Chapter 2: The Family
California, Los Angeles, Glendale, September 23rd, 2007
"What?" Sarah Walker wasn't certain that she had understood correctly. "We're not going to take Bartowski into protective custody?" She stopped dressing and took the phone jammed between her cheek and shoulder into her hand.
"No." The director sounded… annoyed. Perhaps even angry. "It has been decided that we will start a joint covert mission with the NSA in Burbank to protect him while we investigate his… Intersect ability."
It has been decided… That meant, against the director's wishes. She bit her lower lip for a moment. This was what she had wished for Chuck - to stay with his family and friends - but she hadn't expected that her superiors would agree. "I am surprised that the NSA decided on this," she said.
"You suggested a similar course of action."
She had mentioned her suspicion that Chuck's 'visions' might not be triggered outside his familiar environment. But that could have been tested in a secure facility - without risking whoever had been behind Bryce's treason taking a shot at Chuck. "To deny the NSA control of the Intersect," she lied.
He snorted. "The NSA wanted to take him in protective custody."
She blinked. It hadn't been the director's wish either - she was certain of that. "Who decided this?"
"The Secretary of Homeland Security."
"But neither the CIA nor the NSA fall under their authority," she retorted. Further, she doubted that the secretary had been informed about the joint NSA/CIA project in the first place.
"Correct." The director practically spat the words.
"I see." She didn't - not completely. But she understood that someone else, someone highly placed in the government, was involved. And unless the NSA had a worse leak than Bryce had been, that meant… "Caridad."
"We've been ordered to leave 'Caridad' alone," the director confirmed her suspicions.
She was a trained agent - she didn't have to press her lips together to refrain from blurting out her reaction to this order. To leave the arrogant girl alone… "What are our mission's parameter?" she asked instead.
"This is a joint mission with the NSA. You will be the ranking CIA agent. The NSA will be represented by Major Casey."
Sarah managed not to groan - she had expected that. Still, working with that trigger-happy hardass wouldn't be pleasant.
"You'll have support from various agents but, due to security, they cannot be used for tasks that directly involve or require knowledge of the Intersect."
That wasn't good news either. Less chance of another leak, but it would make protecting - and working with - Bartowski harder than expected.
"Both of you will be working undercover close to Bartowski. Major Casey will take the role of a coworker at the Buy More." There was more than faint disapproval in the man's voice when he mentioned Chuck's workplace. "You will be provided with a cover job in the vicinity. Your main objective is to protect the Intersect until the data can be retrieved."
"Understood." She understood the difference between protecting the Intersect and protecting Bartowski as the CIA defined it. "That will require investigating Bartowski's environment."
"Of course. The security of the Intersect is paramount. Use your own judgement as agent on the spot."
"Yes, sir." Caridad certainly qualified as a potential threat. And as long as Sarah wasn't obvious about it, she'd be able to look into the girl's background without violating orders.
"As part of your cover, you will be posing as his girlfriend."
"Yes, sir." She had… expected that. After using a date as her cover to contact him, it made only sense to keep the cover going. It would certainly facilitate protecting him outside working hours. And working closely with him. Although since he was aware of her real background, she wouldn't have to go all the way, of course. "Has he been informed about this?"
"Not yet."
Ah. "I will do it at the first opportunity."
"Good. Major Casey is already in place. Your cover is being prepared as we speak. Documents have been provided, and you can pick them up on location."
That was faster than usual - but then, the Intersect was crucial for national security. "I will proceed to the location," she replied.
"Good luck, Agent Walker."
"Thank you, sir."
California, Burbank, Wienerlicious Store, September 23rd, 2007
Her cover job was operating a glorified hot dog stand that tried to pose as a small restaurant. By herself. Sarah would hurt whoever came up with this. Then she saw the uniform she'd have to wear and corrected herself. No, she'd kill them. She picked it up and glared at it. If she'd turn the skirt into hot pants, she'd have no fabric left over and a lawsuit from Hooters on her hands. At least the base underneath the store was coming along nicely. And she had a good view of the Buy More from everywhere in the store - it was just across the parking lot.
