Safe House

About twenty minutes later, backup arrived. Two vans pulled up in the loading area of the hospital, and the driver, Stillman, and one agent got into one van. The other one was reserved for the body of the janitor and the other agent. The two agents loaded the body, then one came to the first van. Climbing up front, he fastened his seat belt, and told the driver where to go. The driver drove for about 45 minutes to a place in a subdivision, and pulled up into the drive. The truck driver and Stillman got out of the back, and the other agent came out of the front. The van driver got out, unlocked the house, and disappeared back into the van. Saying something to Stillman along the way, he backed the van up, and disappeared from sight.

Entering the house, it seemed like any other one in the neighborhood. Spacious living room, large kitchen with all cooking utensils, an island in the middle with a gas stove in it. Multiple cabinets adorned the walls, and a large capacity refrigerator by the doorway. Multiple bedrooms down the hallway, and a large guest and master bathroom to accommodate those staying for a lengthy time. Curtains covered each window to match the paint scheme or wallpaper in each room. While not fully stocked with food, it had enough for the next day or so. Stillman made sure the driver was inside, and locked the door, twisting the deadbolt into place.

"Whew," Stillman said, "that part's over. Didn't think they'd try you at the hospital, but I guess they thought they had a chance there."

The driver sat down on the sofa in the living room, and replied, "So, let's figure out how they knew, and who told them first before we go any further. On second thought," he said as he grabbed his shoulder, "let's get hold of the doc and see when I can get some pain meds for this shoulder. Feels like it's gonna fall out of socket."

"Right," Stillman said, reaching for his cell. Realizing that he hadn't gotten a replacement, he tossed it on the counter, and went to the wall, where a cheap phone hung, picked up the receiver, and punched in the hospital number. A voice came over the line, and he asked for Dr. Zhen. A brief wait, and Zhen came on the line. Stillman filled the doctor in, and gave him the address, stating that the driver was in need of medication. Nodding, Stillman said, "Thanks doc. See you in a bit." Hanging up the phone, he turned to the driver.

"Doc says that he'll be over in an hour. He's bringing meds and supplies to keep you happy for the next 3 days. Now, I gotta call the office and update them on the situation," Stillman added, "and get a replacement cell phone. Give me a few minutes, and make yourself comfortable. At least as best as you can," he added with a shrug.

The driver eased onto the couch, taking care not to jostle anything, and sank into the cushion. As he eased in, Stillman got back on the phone and called the field office. Talking with another agent, he set up a duty roster and had them bring him a new cell. As the finishing touches were set up, Stillman hung up the phone in time to see a gray sedan pull up into the driveway. He went over to the door as two men got out and proceeded to the front door. The doorbell rang, and Stillman said, "Passcode."

"Incorrect," came from the other side of the door.

Smiling, Stillman opened the door and let the two men in. Once inside, he closed and bolted the door. Once their sunglasses were off, the driver recognized one of them as Jimmy, from the hospital. Smiling semi-weakly, he said, "What's up, Jimmy?"

Jimmy smiled, and replied, "Hello, sir. How are you feeling today?"

"Like I'm in a cargo plane full of rubber dog crap flying out of Hong Kong," the driver joked.

Half laughing, Jimmy said, "Haven't heard that one in a while, man. Gotta remember that one for the office." Turning to Stillman, who also had a smile on his face, he asked, "What's the plan, sir?"

Stillman looked at him and said, "Jimmy, I'm not gonna lie. This one's gonna be a little long. We're playing babysitter to this man here," he pointed his finger at the driver, "until he gets better. It could be a week, it could be two. Until then, we sit and wait."

"So, guard duty sir?" Jimmy almost groaned.

"Yup, and I don't want to hear any whining about it. Just last week you were itching to get out of the office. Don't worry, you won't be here alone. I'm setting up a schedule for 8 hour shifts, 2 agents each. You two," he pointed at Jimmy and the other agent, "have first crack. Passcodes will be changed daily to prevent breaches. There's still another shooter out there, and he's gunning for this man."

"Actually, Stillman," the driver interjected, "there's two others out there. In Missouri there were three people in the truck, then two in the second incident."

