The sun had started to rise in Southern California, rising just over the Los Angeles horizon, fighting its way through the cracks between the high buildings, hitting Deeks in the eyes, enough to momentarily blind him as he makes his way out of the old smashed up warehouse down town. The warehouse had been the first point of call between the two men. The building once held old pipes and other city goods but had been abandoned in the nineties, it was then bought in the early two thousands by a shell corporation that Deeks had found out belonged to Allard. It was the location his 'goods' were brought to before it was decided where they were going. 'Goods' to Allard was more than drugs, and other contraband. Deeks, or rather Max, had sat one night as a van pulled up and twenty five girls had gotten out of the van. To Allard the women were nothing more than inventory, to be sold and a profit to be made. Some of the girls were as young as sixteen. Deeks had managed to get correspondence back to his Captain and fifteen of the girls had been saved. The faces of the other five still haunt him.
The sun hitting his eyes again brought him back into the moment. Flanked on either side by the muscle Allard hired to protect him, the man walked towards Deeks. He was greyer than last time, his hair styled in a way that, when put together with the suit, he wouldn't look out of place in Wall Street. Allard was more than just a bad business guy. He was a man Deeks hoped he would never be called back under to work an op on again. He had been one of the few guys he had never been able to get. Back in LAPD he had be known as Teflon. Nothing sticks. He would be arrested, spend an hour in the room in silence before his lawyer appeared, whisking him away to get on with the many dodgy dealings he was no doubt up to. A car pulled up on the street and out of it climbed a young man, he walked towards them with bravado, clearly close to Allard.
"So you are the infamous Max?" the boy asked, he looked no older than twenty one to Deeks, he internally debated for a moment if it was him that was getting older or the bad guys were starting younger. He ignored the child. Max wouldn't have spoken to him and Deeks was finding it a little too easy to slip back into Max. It was a constant worry for him. One day he'd go under as Max, and Deeks would never return. The young boy spoke again, shaking Deeks from his thoughts. "So you are the one that was friends with Ray the Rat." The anger Deeks was feeling, towards himself for reacting so badly to Kensi earlier, towards Allard for pulling him back in. Towards himself for still using Max as a way to escape so he didn't became his father when he was angry. Towards Ray for getting friendly with Allard in the first place. All that anger was bubbling and he grabbed the guy by the throat.
"Apologise." He spoke, so low it was a whisper. Behind him he could hear Allard telling his men to stand down. Laughing and saying something about 'Good old Crazy Max' "What's his name?" Deeks asked, the question directed at any of the men behind him but not tearing his eyes from the boys.
"Martin." Allard spoke, as a glint hit Deeks eyes.
"Martin. I've always hated that name." That was the last thing he said before he punched the boy in the jaw. Martin stood slowly trying to regain his balance. The moment he had stood up, Deeks smacked him down again. Max liked to play with his food he thought, not finding it difficult to submerge himself in 'Max', relishing the freedom to think with his fists again. A little doubt playing at the back of his mind about how easily he was becoming Max. The doubt was silenced quickly when he saw the now bloodied man attempt to throw a punch at him. Something snapped inside him and he punched down hard, throwing punch after punch at the boys face. Deeks knew why he was doing this, and how necessary it was to do this, to protect his cover, but with each punch his motivation was of something different.
A punch to his jaw, that was for pulling him out of the bar. A punch to his stomach, that was for what his dad had done to him. A right hook hitting his kidneys, that was the punch for Ray. His fist makes contact with his jaw again. That one, in anger of the torture he underwent in order to protect Michelle. He gets up to walk away, and as he does he sees Kensi in his mind. Broken and bloodied in Afghanistan. He whips around fast and punches him square in the nose, that one was for her. That one knocked the boy out.
As he stood up straight, he took a final look at the boy, remorse hitting him. Kensi wouldn't want this in her name and yet that had been his motivation. Remorse wasn't something Max felt he quickly lectured himself. He spat on the boy, hoping it would make up for the nanosecond slip in cover. He locked eyes with Allard, not sure that his cover was secure. Allard laughed and patted him on the back.
"I see nothing has changed with you Max. Crazy as always." He laughed once more before shouting orders to take the boy to the hospital, leave him there and come back. Deeks had checked himself out, he was covered in blood yet none of it was his.
Looking around he spotted a camera, if Kensi had gotten his note, and he could trust Bill to deliver it, Eric should be running searches for him. Maintaining a steady gaze with the camera for 5 seconds, hoping it is enough for his team to find him.
"Max, we are going now." He takes one last look at the camera before climbing into the back of the shiny black Mercedes and driving off.