She put on the uniform - hiding anything under that would be a pain as well, she noticed - and went outside to check the few tables in front of the store proper when a commotion in the parking lot drew her attention. That was… Casey, chasing a young man. And there was Chuck, running after them.
She almost went back to get the gun from the secret compartment under the counter when Casey pounced and took the man down. And judging by the way Chuck and his friend Grimes - who had been tracking Chuck's car during their date, she reminded herself, something else to look into - behaved, it wasn't a mission-critical event. At least she doubted that Casey would have broken cover.
Casey dragged the man away, with Grimes following. And Chuck spotted her.
She smiled at his reaction as he walked over to her, still looking slightly dazed. "Sarah?"
She tilted her head and caught his eyes straying to her legs. "Yes?" It seemed that there was at least one good thing about the stupid uniform.
"What are you doing here?"
"I work here, Chuck," she replied, then adjusted the menus on the table next to her to emphasise her statement. There was no one near them, but parabolic microphones had a long range. "Come inside," she said and led the way. She glancing over her shoulder at him when she opened the door - and caught him staring at her legs.
Once they were safe from eavesdroppers, she told him: "It's just a cover."
"Oh. Like Casey." He shook his head. "I should have known that." After a moment, he added: "I mean, because it's logical, not because of the you know what." He pointed at his head.
She chuckled. "Yes. I can monitor the entrance of the Buy More while you work."
"Ah."
"There's more than that, of course."
"There's more? I mean, of course, there's more. I've got a ton of government secrets in my head, so you need to keep an eye on me for national security, right? Until this is sorted out, I mean."
"Right."
"I assume that that's already being prepared, right? There has to be some plan to deal with this."
"Yes."
"So…" He looked at his watch. "Uh. I need to get back to work before Casey executes the next shoplifter."
She knew that Casey wouldn't do that. Probably. But if he thought someone was a threat, all bets were off. "We'll discuss this tonight then," she told him. "Another 'date'. Eight good for you?"
"Ah… Yes." He nodded. "Another date. As a cover, of course."
"Yes, of course. I'll come fetch you."
He nodded again, then looked at her - her eyes - for a moment. "Yes. Until later, then."
She watched him go, then took her phone and informed headquarters.
California, Los Angeles, Echo Park, September 23rd, 2007
She drove a sports car to Bartowski's place. It wasn't the kind of car a waitress at a hot dog stand could afford, not even an owner-operator, but, presumably, it was a rental for the date. Good enough as a cover since she needed a car able to outrun pursuit. For Chuck's, for the Intersect's, protection.
He didn't have flowers this time, but he was dressed almost like on their first 'date' - just with a different shirt. Still the same jacket with the sagging pockets, though, she noticed.
"Uh, hi, Sarah," he greeted her, with his now familiar, slightly uncertain smile of his.
She beamed at him and opened the passenger door. "Hi, Chuck."
He opened his mouth, then blinked. "Sorry, almost made a stupid joke."
"About hijacking the car?"
"Uh, yes." He nodded. "That joke was the bane of my driving lessons. Well, sort of - in hindsight, I almost miss it." His smile slipped a little.
He would have taken his lessons in high school - in Sunnydale, Sarah remembered. The town that had disappeared into a sinkhole in 2003. "Nostalgia is a sign of growing old," she said with a grin to lighten the mood.
"A friend used to say that you have to grow old, but you don't have to grow up. Sorry," he added. "That was a little of a non-sequitur." He cleared his throat. "So, what are our plans for the evening? I'm guessing it's not exactly dinner and a movie, since, you know, this is just a cover. And, speaking of cover, my sister wants to meet my new 'girlfriend'." He made air quotes with his fingers. Nerd indeed. "You're invited to the Bartowski family dinner tomorrow evening, so you might want to think of an excuse that won't endanger your cover."
