AN: This is the forty-second installment of my personal challenge to write a tag for every episode. This is a tag to 2x21, Wind + Water, and it is also my first multi-chapter fic! I've been planning this fic for a really long time (like since the ep aired) and it's going to get dark, but not as dark as some of my previous tags. I'm not sure what my updating schedule is going to be, but you can probably expect at least one chapter per week after I finish the rest of the tags and write the follow-ups to those that have been requested (i.e., Jailhouse Blues, The Zodiac Strikes Back, Of Bear Traps and Gentle Hands, and Rough Hands). I will most likely be posting all of those followups in that order before I post the next chapter of this. But, I am very excited to write this. I know this first chapter kind of sucks, but I promise the rest of it will be much better. I hope you enjoy, and please leave a review!

Mac had no idea what he was going to do. He couldn't crash the car without getting himself shot in the process, and he wasn't in a position to be making any demands. All he could do was pray that Jack found him before the robbers made it off the island. It wasn't looking likely. He hadn't seen any other cars at all, or even any planes or choppers that might've been sent to look for him. For the first time in his life, Mac was angry that the roads were clear. In most cases, traffic and hazards in the road were a nuisance, but right now, Mac would've given anything for a tree across the road. But of course, he could never be so lucky.

"Turn at this marina, or your life ends now," the man with the gun said, the weapon still held against him. Mac did as he was told, his heart rate increasing more every second as his escape became less and less likely. He parked in the sparse lot, and turned towards the robber.

"Happy now?" he asked. "I got you to the marina, so you can let me go."

"You're not in a position to be making demands, boy," the robber said, pressing the gun even harder against Mac's temple. "You're ours now, just as much as the money is." The man turned his head to the other men but didn't release pressure on the gun. "Get the rope," he said. "If you move, I'll put a bullet in you."

Mac briefly closed his eyes and took a breath. He needed to remain calm if he was going to escape. The men in the back of the car got out, and one of them opened the door on the driver's side. Mac took a glance at him, and didn't resist when the man grabbed his hands from the steering wheel and harshly tied them in front of him. The man fed another rope through Mac's tied hands and held onto the end. He reached over to unbuckle Mac's seatbelt, then pulled him out of the car by the makeshift leash.

Eyeing the rope, Mac hoped he could use it to his advantage. It was long enough that if he could manage to surprise the man holding the end of it, he could wrap it around the man's throat and make him become the hostage instead. The man harshly pulled Mac along the dock and onto the first boat they came across, which happened to be a small yacht.

"I know you know how to hot wire a boat, so you better do it now," the lead robber said. Mac realized he still didn't know any of their names. He raised up his bounds hands with a look in his eyes that was both intensely annoyed and completely dumbfounded. "You're a smart kid. I'm sure you could even do it with your hands behind your back," the man said, taking a few more steps towards Mac and leveling the gun at his chest. Both turned back towards the road at the sight of another car speeding down. It had to be Jack. Mac couldn't contain his smile at the sight. Jack would save him, it was going to be okay. "Take him down there, now!" the man shouted at his fellow robber who was holding the rope. He quickly made his way down to the helm, dragging Mac behind him. The blond struggled against the pull, trying to stay out in the open where he knew Jack would see him. He could hear the car pulling into the marina, but he couldn't see it. The man had been able to pull him down into the yacht.

"Get this boat going now, or you'll be watching your friends die." The man pulled out his gun and trained it on Mac. Another one of the men came down and walked right up to Mac, giving a swift punch to the cheekbone to emphasize the situation.

Mac knew his friends were outmanned and outgunned. There was nothing he could do but start the boat and pray Jack and the others wouldn't get themselves killed. Mac briefly thought of his earlier idea to use the rope to strangle one of the men, but he knew it wouldn't work in the long run. They would call his bluff and kill his friends. But he would gladly give up his freedom for them.

His mind made up, Mac quickly got to the floor and started the boat as quickly as he could hot wire a car. As the yacht fluttered to life, Mac was pushed to the side by the man whose face was still blue, who took the helm. Using the distraction to his advantage, he made a last ditch effort to escape. No one was looking at him, so he quietly - yet quickly - got up and went to the top deck. He could hear the gunshots as the men fired at his friends.

Mac needed to know that Jack was still alive, and he needed Jack to know that he was still alive. Making a jump for it was the only thing Mac could think to do. But of course, luck was not on his side. The boards of the boat creaked loudly beneath him as he reached the deck, giving away his position to the man closest to him. He tried to jump for it anyway, but the man managed to catch the rope and pull him to the ground.

"Jack!" he shouted. He just needed to hear his voice, needed to know that his partner was okay before he taken away. It didn't look like he was getting out of this, at least not any time soon.

"Mac!" Jack shouted back. He was still alive. They hadn't killed him. That was all Mac needed to know. He stopped struggling quite as much, knowing that no matter what happened, Jack would never stop searching for him. His partner would go to the ends of the earth to find him, of that Mac was certain.

That knowledge in mind, Mac felt his fear lessening, despite the fact that the boat had pulled away and Jack's panicked shouts were sounding fainter. Everything was going to be okay. He would figure out a way to escape once they got to their destination, and even if he couldn't, Jack would find him. Jack always found him.