into Warner's office. Adamson is the best breaker we have. I saw that and decided to take her away from Warner. Until that day, we never spoke. I did research her though. I only accept the best on my team. But as you know, our code analyzers stay stateside."

That seems to calm dad down. "When were you going to tell me this?" He asked me.

Damn I felt so freaking guilty. "I wasn't going to. It just makes you worry more."

"Like this bullshit with that bastard?" His hands were tightened into fists.

I nodded as tears start leaking down my cheeks. "I'm so sorry dad! I don't want to hurt you or upset you." I say quietly. "If you worry about me all the time, you'll be distracted from your job. You can get hurt."

"Oh, baby! No matter what you do or where you are. I will always and forever worry about you. That's my job as your dad. This is just a shock. To find out that my little girl is in special ops, it is shocking. My little girl, who just yesterday was in pigtails, skipping through the house looking for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich."

"Dad! It has been many years since that happened!"

"Not to me." He replied. I smiled at him. "Alright, boys. Tell your sister that you'll see her later. I want you guys to go home and clean up. Take your mom. She worked all night."

Mom leaned down and kissed my forehead. "I love you, mom. Thank you for everything!"

"Think nothing of it. One day, when you have babies, you'll understand. I love you, sweetie."

Braden came and kissed my head too. "Thanks for the help, little brother."

"You owe me" He gave me a shit- eating grin. "But not too much more than a huge favor. I'll think of something good though! Rest easy, shorty." I laugh at him.

"Do you need anything from home?" Jaden asked. He looks as if he feels guilty.

"Some comfy clothes? Maybe? And a coke!" I grab his hand and pull him to me. "Do not beat yourself up over this! That's an order. You are not guilty!"

"But I am!" He answers.

"No you aren't! Listen to me, Jaden. Kevin is the only one who is responsible for this. You didn't tell him to fight me. You didn't tell him to bring a gun to confront me. You didn't tell him to shoot me. Every single bit of it is on Kevin's head. You would never hurt me. No matter what."

"I would rather die than hurt you!"

"Exactly!" I smile at him.

Jaden thought for a moment, then smiled. "You're right, shorty! I love you. I'll be back with comfy clothes and a coke." He kissed my forehead and left.

Demo was standing back watching my interactions with my family.

When the room's body count went down to three, I got nervous.

"Alright, dad. What are you feeling?"

"I am actually very proud of you."

Huh? That is new! My shock must have shown. Dad smiled.

"My baby is special ops. Something that I always wanted to do. But I didn't get the chance." He turned to Demo. "I just ask that you guys protect my daughter. She's the most precious gift in my life." He paused a moment. "Hell, I refused to marry Sherri for many years. I didn't want to take attention away from Beth. I thought that if I had a wife, she would need more of my attention than I was willing to take from my daughter. It took me years to even date. Several more to introduce Sherri and her sons to Beth. Then they became best friends. They keep a lot from me. Thinking that I don't know. But I am a detective." He smiled as he looked at me.

"I love you, daddy."