"Oh yes, love," I gasped as a pair of warm, wet lips applied gentle suction to a particularly sensitive area at the back of my neck. That gasp turned into a groan as long fingers danced across my breasts in time with the rapidly quickening beat of my heart. Leaning back into the long body behind me, I felt Ice's hips rock against my towel-covered behind, and the sensation caused a sudden weakening in my knees.

Overcome with a need I knew only too well, I spun within the circle of her loose embrace and crushed our bodies together even as my hands reached up and through the shining raven locks of her hair to pull her head down to meet mine in an incendiary tangle of lips and tongues.

"Bed," I gasped when I pulled away for much needed air. "Now."

Growling deep in her chest, she lifted me easily from my feet as my own hands worked at the towel girding her lower half, courtesy of our shared morning shower.

Before I could blink, I found myself flat on my back as the bedsprings squeaked out their displeasure beneath me. Ice loomed over me, the look on her face the epitome of every fantasy I'd ever dreamed of and a few I hadn't even thought up yet.

Like a lioness she was, all tawny sleekness and barely controlled hunger. Her eyes, passion-dark, swept over my body setting fires wherever her gaze touched down. Her nostrils flared, scenting the air and the passion growing between us. She growled again, long and low, and my body became liquid and burned hotter than the sun.

Taking care to make sure that no part of our bodies were touching, she came in low. White teeth snatched at my lower lip and a strong tongue swirled and tasted its captured prize, then tugged and released and recaptured until I thought I would go mad with this all-encompassing need she was engendering within me.

My hips sent out a plea of their own, and I groaned when their fruitless quest was answered only by the cool air of the room beyond.

My groan of frustration was answered by a wicked chuckle, but she was fair, this mistress of my passions, and used my own desire against me for only a moment longer before ending the sweet torture and melding our bodies together.

Oh, the transcendence of that one exquisite moment when we joined together as two halves of a perfect whole.

Ice's towel had loosened somewhere along the way, and lush heat of her passion as it bathed my flesh sent me spiraling far and away. Lips softer than the finest silk enveloped my breasts, and the air was filled with the sensual sounds of flesh moving against flesh.

A moment later, Ice stiffened above me, but not in passion. My eyes sprung open to catch an intent look on her face.

"What?" I whispered, barely having the breath for it.

And then I heard it, the sounds of a struggle going on in the next room, complete with muffled shouts and angry voices, one of which was undeniably Pony's.

At that particular moment, however, I didn't care why Pony was yelling or who Pony was yelling at. I wanted Ice, and I wanted her now.

She returned willingly enough, capturing my lips in another incendiary kiss as her hand began its slow, teasing trek down to where I most desperately needed it. Then she halted again. I groaned in frustration, slapping my hand down on the mattress hard enough to sting.

This time, we both heard the shout simultaneously.

Just one word, but it was as if ice water had been thrown over both of us.

"Police!"

Ice rolled off the bed and stood, all in one fluid motion. She was across the room and had her hand on the door handle before I even had the chance to sit up.

"Ice! Don't forget your... .robe," I sighed, talking to nothing but empty air. "Oh boy."

Managing to get my stunned limbs to cooperate, I stood up a great deal less gracefully than did my partner, grabbed my own robe and belted it over my nakedness before grabbing a second and bolting after her.

If the situation hadn't been so serious, I would have fallen to the floor with laughter as I slid into Pony's room. It was as if I'd walked in on a very adult version of the game of "Statues".

Pony was flat on her back in the bed with Critter half-sprawled atop her in a position which could have very definitely been construed as sexual had they both not been fully clothed. Nia was standing in one corner, her eyes so wide that if they hadn't been attached to her skull, I felt sure they'd pop right out and roll around on the floor like marbles. Cheeto was standing next to Nia, the tanned skin of her face flushed a shining red. Cowgirl, standing next to her, didn't have the benefit of a tan, and the flush on her face was tending toward purple.

