Chapter 2

The place was rather high end for breakfast. It was more suited for fancy dinners and maybe luncheons. Then again, the clientele that frequented the place expected all the fancy stuff. And it was where the guys on the hill made their deals to benefit or screw the common man. Simkins knew that he had to keep up appearances and straightened his jacket while looking for his contact.

Surveying the other patrons, Simkins resisted snorting at their superficial outlook while looking around. He found his contact and heaved a bored sigh before walking towards the table. He kept his hands in his pockets as he strolled towards the table. He grinned at the occupant and said nonchalantly, "Pretty high end for a meeting."

His contact looked at him with a raised brow. "This wasn't for your benefit, Simkins. I have a meeting with a very important client." They smiled at him and gestured to the empty seat. "But I am not rude. Please, have a seat."

Simkins snorted but took a seat with his best manners and raised his brow when a waiter came with a napkin and asking what he wanted to drink. He said he wanted water though he would much prefer a beer. He waited until the waiter was gone before saying, "Hobnobbing on the hill has always been your thing. A gift that you fully exploit. Suits you, Syd."

Sydney Lane gave a smile that was more polite than friendly as she took a sip of the hot tea that she had been drinking. She retorted, "And you look like you always do, Simkins. The podunk farm boy with a big mouth."

"Seven generations of horse breeders and still going strong even with all the crap I've been into, Syd. So, I know good stock when I see it." Simkins fingered the glass with his water but didn't attempt to drink it. He smiled politely and adjusted his seat. "I know you didn't summon me here to talk about that."

Sydney took another sip of tea. She didn't look at Simkins more as a means of putting him in his place even though she knew it wasn't going to have any effect on him. He simply didn't care anymore. She replied, "You didn't do your job. He's still alive."

Simkins leaned on the table and picked up his glass and took a sip. "We did the job and stole the tech. Not my fault Rook showed up."

"We both knew he would." Sydney looked up and folded her hands. Her gaze was impenetrable. Her voice became low, "Everything was calculated down to the fact that he would show up and when he did, it would be your job to finish him. That, you didn't do." She sat still, staring at Simkins as if it would intimidate him.

"You said finish him," Simkins pointed out. He gave a wry grin as he continued, "And that doesn't necessarily mean physical death, Syd. You should remember that there are ways to kill a man without it being bloody."

"I wanted him dead. He knows everything, and he could tell NCIS…"

"He won't."

"He will."

Simkins looked at Sydney with a deadpan expression. He stared at her for a moment before replying, "Have you forgotten the one thing he was known for, Syd?" He pointed at the table, tapping his forefinger on it. "When he gives his word, he keeps it. Wonder why he's called Rook?"

"I know why you jarheads gave him that."

"Hey, I'm Navy. Get it right." Simkins pointed at her in warning. He relaxed though to keep it civil since they were in a public place. "And don't diss your place either, Syd. Anyway, he won't talk."

"But he's still alive."

"And after what happened in Leland, looks like he'll be out of commission." Simkins took another sip of water as he crossed his legs. He looked around for a little bit and then looked at Sydney. "And I'm sure that you have your kissing ass will pay off once you demand investigation."

Sydney looked at Simkins with a look of dislike. She knew he was about business and he could be sly on the goading and occasionally would surprise you with flirting. Yet, he took his job seriously as he did morning prayers. She huffed as she looked away, "Rook is the only one that has the key to everything."

"I highly doubt it."

Sydney turned and shot a glare at him. "Don't be a fool, Simkins."

Simkins had been laughing at her when she snapped at him. He stopped and took a look at her. He could tell that she was being serious. He sighed and sobered, leaning back in his chair. "Syd, I know you found out a few things and you want to make them pay for what they did to all of us, but why do you want to kill Rook? He's one of us. He took the fall for us."

"Because he still believes in them even after all that they did to him." Sydney sat back in her seat and crossed her own legs elegantly. She took the silver pot and poured herself some more tea. "A fool and an idealist."

"But a damn good SEAL."

"Wasted his talents."

Simkins hummed in agreement as he put his hands in his lap. From a distance, he looked like a man that was having a business conversation and well relaxed. He sides and looked away to stare out the window they were near. "He's dead to them again, Syd. Check the security logs. He's the one that broke the encryption."

