Alright chickadees, tis up finally! Hope you enjoy Part 4! Let me know what you think!

Dollhouse Part 4

XXX

Sean

I brushed the dark curly hair off of Victor's pale and clammy face as I made sure the sedative had taken hold. The poor kid looked like death warmed over and I could still hear his panicked cries of 'Sang's dead, Sang's dead' over Owen's phone. Just the memory of that phone call knocked the wind out of me and turned my stomach. We had all rushed to Victor's home to find the kid a deathly pale, trembling mess. I had immediately taken charge and had attempted to calm him down as best as I could. This was the second member of my family to be reduced to a complete and utter wreck since this whole fucking nightmare started. Since our precious little girl had been viciously taken from us.

I felt the dark, deep well of rage that had since settled in my chest grow that much larger at this latest turn of events. I was so fucking sick of this whole situation and when I got my hands on the one responsible for slowly destroying my family. I would exact payment on his worthless hide. As I further took in the dark purple bruises under Victor's closed eyes and the dried tear tracts down his pale cheeks, I upped the charge. I would make the bastard pay slowly and methodically twice over. The human body could be broken in a thousand and one ways without dying. I smiled grimly at the thought. Being a doctor, I knew every single one.

I fought to rein in my dark thoughts and focus on the present situation. After patting Victor lightly on the shoulder, I glanced at Silas and Kota, who had been assisting me, and I inclined my head towards the door. They nodded back at me and followed me out of the bedroom. I took a moment to check over the two once we stepped out into the hallway. I had taken to doing so with each of my family members as these last few weeks progressed. I fought back another surge of rage and despair that threatened to well up at the looks of grief and bone weary exhaustion that appeared carved into their youthful faces.

I released a large sigh as I dragged a hand over my own weary features. I felt a small headache blooming behind my left temple and rubbed tightly over it to work it out. We were all completely falling apart and I felt helpless to do anything to stop it. I was afraid that we, as a family, would soon shatter into irreparable pieces, all over our missing princess. Owen's early fears may be proven right. Sang was going to destroy our team, our family, just not in the way he had originally thought. As each week passed in our desperate search, I felt more and more of my hope that we were going to find Sang alive crumble. It took everything I had in me to keep going, some days.

I couldn't stop, though. I had an entire team to be strong for. I couldn't afford to give up now. Keeping my remaining family members alive was the only thing keeping me sane and coherent under the constant strain of my own despair. I hadn't told even Owen that I had begun to religiously keep tabs on the hospital and police records for a 16 year old girl, dead or alive.

"Doc, guys. You all really need to see this."

At Nathan's subdued voice, we all snapped out of our individual thoughts and followed him into Victor's office. The rest of our team was huddled around Victor's computer and I felt alarmed at the identical pale faces and looks of intense concern. I rushed over to see what had garnered such a disturbing response. Once I had a clear view of the computer screen, I felt the air rush out of my lungs. It felt as if someone had socked me hard in the gut. I recalled Victor's broken form repeating the mantra of 'Sang's dead, he killed her, Sang's dead' as I stared in complete disbelief at familiar green eyes, dulled in death.

My heart was racing and I heard the blood rushing through my ears. It couldn't be her, I refused to believe it. This wasn't real! As I continued to desperately study the haunting image in front of me, small details began to filter through my terror. As these little details registered, my heart began calming and my clinical mind took over. The hair was too long, too straight, and too dark. The shape of the eyes was wrong and they were deeper set, turning down just a tad too much. The lips were too thin. The nose too long and narrow. As these thoughts clicked into my head, I felt like I could suddenly breathe again.

"It's not her. Oh, ευχαριστώ τον Θεό. It's not aggele mou."

Silas' heartfelt and relieved prayer echoed my own as I heard Kota give a deep sigh in relief to my other side. The girl in the picture was not Sang, but the similarities were beyond eerie. Especially those damn haunting and brilliant emerald eyes. Given how run down and fatigued Victor had been earlier today, I could see how he reached the conclusion he had. The image of the dead girl had been the figurative straw that broke the camels back for Victor's fragile psyche.

"That's not all, Sean. There are others."

Owen's tone was clipped with a brutal fury that had been growing ever deeper with every passing day. His steel gray eyes were practically arctic in their coldness as he began to flip through a series of photos. There were dozens upon dozens of images of three different women, all laying on blood soaked leaves. It took only a minute or so to fully grasp what I was looking at.

