Don't own Chuck

Minister Wang was smiling as he started to leave his office things seemed to going his way. If everything went as he planned he'd be leaving this post and who knows where he could end up. He had his eye on Party Chairman and even President. He told the agent acting as his secretary that he'd be indisposed for a while and didn't want to be disturbed then he headed down to the interrogation room.

"If anyone calls looking for me just tell them that I'm in the building and you'll have to find me then leave them on hold. I don't think I'll be long but I can't be certain."

"Yes Sir," said the agent but almost as soon as he said it the Minister's phone rang. Wang paused at the door wanting to make sure the man had the message down. The man picked up the receiver and he looked at the minister as he stood in the doorway looking at him. "Minister Wang's office, I sorry but he's out in the building somewhere, I'll have to find can Huan hold please?"

"Wait a minute," said Wang. "Is that Huan from the States on the line for me?" The man nodded smiling at him.

"Yes Sir, but don't worry, I did exactly what you told me to do. I told him what you told me to say and I put him on hold," said the man smiling pointing at the phone.

"I expect you to use a little judgement," said Wang shaking his head. "Patch the call through to my office. I'll take it before I go down," he said. Wang could see now he was going to have to look around for another secretary. This guy just wasn't going to work out

"Huan, what news do you have for me? Do you have the watch and the girl?" Wang couldn't believe his luck first Tien and the American were caught and now if everything worked out in the States he would soon be going placed. But his dream was shattered when he heard a woman's voice instead of Huan's.

"Who is this and where is Huan?" He listened to the woman and from there things started to go to crap. By the time he got off the phone he knew he needed to get more intel from the American and Tien.

"I'm going down to the interrogation room now and if anyone calls you know what to say," said Wang as he looked at the man smiling back at him with a look that told him the light bulb inside had burnt out years ago if it ever worked.

"Wait a minute I hate to ask you this question but what would you do if say the President of the Republic or the Party Chairman calls for me?"

"I'll tell them you're in the building and I'll have to find you then leave them on hold until you come back. See I got it right just like you told me."

"Yeah you got it all right. On second thought just pass all calls down to interrogation. I'll screen them myself that way you don't have to worry about them. As a matter of fact, why don't you call it an evening and go on home."

"Thank you sir for this opportunity and your trust I won't let you down. I think I'm really going to like this job. Thank you again for this posting and I'll see you tomorrow morning bright and early ready to go to work."

"Well, don't get too comfortable behind a desk. We might have need of someone with your skillsets out in the field," said Wang as he left heading towards the elevators. "Bright and early not if I can help it. Skillsets as a bullet magnet," he said as he took out his phone and called Jian.

"Yes, I know what time it is and you don't answer my calls like this. Hey, a sudden thought that doesn't relate to anything. But do remember us sending a female agent with Huan to the States? ... I can't remember either but back to why I called you. You've got to do something with that idiot you sent me as a secretary. What rock did you turn over to find him? Whatever one it was he needs to go … I don't care whose cousin he is. I want him gone tomorrow. … Okay, Okay I see your point and yes, he's too dumb to notice anything. Very well I'll deal with him until this is done but then he's gone. I've gotten some good news. I'm on my way to the interrogation room now. … Funny, no I'm not getting interrogated and remind me why I put up with you? ... It's Tien and that American. They were brought in a little while ago. Don't tell Ettore but that thing about the watch was a bust. The watch is just that a watch. … I'm beginning to wonder if you aren't right about Ettore. He can't be trusted. … If need be we can dig another grave. Look, I've got to go," said Wang as the bell rang and the doors opened on the elevator.

"I'll call you later," Wang said then he put his phone away. Standing in front of him was a short female agent with dark sunglasses. He wondered how she could see anything with them on. But he couldn't help think that he should know the girl.

"This way Minister," said the female agent. "I was sent here to escort you to the interrogation room. This way please follow me"

"I don't think I know you. Where is everyone else?" said the Minister as he looked down at the empty corridor. There was something about this that didn't sit right with him.

"The American is where everyone is. He tried to commit suicide so they took him down to the infirmary. We should know something soon. He had a cyanide tablet hidden in one of his back molars. We hope we caught it in time."

"Crap, I thought those things were only in the movies. Someone's going to lose their head if he dies. I need to talk to him. Well, take me to Tien, I want to have a little chat with him while we're waiting."

"This way then. I hope we know something soon. They've been down there for a while," said Anna as she walked the Minister down to an interrogation room. She opened the door and there handcuffed to a table sitting to a chair was Tien. "Do you want me to stand in with you?"

