Previously, in Beckman Strikes Back:
Leader scoffed. "Major Casey, you're very badly outnumbered. And you've been shot. Bulletproof vest or not, that's going to take some of the fight out of a man. Please believe me when I tell you that you're going to talk." He leaned in closer to Casey and lowered his voice menacingly. "Everybody talks."
Casey nodded, looking around at Leader's men, who had since climbed back to their feet and looked to be ready for a fight. He cocked his head back and forth, cracking the joints in his neck, then looked back at Leader. "Well, then," he said.
"Let's get started."
Chuck vs Fulcrum
Beckman Strikes Back
Ch4: National Security
Echo Park
Casey angled himself between Gabriel's men and his apartment's front door. Coming unarmed had been risky, but he had figured it would be a show of faith for Walker. She'd been jumpy lately, and that was on top of her usual protectiveness over Chuck. Showing up gun drawn would have been a bad move for sure. The peaceful approach might have worked, if it hadn't been for Gabriel and his men.
Of course now, the peaceful approach wasn't looking very peaceful. The men in question advanced, their guns drawn, and formed a half-circle in front of Casey, Gabriel in the center. Eight in total, including Gabriel. And Casey's chest hurt like hell. He could already feel how restricted his motion was going to be.
"Last chance, Major," Gabriel drawled, smirking. "Stand down, or this is going to be over in a flash."
"You're right about that," Casey said, and slammed his fist down over his pants pocket. A violently bright green light blazed out of the porch light fixtures, blinding Gabriel and his men. Casey moved quickly, charging forward and elbowing Gabriel in the chest as he stripped his assault rifle away. He swept the butt of the weapon into the throat of the next closest man, then an elbow to the nose of the man behind him.
He'd planted the dazzler lights in the porch fixtures along ago, but today they had been meant as a last resort if Walker wouldn't listen to reason. There was a split second where Casey had considered using them when Walker had tensed up at Gabriel's arrival, but in the end all that would have accomplished was putting Chuck in Gabriel's custody.
Now, with three men down and five still disoriented, Casey's restraint had paid off. He decided not to push his luck, however, and bolted for his apartment door. He was inside in seconds, with the door shut behind him and the defense system activated with a sequence punched into the keypad by the door.
Moments later gunfire erupted from outside, temporarily foiled by the bulletproofing on Casey's door and windows.
"So much for National Security," Casey grumbled as he took cover.
XXX
"They're gaining on us, Chuck."
Sarah aimed carefully, trying to stay behind the relative cover of the Herder's seat, and fired at the windshield of the closest SUV. The bullet pierced the glass, missing the driver but spiderwebbing the windshield and causing him to swerve a bit and slow down. The SUV behind him quickly took over his position.
Chuck split his attention between directing the Herder around traffic and trying to figure out what was wrong with the nitrous system. He muttered to himself as he checked systems via the touchscreen. "Horizontal boosters… alluvial dampers…"
"Would it help if I got out and pushed?"
Chuck glared at Sarah. "It might."
"There," Sarah said, pointing at a street sign. "Get on the 5."
Chuck cleared the GPS coordinates from the nav system and took full control of the Herder, angling it towards the on-ramp and keeping his foot down on the gas. Fortunately, the modified engine was pushing the car along much faster than normal. Unfortunately, not fast enough to keep them ahead of the SUVs for long.
"Not sure this was the best move," Chuck said, watching as the SUVs crept closer. "In a straight line, they've got the advantage."
"They would have shepherded us into a road block eventually if we'd stayed on the streets," Sarah said, aiming at the lead SUV but holding off as Chuck swerved around a pickup.
"Great. Well, we can still outmaneuver them." Chuck blinked as a thought occurred to him. "Outmaneuver," he whispered thoughtfully as he saw break in the highway divider ahead. "Yeah. That'll do nicely."
"What will?" Sarah asked.
"Gonna do something stupid," Chuck said as he drifted into the left lane. "Just remember that I'm going to hate this a lot more than you will."
Before Sarah could respond, Chuck jerked the wheel to the left and fired the Herder through the divider into oncoming traffic.
XXX
Gulfstream V
Potomac Airfield
Beckman studied Graham, sitting across from her in the comfort of the private jet as they waited for clearance to take off. He was still poring over the arrest reports from the Fulcrum raid, trying to connect the dots, doubtlessly planning his interrogations of some of the higher ups. Beckman could see the strain on his face, the concentration, as he worked to unravel the mysteries of Fulcrum's origins.
