Marty Deeks woke up, ready to head off to work but it was quiet and he was late getting up. It wasn't that rare for the detective to arrive there late, but it was usually due to traffic or the odd perfect wave for him to surf that he just couldn't resist.
Deeks was usually awoken early in the morning by Monty; his dog had never let him oversleep in all the time he had owned him. Why would he start now?
"Monty?" Deeks called, but there was no reply or any sound at all from anywhere in his apartment. He was worried that the dog was unwell or injured, moments later it turned out that it wasn't Monty he should be afraid for; it was himself.
Four huge men – not unlike Sam – flanked a dark figure in his living room. Deeks knew his gun was in his bedroom but the second he tried to run back for it, the four men grabbed him and held him tightly. Presumably they were the stranger's bodyguards, they were worryingly strong and almost certainly had experience in combat. Then Deeks noticed Monty lying on the sofa unconscious, Deeks was afraid that his trusty and loyal dog was dead, until the figure spoke.
"Don't worry; your dog is drugged, not dead. This doesn't need to be difficult Detective, it could be the easiest thing you do today. But knowing your reputation, it may not be." Deeks looked at the man but his face was shielded from view and it was still dark in the apartment as he hadn't had the chance to open the curtains.
"Why are you here?" Deeks asked, holding his nerve.
"I want some information, not much – in fact, I would be reasonably happy with a simple address." The man's voice was deep and rough, he sounded older; perhaps fifty years old (at a guess). Deeks wasn't entirely sure what he was going on about or how to answer the man. "I will give you a name and I want you to get me all the info you have on the man." That made a little more sense, but also ensured that Deeks would have to refuse.
"I can't do that." He said, trying to keep his voice steady.
"But on the contrary, you most certainly can. I know that you are not just a detective with the LAPD; I know that you work closely in an undercover team. I do not know the agency, but I know where your partner lives and almost all of your team. If you don't follow my instructions I will kill you." Deeks took a deep breath before answering.
"I can deal with that." His shaky statement made the stranger laugh.
"Perhaps, but your team will share the same fate as you. If you get me the information, I will let you live and they will live too. If you don't or you betray me to the police, you will die and so will they." Deeks was defeated, he could not allow the team to be further compromised or in any way harmed – not because of him anyway. He had only one choice.
"Fine, just leave my team out of this." He said, still kept motionless by the bodyguards.
"I have your number; expect my call after you reach work." Then he nodded to his men, who punched Deeks in his stomach, back and sides. He stayed down on the ground until they left and he heard their vehicle pull away. The detective checked through the window, there were no plates or anything identifiable on the black van they used.
Callen was worried; he felt that something wasn't quite right with Deeks being late. He still hadn't arrived and he should have just over an hour ago. As senior team leader it was his job to keep an eye out for the other agents, but Hetty didn't share his concern.
"He's probably just lost track of time surfing or whatever it is that usually makes him late." But Callen's instinct told him something was off and it was almost never wrong, so he shouted up to Eric – a keen surfer and their technical operator.
"What's it like for surfing this morning?" Eric raised an eyebrow at Callen's question but answered quickly.
"Awful, I doubt you'll find anyone but kids out there this morning. Why?" Callen's suspicions heightened.
"Deeks is late, check the traffic." Eric quickly tapped the tablet he carried and frowned.
"It's all clear, except the usual through the tourist areas. Nowhere Deeks could have driven through is backed up in any way." Callen frowned and asked Eric to track the GPS in Deeks' car and phone.
"They're both here." He shouted back downstairs.
"What?" Callen asked, just as Deeks made his way into the building. Callen took one look at him and saw what must have happened. "Everyone to Ops… now!" The team leader shouted, sending his team and even Hetty up the stairs in a startled hurry. Callen waited as the detective came over to him, he hadn't needed any info; he could see someone had gotten to Deeks.
"Do you need a medic?" He asked first. Deeks shook his head but kept his arm over his side and stomach protectively. "Come on then." He said. Deeks appreciated Callen not offering him a hand; the agent knew the detective would not appreciate it. Callen walked just behind Deeks as they took the stairs up to Ops and only had to catch him once, as Deeks wobbled on the edge of a step. But neither of them mentioned it and they continued up to Ops.
"Mr Callen I hope you have a good explanation for ordering us all up here without a word of warning." Hetty only noticed the way Deeks was leaning on a desk after she finished speaking. "Ah!" She sighed.
"Deeks? What happened to you?" Kensi asked, rushing to fuss over her partner. Deeks finally managed to calm her down and quickly explained what had happened in his apartment that morning, leaving his friends surprised and concerned about a great deal of things.
Why Deeks? Were they severely compromised? How would they play this? It was Callen that spoke first.
"They are going to call any minute, Deeks I want you to take the call and act as if you are going to follow their orders. You put your phone on speaker and we will all be silent. Eric, you try and run a trace – you won't get one but there's no harm in trying – and Nell… as soon as we have a name, run it through the system."
Deeks took to sitting in the nearest chair as the others all awaited the call. Eric signalled to Callen that he was ready to run the trace and Nell nodded, she was also ready.
The whole team waited for only a few minutes in silence, with Ops sealed off so as to ensure no interruptions and the video-feeds shut down incase the director initiated a conference call during the phone call. When Deeks' phone actually rang, everyone stared at it until Deeks answered the call and put it on speaker.
Callen listened to the man on the other end of the phone line; at a guess Callen could profile him in seconds. Between fifty and sixty years old (probably closer to the lower), obviously male and American – sounded Californian – and vaguely familiar to Callen in some way.
"Deeks."
"Detective, are you alone?" Deeks looked at Callen and Callen shook his head, this man would know if Deeks lied, Callen could sense that.
"No."
"Is it safe to talk?" Callen nodded.
"Yes."
"Good. Find the person we are looking for; we only need an address. If you don't we will kill everyone you love and care for, starting with your lovely partner." Deeks paled but kept up the discussion, hoping Eric can pin down the stranger's location. "Do you understand?" He asked. But Deeks was scared and went silent for a moment. "Do you understand?"
"Yes… How will I let you know?"
"I will call you at nine pm. I want you to find… Gabriel Callen." The stranger cut off and Eric cursed.
"I nearly had him, he stopped just in time, in case he was being traced." But Callen wasn't listening; he was trying to keep himself standing and composed.