While Murphy had been starting the fire just down the hall from Lucas,
Commander Jonathan Ford had been
rushing to the hotel where the rest of the crew was staying, hoping that he was in time to prevent something
nasty happening.
When they had docked at the jetty, Ford had chosen to refuse Bridger's invitation to stay with the rest of them
at the hotel and opted for staying at his own room on the U.E.O. base. It was only after having a meal back
at the mess and overhearing a few whispered conversations that he heard about Murphy's breakout. At first
he had been angry at the incompetence of the security staff on the base. Then the realisation of what the man's
real objective might be suddenly hit home and he knew that he had more important things to do for the time being
than initiate disciplinary action against the men involved in Murphy's escape.
Ford's car came to a screeching halt outside the hotel where Bridger and Lucas were staying. Ford jumped out
of his car and breathlessly ran into the lobby area and demanded to know the number to Bridger's room off the
frightened girl at the reception desk. Ford allowed himself to calm down long enough to introduce himself to the
girl and tell her that he was here on a very urgent basis. The girl seemed to get herself under control as well and
was able to provide the handsome dark-skinned Commander the information he sought. She told him that the
room number was 167 and that Captain Bridger and his party were still in their rooms as far as she knew.
By the time Ford had reached the stairs, he could hear yelling and screaming coming from the occupants of the
other hotel rooms about the fire that was in the other room. He quickly ran along the corridor and spotted the
room, not because of the number on the door, but because his friend and colleague Tim O'Neill was standing
in the doorway.
"Captain Bridger" Ford yelled to the others trying to douse the flames down the other end of the hallway.
Something in Ford's voice made Bridger and the other's turn around. They were surprised to see him but his
voice had an urgency about it that made Bridger stop what he was doing and go back to his room. Something
in his gut told him that Ford was not here to say hello.
Murphy had by now grabbed the limp and unconscious teenager and lifted him from the bed and draped him over
one shoulder as he attempted to leave the hotel room the same way he had come in. He had only made it half
way across the living room floor with his intended hostage when he heard yelling from the doorway and knew that
his plans had been foiled again. He was determined though that if he was going to go down, then he would take
the boy with him and he would go down with a fight.
"MURPHY" Bridger bellowed from the doorway of the hotel room. Ford had muttered something as Bridger
reached the doorway about Murphy's escape from the security section of the base. He had heard the words but
didn't really put two and two together until he saw the man in front of him attempting to kidnap Lucas out from
the room.
It was now that they all realised that the fire in the other room had been a distraction. Just like on the jetty it was
all a ploy to divert their attention while Murphy silently entered the room and attempted to take the teenager from
them. It had almost worked to. O'Neill felt terrible because he was the one supposed to be watching the sleeping
boy. He hadn't even heard the man come into the room. If Commander Ford hadn't turned up when he did, Murphy
might have very well gotten away with his kidnap plot.
"LET HIM GO NOW" Bridger said with anger in his voice. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HIM?" he then
demanded to know as he noted the lack of movement from Lucas. He knew that the kid had been sick and was
supposed to be sleeping, but Murphy must have assault him or something to subdue him this much. The boy's
eyes remained closed and he didn't move a muscle.
"I just made sure that he is going to sleep for a little while" Murphy said in response. His vision was darting around
the room looking for another escape route. At the moment the area directly behind him was still within his control.
Then another idea came to him. While he still had the kid all the odds were stacked in his favour. These people
wouldn't risk putting the boy's life in danger any further.
Murphy could see Ford and Ben slowly taking small steps towards him as if to tackle Lucas away from him and
wrestle him to the ground. With a quick transfer of weight, Murphy now moved Lucas's unconscious body so
that the kid was in front of him. The SeaQuest crew wouldn't dare shoot at him or try and tackle him with the
boy acting as his shield and bodyguard.
Kristen kept her eyes totally fixated on Lucas's condition. She could see as well as everybody else that the
boy was unconscious. She couldn't see any visible gashes or lumps to his head that would indicate Murphy
had slugged him. The boy's features were still pale and his forehead had a slight sheen of sweat over it that
glistened in the lights of the hotel room.
Ben and Ford made another attempt to move towards Murphy and rescue Lucas. Murphy saw the steps and
decided to put a little more fear into them all. He bent down slightly and pulled something out of the side of his
boot. As he put his head towards Lucas's unprotected neck, the crew gasped a little in fright as they could
now see the man holding a very savage looking serrated knife at Lucas's throat.
"Take one more step gentlemen," Murphy threatened and then chose to prove that he wasn't joking by making
a small nick in Lucas exposed white skin on his neck. Everybody saw the red blood run down the boy's throat.
The cut had only stung slightly and barely received a grunt from Lucas as a result. Ford and Ben immediately
stopped in their tracks to avoid further injury to the already vulnerable teenager.
