Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Flashpoint. I am writing this fiction for enjoyment purposes only. I have created an character named Grace, so yes, she's mine.
Grace let the feelings overcome her as she sat on the edge of the concrete overpass. She wouldn't cry, she already shed her share of tears and more. She let out a breath she didn't know she had in. Nobody would notice if I was gone. A hollow, sick feeling filled her as a strong gust breezed past her. Anyone who saw her could easily see that she didn't want to be there.
Team 1 was in the briefing room getting ready for a long shift ahead of them.
"Alright team let's be ready for whatever the city throws at us today. Start off in the gym..."
"Team 1 Hot Call! Hot Call!" Winnie came over the intercom "Witnesses say a girl is sitting on the overpass looking like she is going to jump"
"Here we go" Sam mumbled under his breath.
The team arrived quickly and cleared the area. This girl didn't need anyone setting her off.
"I'll go talk to her, Wordy you and Spike are with me. Jules you stay in the truck and get some intel on her. Ed you're sierra 1, Sam you're sierra 2"
"Copy that boss" Ed replied running off to get a vantage point. Sam following.
"Guys it looks like there was a man there not too long ago giving the girl a gun" Winnie told them over the earpiece.
"This doesn't look good. Ed, Sam be on a lookout for another party"
Greg, Wordy and Spike slowly walked towards the girl so they wouldn't scare or aggrivate her.
"Hi, My name is Sgt. Greg Parker with the Stratigic Response Unit this is Spike and Wordy he said motioning to the men on either side of him, "Can you tell me your name?" She turned to look at the older man. He noticed the same look Sam had in his eye when he first joined the team. A look of stubborness and a look that said she had seen too much in her short life.
This is going to take longer then I thought.
"Grace...Thompson" She whispered shakely
"Hi, Grace can my friends come closer? We just want to make sure that you won't fall. They won't hurt you", Fear flashed across her face.
"No...s-stay back or...or...ill... I have a gun"
What are you doing?They are going to stop you. Quit being a coward and do it already.
"Boss"
"Yeah Jules?"
"It looks like she recently lost her father and brother. Within a week of each other. Apparently the man who gave her the gun was her ex boyfriend Dan. There were charges against him but they were dropped when her father died"
"Thanks Jules"
"Grace?" Greg said returning his attention to the girl in front of him."Can you tell me why you're up here?, Maybe my team can help you"
"My...no...I can't...You shouldn't be here..."She said looking away trying not to cry
"We heard about your family" She looked over angrily this time
"You don't know anything!" She yelled as hot tears rolled down her red face
"Let us help you, Tell us what happened" She looked over the edge as if she was going to jump right then and there but instead she looked back at Greg with a pained look in her eye
"My dad, he died. I watched as he struggled to take each breath under an oxygen mask. Pain was all over his face although by that point he couldn't feel anything. It took 2 short years for the cancer to rip apart his body. To leave him like a vegetable. I hated him for it. He'd sit on the coach with a glazed over look on his face for hours because of the pills they made him take." Spike looked away torn realizing he watched his father go through the same thing. Wordy and Greg watched their friend wishing they could protect him, wishing that he had been anywhere else at that point.
"My brother, He blew himself up! He took a gasoline tank and a lighter and just gave up. He didn't even say goodbye!" Spike looked like he was going to break apart right on the spot.
"And my boyfriend he...he...I couldn't say no...He made me...and now if I don't do this he'll make me" She looked right into Gregs eyes after saying this."You have to leave please..." Wordy was staring at the girl wanting to help her like she was one of his own girls. Wanting to rip apart the boyfriend. Wanting to wrap her in a hug to save her from all the pain and hurt.
"My oldest brother, he got shipped off to Afghanistan. He wasn't even home for the past 4 years. And now nobody talks. It's so quiet all the time. My mom she just goes out and drinks and I am left to cry every single night, all alone." By now Grace was shaking and crying.
Greg for once was at a loss for words.
"Boss, I know her brother, I met him when I was leaving Afghanistan. Maybe if I had realized I could have done something to help. I mean the General..."
