Title: Betrayal
Series: Our Mrs. Cobb
Author: Sevangel
Disclaimer: Not mine
Rating: PG-13
-
Kaylee and Willow giggle at the look on Jayne's face, his eyes wide and mouth hanging open.
"Uhh…" Jayne stammers, trying to find some type of explanation.
"Don't even try it." Willow says, smiling brightly at him. "You got caught having the smoochies and there's nothing you can say to cover it."
"Smoochies?" Jayne replies. "I don't have smoochies."
"Oh, then we didn't just catch you with your tongue halfway down River's throat." Willow says sarcastically. "Our mistake."
"Stop teasing him." River orders as she hops off the bed.
"But it's so much fun." Kaylee replies. "Wonder if we can make him blush?"
Jayne scowls at them.
"We'll have to try it some other time." Willow tells Kaylee. "Cause Mal's looking for you and I don't think he'll find the smoochies as cute as we do."
"Yeah, he's libel to shoot Jayne or somethin'." Kaylee agrees.
Jayne's eyes dance between the two girls, his eyebrows furrowed with confusion. "You ain't gonna tell him?"
"Nope." Willow answers. "It's none of his business or Simon's or anybody's but yours and River's. Though I would suggest maybe having your smoochies somewhere a little less visible; a closet could work but if you get caught there's really no way to explain it."
"The bay is probably the best place." Kaylee suggests. "You can always hear when someone's comin' and it'll give ya time to jump apart and act like you weren't doin' nothin'."
"You've thought about this." Willow comments.
"Yeah, but it's not like I'll get the chance to do it." Kaylee pouts. "Simon's too gorram proper."
"What about Simon?" Mal asks from the doorway. He looks at the four people gathered in the infirmary and wonders what they're doin' and why Jayne looks so ruttin' nervous. "What's goin' on?"
"Jayne was fixing me." River replies, holding up her bandaged arm.
"He was, was he?" Mal says, staring his merc down.
"She was bleedin' all over herself." Jayne defends.
Simon moves up behind Mal and then pushes past the captain to approach his sister. "Mei-mei, are you okay?"
"Fine." River replies. "Jayne fixed me up good."
"Come on, River, let's go to our room while we await our verdict." Willow says.
"You told them." River replies quietly.
"Yeah, I had to." Willow says.
"I know." River agrees.
Willow locks arms with River and the two start out of the infirmary. "Think they'll hang us?"
"No." River replies. "Probably just burn us at the stake."
"Yeah, cause that was so much fun the first time around."
-
"Uh, we're not going to burn them at the stake, right?" Wash asks once the crew is gathered around the table in the mess.
"No, we ain't gonna be burnin' nobody." Mal replies. "But I ain't all that comfortable with havin' two…"
"Killers on board." Book supplies.
"Yeah." Mal replies.
"Don't see how it's that big of a deal." Kaylee comments, shocking them all.
"They killed people, Kaylee." Zoe says. "Now, it's not something that we haven't done but Willow just admitted she killed for revenge. What if she feels the need to get revenge against one of us?"
"Her girlfriend was killed, right in front of her." Kaylee whispers, looking directly at the solider. "What if it were Wash? What would you do if somebody killed Wash right in front of you?"
Zoe closes her eyes briefly before looking back at Kaylee. "The same gorram thing."
"And River was bein' hurt and she was scared." Kaylee finishes. "I ain't sayin' it was right cause it ain't but I don't think they'll hurt any of us."
"I hope you're right, little Kaylee." Mal replies. "For all our sakes, I hope you're ruttin' right."
-
"My pop always said anyone who can't find work ain't looking hard enough." Jayne says as he throws a horseshoe. "We ain't even looking at all."
"You can stop looking." Simon says from behind them.
The crew turns around to see Simon walking into the room with River, Willow, and Kaylee following closely behind him.
"There is a client." Simon tells them. "Me."
"You got a job for us?" Mal asks in disbelief.
"One that'll pay for itself ten times over." Simon replies.
"Well." Wash comments. "He's got my attention."
"We don't work on spec." Jayne says, looking at Simon suspiciously.
"Work on spec all the time." Zoe argues.
"Do you know what this is?" Simon questions, tossing a vial to Mal. "It's a common immunobooster called ivoprovalyn. Street value for a dosage of this size, a hundred platinums, maybe sixty credits."
