Bethesda Naval Hospital
Bethesda, MD
December,6,2003 13:50 EST.
Twenty minutes in the span of life can seem small and insignificant. For most, it's the difference between order and delivery or the commute to a mundane job. However, for Captain William Hollis, his team, and most importantly his patient and the people outside, these twenty minutes were life and death.
In his twenty-five years of service, including tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan, he had seen his share of death. The time spent in war zones had forced him to accept the inevitability of death, but the loss of a fellow officer would always hurt his deep sense of honor. However, there was more than his duty as a doctor or an officer. There was a debt to be repaid.
Bethesda Naval Hospital
Bethesda, MD
May 1, 2002 10:00 EST.
Captain Hollis had just finished morning rounds and was catching up on paperwork when the news station he often left on simply for background noise captured his attention.
"This is Stewart Dunston reporting for ZNN aboard the USS. Seahawk. We have unconfirmed reports that a nuclear warhead was launched, by unknown terrorists towards the carrier and its battle group." However, the plot was foiled, when the warhead locked onto an F-14 Tomcat piloted by Commander Harmon Rabb. One of the thousands of lives saved that spring day was LT. Thomas Hollis, youngest son of Sandra and Captain William Hollis. The captain and his family had sent words of thanks for Harm's heroics, to which he simply replied: "Just doing my duty, Captain." God willing Hollis would repay him by his.
The vigil outside the room remained silent despite the expanding presents of JAG senior staff. Bud and Sturgis had returned on their lunch break and the rest seemed to take their lead. They were all there, even Mattoni. AJ briefly wondered who the hell was running the office. He decided he didn't give a damn. Work wasn't getting done today. It was not normal for a military unit to be so close or to have senior staff stay so long. It had been one of the sticking points of the Lindsay report. They paid a heavy price for that disaster, no one more than Harm. They had been through hell the last two years and if this was where they needed to be, so be it. At times like this, he was glad to have his surrogate family.
Twenty minutes. It may as well have been twenty hours. The internal clock that had fascinated her partner was AWOL. The only time Mac had moved was to allow Mattie to tuck herself into her side; her eyes had yet to leave the chaotic scene in front of her. The Marine was on guard, one arm firmly shielding her young friend while her eyes never lost sight of Harm and the heart monitor that may render the final verdict, on the trial that had become their lives.
Harm had flatlined twice in the first ten minutes. In nights to come, hell, years to come the sounds of the defibrillator shocking him back to life would haunt the dreams of those who loved him. Every convulsion of his body ripped at the heart of both mother and Marine alike. Both fought an instinct to rush in and shield him from all those who would inflict pain on him. For Mac, the fact she had played a role, directly or not, in his injury or death was worse than any Paraguayan torture shack.
Mac focused so intensely on Harm that she failed to notice the impending departure of Captain Hollis until Trish's shaky voice asked the question that hung like a menacing cloud of fear. "Captain, is my son going to survive?"
God, I hate these conversations, Hollis thought. The power to destroy a life with a simple yes or was not one he enjoyed. People wanted answers, but often only God could answer. The squad of JAG lawyers wasn't making it easier. "Mr. and Mrs. Burnett, Admiral, Colonel, can you come with me please?"
"The hell I will." What little was left of Mac's Marine discipline was fading fast. There is only one logical reason for his request. The captain was trying to give them privacy because her world was about to shatter. Harm was dead. "I saw the damn machine, Captain, don't you dare tell me he's dead."
Hollis silently prayed his wife had paid the life insurance. The look on Mac's face could cause multiple homicides and faces around her said that she was not alone. "No Colonel, he's not". The world was right-side-up again, but only for a moment. The next words the captain spoke would shock them all. "However, I would love to know who tried to kill him?"
A/N Sorry for the delay. I hope it doesn't suck.
A/N I apologize if I was too harsh about guest reviewers in my A/N in the last chapter. Most have been constructive. I am constantly trying to improve and clean up mistakes. Thanks for staying with me.