Hounded, Scott's Mullings & Four to One

SRU HQ – Gun Range

Ed and Wordy had been looking for Greg for about a half hour when Ed suggested the gun range. As they headed over they discussed the day's training. Both were satisfied with how Jude, Chad and now Kaleb were meshing. There were lots of rough edges to file off but the three would be fine SRU officers given some polishing.

Greg had trained with them all day but he had been distracted after speaking with Holleran early afternoon. After that he left the training mostly to the two of them. Neither quite understood his distraction. Perhaps he had another issue with Dean to sort out. Maybe it was something with Sam, Jules or Spike. They had wondered all afternoon and it was time to find out.

They entered the range and saw it was empty except for Greg who was at the last stall. They donned ear protection and strode over behind him. They watched as he emptied his clip into the target; all solid head shots. They noticed he was mumbling something with each discharge of his weapon but could not hear it.

Wordy saw that Greg did not notice them as he went to swap clips so spoke loudly to be heard over the ear protection "Sarge."

Greg startled slightly and turned his head. When did they get here? He put the safety on, set his gun down and removed the ear muffs and waited.

Ed removed his ear protection too and spoke "Why are you here?"

"Target practice" Greg said noncommittally.

"Why?" Wordy asked setting down the ear muffs on the bench behind him.

Greg shrugged. He really wasn't in a mind to talk at the moment.

Ed cocked his head and raised an eyebrow "Greg what's going on? You've been distracted all afternoon. That's not like you."

Rubbing his forehead Greg squinted his eyes against the constant headache he had today. He really did not want to add any more worries to his friends' plates. They had enough to deal with; their families, Sam, Jules, Spike, and the rookies.

Not to mention the media that was hounding them for interviews or comments. Reporters from across the country were now camped out outside SRU HQ. They nagged everyone that came or went but especially targeting the three of them.

For the past three days they all had constant phone calls to their homes. Mostly it was reporters looking for an angle. However some were people that just wanted to vent against Sam or them by association. It had gotten so bad that Sophie and Shel simply turned off the ringers. Luckily their cell phone numbers had not been compromised so they were not barraged with calls on those.

It was all too much. He was damned glad Sam, Spike and Jules were well away from this chaos. Their recovery would surely be hampered by all this. They all needed quiet and peace to deal with the emotional fallout of Sam and Spike's abduction, Jules attack and assault charge levied against Sam.

But here no one was getting that.

Dean and Clark were even dealing with kids at the high school that had opinions on what a bad person Sam was. They had supporters too but the ones against Sam were spiteful and very vocal. Dean for the most part tried to talk rationally to them and help them see they were unfairly judging someone before facts were known. If he couldn't do that he walked away.

Clark could not stand the garbage a few of his peers were saying and defended Sam aggressively. Sadly Clark had gotten into a couple of yelling matches and one physical fight over it. He was supporting a black eye and had been suspended from school for a week. The other three boys were also supporting bruises and were suspended for two weeks seeing as though they started the physical part and Clark defended himself.

Luckily Wordy's little girls were too young to experience any repercussions from this at school. But Shel was taking heat from a few mothers at the dance school the girls attended. From Wordy's description she had been in tears as she related the hurtful things the mothers had said about Sam while she waited during the girls' dance lesson.

Wordy said Shel sobbed angrily when she told him how they had maliciously said she should be worried about her husband being on the same team. When she had defended Sam and told them she trusted him completely and that he routinely babysat the girls one of the mothers said she was an unfit mother. The mother told Shel that she should call child protective services on her since it was clear Shel put her children in jeopardy by allowing someone that deranged access to her children.

Ed and Wordy waited in silence for Greg to speak. When it looked like he was not going to say anything Wordy added "We are all in this together. Talk to us. What did Holleran say? Was it about the brass making a decision on a statement?"

Greg looked at both of them. Hell they would know soon enough. He blew out a breath and took a seat on the bench.

He clenched his jaw and made a growling noise but then said "This is getting so far out of hand."

Ed snorted as he sat down too "Ya think?"

Wordy sat on the opposite side of Greg "So what is it?"

