Author's Note:

And the plot thickens. Still a ways to go to reach full resolution, but we're getting closer. Thanks to all of you who have hung with me on this.

Couldn't find anything about what location they used for Anton's bar or restaurant or whatever on any RB websites, but the magic google machine did help me find a real Russian restaurant in Toronto that really is located at the Moscow Sauna Club at the address below. It looks like quite a sleazy place, so it seemed a pretty good fit for Anton Hill. ;)

Chapter 14: I Will Always Come after You

Sam tried to call Andy as he pulled into the lot where Collins had his Anton Hill "war room." She didn't pick up, so he left a short message letting her know that he'd be tied up for the rest of the day.

Before he had too much time to wonder at the fact that she'd let the phone out of her sight when he knew she was worried, he saw an incoming call from Nash. "We have a location. A place called Sudar. Noelle thinks it's Anton's restaurant? 1027 Finch Ave. West. You know it?" Traci asked.

Sam gave a short laugh, "Yeah, I've been there." He could hear Noelle snort, "Figures this guy would have a restaurant next to the Moscow Sauna Club."

"That's his too," Sam said. "They're connected. Works well for skirting prostitution busts. Great work staying on him. Can you sit tight and monitor things for a couple hours? Is back-up there yet?"

"Just arrived," Traci confirmed.

"Great. Call me if there's any major activity. I'm just walking in to start figuring out some sort of plan with Collins. We'll give you a heads up if anything is heading your way from our end. Thanks again for helping us out of a jamb," Sam said, about to hang up.

"Sam, wait….There's something I need to tell you," Traci stopped him nervously.

"Spit it out Nash. I really gotta go," Sam prompted impatiently. Now wasn't the time for apologies.

"When I saw you kissing Monica, I sent a quick tweet calling you a douche bag. Andy saw it and called me to ask if I'd seen you. She got the story out of me…."

"What? You told her about that over the phone? Jesus, Nash, even if that wasn't just an act for Anton's benefit, if you're going to tell a best friend news like that, you wait and do it in person. This is the last thing I need to deal with right now. No wonder she didn't pick up my call," Sam groaned.

"I didn't want to tell her, but she wouldn't let me put her off. She must have known you were up to something this morning because she wanted every last detail of what I'd seen. I'm sorry, Sam. I played down the kiss as much as I could," Traci said miserably.

Sam sighed, "Look, forget it for now. She'll be fine when I explain the whole story. It just looks like it's going to be a while before I can get away to see her and put her mind to ease. I'll talk to you later."

"So where are we so far?" Sam asked Collins.

"I scrambled SWAT's Hostage Response Team to stand by. They're positioning their van a few blocks from Sudar to stand by in case we need them. Give me Mickey's thumb drive and I'll have Nichols and the techies start scanning through it to see what she got for us," Collins replied. "You and I will sit down and game out our options about Mickey."

They were about a half hour into going over exactly what had happened at the clinic again, trying to guess what Anton knew and what his next move would be, when Sam's phone rang. Seeing Andy's caller ID, he told Collins he needed to take it, and rose to walk a couple paces away before answering.

"Andy, I'm glad you called…" he started.

"No, but she's right here having a little chat with me and your other little girlfriend," Anton's voice came over the line, instantly sending ice through Sam's veins.

"Hill? What the hell kind of game are you playing? Why would Andy and Monica have anything the say to you?" Sam spun back around to face Collins, panic already showing in his eyes. He should have known there had to be some other reason Andy didn't answer earlier. Anton must be desperate to make a play like this.

"I'm more of a humanitarian than you think. I couldn't bear the way you were abusing the trust of two such beautiful women. I have a little piece of information I wanted to share with your lovely partner," Anton said in an oily tone. Sam could hear a tape of the bugged recording of he and Monica from this morning begin to play in the background. He closed his eyes on a wince at the thought of Andy having to hear this, with Anton and Monica in the room.

Fortunately, Anton's sadistic streak outstripped his common sense, because he'd handed Andy the phone so Sam could hear her reaction. He heard her whimper a heartbreaking, "No…" before he broke in with an urgent low tone.

"Andy, listen. It was fake. We thought there was a bug. I'm sorry, but you have to keep pretending you think it's real. Hang in there. Whatever his plan, I'm going to get you out of there. Remember I said that I will always come for you. And I will. I promise. I love you."

Andy seemed to rally quickly, "Oh God, Sam! How could you!"

Anton grabbed the phone back, "I believe both these beauties have had it with you Swarek. I've made them a generous offer they can't refuse to help them get over the pain you caused. It so happens that I have some new business associates who are eager to offer them the chance to take a trip to a tropical location where they'll have a chance to be the ones with multiple Latin lovers for a change," he paused. "That is, unless you want to come down here and convince all of us that we're being too hasty in judging your recent actions."

