Soooooooooooooo, I sure took my sweet time in posting again but I couldn't let the second month of the new go by without another one shot. This one took me a whole week to write and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I'm really hoping you guys like it and please leave a comment to let me know. I hope I don't take that long in posting again.

Also, this has gotta be the longest one shot I've written so far. I mean, it just has to be!

I can't wait to see what you guys think. This one has a little bit of everything and I think it's gonna be appealing to all the Jack whump lovers out there. Of course, Mac also has to be in that picture. You all know me, Mac whump is like a drug to me: I just can't avoid it.

So… for this one I'm not gonna write a summary. You'll just have to read on and see what happens! Let's just keep in mind that there are brief references of the episode "Mac + Jack" but let's also pretend that the episode where Murdoc kidnapped Mac didn't happen. I mean, It could have happened and this story wouldn't be affected but there's also no mention of that in this story. Cage is also present, which is weird for me because I think I've only mentioned her once in my one shots.

So… no more boring stuff: hope you like it!

CHAPTER 21: Sooner Rather than Later

Movement.

That was all Mac was aware of right now.

He wasn't sure which way was up, which way was down. He didn't know where he was or what was happening around him. He only knew that he was moving and that moving without knowing why or how made him nauseous.

Also, it was dark. Most of the time anyway, because sometimes he could distinguish flashes of light, but there weren't many, and he couldn't even tell if his eyes were open or not.

Worst of all though, was not knowing if he was alone. He could be anywhere, surrounded by anyone, friend or foe, and he wouldn't be able to tell. He felt like he was in a dream. His brain wasn't working right. That much he could tell.

What was going on?

As his brain started to slip further into the darkness, Mac failed to notice the slightly psychotic grin breaking into the face hovering above him. A face he still didn't recognize due to his drugged state and one that wasn't only haunting him in his dreams now. He was haunting him for real.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

Jack woke up late that morning. It was a sunday, the clock reaching the 10am mark and he relished in the feeling of having slept soundly. No nightmares to wake him up in the middle of the night. No lingering emotions threatening to choke him down. He was well rested and just content to lay there, under the covers of his bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking: today's one of those days.

One of those days in which he didn't have to distract himself with anything to keep his mind away from unpleasant memories. A day he could enjoy by doing nothing. Absolutely nothing. A day where he wasn't bothered by his own company.

That didn't mean he had to spend the day necessarily alone.

He reached for his phone on the bedside table. He had no messages. No alerts. No missed calls. Apparently today was gonna be a quiet day for everyone.
If only...

He dialed Mac's number, putting his phone on speaker while he dressed. He was pulling his shirt down when he frowned. The call went to voicemail. Weird.
Jack glanced at the clock again in case he'd been mistaken but no, it was indeed 10am and even though he was known for sleeping in from time to time... Okay, maybe once every three or so months, Mac never, ever, slept after 8 o'clock even when he'd had good nights too.
He dialed the number again, in case Mac had been in the bathroom or something but it went to voice mail again. Not good.

This could only mean one thing. Mac was out looking for his father again. Without him.
Jack sighed, heading to the kitchen for some breakfast. He would swing by Mac's place later. He had promised the kid he wouldn't hover over him so much, but he would never fail to be concerned about him. This search for his father was very emotionally consuming and an emotional Mac was a dangerous Mac, not because he'd do anything dangerous but because he usually let his guard down when he was dealing with the subject of his father.

Another sigh. Stupid, incredibly annoying self-sacrificing heartwarming kid. Jack remember the first time he met Mac, having instantly disliked him for messing with his stuff and being prone to disobeying orders. He smiled. He wouldn't have it any other way now.
Eventually his worry spurred him into eating faster and heading over Mac's place earlier than planned.

He arrived a good 30 minutes later, walking through the front door not bothering to call out to Bozer since the man hadn't returned from his school trip (because Jack totally believed the spy course Bozer had been sent to was almost like a school trip) and just calling for his partner.

"Yo, Mac?" he said, walking around the kitchen and livingroom, sneaking a peek out at the deck but finding every place empty. When no answer was provided, he began to lose his light tone "Mac? You here?" nothing.

Jack registered the bedroom and bathroom. They were empty as well. He could feel a knot tightening in his stomach. Mac's jeep was parked outside, so where was he? He tried Mac's phone again, but when no one picked up he let out a curse.

He was about to call Riley to ask her to track down Mac's phone when the ringtone he reserved only for his partner started blaring on his own. Jack let out a relieved breath and answered.

"Finally decided to resurface, did ya?" he asked somewhat accusingly. If only Mac really understood how much Jack's heart stuttered every time he thought he might be in danger.

"Actually, I did" answered a voice that was definitely not his partner's and that had Jack's blood turning to ice. It also sharpened his senses.

"Murdoc. What did you do?" he asked with venom in his voice and gripping his phone tightly.

"Oh a little of this, little of that. Isn't that what our boy genius likes to say?" Jack could've growled.

"My boy" he corrected "Where is he?" Murdoc tsked.

"All in due time. All I can say now is that he's being taken very good care of, although I imagine he wouldn't feel the same" Jack's heart picked up in speed.

"What do you want?" he asked, willing to do anything to get his partner back but also heading out the door and into the car to head over to the Phoenix. If he was going to find Mac, he needed all available resources.

"For starters, I would like for you to not head over to your working place. You would be wasting time anyway, going in the opposite direction from us" Jack immediately pulled over.

"Quit your games Murdoc! What do you want?" but the psychopath evaded the question again.

