K, I can't believe we have arrived at chapters number 13 and 14. I know you know, and at this point everybody else knows, but what can I say? Without your support it would be impossible to see this story posted here, so THANK YOU!
M, Esta semana hemos dado un giro inesperado a la historia y todo gracias a ti. Sigo contando contigo, gracias chiqui.
Wildfire6962000, your right, poor Riddick. Our big guy still hasn't begun to deal with the new Jack. Just wait, you are going to really have pity for him. Thanks for your review, baby. I love to read yours!
FluidDegree, of course not, baby. Riddick is going to discover a few things about his little Jack in these next two chapters. I think you are going to enjoy them, hope you like'em and thanks for your reviews, as usual they make my day, lol.
SueBe, yeah! Give the big guy a cookie, he deserve it. About lines you will love, you are probably going to find a couple in the next chapters. Thanks, lol!
Buecha, If you're ready and waiting for the next chapters, I have no other option but oblige, so here you have them, I hope you enjoy them. Thanks, lol.
Shamrock920, glad you would be patient, cause we still have a long ride ahead until we see a real J/R moment, but still, you're going to find a funny surprise along the next two chapters, so let's have some fun! Thanks for your reviews, honey. I love them!
Saismaat, glad you like my story, sweetheart. I really appreciate your honest opinion. Keep that up! Thanks for reviewing my story.
Crematoriacon, unfortunately, you're right, I left that part out of the flash back. It's been a while since I watched Pitch Black. My DVD player is broken now, so I tried hard to remember each detail, but as you see I forgot that part. Anyway. I'm glad you like the way the story goes. I like to read your reviews also. I can't wait to read the next one, so please. Thank you, lol.
Icores, don't be sorry, honey. My English sucks, you only have to ask my beta. Thanks for your reviews. No matter if they are only from time to time. They will always be more than welcome. Thanks again, hon.
Thanks to: Absolutly Redonculas; yagirl-123; Foxykirby; amarcano; Niffer01 and Goldum for reading my story. I love to read reviews, so go on. How about a line?
Let's have some fun!
Chapter 13: Falling down The Rabbit Hole.
The Darkveil took off according to Riddick's plans; her leave taking went just as unnoticed as her arrival on Thalion. Riddick sighed a little in relief now that they were on their way to the frontiers. He would have to make a few stops, but he had made sure that those planets would be off the official routes. They probably wouldn't be the safest place for most people, but for Riddick they would be the perfect place to hide for a few weeks. He uploaded the codes, and afterwards he went to check on his special guest.
Riddick watched her as he crouched beside his bed, he had his arms crossed on top of the mattress with his chin on top of them. Jack was sleeping peacefully. He glanced at his chrono. In a couple of hours she'll be up, he thought to himself. He then looked at her again and sighed. The woman sleeping in his bed was a complete stranger to him. Riddick thought about what Danielle had said just before they had left her at the apartment. "Audrey isn't the kid you remember. Now she's fragile… but at the same time she's strong... You're a killer Riddick, but I suspect that she already knows that... take care of her for me...", Danielle's words echoed faintly in his mind. Riddick closed his eyes and heaved another deep sigh. Where's the Jack I used to know? He asked, lost in his thoughts.
Riddick had only trusted two people in the whole Galaxy, Imam and Jack. He had tried to contact Imam after his talk with Danielle. He wanted some answers, but he couldn't reach him. So Riddick had left a message that only Imam would understand, telling him to look after Danielle. Riddick had once trusted the holy man enough that he knew that if he was able, he would look after Danielle. Now, with where he had found Jack, he wasn't so sure, but he didn't have any other choice.
You look like an angel kid, he suddenly thought. He remembered that once, long ago, he had read a book about angels. It was an old one. Some guy had lent it to him when he was just a kid. Riddick smirked. Considering the fact that I've never seen a real angel in all my fucking life, I'll bet that they should look a lot like you. Jack looked so innocent and pure to him, that he couldn't help but curse himself for being in her life. You're not good for her Rick, and you know what could happen to her, you've dreamed it enough times; he scolded himself. Jack stirred in her dreams and murmured something, smiling, then she relaxed completely and let out a small contented sounding sigh. Yeah, the calm before the storm, he chuckled. He then stood slowly and headed toward the cockpit. He needed to keep his mind busy.