"Actually, I'm supposed to be your girlfriend."
"Uh." He blinked at her.
"As a cover."
"Ah, of course." He nodded several times.
"Is that alright?" she asked, tilting her head a little.
"Of course," he repeated himself. "It's part of the plan to deal with…" He pointed at his head.
"Yes. And it might make your friend stop harassing you if she thinks we're a couple." She refrained from frowning at mentioning 'Caridad'."
"She? Ah." He grimaced. "She won't believe it, believe me. I mean, believe me that she won't believe it. Which is actually a good thing. I don't want to know what she'd do if she would believe it."
Now she frowned. "That sounds concerning, to be honest. She seems obsessive." And she had access to weapons. Not a good combination. And the weird orders… she had to be working for an organisation, but which one? Not the FBI. They were far too straight-laced for crossbows.
"Ah, she's merely protective." He laughed in a rather forced manner. "Story of my life - my sister's the same, just not…"
"Not pointing crossbows at your friends?"
"Oh, she'd like to do that to Morgan, but he'd never let her forget it." He chuckled. "So, what's the plan?"
Her plan was to take a closer look at 'Caridad' as soon as possible. She had to investigate all threats to the Intersect - and Chuck's description of the girl certainly made her look like a threat. He didn't have to know that, of course. "There's a specialist who'll examine your head, to see what we can do about it."
"Uh. That examination won't involve needles or probing?"
She started the engine without answering.
"That's where you're supposed to tell me that it won't, you know."
"It's your best chance to get rid of the secrets in your head. That's what you want, right?"
"Yes, of course. It's just…" She glanced at him. He was grimacing. "...it's not a good sign if people suddenly are vague about probing."
"I'm reasonably sure it won't involve 'probing'," she told him, not bothering to hide her smirk.
"That doesn't rule out needles, though."
"No, it doesn't."
"Great." He closed his eyes. "Just keep the blood samples to a minimum. You never know when you need every drop."
She glanced at him again as she took a corner. That was a really strange reason for worrying about blood samples. She was tempted to tell him that anyone trying to kill you would shoot for his vital organs instead of letting him bleed out, but that would probably make him even more nervous.
California, Burbank, Buy More Store, September 23rd, 2007
"You know, I didn't exactly expect to do this here," Chuck said as they entered the Buy More. "Nor that you have a key for the back entrance. Although I probably should have expected that, on second thought, you being a spy and all. And Casey working undercover here."
Sarah suppressed her frown. Casey was a trigger-happy killer. "He's NSA; I'm CIA," she said. "We're working together because we were ordered to."
"Oh." Apparently, he understood what she meant. Given their meeting on the helipad, he shouldn't have expected anything else anyway. He cleared his throat. "So… what are we doing here, exactly? It's not exactly a hospital. In fact, I think some of my coworkers repurposed the first aid station into a drug lab a few years ago."
She chuckled. Since he laughed, she assumed that he had been joking. She still made a mental note to look into his coworkers. Drug addicts were a liability. "No. We've set something up so the doctor can examine you without seeing you so your identity will remain safe."
"Oh." He blinked. "Wait. If he can't even see me, then… You knew there wouldn't be any probing or needles!"
She smirked as she waved him into the store's home theatre room they had repurposed for this. He looked kind of cute when pouting.
"...the plot to assassinate Carter was set up by…"
"...the KGB director in 1978 was…"
"...was shot down with a man-portable surface-to-air missile.."
"That's a picture of a turtle."
"And the test is done," Dr Zarnow said after Chuck's last answer.
"Already? Did I pass?" Sarah heard Chuck's voice through the speakers. Casey rolled his eyes and grit his teeth, but Zarnow nodded. "You did, sir."
"Great. And that means?"
"That's classified." Casey cut the line with a grunt.
"Patient X is phenomenal." Zarnow looked impressed.
"Phenomenal?" Casey snarled as if he had been insulted.
