Journey Through the Past- Chapter 28
Brass, Nick, and Warrick had just finished searching through the buildings at the opposite end of the campus where McKeen and Pritchard had gone. It had taken much longer than Brass had anticipated as these were patient wings. Frightened staff and patients were told to stay where they were and were virtually in a lock-down situation until told otherwise.
"Okay, Rick and Nick, we head over to where McKeen is. According to the map, it looks like we want to head over to those buildings over there."
Scanning over the rest of the campus, Brass spotted movement over by the administration building. Two men dressed in prison guard uniforms were darting from the building and heading towards the buildings in which Brass and company were headed. Signaling Nick and Warrick, Brass and company charged across the campus to intercept them. Sheriff Taylor and his deputy soon emerged and continued their pusuit.
"LVPD, Gentlemen! Halt. Don't make me shoot you…"shouted Brass.
Both Lopez and Baker stopped in their tracks and held up their hands. Quickly Warrick and Nick made it to the men just ahead of Brass. Pushing the men up against the wall of the building before them, Nick quickly frisked both men and confiscating their weapons. Sheriff Taylor quickly took over and cuffed each of the men and turned them around to face Brass. Brass looked each of the men up and down.
"Gentlemen, you have one chance and one chance only. You screw with me, I will personally see that you both get the death penalty, got that?" hissed the police detective.
"Gentlemen, where is Mallory, and where is he holding Grissom and Sidle. Don't you play dumb with me because you do not want to piss me off," ordered Brass holding his Glock against Baker's head.
"You won't shoot me," said Baker with a sneer.
"Want to make a bet? You don't think I'll pull this trigger? Don't know that my buddies here will argue with me…seems like the suspect resisted arrest. What do you think, Rick?" said Brass in a calm voice while cocking the trigger.
"You got it, man. Suspect resisted," Warrick said, loud and clear. Baker shut his eyes and gulped.
"Okay, man. I don't know exactly where Mallory is. He hasn't been answering his radio since yesterday. My partner and I were on the way to find him. We thought he might be in his lab," said Baker in a rush, wishing that Brass would move the barrel of his gun away from his head.
"His lab? Okay, buddy, where is this lab? And you still haven't told me anything about Grissom and Sidle. Tell me about them," Brass said impatiently.
"Sidle..uh…she was in that building over there," said Baker, vaguely waving his hand in the direction from which Brass had just come.
"Hey, turn around," said Brass as he grabbed the man by the shoulder and spun him around, "Now, which building exactly."
Baker pointed to the low concrete-like bunker across the compound.
"That's the building Sidle was being kept in? Are you sure?" asked Brass.
Baker gave a single nod. Nick and Warrick looked at Brass with concern. They had just searched that building and did not find Sara. They did note that only one cell in that particular building had been recently used, but its occupant was not there. They had assumed that the patient was in a different part of the clinic receiving treatment.
"Jim, my guess is that if Rick and I were to process the cell in that building, we'd find evidence that that's where Sara was being held," said Nick.
"Right. Okay, buddy, she's not there, so where could she be? What about Grissom?" Brass barked at the man standing before him.
Baker swallowed hard as he looked at the determined police detective. If they got out of this, Mallory would surely have him and Lopez hunted down, and they would die a slow and unnatural death, but at the same time, Brass might very well kill him and Lopez on the spot if he didn't give him the right information. Caught between a hard place and a rock, Baker made his decision.
"Grissom's woman might be in Mallory's lab. Grissom's cell is next to the lab. Mallory…Mallory…he was using his own brand of "drug therapy" on them. Grissom, um…you're not going to like this," stammered Baker.
"I'm already not liking this…keep going," growled an impatient Jim Brass.
"Baker, shut up…Mallory will get…,"Lopez nearly screamed.
Sheriff Taylor shoved Lopez hard against the wall. "Nobody gave you permission to speak."
Lopez clamped his jaws shut, and turned his head away, afraid of what was going to come down upon him and Baker.
"Grissom is…I mean was…um…he was really hurting. He managed to get away from us and…"stammered Baker, who was now not sure which was worse, facing an increasing irate Captain Jim Brass or an insane Lucas Mallory bent on revenge.
