Chapter Text
"You have got to be kidding me."
Jack was stunned, coming to a full and complete stop, after hearing Jerry's news. Jack couldn't afford to waste a second right now; everything had been planned down to the second. And yet here he was stopping.
"Change of plans," Jack decided immediately. Making split-second decisions was what made Jack so good at what he did, and he wasn't afraid to make split-second changes now. "Jerry, you're off."
Jerry protested, not too eager to leave Jack alone on an assignment that was dangerous even with Jerry's help. "Jack, are you sure-"
"Positive," Jack interrupted, sure of his decision. "We already planned for the possibility that you might get caught up dealing with something else and become unavailable. Looks like that possibility just became reality. I can do this without you there."
Jerry didn't let the argument die just yet. He felt like his priority was to make sure Jack didn't get too cocky, although Jack often had good reason to be cocky. "Just because you can technically do it alone doesn't mean it's a good option-"
"It's not impossible to do alone and there's a more important job for you now," Jack said, leaving no more room to argue.
"Okay," Jerry agreed, trusting Jack's judgement. "What do you need from me?"
"I need you to extract her right now. Keep her away. As far away and as safe as you can manage. Milton, I need you to stay vigilant on the cameras. You're my eyes, buddy. Jerry won't be watching my back anymore." Keep me alive, is what he was really saying.
"Copy."
"On it."
At first, Jack wasn't even sure how to process this new development for a solid few seconds. Precious seconds that he really shouldn't be wasting.
He, Milton, and Jerry were on a mission for Funderburk.
They'd been brought in again for a task they were uniquely qualified for.
It was a straightforward mission, at least their goal was straightforward. The actual details of the plan were quite intricate, but nothing the team wasn't prepared for.
Currently, Milton was stationed in a nearby security room of the mall. He had surveillance footage of all applicable areas, as well as computer access to various databases and softwares to ensure that everything ran smoothly. He oversaw everything and if and when something unexpected came up, Milton expertly guided the team through an improvised new plan. He'd done it before and there was no one Jack trusted more to assist him.
Jack was team leader and the one always doing the grunt work. He got final say on big decisions, like his most recent choice to reassign Jerry mid-mission. He also was heavily involved in planning the missions. This particular mission's goal was to acquire a hard drive. They didn't know exactly what was on it, only that it was being sold tomorrow to some foreign buyers that most certainly were not going to use that information for good. Today, the involved parties were meeting to discuss logistics. The hard drive in question would be in attendance at the meeting and Jack was sent to intercept the carrier and snatch the hard drive after the meeting occurred. Which would all go down at the mall.
And Jerry was meant to assist Jack. He would be standing by in the case of any trouble and if fighting broke out, Jerry was there to diffuse the situation. Only now he had a new task. Jack could technically do this on his own, Jerry's role wasn't critical, but it was always nice having Jerry around when possible. Now, it seemed, Jerry was needed elsewhere, on an assignment that was perhaps even more important.
Since the beginning, Jack kept Kim completely out of it all—the missions, training, planning. Milton had been pulled in not long after Jack. When the pair realized they might need even more manpower, Jerry was the top candidate. Milton was a good guy to have on surveillance, but it made Jack's work less dangerous having someone actually out there in the field with him. With all three of their backgrounds in karate, the group was already more qualified. Being friends meant they could trust each other and worked well together. And being young gave them an edge in an adult-dominated world.
But Kim was never considered to be an addition to the team. Ever. She wasn't an option.
Jack refused to involve her in any way. It was dangerous work and he couldn't live with himself if she got hurt.
The others knew why Jack didn't want her on the team, and they tried to tell him once that she'd be upset if she ever found out he was purposefully keeping her away from joining the team, but Jack didn't care. He didn't care if he sounded like a condescending, misogynistic, jerk. He would endure every insult in the book if it meant keeping Kim safe from this whole other world of evil.
Kim didn't know about the team at all. If she knew it existed in any capacity (even if they lied and claimed they'd all joined some after-school club, which Jerry suggested) then eventually she would demand she have a role. Which, Jack would then have to refuse and then they'd fight and Jack would rather avoid the hassle. Keeping it all a secret was the easiest way to handle it.
It worked out fine, until Kim's ignorance became an issue when she stumbled across the team while they were on a mission.
She didn't realize she was interfering with something as dangerous as it was. If she had, she wouldn't have done what she did.
But she didn't know better so naturally, when she saw Jack being followed by a man with a gun in his pants, all she could think of doing was rushing forward to help him. She had a very rough plan that consisted of sneaking over, attacking the man from behind, and running to safety together with Jack.
She didn't realize the entire thing—Jack being followed and attacked—had been planned, expected. Jack seemed oblivious to the man, but he wasn't really. He had Milton in his ear telling him every move the man made and Jerry around the corner ready to join him.
When they'd been handed the mission, Jack knew getting to the drive would be difficult. Instead of fighting their way in, they devised a plan to have the drive come to them instead.
Let the targets think they were taking Jack by surprise. Let them fight Jack and let them win. Let them think they were protecting the hard drive by bringing Jack right to the guy calling all the shots, waiting to hear Jack's punishment.
Once Jack was caught, he would be taken to the man in charge, the one holding the drive. Jack would then escape, snatch the drive, and get away. Jerry was supposed to be there to provide a distraction to allow Jack to get away, but now it seemed Milton would have to come up with something on the spot. He had a few ideas, and he told Jack he was confident he would whip something up in time.
