A/N: Wow guys! I am so sorry for the delay! Tons of people I know are getting married this time of year so I've been busy with that. Poa suggested getting a beta which BillAtWork is gonna do (thanks Bill) and I struggled with this chapter too. The flow was all weird and I just didn't have time between everything I needed to get done to fix it.
By the way, the movie mentioned is totally worth checking out. It's hilarious! Granted it was made in 1938 so if your not into old movies you may not like it. It's still fun though. And if anyone checks it out, lemme know what you think =)
Chapter ten
Sarah awoke the early the next morning letting out a sigh of contentment. Her eyes remained closed as she took in the scent of Chuck laying just a breath away. Awaking to the sight of his familiar face brought an involuntary smile to her face as a feeling of home washed over her with his presence. 'Stop it, Walker.' She shook her head and banished all thoughts of that nature through distraction. Looking beyond him, she started to notice they were not at the hotel. Memories of last night flooded her mind, reminding her that she was at their newly furnished apartment.
Looking down at herself, she recognized she was still in the same t-shirt and jeans she had worn yesterday, laying on a mattress that had no sheets on it. They haven't been to the store to purchase new sheets yet. They didn't expect to stay here last night. She realized, thankfully or not, that she didn't wake up snuggled next to Chuck. They were both still in the same position they fell asleep in last night- on their sides, facing each other. The only difference being that their feet were tangled together as if they sought out the other's under their own volition.
She eased her feet from between Chuck's and sat up as gently as possible. The slightly off white carpet felt good under her bare feet as she padded her way out of the room. She ran her fingers through her hair before putting it up in a ponytail and going into the kitchen. 'We don't have any food, or coffee, or anything,' she thought as she looked around the space, everything neat and tidy from all her fussing yesterday. Next to the door were a pair of Chuck's flip flops so she decided to go over to Ellie's and ask to borrow things for breakfast. 'We have to eat. It's not like the General can get mad about that.' She quietly closed the door behind her as she walked across the courtyard and knocked on Ellie's door.
It was Devon who answered. He appeared a little distraught at Sarah's presence. "Uh, hey, Sarah," he mumbled, sidestepping the door as if making room for her to enter and to create as much distance between them as possible. He didn't know what it was but something about what happened yesterday with Chuck made him rethink Sarah. Chuck didn't want Sarah to know what ever it was that Devon knew. He still wasn't sure what it was he knows. And, not only that, Chuck didn't want Casey to know. He didn't know why Casey was involved but something strange was going on and he would get to the bottom of it. "What- ah, what's up?"
Sarah regarded Devon curiously. He was acting strangely. Come to think of it, he'd been acting weird since yesterday. "Nothing," she said with a slight raise of her brow and a small smile, "I just wanted to see if you guys have some food I could borrow to make breakfast. We haven't been able to go shopping yet." Movement happened past him, capturing her attention. She saw Ellie come around the corner dressed in her scrubs. "Hi, Ellie."
"Sarah? What are you doing here?" she asked with a smile. "I thought you guys went back to the hotel last night."
Sarah smiled slightly, "Well, that was the plan but then we got to setting up the bedroom, moving the furniture around and all that stuff. I guess we fell asleep."
"Aww, you're first night together at your new home. How did it go?" The genuine interest the Bartowski family could muster was one of a kind. Any time you spoke with one of them it was as if what ever you were saying was the most important thing, even if it was just about spending the night with your 'boyfriend' in your new apartment for the first time.
Sarah took a tentative step into the apartment, noting how Devon recoiled slightly but not enough to set off any alarm bells for Ellie. "It was fine. I was going to make some breakfast but we haven't been able to go to the store-"
"Oh, say no more," Ellie interrupted. "Raid the fridge."
"Thanks," Sarah said walking quickly past Devon. He knew something. She was definitely going to have a talk with Chuck. It must have something to do with yesterday at breakfast. The picture was too convenient of a cover up, but still smart thinking on Chuck's part. It could explain away all his nervousness from that morning since he was fairly relaxed afterward. She followed Ellie into the kitchen, going straight for the fridge. She leaned in to grab a few eggs, a tomato, some cheese, mushrooms and onions. Closing the refrigerator, she went to the spice rack to grab some of those.
