I scrambled to my feet, desperate to get out of the smoke and desperate to get out of the flames. The shock of the situation left me seriously unbalanced as I stumbled my way to the door. My body was shaking with a fear and adrenaline that made me feel quite nauseous. I leant heavily on the handle of the door, but the second I did a burning pain seared across my palm. The handle had already heated up in the flames. Smoke stung my eyes as I made it into the hall where everything was also on fire. The front door now stood open. I could see fresh air and safety, but I turned my back on it. I was so sure that it was Jack I had heard upstairs. If he was here I couldn't leave him.
"Jack!" I screamed as I reached the top landing. Please be okay. The fire wasn't as fierce up here.
"No!" I heard a shout that was unmistakably Jack's. Without hesitating I followed the sound. It lead me through a door to where I could see a dark shape lying in the smoke. I ran towards it and the closer I got, the surer I was that it was him. As I got nearer he sat up. "Isabel."
"Jack. Jack!" I knelt down to his level and wrapped my arms around him. "You're alright. Thank God you're alright. I have no idea what's going on, but we have to get out of here."
"Not you," he pulled away from me. "Isabel, not you."
The fire crept closer. "Jack, what are you talking about?"
He suddenly found his strength to stand up and push me away. "You. I don't want you."
"What?" I faltered slightly. His fists clenched in stress.
"FUCK OFF!" He screamed at me. I stumbled backwards in shock.
"Jack…" I stared at him. "What's wrong? What did I do?"
"It's just YOU! I can't stand you. You drive me insane. You're so clingy. I don't love you! I never have. You were just… convenient. Now were both going to die here I don't care if you know how little I care about you."
"No… no…" I moved slowly towards him. There was something very wrong about his eyes. He wouldn't let me get a close look but I caught a glimpse and I knew they weren't his eyes. They were green. This wasn't him. As I reached this conclusion the fire burned brighter. I grabbed him and forced him to look at me. "This isn't you… you're not him…" His eyes flashed, reflecting the fire as he twisted to take hold of me. He tried to push me backwards, into the fire. I screamed and resisted him. For a while we were locked like that. I was beginning to hurt but I had to resist. Would I have to overpower him? Could I? My moment doubt cost me and he gained an advantage. My foot slipped dangerously close to the fire. This isn't Jack. This isn't really him. The more I told that to myself the weaker he seemed to get. I was tired, my muscles ached but finally I was getting somewhere. "You are NOT MY HUSBAND!" I screamed and gave one last almighty push that landed him on his back. The fire closed in around us. "And this isn't real."
As I uttered those words a wave of fire rose up and came crashing down on us both. Everything around me disappeared and was replaced by solid black. I sat up. It was suddenly cold. A pair of eyes glowed in front of me. "Well done Isabel," the dog's velvety voice made me feel queasy. I was so close to crying. I couldn't take any more of this. "You passed."
"Passed…?" I repeated. "What do you mean?"
The eyes got bigger as he drew closer to me. I could see his teeth as he talked. "This maze is designed test anyone who enters with their worst fears. In your case, fire, specifically the one from your childhood that killed your parents… and loosing Jack. Obviously I underestimated how big that second fear was. I didn't study it enough. You saw through it. You lived. Shame."
With that, everything got lighter. I looked around as shapes slowly grew out of the dark. They looked human. I was wary rather than relived. "Isabel!" Jack's voice was flooded with joy. I felt his arms wrap around me. I smelt him. He smelt right, but I pulled back to study him. He cupped my face in his hands. I touched his cheek.
"Jack," my voice was almost a whisper, tears stung my eyes. "Is it you? Is it really you?"
He looked me deep in the eyes and smiled, "I love you, so much."
I kissed him, flooded with relief. "I love you too… but… how did you know…?"
"Well, I'd have been a bit offended if our fears weren't even slightly similar, love," he grinned. That earned him another kiss. He could still make me giddy and lightheaded. For a second I forgot all of the recent stresses as my brain flooded with sheer love. Somebody cleared their throat. I pulled back and looked around. Most of the crew were sitting around us. They all looked a little shell shocked.
"Is everyone alright?" I asked them. Pale faces nodded back at me, some tried their best to smile. "Where's everyone else?"
Jack shrugged and shifted position to sit next to me. His arm slipped comfortably around my waste. "They've not arrived yet." He kissed my forehead as I leant against him. I was so lucky to have him. He made a stupid happy smile creep over my face. I couldn't decide whether to hit him or kiss him for it. I settled for hugging him. His warm arms tightened around me and his lips pressed down on the top of my head again. I could hear his heartbeat.
We all sat in silence for some time, waiting for everyone else. After a few moments the air seemed to crackle. The area where it seemed to be coming from grew slightly darker and ever so slowly Gibbs emerged from the light. He looked shaken as he took us all in. "Alright, Gibbs?"
"Is this real?" he asked, his eyes wide. That was a very, very good question.
"I bloody hope so, mate," Jack sighed. "I can't take any more of those mind games."
"But how do we know?" Marty's question hung in the air. I looked around.
"This is the end of the maze, it's over." I said and nodded towards a sign that read 'End of the Maze, congratulations if you kept your head'. Everyone took some solace in this and we waited for the others to join us. It took some time but when everyone was accounted for and fully recovered Jack stood up, dragging me with him.
"Right," he smiled. "Onwards."
"Where to?" Gibbs asked. It was another very, very good question.