Author's Note: I have firm belief that I WILL be able to get this done before/on Sunday. I only have a battle scene and wrap up to write! Oh, and I have to remember to throw in a surprise or two in there for you, too.
Thank you again for all the reviews and encouragement for this story. It's taken on a life I never thought it would.
Hardison glowered at the pacing man before him. "Nate, it has been six hours since we heard from Eliot." The Hacker kept switching from screen to screen, watching for the ping from either their teammate's cell phone or his com.
"I know, Hardison," Nate replied, "There's nothing to be worried about yet."
"'Nothing to be worried about yet'?" Hardison was shocked at Nate's relative composure over the whole ordeal. "Man, we haven't heard diddly from him! We let Eliot walk into a drug cartel's headquarters without any protection- without any backup. We might as well jest stuck an apple in his mouth an' served him up on a silver platter."
Nate took a deep breath. He sat down on the couch and looked the other man directly in the eyes. "The only person who could have been his backup was Parker and Eliot made it vehemently clear he did not want her anywhere near Espinosa. It was the best way to protect her." Hardison relaxed a little, as Nate continued, "You've said it yourself, Espinosa has a security system many powerful countries would be jealous of. Perhaps he has some sort of jammer to protect against unwanted eavesdropping, especially so close to the deportation.
"Right now, all we can do is sit tight the next twenty-nine hours and trust that the most dangerous member of our team can, somehow, retrieve himself." Nate gave a brief smile of encouragement to the Hacker, hoping that one of the two of them might believe what he all just said.
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A slap across the face brought Eliot around again. How many times had he been knocked out now? Four? Five? It was important he keep count. He blinked a few times to focus and clear the cobwebs out of his head. The shackles bolted to the floor that held his arms at either side had just short enough chains that Eliot couldn't sit up straight in the chair without pulling his sore shoulders out of socket. His spine was warm with pain and stiffness. But all the discomfort was dull in comparison to his swollen knees.
He was distinctly aware someone was sitting in the chair across from him.
Lola sat with her arms folded across her chest; her red nails tapped her upper arm. One leg was crossed over the other and bobbed in the air. To be blunt, she looked pissed off. He snickered. "Is something funny, gringo?" she scowled.
"I was wondering what it would be like to wake up next to you," he laughed. There was a metallic taste in his mouth and his tongue was slightly swollen from where he bit it during one of the interrogations by Hector. Or was it the man with the cigarillo?
Her backhand was stunningly swift, it was practically supernatural. "My bad," he said, adjusting his jaw.
"Why are you here?" she settled back in her chair. He sighed and said nothing. "What is a man like you doing here, Eliot Spencer? The Black Ops go-to boy? Retrieval Specialist? Muscle? Hit man?" He looked up at her. "What are you doing in Juarez?" Again he didn't answer, and now it was her turn to laugh. "Ever the good military man. 'When in enemy camp, remain silent.' Isn't that what they teach you?" She uncrossed her legs, hooked her feet under the bottom rung of Eliot's chair, and swiftly pulled it.
Eliot didn't think the chair would move period, let alone with such speed and force. The sudden movement wracked his shoulders. Flames of pain shot up his back. His head bounced off the concrete floor and stars danced in front of his eyes. Once the initial pain subsided, he actually felt a little better to finally be in a different position. At least he could move his shoulders and straighten his back. "Gringo, I'm losing patience with you," Lola's head appeared above him. "Who sent you? What do you want?"
"I came on my own," Eliot tasted blood again. He must have bit his tongue when he hit his head.
"It's not nice to lie to a good lookin' woman," she stood up and pulled out a cell phone, "I guess we'll just have to see what your messages have to say." He knew there would be nothing for her to find. He had deleted anything connected to their mission earlier. He looked up at her and thought he saw her brow give the faint hint of a furrow, but it quickly disappeared. She looked down at him, "It's really disappointing, gringo. I really liked you."
She turned and walked out of the tiny room, locking the door behind her. The lightbulb turned out leaving him in utter darkness. He listened to her heels grow fainter and yet another door lock before he couldn't hear anything anymore.
"Eliot, man," Hardison's voice came through the com, miraculously still hidden in his ear, "are you there?"
"Yeah, man," he answered quietly, "I'm here."
