Having a love affair when you work at the Phoenix Foundation is not always an easy thing...
I thought my first fanfiction had reached its end, but it came an other part to me, so here it is:
"Rated R - for Adult themes"
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When he woke up, he was alone and it took some time before he remembered he had company during the night. He had slept well and late, without nightmare. He had not felt so well-rested since Mike had died. Mike... It was strange, lying there in a warm bed, while she... And then, there was Nikki. Nikki was alive, and it was good to be with her. He felt guilty though, being with her while he couldn't give Mike what she had asked from him. She was his best friend but in the way Jack was. She had wanted more. Love. Commitment. He never could stand the feeling, at that stage he always run away. She knew it, and she knew why. Would Nikki expect commitment too? So complicated everything was! He decided it was too nice a day to lay there and speculate. He jumped out of bed. First he would fix the jeep, then he would drive to the Challenger club. He had not been there for a while, he wondered how the kids and Cynthia were doing. He could certainly make himself useful too.
Meanwhile, Nikki was at work. She was quite satisfied with herself, managing to wake up on time without an alarm-clock, to slip out of Mac's arms without waking him up and arriving home at the time she would have woke up if she had slept there. She was in her office at her usual time and not a soul (except perhaps Pete) could tell where she had spent the last 12 hours. Had he, or had he not seen them in the kitchen? Well, they were both adults, and single for that matter, they did nothing wrong... Still.. it was.. private, and she did not wish to share that with Pete. Poor Pete anyway! He had a hell of a job trying to understand the relationship between them! Like cat and dog on the surface, but caring and helping each other as soon as one of them was in trouble. And now, lovers! She was not sure to understand it herself either! “I wonder if he is awake now?” she thought, looking at the time. “So unstructured, this way of working on assignments! He never knows in advance what the day would bring! I am glad my schedule is more predictable. But I suppose it fits Mac to work that way. I sure hope Pete will not send him on a mission too soon. That's the problem with Mac. He always gets the most dangerous missions that no one else could deal with. I was worried enough when we were like cat and dog. Now that we have come closer together, not only will I miss him, but I'll be scared to death...”
They met each evening that week and had a wonderful time together. Now the week end was coming and they had planed to spend it away, so their privacy would not be disturbed by friends dropping by or curious neighbors. They had decided to drive to the Santa Monica mountains, where they could enjoy both the beach and the mountains. Nikki was to pick Mac at his place after work. He had packed his backpack and a picnic basket for diner, as they would arrive late and probably not feel for going out looking for a restaurant then. He also fixed a light snacks for the drive, maps of the area and reservations at the motel. Then he decided to kill the time with chores. But then, the house boat was shinning and she had not showed up yet. He picked up a book and crashed on the couch. Night was falling and he got worried that it would be too late to drive the same evening, so he phoned her at the office. No answer. No answer home either. Well, perhaps she was on her way, he thought. So he tried the phone in her car. No answer either. Could she be shopping some place? He tried all the three numbers again 15 minutes later, and as he could not join her, he begun to worry. He phoned the gate-post of the Phoenix Foundation, where the guard told him Nikki had left at least 2 hours ago. Something was wrong.
He jumped in the jeep and drove to her flat. There was no sign that she had been there in the afternoon. Her backpack was ready in the entrance, waiting for her to pick it up. He was on his way back to the jeep when he noticed her car parked a little further on the street. It was not locked, the door had just fallen back on place but had not been properly closed and the belt hang outside. Searching inside and outside the car, Mac discovered one of her shoes. She would not have left her car with only one shoe. An awful certitude was growing in his mind: she had been abducted! He run to the jeep and feverishly dialed Pete's number. Luckily he was still at his office.
Mac: “Pete! Nikki is missing. What was she working on?! Who would want to hurt her?”
Pete: “What? Mac, calm down, tell me what happened?” Mac explained the situation and his conclusion that she had been abducted. Pete had to agree. While Mac was driving to the Foundation, Pete searched the files Nikki had been working on to try and find some clue. When Mac arrived at Pete's office, his friend had a pretty good idea of what could have happened:
Pete: “She was working on a case quite similar to the GX-1, you know, this plane that could not be detected by usual radars?”