Ellie went to the cupboard to get their extra coffee mix. "I didn't know you knew how to cook," she said, resting the container next to what Sarah had already grabbed.
Sarah glanced over the spices, choosing what to get as she replied, "Well, I'm no where near as good as you are but I can cook some things. Just don't ask me to deep fry anything if you remember eating anything at all from the Weinerlicious."
Ellie laughed, "That's okay. I'm not a fan of fried things anyway." She got Sarah a stick of butter and some pieces of bread. Grabbing a pitcher, she poured in some milk for Sarah and got a cup of sugar for the coffee.
Sarah took the spices she chose over to the other things on the counter. The pile was quite a bit larger than she had intended upon. She reviewed all the items, picturing how best to carry it all and make it in one trip.
"I'll help you carry it, Sarah. I'm on my way out to work anyway," she said picking up the milk, coffee and sugar to carry.
"Thanks," Sarah said picking up the rest of the items.
*********
A few minutes after Ellie had left, Diane sat outside at the fountain listening to the peaceful sound of water trickle down as she waited for Casey and Trisha. Ellie had offered her a ride into the hospital this morning but Diane declined saying she'd go with Trisha and Casey. She was finding it difficult not to like Dr. Bartowski. Her fiancé was a nice fellow but he said awesome way too much for her liking. It was almost hard to believe he was a doctor sometimes. With Ellie though, she made her feel right at home- cooking dinner, cleaning, even offering to do the laundry. Ellie was able to multitask like no one Diane has ever known. The woman was organized and adaptable. Adaptability is something very important to have in life.
Diane looked over her shoulder and saw Agent Walker cooking breakfast. The asset had yet to show up so Diane took this opportunity to observe the lone agent. If someone had asked her if Sarah Walker could cook, Diane would have answered no, but here she was cooking. Sarah Walker was definitely a woman of many talents. She was one of a kind in her field. When Diane was tasked to this mission, she was given the opportunity to look at both the personal and professional file of Sarah Walker. Her professional file was a string of successfully accomplished missions hardly ever veering from standard protocols. Her personal file on the other hand was a string of disasters recounting stories of con jobs and barely evaded captures. Obviously, the file did not contain great detail about her past but the CIA had been tracking her father for quite some time so they had plenty of information. Once Diane finished her review, she felt a strange sense that Sarah was running away from making choices for herself. Although Sarah would deny it, she allowed others to dictate her actions. She blindly followed her father in his schemes; she was an easy grab for Graham to recruit; she fell prey to the charm of Bryce Larkin. While undeniably she was an intelligent human being, she was still easily molded by gentle persuasion from figures of authority or superiority. That's how the CIA operates, by choosing smart, beautiful people that they are able to manipulate and design into what they want.
However, the Sarah Walker she was watching now was not the Sarah Walker who started this assignment, just as the John Casey now isn't the same as before. Diane wasn't quite sure what to think about it. She was still processing so to speak. She knew they both were compromised to a certain degree. That's only bound to happen on long term missions such as these- David and Trisha being a prime example. She should reassign both of them but their effectiveness as a team is much more successful than most. It made for a tough decision on her end.
Casey and Trisha walked out of the apartment to see the General watching Chuck and Sarah's apartment. Her expression was thoughtful and calculating. Casey could only hope that with the General being here personally it didn't get Walker reassigned. He knew both Walker and Chuck had been struggling these past few months. You'd have to be blind not to notice and even then you probably would. But at the end of the day, Team Bartowski got the job done. "General, are you ready to go?"
The General directed her attention to Casey as she stood to leave, "Yes. Let's go." The trio left the courtyard and climbed into the Crown Vic.
**************
Twenty minutes later, Sarah was done cooking breakfast. She didn't realize until she was almost finished that this was almost the exact thing she made him when they were in the suburbs. As a matter of fact, Chuck had the same expression on his face as he rounded the corner today as he did that day. "Good morning."
"Good morning," Chuck said slowly, looking at the food and freshly brewed coffee, "I- I thought we didn't have food."
"We didn't," Sarah said with a small shrug, "I went over to Ellie's and got some."
"Oh, is she still here?" Chuck asked looking around for Ellie, assuming that's why she would be cooking.
