April 18th, 10:15 a.m. The Bronx, New York City

This chapter is dedicated to KaleighMcLauchlan,  the first wattpadder to read through the entire story and flag all the remaining spelling errors.

Danny was at the indoor court playing one-on-one with one of his clients, a fifteen-year-old drug addict in recovery. James was one of the residents at the center and had worked up a good sweat, whereas Danny had barely broken one.

When the boy attempted an ill-executed sky hook, Danny swatted it away at the point of release. The ball rolled across the sideline as it stopped under the weight of a brown boot. Partially obscured by some wooden bleachers, the owner of the boot emerged.

Danny recognized him instantly. The man, dressed in jeans, a sweat shirt and a sleeveless windbreaker, approached. Danny dismissed James with a 'see you tomorrow' slap on the shoulders, and resumed his guarded stare at this apparition from the past. The other man spoke first.

"Hey bro, it's been how long?"

Danny's guarded demeanor melted on the spot. "Well I be. The doctor himself." The other man hadn't changed a bit, his crew cut and dark complexion accenting his rounded eyes and light mustache. "Javier Marquez in the flesh." He walked up to Javi as they embraced in man hug formation.

"Great thing you're doing. Helping these kids."

Danny answered with a question. "You? Let me guess—still with the Agency?"

Javi just smiled back at him. "Hey, you disappeared off the face of the earth."

"It's not like anyone came looking for me, either," he said, shaking off Javi's gaze. Danny bounce passed the ball to Javi, harder than he normally would have. "Anyway, I'm doin' fine now. I needed the reboot."

"We need to catch up."

Danny picked up on Javi's clumsy attempt at a solicitation. "C'mon. Who are you talking to? You wouldn't just show up out of the blue unless...No."

"Straight up? We need you. Something's up right here and we thought you'd be the best man for the job."

"Just tell her 'm done. That's it."

"Who are you talking to?" Javi said, bounce passing the ball back at him.

He caught it, shrugged, shook his head and looked up at the ceiling as if he was trapped in a boomerang vortex. "Unbelievable."

"It'll be a short term assignment. Three weeks tops. I wasn't messing with you. I do want to catch up. I'm only in town until this thing ends."

"What do you know about it?" Danny asked.

"Can't say. Haven't been read in."

"Okay, so now what?"

"She wants to see you tonight."

Danny racked his brain for a moment. The call of government service rang in his ears, and based on what just happened at Park Chester, he figured it might be the perfect time for a leave of absence. He couldn't help but trust his fellow Delta Force comrade. He had to give Joanne kudos for sending Javi out to make contact. Before he knew it, Javi had turned to walk out.

"Hey, where am I going?"

"Read your text, bro."

When Danny grabbed his phone from the bleacher, he found his answer. His voice echoed of the walls of the reverberant gym. "Don't I even get car service to this place?"

Javi turned back with a smile and said, "You're on your own, man. You know, budget cuts." Danny threw up some foul shots, mulling over the possibilities.

Now that the CIA has made contact with Danny, events beyond their contract will occur. What would you have wanted more of in this chapter?

Copyright © 2016 by Alan Field. All Rights Reserved.