tw: human trafficking, non-consensual touching, threats of sexual assault, threats of violence against minors


Hours pass until the three return from the hostage rescue, wound tight as springs, but thankfully in one piece. They're ordered further to get something to eat, shower, sleep, but all of them refuse to leave HQ to do so, except for running home to collect more clothes.

"How are Annie and the kids holding up?" Tan asks, Deacon swallows.

"Annie's worried but she's keeping it together, mostly for my sake, I think. We haven't told the kids yet, and we're not going to until Chris is back safe and sound. Did you tell Bonnie?"

"She could tell something was up, yeah. Asked me to keep her updated and said she'd bring food tonight if we're still here working. Hopefully we won't be."

They slip back into silence, neither having anything to say and not being able to say anything unrelated to what's going on. The only noise is the small creaks of stools and fingers tapping against water bottles until the door creaks open and Street walks in. Dark circles are prominent beneath his eyes, and he walks to the fridge on autopilot.

"How are you holding up?" Deacon asks.

"I-" Street starts, and tears rush to his eyes. Slumping onto one of the stools, he buries his face in his hands and takes comfort in the hands he feels on his back. The team stands around him in solidarity. Luca hands him a water bottle and a tissue when he sits back up.

"We're going to find her." Tan says, looking Street in the eye, and his tone leaves no room for disagreements.


Chris's head is pounding like a drum beneath her eyes when she wakes again. Her vision is foggy for longer than she'd like it to be, and a renewed sense of panic fills her when the reality of what happened hits her again. The gunshot starts to reverberate in her mind.

It's okay, pull it together, Chris tells herself, even though she knows her odds are getting slimmer by the second.

Closing her eyes, another thought floats through her mind from years of department-regulated wellness lectures. Name three things you can feel.

The ground, she notices, is cold and solid underneath her. No longer is the wooden chair pushing splinters into her arms, but the metal cuffs that seem tighter than before on her wrists.

One more thing. Her quiet breath catches as she brushes her hand against her jeans. The jeans her Aunt got her for her birthday two years ago, worn comfortable with age. Street's favorite jeans, that he tells her every time she wears them. Before the picture of him, and her family, and the team that's forming in her mind can come to fruition, she pushes it away.

Two things you can hear. Men, sitting at the card table. She risks a look so she knows they don't know she's awake. The air is hazy with the smoke from their cigarettes, burning Chris's lungs as she bites her lip to keep from coughing.

The sound of the door creaking open and shuffling footsteps pull her gaze to a parade of men walking by with guns and the girls whose pictures are up on a board at HQ— scared, young, girls who meet her eyes and the fear in theirs reminds her of when she was 14. Chris's blood boils, this whole situation ripping her open from the inside out.

They don't know where the safe houses are. She reminds herself of her only refuge.

Ash from someone's cigarette flicks down and lands on her arm. Chris grinds her teeth together but can't stop the groan that pulls itself out of her.

"Oh, she's awake," the same man says, following her gaze to the doorway and then staring her down with a razor-sharp smirk.

"You know, if you just told us where Selena is, then I'm sure we could let those girls go."

She stays frozen where she is. He scoffs and flicks his cigarette again, whispering to one of the others before approaching her.

He grabs Chris right above the wrist and jerks her to her feet. Her back hitting the wall knocks the wind out of her so his grip is the only thing keeping her standing as she stumbles. His hands are rough on her skin, one keeping her wrists pinned to the wall above her head and the other snaking under her shirt and over her chest, as he smiles at her with yellow teeth and breath that makes her eyes water. The harder he pushes her against the wall, the more her stomach curdles, his nose running up the skin of her neck like a snake getting ready to bite.

"You know you're gone once boss gives the word? You'll be no different from those slutty, broken girls next door. You're already shaking like they do." He growls.

Grating laughter fills up the hallway from the other rooms, mixed with whispers and grunts. Bile rises in Chris's throat.

"Or maybe you shouldn't tell him where Selena is," he taunts, tearing her shirt at the collar and laughing when she flinches. "You're prettier than her, and I'm sure much more fun. Don't you agree?"

Agreements from the rest of the men at the table envelop her as his hands continue to roam her body, his hips pressing into hers. Whatever else he says, she doesn't process, trapped, digging her nails into her palms.

His hand snakes between her thighs. Her heart stops. Her vision goes fuzzy and it doesn't matter that she can see denim over her skin, his touch is too much. Fight or flight kicking in, she can't stop herself from twisting in his grip, catching his cheek with the side of the cuffs.

