Hi all, Jess here. Sorry for the delay in updates but we're back. We both really appreciate the support for this story and all the favorites, follows and reviews. Hope you continue to enjoy this little adventure.
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"Deeks? Where are you going?" Callen tried to follow after his friend who was trudging through the snow, but his wounded leg hurt, and the snow was very deep. "Deeks, wait up. I can't go as fast as you. What are you doing anyways? Where the heck are you going?"
"I need to feed the bears," Deeks called back. "Just go back to the cabin, Callen."
"What? No! You can't do that!"
"They're hungry. I have some Elfin Mix for them. They'll like it. I bet they've never had it before. It will be a nice treat."
"Deeks, please come back," Callen pleaded. "This is crazy. That mama bear will eat the Elfin Mix and then she's going to eat you!"
"Don't be such a worry wart. I'll see you guys later." Deeks then picked up the pace and headed for the area where they had last seen the bears. Callen couldn't keep up and fell drastically behind. He followed Deeks' footprints in the snow, walking slower and slower, until he stopped short. Up ahead, he could see Deeks' body lying still and lifeless in the snow. As he drew closer, he saw the whiteness of the snow, marred with the redness of Deeks' blood. He dropped to his knees into the cold snow and tears came to his eyes. He couldn't believe this had happened. He had no idea how they would ever be able to give Kensi this heart wrenching news…
Callen's eyes snapped open and he sat up in bed, shivering. He looked around the cabin frantically until his eyes settled on Deeks. Even in the dimly lit cabin, he could see that he was breathing, and he very definitely had not been eaten by a hungry mama bear and her cub. Damn it, what's with these nightmares? he mumbled to himself. He shifted on the cot, causing a bolt of pain to shoot through his leg and the cot to creak loudly. He was freezing, despite being close to the fire and he wanted his jacket. He looked around and saw it draped over one of the chairs at the table. The way his leg felt at the moment, he wasn't sure he wanted to attempt to walk over to get it. Sam's sleeping form was right in the direct pathway from his cot and he doubted he'd be able to get the jacket without waking him or even worse tripping over him.
He stared into the fire and sighed heavily. He wondered how deep the snow really was. If it was anything like his nightmare, he'd never be able to hike back. He'd have to stay behind until the others got help. He imagined that Deeks would stay back with him.
"Callen?" Deeks whispered from his cot a few feet away. "Are you okay?"
Callen nodded silently, not surprised when Deeks ended up coming over to his cot. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong," Callen replied. "Just kind of cold."
"You want your jacket?" Deeks asked.
Callen hesitated and then nodded. Deeks deftly moved through the cabin, avoiding Sam and brought the jacket to Callen who gave him a grateful look as he quickly put it on. "Thanks."
"No problem...you sure you're okay?" Deeks asked as he awkwardly got down on the floor besides Callen's cot. "If you don't mind my saying so, you look kind of spooked."
"Bad dream," Callen answered shortly.
"Your mom?" Deeks asked, giving him a knowing look.
Callen immediately shook his head. "No... not my mom…not this time"
"Well, I know people don't think so, but I really am a good listener if you want to talk."
Callen shook his head with a humorless smile. "Trust me...you don't want to hear about this."
"Try me."
"You wouldn't ever go looking for the bears again, would you?" Callen asked.
Deeks' eyes widened as he shook his head. "Um, maybe if I was a crazy person," Deeks stated. "No, Callen. Trust me, I'm not going to go looking for the bears."
"Well, that's good to hear," Callen said. "Unfortunately, dream Deeks or nightmare Deeks wasn't as smart as you."
"No? Did the bear rip my arm totally off this time?" Deeks asked, grinning, trying to get Callen to lighten up and forget about the dream.
"Worse than that…"
"My leg?"
"The bear killed you, Deeks," Callen snapped, not wanting to listen to Deeks go through his body, part by part. "You went to give her Elfin Mix and it obviously wasn't enough to feed a hungry bear. She ripped you to pieces."
Deeks couldn't help it, he started to laugh. "Come on, Callen. Dream Deeks was a dumbass. He went to give the bears a little package of Elfin Mix? You need to see the humor in this. Although, I have to admit I'm feeling a little insulted that your version of me was so dim-witted."
"I don't think you're stupid, Deeks. Far from it. I don't know why I dreamed that."
"I know you don't," Deeks patted Callen's shoulder reassuringly. "Come on man, forget it. I'm fine and I promise you, I'm not going out to feed the bears, Elfin mix or anything else."
Callen nodded, but his eyes still appeared haunted.
