Thanks to everyone for the reviews and thanks to N. for the help!

Nine hours after Harriman Nelson was rushed into surgery, Will Jamieson finally got the page. He'd just taken a seat with three very anxious men and as he quickly got to his feet, so did they.

Jacobs' had left a few hours ago to brief his counterpart in San Francisco, promising to inform the team of any new information. Technically, this shouldn't have been his case but since Nelson and the institute were part of his jurisdiction, he'd used that reason to insert himself.

Waiting at the nurses' station, the tall, thin man in light blue scrubs looked very tired but still managed a brief smile. "Dr. Jamieson?" He glanced curiously at Lee, still dressed in black tunic and trousers, while giving Jamie's outstretched hand a quick but firm shake. "I'm Dr. Cameron. I performed the surgery on Mr. Harrison."

From the slight smile on the surgeon's face, Lee suspected he knew his patient's true identity but was working with Jacobs to keep it under wraps. Now he knew why the press hadn't been all over the hospital.

Jamie turned to Crane. "This is Mr. Benjamin. He's a business associate of Mr. Harrison's. Oversees several of his properties."

The surgeon nodded. "I understand. If you'd both come with me, we can talk in my office." He led the two men to a small window office, waving them into chairs while he took a seat in a high-backed black leather chair. "First let me say that yes, I've been briefed by the FBI so I understand the importance of our patient and keeping this out of the press." Hearing a light knock on the door, he said, "come," and thanked the orderly for the small, glass coplin jar he was handed. Waiting until the door was closed and they were once again alone, he continued. "Your field triage probably saved his life. Well, that and getting to him quickly. We had a couple of tense moments and your friend is holding his own but I don't want to give you false hope. He's still very critical. His body has had a great shock. He's stable but he lost a lot of blood. He needs time to rest and let his blood volume replenish before we go back in again." Setting down the jar, he rested his elbows on his desk and steepled his fingers. "So, I imagine you want the details. I repaired the damage to the GSV but," he paused at Lee's questioning look.

"GSV?"

"Sorry, it's the great saphenous vein, the major superficial vein of the medial leg and thigh and runs from the top of the foot to the upper thigh. I repaired the damage to the vein but he's going to need more surgery once his body has had time to recover a little."

"What about the great saphenous nerve?"

"There's definitely some damage as well as some pretty significant damage to the muscle and surrounding tissue. I'm going to reach out to my colleague, Dr. Nathan Berex. He's an orthopedic trauma surgeon so this is more his area of expertise, not mine."

Jamie leaned back in the chair. One of his biggest fears was that the admiral might have nerve damage in his leg that would prevent him from ever returning to Seaview. "How bad is the damage to the nerve?"

"Nerve damage?" Lee glanced between the two doctors, feeling very troubled by this news. "What does that mean? Will it affect his ability to walk?"

Jamie looked to Dr. Cameron and getting an approving nod, explained, "It's a sensory nerve, not a motor nerve so he can still walk."

"Yes," Dr. Cameron confirmed. "The nerve did have some damage but with time it should heal."

"But in the meantime if he were to get against something hot, he might not know it's burning him?"

"That's correct," Cameron answered. "I don't think it will be as bad as that, given the location of the wound however, as the feeling returns it may tingle, like the feeling of pins and needles. It can be uncomfortable but it's part of the normal healing process and a sign of recovery."

"How long does it generally take to heal?"

"I know of one instance where it was as long as eighteen months."

Lee let out a deep breath. It wasn't the worst news but he still didn't like it. He already had visions of the admiral spilling some kind of chemical in the lab and not realizing he had been burned until it was too late.

Judging by the concerned expression on the captain's face, Jamie could pretty much guess where his thoughts were. "Until it heals it just means that whenever he's in the lab, he'll have to have someone around to keep an eye on him."

Lee rolled his eyes. "Oh, he'll just love that." He could just hear the admiral complaining about not needing a babysitter. But quite honestly, it was a problem he hoped very much to have.

Huffing his agreement, Jamie returned his attention to Dr. Cameron. "And the bullet wound?"

