Title: Time's Up
Chapter 7 - Down the Rabbit Hole?
A/N: Okay so I am back off my weekend break and will be posting updates on all my stories this week, plus maybe a new one at the end of the week so stay tuned and thanks again for all the great reviews!
Stella lets out a small scream as they hear a nearby car backfire, sending black fumes in their direction before the night is silent once more. Stella moves out of Gavin's sights and he curses as he's forced to take a step back and refocus. He finally regains his target but as he moves himself back into firing position, he notices the three of them all push through the fence and then walk toward the locked building, his line of sight once again hindered and he's forced to take other measures.
"Damn it!" Gavin curses as he realizes he has to come out of hiding and get involved a little more physically. "I guess I'll just have to do this the hard way," he mumbles to himself as he stows his gun away and disappears back into the shadows.
Stella looks up at Mac and frowns. He was doing a good job of hiding his emotions from her but inside she knows it is more than his run in with Flack that is bothering him. He'd tell her that it was nothing but being in this reality where he wasn't in charge or control is starting to take its toll on Mac Taylor. His usually confident demeanour was now tense and rigid and the warm smile he'd usually offer to reassure her that all was okay, was now replaced with a tight lipped expression.
"I can hear you thinking," Mac light mentions, not looking at Stella, breaking her from her morbid thoughts.
"I was thinking how glad I am that this isn't our world."
"What if we end up here? What if he can't get us back?" Mac sighs; his frown deepening. "No offence Jacob."
"Well then you and I would have to commit a double murder and turn this place around. Hopefully it won't come to that."
"Hopefully," Mac echoes in the stillness of the night.
Both Mac and Stella watch as Jacob produces a small key and opens the door to the warehouse; a place they were in not less than two days ago, a place this whole mess started.
"I am beginning to hate this place," Stella huffs. "Sorry Jacob."
Jacob Prince looks at the two seasoned CSI's and frowns. "I know you two want to get home and I promise I'll do my best to make that happen."
"Just do what you can," Mac states.
"I just need to recalibrate the settings," Prince mentions firmly.
"So what can we do to help?" Mac asks Prince; mostly out of kindness as he's sure inside there is nothing they can do to fix the mess they are in.
"Just stay out of my way and when I ask for something comply. This shouldn't take too long," Prince calls back as he disappears into the darkness.
"Works for us," Mac replies with a slight frown looking at Stella with a nervous glance, as he takes her hand and holds it firmly as they hover outside the front entrance; waiting until Prince turns on the lights and then lets Mac and Stella inside before locking the door behind them.
"So will we remember any of this?" Mac queries, his heart now racing with eager anticipation that they could be going home.
"Well you could remember all, bits or nothing. I am not sure. It's different for each person," Prince informs him.
"Each person?" Stella wonders. "How many..."
"Don't ask," Prince huffs.
"That's not very comforting," Stella shoots back.
"Well again the techn...okay please just wait."
"We'll just...wait over here," Mac suggests with a nervous glance, an uneasy feeling starting to develop inside his gut.
"Okay," Prince calls back.
Mac and Stella watch him hurry away before Mac looks for a place for them to wait; finally motioning to two chairs for them to sit on and wait.
Mac lets Stella sit down first and then slowly takes off his jacket and does the same. "Here," he says, offering her his jacket.
"But..."
"You're slightly shivering," Mac notices.
"You're cold to."
"I'll make due. Please."
"How did...didn't know you looked that close," she smiles as she takes his jacket and drapes it around her back and shoulders, his hands lingering, adding warmth and support.
"I always have, just never..." he starts before looking away. He takes a deep breath and then looks back at her with a pensive stare. "Never been brave enough to do anything about it; until now."
"Better late than never," she kindly reminds him.
"I guess," he replies with a heavy sigh, looking down at his fingers and fidgeting nervously.
"I look close too you know."
"Y-you do?" He asks; looking back up in surprise.
"Why do you sound surprised?" She asks in wonder.
