Chapter Five

The C4 explosion rattled through Ben, almost sent him tumbling. Recovering quickly, he heard Valentina call out from behind him.

"What the hell was that?"

Noboru, standing next to her, answered quickly. "Sounded like C4."

Gillespie met Ben's eyes and then turned to both Noboru and Valentina in turn, panic tinting her voice. "They're trying to bring this place down on us!"

Even as she said it, Ben thought, They're going to need a hell of a lot more than that if that's their plan, though he couldn't help but glance upward as if chunks of concrete might start falling from above.

Then, out of nowhere, Sam was moving, shouting and waving his arms as he came barreling toward Ben. His injured leg snapped out at a painful angle and Sam went down, but not before he managed to shove into Ben. Stumbling backward, Ben only just recovered in time to watch a veritable wall of water crash through the ballistics door and plow its way over the ramp.

Sam was nowhere to be seen.

"Sam!"

Nothing.

"Sam!"

For a split second, Ben thought he glimpsed him, but whatever he saw was gone before his eyes could fully focus on it. With the rest of his team, Ben hurried over to the edge of walkway and peered over the low wall, figuring Sam had to have been caught up in the current. They scanned every inch of the darkened floor below, the water rising at an alarming rate.

"Anybody see him?" Ben shouted over the din of the rushing water. No one bothered answering. Ben knew they would have said something if they had.

As he searched desperately for any sign of Sam, Ben's mind was reeling. He couldn't believe it. So that's what Zahm's men had been up to. When they couldn't beat them in a firefight, they switched to Plan B—plant some C4 and let the lake drown the Splinter Cells instead. Well Ben wasn't going to let that happen. And he wasn't leaving without Sam either. He wasn't going to let Ames and Zahm win.

"There!" Gillespie screamed, yanking Ben back to reality.

He followed her pointed finger and saw the top of Sam's head next to one of the pillars below. Ben called out to him, but Sam went under again. Following Gillespie, who was already darting over there, Ben rushed around the ramp until he was directly above Sam, Noboru and Valentina quickly joining by his side. They all shouted variously at Sam, who seemed to take notice and turned toward them. As soon as Ben could see Sam's eyes, Sam slipped under the water once more.

They had to get him out of the water. He wasn't going to last much longer down there. Without thinking too much about it, Ben hoisted himself over the wall, ordering the others to grab onto him. Head first, he dove toward Sam, the others holding him by the ankles as he sort of rappelled down the concrete wall.

It was pure bad luck that Sam had ended up where he was. He was underneath the section of the walkway that just started to ramp up to the third floor, adding a few extra feet to the distance Ben had to cover to reach him.

Sam reappeared above the water and Ben quickly hailed him. "Grab my hand!" He stretched as far as he could go, but there was at least a foot between them still. Slowly, Sam turned his head toward Ben. Even from what little he could see of Sam's face, Ben could tell he was in agony. And the fact that it was even showing there spoke volumes about what Sam must have truly been feeling. If he was in that state, then there was no way Sam was going to be able to get up to Ben.

Ben folded in on himself to look back toward his team. "I need more! I'm not close enough!" He motioned at them to let him down further in case they couldn't hear him.

The reply was faint at this distance, but Ben could just make out Noboru shouting, "None of us are getting any taller, man. There's nothing left!" Though, as they said it, Ben could feel them stretching out, netting him a few more inches. It would just have to do.

It was all up to Sam now.

Ben dropped himself down to his full extent, meeting Sam's gaze at the same time. "You have to reach!"

There was no time left. The water was already lapping at the bottom of the second floor.

"C'mon, Sam!" Ben cried urgently, even though Sam knew perfectly well the situation at hand. Then Ben could see Sam gathering himself and Ben, for his part, readied himself to grab onto Sam.

