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Post by AgentScarlett on Oct 25, 2004 22:45:54 GMT -5
Lake chuckled at what he thought was a joke, as he sat down across from Sands, not knowing what he was in for. Mike glanced over at Lake, but the rookie was messing with the tape recorder and not paying attention. He’d warned Lake about Sands’ rather unusual personality and infuriating ways beforehand, but doubted he’d got his message across as strongly as he would have liked. Making himself comfortable in his chair, Mike decided that one had to experience Sands to fully understand… and the rookie was definitely about to get the full Sands experience, whether he wanted it or not. Just looking at Sands Mike could tell that his ex-partner was in one of his more confrontational moods. Then again, he couldn’t really blame Sands after all he’d been through.
Sands just smiled and relaxed further into his chair. ‘I’m going to have fun with this one.’<br> "Officer Sands, my name is Richard Lake. Mike and I will be debriefing you today."
"Peachy keen."
"I’m sorry to hear about your injuries, but we’re glad to have you back," Lake continued, no real emotion in his voice.
‘He’s definitely come directly from the Farm; those words are straight out of the textbook for debriefing an officer injured on the job.’<br> "Yes well, the Company couldn’t get rid of me that easily." Sands could hear Lake hitting the record button.
"Could you please state your name, position and operation location for the record?"
"Officer Sheldon Jeffery Sands. Controller in Culiacan, Mexico." Sands could hear Lake suppressing a snicker at hearing his first name, and Mike kicking him roughly under the table to silence him.
Mike knew what kind of wrath Sands could bring down when angry, and already the rookie was baiting him... it didn't bode well for the kid.
‘Amateur hour,’ Sands thought, disgusted, but kept his face an emotionless mask, as Officer Lake stated the date and time for the record.
"Now Officer Sands, I’d like to get this started-" Lake began, only to be immediately interrupted by Sands’ cool voice.
"Oh, by all means. Let’s shoot the breeze."
Lake dutifully ignored the interruption and continued. "Please begin by telling us what intelligence you’ve gained pertaining to the Barillo Cartel, the Assassination attempt on the President of Mexico, your operation's outcome, how you came to be injured and what caused the roll up."
Sands leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table, folding his hands together and completing one last mental ego boost before starting.
Today Officer Sands was going to be extremely economical with the truth.
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Post by AgentScarlett on Oct 25, 2004 22:49:05 GMT -5
Chapter 11: Disinformation
“How about a cigarette first?” Sands asked the two debrief officers before him. He was really starting to miss his habitual hourly cigarette. He hadn’t had one since the day Lake was questioning him about.
“Sands, you know that it’s against policy to smoke in a debrief room.” Mike stepped in.
“Screw it. It’s against policy to smoke anywhere anymore, anyway. But I’m here to tell you about some pretty f**ked up nuts, so I think it’s the least you two could do,” Sands smirked. “Besides, I’d kill for a cigarette right about now, and getting between me and my cigarettes makes me very, well, let’s just say… unpleasant.”<br> Mike, knowing Sands wouldn’t let it drop, and probably meant the word kill quite literally, started digging into his pocket and produced a cigarette from his own pack, passing it to Sands despite Lake’s protests. Sands put the cigarette in his mouth and it hung there as Mike handed him a lighter.
“Gracias,” Sands said, with the cigarette dangling from his mouth, proceeding to light it carefully. It was a little more difficult to light a cigarette when you couldn’t see the end of it.
Lake, trying to remain professional, repeated his question as he watched Sands struggle to light up, until he finally succeeded. “Please, tell us what you know Officer Sands.”
‘They’re in a rush. That’s good. That’s very good.’<br> “Well, you see,” Sands started, speaking in his unique monotone drone. “There are known knowns… that is to say, things that I know I know. There are also known unknowns, that is to say things I know I don’t know.”
Sands paused for a moment and held up a solitary gloved finger as if to accentuate his last point. “But there are also unknown unknowns… things I don’t know that I don’t know.”<br> Lake stared at Sands, trying to disentangle the sentence, as Mike closed his eyes and shook his head. Sands hadn’t changed much since the last time he’d seen him.
Sands took a long drag off his cigarette and relaxed back into his chair. He was the master of saying things that sounded like utter nonsense, but really made perfect sense if you sat and thought about them long enough.
In the awkward silence Sands took the opportunity to tap the first ashes of his cigarette off onto the table, not bothering to ask for an ashtray or find something to catch them. He gave Lake a burdened moan before he spoke, “Look kid, why don’t you ask me one question at a time? That way, you’ll get specific answers to specific questions and the Company will be happy with this here debrief.”
Sands smirked as he took another puff. He knew the Company would already be unhappy with everything recorded so far, and that it would be crystal clear who was in charge. Sands.
“Very well,” Lake said, clearly aggravated at being called ‘kid’ and being told how to do his job. “Please begin by telling us about the human intelligence you gathered.”<br> “No need. A day before the roll-up I sent a full and detailed report with all the HUMINT that I’d gathered since my last report. No new HUMINT to tell the Company at this time.”<br> “But what about the roll-up?” Lake asked, knowing there had to be more since Sands had been caught so off guard.
“Well you didn’t ask about the roll-up. You asked about the HUMINT.”
Sands noticed the growing frustration in Lake’s voice as he continued.
“Please tell us about the roll-up then Officer Sands, and how the operation turned into a wet job.”<br> Sands took another puff off his cigarette. “Shouldn’t you ask me, for the record of course, what my operation objective was to begin with?”<br> Lake’s face grew a bit red. Of course Sands couldn’t see it, but Mike interjected at the kids change of color. “Just answer the questions as they’re asked Officer Sands.”<br> Sands put on a fake pout, “But… you’re doing it all wrong.”<br> “Just answer the question!” Lake burst out, finally losing his temper.
Sands eyebrows shot up. “No need to shout Officer. My hearing is very good, I assure you.”<br> “What caused the roll-up, Sands?”<br> “What happened to Officer?”<br> “d**n it, Officer Sands, I told you to take it easy on the kid,” Mike cut in. He’d seen this coming, but had no real way of stopping it.
“Alright, but I think you both should know, I am taking it easy, on both of you.” Sands took another drag, letting the words hang in the air for a moment. Cigarette in hand, he was already feeling like his old self. His old self on a bad day, anyway. “What caused the roll up was a bad bona fide on AFN Agent Ajedrez. After she was cleared by OOS for up to Flash Classified intelligence, Ajedrez was hired by yours truly as an Agent. She was working under my control in Culiacan. She was to leak false intelligence to the Barillo Cartel, specifically Armando Barillo himself. However, she leaked the real intelligence instead. As it turned out, she was a mole for Barillo, and as you can imagine, that put a little kink in my spiffy well-planned plan.”<br> “That just sounds like bad HUMINT, Officer Sands. Why do you say a bad bona fide is the reason for the roll up?”<br> Sands slowly let out his deep inhalation of cigarette smoke. “I’d say someone at OOS should have caught the tiny detail that she was Armando Barillo’s daughter. Needless to say, things got a wee bit dangerous after I found out that little tidbit. Catch my drift?”<br> “What became of Armando Barillo and Ajedrez?”<br> “Both terminated.”<br> “By you?”<br> “I terminated Ajedrez, purely in self defense of course. I did not, however, terminate Armando Barillo. That would be one of those unknown unknowns I was speaking of. I have reason to believe that retired FBI Agent Ramirez was the executioner.”<br> “Why do you think that?”<br> “Well, I was having a bit of a bad day… being tortured, shot up and having your eyes removed does take its toll on a person. After all that, I wasn’t able to do much of anything in the way of gaining intelligence for the Company. However, they do have my deepest apologies for that.” Sands sighed, his cigarette burning down too quickly for his liking.
‘It is still so hard to think about that day.’<br> “My point being that Ramirez ran across me after the coup and informed me of Armando Barillo’s death. Years ago, Barillo had tortured Ramirez’s partner, and then killed him, so it doesn’t take a genius such as myself to put two and two together and make such an assumption.”<br> Lake frowned as he realized that he only had one last question to ask at this time, and it was one that he was not looking forward to.
“Would you mind telling us how you were captured by the Barillo cartel, and the events that happened after your capture?”<br> “Tuis pugis pignore.”<br> Lake blinked, confused, and asked Sands, “What?” as he looked at Mike. Mike was about to answer, but Sands went ahead and did it for him.
“It’s Latin, kiddo. Don’t they even touch on Latin at the Farm anymore?” Sands shook his head in mock dismay. “Roughly it translates to ‘You bet your bippy’, and to translate that for you it means that I do mind, seeing as I’ll have to live with what happened that day for the rest of my life.” Sands paused, and could feel the cigarette starting to burn his fingertips. Hoping they didn’t catch that little blunder, he stubbed out what remained of the cigarette. He immediately regretted his last comment. He’d felt so good before, but admitting to the consequences of his failed operation out loud sobered him pretty fast.
At Sands’ abrupt change in mood, and unnatural silence Mike prodded gently. “Sands?”<br> ‘I don’t want to talk about what happened. I don’t want to think about what happened. I don’t even want to remember what happened.’<br> Snapping out of his reverie, Sands continued. “I suppose I have no choice but to tell you. Vae. I need another cigarette.”<br> This time neither of them protested at his request, Mike giving Sands another cigarette, already lit for him. Sands inhaled deeply. ‘Ah, I did so miss smoking.’<br> “I knew things had gone sideways as soon as my hired agents began pulling grand disappearing acts. First it was Cucuy, and after that El Mariachi—“
“El… as in ‘The’?”<br> “Wow, you are a true master of languages, Lake,” Sands snorted. “Yes, as in ‘The’. Don’t know what happened to either of them, if they survived or not. I do know that Cucuy double crossed me at the first chance he got, so I wouldn’t give a rat’s ass if he were lying in a ditch somewhere. As for El… there was a hell of a lot of shooting going on during the coup, but he is rather capable of handling himself, so who knows?” Sands was almost positive El was alive; the man was a fighter and simply too d**ned stubborn to die. “Ramirez was the only one of my hired agents that stuck with me to the roll-up. Ramirez was tailing Barillo, and as I said before, I believe he eventually took him out. It was obvious to me that I was being shadowed by the cartel, so I called my superior, Martin, and told him what was going on. That I was being shadowed, my agents had all turned on me or vanished, and that I needed back up. As a matter of fact, I called him a total of three times that morning voicing my concerns about the operation and asking for at least one other officer to assist me. Martin did nothing, of course.