"How much do you care about him?" Jack knew better than to answer such a baiting question. He suspected Murdoc knew the answer anyway. After a minute of silence and heavy breathing on Jack's part, Murdoc kept talking "I'll give you a chance to find him Jacky-boy" the Phoenix agent cringed at the nickname "12 hours and I'm done with him. You can have him after that"

"What are you talking about!?" Jack asked, getting frustrated on top of angry. What could Murdoc possibly want with Mac for 12 hours?

"You will find him in exactly 11 hours and 59 minutes" and he hang up, leaving Jack to try and calm his racing heart by placing his forehead on the steering wheel.

"This is not happening. This is so not happening" he muttered to himself and then called Matty.

He explained everything Murdoc said and Matty ordered him into the office, disregarding Murdoc's first request. She would call the rest of the team in and they would begin the search.
Jack turned the car back to life and hurried over the Foundation, all the while thinking that if he hadn't slept in, he might've caught Mac before he'd been taken.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

Mac opened his eyes slowly, blinking owlishly to try and bring his surroundings into focus. He recognized the signs of having been drugged and the pounding headache threatening to split his head open. He groaned at the effort of lifting his head and that's when he realized the position he was in.

He was hanging by his hands against a wall, his feet barely touching the ground, which put a strain on his wrists and shoulders that was more than uncomfortable. He heard some tinkering and roamed his eyes around the room he was in. It was a square wooden room, lit by natural sun light filtering through the rows of windows adorning the top of the walls.

The sound of metal clinking brought his attention back to a dark figure on the other side of the room, directly in front of him. He had to keep blinking until finally his vision cleared enough for him to see straight, noticing that the figure on the other side of the room was a person who was leaning over something with his back turned to him.

Bang!

Mac jumped at the noise, his heart skyrocketing and his head pulsing in rhythm with it. The figure let out a giggle and turned to face him.

"Oh, I'm so sorry MacGyver. Didn't realize the trigger was so sensitive" and Mac was making his best effort to glare at the man. Murdoc then came closer to him, forgetting for a moment the weapon he had just fired and leaving it behind on what looked like a chair "So nice of you to finally wake up"

Mac let his head rest against the wall while he regarded Murdoc with what he hoped was a neutral expression. Murdoc was now standing close to him, real close, studying him and making him want to look away. But he didn't. He wouldn't show fear in front of this man.

"Ah... Such spirit MacGyver" Murdoc exclaimed, his typical cynical smile never wavering "That's one of the things I like most about you. I can keep coming at ya and you still remain standing" Mac swallowed the cotton ball inside his throat and found his voice.

"What are we doing here?" he asked, his voice rough and deeper than usual, all the result of whatever drug Murdoc had used to knock him out. He flinched at the sudden movement and noise when Murdoc clapped his hands together.

"We're gonna play a little game! You know that annoying friend of yours? Jack?" at the sound of his partner's name, Mac's attention sharpened, and he regarded Murdoc with hate.

"If you did something to-"

"Reeeeelax. He's fine. On his way here I suppose" Mac frowned in confusion. He was sure Murdoc was being confusing on purpose which wasn't helping his drugged brain make sense of the other man's plan.

"Then what do you want?"

"Oh nothing much. Just a few names and locations that only Phoenix knows about" Murdoc answered as if it was no big deal.

"Then you're wasting your time" Mac said, swallowing again "I won't tell you anything" he finished, defiance in his eyes.

"Which is why I haven't asked you anything, dear MacGyver. While your friends at the Phoenix are all busy trying to find their golden boy, I already have someone in place to acquire the information that I need. I'm sorry to break it to you Mac, can I call you Mac? But you're just a diversion... This time" Mac scowled at him.

"You must be crazier than I thought if you think you can access Phoenix's files" Murdoc laughed.

"I already accessed your building once. Don't you remember?" of course he remembered "So getting my hands on some little file won't be that difficult. Honestly, I don't think all this was even necessary but, you know me! I love a good cat and mouse game"

Suddenly, an alarm started sounding and Murdoc reached into his pocket for his phone and turned it off.

"Well, time to send your friends some proof of life and a way to track us down" Then he produced a roll of duct tape and Mac tried trashing his head around to avoid the gag but a hard pull of his hair had him stilling enough for the other man to place the tape on top of his mouth.

Before he could brace himself for whatever Murdoc had planned, a hard open palm slap made his head turn to the side and left him seeing stars. He turned his head to look at Murdoc but the action was interrupted by another, harsher slap. Mac groaned through the gag and fisted his hands above his head. He took a few deep breaths and prepared to take the rest of the onslaught.

Murdoc wasn't holding back. He knew how to hit someone to cause a lot of pain without injuring anything important. None of his ribs were broken or even cracked, but Mac found it hard to expand his chest and take a full breath. He had a cut on his left eyebrow and a bruise already darkening on his cheek. If Murdoc kept at it, he would soon pass out. But the other man didn't, instead he fished another phone out of his pocket and Mac realized it was his phone. Murdoc reached for one of his hands cuffed above his head to take a hold of one finger and use it to unlock the finger print locking mechanism on the phone. He went to the camera app and changed it to video recording. He pointed the phone at Mac and smiled.

"Say hi to your friends MacGyver"

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

"Come on people! I need some leads" Matty yelled to the group of people working furiously in trying to find their missing agent. They were in the war room and a huge clock was ticking by, almost mockingly, on the corner of the screen.
6 hours and 15 minutes. That's how long they had to find Mac, according to Murdoc, which wasn't a very reliable source of information so Matty was pushing everyone around to focus solely on finding anything, no matter how small, that could help them get to MacGyver faster.