"That one person could see all the Intersect images with their encoded secrets… and recall them when seeing the pictures again. I would have never imagined it." The older man shook his head in a bemused manner.
"Yeah, yeah. Can you remove the secrets from his head?" Casey growled.
Zarnow nodded slowly. "Yes, I think I can. Of course, that won't be possible without actually meeting the patient."
"That's up to our superiors," Casey snapped.
"Of course." It wasn't the first time the doctor had been fishing for information. At least he wouldn't expect 'Patient X' to be working at the Buy More - Casey's rough manners had sold that particular double-bluff.
Zarnow packed up his laptop and left the Buy More. Sarah looked at Casey. "I'll drive Bartowski home."
He grunted, already packing up the equipment they had set up - which apparently had come from the store's stock.
Neither of them took their eyes off the other until Sarah had left the room as well.
California, Los Angeles, Echo Park, September 24th, 2007
She parked her car in front of Chuck's home, then waited until he finished eating the last of the fries they had bought on the way home - Chuck apparently hadn't eaten dinner before their 'date'.
"So, what happens now? With my…" He drew a circle in the air near his temple with his index finger.
"The doctor's optimistic that he can retrieve the secret data from your head."
"Ah. That's good." He nodded, but he looked a little torn about it, or so she thought. "So, I guess once this is dealt with, we'll be splitting up."
She nodded. "Yes."
"Uh." He licked his lips. "Can we do that in a way so my sister and friends won't think that I again got my heart broken by a girl ?" His smile looked more like a grimace. "After Jill, they were really… overbearing about this. Overprotective. I'd really rather not go through that again."
"Sure." It was the least she could do. She also wouldn't mind not being seen as the evil seductress or slut. Not that it mattered what his family thought of her since they wouldn't see each other again after this mission.
"And it'll keep Caridad from killing you."
Her slight regret turned into annoyance as she frowned at him. "I'm a trained agent," she reminded him. Why would he think the girl could kill her?
"I know, I know. I saw your work."
"What?" She narrowed her eyes at him.
He grimaced again and held up his hand. "I didn't mean to - I, uh, 'flashed' earlier today when I saw you at the Wienerlicious."
"What did you see?" She hadn't expected that - had that been the reason he had been so distracted, instead of her uniform?
"Just you fighting those French guys." A blind man could have told that his smile was forced.
That had been an assassination mission. A top-secret one. "Don't mention this to anyone. Least of all Casey," she hissed.
He nodded several times and ran his hand over his mouth. "My lips are zipped!"
"Good." She waited until he had climbed out of the car, then added: "Casey's an expert in 'silencing' people. You don't want him to get the wrong idea."
"What? What do you mean?"
"Don't trust him," she whispered before she drove away.
California, North of Los Angeles, September 25th, 2007
Zarnow's car had burned out completely, but there was enough left to tell that it hadn't been hit by an RPG or missile. Probably an incendiary charge placed inside the car after it had ended in the ditch, Sarah thought. She had used similar devices to erase any traces on certain missions.
"Looks like on the Highway of Death," Casey commented. He sniffed the air. "Lacks the smell of burned bodies, though. It just doesn't feel right without that hint of barbecue."
Sarah ignored the disgusting remark but filed the information away. Casey could be blowing smoke, of course, but she thought he had been in the Gulf War - his age and background fit.
"The body could have been completely incinerated," she pointed out.
He scoffed. "You don't believe that."
She didn't - it was technically possible, but very unlikely - but shrugged anyway. "The lab will sort the ashes out."
"Either way, it looks like we won't be getting the secrets out of the idiot's head." He stared at her.
"You think Zarnow was kidnapped." Or turned by someone.
He made a grunting noise and twisted his lips into a parody of a smile. "They didn't tail him and ran him off the road." He pointed at the rubber marks on the road. "He braked and tried to avoid something blocking the street, with trees on either side to stop him. They had to know his route to prepare that ambush. That's not something you'd improvise."
