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The machine's high-pitched squeal fought to be heard over the shouting of the doctors.

"She's not responding!"

"Jesus Christ charge them up again!!"

"Charging!" The head nurse looked at the doctor. The woman wasn't responding. "Ready!"

"Clear!!" Everyone backed up and the doctor put the paddles on her chest again. "C'mon pretty lady, come back to us," he whispered as he thumbed the switch, sending the electric current into her heart. "C'mon!"

The machine beeped feebly at first, then a touch stronger.

"We got her!! Keller!! Call the OR, get them ready yesterday! Blanks, crawl on that gurney and you keep pressure on that chest wound, sit on her if you have to! This Lady Agent is not gonna die in my ER."

Keller nodded and snatched up the phone. Blanks straddled the woman's thighs and leaned over, putting most of his body weight onto the wound in her chest as the other doctor started pulling the equipment together.

"OR's waiting for her!" Keller slammed up the phone and ran to the head of the gurney. He took over bagging, squeezing the inflated rubber ball and pushing oxygen into her airways.

"Let's go!!" The lead doctor, the head nurse and the other attending put the rails up and gave the table a push, starting it on its way. Down the hall they ran, their filmy splatter aprons rippling behind them as they wheeled around a corner and into the elevator.

Officer Hines watched them go. He blinked as something fluttered down out of nowhere to land at his feet. Looking down he saw a white feather, the tip of it scorched and singed as if it had been put to a flame and burnt. Odd, it hadn't been there before… Slowly he knelt down and picked it up. It was still warm… He looked up towards the heavens for a moment, then smiled and turned towards the elevators as he radioed in his change of location.

"Hang on Lady Agent… just hang on," the lead doctor whispered as they passed floor after floor. His eyes fell to her hand as it lay motionless near his hip. She'd lost a lot of blood, some of it was spattered all over her hand. She was married, he saw the silver and diamond ring on her ring finger. He thought back to what Keller had said earlier. 'looks like there's uterine damage, one possibly both ovaries are trashed. I hope she's had all the children she ever wants cuz she's never having any more…' What a shame. He silently hoped she'd already had kids… and in the same breath, he hoped she didn't. Her chances of living were slim… and getting slimmer. His eyes fell to her other hand as the elevator dinged, the doors opening and spilling the team out towards the operating room. What did she have clenched in her fist?

"Jesus Christ she looks like hamburger." The lead surgeon groused. "What the hell happened to her?"

"Gunshots is all we know. Two in her chest - one clean exit, the other's still inside. One pelvic wound, trashed her ovaries and possibly her uterus, lodged in her large intestine. She's stable for the moment, but she's flatlined twice - one in the ambulance, once in the ER. She's a fighter that one."

"We'll take it from here." The surgical staff pushed the gurney into the OR doors and left the ER team outside. Behind them the elevator doors opened and Officer Hines stepped out of the elevator.

"The lady Agent…"

"She's in the OR now Officer. It's up to them to save her life."

Billy Hines nodded his head and drifted slowly over to the doors of the prep room to watch as they prepared her for surgery. "Where can I watch?"

The lead ER doctor looked back as everyone of his team was ripping off their aprons and gloves. "You know her?"

"No. But she's alone. No one should be alone when they're fighting for their lives."

The doctor put his hand on the officer's shoulder and sighed. "She might not live."

Rookie Officer William Hines turned back to the double doors leading into the Operating Room.

The doctor sighed and moved over to the young officer. He couldn't be too long out of the Academy. "Come with me. I'll take you up to the observation room. Don't get your hopes up, please? She's touch and go." He punched the button for the elevator as he watched the young officer look back over his shoulder at the OR team pushing the gurney into the actual OR.

Billy only looked back when the elevator doors opened. Inside were the two paramedics.

"Hey doc… that woman we brought in…"

"We're on our way up to the observation room to watch. Officer Hines here wants to stay with her."

"Yeah, we kinda wanted to see how she does."

As the doctor and the policeman stepped inside, the doors slowly slid closed. Billy Hines chuckled softly and looked down at the burnt feather in his hand. "She'll live."

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