Mac: “Yeah, the one I blew up in East Germany last year, right?”
Pete: “Yes, that one. The engineers have been working on that project again and built a new plane, with some modifications. The Russians did not like that you destroyed GX-1 and they sent some agents to try and steal the plans for the GX-2 from us. We know the agents and have them watched, but we haven't found their contact yet. They MUST have an inside contact, and that is one of the things Nikki was working on. Now there is a fair chance that these guys want to learn what she knows about GX-2 and about them.”
Mac: “You think they would kill her?”
Pete: “No, if they wanted to kill her, they could have done so already. If they abducted her, it is because they want something from her.”
Mac: “OK, then, where would they have taken her?”
Pete: “I can think of two possibilities: the house where the Russians are hiding, but we have it watched so I don't think they could use it without us knowing. So there is the harbor, they own a boat factory as one of their cover activities. I say we check the harbor first. Here is the address.” Mac was on his way already: “Meet me there with the police!” He drove as fast as he could, so worried about what could have happened to Nikki. When he arrived, the warehouse was dark and deserted. He parked at some distance and made his way as silently as possible. He found a door that was not locked and slipped smoothly inside. Waiting for his eyes to accommodate to the dark, he listened carefully. A faint scraping noise on his right put his senses in alert but a strong blow at the back of his head ended his inquiries. All went dark and he collapsed on the floor.
When he woke up, he was garroted at the back of a chopper. His head hurt badly and trying to lift it up made him moan. “Mac!” said a familiar voice behind him through the noise of the chopper. “Are you alright?!” Slowly he turned around and found Nikki sitting there, garroted as well. “Nikki!” he said in relief. “What happened?”. Fighting his dizziness, he tried to sit up next to her. But the chopper was landing and they could not talk further. Their captors opened the chopper's slide door and made them climb down. They had landed in a forest clearing and they had no idea of where they were. A blond man with a hard face verified their ropes before he spoke: “If one of you tries to escape, the other one will be shot on the spot. Now, walk.” he said, pushing them toward a small path. His accomplice opened the way with a torchlight, and the blond man was walking behind them. Mac and Nikki could not see where they walked, and they often stumbled in stones and branches lying on the path. Nikki rapidly hurt her feet, as her shoes were not fitted for hiking, and one of them was missing. “How far are you taking us?” she asked after cutting her foot on a sharp stone. The men did not answer but pushed her so she would not slow them down. She was limping quite badly and Mac could not contend himself any more: “She is hurt! Let me help her!”
“Ah, Mr MacGyver, you are such a gentleman, so predictable!” laughed the blond man. “We just had to wait for you at the warehouse, as we were certain you would run to save your friend. Now, you can not hold yourself because she's got a little scratch. Very well, this weakness of yours will be most useful when the time comes. And as you wish to help your friend, you will carry her for the rest of our little trip.” Nikki protested: “I just need to lean on him, I can walk, he does not need to carry me!” The blond man took out his gun: “He will carry you, Mrs Carpenter.” Nikki and Mac exchanged concerned looks, they could only pray for the “little trip” to be short. Nikki put her tided hands around Mac's neck. Then he took her in his arms and the blond man tied him with a rope that would go from one wrist back his neck and down again to the other wrist. At first, it went fine. But as time went, Mac's arms began to weaken, and the rope was cutting his flesh. Nikki tried to help him but there was not much she could do. She could see he was tired, tensing all his muscles to hold her. He stumbled and they fell hard on the ground. The first guy helped them up and checked their ropes. “We are soon there” he said. Nikki felt so bad, seeing Mac's sweaty face contracted by the effort. “I'm sorry Mac, I'm so sorry!” she said, feeling she could cry in despair. He smiled at her and said between his teeth: “Don't worry, we will manage. Who are these guys anyway? The guys from the GX-1 mission?”
Nikki: “Pete told you about that? Well, yes, the blond one, Ivan Petrov, was in charge of finding the GX-1 when you blew it up. The other one is an American, Derek Johnson. He is one of their agents, covering for their activity here. There should be an other man, Sergei Gregor, but I have seen only these two so far.”
