From the shape of the building, Jack could tell at one time it had been a horse barn, probably big enough for a dozen horses. Sometime in the past someone had converted to a church. The fine wood woods, piles of splintering pews and stained glass ceiling proved that. The lastest owners of the island had converted it to some sort of game room. Pool tables, arcade gangs and a bitching sound system were shoved to the side.

Phoenix had converted the front of the building, where a tall sad Jesus still hung on a crucifix taking up all of one wall overlooking a full portable operating room, into a modern medical facility. Jack leaned over a green cloth draped table. Mac moaned at the position change. Jack felt like he was setting his heart on a butcher's table.

"Jack, we got him." Izzy said gently pushing Jack back. Jack nodded but could only stare as the entire Phoenix medical team circled his kid. He felt dizzy as if he were going to pass out. He took a wobbly step back. He jumped when he ran into a chair. He jumped off balance. A hand grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back until his rump bounced in a wheelchair.

"What the-"

"Sit back and shut up, cutie." Jack looked over his shoulder with genuine fear. Laura. The older nurse whirled the chair around. Jack held on for dear life and bit his lip against the dizziness. It finally happened, he thought desperately. He shook his head trying to get his head on straight. He opened his mouth to call for help, but his gut churned. This crazy old bat was kidnapping him.

"Turn me around!" He shouted angry. He tried to put his feet down. Laura tilted the wheelchair up so he couldn't touch the ground.

"Quit it, you. You are going to shower, eat and sleep." Laura's husky croak snapped with authority. Jack moved to tip the wheelchair over. Laura nimbly whipped the chair around so Jack was forced back in the center of the chair.

"Turn this around." Jack's eyes narrowed and his voice was sharp with real danger. Laura slammed the wheelchair to a stop and whirled it around. Jack tumbled forward. Laura grabbed his shoulder and slammed him back. Her hawk nose was less than an inch away from his face.

"Or what? Listen up Mr. badass Delta boy, I have been taking care of soldiers before your daddy's sperm knew how to wiggle. I'm not afraid of you. You will shower, eat, drink and rest in that order if I have to sit on you and funnel drugs up your ass...by the gallon, got me?" Jack backed up more than a little afraid of the genuine rage pouring from the nurse. Her grey eyes were chiseled sharp knives.

"I am so sick of you boys going out to help others and coming back all broken and bleeding, I am tired of you hurting, and…" Laura's voice trailed off. Her bottom lip quivered. Jack swallowed.

"Laura...I'm...sorry." Jack whispered. Laura leaned back and turned away. She wiped at her face.

"I kno...Look, Jack, I get it I do. I see how you care about that boy. It's sweet." Jack blushed and turned away. He moved to stand up. Laura shoved him back into the chair, "I know how you feel about him, everyone does. But I will not let you kill yourself to save him, do you understand that?" Jack blinked as if that had never occurred to him before.

"But-"

"I know, you're his Papa Jack, I get that. I'm glad he has you, Jack, but protecting him is not all you are. You are as important as he is. What do you think he would feel knowing that taking care of him is killing you? Hmm?" Jack looked down. His ears burned. He didn't think anybody's scolded him this bad since he let Digger, the pig, eat his broccoli during Christmas and Nana Beth found out. At least Laura didn't have a strap-Jack blanched and casually checked to make sure the stern nurse didn't. Laura playfully slapped his face. He winced. Playful, like a lioness cuffing her cub. Jack went to apologize. Laura narrowed her eyes. He snapped his mouth shut. She smiled a smile that made him squirm.

"Before you eat, I'll check you over...and bind your wounds." Jack turned away his face tomato red. Laura laughed and returned to pushing Jack in the wheelchair. Jack leaned an elbow on the arm of the chair and held his forehead. A headache throbbed through his skull. Laura was right, of course, Jack had been going flat out the past month. He couldn't remember all of the TAC raids he made on nests of terrorists around the world and hours breaking suspects for the next target. He was physically exhausted and felt lightheaded. He couldn't remember the last time he ate. He rubbed his eyes.

"Mac…?" He asked softly. Laura patted his shoulder.

