Chapter Text
The helicopter ride was something of a rush. They boarded with a barely conscious Luis, so getting him set and secure inside the chopper was somewhat of a challenge.
It should have felt like eternity, those two hours to the hangar where they were going to board their ride to the US, but minutes went between Leon's fingers like water.
Once they reached the hangar, time didn’t wait for them. The only people there were the strictly necessary to make a secure take off. There was no one with more medical knowledge than Leon had, which wasn’t much beyond first aid kits and patching different kinds of wounds on the field, and he already did that to Luis.
Ashley suggested asking for a medical team who could help Luis, but after giving a little consideration Leon decided their best bet was to reach the US as soon as possible, otherwise they were risking Luis being apprehended in Spain, in which case none of them could help him and in the worst case scenario it could potentially develop into a diplomatic conflict.
Leon could see the worry and anxiety in Ashley's face as they tried, as best as they could, to keep Luis alive. He tried to reassure her as much as he could, but he knew she knew he wasn’t sure if their new friend was going to make it.
Between turbulence and the frantic and clumsy attempts at medical stabilization they somewhat found a little time to rest, Ashley got a couple of much needed hours of sleep, but neither of them could eat much, Leon made sure ashley was at least hydrated enough and he tried to munch on his protein rations a little. His stomach felt like lead though.
When they finally touched solid soil, the sense of urgency Ashley and Leon were feeling skyrocketed.
There were at least five paramedics and half a dozen agents Leon didn’t recognize.
The paramedics rushed to Ahsley as soon as he made sure she was safely out of the jet.
The agents, however, raised their weapons as soon as Leon managed to put a, by this point, very unconscious Luis on the ground.
“We are here to arrest Luis Serra Navarro” one of them said, in full gear.
“You can do that later, he needs medical attention, immediately!” Leon said while checking if Luis still had a pulse, he wasn't sure if it was the change to natural lighting, but he was looking so much paler suddenly.
“our orders say we need to take him into custody as soon as he puts foot in American soil”
There it was, feeble, but there. Something fluttering worryingly rapid below Leon's trembling fingers.
“Didn’t you hear me? He needs medical attention, he is dying!” Leon yelled, if he wasn’t so afraid Luis was gonna die in his arms at that moment he would have stood up and punched the agent square in the face.
“we were instructed to…”
The agent could not finish that sentence, Ashley, with maybe the same desperation Leon was feeling, got rid of all the paramedics fussing around her and planted herself in front of the unreasonable agent.
“Didn’t you hear? He is dying! How are you going to explain to your superiors you left your prisoner to die from blood loss? how are you going to explain to my dad you left to die the man who saved his daughter’s life?”
She looked so fucking done. Leon could relate.
The agent didn’t say a thing.
Ashley turned around and yelled at the paramedics standing there, doing nothing.
“What are you waiting for? The man has a stab wound on his back! isn’t your job to save lives? get moving!”
That seemed to put the paramedics into action.
The next couple of minutes were chaotic. Two paramedics reached to assess Luis’ condition and ask Leon questions. He detailed everything he did back in the mines, when he got stabbed and what Hunnigan had instructed him to do during the flight.
Another paramedic was using his radio to call for a gurney and ask for a helicopter to the military hospital and for the ER to be ready.
He was giving locations and vitals with an efficiency that made Leon finally relax a little.
He didn't leave Luis’ side, but he was aware the other agents were receiving new orders and taking Ashley away. She was struggling and protesting but they managed to take her to the elevator.
Leon wanted to go and tell the agents to go fuck themselves and leave Ashley alone, protective instincts kicking in, but that would probably cost him a bullet to the ass or something.
Besides, he suspected her father wanted to see her as soon as possible.
When the gurney and the helicopter finally arrived, the rest of the people in the hangar, including Leon, were rushing to take Luis to the hospital as soon as possible.
Now that he was somewhat being treated, Leon finally abandoned survival mode, he still felt anxious, he hadn’t felt this kind of anxiety in years. Seeing Luis pale and unconscious on the gurney and being poked and prodded by paramedics didn’t help him feel any better.
Leon was worried he somehow ended making things worse for Luis condition on the plane and wanted to follow them to the hospital so he could make sure he reached the hospital alive.
When he made the attempt to board the helicopter where Luis was hauled moments ago, the two agents Leon hadn’t noticed staying behind stopped him.
“Agent Kennedy” one of them said “you can’t go with them, the auditor from the DSO is already here ready for your interview”
Damn it! Leon thought, these bastards were fast.
