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Dora had been shoved into an attic room, her hands untied. The room contained little more than a single bed, one chair and a tiny window that looked out towards the yard. She'd barely had time to circle the room when the door flew open again and Steve was catapulted into the room, landing heavily on his side. The door slammed instantly and Dora heard the sound of a key turning in the lock followed by heavy footsteps on the stairs.

Before the door had closed she'd glimpsed a light switch on the wall and she reached for it, flooding the tiny room with raw light.

"Oh Steve," she breathed, kneeling beside him and reaching to help him up so he sat upright. His hands were still bound and she started to work on the knot, swallowing hard to stop the tears from spilling over. As she worked she saw fresh grazes on his hands, blood seeping sluggishly. When she finally freed the rope Steve cried out as the blood flowed into his fingers and arms, his teeth gritting against the agony.

After a moment she helped him to stand and they made their way to the bed, sitting down heavily. Steve's face was a garish pattern of grazes and bruising, his hair flopping forward into his eyes.

"What happened Steve ?" Dora asked, indicating the fresh wounds on his hands and face.

"I didn't get up quick enough," Steve explained, lifting his hands to inspect them. "Not a pretty sight are they ?"

"I've tried the window..its too small, and the doors locked," Dora told him as he stared bleakly around their prison.

"Any idea's where we might be ?" Asked Dora after a moment.

"We weren't travelling long enough to go that far, only about half an hour by my reckoning," said Steve, lifting his jacket sleeve to look at his watch, only to find it smashed. "Oh great....my best dress watch," he muttered, shaking his sleeve back down. Turning to look at Dora he noted her pale, tear streaked face and smeared makeup. Lifting up his hand he placed it against the side of her face, his thumb wiping away some of the mascara and tears.

"We'll be okay Dora, they'll release us soon, I'm sure."

"I was so frightened Steve, I thought they were going to...I don't know, the worst I guess,"

With a sigh Steve drew Dora towards him, her head coming to rest on his shoulder, his arm circling her shoulders.

"You heard what he said, he needed twenty four hours, by tomorrow night we'll be out of here....wherever here is,"

For the next few minutes they sat in companionable silence, Dora weeping out her fright and Steve mentally cataloguing his new hurts. Eventually Dora was quiet, Steve realising she'd dozed off, her head heavy on his neck. Shifting sideways he lowered her to the beds lumpy pillow, pulling her coat closed and lifting her legs up. Standing he stretched, feeling the pull of sore muscles in his shoulders and arms. A sharp twinge in his back reminded him of the kick that Gurt had administered in the truck. Gingerly he felt around his lower back, wincing when his fingers encountered the deep bruise left by the mans boot.

Looking out the window, he thought he saw movement by one of the fences but it was too dark and he dismissed it as a nocturnal animal on the hunt. Dora was right, the window was too small for either of them to climb out, plus there was the small matter of the sheer drop even if it was a possibility. Sighing resignedly, Steve turned back and looked around the room. Making his way back to the bed he sat down, his head suddenly feeling very heavy and his eyes sliding shut of their own volition. Before succumbing to the overwhelming desire to sleep, he got up and switched out the light, plunging the room into a stygian gloom. He nearly fell over the edge of the bed and cursed before feeling his way around to the far side and laying down. Dora had curled herself into a ball, her legs drawn up, her back to him. By lying on his side there was just room for him and he tried to get comfortable, ignoring the nagging ache in his back. The bed only had the mattress and pillows, no blankets and Steve felt the chill of the room bite into his body, making him shiver. Beside him Dora slept but she also shivered, drawing her legs up further in an attempt to keep warm. Making his mind up, Steve sat up and turned over so that he was now facing Dora's back. Gently he rolled her over, his arm sliding under her shoulders, so that they now faced each other. Dora stirred and Steve whispered that he wanted her to relax and put her head on his shoulder. Trustingly, Dora did so and they ended up fitting easily onto the grubby mattress, with Dora wrapping her arms around Steve and he hugging her back. Finally they were able to sleep, each warmed by the other.

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"This is nuts, we can't do anything, there's two of them," protested Ron from where he was crouched under the window ledge. Sarah was peering cautiously over the rim into the room beyond.

