As always huge thank you to anmodo for betaing this fic, without her this would not be possible.
This is a fic I have in mind in various versions since I watched No Mas and now I have finally written it.
No Mas
"And I'll go this way," Danny said to Sam as he walked to the larger of the two buildings. It was a beautiful day and he had an enjoyable drive from the city with Sam. He always enjoyed working with Sam, as he had such an easy relationship with her. They had grown so close over the years. He loved her but he could never summon up the courage to tell her.
Stepping into the building, he cast a quick glance around the large, open planned room. He heard the floor creek and swung around – but it was too late. He felt the white hot pain of the bullet tear into his chest before he heard the gunshot. He was vaguely aware of his knees buckling as he fell to the ground. He weakly clawed for his gun, but found a foot on his arm stopping him. Weakly, he looked up to the owner of the foot. He blinked several times as his eyes watered from the pain. He tried to take a breath as he found himself staring up at a gun barrel. Was this the end?
"Who the hell are you?" the gunman growled.
"I'm with the FBI," Danny replied weakly. Feeling his strength rapidly leaving his body, his vision blurred again, the voice began to sound distant.
"I can't have a witness," the gunman growled as he coldly cocked the gun.
"Y-You don't w-want t-to do t-that," Danny stammered. He closed his eyes again. It didn't really matter – he was going to die soon.
"Fine. I will just take you as my bargaining chip," the gunman growled, as he roughly pulled Danny to his feet. Looking around, the gunman started to drag Danny towards his car.
Danny cried out as he was dragged across the cold hard wooden floor. Dark spots started to dance in front of his vision. They began to grow and he didn't want to stop them. An image of a beautiful blonde woman laughing fleeted across his 'vision'. Sam, he thought. Sam didn't know about the gunman. He had to do everything he could to protect her, even if it was just using his broken body as a shield.
He tried to catch his breath, but found it impossible, as the gunman dropped him by the car. He closed his eyes briefly – he needed to think, but it was so hard with the pain that flared across his chest. Coughing violently, he tried to curl up in a protective ball – but he couldn't. The pain was too great. He wanted it to end, but he had to protect Sam. Looking up, he saw a blurry image of the gunman aiming his gun at the building that Sam was in. He had to warn her, he had to protect her. He took as deep a breath as his injuries would allow and landed a sharp kick to the gunman's ankle.
Sam spun around as she heard a man cry out in pain. Hearing a gunshot, she ducked behind a crate. Taking a quick look around the crate, she saw a thickly set man brandishing a weapon. She watched in horror as he lowered his gun and took aim at something at his feet.
"Danny," Sam yelled, not realising she had vocalized her thoughts. She ducked as the gunman swung around and fired a shot.
"FBI," she yelled. Sam ducked as the gunman fired another shot at her. Adrenaline and concern for Danny fuelled her – she felt no fear. She ran forward – firing shots at the gunman – hoping that at least one of them would hit their mark. She was vaguely aware of the gunman falling. Not breaking her stride, she approached the man and kicked his gun out of the way. She cautiously bent down and checked for a pulse – finding none, she looked around for Danny.
Danny closed his eyes as he found his world spinning violently. He was vaguely aware of the gunman standing over him. Part of him wanted the man to shoot him – because then it would be over, the pain would be gone. But he couldn't be selfish – he had Sam to think about. He had to protect her or at the very least warn her about this madman. He heard gunfire and waited for the burning pain, he waited for death – but it did not come. He shifted his sluggish brain into gear – Sam. He tried to yell a warning, but it only came out as a whisper. He felt as useless as his blood that he lay in. Biting back the pain, he tried to remain conscious.
"Danny!" Sam gasped as she knelt down next to his pale, still form. Trying to remain clam, she checked for a pulse. But how could she remain calm when she was covered in Danny's blood. She held her breath and bit back tears, as she tried to find a pulse. She breathed a sigh of relief when she found one – but it was so weak she barely felt it. "Danny," she repeated as she gently tapped his pale face.
Danny slowly blinked his open. At first he thought it was an angel standing over him, but as the pain slammed through his body, he knew he wasn't dead.
"Sam," he tried weakly.
"Danny," Sam sighed in relief as she tried to keep the fear out of her voice. "It's going to be all right, Danny, just hang in there."
"S-Sam are you hurt?" Danny asked. Closing his eyes again, he tried to bite back the pain. He knew he didn't have much time left. He had always loved Sam - but confessing his undying love to her now, would be unbelievably cruel.
"I'm fine," Sam said in slight shock. She gently stroked his hair. "Danny, I'm just going to get the first aid box, I will be right back." She watching Danny nod weakly before leaning down and gently kissing his forehead.