Sarah smiled letting out a breath. 'Of course he would think that.' "You and I both know that if Ellie were here, I would not be the one in the kitchen. I'm cooking for you."
"Really?" Chuck smiled and rubbed his hands together. She's cooking for him. "If it's anything like last time, I'm sure it will be delish." He took a seat at the bar patiently waiting.
Sarah put an omelet on a plate and slid it across the counter to him. "We need to talk," she said as she grabbed a knife and started buttering some toast. With her back turned to him, she continued, "When were you going to tell me Devon knows?"
Her tone was slightly accusatory and angry but her body language was calm and at ease. 'Not good.' Chuck gulped as he swallowed a bite of his omelet. "Ah, h-how did you know?"
Sarah turned to him and slid a plate of toast over to him resting her hands on the counter top. "I didn't for sure but thanks for clearing that up." Chuck was painfully aware of the butter knife she held in her hand and hoped he didn't learn what it felt like to have one imbedded in his body. She dropped the knife on the counter with a loud clank, an angry scowl staking claim of her face. While Chuck was glad she didn't have that knife in her hand, he knew she had knives somewhere close at all times so he wasn't out of the woods yet. And she was pissed. "What happened, Chuck? And it had better be good," she said pointing her finger at him leaving the 'or else' off but it still lingered.
Chuck started quickly with the explanation, "It wasn't my fault, I swear! Remember when Beckman ordered the 49B a few weeks ago?"
"Yeah, Chuck," Sarah said as she grabbed a napkin and furiously started to wipe down the counter, cleaning off the bread crumbs. "It's kind of hard to forget when your performance goes under evaluation."
Chuck could feel the anger pouring off her in waves, "Well, she contacted me through the TV in my bedroom-"
"And he saw her there?"
"No, no. It wasn't like that at all. We were done talking but her name and the time stamp were at the bottom of the screen. He saw it when he came in. I didn't even have time to react. I told him it was for a game that Morgan and I played. Crisis averted, or so I thought. But now General Beckman is staying there and he figured it out. I know he doesn't seem like it all the time, but he's a smart guy, Sarah."
"And what exactly did you tell him when you went into the bedroom?"
"Nothing!" Chuck insisted, "Nothing, I told him nothing. I couldn't talk to him there. Casey has that place so bugged up I would be on the next train to the bunker and Devon would be killed," Chuck said fervently. He could tell Sarah relaxed a little and he was going to keep this last part to himself but she would probably find out anyway. "But-"
"Oh, Chuck. Please don't tell me 'but'."
Chuck's face became pained as he pressed on, "I kind of told him we'd talk about it later."
"Chuck!" Sarah exclaimed, throwing the napkin in the trash then bringing the hand to rest against her forehead. Silence followed soon after and she started pacing the kitchen, thinking. There has to be a way out of this. Their cover cannot be blown. At least it was Devon and not some Fulcrum agent. Sarah had a slight moment of panic. 'What if Devon is Fulcrum?' Sarah shook off the thought. 'How could I possibly entertain that notion? If Devon were Fulcrum, we would have already had issues. Stop being irrational.' She let out a few deep breaths to get her anger under control as she processed. "Okay, okay. Here's what we're going to do. We'll tell him your status as an asset but that's it. Nothing else. You're sure he won't blab?"
Chuck nodded in response.
Sarah looked seriously at Chuck hoping he understand the importance of what he is agreeing to, "I mean absolutely, one hundred and ten percent positive he won't say anything at all to anyone."
"Yes, Sarah. He's Captain Awesome. He won't say anything."
"He better not." Sarah sighed, "I hope you're right, Chuck."
"What about the General and Casey?"
"We're not going to say anything. I trust you when you say Devon won't say anything but that doesn't change that no one else can know except the three of us. For now, we need to be really cautious. We'll talk to him today. Maybe we can use the excuse of picking up the gym equipment from the hotel. At least it isn't bugged so we can explain."
With Sarah calming down, it was easier for Chuck to relax a little. He lifted his arms like a body builder and mocked himself, "Yeah, cause these guns of steel could really help Devon get them downstairs." He smiled as a sort of peace offering. He never liked it when she was mad at him but this truly hadn't been his fault. Selfishly, he was happy Sarah knows. She would know what the right thing to do was and would keep him from saying too much that would get both Devon and him killed or worse.