The team was there too: Riley was leading the search via tech while Cage worked on finding any clues that might be hidden in the conversation Jack'd had with Murdoc that morning.
Jack was on a corner, his arms folded in front of his chest and he was staring with a scowl at the immense screen on the wall. A screen that still didn't show them where Mac was or what might be happening to him right now. Jack didn't want to get lost in the images his brain was conjuring up about what Murdoc could be doing to his partner, but it was hard not to when you couldn't focus on anything else. His job wasn't handling technology, he wasn't a lab rat, as much as it pained him to admit it, he didn't have Cage's entire skill set when it came to 'hacking someone's brain', and he certainly couldn't make solutions appear out of nowhere... That was Mac's job. All in all, he felt utterly useless and it was showing in his mood.

He was about to ask, for the hundredth time if someone had managed to find a lead when his phone beeped with a message. When he looked at it, his heart jumped and he called everyone at attention.

"Hey! I got a message from Mac's phone. It's gotta be Murdoc" he handed the phone to Riley and she set it up to show the message on the big screen. It was a video and everyone gulped, anticipating what might be in it. Under Matty's command, Riley played it through and they were greeted with an image that sent a stab of pain down Jack's stomach and a voice that sent chills through everyone else.

"Say hi to your friends MacGyver"

They could see a badly bruised Mac hanging by his hands, his mouth taped shut and his eyes open half-mast. He was breathing fast and Jack could see the pain hidden behind the determination of remaining strong inside those baby blue eyes. Mac wasn't looking at the camera, but rather at the person behind it. Murdoc kept talking on the video.

"As you can see, our boy isn't having the time of his life here. You now have half the time I gave you to find him Jacky-boy... Are you there Jacky-boy?" at the mention of his name, Mac had changed his focus from Murdoc to the camera and Jack felt like he was looking right at him "Of course you are. Remember: you now have 6 hours to get to him before it's too late"

Jack was about to answer, forgetting for a moment that this was a pre-recorded video and not a video call when he saw Mac's eyes widen in surprise and his breathing pick up in rate. The camera lost its steadiness and they could all see a gloved hand reaching for their friend holding a syringe. Mac tried to get away but it was useless, he was bound.

"No!" Jack exclaimed, knowing there was nothing he could do to avoid what surely must have already happened. He knew how much his partner hated to be drugged, to feel like he couldn't think straight enough to find a way out of a dangerous situation.

They could all hear Mac's groan when the needle was plunged into his neck and then his fight to remain conscious. It was a losing battle though, and with every breath he took, his eyelids dropped a little further until his head was hanging on his chest and his dead weight pulled on the restraints above his head. It was a dangerous position. Mac's airway could be blocked, the strain on his shoulders enough to dislocate them if he didn't stand up on his own soon.
Jack wanted to send a fist flying into the screen, if only the fist could reach Murdoc.

The video ended with another reminder of the time they had left and the war room remained silent for a few more minutes until Matty took back control of the situation.

"Riley, analyze the video and find something, anything that can tell us where baby Einstein is. Shadows, reflections, sounds, background. I want every little detail picked apart"

"On it" Riley answered, still troubled by the video they had just seen but more determined than ever to get their friend back safe.

Matty rattled a few more orders and everyone got to work. When she addressed Jack and Cage, her expression was serious.

"You and me" she said, gesturing at the two of them "we're gonna make some calls"

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

Mac woke up an undetermined amount of time later to the same wooden room, only, this time, it was empty. No Murdoc in sight.

Mac sighed through his nose, relieved. Time to find a way out. Whatever drug Murdoc had given him made his body weight tons more than it should, or maybe it drained him of the necessary strength to support himself right. His neck was stiff and his shoulders screamed in agony. He could feel his hands cold by lack of circulation and his brain still wasn't working right.

He stood up, as much as his feet could touch the floor and allow him to do so and started feeling around the lock on the cuffs restraining him. Unfortunately, unless he could produce something to pick the lock with out of thin air, he wasn't breaking out of the cuffs.

He didn't know exactly how much time had passed since Murdoc drugged him. He noticed the distinctive lack of natural light and piercing of the yellow light emanating from a lightbulb in the ceiling. So, nighttime. The 12 hour mark Murdoc had been talking about in the video must have been drawing near and Mac found himself staring at the door, willing it to open and show his partner followed by a team of Phoenix agents coming to the rescue. As it was, the door remained stubbornly closed. He had to admit though, that he preferred it that way if it meant Murdoc wasn't around either. It was amazing how much he could hate someone and how much that someone creeped him out. He could only hope they could get the psycho into custody once again after all this was done, if only-

Bang!

Mac jumped at the sound of a gunshot again, the loud crack bringing his attention back to his surroundings and finally his eyes rested upon the chair that had been so innocently resting at the other end of the room, in front of him, and that only now his still kind of drugged brain recognized was a contraption that allowed for what looked like a sniper rifle to remain on top of it and aimed. The barrel of the weapon was pointing to his right, and when he looked to the side he saw the splintered wood where the bullet had made impact.

He glanced back at the rifle again, absolutely sure no one had been there to fire it, no matter how drugged he might have been, and that's when he heard it. It was a mechanical sound, like wheels turning and the rifle milimetrically changed its aim. Mac knew what was coming, but the sound still made him flinch.

Bang!

The weapon began to move again, coming closer to him if only by an inch.

Bang!

