Author's Note:
So this idea popped into my head, and it kinda wouldn't leave me alone. With all of the recent episodes, I thought I'd stray a little away from what's going on in the season right now. This is set after season five, and Deeks and Kensi still haven't quite declared their thing official. My penname, NavyStrong42099, is dedicated to my brother. Please let me know if you want me to continue this.
-C
Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS: Los Angeles, nor will I ever, and this applies for every chapter that follows.
Six Hours Ago
"You good, Kens?" Deeks asked, tossing his famous concerned glance at her as she zipped up her leather jacket.
"I'm good. Just waiting for this op to be over with already," she let out an exasperated sigh. Kensi turned away from the mirror and faced Deeks.
"Right. Well, Sam and I will be in overwatch. If everything goes according to plan, we'll have time to get a couple of beers tonight." The detective ran a hand nervously through his shaggy locks.
Kensi gave him a small smile. "Sounds like a plan to me."
Somebody cleared their throat a few feet away, and the partners finally noticed Callen standing there expectantly. Once the senior agent was sure that he wasn't interrupting anything, he spoke.
"Time to go. The meet's set an hour from now."
"That's my cue," Kensi said, shoving her hands deep into her pocket and following Callen to the armory.
Things didn't go according to plan. There were no celebratory beers that night.
Deeks didn't understand how anything could go so wrong. After all, the case started on any normal day.
Two Weeks Ago
"Sean Connery is the best bond, there's no question about it," Callen argued. "All the other guys are too flashy."
"Too flashy?" Sam chuckled. "Connery started the whole 'playboy' thing. That's not who Bond was in Fleming's novels."
"Nah, I have to agree with Callen here. He was definitely the best," Deeks spoke up.
"You have to agree with me, Kensi," Sam asked the younger agent.
The brunette opened her mouth to speak, but Deeks cut her off. "You're really gonna ask Kensi about comparing books to movies?"
"Hey!" she protested.
"He does have a point," Callen mused.
"Daniel Craig brings out the character that Ian Fleming originally wrote in the books. Therefore, he is the best Bond."
Kensi made a face. "But Pierce Brosnan is way cuter than the others."
The three males shot her a look of disgust.
"007, reporting for duty!" Eric called from the staircase, breaking up the long debate. "Sorry to ruin the fun, but we have a high profile case. And I will have you know that Daniel Craig obviously makes the coolest James Bond."
"See?" Sam waved his arms fiercely as the team made their way upstairs.
"We gotta find them," Deeks grimaced, clutching his arm in pain.
Sam gave him a mournful look. "If they found us here, they already found Kensi and G."
"Meet the Salinas Cartel, although, you probably should have already heard of them," Nell began the briefing.
Kensi shook her head. "Doesn't ring a bell."
Deeks raised his eyebrows. "Seriously? These guys fund every homegrown terrorist organization in the continental U.S. I can't begin to count how many operation the LAPD alone has conducted to try and topple their business."
"As Deeks was saying, they wouldn't have come into our jurisdiction. That is, until two days ago," Eric added. He pulled up a picture on screen. "This is Navy Admiral Joshua Lawrence. He washed up on the beach near Coronado with his throat slit in an X pattern."
More gruesome photographs of the crime scene were revealed, showing the details of how the Admiral was murdered.
"It's the sign of the Salinas Cartel. Two of our undercover operators were found like this," Deeks growled.
"And of course, NCIS in San Diego looked into Lawrence's records to try to find out why the Salinas family would take an interest in him," Nell continued to explain.
"It was found that he was working for the Salinas Cartel. He helped them conduct business all along the west coast and even used Naval ships to carry merchandise transglobally. They must have had a fallout because as you can see, he is very dead," Eric continued.
"Why is NCIS in San Diego handing this over to us?" Callen inquired.
"Because, Mr. Callen, they are a bit overwhelmed in their case load right now. With so little man power, they thought it better to let an elite team carry out this mission," Hetty answered as she prowled through the doorway.
"Not to mention that Los Angeles is the center of their operations north of the border," Deeks offered some insight.
"So what's the plan here?" Kensi inquired, not taking her eyes off the screen. "Clearly other operations have failed."
"Lucky for us," Nell said, "Lawrence wasn't the only one aiding the Salinas Cartel."
"His son, Patrick Lawrence, was dishonorably discharged from the Navy eight years ago. After seeing what happened to his father, he agreed to help us," Eric finished.
