Rainey applauded Katie's enthusiasm, but she had no say in whether Katie would be released from the hospital. "I'm glad you're feeling better, but it really is up to Dr. Marsden."

"You have to back me up in there," Katie said, as if she were ramping up for a confrontation with a parent, "when I tell him, I want to go home and that you will take care of me. Deal?"

Rainey played the partner role well, she said, "Deal," with no hesitation. This made Katie too excited and she almost lost her footing. She had to grab Rainey's waist to maintain her balance.

Rainey, still holding the back of Katie's gown closed, said, "Whoa there, cowboy. Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

Katie lost some of the color in her face. She looked up at Rainey, saying, "I want to go lay down, now."

Rainey put her hand in the small of Katie's back and let Katie lean into her, the smaller woman wrapping her arm around Rainey's waist. The two women had just rounded the corner, leading to Katie's room, when Katie suddenly stiffened and froze, in place.

A loud shriek of, "Katie!" followed.

The noise had emanated from a blond woman, who looked a lot like Katie, but not as well put together. She was about the same height and build as Katie, but heavier and older by at least ten years and she was heading straight for Katie. Another woman waited by the door. She was taller than Rainey and lean, with the body of a model, and Katie's best features, blond hair, crystal blue eyes and a dazzling smile. She was older than Katie was, maybe five years at the most, in Rainey's estimate. This woman was a drop dead knock out, and from her expression, she was completely embarrassed by the blonde heading for Katie, arms stretched out, in an anticipatory hug.

Rainey heard Katie say, "Fuck, it's my sisters. I thought you called them."

"I did," Rainey, said defensively. "They could have already been on the way, caught the red-eye or something. JW could have called them."

The oldest sister was now close enough to see Katie's face clearly. She stopped charging at them and threw her hands up to her face, sliding to a stop. She screeched out, "Oh my, sweet Jesus! Look what that monster did to that beautiful face." She turned back to the other sister and said, loud enough to disturb everyone up and down the hall, "Helena, did you see what that monster did to our baby sister?"

"No Maria, I haven't yet, but I bet everybody in the hall is going to come out to see it, after your little announcement," Helena cracked.

To which Maria replied, "Oh, shut up!" and turned her attention back to Katie.

Katie, in the meantime, had been mortified by her older sister's reaction to her face. She looked up at Rainey and asked, "Is it that bad?"

Rainey said, "She should have seen it yesterday," with all the seriousness she could muster.

Katie put her hands to her cheeks, saying, "Oh, my god."

Rainey started laughing, "No Katie, you are not scarred for life. You heard what the plastic surgeon said."

Katie appeared to remember suddenly the conversation with the plastic surgeon, "Oh yeah, that's right." Katie turned to the sister, still standing in front of them, frozen with a comical expression of horror on her face. "Stop being so dramatic, Maria. It will heal."

"I know that it will heal," Maria said, falling in step with them toward Katie's room, "but it just looks so horrible right now."

Katie, already tired of this sister, said, "I really don't care to know how I look, so thank you, for your vivid imagery that will now haunt me in my dreams."

Rainey stifled a laugh. Katie and Maria took pot shots at each other all the way to the door. Then Helena joined in, once they entered the room, taking up for Katie. It sounded like laughing gulls fighting over a piece of food, about fifty of them, all three women talking at once, but no one was listening. Rainey stood clear of the main action, once she put Katie in her bed. She leaned against the doorframe, amused by the trio. Margie charged into the room. She looked at Rainey for an explanation. Rainey simply shrugged her shoulders and gave Margie one of those, "It's out of my hands," looks.

Margie stepped forward and in a commanding voice, said, "Ladies!"

The room fell silent. Katie, who was sitting in the middle of the bed, flanked by her sisters, was the first to speak.

"Margie, I would like for you to meet my sisters, Helena and Maria," indicating each, when she said their names.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, but you must keep it down, this is an intensive care unit." Margie told Katie, "I'll be back with your breakfast," and left.

The next thing Rainey knew, the sisters were involved in a group hug. Rainey was so glad she did not have a sister, at that moment. These three were involved in a very dysfunctional relationship, from what Rainey had witnessed so far. If this is how they handled one of them in trouble, growing up together must have been quite an experience.

Katie finally acknowledged Rainey's presence. "I want you to meet the woman who saved my life." She motioned for Rainey to come to her side, "Special Agent Rainey Bell, these are my sisters. I guess you figured that out." Katie's accent grew stronger as she went on, "This is Maria. She lives in Beverly Hills, with her millionaire husband, and she is my oldest sister." She added quickly, "By ten years."

