FIC: Honey Dust -- for ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ingenius_inc (part 1)
Aug. 16th, 2009 07:09 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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ncisficathonTitle: Honey Dust
Author: hawk_soaring
Written for:ingenius_inc
Prompt(s): Hooker!Tony (I don’t care how); When Tony goes undercover for too long, he has trouble coming back. First time fic with emo and confused Tony, angry Gibbs.
Archive: BiA, WWOMB, all others please ask
Genre: slash
Pairings: Tony/ OMC(s), Tony/ Gibbs
Rating: FRAO
Disclaimer: I don’t own the boys. I try to be nice, but my baser urges usually take over.
Word Count: 16,161
Summary: Tony goes undercover and loses himself. Gibbs finds he has lost even more.
Warnings: Forced prostitution, drug addiction, violence, M/M
A/N: Thanks to Annie for the wonderful beta!
~*~*~
“Three weeks, DiNozzo?” Gibbs glanced up at his senior agent. Sure, Tony took a week off for Spring Break every year but, other than that one predictable vacation, he’d never asked for any substantial time off: a day here, a day there, nothing more. This just wasn’t like him and the request, coupled with Tony’s obvious discomfort at asking for the time, was grating on him.
“Yeah, Boss. I’ve got the time and I need some down time. Been working too hard for too long and I need to get away.” Tony grinned. “My buddies and I rented a house in the Bahamas and I can’t wait to get there.”
“Already rented a house, huh?” Gibbs said easily, watching Tony for any reaction.
Tony’s gaze slid away from his and his grin faltered. “Yeah, Boss. Already rented the house. I didn’t think there’d be any problem.”
Gibbs watched Tony for a long minute before shrugging and signing the paper on his desk. “No problem, Tony,” he said as he held up the paper. As Tony plucked the paper from his hand, Gibbs held it a second longer, looking up at his senior agent. “Let me know if you need anything, Tony. Anything.”
Tony blinked. “S-sure thing, Boss,” he said sincerely. Then he pasted a smile on his face and added, “But I’m sure I can handle things. Not like I can’t hold my own with my buddies.”
Gibbs nodded, the entire conversation sitting wrong with him. “Have a good vacation, DiNozzo.” He thought Tony was walking a little slowly for a man about to take a long vacation on a sunny island filled with hot babes.
Gibbs followed Tony’s progress to the elevators and only turned around when the doors closed behind him. His gaze strayed to the upper floor and he was surprised to see Director Vance also monitoring Tony’s progress. The director met Gibbs’ stare for a moment before turning and walking to his office.
~*~*~
Tony packed his bags quickly and headed downstairs to catch the car that was being sent for him. Things were moving quickly and he didn’t have time to catch his breath, much less take the time to actually think about what it was he was doing. The car was waiting and he climbed in with a stifled sigh, thinking that he’d have plenty of time to mull things over once he was in the air.
The flight was uneventful and he forced all thoughts of what he was doing from his mind and managed to fall asleep. He didn’t imagine he was going to be getting too much sleep for the foreseeable future.
The hand that shook him awake was gentle, yet Tony still startled upright, only biting back a cry of surprise by sheer luck.
“You okay?”
Tony managed a nod and ran a shaking hand over his face, banishing the last vestiges of sleep as he looked around. The belly of the plane was a roiling mass of bodies as everyone gathered their stowed gear and prepared to deplane.
“Agent DiNozzo?”
Tony turned at the gruff voice to see a tall, thick-set man standing in front of him.
“I’m Bill Baker,” the man said, extending a hand in greeting.
Tony shook the proffered hand warily. “You’re from the San Diego office?”
Bill nodded solemnly. “Yes – and I have been assigned as your liaison here in Yuma.”
Tony nodded and picked up his bag, slinging it over his shoulder easily. “Well, let’s get this show on the road, shall we?”
Bill grinned. “Sure thing, Tony.”
Once the two men were off the plane, Bill glanced around. “You sleep much?” he asked.
Tony shrugged. “Some.”
“Never could sleep on those military transports,” Bill said with a mock shudder.
Tony grinned. He thought he could actually like this man. That would help. Where he was going, he would need someone trustworthy at his back.
~*~*~
“Headquarters” was a hotel room on the edge of town.
“Nice digs,” Tony quipped as he walked into the room and dropped his bag on the floor in front of the curtained window. The room had two double beds, two slightly frayed-looking chairs, a TV set sitting on a tall dresser, and a scarred desk. There was a closed door that Tony assumed concealed a closet, and another door that was slightly ajar through which Tony could see a bathroom. As he turned around he saw that Bill was watching him and he feigned nonchalance.
Bill shrugged. “You have to admit it’s low key.”
Tony grinned. “No truer words,” he murmured.
“George Sanchez and Sam Walker,” Bill said, indicating two other men. Both greeted Tony quietly and he nodded back as he took a seat in one of the chairs.
Tony fidgeted for a minute as he watched the three men converse quietly, huddled around a laptop. “You going to fill me in?” he asked. “Or am I the subject of your little conversation?”
The three men turned almost as one, guilt and embarrassment on their faces. Tony smiled and leaned back in the chair, turning on the DiNozzo charm.
“It’s not like that, Tony,” Bill said quickly.
“Really?” Tony drew out the word, putting all his doubts into the one little word.
Now it was Bill’s turn to fidget. Tony waited patiently. He knew that the guys didn’t think he could do the job. Hell – he was pushing 40. That didn’t mean that he had to look his age. He knew he looked younger – and he sure as hell didn’t act his age. All his life he’d had to live with people’s preconceived notions. He could wait.
“Well,” Bill said after a minute. “You’re not exactly eighteen, DiNozzo.”
Tony grinned and laced his fingers behind his neck, using his hands as a pillow. “Nope – and thank god for that! High school was a bitch. College, on the other hand—“ Tony whistled appreciatively. “College I could do again.” He sighed. “The girls. The parties—“ He sighed loudly.
“You’re – what? Thirty? Thirty-two?” Bill said, exasperation coloring his voice.
Tony grinned, deliberately avoiding answering the question put before him. “You saying I can’t do the job?”
Bill looked away, running a hand through his hair as he looked out between the panels of the closed drapes. “Sam,” he said, “explain it to him.”
Sam nodded and turned to Tony, seeming to take his measure before speaking. “Tony,” he began, “you seem like a nice guy.”
Tony barked out a laugh. “Look, I appreciate the platitudes, but I was sent here to do a job. If you don’t think you can back me up, tell me now and I’ll get a new crew.”
Sam frowned and the other two men turned to stare at Tony. “We didn’t say—“
“You didn’t have to. Look, I know I’m not eighteen – and the last one to die was – but I’m good, really good at what I do. Give me ten minutes and I can prove it to you. Then, if you still don’t think I can do this, we can call our bosses. Deal?”
Sam shrugged and Tony watched as George did the same. Tony looked at Bill and raised an eyebrow. Bill seemed to think things over for a moment before sighing loudly. “Impress me,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against the window sill.
Tony knew he had only one chance to show these guys he could pull off the job. It wasn’t like he wanted to do it, but he hadn’t been given a choice. He was Vance’s puppet as much as he’d been Jenny’s – and he hated it but there wasn’t anything he could do about it unless he wanted to quit. And Vance knew he didn’t want to quit. Hell, Vance knew more about why he stayed at NCIS than Tony did himself – and that scared the hell out of him.
Picking up his bag, Tony headed to the bathroom. He had ten minutes to transform himself or he ran the risk of losing his job. Some days he thought it would be for the best if that happened and then he’d look over to where his boss sat and he knew he couldn’t walk away from him. Leroy Jethro Gibbs was the best thing that had ever happened to NCIS and he wouldn’t let Vance tear him down. Unfortunately, Vance knew how Tony felt about his boss and had been using it at every turn. This latest assignment was only one in a long line of less than savory assignments. He could only hope it wouldn’t be his last. No one but Vance even knew he was here – and that thought alone was enough to turn his blood to ice.
~*~*~
Ten minutes wasn’t very long, but Tony was a seasoned veteran and when he sauntered out of the bathroom with a minute and a half to spare, the soft wolf whistles told him all he needed to know: he was in.
“Damn, Tony,” Bill said softly as he pushed away from the window sill, his arms falling to his sides.
Tony turned from Bill to find Sam and George staring open-mouthed. He smiled. It wasn’t easy to put this look on, but it wasn’t something he was unfamiliar with either. Hell, when he’d been in Baltimore he’d gone undercover more than once looking like this. And he loved undercover work – or, at least, he used to. Lately, it seemed that Vance was giving him all the shit assignments and this was one of them.
Hookers and johns were getting killed and the last two sets of murders had involved off duty Marines. Coincidence? Maybe – but they weren’t taking any chances, especially since this was the third city murders such as these had occurred in. First there were three murders near Camp Pendleton, all Marines, then four in San Diego, two hookers and two sailors, and now three in Yuma, one hooker and two marines. They had no guarantee that the murderer would stay in the area, but they were betting on it. There was a lot of nothing around here – and the three bodies had been well hidden. For all they knew, more murders had already been committed and they simply hadn’t found the bodies yet. Tony had been sent to find the perp and stop the murders. He knew if he failed that Vance would most likely drum him out of NCIS. Some days he thought it might be easier. Unfortunately, he also knew that Vance would get him blackballed in every law enforcement agency in the country and Tony loved his job so here he was, playing along with yet another one of Vance’s schemes.
Tony slouched against the door frame, the light in the bathroom shining behind him. He’d just thrown this look together – ten minutes didn’t really do it justice – but from the looks on the agents’ faces, Tony figured they were convinced. His blue jeans looked painted on, threadbare patches framing his assets to perfection. He wore a white cut-off wifebeater and the rings in his nipples pressed against the thin fabric while the gem at his navel peeked out from under the edge of the shirt. He was lean, his muscles well-defined, and he smiled inwardly at the thought of his co-workers seeing him like this. McGee thought he was soft, but he really had no idea just what was hiding under Tony’s clothes. He’d changed since Kate’s death. He was harder now and it showed. He was down an easy twenty pounds since then and there wasn’t an ounce of wasted fat. Running at least ten miles a day and spending two hours in the gym had sculpted him into a lean machine. Flaunting it was the easy part of this assignment. Putting his feelings of revulsion aside would be the hard part. His make-up was subtle; a little kohl ringing his eyes, a dab of lip gloss, and enough hair gel to give his hair that just slept in look.