Riddick didn't want to have face The Firm's men just now. The farther away they got, the better off they would be. Riddick sat in his chair and reclined back in it, staring out the front window of the cabin. Millions of stars were passing around them. He could spend hours just looking at those stars. Riddick grinned, no matter how many times he looked at them, they always seemed beautiful in his eyes. They made him feel at peace, they even soothed his animal side. Just like her, he thought, and caught himself smiling.
Flash back
The bed creaked with Riddick's weight. "Where've you been?" Jack asked in a whisper, turning her back to him. She knew well enough where he'd been that night, but that fact didn't stop her from asking. She didn't want to know where. What she wanted to know was why, but she simply couldn't work up the nerve to ask him directly. She wasn't a child, but he pretended not to notice that fact. She was almost sixteen now. Well, maybe I'm not sixteen yet, but I'm not a "child" either, she thought.
Jack wanted him to herself. She didn't want to share him with anybody else, and she definitely wasn't going to share Riddick with just any slut who happened to be on the same planet. Only one more week, and we'll be off of New Mecca, together, she told herself. When Riddick didn't answer her, she frowned. "I'm waiting" she said with a slight trace of annoyance.
Riddick pretended not to notice it and stared at the ceiling. "Not your business kid" he finally said. "Go back to sleep" he added, and turned on his side. Now they were back to back onto the bed.
Jack turned her head and looked at him. "You know I can't sleep if you're not here", she couldn't help but notice that her voice sounded whineier than she would have liked.
Riddick smirked. "Well, I'm back, ain't I? So you can sleep now" he said as he shifted his pillow.
Jack raised her brows. "You didn't answer me" she said, a little annoyed.
Riddick was tired and wanted to sleep. "Yeah, well, I already did" he retorted.
"No, you didn't" she said, raising her voice.
Riddick didn't want to have this conversation now. I don't need this shit, he thought. Riddick growled as he turned his head to look at her "Listen kid, I don't have to answer any of your fucking questions, got it?" Jack's eyes popped wide open and her face showed disappointment. Riddick knew it would be a good idea to try and change the subject. Little annoying brat, he told himself. He suspected that this conversation was going to end in a subject he didn't want to deal with right now, so he changed it to something that he could control. Fuck with her mind. "Besides," he chuckled after a moment, "good little girls like you need a lot of rest kid" he teased. "So, Go. To. Sleep", he bit out one word at a time. Then, he turned his head again and looked at the door of the room, sighing.
She rolled her eyes and raised herself to a sitting position. "And what the hell do you know about good little girls, Riddick?" she asked, now fully annoyed. "I'll tell you… You. Don't. Know. Shit." she mimicked the tone of his voice.
Riddick shook his head. "Whatever… kid." He said as he closed his eyes.
Just who the hell does he think he is? My father? I'm not a kid, dammit! Jack grunted in frustration, then started to yell. "I'm not a little girl anymore Riddick! Did you think I was traveling around disguised because I wanted to, that I thought it was game! Did you think I thought it was fun to keep my chest bound up so that I could pass for a boy?" She felt angry tears rising at this point and she held her breath for a few seconds, trying to hold them back. "Can you imagine how I felt after… after…?" she trailed off in a teary voice. Riddick tensed up and clenched his fists. FUCK, he thought. Jack found her voice again. "I'm a woman, dammit!" she hissed through clenched teeth. Riddick grunted in response. Jack swallowed hard and tried to take a deep breath. She felt exhausted after her little speech. She didn't want to have to remember that part of her life, but she knew bringing it up would make him feel bad, and right now; she just wanted to hurt him. She was sick and tired of being treated like a little girl by him, instead of like a woman. Fucking kid can't accept I care about her more than any other fucking thing, he hissed to himself.
