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Lita couldn't stop shaking, even when they got to the hotel. She kept seeing the monster everywhere she looked - in the shadows, hiding behind shrubbery and cars, but perhaps worst of all - in her own mind's eye.
Edge retrieved two room keys from the woman at the front desk. He turned to the redhead and handed one to her.
"Here, this is yours." He gave her a quick once-over. "Lita?"
"He's probably here... waiting for me." She looked completely spooked, her hazel eyes darting back and forth, as though expecting him to pop out from anywhere.
The blond man placed both hands on her shoulders, holding her mere inches away. He forced her to gaze up into his face as he spoke.
"Lita, listen to me... You're safe - safe," he assured her. "We drove fast while he was on foot. There's no way he caught up to us." He locked his gaze on hers, searching her reaction to his words. When there was none and she still appeared frightened, he went on. "He has no way of knowing what hotel we're in. Think about it."
Lita blinked, her breath leaving her in short gasps as she tried to calm down. He was right. He was right, and she knew she was behaving irrationally. She nodded.
"You're right," she agreed. She felt somewhat more at ease and was grateful toward the blond man.
He offered her a terse smile and gestured with a tilt of his head in the direction of the elevators.
"Come on... I don't know about you, but I'm beat."
She nodded, agreeing with his sentiment. She too was tired. It had been a most taxing evening, even though she'd never actually gotten the chance to wrestle. But the fear she'd felt at Kane coming after her, not once, but twice, had drained her both physically and mentally. She followed Edge to the elevator bank, and they waited.
"You going to be able to sleep okay tonight?" the blond man asked, as though reading her thoughts.
"I... I think so." Inside, the redhead wasn't too sure. But she knew she was exhausted, so she hoped she could escape into the land of slumber, at least for a few hours.
They reached their floor and got out of the elevator in silence. Edge pointed the way down the corridor, and they turned in that direction.
As they went, they just missed that they were being watched by a pair of eyes... Those eyes belonged to someone who had just gotten out of one of the other elevators.
*
A good half-hour had passed since Edge and Lita had arrived at the hotel room. The redhead was currently in the bathroom, a robe on her body and a towel wrapped around her damp hair following a shower. Although she hadn't wrestled, she had felt the need to cleanse after what had happened at the arena earlier that night.
Shortly after, she left the comfort of the steamy lavatory and went over to the bed she'd chosen for the night. Edge watched her intently from the other one.
He studied her for a long moment before she raised her gaze, giving him a questioning look.
"Will you be okay while I go shower?" he asked.
She cast a look over toward the door, then to the window. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, and everything was peaceful. Shifting her eyes back to the blond Canadian, she nodded.
"Yeah, I'll be okay."
A few minutes later, as Edge was taking his shower, Lita was preparing herself for bed. She had on her pajamas and was relaxing on the firm mattress. The towel around her hair was discarded on the floor, and she had the TV on to the local evening news.
She jerked her head up in the direction of the door. She could have sworn she heard a knock. Her heart nearly skipped a beat. Should she ignore it? Should she answer and see who was there? After a momentary debate with herself, she opted for the latter.
The redhead held her breath as she crept over to the door. Checking the tiny peephole, she relaxed as she saw who was outside. She unlocked, then opened it.
"Hi," the man said with a smile.
"Hi back." They had not been on great terms for awhile, but she was beyond relieved that it was only him and not that horrible monster.
"So, how are you doing?" His face reflected concern.
She sighed and ran a hand through her damp hair.
"I'm okay now," she said. She forced a smile. "I really am."
"Okay... That's good," the man said. There was a small moment of somewhat awkward silence between them. Then, "I know... I'm really sorry I wasn't the one to save you tonight."
She cocked her head with a measure of surprise.
"It's okay... Just... thank God for Edge."
"Yeah."
A few minutes later, the man claimed he was tired and wanted to head back to his own room for the night. Lita was just locking the door again when she realized Edge had come out from his shower.
"Who was that?"
She turned to face him, meeting his green eyes as she replied.
"No need to worry... It was just Matt."