“Twenty-six?” Bill said, biting his lip.
“Could make it twenty if he was willing to shave,” George said after a moment.
Tony snickered at the light blush that stained George’s face when Sam punched him lightly on the arm and asked him what he was doing looking so closely. Bill grinned and told Tony that he thought that Tony could maybe actually pull this one off. Tony thanked him and asked if he could use the bathroom for an extended period of time. At the raised eyebrows Tony laughed and pulled two tubes of Nair out of his bag.
“Time to depilate,” he said easily, hiding the grin that threatened to erupt at the looks of discomfort the three agents threw his way. “So who wants to do my back?” he asked, looking around at the suddenly quiet men.
“Wh-what?” Sam stuttered.
“Look, guys. I can do everyplace but between my shoulderblades so who’s going to help me? I’ll even stay decent until you leave the bathroom.” Tony waggled his eyebrows comically as he wiggled the tube of Nair in his fingers.
The three agents looked at each other uneasily. Finally Bill sighed loudly. “I’ll do it,” he said gruffly. “Pussies,” he muttered as he followed Tony into the bathroom, closing the door slightly but leaning it cracked open. “The ventilation sucks,” he said to Tony’s inquisitive look.
Tony just smiled.
~*~*~
“Where the hell is DiNozzo?”
McGee looked up from where he was avidly working on a report. Gibbs had been watching him for a couple of minutes every time he looked up to see if Tony had graced them with his presence today. It was obvious that McGee had been trying his best to blend into his surroundings and hoping fervently that Gibbs wouldn’t ask him the question he had just asked. Gibbs waited.
“B-boss?” McGee stammered as he looked across the bullpen to where Ziva sat. A quick shrug from the Mossad agent made McGee frown as he looked back at Gibbs. “I –“ He licked his lips. “I don’t know, Boss.”
“Officer David?”
Ziva sat up straighter. “He is not here, Gibbs,” she said unnecessarily.
Gibbs rolled his eyes. “I can see that. The question wasn’t where is he not? It was ‘where is he’?”
Ziva huffed out an annoyed breath. “Well, he is not here. Therefore he must still be at home – or at the home of one of his bozos.”
“Bimbos,” McGee corrected absently.
“Bimbos, bozos, what is the difference?” Ziva snapped.
Gibbs raised a hand and shook his head as McGee opened his mouth to answer the question. “Rhetorical, McGee,” he said. “What do we know?”
“About what, Agent Gibbs?”
Gibbs tensed as he recognized the voice of the director. Turning slowly he nodded toward the man standing in front of him. “Director Vance,” he acknowledged. “Just wondering where my senior field agent is this morning. He was due back from vacation today.”
Vance stared at Gibbs solemnly for a moment before smiling. “Didn’t you hear? Agent DiNozzo called in early this morning. Apparently he’s had a family emergency. He asked to extend his vacation by another three weeks.”
Gibbs raised an eyebrow. “Really?” Sarcasm and disbelief colored that one word but Vance stood his ground.
“Really, Agent Gibbs.” Vance took a breath and looked around at the assembled team. “I granted Agent DiNozzo’s request. He will be gone another three weeks.” When no one moved, Leon smirked. “I’m sure you can find something useful to do instead of standing around speculating about your absent coworker.”
The team watched Director Vance walk away and then, at Gibbs’ subtle nod, they moved to their desks. McGee was obviously nervous, his gaze shifting back and forth between Ziva and Gibbs numerous times before settling on his computer screen. His hands hovered over the keyboard. Gibbs bit back a sigh of frustration, gave Ziva a stern look that made her quickly get to work, and walked over to stand in front of McGee’s desk.
“Are you having trouble with your assignment, McGee?” he asked softly.
McGee turned wide, startled eyes to Gibbs. “B-boss?”
Gibbs leaned forward, bracing his weight on his hands, stifling a growl when McGee pulled back. “Find Tony. His family is the poster child for dysfunctional and I will not believe that he dropped everything to run off for some family emergency – not without proof.”
~*~*~
Tony ran his tongue over dry, chapped lips. He was lying down and, if he had to venture a guess, he’d say he was on a mattress. If the smell was anything to go by, it wasn’t a very clean mattress. Sighing softly, he turned his head, biting back a groan as his bruised cheek came into contact with the scratchy pillowcase. He blinked slowly, silently willing the room to stop the spinning his movement had caused.
“You awake, slut?” a deep, voice growled.
Tony flinched, the movement making his gut clench and forcing a groan of discomfort from his throat. “P-please,” he whispered as he rolled to his side and began to retch, his arms wrapping across his cramping abdomen.
A booted foot caught him on the hip and rolled him onto his back again, where he lay, gasping against the pain and blinking up into a smirking face. “You ready to play nice then, Honey?”
Tony sobbed as he nodded his head. “Y-yes, S-Sebastian. Anything – j-just please m-make it stop.”
The man, Sebastian, grinned and reached into his back pocket. Tony watched from under heavy-lidded eyes as Sebastian held aloft a syringe. He couldn’t tear his gaze away as the cap was pulled off and Sebastian knelt beside the dirty mattress. Tony closed his eyes as Sebastian straightened his arm, tied off a tourniquet with ruthless efficiency and then slid the needle in his vein. He could feel the drug rush into his body, slithering and sliding through his bloodstream, a feeling of euphoria beginning almost immediately. Licking his lips, he sighed softly.
Dimly, Tony heard Sebastian chuckle evilly at the sound and a tear slid down the side of his face as he curled onto his side, the chain at his ankle jangling softly with his movement.
~*~*~
~*~*~
The assignment had begun uneventfully. Bill, George, and Sam had set him up in a room – a hovel really. The old hotel was run down. Most of the rooms had long term tenants. The remaining rooms were rented by the hour, to Tony’s unending amusement and frustration (when it kept him from getting any sleep at all). He’d managed to befriend the local hookers and was slowly winning over their trust. After a few rather ribald conversations with them he’d been dubbed Honey Dust and the girls teased him unmercifully about his uses. There were a couple of young men on his chosen street as well and he found himself wanting to warn them of the danger they could be in – and trying to keep his distance so as not to blow his own cover. The men were a bit more reticent than the women and he found it difficult to engage them in any kind of conversation, meaningful or not.
After about a week, Tony had managed to befriend one of the young men, an “almost nineteen” year old named Kyle. He hadn’t been able to glean much personal information except to learn that Kyle belonged to someone. The name of that someone continued to be a mystery, however, but Tony did catch a glimpse of the man one night when he came to pick Kyle up.
The first words out of the man’s mouth had been, “How much, slut?” When Kyle had stammered out a reply, the man had barked at him to get his “ugly ass” into the car. Kyle had complied quickly, shooting Tony a look that begged for help at the same time that it warned him away. Tony had stayed back, blending back into the shadow of the building as much as possible, not wanting to draw the man’s attention. All Tony could tell was that the man was big – huge, hulking – and that his voice was a deep, growling bass. That, and he liked to swear. As Kyle closed the car door, the man reached out and slapped him, rocking his head back and Tony saw Kyle reach a hand up to his cheek as he hunched down in his seat and cowered away from the man. Tony already hated him and he didn’t even know his name.
As the car pulled away, the other hookers wandered closer to each other. It was only then that Tony realized everyone had melted back into the shadows when the car had pulled up.
“So,” Tony drawled, “who the hell was that?”
Santa Fe sidled up to Tony. “You don’t want to know, Honey,” she said softly, her worried gaze looking down the street to where the car had disappeared.
“Why?” Tony asked softly.
“That was Kyle’s pimp, Sebastian,” Rose said, putting her arm around Santa Fe and hugging the other woman tightly. Tony saw that both women were trembling.
“That was his pimp? Isn’t he supposed to be caring for him – looking out for Kyle?”
Santa Fe shook her head and smiled sadly. “Only in the movies, Honey,” she said. “In the real world? Out here on the streets? A pimp isn’t going to save your ass. They own it – and sell it. You’re nothing but a commodity to a pimp.”
Tony nodded and bit his lip. “So why have one?”
Rose chuckled. “On your own, you’re prey for everyone. If you have a pimp, you’re only prey for one person.”
“Lesser of two evils?”
Santa Fe nodded. “Sometimes – but with Sebastian, it’s not the lesser of evils. That man is the devil incarnate. You mark my words. He’s trouble – and Kyle is in over his head with that one. The deaths around here?”
Rose put her fingers on Santa Fe’s lips. “Don’t, sugar. Please – don’t say it.” She turned to Tony. “Honey – just stay out of Sebastian’s way – okay?”
Tony nodded, his mind spinning with the possibilities. Maybe he’d found the perpetrator. It sure hadn’t taken long if that was the case. This assignment was turning out to be way too easy. “I will,” he promised, resisting the urge to cross his fingers behind his back. If Sebastian was his man, he’d have to approach him eventually.
Kyle showed up again two days later. By then Tony was pretty sure they were going to find his body along with his latest john. Instead, Kyle sported a black eye and winced when he moved like he had bruised ribs. The dead whore they found was a young kid that Tony had seen around a couple of times. In face, the last time he’d seen him he was hanging on Tony’s corner. The john wasn’t even a Marine. Things were getting complicated.
Rose was the one to bring up the kid’s death. She called him Jimmy and when Kyle heard the name he blanched, turned away, and vomited. Tony moved quickly, putting an arm around his shoulders and drawing Kyle away from the mess he’d made. When Kyle started to sob, Tony looked around for help. Santa Fe and Rose were moving away in the other direction, obviously trying to put some distance between themselves and the smell of the vomit that littered the walkway. Tony sighed and pulled Kyle into his arms, letting the younger man burrow close. Kyle’s fingers closed on Tony’s shirt and he held on tightly.
“I kn-knew him,” Kyle said hesitantly at Tony’s inquiry. “He – he was nice. He didn’t belong here.” Kyle’s hand let go of Tony’s shirt long enough to finger the bruise on his cheek gently and Tony got the feeling there was something that Kyle wasn’t telling him.
“When was the last time you saw Jimmy?” Tony asked.
Kyle sighed. “He – he stole a trick from me a couple of d-days ago. S-Sebastian was furious.” Kyle gasped as if realizing what he’d said and Tony rubbed gentle circles on his back, soothing him.
