Here it is, guys. The finale.

Enjoy.

…or not.

"How's it going, Spike?"

"All set, Boss," replied Team One's tech expert, straightening to his full height. He had just attached a wireless security micro-camera to a flower arrangement sitting atop the nightstand next to Sam's bed. "We will able to see everything that happens in here."

"Everything?" Sam made a face. "You mean, I won't be having any privacy at all?"

Ed shrugged. "Hey, it was your idea, Samo. Now live with it."

"Just because I suggested it, doesn't mean I like to be on video surveillance 24/7," Sam complained. "It's kind of intrusive, don't you think?"

"Sam, we will continue to put you under surveillance until we catch the Cop's Killer, even if it would take us months to do that," the Sergeant firmly said. "We are not taking any chances."

"But—"

"Just shut up and say, 'Thanks, Boss'," Jules cut him off with a menacing glare.

Swallowing his protest, Sam avoided her gaze and mumbled, "Thanks, Boss."

"That's more like it." Leah chuckled. "Now just relax and get into character as the wounded cop. It shouldn't be too hard, right?"

"Yeah, whatever," Sam responded, as he continued to scowl at Spike. "But if any of these comes out in YouTube…"

"It would get a million hits and you're gonna be famous!" was Spike's cheery response. "Imagine that, Samtastic. You, a YouTube star. And with that crooked nose…Wow. Chicks would dig it!"

"Okay, guys. That's enough," Parker announced, smiling in amusement at the bantering. "Let's get to our posts, people. It's time for showdown."

An hour earlier, they all had sat in Sam's room to watch the morning news. Inspector Derek Westin had appeared on television as planned, holding a press conference to announce the latest updates on the Cop's Killer. Keeping Sam's name under wraps, Westin mentioned everything else about the abduction and the rescue. He remarked that his task force was getting close to catch the serial murderer now that there was a surviving victim to aid the investigation.

"The Cop's Killer is getting sloppy," Westin had confidently told the media reps, using Sam's exact words. "He has made the biggest mistake by taking this courageous police officer, who vows to help us in every way he can to bring the unsub to justice."

When one of the reporters raised a question about Sam's current condition, Westin had answered, "The officer is still in ICU at St. Simon Hospital, recuperating. Though he is badly injured, he's gonna pull through. For once, the Cop's Killer has failed. And he will continue to fail because we're going to stop him, once and for all."

With that, the trap was set. Now they just needed to wait for the fish to take the bait.

As Ed, Spike and Leah hurriedly left the room, Parker paused to ask, "Sam, you're sure you still want to go through with this?"

With a brief glance at Jules, Sam replied, "Yeah, I'm sure."

"It's not too late to back down. We can get someone else to stand in for you."

"I'm not backing down, Boss. I can handle myself. It's gonna be okay."

"Okay." The Sergeant nodded. Before leaving, he added, "Let us know if you change your mind, though."

Sam shook his head as he turned to Jules. "I will not change my mind. I want to get this over and done with, before more cops could get hurt."

"I understand that, sweetheart. But you also need to remember that you're risking your own life," she said. "Things could go wrong in many different ways."

"I have faith, because Team One is covering my back. Besides, I got the most lethal nurse looking after me." Sam grinned lasciviously back at her. "Honey, you look real sexy wearing that."

Looking down at the borrowed nurse uniform that she had on, Jules shrugged. "I bet you said that to all the nurses here."

"Only the one with a Glock strapped to her thigh and with my baby growing inside her womb." Looking a bit woeful, he reached over to stroke her belly. "Jules, when I was hanging there, I…I was afraid."

She cupped his jaw and asked, "Afraid of what?"

"I was afraid that I won't be able to see our baby being born." He looked up at her, blinking back tears. "And that I won't…I won't be there to raise and protect her, to hear her call me 'Daddy'. I was afraid that she would grow up without even knowing me."

"Oh, honey." Sighing, Jules tenderly kissed him on his bruised cheek. "Look, let's get some things straight. First of all, we still don't know whether it's a girl or a boy."

"My gut feelings tell me it's a girl." Sam smiled back. "And they're never wrong."

"Right. And if it is a girl, you're gonna make her wear mini Kevlar vest and chastity belt the minute she knows how to walk, but let's discuss that some other time," she retorted with a roll of her eyes. "Secondly, you don't need to be afraid of anything, Sam. You're still here, you've survived. Even if you hadn't, I would tell our child every single day what a great and wonderful man you are, and what makes me love you so damned much. She—or he—would know you through me. Nevertheless, I knew it in my heart that our baby will have both parents in its life. Rest assured that the team and I will keep you safe from this Cop's Killer."

