Chapter 227 - 227: Not Looking Good

After hearing the bad news, Erick and Elle together with Bryan sped all the way towards the hospital.

When they arrived outside the operating room, they saw Allen talking to two people who appeared to be very anxious and uneasy at the same time. The woman was crying while being comforted by a man. They were Marie's parents.

Allen was explaining to them what happened to agent Marie. The three of them were about to approach Allen and Marie's parents when they heard someone calling Erick from behind.

They turned around to see Officer Kim together with a lady. She was the concerned citizen who asked for help the moment she saw Marie collapsed on the ground.

"Officer Kim, you are also here," Bryan said as he greeted him.

"Yeah, we are the one who received a call from witnesses regarding what happened to agent Marie. Our men were already in the crime scene, conducting the investigation." Officer Kim said to them.

"I just finished gathering a statement from her. She was the one who responded first on the scene that's why Agent Marie was brought here in the hospital immediately." Officer Kim introduced to them the lady beside him.

They greeted and thanked the lady for her help. After that, the lady left the hospital. She was also the one who handed over Marie's belongings to Officer Kim. Erick instructed Bryan to come over and join Allen and Marie's parents while he talked to Officer Kim. Elle stayed with him.

"Can you tell us what happened Officer Kim?" Erick asked him.

"A witness called us that there was a shooting incident that happened in a theme park. The team rushed over there quickly. It looked like a sniper did this to her. Fortunately, the caller also informed us of the location where the perpetrator hid at that time."

"Our men went there to check. It was a building just ten meters away from Marie's location. From the inside, my team confirmed that location had a clear view where Agent Marie was sitting." he added.

Elle frowned upon hearing that. 

'That's strange. If the sniper did this how come the caller knew the exact location where that person hides during the attack especially if that person was Black Shadow.'

"How is she?" Erick couldn't hide the deep concern in his voice while asking that question.

Officer Kim fell silent for a moment as he looked at the direction of Marie's parents. There was a grim expression on his face as he said: 

"She's not looking good. She was hit by the bullet in the head. The perpetrator had a clear intention to kill her on the spot, fortunately, someone found her and responded immediately. If not then I am afraid she won't make it."

Both Erick and Elle were dumbfounded after knowing her situation.

Officer heaved a deep sigh as he added "Let's pray for her. That's what we can do for her as of now."

They all knew that there was only a small chance of surviving a gunshot wound to the head. The victim often died on the spot.

It was already fortunate that Agent Marie was able to hang on until she was brought inside the operating room.

Erick clenched his fist. He couldn't help but feel responsible for what happened. Agent Marie was putting her life on the line and continued to monitor Black Shadow just to get information about Catseye's whereabouts.

He felt an extreme turmoil inside him. Guilt was consuming him as of the moment. If the team knew that he already learned Catseye's identity then Agent Marie should have already stopped her dangerous mission of getting close with Black Shadow. And this won't happen to her.

However, he couldn't bring himself to reveal Elle's identity. He couldn't do that. Now, he looked like he betrayed his team as he protected the woman he loved. His feelings for her already got in the way of his duty.

He didn't expect this to happen at all. Now, he was blaming himself. Meanwhile, Elle noticed Erick's complicated expression. She somehow knew a little bit of what was going on in his mind right now. Her worry for him was evident to her face as she looked at him.

Elle just held his hand, consoling him. Then she turned to Officer Kim.

"Is Black Shadow the one who did this?" Elle asked him.

"So far, he is the number one suspect. Oh, by the way, I believe here is the thing she wanted to give him today. It looks like a gift. She mentioned to Agent Rose that she was meeting Black Shadow today." Officer Kim said as he gave the paper bag to Erick.

"The lady gave this to me a while ago, along with Marie's other belongings."

Erick took the paper bag. After that, the three of them went to approach Marie's parents and other agents there. Several minutes later, Captain Jason and other members of the Joint Task Force arrived in the hospital.

