Castoffs

Chapter 7

...

Callen was finding it hard to keep his emotions in check. He couldn't keep images of Deeks out of his mind. His voice either. For a man most people considered laid back, it was the times Deeks had challenged authority that he remembered. It used to piss him off. Whenever Deeks had become emotional over a situation during an op, Callen would try and shut him down or simply ignore him. But after he'd stepped up to defend him against Mosley's accusations before the team went to Mexico to find her son, that changed. He'd come to appreciate Deeks' perspective, odd as it might be at times. It was hard to accept he was gone, so he decided not to.

The others were each dealing in their own way. Kensi had practically glued herself to Agent Malloy, pestering him for any info he could give her. Sam had gone silent, sitting alone on a metal chair outside the break room. His silence was disconcerting.

"Sam?"

"What?"

"What's your takeaway."

"Other than being pissed?"

"Yeah…other than that."

"I keep going over Stokes' message sentence by sentence," Sam said quietly. "I don't want to believe the first one. It's too painful. I can't see Deeks dead. But I agree with the second one…this mission is blown. It's the third sentence…the one where Stokes says he's on the run, that doesn't track."

"Why not?"

"Come on, G. You know why. Stokes was the handler. There's no way he should have had direct contact with Mata or his men," Sam said. "He was a behind the scenes guy. Handlers operate in the shadows. Pull the strings sight unseen."

"I agree. Unless Deeks or his undercover partner gave Stokes up, there's no way Mata should have known he existed, let alone gone after him," Callen said.

"I think he's dirty and this is a ruse to stop us from looking for Deeks and for him."

"A red herring," Callen said. "He's betting that Ferris and the task force will believe the text and when he disappears, they'll just think Mata killed him too. He'd be free to start a whole new life with a lot of money to spend. But does he really think a simple text would make Ferris fold his tent?"

"I think he's counting on it. You've listened to Ferris' rambling bullshit. The man's incompetent," Sam said. "And Stokes worked with him. If he's as smart as he seems to be on paper, he would have figured out Ferris' weaknesses from the start. And used it to his advantage."

"Agent Malloy is pretty sharp and worked closely with Stokes. Let's get his take on the man and his message."

"I'm not sure Kensi trusts him either," Sam replied. "She was surprised how little Deeks shared with him."

"I'm not exactly surprised by that at all. Remember how long it took till we found out he'd shot his own father? Or that his mother was alive and in town? He might babble on about crazy theories and weird ideas, but he was pretty damn good at keeping his personal life private."

"He was also in undercover mode," Sam said. "He was becoming Max Gentry."

"Guys?" Kensi called out. "We got something."

Malloy was hunched over his computer, conferring with the tech analyst as they approached. The large screen in front of them was filled with a satellite image of Baja California, and the techie was zeroing in on some marked coordinates.

"Stokes sent that text message from the island where the helo crashed," Kensi said, her voice wavering as the implication settled in.

"So, he either found Deeks' body or…" Callen said.

"Stokes' message came from the other side of the island from the helo crash," Malloy interrupted. "We're zeroing in on his last location from the satellite feed now."

Callen felt a surge of adrenaline as the outline of the island came into view. It was like falling out of the sky. Dizzying as the tech zoomed in for a closer look. Foreboding too.

"Is that a building?" Sam asked, pointing at the screen.

"Looks like it," Malloy said. "A couple of docks too."

"Looks like you might have found Mata's base of operations," Callen said.

"Deeks might have ended up there," Sam added.

"If he was alive after the crash," Kensi said. "And was in good shape, it's possible he made it all the way across the island."

"Doesn't prove he's alive now, though," the tech officer said.

"Stow it, Schneider," Malloy hissed. "Remember who's listening."

"Yessir. Sorry, sir…ma'am."

"Doesn't prove he's dead either," Kensi snapped. "Did Stokes ever answer your message, Malloy?"

"No. Nothing."

"What's your take on the text he sent?" Sam asked. "Make sense to you…that he was somehow made by Mata and is on the run?"

"There are two ways to look at it," Malloy said as he turned to face Sam. "He either went there to rescue his agent…or he's dirty as hell and working with Mata."

"A good guy or a traitor," Kensi said.

"Question is…if he's a good guy…how did he know about this place?" Callen asked. "You told us earlier the island was uninhabited. Was this building in any of the intel you had prior to the operation?"

"No, sir," Malloy said.

"As Deeks would say…I'm going with door number two," Sam said. "Stokes is a bad guy and a traitor."

"Malloy…call Ferris," Callen ordered. "We need permission to enter Mexico but tell him to make sure whoever he talks to keeps that information classified. I don't want anyone to see us coming."