Riddick clenched his teeth. His inner beast roared with both frustration and satisfaction, a feeling only she could invoke. He didn't want to think about her past. Of course, from the time that he had first seen her, he had suspected that she'd probably been abused. Why else would she think pretending to be a boy would be safer? He'd asked himself as soon as he had laid eyes on her. Afterwards, when Riddick knew her better, he made a mental note to take care of the fucking perv. Jack suspected that Riddick had wanted to pay the motherfucker back who had put his hands on her; with a slow, painful death. She didn't know it, but when they had arrived on New Mecca, Riddick had found the information he needed and went in search of him.
Riddick turned and rolled over so fast on the bed, that Jack thought for a second she was going to fall to the floor. Riddick grabbed her by her shoulders and locked eyes with her. "You don't need to pretend that you're a woman because of that" his deep voice sounded angry. "I would kill that fucker again, ten thousand times, if he wasn't already fucking dead" he hissed, squeezing her shoulders a little more than he intended to. Jack winced. Maybe I went too far, she told herself, but she continued to stare at his now cold eyes. Riddick continued, "And I swear to you that if anyone dares lay a hand on you, let alone try to hurt you, I'll be more than happy to destroy him" he growled. "You're NOT a woman, Jack. You're just a KID!" he yelled at her. Jack looked at him as if he had slapped her. This was exactly what I didn't want to happen, he thought.
Riddick stopped and took a deep breath. "I'm a man and you don't need to know where I've been. I can take care of myself, I've been doing it since before you were born, so don't give me shit about this. I'm fucking tired and I want to sleep, so let's just stop this fucking talking before I get really fucking pissed off" he relaxed his grip on her.
Jack looked at him, speechless. She opened her mouth after a moment to say something, but no sound came out. He noticed her tears trying to run and cursed himself for his words. He sighed and stared at her. Jack was silent and staring at him with such sadness and torment on her face, that he suddenly wanted to wipe all her memories away, out of her mind. Riddick pulled her into his arms but she began to struggle with all her strength, trying to release herself from his embrace. Riddick tightened his grip around her and waited. After a moment she gave up and relaxed into his arms, letting her tears run free. Riddick closed his eyes. A long moment later, he could feel her breathing change and knew she had fallen asleep. He then relaxed completely and fell asleep as well, thinking about Jack's words. It was that night the first of Riddick's nightmares had started.
End flash back
Riddick stood and headed to the training room. Well, your fucking wish has been granted, Rick, he said to himself. He needed to release some of his frustration. A few minutes later Riddick was punching and kicking the punching bag like there wasn't any thing more important in the world to do.
Fuck, Jack cried out as she grabbed her head with both hands and opened her eyes. She looked around and frowned. She realized that she wasn't in her bedroom. The room was almost in complete darkness and the sweet sound of engines was floating around her. She felt as if her head would explode at any time, and her body had been pierced with millions of needles at the same time. What the hell...! she cried out in her mind. She then took a deep breath and thought about the last thing she remembered. She closed her eyes and concentrated. Riddick, she frowned. Riddick looking at me with a devilish smile on his face. Then, a ray of pain crossed my mind and everything went black. Jack growled. I'll kill him for this, she thought, as she tried to sit up in the bed. Jack felt a wave of pain pass through her from head to toe. Oh, shit, she shut her eyes and collapsed on the mattress. Oh my God, he's already killed me, she said as she tried to take a deep breath. Jack felt nauseous and carried a hand to her mouth. She shut her eyes tightly as she tried to hold it back. After a few seconds, Jack opened her mouth to scream, but her throat was dry and her tongue felt thick. Fucking bastard, she thought, annoyed and rolled to one side. Jack saw stars floating in front of her eyes as she fell to the floor with a loud bang. Dammit! her mind screamed. After a few seconds she stood slowly. The room was spinning around her and a new wave of sickness appeared. She closed her eyes and just breathed. Then she looked around her and grabbed the first thing she saw in the shadows and threw it across the room.
