A/N: Here we are, one of the climaxes in this journey I'm taking you on. ;) This ones a lot longer than the last two, and it's pretty clear that the more exciting chapters are a lot easier to write. Next update may be around wednesday, but more likely friday/saturday. Enjoy and please let me know what you think by leaving me a review!
After nearly two hours, Callen turned up a side road and approached a white, large, three-story mansion nestled between the woods on almost every side. The front of the house had a vast, open expanse, with several kinds of greenery decorating the walkway leading up to the front door. Callen parked his car near the front of Novikov's house, grabbing the briefcase he'd been given for the exchange. As he approached the door, he began to assume his alias, becoming Krymov more and more with each step. Once he rang the doorbell, his demeanor had changed in a way that he wouldn't have been recognized as the same person.
The door opened to reveal two guards on the other side, a brief thought crossed Callen's mind that he really was getting tired of being ordered by guards. They gestured him inside the mansion and Callen followed them to a room on the third floor. Once he entered, he quickly identified the man behind the desk in the center of the room, lifting a glass to his lips. The man quickly put his glass down and stood to great him.
"Nikolai Krymov", the big, dark haired Russian greeted in his native language, "How are you, my friend?" He smiled, embracing Callen, and the agent followed through, fully immersed in his alias.
"I am well, glad to be back in my home country." Callen replied, perfectly responding in the same tongue as he settled into one of the chairs in front of Novikov's desk.
"Yes, I hear you've been over in America. Tell me, why would you stay there so long?" He said as he eased down into his chair.
"Well," Callen began, "Since my supposed death fifteen years ago, I've built quite a fortune there. It's a much easier place to build your investments, although I have missed this country dearly." Callen responded, Novikov engrossed in each of his words.
"Would you like something to drink?" Novikov offered, holding up a vodka before pouring more into his own cup.
"I'd love one, but I mustn't. I have a long drive back to the city later." Callen answered, trying to keep a clear head for whatever lay ahead for him.
"Ah yes, of course." Novikov nodded, grinning.
The two continued to engage in conversation for some time; Callen still speaking in flawless Russian with the businessman. Their topics kept turning back to what Callen had been doing during the last decade and a half, to which he'd spin more details and stories to fit his cover. Eventually, Callen became restless with the irrelevant conversation and tried to turn the topic to their business exchange.
"Ah, yes, I apologize," Novikov grinned. "Sometimes I tend to talk too much. Let's begin, but first," he suddenly stood, pulled a hand gun out of his suit, and aimed it at Callen's head, "Tell me, why an American agent is back for me after so long? Why are you here?" The smile instantly disappeared and only a menacing, cold stare replaced it.
Callen froze, caught off guard by the sudden action. He met the eyes of the big Russian, ready to deny it, but one look and he knew his efforts would be in vain.
"I always knew you were good, my friend, but how would you have managed to evade the CIA when they raided Aliyev's warehouse? Then, you disappear without a word. Imagine my surprise when you contact me months ago to make a business deal. I'd be a fool if I didn't look into you first. Turns out, no one you've supposedly done business with has heard from you since you disappeared. I knew then that you weren't who you said you were. You are CIA, correct?"
"No," Callen spat, flashing his icy blues. Novikov walked around his desk towards Callen, still sitting in his chair, unarmed.
"Ah, well of course you would never admit it, but I'm sure you're wondering why I'd accept your offer if I knew you were an agent. You see, many times now the CIA has tried to pull one over on me. Well, I want to show them that they can't keep coming after me like this without consequences." Novikov reached Callen, placed the barrel on his forehead, and placed his finger on the trigger.
Sam pushed the limits of the car as they drove on the road toward Novikov's mansion, keen to catch up with Callen, but the drive seemed to go on forever for the agents. Once they'd entered the forest, the view of trees through the windows seemed endless. Once they were almost twenty minutes away, a troubling thought crossed Kensi's mind.
"Guys, what if Iverson has eyes on Callen? He must be playing an angle we don't know about for Callen to be going through with the deal. What if we get in the way?"
