Disclaimer: Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV show and characters are owned by Marvel. I am simply borrowing from them.

Disclaimer #2: This fanfiction contains SPOILERS for the 4th season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Takes place Season 4 between episodes "Broken Promises" and "BOOM"

Warning: This story is rated M for mature. It is meant for mature audiences only and contains some material that may trigger unpleasant memories for survivors of sexual abuse.

Cold Desert

Chapter 1

I'm on the corner

Waiting for the light to come on

That's when I know that you're alone

~Cold Desert by Kings of Leon

"What do you want?" Mace said as they knocked him to the ground.

They tossed Quake at him, and she landed, with a thud, her gauntlets were now gone, replaced by some sort of large shackles.

Mace tried to catch her as she fell toward him, shielding her from the fall, but had limited ability to actually do much of anything besides take a swipe at her while in his handcuffs.

A small militant group, most likely working for the Watchdogs, had managed to capture both he and Daisy.

"Thanks," she muttered.

"So, you aren't an Inhuman after all. Just a buffoon." One of them said.

Mace bristled but said nothing.

"Don't let them get to you," Daisy whispered.

She was always so nice to him, and he still felt so stupid about deceiving the team on Talbot's behalf. He wasn't sure what to say to her.

"You want to know what our plans are?" One of their assailants came toward them, a rifle pointed at Daisy's face. "No idea. Right now we're just waiting for orders."

Daisy attempted to use her powers to throw him back but, for some reason, her powers didn't work.

The man laughed, a taunting, unnerving laugh.

Mace stepped in front of her, putting himself between her and the rifle. "I'm sure we're a bargaining chip of some sort. I doubt anyone will do any trading with you if we're harmed in any way."

The man laughed even louder and struck Jeffrey across the face with the butt of the rifle.

He fell to the ground, his head was ringing.

"Mace," Daisy's voice seemed very close. An urgent whisper.

He held his head in his shackled hands trying to stop the incessant ringing, and when he managed to open his eyes a crack he could see a dozen or so more blurry thugs surrounding them.

"Coulson will be here soon," he panted addressing them again.

"Oh, will he?" The man checked his phone. "About what time do you think he'll be arriving?" Then he smirked. "You don't even have any idea what time it is, or where you are. Why would you think Coulson does?"

Mace and Daisy looked at each other for a moment each of them hoping the other had a good idea for escape.

"Anyhow," the man said sitting back against the bumper of his vehicle. "Not too much to do out here while we wait. Are you two together?"

"What? No." Mace said it before he could stop himself. He wasn't exactly sure what they were getting at. He felt Daisy touch his arm lightly, perhaps for reassurance.

"Oh, just co-workers?"

Mace sat up, and tried to block them from her. His vision was clearing a bit now.

"Very protective though hmm? She's a very pretty girl."

Now he could feel Daisy's hand grip his arm.

"She looks scared. Perhaps you should hold her? Give her a little kiss to let her know we mean her no harm, hmm?"

Mace's heart skipped a beat. "What?" He wasn't certain he'd heard them right.

"Go on, you heard me, kiss her."

Mace scanned the crowd of them. There were at least ten maybe fifteen surrounding them. All staring at them, holding various guns and rifles.

The guy who'd been talking the whole time, the one with short cropped dark hair, pointed his rifle at Mace again. "Do it, or I'll shoot."

"You wouldn't," he said, using his charming political voice. "What would your superiors say if you killed us?"

The man cocked his head to one side, "Oh, we'd kill you, not her." And then smiled. "Like I said, she's a pretty girl. Inhuman scum maybe, but, such things can be overlooked in the heat of passion."

"No."

"All right then." The leader motioned for some of the others.

"Mace," Daisy hissed into his ear. She was behind him and off to one side. "It's not worth it."

"Of course it is," he said just before someone hit him in the mouth, and someone else kicked him in the stomach and he felt himself falling to the ground.

Daisy caught one of them off guard and knocked him off his feet, rounding on the other and punching him in the eye.

Mace scrambled to get to his feet and grabbed the man who'd been doing all the talking, pulling him down and wrestling the rifle from his grasp.

A moment later he was surrounded by men with rifles all pointed at him. He'd meant to keep this loud-mouth conscious but unfortunately he'd overpowered him and the guy had passed out. He held up his hands in defeat.

