Greenbay, Wisconsin
Unused plastics factory
Morning, early-like really early
MacGyver panted as he ran up the third flight of steep steel stairs. He spun onto the narrow catwalk and ran full tilt after the rabbiting terrorist. Mac focused on the fleeing figure instead of looking down at the stagnant water beneath them. The water was a dark brown with a thick green layer floating on top. The moist swampy air clogged his nostrils. Mac ignored it all putting his energy into the chase. The short man in a red coat stopped and raised his pistol. Mac dove to the metal huffing air with the solid impact. He covered his head as a bullet sparked and ricochetted off the railing over his skull.
"Jack!" Mac yelled realizing he had no cover.
"Keep your shirt on!" Mac could hear puffing as Jack scaled the same stairs he'd just climbed. Multiple gunshots from behind him told Mac he was on his own. Mac swallowed, his heart thudded as he launched off the steal like an Olympic track star. The terrorist panicked and shot blindly turning to run instead. Mac slammed into the man taking him down. They both fought to keep the gun and rolled back and forth in a battle of strength.
"Mac!" Mac turned Jack out and gave a final twist. The terrorist howled and punched Mac in the face. Mac rocked back but kept hold of the gun. He lashed out with it. The man cried out and fell back. Mac sprung up to feet and bent down to handcuff the guy. The man kicked out, and Mac slammed into the railing. He caught himself and turned toward the guy just as the man plowed into him sending them both over the railing.
"Mac!" Jack screamed watching helplessly as his partner fell into the green swamp below with hardly a ripple.
"What's going on?" Riley asked over the com.
"Mac just fell into a swamp," Jack mumbled as he reversed his direction and flew down the stairs. He heard the rest of the team demanding answers. He ignored them his dark eyes watching for any disturbance in the water. Mac's head bobbed up, green slime dripping down his limp hair. Jack could see the spew of dirty water Mac spit out. Mac started paddling through the sludge toward the nearest shore. Jack only had one more flight left when he saw arms come up, grab Mac and pull him under the water. "Mac, dammit?" Jack skidded on the greasy black dirt raising his Baretta. Mac again surfaced and began swimming toward the shore. The terrorist popped his head up. Jack scored a bullseye. The man's body snapped back, and he went into a face down float.
Mac reached the edge of the stagnant pool and dragged himself out on his hands and knees. He gagged and spewed. Jack wasn't sure if it was vomit or the brown water. He knelt beside the kid. Jack's nose wrinkled as he pulled a handful of the gray green slime off Mac's head and flicked it away.
"Ew, that's disgusting." Mac coughed and sat back on his knees pushing his hair from his face. His eyes were red rimmed. He looked like he had a layer of snot running down his face, and the smell was a mixture of dead fish and chemical burn. He blinked at Jack trying to suck in air as he wiped at his face and shook it off his hand.
"Tell me about it," Mac said gagging again and spitting. Jack winced at the look on Mac's face. He knew how bad it smelled; he couldn't imagine the taste. Mac staggered to his feet with a hand up from Jack. He looked at the terrorist to make sure he was dead. "So, did you get it?"
"Yeah, Riley did her computer tapping thing, and I took care of Barrister." Mac nodded as he sloshed toward the van.
"Let's go home," Mac said trying to wipe off more slime.
"Yeah. You know Riley isn't going to let you ride in the van, right?" Mac glared at the older man and flicked some of the green gew at him.
Riley did let him ride in the van, in the back sitting on a plastic mat. They rode with windows down trying to blow off some of the fetid stink. Jack looked in the rearview mirror with concern. Mac had been consistently coughing a deep wet cough that caused him to curl up in misery.
"You ok, bud?" Mac silently glared at him. Jack chuckled.
"We should take you to the doctor's; you probably got a hundred diseases from that stuff," Riley said peering around her seat at Mac. Mac coughed then looked at her.
"I'm fine, just need a shower."
"Well, we're fifteen from the hotel." Jack offered as consolation. Mac nodded and leaned back against the van's door and closing his eyes. Jack thought he looked tired, but it had been a busy morning. It's not every day you take down multiple terrorist organizations. Barrister had been the designer of a terrorist information network that leaked classified information to buyers on the dark web. They had handed their prisoner over to Wisconsin police, and the US intelligence agencies were pulling apart the network and plugging up hundreds of leaks. Jack yawned. It had been a busy 24 hours, but well worth the effort.
When they got to the hotel, Mac moved stiffly and walked with more of a shuffle.
"It was a long way down." Mac tiredly explained to his two teammates when he noticed them sneaking worried glances at him. It did not reassure them as he'd intended. Mac sighed in relief as hot water melted the slime off. He soaped and shampooed multiple times but couldn't quite kill the smell. Mac brushed his teeth and took several rinses of mouthwash. Mac's cough got worse in the steamy bathroom, and he found himself up thick green mucus. After he had put on his sweats, he went into a long string of coughs left him trying to suck in air and leaning on the sink with rubbery arms. Everything seemed to dim. Mac's head bounced off the tile. He blinked as the coughing finally ended and closed his eyes enjoying the ability to breathe.
"Mac?" Mac blinked up surprised to see Jack leaning over him.
"Hey." Mac rasped. Jack pulled Mac to his feet. Mac started coughing again hard enough that his side hurt and he could feel muscles in his neck pull. Jack steadied him. Mac leaned against the sink. The stuffiness of the room and effort of coughing covered him with a sheen of sweat.