"Whoa…whoa…wait a sec… are you telling me you don't know where Grissom is? Explain the hurting bit…he was injured when he came here. You mean from his injuries, right…right?" said Brass who becoming more and more agitated at the idiot standing before him and the increasing worry over his friend.
"I mean, Lopez and I think he's coyote bait right now. He's been gone for more than a day in this desert heat, his ribs and wrist were broken, and Mallory made sure that he was strung out 24/7. He's totally messed up, man. If he's alive, he doesn't know who he is anymore. Mallory has him pretty much totally brainwashed."
Brass took a step away from Baker and rubbed his hand over his face. He would have like nothing more than to beat this punk to a pulp. Taking a deep breath to get his rising anger under control, Brass continued with his interrogation.
"Okay, let's get this straight. As far as you know, Grissom might be dead, and if he isn't, he is strung out and suffering from his injuries. Sidle might be strung out, and she might be in Mallory's lab. Mallory has been MIA since yesterday, but you think he might be at the lab, but you're not sure. Do I have everything straight?" Brass hissed.
Baker gave a quick nod of his head, hoping this was would placate the seething police captain standing before him. Unfortunately for Baker, Brass was just getting started.
"You don't know a whole hell of a lot, do you, you jackass. Why don't you point out to us which building Mallory's lab is in? If Sidle and/or Grissom dies, I will make sure that both you sycophants get the death penalty," Brass snapped.
Baker lifted a shaky finger and pointed to the group of buildings. Just as the man was pointing towards the buildings, all seven men were startled by the sound of a single muffled gunshot. Shoving Baker towards the deputy, Brass ordered the sheriff and deputy to secure the prisoners. Motioning to Warrick and Nick to following him, Brass sped towards the buildings that Baker had indicated.
Another muffled shot rang through the air causing Brass, Nick, and Warrick to pause momentarily, look at one another, and then rocket even faster towards their destination.
They all had their service weapons out preparing themselves for the worst.
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Officer Daniel Pritchard watched in horror as Grissom swung around knocking McKeen off balance as McKeen was about to shoot Sidle. Before Pritchard could react, Grissom had reached into his waistband, pulled a 9mm Beretta out and fired it at McKeen. The bullet sent the undersheriff crashing against the examining table. The bullet entered the lower part of th back of McKeen's neck, just above his flack jacket. McKeen turned his head with a look of shock on his face. Grasping his neck, McKeen was aghast at the gushing of blood flowing down his torso.
"You son of a bitch," rasped McKeen as his eyes slowly glazed over. The under sheriff fell to the floor, a pool of blood forming under him.
It took a moment for the scene in front of him to register. Though he felt no particular loyalty towards the dying man, Pritchard knew that he had to finish the business McKeen had started, if only to save his own neck. However, he was also sure that the gunfire was probably heard outside the building. Brass and his men would be here any moment. Pritchard had to salvage the situation before Brass showed up.
Pointing his gun at Grissom, he aimed his pistol and prepared to shoot the man who was now on his knees trying to grasp the situation before him. The cocking of a pistol had Pritchard jerking his attention away from his intended victim to find himself staring down the barrel of a Glock. Lucas Mallory had the Glock that Sara had dropped and was now pointing it Pritchard.
"No, no you don't, Pritchard. Grissom is mine so you can just drop your gun and kick it towards me. Move on over here next to the girl. Take your flack jacket off. I don't think you'll be needing it as much as I will," said Mallory.
Pritchard carefully placed his weapon on the floor before him, shoved the gun towards Mallory and, with his hands up, edged past Grissom and McKeen's body and stood next to Jones who was standing protectively over Sara. Scott now stood next to Jones, his mind trying to process the turn of events that just had occurred.
"Hey, Junior," said Mallory waving the gun at Scott, "hand me his flack jacket and then take his cuffs and handcuff his hands together behind his back. Also duct tape his mouth. I don't want him yelling for help. Do it, and do it now."
