Reversal of Fortune

Chp. 9

Disclaimer: No Copyright Infringement intended. The Missing characters do not belong to me. I don't own them. At all.

Jess was abruptly raised from unconsciousness when Druis angrily stormed into the room. He walked over to Jess and took off the handcuffs. She was still a little woozy from her previous encounter. Yet Jess knew that something was up because of the way Druis came in the room. She forced herself to focus more on what was happening. She didn't want to be caught off guard by Druis, especially not now.

"You know, I must admit that sometimes people can surprise you. I honestly have to say that I didn't believe they would find you so fast." Druis rambled to Jess. "I figured they'd find you in a few days or rather your body, but like I said, apparently, people can surprise you."

The entire time Druis was speaking, Jess just looked at him. It was obvious he was pissed because the FBI found her and Katie with Nicole, Colin, Antonio, and Pollack leading the way.

"But it's not too late for them to find a corpse, Agent Mastriani." Druis continued. "I truly enjoyed your company." Druis said as he reached behind his back and pulled out a gun.

Jess stood up out of the chair she'd been confined to for so long happy that she was no longer handcuffed. At the same time, she figured that no matter how vindictive Druis was, he just couldn't shoot someone tied to a chair. Maybe he wanted to see if she still had any fight left in her. She stared down at his gun then looked back up at him. Jess noticed his usual face full of smugness, but now there was something different there too. She thought it could've possibly been his knowledge of impending capture, but she couldn't really tell. Glancing down at the gun again, she knew she had to act fast or he was definitely going to kill her. "Druis, killing me is only going to make your situation worse. Give up now, and things will be much easier for you."

Druis stared at Jess for a moment and smiled. "You're trying your hand at negotiating again, agent? Didn't you realize the first couple of times you tried it doesn't work?"

"I'm just trying to make sure we both leave this building alive. I know the FBI's here and, trust me, if they find me dead, you will be too."

"Oh, one of us will definitely die tonight, and it's not going to be me." Druis aimed his gun at Jess poised to fire when they both heard gunshots outside the room. Druis looked towards the door taking his attention off Jess.

When the gunshots were heard, Jess glanced at the door also. She looked back at Druis and noticed he wasn't looking at her. She knew it was the perfect opportunity and lunged toward his gun. Druis caught the sudden movement from the side of his eye and reacted just as Jess grabbed his hand. They struggled a few moments before the gun went flying across the room on the floor. Even more enraged than before, Druis swung at Jess missing her head as she ducked. Jess countered by kicking his legs from underneath him. She turned around, grabbed the chair she was handcuffed to, and hit him over the head as he tried to get up. Jess swung again while he was on the ground, dropped the chair, and headed for the door. Her entire body still ached from her earlier struggle, but she knew she couldn't let that slow her down. Before she reached it, she felt herself being pushed with extra force towards the door. She hit the door with so much force her breath was knocked out of her for a moment. Before getting time to recover, Druis grabbed her head, banged it against the wall, and threw her back towards the middle of the room. She went flying across the room landing hard. Druis rushed over to Jess kicking her in the stomach a few times. The blows causing much more pain throughout her already aching body. After a quick moment trying to deal with the pain, she slowly stood up only to be face to face with Druis and his gun.

"Miss Mastriani, you certainly have a lot of fire in you and I like that. Nevertheless, it's time to stop playing games. See you in hell, agent." Druis said as he pulled the trigger.

Jess looked at Druis and saw the flash from the barrel of the gun. The next thing she felt was the pain as the bullet rocked through her upper body. The only thing she could think about was her family, friends, and Colin.

Colin and Nicole had made their way up a flight of stairs when they heard Pollack radio in that they found Katie. They breathed a sigh of relief because they knew Katie was okay, but at the same time, they became a little more worried about Jess. If Druis knew that Katie was safe, he might be tempted to kill Jess sooner. They were already running out of time. A greater sense of urgency was put upon them. Nicole and Colin were stealthily making their way down the hallway checking rooms for any sign of Druis or Jess. Nicole was in the lead, and Colin was watching the rear. Colin couldn't help but think about Jess. He was praying that she wasn't hurt. He cared for her a lot, and he thought they were good together. He vowed to find her before Druis could hurt her. As they were looking, they heard gunshots from behind. Colin and Nicole sharply turned around and peered down the hallway with their guns drawn ready to return fire if necessary. Then, Antonio and Pollack appeared from around a corner.

"We heard gunshots." Nicole said.

"That was us." Pollack answered. "We encountered a couple of Druis' friends down the hallway. It's apparent they know Katie's gone. Any progress on Mastriani?"

"No sir, Not yet."

"Okay. Let's keep going."