Callen couldn't take his eyes off the satellite image of that island. The temporary lighting made it obvious that the hulking building was definitely being used for something. There was a cement quay along the shoreline, but there was also a a couple of metal docks that looked new. He had to decide whether to come in by helo or by boat, a decision they had to make sooner rather than later. He was getting anxious. If Stokes had found Deeks alive, he had no reason to keep him that way. No one said it out loud, but he was pretty sure they were all thinking it.

"Agent Callen?" Malloy said. "I talked to Ferris. He told me he's been reassigned."

"In the middle of an op?" Sam boomed out.

Callen's cellphone sounded, cutting off his own angry response. "Hello, Admiral. I hope you have better news than we just got."

"If you let me in the building, I'll give you a sit rep," Kilbride said. "In case that wasn't clear enough for you, I'm outside…waiting. At least your perimeter security is tight."

"Somebody want to bring Admiral Kilbride in from the cold?" Callen called out.

"Cold? You call this anemic California weather cold?" The admiral grumped.

"You don't really get literary references do you, Admiral?" Callen said with a short laugh.

"Oh, I got the reference, Agent Callen. I'm just not in the mood."

The admiral came in and stalked across the room in a huff. He looked grumpier than usual, which didn't bode well for any of them.

"Gentlemen…and Ms. Blye. In case you haven't heard, which I'm going to assume you haven't…I'm the new leader of this task force," he said. "Mr. Ferris has been sent back to Washington with his tail between his legs."

"How'd you manage that, sir?" Sam asked with a slight smile.

"Sometimes I think you all forget how long I've been doing this," he replied gruffly. "I know people, Agent Hanna. I'm friends with certain people who recognize a clusterfuck when they see one. I simply climbed the ladder until I found a friend who was as pissed off as I was about this operation and the idiot running it. There's more to the story, but that's above everyone's pay grade. Now how about you give me a sit rep, so we can right this ship before it sinks into oblivion and ends our careers."

Once read in on the situation, the admiral barely took a breath before making his opinion known.

"There's only one thing about Stokes' text that we know to be true. This mission is blown," he said. "And without a body, we go on the assumption that Inspector Deeks is still alive. From the intel you've just shared, I'm guessing Stokes is throwing up a smokescreen and is not on the run. He's a traitor covering his tracks."

"The question becomes…just how big a traitor is he?" Callen asked. "The task force has intel that Mata was in possession of a biological weapon of some kind. We have to consider the possibility that Stokes is involved in the sale or the use of that weapon."

"I have an update on that intel. It's not biological. It's chemical," Kilbride said softly. "Our agents in Mexico picked up chatter that someone was offering up a batch of the most highly toxic chemical weapon there is. Sarin."

"Are you suggesting Stokes is trying to obtain nerve gas?" Malloy asked. "Why? What reason could he have? Maybe he just wants to get it off the market before it falls into the wrong hands."

"A couple of minutes ago you called him a traitor," Sam said. "Look at the evidence. He's definitely involved, or he wouldn't be on that island."

"This isn't about money." Callen said. "Something darker is brewing and we need to find out what that is."

"I agree. This clusterfuck is complicated and could get even messier than it already is," Kilbride said. "We need to know a whole lot more about David Stokes."

"We need a deep background check," Callen said. "He could be a sleeper agent for all we know."

"And we need to know fast," Kilbride said. "I'll put out some feelers to our friends at Langley. See if they have anything on Stokes and who he might be working for. Agent Callen? You need to get your team to that island and end this. How do you want to play it? By air or by sea?"

"Both."

"Tell me what you need, and I'll make sure you have it," Kilbride said and immediately pulled his phone. "We have operatives in Mexico. I'll make sure they're at your disposal. I'll also make sure you all have the antidotes you need for Sarin exposure in case this thing goes sideways."

"What about the Mexican government?" Sam asked.

"Got permission for your rescue operation on my way down here. They want Mata in custody as much as we do. Just so you know. I didn't tell them about the Sarin. We keep that intel to ourselves," he said before walking away with the phone to his ear.

"Damn!" Malloy whispered. "That man is my kind of commanding officer."

"Mine too," Kensi said. "He believes Deeks is alive. And I'm praying he's right."

"I'm praying Deeks has already discovered that shipment of Sarin and secured it," Sam said.

"From your lips to God's ears," Schneider said softly.

…

Deeks sifted through the fragments of his memory, searching for a connection to the man in front of him. Nothing about him seemed familiar, except his arrogance. He was a big man with military bearing, clean shaven, his blond hair clipped short. There was something in his eyes that suggested he'd been here before, licking his lips when he looked around as if titillated by what went on here.