"You want some tea or hot chocolate?" Deeks asked, deciding to try to distract Callen from the dream. "Might warm you up."
"How's your arm?" Callen asked, abruptly changing the subject. "Are you in a lot of pain?"
"Nothing I can't handle," Deeks said. "How about you? How's your leg?"
"It's fine," Callen said, knowing neither of them was being entirely truthful about their injuries. "Thanks, but I don't need anything to drink. I... I think I'm going to try to get back to sleep. Thanks for checking up on me."
"Any time," Deeks said. "Don't hesitate to wake me if you need anything."
"I won't...thanks, Deeks."
"You're welcome, Callen...get some rest."
Callen nodded and watched as Deeks went back to his own cot. He then laid back down and tried to warm up and get comfortable, but it was a long time before he finally fell back into a troubled sleep.
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When morning finally came, Callen woke up feeling more exhausted than the night before. His sleep had been restless, and he had spent most of the time switching and turning trying to find a comfortable position, but the release had never arrived. The physical discomfort had been bad enough, but his dreams had been the worst part. After Deeks and the bear, it had been Eric getting trapped in an avalanche, then Sam falling down a cliff. Each time he had woken up with a start, shivering even though the jacket was warm enough and frantically looking for his teammates. Now he was awake again and he just wanted to go back to bed.
Groaning, Callen gingerly stood up. Looking at the other cots and the spot on the floor that had previously been occupied by Sam, he frowned noticing that he was alone. Taking a quick peek inside the bedroom, Callen's heart began spiraling out of control when he found out his teammates weren't there either. Maybe his nightmares hadn't been dreams at all and Deeks, Eric and Sam were really dead. Eyes going wide, Callen pictured having to be the one to tell Hetty, Nell and Kensi that the rest of the team was gone, and he almost went down. Then he heard a laugh coming from outside the window and he half-walked, half-jumped to the edge of the cabin so he could look outside. Deeks and Sam were sitting on the lounge chairs talking calmly to each other, his partner smirking at whatever it was Deeks was saying. Then Eric joined them, coming from the direction of the restroom.
Sighing, Callen ran his hands through his face as he tried to calm down his racing heart. Everything is okay, everyone is okay, he told himself over and over again. Hearing steps nearing the front door, he jumped and quickly limped to the small kitchen, turning on the sink and splashing some cold water on his face. Hopefully then he would lose the deer-in-the-headlight look that was sure to be on his face. He had enjoyed his brief talk with Deeks last night and his younger teammate had reacted well, but he didn't want to open up about the other dreams and make himself look like he was losing his mind. Even if he still thought that he was going a bit crazy.
"G!" Sam shouted cheerfully as soon as they came through the door. "Glad you are awake, brother; we were waiting for you to have breakfast."
Callen smiled at Sam's lighter mood and nodded appreciatively. "What were you guys doing outside? Isn't it cold?" He asked, trying not to freak out by the still falling snow.
"Yeah." Deeks said chuckling.
"Sure is." Sam added, mirroring Deeks' smile. While Eric just shifted uncomfortably in his place.
Feeling like he was the only one out of the inside joke, Callen raised his eyebrows, hoping his friends would share more. But Sam and Deeks just giggled and turned their eyes towards Eric, who continued to look very uncomfortable.
"Okay, I needed to pee, and I didn't wanna go alone!" Eric said exasperatedly, finally caving to the pressure of his teammate's stares.
Callen couldn't help but chuckle, wondering how that conversation had gone. "Why?" He asked, even if he wasn't sure he wanted to know.
Eric sighed embarrassingly before opening his mouth again. "I was scared the bears could be outside."
Sam and Deeks burst out laughing again, and Callen joined in, even if deep down inside he admitted Eric's concern was totally warranted and he was also nervous about the possibility of the bears showing up again. Callen knew Deeks was always full of jokes but now he wondered how he could seem so relaxed after it had been his arm inside the bear's mouth.
"Yeah, yeah, very funny guys. But I heard something about breakfast and I'm quite hungry." Eric said, his stomach growling as if to emphasize his point.
"You got it, Eric. Hopefully there won't be any bears in the kitchen." Sam muttered the last part under his breath, before he walked further inside and got started on breakfast.
Eric rolled his eyes but stayed silent, knowing it was better to endure the teasing until his friends found a new target for their jokes.
"Do you need any help?" Deeks asked.
"No, it's okay. Just sit down and relax, I've got it." Sam said, trying to sound as normal as possible. He knew their food supplies were running low and he didn't want to worry his teammates so he would try to keep them in the dark for a bit longer. "After breakfast, I will head back out to gather more wood. Last night was a cold one so we used more than before."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Eric asked nervously, noticing the blanched look that Callen and Deeks shared at Sam's words.