Mac was exhausted, his body aching and shaking from the effort he had to make at each pace. He stumbled more and more often and they both had scars and bruises from the hard falls. His ropes were hurting badly and he could not feel his hands anymore. At last they arrived to a dark cabin. The door opened and the light from inside hurt their eyes. They had not seen it from a distance as the windows had been blinded with thick curtains. A man with a riffle stopped them, then recognizing his accomplices, he waved them inside. In a last effort, Mac climbed the short stairs to the door and entered the cabin. He collapsed on his knees, and Johnson cut his ropes so that Nikki could stand.
Petrov: “Gregor., here is Mrs Nicole Carpenter, who has been investigating on our activities and who will provide us with information on the GX-2. And here is Mr MacGyver, who blew up the GX-1 and kindly joined our little party tonight. Mr MacGyver and Mrs Carpenter are very close friends, and I'm sure Mrs Carpenter will tell us exactly what we want to know.”
Gregor, looking down at MacGyver: “You sure have done a nice job with him, Petrov. Mrs Caprenter, you are a beautiful woman...” he said, stroking her cheek. “Leave her alone!” roared Mac, jumping on Gregor. Johnson stroke his ribs with the rifle. Mac fell on the floor, moaning, and Gregor laughed at him. “Take him away” he said to his men. They took him by the arms and dragged him to the next room “Don't you touch her!” rumbled Mac between his teeth. Gregor and Nikki followed them in the other room, which was larger than the little kitchen they had first come in. Still, there was only a table and a chair in this room, where Gregor tied Nikki up. Meanwhile, Johnson was emptying her attache-case on the table, examining her papers. Gregor paced back and forth in the room, then, without warning, he kicked Mac's side. Mac groaned in pain and Nikki was horrified, wondering what these men had planed for them.
Gregor: “Now Mrs Carpenter, you will tell me what you know about my organization in your country, and you will also tell me everything about the GX-2, or your friend here will have a very bad time.” Nikki could not say a word. She had been trained to resist torture, but she did not know if she could stand to see Mac in pain. These men knew that of course, and it was the reason why they had set a trap for him at the warehouse. “Don't say anything Nikki” moaned Mac, trying to get up to show he was OK. A new kick in the ribs sent him back whimpering on the floor. “Don't try to be a hero Mr MacGyver” said Petrov. “We know how to make you cry out for mercy. I don't think the lady here would want that, would you dear?” he said, stroking her hair. In anger, Mac found enough energy to crawl up and try to attack him, but Gregor was expecting his reaction and kicked him again. Mac screamed and collapsed on the floor. Teardrops were rolling on Nikki's cheek but she could not say a word. If the Russians were to steal the plans for the GX-2, international security would be compromised. No matter how badly she wanted to stop Mac's misery, she could not make herself to betray her country. Hours passed and nothing came out from questioning Nikki. At dawn Gregor was very irritated and he decided to change his tactic. He took a stick. “I will beat him until you beg for his life” he said. As the stick was falling on each part of his body, Mac screamed and tried to protect himself, but the stick would always find a way to hurt him. Nikki was crying and tried to free herself from the chair. At that point, Mac fainted and stopped screaming. It was even worse to see Gregor beating his unconscious body. “Stop it! Stop it!” she shouted. Panting and sweat, Gregor threw the stick away and grab Nikki's hair. “I knew you would be reasonable. Now, tell me what you know.” Nikki, tears in the eyes, stared straight back at him “I can't”. Gregor exploded in fury and slapped her in the face. “You will talk! You WILL talk!!” Turning to his men “Wake him up, I have an idea”
Johnson went to the kitchen to fetch a bucket and emptied the water on the form curled on the floor. Mac jumped, shocked at the cold water, and he tried to sit back up. “Go and get the water containers outside Petrov” said Gregor. The blond man came back with two 10-gallons containers. Gregor tied them together with a rope, cast the other end over two beams from the roof and dragged the containers up in the air. “Get MacGyver under those containers” he said to Petrov. Mac's body was hurting and it was painful for him to stand. He was also exhausted from the walk in the forest, the beating through the night and he shivered from being soaked wet. He could hardly stand upraised. Petrov placed him under the containers and Johnson lowered them so that he could reach them. “Hold those containers up” he said to MacGyver “or the lady here will be in trouble” Mac looked up and saw with horror that Gregor had tied the rope around Nikki's neck into a slipknot. When he would be too tired to stand under the weight of the containers, she would hang...