Leaning back against the wall Greg answered "Spoke to Holleran about a couple of things. First is that Holleran, Chief Alnwick, Deputy Chief Barnes, Head of SIU Caldwell, Detective Fulco of Intel Investigations and a legal rep will be heading to Ottawa to speak with Sam. The Chief wants to talk with Sam before he makes any public statement."

"Is that a good or a bad thing?" Ed asked.

"No idea. Holleran was given no details. Only to make himself available once the General indicates Sam is up to the meeting. It should be in the next day or so" Greg answered.

"I can't believe they haven't already made a statement. What more do they need? They have the video, the statements from the General, Spike, Gaston and even the security guard that called 911" Wordy snapped out angry at the delay in vindicating Sam.

"I know it's Sam place to decide but if they knew about what that sick son of a bitch did to Sam as a boy they would be praising Sam's actions not waiting. Why hasn't Dupont been charged with attempted murder of a police officer or at least assault of an officer with a weapon? Christ he had a gun and fired twice. Hit Sam twice. What the hell is a security guard doing with a weapon at a hospital? There should be charges on that account too" Ed growled.

Greg shook his head. All things he wondered about himself. "I don't know why they are dragging their feet."

Wordy looked at him "You said you spoke about a couple of things. What was the other?"

Briskly Greg rubbed his face. Both Ed and Wordy saw the nervous habit. They waited as it looked like Greg was collecting his thoughts. It was a look they knew well.

"Brisa Horne filed a complaint against me for unequal treatment" Greg informed them.

"WHAT!" both Ed and Wordy yelled astounded.

Greg laughed sardonically "Yeah. They opened an official inquiry with Internal Investigations. She claims I damaged her career by kicking her off the team at the Goose."

"Whiny little bitch" growled Ed.

"It's baseless" Wordy added incensed at the trumped up complaint.

Standing and striding over to the stall again Greg said "It is but Holleran said they had to go by the book because of everything going on. He expects them to find it was a justified dismissal. But it's just one more thing hounding us. Expect to be called in for an I.I. interview tomorrow or the next day."

"Damn straight it was justified" Ed firmly stated.

They watched as Greg loaded the new clip and donned his ear muffs. Both put theirs back on. Greg unloaded the second clip into the target. Wordy again saw him mumbling something each time he shot. Ed and Wordy watched as Greg shot three more full clips.

After Greg had holstered his weapon and cleaned up the shooting stall the three of them headed to the locker room.

On the way Wordy asked "So what were you mumbling as you shot in there?"

Greg looked at him not realizing that Wordy had seen that. He smirked slightly but said "Nothing."

"Ah Greg don't lie to us" Ed chided.

"Nothing I want to admit" Greg said quietly.

Wordy stopped and pulled Greg to a halt "Now we gotta know."

"Spill it Greg" Ed demanded.

Greg looked at them "I alternated between three things. Damn glad you're dead Logan otherwise this bullet would have your name on it for hurting Jules. If Sam were my son you'd be dead already Dupont. Wish I'd been the one to Scorpio you Vlad."

Shocked by the violence of thoughts uttered by Greg Ed mentally added Greg's name to list of people that might seek revenge upon Dupont if the system didn't work for Sam.

Then Ed laughed "Damned glad we can't be convicted of murder for thoughts."

Wordy patted Greg's back "Did it help to release the anger?"

"Actually it did" Greg admitted. And it had. Shooting a target released the pent up rage that had been building for weeks. Feeling more centered and in control he added "Got my head back on straight."

Ed realized that Greg must be feeling the weight of the world on his shoulders right now and could use some support and looking after. He squeezed Greg's shoulder "How about you and Dean come over for dinner tonight."

Greg hesitated then realized that Ed must feel the weight of the team on his shoulders and could use some support. He nodded "Sure. That would be good."

Ed turned to Wordy "Call Shel, you and girls should come too."

Wordy thought a moment "I'm sure Shel would like that after the altercation with the dance moms."

All three pulled out their phones and contacted their loved ones and informed them of tonight's plans. Tonight this half of Team One would offer friendship, care and strength to one another bolstering them to be able to get through the grueling hounding.

General Braddock's Home – Family Room

It was near eleven pm and Scott Braddock sat off in one corner with Mason and Zach silently mulling over the situation as he nursed a beer. His CO had let him leaved earlier than expected and he had arrived just before dinner. He had walked into an atmosphere that was heavy.