And, of course, the centerpiece of this tableau was my naked lover, to whom all gazes were affixed.

Gathering myself, I crossed the last, small distance between us and slipped the robe over Ice's shoulders. Though she pulled it on and belted it closed over the vast expanse of her wonderful flesh, those actions did nothing to break the frozen stares of her admirers.

That feat was accomplished by Montana, who stalked into the room with a grim expression on her face. Entering, she took charge effortlessly.

"Cowgirl, Cheeto, get out to the perimeter. I want to know the second they get within sighting distance. Critter, round up the non-Amazons and get them into the house. Move!"

As Critter jumped up, Pony attempted to get out of the bed, only to find herself pushed down by her lover. "Oh no ya don't, hero. You just stay there and let the rest of us grunts take care of the dirty work for ya."

"Like hell I will!" Pony growled, using her greater strength to overpower her thinner lover. "Get the fuck off me, will ya?"

"Pony!"

"Enough."

Though not spoken in a loud tone, that one word had the entire force of Ice's personality behind it, and once again, the entire room froze in place.

"What's going on?" she asked Montana, still in that same smooth, controlled tone.

"Paycheck just called in. Ten or more police cruisers are heading here full bore."

"Cavallo?"

"No. Apparently, Nia's husband has decided to bring in the cavalry."

Nia stepped forward and laid a hand on Pony's shoulder. "Please, stay in bed. I'll handle this."

"But... ."

She sighed, and suddenly I saw a new Nia standing in place of the old. A sadder, wiser Nia who'd learned a few life lessons the hardest way possible.

"Rio taught me something the other day," she said as if speaking to herself. "She taught me that it's time I grew up and stood up for something I believed in." Raising her chin proudly, she looked, in turn, at each one of us. "I've decided to start with believing in me."

"Nia," Pony protested, "you can't just... ."

"Yes, Pony, I can. And I will. Every one of you has given of yourselves for me. And it's about time I started giving back." She turned beseeching eyes to Montana. "Please, ask Pony to stay here. I don't want anyone else hurt because of me."

"You're not thinking about going back to him," Montana said.

"No. Never again. He's probably got those police convinced that I was kidnapped and brought here against my will. I'll just have to convince them that I'm here because I want to be."

After a long, searching moment, Montana nodded. "Alright, but you're going to have backup, just in case."

"Alright," she softly replied.

"Great!" Pony shouted, renewing her struggle to free herself from Critter's embrace.

"Not you, Pony. You stay in bed. We can take care of this without you just this once."

"Damnit! Not you too, Montana! Come on! I'm not an invalid, for Christ's sake!"

"No, but you might just become one if I see you step one foot outside of that bed, Pony. And I mean that."

With a groan worthy of an Emmy, or a martyrdom, Pony slumped back on the bed and covered her face with one arm.

Then Montana turned to Ice and myself. "You two need to get out of here. Doc's already preparing Cavallo for the journey. Even though the police are here for Nia, we can't afford to have them do a search of the house."

Ice nodded. "We'll be ready in five minutes."

Turning, she took my hand and we headed back to our room to prepare for a journey whose ending was anything but certain.

We didn't talk as we returned to our room. There really wasn't much to say at that point. Ice had already tried to talk me out of accompanying her, and I'd turned her down flatter than roadkill. My butt was as much on the line as hers was, and whatever happened, I was more determined than ever that we'd see it through together.

Reaching under the bed, she pulled out her black duffel, already packed, then opened a drawer in the bedside stand and removed her gun. Though it was as much a part of Ice as the color of her eyes, I detested that gun, with its pristine, shining finish and malevolent air. I avoided it like the plague, and if I could have made an evil-eye sign to ward off the cold shudders I got whenever I looked at it, I would have.

She didn't even bother looking at me as she opened the clip and then chambered a round before slipping it into the waistband of her jeans at the back. "You ready?"

"In a second," I replied, reaching for my own, mostly-packed, bag. "How long should I plan for?"