The car was silent for a few moments as they thought about how to get Callen out safely. Sam was about to answer when his phone went off. He cut himself off and answered the call.
"Yeah, go." Sam answered as he put the phone on speaker.
"You need to get to the house now. I've been looking into Novikov's communications and recent searches over the last few months. He's been digging into Callen's alias. Callen may have been compromised."
Sam sighed. "Okay, thanks Nell." He pushed the gas pedal harder and the car noticeably accelerated.
"Doesn't matter now, Kensi. We're getting him out of that house whether he wants us to or not."
The younger agents couldn't argue with that for a second.
Sam, Kensi, and Deeks pulled up on the side of the road near the mansion. They grabbed their assault rifles and on second thought, Sam suggested to Kensi that she take an overwatch position in the trees. Kensi grabbed her sniper and the agents stealthily advanced toward the mansion nearby. Kensi identified a good spot high in the trees and signaled to her teammates. She took a position with a good view of the front of the house while Sam and Deeks moved around to clear the house's perimeter. Sam took the front while Deeks took the back door. They waited for Kensi to signal she was in position. Kensi aligned her sniper and scanned the windows of the house, searching for any signs of movement. When she searched through the third floor, she caught in her crosshairs movement through the large glass windows. A split second later she saw a man with a gun walk towards her teammate and place a gun against his head.
"Guys, I've got a suspect with a gun on Callen, I'm taking the shot!" She yelled, pulling the trigger on her last word. The shot hit its target and she glanced down briefly to see Sam kick the front door open.
Callen looked up at Novikov as the cold metal hit his skin, thinking his luck had run out and the last few months had only been borrowed time as he waited for him to pull the trigger.
He waited for the sound of a gunshot, but when it came, he felt no impact. Instead, he heard a crash and saw a bullet pierce Novikov's skull. He sat there for a second, trying to comprehend what had just happened as he stared at Novikov's body. Once he shook the shock of how close he came to dying off, he leaned over and grabbed the handgun from Novikov's lifeless grasp. As he stood, the door burst open and one of Novikov's men entered. Before he had a chance to react, the guard pulled a shot off, hitting Callen in the shoulder. Callen moved to defend himself, but at the same moment that the man had fired his gun he was taken out by two shots crashing through the window.
Callen didn't know who was outside, but he knew he needed to get himself out of the house before more guards came. Clenching his teeth to fight through the pain in his shoulder, he ran through the door and towards the stairs, killing one guard he met in the hallway. Callen could hear shots echoing throughout the house as he ran down the steps. Once he reached the bottom floor, he met two more guards. He killed one, but only winged managed the second. The guard yelled in pain, and Callen took the precious few moments he'd just bought himself to open the window next to him and climb through it. He heard more shots fire inside the house and another guard yell as they were hit while he ran toward the forest.
Sam and Deeks raided the house, taking out several guards as they cleared the house and searched for Callen. Suddenly, Kensi's voice came over their comms.
"Callen's hit in the shoulder. He made it out of the house through the window and ran into the forest nearby, I'm going after him!"
"Got it Kensi, we've almost reached the second floor." Sam acknowledged, trying to not worry about the fact that his partner was shot again. He fired his gun at another guard before climbing the stairs, Deeks covering his back.
They searched the second floor, coming across one more gunman before each signaled that it was all clear. They climbed up the steps to the final floor, Sam checking the rooms on the left while Deeks cleared the right. Sam turned around from clearing another room when he caught sight of a gunman raising his gun toward Deeks who, at that moment, was facing away from the man. Sam aimed and fired at the man, killing him with one shot before he could ever squeeze his trigger. Deeks quickly looked back and understood what just happened, but the two agents quickly resumed checking the last few rooms, only meeting two bodies in an office. They both stopped inside the room, taking in the bodies and bullet holes in the windows from Kensi's sniper. They realized that this was where Kensi spotted Callen minutes before.
Deeks turned to face Sam, who was staring at a pool of blood off to the side of the bodies.