Unlike Jack and Milton focused on the mission, Jerry was now focused on Kim. He was the one who spotted her. The sight of her had been shocking to him, as well. He caught her crouched behind a dumpster, looking like she was ready to pounce.
He saw her before she saw him, and he immediately informed the others via earpiece:
Kim was here. She was watching everything. And she looked like she was ready to intervene.
That was when Jack lost his mind and started changing the plan at the last second. Why on earth was Kim here?
"Solomon is closing in, Jack," Milton said over the comms, reminding everyone that they were in the middle of something. "He's getting ready to make his move on you."
"I'll be ready," Jack assured him, walking forward as if he was still oblivious to the world. "Jerry, do you have her? I'm not risking her getting stuck in the crossfire. I won't make a move until she's clear."
Although Jack's goal was to eventually lose this fight, he had to put up a bit of a struggle or the man, Solomon, would know something was wrong.
"I'm almost to her, I'm trying not to startle her. But she won't come quietly, Jack." Kim was not a quiet girl and Jerry knew she wouldn't take kindly to being extracted. He just hoped he'd be able to get her to hold off on exploding until they were far enough away from the action.
"Don't care," Jack said almost immediately. "I want her out of here."
"She might not care what you want, Jack," Milton chimed in, unhelpfully. "She won't want to leave, especially if she knows you asked for her to be removed."
"I don't care," Jack repeated. "I can't focus on the mission if I'm worried about her. My mind will be on her the entire time. We won't get this drive if I'm not focused. It is in everyone's best interest if you keep her safe and far away from here. Whatever means necessary."
"I'm just saying she'll put up a fight," Jerry reminded him.
"I'm sure she will. But you've been trained to take down men twice your size. I don't care how you restrain her. Sedate her if it becomes necessary. I want her gone."
Jerry gulped at the implications. It was true, since working for Funderburk, all three of them trained harder than ever. They spent more time training in martial arts, but they learned other things as well. Maneuvers to apprehend someone, maneuvers to escape. They learned to hit and get hit, and they conditioned three days a week. Running, weights, and sparring. They learned how to use weapons too, guns, knives, drugs. It was intense, but they only used those skills during missions, as per Jack's request to keep as much hidden from Kim as possible.
All that meant, Jerry had more than enough training and tools to take care of a girl Kim's size. Even with her black belt, Jerry knew how to hold her. Jack wasn't just acknowledging that, he was encouraging Jerry to use his power on Kim. He told him to sedate her! Tranquilizers had been a part of their training, and Jerry always thought it was a cool tool, but that was only when he thought about using them for an enemy. Using it against someone he actually knew and cared about made him feel gross and uncomfortable.
"Jack, he's reaching for his gun," Milton informed Jack urgently. This was all part of the plan, but Jack wasn't going to follow the plan until he had confirmation that Kim was gone. If he didn't act soon, the plan wouldn't work.
"Jerry, grab her now. Do you copy?" Jack demanded.
"Yes, I copy!" he insisted, shaking his head at Jack's stupidity. He was putting his life, and the entire mission at risk just by waiting for Jerry's response.
"Milton, initiate countdown," Jack commanded finally.
"Countdown initiated. Twenty seconds. Nineteen. Eighteen…"
Jerry reached out for Kim then, quickly wrapping an arm around her arms and torso and a hand covering her mouth to keep her from shouting out. "I got her," he said, hoping that was good enough for Jack. Hopefully, he trusted Jerry to take care of her from now on so he could focus on his task at hand.
Thankfully, no sooner did Jerry's words come out of his mouth, than was Jack suddenly spinning on his heel and kicking the gun from the man's hand and charging at him.
Kim let out a scream of horror, muffled by the hand covering her mouth. She fought against the arms holding her, trying to move her feet to get into a solid stance to flip her attacker over her shoulder. As if reading her mind, whoever held her lifted her off her feet.
"Kim, stop it, chica. It's Jerry."
Kim's eyes widened as she tried to spin around and confirm that the voice she heard was indeed Jerry Martinez.
Jerry loosened his grip on her, but kept her close as she turned around to look at him.
Kim was confused and the worry she had for Jack was making it hard to sort through what she was seeing with any kind of logic. If Jerry was here then surely he saw Jack in trouble? Surely he saw that a man was trying to hurt him. Why wasn't he helping?
"Come with me, Kim," Jerry instructed, nodding away from Jack with a no-nonsense tone.
He didn't acknowledge anything that was happening just around the corner and Kim wasn't having it.
Kim turned and watched as the man fighting with Jack threw a punch toward him. Jack dodged it and punched the other man, but he was too slow to dodge the next hit. Kim felt the breath get knocked out of her lungs as if she was the one being punched.
"Jerry, Jack needs help!" she hissed urgently. "We can't leave!"
"Kim, he'll be okay. We gotta go. Now."
Kim shook her head. Jerry was making no sense right now!
"Why aren't you helping him?!" she urged. She took a step away from Jerry's arms, intent on going to Jack, but Jerry was quick to grab her.
She hadn't been expecting him to grab her at all, and definitely not as quickly as he had. She looked at his fist around her forearm for a moment. His grip was tight, solid, and unyielding. He really didn't want to let her go and he was prepared to stop her. What was going on?
She didn't have time to dwell on that now, because she could hear the sounds of Jack's scuffle just around the corner and she had to help him.
"Jerry, let go," Kim said urgently, trying to pull her arm free.