Sarah rolled her eyes and let out a breath. She offered a slight smile in acceptance of his apology. She couldn't stay mad at him. Besides, she was never really mad at him. She was more upset at the situation. Technically, it was Beckman's fault. If she hadn't contacted Chuck at home or even thought about issuing the 49B then Devon would never have found out. That may be a skewed version of things but still. 'That's my story and I'm sticking to it.'
*********
The thirty minute car ride to the hospital was made in silence, all parties seemingly lost in their own thoughts. Without thought or direction they all made their way down the familiar path to Eve's room. She looked pretty good throughout most of the day yesterday but tired more quickly than recently. It seems as if the magical effects of the pain medications were catching up with her and she was starting to feel sick again. Well, she always felt sick but it's not as masked as when she first started them. They weren't really sure what to expect from today. Of course she would be happy to see all of them and be as lively as possible and joke around but they all seemed to feel the sense of dread lurking around the corner.
Casey quietly pushed the door open and held it for Trisha and Diane. Eve's attention was drawn away from the old movie she was watching in the darkness. "Hey, hey," she said tiredly but smiling.
All were immediately concerned. It looked as though Eve had melted into the bed as she looked at them through half-lidded eyes. "Eve. How are you doing?" Trisha asked worriedly.
Eve swallowed with effort as she answered, "I'm pretty tired. I think today is gonna be one of those days. But that's okay. You can't have good days all the time." Her breaths came in heavy and deep as she fought to stay awake. "Ethan said Dr. Williams would be in a little later to discuss some things with you guys. He wanted to tell me last night but I asked him to wait for you guys."
"Eve, you could have called us," Trisha said and then looked at Casey, "See, John, this is why I should stay here with her."
"Mom, it's okay. I think it's a good idea for you to stay with Uncle Casey. You don't like hospitals anyway and while I appreciate your willingness to do things you don't like to, I don't need to be coddled. You're gonna be more comfortable there."
Trisha opened her mouth to respond but Diane rested her hand against Trisha's forearm causing Trisha to look over at her. Diane shook her head and lipped, 'Pick your battles,' to her. Trisha sighed, "Alright, I won't stay."
Casey decided a change of subject was in order, "What are you watching, Newt?"
Eve smiled, "Bringing Up Baby. It's one of my favorites."
John sat in his normal chair by the window and directed his attention to the movie. Carey Grant's character David Huxley was wandering around the house wearing a frilly, feminine robe talking about looking for his clothes or something. He'd never seen this movie. Eve liked old black and white films, which was not a common interest he shared but he would watch them with her anyway. He had to admit she was pretty amusing to watch silent films with too. She would make up dialogue and guess at the story from reading the description on the back. He even participated on the very, very rare occasion.
Eve smiled and let out a strained laugh at a comment from the movie. Casey turned his attention away from the movie and watched her instead. Every breath took so much energy away from her. You could see her struggle to stay awake and focused. In all the time she'd been sick, even with the first time, he'd never felt as scared that this could be it. Scared was never something he felt. Casey's scare people. They don't get scared. It's not on the repertoire.
Diane smiled, "Mine, too. I didn't think you had the option of choosing the movies. I thought you watched what was provided by the hospital."
"Well, normally I do but Ethan brought in an extra DVD player he had," she said, moving just her finger to point above the TV, "It's right up there. He comes in to change the movie when he can. But now you guys are here so he doesn't have to."
'I bet he will though,' Diane thought.
************
Chuck and Sarah drove to meet Devon at the hotel to grab the rest of Sarah's things. They set up a time to meet since Devon went mountain biking that morning. "So how do you think this is gonna go?" Chuck asked, his nervousness shining through.
Sarah glanced over to him and then back to the road. "I'm not sure." She adjusted her grip on the wheel, pausing before she continued, "And you're certain he won't say anything and that there are no skeletons in his closet we should know about?"
Chuck gave Sarah the same glance she gave him moments before, "He can handle it. If there is anyone that wears his heart on his sleeve more than I do, it's Devon. You always know where he stands."