Sam lunged out of the water toward Ben, anguish contorting his face as his hand splashed toward Ben's own. It all happened so fast, yet it felt to Ben like time were moving in slow motion. Sam's hand moved closer and closer and closer. It was right there, right at the edge of Ben's grasp. But it was snatched away before their fingers could fully meet.

And then Sam was gone.

In a jerk reaction, Ben had lurched forward to try to seize Sam's hand. His stomach churned when he felt the hands holding him slip from his ankle and he pitched forward. At the last moment, he felt the pressure around one of his ankles return, jolting him to a stop. His resulting collision with the wall left him momentarily stunned, but he quickly recovered and glanced back down at the dark water beneath him.

"Sam!" He swept his eyes around frantically. "SAM!"

Unbidden, the others had already started pulling him back up. When he was back on solid ground, Ben swore angrily. He still couldn't fully wrap his head around what was happening. Sam couldn't die. Not like this.

"We have to go. Come on, Ben!" Valentina hooked Ben's arm and motioned up the ramp, the other two a few steps ahead of them.

Ben hesitated, feeling as if leaving meant they were giving up on Sam.

"We have to go now, or we're all going to drown!"

True enough, the water was cresting over the second level, the noise level dropping drastically as the water merely poured into the rising pool rather than falling down the shaft.

"Ben, we've got to move!" Noboru called from the ramp leading upward.

Snapping himself out of it, Ben focused in on the task at hand. Sam, if he was still alive, would have to fend for himself now. There was nothing else they could do for him. Right now, they themselves needed to get out.

He looked up at the others and gave a terse nod. "Right. Let's go." With a stolen glance backward, Ben followed his team as they ran up the remaining levels back to where they had entered the facility. It was going to be a close thing. It seemed as though the water were rising more quickly the higher they climbed. He supposed the immense pressure could have widened the initial hole in the building, letting the water in faster and faster. As it was, they made it to the rope leading up through the vent where they had gained entry just as the water was reaching the top level.

They climbed one right after the other, only giving an arm's length head start before the next person latched on. Ben, going last, had the water snapping at his heels as he made his ascent. When his hands met fresh air, the others grabbed him and pulled him the rest of the way out, but not before the water brushed up to his calves.

It felt like an icy hand had reached out and slashed at him, it was so cold. He shouldn't have been surprised by it, but then he hadn't had much time to really think about it.

All four of them, now topside, backed hastily away from the opening as water came bubbling forth.

Gillespie, Valentina, and Noboru were all panting, staring at the vent like they couldn't believe what had just happened. Ben couldn't help but think of Sam. That water had been so cold, it had been painful just at a touch. And Sam had been in it. For who knew how long.

Could he have survived? Ben found himself wondering.

It seemed highly unlikely, but then, highly unlikely was Sam's forte. In fact, once Ben started thinking about it, the more he believed that Sam could have gotten out. There were undoubtedly multiple entrances into the complex. Ben tried to put himself in Sam's shoes. If he had been in that situation, what would he have done? The only other entrance they knew about for sure was the shed.

At the thought, Ben's eyes snapped up. In his mind he pictured the structure below him and oriented himself toward the shed. His heart skipped a beat when he realized that it was in the general direction of the corridor Sam had been sucked into. It may have been a long shot, but it was all they had. And Ben couldn't live with himself if he didn't at least check.

He flicked on his night vison goggles and began jogging in the direction of the shed. "Come on!" he bade the other three.

"Where are you going?" Gillespie called after him.

Ben stopped for a moment and looked back over his shoulder. "I think Sam could have made it out." He turned back toward the empty night. "And I think I know where to look."

It took them ten minutes at a brisk pace to reach the shed, the single lamp lighting the structure betraying its position at the edge of their vision.

"The door…" Gillespie started excitedly.

"I see it," Ben answered before she could finish her thought.

The door to the shed hung open, a stream spilling from its mouth. But there was no sign of Sam.

