Watching nerd's interaction with her family is making me understand why she tried so hard to get home. Why she hardened herself. It was to protect her heart. And protect her family. She doesn't want to let them down or disappoint them. There's a lot of love in the small family.

I completely understand how it is. I had to do that a lot when it comes to work and family. You keep them at a distance to protect them. I need to find out what damage was done by the shot. I just don't want to upset her further. Nobody has said anything about where she was shot. They seem to be dancing around it.

As Sherri was telling her that she will understand when she has babies of her own. Bethany's face paled a bit. That's curious. It makes me wonder if the shot did damage that would cause a miscarriage? Was she pregnant and lost a baby? I saw the fake smile that she gave her family. I understand that too.

Brian tells his step-sons to take their mom home then he talks to Beth.

"Alright, baby. Your mom and brothers are gone. I talked to the boys about what they know. Which happens to be very little. I want the entire story from you. I know about the fight and that you guys sat around the fire for a while afterwards and talked. They said that you went to sleep in the truck on the cot. You can pick it up from there."

"I called Demo and left a message about the fight. Then I tried to sleep, but I couldn't. Then Demo called me back and we talked for a while. I was too uptight to sleep. So I decided to go for a run. I came back and sensed something was wrong. I knew that there was a pistol in the truck. I unlocked the door. As I reached for the door handle, I heard someone running at me. I turned and he hit me with the butt of his gun. It landed behind my temple. I fell against the truck. He was aiming at my heart. I figured the best thing to do would be to get him to start yelling. Maybe it would wake someone up. It worked. Just not as fast as I had hoped. Seems like everyone was sleeping heavy. I noticed that he was getting too agitated. He was waving the gun around. I didn't want him to shoot wild and hurt an innocent person. So I swung my arm against the hand holding the gun and swung my fist at his nose. Both connected. The gun went off and got me. I felt the bullet enter my lower right abdomen. I grabbed the hand holding the gun and just kept swinging a fist. I think people were trying to decide what to do. They may not have seen the gun. I don't know. I saw the boys coming at a dead run as I raised my knee and killed any chance of Kevin wanting sex today. He went down and someone tied him up as the boys called you and the police. They took me to the tailgate. Someone grabbed a towel and applied it to my stomach as I laid on the tailgate."

"What damage did the shot do?" I asked.

I saw that they were holding hands. "My right ovary is gone. The bullet hit it. The doctor had to do a partial hysterectomy." She finished in a whisper.

Holy fuck! That is why she has been off. She will have a hard time having a baby. But all it takes is one egg.

"What are the charges against Kevin?" I ask her dad. Giving her time to recoup.

"Assault with a deadly. Assault causing bodily injury, while committing a felony. Felon in possession of a gun. Felon in possession of drugs. Possession of stolen merchandise. Burglary of a business. When the police went to his house with a search warrant, they found thousands of dollars of stolen merchandise from several businesses that had been broken into."

"Hopefully, I will be back on base by the time he gets out. I'm sick of dealing with him." Bethany said quietly. I see that she is struggling to hide her emotions.

"I will be here to watch your back until you go back to base." I tell her. I don't know why I volunteer, but it happened.

"No! I want you to go on with whatever you would normally do. I will be fine. I'm just going to take it easy and enjoy the rest of my holiday. Enjoy my family. You should go enjoy your family at Christmas and the new year. January, we can start working on codes and keeping you guys safe."

"Trying to get rid of me already?" I asked Bethany with a small smile. She is getting better mentally. So we are getting where we need to be. I will text Thermo to fill him in. I need to also text Granger to look into Kevin. I want to see if there is any way we can make him understand that Bethany is totally off limits. "I'm staying at least until you are out of the hospital. It will give us a chance to get to know each other. I can also start searching for a smart car for Thermo." I grinned when she smiled bigger.

"You got a deal there." Bethany started yawning.

"Go to sleep, Bethany. Rest is what your body needs right now." I tell her.

After a few minutes of nobody talking, Beth started dozing off. I got on the text to Thermo, then Granger. I had to explain to Thermo what happened to Beth.

Brian's phone rang and woke Bethany up. Sounds like he just caught another case. "Beth, baby, I have to go on a case. Will you be alright while I'm gone?" He asked her.

"I'm fine, dad. Go to work and be safe. I don't want you to worry about me. I'm in good hands. I love you most!" This time her smile was tired, but genuine. That is a good change. Her smile is beautiful. If I am ever lucky enough to see a happy carefree smile, I may fall in love!