Sarah nodded, "Okay. We have to keep it simple. Nothing about the Intersect, nothing about missions. You are just an asset. We are just your handlers."
Chuck nodded, "What if he asks about how I became an asset?"
"Then we say it is top secret, need-to-know information that we cannot divulge."
They pulled into the parking lot to see Devon anxiously waiting by his car. Chuck let out a loud breath. "Alright, you ready?"
"Ready as I'll ever be." As Chuck was reaching for the handle Sarah quickly stopped him, "Chuck." He slowly turned back towards her to wait for her to continue. She wasn't sure she wanted to share this with him but she thought it would be appropriate. Sarah swallowed and shook her head a little before explaining, "I've never had my cover blown before."
Chuck nodded and looked down in his lap, "Somehow that doesn't surprise me. When they said I got the best, they really meant it."
She nodded her head and got out of the car, Chuck following behind. He met her at the front of the car and held out his hand for her. She grasped it tightly and looked in his eyes. With a resolved breath and simultaneous nod, they made their way to Devon.
Devon noted the small exchange they had in the car. 'So Chuck told Sarah.' It baffled him to no end how well they got along. Yesterday at breakfast, they didn't say anything but somehow still ended up having a conversation. He really hoped this was some sort of gross misunderstanding. From what he knew about Sarah, which wasn't much, he liked her. But what ever was going on involved her and somehow Chuck was mixed up in it too. He silently fell in step with them next to Chuck as they made their way into the hotel.
Spencer opened the door for the three. "Miss Walker. Welcome back. One more day until you're done with us for good," he said with a small chuckle.
Sarah offered a small smile in return, "Oh, Spencer. I could visit you know."
Spencer laughed, "I'd rather you didn't. It might mean there is trouble on the relationship front if someone has to spend the night." Spencer turned his attention to Chuck and pointed his finger at him, "Now, Chuck, I'm only gonna say this once. You take care of this lady, you hear? Because if I see either one of you back here I will personally see to it that the other is here too."
Chuck laughed, "I'll do my best, Spencer."
"And who is this?" Spencer asked.
"Oh, this is Devon. He is gonna be my brother-in-law in just over a week," Chuck said with a smile. "He is helping us with Sarah's exercise equipment."
"Oh," Spencer said raising his eyebrows and extending out his hand, "Good to meet you, young man."
Devon shook his hand, "Yes, sir. Awesome to meet you." It was odd how composed both Sarah and Chuck were acting despite the fact that moments before they didn't seem to be.
"Well, I'll let you kids get back to moving," Spencer said holding open the door. "I'll keep my eye out for you on the way down. Exercise equipment can't be easy to move."
"Thanks, Spencer."
The elevator ride was made in silence. Devon was waiting for Chuck or Sarah to make the first move as he wasn't sure what to expect. It didn't seem like they were too eager to start anyway but he felt like he should wait. He shuffled his feet, adjusting his weight while waiting for the ride to end. This would be the first time Devon has ever been to Sarah's place. Once the ding sounded, Chuck and Sarah casually strode out, hand in hand, Devon waited a bit so he could walk behind them.
Sarah got her key out and unlocked the door opening it just slightly. She turned and looked between Chuck and Devon. "Wait here," she said going inside. Even though it was her private residence, she still wanted to ensure there were no bugs. Besides, it was standard protocol to do a sweep.
Devon looked over at Chuck, "What-"
Chuck put his hand up, silently indicating Devon to keep quiet. They waited outside for five minutes or so. Devon was starting to get antsy when suddenly Sarah opened the door for them, "We're clear, come in."
'Clear?' Devon thought as he followed Chuck inside, duly noting Sarah locking the door behind him. She went over to Chuck's alarm clock and turned the radio on and up just in case. Chuck sat on the bed and indicated for Devon to do the same. As the silence persisted, Devon glanced around the apartment/hotel room. There wasn't much in it. The room was large and open. It didn't really have a homey feel to it.
Sarah paced in front of them, thinking of where to start. Her arms were folded protectively across her chest. 'This could end poorly,' she thought to herself. She looked to Chuck with a raised brow. 'Do you want to start or should I?'
Chuck responded with a look of his own that said he would.