Riddick heard a loud noise. She's awake ..., he grinned and headed toward his room. When Riddick reached the ladder, he heard something being broken. ...and mad, he added with a smirk on his lips. He sighed, shaking his head, and climbed the ladder.
Jack lost her balance and fell on her bottom. "Shit!", her voice was hoarse.
"Easy there" his voice sounded calm.
"Fuck you" Jack hissed and tried to stand on her feet.
Riddick rushed to her side. "Watch your mouth kid" he warned as he grabbed her by her waist to help her stand.
Jack struggled. "Oh, sorry" she mocked. "Let me rephrase it" she said in a sarcastic tone as she tried to get out of his arms. "Would you please be so kind as to go fuck yourself, Mr. Riddick" she said in a false, polite voice. Riddick grinned and let go of her, making Jack fall again.
"HEY!", she yelled at him.
"Told you to watch your mouth" he teased and offered her his hand to stand.
Jack snapped her head up and locked eyes with him. Fuck you, you psycho. She then slapped at his hand. "Don't touch me" she hissed as she tried to stand without his help, but fell again. Dammit! she cried out to herself.
Riddick rolled his eyes as he took a seat in front of her. "How you feeling?", he asked, concern in his voice.
Jack was embarrassed, frustrated and pissed off. She couldn't stand on her own feet. Fuck, she thought. After a few attempts, she finally got up. "How do you think I'm feeling?", she asked, annoyed. "A fucking, psycho killer, drugged me and kidnapped me!", she yelled at him, then grabbed her head, trying to block the sound of her own voice. She was dizzy and couldn't think clearly now.
Riddick sighed as he stood. "I had no other choice" he growled.
"Well. You could have just asked me", she retorted as she climbed on to the bed.
"I did" he mocked.
"Yeah, sure, Riddick" she muttered. "Like it matters to you", she said and took a deep breath. "You had to leave Danielle injured and alone, you bastard!" she yelled again, and felt tears threatening to appear.
Riddick took a step forward and sat at the end of the bed. "The holy man should take good care of her" he murmured as he rubbed his eyes. He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees as he rubbed his shaved head. He suddenly felt tired.
Jack snapped her head up. "Imam?", she asked frowning.
Riddick looked at her. "You remember him kid?", he asked as he reached out a hand to touch her but stopped himself. Not a good idea right now, he thought.
Jack went silent. Imam, she repeated to herself.
Flash back
Imam was reading in the dinning room. The three of them had been sharing the house for four months now. It wasn't a big one, but with enough rooms for all their necessities. Riddick was out of the city, business he had said, and Imam honestly didn't want to know the nature of the business. Jack was pretending to read, but she was lost in thoughts about her hero. Imam raised his eyes from his book, watching her for a long moment over the top of his small glasses, that were resting at the end of his nose.
"The mind needs training too, my child" he said in a gentle tone of voice.
Jack snapped her head up and locked eyes with him. "Huh?" she frowned.
Imam elaborated. "Jacqueline, I assume that you don't find reading as exciting as your ... survival lessons with Mr. Riddick, as you call them. But you should consider it a different kind of training" he told her, as he closed his own book and took off his glasses.
Jack stared at him as she slowly arched a brow, mimicking Riddick. "Yeah, sure" she mocked.
Imam stood and headed to one of the shelves full of books. Jack shook her head and rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe his obsession for old books. "You know that you can find all the information you need to know about anything on the Web?" she asked. The reason why he insisted on making her read those old books was something she didn't understand. She then put the book that was in her hand on the table.
After a few seconds passing his hand along the covers, Imam finally took one and opened it. He read to himself and nodded. Imam then returned to her side and gave it to her. "Give this one an opportunity, my child" he said in a soft tone and smiled.
Jack took it and looked at the title. "The Beauty and the Beast" she read aloud. "You've got to be kidding me" she grinned, in a sarcastic tone of voice.