“On our third conversation he hung up on yours truly and I made my way over to La Vaca Volando to figure out my next move.”<br>
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Post by AgentScarlett on Oct 25, 2004 22:51:13 GMT -5
“Why did you go there?”<br> “I was to meet Agent Ajedrez there. At the time, I wasn’t aware that she was a mole.” Sands tapped his cigarette, and the ashes fell onto the table. “Plus, they serve good slow roasted pork there and I was hungry.”<br> “I see.”<br> “I half expected her to not show up, with my luck that day. Now, looking back on it, I wish she hadn’t.”
Strands of Sands’ shoulder length black hair fell across his face as he spoke, and he quickly pushed them back behind his ear. “I called Martin one last time from the restaurant and told him my position had been compromised and again reiterated that I needed back up. He finally agreed to send some, but it was a little late. I remember after my phone call Ajedrez showed up and sat across from me. She had a smug look on her face and said ‘You really didn’t see it coming, did you?’. I didn’t have a chance to reply. Someone came from behind and stuck a needle into my neck. I don’t know exactly what they gave me, but it was powerful. I only remember her smiling as I stumbled out of the restaurant. They didn’t try to stop me; they knew I wouldn’t get far. I remember passing out after getting about a block. The next thing I remember is waking up, strapped to a table… after that my memory is pretty fuzzy. I was hopped up on a hell of a lot drugs apparently. Ajedrez, Barillo and Dr. Guevera were there, as well as some other members of the cartel. Don’t know their names. It was then that Ajedrez informed me that she was Barillo’s daughter. I saw a man all wrapped up in bandages, and asked if it was Barillo. It was. He stated that I’d been spying on his operation for some time now and I remember saying something about ‘killing me would be crossing the line and Marines would be up his keister in no time if they did terminate me’.” Sands chuckled, an odd, humorless, tension-releasing noise that broke the room’s silence. “Not the best comeback, I must admit. He didn’t ask me for any information on the operation. I assume he got what he wanted from Ajedrez. He then told me that fortunately I hadn’t done anything worth dying over; that I’d only seen too much. It was then that…” Sands trailed off, his voice a little unsteady despite his best attempts to hide it. The other two officers must have been stone still, as Sands could barely even hear them breathing, much less moving.
‘Jesus Jeff, it’s over. Stop getting all caught up in it! You must look pathetic.’<br> “Stop being such a f.ucking baby!”<br> He cleared his throat, and moved to finish up his second cigarette, which was dangling from his fingers. “That’s when Dr. Guevera appeared, and he took my eyes. After that, it’s all very hazy. I was in a lot of pain. I could hear them all laughing as they untied me and stood me up. Someone handed me my sunglasses and pushed me through the room’s door. I eventually made it outside and paid off a little boy to take me to a taxi. However, someone was following me, and I took out a small .22 I had hidden. Turned out Ajedrez and another cartel member were following me, I guess they really had no intention of letting me live after all. Since I couldn’t see my attackers, I had to listen for them. Someone shot me in the leg, and Ajedrez taunted me a few times.” Sands smiled bitterly, “That was her downfall. I was able to zero in on her voice and shoot her. The man got a couple pieces of lead in me before I could return his favor. After that I talked to Ramirez. Ramirez left and I sent the boy to go get a taxi. It took me to La Vaca Volando where Officer Cameron picked me up. I assume you know the rest.”
Sands took a deep breath as he concluded the account, the lies intertwined within the truth coming effortlessly. He certainly wasn’t going to tell them that after he had been tortured he’d gone to get the money, planning to split it with Ajedrez, and offed a couple more cartel members in the process. Nor that he had murdered Belini for valuable information about the cartel. Not even the more humorous information about how he’d bet on bullfights and made sure the bet would go his way, using the earnings to pay off informants.
Really, it was a rather brilliant scheme, he had to admit. Easy dough.
“How did you know Officer Cameron would be at La Vaca Volando?”<br> Sands took another drag off his cigarette and his eyebrows furrowed together. “I told Martin that I was waiting at La Vaca Volando in our last telephone conversation, when he told me he’d send back up for me, finally. It was too late for it to do me much good, but at least I got out of Culiacan. Come to think of it, it’s rather odd that it was Officer Cameron that pulled me out. He certainly wasn’t assigned under Officer Martin. I hadn’t even been privy to the information that he was in Mexico.”<br> “That’s one of the many problems we’re finding, Officer Sands.”<br> “What, pray tell, do you mean Lake?”<br> “Officer Cameron was assigned to a totally unrelated assignment in a nearby town. However, according to Officer Martin, he never called Officer Cameron. As a matter of fact, he said that he had never even heard of an Officer Cameron before your exfiltration.”<br> “That’s interesting.”<br> “Officer Martin also said that he never spoke to you that day either. Not once.”<br> Sands frowned. ‘Well Jeff, I guess you know for sure now. He definitely wanted to burn you.’<br> “Well, that’s truly unbelievable,” Sands said at last. Sure, Sands hadn’t told the two Officers anything about his cook killing or his covert attempts to retrieve the 20 million pesos, but he certainly had been telling the truth when it came to his conversations with Officer Martin.
“That may be, but Martin also told us that you went rogue some time ago, and that he hadn’t heard from you in over a week.”<br> “Credo quia absurdum est.”
Lake sighed, “Pardon?”<br> “Never mind.” Sands exhaled heavily. Something had to be done about Martin. “I guess I’ll just have to prove that in the current situation, I’m the one to be trusted.”<br> ---
Latin Translations
Credo quia absurdum est. - I believe it because it is unreasonable.
Vae – D.amn
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Post by AgentScarlett on Oct 25, 2004 22:54:13 GMT -5
Chapter 12: Executive Action
“Trust you? That would be new,” Mike uttered, causing Sands to arch a dark eyebrow in his general direction.
“Well, yes… I do admit it would be a new experience for you,” Sands said wryly as he stubbed out his second cigarette. He’d been careful to pay attention to how long he’d been holding it so as not to repeat his earlier blunder. “However, knowing that you’d have a difficult time trusting your dear ol’ partner Officer Sands, I will not ask you to rely on faith or loyalty. I have something better for you Mikey. I have proof.”<br> “Proof?” Lake exclaimed, stepping in “What possible proof could you have?”<br> “Tell me Officer Lake, do I strike you as a stupid man? You can tell the truth,” Sands said, his demeanor calm as he again leaned back in his chair, but an edge of warning creeping into his tone. “I won’t kill you for speaking your mind. I might shoot you where the sun don’t shine, but I won’t kill you Officer Lake.”<br> Lake cleared his throat uncomfortably at the vision Sands’ words conjured up, but he regained his composure quickly as reality struck him. Officer Sands was blind, he probably couldn’t even hit Lake if he tried, assuming that Sands had a gun in the first place.
“All you have to do is find my cell phone. It has a tracking device in it so it shouldn’t be too difficult for the Company to find. If you manage to produce it, I might even develop a tiny smidgen of respect for the two of you,” Sands continued, not waiting for an answer to his first question.
Mike looked at Lake and rolled his eyes, and Lake in turn looked at the perturbing officer.
Sands was leaning far back in his chair, the two front feet off the ground as he swayed the chair back and forth, looking totally full of himself.
Lake had really had enough of Sands macho bulls.hit.
Lake hit the stop button on the tape recorder. He doubted he’d get anything else important out of Sands in this meeting, and if by chance he did, he could just write it down. Besides, he had something he wanted to say that would be less than professional and frowned upon by the Company.
“You didn’t strike me as a stupid man until your last sentence, Officer Sands,” Lake replied calmly, even as Mike gave him a serious warning glance and shook his head slightly to say ‘no’. Lake ignored him and went on, “How is a blind – handicapped – Officer, such as yourself, Officer Sands, going to shoot an able-bodied, fit officer, such as myself, when he can’t even see his target… especially when he doesn’t even have a gun in the first place?”<br> The front legs of Sands’ chair hit the floor with a thud.
Mike was speechless, and he noticed that Sands was too.
‘I swear it’s like watching a train wreck,’ Mike thought to himself. ‘Oh Lake, you idiot! Sands is going to kill you, and he certainly won’t need a gun to do it.’<br> “Officer Lake, that was way out of line! Are you forgetting that you are addressing a superior officer?” Mike said, his tone authoritative and slightly disgusted. Lake had gone way too far for any officer, but to call Officer Sands handicapped and stupid? That was suicide.
‘Sands is a dangerous man, a brilliant man, a psychotic man, but he certainly isn’t a helpless man. He could never be that.’ Of that, Mike was sure.
Sands was sitting there, deathly silent, as his brain digested the words Lake had said to him. It was as if the world around him was in slow motion and the words only slowly started to sink in.
Blind. Stupid. Handicapped.
“How is a blind – handicapped – Officer such as yourself…”
‘Did Lake, that no-good rookie, just call me handicapped, stupid and blind? That son-of-a-pregnant dog, I’ll f**king kill him. I’ll show him who’s the stupid one. I swear I’ll blow his f**king head off.’<br> ‘Well you are blind, what do you expect? He does have a point.’<br> Sands’ brows came together in a rush. The room was silent, waiting for his reaction as his mind argued with itself. Sands hated when his mind did this; it was during these times that he would think about all that had happened, and all it would truly mean.
‘No. No. Lake doesn’t have a point. I’m Officer Sheldon Jeffery Sands and I am not handicapped. There is no way in hell I’m ever letting anyone get away with calling me that, ever.’<br> Mike and Lake stood still, watching Sands intently. The tension in the debrief room was so thick you couldn’t have blasted through it with a grenade launcher. Evidently even Lake knew he’d crossed the line. Too bad he didn’t think before he talked.