"Shut up Ron, I'm not asking you to go in there and take them on, just create a diversion, is that so difficult ?"

"Create a diversion.....she says....just what the flippin' heck do you expect me to do!!"

"Shush...or you'll have them coming out here before I'm ready...why don't you steal the truck or something,"

"And why do you assume that I know anything about starting a truck without a key ?"

Sarah turned her head and gave Ron a speaking look.

"Alright....I may know something about starting a vehicle without a key," said Ron, chastened, "but I still don't understand what you think you can do,"

"Look, we have a choice....run away, call the police and leave it for them to bungle it,"

"Or..?" prompted Ron.

"Or we use the phone in the farmhouse and get the fuzz out here as well as making sure the bad guys don't leave before the police arrive."

"Aahhh...so you not only want me to try and steal the truck, you want me to disable it as well ?"

"Got it in one Ron.....hey, they're leaving the kitchen, come on we'll have to try the other side of the house,"

Ducking down, Sarah started off around the end of the house, Ron, doubled over, following close behind. A light snapped on as they rounded the corner and they crouched down amongst the rank weeds that had once been a kitchen garden.

Raising herself up, Sarah managed to peer over the window ledge but ducked down just as quickly when one of the men approached the window and pulled the curtains.

"Damn....okay Ron, you're on."

"I was afraid of that......listen, I'll do....whatever it is you want me to do....but couldn't we please go and find a nice safe phone box and do the hero thing from a distance ?"

Leaning down, Sarah gave Ron a kiss on the cheek before pushing him back towards the farmyard and the truck. Reluctantly Ron crab-crawled his way back to the yard, reaching the truck without a sign of life from the house. Reaching into his jacket pocket he extracted a penknife and opened it. Careful to keep the truck between himself and the house, he punctured each of the tyres on his side, the air hissing out like a nest of angry snakes. He then climbed into the cab and leaned down, reaching for the wires tucked under the dashboard.

"It's just as well I'm talented," Ron groused, fiddling with the bundle of wires until he had the right ones and twisted them together.

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"Yeah.....yeah, snug as a bug Boss.......no, no problems....very quiet," Tony paused, the receiver pressed to his ear by his shoulder as he took another sip of his coffee. "I told you, sleeping like babies, Gurt checked on them only a minute ago, the two love birds are out cold." He nodded to his accomplice to pass him a cigarette, "How long......oh, okay.....he'll be back soon to transport your stuff. What do you want us to do with the other merchandise ?" Tony flipped open his lighter and rolled the dial, a flame leaping up to light the end of his smoke. "Yeah...yeah....okay, its as good as done. Bye."

Putting down the phone he slid off the edge of the table and flung himself down onto the overstuffed couch that dominated the small sitting room. Gurt lounged in the wing chair by the empty fire, his morose face relaxed for a change.

"What's the Boss want me to do ?"

"You're to go back to the warehouse and load up the last of the gear, then come back here for me. By then I'll have got rid of the last remaining stock and we're out of here, free and clear."

Sipping his coffee, Gurt contemplated his boot tips, while Tony puffed out a cloud of smoke, his fingers tapping a rhythm on the arm of the couch.

"Shame about 'em meddling kids......this was a sweet deal, could 'ave gone on for months," said Gurt, leaning forward to place his mug on the hearth.

Shaking his head, Tony stubbed out his cigarette and leaned back. "It was winding down, this has just added another complication, nuffin' we can't handle, eh ?"

"Yeah, nuffin' we can't 'andle." Gurt agreed, reaching into his jacket pocket and pulling out a gun.

"What the bloody hell have your brought that for ?" Tony exclaimed, almost choking on his coffee.

"I call this my problem solver," grinned Gurt, checking the gun's ammunition clip, the click loud in the small room.

"It's a one way trip to the clink," retorted Tony, getting to his feet and going to look out of the window.

"Oh come on, we have all that spare merchandise, we can't move it, and we can't leave them here, I call this a perfect solution,"

"The boss said to let them go..out the back of the barn,"

"Doesn't he want the maximum time to get away ?" Gurt waited while Tony nodded slowly, his face reflecting his unease at the direction of Gurt's conversation.

