Chris Larabee was engrossed in the blueprints he was reading, with the
leader of Team 3. Their teams were inside, mopping up from the bust.
Each pair
of agents had been assigned a sector of the building. Nobody
searched alone,
just in case. Chris and Mike Stuart were marking off sections
of the
blueprint, as each 2 man squad checked in. It had only been an
hour, and
their crackerjack teams had already searched half of the building.
Chris heard Buck in his ear. "Our sector's clear. JD and
I are gonna see if
Vin and Ezra need a hand. Out."
Chris pointed to a spot on the blueprint. "Sector 6 is clear."
Mike marked the area in red. Both men were looking forward to
unwinding
down at the saloon with their agents in a few hours.
Then, without warning, everything went to hell. Chris and Mike
were blown
off there feet, by series of explosions that rocked the buildings across
the
street
from their command station.
"Shit!" Chris cursed, as he and Mike struggled to get to their
feet. Dust
was swirling and both men took shelter from the debris that was raining
down on them. Their hearts were in their throats, as they frantically
tried
to
reach their team members.
Chris started racing towards the building, when Mike grabbed his arm
and
held fast. "Larabee, get it together. You can't go in there.
We've got to
keep our heads on straight, if we're gonna get our guys out alive."
Stuart's
words were urgent. He knew what had happened to Chris's family,
and
how agonizing this had to be for the agent. But, they didn't
have time for
Chris's demons right now. The lives of their teams and countless
civillians
hung in the balance.
Mike's words cut through the haze of agony in Chris's heart. He
nodded
sharply at the other agent and flipping open his cell phone began calling
for
emergency assistance.
"This is Special Agent Larabee, with the ATF. We're at the corner
of Greenlow
and Victoria Blvds. I'm declaring a Class 1 emergency.
We need the fire
department, paramedics, and the FBI. Have all the hospitals in
the area
stand by for multiple trauma victims. We've got at least a dozen
ATF agents,
and God knows how many other victims. We have multiple explosions
and
fires." Chris's voice was cool and calm, with no trace of the
panic he was
feeling.
Mike was already triaging the victims, who'd begun to pour from the
3
buildings across the street. Traffic had come to a complete standstill
and
the occupants of the vehicles abandoned them in the middle of the street,
as they came to offer their help to the dazed survivors.
Chris flipped his phone shut, but stuck it in his pocket.
He would not be
without access to help, should any of his team require it.
He scanned the
building he'd sent his team into only hours ago. God, please
let them be
alright. As if someone had heard his prayer, Josiah and Nathan
stumbled
out of the building. Josiah's right arm hung limply at his side,
and Nathan
was clinging unsteadily to the big agent. But, they were both
alive and it
looked to Chris, like they were going to stay that way.
Two down, only four left. Chris ran forward to help his two men.
"Are
you okay?" He shouted above the din.
"We're banged up some, but we'll be fine, Chris." Nathan's assessment
of their conditions matched his own, bringing a measure of relief to
the
agent.
"Any word of our brothers?" Josiah's deep voice cut through the
relief
Chris was feeling.
"No." He shook his head. "I'm going to coordinate with Mike,
and see
where we need to direct our search. You two go wait for the paramedics."
Chris knew, even as he directed his agents to the triage area, that
they
wouldn't be waiting for paramedics. No, these two men would be
trying
to aid the other victims, the second Chris turned his back. He'd
never been
prouder to have them on his team.
The fire department was beginning to arrive, and Mike and Chris gladly
turned the logistics over to the first truck on the scene. They
knew, that
the civilians would have the fire department's priority.
Their teams were
only priority to them.
Three members of Team 3 struggled out of the building. Chris and
Mike
ran to them. Chris took hold of Vince Dawson, while Mike aided
Charlie
Brooks. Ed Turner looked to be uninjured, but they'd have him
checked
out anyway. Just in case..
"Mike, they're gone. They were there, and then they were gone.
All 3 of
them Mike." Turner was choking with emotion.
Damn! Damn! Damn! Chris was in agony.
Three men, good men, gone
just like that. And, he thought. Thank God, it wasn't my
team. Mike's
team had been searching the ground floor, where the explosion had done
the most damage.
Just then, Chris spied JD and Buck struggling through the rubble.
Buck's
left arm was bleeding badly, and JD was limping and holding his ribs,
but
they didn't look too bad, he thought hopefully. Damn!
Where the hell
were Vin and Ezra?
Buck gave him a tired smile, as Chris settled Vince to the ground and
turned
back to his own team.
"Hey, Chris" Buck called weakly.
Chris smiled and hugged his men. His voice broke, as he tried
to ease the
tightness in his chest with humor. "Cutting it a mite close there,
aren't you
pard?"
"Gotta keep the kid on his toes." Buck responded, not entirely
able to keep
the pain out of his voice.
"C-Chris, where's the others?" JD's only words, were of concern
for his
team members. The only real family any of them had. Well,
if you didn't
count Maude.
"Josiah and Nathan are okay. I haven't heard from Vin or Ezra,
yet." JD
and Buck could hear the worry and the pain in his voice, as he continued.
"Team 3 lost Baker, Wilson and Andrews." Chris had to turn away,
as he
thought of those good men, gone forever, and his own missing team
members.
"They're okay. I know they are." JD's voice was as full
of emotion, as
Chris's
was.
"Yeah kid. They have to be." Buck patted JD's hand with
his right hand, as
Nathan arrived and began to apply pressure to the large gash on Buck's
left
arm.