"Sam it's alright there's nothing you could've done to prevent this" Greg whispered reassuringly into his headset
"I know what it's like" All eyes turned towards the voice, it was Spike's. He looked almost as bad as the girl sitting on the edge of her death.
"My father he died, He hated what I do, But every night I heard him coughing and I had to love him, to help him. My mother she cries everynight. She is moving away to forget all the memories in our house. And my best friend, we all watched him die."Spike said looking around to his team. "There was nothing we could do, He stepped on a landmine, he...there was nothing...we could do" Spike faultered a little at the end.
Grace stopped crying to listen to what Spike had to say. He had eyes like her brother had. Dark and soulful. She could tell he wasn't lying.
He continued to speak "Nobody gets it right? They want life to keep going full speed but you just want to stop for a minute to fix everything you once had. You feel like a piece of your heart have just crumbled off and you feel empty. You're tired of crying and you just want to yell and scream and you want everyone to notice that you're not alright."
His team mates looked worried at their team mate. They knew he was in pain but he had been smiling and joking so they assumed he was alright."We all get it. We've all lost someone. We've all felt pain. We understand. We can help you"
Grace started to look calm now, it looked like all her energy was focused on listening to Spike. Wordy took a step closer. Almost right beside the girl now. They were so close.
"Spike good job, You're almost there" Greg reassured his young teammate at a time when he himself couldn't find the words.
"You want to jump becasue you're worried more people will die and you won't be able to stop it. And now your boyfriend is trying to make you do it. You think that this will make everything better? It won't but we can help you. We will get Dan. We just need you to get down. I need you to. Please"
"Grace looked into the eyes of the man who was right beside her now. Wordy. He looked strong. Like he understood too. Like he would help her just like the Spike had said. She looked back to Spike to see if it was alright to trust the man in front of her. He nodded his head in response. Like he knew what she couldn't say. Grace reached out a shakey hand. The man took her down and she turned to Spike. He grabbed her into a hug as she started to sob. A sigh of relief came over the com as if now the whole team had been holding their breath.
Grace pulled the gun out of her grey hoodie and handed it to Wordy. The cold metal made her feel sick.
A man on the edge of the perimeter looked enraged. He pushed a police officer out of his way and started running towards Grace.
"What are you doing? You coward! Think of your family! They don't need you!"
"Spike!" Wordy yelled to his nearby friend. Spike pushed the girl behind him just as Greg turned into negotiator.
"Ed you have scorpio if this gets out of hand"And as if he had heard the command Greg had just given the man raised a gun and pointed it at Spike. A single shot rang out.
"Subject down" Ed said over the radio
"Good job today guys, I know this was a hard one that touched all of our hearts but Grace is going to be alright" Greg said looking over his exhausted team in the briefing room
"What's going to happen to her?" Jules asked
"Well, She'll be in the hospital for a few days and she will get a psyc eval then after that Wordy do you want to answer this one?"
"Yeah, She'll be staying with Shel, the girls and me until a better place is found. So I guess she's all of our family now" He said with a small smile to Spike.
"Alright manditory drink tonight, c'mon lets go" Ed said getting out of his rest of team 1 followed and chattered quietly.
*In the original posting this was the end of Ch. 1*
The team sat at the booth laughing and drinking themselves numb to wash away their feelings. Greg just sat watching over his team like a father, knowing he had done the same thing only a few years before.
"Guys I wanted to tell you that you did a good job today, it could have been a lot worse" Greg told his team seriously.
"yeah, yeah don't get all mushy on us boss" Sam replied
"No seriously thanks Spike, maybe we should get you to negotiate more often"
"No way I'm sticking to bombs, they are way safer" The team chuckled softly but couldn't help but notice the hurt in his voice. Just as Ed stood up and was about to leave Greg spoke up again this time trying to reach his team
"Sam, you couldn't have done anything to prevent this, you barely even knew Graces brother" Greg said to the young sniper who had been quiet all night
"And Spike we're all here for you buddy you know that right?"
