Marshall swiped himself into the office and sat down at his desk. After his computer booted up, he began to look over his email. Stan's was talking to someone in his office and when he heard the unexpected voice he looked up in surprise.
A half hour later the door to Stan's office opened and the two men came out and headed towards his desk.
"Dad, I didn't know that you were coming here."
"We had a fugitive that we've been chasing and he headed here to meet up with an old friend. My team is here to bring him in and I asked Stan if I could borrow you and Mary for the take down."
"Since we're slow, I told Seth that the two of you could help him," Stan replied, just as the elevators opened up to reveal Mary.
"Seth, to what do we owe this distinctive pleasure?" Mary asked, surprised to see him in their office. Marshall never mentioned him coming and by the look on her partner's face he hadn't known.
Seth explained the situation to Mary before they moved into the conference room to go over the plans to bring the suspect in.
"Be careful and come back in one piece," Stan said, looking at Mary and Marshall.
"Yes, Dad," Mary replied, sarcastically, while following Marshall and Seth into the conference room.
"So what are we dealing with, Dad?" Marshall asked, now that Mary entered the conference room.
"Our fugitive's name is Max Carter. He was arrested for six accounts of murder and two accounts of attempted murder of federal agents. Carter should be considered armed and dangerous. He has no intention of going back to prison and if backed into the corner will come out with guns blazing. His friend's name is Harry Welsh and has been arrested in the past on gun smuggling and dealing. We're pretty sure Max is getting ready to load up on weapons if he hasn't already. Harry lives here in Albuquerque."
"What's the plan?" Mary asked Seth.
"We're going to storm the house and arrest both Carter and Welsh," Seth started, while rolling out the layout of the house and front and backyards. "Leo, Greg, Blaine and I will take the front entrance. Cheryl, Landon, Marshall and you will take the back entrance. Marshall, I want you to be ready for any runners. You're the fastest runner we've got."
Seth laid out the rest of the plan before the three of them headed out.
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Mary felt a sense of déjà vu with her sitting in the backseat of Marshall's SUV with Seth, the master of all knowledge of Marshall's most embarrassing moments; in the front seat. There was no way that she wasn't going to try and get some dirt again.
"So Seth, I do believe that last time you were here that I never received an answer to my questions about your eldest son. Just a little information would prove to be invaluable."
Marshall rolled his eyes at Mary's attempt to once again find out about his past.
Seth fought the smirk that wanted to form on his face at Mary's question. She was nothing if not persistent. It amused him, but since his last visit, he and Marshall had started to make a dent in their awkward relationship and he didn't want to risk destroying any progress they made.
"What ever gave you the impression I had any intention of telling you that information?" Seth asked, unable to hide the amusement in his voice.
"After all I did for you, you're going to give me the silent treatment? Just one little piece of dirt," Mary said.
"We're here," Seth replied, having Marshall pull up behind Leo.
"Marshall, good to see you again," Leo said, as he watched his partners son get out of the SUV.
"Likewise, Leo. This is my partner, Mary."
"Nice to meet you." Leo said, reaching out to shake her hand while turning his attention back to Seth. "Are they up to speed on what we're doing?"
"Yeah, I debriefed them at the office. What's the current status of our man?"
"Last visual showed both Carter and Welsh in the house. The two seemed to be arguing about something and are in the living room at the moment. I have the rest of the team in place."
"Then let's do this," Seth replied, signaling for Mary and Marshall to head towards the back of the house.
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Marshall positioned himself behind an Emory Oak tree with a clear site to the back door. Mary was across from him behind a similar tree. Cheryl and Landon positioned themselves to the right and left of the backdoor. They were all waiting on word from his Dad.
"Team one is in position," Seth's voice came through their earpieces.
"Team two is in position," Landon confirmed.
"We're going in on one. Three, Two, One," Seth said.
Marshall listened as the sound of U.S. Marshal's came through the ear piece and a call came out that they had runners coming out the back.
Cheryl had the first one down on the ground and was cuffing him as another ran out and Landon moved in to take him down. Mary and Marshall began to move forward when Landon got plowed over by three more men rushing out of the back door. Mary got the first one, while Cheryl and Marshall grabbed the other two.
"We have a runner coming around the side of the building," Leo called out.
Marshall saw the man running past them between the house and the garage after he'd cuffed his suspect.
"On it," Marshall replied chasing after the man. It was as he began to pursue the suspect he heard the sound of gunfire erupt from inside the house followed by a call out of officer down.
