The killing game - chapter 3
Well, this will be my last fanfic post for 2015 - chapter 3 of The killing game.
Wishing you all the best and a very Happy, healthy 2016 with lots more fanfic...
The chapter can also be found on AO3.
When Peter heard the scream, he jolted upright.
“Neal?”
Peter pushed himself up and then remembered where he was, he needed to be careful, maybe Neal had been grabbed by Sergei. He cautiously looked out of their hiding place and saw two men and what looked like a woman. The two men ran towards the scream and the woman turned towards him. Peter ducted back down hoping that she hadn´t spotted him. Unfortunately, she did, and walked towards him.
“Peter?”
It took a moment for Peter´s fevered brain to recognize the voice.
“Katya?”
“Yes, it is me, I am here to get you out of here.”
“How?”
“My husband works for Sergei and told me about two Americans that were brought here. It could only be you. Are you alright?”
“I´m fine.”
“You don´t look fine, you look like you are running a fever.”
“Yeah, I have this wound that seemed to be infected.”
“Vlad did it.”
“What?”
“One of Sergei´s men, likes to wound his victims, just a small cut that gets infected, then he sees how long they last.”
“Let´s go, we need to get to the quads, before Sergei finds out we are here.”
Katya helped Peter up and together they slowly made their way to the quads, there were two of them. By the time Katya had Peter on the quad, the two men came towards them carrying Neal who was unconscious.
“What happened?”
“He stepped in a trap. He was lucky though, it was a wolf trap, but I guess it still broke the bone. I´m not sure. He is losing blood, so we will dress the wound and then we need to get out of here.”
One of the men quickly put a pressure bandage around Neal´s leg and lifted him behind the other man who took his position on the quad. Katya sat behind him so she could keep him upright. Within minutes they made their way to a place where the fence had been taken down. But Peter was too tired and sick to notice that they had been this close to the fence. The trip happened in a blur. He needed all his strength to keep sitting upright and to hold on to the man in front of him.
When they finally arrived at a cabin, Peter let out a groan and could feel he was about to crash. But his concern for Neal kept him going.
“Are we safe here?”
“I wouldn´t say safe, but it will do for now. We will tend to your injuries and then we will need to contact your people to recover you.”
“How is Neal doing?”
“Not so good, he is still losing blood, we need a doctor, the bone is definitely broken, and it will probably not be a clean break. We will stabilize it and get on our way to the city.”
“Davayte yego v mashinu.” (Lets get them in the car.) One of the men said.
“Da.”
Katya handed Peter two pills.
“Take these, they will bring down the fever.” Katya placed them in Peter´s hand and handed him a bottle of water which he greedily drank.
Now that he was warm and relatively safe, Peter could feel his aches. His head was throbbing and he could feel sleep pulling on him. Peter´s attention snapped back to Neal when he heard him moan. Even unconscious, the pain must be agonizing, the way Neal´s face was contorted. Peter slowly got up and walked over to where they had placed Neal on a table. Peter placed his hand on top of Neal´s chest.
“Neal, it is Ok, you are hurt, but we are here to help You are safe now. Just rest.”
All of a sudden, Neal´s eyes snapped open. His face immediately scrunched up and his face drained off all color.
“Neal, breathe, just take slow deep breaths, we are taking you to hospital.”
“It hurts, I…”
“We know, try to relax.”
“Can´t we give him something?”
“Better not, he will almost certainly need surgery.”
“Neal, we are going to stabilize the break and then we are out of here.”
One of the men stood behind Neal to keep him still, the other man held his good leg. Katya took two wooden planks that she lined with bandages and then pressed them against Neal´s bandaged leg. Neal screamed and wanted to get up, but the man standing behind him, prevented it.
Neal squeezed Peter´s hand with a force, Peter would have thought impossible; He would have bruises for sure.
Without warning, Neal went completely limp. Peter looked up at Katya.
“It´s OK, he just passed out, it is for the better. It will make the journey more comfortable for him.” She quickly finished bandaging the leg and the two men picked Neal up and placed him on a mattress in the back of an old Unimog. Peter slowly made his way over to the back as well and placed himself next to Neal and they were off. The rocking of the vehicle in combination with the pills and adrenaline crash made that he was out pretty quickly.
Katya hoped that they would at least make it to the city before Sergei would notice that his victims had escaped.
* * *
But it didn´t take Sergei long to find out, his men had heard the quads driving, and had investigated. They reported that two men and a woman had taken the two Americans with them.
Sergei was furious… Katya.
It could only be her. He called Katya´s husband and told him to come over. In the meantime he told his men to find out where they had taken the Americans.
When Boris stepped out of his car, Sergei walked out to meet him.