She smiled mirthlessly at him. "Some people are good at improvising." She could have done this - she would have used her car to block the street. And she was dead certain that Casey could have done this as well.
"Like your colleagues?" He raised his eyebrows at her.
She glared at him. They wouldn't have had to arrange something like this. "They would have a done better job."
"Like Larkin."
Bryce. Her former lover. Former friend. Whose death had been covered up by staging a robbery, as today's newspapers claimed. She kept her face from showing any reaction other than a slight sneer. "Or someone trying to frame us." The NSA would love to cut off the CIA from the Intersect project.
He scoffed, but before he could insinuate more treason on the part of her and the agency, an agent canvassing the area yelled: "We've found a smartphone! And blood."
Sarah kept pace with Casey as they walked over to the bushes where the agent was standing. The phone didn't have to be connected to the incident, of course - but then, what were the odds a smartphone would be left here in the middle of nowhere? It was bound to hold some clue.
And it was crushed, Sarah realised before she crouched near the bush. There were a few drops of blood as well on the ground and on a leaf.
"How convenient," Casey commented.
"The lab should still be able to recover something," she told him.
Once more, Casey just snorted and bared his teeth. Of course, forensics could work small miracles, but not if someone who knew how they worked had taken precautions. Someone like an NSA agent who wanted to cut the CIA out of the loop.
"Well, I've got hot dogs to grill," she told him.
"And I've got toasters to sell," he replied.
California, Burbank, Wienerlicious Store, September 25th, 2007
"We won't know if the blood or phone are Zarnow's until forensics are done, sir," she informed the Director,
"And the NSA is cooperating?"
"They are acting as if they are, at least," she replied as she moved a bunch of hot dogs from the fridge with one hand.
"You think they are planning to go behind our back."
"It's possible." She was certain - and he knew it.
"If they kidnapped Zarnow, Bartowski is next. Keep an eye on him at all times."
"Yes, sir."
As soon as the director ended the call, she sent Chuck a message to meet her in the Wienerlicious.
It took him twenty minutes to come over. If not for the group of men who had come to stare at her body - they sure as hell hadn't come for her hot dogs - she would have closed the shop and gone over to check on Chuck. But she couldn't risk her cover like that.
And he was there. Nervous, as far as she could tell, and glancing towards the Buy More entrance every few seconds, but unhurt. Casey probably had tried something. Time to undo what damage the agent had wrought.
"Are you alright?" she asked as soon as the other men had finally left.
"Uh, yes. Fine, I'm fine," he lied, confirming her suspicion.
"The doctor we met last night was kidnapped shortly after he left the Buy More," she told him. Or killed - but there was no need to tell him that.
"Ah. The doctor who was supposed to fix me."
"Casey already told you."
He nodded and glanced at the Buy More again.
"And he told you not to trust me." You could always trust the NSA to doublecross the Agency.
"Uh." He flashed a weak smile at her.
"Don't trust him. Don't be alone with him," she told him. "If the NSA kidnapped Zarnow, they'll kidnap you next." That's what she'd do, in their place. Not that she was planning to kidnap Chuck, unless as a last resort.
"But…"
"If he thinks it's the best solution, he'll kill you without a second thought." He had to understand that.
Chuck nodded, but she couldn't tell if he believed her. She struggled not to wince when she realised that he knew she had killed in the line of duty if he had 'flashed' on her. Damn.
He cleared his throat. "I have to go back, or he might think exactly that. That killing me is the best solution."
"He won't," she told him. "That would destroy the Intersect." His smile froze. Apparently, that wasn't as reassuring as she had hoped it would be. She sighed internally. They would have to work on that, or the dinner tonight would be a disaster.
Chuck would also have to work on his poker face, she realised five minutes later when she spotted Casey making a beeline for Wienerlicious. She hadn't expected him to fool Casey, but she had hoped he'd hold out a little longer.
