Author's note: I still here! And still writing! Have a few health issues going on but nothing too serious. Just weird. Still working on my other project, but I hope to get another chapter up for Arrhythmia sooner rather and later though I can't promise anything. Hope everyone is doing well and staying safe in this crazy world. And thank you for your continued support.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

As soon as Toby, Happy, and Sylvester stepped into the emergency room lobby, the first thing they noticed was the sound of Paige's voice echoing off the walls.

"No, you can't take him!" she was screaming. "No! Go away and leave us alone!"

"Dammit, I knew this would happen," muttered Toby. "I should have rode with her in the ambulance." Spinning around, he held up his hands as he face the mechanic and the human calculator. "You guys stay here and try to figure out where Walter is. Okay?"

He didn't wait for an answer, instead whirling back around and jogging toward the examination rooms. Nicky's wails had joined Paige's yells which made it easy to follow their combined cacophony to their cubicle.

"Paige. . ." he began as he rushed toward the gurney. "Oof." Bouncing off a large body, he flailed as he tried to stay upright. He glanced up once he had steadied himself and gulped when he caught a glimpse of the nurse's unamused face.

"Are you the father?" asked the woman whose name tag read 'Angelina,' a misnomer as she neither resembled an angel nor Ms Jolie.

"No, but I'm. . ." he began as the caterwauling continued.

"Then get out," she said. "We've got enough problems already without unauthorized personnel wandering in and out."

"I'm Doctor Tobias M Curtis," he stated, raising his voice to be heard over the noise. "I am Ms Dineen's personal physician and also her psychiatrist. I can help calm her down."

Nurse Angelina stared at him for a very long minute. "What the hell," she said with a shrug. "She won't let us take the baby for an examination."

"I gathered that." Adjusting his hat, Toby jockeyed past the nurse and around one of the men standing next to the bed. Paige was clutching Nicky to her chest so tightly, the poor kid was in danger of being smothered. Having one's face pressed against a female bosom would be a nice way to go out, but. . . He shook his mind clear of his naughty thoughts before approaching mother and child.

"Paige, hey, Paige. It's me, Toby," he said as he tried to catch her attention. "Paige. . ."

She turned to stare in his direction, her eyes wide and wild with fear. "No! Go away! You can't take him."

"Paige, it's okay," he said in a soothing tone. "You need to let the doctor take a peek at the Nickster here."

"No!" she shouted. "They'll take him away. I'll never see him again."

"They just want to examine at him. To make sure he's okay. You want him to be okay, don't you?"

She nodded, tears running down her already damp cheeks. "He's my baby," she muttered. "I can't lose him too"

"You're not going to lose him," Toby reassured her. "The nice doctors and nurses will bring him right back when they're done."

"They all leave me," she stated, her voice sad and resigned as if he hadn't said anything. "Every man I've ever loved. . . All of them. Even my babies are going leave me someday."

Shit, he knew 197 taking a powder with his old buddy Coo-Coo Collins would stir up Paige's abandonment issues. "Walter didn't abandon you," he began before pausing to see if she was willing to listen to sense. When she remained silent, he went on, "He had to stop Collins from taking Nicky from you. He knew how much that would hurt you, if Collins took Nicky and raised him to be a psycho like he is. You wouldn't want that, would you?"

"No." Her whispered reply was barely audible. The baby had stopped crying as well, although he was still a bright red and his movement was noticeably jerky. The sooner the little guy was looked at, the better.

"What if I stay with the doctor and nurse while they examine Nicky?" he suggested. "Would that be okay?"

He knew he'd convinced her when she took a deep breath and sank back into her pillow. "Okay," she said wearily, loosening her grip on her son.

He slid his hands under the baby's neck and booty before lifting him and resting him on his shoulder. "Has she been examined?" he asked as he turned to face the medical personnel milling around in the room.

They all look at each other with blank faces. So no. . . "Well someone needs to, she literally gave birth in a barn. A dirty, moldy hell hole of a barn. She needs antibiotics, a saline solution for dehydration, dextrose because she hasn't eaten for hours, something for pain, and a mild sedative. And she's breast feeding, so make sure whatever you give her is compatible."