He learned from Zach that after speaking with his dad, Sam had gone to his room and refused to join them for dinner. Scott could understand that. It was a lot for Sam to take in that he was being charged with aggravated assault which carries a maximum prison sentence of fourteen years.

On top of that Sam was being flayed open by the press. They all knew Sam would need some time alone to process everything he heard after lunch. So no one ventured into Sam's room except the nurse and that was just to administer pain meds.

Scott noted that his uncle and aunt were subdued tonight. Although Aunt Yvonne did her best to keep dinner upbeat and light he could see she was tired. He could see uncle Will fussing over her too and overheard when he insisted she go to bed early tonight.

She had complied which worried him a bit wondering if her CFS was flaring up again. This had to be emotionally taxing on his aunt. He decided to organize the cousins tomorrow to ensure they were aware. He would make sure Aunt Yvonne was in the supervisory role but that they did all the work.

He glanced over at Jules. That was not the woman he knew. The fire that normally radiated from her was banked. She was nervous and shied away from all the guys except Spike. In fact she had positioned herself close to him all night. Jules seemed especially nervous when Mason came into the room.

The answer for the behavior again came from Zach. A little bit ago he quietly told him that Jules had been attacked and nearly raped in her home. Scott noticed that Mason did his best to give her a wide berth because Zach had found out from Spike that the man who attacked her was very large. Jules had called him the tree man when she had bumped into him in the market.

After learning these details and seeing his aunt he had called Laura. He smiled as he thought of his caring wife. She assured him that Grandma Ann, his mom, had been begging her for a while to have Jerrell and Anna all to herself. Laura would arrive tomorrow morning after dropping the kids off at his parent's home. Both Aunt Yvonne and Jules could use her help and company and he was glad she was able to arrange to come.

Scott wished Natalie could be here to help her mom too but he understood why she wasn't. She needed to be in Paris. His cousin had been lost so long and without direction. At first it was hard to see but eventually he realized that Sara's death had impacted her life too.

It was good to see she had finally found something she was passionate about. He could see her starting to change from the irresponsible self-centered party girl into a true Braddock woman. She just needed a bit more time to mature and get her feet under her.

He took a swig of his beer as his eyes landed on Spike. Christ this whole situation was FUBAR. Spike was not himself either. The man was restrained, serious and clearly something was eating at him. The only time he saw the man smile tonight was when he offered them all some Ma's Love for dessert. His mother sure made fantastic zeppole.

However after dinner Spike spent the rest of the night on his laptop. He barely conversed with anyone so no one knew what he was doing on the computer.

He wondered what was going on in Spike's mind. Sam would be the best to talk to about it but Sam was in no condition to do that right now. Tomorrow he would talk to the cousins determine if any of them could help Spike.

Kyle had connected with Spike pretty well when Sam was in the coma years ago. Maybe he could help. They were alike in many ways. Both were extremely positive men with a sense of humor that never quit. They shared a love of technology too. Kyle had found his niche with in the Navy when he switched from Naval Communicator to become an Intelligence Operator. Kinda felt good his brother was following his path in the Navy.

Then there was Adam. Those two were polar opposites. Where Spike was open and joking all the time Adam was closed off and gruff most of the time. But Adam was insightful and had unique perspectives on things. The way he cheered Sam up by suggesting mountain biking during STF Recovery had been genius. Maybe he might see something to help Spike.

He sighed and hefted himself out of the chair. Tomorrow was gonna be long so he should get some sleep. Scott was saying good night to Zach and Mason when he noticed Jules get up and head out. She must be heading to bed too.

Scott stopped to toss his half empty beer bottle in the trash then headed for the stairs. He halted in the hall seeing Jules enter Sam's room. A few seconds later Cliff headed out and up the stairs. Scott headed for Sam's room to say goodnight.

As his hand was about to touch the doorknob he heard Sam's voice say "Jules lock the door please. We don't want a repeat of this morning."

He heard Jules giggle and light footsteps approach the door then the soft click of the door locking then Jules saying "No soldier we wouldn't want that. Being caught once in your bed by your mom is enough for me."

Scott heard Sam chuckle lightly. He dropped his hand and a huge grin splayed across his face. Well damn. Hot damn. It's about friggin time. He couldn't wait to tell Laura about this development. She would be so pleased. He headed for the stairs and his bed not wanting to bother them.