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"Nate!" Hardison yelled, "Nate, his com and cell phone are back!" Hardison scrambled to get the computer off his lap and reach the case on the coffee table that held the earbuds.
Nate came storming out of the bedroom, cell phone to his ear. "We just got him back online," he was saying to someone, "Hold on a minute."
Hardison shoved the small piece of plastic into his ear and handed the box off to his team leader. "Eliot, man," he said frantically, "are you there?
"Yeah, man," came the soft reply, "I'm here."
"Thank gawd," Hardison rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair.
"Where are you?" Nate asked, putting in his com and ending the call with whomever he was talking to.
"I think somewhere in the basement," Eliot said, "Don't wanna talk too loud in case the place is bugged." Something clanked in the background. The sound of wood on concrete resounded not only through the room Eliot was in, but over the com as well.
"What was that?" Nate asked.
"Chair," Eliot sighed, "Much better. My cover was blown an' I've been chained to that chair for hours."
"Do they know about Parker?" Nate inquired, catching the look from Hardison.
"I'm sure they know of her. Just not where she's at."
"Good. Good."
"How long do we have until we git the kid?"
"About twenty- eight hours now," Hardison answered. An exhausted chain of swears came over the com.
"Hey, now," Sophie's voice now came through the com, "Watch your language."
"Sorry, Soph," Eliot sighed, "I'm tired. I'm in pain. And I want a vacation. Nate, I got one word for ya: fishing."
"We'll discuss it later," Nate sidestepped the issue for the time being, "What's his plan, Eliot?" The Hitter relayed as quickly and quietly as possible what the cartel leader had planned.
"Somehow I think I'm still gonna be a big part of this diversion."
"Most likely," Nate resumed that his pacing from earlier, "Hardison, pull me up the route that the Marshals are going to take from El Paso to Chihuahua. That's where they're going to meet up with the Mexican Federal Police and make the transfer of prisoner."
"On it," Hardison started typing away.
"Someone's coming," Eliot gritted quietly. They all heard the door connect with the chair and it skidded across the concrete as it was moved out of the way. There was some mumbling and the door closed again.
"Eliot?" Nate inquired, "What's happening?"
"I was given a sandwich and a bottle of water," he answered. Nate resumed his pacing.
"Got it," Hardison called out. The Mastermind went over and looked over his Hacker's shoulder. "They're gonna take Carretera Federal 45 all the way down." Hardison continued scrolling down.
"There," Nate jabbed at the computer screen, "There's the bluff that Espinosa is going to use." Hardison zoomed the satellite in to get a detailed look. "Yeah, that's going to be perfect. How long of a drive there?"
"'Bout two, two and a half hours," Hardison answered.
"Okay," Nate smiled and went to the mini-bar to pour himself a drink.
"Wha? O… Okay?" Hardison was shocked again, "That's it?"
"For now?" Nate sat down on the couch, drink in hand, "Yes."
"Damn it, Nate," Eliot grumbled through a mouthful of sandwich.
"Chew your food before talking, Sparky," Parker's voice came in next.
"Fine," Eliot growled, then clearer, "Damn it, Nate."
"We'll get you out of there, but it won't be until after the diversion."
"Do you need us there?" Sophie asked.
"No." Eliot's response was forceful and final.
"Eliot's right. Stay with the family."
"Fine," Sophie didn't sound convinced.
For the next few minutes, there was com silence. Hardison clacked the computer keys. Nate swirled his drink before taking another swig. It was Parker who broke the silence. "So how's the sandwich, Sparky?"
"It's a piece of cheese slapped between two slices of bread. Not exactly a four course meal, Parker."
"At least it's something," she chirped.
Eliot snickered. "Yeah. At least it's something."
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As grateful as he was to be able to hear his team again, Eliot was tired of the running commentary that was now going on several hours. They continued to hash out plans to tomorrow night's coup while he remained silent. There was nothing he could do except be the bait to set this whole thing off. Every once in a while, Sophie, Hardison, or Parker would ask how he was doing, or if everything was okay. At least he wasn't completely ignored.
He needed a new position. From sitting mostly cross legged on the hard floor, his rear was killing him and now his knees felt like watermelons. He stretched out on the floor and caught the chair with his foot to bring it closer to him. The movement was incredibly painful and it wasn't until Sophie said something did he realize he was holding his breath. "Eliot? Is something wrong?" she inquired, silencing the discussion between Hardison and Nate.
