Thanks so much for all the nice comments about the first chapter of this. I really appreciate them. And the couple of you who commented that it would be longer than two chapters were right lol. I think only three but no promises. In any case, this is a big cliffhanger so if you don't like that kind of thing, you might want to wait until the story is completed before going on. For those who decide to continue, thanks :)
xxxxx
As a child, he'd found the darkness comforting, an escape from the harsh realities of some of the foster homes he had lived in. He'd always been small for his age and it had been easy to find a closet and hide in the back corner, behind hanging coats or suits and dresses. One particularly cruel foster mother had locked him in a closet on more than one occasion, never knowing that he'd found it a source of solace, a way to escape a beating or other cruelties which he'd experienced. However, this time, he took no such comfort in the darkness. He reached his arms up and pressed as hard as he could against the unforgiving wood. He immediately knew his efforts were useless. "Help! Can anyone hear me!"' he shouted. He was pretty sure his calls were in vain though and he stopped yelling, wanting to conserve his supply of air.
He couldn't help but wonder if the team had any idea about the type of predicament he was in. Sam had been borderline obsessed when Commander Jason Rehme's daughter, Amanda had gone missing and they had discovered she had been buried alive. His single-minded focus to find the girl had led them to successfully do so. She had been found alive and reunited with her father. He couldn't help but think about Michelle though. They hadn't been successful in finding her and he would always carry that with him, knowing what it had done to her family. Now, he empathized even more with what she had gone through and what she might have been feeling, especially regarding her husband and children. It was times like this he was grateful he had no wife or children he'd be leaving behind.
He couldn't help but think about how much air he had left. If Sam was in this situation, he'd be able to calculate it, but then again, he wasn't sure how long he had been unconscious. Maybe he was close to the end of his air supply already. He tried to take slow and shallow breaths, realizing panic would cause him to take deeper breaths, making the air run out even sooner. He didn't mind admitting he was scared silly. A bullet to the head would certainly be preferable to this way of dying. He wondered how long it would take. He wondered who had put him here and why. He wondered if the team was making any inroads investigating what had happened to him. Maybe they would never find him. In all honesty, if he died here in this little tomb, he'd rather they didn't. He couldn't imagine how Sam would react after having lost Michelle in a similar way and Hetty...he didn't want to put her through it either. However, unless they were convinced he'd gone off lone wolf, he didn't think anyone would react well to his disappearance, whether he was found or not.
xxxxx
Sam had left the interrogation room and was now pacing around the boat shed like a madman. Deeks followed him shortly after. "Are you okay?"
"Do you think I'm okay, Deeks?" Sam asked turning on the younger man angrily. "My partner is underground God knows where with who knows how much air. What do you think?!"
"I'm sorry," Deeks said, "but this isn't helping."
"Don't you think I know that! I know it's not helping. He's not going to tell us though. He's getting off on this. He thinks it's a goddamn game."
"Maybe he'll tell us."
"You know he won't. This is a punishment aimed at me. If we don't find him ourselves…" Sam trailed off, unable to finish the sentence, knowing he didn't have to.
xxxxx
"I don't understand what you were thinking," Kensi said, her eyes locked with Randy's. "You were out of prison, onto a whole new start and you blew it all away, for what? For a murder charge so you could spend the rest of your life in prison with no hope of parole? Because if Callen dies, that's exactly what you're going to get. But maybe, if you tell us where he is, just maybe someone will go a little easier on you."
Randy chuckled lightly then broke into full blown laughter. "Do you think I care about going back to prison? Do you really think I friggen care? I welcome it. No one will hire me. I'm sponging off my elderly parents. How do you think that makes me feel? I don't want that. I'd rather be in prison. I had friends there, a good life. There's nothing for me out here. Nothing but misery."
Kensi stared at him, not knowing how to react to his unexpected words. Finally, she silently headed back out to where Sam and Deeks had been watching over the monitor. "Now what?" she asked, staring at Sam.
"Now I try again," Sam said, heading back towards the interrogation room.
xxxxx
"What is it that you want?" Sam got right to the point when he stepped into the room.
"I'm getting it right now," Randy replied. "A lot of people don't even like who they work with. I wasn't sure that trying to get at you through your partner would even affect you, but by golly it did. I couldn't have dreamed of a better reaction."
"Are you kidding?" Sam asked, looking appalled. "You were home free and you ruined it. There were people who could have helped you find a job, places you could have gone to. You didn't need to do this. Not to him. He doesn't deserve it."
Randy shrugged. "He's just collateral damage. There are innocent victims in every war."
"This isn't a war!" Sam snapped. "This is between you and me. Take me to where he is. We'll go there and you can do what you want with me. Just save him...please."
xxxxx
Watching from the other room Kensi cast a stricken look at her partner and husband. "Deeks, what is he doing?"
"It's okay, baby," Deeks said reassuringly. "Sam isn't going to be on his own, no matter what he tells this freak. We won't let him."
xxxxx
Randy remained silent, staring back at Sam with a faint smile on his lips, obviously amused by the other man's reaction.
"Can you tell me how long he's been in there?" Sam demanded desperately, his eyes filled with emotion. "How much time does he have?"
"Hmmm…. " Randy closed his eyes, seeming or pretending to be lost in thought. "He's been in there four hours, five maybe? It's hard to say."
"Five hours?" Sam asked, distressed by this answer. He had no idea how large the size of the box was, but he guessed it wasn't all that big. Even though Callen wasn't a large man, he couldn't imagine he had much more time left. "Where...where is he? Please tell me...Please."
Randy seemed lost in thought before he finally nodded. "Do you always believe the words of a felon, Agent Hanna?"
"What? What are you talking about now?" Sam asked.
"Back where you found Agent Callen's cell phone. I told you there was nothing for you there. No little puppy to be found. But, I lied. My parent's house is back there, just a short distance away. Didn't you even wonder what I was doing way out there with no vehicle?"
"He's back there?" Sam yelled. He grabbed Randy and hauled him to his feet. "Come on. He'd better still be alive or I'll choke the life right out of you, you lying bastard."
xxxxx
It was getting harder to breathe. Visions of Mexico were flashing through his head, but truthfully, he didn't remember a whole lot right before he had lost consciousness. He did think it was similar to this, but this was definitely worse. In Mexico, he'd derived comfort from Sam's presence. At least he hadn't been dying alone. Now, he felt more alone than he'd ever been. He was struggling, fighting the urge to gulp down air, knowing that would cause him to use it up faster, but it was a losing battle. He knew he wasn't getting enough. The only good thing was that he was weakening and it was getting difficult to stay awake. He was pretty sure he was just going to slip off into an eternal sleep. He just felt bad for the team, for Sam, for Hetty, for all of them. He never would have left them like this if he'd had a choice. They were everything to him. They were his family. He loved them. "I'm sorry…" he whispered as he allowed his eyes to close and his head slumped to the side. "Momma, Amy...I'll see you soon…"