Date: Tue, 18 May 2004 16:42:43 EDT
From: Capricorn77Dude@aol.com
Subject: Free From Within Part 4

Disclaimer: This story is fiction and is not intended to imply anything
about the true sexuality of the celebrities mentioned or any personal
knowledge about their private lives.

Note: Thank you all for the wonderful emails you sent, I love hear how much
you liked or didn't like the last part.  Sorry this part took longer to get
out, but I was swamped with labs and finals.  But thank you for your
patience and support.  Let me know if it was worth it. . . . . .

Free From Within: Part 4
_____________________________________
April 2001

"911, what's the emergency?"

"I am on 33rd street and there is a young man laying on the sidewalk
unconscious."

"Is this someone you know ma'am?"

"No, I just found him."

"Can you tell me what if anything is wrong with him?"

"He has a weak pulse and is breathing shallow.  He has an apparent wound to
the back of his head.  It is soaked with blood and there is a considerable
amount of blood on the sidewalk as well.  I would say he has been beat up
because there is a lot of bruising to the face."

"An ambulance is on the way ma'am, are you able to stay with him until they
arrive?"

"Yes sir, and I also know CPR."

"Thank you ma'am, just don't move him."

	The lady hung up her cell phone and looked at the young man laying
on the ground.  He looked about her sons age and that made her heart break.
She sat by his side and held his hand while monitoring his breathing.  Soon
other people came out of their houses and gathered to see what was wrong.
There was murmuring of questions as to who he was and how he got there.

	They heard the ambulance before the saw it.  When it came down the
road they all stepped back into the yard by which the young man fell.

"Someone's going to have to call the Cleary's in California and let them
know about this." a man said.

"I know I would like to hear about something like this happening on my
front lawn." a woman replied.

	The paramedics came out of the ambulance and descended on the young
man.  The woman who had sat with him moved aside.  While they checked him
out she told them everything that she had seen.  She had been on her
morning run and just found him in the middle of the sidewalk.  It was then
that the cops appeared.  While the paramedics checked the guy over the
police asked the neighbors if they had heard anything.

"I heard some shouts around 3am, but I just thought it was someone arguing
and felt I should mind my own business." an elderly woman stated.

"I heard some cars peeling out around 4am, but we have been having a
problem with the teens around here doing that so I assumed it was them."
her husband added.

	Then one of the women screamed.  Everyone turned to see what it was
an found she was standing in blood.  A trail to be more exact.  From the
front walk of the house to the road.

"This boy was dragged from the Cleary's front door to the street!" she
exclaimed.

"Just who are the Cleary's?" the officer asked.

"They are a family that own this house.  They live in California during the
winter and come here in the summer.  I keep an eye on the house for them."
a man stated.

"They haven't been here?" the cop asked.

"Nope, they don't plan on coming down til later in spring." he responded.

"Are you sure Joe, there were cars here yesterday when I came home from
work and I could have sworn I saw Judy and Naomi getting out of the car."

	The people buzzed about this.  The officers took names and numbers
and also contacts for the Cleary's.  They went over to the ambulance and
saw the paramedics had the guy on a stretcher and were loading him into the
van.

"Did you happen to find any ID on him?" the cop asked.

"No, apparently he was jumped and mugged." the paramedic replied.

"Is he going to be ok?" the woman asked.

"We're not sure.  There is a gash in the back of his head and judging from
the blood we have seen he has lost a lot.  We're running him to UMC ."

	The woman asked if she could go along.  They agreed and she hopped
into the ambulance with the young man.  As they rode to the hospital she
called her family and let them know where she was.  She held the young mans
hand and whispered reassurances to him.  All she could think was that he
had a mother out there somewhere who had no idea this was happening to her
son.  She looked at his bruised face and a nagging started in the back of
her head.  He looked familiar but with the bruising she just couldn't place
it.

	They arrived at the ER entrance and as they unloaded the stretcher
she stood to the side and watched them wheel him in.  She stood for a
moment to catch her bearings before following.  She turned to go in and ran
into another young man.  She looked up and gasped.

"I'm sorry ma'am, didn't mean to bump into you." he said.

"Its my fault I wasn't looking..." she trailed off and stared.

	She looked at him and thought of the young man in the ambulance.
The two looked a lot alike.

