Shifting the weight in his arms slightly as he unconsciously rocked for a second, Metal couldn't take his eyes off the top of Jess's head as she stayed curled into him.
They found her. They got her out. For the most part she was physically fine, mostly. All things considered, it had been in record time too; rescuing her. These were all things he should be happy about, and yet Metal was numb with fury that she'd ever been in need of saving in the first place.
Running his thumb in a box pattern on her arm again when she stirred with a shuddering breath, Metal couldn't stop himself from murmuring, "You're ok."
Whether it was for him or for her, he didn't know. Maybe it was for all of them sitting around her, trying in vain to pretend it was all ok.
He was just glad she knew them now. Having her fighting them, terrified and confused was awful and it took every bit of his control to stay level headed. Her begging and pleading still echoed in his ears, turning his blood to ice every time it bounced back to him. He could still feel the raging, twisted ball of frustration, fear and concern that crashed behind his ribcage when she didn't recognize him. He both hated and preferred that he'd been the one to catch her, and he'd been the one to hold her each time she fought them.
The look on her face when she nearly ran into him was burned in his mind. Desperate, terrified, devastated, with huge eyes taking him in, shrinking away as her voice begged and her limbs scrambled to get away before failing her all together.
Nothing he said to her reached her in those first moments and he'd feared the worst when she collapsed to the ground, blood covering her arm. They knew she'd ripped the IV out. Clay told them as much, but there was still a moment where his stomach dropped through the floor and he feared she'd been hit somewhere.
Beside him, Trent was cleaning the dried blood from Jess's hands and arm now, talking to her and telling her his every move. She hardly responded and let it happen. Metal couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Her breathing was too shallow for her to be asleep.
"We're about to take off." Clay's voice murmured.
"Ok." Trent tapped Jess's knee lightly. "Jess? We gotta buckle up for take off, ok? Come here. Right here. You'll stay with us. Let's get you clipped in."
Metal was reluctant to let her go, but he was able to squash that irrational part of his brain for now. She wasn't about to vanish before his very eyes.
Sluggish and nonverbal, Jess let them maneuver her so she was sitting up in the seat next to Metal instead of half on him. As they did so, her eyes darted around around the enormous plane full of people until she dropped her gaze to the toes resting against cold metal, shoulders rounding as if she was trying to make herself smaller.
"We got you," Trent murmured, sitting directly across from her once she was clicked in and exchanging a grim look with Metal.
If anyone was rattled worse from the lack of recognition from Jess when they found her, it would be Trent. Metal just had to hold her, Trent had to stab her with the needle while she howled in fear. The fact she would only allow him to administer medical treatment and no one else was humbling and healing.
"I'm not wearing shoes," Jess commented out of the blue, startling all of them because it was a very 'Jess' thing for her to say, which seemed out of place right now.
"No, you aren't," Trent answered mildly, glancing at her feet.
Jess's nose scrunched and she frowned at her toes, saying, "I'm still wearing socks."
Her feet shifted and twitched as if suddenly being aware of the socks made the garments intolerable and for some reason they just had to come off right then and there. Jess started to try and hook them off with her opposite toe but her body was too weak and she couldn't do it.
"Want me to take them?" Trent asked, watching with slightly raised eyebrows.
"Yes, please," Jess mumbled, curling her toes and gripping the underside of the seat on either side of her as she studied the floor.
"Ok." Trent shrugged and slipped the socks off her, pausing to double check her toes, feet and ankles over.
Sonny sat across from them and Metal caught him shaking with laughter as he scrubbed moisture from his eyes while looking at Jess's feet.
"What?" Jess had noticed too and her question came in a small voice as she let her head drop sideways onto Metal's shoulder. On her other side Jason finished clipping his belt in and wordlessly threaded her arm through his, clasping her hand under his warm palm and squeezing.
The man had acted cold and callous the entire rescue, but Metal understood why. He'd tried and failed to do the same thing. As their leader, Jason didn't have the option of letting his emotions slip, no matter how much he wanted to burn the world to find the girl he'd claimed as a second daughter.
Sonny took a minute to answer Jess, adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed down emotion and he said, "Leave it to our Snow White to lose her socks on the plane ride home…even after a harrowing adventure."
"Little piles wherever she goes." Clay's grin was tired but warm. "You just wouldn't be Jess otherwise."
