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May 28-June 21, 01
-ooooo-ooooo-
Shep slipped into the hospital, keeping his head down and his hands in his pocket. He made his way to the elevators and slipped into one, thankful that it was empty. It hadn't been hard to find out that Carol had given birth to his daughter and named her Sarah. And it hadn't been difficult to find out that she was fucking that bastard, Doug Ross. She would pay for that, he thought with a sneer as the elevator doors opened. He walked into the hall and headed towards the nursery.
Shep walked quietly into the nursery, gazing around at all the little children playing with toys on the floor. A young woman came up to him and smiled.
"Hello, may I help you?" She asked. He smiled warmly.
"Yes. I'm here to pick up my daughter, Sarah Hathaway." He said. She nodded.
"Aw, she's a beautiful baby. She's over here in the playpen." The brunette replied, leading him to the playpen. He grinned in delight as he looked down at his daughter, sleeping peacefully. He had seen her before, spying on Carol from the El tracks, but he had never seen her up close. He was just thankful that the girl knew which one Sarah was, because he doubted he would have been able to pick her out. Shep bent down and gently picked up his sleeping five-month-old daughter. He smiled and looked up at the young woman.
"Thank you." He said.
"You're welcome." She replied, smiling warmly before she turned and headed back towards the other children. He smiled and walked right out of the nursery and back out the way he came.
-ooooo-ooooo-
Carol sighed and pushed a hand through her hair. She was so tired and all she wanted was to get her baby and head home. She walked into the nursery and looked around. The only adult there was a young woman, with brown shoulder length hair. Carol remembered finally that she was new.
"Excuse me." Carol called out. The young brunette turned, a ready smile on her face. But when she saw Carol her mouth turned down a bit.
"Nurse Hathaway. What are you going here?" Carol's brows drew together in surprise.
"I'm here to pick Sarah up." Carol said.
"She's not here." The young woman said, who Carol suddenly remembered was named Mary.
"What do you mean she's not here?" Carol asked, her heart beginning to race in her chest.
"Sarah's father came in to pick her up." Mary said, coming a few feet towards Carol. Carol immediately paled.
"Oh dear God." Doug had not picked her up. Carol had just said good night to him down in the ER because he was working the night shift.
"What?" Mary asked, suddenly panicking.
"What did he look like?" Carol asked, her voice shrill.
"He was probably 6'1", sandy brown hair, somewhat muscular."
"Did he say his name?" Carol asked.
"No. Nurse Hathaway, what's going on?" She asked.
"Did he say where he was taking her? How long ago was this?" Carol asked.
"It was about two hours ago and he never said where he was going." Mary said. Carol brought a shaky hand up to her mouth. Carol turned and walked over to the phone they kept on the wall in the nursery. She dialed down to the ER and waited until Randi picked up the phone.
"Randi, I need to speak to Dr. Ross." Carol said, sounding calmer than she was.
"Sure thing, Carol. He's in the lounge, I'll get him." She said. Within moments Doug was on the phone.
"Miss me already?" He joked as he picked up the phone.
"Doug, I'm upstairs. You need to get up here now." Carol said. Doug froze.
"Oh shit, Carol. What's wrong? Wait, no. I'll be right up. Don't move." He said. Carol hung up the phone and looked around the nursery, studying all the young children, praying against some unseen force that her daughter was among them. The doors to the nursery burst open and Doug bounded in.
"What's wrong?" He asked, taking Carol by the shoulders. She gripped the side of his shirt.
"Sarah's gone. Shep took her." Carol said.
"He what? When? Oh God." Doug said and pulled Carol into his arms. She buried her face into his neck and held on as Mary looked at them, panicking. Carol could feel Doug's heart race under her chest.
"My baby." She moaned and began to shake.
"Shh..Okay, Carol. It's okay. We'll get her back. I need to call the police." He said.
-ooooo-ooooo-
"Nurse Hathaway?" The policeman walked up to her and Doug.
"Yes?" She murmured.
"We've done all we can do here, for the night. We'll be on the look out for your daughter. There's nothing left that you can do here." He said. Carol hung her head, not even bothering to wipe her tears away.
"C'mon Carol, let's go home." Doug said, wrapping his arm around her waist. She nodded and turned her head into his shoulder. "Thank you." Doug said to the policeman. He nodded and let them go. "Carol?"
"Yeah?" Her voice trembled.
"I need to stop in the ER. Do you want to come with me?" Doug asked. She hesitated before nodding. "Alright." He said and kissed her forehead.
When they arrived in the ER, Doug walked to the desk, his arm still around Carol as she leaned against him. Her eyes were dry but she had a dull ache in her stomach and a bad taste in her mouth.
"Where the hell have you been?" Kerry asked from the other side of the admit desk. Carol didn't even look up. Doug sent Kerry a menacing look.
"Carol and I need to go home." Doug said.
"Why?" Kerry asked, some of the snap out of her voice now that she saw Carol's trance-like state. Doug lowered his voice.
