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Ua Hiki Mai Kapalena Pau. Season 1 x 23

I'd Rather That You'd Been Hit

Part Three – The Hospital Missing Scene/Tag

NOTES: I'm borrowing info about sarin from a Wikipedia entry. And then using some free license to expand on possible symptoms and medical jargon. I'm in no way sure that I'm correct about ANY of this. But even though this is for fun, I'm trying to have it make some logical sense. So I hope it's okay. Please remember all the jargon is totally contrived and based on very little medical fact – it's all fiction, folks! In other words "don't try this at home."

Plus this may be IT for the week. I was able to pound this out on vacation because we've had two lovely rainy days! I'm not sure this even needs more .. it might be a good stopping point.

Many many many THANKS to all the fantastic reviews. I very much appreciate it!

Recap: As the paramedics arrived and Danny was assessed and loaded into the ambulance. Steve was there and ever so vigilant. But he continued to think his dreadful thought the entire time, knowing it was irrational: "Yes, Danny. I'd rather you'd been hit."

Part Three:

Dr. Lee and his team worked in quiet unison and moved Danny from the small gurney to a more traditional treatment bed as they continued their triage. There were definite similarities between this tight-knit medical team and the Five-O's. As their patient continued to decline, Dr. Lee gave orders to intubate. There was no choice but to place Danny on a ventilator since it was obvious that his respiratory system was shutting down first and very rapidly at that. In addition, Danny was more comatose now than unconscious.

There were several nerve agents that Dr. Lee could keep on his short list. Treatments were similar, but not identical. He needed to speak to Commander McGarrett to get more information and excused himself from the room.

"Administer Biperiden to counter the signs of poisoning. I need to see Commander McGarrett myself. With luck, his team will have called with a more solid update for us." On his way out, Dr. Lee noticed that one of his nurses had collected Danny's wallet, a small holstered gun and police badge. They were together on the counter and so he gathered them, put them in his coat pocket, and went out to track down McGarrett.

As he anticipated, finding Steve wasn't difficult. The Commander hadn't moved an inch from the spot where Dr. Lee had originally left him standing in the corridor. Except that Steve was now crouched down, knees bent with his back against the wall as a brace. His elbows were resting on his knees and both hands covered his face. Adrenalin was wearing off and Dr. Lee knew he would need to manage his questioning with care.

By nature, Lee was a people-person. Where some doctors were cold and abrupt, he was perceptive and calming. He had a reputation for being very Zen-like amongst his peers and he often would voluntarily take on those patient cases most doctors would avoid.

Steve's appearance in the ambulance and current defeated posture in the hallway told him one thing: these two men were much more than co-workers. Plus Williams was a regulation blue detective from the mainland and the Commander was a seasoned Navy SEAL. The two typically would have had nothing in common and normally wouldn't have ever crossed professional paths. It was obvious that they were best of friends and more like brothers.

Kindly, Dr. Lee softly asked, "Excuse me, Commander …"

Though the words were quiet, Steve was startled and instantly thought the worst when he saw the doctor. With his heart in his throat Steve demanded to know "What's happening with Danny? Why are you here?"

"I need to speak with you. But first, I'm not going to lie. We're doing the best we can solely based on Mr. Williams' symptoms. I need to ask you a few questions about what happened today. Have you heard from your team yet?"

"No. They're in the house though and evaluating the crime scene. We think the milk carton will hold the main clues about the medium for the contaminant. But I don't see how any of this helps Danny." Steve's temper was again starting to flare. "Look, doc .."

Dr. Lee calmly and simply said "And see, now you just did help. Let's go over this step by step. From the scene, it was shared that Mr. Williams fell ill soon after physically touching the body. But this is the first that I'm hearing about a carton of milk. Do we know anything from your people about the placement of the body?"

"When I entered the kitchen, the body was prone - with the victim lying on his stomach. His head was turned away from me, so I never saw his face." Steve stopped talking as Lee looked at him in shock. "What? What did I say?"

Lee was honestly taken aback and almost offended. "I had no idea you were in the same room with the contaminant and that you could have been exposed. Why of all things, would you withhold that from anyone? You need to tell me now if you're ill or feeling any similar symptoms. Is there any tightness in your chest? Coughing? Shortness of breath?"

Steve sputtered and put both his hands up in surrender as Lee turned his doctor's gaze full on him. Assessing his skin, eyes and tugged his stethoscope out of his coat pocket with every intention of giving Steve an exam in the corridor.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa – Doc! I'm perfectly fine! Danny's the one we need to focus on here!"

"You obviously didn't touch the body yourself or you WOULD be in the same dire position as your partner. But how close DID you get and who else was there?" Lee was in a quiet fury as he rapid-fired questions at Steve.

"I ... I … I didn't think. It was Danny. JUST Danny we were all so worried about". Steve replied lamely. "Listen, I'm sorry. More than you know. But really I'm fine. And isn't that good? Does that fact tell you anything more about the contaminant?"

Lee was angry, but his head was mulling the newest details. "How CLOSE did you get?"