Mildly self-conscious, Jess hunkered down between Jason and Scott muttering, "I hate socks."
Jason squeezed her hand again and said, "Nothing wrong with that. Sit tight. This plane is a lot bigger than what you're used to. Could be a rough take off."
Nodding listlessly, Jess closed her eyes and turned her face more into Metal's shoulder, her fingers going white as they clung to Jason's hand in return.
Take off was turbulent, but Jess managed well. Ray always had water and gummies to chew on when they took off, so Jason started trying to feed her those to help her ears pop. Jess only took one though before saying she couldn't stomach more and tucking back into Metal's shoulder.
"When was the last time you ate, Jess?" Trent asked quietly as they rose higher and higher.
She shrugged, still not moving her head.
"Don't know. Breakfast…morning they took me?" The girl shivered and a tear leaked out. "Didn't want to eat anytime they tried to get me to. Felt sick. Still feel sick. I'm cold."
Automatically, Metal and Jason reach at the same time to tug Clay's blanket closer around her shoulders, pretending they weren't being mother hens about it and that the fact they both did it was entirely intentional.
"As soon as we're up, I'll get my blanket for you," Sonny volunteered. "It's not as soft as Clay's there, but it's heavy and warm."
"When can this come out?" Jess asked without opening her eyes, vaguely lifting the arm that the IV sat in.
"In a bit." Trent answered neutrally. "Promise as soon as it can come out, I'll take it out."
Accepting it was an unhappy wriggle of her shoulders, Jess went quiet again.
Metal watched the top of her head again, knowing full well he wasn't the only one who could hardly stop keeping an eye on her.
When his words finally started to reach her during that trek out of her nightmare, relief rushed warm and light across his shoulders into his chest. Bit by bit, he was able to convince her to trust him, reminding her who he was every time 'Scott' slipped free from 'Full Metal's' control. Her body reacted before her brain did, melting into him. After the small skirmish at the edge of the villa, she'd started to remember more.
That was after her frightened questions about being shot at and begging him to be one of the good guys.
Shit. He could still feel the way his gut clenched when she finally relaxed and gave in to his coaxing, stating that he reminded her of her 'big brother' and that if he wasn't careful with her then her brother would kill him.
Never a truer word spoken and embedded in a dark reality that they'd all literally done just that today. He wished to high heavens they'd gotten the son of bitch who took her in the first place, but the greasy bastard got away.
And then after that he couldn't get her to be quiet. That was the hard part, reassuring her enough so she didn't start screaming and crying again but keeping her quiet so they weren't given away.
Eventually she'd passed out for a bit, completely missing the narrow miss of encountering more of Santino's men and avoiding a second fire fight.
They'd been lucky, or blessed, as Ray would say. Blessed might have been more accurate. The way everything fell together was miraculous. Metal shuddered to think what might have happened to Jess if they hadn't been there.
Once they got in the air, Jess was coaxed through several questions by Trent. The man had a gift for asking in a way that wasn't impersonal or cold and he went through the rest of the basic medical check quickly.
By then Jess was exhausted and her legs were across the seats again with her upper body curled into Metal and Cerberus sleeping on her.
Mandy hovered nearby the whole time Trent worked, and Metal felt his hackles rise. He respected her, but there was going to be hell to pay if she tried to bother Jess with questions about her captivity right now.
Sure enough, the second Trent finished the check and wrapped everything up, Mandy headed over.
Metal was ready for a fight, muscles going taut and his teeth clenched hard enough to creak. Around him he saw the rest of his brothers straighten, alert and watching too, gazes shifting from Mandy to Jess as they put the pieces together. To Metal's disappointment, Jason and Trent intercepted the woman before she came within four feet of Jess, taking any opportunity he might have had to fight with her.
"Not now, Mandy." Jason said in that annoyed, clipped tone.
"I need to know what she knows, Jason, while it's still fresh in her mind!" Mandy crossed her arms, neck arching forward as she lowered her voice and mouth forming a thin line of displeasure.
"She's still half drugged, Mandy." Trent said in a low tone. He rarely used that kind of firmness with anyone, but he was making it clear right now that Mandy wasn't going near Jess without a fight. "It's all muddled up. You can talk to her after she's slept it off more. Go watch the tapes we pulled if you want more intel. It'll be more accurate than what's in her head right now."
