Ok, I'll be nice and give you an update this week, even though we don't get a new episode (darn you, ACM awards!). Thank you for the reviews about the last chapter, especially concerning the formatting. Alright, time to find out what happens to Arya!
"Give us some intel, Eric!" Callen said urgently over the earwig. The team was about to turn onto the street where the warehouse was located.
"There are two entrances, one on the north side and one on the west. Arya's last known location was in the southeast corner." Eric answered.
Nell's voice came over the comms. "We're tapping into the building's wiring now to see if there are any security systems. If so, we'll disarm them. Give me a second…"
Callen and Sam pulled over and stopped a few hundred yards ahead of the building. Deeks and Kensi followed suit. As they checked their ammo, Nell's voice was heard again.
"All electronics in the building are disabled. You're clear to enter."
"Do we know where Saman is?" Kensi asked.
"No, sorry. He must've turned his phone off earlier." Eric said.
"Alright. Let's get it done." Sam said grimly.
Callen and Sam approached the north door, while Kensi and Deeks approached the west door. On Callen's count, they breached the warehouse. Silently, they made their way to the center, meeting up with Kensi and Deeks. Together, they advanced to the south end of the warehouse, each team member clearing an aisle between the shelving racks.
Two noises reached Saman's ears over Arya's cries. He stopped talking and held a hand over her mouth and his pistol to her head.
"Shut up! Not a sound, or you die." He strained his ears, listening for more sounds. He pulled Arya up by her arm and pushed her forward around the table, holding her in front of him as a shield.
They made it about 10 yards before Callen caught up to them.
"SAMAN! LET HER GO!" Callen yelled, raw fury emanating from his every syllable.
Saman smiled and held the pistol to her temple. "Who, her? Trust me, she's not worth the bullet."
"LET. HER. GO." Callen ordered again. Sam appeared from the far east aisle.
"You have certainly eh, what is the phrase, 'thrown a wrench into my plan'? I was all set to have some fun using her like the little bitch she is before I killed her, and then you had to come and interrupt us. Quite rude, I think." Saman bent his head down, putting his mouth right up to her ear. "Don't you agree, Arya?"
Arya flinched as she felt his breath on her face and closed her eyes, fighting a new round of nausea at the thought of Saman touching her again. Please, don't let him...
"It's over, Saman. Let her go, and we might let you live." Sam said.
Saman continued his taunting. "You know, she's not half bad, I'll give you that. I speak from experience. Didn't she tell you?" An evil leer spread over his face as Callen's right eye twitched almost imperceptibly.
Arya couldn't hold back the tears any longer. She whimpered and begged "Please don't, Saman. Please stop."
"I've had her. She was mine before she was yours."
"NO, STOP!" Arya cried, closing her eyes in shame and anguish at having her deepest, most painful secret exposed to the man she loved. Tilting her face down, she tried to hide it from Callen, who remained unmoving. "STOP IT!"
"Oh yes! She's not the pure little virgin you thought. A dirty whore AND a filthy liar! You know, I think I'd be doing you a favor, putting a bullet through her head. It's what her father would've done…"
Arya's world was starting to spin again; she knew he spoke the truth about her.
"I wonder, Arya, were you EVER going to tell your darling husband your dirty little secret?" Saman pulled her head back up. "WERE YOU?"
Callen's mind was reeling at this revelation. He didn't think he could get any angrier than seeing his wife at the mercy of this psycho; now knowing the man had violated her made him positively shake with fury. He struggled to hold his pistol steady.
"Please….just do it." A small voice whimpered.
"NO! Don't do it, Saman!" Callen yelled, panic briefly replacing anger.
"I think I might…."
"Please Saman…." Arya begged. This shame was too much to bear; she'd never be able to face Callen again, and he certainly couldn't want her now. No one will.
"DON'T DO IT! ARYA, IT DOESN'T MATTER TO ME! YOU HEAR ME? IT DOESN'T MATTER!" Callen pleaded with both Saman and Arya. He struggled to keep the fear out of his eyes and voice.
