Disclaimer: I do not own CSI:NY. I wish I did.
Summary: Danny Messer's life is in danger. The past even he had forgot isn't a secret anymore, neither is the future he doesn't want to embrace. Danny/Don friendship. Set some months after Snow Day. No season four. Please read and review.
Warning: Rated for violence and mature references.
Danny was trying hard to remember but that voice did not ring any bells so far. Was that voice of some criminal he had put behind bars? Or a Tanglewood boy maybe? He had pissed so many thugs off in his life that it was quite complicated to pick one... To make things worse, his body was sore and his head ached. He was hungry and cold and beyond thirsty. And he was on the verge of urinating on his own pants, which he thought was most humiliating and strangely bizarre. How could he be so thirsty and so desperate to piss at the same time? He didn't think he could hold any longer so he did the only thing he could do: he grunted and twisted, trying to get someone's attention. He knew he'd got it when someone yanked his hair again.
"What?", the crook asked, taking the gag off.
"I really need to take a pee.", Danny answered, his voice hoarse.
"Oh... Right... Hey, guys, put the masks on!", he shouted and Danny heard shuffling noises while some of them complained. "Now, I'm going to untie you. Don't even think about doing anything funny. You got a lot of guns pointed at you."
When Danny nodded, the perp cut the tape binding his ankles and took the handcuffs off. Danny rubbed his wrists for some moments, trying to ease the numbness, flinching when he felt the abrasions stinging.
"Get up! I don't have all day!", the guy yelled and pulled him up, pushing him in the bathroom's direction. "You've got one minute."
Danny took the blindfold off and looked around. It was a tiny space. Just a toilet, a sink and an old mirror. Filthy place. And nothing useful as a weapon, damn it... He relieved himself, flushed the toilet and washed his hands and face, noticing the angry bruise on his cheek reflected in the mirror.
"Time's up!", the crook chimed in, opening the door and training his gun on Danny. "Come on, Messer boy, hands where I can see. Go sit on the bed, feet up. Be good and you'll eat. Try anything stupid and I'll let you starve. Got it?"
Having no other option, Danny nodded and did as he was told. Another perp chained his ankles to the bed and a third brought him a supermarket-made sandwich and a small bottle of water. Murmuring a 'thanks', he emptied the bottle with some gulps, feeling his crackled mouth lose a bit of its dryness. Then, he started devouring the sandwich and was relieved to see another bottle being put in front of him by the third man, who dragged a chair next to the bed and sat there, observing him with interest while the other two left.
Danny finished eating in a blink and opened the other bottle. Fearing the answer, Danny asked "Lindsay... She was with me in my apartment... Is she dead?"
"Handcuff girl? Ah, no... That would be a waste, huh? Kinky girl like that...", the man replied, his voice sounding young.
"Thanks God...", Danny looked up, closed his eyes and sighed.
"The guy is dead, though.", he added.
"Which guy?", Danny asked confused.
"The lookout.", he answered.
"I don't understand.", Danny frowned.
"If you say so.", the man shrugged, looking skeptical.
"Why am I here?", Danny asked, taking a gulp of water.
"Do you think I know? Only the boss knows.", the guy shrugged.
"Where's he?", Danny said, scanning the room while drinking some more. He saw blurred masked men some distance away but couldn't identify the leader.
"He's not here. He's a busy man.", the perp replied.
"Is he someone I locked up? He implied that I knew him.", Danny continued, seeing that the guy was in a chatty mood.
"Oh, no... Jail is not for him.", the guy laughed.
"A ransom, then? But I'm not rich...", Danny wondered.
"Of course not, he's fucking rolling in money.", the perp cut in.
"Why then?", Danny questioned.
"I don't know. I'm just paid to keep an eye on you. I don't enjoy it but it's my job to make sure you stay put.", the guy replied.
"Well, some of your friends seem to be having fun messing me up.", Danny stated bitterly.
"Oh, yeah, you're a copper, man. They're excited, you know... not only for that...", he sniggered.
"What do you mean?", Danny asked, clearly confused.
"You turn X on, man! And not only him... Don't tell me you didn't notice! Are you blind or something?", the man laughed.
"You've got to be kidding me... No way...", Danny shook his head, alarmed.
"I'm serious, man. You don't need to worry about me, though. I like women.", the man mocked.
"Was that your way of being reassuring?! Take pity on me and just kill me already!", Danny whined.
"We're not allowed to do anything to you... unless you try to escape.", the perp assured.
"Great! I'm thrilled!", Danny blurted out sarcastically.
"You seem to be a nice, funny guy. I wonder what you did to piss the boss off...", he mused.
"I wonder that too...", Danny sighed.
"I don't know why I took this job. It's not for me, really...", the guy thought out aloud.
"Well, you could always let me go and try a better line of work...", Danny said, remembering absurdly of the talk he had with a career's advisor, after seeing his promising future in baseball shattered by a broken wrist, result of a fight.
"Ha! That's likely! People like me have just one path, man. I grew up to be a criminal, lived with it all my life. That's all I'm going to be. If I'm lucky enough, I'll never go to jail.", the guy stated.
"You know what? You're wrong, man. I grew up being tempted by gangs... power, whores, fancy cars, coke, easy money... What I did? I said 'no' to it all. I never stopped studying. I went to college, tried baseball and, when that didn't work out, I enrolled myself in the police academy. I wanted to make a difference and I know I'm doing it. Of course, there's a lot of suffering... Prejudice, you know? People from my old neighborhood don't like me 'cause I'm a cop... and a lot of cops talk behind my back 'cause of where I came from... But, in the end, cracking a case and putting a scumbag behind bars makes up for all of it.", Danny said determinedly.
"I was kinda afraid of doing it.", the man chimed in, lost in his thoughts, obviously not paying any attention to what Danny was saying.
"What? Doing what?", Danny gaped at him, confused.
"This job.", the guy answered.
"Job? Kidnapping me, you mean?! You were afraid 'cause I'm a cop, right?", Danny asked, slightly curious with his captor's statement.
"No. I hear things... I know you are connected and I fear the mob much more than the cops... But whom I fear the most is the boss, the guy is insane...", he said in a serious tone.
"What?! I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not connected.", Danny affirmed, raising his eyebrows.
"If you say so...", the guy shrugged incredulously, stood up and started walking away.
"Hey, man!", Danny shouted. When the perp stopped and looked back, Danny asked "Can you do me a favor? Get me a tee? It's cold..."
Laughing heartily, the man replied "It's cold, huh? You're a funny guy, Messer... I'll see what I can do for you but, when I return, you'll have to go back to the cuffs."
Leena7, jordinajamaica and BostonBrunetteandproud,
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