Tangled Web
Chapter 7Ian clasped his hand across Ellen's mouth. "Don't scream. If you promise not to scream, I'll let go. Do you promise?"
Ellen nodded.
Ian slowly released his hand from Ellen's mouth. "Why did you push me in here?"
"I saw Cade coming. I didn't want us to get caught." Ian replied. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and stared at the ceiling, then turned to face Ellen. "My father wants me to kill you. But I …..I can't. You've got to get out of here. I'll take you to my place. It's the last place my father will look."
Ellen stared at Ian. "Why are you doing this?"
Ian remained silent.
The elevator opened on the basement level of the hospital garage. Ian reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys. "C'mon. My car's right over there." He pointed to a black sedan.
Ellen hurried to Ian's car and waited as he unlocked the door and opened it for her. He ran to the driver's side and got in.
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Unable to sleep, Hannibal got off the couch and walked toward Frankie. Bending slightly, he shook Frankie's shoulder, waking him.
"Frank, get up. Let's let BA and Murdock get some sleep."
Frankie stretched his arms and stifled a yawn. "What? Oh, yeah, sure Johnny. I didn't realize how tired I was. How's Face doing?"
"He was asleep last time I checked on him. His fever was down. I think he's going to be okay."
The door swung open, and Murdock rushed in, breathless. "Hannibal, Frankie come on. Face and BA were…..Ellen is….."
Hannibal hurried to Murdock. "Take a deep breath. What's going on?"
Murdock closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes and exhaled. "Okay. I went to get Popsicles for Face. His throat hurt. When I came back, Face and BA were on the floor, unconscious. Ellen's gone."
Hannibal pulled Murdock's arm. "Let's go."
The three men ran down the hall to Face's room. One of the nurses was talking to BA. "You really should let us take you to the ER and get checked out, sir."
BA snarled, "I said I ain't leaving my friend, and I meant it. I'm fine. You just take care of him."
Face was back in bed, unconscious, the IV's now established in his right arm. Fresh bandages were on his left arm where the IV's had been pulled out.
Dr. Bentley entered the room. One of the nurses hurried up to him and updated him on Face's condition as well as the events that had happened. Dr. Bentley frowned and went to examine Face. He thumbed through Face's chart, making notations. When he was finished, he walked over to Hannibal.
"Well, Doc?" asked Hannibal.
"He seems to be doing well. His pulse is strong. His vitals are within the normal range. I think he's just tired. The nurse told me that Ian treated him when his fever spiked. I'd like to thank you for taking a chance on Ian. He did a good job. Templeton's fever is down to 99 now. We know the cause of the cardiac arrest. He had an overdose of morphine, probably injected into his IV line." Dr. Bentley locked eyes with Hannibal.
Hannibal fumbled to pull his cigar out of his pocket. He rolled it between his fingers. "Doc, I don't know how much you know, and I don't know how much you want to know. But Face isn't safe here. I need to get him out of here. I'm open to any suggestions you may have."
Dr. Bentley thought for moment, then spoke. "Let me think about it. I'll get back to you."
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Face opened his eyes. He immediately thought of BA falling to the floor. He tried to sit up, but didn't have the strength to push himself up.
Hannibal reached out, placing his hand on Face's shoulder. "Face, it's okay. Everything's okay."
"BA needs help. I've got to…"Face whispered. He reached out his hand.
"Face, BA is fine. He's right over there. Murdock and Frankie are fine too." Hannibal brushed Face's hair with his fingers.
"A doctor ….had a needle….." Face closed his eyes. He snapped them open. "I saw Ellen. She was here." A tear slid down Face's cheek.
"I know," said Hannibal. "A lot has happened, Face."
Hannibal hesitated. Face was supposed to avoid stress. But he obviously knew something was going on. He'd seen Ellen himself. Hannibal took a deep breath, then bent down to Face. "I've got something to tell you, Face, and it's not going to be easy."
Face looked at Hannibal, and saw the pain in his eyes. "Tell me, Hannibal," he whispered.
"Face, Ellen isn't dead. She came here to – she came here to kill you. She's not really your sister. She works for Stockwell. Damn it, Face, I'm so sorry." Hannibal clenched his jaw, trying to keep his emotions in check.