"Christ! These are crime scene photos. Look at the identification markers."

Kota sounded disturbed, a feeling we all appeared to share. As I glanced at the assembled boys, my eyes settled on Luke. I was especially concerned with his current state. After that hellish day that we lost Sang, Luke had become a shadow of his former self. His normally expressive brown eyes had darkened into pools of obsidian, brittle and sharp. He refused to rest unless I threatened him with a sedative or he just collapsed from exhaustion. I barely saw him eat anymore and he hadn't said a single word in over a week. If it wasn't for North's angry mother henning, I have a feeling that Luke would have already self-destructed by now.

Pushing my concerns aside for now, I refocused on the images and began analyzing the bodies more closely. The women were all relatively young, similar builds, and shared very similar features. Not to mention those damn eyes. Sang's eyes. The bodies were practically spotless. They were all unmaimed except for a horrific wound that bisected their delicate necks from ear to ear in a morbid parody of a smile. It was almost like a Columbian necktie, minus the gruesome "tie". Looking at the close ups of the wounds, I noticed something odd.

"Are there any reports related to these photos by any chance. Or was it just these?"

"There were crime scene and autopsy reports attached to the e-mail as well."

At Owen's words, I felt excitement bubble up. "Move over, Owen, let me see them."

Owen pursed his lips at me and I saw a question enter his eyes, but he got out of my way without any fuss. I found the initial e-mail and after a small frown at the original message, I located the autopsy reports. As I pulled them up, Kota leaned over my shoulder and read quietly under his breath. I tuned him out and began to read thoroughly through each report, highlighting some key parts.

Alison Krueger, age 26. Cause of death: Stroke. Post-mortem wound located between the third and fourth vertebrae. Blood work indicates high concentration of doxacurium chloride present at time of death. Doxacurium chloride? I stiffened in surprise.

"Doc, what is it?"

I ignored North's gruff question with a shake of my head as I pulled up the second report.

Tori Sawyer, age 17. Cause of death: Stroke. Post- mortem wound between the C3 and C4 vertebrae. Full blood analysis indicates excessive amounts of doxacurium chloride present at time of death.

Feeling my heart rate pick up, my thoughts racing, I pulled up the final report.

Amanda Reyes, age 23. Cause of Death: Stroke. Post-mortem wound located between the 3rd and 4th cervical vertebrae. Toxin/substance screen indicates extremely high amounts of Nuromax (doxacurium chloride) present at time of death.

I released a shaky breath and stared blankly at the screen, feeling my nausea grow the more I read. This wasn't possible. The implications of these autopsies raced through my head and I suddenly wanted to hit something or throw up. Or both.

"Doc! What the hell is wrong? What does it say?"

I was pulled out of my whirling thoughts and turned to face the intent looks of my team. Seven concerned and haunted eyes bore into mine, demanding answers that only I could give.

"It's a doctor. A fucking doctor has Sang."

Stunned and disbelieving looks met my own and I felt the inappropriate and hysterical urge to suddenly laugh. So I did. Even I could hear the manic tinge to it, but it was either laugh or cry, and if I started crying now, I wouldn't be able to stop.

It seemed like ages before I could calm down and I felt a pang of guilt at the freaked out looks of most of my team. I took a moment to collect myself before I began to explain how I had reached my conclusion. I studiously ignore the disturbed and sharp glances I was getting from Owen. I hadn't cracked, yet.

"Doxacurium chloride is what is known as a neuro-muscular inhibitor. In short, it blocks the signals from the brain to the skeletal muscles of the body. This leaves the muscles completely lax. It's typically used during and after operation to prevent any muscle spasm during surgery and allows the body to heal. It is typically fairly mild on the system with few instances of allergic or negative side effects. It is not meant to be used long term, however. There are complications that can arise from subjecting the body to this drug long term, such as muscle atrophy. It is also not commonly known to the public outside of the medical field."

"On top of that, it is also fairly regulated. Doctor's don't administer this drug willy nilly. That means that these women were most likely held by medical personnel, maybe even a doctor. To have such high levels of this drug in their systems at the time of death, they were most likely hooked up to an IV drip of the stuff and for quite some time. What disturbs me the most is the cause of deaths for each woman."