"Kim," Jerry said, glancing at his watch. "We have-"
Jerry was interrupted when a pile of trash near Jack suddenly exploded. It wasn't a large explosion, but it was enough to make her jump. And then realize that Jack could have gotten hurt.
That set Kim off.
She struggled against Jerry with renewed strength. He wasn't expecting it and she managed to free herself for a moment.
It was only a moment because Jerry knew his sole purpose in this mission was now Kim and he was not going to fail.
He grabbed her again, this time snatching at her bicep and bringing her back to the cover of the dumpster and the corner of the building. She hadn't been able to get far enough to be seen yet.
"We gotta go," he said, leaving no room for argument as he pulled her further away.
She was stumbling and still reeling from the sight of an explosion. Her ears kind of rang and her eyes burned with the sight of Jack caught in something straight out of a James Bond movie. He was just a kid. The guy fighting him was strong, and Jack was losing.
"No!" Kim yelled. "We have-"
Jerry quickly pulled Kim close enough to slap a hand over her mouth again, afraid she was being too loud.
"Be quiet!" Jerry urged.
That enraged Kim and she kicked and struggled, making it difficult for Jerry to hold her. She was forcing him to either hold her tightly, which he didn't want to do (hurting her was something he generally liked to avoid), or drop her completely, which he also didn't want to do (setting her free would mean failing his mission).
"Kim, I'm serious!" he grunted, trying to get her to support her own weight. Currently, she was jumping up and down and going limp every time Jerry tried to get her to stand.
"Kim, I'm authorized to sedate you!" Jerry ground out, moving his mouth right by her ear to make sure she heard him even while he tried to be quiet.
It seemed to do the trick in momentarily stunning her and Jerry was able to change his grip. He kicked her legs out from under her and tossed her over his shoulders in a fireman carry. He grabbed her legs in one arm and a wrist with the other, making it difficult for her to try to hit or kick him.
"Put me down!" Kim grunted, wiggling as she tried to free herself.
Jerry moved her wrist across his body, grabbing it with the hand by her legs and essentially creating a seatbelt across his chest with her arm. Switching positions allowed Jerry to hold both her legs and her arm all in one hand, and it freed up his other hand.
He used that arm to open doors and lead Kim down alleyways and eventually to skinny hallways with dim lights and uninviting walls and doors.
She was squirming and grunting the whole time, and Jerry was beginning to lose his grip, when he went inside a door, shut it quickly, and tossed her off his shoulders.
"Take her," he gasped, leaning forward to catch his breath.
Kim scurried to get to her feet but before she got her bearings, Milton was on her. He looped his arms through hers, pulling them back so her elbows were nearly touching behind her. He was careful to pull tight enough to restrain her, but not tight enough to injure her. She was restrained in a fraction of a second.
"What is going on? Why are you both so calm about this! Why won't you let me go!" Kim cried, not caring how loud she was being anymore. They were probably deep inside some building if she had to guess from the path Jerry had taken to get there.
"Kim, calm down," Milton grunted from behind her. He was still keeping a firm hold on her arms and she realized she actually couldn't escape if she wanted to.
When had Milton gotten so strong? Kim vaguely wondered. And what is he doing here?
"No! Jack needs help he-"
"He'll be fine," Jerry insisted for the tenth time. He seemed more concerned about keeping Kim contained than he did about Jack's safety. "He's got everything planned out, this was how it was always supposed to be."
Kim opened her mouth to argue, but then saw the wall Milton had been sitting at when she and Jerry burst into the room.
There were monitors upon monitors upon monitors. Cameras with security feed from an impressive amount of angles all around the mall. She could see Jack, still fighting, on a few different cameras. Milton was watching Jack.
Then her mind snagged on the words Jerry had said. This was how it was always supposed to be. As in, this was planned. Whatever was going on, whatever was happening to Jack, it was something they'd anticipated. Something they'd planned. Somehow, that seemed even more dangerous.
The realization made Kim gasp.
"What are you guys doing?" she demanded, now with more questions than ever.
Jerry looked at Milton over her shoulder and Kim realized she wasn't privy to something the rest of them were. And it was big.
She tore her eyes from Jerry back to the screen and watched with morbid curiosity as Jack was suddenly struck so hard he fell to the ground. He lay there, prone and vulnerable, and the man towering over him seemed primed and ready to strike Jack, kick him, or possibly even shoot him.
"No!" Kim cried, shaking against Milton's hold. She didn't care what Jerry and Milton said, Jack looked to be in big trouble. He couldn't possibly have anticipated fighting off someone with a gun.
"Kim, Jack can handle it," Jerry tried to tell her again. To his credit, he was exhibiting a great deal of patience.
"No! He needs help! Why won't you let me help him!"
"Why haven't you just tranqed her?" Milton asked, grunting as he worked to keep Kim from running out the door.
Jerry gave Milton a look because come on, sedating Kim could not be their first option. She would hate them for the rest of her life knowing they knocked her out simply because she was being a nuisance.
Milton seemed to get the message but he was still annoyed. "Well what are we supposed to do?!" he cried.
He was occasionally looking at his workspace and the monitors and Jerry could tell he didn't like to be away from the screens. The desk was his area of expertise and he had a great deal of control when he was there. Honestly, he probably shouldn't be away for too long, for Jack's sake. Jack needed Milton watching over him.
Jerry looked around for anything useful and when his eyes landed on a small cupboard, nothing more than a supply closet, he looked at Kim.
