TITLE : DANGER
AUTHOR'S NOTES : Part of the series "The Hunter Chronicles". Follows "Trouble". Just felt that the series is due for an update. This is a JackAl story, primarily. Other characters are the Vadzel crew (Aretha, Asher, and Zeke). Also some scenes with Nicholas Hunter, and Neal Caffrey is briefly mentioned.
DISCLAIMER : I don't own any of the publicly recognizable characters. They belong to Jeff Eastin, White Collar writers and USA Network.
SUMMARY : Danger erupts as Alex and the Vadzel crew help Jack Hartnell recover stolen nuclear weapons from a terrorist, who used to have close ties to Jack. (AU) Part of 'The Hunter Chronicles'. Follows "Trouble".
WARNING : Contains some violence (some includes terrorizing a child) and suggestive language. As per usual, suspension of disbelief is required. Also contains a copious amount of Alex Hunter, so if you're allergic, I highly suggest you stop reading now. If not, then keep reading and I hope you enjoy.
Alex Hunter slowly regained consciousness, her head pounding. She sensed danger. Slowly opening her eyes, she took a moment to clear the cob webs and gather her thoughts. It was then that she realized that she was upside down, hanging from the ceiling like a piñata. She looked up and saw that her feet were bound together and chained to a rope attached to a pulley that hoisted her body about 15 ft from the floor. Her wrists were tied behind her back with plastic cable tie straps.
"Come on, Hunter! Think!" she said to herself as she struggled from her bindings.
She looked down and saw a little Korean boy, not much older than her son, Nicholas. His mouth was duct taped and he was tied up to a chair. The boy had tears streaming down his face, with a look of terror in his eyes. Alex struggled to focus and finally understood why the boy was scared to death. He had a bomb strapped to his body.
"How the hell did it get to this?" Alex asked as she tried to remember the events leading up to her current situation.
VADZEL CASTLE, BUDAPEST, HUNGARY, a few days earlier...
Alex and her little son, Nicholas, laughed as they played in the water. It was Saturday and the two decided to have an early morning swim in one of the pools of Vadzel's grotto. It had been a while since they've had a some quality time together like this, and even longer since Alex had seen her son have this much fun.
"I remember when I first taught you how to swim, Moon Beam. You were so scared." Alex told her little boy. "I promised you I wouldn't let you go until you were ready." she added. "Now, look at you! Swimming all on your own, diving and doing cannonballs without a care in the world." she said. A little too fearless for your own good, just like your father. Alex thought.
"I had a pretty good teacher!" Nicholas replied, giving his mother his cutest smile.
"It's like you don't need me anymore." Alex told him, almost in a whisper.
"I'll always need you! You're my Mama!"Nicholas answered. "And even if I don't, I'll pretend that I do." he smiled playfully. "You and I, Mama...we're forever." he promised his mother.
"Yeah, right! I'd be surprised if you'd still remember saying that after a few years!" she teased him.
"Well, if I forget, you be sure to remind me." her son said, chuckling, as he splashed some water on her face.
"Oh, you'll pay for that!" she warned him playfully before swimming closer to tickle him.
They continued to play in the water for a few more minutes when Alex suddenly felt that they were being watched. She looked around them, and sure enough, there he was, not too far from them. Jack Hartnell, with a huge smile on his face that revealed his gorgeous dimples, leaning in one of the pillars as he watched Alex and Nicholas having fun.
"Hello there, sweetie. Not polite to stare." Alex said with a laugh.
"My apologies to the two of you. Just taking in the beautiful scenery. I didn't mean to intrude." the Scottish agent replied, as he walked towards them.
"Jack! I missed you!" Nicholas said. "Did you just come back from another adventure? Just like Mama! I've missed you both!" the little boy told them.
"Oh, I've missed you too, kiddo!" Jack said.
"Hey! What about me?" Alex asked Jack, feigning her irritation.
"My heart longed for you while we were apart, my love!" Jack teased dramatically, as he knelt closer to edge of the pool, leaning in for a kiss.
