"Chris what's wrong?" Louis asked as he entered the lab. He could
tell right away from the expression on the young woman's face that
something had happened and not something good.
"The police called. When they went to go pick Dr. Thompson up,
they found him dead. Looks like the same thing that happened to Lona only Dr. Thompson didn't have anyone to find him in time like Lona had Elmer."
Chris shook her head, focusing on memories of the late doctor to try to keep her mind off of the situation. Without him to give them a clue as to what he might have been exposed to.... "You know, Thompson was always antisocial. Why did Lona ever go out with him, anyway?"
"Desperation, remember?" Louis said with a slight chuckle. "Big banquet that she was going to to try to get more funding for the sleep lab?
And then the...."
"Right," Chris continued, shaking her head as well at the memory.
Think on stuff like that, just keep focusing on stuff like that. "And food poisoning had taken out every man in the hospital under the age of eighty except for Thompson somehow. Did they have figure out what caused that anyway?"
"Something about bad coleslaw in the cafeteria, I think." Louis said as he shook his head. "You know, Elmer was acting so freaked today about Thompson coming back. I should have told him that he didn't have anything to worry about but...." Louis sobered as he thought of his son.
He had been so busy, hadn't really paid much attention to Elmer except to point out every little thing that he did wrong. He felt tears stinging his eyes as he thought of that, that that might be the last thing he ever did with his son and.... "Okay, with Thompson dead, what do we do now?" He shook his head slightly, forcing down his fear. He didn't have the time to fall apart, not when his son needed him. He had failed Elmer in so many ways as a father but this wasn't going to be one of those times, not if he had anything to do about it.
"They're going to bring Thompson's body over here. We're the closest facility with the equipment to do an autopsy in isolation." Chris said with a shake of her head. "I need to talk to Dr. Havens, let him know what's going on and that we need him to put a rush on this. Thompson's dead and I don't even want to think about how much time Lona might have left. And then Hook and Elmer...." She wiped at her eyes, trying to keep Louis from noticing the tears that were slowly falling. No matter how hard she tried to be strong, she just couldn't quite force those tears away.
"I'll talk to him and let him know," Louis handed Chris his handkerchief silently, otherwise pretending not to see that she was crying.
Chris smiled slightly at Louis, glad that he didn't say anything,
didn't draw attention to her tears. She shook her head slowly knowing that crying wasn't helping anything, that Louis wasn't breaking down and his son....
"What else can we do?" Louis said, trying to focus Chris's attention on the situation at hand once more. That would help her more than any handkerchiefs or kind words would, being able to do something that might help bring this to an end.
"The police contacted the airport." Chris said slowly as the two started out the door and down the hallway once more. "They're going to bring everyone on Thompson's plane in for examination. We'll have to set up and isolation area somewhere. I should probably go and warn Dr. James what's going on so he'll be prepared. This is surely going to bring media attention down on us and not the favorable kind he wants, either."
"What about Africa?" Louis asked. "Thompson was working with a group of doctors over there. Maybe we could get in touch with them, see if they might have any clue what Thompson was doing, what he might have been exposed to?"
"I've got a call in to them. Otto's going to page me when it finally goes through. Apparently it's night and they kind of have a problem with cell phone reception in the middle of the jungle. Someone's going to have to drive in and get one of them." Chris shook her head slowly, trying to figure out something, anything, to get her mind off the situation at hand. "So, how were Sally and Peter?"
"Fine as far as I could tell," Louis said. "I told Sally what happened. She said something about talking to Mary, seeing if she could help. Who's...."
"Mary is a long story." Chris said. Could Mary help maybe? Chris couldn't believe that she was thinking that, of despirately pleading for help from a ghost but.... She closed her eyes for a moment, slumping back against the wall. She couldn't loose Hook, she just couldn't.
"Chris, we're going to figure this out." Louis told her in a firm tone as he came over and put his hand on her shoulder, drawing the young woman close into a comforting hug. "We're going to figure this out." They had to figure it out. He refused to even consider the notion that he might lose his son.
