Firestarter

By Jack M. Kaiser

Revenge is a dish best served cold, but when Jack is the mistaken target, the dish is nearly fatal.

Chapter 1

"Second Arson Fire Claims Another Fire Chief As Shooting Victim."

Sam stared at the headline after she'd read the article more times than she could remember. Without moving her eyes from the bold printed words, she leaned back in her chair and tried to rub away the goosebumps that had formed on her arms. Taking a drink of her coffee, she began to read the article yet again. Some psychopath was setting fires and shooting the fire chiefs at the scene. No leads, no clues, and no witnesses. Two innocent men were dead and two buildings destroyed. The newest occurrence was just ten miles away and that's what scared her the most.

When Jack was promoted last year, she felt a sense of relief because she thought that he'd be safer since he wouldn't be going into the fire. But, now she wondered how safe he really was. What if he was next? She quickly shook the thought from her head. Maybe she would just talk to him about taking some time off until the police catch whoever is doing this. She glanced up at the clock on the kitchen wall and saw that it was noon. Jack and MacGyver should be back from the store soon and then she could relax with her arms tightly around him.

SG-1 SG-1 SG-1

Jack pushed the shopping cart down the cereal aisle as his twin brother wheeled himself by his side. He'd felt happier since MacGyver had moved to Colorado from Los Angeles nine years ago after he was released from the rehabilitation hospital. Ever since his brother was paralyzed in an attack during one of his assignments, Jack had been worried about him. His mind wandered back to when he'd got the call from their dad that Mac was attacked and had fallen, landing on the roof of a car three stories below. The anger welled up inside him as he remembered how the bastards that had nearly killed his brother had callously stood by his bedside while he was in the coma. Never in his life had he felt such a strong urge to snap someone's neck as he did the day that Mac woke up and communicated who had done that to him. When his dad held his gun to them, he wished that he would have pulled the trigger. Mac had yelled at him for thinking such things as soon as he regained his speech.

After he'd returned to Colorado, he got a call from his dad saying that Mac was taking his anger for the Egyptian thieves who had hurt him and using it as fuel in therapy. He wished that he could have stayed by his brother's side and helped him through his therapy, but he had duties at home. Mac had spent nearly three months in the hospital and another nine months in a rehabilitation facility. Jack had to give him credit for making it through it. Waking up to find out that you were paralyzed would in itself be a hellish experience, but add a year of being in a hospital to it and you have the perfect recipe for total insanity.

That was ten years ago, but in a lot of ways it seemed like yesterday. It made him proud when he thought of how MacGyver didn't let his disability get him down. He'd gone back to college and got a degree in Early Childhood Education. When he graduated he got a job teaching science at an elementary school here in Colorado Springs. Now that he and their dad had moved there with Jack, Uncle George, and their little brother Daniel, life was much better.

"Jack!"

Jack looked down and saw MacGyver staring up at him like he had broccoli coming out of his nose, "What?"

"Wake up and help me pick out some cereal. Where were you anyway?"

"Just thinkin' is all."

"Oh, God, someone had better start fanning the smoke alarm!"

"Ha ha, so not funny," Jack retorted as he picked up a box of Froot Loops from the shelf.

"You ain't getting those are you?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Do you know how much sugar are in those things?"

"They're my favorite, Mac. You know that. That's another big difference between us; I eat what's good."

Mac just rolled his eyes then pushed his wheelchair farther down the aisle and grabbed a box of Shredded Wheat from the shelf. Jack caught up to him and waited for him to put the box in the cart.

"So, will Nikki be back from Virginia before Christmas?" Jack asked as they started toward the cash register.

"No, she's not due back until mid-January. It's not the first Christmas that we spent apart ya know."

"I know that. I just thought that maybe the FBI would cut her loose for a few days over the holidays," Jack replied as he began to put the items from the cart on the counter.

"Normally they would, but this training is very important. She'll have those days off, just won't have time to come home," Mac answered then dug his wallet out of the carry-all on the side of his wheelchair.

"Put that away, Mac. I got this," Jack said as he quickly handed the cashier a few bills from his own wallet.

MacGyver flashed his twin brother a mock glare then smiled. Jack gave him a crooked smile and pushed the cart outside. He parked the cart up against the side of his truck then walked around to the passenger side to help MacGyver get into the cab. MacGyver locked the wheels on his wheelchair as Jack opened the door. Mac reached his hand up to grab a hold of the truck seat to heft himself up, but before his hand took hold Jack wrapped his arms under MacGyver's and lifted him up.

"Jack! You're going to throw your back out doing that one of these days," MacGyver scolded as he used his arms to shift into the seat.

Jack stuck his tongue out at Mac. "Hey, it's my job to help people."

MacGyver gave Jack a playful swat and allowed him to help him swing his paralyzed legs into the truck. Jack then folded Mac's wheelchair up and lifted it into the back of the truck before he unloaded the groceries from the shopping cart.