"Just never though that..." he stops. "And what do you see?" Mac wonders.
"Do you really want to know?"
"Should I be worried?" He asks in hesitation.
"No," she assures him, taking his hand in hers and holding it; letting warmth and much needed comfort start to build between them.
"Mac when I look at you, I see a strong, determined, loyal leader. You care more for duty and principle than any other man I have known. I never have to worry about doing something wrong or being in trouble because I know you'll always be there to help pull me out. You are my rock and my shield; and I care for you a great deal; more than any other man in my life."
Mac hears her words and feels his heart start to pick up the pace; not at the fact that they might just be going home in a matter of minutes, but at the fact they might be going home with a new understanding. He offers a boyish smile that warms her heart, urging her to continue.
"But when I look at you I also see a man who has locked his heart away for so long that he is afraid to let anyone in or take a chance on anyone who might want more than a simple friendship? That person is me Mac. Why didn't you ever just ask me out? You wanted to right?"
"Stella, the first day I met you I wanted to ask you out," he admits with a small sigh. "But as we grew in our working relationship, I came to depend on you and...and I worried that if you didn't feel the same way, that relationship would be ruined. I'd rather have you as my best friend only than nothing at all if that's how it was to be."
"But that's a chance anyone takes," she reminds him.
"And up until...well I guess recently, I wasn't sure enough to take that chance," he confesses to her. He notices her frown and stops. "What? Did I say something wrong?"
"How recently?" Stella wonders.
"Before the boots," he quickly puts her mind at ease and is rewarded her the smile that always melts his heart.
"Then why wait so long?" She asks.
"Never had the...I mean I have the nerve I just...I guess recently I found an excuse that I thought might work and..." he rambles nervously.
"Ah the Science Expo," she states.
"It was kind of lame but..." he starts in a sad tone; looking back down. "It was all I could think of and with the case. Dumb right?"
"No, actually clever. And I would have said yes," she tells him, making him look up with a surprised expression. "And not out of pity."
"But..." Mac starts.
"Maybe you need to trust me more," she sooths his mind. "Not just yourself."
"I am not going to fool myself into thinking that when we get back..."
"Mac, why are you trying to over analyze everything. It's to save yourself right? You think that if you put up this wall right now, that when we get back you'll be able to tell yourself I told you so if things don't work as you wanted them to you'll already know that in advance. You're setting yourself up for a fall and you know it."
"How is it you know me so well?" He resigns.
"Because that wall you put around yourself is sometimes transparent," she says softly, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.
"Kind of like the same wall you put up?"
"I do not have a wall," Stella shoots back in her defence.
"Now you are lying to me," Mac retorts in a kind tone, not wanting to cause an argument. "You put up a tough outer shell because you are also worried about being hurt. You have always been strong and taken good care of yourself; never allowing anyone else, even me to help, even when it was needed. Like you always have to prove yourself to everyone. But I care; more than I can even probably admit right now."
"Are you saying we are the same?" She asks with a slight smile.
"You look better in the boots," he teases.
"Will you ever let me inside your wall?" She pushes.
"Will you?" He challenges back.
"Mac, if you look closely...you're already in."
They sit in silence for a bit longer before Mac hears a noise; a noise that he thought he had heard earlier, and looks at Stella in concern.
"I'll be right back," he says slowly standing up.
"What's wrong?"
"Thought I heard something."
"You think that..."
"I think that Gavin Seven might be close by. He found us once, I'm sure he can again. Especially if he wants to stop us from returning to our world and arresting his other self," Mac tells her. "Just stay with Prince. We have to make sure that nothing happens to him and our means of escape."
"Be careful," she warns him. "I don't want to lose you now."
"You won't," he tries to assure her. "I promise."
"Wait, you don't have your gun," Stella reminds him. "Here take mine."
"You keep it."
"Mac..." Stella tries.
"Just kept him and you safe; that's all I ask. I'll be right back."