"Ma'am?" he asked.

"I'm sorry.  You just look a lot like someone." she said.

"Yeah I get that a lot.  Its what happens when your Craig Bingham's
brother."

"That's him!" she shouted.

"Excuse me?" Scott asked.

	She grabbed his arm and pulled him with her in a run for the door.
He pulled back and shouted.

"What the fuck lady?!"

"Listen come with me please!" she said and ran.

	Scott followed her into the ER and found her by a bed surrounded by
doctors and nurses.

"Lady, I don't know what your thing is but..." he broke off.

	A nurse had moved and he saw the person o n the bed.  It was his
brother.

"Craig!" he yelled and ran over.

	The doctors asked him to step back.  Scott turned to the lady.

"What happened?" he shouted.

"Sir if you are going to keep yelling I will have you removed from the ER."
the nurse stated.

"No, I'm sorry.  This is my brother."

"Your brother?  Then we are in luck.  He has lost a lot of blood and we
need to get a transfusion going what is his type?"

"Type O Negative" Scott replied.

"Damn!  We are in short supply of that!"

"Not a prob.  Set up the transfusion Doc, I'm type O neg as well."

	The nurses bustled around and set Scott up on the bed next to me.
He reached over and grabbed my hand with his free hand and squeezed.

"Everything's going to be alright bro.  Doc?"

"Yes?"

"Can you have someone go up to room 14 in maternity and get Fred Bingham?
Its our dad and I need him down here."

	A nurse ran up to get our dad.

"Mr.  Bingham, your brother has lost an extreme amount of blood out of the
wound to the back of his head.  It is deep and we are going to need to
stitch it up.  He appears to have broken bones as well.  We need to do
scans to find any head trauma.  Now before we take him in, are there any
allergies or previous surgeries we should know about?"

"No doctor, there are no known allergies and no surgeries." Scott
replied. "Is he going to be okay?"

"We will try our best son.  But the real battle won't be won until he wakes
up."

	They wheeled me into surgery just as my dad came into the ER and
went to Scott.

"What's happened?  The nurse told me my son was in the ER!  Did you trip
when you went to smoke?" dad joked.

"Dad, this is serious.  Its Craig."

"What about Craig?"

"That was him they just wheeled into surgery."

"WHAT?!"

"Calm down dad we got bigger problems."

"What's bigger than your brother being hurt?"

"The fact that Dom isn't here with him." Scott replied.

"Excuse me."

	They both turned to the voice.  It was the lady who called 911.

"My name is Lydia Thomas.  I was the one who found Craig.  Can I be of any
help to you?" she asked.

"What do you mean you found Craig?" my dad asked.

"I was on my morning run and I found him laying unconscious on the
sidewalk.  I called 911 and they brought him here.  I came with him because
I couldn't bear to leave him alone.  They couldn't find any ID on him and
it was just by luck that I ran into your other son and recognized the
resemblance."

"Thank you Ms. Thomas.  I don't know what to say." my dad said.

"No thanks needed Mr. Bingham, I just did what I would have wanted done if
my son was in that situation."

"Ms. Thomas was there a baby anywhere near my son when you found him?" dad
asked.

"No, there wasn't.  He was alone."

	My dad whipped out his cell phone and dialed up the Cleary's
number.  It rang for awhile and then a voice mail picked up stating the
family wouldn't be in Tucson until June and gave the California number to
be reached at.  My dad hung up and dialed the California number and went
straight to voice mail.  Frustrated he hung up.

"Lydia, where did you find him exactly?" Scott asked.

"On 33rd street." she replied.

	Dad and Scott exchanged a look.

"Where on 33rd street?" Scott asked.

"I didn't look at the address.  But it was midway down the street."

"Was the house white with a dark green trim and two huge palms trees in the
yard?"

"Yes."

"The Cleary's" dad and scott said together.

"That name was mentioned this morning." she said.

	Before they could ask what she meant the two officers from the
scene came into the ER.  The nurse came and took the blood that Scott had
pumped out and wrapped him up as the cops introduced themselves.

"I'm Officer James and this is my partner Johnson.  We were at the scene
this morning.  It is my understanding that you are the young man's family?"

"Yes." my dad said.

"Would you join us in another room." officer Johnson asked.