This time Pollack took the lead with Nicole, Colin, and Antonio not too far behind. They progressed a little further down the hallway when they heard a gunshot. Nicole noticed the light from the quick flash of the gun under one of the doors.

"Over there." She said as she charged towards the door.

"Nicole, wait." Antonio called after her.

Colin, Pollack, and Antonio headed after her. Just as Nicole reached the door and opened it, she saw another flash and heard another gunshot.

After the first bullet went through her body, Jess felt the impact of the second bullet through her stomach without hearing the gunshot. Her body lost all of it's strength and she collapsed on the floor. She didn't even hear the door burst open and all the aftermath that ensued.

Nicole was briefly caught in a state of shock. She couldn't believe what her eyes were seeing. She saw Jess fall to the ground when the bullets hit her. A quick flashback of the last time Jess was shot quickly passed through her mind. Nicole's eyes darted from Jess to Druis as he shifted bringing the gun in her direction. Nicole reacted and fired a few rounds at Druis. She saw a few hit his body and one right through his head. As he fell to the ground, Colin, Pollack, and Antonio ran into the room. The whole encounter took less than three seconds. Nicole ran over to where Jess laid on the ground. Colin and Antonio were right behind her as Pollack went over to check Druis.

"I need an ambulance now. Agent down." Nicole yelled then looked down at Jess. "Jess, can you hear me?" Nicole asked.

"Nicole?" Jess sputtered trying to breathe and fight against the darkness. "Is Katie okay?"

"Yeah, she's safe, but we need to worry about you right now." Nicole responded.

"Jess, I'm here baby." Colin said.

"Colin." Jess said showing a faint smile. Her eyes were closing as the seconds went by. Finally, her body gave in, and her eyes closed.

"Jess, stay with us." Nicole said as she held Jess' hand. "Where are the EMTs?" Nicole yelled.

"They're on their way." Antonio said as he checked Jess' vitals. "She's got a pulse, but barely." Antonio glanced over her body looking for the wounds. "She took one in the shoulder and the abdomen. Press down, Colin." Antonio instructed Colin to press down on Jess' abdomen to try to control the bleeding. Antonio was working on her shoulder. Nicole started wiping the blood from Jess' face and neck.

Pollack walked up to the group and kneeled down alongside Jess just like everyone else. He said a silent prayer for Jess' life. He wouldn't know how to deal with losing another young agent on his watch. The entire ordeal with Janey took a lot out of him. He couldn't possibly go through the same with Jess. She was a good friend to him, and she was a very good agent.

Colin sat pressing onto Jess' stomach to keep her bleeding to a minimum. He'd seen agents shot, bleeding uncontrollably, but this was different. The entire way he looked at it was different. It was scarier. Ever since he met Jess when she tackled him in the FBI garage, he couldn't stop thinking about her. Looking into her eyes, he knew he had to get to know her better. Now, that he knew her, he cared for her very deeply. Actually, it was deeper than that. He loved her. He couldn't bear to lose her this way.

Nicole just sat there holding Jess' hand and wiping her face. She couldn't believe this was happening to Jess. She pushed the thought of Jess' death out of her head. To her, it couldn't happen. Jess was the first partner she had that accepted her for the person she was. Jess was not only her partner, but her best friend. They'd been through a lot together since they became partners less than two years ago, and she was determined that their partnership and friendship wouldn't end like this.

Antonio continued to work on Jess' shoulder. It was bleeding badly, but he was thankful it hit her where it did. A few inches lower, and that shot would've killed her. He looked over at Colin and Nicole. Both were incredibly worried about her just as he was. Jess was a wonderful person and a great friend to him. He didn't know many women that shared his love for Mopar muscle cars. He looked down at his work, then back at Nicole and Colin. He thought about what this whole ordeal must feel like for the both of them. In the end, all of them did't really understand the whole situation and why it had to happen to Jess.

While Nicole, Colin, Antonio, and Pollack were lost in their thoughts as they tended to an unconscious Jess, the EMTs finally entered the room. The group moved from Jess' side so the paramedics could do their job. When Jess was loaded onto the stretcher, they wheeled her outside into the ambulance.

"Is anyone riding with her?" One of the paramedics asked.

"I am." Nicole and Colin said at the same time. They both looked at each other and nodded in silent agreement. "We are." They said together.

The EMT nodded. "One can get in back. The other has to ride up front."

"Okay" Nicole responded and with silent agreement, she got into the back with Jess while Colin went to sit up front. As the doors closed and the ambulance took off towards the hospital, Nicole picked up Jess' hand and held on for dear life.

Antonio ran to his Durango ready to follow the ambulance. Pollack barked a few orders at the remaining FBI agents and ran to Antonio's SUV. As soon as Pollack was in, Antonio sped in the direction of the ambulance.