"We need to get this guy!" Mandy hissed. "She is a key to finding him, and I need to know more about her step-dad and her mom, if they're involved somehow I need all the information I can-"
"You can get it later." Jason shifted, blocking Jess from view. "Leave her alone. Let her sleep."
"I would have thought you would want to get this guy." Mandy bit out, glaring at Jason now. "After what he's done? This isn't just about Jess now. He's got ties and connections to bad guys we've been going after for years and haven't been able to touch. I need-"
"Right now it's about Jess." Trent interrupted. "And I'm telling you, in my professional opinion, any information you get out of her won't be helpful or even possibly accurate. She's literally only just started to recognize us barely an hour ago, do you really think she's going to be able to paint a clear picture for you? Hasn't she been through enough today?"
Mandy paused, flicking a guilty stare to Jess who'd been very still during the whole exchange. Metal wasn't sure she'd heard any of it, but given how she was hardly breathing and her tension mirrored his own, he figured she was listening.
"Fine. Alright. There's a debrief in five." Mandy stalked away and everyone released a collective breath.
"It's ok." Metal whispered, to the messy bun just under his chin.
As if reminded to also breathe, Jess drew a quick inhale and her fingers gripped the arm she was hugging against her.
"I can talk to her…if-"
"No. Leave it. It'll keep. You need to sleep."
"Do you have leave?" Jess asked, tone cracking with vulnerability.
"I think we can swing it so one of us stays with you," Metal answered, catching Jason's eye and directing the statement at him pointedly.
"Yeah! One of us will stay and switch out as needed," Jason confirmed readily, shoulders squaring along with his jaw in that stubborn wall that said he was going to get what he wanted no matter what.
"Close your eyes, pips." Metal murmured as the rest of Bravo slipped off for the debrief. "You're safe. I'm not leaving unless someone comes to take my place, then I'm comin right back. Sleep."
"Not yet." Jess whispered. "Scared I'll wake up and it won't have been real…I'll be back there still."
"It's real." He palmed her loose hair back from her forehead. "You're here. I'm not leaving you."
He caught the way her nose wrinkled with annoyance followed by a yawn sneaking out of her mouth. By the third or fourth pass her breathing was evening out and she'd settled considerably more than she had since they'd found her. Still, she was fighting it. He could tell and he knew why. They both knew her own mind was about to haunt her.
"You're safe. We're here. Sleep." Metal coaxed softly, repeating the soothing motion with his palm through her hair and hoping it would work like it usually did.
Jess huffed out a shaky sigh and snuggled closer, fingers lifting to clutch the pendant still hanging around her neck.
Reluctant as she was to go to sleep, Jess didn't have much choice in the matter. She felt so weak, and so tired that no matter how much she wanted to stay awake, she couldn't.
Scott's steady reassurance was what pushed her over the edge and when she couldn't get comfortable enough on the seats, he talked her into using his hammock instead.
"We'll all be right around you." Clay told her when she gave in and let them help her into the huge swinging bed that Scott had set up among the others.
"Yeah, and as soon as that line is out of your arm, Cerberus can even snuggle in there with you!" Brock offered.
Not having it in her to really answer, Jess nodded and surrendered to the heaviness of her body.
Admittedly, the hammock helped and she liked the way it cocooned her body, rocking her. It also smelt like Scott and she had Clay's blanket as well as Sonny's, driving away any lingering smells of that room from her mind.
At first she would just startle awake whenever her brain registered she'd been nearly asleep.
That happened half a dozen times.
Each time her eyes snapped back open she would see Scott sitting near to her with a book. She watched him for a bit over the edge of the hammock with half lidded eyes until about the third or fourth time he glanced her way. Then he'd growl gently at her that she was ok and to go to sleep.
When she didn't comply right away the sixth time, Clay magically woke up in the next hammock over, reached out and took the edge of her hammock so it gently swayed back and forth in time with his own. After a few minutes, Jess reached up and slipped her fingers into his hand instead. Clay responded the way she hoped and enveloped her hand in his warm, calloused palm.
Inevitably, Jess's eyes got heavy again and she drifted off for longer, always half aware and never really sinking into a deep enough sleep to dream properly. If she stayed there she could pull herself from the sea of images that tried to consume her.
When she jerked awake from some turbulence later, Ray was sitting next to her, praying quietly while Metal lay stretched out on the seats across the aisle, seemingly asleep with his book on his chest. Ray paused when she jolted, reaching for her as if to catch her if she rolled out of the hammock.