Scott stiffly nodded at Mallory, who was training the gun on him and the officer. Taking the flack jacket from Pritchard, he handed it to Mallory. While Scott cuffed the officer, Mallory quickly and carefully slipped on the flack jacket.
"Lucas, what are you planning? It's over. The game is over. Give it up," said Ken Jones, realizing that it was just a matter of time before more law enforcement officers showed up.
Jones didn't know if McKeen had brought with him other officers who would be on the take as McKeen had been, but he wasn't anxious to find out. He just wanted this nightmare to end and to go back to the way things were before his cousin reappeared in his life.
"Kenny, you disappoint me. I thought that of all people you would understand. I'll just have to deal with Grissom without your help," said Mallory as he lifted the Glock and aimed it at his cousin.
"Lu…Lucas, you…you don't mean it. I helped you when you needed it. I just want you to think about what you're doing," pleaded the doctor staring at the gun with huge eyes.
"Pick up Sidle. She and Grissom will be my ticket out of here. You and Junior are going to help me to escape," said Mallory.
"Lucas, she's in no shape to be jostled about. The bleeding has slowed, but it could start again if we do what you're planning. I'll go with you and help you with Grissom, but leave her and Scott. This really is between you and Grissom anyway," said Jones as he tried to negotiate with his cousin.
"Pick her up, Kenny- now. Junior, help dear old Dad up, and do it now," ordered Mallory as he waved the gun between the two men.
Grissom was still struggling to maintain his grasp with reality. He lay crumpled on the floor against the counter. Strong young hands had him up by his armpits, hauling him to his feet. Grissom leaned heavily against the strong young body that was holding him up. His injured left arm was draped around Scott's neck as his right hand dropped the Beretta unnoticed to the floor.
Mallory's attention was divided between Scott assisting his father and with Jones', who was gently picking up an unconscious Sara Sidle. Blood was starting to seep through the makeshift bandage wrapped around her midsection. Jones held her tight in his arms, hoping that the added pressure might stem the flow.
"Okay, listen to me. We're going to walk out slowly. You both will do exactly what I say," Mallory said in a quiet controlled voice.
Scott felt spasms start to thunder through his father's body as Grissom's breathing became increasingly labored. Grissom lifted his head slightly to see Jones step past with Sara in his arms. Blinking to focus and process the sight, he tried to stand on wobbly legs and shake off Scott who was holding him up.
"Sara…Wha…," Grissom swallowed and furled his brow. Bewildered at the chaos, images were swirling around him, floating in and out of focus. Shutting his eyes briefly, Grissom tried to control the vertigo creeping into his sense of balance.
"Grissom, I'm taking you somewhere safe, where everything will make sense," said Mallory as he quickly grabbed his notes laying on the counter and all the prepared syringes that lay in the medicine cabinet and stuffing them in a medical bag sitting near the cabinet. He quickly picked up Pritchard's gun and also stuffed that into the bag.
"I bet you will, but you'll have to go through me first," said Jim Brass as he appeared in the doorway with his Glock aimed directly at Mallory's head.
"Lucas Mallory, drop the gun and the bag. Then you will put your hands up. Nobody else move as my trigger finger is feeling mighty itchy right now."
Wordlessly, Mallory dropped both the gun and medical bag and raised his hands over his head. He stared Brass defiantly and then said in a low voice, "Did you come to save Grissom? It's too late. He's tripping right now, and he's so damaged, he'll never be the man he used to be."
"We'll see about that. Right now, you just need to keep that trap of yours shut," said Brass with all seriousness. Turning to Jones, Brass continued, "Lay her gently on the examining table and then back away. You must be this miscreant's cousin."
"Dr. Ken Jones. I'm the…"
"Oh yeah, the administrator and head honcho. Gotcha," said Brass, "Why don't you just move over there with your cousin and put those hands up."
"You," said Brass with a softer voice, nodding to Scott, "if, I'm not mistaken, are Grissom's son. Scott, is it?"
Scott nodded slowly. He tightened his grip on his father who was starting to sweat profusely and who continued to tremble and gasp.