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Mary, Cheryl and Landon secured the prisoners. Landon took one look at Mary and the way her eyes moved towards the last location where Marshall had begun to pursue the remaining suspect.
"Go backup Marshall," Landon said, while they all focused on what they were doing very aware of the call about an officer down.
"Thanks. Marshall, what's your location?"
Mary could hear the heavier breathing as he relayed his location.
"Get the SUV, Mare."
"Alright, just keep giving me your location."
"We're headed towards Manzano Mesa Park."
"On my way," Mary replied, flooring the car towards Marshall's direction.
Mary slammed the brakes as she saw Marshall chasing the suspect and tackling him to the ground. Getting out of the car she ran over to where Marshall was currently handcuffing the suspect while reading him his rights.
"You alright?" Mary asked.
"I'm fine, but I might have to have my brakes and tires checked out," Marshall said, pulling the suspect up while smirking at Mary.
"Your precious automobile is just fine."
"Who was the injured officer?"
"I don't know, but I'm sure your Dad will tell us when we bring this scumbag back."
Heading back to the house, Marshall parked the car and they handed the suspect over to the nearest police officer. Looking around, he didn't see his Dad, so he began to look for Leo. Seeing his Dad's partner just off the porch, he approached the man.
"Leo, where's my Dad?"
"Marshall, you need to head to the hospital. Mary you drive him there and use the sirens if you have to," Leo said, looking at Mary to confirm that she would drive.
Marshall felt sick and numb at the same time.
"What happened to my Dad? Leo, what happened?"
"Seth was the officer that was shot. He's lost a lot of blood. I've called your mother and they've notified the blood bank in Topeka that they may need some of the blood he's donated for himself. Your brothers have also been informed and are on the way."
Mary was squeezing her partners shoulder trying to give him what little support she could while trying to figure out what the issue was with the blood bank. Right now though it didn't really matter, the only thing that mattered was getting Marshall to the hospital. She'd ask later.
"Marshall, let's get you to the hospital. Give me the keys."
He turned around and Mary wanted to protect him from all of this when she saw the fear in his eyes.
"I wasn't here," Marshall whispered.
"You were doing your job, just like Seth would have wanted you to do. There was no way that you could have known it was him. Let's go to the hospital."
Marshall nodded and followed Mary blindly to the SUV. Nothing seemed real at the moment.
Mary took one look at Marshall and then called Stan. Marshall was going to need all the support he could get.
"McQueen."
"Stan, Seth was shot and taken to the hospital. Marshall and I are on our way there right now. We don't know how bad it was because we were chasing down a suspect. He was already taken by ambulance by the time we arrived. They called his family."
"How's Marshall?"
"Not good."
"I'll meet you at the hospital. Mary, stay with him."
"I had no intention of leaving him."
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Mary had managed to convince the nurse to give them a private waiting room. Marshall had sat motionless the first hour before he began pacing the length of the floor. Having enough she stood up and blocked his path.
"Marshall, look at me. You need to sit down and wait. I know that you're worried, but the doctor is doing everything they can to help your Dad."
Marshall was about to answer when the door opened up and he saw his two brothers walk in.
"Neal, Danny, how did you get here so soon?" Marshall asked, surprised.
"We were in Phoenix at a seminar when they called. Mom's flight from Dallas should arrive in another hour. How's Dad? What happened?"
"We're still waiting to here on his condition," Marshall replied.
"How did he get shot and how bad was it when they loaded him into the ambulance?" Neal asked
"Leo said he lost a lot of blood. They're transporting some of the stuff he's donated for himself here."
"Leo said, weren't you with Dad?" Danny asked.
"I was chasing down a suspect. They didn't call officer down until I was already in pursuit."
"Marshall, it wasn't your fault. You didn't know. You were doing your job just as Seth would've wanted you to," Mary said, glaring at his brothers.
"We weren't implying he wasn't. We were just surprised that he wasn't there. It's not an accusation, Miss…" Neal stopped not knowing who she was.
"Mary. Just call me, Mary."
They were interrupted by the door opening again. This time it was a nurse coming in.
"Excuse me are you the family for Mr. Mann?"
"Yes," Danny answered.
"We need to give your father more blood and can't wait for the supply that's coming in. Do any of you have the same blood type as your father?"
All three looked at each other. They knew their Dad has a rare blood type, but none of them had ever found out if they had the same thing.
"We've never been tested."
