Chapter Text
Slipping Into Darkness
by wildlightning AKA foxhound7973
wildlightning@univision.com
After Martin was out of surgery and Danny knew that he was gonna be safe, Danny left the hospital unnoticed and without the doctor's consent. He went back to the office and continued looking for Dornvald. Later, after nearly getting the female doctor killed, Jack had a go at Danny in the clinic. No one had bothered to ask him or realized it, but Danny had been injured badly during the ambush. So, when Jack confronted him at the clinic for almost getting the doctor killed, the effects of his injuries took a toll and he collapsed. Unlucky for Danny, Jack didn't hold on to him on time and he hit the floor hard, causing further damage to Danny as he split his forehead open.
"Danny! Danny, come on, don't do this to me! Wake up, son!" Jack said fearfully but gruffly as he tapped Danny's face slightly hard but didn't get a response. "I need some help over here now!" He yelled urgently, causing the female doctor and a nurse to come to Danny's aid.
"What happened to him?" Dr. Klein asked seriously and concerned as she checked Danny's vital signs.
"I don't know. I was just talking to him and he collapsed. Why the hell isn't he waking up?" Jack said gruffly as fear was clearly evident in his voice but Dr. Klein didn't answer his question.
As Dr. Klein examined Danny, she got a horrified look in her eyes that caused a chill to run down Jack's spine.
"What the hell is going on?! What aren't you telling me?!" Jack yelled gruffly.
"You need to calm down right now, Agent Malone!" Dr. Klein yelled sternly as she and the nurses strapped Danny to a backboard and secured his head and neck. "Get Medevac here right now. Tell them that we have possible severe internal bleeding. Move." She said seriously and urgently, causing the nurse to run off to call the medevac unit.
"Are you going to tell me what the hell is going on or do I have to beat it out of someone?!" Jack yelled angrily out of fear, his words causing Dr. Klein to sigh heavily.
"I'm sorry Agent Malone, but right now Agent Taylor's in critical condition. He's not responding to stimuli-painful or otherwise and he's got severe bruising on his abdomen. It's possible that Agent Taylor's suffering severe internal bleeding and possibly a brain injury. I don't have the necessary medical equipment here that he needs, so I'm having him transferred to St. Lukes. They're the number one trauma hospital and they'll be able to help him better than I can right now." Dr. Klein said seriously but as gently as possible.
A nurse came running back and announced that the Medevac had arrived, so they rushed Danny to the helicopter. At first, the Medevac crew wouldn't let Jack go with Danny to the hospital. But Jack refused to leave Danny's side, so they relented and allowed him to ride along.
Once they arrived at the hospital, Jack was taken out to the waiting room while doctors treated Danny inside the trauma room. They began drawing Danny's blood and then had to intubate him when his lungs collapsed. Doctors had no luck reviving Danny, so they ordered a full body MRI. But the results they got back were devastating.
Three hours had passed and Jack was still pacing the waiting room, waiting to hear news on Danny, when a doctor arrived in the waiting room asking for him. As soon as Jack saw the sorrowful look on the doctor's face, he knew that the news was awful and just that thought alone caused his guts to wrench.
"Hello, my name is Dr. Jamie Gonzalez. Are you here for Agent Taylor?" She said gently but concerned for the pale figure standing before her.
"Yes, I'm Agent Malone. So, how is Agent Taylor doing?" Jack asked calmly but fear was clearly evident in his voice, causing his heart to fall out of his chest when the doctor sighed heavily and gestured for the chair.
"Please have a seat, Agent Malone." Dr. Gonzalez said gently, causing Jack to sit down.
"Whatever it is just tell me." Jack said gruffly out of fear and concern for Danny's safety.
"I'm really sorry but the news isn't good." Dr. Gonzalez explained as gently as possible and saw Jack grow paler before her eyes. "The MRI that we ran on him showed that Agent Taylor is suffering from severe internal bleeding. He's also got a very serious brain hemorrhage." She explained as gently as possible.
"Where is he now? Is he awake yet?" Jack said calmly but fearfully as his voice broke.
"I'm afraid he isn't. We were able to stabilize his vital signs for the moment, so he's upstairs being prepped for surgery." Dr. Gonzalez said seriously but gently.
"How long is the surgery going to take?" Jack asked softly but devastated as his voice broke.
"Because of the severe extent of his injuries, the surgery can take anywhere from eight to twelve hours. Now, I'm really sorry, but I have to go prepare for his surgery. I'll have them give you information as soon as I can. If you need to use the phone or need anything at all, let the staff know and they'll help you. I already ordered that you be allowed full access to the phone. Now, if you'll excuse me, I really must go attend to Agent Taylor." Dr. Gonzalez explained gently as she shook Jack's hands and left.
