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Fighting for Salvation (10)
Aug. 22nd, 2007 04:03 pmChapter 10
The three women moved quickly and quietly. Sounds of fighting continued behind them, but Ava forced the other two to keep going despite their fears. Jack had entrusted them to her care, and she vowed that she would get them to the lake no matter what. She tried to keep her thoughts from Jack and Rick behind them and focused on the task at hand. But as gunfire continued, her worry threatened to smother her.
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Tony and Nina watched silently as Jamey's mother collected things from her daughter's desk and placed them into a plain cardboard box. She was making no effort to hide her tears as they rolled down her cheeks and fell on the assorted papers that littered Jamey's station. She hadn't said anything since walking into CTU – she had just set about her task and ignored everyone else.
Tony found himself thinking about Jamey's son. Not only had he lost his mother today, but he had probably lost his exalted image of her as well. She had betrayed her friends and her country and then taken her own life when the pressure became too much. That wasn't an easy thing for any of them to swallow, but Tony knew that it would hit her son and mother the hardest.
His thoughts were cut short as Alberta Green approached them. He was beginning to foster a severe dislike for the woman, and the very sight of her made him want to run in the other direction. But for now they had to work with her, so he took a deep breath and turned to face her. Nina hesitated before doing the same.
"I hope you two can put past events behind us so that we can get on with our work," she stated.
Tony saw Nina open her mouth to retort, but he laid a gentle hand on her arm.
"We just want to get Jack and his family back here, and find the men responsible for the attempts on Palmer's life. Just don't expect us to be warm and fuzzy with you."
"Of course not," she agreed. "I only expect you to be professional." She paused, taking a breath. "I need the two of you to speak to Mrs. Farrell."
"About what?"
"A substantial amount of money seems to have found its way into her bank account."
Nina gaped. "And what? You think she knew about what Jamey was doing?"
Green shrugged. "Until we know for certain, we have to assume that she had some hand in or knowledge of her daughter's activities. I want you two to interrogate her."
"She just lost her daughter," Tony reminded her.
"I realize that, Tony. But if she has information, it will be our fault for not exploring that avenue."
He nodded, seeing the reasoning in her argument.
"Fine."
He sighed as he and Nina approached Jamey's mother.
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Fear had settled in and now they were running. Ava's eyes were everywhere as she tried to keep abreast of her surroundings, not wanting anyone to catch them off-guard. Teri and Kim ran ahead of her, both stumbling here and there from pure exhaustion. But neither of them complained even once – they just kept moving, knowing that their lives depended on how far they could get from Gaines' men.
A sound rang out, and before Ava even had time to figure out what it was, she found herself on the ground, a burning pain erupting in her left shoulder. She brought her right hand up to touch the spot where it hurt, and when she pulled it back, it was covered in blood.
All the descriptions in books about how it felt when the main character got shot flitted through her head, and Ava almost laughed out loud. They were all woefully inadequate. No flowery words or vivid adjectives could possibly convey the pain that shot through her body. It hurt – plain and simple.
Teri and Kim turned around and rushed to her side, kneeling beside her.
"Oh my God," Kim breathed. "Are you alright?"
Ava tried to smile. "It's only a flesh wound." She sucked in a sharp breath. "Go."
"No," Teri said firmly.
"Yes," the younger woman retorted as she struggled to a sitting position. "You two go. I'll draw their fire."
"You have no idea how many of them are. They could kill you."
"As long as they don't kill you, I'm fine with that." She pulled out her gun. "Jack asked me to take care of you. That's what I'm doing. So go. Now. Please."
Teri rested a hand against her cheek. "Jack should be coming this way soon." She kissed Ava on the forehead. "I won't forget what you've done for my family today, Ava. Ever."
Ava nodded, giving her a watery smile. "They're my family too," she whispered. "Now go. Get off the path and head for the lake."
Wincing and gritting her teeth, Ava dragged herself to her feet. Taking aim, she began firing shots in the direction she thought the first bullet had come from. She saw Teri and Kim run away out of the corner of her eye as her assailants fired back at her. Diving behind a tree, she took cover and continued shooting.
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"We need to stay on the path," Rick insisted, his face pale from the blood he had lost.
Jack turned to face him. "They know we're here. I don't want to meet up with any of them trying to cut us off. And I'm almost certain Ava would have taken Teri and Kim off the path."
"Just don't get us lost," Rick muttered as he stumbled after him.