Shit. Shit! Mac thought, his breathing picking up speed while he yanked on his restrained hands, only managing to make the metal cut into his wrist even more.

Bang!

Mac forced himself to calm down and pushed his uncharacteristically slow brain to make the calculations and see how long it would take the rifle to be aimed directly at him and for the first bullet to enter his body. It was safe to say that the answer wasn't encouraging and having the rifle firing another shot wasn't helping his situation at all.

According to the rate of shots being fired and the space between each shot, the weapon would reach him in about 10 minutes, give or take one because he didn't trust his math processing right now.

Unless Phoenix found him in the next few minutes, he was as good as dead.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

Earlier at the Phoenix Foundation:

"I got something!" Riley called from her spot of the couch of the war room.

"What is it?" Cage asked. They had returned from a meeting with someone high up the range in the military, unfortunately a waste of time, and were now depending solely on the only clue Murdoc had provided: the video.

"I managed to crack the encryption Murdoc used on the video. We know he turned Mac's phone gps off so we couldn't track him that way but he left some prints on the encryption that I could use to triangulate at least a general location from where he sent it. I crossed referenced it with the information we gathered from the video itself. There was the natural light in the room, the reflection on Mac's eyes, the angle of his shadow on the wall. Also, when Murdoc grabbed the camera with only one hand to inject Mac with the needle, Mac's struggles made him point the camera up, for a split second and we got a picture of that frame. There was the top of a building outside the window. We put all of that together and we got..." a few keystrokes on her laptop "... A possible location. It's the most accurate I could get with what we have"

"This might just be enough" Matty said and turned to Jack, who was studying the map on the screen. The area was big. It was an abandoned warehouse scheduled for demolition in a few months. The place had many rooms in it and he wasn't sure they'd be able to search them all in the little time they had left. 11 hours and 25 minutes. Apparently, Murdoc had been right, he had said they'd find Mac in 11 hours and 59 minutes.

"... ack? Jack? Yo, cowbow!" Jack snapped his attention back to their boss.

"Clock's ticking, take a team and go find blondie"

"Yes ma'am" he said and gestured for Cage to follow.

Jack coordinated with the Phoenix agents they'd be taking to raid the compound and soon he and Cage were leading the vehicles out of the building and towards the place where they would hopefully find Mac.

11 hours and 34 minutes. They only had 26 minutes left on the clock.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

Mac's wrists were bleeding profusely by the time the weapon was half way to him. He had yanked the cuffs with all his strength hoping desperation would be enough to snap them, but it wasn't. His body was weak and it hurt all over from Murdoc's beating. No one had showed up yet.
'Come on Jack. Any time now' he thought.

Bang!

He had stopped jumping at the sound, expecting it to happen every few seconds. He knew that he would be feeling the pain rip into his abdomen in about five or six shots. And then again, and again, because the space between each shot was minimal. By the time the weapon's aim had passed by him, there would be four bullets in him. What a horrible way to die, he thought.

If only Jack would walk through that door.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

"Alright people, listen up! This place is huge so we're gonna split into pairs and search every damn-"

Bang!

Jack turned around immediately at the sound. The group of Phoenix's agents had gathered at the entrance of the place, a huge combination of warehouses, office buildings and other spaces Jack didn't care about. Right now his attention was focused on the possible location where that gunshot had come from.

Bang!

"Damn!" he made a move to begin moving in that direction when Cage halted him.

"Jack wait! It could be a trap" she said, her accent somehow making the words more accurate.

"Or it could be Mac getting shot at!" but then he took a calming breath. His partner needed him to be the trained and experienced operative that he was "Okay, we'll still go in pairs and check under every rock. I don't want surprises coming our way and Murdoc sure likes his games" he finished just as another shot sounded coming from the warehouse to their left. He looked pointedly at Cage.

"Let's go" she confirmed

Jack and Cage ran all the way to the warehouse, stopping at the door and taking a stance to breach the place, Jack leading the front while Cage covered his back.

Bang!

None of them flinched at the sound, being accustomed to it and together they moved forwards.

The walked through a long hallway, their assault rifles at the ready and cleared the first door to their right: an office. An empty office, so they moved on.

Bang!

And that when they pinpointed the origin of the shots: they were coming from the left door in the middle of the hall. Jack indicated his approach and got an affirmative from Cage. Through their comms they heard the other teams clearing the place one by one, and every time Jack heard a negative response, his resolve built even stronger for what, or who, may be through the door he was now facing.

Bang!

This time, he did jump. They were so close but there was something nagging at him. Something about the shots felt wrong. They were too precise, spaced together by the same number of seconds. And there were no other sounds coming from the other side of the door.

What if Cage had been right? What if this was just a trap and Mac wasn't in there? He knew they still needed to clear the room and find out what the gunshots were all about, so he squared his shoulders and indicated Cage to open the door so he could be the first one in. If this was indeed a trap and instead of Mac they came face to face with Murdoc, at least he'd have a chance to break the man's bones, each and every one of them.

Cage pushed the door open at the same time another shot was fired and a grunt of pain made it all the way to their ears.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

Mac had stopped struggling, now focused solely on slowing his breathing because he was getting dizzy and it had nothing to do with the drugs Murdoc had given him all those hours ago. Chances were they were already on their way out of his system.

He had started to hyperventilate when he counted only three more shots until the weapon reached his body. Thinking about the pain of being shot in the abdomen multiple times was only adding to the torture and he cursed Murdoc and his psychological games for the thousandth time. How he hated that guy.