Gregor: “Now Mrs Carpenter, you don't have much time. Mr MacGyver will not last long. I give him 10 minutes, 15 perhaps, before he collapses. That gives you a last possibility to change your mind and tell me what I want to know. Just call for me when you have made up your mind. Or die.”
The three men went to the kitchen to sit and enjoy some coffee. Mac and Nikki were alone for the first time since they had been captured. Nikki was horrified to see the torture Mac was into. He fought to keep standing under the containers. She knew very well how he would feel if she died because his body failed him. It had already taken so much that it was a miracle he could stand and support this weight. “Nikki!” he said. “Nikki please. Try to free your hands. I can not hold very long, I don't feel my arms anymore. You HAVE to free yourself and run for help! Please!” She felt a knot in her stomach when she saw tears on his cheeks. “I am trying Mac, I promise! It's not working!” she said in panic.
Mac: “Nikki, calm down. You have to find a way to put something in the knot. Your finger if you can, or perhaps the pin from your belt buckle. Hurry!” Feverishly, she turned her belt around her waist and tried to loosen her ropes. She picked and picked, until she felt she had found a place where she could use the pin as a lever. At last she felt the knot loosen and she hurried to get her hands and throat free. Then she run to help Mac lower the containers down to the floor. Out of exhaustion, he fell on his knees.
Nikki: “Get up Mac! We have to get out of here!”
Mac: “I can't. Go and get help.”
Nikki: “No! No Mac, you have to come!!” she cried in panic. Mac stumbled up and followed her to the window. She helped him to climb out but he was to heavy for her and he crashed on the ground. She joined him and they tried to run under cover. However, after a short time, Mac's strength was used up. He fell and could not get back on his feet. “You HAVE to, Mac! You HAVE to!” begged Nikki.
Mac: “Let me sleep. I am so tired. I just want to sleep. OK?”
Nikki: “No Mac no! You can't sleep now! They will come and kill you!!” she said in despair. Meanwhile, she was looking around to see if the men were after them. Then she saw a large stone emerging from bushes a little further on the right. She hauled Mac up by his shirt and made him lean on her, forcing him to walk to the stone. She made him crawl under the bushes and covered him with leaves. “There. Don't move now. I hear them!” She tried to cover herself with some more leaves and lay against Mac, holding her breath to try and hear if the men were coming. Mac was shivering but he soon fell asleep and his body relaxed. Nikki heard the men running on the path but she couldn't see them. There was at least two of them, perhaps three. “They can't have gone far! MacGyver could hardly stand, they have to be around here somewhere!” she heard Johnson say. “OK” answered Petrov. “I'll search around the cabin with Gregor, you go along the path see if you find some tracks.”
Now she could safely come out of the bushes, but she had no idea of where they were, and did not know where to go for help. Her best chance was to go and see if she could find a radio in the cabin but the Russians were there, she would be spotted at once. She was sure Mac would have walked to the end of the forest, but she had a wounded foot and knew she would not make it. Besides, she did not want to leave him behind, so close to the cabin where their captors could find him. She heard a chopper flying over the forest at some distance, and wondered if it was the same that had flied them here, or if it could be Pete looking for them. She dearly hoped it was him!! If it was, she should give him a sign so that he would find them. What could she do? She had nothing to signal with. It felt hopeless... What would Mac do? She tried to remember the different tricks he had used in similar situations. Oh!! She wished she would have red his reports more carefully back then. She had been so irritated at his boy scout's methods sometimes, she had not paid much attention to his tricks as she did not find these professional at all. Now she wished she had a list of all the situations he had been in with the corresponding tricks that had saved his live... Then she remembered some of them. “I can not make a fire, nor send some kind of projectile in the air without the Russians noticing, so this is not an option” she thought. “Well, what do I have? Trees. Wood. Leaves. Bushes. Stones. Moss. What can I use that for?! Oh Mac!! I need your help!!” The chopper was flying toward them, she could hear it clearer now. “Well. Trees, that would have to do it” she thought. She crawled carefully out of the bushes and checked the surroundings. Then she hurried carefully away from Mac and the cabin, looking for a big tree where she could climb. The chopper was coming closer, she had to hurry! At last she found a big pine with branches low enough for her to start climbing. She was so afraid that the chopper would fly away without seeing her that she climbed to the top at record speed. From the top of the tree she removed her jacket and waved it, hoping dearly that the chopper was a rescue team and that Pete would see her.
