A/N:
Please read.
Hello, this is my 3rd story. It's based off the pilot of one of my favorite shows: Fringe. I really hope I did it justice. Most of the dialogue is directly from the show. It you haven't seen it, I suggest you do. I would really like feedback. I'm not sure if I'll be continuing this story, so if you like it, please, say so. I will be updating my other stories soon.
So in this Peeta is OOC because that is how Peter is in the show before he shows who he really is. There are some hints of his true character in this. If you like it and I continue, at some point, he'll be nicer. Anyway, despite the beginning of this story, if I continue, this will be completely Everlark. Katniss is a bit emotional but, given the ordeal she goes through, I'd expect as much.
My OC is Walter. He's not really an OC. He's just Walter in the show. This isn't a crossover though. He's just the only character who I couldn't incorporate as someone from the books. I was thinking, if I were to continue, this story would be the first season, and I would make sequels for the other seasons.
Please tell me what you think, I really need feedback.
I do NOT own The Hunger Games Trilogy or and thing that involves the show Fringe.
-RC
The plane shudders as an electrical storm strikes its wings. The seatbelt light turns orange and everyone complies with its order. Hands clench the arms on their chairs, interracial seatmates attempt to interact, and an auburn haired man inhales acutely with unyielding shoulders. He bends down, putting his head between his knees, attempting to keep the panic at bay. Next to him, an older Indian man tries to calm him with talk of safety and the passing of this bump in the flight. After an uneasy response, he goes back to his book ignoring the troubled man once again. Then, a briefcase is lifted from between his legs and opened. Inside, rests an insulin pen.
He takes out a cartridge of medicine, unbuttons the bottom half of his shirt, and injects the concoction. He very obviously unwell so, he gets out of his seat, despite the instability, and starts toward the bathroom. A flight attendant comes behind him to force the man back into his chair as they hit a rough patch of turbulence. He stumbles along in palpable pain as the falls to his knees. The woman grabs his shoulder to yank him back into a standing position and back to his feet when she sees his face. His skin slips loosely from his face, liquefying in front of her. Her screams alarm the other passengers. They continue as the infection spreads. The cabin darkens due to the storm as the horrid images remain. Eventually the plane lands hours after with no survivors.
She sighs as her head hits the pillow, sheets draped around her body. Her skin is glowing, glistening as an easy smile slips on to her face. The crummy motel bed squeaks around him as he sits up to see her face.
"Oh, my god…" She laughs.
"What?" He asks while brushing away a strand of her hair from her face.
"This bed, it's the loudest I've ever heard." Another smile erupts on her face and her grey eyes scan his face.
"Better than that seminar though."
"Oh, that was horrible!"
"I know. I just kept watching you, ignoring Chief's droning on and on."
"Am I supposed to take that as a compliment?" She giggles.
"I actually had to turn my chair away from you so people wouldn't notice." Her face changes drastically, happiness changing into sadness.
"We can't keep sneaking around like this…" She groans.
"I know. It is rather unfortunate to know the manager at this hotel by name but just being with you, however briefly, makes my day."
She kisses him again and it quickly gets passionate. Just as they're about to have another go, his cell rings, interrupting their bliss. He sits up and she watches the muscles of his back flex and move.
"Agent Gale Hawthorne." He says into the phone, "Are there any more details? ... Okay, yes sir… Be there soon." He hangs up and turns back to the woman lying in bed waiting for him. She looks at him questioningly and he responds, "Incident at Logan. We have to go." She nods her head sadly and stands to get dressed. He drinks in the view as, he himself, attempts to look presentable. He goes to the door and she meets him, "I'll see you soon," They share a long, desire filled kiss, and he turns to leave. Just before he's out the door and loses his courage, he utters three little words. "I love you." He leaves with a second glance. She stands rigid, after taking in a short gasp. Her hand meets her mouth, covering her smile. Then, her phone rings. She picks it up, composes herself, and answers.
"Agent Katniss Everdeen."
Logan Airport
Flakes of snow rain down against the black sky. The runway is lit up, Katniss stands with red cheeks and a large scarf wrapped around her neck. She stands in line with a dozen other Federal Agents arguing protocol. She walks right past them, her flowing braid getting whipped around by the wind, and makes her way to Agent Johanna Mason.
"What's up?"
"Just basking in the beauty of inter-agency harmony and cooperation." She sarcastically replies. "Alright, the scoop. Hamburg flight loses contact 3 hours in. It entered our air space with no communication. We sent in jet escorts who reported stains on widows and no signs of life."
"Stains?"
She nods, "Organic matter."
"And they let it land? Who was controlling it? Autopilot?"
"Yep, and it landed right on time. Unlike every flight I've ever taken." They share a quick smile.
Behind them, a black van pulls up and out comes Gale Hawthorne talking on the phone. "Believe me; we'll be happy to treat you as family too!" He says calm but harsh. She smiles at him in a friendly way and the 3 of them greet each other. They turn at the noise of a loud whistle. In front of them stands a scruffy, under groomed man who has a sense of power to him.
"Hello, I'm Special Agent Haymitch Abernathy, D.C. sent me to overlook this case. It will be run through Homeland Security and all decisions must be authorized by me first. As soon as the last team gets here, select individuals will go into the aircraft in hazmat suits. From CIA: Leevy, FBI: Mason, Hawthorne…" Katniss tunes out the rest of the names, disturbed by the news. She runs after Abernathy.
"Um, Agent Everdeen, FBI Inter-Agency liaison."
"Yeah, I know who you are." He sighs.
"With all due respect, sir, but, I'd like to -"
"A liaison on a task force." He grumbles.
"Excuse me sir, but I'd prefer my information first hand." She says sternly.
"You want to go in, Liaison? Suit up!"
An hour later, Katniss stands with the small team, listening to the large locked door unhinge and the hiss of decompression. She steps through, shining a flash light at the carnage. Skeletons line the seats, their guts piled on the floor of the cabin, a colorful splatter all along the walls.
Katniss's eyes widen at the gory scene, her breathing uneven. Johanna notices and asks, "You okay, Everdeen?" She nods quickly.
A line of cars are backed up on the highway. A dark truck is checked and the same auburn haired man asks, "What's going on?"
The guard with the flashlight shines it in his face. "Nothing you need to concern yourself with, move along."
The man nods but, smirks after passing.
The media had gotten wind of the Logan flight. People were a buzz at the office, shouting out suggestions and new information. Any thought Katniss had was shot down by Abernathy. Mason walks up behind her. "A guard at a storage facility reports he saw a 'Middle Eastern looking man' hand a white guy a briefcase."
"There you go, liaison. Go check that lead out."
Katniss huffs and asks, "That? That's what I'm to investigate?"
"Yes, now's your time to liaise.
She scowls and adds, "While I'm out, do you want me to pick up your dry cleaning, too?" She gets a few astonished looks from her co-workers.
Abernathy laughs and tilts his head back. "Yeah, would you mind?" She grabs her jacket and huffs.
Together, she and Gale slip out to inspect the storage units. The whole time she grumbles about Haymitch, "The guy's pissed at me because his best friend rapes three girls and I put him away! How does that make me the bad guy, I mean-" He stops her rambling with a kiss and when they break apart she smiles and looks up at him, "You said you loved me…"
"Well, you didn't say it back so I didn't make say anything."
"You said you loved me… that was a big deal… Alright, I've never been good at this so, here goes… What I wanted to say was I love you, too." He smiles and lifts her up by her waist, hugging her closely.
The move to a nearby storage unit and see it's locked. Gale kneels down and starts to pick the lock. "What are you doing?" She asks.
"What are you doing? I'm a Federal Agent." He replies. She smiles. They continue to check to units, finding only junk, until they come across a makeshift lab. It's full of rats and test tubes. They walk inside to see 3 mutated animals and some hazmat suits. "We need to get Chemical Transport out here now."
"I'm on it." She walks outside to get better signal. Gale continues opening units until he hears a noise behind him. The auburn haired man stands behind him for just a split second before he runs away. Gale runs in pursuit until he sees Katniss. He yells for her to come and help. She chases after the two and when they make a loop back to the labs, the man pulls out a detonator, and blows Gale and the labs up. Katniss is propelled back, her phone still dialing for back up.
Her eyes slowly open to white lights. She stands up and looks around. She's in the hospital. Panicked, she begins asking, "Gale! Where's Agent Hawthorne?! Is he alright?!"
Her question is answered only with sad looks. "Ms. Everdeen, you were very lucky today. Your wounds could have been much more severe-"
Katniss stands and heads for the door, "I came in with a man- Where is he?!"
