Hello again. Just adding the newest chapter to the story. Sorry it took so long, but I had a few issues at home to deal with and I had some difficulty trying to work the story with the new AU that is going on. I try to check as much as I can to see if I'm getting everything right, but I'm sure I've made quite a number of mistakes.
This chapter is the start of how "Chuck vs. the Tango" would have gone in this AU. Again, the parts of the story we've seen are the property of NBC and Fake Empire Productions. I hope they don't mind. The story jumps back and forth a bit over the span of a week, so keep an eye out. But I do promise in these next two chapters to go a bit off-book.
As always, please leave reviews. Thanks!
Wilshire Grand Hotel - Los Angeles, CA
October 2, 2015
7:30 PM PDT
"How long have you been going out?"
"Where did you two meet?"
"Was it love at first sight?"
"Have you done any film or TV yourself?"
Chuck Bartowski…or for the benefit of the media, Charles Carmichael…stood outside the art auction with Sarah on his arm and wearing a tuxedo it would take six months of employment with the Nerd Herd to even afford. It didn't take him long to discover why actors and actresses wore sunglasses a lot; he was practically blind from all of the flashbulbs going off. He pasted a decent smile on his face, mainly because Sarah made him practice it. It was probably a good idea because he felt like a bit of a fraud right now.
As he was pretending to be Sarah Walker's new boyfriend, the feeling was a bit too on-target.
"Come on, give this cute guy a break," Sarah playfully admonished everyone as she hung on to Chuck's arm. "We've been going out for a little while, but he suggested the art auction tonight, and I can't resist seeing him dressed up like this."
She stood on her toes and gave Chuck a kiss on the cheek, holding his hand in both of hers. Both of them knew they were putting on an act, but Chuck wished it wasn't and a small part of Sarah wasn't completely acting.
"What do you think of them, Carina?" one reporter asked.
"It's wonderful," she said with the biggest smile Chuck had seen on her thus far, which he figured had to be acting. "I know my girl, and she is very smitten with this tall drink of water."
"Slade, any advice you can give to Charles?" another reporter asked.
"You mean, apart from avoiding you lot at all costs?" Jimmy replied with a grin, which got the crowd laughing. He was Carina's date for the evening, even though the media knew they were just friends, no matter how hard they tried to link the two together romantically. "Just relax and enjoy yourself is the only advice I'd give him."
Chuck took a sideways glance at Jimmy. If only being a spy was that easy.
Buy More - Burbank, CA
September 29, 2015
11:00 AM PDT
Chuck stood at the Nerd Herd desk, watching everything that was going on in the store. Which admittedly, was not much. Things had calmed down since the other night when he went on that wild trip in the limousine with bad guys trying to kill him, ending with him saving a hotel full of people. Sarah took him out to dinner three nights ago at one of the best restaurants in the city. It was his reward for his bravery at the Westin. But more importantly, she wanted to make sure he was up for what they were about to do. Over the weekend, while Ellie and Awesome were out of town at a medical conference, Casey and Jimmy set up surveillance on the apartment, the courtyard, and the Buy More to make sure his family, friends, and co-workers were protected. Chuck protested at first, but Sarah reassured him it was something they did with all assets and they had no interest whatsoever in anyone's private life. Given how he was attacked at the Aragon West and Sarah's team saved his life several times, he was willing to take her at her word.
She called last night and told him to make sure Big Mike was around because she wanted to talk with him. Chuck asked her why, but she said she would explain when she got there. At this point, his imagination was replete with possibilities, many of which got him thinking he might be chased by the bad guys again, whoever they were.
Sarah walked into the Buy More. If it was possible, she looked even better than the first time she walked in. She was wearing a simple pink blouse and gray skirt, but she could have walked through a garbage dump and still turn every head. She waved Chuck to her, and Chuck was only too happy to say hello.
"Give me a kiss," she said quietly as he walked up to her.
"I'm sorry, what?" he asked.
"We've been on two dates, and we have to sell it."
Chuck looked around nervously before turning to Sarah again, who was still waiting for her kiss. Which she finally got…on the cheek.
"That's it?" Sarah asked with a bit of disappointment.
"I'm not really good with PDA."
"Well, let's go make this day better for all of us."
"I've been meaning to ask you about that. Why do you need to see Big Mike?"
"You'll find out soon enough. Is he in his office?"
"I think so. Let's head back there."
Chuck and Sarah walked to the back of the store to see Big Mike emerging from his office.
"I'll be back after lunch and I don't want anyone bothering me…" he stopped and froze at seeing Sarah. "Sarah Walker?"
"You must be Chuck's boss," Sarah said as she extended her hand.
Big Mike shook it. "Big…big fan of your show," he said, a bit flabbergasted. "Do you really do all your own stunts like the website says?"
"Most of them. At least the ones the insurance people will let me do."
She took Chuck's hand and pulled him closer to her. "I hope you don't mind, but I wanted to borrow Chuck for a while. There were a few things I had to go over with him. Sort of a 'Dating in Hollywood 101' course. But I brought a peace offering, if it's OK with you."