"The police called. When they went to go pick Dr. Thompson up,
they found him dead. Looks like the same thing that happened to Lona only Dr. Thompson didn't have anyone to find him in time like Lona had Elmer."
Chris shook her head, focusing on memories of the late doctor to try to keep her mind off of the situation. Without him to give them a clue as to what he might have been exposed to.... "You know, Thompson was always antisocial. Why did Lona ever go out with him, anyway?"
"Desperation, remember?" Louis said with a slight chuckle. "Big banquet that she was going to to try to get more funding for the sleep lab?
And then the...."
"Right," Chris continued, shaking her head as well at the memory.
Think on stuff like that, just keep focusing on stuff like that. "And food poisoning had taken out every man in the hospital under the age of eighty except for Thompson somehow. Did they have figure out what caused that anyway?"
"Something about bad coleslaw in the cafeteria, I think." Louis said as he shook his head. "You know, Elmer was acting so freaked today about Thompson coming back. I should have told him that he didn't have anything to worry about but...." Louis sobered as he thought of his son.
He had been so busy, hadn't really paid much attention to Elmer except to point out every little thing that he did wrong. He felt tears stinging his eyes as he thought of that, that that might be the last thing he ever did with his son and.... "Okay, with Thompson dead, what do we do now?" He shook his head slightly, forcing down his fear. He didn't have the time to fall apart, not when his son needed him. He had failed Elmer in so many ways as a father but this wasn't going to be one of those times, not if he had anything to do about it.
"They're going to bring Thompson's body over here. We're the closest facility with the equipment to do an autopsy in isolation." Chris said with a shake of her head. "I need to talk to Dr. Havens, let him know what's going on and that we need him to put a rush on this. Thompson's dead and I don't even want to think about how much time Lona might have left. And then Hook and Elmer...." She wiped at her eyes, trying to keep Louis from noticing the tears that were slowly falling. No matter how hard she tried to be strong, she just couldn't quite force those tears away.
"I'll talk to him and let him know," Louis handed Chris his handkerchief silently, otherwise pretending not to see that she was crying.
Chris smiled slightly at Louis, glad that he didn't say anything,
didn't draw attention to her tears. She shook her head slowly knowing that crying wasn't helping anything, that Louis wasn't breaking down and his son....
"What else can we do?" Louis said, trying to focus Chris's attention on the situation at hand once more. That would help her more than any handkerchiefs or kind words would, being able to do something that might help bring this to an end.
"The police contacted the airport." Chris said slowly as the two started out the door and down the hallway once more. "They're going to bring everyone on Thompson's plane in for examination. We'll have to set up and isolation area somewhere. I should probably go and warn Dr. James what's going on so he'll be prepared. This is surely going to bring media attention down on us and not the favorable kind he wants, either."
"What about Africa?" Louis asked. "Thompson was working with a group of doctors over there. Maybe we could get in touch with them, see if they might have any clue what Thompson was doing, what he might have been exposed to?"
"I've got a call in to them. Otto's going to page me when it finally goes through. Apparently it's night and they kind of have a problem with cell phone reception in the middle of the jungle. Someone's going to have to drive in and get one of them." Chris shook her head slowly, trying to figure out something, anything, to get her mind off the situation at hand. "So, how were Sally and Peter?"
"Fine as far as I could tell," Louis said. "I told Sally what happened. She said something about talking to Mary, seeing if she could help. Who's...."
"Mary is a long story." Chris said. Could Mary help maybe? Chris couldn't believe that she was thinking that, of despirately pleading for help from a ghost but.... She closed her eyes for a moment, slumping back against the wall. She couldn't loose Hook, she just couldn't.
"Chris, we're going to figure this out." Louis told her in a firm tone as he came over and put his hand on her shoulder, drawing the young woman close into a comforting hug. "We're going to figure this out." They had to figure it out. He refused to even consider the notion that he might lose his son.