"Of course, man. And we need the wood, unless you guys want to share a cot tonight so you can stay warm." Sam said as he continued to work in the kitchen, not wanting to get into how they would be good if they had managed to bring more wood the day before, but Deeks' and Callen's trip had been interrupted.
"Okay, I will go with you, then." Eric offered.
"I can go alone, Eric. You just stay here." Sam replied vaguely.
"We don't need a babysitter." Callen said knowing his partner quite well.
"I know, G. But Eric and I are the only uninjured ones, so it's better if Eric stays behind." Sam tried to reason.
"Are you expecting something else to go wrong?" Deeks joined the conversation, his mind going to the many things that could still spoil this trip.
"Not really, but it's always best to be sure. And, food's ready." Sam began moving the omelets to the table and then some water.
"Then, I will go with you." Deeks proposed.
"No." Sam, Callen and Eric all said at the same time, all of them knowing Deeks was sort of a magnet for danger.
"Come on, guys. I can still be helpful with one arm. At least it's not my leg." Deeks said innocently, sending an apologetic look to Callen, which turned into a wince as soon as he noticed Callen's murderous glare.
"I will go alone, and that's the end of the discussion." Not that it ever was a discussion in the first place, but Sam left that last part unsaid.
"Just go with Eric, we will be okay." Callen said in a commanding tone, reminding Sam that even if he was the one with the outdoor experience, he was still the leader of the team, even when this wasn't a work trip.
"Then who will take care of you?" Sam asked, the worry back on his face, and his lightened mood nowhere to be found.
"I will." Deeks said simply.
"And I will take care of him." Callen added innocently.
Sam just glared at his friends' smiling faces and turned back towards the table. "Time to eat guys, we can talk more about this later." Anyone that didn't know them would think that G and Deeks were two little angels, but Sam knew better and after the bear incident he wasn't leaving them unsupervised again.
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"Mmm… that was delicious." Deeks sighed contentedly after he had finished eating every bit of his omelet. "You're almost as talented as I am in the kitchen, Sam."
"Oh, is that right?" Sam asked with a grin. "Those are fighting words for sure, Deeks. When we get home, I challenge you to a cook-off."
"Oh you are on," Deeks grinned at the prospect. "You don't know what you're asking for."
"And you have no idea of my hidden cooking talents," Sam bragged.
"Oh I definitely want to be a judge," Callen joined in, knowing the culinary dishes would prove to be quite a treat.
"Me too!" Eric called out.
"Sure, you guys can judge, Kens and Nell too," Deeks said grinning, but then his smile faded a little as he thought about just how much he missed his wife. Although he wouldn't want her to be a part of this situation, not having her with him still hurt.
"Sounds like a plan. We'll definitely do it...when we get home…" Callen trailed off as his eyes went towards the window with the seemingly never-ending supply of falling snow.
The other men fell silent for a few moments until Sam got to his feet. "Alright, I'm off to get the wood. You guys be good until I return."
"Take Eric with you," Callen demanded, sounding more demanding than he had meant to.
Sam stared back at Callen for what seemed like a long time but was probably no more than a few seconds. Finally, he nodded. "Fine, Eric can come."
"I just...I really think it's better that we're always in pairs," Callen explained, trying to ease the slight tension.
"Yeah, you're right," Sam said, "but just please, just hang out in here and try not to get into any trouble, okay?"
"What if we have to go to the bathroom?" Deeks asked with a grin.
"Do you?" Sam asked glaring at the detective.
"Uh, not right now."
"Well, we're not going to be out very long. I think you'll be fine."
"Whatever you say, Sam Dawg," Deeks said, determined to lighten the mood.
Sam rolled his eyes but was unable to stop the smile that appeared on his face. He turned his attention to Eric who was zipping up his jacket. "You ready to go, Eric?" he asked.
Eric nodded. "All set, Sam. See you guys later."
"Be careful," Callen said as he and Deeks watched the door close behind their teammates.
"Now what?" Deeks asked, giving Callen a questioning look.
"I don't know…" Callen shrugged and limped over to the first aid kit then pulled out the bottle of ibuprofen and shook two tablets into his hand. "You want any?"
Deeks shook his head. "No, I'm good...just curious, why did you wait for Sam to leave before you took those?"
Callen swallowed the tablets down with a gulp of water and sighed. "I think it's kind of obvious, isn't it? I have a very overprotective partner. I don't want to worry him."