Imam laughed softly. "No, Jacqueline" he shook his head. "It is a book about friendship, loyalty, and faith in mankind" he explained to her as he sat in his chair again. "Also", he began as he took off his glasses. "You're probably going to find one of the characters very interesting " he said as opened his own book. Jack arched both brows and stared at him, question written all over her face. Imam looked at her. "This character is similar to someone we both know" he grinned.
Jack narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Riddick? she asked herself. She sighed and opened the book, not really paying attention to it.
Imam looked at her for a few seconds more, and then returned to his own book. "You should know that an intelligent man would like not only a strong woman, but an intelligent one as well" he said nonchalantly. "And, how to explain this to you", he rubbed his chin, trying to find the right words. "They find them very attractive" he finished, smiling.
Jack looked at him, surprised by his words. "Really?" she asked, not able to completely hide her interest.
Imam's smile widened. "Of course Jacqueline" he assured her. Jack smiled openly at him and went to read the book. A few minutes later, she was hooked on the story and made herself more comfortable on the couch. Imam glanced at her from the corner of his eyes and smiled sadly to himself. Forgive me lord, he prayed to himself. Maybe it was not a good thing to give her ideas about how to attract men, especially this one in particular. He shrugged. Oh, well. Anything to make her feel better while he is gone on his business, he said to himself.
End flash back
Jack closed her eyes and concentrated. She had a blurred vision of their house on New Mecca. It was just a flash, but enough to see Imam looking at her with his eyes full of pride, and then she could even hear Imam's gentle voice. Don't cry, my child. Everything will be fine. She could swear she felt for a few seconds his hands stroking her head, full of tenderness, soothing her. In a matter of seconds, Jack's hands were trembling slightly and she felt drops of cold sweat began to cover her forehead and back. Hiding her sudden fear as well as she could, she rolled onto the bed and stared at the wall in front of her. Too late, Riddick noticed her fear. "I'm tired. Please, leave me alone" she whispered with her back to him. When Riddick didn't move she frowned. "Would you mind?" she hissed weakly.
Riddick arched a brow and stared at her back. "Jack?" he asked concerned.
"Leave me alone Riddick" she said and her voice sounded nervous.
Riddick tensed his body and tightened the muscles of his jaw. "You ok kid?" he narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Riddick had drugged her, but this wasn't one of the side effects. Of course, she would be dizzy and disoriented, maybe even fell sick. What the hell ...? he asked himself.
Jack's breath was faltering and she grabbed for the pillow. "I'll be as soon as you leave this room, thanks" she added as she took a deep breath, trying to make the air pass through her lungs. She needed to be alone to inject herself with her medical treatment. She didn't want to tell him about it though. Not now, anyway. Jack closed her eyes.
Riddick stood slowly and headed toward the door. "I'll be around. Call me if you need something" he said, then he stopped in his tracks.
Jack had shut her eyes tightly and felt tears rolling. "Yeah, sure. You better sit down to wait" she muttered. She felt overwhelmed, she had memories and visions of Imam floating in her mind. Imam praying, reading, cooking, smiling. Always thinking about her, always placing her needs before his. Always trying to teach her new things in his unmistakable style. Always taking care of her and showing her that it was worth it for him to spend time with her. Imam's eyes always showing her he was proud and thankful to play the role of her father.
Imam, she thought. The father I always dreamed of, she could feel the tears start to fall unbidden.
Jack's body was shaking badly now and she could feel her heart racing. Jack suspected she was going to have a seizure soon, so she tried hard to concentrate on her breathing. If she could control that, she could probably delay the reaction. Go away, Riddick, please, she pleaded to herself. She raised a trembling hand to her forehead and felt it burning.
Riddick stared at her in silence, frowning. After a long moment, he cleared his throat. "You sure you'll be ok kid?" Riddick's voice sounded really concerned now.
Jack didn't want to have a seizure in front of Riddick. She just wanted to be left alone. Her mind was racing with all kinds of emotions. Jack let out a deep breath. "Leave me the fuck alone!" she yelled.