There was another bang and now two more shots until he died. That left him about ten seconds. What do you think about when you only have ten seconds to live? Movies always tell you that you see your whole life passing before your eyes, but now Mac called Hollywood bullshit. He wasn't seeing his life in any kind of emotional way, he was seeing stars dancing across his vision from how dizzy his panic was making him.

Bang!

Mac flinched, moaning into the gag out of desperation. The next shot would reach him. He was sure of it.

True enough, after a few more seconds ticked by, the gun went off and, at first, he had been momentarily distracted by the door of the room opening but then he felt the burn in his side and he grunted. The aim of the weapon hadn't quite reached him, so the bullet only grazed him on his right side. That didn't make the burn any less painful and the prospect of the next bullet any less scary. He would get hit within the next few seconds and there was no way around it.

He closed his eyes, not having the time to see who had opened the door and braced himself for the impact.

Bang!

The next shot went off, but instead of feeling a bullet rip straight to him, he felt a massive weight slam into him, knocking the wind out of him and making him open his eyes wide.

JACK! He thought, before another shot went off.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

When he stepped through the door, Jack only had a split second to sweep the room for any threats and understand what was going on.

He saw his partner hanging from the wall, a pained expression on his face, a small stain of blood on his side, and then his eyes went to the rifle on the chair, hearing and seeing it move a few inches towards his partner.

Later, Jack wouldn't exactly remember how his brain put the picture together so fast: the odd timing of the shots, the gadget were the rifle rested, the bullet holes on the wall making their way to Mac, the stain of blood on his shirt. The weapon had already reached him. Well… shit!

Jack sprinted forward, not having the time or the knowledge to stop the riffle mechanism from shooting at his partner again and just thinking about how the next bullet would hit Mac again. He put himself between the trajectory of the weapon and Mac, and another shot went off.

He felt it slam into his back and the strength of the hit propelled him into his partner. He tried to brace himself with his hands on the wall, but he still slammed into the blond, eliciting both a gasp from him and a grunt from himself. His back was on fire but, thankfully, his vest had stopped the bullet.

"Jack!" he heard Cage shouting and he turned his head to the side to glance back at her as much as he could.

"Turn that thing off!" he grunted and then turned his head back to the front to glance at his partner. Mac's eyes were wide with what he thought was disbelief and fear. He couldn't blame the kid, after all-

Bang!

"Urgh!" Jack uttered when another bullet slammed into his back and he almost lost his footing. He could tell the weapon had moved a few inches to the right but, after the shock of another impact, the pain kind of spread all over his back.

He could now hear Mac, shouting through the gag, desperate to say something, but Jack didn't want to risk changing his position to get the tape away from his face and lose his balance. He had already slipped a bit to the floor but he'd be damned if he let his partner unprotected.

"Cage!" he roared, making her hurry "Today would be nice" he hissed.

"I'm on it!" Cage answered, trying to find a way to stop the rifle from shooting again. The mechanism was complicated. This could take a while.

Jack was beginning to stand straighter, reaching to the wall for support when another shot rang out and he lost his footing entirely. He began to fall to the floor, pain consuming his back and making it almost impossible for him to remain standing but he couldn't leave Mac unprotected now. He was sure the kid was yelling his name through the gag and Jack did the one thing he didn't want to do: he grabbed into the kid to keep himself from falling to the ground. He latched into one of his shoulders and arms and he heard Mac crying out from the extra weight pulling on his more than strained limbs. Jack apologized in his mind for having to cause his partner more pain, but it was the only way to remain upright and to still act as a shield for him.

He wasn't sure if he'd be able to remain upright when the next bullet reached him given how his vision was starting to darken around the edges. His legs were trembling and he rested his forehead on Mac's chest, breathing heavily. The bullets might have slammed into his back, but his chest felt tight and taking deep breaths was out of the question. His eyes were closed, his only focus now was maintaining his position so Mac wouldn't get hit by any shot, at least he had a vest, Mac didn't. Somewhere in the back of his mind and through the sound of his blood pumping in his ears, he registered that the seconds had ticked by and he hadn't felt any more pain beyond the now existing agony at his back. He was talking to himself, repeating the same words over and over again in his mind.

'Stay up, stay up, stay up, stay up…'

He almost missed his partner's body shaking, trying to call his attention or Cage's hands on his shoulder.

"… it Jack. I got it. You can let go now" his hearing came back suddenly and Jack snapped out of the small trance he had fallen into. He turned his head from Mac's chest to glance at Cage and asked in a husked tone.

"Did you get it?"

"Yes Jack. It's over" she answered.

"The riffle's not aimed at Mac?"

"No. Jack…" she held his gaze "You can let go" he heaved a sigh, a painful one.

"Good" and then he collapsed on the floor.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

When he felt Jack slam into him with a grunt, Mac realized what his friend had done and his mind had gone into panic mode quicker than if the bullet had actually reached him. He could see his partner was wearing a vest, but that didn't take away the fear of him getting seriously hurt. What if the rifle had armor piercing rounds? Even if it hadn't, the distance wasn't much and a bullet that close, even stopped by a bulletproof vest, could do a lot of damage.

"Urgh!" when the second bullet hit him, Mac felt like crying.

'Jack! JACK!' but when he started to yell, only a muffled sound could be heard. Stupid gag! Stupid Murdoc!

Cage was there too, looking around the device, trying to find a way to dismantle it and stop it. Jack had spurred her to work faster and Mac wanted to tell her to look for the wire that pulled on the trigger but he had no way of doing it, and no time. Jack had just turned around to look at him when another shot rang out and he almost fell to the ground.

