A/N: Sorry for the slow update, wanted this up a few days ago but had less free time than I expected. I'll always update as soon as I can (psst... reviews help ;)) And to answer a previous reviewer question even though it's kind of a spoiler, no this isn't a death fic. Trust me, you'll see I've got this all planned out! Hope you like this chapter.

Callen slowly opened his eyes while he regained consciousness. As he groggily surveyed his surroundings, he became aware of a few things. The first was the throbbing pain shooting out from his shoulder, and its intensity forced him to shut his eyes again and try to block it out. The next thing he noticed was that he was laying on cold, dirty concrete in an uncomfortable, awkward position. Testing his hands and feet, he concluded that they both were tied together with rope, so even if he did have his trusty bobby pin on him, it would've been useless. Breathing hard, Callen opened his eyes once more, trying to get an idea of where he was. He noticed he was in some kind of basement or cellar. Boxes with layers of dust on shelves, old equipment and hand tools, and a few chairs decorated the small room. The room had no windows and only one door at the top of a flight of stairs. It reminded him of Gibbs' basement, except the stairs proceeded downward directly in front of the door rather than off to its side.

The brief thought of his former teammate brought his mind back to his next question: what happened? Now awake and fully aware of what was going on, Callen moved quickly to a sitting position, ignoring the dizziness and pain from his shoulder it caused. He went through what he last remembered, trying to figure out what he'd gotten himself into this time. It didn't come back until the thought occurred to him that he and Sam hadn't finished their run. All at once, last night rushed into his mind and he realized the gravity of his situation. The end of the case, their little competition, the run, the shooting, a gun to Sam's head, and being crammed into a van with several huge men. He must have passed out after that, because he couldn't recall anything else, but for how long? Was it the same still night, or the next day? More importantly, who were they? And what did they want? Callen let out a long sigh as he realized these were all questions he couldn't answer. He'd just have to wait this out and see what lay ahead for him.

One thing he did know was his partner must be fuming by now. Unfortunately, this would count as another time Sam had to save his life. Truthfully, he knew Sam was right, but he would never admit it. The last thing he needed was another disagreement for Sam to win.

Callen scooted himself over to the concrete wall behind him so at least no one could sneak up on him from behind. A faint trail of blood followed him from his original spot on the floor, where a dark, half-dry pool of the trail's source lay. Glancing down, Callen noted he had almost stopped bleeding. 'At least it seems I won't bleed to death', he thought. He leaned against the wall and rested his head. Patience had never been his strong suit. At this point, he'd rather have his captors come in than just sit in this musty basement waiting for something to happen, but with no other options, he made himself as comfortable as possible with a gunshot and his hands tied behind his back and silently prayed his team would find him.

While Eric and Nell followed any lead they could possibly find, Sam, Kensi, and Deeks drove to Callen's house. Although they doubted they'd find anything, they could leave no stone unturned if it meant finding their leader. The junior agents hadn't ever even been there, so Kensi followed behind Sam in her Cadillac with her partner seated next to her. When she remained silent for most of the drive, Deeks knew something was off.

"Kensi, something wrong?" he quietly asked. Kensi hardened her expression, preparing to deflect his concern, but then she decided against it.

"Other than being worried?" She gave him an exasperated look. Deeks' surprised expression caused her to turn her attention back to the road.

"Sorry, it's just-"

"I know, Kens."

"I hate doing this, having to search our teammate's house. It just feels so wrong. The last time we did-"

"Kensi, we'll find him."

She let out a long sigh, and the two continued the trip in silence.

Pulling up to his house, Sam exited his challenger and Kensi and Deeks fell in step behind him after arriving. They discreetly surveyed the street for any watchers, but didn't notice anyone. Kensi reached for her lock picking tools as she neared the door, but Sam motioned for her not to. He pulled a key from a nearby flower pot and opened the door.

"Don't think he'd want us messing up his door." Sam commented.

Deeks glanced at Kensi, surprised Callen would keep his key in a flower pot of all places, and Kensi just shrugged her shoulders in return and stepped inside behind Sam.

Their search eventually came up empty, which for the junior agents was a little too accurate of a description since they'd barely encountered anything in Callen's whole house. The most exciting thing they came across was a chess set laid out on the floor. They knew about his strange habits, they just figured he'd at least have a TV by now.

"Nothing." Sam spat, clearly upset with how far they'd gotten on the investigation. He walked around for a minute, clearly trying to convince himself they could find another lead, another way to save his best friend. He prided himself on being able to keep a clear head in stressful situations, but when it came to all the trouble his partner got himself into, that ability always went out the door. The clock was ticking and the longer they waited, the less their chances were. When Sam calmed down and could think straight again, he rejoined the rest of the team.

"We need to check in with Ops, see if they found anything. Let's go, there's nothing here."

Eric and Nell were still working furiously on the van and Callen's whereabouts for the past few weeks, so the rest of the team wasted no time in going through Callen's list of enemies. They searched and searched through his old case files, looking for anyone who had the resources and the desire for revenge. The problem was that most of his enemies had both and with what little information they had to go on they couldn't narrow them down, it really could be anyone. Their worry and anxiety had increased over the past few hours, so when Eric barreled out of Ops yelling that he found something, they rushed upstairs mirroring Eric's enthusiasm.

Eric and Nell had finally been able to trace where the van went by catching it on a couple of private home cameras and even in the reflections of images on a couple other cameras. They explained to the team where it was spotted and eventually came to an address in Valencia.

While Sam, Kensi, and Deeks raced to the location, Nell managed to find one guy who had been following Callen for the past few weeks. He'd showed up on cameras on the streets near his house and the mission, but never close enough to either building. Nell decided that he was discreetly tailing Callen but could never follow him long enough for Callen to lead him anywhere because Callen was such a paranoid driver. The suspect must have been waiting and watching for the right time and opportunity for the abduction. This also proved that Callen was targeted. Unfortunately, none of the cameras could get a clear enough image for Nell to run it; another dead end.

Callen looked up from the spot on the ceiling he'd been staring at for an hour when he heard the only door creak open. Three men walked through and down the stairs, and Callen knew by the way they moved they were the same men that had put a gun to his partner. Defenseless, Callen just waited for them to get closer, watching their every move. Two of them grabbed him while the third brought a needle out of his pocket. Callen tried to free himself from their grasp, but his efforts were in vain as he felt something pierce his neck and in a matter of seconds he went out like a light.

Tires screeched to an abrupt stop as the agents climbed out and advanced on the house. It stood alone with no surrounding buildings or houses on its street, 'perfect if your hiding out a hostage', they thought. Sam kicked the door open and the three of them stormed the house together, determined to find their missing leader. Surprised, they didn't find anyone as they searched every room. Finally, they came to the back of the house and with one closed door left unchecked, the agents shared a look and took their positions. Sam kicked in the door.