	They agreed and along with Lydia, followed the officers to a
private room with couches.  They all had seats.


"Officers, right now we are a little stressed.  You found my son but did
anyone find my grandson?"

"Excuse me sir?" officer James asked.

"My son left here last night to get his son from a babysitter and never
returned.  I find out that he is beaten badly and unconscious in the ER and
no one knows where his son is.  I called the people he left him with and I
cannot get anyone."

"Sir, we are doing all we can to find how your son got to where he was.  We
had no idea there was a child involved.  Can you give us more details?"
officer Johnson said.

"Wait a minute, sir.  Who was your grandson left with?" officer James
asked.

"My son's in laws.  Judy Cleary to be exact."

"Cleary?"

"Yes."

"Sir that is the house your son was found in front of.  The neighbors
stated that the Cleary's are in California until June, how could your son
have left his son with them?" officer james asked.

"I do not know what is happening exactly officers but I have sneaky
suspicion about it.  My son was contacted by Judy Cleary last night.  She
asked if he would come over for dinner so she could see her grandson.  They
went and during the course of the evening my daughter in law went into
labor.  We were all out of town and Craig was the only one she could
contact to bring her here.  He couldn't bring his son of course so he did
the only thing he could do, leave him with Judy.  He left here at 2am this
morning to go get his son.  And now we find he was found broken and
bleeding in front of the house he left his son in and that neighbors claim
is empty."

	The officers digested this before they responded.

"Sir, while some of the neighbors say the family is out of town, there were
others who saw their vehicle their last night and stated they also saw two
of the women.  It sounds to me like your grandson has been taken by his
grandparents."

"They are not his grandparents.  They have no legal right to my grandson.
They kidnapped him." my dad said.

"Sir, I am going to contact the station and get an APB on their vehicles
registered in Arizona and California.  The trouble is that if your son left
at 2am and this all happened, then they have had six hours to get away.  We
will do our best sir." officer james said.  "Sir, is their any information
you can give us that would help us in our search?"

"Yes.  There are four of them.  Tim is the father he is a short man about
5'5 with a walrus mustached and no hair.  Judy is the mother and she is
heavy set with long blonde hair.  They are both in their late 40's.  Josh
is their son he is in his 20's and is also heavy set.  His hair is long and
brown.  He has piercing in his nose, eyebrow and lip.  Naomi is their
daughter.  She looks exactly like the mother.  Carbon copy almost." scott
said.

	The officer took this all down and left.

"This is what we have so far.  At 3am one neighbor heard shouting.  At 4am
another neighbor heard cars peeling out." officer Johnson stated.

"And they didn't look to see what it was?" Lydia asked.

"No, they have been having problems with teens in the neighborhood and late
night fights and such.  They felt if they ignored it, it would go away."
the officer replied.  "Ms. Thomas found your son at 7am this morning laying
in the sidewalk in a pool of blood.  When we arrived we were alerted to a
trail of blood from the front of the house.  We then asked the neighbors
whose house it was and revealed that it was in ownership of Tim and Judy
Cleary.  We were told that the family was out of town until June, but
others stated they saw the two women yesterday afternoon.  There were no
vehicles in front of the house.  We will get a warrant to let the caretaker
show us the inside of the house."

"Was there a Mustang or a Jeep Cherokee anywhere near the house?" Scott
asked.

"No sir why?"

"My brother had to have driven one of his two vehicles there.  I was just
wondering.  If his wallet was taken it stands that the car was as well.
Maybe you guys should put on an APB on that too."

"We will do everything we can with the information you folks have given
us."

	They thanked the officer as he left and then looked at Lydia.

"Ms. Thomas I cannot tell you how thankful we are that you found my son.
Is there anything you need?" my dad asked.

"Just a ride home if that isn't a problem." she said.

"No problem, but I meant more in the terms of money.  Can we help you with
anything?"

"Mr. Bingham, helping your son and finding you two is all the reward I
need."

	My dad took Lydia back to her house as Scott went to Beth's room
and told her what had happened.

"Oh my god!  This is all my fault." she said.

"How do you figure that?" scott asked.

"If I wouldn't have called him to take me her, he would never have had to
leave Dom with those people."