Sydney looked up from her cup. She looked at Simkins with a raised brow. She put the cup in its saucer and held it on her lap, "You what?"

"I figured that he would come alone; we both did. I also figured that he would have someone following him." Simkins chuckled at the memory. "He thought he could fool me into thinking that he would join us. Almost had the agent he was with convinced."

Sydney studied Simkins as she took another sip of tea. This was unexpected but there were still risks. With everything she found out… There was going to be hell to pay. She didn't like that a good man had to suffer all these years. It rankled that he still believed in the system and they were still using him. She was well aware that they used him for black ops; he was dispensable. And he did it for them so that they didn't suffer the penalty.

Placing her cup on the table, she checked her watch, "My client should be arriving."

"And I expect you will be getting the phone call soon about Leland." Simkins finished his water and stood up. He straightened his jacket and buttoned it. "Don't worry about Rook. He's expendable and they will keep him out of the way."

Sydney looked at Simkins with a firm look, "They better or we're going to have a problem."

"Don't worry, Syd. You know the cleaner for this kind of thing. You know how she hates him." Simkins grinned as he leaned over and gave a polite peck on her cheek. He whispered, "Rook won't be your problem. I'll always take care of you Syd."

"Just go."

Simkins smirked as he turned to walk away. He smiled politely so people would think it was just a friendly conversation. He gave slight wave as he turned to walk away. He left the dining area and made his way to the lobby where his right hand was waiting for him, looking bored when in truth he was annoyed that he had to stand there looking like an idiot. Simkins gestured at him to join and follow.

"How was it?"

"Just a sitrep."

"And?"

Simkins glanced at his right hand with a raised brow. "Continuing as planned, Warbler. Get the package ready."

Warbler nodded and continued walking side by side. He looked around and noted how the people just walked about doing their business. That was the thing about people. They ignored everything around them unless it directly pertained to them. He had seen it plenty of times and they called it the bystander effect. The world acted the same way with all the atrocities in the world.

"Everything is going to plan."

"I take it she didn't like that Rook is still alive."

Simkins snorted, "She thinks all problems have to be solved with a dead man. It's so fucking messy."

Warbler nodded in agreement. "And what of your methods?"

"She realized the implications."

Warbler nodded. He didn't really like the methods Simkins was taking. He had seen a lot when he had been placed on this assignment and each day he got in deeper, he worried that he would be found out. He suspected that when Simkins kept him arm's length from anything in the operation. He knew enough to know what was going down, but not enough to really nail the fact that technology was being sold to America's enemies, particularly terrorists.

Warbler looked at Simkins as they approached their car. He opened the back door and let Simkins in first before getting in. "If Rook does pull through, he'll go on the run. We won't be able to find him. They trained him to be a ghost after they pulled from JSOC."

"I know. The bastard always had a way of being sneaky on an op. Never lost a man until DZ."

Warbler blinked and looked out the window at the city. "Are you trying to make things difficult for Syd?"

"Just having a little fun, Warbler," Simkins replied with a grin. He looked at his man and added, "We already got one of those bastards that did this. If Rook gets in the way, I'll just take care of him. For the most part he's a dead man anyway. They'll look at treason for him."

Warbler blinked at that. That was a very real possibility. Inwardly he winced at the possibility. Everything that happened last night was going to come down hard on Rook. He could only hope that his injuries weren't severe enough and he could get on the move. Once that, Rook would make sure that no one that mattered would get involved.

"That woman that was there last night. She looked familiar."

Warbler turned his attention to Simkins. He raised his brow, "That NCIS agent? The one that looked ready to rip your throat out with her bare hands?"

"That's the one." Simkins looked ahead as he mused on it. "I know I have seen her before from somewhere. And you know that I don't forget a beautiful face."

Warbler narrowed his eyes slightly. He recognized the tone. Simkins was up to something. He recognized the woman, at least where she was from. "She's Mossad. I saw the necklace."

"The navy cops have a Mossad agent on their team?" Simkins looked at his man with disbelief. "Where the fucking hell is the world coming to? You sure?"

"Saw the Star of David, myself. Why?"

Simkins put a hand to his chin. An idea came to mind based on what he observed, "Oh just that I think I found out something about dear old Rook."

