"Hey sweetie, you up for some company?"

"Who...oh it’s you." Jessica flipped open the magazine and pointedly ignored Nick’s ex-fiancee, Heather.

"Jessica, I’m sorry I seemed miserable to you, but I was hoping you would understand. That you would want to leave him after what I had to say. I didn’t want to have to tell you. I had hoped it wouldn’t come to this."

"What do you mean?" Jessica kept her eyes on the magazine.

"He beat me up too, lots of times. I finally realized it was crazy and that I needed to get away." Heather sat on the edge of the bed. "Please look at me Jessica. I’m telling you the truth."

Jessica looked up at Heather sadly. "Why did you wait until your wedding day? Why did you tell him yes if it was so bad for you?"

Heather’s fingers followed the pattern on the blanket. "I think I finally realized that if we married I would be stuck. I would be his forever." She looked at Jessica with tears in her eyes. "I loved him Jessica, I probably still do somewhere inside me. Somewhere under all that hate is a wonderful man. But the hate has buried him deep. He’s uncontrollable. Surely you can see that."

"I love him." Jessica answered, her voice faltering.

"See!" Heather urged. "That’s what I was like. Look at what he did to you! How can you say you still love him?"

Jessica stuck her lip out in a pout and picked up her magazine again. "You just want him back for yourself."

"I want you to survive! He’ll kill you eventually, if you stay with him!" Heather protested.

"It was a mistake!" Jessica sobbed. "I made him mad! He loves me, I know he does!"

"Jessica, it’s not your fault, nothing is your fault. There’s something wrong with him. He needs help." Heather moved towards Jessica, reaching out to her.

"Get away from me!" Jessica cowered back against the headboard. "Please leave me alone!"

"Has he been to visit you?"

"Go!"

"Please, Jessica, for your sake. Listen to me and leave him now or get him some help. He’s insane." Heather stood and looked down at Jessica sadly. "I don’t want to hear that he hurt someone else. Please keep what I’ve told you in mind." Heather offered a small wave and walked out the door with a sigh when Jessica refused to answer her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Where you goin’, Nick?"

Carlos put his arm across the entrance to the elevator. "You know Kevin doesn’t want you down there." he admonished the younger man.

"I just want to go out for a walk, some fresh air. Is that okay with Kevin?" Nick blew out a puff of air in frustration.

Carlos studied Nick carefully. "You know Kev will have my ass in a sling if you go to that hospital. I’ll call Eddie and he’ll go out with you."

Nick collapsed into a chair on the opposite side of the hallway with a loud sound of protest.

"I hate this. I just want to go for a walk!"

"Even at the best of times, you can’t go out by yourself Nick, you know that. Don’t fight me on this or you can just cool your ass in the hotel."

Carlos picked up the phone and tried not to grin as Nick frowned at him. Plans confirmed he hung up the phone and turned back to Nick. "Eddie will be right here for you."

Nick stood up, pulled his baseball cap low on his head and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Do I have a curfew too?"

"You have to be back in time for the show, and don’t go to the hospital, that’s it. Be a good boy Nick."

"Go to Hell, Carlos." Nick muttered, under his breath as Eddie sauntered up the hall to join them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I’m going to see Jessica." Nick exclaimed, once the duo was a fair distance away from the hotel and Nick was sure no one had followed them.

Eddie looked at Nick uncertainly. "You aren’t supposed to Nick."

"If you don’t tell them, they won’t ever know." Nick snapped back. "Jess won’t say anything. I got her under my thumb."

"I don’t know Nick."

Before Nick could reply, he heard a shriek and two teenage girls barrelled into him, almost knocking him to the pavement. He smiled and signed their autographs, posed for pictures and started on his way again.

"Tell me again why you’re a bodyguard? They could have killed me, for Christ’s sake!" Nick checked his arms for bruises as he complained.

"You know I’m just in it for the tail." Eddie smiled at him, nodding his head a little, hoping Nick got his meaning.

Nick looked at him for a few minutes before he understood. "Oh! Alright! You can have primo first choice of any slut out there tonight. They’ll do whatever I tell them, if they think they have a chance with me. How’s that?"

"Excellent!"

"You’ll keep quiet?"

The two men shook hands, then Eddie flagged a cab to escort them to the hospital.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What do you mean I can’t see her?" Nick slammed his hands down on the receptionist’s desk. "I’m the father of her baby!"

"She’s not pregnant, sir." she told him, primly.

"I know, shit, she was, well...I mean, damn it!" Nick cursed and banged his fist down again.

"No visitors, sir, unless authorized. I’m sorry."

Nick cursed again and walked back over to Eddie. "They won’t let me see her."

"Big surprise there." Eddie looked up from his magazine. "Kevin took care of everything."

"Damn Kevin!"

"But maybe if you looked like you belonged." Eddie gestured to a pile of doctor’s scrubs sitting on a gurney unattended.

Nick’s eyes lit up. "You suck as a bodyguard, but you have some damn good ideas sometimes." Nick smiled at him. "Cover me!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nick quickly ducked into a washroom to change after he had swiped a pair of scrubs. Eddie stayed in the lounge. The pants were a little short, but they would do. Nick pulled the cap down low over his forehead and tied one of the masks over his mouth and nose. Perfect. He barely recognized himself.

"Nick?"

"Will you shut up, you bozo?" Nick handed Eddie his clothes. "Be watching for me. I don’t want to wait in here forever to change and get out of here, got it?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a few moments Nick realized he had no idea where to find Jess. He had relaxed a little, realizing that no one was stopping him. Everyone just assumed he was a doctor. But how could he find out what room Jess was in. He stopped as he saw a couple of nurses chatting. He grabbed a clipboard from the empty desk and pretended to look busy as he listened to their conversation.

"How’s that beating in room 303?"

"Oh she’s still out like a light, really did a number on her, I tell you. How’s yours?"

"She’s doing better. She’s got one guy coming around that just dotes on her, always telling us to do this and do that for her."

"She’s the one that lost the baby right?"

"It was barely a baby." The nurses turn to look at him as Nick cleared his throat loudly.

"She was only a couple months along. I don’t think she or the asshole that beat her up knew she was pregnant." The nurse shook her head sadly and then glared at Nick as he coughed loudly again. "You should get that looked after Doctor!" She smiled at him.

Nick waved and looked back down at the reports in front of him.

"Where is she?" The first nurse asked.

Nick’s ears perked up and he leaned towards the nurses, not wanting to miss the information.

"She’s in 310, but they are releasing her today, I think. Maybe tomorrow. I should check." She started back for the desk.

Nick dropped the clipboard back down hastily and hurried away.