"What do you mean?"
The three of them turned to see Carina and Jimmy enter the store, followed by a couple of assistants carrying a table and several boxes.
"We put the word out on our Facebook page and Twitter that we were having a DVD signing party here at noon today for the Season 5 discs. I hope that's OK. There's a very large crowd lined up outside. I'm sure some of them will be happy to do some shopping while they're here."
Big Mike ran…as fast as someone of his size could run…and looked out the door. There were 300 people lined up along a set of velvet ropes he didn't even know were organized outside.
He turned back to Chuck and Sarah, who had followed him to the door. "No, not a problem at all," Big Mike said with a smile, the images of dollar bills and credit card swipes dancing in his head. "I'll just get the other Nerd Herders to man the registers. Go, Bartowski! Don't keep the lady waiting!"
"Thanks," he replied nervously. Sarah pulled him away, and they headed toward the employees' breakroom, where John Casey was waiting for them.
"That took you long enough," Casey said with not a little ire.
"We're lucky we got enough DVDs in time," Sarah replied. "The release isn't until next Tuesday. Besides, this will help for later."
"Later? What happens later?" Chuck asked.
"Nothing to worry about for now," Casey told him as he placed four pictures on the table in front of Chuck. "Take a look at these."
Chuck looked at the pictures. "Why are these people sleeping?"
"They're not, Chuck," Sarah replied. "They were killed and we'd like to know why."
"I have no idea!"
"Well, look again," Casey said.
"I would rather not. It's kind of creepy." Chuck stood up. "I mean, don't you have people who can…"
Chuck's eye caught a copy of the newspaper on top of the recycling bin. He had a flash, seeing images of paintings, an art auction, various weapons, and a name: La Ciudad.
"Chuck, what did you see?" Sarah asked, having learned quickly when Chuck has a flash.
"I don't…I'm…I'm not totally sure. A water lily painting, weapons, an art auction Friday night. Does the name La Ciudad mean anything to you?"
Sarah and Casey looked at each other, and the same thought went through their minds. "Why?" Casey asked.
"Because I think he's going to be at that auction."
"I'll go tell Carina and Slade and then relay the information to Graham and Beckman," Casey said. "You're going to tell him about the other thing?"
"No problem, John," Sarah replied.
Chuck watched Casey quickly exit the breakroom. "OK, what is this thing both of you keep talking about?" he asked Sarah as he sat back down.
"General Beckman and Director Graham both agree this is an essential project. So much so, they're moving the production of the show from Toronto to here. They'll announce tomorrow that they've signed a deal with one of the major studios to use their facilities."
"OK, but what does that have to do with me?"
"Until we can figure a way to get the Intersect out of you…and they're working on it as we speak…we need to have you in a location where we can keep an eye on you during the day, just like the surveillance we have on your apartment complex watches you at night. We're going to hire you on the show as a technical consultant."
Chuck sat up straight in the chair. A smile came to his face. "You mean, like, I'd design anything showing on a computer for the show?"
Sarah nodded and smiled. "Also making sure any technical dialogue is accurate and teach us how to use computers on the show so we don't look silly. Although I think that's more for Carina and me since Casey deals with computers all the time doing surveillance and Jimmy actually has a degree in computer science from Illinois."
"Ellie is going to flip when she hears I got a job on the show."
Sarah watched Chuck smile at the thought. She had her fair share of assets to deal with in her career as an agent. Actually, she had several agents' fair share of assets to deal with because Graham considered her one of the best when it came to relating with others. Her extensive skill set, however, wouldn't be needed with this particular asset. Visiting him was quickly becoming the highlight of any day she worked.
"Really?"
Chuck nodded. "She's been wanting something like this to happen to me ever since I came home from Stanford."
"Then how about we do one better? I'll have our executive producer, R.D. McNeill, call you at home tonight, and you can let Ellie hear the job offer herself."
"Oh, she'd really go out of her mind."
"Of course, you'd have to tell your boss you won't be working here anymore."
Chuck froze at that thought. "I'd have to leave the Nerd Herd?"
"It's for your own protection. It would be much easier to keep an eye on you at the studio."
"No, I get that. It's just…"
"What's wrong?"
"I…I'm worried about leaving Anna, Jeff, and Lester…heck, most of the people who work here…high and dry. A lot of them come to me when they have problems. Big Mike doesn't like to be bothered, and they certainly wouldn't go within a mile of Harry Tang."
Sarah gave a little laugh. "That I can understand. And the loyalty you have to everyone here is commendable. But you have to realize people may come after you and wouldn't be afraid to use any of them against you. Look at what happened the other night. If you want us to keep you safe, you have to work with us to make sure we can."
"Could I…could I at least help them out when they need it? Like right now, there's a huge backlog of computers that have to be fixed, and if we can't get them fixed, then Harry Tang will start ruling this place with an iron fist. Actually, he already does, so I don't want him getting any worse."
