CħᴧᵽṪ€ᴙ 1

"Pull over!"
"But! We're almost at the hotel."
" I need something to eat."
Sarah looked at Carina and shook her head. Then signalled to turn into the Circle K confectionery store.
"Where do put the stuff. You don't seem to gain a pound."
"Let's just say it replaces other stuff."
Sarah pulled up to the door and put the car in park, following Carina into the store, casually walking the aisles hoping that something would catch her eye or scratch that itch as well.
Paying for their items they headed to their hotel. Gavelston was not a planned stop as their destination included some long awaited RnR, mai tai's, a beach and all the sun they could absorb in Miami. But Beckman's called and cancelled their plans, forcing them to stay the night and head out at the next available flight to London.

Beckman's way of approaching her missions and her agents was her way and the only way. She wanted them there to assist a current mission which would involve doing their part as to "getting as close as they could" to a man named Anton Augustus. Whom Beckman placed at the top of her to do list. Along with MI6, and her two best Clandestine agents their hopes were to smoke him out of hiding for the murders of an undercover agent and her team. Apparently, he found out that she had been sharing his secrets with MI6 and Interpol for the deaths of an Georgian family and possible others who had crossed him. Before she was shot and killed, she reported that a small group of people had escaped their small town stating that many had already disappeared for no reason after a truck drove into town driving to one particular family, taking them then coming back to grab a few more. The team assumed from what they had heard and uncovered that there could be a possible smuggling ring. MI6 didn't know how far the agent had gotten herself involved but it ended up that her team wasn't spared being taken as well. Presumably dead as well. Word got back to Beckman that her help was needed when one of the 'viable' individuals who was abducted was an American aid worker and his family, who's military background had ties to Beckman. After hearing this, Beckman wanted more than what MI6 felt was being done. She knew that there was more to this story and the story had to be heard. Hence the recruiting of Sarah and Carina.

As Carina munched on her various purchased items, Sarah nursed her coffee as she looked for the hotel. Carina continued to munch and stare out her window. As they approached the intersection just before the hotel and Sarah watching the lights. Carina scanned the area and to her surprise, saw someone that she thought she would never see again nor did the driver. Not wanting to alert Sarah. She grabbed her phone and snapped a picture. She was positive that whom she saw was him. As Sarah sped forward. Carina turned back to help her justify what her next steps would be.
"What are you looking at?"
Carina then sat facing forward and put her phone away.
"Nothing really. "
"Hot guy I bet."
"Maybe." As she avoided making eye contact with Sarah.

Settling into their hotel rooms. They planned to meet in the morning. Sarah rolled her suitcase down the hall to her room as Carina slid her card into hers.
Opening the curtains and opening the window to get some air, she grabbed her phone and brought up the picture. The resemblance was uncanny. Either it was him or life was playing a cruel joke. Grabbing her lab top she downloaded the picture and didn't a facial scan. Seconds later she had her answer.

Marine Lane – Bay Area West Gavelston

Chuck walked up to his plain but quaint water front bungalow, placing his bags onto the counter. Emptying them, and placing a few of his purchases in the fridge, he grabbed a plate to house his round steak. When his room mate entered the room. Chuck looked up. "Now you come out." Chuck reached down and gave his big pup a friendly pat down. Jenny was the last thing that Chuck wanted in his life. The last thing that he wanted to take responsibility for, but when Ellie and Devon decided to try Doctors without border again they couldn't take their 4 month old puppy with them. So Chuck agreed to take the pup and the only name that he could think of at the time was Jenny, so Jenny stuck. Chuck told himself that it was because he had been watching Forest Gump and the Jenny was Forest's best friend. But who was he kidding there was another reason. Chuck open the door but pushed his steak further back on the counter. Heading outside with a beer in his hand, it was finally perfect BBQing weather after weeks of rain. Lighting the BBQ he looked out, reminding himself that he didn't have to worry about time because he promised himself to not worry anymore about time, schedules or anything that his past had given him or taken away from him.