She kept smiling as she handed another takeout order to a teenager who wouldn't be able to say what colour her eyes were, but would be able to describe every wrinkle of her top. She was already placing her free hand near the handle of the throwing knives hidden under the counter.
As soon as the customer had left the store, Casey spoke. "What did you tell Bartowski?"
"That you'll kill him if you think it's needed," she replied. Baring her own teeth, she added: "Am I wrong?"
"No," he spat.
She caught him shifting his posture a little. His right hand rested on his hip - close to the concealed holster in the small of his back. She pulled a throwing spike under the counter. If he moved…
"Only two people knew about the doctor's visit," he said. "You and me."
And she hadn't sold the doctor out. That left Casey. He must be here to silence her and wanted her to know it, the smug bastard. She had to stop him. Take him out. Something moved outside the shop, but she couldn't afford to take her eyes off the killer.
When the door was pushed open, she almost threw her spike, but she managed to control herself. Customers. Half a dozen young men - one of them had been here at lunch. And all were beaming at her.
She forced herself to smile back at them as Casey left the store and headed back to the Buy More.
Damn.
She clenched her teeth. She couldn't take the killer out in the middle of the parking spot. Not with so many witnesses. But he wouldn't be able to take Chuck. Not in the middle of the store. And she had warned Chuck - he might not fully trust her, but he wouldn't trust Casey either.
Or so she told herself as she started serving the leering teenagers. Besides, it was just half an hour until dinner.
California, Los Angeles, Echo Park, September 25th, 2007
"Ah, you must be Sarah!" Chuck's sister greeted her at the door with a wide smile.
"Yes, I'm Sarah."
Ellie stepped to the side, nodding at her. "Chuck's running late, some last call at work, according to Morgan. I'm Ellie."
Sarah had to struggle to keep smiling as she entered the house. Chuck hadn't answered his phone. That could be work-related, of course.
"Yeah, he's the Nerd Herd PC guy. And Linux. And anything else Jeff and Lester can dump on him," Grimes said, waving at her from the table.
"I'm Devon!" Ellie's boyfriend, slicing bread in the kitchen told her. "Welcome!" He looked very fit, as Chuck had described him. Fit enough for an agent.
"Hi," Sarah said, fishing her phone out of her pocket. She'd call Chuck again.
"Hi."
Sarah almost dropped her phone as she whirled and came face to face with a widely-grinning 'Caridad'. How had the girl managed to sneak up on her?
"Caridad!" Ellie snapped with a glare before she turned to Sarah and smiled. "I'm sorry - she does that all the time."
"Keeps strangers on their toes," Caridad replied.
"She's a ninja!" Grimes said, earning himself another glare from Ellie.
Sarah could almost believe that if the girl were Japanese. "I wasn't aware you were part of the family," she said. "Chuck seemed a little wary of you when we met." She smiled sweetly when she saw the girl's expression darkening in response.
"She's practically family," Grimes said.
Ellie expression said otherwise, but Chuck's sister didn't say anything. She glared, though. Which was an opportunity, Sarah realised. "Chuck said you're a doctor, Ellie."
"Yes. We both are," Ellie replied, gesturing - and smiling - at Devon.
"I'm working with Chuck at the Buy More," Grimes said. "But you knew that already."
"And you're working at a hot dog stand," Caridad said with a toothy smile.
"I'm the owner of the store," Sarah corrected her, matching the girl's expression. Caridad was standing too close to her - even a French person would have felt their personal space were invaded - but Sarah wouldn't retreat. Not from the girl. She was a trained CIA agent on a mission. And Caridad was an obstacle she wished she could shoot on principle. "And what do you do?" she asked instead.
There was the slightest sneer as the girl answered: "I'm a courier."
"She makes deliveries," Ellie corrected her. It was quite obvious that Chuck's sister didn't approve of his friends.
"Pizza?" Sarah asked as sweetly as she could.
"All sorts of things," Caridad replied with a frown.