A smile drew across her face. Ordinarily, she could counter almost any argument an asset might have for wanting more room to breathe. But looking into those puppy-dog eyes of Chuck's, Sarah was beginning to find it difficult to turn him down for anything he asked. Mostly because he didn't really ask for anything for himself; it was always about his family, friends, or co-workers. This was as unselfish of an asset as she had ever encountered.
"We'll see what we can do to make that work," she said. "I can't make any promises, though. It'll be up to our supervisors. I admit it's only fair, though. We brought an avalanche of customers upon you without warning."
"Thanks," Chuck replied with a smile. It was a smile that put Sarah in a good mood, which was rare when she was doing actual spy work.
"We should go see how everyone is doing out there."
Chuck and Sarah walked out to the main floor. The line to get the signed DVDs was still very long. Not surprisingly, Carina was getting a lot of male fans and Jimmy was signing for the female fans. Unfortunately, only Anna seemed to be doing any work from the Herd, meaning the checkout lines were worse than at 1AM on Black Friday.
"And…now you know why they need my help."
Sarah laughed. "OK. Go give them a hand."
She turned and exited the store out of the back entrance so nobody would see her. If the crowd was this crazy for just Carina and Jimmy, there would be a riot if they spotted her.
Hotel Amarano - Burbank, CA
September 29, 2015
5:00 PM PDT
The four gathered in Sarah's room to conference with Graham and General Beckman, both of whom had received Casey's report. Carina was exhausted from signing autographs mainly because, like Casey, she wasn't much of a people person. She dreaded the trip to Comic Con every year. She preferred her social situations to be comprised of three things: a hot male, one-on-one, and horizontal. Jimmy wasn't much of a social creature either, but as he always told Sarah, doing this beat a holding cell any day of the week.
"If Chuck is right, this is a high priority," Beckman began. "La Ciudad is the most elusive and dangerous arms dealer in the world."
"Last anyone heard, MI-6 tried to get the drop on him, but he vanished," Graham added.
"Then we take him down at the art auction," Carina said. "We have a lot of experience in that."
"It's not that easy, Agent Miller. We have no idea what he looks like. No photographs. No one has ever seen La Ciudad who has lived to tell about it."
"So we'll bring the Intersect," Casey said, which made Sarah turn in surprise. "Everything we know about La Ciudad was fed into that computer."
"No way. It is too dangerous," Sarah countered. "He doesn't have any field experience or training."
"He'll be fine. It's an art auction."
"If all of us are there, Sarah, we should be able to keep him safe," Jimmy said. "They would have a hard time trying to capture Chuck if one of us is near him at all times. Where we go, the cameras go."
"Exactly," Casey said. "La Ciudad probably won't even be there."
"And if he is, is it worth the risk?" Sarah forcefully asked.
"All right, I've heard enough," Beckman said in an authoritative tone. "Put him in the field. We don't know what he's capable of until he's been tested."
Beckman hung up and the screen went black. Casey and Jimmy left the room to prepare. Carina took a long look at her friend.
"You don't want the best chance of catching La Ciudad at an art auction? Even with all of us there to keep an eye on him?"
"It's just…" Sarah paused for a moment to draw herself into full agent mode. "There's a lot in risking him. If something happens to him, all of the secrets of the government go with him."
"And I might have believed you if you didn't take so long to put your guard back up. Are you sure you shouldn't let me deal with Bartowski? Or Jimmy?"
"There won't be a problem," Sarah said with resolution. "Chuck is just an asset."
Carina headed for the door. She opened it and then turned back to Sarah.
"And Bryce was just a partner."
She walked out of the room. Sarah sank down on the bed, her thoughts going in a million directions, none of which were about the upcoming mission.
Echo Park - Los Angeles, CA
September 29, 2015
8:00 PM PDT
Chuck walked into his apartment…and almost closed the door on Morgan.
"Chuck…I…" Morgan slurred through his smashed face. Chuck opened the door so Morgan could enter.
"What are you doing here?" Chuck asked.
"I thought we had plans tonight. You left the Buy More and you said 'see you later, dude', so…if you don't want me here, that's fine. Just stop sending me mixed signals."
"Chuck?" Ellie called from the kitchen. "Did you apply for the Assistant Manager position?"
Chuck sighed, trying to put on a good act before the impending phone call. "That job is really not all it's cracked up to be. It'd only be a $2 an hour raise and it doesn't even get me my own parking spot. I ought to do better."
Ellie came out from the kitchen with a pan of cupcakes she was working on. "Does that mean you're actually giving consideration to leaving the Buy More?"
"A real profession?" Morgan did not like where this was going. "I'm going to need some clarification on that."
"He went to Stanford, Morgan."
"And was unceremoniously expelled senior year. Sorry to bring that up, buddy. But I think we need to be realistic about our goals here."
Ellie scoffed. "His goals or your goals?"
Morgan didn't slow down. "Great question, and I think we need to hammer out a plan for Chuck. Where do we see him in five years? Ten years?"
"We?"
"Fine, then just you and I. Look, it is way too scary out there. Chuck can't leave the Buy More. We're still finding ourselves."
"No offense, Morgan, but I think my brother has quite a few years finding himself, and he's definitely proven his place in life is not at the Buy More."