Wiping his brow and his neck of the sweat that awaited him after his walk to the market, he looked in the mirror, sliding his hand through his longer locks, taming the animal shapes that had a habit of appearing in this humid environment. He continued to watch his BBQ warm up. Chuck leaned over his balcony staring out watching the boats enter and leave the marina. This never got old. Laughing to himself, he couldn't remember when his love of the ocean had started but since moving out here it had remained strong even after leaving LA almost two years ago. Taking a swig of his beer, he nodded and toasted the late afternoon sky congratulating himself for finally taking the advice that was given by several people, who told him that he was capable of doing great things. He was also tired of his five-year plan morphing into that recurring nightmare of never becoming a reality.

Flashing back to LA two years ago, his flashes were no longer those of CIA or NSA or any other agency or some important governmental files but memories that allowed him to stay true to himself and put the past behind him. His dream of starting his own computer company, was the best investment that he ever put his money into. Devon and Ellie helped financially at first but quickly took a back seat when Chuck's business started paying off. Fulfilling his dream yes, but not cutting ties with his sister, Devon and Morgan. He kept in touch with Casey, as much as he needed to. Casey would drop in once in awhile on his way back from a mission. Staying a few days, then leaving in the middle of the night because duty called. But Casey never brought up the months after Paris. Chuck even cut ties with his dad by selling the cabin and taking all his dad's instruments and gadgets with him. Mostly to keep his dad close by but to pay homage to a man that he didn't really know but wanted to know. At least Chuck thought that his dad would have some small part in his dream.

Grabbing his steak from the kitchen, he seared the steak to the exact texture and turned over the baked potatoe and assorted vegetables which needed a few more minutes. Dishing up he sat in his favourite chair with Jenny sleeping at his feet, looking out at the water. This was his dream but unbeknownst to him this was the calm before the storm.

HOTEL

Carina sat back still trying to get some info on Chuck. Why was he here? What happened between him and Sarah? What had he been doing the last few years? She tried searching Chuck through her channels but came up empty. Her clearance only gave her the least amount of info. It was like he had been erased, vanished or better yet had someone pretty high up in ranks that made sure he wasn't going to be found by anyone. Carina opened another search engine and did a search on Sarah's past entries. She knew that Sarah had left LA abruptly almost two years ago when she flew back to DC looking like she had just lost her best friend. Carina typed in her log ins dating back two years with key phrases but found as much as she did on her own search. Sarah had looked into Chuck a few weeks after returning to DC most likely clearing up some business or work-related issues but like Carina her searched came up empty as well. She wondered what Sarah or even Chuck had done to have both of them living the life they had now after what they had gone through that last year.

Sarah grabbed a towel wrapping her body then grabbing another one to dab her hair dry. Wiping down the mirror from the steam she grabbed her hair brush and for the first time in a long time, he popped into her head. Seeing the reflection of the sun on the dampened tile behind her triggered the time that they had been casing out Guy Lafleur's hotel room, ending up tearing off their clothes sharing a moment while the hot water cascaded over their almost naked bodies. Happily, they weren't hurt but sadly it just added to the pressure of their "fake" relationship knowing that it wasn't going anywhere. Closing the shower curtain, she finished combing her hair, returning to the main part of her room. Calling for room service she curled up opening a beer to start but ended up grabbing the real stuff after the pain was too much. Sarah crashed into her covers instantly being drawn back to the last day of her best job she ever had to the first day of her new forever with out Chuck. Heart broken she dove into her missions. Even trying her hand at being a handler again to a up and comer agent but it wasn't the same. She knew it and Beckman knew it as well. Sarah would see Casey once or twice and would converse on a few missions but out of courtesy Chuck wasn't mentioned yet Casey wanted to let Sarah know that Chuck was doing ok. Ellie still kept in touch till Sarah was unable to answer the many questions Ellie had about her and Chuck and felt that Chuck's actions were warranted.