Tony had seen evidence of Sebastian’s temper when he’d struck Kyle – and the evidence lingered on Kyle’s face even now. He was sure that, if he lifted Kyle’s shirt, there would be even more evidence coloring Kyle’s ribs in purpling bruises. But now he had even more troubling information. The last thing Jimmy had been seen doing was stealing a trick from Kyle. So, if Sebastian had gotten angry, why didn’t he simply try to recruit him into his stable? Why kill him?
A thought occurred to Tony. “Did Jimmy have a pimp?”
Kyle sniffled and pushed away from Tony. He swiped a grimy hand over his eyes and nodded. “Yeah – he was on a pretty short leash too.”
Tony tilted his head. “What do you mean?”
That was when Kyle told him about Jimmy’s pimp and how controlling he’d been. Funny thing was – the pimp had been arrested the night before Jimmy had gone missing. Jimmy had been unprotected.
Kyle sniffled and wiped his face again, keeping his head down and his gaze lowered. Tony ruffled Kyle’s hair gently. “It’s okay, man. You don’t have to be embarrassed about this.”
Kyle snorted softly. “It’s just – I think I know who did this,” he said softly, looking around quickly as if to see if anyone was watching them.
“Who, Kyle?” Tony asked urgently, his fingers gripping Kyle’s arms. “Who did this?”
Kyle struggled in Tony’s grasp. “H-honey, you’re hurting me!”
“What’s going on here?” The deep bass voice startled both men and Tony found himself reaching behind his back for a weapon that wasn’t there.
“Sebastian!” Kyle squeaked as he spun around to face his obviously angry pimp.
Tony watched as Sebastian backhanded Kyle, making the young man fall to his knees. Kyle put up a hand and shook his head as Tony made a move to help him. That, coupled with Sebastian’s low growl, stopped Tony in his tracks.
As Kyle got to his feet, Sebastian grabbed him by one arm and shook him. “Who’s your little friend, slut?” he growled, his spittle dotting Kyle’s face as he spat the words at him.
“N-no one, Sebastian. J-just a guy,” Kyle stammered.
Tony stepped forward, his hips swaying easily as he moved. “They call me Honey,” he said seductively, trying to pull Sebastian’s focus from Kyle so the kid would’t get hurt any more.
Sebastian grabbed Tony by the throat and pushed him up against the side of the building. He was a big man, easily five inches taller than Tony and seventy pounds heavier. His hand felt like a vice around Tony’s neck and Tony struggled in his grasp.
“I don’t like anyone touching my property – Honey,” Sebastian spat.
Tony swallowed with difficulty around Sebastian’s grip. “N-no problem, man,” he gasped. “W-won’t happen again.”
Kyle stumbled forward, grasping Sebastian’s arm. “Please, Sebastian. D-don’t hurt him.” Kyle fell to his knees, still holding on to his pimp’s arm.
Sebastian tangled the fingers of one hand in Kyle’s long hair, using it to pull Kyle’s head up sharply. Kyle gasped in pain, his hands going to his head, holding onto his hair around Sebastian’s fist as if trying to lessen the pressure of his pimp’s pull.
“You like this one, then?” Sebastian growled.
Kyle nodded as much as he was able. “Yes,” he gasped. “I like him. Please, Sebastian.”
Sebastian looked at Tony for a long minute before loosening his grip on Tony’s throat. “You got a protector, Honey?”
Tony cleared his throat softly, using the time to think. If he said yes, would Sebastian just walk away – or would he stake his claim on Kyle by beating the crap out of him for touching his property. As confident as Tony was about being in shape, he knew there was no way he could hold his own against Sebastian. The man was all muscle and outweighed him by a lot. Just from the way he held onto Tony as he pressed him against the wall, Tony could tell that he knew what he was doing – and how to hurt someone.
“I’m solo,” Tony said after a minute. He couldn’t be sure how Sebastian would react to that news but something in the way Sebastian had asked the question told Tony that he might have a better chance of not getting beaten if he didn’t have a pimp.
Sebastian smiled then and Tony fought to stave off a shudder at the predatory look that crossed the man’s face. “Well then – why don’t you come visit with us a while? It would be a good opportunity for you to see how we operate – and where Kyle lives.”
Tony was shaking his head before Sebastian finished talking. “Oh, I couldn’t do that,” he protested softly, backing away slowly. Sebastian watched him and reached out, pulling Kyle close with a hand around the back of his neck. Kyle winced as Sebastian shook him slightly and Tony sighed. The threat was obvious: go with them or Kyle would get hurt again.
Tony shrugged and then smiled. “Sure, man. I’ll come.” He only hoped that his back-up was close enough to follow them and that they were listening to the wire. There was no way he wanted to go inside Sebastian’s place wherever that was. When they stopped, he planned on running and someone had better be close by to pick him up.
No one was there when the car stopped. They were in a parking lot and, when Tony stepped from the car, Sebastian smiled tightly and pulled Kyle out, wrapping his hand around the young man’s throat possessively. Tony looked around. The lot was fenced in and barbed wire ran around the top of the chain-link.
“Come on, Honey,” Sebastian said quietly and Tony turned quickly. Sebastian was watching him and, as Tony turned, he opened his coat, exposing the gun he wore tucked into the front waistband of his jeans. “You’re not thinking of leaving before we have our little talk are you?”
Tony licked his suddenly dry lips and put his hands in the back pockets of his jeans. He smiled a little and shrugged. “Can’t blame a man, can you? You’re a little intimidating.”
Sebastian snorted. “Come on, Honey.”
Tony followed, looking around for his back-up and praying they were close. The wire and the GPS locator in his shoe were all that was between him and the possibility of disappearing without a trace.
Tony tried lagging behind but Sebastian was having none of it. He literally propelled Tony into the house ahead of him and Kyle, making Tony stumble as he tried to catch his balance without landing on his ass. As he got his feet under him again, Sebastian was there and Tony shied away. Sebastian grabbed Tony by the arms and Tony struggled against his grasp. He pulled free desperately only to have Sebastian lash out at him. One meaty fist connected with Tony’s jaw, snapping his head to the side and sending him to his knees, hanging onto consciousness by a thread. As strong hands rolled him onto his back, Tony lost the fight and slipped into darkness.
~*~*~
It was light when Tony woke, naked and cold on a filthy mattress. He sat up quickly, clutching his head against the sudden pain that stabbed through it at his movement. The house was quiet. It took him a minute but then he saw it – a sturdy chain was wrapped around his ankle and locked with a padlock. He couldn’t help the frantic struggle that ensued as he pulled and tugged on the chain, bruising his hands and ankle but unable to loosen his fetter.
“So – Honey.”
Sebastian’s deep voice startled him and he looked up, his hands moving instinctively to cover his groin. Sebastian laughed. “I found your wire last night,” he said matter-of-factly. “Cop then?” When Tony didn’t react at all to the taunt, Sebastian reached out and grabbed Tony’s chin in one meaty fist, fingers tight enough to bruise.
Dark brown eyes stared into Tony’s, searching, demanding answers. Tony cleared his mind, not letting any fear show in his eyes. He’d been trained for this. Sebastian wouldn’t break him. After a long minute, the hand left his face and Tony stifled the urge to rub the ache away where Sebastian’s strong fingers had dug in hard enough to leave bruises.
“Cop,” Sebastian said as he nodded once as if just making up his mind on the matter. “So – cop. You got a name?”
Tony stared back, stone-faced.
“I can beat it out of you.” Sebastian smiled. “Or maybe I should beat it out of Kyle.”
Tony held his breath for a moment. The bastard probably would beat Kyle until Tony told him his name – or until he killed him. “S-sam,” Tony said softly. “M-my name is Sam.”
He didn’t see the hand coming, the impact rocking him backwards, pain exploding across his cheekbone. Seeing stars had always seemed like a cliché to him – until now. He shook his head slowly, moving his jaw just to make sure it wasn’t broken.
“The truth would be good.”
Tony looked away, debating lying again. Finally he shrugged mentally. What could this bastard possibly do with a name? “Tony,” he said quietly. “My name is Tony.”
Sebastian stared at him for a moment as if weighing the veracity of his statement. Finally he smiled and walked away. Tony stayed where he was, pulling his knees to his chest and resting his head on his bent legs. Turning his head slightly, Tony looked up at the tiny slit of a window set up near the ceiling. A pale light shone through it but Tony thought it didn’t really look like sunlight.
Tony sighed. He was well and truly screwed. All he could hope for now was that George, Bill, and Sam would be able to trace the GPS in his shoe – assuming that Sebastian hadn’t simply destroyed his clothing, of course.
~*~*~
“So, Cop Tony, why were you hanging around my boy?”
Sebastian was back and Tony blinked stupidly up at him, wondering briefly when he’d fallen asleep. When Sebastian slapped him across the face, Tony licked the blood off his lips and glared.
“Answer the fucking question,” Sebastian growled.
“Fuck you.” Tony looked away from Sebastian, turning his body and putting his back to his captor. It had been hours. If Sam, George, and Bill had a GPS signal, they would have been breaking down the door long before now. No, he was on his own – and there was no way he was playing nice with the murderer.
Tony tensed when he heard Sebastian move. He expected to be beaten. What he didn’t expect was for the big man to roll him onto his back and straddle his body, holding Tony down with his own heavy weight. One knee pressed Tony’s right arm to the mattress. His left arm was wrenched to the side, pulled away from his body. Tony’s struggles were futile. Sebastian was simply too strong and Tony went limp after a few minutes, panting lightly from the effort.
“You were undercover,” Sebastian said softly as one hand reached to pull something from his back pocket. It was a syringe and Tony felt a tendril of true fear when he saw it.
The moment of terror gave way quickly and Tony bucked and twisted under Sebastian, desperate to throw him off. A huge meaty hand wrapped around Tony’s throat, fingers digging into his skin cruelly, shutting off his air. After mere moments, Tony felt his lungs begin to ache and his vision started to black out. He could feel his body grow heavy and he knew he was going to die.
~*~*~
When Tony next woke it was to a sore throat and a feeling of lethargy that confused him – right up until Sebastian came back with a syringe in his hand and proceeded to inject it into Tony’s arm. While the action horrified him, Tony found himself unable to rouse himself enough to pull away. The feeling of lethargy intensified as the drug entered his body and his head lolled on the dirty mattress. He closed his eyes as Sebastian cradled his cheek in one huge hand and smiled down at him.
“You’re gonna make me a lot of money,” he said as tears fell from Tony’s eyes.
