Title: Gone 15/15

Author: veiledndarkness

Pairing: Future Bobby/Jack

Rating: R for violence, swearing, and mild slash

Disclaimer: Characters not mine, no harm intended.

Summary: AU. Jack's been taken, a pawn of Victor Sweet's game.

xx

"Bobby..."

Jack stared at him, his blue eyes wide with fear. Bobby stood only inches away from Jack, a look of pure fury on his face. Jack swallowed nervously, his palms damp.

"Bobby, I...This..." he stuttered, words failing him.

Bobby turned his head and looked at Jack, puffs of breath visible in the cold air. "Get back to the house," he ordered, his voice leaving no room for argument.

"No...Bobby, this is, he's not gonna hurt me," Jack licked his lips, his eyes darting to Daniel's, pleading with him silently to leave. "This is, his name's Daniel."

Daniel eyed Bobby, an expression of calm indifference on his face. "Bobby Mercer, nice t' see you up close again. You 'member me? I was there, on the ice," he said.

Bobby's heavy boots crunched over the snow. "On the ice, you were the fucker with the gun t' my Jack's head?" he demanded.

Jack stepped between them, his hands resting on Bobby's shoulders. "He was my guard," he explained hurriedly. "In...In the basement, he took care of me; he never hurt me, Bobby."

Daniel nodded. "S'right," he said. "I took care of your boy; made sure he ate an' shit."

Bobby glared at him, anger sparking in his dark eyes. "You shut your fuckin' mouth righ' now!" he growled. "You, you're no better, you kidnapped him, I fucking watched you drag him across the lawn. Don't you stand there, tellin' me you 'took care of him'," he spat. "You fuckers woulda killed him or God knows what the fuck else!"

"Bobby, please..." Jack fretted. He gripped Bobby's shoulders. "We're outside, man, someone could call the cops or shit...Come on, he isn't worth this."

Daniel made a sound behind Jack, a stifled noise that made Jack's heart ache for him. Bobby shook his head. "No, no fucking way is this piece of shit walkin' outta here!"

Jack rubbed the side of his head wearily. "Bobby, you don't understand," he said. "He never hurt me, he kept me fed, and he gave me blankets! Are you hearin' me?!"

"Oh well that changes everything," Bobby rolled his eyes. "He didn't let you go, did he? Huh? Answer me that, Jackie! Did he let you go; did he make sure you got home safe?"

"He couldn't!" Jack shouted. "Damn it, Bobby!"

Bobby curled his lip at Daniel, his hands loosely clenched in fists. "Why? Why the fuck not?"

"Victor was blackmailing him, he did it to make sure Daniel wouldn't turn on him," Jack argued.

Daniel shifted on his feet, a guilty look creeping over his face. "Not entirely," he mumbled.

Jack spun around, staring at him in disbelief. "What?" he croaked.

Bobby snorted. "I fucking knew it!"

Daniel looked down at the snowy ground, his dark eyes sad. "I lied," he admitted. "I...Victor told me to guard you. I did it cause that's what I do, I was one of his guards. I lied. He never threatened me or my girlfriend."

Jack's throat worked furiously. "You...I thought..."

Bobby chuckled bitterly. "Yeah, I fuckin' knew it. I know what you want, Danny-boy, and I know what you're thinkin'. You wanted to help him, right? Be the hero and find a way to let him go somehow, and gee wouldn't Jackie be awfully thankful if you did?"

"You shut the fuck up!" Daniel snapped. He glared at Bobby and ran a hand through his messy brown hair, knocking his cap loose. "You don't know shit, Mercer."

"Oh but I do!" Bobby shouted. "I see it in your eyes. You need to get the fuck out of my sight, right now before I blow your mother fuckin' head off."

"Bobby..." Jack tried to catch his attention, keeping himself between the two of them.

Daniel leaned forward, one gloved hand squeezing Jack's good shoulder. "I'm goin'," he murmured in Jack's ear, his breath tickling the small hairs on the back of his neck. Jack shivered, his head tilting to the side.

Bobby's eyes flashed and he let out a sound of rage. He pulled Jack over to the side in one quick movement, his fist catching Daniel off guard. Daniel staggered back, the two of them dropping to the snow covered ground.

