Chapter 9

Lady Andrea drove like a woman possessed towards Mercy General. As she drove she couldn't help but spare frequent glances in the rear-view mirror at Kraven. The Kraven sitting in the back seat was not the same Kraven that had received news that his friend Violet may have been dead, just two hours ago. When he had first received the call Nigel, and the others in the room, had been forced to manually restrain him as he went completely berserk, and had even had started to foam at the mouth in rage, all the while tears ran down his cheeks.

To everyone's surprise it had been Alan who did the most to return Kraven to sanity. There had been no hesitation when he came back in and saw Kraven being held down and thrashing on the floor, screaming in rage, and frothing at the mouth. Andrea would never forget the scene as Alan walked quickly over and squatted over the head of the raging Kraven.

"We are truly of one spirit my brother." Spoke Alan as he held Kraven's head still and met his eyes. "Share with me your great burden so that you do not carry it alone. Let our spirits merge so that always you will never again be truly alone in sadness, pain, nor your great rage." Kraven's screaming had trailed off as Alan began an unknown chant in a deeply sonorous voice, that quickly grew in speed, intensity, and volume until both men stiffened and an identical snarling scream of rage issued in stereo. Alan had then fallen back exhausted and shaking, but motioned silently for them to let Kraven up.

Andrea had watched as Kraven stood, shook his head in a confused manner, and then walked over to Alan with a dazed look on his face. "I don't know what or how, but anything, anytime, anywhere Injun." Kraven's voice was full of emotion as he spoke, and then pulled Alan up and into a crushing bear hug.

When Kraven had let Alan down the tone of Alan's voice had sent chills down Andrea's spine when he spoke. "Show them all why it is wise to fear the wrath of a true headhunter my brother. Show them terror even as you bring justice to them, as you have done so many times before."

Andrea spared Kraven one last glance as she screeched to a halt in front of the group of police, and other officials waiting for them at the emergency room entrance. Kraven still had not moved a single muscle, and only the rhythmic flaring of his nostrils gave any indication that he was still alive. Officer Smyth looked decidedly uncomfortable next to Kraven in his current state. Her eyes flicked over to Alan, on the other side of Kraven, and found him calm and cool as always. As Alan and Bryan moved to open the doors Andrea handed Kraven's phone over the seat back to him. "I picked it up and found out from your women what happened Kraven. I also tried to console them."

Kraven was surprised when he took the phone, and Lady Andrea touched his wrist softly and spoke. "I'm truly so very sorry Kraven." Kraven nodded wordlessly as he got out of the care, and along with a grim faced and silent Nigel, led the way towards the hospital to see what exactly had happened to Violet.

Newly minted DHS agent Kenneth Cromwell straightened his silk tie habitually as he watched the group of three hardened killers, and oddly enough what appeared to be a beat cop, make their grim and silent approach. "Probably coming to finish the job." He muttered to himself as he moved to intercept the group. DHS Agent Cromwell was unaware that the two older, and wiser by far, agents had exchanged knowing looks and moved well away, they hoped, from the line of fire.

Kraven watched the government dandy approach with an arrogant sneer on his artificially tanned face without breaking stride. The dandy held his badge up in his left hand, and held his right up to stop the quartet. "You four are done with that poor girl. I'm with the DHS, and I'm taking you into custody for domestic terr-urgh." That was as far as he got before Kraven buried his left fist up to the wrist in the man's soft stomach. As the man bent over Kraven paused long enough to grab him by the back of the head and assist in his downward path, all the while bringing his knee up as fast and hard as possible.

Both of the older agents cringed when face met knee, and face lost; badly. "Terrible thing to be so clumsy, don't you agree Bryan?" Spoke the SAS Colonel in a conversational tone of voice. The beat cop nodded in a sage manner and paused to offer a piece of advice to the stunned older DHS agents.

"Take 'im back to his dear sweet mum's tit before he has another accident. The next one may actually hurt the poor bastard." Both men hadn't realized just how the other law enforcement agencies felt about them until after Bryan and Grizzly Adams had disappeared into the hospital, when the few muted snickers they had been hearing, quickly grew into full blown laughter as the hospital staff rushed out to help the moaning agent Cromwell.

Kraven paused just inside the doorway to the emergency room and looked around somewhat lost. It had been years since he had been inside a hospital, and the vague sensation of his skin crawling didn't help matters any. The over three weeks it had taken Kraven to carry her back to Nome after rescuing Violet he had used natural herbs and things from the bounty of God's creation to heal the physical wounds she had suffered.