Warbler looked at Simkins in surprise, "You think…?"

"It was in the eyes, Warbler," Simkins answered. He leaned back in his seat. "I could see it and if I'm right… she will be the one that will help him."

Warbler felt uncomfortable with this. This changed the game if Simkins was having ideas about going after people not involved with DZ. He didn't let it show but his mind went to work on how he could work with the situation to make it less collateral damage. He closed his eyes as he recalled when he asked Rook to help them. Now, he felt like he was going to regret it.

The apartment could be considered the epitome of a geek's haven. The shelves were full of odd collections of action figures, electronics and hobby projects with no discernible logic to them. Books occasionally littered the shelves except for one bookcase that was full of books next to a desk that looked like a technician's disaster area. The place thought was fairly clean, and a person wasn't in danger of accidentally falling or injuring themselves on the gear that was there.

The blinds were drawn but the morning light was peeking in through the window of the section of the living area that was dedicated to work. Danny Chen was fast asleep in the desk chair, one of his splurges, after a long night. He had just finished working on a web page for a client that was worth quite a bit and spent the rest of the night surfing the net and then launching a campaign with his online squad against their rival. He had earned a little break.

He did have to face the consequences of waking up with a stiff neck and he groaned when he straightened up, trying to massage the crick in his neck. It was still early but he knew he had to get it together since he had a class today and he had to check his grade for the online course he was taking at a different university. Yeah, he was a geek, and some said a genius. He didn't think so, but he knew things.

Massaging his neck, he walked to the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day. He didn't feel like going to class, but he didn't want to fall behind either. Like that would happen. He was just easily bored. He wanted a challenge and managed to find that with one of the professors as a research assistant.

It was unusual research, but Danny liked the challenge of it. It also opened up the possibilities of other forms of employment. Building and maintaining websites was a hobby and it paid the bills. It paid to know tech. Professor Gibson though offered something that made movies like The Terminator seem like a children's program.

Finished with his shower, Danny dressed and came out of his room drying his hair. He grabbed the remote and turned on the television. The morning news came on and Danny heard it but wasn't really listening since it was the usual cheery stuff and what a good morning it was. He didn't notice that it was talking about a break in and an explosion. He heard it but didn't pay attention and he made coffee.

Watching the news was force of habit and he did like to be kept abreast of what was going on in the world. That saying about being informed, if there was one, made sense. He took a sip of his coffee and turned towards the television. He watched the newscaster as they talked about an exploding building and the footage cut to the outside of some building. Danny watched and shrugged as he turned to go and pack up his things. By then the story changed to some deal going on at the hill. All politics to him.

He finished and decided to check his emails before he left. He went back to his computer and woke it up to find a message across the screen. He frowned and almost growled at the thought that he was being hacked. He was one of those types that was paranoid about his cybersecurity. He had done it enough himself to know how to protect himself. He started tapping the keys on his keyboard to clear it up and maybe find out who was trying to be an asshole with him.

The screen changed, and a window popped up. Danny frowned as he looked at it. It looked like a set of vitals but not necessarily human vitals. It was a bit confusing, but it held his interest. Another window popped up, an IM message.

You said you wanted a challenge.

Danny read it and it disappeared quickly. He blinked as he realized what it was. Rolling his eyes, but with urgency, he pulled a cable out of his drawer and grabbed a laptop, a special one and plugged his computer to it. While it was working, he grabbed his bag and a few other odds and ends. Once it was done, he unplugged his computer and grabbed the laptop and shoved it in his bag. He was out of the apartment in a flash.

The university wasn't too far away, walking or, in his case, biking distance. He made be a nerd, but he liked to keep in shape. It was why he rode a bike and occasionally trained for a marathon. He jumped on his and began to cycle away from the campus. It looked like class would be missed today if it was what he was thinking that was on his laptop. No matter. Gibson would square it away.

Danny pedaled fast in the direction of the prearranged location. When he first signed on, he thought Professor Gibson was crazy about being off university property. He didn't think much of it when he agreed to it, thinking that he would cater to the crazy professor that was popular and brilliant and then he would get a good word in on his thesis. He never expected that he would actually be going there, but he was.