“Sergei, tovarishch.” (comrade)
Sergei stepped towards him, pulled his revolver and shot him point blank. He then walked to his car and drove towards Katya´s home.
* * *
The jostling of the Unimog over the badly maintained roads woke Peter. He was feeling ill, the pain was getting worse and if seemed to nestle deep inside his leg. Peter pulled up his pant leg and gasped when he saw the red streaks extending from the wound. This was definitely not good. He was glad they were on their way to hospital, if they would be in the woods, they wouldn´t have survived, that was for sure. Peter thought about El and Satchmo. Would they make it out of here? He mentally slapped himself, he needed to think positive, of course they would make it.
He glanced over to Neal and could see that Neal was regaining consciousness. He was getting restless and started moaning. When the moaning increased and Neal´s eyelids started fluttering, Peter tried to reassure him.
“Neal, you’re going to be fine. We are on our way to hospital. Neal?”
“Wha? Hppned?”
“It´s OK, we will talk about it later. Try to rest, I don´t know how much longer it will be.”
When the truck drove through a bigger pothole, Neal tried to choke down his scream, but failed miserable.
“My leg hurts.”
“It is broken and we are on our way to hospital.”
“Never hurt this much before.”
“You broke it before?”
“Yeah. Oh God, … please make it stop.”
“I can´t. We need to get going and the roads are in bad shape.”
“I´m going to be sick.”
“Try to breathe through it, you have nothing in your stomach and it will hurt if you get sick now.”
Neal tried to comply with Peter´s suggestion, but the pain was overwhelming and he couldn´t focus on his breathing; The pain was becoming all consuming.
Peter could see Neal doing is best to comply but all color had drained from his face. Now that he looked closer, he could see that his fingernails were getting a bluish tint. Now that Peter examined Neal closer, he could see the sweat forming in his hairline.
“Cold.” Neal shivered.
Peter pulled up the blanket and tucked it around Neal. Katya had followed the conversation between the two men and Peter could see that she was worried. She checked the bandages and told the men to drive faster. She also place her coat on top of Neal.
“It´s OK, Neal, we are getting you out of here.”
“Who are you?”
Peter looked worried now, it wasn´t like Neal to not recognize someone. He was going into shock. He could only hope they were close. Katya carefully lifted Neal´s legs and stuffed a log underneath them so they were elevated.
“We are almost there, it is a military basis, we didn´t dare go to a civilian hospital, Sergei is too influential.”
“Will they help us?”
“Anatoly is special forces, he will get you guys onto the base.”
Peters stared at Neal. Special forces, hunters…how had this happen?
Suddenly the truck sped up and Peter could hear a car accelerating. This was not good, it could only be Sergei. When he heard gunshots, he ducted instinctively over Neal to protect him. While he was lying over Neal, he could see that Neal was conscious, but no longer tracking what was happening. He heard the gunfire being returned, probably Anatoly making good on his special forces training.
When a bullet pierced the tail gate, his heart rate sped up. They bad guys were gaining distance, this was not good, luckily they hadn´t hit anybody, but they were getting to close for comfort.
Suddenly the truck came to a hard stop and Peter only now noticed that the gunshots had ceased. It was then that he realized that Neal had lost consciousness again.
The back was pulled open and Peter took a defense stance, thinking that Sergei had stopped the truck, but before him stood a military medical team.
“Help my friend.”
“Pozvol'te nam pomoch'” (Let us help) One of the medical staff members said. Peter looked at Katya who nodded. “Let them help Neal.”
Peter released his grip on Neal, and suddenly there was a flurry of activity. Two people climbing up in the back of the truck and lifted Neal onto a gurney. Neal made a sound that wasn´t human anymore and Peter wanted to follow to reassure him. Katya tried to stop him, but the moment he jumped from the truck, his knees buckled and his vision greyed out. It took him all his will power to stay conscious. He could hear Kathy call out to someone and within seconds, he was lifted as well and on his way inside the building.
People asked him question, but he didn´t understand them. He was getting agitated, until suddenly Katya stood next to him.
“Katya, how is Neal?”
“I don´t know, he was taken away into surgery. I will ask if they can tell me his status.”
“Please, ask, I need to know.”
“I will be right back.”
Peter let his head slump back onto the pillow and sighed, he felt bushed, his whole body ached and now that he was safe and being taken care for, he noticed how hungry he was. When his stomach growled, a nurse took pity in him and after she placed an IV, she left, only to come back with a cup filled with what looked like yoghurt.
“Matsoni” The nurse said and handed him a spoon.
Peter was too hungry to be fussy, so he spooned the cup up, it turned out to be a yoghurt like substance. After he finished, his eyelids were getting heavy and the combination of warmth, food and comfort made him doze off before he could ask about Neal.