3 Wing/Canadian Forces Base Bagotville, Quebec – The Brig

Master Warrant Officer Adam Braddock paced his cell in the brig as he glared at the occupants in the cell across from him. Four against one. Not fair odds, for them, he mused.

He continued to pace trying to control his pent up rage. The sheer stupidity of some people infuriated him. Some people just didn't know when to stop running their mouths. He slammed one fist into his palm. He sure knew how to shut them the hell up though. He was glad they had given him the cause to do it.

Adam stopped pacing and looked at the four again. None of them would dare look him in the eyes now. Each of them was nursing sore jaws, arms and ribs. For his part he his knuckles were a bit reddened and he would have a wonderful bruise to the jaw.

The adrenaline rush was finally leaving his system and he sat on the bunk. The only thing he regretted about this whole affair was that he was in the brig and was not sure he would make it in time to the family meeting. He wanted to be there to support Sam.

He sighed and laid back on the bunk and put his hands under his head as he stared at the ceiling. Assault. Could what he just did be considered assault? No he was defending himself. His commanding officer Chief Warrant Officer Seaton had witnessed the whole thing as was talking to the MPs on his behalf right now.

Thing one, two, three and four in the other cell threw the first punches. It wasn't his fault only one of them landed it. He had just finished it. He rubbed his sore jaw. It was a small price to pay to defend his cousin's honor.

"Braddock" an MP called.

Still looking at the ceiling Adam responded "Yeah?"

"You have a visitor" he said.

Adam sat up on the bunk. Seeing who it was he scrambled to his feet and came to attention and saluted "Colonel Sir."

"At ease Braddock" the Colonel stated as he returned the salute.

Adam assumed parade rest and waited for the dressing down to begin.

The Colonel looked him over and then turned and visually inspected the four in the other cell who had also come to attention but had not gone to parade rest because they had not yet been ordered to do so. He had to suppress a smile, four to one, too bad the four were outnumbered by the one.

He ordered them "At ease." The four went to parade rest.

Turning back to Adam and taking two steps towards the cell the Colonel asked "Care to explain what happened Master Warrant Officer Braddock?"

"Sir. No excuses Sir" Adam answered.

"I didn't ask for excuses. I asked if you cared to explain happened" the Colonel stated.

Adam stared at the blue eyes staring at him. He saw the glint of pride reflected in them. Adam cleared his throat "Sir. I was in the bar with my CO Chief Warrant Officer Seaton having a beer after duty. At the next table Sir were those four. I overheard them speaking ill of my cousin. I tried to ignore it. It was difficult to do because of the foul things they were saying about him. Things I know to be false."

"I could no longer sit there and listen. I rose to leave. That's when thing one, I mean Sergeant Mast, placed a hand on my arm stopping me. Sergeant Mast then asked me if I enjoyed being related to nut job that beat people to death unprovoked. I remained silent and shrugged off his grip and tried to leave again."

"The four quickly followed me outside and surrounded me. They continued to disparage my cousin and myself. I tried to push passed thing two, I mean Corporal Mumford. That is when they all began to throw punches. I responded in self-defense Sir."

"The MPs were called. When they arrived all four were on the ground and I stood waiting with my CO. The MPs brought all five of us in until the situation could be sorted out Sir" Adam concluded.

The Colonel turn to the other cell "Sergeant Mast, does Master Warrant Officer Braddock's accounting of the events match your accounting of them?"

Sergeant Mast shifted uncomfortable. He already knew he could not lie. He had been in a previous bar fight at that location and knew they had video cameras inside and outside that would have captured the entire altercation. He answered "Yes Sir."

Turning to the MP the Colonel ordered "Release Master Warrant Officer Braddock."

The MP inserted the key in the door and slid it open then stepped back. Adam stepped out.

The Colonel clapped him on the back several times "Let's get out of here son. We have a plane to catch in two hours. Sam needs all our support now we cannot be late. Did you pack your dress uniform?"

Adam said "Thanks dad and yes I did Sir."

As they walked out the four in the cell overheard Colonel Ryan Braddock say "Damn proud of the way you handled yourself son. Four at one time. They never knew they were outnumbered did they."

"No Sir they did not" Adam laughed.