"You don't understand. He is a fragile little gelding. He's still trying to find his legs. The real world will crush him!"
Ellie gave him a look. "Do you know what a gelding is?"
Chuck was never more grateful his phone rang. "Hello?"
"Chuck, this is R.D. McNeill, but you can call me Rob. This is the phone call you wanted. Is your sister nearby?"
"She's right here," Chuck replied.
"OK, then. Put me on speaker."
"Who is that, Chuck?" Ellie asked. "And why do I need to hear it?"
"The executive producer of Sarah's show stopped by the Buy More during the DVD signing today. He said he'd call me tonight about something important."
Chuck put his phone on speaker. "Go ahead, Rob."
"It's good to hear from you again, Chuck," Rob as Ellie and Morgan listened in. "I talked to the studio and they were very impressed with what I told them about your technical knowledge. They want to offer you a job as a technical consultant for the upcoming season of Jen Burton: Spy Girl."
Ellie's eyes went wide and she clamped her hand over her mouth to prevent her from screaming for joy. Morgan stared at the phone in shock.
"Rob, that's…that's an amazing offer," Chuck said. "Could I have some time to think about it?"
"Already trying to negotiate a raise?" Rob gave a laugh. "Can't blame you. Besides, that's the first rule of business: never take the first offer."
"I just need to talk to a few people first. Family and all that."
"Not a problem. Get back to me tomorrow. I'm hoping your answer is yes."
"Thanks, Rob. I'll talk to you tomorrow."
"Good night, Chuck." Rob hung up.
Ellie removed her hand from her mouth. "You were offered a job on Sarah's show?"
"I was helping people at the Nerd Herd desk when he stopped by to check on the DVD release party. We talked for a little bit, and then he told me the show was moving here. They'd have to hire a few people, and he thought I would be a good fit."
"That is amazing! So, what would you do as a technical consultant? Do you design anything the show would have on a computer?"
"Yes, and make sure the dialogue had the correct computer terminology and teach the actors if they need to look like they know what they're doing on a computer."
"Oh, please tell me it pays more."
"They didn't tell me a specific number, but he assured me I'd be paid way more than I make at the Buy More, plus health insurance. I still don't get my own parking space, though."
"Chuck, that is so, SO epic!" Morgan beamed. "But, wait. Does that mean you're leaving the Buy More?"
"I am so hoping the answer is yes," Ellie practically begged.
"I don't really know. I don't want to tell Big Mike that I'm quitting yet because I don't know how many hours this job will take each week."
"But at least you'll consider it? Working on a TV show has to look better on your résumé than Nerd Herd Supervisor."
"Yes, of course."
"That's all I need to hear," Ellie said as she walked over to Chuck and gave him a hug. "Congratulations."
"Thanks, sis. I'm going to lay down for a while."
Chuck went to his bedroom…and was startled by Casey at his window.
"Congratulations, Bartowski. You just got your first mission. Friday night."
"A…a mission? I'm actually going to be a spy?"
"Hope you're ready for the real world." Casey started to walk away.
"Wait, wait. What am I supposed to wear? Is this a sneakers event or should I wear regular shoes?"
"We'll get you a tux."
"OK, what about hand-to-hand combat? I mean, if it comes down to me and La Ciudad in some fisticuffs, is there like a 20-minute tutorial you can take me through?"
"Don't worry, you're going to be fine. Nothing will happen to you. Assuming you know how to tango."
Chuck blinked in disbelief. "Seriously?"
"Oh, I don't joke about your life." Casey walked away.
Buy More - Burbank, CA
September 30, 2015
12:00 PM PDT
Chuck watched Devon enter the store. He knew Ellie and Awesome had a rare day off together, so he wasn't entirely surprised to see him. Chuck had already agreed to clear out of the apartment for the night. In fact, he shifted his hours so he would close the store, and then Sarah would come by to get some frozen yogurt and talk about Friday night.
"Chuck, did you find those DVDs?" Devon asked.
"Done and paid for," Chuck replied, handing Devon copies of Casablanca and The Princess Bride. "Devon, have you ever…" Chuck stopped, too embarrassed to ask.
"What's wrong, bro?"
"I'm going on a date with Sarah Friday night, and…have you ever tangoed?"
"Did a semester in Buenos Aires. Knowing the tango got the señoritas muy caliente."
"Yeah, that crosses a line of some sorts here. But is there a way you can show me a few moves?"
"Not a problem. We'll use the breakroom. Need a place with lots of open floor."
Chuck and Devon walked to the back of the store, Devon having grabbed a CD on the way there. "Already regretting this," Chuck said.
They entered the breakroom. "What is going on?" Harry Tang asked with considerable venom. "And why are you bringing customers back here?"
"This is my sister's boyfriend, I'm on my lunch break, and I requested we go over something."
Tang relaxed slightly…very slightly. And only because he couldn't throw the book at Chuck over this. "Then proceed."