Ben doubled his pace, leaving the others chasing after him. He rounded the back side of the shed to the far side, and there, huddled up to the wall, was Sam, curled into himself. There was a layer of frost coating his hair and clothes and Ben thought he must surely be dead. His heart pounding, Ben drew closer. As he did so, the violent tremors racking Sam's body became all too evident.

He was alive.

By this time, the other three had come around the corner as well. Ben could feel their surprise as they spotted Sam and then their questioning gazes directed at himself. Squatting down, Ben put two fingers to Sam's ice-cold neck. He shot a glance toward the others. "His pulse is slow, but he's alive."

Noboru scoffed in disbelief.

Now it was a race against the clock. By the looks of him, Sam was severely hypothermic and he would only get worse the longer he was out in the open. They had to get him back to the car, they had to raise his temperature before his organs started failing. Assuming they hadn't already.

A sense of purpose gripping him, Ben shot to his feet and rounded on the others. "Valentina, Noboru, go and get the car, warm it up. We'll follow in your tracks."

Both gave an understanding nod and trotted off. Ben then returned his attention to Sam, kneeling down in front of him.

"Sam? Sam, can you hear me?" Ben gave him a slight shake, speaking a little more loudly this time. "Sam?"

Ever so slowly, Sam's head lifted, enough that Ben could see the slightest wisps of breath spurting from Sam's mouth in time with the shivering that had consumed his body. One eye pried open a fraction, the other frozen shut, and Sam drowsily met Ben's gaze, some kernel of strength left within Sam still clinging to the scarcest thread of consciousness. Sam's eyes were rolling, his head drooping. He moved his chapped lips as if to speak, but nothing came out except for the irregular tufts of air.

Relieved, yet still worried, Ben tried to sound reassuring. "We're getting you out of here, Sam. But you need to get up. We have to get you moving, get you warm."

Ben didn't know how long it would take for his compatriots to retrieve the car and Sam was likely to freeze to death before then. If they could just get him moving a little, get his blood pumping, then they may be able to stave off the cold a little longer. It was risky, considering Sam's weakened state, but it was better than nothing.

Stripping off his gloves and coat, Ben motioned Gillespie over. "Help me get these on him." Together, they carefully unfurled Sam's arms and garbed him in the warm jacket. With the gloves, they didn't even bother putting Sam's fingers in them. They couldn't have even if they wanted to. Instead, they just shoved the gloves down over his clenched fists, then hoisted him up with his arms over their shoulders. A pained gasp tumbled from Sam's mouth at the movement, but he was too far gone to put up much of a struggle. He hung limply between them, his head lolling. Yet when they started moving, Sam's feet pulled forward along with them, uncoordinated as they were.

It was slow-going as they followed the footprints the other pair had left in the snow. After a quarter mile, Sam wasn't faring very well. Draped between them, he sagged closer and closer to the ground the further they went. His right leg had stopped moving entirely a while back and his left leg dragged a foot forward at a time before it fell limp and was left behind. Eventually they were forced to stop and readjust, Sam had become so cumbersome between them.

This wasn't going to work.

Cursing inwardly, Ben let out a growl. "Screw it." Gesturing to Gillespie to let Sam down, Ben bent down underneath Sam and lifted him onto his shoulders. It was like carrying a bag of ice, he was so cold. Ben could only hope that some of his own warmth was seeping back into Sam.

Even so laden, they easily tripled their pace, Ben managing a sort of flat-footed jog. It wasn't too long before they could hear the car approaching. A dark mass in their night vision goggles following shortly thereafter. The headlights weren't on, the occupants opting for their night vision rather than give away their position. They were still potentially in enemy territory after all.

Ben halted, sides heaving, a chill creeping across his sweaty torso as Gillespie waved the car down. At this point, even Ben's teeth were starting to chatter and his hands were numb. He could only imagine how cold Sam must be, drenched as he was by water that had already been dangerously cold.