"And what you could have given birth to Kaitlyn on our living room floor?
If its anyone's fault its mine for not staying with you in your final week.
If I wouldn't have gone with Dad then I would have been there and this
wouldn't have happened. What I don`t get is where were his guards at?
Aren`t the supposed to be 24/7?" Scott asked.

"He sent them away when we got here.  He thought that since he was here
they could use some time off." Beth said.

"That's Craig, always thinking about everyone else.  He's my big brother
Beth, he's always been there for me.  And when he needed me I wasn't
there." Scott said in tears.

"But you were baby, you were there in that ER when they brought him in.  If
you weren't he wouldn't have had that transfusion.  You may have saved his
life!"

	They held each other until the nurse came in with their daughter.
She handed her to Scott and the three sat on the bed momentarily forgetting
the problem.

	Then Scott's cell rang and he handed the baby to Beth.  He looked
at the caller ID and groaned.

"Its Howie isn't it?" beth asked.

	Scott nodded and answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey Scott, what the heck is up with you guys?  I've been getting calls all
hours of the night from you and Craig.  Is everything ok?"

"Howie, where are you right now?" Scott asked.

"In my room.  Getting ready to head to the studio and meet the guys.  We're
finishing up the new album now that the tour is winding down.  Why?"

"I got something to tell you dude and I just want to make sure your not
driving or anything."

"Oh god.  Are Dom and Craig ok?"

"Craig's hurt."

"WHAT?!"

"He is in surgery right now and we are waiting to find out what's
happened."

"Oh my god what happened?"

"We don't know too much just yet.  Craig was jumped and mugged and left
unconscious."

"Okay, I'm outta here.  I'll be to Tucson within a few hours."

"How?"

"I have a friend who has a private jet in the airfield outside of town.
I'll get him to fly me.  If Craig wakes up before I get there tell him that
I am on my way and that I love him so much." Howie sobbed and hung up.

	Scott pushed the end button on his phone and turned to Beth.

"You didn't tell him about Dom." she said.

"He was already flipping out over Craig.  I just. . .the poor guy is
already going to be stressed.  I thought I could save him a little until he
got here."

	Beth sighed and hugged Kaitlyn closer.

Back in Orlando. . . .

	After hanging up the phone Howie was mad dashing around.  He called
his friend as soon as he hung up with Scott and they were set to go as soon
as Howie got there.  He then called the service and had a limo waiting for
him outside the hotel.  His last call was to Kevin.  He couldn't handle
calling management right now.

"Hello?" Kevin said.

"Kev this is Howie."

"Bro, you okay?"

"No, I just got off the phone with Scott.  Craig is in the hospital right
now and...and..." Howie broke off and sobbed.

"Bro, go..  Let us handle management for you.  Just get out there and do
what you have to do.  We'll manage." Kevin said.

"Thanks Kev." Howie said.

	They hung up and Howie flew to the limo and headed to the air
field.  Kevin dialed up Scott and got filled in on what happened.  He hung
up and turned to the guys who by now had swarmed around him.

"What's going on Kev?" AJ asked.

"There's been a problem.  Craig was jumped and mugged and left for dead.
He is in the hospital right now being operated on and Howie is flying out
there to be with him." Kevin explained.

"Damn!  Why the fuck do people have to act so fucked up like that?  What's
wrong with our society?" Nick cried.

"What kind of condition is Craig in?" Brian asked.

"They don't know yet.  When Scott saw him his face was pretty bruised and
swollen.  He lost a lot of blood from a wound in the back of his head and
they were talking about breaks." Kevin answered.

"Howie must be a wreck." AJ said.

"He is.  But I think that Eddie is flying him to Tucson." Kev said.

"Who's flying to Tucson?" a voice asked from the door.

	The guys turned and saw their manager standing in the door.

"Um...Howie is." Kevin answered.

"Is he?  Funny I never got anything requesting this?  I never approved
this.  So tell me how he is doing this."

"You know what Jack?  Your fucked.  His husband was mugged and is in the
hospital and your pulling this shit?" AJ hissed.

"What shit?  You all signed agreements giving up your personal time.  Fine
print boys.  Read it sometime.  Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go tell
the others this." he said and walked out.

	The guys all looked at each other apprehensively.

"What do you think their gonna do?" Brian asked.