‘Say something, f.uckmook. You’re just proving to him that he’s right.’<br> Sands forced himself to snap out of the one-man argument he was having and flashed Lake an evil grin full of malice as he gave him the finger. “Climb it Tarzan.”<br> Both Lake and Mike exhaled deeply as Sands finally broke the silence. Mike was still quite worried however, knowing it wasn’t like Sands to let something like this go so easily.
“I-I’m sorry Sands, Lake had no right.” Mike apologized, trying to figure out what was going through Sands’ mind. ‘He has to be planning something.’<br> Sands said nothing, only lowering his head slightly as he let his hand drop to his side. His brow was furrowed as if frustrated. Actually, he almost looked defeated.
This worried Mike; as a matter of fact he got a downright chill.
Mike walked over to Sands slowly, cautiously, just as one would approach a dangerous wild animal. As he did so, Lake spoke again, “See Mike? I knew Sands was all talk and no show. Just a lot of hot air and bullnuts.”<br> Mike, now by Sands side, spun around to face Lake. ‘The kid must have a death wish. That can be the only explanation for his stupidity.’<br> Sands listened intently, knowing he was on the verge of losing his cool. He heard Mike defending him. ‘Well look at that, the man is good for somethin’ after all.’ He concentrated deeply on the sounds around him, a thought taking form. ‘Mike is standing right beside me…’
“What’s gotten into your head, Lake?!” Mike replied, as he shot Lake a scathing glare. Unfortunately, this caused Mike to let his guard down, and a highly peeved Sands was sitting next to him. It was not a good combination.
Sands let a small smile creep across his face; both officers too busy sparring with each other to notice the look of mischief. Lake was saying something else, the idiot no doubt insulting him again… but Sands wasn’t paying attention to what was being said… no, what concerned him was where it was being said.
Sands was so quick that the two other officers in the room didn’t even see it happening until Sands stood up sharply with the automatic in his right hand.
Sands had easily zeroed in on the sound of his former partner’s gun in its holster. With expert precision he’d snaked his hand across Mike’s back, freeing the gun from the holster and owner, and into Sands’ dangerous possession within a mere couple seconds.
‘Now things will get interesting,’ Sands thought wickedly as he lifted the gun, training it on Lake’s voice. Lake immediately stopped talking.
He heard Mike start to move towards him and he swung around, training the weapon on his old partner.
“Don’t get into this, ol’ pal. I’d hate to have to shoot you too, because the truth is I kinda like you.”
Mike wisely backed off and the gun zeroed back in on Sands’ main target, as Lake started backing towards the door.
“Oh no, no, no, Lake… you’re not getting away that easy. One more step to that door you’re undoubtedly trying to flee through, one call for help and I will shoot you. I swear I’ll blow your f.ucking brains out… and believe me, I won’t miss.” He paused and thingyed his head to one side. “You follow?”<br> Lake wisely stopped moving.
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Post by AgentScarlett on Oct 25, 2004 22:56:06 GMT -5
“Sands…” Lake started meekly, but stopped almost as quickly, at a loss for words as he stared at the now frightening figure of a black-clad Sands with a gun zeroed in on him.
Sands knew the kid was scared to death, which was exactly what he wanted.
A menacing smile crept across Sands lips as he slowly and stealthily made his way closer to Lake, making sure to remember where the desk and chairs were. Sands felt like he was there in Mexico again, using his newly heightened sense of hearing to bring the cartel men - and women - down. He could almost feel the heat of the Mexican sun beating down on him, feel the dust off the street enter his lungs…<br> ‘Snap out of it!’<br> Sands was directly in front of Lake now, the gun still aimed at Lake’s chest… much to Lake’s surprise.
“What’s the matter Lake? Cat got your tongue?” Sands asked him, tilting his head. He knew Lake was surprised at the sudden development, and he knew that Mike was not.
“Sands, he’s just a stupid kid. Please…” Mike tried one last time, and Sands head snapped around to face him briefly.
“Stay out of this Mikey, I’m handling it,” Sands said to Mike before turning his head back to Lake and speaking to him in a dangerously flippant voice, “and when I say I’m handling it…” he paused for dramatic effect, “I’m handling it.”<br> Sands edged closer to Lake, gun still poised at the ready, not wavering an inch. Lake took a step back, but Sands was too close and his left arm quickly grabbed for Lake’s neck. Since he couldn’t see him he had to guess where that might be. He missed, instead only getting a firm hold on Lake’s jacket, but it would do.
Sands yanked Lake closer as his left hand quickly found its way to Lake’s neck. Their faces were only a couple of inches apart now and Sands could hear the shaky breaths Lake was taking.
The rookie was terrified.
Sands gave his neck a squeeze and slowly backed Lake up until he felt Lake’s body press into the wall.
Sands smiled wider. “N’ayez pas peur,” Sands purred dangerously, using the different languages to keep Lake worried, one of his favorite tactics. Sands clicked off the gun’s safety so Lake would know he meant business.
Sands leaned forward a little more, his face almost touching Lake’s, before whispering “It means… don’t be afraid.”
Sands roughly shoved the barrel of the gun under Lake’s chin. Mike said something to him, but Sands wasn’t listening.
“I-I-I didn’t mean… t-t-to insult you. It just slipped out, I-“ Lake stuttered, but was cut off by Sands.
“Flocci non facio! You said it, and now it’s time for you to pay the piper.” Sands breathed in deeply through his nose and Lake could swear Sands could smell his fear.
“Handicapped, am I? Wouldn’t be able to shoot you if I tried? Then how do you, pray tell, an able-bodied and fit young officer, explain the current situation? Held at gunpoint by a blind, handicapped officer who’s all talk and no show, huh?” Sands pressed the barrel of the gun harder into the officer to accentuate his point.
“You’ve underestimated me, and now things have gotten a wee bit dangerous… haven’t they?” Sands said. The chill in his voice could freeze water. “Take a right leer, dear Lake. See that? It’s your partner doing nothing to save your lousy hide. Do you know why?” Sands asked, waiting for a reply. He was greeted with silence. “Do you?!” Sands repeated forcefully.
“No,” Lake said, his voice barely audible.
“Because Mike Gleason knows me, he knows how dangerous I really am, and he knows that I’m more than just talk… savvy? I can put on quite a show as well.”
Lake gulped, trying to swallow the lump that had lodged in his throat.
“You wouldn’t dare kill me, a fellow officer, here at OOS,” Lake stated, sounding more than a little unsure of himself as his voice wavered slightly.
Sands raised his eyebrows in mock surprise and leaned into Lake, whispering almost silently into his ear, barely loud enough for Lake to even make it out.
“Oh yes I would.”<br> ---
Latin Translations
Flocci non facio - I don’t give a d.amn
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Post by AgentScarlett on Oct 25, 2004 22:57:33 GMT -5
Chapter 13: Chokepoint
Lake felt an involuntary shiver run up his spine. Sands was only slightly taller than him but he seemed to loom over him in his black ensemble, his pitch black hair falling across his face, while a black-gloved hand held onto his neck, the other on the trigger of Mike’s gun. The black glasses reflected the dim light emanating from above them and Sands’ face was abnormally calm for such a drastic situation.
Yes, Sands looks fully capable of murder at the moment.
The cold barrel of the gun chilled Lake’s skin and he realized that he was truly at this madman’s mercy. If he moved for the gun, or did anything rash, Sands would probably shoot him, and it only took half a second to pull the trigger of a gun.
“What do you want me to do, Sands?” Lake finally asked. Sands tilted his head to one side, then the other, considering his answer.
“Well now, I don’t know that I want you to do anything, Lake.” Sands held on tighter to Lake’s neck as he moved the gun away from his chin and aimed it towards a much lower region of Lake’s body. “It might take a couple of shots for me to hit the target, but as for your dangerously stupid assumption that I won’t be able to hit you, well, I think I can prove you wrong Mr. Lake.”<br> “No…” Lake whispered. Threatening to kill a man was one thing. Threatening to take his manhood altogether, well that was another thing, and frankly, it frightened him more.
“No?” Sands asked innocently, before kneeing the man in the crotch full force. Lake gasped and started to double over, but Sands still had a firm grip on the man and continued to hold him against the wall.
Sands shoved the barrel of the gun into the man’s crotch. Lake’s groan satisfied him that he’d hit his mark. “No… what?”<br> “No, please don’t shoot me,” Lake pleaded pathetically. “Please.”<br> Sands snorted, thoroughly enjoying his position of power; it was, after all, what he lived for.
‘The man is an inexperienced coward of a kid, but he needs to be taught a lesson, and I’m just the one to do it.’<br> Sands jolted the kid against the wall again, shaking him up. “You do realize how pathetic you are, don’t you?”<br> Mike watched as Lake’s eyes widened in worry. Unlike Lake, Mike wasn’t really worried for the kid’s life. Sands would have shot him by now, if he was going to do it; at least he sincerely hoped that was the case.
“Yes,” Lake whispered hoarsely, his pride thoroughly broken.
Sands smiled widely. His grip on Lake’s neck tightened, making it hard for the other man to breathe.
Mike shifted his weight, and the thought of intervening while Sands was occupied crossed his mind. However, the idea was quickly dispelled by Sands’ voice. “Don’t even think about it, Mikey.”<br> Sands was holding the kid in what could only be called a death grip, and the kid looked about ready to pass out. It seemed that the only real question was whether it would be from fear or lack of oxygen.
“Do you realize how vulnerable you really are right now, Officer Lake? I can do… whatever I want to do to you… and there is nothing you can do to stop me. What, pray tell, are you going to do Lake? What’s your brilliant plan of action? I do believe I’ve gained the proper clearance to be privy to such information,” Sands said dangerously.
Lake struggled feebly to try and free himself from Sands’ grasp, but he was no match for the older and more experienced officer, especially while he was barely able to breathe. He coughed weakly, once, and a strangled “I don’t know,” managed to pass his lips.
“Of course you don’t know, and do you know why? Because every matter requires prior knowledge and you know nothing about me, therefore, how could you possibly come up with a plan?” Sands tilted his head up a bit, as if pondering a thought. “I do believe you owe me your deepest apologies, Officer Lake, and you better make them sound sincere,” Sands continued, his voice sounding completely calm. It was, in effect, much more frightening than if he’d actually sounded angry.