"What exactly do you want from me, you bastard?" Sam ground out.

"I take that you get my meaning. I want you to come join us at Sudar. We'll have a little chat and clear up any misunderstandings. But you come alone. And no heroics or Rambo syndrome from you or you two lovely ladies won't be in any condition to forgive or take a vacation. You've got one hour to decide and get down here before I send them off to meet their tropical hosts. Don't disappoint me," Anton warned.

"Listen to me, you piece of shit. I'll do what you want, but you better be bluffing about trying any such thing with either of them. You do anything to them, and you'll wish you only had Rambo to deal with after I get my hands on you," Sam snapped the phone closed after the line went dead.

Shit! Sam punched his fist through the wall up to his elbow and stalked into the hall to take a few deep breaths so he could fill Collins in without puking all over his shoes. He splashed cold water on his face and forced the rage down to be replaced with an icy focus.

He walked back into the room long enough to ask Collins, "Can we have a word in private," before walking back out. The team that had been scrambling madly was frozen with jaws gaping. As Collins ordered them back to work before turning to follow, Nichols stopped him.

"You're not keeping him on this after that?" he asked, stunned by Collins' calm reaction.

"Probably. I'm going to hear him out anyway," he replied evenly.

"You can't be serious! He's out of control already," Nichols objected.

"He may be our only chance. Besides, he's not that out of control. He punched the wall with his left hand, didn't he?" Collins winked at his second in command. "If the man can protect his trigger finger in the heat of the moment, he can get himself together enough to do what needs to be done. Relax, I know how to keep him centered."

~~~~0~~~~

"So, what exactly did Anton say?" Collins asked, keeping his tone even to encourage the icy calm that had taken over from Sam's first hot headed response.

"He picked up both Andy and Monica," Sam started.

Collins just nodded. He'd gathered that much.

"He played the tape of the two of us faking sex because we suspected a bug. Thanks for dropping the ball on keeping that place swept clean, by the way. It's your damn fault Andy had to listen to that," Sam said throwing an angry glance in Collins' direction.

"Then he used some cockamamie story about helping them drown their sorrows with his 'new partners' in a tropical location as a way to indirectly threaten to hand them over as playthings for the Zetas. I suppose that's his twisted idea of a gift to seal their new business deal. Anyway, he said he'd give me a chance to 'convince him he's being hasty' if I come in alone to talk to him within the hour."

"Christ! Sam…"

"I think he's just bluffing, threatening something that would make me freak out like nothing else. But I'm not taking any chances. I'm going to do exactly what he's asking. But I'm not dumb enough to trust him as far as I can throw him. So we have to figure a way to get the HRT team to back me up, just in case his angle isn't just to bluff me into coming in so he can pump me for information. Can we smuggle a sniper in the building after me?" Sam asked.

Collins sighed, "Maybe. It would definitely be risky, but we may be able to take down his guards quietly and smuggle him up to that balcony area inside. But who knows what Hill will have going on in there. We don't have eyes on the interior yet. We'll be flying blind."

"It's less risky than just sending the HRT team in hard to try to extract them and Mickey," Sam pointed out.

"Yeah. It does seem to be the best of out pool of shitty options. OK, Swarek. It's a good thing you're about the best bullshitter around. Even if the best case scenario holds, and Hill actually honors a trade of them for you, you might have to bluff your way through giving up some phony intel. And if so, you'll have to decide whether he buys you do it easily because you have little conscience. Or whether he only buys it after roughing you up a little first. You sure you're ready to do that?" Collins asked. "You have your head together under the circumstances?"

"I'll be ready to play games with Hill if he's actually on the up and up. But I want to be able to signal our shooter if he tries to screw me, especially if he tries to get to me through them. I wasn't kidding. If he pulls something like that, I want him to be a dead man, one way or another."

"Sammy, all I can do is give shoot to kill authority to the sharp shooter if the situation turns life threatening. For any other contingency, he shoots to disable or calls the rest of the team in. You know how this works," Collins let him know that he'd only give him so much leeway for payback.

"Yeah. And Hill actually keeps his word sometimes. He hasn't gone after Emily. I just hope to God, this is one of them," Sam said fervently.

"OK. We don't have a lot of time, so let me call HRT and get them started planning. Then you and I will figure out what false info we want you to pass along should it go that way. We may even be able to keep him from calling the bus crossing off for tonight."

When Sam shot him a dirty look, he held up his hands, "It's my second priority now too, Swarek. But fifty young girls…I'd like to get them free tonight, if we still can. So don't forget who's still in charge here," Collins warned.