Thirty-one
"Sarah, what are you doing? Are you crazy? You turned the machine off!" Vern shouted, rushing over to the machine and turning the dial back up to '5'.
Sarah backed away from the machine. "Vern!" she said nervously.
Knowing he had very little time before the anesthesia would take its full effect again, Flash fought against the restraints holding his arms and legs. The straps were too strong and refused to give.
"What's going on? Why did you unfasten the cranial strap?" Vern asked angrily.
Flashed turned his head to look at Sarah.
Sarah looked horrified.
"Get that strap back on his head!" Vern bellowed.
Flash could feel the cold numbing fluid seeping back into his arms and legs, as Sarah reluctantly did what she was told.
"Sar…" Flash tried to talk, but his jaw went numb.
Just then, the doorbell rang. Vern looked up from the dials on the machine. "Sarah, get the door, that's got to be Carter and Rowe with West," he ordered. "I've got to make sure none of these tubes came loose."
Sarah ran out of the room without saying a word.
"I don't know what's gotten into that woman!" he muttered.
Vern, satisfied that the connections were secure, walked around the table and stood directly in front of Flash.
"It's you, isn't it? You're getting to her," Vern said, "It's not enough that you break every city ordinance to glorify yourself, but you have to rob me of everything that is rightfully mine! You cost me my job and my dignity. You won't turn my wife against me too!" he fumed.
Just then, the door to the room opened and in walked Sarah, with another man trailing behind her.
Flash noticed that the man was carrying a young woman who appeared to be asleep or unconscious.
"Carter, where is West?" Vern asked sounding annoyed. "Who is this woman? What are you doing here?"
Carter placed Kali upon a table across the room from Flash.
It's Kali! Flash realized in horror. His heart sank. What do they want with Kali? How in the world was he going to save her when he couldn't lift a finger for himself? He needed help, and from the scared look on Sarah's face; it didn't look good.
Flash watched helplessly as Vern walked over to Kali and strapped the restraints around her arms, legs, waist and head.
With Kali fastened securely down to the table, Vern turned to face Carter. "Well?" he asked, rudely.
"Listen Monocello, I've had it up to here with your 'attitude'. Let me get one thing perfectly clear. I do not have to take this from you. I am only in this to get my old job back. You said that if we helped you take the Justice League down, you could get us back on the police force. You said, with your connections and without the Justice League in place, we could run the town. Don't you worry about me; I will keep my end of the bargain, you just make sure you take care of yours," Carter said angrily.
"Well, MR. Carter, how do you propose to do that when you can't even get West in here? What kind of cop are you?" Vern argued.
"Monocello, we wouldn't even NEED West if your stupid wife had followed instructions! What was she thinking, drugging West and tying him to his bed! Any fool would know to wait for Flash and drug him when he's asleep!"
"Don't you dare bring my wife into this!" Monocello sneered.
"I didn't. You did." Carter spat the words at Monocello. "And now it's going to cost us everything."
"She had every reason to believe that West is Flash," Monocello argued. "The tracers led to West's apartment, so we know there is a connection between the two of them. When we get West, we'll know what that connection is."
"You're a fool Monocello. I don't know why I ever agreed to do this with you in the first place!"
"If you feel that way, Carter, then why are you here now?" Monocello retorted.
"I have nothing to lose. If your plan works, fine, I'll have my old job back. In fact, I would love to see the Justice League prosecuted for their crimes and disbanded; but I suspect that will not happen. The public reveres them too much. They are not just 'heroes' they're 'super-heroes'. The only consequence of revealing their identities to the public is that they will be more easily recognized; and then, venerated even more. The courts cannot prosecute them now because they don't know who these masked vigilantes are, but once their identities are out in the open, the courts will have no choice but to proceed with due process of law. When that happens, their crimes will be forgiven and mine will be as well. Either way, once the Justice League members' identities are exposed to the world, I'll get what I want. I expect I'll be back on patrol by the end of this month."
"Very nice speech, Carter," Monocello replied. "Are you finished? We're running out of time."
"I'm finished, but make sure there are no more slip-ups," Carter said, throwing Sarah a nasty look. "We can't afford any more mistakes."
"Then, I suggest you get your tail out to West's apartment. We're gonna need to cover our tracks."
Flash watched as Monocello grabbed Sarah and followed Carter out of the room. "I've got a special job for you, Sarah. You're going to take care of a little something for me," Flash heard Vern whisper to Sarah.
Thirty-two
When Kali slowly came to, the first thing she saw was Flash, strapped to a partly reclined metal laboratory table. He appeared to be awake and very calm. How odd, she thought.
She tried to move her head, but could not. Suddenly she realized that she too was strapped down to a reclining table. Where was she? What kind of place is this? she wondered.
