A/N: Just re-read the last chapter and saw that I screwed the name of the guy Martin shot. It's Reyes, not Riley. Going to fix it when I post this chapter, just wanted to tell you in case you already read chapter 11 and wondered which case I was talking about. Sorry.

I was already thinking about maybe writing a chapter involving Vivian and as you wanted me to go on some time more (I know, most of you want Martin to wake up, but I like writing this one, dunno what I'm going to do without it), this chapter includes Viv.

Hope you like.

Dedicated to: bdoney (try to keep it as good as ever ;)), Raven001 (mmh, this is the second time I got threatened, maybe I should think about hiring a bodyguard or something), rabbitmonkey (I try to write more, but I'm running out of ideas, well, here's your Viv chapter), newsyd (thanks a lot), missusmesser (glad I'm still able to make you cry, I was getting worried I lost that wonderful ability of mine, but I see, I'm still very good... uh, I'm a bit arrogant today...), Zonya (yeah, quite a good idea to keep the story running, THANKS), lapmal (I think I'll have enough time on our project days, we're going to get home early, so it'll probably be finished next wee), csigirlie156 (glad you're back), fans1024 (never mind, glad you've reviewed now), higherbeingfriendsfans (that was cute, seems like now it's your turn makin' me cry), wItHouT a tRacE fReAk (though I think Jack's being a bit of a jackass sometimes it seems to me that he always cares a lot about his agents' safety) and fairygurl621 (again, I'm crying... It's so great to hear you like what I write!)

Chapter 12

Jack just wanted to run into the room and tell Samantha everything would be okay, that Martin would wake up soon and that she would be happy again. But he couldn't. It felt like he was glued to the floor of the white hospital corridor, not able to move, tears still streaming down his face. He didn't cry very often. Actually, he could count the times he had cried in his life (including his childhood) on one hand. His father had always said 'Men don't cry'. And for his Dad, even a boy was a man. So he hadn't cried. Even if he felt lonely and sad or if he was hurt, he didn't cry.

He had cried, thought, when Hannah was born. It had been so overwhelming, holding this little person in his arms, his own flesh, and he had to care about her, teach her everything she should know, help her become the person she would be one day.

The second time he could still remember crying, was at his mother's funeral. His Dad had just stood there, staring at the coffin with the white lilies on top of it, showing no sign of emotion. No anger, no pain, no sadness, just nothing. It hadn't been the sorrow about his Mom being dead, of course he had been sad, but it was more his father still showing no sign of emotion. He had never been the person to show his feelings, but Jack had thought at least the death of his wife would make him a bit weaker. How wrong he had been.

And now, standing in front of a hospital room, with one agent laying there, maybe dying, his strong fassade broke down once again. He didn't like the idea of being vulnerable, but at the same time the image of his father, standing at his mother's grave, motionless, scared him to death. As a respected FBI agent he had learned to control his emotions, but it seemed like he hadn't just kept his feelings locked up at work, he had also done it while at home, being with his family, his wife, his kids. That was probably why Maria had left him. He had become unfeeling, cold. Like a stone.

Like his Dad. The thought kept running through his mind. His whole life he had tried to make everything right, be the perfect son, perfect agent, perfect husband, perfect father. But he had screwed everything. He had disappointed his father by leaving the army, disappointed the families of all the victims he hadn't been able to rescue, disappointed his wife when he stopped talking to her about his feelings, disappointed his children by not being ther for them when they needed him.

He hadn't even been able to protect his agents. Martin and Danny had been shot, Viv was also laying in hospital right now and Samantha nearly broke down because she couldn't handle being hurt again. Hurt by Martin leaving her like he had hurt her when he left her.

Jack stepped back from the door, wiping his tears away with the back of his hand and started walking down the corridor. He didn't quite know where he should go. Lost in thoughts about his life, his family, his agents and friends, he just wandered the corridors. Finally, he stopped.

Looking around, he saw that he was still on ICU. Reading the number of the room next to he saw that he was near Viv's room. Viv. It dawned upon him that she still had no clue about Martin and Danny and what had happened yesterday afternoon. He started walking to her door and was halfway there when he suddenly stopped.

Should he really tell her? Of course, Viv would want to know about it, but she had had a heart surgery only half a day ago. She needed rest, plenty of rest. Excitement could be dangerous for her.

Unsure of what to do, Jack sat down in a chair on the wall next to him. Viv would freak out if he waited until tomorrow to tell her the guys had been shot. Not to think about what if Martin really didn't make it through the night. But what if he told her now? Wouldn't she freak out even more? No, he didn't think so. Although Viv cared about Martin, Danny and Samantha like they were her own children, he knew Viv would stay calm. She would be worried to hell, cursing herself for not being able to be there for Samantha, but she wouldn't freak out.

He needed to tell her. So Jack got up and again started walking towards Vivian's door. He knocked slightly, then entered the dimly lit room. Markus was sitting next to his wife's bed, telling her about home and his work. When the two of them heard the door open they turned around to see Jack entering. He looked horrible. His tie was loosened, his suit crumpeled, his face was pale and he had dark circles around his eyes.

The smile quickly faded off Vivian's face when she saw the state Jack was in. "Oh may God, Jack, what happened?" She asked concerned.