He pedaled his way through towards the building that they were to meet in. He tethered his bike with the others there, making sure that it was secure, and no one could take it. It was highly unlikely. But he didn't want to risk it. Making sure he had his bag, he entered the building and started going up the stairs, ignoring the sounds of people in the halls, the arguing couple that was always fighting about something.

Danny long got over the weirdness of having an offsite lab. He mostly thought it was a joke and humored the old man that gave him a coveted job while he was a student. Now, he was starting to think that there was more to it and it was on the laptop he held securely in the back around his shoulders as he made his way up the stairs.

The key was kept on a ring that he attached to a USB drive and made it look like it was something unimportant. It wasn't the best security, but it was enough to ignore when people noticed and asked about it. There was a spare key that was hidden at the door to the rented space and only to be used for emergencies. It was second nature to check and make sure that nothing was moved.

He was barely in the door when his cell phone rang. He shut and locked the door and answered it, "Hello?"

Are you there?

Danny recognized the sound of his mentor and resisted rolling his eyes as he walked towards the second room. "Yeah. I'm here G."

He was pretty informal with the professor and it was allowed. He opened his bag and pulled out the laptop. "The data started coming in. It was off the charts."

Plug it in.

"Working on it." Danny had put the phone on speaker to allow him to use both his hands. He pulled out the laptop and the connector cables. He opened the laptop to view the data streaming in as he moved to plug into the larger computer flat screen. He looked at the data and his eyes widened, "I've never seen anything like this."

You said you wanted a challenge. Are you up and running over there?

Danny rolled his eyes as he finished connecting and moved the data over and set it up. "You should be getting something now."

You know the protocol, Danny.

Danny rolled his eyes again, "Yeah. Only here."

Are you up?

"Yes. Stream is perfect, but…" Danny stared at the screen. "I have never seen anything like this. I mean the initial stuff was… well… normal." His eyes looked at the readings that had been separated out. "This is like off the charts."

How far off?

"Like something is wrong off the chart," Danny replied. "It's like whatever the system is went into overdrive."

There was silence over the line. Danny had been watching the feed, but he noticed the silence. He frowned at the silence and glanced at the phone resting on the table. "Professor G?"

I'm coming over. Don't leave.

Danny looked at his phone, "You do know that I have class today."

I'll square it away with your instructor. Stay there.

Before Danny could say anything, the line was disconnected. He growled and shook his head. It wasn't the first time that he had to miss class for this project he was working on. Always Professor Gibson was the one to square things away and there were no problems. Just a make up assignment. He never understood how that was possible, but it was, and he just went with it.

Sighing, Danny turned to look at the data. Since he had time, he might as well take a closer look at things. Initially, he thought it was some data from sensors or something from the research project that Professor Gibson had going on. The funny thing was that when he inquired at the office because he needed information for his financial aid, he was told that the professor wasn't working on any projects.

It had Danny suspicious, but he stuck with it since the professor was a nice guy and he was getting paid for his help. He certainly helped to build a few things for this. He was the one who made sure this place had the specs for their power needs. Eventually Professor Gibson revealed to him that this was an old research project that had started showing signs of change and he needed a better monitoring system.

It was a start and eventually Danny learned that it had applications for biomedical uses. That was the challenge he was looking for. He was a geek and a nerd and the idea that biotech could be advanced for use in humans was fascinating. Professor Gibson though looked worried and scared at the whole thing while he was setting up and didn't calm down until this place was built. Now, he was anxious again and it had Danny thinking that the readings he was getting had more to it than meets the eye, and it made him determined to find out.

Pulling up a chair, he began looking at the data that was coming in. To anyone looking at it, it looked like computer code. It just needed to be translated into something else. It was simple matter of putting it through the program, a few keystrokes. He did it and his eyes widened as to what he was seeing.

"Oh boy," he muttered as he stared at the screen.

The screen had shown several windows and they were readings like he suspected. It was just that they were more than what he was expecting. He sat back in his chair and ran a hand through his hair. "Man, I certainly didn't think that he had actually done it," he said as he stared at the screen. "But he did and looks like they are going wild."

A/N: Looks like Simkins wasn't in on the job alone and looks like another piece entering in. Stay tuned for next time on Rogue Agent...