Over the next eight hours, doctors worked hard to repair Danny's injuries and they had gotten lucky. However, that luck turned awry when they were closing Danny's incisions. Danny's heart began beeping rapidly and he flatlined. Doctors tried everything thing they knew to get him back. They tried shocking him, giving him drugs and one doctor even massaged his heart with his hand to get it going again. Danny's heart had been lifeless for ten minutes and they were ready to pronounce him dead, when Danny's heart began beating again and he began breathing on his own.
Jack hadn't moved from the waiting room in over eight hours and he was exhausted. He saw Dr. Gonzalez coming to him and immediately stood up from the chair, but only to be sat down again by the doctor.
"What happened?" Jack said very concerned as his heart began to beat rapidly, causing it to beat violently when Dr. Gonzalez gently held his hand tightly and sighed heavily.
"Jack, I need you to remain calm. But the news isn't good, I'm sorry." Dr. Gonzalez explained very gently as she held his hand tightly, causing Jack to blanch a little. "We were able to repair the damages to Danny's brain and stop the bleeding but when we were finishing...he flatlined for ten minutes. We tried all we could and gave him drugs and shocked him. Now, we were able to get him back. But, I'm afraid that he suffered brain damage due to the lack of oxygen. I'm sorry, but there's only a one percent chance that Danny will ever recover." Dr. Gonzalez explained very gently but sadly, causing Jack to cover his mouth in shock.
"But, there's still a one percent chance that he'll wake up-I mean that he'll be all right?" Jack said with emotion and concerned etched in his voice, but the doctor sadly shook her head and gently squeezed his hand.
"I'm so sorry, Jack, but it is unlikely that Agent Taylor will survive the night. And even if he does survive the night, he'll have to wake up within the next 8-12 hours. Or it's unlikely that he'll ever wake up." Dr. Gonzalez explained as gently as possible.
"Danny's a fighter, he's tough. He's one of my toughest agents. I know he'll wake up. I just know it. He's too damn stubborn not to." Jack said with conviction.
The doctor shook her head sadly. "Even if he does wake up, there's no telling what condition he'll be in." Dr. Gonzalez explained sadly and it caused Jack to look at her questioningly and defiantly.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Jack asked gruffly as he glared at the doctor.
"Because Agent Taylor's brain was deprived of oxygen for so long, when he flatlined in the O.R. and also the extent his injuries went untreated, it's very possible that he'll remain in a vegetative state for the rest of his life and will not be able to function normally." Dr. Gonzalez said very gently and cautiously as she saw Jack turn complete white as he began panting and sweating.
At that moment, Jack felt as though all of the air had been sucked out of him and he collapsed onto the hospital floor in utter shock and disbelief. Dr. Gonzalez knelt in front of him as she called for help. Help arrived and they rushed Jack inside on a gurney to a trauma room and began treating him.
Jack tried to fight her off along with the nurses and orderly who came to his aid. So, they restrained him to the gurney with hard restraints and then Dr. Gonzalez stabbed him with a syringe and injected Jack with a sedative to calm him down. Jack immediately fell asleep and didn't wake up for several hours later when Dr. Gonzalez came in to check on his condition.
"How are you feeling, Jack? You gave us a hell of a scare." Dr. Gonzalez asked gently but concerned as she checked his heart rate, breathing and blood pressure, causing Jack to glare openly at her as he growled angrily.
"You didn't have to do that." Jack exclaimed weakly but gruffly as he was still obviously angry with her for putting restraints on him and giving him a sedative.
"You were out of control and needed to be calmed down. You were so angry from what I told you, that you tried to attack my nurses and orderly. Just be thankful that I didn't call security on you." Dr. Gonzalez said sternly but caringly because she understood all too well what he was going through.
As Dr. Gonzalez spoke, Jack suddenly remembered that he was there for Danny.
"Wait a minute. How's Danny? How long has he been out? Is he awake already? Answer me." Jack said urgently but gruffly.
"Calm down. Otherwise, I'll have to sedate you again." Dr. Gonzalez said sternly but Jack nodded and took a breath. "Regarding Agent Taylor, I'm afraid that there hasn't been any change in his condition. He's been unconscious for nearly ten hours." She explained gently, her words causing tears to escape Jack's eyes.
"Can I see him?" Jack said solemnly and tears stained his weary face as he remembered the doctor's warning about Danny having to wake up in the next eight to twelve hours.
Dr. Gonzalez wouldn't answer his query but that's when Jack noticed the uneasiness his question had caused her.
"Please? I'll stay calm, I promise. I mean, if he's...going to..." Jack couldn't utter those words. "I don't want him to be alone if he's... going to die." Jack cried softly but solemnly.
Dr. Gonzalez relented and had Jack transferred to Danny's room in the ICU. She knew that Jack shouldn't be there but she felt sorry for him. By Jack's reaction to Danny's condition, it was obvious that her patient meant more to Jack that just another agent. Danny was family to Jack.