"Then I say we give 'im that time. Leave no evidence, and no witnesses...that's my policy," said Gurt smugly, tucking the gun back into his jacket pocket. Tony only shook his head.

"Now look 'ere. No-one said anything about topping those two. I didn't get into this to commit murder."

"Who said you would be ?" asked Gurt, a sneer tilting the corner of his mouth unpleasantly.

"No way, count me out, I....." he stopped and cocked his head to listen. "What's that ?"

They both listened and heard the sudden roar of their horse-trucks' engine coming alive. With alacrity, both men leaped for the door, almost blocking each other before heading for the front door at a run.

Outside, Gurt pulled out his gun and sidled down one side of the rumbling truck, Tony taking the other. Both men reached the cab and pulled open the doors. Gurt found the wires and disconnected them, the engine dying away, leaving only a lingering smell of diesel.

Tony scanned the small yard, looking pointedly at the barn door not ten feet from the truck. Nodding to Gurt to follow, the two men crept to the big double doors. "Whoever it was, must be inside," hissed Tony, jerking his head to tell Gurt to circle around to the back of the building to cut off any escape. Gurt nodded and padded away, his gun held high. Tony waited until he figured his companion was in position, then he lifted the latch and pulled open the door. Darkness and silence greeted his actions. He pushed the door wide, letting in a small corridor of light from the outside. Shuffling from the side told him that the horses they'd stashed in the barn were still there, their hooves rustling in the thick straw on the floor.

"I know you're in here....show yourself," he shouted. The horses moved restlessly, the darkness split with the only reply, a shrill whinny. Looking down he saw a pitchfork and he picked it up, brandishing it menacingly, the prongs catching a faint gleam from the doorway.

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Ron hunkered down further, his legs drawn up, as he stared mesmerised by the mans feet not six feet away from where he was hidden. The horse in the stall with him blew on his head, lifting a few strands until Ron pushed its inquisitive nose away. The stalls were enclosed with half doors that ended several feet above the ground, giving Ron an uninterrupted view of anybody walking around the barn. He watched as one of the men picked up a pitchfork and stepped further into the barn.

"Hey Gurt.....you here yet ?" he heard and a voice answered almost directly behind Ron, making him start.

"I'm here..been listening to you stamping and shouting, enough to cover the sound of a hundred burglars escaping," scoffed Gurt, appearing from behind one of the stalls and standing in the shaft of light from the yard.

"There's no-one here," said Tony, lowering the pitchfork and eyeing Gurt's gun.

"That's as maybe, just because they haven't decided to give themselves up to your bellowing, doesn't mean they 'aint here still,"

Ron pressed himself back against the boards, the shadow from the feedtray sheltering him and the body of the horse combining to hide him. He watched the feet of the men as they separated again, one to return to the barn door, the other walking towards the stalls. He heard the bang of the first stall being opened and his heart leapt into his throat. The horse standing over him started to dance nervously, its feet coming close to Ron's hideyhole.

"Come on Gurt, there's no-one here, they're long gone, most probably across the fields."

Ron heard the second stall bang open, the horses now moving about, banging against the wooden walls and whinnying. The door of the stall next to his banged open and Ron started to pray, his eyes fixed on the piece of floor under his stall's door, expecting any second to see a pair of boots and an angry man.

"Leave the perishing animals alone, they'll never settle if you keep bangin' about,"

Ron saw a pair of boots pause outside his stall and he held his breath.

"Yeah....okay, they must 'ave scarpered," Gurt finally agreed, his boots turning and leaving Ron to slump shakily to the ground under the feedbox. Ron waited for the two men to leave and the barn door to be shut before crawling out and climbing to his feet, brushing his dusty hands on his equally dusty jeans.

"Oh my gawd, that was a close one," he muttered, absently patting the back of the horse that had sheltered him. "Thanks, me 'ol mate, you put him off." The horse nickered softly and Ron gave it a final pat before opening the stall. As quietly as possible, Ron made his way to the barn door, by putting his eyes to the crack between the two sections he had a good view of the truck in the yard. The two men were walking around it, stopping suddenly with one of them cursing roundly and kicking the flat tyres viciously. The other stood slightly away, his face twisted in a scowl.