Maria reacted immediately, "Thank you, for broadcasting it."

Rainey grew up around Southern women like Maria. She might live on the West coast, but Maria had not forgotten from whence she came. She probably attended numerous charity events during the week and church on Sunday. These women were always impeccable in dress and manners. Yet, they did have a way of saying, "thank you," meaning, "fuck you" instead, and it was an acquired skill. Maria, Rainey thought, had achieved the mark.

Maria extended her hand to Rainey, saying, "It's so nice to meet you. Thank you so much for saving my baby sister."

Rainey shook Maria's hand and gave her a standard response from years of dealing with grateful families, "You are very welcome."

Katie was smiling at Rainey, having come to realize how shy she really was, and how she had to fight it. Rainey had not always been that way. She was full of self confidence until the attack and then she shut herself off from the world, for so long, Rainey was now enduring the difficult process of re-joining it. The mostly solitary life of a bail bondsman fit her better now, than that of the Special Agent she used to be.

Katie said, "And this gorgeous creature is the middle sister, Helena. She's a model and lives in LA."

Maria piped up, "Why don't you tell Rainey how old Helena is?"

Helena answered for Katie, "I'm forty-two. Rainey, it is a pleasure to meet you." She extended her hand, for Rainey to take. Helena left the South in the dust and embraced her LA persona.

Only one thought crossed Rainey's mind, "I hope I look that good at forty-two," but she said, aloud, "The pleasure is mine."

Helena had a moment of recognition, "You are the one who left the message on my phone. Maria was coming anyway and I couldn't leave Katie defenseless against her, so I had to follow." She looked down at Katie, "I know you didn't want us here, but she could not be stopped."

Maria defended herself, "With Momma and Daddy gone, someone had to come take care of her. God knows JW wouldn't."

Helena snapped back, "He took care of her six months ago and she came out fine."

Rainey thought the sea gulls were about to erupt again, but Katie quieted them, when she said, "I'm divorcing JW."

Maria was thunderstruck, "What?"

Helena was much less dramatic, saying only, "Thank God." Rainey liked Helena right away.

Katie was in the hospital and under the influence of medications, so Rainey figured Katie thought, "What the hell. I can always claim the drugs made me say it, if it goes badly."

"That's not all of it," Katie said. "I'm moving in with Rainey."

"You're going to move in with a friend and let him have your house. Are you out of your mind?" Maria said, showing her true colors and totally missing the point of what Katie said.

Helena remained quiet, looking at Katie, trying to understand what Katie said. When Katie took Rainey's hand and returned her sister's gaze, the light came on for Helena.

"Congratulations! I'm so happy for you both, well, except for the fact someone kicked your ass," Helena said, bending to give her sister a kiss on the top of her head.

Maria was still trying to put the picture together in her mind. Rainey could visibly see Maria's mind trying to put the square peg in the round hole. It just was not working for her. Everyone in the room turned to her. Maria was unable to make the puzzle go together.

Katie said, "Maria, I'm a lesbian."

Helena made Rainey laugh, saying, "Oh, thank god. I have a lesbian sister. That will be so hot in LA, you know with the whole Ellen movement."

Maria was not so supportive, asking, "When did this happen, you were just pregnant six months ago?"

Katie gripped Rainey's hand tighter, but Helena saved her from having to say anything to Maria. Helena leaned across the bed and said, "You insensitive bitch."

Maria began to ring her hands, "I'm sorry. I'm just so confused."

Helena was breathing down Maria's neck, "What is so hard to understand? Katie has left that asshole JW and is now in love with a woman. Is that too unclear for you?"

"Katie, what will people think?" Maria asked.

"Oh, for fuck sake," Helena said, exasperated, "it's the twenty-first goddamned century."

"Maria, I don't care what people think. If I lose my job, my family, my friends, I will have gained one good thing in my life. One thing that I chose, one time that I threw caution to the wind and lived my life the way I wanted to."

Helena was extremely funny and Rainey could not wait to get to know her, even though her Hollywood affect was a little too much. Helena started digging through her giant handbag, saying, "God, Katie, that was profound. I have to write that down. That would work so well in a screenplay."

Maria pressed on, "What about JW? You will ruin his career."

"Fuck JW!" Katie said, with venom enough for even Maria to understand.

