AN: This was highly requested, and is a loose sequel to my tag to Murdoc + Handcuffs, "Never Again", but that does not have to be read to understand this one. Nothing about it is referenced here. The only thing making it at all a sequel is that Murdoc makes some threats in it, and those threats are carried out in this. It was highly requested that I write about those threats coming to fruition, so here we are. I wasn't expecting to write it so quickly, but I'm very excited for my next WIP, so I had to get this done so I could work on it.
WARNING: This contains non-con. It isn't graphic, but it is there, it happens. Please know that before you read this.
The first thing Jack was aware of was a pounding in the back of his head. That's what dragged him out of unconsciousness, and it was not pleasant. He would have much rather stayed unconscious. The next thing he noticed was that he couldn't move his hands. Jack's eyes shot open at the realization, and quickly went down to look to see why he couldn't move them. They were tied to the arms of a chair, as were his feet. The chair itself was bolted to the floor, so he couldn't break it by falling. Jack started wracking his mind for what had happened, and looked around at his surroundings. The moment he looked up from the chair, he saw something that made his heart drop. Mac was there, lying down on his stomach with his hands tied to a metal loop on the floor in front of him. The room they were in looked very similar to where Murdoc had brought Mac when he had kidnapped him before, complete with a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling. But the most horrifying thing wasn't that they had been kidnapped, or that Mac didn't seem to be awake yet. It was that Mac was naked.
What was going on?
"Mac," Jack softly called out. He didn't want whoever had taken them to know that he was awake, but he needed to see if Mac was okay. "Mac, buddy," he called out just a little louder.
He sighed in relief when he heard Mac give a soft groan. The kid was okay.
"Jack?" he called out.
"Yeah, I'm here, bud," Jack replied, testing the strength of the ropes securing his wrists and ankles. They were pretty strong.
"Wh-what's going on?" Mac asked, panic creeping into his voice. His legs were scrambling to curl up in an effort to gain just a little bit of privacy, but because of the angle he was put at with his hands tied, stretched out in front of him, he couldn't get quite the leverage he needed to curl up, much less sit.
"I don't know, but we're gonna be okay, alright? We're gonna get out of this," he insisted, trying to keep Mac calm. He really had no idea what they were going to do. The ropes holding him were too strong to break, and it appeared as though the ropes tying Mac were the same. If he couldn't get out of the bonds, then he wouldn't be able to whip up some miraculous way for them to escape. But he couldn't say as much if he was going to keep his kid calm. He needed to act like he wasn't scared if he was going to help Mac.
But that wasn't true at all. Jack was terrified. He was tied to a chair, unable to do a single thing, while his partner was on the floor, tied up, and naked. It didn't take a genius to figure out what someone probably wanted with the boy, and that terrified Jack more than anything in the world.
The door suddenly creaked open, and they were met with a terribly familiar whistling. It was Murdoc. Of course it was Murdoc, who else would it be? The psychopath walked nonchalantly into the room, as if he kidnapped people on such a regular basis that this was just a normal Tuesday to him - which, on second thought, was probably exactly the case. He met Jack's death glare with that sadistic smile that was always on his face, but then turned to give Mac his complete attention.
"I have been looking forward to this for a very long time," he said, the excitement clear as day in his voice. "You really are quite beautiful, Angus, especially all tied up for me. You would not believe how much I've been fantasizing about this, and now it's actually happening! So I hope you can understand that I'm a little giddy."
"You sick bastard," Jack growled. "Don't you dare."
Murdoc spun on his heel to face Jack, that sick smile still on his face - did it ever leave? "This is just as much for you as it is for me, Dalton. You see," he quickly continued before Jack could interrupt. "I am not just doing this to fulfill my own desires. This is happening because you need to learn something." Murdoc's smile did finally start to fall as his face grew darker. "You need to learn that you cannot protect your precious Mac. You always say that you'll protect him from me, but it's quite clear that you can't, and you will never be able to. As long as I am on this planet, you will never be able to keep him safe from me. I will always find him and he will always belong to me." Murdoc stepped close enough that he was just barely out of head-butting range. "You can't protect him, and I will always make him scream. So when you hear him scream and cry and beg me to stop in just a minute, know that it's your fault, because you can't seem to learn your lesson."