Maybe out of instinct or just sheer stubbornness Jack had reached out to the only thing available to him to hang on. Unfortunately, that thing was him and the moment his partner's weight was added to his own, he felt his shoulders screaming in agony and the cuffs cutting into his wrists even more. He felt his left wrist get pulled out of place, dislocated and he screamed.

Again, the tape around his mouth didn't let him shout out properly and he found he couldn't breath fast enough through his nose. He was getting dizzy again but he'd be damned if he lost consciousness now. Jack was doing everything he could to protect him from the shots while Cage worked on the machine, so Mac would do everything he could to stay awake until he was sure his partner would be okay.

When Jack rested his head on his chest, Mac wanted to slow his breathing so his chest wouldn't move that much but it was kind of hard not to. When the time kept going and the next bullet was imminent, Mac braced himself for the pain his partner was about to feel, but the next second came and went and no shot was fired. He looked up, beyond Jack and saw Cage taking a hold of the rifle and putting it down on the floor.

"Got it!" she shouted and came forward to help them.

Mac tried to get his partner's attention because it was clear he hadn't got the message, shaking him some but Jack didn't look up. It took Cage standing right next to him and shaking his shoulder for Jack to acknowledge her.

"I got it Jack. I got it. You can let go now" she said.

"Did you get it?" Jack's voice was low and pained. Mac winced when he heard it.

"Yes Jack. It's over" Cage insisted.

"The riffle's not aimed at Mac?" and Mac almost wanted to roll his eyes. Almost. Trust his partner to always think about him first.

"No, Jack. You can let go" Jack breathed heavily.

"Good" and then he collapsed on the floor.

Mac grunted when the extra weight was lifted off his body, but he instantly started shouting through the gag again because he needed to know if Jack was alright. Cage had crouched down to help him, but Jack shook his head.

"Mac, get Mac first" he ordered and let his head rest on the floor.

Cage stood up and began to work on freeing him. She had announced through her comms that they had found Mac and there was one agent down. The other teams would be with them soon. She picked the lock on his handcuffs and Mac winced when his dislocated left wrist was released. When his right one was also freed, he fell to the floor.

Cage helped him ease his fall, but his body still hurt like hell when it was released from its holding position. His shoulders were on fire, his legs felt like jelly, his wrists were throbbing and his head hurt like hell. He wanted nothing more that to lay down and just pass out from exhaustion, but he reached up and ripped the tape from his mouth, wincing at the sting it left behind.

"Jack!" his voice sounded raw and he cleared his throat while he dragged himself closer to his partner "Jack, you okay?"

Jack looked to his left and wanted to reassure the scared looking blond that he was alright but, the truth was, he couldn't breathe. His chest was moving, rapidly, but he felt like no oxygen was making its way into his lungs. He started to fumble with the straps on his vest, needing to take the weight off his chest but his movements were uncoordinated.

"Can't breathe" he gasped and then felt a pair of small hands helping him unstrap the vest. Cage.

"Jack?" Mac's voice sounded uncertain. He had seen Jack hurt before, countless times since they met in the dessert, but it never failed to scare him whenever he got hurt. He knew it was irrational, specially in their line of work, but Jack always held that aura of healthiness and life so much that Mac thought him invincible, much like a little kid sees his father as a superhero. So when he got hurt, it rattled him, made him think about the fear of loosing him. He shook his head, there was no time for pessimistic thoughts like that.

When the vest was finally removed, Jack was able to take a proper breath even if it still hurt him. He was positive he must have had broken ribs at the very least. A long mass of blond hair hovered over his vision, calling for his attention.

"Jack, can you move?" it was Cage, she was trying to assess how much damage the bullets had caused.

"How's Mac?" he asked back, completely ignoring her question.

"I'm fine Jack" the other agent answered but it was clear to Jack, by the sound of his voice, that he wasn't.

"You're not" he whispered. Finding it hard to keep his eyes open and alert. Mac huffed, letting out what could pass as a chuckle and dragged himself closer to Jack.

"Says the guy who just took three bullets on his back" Jack turned his head to stare at Mac, taking in every bruise and stain of blood.

"Says the guy who was kidnapped, beaten, drugged and also shot at" Jack countered. At this point, Mac hadn't been able to remain sitting, so he had also slumped the rest of the way to the floor, his left wrist resting on his stomach, head on the ground and eyes staring at his older partner. They were both laying down, trying to stay awake through pain and exhaustion while Cage hovered over them, checking for major injuries and talking to Matty over comms, requesting medical assistance fast.

The rest of the team were making their way back to them, letting them know that the rest of the place was empty and there was no sign of Murdoc anywhere. At the mention of the name, Mac's eyes searched Cage's as he felt there was an important piece of information he was missing. Something about him being just a bait… wait!

"Cage. Murdoc. He… not me. Phoenix" he mumbled, what little adrenalin he'd had now leaving him to try and make sense of what his brain wanted to say. When Jack heard his young partner's interrupted speech, he glanced at him worriedly. He might have been the one recently injured by taking bullets to his vest, but Mac had just spent the last 12 hours at the mercy of a psychopath and the signs of exhaustion were clear in his face.

"Mac, buddy, what are you talking about?" he asked, moving his arm to take a hold of Mac's shoulder. Mac locked eyes with his partner now.

