The tomahawk touched down and as promised Doc was standing on the mat with a medical team. Scarlett saw Falcon standing with the team. She figured someone would have told him about the situation. Doc and his team swiftly jumped on the chopper and transferred Duke onto a gurney. No sooner had they jumped on than they were off, whisking Duke to sickbay.
"Scarlett, what happened?" Falcon asked looking anguished.
"They poisoned him." She replied throwing her arms around him as they both comforted each other. They were about to walk to sickbay together when shouts were heard.
"Cobra attack! They're coming in fast!" Beach Head announced.
"They're probably pissed about the false information." Scarlett concluded. Although she wanted nothing more than to be with Duke, she had to lead her team against the attack. She took a deep breath and began to rattle off assignments for the Joes.
"I'll stay on the ground for this one." Scarlett decided and ran towards the sounds of battle. She threw herself in the middle of a pack of guards and knocked each one out with a punch or a kick. She darted into the shadows between two hangers to surprise any more guards that would try to pass.
"Cobra Commander is very angry with you, love." A voice called from the shadows.
"Zartan!" she jumped hearing that voice.
"Relax, I come meaning no harm." Zartan came partially into the light raising his hands in the air.
"Oh really, and why should I believe that? You certainly seemed to want the opposite a few hours ago." Scarlett spat in disbelief.
"Let's just say the tide has changed. There's something I'd like to give you." Zartan said and went to pull something out of his pocket. Scarlett pulled her gun and cocked it. She watched him pull out a small vile of a greenish liquid.
"What's that?" Scarlett asked.
"The cure for Duke. This is the antidote for the poison." Zartan informed her with a smile.
"And why do you want to give it to me?" Scarlett asked narrowing her eyes.
"Cobra Commander promised me certain payment for setting up the scene of your capture. He has since gone back on his offer. I want to show him that crossing me is a deadly mistake and that revenge will be mine. Saving Duke's life will undo everything the commander has worked for." Zartan revealed his spiteful plan.
"I still have my doubts." Scarlett replied not changing her stance.
"What's the worse that can happen if you give it to him? He's already dying." Zartan reasoned.
"Throw it to me." Scarlett demanded still keeping her weapon aimed. Zartan did as she ordered. She caught it in her hand and slid it into her pocket.
"It will level off his vitals right away, but it will take a few days for him to regain his full health." Zartan warned.
"If this works…" Scarlett trailed off not knowing what to say.
"Cobra Commander will rue the day he deceived me!" Zartan exclaimed, "And Duke will be saved."
"You should go. I think Cobra is retreating." Scarlett advised hearing her own troops sounding victorious.
"Until we meet again and I hope we do" Zartan eyed her lustfully before retreating back into the shadows. Scarlett chased in his direction, but soon came to a wall. Zartan had somehow disappeared. For a moment she wondered if she had dreamt the whole encounter, but she felt the vile in her pocket. She flew to sickbay as fast as her legs would carry her.
She ran to the nurses' station and demanded to see Doc. Doc came out and Scarlett explained what had happened during the battle and gave the vile to Doc.
"And you trust what Zartan said?" Doc raised his eyebrow.
"At this point, does it really matter?" Scarlett asked sullenly.
"Point taken. I'll get on this right away." Doc agreed and hurried back into the room where Duke was being evaluated. Scarlett walked back to the waiting room and saw Diva and Falcon there, waiting for news on Duke. They were standing off to the side, wrapped up in each other's arms. She walked over and cleared her throat making her presence known.
"Oh, Scarlett, how is he?" Falcon asked as he and Diva parted.
"Not good, but there's hope." Scarlett replied telling Falcon about her encounter with Zartan.
"Hopefully Zartan was telling the truth." Diva replied after hearing the details.
"I hope so, too" Scarlett replied praying for the best. She sank down in a chair near by reliving the whole day over in her head. She had been so furious with Duke over the party incident. It all seemed so juvenile now that his life was in danger. She had wasted so much time being angry and resentful. And to realize that despite all these hard and cold feelings deep down there was a part of her that still loved him, was just overwhelming. Her heart felt heavy as she thought about the hours they had been captive, especially when Cobra Commander had injected him with the poison. She felt like she had been injected with something too, and her heart was dying along with him. Her mind fixated on Duke's expression when he told her he loved her…. She put her head in her hands and began weeping, begging God for another chance with Conrad.
