They saw Walter fall over and his hand pushed his laptop and it turned to the side.
Several minutes passed by as they heard Walter's labored breathing.
"Well, well, what do we have here? I'm impressed Walter. I can't believe you found my location without me knowing it." They heard Collins say. Collins grinned. "That is some really great detective work Walter. Now what were you up to on your laptop?" Collins grabbed it and turned it around to look at the screen. "Oh how nice. Talking with the little fam? How are you little fam?"
"I swear Collins I'm going to hunt you down." Cabe told him angrily.
Ralph pulled his tablet over and began typing as they talked with Collins.
Collins laughed. "Oh please. Like you ever had a chance of finding me before, now without Walter you have zero chance."
"Please Mark. What do you want for Walter? Name it and we'll get it for you. Just don't hurt him anymore." Paige pleaded.
Collins laughed. "Seriously, that is your plan normal? Just offer me anything I want, like you have the ability to get it for me. What could you possibly get me that I can't get myself? I've lived comfortably for a year without any problems."
"Well I'm Homeland. There is a lot I can get you. You just tell me what you want." Cabe told him.
Collins grinned. "The look of desperation on your faces is priceless to be honest. You're ready to give me the world out of love for one insignificant life. That's the real problem with this world."
"If he is so insignificant then logic dictates you can just give him back to us." Ralph told him. Ralph continued typing on his tablet without looking back at the screen before him.
Cabe jerked his head at Paige and she moved around the table. Cabe kissed Allie and with Paige they took off out the front door and got into his SUV.
Collins moved his head back and forth. "True I could. But why should I? I could just leave him here and let him finish bleeding out. Then I don't have to worry with any of you."
"Wrong. Walter is the closest thing I have to a Dad and if he is going to die then I am going to make his death count for something. Right now I am hacking into Fort Irwin and targeting your location with a Thermobaric missile. Try to run and I release it. You won't get far enough away to survive, best case you die after a few days of intense pain from lethal burns." Ralph hit a couple of keystrokes on his laptop that as far as Allie could tell did nothing.
Collins laughed. "You're buffing. You don't even know where I am."
Ralph rattled off several sets of coordinates. "If you test me, you will fail." It was Ralph's favorite line from Star Trek.
"How do you have my coordinates?" Collins seemed visibly shaken.
"I told you. Walter's my Dad and I want him back. So you keep him alive until help gets there. And I might just not tell them who you are." Ralph told him.
He watched as Collins seemed to be thinking. Ralph had already finished his typing on the tablet. He pulled up his browser and connected to the web through his hacking portal. He inputted the numbers from Walter's laptop and connected to it. He flipped the Bluetooth on and saw Walter's smartwatch and connected to it. He saw Walter's vitals play out on the tablet screen.
"Katherine, Walter got us confirmation on Florence. She's been working for Collins to bring down Scorpion. Paige and I are on our way to El Segundo air base to catch that helicopter. Can you dispatch a team to take her into custody? But make sure it is agents you trust. Walter said Collins might have people inside of Homeland." Cabe told her as he drove like crazy.
"Of course Cabe, do you know where she is? Wait, is he sure or just suspects?" Katherine asked.
"She's probably at Centipede headquarters by now Katherine. If not she might still be at her part of the Garage. He isn't sure he is just being cautious." Paige told her.
"Okay, I'm dispatching a team to get her. What about the other members of Centipede? Are any of them complicit with what happened?" Katherine asked.
Paige looked at Cabe a little bit of fear on her face. "You don't think they would have done that do you?"
Cabe shook his head. "I don't know what their motivation in all of this is but I don't think they would have been involved."
"Okay, for now we'll leave them alone. Do you know where you are going?" Katherine asked.
"Hollow Hills Wilderness area," Paige told her.
Katherine looked up. "That's out by Fort Irwin. I can scramble a team from there if you got coordinates."
Cabe nodded. "Call Allie's phone, she's with Ralph. He should have the coordinates. Plus Walter was shot by Collins so the quicker he can get medical aid the better."
"What? Why didn't you tell me that to start with? Okay, you both be careful. I don't want any deaths on my hands today, unless it is Collins. Keep me advised." Katherine told them.
Ralph looked back up at the laptop. "What is your answer?"
Collins stood there calculating the odds, he knew Ralph was a genius, but was he smart enough to hack through a military system and dispatched that weapon. "I'm thinking."
