Title: Club Descent: Taken (11/13)
Author: Aeon Cole
Beta: sharpiesgal/Dino
Rating: FRAO
Genre: AU
Warnings: This story is slash and contains graphic depictions of violence, abuse, bondage, and rape. If you are bothered by any of these things then please don't read this.
Fandom: CSI Miami
Pairing: Horatio/Speed
Challenge: 50 Dark Fics
Prompt: #21 Brutal
Word Count: 1550
Summary: Tim's past comes back to haunt him.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Note: This is the second part of the Club Descent series. Read the first part for this one to make sense.
ooo
Thursday, April 8, 2004 (early morning)
Max rolled over in bed and stretched. His stomach grumbled. He looked at the clock and saw that it was only two in the morning. He looked over and Michael was sound asleep so he quietly got out of bed and padded into the kitchen to get a snack. When he got to the doorway he saw Horatio sitting at the table, his head resting on his arms. Max walked around to the side of the table and chuckled to himself when he saw that Horatio was sleeping. His body had finally given up the fight. He decided to forgo his snack so as not to disturb him.
He left the kitchen and headed back to bed. But sleep didn't come easily for him. His thoughts kept drifting to Tim. He'd offered to help with the search but the others had convinced him that it would be better if he kept an eye on Horatio, kept him from doing anything stupid. He'd agreed but against his better judgment and now he was beginning to feel like it was time for both of them to get out there and do something.
Michael rolled over in his sleep and snuggled up against his arm. He looked down at him. He couldn't even begin to understand what Horatio must be going through right now or how he was keeping it together. He just kept thinking that if it were Michael who'd been kidnapped by some deranged maniac he'd go ballistic.
ooo
Tim was dozing when he heard a loud noise out in the warehouse. He quickly shook Garrett, who had fallen asleep. "He's back. Quick, go hide."
Garrett shook himself awake and scampered off to hide behind the door. Tim heard Simon walking around outside the room then he heard him yell Garrett's name. When no one answered he heard him curse then he heard footsteps coming toward the room. Simon stopped in the doorway and glared at Tim.
"Where is he?" he hollered. Tim stood his ground and remained silent. "Answer me," Simon growled as he stepped into the room.
"I don't know who you mean," Tim answered him remaining surprisingly calm.
Simon moved further into the room. "Don't lie to me. Where's Garrett?"
Tim didn't back down. He didn't know where his sudden burst of courage was coming from but he just looked Simon in the eyes and said, "Who?"
He could see Garrett silently sneaking up behind Simon so he kept his eyes locked with Simon's trying to keep the other man focused on him. Garrett got within striking distance and swung. Without turning around Simon reached back and grabbed his arm before the frying pan could connect with his head. He twisted the boy's arm causing Garrett to cry out in pain and the frying pan to clatter to the floor then pulled him into a headlock.
He glared at Tim. "Is this the best you could come up with?"
Tim darted forward. "Let him go," he yelled. But Simon was standing just outside his reach.
"I'm disappointed Garrett. I had high hopes for you. I thought you were smarter than this," Simon said.
He dragged the boy over to the center of the room and pulled his arms up over his head. He fastened him securely to the cuffs hanging from the ceiling then turned his attention back to Tim who stood there defiantly. Garrett struggled to free himself but in the end all he could do was watch helplessly as Simon proceeded to beat Tim unconscious then storm out of the room and slam the door shut.
Garrett struggled to get free and over to Tim. He pulled at the handcuffs until his wrists bled. As his frustration and his anger rose, he wrapped the chains around his hands and, in a sudden burst of adrenaline fueled strength, he pulled at the chains and heard a cracking sound. The bolt that was screwed into the wooden ceiling beam loosened. One more pull and it was out, the chain landing with a loud clank on the floor. He ran over to Tim and fell to his knees. He placed his hand gently on his chest and realized he was still breathing.
