AN: This chapter contains medical terminology. Although I made my own research and a real doctor helped me, keep in mind that I'm not a doctor. An apology for the medical inaccuracies that may exist (and I'm sure there are some). This is only for entertainment purposes.

Please take a little time for a quick review. I would like to know what you think.

Enjoy reading.


Chapter 12: Uncertainty

"Damn it!" Steve exclaims, "Thompson must have covered him while he was running away." Then he presses his ear and says, "I need the thermal images within a radius of five miles around the delivery point. Adler fled. "

At that moment, Steve checks his gun and puts it in the holster, he gets rid of the jacket and runs in the direction of the group of trees by which he followed Thompson half an hour earlier.

Some SEALs of the Alpha team are finishing moving boxes from one truck to another, to proceed with the transportation of weapons and ammunitions to the safe house. Other team members are evaluating the medical conditions of Adler's men who have fallen, checking and caring for the wounded. Crackerjack calls one guy and says, pointing to Lynx "The helicopter is coming, take care of him." He checks his weapon and runs after Steve.

Steve is moving through the trees, tracking Adler. Checks every branch or rock on the ground that has a suspicious position. Presses his ear and asks, "Is there any sign of Adler in the thermal images?"

A voice responds, "Not yet, we can't activate the thermal image until we have a more accurate location. We've sent the helicopter to overflight the area, they're practically skimming the treetops to see if we can locate him. "

Suddenly, Steve feels a strong blow in the head and falls to the ground stunned, the gun slips from his hand. He curses himself for not being alert. Tries to stand up, but an intense feeling of dizziness invades him. With blurred vision, he can distinguish a figure walking towards him, the man picks up the gun from the ground and leans over him.

Adler's voice sounds furious, "So, Commander McGarrett, here we are again," then beats hard with the butt of the gun on the fallen man's face, Steve can hear a crack and an intense pain spreads from his jaw. Adler brings his right hand up and rips the intercom off from Steve's ear; with fury, he crushes it with his foot.

Steve gathers his strength, straightens up and looks at Adler and, smiling with contempt, asks him "Do you really think you'll get out of this alive? At this moment, there is a SEAL team tracking you and they won't take too much time to find you. "

Adler can't help laughing, "That's why I need you, commander. You'll be my exit ticket". Abruptly, he takes Steve's arm, pulling him and forcing him to get up. "Come on, get up!" He yells, pointing the gun. Steve can see the SIG's black hole only a couple of inches from his face; as he slowly gets up, Adler yells "Walk ahead!"

They have walked ten or twelve steps, when a flock of birds suddenly takes off, a couple of yards further on. Adler is distracted by the noise and Steve takes advantage of the brief moment to attack him. Both men struggle and a few seconds later they are rolling down a steep slope, hitting logs, branches and rocks in their path, a fraction of a second later, Steve feels a sharp blow behind his head and everything becomes dark.


Crackerjack is running through the trees, confused because he has not yet managed to see Steve. He is almost sure the man has gone this way, but he still can't find him. At that moment, he sees a body on the ground, next to a tree. He prepares his gun and walks close to the body, when he is a couple of feet away he can see his face and recognizes him: Thompson. A shot in the middle of the forehead and the eyes open and fixed. He quickly leans over and checks the man's pockets, finding a cell phone and a walkie talkie without difficulty. He keeps them in his pants pockets and without taking a second look at the traitor's body, continues his way in search of Steve.

It's been ten minutes since he heard his voice on the intercom, and after then, nothing. For the umpteenth time, he presses his ear saying, "Steve, do you copy?" There is no answer. Suddenly, on his left, about fifty or sixty yards away, sees as a flock of birds take flight, fleeing. Instinctively he starts running towards there.


The Delta team has arrived at the warehouse. Junior approaches the entrance stealthily and slides the door carefully. On the intercom they were assured that inside there is only one person alive, huddled in a corner.

The warehouse is completely dark; the men turn on their flashlights and begin to move, checking the place. Suddenly Junior sees them: The bodies of two men hang inert from one of the roof beams.

