For a moment, she'd forgotten where she was - but then it all came rushing back to her.

Oh, God... She hated this.  She hated the empty feeling she had in her heart, in her soul.  She felt as though she'd been in this hospital forever, even though it had, so far, only been overnight.

The redhead's mouth was so dry - parched, even.  She longed for a drink of water.  Her stomach was also grumbling its frustration at not having gotten any nourishment in many hours - since the ice cream she'd eaten at the county fair...

She shuddered.  That had been right before she'd been shot.  That damned psychotic son of a bitch, who, in his twisted mind, probably thought he would be doing the world a favor in ending Adam's life...

Amy closed her eyes, at the moment too weak to even sit up.  Her head felt so strange, so heavy.  She hated this feeling and wished she didn't have to be so heavily sedated.

She thought about Adam, wondered what he was doing right now.  Since she figured it had to be quite late, she guessed he was probably asleep but then thought better of that.  No, he was most likely wide awake, worrying about her - about his angel.

She felt a small smile coming to her lips thinking about him, despite her pain and current state of mind.  God, how she loved him.

The redhead shifted just slightly in the hospital bed, managing to turn her head a little as she opened her eyes again.  Her vision swam just a bit at first, and she suddenly realized that someone was standing at the side of her bed.  Slowly, she raised her sleepy eyes up to take in the person's face...

And all of a sudden, she was wide awake.

The diva's eyes widened with fright and alarm as they focused on the man's face - Paul Levesque was standing directly at her bedside.

Despite how weak she felt, Amy began to scream at the top of her lungs.

*

"There, there, dear," the kindly older nurse said as she patted the distraught redhead's hand.  "It was only a dream."

"No, it wasn't!" Amy insisted as she glanced around fearfully.  She knew the man had not merely been a figment of her imagination.  "He was here!  He was standing in the exact same spot you're in right now!"

The gray-haired, sixty-something nurse tried to soothe the young woman.  "Well, he's not here now, honey," she said in a tone of voice so patronizing Amy wanted to just grab the woman and shake some sense into her.  "Sometimes, the medications they give you here are so potent, your mind plays tricks on you."

"Oh, for crying out loud..." the diva muttered.  "...I'm recovering from a gunshot wound, not in the psychiatric ward!"  She pulled her hand free of the nurse's grasp and ran it through her slightly sweaty red hair.

"Look, I'm still shaken up, as you can plainly see.  Can I call my boyfriend?  I want - no, I need to see him - I need him here with me."

"Well, visiting hours are over, but...I'll go check with the doctor," the older woman promised.  She then slipped out of the room, and Amy pulled the sheet up around her body protectively, terrified he would come back...

*

After Stephanie had finished with his injured hand, Adam followed her back to her hotel room.  The brunette had said she and her brother had something important they had to share with the rest of the group.

He was surprised to see that Jay and Nora had returned from the hospital as he entered the room after Stephanie.  His eyes instantly met those of his best friend, and, from beside him, the petite blonde's eyes widened at the sight of Adam's bandaged left hand.

"What happened?" Jay asked, his face showing his concern.

"Oh, nothing," the tall Canadian replied.  "I just punched out a window, that's all..."

Nora exchanged shocked glances with Torrie, who was sitting near her.

"You okay, man?" Shane asked as he peered over from the tall blonde woman's other side.

"Yeah...fine."

Kurt said, "I hope you didn't do any serious damage there, pal."

Adam arched an eyebrow at how much alike the Olympian's statement was to Stephanie's when she'd seen his hand a bit earlier.  The two of them were almost eerily similar.

"Nah...I'll be okay," he assured his friend.

"Even so," Nora said as she gazed at him with worried blue eyes, "maybe you should go back to the hospital and have it looked at."  She noticed how the blood had seeped partway through the bandage Stephanie had administered.

The truth was, Adam wanted to go back to the hospital, but not for the reason the small diva had just given.  He desperately wanted to see Amy.

"Anyway," Shane said as he stood up to join his sister in front of the others.  Adam sat down on the very edge of the bed near Jay as he listened along with the rest of the group.

"Stephanie and I are going to have to go away for a little while," he announced.

Everyone eyed him with perplexed expressions, and the brunette cleared her throat to elaborate on what her brother had already said.

"We're going to see our father in prison in Stamford.  We have to let him know about everything that's been going on."

"Right," Shane said.  "And maybe, just maybe, we might even be able to convince him to talk Levesque out of whatever else he might be planning."

Adam's green eyes were hard as he eyed the young man.  "No offense, Shane...but fat chance."

Stephanie shifted her gaze to Angle, whose face looked pensive but worried.  His blue eyes gazed directly into hers, and the brunette could read everything the man was thinking.

"Well, it's still a chance we have to take," the elder McMahon spoke.  He focused his gaze on Torrie, noting the look of stark alarm in the young woman's blue eyes.  Obviously, she was terrified of the thought of him and Stephanie leaving.  And then, she was the first to speak.

"B-But..."  Torrie rose from the bed and started to walk slowly over to Shane, her eyes blinking but staying fixed on him.  "...do you really have to go?  I mean...can't you just call Mr. McMahon?"

Shane felt his heart sinking at the look in the platinum blonde's eyes.  He shook his head as he spoke.  "No...we actually tried that."  He glanced over at his sister for a beat, then back to Torrie.  "Well, I tried that.  We had to go through Vince's attorney to even get to see him.  They won't let him speak to anyone but him until the trial starts."

"But that's so unfair!" Torrie exclaimed, and Shane was afraid she might break into tears at any moment.

"I know," Stephanie said, reaching out and placing a hand on her friend's wrist.  "And to be honest, I don't even want to go see...that man."  Her expression hardened, but then softened again as her eyes met Kurt's.

The Olympian finally spoke.  "So, when do you two leave?"

"We've decided on five AM.  We have to be able to see Dad by ten," Shane answered.

"Very well," Angle said with a nod, his voice firm.  "Then we'll have to make the most of the few hours you've got before you leave."

All of a sudden, the ringing of a cell phone startled everyone, and Adam instantly realized it was his.  He reached for it, holding a hand up to the others as he answered.

"Hello?"

Stephanie eyed the tall blond man, noticing the way his expression changed somewhat, the alarm in his eyes.  Instinctively, she had the feeling she knew what this call was about.

"I'll be right there," he said firmly, then ended the call, standing up in a hurry.

Jay, from beside him, looked up into his best friend's face.  "What was that?"

"The hospital.  Amy needs me...Paul Levesque was there - standing right over her bed..."