Hannibal crashed through the emergency room doors, BA behind him with a limp Face in his arms. A nurse grabbed a gurney and BA placed Face on it.
"He stopped breathing about a minute ago." Hannibal told the nurse. A doctor ran out of an exam room and started barking out orders as they wheeled Face into a room.
Hannibal and BA stood there, watching the doors go back and forth, back and forth. Hannibal put his hand on BA's shoulder. "C'mon BA. Let's go to the waiting room. Murdock and Frankie should be here any minute."
XXXXXXX
Ellen stepped out of the shower and dried off before putting on her red silk robe. She walked into the living room. Stockwell was sitting on the couch, looking through some files. Ellen sat on the couch, taking the files from Stockwell's hands and placing them on the coffee table.
"All work and no play, General?" she teased.
Stockwell pulled her toward him and kissed her. "Now, now. I was just keeping busy while I waited on you. Phase two has begun, and I was just preparing for phase three."
Ellen smiled as she unbuttoned the top buttons on Stockwell's shirt. "Well, I say we take a break from the planning and have a little fun." She began kissing his mouth, then his neck.
"You are going to be the death of me, Ellen." Stockwell untied Ellen's robe and began caressing her. "Let's go into the bedroom." He whispered.
Ellen stood, letting the robe fall around her feet. She offered her hand to Stockwell, and led him into the bedroom.
XXXXXX
Dr. Cade Bentley entered the waiting room where Hannibal, BA, Frankie, and Murdock had practically taken over. Hannibal started to stand, but the doctor motioned for him to stay seated. He pulled up a chair across from the four men.
"Your friend is going to be fine. But it was touch and go for a while. First of all, I want you to know that you can speak freely with me. I know that your friend is Templeton Peck and that you are the A-Team. I can assure you that no one else here knows. I have him listed as "Tim Smith" in the records. That said, according to our toxicology tests, he overdosed on a narcotic, causing his respiratory functions to slow down and then cease. Have you noticed any signs of depression lately?"
Hannibal replied, a tinge of anger in his voice. "Face did not try to kill himself, Doctor. In fact, he's only had two of his pain pills in the last 12 hours. I gave them to him myself."
Dr. Bentley sighed. "I didn't mean to offend you. It's just that the level of narcotics in his system is what is seen in suicide attempts. Do you have his pain medication with you by chance? I'd like to have it analyzed."
Hannibal dug into his jacket pocket and retrieved the bottle of pills. He handed it to Dr. Bentley. "When can we see him, Doc?"
Dr. Bentley put the pills in the pocket of his lab coat. "You can see him in a few minutes, but there are some other things you need to know." Dr. Bentley ran his hand absently through his graying hair and then continued. "Templeton suffered a seizure in the emergency room and aspirated, so we have him on a ventilator. I assure you it is only temporary. I also noticed signs of infection from a surgical wound and have started him on antibiotics. He's going to be 'out of it' for a while, but you can see him for a few minutes."
Dr. Bentley stood and extended his hand to each man. "I'll be checking in with you in a little while. Now, go see Templeton. He's in room 212."
"Thanks, Doc. For everything." Hannibal said. Then he and the rest of the team headed toward room 212.
XXXXXX
Room 212 was quiet except for the rhythmic breathing produced by the ventilator and the steady beeping of the heart monitor. Hannibal entered the room first, followed by BA, Murdock, and then Frankie.
Face lay still in the bed. The covers were pulled waist high, and the new bandage that had been placed on Face's surgical wound already had drainage seeping through. Hannibal took his fingers and laced them through Face's hair. "Hang in there Kid. You're going to be just fine. Doc says you'll be chasing the nurses in no time."
BA spoke to Face. "Hey, Little Brother, you really scared me, man. But you're going to be okay, I promise you. You just rest and get better."
After BA retreated from the bedside, Murdock walked up and took Face's hand in his own. "You gotta wake up soon Face. You've just got to."
Frankie walked up, not knowing really what to say. "Hey, Face. Listen, you're going to be okay."
Hannibal placed his hand on Face's shoulder. "We've got to go now, Son, but we'll be back first thing in the morning. You just rest."
One more glance over his shoulder, and Hannibal left, followed by the rest of the team.
XXXXXX
It was dark, save for a small florescent light over the bed. Face slowly opened his eyes, trying to take in his surroundings. He tried to speak, but couldn't because of the tube down his throat. Frantically, his eyes darted around the room.
"Don't worry. You'll be all right."
Face tried to focus in the direction of the voice. He could only see the outline of someone in the corner of the room.
"That's it. It's okay. I'm here for you."
Face squinted at the figure in the dark, who was now approaching him out of the shadows. A hand reached for his IV and injected something from a syringe into the tubing. Face felt his chest tighten. The respirator alarms began to sound, followed by the shrill of the heart monitor. His mind tried to wrap itself around what was happening to him. The last thing Face saw before slipping into unconsciousness was a glimpse of the shadow's smiling face.
XXXXX
"I take it phase two is now complete."
"Yes, General. If Face isn't dead yet, he soon will be." Ellen laughed.
"Very good. If all goes according to plan, we can begin phase three by next week." Stockwell smiled and pulled Ellen onto his lap. "They'll never know what hit them."
XXXXX
Hannibal and the guys had returned to the waiting room after visiting hours ended. BA and Hannibal were huddled in a corner of the room coming up with a new plan that now included taking care of a very ill Face. Murdock was stretched out on one of the couches, his right arm dangling off the side, his baseball cap pulled over his eyes. Frankie sat in a chair, reading a three-year-old entertainment magazine.
Code blue. Room 212. Code blue. Room 212.
The team jumped up and ran down the hall toward Face's room. A nurse pushed in a cart with a defibrillator. Another was performing CPR on Face. A respiratory therapist was monitoring the ventilator. Dr. Bentley, followed by another doctor Hannibal did not know, ran down the hall, pushing Hannibal aside as he entered Face's room. Hannibal could barely see Face through all the medical personnel surrounding his bed.
He could make out Dr. Bentley's voice above the others in the room:
"Asystole."
"Give me 400 watt seconds."
"Hit him again."
"Damn it, son, fight!"
Then another voice.
"Cade, let him go. We've lost him."
TBC