“Sorry.” Lake croaked.
“Te audire no possum.” Sands shook Lake a little, to get his point across as Lake looked at him in confusion.
“I’m… sorry…”
“You miscalculated my abilities, didn’t you Officer?”<br> “Yes… was wrong,” Lake managed.
There was a long silence as Sands thought. He was standing as still as a stone statue while Lake continued to gasp for air.
“Do you think I should let you go and let bygones be bygones?” Sands said suddenly. Caught momentarily off guard by the quick change in attitude, Lake just stared at him wide-eyed for a long moment before starting to nod his head furiously in agreement.
Sands faced Mike with a smirk. “What about you? Think I should let the kid live to screw up another debrief?”<br> “Well, I think you’ve pretty well scared this kid nutsless. I don’t see the harm in it,” Mike said, choosing his words carefully. He saw Sands’ smirk widen into a grin when he’d confirmed that the kid was indeed ‘scared nutsless’ and looking the part.
It was a look that Sands wished desperately he could see at this moment, but he supposed that feeling the kid squirm and hearing him gasp for breath would have to do.
Sands turned back towards Lake, smile still in place. “Hear that? Your partner thinks you should live,” he said cheerfully, but it didn’t last. Sands dropped the smile and all hint of playfulness was gone, his tone returning to that dangerously calm drawl as he stated flatly to Lake, “Too bad I don’t.”<br> “Sands! Don’t!” Mike shouted, but Sands never was one to listen.
Sands’ hand was tightly enclosed around Lake’s throat. He pulled the gun away from Lake’s precious jewels but it was of little comfort to Lake as he watched Sands’ actions.
Sands still had the gun, and he still intended to use it. He pointed it at Lake’s head briefly before making a quick decision. He focused intently on the sounds around him, aimed again and pulled the trigger.
The echo of the bullet leaving the gun bounced back off the soundproof walls of the debrief room, making it seem incredibly loud. It was immediately followed by Lake’s gasp and the sound of glass shattering.
The room was flooded with darkness.
Sands had focused on the sound of the light above them, and had shot out the bulb with little problem, his head never turning towards the target, facing Lake the entire time.
The gun took its place back under Lake’s chin and Lake could feel the heat of Sands’ breath against his face. “How does it feel Lake? How does it feel to be completely surrounded by darkness? Unable to see the room around you? Unable to see your partner? Unable to see your attacker? Unable to see the gun pressed up against your jaw, a gun that could bring you permanent darkness at any moment…” Sands paused for a moment, savoring the control like it was a good piece of slow roasted pork, savoring the ultimate power he had over this man. The power over life and death, the ultimate control.
‘In one second I could pull the trigger, and this man would be dead.‘<br> “Tell me Lake. How does it feel?” Sands hissed.
Lake felt as if he was about to pass out, his breath coming short and quick. “Frightening,” Lake finally admitted, his voice mirroring the feeling.
“Good, because your slip of the tongue just cost you your life, and I want pure fear to be the last thing you ever feel in this world.”<br> Lake pleaded one last time.
Then he felt the cold metal move from under his jaw and press hard against the side of his head.
Mike looked on helplessly, barely able to see the two other officers in the dark, sure that if he moved, he’d be shot too.
‘Oh nuts.’<br> Lake looked at Sands with terror filled eyes.
Mike shouted one last time for Sands to let the kid go, but it was in vain.
They all heard the click of the gun in Sands’ hand.
Bang.
And the room was quiet.
Sands finally let go of his stranglehold on Lake and the kid fell to the floor in a heap, the gun now at Sands’ side as he stepped back, smirking, before deadpanning into the silent darkness, “You’re dead.”
---
Latin Translations
Te audire no possum. - I can’t hear you.
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Post by MojaveDragonfly on Oct 26, 2004 15:40:39 GMT -5
Sorry to interrupt the flow of the story with my comments, but I can't see any other way, besides waiting for the whole thing to be done and commenting then. One of the things I love about this story is the involvement of the CIA. As much fun as stories about Sands and El taking on the cartels are, it's hard to imagine the CIA abandoning Sands (whether for good or ill) and it's even a little unlikely that Sands would want to completely sever his ties with them. He clearly identifies rather strongly with being an agent. Now, how does this smiley thing work?
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Post by AgentScarlett on Nov 1, 2004 12:54:09 GMT -5
AN: Thank you MojaveDragonfly! Please do feel free to comment whenever, as I love feedback. Ha! Love the smiley. Yeah, I'd read a lot of fics w/ Sands not dealing w/ the CIA again, and thought it would be fun to explore a different angle. I'm very happy you're enjoying it so far! ~*~ The room was dark and quiet. No one dared to move or breathe. Lake slowly opened his eyes again, although it did little good in the darkness. ‘I’m alive?‘<br> Confusion filled his face; he’d heard the gun go off, felt the pierce of the bullet… hadn’t he? Or had he? He let out a long, shaky breath as he attempted to get his bearings. Suddenly, Sands started laughing. Admittedly, Sands’ laugh was an odd thing to hear, but it was at that moment that Lake realized what had happened. Sands had only yelled bang as he shoved the barrel hard into Lake’s temple, and let his fear-ridden body drop to the floor. Sands hadn’t actually fired the gun. He’d been playing with him the whole time. But Lake had heard the click… “What?” he started to ask as he caught his breath, the room still frighteningly dark. Still lying on the floor Lake saw the dark outline of a figure loom above him and answer back, “Don’t flip your wig, kid. It was only the sound of yours truly clicking the safety back on.” Sands smirked before lifting the gun up and demonstrating, rather sarcastically, how to flip the safety on and off. At the new revelation and developments Mike slumped into the nearest chair in relief. He realized that he was covered in sweat and took out a handkerchief, starting to pat his face dry. It had been too dark for him to see exactly what had happened, and he’d been more than a little caught up in the moment. Sands had given them a good scare, but thankfully nothing more. Sands smiled. ‘Oh, how I’ve missed all this. The thrill, the control, the power - and the ability to strike pure terror into the hearts of those who try to f**k with me.’<br> Sands knelt down next to Lake. He could hear him trying to catch his breath. “Just remember this Lake. I could have killed you,” Sands stated menacingly, tapping the gun against his thigh absentmindedly as he spoke. “And the only reason why you’re not dead on this floor right now is because I chose not to kill you.” He paused for a moment, letting the words sink in. “I hope for your sake, dear Lake, that you never do or say anything again that will make me regret my choice here today.” Sands leaned a little closer towards Lake, causing him to lean away. “What do you think Lake? Can ya walk to the tune of that beat?”<br> “Yeah,” Lake answered softly, caught slightly off guard, as Sands stood up again. “But-“ Lake started, then stopped abruptly. “But?” Sands questioned. Lake sat there on the floor for a long moment, rubbing his sore neck before answering. “But why didn’t you? Kill me, that is,” Lake asked, curious about the answer. He was quite sure that Sands was capable of murder. “Hmm…” Sands considered the question as he walked back towards the desk; one hand reaching out in front of him slightly until it hit the edge. He was grateful that the room was probably dark enough that the other two Officers couldn’t see his obvious weakness. Sitting on the edge of the desk, Sands’ gaze seemed to fall on nothing as he fiddled with the gun in his hands, “You’re afraid to live and scared to die.” He let out a small laugh, “That’s truly… unbelievable.”<br> Sands heard some shuffling from the floor, and assumed that Lake was finally starting to get up. “It’s not that,” he heard Lake say, “But you seemed serious enough to do it.”<br> “Oh, it would have been easy enough for me to do it kid, and I certainly wouldn’t have found it difficult to pull the trigger after what you dared to say to me. However, I’m not so insane as to surely wreck my career and future at the Company by killing a kid who’s hardly worth the effort,” Sands said calmly, surprising both the other officers in the room, until he spoke again. “At least not here at OOS where I’d be immediately arrested,” Sands threw in, smirking. Mike looked at the silhouette of Sands. ‘He’d been in control the whole time.’<br> “Hey, Mikey?” Sands questioned, while he unloaded the gun’s clip. Sands wasn’t quite sure where Mike was anymore; he’d lost track after focusing on Lake so intently. “Yeah?” Mike asked, getting back up. “Catch.” Sands said, tossing the unloaded gun in Mike’s direction. Mike managed to catch it, despite the dark and the slightly off throw, and regarded Sands as he put the gun back in its holster. Sands was rolling the clip in his hand, not really facing either of them. Mike glanced at Lake and put a single finger to his lips, signaling for Lake to say nothing else. ‘Sands seems calm enough and I definitely don’t want Lake blowing it now, at least not any more than he already has.’<br> “Well Sands, I’d say this debrief has run its course. As always… it hasn’t been dull.”<br> Sands smiled at that, “You know I’m always good for a little excitement, Mikey.”<br> “True. I suppose some things never change.”<br> Sands stood up and tossed the clip on the desk. “It does seem that way, doesn’t it,” he said distractedly. ‘And some things do change.’<br> Lake started walking towards the door, then stopped at the sound of Sands voice. “Oh and Lake, I wouldn’t mention what happened in here, if you catch my drift.”<br> Lake looked at Sands, then at Mike who gave him a look that clearly said ‘agree with him, and don’t talk about it’. “Yeah, I got it.”<br> “Groovy. Besides, who’s going to believe you? Mike owes me one, more than one actually, but who’s counting? And thanks to you, this whole little incident isn’t even on record.” Lake looked at the recorder and realized Sands was right. The tape didn’t include any part of the ordeal; he himself had turned it off before the whole thing started. “Don’t be too terribly disappointed, kid. You’re walking out of here with your life firmly intact. Just take this as a friendly lesson, and remember it well. Don’t ever underestimate anyone, no matter what you think you know about them. In the Company it’s something that’s likely to get you killed… or worse. Take my word for it,” Sands said, tapping one of the lenses of his sunglasses. “I know, and I would truly hate to see any fellow agent or officer have to learn it the hard way. Consider yourself lucky, kid, because I’m sure that if you’d been sent out in the field before today, you’d be dead before you could even send in your first HUMINT report.” Sands quirked an eyebrow. “I just gave you free training in field psychology, I’m sure you can dig it.”<br> Lake let the words sink in, and at least had the good sense to be humble and not say anything stupid. Deep down his mind knew Sands was right, d**n him. Sands frowned. ‘Why the hell did I just tell that kid all that? Lake certainly doesn’t deserve any helpful tips from me, and I’d have been perfectly happy if that idiot had gone out into the field and gotten himself terminated.’ He shook his head slightly, as if to clear it. ‘Seriously, I cannot watch, or rather listen, to any more Soap Net.’<br> “Then I suppose I should thank you,” Lake said, not sounding very thankful. “f**k off!” Sands snapped back, irritated and confused, though more at himself than at Lake. Lake raised his eyebrows in surprise but said nothing. Mike chuckled as shades of the partner he remembered started to slip through Sands’ seemingly somber mood. “Mike, I believe I’m through here. Just remember, find the cell phone. It’s got all the proof the Company needs that my superior superior’s intentions were to burn me, and not with the Company’s blessing.”<br> Mike nodded in consent, then realized that Sands couldn’t see the gesture and voiced his reassurance. “We’ll relay the information immediately. The Company will be on it right away.”<br> “Spiffy,” Sands replied as he followed the sound of his ex-partner’s footsteps out of the room, hoping to hell that the Company would manage to find his proof.