"Miss, Agent Hawthorne, along with the injuries he sustained from the blast, was exposed to a synthetic compound that must've been a part of the work done in those labs-"
"Can something be done about it?!"
"The doctors here- they've never seen anything like it." They lead her out the room and down the hallway. She is in scrubs and has a mask around her face. All very sterile surroundings.
"What he has, it's not contagious, it's just best to keep Agent Hawthorne away from other contaminants." She walks into the cold room to see him. His skin is clear and she can see every muscle and vein inside his body. "We've lowered his core temperature to slow the progress of this… disease." She goes up and takes hold of his freezing hand. She stares at his face for a while until, in a break of character for her, tears stream down her face silently. "Agent Everdeen, if nothing is done… he will die in a week's time. He only has so long before his organs shut down…"
Federal Building
Katniss sits in her office, hair tied up in a bun and out of the way. She has a white bandage going across her forehead from a wound caused by the explosion. With a determined look on her face, she rifles through the Agency's database, searching words like "MEDICAL", "INFECTION",
"TISSUE", "CHEMICAL", "HARDENING", "CLEAR", and of all the articles that pop up, one name stands out: Dr. Walter Mellark.
She hurriedly runs down the hall to her superior, knocking on his office door. She enters soon after and walks up behind him awkwardly. "Uh, it's me: Liaison."
"I told you to go home-" She interrupts him by dropping Dr. Mellark's file on his desk.
"I found a connection." She states simply. "Walter Mellark. Genius theoretical scientist. He did experiments, and I think he might have the answer on how to save Agent Hawthorne."
"Says he's been institutionalized for the past 17 years." Abernathy states with a look of incredulousness.
Katniss explains, "An assistant was killed in his lab. He was blamed and then rumors started to pile up about using human test subjects. He was charged with manslaughter but deemed mentally unfit to stand trial."
"So, your prime suspect has been in St. Clair's for almost 2 decades?"
"Yes, but-"
"It says here he's not allowed visitors."
"I know-"
"Why are you so sure this is the guy?"
"All of the files-"
"Find his next of kin then." He quickly dismisses her, not letting her finish a single sentence.
"He does have a son…" She grouses.
Baghdad, Iraq
Katniss sits in a cab, reading the boy's file out loud, "High school dropout, IQ of 190- 50 points north of genius. Hasn't been employed longer than 2 months…"
Peeta Mellark sits in front of two very wealthy Iraqi business men, persuading them to hire him for an odd job. "My resume is hardly traditional. But in these parts, traditional seems increasingly irrelevant. A hundred billion dollars sunk into infrastructure, you're barely keeping the lights on. So, you need construction oversight of a 600 mile pipeline to carry crude from the field at Kirkuk to the Port of Ceyhan. A job well outside the Green zone, I might add while I'm still alive to do so. You'll need someone with a handle on the laws of hydrodynamic resistance –- heat exchange in oil mixture flow – a working knowledge of mixed integer programs so you can re-size the pipes you're going to use across uneven terrain, that's if you want to minimize construction costs." The men looked pleased but they start to speak their native tongue, to leave him out of their decision process. "Oh, didn't I mention? I speak Arabic too." He smiles, charming.
He runs down the stairs, leaving the men behind, confident about the job. But, someone stops him. "Excuse me, Peeta Mellark?" An American? He raises his eyebrows at the brunette.
"Well, what can I do for you, Sweetheart?" He asks.
She reaches into her pocket ant pulls out a badge, the smile from his face drops, "I'm Agent Katniss Everdeen and I need to speak with you."
"Okay…" He says, cautiously.
"Have you heard of Flight 627?"
"Yeah, the one from Hamburg."
"I think, you can help me with that."
"Sorry, I'm not your guy," he says and begins to walk away.
She runs up around him and he can see the desperation in her eyes but it doesn't faze him. "No, you are Walter Mellark's son, yes?" Peeta bristles at the name. "I really need to speak with him-"
"And he's only allowed to see relatives. Sorry, I can't help you." He says and continues going.
"I know why you're here." She says loudly. "I read the file."
He quickly turns around, "What file?"
"The one the CIA would say doesn't exist." The look in his eyes says it all. She's got him. "You come with me or I tell certain people about your whereabouts." He scowls at her, but quickly masks it. "When do we leave?" He asks with a smile.
They sit in an airplane, across from one another. Katniss is on the phone, in distress, "Did they explain how it was getting worse?! Were they doing anything?" She listens for a moment and her face falls. "Well, thanks, Jo... Yeah… I'll see you at home." She sits back and stares at Mr. Mellark.
"Everything alright?" He asks.
"Not in the slightest, but you're giving me hope." She grins slightly.
"Alright, so, question. My father, how's he involved in all this. He's brilliant but self- centered, and growing up, I was led to believe he was just doing research for a toothpaste company. My gut tells me your friend isn't going to be saved by a tube of Colgate. So, obviously that's not the case." He says.
There is a pause, "I don't think that was a question?"
"I'm asking you to tell me who my father was, really?"
"He worked, in the basement of Harvard, not on toothpaste, but a classified US Amy experimental program. He delved in the impossible, Fringe Sciences, pushing the boundary of possibility. They gave him any and all resources he would need to attempt these tests. They considered him a genius."
"Fringe science?" He asked, with disbelief. "As in 'psuedoscience'?" She nods.
"Teleportation, genetic mutation, astral projection, reanimation?" She nods again.
"Wait, so you're telling me my father was some real life Dr. Frankenstein?"
She waits a while before speaking, "Does this explain some of his behavior when you were younger?"
"Yeah, childhood solved. Thanks." He snipes sardonically.
She looks down.
Saint Clair's
Everything is a cold grey. Together they walk toward his father's cell. Katniss has no hesitation but Peeta stops, "I'm going to wait in the lobby…" He clearly can't go through with seeing his father.
She turns back to him and with a nod, says, "Alright." As they reach the end of the corridor, and orderly opens the door to cell 243. There sits and older man, early 60's, sitting on a chair and staring at a blank wall. "Hello?" She calls and he turns around slowly. She sees a long grey beard forming in his face matching his head.
"I knew someone would come." He smiles sweetly. "Eventually." They transport the pair to the cafeteria and at first they are silent. He sits, staring blankly at empty space. Every now and then, he rocks back and forth and fidgets with his fingers, most likely from almost 2 decades of shock, drug, and psychotherapy.
"And you said- when… when did this happen?"
"The plane was four days ago, Agent Hawthorne was injured the next day."
Walter sits there and thinks. Then suddenly he sneezes, snapping him out of his reverie and looking at Agent Everdeen. "And- and is the dermis?" Katniss looks at him for a moment before he continues, "Translucent… Can you see the muscular tissue? Indurated?"
"On Agent Hawthone? Yes. You can see through his skin…"
That's-– oh, that's not good. When you can see through skin. Tricky. Advanced. Like that – tricky. Tricktricktricky…" He rambles off.
"Dr. Mellark?" She asks trying to bring his mind back to the subject, "Can it be reversed?" He continues to look off, with a disgusted look. "What is it?"
"They have… this dreadful pudding here on Sundays… Butterscotch- used to be a favorite of mine…" Katniss's heart sinks. He's crazy, his son was right, but she wasn't going to just give up.
"It's Thursday."
"Oh… Oh, that's great news…" He trails off and the turns to look her in the eye, "I'm sorry that I'm like this now." Her face softens and she is quick to his aid.
"Oh, no, don't be sorry."
"I—-I'm thinking things. Some things don't even make it. To my mouth. Some do, though. This place… their… choice of therapies…" He looks down with tears in his eyes, "…have consequ—cons—con— consequences."
"It's okay, really…" She says softly.
"It can be reversed," And just like that, he's a deluded scientist again, "Your colleague. We had- l- lab animals… some were afflicted but sa- saved."
"Good, so what do we have to do?"
"If your colleague has been exposed to a compound based on my work, two obvious questions arise... Neither of which I remember…" He sighs, "Oh yes, first is the how... this individual, who must have significant scientific apprehension, access and then duplicate my work? And why?" He stills for a moment before continuing, "That's two, yes, but there's a third, what…" He mumbles, but then looks like he had an epiphany.
"Dr. Mellark, please, I need you to remember…"
"I do, I- I do. But first, you came here with my son." She raises her eyebrows at this, curious as to how he knows, "I'm not allowed visitors, except direct family. So, unless that order was lifted… It's a simple, 'If, Then.' statement. If you are here, then so is he. I- I would like to see him."
She goes out into the lobby. "He asked for you," She calls toward Peeta.
"Oh, thanks, Sweetheart, I really appreciate that."
She gets defensive, "Hey, I didn't tell him! And call me 'Sweetheart' once more, I'd really like that." She quips laced of sarcasm.