"I know you will." Gently, he pulled her down to kiss her. Lying almost on top of him, she returned the kiss with as much ardor as he showed her. They were still at it when their Boss stepped into the room without warning.

As the two lovebirds froze like statues, Parker simply blinked for a heartbeat before he wordlessly went to collect his Filofax that he had left forgotten on the foot of Sam's bed. Calmly, the Sergeant walked back to the door and said, "Carry on."

When he was gone, Sam and Jules exchanged chagrined looks, stifling their laughter.

"I'd better get into position before I get myself fired," she said and pulled away. "I should be protecting the patient, not taking advantage of him."

"I like you taking advantage of me." Sam grinned back. "Can I get a sponge bath too?"

"Sure. I'll tell Oliver to give you one," was her snarky comeback before she walked out, causing him to wince. Oliver was the male orderly who had been assigned to give Sam any physical assistance. The man was tall, strong and handsome. He also liked Sam. A lot.

Obviously, Sam wasn't only popular among the female population of the hospital staffs.

His cellphone chose that moment to buzz. Jules had brought it over and it now sat on the nightstand. Grunting a bit, Sam reached for it. The call was from Spike.

"Yeah, buddy. What do you want?"

"Dude, you are so on YouTube!" Spike exulted and quickly rang off.

Horrified, Sam whipped his head around to glare at the micro-camera nestled among the flowers just inches from his bed. Looks like Sergeant Parker wasn't the only one who had seen him making out with Jules just now. His face burning, Sam flipped a bird at the camera. He swore he could hear Spike's laughter booming from the security control room, the team's command post for the current mission.

Warily, Sam lay back against the pillows and settled in to wait. A very long wait.

The whole day, Team One anticipated for the Cop's Killer to appear. After afternoon had dragged into evening and still nothing happened, they were prepared to accept that either the subject had not seen the news or he was still planning to make his move.

"Maybe he won't come after all," said Jules from her seat in front of the monitors at the command post, where she was resting her feet. "This guy is smart. He might have figured out that we're setting up a trap for him."

Jules had positioned herself at the nurse station since that morning, blending in with the staffs, so that she could have a good look at everyone arriving on the floor. So far, besides the staffs, all she saw were the worried relatives who came to visit their ailing love ones. No sign of the subject, as if he would wear a sign around his neck saying 'I am the Cop's Killer'. He could have walked right in front of her and she still couldn't tell the difference, that was how limited the descriptions the team had on him.

"Yes, he is smart. But he's also an arrogant son of a bitch. His ego has just taken a beating in front of national television. He's not gonna sit around and keep quiet. He will retaliate, sooner or later," said Ed, getting out of the grey jumpsuit he wore over his uniform. "And it had better be soon because I'm sweating buckets inside this getup!"

Spike chuckled. "Ed, you make a mean-looking electrician. And an unconvincing one too. You should know better not to poke a screwdriver inside a power socket!"

"It's a test pen, not a screwdriver."

"Oh, really? You can actually tell the difference?"

Ed glared back. "Whatever. I was just trying to look the part."

"Yeah, you certainly look the part as the man who has absolutely no idea what he's doing. If you continue to check the circuit breaker every few minutes, the hospital will start thinking you're an electrical hazard before they throw us out on our asses!"

Parker shook his head, smiling. "Spike's right, Ed. Maybe you should change your disguise."

"What should I be now? A surgeon?" Ed grumbled. "But I can't hide my Glock under the scrubs."

"Come on, Ed. Be creative," said Jules, rising to her feet. "I bet you have no idea where I hid my Glock."

Ed ran a quick gaze up and down her body before he hastily dragged his eyes away. "What the hell am I doing? Sophie would skin me alive if she knew I tried to mentally…um…"

"Mentally undress me? Don't worry, I'm used to it. I got that a lot from Sam." Chuckling, Jules turned to speak into her button mike. "How's Sam doing, Leah?"

"He is deeply asleep, as you can see from your monitor," Leah responded, her voice sounded clear through their wireless earphone. Also disguised as a nurse, she had taken over Jules' position an hour before. "The doctors have come to examine him again. They said Sam's fever is still rising, but nothing life threatening."

"Okay, I'm going over there—"

"Jules, stay. You've had your turn, now it's Leah's," Parker said, squeezing her shoulder. "Don't worry too much, alright? Sam is in good hands."