"Probably threaten us again.  Or maybe fulfill it this time." Nick said.

"Fuck them.  They don't control us.  We are not puppets.  All for one and
one for all.  If they attack Howie they are attacking all of us.  Right now
we need to band together. " Kevin said.

"Aight.  D has most of his tracks laid.  Most of the work was going to be
on us.  What parts he has left to finish can wait til he comes back.
Between the four of us we can do most of this." AJ said.

	So the guys went into the studio to do their thing.  Howie was
boarding Eddie's jet to fly to Tucson.  Scott and beth were counting their
blessings with Kaitlyn.  Beth's mom was at their house with the boys.  Mom
and Sel were en route to Tucson as well, being alerted by Dad about what
was happening.  The only one unaccounted for was Dom.

Five hours later. . .

	Dad, Mom, Sel and Scott were sitting in the waiting room.
Everytime a doctor came through the door they jumped.  After what seemed
like forever, the door opened and it was my doctor.

"Mr. Bingham?" he called.

	My family rushed him at the door.  He looked around at all their
faces filled with anticipation.

"Your son pulled through just fine.  We had to put about 30 stitches in the
back of his head and had to set his left arm.  His left collarbone is
fractured and he has about five cracked ribs on his left side.  The
bruising to his face has stopped and all the facial wounds were minor
scratches.  We could find nothing wrong with the CAT scans, no cracks or
hemorrhages.  But, he still hasn't woken up yet.  Until he does that we
cannot be entirely sure he is okay."

"Can we see him?" my mom asked.

"Yes but please remember that right now is a crucial juncture, we can only
allow two at a time.  And I have to ask you not stay for too long. "

	He showed them down the hall to where I was.  My mom and dad went
in first.  When they walked in they gasped and mom buried her face against
dad's chest.  He hugged her and they slowly walked over to my side.  They
looked down upon me and tears came freely.

	My face was puffy and swollen, my arm was cast up and I was very
pale from all the blood loss.  Mom reached down and held my right hand.
Dad reached over and stroked the side of my face.

"Your going to be fine son.  Your going to wake up and we are going to have
Dom waiting for you." he said through his tears.

	Mom just sobbed and held onto my hand.  They stood like this for
fifteen minutes until the doctor knocked on the door.  As they went into
the hall Scott and Sel went in.  They were shocked.  Sel more than Scott
since he had seen me when I first came in.  They stood on either side of my
and whispered to me.  Sel whispered encouragement, telling me I would pull
through this and be ok.  Scott whispered that he would personally find Dom
and kick the ass of whoever did this to me.

	Suddenly, they heard noise in the hall and turned to see mom and
dad talking to Howie.  And then Howie falling to his knees.  They rushed
out of the room as my dad caught him.

"No, this can't be right!" Howie cried.

"What happened?" Scott asked.

"We told him about Dom." dad said.

	And with that Howie lunged up and grabbed Scott's shirt by the
throat and threw him against the wall.  He got up in his face and started
to yell.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THAT MY SON WAS MISSING?!  DID YOU REALLY THINK IT
WOULD BE BETTER IF I CAME HERE TO SEE MY HUSBAND LAYING BROKEN AND THEN
TELL ME??  ARE YOU THAT FUCKED UP?" Howie yelled.

	My dad and an orderly pulled Howie off of him.  Mom and Sel grabbed
Scott.  Howie fought against the two.

"Look.  I made a mistake but instead of trying to beat the shit out of me,
why don't you get your ass in there and be with your man?" Scott yelled.

	Howie stopped his struggling.  He looked at my family and hung his
head.

"I'm sorry.  I don't know what came over me."

	They let go of him and he walked over to scott and hugged him.
Scott hugged back and thumped his back.

"Its aight bro.  I know how your feeling.  If it was me I would have done
the same thing."

	Howie nodded and was enfolded by my mom and Sel.  Dad and scott
exchanged a look and then went over and joined the hug.  They all held like
this for a few minutes and cried.  Then they broke.  Sel took Howie's hand
and led him into the room.  He cried harder upon seeing me in the bed.  He
rushed over and grabbed my hand.

"My baby, why did they do this to you?" he asked and kissed my hand.

"Probably because he was fighting to get the baby." scott said from the
door.

"What?" Howie asked.

"The cops are here, they got some more information for us."