"I kill the little bugger that did this, so help me!" Gurt exclaimed, his fist connecting with the side of the truck and making him curse again.

Backing away, Ron made his way to the back of the barn and felt around until he found the small back door that led out of the barn and into the paddock beyond. Edging around the side of the barn he started to make his way back to the farmhouse, hoping that Sarah had managed to use the phone in the time Ron had given her. As he passed behind a hedge he could hear the two men arguing in the yard and he kept low, hurrying along to the stone wall to wait for Sarah. As he threw himself down in the rank grass a figure rose up and he nearly screamed.

"It's me," hissed Sarah, scooting over beside him.

"You just scared ten years off my life," Ron gasped. Sarah giggled and laid a hand on his arm.

"You're shaking," she exclaimed, "did it go okay ?"

"More to the point, are the coppers on their way ?"

"I don't know, I told them everything, but I'm not sure they believed me. We'll have to wait and see."

"Well they aren't going anywhere," said Ron, hooking his thumb in the direction of the truck, "I fixed 'em good,"

"So all we have to do is wait," she paused for a moment, "Ron...is there somewhere warmer we can go, I'm freezing my boots off here,"

"There's the barn, but what if they search it again ?"

"Not likely, and there's bound to be a loft or something. Please lets go,"

"Fine, but keep low, they were still in the yard when I came past,"

Taking Sarah's chilly hand, Ron led her to the back of the barn where they slipped inside the door and stood for a moment to allow their eyes to get used to the almost pitch black interior. It was noticeably warmer inside as they felt their way to a ladder leading to the loft. Ron followed Sarah as they climbed, ending up above the horse stalls and hidden from anyone entering the barn.

Sarah threw herself down on a pile of straw.

"Brilliant, I haven't slept in a hayloft in years, I'd forgotten how wonderful it smells,"

"You won't think its so wonderful when you have to pick straws out of your knickers," muttered Ron, plumping down and letting go a sigh.

"Oh you.....this is so....*yawn*......soft."

"Hey Sarah, what do we do if the fuzz don't get here by the morning ?"

"Hmmmm...I don't know, I'll worry about that in the morning. 'Nite Ron."

"Shouldn't I keep watch or something?" asked Ron, listening to Sarah settle down.

"Oh sure....whatever you like," came the sleepy reply.

"I don't know how you can sleep at a time like this....Steve and Dora held captive, I'm practically found by the bad guys...no-one knows where we are, and those that do, don't believe us,"

"Shut up Ron," murmured Sarah.

"Oh great....I won't be able to sleep a wink....those guys could come in.....*yawn*....anytime and find us here, and you don't..*yawn*... think they're going to like what I did.....*yawn*...to their truck,"

Ron listened to the horses moving about below them.

"And another thing....what's your mum gonna say, I bet she won't like it when I bring you home...*yawn*..whenever that's gonna be."

A soft snore greeted the next silence and Ron grunted, rolled over on to his side and closed his eyes in defeat.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The police had, in fact, been anything but idle since Sarah's call. The night duty constable had passed Sarah's information on to his Sergeant. Once it was matched up with the incident at the village dance, Mrs.Weldon ringing to complain that her daughter hadn't returned home from said dance, having been last seen in the company of Ron Stryker, and an early morning call from Follyfoot Farm informing them of two missing people, the Sergeant rang the Inspector who quickly joined the dots and decided to investigate. A constable was sent to check out the butchers shop and warehouse and a car was dispatched to verify Sarah's report about the isolated farm.

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Dora snuggled in closer, her cheek rubbing up and down her soft, warm pillow, the comforting sound of a heartbeat lulling her back to sleep.

*Heartbeat* Dora suddenly came fully awake, her eyes snapping open in surprise. The gently rise and fall of the chest under her cheek made her quickly go back over what she remembered of the night before. When her other senses came into play she relaxed as her nose told her that it was Steve that was acting as her pillow, his familiar scent a safe haven. The room was now bright with sunshine, the grimy window's silhouette painted starkly on the opposite wall. Tilting her head slightly, Dora looked up into Steve's face, her eyes running over its familiar planes, here and there marred by blossoming bruises and scrapes. Relaxed in sleep, Steve looked younger and less careworn, his long hair sweeping across his forehead and down into his eyes. She took in the thick, dark lashes matched by straight black brow's, the full lips and strong nose. It was a face she'd seen nearly everyday for the past two years, in every mood from furious to compassionate, and every shade in-between. Now she looked at that same face with eyes that remembered a passionate kiss in a darkened alley, of arms that held her close and supported her when she felt her legs melt from under her, of midnight eyes that, for a brief second, seared her with their heat.