Unsettled, Steve thought more about the crime scene and how he'd entered the house. "I'd say no less than ten feet away. And Kaye was with me. We were pretty much standing at the same distance, together. And no, neither of us touched the body. And neither of us feels ill."

He continued to relay as much detail as he could recall. The body was prone, victim laying on his stomach and head turned away from Steve. He couldn't see the victim's face and the stench was strong but not putrid. The milk carton was overturned on the counter top. It seemed as if the man had died immediately after drinking directly from it. Presumably, dropping it on the counter as he fell to the floor, convulsing and dying.

He gauged Lee's level of aggravation and was relieved to finally see the slow, characteristic nod from the doctor. There was no way Steve could risk being locked in a separate quarantine room now, of all times. Danno needed him and he also needed to be accessible to his team.

"I'm not pleased about this Commander. This could have caused us all extreme troubles. But I'm going to agree with your Ms. Kaye for the moment. This toxin would have been ingested first orally. Your victim's body has become a toxic stew of sorts. Mr. Williams' secondary exposure was likely by skin absorption. And unless you STILL aren't telling me something – then no. No, you thankfully don't appear to be ill." Lee shook his head in disgust. "It's also a good thing I did decide to ask you a few more clarifying questions. But I never expected to hear this. And I will also admit your information minimizes or even negates our concerns about a toxic inhalant."

"Doc, I really am sorry. I wasn't thinking. And of course you're hundred percent correct." Steve ran his hands over his face and up into his hair, leaving it a tangled mess. "Batting a thousand today McGarrett. Good job, well done."

He then hitched a breath and wryly thought to himself, "Well Danno, I get to deal with the next corpse. How about this - I check–em and you book –em?"

Lee was watching Steve closely. He could plainly see the internal struggle for composure and he made a decision. "Alright then, let me get back to Mr. Williams. I'd prefer that you stay here as well. I'm sure you've ordered your people to call you with first reports. I'd like you to come directly to the isolation room with that report as soon as know anything. Time will be of the essence."

Steve was nonplussed and at first didn't know what to say. Recovering from his momentary surprise of being asked to actually stay close when he was sure he would have been tossed out on his proverbial butt, he found his voice. "Of course. Yes. I'll do that. Thank you."

Before turning away, Dr. Lee remembered the other items in his coat pocket. "I think it best that you hold these for now as well." He gently handed Danny's wallet, badge and gun to Steve.

He then cautioned Steve. "I need you to know that we've had to place Mr. Williams on a ventilator to help him breathe. The toxin is most definitely a nerve agent and acting against his major organs. If we don't know something soon, I'll have zero treatment options. And if he has a family, I'd also suggest placing some initial phone calls."

Steve despondently looked at Danny's belongings in his hands. The crazed mantra of "please stop – please stop" was starting up again. "You know, we grabbed a coffee together this morning on the way into the office. Before, all of this – this INSANITY happened." Steve gestured aimlessly in front of Dr. Lee's face.

"I understand. I do. None of this makes any sense, if it ever could." Replied Lee ruefully. "This added information will be helpful. Once your team has any news, we will have more pieces of this puzzle to put together. But let's not make any other mistakes or overlook an opportunity to learn something."

"Okay, okay. Good. I get it." Steve took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. Lee was a good guy, Steve liked him, and couldn't afford – no didn't WANT to – offend him. "My team is due to call. As soon as I get any type of update, I'll bring it to you A-S-A-P."

"I need to get back in there. We've given him additional meds to manage systemic poisoning and I need to see how my team is faring with stabilizing his vitals."

Steve leaned back against the wall as Lee returned to isolation. He rhythmically thumped the back of his head against the wall a few times and looked at his watch. "Call me Jenna. Somebody call me," he said out loud to no one at all.

And less than two minutes after he uttered those words, Jenna did call him.

"McGarrett".

"Hey, it's Kaye. Listen to me. Danny's been exposed to sarin. You need to tell the doctors to get him started on Pralidoxime right away. If they don't … he's going to die."

Without answering, Steve cut the connection and then for a split second forgot which way the isolation room was before darting to the right down the corridor. He skidded to a stop outside the door as Lee's sixth sense caused him to simultaneously look up.

Steve opened the door and shouted, "It's sarin. My team says it's sarin!"

Lee had directed his team to ready a small array of antidotes on a tray based upon his mental short-list of possibles; exposure to sarin being among them.

"Pralidoxime people." Lee declared, before Steve could say more. "I want the on-duty neurologist on stand-by as well. I'll need him on this case immediately."

"Commander, give me a time check from perceived initial exposure to this moment."

Steve had frozen in the doorway, shocked at Danny's transformation from his animated and outgoing friend to that of a pale, lifeless body. He had been warned about the ventilator, but still wasn't entirely prepared to see Danny surrounded by so many machines. "He looks dead. Oh my god, we're too late. No matter what we do, we're too late."

"Commander, time check please. NOW." Lee reiterated firmly. "I need a time check and then YOU out of this room until I can safely provide an accurate status on his response to the antidote."

For a moment, Steve blankly looked at Lee. "Time check. Right. Right." Looking at his watch yet again, Steve estimated that an hour and fifty-five minutes had elapsed for Dr. Lee and his team.

