"G, how's Hetty?"
While Callen wanted to update Sam on Hetty's condition, the information he'd just received from their Operations Manager was far more pressing.
"Awake…and talking. Well, signing."
"Signing?" Sam asked, confused.
"Yea…add sign language to her repertoire."
"Never count Hetty out," Sam answered with a laugh. "Woman is gonna get her point across no matter what."
"But we got a problem?"
"What's up?" Sam asked, moving away from the team so he could speak freely.
"Emma is the mole," Callen answered.
There was a pause before Sam responded. "Are we sure?"
"Hetty confirmed it. Was the first thing she said…well, signed."
Sam sighed heavily. "What are you thinking we should do? Our flight boards in five minutes."
"We need to alert the pilot. Can't chance that she made a call to her handler or any other Russian agents with her location or flight route."
Sam nodded, silently thinking through how best to execute what needed done. "I'll call Fatima. See if she can make the calls so I don't raise any suspicion."
Callen agreed before voicing his concerns. "Sam…if she got in touch with the Russians…there's no telling where or when they might try to get her back."
"No kidding," Sam replied, scanning the small crowd at the airport. Suddenly, the fact that a threat could be right under their noses amongst the crowd worried the former Navy Seal. He would have to alert Kensi and Deeks so all three could be on high alert until they figured out how to get a new flight.
"I wish I could do more from here," Callen said, wiping a hand over his head. "I could touch base with Sec Nav…"
"Let me talk to Fatima first. I'll update you after."
"Right. Good."
"Take care of Hetty."
"I will. Sam….be careful. If she brought Hetty down…"
"On it, G."
And with that, Callen's phone went silent. He took a few deep breaths, quelling his increased anxiety. Walking back in to Hetty's room, Callen felt Hetty's eyes following him. He knew she would want a sitrep sooner rather than later.
"Agent Callen, I'm going to come back in a bit. It seems Ms. Lange's sole concern is her team," Dr. Young offered, stepping forward to pat Callen's shoulder. "Call me when things have calmed down."
Callen offered a sympathetic smile to the doctor, thanking him as he walked out.
"Hetty- you need to let Dr. Young do his job. He needs to go over a lot of information with you about what has happened," Callen said, stepping to the side of her bed.
Shaking her head slightly, she signed a few words, causing AJ to huff.
"What was that?" Callen asked, hating that he had not thought to learn sign language himself.
"She said he's already done his job…now she has to finish hers," AJ explained with a shake of his head. "Henrietta…there is nothing you can do in your current state. You've got to let the doctors and nurses take care of you and let Callen take care of the team."
Callen could tell, even with a tube down her throat, Hetty disagreed. He understood she was probably yearning to ensure the safety of her LA team and those undercover agents from whatever Emma had planned. It was not in Henrietta Lange's playbook to leave a mission open-ended.
"Sam is on it. He's contacting Fatima now to have their flight delayed or cancelled. If Emma told anyone about where they were flying in to or what the flight number was…they'll have faulty intel," Callen explained.
Hetty's eyes closed for a moment. Callen was unsure if she was resigning herself to the fact that there was nothing she could do or if she had fallen asleep. AJ looked down as Hetty's fingers suddenly gripped his hand. Callen saw the look of concern on the Admiral's face and worried Hetty's pain was increasing.
He was about to send for the nurse when Hetty's eyes opened, meeting the Admiral's. Her fingers quickly began signing once more.
"She said Russia will do anything to extract Emma," AJ interpreted quietly.
Callen crossed his arms. "I'm sure they will, but the team will make sure they secure a safe flight path and bring Emma in for questioning. You have to trust them."
"She does," AJ answered as Hetty's fingers continued moving. "But she doesn't trust Emma. Said her spy craft is some of the best she's ever seen."
"That may be," Callen replied, leaning over the bed rail to be in Hetty's line of vision. "But we're your best team of agents…we were trained by you, weren't we?"
He saw the uncertainty in Hetty's eyes, quickly realizing his words puzzled rather than reassured her. For the last conversation they'd had before she left for Syria ended in anger. He'd yelled at her, demanding answers for information she'd hid away for decades. And the answer she gave, that he was Subject 17, infuriated him.
The relationship he'd once held with Henrietta Lang was gone. And Grisha Callen, for one of the first times in his life, was not sure what to do about it.