Dr. Gonzalez made Jack wear protective gear to go in and be with Danny. Once protected, she gently sat Jack on a chair next to Danny's bed. Jack was shocked to see Danny connected to all of those machines and tubes entering every crevice of Danny's cold and lifeless body. But despite all of that, Jack tried to fill Danny with some warmth and held his hand tightly in his own as he cried.
"Danny, it's me Jack. You have to listen to me now, okay? You have to wake up, Danny-boy. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let you go back into the field today and I should've asked you how you were really doing. Instead, I got blindsided by my rage and need for revenge on Dornvald for what he did to you and Martin." Jack cried regretfully as he continued to hold Danny's hand tightly.
All of a sudden, the heart monitor began beeping rapidly and then its tone changed to a blaring beeeeeeeeeeep as Danny flatlined yet again. The medical team immediately ran into Danny's room yelling frantically as they started trying to revive him.
"Code Blue! Code Blue!" The medical team yelled frantically as they began working to save Danny's life.
Dr. Gonzalez grabbed the paddles and shocked Danny several times and injected medication intravenously. Then, finally after all hope was gone and she was going to pronounce Danny dead, the heart monitor started beeping again. Danny's heart was beating again. He was alive once again.
"We got him!" Dr. Gonzalez yelled relieved.
"How is he? Damn it, tell me!" Jack yelled angrily as tears stained his face.
"Calm down, Jack or I'll have you removed from here immediately!" Dr. Gonzalez yelled sternly as she checked Danny's vital signs and sighed heavily. "He's stable at the moment but he's still critical. I'm sorry, but if we lose him again, we might not get him back. I'm gonna order some tests for him and I'll be right back. I'm sorry, Jack." She said sadly as she gently squeezed his shoulder and left Danny's room.
Jack sighed heavily as tears stained his face and he took a hold of Danny's hand as he cried. The deadline for Danny to awaken had long passed. Danny had been in a coma for twenty-four hours. And yet, there remained Jack, hopeful that Danny would wake up. However, his hopes began failing him when Dr. Gonzalez informed him that the tests showed that Danny wouldn't wake up. The news left Jack completely devastated.
"I'm sorry, Jack, but we've done all that we can for him. And I hate to do this to you now, but you're going to have to make a difficult decision. You're gonna have to decide if you wants us to keep him on life support or if you want us to take everything off." Dr. Gonzalez explained sadly and gently, her words causing Jack to cry inconsolably.
"Please, just give me some time alone with him." Jack cried distraught as he held on to Danny's hand, causing her to gently squeeze his shoulder.
"Of course, Jack. Take all the time you need. If you need anything else, let us know." Dr. Gonzalez said sadly as she left the room.
THIRTY-TWO HOURS LATER...
Although Jack had lost all hope by this time, he decided to leave Danny on life support because he couldn't bring himself to let Danny go yet. He felt so hopeless that he did the only thing he could think of-he began praying. He hadn't done it in a long time because he'd lost his faith. But as Danny laid there lifeless, he felt that only a higher power could save Danny now. So, he took a hold of Danny's hand in his own and began praying.
He finished praying and laid his head on Danny's bed as he gave in to sleep- he was so exhausted after not having left Danny's side since he flatlined. An hour later, he felt, what he thought to be Danny's hand lightly squeezing his own. He woke up and quickly looked down and saw that he hadn't been dreaming. Danny was indeed moving but his eyes remained closed.
"Danny, squeeze my hand! Come on, Danny-boy! Squeeze my hand right now!" Jack said as his voice was raw with emotion, causing his heart to jump out of his chest when Danny complied and weakly squeezed his hand. "Danny can you open your eyes for me?" He said emotionally as tears streamed down his face.
Danny tried really hard but he couldn't open his eyes because they felt like they been glued shut.
"Danny-boy, come on. Open your eyes for me. I know you can do it. Come on or your ass will stay in the dog house for a year." Jack said as his voice was filled with raw emotion.
Danny slowly opened his eyes to a crack and a blurry image appeared before him. "Good, Danny-boy, you're doing great." Jack said as his voice shook and he tightly held Danny's hand and soothed his head.
Danny soon realized that he couldn't breathe because something was lodged in his throat. So, he started panicking and tried to take out whatever was taking his air away. Jack, however, quickly grabbed Danny's weakly flailing arms before Danny could take out the ET breathing tube.
"Danny, calm down! You're in the hospital! You have a tube in your throat that's helping you breathe! So, calm down and leave it alone!" Jack said sternly as he held Danny's arms carefully but somewhat tightly.
Danny weakly tried to get free from Jack's tight grips but he soon gave up on that idea when he realized that there was no point in trying.