Mal's eyebrows rise as he stares at the little vial held in his hand. He listens while Simon goes through the prices of a couple different medicines. "Let me get this straight." Mal says after Simon finishes explaining his 'job'. "You want us to sneak you and your sister, both of you bein' fugitives, into a core hospital so's that you can take a peak at her brain to see if what Willow said is true?"
"Yes." Simon replies.
"Huh." Mal mutters. "Sounds kinda fun."
-
"Uh, the patients were cynical and not respondin' and we couldn't bring em back." Mal repeats, his face tense as he tries to remember all the go'se Simon is trying to cram into his brain.
Simon sighs with frustration; they've been at this for at least an hour and so far, none of them have got it right once.
"I want to go." Willow says from the doorway.
Mal spins around and glares at her. "No."
"I want to go." Willow repeats. "Besides, you three suck at the doctor stuff."
"Like you can do better." Mal mutters.
"The patients were cyanotic and non-responsive." Willow deadpans. "We used pulmonary stimulators, cardiac infusers and cortical electrodes but were unable to resuscitate them."
Simon's mouth drops open.
"And that's just from listening to Simon say it once." Willow says. "Trust me, I can BS my way through any questions they may ask better than you."
Jayne sighs with relief.
"I don't want to help with the stealing." Willow tells Mal. "I just want to go with River."
Mal looks at Zoe and sees her shrug.
"I'm gonna regret this." Mal mutters. "I ruttin' know I am."
"So I can go?" Willow asks.
"Jayne, you gotta nuf stuff to make her a badge?" Mal questions.
"Yeah." Jayne replies. "There was a couple left over, just need to get a picture taken of her."
"Go get Kaylee to take a picture of you." Mal orders.
Willow squeals happily and throws her arms around Mal. "Thanks."
"Yeah, yeah." Mal mutters.
Willow ends the hug and starts to run out of the infirmary in search of Kaylee.
"Willow." Mal stops her.
"Yes?"
"Don't make me regret doin' this." Mal replies.
"I won't." Willow assures him, her fingers crossed behind her back.
"Sir." Zoe says a few moments after she's gone.
"I don't know, Zoe." Mal replies. "Jayne, keep an eye on her."
"Yeah." Jayne mutters, just happy that he doesn't have to try and remember all the doctorin' crap.
-
"They didn't even ask us one question." Willow complains quietly to Mal as they push the 'body bags' containing River and Simon towards the morgue.
"That's a good thing." Mal replies.
Willow watches as from the doorway as Mal and Jayne unload Simon and River, setting them both on cold, stainless steel slabs. She waves cheerfully to Mal and Zoe as they leave to go make with the thieving before moving to stand beside Jayne.
"Just don't seem right." Jayne comments, staring down at River's 'corpse'. "It's all kinds of creepy."
"Yeah." Willow agrees. "So, you and River with the smoochies?"
Jayne glares at her.
"Hey, can't say that I blame you." Willow says, smiling cheerfully up at him before looking at River again. "She's a cutie, all that warm, milky skin and long luscious hair. She's so tiny and you know her body's gotta be all nice and firm plus her legs, well they don't get much better than that." Willow waves her hand at River's exposed calves and lower thighs.
Jayne steps in front of River, blocking Willow's view, with a growl. He glares down at the redhead with his hands fisted at his side.
"You just did the jealous, possessive growl thing." Willow squeals happily. "You don't like other people looking at your girl."
"She ain't mine." Jayne replies, still glaring at her.
"But you want her to be." Willow says, still smiling happily at him. "You want to be the first person to touch her, the first person to be inside her; you want to be the only one to ever make her scream in pleasure."
Jayne continues to glare. "You really are a pain in the ass."
"Yep." Willow agrees. "Doesn't make it any less true though, does it?"
Jayne doesn't answers and that's answer enough for Willow. She pats him sympathetically on the arm before walking over to stand beside Simon.
Jayne continues to stare down at his 'wife' and can't help replayin' what Willow just said. He ain't gonna admit it out loud but he does wanna be the first one to touch her and if he's really gonna be honest with himself, the thought of anyone else touchin' her makes him feel like rippin' things in half. He sighs with frustration. When did she go from bein' anything but the moonbrain? He don't right know the answer to that question and don't wanna look deep enough to find it. Luckily, he's saved by River sitting up straight, her body all tense and straight as a board.