"It's ok," Ray whispered. Around her Jess sensed Clay, Sonny and Brock shift in their hammocks, half waking to check on her before settling again when they saw Ray had her.
"I'm sorry," Jess breathed, wincing because she knew they were all tired and guilt threatened to crush her chest.
"Jess, sweetheart, it's ok." Ray got up and moved so he was standing next to her instead and took her hand. "How are you doing?"
Tears pricked in the corners of her eyes, and Jess eyed the IV still in her arm.
"I'm ok. Can that come out yet?"
"I think I heard Trent say another thirty minutes and they might be able to take it out, but they want to take more blood first to make sure you don't need more meds." Ray spoke with all the kindness and understanding that Jess knew to expect from him.
Chewing the inside of her lip, Jess pulled the blanket up around her chin and asked, "Could Trent be the one to take the blood again? I…I still don't want anyone else to…to do anything."
"You got it, Jess. He ain't letting anyone else do anything without your permission first unless it's out of his skill to manage, ok?"
"Ok." Jess turned onto her side and peeked up at Ray, still clasping his hand tightly with her own and using her free arm as a pillow. "Ray?"
"Yeah , Jess?"
Hesitating, Jess fought to find the right words, "Ray…were you, ah, were you praying for me when…when they had me?"
Ray nodded before she even finished speaking, squeezing her hand back and saying, "Every spare second I had."
A tear slipped free and Jess's ribs heaved with a shuddering breath.
"Could you keep praying for me…even after all this?" Jess asked thickly. "God and I don't talk much anymore, but…but I think I really need all the help I can get because- because I know this isn't over and I know it's gonna be so hard and-and- and I'm scared, Ray…but, God'll listen to you- I know he does-"
"Shhh," Ray leaned in, brushing her tears the same way he did for Jameelah and said softly, "I've got your back, sweetheart. I'll pray every damn day, and you're gonna get through this. I promise. We'll all be here for you."
Gulping pitifully, Jess whined out an incoherent reply and closed her eyes again, willing the world to fade away.
"Jess? It's Trent."
She opened one eye to see the man next to her in the lower light of the plane, across from where Ray still stood holding her hand.
"Are you good if I take a little more blood?"
Resigned and wanting the dang IV out, Jess nodded.
Like the other times, Trent worked quickly, telling her softly everything he was doing and making it nearly painless.
Jess was so tired. No matter how much she didn't want to truly sleep, and she didn't have a choice this time as she fell into a deeper sleep than the other times before Trent even finished taking her blood.
To her discomfort slumber took her down a rabbit hole of images and frightening, nonsensical scenes in her dreams.
Harold standing next to 'Boss Man', laughing at her as she puked and cried. Her mother telling her she could fix it all if she would just come home and do as she was told. Bravo coming to get her only to never find her. They couldn't see her and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't call for them as they walked away again. Hand grabbing for her in the dark- dragging her from them so she couldn't reach them.
About thirty minutes later, Jess's dreams finally got bad enough that she started to whimper and kicked out in her sleep, uttering a string of incoherent phrases until she was dragged from the abyss suddenly. An unknown source pulled her out, and she was disoriented when she came to, thinking she was still captive.
Waking with a sharp gasp, Jess tried to fight off the hands holding her and uttered a ragged cry of, "No, nononono-"
"Jess- shit- kid, it's me. It's Jason! I got you, just tryin to keep you from falling, that's all- it's ok, look at me! Jess. JESS." The arms rapidly lowered her to the ground in one fluid motion, controlling her fall from the hammock and reality stabbed into her when she felt cold metal under her toes.
Movement rose up around her and she heard a mix of voices as feet scuffed the floor rapidly.
"Is she ok?"
"Jess?"
"Nightmare."
"Back off, let's give her some space."
The arms let her go the second she was on the ground and Jess scrambled away until her back hit a block.
"Kid…hey! Look here. Right here."
Breathing hard and taking in her surroundings, Jess's wild eyes finally landed on Jason as he crouched about a foot from her, hands up where she could see them.
"It's ok. You're safe." Jason told her, worry etched into his features and tortured in his eyes as he waited for her to calm down.
"Jason," Jess whispered with disbelief, flicking her attention up around her, hunting for the rest of her family.