His sick smile returned and he spun back around and stalked back to Mac, who was desperately pulling at the ropes holding him down. "You can't be serious," Mac said, a touch of nervous hysteria in his voice.
"Oh, dear Angus, I have never been more serious about anything in my life. You see, I've wanted this since the day I met you, and now, I'm finally going to get exactly what I want," Murdoc replied.
"Don't you touch him!" Jack shouted out, renewing his struggles. This could not be happening. It just couldn't actually be happening. There was no way he was about to watch his kid get- get- "Don't you dare, Murdoc, I will kill you for this. I'll kill you!"
"I forgot one thing," Murdoc said, holding up a finger. "There is one rule here that you must follow, Dalton." He turned to look at him. "The audience is supposed to be quiet in any show as beautiful as this. That means that you can't say anything else. And if you break that rule, then once I am done with this beauty, it will be your turn. You will do the exact same thing to little Angus as I am going to, and you will have to be just as aggressive as I will be, or else I'll put a bullet between his beautiful blue eyes, and you don't want that, do you?"
Jack stared at him in shock. Murdoc absolutely could not be serious. He just couldn't. This couldn't be happening, none of this could be real. He could never do that to Mac, never, but he would also do anything to keep him breathing. Jack just continued to stare at Murdoc with wide eyes.
"That's what I thought. I take it you will be quiet then? Besides, this is MacGyver's turn to scream, and he does have such a beautiful voice." Murdoc turned back to Mac as Jack renewed his struggles once again. "You also can't close your eyes or look away, okay, Dalton?" Jack could practically hear the psychopath's smile.
"Come on, Murdoc," Mac said, trying to look up at the man, but he couldn't turn his head that far. He could, however, turn and make eye contact with Jack, and Jack saw pure, unabridged terror in his eyes. "Don't do this," he said, almost in a gasp as his breathing sped up. "Please don't do this."
"You're begging already, how wonderful. This will be fun." Murdoc knelt down between Mac's legs, and pressed down on the small of his back while his other hand fumbled at his own belt. Jack couldn't believe this was happening. He kept glancing at the door, almost expecting a TAC team to storm in and stop this before this nightmare came true. Mac was struggling like a pinned wildcat, but he just wasn't at an angle to be able to do anything that actually helped. He was screaming at Murdoc not to do this, to please not do it, and Jack knew he'd never seen Mac so scared in his life. Jack had never been so scared either.
Then Murdoc was gripping Mac's hips, and Mac began to scream. The first tear fell from Jack's eyes, and it took everything he had not to yell and scream and cry out himself. He knew Murdoc had been serious when he said that he would make Jack do it to him too, and he just couldn't let that happen. If that was the absolute bare minimum that he could do to protect his kid, he would. But Mac was screaming and crying and Jack could see the blood. Murdoc was moaning and laughing and yelling obscenities about Mac and how good he felt and calling him terrible things and Jack wanted nothing more than to cut the man's tongue out for what he was saying, cut off his hands for his bruising grip on his kid's hips and for hitting him and for even grabbing the kid's hair to force him to arch his back, and castrate him for the whole act itself. Jack could barely see through his tears, but he had to keep looking if he didn't want this all to be repeated.
Finally - freaking finally - Murdoc's moans reached their height and then he finally stopped.
"You, my dear Angus, are by far the best I've ever had," he said, finally releasing his grip and putting himself back in his pants. Mac didn't say anything, or move, or do anything but keep softly crying. Jack did the same. He wanted to yell and scream at Murdoc for what he had done, he wanted to comfort Mac and tell him that everything was going to be okay - but how could it ever be okay again - but until Murdoc was gone, Jack didn't know if he could say anything at all. He couldn't let Murdoc make him do the same to Mac, and he certainly couldn't let the man shoot his kid. He was powerless to do anything. It was exactly what Murdoc wanted.
"You see, Jack," Murdoc continued. "You can't protect him." He looked over at Mac, forcing them both to listen to his quiet cries. "I can take him and use him however I want, whenever I want, and you can't stop me. I know you like to think of him as your kid, your boy, your Mac, but really, he's never been yours, because he's always been mine, and he always will be. He will always be my little bitch, and there is nothing you can do to change that." Jack couldn't stop another tear from falling, but this time, it was from anger. How dare that man speak that way about Mac? What right did he have to speak that way about any human being? Jack was going to kill him for this. He wouldn't rest until he had Murdoc's head on a stake. "Ta, now," Murdoc called out, turning and leaving through the open door. He didn't even close it on his way out.