"Cooper for a kiss?" River whispers, looking up at Jayne. "Hi."
"Hi." Jayne replies. "You okay?"
River glances around the morgue before shaking her head wildly. "I don't like being dead."
Jayne goes to respond when Simon starts coughing. "What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing." Simon replies, still coughing. "Just the after-effects from the drugs, I'll be fine."
"Your sister seems okay." Jayne smirks at Simon.
"Jayne." River whispers.
Jayne whips his head around to see River looking up at him, her face pale and covered with sweat. Then she's bending over and he barely has time to hold her hair back before she's puckin' her guts out.
"It's just a side-effect from the drug." Willow assures him quietly. "She'll be fine once it's out of her system." Willow waits until River is done puking before handing the genius a small cup filled with water. "Here you go, sweetie."
"Thank." River replies, downing the water to get the taste of her vomit out. "Are we going now?"
-
Simon stares at the scan in front of him, Jayne and Willow flanking his sides. Jayne is staring at the image in confusion while Willow looks at it with complete understanding.
"You were right." Simon whispers, looking at Willow.
"I know." Willow replies. "I didn't want to be but I knew I was."
"What?" Jayne asks, not understanding.
"They cut into her brain over and over again." Simon answers as the information downloads. "She's just a girl; why would somebody do this to her?"
Nobody answers him; there's nothing they can say.
Simon continues to look at the scans for the next twenty minutes or so as he tries to come to grips with what was done to his sister.
"Simon, we have to go." Willow says softly, touching his shoulder.
"But." Simon protests.
"There's nothing more we can do here." Willow says. "You got what you need."
Simon pockets the information and watches as Jayne helps his sister up. Part of him wonders why the merc is being so gentle with his sister but he's still too shocked by the scans. He follows Willow out of the imaging suite, not even noticing when she turns towards the back exit instead of they one they're supposed to be using. Then he's blinking in shock as spotlights are aimed at them.
"River and Simon Tam." A federal officer says, his gun pointed towards them. "By the authority of the Union of the Allied Planets, you are hereby bound by law."
-
"Time?" Mal asks Zoe, his body tense with fury. Something went down and he's got a good gorram idea what it is.
"Ten minutes past rendezvous." Zoe answers.
"Something happened." Mal declares, looking to Wash.
Wash's fingers fly over a screen as he opens a communication channel with Serenity. "Kaylee, are you linked?"
A few seconds pass before she replies. "I am now. What do you need?"
-
"Agent McGinnis, I'm certain you're working under a superior who's keeping close tabs on this case." Simon says, his voice bordering on a shout. "I'm certain because important people don't usually do field work. I'm also quite certain your superior wants my sister and me alive. Now, I'm not going to move from this spot until one of two things happen: you answer my very simple question or you shoot me."
"He sure talks a lot when he's mad." Willow whispers to River.
"Yes." River agrees.
"Should I?"
"No." River answers. "We must let it play out as it should or all will be lost."
Jayne glances over at the two whispering girls, wondering why they're not all freaked out. They're minutes away from goin' to jail for the rest of their gorram lives and they're actin' like it's a gorram tea party. He follows the guards as they walk through some rooms, looking for an opening. He sees one when one of the guards shuts the door and slams his head into the fed's nose, knocking him out. He body slams the next one into a wall and then wiggles his cuffs past his feet with a grunt.
"Well, if that wasn't all manly." Willow whispers to River while they watch Jayne take out the guards.
River can't keep the small smile off her lips.
"Oh, you like watching your man be all rough and violent." Willow gasps. "Bet you just love to lie on the walks and watch him work out."
"Uh huh." River agrees.
Jayne rolls his eyes at them as he moves behind River to un cuff her. He then does Willow's and final Simon. He grabs the fed's weapon and motions for them to follow him.