Carina woke up looking at the clock and seeing 2:30 am. Grabbing her hotel key card, she phoned down to have them hail a cab for her. Carina had dozed off to find Chuck's DMV photo and address awaiting her. Carina swore to herself that she was the worst spy ever. Laughing out loud she could have had this search done hours ago but, she didn't know his real name. Well his given name. Cause Sarah and Casey always called him Chuck or Agent Carmichael, he never had a real last name. Reading his bio after LA, she was impressed to see that he had done so well but wanted to know why they broke up. Exiting the lobby to the cab she gave the driver the address and to her surprise his place wasn't too far from their hotel. Having the driver drive pass the house then swing back, Carina stepped out asking the driver to stay for a bit. Closing the door quietly as it was way to early to cause some nosey neighbour causing some issues, she stared up at the home of Chuck. Walking quietly, she had to make sure that this was the Chuck she knew. Reaching the top of the balcony, she peeked into the closet window but looked up to find a small but impressive camera making its way around to her direction. Taking it as a clue she stepped down just in time and got back into the cab. Stepping out of the cab the driver piped up. "Did you find what you were looking for."

Carina bent down and smiled. "Yes, more than I realized."

The next day

Sarah sat down in the airports waiting area waiting for their flight. Carina finally got through security joining her friend. It would be another 15 hours till they would arrive in London. Sarah got up and turned to face Carina. "Need anything?"

Carina looked up. "Sure, some magazines, chocolate, some licorice and…."

"I'll buy the whole store."

"Okay."

Sarah shrugged her shoulders and walked over to the duty free store. Browsing through the magazines she grabbed a few items here and there to tie them over on the long flight. As she reached for the latest Entertainment weekly. Carina looked up to see a man across from her reading the local paper which on the front cover had a exposѐ on Chuck as one of the most eligible bachelors in Gavelston. It was a very fetching photo but if she didn't get to Sarah in time she would see his face. As Sarah reached for the magazine Carina swooped in stepping in front of the clerk who had just placed the local newspaper to Sarah's left. Extending her arm Carina was able to divert Sarah's eyes away from seeing the paper. Reaching for a random magazine instead Carina added it to the pile as Sarah paid for the items. Carina took one last look back then quickly smiled at Sarah as they walked out of the store.

LONDON

Beckman greeted Carina and Sarah as they exited the elevator. The new MI6 building was very impressive, a major upgrade from their last place. As assistant agents took their luggage, they were escorted into a high security meeting. Sarah and Carina sat down less than dressed for a major important meeting but as Beckman was introduced she apologized for her agents attire, the two sat back taking notes to debrief later.

"Anton Augustus. Anton Wilhelm Augustus born June 23, 1968. Born to a prominent Belgium family, he grew up spending his daddy's money and learning the benefits of the family business but felt that his dad's financial endeavours needed an upgrade. So, reportedly he started escorting immigrants at a cost that ended up making him a lot of money."

Carina raised her hand. "Excuse me General but what does that have to do with this team?"

"Agent Miller, we have intel that there was more to him just escorting immigrants to various countries for a cost. Interpol has audio of him talking to Interpol's agent Harper who weeks ago along with her team were executed at close range after he found out that she had shared intel with us. And that one of the family's taken is an American family with ties to our military. So that is why there is more to this."

Sarah and Carina looked at each other as the images came up on the screen of the after math. After the gasps had settled and a few more details were explained the room quickly exited only leaving, the two of them, Beckman, four Interpol agents along with three MI6 agents. Sarah scanned the room not recognizing anyone. As they resumed their seats the brainstorming began.

Sarah and Carina took team one and Beckman joined the other team across the hall. Sarah and Carina worked the room making a good start on possible directions that this mission could go.

Sarah jotted down on the white board the word ACID – as she continued to write Carina relayed what the word meant.

"ACID Aggressive Criminal Interdiction Detail involves taking down one asset to another. Building a picture of the person in question, network and ween out the connections that add up to the bigger picture. That's how we find people that don't want to be found. We know that Anton will continue to go into hiding if we go in guns a blazing. We know what he can do and what he could be capable of doing."

