The light was deafening, blurred lights and voices hit Nikki like a mobile brick wall, muddling her senses into a pool of nausea and disorientation. With great effort, she lifted her head off the stretcher she had been lain on, face down. Immediately, someone shoved her head back down into the towel which was acting as a makeshift pillow.
"Stay still, Agent Betancourt." Nikki mumbled something rude in reply, but all the medic heard was a questionable mumble. That was good; things would probably work smoother that way. "This will hurt a little." Nikki wouldn't be surprised if the whole of LA heard what she said next, although it was completely justified. 'A little' was apparently a relative phrase. The searing pain scored across her back, as the paramedic antiseptisised her gunshot wound, and bandaged it. Her scream of pain and obscenity had summoned Colby and Liz, who were waiting nearby.
"Nikki!" Ignoring the medic's protest, and pulling herself upright, Nikki held a towel against her chest, upon realising that she was exposed. The view for the rest of the agents in the garage was blocked by the ambulance, parked haphazardly in the middle of the underground car park. "Nikki, are you okay?"
"Of course I'm not bloody okay..." The young agent hissed, in so much pain that she had to suppress a gagging motion. "What's happening?" Her voice was low, and slightly groggy. Liz shot her a sympathetic look, and moved forwards so that their conversation did not have to be yelled over the fray around them. The crime scene was still in chaos. "Charlie and Amita... and Larry... is Larry okay?"
"Larry's on route to the hospital, you haven't been out of it as long as you think you have been. We have an APB out on the van, but God knows how that's going to turn up. They've probably dumped it already." Colby cut in, but kept his distance, clearly not wanting to invade her privacy. If the medic would have let him, he would have been a gentleman and given her his coat. "They think Larry's going to be okay, but he keeps talking about the cosmos. Normally, we wouldn't think there would be anything wrong, but in this instance, we know that he has concussion. The doctors think there'll be no lasting damage though." Liz blocked the view from the corner of the van where the crime scene was visible.
"We would have sent you too, but Don wanted to keep you here. If you saw anything..." Nikki dropped her chin to her chest, staring at the ground and thinking as hard as she could. Trying to force her groggy mind to remember. They clearly hadn't given her any medication, but she didn't know whether the pain was making her memory worse than the meds would have. She had seen a plate; she made a note to remember it. The amount of times witnesses had forgotten the plates pissed her off, so she always remembered to check plates.
Automatically, she reeled off a number, which Colby quickly jotted down and ran off with, pulling out his phone as he went. Liz nodded, eagerly.
"Anything else?" Nikki furrowed her brow. She would start from the beginning.
"I was going to my car when Charlie, Amita and Larry pulled in. I just wanted to get home, so I kept on walking." She admitted, with a hint of regret. Maybe if she'd wanted to see them that night, they wouldn't be in the hands of killers. "Then, I heard something and they were gone and I had a real bad feeling about everything." She wrapped the towel around herself, wincing as it touched her back, and letting the material gape around her wound. The medic looked pissed off, but conceded to work sideways instead. "Then, I met Agent Edgerton coming around from the back of another car, I don't know what he was doing down here, I thought he was in Kentucky. Anyway, the van drove past, I shot at it. I counted Charlie and Amita in the back of the van, and three kidnappers including the driver. It looked professional: they all wore ski masks and one of them carried an Uzi. I don't know if the others were armed, I only got a quick look at them. I have no ID for them, I don't even know definitively how many of them there are." Nikki hugged the towel around her, suddenly very cold as tears threatened. She felt so useless.
Liz seemed to feel her thoughts, and placed a warm, comforting hand on her colleague's bare shoulder. She knew how stressful the job was, and she knew what being the new guy was like, but this was nothing to do with that. Guilt could destroy an innocent person, she had seen it many times before. And even though she didn't know Nikki that well yet, she knew that she was innocent, and she could tell from her expression and the salty tears welling up in her eyes that given another chance to save their friends, she would have gladly taken another bullet. That was worthy of at least a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry, we'll get them back. You focus on getting better, and we promise that we'll keep you aprised." She stood and walked away, and Nikki valiantly tried to follow. The medic, though, decided that he'd had enough.
"Whoa, back up there lady." He interrupted. "You're not supposed to be standing, let alone walking. You need to come with me to the hospital-" Nikki shoved him back, unfortunately losing her already weak balance as she did so. She really hated hospitals. Trying to call back Liz, her small voice was covered by sirens and agents shouting. The medic softened when he realised her panic, and took her gently by the arm, letting her stand, but limiting her to the area by her stretcher.
