AN: I absolutely adored this episode, and it was really fun to write this tag too. The only thing I would've changed about the ep is that I would've put Jack with Riley and Bozer looking for Mac, but oh well. It was fantastic, and I really loved it. I don't know how long it's going to be until my next fic, because I am still planning it. Next up is a werewolf AU for my sister, and I am very excited for it! I hope you like this tag, and please leave a review!
Throughout the entire experience, Mac just kept thinking about Jack. The thoughts themselves varied a lot, but they were almost always about Jack.
When he was first taken, Mac's first thought was that Jack would save him within the hour, because Jack always saved him. It took him a minute to remember that Jack wasn't with them, that he had gone with Matty to relocate Ethan. Jack had wanted to go with them, but Mac had insisted that it was a training mission for Riley and Bozer, and he was perfectly qualified to teach it alone. Mac had assured his partner they would be perfectly fine, and he could take care of things. Besides, Matty really needed a close friend for emotional support, and Jack fit the bill perfectly. That had been enough to convince him that it was okay to let Mac handle it on his own. After being kidnapped, Mac quickly wished that he hadn't been so convincing. Even though Jack always just somehow knew when Mac was in trouble, the man was all the way in Nebraska, and wouldn't be able to get to him in time to save him even if he knew the very minute that Mac was taken. Mac was going to have to get himself out of it. He wasn't exactly able to do that, but Riley and Bozer were.
But Mac was also glad that Jack wasn't there. He hated the thought of his friends getting hurt, and he knew that Jack would likely get hurt trying to save him, just because the man would take every risk there was to get him back. It wasn't that Bozer and Riley wouldn't risk their lives to save his, but it was different. They had a bit more self-preservation than Jack did when it came to saving his life, and that was something that Mac was very thankful for.
Still, when Giovanni hit him and then held him back by his hair, all Mac could think was how badly he wanted Jack to be there. He'd gotten very good over the years at hiding his fear, but he was terrified. This man was going to kill him when all was said and done, whether or not Mac did what he asked. There was no question about it. And if he saw Bozer and Riley again, he was going to kill them too. The man was forcing him back, exposing his neck and holding his head by the hair at a cruel angle. It hurt more than the punch did, and Mac knew that if Jack were there, he would've been screaming at the man to let him go, that he couldn't help them if he were hurt too badly, that he was just a kid and the man should pick on someone his own size - whether or not the last one was actually true didn't matter, because Jack would shout it anyway. Jack would do anything to get Giovanni's attention off Mac and onto him, because he wouldn't hurt Mac if he were too busy being annoyed by Jack. On the one hand, Mac would've killed for Jack to be there to protect him, especially when he was so terrified of this man who was so cruel, not only to him but to his own men, but on the other hand, Mac never wanted Jack to get hurt, ever. It was better this way. It was better that Mac was kidnapped alone. That way, hopefully, he would be the only one to die - better him than anyone else.
All those thoughts left his mind when he was shot. All he wanted was Jack, and he wanted him immediately. As the adrenaline left him and he was lying on the ground, trying to keep himself from screaming, the pain just spiked up more and more and he just wanted Jack to be there, to tell him that everything was going to be okay, that he was going to be fine. It just hurt so damn bad and once Bozer and Riley were there, despite the brave face he tried to put on for them, because they were already worried enough, it only hurt more. He was proud of Bozer and Riley for taking care of him and wrapping it so well, but he couldn't control his screams of pain the whole time. It just hurt too much, and there wasn't a calloused hand holding his or running fingers through his hair. Jack was always there to distract him when it hurt this much, so where was he? Mac had to keep reminding himself that Jack was in Nebraska. He was barely able to keep himself from asking out loud. He didn't want to scare Bozer and Riley more than he already had, and if he were to start asking about Jack, that would officially put him as delirious. Mac couldn't do that, he had to keep it together, at least until he got to the medevac. That's what Jack would help him to do. Jack would hold him and tell him it was okay and keep him calm. Although those thoughts made him miss his partner even more, they calmed Mac enough bite down on his screams and keep it together.
Still, he just wanted Jack. Mac squeezed his eyes shut against the oncoming tears. It hurt so damn bad and he was exhausted and freezing and he just wanted his partner. Mac was glad that Bozer and Riley couldn't see him from their position in carrying the sled, because that meant they couldn't see the two tears that escaped.
Even after Jack figured out who it was in the picture, he knew something was still wrong, and that something had absolutely nothing to do with some old bad guy. Something was wrong with Mac. He just knew it.