"Jack. It's important. Murdoc. Murdoc wants…" he was beginning to fade and he knew it. His vision was blurring and it was out of focus, the world was spinning before his eyes. He felt as if someone had drugged him again and he didn't want to pass out just to wake up chained to another wall, alone. He found his partner's eyes again "Jack?" he asked in a small voice.

Jack had noticed Mac's distress and he made a monumental effort to get his body to cooperate with him. He had been laying on his back, but he wanted to get closer to Mac, to reassure him that Murdoc wasn't around so he'd gathered his strength and rolled on his side, almost screaming at the motion but quickly swallowing the sound. He didn't want to add to Mac's distress.

"I'm here Mac. 's okay. You'll be okay" he got no answer though. Mac had already closed his eyes and Cage stepped forward to check.

"He's out" she announced. Jack closed his eyes as well and let his forehead hit the floor, he couldn't keep holding how much his back hurt and having changed position hadn't done him any good. He was shaking now, breathing coming in short gasps again. He moaned "Jack?" Cage asked, coming closer to him now "Come on Jack, stay awake" and he wanted to, he really did, but he couldn't. He closed his eyes though he remained conscious.

Conscious enough to hear Cage asking for an ETA on the ambulance, to hear the Phoenix agents waving the medical personnel over to them. Conscious enough to mumble Mac's name when he wanted them to take care of him first and then conscious enough to feel himself being loaded into a gurney. There was a collar strapped around his neck and even if he'd had his eyes open, he wouldn't have been able to look around searching for someone to answer his most important question. So he called out.

"Cage" his voice was low, he was about to just drop "Cage" when she answered and put her hand on his shoulder, he asked "Mac?"

"He's already on his way to Phoenix Medical"

After that, he really didn't care to stay awake.

MCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCGMCG

When he woke up, it took Mac a few seconds to recognize where he was and he never thought he'd say this, and he would forever deny it, but he was glad to be at medical.

Much like the last time he'd woken up here, Cage was sitting beside his bed, instead of his partner and that just served to spur him into action and begin to sit up. When he put weight on his injured wrist, which he noted was wrapped in a semi hard cast, he grunted and quickly leaned on his right one. As long as he wasn't drugged to the gills, he wasn't seriously hurt. His shoulders burned, yes, the bullet graze stung too, but those weren't reason enough to keep him in bed.

"Wow, Mac, I think you should take it slow" Cage cautioned, standing up from the chair. He shook his head.

"I'm fine now" he answered, voice still laced with sleep and place his feet on the floor, sighing at the fact that he was wearing a hospital gown "Where's Jack?" if is partner hadn't been here waiting for him to wake up, then he must have been really hurt or… worse.

"He's in the room next door" and before he could ask his next question, Cage hurried to add "And he's going to be fine. Couple of broken ribs, bruised kidney but no internal damage. He'll be sore for a while and he's been restricted to bed rest. Mandatory. Matty had to actually threaten him to keep him there knowing that you were here" Mac let out a sigh. If Jack had been already arguing with Matty, then he really was better than worse.

"Thanks" he said "And… you know… thanks for getting me out" he added, sitting on the edge of the bed and forgetting momentarily about his mission of storming into the next room. Cage suited him, with that focused gaze she uses when she's analyzing someone.

"Are you okay? For real" he heaved a sigh.

"I'm… fine, physically. I've had worse you know?" he said, not quite meeting her eyes. She wasn't exactly the person he'd like to open up to, but he guessed she could just read him open if she tried hard enough. She was that good at her job.

"But…?" she prompted.

"But, it's Murdoc so…"

"So not entirely okay" she answered for him, a small smile on her lips. He returned the smile and stood up from the bed.

"I'll go check on Jack" he announced before stepping out of his room and opening the next door over.

He didn't care much about what time it was, although he assumed it must have been somewhere in the middle of the night. The lights of the hallway were turned to the lowest and there was only a bedside lamp turned on in Jack's room. He wasn't sleeping though, and neither was Riley who was sitting on the chair, her feet on top of Jack's bed. They had been talking about something but stopped their conversation as soon as Mac walked in.

Riley was the first to react, standing up and coming to him to greet him with a hug.

"Are you okay?" she asked, genuine concern on her face and although he was tired of the question, he gave her an honest answer.

"I've been better but I'm fine, really" and she hugged him again. Then he walked closer to Jack's bed "Hey Jack" he said, suddenly feeling very guilty.

"Hey bud" and there was an awkward silence.

Riley excused herself, saying it was time to head home and kissed the both of them good night. When they were left alone, Mac stared at his partner. Jack was laying on the bed, a bunch of pillows behind the left side of his back so he was almost resting on his side. There were no superficial marks to tell that his partner was even injured at all, but Mac knew better. The fact that the man was barely moving, even just to breathe, was sign enough of how hurt he really was.

"I'm sorry" he blurted out. Jack looked at him like he was crazy.

"Now I don't even need to ask if you're alright because it's obvious you're still high as a kite" Mac narrowed his eyes and Jack kept talking "What on earth are you sorry for, pal?"

"Are you serious?" Mac asked, somewhat dumfounded himself "You just got shot three times because of me" Jack laughed bitterly and had to stifle a moan afterwards.

"So I got shot. Big deal! I get shot at on a daily basis" Jack said, for all intents and purposes he sounded perfectly normal, like every day Jack "And I didn't get shot because of you, I got shot instead of you so that would mean me just doing my job and being very good at it" he finished, leaving Mac speechless for a moment "And you better park your ass right here on this chair before you fall and make a fool outta ya" he added, noticing the pale tone on Mac's face. The blond agent started walking but he didn't go for the chair.