"I need to help." She swallowed, hard. "Please, you have to let me stay." His heart went out for the kid. He had been a paramedic for twenty years, and this loyalty and bravery was rare. Knowing that he would have to make the best decision for her health and say to hell with her feelings, he couldn't make eye contact.
"You need to get this checked out by another doctor, just to check that there's nothing that I missed. It's just a graze, but I've seen complications arise from splinters which have left people with no choice but to amputate. And since it's your back we're talking about, I'd be worried about paralysis." Nikki shook her head.
"It's just a graze. Please, I want to help with the investigation. I'll sign forms which say you're not liable, I'll-"
"It's not about signing forms, lady." He insisted. "I don't care about liability." He didn't. "I'm making the best decision that I can, based on your health." Nikki sighed, and shook her head, although she had barely any strength to argue. She had been tired at the beginning of the night, and that was before Mr. Uzi got all trigger happy on her. However, she was saved from any more argument by a solid form, which stormed around the back of the ambulance with an air of anger, determination, and authority.
"Hey, Betancourt." Don barked, shaking with anger and mixed emotion. He felt for her; she looked so helpless on that table that it reminded him of their encounter in the kit room. His voice softened considerably as he got nearer. He wasn't angry with her, he wasn't even angry with himself, Charlie, Amita or Larry. He was just angry. "What happened out there?" Nikki shook her head, making the world spin. Between facing a man who quite possibly had just lost his brother and a hospital, she knew which one she would choose.
"I've given my statement to Liz, and I'll give another one officially once I get upstairs. Plus, Edgerton probably knows just about as much as I do." She said, solemnly, tears forming in her eyes. She looked down, to hide them from her partner. He was still almost a stranger to her. She never cried for strangers. Eppes' face hardened grimly as soon as Nikki mentioned Edgerton's name, and his fists balled. Ian Edgerton, he was angry with.
"Yes well, he's not exactly forthcoming." He said, voice shaking with rage. Nikki frowned.
"What do you mean, he's not forthcoming? He was there... is he not cooperating with your investigation?" Don shook his head bitterly, though he wasn't saying no.
"The investigation belongs to him now. Apparently that's why he was here tonight: he's heading up a new team and his authority seems to supersede mine. I know I have emotional connections with this case, and I know that the rest of my team do too, but he can't cut us out completely!" Blankness numbed Nikki's mind, and the fuzziness in her brain caused her to register his words slower that she normally would.
"He's cutting you out? He can't do that though... you're family of the victim." Don winced immediately at the use of the word victim, and Nikki immediately regretted using it. "You deserve to be in on this!" The medic moved forwards, between the two partners, a slightly apprehensive look on his face as he stood before the physically intimidating and absolutely raging Donald Eppes.
"I'm sorry sir, we're going to have to take Miss Betancourt to hospital, we only kept her here so she could give a rough statement for the case. Now though, she needs to be checked over by a doctor in more sterile conditions." The paramedic shrank back as Don glared at him.
"She's not going anywhere, you hear me?" Nikki was relieved that she had Don to fight for her. He was strong, persuasive and stubborn as hell. He would no doubt win any argument that she couldn't. "She's staying here so she can help with the case."
"I cannot stress enough about the extent of her injuries-"
"I have a graze." Nikki shot in from the side, still holding the towel to her chest. "It's not like it even went that deep."
"Is this about liability? I'll sign the forms-"
"This is not about liability!" The medic said, slightly angry himself now. "It is in the best interest of the patient that she sees a doctor immediately, and for regular intervals within the next forty-eight hours. She also needs to be watched, so she does not fall unconscious-"
"I completely agree." Both the medic and Nikki were taken aback at Don's sudden statement.
"You do?" They asked, simultaneously. Don nodded, gravely.
"Yes, and we have doctors upstairs in the medical suite. There, everyone wins. I'll have two of them come down and transport her upstairs, where you can sign her off into our care." The medic sighed. He supposed that would do, he only hoped that this Agent, who appeared to be in charge, knew what he was doing.
"I don't need to sign her off, you can just take her, though as soon as everything settles down a little I strongly advise you to visit a hospital. Also, make sure that she is accompanied at all times during the next forty-eight hours at least." He turned back to Nikki, smiling weakly. "I envy your strength, Miss Betancourt, and I wish you well." He packed up his bag and left, nodding to Don on the way past. It was only when he had driven away when Nikki realised something.