Graham was smart, she knew. Idiots didn't get to a position like his. Talking to the right people, turning over the right rocks, he'd figure it out. And then what? Could he be turned? Graham, and his organization, would be invaluable. And even under the pretense of Operation Bartowski she'd orchestrated, they'd worked fairly well together. But would he go along?
Graham stretched, sighed, and sealed his fate. "None of these characters have the resources to put an operation like Fulcrum together and maintain it they way they have," he said. "There's someone we're missing. Someone higher up who's eluded us so far. When I get my hands on him…" Graham shook his head and returned to his files.
Well, Beckman thought. That settles that.
Beckman's phone rang. "Pardon me, Langstrom." She got up and moved to a quiet corner of the plane. "Empress, secure."
On the other end of the line, she could hear gunfire. "Leader, secure but in public."
Beckman closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. "That had better not be the sound of your men putting holes in my Asset, Major."
"Negative, ma'am, we are currently pursuing Major Casey."
Beckman's eyes widened. "You're what?" she hissed.
"Seems he wasn't expecting our arrival, Empress," Leader replied, putting a sarcastic emphasis on Beckman's code name. "Would you happen to know anything about that?"
Beckman took a deep breath. "Major Casey was given the same opportunity I gave you: to secure the Asset."
There was a pause as Leader put it together. "And the first one back sits at your right hand."
"Something like that. Where is the Asset now?"
Another pause, as Leader seemed to process his new information. "I have a team pursuing the Asset and Walker on the road, and we are attempting to breach Casey's stronghold."
"You are to cease fire on Casey's position immediately, Major," Beckman growled. "You're creating an incident in a residential area that can't be explained away. Contact your pursuit team and have them fall back to a surveillance position. These are not things I should have to tell you to do."
"All due respect, ma'am, if you're going to make this into a job interview, then it's in my best interest to eliminate the competition. Leader out." Beckman bristled as the line went dead. She took a deep breath, composed herself, and went back to her chair.
Graham cocked an eyebrow at her as she sat down. "Everything okay?"
"Oh, you know," Beckman sighed. "The usual."
XXX
"ARE YOU CRAZY?" Sarah screamed as they flew by a semi truck, blasting its horn.
"They'd be crazy to follow us, wouldn't they?"
Chuck stayed on the shoulder as cars and trucks whipped by to the left, all honking and flashing their headlights. Sarah, while holding the door handle in a death grip, glanced over her shoulder to see that the SUVs had indeed stayed on their side of the highway. They had slowed a bit to decide whether to follow, but had since poured on the speed again.
"They're going to be right next to us in a second, Chuck," Sarah said, tersely. She looked over at Chuck, who appeared to be gathering his resolve for what had to happen next. She tried to calm herself as much as she could, and spoke as gently as possible. "Look for an opening, far enough ahead to react. When you go, try to come as close as you can to the cars you've just passed. That'll give you the most distance between us and the oncoming cars."
Chuck nodded. "Okay," he said. "Okay. I can do this."
Sarah looked at the SUVs. One was almost alongside them now. The rear driver's side window was open. She could see the agent inside aiming.
"Clock's ticking, Chuck."
"I see an opening. Just a couple seconds…"
The SUV was right next to them. Sunlight glinted off the agent's gun. Sarah could see the calm, competent expression on his face.
"Chuck—"
Chuck yanked the wheel to the left, and Sarah heard a gunshot. The passenger side window shattered. She screamed and shut her eyes as glass flew everywhere. For a moment she felt almost weightless as the tiny car danced back and forth, tires screeching. Chuck was weaving them in and out of traffic, between enormous steel hulks coming at them at a hundred miles per hour.
She forced her eyes open in time to see Chuck dodge the last truck and slide the car onto the opposite shoulder, slamming on the brakes and yanking the wheel again to the left, just in time to direct it into a u-turn and onto an exit ramp. They careened down the ramp, then onto a side street, where Chuck stopped the car entirely. He gripped the wheel, eyes forward, face white as a sheet. They both just sat for a moment and stared straight ahead.
"Chuck." Sarah finally said.
"Yes, Sarah?" Chuck breathed.
"Half of me wants to kill you and half of me wants to rip your clothes off."
"You can probably guess my vote."
"That was actually really impressive."
"Don't thank me, thank Grand Theft Auto."