He stares, pissed and stomps into the cafeteria. Peeta then finds himself standing in front of his father, well more like a shell of his father. He attempts impassiveness but still ends up showing his vulnerability.
"Hello." He says curtly. Walter stares up and inspects him.
"I thought you'd be fatter."
"You thought I'd be fatter. Those are the first words you say to me?" He laughs clinically.
"As a boy you were rounder."
"Until the summer, before high school. Although, I'm not surprised you don't remem-" Walter quickly stands up and rushes toward him, pulling at the lids of his eyes. "Hey, what are you doing," he quickly pushes his father off of him. "What the hell are you touching me for?!" Just then Agent Everdeen enters, stunned at the sight she sees.
"Good, thank goodness, pupils- pupils are good." He then turns toward Katniss, "The third question- How advanced is your colleagues condition, something I- I am not able to deduce without seeing first hand. Which is to say I must tergiversate. "
"What?" She asks, stunned at his fast paced words.
"Leave. He wants to leave." Peeta rolls his eyes.
"I must see Mr. Hawthorne myself -which I am unable to do under present law unless signed out by a legal guardian, which can only be…" He looks at Peeta, "…once again… a relative." Katniss turns toward him with a hopeful gleam in her eyes.
Peeta stares at her, shocked, "No, no, Katniss. No - forget it."
Katniss turns, pissed, to Walter, "He'll do it."
"I will not do it!"
"One phone call, that's all it takes- you want me to make it?! 'Cause I've got a phone in my pocket." They stare at each other for a few moments, and then she whips out her phone. "Now it's out of my pocket." He glares at her and then stomps away back to the lobby. He's in the process of signing the guardianship papers, supervised by Katniss, while Walter gets ready to leave.
When they're ready to depart, Walter comes out, clean-shaven, looking surprisingly good. He smiles at the pair. They head off the premises to Katniss's car. "This is spectacular," he says, wide eyed examining the vehicle.
"Thanks." She smiles.
They sit in her van, she's driving, Peeta sits in the passenger's seat, and Walter sits in the back. He stares out the widow with fascination, child-like. Over the radio, there are various reports on flight 627. She turns the volume down and directs a question toward Walter, "Dr. Mellark?" He looks up at the front of the car. "I was wondering, has anyone else had access to your work?"
"Well, the- the assistants had bits and pieces… God, I suppose, if you go for that sort of thing… I think the only person who really knew what I was doing was Bee."
"Bee?"
"Beetee Wright, he and I shared a lab."
"The Beetee Wright? Founder of Massive Dynamic?" Peeta asks, irritated.
"I'm sorry, what? I- I don't know what that is." Walter asks.
"Great! One becomes an institutionalized psychopath, the other goes on to be one of the richest men in the world." Peeta grouses and shakes his head "It's just a tiny company, Walter." He says moodily.
"Sometimes-– I don't know if I mentioned this, but sometimes I hear someone whistling. Row, Row, Row Your Boat, late at night, down the hall. Way down, near the windows. And I can never be quite sure…that it isn't me. You ever have that?" Walter rambles.
"That's my father." Peeta says with fake-pride.
Hospital
The unlikely trio enters the quarantined area. Every detail of the hospital is surprisingly new to Walter. They walk towards Gale and Katniss's spirit falls even further. Hiss muscles are fading, showing his internal organs. She's not the only troubled one.
Peeta is disturbed, "…Wow." He states.
Katniss looks to Walter, hoping he has a miracle to offer. She sees he's not even looking at Agent Hawthorne; he's absorbed in a light fixture on the ceiling. "Dr. Mellark?" She calls, to get his attention. He breaks out of his trance, picks up a clip board full of Gale's information, and flips through it.
"Ginger Ale?" He asks, "Is there any ginger ale, I haven't had some for quite a time." He states. Peeta shakes his head, thinking about how nuts the situation is. Katniss raises her eyebrows but calls in her assistant Agent.
"Rue, can you bring the doctor some Ginger Ale?"
She nods and leaves, while Walter looks around the room. He sees medical equipment and pulls on a pair of gloves and carefully picks up a scalpel. Peeta on him is a second grabbing his arm. "Whoa, whoa, what are you doing?"
"I need a tissue sample and you're squeezing very tightly, Peeta."
He turns to Katniss, "Does this not concern you?" He asks.
It's not an easy decision, but she makes it. "Let him go." Peeta, fuming, does as she asks but immediately crosses his arms in a silent protest.
"Petri dish?" Walter holds out his hand in front of Peeta.
"I'm not your assistant." He grumbles, but gets it anyway. For the first time, they're working together. Walter carefully scrapes away a bit of skin from Agent Hawthorne's leg and places the sample in the dish.
"Alright, I need to get this to my lab straight away."
"Your what?" Katniss asks.
"My lab. Harvard basement. I have my sample, let's go."
"Dr. Mellark, you do realize your lab was shut down after you left."
"I'm sorry- what?"
Then, cruelly blunt, Peeta interrupts, "Wake up! It's gone, just like you've been, for the past 17 years. You have no lab." Walters face goes red and, resembling a temper tantrum in a 60 year old man, he begins to mutter.
"It- it can't be gone. - No—no no no- the foundation is a golden rectangle! I can't be expected to make real progress if I don't understand the proportions of my space! The work itself won't be consistent-"
"I- what's a golden rectan-?" Katniss starts alarmed at Dr. Mellark's outburst.
Walter begins to shout, "WHAT'S THE GOLDEN RECTANGLE?! THE PERFECT RECTANGLE!" He turns behind him and flips over a medical tray. He continues mumbling angrily and then punches the wall behind him. Katniss's eyes widen at the sight and she begins to think that Dr. Mellark is too insane to handle.
Peeta leans over to her and hurriedly says, "We need to get him back right away." She's about to nod but then she sees Johanna outside the room.
"Excuse me." She says to him. Then, rushes out to Jo and smiles uneasily.
"How's Gale?" She asks.
Katniss responds, solemnly, "Bad- worse."
"Mellark?" Mason asks.
"Utterly maniacal, but also our only hope. Listen- I need to question Beetee Wright. Could you set that up?"
"The Beetee Wright? Massive Dynamic?" Katniss nods. "I'll do my best."
"Wait, Kat, I also have this." She hands her a file and her eyes widen as she reads it.
Abernathy's Office
"Liaison when'd you get-?" He asks.
"I need to talk to you," She says rushing into the office. "I think there's a mole in our department." Abernathy freezes and he stares at her cold and suspiciously, "-Are you not going to-?"
"I know there is. What I'd like to know is how you do?"
"That's why you're here, isn't it? To babysit us?"
"Start talking, now!" He growls.
She hesitates a moment, wondering if he could possibly be the mole, but ends up telling him anyway. "We recovered records from a cell phone found at the storage facility. There was a call made immediately after the Hamburg flight landed—- a call that was routed through this building."
"Who else knows about this?"
"Agent Mason."
"No one else?"
"No one else." He was very serious on the matter, she was very worried. "…What the hell is going on?"
"The integrity of this office is being handled."
"…what do you know about the—"
"It is neither your job nor your responsibility to get involved –- so I appreciate your bringing the matter to my attention just as I expect you to appreciate the fact that you work under me. You're prohibited from discussing this with anyone inside or out of the office, is that understood?" Her nostrils flare in anger but, she calms enough to nod. "I do my job, you do yours."
"Then it should be noted: I have successfully had Dr. Walter Mellark released from St. Clare's and he requires his old lab back."
"…I'm sorry, what?"
"Harvard basement."
"Yeah, congratulations, I'm sure the University'd be thrilled to welcome back their-"
"I'm just trying to do my job and to do it, I need him."
"I would like to think that your persistence on this case is an act of severe professionalism but I can't help but think there was something going on between you and Agent Hawthorne."
She puts on her best poker face, and replies, "You want answers, get the lab for Mellark." She storms out of the office and rushes to leave the building.
Harvard University
The lights turn on, illuminating the large workspace. White sheets cover large pieces of machinery. "So much happened here," Walter says and turns around to the duo, "And so much is about to."
Agent Everdeen looks around uneasily and Peeta Mellark stands behind her, full of resentment.
Peeta begins to speak in a mocking tone, "Wow, here we are. In the Golden Rectangle itself. I'm pumped."
"What makes a rectangle…golden?" Everdeen asks.
"It's got a length-to-width ratio equal to a number called 'phi.' Greeks discovered it - turns up in math, Renaissance art, music – Dali used it in The Sacrament of the Last Supper - Debussy's Reflections In Water - nature too: seashells, branches on plant stems…" Peeta says casually, revealing his underlying genius. Katniss is quietly stunned by it.