She wasn't sure how long she had been like that, when she looked up to see Falcon standing in front of her.
"Scarlett, there's something I think you should know." Falcon replied seeming a bit nervous.
"What is it?" Scarlett asked wiping tears from her eyes.
"It's about Duke. I'm usually not one to get into other people's business, but I feel I should tell you this because he might not ever get the chance to himself." Falcon replied, swallowing a lump that had formed in his throat.
"Vince?" Scarlett asked concerned, using Falcon's given name.
"I know you and Duke had an intensely painful break up and that it hasn't exactly been a walk in the park since he's returned." Falcon began with his voice slightly shaking.
"I know. I didn't really give him a chance at a fresh start." Scarlett nodded feeling guilty.
"You guys have too much history for a fresh start. I don't think it would have been possible for you or Duke to pull that off. You're both too stubborn for that." Falcon smiled half heartedly.
"You're right about that." Scarlett agreed.
"That's why I think it's important to tell you that beyond all the hurt and resentment, Conrad is still very much in love with you. I know that sounds ridiculous, but it's the truth. I wouldn't make something like that up, not now." Falcon revealed seriously. He watched Scarlett's eyes drink in the news quicker than he imagined she would.
"I know," Scarlett answered a few moments later.
"You do? Oh-well- I, um, didn't know he told you." Falcon replied clearly embarrassed.
"He told me while we were captive, right before we were rescued. I'm sure he told me for the same reason you thought to." Scarlett tried to ease his embarrassment.
"I just couldn't have him go with you thinking he hated you." Falcon's eyes welded up thinking of the possibility. Scarlett instinctively stood up and wrapped her arms around Falcon for a supportive hug.
"We need to be strong for him. He wouldn't want us to be in so much pain because of him." Scarlett spoke as a mantra to get them through this. She felt Falcon nod against her. Doc's voice entered the room and they both turned quickly. Diva came over to join them.
"So far so good. Whatever Zartan gave you has leveled his vitals and there has even been a slight improvement. He's still in a coma but there's hope." Doc announced. The three Joes sighed with relief, glad to hear about an improvement.
"I'll have Breaker make an announcement." Diva offered and went to place the call.
"Can we see him?" Scarlett asked hopefully.
"I don't see why not, just one person at a time. He's hooked up to a lot of machines so there's not a lot of space around the bed." Doc warned.
"Go ahead, Vince, see your brother." Scarlett ushered Vince to go first.
"No, you go. I think he'd much rather have you at his side." Falcon declined.
"No, please, go. I'll see him right when you're done." Scarlett shook her head. She knew once she got into that room, she was never going to leave him. Falcon nodded and proceeded towards Duke's room.
"You need to get your rest too. We can't have both of our top commanders out of commission." Doc ordered.
"I promise I'll get some sleep after I see Duke." Scarlett agreed. Doc walked back to his office. Soon other Joes began to pour into the waiting room, excited about Duke's positive news. All gave their love and support to Scarlett, who promised to pass it on to Duke. Falcon joined the crowd in the waiting room giving everyone a first hand report on how Duke was recovering. Scarlett took the moment to slip back into Duke's room. Doc wasn't kidding when he said there were a lot of machines hooked up. Scarlett had never seen so many wires hooked up to anyone before.
"Conrad, I'm here." She whispered taking a seat next to him. She took his hand into hers. She watched him for hours hoping something would change to show the antidote was working. She laid her head down next to Duke's arms and thought about everything she wanted to say to him. She couldn't wait for him to open his eyes.
She felt someone shake her shoulder. She opened her eyes and saw Doc looking down on her.
"Shana, I thought I made it quite clear to you that you needed to go home and get some rest." Doc scolded.
"I know. I just can't leave him. I won't." Scarlett vowed.
"You dozed off about an hour ago. You need your rest." Doc cautioned.
"He needs me here." Scarlett balked.
"What he needs is for his top shirt to be in top form in case anything arises. You know as well as I do that he would be picking you up and dragging you to bed himself if he could." Doc reasoned.
"You're right, call me with any changes." Scarlett replied getting up.
"Of course." Doc promised as he escorted her out.
Scarlett walked back to her quarters feeling like she was leaving part of herself in sickbay. The halls were quiet, which she relished. She didn't really feel like answering anyone's questions about Duke's condition. She entered her quarters to find Diva reading on the couch.
