Author's Note: A couple of people have asked about Evan's status - Major Lorne is an Air Force Major. He served with Stargate Command before coming to Atlantis, and he is also an accomplished pilot and was also his squadron's leader. He's a Flyboy. :P Also, apologies for the long chapter... there's a lot of conversation happening here! :) And a huge thank you to everyone's reviews and comments and questions! If I missed a reply, my apologies! - Nika
Jen's wrists hurt from their awkward angle, her ribs reminding her of their bruised state every time she tried to adjust her position. Her lips were too dry and her tongue couldn't reach them through the tightly wadded material gagging her mouth.
She concentrated on keeping her heartbeat down to a reasonable rate. Panic wouldn't help her now. Wouldn't help Evan.
God, Evan. She felt her heart skitter again. He'd gone down hard. She'd tried to get to him but the other man grabbed her from behind. He'd covered her head with some kind of musty, grainy sack, and her hands had been quickly bound. She'd lost track of how long she'd been slung over his shoulder, carried like a bag of feed corn, the pain in her ribs leaving her half passed out.
And she had no idea where she was now, or where Evan was. She needed to get back there. She needed to get the hell… out… of… here!
She yanked madly on the restraints as each word echoed through her brain, but all she got was a cramp in her shoulder, and a stabbing pain through her left side.
With a soft sob she let her head drop back onto the pillowless bed.
She'd been deposited onto a mattress, her hands still bound tightly behind her back. They'd removed the hood, and had promptly confiscated her radio, and her shoes.
The man who'd carried her knifed the rope around her wrists and her arms protested at sudden the release. He watched her warily, warning her not to try anything stupid. He stepped into the hallway, and admitted a skittish young woman with a very shaky revolver in her hand. The woman requested Jen's wet clothes, handing her a long dry shift to put on instead.
Jen wasn't about to change… but the woman insisted… and Jen wasn't so sure she trusted the trembling trigger finger aimed in her direction. So she changed.
Then the man returned and with the help of the wiggling revolver, Jen let herself be bound to the bedrail with orders to get some sleep.
Sleep.
He'd actually suggested she get some sleep?
There was no way she was going to close her eyes.
She kicked her feet up and tried to push herself higher up on the bed. With a deep breath, she concentrated on holding her injured left side steady while she worked the ropes on her right wrist.
Ronon stood under the trees, the shadows watching over him as he waited. He would have preferred silence, but McKay's chatter was preventing it.
The branches across the clearing broke and Sheppard and Teyla stepped into the open. They had snagged a straggler off the group moving towards the village, and dragged a skinny man - no, Ronon changed his mind as he got closer – a boy, between them.
The child was young. Too young to be carrying the long rifle Teyla dropped onto the ground next to the Jumper. Sheppard let go of the back of the child's shirt, earning him a frowning from Teyla. The boy shook himself and did his best to pout… or perhaps glower… Ronon wasn't sure which. It would have been otherwise humorous if not for the situation.
Evan, who'd been keeping watch on the opposite side, stepped into the clearing from the corner, and Rodney exited the back of the still cloaked Jumper. The group formed a circle around the boy, who had to tilt his head way back to look up at Ronon.
"It's a little late to be out wandering around in the woods, kid." Evan frowned.
"I don't have to talk to you. You're friends with the Malusians." The boy shook his head, his voice still high with childhood, and his lanky young frame. He crossed his arms and huffed. He was young enough not to know he should be afraid of a group of soldiers, Ronon thought, and still cocky with the innocence of childhood.
"We do not have any affiliations." Teyla smiled at the boy. "We are only looking for our friends. Perhaps you can help us find them?"
"I saw him." The boy pointed his chin at Evan. "He came from the Malusians side of the ring. No one comes from the Malusians side of the ring unless they are friends with the Malusians." His voice was very matter of fact.
"And you are not Malusian?" Teyla asked softly.
The boy spit on the ground. "I am Freenan. We hate the Malusians. They steal from us. We steal it back. They eat dirt and are covered in nasty warts."
"Look kid." John rolled his eyes. "We're just trying to find out friend. A woman. Dressed like we are."
"He's not dressed like you are." The boy looked at Ronon.
"Yeah well, he's not from around here." John muttered.
"Technically we're not from around here." Rodney offered.
John ignored him, and re-asked his question, this time with more force. "Have you seen her?"
The boy shook his head.
John swore.
"What are you doing out here this late at night?" Teyla glared at Sheppard, but kept her voice calm.
"We're raiding the village." He nodded, a proud smile on his lips.
"Raiding the… Malusian village?" Teyla prompted.
"Usually we only raid once a month but tonight is special."
"Special?"
He nodded furiously. "The Malusians have a great treasure worth much. We will bring the treasure back to our village."
"Treasure." McKay snorted. "Right."
"You are raiding the village for a treasure." Teyla confirmed.