Tony was left alone for long periods of time, long enough for an ache to build in his muscles and joints, long enough for his body to begin to tremble. It was only then that Sebastian would return, holding up the syringe and waiting – almost as if waiting for Tony to beg for the drug, but Tony would turn away, burying his head in his arm and curling his aching body into a ball. Sebastian would wrestle an arm free and inject the drug into Tony’s system before leaving him alone again.
Each high brought an increasingly desperate low and Tony realized that he wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer. Whether or not he wanted to admit it, he needed whatever was in the syringe that Sebastian wielded. He hadn’t been given food or water in days it seemed and he’d been lying on the same dirty mattress for the same amount of time, relieving himself in a corner at the end of his chain when he’d had no other choice. His lips were cracked and bleeding, his muscles felt like they were on fire and he couldn’t stop shaking, his stomach cramped and his head ached, yet, when Sebastian returned, Tony turned away again.
The sound of Sebastian chuckling only made Tony tremble more. “You’re a stubborn bitch, aren’t you, boy? We’ll soon be taking care of that.” This time the injection burned its way through Tony’s body and he screamed in agony as he felt like his skin was on fire. He scratched at his skin with ragged fingernails and was only dimly aware of Sebastian pulling his hands away, tying them together with a rough piece of rope and fastening it to the wall above his head. His body arched and bowed off the bed as he thrashed, his muscles spasming almost uncontrollably.
“I can make it go away.” The voice was soft, deep, and compelling. “I can take all your pain away. Just ask.”
Tony screamed again as another wave of pain boiled through him. “Please,” he gasped. “Please make it stop.” He barely registered the pinprick of pain in his arm and then the familiar warm feeling of lethargy and euphoria flowed through his body. He melted back against the mattress, sighing softly.
“Better?”
Tony blinked up at Sebastian as the big man leaned forward and pressed his lips against Tony’s. His eyes closed.
~*~*~
~*~*~
Tony shivered as he stood under the streetlight, hands thrust into his pockets. He didn’t even know if he was in Yuma anymore and there was no way he was going to ask the other streetwalkers. He’d learned his lesson the hard way, having been forced to watch as Sebastian beat Kyle to death and then tossed him out like so much trash – and all because he had talked to Tony, tried to help him. It was warm out but then the temperature wasn’t why Tony was shivering. Sebastian had gotten him hooked on drugs and now Tony was expected to pay for them – by turning tricks. If he didn’t make enough money – he didn’t get his fix, or he got just enough to get him on his feet and back out onto the street. He was riding the ragged edge of a crash and didn’t have enough money in his pocket to get high. He needed at least one more good one; one more john who would pay full price and, hopefully, not leave him bleeding when he was finished.
With a sigh Tony looked around at the nearly deserted streets. He didn’t see Sebastian’s car but that didn’t mean he wasn’t there, watching and waiting for Tony to screw up so he could punish him for it. Sure, he could run – he could try anyway. But where would he go? Who would he call to get him out of this hell-hole that was his life now? His mind immediately went to his former boss, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and he snorted mentally. Yeah, like he could make that call. ‘Hello, Jethro. It’s me, Tony. I’m a whore now and I’m a bit sick of it all. Do you think you could come pick me up? I’m not quite sure where here is, though…’ That would go over well, he thought wryly. He was damaged goods now, not strong enough to stand up to the latest bully, letting himself get hooked on god only knew what drug and then whoring himself out to pay for yet one more fix. Jethro wouldn’t want to save him. No one would.
Just then a car pulled up to the curb, the side window sliding down slowly. Tony pasted a sultry smile on his face, hooked his thumbs in his belt loops and approached the car, swinging his hips as he glided forward.
The light was falling wrong, Tony realized as he approached the car, and he couldn’t see the person behind the wheel. That creeped him out a little bit. He liked to take a look at the man who’d be fucking him – before he got to the car. If he was too creepy, Tony could turn away and things wouldn’t get too heated. However, once he was hanging onto the door of the car and leaning in so they could talk, it was too late to back out gracefully. By that point, the john thought he already owned him and if he walked away, the john could get violent – or, at the very least, mouthy.
But who was he kidding? He was desperate and the night wasn’t getting any younger. It was either this guy or going without tonight, probably along with a good beating for not making his quota. No, he’d do this one. Looks didn’t really matter since he wouldn’t be looking at the man while he fucked him. As long as he didn’t look like an axe murderer Tony was going to crawl into that car and take money for sex – and, he supposed there would come a day when even that one limit of his wouldn’t matter. Axe murderer or not, Tony was getting close to the edge of need that couldn’t be abated without the drug that Sebastian held over him.
~*~*~
Eight weeks. Eight weeks since Tony had walked out, going on ‘vacation’ with his buddies. Three weeks later and it was a ‘family emergency’. Three weeks after that, and it was yet another extension for a ‘personal matter’. None of the excuses had sat well with Gibbs yet the director had seemed very glib when he told Jethro that he’d approved each and every one of Tony’s time off extensions. Jethro had yet to speak to Tony and, when he called his cell, he found out that not only was it not being answered, the voice mail was full as well. Tony never went anywhere without his cell and he’d never leave voicemail not listened to. Tony was a technology geek, even if he couldn’t type for shit. Gadgets were his ‘thing’ and email, voicemail, and texting were his gods. Something was seriously wrong.
A few hundred pulled strings and a handful of favors called in had gotten Gibbs the first concrete information on Tony in almost two months. The manifest of a heavy transport heading to Yuma had listed one NCIS Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo (passenger). Assuming Tony was still working for NCIS, Gibbs contacted the nearest base of operations, San Diego.
Gibbs’ phone had rung not two minutes after he hung up from talking to the San Diego office and getting nowhere. According to them, there was no operation in Yuma and they had never heard of Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. Gibbs’ call was a summons to Director Vance’s office.
“Word travels fast,” he commented dryly as he stared down the director. Vance had immediately berated him for calling the San Diego office to inquire about DiNozzo. At least the director hadn’t bothered to lie to him about DiNozzo going under cover for the San Diego office. What he had lied about, however, was that Tony was okay. Something in Vance’s eyes, the way he’d looked away from Jethro for just a moment, telegraphed his insincerity and confirmed Jethro’s fears. Tony was in trouble and it looked like Jethro was on his own to find him.
Vance told Jethro that Tony was just finishing up an op and to let it go. He’d be home in a few weeks at the most.
“Care to tell me where this op is taking place?” Jethro asked evenly.
“No,” Vance answered. “It’s on a need to know basis – and you don’t need to know.”
Jethro sighed softly. “Look,” he said after a moment, “Tony is mine. He’s a member of my team. I won’t put the op in jeopardy but I need to know where he is. It will put my mind at ease if nothing else.” His voice was sincere and Jethro hoped that Vance bought it. He needed to know where Tony was – or where he was supposed to be. His gut was telling him that Tony was in trouble and he wouldn’t rest until he found him.
Vance stared at him for another minute before sighing loudly and looking away. “Yuma,” Vance said as he shuffled the papers on his desk.
“Thank you, Director,” Jethro said evenly, turning to leave the office.
“Leave it be, Gibbs. I will not tolerate any interference from your team.”
Jethro’s steps faltered only a little at those words and he didn’t grace the comment with an answer. Vance was using Tony again. It had been bad enough when Jenny had done it, using Tony for undercover assignments that had nearly broken the younger man. He’d slowly come back from the whole Jeanne fiasco apparently only to be thrust into the frying pan again with yet another undercover assignment.
Stopping only long enough to tell McGee to start discreetly looking for Tony, Jethro continued through the bullpen and down to the lab where Abby was talking to a picture of Tony again.
“Abby,” Gibbs said softly, wrapping his arms around the young woman as she cried silent tears.
“Something has happened to him and you can’t tell me that I’m crazy, Gibbs. I feel it.”
Gibbs nodded. “I feel it too, Abs. I’ve got a lead but we need to be discreet.”
Abby looked up at him, wiping the moisture from her face with the backs of her hands. “I can do discreet,” she said firmly.
“Yuma.”
Abby frowned. “Yuma? That’s all you’ve got?”
Gibbs nodded. “It was an undercover assignment – but the San Diego office denies any knowledge of him being there. I think there’s something –“
“Hinky about the whole thing,” Abby finished for him.
Gibbs nodded. “Yeah,” he said softly. “Definitely hinky.”
Abby beamed. “So go, shoo. I’ve got work to do.”
~*~*~
Pasting a smile on his face, Tony leaned into the window of the car. “Hi, looking for—?” His breath caught in his throat as he stared into all too familiar blue eyes.
“Hey, Tony, fancy meeting you here.”
Tony stilled, shock tearing through him. He wanted to run, to get away from the censure he was sure he could see in those piercing eyes. Pushing away from the car, Tony back-peddled quickly, looking around for any sign that Sebastian had seen what had happened. This was bad. This was so very bad. Suddenly Tony heard a car door open and he looked up to see Gibbs stalking toward him. He looked around frantically, shaking his head.
“Y-you have to l-leave,” he stammered as Gibbs got closer.
“Why, Tony? What’s happened to you?”
“J-just go, Boss. P-please,” Tony begged softly, his arms wrapping around his torso.
“We need to talk,” Jethro said.
“N-no,” Tony whispered. “I c-can’t –“
Jethro reached out and took hold of Tony’s elbow.
“What’s going on here?”
Sebastian’s deep growl startled Tony and he turned quickly, stumbling in his haste. He was shaking openly now.
“N-nothing, Sebastian,” Tony said quickly.
Sebastian glared at Gibbs. “This asshole bothering you, Honey?”
Tony shook his head quickly. “N-no, he just startled me. He looks like someone I used to know is all.” Tony pressed himself into the curve of Sebastian’s arms, rubbing back against his erection in hopes of distracting him from Gibbs.
Gibbs put his hands up. “I’m not looking for any trouble here,” he said easily, backing away. “Just looking for a little fun and I thought your boy was selling.”
Sebastian grinned. “Yeah? Well, come back tomorrow then. He’s off duty for the night.”
Gibbs grinned. “I’ll be sure to do that.”
Tony watched Gibbs walk back to his car, wincing as Sebastian’s embrace became painful.
“You stupid fuck,” Sebastian growled into his ear as he wrapped one hand around Tony’s throat. “That one could have paid big.” He slapped Tony hard, rocking him back and leaving a red handprint on his cheek.
Tony’s hand went to his face and he looked to where Gibbs’ car had been parked, but the curbside was empty.