Face blinked a couple of times and said nothing. Ellen wasn't his sister. That meant AJ wasn't his father. That meant he really was a throwaway child. Face turned his head and closed his eyes, wishing he could just be left alone, knowing that he couldn't be.
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Ian pulled up in the driveway of his house. He pulled into the garage.
"We're here. Let's get inside." Ian said.
Ellen opened her door and exited the car. She followed Ian into the house.
"Would you like something to eat or drink, Ellen?" asked Ian.
Ellen looked around the vast kitchen. "No. Thank you."
Ian walked toward the living room. "Here. Why don't you have a seat? You look tired."
Ellen smiled. "Yeah, I am tired." She followed Ian to the living room and sat down on an overstuffed couch.
Ian sat down beside her. "So, Ellen, what's my father got on you?"
Ellen looked surprised. "What do you mean?"
"Well, my father only forms relationships with people he can control. What does he have on you?" Ian asked.
"I'm sure you now about the diary my father had. Well, I have the complete version. It has some interesting information about your father. He gets the diary. I get a new life. It's as simple as that," said Ellen. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back on the couch. She sighed. "At least it was supposed to be simple." Ellen lifted her head back up and looked at Ian. "Does your father have anything on you?"
Ian smiled. "Of course. I told you, he only has relationships with people he can control. What better way to control someone than to use blackmail?"
Ellen scooted up on the couch. "Really. What does he have on you?"
Ian inched over to Ellen, his face merely inches from hers. "Murder."
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Dr. Bentley motioned Hannibal to the physician's lounge and directed him to a small conference room. He poured two cups of coffee and sat down across from Hannibal, sliding a cup of coffee to him across the table.
"Hannibal, I know where you can take Templeton. I have a beach house about 30 miles from here. It even has a hospital bed set up in the atrium, overlooking the beach." Dr. Bentley hesitated then continued. "My wife died there a couple of years ago. Pancreatic cancer."
"I'm sorry," Hannibal said.
"Thank you," Dr. Bentley composed himself. "Anyway, I don't mind if you use it. I'll write orders that Templeton is going to be transported back to Virginia to continue his convalescence. I even know an ambulance attendant who'll take him out there, no questions asked."
"Doc, I appreciate what you're doing, but won't you get in trouble for writing fraudulent orders?" Hannibal asked.
"If I do, I do. I told you, my main concern is my patient. He's not safe here." Dr. Bentley took a sip of his coffee and grimaced, "God, this stuff is terrible."
Hannibal took a sip of his coffee. "I don't know, I kind of like it."
"Hannibal, you remember when Templeton first came here, I told you that I knew who you and the team were?"
Hannibal nodded.
Dr. Bentley continued, "Well, I know who you are because I was there in Vietnam when you and the guys were brought to the hospital after escaping the POW camp. I was fresh out of residency. It's no wonder Templeton doesn't recognize me. He was pretty out of it for quite a while, and well, I was a lot younger then. Weren't we all? Anyway, I treated Templeton when he was brought in. He had been beaten, tortured, and….raped….but he refused to give up. He was told he could go home. He refused to go. Said he wanted to stay with his unit."
Hannibal cupped his hands around the coffee cup. "It would have been better if he had gone home. He'd be a free man right now. Probably married with a couple of kids."
Dr. Bentley continued. "Don't go there, Hannibal. That's one thing that Anna and I learned when our son David died in a car accident just a year before Anna died. You can't live in the past. We've all got 'coulda's' and 'shoulda's' in our lives, but we can't dwell on them. Anna made me promise to go on, to make a difference. That's what you and the team have done, and what you must continue to do. You've made a difference. Ask Templeton if he regrets staying with the unit. I'll guarantee you he doesn't. I see it in his eyes when he looks at you."
Dr. Bentley stood. "Stay in here as long as you need, Hannibal. I've got rounds to make. If you want to use the house, we can have you there by the afternoon. I'll check back in within the next couple of hours."
Hannibal stood and extended his hand. "Thanks Doc. I don't know what to say. We couldn't do this without you."