The team approaches slowly, running and lighting that part of the warehouse. The ground is completely covered with water and there are several blood puddles. Two of the men approach the bodies and, after verifying the absence of a pulse, begin to lower them. At that moment, Junior lights the corner with his flashlight and then sees her.

Catherine is unconscious; her hands are tied with a rope to a ring embedded in the wall. Her head is tilted and her hair, wet and tangled, falls forward, completely covering her face. Gently, Junior comes over, removes the hair from her face and places his fingers on her neck saying, "She's alive! The pulse is weak and her breathing is irregular, but she is alive. Call the helicopter to come here immediately!" Then he presses his ear and says to the intercom "Here Delta team. We have located the target." He expects to hear Steve's voice asking about Catherine, but all he hears are gunshots and the voices of some of the SEALs in the heat of the shooting. The Alpha team must be executing the operation, so he decides to wait.

Begins to untie Catherine's wrists and gently lays her on the floor, trying to assess her condition. Her face has some bruises and spots of dried blood and there don't seem to be broken bones or signs in the chest or abdomen that suggest the possibility of internal injuries caused by blows. He approaches to listen her breathing, it is slow and shallow, her throat emits rare noises when inhaling and exhaling.

Someone has turned on the light and now he can see the place better. Next to the two men's bodies, there is a bucket and a wet cloth thrown on the floor and an electric prod on a ramshackle wooden chair. Junior begins to figure what really happened in this place.

After what seems like an eternity, the unmistakable blades of the helicopter are heard on landing. Quickly two paramedics come running with a stretcher. Junior gets up to let the men do their job. As he watches the paramedics move frantically to stabilize Catherine, Junior presses his ear again and says, "Commander McGarrett, this is Junior, do you copy?"

Crackerjack's answer is immediate. "Junior, I'm Sam. We secured the area but Adler ran away and Steve went to look for him. I went after, but I still can't find him. Something must be wrong with his intercom because he doesn't answer. "

"Okay," Junior says, "please tell him we found Lieutenant Rollins."

One of the paramedics takes a stethoscope and begins to listen to the heart and lungs, while the other wraps her neck with a cervical protector. Both carefully place Catherine on the stretcher. The first paramedic says, "The patient is unconscious. Irregularly strident breathing, supraclavicular and intercostal strain, increased pulse. Possible pulmonary edema due to aspiration. Volume and composition of the liquid yet to be determined. I will proceed with early endotracheal intubation with O2 to 100%." The other paramedic is inserting an IV into her left arm.

"We're going to take her to Queen Elizabeth Hospital, someone call them and let them know we'll be there in fifteen minutes"

Quickly the paramedics push the stretcher and a moment later, they put it into the helicopter. Junior gets in, behind her and tells the rest of the team "Secure the area and wait until they come to pick up the bodies. I have to go with her." He quickly takes off his helmet, vest and the rest of the equipment and approaches Catherine holding her hand, trying not to hinder the paramedics work, who continue their battle to stabilize her.

After closing the door and the helicopter takes off, Junior turns left and looks at Lynx who is sitting on the left, looking at Catherine uneasily. He has a bandage covered in blood, wrapping his right shoulder and an IV line goes into his left arm from a bag with a clear liquid.

Junior gently squeezes Catherine's hand; his face is contorted with concern. Seeing Lynx looking at him, he yells so his voice can be heard over the intense rotor's noise, "Commander McGarrett asked me to take care of her." Lynx looks at Junior with a sympathetic expression and draws a smile, answering "He's lucky to have you ..." Junior nervously sighs, takes the satellite phone from one of his pants pockets and dials a number.


Twenty minutes have passed and Crackerjack still can't find Steve. Some SEALs from the Alpha team have joined the search. They have been in communication with the helicopter, but the vegetation in the area is very thick and there is not much they can see through the treetops. Desperate he presses his ear and says, "There's still no sign of McGarrett. We're going to walk to the east to see if we can find him. "


Honolulu

Danny and Chin have been watching the operation by looking closely at the screens in the situation room. Now Danny is stirring restlessly in his chair. It has been more than half an hour since Steve's last communication with the base and he knows that the SEALs are looking for him in the dense forest, but he has also heard the message from Lieutenant Jackson saying that there is no trace of him. The screens constantly show the images of the helicopter and the cameras located on the helmets of the SEALs.