"You bitch." The man spits at her, wiping the blood from his face. Ripping her away from the wall, he throws her onto the ground, dumps a beer over her head, and stalks out, slamming the door. The rest of the men continue to sit at the table as if nothing happened.

Tears line Chris's eyes as shaking starts to overtake her. If the men are paying her any attention, she can't tell, unable to hear or see or feel anything as her own body seems to abandon her and she slides into darkness.

The next time she opens her eyes, she's alone. Stale alcohol fills the room and she feels sticky and disgusting where it's dried on her skin. The only solace she has is that the noise from the other room has also stopped. She's starving, and she tries to think of how long she's been here because it feels like minutes and months at the same time. Her thoughts float to her family and the team, allowing herself a second of hope that they're looking for her before refusing to indulge anymore.

Three things you can feel.


"How's it going?" Luca and Tan look expectantly at Deacon and Street, the air thick between them.

"We've talked to someone from every rival gang we can think of, and even Marcos hasn't heard anything. Any of the girls remember anything?" Street fires back, but Tan shakes his head.

"Kind of. A few remember being kidnapped similarly as Chris in their hometowns. But all the locations they gave have already been cleared out, so if it is the Brass Arms, they have enough connections to quickly move operations. We just need to find one person we can make talk, and that should be enough to break this open. " The confidence in his tone is reassuring to everyone but Street, and Deacon's about to agree when the slam of a fist against the table makes them all jerk.

"It's been two days!" Street shouts. When Deacon steps towards him, he counters back, putting his hands up in defense.

"We aren't finding Chris any sooner by hoping some miracle person walks in and gives up a gang leader, and the longer we wait—" He stops to gather himself, breathing heavily. When he speaks again, it's with a set jaw and a determined tone. "I'm not losing her. I'm going to find her."

Deacon's strong grip on his bicep stops him, Luca and Tan looking on and dripping with sympathy for their friend.

"Street, you walk out of here now, you're done. Think about it. The only way we get Chris back safe is by working together and not going rogue. She needs you to have your head on straight."

Street pulls his arm back but doesn't leave. He looks at them with fists clenched, and then turns and blows a heavy exhale.

"I'm going to take a shower. If we don't have something in the next day, I'm not making any promises." With that, he spins on his heels and leaves them standing in shock.

"The kid's upset, but he's right," Hondo says from the doorway, catching their attention. We need to start finding and narrowing leads as quickly as we can, so I called an old friend."

It's at that moment Hicks enters, talking to someone on an iPad and giving Hondo a look.

"Alright, let me get you hooked up to the big screen.".

The team waits, anticipation growing as the loading circle pops up on the screen before finally giving way to a face they all know, but haven't seen in years.

Jessica Cortez.


"Christina!" Huevo sings, light and sinister. Her eyes open slowly, body and mind trying to come online but struggling to comprehend what's going on around her anymore. He says her name again, and when she opens her eyes it registers that she's again hanging from the ceiling.

Pain rings dull but steady in her chest and shoulders, adrenaline the only thing keeping her going as each breath takes all her effort. Chris hears the air crackle on every exhale but doesn't allow herself to think about what that means. The light is too bright and she blinks back against it. She can't get her bearings and tamps down on her panic. Huevo's eyes are like lasers on her and his voice is sharp.

"Eric told me you couldn't behave yourself on the ground. But, if you tell me something I want to know, maybe I can give you a second chance."

Silence. Chris blinks. She sees Huevo's jaw clench and fist tighten.

"You want to waste my time? Fine. I have all the time in the world. But your team? And your family, Helena, Sarzo, and Tomas, isn't it?" Shock rolls down her spine, looking at him with wide eyes.

"How dead do you want them to find you? Or should I bring them here and make you watch as they bleed out?"

Chris's breathing speeds up, her heart beating against her sternum. He holds her in place for another minute before taking her chin in the other hand, forcing her to look at him and softening his voice.

"But all of this goes away, if you just tell me where Selena is." He says, voice sickly sweet, like he's doing her a favor or offering her an out. Smirking at her silence, Huevo puts his mouth right against her ear, his breath hot.

"Don't think I could forget little Mirabel, either, if you don't tell me what I want to know. She'll be so grown up in a few years, a real hot-ticket."

Ice in her veins, Chris writhes against the restraints, trying to make contact with Huevo wherever she can as he laughs and takes a step backwards.

"If you go near my family, I will kill you myself!" She shouts, voice scratched with pain and rage.

"Oh, Christina, I have all the power here. To kill them or you or any of those girls means no difference to me. If you're willing to kill your family to protect some girls and a few houses, that's on you."

