I'm back with the next chapter! I didn't want to leave you all hanging for too long. I hope everyone enjoys the first confrontation between Javier and Damon. This chapter contains violence and slight language. Thank you to everyone who reviewed last chapter! I truly appreciate all of your wonderful words, advice, and encouragement. Thank you as well to all those who have added this story and me as an author to their follow/favorite lists! Enjoy!
Chapter Five
"Damon." The detective swallowed his anxiety. "I didn't realize that coming back from the dead was a part of your skill set, Calder." Javier growled in barely controlled rage.
Kate swiftly rushed from the break-room to get a trace on Esposito's phone while Castle urged Javier to put the call on speaker. The detective complied and Calder's dark chuckling filled the room.
"I'm flattered that you think so highly of my abilities." Amusement clear in Damon's voice.
Esposito brought the phone closer to his mouth and spoke dangerously. "Don't be. I just wanted to make sure that when I put you in the ground, you'll stay there this time."
Esposito's gaze connected with Beckett's who returned, mouthing to keep Calder talking. But Damon's next words made all the room's occupants scowl.
"You sound distressed, Javier. Is something the matter? You didn't lose anything…important did you?"
Javier's hand shook with the strain of his tightening grip on the phone. "You son of a Bitch! What did you do to him?! Where's my partner?!" He shouted, losing control.
Calder made a sound of disapproval. "Now I don't think bringing my mother into this is necessary. Even if it is an accurate statement. Your partner is right here. Would you like to speak with him?"
Kevin snapped his head up in surprise at Calder's words. He was fully intending on shouting out something helpful to his partner, but maybe he wouldn't have to shout. The restrained detective watched with uncertainty as the dark blond made his way towards him. There was something in Damon's cold grey eyes that sent a spike on fear down Kevin's spine.
Calder pulled the phone from his ear, but instead of holding it out for his captive he covered it with his large hand, leaning close, whispering into Kevin's ear. "If you tell them anything about where you think you are, or any kind of hint that could help them find you. I will kill your wife and child…slowly…and I will make sure you watch every agonizing moment."
Kevin felt numb, and all he could do was stare into Calder's steel unrelenting gaze as the man place the phone on speaker. Detective Ryan clench his jaw tightly until the muscles hurt from the strain. He wasn't going to play this mad man's game, but relented when he heard Javier's panicked voice.
"Javi?" Kevin spoke clearly, and had to swallow his sudden terror when Damon's cruel face twisted into a wide smile. It was the first time Ryan saw such amusement from the man and the captured detective did not like it one bit.
"Kevin! It's really good to hear your voice, Bro. Are you alright?" Javier's unsteady emotion-filled voice made Ryan's chest constrict with guilt, knowing he was the reason for his friend's uncharacteristically troubled voice.
"Well I didn't get my morning coffee so…I've been better." Detective Ryan's exhausted voice said, trying to lighten the mood. The two friend's shared a small dejected laugh both knowing how desperate the situation was.
Javier knew they didn't have a lot of time, so without any more delay he got down to business. "Kev, do you have any idea of where you are? Anything that could help us find you?"
Calder raised an eyebrow and grinned at Kevin, knowing he wouldn't tell them anything with the threat to his family fresh in his mind.
Kevin looked away from his captor as his vision blurred with held back tears. Clearing his throat of emotion Ryan answered his best friend quietly. "No…I….I didn't see anything. I have no idea where I might be." His intense blue eyes reconnected with Calder's as he finished the lie.
Ryan could hear Esposito sigh on the other end. "I'm sorry you got dragged into this Kev. I will get you out of this I swear. Just hang in there, Bro. Remember…'til the wheels fall off."
"Yeah, 'til the wheels–" Ryan's response was cutoff.
"Now, Javier. I'm not sure it's such a good idea to make a promise you will not be able to keep. Some people might view that as a betrayal." Calder spoke firmly as he made his way back to the table.
Kevin drew in a sharp breath when Damon picked up his large knife and looked back at him with glee. Ryan tried to prepare himself for whatever was coming next, but he couldn't control how his heart rate increased rapidly nor the small trickle of sweat that rolled down the side of his forehead.
Detective Ryan's breaths began to falter in his lungs the closer Calder came. Gathering his courage Kevin glared at his captor and raised his voice loudly. "Javi, I need you to listen to me carefully. All of this; it's not your fault! I know you're beating yourself up right now, thinking just because you have a history with this nut that it's your fault, but it's not. Whatever happens from this point…do not blame yourself. I trust all of you with my life and I know you will find me. Don't let this Asshole make you think otherwise!"