"We're on the same page. Good." Lee noted, and then, addressing his team, "I think that we may be within a decent window of time on this one. Let's take advantage of it folks."

Glancing up, Dr. Lee saw that Steve still hadn't moved from the threshold. He quietly asked one of his nurses to escort Steve back out to the waiting area. "Just show him to the main waiting room. Tell him that I will be out personally to speak to him in exactly one hour."

Steve looked down as an older dark-haired nurse took him by the elbow and guided him fully out the door. "Sir, can you please come with me right now?" He hesitated briefly as his eyes fell again on Danny. He was learning to trust Dr. Lee but the activity around his friend looked like organized chaos.

He managed to turn away and silently followed the nurse, who offered. "I can't tell you that your friend will be fine yet, but Dr. Lee will give update you personally in one hour. I'd suggest that you grab a coffee, some juice or bottled water - or something - from the cafeteria. It will do you some good."

Steve never answered her and certainly wouldn't be visiting the cafeteria. He was tapped out and just watched her walk back towards isolation. "Well Danny, if you didn't like this little rock before, I bet you just love it even more now."

The final hour of waiting was sheer torture for Steve. But Dr. Lee kept to his word and returned in exactly one hour to provide Steve with an update on Danny's recovery status.

"So?" Steve asked immediately, voice almost breaking. "How's Danny? Can I see him?"

As with many people and even though he'd have some familiarity with chemical agents from SEAL expertise, Dr. Lee had partially expected Steve to hope that the word "antidote" would be the miracle cure. 'Hope springs eternal' was one of his favorite sayings and regardless of the person, almost everyone held out for 'hope'. But truth be told, an antidote wasn't always the silver bullet and people didn't miraculously rise; whole and sound.

Dr. Lee chose his words gently sensing the renewed levels of anxiety, but wanting to be as honest as possible. "Let's just say that I'm cautiously optimistic. He is responding to the drugs. Meaning that initial tests are now more positive and he is most definitely stabilized."

Steve sighed in relief. "It's good then? He's better?"

"He is responding in a positive and predictable manner to the drugs. It's what we had hoped for - but do I believe that he will recover?" Dr. Lee paused and hesitated slightly before replying. Steve anxiously held his breath as he listened closely to each word the doctor said next. "Again, a cautionary 'yes'. The best news is that we were within the optimal window of time when the antidote was administered."

"Why do I know there's a "BUT" in this conversation?" demanded Steve. Arms flailing once again in frustration. "What is the full prognosis here for Danny?"

"My caution to you is that sarin is more than 500 times more toxic than cyanide. Orally, your victim had a massive dose and died virtually instantly. That body held a secondary level of toxicity which Mr. Williams was directly exposed to through skin absorption. Mr. Williams is almost through the woods, but not entirely. Once he's conscious, he'll need to be thoroughly examined by a neurologist. Remember, this is a nerve agent and his convulsions were quite severe."

Lee waited as he watched Steve grasp this latest news. His face was pained, he had closed his eyes and hands were tightly fisted on his hips. He was clearly exhausted and Lee was sympathetic. With his eyes still shut, he quietly replied. "I'm not sure I understand what that means for us. For Danny."

"It means that while he's responding well and that I DO believe he will pull through this, that we all still need a bit more time. He's trending up but it's early and he's been through a great deal of systemic physical stress. After that, our next step is to have the neurological results also prove to be a simple matter of course.

Steve had hung on every word. "Alright. That's fair. So when can I see him?" Steve continued to push for more, and his need to see Danny with his own eyes was overwhelming.

"This guy is starting to look like a bobble-head." Steve thought to himself as Lee once again did his characteristic trademark. And then he was able to smile for the first time that day as Dr. Lee confirmed, "If the positive trending continues as we hope it will, he should recover consciousness in approximately two to three hours. As that trending continues, we will get him off the ventilator and then out of isolation and into a recovery room. He likely will be exhausted and he'll need to stay in the hospital a few days for monitoring. He won't be feeling very well since the muscular convulsions were so severe. But you can see him in a few hours; definitely later this afternoon or by early evening."

Steve felt himself relax ever so slightly. He could deal with this latest timeline. He now fully trusted Dr. Lee and found security in words and details he could easily understand.

His muscles were a bunched band of knots across his shoulders and into his neck. He'd need a good, long swim at some point. He pinched the bridge of his nose with his two fingers and exhaled deeply. "Okay Danno, we got some good news here. Maybe, quite possibly, the best news all day. So you just keep your end of this bargain now."

And after all of the anxiety and stress of the day, the best he could come up with next was a simple, "Thanks, Doc." But the words spoke volumes, and Dr. Lee heard the sincerity in them.

As Dr. Lee turned away, the rest of the Five-O team rounded the corner. "Fantastic, everyone's timing is improving." Steve noted, as he turned towards his team.

Chin reached him first. "How's Danny?" And Steve actually welcomed the question as the rest of them gathered around. And as he answered, he was content that the outcome of this get-together would be much different compared to what had unraveled all of them earlier that day.

To be continued …. MAYBE?