Dr. Bentley smiled and returned the handshake. "Don't say anything. And call me Cade." He walked to the door, then turned around. "I'll see you in a bit."
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The ride to the beach house was uneventful. Face was settled in the hospital bed in the atrium. The ambulance driver, another Vietnam vet, saluted Hannibal and left.
Murdock and BA cased the outside of the house while Frankie and Hannibal aired out the inside of the house. Face smiled when the windows were opened and he could smell the ocean air. He fell asleep to the sound of waves hitting the shore.
For the first time since leaving the hospital, Hannibal felt he could relax.
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Ian paced back and forth in the basement. Ellen was sitting in a chair that was bolted to the floor. Her hands were tied behind her back and her feet were tied to the legs of the chair. She was crying.
"Ian, please. Let me go. I won't tell anybody about you. Please let me go." She continued to cry.
"Let you go? Let you GO? How can I let you go? Don't you see? Everything was perfect until you fucked up. My father saw to it that my past transgression was never discovered. I finished medical school. I became a damn good doctor. Not that my father cared. He was interested in only having someone with a medical degree that he could use to his benefit. Drugs to fake a death. How to inflict maximal physical damage with minimal evidence. The list goes on and on. Then last year, the calls became less and less frequent. Then they ceased. Until now. I had finally been able to have a real life. Be a real doctor, a good doctor."
Ian wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand and started pacing again. "I saved Peck, you know. I saved him because my father wanted him dead. Of course, he wants you dead too."
"Ian, I'm sorry. Tell me what to do. I'll do whatever you say, just please, don't kill me." Ellen sobbed.
Ian stopped pacing and turned to Ellen. "Tell me where the diary is. We can use it to destroy my father."
"He already has it, Ian. It's in the desk on his plane." Ellen said, pulling the ropes on her wrists, causing them to bleed.
"Well then, there's no reason for you to stay alive, is there?" Ian laughed a throaty laugh.
"Wait. Wait. You're right. He doesn't have the original. I've got it put away somewhere safe. He only has a copy."
"I want the original diary," Ian said tonelessly.
"You'll have to let me get it for you." Ellen said, her voice quivering. "It's locked up."
Ian approached Ellen. He reached out and ran his fingers down the side of her face. "If I take you to the diary, you'll try to escape."
"No I won't, I swear!" Ellen cried.
Ian walked over to a desk in the corner of the basement and pulled out a handgun, attaching the silencer as he walked back to Ellen.
"Okay, take me to the diary. If you try to get away, I'll kill you. Do you understand?"
Ellen nodded her head. "Yes."
"Where is the diary?" Ian asked again.
"It's at the train station."
"Let's go."
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Face awoke to the sound of ocean waves, seagulls, and BA snoring as he slept on a couch in the atrium. He couldn't help but smile. He looked out the window and took in the beauty of the sunrise. The sky was painted in purple, pink, and orange. He suddenly remembered what Hannibal had told him about Ellen and he turned his head away from the window, closing his eyes, willing the world to go away.
He heard footsteps and slowly opened his eyes. Hannibal approached him along with another man who looked familiar.
"Face, this is Cade Bentley, your doctor. Do you remember him?" Hannibal asked.
Face nodded his head slowly. "I think so."
"This is his house. He's letting us use it until you're well enough to travel."
Face looked at Cade and smiled. "Thanks." He turned his head away and stared out the window.
Cade approached the bed and opened up his medical bag. "Okay, Templeton. I'm just going to do a quick exam and replace your IV's." Cade pulled out his stethoscope as he spoke. He checked Face's pupils, then his throat. He checked vital signs. He walked to the other side of Face's bed and tugged on the sheet. "Okay, now I need to check your surgical incision." Cade pulled the sheet down to Face's waist. He slowly pulled the tape off the dressing and proceeded to inspect the incision site. Face flinched as Cade pressed the area of skin around the incision. Cade finished his exam quickly and redressed Face's wound.
"All done. You're looking good Templeton. Your vital signs are stable. Your incision is healing nicely. I think the antibiotics have finally started to kick in. What you need now is rest. You can sit up for a couple of hours a day if you want, even go outside if someone is with you. The main thing is not to over exert yourself." Cade patted Face's leg. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Murdock bounded into the room. "Doesn't he get a lollipop for being a good boy?"