Bridger had been desperately trying to think of a way to get Lucas away from Murphy. If he could someone
distract Murphy's attention, they might be able to get Lucas away from him long enough for the others to subdue
Murphy. He started a conversation with the kidnapper that he hoped would let him spill his guts about his
true intentions for both the SeaQuest, U.E.O. and Lucas.
"Why are you taking him from us?" Bridger asked in a calm and inquisitive sounding voice. "What has he done
to make him your ultimate target in all of this?"
"He………. hasn't done very much at all Captain Bridger" Murphy answered cautiously whilst still remaining to
keep his wits about him and his hostage. "It's what he represents to you and the U.E.O. that interests me the most.
You see Captain, me ultimate goal on that submarine was to make the U.E.O. stand up and take notice of one
William Murphy. Once upon a time I worked for the U.E.O. just like you all do now. The exception is that I
realised a long time ago that the longer I worked for them miserable son's of bitches, the more the real me was
getting eaten up by the red tape. You see all my life I have worked for people that kicked you in the guts no
matter how hard you tried. I was always willing to do my share of the work. Sometimes I even got some ideas
of my own about how things could be improved. When I spoke up and tried to put my ideas across, I just got
kicked down more and told to just do my job. My job. A job that was nothing but a dead end. Then I got
smart about things. I decided that if I really wanted to make a difference then I had to sidetrack the U.E.O.
brass and go straight to the top. Nobody took me seriously. They all thought I was some crazed lunatic.
After that I decided to make a stand and an impact that would get people's attention. I intended to prove
to the world and to the U.E.O. that William Murphy wasn't just a dead end bum with no where in life. I
wanted them to sit up and take notice of me for a change."
"Admittedly, the submarine idea was working great until your young friend here decided to foil my plans"
Murphy continued. "He's a bright one this one. And that's what got me to thinking to how to make
an even bigger statement to them U.E.O. brass. You see Captain Bridger, this kid represents everything
about the U.E.O. that I have come to hate so much. He's their product. He was made in their image.
And then there is you Captain Bridger. The U.E.O. brass listen to you. So I decided that if I really wanted
to get the U.E.O. brass's attention, then first I needed to get your attention and thus you would then get
their attention. I figured back on that submarine that the way to get to you was through this here lad. I
make him squeal a little and I make you do what I ask and then I get what I want from the U.E.O. I don't
get what I want then I just have to make this kid squeal a little louder. You understand?"
"Your philosophy I understand Murphy. But I have to say that if you think using Lucas is the way to achieve
things then you are very wrong indeed. You say that Lucas is a product from the U.E.O., you couldn't be
more wrong. Lucas hates just about everything military about the U.E.O. that you do. He hates the routine,
the rules and regulations and the red tape that often has bound him up tighter that he would have liked. No,
Murphy, a product of the U.E.O. he is not." Bridger said. While talking, Bridger was making small and
deliberate secret hand signals to the other crew members of what he wanted them to do. Apparently on his
signal, once Murphy's guard was down enough they would just rush at him and get Lucas away from him.
They couldn't let Murphy get any further out the door with his hostage or there was no telling what might happen.
Bridger's speech seemed to be working and at one point it looked as if Murphy's hand that held the knife to
Lucas's throat was relaxing slightly.
All at once though Murphy seemed to come to his senses and understand what was going on. His hand suddenly
gripped on the knife tighter and his face reddened as he realised that he was being had by Bridger.
The next few minutes all seemed to happen in slow motion. Commander Ford and Ben made a dive for Lucas
and Murphy. Murphy was slightly quicker and looked like he was about to stab the unconscious teenager
before they got to him. Ben's outstretched hand seemed to aid some as he knocked the point of entry for the
knife away from Lucas's chest. The blade made a slashing sound and caused a large gash down one arm.
Blood began to ooze from the wound and small moans of pain escaped Lucas's lips as he was pulled back to
consciousness from the sudden pain and stinging sensation that he felt down his arm.
Lucas briefly opened his eyes and tried to work out why he was being restrained. His vision fixated upon
his friend Ben who seemed to be coming at him at a fast speed. Lucas's brain was very foggy and he had
to fight with himself to get any sort of reasoning going. Before he could remember why he was standing
up and why he had pain in his arm and why he was being held from behind, again for the second time today
he felt himself being propelled backwards towards the floor.
As Lucas tumbled onto the floor with his would-be kidnapper, his head banged on the hard floor. Because
of his already hazy consciousness, the blow was enough for the teenager to lose his senses once again and
remain where he fell on the floor.
Murphy was quickly being hauled away from the teenager by three sets of hands and the knife in his hands was
being reefed out with force. Murphy suddenly found himself eating the floor on his stomach as his face was
pushed up against the hard wood floor and his hands were being restrained behind his back. The men who
were restraining him made no attempt to be gentle in any way. Actually it felt like they were trying to extract
a little retribution of their own for his actions against Lucas.
Bridger was yelling orders to Commander Ford about hauling Murphy's miserable hide out of his sight and down
to the police station to face charges of attempted-murder, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon and a whole
string of other charges he hadn't even began to think of yet to add to the list.