"How long is their training supposed to last?" he asked Matty out of the blue. He knew none of them would have their phones until it was over.
"It should be a few days still, Jack. I know you worry about them, but they really are adults and fully fledged agents, even Bozer, and they will be fine," Matty gently explained. "Mac is okay." She knew him too well.
"I don't know, Matty," Jack replied, shaking his head with a scowl. "Something has felt off ever since this morning, before the picture even got to my phone, and it still feels wrong. I know something's wrong, I just know it." He always had a sixth sense when it came to his kid. It was rare that he was wrong about something like this. It did happen, and usually after a traumatic event, but Jack knew he was right this time, even if everyone else just chalked it up to him still being nervous after the whole manniversary disaster.
Matty's phone rang. "Speak of the devil," she muttered, taking the call. "Hey, slow down...honestly I'm not surprised...okay, call me with an update when you have one." She hung up and sighed. "I hate to say this, Jack, but you're right," she said, and Jack could practically hear her rolling her eyes.
"What happened to my kid? Is he okay?" Jack rushed out. He knew it. He just knew it.
With another sigh, Matty replied, "well, the bottom line is that while they were training, Mac got kidnapped by a group of thieves, and he ended up getting shot in the leg. He'll be fine, he's just in a lot of pain, so he's currently being airlifted to a Phoenix hospital."
It took everything Jack had to keep the car steady and on the road. All he wanted to do was stop the car and scream at Matty for letting this happen, but it was in no way her fault. None of this had anything to do with her, but his kid was hurt and probably scared and he needed to be with him, and it was only because of Matty's stupid ex-husband that he wasn't. Ethan was dead to him because of that.
But instead of lashing out, Jack white-knuckled the steering wheel and floored the gas. He was going to get there as quickly as physically possible. That meant he was not driving the whole way. The closest airport was his destination now, whether Matty liked it or not. There was no force on earth that could keep him from getting to his kid.
"I knew it," he seethed, staring straight ahead. He had very little information, but Mac getting kidnapped was never a good thing. Jack could just imagine Mac in the hands of those criminals, hurt and scared and alone and being forced to do things he didn't want to do. People always wanted that kid for something, and it was never pretty. Jack didn't know what these thieves wanted him for, but he would find out, and if those thieves weren't already dead, they might be soon, depending on what they did to his boy.
"Jack, he's gonna be okay," Matty said, her voice calm. In any other situation, it would have been soothing, but this was Mac they were talking about. His kid was hurt and there was nothing that could calm Jack down when that happened. "He has a burned hand and a GSW to the thigh. Riley and Bozer were able to stop the bleeding, so he's not in any danger at all, he just hurts. He's gonna be okay." He knew that she was right, but still, it didn't matter.
"I'm still gettin' to him as quick as I can," Jack said, turning off the road and into the turn lane for the airport. "I'm sorry, boss, but you're driving yourself home. I'm not sittin' in a car for twenty hours when my kid is hurt and scared and in a hospital." Jack pulled right up to the front of the small airport and stopped the car. He got out and went inside, not even saying goodbye to Matty. She would understand. This was Mac, his partner, his little brother, his freaking kid, that was hurt, and Matty should know that nothing would stop Jack from getting back to his kid. She hadn't said a single thing once they turned towards the airport, so clearly she wasn't at all surprised. Jack would see her back in LA anyway, but now, his full attention was turned towards getting to Mac.
Too many hours later, Jack was landing in LA and rushing towards the Phoenix hospital as quickly as possible. He'd gotten directions to Mac's room from Riley when he texted her at the airport, and nothing else. He just couldn't listen to anything else until he saw Mac with his own two eyes, and knew that the kid really was okay.
Jack ignored any and all friendly smiles in the hospital. He had one thing and one thing only on his mind: Mac. Until he was with him, all pleasantries were out the window.
Much later than he had wanted to be there, Jack was finally right outside Mac's room. He walked right in, and his heart stopped at the sight of his partner lying so still in that hospital bed. Riley and Bozer were occupying the two chairs next to the bed.
"How is he?" Jack asked, surprised that his voice was steady. He had just been so worried about the kid and now here he was.
Both Riley and Bozer turned to look at him before Riley answered, saying, "he passed out during the procedure, and he hasn't woken up yet." She looked back at Mac, and resumed gently rubbing her thumb along his hand.
"You mean he wasn't already out when the surgery started?" Jack asked, his eyes widening.
"He kind of refused anesthesia..." Bozer muttered, not meeting Jack's gaze.
Jack sighed and rubbed a hand over his face in frustration. Of course. Because this was Mac they were talking about, and he would rather pass out in pain than let drugs do the work for him.