Riddick sighed and closed his hands into fists. "Fine" he said. "For now" he added as he walked out the door, closing it behind him. Once in the hallway, Riddick closed his eyes as shook his head. His gut instinct told him that he was missing something. No way, he finally told himself. Thinking he could use the training room again, he headed toward there lost in thought.
As soon as Jack heard the door close, she rolled again and tried to sit up. She managed to do it, then headed, stumbling, to look for her hand bag. She had no idea where it was. She ordered the lights up and rolled her eyes when she realized that it didn't make much difference. She looked frantically around her untill she spotted her hand bag on the floor in a corner, beside the wardrobe. She was trembling really bad now, so she took the bag in her hands and turned it over. All her things fell to the floor, scattered. Jack caught sight of the box and kneeled down to pick it up. She then stood slowly and headed for the door. It wasn't an easy task though, with her shuddering and as dizzy as she felt. After what seemed an eternity for her, she finally reached the door and opened it. Jack looked around her. It was almost as dark as the room. "Fuck, Riddick. I can't see shit" she muttered.
Riddick kicked the punching bag so hard that it almost fell to the floor. He couldn't get Jack shuddering out of his mind. The idea he had was so unthinkable that he had discarded it almost as fast as he had thought it. He had seen shuddering like that before, and the cold sweat as well. He was lost in thought when realization dawned. Johns, the merc, he grunted.
Jack looked over to her right and saw a door. Please, tell me it's the bathroom, she told herself as she leaned against the doorframe. Jack felt too weak to even think of moving any further. She took a deep breath and started off. She opened the door and grinned. "Thanks, man" she said to no one in particular. Jack entered and closed the door. "Lights full" she ordered and smiled weakly as she could see everything around her. She was in such a hurry, she forgot to lock the door. Jack sat on the floor and opened her box. She loaded the hypo syringe with her trembling hands and pressed it against her neck as she closed her eyes.
Riddick remembered how Johns was shaking in the middle of the desert, because he needed his fix. Riddick let out a growl. No fucking way, he hissed to himself. Suddenly Riddick froze. He was sure he had just heard her, so he frowned and headed to look for Jack. He didn't find her in the bedroom, but looking at the floor he saw her things scattered. Riddick narrowed his eyes and slid his eyes in the direction of the bathroom. He wanted to think that she was just throwing up. She wouldn't dare, he thought. He took a deep breath and went to press his ear to the bathroom door.
Jack shut her eyes tightly. "Shit" she hissed as she felt the red liquid sliding through her veins. She relaxed a bit, and opening her eyes, she blinked several times, trying to focus her sight; then her eyes widened in horror. OH, NO! her mind screamed.
Riddick's eyes were almost popping out. "What the FUCK do you think you're DOING!" he roared as he stared at her. Jack jumped at the sound of his voice. Oh, fuck, Jack. What happened to you, was this because I left you? he thought, completely furious with himself.
Jack could see disappointment written all over his face. She felt his cold glance looking at her and misunderstood the expression that his face showed. Jack thought he was looking at her as if she was a disgusting, but Riddick felt overwhelmed by guilt. Jack wanted to die there and then. She felt ashamed of herself. She always felt like a junkie after taking her medicine, that was the reason why she'd never told anybody about her medical treatment. Jack never knew when she was going to have a seizure. That was the reason why she always injected her dose alone. It didn't matter to her that her shots were prescribed by a doctor. It made no difference to her. He grabbed her shoulders. "Speak up kid!" he yelled as he shook her almost violently.
Jack was shaking now with fear. "Ri ... Riddick ", she shut her eyes tightly. She couldn't speak right now, she needed to catch her breath. She was terrified, looking at his eyes. Riddick unconsciously tightened his grip on her shoulders. Jack whimpered in pain and managed to talk. "Y...y...you're h..h hurting me" she stuttered in complete panic.