There was a lock on the door, it was small, it was right there…
Kim must have realized it at the same time as Jerry because suddenly she was fighting Milton with renewed strength. Milton was losing his grip on her when Jerry wrapped his arms around her waist and picked her up.
"Jerry, don't you dare lock me in a closet!" Kim screamed, throwing her fists toward him, hoping to make contact with something sensitive.
"Ow!" Jerry cried when Kim kicked his shin.
Kim would have smirked at the small victory but she was still very much fighting to be let go.
"Milton, open the door," Jerry huffed.
Milton hurried to do just that, and scanned the room to make sure there was nothing Kim could use to hurt herself or anybody else.
When he was fairly certain she'd be okay, he nodded at Jerry and hurried back to his desk.
"Kim, I'm doing this for your own good," Jerry sighed. He knew she wouldn't believe him and he was probably going to have to face her wrath for many many many days. Weeks, probably.
"What about Jack's own good!" she yelled back. She thought again of Jack, laying there, bleeding, dying, alone. She balled her hand into a fist and began banging it against Jerry's arm.
Jerry ignored her because, to be honest, he was just as worried about Jack's wellbeing as she was but he knew the best way to ensure Jack's safety was to stick to the plan. Kim wasn't part of that plan and she couldn't be part of it without Jack worrying about her the whole time. The plan involved Jack going in alone and that was how it had to be done or it wouldn't work. Changes would put Jack's life in jeopardy.
Jerry couldn't explain that to her because then he'd have to explain that there was a plan, something they'd thought about in advance. He'd have to explain that they were on a mission and he'd have to explain that they got missions assigned to their team specifically. And he'd have to explain that she wasn't a part of their team. That was a conversation that Jack had to have with her. Jerry did not want to be the one to break that news to her.
So instead of trying to explain anything or make her hate him just a little less, Jerry said nothing and just threw her down on the ground and quickly moved to shut the door.
"Jerry Martinez don't you dare! If you shut that door I swear to you I-"
Jerry never heard the end of her threat, however he was confident that it was graphic. He shut the door and quickly locked it, pulling at it to make sure it would hold.
"She's gonna kill you," Milton warned with a low chuckle. He was not jealous to have not been selected for the task. Keeping Kim away was the last thing Milton would ever sign up for. He'd do it if asked, of course, but he sure was glad his skills on the computer were more valuable.
"Yeah, well, better her than Jack," Jerry sighed. He was used to Kim's wrath. He ended up on the wrong side of her anger every other day. Jack's on the other hand was something Jerry hoped to never be on the end of.
"Milton, I need you to unlock a door for me." Jack's voice came in over their comms and Milton was pulled away from their conversation to get back to the mission.
Jerry was just about to look over Milton's shoulder to check on Jack's progress when a loud thud from the closet sounded.
He should have known better, but part of him knew he had to make sure Kim was okay.
The second he opened the door, Kim ran from the room, making a beeline for the exit. Jerry swore as he turned on his heel and chased after her, grabbing her just before she could dart out into the hall.
"Kim," Jerry groaned, fighting with her to keep her from wiggling free. "You're better off staying here. Safe."
That must've been the wrong thing to say because Kim let out a noise of protest and wouldn't stop arguing the moment she started.
"Safe?! I'm better here and safe? Or do you mean out of the way! I'm just a nuisance for you all, aren't I? I can handle myself! I've been taking karate for longer than you have, Jerry!"
"Kim-" Jerry tried to intervene, calm her down a little, but it was pointless.
He shuffled her all the way to the closet and she began to throw her fists again. He knocked her hands away with a level of precision Kim hadn't seen from him before and it only made her more angry that somehow Jerry was able to overpower her now. When had that happened?
"Seriously, Kim, don't make me use a sedative. It'll be miserable filling out the paperwork," Jerry groaned, pleading with her.
"You can't seriously leave Jack out there!" Kim yelled. She had hardly even heard what Jerry had said. "Why are you keeping me here?! He needs help! That man had a gun!"
"I'm sorry, Kim," Jerry said preemptively. He practically threw her to the wall and then shut the door again.
This time when he heard a crash and was tempted to check on her, he waited a second longer. After a few moments, he heard more movement. She was fine. It was only if the noise stopped that he'd be worried.
"Let me out!" Kim screamed, banging on the door. While the sound was muffled, Kim's screams were more than loud enough to be heard on the other side. Slightly muffled, but still decipherable.
Jerry looked over at Milton who was now looking at Jerry with a knowing smirk. Again, he didn't envy Jerry or his task at all.
"Open this door!"
Kim continued banging and screaming and Jerry wondered how long she would keep it up.
There was a moment of silence, and then the banging became crashing as she started throwing things at the door.
The yelling never stopped.
She yelled and screamed and threatened and she didn't let up.
After nearly ten minutes of yelling Milton was getting fed up.
"Can't we gag her?" he asked, glancing at the door. Jerry didn't want to knock her out, but they could at least make her be a little more quiet.
"No!" Jerry objected.
"Would it really be so bad?" He whined.
"Uh, yes, it would. She's not a prisoner, Milton," Jerry informed him. "This is to keep her safe. We're not gagging her or sedating her or tying her up. She's going to be furious enough about being locked in a closet."
Milton, unfortunately, had to agree.
Hearing Kim scream was the price they had to pay. They probably deserved to hear it, as a sort of payback for restraining her in the first place.
