Fisher and the SWAT team, along with the Chicago police, and the hostage rescue team had surround the house, many questions running through all of their minds. Was she in there? Not in a physical sense, but in a spiritual one. They knew the corpse was there- a body of some sort- but was it actually a corpse, or was it still a body, a living body housing a human soul? If she was dead, then how long? If she was alive, in how much pain? Would she be within their capacity to save? What if there was a trap waiting for them? Baited with her, or the promise of her. What if they were about to explode into a million bloody, ragged pieces, fragments, just another part of his sick game, the final stab aimed at the people who had tried to rescue Abby, could also become his next and final victims.
The media had quickly learned of what was happening and had gathered along with a growing crowd of bystanders, across the street, all wondering what was about to go down.
SWAT men in Kevlar vests, all around, the place was surrounded. A sniper or two hid in the shadows. What if? She was probably dead. It was just too plausible. Too realistic. Something like this just doesn't turn out well. Don't hold your breath. It won't do any good. But what if she was still alive?
They slammed down the door, as helicopters hovered overheard, the thud and crack were both insufferable, it had been done a dozen times in the past- and as it fell, the first of the SWAT team swarmed in. Those that weren't on the perimeter, were waiting to be the flank. Rifles, guns extended, fingers on the trigger guard, waiting for the slightest reason to move them to the trigger, to pull that little piece of metal, to fire and send the slightest thing that moved as foe into oblivion. Whatever they needed to do, to get Abby out safe, would be done.
One room cleared, then a hall, and another and another. No sound came from the house. Not television, not radio, not human suffering. Had she died, had the promise of her being alive been nothing but a lie? Each time a new room came, there was that sickening feel of bile and swallowed sputum. There were the ulcers forming prematurely. Stomach acid rising. The pressed on. A train of men, one behind the other, clad all in black Sniper gear, FBI and SWAT printed on the backs of them all, for anybody to easily identify.
And then the last room. They kicked the door in. She sat there, in the middle of the room, staring out the window. Silent. As though she had been sitting there for so long. Resigned. The noise seemed to catch her by surprise, as it would anyone. Her face was ghost white, she was incredibly thin, and just by looking at her, a quick glance, it was easy to see that Abby was in need of urgent medical attention.
She looked at them. Her eyes blank. Iced over. The look in her face-but not her eyes, which were nearly devoid of emotion, was one of fear. Was she that afraid that she could not move? Paralyzed for fear of yet more strange men coming in to take her somewhere else, even if that somewhere else was safety. Or was she biting her tongue, holding back a scream? The answer was there when she fainted. And they were all shocked by how tiny she looked, huddled there on the floor, the heap she had collapsed into.
"We've got her! We need the paramedics! " the leader of the SWAT team shouted into his ear piece as she slowly approached Abby. The team lowered their weapons, realizing that the house was empty, besides Abby, and that there was no trap waiting for them.
"Dr. Lockhart?" he bent down and pressed his fingers to her neck, searching for a pulse. "Dr. Lockhart, if you can hear me, its okay, its over with, you're safe now," he pulled off his mask, as he spoke. Suddenly, he was pushed out of the way by Agent Fisher, who was leading the paramedics into the room.
Abby heard the commotion outside, the sound of helicopter flying over head. Something was going on and it scared the hell out of her. Then came a large bang, followed by loud shouts, people were yelling, screaming something, what she couldn't make out. She listened as at first they moved closer to her room, then farther away, and then close again. They had stopped at her door, they were coming in now. And then, suddenly, they were there. About ten of them, guns drawn, all pointed at her, all she could do was stare.
"We've got her, she's alive!" Abby heard one of them shout, and then she didn't know what to do anymore. Abby remembered the second time she had awoken with Martin in the room, how she had pretended to be asleep, how it had worked. Maybe it would with them. Her idea had to work, so she let herself collapse into a ball on the floor and closed her eyes, praying that they would just turn around and leave. They didn't, suddenly she felt someone's hands, another strangers hands, on her body, touching her.
They were asking her to come back to them, telling her that it was all over, but she didn't believe them, she couldn't. But then she heard two familiar voices, one she could easily identify as Agent Fisher and the other she couldn't put a name to.
Fisher, was to say the least, shocked. Martin had not lied to them, Abby Lockhart was lying in front of him alive, but she was not in the best of conditions. As soon as he had heard the SWAT team announce that they had found her and they needed the paramedics, Fisher had rushed in, the paramedics right behind him.
"Abby," he began and kneeled down next to her. "Abby, open your eyes for us, were not going to hurt you," he put a hand on her arm and instantly felt her body tense, she was conscious, it was more then he could have hoped for.
"Excuse me Agent Fisher, I really need to check her out," the paramedic didn't wait for a response, just brushed right past him, and sat down next to Abby. He had waited for the all clear sign that was given the medics moved in to recover the victim, knowing that she was a young woman who had been to have been horrifically traumatized by her whole ordeal, it was hard to imagine just what all she might have succumbed to at the hands of a mad man. The medic slowly and carefully approached the young doctor not wanting to make any sudden movements, kneeling down beside her seeing that she was in this state somewhere between being unconscious and being in shock. They could see the blank look in her eyes as if this was nothing more than a mere shell the life having been long sucked from it.
"Dr. Lockhart," it was Todd, the last paramedic that had had a conversation with Abby, the night she was abducted. "I'm Todd," he said as he reached down to gently check her over, "we're going to take good care of you," he somehow managed to pull Abby out of the tight ball she had curled herself into, so that she lying on her back. Members of the SWAT team still congregating, all very protective over the no longer missing doctor, that they had successfully rescued. Not wanting this to go in any way shape or form, wrong.