Stella watches him leave, a nervous knot growing in the pit of her stomach as he disappears into the shadows; before hurrying to Prince, who was busy working on some of the controls.
Mac nears the entrance and looks around for anything he can use, finally spying a crude weapon; picking up the nearby piece of industrial pipe as he slowly pushes the front door open and looks around outside.
He squints into the darkness and frowns when he sees nothing in return. He turns back but then hears shuffling once again to the left and stops to listen. He spies a shadow moving and quietly walks toward it. As he rounds the corner he sees a small cat look up at him with a wondering stare.
"Damn it!" He lightly curses, trying to get his heart rate back down to normal.
XXXXXXXX
Stella meantime hovers around Prince, watching from time to time but wondering when Mac will return.
"So will we remember any of this?" Stella asks again.
"Not sure...I sometimes did and sometimes didn't," he informs her.
"How many times have you done this?" Stella questions.
"Oh just a few," Prince huffs. "But don't worry, there are no other side effects...I think."
"Think?" Stella arches a brow, with a slight frown. "Not very comforting."
"Sorry," Prince mumbles as he continues.
"So how will we know ifor when..."
"Remember Alice in Wonderland?"
"Yes."
"Remember when she fell down the rabbit hole?" Prince asks with a smile, not looking up.
"So this is going to hurt?" Stella frowns.
"Actually I don't know, it's always the same for me but different for every..."
"Wait? How many others have used this machine?" She asks quickly.
"As I said before to Mac, don't ask."
Stella looks back but Mac still hasn't returned. "Mac, where are you?"
XXXXXXXX
Mac hurries past the cat and then makes his way over to the other entrance, not aware that Gavin used the cat as the perfect distraction to get into the building. Mac spies the open back door and then carefully walks toward it; Gavin now behind him.
He slowly pushes the door open and looks around outside into the back parking lot; nothing. But as he is about to turn around he is met in the side of the head with a hard object that sends his body to the ground with only a small cry.
"As I said before...and then there were two!" Gavin hisses at Mac's unmoving frame as he goes in search of Stella and Jacob.
XXXXXXXX
Stella hears the small commotion and looks nervously around. Mac should have been back by now. But if they were in trouble then she knows she needs to protect their means of escape; Jacob's survival could mean the end to all this nonsense.
"Are you almost finished? I think Gavin might have found us," she mentions.
"What? Why?"
"Because I want the glory and the credit," Gavin states smugly, stepping out from behind the shadows, his gun raised and ready to fire.
"Where's Mac?" Stella demands in anger, trying to keep her fear of Mac's absence at bay.
"Taken care of," Gavin sneers. "Now move away from the controls!"
When neither Stella nor Prince make a move, Gavin fires off a shot into the air, making Jacob jump and Stella seethe with anger.
"I SAID MOVE!" Gavin yells in anger.
"Where is Mac?"
"Gone. Now do as I say!"
Stella, whose gun is hidden starts to slowly comply, making sure to keep her back to Gavin and not giving away her means of protection. But the fact that Mac still wasn't there worries her and that keeps her guard at a level not as high as normal. However, knowing she has a mission to complete she refuses to show fear of any kind.
Prince stays beside Stella as they start to slowly move away from the controls. Stella's eyes keep moving about trying to find Mac; frantically searching the darkness for any signs of her beloved partner.
"Oh stop looking for him already...he's not coming to help you," Gavin snaps.
Stella glares angrily at Gavin; telling herself to keep her heart rate down and to create a distraction to give her and Jacob a chance to escape. She looks past Gavin and pretends she is relieved that Mac is there. "Actually he is, right Mac?"
Gavin's eyes momentarily leave theirs and this allows Stella to grab Prince by the arm and drag him behind a few bulkheads.
"Yeah nice try," Gavin laughs, firing off a few shots in their direction.
"Okay I'm going to draw him away and you get to that machine. How long do we have?" Stella queries.
"About ten minutes...but you both have to be here to..."