"Would you be willing to be checked?" the nurse asked.
All three men nodded in acknowledgment.
"Would you please come with me?"
The three brothers went to leave, but Marshall stopped before walking out the door.
"Mare, if my Mom gets here before we're back, could you let her know where we went. I know you don't do feelings well, but I need you to keep an eye on her for me. Just until I get back. I promise."
"Marshall, you don't even need to ask. Go and get tested. I'll take care of everything else."
"Thanks, Mare."
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The three men were back in the room before their Mom arrived. They waiting on the results of their blood test.
"Why can't they give him the universal one?" Mary asked Marshall.
"With his blood type you can only use the same type or it could kill him. That's why he is on the rare blood type list and donates his own blood. They freeze it in order to save it in case it's needed."
"Why haven't you been tested before? If you have it, don't you think it would be a good idea to know?" Mary asked.
"I don't know. Mom and Dad never pushed for it, so I guess we never thought much about it," Marshall admitted.
"Damn it, Marshall. I swear if you have this then your sorry ass is going to be donating and on that list," Mary said heatedly.
Marshall noted the slight amusement on his brothers' faces and glared at them.
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Stan walked in with his Mom at the same time the nurse appeared. The three brothers stood up and looked at her anxiously.
"Neal and Danny, if you could come with me we would like to start taking some of your blood for your Mr. Mann. It should be enough to last until the blood arrives."
Marshall looked at the nurse stunned. "I'm not a match?"
"We double checked, but with Mr. Mann not being your biological father, the odds were slim to none at best," the nurse replied, before hearing the gasp from the older woman in the room and the shocked look on the rest of the groups faces.
"What do you mean, not being his biological son? I tested when I was eight and the results showed that I was," Marshall said.
"I'm sorry, but we retested because we thought they sent us the wrong information. The lab put a rush and did a DNA and verified the sample of your blood didn't match. I'm sorry, but we really need to get blood for your Dad's transfusion."
"Mom?" Neal and Danny said, unsure what to do. The look on Marshall's face alone worried them.
"Go help your father. We'll discuss this later," Haley said to her younger sons. Her focus though was on Marshall.
The look of confusion and pain scared her almost as much as telling him the truth. She couldn't do that, at least not until Seth was awake. She had to protect Marshall and know that it was safe to tell him. She knew it would cause problems, but she had no choice. Protecting her son was the most important responsibility that she had to do. No matter what it cost her.
Once the Neal and Danny left with the nurse, the silence in the room became deafening. Mary and Stan stood stunned on the opposite side of the room. Neither of them knowing what to do.
"Marshall," Haley started to reach out for his arm, but he pulled it away before backing up from her.
"What the hell is going on? What did she mean that he's not my father? Did you have an affair? Is that why I was never enough for him? Who the hell am I?" Marshall yelled at his Mom.
Stan and Mary moved in to try and calm Marshall down, but he pulled away from them too.
"Son, I know you want answers, but I can't give them to you right now, at least not all of them. I never cheated on your father," Haley said trying to keep her voice steady and calm hoping it would help Marshall relax.
"Are you really my mother?"
"Yes, I am."
"Who's my father?"
"As far as I'm concerned Seth Mann has always been and will always be your father."
"Yet, we all now know that's a lie. I trusted you for all of these years. You were the one person that I could count on to listen and be there for me. It was all a lie. Every single day of my life both of you looked me in the face and lied to me."
"Marshall, I know you're hurt and confused and when you're father wakes up we can discuss this with you, but until then you're just going to have to trust me when I say what we did was in your best interest."
"Trust you. You want me to trust you? How the hell am I supposed to do that? Why do you have to wait for Seth Mann to wake up for? He's not my father; the proof is in the test. I want to know who I am."
"You're my son and that is all I'm saying on that topic. Let it go for now, Marshall. Let's concentrate on Seth getting better and then we'll sit down and discuss this rationally."
"I guess we'll have to take a test to prove that you're my mother. How do I know that's the truth? Should I just take your word on that? We both know now just how good your word is," Marshall replied, before storming out of the room.
"Marshall!" Haley called out, but he either didn't hear or chose not to. "Mary, could you please…"
"Already on it. You might want to consider changing your mind about hiding the facts from him or you could lose him forever. I don't mean to be cruel, but you just stripped him of everything he's ever been and known. Marshall was proud of who he was and you took that away from him," Mary said, before racing out into the hallway to find her partner.