She forced her shaking body towards the car. With trembling fingers, she pulled out her cell phone and dialled a number.
"Malone," came a gruff reply.
"Jack… I need help, I-I'm at the C-Catskills. Please, Jack. I need help now," Sam stuttered
"Calm down," Jack said is face twisted in concern. "Now I want you to take a breath, and start again," he continued in a soft, soothing voice.
"U-Umm, I… we are at the Catskills and oh god Danny's been shot and i-its really bad," Sam rambled. She had never felt so alone, the love of her life was dying. The love of her life didn't know how she felt about him. "Jack we need chopper, I-I don't think Danny will make it otherwise."
Jack clenched his jaw and ran a shaky hand through his hair. He had never felt so useless. One of his agents was bleeding to death and there was nothing he could do. "Sam stay with Danny, okay? Now I need you tell me everything you can about his condition."
Sam hurried back to Danny; she dropped beside him and lighted kissed his cheek again. "Hold on a second, Jack," Sam said as she almost dropped the phone. She gently wrapped a blanket around Danny, reassuring him as she did. She gently moved Danny's head onto her lap and pulled a wad of gauze from the first aid box and pressed against the wound – hoping to stem the blood flow. "Hey there Danny," she whispered as Danny's eyes opened again. "Help is on its way, ok."
"Sam," Jack said as he paced his office. He had pulled Danny's file and had given all of Danny's medical history to the medics. He just hoped they weren't too late. He raced up to the roof – waiting for the chopper. "Sam," he yelled again.
"J-Jack," Sam stuttered forgetting that Jack was on the phone.
"What's Danny's condition?" Jack yelled above the chopper's engines
"U-mm, he conscious," Sam started. She wanted to hold Danny's hand – in a vain attempt to comfort him. "He's lost a lot of blood. The GSW is on his left side about halfway up his chest. His pulse is weak and his breathing is laboured," Sam said in business tone – although she didn't know how.
Jack held his head in his hands. "Okay," he said slowly as he digested the information. "Okay, u-mm. We will be with you within forty minutes, tops."
"Jack, I," Sam started but stopped. She didn't want Danny to hear that. She didn't want Danny to know that she didn't think he would be alive in forty minutes. Luckily Jack read her thoughts, as she heard him yelling to the pilot.
"I don't, my agent doesn't have forty minutes – floor the damn thing," Jack yelled to pilot. "We need to be there in 20 or less"
"Jack I've gotta go," Sam said suddenly
"Why? What's wrong – what's happening Sam?" Jack yelled
"I need to concentrate on Danny and I can't do that while I am on the phone with you," Sam explained.
"OK," Jack replied slowly. "We will be with you in less than 20 minutes." He frowned as his phone now was receiving the dial tone. He took a breath before he relayed the information to the medics.
"We tried to get some units of his blood type but as its rare and with such short notice, we couldn't get any," the medic explained.
Jack sighed and rubbed his temples. Could this day get any worse? "You are looking at eight units," he said softly. "Take as much as you need."
"Sir?"
"Danny and I have the same blood type," he explained. "Just take as much as you need to save him."
Sam gently stroked Danny's face; it felt as though there was no warmth in it at all. "Danny," she started and then stopped. Danny was dying and yet was being so brave about it, but she couldn't hold herself together. She could tell him that she loved him. "Danny, I-I, Danny there something I need you to hear."
Danny slowly opened his eyes again. He felt his senses slowly shutting down. He felt so cold, why was he so cold? He forced a small smile for Sam. "I'm going anywhere," Danny said as he joked weakly. "I'm listening."
"Danny, I-I, Danny I love you," Sam blurted out.
Danny felt a single tear roll down his face. Why was life so cruel? The woman he had loved since the day he had met her, had confessed her feelings about him. "I-I, Sam I've always l-loved y-you," Danny stuttered. He never wanted it to be this way. He didn't want it to be so weak that he could barely speak. He wanted to be full of life when he confessed his love to Sam. But life was cruel. He slowly and weakly moved his hand up and gently stroked Sam's tear-ridden cheek. "I love you, my angel." He closed his eyes. He wanted to fight the darkness, he wanted to fight death – but he couldn't.
"Danny," Sam said, tears blurring her vision. "Danny, don't go, don't leave me." She cradled Danny in her arms and sobbed uncontrollably.
Jack had jumped out before the chopper had landed. He looked wildly around for his agents. His gaze fixed on two people. He felt he was in a trance. This could not be happening. They could not take Danny from them. He watched as though it was slow motion as the medics ran passed him. This had to be a dream. Danny couldn't be dead.
TBC?