"Shep kidnapped Sarah from the nursery." Doug felt Carol's slight tremble under his arm and he squeezed her closer. Kerry's mouth dropped open and she stared for a few moments before she got her thoughts back together.
"Take as many days as you need." Kerry said.
"Thank you, Kerry. You can tell Mark what happened. Tell him I'll call him later." Doug said. She nodded and watched as Doug led Carol out of the ER. Kerry looked around and saw with some relief that no one was around to have heard their conversation.
-ooooo-ooooo-
"C'mon baby, here you go." Doug said, sliding Carol into the bed and under the covers. She gripped on to him.
"Don't go." She said.
"I'm not going anywhere." Doug said. He had already helped Carol into her pajamas and he was in his boxers. He slid in bed beside her and took her into his arms. The whole way from the hospital Carol had not cried. But now as she burrowed into Doug's chest the sobs began.
Doug cradled her and listened to her heart wrenching sobs. His own heart was breaking in his chest. He buried his nose in her hair and squeezed his eyes shut as if trying to block out the pain.
He held her for the rest of the night as she cried and dozed.
-ooooo-ooooo-
It was such a horrible thing, Mark thought on the airplane on his way to Milwaukee. He was going to visit Rachel because she couldn't make it out to see him that weekend and he needed to see her, to reassure himself that she was okay. He couldn't even begin to wonder what Doug and Carol had gone through since Sarah was kidnapped two weeks ago. Even though Mark couldn't be with Rachel all the time, he knew she was safe in Milwaukee.
He sighed and reclined his seat a bit, gazing out the window at the clouds. He hoped to God that Sarah would be found soon.
-ooooo-ooooo-
Carol walked into the house. She had been visiting Helen and had told Doug that he didn't have to come with her. Things between Helen and Doug still were not good, even though Helen knew that Doug was living with them and Carol considered him Sarah's father although he was not.
She saw Doug sitting on the couch and when he heard her come in she saw him scrambling to wipe his eyes. She froze and stared at him. Had he been crying? She had never in her entire life with Doug ever seen him cry.
"Doug?" She murmured, finally coming to her senses.
"Hey Carol." He said, looking down at the floor. She sat beside him on the couch, but he would not meet her eye. She reached over and tilted his head towards her. She saw the slight redness of his eyes and the moisture.
"Oh Doug.." She wrapped her arms tightly around him and held on as she began to cry quietly on his shoulder. He held her with equal fierceness, burying his face in her hair and trying his best not to cry. She felt his chest tremble and she buried her face into his neck. "I want our baby back, Doug." Carol said.
"I know." His voice shook. "Me too."
-ooooo-ooooo-
Mark had his arm around Rachel's neck as he walked into a small restaurant.
"Where do you want to sit?" He asked her. She looked around and saw a small booth.
"Over there." She said.
"Alright. Looks good." He said and led her to the booth. He sat down across from her and smiled as a waitress came up to their table and took their drink orders. Mark kept his eyes on her as she made her way to another booth in the front of the restaurant. Mark froze suddenly. That man looked exactly like.....Oh God, it was. It was Shep. Mark could see the back of a baby's head, where little Sarah was sitting in a highchair.
"Rach?" He asked.
"Yeah?" She asked, looking up from the menu.
"I need to make a phone call. Can you stay right there?" He asked. She nodded.
"Sure." Mark pulled his baseball cap farther down over his eyes and hoped Shep wouldn't recognize him, even out of his scrubs and with a baseball hat on. He was just glad that Rachel was out of sight, because he knew that Shep had met Rachel once at a Christmas party of Carol's and might recognize Rachel. Mark made his way up to the counter.
"Can I help you?" One of the women behind the counter asked.
"Yes. I need to make an emergency phone call. Do you have a phone book?" Mark asked.
"Sure. Is there anything I can do?" She asked, reaching beneath the counter. She brought out a phone book and handed it to him.
"Thanks. And no, it's nothing serious." He said with a smile that he hoped was charming.
"Do you need a phone?" She asked.
"Nope, I've got my cell." He said. He moved a bit further down the counter, hoping that he was further out of the way of Shep's sight. He flipped quickly through the phone book until he came across the local police in the yellow pages. He dialed the number and brought the phone to his ear.
"Milwaukee Police Station." A man's voice said.
"Yes, I'd like to report a possible kidnapper sighting."
"Okay, sir. May I have all the details you can give me?"
"The kidnapper is Ray Shepard. He kidnapped my friend's five-month-old daughter two weeks ago from a nursery in Cook County General Hospital in Chicago, Illinois. The baby's name is Sarah Hathaway. Her mother's name is Carol Hathaway, she's a nurse at County." Mark could hear the tap of a keyboard.
"Alright. I found the exact case. May I ask where you spotted the kidnapper?"
"Betty's Diner and Bar in Milwaukee. He's sitting there in broad daylight with the baby in a highchair."
"Alright, sir. Please stay where you are. I'll send a cop right over. Undercover so he won't get suspicious."