"Two more?" Stillman asked, his eyes wide in shock.

"Yes, sir," the driver replied.

"Well, Missouri State Police forgot to tell us about the third one. That just makes it that much harder." Stillman shook his head. "OK, you'll be set up in the basement. No windows, hard for them to see you if you're not able to be seen. There are two stairwells leading down, so multiple access points. There's a bathroom down there, along with a comfy bed and recliner. Just don't ask who decorated it." Turning to Jimmy, he said, "We've got enough food for this shift. Each shift will bring in enough food for the two agents and the driver."

Jimmy asked, "Where are we buying the stuff at?"

"If you get it and make it before you reach here," Stillman explained, "it'll just need to be reheated." He heard a knock at the door. He motioned the other agent over to the door, as he crouched over by the driver.

"Password," the agent said.

"Incorrect," the voice of Dr. Zhen came from the other side.

Nodding, the agent opened the door, where the doctor had a box full of supplies and medicine. Stumbling into the door, he brought the stuff to the kitchen island, where he set the box down with a dull thud. Looking over at Stillman, he asked gruffly, "Why isn't this man in bed yet?"

Stillman shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry, doc," he said. "We were just going over the details of his stay."

"Well," Zhen said, "he needs to be resting for the next few days. Help him to his room, and I'll get things set up."

"Doc," Stillman said, "he's going to be set up downstairs."

"In the basement?" Zhen asked. "That place looks like a decorator's nightmare. He'll be screaming in pain from the clash in decor burning his eyes."

Everyone chuckled a bit, then Stillman said, "OK, doc. We'll get him down there."

Nodding to the driver, he motioned him over to the staircase. "C'mon, man," he said, "Let's get you set up and comfy."

The driver got up from the couch slowly, as if his equilibrium was still off balance, and trudged over to Stillman. Together, the descended the staircase to the basement. The room was quite large, and seeing the contrasting colors and patterns on the walls, the driver understood what they meant about design clashing. While he was no interior decorator, even he was ashamed to be in this room. If his wife were to see this, he thought, she'd demand that the person in charge of doing this be shot in the face. Nonetheless, he made it over to the bed, where he laid down, and turned over to his good side.

Dr. Zhen brought down what was needed, and set up everything next to the driver. He found a hook on the wall where he could hang the IV bag, and plugged in the pump into the wall next to the bed. Once everything was set up, he activated the pump, and the fluid started to go into the driver's line slowly. Once satisfied that it wasn't backing up, he produced the syringe of morphine, and told the driver, "The first dose is a double, to get you back to your comfort levels. After that, you'll get regular doses for the first two days. This is not as strong as the other medication you were given. Also, I'm having you take this." He held up a small cup just a little larger than a coffee creamer.

"What is that doc?" the driver asked.

"This," Zhen replied, "is milk of magnesia. Basically, you have been eating for two days now, and have not been going to the bathroom properly. So, I want you to take one of these every 8 hours, to help get you regular again."

"OK, I just have one question for you doc," the driver said. "Are you planning on staying here the whole time, or are there going to be other people besides you taking care of me? I can't just keep you from your family, doc."

"Goodness, no," the doctor chuckled. "The two nurses that have been taking care of you are getting special work conditions. In other words," the doctor said, "their sole focus until you are ready to be released will be to take care of you. They are working their regular shifts, so Miss Tina will be night shift, and Miss Judy will being doing days." As if on cue, he heard footsteps on the staircase, and Nurse Judy appeared. "Ah," he replied with glee, "glad to see you found the place okay."

"Yes, I did," she replied. Turning to the driver, she asked, "You doing ok, hun?"

"About as best as I can be, given the situation," he replied.

"Well, lay down over there, and I'll fix you right up," she said with a smile. Turning to the doctor, she asked him a couple of questions, then proceeded to get everything set up. Once the IV line was established, she put the medicine to the line, and started running it through. Stillman came downstairs as the first effects came over the driver. "You hungry, champ?" he asked with a small grin.

"Give me a couple minutes, and I'll be ready to go," the driver said. Letting the medicine work its magic, he breathed a small sigh of relief. Looking back to Stillman, he said, "Let's get to it, then."