SG-1 SG-1 SG-1

The bright mid-day sun beat down as Jack drove his truck down the street they lived on. He smiled as he passed the house that his father, Pete, shared with his fraternal twin brother George. Next door was his own home, where his beautiful wife was waiting for him to come home. He pulled into the driveway of the house on the other side of his own where MacGyver lived with his wife, Nikki. It was a wonderful and rare surprise that they were able to find homes in the same cul-de-sac let alone all in a row. It made having get-togethers much easier.

"Ya know you could've just gone to your house and I coulda wheeled home from there," Mac said as he readied himself to get out of the truck.

"I know, but I think it'd be hard to do that with an inch of snow on the ground and fifty bags of groceries," Jack replied then jumped out of the truck to get MacGyver's wheelchair ready. He sat the chair on the ground then opened it up before pushing to the passenger side of the truck. He opened the door and helped his brother out and into his wheelchair.

"Fifty bags my eye! Most of it's yours and there is not an inch of snow on the ground. It's a dusting at best," Mac teased his brother. He started toward his house to unlock the door, but stopped and started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Jack asked as he walked up to where Mac was with his hands full of cloth grocery bags.

"Oh, I was just thinking of how that cashier was staring at us. It was like she was wondering if she had a bit too much to drink last night and was seeing double," Mac replied then started toward the door again.

Jack had to laugh too. By now they were used to people staring at them because they were identical in every way with the obvious exception being MacGyver in a wheelchair. "Well, cut her some slack, Mac. She's new in town and we gotta give her time to adjust before we have a little fun."

Twenty minutes later the groceries were sorted and what was MacGyver's was put away. The twins sat at Mac's kitchen table, drinking coffee and talking.

"I better get going. Sam and I have the night shift tonight."

"Thanks for taking me to the store," MacGyver said as he pushed his wheelchair back from the table.

"Not a problem. Hey, Sam and I are on night shift again on Monday and we're going to have the department Christmas party then. Ya wanna come?"

"Sure. You said about Nikki getting Christmas off and you're working it too."

"Ha ha. You want stay with us Sunday night?"

"Yeah, sure, what time?"

"I'll come and get ya about five that way you can have dinner with us."

"Jack, I'm a big boy ya know. I think I can come over all by myself."

"The boogey man might get ya," Jack teased his brother with a wink. "I'll be here at five, okay?"

"Yes, boss."

"Call if ya need anything and if ya can't reach me, call dad or Uncle George."

MacGyver snapped off a sloppy salute, "Yes, Fire Chief O'Neill. I will obey your every command."

"Funny, Mac, so very NOT funny," Jack snipped then smiled. He gave his brother a hug and left.

SG-1 SG-1 SG-1

The cheery sound of Christmas music and children's laughter added to the jolly atmosphere in the fire station's community hall. Jack stood dressed in a Santa suit with his arms around his wife from behind, chatting and laughing with his brother and a few members of the fire department. MacGyver smile widely as Jack finished telling the tale of how they were reunited twenty-five years ago and how he'd worked with his father, Pete Thornton, for nearly ten years without knowing it.

"Hey, don't forget, Jack. You worked here with Uncle George and you didn't know it either," Mac pointed out after Jack stopped laughing.

"Yeah, I know. I think the oddest part of it all is that the same thing happened to grandpa and then again with dad," Jack replied with a puzzled expression on his face.

"Man, I feel sorry for ya, Mac. Having a smartass like the Chief for a twin brother," T said then let out a deep laugh. "At least Danny Boy there lucked out with not looking like him."

Jack glared at the large African-American man, "Thanks for volunteering to hand wash the trucks."

Jack smiled at the horrified expression on his friend and fellow fireman's face. T opened his mouth to protest, but before he could say a word the shrill sound of the alarm rent the air.

"Structure fire, 804 Treemont! Structure fire, 804 Treemont!" The tinny voice announced over the intercom.

All of the fire department personnel at the party stood and after giving their significant others a quick kiss, they ran for the truck bay. Jack quickly stripped off the Santa suit and tossed it onto a chair. He started toward the truck bay, stopping and turning to his brother.

"Just go, Jack. I'll get Daniel to take me home then," MacGyver said, knowing why his brother stopped.

"Hey, Christmas Eve may have gotten screwed up, but I promise that we'll spend Christmas Day together with no interruptions," Jack told his family.

"Sounds great, now go," Pete called to his son then smiled.

Jack nodded and smiled before he ran into the truck bay, he hated to leave his family behind like this, but duty called. By the time he arrived in the bay, everyone was ready and piling into their assigned trucks. Jack grabbed his jacket and uniform cap from the rack then climbed into the passenger seat of the van.