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Post by AgentScarlett on Nov 1, 2004 13:02:58 GMT -5
Chapter 15: Home Sweet Home?
Today was his last day at OMS, Crystal had informed him after debrief a few days earlier, and the days and nights that followed had been long, boring… and totally uneventful. Sure, his body might have needed the rest, but the inactivity was somewhat less fruitful for his mind. No matter how he tried to distract himself, the same question kept popping into his mind, over and over again. He tried to push it away, but it always came back taunting him, asking him the same thing every day, every hour, every minute…<br> ‘What are you going to do when you are released?’<br> And try as he might, Sands simply did not have an answer.
No master plan.
No ingenious solution.
After several days of struggling with himself, racking his brain for an answer, Sands finally had to admit it to himself, if to no one else.
‘I don’t know what I’m going to do.’<br> “nuts,” Sands whispered out loud.
‘What’s wrong with me? I’ll do what I’ve always done. I’m still an officer for the Company…’
Sands swung his legs over the side of the bed and sat up as he heard footsteps approaching his door.
‘Or am I?’<br> The door opened and then closed again quickly.
“So I hear they’re releasing you today.”<br> Sands smirked at the familiar voice and nodded in affirmation. “You’d think those f**kmooks would know better than to set me loose on the unsuspecting public.”<br> “Yeah, but they never seem to learn. They keep making the same mistake.”<br> Sands made a quick up and down motion with his eyebrows mockingly. “Well you know what they say Cam, all wrong-doing is done in the sincerest belief that it is the best thing to do.”<br> Cameron snorted. “Since when does the Company think about what’s the best thing to do?”<br> “Oh, right. My bad,” Sands laughed. “So, do you mind telling me exactly what you’re doing here?”<br> “Perhaps I’m just here to see how you’re doing.”<br> Sands’ head went back and he groaned.
‘I swear he’s trying to kill me with kindness.’<br> “Don’t make me shoot you.”<br> Cameron walked further into the room to stand by the bed Sands was still seated on. “Sands,” he said, waiting for him to respond. After half a minute of silence Sands made a ‘get on with it’ gesture with his hands and raised his eyebrows impatiently. “You’re still an not a very nice person,” Cameron concluded.
“What? Were you expecting someone else?” Sands asked in mock disbelief.
Cameron sighed and leaned against the nearest wall. “I’ve been informed that my new assignment is to act as your chauffeur for the day.”<br> Sands smiled a little smugly and stood up, suddenly ready to go. “Well if that’s the case just be sure to keep it clandestine. Now let’s get a move on, I’m sure there’s a pack of smokes somewhere with my name on ‘em.”<br> The door opened again, just as Sands was absentmindedly making sure his sunglasses were in place, and Crystal walked in.
Cameron saw what she was holding, and frowned slightly, but didn’t say anything.
“Well I bet you’re glad to be going home,” she said with a smile, as she tried to think of a good way to break the coming news to him.
“Home sweet home,” Sands muttered sarcastically, before adding, “I bet the staff is even gladder.”
Cameron looked over and saw a small smile tugging at Crystal’s lips before she answered. “I wouldn’t doubt it. Before you go Sands, remember that you’ll need to continue to come in once a week to see your psychologist and… for rehab.” Sands’ brow furrowed unhappily as she went on. “Well, you’ll need some help… adjusting… to everything. OMS and the Company require that you take a DLS class with us,” she said nervously. She quickly handed Sands one of the items she’d been carrying and gave Cameron the rest; a small bag and a box containing a few of Sands’ things, including Cam’s present from a while back.
‘DLS Class? What the hell is that?’ Sands thought, frowning, as he felt the object shoved into his hands. Crystal was making her way towards the door, even as she continued speaking. “Those are antibiotics and pain killers,” she said, pointing to the bag in Cameron’s hands. “Sands, you’ll need to take two of each a day, for a week. You’ll have a checkup here once you run out of pills and we’ll decide if you still need them after that. You may need the pain killers for a little while longer.” She stopped and turned around to face him while standing by the door. “You sure there’s no family you’d like me to notify?” she asked again, for the third time that week, concerned about him being alone so soon, but not daring to voice that concern.
“For the last time, no, sugar-butt.”<br> Crystal dropped her gaze to the ground for a moment. After a glance at his files a couple of days ago, she knew he was lying, but she didn’t press the matter, feeling as if she was already walking on thin ice.
“About the cane…” She paused for a moment, seeing his growing fury as he held the object tightly, “don’t be ashamed to use it, you know, if you need to.” She walked out the door, leaving it at that.
After hearing her leave, Sands’ ran his hand up and down the aluminum cane a couple of times, lost in thought, before he held it out in front of him then abruptly dropped it, hearing the aluminum hit the linoleum floor and bounce a couple of times before becoming still. He stepped over it and made his way to the door with every intention of never using such a crutch. He turned towards Cameron, who unbeknownst to him, was quietly picking up the cane to take with them. “You coming or what?” Sands asked, now in a thoroughly foul mood.
‘Great, just what I needed. Someone to make Sands crazier than he already normally is, right before I have to drive him to his apartment. Just perfect.’<br> “Yeah, yeah,” Cameron muttered as he tucked the cane under his arm and led the way out of OMS.
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Cameron looked over at Sands in the passenger seat of his black Suburban as he followed the directions to Sands’ apartment. Cameron was somewhat grateful that Sands was one of the many officers that lived close to the CIA offices. He’d hate to have to drive Sands for any long period of time; sure, he had done so the day he’d picked Sands up in Mexico, but Sands had been unconscious most of the way, and it had undoubtedly made the long drive much easier.
Sands hadn’t said a word since he’d gotten his cigarettes fifteen minutes ago. Not one. He was obviously thinking about something as he sat there, facing forward, smoking a newly bought cigarette like it was his lifeline.
Sands’ curiosity was killing him and his distrust of Cameron was starting to seep into his brain.
‘He hasn’t told me the truth about that day in Mexico. How did he know where I was if he hadn’t talked to Martin? Or is Martin lying about not talking to Cameron, just as he lied about not talking to me?’<br> ‘No… that last idea doesn’t make any sense. If Martin were to lie about two officer’s actions it would become risky. The lies would be more likely to turn on him.’<br> ‘It’s time for Cameron to tell me what the hell is going on here.’<br> “We’re almost there,” Cameron told him, as he turned into the apartment complex.
Sands thingyed his head and took a long drag off his cigarette as his thoughts were interrupted. “There’s no place like home.”<br> After about a minute Cameron pulled into a parking spot fairly close to an entrance door and shut off the engine.
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Post by AgentScarlett on Nov 1, 2004 13:04:47 GMT -5
“Shall we head in?” Cameron asked, as he pulled the keys out of the ignition and turned towards Sands.
“No,” Sands stated flatly.
“What?”<br> Sands turned to him suddenly, his face showing absolutely no emotion. “Who sent you?”<br> “What?” Cameron repeated again, totally caught off guard.
“Quo usque tandem abutere patentia nostra?”
“Huh?”<br> Sands’ face continued to be an unreadable mask. “You need to expand your vocabulary Cam. You heard me the first time. Who sent you to bring me out that day in Mexico? Because I tell ya, I rather assumed that it was Martin. However, I’ve made a startling discovery as of late. Martin claims that he never spoke to me on the Day of the Dead - that’s not surprising - but he also claims that he never sent you to exfiltrate me either, and that is very interesting indeed.”
Sands took another puff of smoke and blew a large cloud into Cameron’s face. Cameron didn’t smoke, and Sands knew he hated the smell.
“So you see, Cam, the puzzle pieces that I have in my possession seem to belong to two completely different puzzles.”<br> Cameron looked at Sands for a long moment and then sat back in his seat.
‘Of course Sands isn’t going to just up and trust you. What did you expect?’<br> “Are you saying you don’t trust me?” Cameron asked.
Sands laughed and thingyed an eyebrow, opened the car door and threw out his cigarette. “A question for a question. Do you trust me?”<br> Cameron returned the gesture. “I see your point.”<br> Sands got out of the car and closed the door, leaning against it as he waited for Cameron to get out.
Cameron followed, a little curious as to why Sands wasn’t pushing the question further, but left it at that while he grabbed all of Sands’ stuff from the backseat and started towards the apartment building.
Sands followed the sound of the box as its contents shifted with each of Cameron’s steps. He wasn’t going to just let the question go, but he preferred to continue the conversation in more private and familiar surroundings.
‘I’ll have more of an edge in my apartment,’ Sands thought, and then chuckled slightly to himself under his breath. Cameron looked at Sands in bewilderment, but said nothing. Sands looked to be in a weird mood and Cameron wasn’t anxious to start anything. As a matter of fact, he was pretty anxious to get all this over and done with as quickly as possible.