"What do you mean, Doc? And what do these women have to do with Peanut?"

"These women are all young, very young. They were all perfectly healthy, but they all somehow died of strokes. Doesn't that strike you as odd? This fact, combined with the nature of this drug and the eerie similarities with Sang lead me to my next conclusion. I hate to say it, but I think the same person who killed these women now has Sang." Or worse, I silently added. No need to cause anymore freak outs tonight.

A resounding silence met my proclamation and I could see each member of me family process what I had just said.

"What the fucking shit is this? How in the hell is it fucking possible that our luck, Sang's luck, is this bad? Her parents and that bullshit school are one thing. McCoy and fuck face are another, but we can still handle this shit. But this fucking shit? This is bullshit. You're saying that Trouble somehow snagged the attention of some fucking psycho quack? Un-fucking-believable!"

Gabriel started pacing back and forth, his hand mussing his disheveled hair roughly. The rest split their focus between the two of us and I saw grim looks settle deeper all around.

"But why send us this e-mail. This 'V' guy? Why send us this shit and not help out further? They obviously know something. How does this help us find Sang?"

The sound of Luke's voice, rough with disuse, had everyone turning to face him in amazement. It had been so long since he had last said anything more that a word or two. His eyes had a new energy and focus to them that gave me a small surge of hope.

"That, Luke, is an excellent question. I believe that these women may not be the only victims. There's a set pattern to these deaths. All kidnapped in relatively isolated areas. After roughly two months, they are all found dead in the woods. They were all located in different states too. Alison Krueger went missing about 3 years ago from Beaufort. A little over two months later, her body was found within the Congaree National Park. A year later, Tori Sawyer was abducted from Marion. About ten weeks later, her body was found just over the border in North Carolina in a small patch of woods. The last, Amanda Reyes, was kidnapped from Charleston. Her body was found in northern Georgia 5 weeks later. That was about six months before Sang was kidnapped."

"The police failed to make a connection between these three women. It's very likely that there may be more women that we're missing. Combined with the drug, we have a new direction to take this. This e-mail gave us the key to finding our girl. We just need to piece it together. And we better do it fast. Because if I'm right, Sang is running out of time."

"So this bastard is killing them? Slitting their fucking throats?"

"No, North. Their bodies killed knife wound occurred after the died. I fear this sick bastard is keeping Sang on this drug. This means that she will be a virtual prisoner in her own body. She won't be able to move or speak. Not even a damn twitch. The problem in this is that the brain is used to constant stimulation. Force the body to freeze like that and the brain becomes dangerously under stimulated. After too long, it strokes out. This monster has had Sang for three weeks. We need to find her before her mind shuts down, forever."

An explosion of questions met my last statement, but I kept my eyes locked on Owen's glacial gaze. He swiped a hand sharply, cutting off the deluge of panicked questions. I could see the gears whirling behind his eyes and felt relief at the sight. Owen is one of the most brilliant people I know. Like, fucking scary brilliant. He whipped out his cell and entered in a number, his face set and determined. The rest of the team was picking up on his confidence and straightened in response.

"Axel? It's Blackbourne. I need to call in a few favors. This is a matter of life and death for my family. Is Corey Henshaw available?"

I felt a thrill of excitement build at these words. If there was one person who could help locate any other victims of this fucker, it was Corey Henshaw, computer genius extraordinaire. Don't get me wrong, Victor was good at what he did, but Corey was on a whole other dimension. Owen was nodding at whatever Axel was saying.

"I understand, my team will incur. Mr. Henshaw? I need you to run a mass analysis of every death of women ages 15 to 35 within the last decade. Keep the search between South Carolina and the surrounding states. Cause of death, stroke. Look for green eyes, petite frame. Run a second sweep on all medical personnel within the same area. Male, around 5'8" to 6', between 160 to 190 pounds. Age, between 30 and 45 years old. Look at their families too. Specifically, look for any small boys, probably 4 or 5 years old. Also, be on the lookout for the presence of a substance known as doxacurium chloride. Look for any unusually high orders of the substance. I must impress upon you the dire urgency of this matter. We need to get this information as soon as possible. We may be calling you later on with more details, so please keep your phone handy."

Owen disconnected the call and turned to face us all, fierce determination written across his face and a gleam of something I couldn't name in his eye.