It wasn't until another ten minutes later that Jack was finished. It was only supposed to take a few minutes but without Jerry's help, he had to be careful.
But now, twenty minutes later, police had arrived to detain the men with guns and Jack and successfully extracted the hard drive they were after.
He secured it in a briefcase, handed it off to the team of agents sent to transport it, and made his way to the control room.
When he ripped the door open, Jerry and Milton could immediately sense he was upset.
He had sustained the usual injuries, nothing too severe. He would be bruised and he had a few scrapes, but no gunshot wounds. He didn't need immediate medical attention, thankfully. That was Jack's specialty, not being severely injured even after accomplishing near-impossible feats of strength and agility. It was why he was so good at what they did.
"Where is she?" he demanded, forgoing any sort of greeting.
Jerry wordlessly pointed toward the closet.
Kim's yells had quieted to the occasional cry or grunt paired with a smack against the door. She was still going.
When she hit the door again, Jack's eyes darkened.
He stormed toward the door and ripped it open.
Kim, who had been laying on the ground with her feet propped against the door, startled. Her feet dropped to the ground unceremoniously.
Jack scanned the area quickly, his mind still in mission-mode. He took note of the room. It was small but Kim had done one heck of a job tearing it apart. She couldn't have been there for more than twenty minutes, Jack calculated. She'd had a busy twenty minutes, then.
An old mop had toppled over, a box of random supplies had been emptied and the contents were sprawled around the room. Bottles were dented. Liquids spilled. Something glass had shattered in the corner by the door.
Kim moved, trying to sit herself up.
Absolutely not.
"Stay down," Jack snapped.
Kim froze, Jack's harsh words stopping her long enough for him to use his foot against her hip and nudge her a few inches to the side.
It seemed to snap Kim out of it and she tried to sit again. Jack was suddenly on her, pushing her shoulders back down and kneeling on either side of her waist. She was stuck in that position, laying on her back, with Jack now towering over her.
"Jack-"
"How did you find me?"
"What?"
"Did you follow me?" He pushed her shoulders harder. It didn't hurt but Kim hated that he was doing it. She tried to shove him off her but he grabbed her arms instead and shoved her wrists to the ground by her shoulders. It was an unnatural position and it effectively kept Kim from using her arms without requiring much strength from Jack.
"What are you doing?" Kim demanded, her voice raw from screaming for twenty minutes straight.
Jack immediately clocked it and turned around to glare at Jerry and Milton. It was hardly in their control but the way they'd handled Kim must have had her screaming the entire time and Jack was upset with them for it. At least if they'd sedated her like he suggested she would be peacefully sleeping right now, immune to any danger she might get herself into.
They shrank back and Jack knew he'd deal with them later. He turned back on Kim. He felt rage in his veins, residual from working the mission. It coated his entire being and fueled him with a sharpness that was finely tuned to strike, intimidate, and control with precision. He didn't bother turning it off or toning it down. The current occasion called for rage and he was more than willing to let it in, to use it to his advantage, to channel it.
Kim had never seen him like that before. She could immediately tell something was different, he was different. He had this… aura around him. Like a bubble of fiery power that he knew how to manipulate to serve his purposes. It scared Kim. She was terrified.
"How did you find me?" Jack demanded again, leaning closer to her. His breath was hot on her face as he stared at her with a gaze so intense she wouldn't have been surprised if she spontaneously combusted.
Kim gulped. "I- I didn't mean to," she gasped out quietly, struggling to make each sound that left her mouth. "I just saw you walking by the side of the mall and- and I was curious what you were doing and then…"
Kim stopped, close to tears. She couldn't take much more of Jack being so cold to her, demanding things from her while he held her in place. She wished the floor would swallow her up. She felt like it might.
"Keep going," he commanded with a harsh bite. Something about the way he spoke implied that she would regret not listening, so with great effort she continued.
"I saw someone following you," she admitted, knowing Jack wouldn't be pleased to hear her reveal these details but knowing he'd be more displeased if she kept them quiet. She was sure he already knew, lying would make it worse and he would know she was lying.
"I saw he had a gun." That memory alone was enough to bring tears to Kim's eyes and make her choked up. It wasn't just that he'd had a gun. It was that he was clearly focused on Jack. Kim didn't understand it then, and she didn't really understand it now, but that man was targeting Jack. He wanted to shoot Jack.
Jack ground his teeth. "And you followed me?"
Kim looked away, not wanting to endure it any longer. She knew it was dangerous, obviously it was, but Jack was her friend. How was she supposed to walk away from that? How was he any more equipped to withstand a bullet than she was? At least she would have the element of surprise.
"Answer me!"
"Yes!" Kim cried. "Of course, I followed you! That man was going to hurt you, I can't just-"
"If you see me in danger," Jack interrupted, growling at her. "You run. The other way."
"I can't-"
"You see me in danger, Kim, you turn around and run away," Jack repeated, more insistent.
"Jack, I'm not going to-"
"Look at me," Jack demanded, a sharp snap of his voice.
Kim stubbornly kept her head turned.
Jack was yelling at her, making her cry, she would not stand for his demands. She couldn't do much, but she could refuse to meet his eyes.
"Look at me!"
Kim blinked, fighting every cell in her body that wanted to look at Jack. Every part of her wanted to look. To listen to him, to see what was behind his eyes, to stop him from being so… nasty.