"I'd kind of like some privacy if that's OK…"
Devon placed the CD in the breakroom's player, and a song blasted out of it. He grabbed Chuck, placed Chuck's hand on his shoulder, and placed his own hand on Chuck's hip.
"This new job had better pay a LOT," Chuck muttered to himself as Devon began to tango with him, not even caring if Harry Tang watched.
Orange Orange - Burbank, CA
September 30, 2015
9:30 PM PDT
"The idea with a cover is to keep it simple while not revealing true personal detail. And remember, you'll be out in public a lot pretending to be my new boyfriend, so you have to remember all the little facts about the cover. Let's start with an easy one. What is your name?"
Chuck smiled with a bit of nervousness behind it. How Sarah and her team managed to do things like this on a daily basis was still beyond his comprehension. But they had to be ready for Friday night. He knew he'd be in front of the media. But at least he learned how to tango, like Casey wanted.
"How about Charles Carmichael? Simple, dignified…"
"Easy to remember and not far off from..."
"Graduated with honors from Stanford. Owns a small but highly profitable software company who is doing his 'girlfriend' a favor by helping her out on her show. Thinking about sailing in the America's Cup..."
"I get the feeling you've done this before."
"Let's just say Mr. Carmichael and I share a…small kinship."
"How's that?"
The playful look on Chuck's face disappeared. "When I entered Stanford, it's kind of how I envisioned myself being by now. Except for the sailing; I don't know where that came from. But it's where most of my class is these days."
"So what happened?"
"I took a little detour when my good friend, Bryce Larkin, discovered some stolen tests under my bed and was kind enough to alert the administration."
Sarah looked at him for a moment. "Did you steal the tests?"
Chuck got a little annoyed. "I thought it was kind of implied that I'm a decent person."
"Well, we all make mistakes."
He exhaled in frustration. "And I've made plenty. That just wasn't one of them." He took a small spoonful from his frozen yogurt, which Sarah took the occasional sample from. "But then Bryce sent me a whole database of government secrets that are now locked in my brain, keeping me in a constant state of fear, danger, and anxiety so…I'd say we're even."
Sarah took his hand. "Don't worry about Friday night. All of us will be there to help. You have nothing to be nervous about."
"Me, nervous? Nah."
"Your hand is a little moist."
"It does that when I'm freaking out."
Sarah laughed and squeezed his folded hands with both of hers. Chuck didn't know how Friday night would go, but he certainly couldn't complain about getting a frozen yogurt with Jen Burton.
Wilshire Grand Hotel - Los Angeles, CA
October 2, 2015
7:45 PM PDT
Chuck, Sarah, Carina, and Jimmy walked up the stairs to the main ballroom. Sarah felt a bit of relief, given the majority of people here were well out of the show's demographic, so there wouldn't be a huge problem with the crowd. Still, they didn't want to take a chance.
"Are you OK, Chuck?" Sarah asked.
"Fine. I'm all set. I even learned how to tango. I wouldn't call myself an expert, but…"
"Why would you need to know how to tango?"
"Casey told me the other night…"
Carina and Jimmy started laughing and Sarah couldn't help but smile. "Owned by The Case," Jimmy said. "He doesn't pull it out often, but when he does, it's like a sledgehammer to the pills."
Chuck rolled his eyes in aggravation. "Great. That's lovely. Spy humor, I like that."
"Don't worry about it," Sarah told Chuck, giving his hand a squeeze before turning to Carina and Jimmy. "Are you two good on recon?"
"We'll head in and try to draw some people away," Carina said as she hung onto Jimmy's arm. "Hopefully that will give Chuck some room to do his thing."
"Thanks," Sarah replied as Carina and Jimmy went ahead. Chuck grabbed a hors d'oveurs from a passing waiter.
"Oh, nice," Sarah said, looking at his shirt.
Chuck exhaled in frustration. "I've been a spy all of five seconds and I already have soy sauce on my shirt."
"Go and wash it off. And Chuck? Stop saying that you're a spy."
He glanced around nervously before looking again at Sarah. "Right. Of course."
He went down the stairs to the men's washroom.
Buy More - Burbank, CA
October 2, 2015
8:00 PM PDT
"Wait, where are you guys going?"
Morgan couldn't believe it. Actually, he could believe Harry Tang hoarding some of the old computers that needed repairing by tomorrow and dumping them in the Nerd Herd's lap at closing time. But Anna, Jeff, and Lester didn't appear to have much interest in finishing.
"Sorry, bro. I've got my bar mitzvah lesson," Lester replied.
"Internet poker," Anna said.
"I'm off by 8 and hammered by 8:05," Jeff said, sounding like he was already hammered.
"Fine! We don't come through, and Big Mike is going to let Harry Tang run rampant through your little group. And you know what that means? No more two-hour lunch breaks! No more X-Box tournaments! And no more porn. Yeah, total work hell. We owe it to Chuck. Because tonight, he is going to get to sleep with one of the hottest actresses in Hollywood. Can any of you say you've done that?"
Anna defiantly raised her hand. "Really?" Morgan and Lester asked. "That's interesting."
"Never mind," she spat out.