"What do we do now Mr. Blackbourne?"

"For now, we rest and recuperate, Mr. Lee. And when Mr. Henshaw gets back to us? Then we hunt down this bastard and take back our bird."

Nods of ascent met his fierce statement and for the first time in weeks, we all had hope.

/

Sang

I found myself staring desperately at the door to my little prison. It was the only thing I could really do these days. It had been nine days since I had last seen Seth. Ten days since I had last seen Jaimie. I found myself swinging from complete and utter faith that at any moment, those little boys, my little boys, were going to walk through that door and abject despair. Was Seth even alive? Had that sick monster killed his own son? And what about little Jaimie? Why weren't they coming to visit me?

In the endless hours since Seth had been wrenched out of my sight, I had felt as if my last anchor had been taken away. I couldn't retreat into my memories anymore and the only thing that broke up the new torture that was worrying over Seth and Jaimie's safety was the frequent visits of Dr. Sir. But gone was the cold and impersonal man that I had known up to this point. He had seemed to finally crack. His movements were jilted, a bizarre frenetic energy in his average frame. Before, he never addressed me specifically, but now he constantly spoke to me, calling me Eve.

He would rant at me the whole time he was with me. However, after that horrific night with Seth, I could care less what he had to say. I tuned out his mad rambling and just focused on trying to make it clear how much I completely abhorred him. I had never before felt such deep and abiding hatred for another human before this entire nightmare began. I poured all of my fear, anger, and hatred for the man into my eyes and just glared for all I was worth. It was the only thing that had helped me survive these last nine days.

I had found myself giving up a little more every day. I couldn't handle not knowing if Seth was alive or dead. I couldn't handle not knowing if Jaimie had been harmed in the murderous anger of his father. So here I sat, hour after hour, staring desperately at the little white door, willing it to open. I fantasized so often that it would swing open and the mischievous and sweet Jaimie would run through, all smiles and giggles followed by the stable and calming presence of Seth. I fantasized so often and focused so hard on that damn white door that when it finally clicked open, I startled in surprise.

I held my breath as a pale, perfect face, outlined in glossy black curls peeked through. I felt my heart soar as golden eyes settled upon me and lit up in relief and joy. Oh, if he wasn't the most beautiful thing at that moment! A dimpled grin broke out across his cherubic features before he turned to look behind him. As he stepped into the dim lighting of the room, I felt my eyes well up and overflow. For there, standing behind his little brother, was Seth. Oh! He was alive! Thank God, thank God, thank God! As I hungrily took in the sight of the two boys, I quickly focused on Seth and his state.

His lovely face was covered in green and yellow bruises. A large healing cut was visible through the dark curls that kissed his forehead. His cupids bow lips were split and a scab clashed across his high right cheekbones. His skin was so pale that he appeared to glow in the darkness. His little frame looked so much more delicate and fragile than I had ever seen it. I felt my tears fall as my concern rose over his current state. But when I looked into his gemlike eyes, I was struck by the look of triumph and strength they held. The almost glowed with an inner fire and I was entranced by their ethereal beauty.

"Sang! Oh, we missed you so much! I was so afraid that Sir would have hurt you or that you would disappear too!"

The warmth of Jaimie's voice and little body began to settle and thaw the cold that had taken root within me these last nine days. His soothing scent of soap and little boy rushed into my nose and I felt so unbelievably happy right then. They were alright! I was so focused and basking in Jaimie's presence that the small touch to my left elbow surprised me. I turned my eyes to see Seth looking directly at me. I wanted to hug him too and make sure he was alright. He just shot me a small grin before he pulled the IV out in a quick jerk. I flinched at the sharp sting and out of surprise. I had not been expecting that at all. He pressed down firmly on the small hole with a piece of gauze before looking back at me. His grin broadened into a full out smile and it was the most youthful look I had ever seen on his face.

"Hey Sang, did you miss me? I'm sorry about the needle. I didn't want to hurt you, so I hope it didn't sting too much. I'm ok, by the way. You don't have to worry about me. Sir tossed me around a bit, but I've had worse. I've just been locked in my room this whole time and Sir has been skipping work to stay here recently. I couldn't afford to break out. He's gone today though, got called in. And the best part? I got this!"

