John was startled awake by Jessie coughing. He rubbed at his eyes and looked down at her, she had at some point, moved to lay her head on his 'good' thigh and curled up against his leg. He reached for a bottle of water and put his hand on her back, shaking her gently.

"Hey," He patted her back as she continued to cough. "Hey, I have water here...take a drink." When she didn't respond he pulled her up and leaned her against his shoulder. "Jessie..." He pushed the hair from her face and ran his hand over her cheek. "Jessie...hey..."

She stirred and pushed at the air above her chest, as she coughed. "Get this thing off me...I can't breathe..." She mumbled. She opened her eyes and looked up at John. "You said we would go fishing before we went home...did I get sick?"

John looked at her eyes, they were glassy and unfocused. She was looking at him, but not seeing him. Her coughing had eased when he sat her up, but he could hear a slight wheeze in her breathing. "Hey, stick with me, kiddo... Jess, want some water?" He watched as she tried to blink her eyes to focus on him. "That's it..." He ran his finger from her temple to her chin.

"John..." She rubbed at her eyes, weakly. "You're all fuzzy..."

"It's okay...it's just the fever."

She stopped rubbing her eyes and looked down at her chest. "Feels like there's something sittin' on top of me...I feel funny..."

"It's alright, don't worry about it...you're okay." He wasn't sure who he was trying to convince, her or himself. He held the bottle of water to her lips. "Here, take a drink."

She took a few swallows and pushed it away. "That's good." She told him and started coughing again.

John patted her back. "Easy...easy now."

"I don't like it. I don't like feeling this way." She turned and buried her face in his chest. "Please, make it stop."

"Shhh...lay back down, go back to sleep."

She let him guide her so that her head was resting on his thigh, again, and she curled around him as he stroked her hair. She started coughing a minute later and struggled to sit up. John helped her. He pulled her up and sat her between his legs, pulling her back to lean against him. He put his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder. Her coughing subsided and he kissed her temple.

"Better?" He asked, as he ran his fingers through her hair.

She nodded. "Can't lay down again...feels like someone's standing on my chest."

"It's okay...just lean on me... go back to sleep...you'll feel better when you wake up."

"I'm scared..." She whispered.

John felt tears slide down his cheeks and he stopped stroking her hair, for a minute, so he could brush them away. "Shhhh...don't be. I'm right here...go back to sleep."

"Dad will be here soon." She mumbled as she drifted off.

John held her tight. "Just rest...you here me?...I'm not gonna let you quit on me, got it?" He whispered in her ear and he was amazed when she nodded. He smiled, then leaned his head back against the wall. 'Hurry up, Bailey...' He prayed. 'Please...'

Brian Kerrigan arrived at the penthouse looking like he had just played a football game and won. He had a black eye and a split lip, but he was smiling and could barely contain his energy. Joey, on the other hand, looked like something the cat dragged in, but somehow he managed to smile too, proud of himself that he had helped get information that could help them find Jessie. As Grace dressed their wounds, Kerrigan told them what happened. He had gone to see Jake Dill, an employee of Ian O'Malley, who had been an upper-level soldier for Shawn O'Doyle up until his death. After explaining the situation to him, the man was more than willing to help, he had liked Patrick and had been a friend of Sal's. He told Kerrigan about the underground bunkers that were used in some of O'Doyle's warehouses to store contraband and how, sometimes, they were used to dispose of O'Doyle's enemies. As Kerrigan was thanking him for the information, four O'Malley men came out into the alley and spotted the two men talking. Faking an argument, so they wouldn't grow suspicious, Kerrigan cursed at him and turned to leave, but Joey who had been watching from the car thought that the argument was real and Kerrigan was in trouble. He jumped out of the car and ran towards the alley, diving on the closest man too him. The three other men descended upon him immediately and Kerrigan ran over to help. The fight lasted about ten minutes. Kerrigan had managed to floor three of the four and as Dill held the last guy back, Kerrigan picked up Joey and left.

George had been going over the building schematics of O'Doyle's warehouses since Kerrigan had called and talked to Robert. Taking into consideration, their location and structure, he narrowed the possibilities down to thirteen. Bailey split everyone into teams, with the help of the Boston P.D. and set the search in motion. George had stayed behind with his computer to coordinate with everyone, and Grace and Sam waited with the E.M.T's. Bailey was with Nathan on his way to the warehouse, he had assigned himself to when his cell phone buzzed. They were all communicating with walkie-talkies so he was a bit annoyed that someone was calling him on his cell. He dug it out of his pocket and was surprised to see it was Angel. His first thought was that something happened to Chloe. He only got the first syllable of her name out before she started talking, fast. Too fast. She was upset, that was obvious, but between their connection and her speaking so quickly, he couldn't tell what she was upset about. He turned cold when he heard Krieger's name, that part came in loud and clear.