"...before we leave." Mac looked at Jack who was eyeing him with worry.
"What?"
"I said you are going to see a doctor before we leave." Jack's voice left no room for argument. Mac sighed and broke into another severe fit of coughing. Jack walked him to the closest bed in their shared hotel room. Mac leaned his elbows on his knees. Jack got him a drink of water. Mac nodded his thanks and felt the urge to cough lessen. He yawned and wiped his eyes. They still stung. He looked down at his arms, they were still pink from the shower, but he could see tiny pinpricks of red on all of his skin. Jack noticed and stood in front of Mac and crossed his arms. Mac laughed. Jack braced for a heated argument. Mac yawned again, too tired to argue about anything at the moment.
The ER was slow, Mac was seen right away. Jack sat beside the cart flipping through an old Parent magazine. He shook his head as he read the reader's comments page.
"'How do I stop my ten-year-old from begging and making a scene in the store?' Really?" He glanced at Mac who sat on the side of a medical cart glumly inhaling a nebulizer breathing treatment through a long blue tube attached to a small plastic chamber hooked up to oxygen. Mac still wore his T-shirt and sweats refusing to wear a gown even for the chest x-ray. Mac absently itched at the red hives breaking out on his arms and chest. He coughed into a tissue bringing up more mucus. Jack caught the nebulizer as Mac accidentally let go to grab onto the side of the cart. Jack stood up and put a steadying hand on Mac's shoulder.
Mac wiped his mouth and took back the breathing treatment. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. Jack watched him his dark eyes heavy with concern. Mac was about to reassure his partner when Dr. Ellery, the on-call ER doctor, pulled aside the curtain. She was a short, plump woman with curly hair tied back in a tight bun. The doctor slid on red prez nes and scanned the chart. She smiled at Mac removing her reading glasses letting them hang on a black cord around her neck.
"How are you feeling, Mr. MacGyver?" Mac went to answer; Jack was speaking before he got out a word.
"He's been coughing up a lot, his eyes have been irritated, and he. Mac's had dizzy spells and passed out once." Mac glared at the older man.
"I did not pass out." Mac protested.
"Then how'd you end up on the bathroom floor, genius?" Mac went into
Another coughing fit leaving him unable to answer. The room spun as Mac's breathing eased. A blinding light made him turn away. Mac blinked away red shadows and frowned. He was laying flat on the cart. Had he passed out?
"Back with us, bud?" Jack asked softly looking down at him.
"What happened?" Mac asked clearing his throat.
"You fainted." Dr. Ellery said listening to his chest with her stethoscope. The two men waited. The doctor nodded and made a note on the chart. She pulled up a rolling stool. "I don't see any reason to keep you. Your Xrays do show some irritation, but no fluid build up. Your labs all came back normal. I think you're having an allergic reaction." Mac shot Jack an 'I told you so' look. Dr. Ellery continued, " I'll give you scripts for a cough suppressant, eye drops, and an inhaler. That should take care of your symptoms. The nurse will be in to give you a shot to help with the inflammation."
"Shot?" Mac swallowed. "I think I'll be fine…"
"He'll be delighted to have a shot." Jack had a smug smile.
"No, that wasn't what I was saying…" Mac broke off into another coughing fit. Jack leaned forward and whispered something in the doctor's ear. The doctor looked at Mac, smiled and nodded leaving without another word. Jack sat back down and picked up his magazine. "What did you just tell her?" Mac demanded.
Jack hummed turning a page.
"Jack, I know you aren't reading the magazine is upside down." Jack hummed again.
"Look, they answered that woman's question. They said when your child makes a scene to offer them a choice to comply or not then explain to the child that there will be consequences if they are noncompliant." Mac glared at Jack who turned another page in the upside down the magazine.
"Consequences? I'll show you consequences when you…" Mac was interrupted again by coughing. Jack didn't look up just hummed. The nurse entered and drew up a syringe of clear fluid. Mac swallowed and edged away on the gurney. The needle was about a foot long. Mac cleared the stretcher and stood up ready to bolt. He ran straight into Jack who grabbed him and had him bent over the gurney. Mac yelled at the sting of the injection. His hip burned.
"Ow, dammit!" Mac snarled. Jack let him go and stood ready for a fist to the face. Mac gave him a stony look pivoted and stormed out of ER. Jack smiled and turned to the nurse.
"Well done." She chuckled and went over the medications and orders with Jack. It was a chilly clear night as Jack strolled out to the van humming. He knew the kid would be pissed, but Jack did warn him about consequences. Bright lights flashed, Jack waited for the ambulance to pass before stepping across the crosswalk. He hopped into the van. Mac sat in the front seat arms crossed glaring out the passenger's side window. Jack smiled at Riley and shook his head as he merged into traffic.
"What did you do?" Riley asked whispering as if Mac couldn't hear her.
"I helped Mac take his medicine." Riley winced.
"Shot, big one too."
"That explains it, he came out here and demanded we leave you here." Jack laughed. He met Riley's eyes across the rear view mirror.
"Thanks for having my back, Ri." Riley chuckled as the two fist-bumped. Mac huffed, then instantly regretted it as it turned into a gut crunching fit. Mac doubled over holding his abdomen with one hand and bracing himself against the dash with the other until his coughing subsided.
"Mac?" Jack asked with concern, all amusement leaving his voice. Mac didn't answer only leaned his head against the window; eyes closed taking deep breaths.