"Yeah, I know" Spike replied with a small smile
"Wordy?" He said looking right at him
"Yeah boss?"
"You take care of that girl, alright?"
"Ok" He replied quietly looking towards the door
"I guess I'd better be leaving too, anyone need a ride home?" Wordy said
"Yeah, Sam and me are coming he owes me dinner anyways" Jules replied. The team didn't even think of the dinner as anything more than that and Sam didn't protest as Jules dragged him off his seat.
"Spike you alright to drive home?" Ed asked, He knew Spike didn't hold his alcohol well
"Umm...Yeah" Ed knew he was lying so he dragged Spike along with him.
"Shel?"Wordy called into the dark hallway
"In here" She called quietly from the bathroom. Wordy just looked at her as she dried off her face with a towel
"I'm going to stay at the hospital for tonight, ok?"
"Ok, Come home tomorrow night though"They hugged each other and then as Wordy was about to leave he quietly replied "I love you"
"Love you too"
Wordy walked into the small hospital room, he looked over at Grace who was sitting facing towards the window shaking. She turned around as he walked towards her, her eyes were red and puffy and she still had tears streaming down her face
"Oh...Grace" Wordy said as he rushed to her side
"What's wrong?" He spoke softly and calmly
"I don't...want to be...be... here" She sobbed
"It's alright" Wordy replied as he wrapped his arms around her and rocked her just as the Boss had done to Spike when the team lost Lou. "He's going to come back"
"Who is? Dan? No Ed he shot him. He's gone now and you know what I bet the whole team will come by tomorrow just to see you" Grace didn't reply she just continued to sob "And I know Jules has tonnes of secrets about this place and Spike he has so many funny stories and Sam well we can make fun of him just because he's the rookie" He could tell him talking was calming her down so he continued to tell Grace stories of his team mates until he could tell she was asleep. Wordy heard a knock behind him and slowly slipped Grace's arm off him. He got up and walked towards Greg.
"Hey" He said softly
"I thought you could use some company" Greg said looking towards Grace
"Yeah, I don't know what I'm going to do" Greg knew Wordy wasn't talking about just tonight but the next few weeks, months, years.
"Well, what I said at the bar was true. We'll help you and plus she can stay with any of us anytime she wants. I mean Spike and her have a connection and I bet since he moved into his new place he could use some company. Someone who understands him more then we do". Wordy nodded his head understanding and looking over his shoulder at the girl sleeping in the bed. He learned a little about her from the nurses and her file. He knew she was 15 years old and when the police had talked to her mother she didn't even care she was losing her daughter. He knew that her brother had killed himself and her father had died of cancer. He knew that she still believed Dan was alive and going to hurt her. Wordy wondered how much control he had over her. If it was enough that he convinced her she was worthless and she should kill herself he must have been very controlling. He knew when the time was right he could ask her or Jules could. Although he had 3 girls and a wife at home it didn't make talking to women any easier.
"Mind if I sit for a while?" Greg asked tierdly
"Sure pull up a chair" The two men sat quietly until sleep over took them and their bodies were finally able to get some much needed rest.
"Team 1 Hot Call! Hot Call!" Winnie's familiar voice came over the intercom. Team 1 was running on empty and after yesterdays call they were both physically and mentally tired. Boss called for tomorrow to be a mandatory rest day for the team. Nobody argued with that.
"Security reported a shooter at Toronto General Hospital, he said nobody has been injured and they're trying to evacuate"
"All right team 1 suit up"A look crossed Team one's faces as they each realized that Grace was still at the hospital where Greg and Wordy had left her not an hour previous.
As the black SUV's pulled into the already crowded parking lot of the hospital the team grouped together.
"Alright our priority is to find the shooter and get everyone out safely. Spike you're in the truck we'll need eyes in there. Ed you Jules and Wordy go top to bottom, Sam me and you will go from the bottom to the top"
"Copy that boss" Most of the team replied in unison
"Everybody down now!" A distressed man yelled as he raised his gun towards a group of patients and nurses.