Jack's attention was fully turned to Mac, who was still crying into his arm.
"Mac?" he hesitantly called out, hoping beyond hope that Murdoc wouldn't storm back him and make him do it too. Mac only flinched, moving away from Jack almost imperceptibly. "Mac, I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry," he said, more tears falling. "I failed you, Mac, I'm so sorry. He was right, I can't protect you."
"No," Mac said, his voice hoarse from screaming. Jack could barely hear him. "Jack, no."
Before Mac could say anything else, they heard noises coming from outside, and it didn't sound like Murdoc. It sounded like a TAC team. Jack couldn't help but be furious at them. It wasn't really their fault that they were late - Murdoc had probably planned everything out so that they would arrive just shortly after the act was finished - but Jack hated that they hadn't been there in time to save Mac. The kid just cried more, trying once again to curl in on himself, and crying even more when he couldn't. It would be impossible to hide what had happened. The evidence was all over the ground, and on Mac too. Everyone who came in would see.
"I found them!" a voice shouted from the open doorway. It was Leanna. "Oh my gosh..." she gasped, staring at Mac.
"Don't touch him," Jack pleaded with her. "Just get over here and untie me and I'll help him."
Leanna nodded, then rushed over to Jack and took out her knife. She made quick work of the ropes, then went back over to the door.
"Bozer, get a blanket!" she shouted. "What can I do? Just tell me what to do and I'll do it," she asked Jack, rushing back over to Jack and laying a hand on his shoulder.
"Go find that sonofabitch, Murdoc," he growled in response. Jack, once he was completely free of the ropes, calmly walked over to Mac. He needed to exude nothing but calmness and serenity if he was going to help his partner right now. Jack took the knife from Leanna's hand and slowly brought it down to Mac's bound wrists. "I'm just gonna untie you, bud, okay?" he asked. He wanted to make sure that he asked Mac before doing anything, even something that would help him. After what he'd been through, he just needed to ask before everything and let Mac be the one in control of the situation.
"Okay," Mac mumbled in response, glancing up at Jack, but refusing to look at Leanna.
"I'll go," she said, taking the hint. Her voice broke a bit. Jack didn't blame her. If he had walked in on a scene like this, he probably would've been pretty emotional too.
Jack just nodded as he carefully cut the ropes away. Mac's wrists were slightly bloodied from the ropes rubbing them raw as he struggled. The sight only fueled Jack's rage at the man who had done this, but he forced himself to close his eyes and calm down. He couldn't get worked up right now.
Once Mac's wrists were free, he pushed himself up onto his knees, his arms and legs shaking the whole time. Jack could see him biting his lip in an effort to keep his cries of pain inside as he maneuvered to give himself as much privacy as possible. It took all of Jack's strength not to help him, because the kid needed to do this on his own. He needed to feel in control, not helpless. It took all of Jack's willpower not to grab the kid and hold him tight, never to let him go. Mac didn't need that right now. He didn't want pity, and it definitely wouldn't help to have someone touching him while he was still naked, so soon after what had just happened.
Jack's attention was briefly drawn away when Bozer walked through the door. "Mac," he said, unable to really say anything else, if Jack was judging from his breathing correctly. Mac ducked his head and looked away, and Jack was able to see a few more tears falling.
"Hand that to me," Jack said in the soft voice he always used on skittish horses back in Texas. He reached out to take the blanket from Bozer, then gently wrapped it around Mac's shoulders. The kid latched onto it, eagerly pulling it around himself as much as he could, hiding his body from view.
"There's an ambulance outside..." Bozer said, pointing back over his shoulder. "I'll go wait there." He hesitantly left, and Jack was proud of him. It was taking a lot for Bozer to keep it together, and Jack knew how hard that was. He knew that Bozer wanted to scoop Mac up and hold on tight, and it was taking a lot for him not to. He knew Bozer wanted to yell and scream for Murdoc's head on a platter, but he couldn't right now. Bozer was a highly emotional person, and he was handling this very well. Jack was proud of him, and he would have to tell him that later.
