"On the stage, move!" Jack yelled at Molly, who turned to comply. Marty was the biggest threat, the man moved like a dancer and struck like a viper. Jack ducked under a haymaker and moved in close. He lashed out a triple hit in the gut. Might as well hit a brick. Marty went for the grab. Jack danced under the man's right arm and landed a right and left to the man's kidney. The man grunted and staggered. Jack found himself grabbed and hauled back by Marley.

Jack kicked Marty increasing Marley's rearward momentum. The man yelped in surprise and tilted back. Jack rode him to the ground and lashed out an elbow to the man's solar plexus. Marley wheezed out air. Jack kicked up and scored Marty's face. Marty backed up. Jack rolled to his feet and slashed down with a boot. He hit Marley in the low gut. The man howled and held his hands over his abdomen.

Marty snagged Jack by his neck and lifted. Jack grabbed the man's wrists preventing a strangle hold. He kicked Marty in the thigh. The man grimaced. Jack kept moving, keeping his body in a ball, walked up the man's body kicked out hitting Marty in the chin. The man let go of Jack's neck. Jack wrapped his arms around the man's arms and completed his back flip. Marty howled as both his arms snapped with a loud crack. Jack let him go and snapped out a strong side kick to the man's face as he fell. Marty was down and not moving.

Marley was up and charging. Jack danced out of the way. The man tripped over Marty's leg. Jack smiled. Finally! He ran the three steps to Marley's side and launched himself into the air. Jack went Enter the Dragon and came down with his full weight and momentum into an elbow to the back of the man's neck. There was a snap and the man was down.

Jack rose to his feet, panting. It wasn't a punch to the face, but he could live with that especially if he broke the bastard's neck. Jack glanced around. The studio was completely empty except fo Molly who stared at Jack with her mouth open. Jack grinned not quite able to keep from swaggering.

Jack slammed back to reality when Riley came over the com.

"Jack...they're after Mac." Jack turned and put his hand on the com in his ear. He snatched up his Baretta as he stalked out. He heard Molly yell behind him, but he'd already written her off as inconsequential.

"Where are you?" Jack demanded. He climbed into his rental and skidded out of the lot as fast as the Explorer could go.

"Just getting off the elevator." Riley huffed. "I'm at the ro…" Jack scowled. He heard another familiar voice.

"Oh dear, I was hoping you wouldn't walk in." Edna McFee. Jack howled in frustration and jammed his foot down harder. "Take out your ear bud, now please."

"Riley! Don't…" Jack could only hear silence. He growled louder than the stressed engine of the SUV.

Riley pulled out her com and slipped it in her pocket. Edna's oversized eyes peered at her over the butt of a subcompact ACP. Riley frowned. Matty used the same pistol. Riley had burst into the room to find the small woman holding the pistol and clearing the room, like an agent. Riley frowned.

"Who are you?" She asked. Edna studied her a minute then sighed and put away her pistol in a holster on the small of her back.

"Who are you?" Edna asked putting her arms across her chest. Riley felt herself squirm under the woman's steady gaze, but didn't back down. She glared back at the woman venting her frustration and anger through her eyes. Edna smiled and relaxed.

"I'm DHS. I imagine we're here for the same thing?" Riley nodded before she could say anything, Jack blew into the room like a wrecking ball, his Baretta steady pointing at Edna's head. Jack didn't move his eyes.

"You alright, kiddo?" He asked.

"Yeah, Edna's DHS." Jack raised his eyebrows.

"Don't they have a height requirement?" Edna laughed.

"I like you. Delta? Probably CIA?" She asked. Jack narrowed his eyes but didn't answer.

"We're after the same thing." Edna offered.

"We need to find Mac," Riley added urgently. Jack straightened and holstered his Baretta.

"What do you know?" He growled.

"My source says that the Doxen clan has been trying to relocate and increase the reach of the syndicate we closed down out in Nevada."

"Who's your source?" Riley asked.

"Miley Doxen," Edna said. Jack rubbed his head.

"Oops." He said without sorrow. Edna laughed and shrugged

"He's an asshole, I think he was playing both sides. We have to move fast if we're going to round them all up." Jack loomed over her as he stepped into her space.

"I don't give FA about your case, our friend is more important." Edna's face grew serious and she nodded.

"So what's our next move?" Riley asked. Edna tapped a finger on her chin.