"Angel! Angel, honey, slow down! Did you say, Krieger? Thomas Krieger? Are you alright?" He could hear her taking deep breaths, to settle herself, and when she spoke again she was calmer, but there was still a tremble in her voice. He couldn't believe what she was telling him. When he was sure she was finished, he repeated some of what he heard back to her, to make sure he heard correctly. "He told you where they were...Clayton and William, right? You're sure? Okay, good. He wasn't calling from Georgia? Uh-huh...you think he may kill himself...well, the last signal we got from him was from Ohio, so we'll have to start from there. I'm going to call the guys downstairs and put them on alert...and I'll have a car cruise the neighborhood. Chloe's still at school? Okay. I'll have someone go with you to pick her up. No, I don't think you should worry. Okay. Are you sure you're gonna be alright? Okay. I'll call as soon as we find them and they're safe. I'll talk to you soon." As soon as she hung up, he threw his phone down and picked up his walkie-talkie.

"Georgie...Clayton and William...what's there.?"

"Uh...a warehouse...but not one that's on our list. What's up?'

"Krieger called Angel...he told her they were there. Who's in the vicinity?"

"Uh...Kerrigan and Baker are the closest. You're about fifteen minutes behind them."

"Kerrigan, you listening?"

"We're turning around now, Agent Malone. We'll be there in ten."

"Good. I'm headed there also. Sam?"

"We just pulled out, Bailey, we're on our way. We should get there at the same time as you."

"Okay. Alright, listen up everyone, stick to your assignments in case Krieger is jerking us around. As soon as we get confirmation, we'll need to get everyone there to secure the crime scene. Lt. Rummel, I'll need you, two more cars and a C.S.U. team to join us now."

"We'll be there, sir."

"Okay everyone, let's bring them home." He laid the walkie-talkie down on the dashboard and turned to Nathan, who was trying to cut there time in half by swerving in and out of traffic. "I hope Krieger's on the level...and John and Jessie are alright."

John opened his eyes, though he didn't remember ever closing them, and tried to rub the blurriness from his vision. He felt hot, but it wasn't the same heat he felt with Jessie leaning against him. This heat was coming from him. Out of him. He touched his forehead, to confirm what he already knew. It was very warm and beaded with sweat. His hair was damp and when he leaned forward, to reach a bottle of water, he felt cold sweat run down his back. "Perfect." He said tiredly and drank some water. He figured Jessie might need some water too.

"Hey...Jessie." He shook her and patted her cheek gently. "Jessie, c'mon wake up...just for a minute." She didn't respond to him in any way, so he put some water on his fingertips and moved them gently across her lips. 'God, she looks pale.' He thought when he noticed there was no color in her lips at all. "Jessie, please, just open your eyes and talk to me, okay?" He held her closer and laid his chin on her shoulder. He could feel her breathing and it was comforting, but he could also hear a wet, rattling noise in her chest each time she inhaled, and that scared him. He wet her lips again and she flinched. "Hey..." He smiled when she opened her eyes. "I knew you were in there...somewhere. Want some water?" He held the bottle out in front of her.

"No, I don't want anymore." Her voice was raspy like she needed to clear her throat. She knocked the bottle out of his hand. "I think I drank too much...I feel sick."

"He could tell by the way she was just looking up at him, blinking, that again, she was looking at him but not seeing him. "It's just water, Jess."

"I don't feel good...I want to go home now."

"I know...soon, Jess...just a little while-" He stopped talking and looked toward the ceiling. He heard movement and muffled voices, then the trap door open and he stared, wide-eyed, as it swung open. Seconds later, the ladder slid into place and two pairs of legs came bounding down the steps. Not recognizing either man, John pulled Jessie, protectively, as close to him as possible.

"Thank God." Brian Kerrigan said, as he and Mike Baker, a member of the Boston P.D., approached them. "We got 'em." He said into his walkie-talkie, then knelt down in front of John and Jessie. "My name's Brian Kerrigan...I work for your Father...this is Officer Baker...we're here to help you. We're gonna get you out of here." He looked down at Jessie. "Here...let me take her-"

"No!" John yelled. "Don't touch her...she needs to stay with me." He pulled Jessie closer and held her tight.

Kerrigan looked at John, closely. He could see the fever and pain in his eyes. He decided not to agitate him further and backed off. "Okay, buddy, okay. We'll wait for Agent Malone, okay? He's on his way...he'll be here any minute."

"Bailey? You know Bailey?" He relaxed a little, loosening his hold on Jessie.

"Yes, I've been working with him to find you. Is she okay?" He asked gently, as he reached out to touch Jessie's shoulder. He didn't like the way she looked or sounded, and the way she was staring at nothing, unnerved him. Her eyes looked glassy and dull, at the same time. "Jessie...hey...it's Brian. How's my girl?"

Jessie moved her eyes in his direction and smiled. "Brian...I'm...I'm in trouble now. Did Dad tell you to come for me?"

Kerrigan looked at John. "What-"

"It's the fever, she's delirious..." John told him. "It comes and goes."

Kerrigan nodded. He moved his hand from her shoulder to her cheek and was surprised by how hot she was. "She's really burnin' up." He moved his hand away and took out his walkie-talkie. "What's the e.t.a on the ambulance...we need to get them out of here..."

"We'll be there in fifteen minutes," Grace answered.

"Hurry." He said and put the walkie-talkie back in his pocket. "C'mon Baker, let's get their stuff together." He looked at John and smiled. "Almost there, buddy."

Tbc...