"Where's my shirt?" With the ambulance gone, her chest was covered only by a towel, and some of the younger agents were beginning to stare. Don pulled his sweater over his head, revealing a plain white t-shirt underneath, and offered it to her. With a grateful smile and a wince, she took it and walked slowly behind a nearby SUV to begin the painful and laborious process of actually putting it on. When she had finished, the pain in her back acute and aching at the same time, she followed Don across the crime scene.
"You're going to be checked over by the doctors in the medical suite before you can come back onto the scene. Not that either of us are going to have anything to do with the case..." Don rubbed his face, looking absolutely exhausted, and Nikki stood close to him as they stepped into the elevator, hoping that maybe he might take some comfort in closeness with another human being. She could tell that his thoughts were grim, and whatever hope he had of Charlie and Amita still being alive was diminishing with every passing second.
"I'm sorry." She said, after they had let another agent out into the lobby. Don looked taken aback, and every so slightly confused.
"For what?"
"I'm just sorry."
"This wasn't your fault and I don't blame you. You have nothing more to be sorry for." He said, bluntly, and she could tell that he was still not pleased with her. Rationalising that she wouldn't be either if she was in his position, she let that be.
"Well tough because I am. And I'm gonna help you do anything to get them back." The expression on his face softened, as did his harsh demeanour.
"Thanks Betancourt. We'll talk more later, after this is all over." She knew that he meant their conversation in the kit room, and agreed. That could wait until Charlie and Amita came home safe and sound. "But you will be telling me everything because by the end of today, I'm not taking any of your shit." His tone was hard again, and ruthless. Nikki felt her shoulders sag, and everything hit her at once. She was glad that he was not looking at her, because this way he didn't see the solitary tear track it's way down her face. Charlie and Amita were missing. Larry was in the hospital. Edgerton was cutting them from the investigation. Sometime soon, she was going to have to go to the hospital, one just like the one she had seen her mother die in. Nikki swallowed hard.
"Yes boss."
The doctor in the medical suite was even more insistant that Nikki visit a hospital, and be under constant supervision. However, a couple of pain meds and a short nap later, she felt... well not as good as new, but one hell of a lot better than she had felt before. Liz appeared, just as she was trying, for the third consecutive time that hour, to convince her doctor that she was fine and all she needed was some coffee.
"Whoa, tiger, stay down." Liz said, pushing Nikki back down onto the sterile hospital bed. Nikki glared at her, partly because her push elicited a shooting pain which migrated not only to her head but also to every cubic millimeter of her body. "Have you remembered anything more or are you just eager to join the party?"
"I think that there may have been a fourth guy. To cuff all three of them, it only makes sense, and also to have the driver." Liz nodded.
"I'll tell Edgerton. He may not apprise us of everything, but I still want him to make this case. If just for Charlie and Amita."
"No..." She pulled herself off the bed, standing tall, two inches shorter than Liz, who looked baffled and alarmed.
"If we want to have a proper chance of finding Charlie and Amita-" Nikki shook her head, making her impressively fast progress to the elevator.
"That's not what I mean." The doors closed, Liz only just nipping inside before her colleague stabbed the little button for the fourth floor. "I mean that I'll do it myself." Liz looked wary.
"Now is not the time to prove yourself."
"Someone's been talking to Eppes." She muttered, darkly. "Come along if you like." Liz set her jaw, standing besider her coworker in the small elevator. A resident puppydog wouldn't have eased the tension felt in that elevator.
"You know, you should rest." The nasty look which Nikki shot the older agent was not missed, though it was ignored.
"I'm trying to help. What's your problem with that?"
"My problem is that you're trying to fix things that it's not your place to fix." Liz turned to the other woman, angry and disbelieving. "You're making as many problems as you're solving! You've managed to get yourself nearly killed, shot, and maimed within the last few days! You're reckless and your 'bravery' right now is only making Don feel worse because if you get youself hurt, he's going to blame himself for that as well. As if he doesn't have enough to worry about just now! Not only are you involved with Edgerton, I have no idea whether you love him or if you're angry with him. I need to know where your loyalties lie, Nikki!"
"My loyalties are the least of your worries. I am going to report everything back to Ian because I want to help with the investigation. That doesn't mean that I'm betraying you in any way, so stop acting so damn self-righteous. You want me to sit back while Charlie and Amita are out there, in the hands of killers when I might be able to do something? I know you're angry because Charlie and Amita are in danger, and because you feel like you should be protecting them when all you can do is sit back and watch Ian through a closed door. But that is no reason to take it out on one of the people who are trying to help them." Nikki rallied, fists balled by her sides and breathing heavily. She felt like screaming.
