Jamie stared out the window still scared she couldn't do anything. If she
went to the cops it wouldn't matter because they'd still find a way to kill her, and they would find her eventually. She knew all about their organization and some of the things they had done, they would find her and kill her.
Jack looked at her and could see the fear seething off her. "Don't worry
they can't find you we are outside of L.A."
"Did he call you by your name?" She said still looking out the window.
"Yes how did he know my name or my number did you give it to him?"
"No. That's my point Jack, they have resources and ways of finding and
getting information. They have government connections everything they need
to find and do whatever they want." Jamie said drying the tears from her eyes.
"How do you know this" Federal Agent Jack Bauer taking over now.
"I lived with them while I was out in L.A. I over heard stuff, saw a few
people that's all and that's going to get me killed now. I should just go back and beg him to take me back." She said looking out the window really contemplating going back to Anthony.
"You don't want that. If it's ok with you I'm going to call a contact of mine at CTU and have them look up this Anthony and his father so I know what we are dealing with. After that I'll think of something. I'm going to help you get out of this Jamie." Jack said meaning every word.
"Why do you want to help me so much Jack? Do you want to take them down maybe get the old job back or maybe just a pat on the back? What's in it for you so I know off hand?"
"Nothing." Jack lied it was redemption for all he had ever done for not being there for his own daughter.
"Sure no one ever does anything because they want to be nice there is always another motive behind it." Jamie said bitterly. She was angry, but not at Jack at herself more than anyone else. She had gotten herself into another bad situation like her mom had said she always would.
"Redemption." Jack said flatly. "I was never around for my daughter. You are a little younger than her and you need someone to help. So in order to redeem myself for letting my own daughter down I want to help you. That's why." Jack answered truthfully.
"Why me? I have nothing to offer you. Redemption is not possible. Just helping me won't take the past away or fix anything."
"I know, but I won't feel like such an arshole maybe." Jack let the truth out and felt a weight lifted off his shoulder.
"Thank you. I guess."
"Thank you." Jack said back they were going to help each other fix the mistakes of the past, and hopefully they wouldn't fail.
Jamie became silent after that. She stared out the window at the desolate road. It reminded her of home. Once you got outside the city you were surrounded by corn fields, and soy bean fields. It was a dramatic change. She didn't feel like talking so she closed her eyes as if she were asleep, maybe Jack would just let her be for awhile if he thought she was asleep. She use to do the same thing when she was a child. She'd hear her mom and dad fighting, she'd be on the couch or in their bed and she'd just close her eyes praying they'd stop and not bother her, just let her sleep there. She listened the music that was playing she needed something to take her mind off her current state.
I meant a girl who hated the world
She used her body to sell her soul
Every time they break her and pay
Tear out her heart and leave her in pain
I never found out how she survived
All of the sadness she kept inside
I never found out how she could lie
With a smile on her face and the scratches she hide
You could love her if you paid
You could have her every day
You could love her if you pray
You could have he every way
This was not the song she wanted to hear. It felt to her like a story of her life. It only brought back the problems in her life. Who could say they were nineteen and had the Aryan Nation after them? Not many people, but she could. She thought to herself, Jamie this isn't the time to be self loathing. She formed a plan she would follow through with this one, it wasn't going to be like the others. She had to follow through. Jack didn't know what he was getting into and she couldn't have his blood on her hands.
She had to much of that now.
Down on her knees she wept on the flour
This hopeless life she wanted no more
Dead in her mind and cold to the bone
She opened her eyes and saw she was alone
She never found out how much I tried
All of the sadness she kept made me blind
She never found out how much I cried
She opened her eyes it was night now. The sudden change from day to night occurred in the time she had her eyes close. It always amazed her how the day and night could change that quick. "Can we stop somewhere to eat?" She asked finally speaking.
"Sure." Jack said looking at the signs on the road. "Where do you want to eat?"
"Anywhere. I'm not to picky."
"I'll stop at the next restaurant we pass." Jack said still formulating a plan. He had to get a hold of people at CTU. He than could better understand what to do next. He had to find somewhere for Jamie to stay while he was trying to solve the problem. Someone he knew he could trust. Most of them had stopped talking to him a long time ago because of his coldness towards them over the past few years. He didn't blame them, but he needed them now to save this poor girl. She was to young to be dealing with
this sort of problem. Jack remembered how he tried so hard to keep Kim shielded from the world Jamie was living in. He had done a good job until Victor Drazen and afterwards it all went to hell, but Kim had never seen as much as this girl must have seen. Jack felt compelled to help her not just redemption, but she needed someone and like himself she didn't have to many people left, so he would fill the void for her.