Deeks was about to protest Callen's actions but then reconsidered. "Are you in a lot of pain?"
Callen shook his head. "I'm fine, Deeks. Just want to take the edge off if I can." He wished he could have taken the pills in private, but privacy was severely lacking in the cabin and that just wasn't possible. He wasn't even sure that two ibuprofen tablets would make a dent in the throbbing he was feeling but it couldn't hurt to try.
"You should probably keep your leg up," Deeks suggested after a few moments of silence.
"Yeah, I know…" Callen went over to one of the chairs and sat down then rested his leg on a small wooden crate that had been in the cabin when they arrived.
"Want to play a game of cards?" Deeks asked.
Callen nodded as Deeks grabbed the deck and began to shuffle the cards.
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"I add another run". Deeks said, signature smirk on his face at the way he was crushing Callen on this Rummy game. While the agent only had two sets and one run, the detective had just gotten his second run, on top of his four sets.
"Yeah, yeah, let's see how well you do in another game." Callen rolled his eyes and grabbed another card.
Deeks just smiled confidently, feeling pretty good about his chances regardless of the game. Not many people assumed the surfer was also a good gamer, but he had spent a lot of lonely nights undercover distracting himself with a deck of cards.
For the next few minutes, the game continued much in the same way as it had been going since the beginning. Callen barely holding his own as Deeks continued to fill the table in front of him.
"We should play Durak next." Callen grumbled after Deeks got yet another run.
"Why am I not surprised that you're suggesting the one Russian game among all the ones we could be playing?" Deeks asked, while silently wondering if maybe card games had also been Callen's entertainment when he had been an operator in Europe.
"What, are you scared your luck will finally run out?" Callen teased, but before he could continue, a crash sounded outside. "What's that?" Callen said instead. Taking a look out the window but not able to see much from his sitting position.
"Maybe Sam and Eric returned." Deeks offered weakly. "Yes, it must be that. Let me take a look." He added, trying to steal his nerves and sound sure of himself.
Callen just nodded and waited for Deeks to say something, but the detective uncharacteristically stayed silent, his only response his eyes going wide and a nervous hand running down his hair.
"What's wrong?" Callen asked knowingly, having long ago learned to recognize the tales of all his teammates.
"It's just wind." Deeks tried downplaying the situation. "It must have been a branch falling down or something".
Callen gingerly stood up, wanting to see for himself.
"It's really nothing." Deeks tried again
"You might be a damn good undercover, Deeks, but you're not nearly as good at lying to your friends." Not anymore, Callen added to himself.
Reaching the window, Callen's reaction mirrored his friend's as he noticed how much the storm had intensified. Snow wasn't falling as much anymore, but it had seemingly been replaced by wind gusts that threatened to topple the trees surrounding the small cabin. "I hope they are close to returning." Callen said to no one in particular.
Deeks nodded, his own worry for Sam and Eric already making itself known through the empty feeling in his stomach. He was glad the two of them were inside, but a part of him also wished he was out there where he could help his friends. The safety of the cabin wasn't good enough when Sam and Eric were still out in the open.
"Ok, let's just calm down and wait. We will give them a few minutes and if they are not back, we will go look for them." Callen explained, trying as hard as he could to sound like a team leader.
Deeks wanted to point out that Callen was in no shape to go searching for anyone, but instead, he just nodded his agreement. Deeks knew he wasn't in a considerably better state, but at least he could still walk.
Just as Deeks had turned to follow Callen back towards the table and their game, he saw movement out of the corner of his eye.
The next few minutes passed seemingly in slow motion, with Deeks reacting instinctively as a particularly nasty wind gust hit one of the trees, breaking down two huge branches that came down into the window and the front of the house. In the brief moment between the branches breaking and reaching the house, Deeks led out a scream and managed to push Callen out of the way. The agent falling hard towards the dining table, which broke instantly, letting Callen fall onto the ground.
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"Storm seems to be getting worse." Eric said nervously, having noticed the diminishing snowfall, but also the wind gusts that had picked up.
"Yes, you're right." Sam agreed, just as he expertly dodged a pine cone that fell down from a tree. "Let's hurry."
Eric stared back the way they had come, wishing they could just turn around and head back to the cabin. But he knew they still needed wood, especially if the storm was getting worse.
Soon enough, they reached the side of the lake where the previous day everything had gone wrong and they ran to grab the pieces of perfect wood that laid discarded on the ground. Sam had considered searching closer to the cabin, but he knew Callen and Deeks had already taken the time to select good pieces, so he preferred not to work double.