"Dr. Mellark?" She asks after a moment of silence, "I ordered a standard forensics package, will you need anything else?" Walter touches one of the water-damaged walls.
"There's an unexpected level of corrosion in the insulating sheathing. Drainage planes- vapor barriers-"
"You know, pop, some people just say walls." Peeta quips.
"An optical coherence tomography for flesh study, please." Walter begins answering her question. "Two thousand pounds of silicon—" Katniss nods at Rue, who starts writing this all down. "-at least five anonymous blood samples from voluntary donors, please. A micro-organism detector, - NASA grade, obviously - there's still NASA, yes?"
"Yes." Katniss says.
Walter pulls a white sheet off a large SALINE ISOLATION TANK. He shouts out in joy "She's still here! This tank was the best!" Then he continues with his list. "Oh-and a five-year-old Ankole-Watusi."
"- a what?" Rue asks quietly.
Peeta laughs loudly and tells her, "It's a cow. He wants a cow."
"Pure-bred, not cross-bred, this is important - with a mature weight of 1100 pounds and internal fat average of 2.37."
"- are you- is he joking?" Katniss asks his son.
"Genetically, cows and humans are distinguishable by only a few lines of DNA. Ethical test subjects."
"Where'd you learn all this? MIT? "She smirks. Of course, he knows she's messing with him since he faked a degree from that particular institution.
He smiles at her joke, and for the first time it's genuine.
Katniss sits alone on a bench, writing something down on a piece of paper. She is interrupted by a cup of coffee being wiggled in her face. She looks up to see Peeta, unhappy, as usual; it just seems to be his way.
She takes the cup and smiles, "Thanks." He sits beside her as she sips the coffee, going back to scanning.
There's a beat of awkward silence as he figures out how to ask her a question, until, finally, "So what else did my file say. About yours truly. How bad was it?"
She halts and looks at him.
"I'm really not at liberty to talk about it."
Peeta scoffs and says,"- well liberate yourself, because I came back here, I think I deserve the truth- what did the file say?" They stare at each other for a moment, and a few seconds later, after seeing her guilt reflected on her face, he comes to a revelation. "…there was no file, was there?" He's baffled.
"I needed you back here." She says innocently enough.
"Wait a minute, so you were what? Bluffing?" His mouth is gaping open, unhappy, but also pleasantly surprised that she was able to trick him.
She shrugs her shoulders, "I was desperate."
"I'm usually good at reading people- I mean that's what I do-"
"I could see you were in trouble. Anyone could see that."
"Yeah. It just feels safer there than here I guess." He sighs and shakes his head in disbelief, "I could have stayed…"
"Mafia?" She asks quietly and he laughs.
"The guy literally goes by the name Big Eddie. I swear to God, I'm not making that up."
"You owe money to a guy nicknamed Big Eddie?"
"Nope. He had his name legally changed to Big Eddie…" Then his face becomes regretful, "I was never a gambler. Never. But a couple of years ago? It was just…" He looks down, "…crazy."
And Katniss looks at him…really studies his handsome, haunted face.
That night, Walter's running around, rambling and trying to explain his theory to and anxious Katniss and a still skeptical Peeta.
"Agent Hawthorne, is not infected by a virus. It's a chemical reaction. I should be able to synthesize a counter-agent that reverses-"
"You can save him? She asks hopefully.
"Hey, hey, hey, don't give her false hope, Walter." Peeta interrupts.
"It's not false. I can create it if I had the precise inventory of the storage facility when it detonated, then I can-"
"We don't have that." She says sadly, "It all went up, everything, and the man, the one who could have the answers got away and Gale's the only one who saw his face." She looks down gloomily and sighs, "How much longer does he have left?"
"At the current rate of crystallization, cellular degradation, the slowing of his natural-"
"How long?!" She yells, having had enough of his tedious sentences.
"24 hours, then his brain will no longer be able to oxygenate itself." She can't breathe, as those word sink into her skin. Walter does his best to console her, despite his outward appearance. "I'm sorry I can't offer you a safer solution."
"Wh- what?" She asks.
"Didn't I mention it?" He asks her. The shared dream state, oh, were you not listening?"
Peeta pipes up, "Walter, whatever you think you said, you didn't say." He frowns.
"Shared dream state?" Katniss asks.
"The human brain generates a quantifiable, measurable electric field. I posited, in 1976, that it's possible to synchronize fields from two distinct minds, and allow the sharing of information across an unconscious state. Like a string between two tin cans."
Peeta turns to Katniss, "And what's great about that is that it's insane."
She ignores him and asks Walter, "So you're saying I can talk to Gale in a coma and he can tell me what the suspect looks like?"
"Oh, more than that, you could-" Peeta scoffs, "-This isn't an exact science-"
"No, no, of course not." He retorts sarcastically.
"-You would have access to his memories." Walter continues with Katniss, "Assuming there's no extensive brain damage. Of course, you'd have to be severely drugged, have an electromagnetic probe inserted at the base of your skull and float without clothes in the old tank."
Peeta rolls his eyes because, surely, now he thinks Katniss would let him take Walter back to St. Claire's but instead she asks, "Have you done this before?"
"I…think so. I mean yes, but years ago- it's… " He smiles, " a bit …foggy. Actually, I used this technique to extract information from a corpse. You can do that, as long as they're not dead longer than six hours."
"Yeah, because after six hours, they're really dead." Peeta says mockingly.
"And you could do this with me?" Katniss asks.
"Which." Walter responds.
"This whole thing- talk to Gale— see his memories-"
"Of course. He'd just need to be brought here to the lab, kept on ice—"
"So what drugs?"
"Psychotropics. Mix of Serotonin, Neurontin, Lithium Carbonate, Lysurgic Acid Diethylamide—"
"Are you serious?" Asks Peeta, "That last one, it's LSD!"
"It will take some time to synthesize. Would you care to help?" He asks his son.
"No! No, this is crazy! Look, Katniss, I know you've been very stressed lately and you haven't slept since Iraq but, this man," He points towards his father, "Will kill you! He wants to make you overdose, put a steel rod in your head, and dump you naked in a tank full of water!"
"Oh, no." Walter interrupts, "I don't want to; I'm just saying I can."
"Katniss, what in the world would make you do such a thing?!"
"Knowing Gale would do it for me." Peeta huffs.
"Fine, but, I'm not helping."
He turns to walk away when she shouts at him, "I'll have you arrested for impeding a Federal Investigation!"
He whips back at her with a sarcastic smile, "Refusing to cook LSD for a Federal Agent? Somehow, I don't think those charges will stick!"
"Then I'll call Fat Eddie." She smirks holding up her cell phone.
"Big Eddie. And I told you that in confidence." He snarls.
"And let's keep that between us, alright?" She says.
"Wow, you are all literally insane!" He turns and walks away, not telling her no, and not telling her yes.
Jo enters after he storms out, looking back at him curiously. "Everdeen, you got a minute?" She calls. "So, I heard back from Massive Dynamic. You're due out there to speak to his CEP, Alma Coin. Beetee Wright is apparently out of the country, but she's happy to speak with you." She says with a fake smile.
"Happy, really?" She asks skeptically. A loud 'moo' break's Johanna's stare.
"There's a cow… Kat, what is going on here?"
"Were about to make some LSD." Walter calls to her.
"Don't listen to him…" She says with a roll of her eyes. Katniss goes back to the table to get her jacket, shooting Walter a 'shh!' look and leaving alongside Mason.
The Med-Techs roll in Agent Gale Hawthorne, who, is looking much worse, and Peeta directs them to a platform in the lab. "I guess over here- is this okay, Walter?"
Walter is mixing various solutions, and burning them on a Bunsen, prepping the LSD. "Yes, yes. Good. And son. You can call me Mom." Walter continues his work while Peeta shakes his head.
Rue is by the tank pouring in Epsom Salt and asks, "The whole box, Doctor?"
"Yes dear, I'm sure." He continues boiling and mixing with his son next to him and begins to speak his thoughts out loud. "I feel normal. Working."
"Yes, because bootlegging in a basement really is the picture of normalcy." Peeta jibes.
Walter starts leaning in to inspect his son's face. It's quite unnerving. "I'd like to check your blood pressure."
"My blood pressure's fine." He says with a sharp edge.
"Your flesh tone suggests you're suffering from arterial hypertension. He reaches out to touch Peeta, who snaps away, defensive.
"Hey, don't tell me what I'm suffering from – and there are no visible symptoms of hypertension –"
Walter has been pouring chemicals which suddenly ignite and a large fire erupts.
Rue blurts out a scream and Walter's lab coat is on fire.-– Peeta quickly grabs a hose and douses water on Walter's chest, putting the fire out.