Sarah and Carina looked around as the heads were nodding but it was too early to tell that they were all on board. Sarah and Carina continued to piggy back on their expertise as Beckman the others returned from the other room. Beckman walked past the board and was very pleased with what she saw. As both teams presented their data and plans by the strike of midnight they had agreed on a plan. Agreeing to reconvene at a more reasonable hour, Sarah and Carina hailed a cab to their new digs south of London. Crashing in their rooms their long-awaited sleep over took them.

Arriving a few hours later, dressed in their CIA attire, they met with Beckman the team that would be backing them up. While Sarah and Carina slept Beckman put the team together and devise a plan that would have Sarah posing as an interested party with the option to use whatever methods was needed to get the intel they desperately needed. Carina along with Interpol's Samuel Garrison would play a married couple looking into moving precious cargo across to Russia which would allowed them to create a back story even Anton wouldn't want to miss having his hand in it. Their hopes were that once they met Carina and Samuel, Sarah would enter making a profitable presentation that with the right twist of things would be too much for the young couple but very tempting for someone else. As Sarah worked the room so to speak, and once they got Anton where they wanted they would move in and arrest him and his team. Beckman wanted to make sure that her agents were on board and when both agreed Beckman gave the nod to push this mission forward.

GAVELSTON

Chuck jumped into his car unaware that he had a visitor hours before. Driving to his office that he had renovated from an old cotton mill, his team was hard at work. Not to brag but his space was much more friendlier and happier than Roark's building ever was. Chuck's motto was to dream big even when your faith was smaller than a mustard seed. As those words in Tron font as he called it covered the main lobby, he walked over to the coffee house and grabbed himself a cup of java. Taking a sip of his perfect coffee, he made his way to his office. Grabbing his messages from his admin assistant he walked in to his bright office facing downtown, pushing play on his Rush greatest hits and sat down at his desk.

Getting right to work he sat down to continue his work on some new soft ware that Casey had asked him to look into. Casey knew that he hadn't flashed since Shaw but felt that Chuck's knowledge of the intersect would be helpful even without flashing on the secrets he still kept. Not to say that Chuck was never tempted to 'flash' when boredom set in and with the last upgrade or reboot as he called it he didn't want to jinx it to what he would find if he flashed. With no new intel added the Government kept their promise to stay away but Beckman hoped that when the time came she could rely on him. When Chuck arrived in Gavelston he set up his father's system in his secret base in his new home, away from prying eyes. Fidgeting here and there Chuck was able to recreate a cypher that his dad was planning to use originally with Roark but saved it to use when the time came. But unfortunately, he didn't see it become a reality ever. Handing over the new Orion cipher to Beckman in a boxed envelope he signed it – in good faith Chuck. The cipher would tie the CIA/NSA over for hundreds of missions with detailed intel but maintaining the integrity of actually using agents to do their work by themselves.

Pulling out his drawings that Casey and him had discussed over several glasses of Johnny Red, Black or whatever color it was. Chuck got to work trying to envision a small enough gadget that could be worn maybe inserted into a vest or other gear worn by agents or service men and women that would be a GPS locator or even as a multi tool. Reaching for his file of products already out there, Casey circled what he liked of those items and wanted them all included into this one item. With out breeching copyright – it had to be different than what he was seeing but still Casey approved. Moving his chair to his computer Chuck scanned his drawings and created a 3D image then sent it to be printed. Chuck loved his 3D printer too bad he didn't have half of the toys he had now when he worked at Buy More.

Working till noon, Chuck locked up his drawings and work and headed out. Being the boss had its perks. Checking on his small but diligent staff he left for the day. Arriving at home changing, he and Jenny went for their daily walk along the shore. Tossing rocks and throwing sticks their walk had them reaching their next destination right on schedule. Jenny ran up to the stairs but still struggled with them but at least she was consistent. Sitting down in their favourite spot overlooking the restaurant and the beach they waited for their waitress. But when the owner heard them he came out. Chuck looked up and the resemblance was uncanny. This guy could have been a doppelganger of his best friend Morgan, made his homesickness less and less over the months that he first arrived in Gavelston. Garcia was his name and he was about 65 but reminded everyone that he was younger than that. Bringing Chuck his glass of water and a cold beer, he brought Jenny her bowl as well. Garcia sat down, smiled and waited for Chuck to place his order. Chuck looked over the menu then put the menu down. "If you know what I order everytime why do you bring me a menu?"