Jack found a restaurant and pulled into it. "Here we are." He said.
"I'm going to stretch my legs a little. Why don't you go in and eat. I'll join you in a few minutes." Jamie said.
"You don't want company?" Jack asked figuring the answer already.
"I just need to think by myself for awhile. Is that ok?" Jamie asked not wanting to hurt his feelings and hoping he didn't see through her.
"Sure. I'll order you something if you don't mind."
"Sure." She said smiling at him. She got out and walked down the deserted
road. She didn't look back, if she looked back he might see that she was not walking away, but running away. She would walk for a few miles and than try to flag down someone else. Maybe she could get back to Peoria and stay with her grandparents for awhile. He grandpa would keep her safe, he always had.
Jack went into the restaurant feeling something was different he wasn't sure. He sat at a table an older waitress came up. "How can I help you honey? Is it just you tonight?"
"I'll be right back." Jack said feeling something was wrong. He walked outside and didn't see Jamie anywhere. His first thought was somehow they caught up to them, than he knew she was acting different almost as if she had accepted her fate. He ran to his car and drove down the dark road looking for her. He saw someone running down the road and he pulled over quickly. "Jamie?" He yelled out the window.
Jamie looked back to see Jack in the SUV calling her name. She had tears running down her face as she began to run harder.
Jack got out of the SUV and took off after her, "Jamie wait." Jack screamed almost catching up to her. "You can't run from this. You know that."
"I can't just wait around either. You can't help me Jack, no one can. Just give it up. You were a great father to your daughter, you never once hurt her, and that makes you better than most of the fathers I've known. You don't need redemption or anything like that. Call her and talk to her she'll tell you the same goddamn thing."
"What if I just want to help you?" Jack said.
"There's always a catch." She said staring at him her eyes bloodshot.
"I just want to help you. You clearly have no one to help you and I want to help you. That's all no catch."
"Fu(k you Jack. Go away and get another pet."
"Fu(k me sure. Why not let it out tell me whatever you want I'm still going to help you."
"You are a stupid son of a b!tch go away leave me alone." She screamed at him almost as if she were going to attack him.
"Yeah and then some. I 'm still going to help you." Jack said watching as she let the feelings she had kept inside for so long out.
"Leave me alone please. Just go back to you nice normal suburban life."
"My life is far from nice and normal. Now are we finished or do you feel you need to scream a few more obscenities at me?"
Jamie looked at him and felt like laughing, she started to laugh hysterically something had broken in her mind. "Why me?"
"I already said I wanted to help you. You don't have anyone to help you and I want to help you that's all I don't know why I just do."
"Fine. What's the plan super agent man?"
"I don't know yet. Can we go eat and talk about it. I'm starving."
"Sure." Jamie said smiling through her tears.
When they got back to the diner the same waitress as before waited on them.
She gave Jack a look of concern from his early actions and now having a woman who looked like she had been crying not to long ago. "how may I help you?" She said instead of asking if everything was fine, she had long ago stopped getting to nosy about the customers.
"Coffee and pancakes please." Jack said.
Jamie said, "I'll have the same only soda instead of coffee."
"What type of soda hun?"
"What do you have?"
"Pepsi."
"I'll have a mountain dew than." Jamie said smiling at the woman trying to act as if everything were fine. When the waitresses walked away Jamie slumped into the booth to tired to argue with Jack.
"Do you have anywhere you can go that is safe?" Jack asked.
"My grandparents."
"No that's not good they can easily trace you there. Is there anywhere else?"
"Not really." Jamie said feeling the lack of a social life she had.
"Ok than I'll call and see if an old friend will let you stay with them. They are good people and I know they'll make sure your safe while I'm figuring out how to fix your little problem."
"I don't want you to do it all on your own. I got myself into this I should get myself out."
"Jamie you may have got in with the wrong crowd but as long as you didn't help them you haven't done anything wrong. And laying low for awhile will help you more. Just let me do this it's sort of my job. You can help by giving me information on this Anthony character." Jack said reassuring he knew she wanted to be a major part of this, but she would only get hurt and the thought of seeing her get hurt was something he didn't want to think about. He saw himself, a younger version of himself in her, and even some of Kim in her. He wanted to help her out like people had not done for him.
They finished there pancakes and Jack paid for the food. He walked back
out to the SUV and called his contact at CTU, or at least he hoped they still worked there. The phone rang a few times before the familiar voice answered, "CTU Almeida speaking."
"Which Almeida is this?" Jack said jokingly. "Kind of sounds like Tony,
but he always did sound like a chic."