Willow holds on tightly to River's hand, her eyes closed as she lets the genius drag her down halls and towards some exit nobody can see but her. It's a good thing that they're now leading the escape; Jayne and Simon would freak out if they saw her running with her eyes closed. But she trusts River and knows the genius won't let anything happen to her. She pushes past Simon and Jayne's worry and fear and stops when she reaches pain. It's the agent, the one they left alive and he's screaming as his insides are literally boiled out. He's dead within a few seconds. Then she's inside the ones River refers to as 'hands of blue'. She almost screams out loud by what's there. It's like being inside a vampire; there's no remorse for the lives they just ended, in fact it's worse than being inside a vampire. There's nothing. No pain, pleasure, hate, fear, or conscious. They are empty inside. But they're humans, with human souls and everything. How a person can be so empty inside and still retain their soul, she doesn't know. She pulls back inside herself with a gasp and opens her eyes to see Jayne trying to knock a handle off a door with a gun. She looks over to River and sees the genius staring back at her, her face full of terror. Then the door blows off and she sighs with relief upon seeing Zoe and Mal on the other side.
-
"I think I might cry." Mal says sarcastically. "Jayne, help me with the cargo. Everyone else..make yourselves useful. You got jobs, go do em."
Jayne starts to unload the cargo as the crew filters out. "Gotta be one of our best takes ever." Jayne comments.
"Doc had a good notion." Mal replies as he wraps a chain around his hand. "Boy's got a decent criminal mind."
"What're you buying with your cut?" Jayne asks curiously.
Mal doesn't answer; instead he punches Jayne with his chained up fist. The merc drops instantly and Mal drags his heavy ass body to drop between the ramp and airlock. He throws a com down beside Jayne and then exits, leaving the unconscious merc lying on the ground.
"The hell are you doing?" Jayne mutters as he comes to and finds himself between the door and the ramp. He looks up when he hears Mal's voice coming over a com.
"We'll be in space in a minute or two." Mal comments as he hits a button and the ramp starts to open. "Figured it was a good time for a chat, fore it starts getting cold out there."
"You outa your gorram mind?" Jayne grunts, holding his head with one hand and the com with the other. "Let me in."
"You called the feds, didn't you?" Mal accuses.
"What?" Jayne shouts. "I don't know what the ruttin' hell you're talkin' bout."
"I ain't stupid, Jayne." Mal yells back. "Them feds just didn't happen to be there. Somebody ruttin' called them. I'm guessin' that big old reward finally got to be too gorram temptin' for you and you gave in."
Jayne looks back at the partial opened ramp and then back at Mal. "I don't gotta ruttin' clue as to what you're talkin' bout."
"Don't lie to me." Mal yells. "You turned in your own gorram wife…."
The ramp closes and Mal looks over to see River and Willow standing by the panel, both of them glaring at him.
River pushes past Mal and opens the door. She then takes Jayne's hand and pulls him back into Serenity. Stopping in front of Mal, she kicks him roughly in the shin. "Butthole." Then she's pulling Jayne past Mal and Willow, past the watching crew, and out of the bay.
"Cap'n, how could you?" Kaylee gasps, looking at him with disbelief.
"Somebody called the ruttin' feds." Mal defends.
Willow looks up at Mal sadly. "It wasn't Jayne."
-
Jayne stumbles behind River as she leads him into the infirmary. He doesn't protest when she pushes him onto the sickbed or when she walks over to the counter. He watches as she looks through some bottles of pills and pours a few into her hand. But he does look up at her when she holds the pills and a glass of water out at him.
"Pain reliever." River explains quietly. "For your bump."
Jayne takes the pills and swallows them with the water. Then he goes back to watching as she putters around the infirmary.
River wets a cloth and grabs an ice pack before moving back to Jayne. She pushes on his chest until he scoots back and then crawls onto the bed between his legs. "I'm sorry." River whispers as she gently cleans the wound on his head. "It's my fault."
"Ain't your fault Mal's lost it." Jayne replies, closing his eyes with a wince.
"It didn't work out like it was supposed to." River explains. "You were not to be injured but you were and it's my fault. I didn't want that to happen, I didn't want so many things to happen but they did and it's my fault."
"Ain't your fault." Jayne repeats.
River tosses the rag over to the sink and then looks up at Jayne with guilty eyes. "It's nice that you say so but the fault is still mine." River replies. "I didn't mean for this to happen but it did; I didn't want it to end like this but needed to see."
"Kiss me." The words leave Jayne's mouth without him realizing and it's too late to take them back.
River smiles happily at him and wraps her arms around his neck. "Finally, something I do want to happen." Then she's kissing him and it's just like she remembers.
Jayne wraps his arms around River and pulls her closer as he eats at her mouth. She tastes so gorram good and feels even better. His hands rub up and down her back and he realizes Willow was right; she is all nice and firm.