"OK, we'll do it. But your boy better close the deal," Jeff said.
The four walked back to the cage.
Wilshire Grand Hotel - Los Angeles, CA
October 2, 2015
7:55 PM PDT
"Idiot."
Chuck washed the soy sauce on his shirt with a wet paper towel, still not believing he screwed up like that when they barely got into the Wilshire Grand. His new career was off to a stellar beginning.
Until he flashed on the man standing at the sink next to him. He saw the same painting he saw earlier, the folder on La Ciudad, and a picture of the man shooting someone in the back.
Unfortunately, Chuck's nervous expression caught the man's attention. "Do we know each other?" the man asked in a British accent.
"No. No, not that I know of," Chuck replied. "Sorry."
He departed the restroom and walked quickly back up the stairs to where Sarah was waiting for him.
"It's him."
"Who?" Sarah asked.
Chuck looked towards the bathroom, where the man he flashed on just exited. "La Ciudad," he said fearfully.
Sarah looked around quickly. "Everybody, on your toes," she said over everyone's earpiece. "Chuck ID'ed La Ciudad. I'm going in for a closer look."
Sarah took him upstairs. "OK, if I've already have identified the perp, as it were, what are we still doing here?" Chuck asked. "You know, mission accomplished. Time to go."
Sarah looked around to see Carina and Jimmy keeping a sharp eye out. "Chuck, go wait at the bar."
Sarah walked away to get a closer look at La Ciudad while Chuck backed up a few steps to where the bar was. "Bartender, I'd like a martini, shaken AND stirred…"
He turned around to find Casey there…and in disguise. It was all Chuck could do to not laugh hysterically.
"So you don't get to be on a date?"
"I blend in where I can," he quietly growled as he poured Chuck a 7-Up. "Want a cherry with that?"
"Blend in?" Chuck was incredulous. Casey's disguise was borderline insane. "So, how did it feel being Patrick Stewart's stuntman on the X-Men films and Star Trek?"
"Ever heard of a Colombian necktie?"
The smile on Chuck's face disappeared. "No…and I probably don't want to know?"
"Not even a little."
Chuck turned back to the crowd to see Sarah talking with La Ciudad. She seemed to be getting along with him, although Chuck was relieved Carina and Jimmy were keeping an eye open for trouble. Sarah began to walk forward, and La Ciudad signaled someone ahead of them. That person put a gun to Sarah's back as she passed by. That got Carina and Jimmy moving towards them. Unfortunately, they had a group of four following them.
Casey jumped over the bar and began to walk in the same direction. "You stay," he ordered Chuck.
"Stay?" Chuck said in frustration. "Stay…like a dog."
La Ciudad and his partners led Sarah to the roof. Carina and Jimmy followed behind a few feet, as did the four agents following them. Casey brought up the rear.
~/^\~
Chuck grew tired of sitting at the bar and went to look at one of the paintings. The very same painting he saw in prior flashes, only now a new flash added a metal vial marked with a radiation warning tag. He looked closely at the frame.
"Beautiful painting," a woman standing next to him said.
"Yeah, beautiful. Painting, yeah. It definitely has a quality about it. Very Bob Rossian in its influence."
"Who?"
"Bob Ross? The guy who used to do paintings on PBS? With the afro and the soothing…you have no idea what I'm talking about."
"No, sorry."
"Well, it wouldn't be the first time."
"I'm Malena," the woman said, extending her hand.
"I'm Chuck…Charles," Chuck said as he shook her hand. "Charles Carmichael."
"So you don't like the painting?"
"No, it's fine. I'm just more interested in the frame."
Chuck's phone began to ring. He saw Morgan's name on the Caller ID and hit Ignore. "Sorry, so sorry about this. Work never leaves me alone. I'm in the software game."
"So you were saying about the frame?"
"Nothing. It really doesn't matter." He grabbed two flutes of champagne from a passing server and handed one to Malena. "Cheers."
"Cheers," she replied and clinked glasses with him. The band began to play a tango.
"Mmmm, I love a tango," Malena said.
"Oh, yeah. Who doesn't?"
"Do you?" she looked at him with considerable interest.
"Do I, do I want to…" Chuck looked back towards the auction but didn't see anyone on Sarah's team nearby. He figured they were trying to grab La Ciudad. "You know what? What the hell."
Chuck and Malena put down their champagne flutes and went to the dance floor. They held hands, Malena put her other hand on Chuck's shoulder, and he put his other hand on Malena's shoulder.
"Mr. Carmichael?"
"Please, Chuck."
"Chuck…I think your hand is supposed to be on my hip."
Chuck looked back and forth nervously. "Uh, right. Apparently I learned the girls' part of this dance. Would you mind leading?"
"Not at all," Malena said with a smile.
~/^\~
"Who do you work for? And don't try to tell me it's for that bloody show."
Sarah was being held by two of La Ciudad's men on the rooftop.
"Why are you here? And don't lie to us; you'll only make this much more painful."
Sarah looked towards the door, which was opened a crack. She saw Jimmy count down from three on his fingers. She nodded.