Once Murphy was taken away, Bridger and Kristen went about checking Lucas over and tending to the fresh
wound on his arm. Miguel Ortiz had gone into the kid's room to make sure everything was okay when he
returned to the living room holding the drug soaked rag that Murphy had used. He had shown the white cloth
to Kristen and she noted that the drug was chloroform. At least now they had the reason why Lucas hadn't
been putting up any struggle against his attacker.
Kristen had applied some pressure to the bleeding would on Lucas's arm with towels from the bathroom.
The sight of the red stains on the bright yellow fabric made tears form in her eyes as she looked back down
at Lucas's prone and unconscious form. She instructed Bridger to hold the towel in place while she checked
the rest of him over. She noted there was a small but barely noticeable swelling on the back of his head from
the fall to the floor.
Once Kristen was satisfied that the bleeding had stopped, she removed the towel and started to rip away the
torn fabric of Lucas's shirt to see the wound itself. Upon looking at the cut, she surmised that although the wound
had bleed rather well, there probably would need to be any stitching of the skin. She pulled out her medical
bag and applied a small amount of antiseptic and then wrapped the area with a clean white bandaged. She lifted
his eyelids and noted his breathing. The teenager was still under the effects of the chloroform and judging from the
amount on the cloth Ortiz had found probably would be for some time.
Bridger and Ben Krieg lifted the unconscious teenager from the floor where he lay and carried him carefully to
back to the bed he had been taken from earlier. They laid him down and allowed Kristen to briefly check him
over again before covering him with the blankets.
"He'll probably sleep for quite a long time" Kristen said relating her diagnosis to the others. Bridger was just
plain scared. He had just come so close to having somebody take his son away to get back at him that he
couldn't bare to think what might have happened if Commander Ford hadn't come when he did. Bridger
sat on a chair beside the bed and told the others that he would stay with Lucas in his room tonight.
"Do you think he will remember much of what happened to him tonight Doc?" Ben asked in a whisper.
"I wouldn't be surprised if he remembers nothing at all Mr Krieg given his body's weakened condition
before being drugged. The chloroform was strong and he wasn't even fully awake when Murphy stabbed
his arm. Then again, I also wouldn't be surprised if he has flash backs and bits and pieces of memory for
the next few days as his body and mind continue to heal. He might even start having a few nightmares
during his sleep. We just have to make sure that this attack doesn't prevent his physical recovery from the
illness he had. He still needs to get rid of the infection of his chest before he will be completely well again.
Let's just leave him for tonight with Nathan and see how he copes over the next few days." Kristen suggested.
"Nathan are you planning to take him back to the island tomorrow?" Kristen now asked.
"Yes, first thing if you think he can travel alright. I know he might be still asleep, but we can manage between
us to get him home okay. I think he will heal faster in a familiar environment." Bridger answered as he gently
caressed Lucas's limp arm and talk soothing words to him.
"I'll make all the arrangements Captain" Ben said as he gazed down at his friend on the bed. He was determined
to keep his friend safe and see him well again.
Kristen ushered everybody but Bridger out of Lucas's room and then gave him strict instructions to seek her
if he or Lucas should need anything for the rest of the night. She told Bridger that Lucas might awaken with
some pain in his arm and she had some painkiller to give him if he did. She also had another dose of antibiotics
to give Lucas the next time he awoke.
Bridger agreed to get her if she was needed but then turned his attention solely back to Lucas. He promised he
would keep up his vigil all night if it was needed.
At some point during the night Lucas seemed to be caught somewhere between reality and dreams in his sleeps
and he actually called out a couple of times in fright as his mind remembered some of the scenes from earlier.
At an instant Bridger was there beside him urging him to go back to sleep and telling him that everything was
alright. He secretly cursed William Murphy for causing his son such pain and anguish.
Back in the security wing of the U.E.O. base, William Murphy was lying wide awake on his small bunk in his
cell. He had not yet been put on trial for any of the actions against Lucas Wolenczak. He had yet to see
a lawyer and hear the charges laid against him. None of this particularly worried him though. At the moment,
the man only had thoughts for one thing, Lucas Wolenczak. He somehow promised himself that he would
still get even with them all. He would seek his revenge against the U.E.O., Captain Bridger and Lucas
Wolenczak. The next time though things would be his way and there would be no escape for young Mr
Wolenczak.
"THIS ISN"T OVER YET MY YOUNG FRIEND" Murphy said out loud to nobody
************************************************************************THE END.
THAT'S ALL FOR THIS TIME – YOU'LL HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE SEQUEL TO SEE WHAT'S
GOING TO HAPPEN – HAD A DIFFERENT IDEA OF ENDING THIS ONE BUT HAVE DECIDED
TO LEAVE THAT IDEA FOR ANOTHER DAY AND ANOTHER STORY IDEA. DON'T WORRY
YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE LAST OF WILLIAM MURPHY………………. HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED
THIS STORY.