Grissom whipped his head around to stare in the direction of the familiar voice. He didn't trust his senses to tell him that it was really Brass, who was standing there like an answer to a prayer.
"Jim…wha…how," stammered Grissom, realization dawning. "You came with McKeen. McKeen brought you."
"Yeah, Buddy," said Brass softly, shocked at the wildness in Grissom's eyes and his haggard appearance. Both Sara and Grissom looked like they had been run through the mill. Grissom was definitely tripping, his eyes had an unfocused look about them, and Brass had never seen such a look of desperation about the man.
Brass came with McKeen…he came with McKeen…he was with McKeen…channeled through Grissom's head. No! No! can't be…with McKeen…Eyeing the unnoticed Beretta laying on the floor near McKeen's lifeless body, Grissom lurched away from Scott and fell to his knees. Grabbing the Beretta, Grissom, with shaking hands pointed the gun at Brass.
A puzzled look crossed the homicide detective's face. "Gil, what's going on? Hey, buddy, it's me. Jim Brass," said the police captain softly. Brass glanced down at McKeen's still body and then back at Grissom.
"Gil, did you shoot McKeen? Did you?"
Grissom glanced at the body lying next to him and then looked back up at Brass.
"I…I… he was going to shoot Sara…I had to," admitted Grissom weakly.
Looking up at Brass, in a stronger voice, Grissom continued, "I won't let you hurt Sara, either. Drop the gun, do it now."
"Gil, I would never hurt Sara."
Mallory watched the scenario between Brass and Grissom unfold. Thinking quickly, Mallory spoke up.
"Grissom, who can you trust? McKeen was the under sheriff. Now your so-called friend just admitted that he came with McKeen. I was trying to get you out of here, but the under sheriff was going to kill Sara and he had you injected full of stuff for an overdose. The effects are getting worse, aren't they?"
Grissom swung the gun between Brass and Mallory, trying desperately to get a handle on the situation. Things were spinning out of control and there was nothing he could do to stop it except to protect the two things he loved the most.
"Shut up, Mallory. Don't talk…just don't talk."
The need to resolve this situation was paramount. With Scott helping him to his feet, Grissom leaned against the counter and pointed towards Brass.
"Scott, take the gun from Captain Brass. Jim, please don't do anything that might hurt my son or I will have to shoot," pleaded Grissom.
Brass held up his hands and turned the Glock around and handed the gun to Scott, saying softly, "Okay, Gil, whatever you say."
"Dr. Jones, please ta..take the cuffs from the under sheriff and off of Captain Brass. Cu…cuff Brass and Mallory," said Grissom in a soft but determined voice.
Jones quickly handcuffed both men, adding duct tape to Mallory's mouth so that he couldn't confuse Grissom any further. At this point, Jones wasn't sure whether Jim Brass was sincerely wanting to help Grissom or whether he was a crony of McKeen's. Jones decided not to take any chances with Brass.
Softly, so that only Brass could hear, Jones whispered, "I don't know whether you are friend or foe to that man. If you're a friend, I'll take care of him and Sara."
Jones continued, "If you are foe, the authorities will be here in a few hours to take care of you."
Brass remained silent and relaxed. He had split up with Nick and Warrick. They were checking out the next building and should be here any moment. The only worry would be if Grissom would think that they, too, were in league with McKeen. At the moment there was nothing he could do but wait. Jones firmly placed a length of duct tape over his mouth too.
"Father, what do you want to do? Lopez and Baker, the guards, are still out there. We don't know who else could have come with these guys," asked Scott, keeping an eye on the three bound men.
"I…we just need to get away from here…need more control of what's going on. Can't tell what's real and what's not," gasped Grissom.
"Grissom, I can give you a countermeasure, like we did before. Do you remember?" asked Jones.
"No…don't want anything else…just want control," Grissom said, shaking his head. "Doc, pick up Sara. Scott, I…I…don't think that I can walk on my own. Grab the medical bag and put Brass's gun in there with the others. We're…we're leaving to somewhere safe."
A/N: Okay, another twist. I'm sorry…the ride continues. Hope this pleases, though. Let me know. The reviews keep me going.