A/N: There you go, another chapter! I hope you'll find it interesting…

Disclaimer: I don't own anything…

Chapter 6

Danny opened his eyes, trying to figure out what had just happened. His head ached like hell, but he soon realized that it wasn't his only problem. His hands were tied behind his back, and they seemed to have been like that for quite a while. He looked around him, only to see that there were like a dozen people there, and they didn't look friendly at all. They were all wearing hoodies, which, in addition to the dimmed light, hid their faces and made them look a bit like dementors from Harry Potter movies. Danny wasn't even a fan of them, and was a bit surprised that he remembered them now. He shook his head. There were slightly more pressing matters at hand there.

"Who are you?" one of them asked upon realizing the hostage had come to his senses. "What have you been doing here?"

"I was just…" Danny couldn't come up with an answer. Shit. No good. "I was just out for a walk…"

"Oh, drop it," another hoodie yelled. "In here? Are you fucking kidding?" he received a look from the first one and fell silent.

"Either way, we don't need you in 'ere," the first hoodie spoke again. For a split second Danny had a wild hope that they were going to let him go. Then he realized how ridiculous it was. Of course they weren't. Danny was scared. And angry not only at the bad guys but also at himself and his own stupidity.

"Tim," the leader turned to one of his fellows who stepped out eagerly, "take him out and get rid of him. We don't want this place littered yet".

Danny closed his eyes. No good at all. So I'm gonna die.

"Although… wait," Danny's heart skipped a beat. Maybe it wasn't so bad. Maybe they would let him live for some unknown reason. Because he didn't want to die, no matter how bad things had been for him lately.

"Let your cousin do it," the main hoodie offered. "Let it be his initiation".

Tim sighed with disappointment. Another guy stepped out. Danny's heart dropped. Bad. He saw a blade of the knife in the guy's hand. Very bad. A strong hand gripped his shoulder and practically lifted him up, leading him into some passage.

Danny calculated his chances. He could probably take on this guy. Even though his hands were still tied, he was a police officer after all. Now he needed to get away from the rest of the gang. It was his only chance.

As soon as they got quite far, Danny prepared himself for some movement. As if sensing his body tense, the hoodie gripped his shoulder even harder. Then, before he could do anything, the hand moved from his shoulder to covering his mouth.

"Be quiet," the hoodie whispered into the Sergeant's ear so quietly it was barely audible. "I'll get you out of here".

Danny could literally feel his knees give in, and he had to make quite an effort to stay up. That line reminded him of the things he wanted to forget. And why was this guy helping him, anyway?... The ropes on Danny's wrists were soon gone. They walked a bit more, and entered a large room. A few of the big old-styled windows were missing the glass. Some light was getting in, but not much — it seemed to be getting dark outside. The place was dusty and littered with all sorts of junk. And then they heard footsteps behind them. They stopped and turned, the hoodie still behind Danny's back. Another one was approaching them. As he came up, he suddenly punched the guy behind Danny in the stomach. The second punch to the jaw made him fall onto the floor. The Sergeant froze in shock, not sure what to do — whether to help his probable savior or just run or whatever.

"What the f —" the guy squeaked from the dusty wooden floor.

"I'm sorry, Nicholas," the other guy cut off quietly but confidently. "If anyone can crack this case, it's you, not me. If they find out you let this guy go, they will kill you".

Danny did hear all of that but he barely registered it. He just stared at the man on the floor. The hood had now completely fallen from his head, revealing blond hair. His face was covered with small cuts, and his lip was bleeding quite badly, and he now had some facial hair, but there could be no doubt. It was Nicholas Angel. Was it a dream? Danny didn't know. He felt reality slipping out.

"So you beat me up and…"

"Well, you know I'm a bloodthirsty freak. Wouldn't let my cousin have all the fun, would I?"

"And if they find out you have let him go…?"

"Like I said. It's up to you to solve this case. I've been trying for too long without any success".

Danny was looking from one of them to the other, opening his mouth, but no sound came out. Nicholas looked at the other hoodie and swallowed hard. Then he finally turned to his friend.

"Danny," the warmth in his tone seemed to be overpowered only by the worry. "Don't ask me anything, I can't tell you, no matter how I wanted to. Follow this man and go home. Stay out of this. Please".

Danny felt that if he tried to speak, he would probably just begin to cry. Instead, he just threw his arms around his friend.

"Just don't do it again," he forced at last, squeezing Nicholas, as if still in doubt that he was real. "Don't leave me".

Angel wanted to answer "Never" but he really just didn't know, and he didn't want to lie to Danny.

"Everything is going to be fine," he whispered, returning the hug. "Now go".

The last thing Danny saw in that place was Nicholas' big blue eyes, which looked at him with sadness, despite the smile which appeared on his face when Danny turned his head towards him.

The Sergeant was led into another passage, then there was some corridor, then some steps, and he was outside. He didn't remember how he got to Sandford, as he shook his head to realize he was in his car in front of his house.