Spike kept quiet. He had turned when he heard someone enter the room and then the door close and lock. He could see perfectly through the goggles who was in the room with him. "Bastards." Spike whispered. He moved to the far corner of the room and sat as quietly as possible.

Sam took a breath. He waited for his eyes adjust to the complete dark before he made his way to the table he knew was to the left. He bumped the table and felt around until he found the goggles. He put them on and searched the room. He found Spike sitting in the far corner.

Lew, Ed, Greg, Wordy and Jules stood in the observation room.

"How long do you think it'll take?" Jules asked.

Wordy shook his head. "Hours."

For the first hour, Sam and Spike didn't speak to each other. They sat in opposite corners of the room. Lost in their own thoughts.

Sam was the first to speak. "Dammit Spike." He couldn't take the silence anymore.

"Damn me?" Spike looked up and towards where he knew Sam was.

"Why?" Was all Sam could choke out.

Spike hung his head. "Why what?"

"Why is it so hard to believe I wouldn't betray you?" Sam put a hand to his head, his elbow on his knee. "What in our history together makes you think I would do something like that?"

"So why did you?" Spike growled.

Sam stood and walked to the middle of the room. "I DIDN'T!" He waved dismissively at Spike. "I don't know why I'm bothering." He walked to the door and started pounding on it with his fist. "Time's up! Let me out."

Wordy pushed the intercom button. "Nope."

Sam pounded his fist against the door once in frustration. He stayed at the door, his palms flat on it. "How long have we known each other?"

"Almost two years." Spike put his head back against the wall and looked up.

"How many times have we hung out, just the two of us?"

"I don't know Sam. A hundred?"

"How many times have you told me something personal?"

"Same." Spike looked at Sam. Where is he going with this?

"How many times I have I?"

"I'm not in the mood for 20 questions."

"A lot. But I never told you about the time I was captured by terrorists when I was in JTF2."

Spike frowned. "No. Guess we weren't close enough."

"I was out on a mission. Middle of the day in the scorching desert staring through my scope. I waited there for hours. I had my camo on so that added to the heat. I was supposed to cover my unit's retreat." He stopped and took a breath. He couldn't get into more details about the mission, but what he had to say next was not going to be easy.

"Finally, after four hours one of my teammates showed up. I looked back at him when he approached and he was laughing. I didn't understand why until someone clocked me in the head. There was a couple of them. They beat me pretty bad. Broke a couple ribs, messed up my face pretty badly, broke four of my toes. As they dragged me off I heard my teammate say, 'not so tough without the general around are you?'

Do you get that? Someone from my team did that to me." Sam hesitated to say more, but he knew he had to.

Spike didn't know what to say. How could they do that to him?

"Anyway," Sam blew out a breath. "They dragged me into this cave, shackled me to the wall and let me lie there by myself for awhile. I guess I fell asleep or passed out, because the next thing I know I have a cattle prod in my side. They stripped me naked and tied me so my arms and legs were outstretched. They started sticking needles into my skin and no where you want to know about."

Spike put his head down. No, he thought. I don't want to know. His mind went back to the brick building. He remembered that position. The things the woman did.

"Every morning they would wake me up with waterboarding. More needles and beatings. It went on for," he paused, "it felt like forever. I started to think I would die there." He looked at Spike. "Some part of me wanted to."

Spike started to cry softly.

In the observation room, Jules had a hand over her mouth and was crying silently. Every member of the team had tears in their eyes.

"I asked the same questions Spike. Why? Why didn't I get away? Why didn't I fight? Why was this happening to me? I had no control over the situation and I hated that. After I was finally rescued, I was.. Fine. Totally Fucked up, Insecure, Neurotic and very Emotional. That's where that started.

My buddies Matt, Patch, Blaze and Winds helped me get through it though. They wouldn't let me give up. They helped me see the beauty of life. I was," he let out an incredulous laugh, "so angry." He stood, walked to where Spike was sitting, sat down next to him and took his goggles off. "Just like you." He put a hand on Spike's shaking back.

"I took it out on my friends but they never left me." Sam wiped the tears from his eyes. "They were too stubborn." He scoffed.

"Yeah," Spike sniffed, "I know some people like that."

Smiles from the observation room.

Sam smiled. "After they found me, I found out the guy that had been there when I was taken had been transferred. His report said that I'd wandered off on my own and they couldn't find me. He basically said I went AWOL and that's how I got captured. That's a big no no in the military. Of course I gave my side of the story but it was his word against mine.

So you have to know that I know what it's like. I was betrayed in a big way. I know how that feels. And I would never ever do that to you Spike." He gave Spike a sincere look.

"I'm, I'm so sorry." Spike shook his head. "I shouldn't have doubted you."

"It hurt a lot that you would think I could ever be like that-" He paused and searched the ceiling for strength. Help me Matt, he thought. He always looked to his fallen JTF2 buddy when he needed extra help. He took a breath and blew it out. "I understand what you're going through. I know It's going to take time. And patience. On both sides." Sam looked in Spike's eyes meaningfully.

