The sound of the gunshots seemed to echo through the crate like area where they laid. Flinching instinctively, Jaz fought to control the panic that wanted to overwhelm her, knowing that she was once again helpless. The anxiety and tension throbbing from her teammates as they longed to be out there to help Amir and Hossein only served to raise her already heightened state.
When the truck lunged forward and picked up speed rapidly, a whimper escaped as the bouncing woke every nick and cut in her body. After a particular hard bounce she felt Adam's arm press down on her, trying to secure her from the worse of it.
"Hang on, Jaz," he encouraged. "We're almost there," he added, as the truck shuddered when it hit the blockade gate and the sounds of gunfire slowly faded away.
At the sound of Amir voice while he reported that they had made it through, Adam's gut clinched at the sorrow underlying the words. "Amir?"
A few seconds of silence met his inquiry before Amir's voice came softly through the line. "He said they'd killed his daughter and he wouldn't let them kill his friends too. I'm sorry, Top. I couldn't stop him."
Swallowing the raw emotion that clawed at his throat as the implications of what Amir said hit him, Adam felt the adrenaline and tension of the past two days rush from his body, leaving him breathless and broken on the bed of the truck that served as the final testament to his friend.
Throwing his arm over his face, he fought to keep in the tears that wanted to escape. He was just so fucking tired of loosing people he cared about. Absently he registered the big hand that gripped his ankle and squeezed it to let him know he was not alone in his grief.
Drawing in a shaky breath, he shifted back to his side. When he did, he realized that Jaz had rolled and was staring at him. In the low light, he could see the sweat and fear evident on her face.
"Top?" She whispered, fearing his, McG's, and Preach's reactions to whatever they had heard meant they were still in danger or that someone had died.
Knowing he had to pull it together for her, he forced his emotions to calm. "We're okay," he soothed, even though his voice was still husky. "Just rest and we'll stop after we get a little distance between us and the border."
Trying to read him, she scanned his face in the low moonlight that seeped through the slats. Unsure of what she was seeing, but instinctively reading it was not concern for their safety, she slowly lowered her head to rest on her arm. Keeping her eyes on him, she felt the realization of what she had been through reflected in the pain and weariness in his features.
Not wanting to further his pain, she buried her face into her shoulder to hide the tears that she couldn't stop.
Shuffling behind her was followed by McG's low tone. "Need to check your vitals," he said, reaching across her to get to her wrist. If that move happened to bring her closer to offer a little comfort, it was purely inconsequential he tried to convince himself.
Feeling the pounding under his fingertips, McG counted the beats as he marked time in his head. "Take a couple deep breaths, Jaz," he whispered, feeling her follow his instructions. On the second one, he felt some of the tension leave her back. "Good," he encouraged, feeling the beats begin to slow and slip into a more normal rhythm. "How's the pain?"
"It sucks," Jaz murmured. Feeling the rise of McG's chest and knowing he was going to chide her for a number, she added, "Five, maybe six."
"Can you make it a bit or want something now?"
"Later," she answered, nestling the hand he released back under her head with the other one. "It'd just make me throw up right now."
A grunt and the sound of cloth rustling met her statement. A low light clicked on and the sound of paper tearing echoed over the rumble of the tires. After a few moments, the light shifted as she felt a hand on her waist. "Going to give you something for the nausea now," he said, waiting for the movement of her head before shoving the shirts up and pulling her pants down a bit to expose flesh. "That way, when we stop, we can try to get some food into you too."
Extracting the needle, McG caught that Top's head had come up and he was watching intently. Knowing he probably had not heard anything they had said, he let a small smile pull on his lips. "We're good," he offered, shoving the needle into the small sharps container in his bag. Seeing Adam's head sink back down, he shut off the light and settled back to waiting.
Adam started awake, only then realizing that he fallen asleep. Glancing around the small space, he saw the others were shifting also as the truck below them slowed and eased off of the main road, the body rocking on the uneven ground.
Listening, he heard the engine die out only to be followed by the sound of a door slamming shut before the jostle of someone pulling themselves onto the truck.
"Top," Amir called before his foot hit the truck bed. Better safe than sorry.
Shoving himself toward the opening that appeared, Adam pulled himself up, his feet gaining purchase to help. Sitting on the side, he looked over at the younger man kneeling beside him. "You did what you could," he said softly, clamping a hand on Amir's shoulder to let him know his words were for more than just driving the truck out of Iran. He knew the meaning was heard when Amir dropped his gaze and nodded once.