Cameron pursed his lips and sat forward, his hand going to the glass jar. "As you may already know, the initial impact was here," The doctor pointed just below his collarbone. "I removed the bullet, repaired the pneumothorax and inserted a thoracostomy tube. A chest tube," he clarified for Lee. "We'll keep that in for a couple of days and then re-evaluate. He's currently on a ventilator to help him breathe and will remain on the vent until his breathing gets stronger. However, I don't want to leave him on that longer than necessary. I am concerned about pneumonia and the longer he's on the vent, well, I don't have to tell you, Dr. Jamieson, about the risks." Holding up the jar, he said, "This is the interesting part and I'm not sure what to make of it. Given the trajectory of the bullet it should have torn through the brachial plexus and the subclavian artery. But whatever this is, it impeded its path. It was destroyed in the process, sending pieces of metal throughout the shoulder." He handed the jar to Lee so he could examine it. "I'd like to say I got most of the pieces but I can't be completely certain until I see some films. Whatever it was, my guess is that it was the size of a nickel or maybe a quarter."

Examining what was left of the device, Lee could make out what looked to be a tiny wire connected to a bit of metal. Whatever it was, it was very intricate. "This almost looks like some sort of transmitter." If Lydia Parrish hadn't been involved, the thought might not have occurred to Lee but he knew she had the skills to design something so complex.

Remembering the deep cut he'd seen on Angie's shoulder, Jamie easily connected the dots. Nodding towards the jar, he said, "I'm willing to bet Angie has the same thing inserted in her shoulder."

At this little revelation, Lee twisted around in his chair. "You never mentioned this."

"I sent her for x-rays to be sure."

"We need to get it out of her as soon as possible!" Lee caught himself before saying any more however, if Parrish did have something to do with this, he feared she might be able to use the device as a way to track down Angie or the admiral.

Sensing the urgency of the situation, Cameron started to reach for the phone. "I can have her prepped and ready for surgery as soon as you give the word. Dr. Jamieson, would you like to do the honors?"

"Yes but I'll do it with a local. I don't want her under anesthesia until I know for sure the drug is out of her system. And if it shows up on the x-ray, then I should be able to keep it as minimally invasive as possible."

"Okay, just let me know when you're ready and I'll clear things here." Leaning forward, Dr. Cameron rested his elbows on the desk. "With regards to Mr. uh, Harrison, of course it's too soon to know how severe the aftereffects will be. The medial cord of brachial plexus was affected so he will have some residual numbness and tingling in his right arm and his hand but with time they should heal. I know it's hard to believe but that little device most likely saved him from some very serious damage and quite possibly, death."

At the word, death, Lee looked up. "How?"

"The device kept the bullet from severing the subclavian. If that had happened, I don't care how soon you got to him, he would have bled out. And I don't want to downplay the damage the bullet did. Bullets like to bounce around in chest cavities, especially when they hit something that impedes their path. Both the clavicle and the second rib were broken, his lung collapsed, and he had what amounts to tiny shards of metal buried within the muscle and tissue. He's going to be in a lot of pain when he wakes up so we'd like to keep him on morphine as long as possible. And with the blood loss, as well as immobilization, the concern will be deep vein thrombosis and the potential for blood clots in the lung so we'll need to monitor him very closely."

Jamie shared a concerned look with Lee then said, "Just a warning, he's not going to like being on the vent."

Taking in and letting out a deep breath, the doctor got to his feet. "I'll let the nurses know he'll probably fight it. Dr. Jamieson, I'll arrange for an OR and we can get her prepped when you say the word."

Jamie and Lee followed the surgeon's lead and also stood up, Will being the first to speak. "Thank you. I'd like to check on her once more. She was pretty lucid when I left her but after the ordeal she's been through, I want to make sure I explain everything first."

Next it was Lee. "Dr. Cameron, I'd like to have a couple of my men stationed around Miss Moreira and Mr. Harrison."

"I can assure you that our security here is top-notch but I also understand the importance of our patient. Ray Dixon is the security supervisor on duty. I'll alert him that you'll have your men here as well. Now, I need to check on my patient."

"Can we see him?" Lee knew the admiral would be out of it but he still needed to know he really was alive.