Unseen, Deeks and Kensi had crept around behind Saman and Arya. Saman sensed their presence and spun to his left, pulling Arya with him. The sudden movement threw her off balance, just long enough for Sam to get a clear shot at Saman's torso. He took it, firing two rounds, which hit Saman in the right side. Saman released Arya, who scrambled away on trembling legs.
The team converged on Saman, ensuring he was no longer a threat. Deeks kicked away the gun that had fallen to the floor. When he didn't move, Kensi reached down and felt for a pulse; finding none, she looked at Callen and shook her head.
He breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Arya, but she wasn't there. A wave of fear washed over Callen at her absence.
"Arya?!" he started looking for her, weaving around the shelves, listening for her.
Arya ran blindly, not caring where she was going, as long as it was away from the others. She wanted to hide, to be alone with her guilt. Worthless! She struggled to catch her breath, hyperventilating as the overwhelming emotions crushed her chest. Whore! Her mind flashed between memories of the long-ago assault and the current events. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't think; all she could do was run. Alone.
So, run she did. Head-first into Callen.
Luckily, his ability to track a target by sound was well-honed; he'd known she was running down the next aisle over. He sped up to get ahead of her and turned around the rack just in time to catch her in his arms.
"Stop running, stop fighting, Arya!"
"Let me go!" Arya struggled to get out of his grasp, but he was unyielding.
"No Arya, I won't. I'm not letting you run from me. Not like this."
Arya fought him until, exhausted by the events of the day and overwhelming emotions, Arya collapsed against Callen. He picked her up in his arms and carried her outside. Setting Arya down on her feet, Callen opened the back hatch of Deeks and Kensi's SUV, then guided her to sit on the bumper.
Tapping his earwig, he said "I'm outside with Arya." Sam replied "Copy that, G. We'll handle it in here."
"Here." Callen pulled out his knife and gently cut Arya loose. She pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her face against them.
"Arya." Callen said gently. "Arya, look at me." He tenderly took her head in his hands and raised it to face him.
"No." she whispered.
"Arya, I don't care if you've been with a man before. I don't. What I do care about was if it was your choice or not. Was it what you wanted?"
It seemed an eternity before Arya finally cracked. "NO!" she said hoarsely, opening her eyes. "No, I didn't!" He saw the raw torment in her eyes; it made Callen wish Saman had survived so he could torture him to death as painfully as possible.
"Okay. Okay." Callen released her face and sat down beside her, wrapping his arms around her again and holding her against him. "I'm sorry, but I have to ask: did he….did he do it again? Today?" his heart squeezed as he waited for her answer.
Arya shook her head no. Callen released the breath he had been holding. There was hope yet that things would be okay.
The next morning, Callen got out of bed exhausted. He hadn't been able to sleep all night; the image of Saman's filthy hands on Arya had made him sick every time he closed his eyes. At 4am, he'd finally given up sleeping and decided to head to the office early; maybe a good workout with the punching bag would help clear his head.
He checked on Arya. Although she was sleeping at the moment, several wet spots on her pillow and a collection of used tissues on her nightstand were evidence of her own struggle to sleep.
He set the alarm on the house and left.
"Mr. Callen! What on earth are you doing here so early?" Hetty stood at the door of the gym.
"It's only 6am, Hetty." Callen turned from the bag on which he had spent the last 30 minutes unleashing the full force of his rage.
"That doesn't answer my question." She approached him slowly, hands clasped behind her back.
"Couldn't sleep."
"Mm." She nodded sagely. "And how about now?"
The truth was, Callen was exhausted. But enough fury still coursed through his mind to keep him from resting. "Doubtful."
"I see. Well, in light of the nature of yesterday's events, you're free to leave anytime and go home."
"Hetty-"
"No arguments, Mr. Callen. She is your wife; she needs you now more than ever. Do not abandon her in this time…"
Callen crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I'm not abandoning her, Hetty. She's shutting me out. She hasn't said a word to me since we left the warehouse yesterday."
"Then perhaps what she needs is not your words, but your presence." Hetty turned back toward the door. "We'll have the brief on your desk for you no sooner than tomorrow morning." She said over her shoulder as she left him alone in the gym.