Walter falls to the floor, heart pounding and fearful. Peeta is suddenly forced to comfort the man. "Hey, pop- it's okay. Listen, you're fine, it was nothing-"
"-that was careless- bad form-"
"-and I put it out. You're okay. "
"- I wasn't- I didn't see-"
"It's okay, I'm here."
"That could've—- been worse- I'm so sorry - so sorry - so sorry - so
sorry… "
And in this odd, heartbreaking moment, Peeta is reminded just how damaged, how vulnerable, and ill prepared for the world his father truly is. And he couldn't be less comfortable about it.
"It's okay."
Alma Coin's Office
The atmosphere is sharp, white and pristine, just like the woman who stands before her. Clean, cut, strict. "Thank you for seeing me." Katniss says politely standing to shake the woman's hand.
"No problem. Dr. Wright should be back by next week; hopefully I can help you in the meantime."
"Well, we've been looking into the work of Dr. Walter Mellark."
"Yes he was an old colleague of Bee's."
"Well, we have reason to believe his work was connected to the unexplained phenomena of Flight 627."
"Dr. Mellark's."
"Yes, we asked if anyone had access to his studies and he said the founder of this company."
"Yes, I know, they shared a lab in the 70's."
"Until 1983, actually. So, we were wondering if Massive Dynamic was researching any of these technologies. And if so, the identities of any and all employees who may have access."
"You're suggesting Beetee Wright stole intellectual property from Mellark?"
"I'm suggesting that, since they had a common workspace, the focus of their research might have been analogous. Mutually-influenced."
"Unfortunately, I'm not at liberty to discuss our companies, their research or employees. The security of our proprietary information is a very real concern to us".
"Certainly. As I'm sure is national security. Can you tell me if any employees have in the recent past been dismissed because of suspicion of espionage of any kind?"
"I do not have the authority to discuss such matters."
No, Katniss does not like Ms. Coin.
"How long have you worked for Massive Dynamic?"
"Six years."
"And you…still enjoy it."
"I owe this company my life. And that's no exaggeration."
"…how so?"
"I was a runner, for most of my life. Always had been. During the '97 Boston Marathon, I felt strangely tired. Had a pain in my upper back that I'd never had. I assumed it was just another pleasure of advancing age- until one morning at the office- our building at the time was in Charlestown- Dr. Wright saw that I was in discomfort and insisted I go for a CAT scan. Which revealed stage three cancer, two metastases.
"The cancer had spread so severely that I had to have my right arm amputated that week." Katniss's eyes dart the hand she had just shook. Coin noticed and lifted up the sleep of the black jacket. Then she pulled down a silicone skin from the elbow down to reveal a completely robotic hand and arm. The mechanics' casing is clear so she could see the inter-working parts. "That first scanner that found my cancer was built by this company. The robotic-assist tools used in my surgery and the drugs I took afterward were developed and manufactured by Massive Dynamic. And my replacement limb…"
Alma lifts both her real and fake translucent hand and wiggles
all her fingers. It's uncanny. "…was designed by Wright himself."
Katniss was astonished, "I shook your hand, I couldn't tell."
"Massive Dynamic is a remarkable company, although, due to the confidentiality agreement, I can't say why." She smirks.
Agent Everdeen's phone then rings and she picks it up. "Hello?"
Peeta's sardonic voice is on the other line, "Honey, your drugs are ready."
Katniss with a straight face says, "I'm on my way."
The Lab
Rue sits on a table, eating from a back of chips, like it's a show and what she sees is Walter, preparing various syringes- each with a different color drug. Peeta is calibrating various machines to test her brain functions. Unlike the digital age outside, wires snake around all surfaces. Peeta glance at Katniss disapprovingly as she enters clad in just a robe and her black undergarments. Walter moves to her, holding a tangle of sensors on wires.
"This may be a silly question. In fact, I may have already asked you. But you're aware of how serious this is- the real risks involved?"
"…yes, I understand. And yeah, we had that conversation."
"Oh, okay. Sorry. Peeta come place these."
He walks up to her, sneaking a look or two at her body. He places the sensors on her tan chest, stomach, and legs. It's a strangely intimate moment. He leans toward her and says, "I hope he's really worth it."
Walter comes up behind her with a syringe. "I'm going to give you some anesthetic." She nods as she flips her hair to the side of her head, long and flowing. Then he stretches some skin at the nape of her neck, places the needle on her skin, and pushes it in. She doesn't flinch but it stings a little. Then he picks up the metal probe and places it in the same area. "Ready?" Before she can respond, he pushes it in. She gaps and falls forward, clutching on to Peeta's arms.
Walter walks away, quietly mumbling to himself. He checks her vitals while Peeta guides her to sit down. Then they open the large tank with a long, low creak. Peeta walks up with two colored needles; the drugs, she's nervous but does her best not to show it. He sees right through her. "Have you ever been on a trip before?" He asks with a smile. Not a sincere one, more like a conceited one.
"Yes!" She says, defensive. "I have been to college."
"Which college?"
"Maine State."
"Nope, you've never tripped before. Not like this." She scowls, but stays silent. He injects one right after the other.
Walter calls to her from the tank, "One is to relax you and the other to rip open your consciousness." Peeta and Walter guide Katniss into the tank. "The salt will make you float." He adds. Together, they stand above her, "Listen, in case you don't make it back… I would really like to te- tell you how much I appreciate what you have done for me."
Katniss already drowsy says, "… What's that?"
"You don't know how much you lose in a place like that… the hospital where I've been. You lose being trusted and it's strange how important that is once it's gone."
Peeta stands worried for the woman who has just put her life in his father's hands. He looks to the monitor to see images of her face and body. Walter comes up behind him to look. He turns to see Rue and gazes at her curiously. "If you want to watch, you can come closer- who are you again- do you work here?" She sighs and shakes her head.
"I'm Rue Stenburg, remember? Junior FBI Agent? Assistant to Agent Everdeen?"
"Uh, no I don't remember, but hi. I'm Walter, uh…" And he's forgotten his own last name…
Peeta frowns and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Mellark, your name is Walter Mellark."
"Ah, yes, Mellark. Thank you."
"Don't mention it," Peeta sighs.
"See, this is her brain rhythm." He point to one generator, showing Rue, "More important than people know regarding cerebral regional interaction. Critical- massively important." Then to the other. "And this is his. Over time, as the narcotics take effect, the probes will coax their rhythms into sync – and the electrical signals from both - that's what our brains are electrical routers - should be able to be interpreted by the other."
"See it's easy, like making taffy!" Peeta laughs with an eye roll.
Rue smiles. Walter hooks up a monitor between the two generators and gets two squiggled lines, red and green, that represent their sine waves going across the screen.
"These are both of their rhythms- when they're in sync…they should be in the same place. So to speak."
"…So…now what?" Asks Peeta.
"Now? Chicken salad."
"…what?"
Walter turns to Rue, "Would you be a doll? Chicken salad sandwich, no raisins? Wheat bread? Pickles?"
"Yeah, I'll call that in-" She replies awkwardly, she turns to Peeta, "-anything for you?"
He smirks at her. "An escape hatch?" She smiles and goes off to make the call.
Walter turns and whispers toward Peeta, "Now we wait." Peeta watches, pensive.
Katniss floats on her back, eyes closed waiting…
Gale lies still, looking worse for wear, on the brink of death…
Walter takes notes on their vitals while eating his sandwich…
Peeta walks around Gale, looking into his refrigerated containment unit, sneaking quick concerned glances at Katniss…
They're all waiting.
Then Katniss inhales sharply, Peeta's at the monitor in a split second, looking for any sign of danger. "What's happened?" He demands from his father.
"She's getting close. Only a bit longer. Yes!" He shouts out, happy. They look at the sine waves and see there still just a tad off.
Katniss stands in the middle of a junkyard, curiously looking around. "Hello?" She shouts out. "I think I'm here." Her surroundings jerk as the waves line up. "Gale?" She turns around and there he stands. She breathes in heavily with tears in her eyes.
"I was just thinking about you." She runs toward him and they kiss. When they break apart, her hand lingers on his face.
"You're okay, you're here." She cries and kisses him again. This time after they separate and she looks into his eyes, she recollects. "Gale, you were hurt." He looks confused.
"I don't remember."
"Think. The storage units. We were sent to investigate-"
"Yes- wait why are you here? I feel so cold."
"I need you to remember, please. You saw his face."
"…Why?"
"So- so I can save you." She smiles sadly.
She starts to see herself running toward a figure, through the snow and - the man turns around. She sees him! She sees what he looked like! Then she calls for herself. They continue to run until she hears the deafening explosion.