* * *
When Peter woke, he was staring at a white ceiling. He turned his head and saw he was in a room with several other men who were being treated.
“Rad videt' vas prosnulsya.” (Good to see you awake) The man next to him said.
Peter gave him a tired smile.
“I´m sorry, I don´t speak Russian.”
“Oh, you are American?”
“Yes, where am I?”
“You are at the 102nd Military Base.”
“And where are they located?”
“You don´t know? You are in Gyumri, Armenia.”
Peter looked surprised.
“You didn´t know?”
“No…”
“Can you ask the staff where the woman is that was with me?”
“Sure. By the way, my name is Vladislav.”
“Peter.”
A nurse entered the ward and walked up to Peter, taking his vitals while talking to him.
“On ne govorit po-russki” (He doens´t speak Russian)
The nurse said something back to Vladislav and left.
“She is getting someone that speaks English.”
“Thanks.”
Katya came into the room.
“Hi Peter, how are you feeling?”
“Better, what is the verdict?”
“A wound infection, but nothing to be worried about. They are giving you antibiotics.” She pointed at the IV, where several bags were hanging.
“Some dehydration, low blood sugar, cuts and bruises, nothing that can´t be healed.”
“Anything on Neal?”
“They are still operating. The bones splintered and need to be stabilized. They are also worried for wound infection. They told me they are almost done. Neal will then go to recovery. Once he is in a room, we can see him, but that will take some time, so get some rest while the IV´s finish.
“Sounds like a good idea.”
Peter let his eyes close, but he suddenly opened them again.
El!
“I should call my wife to tell her we are OK.
“Of course. I will see if I can get a phone in here”
“Thanks.”
Peter laid back and dozed a bit, listening to the hustle and bustle of the hospital.
* * *
Neal fought his way back into awareness. He felt sluggish, tired and worn. What had happened? He felt like he had been sleeping for a long time. His eyelids seemed to have been glued together. He tried to open his eyes, but for some reason his body didn´t obey his brain. Now had he thought about it. He felt drugged. Yeah, definitely drugged.
Why would he be drugged, he didn´t do drugs…
The memory hit him like a freight train. Sergei… Sergei had drugged them to hunt them. He needed to get away. He needed to locate Peter. But he couldn´t open his eyes, let alone move.
Peter…
He needed Peter.
“P’ter…” he whispered.
Somebody must have noticed that he was waking up, because he heard someone talking to him in a soothing tone and a hand was placed on his arm. He felt a warmth spread through his body before everything went black again.
* * *
Peter had been able to call Elizabeth and reassured her they were OK. He also called Diana and she would contact the American embassy to make sure they would be able to return, the moment, they were cleared for travelling.
By the time he had made the necessary calls, he was exhausted and ready to nap again, when Tanya walked up to his bed.
“Peter, we can see Neal now.”
Peter tried to get out of bed.
“Wait, a nurse will bring in a wheelchair, it will be easier.”
“Thank you.”
When an orderly came in, and helped Peter in the chair, they walked to another corridor. They stopped in front of a door and Peter held his breath. He was pushed inside and there was Neal, he was hooked up to several IV´s, similar to the one he was attached to. Neal´s leg was elevated and under what looked like a tent.
Peter gestured to be pushed closer. Once he was able to, he took Neal´s hand in his own.
“Neal?”
“I´m sorry, mister Burke, but mister Caffrey is still sedated. He woke up in recovery and then again here in the room, but he panicked and we thought it best to give him a mild sedative.”
“Can you tell me the diagnosis, doctor…?”
“I am sorry, my name is doctor Matvei. Mister Caffrey has suffered a fracture of both Tibia and Fibula. The fracture was severe and needed surgery to realign and fix it. I used plates and screws which will be left in place as long as they don´t become a problem. Because of the surgical wound, we can´t put plaster around the leg, so for now, we leave it as it is, so the wound can heal.”
“Will there be lasting effects?”
“We need to see how the leg heals. It should heal without problems, but I was informed that the fracture was caused by a wolf trap, they are not the most hygienic, so we have mister Caffrey on strong antibiotics. As we didn´t know if he is up to date with his Tetanus, we also administered a new booster shot.”
“Thank you. Can I stay until he wakes up?”
“I will ask the orderlies, to transfer your bed into this room. I guess it will be more comfortable if you can talk to each other.”
“That would be fantastic. Thank you.”
“No problem, if that is all, I need to see other patients.”
“Of course.”
Peter stayed seated next to Neal, until two orderlies came in with his bed. They transferred him quickly and efficiently.
About an hour later, Neal started stirring. A low moan escaped him and Peter jolted awake. He looked around and his attention was drawn to Neal whose face was contorted in pain.