Suddenly, Jack's hand found her chin in a harsh grip. He lifted her head and turned it toward him. She couldn't keep her head turned but she did refuse to meet his eyes. She kept her own gaze on anything she could. A splinter at the bottom of a shelf caught her eye and she zeroed in on it as if it were the most interesting thing she'd ever seen.
Jack didn't like that. "Look. At. Me."
Kim's eyes flickered, yet they didn't move quite enough.
Jack suddenly lowered his body onto Kim's, not completely, but enough to put a heavy weight on Kim's torso. Enough to make it just slightly harder to breathe but not enough to suffocate her. It was uncomfortable, physically and… Kim didn't like it.
Finally, Kim looked at him.
He was furious. She didn't bother to dwell on it, to consider that maybe his fury wasn't exactly directed at her. All she knew was she couldn't tear her eyes away if she wanted to. Something about him pulled her in and kept her there—and it wasn't just his body holding her down.
"If there is danger," Jack warned low, slowly and intentionally. He meant every single word. "You run the other way. You do not get involved, do you hear me? Run the other way, no questions asked."
Kim opened her mouth with a sharp inhale, and Jack knew she was gearing up to argue or make excuses. He couldn't have that. He let his weight settle on her just a little more.
"Never go into a dangerous situation like that again. Ever."
It all became too much. The way Jack was being so demanding and serious. The suffocating hold on her. Kim shifted, whimpering when she realized she couldn't shift or move. Jack was too heavy on her, too overpowering.
The normal Jack—caring, easy-going, charming—wanted to come out then. Normal Jack wanted to jump up and cradle Kim close and apologize for scaring her while whispering sweet things in her ear. He would comfort her and tell her she was okay and everything was fine. She wouldn't be scared of him.
But the other part of Jack, the part that dealt with enemies and weapons and evil people of all kinds, that part wanted to drill it into her head that she was getting involved in something too dangerous. He needed to scare her or she would never understand the severity of what she did. Of what her actions could have led to. Could still lead to.
There was a reason she wasn't on the team, that she didn't even know the team existed. It wasn't just because he didn't like to see her hurt, it was dangerous for her. Her getting involved opened up too many doors of terrifying possibilities.
"Stay away. Promise me," Jack insisted, almost a yell. It would have seemed manic if he wasn't so calm. He wasn't manic though, he was fully in control. He could snap her in half if he wanted to.
"Jack, you're scaring her," Jerry said delicately, stepping forward.
Jack snapped his head toward Jerry. "Did she, or did she not, run into a gunfight, Jerry?" Jack demanded.
"Yes, but-"
"Then she's not moving until she knows that she cannot hurl herself into dangerous situations like that. She can't put her life at risk. She can't do that."
Kim took another breath and blinked out a few tears. The combination of the stress of the entire thing, the fear over Jack, and the intensity of her current predicament was getting to her. She was reaching her breaking point, and fast.
"I won't," she choked out, if only to end this stupid show of power from Jack. "I won't, I promise."
She knew she didn't mean it, and apparently, Jack did too.
"You're lying."
Kim tried to shake her head, but it didn't go very far with Jack's unyielding grip on her chin. "N-No I'm not."
She was lying, and they both knew it.
"Fine," Jack harrumphed. "That's fine."
Kim was confused now, as were Jerry and Milton. That was it?
"If you think you can handle it, who am I to stop you?"
Kim blinked up at him, one last tear falling from her eyes before it stopped, slowed by her preoccupation with figuring Jack out.
"You think you can handle fighting off men like that? Prove it."
Kim didn't have a chance to ask Jack what he could possibly mean, how she could prove anything, before Jack was moving.
He dropped all of his weight on her. He closed his hands around her wrists in the tightest grip Kim had ever felt from him. He even shifted his legs to pin her further, ensuring she'd be thoroughly trapped.
"Get up."
Kim wasn't playing this game. She didn't want to play this game. But when she went to move her hand to push against Jack as a way of getting him to stop, she couldn't move it. He was still holding her.
It didn't matter if she didn't want to play, Jack already dealt her in.
She tried to yank her arm free, but Jack was holding on too tight and he was anticipating her struggles. It didn't matter how she squirmed, he kept her pinned. She bucked her hips, but all that did was make her back hurt when she couldn't get Jack to move at all. When she tried to use a knee to hit Jack, he shifted to pick her legs as well.
She was full-on panicking now.
"Get up," Jack pressed, taunting her because she was trying. She was trying her hardest and she couldn't do it.
"Drop your leg," Jack said suddenly. Kim didn't, she hadn't fully processed that he had somehow moved on from belittling her to whatever this was.
"Your left leg," Jack instructed firmly. "Drop it. Now."
As soon as Kim did, Jack barked out more instructions.
"Brace against the floor."
"Kick up."
"Momentum, Kim. Use it."
Jack kept going. And going and going.
Kim tried to follow his steps, she really did, but she could hardly move and she was beyond out of breath.
"Again," Jack barked. "You can't hesitate. Do it in one fluid movement. Hesitating makes you lose momentum and that's all you have working to your advantage."
"I can't!" Kim cried. "You're too heavy!"
Jack didn't give her any sympathy. "You have to. Because I'm not giving up. If you don't get away on your own, I'm going to hurt you. So you have to do it. Try again. Harder."
Kim swallowed more cries as she tried again. It wasn't until the fourth try that she was successful.
She'd wrapped her legs around Jack and knocked him off balance. The commotion of turning gave her a moment to rip her hands free and strike Jack's torso and head in quick succession.