“I understand” he replied, and followed the other agent when he signaled the way back to the building where they landed.
He wasn’t sure what kind of government building he was in, but he could tell it was not a civilian one.
The decontamination chamber and protocols were the same as the DSO, so Leon went where he was told to go to start his protocol.
He went through the motions by muscle memory alone, first, putting his gear away so it could be examined, assessed and eventually incinerated, he hoped.
Once completely naked, he walked straight to the shower and turned the water on, it was lukewarm, at least.
His mind stayed with Luis, barely standing after he managed to shoot Krauser. How he seemed so ready to die for Leon.
How he had asked, on what he thought were his last moments, if people could change.
Until that moment, Leon was ready to stay with him until his last breath, so he could continue the mission because Ashley was the priority.
But everything changed after that question, something deep inside Leon stirred and he found himself looking around for a way to start a fire quickly so he could sterilize a knife and cauterize Luis’ wound.
Not only had he gone against a time race, risking Ashley's safety so he could try to give a man a second chance, but he had spent precious resources on someone most agents would have considered dead already.
So many people had died because humanity continued to play gods with nature and morphed it into something horrible, just because it gave the chance to control.
Luis might have been part of Umbrella once, but he did not ask for forgiveness, instead, he risked his ass so he could give Leon and Ashley the chance not only to escape several tough spots, but also to break free from a fanatic’s influence and get rid of las plagas inside their for good.
To Leon, words uttered in the desperation of being caught meant nothing.
Luis had risked his life for them, claiming it was because it made him feel better. Now Leon was risking something for Luis too.
During the 10+ hours flight they had, he asked Hunnigan for guidance on how to make sure Luis would make it to the US alive, and she had provided Leon and Ashley with instructions on how to install an EV line so they could give him fluids. Leon had been as precise as possible in estimating Luis weight and height and had given exactly the amount of fluids Hunnigan had suggested at the rate she suggested.
He and Ashley tried to keep him warm with what they had.
Now, while he stood in the shower washing the blood and grime away, he was thinking what he could do so Luis will be able to prove to Leon that people can, indeed, change.
Luis was going to survive. He needed to survive.
Luis should not die. He should be able to atone for what he did, or ultimately pay with prison time, but not his life. No more lives taken and wasted by bioterrorism.
Leon did everything he could.
He took a deep breath.
Everything was going to be fine. Leon knew what to do.
He finished rinsing the decontamination soap from his body and walked toward the sterilization chamber.
The sooner he gave his report, the sooner he could go ask about Luis.
He finally put on the gray fatigues that were left for him and walked toward where he was told the interview would take place.
This was far from Leon's first rodeo, and by now he knew how to manage these interviews.
He just needed to be careful remembering everything he said. Especially if he wanted to make sure Luis was safe once he is out of the hospital.
He entered the room and noticed there was no one there. Dread recoils in Leon’s gut.
The room was mostly white; white walls, white floor, white lighting. There was a water dispenser on the far right corner of the room, white, too. The furniture was the only thing that wasn't white, but an ugly and washed out shade of fake cherry hardwood.
Leon sat down and waited for the auditor to arrive. He didn’t mind most of them, the exception being auditor Cole, Leon could never tell what the other man was thinking or plotting. He was always formal and calm, like he'd be asking about stocks; never reacted, never said anything personal. He simply asked his questions and then proceeded to absolutely destroy your written reports.
He was probably the most thorough of them and it wasn’t really a surprise they would send Cole for a case like this.
His signature move was to make the agents wait a couple of minutes before he enters the room to make them sweat, while all the other auditors are already there when the agents are brought to the room.
After 5 minutes or so, Cole entered the room. He put a binder full of papers in front of Leon and sat down opposite to him.
He bowed his head as a greeting and Leon did the same.
Leon remained calm on the outside, no fidgeting, not nervous looking around the room. He knew his body language is going to be dissected to the details afterwards, when they'd reviewed the surveillance footage.
“Agent Kennedy, let’s begin so you can get your medical check up and go home. I'm sure you are tired”.
Leon bowed his head again in acknowledgment.
“I'm Damian Cole, it’s the 29th of October of 2004 and it’s exactly 16:45 pm. I’m in interview room 5 with agent Leon Scott Kennedy who's coming back from mission… “ Cole looks at his papers “classified level 9. Agent Kennedy, can you confirm your identity?”
