Shaw became aware of voices, first off in the distance, then increasing in volume as if they were approaching. The darkness faded slowly into a gray fog, then began to brighten. She slowly opened her eyes and the glare of the examining room made her wince in pain. The simple act of shutting her eyes sent waves of pain and nausea cascading through her head. Her groans were quiet but Dr. Tillman was immediately at her side.

"Ms. Shaw, Sameen- Dr. West is on his way, he's asked me to prep you for a brain scan. We're not sure what caused your collapse but we're going to figure it out and make sure it gets addressed. Please stay as still as possible, we don't want any sudden movements to add to any issues."

Shaw did a quick inventory of her senses. Her head felt like someone was drilling for oil from the outside of her neck on the right side. There was some numbness in her hands and feet and a tingling sensation in her legs. Classic stroke signs? Something worse? The doctor in her remained aloof from the patient's mild panic.

She raised her right hand and motioned Dr. Tillman over and waved her in close so she could whisper into the doctor's ear.

"Don't tell Root."

Tillman smiled and nodded.

"Don't worry Ms. Shaw. Everything's going to be alright."

Shaw sank back into darkness.

….

When Dr. West arrived, Shaw had been out for almost an hour after her brief return to consciousness. West examined her briefly, spoke to Elizabeth and John, and consulted with Dr. Tillman. Before the doctors took Shaw up to Imaging, Dr. Tillman spoke to the others about Shaw's request not to inform Root.

"Let's see what we find, then we'll make a determination."

As they wheeled Shaw toward the brain scan, Dr. Tillman remembered what occurred when Elizabeth and Shannon arrived.

"We were outside waiting for them to arrive when she suddenly had a stabbing pain in her head. When I mentioned it, she said she hadn't enough caffeine that day. I didn't really dwell on it because minutes later Elizabeth arrived with her mother."

West nodded.

"You couldn't have known. I have my suspicions but we need to do both a CT Scan and MRI so we have complete data on her condition. Then I want to interview all who've spent time with her during the past eighteen months or so."

Dr. Tillman frowned. "Ms… Root as well?"

"Yes of course. I know she doesn't want Ms. Groves to know, but if it comes down to needing information to treat her and protecting Ms. Groves' feelings, there's no contest."

….

The two doctors were looking at several screens of imaging and computer reports. Dr. West pointed to an area on one of the screens.

"See that point of light? That's the culprit in my opinion. Somehow, a small object has managed to work its way into Ms. Shaw's left temporal lobe. It's caused a subdural hematoma which you can see as the darker mass toward the rear. I'm fairly certain this is what caused both her pain episode, which you witnessed and her loss of consciousness today.

"I'd like to discuss with her friends if there have been any behavioral changes such as emotional outbursts, laughing or crying fits or any unusual behavioral episodes. The pressure could actually be building gradually in areas like the amygdala which controls some emotions.

"We need to remove the object, drain the excess blood from the temporal lobe and seal off the source of the blood leakage. It needs to be done immediately before either the hematoma itself causes permanent damage or ruptures completely and kills her.

"We can do it without invasive surgery, however if anything goes wrong we have to be prepared to open her skull and reduce any rapid increase in blood flow into the temporal lobe. We have to monitor her situation closely to avoid any brain damage. If we're fortunate, we can get in, get the object and stop any leakage without doing any permanent damage to Ms. Shaw's brain.

"One way or the other, we need to proceed quickly and eliminate the danger. I'm afraid she's been on borrowed time for quite awhile. Let's get going."

….

The operation should have been straightforward. An incision behind the right ear for access to the unidentified object, removal then suctioning of excess blood that was causing pressure inside the brain. Following removal of the object would be a short observation period to locate the exact source of the blood leakage.

Once the source of the leakage was located it should only take about fifteen minutes to repair and close.

That was ideally. Unfortunately, the object itself had become imbedded in the brain due to scar tissue which had grown around it. This slowed the doctors down considerably and added to the danger which the blood posed. The longer they waited the more pressure built.

At the moment of removal, after thirty minutes of painstaking work around the object, both doctors and nurses held their collective breath. Once actual removal occurred, the most dangerous part of the surgery presented itself.