"Hey, I was wondering when you'd be back." Diva smiled.
"Yeah, I dozed off while sitting with Duke." Scarlett replied taking a seat next to her.
"Any news?" Diva asked hopefully.
"No change since you were there." Scarlett reported with sorrow.
"I took the liberty of calling Allie and Dash while you were gone. I told them what happened. They said they would try to come up tomorrow to see him." Diva informed.
"Thanks." Scarlett said feeling relieved she didn't have to call them. It's not that she wouldn't, she just didn't have the energy to talk about the whole ordeal again.
"I told them they should stay home; it's Christmas Eve but they insisted. Dash said he had some relatives near here that they would stay with." Diva continued with a shrug.
"Tomorrow's Christmas Eve…" Scarlett suddenly remembered. She was supposed to fly home tomorrow morning to be with her family.
"I'm guessing your holiday plans have changed." Diva sighed hugging her knees.
"With Duke out of commission my duties demand I stay here, but I couldn't leave without knowing if he's going to be ok." Scarlett responded.
"I wish there was something else I could do." Diva sighed frustrated.
"Just be there for Falcon. He, especially, needs someone to lean on." Scarlett advised.
"With the holidays here, he's been thinking about Jinx a lot." Diva replied softly.
"Her death hit him hard. They were really close. I think she was the first person to really get to him. She got through all that bravado and actually found Vince in there." Scarlett fondly remembered her teammate. Jinx had died honorably in a Cobra battle almost three years ago.
"And now with Duke's life uncertain…" Diva sighed beginning to choke up.
"The anitdote seems to be working. Zartan said it may take a few days for Duke to recover." Scarlett tried to save her roommate from tears, even though she felt like crying herself. Diva nodded and blinked back her tears. "In all my years of knowing Falcon, I've known him to be a pretty private person. For him to open up to you about personal things, you must be special to him." Scarlett spoke, finding the topic change refreshing.
"I hope I am because he's special to me too." Diva softly smiled thinking of him. As if on cue, there was a knock on the door.
"That's him. He had to take care of a few things earlier, but said he'd be back." Diva got up to answer the door.
"Do you need me to go? I can make myself scarce." Scarlett offered.
"No, you stay right where you are." Diva dismissed her. She opened the door and as she predicted, Falcon had arrive.
"Evening, ladies." Falcon greeted tipping his beret.
"How are you holding up?" Scarlett asked him.
"I'm ok. I just gotta keep believing the antidote is the answer." Falcon answered bravely. "I'm actually glad you're here, Shana. I wanted to ask if you would sing O Holy Night at our Christmas Eve gathering."
"Me? Don't you think you should be asking Chelsea?" Scarlett was taken aback.
"Duke's always loved the way you sang it. I figured it might help lift everyone's spirits." Falcon coaxed.
"Chelsea is the peformer. I'm fine sticking to singing in the shower." Scarlett shook her head.
"C'mon. For Duke?" Falcon begged.
Scarlett sighed defeated, "Alright, for Duke."
"We can make it a duet, if it that would make you feel more comfortable?" Diva suggested. Scarlett nodded, liking the idea.
The three sat in the living room chatting for most of the night, hoping to get a good news call from the infirmary. When the coffee ran low, Scarlett said good night to the others and went into her bedroom.
"I guess Scarlett has the right idea. We should all hit the hay." Diva sighed realizing the time.
"Chelsea," Falcon began, but stopped.
"What, Vince?" Diva asked concerned.
"What if the antidote doesn't work? What if Duke doesn't make out ok?" Falcon questioned with a furrowed brow.
"Let's not think about the 'what if's'. Let's just focus on the fact that Duke's vitals are stable. He's a strong man. He's going to make it. Just believe it." Diva comforted.
"You're right. Just gotta keep the faith." Falcon sighed heavily. He turned and headed towards the door.
"Wait. Where are you going?" Diva asked with a frown.
"I thought you wanted to go to sleep?" Falcon asked confused.
"Well, I want to go to bed…." Diva trailed off batting her eyelashes.
"Oh, I see." Falcon grinned taking her hand.
"I was hoping you'd keep me company tonight." Diva purred leading him to her bedroom.
"Oh, I'll keep you company alright." Falcon nodded with excitement. Diva opened her bedroom door.
"Good," she simply stated and pulled him inside.