Once again, he was met with silence, although now their mouths were hanging open. He knew not everyone studied medicine at Harvard, but for fuck's sake, they should have already started her on all those IVs as soon as she was wheeled through the doors.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" he asked in his best authoritative tone. "Hop to it."

The doctor and the nurses and aides all started scurrying around at his command. He gave Nicky a gentle pat before glancing at Paige, who was quietly sobbing as she was being fussed over. He hoped for her sake. . for all of their sakes really. . .Walter could get away from Collins before the psychopath dragged him down a rabbit hole from which he'd never be able to escape.

ooooo

Ralph had fallen asleep on the red couch, his attempt to stay awake failing about an hour earlier. Cabe checked on the boy before heading back to the kitchen, deciding if he should have another cup of coffee. It was after midnight, it had been a long day, and the lack of news weighed heavily on his mind.

Finally figuring he wasn't going to be able to sleep anyway, he grabbed his mug off the counter and filled it with the coffee he'd brewed hours ago. He gave it a sniff, its bitter than usual smell tweaking his nose. As he brought the cup to his mouth to take a sip, his phone rang.

Setting down the mug, he reached for his cell and read the screen. Toby. About damn time.

"Where the hell are you guys?" Cabe growled when he'd answered it. "Ralph and I have been waiting for. . ."

"Hang on to your horses, Cabe," said the doc. "We're at Victor Valley Global Medical Center in Victorville." He pronounced each word carefully. "Say that fast three times."

"Quit fooling around."

"Okay, okay," Toby said. "Paige had the baby and they're both doing okay."

"That's great news," Cabe replied, genuinely thrilled. "I'd tell Ralph but he's sleeping."

"No, I'm not." A tousled haired Ralph strolled into the kitchen with a yawn. "Who ya talking to?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Here, let me switch over to speaker." Fumbling with his phone as he tried to remember how, Cabe finally found the right button and pressed it.

Toby gave them both a quick rundown of what had happened. "And of course, our fearless leader sacrificed himself for the greater good and left with Collins. We have no idea where they are."

"Dammit." Cabe had worried about the influence the former Scorpion member had over Walter from the day he'd met the man in the interrogation room at Fort Daniels. "We need to find Walter."

"I've been saying that for hours." The irritation in Happy's voice came through loud and clear. "I'm sure whatever Collins has planned for Walter – it's not good."

"I agree," said Cabe. "I'll get Homeland to put out an APB, then Ralph and I will head on over to the hospital." He glanced down at the boy. "You want to go see your new brother, don't you, kid?"

"Yes, please." Ralph perked up a little. "I can't wait to meet him."

"Oh, yeah, forgot to tell you," said Toby. "His name is Nicky. Short for Nikola Cabe O'Brien."

"Well, I'll be damned," Cabe said proudly, unanticipated tears forming in the corners of his eyes. "Hell of a name to hang on the kid though."

"That's what I said," the shrink replied. "I don't think Paige has filled out the birth certificate yet. There's still time to change it."

"Hey, now, don't go giving her a hassle," he scolded. "She's had enough to deal with today." He looked at his watch. "Well, yesterday. But you know what I mean."

"We do, Cabe," said Sylvester. "Do you think we should stay here until you guys get here or. . .?"

"I think we should retrace our steps and go look for Walter," Happy stated.

"And keep chasing our tails around the greater Los Angeles area?" Cabe could hear Toby's frustration. "We need a plan."

Cabe stifled a chuckle as the trio started squabbling. Ralph tugged on his arm. "How far away is the hospital?"

"Probably a couple hours," he replied before addressing the others. "Hey, knuckleheads, listen up. Unless you all want my foot up your asses, you need to stay put until we get there. Capisce?"

"But you only have two feet." Sly seemed confused. . .and concerned.

"He's not really going to kick your ass, you big baby," said Toby. "When has he ever hit any of us?" What sounded like the sound of a slap to the back of a head rang out. "Ow!"

Deciding to wrap it up before someone got seriously hurt, Cabe cut in, "Ralph and I will be heading out in a few minutes. Use the time it takes us to get there to cook up some kind of plan. Okay?"

"Fine, we'll wait here," sighed Happy. "And hey. . ."