SG-1 SG-1 SG-1

By the time the fire trucks arrived on scene, the small warehouse was fully engulfed in flames. Jack climbed out of the van as the crew jumped out of the trucks and readied to fight the fire. He hurried around to the front of the van, watching his men, and woman, in action. It made him proud to watch them do their jobs with professional precision without having to be told what to do or when to do it.

"Be careful, kids," he shouted out to the crew as they began to hose down the inferno.

"Will do, Sir," Sam replied then blew him a kiss before she disappeared around the side of the building.

Jack smiled then leaned back against the van. The sun was nearly set in the sky and the reddish glow from the sun added to aura from the fire. The black bellow of smoke floated up into the sky, blending with the dark clouds. He took his eyes off of the beautiful night sky and looked back at his crew who was hard at work.

"Chief!"

Jack looked over to see a young fireman racing toward him as fast as his bulky fire suit would allow.

"What is it, Johnson?"

"It's Lieutenant O'Neill, Sir. She tripped over a rogue hose out back and fell," the young man informed him breathlessly.

Jack's heart sank, "Is she okay?"

"She's out cold, Chief, and her hand's twisted to the side, probably broken."

"Get the EMT's back there!"

"They're already there. Wilson said that he'll check in with you when they're ready to transport her to the hospital."

All Jack could do was nod and watch helplessly as Johnson returned the nod then ran back in the direction he came from. He wanted to run to his wife's side, but they'd agreed from the start that they wouldn't put their personal relationship ahead of protocol. So, he stood there at his post and prayed that Sam was alright. It felt like forever until he heard Wilson's voice crackle over the radio that Sam was ready for transport. Jack straightened and watched as the EMTs hurried around the far corner of the building, pushing the stretcher as fast as they safely could.

"Don't worry, Chief, we'll keep you posted," the paramedic called to him as they loaded Sam's stretcher into the back of the ambulance.

"Thanks, Wilson. Now get her to the hospital!" Jack shouted back wishing that he could go with her.

A lump formed in Jack's throat as he watched the ambulance pull away. They had only been on scene twenty minutes and already someone was hurt. Not just anyone, but his beloved wife. It was Christmas Eve for crying out loud, only good things are supposed to happen. He turned his attention back to the fire and walked a few steps toward a nearby fire engine where a few members of his crew were working on freeing more hoses.

Thirty minutes later the fire was finally under control and for the first time since they'd arrived on scene Jack was alone. Everyone else was either battling the still burning fire or clearing the interior part of the building that was no longer burning. This was the part that he hated about calls since he'd been promoted to Fire Chief, the part where all of his friends and co-workers were converged on the scene and he was stuck on the sidelines.

As he watched longingly at his people doing their job, a noise like someone had thrown a rock at a metal sign caught Jack's attention and he turned around toward the back of the van. There was a small, bright flash a few feet behind the van at the tree line, briefly illuminating a pale face beneath a black hood then a white hot pain erupted in his stomach just below his ribs. His legs went out from under him and he collapsed to the ground; the cold, wet grass cutting into the side of his face.

Jack could hear voices shouting as his vision began to grey around the edges. His lower chest burned and he was cold, so cold. Panic coursed through him when he realized that he couldn't feel anything from his chest down. He clenched his eyes closed and groaned. A hand touched his arm causing him to jump and he opened his eyes to see T's sooty face in front of his own.

"T?" Jack inquired breathlessly.

"I'm here, Chief. Just hold on, help's on the way," T comforted his boss and friend.

Jack swallowed then licked his lips, the pain burning his insides like the fire that had consumed the building behind them. He looked up at T with pain glazed eyes, "W-as shot. Can't feel m-y legs."

Before T had a chance to reply, a flock of paramedics converged between them and soon Jack was secured on a gurney in the back of an ambulance. He'd passed out from the pain when one of the medics pressed a gauze pad against the bullet wound in his upper abdomen and he stayed that way until the hard pinch of a needle entering his arm brought him back to consciousness. The bright lights on the ambulance ceiling stabbed at his eyes as he slowly cracked them open.

"How are you feeling, Chief," the medic tending to him asked as he adjusted the oxygen mask on Jack's face.

"Burns," Jack huffed in reply.

"I know, we're almost at the hospital and they'll help you out with that," the older man replied as he readied a second IV.

"Another one?"

"I'm afraid so. It's standard protocol as you know."

"Yeah, t-they should- change that," Jack said then flinched as the needle slid home.

The medic laughed as he attached the line to Jack's arm with a piece of tape, "I agree."

Jack closed his eyes and allowed the sounds from the ambulance to flood his mind in a desperate attempt to push back the pain and keep his mind from going into a full blown panic. He had a sneaking suspicion as to why he couldn't move or feel his legs, but he thought that maybe, just maybe he could fool himself into believing otherwise. Though he knew that once they arrived at the hospital and the doctors did their thing, his delusion would be shattered along with what was left of his life.