Once they reached Sands’ apartment, Cameron unlocked the door to let them both in. Sands carefully walked towards the couch, while Cameron closed and locked the door behind them, all the time watching Sands. “Where do you want this stuff?”<br> Sands sat himself down on the couch, picturing the apartment’s layout in his mind. He pointed towards a door off to Cameron’s right. Cameron followed the direction of Sands’ finger; it was a little off the mark but he got the idea. “If you drop that crap off in the bedroom there, that would be dandy.”<br> As Sands heard Cameron open the door and go inside, he quickly stuck his hand under the couch cushion and started groping around.
‘I know I left it under here somewhere… ah! Here it is.’<br> Sands smiled a little mischievously, and brought up the object he’d been searching for. He heard Cameron start back towards the living room, and quickly hid his find under his left leg. His mischievous look was gone by the time Cameron came back into the room, and as Cameron asked him if he’d like anything before he left, he began to plan out what he was going to do.
“Yeah, you can fix me a tequila. Stuff’s in the kitchen.”<br> Cameron rolled his eyes at Sands’ request. It had sounded more like an order.
“No problem,” Cameron said, walking into the kitchen. As he started looking around in the cabinets he heard Sands call out from the living room “…and don’t forget the lime.”<br> ~*~
Latin Translations
Quo usque tandem abutere patentia nostra? - How long are you going to abuse my patience?
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Post by AgentScarlett on Nov 1, 2004 13:06:27 GMT -5
Chapter 16: Expect The Unexpected
Sands leaned back on the couch looking relaxed as he waited for his unsuspecting prey. Said prey currently fixing him a tequila… with lime… in his small kitchen, seemingly not used to any kind of job in the culinary area judging by the way he was banging and crashing around.
‘It’s like STOMP giving me my own private performance for Christ’s sake,’ Sands thought to himself as he hollered a sarcastic “Are you alright in there?” to Cam. Cam gave a muffled response in the affirmative as Sands waited, the object he had retrieved from under the couch cushion hidden beneath him.
‘I’ll be d**ned if I’m going to let Cam leave or stall the subject any further.’<br> ‘I’m getting the truth from him, once and for all.’<br> It was obvious to Sands that asking Cam nicely about how he’d found him that day in Mexico was getting him nowhere.
Well then, that was just peachy keen with him. After all, he’d never had any problems using force when necessary. Hell, he’d never had any problems using force even if it was totally unnecessary.
Sands heard Cam’s usual no-nonsense footsteps as he reentered the living room, and the sound of ice tinkling against the side of a glass.
‘Guess I’ll be having it on the rocks.’<br> “You alright amigo? Sounded like you were having a little trouble in the kitchen there,” Sands asked in his trademark sarcastic drawl.
Cam rolled his eyes but ignored the comment. “Here’s your tequila.”
Sands moved his head towards him stone-faced, but didn’t make a move to reach for the glass.
Cam stood there for a moment, nonplussed, before adding, “with a lime.”<br> Sands smiled, and reached for the glass. As Cam gave it to him, he couldn’t help notice the slight look of malice that shifted across Sands’ features.
“Well, I guess I’ll be going now…” Cam told him, starting towards the door. Cam was beginning to feel a bit uncomfortable as he watched Sands take a sip of his tequila, and then immediately set it on the small coffee table in front of him.
“Veni huc.”
Cam halted his progress to the door, turning around and facing Sands again, with a frustrated sigh. He knew very well that Sands spoke Latin to him because he knew Cam couldn’t understand him. But he knew Sands also did it to other people, so it seemed to be some bizarre game that Sands liked to play. “Sands, you know very well that I don’t speak or understand Latin.”
Sands smirked and made a somewhat sinister come here motion with his finger. Cam never thought that such an innocent gesture could be so frightening, until now. ‘Don’t go over there,’ Cam thought even as he reentered the room. ‘Bad idea… bad idea…’
Cam sat down hesitantly next to Sands on the couch, staying as far away as possible. Cam’s designated space between the two of them didn’t last long however.
Three things happened in the span of a few seconds.
Sands closed the gap between the two of them, grasped the back of Cam’s neck and pulled what appeared to be a syringe full of an unknown liquid out from god knows where.
Cam gulped slowly, d**ning himself for his own stupidity.
‘Should have seen this coming…’
Sands held up the needle, his other hand holding Cam’s neck in a painful grip.
“Now Cameron,” Sands drawled, and the use of his full name was not lost on Cam. “I have tried asking you nicely, twice, but to no avail. Now, I’ll ask you again and I’ll ask you for the last time…” he continued as he brought the needle up to Cam’s neck, “…how did you know that I needed to be exfiltrated that day in Mexico?”<br> Cam opened his mouth to answer, but Sands quickly interrupted him, “Think very carefully about what you say to me Officer…” Sands said as he edged a little closer to Cam, his voice now exuding that dangerous calm that meant only one thing; he was furious. “… because if you lie to me now I swear I’ll f**king pump this nuts into your veins and let you worry about what it is and how much time you’ve got left until it takes you. Capiche?”<br> Cam stayed completely still.
‘Sands thinks I’ve betrayed his trust… perhaps even thinks I may be part of some larger plot involving Officer Martin.’
After all that had happened, Cam supposed he couldn’t blame Sands for his reaction. After all, he hadn’t answered Sands previously and it probably did seem suspicious to him. He should have known better.
‘I just need to stay calm, and explain.’<br> Cam swallowed again, his heart beating a little faster than he would have liked. “Yeah.”<br> “Any time Cameron, I’m all ears.”<br> “Before I start… I just want to say that I didn’t betray your trust in me, Sands.”<br> Although Sands did his best to hide it, Cam saw the small frown that played over his face ever so briefly, replacing Sands’ normally unreadable mask.
“Why the hell would you think that I ever trusted you?” Sands asked. Deep in the back of Sands’ mind though, a voice rang out.
‘You should have known better than to ever trust Cam. You should know that you can’t trust anyone.’<br> Snapping himself out of his thoughts Sands snarled, “Get on with it or else…” He halted for a moment and smiled “…Me oporlet propter praeceptum te nocere.”
“Well,” Cameron started quickly, knowing Sands was in no mood for stalling. “Officer Martin may be lying about everything else, but he was telling the truth when he said he didn’t send for me to-”<br> “I think it’s rather obvious that I figured that out Cameron,” Sands rudely interrupted, exasperated now. “I don’t think you’d be in this rather precarious position otherwise. Now stop farting around.”<br> “FBI Agent Ramirez told me that you were injured and needed to be exfiltrated. Not long before Ramirez retired, he and I had worked to bring down a drug kingpin, so he knew how to get a hold of me. Ramirez also knew that I had worked with you previously. On the Day of the Dead he must have seen you at some point, known that you were injured, and then called me to get you out. Didn’t want to deal with you himself, said he was too old to deal with your nuts.”<br> Sands remained quiet for a moment, his grip on Cam loosening ever so slightly. “How did you know that I was going to be at the Flying Cow?” Sands demanded, still not wanting to let go of his suspicions.
“Ramirez told me. I don’t know how he knew, I only know that he was aware of the fact that you were going to be there. He told me that if you weren’t there then I should check a certain side street for your body.” Cam paused for a moment as Sands slowly removed the needle from his neck, but kept his grip firm and the syringe ready just in case. Cam continued, “You were acting as his handler, weren’t you?”<br>
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Post by AgentScarlett on Nov 1, 2004 13:08:01 GMT -5
“I was.”<br> “Did you mention your meeting at the Flying Cow to him or tell him that you’d be there sometime that day?”<br> Sands sat back slightly, relaxing his grip on Cam a bit as his mind mulled over Cam’s explanation of the events. Truth be known, he couldn’t remember whether he’d shared that information with Ramirez or not. Those last couple days in Mexico just weren’t sharp in his mind, and he supposed that just too much nuts had hit the fan for him to remember. Still, it irritated him no end that his memory on the subject was so vague.
‘d**n it all. The explanation sounds plausible enough.’<br> Sands let go of Cam, still lost in his own thoughts. Cam, perhaps wisely, stayed silent and waited for Sands to make the first move.
‘Hell, his explanation sounds more plausible than a man like Cam double-crossing anyone... even me.’<br> Sands came to a sudden realization right then and there. He’d known Cam since he’d started out in the Company, and despite his life-altering misjudgment about Ajedrez’s motives and character, his instincts about a person were normally dead on. He just couldn’t quite bring himself to believe that Cameron was capable of such deceit.
The fact of the matter was he actually did trust the man sitting next to him.
‘But should I really trust Cameron?’<br> Sands took a long, deep breath. Distrust was a vile little creature that refused to leave Sands’ twisted little world, and it was a hard habit to give up, especially now that he no longer had the ability to look into a man’s eyes or read the expression on his face as he spoke. It made it all the harder for him to trust his own instincts. A voice could tell you a lot about whether what a person was saying was the truth or a lie, but usually the eyes were what gave a person away…<br> ‘Eyes are the window into the soul…’
‘So what does that make you?’<br> Sands stood up abruptly, still not having said a word, and Cam was unnerved both by his silence and his sudden change of position.
But by far the most unnerving thing was watching Sands, Agent Sheldon Jeffery Sands, bad-ass extraordinaire, pacing before him as he nervously ran a hand through his shoulder length black hair mumbling, seemingly to himself, in Latin.
‘You can’t trust anyone can you? You just had to jump to conclusions, didn’t you?’<br> “Non est mea culpa.”
‘I don’t know that I can trust him, I don’t know that he’s telling the truth. How do I know if a man is telling me the truth when I can’t look into his f**king eyes?’ Sands continued to think to himself angrily, not realizing he was mumbling things out loud.
“Veritatem dies aperit.”
Cameron watched Sands worriedly. In all the years Cameron had known Sands, which was admittedly quite a few, he had never seen Sands do what he was doing right now.
Never.
Not even remotely.
And frankly seeing him act this way… well, it was scarier than Sands threatening his life.
Cameron was seriously considering the possibility that Sands might be having a mental breakdown right in front of him at this very moment… but was surprised when Sands suddenly stopped his odd behavior and rounded on him.