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"Green."
"Alberta, it's Jack."
"I've sent the team out. They're on their way."
"There's an old water tower by the lake – let them know we'll meet them there."
"Will do, Jack." She paused. "Good luck."
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Jack felt his heart plummet into his stomach as he and Rick reached the water tower. There was no sign of Teri and Kim. He looked everywhere, checking the ground for fresh footprints, but he could find nothing.
"Where could they be?" Rick asked, doubling over at the pain from his wound.
"I don't know," Jack whispered. He thought for a moment. "I have to go look for them."
"What if Gaines caught them again?"
He shook his head. "I can't think that. I'll go back. I'll find them."
Rick nodded, wincing again. Jack looked at him closely.
"There's no way you can go any further. Get in the water tower. Stay there. If Kim and Teri show up, tell them to wait for me."
"Be careful, Jack."
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He moved quickly, but quietly. Having no real idea which way Teri and Kim might have gone, he simply plunged into the woods, hoping for some sign. He knew that Ava would do everything in her power to protect them, and that she would also want to leave some clue for him as to where they had gone if they were forced into hiding.
Up ahead, Jack spied a cabin nestled between a copse of trees. He paused as he saw an Asian man come through the door, his focus on something Jack couldn't see. The man raised his gun, taking careful aim. As his finger applied pressure on the trigger, a shot rang out and he crumpled to the ground. Jack ran around the cabin, stopping and breathing a sigh of relief as he saw Teri and Kim staring at him. He ran to them, embracing them both tightly.
"When I couldn't find you at the water tower, I thought…"
"We were found," Kim told him. "We had to get off the path. And then we got lost."
Jack smiled gently at her and ran a hand though her hair. "Then I'm glad I found you," he murmured. Then he paused and looked around in confusion. "Where's Ava?"
His heart sank again as Teri's face fell.
"She got shot, Jack."
His chest constricted and he struggled to breathe.
"She made us leave. She distracted them while we ran."
"Is she…was she…" He couldn't say the words.
Kim told him what he needed to know. "She was still alive when we left, Dad. It looked like it was a hit to her shoulder."
He nodded, looking suddenly lost. Pulling himself together, he shook his head and refocused on what he had to do instead of things he couldn't change.
"Alright. I'm getting you two to the water tower. Rick is there waiting for you. A team from CTU is going to meet us there and get us out of here."
"What about Ava?" Teri asked. "We can't just leave her."
"We won't. After I get you to the lake, I'll come back for her." He paused. "I owe her that," he added quietly.
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Tony slumped in the chair at his desk and rested his head in his hands. His face still stung from where Jamey's mother had slapped him. She was outraged at the very idea that her daughter had done something illegal, and that they had accused her of knowing about it. He couldn't blame her, and he would have let her hit him as many times as she needed to, if it would have made her feel even the slightest bit better. But she had just stared at him with venomous eyes and then picked up the box containing her daughter's things before walking out.
Nina pulled up a chair and sat next to him.
"You believe her?" she finally asked.
"Yeah," he nodded. "I do."
"Me too. I hated doing that to her. I hate Green for making us do that to her."
"She was right though. I don't want to admit it, but there was a chance she had information. And it would have been on us if we hadn't looked into it."
The phone on his desk rang, and Tony wearily leaned over to pick the receiver up.
"Almeida."
"Tony, it's me."
"Jack! Is everything alright?"
"Not quite. How far out is the team?"
"Ten, fifteen minutes. Why?"
"I've gotten Teri and Kim to the water tower. They're waiting for the helicopter."
"Where are you?"
"I have to find Ava."
Tony froze, his throat dry and choking him. "What are you talking about?" he rasped.
"She got shot while she was trying to get Teri and Kim to the rendezvous point. She made them go ahead while she drew the gunman's fire."
"Do you know where she is?"
"Teri said somewhere along the path. I'm following it now." He paused. "Don’t worry, Tony. I'll find her."
"Bring her back, Jack," he whispered.
"I will."
Nina watched Tony closely, surprised at his sudden show of emotion. When it became clear that he didn't have anything else to say, she took the phone from him.
"Jack?"
"Yeah."
"We had Milo do some digging and we found out that the money in Jamey's account came from Belgrade."
"Dammit."
"You still think this is connected to Operation Nighthawk?"
"I'm almost certain now. Keep looking. I have to find Ava before the team gets here."