"The answer is yes, I am smart enough to hack into Fort Irwin and I am smart enough to have targeted your location. I hacked a Japanese warship and used one of its missiles to save a group of Special Forces that were trying to board a ship." Ralph bragged.
Collins stood there for a moment when suddenly Walter half rolled over and shoved his hand up and into Collins's groin and hit the trigger on the stun gun he had.
Collins began screaming and shuddering as he dropped the laptop.
Walter had to adjust his hand position as Collins began relieving himself and his pants became soaked in urine.
The feed from Walter's laptop cutout as the laptop hit the ground and Ralph also lost the signal from his smartwatch.
Allie looked from the laptop to Ralph. "Did you do that?"
Ralph shook his head as he began to worry about what it might mean. "I think Walter must have recovered and done something to Collins to make him scream and drop the laptop."
"You're not really sending a missile at them are you?" Allie seemed a bit desperate.
"No, but I sent a message as Katherine Cooper giving the base commander the coordinates and issuing an order for an assault team to recon the area fast, so they could provide aid to Walter and take Collins into custody.
Allie's phone began ringing. She pulled it out and saw "Homeland Security". She swallowed as she answered. "Hello."
"Allie, this is Katherine Cooper with Homeland. I need to know Walter's coordinates so I can order a team from Fort Irwin to go assist him." Katherine told her.
Allie swallowed hard. She didn't want to get Ralph in any trouble. "Oh, okay Katherine. Ralph, what are those coordinates for where Walter is?" She held her phone closer to Ralph as he read off the coordinates. "Did you get that?" Allie asked.
"I did, thank you for staying with Ralph. I'll get a team dispatched immediately." Katherine told her.
"Well, just so you know. A message has already been sent to the base commander directing them to send a team to help Walter." Allie tried for a bit of subterfuge.
Katherine sat there kind of stunned for a moment and then slowly nodded. "Of course, Ralph did it didn't he?"
It wasn't really a question. Allie kind of grimaced. "You can't really blame him. He really loves Walter and after Walter was shot he was worried."
Katherine smiled. "Okay, I'll call and follow up on it then. But tell Ralph no more of this."
Allie looked at Ralph. "Okay, I'll tell him not to do this again." Ralph rolled his eyes as she hung up her phone.
Ralph grabbed his phone and called his Mom. "Ralph? What's wrong?" His Mom asked.
"We lost communication with Walter's laptop. I think Walter did something that caused Collins to scream and then he dropped the laptop." Ralph explained.
"Alright team, Col. Halston has dropped this in our laps. Our primary goal is to secure a Homeland asset name Walter O'Brien." Captain Benson told his men as he passed out a photograph. "We have word they believe he has been shot and might be held by a terrorist named Mark Collins." He passed out another photograph.
"Johnson, you are on point. As we get closer to the coordinates if you see Collins and you can take the shot, take it. Otherwise after you let us out of the helicopter get back in the air and keep an eye out. The rest of us will form two teams. Team one is with me. Our job is to secure O'Brien and render all aid and get him to medical care immediately. Team two your job is to hunt down Collins if necessary. Per Homeland security director Cooper's orders, the only acceptable death today is Collins. So stay frosty out here."
Staff Sergeant Johnson reached over and released the door and pushed it open before putting a foot into a brace on the side of the helicopter and brought his RC-50 up as he began peering through the scope.
Florence was sitting at her desk when her phone buzzed. She frowned and pulled it out and saw she had a text message. She pulled it up and her eyes opened wide. "They're coming for you. Execute project exodus."
Florence stood up and stepped out of her office and saw Sylvester at his desk. She smiled as she stepped up. "I was so excited to get here this morning I forgot an experiment back at my lab. I need about a half hour to run over and secure it and I'll be back."
Sylvester smiled. "Of course, would you like me to come with you?"
Florence shook her head still smiling. "I won't be gone long. Maybe we can go get lunch later?"
Sylvester nodded.
"I'm just going to tell Happy and Toby." Florence told him.
Florence walked down the hallway until she came to Happy's door. "Hey, I'm grabbing some coffee, either of you need a refill?"
Toby looked over and smiled. "Sure, I'd love some, a tablespoon of hazelnut creamer, if you don't mind."
Florence smiled as she shook her head and stepped in and took his mug from him.
Toby looked at Happy. "See, now that's what I am talking about."
Happy rolled her eyes. "You're just lazy."
Florence hurried into the kitchen. She didn't want to do this today but if she wanted that final payment from Collins she had to act now and get out of there. She reached into her purse and pulled the small vial out. She carefully took the top off and started pouring when the door squeaked open and she stopped and looked back as Sylvester stepped in.