Peter pushed the call button.
“Neal?”
The moaning got worse, he had to be in considerable pain. Peter swore that he couldn´t reach Neal, so he slowly tried to get out of bed.
“Can you open your eyes? You´re safe, but try not to move.”
“P…”
“Welcome back, Neal. Are you in a lot of pain?”
He just nodded.
A nurse came in and smiled at Neal.
“Welcome, you OK?”
She checked Neal´s vitals and adjusted the IV´s drip. She also injected something and Peter could see, Neal relaxed more.
“I guess she just upped your pain medication.”
“Feels good.”
“Rest Neal, you need to heal.”
Neal just nodded again. He slowly lost his fight with sleep and soon Peter could hear his even breaths. He let himself nod off as well, only to be wakened by noise in the corridor. They were distributing food. The nurse placed two trays on the side tables and Peter checked out the contents of his tray. It didn´t look familiar and when the nurse entered that spoke a bit of English, Peter asked her what today´s meal was.
“Shchi soup and cutlets with buckwheat”
Not something he would have chosen, but it tasted surprisingly good. He ate everything and regretted that the portions hadn´t been larger. It was obvious his body was till craving food. He eyed Neal´s tray, wondering what he was having for dinner. The nurse gently woke Neal.
“Prosnut'sya.” (Wake up)
Neal’s breathing picked up and Peter immediately noticed the panic that gripped Neal.
“Neal, you’re safe”
“Peter?”
“Yes, it´s me, we are in the hospital. A Russian hospital so there is no need to panic every time hear a Russian voice.”
Neal slowly opened his eyes, while the nurse checked everything.
“You, eat.” She said to Neal.
She helped him sit up a bit straighter by placing an extra pillow behind him. She lifted the lid of the food tray and it revealed the same soup as Peter had. She spoon fed Neal when he didn´t make any attempt to eat himself.
Neal started to nod off by the end of the soup. It was clear he was still weak.
“Idti spat'” (Go to sleep)
“Ya budu” (I will) Neal slurred while his eyes were drifting shut.
Peter smiled, leave it up to Neal…
He was getting bored real quick, as there was no television and the newspaper someone brought in was in Russian… So Peter was relieved when their doctor came in.
“How are you doing, mister Burke?”
“Fine, still a bit hungry, but better.”
“I will ask the staff to bring you something. Your vitals are good. The infection is retreating, but we want to keep you on an antibiotic drip.”
“And how is mister Caffrey?”
“Weak, he sleeps a lot.”
“That is good, his body had quite the shock, let me check the wound.”
The doctor took the little tent of Neal´s leg and exposed the wound. Peter just looked at it in horror. Neal´s lower leg was black and blue and there was a deep jagged scar.
“It is not as bad as it looks. It will heal alright. Bearing any complications, he will have full use of the leg.”
While the doctor inspected the wound, Neal moaned and woke up, again completely disoriented. Peter and the doctor reassured him everything was OK.
“Is it normal that he wakes up confused?”
“Yes, his body was quiet traumatized by what happened and the anesthesia will also do that to you. As he gets stronger, it will get better.”
While the doctor covered his leg again, Neal was already dozing.
* * *
It turned out that getting two injured Americans out of Russia without passports was more difficult than expected, but within a week, Neal was cleared to leave the hospital as long as it was on a medical repatriation and he was transported horizontally. Peter had also asked to arrange to get Katya out of the country as well, as she was a witness to their kidnapping and a victim. She wouldn´t be safe if she stayed here.
Diana flew over together with Jones, they were carrying the official documentation from the Russian Embassy in New York, that both men had been kidnapped and brought here against their wishes. They were accompanied by a doctor who would take care of them during the flight back.
Diana talked to Neal, explaining how they were going to bring them back. He was still not himself and doped up on pain killers, so while they were talking he just fell asleep. It made Diana wanting to take care of him, all her motherly instincts coming to the surface.
Diana and Jones had gotten permission to carry a weapon on foreign soil, as they still hadn´t been able to find Sergei. Local police had searched his estate, but he wasn´t there. They had however found the body of Katya´s husband.
With her diplomatic contacts, Diana had made sure they had an armored vehicle that could transport Neal laying down. He was still not up to sitting.
The doctor had introduced himself as Frank Friedman. He was a doctor that traveled to retrieve injured people around the world and bring them back home safely. He explained Neal and Peter how the trip would go.
They said their goodbyes in the hospital to the staff while Frank signed them out and was handed medication for the journey.
“Proshchay, golubyye glaza” (Goodbye, blue eyes) the nurse smiled.
“Uvidimsya!” (see you) Neal smiled back.