"I don't want to go to the hospital," Mac muttered, finally looking back up at Jack. "I just wanna go home, please, Jack, let's just go home," he pleaded, letting his head fall forward until it was resting against Jack's chest. Jack reached behind him and started gently running his fingers through his kid's blond hair, making sure to go slow and gentle enough that it would be a far cry from the way that Murdoc had gripped his hair. He held Mac just a little closer, just to see if that was what Mac wanted or not, and the boy melted into his touch. He leaned in closer until his shoulder was resting against Jack's chest, and he took his hand and held onto Jack's shirt like it was the only thing keeping him there.
Jack didn't know what to do. He wanted Mac to be in control of everything, but after what had just happened, he couldn't not let him go to the hospital. What if Murdoc had some terrible disease that he'd just given Mac? They needed to go, whether Mac wanted to or not.
"I'm so sorry, bud, but you need to. We need to make sure you're not gonna get sick, okay?" Jack wouldn't be able to handle it if Mac got sick because of this, because he had failed to protect the kid. "I'll be with you the whole time, I promise. I am never leaving you, alright?" After a moment, he felt Mac nod against him. "Okay, kiddo, you ready to get out of here?" Another nod. "Alright, do you want me to help you up?" he asked. Mac nodded again after a moment, but let go of Jack's shirt and leaned back. Jack carefully stood up halfway, then reached down to help Mac get one of his arms around his shoulders. He then helped Mac to stand - all the while clutching the blanket close to him, which was easier said than done - then carefully walk out of the room. Jack's heart broke at the way Mac couldn't walk properly because of the pain, at the way he leaned onto Jack so much for support, at the blood he saw running down the kid's legs and wrists, at the tears in his eyes and his voice hoarse from screaming, at all of it. He was going to kill Murdoc for this. Nothing would be able to stop him from taking that psychopath's life, no matter how illegal it would be in the moment. That sorry excuse for a man would burn for what he did.
Mac was avoiding eye contact with everyone they passed, even Bozer and Leanna. Jack was sure he'd probably do the same with Riley and Matty once they went back to Phoenix too. They had to know by now what had happened. That wasn't exactly something Bozer would've been able to keep a secret, but Jack hoped that it was Leanna who delivered the news. She had a bit more tact than Bozer did, bless his heart.
Jack helped Mac into the ambulance, and sat with him the whole way there. He stayed with him in the hospital, through every test and exam, not once leaving his side, even when the doctors said that he had to leave. He insisted on staying, and Mac begged them to let him, so they did. He stayed with him when it was all finally over and they got a taxi back to Jack's apartment. The first time he let the kid out of his sight was when he said that he needed to shower.
"I'll be okay, I just can't stop feeling him, and I need to get him off, and I need to get clean again, and I need to wash him-"
"Hey, hey," Jack interrupted. "It's okay, you can go shower. I'll be right here when you're done, and I'll be ready with your favorite soup, okay?"
Mac nodded shakily, then turned and walked into his room - it was technically the guest room, but Mac used it more than anyone else, and it was filled with Mac's things and some of Jack's things that had become Mac's things over time. Jack quickly got to work on the soup, then once that was going, started cleaning the kitchen, and then the living room, and then he started dusting, and doing absolutely anything he could to keep his mind off what happened. He didn't want to be thinking about that at all, but try as he might, it just wouldn't leave his mind. Jack just couldn't stop thinking about how it was his fault. Murdoc was right. He couldn't protect Mac from him just like he hadn't been able to stop his own father from getting cancer, or stop James from walking out, or stop freaking Pearl Harbor from being bombed in 1941.
What was he supposed to do now? His entire job was protecting that boy and he had failed spectacularly. Not only had he failed, but he knew that it could happen again at any time. It was Murdoc, and that psychopath always got the best of them, and he could swoop back in and take Mac away whenever he wanted, and Jack was powerless to stop him. That was the truth of it, and Jack didn't know what to do. What was he supposed to say to Mac? What was going to fix what had happened? Could anything be the same again?
"Are you okay?" came Mac's small voice from the door to his bedroom.