Riddick released her a bit and locked eyes with her. Jack let out a whimper and tried to breath normally. Her throat felt dry and she swallowed hard. "It's my ... it's my medical treatment" she finally said as she felt tears rising in her eyes. She let them run free. "Dr. Morris prescribed it to me" she said in a teary voice.
"Why?" was all he said as he released her.
Jack closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "My memory loss" she sighed heavily.
Riddick looked at her as if she was a ghost. "Bullshit!" he retorted.
Jack snapped her eyes open. "I'm telling you the truth Riddick!" she exclaimed.
Riddick locked eyes with her and knew she was telling the truth. He seemed far away for minute. Riddick had been in the Special Forces and he had seen any kind of drugs you could imagine. And later, in Slam, he had heard about medical experiments done on inmates. Of course, Riddick hadn't spent enough time at any slam to take part in any of the experiments that were under the supervision of The Firm. But he knew a lot about drugs and medical treatments. They had been part of his life when he was a kid. Riddick was completely sure that there was no way that one drug would get someone his memory back, quite to the contrary. His mind was racing. Riddick frowned and growled. Fucking bastard, he thought, and his beast roared in agreement. "You're not gonna inject this fucking shit anymore" he hissed as he grabbed the black box.
Jack looked at him as if he had sprouted a third eye. "What! Are you crazy!" she yelled in panic.
Riddick looked at her and raised up an ampoule. "This shit is what keeps your memory lost, kid" he growled. "I'm gonna get rid of this shit right now" he added as he stood.
Jack tried to snatch the black box from his hands, but Riddick raised his arms. "Riddick, please. I'll die if I don't get them!" she cried out as she managed to stand. "Please, Riddick. Give it back to me!" she begged him as she tried desperately to grab the box.
"WHAT!" he roared as he stared at her with a steely glare.
She shook her head and shut her eyes. "I get seizures Riddick", she answered softly, feeling suddenly both panicked and ashamed.
Riddick narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Seizures?" he asked in disbelief.
Jack hugged herself. "My heart won't be able stand the stress and ... and I ... I'll suffer,... I'll suffer a heart attack if I can't inject them" she explained to him between sobs.
Riddick arched a brow. "Your heart will be fine" he said as he put the black box aside.
Jack looked at him. "But, ... but Dr. Morris said…"
Riddick noticed her fear and wouldn't let her finish. "You won't suffer a fucking heart attack" he said seriously.
Jack frowned, confused. "You're not a doctor Riddick" she said, raising her voice. "Please, please, Riddick. I don't want to die!" she cried out then collapsed on the floor, gasping for air. She concentrated on her breathing with her eyes closed.
Riddick shook his head and kneeled down in front of her. "Listen to me kid" he said as he pushed her hair back. "You've been using this shit for five fucking years?" he asked as he stroked her hair. Jack nodded yes without looking at him. Riddick sighed. "Your body will need to get used to being without it", Jack raised her head and looked at him. "Probably, you'll suffer withdrawal symptoms, but that's all kid" he explained to her. Jack's eyes went wide at his words. Riddick watched for any sign of panic and found none. She was still frightened, but that was something Riddick could deal with right now. Gently he stroked her cheek. Jack closed her eyes and rested her cheek on his hand. "You'll be fine, baby. I'll take care of you" he put as much reassurance as he could into his words.
Jack let out a deep sigh and opened her eyes. She stared at Riddick. "Tell me I'm not gonna die" her voice was hoarse.
Riddick cupped her cheeks gently in his big palms. "You. Won't. Die. Jack." He said slowly staring into her eyes. No if I can help it, he added silently
Jack blinked and a few tears rolled down her cheeks. Oh, God. Let him be right, she prayed silently. Riddick felt a sting to his heart. I won't let you die, he thought. He pulled her into his arms and embraced her. Jack rested her head on his chest and cried softly. Riddick shut his eyes and sighed. Dr. Morris will die, he told himself. He'll get a slow, painful death, he continued as his inner beast paced its cage in anticipation. After I get a few answers, he added to himself. His animal side roared, but this time in appreciation.