Dr. Cameron hesitated for a moment but seeing the anxious look on Lee's face, he acquiesced. "Once he's settled in ICU, you can see him."

-xxx-

Angie had been moved into a new, more spacious room with a window and was sitting up in bed when Lee knocked on the door. Doc had told him that while the half hour surgery was very straightforward, she would be in some pain so they should keep their visit short and of course Lee had agreed.

"Hi, ready for visitors?" He asked, poking his head inside when she'd told him to come in. "I brought along your fan club." The door opened wider and Lee, followed by Chief Sharkey and Kowalski, entered the room.

They were all dressed in street clothes and while she was used to seeing Lee and sometimes Sharkey in something other than a khaki uniform, she'd never seen Kowalski so casually dressed. She had to admit the young seaman looked quite different.

Kowalski stepped forward first, sheepishly leaning in and giving her an awkward hug, careful not to disturb the dressing on her shoulder or the IV lines. "How are you feeling, Miss Angie?"

"I'm okay now, thank you." Admittedly, she didn't feel okay. Her right arm tingled, her shoulder hurt, and she was anxious for an update on the admiral but seeing their familiar, smiling faces, she couldn't disappoint them.

Sharkey was next, also giving her a slightly awkward hug. "You just worry about getting better and if you need anything, anything at all, you just let me know. I'll be right outside the door."

"Thank you, Chief. I'll be sure to let you know." Angie tried to mask her alarm at the chief's innocent statement. If Sharkey was going to be outside her door, that meant Lee was worried about something. No one had given her much information so she wasn't going to let Lee leave without answering a few questions.

"Okay, how about we let her get some rest now." Lee ushered the two men out the door but hung back and pulled up a chair. He didn't need her to ask to know she needed some answers. Doc could yell at him later.

"How is he, Lee?"

Lee put on his best smile. He hadn't been allowed in the ICU – he'd had to look in from a window. For as long as he'd served as Seaview's captain, Lee had seen Harriman Nelson come through so many close calls that he had started to think the man was indestructible. To see him so pale and hooked up to so many machines, each one working to keep him alive, left Lee feeling a little rattled. But for Angie's sake, he tried to keep his own emotions in check. "He's out of surgery and in the ICU. I just came from seeing him and Doc is with him now, that's why he hasn't been in to see you yet. But he told me to tell you he got the device. Lydia Parrish no longer has any control over you."

"Lydia Parrish?" Angie vaguely recalled hearing the name in an earlier conversation.

"Yes. She and the admiral have crossed paths before."

Angie's recollection was still fuzzy but the more time that passed, the more she started to recall. "She alluded to that. I thought perhaps she'd been a student once."

Lee shook his head. "They worked on a project together and then a couple of years later, she conspired with a traitor to try to destroy that project. The admiral was responsible for sending her to prison."

"How can he be alive, Lee? He was right in front of me. I shot him in the chest."

Lee covered her hand with his and gave it a squeeze. "Angie, he's not dead. You didn't kill him."

"I didn't mean to shoot him. I just, I don't know. It felt like I was standing outside my body, watching this other woman point the gun and pull the trigger. I heard her voice telling me to shoot and then when the gun went off, it hit me. I did it. It wasn't some other woman, it was me. I pulled the trigger." Burying her face in her hands, she started to tremble. "I shot him! Oh, God, what did I do?"

Lee took a seat on the side of her bed and let her fall into his arms, her sobs muffled by his shirt. "It wasn't your fault. You had no idea what you were doing. You were drugged."

She pulled away and looked at him, confused. "Drugged? I thought maybe it was that device."

Lee wondered how much she would remember. Obviously, she knew she wasn't herself but it was becoming more apparent that she didn't know why. "We aren't sure what you were given, some kind of hallucinogen most likely. You mentioned the device. Do you remember how it was used?"

Angie stared into space then closed her eyes tightly. "I remember. I'll never forget. She used it to torture me…the admiral. It only lasted a few seconds but it felt like electrical bursts all through my body." She opened her eyes and looked at Lee intently. "It had to be much more horrible for the admiral though because," she stopped, not wanting to say more.

"Because why?"