Earlier in the day, exactly at noon, Sam's condition suddenly started to deteriorate. As he grew weaker, his body temperature had risen and his breathing grew more labored. The doctors then diagnosed it as pulmonary edema, which meant that fluid had been traced inside Sam's lungs. He had been given a few doses of diuretics to remove the fluid. In the meantime, he had to wear an oxygen mask to help him breathe.

"I think we should abort this mission, Boss," Jules remarked, sitting back down. "We didn't expect Sam's condition to take a turn for the worst. He's not up to this."

"I hear you, Jules," said Ed. "But we've already asked Sam about this, and what did he say?"

"He still wants us to carry on." Jules looked crestfallen. "But then he could be delirious. It was the fever speaking."

Spike laughed. "Even in his sleep, Sam can still recite the alphabets. Don't worry, Jules. Sam's mind is sound. He knows what he's doing."

"Doesn't mean I have to like it, though," she muttered. Turning to Parker, Jules asked, "What if the subject never shows up? We can't be here forever, right?"

"Team Four will take over in another couple of hours as scheduled," the Sergeant responded. "And when they arrive, I want you to go home and sleep. No question asks."

Jules opened her mouth to protest, but then she remembered the other soul she was carrying within her. She sighed. "Copy that, Sarge."

As night fell, visiting hours was limited to immediate relatives only. The staffs were also cut down to half, leaving only the resident personnel to roam the silent hallways. The originally quiet floor where the ICU was situated grew even more hushed and serene.

"Leah, what's the situation on your end?" Parker's voice came into the com link to check the status, as he had been doing every thirty minutes.

"Nothing major, Boss," Leah replied from her seat at the nurse station. "A man just arrived to see his comatose wife, and the Williams couple still sits with their dying son. All clear."

"Copy."

Spike was monitoring the cameras when he noticed someone getting off the floor. "Guys, a man just emerges from the elevator."

"Yeah, I see him," said Ed, now posing as a janitor, from his position at the end of the corridor where he was mopping the floor. "Wait, he's a priest."

"What's a priest doing here at this hour?" Jules wondered out loud.

"I guess we're gonna find out," Leah whispered as the man wearing all black except for the white clerical collar walked straight towards the nurse station.

"Good evening, miss. I'm Father Murphy."

"Good evening, Father," responded Nurse Peggy Lee, the head nurse on duty that night. "Anything we can help you with?"

"Yes…uh…the Williams are expecting me," said the priest, clutching a Bible close to his chest.

"The Williams?"

"Their son is in death bed," he explained. "I've been called to come sit with them and say prayers for little Timmy."

"Oh, right. Mr. and Mrs. Williams," Nurse Peggy exclaimed, all smiles. "Of course, Father. Come with me. I'll take you to them."

"Thank you." The priest nodded with a smile and followed her to a room down the hallway.

"You catch that, Boss? He's here for the Williams and their kid."

"Loud and clear, Leah. Continue with the lookout."

"Yes, Sarge."

"Guys, we have one more hour before we exchange shift with Team Four. Stay sharp and keep your eyes open."

"Copy that."

Rolling his head from side to side, Sam looked around him in a daze.

Where the heck is everybody?

He had just woken up and found himself entirely alone. He had no idea what time it was, but the position of the full moon right outside the window told him that it might be around ten o'clock. It had been quite a while since he last saw a moon so beautiful, so he just lay there and stared at it in awe.

He must have drifted off, because soon afterwards he was jerked back to awareness by the sound of soft footsteps entering the room. Turning his head, he saw that a priest was approaching his bed. Sam blinked.

Whoa. Do I need the last rites after all?

Reaching for his oxygen mask, Sam slipped it off his face before he croaked, "Uh…can I help you?"

The priest smiled. "Sure you can, cop."

Sam's face instantly drained off all color. He knew that voice.

Fuck. It's him.

Before he could cry out a warning to his team, the man in the priest garb lunged and grabbed Sam around the throat, squeezing the life out of him. Still weakened, Sam could barely fight for release. Flailing helplessly about, he slipped one hand under his pillow.

"Die, cop! Why don't you just die!" the subject was screaming.

Nearly blacking out from the pain and lack of air, Sam yanked his hand from the pillow, a stun gun now in his grip. He jabbed the thing against the man's side, sending millions of volts into his body. With the subject's hands still wrapped around his neck, Sam felt the current too, stunning him.

