Shortly after the ambulance turned and bounced down the road, a Hummer powered up the hill. For a moment Chase thought Liz was behind the wheel before he realised it was Major Wayne, their profiles identical. Only then did it hit him. Now he understood Tony's evasive answers over the phone, it was Liz who poisoned him, she was the Tailor. He could imagine her derisive laughter as she opened the envelope he'd left for Jack... consider looking for a female suspect with medical training... he had stupidly written his own death warrant.
And now she had prisoners at the farm. Max and Fred had been talking in the ambulance but their voices were muffled through the closed door, their conversation difficult to fully hear. CTU had been mentioned several times, but they talked mainly about the young blonde girl and how they couldn't wait for their turn with her. He hoped it wasn't Kim kidnapped again... surely she couldn't be that unlucky?
The early morning baying of the dogs alerted Chase to the time. The men were stirring and the dogs would soon be released from their enclosure. He sat up slowly from his makeshift shelter, pleased he felt slightly better despite having had little sleep. Stashing the hospital's paper sack which had held his clothing in the shelter, he stopped to take a piss. He had been marking his territory all through the woods, pissing in various spots so the dogs wouldn't get over-excited and bark if they saw him, thereby alerting the men.
A shift in the shadows ahead and Chase saw Luke heading through the trees, his sniper rifle slung over his shoulder. Luke was ex-Special Forces, a gifted marksman who often enjoyed an early morning target practice before the thermals and air currents became unpredictable. Slipping silently through the trees, Chase narrowed the gap between them as he pulled the scalpel taken from the ambulance.
When Luke stopped to set up a target on a fallen tree, Chase silently slid forward, ready to push the scalpel between the ribs for a death blow. However a sixth sense made Luke turn at the last moment and the scalpel glanced off a rib rather than slide between.
Straining, Chase held Luke from behind, one arm around his face, as he angled the scalpel up for a final thrust. Luke twisted again and Chase knew he was in trouble. Luke was an experienced fighter and he leaned back into Chase's body, knowing his superior weight and height would wear his attacker down.
Desperate, Chase grunted with effort as he pushed off from a dead tree causing the two men to fall forwards and land heavily to the ground. Luke lay still and Chase rolled him over to see the scalpel pushed through the ribs by the force of the fall. Checking his pulse, Chase was relieved to confirm Luke was dead.
Panting, Chase stayed on his knees until his breathing eased and the bouts of nausea relented. Going through the pockets of Luke's cargo pants, he transferred a hand gun with spare clips then a cell phone into his own pockets. The knife he strapped to his leg. He opened the canteen and sniffed cautiously before swallowing some water down. He left the handful of dog biscuits behind, Luke had always spoiled them.
Slinging the rifle over his shoulder, he covered the body with loose branches. It wouldn't fool the dogs but might pass a casual glance by another militiaman.
Moving away from the body, Chase squatted down to call CTU and was put straight through to Tony. "… they call it the farm, I'll leave the phone on and you can triangulate. I don't know their numbers, except they're down three. Two drove away in the ambulance and one's dead... Tony, they have three hostages, do you know who they are?"
"Three?, we think we know two. Liz took Kim, so Jack went to rescue her. We haven't heard anything since. As soon as we get a location we'll send in the teams... but Chase, stay low until then, we don't need to give them advance warning."
"Fine," Chase agreed, leaving the line open as he moved along the top of the ridge until he could see the farmhouse. Placing the phone in a tree knot, he moved forward to observe the house. Two men were building something, drilling holes into heavy timber for large bolts, another was digging a deep hole. He couldn't figure out what they were making.
The front door opened and Major Wayne and Liz came out onto the porch, arm in arm. Chase lay prone and steadied the rifle, he had a clear shot to the Major's chest, his finger itching to squeeze the trigger. He then scanned over the faces of the dozen men standing about on the lawn as they watched progress on the building work. Some faces he recognised from his time with the militia, but there were about eight new faces. He wondered at their air of excitement, the men full of eager anticipation.
He lowered the rifle as the door opened again and Kim, Jack and Jonathan were brought outside and down the steps to the lawn, their arms tied behind them. Raising the rifle, he focused on them one by one. Kim appeared drugged, her eyes glazed as she half leant on Jack for support. Jonathan's face was swollen, especially around the mouth. It looked as if he had been stitched and Chase hoped it wasn't because he'd helped him. Jack had a fresh gash above his eye but still looked defiant. He turned to Liz and Chase wished he could hear what was being said. Watching the body language, Chase guessed Jack was negotiating for Kim's life.
Wayne and Liz were laughing as Jack was pulled forward, his hands untied and pulled out from his sides. "Oh hell!" Chase cursed as he saw what was planned, a large cross lying ready on the grass and Jack about to be crucified.