"I'll be damn. You don't recognize me, do you?" Stokes said, looking surprised. "Saw drone footage of the helo crash. Looks like it left you good and rattled. Bloodied too. Concussion. Memory loss. No doubt there. Maybe a couple of broken ribs. That about cover it?"

"Something like that, douchebag," Deeks said.

"Aaahhh…there's the rude bastard I remember," he laughed. "Max Gentry or Marty Deeks…both always questioning my authority, my orders, even my right to give them."

"What can I say…I'm a quick study."

"You'd be a dead one if Lozano had done what he was paid to do," Stokes said. "That asshole got my men killed, but not you. No. You managed to survive somehow."

"What? What do you mean…your men?"

"Guess it won't matter if I tell you now. I brought my own private team to this little party," he said, waving the gun from side to side. "You might not have figured out that you were played, what with the concussion you suffered. But all of you were played. Mata. Lozano. Ferris. The task force. The entire Intelligence community. Played. All used to get me and my people what we want."

"And what would that be?"

"You really don't remember?" Stokes asked.

"I remember seeing your private team dead in the water," Deeks said.

"I have more on the way," he said, but Deeks could see that his comment had irritated the man. "And I will get what I came for."

"And what's that?"

"Something that will change the world as we know it," he replied.

Deeks shook his head and Stokes laughed. A sick feeling of dread settled over him as he searched the emptiness of his mind for some clue as to what he was talking about.

"Mata's restaurant out in the desert by San Felipe in Baja?" Stokes said. "You don't remember that?"

A dark flash of anger sliced through him, and clarity followed. "You sold me out."

"Mata liked you," he replied. "He didn't believe me when I told him you were a federal agent. Couldn't believe you were a liar. He trusted you. I had to actually show him your credentials before he would believe you'd been playing him."

"But he never showed up at San Felipe," Deeks said slowly as fragments of memory tumbled together. "But his right-hand man was there. He handcuffed me."

"Osario." Stokes said, his distaste obvious. "A degenerate asshole."

"Unlike you?" Deeks said. "The girls told me you took one of them. A little girl named Rosie. That makes you a pervert just like Osario."

Stokes moved fast, striking him across the cheek with the barrel of the gun. He slammed into the table and sank to his knees, warm blood streaking down his jawline.

"You seem a little sensitive there, Agent Stokes."

"Don't you dare judge me, Deeks. I've earned a little R and R," he spit out.

"Seriously? Is that what you call it, douchebag? You make me sick."

"Fuck you, Deeks. It's over sensitive little shits like you that are ruining this country."

"Yeah…you're a real pillar of the community," Deeks said as he wiped the blood from his cheek. "You've aligned yourself with a world class criminal. Congratulations, scumbag."

"I have my reasons," he replied. "Apparently you don't remember one of the most important pieces of this assignment. Your partner, Frank knew. Didn't he tell you when you were at San Felipe?"

"To be honest, I don't remember much. They kept me there…I can't remember how long…" Deeks said almost to himself as his memory coalesced. "No food. No water. Just Frank and a couple of ugly guys. I talked to Frank…tried to shame him. I called him a traitor. He hit me. But I think I was getting to him."

"He did it for the money," Stokes said with a shrug.

"What did you do it for?"

"Complex reasons you wouldn't understand," he replied.

"What are you really after, man?" Deeks asked, curious about what he couldn't remember. "It isn't about money or drugs. Maybe it is the little girls. I know you've been here before. Maybe you're just a degenerate with a hard on after all."

Stokes jerked him to his feet and slammed him against the wall, pressing the muzzle of the gun up under his chin.

"These girls are human trash, Deeks. Castoffs. Throwaway, worthless nobodies, just like you," he hissed. "This world doesn't need them or you."

"They're innocents, Stokes. Can't you see that?"

"They're whores. Not worth my time or attention.

"Really? You took Rosie," Deeks choked out.

"She's not important."

"Then what are you really here for, Stokes?" Deeks asked. "What's here that will change the world as we know it…as you so arrogantly put it?"

"Sarin, Deeks. A whole big batch of it," Stokes said with a giggle.

"Sonofabitch." The last bit of his memory clicked into place, and he felt his knees go weak.

"I remember now," he said. "On the helicopter…Frank finally realized he couldn't go through with it. He shoved me to the floor and fired. Took out one of your guys and the pilot before he was hit."

"That idiot. The money was already in his offshore account. Why'd he do that? What changed his mind?"

"He heard your guys speaking Russian."

…

…