Peeta watches the monitor, first she is calm, then happy, and a split second later, she's convulsing in the water, jerking around. "Walter! She's having a seizure!" Walter gets the FOSPHENYTOIN injection while he and Rue run down to the platform and throw the doors open. He grabs her by the shoulders and lifts her out. "Rue hold down her arms." She does as told and Walter hand him the syringe. He injects it into her right arm and immediately, her eyes stop rolling back into her head and she stops moving. Then she wakes with a gasp, sobbing, "I saw him! ...Oh my god! I saw him! ...I was there!" She clings to Peeta's shirt and he wraps his arms around her, comforting her. A few minutes later, she passes out, exhausted.
Federal Building
Katniss sits at her computer, creating an image of the auburn haired man. Her grey eyes are red and have bags under them. A number of agents stand around her, perplexed.
"What do you mean, 'I saw him'?" Jo asks her.
"I told you not to ask me that." She hands the picture to the surrounding workers and says, "This is our suspect. Run him through all data bases." And soon the picture is everywhere.
"Have you slept? You look like crap!"
"I told you already, I was there." She looks into her friends brown eyes and silently pleas for her to understand, but she knows she sounds crazy. Probably looks it too.
Another agent shouts out, "No primary matches for criminal records."
"Cross check all states' driver's license files."
"On it." He calls.
Another guy walks up to her. "I know this guy. I've seen him before."
It takes him a moment. And then, as if he doesn't believe it himself, he hurries across the room, to the images and file of people on flight 627. He rips one off the wall and looks at it as he moves to Katniss and hands it to her. She visibly pales.
"Oh, my god… This is him." She shakes her head in disbelief.
"Kat…" Johanna looks at her with soft eyes. "He was on the plane maybe you just-"
"I saw him there Jo!" She looks sympathetic but dubious.
"I think you need some sleep." For a moment, Katniss doubts herself. Maybe she is crazy. She looks at her with tears. "Why don't you come with me back to the house? I'll have Blight make up the guest room."
"No, no, no, I saw him there."
"Hold on guys. Morgan Stenson of Steeltown, Pennsylvanina, 44, and had one sibling…" The printer comes to life and Katniss walks over to it. A different picture of what looks like the same man. "Richard Stenson."
"He had a twin." Mason shakes her head disbelievingly. "You were right, Brainless!" Johanna shouts.
"This cements the connection between the plane and the storage units." Katniss begins articulately.
"What is the connection?" Mason asks.
"-That's right: So, Richard Stenson sets up labs in the storage yard – we don't know what the hell he's working on, why or for whom- I need a work and education history!
"Pulling it up."
"Whatever he's doing, it's about as dangerous as it gets. His brother was obviously a trigger. But how? Was he in on it? Or was he set up?" She then has an epiphany, "-Jo, do you have medical history?"
"Yeah."
"Okay, tell me Morgan Stenson wasn't diabetic." She says.
"I can't, Type Two. How did you know?"
"There was an insulin pen found in the isle of that plane. So theoretically, let's say Richard Stenson spiked his brother's syringe. Dr. Mellark mentioned that he'd worked on self-eradicating airborne toxins – designed not to leave any trace once the targets have been infected."
"With what?"
"Well we need to ask Stenson that, don't we? Where's his file?"
"Hot off the press." Mason winks.
Katniss reads it and her eyes go wide. "Mason, look at this! Last employer."
Johanna takes it and mimics her expression. "Massive Dynamic…"
Massive Dynamic
Katniss walks fiercely down the hallway to Coin's office. She slaps the file on her desk. "This is our suspect. I want everything you've got on him." She demands. Coin picks up the photo of the auburn haired man. She obviously recognizes Richard Stenson. "Do you want me to get a court order or do you want to talk?" She places her hands on the desk and leans forward menacingly.
Alma past her and gesture someone forward. She says to her assistant, "Bring in our files on Richard Stenson." Then she turns back to Katniss. "The man you're looking for was an employee here for two years in our weapons systems research lab. He was fired three months ago after he tried to leave the premises with certain classified materials. Our investigators concluded that damage to Massive Dynamic was minimal…but that Mr. Stenson may be part of The Pattern. Which would be consistent with your suspicions."
Katniss looks curiously at Coin for a moment. "…I'm sorry, you said part of the pattern - what pattern?"
Coin's eyes widen and she looks at the girl in front of her with a surprised expression. "I assumed you had clearances…"
"Any clearance you have I have."
"Apparently not." She scowls at Coin, "Although, I will tell you this much. We've reached a point where science and technology have advanced at an exponential rate for so long…that it is far beyond our ability to regulate and control them. You should know what you're getting into, Ms. Everdeen. I would say the same thing to my daughter. To my granddaughter. Be careful." Katniss is struck by the warning, but before she can ask more questions, Coin's assistant walk in and hands her the files. "Will that be all?"
"Yes, thank you for your co-operation." That's how Katniss leaves Massive Dynamic, with answers but many more questions...
The Lab
Walter, Rue, and Peeta sit on the couch in front of a small, outdated television. Sponge Bob is on the screen and Walter is thoroughly loving it. "This, " He gesture to the screen, "is a show for kids?"
Rue nods excitedly and says, "It's a huge hit."
Peeta sits with his head back staring at the ceiling, resenting the whole thing.
"It's surprisingly profound, for a narrative about a sponge." Walter comments, "Don't you think?" He asks Peeta.
Before he can respond, the phone rings. He crosses the lab and picks it up. "Crazy house." He mutters into the receiver.
"I just landed at Logan. I'm on my way to you- I think we found the suspect."
"You actually found him?" He asks incredulously, "A guy you saw in your dream?"
She continues without bothering to answer the question. "I'm picking you both up- I'll need your father there to question him, get whatever information he needs so he can make the cure for Gale- and I'll need you there too, in case your father's…you know-"
"Say no more."
Peeta and Walter sit in the back seat of Katniss's car. Waiting there like dogs after being instructed to stay put. He sighs and continues to flip through the file on Stenson. Walter is looking particularly uncomfortable around all the police activity. "Hey, you alright?"
He shakes his head like a child. "Reminds me…" He trails off. "Nothing." Then it hits Peeta. The day he was arrested, the fire.
Katniss and the team break down the door and inspect the apartment. Each room is signified as empty by resounding 'clear's'. She huffs, frustrated and depressed when she notices it; the rug she's standing on has a break in the dust line. She quickly moves it aside and finds a trapdoor, leading down into the ground. She puts a finger to her lips, in case someone is in there, and opens it. The cellar is dark and damp, and no one's in there but, the storm window's been opened. Inside, looks identical to the storage units. Katniss gets overwhelmed with the memory and leaves to exit the building. As she opens the door to the outside's cold air, she hears an unintelligible shout and starts running.
Peeta sits in the car alone with Walter and bored. He looks outside, anxious, at the footprints imprinted in the snow. "Thank you, before. For putting out the fire." Walter breaks the silence.
"My pleasure," He mumbles absentmindedly.
"It's good to see you again." Peeta looks at him, not giving an inch. Then he sees, past Walter. Stenson emerges from a below-ground flight of stairs. Peeta recognizes his face. He quickly throws the car door open, and calls out, "The alley, he's in the alley!" The auburn haired man turns and sees him. Well, he can't just let him get away. He turns on Walter, "You stay right there! You hear me?!" Then he moves into a run.
"What- Can't I- Can I leave the car?"
"No! No, you stay there!" He calls back from the alley.
Moments later, Everdeen makes her way to the car to see Walter alone with the door wide open. "Where's Peeta?" She asks alarmed. Walter nods at the alley where she sees a flash of fabric and is off following in a second.
He's gaining, he could tell that much. The man makes a sharp right and then he knows exactly where he's headed. He goes left instead.
Katniss gets into the fork and goes right, after a grunt she heard. She sees him, Stenson. He is going up a ladder and she follows suit. He keeps running on a roof top until he has to jump onto the fire escape of the building next door. He lands with a wail, but continues limping away. She does the same, in a more trained manner. She's still on the ground when another figure comes from the adjoining direction and barrels into the suspect, crashing together to the ground. She recognizes the blonde that continually punches Stenson. She takes out her gun and points it in the auburn's face. "We've got some questions for you!" She shouts.