"At least two weeks, but don't pack too much. With Cavallo, we're not gonna have too much room to spare."

"What car are we taking, anyway?"

"Montana said she had something to show us, so I suppose we'll know when we see it."

"Alright. How about if I meet you out back?"

"Fine, just hurry up. Those cops are gonna be here any minute."

"Be right there."

Corinne entered as Ice left, and came to stand next to me, arms crossed against her ample chest. "I just heard. Leaving already, are you?"

"Yeah," I said as I looked around the room to make sure that I wasn't missing any indispensable item. Spying the carving Ice had made for me for Christmas, I carefully grasped it from its place on the nightstand and rubbed my finger over the exquisitely carved angel's wings as one would a talisman.

"Your things will be safe here," Corinne said.

"Oh, I know that. It's just... ."

"Difficult to leave yet another home?"

I sighed. "Something like that, yeah. Especially since we don't really know where we're going."

Corinne's eyebrows raised. "Hasn't Donita told you at least that much?"

"She hasn't told us anything. Ice can't get a hold of her."

"Now that is worrisome."

"Yeah. I know." I rubbed the rapidly forming stiffness at the back of my neck and spared a last look around the room. My eyes lit upon my growing stack of journals which, prior to Mexico, had gone everywhere with me. And now it looked like they'd be staying behind once again. I looked to Corinne. "Would you keep these for me in a safe place? I...don't think I'll have room for them in the car."

"I should be insulted that you even felt the need to ask, but that would be a waste of effort, so I suppose I'll just say 'yes' instead." Gathering the books up, she held them close to her chest. "They'll be here for you when you return."

"Thank you," I replied, for far more than babysitting my journals, and we both knew it.

Dropping the journals onto the bed, she reached out and engulfed me in an all-encompassing hug. I inhaled the scent of her sachet and, as always, drew some measure of comfort from it. My love for her burned fierce in my heart and I hugged her with as much strength as I could manage while keeping in mind the frailty of her elderly bones.

She hugged me back, just as tightly, and we both had teary eyes when we pulled apart. "Go, Angel."

Taking in a deep breath, I nodded, then grabbed my duffel. "I love you, Corinne," I said, brushing a kiss against her cheek.

"I love you too, sweet Angel. Be safe."

"I'll do my best."

I hurried down the halls, duffel in hand, and into the back of the house, where I had to push upstream against a tide of women being escorted inside to safety. Stepping outside, I saw Ice and Montana standing next to a very large Jeep-the kind that looks like some sort of hybrid cross between a car and a tank. The engine was on and it was loud and rumbling, giving me what I was sure was just a small taste of its power. It was a dark, metallic blue and had heavily tinted windows, better to keep prying eyes away, I gathered.

Seeing me, Ice grabbed my duffel and slipped it into the back seat. A back seat that I was quite positive could comfortably house a family of four and their dog-and perhaps some cats, a bird or two, and an aquarium thrown in for good measure.

I briefly wondered if it came with its own butler before going around to the very back and peering inside. The interior space was huge, and there was a mattress of sorts laid out on the floorboards together with a couple of small pillows and two pairs of shackles locked to the seat supports.

A perfect love nest for the kinky set.

Which, of course, gave me some ideas, none of which can be shared in polite society.

Hearing a noise behind me, I stepped back just in time to avoid being trampled by Cheeto and Cowgirl as they carried a lolling Cavallo between them. His swollen face was a sunset of bruises and scrapes, and he appeared dead to the world.

The two women slung him inside the Jeep, then Cowgirl entered and began to secure him. Doc supervised, smiling.

"How is he?" I asked.

"Woke up a little feisty this morning, but I sent him off on the SS Valium and now he's feeling nooo pain." She handed me a small black bag. "There's more drugs in there. If he starts yowling, just hit him with another dose. They're pre-measured, so you don't have to worry about unintentionally narcing him."

I took the bag just as Cowgirl jumped back out of the Jeep and dusted her hands off on the legs of her jeans. "Packed up and ready to go."