Cade laughed. "No. But he can have a Popsicle if he wants. His throat is still a little raw from the tube, but it's progressing nicely." Cade turned back to Face. "Take it easy."
Cade crooked his head in the direction of the kitchen and headed that way, Hannibal following behind him.
Murdock walked over to Face. "So, do you want a Popsicle?"
Face frowned. "No, I don't want a damned Popsicle. Just leave me alone, okay Murdock? I just want to go to sleep." Face closed his eyes and turned his head away from Murdock.
Murdock stared at Face, then put his hands in pockets and slowly walked away. Frankie stepped out from one of the bedrooms just as Face told Murdock to go away. He put his hand on Murdock's shoulder. "C'mon Murdock. Let's go get something to eat, okay?"
"Sure. Okay."
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"Okay, Cade, what's really going on? Is Face okay?" Hannibal asked worriedly.
"I think he will be. But he's obviously upset. He's so quiet, too quiet. Just keep an eye on him. When a person has nothing to do but lie in bed and think, sometimes emotions become too much to bear. He's really weak right now. We just need to reinforce a positive attitude with him. And if he's prone to nightmares, someone will need to stay with him when he sleeps. He's suffered a cardiac arrest, and we must keep him calm." Cade locked his medical bag. "Well, I better get going. I'll come back out this evening and check on him again. In the meantime, if you need anything just page me."
Frankie and Murdock entered the kitchen as Cade was preparing to leave. He greeted them with a handshake and left.
Hannibal watched Cade walk down the path to his Jeep. "There goes one hell of a man." He turned to Murdock and Frankie. "Okay, guys. Let's get busy. I don't think Stockwell knows where we are, but that could change at any minute. We need a contingency plan."
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Stockwell was angry. He had paged Ian more than 20 minutes ago and Ian had not called in.
"Carla, call his house."
"Yes sir."
Stockwell thumbed through the papers on his desk. Carla entered the room. "There's no answer, sir."
"Call the nurse's station and inquire about Peck."
A minute passed, and Carla came back into the room. "They said he's been transferred back to Virginia."
Stockwell slammed his fist on his desk.
"Find Ian."
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Ellen and Ian stood in the train station, in front of a long row of lockers. Ian's right hand was clasped around the gun hidden in his pocket; his left was clasped around Ellen's wrist.
"Let's go." Ian whispered in her ear.
Ellen slowly made her way to the locker. She dialed the combination of the lock, and slowly unclasped it.
"Get it." Ian whispered.
Ellen opened the locker door. The only thing inside the locker was a black notebook. Ellen reached in and retrieved the notebook.
Ian tightened his grip on Ellen's arm. "Let's go to the car."
They slowly made their way out of the train station to the parking lot toward Ian's car. He unlocked the passenger door. "Get in."
Ellen sat in the passenger seat and Ian slammed the door shut. He walked to the driver's side. Ellen opened her door and began to run back toward the train station. Ian aimed the gun and fired, hitting Ellen in the back. She fell to the ground. A crowd began to gather around her.
Ian ran to where Ellen lay. "Let me through. I'm a doctor. Somebody call the ambulance." Ian turned Ellen over. Blood was trickling from her mouth. She tried to speak, but only a gurgling sound came from her throat. Ian stroked her hair. "It's okay, Miss. I'm going to take care of you."
The last image Ellen saw was Ian smiling at her.
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"Hello?"
"I killed her, Father."
"Very good. Now find Peck and Smith. The nurses say Peck was transferred to Virginia, but I don't believe that. Find them and kill them."
"Yes, Father."
Stockwell hung up the phone and smiled. Phase three was about to begin.
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Ian Stockwell could feel the dried blood on his hands. Images of Ellen's face flashed through his mind. The look in her eyes as she lay dying caused Ian to smile. He had the power of life and death. It was just like before, when he had killed David Bentley.
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Cade Bentley stopped by the grocery store on the way to the beach house. He loaded the groceries in his Jeep and pulled out of the parking lot. He didn't notice the dark sedan three cars away.
TBC