Looking away, Dora felt a delicious shiver run down her spine as her wayward thoughts relived the brief embrace.

"Are you cold ?" Steve's sleep roughened voice asked, flowing over her heightened nerves like warm honey.

"No.....no I'm not," answered Dora, quite sure that her blush could have melted an iceberg. She felt his fingers tighten on her arm, his own, around her shoulder, hugging her closer.

They lay there for several long minutes savouring their closeness, unwilling to break the spell that held them. The sound of a key in the lock broke that spell and dispelled all thoughts of lingering further. Steve sat up quickly and swung his legs off the bed, unable to suppress a groan as his battered body protested at the swift motion. Dora also sat up, leaning over to rest her hand Steve's back as he hunched over, waiting for the pain to recede.

"Steve ?"

"I'll be fine,"

When the door opened they were both on their feet looking towards the door apprehensively.

"Ron ?" they both exclaimed, seeing their workmate leaning against the doorframe, a piece of straw between his teeth.

"Have a cosy night did we ?" asked Ron, his face split with a wide grin as Steve and Dora made their way towards them, a look passed between them not missed by the sharp-eyed Ron.

"I don't understand, where are the two men?" asked Dora, peering past Ron into the hallway.

"Gone, scarpered, hared-off, legged it......I'm just the cavalry, here to rescue you,"

"Oh Ron, I'm so pleased to see you," Dora quickly hugged a surprised Ron who warmly hugged her back, his eyes meeting Steve's over Dora's shoulder.

"That goes for me too, Ron," said Steve, smiling broadly.

The sound of feet on the stairs made Dora pull away, looking fearfully at the head of the stairs, only to relax when a policeman appeared, his bulk filling the narrow hallway.

"Are you alright Miss ?"

"Er....yes, fine...what happened to the men who brought us here ?"

"We haven't caught 'em yet...but it's just a matter of time," he told them, doing an about-face and setting off once more down the stairs with a clatter.

"He didn't ask us for a description, or anything," said Dora, turning to look at Steve.

"Oh that's because Sarah and I gave them plenty to be going on with," Ron answered, pushing away from the door jam and walking ahead of them.

"You ?"

"Yeah....we've been keeping surveillance, you could say, on this place. Proper Sherlock Holmes I am,"

"More like Dr.Watson, I'll bet," teased Steve, following Dora down the stairs. At the bottom they entered the front room of the farmhouse and found it full of people. Sarah was holding court with two constables, her bright hair and animated face keeping both men's attention. There was also a middle aged woman with an unmistakable resemblance to her daughter and another man. With a glad cry Dora ran towards her Uncle and hugged him.

"Are you alright Dora, Slugger was very concerned when you didn't come back when you arranged to, he was on the phone to the police and me right away."

"Poor Slugger, was he really worried ?"

"As we all were.....if was very foolish of you to put yourself at risk like that. You should have left it to the police."

"We tried to tell them......well Sarah did, but they didn't believe her!" Dora explained, drawing the attention of one of the policemen.

"That's not entirely true miss, we had taken the young ladies statement previously and constable Cummings told us what the Colonel had said. It was all combined with our own investigation, in which we were already suspicious of Mr.Masters in connection with the missing horses. And your Uncle is right, you were very lucky to get out of this with nothing more than an uncomfortable night, those two men are wanted for more than just horse thievery."

The Colonel was looking curiously at Dora who was blushing furiously at the Constables reference to her night spent at the farm. She glanced over at Steve and saw he'd adopted a familiar pose, hunched shoulders, hands stuffed in his jeans pockets and looking down in embarrassment.

Shooting a quick smile at her Uncle, Dora made her way back to Steve's side and managed to get his attention by slipping her hand into his.