"Where is she?" He screamed at a nurse sitting by a computer
"I...I...who?" She managed to reply trying not to look at the man or the gun
"My wife! Elizabeth Ward!" The gun was right up against her side now as she shook violently from fear.
A man dressed in green scrubs spoke up "Please leave her alone"
"No!" He screamed as he shot the man in the leg. The man crumpled over grasping his leg trying to stop the blood. The room was dead silent except for a few beeping monitors and the doctor heavily breathing.
"Alright now where is she?"
"There's nobody here by that name...I'm I'm sorry" The nurse was trembling with fear as the gunman grabbed her by the arm and lead her to the stairwell.
Grace walked slowly and silently into the stairwell. She knew something was up and she had to get out of there. But she had to see for herself if Dan was really dead or not. She knew he had been shot but she was whisked away quickly by Spike. She could hear men talking, the voices sounded familiar but she couldn't place them until she looked down towards the sound. Oh no, it's the SRU, maybe they're looking for Dan too...Maybe they're looking for me...
"Guys first floor is clear me and Sam are in the stairwell now..."
*SLAM*
"Boss?" Ed said into the headset
"Sorry, I think someone was in the stairwell, We'll keep you posted" Greg finished
"Alright Sam c'mon we'll corner them if they're up there"
Grace ran to the nearest room and huddled in the corner. She knew she had to get to the morgue but she couldn't get caught either. She heard the familiar voices in the hall again.
"He's not in here" Sam said looking around the room
Grace waited until it was quiet again to sneak into the stairwell and creep down into the basement.
"When was your wife a patient here sir?" The nurse tried to speak calmly now
"2 days ago, they wouldn't let me see her" He replied his eyes showed pain but his body had something different showing.
" Did...did she die?" The nurse asked in barely a whisper. He looked at the nurse tears welling up in his eyes.
"I just want to see her again" She thought she understood. She carefully guided the man towards the morgue where she presumed his wife would be. Little did they know another nurse had been hiding close enough to hear their conversation. As soon as they turned around the corner the nurse ran towards the stairs. She nearly flew right into Jules.
"Hey it's alright" Jules said as she held onto the womans shoulders.
"He...they're right over there they just left...they're going to the morgue"
"Jules take her outside, Wordy you're with me, let's go" Ed said quickly and authoratively
"Boss, you hear that?"
"Yeah Ed me and Sam are on our way down"
Grace had found the morgue a lot easier than she thought she would. Now she just had to go in. She took a deep breath and crept through the large double doors. The room was freezing and the smell made her sick to her stomach. There were only 5 bodies laying on the long metal tables with thin white sheets covering them. Slowly Grace walked towards the first table, it took all of her courage to pull back the first sheet. The blanket trembled under he touch or maybe it was just her hands shaking. She saw the face of an old man probably in his sixties he was white as a ghost. She shivered as she put the blanket back over his face. The second body wasn't as bad as the first. Just as she had her hand on the sheet a nurse and a man came in. The look on their faces said they didn't expect anyone to be in the room. And why would they?
"Who are you?" The man yelled angrily
"Grace...Wh..."She was about to ask who he was when she noticed the gun in his hand. As soon as she saw it a wave of darkness overcame her and she could only hear muffled noises.
"Get over there!" The man pushed the nurse to the floor by Grace, and then shot her in the chest. The man walked over to the body Grace had been at and looked under the sheet.
"No..no...no...I'm so sorry" The man lost all of his composure when he realized the body he was looking at was his wife
"Guys one of the nurses identified the subject as Mitchell Ward. His wife was a patient here a few days ago it looks like she came in because she had been abused. Mitchell left as soon as the police showed up" Winnie told the team over the head set
"Alright team so looks like a domestic fight gone bad" Greg said as him and Sam continued down the stairs.
"Boss we're there, what do you want us to do?" Ed questioned
"Ed feel up to negotiating buddy?"
"Sure boss" Wordy and Jules held up their shields as Ed walked behind them pushing through the of them were prepared for what they encountered.