She was overwhelmed with joy when she spotted the silhouette of the dear man at the back of the chopper. She waved her jacket frantically and nearly fell from the tree. At last he saw her and made sign to her that they would try to find a place to land. From her tree top, she could not see any clearing in proximity. Their captors had used a clearing at quite a distance from the cabin, she doubted that Pete and his team could find a place any closer. But at least, they knew where they were and they would come to rescue them. She climbed carefully down and went back on her tracks to join Mac. However, she was worried, knowing the men were searching the wood and would have noticed the chopper. She sneaked to the edge of the forest to spy on the cabin. It was calm and silent, as if the men had deserted the place. She stayed hidden for a moment, and decided it was time to go and see after Mac. But as she turned over, she found herself face to face with Gregor!! “Ah my beautiful lady! How we meet again!” he said with a large smile. “And where is our Mr MacGyver?” Nikki closed her eyes in frustration. The arrogant Russian pushed her toward the cabin and forced her inside. Petrov was searching the other side of the cabin, and joined them when he saw Gregor's capture. “Where is the man?” he asked
Gregor: “We will soon know that.” he said in a menacing tone. “Has Johnson come back yet?”
Petrov: “No. He took the path, and with that chopper flying around I guess he went down to the clearing to welcome them if they were to try and land there”
Gregor: “Good. Now Mrs Carpenter, my patience has reached its end. You will tell me what I want to know at once. Where is your friend? And what do you know about the GX-2?” He grabbed her hair and forced her to look at him. She spitted in his face. He slapped her, grabbed her again and smiled coldly. “Petrov. Go and stand guard outside.” he said while keeping his eyes on Nikki. “You are proud and stubborn, but I will make you talk. I will break you.” He slapped her again, and again, then he tore her blouse open. She screamed in fear. He cast himself upon her, trying to tear off her clothes. She fought back, trying not to panic and to remember what she had learned in self-defense. But he was strong and heavy, and he slapped her hard. She could not get rid of him! She screamed as the panic rose, but suddenly she saw Mac knocking her aggressor out and casting himself upon him. He was in a blind rage, beating the man again and again. “Mac! Stop it! You will kill him! Stop!” she cried. He stopped and looked at the motionless man under him. He could not believe he had done that, he would have killed that man, hadn't Nikki stopped him. His rage vanished. Slowly, he looked at her. At the sight of her torn up clothes, he felt his anger roaring deep inside. “Are you OK?” he asked, trying to calm down. She fell in his arms. “Oh Mac, you came just in time. I'm OK. Did you pass Petrov?”
“Yeah, he should be out for some time. Have you seen a radio here? We have to call for help.”
Nikki: “Pete is on his way. He was looking for us from a chopper and he saw me. They can't land here so I suppose they will have to come the way we came. If we manage to bind the Russians, we should be able to sit and wait for the cavalry to arrive.”
Mac: “Sounds good” he said, sitting painfully on the floor. He stretched his hand after the rope which was still lying in the room after them, and garroted Gregor's hands and feet together. “Help me take him outside with Petrov, will you?” They disposed both Russians on the grass in front of the cabin, and Mac sat on the stairs, holding his ribs with a grimace. He felt he had used up the little energy he had regained from resting under the bushes. Nikki went in and found some coffee.
Nikki: “I know you don't usually drink coffee, but this is at least warm.” He took the cup and hold it against his chest, enjoying the heat from it. Nikki sat against him and kissed him tenderly. Then, she moved around so that her back would rest against the cabin's wall, and she made Mac lean against her. He smiled at her, sighted and fell asleep shortly after.