~*~*~
On to
part 2
Author: hawk_soaring
Written for:
ingenius_incPrompt(s): Hooker!Tony (I don’t care how); When Tony goes undercover for too long, he has trouble coming back. First time fic with emo and confused Tony, angry Gibbs.
Archive: BiA, WWOMB, all others please ask
Genre: slash
Pairings: Tony/ OMC(s), Tony/ Gibbs
Rating: FRAO
Disclaimer: I don’t own the boys. I try to be nice, but my baser urges usually take over.
Word Count: 16,161
Summary: Tony goes undercover and loses himself. Gibbs finds he has lost even more.
Warnings: Forced prostitution, drug addiction, violence, M/M
A/N: Thanks to Annie for the wonderful beta!
~*~*~
“Three weeks, DiNozzo?” Gibbs glanced up at his senior agent. Sure, Tony took a week off for Spring Break every year but, other than that one predictable vacation, he’d never asked for any substantial time off: a day here, a day there, nothing more. This just wasn’t like him and the request, coupled with Tony’s obvious discomfort at asking for the time, was grating on him.
“Yeah, Boss. I’ve got the time and I need some down time. Been working too hard for too long and I need to get away.” Tony grinned. “My buddies and I rented a house in the Bahamas and I can’t wait to get there.”
“Already rented a house, huh?” Gibbs said easily, watching Tony for any reaction.
Tony’s gaze slid away from his and his grin faltered. “Yeah, Boss. Already rented the house. I didn’t think there’d be any problem.”
Gibbs watched Tony for a long minute before shrugging and signing the paper on his desk. “No problem, Tony,” he said as he held up the paper. As Tony plucked the paper from his hand, Gibbs held it a second longer, looking up at his senior agent. “Let me know if you need anything, Tony. Anything.”
Tony blinked. “S-sure thing, Boss,” he said sincerely. Then he pasted a smile on his face and added, “But I’m sure I can handle things. Not like I can’t hold my own with my buddies.”
Gibbs nodded, the entire conversation sitting wrong with him. “Have a good vacation, DiNozzo.” He thought Tony was walking a little slowly for a man about to take a long vacation on a sunny island filled with hot babes.
Gibbs followed Tony’s progress to the elevators and only turned around when the doors closed behind him. His gaze strayed to the upper floor and he was surprised to see Director Vance also monitoring Tony’s progress. The director met Gibbs’ stare for a moment before turning and walking to his office.
~*~*~
Tony packed his bags quickly and headed downstairs to catch the car that was being sent for him. Things were moving quickly and he didn’t have time to catch his breath, much less take the time to actually think about what it was he was doing. The car was waiting and he climbed in with a stifled sigh, thinking that he’d have plenty of time to mull things over once he was in the air.
The flight was uneventful and he forced all thoughts of what he was doing from his mind and managed to fall asleep. He didn’t imagine he was going to be getting too much sleep for the foreseeable future.
The hand that shook him awake was gentle, yet Tony still startled upright, only biting back a cry of surprise by sheer luck.
“You okay?”
Tony managed a nod and ran a shaking hand over his face, banishing the last vestiges of sleep as he looked around. The belly of the plane was a roiling mass of bodies as everyone gathered their stowed gear and prepared to deplane.
“Agent DiNozzo?”
Tony turned at the gruff voice to see a tall, thick-set man standing in front of him.
“I’m Bill Baker,” the man said, extending a hand in greeting.
Tony shook the proffered hand warily. “You’re from the San Diego office?”
Bill nodded solemnly. “Yes – and I have been assigned as your liaison here in Yuma.”
Tony nodded and picked up his bag, slinging it over his shoulder easily. “Well, let’s get this show on the road, shall we?”
Bill grinned. “Sure thing, Tony.”
Once the two men were off the plane, Bill glanced around. “You sleep much?” he asked.
Tony shrugged. “Some.”
“Never could sleep on those military transports,” Bill said with a mock shudder.
Tony grinned. He thought he could actually like this man. That would help. Where he was going, he would need someone trustworthy at his back.
~*~*~
“Headquarters” was a hotel room on the edge of town.
“Nice digs,” Tony quipped as he walked into the room and dropped his bag on the floor in front of the curtained window. The room had two double beds, two slightly frayed-looking chairs, a TV set sitting on a tall dresser, and a scarred desk. There was a closed door that Tony assumed concealed a closet, and another door that was slightly ajar through which Tony could see a bathroom. As he turned around he saw that Bill was watching him and he feigned nonchalance.
Bill shrugged. “You have to admit it’s low key.”
Tony grinned. “No truer words,” he murmured.
“George Sanchez and Sam Walker,” Bill said, indicating two other men. Both greeted Tony quietly and he nodded back as he took a seat in one of the chairs.
Tony fidgeted for a minute as he watched the three men converse quietly, huddled around a laptop. “You going to fill me in?” he asked. “Or am I the subject of your little conversation?”
The three men turned almost as one, guilt and embarrassment on their faces. Tony smiled and leaned back in the chair, turning on the DiNozzo charm.
“It’s not like that, Tony,” Bill said quickly.
“Really?” Tony drew out the word, putting all his doubts into the one little word.
Now it was Bill’s turn to fidget. Tony waited patiently. He knew that the guys didn’t think he could do the job. Hell – he was pushing 40. That didn’t mean that he had to look his age. He knew he looked younger – and he sure as hell didn’t act his age. All his life he’d had to live with people’s preconceived notions. He could wait.
“Well,” Bill said after a minute. “You’re not exactly eighteen, DiNozzo.”
Tony grinned and laced his fingers behind his neck, using his hands as a pillow. “Nope – and thank god for that! High school was a bitch. College, on the other hand—“ Tony whistled appreciatively. “College I could do again.” He sighed. “The girls. The parties—“ He sighed loudly.
“You’re – what? Thirty? Thirty-two?” Bill said, exasperation coloring his voice.
Tony grinned, deliberately avoiding answering the question put before him. “You saying I can’t do the job?”
Bill looked away, running a hand through his hair as he looked out between the panels of the closed drapes. “Sam,” he said, “explain it to him.”
Sam nodded and turned to Tony, seeming to take his measure before speaking. “Tony,” he began, “you seem like a nice guy.”
Tony barked out a laugh. “Look, I appreciate the platitudes, but I was sent here to do a job. If you don’t think you can back me up, tell me now and I’ll get a new crew.”
Sam frowned and the other two men turned to stare at Tony. “We didn’t say—“
“You didn’t have to. Look, I know I’m not eighteen – and the last one to die was – but I’m good, really good at what I do. Give me ten minutes and I can prove it to you. Then, if you still don’t think I can do this, we can call our bosses. Deal?”
Sam shrugged and Tony watched as George did the same. Tony looked at Bill and raised an eyebrow. Bill seemed to think things over for a moment before sighing loudly. “Impress me,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against the window sill.
Tony knew he had only one chance to show these guys he could pull off the job. It wasn’t like he wanted to do it, but he hadn’t been given a choice. He was Vance’s puppet as much as he’d been Jenny’s – and he hated it but there wasn’t anything he could do about it unless he wanted to quit. And Vance knew he didn’t want to quit. Hell, Vance knew more about why he stayed at NCIS than Tony did himself – and that scared the hell out of him.
Picking up his bag, Tony headed to the bathroom. He had ten minutes to transform himself or he ran the risk of losing his job. Some days he thought it would be for the best if that happened and then he’d look over to where his boss sat and he knew he couldn’t walk away from him. Leroy Jethro Gibbs was the best thing that had ever happened to NCIS and he wouldn’t let Vance tear him down. Unfortunately, Vance knew how Tony felt about his boss and had been using it at every turn. This latest assignment was only one in a long line of less than savory assignments. He could only hope it wouldn’t be his last. No one but Vance even knew he was here – and that thought alone was enough to turn his blood to ice.
~*~*~
Ten minutes wasn’t very long, but Tony was a seasoned veteran and when he sauntered out of the bathroom with a minute and a half to spare, the soft wolf whistles told him all he needed to know: he was in.
“Damn, Tony,” Bill said softly as he pushed away from the window sill, his arms falling to his sides.
Tony turned from Bill to find Sam and George staring open-mouthed. He smiled. It wasn’t easy to put this look on, but it wasn’t something he was unfamiliar with either. Hell, when he’d been in Baltimore he’d gone undercover more than once looking like this. And he loved undercover work – or, at least, he used to. Lately, it seemed that Vance was giving him all the shit assignments and this was one of them.
Hookers and johns were getting killed and the last two sets of murders had involved off duty Marines. Coincidence? Maybe – but they weren’t taking any chances, especially since this was the third city murders such as these had occurred in. First there were three murders near Camp Pendleton, all Marines, then four in San Diego, two hookers and two sailors, and now three in Yuma, one hooker and two marines. They had no guarantee that the murderer would stay in the area, but they were betting on it. There was a lot of nothing around here – and the three bodies had been well hidden. For all they knew, more murders had already been committed and they simply hadn’t found the bodies yet. Tony had been sent to find the perp and stop the murders. He knew if he failed that Vance would most likely drum him out of NCIS. Some days he thought it might be easier. Unfortunately, he also knew that Vance would get him blackballed in every law enforcement agency in the country and Tony loved his job so here he was, playing along with yet another one of Vance’s schemes.
Tony slouched against the door frame, the light in the bathroom shining behind him. He’d just thrown this look together – ten minutes didn’t really do it justice – but from the looks on the agents’ faces, Tony figured they were convinced. His blue jeans looked painted on, threadbare patches framing his assets to perfection. He wore a white cut-off wifebeater and the rings in his nipples pressed against the thin fabric while the gem at his navel peeked out from under the edge of the shirt. He was lean, his muscles well-defined, and he smiled inwardly at the thought of his co-workers seeing him like this. McGee thought he was soft, but he really had no idea just what was hiding under Tony’s clothes. He’d changed since Kate’s death. He was harder now and it showed. He was down an easy twenty pounds since then and there wasn’t an ounce of wasted fat. Running at least ten miles a day and spending two hours in the gym had sculpted him into a lean machine. Flaunting it was the easy part of this assignment. Putting his feelings of revulsion aside would be the hard part. His make-up was subtle; a little kohl ringing his eyes, a dab of lip gloss, and enough hair gel to give his hair that just slept in look.
“Twenty-six?” Bill said, biting his lip.