"You know our team is the best, Jack. No one cares about him more than we do." Jack felt a little reassured.

"Laura, the cave...it was more a hole, no not even a hole. It was…" Jack leaned forward rubbing his face at the burn of tears. Laura rubbed his neck between his shoulders.

"I heard. I can't imagine. The poor boy." Laura's voice was stiff and gruff. Jack smiled. Maybe there was a gooey center beneath the hard crust after all. Jack's face paled when they pulled up to a shower room. There were no curtains or areas for privacy. It had once been used to hose off animals.

"Ok, cutie, time for your shower." Laura smiled with a raised eyebrow.

"Ulp." Jack thought about staying in the wheelchair...Laura put on gloves and snapped them. She smiled and shut the door behind him.

"Ok, clothes off, handsome." Jack froze desperately looking for a way out, "Or should I lay you on the bed to check you over? Something wrong with your-"
"I'm fine!" Jack yelped not liking the way Laura licked her lips, "Give me a minute, already." He growled.

"Take as long as you want, cutie."

"Oh hell."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Matty looked down at MacGyver and rubbed tears off her face. She watched the medical team work from an area over the surgical area. One that had once held the choir. It had probably held hay at some point. The room behind her was dirty and had piles of rusted pipes and tools. Pigeons cooed and flew in and out the open areas around the fan.

She had thought she knew how bad it would be. She'd gotten the report from Riley and Bozer. She'd heard the gory details from Jack...but she'd never...god what those animals... She sat down and covered her face fighting the need to burst into tears.

Mac was so pale, so small, so broken. Having his hair chopped off just highlighted how vulnerable he looked. And that swollen ring around his neck. Matty's eyes narrowed. She wished she could go back and blow up the terrorists all over again-slower, with much, much more pain.

"There you are. How did you get up here without breaking your knees." Izzy asked as she rubbed her back crossing to Matty. Izzy dropped into the simple wooden pew and rubbed her right shoulder. She glanced down at Mac and put her hand in her lap. She looked up at the crucifix and made the sign of the cross, bowed her head and murmured something under her breath.

Matty watched her curiously. As a general rule, she didn't pry into her agent's religious life. She knew the basics, of course. She had to in case she lost one and-Matty stopped and angrily brushed at her face. No Mac was not going to be one. She wouldn't let him. Izzy finished and leaned back. She rubbed her face. She stared at her feet. Her still presence was there as always, but her eyes were terribly sad.

"You ok?" Matty asked. Izzy itched her nose then stared at her fingernails. They had dirt and grease in the cuticles. She fought the urge to gnaw on them. Terrible habit she just hadn't figured out how to kick yet. She looked at Matty and smiled.

"Yes, I am worried for Mac." Matty nodded but didn't say anything. Izzy sighed and pulled at a loose coil of hair tucking it back into her ordered bun.

"So when are you going to tell us?" Matty's head snapped to the older woman.

"What are you talking about?" Izzy turned and cocked her head to the side. Her green-blue eyes seemed to contain all the soothing green places in the world.

"The real reason we're on this island?" Matty scowled and turned away. She stood up and crossed to the railing. Her gut roiled at the sight of Mac laying on his side a tube down his throat. Doc Carl worked on his shoulder. He'd had a fractured collar bone and dislocated shoulder. It had healed wrong so they'd had to re break it, clean out shards of bone then put it all together. A major surgery in the best of times. Matty felt Izzy stand beside her.

"You and I both know that MacGyver would have an easier recovery if he saw specialists at UCLA. You would not bring him here if there wasn't something serious chasing us." Matty shook her head.

"The DOJ want to put him on lock down for a thorough debrief." Izzy's nose flared.

"I see." Matty looked up a small smile on her face. The sour disappointment in Izzy's voice was equivalent to a screaming violent murderer in someone else. Izzy met Matty's gaze an eyebrow raised, "and?" Matty chewed her cheek, damn the woman. Matty glanced down at Mac then turned back the way she'd come up.

"Then all hell is going to break loose." She said softly as she turned and climbed down stairs steep enough to be considered a ladder.