"He was a good man," Amir said simply.
With that, Adam had to avert his eyes too. "Yeah he was," he breathed out before clearing his throat. Seeing movement by his feet, he swung around to get on his knees. "Sit up and we'll pull you out," he said into the hold.
Reaching down, he slipped his arms under Jaz's armpits as Amir held him so he would not overbalance. "Go," he threw over his shoulder, pulling her with him as he moved and Amir pulled them both back. Sitting her on the edge, he waited until he saw her give a nod she was ready for the next step before helping her spin to get her feet to the bed truck.
Taking her hands, Amir squeezed them in hello. "Ready?" He offered.
"As much as I'll ever be," Jaz retorted, feeling the burn of muscles as she forced her body upward with Amir's gentle tug. Coming to her feet, she leaned heavily against him for a moment before taking a limping step towards a crate on the other end.
Easing her down, Amir looked back to make sure the others did not need assistance. As Preach climbed out and sat on the edge of the entry, he moved past Top to a crate stuffed in the back corner of the truck. Prying open the lid, he pulled a blanket and a bottle of water from it before moving back to drape the blanket over Jaz's shoulders and open the bottle for her. "A little chilly tonight," he said, shrugging down into his own coat a little bit more.
"You good for a minute?" McG asked dropping his med kit beside Jaz. See her nod, he patted Amir's shoulder as he climb around him to jump off the truck.
Hitting the ground he waited for Preach and Top to descend before he took a few steps away from the truck, motioning them to follow. "I need a little time to check her over," he said, keeping his voice low. "Maybe it would be best if you guys made yourselves a little scarce." Seeing Adam's shoulders pull back as he braced for a comeback, he clarified his statement. "Not far, just enough for a little privacy." Glancing back to make sure Amir was still with her, he added, "She may be willing to talk a little more if we aren't all there."
"You think they hurt her more than she's letting on?" Preach asked, sorrow in his voice as his eyes moved toward her.
"I think," McG rushed out with a sigh, "that she's hurting bad enough in some parts of her body that she may not even be aware she's hurt someplace else."
"How long?" Top asked quietly.
"Give me fifteen," he answered, seeing Top's head move slowly in agreement. "Going to make a pit stop first," McG added, moving away.
"Didn't think I'd see the moon and stars again," Jaz said softly as she looked up. Bringing her eyes back toward Amir, her voice was choked as she continued. "Hossein died, didn't he?" When he looked down and squeezed her hand, she shook her head. "I'm not worth it."
Amir's eyes snapped up wishing it was lighter so he could see her eyes. "You were worth the risk to stay and get back. All of us were ready to die if it meant you could be saved," he countered back, his voice firm. "Hossein too," he added, his voice softer.
"He was Top's friend," she whispered, still shaking in denial her life was worth more than another.
"So are you," Amir answered softly, dipping his head to match hers. "Hossein did what he felt he needed to do to protect all of us, Top especially. He accepted that he would die before he ever got out of the truck."
Moving back toward the truck, Adam had to swallow hard when he overheard the conversation. Stopping at the tailgate, he nodded to Amir before moving his gaze to Jaz. Swallowing again at the wetness reflected in the moonlight, he shifted. Before he could say anything, Jaz spoke, her voice thick with emotion.
"I'm so sorry."
"You didn't kill him," Adam said softly. "He would have done the same thing if we had been trying to get home without you." Pausing he looked away before he continued. "He was a stubborn son of a bitch that was tired of loosing those he cared about." Looking back, an apologetic grimace pulled on his lips. "I can't say I wouldn't have done the same thing if I'd been in his place."
A choked sob escaped Jaz's lips before her hand could stop it.
McG's hand on Top's shoulder told him it was time to back off. Looking at Amir, he spoke his name lowly to tell him to come with him. Turning slightly, he waited until his teammates had switched positions before he added, "You're not to blame Jaz," and walked away.
Moving away from the truck, Adam explained to Amir what McG was doing before diverting his path. When he'd gotten a hundred or so yards away from the others, he stopped. Taking a deep breath, he ran a hand down his face as he let the quiet of the night seep into him. He startled when Noah's voice called his name.