	Taking one last look at me, Howie leaned over and kissed my
forehead.

"Don't go anywhere baby.  I'll be right back and I'll be with you through
all of this.  I promise." he said.

	They left the room and joined my parents in the hall with the two
officers from this morning.  Introductions were made and then the officers
told us what they came for.

"Craig's Jeep Cherokee was found on the next block over with the keys in
the ignition.  His wallet was found on the ground in front of their house.
All cash and credit cards are gone.  We got fingerprints matching the
juvenile records of Josh Cleary.  Their van was found in a shopping plaza
over on Speedway.  the San Bernadino police report that all their
California vehicles are still there.  So they have either stolen a car or
rented under an assumed name.  We have scoured all the rental agencies and
have found nothing.  We searched the house.  We found your sons diaper bag
in the living room.  The caretaker relinquished his contact list.  The only
family in town are both relations of Tim.  He has a brother who is on the
force and another brother who's in accounting.  Both deny hearing from the
family since a week ago and as far as they know they were still in
California.  The officers in San Bernadino have searched the Cleary house
and have found nothing.  There are no friends or babysitters up there.  The
family pretty much kept to themselves.  Judy and the kids just stayed at
home.  They were home schooling.  So there is no one to say if the kids
were pulled from school or anything." officer Johnson reported.

"So basically you've got nothing.  My husband is laying in there broken and
bruised and these people are god knows where with our son." Howie said.

"Mr. Dorough, we are doing everything we can to find your son." officer
james said.

"We know you are.  Its just real hard for us right now." my mom said as she
put her arm around Howie.

"We will keep you updated on everything."

"thank you." my dad said.

	After the officers left, Howie told my family he would stay with me
until I woke up.  My parents insisted that they would take shifts with him
and he agreed.  He came into the room and sat next to me.  The nurse came
in to check my vitals and asked if he needed anything.  Shaking his head,
she left and he stared at me.

"How did we get here baby?  I am so sorry for the way I acted when you
left.  If I never see you again, the last time I said goodbye to you was
one of the worst ways.  I love you so much and I don't know what I would do
without you...No.  Your not going anywhere.  You hear me!  Your going to
wake up and we are going to find our son and have a happy ever after.  We
are not going to let them ruin our lives like they did to Rachel." he
cried.

	He sat with me for the next 24 hours.  My mom and dad came to try
and relieve him but he refused to leave my side.  So one of them would sit
with the two of us.  Howie would doze in his chair but always hold tight to
my hand.  When he was awake he would talk to me and give me encouragement.

	Meanwhile, Sel was trying to deal with her finals amidst the stress
of everything.  Howie's parents wanted to fly out to be with their son, but
at the last minute Paula got sick and they had to put off coming for the
time being.  Scott and Beth were home with Kaitlyn and the twins.  Once
they were settled and all was well, Scott got down to business.  From his
days as a wild child in high school, he still had connections with people
who dealt in everything from weapons to drugs.  He uses these contacts to
find out if anyone knew something about what went down.  The Cleary's were
to clean to pull this off themselves.  He puts the feelers out and waits
impatiently for a call back.

	The Backstreet Boys remained in the studio laying down the tracks
for Black and Blue.  Management was harassing them to get Howie back but
the guys just pushed on and worked on the album and let Howie be.  For the
time being management relented and for the guys there was temporary peace.

	Britney was in the studio as well.  She wanted to come back to
Tucson to support me, but she also had to play by the book with management.
She kept on the phone with Sel to hear daily update and asked them to let
her know as soon as anything changed.

	The police were working every angle they could to find out about
Dom.

Three Weeks Later. . . . . .

	It had been three weeks since I was found by Lydia.  Through this
time I had lain in a coma.  The doctors insisted that my family shouldn't
worry.  They explained that the coma was my body's way of shutting down so
it could heal faster.  The police had made no progress on finding Dom.
They hoped that upon waking I may be able to give them information that
could help.

	Howie and my mom were sitting in the room with me as always.  Mom
was dozing in her chair and Howie was a the window watching the city come
to life.  It had been raining steadily through the night but around 7am, it
intensified.  The winds picked up in a hurricane force, lightning and
thunder cracked every few minutes and the parking lot looked like a lake.
The thunder cracked very loud causing Howie to gasp and jump back.  He
laughed at his reaction and turned around to see me staring at him.