Alex took this opportunity to grab him and pull him into the water. In mere seconds, Jack joined them in the pool, with all his clothes on, soon thoroughly drenched. He was shocked for a bit but didn't appear to be mad.
"The water feels nice, I thought you wouldn't mind to go for a little dip." Alex said, chuckling. Nicholas soon joined in the laughter.
"Oh, you think that was funny, did you?"Jack asked the little boy."Come here, ye tim'rous beastie! I'll teach you not to laugh at your elders!" he joked, as he lifted Nicholas from the water and twirled him in the air, making the boy squeal and laugh louder.
Alex watched them as the two continued to play around in the water. A big part of her felt guilty that Nicholas never got to do this with his own father. She thought of Neal and all the things he missed out on Nicholas' life. How she wished that the two would've been closer.
Then, she looked at Jack. The amazing man she met at the time when she needed a savior. The man who showed her nothing but love, kindness and understanding. That same man who was spending time with her son at the moment, treating Nicholas as if he was his own flesh and blood.
Alex then realized that it came as a welcomed sigh of relief when her heart finally told her to stop wasting her time on Neal Caffrey. Part of her will always keep Neal close to her heart. He was forever a part of her life because of the son they shared, but her life is with Jack now. For the first time in a long time, she was in love again...only this time, it didn't hurt.
Nicholas' voice broke her out of her thoughts. "Mama, Jack said that he's going to take us out today!" he said excitedly. "This'll be fun!"he added.
"Of course, it will." Jack replied. "Where would you like to go...the Budapest Zoo, the Oceanarium, the Museum of Fine Arts, or the Palace of Wonders Science Museum?" he asked the child.
"Can't we go to all of them?" Nicholas suggested with a childish pout.
"I see no reason why we can't." Jack replied, as he looked to Alex for confirmation.
"Absolutely." Alex answered. "But if we're going to all those places, then you should get a move on. Better get ready now, or we won't have enough time." she told her son.
Nicholas squealed with delight upon hearing this. He practically leaped out of the pool and ran inside to get ready.
"Careful!" Jack called out to the boy, as he and Alex climbed out of the pool as well. He turned around to find Alex smiling at him. "What is it?" he asked her.
Alex wrapped her arms around his neck. "Thank you." she said.
"For what?" Jack asked again.
"For being so good to him." Alex replied.
"I can't help it. He's every bit as amazing as you are...only in a totally different way." Jack said with a smile.
Alex pulled him closer and gave him a soft, lingering kiss on the lips. When they parted, she noticed that Jack looked at her with an unreadable expression on his eyes. His expressive, deep blue eyes made it seem as if he wanted to tell her something very important.
"Something on your mind, Jack?"she asked.
Jack stared into her eyes. "I love you, Alexandra Hunter." he whispered to her.
"I know." she whispered back, as she kissed him again. Hand in hand, they made their way inside the castle.
Just as planned, Jack and Alex spent some quality time with Nicholas. They went to all the places that the little boy wanted to go to. They visited the pandas in the Budapest Zoo, looked at the different kinds of marine life in the Oceanarium, admired the collection of the Old Masters in the Museum of Fine Arts, and marveled at the exhibits inside the Palace of Wonders Science Museum. Their entire day belonged to young Nicholas.
That was during the day. The night belonged to Jack and Alex. That night, Jack made love to her with such hunger, such passion, such longing. Alex was in a state of complete bliss. It was pure ecstasy, whenever Jack handled her body with that much desire. He loved her like there was no tomorrow...as if it was the last night of the world...as if they could lose each other at any time. They made love until they were both spent. She fell asleep right there in his arms, her head resting on his chest. His powerful heartbeat lulling her to sleep. She never felt safer in any other place in the world, than when she was in Jack's arms. He was her champion, her protector, her lover.