"I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm really sorry." Spike hung his head in shame. "After what she- the things she did- I kept thinking that you would be, I- ashamed I guess." He searched for the right words.

"Ashamed?" Sam frowned at him. How could I be ashamed of him, he thought. "Of what? Of you?"

"Yeah." Spike sniffed and put his head back against the wall. "That you'd think I was stupid and weak for getting taken and then not being able to get away."

"Why didn't I?"

"You were incapacitated. They beat the crap out of you."

"How did she get you out of the house? Did she sing a siren song and you followed her?" Sam tapped into Spike's love of Greek mythology, part of his history.

"No. She drugged me."

"Ok. Once you woke up?"

"She had me cuffed to a bed bolted to the floor with steel brackets."

"Ok. So you reconed the room. What was in there?"

Spike closed his eyes. He saw the room in his mind. She's in the corner. No, just the room. She disappeared. "No windows, no other furniture, just a sheet on the bed and one nasty looking blanket."

"What about the rest of the inside?"

"Very bare. A couch and TV in the middle, table, two chairs and a heavy chain with a reinforced cuff."

"Ok. So she kept you incapacitated."

"Yes."

"So when were you supposed to escape? How?"

Spike opened his eyes and looked at Sam. "I couldn't. I had to wait for you to come get me."

"Yes. And we did." Sam nodded.

"Yes." Spike's face broke and he put his hands to cover it.

Sam put an arm around Spike and pulled him to him. "Who's to blame?"

"She is. God I hate her so much. I know she's gone, but I wish she were here so I could kill her myself."

"I know it feels that way, believe me, I wish I could kick her ass for you."

Spike laughed. "But she's gone. She can't come back and she can't hurt you anymore."

"She hangs around." Spike swallowed hard. He hadn't gotten a full nights sleep since it happened.

"The things that happened-" he stopped, looked at Spike and then at the far side of the room at the two way mirror. "They haunt you. I get it, believe me."

"How do you deal?"

Sam gave him a half-smile. "You. Wordy. Ed. Jules. The Boss. Lew. I have an extended family I never thought I'd have when I started here. You guys pick me up when I fall. You care for me, even when I do or say something stupid." He gave him a pointed look.

"I hope we can have that again." Spike looked at Sam with hope in his eyes, for the first time in a week.

"It didn't disappear Spike. I don't hate you." He shook his head. "I don't know if I could. This is what family does. Sometimes we hurt each other, whether we mean to or not, we forgive and move forward. It may take a little bit for the hurt to go away, but I'm not going to hold it against you. Or hold it over your head." He wiped his hands. "It's done."

"Really?"

"Yes you knucklehead." Sam smiled at him. "I know you may not think so now, but they can handle whatever you want to tell them. When you're ready."

Spike nodded. He wasn't so sure he wanted to he wanted to tell them so soon.

The door to the dark room opened and Team One moved into the room.

Sam stood and helped Spike stand. It was still hard for Spike to move around. His doctor told him it'd take awhile for his skin to bond with the new skin and heal.

"Hey guys." Spike smiled shyly. "Jules." He turned to her. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have kicked you out."

She walked to him and gave him an easy hug, remembering his wounds. "You can't get rid of me that easy." She whispered in his ear. Spike closed his eyes and held on. She pulled back from him and smiled before letting go.

Ed stepped forward next and hugged him. "Sorry man," Spike said when Ed hugged him. Ed just nodded.

They each took turns hugging Spike and each time he apologized.

Before Greg hugged Spike he said, "Michelangelo 'Spike' Scarlotti."

Spike stiffened at the use of his full first name. He hoped that would fade with time too. "Yeah Boss."

"You are essential to this team. Without you, we start to fall apart."

Spike stole a glance at the others who nodded.

"So whenever or whatever you need, ask. You want to know what we're thinking, ask. We will be with you, pick you up when you fall and hold you up when you need it. This family sticks together." Greg's eyes were filled with brotherly love. "Got it?"

"Copy that." Spike grinned, the smile reaching all the way to his eyes.

"Good." Greg smiled and hugged Spike. "Let's get out of here." Greg tipped his head towards the door.

Sam put an arm around Spike's shoulders and the walked out together, the team close behind.

Spike suddenly remembered and turned back to Ed. "How was the recital?"

"Really good." Ed smiled, "his instructor said Clark is very talented for his age."

"He could be the next Beethoven." Jules said.

"Or Chopin." Spike offered.

"What?" Sam looked at Spike in shock.

"What do you know about Chopin?" Lew laughed.

"More than you." Spike looked at him incredulously as they walked past the desk.

Winnie smiled as they walked by. This was the Team One she knew. Not the ones that had been skulking around here this week. She knew it was hard for them to have a teammate down. It'd been rough for her this week too. No one liked a tense team. The calls they went on had been extra tough. More than once Ed and Greg had apologized for their attitudes on the radio with her. She hoped they could all put this behind them now and come back stronger.