Author's Notes: As you may know, the main difference in this timeline is that Sarah did not die. Because of this, Sam was able to complete his objective of destroying the plant, but because of this, encountered enemy fire upon extraction. Also note, Double Agent takes place in 2007.
Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN SPLINTER CELL OR ANY RELATED CHARACTERS
Chapter 1:
St. Rose Hospital
Maryland, USA
Unknown date
Sam could still feel the bullet piercing his chest, the surprise and pain flooding his brain. He came in and out of consciousness, seeing faces of his friends, his daughter, and doctors and nurses he didn't know. He woke in a daze, the room around him still fuzzy, his arms and legs weak from disuse.
"Sam! Good God, it's a miracle!" came a familiar voice.
"L-lambert…what's going on?" Sam stammered his voice as weak and tired as he was. He blinked, trying to regain his strength, and gather his thoughts.
"Hold on, Sam. You've been out for…a while." said Lambert, as Sam looked around his austere white and medical green room, his eyes searching for the familiar African-American man.
"Colonel, the factory…" Sam started.
"It's done. That's in the past now Sam." Lambert paused. "Far in the past." Sam's mind was beginning to gather again, his eyes adjusting to the dim light. Lambert wasn't in the room. Wait…
"What do you mean, 'far in the past?'?" Sam inquired, finally gathering the strength to sit up on his bed.
"Sam…it's been a long time since you've been up. This may come as a shock to you, but you've been in a coma." Sam nodded. That explains the room, the memories, and the muscle dystrophy.
"How long?"
"Sam, I--"
"How long?"
Lambert sighed, resigning to a half-smile, half-frown at Sam's stubbornness.
"4 weeks." Sam was confused. 4 weeks would not reduce his former physique to this…
"What aren't you telling me?"
Lambert sighed again and Sam heard him say something to someone he couldn't hear. A woman entered the room, wheeling a man in on a wheel chair, and she stood in the shadows and the man wheeled up to the side of the bed.
"Who--?"Sam's question caught in his throat.
"Hi, Sam. It's been a while," said the frail elderly man in the wheel chair, who was once the proud and tall Colonel Irving Lambert.