*The next day, Alex woke up alone in bed, left to wonder where Jack was. She quickly showered, got dressed and went in search for him. She found him in the training room inside Zeke's gym back in the East Wing. She lovingly looked at him from a distance, admiring his lithe, athletic, shirtless body as he continued his work out.
Jack was panting, his half-naked body glistened with sweat that trailed from his toned upper torso, down to his tight abs. He had been working the heavy bag steadily for almost an hour, landing combinations of punches and kicks. He was starting to get tired, his arms and legs beginning to show signs of exhaustion. Then, he heard Alex's voice behind him.
"You know, if you wanted a workout, you could've just told me. You didn't even need to leave the bed."she said cheekily.
Jack turned around to look at her. He remained silent for a while, just staring at her. Alex recognized that look from before. That same look he had back at the grotto, when he seemed to want to tell her something important. It was really beginning to worry her.
"Jack?" she gave him a questioning look.
Just then, Aretha appeared out of nowhere. "Oi, Scotsman! You might want to go and tidy yourself up. We'll be having that meeting that you asked for, in my office after breakfast." she told him. "Not that I mind the nakedness." she whispered to Alex and wiggled her eyebrows.
"Aretha!" Alex scolded her.
"What? I'm your best friend...I'm not dead!" Aretha replied with a wink, before leaving the room.
Alex turned to face Jack again. "What meeting?" she asked. "Is this about a job?"she pressed.
Jack gave her a weak smile. "I'll tell you and the others later." he replied. He gave her a quick peck on the cheek before proceeding to their room to get cleaned up, leaving Alex to worry as to why Jack was acting oddly.
Alex went to Nicholas' room to wake him up and get him ready. They were all present in the dining are for breakfast. Everything appeared to be normal. Nicholas and Asher were chatting about video games and comic books; Aretha and Jack quietly having a conversation; Zeke reading the morning paper. Alex merely sat there and drank her cup of coffee, her mind still on Jack. He was troubled about something, Alex didn't know what it was. And that worried her.
"Something wrong, Hunter?" Zeke asked her, interrupting her thoughts.
"Not sure, Zeke. Maybe..." Alex replied. "I guess we'll find out in the meeting." she added, before finishing her coffee.
When Alex arrived at Aretha's office, Jack was already there waiting for them. She approached him, wanting to ask him what was up with all the secrecy, before the others arrive. Jack stared at her, his hand gently took hold of her waist, and pulled her closer. His other hand softly caressed her cheek.
"Alex, I don't want you to-" he began to say, before he was interrupted by the arrival of the Vadzel crew.
"Alright, enough of the lovey-dovey bit! This, here, is a working area. We can all have a flirt later." Aretha told them.
"Yes, please. Also remember that there are single people here. Leave all the cutesy couple stuff for when nobody's watching." Asher said in envy.
"Just take a seat, kid, will you?" Zeke told their young tech specialist.
Everyone went to their usual chairs. Aretha sat at the head of the table, with Alex to her right, while Zeke sat to her left. Jack sat beside Alex, his usual place when he was there, while Asher sat next to Zeke. Once they were all seated, Jack began to talk.
"Here's the gist. Two days ago, a suspected terrorist seized control of one of the British military cargo truck. They were en route to Clyde Naval Base in the West Coast of Scotland. The transport was supposed to deliver cargo to one of the Vanguard class submarines in the Royal Navy base. The 'cargo' were four Trident D5 ballistic missiles. The terrorist managed to steal one of them, and is now headed for North Korea." he informed Aretha and her crew, who all regarded him with surprised looks. "That's it. That is all that I'm allowed to say. Any others details can't be revealed until you have agreed to help me retrieve the stolen weapon." he added, as he looked at every person in the room with him.
Asher let out a low whistle. "So, basically, our job...should we choose to accept it...is to go to North Korea...a nation that doesn't take too kindly to strangers let alone Westerners, and help you STEAL back a nuclear weapon without raising any suspicions. Right? That's a little out of our comfort zone, isn't it?" he said. He looked at the faces of his crew members to seek confirmation, but found none. "Well, it's a bit out of MY comfort zone!" the hacker scoffed.