“Could make it twenty if he was willing to shave,” George said after a moment.
Tony snickered at the light blush that stained George’s face when Sam punched him lightly on the arm and asked him what he was doing looking so closely. Bill grinned and told Tony that he thought that Tony could maybe actually pull this one off. Tony thanked him and asked if he could use the bathroom for an extended period of time. At the raised eyebrows Tony laughed and pulled two tubes of Nair out of his bag.
“Time to depilate,” he said easily, hiding the grin that threatened to erupt at the looks of discomfort the three agents threw his way. “So who wants to do my back?” he asked, looking around at the suddenly quiet men.
“Wh-what?” Sam stuttered.
“Look, guys. I can do everyplace but between my shoulderblades so who’s going to help me? I’ll even stay decent until you leave the bathroom.” Tony waggled his eyebrows comically as he wiggled the tube of Nair in his fingers.
The three agents looked at each other uneasily. Finally Bill sighed loudly. “I’ll do it,” he said gruffly. “Pussies,” he muttered as he followed Tony into the bathroom, closing the door slightly but leaning it cracked open. “The ventilation sucks,” he said to Tony’s inquisitive look.
Tony just smiled.
~*~*~
“Where the hell is DiNozzo?”
McGee looked up from where he was avidly working on a report. Gibbs had been watching him for a couple of minutes every time he looked up to see if Tony had graced them with his presence today. It was obvious that McGee had been trying his best to blend into his surroundings and hoping fervently that Gibbs wouldn’t ask him the question he had just asked. Gibbs waited.
“B-boss?” McGee stammered as he looked across the bullpen to where Ziva sat. A quick shrug from the Mossad agent made McGee frown as he looked back at Gibbs. “I –“ He licked his lips. “I don’t know, Boss.”
“Officer David?”
Ziva sat up straighter. “He is not here, Gibbs,” she said unnecessarily.
Gibbs rolled his eyes. “I can see that. The question wasn’t where is he not? It was ‘where is he’?”
Ziva huffed out an annoyed breath. “Well, he is not here. Therefore he must still be at home – or at the home of one of his bozos.”
“Bimbos,” McGee corrected absently.
“Bimbos, bozos, what is the difference?” Ziva snapped.
Gibbs raised a hand and shook his head as McGee opened his mouth to answer the question. “Rhetorical, McGee,” he said. “What do we know?”
“About what, Agent Gibbs?”
Gibbs tensed as he recognized the voice of the director. Turning slowly he nodded toward the man standing in front of him. “Director Vance,” he acknowledged. “Just wondering where my senior field agent is this morning. He was due back from vacation today.”
Vance stared at Gibbs solemnly for a moment before smiling. “Didn’t you hear? Agent DiNozzo called in early this morning. Apparently he’s had a family emergency. He asked to extend his vacation by another three weeks.”
Gibbs raised an eyebrow. “Really?” Sarcasm and disbelief colored that one word but Vance stood his ground.
“Really, Agent Gibbs.” Vance took a breath and looked around at the assembled team. “I granted Agent DiNozzo’s request. He will be gone another three weeks.” When no one moved, Leon smirked. “I’m sure you can find something useful to do instead of standing around speculating about your absent coworker.”
The team watched Director Vance walk away and then, at Gibbs’ subtle nod, they moved to their desks. McGee was obviously nervous, his gaze shifting back and forth between Ziva and Gibbs numerous times before settling on his computer screen. His hands hovered over the keyboard. Gibbs bit back a sigh of frustration, gave Ziva a stern look that made her quickly get to work, and walked over to stand in front of McGee’s desk.
“Are you having trouble with your assignment, McGee?” he asked softly.
McGee turned wide, startled eyes to Gibbs. “B-boss?”
Gibbs leaned forward, bracing his weight on his hands, stifling a growl when McGee pulled back. “Find Tony. His family is the poster child for dysfunctional and I will not believe that he dropped everything to run off for some family emergency – not without proof.”
~*~*~
Tony ran his tongue over dry, chapped lips. He was lying down and, if he had to venture a guess, he’d say he was on a mattress. If the smell was anything to go by, it wasn’t a very clean mattress. Sighing softly, he turned his head, biting back a groan as his bruised cheek came into contact with the scratchy pillowcase. He blinked slowly, silently willing the room to stop the spinning his movement had caused.
“You awake, slut?” a deep, voice growled.
Tony flinched, the movement making his gut clench and forcing a groan of discomfort from his throat. “P-please,” he whispered as he rolled to his side and began to retch, his arms wrapping across his cramping abdomen.
A booted foot caught him on the hip and rolled him onto his back again, where he lay, gasping against the pain and blinking up into a smirking face. “You ready to play nice then, Honey?”
Tony sobbed as he nodded his head. “Y-yes, S-Sebastian. Anything – j-just please m-make it stop.”
The man, Sebastian, grinned and reached into his back pocket. Tony watched from under heavy-lidded eyes as Sebastian held aloft a syringe. He couldn’t tear his gaze away as the cap was pulled off and Sebastian knelt beside the dirty mattress. Tony closed his eyes as Sebastian straightened his arm, tied off a tourniquet with ruthless efficiency and then slid the needle in his vein. He could feel the drug rush into his body, slithering and sliding through his bloodstream, a feeling of euphoria beginning almost immediately. Licking his lips, he sighed softly.
Dimly, Tony heard Sebastian chuckle evilly at the sound and a tear slid down the side of his face as he curled onto his side, the chain at his ankle jangling softly with his movement.
~*~*~
~*~*~
The assignment had begun uneventfully. Bill, George, and Sam had set him up in a room – a hovel really. The old hotel was run down. Most of the rooms had long term tenants. The remaining rooms were rented by the hour, to Tony’s unending amusement and frustration (when it kept him from getting any sleep at all). He’d managed to befriend the local hookers and was slowly winning over their trust. After a few rather ribald conversations with them he’d been dubbed Honey Dust and the girls teased him unmercifully about his uses. There were a couple of young men on his chosen street as well and he found himself wanting to warn them of the danger they could be in – and trying to keep his distance so as not to blow his own cover. The men were a bit more reticent than the women and he found it difficult to engage them in any kind of conversation, meaningful or not.
After about a week, Tony had managed to befriend one of the young men, an “almost nineteen” year old named Kyle. He hadn’t been able to glean much personal information except to learn that Kyle belonged to someone. The name of that someone continued to be a mystery, however, but Tony did catch a glimpse of the man one night when he came to pick Kyle up.
The first words out of the man’s mouth had been, “How much, slut?” When Kyle had stammered out a reply, the man had barked at him to get his “ugly ass” into the car. Kyle had complied quickly, shooting Tony a look that begged for help at the same time that it warned him away. Tony had stayed back, blending back into the shadow of the building as much as possible, not wanting to draw the man’s attention. All Tony could tell was that the man was big – huge, hulking – and that his voice was a deep, growling bass. That, and he liked to swear. As Kyle closed the car door, the man reached out and slapped him, rocking his head back and Tony saw Kyle reach a hand up to his cheek as he hunched down in his seat and cowered away from the man. Tony already hated him and he didn’t even know his name.
As the car pulled away, the other hookers wandered closer to each other. It was only then that Tony realized everyone had melted back into the shadows when the car had pulled up.
“So,” Tony drawled, “who the hell was that?”
Santa Fe sidled up to Tony. “You don’t want to know, Honey,” she said softly, her worried gaze looking down the street to where the car had disappeared.
“Why?” Tony asked softly.
“That was Kyle’s pimp, Sebastian,” Rose said, putting her arm around Santa Fe and hugging the other woman tightly. Tony saw that both women were trembling.
“That was his pimp? Isn’t he supposed to be caring for him – looking out for Kyle?”
Santa Fe shook her head and smiled sadly. “Only in the movies, Honey,” she said. “In the real world? Out here on the streets? A pimp isn’t going to save your ass. They own it – and sell it. You’re nothing but a commodity to a pimp.”
Tony nodded and bit his lip. “So why have one?”
Rose chuckled. “On your own, you’re prey for everyone. If you have a pimp, you’re only prey for one person.”
“Lesser of two evils?”
Santa Fe nodded. “Sometimes – but with Sebastian, it’s not the lesser of evils. That man is the devil incarnate. You mark my words. He’s trouble – and Kyle is in over his head with that one. The deaths around here?”
Rose put her fingers on Santa Fe’s lips. “Don’t, sugar. Please – don’t say it.” She turned to Tony. “Honey – just stay out of Sebastian’s way – okay?”
Tony nodded, his mind spinning with the possibilities. Maybe he’d found the perpetrator. It sure hadn’t taken long if that was the case. This assignment was turning out to be way too easy. “I will,” he promised, resisting the urge to cross his fingers behind his back. If Sebastian was his man, he’d have to approach him eventually.
Kyle showed up again two days later. By then Tony was pretty sure they were going to find his body along with his latest john. Instead, Kyle sported a black eye and winced when he moved like he had bruised ribs. The dead whore they found was a young kid that Tony had seen around a couple of times. In face, the last time he’d seen him he was hanging on Tony’s corner. The john wasn’t even a Marine. Things were getting complicated.
Rose was the one to bring up the kid’s death. She called him Jimmy and when Kyle heard the name he blanched, turned away, and vomited. Tony moved quickly, putting an arm around his shoulders and drawing Kyle away from the mess he’d made. When Kyle started to sob, Tony looked around for help. Santa Fe and Rose were moving away in the other direction, obviously trying to put some distance between themselves and the smell of the vomit that littered the walkway. Tony sighed and pulled Kyle into his arms, letting the younger man burrow close. Kyle’s fingers closed on Tony’s shirt and he held on tightly.
“I kn-knew him,” Kyle said hesitantly at Tony’s inquiry. “He – he was nice. He didn’t belong here.” Kyle’s hand let go of Tony’s shirt long enough to finger the bruise on his cheek gently and Tony got the feeling there was something that Kyle wasn’t telling him.
“When was the last time you saw Jimmy?” Tony asked.
Kyle sighed. “He – he stole a trick from me a couple of d-days ago. S-Sebastian was furious.” Kyle gasped as if realizing what he’d said and Tony rubbed gentle circles on his back, soothing him.