Once the large SUV they had driven up from Irkutsk skidded to a halt beside them, Ben and Gillespie wasted no time jogging around to the back and opening up the back hatch, a blast of hot air rushing out as they did so. The inside was empty save for a few duffle bags stacked against the sides. The seats had been stripped out.

Noboru called back to them from the passenger seat. "We dumped the seats. Figured they would only be in the way."

Ben merely gave a quick nod of acknowledgement, though he was thankful for their foresight. And he couldn't help but produce a mental image of two pairs of bench seats abandoned in the middle of the Russian tundra, lost and forgotten.

Heaving himself back to the present, Ben placed Sam carefully onto the floor of the SUV then climbed in himself to haul Sam the rest of the way in. Gillespie followed behind them and slammed the door shut once they were all inside. It was a tight fit, but they were just able to lay Sam out with his head right behind the front row of seats.

He had definitely deteriorated since they had found him. Sam was unresponsive now, his eyes fully rolled back into his head, his shivering seeming even worse than it had been somehow.

Ben looked up at Valentina, who was looking questioningly at him from the driver's seat. "Get us back to Irkutsk."

"Do you think he'll make it?" Valentina asked concernedly.

"I think he's got a chance now that we've got him someplace warm," Ben answered, struggling to add some levity into his tone. "But I still want to get him to a doctor as soon as we can. He's in pretty bad shape." He truly believed that too, Ben wasn't just saying it to calm the others. As long as they could get Sam warmed up, he might just make it.

Nodding in confirmation, Valentina spun back around and stepped on the gas. She was the best driver of them all, Ben knew. If anyone could get them back to Irkutsk quickly, it would be her.

Steadying himself after the sudden acceleration, Ben turned to Gillespie who had situated herself on the other side of Sam across from Ben. "We need to get these wet clothes off of him." Without a word, Gillespie started about the task while Ben rummaged in their duffle bags for some extra clothes. He was just pulling out some sweats and a hoodie when Gillespie spoke behind him.

"Shit."

The dread in her voice had Ben spinning around instantly. She was staring down at Sam's bare torso. Following her gaze, Ben quickly found the source of her fear. Spilling down Sam's left side was a nasty bruise, worse than the one that had been there before. Much worse. Ben's stomach leapt into his throat. He had seen bruises like that before and it could only mean one thing.

Ben's and Gillespie's eyes met over Sam and Ben could see the fear and defeat playing across her face.

"He won't make it to Irkutsk," she said flatly.

It wasn't a question. Ben knew as well as she did that Sam didn't have much time.

Noboru spun around at the change in their tones. "What is it? What's going on?"

Ben pulled his gaze from Gillespie and heaved a frustrated sigh before lifting his eyes to Noboru. "Sam's bleeding internally."

This was bad. It was five hours back to Irkutsk. From the look of that bruise, Sam would be lucky if he lasted one. In fact, it was likely the only reason he had lasted this long was because he had been freezing out in the snow. His slower heart rate had kept him from bleeding out. And the very thing they had done in warming him up now meant his blood was only pumping out even faster.

What was supposed to be saving him was killing him instead.

Valentina craned her head around, her voice agitated. "What? How?"

"I don't know. He wasn't like that when you patched him up earlier," Ben replied, nodding to Gillespie. She shook her head in affirmation. "It must have happened when he was in the water. Who knows what the hell happened down there. It couldn't have been easy getting out."

"So what do we do?"

Ben didn't have any immediate answer. It seemed like an impossible situation. And then something inside him clicked.

There was only one person besides Sam who was capable of getting out of an impossible situation.

Diving into his pockets, Ben pulled out his phone and started typing, punching in a number as the recipient that Sam had made him memorize.

He could feel all of his comrades' eyes on him, but it was Gillespie who finally spoke up.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

Ben didn't bother looking up. "Throwing out a Hail Mary." He finished his text and pressed Send, only then looking up at the others. "And praying to God that Grim catches it."