"You're in the hospital, Danny. You collapsed after Dornvald escaped from that clinic. Do you remember what happened?" Jack asked fearfully but hopeful, causing Jack to sigh in relief and breathe shakily when Danny weakly nodded.
Dr. Gonzalez quickly rushed into the room after the ICU staff informed her that Danny had regained consciousness.
"Agent Taylor? My name's Dr. Gonzalez and I've been handling your care. Can you understand what I'm telling you?" She asked gently but concerned, causing her to sigh in relief when tears escaped Danny's eyes as he nodded. "I need you to shake yes or no if you can feel what I do to you." She explained gently.
Dr. Gonzalez began checking Danny's reflexes, causing her to smile when she scraped his feet and hand with a sharp instrument and he curled his fingers and toes and then glared at her. She told him to squeeze her hands and move his feet and he did, earning a fearful Jack a smile from her.
"Do you know what happened to you and how you got here?" Dr. Gonzalez asked gently and Danny nodded.
Danny suddenly thought of Martin and began looking at Jack fearfully as the monitor beeped a little rapidly, causing jack to quickly and tightly grasp his hand.
"Hey, calm down, Danny-boy. I know why you're scared but don't be. Martin's okay. It was touch and go but he pulled through. He'll have to be on a junk-food free diet for a while but he's going to be fine; you both are. And soon you'll be making go bald from worry. You see this spot?" Jack said smiling as he pointed to his head and Danny looked at him. "Yeah, this is thanks to you and Martin driving me crazy with worry. Pretty soon I'm gonna be completely bald. So, I want you to get your lazy ass out of that bed and get back to work as soon as possible. Do I make myself clear, Agent Taylor?" Jack said in a mock stern tone as he smiled, causing him to laugh loudly and happily when Danny's eyes crinkled in mirth and he tried to laugh.
"Calm down and don't try to laugh, Agent Taylor. We'll be right back." Dr. Gonzalez said kindly as she smiled, causing Danny to smile again and nod.
Astonished, Dr. Gonzalez brought Jack out of the room and into the hall.
"So, how is he? How's he doing?" Jack asked Dr. Gonzalez.
"I can't explain this. There's no reason for him to even be responsive but apparently he knows everything that's happened in the last few days. I'll have to run some extensive tests to make sure that there isn't any permanent damage but his prognosis...is...positive. This is a miracle. I've never seen anything like it." Dr. Gonzalez said genuinely happy for her patient as she smiled from ear to ear.
"Can I stay with him? Please?" Jack asked smiling as he looked at Danny, causing Dr. Gonzalez to smile when she turned around and saw Danny looking at Jack as he weakly held out his hand and mirth crinkled his eyes.
"Of course, you can stay with him, Jack. I'll go order the tests and then I'll be back. Go with him." She said kindly and Jack gladly returned to the room.
She couldn't stop herself from smiling when she saw Danny weakly grab Jack's hand and squeeze it lightly as his eyes twinkled. She departed smiling as she left to order the tests for Danny.
All the tests came back normal and Danny was released three weeks later. After a lot of pleading and begging, Jack allowed Danny to go back to work six weeks later, with the doctor's permission, but only light desk duty.
Danny walked to Jack's office one morning a week after he started working again and knocked on his door.
"Come in." Jack said gruffly not knowing that it was Danny at the door, causing him to immediately worry when the door opened and Danny stood before him. "Danny what's the matter? Are you okay?" He asked concerned as he motioned for Danny to come in and close the door.
"Yeah, I'm okay, Jack. I just...uh...wanted to thank you for letting me come back to work this soon." Danny said nervously.
"You're welcome, Danny. But don't think that you're gonna be leaving the office anytime soon. You're gonna work light duty and if I see you looking even a little sick, your ass is going back home. I'll even have another agent escort you to make sure you stay there if I have to. Do you understand me? And I'm gonna watch you like a hawk, so don't think that you can pull a fast one on me again." Jack said with a smirk. "Jack, I'm fine." Jack said mocking Danny's earlier comment and then smiled. "Go on, get out of here." Jack said with a grin from ear to ear as he motioned for the door.
"Thanks, Jack." Danny said smiling but with a tinge of nervousness and sadness in his voice that Jack noticed. "Well, I better get back to work." He said smiling softly as he bit his bottom lip and left Jack's office.
And whether Danny knew it or not, Jack was keeping a close eye on him. Danny may not have thought that he'd shown any emotion of how he really felt being back at work, but his boss and friend, Jack Malone clearly saw the tears that escaped Danny's eyes as he sat at his desk once again. And just as quickly as they came, Danny looked around to make sure that no one could see him and just as quickly wiped the tears away. Yes, Jack thought, he'd definitely have to keep very close, hawk eyes on his young agent.
end part 1