"Oh, Florence, what are you doing? I thought you were leaving?" Sylvester asked.
Florence smiled even as she put the lid back on the vial and slipped it into her purse. "I am. Toby wanted a refill so I volunteered to get it before I left."
Sylvester nodded with a smile. "That was very kind of you."
Florence poured coffee into the mug hoping she got enough of the poison into his cup. Sylvester scooped out a tablespoon of the creamer and dumped it into the mug for her. Florence smiled. "Thanks."
Sylvester nodded as Florence swirled the liquid around with another spoon and dropped it into the sink. She walked out and stepped into Happy's office and handed it to Toby.
Toby took it with a smile. He slurped a big drink and nodded his head. He frowned. "I thought you were getting a cup?"
Florence turned and smiled. "I've got to run over to my lab for a moment. I was in such a hurry this morning I forgot an experiment I had running. I need to secure it and I'll be right back. Oh, Sly and I are going to go out for lunch together later."
Toby nodded as he took another drink. "Alright, see you back soon then."
Florence stepped up to the front door and pushed and as she stepped out she saw three black SUV's turn into the parking lot with lights and sirens blaring. She swallowed hard and looked about. There was no clear escape and she stepped backwards back into the office and let the door close.
"Florence, is something wrong?" Sylvester asked as he came up behind her.
Florence jumped. "Oh God, Sly, you scared me. There's several black SUV's with lights and sirens."
Sylvester stepped past her and saw two of them pulled up out front as the third drove down the side of the building. "That's odd." Sylvester pushed the door opened and stepped out onto the balcony without noticing that Florence moved quickly back down the hallway and entered Happy's office.
Toby and Happy looked up and frowned. "What's wrong?"
Florence shook her head and darted past them both and out into the work bay where Happy worked on vehicles or built devices for clients.
Sylvester saw the men climbing out and he waved. "Um, hello, can I help you?"
The lead man flashed his badge and id as he ran up the steps. "Sylvester Dodd, agent Mark Jerald, Homeland. Is Miss Tipton here?"
Sylvester nodded. "She just started today. I'm an attorney for Centipede Partners. Can I ask what this is about?"
Agent Jerald shoved a copy of the Patriot act into his face. "Per the Patriot act Homeland is pursuing a suspected terrorist. Stand aside."
Sylvester moved quickly away as he grabbed the copy of the Patriot Act as Agent Jerald and his partners charged into the office.
Florence ran to the side door and hit the release bar and ran on out and stopped as she was looking at the SUV that came around the side of the building and the two agents that had just stepped out of it. She sighed as she put her arms up in the air.
She turned around as they ordered her and put her hands on her head. As the first agent stepped up and grabbed her left wrist she spun around and drove her right palm into his nose breaking it causing blood to gush out. She jumped up and kicked the other agent's arm and his gun went off and the bullet struck the side of the building. Florence spun and kicked him in the side of the head.
"Freeze Tipton," agent Jerald shouted as he came out of the door just before she could run. "On your knees," he ordered.
Florence slowly got down on her knees. Toby and Happy had followed the agents out side and watched as they began securing Florence.
Toby began rubbing his left arm. "I'm not feeling well, pain in my chest."
Happy looked over at him and saw he was sweating a good bit. "Toby," she yelled and grabbed his arm as he collapsed. One of the agents ran over and began examining him. "Have you got a history of heart disease?"
Toby shook his head as he grimaced.
"Agent Jerald to dispatch, we need paramedics at our location for a possible heart attack."
Florence looked back and grinned.
Sylvester saw the grin as he came out of the door. "Florence? What are you grinning about?"
So glad you guys like the cliffhangers...LOL
Greetings! Hoping you all are well! Thank you for your good thoughts and prayers!
Lucy, Pamz, Scorpling - So glad you guys enjoyed my Baker, CA scene!
Lucy - Sorry about the BP, this chapter probably didn't help any. lol
Pamz - Thank you, I thought it pretty funny hacking NASA! I don't know, I still think your cliffhangers are harder on me, but then I don't know what you have planned so that might be why. lol
Franxine - Why would you cuss me on a Sunday when it was Tuesday? hehe Well I don't know if it was a flesh wound or not yet. *grin*
Scorpling - I agree, this area of California seems really bad for ol'Wally! Not too good for Paige either. lol
To the Adventure! -Tim