Someone clobbered Daisy and sent her reeling back to the ground, and a moment later there was nothing-

The next thing he knew he opened his eyes and saw several men hovering over him. He had no idea where he was, this was possibly the strangest dream he'd ever had…

"Yeah, he's awake." Someone said in the distance.

And then his skull felt as if it might split in two. He reached to rub his forehead. A trickle of blood blurred his vision, and he winced.

"Mace?" It was a woman's voice. He knew that voice… but couldn't really place it. But, it was a nice sort of voice, warm and raspy, a sort of whisper.

"Hmm?" He said. He turned toward the voice, she was staring down at him, her dark hair brushed his face, and it smelled good. "Daisy?" Now he remembered- He sat up suddenly, a little too suddenly. "Did they hurt you?-"

"No," she said quietly so that only he could hear, her lip was split, her cheek bruised.

"He's awake!"

"Oh god," he muttered, he hadn't meant to say it aloud, he was a little scared, truth be told. He wanted the rest of the agents to arrive and help them. He knew Daisy was in trouble if they killed him… also, he didn't want to be killed. And, he knew this guy, the one he'd choked unconscious, who was on his way over wasn't going to be happy with him-

"So, you're up?" The man said, obviously angry now. "Ready to do what I say?"

"Nope." As he said it he knew he was going to regret it.

"Take the girl," he said to his henchmen. Daisy was dragged back by the shackles and he took a running kick at Mace's privates.

Mace let out a scream of pain and then doubled over, crunched into a shaking ball.

"Stop!" Daisy cried out.

Jeffrey's face had gone scarlet with the pain but he said nothing.

"Why are you even doing this?" she demanded.

The leader of the group grinned back at her, "Sometimes I like a show before the main meal."

"You're toying with us before you kill us, you mean?" she said teeth clenched; angry.

He stopped and looked at her, his eyes roaming over her body. "Something like that." He motioned for his men to let her go.

Daisy fell back onto her knees and padded over to Jeffrey Mace, director of SHIELD.

He was trying to catch his breath.

"Mace," she leaned down against him, her voice was soft and warm in his ear.

He pressed his face into the ground entertaining the idea of vomiting and simultaneously not wanting to vomit in front of Daisy, being doubled over in pain after being kicked in the crotch was embarrassing enough.

"Director Mace." The man with the short cropped hair addressed him again. The man who had just minimized his chances of ever reproducing.

Mace groaned.

This seemed to amuse the man. "Now, kiss her."

Daisy glanced up at the goon incredulous. "You just castrated him."

"No…" Mace managed to croak out. "I'm fine…"

She lowered her face to his so that the others couldn't see. "Oh my god, don't aggravate him."

A muscle in his jaw clenched as he stared up at her from the ground. "I can't let him hurt you."

She quickly put a hand to his chest as he tried to get up. "That's all well and good but Coulson should be here soon, we just have to delay him a little while."

He could feel sweat beading up on his forehead from when he'd been kicked, it mingled with the blood and rolled down into his eyes and he scrubbed them trying to stop them from stinging. "I don't know what you're talking about," he panted.

"Kiss me," she whispered. "It's what he wants. Maybe it will shut him up for a little while."

He met her eyes, soberly. "You know it won't stop there."

"Would you rather die?"

He had no idea what to do. For a moment he just stared at her unable to make a decision. "I can't-"

"I'm not going to watch them beat you to death."

He sighed, torn. Of course he was attracted to her, who wasn't? The day they'd finally met… there was a connection… he hadn't wanted it to be like this. He wasn't sure she felt the same though.

"I'm getting tired of waiting, do you need more incentive Director?"

Daisy turned toward the man, still hovering over Mace's beaten form. "No, he doesn't, he's going to do what you want."

Mace looked up at her, then faced the man who had just injured him badly. "No," he said weakly. "I won't…"

The leader shrugged and pulled his rifle from his shoulder as Daisy's eyes widened.

"Mace!" She swung back around to face the director and planted a kiss on his lips, then glanced back around just as quickly to face their captors. "There, is that what you wanted?"

Mace's mouth parted slightly. He looked a bit stunned.