Liz watched the floor with an unmistakeable look of fright on her face. Of course she wasn't angry with Nikki. She was scared, for her friends. For Charlie. For Amita. For Don, Alan and Larry. Hell, this was affecting her more that any other case she had worked on, and she knew that it would destroy Don if something happened to Charlie. Especially when it may have been because of him. Taking a deep shaky breath, she shook her head at the floor.
"I know, I know." Nikki's breathing regained normal pace, and she moved closer to Liz, bending her arm slightly and grabbing her elbow.
"It's no one's fault, Liz. You couldn't have prepared them for this, and neither could I."
"Don would blame himself."
"Don already blames himself. It's just up to us that at the end of the day, he has nothing to blame himself for." Liz looked up at the new recruit, with a new sense of respect. She may be rash, reckless and addicted to the adrenaline high she got off kicking ass, but she certainly had her priorities right. "So stop feeling sorry for yourself, Liz, and help me find Charlie and Amita." A slight smile came onto the elder agent's face, as the elevator doors slid open.
"Aye aye Captain." She said, and Nikki smiled as they stepped out onto the floor.
"Now where the hell is Edgerton..." Nikki asked, with narrowed eyes, while Liz made a beeline for Colby and David, for a status report. She would let the new guy fight this battle. Fighting through a throng of bustling agents, Nikki spotted Ian in the situation room, bossing his agents around. He looked busy, which was either a good thing or a bad thing. Either they had lots of leads, and they were running them all up, or they had very few leads, and they were just clutching desperately at straws which were snapping at the lightest touch. Making a beeline for him, she shoved aside the agent at the door, ignoring his spectacular stumble into two other agents, creating an almost comical domino effect.
"Edgerton." She barked, surprising him. He looked up as she made her unforgettable entrance, still wearing her boss' sweater which was by now slighlty stained with blood. She'd buy him a new one. Edgerton hung up his phone, with a non-commital "I'll call you back". Rounding the desk swiftly with his mouth set in a straight line, he looked decidedly displeased. But Nikki was far too pissed off to care.
"Nik, you're meant to be in medical-"
"You're shutting Eppes out of the investigation?" She kept her tone calm, though she was sure that the depth of her anger showed through. She had always had problems with her anger management, so in a way, she was doing very well. Liz, Colby and David watched warily from the floor, hoping to God that she didn't end up doing anything that she might regret.
"His team is biased. I know Eppes, I've worked things out with him. You should go to the hospital."
"That doesn't mean that you can't give us real time updates. We can't do any damage." Edgerton took her none too gently by the shoulders and pushed her aside.
"Not on this one. I have orders, and I intend to follow them. We have the investigation under control, and as soon as we find anything, or recieve a ransom demand, Professor Eppes and Ramanujan's families will be informed. Plus, this is probably due to a security leak-"
"What?" Her voice raised an octave in complete and utter disbelief, shaking with anger and pain from her back. A security leak?
"How else would they know that Eppes and Rumanujan were going to be there at that specific time. It had to be an inside job-"
"People know that Charlie generally has drinks with his brother when the case is over. That usually involves meeting them. It's not a top secret operation, Ian. I know these people-" Edgerton snorted.
"The hell you do. You've been working with them for a grand total of two weeks." That stung Nikki, and she lashed out, as she always did when she felt threatened.
"You know them though!" Edgerton shrugged.
"I find it unlikely that anyone can ever really know another person." Ian Edgerton was one of the country's best snipers. Fourth in the America, in fact. He was an experienced tracker and an exceptional agent, and he had reflexes faster than a brand new sports car, but he still didn't see her fist coming.
As soon as it connected with his face, two agents immediately jumped from their posts and pulled Nikki back, brushing her back and making her yell out in agony. Ian was silent, holding his face in complete and utter shock.
"Nik-"
"I can't believe you could say that about these people." The office was silent, still running down their leads, but distracted by the scene before them. Liz and her boys watched on, mouths open in shock and horror. "These agents are good people, and I may not know them well enough to base a profile on them, but I know them well enough to know that they would never do anything to hurt Charlie or Amita. They're good people, but you're right about one thing," Nikki pulled her arm free from the agents holding her, mouth twisted into a grimace. Ian motioned to the guards, to let her go, and he seemed infuriatingly calm.
"What was I right about, Nik?"
"No one can ever really know another person." She said, lower this time. Ian was angry; he turned away, refusing to make eye contact, and began to log into the system on the laptop in front of him. Nikki shook her head and stormed away, hand stretched out because of the pain shooting through her joints. Edgerton was the least of her worries now, and a small pleasant smile lit up her face as she reached her colleagues congregated around Colby and David's work area. She had got what she had needed to from her encounter.