She found it very frustrating not being able to turn her head to look around the room. In fact, the only direction she could look was at Flash, who was only a few feet away, but positioned directly in front of her. She was face to face with Flash.
"Flash!" she whispered, hoping no one else would hear her.
Flash didn't respond. He just stared.
"Flash?" she called, a little louder this time.
He still didn't respond.
It was very strange how he looked at her. He just stared at her with a blank expression on his face: no smile, no frown, no hint of emotion. It was very, very strange.
"Flash, can you hear me?" she asked, daring to raise her voice a little louder.
Flash blinked his eyes quickly three times.
"If you can hear me, close your eyes," she commanded.
He closed his eyes.
"If you know who I am, blink three times for yes and twice for no," Kali said, feeling encouraged.
He blinked three times.
"Can you move at all?" She asked, wondering why he wasn't speaking.
He blinked twice for no.
"What are we going to do?" she said aloud.
Flash shifted his eyes back and forth nervously.
"Oh, sorry. I guess I have to stick with yes and no questions, huh?" Kali wasn't sure what questions to ask. There didn't seem like much either of them could do. She didn't even know where they were, much less how to get out of there.
"Are we in a hospital?" Kali asked nervously.
Flash blinked twice.
"Maybe I should have asked 'Do you know where we are?'"
Flash blinked three times.
Kali was growing weary and discouraged. We're never going to get out of this, are we? she thought sadly.
Her eyes searched his, trying to read his thoughts. Her mind drifted back to the pizza place, when she first met him. He was so upbeat and friendly, she remembered; but her first impression of him was that he was full of himself, a flirt and comedian. That is, until he sat down, face to face, across the table from her, much like he was now. The memory of his smile was as clear as day, in her mind. That huge, self-assured grin plastered on his face when she had asked him to prove his speed. She missed that smile. It was just like Wally's smile.
She wondered if Wally was okay. She had never made it to his apartment. Would he come looking for her? she was beginning to think she'd never see him again.
With her vision distorted from the tears welling in her eyes, Flash's red mask blurred. For a moment, he appeared to have a flowing cascade of red hair where his mask would normally be. Except for the missing smile, he was the man in the wedding picture she held in her hands only a short time ago.
"Wally?" she said, aloud.
Thirty-three
Superman had observed Carter lift Kali out of the car and carry her to the mortuary back entrance. With his x-ray vision, he spotted Flash strapped to a metal examination table at the far end of the building. There were two other people in the room with Flash, a fair-haired young woman and dark-haired man, both wearing long white lab coats.
Superman watched and waited, planning to take them down one by one. He tuned-in with his super-hearing and listened to the heated exchange between Carter and Monocello. As the two men argued, Superman realized that the blonde-haired woman in the white lab coat, Sarah, was Monocello's wife, the woman who had drugged Flash.
Judging from the nervous look on her face, Superman surmised that she was not as willing a participant, as he was lead to believe.
As Carter exited the building and approached his car, Superman stepped out from the shadows behind him. "Mind telling me what you used these for?" he asked, holding up the half-empty container of ether and dampened cloth.
"Superman!" Carter exclaimed, reaching for his gun.
"I'm afraid that won't be of much help," Superman said calmly, as he placed the glass bottle and cloth on Carter's car.
Carter dropped his gun and took off, running for cover at the far end of the parking lot.
Superman smiled, took three running steps, and leapt into the air. Unobserved, he landed just a few feet in front of Carter, folded his arms across his chest, and waited for the inevitable.
Carter, panicked and not paying attention, crashed directly into Superman.
"Going somewhere?" he asked, smiling smugly. "How about a lift?" he added, grabbing Carter by his collar and tossing him onto the grassy ground nearby.
Wonder Woman arrived just as Carter fell to the ground, unconscious.
Thirty-four
Kali knows who I am! Flash thought, excitedly. This is great! No more worries! We can move forward without this big secret between us… Wait 'til I tell Marty! He can be my Best Man at the wedding! And he thought I'd never settle down! Hah!
I wonder if Kali likes to mountain climb, I've always wanted to climb Mount Everest. That would be a great place to go on our honeymoon! Maybe we can hold the wedding up there. That will be good for J'onn J'onzz; I know how his Martian constitution doesn't do well with the warm temperatures here on Earth. I'm sure the rest of the Justice League won't have a problem with it. At least Marty will stop pestering me about meeting the rest of the Justice League!
He turned his attention back to Kali. She looked nervous and worried, he thought.
He watched a tear run down her cheek. He tried to say something, anything; but his cold face remained still. He wanted to break free from his bonds and whisk her away to safety, but could not.
Don't give up, Kali, don't lose hope, he pleaded with his eyes. I'll save you, he promised. Don't you know? …the good guys always win.
Just then, Vern entered the room.