“Agent Leon Scott Kennedy, id LKN 77843 DSO. The place, date and time of the interview are accurate”
“Thank you agent kennedy. Let me remind you that this interview is being recorded, audio and video. Everything you say here regarding your mission is going to be contrasted with your written report once you hand it over, every piece of evidence you brought is going to be reviewed here by me, auditor Cole and later, by the same auditor while reviewing your written report. Remember that you are legally liable by anything you say here, if inconsistencies between your oral and written reports are found, you can be called for another interview. You can be sued and prosecuted if you are found suspect of being untruthful, manipulating, omitting or destroying information deemed critical, sensible, important or classified above level 3 by your auditor. Are you aware of all of this?”
“Yes. I am”
Leon wasn’t really worried about lying to protect Luis, he’d been very thorough throughout the mission in destroying any memo and note that referenced Luis willingly working with the cult. They are only going to see instructions to the villagers to pursue and kill Luis, besides some other papers from Saddler himself admitting he’d played Luis into working with las plagas. It didn't matter how methodical Cole was, Leon made sure there were no holes in the narrative in his head. He also fed HUnningan just enough about Luis to not make her suspicious, likely, her report will be similar to Leon’s.
“I have here with me the preliminary report of communications specialist Ingrid Hunnigan. I'll be referencing her report as I interview you and I'll ask questions whenever I see fit” Cole explained.
Leon really hated all the protocol for these kinds of things. It was time consuming and kind of pointless.
“You can begin whenever you want agent kennedy” Cole looked straight into leon’s eyes as he said that last part, so leon started his report.
The interview lasted almost 5 hours, one of the most draining Leon’s had ever had.
He was worried about Luis and Ashley, he was tired and sore, he was kind of hungry and Cole was ruthless, he extracted every single detail out of Leon, the only questions he didn’t ask were what the colour of Saddler and Salazar’s underwear was, fortunately. But he did ask a shit ton of questions about Luis.
He knew as soon as his written report was reviewed and he was clear to start therapy and R&R, it was going to be entirely redacted, possibly destroyed.
Leon waited until Cole took all of his notes and papers and left the room to go get back his phone from the decontamination room.
He'd been working on this plan since he cauterized Luis’ injury back in Spain, he only hoped it was all worth it because he absolutely hated asking for favours.
Once he had his phone in hand he opened the app Claire installed on it so he could have a safe line to her, the BSAA and her brother Chris. He decided he needed the big guns for this one so he texted Chris directly.
New message 10292004
encrypted
[22:05] LKRC02
I need a favour.
and i know how that sounds, just hear me out.
[22:06] CHRRC
that’s a hell of a way to start a message.
what kind of favour?
[22:07] LKRC02
There’s someone I brought back from my last mission. Civilian now, former umbrella researcher.
before you send me to burn in hell, he is not a threat. He left umbrella when he realized what they were doing. already checked my intel, it’s legit.
It was a rescue mission, he helped me and my target. He almost died saving my ass.
[22:08] CHRRC
you brought back a former fucking umbrella scientist… and you want me to what? babysit him?
[22:08] LKRC02
No.
I want you to talk to him. just talk. see what you think.
if you don’t see any value in keeping him alive, fine.
look, can’t give much details because it's classified, but he made some kind of suppressant and figured a way to permanently remove some nasty shit once infected, if you get my meaning.
all i ask you is that you talk to him.
[22:08] CHRRC
Leon…
[22:09] LKRC02
Please.
[22:10] CHRRC
Fine…
Just let me know when he is deemed fit to give interviews and I'll see what I can do.
No promises.
[ 22:10] LKRC02
I'll let you know when he is out of the hospital.
thank you.
Leon sighed deeply. That went better than expected, he had expected Chris to tell him to go fuck himself.
Now he has to go and make sure Don Quixote is going to be okay and wait for him to be well enough to speak for himself.
He kind of knew Luis' condition was critical, just wasn’t sure how critical.
He needed to go to the hospital anyway, for his post mission check up, so he walked straight to the security officer to ask if he was cleared to leave.
They gave him an ID card, an NDA and a stack of forms he was supposed to hand over at the hospital. They also offered him a ride.
Whatever this building was handling, its security was as standar as it got.
He made his way to the parking lot, where a black Chevy suburban was already waiting for him. The driver, probably a specs officer or someone equally green, looked visibly annoyed about playing chauffeur.
For some reason, that amused Leon enough to keep quiet about the attitude.
He saluted lazily and climbed into the back seat.
Minutes later, they were on their way to the hospital.
His gut still clenched, sharp and cold.