"Jack." Michelle said recognizing the voice, he was in a good mood. "You
know if Tony hears this he'll get a little pissed."
"How will he hear if you don't tell him?" Jack said into the phone.
"What's the call about personal or business? I doubt personal unless Jack
Bauer has done a full three sixty."
"Business. I need your help. A friend of mine ran into some trouble.
Could you look up an Anthony Thur and his father, he's possibly the leader
of the Aryan Nation."
"Yes he is we have a long file on them both. What's this about Jack?"
"I don't want to talk over the phone. Are you still living at the same house?"
"Yeah."
"I'll meet you there when you guys get off work and explain what's happening. I have one more favor to ask too." Jack paused looking at Jamie who was inside the SUV defeated look on her face.
"What is it?" Michelle said wondering what else Jack could want from her.
"My friend needs a safe place to stay for awhile. Kim's not really talking to me so I can't ask her."
"Sure Jack. We have a guest bedroom your friend can stay in. What type of friend are we talking bout Jack?" Michelle teased.
"She's only nineteen Michelle."
"I thought you older men loved those nineteen year olds."
"I'm going to act like you didn't say that Michelle. We'll be there by tomorrow morning we're kind of far off right now."
"See you than. Stay out of trouble too." Michelle said hanging the phone up.
Tony walked up to her, "Who was that?"
"Jack."
"Bauer?"
"Yeah he needs some help. Someone he knows in trouble and he needs our help. We're going to have a guest for a few days too. They should be in tomorrow sometime."
"Great. Jack needs help why do I think that my job isn't so safe anymore?"
"Hey you brought the last close call on yourself there Tony." Michelle said joking about Tony's close call with almost getting charged with treason but Jack and Palmer stepped in to stop that before anything major came of it. Tony got a slap on the wrist and a demotion, which in the end worked out for the better.
Jack told Jamie of his plan. She didn't say anything she long ago gave up
fighting with Jack, she just didn't care anymore anything that was coming was coming and she couldn't stop it. "Great." She said not really excited.
Jack drove through the night at tops speeds determined to get back to L.A. as soon as possible to handle the problem. He stopped at a rest stop to get some coffee and than continued on. When he looked over Jamie was asleep and he watched her and noticed how she still had a child like look to her. Jack felt as if he had been able to take all those years back and be with Kim again.
Jack started to feel sleep overcome him. He tried to keep his eyes open but
it was getting hard with the slight noise of the outside calming him more. He pulled over for a moment and stretched. He looked through Jamie's CD's he hoped she didn't mind but he needed something to keep him awake, and not give him a headache. To his surprise he found a Blues Traveler CD and was delighted as he loved the group. He put the CD in and turned it up some. He drove off flipping through the songs to find one to listen too.
If Cyrano De Bergerac
Fell prey to the blades of fifty men
With a heart and a sword he'd drive them back
Perchance to see Roxanne's eyes light up the sky again
And when beauty kind and full of grace
Again denied the beast her hand
The beast he turned and hid his face
And tried with all his might and magic to understand
And once upon a time
You know I used to wondery why
You know no one should need to cry
In pain of a heart forbade to fly
But you learn to say goodbye
As you whisper beneath a sigh
Jack cleared the sleep out of his eyes as he drove. The song was soothing, but at the same time made him think, which helped him stay awake. He drove through the night. He saw a sign they were only 25 miles off from L.A. he looked at the speedometer and saw he was going 100 mph. He slowed down to the speed limit and listened the lyrics.
Sweet pain
Can't you plainly see?
Sweet pain
You know it matters to me
Sweet pain
Won't you make me feel at home?
Sweet pain
Don't you dare leave me alone
Sometimes a life that seems hard to take
Is soothed for a while by an old friend
Leaving a bad need in its wake
Sad how, some friendships never ever seem to end
Well all of my heroes up and died
Songs and a dream are left for me
What did them in, not suicide
Just a lengthy friendship and a dream of hot it could be
He laughed at the lyrics, Just a lengthy friends ship and a dream of hot it could be. He had always found some of the lyrics to be weird, but especially when he didn't observe them further. He was almost there he told himself to stay awake a little longer.
And isn't it a crime?
Was it more than they could bear?
You know they did not even care
At all and they might have something there
But I'm here and I don't see where
All I hear is their silent prayer
He opened his phone and dialed Michelle and Tony's home number.
Michelle answered the phone, she had been in a deep sleep when she heard it ring and she knew Tony wouldn't wake up to answer it. She use to joke with him that a ugler could still the bed and Tony would sleep through it.
"Hello?"
"Sorry Michelle if I woke you. We are almost there."