"Good to see you, pard." Buck made eye contact with Nathan.
"You too." Nathan responded softly, letting his eyes wash over
his two
comrades.
Just then, a tall figure covered from head to toe, with plaster dust
made his
way towards them.
"Ezra. You alright?" Josiah's rich voice rang out
as he made his way to
the undercover agent's side.
"No, Mr. Sanchez. I am most certainly not "alright." I've
just been blown
up, I'm filthy and I've got a splitting headache." The southerner
quickly
noted the missing team member. "Where's Mr. Tanner?"
His voice held
a note of fear.
"We haven't seen him. Weren't you supposed to be together?"
Chris's tone
was cold. He was trying hard not to blame the southerner, but
his fear for
Vin, was overriding everything else, including his sense of fairness.
"I can assure you Mr. Larabee, Mr. Tanner and I were adhering to
procedure."
Ezra's voice, was equally cold. "We were checking the last room
in our
sector, when we were seperated by the explosion. I attempted
to ascertain Mr.
Tanner's position, but was unable to locate him. I was hoping,
he would have
found his way out of the ruins by now." Six pairs of eyes scanned
the rubble,
searching for any sign of the quiet young man, who meant so much to
them all.
"I'm not just going to stand around here waiting anymore." Chris's
voice was
desperate.
The others watched helplessly, as he attempted to enter the building,
and was
forcibly prevented, by two police officers. "Sir, I'm sorry,
the foundation
is
unsteady, and we can't let you go in there." A young officer
was trying to
explain to an angry Chris, that they had to wait for equipment to shore
up
the building, to make it safe, before he'd be allowed to enter.
Chris was equally intent on explaining to the officer, that he had no
intention of waiting for anything. One of his men was in that
building,
and Chris was gonna find him.
Josiah made his way to Chris's side, and rested one of his huge, gentle,
hands
on Chris's shoulder. "Brother Larabee, we have to trust in the
Lord - and the
Denver fire department." He gently pulled Chris towards the 4
men watching
with pained expressions.
None of them had noticed, a slight figure covered with dust, coming
around
the corner of the building. Until JD, trying to hide his tears
from his team
members, screamed. "VIN!!" He was pointing to the corner of the
building.
The others looked hopefully in the direction JD was pointing.
It was Vin.
He was cradling his right arm, and leaning against the building for
support
every few steps, but it was Vin and he was alive.
Chris and Josiah were sprinting towards him. Nathan took a moment
to warn
JD, Ezra, and Buck who were struggling to their feet. "Ya'll
stay put." He
told them fiercely, as he was already following the other two.
Chris got to Vin first and caught him, just as he tripped over a board.
"Whoa
there, cowboy." Chris laughed and hugged him. His voice
was hoarse with
emotion as he told him softly, "I can't afford those ten years,
pard."
Vin managed a tired smile, as Josiah took careful hold of his right
side.
"Good to have you back, Brother Tanner." Together Chris and Josiah
raised the younger agent to his feet. Nathan took one look at
him, and told
the other two to get him over with the other's waiting for the paramedics.
Nathan gave Vin a once over, and reported, "Feels like his collarbone's
broke, and he's got a bruise from about here," he pointed to the top
of his
head, "to about here," and he pointed to his foot. "Other than
that, I think
he's okay."
Forty Eight hours later:
It was a sorry looking bunch, that gathered in Conference Room 1 on
the
4th floor of the Denver Federal Building. A large bandage spread
out from
under Buck's short sleeved shirt, on his left arm.Nathan was sporting
several large bandages and a black eye. Josiah's right arm was
in a sling
and his bottom lip was split. Ezra had a large bandage, covering
the back
of his head. Nathan didn't have any bandages showing, but the
other's had
seen the huge bruises on his legs. JD's open collar afforded
a peek at the
large bandage wrapped tightly around his ribs, and he was sporting
a pair of
crutches, for his badly spained ankle. Vin's right arm was in
a sling.
Nathan's
diagnoses of a broken collarbone had been dead on. The entire
right side of
his
body was bruised. His right eye was still swollen shut, and that
side of his
face
was a mix of purple and black.
Chris strode into the room, with a folder in his hand. He looked
totally
relaxed.
The guys sat up a little straighter in their chairs, anticipating what
he had
to say.
"We just got the word. FBI definitely ruled out any kinda bomb."
Chris's
tone
was upbeat. He was still so damned relieved, at having his whole
team safe
and relatively sound, that it was hard to keep a professional note
to his
voice.
"What the hell happened then?" Buck demanded.
"Some idiot forgot to check with the city, before he started using digging.
He
dug up a natural gas pipe." There was a note of anger in Chris's
voice now.
Nothing made him as angry as stupidity, especially when it cost good
men
their lives.
The room was immediately filled with tension, as the 7 men thought of
their
brother agents, dead because of one man's stupidity. The room
was silent
for a long time, and JD was beginning to feel uneasy. He
decided to say
something, anything, to ease the tension.
"Uhm, Chris?" He began.
"What is it, JD?" Chris snapped.
"Uh, I just wanted to tell you, Buck and I ordered you something for
your
birthday, but we sorta forgot to pick it up, what with everything that's
been
going on. And, we were planning on giving it to you tonight at
the saloon,
but the place is closed till Monday."
Chris's face softened and his tone was kind, as he looked around the
room
at the bandaged, bruised men. He made eye contact with
JD and told him
gently, "It's okay, JD. I already got my gift."
The End
