As Pyotr virtually collapsed, sinking down on his haunches against the wall there was a ruckus at the door and suddenly a bloadsoaked Izzy appeared. Sure he was hallucinating, it took a moment to realise she was there, and, by the time he reached her side she was already losing consciousness. He picked her up, carrying her in his arms as he ran to the small but well-equipped hospital in the basement. As the doctor rushed in he grabbed him, pushed him against the wall, growling at him to save her or else his life. Dr Chene understood. He knew the risks but also knew he was one of the top surgeons around. He'd do everything to save her, not because Pyotr threatened him but because he was loyal to the Pakhan and, by extension, his family.

To his relief the wounds, though serious, were not life threatening, and the baby also appeared fine, with a strong heartbeat, which was in itself a miracle. Izzy had abrasions all down her left side and several cracked ribs, her left jaw was probably broken and her left shoulder was obviously dislocated. She looked like she'd been hurled from a car at high speed.

Not wishing to drug her more than necessary for the baby's sake he popped her shoulder in immediately, before swelling made the job much harder. She didn't even move. The anaesthetist did his work, ready in case she started to stir. An X-ray showed he'd been wrong, her jaw was only fractured and swollen, not broken. As he worked she remained unconscious. Finishing taping up her ribs he moved her to a bed, hooking her up to the usual moniters. He'd vetoed taking her back to her room till after she was awake. Pyotr was a wreck, staying by her side, while simultaneously running the hunt for his brother. The silence was deafening, no useful information coming in from any source.

Near dawn Izzy stirred, regaining consciousness slowly. Despite what the doctor had told him he had to question her, find out what had happened. She spoke almost robotically, albeit in a whisper.

How she and Max had been having a late meal when gunfire erupted. Moments later the front door was blown open. They'd reacted instantly, Izz rushing for their son while Max moved the painting, punching numbers into the access panel. As she came back the end of the wall opened. Reaching in, she'd placed her still sleeping son on the ground. Max stroked his cheek then the panel closed, indistinguishable from the rest of the wall. Hoping that would be enough to save him they quickly armed themselves. Several explosions rocked the house then a couple of stun grenades rolled across the floor. All Max had time to do was step in front, trying to shield her before they went off.

The next thing she remembered was waking up on the floor of a vehicle with Max beside her. Their attackers had made a fatal mistake. Overconfident and rushing they'd failed to restrain them, thinking the stun would keep them out cold. An amateur mistake they needed to take advantage of. She could feel Max slowly moving, slowly sliding the knifes from the sheaths in her right boot. Izz pulled her "Old Faithful" from her bra. As the vehicle swerved around a corner they acted. He spun to the right, slicing the throat of the man in front of him and a second man, before their captors realised their error. Iss slipped her garotte around the drivers throat, bracing herself against the seat and crossed her arms, pulling hard. The wire went thru the jowly flesh like a knife thru butter. The third man fired back into the seat and Max grunted as the bullet hit. A second and third also found their target. The car accelerated as the man beside the driver fought to control the vehicle while Izz r pushed her stiffened fingers into the eyes of the shooter. As one eyeball hung by a thread Max shoved his remaining blade straight into his brain. Before the driver in front could react he pulled Izz to him, kissed her hard and said "Go"

It was only her automatic obedience (and training) that allowed her to act. He opened the door, she slid over his body and leapt, tucking herself into a tight roll. As she hit the ground, and then a parked car, she heard a vehicle explode. Knowing Max had died to give her a chance she swore it wouldn't be in vain.

Fortunately the parked car was an old Zhiguli so it only took a minute to start it. Fighting against the pain she held on, driving straight at the open gates. It was beyond lucky nobody opened fire at the strange vehicle.

Pyotr's jaw dropped as he looked at her. He was in awe, had had no idea Max had trained her, that she was more than a fuckpet wife. Then he remembered his brother was dead, that there was a lot to do. More men were arriving from other branches of the family and the house bristled with guns He knew he needed to step up even though he hadn't been voted Pakhan yet. Cursing, he suddenly remembered he hadn't told anyone of the attack at the plane, about the mermaids. He tore himself away from Izz and sought out Little Max, telling him to check the bodies for the tatt. A few minutes later he had his answer.

Their enemy was Sergei Kuznetsov. Three months ago his son had been left in a vegetative state after an assassination attempt had gone wrong and... suddenly he wondered. The stress Izz and Max had been under, the extra security, the step up in seemingly pointless attack and now finding out Izzy's secret all pointed to one thing. Was it really possible his Izz was the one called Midnight? The more he thought about it the more he knew he was right. It explained everything from the way they'd go off on private trips in the early days, to the later unexplained absences that Max allowed. All those 'migraines' when nobody saw her. It made sense.

How could he have not known? This changed everything!! He immediately sent men to dig in that direction, to find weaknesses in their network. They weren't a big family, but, through marriage, they'd got control of the two biggest routes from South America. Powerful but small.

By the time night fell he'd set everything in motion and Izz was sound asleep. The next day was havoc. Izz insisted on being in on the loop and swore she'd kill the bastards. Unfortunately most of the men simply patronised her, ignoring her opinions and making their own plans. In view of what he'd deduced, Pyotr wasn't so sure it was the right thing to do.

Over the next few days Izz appeared to recover, only to ask him for help. Despite her injuries, she wanted a team to go with her, to hunt the family down. Pyotr was curious to see what happened so approved her request. He made sure two of his most trusted men were in the group.

**Apogies, this got away from me, and is a bit out of order. What Izz did is in The Island pt.1. We'll actually arrive on the island in the next part. Sorry again for the mix-up