She shook her head. She knew Lee admired the admiral. She didn't want to tell him about the screams she'd heard or about what she'd seen. "I can't say."

Nodding, Lee wasn't going to make her tell him. "Angie, she did this to you so you would kill him. Believe me, I know what that's like."

"You do?"

Lee hadn't told anyone outside the Seaview about what had happened on the island and was hesitant to talk now but Angie needed to know she wasn't alone. She had a friend in him, one who understood what she was going through. "It was a couple of years ago. We came across this uncharted island and the admiral and I went ashore to investigate. We didn't realize until it was too late that the water and food had been drugged. I was affected, the admiral was not. I tried to kill him, tried to shoot him, and then when that failed, I tried to bash his head in. I almost succeeded too. Thankfully, I guess, I knocked him into a pit of quicksand so it softened the blows. Still, he ended up with a mild concussion and a couple of nasty bruises. The drug wore off after a few hours but when I was under its influence, all I could think of was how badly I wanted to kill him. It consumed me." Taking her hand in his, he spoke as earnestly as he could. "What happened back there, happened. You can't eradicate the memory because it won't go away. You have to face it, head on. If you don't, it'll follow you for the rest of your life, eating away at you until you can't take it anymore. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Slowly, she nodded, wiping an errant tear from her cheek. "Yes."

Ducking his head a little so he could see her face, he caught her gaze. "Hey, if you think he'll hold you in anyway responsible for what happened, then you don't know him at all. That's not who he is."

"I'm not worried about how he'll react. It's me. I won't be able to look at him without knowing what I did."

-xxx-

He was floating down a river on his back, looking up into a cloudless blue sky. Somewhere off in the distance, someone was shouting. He didn't mind though. He was content to keep floating. The voice became louder and louder, more insistent breaking the serenity and pushing him upward, towards a bright, white light. He struggled to stay where he was, fighting the pull, until the light came rushing forward, sucking him into its void.

Opening his eyes, Harriman Nelson looked up at the unfamiliar face, felt something obstructing his throat, and panicked.

"Dr. Jamieson, he's waking up and seems to be in some distress."

Waiting in front of a large window outside ICU, Jamie had looked on anxiously as the admiral started to come out of the anesthesia, fighting against the ventilator, and causing alarm bells to sound on the monitoring equipment. As the respiratory therapist checked in, Jamie rushed into the ICU and waved him off. "He doesn't like the tube. Let me see if I can calm him down." Backing off, the RRT hovered off to the side, ready to jump in if necessary.

Jamie went to the left side of the bed, where there was less equipment and only one tube in the way. Gently placing his hand on the admiral's shoulder and leaning in so Nelson could see him, Jamie called his name several times until he could feel the tension leaving the admiral's body, could hear his breathing fall into a steady rhythm. Seeing the glint of recognition in Nelson's eyes, Jamie smiled. "Welcome back. You gave us a bit of a scare. Look, I know you don't like the tube but it has to stay until you're strong enough to breathe on your own, okay?"

Nelson glared at him, telling Jamie it was not okay.

Jamie could tell by how clouded his normally clear blue eyes looked that he was in a great deal of pain and gently patted the man's arm. "Hang tight, my friend. We're going to get you the high octane meds to help with the pain."

Nelson blinked once, telling Jamie that's what he wanted. Long ago they'd established blink once for yes and twice for no as a way to communicate in situations like this. That the admiral remembered their code was a good sign that his faculties were intact. Jamie started to move away but saw the slight motion of Nelson's left hand. It didn't take a stretch to guess what he wanted.

"Angie?"

Nelson blinked once.

"She's okay. She's in a room on the fourth floor and Sharkey is outside her door." Doc wasn't going to give him all the details – just the pertinent ones that would allow him to rest easy. "Now, I'm going to update Lee and then check on Angie. Enjoy the meds." He started to leave then remembered something. "Oh, and don't hassle the nurses too much." He was gratified to see two blinks.

-xxx-

"Knock, knock," Jamie slowly opened the door and came into the room, surprised to see Lee sitting on the bed. "Um, everything okay in here?" The scowl he might have made at finding Lee still in her room, disturbing her when she should be resting, faded when he realized she had been crying again.