They were going home.
Continue to chapter 4.
Wishing you all the best and a very Happy, healthy 2016 with lots more fanfic...
The chapter can also be found on AO3.
When Peter heard the scream, he jolted upright.
“Neal?”
Peter pushed himself up and then remembered where he was, he needed to be careful, maybe Neal had been grabbed by Sergei. He cautiously looked out of their hiding place and saw two men and what looked like a woman. The two men ran towards the scream and the woman turned towards him. Peter ducted back down hoping that she hadn´t spotted him. Unfortunately, she did, and walked towards him.
“Peter?”
It took a moment for Peter´s fevered brain to recognize the voice.
“Katya?”
“Yes, it is me, I am here to get you out of here.”
“How?”
“My husband works for Sergei and told me about two Americans that were brought here. It could only be you. Are you alright?”
“I´m fine.”
“You don´t look fine, you look like you are running a fever.”
“Yeah, I have this wound that seemed to be infected.”
“Vlad did it.”
“What?”
“One of Sergei´s men, likes to wound his victims, just a small cut that gets infected, then he sees how long they last.”
“Let´s go, we need to get to the quads, before Sergei finds out we are here.”
Katya helped Peter up and together they slowly made their way to the quads, there were two of them. By the time Katya had Peter on the quad, the two men came towards them carrying Neal who was unconscious.
“What happened?”
“He stepped in a trap. He was lucky though, it was a wolf trap, but I guess it still broke the bone. I´m not sure. He is losing blood, so we will dress the wound and then we need to get out of here.”
One of the men quickly put a pressure bandage around Neal´s leg and lifted him behind the other man who took his position on the quad. Katya sat behind him so she could keep him upright. Within minutes they made their way to a place where the fence had been taken down. But Peter was too tired and sick to notice that they had been this close to the fence. The trip happened in a blur. He needed all his strength to keep sitting upright and to hold on to the man in front of him.
When they finally arrived at a cabin, Peter let out a groan and could feel he was about to crash. But his concern for Neal kept him going.
“Are we safe here?”
“I wouldn´t say safe, but it will do for now. We will tend to your injuries and then we will need to contact your people to recover you.”
“How is Neal doing?”
“Not so good, he is still losing blood, we need a doctor, the bone is definitely broken, and it will probably not be a clean break. We will stabilize it and get on our way to the city.”
“Davayte yego v mashinu.” (Lets get them in the car.) One of the men said.
“Da.”
Katya handed Peter two pills.
“Take these, they will bring down the fever.” Katya placed them in Peter´s hand and handed him a bottle of water which he greedily drank.
Now that he was warm and relatively safe, Peter could feel his aches. His head was throbbing and he could feel sleep pulling on him. Peter´s attention snapped back to Neal when he heard him moan. Even unconscious, the pain must be agonizing, the way Neal´s face was contorted. Peter slowly got up and walked over to where they had placed Neal on a table. Peter placed his hand on top of Neal´s chest.
“Neal, it is Ok, you are hurt, but we are here to help You are safe now. Just rest.”
All of a sudden, Neal´s eyes snapped open. His face immediately scrunched up and his face drained off all color.
“Neal, breathe, just take slow deep breaths, we are taking you to hospital.”
“It hurts, I…”
“We know, try to relax.”
“Can´t we give him something?”
“Better not, he will almost certainly need surgery.”
“Neal, we are going to stabilize the break and then we are out of here.”
One of the men stood behind Neal to keep him still, the other man held his good leg. Katya took two wooden planks that she lined with bandages and then pressed them against Neal´s bandaged leg. Neal screamed and wanted to get up, but the man standing behind him, prevented it.
Neal squeezed Peter´s hand with a force, Peter would have thought impossible; He would have bruises for sure.
Without warning, Neal went completely limp. Peter looked up at Katya.
“It´s OK, he just passed out, it is for the better. It will make the journey more comfortable for him.” She quickly finished bandaging the leg and the two men picked Neal up and placed him on a mattress in the back of an old Unimog. Peter slowly made his way over to the back as well and placed himself next to Neal and they were off. The rocking of the vehicle in combination with the pills and adrenaline crash made that he was out pretty quickly.
Katya hoped that they would at least make it to the city before Sergei would notice that his victims had escaped.
* * *
But it didn´t take Sergei long to find out, his men had heard the quads driving, and had investigated. They reported that two men and a woman had taken the two Americans with them.
Sergei was furious… Katya.
It could only be her. He called Katya´s husband and told him to come over. In the meantime he told his men to find out where they had taken the Americans.
When Boris stepped out of his car, Sergei walked out to meet him.