"Alright, baby. I love you too! I'll see you when I can." He turned to me. "Protect her. She is my world."

"Consider it done! She is safe with me. Good luck on the case." I shook his hand as I look into his eyes. At least he knows that I mean what I say. He turns and gives Bethany a kiss on her forehead then leaves. "Go to sleep, Nerd. That is an order this time. I got your back." I told her.

She smiled and closed her eyes and slept. All was quiet again for a while. Granger found that Kevin owes a drug dealer several thousand dollars.

We will let the guy know where Kevin is currently residing. Maybe he will take care of Kevin for us.

A few hours later my phone vibrated. I text Thermo that I couldn't talk that he should text.

Is nerd ok?

She's sleeping. They had to give her a partial hysterectomy. That is where the shot hit her.

Oh Fuck!

Yep! She's hurt more mentally than physically. GSW is easy recovery. Hard to get pregnant is hard to deal with.

I'll be there some time this weekend. I can cheer her up.

I'm hoping that she will get out of the hospital today.

I hope so too. Later!

Later!

I text Granger.

Hey see what else you can find out on Kevin. I want to know everything about the prick.

On it! Is she ok?

Yeah, she was shot lower right abdomen. Had surgery to remove the bullet.

I'll let you know what I find out.

Thanks! Later!

I sat in the chair that Brian had vacated. I watch her sleep. She's so pretty! To know that she is in pain makes me want to beat the fuck out of Kevin! Beth's hand is twitching, so I lay my hand on it and she calms down. I leave my hand there. I like touching her. Maybe a little too much. I should back off, but I can't. If I don't let her into the unit, she'll be stuck with Warner. She's already said that she'll quit the military if she has to stay with him. I refuse to allow him to treat her like dirt!

We stay quiet for a few hours. The nurse comes in and checks her vitals without waking her. The next time the door opens a man walks in with a woman.

"Can I help you?" I ask quietly.

"We just want to speak with Bethany Adamson." The man responds.

"She's sleeping. You are?"

"We are Nick and Carol Mason. Our daughter is Hayley." I am instantly pissed.

"I think you should leave. You've done enough."

"We haven't done anything." He acted offended.

"Exactly! You had said that you would call the police about the drugs and property. You didn't. So he wasn't in jail. He beat your daughter. Then went back to the campsite and shot an unarmed woman. So you didn't do anything that would have saved Hayley another beating and a soldier her injury. That is what your enaction caused."

They acted even more offended now. "How do you know what happened to Hayley?" Carol asked me.

"Because I was here when Brian Adamson told his daughter what happened. The cops were there to arrest Kevin and Bethany told them what Hayley had told her father earlier. You see, Bethany Adamson isn't scared to stand up to Kevin. She is a soldier. An awesome soldier who has an amazing future. That irritates the hell out of Kevin. Because he isn't near good enough to compete with her. You allow your daughter to keep going back to a male chauvenstic abusive bastard." I need to calm down before I wake Bethany.

"We don't allow Hayley to do anything! She is an adult." Nick replied.

"She is an adult. But she would probably listen to you more if you do as you say. If you had called the police the first time that he beat her. He would have thought twice before doing it again and again, week after week." Bethany said suddenly. I look to her and her eyes are on me. She whispers to me "Thank you, Demo!" I smile to let her know that I heard.

The Masons come into view for Bethany. "Ms. Bethany, how are you feeling?" Carol asked her. Seriously?! She's trying to act as a concerned mother.

"Like I've been shot. It is really embarasing that my family and superviser have to see me this way. I'm a soldier and I get shot on my first vacation in over a year. How are you feeling?" Carol can't see the sarcasm coming from nerd.

"We are actually depressed and at our wits end. We don't know what to do. When the police went to Kevin and Hayley's apartment, Hayley had a black eye again. Now she is in jail as an accomplice to the drugs and illegal gotten gains. We are at a loss on what to do. The only thing that her attorney has suggested was asking you to speak in her favor in court." She paused for a dramatic moment. "Can you do that for us?"

Bethany and I laughed at the audasity. "Seriously?" I asked.

"You have got to be freakin kidding me! Why in the hell would I testify for Hayley? When you guys couldn't do the simple task of calling the police. You have lost your damn minds! There is no way that I would ever do anything for Hayley or Kevin. They can rot in jail. I lost an ovary because of all of you. You are just as guilty as they are. Now you should really get the hell out of here before I get pissed off all over again! Don't ever try to contact me again." Bethany told them.