Markus looked at his wife and said "I guess I head to work now. I'll come back later." He leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek, then got up and left the room. Before closing the door, he threw Jack one last glance, then he vanished out of view.

"What happened?" Viv repeated.

Jack walked over to her bed and sat down in the chair Markus had just left, then looked at Viv with what he thought was a look free of care. "How are you?" He ignored her question completely, not knowing how to start or what to tell her.

"I'm fine." Viv responded, "But what about you? You look like you didn't sleep the whole night. I told you to head home last night. Where have you been?"

Jack hesitated. "I... " Viv looked at him with her 'Tell me' look she always had when someone didn't tell her what was bothering him or her. So he just said, "I've been here."

Viv looked at him with a quizzical expression. "What do you mean 'I've been here'? You left the hospital last night when I told you to go home, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I did."

"So?"

"I was just driving home when I got a call. It was Danny. He... " Jack didn't know how to go on. When he had called Samantha he didn't tell her what had happened. First he didn't want her to hear it on the phone, second he just didn't know how to say it. Luckily, Danny had took matters out of his hand by telling Samantha what had happened. It had been hard enought to tell Martin's parents that their son had been shot, but telling Viv, who he knew so well, was just too much.

"He did what? Why did he call you? Tell me!" She demanded.

Jack looked up and saw Viv staring at him with fear clearly visible in her eyes. He didn't know how to tell her, but he knew he had to. This uncertainty and worrying about what had possibly happened wasn't good for her. "He called to tell me that... he and Martin got into a shooting."

"What!" Viv was nearly yelling. "Where are they? Are they okay?"

"Hey, hey calm down. You are not supposed to strain too much."

"Jack, don't tell me to calm down when you just told me the boys got into a shooting, just tell me if they are okay!"

Jack saw there was no way of calming her down right now, so he decided to just tell her the truth. "Danny was hit once in his upper arm, but it was a through and through and he's okay."

Viv sighed with relief. "What about Martin?"

Again, Jack hesitated. "Wait, he's okay, right? I mean he's not-" Viv started.

"He's not dead." Viv put a hand to her heart and sighed again. "But he's in bad condition." Viv's head snapped up and again, her eyes were full of worry.

"He was hit twice and was in surgery for several hours. The doctor told us they had to remove his spleen and parts of his liver. Right now, he's... he's in a coma."

"Oh my God, Jack... Where's Samantha? Does she know about this? You have to call her, she needs to know, she-"

"Hey, Viv, it's okay. I called her, she's here, she's with him right now, okay? Calm down."

Viv relaxed a bit, but she still had a concerned expression on her face. "Is she alright? No, of course she is not alright. Martin's been shot and he's in a coma, why should she be alright? Jack, I need to see her. She needs somebody she can talk to. She shouldn't be alone right now."

"She is not alone. Danny's with her."

"Danny's here?" Viv asked unbelievingly. "But he shouldn't be! He should be at home, sleeping. A shot-wound can be dangereous. He needs rest!"

Jack put a hand on top of hers which was laying on the white sheet. She was shivering. "I told him to go home, but he won't. He's concerned about Martin and I know he wouldn't sleep, even if I made him go home. At least I can look after him while he's here."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Viv nodded her head slowly. She looked into space for several seconds before continuing. "Why did this have to happen while I'm in hospital myself? They need me! I should be there for them, take care of them."

"Viv, it's not your job to take care of them. You have to rest, get back to your normal strength. Then you'll still have plenty of time to be there for them."

"But they need me now. Not in three days or a week or something, now." Her voice was croaky and while she spoke, tears started rolling down her cheeks.

Jack didn't know what to say. Of course she was right, they needed her now. Viv always had a calming effect on everyone. She cared about strangers like they were her own family, and her team was her second family. Jack could only imagine how hard it had to be for her not being able to help, to reassure, to calm down. He was glad he hadn't told her about the 24 hours the doctor had given Martin to wake up. It had only confirmed her with saying they needed her now.

"Viv, there's nothing you can do right now, okay? I was there, I was with them, and there was nothing I could do, either."

She didn't seeom to be convinced by his words. "But-"

"No buts." Jack said. "You know I'm right. I didn't tell you about all of this because I wanted you to blame yourself for not being able to be with them."

"I'm sorry, Jack, it's just... you know, you're like my second family. I just wouldn't be able to handle it if something happened to anyone of you."

"I know." Jack replied. The shivering hadn't stopped, but it wasn't as bad as it had been earlier. "I know how much you care. But I have to say it again: There's nothing you can do."

Viv nodded. "Thank you, Jack. Thank you for telling me. I know you didn't have to do it."

"I knew you would have ripped my head off if I had only told you tomorrow." Jack said with a small smirk.

He got the smile he had hoped for. "Oh, yeah, you're damn right." Viv replied with a slight chuckle.

"He will be fine, okay? And in a few days, when you're able to stand up again, you go and see him. And I'm sure Danny and Samantha will come and visit you."

"Thanks, Jack. Again."

"You're welcome." Jack replied with a smile.

A/N: So, we've managed 12 chapters and 28 pages so far (without my notes and thanks and the double spaces). Guess we're slowly coming to an end now (but I've said it so often already, I don't quite believe myself when I'm saying it). :)