Chloe couldn't sleep. Even though they'd heard from Jack she was still worried about him. He'd been to see Secretary Heller and had got some new information but he'd told her he'd fill them in on developments in the morning. She supposed he was going back to Audrey to try and smooth things over between the two of them. She felt a pang of guilt at what had happened earlier that day. She hated that she always seemed to be the one who managed to get him hooked up in something that then made things difficult for him.
She heard the sound of the apartment door opening and felt hope flare in her chest. She moved to swing her legs off the bed but was stopped by the strong grip that clamped down on her wrist.
"Wait here" came the voice of the man who had been sleeping next to her.
"Chase, it's only Jack" she said in an urgent whisper.
"Let me check" he said, getting up off the bed.
He moved to the open doorway and leaned out to look across the apartment. A second later he was climbing back into bed.
"You're right, it is Jack. Go on then, maybe now I can get some proper sleep" he said, his voice drifting along with his eyes.
Chloe climbed out of bed and padded barefoot across the hall to the kitchen. Jack was making coffee and turned as she walked in.
"Hey" he said with a smile, "you okay?"
She nodded. "Where have you been?" she asked.
"Checking out a lead" he said simply.
"I've been going stir crazy, all this being cooped up in one apartment is driving me mad. It's like being captured again."
Jack stopped what he was doing and turned back towards her.
"I guess I didn't think about that in this big plan of mine did I?" he asked with a smile, "I just want you to be safe Chloe."
"I know, and I don't mean to sound ungrateful" she said, sighing and blowing her hair out of her eyes.
"You don't sound ungrateful, you just sound like Chloe" he said with a smile, reaching out and pulling her against him, his arms curling around her in a tight hug.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" she asked in a voice muffled by his chest.
He laughed in response. "Come on" he said, tugging her into the living room where they sat on the couch.
Jack sat looking down at the floor for a moment and Chloe sat nervously beside him. Eventually he turned towards her and, taking her hand in his he stared intently at her face.
"I found out what this is about Chloe"
"You did?"
He nodded. "You remember Miles Papazian?"
Chloe scowled as she nodded. "The idiot from homeland?"
"Yes. Well, it seems that the idiot from Homeland was behind the CTU bombing"
Chloe struggled to comprehend what he was saying. In her mind Miles didn't have the guts to do something as big as that, he needed to have someone else behind him pulling his strings.
"You're thinking what I'm thinking aren't you?" Jack asked, looking at her intently; watching her expression changing along with her thought patterns.
"He wasn't working alone" Chloe said, certainty in her expression.
"Exactly" Jack said.
"You thinking Logan?" Chloe asked, a scowl on her face.
"It's certainly possible. I'm seeing him tomorrow, I tried to get over there tonight but they wouldn't let me through. I decided as long as you had Chase and me with you you'd be fine until morning" he said with a smile.
"I can look after myself you know" Chloe said with a scowl.
"Of course you can Chloe. It's just after what you've been through . . . ."
"Just remember Bauer, I only got captured and held for ten months. You got twenty. Who should be more nervous about whom here?" she asked with a frown.
Jack laughed outright. The fact that she could joke about both of their traumas was a good sign, even though Chloe wouldn't see it as joking.
"Come on lets get some sleep" he said, "Hopefully we can get this sorted out once and for all tomorrow."
He stood and pulled her up with him, his hand reaching to stroke her cheek. "I am so happy to have you back Chloe" he said simply, his tone slightly gruff.
"Me too" she said, reaching up on her toes to kiss his cheek.
As she was about to pull away Jack held onto her for a moment then reached down to return the kiss. His lips fluttered across her cheek and his hands clamped in her hair. He pulled back and looked deeply into her eyes before brushing his mouth briefly and ever so softly against hers.
Chloe felt her heart rate quicken and resisted the temptation to lean into him. As he pulled away from her he blinked as though trying to clear his muddled thoughts. For some reason she chose that moment to wonder what happened to Audrey. She nearly asked him, but decided he'd tell her if he wanted to.
"Goodnight Chloe" he said quietly.
"Goodnight" she said before moving back into the bedroom she shared with Chase.
As she settled under the covers she heard a muffled voice coming from the other side of the bed.
"Remind me to ask what's going on between the two of you in the morning".
"Nothing is going on" Chloe said, glaring at him. She settled down against the pillow, huffing loudly.
Chase chuckled so she slapped him on the arm. "Go to sleep".
She turned on her side and forced her mind to relax, within minutes she was asleep.
00000
She woke suddenly, an inexplicable weight on her chest. She panicked when she realised she couldn't breathe. Her breath came in short gasps and her heart was pounding, her hands moving to push away whatever was doing this to her. But there was nothing there. She forced herself to calm down, realising she had woken suddenly from another bad dream.
She looked at the clock to her right and saw it was only 5 a.m. Chase continued to sleep soundly beside her so she moved to get out of bed so as not to disturb him. She walked into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water. She'd just taken a sip when a sound behind her made her jump, dropping the glass which shattered at her feet.