She had to scramble away quickly, and it wasn't long before he would recover, but Kim got away. Jack didn't make a move to attack her again.
Now that she was finally free to move, she gulped, laying there for just a second because holy crap. Jack was… intense.
Then she started to sit up straighter, slowly, and Jack was right there to bend down and help her.
"Careful," he scolded. "There's glass shards everywhere."
He gave her a knowing look, she no doubt threw whatever it was that broke and he was trying to make her feel sorry for it. She ignored that look. He didn't get to judge her for what she did while she was locked in a closet.
As Jack helped her to her feet, he was so gentle and careful with her and she hated that he seemed to flip a switch just like that.
As soon as she was standing outside the closet, she shoved him away and took three steps back.
She wiped the tears off her face and kept a wary eye on him, making sure he didn't get any closer to her.
"Kim-" Jack started, his head falling just a little to the side.
"No!" Kim snapped immediately, clearing her throat because it just hurt now. "Don't come any closer."
She held her hands out, as if that would be enough to stop Jack if he really tried to grab her again. It wouldn't, but it made her feel a little better. And Jack seemed to stay away.
"Kim, he just-"
"No!" Kim interrupted again, glaring at Milton as well. He was just as much in trouble, his compliance led her to that situation.
Jerry didn't say anything and instead just held his hands up in surrender. He knew how this was going to turn out from the beginning and he wanted no part in it.
Jack didn't try to talk to Kim again. Instead, he ignored her. "Watch her," Jack directed the others with a tired sigh and a nod toward Kim.
Kim opened her mouth to protest again—if he intended for Jerry and Milton to lock her away again she'd put up much worse of a fight—but she was caught with a sudden curiosity at what Jack was doing. He didn't turn to leave the room or go anywhere else. He didn't run off to do who knows what with dangerous men with guns. Instead, he turned back to the closet.
He picked up the mop she'd knocked down. He propped it gently against the wall, tucked neatly into a little slot. Then he grabbed all the bottles she'd knocked over and started returning them to a shelf he had to straighten.
"What are you doing?" She couldn't stop herself from asking.
Jack didn't look at her when he answered. Kim had the impression he was feeling hurt, annoyed, and conflicted. "This isn't our space."
It was all he said, as if it explained everything. It didn't, but Kim was pretty good at making inferences.
She'd made a mess to piss off the boys, as a punishment for locking her there in the first place (and she didn't regret it). But this closet wasn't theirs, they were borrowing the space for… whatever it was they were doing, and it'd be rude to leave it a mess. So Jack felt obligated to clean up after her.
It could have been because he just didn't want someone to get mad at him, but somehow Kim knew it was because he was just a good person. He was a good guy and his personality wouldn't let him borrow a space and then leave it trashed after. Now, the reminder of how good he was infuriated Kim.
How could he be such a good guy and then yell at her and lock her away?
He scared her, and she knew he did it on purpose.
He said he was going to hurt her.
And now he was kneeling on a dirty floor scrubbing it clean and putting everything in its place so someone else wouldn't have to. How could anybody be scared of a charming boy who was harmlessly cleaning a messy closet?
You couldn't, Kim couldn't, and it made her head spin painfully that suddenly the normal Jack was back.
She'd gotten a glimpse of someone she'd never met. A side of Jack that was hard and merciless. She had too many questions to let this gentle Jack make an appearance. She wasn't done with the new Jack yet.
She looked at Jerry and Milton, wondering how they could possibly find this any less concerning than she did. But then she remembered.
The way Jerry blocked her hits with such skill and flawless technique. The way Milton restrained her, her, so she couldn't even move. They were different too.
It wasn't quite as different as Jack, but there was another side to them too. A side that was vicious and determined as well. A side that was trained to strike quickly, to confidently control a situation or even a person.
The room they were in was strange and while Kim had gotten a peek at it when Jerry brought her in the first time, now she had a better view of it.
It was definitely a security room, but why Milton and the others had unrestricted access to it, and the security feed, didn't make sense.
It didn't make any sense.
Fighting to keep her composer, Kim gulped. "Somebody explain this to me. All of this," she demanded, waving her hands wildly in a circle in front of her. "Right now."
Jack stopped cleaning for a second, turning to share a nervous glance with Milton and Jerry. He wasn't jumping to tell Kim anything and knowing Jack's stance on the matter, neither was Jerry or Milton.
"I'll get it out of Jerry," Kim threatened. "You know I can." Kim was Jerry's weakness. They were about as strong a pair of pseudo-siblings you could find. They loved each other, but they also got on each other's nerves. They knew the other's weaknesses and saw through their tough exteriors. If one of them had a secret, the other could pull it out. They couldn't lie to each other, not for very long.
Jack stood up, taking a break from cleaning the closet now that Kim seemed like she was wanting to chat.
"If that's how it's going to be, then you can say goodbye to Jerry for a while," Jack reasoned, a tone of finality in his words. "I won't have you prying into this. If you being around Jerry is a liability, then I'll fix it."
Kim's jaw dropped slightly in offense. Jack knew Kim could get Jerry to cough up the information she wanted, and now Jack was going to keep her away from Jerry so he never had the chance?
"What are you so afraid of me finding out?!"
Jack said nothing.
Kim continues. "I already saw all this. I know this is something you've planned. I know you all have had some training. I know-"
"Nothing," Jack interrupted. "You know nothing. So just stay out of it."