In his panicked struggle, the subject flung himself to the floor with a shrill scream, dragging Sam along with him. Sam landed hard on his hip, losing his grip on the stun gun. It went sliding under the bed. Swearing, the other man pushed himself to his feet. He staggered towards the wall and grabbed a fire extinguisher hanging there.

Disoriented, Sam could only watch helplessly as the man raised the heavy canister and prepared to smash it down onto his head!

Inside the security control room around the corner about a hundred yards away, Spike had been frowning at the monitors. "What in the world…?"

"What is it, Spike?" Parker asked, watching over Spike's shoulder.

"It's the priest. He just left the Williams and is entering Sam's room," the tech wizard said, pointing at the screen. "See that?"

"What does he want?" Puzzled, Jules also stared at the monitor.

"Whatever it is, he's not supposed to—holy shit!" Spike jumped out of his chair and ran out of the room, Jules and Parker hot on his heels. "Ed, Leah, it's the priest! He's strangling Sam!"

"On it." Ed dropped the mop and started running, the Glock already in his hand. He met Leah at Sam's doorway and they simultaneously burst inside, their guns at the ready.

"Police! SRU! Don't move, don't move!"

Surprised, the subject froze with the fire extinguisher high above his head. Ed moved closer with his gun trained on the man. "Sir, put it down. Slowly, do it now!"

His eyes wild with anger at the interruption, the subject looked to his left and right, only to realize that he was completely surrounded. Parker and Spike had also arrived, blocking the only door with their weapons raised. Leah and Jules meanwhile had taken position in each corner. There was no way out.

"Put that thing down, sir. I'm not telling you again," Ed commanded.

Despite it all, the subject grinned. "Go to hell."

As he was about to bring down the heavy red cylinder onto Sam's head, Spike took a running leap and tackled the subject around the waist, sending them both crashing against the wall. The fire extinguisher, all fifteen pounds of it, fell harmlessly away from its intended target.

While the others worked together to cuff the subject, Jules knelt down next to Sam. "Are you okay?"

Sam nodded, albeit wearily. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" Ed asked, pulling his teammate upright.

"Except for a sore ass, I'm real peachy," Sam grumbled, rubbing his aching hip which had hit the floor. To Spike, he said, "Yo, buddy. Awesome tackle, man."

Spike grinned back. "I've wanted to do that for ages!"

Parker was already on the phone with Inspector Westin as Ed and Jules helped Sam back into bed. When Leah and Spike was leading the subject towards the door, he suddenly stopped to glare at his last victim.

"I got to give it to you, cop. That was real smart, setting up this trap," he mockingly said.

"Be quiet and get moving!" Spike yelled with a shove but the subject firmly planted his feet, his full attention still on Sam.

"What, you think this is all over?" he spat with full vengeance. "Just because you're still alive, doesn't mean you're completely free, cop! Every night before you go to sleep, you're gonna remember me. You will never forget what I did to you, the way I beat the shit out of you, how I broke all your ribs before I stripped you naked and hang you up in the tree, leaving you for the—oof!"

Jules had quietly left Sam's side to step closer towards the subject before she rammed her fist into his crotch. As the man folded over with a low keening moan, Jules said with pure steel in her voice, "In case you're wondering, that's not police brutality because I've just finished my shift and I'm not even in my own uniform. No, I'm not a cop right now, I'm just a real mad girlfriend. So you had better shut your trap before I smash your nuts again, only this time I will use the damned fire extinguisher!"

It was hard to tell who was more surprised, the subject or her teammates.

Stifling his smiles, Parker told Spike and Leah, "Get him out of here before Jules put him in ICU. Permanently."

Chuckling, they dragged the subject out. He still couldn't stand straight, moaning and whimpering the entire way. Sam sat grinning at Jules like an idiot.

"Damn, you're hot," he told her.

Though he was still not fully recovered, Sam looked so happy that it made Jules' heart soar with equal joy. She leaned down to kiss his forehead. "Anything for you, honey."

Turning to Ed and the Sergeant, she emitted a guilty shrug. "Sorry for that outburst. I just couldn't control myself. Blame it on my shifting hormones."

The other two men exchanged looks and broke into grins.

"Actually, Jules," Parker said, "You beat us to it."

"Yeah," Ed added, "I think that poor bastard will always remember it and wouldn't dare touch Sam again!"

"His real name is Alan Turner. He's forty two years old, no wife and no kids. And no, he is not a priest," said Sergeant Parker as he stood with Inspector Westin in the hospital compound, watching the Cop's Killer being driven away to the downtown station for processing. Caught at last, the brutal serial murderer would be stuck behind bars for a very long time.