"They seem to really enjoy the infirmary." Kaylee tells Willow.
"Nee ta ma duh. Tyen-shia suo-yo duh run doh gai si." Jayne mutters against River's mouth. He pulls back with a growl and glares at the two girls leaning against the open doorway. "You two gotta ruttin' radar or somethin'?"
"River, you better get down." Willow advises. "They're coming."
River moves off the table and then hands Jayne the ice pack still held in her hand. Jayne presses it against his head seconds before Mal walks in.
"Mess." Mal orders. "Now."
-
The crew is once again gathered around the table in the mess only this time River and Willow are present. River is sitting between Jayne and Willow as she watches Mal pace in front of the table.
"Okay, Jayne, you say you didn't call the feds." Mal says. "And River and Willow are backin' up your story but I gotta say, I ain't so convinced. Those ruttin' feds weren't just there; somebody ruttin' called them."
"You're right." River agrees. "But it wasn't Jayne."
Willow looks at River and then at Mal. "It was me."
The mess is filled with shouting and the sound of chairs moving as Simon and Jayne both jump up. Jayne tries to move River away from Willow but she just pushes his hands away.
"You can sit back down." River tells her brother and Jayne.
"Mei-mei, get away from her." Simon shouts. "She's dangerous."
"Sit down, Simon." River says, rolling her eyes. "Willow is no danger to me."
"She ruttin' turned you into the feds." Jayne growls, glaring at Willow.
"I know." River replies.
"You know?" Mal shouts. "You mean you know now or you knew before?"
"How do you think she knew who to contact?" River replies. "I told her."
The mess goes completely quiet as they stare between River and Willow, everyone completely confused.
"So, are you going to suck me out the back of the ship?" Willow asks Mal.
"I think we need to calm down." Book says, having come back from his 'mediation' when Inara came back from her doctor's visit.
"See, I don't think we do." Mal replies. "I got two people on my boat callin' the feds but what I don't got is an understanding of it."
"We had to." River whispers. "Had to see."
"See what, mei-mei?" Simon asks, still wanting to tear her away from Willow.
"Hands of blue." River's hands move up in the air and they can see them shaking uncontrollably.
"Not this stuff again." Mal mutters. "River, none of us understand this 'two by two, hands of blue' thing."
"They were there." Willow says quietly. "They were coming to pick her up."
"Cause you ruttin' called them." Mal yells.
"She's terrified of them." Willow replies. "It's not a normal fear, its mind-numbing, breath-taking terror. I needed to know why; it's the only way for her to beat her fear. And she's right to be terrified of them, frankly, they scare the crap out of me too."
"You know who she's talking about?" Simon asks.
"Like I said they were there." Willow replies. "And they killed every person that came into contact with River. Those agents that arrested us, dead. The patient you saved, dead. The doctor you corrected, dead."
"How do you know that?" Mal asks.
"Just do." Willow replies.
Mal stomps out of the mess and after a few seconds, the crew follows him.
Mal sits down in the pilot chair and starts moving surfing through the cortex. "Gorram thing."
River walks up behind Mal and nudges him aside. Then she's moving through screens so fast Mal can't keep up with what she's doing. After a few moments, she steps back and points to the screen. "They're calling it a gas leak." River says quietly. "Seven federal agents, a patient, two doctors, and 3 interns are dead."
Simon moves behind Mal and reads over his shoulder. After he's done, he turns to look at his sister and Willow. "Why?"
"She's their possession." Willow says. "They created her and everything about her belongs to them; mind, body, and soul. They made her and they think they have the right to control her as they please, and that includes kill her when they see fit."
"She ain't theirs." Jayne growls.
"I know that but that's not how they see it." Willow replies. "They want her back and are willing to do whatever they have to get her. The reward thing; never going to happen. They have no intentions of letting anyone that has come near her live. It doesn't matter how much contact or how long; if they know she's been near someone, they're going to kill them."
"Why?" Zoe asks. "I don't get what would make someone that important."
"I don't think it really has anything to do with importance." Willow answers. "She has to know something or have seen something that they can't afford for anybody to find out. What it is, I don't know, I doubt River even realizes what it is."
"They're going through all this trouble to keep a secret?" Mal asks, looking at her as though she's insane.
"Yes." Willow replies. "It's the only reason anybody would go through all this trouble. Whatever it is, it's big and they don't want anybody to find out."
-