He walked over to Kali. "Well, what am I to do with you?" he said aloud. "Carter was very foolish to bring you into this. The man is a loose cannon, he has been nothing but trouble. I never should have brought him into this deal. No matter, I've got other plans for him."
Vern walked over to a cabinet in the corner and slowly removed a large brown bottle marked 'Neurotrixatocin'. "In this bottle, young lady, is an altered carbon-based chemical compound I invented containing Cessatrixide and Neurotocin. Though both Cessatrixide and Neurotocin are produced and stored naturally within the body, they both must remain separate. When mixed, the combination of the two liquids produce a fast-acting Neuro-muscular inhibitor that slows the body's organs, muscles and nerves."
Flash and Kali both watched as Vern poured the cloudy mixture into a drinking glass. "A drop of this stuff in a bucket of water was enough to slow a race-horse's pace down to that of a snail," he explained, holding the glass out toward Kali.
"I'm tired of waiting," Vern continued. "I want answers now."
He turned to face Kali. "This lovely little cocktail isn't painful. It will merely relax you and you won't feel a thing. You'll just slip away into a peaceful state of eternal rest."
Kali looked horrified. "What do you want from me?" she cried.
Vern ignored her and turned his attention to Flash. "This chemical won't be detected in any autopsy. It will look like a natural death."
"No! Please!" Kali screamed, wiggling to pull herself free from her restraints.
"It's up to you, 'Mr. Fastest Man Alive'! Tell me who you are!" he demanded.
Thirty-five
Superman and Wonder Woman burst into the room, startling Vern and making him drop the glass onto the floor, shattering it and spilling the toxin.
Flash watched helplessly as Superman grabbed Vern.
Lifting Vern by the front of his shirt with his left hand, Superman threw him a knockout punch with his right.
Wonder Woman raced over to Kali and began unfastening her restraints. "Are you okay?" she asked her, helping her down off the reclined table.
"I'm okay," she insisted, "Please, help him!"
Kali, visibly shaken and unsteady on her feet, leaned against Wonder Woman for support.
"The police are on their way," she told Kali, helping her into a chair.
Superman looked up at Flash, as he tied Vern's hands together. "Be right there, Flash," he called.
Wonder Woman walked slowly around Flash. "He's connected to a machine by these feeding tubes," she commented. "What is this liquid?" she asked. Circling around to the front, she gently placed her hands on his cheeks. "Flash, you look almost blue! You're freezing!" she said concerned.
"Let me shut the machine down, before you unstrap him," Superman said, turning down the dosage knob.
Police sirens and flashing lights announced the arrival of the local police force. Moments later the Police Sergeant and two police officers rushed into the room.
"Vern? Is that Officer Monocello?" One of the police officers asked the other in disbelief. The Sergeant nodded, and pointed, indicating that the two officers should proceed with the arrest.
"Thanks for bringing Sarah Monocello and Joe Carter down to the Station, Wonder Woman," the Sergeant said kindly. "This was all part of a scheme to bring down the Justice League. We couldn't get much out of Carter, but Sarah was very talkative. If I know Vern Monocello, he'll talk too.
Three months ago, the Department fired Officers Monocello, Carter, and Rowe for failing to follow proper police procedures. These men have a penchant for harassing suspects regardless of whether there is probable cause. The officers' poor behavior resulted in the release of the leaders of a major drug ring. These drug dealers would have evaded capture and trial had it not been for the Justice League.
Monocello, Carter and Rowe have always had a problem with the Central City Police accepting aid from outside the Department, specifically by members of the Justice League. I think this pushed them over the edge," explained the Sergeant.
"Let me personally say that this attitude, by no means, is a reflection of the rest of the Department. We whole-heartedly appreciate the Justice League's help in serving the people of our fair city," he said, offering his hand first to Wonder Woman and then to Superman."
"Thank you Sergeant," Wonder Woman replied, "I'll relay your message to the rest of the members of the Justice League."
The Sergeant nodded in agreement and left the room.
Flash felt tingly all over. He was still a bit cool, but at least now, he could move. He turned his head and shook his hands. For once, he was thankful for that ticklish feeling of 'pins and needles'. "Ahhh…." he sang softly, testing his voice. At least his throat had not become dry this time, the thought.
Wonder Woman unstrapped Flash's restraints while Superman helped him down.
Flash looked over at Kali. She was watching him, smiling. She looked tired, but much more relaxed, happy even.
"I think you should get checked out at the Watchtower," Superman suggested.
"Yes, I think that's a good idea," Wonder Woman agreed. "I'll take Kali home, while you go with Superman," she instructed.
"No, I want Kali to come with me," Flash objected. "I mean, can she?" he asked, "Please?"
Wonder Woman looked to Superman, for his opinion.
Superman nodded.