Fifteen minutes later McG realized Jaz's eyes were open although they were cloudy with confusion.
"How are you feeling, Jaz?" he asked as Adam leaned forward to listen.
"Like I should rethink my career options," she said on a shaky breath.
"Nope, you're stuck with us," he told her.
"Lucky me," she replied.
Adam couldn't resist chiming in, "Yes, you are lucky to be surrounded by four handsome men day and night who are willing to tend to your every need."
Jaz snorted from her spot on the floor, "Oh, really? How many times a week do I ask you guys to put the toilet seat down in the bathroom?"
Adam was happy to see her eyes were now clear although he was less happy to see the lines of strain on her face as she struggled with pain.
"I'm going to give you some pain medication to take the edge off, Jaz, in case we need to make a run for the plane," McG told her.
Adam thought McG had handled that nicely. He could totally see her refusing the pain meds for herself but she would never risk the team's exfil. The needle was quickly slid into her arm and the plunger slowly pushed in. Jaz's other arm shot out and she grabbed McG's calf.
"Okay, Jaz?" he frowned down at her as he removed the syringe.
"Dizzy. Very dizzy," she replied in a slurred voice.
Adam dropped down on the floor of the truck to sit next to her taking her hand in his. She clutched at it.
"McG?" he asked.
"I'm not sure. I didn't give her very much."
"Well, it certainly took the edge off the pain."
Without any warning, Jaz rolled up to a seated position and struggled to get to her feet in the back of the moving vehicle.
"Down, Jaz. Stay down," McG instructed as Adam used his grip on her hand to pull her back down.
She was pale, clammy, and not thinking clearly. Not what they had expected considering she had been fine just a couple of minutes ago.
"Lay down, Jaz."
She shook her head vehemently and in the process she tipped over ending up with her head in Adam's lap. McG tossed the makeshift pillow at him and covered her with the blanket while Adam slipped the cushion under her head. Once she was settled he gently began massaging her head through the silk of her hair. His action removed any desire she had to try and get up again.
"So good," she practically purred resulting in the men bursting into laughter.
"Clearly the pain meds are working more effectively than I expected. I'll have to change out what I'm carrying for something she tolerates better."
"Good decision, McG. I don't think I'd want her handling a gun in this condition," he said with a smile.
When they arrived at their chartered airplane for the trip home, Adam had to turn her over to McG so he could focus on the pre-flight check. It wouldn't do any of them any good to crash on the way home. Amir and Preach's eyes were the size of saucers when they saw the way Jaz was acting.
"What did you do to her, McG?" Preach demanded.
"I gave her a little Demerol to take the edge off her pain."
"Looks like you took more than the edge off. She can barely stand on her feet."
"I noticed."
When Jaz realized Preach was right in front of her she lurched out of McG's hold and only Preach's quick reaction kept her from ending up on the ground.
"Hey, Jaz," he said as he scooped her light weight into his arms.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, "I don't feel good, Preach."
"I know. McG was bad and gave you something he shouldn't have but you're going to be okay."
McG shook his head in disbelief as Peach walked away talking to her like she was one of his kids. He watched as Preach exchanged a couple of words with Adam who also took the opportunity to say a few things to Jaz. Preach climbed up the stairs of the plan settling into the copilot's seat while keeping Jaz in his arms. By the time the rest of them boarded the plane, Jaz was strapped in against Preach's chest sleeping. McG did feel a little bad about her side effects but the other choice had been leaving her in pain.
"McG, do you still have that blanket I saw in your pack earlier?" Preach asked.
"You're speaking to me again?"
"I never wasn't speaking to you. I was just distracted by this one being on the verge of crying which she never does."
He hadn't realized her mood had swung that much. It was quite the change from the euphoria she had been feeling. He handed the blanket up.
"Is she okay?"
"Yes, just sleeping but she already feels cool to the touch. The higher elevations aren't going to help with her body temperature regulation."
Adam watched as Preach tucked the blanket around himself and Jaz to trap their body heat. She was still too pale but at least they were finally on their way home and Jaz would have several days to do nothing but rest. He taxied the plane and got them airborne fairly quickly. McG and Amir took the opportunity to sleep while Jaz was still out from the medication.
"She okay, Preach?"
"She's fine, Adam. She just needs to get that crap out of her system and then give herself the time needed for her wounds to heal. We're lucky she didn't start vomiting. She was pretty green when she reached for me on the tarmac."
"She knew you'd fix everything."
"She didn't need any words of wisdom this time. Just some sleep."
"I know, but like most of us, when she's upset she goes to you. You keep this team stable."
"Well, I don't plan on holding any of the rest of you if you get drugged, so don't expect it," Preach said with a smile.
"Jaz smells better than the rest of us so I can understand your position."
"She certainly does."
Three hours into the flight Jaz moaned and shifted in Preach's arms. He looked under the blanket and reached a hand down to check her forehead and cheek.
"She okay, Preach?"
"You're starting to sound like a broken record over there. Concentrate on flying the plane. She'll be fine."
Jaz finally pulled her head up but kept her eyes closed, "How much did I have to drink?", she whispered.
Preach kept his voice at a whisper too, "No alcohol, Jaz. Just some pain medication."
She raised a shaking hand to her head, "I'll need some pain medication for the headache from my pain medication but I'm going to kill McG first."
"You can kill him when we get back home."
He reached down into the small pack he had next to the seat and uncapped a bottle of ginger ale he had taken on this mission. He'd knocked all the carbonation out of it earlier when he'd noticed her nausea. He tilted it to her lips and she took a couple sips before he pulled it away.
"More?" he asked.
