Ali Vali - Love Match

They moved as a unit off the bed and toward the door with Emily hanging on for dear life. The last thing Parker saw was the fangs that had broken through the sheet inches from where Emily's head had been. Whoever had done this had gone too far now, and she hoped she was armed with her tennis rackets when the bozo finally did decide to come out of hiding.

"Wait here," ordered Parker when they had reached the living room. She had to get rid of the snake before the damn thing crawled off somewhere in the apartment and laid eggs or something. It was a long shot, but she had seen too many movies in hotel rooms around the world not to want to take the chance. Parker unzipped her bag and pulled out one of her practice rackets.

"You can't leave me here all by myself, I'm coming with you. Can I borrow a racket?" asked Emily. Parker pulled another one out of the bag and handed it to her shadow. "This is the first time you've let me touch these things," said Emily grasping it with two hands.

"Make a mental note for the future. If there's any type of dangerous critter in the room, please don't hesitate to come out swinging."

The rattle was visible when they got back into the room, but thankfully the dangerous end was still caught up in the bedding. Parker didn't have a lot of experience with reptiles, but whoever this one belonged to must have fed it well it was so thick. The first swing Parker took made the rattle stand almost ridged before it started in over time again. She kept at it until there was a visible bloodstain and the damn thing wasn't moving any more.

"I bet that guy Steve Irwin would have me beaten if he had witnessed this," said Parker.

Emily shivered thinking about the whole thing as she clutched Parker's racket to her chest. "How do you think it got in here?"

"Aren't rattle snakes indigenous to New York City?" asked Parker.

"Only on Wall Street, honey."

"Touché, pretty lady. Are you ok?"

"I have to admit that I should be more freaked out with the fact there was a snake in my bed, but having you here made it all right. You make me feel safe, Parker." Emily dropped her racket and ran to Parker for a hug. "It's kinda creepy that someone we don't know was in here though."

"Yeah, cause that puppy was too chunky to slither under the door. Let's call Logan to come and do whatever needs to be done and then check ourselves into the Plaza. Maybe I can have the thing skinned and made into a headband for the finals."

"Are you going to buy us a new bed?" asked Emily.

"Not just that but a couple of chairs so I can put my socks on in the morning." The siren outside signaled Logan's return along with another couple of units to dust the apartment and interview the neighbors who might have seen something.

The two women left as soon as the police were through with their questions getting a promise from Logan to lock up when he was done. Gray, Kimmie and Gary were waiting for them at the Plaza when their cab arrived wanting to see in person they were all right. When they were finally alone, Parker held onto to Emily as the shock of what happened leaked out in a jag of hysterical crying.

The stalker had gotten so close that Parker made no more promises. Keeping Emily safe had been paramount in her mind from the moment she had heard that rattle, and now would be no different. She was going to accept the police protection that Logan had offered initially, if only to keep the blonde in her arms whole.

************************************************************************

"Good morning, do you need help finding your seats?" The usher at the Open looked eager to escort Emily and her companions to the box near the court. He had recognized her from the picture in the paper a week before along with the two other brunettes that were with her.

"Thanks, we can find it. Any of you seen Bobbie?" asked Emily. The finals were set to begin in an hour and their friend was nowhere to be seen. The one that did make an out of place picture was Logan, who was wearing a jacket to conceal his weapon. He was supposed to be guarding Parker, but the tennis pro had told him if he wouldn't sit in the stands with Emily he couldn't come. Emily's only concern now was that he'd be so engrossed in the match, a rapid gorilla could join them and he wouldn't notice.

"She's parking the car. The sweetheart dropped us off at the gate saying she didn't want us out in the open too long," answered Kimmie. Behind her Gray and Natasha sat holding hands and sharing a bagel.

Downstairs, Parker thought about all the games it had taken to get her to this point. A position she had found herself in on numerous occasions only to fall short of the goal. On the other side of the locker room sat Lee Darnell, the underdog that had fought her way through the ranks to become the hero of the tournament. All the seeded players that had underestimated the up and comer from Texas had gone home scratching their heads at her level of play.

In a change of pace, Parker let her mind wander to other things besides the up coming match trying to get her stomach to settle down. It never failed and pre play jitters had scared Emily that morning. Finding Parker puking in the bathroom was not on her list of things to expect and it had taken a while for the pilot to believe her it happened before every final she played in.

Their friend the snake charmer had been quiet since their scare at the apartment and Parker hoped it stayed that way until play was over. Having a police officer watching over Emily was one less thing to worry about so she turned her attention to Lee Darnell to see what she was doing.

The young woman was sitting with her head back and her eyes closed like she was bored and waiting for a bus. It wasn't until they were called out for practice that she stirred at all. The sound of cameras going off started as soon as the two emerged from the tunnel. Parker took time to look up into the stands and smile at Emily. She felt warm inside as she unzipped her bag and got out a racket. The tension melted away and Parker was ready to play.

************************************************************************

"I do this to please you, Lord."

"I'm sorry did you say something?" asked the older woman sitting a row up from the court. The gentleman sitting next to her had been mumbling to himself since the time she had sat down.

"I said, may the Lord be with you."

"Thank you." She smiled at him before going back to talking with her husband about the condition Parker was in and her chances at winning this year. On the court Parker had walked back to her chair and fished out a towel to wipe her eyes. Something in the wind had irritated them enough that she was blinking furiously.

It was the old lady's cry that made her turn around and see what had upset her. The voice was the same from the night in front of the restaurant. "Death to those who go against God." The pain and blooming red stain on her tennis whites happened almost simultaneously.

Parker wasted no time and used the towel to keep the end of the knife away from her when the guy pulled back for another swipe until she could pick up her racket. She swung and the sharp blade cut right through the gut. "What is it with you people and my rackets?" Parker was so intent on looking at where he was swinging the knife she never got the chance to look up at his face.

Ignoring the pain she swung again and connected with his jaw sending him back a few paces shaking his head as if to clear the blow away. The man staggered forward again not wanting to fail in his mission to kill Parker. She was ready though, bouncing on the balls of her feet like she was waiting for a serve to come over the net. The racket flew forward again and knocked the knife out of his hand making him turn around.

From the stands, Logan flew down the stairs before the attacker had another chance to cut into Parker. All four of the women that had been sitting with him weren't too far behind the policeman.