"What happened to her?"
"She got injured. Tony will fill you in."
As he hung up, Nina looked down at her boyfriend. "I'm sure he will," she murmured.
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Sounds of fighting reached Jack's ears as he moved further along the path. Slowing down, he took cover behind a large tree and peered out, trying to distinguish what was going on ahead of him.
His eyes rested on Ava locked in combat with a man he didn't recognize. Even from that distance, he could see how pale her face was, how much the fight was draining her. There was blood running down her left arm, but she didn't cradle or favor it. As he watched, she swung a quick right hook at the man's face, that he easily blocked by grabbing her hand. Unable to break his hold, Ava wasted no time in slamming her left fist into his nose. He stumbled back, clutching his face, and she continued with a hard upward kick to the head. She moved to knock him out with rotating kick, but at the last second he lifted his head and grabbed her ankle, throwing her backwards onto the ground. As she struggled to get back up, he rushed towards her, taking careful aim and slamming his foot onto her left shoulder and grinding his heel in.
Ava let out a horrendous yell, and Jack brought his gun up, intending to take the man out then and there. But before he could get the shot off, Ava swung her legs up and back, kicking the man square in the back and forcing him off of her. As he stumbled, she lunged for him, grabbing him around the waist and tackling him to the ground. Now they were entangled, rolling around the forest floor, and Jack couldn't fire – there was just as much chance that he would hit her instead of the man he was aiming for.
He watched in helplessness as they continued to fight. Ava managed to get the advantage, rolling on top of him and pinning him to the ground with his knees. She started pummeling him, sending resounding blows into his torso and face. When she seemed to be satisfied, she wrapped one hand around his neck and squeezed.
"I'm assuming you're Gaines," she said, clearly out of breath.
"Who the fuck are you?" he asked.
"Someone who's day you have thoroughly ruined," she gritted out, tightening her grip. "Now why the HELL did you kidnap Bauer's family?"
"He wanted to make it personal," Gaines smirked.
"Who?" Ava demanded.
"You'll find out eventually."
She pressed down on his throat. "I suck at waiting. It would be in both our interests for you to just tell me now.
As he sneered up at her, Gaines reached all around him until his hand settled on a large rock.
"Go to hell you fucking bitch," he growled as he swung the rock toward Ava's head.
She caught it out of the corner of her eye and threw herself to the side just in time, but she had now lost the advantage. Gaines scrambled to his feet, landing an angry kick to Ava's ribs. As she writhed on the ground, he pulled out his weapon and aimed it at her head.
Ava could see the muzzle of the gun pointing at her, but she couldn't seem to get herself off the ground in time. Everything slowed down and her vision narrowed until all she could see was Gaines' finger moving inexorably against the trigger.
A sound roared from behind him, and he stopped suddenly, blood pouring out of his mouth. He stared at Ava in surprise before stumbling forward and then falling face first onto the leaves around him. She stared at his body for a moment before looking up and locking eyes with Jack. He rushed over to her, turning her over and inspecting her wound.
"This looks nasty," he commented, obviously trying to keep himself under control.
"I'll live," she laughed, wincing at the sensation in her shoulder. "Can we go home now?"
"If by home you mean CTU, then yes, absolutely. Think you can walk?"
She nodded. "Just help me up."
He aided her with a gentle hand, watching her cautiously. He knew she was more injured than she was letting on, but they needed to get to the lake and arguing with her would only slow them down.
"The helicopter is meeting us at the lake," he told her.
"Onward ho," she mumbled as they started moving back up the path.
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They boarded the helicopter silently. Kim looked around as worry washed over her – Rick hadn't been in the water tower when she and her mom got there, and she had no idea where he had gone or if he was alright. But her father wouldn't wait, anxious to get them back to safety.
Ava was too tired to put a coherent sentence together, and she sat across from the Bauers as helicopter lifted from the ground. She watched them, the smallest of smiles teasing her lips as Jack wrapped his arms around his wife and daughter and kissed them both. The family was finally back together, and they could all breathe a little easier.
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"We've got a problem!" Tony called out to Alberta as she walked near his desk.
She immediately changed course and headed toward him.
"What is it?"
"We've been monitoring wire transfers from Belgrade – we have reason to believe a second assassin left Yugoslavia this morning."
"Do we have any idea where he is now?"
Tony nodded. "He arrived in L.A. this morning."