*In previous story this was start of a new chapter*
As Wordy, Jules pushed through the doors with Ed close behind them a look of shock and dismay came across their faces. In front of them behind one of the metal tables with a woman laying on it covered only by a thin sheet was Mitchell Ward. The team noticed the nurse laying on the floor covered in blood struggling to take in air and Grace slightly behind Mitchell trying to shield herself from him. When the man heard the doors behind him open he spun around wildly with a crazed look in his eyes. He knew that Grace wasn't a threat so his gun was pointing right at Ed although he was slightly covered by Wordy and Jules and the man would likely be shot before he could pull the trigger on Ed, the sight still made Jules uneasy.
"Get out of here, leave us in peace" The man said angrily to Ed
"Now you and me both know I can't leave you with those two in here alone, Why don't you tell me what you need?" Ed replied
"Didn't you listen? You need to leave now" The man said slightly more aggitated then before
Any negotiator could tell that this situation needed to be diffused quickly or it wouldn't end well for anyone.
"Listen we need to get her out of here" Ed said motioning to the nurse laying on the floor "Can you let us take her out of here and then me and you can talk"
"Good Eddy, let him know that you're listening. He just wants to be heard" Greg said over then and Sam were right outside the door now with EMS closely behind.
"No, she stays. They both stay" Mitchell said looking towards Grace and the nurse
"Ok, tell us why you're doing this. We're here to listen and to help" Ed said with a sense of forced calm
The man seemed to de-escalate a little when he knew they were there to listen to him.
"I just needed to see her again. It wasn't me. I would never hurt her, she was my Liz" The man said his face becoming less angry and more calm replied.
"Alright what happened to her? How'd she get here?" Ed coaxed the man
"She...it...*SIGH* It wasn't me, but it was, I had been drinking". The teams faces cringed.
"I couldn't control myself. I would never hurt her" The gun started to lower. But the mans body was still tense.
A small quivering voice spoke up "But you killed her". Mitchell turned towards the voice, it was Grace. Wordy closed his eyes and let out a sigh in frustration.
"I didn't mean to though, I didn't even know it was her until I was done. It's not my fault" The man replied. He stared at the girl for a minute before grabbing her arm and pulling her towards him and pointing the gun at her. He turned around quickly barely even giving the team a chance to register what just happened.
"Mitchell, you have to let her go now, this won't end well if you don't let her go"
Grace thought for a minute...this had been the second time in two days that a gun had been pointed at her but this time she cared about life. Spike had made her think about life and living. She shouldn't have said anything. Why was she so stupid?
Grace looked right at Jules she looked like the kind of girl who she wanted to grow up into strong, not taking anything from anyone but still being able to be protected by the people around her. Then she looked towards Ed he was calm, he seemed a little scary but there was something else there, something that told her he cared about people. He cared about the victims, the subjects and most of all his team. Finally Grace looked towards Wordy, he was the one who was going to take care of her. She knew the look that they had on their faces. Ed was fighting to stay calm, Jules was trying to look reassuringly at Grace and Wordy was paralyzed with fear.
"No, she's the only thing keeping you guys from shooting me"
"That's not true, we can resolve this peacefully, you just have to put the gun down" Ed was almost pleading with this guy now
"But I'll go to jail" The man still didn't believe that his actions were his own
"C'mon Ed you can do this" Greg instructed
"You'll be there longer if you don't let the girl go"
"I'm...I'm sorry" The man pulled the gun away from grace and aimed it at his own head
"No!" Ed yelled jumping forward a little with his hand out reached
*BANG*
Grace could hear screaming and until Wordy had her gripped in his arms did she realize it was her. EMS came in quickly and carried the nurse off on a stretcher while Wordy shuffled Grace out of the room. Out in the hallway team one minus Spike surrounded Wordy and Grace trying to protect them both from the outside world. Wordy looked up into his Boss's eyes and couldn't hep but feel overwhelmed with emotion.