Kim bristled at that. Jack was shutting her down again. She was going to get the information she wanted and she was going to get it now. If she let Jack get out of it, she might never have a chance to pull it out of him again.
"You can't hide this from me," Kim told him calmly. "You can refuse to talk, but that won't do anything. I won't give up, you know that. You don't want to tell me but you know I'll figure it out. I'll follow you again if I have to-"
"I would sooner put metal bars on your bedroom window than let you follow any of us," Jack interrupted, his eyes unwavering. He meant what he said and just like that, the breath in Kim's lungs seemed to vaporize.
"Jack," Jerry interjected, unable to stand aside any longer. "She's going to try."
Jack seemed ready to argue his point, but this time Milton jumped in.
"Jerry's right," Milton said. "You know Kim. You can put bars on her window and tie her to a chair and lock her in a room but she'll find a way out and she won't stop meddling until she finds what she's looking for."
Jack frowned. "Look, can we talk about this later?" He didn't want to have this argument with Jerry and Milton again, in front of Kim.
"No!" Kim snapped. "I'm right here. And Milton's right. I won't stop."
Kim wasn't sure if it was the smart thing to say, but she felt more confident with Jerry and Milton on her side.
More than anything, Jack's refusal to tell her anything felt like betrayal.
They were best friends and they told each other everything. Whatever it was Jack was hiding, it was big and a big part of Jack's life. There was a big part of his life that Kim wasn't even aware of. She didn't exist in that part of his life.
Jack looked at her, really looked at her, and Kim gasped quietly. She could see his eyes soften. Looking at her, with determination and tears in her eyes, he was returning back to normal. His hard shell chipped away until it was just Jack. Goofy, caring, sweet Jack.
His eyes began to well up and he tore his gaze away like it was too painful to even look at Kim. She tried not to let that cut her too deep.
"I can't," he cried, voice breaking.
He turned away, like suddenly cleaning up or doing anything else was more important than the conversation they were having.
Taking a risk, Kim swallowed her fear and anger and walked closer to Jack. She put a hand on his arm. She didn't grab him or push him, she just held it there.
After a few seconds, Jack met her gaze.
He had tears in his eyes and when he blinked, a few fell.
"Kim, I can't hurt you like that," he admitted in a whisper.
"I don't get it," Kim whispered back urgently. "You don't want to hurt me but this, not telling me about whatever you're doing, this is hurting me."
Jack shook his head. "I know that's how it feels to you, but you don't know, Kim. If you get involved in this, you're going to get hurt. I can't be the one to do that to you."
"Who are you to decide what I get to know?" Kim asked. It was a genuine question, she hadn't asked to offend him and Jack didn't take offense from it.
"What I did to you," Jack started, nodding sloppily toward the closet to refer to when he'd practically attacked her. When he'd crushed her under him, threatened her, taunted her. "What I did was nothing compared to what could happen to you. It scared you, I know it did."
"No it didn't," Kim argued.
Jack gave a wry smile. "You're lying again."
Kim didn't refute that. She knew, on some level, that Jack wasn't doing it to hurt her. She knew that he had no intention of hurting her if she didn't escape, like he said he would. It was supposed to motivate her, and tell her what could happen if it wasn't Jack holding her. Even in the moment, she knew that. But she had also been terrified. It was a scary position to be in, no matter the reason.
"Please tell me," Kim begged. "I wasn't just scared then. I was terrified when I watched you get attacked. And Jerry held me back and I couldn't help you. Knowing that you've done that before, and you'll do it again… Jack, I don't think I'll ever be able to sleep again. How will I know if you're okay? What if something goes wrong?"
"Telling won't help you sleep better," Jack replied.
Kim didn't refute that either because she didn't really know what she was talking about. Maybe Jack was right and maybe she didn't want to know.
"Just tell me this," Kim said. "Are you allowed to tell me?"
Before Jack could answer, Kim continued.
"I'm not asking if you want to tell me or if you think it's a good or bad idea. I'm asking if I am authorized to know." It wasn't an accident that Kim used that word. Jerry had said it earlier. I'm authorized to sedate you. That meant there was someone in charge, giving out orders and authorizing things.
"Technically… yes. But it's kind of-"
Kim held up a hand to cut Jack off.
"And you've told Jerry and Milton?"
Jack sighed, knowing where this was going. "Yes."
Kim turned to Jerry and Milton then.
"Since you both seem enlightened, if it were up to you, would you tell me?" she asked them.
Milton started to look at Jack, but she snapped him back to her. "Tell me. If Jack wasn't a part of the picture, and I wanted to know, would you tell me?"
"Yes."
Kim nodded, satisfied. She spun on her heel and looked at Jack. "Balls in your court."
"If I tell you-"
Kim thought she was hearing things. She didn't think it would actually work-
"If I tell you," Jack repeated, getting her eyes locked on his. "I need you to promise me you won't do anything reckless."
"I won't do anything reckless," Kim said immediately.
"I mean it," Jack added. "If I don't tell you, you're going to do something reckless anyway. If you're just going to be stupid as soon as I tell you, I may as well save myself some trouble and just keep it to myself."
"I'll try," Kim amended. That was the best she could do.
"If I tell you, you have to promise me you'll trust me. Trust my experience, my authority. If you ask, and I say no, you'll take no as your answer. If I tell you to do something hard for your own good, you do it. Understood?"
Kim was far too excited to disagree. "Got it."
"Remember when that Prince came to Seaford, and I told you to throw that key out the window? Well I was working for the government…"