There was a slight, yet significant possibility that the object was actually preventing blood from cascading into Shaw's brain, and removal would unleash a flood into the brain which could permanently damage her brain or kill her. There was an eerie silence in the operating room as Dr. West worked on the object.

It came free and the area held. Ten seconds passed, then twenty. After a full minute where no one in the room either moved or spoke, Dr. West looked up at the monitor and released a breath he didn't even realize he was holding.

"Looks like we're OK. Let's find the source of the leakage and get out of here."

Within the hour Shaw was being wheeled into recovery, where she would spend the rest of the night. It was two fifteen when they finished and both Drs. West and Tillman were exhausted. Smiling, they bid each other good night and went their separate ways.

Dr. Tillman headed for her office where she planned to spend the night. She had long ago moved a bed and some of her personal items into a room behind her office for nights like these. She was in the middle of brushing her teeth when her phone vibrated- a text.

The number was blocked.

See Root, tell her everything. Now.

She stared at the screen for almost a minute. Shaking her head at the insanity, she headed over to Root's room where she found the hacker sitting up in bed waiting for her.

"Talk to me doctor. She says you need to bring me up to speed on something. Where's Sameen? I haven't seen her since she went to work the number."

"She's fine…. at least she will be." Dr. Tillman went on to brief Root on the events of the last 12 hours and Shaw's prognosis.

"She should wake up sometime this morning and we can check her condition over the next 72 hours. The surgery went fine and it appears we have everything under control. The hematoma has been repaired and the offending object removed- we anticipate no complications.

"There is a question, of course, relating to any residual affects from both the leakage and the object that caused it. We will have to monitor her over the next few weeks to ensure there are no issues."

Root frowned.

"What was the object?"

"We're not sure, we sent it to pathology."

"I need to see it when they're done. Now tell me more about the procedure."

Something was nagging at Root's subconscious… why had the Machine insisted to both that they discuss this immediately? Sure it was serious, but the timing led Root to believe there was another issue at play that needed to be addressed.

As Dr. Tillman explained the procedure, Root periodically interrupted with questions. As they reached the discussion of the final clean up and close, Root's eyes flashed.

"Why didn't you open her skull? Brain surgery always seems to require it doesn't it?"

"In this case, Ms. Shaw's areas of concern were all in the lower rear of her brain cavity. We could access below her skull and work into the affected areas from entry gained behind both of her ears. This way…."

"That's it! That's why we're doing this now. Doctor, you have to get me into that recovery room. I need to be there when she wakes up. If not, she may very well find a way to kill herself before we can stop her."

"What are you talking about Ms. Groves…Root?"

"We've never talked with you about the months Shaw spent in Samaritan's hands. They implanted a chip in her head which allowed them to run simulations. Those simulations were run with one goal in mind- getting Samaritan access to the Machine so it could be destroyed.

"They were very creative with the scenarios in their attempts to locate the Machine. During these simulations, Shaw killed lots of people, including John on more than one occasion. The one person she told me she couldn't kill was me.

"Over and over again, she killed herself to keep me safe. If she thinks she's back in a simulation, she may very well try to kill herself as a way of keeping me safe and a way of resetting the simulation."

"Why would Ms. Shaw think she's back in a simulation?"

"After we got her back, we removed the chip from her head but periodically I would catch her checking that area behind her ear for the wound. If it appears to her there could be a chip back there, she may flash back to her captivity and could be a danger to herself.

"I can talk her down. I can reassure her this is real. I need to be there when she wakes up.

"Please, Dr. Tillman, get me over to her."

It was the desperation in Root's eyes that convinced the doctor. She pulled out her phone and started giving orders. A wheelchair arrived ("You will not walk over there!") and they headed toward Recovery. By the time they arrived, the recovery area had been slightly altered to allow space for Root to sit next to Shaw's gurney while she awaited her regaining consciousness.

Dr. Tillman got Root situated and gave the nurses specific instructions to have someone with them all the time until Shaw awakened. She told Root she was sleeping in her office and would be available on five minutes notice if necessary.

Root thanked the doctor and began the vigil. As she sat beside Shaw's bed, she went over different possibilities she could use to convince Sameen that this wasn't a simulation. Everything she considered seemed to have holes that might leave Shaw unconvinced.

Then a light went on in her head. Root smiled.