"Is it okay if I sit here?" he asked, indicating the edge of Jack's bed and not wanting to cause unnecessary pain by moving the bed too much.

"Whatever suits you as long as you sit down" and so he did. Mac fidgeted with the hem of his gown before finding his partner's eyes and trying to convey how serious his next question was.

"Are you okay Jack?" the older man would've liked to joke his way around the question. Usually humor was the best way to keep his friend from giving into the dark recesses of his big brain, but somehow the trick wasn't working this time. So he regarded seriously as well.

"I'm gonna be fine Mac. It hurts like hell but it's nothing I can't handle" Mac nodded and let out a sigh "You on the other hand… Man, you're not looking too bright. Wanna talk about it?" Mac pinched the bridge of his nose.

"My wrist's the worst. Other than that, I'm okay"

"Aha, and the killer headache?" Mac smiled.

"And the killer headache"

They remained in silence for a while, almost so much that Mac thought his partner had fallen asleep but then his voice broke it with a question that made Mac's stomach drop.

"So what did Murdoc want with you?" Jack saw his partner paling even more.

"Oh God" Mac exclaimed, standing quickly from the bed and getting a dizzy spell as a result. How could he have forgotten?

"Mac? What's wrong? Mac?" the younger of the two had to steady himself against the wall and Jack didn't hesitate to press the call button the nurse had place near his hand.

"Phoenix. He didn't want me Jack, I was a distraction. He wanted to breach Phoenix" right then the night shift nurse came into the room asking what was wrong and Mac was ordered to sit down. He only complied because he didn't want to end falling to the floor and jostling his injuries.

Jack would've liked to sprint from the bed and help his partner, but as it was he could barely move without seeing stars dancing around his vision. He explained the nurse Mac had gotten worked up about remembering something from the 12 hours he'd spent kidnapped and in the hands of Murdoc. Once he had calmed down enough, he started making more sense.

"Murdoc kidnapped me as a distraction. Said that while you were all worried looking for me, he'd have someone getting a hold of some files, something about people only Phoenix knew where to find"

"We have to call Matty" Jack said and the medical personnel told them they would contact their boss for them.

"Agent MacGyver, you should return to your room. You need to rest" the nurse insisted after the message had been delivered to Matty and she'd assured them that she would investigate and see if there had been a breach.

"I'm fine, I can stay here"

"Come on Mac, you look like you could use a nap" his partner intervened. It was true, Mac felt exhausted and he admitted to himself that a nap sounded great right about now and yet, he didn't want to leave his partner's side just yet.

"Jack, I just spent the last 12 hours of my life with Murdoc. I don't fancy being alone right now" he said, gaze fixed on Jack. The older man got the message and pleaded his case with the nurse. After some argument from the woman, they had agreed Mac could stay for another hour or until Jack fell asleep himself. The younger agent let out a sigh of relief when the woman walked out of the room and he and Jack were left alone once again.

"I'm still sorry, you know?" Mac said, leaning against the back of the chair and crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"And I was still doing my job, so I'm not sorry"

"Are we cool then?" Mac asked, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

"Yeah man, we're cool"

They fist bumped and settled in. There wasn't much talk and Jack eventually drifted off to sleep.

As much as sleep was also appealing to Mac, once the nurse had bossed him into his own room, he couldn't bring himself to stop thinking about what Murdoc could've taken from Phoenix and there was also another question nagging at the back of his mind. How had Murdoc taken him in the first place? He didn't remember much from before waking up in that room and he clearly remembered getting home at some point after he and Jack had parted ways on Saturday night.

It was certainly disconcerting how easily people found him at his place. Was it really time to move? He didn't really want to think about leaving his grandfather's house. He sighed.

When the nurse woke him up in the morning to take his vitals and write them on the chart, he realized he had fallen asleep at some point and he was beginning to ask how his partner was doing when a not so happy looking Mathilda Weber entered his room.

"Oh, you're awake Blondie" she said. She eyed him up and down in the bed, almost deciding if he was healthy enough or not. She hadn't had time to stop by and see her recently recovered agent because the news of a possible breach had gathered all her attention.

"Hi, Matty" he said, sitting up in bed. Noticing how serious she looked, he didn't waste time "Is everything okay?"

"Depends on how you define 'okay'" she answered and paused before adding "Murdoc got the files he wanted"

Mac swallowed and felt guilt crush into him all over again. If he hadn't let Murdoc kidnap him, he wouldn't have been used as a distraction to breach the Foundation.

"Oh quit the sad kicked puppy face Blondie. This isn't on you. What it is on you is helping find the son of a bitch so we can put him on lockdown again. As soon as Dalton is ready to move, I want you both on his trail again. Nobody infiltrates the Phoenix and messes with my agents and gets away with it. Are we clear?" she demanded.

"Yes, ma'am" Mac said with conviction. When she was about to leave the room she turned around and regarded him with a softer expression.

"Are you okay Mac?" she asked. He gave her a small smile.

"I'm fine" he said and he meant it.

She left and he was once again alone, already planning out the best way to track Murdoc down until Jack was good enough to go with him on the man hunt. The assassin had gone un-detained long enough already and he wasn't willing to keep letting that happen.

Murdoc would fall, one way or another and sooner rather than later.

THE END – FINITO – TERMINADO

So, did you like it? At least enjoyed it? I really hope you did and please send a review and tell me what you think. That would be much appreciated and encouraging.

Also, if anyone has any ideas or requests, I could use the fuel to start writing one shots again… Until next time!