Greetings my Friends.

I share with you a warning.

The language becomes moderately obscene in this chapter. Although the foulest of the foul is not in English, if it were to be used to this degree in a movie…in English, it would likely receive an R rating.

Translations will be provided in Authors Notes.

Chapter Seventeen: Five Pounds of Pressure

When Don followed David into the back of the large black van, all of the occupants suddenly fell silent.

"I'm just here to watch, folks. Agent Sinclair is the SEC tonight."

With a glance at David, everyone went back to their assigned tasks.

With his eyes on Don, Colby addressed the new agent in charge.

"They found Henry Matacinis' family at their home in Glendale… ...executed. Gangland style. They must have used his family to get him to cooperate……and get the knife into holding. Once things started moving, they killed them anyway."

"Sons of Bitches."

David grabbed the handle on the wall as the van started to move.

"Anything on Miguel Escalón?"

Colby shook his head.

"No. He's a ghost. I guess that's why they haven't gotten a lead on his involvement before now. As well known as he is, he keeps a low profile."

Another agent near the front of the van spoke up.

"They thought they had him at Vincent earlier today, but they couldn't get a positive ID."

"Ok, get Agent Eppes the photos from that. He saw the guy up close."

Glancing at Don, David took the assault rifle that Colby passed in his direction.

"We're going in from the rear. Megan's with LAPD. They have the front and she's waiting for our go. Any sign of the 18th?"

Colby raised his eyebrows.

"Not a one. Do we wait?"

David exhaled loudly before answering.

"No. Let's keep them out of this if we can. We've got the perimeter covered if they decided to interfere."

Don nodded at him, giving his silent approval. As strange as it felt not to be that guy, it was also strangely satisfying to see his team operating from this perspective. Standing on the outside looking in.

David opened the back of the van and jumped down to the wet pavement.

"Let's move out."

Each member of the assault team clapped Don on the back as they passed him to exit the van. Colby was the last one out and he stopped at the door and turned back to Don.

"You know Agent Evans, right? He's our tech tonight."

He indicated the only agent who had remained in the vehicle.

"Yeah, we've met."

"Okay…….."

Colby offered a smile before he stepped into the misty rain and closed the door, leaving Don in the van with Agent Evans.

Evans was a scrawny young man with light blond hair. His round frame glasses screamed 'techie', but the gun on his hip was a quick reminder of his true occupation. He put on his headphones and Don watched as he checked the helmet cams and radios. They were doing this thing by the book and getting on all on tape to boot.

Watching the video monitors on the rack in the van, Don felt his stomach flip. He'd never watched a full fledged assault from this side of things before and seeing everyone's perspective as they held their positions was nerve-wracking.

When David called the strike, Don felt his heart jump out of his chest. Knowing that this same scenario was going down at three other locations in Los Angeles at the exact same moment in time put an extra boost into the rush. It was all Don could do to keep his seat when one of the cameras picked up a young man who had stepped outside the house to light a cigarette. Colby tackled him to the ground before he had a chance to make a sound. When everybody hit the doors, Don could no longer stay seated. He hovered behind Agent Evans and watched the cameras, his reverence for his team growing by the second. Most of the house's occupants gave up without a struggle, hitting the ground the moment the agents entered the building. A few high spirited young men tried to run for it and were quickly apprehended by the officers that had remained outside at the perimeter.

Only one man was fool enough to fire a shot, which hit an agent in the vest. David squeezed off a single round and dropped him. It was all over in less than two minutes.

As the INS team that was assisting began to cuff the young men and lead them out of the house, Don was finally able to relax.

Agent Evans let out a deep exaggerated sigh.

"Don't let the glasses fool you, Agent Eppes. I'd love to be on that side of things for once."

Don couldn't help but grin at the younger agent as he opened the door to hop out of the van.

"I'm sure you'll get your chance. This is my first time to see things from this….……"

As he swung open the door, Don's eyes caught the figure of a man about twenty yards away. He had stopped in his tracks, and the light from a nearby street lamp reflected off his shaved head.

Even in the poor light, Don recognized the man. When their eyes met, he couldn't help but allow a grim smile to pass over his face. Without hesitation, Don jumped from the back of the van and hit the ground running.

………………………………

"Sinclair!"

The voice of Agent Evans in his headset caught David off guard.

"What!"

"Eppes just took off, man. Some dude came walking down the street, and he just took off."

"Awww shit….."

His exclamation got Megan's attention.

"Granger!"

Colby turned his head and they both looked to David.

"Don's after a runner."

In unison the three agents hit the door and headed toward the vehicle in the back of the alley. Evans stuck his head out of the back of the van and pointed down the alleyway.

"They went that way."

As David and Colby changed directions to join the pursuit, two gunshots rang out from somewhere down the street.

Agent Evans shook his head at Megan as she headed around the house for her car.

"But Eppes didn't put on his vest!"

………………………………...

"Escalón!"