"Craig!" he yelled and ran over to the bed.

"Wha?" my mom came awake.

	I struggled to speak but my mouth and throat were so dry I couldn't
get a word out.  Howie hugged me and kissed my face.

"Craig...your awake..baby I thought I was going to lose you.." he gushed.

	My mom hit the call light and came over to the bed to hug me as
well.

"Your safe Craig." she said through tears.

	I looked at them in confusion and struggled to speak.

"He needs a drink." Howie said.

	He poured me water and I took the cup and guzzled the water down so
fast that I started to cough.  Howie took the cup and my mom rubbed my
back.

"You need to take it slow." she said.

"w-where are we?" I asked in a scratchy voice.

"We're at UMC baby." Howie said.

	My head felt like it was full of cotton and I could barely form one
thought to the next.  Before I could ask anything else Dr. Hannigan and a
nurse came in.  He smiled and me as she took my vitals.

"Its good to have you back Craig." he said.

	I nodded and laid back suddenly feeling very heavy.

"What's wrong with him?" Howie asked.

"it's the drugs.  We need to adjust his dosage.  That's partly why he was
out for as long as he was.  Now we need to take him and run some tests on
him.  Do you want to talk to him first or wait til he is back?"

"Will he be more aware then?" Howie asked.

"Yes."

"Then we'll wait."

	I listened to this exchange and wondered what the hell was going on
but couldn't form that in words.  Howie and my mom kissed me before they
wheeled me out of the room.

	As soon as we were out of the room Howie turned to my mom.  They
laughed and hugged each other and started to cry.

"Its going to be okay Howie."

"I hope so mom I really do."

	While I was getting scanned they called the family and friends and
let them know I was awake.  Britney and Howie's parents were flying in that
evening.  The guys wanted to come as well, but they were not allowed.  My
dad and Scott were on their way and Sel was leaving school.

	By the time I was brought back from my tests, I was sore and
hungry.  The pain meds were wearing off and I was feeling every break in my
body.  When I was wheeled into my room I saw my whole family and I smiled.
The nurse helped me into the bed and when she left they converged on me
with hugs and kisses.  A tray of food was brought in and I was given jell-o
and applesauce.  I wolfed it down and then it clicked.

"Where's Dom?" I asked.

	Howie was sitting on the bed beside me.  He put his arm around me.

"What do you remember Craig?"

"Oh god.  They took our son." I said through tears.

	Howie held me and rubbed my back.  The rest of the family looked
uncomfortable.  Then Officer Johnson came through the door.

"You must be Craig." he said.

	I looked up in confusion.

"Craig this is officer Johnson." Howie said.
	He walked into the room and closed the door.

"I've been involved in your case Craig.  I know that you just woke up, but
I need to ask some questions."

"Officer he just woke up, don't you think you should give him some time."
my dad said.

"Sir, if he has any information that could help us."

"What are you guys talking about?" I asked.

"What do you remember Craig?" Howie asked.

"I remember leaving Dom with Judy and Naomi.  Coming here with Beth and
holding Kaitlyn.  Then I went to get our son.  When I got their there was
an officer and a lawyer that answered the door.  They told me that our son
was being taken by his maternal grandparents for safekeeping.  I tried to
bust through the door, I could hear Dom crying in the back...they shoved me
out and I decked the officer then turned to go in the house.  Then
something hit my head and I... that's all I remember." I said in tears.

"Did you recognize the `officer' or `lawyer'?" he asked.  "No, just the cop
uniform and the lawyer was in a suit." I said.

"Craig could you describe the officer?" he asked.

"He was my height.  Dark hair with a receding hairline."

"Was this him?" he asked and handed me a picture.

	I looked at the photo and saw the man who had kept me from my son.

"This is him!"

	Everyone came over to see.

"Damn!" the officer said.

"What is it officer?"

"Can you tell me if this was the lawyer?" he asked and passed me another.

	I looked and nodded.

"I was afraid of this.  Those are Nathan and Jed Cleary.  Tim's brothers."
he sighed.

"What's wrong officer?" my dad demanded.