"Timmy," he called as he shook him slightly. "Wake up." Tim moaned but didn't open his eyes. "I don't know what to do," Garrett said quietly but Tim didn't regain consciousness.
ooo
Simon stormed out of the warehouse. He was fuming with anger and so distracted that he forgot to bolt the outside door. He was no longer in control of the situation and he realized that he might have just killed Tim in his fit of fury. He knew he needed to calm himself down before he went back inside so he just walked. He would need to do something about Garrett. He couldn't keep him any longer. He'd become a liability.
He kept walking until he noticed that he left the warehouse district and was wandering through a commercial area that he recognized. He stopped when he saw the familiar outline of Club Descent a short distance away. He quickly turned and headed back the way he'd come. From half a block away a man moved in the shadows. He'd recognized Simon almost immediately and began to follow him.
ooo
Max walked through the front door just as the sun was coming up. Michael had heard his motorcycle pull into the driveway and met him at the door.
"Where the hell have you been?" he demanded as Max walked in.
"I couldn't sleep," he said. "I went down to the club for a while."
"Well you went out without your cell phone. I was worried," Michael said, a bit calmer.
Max looked down at his partner. The differences between the two men were striking. Where Max was tall and muscular, Michael was small and thin; he barely came up to Max's chin. And for all of his imposing presence, Max tended to be very gentle and soft-spoken. Whereas Michael had a quick temper.
"I'm sorry," Max said gently. "I didn't think. I just needed to get out of the house for a while." He leaned in and gave him a quick kiss.
"Did Horatio go with you?" Michael asked.
Max raised an eyebrow. "No, he was asleep when I left."
They heard the front door open and they both turned to see Horatio walk in. He stopped and stared at them for a moment. "What?"
Both men shook there heads and said, "Nothing," in unison.
"Where were you?" Max asked.
Horatio shrugged. "Went for a walk. Have you heard anything yet?" But before either of them could answer Horatio's cell phone rang. He answered it without looking at the caller ID. "Yeah," he said into the receiver.
"Horatio?"
He recognized Jess' voice and winced as he realized he'd forgotten to call her to tell her what had happened. "Jess, I meant to call you yesterday."
"What's going on? I can't get a hold of Tim and he hasn't been to work in a couple of days."
"He, um…" he started to say but a sudden surge of emotion took his voice. He handed the phone over to Max and walked off into the kitchen.
Max watched Horatio sit down at the table in front of all of the papers he'd left there last night and rest his head in his hands. He returned his attention to the phone.
"Jess, it's Max."
"Max, what is going on?" she asked, now slightly panicked.
Max took a seat on the sofa and explained everything to her. Before he hung up he promised that one of them would call her later hopefully with more information.
ooo
Garrett hadn't moved from Tim's side all night. He was scared, more scared than he'd ever been. Every time he heard a noise he was certain it was Simon coming back. He'd tried several times to wake Tim up but other than a groan or a moan he didn't regain consciousness. Finally as he sat there with one arm resting on Tim's chest he seemed to stir. Garrett watched his eyes flutter open and he smiled down at him.
"Timmy," Garrett said cautiously.
"What happened?" Tim muttered.
He tried to move but pain shot through his body and his face contorted and he collapsed back onto the mattress. He had no clear memory of the beating. The last thing he remembered was hearing a noise in the warehouse and telling Garrett to go hide.
"Where's Simon?" Tim asked once the pain subsided enough for him to speak.
"I don't know," Garrett answered. "He didn't come back."
Tim thought that was odd, unless his plan was just to let them die. He looked up at Garrett, though his vision was still clouded. "Did he hurt you?" he asked.
Garrett looked down at his wrists, still in the handcuffs with the chain attached. He held them up so Tim could see. It took Tim a minute to realize what he was looking at. "You pulled that out of the ceiling?" Garrett nodded. "Are the doors locked?"
"Yes, I can't break them."
Tim took a painful breath. All they could do now was wait.
TBC