Don called out after the young man running ahead of him.

"STOP! FBI!"

His warning was answered when the man brought his right arm up from in front of him, a large caliber handgun held tightly in his fist. He fired off two shots at Don without aiming as ran down the street. Don never slowed down, pulling his own weapon as he ran.

"FBI - DON'T MOVE!"

The man continued to run without turning back and rounded the corner ahead of him disappearing from sight.

With his GLOCK firmly in his fist, Don continued the pursuit rounding the corner and catching sight of his quarry heading into the next alley.

A thousand thoughts were running through his mind as he focused every ounce of energy he had into moving his feet.

He didn't want to shoot this guy as he was running away.

He wanted to wrap his hands around his throat and choke the life out of him.

He wanted to hit him in the face, over and over, until there was nothing left but a mass of fleshy pulp.

And somewhere deep down, he also wanted the satisfaction of making that skinhead son of a bitch piss his pants when he realized that he was about to die. The way Robin had died.

His building rage only increased his speed and as Don rounded the next corner he was unprepared when a two by four swung around to meet him. The board caught him across his left cheekbone and he staggered backwards, dropping his gun. A second impact to the left side of his face made stars explode in front of his eyes and Don lost his footing, slamming into the ground. ………………………………

"Dispatch, this is FBI unit one in pursuit of armed suspect. Requesting LAPD assistance. Heading south down Harrison. I've got three agents in foot pursuit."

In her headset, Megan could hear David's voice.

"Granger - Head up that alley. I'll cover the next street up. Reeves?"

"Right with you."

Megan hit the gas, passing David and cutting across the alleyway to cover the next street over.

………………………………

Don shook his head in an attempt to clear it and looked up into the face of the man he had chosen to focus all of his anger on. The man he was holding accountable for the devastation and loss that had turned his world upside down, was standing over him with the barrel of a gun pointed directly at his head.

Don could feel warm liquid running down his cheek, but resisted the urge to reach up and wipe the blood away. His ears were ringing and white spots continued to dance in front of his eyes. Forcing himself to focus on the face behind the gun, Don blinked rapidly to clear his vision and took in the cold dark eyes above him. Even in his daze from the staggering blows, the pain and fear only seemed to fuel his hatred for this man.

"I thought I told you to stop."

With a incredulous laugh, the man's face broke into a grin.
"You stupid Culero! I gotta tell you FBI…..you got the goddamndest nerve. What do we have to do to make it clear to you Serotes? You have no jurisdiction over the Mara Salvatrucha."

With his last two words, he raised the short two by four he now held in his left hand and brought it down hard. Reacting as quickly as his fuddled brain would allow Don pulled his right arm up to protect his head. The board struck him near the elbow and a sharp pain shot up his arm and into his shoulder as the nerve took the brunt of the blow. Don's movement knocked Escalón off balance and the younger man staggered forward. Despite his injuries, Don reacted with an instinct born of years of training. Rolling onto his side, Don struck out with his left leg, catching the man's kneecap with the ball of his foot. As the knee bent sideways, a howl of pain, followed by a string of curses echoed through the alley. Seeing his gun a few feet away, Don realized he could never get to it before Escalón put a bullet in his head. So instead he turned and launched himself across the alley, just as the young man brought his gun up and pulled the trigger.

………………………………...

David rounded the corner, fully expecting to find a body lying in the alley….Don's or Miguel Escalón. Somehow David knew one of them wasn't going to be walking out of this neighborhood on their own. But the alley was empty, save for a few broken bottles and a dumpster filled with something foul. Another gunshot rang through the night…this one much closer. As David headed around the next corner, he almost ran directly into Colby.

"It came from the next block over."

"Yeah…."

He addressed Megan through his headset.

"We're two blocks up on Harwinton. We've got another shot fired."

Her solid voice answered.

"I crossed over to Gerard, I'm heading back your way."

As he and Colby headed up the street at a cautious sprint, he continued to speak into his headset.

"And Megan? Call an EMT. We may need 'em."

………………………………

The sound of the gunshot reverberated in his ears and Don could feel the heat from the passing bullet as he slammed into Miguel Escalón. The impact sent both men tumbling to the ground as they began to grapple for the weapon. Don got his right arm loose and even though it was still numb from being struck with the two by four, he pulled his arm back and shot his fist forward as hard as he could. He felt bones break as his fist connected with flesh. Miguel Escalón stopped his struggle and dropped to his knees, instinctively reaching for his shattered nose. He began to scream at Don in a language that sounded vaguely like Spanish.

The gun had fallen to the ground and Don reached down dispassionately and picked it up. Looking at the gun in his hand and then at the bleeding face in front of him, Don lifted the weapon and took aim.

………………………………

Megan pulled her car up onto the main stretch of road that connected the series of alleys and side streets and put it in park. There was no sign of Don or the man he had pursued. David and Colby were on the other main drag, so if they exited whatever alley they were in, someone would see them. Cautiously, she exited the car and drawing her weapon began slowly up the street, checking each alleyway as she passed.