"We will. Trust me, Mac and I will be there to go home. Just get that damn machine ready!" Stella states firmly, as Gavin nears. She pulls her gun and fires off a few shots, sending him scrambling for cover opposite them.
"Damn you Bonasera!" Gavin curses once more as he fires off a few more shots but misses; curses angrily once again and then tries to move to another covered area.
Stella motions to Jacob to go around Gavin while she hurries the other way, hoping Gavin will follow. It works.
XXXXXXXX
Mac, finally feels himself coming back to consciousness and hears the shots being fired; forcing his eyes wide open. He twists himself around just in time to see Stella rushing away from Gavin, who is firing off a few shots in her direction.
"Mac!" Stella yells. "Where are you?"
"He's dead! Now it's just you and me," Gavin calls as he nears Stella.
Stella rounds the corner and spies Mac slowly getting up. "Mac!" She breathes in relief at seeing him get up. However, she's not able to get to him as Gavin has that angle covered.
Mac watches as Gavin closes ground, before pushing himself up and charging at Gavin, allowing Stella to run past them while his body slams into Gavin's, taking them both to the floor; his gun going flying.
Prince hears the shouting and the altercation and rushes for his machine; nervously glancing at the dials before him and frowning. "Something is missing."
Prince notices the pressure tanks have been overloaded and then remembers he was told that each tank was shot once; therefore reducing the pressure which would affect the outcome.
"We only have...." Stella says in panic as she rushes to help Mac fight Gavin.
Gavin punches Mac in the side but Mac is able to counter, punching him in the stomach; each trading blows on the other. Stella adds herself to the mix as she kicks Gavin in the side; however, he counters by grabbing her leg and pulling her to the ground.
"Stella!" Mac calls in horror as he watches her fall backward into some cardboard boxes.
Gavin tries to twist himself around to go for his gun but Mac slams him to the ground on his stomach, hoping to stop him from hurting either one of them. Gavin grabs at a piece of nearby metal debris and swings around, catching Mac in the side of the chest, causing his grip to loosen.
Prince looks at the clock and knows this will be close. "HURRY!" He yells in a panic; forcing both Mac and Stella to look up in a panic.
Stella hears Prince's frantic voice shouting to them and goes after Gavin once more; trying to get him off Mac.
Gavin has just made it to his feet when Mac grabs his pant leg and pulls, making Gavin crash back to the ground on his face. However, Gavin was able to get the gun once again and use it to stop Mac in his tracks.
Mac watches in horrible slow motion as Gavin twists himself around, so he was lying on his back, raises his gun hoping to shoot him. However, Stella who has just pushed herself up manages to get her body in the way and as Gavin's bullet leaves the chamber, Mac cries out in horror as Stella's body absorbs the blow, meant for him.
"NO!" Mac shouts in horror as he watches Stella starting to fall to the ground, clutching her shot side in agony.
"Mac..." her voice dies out.
Mac spies Stella's fallen gun and dives for it while Gavin fires off another shot missing Mac. Gavin quickly ducks behind another bulkhead and fires at Mac, keeping him pinned behind some boxes while Stella lies helplessly in front of him.
Stella looks up at him with an anguished expression. "Mac..." she whispers again in pain.
"Gavin give it up!" Mac shouts in anger; his hatred now boiling inside him.
"I have all the time in the world Taylor! How long do you have? While we waste time bickering her precious life blood flows from her body! Can you live with her death on your head?" He shouts as he fires off a few more shots in Mac's direction.
Mac looks around for something...anything he can use to rush Gavin and get them back home before the woman he loves dies and leaves him entirely. He hears Prince shouting once more that they are almost out of time and knows it's down to the wire now. He spies a chair on wheels and rushes for it; not caring that Gavin is firing at him.
Stella watches as Mac turns and heads for something and then holds her breath as he uses the chair as a distraction and rushes Gavin, fires as he does. A few shots miss, but two meet their mark, taking him down, but not killing him.
Mac wastes no time in rushing back to Stella and spying the wound. The bullet is still inside, embedded deep in her stomach cavity. It was bad; fatal.