"Nothin'," he grunted, propping his feet up on the chair seat, "Just need to stretch out." He sighed, folded his hands over his chest, and closed his eyes. He had no intention of sleeping, but did need a few minutes to unwind from the stress of last couple of days, before the really hard part of their operation began.
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"Nate," Sophie crooned through the com, "just let him sleep."
"Who's sleeping?" Eliot asked.
"You were," Sophie snickered.
"No, I wasn't."
"Sure, brah," Hardison laughed, "there was someone next to ya snorin'."
"I don't snore."
"You do when you come down after a hard job," Parker perked up, "I've seen you do it after that one in Nebraska and that crap we dealt with Sterling and Nate going to jail for us."
"I don't snore!"
"Uh-huh…"
"Sure…"
"Whatever, brah…"
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For the next twenty four hours, the events of the Hitter in the cell, the Mastermind and Hacker at the hotel room, and the Thief and Grifter at the mystery location were uneventful. A random conversation would take place occasionally, but for the most part, every one remained quiet to conserve the energy for that night.
Three and a half hours before the U.S Marshals were scheduled to transport Pablo, Nate came across the coms, "Hardison and I are on our way to the rendezvous point. Soph, Parker, stay put. Eliot, see you there." Eliot had resumed a tranquil position on the floor and started to mentally prepare for his fight out.
He didn't need to wait too long, for a little while later, the sound of the door unlocking brought him out of his reverie. He glared up at the man dressed in the white suit and cowboy hat. Espinosa had a malevolent grin plastered on his face. "Gringo," he opened his arms in greeting, "ready to assist us take out my innocent twin?" Behind him, Lola glared over the cartel leader's shoulders at Eliot, and behind her, Hector looked ready to beat any thought of escape out of him.
"Nah. Thought it was rather cozy in here, though gotta say the furniture could use some work," Eliot taunted, raising an arm to let a chain dangle. The smile faded from Espinosa's face and stepped aside for Hector to enter the room.
The beefy bodyguard kicked the wooden chair into a corner and grabbed Eliot's arm roughly. He unlocked the chain around the Hitter's wrist. Lola also entered the room and unlocked the chain around Eliot's other arm. Both grabbed a firm hold to him and drug him to his feet. Lola grasped both of his arms using a zip tie to fasten his hands behind him. Espinosa walked up to Eliot and went face to face with the dangerous man. "Gringo," he taunted, "tonight you will regret that you ever walked into my city. You'll regret you ever got this far into my organization. You'll regret that you ever betrayed me."
"Espinosa," Eliot looked him dead in the eyes, "if you know half as much about me as I think you do, you should know you are standing far too close." Both men stared at each other with such hatred and contempt.
"Vamanos," Espinosa barked, backing up and out of the room.
They paraded him through the hallway and through the living room. Throughout, a random cluster of thugs would stop cleaning guns, weighing drugs, counting money, or drinking to stare at Eliot. He looked at none, but the cartel leader's back. He was marched outside to the waiting Cadillac, where the cigarillo gangster sat in the driver's seat waiting. A few other cars and trucks dotted the driveway, miscellaneous men milled around them. Suddenly Espinosa suddenly turned. "Oh," he started, "and one more thing, Gringo." The cartel leader threw a wickedly powerful upper cut and Eliot's world, once more, went black.
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When Eliot awoke, he found himself in the backseat of a different SUV. He looked at the upholstery and saw the tears and stains all over the seat and floorboards. From the metallic scent he had a firm guess as to what the dark brownish discolorations were. A cool breeze ruffled his hair. He noticed that all the windows had been broken out. His hands were still zip tied behind him, and as he sat up and took notice of his surroundings, he started to strain to break them. The SUV was parked sideways in the middle of the road, and in the distance he could see the small line of vehicles heading straight for him. They kept getting closer and closer, and he still was having a hard time breaking the tie.
When the cars were less than a mile away, he heard a sharp whistle behind him. He turned to see two flaming bottles flying into the busted out back window and ignite the back storage area.
Oh, yes I am leaving it there. You're just going to have to wait for the next chapter to see how this all plays out. At least you shouldn't have to wait too long for that to happen. In the meantime, I strongly recommend the use of the "Review This Chapter" hotlink.