Sands stalked towards Cameron quickly, a look of anger on his face as he stood over Cam, who was still sitting on the couch.
Then Sands did something totally unexpected.
He reached up and roughly jerked off his sunglasses.
Cam finally saw the extent of what had been done to Sands. He had never seen Sands without his sunglasses or bandages, not since his return. Cam drew in a sharp breath, horrified at the sight of the two dark holes that stared back at him, where Sands’ eyes should have been. “Oh my god…” Cameron said softly as he started to look away, his stomach turning flip-flops. But Sands grabbed hold of the front of Cam’s shirt quickly, and pulled him back around, seeming to anticipate Cam’s reaction.
Grabbing hold of Cameron’s jaw, Sands aggressively turned his face so that it was facing his own, then leaned forward till they were only inches apart.
“Look at me,” Sands ordered, giving him a slight shake. “Look me in what were once my eyes, and promise me…” Cameron forced himself to look, and noticed that Sands was having some difficulty continuing. “…promise me that what you’ve told me is the f**king truth.”
Cameron finally figured it all out. Sands was desperate… desperate to trust someone. No matter how much of a bad ass he unarguably was, right now in his current state, he needed someone to trust. Cameron looked straight at Sands as he answered sincerely, “I promise you Sands, I’ve told you the truth… you can trust me.”<br> Sands stood up straight again, taking a couple steps away from Cameron. Sands suddenly looked tired, and a little older than he had before.
“I swear Cam, if I find out at any time that you’ve lied to me…” he began, his tone full of warning as he gently put his sunglasses back on. His head was pounding, and he vaguely remembered that he should be taking his painkillers right now. “… I’ll make sure you know how I feel before you die.”<br> “Sands, I-“<br> “Just get the f**k out of here Cam.”<br> Cameron stood up slowly and made his way to the front door. He turned around; giving Sands one last worried glance, “I’ll… I’ll call you later, alright?’<br> “Noli me vocare, ego te vocabo. Get out!” Sands demanded as he removed a cigarette from its pack and lit it.
Cameron sighed, and as he left, the door shutting firmly behind him, he sincerely hoped that Sands would be alright.
~*~
Latin Translations
Veni huc. - Come here.
Me oporlet propter praeceptum te nocere. - I’m going to have to hurt you on principle.
Non est mea culpa. - It’s not my fault
Veritatem dies aperit. - Time reveals the truth.
Noli me vocare, ego te vocabo - Don’t call me, I’ll call you.
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Post by AgentScarlett on Nov 1, 2004 13:10:48 GMT -5
Chapter 17: Throwaway
Sands wearily entered his apartment, shutting the door firmly behind him. He’d just returned from his sixth DLSC. The acronym was mercifully better than the full title; Disabled Living Skills Class.
It was degrading to him, to need such a class. Yet he saw no way out of it. He had to take the classes if he was to have any hope of staying on at the Company and what was worse, he found that the classes did help him to live better on his own. He was finishing his second week, and already he’d learned some useful skills.
Still, it didn’t help Sands’ mood any. He craved revenge. Not revenge against the cartel, that had already been done, but revenge against the traitor within his own agency. The agency that had been his miserable life for over 10 years. Yet here he was, going to these classes because… because why?
‘Because you feel useless and weak and bored.’<br> He disgusted himself.
Sands threw his coat and cane down in a corner of the entryway and made his way into the kitchen, feeling an intense need to shoot something.
‘I need a drink. A strong drink.’<br> Opening the cabinet that contained the tequila, Sands poured himself a rather large measure of the liquor, then opened the fridge and fished in the fruit drawer for a lime. Unfortunately the fruit drawer was empty and Sands found himself and his friend El Tequila lime-less.
‘f**k it.’<br> Sands downed the drink quickly and set the glass down heavily on the counter, refusing himself another shot of the drink. He walked into the living room running a hand through his hair, but he felt too antsy to sit down.
‘d**n it all, stop thinking like that! You know this is only temporary. You’re just as sharp as you always were and by the end of all this nuts you’ll be just as deadly and just as efficient as before.’<br> Sands desperately needed to do something, to stop thinking.
‘I’m driving myself out of my f**king mind with all this thinking.’<br> Suddenly he got an idea, and he smiled at the thought.
Reaching into his pocket he got out his cell phone. It wasn’t his old companion - that still seemed to be MIA - but he supposed it would have to do.
Cam had only visited once since their little encounter two weeks ago. During the visit Cam had entered his number into Sands’ cell, setting it as speed dial three, much to Sands’ dismay.
After dialing Cam’s number on speed dial he waited as the phone rang. Cam picked it up on the third ring.
“Hello?”<br> “Quid agis, medice?”
“Huh? Wh… Sands?” Cam asked, sounding caught off guard and a little shocked that Sands had called.
“The one. The only.”<br> “Is everything alright?”<br> “Groovy. Except I seem to be developing a possibly fatal case of itchy trigger finger and seriously need to shoot some lead into some nuts. So, I thought before I go next door and shoot one of my neighbors, I’d give you a jingle and see if you were up for it.”<br> “Are you offering to shoot me instead?”<br> “Hmm, tempting, tempting,” Sands said as if contemplating the idea, amused, but showing little sign of it in his voice. “Are you offering?”
Cam was silent, obviously trying to think of something to say. Sands snorted and continued. “I didn’t think so… well since my human target doesn’t seem to be willing, what do you say we go down to the range? You can paste a picture of Officer Lake’s head on my target. It’ll be better than a visit to the shrink.”<br> Cam laughed, and was relieved to hear Sands sounding more like himself… even if it was just because he was happy about the prospect of shooting something, it was refreshing to hear.
It was Sands.
The nurse at the hospital, Crystal had been keeping a sharp eye on Sands when he came in for his physical therapy and check-ups and had told Cam that Sands had seemed even more detached than normal (which was saying something) and that it could be a sign that he was depressed. The news certainly wasn’t surprising considering Sands’ situation.
Actually, what was more surprising to Cam was that Sands hadn’t completely lost his mind. He certainly hadn’t had a firm base as it was, and a lesser man would have given in by now. Briefly Cam wondered what he’d be like if the same happened to him… he didn’t think about it too long.
“Sounds like a plan. I’ve just finished up some paperwork… I can probably make it over there in about forty-five. Sound good?” Cam asked him, thinking that perhaps Sands was finally starting to warm up to another human being.
“Peachy,” was the quick reply, as Sands hung up the phone and smiled at the thought of feeling the power of an automatic in his hand again. It had been far too long.
The thought that perhaps he was beginning to develop a less-than-hostile relationship with another officer never even crossed Sands’ mind.
---
Sands had just finished changing when his phone rang; not his cell, but his home phone. He stiffened slightly, as very few people ever called him, especially on his home phone.
‘It’s probably someone from the Company.’<br> “Ah nuts.” Sands swore under his breath as he walked over to the phone, d**ning the fact that he could no longer read his caller ID.
“Yeah?” he answered in a bored tone, as if he was already tired of a conversation that hadn’t even started yet.
“Officer Sands?” The voice on the other end asked, all business.
“The one and only,” Sands stated before thinking, ‘deja vu.’<br> “This is Officer Douglas…”
‘Oh f**k… this can’t be good.’<br> “I’m calling to inform you about the progress of the investigation.”<br> “Oh well, glad to hear you all stopped farting around. There may be hope for OOS yet,” Sands commented sarcastically. “So, have you found out who cluster-f**ked the operation?”<br>
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Post by AgentScarlett on Nov 1, 2004 13:12:53 GMT -5
“Perhaps… Officer Sands. I regret to inform you that you’ve been suspended indefinitely, pending an investigation into your actions during your operation in Culiacan, Mexico.”<br> Sands whole body froze, his breathing stopped, his grip on the phone becoming so tight his knuckles turned white, as he forced himself to answer and maintain his ever-bored drawl.
“Just for my own edification, why the sudden shift in suspicion? Last I talked to you, you seemed to agree that Martin was the rat.”<br> “We found your phone Officer Sands,” Douglas answered, then paused, waiting for a reaction from Sands.
‘If they found the phone, then shouldn’t they be delivering this call to Martin?’ Sands thought, suddenly confused.
Douglas continued in the face of Sands’ silence. “There are no recorded phone calls to your superior, Officer Martin, in your cell phone, nor is his number in your recent calls archive. There is no record of you ever calling your superior, Sands.”<br> Sands opened his mouth to speak, but didn’t know what to say and no sound came out.
‘What the f**k? No record of my calls to Martin… it wasn’t possible.’<br> ‘I made those calls.’<br> ‘I recorded those calls.’<br> “You are free to continue your DLSC and physical therapy at OMS while we investigate further. However, you are suspended from any type of active duty and you will be arrested if you attempt to leave the state. For the time being, consider yourself a civilian. We will notify you further at a later date.”<br> With that Douglas hung up, not even waiting for a reply and Sands just stood motionless as the dial tone buzzed in his ear and into his brain like a swarm of hornets. His temples pounded as his phantom eyes began to throb with pain. Over and over his mind raced in circles.
‘I made those calls. I made those calls. I did make those calls…’
‘…didn’t I?’<br> “Officer Martin also said that he’d never spoken to you that day either.”<br> ‘Well, that’s truly unbelievable.’<br> “Did you mention your meeting at the Flying Cow to him or tell him that you’d be there at some time that day?”<br> ‘I can’t remember.’<br> Sands’ breathing became quicker as his sense of reality began to crumble. Still he held the phone to his ear, the sound of the dial tone the only reminder that he was standing in his apartment at this moment… alive and in the US… just stripped of his title by a one-minute phone call from a weasel of a man who’d sat in a cozy office all his life and didn’t give a nuts. A sorry-you-wasted-eleven-years-of-your-life-with-the-Company-and-got-your-eyes-ripped-out-but-tough-nuts-and-guess-what-we-don’t-give-a-d**n courtesy call that took away the last thing he had left in his miserable existence.
‘I made those calls.’<br> “There’s no record of any calls to Martin.”<br> ‘I made those calls.’