Cabe's phone beeped. "Hold on," he said, "I have another call. . ."

ooooo

Walter regained consciousness only a few moments after being tased. He laid on the ground as he tried to catch his breath, his wind knocked out him from the fall. Residual jolts of electricity made his muscles twitch. A coppery taste filled his mouth and he realized he must have bitten his tongue. His chin throbbed but when he tested his jaw, he didn't think any bones were broken.

Opening his eyes, he had to blink a couple of times to regain focus, and he heard footsteps approaching.. He groaned as he tried to get to up, his effort thwarted by what he thought was a foot pressing him back down. Crying out when the first tazer barb was removed, he gritted his teeth for the second barb's extraction.

"Get up!" He was yanked to his feet by the cop, who, if his expression was anything to go by, was pissed off. Walter's legs wobbled, the officer's grip on his arm the only thing keeping him upright. Hernandez read him his rights as he dragged him over to the squad car and shoved him in the back seat..

Ducking his head a second too late, Walter winced as it bumped into the doorframe. His hip suffered the same fate when it was hit by the armrest as the door slammed shut.

Dammit. He didn't have time for this. Collins had escaped and would soon be out of reach as he had the intellect and resources to stay one step ahead of the authorities. He was the only one who could stop the mad genius. Closing his eyes, he leaned his head back against the seat. He refused to concede defeat. There had to be something he could do.

The squawk of the radio interrupted his musings. "Charlie 110 to dispatch." the officer said into the mic. "Apprehended possible escaped mental patient. Taking him in for medical treatment and psych eval."

"Advise to avoid St Mary's. Multiple victim accident. Try Vic Valley," the dispatcher said.

"Copy that," Hernandez replied.

The dispatcher asked another question Walter couldn't quite hear.

The cop must have understood because he answered, "Sure, badge number 6128."

Oh, shit. Badge number. "Hey!" yelled Walter, embarrassed he could forget such an important detail. Blaming it on Collins and Paige giving birth and the general turmoil of the day seemed like a poor excuse, but it was the only one he had. "Hey!"

"Be quiet back there," the cop said over his shoulder before going back to his conversation.

"No," Walter insisted. "I need you to contact Homeland. I'm one of their assets."

"Sure you are, buddy," Hernandez scoffed with a shake of his head. "I got a real crazy here," he said into the radio.

The other man's dismissal only made Walter more determined. "Contact Homeland Security. Agent Cabe Gallo. Badge number 2835. He can clear this up."

"This isn't one of your imaginary friends, is it?" the cop asked with a laugh.

"No." His breathing grew agitated as sweat beaded on his skin. "He's real. Just contact him."

"Sure thing, pal." Hernandez held the mic to his mouth. "This dude is telling me to get in touch with Homeland Security. Says he's one of their assets."

The dispatcher chuckled. "You're like a squirrel. You get all the nuts."

"I know, right?" the officer responded. "On my way to Vic. Over and out." Hanging up the mic, he started up the squad car's engine.

"Wait!" Walter shouted. Frustration raged through him as he realized they didn't believe him. They weren't going to contact Cabe. They weren't going to look for Collins. "Wait. You need to. . ."

"I don't think you realize who's in charge here buddy," Hernandez interrupted, clearly annoyed. "It's me. You need to pipe down or I'll add some more charges to the ones you've already racked up. Understand?"

"Understood," Walter said under his breath. He had only been a father for a few hours and he was already failing. . .badly. Abandoning Paige and Nicky. Letting Collins escape. Under arrest. . .

"Sir," he said, the word sticking in his throat a little. But if being deferential could get him what he wanted, he would do it for efficiency's sake.

"What now?" came the surly reply.

"May I have my phone call now?"

"Can't it wait?" Hernandez asked with an exasperated sigh.

"No, I need to do it now," Walter insisted. "It's one of my rights."

"Fine." The cop shut off the vehicle and got out. He uncuffed Walter's right wrist then pulled his left arm forward and hooked the opened manacle through the mesh of the metal divider before snapping it close. "Make it quick," Hernandez snarled as he handed over a cell phone.

Walter punched in the numbers then held the phone to his ear. As he listened to it ring, something caught the corner of his eye and he turned his head in its direction.

"It's him! It's Collins!" he yelled. He pointed toward his former friend running between two houses as his call connected, barely hearing Cabe's voice as phone fell from his hand.