Tony had seen evidence of Sebastian’s temper when he’d struck Kyle – and the evidence lingered on Kyle’s face even now. He was sure that, if he lifted Kyle’s shirt, there would be even more evidence coloring Kyle’s ribs in purpling bruises. But now he had even more troubling information. The last thing Jimmy had been seen doing was stealing a trick from Kyle. So, if Sebastian had gotten angry, why didn’t he simply try to recruit him into his stable? Why kill him?
A thought occurred to Tony. “Did Jimmy have a pimp?”
Kyle sniffled and pushed away from Tony. He swiped a grimy hand over his eyes and nodded. “Yeah – he was on a pretty short leash too.”
Tony tilted his head. “What do you mean?”
That was when Kyle told him about Jimmy’s pimp and how controlling he’d been. Funny thing was – the pimp had been arrested the night before Jimmy had gone missing. Jimmy had been unprotected.
Kyle sniffled and wiped his face again, keeping his head down and his gaze lowered. Tony ruffled Kyle’s hair gently. “It’s okay, man. You don’t have to be embarrassed about this.”
Kyle snorted softly. “It’s just – I think I know who did this,” he said softly, looking around quickly as if to see if anyone was watching them.
“Who, Kyle?” Tony asked urgently, his fingers gripping Kyle’s arms. “Who did this?”
Kyle struggled in Tony’s grasp. “H-honey, you’re hurting me!”
“What’s going on here?” The deep bass voice startled both men and Tony found himself reaching behind his back for a weapon that wasn’t there.
“Sebastian!” Kyle squeaked as he spun around to face his obviously angry pimp.
Tony watched as Sebastian backhanded Kyle, making the young man fall to his knees. Kyle put up a hand and shook his head as Tony made a move to help him. That, coupled with Sebastian’s low growl, stopped Tony in his tracks.
As Kyle got to his feet, Sebastian grabbed him by one arm and shook him. “Who’s your little friend, slut?” he growled, his spittle dotting Kyle’s face as he spat the words at him.
“N-no one, Sebastian. J-just a guy,” Kyle stammered.
Tony stepped forward, his hips swaying easily as he moved. “They call me Honey,” he said seductively, trying to pull Sebastian’s focus from Kyle so the kid would’t get hurt any more.
Sebastian grabbed Tony by the throat and pushed him up against the side of the building. He was a big man, easily five inches taller than Tony and seventy pounds heavier. His hand felt like a vice around Tony’s neck and Tony struggled in his grasp.
“I don’t like anyone touching my property – Honey,” Sebastian spat.
Tony swallowed with difficulty around Sebastian’s grip. “N-no problem, man,” he gasped. “W-won’t happen again.”
Kyle stumbled forward, grasping Sebastian’s arm. “Please, Sebastian. D-don’t hurt him.” Kyle fell to his knees, still holding on to his pimp’s arm.
Sebastian tangled the fingers of one hand in Kyle’s long hair, using it to pull Kyle’s head up sharply. Kyle gasped in pain, his hands going to his head, holding onto his hair around Sebastian’s fist as if trying to lessen the pressure of his pimp’s pull.
“You like this one, then?” Sebastian growled.
Kyle nodded as much as he was able. “Yes,” he gasped. “I like him. Please, Sebastian.”
Sebastian looked at Tony for a long minute before loosening his grip on Tony’s throat. “You got a protector, Honey?”
Tony cleared his throat softly, using the time to think. If he said yes, would Sebastian just walk away – or would he stake his claim on Kyle by beating the crap out of him for touching his property. As confident as Tony was about being in shape, he knew there was no way he could hold his own against Sebastian. The man was all muscle and outweighed him by a lot. Just from the way he held onto Tony as he pressed him against the wall, Tony could tell that he knew what he was doing – and how to hurt someone.
“I’m solo,” Tony said after a minute. He couldn’t be sure how Sebastian would react to that news but something in the way Sebastian had asked the question told Tony that he might have a better chance of not getting beaten if he didn’t have a pimp.
Sebastian smiled then and Tony fought to stave off a shudder at the predatory look that crossed the man’s face. “Well then – why don’t you come visit with us a while? It would be a good opportunity for you to see how we operate – and where Kyle lives.”
Tony was shaking his head before Sebastian finished talking. “Oh, I couldn’t do that,” he protested softly, backing away slowly. Sebastian watched him and reached out, pulling Kyle close with a hand around the back of his neck. Kyle winced as Sebastian shook him slightly and Tony sighed. The threat was obvious: go with them or Kyle would get hurt again.
Tony shrugged and then smiled. “Sure, man. I’ll come.” He only hoped that his back-up was close enough to follow them and that they were listening to the wire. There was no way he wanted to go inside Sebastian’s place wherever that was. When they stopped, he planned on running and someone had better be close by to pick him up.
No one was there when the car stopped. They were in a parking lot and, when Tony stepped from the car, Sebastian smiled tightly and pulled Kyle out, wrapping his hand around the young man’s throat possessively. Tony looked around. The lot was fenced in and barbed wire ran around the top of the chain-link.
“Come on, Honey,” Sebastian said quietly and Tony turned quickly. Sebastian was watching him and, as Tony turned, he opened his coat, exposing the gun he wore tucked into the front waistband of his jeans. “You’re not thinking of leaving before we have our little talk are you?”
Tony licked his suddenly dry lips and put his hands in the back pockets of his jeans. He smiled a little and shrugged. “Can’t blame a man, can you? You’re a little intimidating.”
Sebastian snorted. “Come on, Honey.”
Tony followed, looking around for his back-up and praying they were close. The wire and the GPS locator in his shoe were all that was between him and the possibility of disappearing without a trace.
Tony tried lagging behind but Sebastian was having none of it. He literally propelled Tony into the house ahead of him and Kyle, making Tony stumble as he tried to catch his balance without landing on his ass. As he got his feet under him again, Sebastian was there and Tony shied away. Sebastian grabbed Tony by the arms and Tony struggled against his grasp. He pulled free desperately only to have Sebastian lash out at him. One meaty fist connected with Tony’s jaw, snapping his head to the side and sending him to his knees, hanging onto consciousness by a thread. As strong hands rolled him onto his back, Tony lost the fight and slipped into darkness.
~*~*~
It was light when Tony woke, naked and cold on a filthy mattress. He sat up quickly, clutching his head against the sudden pain that stabbed through it at his movement. The house was quiet. It took him a minute but then he saw it – a sturdy chain was wrapped around his ankle and locked with a padlock. He couldn’t help the frantic struggle that ensued as he pulled and tugged on the chain, bruising his hands and ankle but unable to loosen his fetter.
“So – Honey.”
Sebastian’s deep voice startled him and he looked up, his hands moving instinctively to cover his groin. Sebastian laughed. “I found your wire last night,” he said matter-of-factly. “Cop then?” When Tony didn’t react at all to the taunt, Sebastian reached out and grabbed Tony’s chin in one meaty fist, fingers tight enough to bruise.
Dark brown eyes stared into Tony’s, searching, demanding answers. Tony cleared his mind, not letting any fear show in his eyes. He’d been trained for this. Sebastian wouldn’t break him. After a long minute, the hand left his face and Tony stifled the urge to rub the ache away where Sebastian’s strong fingers had dug in hard enough to leave bruises.
“Cop,” Sebastian said as he nodded once as if just making up his mind on the matter. “So – cop. You got a name?”
Tony stared back, stone-faced.
“I can beat it out of you.” Sebastian smiled. “Or maybe I should beat it out of Kyle.”
Tony held his breath for a moment. The bastard probably would beat Kyle until Tony told him his name – or until he killed him. “S-sam,” Tony said softly. “M-my name is Sam.”
He didn’t see the hand coming, the impact rocking him backwards, pain exploding across his cheekbone. Seeing stars had always seemed like a cliché to him – until now. He shook his head slowly, moving his jaw just to make sure it wasn’t broken.
“The truth would be good.”
Tony looked away, debating lying again. Finally he shrugged mentally. What could this bastard possibly do with a name? “Tony,” he said quietly. “My name is Tony.”
Sebastian stared at him for a moment as if weighing the veracity of his statement. Finally he smiled and walked away. Tony stayed where he was, pulling his knees to his chest and resting his head on his bent legs. Turning his head slightly, Tony looked up at the tiny slit of a window set up near the ceiling. A pale light shone through it but Tony thought it didn’t really look like sunlight.
Tony sighed. He was well and truly screwed. All he could hope for now was that George, Bill, and Sam would be able to trace the GPS in his shoe – assuming that Sebastian hadn’t simply destroyed his clothing, of course.
~*~*~
“So, Cop Tony, why were you hanging around my boy?”
Sebastian was back and Tony blinked stupidly up at him, wondering briefly when he’d fallen asleep. When Sebastian slapped him across the face, Tony licked the blood off his lips and glared.
“Answer the fucking question,” Sebastian growled.
“Fuck you.” Tony looked away from Sebastian, turning his body and putting his back to his captor. It had been hours. If Sam, George, and Bill had a GPS signal, they would have been breaking down the door long before now. No, he was on his own – and there was no way he was playing nice with the murderer.
Tony tensed when he heard Sebastian move. He expected to be beaten. What he didn’t expect was for the big man to roll him onto his back and straddle his body, holding Tony down with his own heavy weight. One knee pressed Tony’s right arm to the mattress. His left arm was wrenched to the side, pulled away from his body. Tony’s struggles were futile. Sebastian was simply too strong and Tony went limp after a few minutes, panting lightly from the effort.
“You were undercover,” Sebastian said softly as one hand reached to pull something from his back pocket. It was a syringe and Tony felt a tendril of true fear when he saw it.
The moment of terror gave way quickly and Tony bucked and twisted under Sebastian, desperate to throw him off. A huge meaty hand wrapped around Tony’s throat, fingers digging into his skin cruelly, shutting off his air. After mere moments, Tony felt his lungs begin to ache and his vision started to black out. He could feel his body grow heavy and he knew he was going to die.
~*~*~
When Tony next woke it was to a sore throat and a feeling of lethargy that confused him – right up until Sebastian came back with a syringe in his hand and proceeded to inject it into Tony’s arm. While the action horrified him, Tony found himself unable to rouse himself enough to pull away. The feeling of lethargy intensified as the drug entered his body and his head lolled on the dirty mattress. He closed his eyes as Sebastian cradled his cheek in one huge hand and smiled down at him.
“You’re gonna make me a lot of money,” he said as tears fell from Tony’s eyes.