“That’s one of the many problems we’re finding Officer Sands”<br> ‘I know I f**king made those calls.’<br> Sands began to feel dizzy, the pain in his temples and the thoughts in his mind affecting his equilibrium in ways he didn’t know were possible. His thoughts became fogged over, confused, as his breathing quickened and his head spun out of control. Suddenly he didn’t know which way was up or down, left or right, front or back. His eyes burned, mere phantoms to torture him.
Then there was more fog, and the ground seemed to tilt.
‘Open your eyes so you can see where the floor is.’
And as ridiculous as the thought was, Sands tried to open his eyes.
‘I can’t. I can’t open my eyes. What’s happened?’<br> ‘I can’t remember.’<br> He let out a strangled sound as an arm snapped out in reflex, groping for anything within reach. Yet his fingertips hit nothing but air, and Sands staggered hard to the right, finally dropping the phone from his iron grasp. It fell to the floor as the dial-tone turned to a beep.
The sockets of what were once his eyes pounded mercilessly and the pain echoed in his skull.
‘Why do my eyes hurt so f**king much?! Why can’t I open my d**n eyes?’<br> Sands staggered again, reaching out with the other arm for something to hold on to. But there was nothing. Nothing at all. Just black surrounded by deeper black.
‘You didn’t see it coming… did you?’<br> Sands right hand reached down to his side for his gun at the sound of that voice, but again, there was nothing there. The movement was enough to cause him to lose his balance and he felt his still recovering left leg give way, then the right.
“I am Sheldon Jeffery Sands of the Central Intelligence Agency” Sands muttered, trying to keep a grip on his slipping hold on reality. As his knees hit the carpet that same black was eaten away by the deeper black and he quickly slipped out of consciousness as his body hit the ground.
~*~
Latin Translations
Quid agis, medice? - What’s up, Doc?
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Post by AgentScarlett on Nov 6, 2004 12:58:07 GMT -5
Chapter 18: Loyalty
Cameron walked up the second flight of stairs and made his way down the hall to Sands’ apartment. Reaching the door he knocked hard three times and waited… and waited… and waited. Cameron frowned slightly before knocking again and calling out, “Sands, open up. It’s me, Cam.”<br> Still, there was no response. Cam felt a knot begin to form in his stomach as he got a duplicate of Sands’ apartment key - given to him the day Sands was released from OMS - out of his pocket. Wary of entering without Sands opening the door himself, Cam knocked again and tried the doorknob. Unsurprisingly, the door was locked.
Cam sighed and fidgeted with the key in his hand, staring at the doorknob and listening to the echoing silence inside with dismay. A woman walked past him, giving him a suspicious glance before heading down the stairs.
Cam knocked on the door one last time. “Sands, if this is your idea of a joke it isn’t very funny.”<br> Still there was nothing.
Worriedly Cam glanced up and down the hall before withdrawing his gun, then inserting the key into the door. Turning it, he opened the door and cautiously stepped inside.
Cam’s eyes widened at the sight that greeted him. Closing the door, he hurried over to Sands’ prone body, lying unconscious on the living room floor.
“Jesus! Sands!” Cam called out as he knelt down beside him, efficiently checking him over for any wounds, thinking that perhaps someone had broken in.
‘I don’t see anything,’ Cam thought, somewhat confused, as he shook Sands a bit in an attempt to rouse him. However, Sands still didn’t move, and the lack of any external harm did little to ease Cam’s worries. As he sat back slightly, he returned his gun to its holster, at a loss as to what exactly he should do. It occurred to him that the phone was beeping and he looked over to see it off the hook, lying on the floor next to Sands.
‘Water. Maybe some water on his face will wake him up,’ Cam thought as he stood, picking up the phone and replacing it in its cradle. It was then that Sands abruptly sat up with a sudden gasp, and Cam nearly knocked the whole table over in his surprise.
“Sands?” Cam asked tentatively, but got no real response as Sands’ breathing speeded up. He appeared to be on the verge of panic. “Sands, what’s the matter? What’s wrong?” Cam questioned, but still didn’t seem to be getting through to the man sitting before him. Sands’ right hand began to reach out blindly in the air in front of him as his breathing became ever more labored. His sunglasses had been knocked askew to reveal some of the nothingness that lay beneath, and strands of his long hair clung to the sweat on his face.
Cam bit his lower lip nervously as he thought, ‘He’s a total wreck.’<br> “Sands?”<br> Cam moved toward Sands slowly, not wanting to startle him, but still seeking to help him. It was painfully obvious something was very wrong. “Sands,” he said softly, as if talking to a child.
Finally Sands’ head moved towards the sound of Cam’s voice and he took a small amount of comfort in the acknowledgment. Sands swallowed hard, his breathing still far too quick to be normal. “Cam?” Sands asked quietly, his upper body swaying a bit as if he were dizzy.
“Sands, what’s wrong?” Cam asked again as he knelt down, unafraid of startling Sands now that he held his attention. He grasped Sands’ outstretched hand and immediately noticed how clammy his skin was to the touch, his palms sweaty. “I… I… Cam, something’s wrong. I…” Sands began to stutter, in a small voice that Cam had never heard from him before.
“Sands it’s OK, just…”
“No… no, it’s not. Eric… I… I can’t see!” Sands whispered to him desperately, as an involuntary shudder passed through his body.
Cam furrowed his brow in confusion, surprise… and worry. He couldn’t remember the last time Sands had called him Eric.
“Sands…”
“I can’t see!” Sands said again, more loudly this time, his voice cracking. Sands reached a hand up to his face as he attempted to stand up, succeeding only with Cam’s help, and swaying dangerously in place. “My eyes… my eyes hurt so much. Eric, why the f.uck do they hurt so much?” Sands asked, becoming frantic. It was painfully clear to Cam that Sands was having some sort of panic attack or mental collapse.
‘Perhaps it’s all finally hit him. Perhaps it has all finally started to sink in.’<br> ‘But he sounded so normal less than an hour ago. What happened in between then and now?’<br> “Sands… you’re alright. Just try and take a few slow, deep breaths,” Cam said soothingly, as he tried to guide Sands over to the couch, but Sands pulled back at his lead, roughly and suddenly, the quick movement almost causing him to tumble back down to the ground. Sands was still breathing oddly, and he was sickly and pale and not at all Sands.
“Don’t you touch me!” Sands warned in a dangerous tone laced with unfamiliar desperation. “Don’t you dare touch me!” Sands said again. This time his voice was a mere whisper.
“What… what have you done to me? I can’t see… I can’t see anything.”<br> Cam swallowed, his throat dry, as a feeling of dread swept over him. Sands was definitely having some sort of mental breakdown. Unfortunately, out of the two of them, Sands was the only one with a degree in psychology.
“Sands, I haven’t done anything to you. Don’t you remember?”<br> “Yes… yes you did,” Sands accused. He began to feel his way around the apartment as if searching for something, stumbling several times before finding a wall to help guide him.
A thought struck Cam as he watched Sands in concern, ‘He’s never looked as blind as he does right now.'
Sands made it to the door of his bedroom and Cam followed him, still completely unsure of what to do. He didn’t want to make any drastic phone calls, still holding out hope that Sands would snap out of whatever panicked state seemed to have gripped him.
As Cam entered the doorway of Sands’ bedroom he watched as Sands felt around the bed, and then his dresser. Sands began to pull out the lowest drawer and it quickly dawned on Cam what he might be searching for.
Leaping into action Cam came to an abrupt halt as Sands swiftly stood up and spun around to face him, automatic in hand.
“What are you doing, Sands?” Cam asked, as he cursed himself for his stupidity. He took a step back from the imposing figure of a crazed Sands; hair a tangle of black, sunglasses askew, sweat glistening on his brow, his breathing rapid and ragged. He raised the automatic and aimed it at Cam, his hand uncharacteristically shaky.
“Just stay away from me motherf.ucker. I…” Sands seemed to stop for a moment, as if battling with himself. “I’ll blow you straight to f.ucking Broadway.”<br> “Alright, alright,” Cam said, trying to sound calm as he backed up a little more. “Listen to me Sands. You’re in your apartment. About a month and a half ago you returned to the US after your operation rolled up in Culiacan, Mexico. Don’t you remember? You were injured,” Cam said, then took a silent step to his left, removing himself from Sands’ line of fire.
“I can’t remember. I…I can’t… I can’t see…” Sands trailed off feebly. He looked frustrated and confused, his gun still trained on the spot Cam had just vacated.
“Sands… The Barillo Cartel…”
Sands jumped in surprise at the sound of Cam’s voice, and took an unsteady step away from him, caught off guard by his stealthy change of location. The hand clutching the gun faltered, and he didn’t attempt to correct his aim as he continued to try and grasp what Cam was telling him.
“…the Day of the Dead. Armando Barillo… Ajedrez…” Cam continued to prod. Suddenly, Sands turned the gun on himself.
Cam’s eyes widened in surprise at the one thing he never expected. “Please, Sands! Just… just put the gun down.”<br> Sands began to laugh, a twisted and crazy sound that chilled Cam to his core. “I won’t tell you what you want to know. I won’t tell you anything! The Company will not stand for this! I’ll willingly take myself to hell before compromising my operation,” Sands went on. His laugh became a choked sob while the gun remained pressed against his temple.
“There’s no operation Sands! There’s nothing to compromise!”<br> Sands shook his head. “I called him. I… I did call him. I spoke to him. He spoke to me. I recorded it. God d**n it! I recorded it!” He shouted, struggling to catch his breath. When he spoke again, his voice came out haggard. “I’m a loyal officer to the Company.”<br> “Of course you are Sands.”<br> Cam watched him with something beyond fear in his eyes. There was no doubt about it, Sands had completely lost it.
‘I can’t stand here and watch him shoot himself.’<br> Sands backed himself up against the dresser, then slowly slid down to the ground with the gun still at his temple. “I’m a loyal Officer,” Sands stated, sounding weak and tired as he sank down. “I made those calls … and I’m a loyal officer.”<br> Cam could wait no longer. He dove towards Sands in a desperate attempt to pull the gun off its target before Sands could pull the trigger.
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