After what seemed like a lifetime the team met up by their big black SUVS where Spike was waiting for them. They could tell by the look in his eyes that he had wanted to help more. Wordy and Grace walked slowly towards the rest of the team. Grace looked up, her eyes were glassy from crying but a small smile crossed her face. She walked a little faster and he locked her into a hug.
Jules standing over by Sam in the driver's seat of the SUV let a smile cross her face.
"What?" Sam asked
"You won't get it" She teased
"What? Why not?" He responded a little hurt
"It just looks like Grace has a little crush on our Spike"
"Oh" Sam replied still looking confused
"C'mon get in the truck already" Ed said playfully from the passenger seat
A look of surprise crossed Jules face "When did you get here?" She questioned as she hopped in the back seat
"Ouch, No oh hey Ed you alright? Anyways everybody already knows" He replied with a grin
"Sam didn't" She smirked
"That's Ok it's Sam" Ed said continuing the jokes until they arrived at headquarters
[Many weeks later]
"God that was awful" Jules commented as the team warily shuffled out of the SUVs.
"Yeah I thought those two were going to take down the entire block..." Sam started
"Good thing we had Babycakes then eh?" Spike cut it jokingly punching Sam on the arm.
"Alright, alright let's just get to the briefing room so we can go home" Ed replied as him and the team carried their gear into the elevator.
[In the briefing room shortly before Team 1 arrives]
"Hey...I know you don't I?" A tall bright blue eyed older man asked Grace who was waiting for Wordy and the rest of team 1 to get back.
"Mmmmm maybe, I dunno" she replied but she could easily recognize half of the brass pins on his uniform making her know exactly who he was. That and his name tag that read 'Braddock'. Grace remembered back to when her brother was shipped off, they tried to get him home for the funeral of her father but her mother and her just had doors upon doors shut in their faces. Until finally they had a meeting with a General Braddock, Grace at first thought this meant finally they were getting somewhere. But much to her dismay he was the worst of the lot.
[Flashback]
"Good afternoon, Ma'am I am General Braddock, I hear that you have been trying to get your son home for some personal reasons, is that right?"
"Y-Y-Yeesss sir" Graces mother stammered out as she nervously flattened out her dress again with her hands.
"We'll I'm afraid that just isn't possible, his country needs him" the General said in a matter-of-fact way that made it known that was how it was going to go. No questions asked.
"But, sir, you must have a child of your own? Can't you understand?"
"Yes I do, but like I said his country needs him. So if you don't have any more questions I have to get back to work" the General replied straight faced and then started shuffling papers on his desk. Grace just glared while her mother broke down, she never was the tough one. So they left the office and only saw the General again once with his son at the funeral of her brother.
"Ahh... I know where I know you from now" the General stated as he watched Graces face "You and your mother came to see me a while back...about...your brother?" He was now looking intently at Grace.
*deep breath don't freak out, don't freak out...nope too late*
"You dirty, scuzzy, asshole of a man. You are the sickest worst person I have ever met. You gave us hope with that meeting and you just shut us down just like the rest of your stupid nimrod followers!" Graces voice rose steadily with her temper until she was yelling and had her finger inches from the Generals face. Which now was beet red, with anger or embarrassment Grace didn't know, but suddenly she was scared.
"Little girl..."
"I'm 14 I'm not a little girl!" Grace cut him off, she knew she had a bad temper but boy this man could bring it out. Apparently so did he though, as she was about to learn.
"You better get out of my sight before you regret ever being in it" the General whispered coldly through gritted teeth.
"No, you can get out of my sight, I was here first" Grace replied with a shove. Which was mistake number 3. The first mistake was being there at that time, the second was getting into that argument. The general responded by gripping onto Graces arm.
"Listen here girly, you may not know it but I am a General in the military. I have a lot of authority and power and if you touch me again that will be a very, big mistake" the General snarled this literally an inch from Graces face as she tried to pull away.
"Get away!" She screamed with tears in her eyes
Just then...
Alright so what do you guys think? Want to read more? Really I have not written anything in forever so this is probably really awful. Review or message me if you'd like. Hope you enjoyed it :)