Kyle had lain awake most of the night, euphoric with Sarah sleeping in his arms, yet worried. Something had happened and she hadn't yet told him. His senses were on high alert in the unfamiliar surroundings as well. At first light, he went outside. When he had satisfied himself everything was as it should be, he allowed himself the luxury of watching the sun rise. Sitting on a rock in the clearing, he could hear Sarah moving around inside the cabin and a new and unfamiliar feeling of contentment washed over him. By the time it was quiet again, the sun was well up and he was hungry.

He came in just as she had finished drying off, the warm, moist air seeping out the open bathroom door. He stood motionless in the middle of the living room, heart suddenly rocketing to redline, and watched as Sarah ran a comb through her wet hair. She was turned away from him, leaning to the side so the water dripped to the towel on the floor. The small curve of one breast was visible as well as her form from neck to waist, the swell of hips to thighs, to her toes which still sported tiny flecks of pink nail polish. Sarah was aware Kyle was behind her, but finished her task without considering the absence of sound or movement. They had few if any personal boundaries between them at this point. Standing naked in the bathroom was a non-issue.

Sarah turned to look for some clothes which lay folded in a little pile on the edge of the sink and collided with Kyle's eyes. Instantly, her body went from relaxed, humming in pleasant neutral, to a jolt of sexual heat that whipsawed her mind back to their first night together. The past two weeks snapped out in an instant. She set the comb down on top of the clothes and walked toward him. At some level, she felt vulnerable approaching this man, tall, imposing in his jeans and heavy shoes and oversized jacket, but his expression, the love in his eyes, how much he wanted her, every emotion he was feeling was burned into her leaving no place for self consciousness.. She came to him and kissed him slowly and deliberately with none of the hesitation or entreaty as before. She felt tiny, reaching up, her skin pressed against the cool fabric of his clothes, her bare feet tucked between his boots. She opened his jacket and unbuttoned his shirt, burrowing inside, skin to skin, caressing the hurt places, touching the bandage covering a wound. Then her arms were around him and she could feel the muscles of his back sliding under her fingers and the beating of his heart against her lips and mouth as she pressed against him.

As before, he was a gentle and attentive lover. She felt cherished under his touch, her flesh coming to high-tension life. He was learning her secrets, her love sounds teaching him and enflaming him. Kyle was drowning in her taste and scent as her body responded to his. He was rock hard and the wet heat of her felt so good as he slide inside her. Sarah cried out in relief and contentment as well as pleasure. So much of the past fourteen days simply faded out at this moment. He completely consumed her senses and she reveled in the pure animal passion of their bodies while his eyes locked onto hers, his soul laid bare. She felt as if his heart was being placed carefully in her hands. It was intense and she had been craving it every moment since Kyle had first touched her.

Sarah got up from the bed and brought him the smoothie she had made earlier. She could tell he was again a mass of hurts as she watched him gingerly try to arrange the pillows to sit. "Are you O.K.? That probably wasn't such a good idea for you," she said as she curled back up under the covers.

He gave a short laugh. "I'll live."

They sat in silence for a long while. Kyle set the empty glass on the floor, wincing as he resettled himself against the pillows. Sarah lay with her head against his shoulder, her hand resting in the middle of his chest, her fingers tracing little caresses against his skin. He remembered how she had first touched him like this, how good it had felt that night in the motel room, while he was afraid for him self and terrified that he would not be able to protect her. He looked down at her, at the discolored skin on her belly. He had seen the marks and bruises on her legs and arms too, but the welts and scratches on her sweet breast and the fading bruises on her face was more that he could stand. Sarah felt Kyle's body tense and knew what was coming. "What happened?" he asked quietly. She drew one huge shuddering breath and began to cry. Kyle forced himself to be patient, afraid of what he would have to hear when she could speak.

"Some carjackers tried to rape me," she said, finally beginning his nightmare, and told him everything she could remember. Sarah left nothing out, especially her frustration after she had struggled to drag the two dead thieves far into the woods, returned to the car and realized there were no keys. She had gone back to the bodies and found the keys in T-shirt's pocket and then decided to lift all their cash. Then she had driven Matt's Civic to the cabin, cleaned it out, cleaned herself up, and gotten back to the business of preparing for their lives together. She had been in shock, her brain and body running on some sort of detour for days, but now all the ragged fear, helpless terror, and savage pain invaded her senses again.

Kyle drew his precious Sarah to him, his brain seething, but he said nothing. He was a patient man by nature, his training for dispassionate, efficient death, but images of two faceless car thieves suffering lingering termination at his hands flooded through him. This was his fault and his responsibility. He was failing in his mission and he began to realize how seductive pre-war life could be. He was letting himself be distracted by his love for her. The physical and emotional need were insatiable now that she had blasted through his self control and knowing that she loved him back simply wiped out any resistance.

"I'm sorry I messed this up," she was saying. "I wasn't paying attention like you said, like you always do and now I've murdered two people. I was stupid and careless. It's like I thought I was playing dress-up soldier, trying to be like you and I just went back to that night, only this time it wasn't a machine and I just blew those guys away without even thinking. No, I actually was thinking. I was thinking I have to make sure no one finds out so we can run off somewhere together. It sounds like some stupid made-up game. It sounds insane even to me."

"All that matters is your survival, Sarah. You have to survive or nobody else does. You're strong; you're a fighter and always have been. You just didn't know it."

"I was so scared."

"I know. Everyone is." Kyle couldn't remember a time when he wasn't afraid. In his world, if you stayed afraid, you stayed alive.

"Not now and not here, they're not."