As Ryan spoke Calder walked around to the back of his captive's chair and knelt down to his level. Wrapping his arms around Kevin, Damon positioned the phone just in front of the detective's mouth while his other hand placed the blade of his knife against Ryan's taut forearm. Kevin braced himself for the pain to come and silently hoped the others hurried to save him.
Javier started to speak again but his voice was promptly drowned out by a long agonizing scream ripped from Kevin's lips as Calder dug the knife slowly and deeply through his left arm. He tried to hold his scream in, but Calder just pushed the knife deeper until Ryan relented. When the blade was finally pulled completely free Kevin began trying to control the pain radiating from the deep wound by taking ragged deep breaths. The injured detective's ears were ringing so loudly that he missed the exchange happening between his kidnapper and his best friend.
"I will kill you Calder! If you touch him again I will destroy you! And that is a promise I can assure you I'll keep!" Javier screamed into the receiver of his phone. Beckett's eyes glistened with welling tears and Castle lost all color in his face.
The three stood still with nothing to do but listen to their friend trying to control his heavy breathing, knowing he was all alone, and there was nothing they could do to help him.
Calder laughed. "No Javier it is me that will destroy you. Did you really think you could turn me in, after everything I did for you, and I wouldn't want to settle the score? That you could ruin my life and just continue to keep yours untouched?"
None-too-gently, Calder lifted Ryan's head after it had dropped to his chest and squeezed his jaw tight enough to leave bruises. "I want you to disregard what my new friend Kevin said. Every ounce of his pain is your fault. I want you to know this and remember how you failed to protect your partner as you attend his funeral."
Without warning Calder clutched the bleeding wound on Ryan's arm and extracted another pain-filled cry from the Irishman just before ending the call.
For moments none of Kevin's three friends moved or spoke as the sounds of their friend's suffering still rang clearly in their minds. Beckett was the first to come to her senses and ran from the room.
"Sam, did you get a trace?!" Kate snapped.
Startled, a young man with neatly slicked back brown hair looked up at the detective with pale green eyes. "Uh…no…Detective Beckett. I…I'm sorry, but the signal was bounced around from tower to tower every few seconds. It looks like military grade anti-trace technology."
"You mean to tell me you have nothing?! No idea? Not even a general area?!" Beckett barked in frustration.
Sam started typing in a rush on his computer, almost panicked. "I…I can try to keep working on a way to…to uh isolate the signal…but that will only work if he calls again."
Beckett sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Do it."
Javier's phone began to ring again bringing Kate back into the break-room. Esposito hadn't moved from his position, staring at the ground in dismay; his phone held loosely in his hand. Castle looked no better perched on the edge of one of the navy blue couches, his face betraying his feelings of defeat. Beckett slowly placed a comforting hand on Javier's shoulder when it became apparent that he didn't even realize his phone was ringing.
"Javi? Your phone is ringing again. It might be Calder." Kate said softly.
The Hispanic detective blinked out of his stupor and checked the ID on his phone. His heart dropped when Jenny's name and smiling face was displayed. "It's Jenny."
"Javi, I can take it if you want?" Beckett's voice was low and comforting as she gave Javier a way out. One he could not take.
"No…he's my partner. I'll tell her."
White-hot burning pain radiated from the swiftly bleeding wound on Detective Ryan's arm; the bleeding increasing with each attempt at moving away from his kidnapper. The pain spiked again as Calder jammed the needle from his suture kit into the flesh surrounding Ryan's wound and pulled the skin harshly back together, creating professional but painful stitches.
Kevin knocked his head back against the chair and breathed out a long huff of air, as Damon began a new stitch. "AAH! Why are you even bothering to stitch me up?! You're the one who did this!"
Calder continued his work only momentarily pausing to answer his hostage. "I can't have you bleeding to death before we really get things started."
Damon finished the last few stitches uninterrupted and without warning poured some whiskey over the newly stitched cut. Ryan groaned in discomfort as the alcohol burned. Calder took a large mouthful of the whiskey, watching his captive breathe through the pain, and held out the bottle to Kevin when he had settled again.
Ryan looked at Calder in loathing. "Go to Hell."
The military man smirked. "I thought being an Irishman, as you are, you would appreciate a fine bottle of whiskey."
Kevin just continued to glare, prompting Calder to shrug his shoulders. "Your loss."
The blond took another large gulp before placing the bottle of the ground next to him. Damon wiped away the wetness surrounding the detective's injury and roughly wrapped a thick white bandage around the Irishman's forearm.
Curiously, Calder's grey eyes swept over an oddly quiet Kevin, trying to figure out what thoughts were clearly racing through his head. He didn't have to wait long to find out as Kevin's voice, raw from screaming, called out to the former military man as he washed the blood off his hands in the cabin's sink.
"You said you wanted Javier to pay for betraying you. You want him to fall apart completely. So I've realized there's only one way I end up in your plan for vengeance. You're going to kill me aren't you?" The detective finished his words, watching Calder with interest.
