Surviving/Page1

"Amanda?" came a soft voice. "Amanda, can you hear me?"

The young man that stood in front of the 32 year old woman looked over his shoulder worriedly. "She isn't responding Sir."

"We need to get her to the nearest hospital and see if the docs can do anything for her. Let's get her loaded in the the Ambulance. I've called Doc. Harrison and he's expecting her. He has a Phyc. team on hand." The older EMT shook his head and muttered to himself. "Whoever did this oughta pay big time."

Amanda never uttered a sound as she was gently lifted from the ground and her bruised body placed upon the stretcher. She vaguely was aware of the motion, but was so deep into her own consciousness that she couldn't respond. She kept reliving the nightmare of the last 2 weeks. Amanda worked as a nurse and had seen her share of suffering, but never had she been exposed to the type of treatment she had received at the hands of her captor. For two weeks, she had been kept blindfolded and isolated. She curled her battered body into the fetal position and closed her eyes against the light that threatened to force her back to reality. The EMT's unknowingly took her to the hospital where she had worked for the last 7 years.

"Oh my GOD! Amanda?!" came the shocked voice of her best friend and co worker. She felt Carol's arm wrap around her and felt her tight control start to slip.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" Amanda screamed and started to fight with what strength she had left.

"Doctor Harrison!" Carol shouted, struggling to hold her friend. The doctor ran into the room carrying a hypospray and injected Amanda in an attempt to calm her.

"Leave me alone! PLEASEEEEEEE!!!!" Amanda fought, striking out at anyone touching her. Hearing the doctor order the emergency rejuvenator into the room, she began pleading.

"Nooooo, I'll be good. Don't!!!!" She begged as the machine was wheeled into the room.

"Amanda?" Doc Harrison asked quietly. "Can you hear me sweetheart?" Amanda nodded frantically.

"OK then. You know where you are?" Again the frantic nodding. "Good girl. Then you know we are trying to help you, right?" Amanda reluctantly nodded her head and felt the affects of the hypospray take hold as she gave up fighting those trying to help her.

"You calm down and let us check you out, OK sweetie?" Doc Harrison asked in a low voice again, trying to sooth the distraught woman.

"Y-yes Doctor." Amanda closed her eyes and let the darkness envelop her. The medical team did a thorough examination and found that her injuries, caused by her escape were life threatening. Her attacker had struck her in the head, as well as the injuries to her psyche. Her friends feared she would never recover, especially since she had been exposed to the same type of abuse at the hands of her father as a Kidern. The doctor went to talk to the police and to his superiors about Amanda's situation.

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Amanda slowly awoke from the drug induced sleep and moved, groaning slightly. Carol immediately sent for Doctor Harrison.

"Amanda? Are you awake?" the doctor asked.

"mmm hmmm" Amanda blinked and tried to sit up.

"No Amanda, lay back down. I don't want you moving about right now." Doc Harrison smiled as the usually opinionated young woman followed his order. "You've had a pretty severe shock to your system and I don't want you up and about just yet, understood?"

"Y-yes Sir." Amanda looked around and her eyes filled with tears at the sight of her best friend. "Carol?" Carol came forward and held Amanda gently as she began to sob. "I couldn't . . . He made me do. . . " Amanda choked out.

"Shhhhhhhh, Manda. Shhhhhhh. It's gonna be okay. I'm here and you're safe now." Carol rocked Amanda, shedding tears of her own. "Manda? Doc wants to ask you some questions. OK?"

"Noooo, I don't want to talk about it!!!" she insisted, looking around wildly.

"Amanda, I am not going to make you talk about it." Harrison assured her. "It is my opinion that you need to be rejuvenated to help you recover from this and from what your father did." The doctor held up his hand to stop her protest. "I know, you don't want to be rejuvenated, but I think it is what you need. You need to go back and learn that childhood is NOT about what you went through, that it should be fun and full of love. I would recommend a rejuve back to age 3."

Amanda sat up and threw off her covers.

"I am NOT going back to being a 3 year old!!!!" As she was yelling this, she leaped off the bed and fled out the door into the hallway, Carol and Harrison close behind her. Grabbing her arm, Harrison was not prepared for the attack as Amanda turned all the fury she felt toward her kidnapper on him. Only Carol's quick action saved the doctor from being seriously injured. Grabbing a hypospray from where she had hidden it in her pocket, she injected Amanda and had to catch her friend as she collapsed. With Dr. Harrison's help, they lifted Amanda's limp body and placed it gently back onto the stretcher. When the monitors were reattached, it showed a dangerous rise in blood pressure and a dropping heart rate.

"She's going into shock!" Carol shouted as the doctor yelled instructions to the medical team rushing into the cubicle.

"Get that emergency rejuvenator in here NOW!" He ordered. "Like it or not, this young lady just earned herself a rejuve." The doctor stepped back as the rejuve team rushed in with the machine. When the head of the team looked to Dr. Harrison for instructions, he snapped, "Age 3. NOW!"

Carol and Dr. Harrison stepped out of the cubicle to let the team do their job. Only when the rejuve coordinater stepped out did they go back in to see their friend and co-worker.

"Oh my God! She is soooo little. I hope. . . " Carol stammered.

"I know Carol. You know it had to be this way though. Now she can begin to recover not only from what that . . . " the doctor paused, a grimance on his face. ". . . man did to her, but from what her father did also." Glad for an excuse to embrace Carol, he put his arm around her. "The only question now, is who will her parents be?"

Carol looked up in shock. "I will be her Mommy, of course!" she insisted.

"But what about a Daddy? She will need one so she can learn that not all men are like her father and that monster." Dr. Harrison replied. Carol looked at the doctor with a shy expression.

"You could be her Daddy?" She asked more than suggested.

"You mean. . . ?"Dr. Harrison asked, looking pleased. "You mean we should raise her together? Ummmm . . . I mean. . . That we should get married?" he stuttered, trying not to look as happy as he felt.

"Well, it would be good for her to have a Daddy and . . . " Carol started, breaking off when she saw the smile light up Dr. Harrison's face. Grinning, she asked impudently, "Does this mean I can start calling you Alex?"

Before he could answer a small, high pitched whimper caught their attention. Rushing back to Amanda's bedside, they were standing there when the small child opened her eyes.

"Wha. . . Wha happen? Why'm I so . . . Nooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!" Amanda sobbed, kicking her feet in a little girl tantrum.

Dr. Alex Harrison picked Amanda up and held her gently.

"Honey, it had to be done. You almost died." He explained carefully.

"Wahhhhhhhhh!!! Donnn wanna be a b babbyyyyyy!" Amanda cried and struggled to get free.

"I know sweetie, but it had to be done. It won't be so bad. I promise." Alex reassured her.

"Wha if my. . . Dadd dyy is meann??" Amanda asked in a frightened voice.

"Honey?" Looking up at Carol, he continued after seeing her nod. "What if I were your Daddy?"

Looking shocked, Amanda stared at him.

"And I would be your Mommy, sweetie." Carol promised, coming closer.

Not answering in words, Amanda started sobbing again and lay her head down on her new Daddy's shoulder. Putting her thumb in her mouth, tears still flowing down her cheeks, the tiny child fell asleep, feeling safe for the first time in years.