Alex's mind was racing. This was what Jack was trying to tell her earlier. He doesn't want her to go. Asher was right, stolen nuclear weapons was WAY out of their comfort zone. Alex wasn't sure about Aretha and Zeke, but she has never done a job that concerned anything even close to involving nuclear weapons, not even when she worked with Valerie Vega. She tried to catch Jack's attention, but he was doing his best to avoid her eyes.
There was silence in the room for a while. It was Aretha who spoke first. "Well...the motherland may not welcome me back with open arms anytime soon, but if the Queen calls for my services, you can count on me to answer. Besides, I actually do have experience with these things. I'm in." she replied.
It was Zeke's Turn to answer next. He turned to face Aretha. "I've been watching your back for years. Not planning to stop now." he told her. "And as a former military and a retrieval specialist, this is right up in my alley. Count me in." he said.
Asher stared at them as if they were both crazy. Finally, their youngest member sighed and spoke. "Well, you certainly can't leave ME here, can you? I mean, without me, you'd all get lost and end up buying a house there in North Korea. You guys need me...so yeah, I'm going with you." the hacker replied.
All of them looked at Alex...all except for Jack, who was still avoiding her eyes. The crew was waiting for her answer. "Seeing as I have no experience in this kind of stuff whatsoever, and have no skills to offer that could be helpful to this job, I elect to stay behind. I'll just guard the castle and take care of my son. Bring me back a snow globe or something."Alex replied. With that, she stood up and walked towards the door.
"Wait, H! You're not going with us?" Asher called after her, as she stormed out of the Aretha's office. The tech specialist raised his hand. "Is it too late to change my answer now?" the young man asked Jack, who then stood up and went after Alex.
Outside the office, Jack ran after Alex. He tried to stop her by lightly grabbing her arm, which she swatted away. "Alex, please listen to me-" he tried to explain.
"Oh, so now you want to talk?" Alex hissed at him. She looked at him square in the eye, her expression a mixture of anger and pain."I don't understand, Jack. Help me understand. You knew how dangerous this is. You also knew that if YOU asked, my friends wouldn't say no. And yet you don't want me to go! Those people in that room, their more than just my crew, their my family! You expect me to step back when there's a chance that they might die? You think that it's alright for them to make that sacrifice more than me? Why? Because I have a son? They're Nicholas' family too! My life is not worth MORE than theirs." she told him.
"It is to ME!" Jack snapped back. "I love you, Alex." he said in a gentler tone.
"Jack, the moment you decided for yourself that it was okay for them to die and me to live, it became unfair of you to love me." Alex replied.
"Oi, you two! All these talk of dying. Who said that anyone's going to die?" Aretha interrupted them. The couple were too caught up in their argument, they didn't even notice her presence. "We work fantastic together as a team. We've surpassed worse odds before." she continued. She turned to face the Scottish agent. "Jack, if she wants to come with us, then let her." she said, before turning to face her friend. "Alex, if you want to stay behind, then stay. Make a decision now! We're wasting time here arguing. Now, let's all go back to the office, shall we?" she told them. She turned around and went back inside the office.
Jack looked at Alex once they were alone. "I will not apologize for wanting to keep you safe." he whispered to her.
"I know. And I won't apologize needing to be there for my friends." Alex said, as she gently caressed his cheek. Together, they went back inside Aretha's office.
"Everything's good then?" Asher asked once they were inside. The two nodded. "Now that the gang is back together, I think I speak for everyone when I say that we'd appreciate more details regarding the job. Like, sometime soon would be awesome."he pressed.
"Any of you have heard of the name Graham Donoghue?"Jack asked the Vadzel crew.
After a brief pause, it was Zeke who answered. " He's fomer British military, before he turned rogue. They call him 'The Death Monger'...The Merciless Merchant, whose expertise include assassination, espionage, torture, sabotage, drug trade, human trafficking, arms dealing. Hell, he'd kill his own grandmother for the right price! Wanted in 42 different countries for a laundry list of crimes and is in the watch list of every alphabet organization in the world. Filthy rich and has the right connections, so he has never been arrested." he elaborated.