"Just in case one day you want to mix things up. "

"It will never happen." Seeing Garcia's expression Chuck closed the menu.

"If I ever changed my mind it would only be for a really good reason."

Garcia got up and grabbed the menu, shouting back to the small kitchen. "One Chuck's special."

Chuck was sure that Chuck's special wasn't on the menu but had to be written some where. His loaded taco and salsa combo with potato fries, cheese sauce and a slice of coconut cream pie was the only thing he ever ordered. Chuck looked down at Jenny to see that today she got an extra rib bone that with her small jaws had her work cut out for her. She was determined to prove everyone wrong that she was a big dog but her Maltese mix would never make her the size she felt in her little heart she was. Chuck sat back and waited.

LONDON – Weeks later

Carina and Sarah had made some leeway with finding Anton. Deciding to head to Istanbul to hopefully cross off some more name off their list, they hoped that it would bring them closer to finding Anton. Word was spreading through the back channels that another small amount of people had been 'taken' from a small town but when they arrived there wasn't much to go on. CCTV feeds did give them an facial of a man that owned a small trucking company and had lent out a few of his trucks for a job that matched the previous disappearance of many others. Sarah, Carina and Samuel sat in a corner of a local bar opening up an envelope that Sarah obtained from an informant. Opening the envelope, she pulled out a picture of an apartment. Turning the photo over there listed on the back was the name of the street and a number. Samuel opened his lab top and typed in the name of the street that was written on back. Only getting a list of possible names, he broadened his search to see if any of these streets where close to or in the vicinity of Istanbul. Getting a map of Istanbul, they found the exact street and thanks to google maps where able to find the apartment in the photo. Samuel got on the phone and made arrangement to have immediate surveillance on the apartment and to have a drone scan the area for any signs of life. Heading into the dark the three, drove to Istanbul hoping to get ahead of this mission.

Two days later

Carina and Samuel met with Sarah looking out towards the Galata Tower. Being in a public place made their jobs somewhat safe but still easy prey for anyone knowing that they were spies. Samuel was good at his job maybe too good but he knew the area and Beckman wouldn't have put him with Carina and her if she didn't think that he was capable of doing the job. Sarah knew Carina and they worked good together, I guess she just had to trust that it was a good match. Samuel updated Sarah, and knowing that someone took the bait, she hoped that it was Anton. Carina and Samuel had been busy the last few days hanging out at local establishments throwing cash and other items to make people the right people take notice.

Carina and Sarah headed down to the lobby of their hotel meeting Samuel who was dressed very casual but very elegant and Carina dressed in a dark burgundy low cut dress and Sarah dressed in her rendition of the black dress but this red sleeveless dress made heads turn and that is what she needed to do. Pulling up to the 360 night club located in a penthouse of a 19th century apartment building. It had a mesmerizing 360 degrees landscape view of the Bosphorus, Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmaroenthiuse. The trio walked in and made their rounds. Their meeting was in an hour and they had to be prepared with ways to exit if things got out of hand, always with a strategic plan. Sarah sat at the bar and casually ran her hand down and inside her upper leg to make sure that her knife was still within reach. They had come along way when the knives she carried wouldn't set off any alarm. Carina was bummed that she had to leave her gun at the hotel. Carina and Samuel poured the PDA on as on cue and had the nightclub taking notice. As the hour approached Carina and Samuel headed closer to the elevator as Sarah took the stairs to the next floor as to not draw too much attention that the three came together. As the elevator doors open Carina nodded to Sarah as Sarah looked into the elevator car and seeing the amount of people she answered back. "I'll meet you guys up there." Carina and Samuel nodded and continued with their PDA. Sarah finally reached the top penthouse, looking around she saw that the meeting had already started. Sitting in the distance but in clear view of Carina and Samuel, Sarah slid her ear piece into her ear and casually nursed her drink.