Lee slid off the bed but kept his hold on her hand. "Everything will be okay, right?" He looked at Angie, who gave his hand a squeeze but didn't respond.

"Well, here's some good news," Jamie said, leaning on the end railing and smiling. "He's awake and responsive to my voice. And would you believe, even on a ventilator he asked about you." Jamie hoped that bit of news might also cheer her up a bit. And it did.

For the first time since they'd found her, a real smile, a relieved smile, lit up her face. "Can I see him?" As soon as she asked the question, the smile faded as apprehension and panic gripped her. She wasn't sure she could see him. Not yet anyway.

Jamie looked at Lee and then to Angie. "I think that would be a very good idea for you and for him. However, I'd like to wait a day or two, until he's a little stronger." That wasn't really the reason he wanted to wait. Angie's emotional state was still very precarious. Seeing him on so many monitors and on the ventilator might be too much for her. Not to mention what kind of a traumatic reminder it would be to see the massive swath of bandage covering the upper right side of his chest. "Now, Mr. Benjamin, how about you wait outside while I check my prettiest patient."

Winking at Angie, he gave Jamie his most indignant look and said, "Hey, I thought I was your prettiest patient!" Her laugh was a very welcome sound. Leaning in he gave her a quick peck on the cheek and whispered, "Think about what I said, okay?"

"I will. Thank you." Now she understood why the admiral placed so much trust in Lee Crane. He really was a good man and a wonderful friend.

-xxx-

Jamie found Captain Crane standing in the corridor, talking with Chief Sharkey when he finally emerged from the room. Stopping at the nurse's station, he gave orders for a sedative for Angie and then waited for Crane.

"Okay, call me if you see anything out of the ordinary."

"Will do, uh, Mr. Benjamin." Saying the name elicited a small smile from Sharkey.

Rubbing his left eye tiredly, Lee walked over to a waiting Jamie. "Were you able to determine what was in the syringe?"

Jamie shook his head no. "My guess is lysergic acid diethylamide."

"LSD? She'll be all right, won't she?"

"From the aftereffects of the drug, she should be. However, when we get her back to Santa Barbara, I'd like her to see a psychiatrist. I think it might help her work through some of her guilt." Resting his hand on Lee's shoulder, Jamie tilted his head, eyes scrutinizing the captain's face. "How are you holding up?"

Lee let his shoulders fall, the weight of the last several days bearing down. He'd had to be strong for Angie, suppressing his own concern for the admiral, and now it was all catching up with him. "I'm okay. Just tired. I think I could sleep for a week."

"Well, he's stable and Angie seems to be doing much better. Why don't you head over to the hotel and get some rest. I'll call you if anything changes."

"I'm not so sure she is doing that much better. I think she's still barely holding it together."

Jamieson rubbed the back of his neck in an attempt to ward off his own fatigue. "Why don't we sit?" Both men headed over to a small waiting area, relieved to find they were alone. Doc took a seat across from Lee. "If it were a physical problem, I would know what to do to repair it. But this? I don't know what to do."

"The psychiatrist you mentioned when she's back in Santa Barbara, that sounds like a good place to start."

Jamie nodded. "Unfortunately, we don't have one at the institute. She'll have to seek outside treatment."

Lee leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes, stretching both legs out in front of him. "With everything we've faced, you'd think we'd have a whole team of psychiatrists standing by. I think we need to suggest that to the…to Mr. Harrison." At the mention of the alias, he quirked a smile. One day, he hoped he and the admiral could have a good laugh about that.

Jamie settled into a very comfortable chair and mirrored Lee's position. "You know, I think you have a point. I'll submit a request for at least two when we get back."

A thought occurred to Lee, causing him to open his eyes and raise his head. "Doc, what about hypnotherapy? To help her forget, I mean."

Jamie pondered the question. "I hadn't thought of it but I hear they've used it to help with post-traumatic stress. Of course she would have to agree to it but it might be worth looking into."

"Might be good for both of them." Lee closed his eyes and relaxed once again.

Jamie huffed a laugh. "Yes, and you can be the one to try to get him to agree." A few minutes later, both men were snoring lightly.