Chapter 16

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They parked a block from the warehouse and made the rest of the journey on foot, ducking into the shadows so as not to be seen by any possible lookouts. When the warehouse was in sight, Danny and Chao moved to stand behind the dumpster. Sam got in step behind Martin as they moved across the alley to stand behind a towering bale of recycled cardboard and old milk crates. On the other end of the warehouse lot, four SWAT agents were in position waiting for word from Martin.

The warehouse was a large three-story structure of faded brick. There were windows on several walls but they were blacked out with soot and dirt. Sam spotted a faded image of a dragon mural on the exterior brick wall. Under the mural was a painted sign that read, Miyagi Fortune Cookies, Inc. She jutted her chin towards the wall and whispered, "That matches the description Kramer gave us."

Martin nodded his head and motioned for her to look over at the loading dock. She saw an Asian man of about twenty five years old leaning against a wall looking bored. He would have looked inconspicuous if it weren't for the fact that he was holding an AK-47. They both scanned the area but didn't spot anyone else. Martin stepped back and quietly said, "Doesn't seem to be much activity but there's no way to tell how many are inside." He pulled out his cell phone and called Frasier. "It's Martin. Yeah, it looks like we found them. What's your ETA? We're parked one block away. I want to take them by surprise so make it quiet." He hung up his phone and stuck it into his back pocket. He motioned for Danny and Chao to hold their positions.

She hated this part. Waiting.

Martin was eyeing her and said, "Patience, Sam. Reinforcements should be here in ten minutes."

She nodded her head when she spotted a large white delivery truck and a black SUV pulling up to the building. Martin noticed it too and they all watched as two men got out of the truck and walked up to the man on the loading dock. A few seconds later, the driver of the black SUV exited the car and walked to open the passenger door. A distinguished older Asian man and a young Caucasian male got out. The men discussed something before the two well-dressed men went inside and the other four lingered on the dock.

Martin lifted his wrist to his mouth so he could communicate with Danny through the mic. "I don't think we can wait for Frasier. Something's going down."

In her earpiece she heard Danny's reply, "I think you're right. Move in?"

Martin's gaze was on Sam when he spoke. "Okay, you guys move right. Unit Three I want you to flank them on the left and Sam and I will go around and take them on the rear. We can't let them see us coming in, all we have going for us is the element of surprise."

Danny agreed and she watched as Danny and Chao disappeared around a corner while the other unit moved into position. Martin started out ahead of her and they made their way behind large freight containers, quickly running from one hiding spot to the next. Eventually they were on the opposite wall, behind where the men were standing around chatting.

In her ear she heard Unit Three announce they were in position followed by Chao's voice saying so were they. Martin looked over his shoulder at her and asked, "Ready?" She nodded and he spoke into his mic, "On my mark."

They all descended onto the dock with their guns trained on the four men and said, "FBI! Put down your weapons and get on the ground."

The men were too shocked to even have time to try and resist. Three of them raised their hands in the air while the third placed his gun on the ground. They all lay down and the agents from unit three quickly frisked them and started cuffing them.

"Like I said," Danny said quietly as he got behind Sam. "Easy as cake."

Sam gave him a chagrined smile and followed Martin and Chao as they approached the door to the warehouse. They all went inside.

The first floor had a wide-open floor plan. There were mixing vats and a conveyor belt in the center of the room that looked like they were used to make the fortune cookies but judging by the layer of dust, they hadn't been turned on it quite awhile. At the far end was a freight elevator. Sam looked at the arrow and saw that the elevator was docked on the second floor. Danny gestured for them to move up the stairs. As they ascended the staircase the worried feeling in Sam's gut was gnawing at her. She stifled it down, doing her best to concentrate on what she was doing. As they reached the top landing they could hear voices speaking in Korean. It sounded like they were arguing because their voices were low and threatening.

They reached the floor and she saw a group of men gathered at the far corner. They were surrounded by counters and shelves filled with lab equipment. She spotted several Bunsen burners, microscopes, laptops, and other scientific looking equipment. She surmised that this was most definitely where the missing scientists were being held but there was no sign of the doctors. They stealthily stepped closer and the men were so engrossed in their argument that they didn't notice them until Danny and Martin shouted, "FBI! FREEZE!"

The men all ducked and scattered like cockroaches after a light has been turned on. Unlike the men on the loading dock these men were not willing to go quietly. They men started firing and ducking behind the counter for cover so they returned fire. Sam saw that the younger of the two men from the SUV pulled out his gun and began firing at them as he grabbed the older man and rushed for the stairwell at the other end of the building.