"I'll keep that in mind should I start deliveries," Sarah lied. She didn't believe for a second that the girl was telling the truth. Delivery women didn't sneak like her, nor did they carry crossbows - which, while not as silent as the movies made them appear, would work for assassinations, Sarah recalled. And a delivery was a useful cover in many locations. But the girl wasn't NSA nor CIA. And certainly not military. Who else was involved here?
Both of them were smiling at each other when Grimes cleared his throat. "So… how about them Lakers?"
"Morgan, no one here cares about basketball," Ellie said.
"You can't know that," he protested. "You haven't met Sarah before!"
Both turned to look at her.
"I'm not very interested in sports, sorry," she said, which made Grimes pout and Ellie smile.
"Well, you might want to change that," Caridad cut in. "I know it's hard, but at your age, exercise is important. You don't want to end up as a blob, do you?"
Sarah kept her temper in check. The girl was trying to provoke her. Probably wanted her to make a scene in front of Chuck's family. "I do exercise," she corrected the annoying girl. "I'm just not very interested in watching sports."
"I wouldn't have been able to tell," Caridad replied with a smug smile. "You don't look like it."
Sarah really wanted to shoot her.
Fifteen minutes later, Chuck still hadn't arrived nor had he answered his phone. Sarah was getting worried. And even more annoyed at Caridad.
"Caridad, don't touch the snacks!" Ellie snapped.
"But I'm hungry. The invitation said dinner would start at seven. It's a quarter past," the girl whined.
"There was no invitation for you," Ellie snarled.
"Now, now, we're all a little tense since Chuck's late, but that's no reason to snap at each other." Her boyfriend beamed at everyone. "Besides, there's enough for everyone."
There certainly was enough food for twice their number, in Sarah's estimate.
"That doesn't mean that we'll start without Chuck!" Ellie spat. "I haven't spent the whole day in the kitchen making pot roast so Caridad can pig out before we even start!"
"I've got a protein bar," Grimes said, waving said bar around.
Sarah blinked. Was he trying to bait the girl? Then she blinked again - Caridad had ripped the bar out of his hands and was already chewing. The girl was very fast - and very hungry. Sarah recognised the brand; those bars had enough calories for a full meal - for a soldier in the field.
"Thanks. At least someone is considerate of my special needs," the girl mumbled with her mouth full.
"Don't speak and chew at the same time," Ellie snapped.
In response, Caridad bared her teeth. If Sarah hadn't checked for hidden cameras already, she would suspect that she were on candid camera.
"Now, now - let's be nice, everyone!" Devon tried again to play peacemaker.
"Are they always like that?" Sarah asked.
"Oh… not always," Devon replied.
Ellie's expression contradicted his statement. But then the woman smiled again. "So, how did you meet Chuck?"
"Ah, I met him at the Buy More," Sarah said. "My phone was defective, and he fixed it in a minute."
"Oh, yes, Chuck's great with computers. And phones." Grimes butted in, nodding several times. "He's basically great. We've been best friends since kindergarten," he said. "And we moved together to L.A. after high school. I know everything about him."
Ellie's smile slipped a tiny bit as she nodded. "He's great, but he should be changing his… environment."
It was perfectly clear what Ellie meant, but neither Grimes nor Caridad acknowledged it - both nodded, instead, as if they agreed.
Sarah knew she was missing something. Something important. Something related to that annoying girl whose attitude could really do with some enhanced interrogation. Preferably conducted by Sarah herself.
"Chuck told me that you moved here from D.C. after a long relationship ended," Ellie interrupted Sarah's thoughts.
Apparently, Chuck had been interrogated himself. She nodded. "Yes. I needed a change of scenery - it wasn't a nice breakup."
Ellie nodded in sympathy. "You've got something in common with Chuck, then - his last serious relationship ended in a similar way."
"It ended because the bitch cheated on him with his so-called best friend," Caridad snarled.
"Second-best friend," Grimes corrected her. "As Larkin's actions proved, I believe." He nodded without waiting for agreement.