Damon continued to wash and dry his hands and ignored Ryan's question before settling himself in front of his laptop.
Kevin felt his chest tighten and looked around at the secure cabin somewhat panicked, clearly upset. "Before you do it…could I at least talk to my wife? Tell her I love her."
Calder remain silent refusing to look at his captive, working on his laptop.
"Please?!" Kevin yelled in desperation.
Finally Damon lifted his steely gaze to connect with Kevin's. "I'm sorry but I can't risk you giving your wife any information or some sort of signal."
The Irish detective's mouth opened in disbelief. "I know you have the capability to have my family killed if I say anything. Why would I risk their lives?"
Calder leaned his elbows on the table bringing himself slightly closer to Detective Ryan and spoke in a smooth voice. "There is a kind of bond between a husband and wife that no one can quite figure out. It's like the weird phenomena of the connection between twins. I can't risk your wife being able to figure something out merely from the sound of your voice. You understand I'm sure."
Kevin swallowed the lump that burned in his throat. "No I don't understand. You completely confuse me. If you're planning on killing me then why treat my injuries? Why do any of this? Why didn't you just kill me at the coffee shop and leave my body for Javier in that alleyway?"
Calder's attention was brought back to his laptop screen. "There you are." He whispered in triumph. Abruptly the tall blond jumped up after closing his laptop with a loud click, and opened a locked cabinet pulling out a small black container. With no need to keep its contents hidden Damon placed the black box on the edge of the table closest to Kevin and opened the lid. Inside held a syringe and five small vials of some type of liquid secured by a foam insert.
"What's that?!" Kevin demanded as fear settled deep in his chest.
Damon didn't answer and instead lifted the syringe and one vial out and onto the table. With practiced ease Calder's hardened hands drew the liquid into the syringe and replaced the vial carefully. Turning around Calder's thudding footsteps brought him in front of his struggling captive.
"What are you doing?! What is that?! Ah! Come on answer the damn question, Calder!"
"Shhh take deep breaths Kev. Everything is going to be just fine." Damon's southern voice rumbled as he placed a strong hand on Detective Ryan's struggling arm, holding him as still as possible and injecting the yellow liquid into his veins.
Ryan cried out in anger, frustration, and a slight bit of pain as Calder inserted the needle into his flesh. The effects were fast acting as Kevin's vision began to fade and an overwhelming sense of exhaustion came over him.
Damon knelt down in front of his fast fading captive and undid the straps holding him in place. "I gave you a mild sedative, nothing to worry about. I just don't need any escape attempts while I'm out."
Kevin squeezed his eyes shut and open them again trying to fight the effects of the sedative unsuccessfully. "Out? Wher…where you goin'?"
Calder finished unstrapping the detective and Kevin weakly try to fight him off, but all his fight accomplished was bringing a laugh from his captor's lips. With very little resistance Ryan was half carried half dragged back down to the basement and tossed on the creaky bed.
Kevin's vision blurred again and the last thing he saw before he lost his fight with consciousness was Damon's smiling face as he clamped a thick metal cuff around his pale ankle.
"Esposito." Javier answered as normally as possible, even-though the sound of Kevin's scream was still ringing in his ears.
Jenny's bright and cheerful voice greeted Esposito as if nothing was wrong, and to her nothing was yet. "Hi there Javier! I'm really sorry to bother you at work, but my husband missed a FaceTime lunch date with me and Sarah Grace. Now you know I understand that he must have been busy with a case, but princess here doesn't see it that way and wants to talk to her daddy."
Javier felt his guilt rise with every word coming from Jenny's mouth. He didn't have the heart to interrupt the woman and shatter her world into pieces. So he continued to listen, dreading the moment she stopped talking.
"I found it odd that he hasn't answered my calls or texts, but then I realized that my silly husband must have left his phone in the car. It wouldn't be the first time." Jenny chuckled.
The line went quiet and Jenny's voice returned when Javier didn't say anything only this time it was filled with anxiety and concern. "Javi? Are you still there?"
Javier cleared his throat and a single tear escaped his troubled eyes. "Yeah…I'm…I'm here. Jenny there's something…I need to tell you. Maybe you and Sarah should come down to the precinct."
"What? What happened?! Javier please tell me Kevin is okay!" Jenny asked hysterically it was clear in her voice that she was crying. "Please Javier just tell me. Where is my husband?"
Esposito sighed sadly and answered; his voice cracking slightly. "We don't know where Kevin is…he's been abducted."
Oh no! Poor Ryan, poor Javier, and poor Jenny. What is Damon up to? What do you think his game is? Please review and let me know what you thought of the new chapter and what you think might come next! Until next time...