"Fuck!" Jack swore as he approached them warily. Daniel grunted at a particularly vicious punch to his ribs. He flipped them over, dodging Bobby's fist again. Jack tugged Bobby's arm, his breath catching at the look of raw fury in Bobby's eyes.

"Jack, stay the hell outta this!" Bobby snapped.

"No! No, fuck, he won't hurt me, get off him!" Jack yelled, tugging at Bobby's arm again. He made a pained sound, his shoulder throbbing dully with pain. "Stop, this is fucking crazy!"

Daniel kicked his leg up hard, kneeing Bobby in the stomach. He scrambled away from him and stood up, breathing hard. "Jesus, you outta ya fuckin' mind?" he huffed, wiping blood from his mouth.

Bobby pushed himself up from the snow, coughing a little. Daniel gestured to Jack. "He's yours man, you got him, you got him, no one else does, so calm the fuck down!" he shouted.

Bobby stood upright, his hand pulling the gun from the waistband of his jeans. He flicked the safety off and aimed it at Daniel, his hand steady. "You been hidin' around my house, lookin' for him. That shit stops now. You walk outta here, an' never fuckin' look back, clear?"

Jack felt his blood run cold when Bobby pulled the gun out. "Bobby...Jesus, fuck, don't do this," he whispered, horrified.

Daniel breathed out, his dark eyes on Bobby. "He's yours, man, I got that. S'all he talked about in the basement, about how you were comin' for him. He never fucking doubted for one minute."

Bobby glanced at Jack, some of his fury ebbing a little. "Get the fuck outta here," he said to Daniel. "If I even think I see you around, you better hope I'm not carryin'. Don't check on him, don't even think about him. I know what you want, I see it in your eyes, and you ain't gettin' it, ever."

Jack approached Bobby cautiously. "Come on...come on, I wanna go home, Bobby," he said, resting one hand on Bobby's arm. "Please..."

Bobby kept his eyes on Daniel. "Leave now before I regret not shootin' you on the ice."

Daniel looked over at Jack, nodding to him. Jack felt his stomach twist for Daniel, the misery in his face telling him everything he suspected. "I...I'm sorry," Jack mumbled in his direction.

"You don't gotta be sorry, Jackie," Daniel said softly. He gestured to Bobby. "You go on with him, be safe, y'hear?"

Jack nodded, shivering in the cold wind. "You too," he offered.

Bobby gritted his teeth. "Go."

Daniel looked at Jack once more and then turned away, his boots crunching through the snow. Bobby kept his gun trained on him as he walked away, one arm wrapping tightly around Jack's waist. Jack stared at the ground, guilty tears prickling under his eyelids.

"You wanted t' go to the store?" Bobby said gruffly while flicking the safety back on.

"Y-Yeah," Jack breathed, flinching when Bobby clasped a hand to his side.

Bobby eyed Jack, the rage on his face slowly fading. "What?"

"N-Nothing..." Jack muttered. He looked to the ground to hide the tears in his eyes. "You...You didn't hafta do all that, y'know."

"Yeah, I did," Bobby pointed to the direction that Daniel had left in, "He kidnapped you, Jack. He's no good guy, ok? He wanted you, and he sure as fuck isn't getting you."

Jack crossed his arms over his chest. "I...I don't want him," he said, shaking slightly. "Home...Take me home."

Bobby nodded and kept a tight grip on Jack as they walked. Once home, Bobby settled Jack on the couch with one of Evelyn's thick blankets, covering his shaking body well.

xx

Jack spent much of the evening curled up on the couch under Bobby's watchful gaze. He said little, his thoughts mainly on everything that had happened. Daniel...He'd lied to Jack, made him believe that he was following Victor's orders only because Victor had threatened to go after his girlfriend.

Jack chewed on his fingernail anxiously. Bobby flicked through the television channels, his gaze landing on Jack every so often. Jack edged closer to him, tugging the blanket with him.

Bobby smiled faintly and draped his arm around Jack, tugging him closer. Jack sighed and rested his head to Bobby's chest, the echo of his heartbeat soothing for him. Bobby ran his fingers through Jack's hair, the motion lulling Jack into a sleepy daze.