At this moment the phone, which until now has remained silent, begins to ring. Danny blinks a couple of times and takes it, identifying the number of Steve's satellite phone. Without wasting time, he gets up, presses the button and says "Steve ..."

"No. Danny, It's Junior. I'm in the helicopter with Lieutenant Rollins ... She doesn't look good. "

Danny doesn't know what to say. The last thing he heard was Catherine is alive and now this. "What do the paramedics say?" He asks, lowering his voice.

"All they know is that she has pulmonary edema by aspiration of a large amount of fluid. They still don't know how much. They had to intubate and she's connected to a tank of pure oxygen. We don't know how long she has been in this condition and the paramedics say time is crucial. They don't seem to hope much, Danny." Junior makes a pause, trying to calm down, and then continues, "We're going to Queen Elizabeth Hospital. I'll call you as soon as I know something. Do you know anything about Steve? "

Danny answers, "They're looking for him, but darkness doesn't help. I'll keep you informed. Please don't move away from Catherine. "

"I won't" Junior answers and Danny presses the button to end the call.

Slowly he drops into the chair, Chin looks at him, but before he can ask anything, Danny says, "It was Junior. He's with Catherine in the helicopter. She doesn't look good." Chin knows that, no matter how much anger Danny feels against Catherine, the concern in his voice is sincere, mainly because they both know Steve will be devastated if she dies. He gently places a hand on Danny's forearm and says "She's strong ... she's going to make it". Danny sighs.


Steve opens his eyes slowly and emits a grunt of pain. The darkness of the night surrounds him; He can hear the noise of the insects and the wind blowing through the trees. Tries to get up, but an intense pain pierces his brain, he raises his left hand by feeling the back of his head and feels the warm blood that flows from a two-inch wound just behind his ear. Cautiously looks around, the faint moonlight filters through the trees, giving the forest a ghostly appearance. Suddenly, Steve feels cold and he notes his clothes are wet. He realizes that half of his body is submerged in the water of what appears to be a small pond.

He mentally scans his body, trying to detect other injuries, but in addition to some bumps and bruises, there doesn't seem to be any fractures in his arms or legs and the chest pain seems to be due to the impact of Thompson's gunshot, his jaw has started to swell and it hurts like hell…

Suddenly his senses alert him and he feels how the hair on the back of his neck bristles. He has heard footsteps splashing on the muddy ground. Calculates they're coming from the right side. His hand goes to the holster, but remembers he has struggled with Adler for it, he instinctively lifts his leg and takes the Beretta 22 from the ankle holster, raises his head and then sees him.

Adler's hunched silhouette approaches him walking slowly. The left hand pressing his abdomen. On the right, Steve's SIG SAUER. The man raises his hand and turns on the light of the gun, searching... Suddenly Steve feels the light illuminating his face and the barrel of the gun pointing direct to him.

In a sarcastic tone Adler says, "Wow. Commander. I think we both have seven lives! Don't you think?"


Crackerjack has found Steve's trail again, under the powerful light of his flashlight. On both sides, the members of his team are still searching. Suddenly someone shouts "Hey! I've found something!"

Quickly Crackerjack runs towards the origin of the voice, arriving at the place a few seconds later. One of the men points to some broken branches, a large stain of blood between the rocks and some splashes on the bark of a huge tree.

"Sir ..." says the man "Here are signs of struggle".

Sam begins to search around the area. A couple of inches beyond, he finds Steve's wrecked intercom. Someone says, "there's more blood here!" They all begin to follow a trail of blood drops, separated by a couple of inches. A little later, they find more signs of struggle. There are some broken branches scattered on the ground and splashes of blood everywhere.

Sam approaches and can see that the trail of broken branches continues down a steep slope. "I think they fought and rolled around here," he says, as he prepares his gun again and starts walking in that direction, followed by his teammates. Suddenly they stop, surprised by some gunshots that pierce the silence of the night.