"I came here to get info from you, honestly I thought you were part of this mess." The older woman said. Jack huffed and began to pace.

"So we got nothing?" Jack snarled wishing he had something breakable to throw at the wall.

"Maybe…" Riley said thoughtfully, "When I was over in the widow's wing I found a door in the women's room leading downstairs to something." Jack grinned heading to the door. The others falling in behind him. Riley grabbed his arm making him pause and half turn. "We need to bring Lenny." Jack frowned and nodded. He hated the added time it took but knew if Mac had been poisoned there would be no time to waste in order to save him.

NOW

It was the nightmare Mac had never thought to dream. He jolted awake in darkness. He desperately tried to get up, to run, panic rocked through his consciousness even as he felt his heart sluggishly pound, his body as unmoveable as a sarcophagus. Mac wanted to scream, to fight, to cry, to...anything. His brain told him he was panting with desperation but his body raised and lowered his chest steady as a metronome.

Mac knew that wouldn't last long. 3-4 hours, Riley had said. He wondered how long he'd been unaware. Like a mummy's wrapping, his plethora of pains began to sing like an orchestra. He wanted to moan. His throat was a whole other agony in addition to the back round bruises, sprains, and contusions.

"Are you awake, pretty?" The hated voice. He felt his eyes plucked open. He desperately wanted to close them again, blink or turn away, or puke in disgust. Lucille leaned on her hand laying beside him in a huge bed that had cameras and studio lights around it. Mac cringed his mind going to the hellish corner the bitch could drag him to. And he couldn't do a damn thing about it. The woman reached down and roughly pulled his head around to face him. Mac could feel small moon pains from her long fingernails as they dug into his flesh.

The woman leaned closer and slowly unbuttoned his shirt. Mac tried to curl up into a tiny ball inside his mind, even that failed him. Lucille licked her lips and lazily ran her index finger around his chest. It burned in his mind like a firebrand of shame and hurt worse than a molten iron. She smiled looking straight into his burning, unblinking eyes.

"You don't like me much?" Lucille said, not even trying to keep her fake accent. "You think you're better than us, better than me don't you sweet?" The woman's face contorted into an ugly mask of frustration. She dug in with her claws. Mac could feel blood dripping from the small cuts. She took a deep breath, her face smoothing to her normal vicious cruelty. "Oh, we are going to have fun." She glanced at her watch. "For the next two hours. You'll be amazed at what I can do to you. Then, "she nodded at the cameras filming it all. "It'll all be online for the highest bidder to watch." Mac felt tears ooze from his eyes. He didn't know if it was from not blinking or from the hell he couldn't escape from. Lucille rubbed at one then licked her index finger. She smiled, leaned over opened his mouth and kissed him. She tasted like old cigarettes and meth. Mac wanted to vomit.

Lucille leaned back. Mac could feel her spit around his mouth. The door opened and Buck Miller and Minnie Doxen came running in out of breath.

"Mama, we have to go, now! Molly's betrayed us, Marley's dead, Marty's all busted up and Joy…" Minnie's eyes filled with tears. "My baby is dead." Mac mentally smiled. Jack and Riley were taking down this evil empire. Mac could be satisfied with knowing that no matter what happened to him. It was the tiniest consultation, but he was scrambling for any scrap of sanity. Lucille sat up. Her back was stiff and her her claws clenched into fists.

"Settle down. There's only two of them."

"Three, honey," Buck said glaring at Mac. His jaw flexed and he looked like he would happily bash in Mac's face with a brick. Mac was surprised to find him thinking that wouldn't be too bad.

"Oh don't worry about Blondie, he's already dead. Take care of the other two. There is no way we're abandoning this cash cow, we worked too hard for this." Buck leaned in closer and shared a long passionate kiss with his wife. He looked down at Mac's unmoving eyes with a satisfied glare. Mac mentally rolled his eyes. Was the man jealous of him? Really? Buck and Minnie rushed from the room. Lucille sighed and lay down beside Mac.

"Heavy is the head that wears the crown." She said softly. She rolled over and pulled something out of a drawer on a small table beside the bed. Mac's inner scream became a wail of despair. She held a long fish boning knife. The thin blade gleamed like her fake smile. She leaned back down and softly ran the knife over his chest, not cutting him-yet. "Now where were we." She cooed.