They looked put out. Good! The nerve of some people never cease to amaze me. They leave and I stay quiet. I don't know if Bethany will go back to sleep or not.

"You know that you don't have to stay with me. Just leave me a pistol and I'll be fine." She says as she looks at me.

"Now I gave your dad my word that I will watch over you. I'm a man of my word and will never break it. At least not to you. How are you feeling?" I don't know what made me tell her that I won't break a promise to her. I just know that I won't do it.

"A lot better! Now I'm just ready to get out of here. I can relax better at home."

"Understandable. Thermo said that he will be here some time this weekend. I also have Granger working on Kevin. I might get a few more guys on the job."

"No! Keep my personal business out of professional life. I have to keep them separate. I have to protect my family."

"Listen to me. Your family will not be contacted by anyone in the team. Except for me. They already know me. As for Thermo. He will be here as a friend to you. He likes you. When I told him that you were shot, he instantly wanted blood. The man was very impressed by you. We all protect our own. You are one of us."

She put her hand on mine. "Thank you, Demo. I feel like I won't be able to live up to your expectations. I can only hope that I don't disappoint you and the team."

"I have no doubt that you will fit right in." I have my fingers interlocked with her's. It feels so good to touch her hand and she isn't pulling away.

"You are sweet! But I won't tell anyone your secret." She laughed.

I smiled. "Thank you! I don't want to ruin my reputation."

We keep talking for an hour. Then everyone started showing up again, except for Brian. This sets up a mood for the rest of the day. I get a text from Thermo.

I'm here. On my way up.

Ok

"Thermo is on his way up." I tell Bethany. She nods.

"The bet is still on the QT. I want him to become comfortable and forget it. Maybe a month or so." She smiles.

My fuck! She's beautiful! "You got it! This is going to be so much fun!" I reply as the door opens and Thermo walks in with Decker. "You didn't tell me that Decker was with you."

"Evening boss! I was in Dallas when Thermo told us what was goin on." He looked at Bethany. "I had to come meet the new recruit." He smiled at Bethany.

"Bethany Adamson, Brantley Decker."

"Nice to meet you, Brantley." She held out her hand.

Decker shook it. "Ditto, Bethany. But this is the last time we shake hands. We are family. We hug." He tells her with a smile.

"Since when do we hug?" Thermo asked.

"Since she's a woman." Decker responded. We all laughed.

"You ass!"

"Watch the language in front of my mom, Thermo." Bethany told him sternly.

Thermo's face turned red. "Sorry, Mrs. Adamson."

"Thank you." Sherri told him.

"Ok, I need all the guys out for a few minutes. Mom, I need your help."

All of the men left quickly. Once out in the hallway, I introduced the men to the brothers.

"I sent you a file. It is important." Decker told me. I open it. As I'm scrolling through, the door opens.

"Boys, go get Bethany something to eat." Sherri told her sons.

"What does she want?" Jaden asked.

Sherri disappeared for a moment then returned. "She said that she will love you for three days for Italian. Or five days for Mexican."

"Enchiladas it is." Braden said with a wide grin. They soon left.

"Seems like a nice family. I hear that her dad caught a case." Thermo said.

"Yeah. His second in two days." I told them as I continue with the file. "How sure are you about this?"

"About ninety-five percent. I don't trust that prick." Decker said seriously.

"Well this is why we brought in Adamson. I have thought of giving her the codes that we got a go ahead on last year. See if she comes up with the same as him."

"Sounds like a good idea." Thermo added. "Sooo... did she say anything about a phone conversation last night?"

I left my face blank. "No. Why? Did you call and harass her a second time last night?"

"I didn't harass her... We just had a simple conversation. So she didn't say anything?"

"No. She has been preoccupied with getting into a confrontation with an armed fucker. While she was unarmed. I need to have Granger look into Nick and Carol Mason. They are Hayley's parents. Hayley is the girlfriend of Kevin. She told her dad about the illegal shit in the apartment. Nick said that he would call the police. They didn't and Hayley went back to Kevin last night. After beating her again he went back to the campsite with a gun. He went to kill Bethany. The parents came here earlier to try to get Bethany to testify for Hayley. They are taking no type of responsibility for not getting Kevin locked up last night."

"They aren't too bright. I'll see what I can find on them." Decker volunteers.

The door opens behind us. "You can come in now." Sherri said.