Clay, Trent, Sonny, Scott, Brock, Ray. They were all there, watching with obvious discomfort and grim resignation. Lisa was hanging back, biting her lips into a thin line as she waited too and offering a weak, encouraging smile when she noticed Jess looking at her.
With a dull click, everything fell into place and Jess swallowed thickly before curling in on herself with a dry sob of, "I'm sorry!"
"Hey…nuh uh. None of that. Come here. It's ok." Jason edged neared and she latched on when he cautiously touched her shoulders, inviting her back into the comfort he offered. "Shh…it's ok. Nothing's going to hurt you. We got you."
Crying for a good while until she was spent, Jess stayed on the floor unable to face anyone.
Once she'd calmed, Jess sluggishly took stock of how cramped and sore she was and the fact poor Jason's shirt was as much a mess as her face.
"Sorry." She mumbled again, pulling away a bit and keeping her eyes glued to the floor of the plane.
"Stop with that," Jason said with his light impatience. "Do you want a cloth? Lisa will get you a cloth."
"Yes…and I want– Oh. Never mind. It's already out." Jess eyed both arms, reassuring herself there was no IV left in her arm, only bruises.
"Yeah, Trent took it out a few minutes ago."
"Good timing," Jess answered with dull humor that didn't reach her eyes.
"Jase," Scott was leaning around the hammock and handing them a cloth and bottle of water. "Here."
Jason hovered, kneeling in front of Jess the whole time she cleaned herself up and then gently eased her to her feet, tugging her out toward the seats again.
"Come here. Let's sit for a bit."
They sat for nearly an hour with her; Jason, Brock, Cerberus and Scott. Sonny, Trent, Ray and Clay all slept. Jess fought falling back asleep with everything she had. In the end having Cerberus snuggled next to her and having her body cuddled against Jason, steady arms around her while he talked about nothing to her and the others, it all knocked her out.
She was curled on the seats when she came to, yet again. This time Jason was gone, Brock was sleeping on the seat next to her feet, sitting up. Sonny was sitting by her head now, arms resting on her shoulder with a comforting weight and watching her with this look that suggested he was worried she would disappear if he even blinked.
"Hi," Jess whispered, tears unexpectedly leaking into her ears as she tilted her face up to see him and registered just how scared the Texan had been for her.
"Hey, little ocean-fearing buddy, how you doing? You still comfortable there? Are you hungry? Need anything to drink?"
"Maybe a little hungry. I think…I might need a toilet though."
"We got those! Come on. Let's get you up. Lisa?"
"Hey! Jess! How can I help?" Lisa appeared out of thin air, crouching next to them as Jess eased up, her head pounding with a hangover like headache.
Sonny answered for her.
"Needs the bathroom, and she's hungry."
"Ok, I got stuff already gathered for you. Don't worry. I found good stuff. Come on."
Grateful that Lisa wasn't acting too much out of the ordinary and feeling like she was watching her body from a distance as she moved through the plane with the pair, past the many sleeping people who'd worked so hard to find her. She didn't even know all their names.
As they passed to the other side of the plane, Jess spotted Jeremy and stopped moving. He was watching, eyes bloodshot and face too thin. He'd lost weight since she saw him last.
A sad, twitch of a smile graced Jess's lips as she passed, by way of some lame reassurance for him. She didn't think she could handle interacting with him yet, but for all he was the reason she'd been in this mess, and the complicated feelings that came with that, Jess loved him still.
"J-"
"You just keep sitting there, nice and quiet." Sonny snapped in a low, hot voice, stopping the young man from saying anything further to try to get her attention.
Jeremy sat back down, mouth clicking shut as he stared at the floor, cheeks burning. Jess tried not to notice and went into the small privy, leaving Sonny and Lisa waiting outside for her.
The moment she was a lone, Jess felt walls she didn't even know she'd had up crumple and she started to shake as she struggled to do what she needed to do. When she was done, she made the mistake of looking in the mirror as she cleaned her hands.
She was a mess. So much so that Jess almost didn't' recognize herself.
The clothes covered her the same as the day she'd been taken, but blood stained in places, smudged with dirt and grime. The cheeks of her face were pale and sunken, her eyes dull and lifeless. Her arms were covered in bruises and she had a particularly dark one around her wrist, reminding her of where the cuff had been keeping her in that bed. There were also sore points everywhere else. Her ribs seemed bruised, her arms were sore all over and marks were beginning to appear on the upper arm. The hair was a matted mess.
