Chapter 4

The ride to the hospital had been tense and silent. Since none of the team had been with Don when he was hurt, there was nothing they could tell Alan. Several times he tried to reach Charlie. If Donnie had been injured at Cal Sci, chances were Charlie would know what had happened. The third time he got Charlie's voice mail, Alan gave up. He chose to believe that Charlie was in the ambulance with his brother, too busy holding Don's hand to answer his cell. He would find out what happened at the hospital.

At Huntington, Colby let the three of them off at the ER entrance, then left to find a parking space. Megan and David spotted some LAPD uniforms as soon as they entered the building, and they hurried Alan over to them.

Megan flashed her badge and demanded, "You brought in Agent Eppes?"

A uniformed officer nodded. "He's being examined now. He hasn't regained consciousness, so we've been unable to get a statement."

Alan interrupted. "What about my other son? What did Charlie tell you?" He looked around, not seeing him. "Did they let him go back with his brother?"

The officer at first looked confused, then sorrowful, and Megan felt her heart drop. "Wasn't someone with Agent Eppes?"

The officer shook his head. "No…are we talking about Dr. Eppes?"

Everyone nodded, and the officer continued. "We have a witness, a girl, who says she saw two men place an injured Dr. Eppes into a private vehicle. They told her they were transporting him themselves, and she got the impression they were FBI officers, somehow."

Alan became more agitated than he already was. "Where is he, then? Where's Charlie?"

The officer tried to sooth him. "He hasn't been brought here, but we have alerts at all other area emergency centers."

Alan wouldn't be placated. He looked at Megan and David. "But if they were FBI officers, you would know it, right? You would have heard."

Colby, car parked, jogged up to the group. "What's happening?"

Megan looked at him in horror. "Nothing on Don, yet. And…it looks like Charlie is missing."

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Thirty minutes later, Alan refused a cup of coffee for the seventh time. He had finally agreed to sit when he saw a white-coated doctor headed for the waiting area, and heard a faint, "family of Donald Eppes?" He jumped up again and lifted his hand, and the doctor came toward him.

"Dr. Rich Embry. Are you Donald's father?"

Alan nodded. "Don, yes. How is he?"

The doctor looked at the crowd gathering around Alan. "Perhaps we should find somewhere to speak privately."

Alan shook his head. "It's all right. These people are family."

Dr, Embry's gaze lingered on David and he cleared his throat. "Of course. Well. Mr. Eppes, you may have the luckiest son alive at the moment."

Alan visibly sagged, and Colby tightened up the space between them, ready to grab if Alan went down. Alan sensed his presence and was grateful. "He's all right?"

The doctor's attitude remained serious. "He's alive, Mr. Eppes, and that in itself is remarkable. Agent Eppes was shot, with a shotgun. He was wearing his Kevlar vest, and that saved his life — but there was still enough force to bruise several ribs, break two — and knock him off the roof of a three-story building." Alan gasped, and the doctor urged them all to sit down. Once settled, he continued his litany of Don's injuries. "Your son entangled part of the building on the way down — an outward-opening window. That slowed his descent some. At some point — perhaps on the window, perhaps on impact — he suffered a broken leg; right tibia. He's being prepped for surgery on that now. When he hit the ground, both lungs collapsed — he 'had the air knocked out of him' — and his right lung reinflated on its own. The left was…encouraged…by the EMTs. His head hit in the muddy landscaping. The other choice was cement, and I don't have to tell you how different this story would be if things had gone that way."

"Is he conscious, now?" Colby's interruption was fine with Alan. He would ask the same thing if he could speak.

The doctor shook his head. "The impact was still significant. It was three stories. There is some brain swelling, and we're addressing that with drugs for the time being. Hopefully it will recede without further intervention. The window that came crashing down with him also shattered, obviously, and some glass shot into his left arm and leg. Only a few of those wounds required any treatment besides simple irrigation and a tetanus shot." He looked down at the chart in his hands. "I believe we put a few stitches in two leg wounds."

Alan found his voice. "Can I see him before the surgery?"

Again Dr. Embry shook his head. "I'm sorry. He's already gone up. If you'd like to go to the fourth floor surgical waiting room, the orthopedic surgeon will find you there as soon as he's finished. I can give you directions."

This time it was Alan who shook his head. "That's all right," he said quietly, "I know." He remembered waiting there just a few short months ago, for news of Charlie's emergency surgery. At least Don had been with him, then. Tonight, waiting to hear about Donnie, Alan not only didn't have the comfort of his other son — he didn't even know if Charlie was still alive.

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An hour later, Alan heard footsteps and looked up anxiously. Was it over already? Instead of looking into the face of another doctor, however, he saw the pale face of Cecile, and immediately wanted to kick himself. How could he have forgotten that she worked here, and in post op, no less? How could he have let her find out this way?

Alan stood and started toward her. "Cecile, I'm so sorry. I should have called you…"

She met him in the middle of the room and hugged him briefly, but strongly, and smiled over his shoulder at the members of Don's team. "Hush, Mr. Eppes, I'm sure you've had other things on your mind." She pulled back, but left a hand on his arm. "I saw Don's name on the latest list of patients currently in surgery and came as soon as I could get someone to cover my rooms. I was sure you and Charlie would be waiting here…" She looked around for Charlie expectantly, then with confusion back at Alan. "Is he in the restroom or something?"

Alan suddenly teared-up and frightened Cecile nearly senseless. She managed to pull some automatic nursing skills out of somewhere, though, and got him to sit down with her. "Mr.…"

He tried to smile at her. "Alan, dear. I've told you that."

She gave a little smile back. "Alan…I checked on Don just before I came, and surgery is going well. It should be another hour or two." She looked at Megan, who smiled and then dropped her eyes. Colby and David wouldn't meet her eyes to begin with. She almost whispered her next question. "Alan…Alan, where is Charlie?"

Alan didn't try to stop the tear that spilled out of one eye as he answered sadly. "I don't know, Cecile. Nobody knows. Someone saw him being taken…he's hurt…"

Cecile braced herself and put on her best patient's family smile. "Maybe not, Alan — the witness could be wrong." She looked to the FBI agents for support. "Don told me that witnesses often get things wrong, they get caught up in the shock…"

Alan shook his head. "It's not just the witness. I feel it. I'm his father."