"Have you met him?" Aretha asked.
Zeke shook his head. "No, but he's had dealings with some people I used to know." he answered. He turned to Jack. "I assume that Donoghue is the man involved in stealing the nuke?" he asked.
Jack nodded. "Yes, it was him." he confirmed.
"How the hell did one man manage to steal a nuclear weapon that was heavily guarded by armed soldiers?" Aretha pressed.
"A couple days ago, an unidentified man in a motorbike came up along side of the transport, put a magnetic charge on the side and detonated it. The lorry flipped over, the man came closer and shot all the military personnel guarding the warheads." Jack informed them.
"Again...ONE man stealing a ballistic missile?" Asher let out a low whistle.
"He didn't steal the whole missile, Asher." Jack told him. "He only removed primary from the missile. The primary is with uranium. If detonated, it could still take out an entire 15 city block, and kill at least 500,000 people in a densely populated area." he explained.
"And you're sure that this was Donoghue's work?" Alex asked.
"Yes...fortunately, one of the CCTV monitors places him in the area around the same time of the incident." Jack answered. "We also have reports of him leaving the country incognito, right after the theft." he added.
"And you have reason to believe that he's in North Korea...why?" Aretha asked him.
"A sleeper agent from MI-6 based in Pyongyang confirmed that Donoghue sneaked into North Korean territory yesterday morning." Jack replied.
"I don't get it. You have a sleeper agent there already, why can't you just send more? Hell, this is more like a job for 007!" Asher interjected.
"You DO know that James Bond isn't real, right, kid?" Zeke told the hacker.
"I'm just saying...why can't MI-6 just send more agents there, catch Donoghue, and drag his ass back to England?" Asher pressed.
"It's not as simple as that, Asher." Jack replied. "This CAN'T come back to us. That means no intel ops unit or military presence. We need absolute deniability in this case. I can't even take my own partner with me." he said.
"And yet YOU yourself are headed over there to catch this terrorist." Alex pointed out.
"And the Trident D5 has a distinctive signature. It can easily be traced back to the Royal Navy submarines." Aretha reminded him.
"Which is why we need to get it back." Jack told her.
"Again...why all the secrecy?" Alex pressed.
Jack looked at her and sighed. "As we speak, there are talks 'behind closed doors' between the UK Prime Minister and the Supreme Leader of North Korea regarding nuclear disarmament. Any mention of UK nuclear weapons' presence in North Korean soil would jeopardize the crucial ongoing negotiations with the country." he explained.
"And that's what Donoghue must be counting on." Zeke assumed.
"What do you mean?" Asher asked.
"Detonate the nuclear device in Pyongyang will definitely end any nuclear disarmament talks. You need to understand, there are plenty of people who, for business purposes, would not want these negotiations to happen and these people are willing to spend an obscene amount of money to make sure it fails." Zeke explained.
"For every peacemaker in the planet, there are 10 warmongers to stop him. It's a dirty industry." Aretha added.
"So, Donoghue was paid to plant a nuclear device with a UK signature in North Korea with a to halt the negotiations and pit the two nations against each other? This could start a war." Alex said.
"That's his plan...and we need to stop him." Jack replied.
There was a long pause, until Aretha broke the silence. "Alright everyone, you know the drill." she said to her crew. "Pack a bag, feed your pets, kiss your loved-ones. Looks like we're going to North Korea." she told them.
~END OF CHAPTER ONE~
FOOTNOTES:
*All the character in this chapter (other than the villain) have been in some of my previous THC stories.
*Yes, they do live in a castle. [FIC : Budapest]
*Again, this is a work of fiction...I don't really know anything about nuclear warheads, so don't fault me for inaccuracies.
*Many thanks for reading this chapter. If you liked it, please feel free to leave comments and kudos.