"Would you really have gone off with that guy?" Bobby murmured.

Jack lifted his head and peered at Bobby. "How can you even ask that?"

Bobby shrugged silently. It occurred to Jack, a brief glimpse of understanding. "You…You were jealous?"

"No," Bobby said quickly. Jack sat up more, everything sliding into place faster.

"You were," Jack nodded. Bobby shook his head hurriedly. "No, no, where'd you get a dumb fuckin' idea like that?" he protested with a weak smile.

Jack blinked slowly. "That's why…God, Bobby, you almost killed him, you coulda just told me how you felt."

"Almost," Bobby snorted. "I woulda, had a clean shot too," he looked away from Jack, a hint of color in his cheeks.

"Daniel wasn't gonna hurt me. He was worried about me, about…well…" Jack trailed off.

"Yeah, I don't think I need to tell you what he wanted," Bobby all but growled.

"I…No, he said so himself. He didn't…he said he didn't…" Jack blushed, remembering the first days in the basement. He'd offered to do whatever it took to get him out of there, only to have Daniel freak out at the mere mention.

"So?" Bobby put the remote control down. "Y' don't see me advertisin' what I do when the door closes."

Jack's hand crept up to his necklace, his fingers trailing over the beads. "Are you ashamed?"

"No!" Bobby snapped. He glanced at Jack. "I got nothin' to apologize for. I'm…I'm me, this is me, I jus' don't see why I should have to scream it out. An' maybe that guy jus' ain't ready to face who he is. But you made him see a side of himself, that's why he's sniffin' around the house."

Jack shifted closer to Bobby again. "You do want this, right?" he couldn't help but ask. He needed some form of comfort, some reassurance.

Bobby bit the inside of his cheek. "Of course," he said. "Jack…Look, I know this was…well with everything that happened an' all…" he sighed, "C'mere."

Jack leaned in, breathing in Bobby's familiar scent. Bobby cupped Jack's cheek, his roughened thumb brushing over Jack's cheekbone. "I'm not good at talkin' about feelings an' shit," he murmured. "But I do love you, and I don't say it enough, an' I'll try. Make sure you know it. I wouldn't have bothered lookin' for you if I didn't love you."

Jack tilted his head and pressed a kiss to Bobby's lips. Bobby pulled Jack in closer and deepened the kiss, his arm tugging Jack onto his lap. Jack closed his eyes, warm sparks traveling through him. "Bobby…" he whispered thickly. "Admit it."

"Admit what?" Bobby mumbled, drawing Jack in for another heated kiss.

"You were jealous," Jack grinned when they parted.

"Maybe a little," Bobby admitted grudgingly. He held Jack tightly to him, his fingers wrapped with Jack's. He closed his eyes and let Jack run his hand through his hair, ruffling the careful combed strands.

Jack smiled widely and kissed him again, his other hand entwining with Bobby's. "Knew it."

"Shut up," Bobby growled as he kissed Jack, a smile curving his own lips.

xx

Bobby draped the blanket over Jack's body on the bed, listening to the sound of his soft breaths in the still of the night. He paused by the open window, his eyes on the snow covered front lawn. He could see it, see the blood on the snow by the lamp post, bullets flying by, whizzing past him as Jack's screams filled his ears.

He swallowed uneasily and looked back to the bed, Jack's messy hair sticking up in waves and curls over the pillow, his chest rising and falling with each inhale and exhale.

Bobby closed the window and ruthlessly shoved his nightmares to one side. He'd been plagued by them since the day of the kidnapping, when they'd taken Jack from him. He could see how things could have been, if Victor Sweet hadn't changed his plans. Bobby bit back a shudder, his chest clenching at the thought.

Jack lifted his head from the pillow and looked up at him, blinking sleepily. "Bobby?" he croaked. "I'm cold…come lie down."

Bobby tugged the curtains shut, resolutely ignoring the horrific images in his mind. Jack sighed as Bobby curled up to him on the narrow bed and draped his body over Bobby's, seeking his warmth. Bobby brushed a kiss over Jack's forehead, murmuring his words of love to him.

His Jack…

xx

And this is it, Gone is complete. Thank you to everyone who's reviewed.