Chapter 20
Michael's hands were steady in spite of his stabbing headache. He did, however, grow snappish without provocation.
''How's it looking, Doc?'' Steve asked, midway through the 'turning up' procedure.
''If there was a problem, you'd know the second I ran into it,'' Michael said in what was practically a growl.
''Hey, next time chew my head, why don't ya?'' Steve told him with a nervous chuckle.
''Sorry; so far, everything looks good.''
''What about Jaime's surgery - the regeneration - have you made a decision?''
''She's had some serious setbacks,'' Michael acknowledged, ''but if she stabilizes by the time we're finished here, I'll feel a lot more comfortable with going ahead.'' When he'd fully opened the circuits on all three power packs, he increased their output and adjusted the corresponding wires...causing Steve to jump.
''Easy there, Doc,'' he gasped. The pain seemed unnecessary; Steve knew enough about his own bionics to realize that pain meant a crossed or damaged wire somewhere. Would Michael notice the mistake?
He did, readjusting the error - and causing a spark as the circuit flowed freely, upon full activation.
''Never done this before,'' Michael qualified. (Obviously, Steve thought to himself.) ''You should be good to go now.''
Corinth had remained with Jaime...and when he saw her beginning to have what looked like another nightmare, he did what he'd seen Mark Conrad do so successfully. He leaned in closer and whispered to her, ''You're safe; remember that...and fight it off.'' It seemed to help she remained in distress for a few more minutes then calmed and stabilized (still completely under the sedative). Corinth wouldn't have thought it was possible...but she shouldn't have have dreamed at all, under such heavy medication...and Mark's technique worked.
Michael noted that too, when he'd finished with Steve and moved on to assessing his critically ill patient. There was still no notable brain swelling and the danger of bleeding seemed to have passed. Her vitals had taken another alarming swing, according to the monitor readings, but she had stabilized now. It was a good sign.
In his current position, anyone else's focus might have been torn between the goings-on at National Medical and the prisoner currently in full shackles in the NSB's Hole...but Oscar tended to each of the most urgent factors with singular resolve. Jaime's condition remained critical but the surgery appeared to still be a 'go' in just over 24 hours - so he headed to NSB-HQ. Russ had been combative, he learned from the guard who was about to let him into the cell. He had quieted now and was finally trying to talk things through with Mark; excellent news. Oscar stood just inside the re-locked cell and listened.
''Use the mental imaging I taught you, to try and relax your mind'' Mark instructed. He waited while Russ did his best to comply. ''Now, what's the last thing you remember?''
''I was...here,'' Russ told him. No shackles. ''And I think...I broke my own wrists and hand...''
''Yes, you did. Nothing after that?''
''Sorry...no.''
Mark moved his pen in front of Russ' nose and eyes - but even deeper hypnosis couldn't break through whatever was happening to him. If anything, he grew more bewildered and frightened.
''Just admit it!'' Oscar stormed. ''You shot Jaime in the head - looked her right in her eyes and shot her! Then you tried to finish her off again today!''
''That's...not helpful,'' Mark said, stating the obvious as his patient (who had been relatively quiet and cooperative) now grew agitated - and angry.
''Get out!'' Russ stormed at both men. ''I don't need or want to talk to you!''
Anja adjusted her device to full power and sat back to await word from her contact. Doctor Wells would soon be eliminated and then her subject could move on to the most difficult assignment to program - and to carry out - the assassination of the head of the OSI. Goldman had done her no direct harm, but this would leave the hospital rudderless so her subject could easily assume command. Then both Austins could be terminated at will. Her plan involved the woman going first and when Austin himself finally died, he would do so with the knowledge that he'd directly caused his own beloved wife's painful exit with his actions while he'd been in Soviet territory. He would be told; her instructions and programming made certain to include that...but the knowledge would come to him too late to let anyone know or to do anything to try and stop her! Anja laughed with joy; her plan was foolproof! Perhaps her subject could even arrange an inter-cultural internship for her but even if that hope failed, she would go back to her nationalized country with the knowledge that everyone who had wronged her was dead - and she could report the success of her device directly to the KGB. They would surely listen to her now, after what she was about to accomplish!
With another headache piercing through him, Michael pulled the Security alarm on the first floor, slipped up the stairwell and made his way into Rudy's room, unchallenged...
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