Devon was still amazed they could do that. He knew that he and Ellie did it too but it's different when you see it happening.
"Devon, I have to say this first. You cannot tell anyone what is said in here. You cannot make any passing comments about it. It is imperative that you do not ever, ever, ever bring it up. Can you do that?"
Devon gave them both a calculating look. If he wasn't intrigued before, he was definitely intrigued now. "I can do that."
"Good," Chuck said visibly relieved. "I was hoping you'd say that. Okay, um, where to start-" Chuck looked down collecting himself before looking up, "Devon, I am a high level CIA asset and Sarah and Casey are my handlers. For the past two years they've had to watch and protect my every move."
Devon looked disbelievingly at Chuck as he processed what he was being told, "You're being serious?" He turned to Sarah, noting her stoic expression, "He's being serious?"
"Devon," Chuck said directing Devon's attention back to him, "I need you to help me. I need you to be cool about this. I need you to be awesome. Can you be awesome?"
"You're a spy, Chuck?" Devon asked his voice slightly higher than normal.
Chuck bobbed his head back and forth, "Yeah, more or less. Yeah."
"Whoa . . . wow!" Devon wore a shocked expression as his mouth hung open at the revelation. "This is . . . awesome!" he said with a small laugh and large grin. He put his hand up for a high five from Chuck which Chuck gladly returned. "I knew you weren't a loser that worked at the Buy More."
Sarah furrowed her brow in annoyance at Devon using loser so soon after she fixed that slight problem and also at Devon's reaction. "Loser is a bit harsh," she said defensively.
"And the Buy More is real," Chuck added.
Devon nodded exaggeratedly, "Awesome. So I guess I can't ask anything specific then?"
Sarah and Chuck shook their head together, "No."
"Well, that still explains a lot." He couldn't believe it. 'Chuck? A spy? Bartowski, Charles Bartowski. . . . Do they really do that?' Devon looked curiously between Chuck and Sarah. "Wait, are you guys not a real couple then?"
"No. It's our cover," Sarah said adjusting her grip on her arms. "It was the easiest way to explain my appearance and keep him safe."
Devon heard her words but her tone sounded like some sort of variation to sad and her body language indicated that as well. "You coulda fooled me. Oh, wait, you did. Ellie is not going to be happy about this."
"Devon, no," Chuck said, "No telling Ellie. Remember no one can know. You have no idea how much of a risk this is letting you know."
"Okay. But what does this have to do with Diane? How is she involved?"
Sarah replied, "General Beckman is our superior officer."
"But isn't the CIA a civilian run thing and not a military?"
"Yes, but this is a joint mission between the CIA and the NSA," Chuck said.
"Chuck," Sarah warned giving him a stern look.
"Right, sorry," Chuck said raising his hands in surrender, "Won't say anything else."
Devon nodded. "If you're the CIA part, then that makes John the NSA part. Okay, now his promotion makes so much more sense."
"His promotion?" Sarah asked confused.
"Yeah, Ellie told me. He is a Colonel now as of a couple days ago I guess. She is gonna have dinner at some point to celebrate for him."
Sarah nodded. 'Well, if he is getting promoted then he definitely isn't sick. What else could it be?'
"Okay," Chuck said standing, "Well, now that that's done I'm going to the bathroom and then we can move the rest of this stuff."
Sarah gave him a slight smile and rubbed his arm as he walked by her. Devon waited until Chuck closed the door and gave Sarah a knowing look, "It's not all a cover, is it?"
Sarah ignored his comment and glared at him crossing her arms once again over her chest, "Listen carefully, Devon. You're taking this surprisingly well and I hope for your sake you don't say anything to put Chuck in jeopardy."
Devon's eyes widened in shock as his jaw dropped for the second time. 'Well, that's a new side to Sarah.' All her protectiveness, all her secrets, all her solitude made a whole lot more sense to him now. All of Chuck's disappearing acts and suspicious behavior as of late had a reason, and a damn good one at that. He closed his mouth and nodded. "I won't. You can trust me."
"I don't trust people," she said crossly. Her body language changed as she amended her statement quietly enough for him to hear, "Except Chuck."
Devon nodded again, knowing that in some small way she was referring back to his comment about their cover. "I knew it. You do have feelings for the Chuckster."