"I didn't find our night here at all uncomfortable," she whispered, squeezing his fingers before letting go. Steve's looked up and smiled, his eyes warm as they caught and held hers in a long look.

Turning back to her Uncle, Dora asked him what happened about the butcher.

"As the Constable said, they already had him under suspicion, with this latest incidence, they'll add kidnapping to his list of charges."

"Then they were already going to arrest him ?" asked Steve, coming to stand in front of the Colonel.

"Yes....they apparently had already connected Mr.Masters with the stolen horses and were testing meat samples from his shop to verify that he was selling horse meat for human consumption." He looked sternly at Dora and Steve. "Which made this little escapade completely unnecessary." He looked hard at Steve. "I can't believe you knowingly put Dora into such a situation, how could you?"

"He didn't Uncle, we were all a part of this, Steve didn't organise it, we all did,"

"Including that brawl at the dance ?"

"How...?" spluttered Dora.

"Well look at him," the Colonel indicated Steve's face, "you don't expect me to believe he walked into a wall, do you ?"

Both Steve and Dora glanced at each other, Steve smiling ruefully.

"It looks worse than it is, I'm sure."

"You obviously haven't looked in a mirror lately," scoffed the Colonel. He looked over at the two policemen and beckoned one of them over. "Can I take these two back to Follyfoot, they've had a long night,"

"We'll need to take a statement from them both.....but I'm sure we can do that at the farm. No need to stay here. We'll finish up first with Miss Weldon and Mr. Stryker, would this afternoon be convenient ?"

"Certainly officer, we'll see you at Follyfoot. Come on you two, lets get you home,"

"I'll call you Steve," Sarah called out, receiving a tired wave in reply. As they passed Ron, Dora gave him another hug before walking outside to join Steve and her Uncle beside his Jaguar. Steve and Dora climbed into the back seat, sinking gratefully into the butter soft leather upholstery. The Colonel slid behind the wheel and started the motor.

"All set back there ?" he called, putting the car into gear and starting to pull away.

"Yes Uncle....lets go home," sighed Dora.

Steve put his head back, his eyes closed, and tried to take himself back to before Ron had entered their room. It had been the sweetest moment to wake up with Dora trustingly tucked into his side. Their relationship, from this point onwards, was going to prove even more volatile and quite possibly just as frustrating as before, but, as far as he was concerned, he didn't want to miss a minute of it.

Ron, staring out of the window, watched as the Jaguar smoothly rolled out of the farmyard, avoiding the sabotaged truck and continuing out of the gate and up the dirt road. Turning back he listened while Sarah finished her statement, her eyes immediately seeking his, a smile blossoming on her lips. Ron tore his gaze from hers and addressed one of the policemen.

"What happens with the horses ?"

"We have to get them back to their owners...we have descriptions of the horses stolen, so we just have to match them up and contact the people concerned."

"Yes, I know that, but what about feeding and caring for them?" Ron persisted. Sarah and her mother were watching the interchange with interest. The young constable looked perplexed and annoyed.

"I don't know, I imagine the owner's will take care of that,"

"In that case, I'll stay here....until you catch those blokes, you'll all be busy and there's no-one else. There's no guarantee that the owner's will want the horses back, is there?"

"No," agreed the constable, "I guess there's no problem, if you want to stay. I'll have to find out about the owner of this property, but in the short-term, I don't see a problem with you caring for them."

"I'll help you Ron," Sarah added, a quick glance at her mother for permission. Her mother rolled her eyes but nodded . Trying to cage her headstrong daughter was proving beyond her plus she knew that Sarah had missed her time spent messing about with horses since they'd moved into the town.

"As long as you promise to stay here, not go gallivanting around the countryside, looking for trouble young lady," her mother admonished. Sarah hugged her, giving her a smacking kiss on her cheek. "I promise mum," she whispered.

A little later, she and Ron waved her mother and the policemen goodbye, watching as the cars disappeared out of the farmyard and around the first bend.

Still watching and waving, Sarah turned to Ron.

"What if those ratbags come back here, did you think about that ?"

"Not likely girl, what's to come back for....they legged it when the police arrive and I bet their still running,"

"Let's hope your right, now let's go see about these horses."

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