She aimed for them but her bullets missed, ricocheting off the wall. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Danny and Chao rush to stand behind a series of file cabinets, still shooting at the other men. She turned to look at Martin, she jerked her head in the direction that the men disappeared and he nodded that they should give chase. As they carefully dashed towards the stairwell she heard Frasier and several other agents shouting and more gunfire.

The Calvary had arrived.

She reached the stairwell and pressed her back up against the wall before craning her neck to check to see if they were clear. The stairwell was empty so she and Martin started up the stairs, their eyes fixed at the closed door at the top. As she climbed each step her heart was thumping madly in her chest as she prepared herself for what lay ahead.

They reached the door and Martin motioned for her to step back, that he would kick the door in. She moved against the wall and gave him the nod that she was ready. With one swift kick the door swung open and they were greeted with silence. They peeked inside and saw rows and rows of shelves filled with cardboard boxes. Martin gestured for her to cover him and he went in first. He dashed to the first shelf, careful to keep an eye out. As soon as he was safely there, she followed. They slowly made their way down the aisle between shelves when they heard steps climbing up the stairs. She turned around to check the doorway to see who was coming up when suddenly Martin screamed her name followed by two gunshots.

Before she knew how it happened, Martin had dived towards her, shoving her to the ground.

Time seemed to move in slow motion as she saw him fall in front of her. She heard another round of shots sound and looked over to see Danny and Chao firing at someone behind her. She refocused her attention on Martin who had rolled onto his back, gasping for air.

He was clutching his chest, panting heavily, his face contorted in pain. He was scrambling to try and yank off his vest but because his breathing was so labored he couldn't get concentrate enough to get his fingers to cooperate.

She crawled towards him as the gun battle raged on between the others. She heard one more shot and in her peripheral vision she saw that both of the men were down on the floor. As she reached Martin she heard Danny shout out that they needed medics upstairs right away. She placed her hand on Martin's chest and croaked out, "Martin?" She pulled herself up to a crouching position and frantically started scanning for wounds. "Martin, where are you shot?" He closed his eyes, still gasping for breath so she ran her shaking hand over his forehead and demanded, "Stay with me, Martin."

"Can't breathe…" he choked out before he convulsed, trying to intake a breath. He started shaking his head, still writhing on the ground.

"Martin, don't leave me," she pleaded as she peeled back the Velcro tabs, loosening up his vest. She lifted up the top and started checking for any sign of blood but she didn't see anything. In the background she heard Chao tell Danny that they two men were dead.

Danny walked over, knelt down beside her and asked, "Where is he hurt?"

"I don't know," she replied, panicked. She kept touching Martin and searching. "I don't know…I can't see anything…" She lifted up his t-shirt and her breath caught. This was the first time she had seen his bare chest, the one she used to know so intimately was now covered in scars. She swallowed and refocused on checking him for any injuries. While he didn't appear to have been shot, she did see that his chest was bright red and a bruise already started to form.

"Stay still buddy," Danny reassured him, his hand on his shoulder. "The paramedics are on their way up."

"Is he okay?" Chao asked, fear evident in his voice.

Martin's breathing started to steady out and he said, "I'm fine, just need to catch my breath…" he closed his eyes and repeated, "just catch my breath…"

Danny smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "Stay still."

Martin nodded that he understood and once he was breathing more easily he cracked open an eye and looked at Danny. "Did you find the doctor's yet?"

"No," Danny replied. "Not yet."

Martin's lips twitched into a very slight smile as he said, "Well, don't just stand here staring at me. Go look for them." He opened both of his and whispered, "Do I have to do everything?"

Danny chuckled and looked at Sam saying, "He's going to be fine." He stood up and shouted at Chao and the other agents who had arrived, "You heard the man, spread out and find the doctors!"

As soon as they had all gone off to search the building, Sam gently moved Martin's head into her lap. "Is it getting easier to breathe?"

"Yeah," he replied softly. He opened his eyes to look up at her and said, "I just got the wind knocked out of me."

She nodded her head and ran her fingers through his hair. She didn't know if it was so much to soothe his nerves or hers. Her heart was still racing in her chest as she whispered, "You really scared me. What were you thinking, jumping in front of a bullet like that?"

"I didn't have time to think," he replied. He closed his eyes and finished, "I just knew I'd rather it be me than you."