The man with the short cropped hair stopped what he'd been doing and pointed the rifle at Daisy. "Again… more slowly this time."

She felt her heart beating faster. She hadn't dared look at Jeffrey when she'd kissed him, she just gave him a quick peck and turned away. Now she'd have to face him, and he'd been right. It was already apparent that it wasn't going to stop with one kiss. Taking a deep breath she turned away from their captors, who were watching their every move, and back at Mace apprehensively.

He looked unhappy, and concerned at the situation they were now in. He took her hand in his reassuringly, off to the other side of his body, where they couldn't see.

"You were right," she whispered as she lowered her face closer to his.

"I know." He bit his lip and looked up at her nervously.

"Well, it could be worse. Some people actually like doing this with me believe it or not."

"Oh, I… I believe it."

She raised an eyebrow.

"I do appreciate that you didn't want them to injure me further. You are definitely a hero in my book…"

"Oh mygod…" she said quietly. "Are you attracted to me?"

He lowered his eyes and shook his head slowly. "No, no… of course not."

She touched his jaw holding it in place and slowly pressed her lips against his.

Mace inhaled suddenly, his mouth was quivering beneath her own, but he didn't touch her, just laid on the ground bleeding as she slowly stroked his jaw with her thumb. It was slow burning kiss, and for a moment he forgot where they even were. Her lips were soft, and warm and she smelled like floral shampoo. He could feel his stomach turning to a pool of jelly.

He reached for her, and then the handcuffs jingled and he quickly withdrew his hands, pretending he'd never even thought to do that at all.

Daisy broke the kiss, and he gasped a bit in protest and then pressed his lips together and looked up into her eyes in terror, asking for forgiveness silently. This was wrong, all wrong… and yet his body was responding like he assumed his captors knew it would. He was certain this was all amusing to them.

Her eyes mirrored his horror.

"Well, that was very nice. Finally the show's improving."

They both looked at the leader of this group.

"Show?" Mace said quietly. Clearly frightened now. "What do you mean?"

The man chuckled. "You know what I mean Director."

Mace fought to sit up with Daisy holding him down. "No."

"Oh, you'd prefer I had the honors? Or some of my men?"

"You're animals."

The man hoisted himself up onto his Humvee, "And so are you."

"You're wrong."

"Mace," Daisy said out the side of her mouth.

"All right," the leader said. "Take her."

"What?!" Daisy kicked the first one to the ground, but the second had her and they dragged her away from Mace.

"Take off her clothes."

"No!" Mace struggled to get back on his feet and grabbed for her. "No, no, no, no…"

Meanwhile Daisy was fighting with the ones holding her as someone else managed to rip her shirt until it was open and dangling.

Three more of them held Mace back as he fought to get to her. His eyes were suddenly fixed on her partially naked form, then he met her eyes and blushed.

"Stop!" Her voice had gone from commanding to pleading.

"Daisy!"

"Stop it!"

"Let her go! Let her go!" Mace turned to face the leader of this group who was now leering at Daisy. "Let her go and I'll do what you want."

"Stop." The man said calmly his attention had been on Daisy's struggle but now he looked over at Mace. "Yes you will." He motioned for the men to give Daisy back to Mace.

The others holding Mace drifted back into the surrounding crowd and the men who held Daisy shoved her at him.

He managed to catch her with one hand and turn her away from the semi-circle of thugs around them.

She was trembling, clinging to him, her shirt and bra torn off, and down to her panties, part of a legging and her boots.

Mace cradled her small body against his, setting his chin on top of her head.

"What are we going to do?" she said in a small voice.

"Delay them for as long as we can," he whispered.

She lifted her head to look up at him. "What of the team doesn't come?"

He didn't know. He met her eyes and exhaled nervously. His choices were very limited at the moment, try to fight their way out, they'd probably be killed; try to fight their way out and he was killed and she was gang raped; refuse to do what they wanted and she was gang raped, and he was probably killed; or do what they wanted, then she was gang raped and he was killed. No matter what they did the outcome was going to be the same. She didn't have her powers for some reason, he had no powers, they had no guns and they were outnumbered.

Only one option would buy them any time for the team to get to them…

"Now," the leader barked at them. "Take off your clothes Director."

Discography:

Cold Desert by Kings of Leon
The Face by Kings of Leon