"Damnit." Hank let out a curse as the empty sign lit up on the petrol gauge. He knew they couldn't keep running but he also needed to make sure they weren't being followed. In the city it was too hard to spot a tail so he'd driven them to the outskirts, changing direction every few minutes to try and calm his nerves. He felt like he hadn't slept properly in weeks, always keeping one eye open over his shoulder. He was mentally as well as physically drained from the ordeal and he was running out of options.
"Hank I need to call my partner..." Kensi tried to reason with him again, blinking against the heat rolling in from the vents. Half an hour ago she'd been freezing but now beads of sweat were drenching her body and she coughed roughly against the hot air suffocating her. They'd been driving for nearly forty minutes and she'd learnt all she could about Syverson. Her gut told her Hank wasn't fabricating the story but his paranoia was starting to become detrimental to their safety. He was a desperate man making irrational decisions and she needed him to trust her before things got worse. "Hank, please..."
"You really believe me?" His voice hitched as relief rolled through him. He knew there would be consequences to his actions but he needed his family to be safe. They couldn't stay in hiding forever and he didn't trust the local police to protect them, not after they'd failed to help Trent. "I didn't want this... I wasn't going to hurt you I swear-"
"I know," she bit down on her lip, hoping the honest admission was enough. Everything was starting to feel fuzzy but she focused on the case letting the facts guide her instincts. If Malcom Stoker, the board member who'd wound up in ICU, had uncovered something or threatened to go public... it made sense Syverson would look for a scapegoat. Using Hank and Trent had killed two birds with one stone -almost literally- but the only way they could prove it was to relay the information back to her team and find evidence.
"There's a gas station... up ahead-" she coughed again, bringing her wrists up to wipe the moisture beading across her forehead. Her hands were still bound and even though she could have worked her way out of them she let them drop back to her lap hoping Hank would make the first move. "If we had a tail we would have spotted them by now... just let me call my partner, we'll protect you... you can see your family and this will all be over. "
Irrational fear clamped around his chest at the thought of stopping but he knew they didn't have a choice. They couldn't keep going like this and guilt was starting to eat away at him for involving the agent beside him. He'd known she was ill when he'd been able to outrun at Trent's house, it's why he'd targeted her... but now she was starting to worry him. "There's a knife in the glove box-" he nodded towards the compartment, "and if you can find some change you can call your partner when we stop."
Kensi closed her eyes breathing in her thanks as she followed his instructions. As promised there was a Swiss army knife lying in the clutter and she flicked up the blade using it to cut her wrists free. The thought of hearing Deeks over the phone was nearly too much of a relief to comprehend. Just his voice would make the situation seem more manageable and she held onto the notion as they pulled up at the gas station. It was closed but there was a payphone off to the side and she climbed out of the car, rubbing her wrists as she moved towards it.
Hank was still in her direct line of sight as she stepped into the box and she felt a pang of sympathy as he nervously checked over his shoulder while working the automatic pump. It was no wonder he had gone to such extreme lengths to get her to listen. His whole life had been turned upside down in a matter of days and there wasn't a single person who had helped him.
Determined not to let him fall victim to another power-hungry company, she dug out her coins and fed them into the slot as she punched in her partners number. It rang twice before his voice filtered down the line and relief caught in her throat, spurring another bout of coughing to erupt. She covered her mouth trying to shake the spots that started popping up in front of her eyes, doing her best to focus on Deeks instead. His tone thick with concern and she swallowed roughly steering herself to answer him, "Deeks-"
The sound of tires screeching cut her off and she turned, barely managing to croak a warning as a black SVU pulled up behind Hank's car. Without thinking she dropped the phone as she yelled at him to get in the drivers seat but it was too late. By the time she reached the passenger side door two men in black were already hauling Hank back out of the car and she lashed out as a third man came up behind her, trying to get her in a headlock. Under normal circumstances she would have easily kicked his ass but he blocked every sluggish throw she made, hitting back at her twice as hard. When his fist jarred her rib cage she felt something crack and dropped to her knees struggling to breathe though the pain.
"Get up bitch." The deep voice cut through through her spinning thoughts. The orchestrated attack proved one thing, there was no way they'd been tailed. It had to have been planned out which meant either the car was bugged or it was Hank himself carrying the tracer. It was something she should have thought of and she cursed the grogginess that was starting to take control again.
Out of the corner of her eye she watched Hank being forced into the SVU and she sucked in a deep breath as she was hauled forcefully off the ground. Her vision lurched and she couldn't fight the black haze that was starting to make everything swim. She trusted Deeks, she just hoped he had enough time to figure out what was going on... because for once she didn't think she could get though it on her own.