"What? Yeah, I'm fine," Jack replied, clearing his voice. Of course, after everything, Mac would ask if he was okay. It didn't matter that he was the one who was so violently violated, he still had to make sure that Jack was okay.
"It's just, you were dusting that same spot for a long time," Mac continued, hesitantly looking up at Jack as he slowly walked over. He was wearing a pair of Jack's slippers, a pair of Jack's old sweatpants, and an old t-shirt that was once Jack's too. His hair was only partly dry, and not at all brushed. It made him look so young - and he already was so young, really - and it made Jack nearly cry. It wasn't fair that this had happened. Mac was so young and pure and he didn't deserve this. This would stay with him for the rest of his life, and it just wasn't fair.
Shaking his head, Jack walked over to the stove and got Mac a bowl of the soup, before getting one for himself too. It was beef and barley soup, Mac's favorite. Maybe it would help. Jack absentmindedly stirred his, taking a sip or two, refusing to look at Mac. How could he look at him after everything that had happened? He was supposed to protect him and he didn't. How was he ever supposed to look Mac in the eye again?
"If you want me to go, I will, just tell me," Mac said, startling Jack a bit.
"What?" he replied. Where had that come from?
"I get it. After what happened, you can't even look at me, it's okay, I understand, I don't want to look at myself either. It would probably be better if I just left," Mac said, gingerly sliding off the bar stool.
"No, kiddo, no, that's not what that was," Jack quickly replied, rushing around the island to stop Mac from leaving with a gentle hand on his shoulder. "It's not because of what happened." Jack sighed. "It's because Murdoc was right," he said with a shrug. "He was right. I can't protect you from him, no matter how hard I try. I'm supposed to protect you, and I failed, and I can never in my life make that up to you. You should be the one who won't look at me. This is my fault." Jack let his hand fall away with a sigh and a shake of his head. He took a step away from Mac and rubbed the back of his neck, trying to get some of the stress out.
"You're not God, Jack," Mac said, speaking louder than he had since before- before it happened.
"What?" Jack said, turning around with a confused look on his face.
"You're not God." Mac just stared at him, his eyes big and blue and full of sincerity, and somehow, even though Jack didn't deserve it, love. "You can't control what happens to me. You can do what you can to protect me, but sometimes things happen and it sucks and there's just nothing anyone can do about it." Mac's voice got louder and his eyes filled with tears. "What Murdoc did, he was always going to do it. No matter what happened, that's what he wanted from the beginning and somehow, someway, he was always going to find a way to do it." The tears were falling now. "But that doesn't mean that it's your fault that he did. It's no one's fault but his. You can always be there to try to protect me from cartels and terrorists, but sometimes things just happen even when people try their best. That doesn't mean that just because Murdoc got what he wanted, you don't have a purpose. We're gonna get back in the field, and you're gonna do what you always do, and we're gonna save the world like we always do." He reached up to wipe some of the tears away. "But you're not God and it wasn't your fault, so please, Jack, please. Stop blaming yourself." Mac took a few hesitant steps closer to Jack, almost as if he hoped for Jack to do the same.
"I promise you, Mac," Jack said, taking a few steps closer to the kid and swiping at his own eyes. "I will do everything in my power to protect you, as long as I live. I know I've failed you before, but I will never stop trying to keep you safe."
Mac quickly reached out and pulled Jack closer to him, pressing his head into Jack's shoulder and gripping the back of his shirt like a lifeline. Jack reached around and held Mac close, trying to let the boy's words sink in. Maybe he was right. Still, Jack never wanted anything like that to ever happen again.
"I've got you, bud," he whispered, reaching up with one arm to massage the back of Mac's neck and head. He could feel Mac beginning to cry again into his shoulder, but that was okay. He would let the boy cry as long as he needed to.
Deep down, he knew Mac was right. It wasn't his fault. Sometimes, things just happened. He'd told Mac the same thing time and time again when something went wrong that was out of their hands and innocent people died on missions. This was just another one of those cases, as much as Jack hated to admit it. Still, that didn't change the fact that he was going to kill Murdoc for this.
Jack held Mac a little closer. Yes, he would kill that psychopath for this, but not right now. Right now, he had a kid who needed him, and he was going to be there for him until his dying day.