"Yeah, I'm here," he replied. "What's happening?"
"They escorted the Director out about an hour ago," Noah relayed softly. "Hannah has been checking with her contacts, but no word yet as to where she was taken."
"Probably FBI or Homeland Security offices," Top surmised, blowing out a breath out as the cost of the mission kept piling up. "It'll be at least tomorrow before they decide what their next step is going to be. Little hard to come down on her when the mission was completed and we all got out alive."
"She still broke the law," Noah countered flatly.
"Yeah, well," Adam said, glancing back at the truck behind him. "Can't say I'm sorry about that right now."
"How she doing?" Morgenthau asked, his voice softening.
"McGuire's checking on her now."
Nodding, Noah noted their position on the map. "Medical will be waiting for you at Incirlik. If you need it sooner, we can call in a helo for you."
"Copy," Dalton said, turning back towards the empty desert around him. "Let's not call any more attention to ourselves that we have to. We're still a little close to the border for my comfort. If we need it, I'll let you know. Keep me posted on what you find out on the Director. Dalton out."
Dropping his hands from Jaz's face, McG plucked the penlight from his mouth. "Don't think your nose is broken, but you're gonna have some shiners," he murmured, pushing her hair back to look at one ear than the other. "Your left ear has a little blood in it," he noted, smoothing her hair back down.
"Gunshot next to it," she reported, flinching slightly at the memory.
"Ah," Joseph answered, dabbing at her lip before shining the light onto her neck. Picking up the edge of the white shirt, he grimaced when he felt it pull back, telling him it had stuck to her wounds. "If I mess with that too much, you're going to start bleeding again," he said softly, letting the edge go. "Is there anyplace else on you that I need to be worried about right now?"
Grimacing, Jaz shifted on the crate. "They liked using my right kidney as a punching bag." Shrugging, she added, "It's sore but they hit like girls," she retorted, trying to divert him from worrying too much.
Chuckling, McG wasn't taking the bait. "Yeah well," he said as he eased up her shirt and moved the light to her lower back. "If they hit like you, it had to hurt like a mother," he added, hissing at the large area that was beginning to bruise. Running his fingers over it lightly, he stopped when she jerked away. "You're going to have to have that looked at when we get home," he cautioned, sitting back up. Tapping the water bottle in her hand, he motioned for her to drink it. "You need to hydrate. I can start an IV if you want."
Swallowing, Jaz shook her head. "Only if it's necessary," she said, taking another sip.
Nodding, McG shifted his attention. "What's going on here?" he asked picking up her foot. Moving the pant leg aside, he noted the chaffing from the restraints and dried blood on cuts. Putting one foot down, he picked up the other, murmuring a sorry when she hissed in pain. Running his fingers over the swollen joint, he watched her reaction to see where it pained her most.
Hissing again and instinctively trying to pull her foot from him, she blew out a breath trying to get her body to ease its reaction. "Probably from when you guys stopped the truck. Had an opportunity and took it," she said, shifting the foot once he let go of it. "Wrapped the leg chains around his throat and pulled," she added, shrugging off the action.
Sitting back, McG let his hand rest on his leg as he watched her shift. He absolutely hated what he was going to ask her next. "Did they rape you?" he asked as gently as he could. The thought made his gut knot and hurt like a knife had been buried in it. When she froze at the question, the knife turned sending pain into his chest. "Jaz?"
Trying to still the nausea that erupted at the question, Jaz fought to flatten her affect. "They changed my clothes when I was knocked out the first time," she said flatly. "The second time," she paused, swallowing hard, "That sick bastard Arthur said he took the liberty of looking me over," she spit out, hatred burning in each word.
When she didn't continue, McGuire grimaced. "Arthur?"
Shaking her head, she finally said, "Guy in the van. Lead the interrogation." Jaz's eyes dropped to the floor. "I don't know," she said softly. "I don't think so, but..." she trailed off, her voice almost non-existent.
Hatred for the man he had barely looked at before he had put two bullets into his head burned through McG. Fighting that back, he shifted to give himself a moment so that he would not do something that would make Jaz think the anger was directed at her. Finally he swallowed. "They'll check you out at the base," he said. "If you don't think he did anything, he probably didn't," he added, trying to assure her. "But they'll be able to tell you for sure."
Nodding, Jaz glanced at him before turning her face back away in shame.