The place was engulfed by deafening silence. Everyone could feel the gloomy atmosphere around them. Everyone was feeling the uneasiness in their heart as they're silently praying for Marie to survive this critical operation. 

They couldn't afford to lose a colleague today. They all felt terrified as they looked worriedly at the closed door of the operating room. This was the same feeling and vibe when Erick got injured.

As time went by, everyone became terribly anxious. The tension and uneasiness were growing by the minute. And after several hours of waiting, the door of the operating room opened. When the doctor appeared on their sight, Marie's parents went up to him right away.

"How's our daughter?" Both of them asked the doctor in unison.

At this moment, the doctor took his mask off and he looked at them with a solemn expression on his face. Everyone was waiting for the doctor's response.

"We were able to successfully remove the bullet inside her head. However, I am sorry to tell you but the patient fell into a coma." 

"The bullet had hit and injured the right hemisphere of her brain. That means there is a possibility that if she wakes up, this injury can leave the patient impaired especially on her left side."

Marie's mother fell limp when she heard that. Fortunately, her husband was able to catch her. All of them were stupefied with their pale expression on their faces. The doctor continued to speak and explained her condition to them.

"But don't worry she can still able to perform those functions on some level. Our main concern here is for the patient to wake up from her comatose condition. Let's just wait and observe her. We will transfer her to the ICU for now. You must stay strong for her and pray. Let's put our faith in the patient's will to survive this."

After a while, Marie was transferred to the ICU room. The Joint Task Force members were now gathered in the hospital lobby together with Elle. They bade Marie's parents goodbye for a while. Allen and Jane were the ones who helped and assisted Marie's parents in processing things in the hospital.

There was a heaviness in the air as they gathered together with the sullen atmosphere around them.

"F*ck! Black Shadow needs to pay for this!" Carl broke the silence as he spoke with anger and rage.

"We were very careful, especially Marie. She'd never lower her guard when it comes to Black Shadow. Why is it this thing happened suddenly? Is it really possible that he discovered Marie was a spy?" Rose couldn't help but wonder.

"I am very sorry. I think it's my fault." Erick suddenly blurted out to the team. There was a hint of guilt and sadness in his voice.

Then the others averted their gaze to him. The confusion was evident to their eyes.

Elle could understand Erick's feeling as of this moment. After hearing his words, Elle chose to leave as she gave them their privacy. After all, she was just an outsider among them and she didn't belong to them. Somehow, she also felt that this incident happened because of her.

"Erick, I'll go ahead first. I will wait for you in the car." Elle said to him. Erick just nodded at her. 

He knew that Elle was giving him privacy with his team. They exchanged meaningful glances with one another before she left. She believed in him. No matter what would be his decision regarding this matter, she would understand him.

"What do you mean Chief Lee? This is not your fault. Why are you apologizing to us?" It was Bryan who spoke up.

"Last week, I asked her to check again the necklace in Black Shadow's possession. To do that, she sneaked into his apartment. I am afraid because of that Black Shadow was able to discover her identity as a spy."

After hearing that, the team fell into silence once again. They didn't want to blame Erick for that. It was part of their job. That necklace was another clue to Catseye's identity. 

But unknown to them, Erick already knew the truth and he chose to hide it from them. That's the reason why he felt guilty and sorry for them.

After the team talked, Erick proceeded to the parking lot where Elle was waiting for him. Upon seeing Erick walking towards her direction, Elle stepped out of the car. She could feel that he was going through a lot right now. This incident greatly affected him.

When Erick reached her, he concealed his negative emotions as he faced her with a gentle smile on his face. But it was too late for him to hide it from her. She already saw through him. 

She sighed deeply as she did not know what she could do right now to console him. She just closed the gaps between them and engulfed him into her arms at that moment. She stroked his back as she hugged him in her arms. Elle didn't know but this little action of her was enough to console him.