$582

Earlier that morning, 03:17…

Chuck's cell phone burred annoyingly into his dreamless sleep. "Yeah," he mumbled.

"Chuck, this is General Beckman, code word Snowman."

He sat up in bed, his heart thumping in his chest and his mind racing. "Now?" he asked.

"Yes, there has been a leak and I believe that Fulcrum may have identified you as the Intersect. You are to proceed as we discussed," said Beckman.

"But what about…?" Chuck began. Chuck's first thought was to call Sarah.

"Listen carefully," Beckman interrupted him. "You and your family are in danger. You must proceed as we discussed earlier. I will communicate with your handlers. You are not to call anyone, and you are to turn your phone off until further instructed by your contact. You are to arrange your own ground transportation to the beta site and arrive there at 10:00am. Bringing the contact to you is too risky at this point. You are to approach the contact and ask for the code word. Additionally, the contact is someone familiar to you, so there should be no question of your safety. You are to travel with the contact to Washington, where I will debrief you. Undoubtedly, someone is listening to your words right now, so pretend you are speaking to a friend, turn off your phone, and follow my orders, Chuck. Your family's safety may depend on it." Click.

Chuck spoke into the dead phone: "Sure…uh, Morgan, see you in the morning." He felt panic creeping into his mind and his stomach churned as he turned off his phone. This is it, he thought. He was going to be bunkerized forever, never seeing Ellie or his friends again. If only he had more time, or if he could just say goodbye to Ellie. He shut those thoughts from his mind as he searched for his clothes. He couldn't be selfish; for all he knew, Fulcrum was closing in on him now, and if they found him here, Ellie and Awesome would probably be killed. He hurried into the bathroom to change. On his way out, he opened Ellie's door a crack and watched her sleeping in Devon's arms for a moment. He blinked back tears furiously as he quietly shut the door and returned to his bedroom.

Chuck locked the door behind him and searched for his bag in the closet. He gathered a few belongings and shoved them into the bag. He had to say something, he couldn't just disappear. He grabbed a pad of paper and wrote while sitting on his bed. Walking over to the dresser, he placed Ellie's note on top, using his ID badge as a paperweight. He hesitated, torn by indecision, and then finally took off his watch and placed it on top of the note, pointedly looking at the hidden camera. He was taking a chance, but he felt certain that only Casey or Sarah would notice when they reviewed the camera footage. Taking his cell phone and wallet, Chuck took one last look at his room before exiting via the Morgan Door.

Once outside, panic took hold and he found himself trotting toward the nearest bus stop. He pulled the worn schedule out of his wallet, looking furtively at his dark surroundings. The streets were nearly deserted. First bus didn't arrive until 04:45, and he didn't want to wait around that long. Trying to look like a normal guy walking in the middle of night, he strode briskly along, looking for a pay phone, which turned out to be quite a challenge. Twenty minutes later, he had located a phone and called for a taxi. He leaned against the shadowed side of the gas station to wait.

He tried to focus on what he was going to do. There were two choices: follow Beckman's orders, or, follow his own plan for this event. He had $582 in his wallet, stashed for an emergency of this type. Casey told him a while back that cash was the way to go if you were trying to stay off the radar. Chuck took the advice to heart, especially after his private conversation with Beckman last week. He had another $2000 in the bank, but he knew better than to try using his ATM card. He ran his hands through his hair and then ducked as headlights came into view. A truck rumbled past. He was a nervous wreck, ducking shadows and jumping at every sound. If only his heart would stop thumping so loudly in his chest he might be able to think more clearly. Was he really going to do this? He withdrew into the shadows as another pair of lights approached. This time it was the taxi, and Chuck got in.

"Where to?" asked the cab driver, an older man with a full gray beard.

Chuck struggled with indecision. He could live out his life in safety within the Bunker, or he could run and take his chances on his own terms. "Ferndale, please," said Chuck, finally making his decision.

"That's a long drive," said the driver.

"Yeah," said Chuck, pulling out his wallet and handing the driver some bills.

"It's a nice day for a drive," commented the driver, slipping the bills into his lockbox.

This was a turning point for Chuck; the beta location was due south of here, Ferndale was northeast. He swallowed hard, wondering if he would be labeled a traitor for not following orders. Would Casey come after him? And what would Sarah think of him? He licked his lips and stared out the window into the darkness, trying not to think about the consequences. He wondered if Casey and Sarah would notice his clue. When Beckman talked to him just after the hostage crisis, he knew that he had to have some way of communicating his decision to his handlers; no matter what Beckman suspected, he would never believe that either of them would betray him. Well, it didn't matter now; either they would find it or not, he had made his choice regardless. He closed his eyes and rested his head against the cool windowpane, wishing desperately this was only a crazy dream.