Chris's stomach is in her throat. The edges of her vision are going blurry as she tamps down on her panic. Evidently, he's worn her down enough to read her face despite her effort. Huevo laughs at the lost look on her face and pats her on the cheek.

"All I want is my Selena back. I thought I could get her to come back, but by the time we got here, she had been hidden from me. She's confused—"

"She is not confused!" Chris screams, spit flying, "She risked her life to get away from you. She's a stronger person than any of you will ever be, and I will kill you before I let you get to any of those girls. You deserved every second you spent in prison, and a million more, for what you did to them." It comes out of her before she knows it, but she doesn't back down after. Huevo narrows his eyes at her, presses his forearm into her neck a little harder until she's clawing at the air for a breath.

"I will get every one of those girls if that's what it takes to lure Selena out. I will kill your family and destroy your niece until she can't look at you because you sold her out. And it will be all your fault. I'm losing patience, Christina, so think about her and then decide what you're willing to be responsible for."

He lets her go, but not before the lack of air starts to make her eyes slide shut. Her body can't produce the adrenaline she wants it to. Every comforting thought—that her family is away and if he knew anything tangible about them besides their names, he'd be throwing it in her face—isn't enough as she fights to keep her consciousness. She feels tears on her face and blood in her mouth as the world abandons her again.


Hot water rolls off Street's back and he shakes it out of his hair. The steam fills his lungs, helps slow down his heart when the sobs turn to quiet remnants of tears. He loses track of how long he stands in the shower, opening and shutting his eyes until he doesn't feel like he's going to jump out of his skin.

Staring at the pictures of Chris in his locker, one of them and one of her with her family, he wills some epiphany to come to him, but nothing does. He wrings his hand after he's changed into clean clothes, actually feeling refreshed, though he struggles to keep his breathing steady and pays no attention to those around him. The metal bench chills through his bones as he glides his thumb over the shiny image.

"Don't quit on me now, Alonso." He whispers to himself, begging the universe to give her some way to hear him. "Please, Babe."

When he finally stands again, a glance at the clock tells him it's almost 8pm, and his stomach reminds him that he hasn't eaten in hours. He returns to Command with a protein shake and a clearer head, nodding at the team, who gives him small, relieved smiles.

"Anything?" His tone is soft, apologetic, but the team understands all too well and no one expects an apology. Deacon gestures to the whiteboard with a shortlist of names, Joseph "Huevo" Estévez at the top.

"Cortez." Tan says before Street asks. "She's continued to work around cartels since she left and Hondo called her. She's working with her connections in Mexico to locate Huevo and his people and see how they could've gotten into the country. It'll take us a few hours to be certain, based on travel and double-checking properties, but it's our best shot at finding her."

Street's jaw drops and tears flood his eyes. He leans against the table when his knees start to buckle, a small flicker of hope warming his chest for the first time since Wednesday morning.

Hicks and Hondo come around the corner, talking with a newfound lightness and passing the iPad around for everyone to say goodbye to Jessica. She smiles when Street thanks her, says she'll keep them updated on her end and she expects the same from him.

"Chris is strong. She's smart, she's determined, and she's a survivor." Jessica says, and it's the only thing that's given Street any hint of comfort since this nightmare started. He thanks her again and hands the device back to Hondo as the screen goes black.

"So, what's our plan?" He asks. Hicks clears his throat so they form a semicircle around him.

"Our plan is you're all going back to your homes and your families and coming back fresh tomorrow." He puts a hand up to stop their protests, including Hondo's. "You need to be at your best. 50-Squad is on tonight and, unless they get any other calls, they'll be working this. You all come back fresh in the morning and we'll take off from there."

He leaves no room for questions, going to talk to Rocker and delegate. They all look at Hondo and wait for him to say something.

"We all know he's right. Chris needs us on top of our game, so go and get some rest. 50-Squad will get it done." The energy is tense as they agree and return to the locker room to grab bags and keys. Their eyes linger on Chris's locker, Luca clapping a hand on Street's back and telling him he'll drive.

"We're going to bring her home."


hello! thank you so much for reading ? Jessica Cortez surprise! admittedly, she's not in this as much as i'd like (yet) but i did want to rope her in and i'm so, so glad i did. (i also thought it would be fun not to tag her, since we do all love her, so hopefully her appearance brought a brief levity to an otherwise obviously heavy chapter.) our poor team and poor chris, but they're getting closer! we're coming up on what's been one of my favorite and most challenging things to write ever. excited to have another update in a few days :) thank you again for all the lovely comments, i think about them 24.7 and can't wait to hear your thoughts/commiserate over chris's circumstances in this chapter ? xo, A