After a protracted process involving five different liability waivers, the wires and plates in Kyle's jaw were to be removed much sooner than planned. The surgeon came in and examined his work from weeks before, comparing two sets of x-rays. "It looks good," he said. "I think you'll be fine. You still don't remember how this happened?"

"No." Kyle's voice was impassive.

"You're certain this move is necessary? That you can't postpone it?"

"Yes."

"Hmm, alright then, let's go ahead." Dr. Kowen nodded toward the nurse.

Sarah propped her self and the crutches out of the way, leaning against the wall during the procedure. It was upsetting watching someone work with wire cutters and pliers in this fashion, especially as the bits of metal piled up on the surgical tray. She could see blood on Kyle's teeth.

"I think we're ready for the lidocaine." The nurse handed him a startlingly long-needled syringe. Kowen moved around the table blocking Sarah's view, but she could still see Kyle's fingers tense at the edge of the sheet. "Let's let that work for a few minutes," he said. As the door closed behind Kowen and the nurse, Sarah moved closer. Kyle looked up at her biting her lip and sat up slowly.

"Ow," she said.

"Yeah." She carefully kissed the side of his mouth. How different it was here with Sarah in pre-war time, having someone who loved him and cared whether he hurt or was afraid.

Each of the surgical plates came out with a tiny, but audible snap. There were four. "All done," Kowen said. "Mia will get you cleaned up. Just rinse several times a day with warm salt water until those little cuts heal." Kyle said nothing. "Alright then, no carrot sticks, no steaks. Soft stuff only, for the next week or so. Then work you way back into it, O.K.?"

"Sure." Kyle was impatient, but outwardly passive as the hygienist carefully cleaned his teeth and had him rinse with a solution of something to stop any bleeding. He was thinking about the carjackers' guns and where to get some ammunition. He was also wondering how those two motherfuckers happened to be at that particular gas station.

Riding in the Silverado with Kyle on the way to her mom's house Sarah thought how everything in her life now felt like part of a mission. Before seeing Dr. Kowen, they had returned to her apartment, Sarah driving the Civic, leaving it and Matt's keys where she'd found them. There were a few clothes, but not much else she wanted or needed to bring, but while she packed, Kyle looked around musing over the furniture, the books, even the carpet. Exploring the kitchen, he found the little bowl of mini Hershey bars. He came in her room working his way through a handful. "Where is that?" he asked, seeing the desert poster.

"What?" she looked up, "Oh, New Mexico."

"It's pretty."

"Yeah, it's a lot different than here, that's for sure."

Andy Shepherd was coming down from his meth high, making yet another phone call, checking more contacts for word on his brother, Ron. He needed money and he was resentful that none of his "friends" would give him a loan. It had been a week since he'd last seen Eric and Ron getting into the white Civic at the gas station, everything a picture perfect boost until they didn't show up at the garage three hours later. As usual, he had waited a few minutes after they left in the stolen car and drove the Camry back alone. They generally made some effort to stay separated by distance and time and often Ron and Eric took awhile getting rid of the car owner, but now Andy was frantic. Where were they? Ron always drove-if they'd been arrested, he would have heard days ago, in fact he probably would have seen them pulled over since the one mountain road was the only way in or out. If they'd been in an accident or crashed the car they would have either abandoned the vehicle or been caught. Somehow they had just dropped off the face of the earth. As he saw it, there were only two things to check out. One was simply to look for the Civic somewhere along the route, and there were hundreds of little dirt tracks leading to cabins and lake properties. The other possibility was the girl driving the Civic. Since she evidently wasn't missing-no news stories of unaccounted for tourists or residents, he was beginning to wonder if there wasn't something off about her. It seemed unlikely something had happened to Ron and Eric without it happening to her too.

Watching Kyle as he picked up cues from the surrounding traffic, matching speed, seamlessly adapting to the environment, Sarah thought about the first night they were running from the Terminator, about how Kyle's arm had been clamped protectively across her body while he drove one-handed, at ninety miles an hour, evading police cars through unfamiliar streets and alleys. He looked over at her, surprised at the smile on her face. His usual sphinx-like expression softened. "What?"

"I was thinking you should open a franchise of defensive driving schools."

"If you're saying you think I'm good at what I do, you're wrong. I've let all this distract me," he gestured at their surroundings, "and I've failed in my duty to protect you." He paused, "twice."

"Why do you think that? I'm still here with you and I think some of these things have happened for a reason. Maybe ripping my former life apart was all part of the plan, you know?"

"Like fate?"

"Yes."

Andy had no idea so many cabins and vacation homes existed. He had driven up dozens of dirt tracks only to encounter curious families or retirees or college kids at play or relaxing. He had located two white Civics. One he saw parked at a camp site with two mountain bike enthusiasts, and the other appeared to be owned by a middle-aged couple and the woman looked nothing like the girl from the gas station. After four days, Andy was out of patience and getting more and more pissed off.

Making a u-turn in front of a fire-gutted cabin he noticed two gaps that could have been old tracks and decided to check back into the trees. They were overgrown, but wide enough to drive a car through. He got out of the car and suddenly knew he would find the Civic back there and most likely his brother and Eric. Andy picked his way through the waist high brush for fifty yards or so before he realized none of it was crushed or bent the way it would be if a car had been driven over it. The other gap was a little less overgrown, but ended a very few feet into the woods. Nothing. He walked back to the Camry both relieved and disappointed. There were patches of smashed grass, tire tracks and foot prints around where he had parked, but the empty beer cans and other trash were just leftovers from partying kids so at first he thought the little ring was just another pull tab. Actually, it was way bigger than that. Andy stared at the ring a long time before he picked it up. It was Ron's.