Pairing/Chars: Kadam
Words: 1164
Rating: PG for language
Summary: AU - Agent Hummel is close to accomplishing his mission, but is told to get a move on; it's time to finally close down on Anderson sr through his son Blaine. Personal costs be damned.
A/N: Seriously, I don't even know. It just happened.
To Serve and Protect
"Do you know why you're here, agent Hummel?"
Kurt arched an eyebrow and cocked his head. "Actually, no, I don't. I already handed in my status report last week." Before his superior could say anything, he continued. "And to be quite honest, between my constant trips to Lima and being summoned here, my cover at NYADA is wearing very thin."
"So is our patience," the man opposite of him replied coldly. "The upper office is beginning to ask questions, Hummel. What can I tell them when they ask me why, after more than a year on this case, you don't seem to be any closer on locating Anderson senior?"
Kurt scoffed. "Well, you could tell them to stick their own job so I can do mine," he replied. "I worked hard on creating my persona and integrating myself into the Lima community. These things take time. I recall you saying you wanted the best on this case. I am the best."
"There's no need to get cocky, agent Hummel. We're not the only ones eager to finally crack down on Anderson's crime syndicate. The international associations keep offering to send in more men."
Kurt laughed without mirth. "Huh! Like Smythe?! Oh yeah, 'cause that worked so well last time! Sebastian Smythe nearly ruined everything! He was as unsubtle as hell. He might as well just have come out and said: 'hey honey, wanna tell me where your dad is hiding while I fuck your brains out?' Blaine would have never told him anything."
His superior made a sour face. "I agree that the French have their own ways, which may not always be appropriate in a North-American setting. Our sources had led us to believe Anderson junior might have been sensitive to such an approach."
Kurt rolled his eyes. "Which approach? The cheap pick-up lines or the part where he was nearly blinded?"
"There's no need to be sarcastic. Agent Smythe was reprimanded for that."
Kurt huffed. "Good. He nearly made me blow my cover," he commented. "After he awoke Blaine's libido it took great personal sacrifice on my end to keep him interested in me."
"Yes, I have read those status reports. We expected some kind of break-through after that."
"Like I wrote in the report, I invited myself to his house but I couldn't find any evidence or leads to his father's whereabouts there. It has to come from him. Building trust like that takes time." Kurt sighed. "Look, his immature tryst with the facebook guy set me back a lot. I couldn't just continue like nothing happened, it would have been out of character. I had to put distance between us. But I almost have him there where I want him. His google searches show he's actually thinking about proposing to me. It's ridiculous, of course, but it does mean he wants to get back together and-"
"Yes. We want you to accept that proposal."
Kurt blinked. "What? No! That would be absurd!"
"It would be the opportune moment to dig into his family background."
"It would assassinate my credibility!" Kurt protested. "We're not even a couple!"
"The upper office-"
"The upper office can chill the fuck out!" Kurt cut his boss off angrily. The man in front of him raised his eyebrows.
"Please mind your language, agent Hummel. You may associate with teenagers on a daily basis, but that's no reason to use their vocabulary."
"Then stop treating me like a child and tell me why I am really here." Kurt crossed his arms over his chest and waited.
"Very well," his superior replied, taking a manila envelope from a drawer in his desk. "We have reason to believe you are neglecting your mission."
"Excuse me?" Kurt said, "Just because I try to maintain a credible-"
He broke off when his boss pulled a stack of black and white photographs out of the envelope and laid them out on the desk. They were slightly skewed as if taken from a far off angle, but there was no doubt of its subject. The man clarified it all the same, reading his data from a sheet in front of him.
"Adam Crawford, Caucasian, male, 22 years old, nationality: English, familiar background: father deceased, mother 45 diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, siblings: two, female, 23 and 17, all residing in Sussex, England. Sexual prefer-"
"You're having me followed?!" Kurt interrupted, outraged at the invasion of his privacy.
"-preference: men," the man continued. "With cases of this magnitude, all of our agents are under surveillance, agent Hummel. It's for their own protection." He turned back to his data. "Mr Crawford attends the New York Academy of Dramatic Arts and leads an extracurricular club called The Adam's Apples. He has been associated with Agent K. Hummel both within his capacity as club leader as well as in a private setting off-campus."
Kurt clenched his jaw. His own protection indeed. "So?"
"Who is this man? Is he an agent? Is he from the British secret service? Are you sharing confidential information?"
"He's not a spy!" Kurt let out frustratedly. "He's just a student! He has nothing to do with this case, he doesn't know about me, okay!"
The man nodded as if this confirmed his suspicions. "Then you are wasting your time and the tax-payers' money dallying with him, agent Hummel. It says here Mr Crawford frequently spends the night at your Bushwhick loft. You cannot allow yourself to become distracted."
"I am NOT distracted. I know exactly what I'm doing!"
"Then give us something to show for it! A lead, anything to set us ahead. We are this close-" the man held his index finger and thumb closely together, "to another interference by the army. They still believe Anderson must be baited via Narcotics."
Kurt felt sick. "Officer Clarington could have seriously damaged those kids' health," he said quietly, the fight leaving him. He knew his private life would have to be put on hold (again), or the people he had spent over a year protecting would be at risk. He gave the pictures a longing last look. "Alright. I'll try it your way. But only if the rest of the cast is in, too. I'm not defending this ridiculous proposal on my own."
"All of them will be informed and on your side." Kurt's boss had difficulty concealing a smug tilt of the lips. Kurt knew he had to be delighted about this turn of events. Deny it as he might; he had disliked Kurt from the day he met him. Kurt met prejudices where ever he went. It hadn't stopped him from becoming the best at his trade.
"And I'm not marrying this boy," Kurt added. "If this thing blows up in my face because you are rushing me, I'm resigning. Either way, I'm pulling out before the wedding night." If there was any chance of getting back with Adam after this case, he wanted to be able to do so with a clear conscience.