"Ok. I'll get up and set up the guest room for you and the couch. You could probably use some sleep before you tell me what this is all about."
"Thanks Michelle."
"No problem Jack."
Sweet pain
Is it so terribly wrong?
Sweet pain
To want to come along
Sweet pain
Won't you make me smile?
Sweet pain
If only for a while
Can you feel what I feel?
So we can establish that the pain is real
Don't be afraid and I'll do the same for you
And we'll just hang on and we'll make it, make it through
There's got to be a reason it works out this way
And there's something deep inside me
That makes me have to play
For you
For you
Jack drove into the city still fighting off sleep. He decreased his speed even more. Even though it was night the traffic was still horrible. He didn't miss the traffic, though oddly enough he missed the smell. He started to sing with the music lightly to keep himself awake.
In no position to give advice
My heart it spoke and I wrote it down
And you know every wisdom has its price
My head up in the stars
And my feet planted firmly on the ground
When will I embrace this life I see?
I've been wondering for so long
Thinking back, the truth may be
I've been unaware but I've been living it all along
And it didn't cost a dime
And it did not come for free
It just would not let me be
But it never conquered me
Just a doorway and a key
And I think that we both agree
Sweet pain
Is sometimes what you need
Sweet pain
It allows the blood to bleed
Sweet pain
From the moment of your birth
Sweet pain
You know it keeps you here on Earth
Jack arrived at Tony and Michelle's house. He put the SUV in park and got out. Michelle opened the door to the house to greet him. He put his finger to his mouth to warn her to be quiet he didn't' want to wake Jamie. He walked to the passenger side of the car and gently put his arms under her sleeping frame. He carefully carried her inside the house every step he worried he was going to wake her. Michelle led him to the guest room where he lay her on the bed, after Michelle pulled the covers back.
They left her to sleep, and once they were down the hall Michelle asked, "Do you want to tell me what this is all about now?" She was a little wired to sleep.
"Can I sleep some. I'll tell you first thing in the morning." Jack said.
"Sure. I'm sorry. I made the couch bed up for you. See you in the morning." She left Jack to find his way to the couch. Once he hit the bed Jack fell asleep without a problem, the dreams didn't haunt him this night. He slept easily for once.
Jack awoke early the next morning when Tony was holding a hot cup of coffee under his nose. When Jack opened his eyes he almost jumped seeing Tony standing there. He sat up and said, "God Michelle how do you wake up to him every morning it's almost as bad as a Wes Craven horror movie."
"Thanks Jack." Tony said handing him the cup of coffee, "You aren't all that great yourself." Tony quipped back.
"Nice to see someone's cheerful this morning." Michelle said walking in. "So are you going to tell us the story now?"
"What story?" Jack asked drinking the coffee. Tony purposely put it in another Cubs mug. He knew Jack was a Dodgers fan and would at any chance he got rub the cubs in his face, even if Jack quipped back that they hadn't won a world series in forever, and when they did if they had a special deal that if you were a live when the cubs won their last world series you got in free, they'd be pretty sure not to loose to much money on that since most of the people were already dead from that era.
"Come on. Before she wakes up." Michelle said looking at Jack wondering what the girl meant to him.
"She's a teenager she'll be up around three o'clock in the afternoon." Tony said smiling at Michelle before he leaned in to kiss her.
"I picked her up outside of L.A. a few days ago. Her car broke down and I was just going to help her get it going again or towed but she just wanted to get out. I didn't want to take her at first but than she just, I don't know."
"She just what Jack?" Michelle said worried about what she just might have done. Not that she thought Jack would ever do anything with someone that young, but you never knew.
"She reminded me of Kim." Jack said looking to the ground in shame sure Tony would say something smart about that. When he didn't Jack looked back up and continued on, "Everything was going fine until last night. Someone called my cell phone, she said it was an Anthony Thur. I guess his father . . ."
Michelle cut Jack off CTU had been investigating the group as domestic terrorist, "He's the leader of the Aryan Nation."
"I guess. Well she was going out with Anthony and I guess he was to happy that she left. After the call she freaked out, and I promised her I'd help her some how. I guess they are going to kill her, she saw to much or heard to much and is a threat to them if she's not with Anthony who seems like a general psycho by himself."
"I knew when
you called last night Bauer you were deep into some terrorist
trouble. Do you have like a magnetic field that just attracts them,
or do you call them every once in awhile and say, 'hey I'm sort
of bored lets do something." Tony joked at first but when he saw
the look on Jack's face he said, "I was kidding Jack. What do you
need us to do?"
"That's it I don't know anything
about them. I have no connections with CTU, and no way of getting
information. If I could just get what you have and maybe I could come
up with something."