"We have had them under surveillance.  But this morning they skipped town.
We got their phone records and they have been making calls to a cell phone
that has been traced to Tim.  Being a cell we have no way to get their
location."

"So they were under our noses this whole time and the day my son wakes up
they skip town?  I think that maybe you have a mole in your department."

"I'm afraid your right." he said.

"So what do we do now?" my mom asked.

"We try to find them."

"With the same luck you found the others with?" Scott said sarcastically.

"Guys this is too much for Craig right now." Howie said.

	They all looked over and I was crying.  The officer said he would
keep in contact and the family came over to me.  They reassured me that
things were going to work out.  Somehow.

	During the course of the next week I went through physical therapy.
The limbs and joints were a little stiff from being inactive for so long.
I made quick progress.  All that was on my mind was to get out and find my
son.  The problem being that once I was up and around the pain of my
collarbone was intense.  They had to regulate my pain meds and this caused
me to be doped up.

	By the end of the week I was able to be released to home.  I
couldn't wait to get out of the hospital.  Dad and Mom had come to see me
and Howie out.  Scott, Sel, Britney and Howie's parents were waiting at the
house for us.  We signed me out and once we hit the doors we were hit by a
problem.

	The media.  Someone had tipped them off to my stay in the hospital.
They knew about the kidnapping and were trying to get the story.  Not
wanting this we had arranged for Johnson to escort us out.  He used his men
to clear a path for us but it was hectic.  They were screaming at us asking
questions.  I could barely handle it.  We got to the Escalade and Dad
followed Johnson out.


	I sat in the back with Howie and just laid my head on his shoulder.
My collarbone was throbbing but I didn't want to take any more meds. I
fought back my tears as he caressed my head.  I now had a buzz cut.  To do
the stitches they had completely shaved my head.

	We drove away from UMC and headed to home.  Halfway there I
couldn't take the pain anymore and took two of my pills.  Shortly after we
pulled up to the gatehouse.  Dad hit the button on the remote and the gate
opened.  Johnson went through first and we followed.  As we drove up to our
street I noticed something different.  I sat up and gasped from the pain.

"You okay baby?" Howie asked.

"Fine.  Just sat up to fast." I said.
	We pulled into the drive and Johnson parked across the street where
another squad car sat.  We were told back at the hospital that there would
be a car there at all hours.  Our phones had been tapped and there was a
officer monitoring every call.

	We got into the house and everyone rose to greet me.  Howie's
parents embraced me and tried to smile through the sadness on their faces.
Brit came next and gave me a soft peck on the cheek.  I looked down at her
stomach and saw the begin of the swelling.  The pop princess wouldn't be
able to do the mid riff much longer.

	We sat on the couch and everyone surrounded me and my mom and
Howie's went to cook.  The meds kicked in and soon I dozed against Howie.
I awoke to the call of dinner.  Howie and Brit helped me up and I told them
I needed to use the bathroom.  Howie started to follow and I whipped around
and yelled.

"I AM NOT AND INVALID!  CAN YOU PLEASE JUST GIVE ME A MOMENT TO PEE BY
MYSELF?!"

	Everyone sat there stunned.  Without a word I walked out of the
family room and went to the stairs.  I climbed them slowly and thankfully
no one followed me.  I made it to the top and instead of going to the
bathroom went to Dom's room.  I stood in the doorway and looked around.
The pictures on the wall, his birth certificate, his footprints and
announcement.  Then his crib with all his blankets and mobile.  The shelf
full of stuffed animals.  The toy box full of toys he had never played
with.

	Lucky lay on the floor in front of the crib looking up at me.  I
eased painfully down onto the floor and stroked him.  He whimpered.

"I know boy, I miss him too." I said as my eyes teared up.

	I leaned against the dresser and something fell to the side.
Before I could turn around I heard the refrains of "Surfer Girl".  Dom's
lullaby.  I forgot all about the globe with two dolphins.  We had picked it
up in Louisiana.  When you wound it, it played Surfer Girl.  This caused me
to cry harder.

	I heard footsteps and looked up to see Howie.

"If I come over and hold you will you yell again?" he asked sadly.

	My body shook and more tears poured out.  Howie rushed over and
embraced me carefully.  He pulled me close to him and I cried into his
chest.  He just held me close and rubbed my back and whispering that it was
alright.  To Be Continued...