"Jess? You ok in there?"
The soft knock at the door dragged Jess back again, and her reflection blinked, confused.
Right. She needed to do the next thing. What was that again?
Forcing her feet to move and leaving the broken, scared stranger in the mirror, Jess opened the door and let Lisa take her for some food that she figured she wouldn't manage to choke down.
The long flight home was a mixed blur of hovering, grumpy protectors and the feeling that nothing was real, including herself. Now that they'd landed Jess just wanted to go home and shower for a week. That and she wanted to leave as soon as possible. Scott had chased off Mandy, saving Jess a fourth time from almost having to talk to the woman about things she didn't have the mental strength to right now. Between Trent and Lisa, they'd collected all the information they technically needed before she was free to leave, but Mandy wanted more. Bravo team wasn't having it. Blackburn backed them up in the end, stopping a potentially nasty argument from cropping up between Scott and Mandy by taking Jess aside and talking to her himself instead.
The conversation was simple enough.
"Are you sure you won't consider going to the hospital?"
"I want to go home," Jess stated again, struggling to keep her hands from gripping her head or scream at the top of her lungs.
"Do you want to talk to Mandy today, or do you want to talk to her tomorrow." Eric had asked, crossing his arms much like Jason did and fixing her with the most 'dad' look Jess could have imagined. Unlike Jason, he didn't seem like he had an opinion either way and Jess was free to choose without a fight on her hands.
"I don't want to talk about anything more today unless I really don't have a choice…and I-I really want a choice. Please?" Jess closed her eyes, willing the screaming in her chest to die down so it didn't come out. "I want to go home."
"Ok." Blackburn accepted it in a businesslike manner, motioning Scott over. "Done. We have no need to keep you longer. Let's get you home."
The big man had swooped in, arm guiding around her shoulders as they left the plane, feet back on US soil and into a cloudy, bleak day that seemed to echo Jess's insides.
Just a little longer. That's all she needed. For now she settled into an unresponsive shell, wordlessly answering questions only when necessary. For his part, Scott asked few and seemed to know what she needed, or else decided for her.
She made it the entire, silent truck ride home without breaking down and for a time she thought perhaps she had no tears or emotion left.
When she walked in the door of hers and Scott's home though, Jess found herself rooted to the ground, rocking back into her own body violently and that volcano of suppressed feelings boiled up.
"I'm guessing you'll want a shower, so why don't-"
Scott trailed off, watching her has he slowly put this bag down.
Jess's breath was coming faster now and she had her fists clenched at her sides.
"Scott…" Jess managed tightly, desperate and pleading for something she didn't even understand.
He didn't move until she reached helplessly for him, a howling sob ripping from her chest.
"It's gonna be ok," Scott whispered, holding her tight.
"This is real…right?" Jess asked through shaking cries. "I don't feel real. I…I don't feel right- what's wrong with me? It's like I'm watching myself and I'm not really here! Please, promise me this is real?!"
Scott hushed her and kept holding her, promising again that she was safe and he was real.
After a while, Jess lifted her head just enough so she could see Scott's tired, haggard face and she said in a tremulous whisper, "I thought you weren't coming."
To her utter shock, Scott's eyes got over bright and he pulled her head into his chest again and whispered, "I know, pips. Came as fast as I could."
"I tried- I tried to keep believing you were- but," Jess barked out another sob with her confession, shoulders curling in on herself. "It was so hard- I'm sorry-"
"I know. It's ok."
"I thought you wouldn't find me and the necklace wasn't working and I'd only have Jer to get me out-"
"No. It worked perfectly." Scott answered firmly. "I've never been so relieved as I was when I saw it was still on you."
"It really worked?" Jess asked, struggling to calm down.
"Yup."
Slipping a hand up jerkily to wipe at her eyes, Jess said, "Jason told me that you had eyes on me?"
"Yeah." Scott accepted her sudden need for answers without judgment. "Lisa and a team watched security cameras that your brother hacked, Trent was there a few times to check your medical condition…we weren't allowed to watch most of the time though."
"Why?"
Scott growled back darkly, "Blackburn didn't want the plane torn to pieces before we landed and he had orders to keep Jeremy alive."