"How the hell did he manage to pass himself as Father Murphy?" Westin wanted to know. "The couple with the dying kid, are they his accomplices?"

"The Williams?" Sadly, Parker shook his head. "No, they have nothing to do with this. Turner somehow managed to sweet talk one of the nurses earlier during the day. He gathered from her some details about other patients on Sam's floor. He capitalized from that knowledge and picked the Williams as his key for a way in, disguising himself as a priest. The Williams didn't call for a priest for their son. When Turner came, they thought he was provided by the hospital itself. The couple insisted that Turner makes a very convincing priest, so they didn't suspect anything."

Parker continued to inform the Inspector about the background check Spike had just made on Alan Turner. He looked grim as he recalled their findings after Turner's name had been run through the databases. "The subject owned a tow-truck business and has several criminal records. Nothing big, mostly DUI and public disturbance. About a year ago his younger brother, Alex, got involved in a street brawl. It was drug related. Alex was taken into custody, only to die in jail hours later. Alan firmly believed that the cops had abused his brother, but the police denied the accusation.

"Alan then filed a case to court. It is never put on trial, not enough evidence. The autopsy also revealed that Alex Turner had been hit on the head during the brawl. An internal bleeding was determined as the COD. Alan can't accept that, however. He thinks it's all a big cover up. He hired another lawyer but can't afford the fee, and so he put up his business as collateral. In the end, he loses everything."

Westin sighed with a shake of his head. "His motive is personal indeed. He wants retribution for his brother's death."

"I can understand his anger. But in his desperation to seek justice, Turner has lost all reasons and crossed the line. He did far more evil crimes when he took those innocent lives."

"Luckily, your team is able to capture him before more cops are killed. Thanks for your help, Sergeant. I admit, my team and I feel quite bad for taking all the credits when it was you guys who actually did the hard work."

Parker grinned as he shook the other cop's hand. "We were just protecting our own, Inspector. It's what we do."

"Say, how is Sam doing? I heard Turner managed to get his hands on him again."

"Sam is gonna be fine. The doctors said his condition is steadily improving. After he gets some R&R, Sam will bounce back into full recovery."

"He is one crazy son of a bitch though, putting himself as bait like that," Westin reverently said. "He could have gotten himself killed."

"Well, he did it for all of us, his brothers and sisters in arms. Sam is a soldier, through and through."

"Yeah, I hear you. Anyway, thanks again, Sergeant. We'll keep in touch."

After Westin had left, Parker took himself back inside to the command post where Spike and Ed were packing things up. "All set to go?"

"Yeah, Boss," Spike replied. "I only need to collect the camera from Sam's room."

"No, let me. Besides, I need to talk to the hospital management. You guys finish up in here. Where are Leah and Jules?"

"The last I saw, they were in Sam's room, spoiling him as if he were a royal prince or something," Ed said, rolling his eyes heavenward. "And of course, Sam laps it all up, like the royal pain in the ass that he is."

"The girls certainly did a good job playing nurse," Spike commented, still chuckling, "Unlike Ed here."

"What are you talking about? I played my part very well," Ed protested.

"Buddy, not only you suck as electrician, you also suck as janitor!"

Laughing, Parker left them to their banter and headed for Sam's room. There, he found Leah standing in the doorway, looking inside with a benign smile.

"What is it, Leah?"

She nudged her chin towards the bed. "See for yourself, Boss."

Parker took a look and couldn't help smiling himself. Somehow, Sam and Jules managed to fit on the narrow bed as they lay cuddled under the blankets, their foreheads touching. Both were deeply asleep.

"Should I wake her up and tell her we're leaving?" asked Leah, only half serious.

"Nah," Parker quietly responded. "Let's leave them be."

And that was exactly what they did.

THE END

Everyone, thank you so much for reading, with extra hugs and kisses to those who spent their precious time reviewing. I hope you've enjoyed the story, as much as I enjoyed writing them (Yeah, I admit, the main purpose is to give Sam some whumps. LOL!).

Seriously, Season 5 grows more incredible every week. Only two episodes left before the explosive finale. I just can't wait! Arggggghhhh! The waiting is killing me!

Oh, and I hope it's still not too late to wish 'Happy Birthday' to David Paetkau. Selamat Hari Jadi, David. You look as if you never aged. What the heck is your secret? Do you have a fountain of youth hidden somewhere?

Well, until next time, guys. C U L8er!

Adromir has left the building…only to come back later with more torment for Sam…muahahahahaha… ^_^