"Okay," he finally replied with a thin lipped smile, clapping his hands together. This shouldn't be a surprise at all, really. Accepting it and moving on was the best thing to do for the moment. "Now, tell me what happened, and I need to hear everything," Jack said.
Riley looked at Bozer, then Jack. "Well, we realized something was wrong when we woke up and noticed that Mac was gone..."
Riley continued on to explain how they searched for him, and what they found at the cliff. She told him about the man who answered their distress call in a very Hans Gruber fashion, dispatching the man that found them, and finally getting to Mac. When it got time to talk about Mac's wound and what they had to do, Bozer took over, realizing that Riley was getting emotional about it. Jack would never fault her for that. She had such a big heart, and she really cared about their family. Bozer explained dressing the wound, while Riley just sat there, not meeting Jack's gaze. She looked haunted. Jack knew exactly what that meant, and it broke his heart even more. That meant that Mac screamed. It meant that Mac was in so much pain that he was completely unable to hide it from them, and he screamed and whimpered and cried out and it was all that Riley could hear, even now. Jack knew that feeling all too well. Those sounds were the soundtrack to his nightmares.
"We'll let you be alone with him for a while," Bozer said, standing up after finishing with how they got Mac to the hospital. Riley nodded and joined him, but not before kissing her hand and laying it on Mac's forehead. The sight made Jack smile. Riley had grown into such an incredible young woman, and an amazing big sister.
Jack sank down into the uncomfortable chair that Riley had vacated, closest to Mac. He sighed, taking in the kid's appearance. Mac had bruises on his pale face, and a split lip. One of his hands was bandaged, and his right leg was elevated. Jack was pretty confident that if he looked, he would find a myriad of matching bruises on the kid's torso. That's just how Mac's luck worked.
"Oh, kid," he sighed, shaking his head. He should've been there. Maybe he would've been able to stop those psychopaths from getting their hands on the boy at all. He at least would have been able to actually do something. Jack took a gentle hold of Mac's hand in his, and lightly squeezed. "I know I wasn't there, but I'm here now. I'm here now, Mac, and I'm not goin' anywhere." Jack looked up when he felt the hand he was holding squeeze back. "Mac, bud, you can wake up now, I'm right here, Jack's here now, it's all okay."
After a moment, Mac's eyes slowly opened, and quickly latched onto Jack. "You're here," he said, his voice raspy. Mac's eyes filled with tears, and he quickly started to blink them away. But he couldn't get rid of them all. "You're here," he repeated as a single tear fell. Mac closed his eyes and leaned towards Jack.
"Yeah, kiddo, I'm right here," Jack said. He quickly pulled the chair even closer, and leaned forward to wrap his arms around his kid as much as he could. He could feel Mac grip his shirt with his unbandaged hand. Jack started to rub gentle circles on Mac's back, and felt the kid's head come to rest on his shoulder. "I'm right here," he repeated in a whisper. "It's all okay now. I'm so sorry I wasn't there, but I'm never leaving you again. I'm never letting this happen again. It's gonna be okay."
Jack could feel Mac's hand against him grip his shirt even tighter as the kid's bandaged hand came around to rest gently on Jack's arm. Mac was trying to pull himself as close to Jack as he possibly could.
"I've got you now, it's all gonna be okay. I am so, so proud of you, kid," he said, moving one hand up to Mac's hair to gently run his fingers through it. That was a surefire way to always calm Mac. "Riley and Boze told me all about what you did, and I am so proud of you. You did so good, kiddo."
"Just wanted you there," Mac muttered, his voice muffled by Jack's shoulder. "I was scared and I just wanted you there."
Jack knew that even though Mac had refused the drugs earlier, there were definitely drugs running through that IV now, because it was very rare, even when he was in pain, for Mac to vocally admit that he was scared.
"I know, kid, and I'm so sorry I wasn't there. I should've been- I should've been there to save you, but I'm here now, and I'm not goin' anywhere. I've got you." Jack just continued to hold him, and it seemed to work. After a few minutes of holding him in silence, Mac's breathing had evened back out, and his grip had loosened significantly on Jack's shirt. He was barely holding on anymore. The kid had fallen asleep in Jack's arms.
With a sad smile on his face, Jack very slowly and carefully untangled the two of them, and pulled the covers up on Mac as far as he could. He didn't want the kid to be cold ever again. But even though he was asleep again, getting the rest his body had been deprived of, Jack wasn't going anywhere. He kept that gentle hold of Mac's hand, and he wasn't letting go. He was never letting go.