She could hear the chopper long before she saw it. It had been gone for quite a long time, and she could hear it coming to the cabin. There was no place to land, but the rescue team threw line ladders out and climbed down to them. With a winch, they hoisted Nikki, Mac and the Russians on board. Johnson had attacked them at the clearing when they had tried to land after spotting Nikki, and they had taken him to the police as they had to fill gas before returning to the cabin. The two Russians joined him soon enough in jail while Mac and Nikki had to undergo a medical examination to estimate and tend their wounds. Mac had two broken ribs from the kicking and beating, but the doctors did not worry too much about that. They were far more concerned about the physical exhaustion he showed, and wanted to keep him until the day after. Nikki's foot had been tended and she could walk quite normally. She sat beside Mac's bed and watched him sleep. His body was covered with bruises and cuts, but he was sleeping peacefully. She could feel her love for him glowing inside her chest, and now she sobbed, expressing at last the fear she had had of seeing him die. The nurse came in and tried to comfort her before checking on Mac. Then she told Nikki she could not stay, but could go and wait in the waiting area if she wished. Pete had filled all the forms for Mac, given some phone calls to the office, and now he offered Nikki to drive her home. She wished she could have spent the night here, as she had no wish to leave Mac nor to find herself alone at home. But she was a reasonable woman and followed Pete to his car. When she arrived home, she found her backpack still standing in the entrance and felt her heart sink, thinking how the wonderful week-end they had planned had turned out to be a nightmare. They had survived, this time again, but she did not like the way her relation with Mac had been discovered and used against her. In the kind of work they did, a love affair was a weapon in their enemies hands.
Some days later, they were debriefing in Pete's office. Mac remained mainly silent while Nikki was reporting to Pete. Pete had told them how he had found Mac's jeep at the factory and at last found clues leading to the cabin, and informed them that the Russian's network had been dismantled. Then he dismissed them and sent them to write their report. He followed them to the door but hold Mac again after Nikki had gone.
Pete: “What is it Mac? You did not say a word, are you OK?”
Mac: “No, I am not OK Pete. I nearly killed that man, Gregor, up there. I.. I missed control completely and can't get myself to come over it.”
Pete: “Well, he had tortured you for hours, I suppose it..”
“No, it's not that Pete!” yelled Mac. “I wanted to kill him because he...” He could not make himself to speak it up. He sighted and sat down, holding his head. Pete clapped his shoulder, waiting for him to be ready. “Pete” started Mac again. “Nikki and I, we... we have come much closer lately... When I saw that guy put his hands on her I... I got mad you know? I was protecting my territory! I could have killed him. I wanted to. I discovered a part of me I didn't know I had. I scared myself.” Pete clapped his shoulder again. “You know Mac. Every man and woman has some caveman remnant deep inside, and it shows up when our deepest emotions are at stake. Fear, anger, love. Mothers defend their youngsters, males defend their females, it is in the order of Nature.”
Mac: “And then I should accept it? Being no more than a wild beast?”
Pete: “You wanted to kill him, but you didn't”
Mac: “Because Nikki stopped me!”
Pete: “And you listened to her. Her appeal touched your humanity and you reacted to that. It was stronger than your anger, wasn't it?”
Mac, reluctant: “Yeah, I suppose.” Pete clapped him again, and they smiled to each other. Then, Pete sighted and said: “So... You and Nikki together uh? God knows if I ever will understand what's going on between you two!!” They laughed.
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Hope you enjoyed
I told you I'm a fan ) and without being repetitive.
It has to fit with the chronology, somehow.. 
In Blow Out, he is NOT happy to learn that she's going to work full time at the Fondation, and when she comes to him for help, he says "you and me, talk?"
Next chapter is already one side long with no Murdoc... Mac & Nikki still together though, and as you mention it, Murdoc could find his way in there too 
They have come to a place I never thought to put them in at first. I had control on the first page then they took over. Now we are on the top of the fourth, I just had to follow them... I think you'll love it! 