“Sergei, tovarishch.” (comrade)
Sergei stepped towards him, pulled his revolver and shot him point blank. He then walked to his car and drove towards Katya´s home.
* * *
The jostling of the Unimog over the badly maintained roads woke Peter. He was feeling ill, the pain was getting worse and if seemed to nestle deep inside his leg. Peter pulled up his pant leg and gasped when he saw the red streaks extending from the wound. This was definitely not good. He was glad they were on their way to hospital, if they would be in the woods, they wouldn´t have survived, that was for sure. Peter thought about El and Satchmo. Would they make it out of here? He mentally slapped himself, he needed to think positive, of course they would make it.
He glanced over to Neal and could see that Neal was regaining consciousness. He was getting restless and started moaning. When the moaning increased and Neal´s eyelids started fluttering, Peter tried to reassure him.
“Neal, you’re going to be fine. We are on our way to hospital. Neal?”
“Wha? Hppned?”
“It´s OK, we will talk about it later. Try to rest, I don´t know how much longer it will be.”
When the truck drove through a bigger pothole, Neal tried to choke down his scream, but failed miserable.
“My leg hurts.”
“It is broken and we are on our way to hospital.”
“Never hurt this much before.”
“You broke it before?”
“Yeah. Oh God, … please make it stop.”
“I can´t. We need to get going and the roads are in bad shape.”
“I´m going to be sick.”
“Try to breathe through it, you have nothing in your stomach and it will hurt if you get sick now.”
Neal tried to comply with Peter´s suggestion, but the pain was overwhelming and he couldn´t focus on his breathing; The pain was becoming all consuming.
Peter could see Neal doing is best to comply but all color had drained from his face. Now that he looked closer, he could see that his fingernails were getting a bluish tint. Now that Peter examined Neal closer, he could see the sweat forming in his hairline.
“Cold.” Neal shivered.
Peter pulled up the blanket and tucked it around Neal. Katya had followed the conversation between the two men and Peter could see that she was worried. She checked the bandages and told the men to drive faster. She also place her coat on top of Neal.
“It´s OK, Neal, we are getting you out of here.”
“Who are you?”
Peter looked worried now, it wasn´t like Neal to not recognize someone. He was going into shock. He could only hope they were close. Katya carefully lifted Neal´s legs and stuffed a log underneath them so they were elevated.
“We are almost there, it is a military basis, we didn´t dare go to a civilian hospital, Sergei is too influential.”
“Will they help us?”
“Anatoly is special forces, he will get you guys onto the base.”
Peters stared at Neal. Special forces, hunters…how had this happen?
Suddenly the truck sped up and Peter could hear a car accelerating. This was not good, it could only be Sergei. When he heard gunshots, he ducted instinctively over Neal to protect him. While he was lying over Neal, he could see that Neal was conscious, but no longer tracking what was happening. He heard the gunfire being returned, probably Anatoly making good on his special forces training.
When a bullet pierced the tail gate, his heart rate sped up. They bad guys were gaining distance, this was not good, luckily they hadn´t hit anybody, but they were getting to close for comfort.
Suddenly the truck came to a hard stop and Peter only now noticed that the gunshots had ceased. It was then that he realized that Neal had lost consciousness again.
The back was pulled open and Peter took a defense stance, thinking that Sergei had stopped the truck, but before him stood a military medical team.
“Help my friend.”
“Pozvol'te nam pomoch'” (Let us help) One of the medical staff members said. Peter looked at Katya who nodded. “Let them help Neal.”
Peter released his grip on Neal, and suddenly there was a flurry of activity. Two people climbing up in the back of the truck and lifted Neal onto a gurney. Neal made a sound that wasn´t human anymore and Peter wanted to follow to reassure him. Katya tried to stop him, but the moment he jumped from the truck, his knees buckled and his vision greyed out. It took him all his will power to stay conscious. He could hear Kathy call out to someone and within seconds, he was lifted as well and on his way inside the building.
People asked him question, but he didn´t understand them. He was getting agitated, until suddenly Katya stood next to him.
“Katya, how is Neal?”
“I don´t know, he was taken away into surgery. I will ask if they can tell me his status.”
“Please, ask, I need to know.”
“I will be right back.”
Peter let his head slump back onto the pillow and sighed, he felt bushed, his whole body ached and now that he was safe and being taken care for, he noticed how hungry he was. When his stomach growled, a nurse took pity in him and after she placed an IV, she left, only to come back with a cup filled with what looked like yoghurt.
“Matsoni” The nurse said and handed him a spoon.
Peter was too hungry to be fussy, so he spooned the cup up, it turned out to be a yoghurt like substance. After he finished, his eyelids were getting heavy and the combination of warmth, food and comfort made him doze off before he could ask about Neal.