The door burst open and Sarah ducked to the ground, spinning on her leg to trip La Ciudad as Jimmy fired away with both guns, nailing the two men who were holding Sarah in their shoulders. Carina charged onto the roof to fire at the man behind La Ciudad. Two more enemy agents came out of the door. Jimmy dropped and rolled, kicking the door closed on the third man. Sarah landed a spinning kick on one of the men who made it through the door while Carina sent a Superman punch into the other. Jimmy tossed Sarah her gun, which she caught and pointed at La Ciudad.
The team heard a loud grunt behind the door, and Casey emerged dragging the agent he knocked out and the one Jimmy nailed with the door.
"Federal agents, nobody move!" Sarah shouted.
"We're international agents. MI-6," the man Chuck thought was La Ciudad answered.
"Drop the guns," Carina said as she pointed her gun at one of the downed men while Jimmy covered two others with his guns.
"We're with the British Secret Service."
"Lower your weapons!" Sarah said, her gun still trained on him.
"OK, everybody take a deep breath. I'm putting down my gun and getting out my identification."
"Uh-uh," Jimmy said quickly, turning his gun to the agent as well. "Left hand, two fingers only."
The MI-6 agent did as Jimmy commanded, holding his wallet in the air. Jimmy kept one gun aimed at the man's head while he checked the ID. He then put the gun away. "He's legit," Jimmy said.
"And this must be Graham's famous TV spy team."
"You know about us?" Carina asked.
"You think the show cover was his idea? Half the Doctor Who's were secret agents."
"What are you doing here?" Casey demanded.
"Probably the same thing you're doing. We've been pursuing an arms dealer across five countries."
"Let me guess. La Ciudad?"
"That's right. MI-6 intercepted a painting with plutonium in the frame. Rather than announcing the bust, we removed the plutonium and kept the auction, hoping we could lure Ciudad."
Sarah stood. "But if you're not La Ciudad, then where is he?"
~/^\~
Chuck and Malena strutted around on the dance floor, Chuck being quite intimidated by not only letting Malena lead a tango, but she was so good at it. He did his best to keep up, but every hair on him was standing on end.
She ended it by spinning him to her and dipping him. He tried to catch his breath. It was then he caught a scar on Malena's neck. He had yet another flash, only this time he saw the La Ciudad file, a cache of weapons, and Malena's neck being slashed in that very spot with a machete.
The old British guy wasn't La Ciudad; she was. Chuck gulped nervously. "Help," he said quietly.
Malena pulled Chuck back to his feet. "So what line of work are you in, Malena?"
"Why are you so interested, Mr. Carmichael?" Malena asked.
"No reason, just making conversation."
A concierge walked up to them holding a phone. "Excuse me, sir. Are you Chuck Bartowski?"
"Who, me? No, no, no. I'm Carmichael."
"Um, that's him!" Morgan's voice could be heard over the phone. "That's my friend. I can hear his voice! HEY CHUCK!"
"Are you sure you're not Mr. Bartowski? Your friend insists," the concierge said.
"No, no, I insist." Chuck was getting more and more scared. "I never heard that name in my life."
"Chuck, you gotta help me!" Morgan cried. "I'm locked in the cage with a bunch of old computers, and you know how I feel about those!"
"I gotta go," Chuck said and turned around…only to be stopped by one of La Ciudad's very imposing bodyguards. A second one cocked his gun and put it in Chuck's back.
"Let's head up to my room, Mr. Carmichael," La Ciudad said. "And let's find out who you really are."
~/^\~
Sarah, Casey, Carina, and Jimmy rushed downstairs to the auction. Chuck was nowhere to be found.
"If we get out of this, you three are in for the chewing out of your lives," Sarah said angrily.
"How were any of us to know the intel would be wrong?" Casey said, not entirely happy that Sarah seemed to be taking this personally.
"We better find him fast," Carina said.
"Already on it," Jimmy said as he pulled out his mobile phone. "Good thing Case gave him that Rolex with a GPS tracker in it." Jimmy got the signal on his phone. "18th floor, west side of the building."
"Let's go," Sarah said, and the team took off.
~/^\~
"Let's start with an easy one. What's your real name?"
Chuck was tied to a chair in La Ciudad's hotel suite. He couldn't stop shaking, particularly when he glanced over at the rather impressive set of knives and other tools laid out on the sofa.
"Carmichael. Charles Carmichael." Malena picked up a knife and threw it at Chuck. It embedded itself in the chair between Chuck's legs and barely an inch from his groin. "Chuck Bartowski!"
"That wasn't so hard," she replied. Chuck wasn't even sure why he bothered to lie. She had his wallet and probably knew that answer already. "Now…before you answer my next question, I want you to think long and hard about my options here. There's the old favorite: yank out a tooth. Too noisy. Cut off a toe? Too messy."
"Far too messy," Chuck blurted out.
"Or we could just chuck you off the balcony…Chuck. Probably land face first. Teeth go through the back of your head. Not a good way to go. So, here's my question. Who do you work for?"