When she nodded he gave her a few more sips. He recapped the bottle and put it away as she sank back down against him. She shivered and he tucked the blanket tighter around her. Over time she sank back into sleep.
"How much longer Adam?"
He looked at the instruments, "About another hour."
"Good. Jaz needs to be in a bed not being hauled around with us."
Adam knew Preach was right. In fact, if they hadn't been in territory known for hostility to Americans, he probably would have delayed exfil to clear the medication from her system. Not that she would have been happy with him but she could have added it to the list of things that he had done to irk her since she had joined their team. He was fairly certain they had moved on from volume one to volume two at this point.
Looking over he was pretty happy to see the runway of the base and he got them on the ground quickly. Amir and McG woke up and McG did a quick check on Jaz who continued to sleep. She seemed okay. Preach walked out of the plane with her in his arms and held her as he got into the passenger seat of the Jeep. It was a three minute drive to their hut and a ninety second walk to her room where he carefully placed her on her bed. She immediately curled up on her side and he took a moment to remove her boots. When he turned he saw the other three men crowded in the doorway.
"She'll be fine." Preach assured them.
He walked over and pulled her darkening shade down blocking the sunshine from entering the room before he stepped out and pulled the door mostly shut.
"I'm going to get some sleep. Top, you should as well. Amir and McG you're in charge of keeping an ear open for her since you already grabbed a nap on the flight."
"I'm going to double check the sutures I put in first," McG informed them before stepping into her room.
The rest of the guys walked away as he uncovered her and looked at her back and belly in the light filtering in from the hall. He had just finished looking at her arms when she punched him in the stomach. It wasn't much of a punch but it had been a statement.
"You mad at me, Jaz?" he asked while trying to keep his face serious.
"You drugged me. Of course I'm mad."
"I didn't actually drug you the way you're thinking. I swear it wasn't a sedative. Apparently you don't react well to a certain class of pain medication and I promise it will never be in my bag again when we head out."
She sighed and waved him away as her eyes closed again. He covered her back up and let her sleep off the rest of the medication. Amir was waiting for him in the kitchen.
"McG, you do realize that Jaz is going to be worse now about you treating her than she ever was before?"
He dropped his head into his hands, "Crap. I hadn't thought that far ahead but you're right. She's going to question everything I want to do from now until we retire from this line of work."
"At least there's a way to get around it. We just need to make sure she never gets hurt again."
"You trying to put me out of business, Amir? Jaz is one of my biggest customers."
"Only because she refuses to be seen at Medical. It's either you or no one."
"As you know, I tend to be in demand with the ladies," he said with a smirk.
"Personally I can't understand what they see in you."
"It's the height, my man, and my six pack abs."
"Which people wouldn't see so much if you'd keep your shirt on. I'd never seen a person go around with their shirt off in the winter until I met you."
"You're just jealous."
"Keep telling yourself that."
Amir wandered off shaking his head while McG settled on the couch to watch a movie. The credits were rolling when Jaz shuffled out into the kitchen looking like death warmed over. She had one of Elijah's T-shirts on which hung to her knees and a pair of her own shorts. Her hair was all over the place. He got up and walked over to touch her forehead which was thankfully cool. He squatted down to look in her eyes, "Feeling okay?"
"Worst hangover ever. Plus I'm itchy all over and as a result I'm not in the best mood."
"Sit down and I'll get you some Advil for your head and some salve for your sutures."
He walked to his room passing Adam who was also on his way to the kitchen. Probably lured by the smell of Jaz's coffee brewing. When he returned they were sipping their coffee next to one another in silence.
"Here, Jaz, take these and get something to eat. When you're done rub this over and around your sutures and it'll take away some of the itch."
"Thanks," she replied as she pulled the tin in close and lifted the lid to sniff it. She was happy it had barely any odor.
In response to McG's comment, Adam stood and made some toast and zapped some bacon in the microwave for the two of them and handed her a plate. When they were done Jaz pulled the tin over.
"You have a bra on under that shirt, Jaz?"
She thought that was probably the weirdest question any CO had ever asked her.
"Why?", she asked suspiciously.
"If you do, and take off your shirt, I'll rub the salve on the sutures that you can't reach."
Now that sounded like a plan. She pulled her shirt off and rested her head on her arms where they were folded on the table. His hands gently applied the gel over the wounds on her back and then he bent down and applied it to her sides and belly before standing up to finish with her arms. After he washed the salve off his hands he massaged the remaining tension from her shoulders and neck.
He leaned down close to her and whispered, "Feel better?"
She shivered at the sensation of his breath across her ear and nodded her head. In fact, considering she'd been carved up, she was feeling pretty good. He had a way of redirecting her thoughts to things other than her injuries. Fortunately he had no idea how she felt.
Once Jaz confirmed that she was comfortable, Adam took a seat near where McG was sitting but where he still had a clear view of Jaz in the kitchen. The warm velvet of her skin had to been addictive to touch and he'd found it hard to pull himself away. She was so soft and so strong at the same time. It was a hell of a combination and it spoke to everything in him. Fortunately she had no idea how he felt.
McG had watched their interaction in the kitchen from his spot on the couch and his eyes hadn't missed anything. He smiled as he realized they thought they were so good at hiding their feelings for one another. These were two of the "best of the best" in the military? Clearly they excelled at strategy and tactics in the field but interpersonal relationships? They both needed classes on those.
The rest of the team knew it wasn't a question of if they would get together but a question of when. The pool had started the previous year and he had fifty bucks on next year being the year. But one more life threatening instance like this and he knew they wouldn't be able to hold off another year. However, this was one bet he would be okay losing. He and the rest of the guys would get a lot of laughs out of what was to come. Maybe they would even help them out. Of course, where would the fun be in that?