"Hey," Deeks addressed, getting Sam's attention. Sam lifted his eyes to meet the detective's. "Thanks." Deeks conceded. Sam responded with a serious nod towards his teammate before taking a few steps towards the door.
"Let's go find him." Sam walked out of the room, and Deeks was right behind him.
Callen ran through the trees, seeking cover from the shootout going on behind him. For all he knew, Novikov could've sent his men to finish them all off and take everything for himself. Callen sought refuge behind a large tree nestled in the brush. He wasn't very far from the mansion, but his shoulder was throbbing and his energy was diminishing fast. He knew he needed to conserve his strength and find cover. He leaned against the tree, trying to catch his breath while watching for anyone approaching.
A rustling off to his right caught his attention and he snapped his head around, raising his gun. The person came into view, and instantly he relaxed when he saw someone he wasn't sure he'd ever see again.
Kensi had quickly followed after Callen, which wasn't too hard because he'd left a small blood trail she could track. She rounded a corner, gun hanging by her side, when she saw the man himself, gun raised toward her. For a split second, she caught sight of his cold eyes before he visibly relaxed and holstered his gun. He took a heavy breath and rested his hands on his knees, but Kensi couldn't shake off what she saw in his eyes. They looked hard and icy, but she also recognized the thinly veiled stress and anxiety behind them. She took in the slightly weary appearance of the agent and could only imagine what the last few months had been like for him.
Kensi took a few steps closer to Callen, placing her hand on his back.
"Hey, you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Callen stood and pushed himself off from the tree. She knew it was a lie, but decided to let it slide for now. She pulled her leader into an embrace, overjoyed to have the agent back. The two released and began to walk back towards the clearing, Kensi discreetly making sure he wouldn't collapse on his own because he chose to be stubborn. After a few moments of silence, it was obvious neither knew exactly what to say.
"So, it's been a while, huh?" Kensi tried, wincing afterwards at her poor attempt at conversation.
"You're really not good at small talk, are you? Callen smiled, recalling a previous occasion where Kensi had tried it before.
A small chuckle escaped Kensi's lips. "Guess not." She admitted. However, she noticed she managed to make Callen smile, so her comment was successful nevertheless.
A crackle came over Kensi's comm and she registered the words being spoken.
"Sam and Deeks just finished clearing the house," she announced, silently debating her next words. "Sorry about your shoulder. I should've acted faster," she scolded herself.
"Kensi, there's no way I can complain about your timing. I should be thanking you, I couldn't've gotten out of that myself." He admitted. Kensi remained silent, recognizing Callen's gratitude within his words. They cleared the last few feet of brush until stepping onto the neatly kept grass. The two soon caught Sam and Deeks coming around the corner of the house.
The two agents spotted Callen ahead of them with Kensi, and Sam sighed with relief that his partner was finally found. He saw the bloodstain over Callen's left shoulder and grew concerned, but he knew that at least the injury wasn't too serious.
The agents finally reached each other, small smiles gracing each of their faces as they looked at each other. Deeks held out his hand to Callen. "Welcome back." Callen grasped it and Deeks pulled him into a brotherly hug, careful of his wound. Callen then turned toward his partner.
"Really? Same shoulder again?" Sam teased, pointing at Callen's gunshot. Callen smirked in response, and Sam took his hand to pull him into a hug. The younger agents smiled at each other, glad to see the duo back.
Once they'd all finished greeting Callen, they moved inside the house, quickly assessing their situation. Callen noticed his check in time was coming up soon, however the rest of the team was glad to hear Iverson didn't have eyes on him. Callen knew he needed to make a decision about how to handle Iverson fast.
Callen grabbed the briefcase of classified information and handed it to his partner, then grabbed Novikov's briefcase of money that lay on the desk.
"So Callen, what's the plan?" Deeks asked.
Callen pulled out his phone, sending a text to check in before turning to his team.
"Now, we go after Iverson."
A/N: Callen's back with the team, but where will his plan to catch Iverson take him? Stay tuned.