"No one!" Two of La Ciudad's goons picked up Chuck's chair and started to carry him to the balcony. "I fix computers for a living, OK? I snuck into the party under a fake name to impress a girl! I swear! Please, please, down! Put chair down!"
"Goodbye, Chuck."
"No, no, no! It's a setup!"
"What is?" La Ciudad asked.
"The painting? The painting!" La Ciudad's men turned the chair around to face her. "The painting, I think the painting might be a fake or something."
"Why?"
"If you put me down, I'll tell you." La Ciudad nodded, and her men put the chair down. "I saw a photo of the painting in the L.A. Times, but it had a different frame. So I'm assuming maybe someone swapped it out, I don't know. But if I were you, I would not buy that painting."
"A fake painting? And you had no intention of bidding on it?"
"No, not unless they were selling it for $25 because that's about all I have in my decorating budget."
"Fine, then." La Ciudad said. She then cocked her gun and aimed it at Chuck's head. "Tell me how to fix a computer, Chuck."
The team reached the 18th floor. They moved down the hall with weapons drawn as Jimmy confirmed the location of Chuck's watch on his smartphone. They looked around the corner to see a room with two guards in front of it.
"My first inclination would be your bus speed is not up to snuff with your video card. I assume we're talking about a PC?"
"That's enough, Mr. Bartowski," La Ciudad said, already weary of Chuck's technical jargon. "I believe you. But the problem is, you've seen my face, so I have to kill you."
Chuck's eyes widened. "Have to? No, no you don't have to. I disagree. I disagree vehemently. I won't say a thing, I swear."
La Ciudad put a silencer on her gun. "Don't worry, it'll be fast. Goodbye, Mr. Bartowski. I enjoyed our tango."
Sarah and Jimmy walked down the hall hand-in-hand as they approached the two guards, lost in a seemingly romantic conversation. They went to the door opposite of La Ciudad's suite, and Sarah sent a kick into the gut of the first guard while Jimmy head-butted the other guard. Sarah sent the first guard down with a punch as Jimmy gave a vertical kick to the second man to take him out.
La Ciudad heard the commotion outside and turned around, opening fire at the door. Sarah stepped away from the door and Jimmy dropped to the ground. Casey and Carina came up with guns at the ready as La Ciudad's guards also opened fire with automatic weapons. The door and surrounding walls were riddled with bullets.
"CHUCK, GET DOWN!" Sarah shouted as the four got ready to charge.
"AAAAAAHHHHHH," Chuck screamed as he tipped his chair back and forth to fall to the ground. La Ciudad and her guards stopped to reload.
"Now," Sarah commanded.
Jimmy pushed up from the ground and mule-kicked the door open. Casey and Carina went in guns blazing. One of the guards was shot dead. The other one jumped off of the balcony with La Ciudad right behind him. Jimmy ran in and pulled a hook from his belt. He threw it at the balcony railing and jumped off, chasing after La Ciudad and her bodyguard.
Sarah rushed in and went straight to Chuck. "Chuck, Chuck, are you OK?"
"OK? OK?" Chuck was in full freak-out mode. "Two more seconds and I would have been dead! They were going to throw me off the balcony!"
"I'll locate Jimmy," Carina said as she sprinted out of the room.
"Did you tell them you work for us?" Casey asked.
"Of course not! Where the hell were you guys?"
"You're still alive. I'd consider myself lucky."
La Ciudad and her bodyguard ran down the hall one floor below her suite and made it around the corner to the elevator. Jimmy sprinted down the hallway and was about to turn the same corner, only to get pistol-whipped by La Ciudad's bodyguard. He fell to the ground in a daze. La Ciudad aimed her gun at Jimmy's head.
She then had to dive to the floor as Carina shot at her from the other end of the hall. La Ciudad thought the better of it and got in the elevator. The doors closed just as Carina got to Jimmy, who slowly sat up, the room still spinning around.
"Well, this has been a fun day," he muttered in disgust.
La Ciudad and her bodyguard bounded down the stairs and headed to the exit of the Wilshire Grand. They considered themselves lucky to have escaped.
"We have to get you out of the country," her bodyguard said.
"First, we take these people out," she replied and pulled out Chuck's Buy More ID. "Starting with him!"
Unknown Location - Los Angeles, CA
October 7, 2015
9:00 PM PDT
A man stood in a darkened room with a group of five people sitting at a table and looking at him. He had this working theory for some time, ever since encountering Bryce Larkin. He knew Bryce was a spy, but he originally thought only Bryce was using the TV show as a cover. What happened two weeks ago told a different story. It appeared the entire cast was in on it, even Bryce's replacement.
"There is no doubt in my mind this man is the one Bryce sent the data to. And those four people from the TV show are all part of the effort to protect him. Bryce wasn't working alone. He never was."
"This Chuck Bartowski must be captured," one of the five said. "Your assignment remains the same."
The man nodded. "The blonde woman is clearly the leader of the group. The others take their cues from her."
"Then eliminating her would give us a significant advantage."
"Exactly what I was thinking," the man said as he scratched an itch near the long scar on his face. "Consider her dead."