"Mr. Lawrence has agreed to insert two operatives in the ranks of the Salinas Cartel with the promise of expanding their business to the east coast. They are an extremely allusive power in the underworld, ladies and gentlemen. Ms. Blye and Mr. Callen will be on the ground, and-"
Deeks cut Hetty off. "You're splitting us up?"
"Need I remind you that this is a team, Mr. Deeks? Their language skills will be pertinent to this case. Our mission is to find whoever killed Admiral Lawrence, flip him, and then DEA can handle taking down the rest of the cartel from there. You and Mr. Hanna will conduct overwatch for the duration of this operation."
"Well, we need to try!" Deeks protested angrily. He kicked the closest piece of rubble, sending a red hot pain up his already bruised foot.
"I didn't say we wouldn't."
One Week Ago
"The Salinas Cartel has a lot of contacts," Deeks murmured, snapping another picture of the meeting going on.
"It's nothing we haven't handled before," Sam reassured him.
"Problem is, nobody can ever link anybody to the head of it and what not. They have connections everywhere, Sam. It's why nobody can get close."
The ex-Navy SEAL rolled this over in his head before pressing his com closer in his ear, as if that would help make out what was being discussed at the meeting. "We're not like other agencies. Not even like other divisions of NCIS. They're legends are solid. Nobody knows who we are."
"I hope not," Deeks muttered. "Let's move. It looks like the meeting's over."
What gave them the upper hand was the exact thing that made them fall so far.
Twenty-Four Hours Ago
"We're being given the location of the drug supply tomorrow," Callen told them in the boat shed late one night. "Thanks to Lawrence's track record with the cartel, they were quick to trust us."
"The Wonder Twins said that there's been a lot of activity on your accounts. So far your legends are holding up, but just be careful," Sam warned them.
Kensi flicked a finger against her beer bottle. "Hopefully this will be over soon."
"Yeah, but we won't make a dent in the cartel's operation," Deeks pointed out.
"Our job is to gain sufficient evidence to indict the person who killed Admiral Lawrence, not take down the cartel."
"Kensi's right. The DEA haven't left Hetty alone since we started this," the team leader commented. "It'll all come into play in the morning. Go home and get some sleep. You've earned it."
How did it come to this?
Five Hours Ago
"Everything's set. We'll have the truck pick up the supplies and bring them to the cargo ship. Our contact will make sure it reaches New York Harbor safely and deliver it to your contact there," Callen explained to a man they had come to know as Axel. It wasn't his real name by any means, but it was a start.
Axel smiled crookedly and paced the length of the warehouse slowly.
From afar, an uneasy feeling churned in Deeks's stomach.
"Not today."
With an ear-shattering noise, the coms broke out, and the line went out. Deeks removed it and smashed it underneath his foot in anger. Damn! They were too far away from the warehouse.
"We gotta move," Sam urged.
Deeks didn't need to be told twice. He grabbed his gun, ensured that it was loaded, and raced after the senior agent. They picked their way down the hill slope the had been forced to park at the top of until the pair finally hit concrete. Deeks approached the warehouse stealthily, worry groping at his heart every inch of the way.
When the temporary partners came at a side door, they forced it open and were disappointed to find a lack of any human presence. Deeks yelled and slammed his fist against the wall.
"Let's head back to Ops. We'll find them from there," Sam said as he holstered his gun.
Returning to the ancient Spanish mission had been the worst mistake of their lives. To the agents' credit, there was no way they could have spotted the tail. It had consisted of multiple cars constantly changing. But there was no placation for their mistake now.
Deeks howled, staring at the burning remains of the Office of Special Projects. Rubble was blown everywhere. Fire trucks and ambulances populated the normally quiet street, hurrying people to emergency rooms or covering their bodies with sheets.
"They found us," the detective whispered hollowly. "What was it, six years? And not even the neighbors knew? THIS IS OUR FAULT."
"Deeks. Deeks, we have to move. The Salinas Cartel is going to be looking for us, and the best thing we can do is distance ourselves. Come on. Kensi and Callen need our help." The ex-Navy SEAL managed to pull Deeks away from where he was rooted to the concrete.
"Nell…Eric…Hetty? Sam, they could all be- we don't know if- I would never forgive myself-"
"Get your head in the game, Deeks!" Sam brought him back to his senses. He faced the blond surfer. "Now we have our friends out there who need our help. And we have a mission, and we'll be damned if we don't get the job done- one way or another."
The detective's blue eyes narrowed and gave him a curt nod. The Salinas Cartel had hurt what mattered most to them, and they were sadly wrong if they thought they would walk away without some scars of their own.
"Let's find Kensi and Callen. And then we'll kick their ass."
Thoughts?