* * *
When Peter woke, he was staring at a white ceiling. He turned his head and saw he was in a room with several other men who were being treated.
“Rad videt' vas prosnulsya.” (Good to see you awake) The man next to him said.
Peter gave him a tired smile.
“I´m sorry, I don´t speak Russian.”
“Oh, you are American?”
“Yes, where am I?”
“You are at the 102nd Military Base.”
“And where are they located?”
“You don´t know? You are in Gyumri, Armenia.”
Peter looked surprised.
“You didn´t know?”
“No…”
“Can you ask the staff where the woman is that was with me?”
“Sure. By the way, my name is Vladislav.”
“Peter.”
A nurse entered the ward and walked up to Peter, taking his vitals while talking to him.
“On ne govorit po-russki” (He doens´t speak Russian)
The nurse said something back to Vladislav and left.
“She is getting someone that speaks English.”
“Thanks.”
Katya came into the room.
“Hi Peter, how are you feeling?”
“Better, what is the verdict?”
“A wound infection, but nothing to be worried about. They are giving you antibiotics.” She pointed at the IV, where several bags were hanging.
“Some dehydration, low blood sugar, cuts and bruises, nothing that can´t be healed.”
“Anything on Neal?”
“They are still operating. The bones splintered and need to be stabilized. They are also worried for wound infection. They told me they are almost done. Neal will then go to recovery. Once he is in a room, we can see him, but that will take some time, so get some rest while the IV´s finish.
“Sounds like a good idea.”
Peter let his eyes close, but he suddenly opened them again.
El!
“I should call my wife to tell her we are OK.
“Of course. I will see if I can get a phone in here”
“Thanks.”
Peter laid back and dozed a bit, listening to the hustle and bustle of the hospital.
* * *
Neal fought his way back into awareness. He felt sluggish, tired and worn. What had happened? He felt like he had been sleeping for a long time. His eyelids seemed to have been glued together. He tried to open his eyes, but for some reason his body didn´t obey his brain. Now had he thought about it. He felt drugged. Yeah, definitely drugged.
Why would he be drugged, he didn´t do drugs…
The memory hit him like a freight train. Sergei… Sergei had drugged them to hunt them. He needed to get away. He needed to locate Peter. But he couldn´t open his eyes, let alone move.
Peter…
He needed Peter.
“P’ter…” he whispered.
Somebody must have noticed that he was waking up, because he heard someone talking to him in a soothing tone and a hand was placed on his arm. He felt a warmth spread through his body before everything went black again.
* * *
Peter had been able to call Elizabeth and reassured her they were OK. He also called Diana and she would contact the American embassy to make sure they would be able to return, the moment, they were cleared for travelling.
By the time he had made the necessary calls, he was exhausted and ready to nap again, when Tanya walked up to his bed.
“Peter, we can see Neal now.”
Peter tried to get out of bed.
“Wait, a nurse will bring in a wheelchair, it will be easier.”
“Thank you.”
When an orderly came in, and helped Peter in the chair, they walked to another corridor. They stopped in front of a door and Peter held his breath. He was pushed inside and there was Neal, he was hooked up to several IV´s, similar to the one he was attached to. Neal´s leg was elevated and under what looked like a tent.
Peter gestured to be pushed closer. Once he was able to, he took Neal´s hand in his own.
“Neal?”
“I´m sorry, mister Burke, but mister Caffrey is still sedated. He woke up in recovery and then again here in the room, but he panicked and we thought it best to give him a mild sedative.”
“Can you tell me the diagnosis, doctor…?”
“I am sorry, my name is doctor Matvei. Mister Caffrey has suffered a fracture of both Tibia and Fibula. The fracture was severe and needed surgery to realign and fix it. I used plates and screws which will be left in place as long as they don´t become a problem. Because of the surgical wound, we can´t put plaster around the leg, so for now, we leave it as it is, so the wound can heal.”
“Will there be lasting effects?”
“We need to see how the leg heals. It should heal without problems, but I was informed that the fracture was caused by a wolf trap, they are not the most hygienic, so we have mister Caffrey on strong antibiotics. As we didn´t know if he is up to date with his Tetanus, we also administered a new booster shot.”
“Thank you. Can I stay until he wakes up?”
“I will ask the orderlies, to transfer your bed into this room. I guess it will be more comfortable if you can talk to each other.”
“That would be fantastic. Thank you.”
“No problem, if that is all, I need to see other patients.”
“Of course.”
Peter stayed seated next to Neal, until two orderlies came in with his bed. They transferred him quickly and efficiently.
About an hour later, Neal started stirring. A low moan escaped him and Peter jolted awake. He looked around and his attention was drawn to Neal whose face was contorted in pain.
