Collateral Damage: Chapter 6

See Prologue for disclaimer and other story notes.

Night Shift

~*~

The sunset was casting beautiful purples. Emma watched it with her peripheral vision as Brennan spoke beside her, "We're ready, Adam."

"Let it get dark, Brennan. Be patient."

Brennan groaned and rolled his eyes, muttering something about overcautious scientists and cursing softly. On his other side, even Shalimar was fidgeting. "He's right," Emma put in softly. "We can't help Jesse if we get ourselves caught and arrested."

Neither of them even acknowledged her. She rolled her own eyes and briefly entertained the idea of using her powers to send them a calming wave. But since they needed to be as sharp as possible to break into a government facility, she dismissed the thought.

She glanced back to the building. The plan was for Adam and Jesse to guide them past the security measures and through the maze of current labs to the unused section where they would find the girl. They had waited for the early sunset and watched the majority of the employees leave, knowing that the less the possible resistance, the better.

Unfortunately, the longer they waited the more agitated Brennan and Shalimar became. Emma had little doubt that Jesse was behaving similarly back at Sanctuary. While she felt for him, she didn't envy Adam the task of trying to calm him.

Fortunately, once the sunset had begun darkness followed in short order. Brennan waited a few more minutes before announcing once again that they were ready. This time, Adam gave them the go-ahead.

They walked right in the front door. Brennan shorted out the cameras, Emma hit the guard with a psionic blast, and Adam directed them past the lobby and into the network of laboratories.

~*~

Adam turned his attention from the monitor when Jesse sank down beside him with a sigh. He studied the young man, certain that he looked a little paler than normal. "How are you feeling?" he asked carefully.

"Oh, I'm just sitting here dying. No big deal."

Though he knew the biting sarcasm was just hiding Jesse's fear, Adam still winced as though he'd been struck.

Jesse noticed and sighed again. "Sorry. I'm okay, Adam."

Adam studied him. "Promise you'll let me know if that changes?"

He received a slow nod. "Yeah."

Adam had little choice but to accept that. He indicated that Jesse should take over with the comm, then sat back and watched. As Jesse directed Brennan past the security door leading to the older section of the lab, Adam ruminated on the smooth workings of his team. It would be devastating to have to start over with a new team member. More than that, it would break all of their hearts.

It wasn't as if this was the first time he'd had to face this with one of them. But it never got any easier. As a matter of fact, the closer the four of them got, the harder it became.

~*~

"This is entirely too easy," Brennan muttered.

Shalimar glanced back at him, seeming to agree. Nothing ever went this smooth. If it did, trouble was usually waiting around the next corner.

But the next corner revealed an empty hallway much like the last one. They had encountered only one technician in this section, and he hadn't exactly been a difficult obstacle. Whatever was behind the rest of these doors must not be considered too important.

Adam was directing them again, leaving Brennan honestly missing Jesse's voice. It was comforting to hear him, even if he was just supplying security codes. At least they could hear that he was still with them.

He broke from his thoughts when Adam told them to stop. "She should be right through the door on your left."

Brennan exchanged a glance with the girls, then opened the door. They all entered together, then stopped short and stared.

"Did you find her?" came Adam's impatient voice after a few moments of silence.

Brennan took a second to respond. "Uh…not exactly."

They were looking at cryogenic pods. Plural, not singular. There were rows and rows of them.

~*~

After Brennan had explained the situation, they had begun searching through the room. On the other end of the comm, Adam and Jesse were forced to do nothing but wait.

Adam watched as Jesse rubbed at his eyes. After a few moments he said hesitantly, "You need to get some sleep."

Jesse glanced up at him, then responded exactly as he had expected. "If it's all the same to you, I'd rather not waste my last hours sleeping."

The sharp edge in the young man's voice prompted Adam to take a gentler tone. "Jesse, you're exhaustion is only speeding up the process. Your body doesn't have the strength to fight it." He paused, angling his head to look into Jesse's eyes. "I'll wake you in an hour, I promise."

Jesse's tired blue eyes spoke volumes. As they bored into his own, Adam reached to squeeze his shoulder, trying to convey as much comfort as possible. He wasn't sure he was being very successful until Jesse finally spoke. "All right," he capitulated. "But if anything happens…"

"I'll wake you then."

Jesse shuffled off a bit reluctantly. Adam watched him go. He waited until the door to Jesse's room was safely shut before allowing himself to drop the calm façade.

He brought a hand up to rub his face. A moment later, he was staring at it blankly as he realized it was shaking. He sat down heavily in front of the monitor.

After a few intense minutes, he forced his emotions to the back burner. He couldn't afford to do this now. "Brennan, what's happening?" he asked into the comm.

~*~

Brennan was moving from pod to pod, searching for the young face Adam had shown them earlier. The next row over, Emma was doing the same. "We haven't found her yet, Adam. Stand by," he responded shortly.

He glanced towards the entrance, where Shalimar was keeping watch. He was starting to get a seriously bad feeling about this situation. He took a deep breath and shoved his worries aside, continuing the search. He moved on to the next pod.

After a moment he called, "Emma, I think I've got her."

She hurried to join him. Together they looked down through the glass and into the innocent young face. In a different setting, she could have been just a beautiful little girl fast asleep and having pleasant dreams. But here, Brennan was forced to clench his jaw at what Genomex and their experiments had done to this child.

He shook his head, mentally shaking himself back to the present problem. He knelt to look at the anchorage of the pod. "We're never gonna get this thing out of here," he mused.

Emma knelt as well. After studying it for a moment she concluded, "Well, we'll just have to wake her then."

They exchanged a glance. Brennan sighed and spoke into his ring, "Adam? We can't move the pod. We're gonna have to wake her up."

"Brennan…" He could practically hear Adam doing the mental calculations. This certainly wasn't the most desirable course of action. The timetable had begun a decade ago, and waking her now was going to restart it and place her in a situation very similar to Jesse's. Finally their leader responded, "Okay. She should be alright for a few hours yet. Do what you have to do."

Brennan nodded. "I'll get back to you when we've got her out." With that he cut off communication, going back to the pod before him and the little life it contained within.

~*~

Adam let out a pent-up breath and moved from the monitor to the nearby couch as he waited for more news from his team. He realized he was fairly exhausted himself, though he had no plans on sleeping any time soon.

He looked up when he heard the slight noise. He sighed at the sight. Jesse was leaning against the doorframe, watching him silently. He had sincerely hoped that the young man would be able to rest. He was reluctant to offer him any kind of drug to help, what with the chemicals already churning in his system. "Jesse…"

Jesse met his eyes for a second before looking to the ground. "I don't—" he broke off, cleared his throat, then tried again. "I don't want to be alone, Adam."

Adam shut his eyes briefly, then simply nodded his understanding. He knew what that admission had taken for him, and he also suspected it was the closest he would get to a profession of fear. Adam felt a pang in his heart as he opened his arms in silent invitation.

And while part of Jesse was still embarrassed by this, he needed the comfort more. Nothing was said. He just settled beside his leader on the couch and allowed himself to be pulled close.

And there, in familiar, trusted arms, he finally rested.

~*~

To be continued