"Shit" Jack exclaimed as he put his gun down on the counter and moved forward quickly. "Don't move, there's glass all around you" he said, looking at her bare feet.
Just then Chase came bounding out of the bedroom, weapon drawn. "Dammit, what are you two up to now?" he asked in disgust at having been woken.
"It's nothing Chase. Go back to sleep" Jack said quietly, his eyes not leaving Chloe who stood rooted to the spot.
As Chase went back to bed Jack moved forward, careful not to step on the glass himself. He reached for Chloe and lifted her up and out of the way of the shards of glass.
"Why are you awake?" he asked as he set her back on her feet at the opposite end of the kitchen.
"Just dreaming" she said simply, her hands resting on his arms, not wanting to let go yet.
Detecting her need to be close to him he kept his hands on her waist for a moment, looking intently into her eyes.
"They will get better Chloe" he said softly.
"I know" she said, screwing up her face a little.
He smiled and dropped a kiss to the top of her head before moving away to clear the glass from the floor. Chloe leaned against the door waiting for him to finish.
"I want to come with you to see Logan" Chloe said eventually.
Jack stood up slowly. "No" he said quietly, but the quiet inflection of the word left no room in Chloe's mind as to the utter determination behind it.
"Why not? I have as much right as you do to be there Jack."
"No" he growled, turning away from her and refusing to enter a discussion.
"That's it? No discussion?"
"Go back to bed Chloe"
"No. Not until you discuss this" she said, wrapping her arms around her body and staring at him defiantly.
"This is NOT a debate Chloe" Jack said, moving so his face was only inches from hers "you are not going, I need you to stay here with Chase"
"What about what I need? I need this to be over Jack, whatever that takes. I can't just sit here waiting dutifully for you to sort this out for me. At least let me help."
Chloe's eyes were pleading with him. Jack blinked then turned his head away from her.
"No".
"Damn you" she said, tears of frustration stinging her eyes. She shoved at his chest in an effort to get away from him, unable to be close to him at that moment.
Jack stood there unmoving, allowing Chloe to take her frustration out on him. Eventually he deflected the repeated blows to his chest by taking hold of her wrists and pulling her back against him.
"I will not put you at risk again Chloe" he said simply.
"I'm already at risk you idiot, nothing you do will change that until we get to the bottom of this and whatever you do it'll be quicker and more effective if we do it together."
"Dammit Chloe . . . . ." he sighed in frustration, "I can't lose you again".
"I am not yours to lose" Chloe said harshly before extracting herself from his arms.
Jack felt shock ripple through him, her words as effective as a slap in the face. He watched her retreating into the bedroom and felt that whatever he did he would not win; a feeling very familiar to Jack Bauer.
000000
He stepped out of the shower, dried himself off and got dressed. He was meeting Logan in a couple of hours but wanted to leave before Chloe woke. He couldn't face another confrontation with her this morning.
"Morning" Chase said as he walked into the kitchen.
"Hey" Jack responded looking around warily for Chloe.
"Is Chloe still asleep?" he asked, pouring himself some juice.
"Dunno" Chase said, sipping his coffee and eying Jack with a frown, "you tell me."
"What are you talking about?" Jack growled.
"Chloe didn't come back to bed . . . . . oh shit!" Chase jumped from his seat, looking around frantically as though Chloe would appear from some hidden place.
"Where is she Chase?" Jack asked, his expression fearful.
"She's not here" the younger man said.
"Dammit, she's gone to see Logan" Jack bit out, grabbing his gun and his car keys.
Chase followed Jack out to the car, neither of them talking but both terrified about what might happen to her.
00000
Chloe lurked on the periphery of the retreat. She'd already evaded two sets of Secret Service agents and was in the process of setting up her laptop and hacking into their security logs. She'd managed to remotely track satellite activity using DoD banwidth and had downloaded a grid of the complex to her PDA.
She spared a moment to think about Jack and Chase as she checked her watch. They would have discovered her missing by now and would be on their way. She felt a momentary pang of guilt but comforted herself in the knowledge that she wasn't about to take any unnecessary risks. She was banking on Jack being unable to refuse her request to meet with Logan if she was here anyway. She sat in her hiding spot, deciding to wait it out. She knew they would find her.
She'd been there for about ten minutes when a movement to her right caught her eye. She pulled the 9 mm from the waistband of her jeans and moved back a little to get a clearer view, although she suspected it was either Jack or Chase she wasn't about to take any chances.
She peered through an opening in the trees to get a clearer view but all she saw was a pair of booted feet only a few steps away from her. She waited for the man to move away and as he did she frowned to herself, realising that he was neither Chase nor Jack. Just then she heard him whisper through his comm. unit and his words chilled her to the bone.
"I can't see her Papazian, but she has to be here somewhere".
Just then Chloe felt her heart jump into her throat as she was grabbed from behind, a hand clamped across her mouth and an arm lodged around her middle, thwarting any attempt she might make to break free.
"Don't. Move" came the menacing voice in her ear.