"Oh god no..." Mac laments in horror as his eyes instantly water. "I have to get..."
"Mac you have to le..." she tries.
"No, I'm not leaving you here," he tells her, as he tries to pick her up.
Stella cries out in pain and Mac quickly puts her back down.
"Please...just go."
"Never! PRINCE!" Mac yells.
"You can't..."
"I can't live without you," he finally admits.
"Mac?"
"I can't Stella. You are my life. You just have to hold on."
"PRINCE!" He shouts again.
Prince races for them and gasps at the blood around Stella. "Is she..."
"Help me get her up," Mac pleads.
"But she's..."
"HELP ME!" Mac demands. "I'm not leaving her here!"
"What do I do?"
"Give me...this..." Mac growls as she reaches for Jacob's jacket. He takes Prince's jacket and wraps it around her stomach, trying to stop the bleeding long enough for them to get back home.
"Mac..."
"Hold on Stella."
"Mac..." she whispers, her life force rapidly leaving her.
"Don't you dare die on me Stella," Mac warns as he gently lifts her into his arms.
Stella cries out which instantly sends shivers of pain down his entire being.
"I have to..." she tries again, her eyes wanting to close.
"DON'T DIE ON ME!" Mac shouts, trying to keep her awake.
"It looks bad," Prince mentions softly.
"Is that damn thing ready yet?" Mac demands as he starts to walk for the machines.
"Yes but I don't know if she'll..."
"She's not staying here! Now get us ready or whatever the hell you have to do. But send us home!" Mac shouts in anger. He carefully follows after Prince, salty tears running down his face and making small pools in her damp hair.
"Stella you have to stay with me," Mac begs. "Please don't do this..." he offers in anguish. "You can't leave me alone."
Stella looks up at him weakly and only offers a small smile.
"Mac I need to say..."
"Stella you are going to be okay," he tries in desperation. "You can't...not now. Not after all we've been through...you can't leave me," he begs again, as he finally reaches the machines.
Prince looks at Mac with a gun in his hand and raises it.
"What the hell?" Mac asks angrily. "After all this, you want to kill us now?"
"You said one shot in each tank right?"
Mac breathes a sigh of relief and quickly nods his head yes. "About mid-way down," he remembers.
Prince fires off two shots and then quickly turns back to his dials.
"Almost home," Mac told Stella who has now closed her eyes. "Stella you stay with me..." he tells her in a loud firm tone.
"Tired," she mumbles in an almost dead whisper.
"HOLD ON!" Prince shouts.
"Thank you..." Mac says firmly.
"Remember me on your end Detective Taylor!" Prince calls as the machines start to kick in.
"I promise," Mac shouts back. "Stella..." Mac starts as the tanks started to make loud noises, filling the space around them; their ear drums about to shatter.
"Mac..."
"Just hold on...don't leave m..." he tries again as he feels pressure from tanks starting to almost suffocate them.
"Mac..." she whispers again. "I need to tel..."
"STELLA! HOLD ON!" Mac yells as the pressure continues to build around them.
Mac holds onto Stella, closes his eyes and offers a small prayer for help; a prayer that both would make it back alive and safe; finally together.
"NOW!" Prince shouts.
Mac's world around him feels like it was exploding with something but in reality he wasn't moving; Stella still carefully held in his arms. There was loud noises, the sirens were blaring, and an then explosion as the outer tanks finally gave way. He felt his own strength starting to fail him and just when he thought he couldn't endure any more...
BOOM
He is sent flying and Stella was taken from his arms, landing on the floor a few feet away.
The machines blew and then subsided, casing eerie shadows on the two still bodies of the CSI's a few feet beneath them.
The hissing stopped and the shouting died down.
And then...
Silence...
They were...
~TO BE CONCLUDED...~
A/N: okay so don't hate me but one more chapter to go. Thoughts on how this adventure might end for our SMACKED? Please review and let me know. THANKS AGAIN!