Chapter Two: I Trust You

En route to the hospital, Greg called Roy and rapidly brought the younger Lane up to date on the shooting. Then he asked Roy to swing by and pick up the kids before coming to the hospital. Roy agreed with only a touch of reluctance, promising to meet up with Greg as quickly as possible.

Once at the hospital, Greg strode in, his focus split three ways. One part was on Donna and Team Three, with the objective of getting as much info as he could. The second part was on Ed and the low-level pain still radiating through the 'team sense'; Ed's condition was obscuring all of Greg's other connections and likely causing the painful 'feedback' Greg was experiencing, but the Sergeant was loathe to cut off his private way to keep an eye on his injured man. The third part of Greg's focus was on discreetly trying to get his left arm to cooperate. The pain in his chest had died down, but his arm was still alternating between numbness and fiery agony; almost as if Greg had been shot himself.

"Parker!"

Greg paused, turning on his heel as Roy and Giles hurried in, two teenagers in their wake. When the four reached the Sergeant, he turned back without a word and started off again, explaining as he moved. "I just got here, so I don't know how he is yet."

Roy, breathing hard, nodded as he fell in at Greg's left; the other three fell in behind, but kept close. "What do you know?" Roy questioned, his voice hard.

"Give me a second," Greg requested before directing his next words to Team Three. "Donna."

Donna smoothly picked up the baton, reporting, "Witnesses say that the shooter is white, male, thirties, dark pants, dark jacket."

"You get an ID on the car?"

"Yeah, we got a plate and an address and we're headed there now," Donna confirmed.

"That's great," Greg praised before shifting towards Roy. "Team Three is on-scene and they've got an address."

As he spoke, a nurse intercepted the group and guided them towards a back area of the hospital; she didn't have to ask who they were there for – the uniform Parker wore made it clear without any further explanation.

"They'll get this guy?" Roy questioned, his face tight with worry for his older brother.

"With any luck, yes, but Team One is gearing up right now," Greg replied. "We might have another problem, though."

Roy arched a brow.

Greg drew in a breath. "Ed got a call earlier today; Sophie's in labor."

For a moment, Roy was puzzled, then his eyes widened and he darted a look behind him. "Clark," he breathed; Greg nodded once.

There was no more time to talk as they arrived at a gurney with a familiar figure lying on top of it. Ed was still in his SRU shirt, pants, and boots, though his vest and uniform jacket were nowhere to be seen. Greg grimaced at his team leader's stillness and the bloody bandages clearly visible on his left arm; his private suspicions were confirmed. His own left arm was hurting in the exact same places where Eddie had been shot.

The Sergeant leaned over the gurney, meeting his friend's eyes and quietly asking, "How you doing there, buddy?"

The nearby doctor cut in. "He's in shock."

Ah. Greg turned fierce topaz-hard eyes on the man. "Then talk to me, Doc."

Over the comm, Greg heard Toth's voice. "Winnie, boost the volume, please."

The Sergeant kept his gaze on the doctor as the man explained, "He took seven bullets, most to the chest and abdomen. They hit his vest." Silently, Greg gave thanks that Ed had been too angry earlier to change out of his uniform before leaving, though he suspected Ed's anger had led to this turn of events. The doctor concluded, "He has major bruising and has lost a lot of blood."

Greg let his gaze fall to his subordinate's visible injuries. "His arm?"

"Two bullets," the doctor replied, before indicating the lower arm. "This is the one I'm worried about. Ulnar nerve damage." He looked towards the nurse and ordered, "Page a surgeon. We got to get him into an O.R. soon as possible."

Parker cast a discreet glance in Onasi's direction, hiking one brow. The Auror inclined his head, but lifted one shoulder in a partial shrug. Keeping his expression neutral, Greg asked the doctor, "This surgeon?"

"Doctor Brown," the man supplied. "Don't worry. He's the best."

Mentally, Greg filed that under 'acceptable backup plan.' Turning his focus back to Ed, he remarked, "Hear that, buddy? You're gonna be okay."

To Greg's private relief, Ed's eyes had regained some alertness. "Sophie?" he managed. Through the pain, Greg sensed his team leader's intense fear for his wife.

The Sergeant snapped around to the nurse, demanding, "His wife."

Out of the corner of his eye, Greg saw Roy jerk to attention. "I already checked," the nurse informed them. "She's in Maternity, two floors up."

"She was in labor," Greg pressed, Ed's worry hadn't abated, though he could surely hear the nurse just as well as Greg could.

"She's had a downturn, but we got a team working on her."

More dismay from Ed, but not surprise. No wonder Eddie had gotten himself into trouble. "What do you mean, 'downturn'?" Greg coaxed.

"I'm sorry," the woman apologized, "That's all I know. I'm sorry."