"Thank you." Mark said.
"Sir, I need to know your name and a short description of you."
"Dr. Mark Greene. I'm 6'2", 180 lbs. I'm wearing a baseball cap and jeans. I'll be sitting with my daughter."
"Thank you, Dr. Greene. There's a cop on the way." They hung up and Mark headed back to his seat after giving the woman the phone book, keeping a careful eye on Shep. He watched as a waitress delivered the food to Shep. Good, Mark thought, he would take awhile to eat.
"Dad?" Rachel asked. Mark turned his attention to her.
"Yes?"
"Who did you call?" She asked.
"The police."
"Why?" Rachel asked, her eyes widening.
"Do you remember Doug and Carol in Chicago?"
"Yeah." Rachel said, staring at him.
"Their baby girl, Sarah, was kidnapped two weeks ago." Rachel gasped. "The man who kidnapped her is sitting with Sarah back there. Don't look, he might recognize us. A cop is on the way. I need for you to stay absolutely calm, Rachel."
"Yes, Daddy." She said, staring wide-eyed at him. He smiled.
"Let's order to make everything appear normal." Mark said.
"Okay."
-ooooo-ooooo-
Minutes later Mark watched as a man with a dark head of hair walked into the diner in jeans and a t-shirt. He looked around the room, spotting the kidnapper and the child and then spotting the man fitting Mark's description. He made his way to Mark's table.
"Are you Mark Greene?" He asked.
"Yes, I am." Mark replied and scooted over as the cop took a sit beside him.
"I'm Agent Murphy. Is that the man in question?" The cop asked, looking over towards Shep briefly.
"Yes sir. That's Raymond Shepard and Sarah Hathaway."
"That is confirmed. I have a picture of both child and him." The cop smiled friendly. "Wait right here, would you? The plan is I go and arrest Mr. Shepard. Then you come up behind me when I get him out of the booth and take the child. Understand?" Rachel stared wide-eyed at the cop, with much the same expression that she had given her father earlier.
"Understood." Mark said. The cop smiled easily and stood up, making his way comfortably to Shep's side. Mark watched as Shep tried to argue with the cop and grab Sarah, but the cop maneuvered that easily and hauled Shep to his feet. Shep fought him but went still when he saw Mark coming up behind the baby.
"You bastard." He said as Mark picked Sarah up and cradled her to his chest. She looked at him warily. Mark stayed absolutely silent as he watched the cop haul Mark out. The waitress and the woman from the counter stared at them in shock. Rachel came up behind her father as another man entered the shop, this time in a cop's uniform.
"Are you Dr. Greene?" The officer asked.
"Yes." Mark replied with a grim smile.
-ooooo-ooooo-
Carol and Doug were sitting at home when the doorbell rang. Carol got up from the couch and headed to the door. She opened it and saw a strange man standing on the porch.
"Hello." The man said easily.
"Hi." Carol replied. Doug stepped up behind her, laying a hand on her shoulder.
"Are you Nurse Carol Hathaway?" The man asked.
"Yes." Carol said, opening the door a bit wider. He flipped open a badge, revealing he was a cop.
"I'm Agent Murphy. Your daughter Sarah went missing two weeks ago, is that correct?" The man asked. Carol's eyes widened slightly and she swallowed. Doug felt her tremble under his hand.
"Yes." She said. The cop motioned slightly with his hand and stepped to the side. Carol and Doug watched as Mark stood up from a old brown car that was sitting on the curb. They didn't recognize the car but watched Mark still. He bent back into the car and messed around slightly until he re-emerged holding Sarah in his arms. Carol gasped and she and Doug flew off the porch and to Mark's side. Carol grabbed the baby from him and buried her face against Sarah. Doug enveloped them both in his arms and crushed them to him.
"Oh God." Carol began to sob. "Sarah." She pulled away and looked over her daughter. She began to kiss her everywhere. Sarah smiled at Carol and then Doug in pure delight. Doug looked at Mark.
"Where?" He asked.
"Later." Mark murmured and watched the small reunion pleasantly.
-ooooo-ooooo-
"Mark! Tell us everything." Doug said as he and Carol sat on the couch. Mark sat across from them. The undercover cop had taken his car and left.
"I was in Milwaukee with Rachel. I took her to this restaurant and I saw Shep and Sarah there. I called the police, they arrested Shep and I got Sarah. I convinced them to let me take her home to you instead of calling, so Agent Murphy and I took the train home. We rented a car and brought Sarah back." Mark said, smiling at himself.
"Mark, I'll never be able to repay you." Carol said, cradling Sarah to her chest. Mark smiled.
"You already have." Mark said.
"We owe you." Doug said. Mark chuckled.
"No, you don't. What else would I have done? Sat there and let them leave?" He chuckled.
"Thank you." Carol said, tears coming to her eyes. She knew she would forever be in debt to Mark Greene.
"You're welcome." He replied and watched as Carol and Doug cuddled together with their child.
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