Federal Interrogation
Katniss paces angrily, stomping her feet and shouting useless threats. He wasn't talking. No, Richard Stenson decided to play the silent card. Peeta took things into his own hands. He silently treads his way into the room the man is being held. He walks forward and starts to talk. "The compound that infected Agent Hawthorne- its water soluble, right?" The suspect stays silent, "We might not know what it is… but we know what it does. So, if I wanted to, I could extract the contaminated fluids from his body, and that would allow me to slip it to you whenever I wanted to. In your food, cup of coffee… no one would even know how it happened. The only problem is," Peeta starts forward, in a more daunting position. "The woman that was just in here… that's her friend who's dying, so, I just don't have that kind of time." He yanks Richard's hand forward and slams his mug down, effectively breaking a few bones. "Tell me the chemicals, now!" He yells and waits a few moments before repeating the process.
Katniss bursts through the room, and tries to separate the two men. "Hey, stop! Stop, you can't do that!"
He corrects her, "You can't do that." He says and turns his attention back to Stenson. "I want the names. I'll give you to 3…" He pauses, "One!" He says, not even giving him the other numbers to work with and slams the cup back down. The man cries out in pain.
The Lab
"The active toxin was a magnesium-based ethylene glycol-" Walter starts.
"No, I understand that, but you're not listening to me-" Peeta runs after him down the stairs.
"A magnesium ethylene glycol with an organophosphate trigger-" He ignores him.
"Dad, stop!" He stills and looks back at his son, stunned. Peeta ignores his choice of words, "His blood won't be able to absorb if fast enough before the side effects kill him!"
"So- so your saying we synthesize a calcium gluconate in a thiamine base?"
"Yes."
"We- we can't we need more of his blood and we have none."
Katniss pipes up from the doorway, "That's not true. All Agents are required to donate a pint of blood in case they're injured."
Walter gasps, "That's brilliant- good thinking!"
"It wasn't my idea." She says but he'd already stopped listening.
Peeta continues, "We create the antidote, dissolve it into Hawthorne's stored blood, then transfuse it intravenously so his body's not overwhelmed."
"Autologous transfusion. Yes!" Walter shouts. Then he speaks to Katniss "We'll need that blood-"
"I'm on it."
Katniss watches as the Mellarks start doing, what they do, using whatever tools and tricks of the trade are needed to build the device, create the compound or jerry-rig the machinery-
In this case they're formulating the antidote for Gale.
Walter carefully measures multi-colored chemicals for Peeta to inject them into test tubes. Walter puts them in a centrifuge. Peeta hangs saline bags for Walter to inject the green compound into- the antidote.
Rue enters with a stainless-steel cooler and she opens it to reveal a bag of blood. Walter preps for the blood transfusion as Peeta looks for a suitable vein to put the needle into. His old blood leaves Gales body, and the new blood enters. Four faces wait patiently.
Katniss sits on a bench in the crowded hallway of Harvard. Students file through, unbeknownst to the heart ache she suffers. Abernathy appears next to her. He says, half-seriously. "I got you the lab." She can't help but smile a little.
"Yeah, you did. Thank you."
He nods, "How's it going downstairs?"
"Mellark says it'll be a while. But it's actually looking 'auspicious'. That was his word." He begins to stare at her. "…What?"
When he speaks, he's direct but warm and engaged, "You've done some solid work here; locating Mellark, getting him out, and finding a way to get him to work with you."
"His son found a way to get to him to work, not me. Brains run in the family."
"But you found them. You did it. You've done more in six days than we have in months."
"We? Who's we?"
"What happened on that plane might not be an isolated incident." Haymitch pulls out a tan folder with a classified sticker across the front. "Most of what I'm going to show you has not been made public." She looks at a photo of dozens of dead cattle, "Last April, in Houston, two- hundred and six cows were found dead. Autopsies reveal they were all missing lungs. No surgical marks. No signs of foul play." He pulls out more photos. All of men in hospital beds, he points to one. "In June, in a Paris hospital, a man who had been in a coma for six years began whispering one word, over and over. 'Dieu'."
"God? She asks.
He points to another one, "On the same day a comatose patient in Lisbon was heard speaking for the first time in a decade. 'Deus'." And the last, "Same day, Osaka: another comatose patient starting chanting…'Kamisama'." Katniss looks at him, confused. He takes out two more pictures, the first of a happy looking family, "In August a family from Toronto vanished while on a road trip to the United States. Then, two hours after they were last seen at a rest stop… " She looks at the last image, "…these charred remains of four people were found near Shanghai. The dental records and wedding ring matched those of the missing couple." He hands he the file and she looks through more depictions of unexplained phenomena, "Needless to say. Strange things are happening. You yourself have been witness. You know. It is a new, real, and continuing phenomenon: in the past nine months there have been three-dozen authenticated incidents like these 'anomalies'."
"There are no explanations? …Suspects? Claims of responsibility?"
"An emergency session was called two months ago in Tokyo – the worlds' top scientific minds in research and technology. They met with us - heads of state, security agencies. They were asked to review the evidence. Draw conclusions, make suggestions… It was a room of very alarmed people. They named these events 'The Pattern'."
"…The Pattern…" Alma Coin had used those exact words, "Why are you telling me all of this?" She asks and looks up at him from the file.
"Since May I've been heading up a Homeland task force called Fringe Division. We've been investigating these abnormalities."
"That's why they assigned you to the Hamburg flight."
"I want you to work for me, as a lead investigator."
"I have a job."
"This is a better job."
"I like my job. And the man I do it with. As you seemed to have deduced on your own."
"Another 2 cases have come up since Hamburg. When I tell you what they are-"
"I don't want to know. Don't tell me. Mr. Abernathy, I've been trained for a lot. For everything, it feels like. Battle. Hostage crisis. Terror campaigns – suicide bombers, chemical attacks… But what I've been seeing recently…I don't know why it should be any different. Why it should affect me anymore. But it does. I'm scared. And I just want to go back. To before." Her eyes well up with unshed tears.
"I don't think you can."
"I can." She sniffles, and tries to persuade herself, "I can." She stands up to leave but before she does, she turns back to him and smiles, "Not that I'm not flattered, because I am. I should've said thank you before… Thank you." He watches her walk off, and he knows he's lost a good one.
Gale's tan skin is almost fully opaque. Only a few veins stand out against the pigment of his skin. While he sits there, looking remarkably well, he suddenly inhales. Walt goes to give him oxygen and calls out to Peeta, "Hurry, he's waking up!"
"Katniss! Katniss! He's waking up!" He calls out the doorway.
Katniss bursts into the room, full of hope and anticipation, and rushes to Gale's side. He opens his eyes and she's there with tears blurring her vision. She begins talking, quietly and sweetly, "Gale, can you hear me, baby?" Peeta records that unofficial term.
His voice is weak when he says, "I had a dream about you…"
For the first time, Peeta regards his father as something of a hero.
Not an hour later, Gale is being wheeled out of the lab and to the hospital to continue his treatment. He passes Peeta, who stands near the entrance. He's on the phone speaking in Arabic, "I appreciate your patience, I should be back by Thursday night," He says into the phone. He walks past Walter, who stands in the middle of the room, keeping a close eye on Peeta, brooding. And Katniss approaches, grinning, grateful…
"You can work all sorts of miracles." She smiles.
"I was hoping you might…need me. For another go. Another…something, I don't know…"
"They might."
"But I'd need Peeta. I don't think I could do it without my son… And I suspect he wouldn't do it without you." He says. That catches her off-guard; the fact she understand the subtext so instantaneously, and might even (in her deepest recesses) share the feeling it implies, is something she can't handle yet.
"…What? What do you mean?"
"I'm not sure…" Walter grins. Then, the smile fades, "What is it we're talking about?"
"I was… just thanking you."
"No need." His voice then hushes to an almost silent tone, "I meant to ask you. If you've read my file…then you know the truth. About my son's…medical history…" He looks at her, at sees a muddled expression.
"What are you talking about Walter? It just had his birthday."
"Oh, never mind then…" He trails off. She looks at him curiously, but brushes it off as his misremembering. He goes and walks towards his son to say her thank you and good bye.
"Your job still waiting for you?"
"You bet it is. Guys as brilliantly stupid as I don't just grow on trees."
"Not in Baghdad they don't."
"No sir."
"Good luck with Big Eddie."
"Thanks." And there's a moment, a look between them- despite everything, he's actually come to like her. And she, him. "This whole, circus actually went better than I thought it would." And the look holds…
Hospital
Katniss looks on at Gale through a hospital room window, a doctor stand behind her, astounded with his recovery.
"His vitals are strong."
"How long until he gets out of here?"
"A week or so, the melanocytes in his skin need to regenerate. This man really owes you his life, doesn't he?"
"We owe each other." Katniss turns back at Gale but her gaze heads elsewhere. "What room is Stenson in?"
She approaches the room in the secure, FBI only access, wing of the hospital. He's sitting in bed, wrists strapped down to the bed. She enters giving him a cold dark stare.