Behind Greg, Ed whispered, "Boss…"

He couldn't go himself, but he could do the next best thing. "Roy."

"On it," Roy acknowledged, hurrying off without another word.

Greg rested a hand on his team leader's shoulder. "Roy's going to find out what's going on here, buddy. He, Giles, and the kids are going to keep you company, all right?"

The Sergeant was grateful when Toth kept his mouth shut; apparently that met with the man's approval.

Ed's right hand spasmed as he fought through the pain from his left arm and chest. "Greg…"

Greg debated his options. To the nearby doctor, he requested, "Give me a minute, will you?"

"Don't worry," the doctor replied, "I'm done." Moving away, he instructed the nurse, "Give him ten mils of morphine and get the pre-op started."

Good, two down and one to go. Greg called after them, "Just keep me posted, please."

"Will do," the nurse agreed.

Before Greg could enact part two of his hasty plan, Ed whispered, "Boss…"

"Hey, you hang tight," Greg urged. "You get some rest. We got a plate. We're gonna get this guy."

But Ed would not be deterred. "I saw something…" he gasped out. Greg froze for a split second, then he leaned in close so his team could hear Ed's report, too. "Somebody else in the back seat," Ed managed. "A woman in a military uniform."

"Military uniform?" Greg double-checked, earning a nod. To his teammates, the Sergeant ordered, "Team, call Downsview Base."

"Got it, Boss," Jules replied, "Possible hostage."

Returning his focus to Ed, Greg questioned, "That's when he shot you?" Ed nodded again.

Greg stole a quick look around, then straightened and spoke directly to Toth. "Dr. Toth, I'm going to turn my radio off for five minutes."

"Sergeant Parker," Toth protested at once.

"Go ahead," Commander Holleran cut in. "Take ten if you need to, Sergeant."

Mentally, Greg blessed his commander as he switched the radio off and gathered Onasi and his kids closer to Eddie's gurney with a glance. One hand stayed on Ed's shoulder as he spoke. "Giles, if you can call in Healers for Ed and maybe Sophie?"

"Ed, for sure," Giles replied. "I'd have to see what the situation is with Sophie and even then…"

Greg nodded once, understanding. As with Roy's late partner, there was only so much the magical world could do once a patient reached a tech-side hospital. "Now, our other issue is Clark," Greg remarked, his eyes falling on his paling nephew. "Giles, if you and Roy could take the lead on that?"

"No," Lance cut in; Greg jerked back in surprise and felt Ed tense under his hand. The pale teenager swallowed hard, but his eyes were determined. "I-I should be the one to explain."

"Not everything," Greg cautioned, letting his eyes shift around the hospital. Parker let go of Ed's shoulder and leaned closer to his nipote. "You don't have to do this by yourself, Lance. It's not your mess to clean up."

Lance gulped and went paler, but the determination never faded. "But it is, a little bit," he countered. "I didn't start all of this, but I could've told Clark last week and I didn't."

"That was my decision," Greg refuted, though he knew what his nephew was driving at.

"But you made it for me," Lance whispered. "I-I can't hide forever, Uncle Greg. And I shouldn't, either."

For the space of a minute, Greg focused on his nephew and his nephew alone, gripping both of Lance's shoulders. "I'm so proud of you, Lancelot," he murmured. "I wish I could be here to help you, but I can't. But you know what?" Lance cocked his head to the side in question. "Giles is going to back you up in my place, okay?"

Onasi's expression turned alarmed and he hissed, "You want me to what?"

Greg didn't let go of his nephew as he turned towards Giles. "You won't let us down, Giles."

The brunet paled and Greg saw the other man's eyes go haunted.

Without a lick of hesitation, Parker said flatly, "I trust you, Giles, and now you need to trust yourself, okay? You and Roy, you're in charge here; I know you can handle it and I know you'll make the best decisions you can."

Greg turned back to Ed, meeting his team leader's eyes. "We're on it, buddy. We're on it." He hesitated. "Ed, about before, with Toth…" No, he hadn't called Toth in, but if not for his team's direct defiance of Moffet's plans…if not for him and his kids…then, maybe, the utter disaster that had been evaluation day might not have happened.

Ed's voice was weak, but direct. "Don't worry about it," he rasped. "Let's just get this done."

The Sergeant could hardly refute Ed's statement. "Just what I was thinking," he confirmed with a shaky smile. He straightened, turning his radio on. "Okay, team, Roy and his partner will keep us up to date; I'm heading out."

Sam's report flowed in before anyone else could speak. "Boss, there's a shooting at Downsview Base. Two soldiers hit, one female. She's missing. We're on our way."

Greg's eyes hardened as he moved and he didn't even notice as slightly lengthened canines flashed in a silent snarl. "Let's get this maniac off the street."