By now, Todd's partner, Joe had joined them. He, like Todd, also knew Abby, and it killed them both to see the once strong and confident doctor, reduced down to this.
"You want to start a line?" Joe asked, already reaching for the supplies, knowing what Todd's answer would be.
"Yeah," he looked back down at Abby, who had yet to move, yet to make eye contact. She looked as though she was going into shock. She probably was. "Here, Joe, let me do it," he grabbed the supplies from his partner and gently rubbed the alcohol on her arm. "Abby, I need to start an IV alright, we'll be out of here in a minute, just hold on for a second."
Abby felt the needle piercing her skin instinct started to take a hold she didn't trust, she couldn't trust the people that were around her. Friend or foe she didn't know as her body started to fight against those who were hurting her, she needed to protect herself, to get away and escape right now where the only thoughts that were going through her mind.
She was fighting them, and Todd knew they needed to get the line started, he held her arm firmly as she fought against him, there wasn't much fight there, but enough to make it hard to make getting the line in difficult. He spoke to her in soft tones, trying to reassure her that he wasn't going to hurt her, but no matter what he said it didn't seem to make a difference. The tears that were rolling down her cheeks where the only sign that was coming from the doctor, she hadn't said anything since they had gotten there and if it hadn't been for the tears, he wouldn't have any idea just how bad she was hurting on the inside. He would comfort her the best that he could, damage had been done that only time itself could repair, but he didn't think from what he had seen that there would be enough time in the world for this young woman to recover from the emotional trauma she had suffered
"Its alright, its okay, we're not going to hurt you Abby I promise," he whispered, as he continued trying to get the needle inside her skin. She was still struggling against them, but Joe had pressed his hands, gently but firmly on her shoulders, which easily held her down, and then just as soon as she had started, she stopped, Just lied back down, she had given up, or maybe she had realized that they were only there to help. "Okay, Abby all done," Todd said after he had finally started the line. He had almost given up on finding a vein in her hand and arm, and was about to move to the legs, when on his last stick, he managed to get one in. "Its just saline, nothing else," he had heard from one of the agents that Abby had been repeatedly drugged, that would explain why she was probably be just one of the many reasons she was so upset about him starting the IV.
Once he was sure that Abby was stable, he turned to his partner. "are we going to be able to get out of here?" Todd asked as the crowd continued gathering, newspaper reports, TV journalists, it seemed that everyone was converging on this one house in Chicago, news traveled fast and right now he and his partner were responsible for getting the biggest new story in the Nation away to assure her safety and well being. Joe just shrugged his shoulders, to busy making sure the IV was in place correctly.
"Okay Dr. Lockhart, we're going to take you to County, alright?" as suspected he didn't receive any kind of response. He watched as Joe lowered the gurney before once again addressing Abby. "Do you want to get on the gurney, or would you rather we lift you?" no response. "Okay, here we go," he bent down and wrapped one arm under her knees and the other behind her neck. Immediately, Abby felt it and began once again to attempt to fight them. Todd, knew it was coming, but continued to hold his grasp on her, as he lowered her to the gurney. "There you go, just lie back" he said as he placed her down, but she shot back up, ready to run. He caught her and gently held her around the waist, guiding her back to a lying position on the gurney.
"Abby, we need you to lie down so we can leave," Joe's voice was not as reassuring and understanding as Todd's. But she didn't listen, and kept trying to get off of the bed.
"Alright, just lie down, it will be okay Abby I promise, I promise" Todd pushed her back down, and held her there, stroking back her hair, as Joe brought the straps over her now shaking body, more to restrain her and stop her from hurting herself, then anything else. The tears had returned. One of the SWAT members had joined them in pulling the straps over her body, the faster they got that done, the faster Abby could get out of there. Todd had to turn his head away for just a second as the strap was brought over her chest, how for that instant Abby had stopped fighting and kept her gaze upon Tom's hands, watching where they went. When he looked back, she had seemed to relax a little bit knowing that, she wasn't going anywhere. He brought the sheet and multiple blankets over her, and smiled down at her. "let's get you of here, Dr. Lockhart."
"You ready?" Joe asked, and with a quick nod, he went to the front of the gurney, and surrounded by the reaming members of the SWAT team, guided the gurney outside.
The cops where one step ahead of them clearing a path through the sea of reports so that they could transport her safely and from the look of her they instantly knew that there would be no time for questions, asked or unasked they would have to wait for answers.
Multiple flashes of light went off when everyone first saw the gurney being wheeled out of the house. Everybody desperately wanting to get the first glimpse of the doctor who had been a part of their lives for three weeks now. The police had to surround the ambulance, clearing way so that Todd and Joe could easily put her inside, and leave within minutes.
Fisher approached Joe, once Abby was safe inside the rig. "How is she?"
Joe, already knowing who Fisher was, answered as she walked around to the side of the ambulance.
"Not good, medically she seems to be in the clear, but whatever he did to her.."
"You're taking her to county right?" Joe nodded his answer in response.
"it's the closest trauma center, we're only a few minutes out. " Joe paused, this case was really getting to him. He had brought patients to county before, and Abby had been the one to take some of them. Now he had to see her like this. It was a sight that no one wanted to see, it was always harder when it was one of their own. "He had her for three weeks, and it turns out, they were only a couple miles from the ER." Joe shook his head as he climbed in, "are you going to meet us there,"
"Yeah, I need to deal with the media first."
"Alright," Joe turned on the engine and guided the rig slowly out through the mass of people. As soon as it was clear, the sirens went on and the ambulance speed off, some reporters following, but most staying behind, anxiously awaiting to hear what Fisher had to say.
"Agent Fisher…." this was it, the questions had began.
"I cant release any details right now. I will hold a press conference at County in two hours," and with that he got into his own car and followed the ambulance to the hospital.