Michelle thought about it. Technically Jack was not allowed to have that information, but it was Jack Bauer. The man who had helped this country so much and held a lot of the countries dirty little secrets as memories. She could get in trouble for it, but every time she helped Jack she was bound for some type of trouble she had learned that the first day she meant him. "I'll see what I can do."
"Thanks Michelle." Jack said smiling at her. He had always liked her, from the very first day he meant her, even if it was a really crappy day.
"I got to go to work before I'm late. Why don't you stay here make yourself at home Jack."
"Thanks Michelle."
"I'll call you around lunch time and if I can I'll smuggle some of the documents out for you to read over. Than tonight we can figure out what to do." Michelle said.
"Great." Jack smiled at her.
She thought to herself, this might have been the first time she ever saw him smile and she had known him for quite some time now.
Jack paced around the house most of the morning. He wasn't use to waiting around for information. When he was at field op's he thought to himself, But your no longer there Bauer. He was so bore he didn't know what to do.
Jamie awoke and looked around she wasn't sure where she was. She sat up in bed and studied the room she had never seen it before. She got out of the bed and walked out into the hallway she still didn't recognize it and was not sure how she got there. She walked down to what she assumed would be the living room. She found Jack pacing the floor.
"Where are we?" She asked shocking him out of his deep thoughts.
"A friend's house. Tony and Michelle Almeida I use to work with them."
"Oh."
"Don't worry they are helping us. We will figure out what to do tonight."
"So we are just going to stay here till than?"
"Yeah." Jack said.
"Ok." Jamie sat on the couch already bored.
"What's wrong?" Jack noticed a look on her face.
"Nothing." She didn't want to complain he was helping her so much.
"No what's wrong?"
"I'm bored." She said smiling at him.
"We can solve that. I hear that teenagers especially female teenagers like to go shopping."
"I'm not your typical female teenager and that won't work on me." She smiled at him for his effort.
"Ok how about I take you to rent a few movies. I have to go do something later, but you could watch movies."
"Yeah I wanted to see Kill Bill, but never could because they hated the director."
"Ok I'll go rent those bring them back along with some Subway. And you can watch movies while I run out to find someone."
"Sounds like fun." She said slightly uncomfortable in the strangers house.
Jack left and returned twenty minutes later with both volumes of Kill Bill and Subway. He helped Jamie get them going and than left her with his cell phone number. He drove to where Tony had told him, after a phone call, where Kim and Chase were living now. Jack sat outside the SUV getting up the nerve to walk up to the door. He had not seen them since he cut Chases hand off.
He watched as Chase walked out of the house and got into his car to go wherever. Jack knew they had the day off because Tony had told him. Jack walked up to the door a minute later and knocked. He heard Kim walking up to the door with a little girl in her arms.
Kim opened the door and her mouth dropped open to see her father. "Dad?"
"Sorry I haven't called in awhile." He smiled at her.
"I missed you so much." She smiled at him. "Where have you been?"
"I went on a little trip." He said not wanting to get into the full details of rehab than his trip that ended abruptly.
"Well I'm glad to see you. Come in let me got put Angela down." Jack walked in and studied the house. It was clean and nice. He stood uncomfortably for awhile.
Kim hugged him when she came back in. "Are you going to go back to work?"
"Probably not. I think I'm done with CTU. Though I am working on something." Jack said.
"What possibly could you be working on if you just got back from a trip?"
Jack began the story of how he meant Jamie. He made sure to let Kim know he was only out to help her. He wasn't sure what his daughter would think of him, and especially if he's carting around someone younger than her.
"Oh." Kim said when he finished.
"Michelle is helping me."
"Where is she now?"
"At Tony and Michelle's house. WE got in late last night and probably will stay there till I figure out how to solve the problem."
"how might you do that?"
"I don't know. How about we all go out to diner tonight? I would love for you to meet her she a very nice young lady."
"Uhm Sure. Chase has been wanting to see you."
"how's his arm?" Jack asked looking to the ground in shame.
"He's getting most of the movement and some feeling back slowly. He's not mad at you. He actually feels bad for putting you in that position dad. That's why he wanted to see you."
"He shouldn't be. I never should have. . ." Jack trailed of he didn't know what he never should have done, chopped Chase's hand off, than an entire school full of children would be infected as well as himself and his team, and not having Chase on the case they might not of found the virus in time. "I better get back to the house. Call me on my cell phone and we can set up a time."
"Sure. Bye Dad." Kim said not wanting to let him leave. "Please don't disappear again."
"I won't. I'm sorry." He kissed the top of her head as he hugged her goodbye.