"It's complicated," she said as she sat next to Devon. She knew she slipped by telling him that. She should have left it at not trusting people. "Please don't say anything. You would be putting Ellie, Chuck, yourself . . . everyone you know and love in danger."
Just like that, her strong, confident demeanor was gone as she pleaded for his silence. "Sarah, I would never do that. Your secret is safe with me. You have my word."
Sarah looked remorsefully at him, "I wish that was enough, Devon." She walked away and gathered up the small box of weights she had. All together it weighed close to 100 pounds and she lifted it as though it was nothing.
Devon watched as she easily picked up the box and carried it to the table by the door. He watched as she doubled checked that everything was in its place. 'So Sarah is a CIA agent. That explains the Porsche, the ability to pay for this place, the dead-end job.' "I guess that means the Orange Orange is all for show."
"Yes."
Devon shook his head, "That must suck for you to work there."
"I can think of worse."
"Really?"
"Weinerlicious," she replied shortly as she put the top back on the box.
Devon let out a small chuckle. He wasn't sure if he should approach this topic now knowing she could probably kill him but he figured he'd try anyway. "So, as far as things with Chuck goes-"
Sarah didn't look at him as she interrupted, "Things with Chuck will only ever be the way they are. That can't be changed."
"But you want it to be different?" he asked uncertainly.
"Does it matter what I want?" She looked over to Devon and he raised his eyebrow indicating further explanation was necessary. She sighed, "I want Chuck to be safe and if keeping him at a distance from me does that then that's what I'll do. Chuck is far too valuable to me to let anything happen to him, even me."
Their conversation was cut short by Chuck coming out of the bathroom. "Alright, let's get the rest of this stuff outta here," he said standing next to the punching bag assessing the best way to take it.
Devon stood to go over by Chuck and whispered for only Sarah to hear, "We're not done yet."
"Great. Can't wait," she said sardonically to herself. They carried the rest of Sarah's belongings downstairs, packing the punching bag in Devon's jeep and the weights in Sarah's car. She closed the trunk and went over to the other car. "I'm going to do one last check."
Chuck turned his attention to her as Devon closed the back of the car. "Do you want me to go with you?"
"No, it's fine. Why don't you guys go ahead? I have some things I need to get out of the hotel safe anyway so that will take a while. I can bring us all lunch back if you'd like."
Chuck nodded, "Okay. We'll get this stuff taken care of." He leaned down and gave Sarah a peck on the cheek, causing her to smile some and reciprocate.
"See you in a little while," she said with a waive as she left.
Devon stood next to Chuck as they watched Sarah walk away. "So, she could probably kill me, huh?"
Chuck kept his gaze on Sarah as he responded, "Yeah, she could definitely kill you."
As the front door to the hotel closed they started for the car. "Do you trust her?"
"I trust her with everything. I trust Casey with most things. They put their lives on the line for me everyday. I got lucky. The Government gave me the best, which I'm grateful for."
Devon nodded, "I always thought it was weird that you were friends with a guy like John. Well, you're friends with everybody but that a guy like John would be friends with you is new."
"It's a difficult relationship to define. I'm not sure it falls under the same guidelines of friendship but he's a good guy even if he would never admit it."
**********
Sarah walked to the front desk after double checking things upstairs. She would probably check again tomorrow too just because she liked to be thorough and she had that extra day.
A woman came from the back with a smile as she addressed the guest, "Hello. How may I help you?"
"I have some belongings I need to get out of the safe."
"Yes, of course. Name please?"
"Sarah Walker."
The woman typed a few commands into the computer and pulled up the location of her guest's items. The screen showed a picture of Sarah, confirming her identity. "Just a moment please, Miss Walker." The woman was gone for about five minutes, returning with a locked briefcase in hand. She placed it on the counter and printed out a reclaim sheet from the computer. "I just need you to sign this release form and you're good to go."
Sarah quickly signed the sheet and exchanged it for the briefcase and walked out to her car. Opening the trunk, Sarah lifted a corner of the carpet revealing a combination lock. She entered the combo and placed the briefcase in the secret compartment of her trunk. With one last look at the briefcase, she shut the compartment and spun the lock.
******
Well thats all for now. let me know what you think