Tony was left alone for long periods of time, long enough for an ache to build in his muscles and joints, long enough for his body to begin to tremble. It was only then that Sebastian would return, holding up the syringe and waiting – almost as if waiting for Tony to beg for the drug, but Tony would turn away, burying his head in his arm and curling his aching body into a ball. Sebastian would wrestle an arm free and inject the drug into Tony’s system before leaving him alone again.
Each high brought an increasingly desperate low and Tony realized that he wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer. Whether or not he wanted to admit it, he needed whatever was in the syringe that Sebastian wielded. He hadn’t been given food or water in days it seemed and he’d been lying on the same dirty mattress for the same amount of time, relieving himself in a corner at the end of his chain when he’d had no other choice. His lips were cracked and bleeding, his muscles felt like they were on fire and he couldn’t stop shaking, his stomach cramped and his head ached, yet, when Sebastian returned, Tony turned away again.
The sound of Sebastian chuckling only made Tony tremble more. “You’re a stubborn bitch, aren’t you, boy? We’ll soon be taking care of that.” This time the injection burned its way through Tony’s body and he screamed in agony as he felt like his skin was on fire. He scratched at his skin with ragged fingernails and was only dimly aware of Sebastian pulling his hands away, tying them together with a rough piece of rope and fastening it to the wall above his head. His body arched and bowed off the bed as he thrashed, his muscles spasming almost uncontrollably.
“I can make it go away.” The voice was soft, deep, and compelling. “I can take all your pain away. Just ask.”
Tony screamed again as another wave of pain boiled through him. “Please,” he gasped. “Please make it stop.” He barely registered the pinprick of pain in his arm and then the familiar warm feeling of lethargy and euphoria flowed through his body. He melted back against the mattress, sighing softly.
“Better?”
Tony blinked up at Sebastian as the big man leaned forward and pressed his lips against Tony’s. His eyes closed.
~*~*~
~*~*~
Tony shivered as he stood under the streetlight, hands thrust into his pockets. He didn’t even know if he was in Yuma anymore and there was no way he was going to ask the other streetwalkers. He’d learned his lesson the hard way, having been forced to watch as Sebastian beat Kyle to death and then tossed him out like so much trash – and all because he had talked to Tony, tried to help him. It was warm out but then the temperature wasn’t why Tony was shivering. Sebastian had gotten him hooked on drugs and now Tony was expected to pay for them – by turning tricks. If he didn’t make enough money – he didn’t get his fix, or he got just enough to get him on his feet and back out onto the street. He was riding the ragged edge of a crash and didn’t have enough money in his pocket to get high. He needed at least one more good one; one more john who would pay full price and, hopefully, not leave him bleeding when he was finished.
With a sigh Tony looked around at the nearly deserted streets. He didn’t see Sebastian’s car but that didn’t mean he wasn’t there, watching and waiting for Tony to screw up so he could punish him for it. Sure, he could run – he could try anyway. But where would he go? Who would he call to get him out of this hell-hole that was his life now? His mind immediately went to his former boss, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and he snorted mentally. Yeah, like he could make that call. ‘Hello, Jethro. It’s me, Tony. I’m a whore now and I’m a bit sick of it all. Do you think you could come pick me up? I’m not quite sure where here is, though…’ That would go over well, he thought wryly. He was damaged goods now, not strong enough to stand up to the latest bully, letting himself get hooked on god only knew what drug and then whoring himself out to pay for yet one more fix. Jethro wouldn’t want to save him. No one would.
Just then a car pulled up to the curb, the side window sliding down slowly. Tony pasted a sultry smile on his face, hooked his thumbs in his belt loops and approached the car, swinging his hips as he glided forward.
The light was falling wrong, Tony realized as he approached the car, and he couldn’t see the person behind the wheel. That creeped him out a little bit. He liked to take a look at the man who’d be fucking him – before he got to the car. If he was too creepy, Tony could turn away and things wouldn’t get too heated. However, once he was hanging onto the door of the car and leaning in so they could talk, it was too late to back out gracefully. By that point, the john thought he already owned him and if he walked away, the john could get violent – or, at the very least, mouthy.
But who was he kidding? He was desperate and the night wasn’t getting any younger. It was either this guy or going without tonight, probably along with a good beating for not making his quota. No, he’d do this one. Looks didn’t really matter since he wouldn’t be looking at the man while he fucked him. As long as he didn’t look like an axe murderer Tony was going to crawl into that car and take money for sex – and, he supposed there would come a day when even that one limit of his wouldn’t matter. Axe murderer or not, Tony was getting close to the edge of need that couldn’t be abated without the drug that Sebastian held over him.
~*~*~
Eight weeks. Eight weeks since Tony had walked out, going on ‘vacation’ with his buddies. Three weeks later and it was a ‘family emergency’. Three weeks after that, and it was yet another extension for a ‘personal matter’. None of the excuses had sat well with Gibbs yet the director had seemed very glib when he told Jethro that he’d approved each and every one of Tony’s time off extensions. Jethro had yet to speak to Tony and, when he called his cell, he found out that not only was it not being answered, the voice mail was full as well. Tony never went anywhere without his cell and he’d never leave voicemail not listened to. Tony was a technology geek, even if he couldn’t type for shit. Gadgets were his ‘thing’ and email, voicemail, and texting were his gods. Something was seriously wrong.
A few hundred pulled strings and a handful of favors called in had gotten Gibbs the first concrete information on Tony in almost two months. The manifest of a heavy transport heading to Yuma had listed one NCIS Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo (passenger). Assuming Tony was still working for NCIS, Gibbs contacted the nearest base of operations, San Diego.
Gibbs’ phone had rung not two minutes after he hung up from talking to the San Diego office and getting nowhere. According to them, there was no operation in Yuma and they had never heard of Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. Gibbs’ call was a summons to Director Vance’s office.
“Word travels fast,” he commented dryly as he stared down the director. Vance had immediately berated him for calling the San Diego office to inquire about DiNozzo. At least the director hadn’t bothered to lie to him about DiNozzo going under cover for the San Diego office. What he had lied about, however, was that Tony was okay. Something in Vance’s eyes, the way he’d looked away from Jethro for just a moment, telegraphed his insincerity and confirmed Jethro’s fears. Tony was in trouble and it looked like Jethro was on his own to find him.
Vance told Jethro that Tony was just finishing up an op and to let it go. He’d be home in a few weeks at the most.
“Care to tell me where this op is taking place?” Jethro asked evenly.
“No,” Vance answered. “It’s on a need to know basis – and you don’t need to know.”
Jethro sighed softly. “Look,” he said after a moment, “Tony is mine. He’s a member of my team. I won’t put the op in jeopardy but I need to know where he is. It will put my mind at ease if nothing else.” His voice was sincere and Jethro hoped that Vance bought it. He needed to know where Tony was – or where he was supposed to be. His gut was telling him that Tony was in trouble and he wouldn’t rest until he found him.
Vance stared at him for another minute before sighing loudly and looking away. “Yuma,” Vance said as he shuffled the papers on his desk.
“Thank you, Director,” Jethro said evenly, turning to leave the office.
“Leave it be, Gibbs. I will not tolerate any interference from your team.”
Jethro’s steps faltered only a little at those words and he didn’t grace the comment with an answer. Vance was using Tony again. It had been bad enough when Jenny had done it, using Tony for undercover assignments that had nearly broken the younger man. He’d slowly come back from the whole Jeanne fiasco apparently only to be thrust into the frying pan again with yet another undercover assignment.
Stopping only long enough to tell McGee to start discreetly looking for Tony, Jethro continued through the bullpen and down to the lab where Abby was talking to a picture of Tony again.
“Abby,” Gibbs said softly, wrapping his arms around the young woman as she cried silent tears.
“Something has happened to him and you can’t tell me that I’m crazy, Gibbs. I feel it.”
Gibbs nodded. “I feel it too, Abs. I’ve got a lead but we need to be discreet.”
Abby looked up at him, wiping the moisture from her face with the backs of her hands. “I can do discreet,” she said firmly.
“Yuma.”
Abby frowned. “Yuma? That’s all you’ve got?”
Gibbs nodded. “It was an undercover assignment – but the San Diego office denies any knowledge of him being there. I think there’s something –“
“Hinky about the whole thing,” Abby finished for him.
Gibbs nodded. “Yeah,” he said softly. “Definitely hinky.”
Abby beamed. “So go, shoo. I’ve got work to do.”
~*~*~
Pasting a smile on his face, Tony leaned into the window of the car. “Hi, looking for—?” His breath caught in his throat as he stared into all too familiar blue eyes.
“Hey, Tony, fancy meeting you here.”
Tony stilled, shock tearing through him. He wanted to run, to get away from the censure he was sure he could see in those piercing eyes. Pushing away from the car, Tony back-peddled quickly, looking around for any sign that Sebastian had seen what had happened. This was bad. This was so very bad. Suddenly Tony heard a car door open and he looked up to see Gibbs stalking toward him. He looked around frantically, shaking his head.
“Y-you have to l-leave,” he stammered as Gibbs got closer.
“Why, Tony? What’s happened to you?”
“J-just go, Boss. P-please,” Tony begged softly, his arms wrapping around his torso.
“We need to talk,” Jethro said.
“N-no,” Tony whispered. “I c-can’t –“
Jethro reached out and took hold of Tony’s elbow.
“What’s going on here?”
Sebastian’s deep growl startled Tony and he turned quickly, stumbling in his haste. He was shaking openly now.
“N-nothing, Sebastian,” Tony said quickly.
Sebastian glared at Gibbs. “This asshole bothering you, Honey?”
Tony shook his head quickly. “N-no, he just startled me. He looks like someone I used to know is all.” Tony pressed himself into the curve of Sebastian’s arms, rubbing back against his erection in hopes of distracting him from Gibbs.
Gibbs put his hands up. “I’m not looking for any trouble here,” he said easily, backing away. “Just looking for a little fun and I thought your boy was selling.”
Sebastian grinned. “Yeah? Well, come back tomorrow then. He’s off duty for the night.”
Gibbs grinned. “I’ll be sure to do that.”
Tony watched Gibbs walk back to his car, wincing as Sebastian’s embrace became painful.
“You stupid fuck,” Sebastian growled into his ear as he wrapped one hand around Tony’s throat. “That one could have paid big.” He slapped Tony hard, rocking him back and leaving a red handprint on his cheek.
Tony’s hand went to his face and he looked to where Gibbs’ car had been parked, but the curbside was empty.
~*~*~
On to
part 2
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