The Powder Keg

By Sherry

Part 1

The small group returned to CLHQ laughing, obviously having had a wonderful lunch. North, Sherry, Kathy and Curlly had gone out for lunch together. Rita was supposed to go as well, but she had been called in on a mission at the last minute. The foursome had gone to a local restaurant, one that members of CLHQ visited frequently.

Each one returned to her office or station when they got back. Sherry sat at her desk working up the profile for an upcoming mission. Suddenly her office seemed to be getting warm. She checked the thermostat, but it was set where it usually was and the temperature read 68 degrees. She also noticed that the air conditioning seemed to be working properly. Gradually, she realized that she really wasn’t feeling well; she was nauseous and had a slight headache. Figuring that she was probably getting the flu, she sat down and returned to the profile she was working on.

Ten minutes later, perspiration was starting to run down her face and she was felt woozy. Deciding she had better get back to her quarters and get some rest so she could be back at work tomorrow, she got up and headed to North’s office.

"Hey North. I’m not feeling so well. I think I’m coming down with the flu. I’m just gonna go home and sack out for a while. I’ll see you tomorrow." North, showing concern, nodded. "Okay. Take care of yourself. And if you need anything, give me a call." Sherry nodded and headed home.

A couple of hours later, Michael stopped in to check on her. North had told him earlier that she had gone home because she wasn’t feeling well. Not wanting to disturb her if she was asleep, he quietly let himself in through their connecting door. He saw her lying on the couch. When he got closer, he noticed that she was drenched. Feeling her forehead, he realized she was burning up. He tried to rouse her, but she didn’t awaken. He quickly called Medical and told them he was bringing her in.

Michael got Sherry to Medlab quickly. The doctors and nurses asked him all kinds of questions, but he had no answers. "I don’t know. I was told she went home this afternoon complaining of flu symptoms. I went to check on her and found her like this."

"Her temperature is 103," one nurse called. "Her BP is 210 over 100," another announced. The doctor shouted orders. He wanted a blood work-up. He ordered them to bath her in cold water. He wanted to get her temperature down, but he wouldn’t give her any drugs until he saw the blood work results.

Just then the door opened and Operations came in carrying North. "She wasn’t feeling well. She said she must have caught Sherry’s flu bug. Next thing I know, she’s passed out on the floor." The doctors and nurses began the same procedure on North. "Her temperature is 102 and rising, BP is 190 over 105," the stats came quickly. The doctor ordered the same course of treatment as he had for Sherry.

"What’s going on?" Operations demanded. "How did they get so sick so fast? They were perfectly fine this morning when we had our review meeting."

Michael had an idea and headed to Comm. "Birkoff, check Sherry, Rita and North’s offices for airborne contaminants. Something made Sherry and Northstar sick."

Birkoff quickly ran a scan. "Michael, nothing is showing up. Are you sure it’s contamination? Maybe they just have the flu or something." Michael returned to Medlab only to find that Kathy had been admitted as well. Whatever this was, it seemed to be hitting hard and fast.

"Anything yet?" he asked one harried doctor. The doctor moved to the side of the room and Michael followed. "We have some preliminary results of the blood work on Sherry and Northstar. They do not have the flu, or any other known illness for that matter."

Michael nodded. "So is it a toxin?" The doctor shrugged. "We’re not sure yet, but we think they were poisoned. There is something in their work-ups that we can’t identify. I’ll bet that we find the same thing in Kathy’s blood as well."

Michael, whose expression suggested that he and the doctor were discussing nothing more interesting than the weather, was angry. Who had done this and how? Were they attacked right here in Section? In their offices? In their quarters? Who would be next?

Suddenly one of the monitors started beeping. The doctor hurried over to North’s bed. "She’s crashing, people. Let’s move!" They worked for a few minutes and got North’s heartbeat restored. When he was certain she would survive, he walked back to Michael.

"I do have one piece of good news. None of them is in a coma. They are unconscious, but if we can get the fever down, I believe they will come around. We just need to do it quickly, before any serious damage occurs."

Michael nodded. "Keep me posted." He walked over to Sherry’s bed. She looked so pale, as did North and Kathy. There were IVs running into her arms to keep her hydrated. He leaned down, kissed her forehead and then stroked her hair. "Hold on, Cherie. I’ll find out who did this and they will pay. I will get you the antidote. Just hold on."

Once he was left Medlab, Michael headed for Rita’s office. He knew she had just returned from her mission, but she wasn’t in her office yet. She would soon be finished with the debrief so he decided to wait. It wasn’t long before Rita came back to her office, obviously tired from the mission. She almost jumped when she saw someone sitting there, until she realized who it was.

"Michael. What a nice surprise! I should go away more often if I’m going to find you here when I get back!" she laughed. Then she noticed his expression. "What’s wrong, Michael? What happened?"

"Operations or Madeline didn’t tell you?" he asked. Rita shook her head.

"Someone has poisoned Sherry, Northstar and Kathy. They are all unconscious with high fevers, high blood pressure readings and flu-like symptoms."

Rita was stunned. "Are they going to make it? When did this happen? How did it happen?"

Michael sighed. "That’s what we need to find out. North told me this afternoon that Sherry had left the office early because she thought she was getting the flu. I had to run tactical on the Brussels mission, so I didn’t get to check on her for a few hours. When I did, she was unconscious. The same thing happened with the others. All this afternoon, within a few short hours."

Rita sat there for a moment and then it hit her. "Who did you say was sick?"

Michael looked at her, wondering what she was thinking. "Sherry, Northstar and Kathy. Why?"

Rita was curious. "Not Curlly?"

Michael frowned. "Not the last time I checked. I don’t know if she’s been brought in since I left. What’s going on, Rita?"

Rita sounded excited, as she did when she was on to something. "I was supposed to go with them. That has to be it."

Michael was losing patience. "Go with them where? What are you talking about?"

Rita nodded. "They went out to lunch together. I was supposed to go, but was called in on that mission at the last minute. That has to be it. Somebody must have gotten to them at the restaurant. I just don’t know why Curlly wasn’t affected."

Michael jumped up. "Go get Curlly and bring her to Medlab. I’m going back there. I’ll let Operations know what you’ve told me."