"Traitor," Caridad grumbled.
"We shouldn't talk like that about a dead man," Devon cut in.
"He's dead?" Sarah feigned surprise.
"Died a few days ago," Devon replied. "It was in today's news."
"Oh."
"Karma," Caridad added with a sneer. "The Powers That Be occasionally do their job instead of messing up or lazing around."
"The Powers That Be?" Sarah raised her eyebrows.
"She's Wicca," Ellie said.
"I'm not!"
"Close enough," Ellie replied.
The girl was wearing several crosses, Sarah noted. Which wasn't too unusual among teenagers, as far as she knew. But given the prominent crosses in the house, the girl using crosses as fashion statements might explain Ellie's hostility - together with the girl's horrible and entitled attitude, of course.
"I'm not Wicca. I'm a good Catholic girl," Caridad insisted. "I visit the church several times each week!"
"To steal holy water," Ellie said.
"It's not stealing!" Caridad pouted. "That was only one time and an emergency."
What were they talking about? Was the girl vandalising churches?
Grimes cleared his throat. "So… how about them Dodgers?"
Sarah was about to tell him that she had no interest in baseball either, but, the door opened, and Chuck entered. "Hi!"
He was much too chipper for their situation, Sarah noticed. And his shirt was dirty - earth, no, dust. She stood and was about to walk towards him to take a closer look, but Caridad had practically jumped out of her seat and all but pounced on him.
"What happened?" she snarled while Chuck was literally cornered.
Sarah frowned and stepped closer, then blinked. Was the girl sniffing Chuck? She was. And why wasn't anyone commenting on that?
"Oh, nothing… just, you know, a client that was still stuck in the eighties." Chuck was lying; Sarah could easily tell. Not that it was hard to begin with. "Pale too - probably hasn't been in the sun in ages. Turns out I couldn't do what he wanted, so I left."
Caridad snarled. "Where?"
"Lemme check the list," Grimes said, phone in hand.
"That's not necessary," Chuck went on. "Really not. I made it clear that we won't be taking their calls in the future. Shouldn't trouble us any more."
"You did?" Caridad practically growled.
And Grimes was taking notes? Sarah forced herself to keep smiling.
"Chuck! What did we agree about work and dinner talk?" Ellie said through rather clenched teeth. It made Caridad back off, at least.
"Sorry, Ellie," Chuck said. Then he turned to Sarah. "Oh, you look great!" he said. He wasn't lying - but he hadn't been paying attention to her at all until now, Sarah knew.
"Thanks!" she replied.
He rubbed his hands. "So, shall we eat before Caridad starts growling at us?"
"Yes!" the annoying girl exclaimed. "I've got work later, and I need to eat!"
"Yes," Ellie agreed. "Let's sit…"
She was interrupted by the doorbell. Sarah wasn't the only one who tensed up, she noticed. Caridad opened the door before anyone else moved, and Sarah almost drew her gun when she saw who had rang: Casey stood there, still wearing his Buy More t-shirt - and holding a plate with cookies.
"Hi! I just moved in across the courtyard, and thought I bring something." His smile was about as honest and friendly as a shark's, in her opinion.
"Ah, that's Casey. He's a new co-worker," Chuck said, rather quickly. "I've invited him as well - sorry, I should have said something sooner, but it slipped my mind."
"That's OK," Devon said. "The more the merrier!"
Sarah forced herself to smile again as she turned so she wouldn't present her back to Casey - the killer might try to take her out despite witnesses being present.
He did the same, which made for a very awkward walk to the table. Fortunately, everyone else was still staring or glaring at Chuck. Especially Caridad.
Something didn't add up here, but Sarah had no idea what was going on. Something she would remedy post-haste. As soon as she could corner Chuck without witnesses.
Which, she had to admit with a glance at Casey and Caridad, might prove to be a little more difficult than she had anticipated. Even as his 'girlfriend'.