He held up a cell phone in his tiny hands and I felt a dangerous rush of hope. Oh! This was it! I could have him call the boys. Seth must have seen the joy in my face, for his grin widened further, if that was possible. I glanced down at Jaimie, still buried in my lap, and his face was practically split in half by a giant smile. If I could have laughed at that moment, I would have.

"But before we get to that, let me take care of this."

He pulled out a small knife and slashed it through the IV bag, the look of triumph rising in his bright eyes. He then turned to me and gave me a gentle, but firm hug around his brother. It was the first time he had ever done do and I felt as if my heart would burst in happiness. I inhaled his sweet scent, light and clean, imprinting it into my mind.

"We're getting you out of here Sang, Seth said so! We just need you to give us a number to call. For your family!"

At this Jaimie held up nine of his little fingers and told me to blink twice at each number for a telephone number. I instantly thought of Mr. Blackbourne's number and we began the slow process of communicating. At each number that I indicated, Jaimie would relay it to Seth until at ten digits had been imputed. As Seth raised the phone to his ear, the ringing of the phone echoed loudly in the quiet room. It took only three rings before I could hear the cool, clipped voice of Mr. Blackbourne. The pure rush of relief was instant. The boys would find me. They would come and take us all away from this hell.

"Excuse me, but are you Sang's family? Yes, I need you to listen, please. Sang is here at my house. You need to come get her quickly, before that monster comes back. He's going to kill us all. Our address is 702 S. Hartfell St., Orangeberg, South Carolina. Please hurry. I pulled Sang's IV out, but I don't know how long it'll take for the drugs to wear off. My name is Seth Ayers. I have a little brother named Jaimie Ayers. The monster is Dr. Adam Ayers. He killed my mom, Eve Ayers and several others. No, he's not here. He's working. I stole his cell to call you. Ok, I understand. One second, I need to tell Sang, ok?"

Seth turned to face me and he grinned.

"Sang, Mr. Blackbourne says that they are coming. He wants me to stay on the phone with him and keep him updated. Also, a Dr. Green told me to tell you you're grounded, forever?"

Those last lines made me want to laugh and cry at the same time. I could only do one at the moment, so I cried in relief as Jaimie curled into my right side and Seth settled on the bed to my left, leaning into my shoulder. Oh, my boys were coming and we were going to be saved.

/

Sean

Corey had been an amazing help over the last nine days or so. In 48 hours time, he had compiled a listing for both of the scans that Owen had asked him to complete. After having a chance to rest up and being told the truth of the photos, Victor had recovered with a vengeance. He attacked the data Corey provided us and began the tedious job of sifting through the many, many names. With a new direction and focus, our family was working with a new strength. We had hope driving us, fragile but powerful nonetheless.

We all worked tirelessly to whittle down the suspects, ever mindful that we were running closer to a deadline. We were all looking over a series of case files and medical personnel, but it was proving difficult to find the needed connection to pin down our perpetrator. To finding Sang. The room was silent except for the rustling of papers and I focused intently on each report in my pile, determined to find any crucial information. The sudden and unexpected ringing of Owen's phone, startled us all. Owen glanced at the number in confusion before lifting it to his ear.

"This is Blackbourne. Who is this?"

I couldn't make out the words on the other end, but whatever was said made Owen instantly straighten up and his eyes gleamed with emotion.

"I am Sang's family. Who are you? "

We all were instantly on alert. I felt as if an electric current ran through our entire group. Owen barked out an address in Orangeberg and we were suddenly flying out of the house to our cars. Owen put the phone on speaker and I heard a young voice explain what was happening. Oh, thank God! This was the miracle we had needed so desperately. Owen ordered the kid, Seth, to stay on the line and soon we were flying down the highway. Between the two of us, we were able to get a better understanding of Sang's current situation.

The more I heard, the more I wanted to kill the fucker who did all of this. He was a psychotic bastard who could choke on acid for all I cared right then. I glanced at my GPS on my phone to distract myself. The GPS read just over an hour and I silently willed Owen to go faster. Just as I about to tell him to speed up anyways, a loud thunderous noise broke out the phone. A roar that sounded like a bull crackled across the line and I heard a young child start screaming. Seth could be heard yelling "he's here! Hurry please, he's going to kill us this time I kno-…."

The sudden sounding of the dial tone echoed loudly in the car and I felt as if my heart had stopped.