Sarah finally turned to look at Chuck, narrowing her eyes. "Isn't that the game where you get points for punching out hookers?"
"I have never punched a hooker in my life."
"Well," Sarah said, getting out of the car to take over driving. "The day's young."
XXX
Casey crouched behind the kitchen counter, taking stock of his position and situation. There was an emergency exit at the back of the apartment, but getting to it would put him into the line of fire. His bulletproofing on the front door and window was holding up for now, but the occasional bullet was making its way through the exterior wall. With the pain in his chest from Walker's shot still increasing, Casey didn't know if he'd be able to shrug off another hit long enough to make it out. And even then, there was most likely some of Gabriel's command waiting for him around the back.
In the kitchen, he had some small arms hidden within reach. Better than nothing, he supposed, but hardly anything that would stand up to the firepower outside. And even if he could reach the transmitter inside the entertainment center, who would he call for help? Beckman? Walker?
Casey's shoulders slumped as he realized his only chance. He pulled a .45 pistol from the silverware drawer and tucked it into his waistband. This was going to hurt, in more ways than one.
Casey waited for a reduction in the shooting, and then dashed across the living room to the entertainment center. He felt a sting as a bullet grazed his arm, but made it otherwise unscathed. He moved quickly, pulling the cover off the dummy amplifier to reveal the transmitter inside. A few connections later and the power came on. Casey dialed a frequency he'd learned by heart, paused for a moment, and then sent the signal.
Almost immediately, the gunfire ceased. Casey's brow furrowed, and he looked down at the transmitter. That wasn't him, was it?
Casey chanced a look out the window to see one of Gabriel's men crouched by the front door. Not good. He scrambled back to the kitchen, and worked furiously to open a hatch in the floor.
Just as the hatch opened, an enormous explosion blew the entire front of the apartment open. Casey was thrown back by the blast, thankfully shielded from shrapnel by the kitchen counter. He slumped to the floor, unconscious.
Leader walked slowly through the debris, gun up, broken glass and masonry crunching under his boots. He stopped at the kitchen when he saw Casey on the ground, lowering his weapon and smiling wide.
"You're under arrest, Major."
XXX
Sarajevo
Veliki Park
Today is the day, she thinks to herself, as she sits across from the wizened old man. He looks calm, but she knows him, knows how to read people well enough to know he realizes how much trouble he's in. Today, after so many months, is the day she finally beats him.
He moves a wrinkled hand to the table, withdraws it, then brings it to the table again. She smiles. He never used to hesitate like this. Today is the day.
She feels a vibration. It's tiny, subtle, but from an object so long dormant that the awakening shakes her entire body. The old man notices, looks quizzically at her. Today, she thinks, of all days.
"I am sorry, Emir," she says, tipping her king over. "I must forfeit. Next time, all right?" She gets up to leave. The old man smiles wide.
"Fortunate for you," he says. "I had you on the ropes." She bites back her retort. He's insufferable, but old enough to deserve her respect.
"I'm certain you did," she replies, and turns to walk away. This place has been her refuge for months, while her heart healed. Walks through the park in the afternoons, dinner in the square, chess in the evenings with Emir and the other masters. It had been working, distracting her, allowing her to believe that eventually she'd forget him and move on with her life. Until now.
She withdraws the charm, hanging from the chain around her neck, feels it pulse once more and then go still.
"Sugar bear," she whispers.
Sorry for the delay in updating. Planning a road trip, so it may be a little while before I update again. Speaking of which…
Next chapter:
"I can only imagine what you're thinking right now, Colonel. Do you think I'm evil? Some sort of mad villain?"
"You broke the law."
"I made decisions that were necessary for the-"
"You. Broke. The. Law."
Beckman stared at Casey, her stone expression slipping into a slight smile. "Yes," she replied. "I did. And out of curiosity, Colonel Casey, how many times have you broken the law for what you perceived was the greater good? How many times have you bent the rules to protect your assignment - Mr. Bartowski? I can list several times that I know of, and I'm sure there are many of which I'm not even aware."
Casey struggled with his response. Beckman continued.
"You broke those laws to protect Bartowski, because you believe you know better than the law. Because at those times when the law was contrary to your goals, you believed that you had the greater good in mind."
Beckman leaned down into Casey's face. "How is that any different from what I'm doing, aside from the scale? You're protecting Bartowski, Colonel. I'm protecting the world."