"Okay, if that's what you think is best," Maria said, not convinced, but conceding.

Katie looked at them both, "Do not tell mom and dad. I will do it when they get back from their holiday."

Both sisters shook their heads back and forth, neither wanting to be the one to break that news to the parents.

"What can we do for you, while we're here?" Maria asked.

"If you really want to help, go by my house and pack some clothes for me. It will be at least two weeks before I go back to school. The bruising would scare my babies," Katie said.

Maria could not control her mouth, "I should say it would. Give them nightmares for weeks."

"You are just a fucking idiot, aren't you?" Helena asked Maria.

Once again the squabble began and was silenced by Katie's voice, "Look, either help me or get back on the jet and go home. I can't deal with you two at each other's throats." Katie sat back on the bed.

Rainey decided it was time to intervene, "She's getting tired. She hasn't gained back all her strength yet."

Katie protested, "But I'm strong enough to go home, Rainey."

"Okay, honey, what do you need from the house?" Helena asked.

"I have nothing, so a little of everything, underwear, bras, socks and shoes, the basics, you know. Bring the toiletries from my bathroom and my makeup. I need pajamas, lying around stuff and some shorts and tanks. My luggage is in the walk- in closet."

Maria was a bringer of bad news, it was her character, "What about JW? Won't he be angry?"

Katie paid no attention to Maria and spoke directly to Helena, who did not seem to care if JW was angry, "JW probably won't be there, so I'll give you the alarm code."

Rainey spoke up, "Just in case, I think you should take a police escort and one of my guys will come with you to carry things."

Maria looked more frightened than ever. She was not used to so much excitement and it was taking its toll. Margie came in with Katie's breakfast, which she ate, while relaying what details of the attack she wanted her sisters to know, leaving out some of the things she had been told happened to her.

Rainey went to the bathroom, to use the phone. She called Mackie, to arrange the sister's escort to JW's house. He said he would take them over in the Escalade, and meet the police there. Mackie would arrange everything with the police, because he had such a long working relationship with the departments in the area.

Margie came in with pain pills and news that Katie may go home this evening when Dr. Marsden came for rounds. Katie drifted off to sleep, still talking to her sisters. Rainey took the sisters down to meet Mackie and couldn't wait for Katie to wake up so she could tell her about the look on Maria's face when she saw Mackie. Rainey wished so badly that she had taken a picture.

Katie's sisters were off on their mission and Rainey was kind of glad to see them go. The air around her became more still. She grabbed a breakfast burrito and took it back upstairs, assuming her position in the recliner, once again the guardian of Katie's dreams.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX.

Danny came in, just after Katie had awakened and eaten lunch. She was once again rejuvenated from her nap and wanted to hear everything Danny could tell her about the case.

Danny told them, "We had to release John Taylor. He finally asked for a lawyer, after his wife arrived, from New York."

"Poor Ann, she must be so upset," Katie said.

"Pissed off, is more like it, she nearly took my head off," Danny alleged.

Rainey was more interested in where the Veterinarian had gone, "What about Taylor? Are you covering him?"

With confidence, Danny said, "Like a blanket, he can't breathe without us knowing it."

"We might go home tonight, that's all. I don't want to be surprised by this guy, in the middle of the night," Rainey said, warily.

Danny was adamant, in his reply, "Trust me, Rainey. He will not get near you. I'll put a couple of agents out there with you, but this is our guy, I know it."

Katie was still mulling over John Taylor's arrest in her mind, she asked, "What kind of hard evidence do you have to link him to the murders?"

Danny's confidence waned a little, "Katie, this guy had the means and opportunity to commit every one of these killings and attacks. He fits the physical description. He fits the profile to a tee."

"But that's all you have, circumstantial evidence," Katie stated, like a lawyer. Rainey was reminded that Katie had been married to one. Katie probably helped him study for his law exam.

Danny wasn't out yet, he had one more play, "We have his DNA and when it comes back a positive match, he's getting the needle, no question."

Rainey was still on the fact that the guy was free, "Who's on Taylor's tail?"

Danny ran his fingers through his hair, "Don't worry Rainey. I got the best guys on this, Roger and Bobby. You remember Bobby, right? They aren't going to lose him."

"You got a tracker on his car?" Rainey was not listening to Danny tell her it was under control, she wanted details.

Danny was getting frustrated, "Yes, Rainey. If he moves, we will know it."