………………………………

A hundred thousand words could never have verbalized what Don was feeling at that moment. He wanted nothing more than to pull the trigger and obliterate the despised visage at the end of that barrel. If there was any man who had been on that side of his gun that deserved to die more, he could not remember them.

At the same time another part of him wanted to see this man spend the rest of his life in a federal prison, bleeding out the ass and sharing a cell with a two hundred and fifty pounder named Dutch.

Killing him would be so easy. Don knew how simple it would be to claim self defense. The throbbing pain in his face and the blood running down his cheek and soaking his shirt front would easily clear him of any misconduct charges. It would be classified as a justifiable shooting.

But he would know the truth. And he would have to live with that.

Besides, death was the end. Short, Quick…and Easy. Far to easy.

This son of a bitch didn't deserve the luxury of death and Don had already made the conscious decision that he wasn't going to get it from him.

David was right. He was better than that.

Staggering slightly, Don lowered the gun. The man quickly scrambled to his knees, trying to stand and Don quickly brought the gun back up.

"DON'T. Don't even try it."

Escalón froze.

"Get down."

"JODE TE!"

Don didn't know what it meant, but from the look on the bastard's face, it wasn't anything good. He took two steps forward to train the gun directly at Escalón's head.

"I said, GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!"

As the man lowered himself to the ground, Don backed up and retrieved his own gun from the pavement, holstering it.

"Put your hands behind your head."

Megan was moving so quickly, she actually passed the mouth of the alley before he saw them. Taking several steps back she stared at the scene before her.

A man was lying in the alley floor, bleeding profusely from the nose, his hands laced behind his head. He was cursing and swearing at the man standing over him. It took Megan a moment to truly acknowledge that that man was Don Eppes. There was blood streaming down the left side of his face, his right arm hanging limply by his side and the gun in his hand was pointed..…at the ground.

When Megan took a couple of steps into the alley, Don raised his eyes to look at her.

"If you've got this, I really need to sit down."

Without waiting for her to answer, Don staggered back against the wall and used it to slide his body to the ground. Suddenly feeling as if his own head weighed a metric ton, Don leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes.

Colby's voice cut through the darkness.

"Don. Hey, pal. Stay with us, man."

He forced his eyes open. He was no longer sitting against the wall, but was still in the alley. Someone had laid him down on his back. Colby was kneeling next to him looking profoundly concerned and holding something up against the side of his face.

"Don. Try to keep your eyes open."

David's voice caught his attention.

"I think I found what he hit him with."

Don shifted his eyes to see David holding up the bloody two by four that his opponent had dropped during their struggle.

"You dumb shit."

It took Don a minute to realize Megan was talking to the man who sat cuffed in front of her.

"PUCHICA!"

He spat at her feet and she stepped backwards to avoid being hit with the spray.

"David, will you get him out of here? Don may have decided to let the courts have him, but if I have to keep looking at him, I'll kill him myself."

Don blinked trying to keep his eyes focused as David lifted the man up from the ground by his cuffed hands and lead him out of the alley toward the flashing lights that were approaching on the street.

"Damn, He really messed him up. He looks pretty out of it."

Megan's comment intrigued him, but Don couldn't find the gumption to investigate the severity of his injuries.

Colby's next comment laid his curiosity to rest.

"I think it may have broken his cheekbone. And I'd say he has a concussion."

To Don, it felt like his whole face was throbbing and his right arm was now so completely numb that if he had been told it had fallen off he could have believed it.

"You need to keep him awake, Colby. Don, keep your eyes open."

Before he could try to respond, Megan turned her attention to the street as an ambulance pulled up just outside the alleyway.

As Colby readjusted the light pressure to the laceration on Don's face, he continued to talk to him.

"You did good, Boss. You got him."

Don started to feel his grasp on consciousness waning and he allowed his eyes to close again.

"Stay awake. Come on, man. Open your eyes."

Despite Colby's pleas, Don kept his eyes closed. He could feel the light rain on his face and he blocked out the voice of his teammate, focusing instead on the sound of his own heart beat. The past two days had been nothing short of hell and he was just so damn tired.

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Actual Authors Notes: In Caliche or the Salvadorian Spanish language - here are today's translations…for those of you who want to know what great obscenities I've shared with you.

Culero-faggot

Serotes - F...'ers

PUCHICA- a term of disgust aimed at a woman. Similar in meaning to Puta which means whore, but can also mean F...'king whore.

Jode te - go f...k yourself

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Chapter Eighteen: I've Got the Scars to Prove It

Trivial Notes from the Author: In the realm of spoilers. I like www dot Numb3rs dot org……of course replacing the word dot with an actual dot because I can't write a complete web address here. It just won't let me.

More good news………NUMB3RS: The Complete Second Season on DVD October 10, 2006