"I told the truth. Didn't I? I gave you the names of the synthetics I used in the-"
She scowls at him with obvious hatred, "Don't worry, our immunity agreement holds, but there's a lot more we have to talk about- like why you killed your own brother, and who you were selling your work to."
"Who says I was selling it?" He asks, curious.
"Right now I only need one thing: you got help from someone in our office, didn't you? We have phone records. The calls made to your pre-paid cell. Who were they from?"
He sits back, fear in his eyes… "You've got it wrong: I wasn't working with anybody, I was being threatened. And if the calls came out of your office…I'm starting to wonder if you can really protect me."
"I'll remind you, the death penalty is only off the table with your continued cooperation."
"I'm not lying. I can prove it. I recorded one of our conversations."
"And where is this… tape?" She asks uncertainly.
"I buried it."
The Lab
Walter sadly looks on as all of his equipment is being packed and shipped back out. The cow, too. He walks up to it and awkwardly pats its head. "Research suggests bovines are… gifted with advanced cognitive abilities, and never forget a face. I hope you'll remember mine. Good luck, Gene." He says as his parting words.
"Gene?" Peeta asks from behind him, having had watched the entire exchange. His expression is partly amused, party embarrassed, and partly pitying.
"Our genetic benefactress." To that, Peeta smiles slightly. There's an unspoken acknowledgement then of what comes next, and suddenly Walter grows quietly, painfully desperate. " Please, please don't take me back."
His son sighs, not wanting to do this, "Listen, um- Walter-"
"You called me Dad before."
"And you asked me to call you Mom."
"This experience, it's woken me up again. You can't put me back to sleep-"
"This was hardly my idea-"
"Whatever punishment you think I deserve, I can assure you I've already endured it-"
Peeta cuts him off with a loud, "Stop."
Quiet settles around the pair.
"…Please, son." Peeta hurts too from hearing his father's pitiful pleas, it's against every rational thought that he has, his heart bleeds for this man, and it's irritating and confusing, he doesn't want to connect…
"Maybe the truth is if you'd been a better father to me, I'd be a better son." He moves off, leaving, Walter standing alone and heart broken.
Stenson's Apartment
Katniss's paranoia got the best of her. She went back to the crime scene. She's on her knees, cutting up her hands on the dirt. She digs, and digs until she comes across a plastic bag. Inside is the microcassette.
Gale stands up, looking determined towards the door as he walks, painfully towards the door. He touches the cold metal of the handle and slowly creaks it open-
She sits in her car and pops the tape in. She waits in anticipation as she rewinds it and pushes play.
"Who is this?" Stenson's voice fills her car.
"We had a purchase agreement." Another person says. Katniss's heart begins beating rapidly.
"There have been other bidders. Today- the airplane- was just a demonstration."
"You've drawn unwarranted attention- something we can't afford to be connected with. I'll make this simple: you're not selling to anyone else. You do that and we will come after you- I will come after you." Her eyes fill with tears as the soft, oh so familiar voice continues.
"You're threatening me? Isn't that unwise after what I did to my own brother?"
"Believe me we'll be happy to treat you as family too!" She closes her eyes as the tears slip out onto her horrified face.
Behind them, a black van pulls up and out comes Gale Hawthorne talking on the phone. "Believe me; we'll be happy to treat you as family too!" He says calm but harsh.
Gale, now back in his clothes, walk up to the guard of the wing where Stenson is being held. "I just need to ask him a few questions." He says, showing him his badge. He slowly walks over to his door, like a predator. The auburn haired man lays still, asleep as Gale walks over to him. He grabs a pillow and without hesitation, begins to smother the man. He has no way of defending himself with his hands tied down, he's destined for death. So, when he stops moving and Gale removes the pillow, he knows the deed is done.
Katniss rushes for her phone and immediately dials Mason. "Jo, I need two agents stationed outside Agent Hawthorne's door, now! Nobody gets in there until I get there! And make sure Stenson's safe."
Johanna runs to that wing of the hospital, flashes her badge, and entered to see Stenson's current state. "Oh, god, Kat he's dead! I need this place locked down immediately!" She shouts at the guard.
Katniss swerves around a corner at the entrance of the hospital. She jumps out the car, running to automatic doors. Then she sees him. He is behind the wheel of a black SUV, their eyes widen at the same time and she darts back to her car.
She is already chasing him when she calls over her radio, "This is Everdeen, Agent ID 52776-in pursuit of black SUV, license number 5AD672B- heading south on Fenway, need immediate assist-"He quickly pulls on the freeway, trying his best to escape. She catches up to him and they begin to ride parallel. Gale swerves into Katniss, trying to run her off the road, but he himself drives right into some crash drums. Her eyes trail up to her rearview mirror, seeing the wreckage. She jumps out of the car, and runs like hell toward Gale's limp gasping body. She, despite learning of his betrayal, holds him and cries.
Then he says his final words, "Ask yourself… why… Abernathy sent you… to the storage facility… why you?" She looks at him befuddled. What did he mean by these words, did he expect her to believe him, or trust him?
"Gale… tell me… who are you working for?" He coughs up more blood but manages a half smile before closing his eyes. "No! No, you tell me, Hawthorne!"
His chest stops rising, however slightly it was before and he dies. She's left sitting there, holding him and wondered… like his last words implied… why she was stuck in the middle of this mess.
Katniss sit in the passenger seat of Johanna's standard issued car, eyes red and puffy, dried blood stains on her shirt. "I want to go to the lab…" She sighs.
"Kat, I promised I'd take you directly to the hospital."
'I don't want to go there," she whispers, pulling her legs onto the seat and hugging them.
"You need to get checked out-"
"I'm fine." She sighs and turns her head toward the window. And then she starts sobbing. "I- I'm fine, look at me!" Johanna looks at her and knows she can't say no.
She drives to Harvard, and Katniss stops crying but she can still see the paths all across her cheeks, glistening. When they park, she looks across the lot at Peeta and Walter, packing their things into another black government issued car. She moves toward them a shell of herself after everything she had just experienced, but she tries to appear normal in this moment. Strong. Better than okay. She jogs up to where Peeta stand and starts talking to get his attention, "So, uh…I was thinking. About everything. About what we did. And what we're going to do next." He turns to her and gapes at her disheveled appearance, " And I thought…given everything…that maybe not sticking together…maybe that's being a little selfish."
"What are you saying?" He asks trying to appear impassive to her obviously distressed state.
"I'm saying, even though the world, scary as it can be, is hell and I don't like it. If we can make a change, don't you think we should?"
Walter speak up from behind him, "Yes."
"No." Peeta ignores his father,
"I'm in." Walter persists.
"No you're not, because I'm not." Then he turns to Katniss, "I can't, you know I can't."
"You're the only one who speaks Walter. What if- please - what if…we take care of it? What you…what you owe." Katniss is desperate and he can see that. He stares at her- a mix of suspicion and concern…
"..What happened?"
"I… just think it's the right thing to do." She starts to cry again. That's it; he knows he can't tell her no, now. He holds her, like her did before and even if he doesn't know why he's doing it, he comforts her.
"Of course, I will. I'll stay." He says.
She very quietly whispers her thanks and relaxes in his arms around her.
Suddenly, equipment is being moved back in. Walter could not be happier as he prances around his 'Golden Rectangle'. Rue helps unpack with Peeta. As he pulls out, yet another intimidating looking device he mutters, "I don't even want to know what this does." He fakes a shiver and Rue laughs at him.
"No you don't…" Walter remarks.
Peeta sees right through him. "You don't even remember what this does, do you?" He asks incredulously.
"No I do not." Peeta smiles at his father's antics. The Walter sees something come through the door, "Gene!" He smiles. "Come this way, over here!" He jumps in glee.
Katniss stands in the corner of the lab, across from Abernathy, "I'm sorry about how it happened but I'm glad you changed your mind." He states.
She nods, but looks down sadly, "There's a lot we'll need on Monday. The doctors have a list of equipment- and of course they'll need a place to stay-"
"We have it all covered. But, it can't wait until Monday. I have something I need to show you now." He hands her a file.
"Mellark!" She calls. Both Walter and Peeta turn around obediently. "We've got a briefing," She smirks. They all shuffle into a side office in the lab. Walter and Peeta enter first but she holds back Haymitch, "Oh, and there's also the issue of the slight gambling debt…"
"No problem."
"By slight I mean massive."
"Solve this one, and it's done." She smiles and heads in.
Massive Dynamic Hallway
Alma Coin meets up with her assistant who is wheeling a body to the morgue. Her hand reaches out and she pulls back the sheet. There lies Gale's bloody corpse.
"How long has he been dead?"
"5 hours."
"Question him, then." She says and then saunters off.