As Sam reached down to grab the wood, his eyes landed on a small crimson spot that matted the otherwise white ground. The wind must have blown away the soft snow that had covered that icy, red spot. Silently, Sam wondered if it was Deeks' or Callen's, his thoughts going back to that awful moment when he had stood momentarily frozen as two bears encircled his teammates. Maybe it had been better if he had stayed frozen in place, then Callen wouldn't have been shot. Knowing that this way of thinking was getting him nowhere, Sam shook his head as he forced the thoughts away. Callen and Deeks had been out of options and his actions had saved their lives. That's all that mattered.
"Ready?" Sam asked Eric, after the younger man had his arms full. Seeing Eric nod, he finished grabbing as many pieces as he could, before leading them back towards the cabin. The sight of the blood had set his nerves back on edge, and he knew the sooner they got back to the cabin, the better he would feel.
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Callen wasn't sure what had just happened. One moment, he was moving back towards the table, the other he was being pushed away as a loud crash sounded behind him and then under him.
Groaning, Callen felt the sharp pain return to his leg with a vengeance, just as his back protested in pain. He could feel his breathing beginning to come in ragged as the ache in his back intensified, making it hard for air to move throughout his body. Not again, he thought to himself, remembering the mission in Mexico and the desperate feeling of not being able to draw air into his lungs. Not being able to breathe was not the best way to go.
Taking as deep a breath as he could, Callen tried to calm down his increasing panic, just as his mind tried to comprehend what had happened. His answer came crashing down on him as he tried to search for Deeks, instead finding two branches, more the size of a small trunk, that had broken the window and destroyed the front left-side of the cabin. What had once been a steady structure, was now just a broken pile of wood. But, more terrifying of it all was the sight of his teammate. Callen's eyes finally settling on the blonde mop of hair that laid unmoving under the two branches and partially covered by broken shards of wood and glass. That's when he recalled the echo of a scream, and the realization that Deeks had alerted him and pushed him out of the way slowly dawned on him.
Seeing Deeks for the first time, Callen wanted desperately to stand up and get to him. But he felt pinned down by an invisible force, not able to stand up or move more than his limbs. Focusing on himself instead, Callen could feel a crushing pain on his back and chest, just as he thought he felt a damp spot on his shirt. But he downplayed it, thinking, or rather hoping, that it was only his imagination.
Shivering, Callen suddenly realized the cold air from outside was now rushing inside the cabin, and he felt his panic increase. Hands going to his throat, his world began closing down on him as air became even more scarce. And, just before he was pushed down into the darkness, his last thought was whether the chill spreading through his body was a result of the change in temperature or his body going into shock.
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The walk back to the cabin was less peaceful than the one towards the lake. Sam and Eric constantly dodging falling pine cones and small shards of wood. Both men feeling the wind cut into their skin as their full hands made it impossible for them to shield their faces.
Eric was sure Sam was more than used to handling adverse weather, but he had spent most of his life behind a screen, so he felt his fears increasing as the storm continued to rage above them. His throat dry and nostrils flaring as the chill in the air burned through.
For his part, Sam continued to take quick glances at Eric. Noticing how hard it was for the smaller man to push his way forward. If it weren't for Callen and Deeks, he would have tried to find shelter and wait for the storm to slow down. But he would feel much better about their chances if all four of them were together again.
Finally reaching the cabin, Sam blew out a relieved breath. That is, until they rounded the corner, coming face-to-face with what once had been the front of the house. The left side of the wall was now gone, shards of wood littering the ground both outside and, he assumed, also inside the cabin.
Dropping the wood to the ground, Sam ran towards the cabin but stopped in his tracks as he noticed a big piece of wood blocking the front door. Turning desperately to where the window had been, he climbed over the piece of tree and tried looking inside.
Sam's sight first landed on his partner, whose eyes kept blinking closed and back opened, as his hands held tightly to his throat. Seeing no obvious injury but the broken table below him, Sam wasn't sure if Callen was really choking or maybe he was just experiencing a panic attack.
Not being able to fully see Deeks, Sam got back down and ran to the other side of the cabin, reaching the side that was unharmed. From this window he could see Deeks' body on the ground under the rubble of the broken wall, pieces of wood and glass covering him, along with leaves and pine cones from the trees.
Staring at the chaos in front of him, Sam drew a trembling hand down his face. He couldn't think this trip could get any worse, but he had just been proven very, very wrong. He knew he shouldn't have left Callen and Deeks unsupervised.
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Thanks for reading and apologies for the cliffhanger, but we will be back soon!