Hunting Season

HUNTING SEASON Chapter 10

Los Angeles

"Stay still, Callen." Kensi's soothing voice echoed through the abandoned warehouse. He was being his stubborn self refusing help, but she had noticed the bleeding on the back of his head. "Let the paramedics take a look at your head wound."

"No! We don't have time, I need to call Gibbs." Callen searched for his cell, but he couldn't find it. "Your cell? I can't find mine." Resignedly, Kensi caved in and gave their team leader her cell.

"You gave him your cell?" Deeks quipped over to his partner. "You caved in just like that? Now if it had been me, you would have stretched it out longer and pretended like you weren't going to let me have it..."

"You're such a blatherskite, Deeks," Callen snapped at the detective.

"I'm a what?" Deeks asked stunned at Callen's retort towards him. "You been hanging out with Wikipedia here and learning new words.."

"Shut up, Deeks!" Callen glared at him. He was not amused by the detective's blabbering. "I can't hear over your chatter." He knew he was being snappy with him, but he had no patience and his head continued to throb. "Gibbs. Sidorov has a man up there following you...Who? When?"

Deeks shook his head and walked over to see how Sam was doing. "He's worried." Sam told him. "Don't take it personal, Deeks. He's under a lot of pressure worrying about his family."

Deeks shrugged. "How are you?" The detective and former Navy SEAL had made amends since he tried to save his and Michelle's lives.

"I'll be fine when we get Sidorov." Sam watched Callen talk to Gibbs on the cell. "Sidorov has a man in town where Gibbs and the others are. He never mentioned them, but his man has been following Gibbs..."

"He's worried that they'll find out that they're still alive and tell Janvier?" Deeks inquired.

Sam nodded.

"He's not the only one to suffer because of Janvier. Look what we've gone through because he had burned you? Surely he can see we're all in this together?"

"He still feels the guilt of going into Iran and bringing Janvier back here. All that's happened to us, to Matt, and the rest of his family -- he blames it on himself. He needs to find peace with it all. But now he's had to hide them, take them away from their own lives because of something he did." Sam eased himself up onto his feet using the support post. He swayed a little as the dizziness remained from the concussion he sustained by Sidorov's men.

"We're on our way." Callen hung up and handed Kensi her cell back. "We've got to go."

"You're not going anywhere, Agent Callen." Owen Granger moved closer to the team leader, forcing his position over him. "You need to have your head looked at."

"I'm fine," Callen snapped. "What are you doing here?" He glared at him briefly. "I don't have the time to deal with you." He went to walk past the Assistant Director, only to sway and have Granger grab him for support.

"Do you have a headache, Callen?" Concern spread over his face as he looked at his son more closely.

Callen shook his head, but it throbbed and hurt too much. He winced.

"Like hell you don't." Granger called over an paramedic. "Agent Callen needs to be assessed at the hospital before he can be released. He's suffering pain from his head injury, losing balance and is more intolerable than usual." Owen advised the paramedic. He handed Callen over to him and watched his son resist, only to lose the battle. Callen bent over and heaved, as his body purged the contents from his stomach, onto the warehouse floor.