Seven minutes later, Deeks wiped away the tears from his eyes and his cheek. He was still sitting in the "think tank room" where he had finally let out all his emotions and cried. It had helped him feel a little better, but hadn't helped get rid of the guilt running through his veins. No one had come to check on him since he had walked out of the kitchen, something a bit surprising to the new agent. The last time Deeks had gotten so upset and walked away from the group, he had run off, knowing well that he had a target on his back, all the way to Algeria alone. In all honesty, Deeks was surprised that his partner hadn't handcuffed him to the bed as a precaution.
"I'm so sorry, Nell," Deeks whispered. He was trying so hard to not also think of Eric and any forms of torture that he might have endured. There was no doubt in Deeks' mind that Hetty would be perfectly fine with anything Granger threw her way. "I'm so sorry."
"You aren't thinking about running away again, are you?"
Deeks looked up to see Callen leaning against the doorframe.
"No…I, uhm, am thinking about what Hetty, Eric, and Nell are going through right now," Deeks replied, his voice wavering, "Nell…..I keep picturing Granger or one of his goons torturing her-"
"You can't focus on that right now, Deeks. You need to focus on how we're going to get into the US without getting arrested or killed," Callen walked across the room and sat by Deeks.
The younger agent took a moment to admire the lead agent's composure before asking, "How do you do it? How do hold it together when someone's life is on the line because of you?"
Callen thought back to the team's trip to Romania and Hetty's shooting. "Every time that you, Sam or Kensi get in trouble, I struggle keeping my emotions in check. Don't think for just a second I had it together when we went to Romania. Every time gunfire went off, I was scared that one of you could have been killed because of me. Like I said earlier, you have to focus on the main goal and not your emotions. We need to help our people back home and end this."
Deeks nodded in content. "So we're doing this? We're actually going to try and fly into the US?"
"Yes. I just came up with an idea of how we could do it. It's beyond crazy, but crazy enough to work. And before you say it, no- you wouldn't have to cut your hair."
Deeks sighed in relief before looking over to Callen in curiosity. "How crazy are we talking?"
"It might be our craziest idea yet."
Los Angeles Metropolitan Detention Center- 3 Days later
Granger sat across from Hetty in Interrogation room #2C at the detention center. For the past month, he had visited Hetty every day to try and get her to talk. And as expected, the ex-OPS manager would quietly sit and only answer unrelated questions in a polite manner during every visit. Today, Granger was hoping that a new tactic of showing pictures of an injured Eric and Nell would help change her mind. The ex- OPS manager didn't flinch when Granger placed three pictures- one of Nell, one of Eric, and one of the house in Algeria- onto the table.
"Where are they?" Granger asked, struggling to keep his composure. He wanted to nearly strangle Hetty for not giving up any details and for keeping such a stoic face during a time where he was getting desperate.
"My answer is the same as it has always been- I don't know," Hetty replied.
Granger jammed a finger against the picture of the house in Algeria. "8 weeks. We've been at this for 8 weeks, Henrietta. How long do you think they can last out there?"
"As long as needed. I taught them how to survive and how to be the best there is."
Granger moved his finger towards the pictures of Nell and Eric. "What about them? They keep saying that they don't know, but I think that they're lying, just like you."
Hetty glanced down towards the photos, her face expressionless. She pushed the photos back across the table and stated, "You won't catch them, Owen."
"What makes you so sure about that? I-"A loud knock from the door interrupted Granger mid- sentence. He looked over his shoulder to see a red headed agent peek his head in and say, "Sir, a word? It's important."
"What is it?"
"It's about those missing agents," the agent stammered.
Excellent. "Just say what you need to say," Granger said. He shifted his position in the chair so he could still see at the agent and also monitor Hetty for any sign of any emotions.
The agent scratched his head before saying, "Sir, there was a call that just came in from the TSA at Los Angeles International Airport. The TSA's attention was caught after someone thought a passport photo found on a manifest from Air Pacific flight #273 looked like Agent Blye. They ran it through facial recognition and it came back to be a match. A little more digging found that Agent Hanna, Callen, and Deeks are on the same plane. They're wearing disguises, sir. Also, the flight should be landing within the hour."
Granger's eyes widened as he felt a nervous excitement rise in him. "Did you tell air traffic controllers to ground the plane when it lands?"
"Yes, sir. It'll sit on the tarmac and be monitored to eliminate any chances of escape."
"Good. Call TSA and tell them that I'll be on my way." Granger collected the photos and grinned maliciously at Hetty. "Guess you didn't train them as well as you thought. We got them."
When Hetty gave no emotional response, Granger told himself, Ignore it. She won't give me the satisfaction.
Los Angeles International Airport- Tarmac 2C
A herd of 12 LAPD cars and three NCIS-issued SUVs sped towards Tarmac 2C where a white 254 passenger Air Pacific jumbo jet sat alone on the tarmac. TSA had already prepped a ramp stairwell for law enforcement to enter the plane. Two airport security cars were parked at the bottom of the stairs to make sure that none of the agents would try to make a run for it.
Granger drove in the lead vehicle alone. He was grinning, feeling his heart race faster during every second that he came closer to the airplane. The man wanted one thing more than arresting the four agents- he prayed that one of them would try and do something stupid, giving NCIS free range to take each of them out, including the annoying ex-cop.
Once he reached the plane, Granger slammed on the breaks, creating a loud screeching noise. He jumped out of the front seat and sprinted towards the ramp stairs, not caring that he had left his SUV running. Granger bolted up the stairs as the rest of the NCIS and LAPD officials got out of their cars. In the cabin, Granger took the opportunity to dial someone who would enjoy the news just as much as he did- George Lyons.
For the past month, Lyons had been hunting down those four agents as far as Interpol knew. In reality, Lyons was keeping Pendle from falling under any suspicious eyes and was also selling classified information to insurgents in Syria. The last time both men spoke was right after the team had disappeared from Algeria.
Lyons answered after the first ring. "This better be life or death, Granger."
"We got them. They tried to fly into LAX on a flight from Tonga," Granger said excitedly. He pulled the phone away from his ear to ask a blonde flight attendant, "Where are they?"
"Seats 35A, 30C, 25D, and 27B," the attendant squeaked. Granger drew his weapon and started the trek towards the back of the plane.
On the other end of the line, Lyons paused before giving a slightly less enthusiastic response, "Owen, we've been after these guys for almost 2 months now. You really think they'd be dumb enough to try in fly in undetected?"
"It's been done before."
"I don't buy it," Lyons growled, "I don't buy it. After all the stories I've heard about Henrietta Lange and her agents, I think she'd train them better than that, Deeks included."
"Well, it's-"Granger dropped his jaw at what was supposed to Deeks, Hanna, Callen, and Blye sitting in the four seats. Instead, four Asian Pacifiers- three young men and a pregnant women staring wide eyed at Granger. The assistant director gasped before he roared, "This isn't them. Where the hell are they?"