Scars Of Time

Dilemma

Present Day

Agent Christopher was stunned, to say the least, to see the team when they emerged from the Lifeboat. Her eyes were glued on the young doctor. She hadn't meant for the girl's first trip to result in something so severe. It seemed like a simple mission where they had to make sure that a baby would make it...and yet, based on how the poor kid looked, it didn't go as simply as planned.

She had tried to talk to the doctor about what happened, but the kid said nothing. It was almost like she was in shock because nothing anyone had said was registering. Agent Christopher stood back and watched as the doctor walked silently, staring at her feet, down the corridor towards her room.

Wyatt had passed her in the hall on his way to the common living area and turned his attention to Christopher. "What the hell happened to her?"

Denise turned to the team that was still standing there. "That's what I'd like to know."

Rufus glanced between the two of them. "It's not like it was a team hazing thing..." He could feel the tension in the room and was trying hard to lighten the mood, but the mood was too dark. He stopped trying.

The three had explained to Agent Christopher what they had discovered when they arrived back in time. Lucy had removed the 'Wanted' poster from her pocket to show them. Wyatt, as the others suspected, took offense just as Rufus had, that his image didn't look anything like him.

"Let's stay on track," Denise redirected. "What does this poster have to do with what happened?"

The team began to explain what they discovered regarding the meaning of the poster. It led them to a group that called themselves 'Bloodstone', and they were the ones who took Tenley.

"So, did you find out anything about this group?" Denise asked. "What do Rittenhouse and this Bloodstone group have in common?"

"Aside from being psychotic and they can't draw?" Rufus suggested. "Not much." Agent Christopher rolled her dark eyes at the man.

Lucy asked, "Do you think you might find anything in your files through Homeland Security? Maybe now that we know who to look for, we might find something through them?"

Agent Christopher tilted her head slightly. "It's worth a try. I'll look into it and let you know." She glanced between the three that stood before her. "Get cleaned up...and get some rest."

The three nodded, grateful for the chance to wash away the mission from their bodies.

Tenley stood in front of the sink in the bathroom. After wiping off the condensation that gathered on the mirror from her hot shower, she stared at her reflection.

She had managed to wash away the blood, dirt, and grime that had collected on her body. She had scrubbed so hard that her usually pale skin was marred with splotchy red patches. The bruises had darkened on her face, which made her look like a victim of domestic violence. She was suddenly thankful that she didn't work in the real world anymore because she'd be faced with numerous questions and possibly a police interview regarding her battered appearance.

She had healing cuts on her face, one on the lower corner of her mouth and one on the edge of her brow. The cuts were superficial, even though they were healing, they still stung, but it wasn't the cuts that concerned her. A few inches below her collarbone on her left side was a three-inch wide gash that she had gotten when the Bloodstone man held a knife to her.

Images flashed before her eyes of the encounter. She remembered the boy aiming his gun in her direction, the feel of the cold steel knife against her skin. The gunshot echoed in the dark recesses of her mind. She suddenly remembered the feeling of the blade slicing through her skin like butter.