"Oh," Jess twisted her head slightly, looking around the comforting living space and reassuring herself it was all real. Think of Jer, because she hadn't been able to bring herself to speak to him before leaving the plane, Jess let herself wonder aloud. "Did anyone hurt Jer?"
Scott's tone was flat and his muscles went taut when he said, "No. Made sure of it. I know you love him even if he is a son of bitch. Probably one of the hardest things I did today was not punch him."
"Thank you," Jess drew a shuddering breath and a bit of tension left her. "Feel's a little better knowing Lisa was watching…oh…did she hear my singing and rambling then?"
"Yeah, probably. Trent heard you once too."
"Was trying to stay brave…pretend I wasn't scared…"
"You were brave, pips." Scott's arms tightened again, tucking her close. "Really fuckin brave."
Predictably tears gathered again and Jess whispered, "I was terrified. I didn't think anyone was coming, or how long I'd been there, and-and then I didn't know it was you guys and I made everything harder-"
"You put up one hell of a fight and I'm proud of you."
"I was useless!" Jess wailed suddenly with despair. "And helpless ! All I could do was puke on someone's shoes!"
"Maybe," Scott countered with a stern calm. "But your aim was amazing for someone as drugged as you were. I was impressed."
Jess forced herself to look at him again, wiping at her eyes and nearly half smirking despite how mixed up she felt right now.
"You saw that?"
"Yeah. Right before the call that followed." Scott's own pained, half smile surfaced fondly all the sudden. "Sonny cheered when you did it."
"Was just trying to…to fight back…"
"I know. You did good, pipsqueak."
Not believing him, but also not wanting to argue, Jess slipped free and mumbled, "I should shower."
"I'll be here. You ok if some others come over too?"
Hesitating, Jess waited for him to elaborate without turning back to face him on her way to the bathroom.
"It'll just be Naima and the rest of Bravo…and you can say no."
"Why do they want to come?"
"Honest answer?"
"Yes, please."
"They're as shook up about all this as you are and want to make sure you feel safe. Figure more than one Seal should help with that."
"But they won't sleep properly here and-"
"Jess, they won't sleep tonight anyway. Trust me. Now, do you want them to come?"
Blinking back more tears, Jess nodded and continued to the bathroom.
Her plan was to stay in there a long, long while, washing away the experience with every soap they owned.
Bravo stayed the rest of the day and well into the night. For the most part Jess was present in body and not in mind.
Naima was the one who broke through again. The woman's maternal energy shattered Jess into a thousand pieces and the girl spent a good few hours clinging to the woman as they sat on her bed, hiding from the world. She ended up coaxing Jess off to sleep that night, promising to stay with her.
That was a promise the woman kept. When Jess woke suddenly, in her own bed and room, she spotted Naima next to her in the double bed, sleeping. Apparently she'd woke gently enough to not have alerted the others to her movements.
A need drove her to toss back the covers, dreams and reality mixing in her brain. She was afraid of her own shadow right now and there was one place she wanted to be.
Not even really sure what she was thinking until she was already out of bed and halfway across the hall Jess went to Scott's room. She expected the door to be closed, like it usually was when he slept, but instead it was half open, enough for her to slip through silently.
The aching, trembling need in her bones forced her feet to ghost across the floor and the next thing she knew she was up on the far side of the bed, just on the edge. She told herself she wouldn't wake him up and that she just needed to be in the same room for a little bit. That she would go back to bed in a few minutes when her heart stopped racing and she stopped feeling like the world wasn't real.
She hardly got settled, curled on the furthest edge, when Scott stirred.
A whole torrent of pressure built up, sitting heavy on her chest when he rolled over and even with her back turned to him she could feel him squinting at her in the semi light of the early morning.
A moment later the covers tugged out from under her and an arm hooked around her middle, gently pulling her backward until she was tucked in the shadow of Scott's larger body and essentially the little spoon.
A tremor rolled through Jess as she tried to hold in yet another round of tears. Like every other time, she failed to keep her shoulders from shaking silently and when Scott's arms tightened, curling around her like protective wings, Jess couldn't keep it in anymore.
A deep sob worked up from her gut.
"You're safe. I've got you." Scott whispered, wide awake.
Nodding miserably, Jess couldn't trust herself to speak. Instead she hunkered down into the arms around her and let herself cry a bit before her body finally relaxed.