So, I really just wrote this because I figured there weren't enough Espo/Ryan fics on here. Enjoy! ;)
Oh, and I promise I'll get back to Defensor, which is completely different from this story.
Warnings: Contains explicit intercourse between two men, vulgar language, violence, rape and drugs.
Summary: When detective Ryan stumbles upon a major human trafficking ring, a price is put on his capture- dead or alive. And Esposito will make sure he does whatever it takes to get rid of it.
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Chapter one:
In which there is much stumbling and cursing.
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"Ryan, I need you to tell me exactly what happened, starting from when you left the precinct." I hunched my shoulders under Beckett's tired glare.
"I left, and got in my car to drive home," I started miserably, sinking down into the memory.
There was a crash on Lincoln, so I had to take 33rd to get to my apartment. My phone rang, and I looked down at the caller ID. It was Jenny. The engagement wasn't going well. We were fighting every other day, and she insisted that I wasn't doing enough to make the relationship work. She said that every day when I went off to work, she was worried I wasn't going to come back. I had told her that she would have to live with it or live without me, and she left. That was the first time she had called in a week.
I snorted and went to press ignore when something decidedly heavy crunched down on the hood of my car, making me drop my phone onto the floorboard. I cursed and slammed on the brakes, watching the body slide off the hood and onto the ground.
"What the hell?" I turned off the car and stumbled out. There hadn't been anyone on the road, I was sure of it. I ran around to the body and knelt down beside it. It was a young woman, barely twenty, with long, blond, (obviously dyed) hair. But the most noticeable attribute was a bullet hole right in between her wide set eyes. My head swung up toward one of the building next to me and saw a head disappear into one of the upper story windows.
"Freeze, NYPD!" I shouted and pulled out my gun, running into the building. And right into the arms of a room full of gunmen.
"What happened after that?" Beckett inquired. It was only then that I realized I had drifted off, thinking about the horrors I had seen in that building. I shrugged uncomfortably, a crease forming between my eyebrows.
"They took my gun and brought me to a room with a bunch of other people chained to the wall. They were mostly young girls, but there were some boys," he told her, trying to keep himself as detached from the experience as possible. "They chained me the wall as well and left for a few minutes, which gave me a bit of time to talk the girl next to me. The next thing I remember is waking up to an empty room with my gun next to me, and you guys bashing down the door. I think they drugged me." Beckett's eyebrows rose into her hairline.
"Human trafficking ring?" I nodded.
"That's what the girl told me," I replied. "She said that they had been there for a while. Some people had been bought or killed, and new ones came in every few days." Beckett nodded, obviously deep in thought.
"How did you find me?" I asked. Beckett smiled slightly.
"Esposito got worried. Said you hadn't met him at the café this morning and you weren't at the precinct when he got in. We tracked your phone, and found a dozen squad cars around your car and a body, but not a sign of you. Turns out one of the neighbors saw everything and was more than willing to tell us where you were once Esposito was through with him." I nodded slowly. It made sense. Neither of us ever blew off our morning coffee. Especially without even a text or phone call. "Speak of the devil." Esposito was marching over to the back of the ambulance where I was sitting.
"Yo," he addressed Beckett. "The only one that saw what happened was the man from before. He called the uniforms and they came to check out the body. Claims that he thought Ryan had already come back out of the building, which is why he didn't report that as well." Beckett frowned.
"Well, how did the men inside escape the building with a bunch of prisoners?" Espo sighed, clearly frustrated.
"The basements are all connected on this street. They probably went underground until they were out of the Uniforms view and then got transportation elsewhere."
"Well, why did they leave me?" Espo frowned thoughtfully.
"Ooohh, maybe they were aliens and they implanted a tracking device in your teeth!" Beckett rolled her eyes and turned around.
"Castle, that's completely ridiculous," she told the tall man who had just walked up behind her.
"Yeah, bro. It's more like they didn't want the full weight of the twelfth comin' down on their heads when we learned that they kidnapped one of our own." Beckett smirked at Castle.
"That's a much more likely theory, Esposito," she said. "Castle and I are going back to the precinct to set up the murder board for Jane Doe. Ryan, do you have somewhere you can go besides your apartment? The captain says that he wants you out of the line of fire until we can determine whether you're going to be a target or not."
"He can stay with me," Espo stated. "He'd be safer with another cop than at some hotel." Beckett looked at me, eyebrows raised. I nodded.
"Thanks, man." Espo nodded, his thoughts clearly somewhere.
"You'd do the same, bro."
"Okay, we've been here most of the day, so you two go home and get some rest. See in the morning." And with that, Beckett spun around and walked towards her car, Castle following after her like a stray dog.
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"What the fuck were you thinking?" I jumped at the low growl. Espo had been quiet for the entire car ride back to his apartment, clearly in deep thought.
"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.
"Dios mio," he muttered almost inaudibly. "You went into the field without any back up! Without even calling me! I'm your partner, bro. What were doing?"
That's why he's been really quiet, I realized. He's angry.
"I'm sorry," I said softly. "I thought the guy who threw the girl out the window was going to get away and I dropped my phone on the floorboard. I'm sorry, Javi." He visibly relaxed, and sighed.
"It's good, bro. I'm just glad you're alright." He pulled into his spot in the parking garage and shut off the car.
"I don't have anything to wear tomorrow," I realized, a bit too late. Espo paused on his way out of the car.
