Twenty minutes later, Elwood Davis was sitting at a workbench in the Taylor-MacGyver family workshop, drawing out a detailed picture of the necklace with coloured pencils.
Meanwhile, the rest of the workshop was a hive of activity. Jill was grinding stuff together in a mortar and pestle while studying a heap of what looked like chemistry and maths on a blackboard, while Mac stoked the blacksmith's forge and collected a whole heap of odd-looking metal tools.
Nate ran in, holding a bag that smelled like oysters, and held them out to Mac.
'There you go, Mac, uh, sorry, my lord.' Mac raised an eyebrow at him (he and Beth weren't married yet), and Nate just grinned unapologetically. 'I'm practicing!'
Mac shook his head rather fondly, before seemingly remembering something he had to tell Nate.
'Oh, Beth wanted me to ask you if you're okay with you, your sister and mom sitting on the same table as Sidney at the wedding.'
Nate's grin changed into something that was a bit softer, fonder, but also more knowing.
'Nessa and I really like Sidney. He's coming over for dinner tonight.' Jack raised an eyebrow. That was news to him. Then again, the big guy wasn't super talkative. Nate's grin grew even more knowing. 'He has our blessing!'
And with that, the Page took off again. Smiling, Mac got to work scraping out the mother-of-pearl from the oysters.
A few minutes after that, Mac sent Riley and Jack out to the washerwomen's domain to pick up a whole list of stuff.
(They weren't sure if he actually needed these things, or if it was Mac's attempt to give them some time alone to talk, as he thought they could do with it.)
Well, Riley thought, he wasn't wrong.
'Thanks, Jack.'
He looked up from where he was trying to match the words on Mac's list to the words on the labels on the shelves.
'For what?'
Riley raised an eyebrow. He knew what for.
'For helping Elwood.'
Jack stopped rummaging, and turned to face her.
'You know I'm not doing this for him, right?'
Riley nodded.
'Yeah, it's weird. It's like, I get why you're doing it, I just don't get why I'm doing it.' She plonked herself down on a bench by the wall. 'I mean, this guy has not made one sacrifice for me. Not one.' She waved a hand. 'Then he shows up in my life swearing he's changed, and the next thing you know, I'm helping him commit jewellery fraud.' She raised her shoulders. 'It's like I'm ten years old all over again.'
'You helped him commit fraud at ten years old?' Jack paused. 'Don't answer that.' He walked over and sat down by Riley on the bench. 'I remember when you were little, you wanted to do everything by yourself. Didn't want help form anybody, and wanted to make sure we all knew it.' He smiled. 'You were a tough little girl. And you've become a real badass, Riley. Honestly.' He reached out and put an arm around her. 'Even if the biological doesn't see it, the tiger-bear does.'
Jack made that noise that he insisted was a tiger-bear's howl-roar.
Riley shook her head with a smile, and leaned a little closer to Jack, resting her head on his shoulder for a moment.
The next day, Jack and Elwood set off in the cart again for Dougie's house, with the fake necklace that they, Riley, Mac and Jill had stayed up half the night making, fuelled by coffee and snacks that had been brought in by Beth, Bozer and Billy Colton in shifts.
Dougie looked sceptically at Elwood when he handed him the necklace.
'So you sat on this thing for an entire year? Why didn't you sell it, take the money?
Elwood shrugged.
'I thought about it. I decided to get sober instead.'
Dougie snorted, pocketing the jewellery.
'Okay. Well, this has been a lot of fun.'
He made to head back into his home. Jack called out.
'Now that you have your necklace, we're all good here, right?'
Dougie turned around, pulled the necklace out of his pocket again.
'With this?'
'Yeah.'
He smiled in a way that Jack didn't like. Not at all. He grabbed Elwood by the sleeve as discreetly as he could, starting to tug him away.
'Awesome. It's been great doing business with you, Dougie. Come on, Elwood.'
Dougie's smile grew darker. His men tightened their circle.
'There's still the matter of the, uh, interest that Elwood owes me.'
'Come on, man, it's a necklace, not a mutual fund!'
Dougie raised an eyebrow.
'I spent a year tracking this deadbeat down.' He addressed Elwood. 'You cost me time and resources. I got a reputation to protect.' He strode closer again. 'You want to be square with me? Do ya?'
Elwood swallowed, but nodded.
'Yeah.'
'I want another 10 K.'
Elwood shook his head.
'I don't got that kind of money.'
Jack leaned closer to him.
'I might be able to cobble that together-'
Elwood shook his head.
'Jack. I'm tired of people handling my problems for me.' He looked at Dougie. 'I can pay this the, uh, other way, can't I, Dougie?'
Dougie laughed.
'What, you mean a $10,000 beating? That could take a while.'
He laughed again, as Jack held up a hand.
'Hang on, now, no-one is taking a beating.'
'Jack.' Elwood turned and looked very seriously at him. Very, very seriously. Jack stopped his protests. Then, he turned back to Dougie. 'One more thing, Dougie, when we're done here, we're…we're done, right?'
Dougie nodded in agreement, and they shook on it, before Dougie twisted Elwood's arm, and kneed him in the stomach, before gesturing to his men to drag him away.
Jack took a half-step forward, like he wanted to intervene, but Elwood just shot him a look that insistently said, no.
Jack swallowed, Riley's words from the night before echoing through his mind.
Yeah, Elwood Davis had definitely changed.
'Take it easy, big fella, take it easy.' At 7:30 that night, in the middle of the dinner rush at Bozer and Riley's restaurant, Jack helped a bleeding, bruised and thoroughly beaten Elwood into his cottage. 'I'm gonna set you down right over here okay?' He helped him into the armchair. 'Here we go, easy.'