"Yep." The boy nodded, suddenly excited about the prospect of treasure. "I over heard my uncle talking in the tavern about treasure and uncle said it would make us rich to have and uncle talked to the others and they said they would raid tonight to get it but then uncle saw him-" he glared at Evan. "and said the Malusians hired people to keep the treasure from someone else and we'd have to be quick to steal it away and he organized the hunting party and I followed because they wouldn't let me go because I wasn't supposed to be in the tavern but I'm big enough now and I'll help get the treasure back for our village."
"Did anyone hear him breathe in there anywhere?" Rodney asked.
Ronon was watching Evan's expression as the child spoke. The Major was frowning, the lines of his jaw hard as he clenched his teeth.
"How did your uncle know about the treasure?"
Everyone turned towards Lorne.
"A traveler came to see my uncle."
"What did he look like?" Evan asked, stepping forward.
The boy shrugged. "He was tall. Like you. But not tall like him." He pointed at Ronon.
"What color was his hair?" Evan continued.
The boy looked around at the group. He pointed at Sheppard. "It was messy like his. Longer. But not dark."
"My hair's not messy." John muttered, running a hand across his head.
"Do you own a mirror?" Rodney stared at Sheppard incredulously.
"And this traveler told your uncle about the treasure?" Evan leaned closer.
The boy nodded. "He said he would help us get it back."
"Is he with your uncle's raiding party? Is he with the other group?"
The boy nodded. "He will help us get the treasure back."
"Something you want to share, Major?" Sheppard asked, watching Lorne.
"Did you hear anyone say exactly what the treasure was?"
The boy shook his head.
"Did you hear the man's name?" Lorne persued.
Eyes moved from Evan, to the boy, back to Evan, then back to the boy.
The child nodded then smiled. "Mart."
"Mark?"
"Yes!" He nodded quickly. "Mark."
"Fuck." Evan swore. "Hoyle. I knew it. I'm going to shoot the bastard. Right after I beat the living shit out of him." He turned, took two steps, then turned back towards the group.
"Major?" John angled his head. "Maybe you should go sit down."
Ronon was beginning to wonder just how hard the Major hit his head.
"God damn it!" Evan cursed. "He set this whole thing up."
"Who did?" John asked.
"Hoyle." Evan spat.
"The actor?" Rodney questioned.
"Yes, the actor. The disgusting, perverted, dead-when-I-get-my-hands-on-him actor."
"I thought his name was… Brandon?" Teyla shook her head, confused.
"It is." Evan nodded. "Mark's the name of his character."
"His… character?" Teyla raised an eyebrow.
"From the movie. His character from the movie." Evan nodded.
Ronon dodged to the side and snagged the back of the boy's shirt. The child was attempting to sneak away during the distracted conversation. He held the boy beside him and attempted to make sense of what the hell the Major was talking about.
"He staged this. Hoyle. He's staging the raid."
"He's staging a raid?" John looked quizzically at the Major.
"I believed her. I did. But I never realized just how far the maniac would actually go." Evan shook his head, incredulously.
"Believed who?" John asked.
"The Doc."
"Keller staged the raid?" Rodney frowned.
"No." Evan spat, exasperated. "Hoyle did. Is."
"And you know this how?" John asked.
"The Doc told me."
"She told you he'd stage the raid?" Rodney raised an eyebrow.
"No, she told me what he'd done to her before."
"What did he do to her before?" Ronon growled.
Evan looked at Ronon, and Ronon saw the hardness in the Major's eyes. "Hoyle gets off on acting out his movie scenes in real life. He thinks it's a great way to get into a woman's pants. And he's pissed because the Doc said no. More than once."
"He wants Jennifer's pants?" Teyla frowned.
"No." Rodney shook his head. "He wants to get in to women's pants. In… as in…" he leaned closer and whispered "sex".
"Oh." Teyla nodded slowly, her brows furrowed as she stared at Rodney. "Hoyle wants Jennifer's… Oh. I see."
Ronon growled.
Rodney nodded knowingly.
As succinctly as possible, Evan explained Jennifer's date with Hoyle. Ronon did not know the movie, but he judged by the look on McKay's face that the scientist did. When Evan mentioned a tavern, Rodney's face blanched, but Evan did not expand on it. Ronon had a very, very bad feeling he was not going to like knowing what happened to Jennifer in this tavern, and that the Major wasn't about to tell them all here and now.
"Please tell me you've seen Treasure of Marcos?" Evan looked from John to Rodney.
Sheppard shook his head.
Evan zeroed in on Rodney, who had a slightly sheepish expression.
"You have seen it." Evan glared at him accusingly.
"Nope." Rodney shook his head. "Never saw it. The guy's a horrible actor… why would I watch such a piece of drabble. I mean, come on… no one could shoot that many people and live… well, except maybe Goliath here…" Everyone turned towards him and he threw his arms up in the air. "Okay fine. Yes. I've seen it. I was curious about what the big deal was. The guy can't act worth crap and the women are all over him!"