"You can just borrow some of my clothes. We're about the same size. We'll swing by your apartment on the way home tomorrow." I nodded and climbed out of the car.
"That'll work."
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I was back in that room again. The girl next to me was cowering against the wall, hoping to not be seen. I had lied to Beckett. I was conscious for a lot more than a few minutes. It had been more like a few hours. I could hear the screams of some poor girl on the far side of the room as she was beat for tripping one of the men and the low, muffled sobs of one of the boys being forced to blow another guy. I struggled weakly against the cuffs, my wrists already bloody. I was worn out from the drugs and trying to escape.
"It's no use," the girl next to me whispered. "If you don't stop, it'll be you next." I knew she was right. I could already feel the burning gaze of one of the men on me. So, I did the only thing I could. I stopped fighting and gave into the drugs. Eventually, I became aware that someone was calling my name.
"Kevin, Kev. C'mon, bro. Wake up." I struggled against the dream wearily, trying to come back into wakefulness. When I finally managed to open my eyes, I saw Espo leaning over me, a worried frown marring his features.
"Javi?" I muttered, confused. Then I remembered falling asleep on Espo's couch while watching one of his action movies. Some time during the night a blanket had found its way onto the couch and it slipped off my bare shoulder as I sat up. "What is it?" Espo knelt back on the carpet, turning his gaze to the floor.
"You were having a nightmare," he told me. I frowned.
"Oh, sorry for waking you up." Espo looked back up at me and smiled.
"It's a'ight," he replied in a light tone. "I just want to make sure you're not gonna fall asleep while doing for share of the paper work." I groaned, imagining all the forms that must be sitting on my desk, waiting to be filled out. Espo laughed at my miserable expression and patted my shoulder.
"Get some rest. You're gonna need it for tomorrow." I sighed and laid back down on the couch as Espo padded back into his room. The last thing I remember thinking is that Espo's couch smelled a lot better than Jenny's bed.
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When I woke up for the second time, it was to a beam of sunlight hitting my face. I groaned in displeasure and turned my face to bury it in the pillow. A low chuckle startled me, and I looked up, blinking blearily.
"Morning, honeymilk." Javier was sitting in a chair at the kitchen table in nothing but sweats and sipping a mug of coffee. I grunted in response. That stupid grin just widened.
"You are way too happy in the morning, man," I groaned, rubbing my eyes and swinging my feet around to the ground.
"Nah, bro, you're just too grumpy." I scowled at his smug grin and reached up to scratch my head. Javier made a low noise in his throat and the grin slipped from his face.
"What is it?" I froze my hand, trying to figure out what would make my partner react like that.
"You're bleeding through your bandages." He set his mug down on the table and got up. I brought my hand down and looked at it. Sure enough, the white bandages were stained a bright red. I sighed and watched Espo walk into his bathroom and stumble around, cursing. When he came back out, he was holding a first aid kit.
"C'mere." He nodded to the table and sat down. I got up from the couch and walked over to the other side, holding my hand out for the bandage he had pulled out of the kit. Instead of handing it to me, he pulled my arm forwards him. I shrugged and let him unwrap my right and then left wrist. He studied them for a moment, before glaring back up into my face.
"You said that you were only conscious for a few minutes. Unless they lined the cuffs with razors, it would have a taken a good bit longer to cause this much damage." I winced. I should have realized he would catch on. "Why'd you lie to Beckett? I read her report." I sighed, and looked down at where his dark hands were holding my pale ones.
"If I had told her, she would've demanded that I get counseling. I'm fine."
"Bro, you are not fine. You saw something in there and it's fucking with you." His grip on my hands tightened almost painfully.
"Javi, please. I'm fine," I pleaded. "I'll see someone if it gets bad, I promise. Just please don't tell Beckett." Espo let out his breath in a slow sigh, nostrils flaring, before slackening his grip on my hands.
"Fine, but if you have another nightmare, I'm going to Beckett." With that said, he began to rewrap my wrists.
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"Javi, you have no fashion sense." Espo smirked, watching me button up the ugly pinstripe dress shirt.
"It's the only one that would even remotely fit you," he said, obviously trying not to chuckle. "You're a lot smaller than I thought." I glared at him.
"You sure this isn't payback for me not calling you in for back up?"
"Would I do that?"
"Yes, you would." His grin reminded me of a hyena. Or a shark.
"Then, yeah. Consider it payback." I groaned and threw on the overly large suit jacket, before grabbing my things and following Javier out the door. Halfway down the hall, my phone started to ring. A quick glance showed that it was an unknown number. I pressed 'answer' and held the phone up to my ear.
"'Lo?" I grabbed Espo's sleeve and pulled him back so that he would stop.
"Detective Kevin Ryan?" A man asked over the phone.
"Yeah, who's this?" I put the phone on speaker at Javier gesture.
"You stumbled upon something you shouldn't have the other day. This is your only warning. We will find you, and we will kill you."
"Listen, you bastard. I don't know who you are, but you ain't layin' a hand on my partner, got it?" Javier growled. I just stood there in shock.
"Detective Esposito, I presume?" The voice menaced. "Protecting your boyfriend will only get you killed. Just stay out of this, and I'll make sure you don't get hurt."
"He's not-" I started to protest, but Espo was already replying.
"You're gonna have to get through me, pendejo." And then he grabbed the phone and snapped it shut, pushing me back through the hall.
"Back into the apartment, bro. We got some calls to make."
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So? What do you think?
Be gentle with me, it's my first time writing a slash fic. ;)