Elwood groaned in pain, and did his best to wave a hand nonchalantly.
'I'll be fine.' He groaned again. 'I'm fine.'
'You good?'
Jack busied himself lighting the fire and boiling some water in the kettle.
'Oh, yeah. I just need to sit right here for another one or two…' He chuckled, then clutched his ribs as that pained him. '…months.' He chuckled and groaned again. Jack wondered if he shouldn't have let Elwood be so stubborn and dragged him to the Houses of Healing, or to Beth, who was probably at Mac's. 'Hey, Jack, do me a favour.'
Jack looked up at him from the fire.
'Yeah.'
Elwood looked him straight in the eye, asking for understanding.
'I don't want Riley to see me like this. So as soon as I can stand, I'm gonna blow out of here for a little bit.'
'Okay.'
Jack got that. He'd probably want the same.
'You tell her I'm coming back, you understand?'
Jack nodded seriously.
'Yep.'
'Tell her I'm not running again.'
Jack nodded again, and placed the kettle on the fire, before grabbing the medical kit Beth had given him off a shelf.
'Yeah, don't worry about it, I'll handle it.' He crouched down in front of Elwood, unrolling the medical kit, before looking up and making eye contact with the man. 'Hey, Elwood, what you did was admirable. You picked the right thing, not the easy thing.' Jack smiled. 'And that's what an R-E-A-L dad does.' Elwood let out a breath and gave a little smile too. 'I'll make sure Riley knows that.'
His smile widened a little.
'Thanks, Jack.'
Jack gave a quick salute, then turned to check on the kettle.
'Just sit tight…'
That night, just after Bozer and Riley's restaurant closed, Jack heard a knock on his door.
He glanced at the recently-vacated armchair, sadness in his eyes, then opened the door.
'Hey, Riley-'
She looked past Jack, into the cottage, then up into his eyes. There was something plaintive and vulnerable in there, and for a moment, he saw a scared, sad little girl instead of a strong, tough young woman.
'He's gone, isn't he?'
Jack just nodded sadly, leading Riley into his home, to the kitchen table.
'Yeah, but he's coming back, Riles. Swore he would.'
Riley snorted, looking down at her clasped hands on the table, as he busied himself making some tea.
He glanced over at Riley as she looked up and down repeatedly, before looking straight ahead and speaking.
She looked like she was being torn in two, as if half of her believed that Elwood had really changed, and half of her was scolding the other half, telling her that there was no reason to believe him this time, not after so many previous betrayals.
'He always says that.' Riley snorted. 'And I always fall for it.'
The kettle on, Jack just sat down opposite her, so he could put one of his hands over hers, locking eyes with her.
'Riley, you know how you were saying that he's never made any sacrifices for you?' She just nodded. 'Well, he just did. $10,000 worth.' Riley's brow furrowed; she knew he didn't have that kind of money, and Jack squeezed her hands with his. 'Paid in blood, Riles.'
Riley's eyes widened, and Jack recognized the little ways her face changed, her posture changed, when she was fighting not to cry (and succeeding, usually).
'Is he-'
He squeezed her hands again, bringing his other hand over to cover hers too.
'He walked away, Riles.' Wryness crossed his face for a moment. 'Mostly. Needed a little help.' Jack paused, seeing some of that tension and worry leave the young woman, before continuing. 'Brought him back here, patched him up best as I could and then…'
Riley looked at their hands for a moment.
'He left.'
There was an awful lot of meaning and hurt and history and pain and hope in those two words.
Jack squeezed her hands again.
'He left 'cause he didn't want you to see him like that, Riles. He's coming back.' Jack lifted Riley's hands up a little, off the counter. 'That wannabe tough guy threatened you when your dad said he couldn't pay him for the necklace.' He figured Elwood wouldn't mind if he broke that promise now. 'Then, after we got the fake to him, he demanded $10,000 in interest.' Jack paused, and his voice was a little rough when he continued. 'He took a $10,000 beating for you, Riles. He's coming back. For you.'
Riley lost her battle with those tears, and they started to flow, as Jack leaned uncomfortably over the table to hug her. She clung to him, doubtlessly staining his shirt with tears, but he didn't care, just rubbing her back and making soothing noises.
Later, after a nightcap of some really good whiskey he'd been saving for a special occasion (a retirement gift from a couple of Knights from his old squad), Riley reached out and punched Jack none-too-gently in the arm.
He yelped and rubbed it, as if it were tender.
'Ouch, Riles! What was that for?'
She snorted, but there was something lovingly exasperated in her eyes.
'I'm still mad at you for, you know, breaking your promise to stay out of it, but…' Her expression softened. 'Thanks, Jack.'
Jack smiled that soft little smile back at her, and held up his arms.
'Give the tiger-bear some love, Ri.'
She shook her head again (Jack was ridiculous), but hugged him anyway.
Jack tucked his head over her shoulder and spoke.
'Riles, any man would be happy and proud to have you as a daughter.' Jack's voice was rough with emotion and very, very heartfelt. 'Heck, I'm prouder than punch to be substitute dad, or dad to 50% of you, or maybe me and Elwood could work out a time-share thing…'
Riley, her head tucked over Jack's shoulder, shook her head as best as she could, fond exasperation in the gesture yet again, but smiled and hugged him tighter, hoping he'd get the message.
Jack's smile widened.
He did, loud and clear.
AN: And that's a wrap to Elwood's storyline! It was a short chapter, but I wanted to keep it 'self-contained', and you'll see why I didn't want to put in some of the next chapter in this one when you read the next one…
Much of the dialogue for this storyline is taken from/adapted from the show, so obviously, I can't take credit for that!
Teaser for next chapter: 'Mac, we can't just sneak out of our own wedding reception!'