Evan stepped in front of McKay. "Two villages, regular raiding parties. One village kidnaps the geologist thinking she'll help them find a mysterious treasure."
"Yes, yes." Rodney shrugged. "The plot wasn't very believable."
Evan shook his head and pointed to the boy. "Two villages. Raiding party. Kidnapping of a female scientist?"
"Yeah." Rodney shrugged. "Our hero steps in, convinces the other village to steal the treasure, then he double crosses them and goes after the girl but I don't see what this has to do with Hoyle?"
"And you have how many PhD's?"
"Now just a minute…" Rodney muttered.
"We're wasting time!" Ronon growled.
"Agreed." John looked pointedly at Evan.
"Just… wait." Evan held up his hands. "Hoyle is setting up this raid so he can get to the Doc."
"Hoyle's going to rescue her?" Rodney laughed. "You really did hit your head. They guys a chicken shit. You should have seen how fast her ran for the bathroom the minute Zelenka explained what a Wraith did to the human body."
"He's acting." Evan shook his head. "He's pretending this is the movie. He thinks he's going to get the girl and she's going to be so grateful he rescued her she'll be all over him with gratitude."
"Oh please." Rodney muttered, crossing his arms over his chest. "That never happens in real life. I'd be covered in happily willing females for the amount of universal life saving I've done."
"Yes well tell that to Jennifer." Evan shook his head.
And what he said next had them all in shocked silence. When Evan finished, Ronon couldn't stop himself from pacing. It took Sheppard's hand on his wrist to realize he'd been spinning his gun. He dropped it into its holster but kept his hand on it. The reassuring feel of the hilt in his hand calming him for the task at hand. It took every ounce of willpower he possessed to keep himself from chasing the man down and killing him with his bare hands. Brandon Hoyle would not leave this planet alive.
"She didn't know?" Rodney squeaked.
"No." Evan shook his head.
"He hired them to…" Sheppard looked at Evan with a mix of horror and disgust.
"Yes." Evan nodded.
"And she had no idea…" John trailed off.
"None." Evan shook his head.
"So she thought…" Rodney looked aghast.
"Yes." Evan answered.
"I believe I would like to meet this Brandon Hoyle." Teyla frowned, her expression hard.
"Stand in line." John muttered. "So you think he's using this… to… it's a little extreme don't you think?"
Evan shook his head. "As far as I can tell, the guy's a complete crackpot. Who knows how far he'd go? It's not like we haven't met worse?"
"Point taken." John nodded.
Rodney pointed at the boy. "The two villages, with the raiding back and forth."
"Right." Evan nodded.
"The talk of treasure." Rodney pursed his lips. "Keller would be the geologist… but I don't get how she's supposed to help them find any treasure."
"There is no treasure." Evan shook his head. "Hoyle made it up. He's setting them up so he can get into the town protected by a raiding party. He's going to go in and try to get her himself."
"But this isn't a movie." Rodney shook his head. "What happens when…"
"When he figures out the guns are real? The bullets are real? That real people are dying?" Evan shrugged. "That's what I'm afraid of. The guys going to snap and probably get himself killed."
"Or get Keller killed." John muttered, shaking his head. "We'll use the raid as a distraction, and go get her ourselves."
"How long before they reach the village?" Evan turned towards the boy.
"We will attack an hour before the sun crests, as always." He nodded happily, glancing around the circle of adults.
John checked his watch. "Let's move."
They headed towards the trees, the boy happily accompanying them.
"Major?" Rodney hurried to catch up to Evan. "Why would Hoyle pick this particular movie for his little… excursion."
Evan shrugged as they moved under the branches. "How the hell should I know? Maybe because he already had two villages that fit the plot. Sounds like these guys have been at it for a while. Why?"
"Well, if the whole goal is to rescue the girl…"
"It is." Evan nodded.
"How long ago did you see the movie?" Rodney prompted.
"A couple of years ago, why."
"Well, I was just thinking… about the ending and all."
"The ending?"
"Yeah. It's not a great choice if the goal is to get the girl in the end."
"Why not?" Evan glanced at McKay, the odd look on the scientists face making him stop. "I don't remember what happened."
"Well…" Rodney shrugged. "She dies."
Everyone stopped.
"What?" Ronon growled.
"The geologist dies in the end." Rodney looked from Ronon to Evan. "Get's shot trying to shield the hero. Big tear jerker. The last scene before the credits is the guy-"
"Carrying her through the middle of town while she dies in his arms." Evan exhaled. "Fuck."
"You don't think…" Rodney shook his head. "He wouldn't… go that far would he? I mean… Just how mad is he that she turned him down? Or that she tried to ruin his career? Or that she couldn't be bought out? Would he… He couldn't, could he?"
Everyone stared directly at Evan.
And Evan stared directly at Ronon.
Ronon's eyes shifted to John.
Sheppard cursed as he nodded at the Satedan. "Go!"