Peter pushed the call button.
“Neal?”
The moaning got worse, he had to be in considerable pain. Peter swore that he couldn´t reach Neal, so he slowly tried to get out of bed.
“Can you open your eyes? You´re safe, but try not to move.”
“P…”
“Welcome back, Neal. Are you in a lot of pain?”
He just nodded.
A nurse came in and smiled at Neal.
“Welcome, you OK?”
She checked Neal´s vitals and adjusted the IV´s drip. She also injected something and Peter could see, Neal relaxed more.
“I guess she just upped your pain medication.”
“Feels good.”
“Rest Neal, you need to heal.”
Neal just nodded again. He slowly lost his fight with sleep and soon Peter could hear his even breaths. He let himself nod off as well, only to be wakened by noise in the corridor. They were distributing food. The nurse placed two trays on the side tables and Peter checked out the contents of his tray. It didn´t look familiar and when the nurse entered that spoke a bit of English, Peter asked her what today´s meal was.
“Shchi soup and cutlets with buckwheat”
Not something he would have chosen, but it tasted surprisingly good. He ate everything and regretted that the portions hadn´t been larger. It was obvious his body was till craving food. He eyed Neal´s tray, wondering what he was having for dinner. The nurse gently woke Neal.
“Prosnut'sya.” (Wake up)
Neal’s breathing picked up and Peter immediately noticed the panic that gripped Neal.
“Neal, you’re safe”
“Peter?”
“Yes, it´s me, we are in the hospital. A Russian hospital so there is no need to panic every time hear a Russian voice.”
Neal slowly opened his eyes, while the nurse checked everything.
“You, eat.” She said to Neal.
She helped him sit up a bit straighter by placing an extra pillow behind him. She lifted the lid of the food tray and it revealed the same soup as Peter had. She spoon fed Neal when he didn´t make any attempt to eat himself.
Neal started to nod off by the end of the soup. It was clear he was still weak.
“Idti spat'” (Go to sleep)
“Ya budu” (I will) Neal slurred while his eyes were drifting shut.
Peter smiled, leave it up to Neal…
He was getting bored real quick, as there was no television and the newspaper someone brought in was in Russian… So Peter was relieved when their doctor came in.
“How are you doing, mister Burke?”
“Fine, still a bit hungry, but better.”
“I will ask the staff to bring you something. Your vitals are good. The infection is retreating, but we want to keep you on an antibiotic drip.”
“And how is mister Caffrey?”
“Weak, he sleeps a lot.”
“That is good, his body had quite the shock, let me check the wound.”
The doctor took the little tent of Neal´s leg and exposed the wound. Peter just looked at it in horror. Neal´s lower leg was black and blue and there was a deep jagged scar.
“It is not as bad as it looks. It will heal alright. Bearing any complications, he will have full use of the leg.”
While the doctor inspected the wound, Neal moaned and woke up, again completely disoriented. Peter and the doctor reassured him everything was OK.
“Is it normal that he wakes up confused?”
“Yes, his body was quiet traumatized by what happened and the anesthesia will also do that to you. As he gets stronger, it will get better.”
While the doctor covered his leg again, Neal was already dozing.
* * *
It turned out that getting two injured Americans out of Russia without passports was more difficult than expected, but within a week, Neal was cleared to leave the hospital as long as it was on a medical repatriation and he was transported horizontally. Peter had also asked to arrange to get Katya out of the country as well, as she was a witness to their kidnapping and a victim. She wouldn´t be safe if she stayed here.
Diana flew over together with Jones, they were carrying the official documentation from the Russian Embassy in New York, that both men had been kidnapped and brought here against their wishes. They were accompanied by a doctor who would take care of them during the flight back.
Diana talked to Neal, explaining how they were going to bring them back. He was still not himself and doped up on pain killers, so while they were talking he just fell asleep. It made Diana wanting to take care of him, all her motherly instincts coming to the surface.
Diana and Jones had gotten permission to carry a weapon on foreign soil, as they still hadn´t been able to find Sergei. Local police had searched his estate, but he wasn´t there. They had however found the body of Katya´s husband.
With her diplomatic contacts, Diana had made sure they had an armored vehicle that could transport Neal laying down. He was still not up to sitting.
The doctor had introduced himself as Frank Friedman. He was a doctor that traveled to retrieve injured people around the world and bring them back home safely. He explained Neal and Peter how the trip would go.
They said their goodbyes in the hospital to the staff while Frank signed them out and was handed medication for the journey.
“Proshchay, golubyye glaza” (Goodbye, blue eyes) the nurse smiled.
“Uvidimsya!” (see you) Neal smiled back.
They were going home.
Continue to chapter 4.