Death in the Shell Ch. 06

A/N: This is actually a very short chapter that will lead into the final chapter of the Conspiracy saga.

Standard Disclaimers Apply

*****

Roarke's plane was about to make it's descent on the private New York runway when they heard the news.

Eve: Do you know where they transported her too, Ishikawa?

Ishikawa: She's being transported to the Drake Center, no details have come up yet, but they're saying she's in a critical condition. Word also broke that Dr. Wo has been transported to the Drake as well, it's looking like self-termination and they don't think she's going to make it."

"Damn it." Eve cursed to herself. "And here we were trying to get her and Vanderhaven into interview along with Young."

Motoko: We have Young in our custody, Lieutenant. We got two of our European agents trying to search for Vanderhaven. We're not going to make him hide on our watch.

Eve: Major, do you still have any of those thermoptic cloaks?

Motoko: If you go to the Drake, Eve, you give me your word you'll stay hidden under those cloaks, do you understand? I don't even want your friends to see you in that hospital.

It frustrated Eve for her to know that since she and Roarke were technically still in hiding, the potential murder of a potential friend for Eve and she couldn't even allow Louise to see her. But the oath of secrecy was more important for Eve and even more important, she needed to find the person she now knew who was definitely responsible for everything.

Eve: You have my word, Major.

Motoko: The cloaks will be waiting outside The Ghost Headquarters, Dallas. If you ever need my help, I'll be there, little one.

The ride to the Drake had been the near equivalent of a rocket car traveling to Mexico at hyperspeed, Eve had dealt with that firsthand due to the occasional trips to Roarke's private villa in that region. They stopped at The Ghost Headquarters first, to not only pick up the thermoptic cloaks, but to also pick up a vehicle that also had thermoptic camouflage and ended up parking at the top of a parking garage where there were fewer cars parked so no one would bump into the invisible car.

It would be frustrating for Eve and Roarke to not use their social statuses to get around the hospital, let alone show their faces. But they waited patiently for each hospital door to open and pass through without much notice and they eventually made it past the Intensive Care Unit of the Drake.

They maintained total silence throughout the whole trip, because even with thermoptics, their voices could still be heard through the camouflage and Eve didn't want to risk being caught by talking.

So when Eve and Roarke caught Louise's uncle Colin Cagney ranting and blaming on Eve Dallas being the cause of his niece being in a coma, as much as she wanted to object, Eve kept her silence. His rants ranged from how Louise didn't want to share in the family fortune that was the Drake Center, instead she chose to go her own path and give healthcare to the homeless to how the homeless could potentially kill someone like Louise for the credits in her pocket or the drugs used to keep those pitiful lives going.

Eve silently let out a glare when Waverly exited the ICU doors to calm Cagney down in his suave way. She could never forget how jealous Roarke got of him when Waverly used some of that suave charm on Eve, even though he knew she knew better.

When Eve and Roarke finally passed through the ICU doors, it didn't take long to see some of the nurses comforting a crying woman, though it definitely didn't take long for them to find out that Dr. Tia Wo didn't make it when they saw her girlfriend weeping hysterically to the point where two orderlies had her sedated.

It pained Eve to see her aide Officer Peabody standing guard with a uniform and there was no doubt that Captain Feeney was also in the building, but she couldn't bear to see her mentor, not like this. They eventually snuck into Louise Dimatto's room to watch her sleep and saw that her head was heavily wrapped in some bandages, to the point where you couldn't see her short blonde hair.

Eve: There's a blow to the head and her right wrist is fractured.

Roarke: Defensive wounds, and from the looks of things the blow to the head looks like it belonged to a desk 'link.

Ishikawa: I got a copy of the police report, Dallas, Dr. Dimatto was at her office and was attacked between three or four pm.

Eve: Any status on her, Ishikawa?

Ishikawa: From what I gathered, it's looking to be a good center, doctors have been fleeting in and out. There's been NYPSD droids ordered to watch her 24/7 and from my gathering of hacking the droids, the nurses are saying that her heart and lungs are prime and brain scans aren't looking very troubling for the moment. They've been working hard to bring her out of the coma as quickly as possible.

Eve: What's the verdict on Dr. Wo?

Ishikawa: Turns out her private co-hab got home and found her drugged on barbs.

Motoko: We didn't see her at the organ lab and we were gonna pick her up at her residence, for interview after we picked up Bradley.

Roarke: They definitely want some people silenced.

Ishikawa: Well I may have a good idea on who, I just pulled up security footage from Dimatto's office.

Eve and Roarke hid in the bathroom at Louise's room, wide enough for them to fit in and Eve pulled out her 'link. The link showed Eve footage of Louise facing her attacker and not being able to stand a chance when the desk 'link bashed against her head. The footage was clear enough for Eve to recognize a certain woman who was supposed to be a loyal assistant.

Eve: I know who it is, Major, it's Louise's nurse Jan.

Motoko: She definitely knew something and Jan was a key in that. Batou and I are en route to her residence as we speak.

Eve began pace at the rather large restroom in Louise's quarters: It's highly probable that Jan will likely be silenced, Major. Just like the killer has silenced Dr. Wo.

Motoko: Pay someone off just to kill somebody later to cover something up, it's a method that has never worked.

Eve: It's definitely a good thing that I've called you, Motoko. It's becoming more and more clear that this is a bigger problem than any of us realized, NYPSD included.

Motoko: A blessing in disguise, little one, this has been the work of a team. A team of contacts, fillers, assistants, experts and that nurse was one of them. A team too big for the NYPSD to handle.

Eve: My best guess is she fed him data on patients, the kind that use the clinic or make use of the medi-van service. Sleepers, LCs, dealers, chemi-heads. Dregs...Vessels.

Roarke: She contacted someone with possible donors. Every business needs a good inside track. And this appears to be a business.

Motoko: We'll finish the rest of this discussion at the Ghost Headquarters, I need everyone to report at once.

Eve: I know who's doing all this, Major, he's right in my grasp and I can stop him.

Motoko: I concur, Lieutenant, but we need to plan a sting to take him and everyone else down.

Just then Eve and Roarke heard the door open for Louise's room and they had no choice but to keep quiet while they saw Michael Waverly take her hospital bed out of her room with her in it. Waverly briefly noticed the bathroom wide open and thought that one of the cops must've left it open after using it. Not once was he able to see Eve and Roarke in their thermoptic camouflage cloaks.

Eve: Major, Dr. Waverly just walked into Louise's room.

Major: What's he doing, Lieutenant?

Eve: It looks like he's getting ready to transfer her somewhere, he's unplugging every machine that she's hooked up to.

Major: He's definitely not waiting around...alright change of plans, Lieutenant. Keep your thermoptics on and stay a few feet behind him. When it looks like he's making a stop, take him down, arrest him and wait for us. Batou and I should be there in thirty minutes.