"No, I'd like to do this alone. Make sure there is no one in the observation. If there are tell them to go get a cup of tea."

"No, the room is empty. We were already shorthanded and with what happened to the American the other two men took him down while I stayed here for you."

"Right, the extra people we had to send to Ettore. Okay I want you to post outside the door and make sure no one comes in until I knock to say I'm ready to leave."

"Yes Sir," said Anna as Wang walked past her but he stopped in the doorway turning around to look at her. Anna thought for sure she'd been made. "Yes, Sir is there something you need?"

"No… well yes. It's I have had this feeling since we met that I should know you from someplace else. Have we met before?"

"Yes Sir, we have you were at my graduation ceremony from the academy. You gave a speech then walked right in front of me and it was then I knew I wanted to be in your service."

"Very good, yes that must be it. You know if you play your cards right I will be needing a personal secretary very soon and the job could be yours. I'm going places and when I do I'll be showering my trusted people with gifts. We can talk more about that later up in my office."

"I'd be honored Sir," said Anna. She closed the door then spit on the ground. "I'd rather be dead first. I hope Chuck's getting his crap done."

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In the meantime, Chuck walked into the server room where a group of techs were working on the main frame trying to get the connection up and running. However, given their look of frustration and their irritability it didn't look like it was going anywhere. Some people looked up at him as he walked in but others just continued with what they were doing.

"And who are you," said the one techie looking over everyone's shoulder. He challenged Chuck. "My name is Bao and I was put in charge here. No one call me about a new guy being sent to us."

"Who I'm is your salvation. I hate to tell you're going about this all wrong. Your main frame will never be able to handle the data stream if you run it through like that. It will burn out it's processor before it can relay the data to the sanitarium."

"We've been at this for two days and you come in here with your bright ideas and think you know more than we do. Okay golden boy you told us that this won't work that we know by now. So bright boy tell us something we don't know like how to make this work," said Bao as he motioned for Chuck to come over to the workstation.

"I never thought you'd ask. Can everyone move over there out of my way? You're breathing my air," said Chuck as he sat down at the console, cracked his knuckles then started typing code. "It's rather simple... my solution that is. But you have to be good at code writing in order to do it..."

"All I hear is you calling us simple and you bragging right now. Let's see some results first," said Bao as Chuck pulled out of his bag a bottle. He pulled the cork out of the bottle with his teeth then took a hit.

"Anyone what a sample... Rombauer, chardonnay? I like to call it my thinking juice. What no takers? Okay more for me. You see your data is coming in too fast for the machine to process which is causing a backlog in the processing unit which in turn is causing your machine to overheat. What you need is for the data to be translated into packets with your machine acting as an encoder. That will make the data more manageable then it will send it on to the sanitarium..."

"Where we install a decoder that translates the packets back to data," said Bao. "Ingenious, you know that just might work."

"There is no might it… It will work. Now you need to get kick up the air condition in here because even like this these machines are going to run hot. You need to turn this room into a meat locker. I going to need a lift to the other end now so I can install the decoder."

"I'll have you taken there," said Bao. His tune changed now that he'd seen Chuck at work and saw what he could do. "Where did you learn how to do this? This is not something you learn in school."

"My schooling was the school of hard knocks. I was sent to the States where I infiltrated the collective. I learned a lot there and I even met the Piranha. I don't want to drop names but I also met Colin Davis, the man who wrote the Omen Virus."

"Then you know what it does. The Minister has been on our backs for weeks to figure out what exactly it does. I know there was a big scare in the States that turned out to be nothing."

"Come my son and I will try to illuminate you as we head for the sanitarium," said Chuck as he packed up and started to walk out with Bao.

"No, I'll send another one of my men with you. I need to report to the minister that everything is about done. He'll be happy to hear that. Bao," said Bao as he looked at another man. "I'm sorry but you never told me your name."

"So, your Bao too and together Bao, Bao. I'm sorry you asked me my name. It's Woof... no just joking it's So. So, come on Bao let's go."

"That man is strange. If that's what happens to people who get sent to the States we're better off where we're at. I'm going upstairs to see the minister and tell him the good news. While I'm gone get this room cooled down as low as you can," said Bao as he left he server room. "And I'll take all the credit," said to himself as he smiled.

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It was the middle of the night in China while on the East coast of the United States it was day break. Everyone was going to work and the beltway around D.C. was a filled with cars as people tried to get to their place of employment. In all this mass mayhem, there was at least one person already hard at it at Langley. In fact, Beckman and the Major had never gone home but stayed through the night until they were sure Sarah was safe and her family was under lock and key.

"I don't totally agree with your staying at Echo Park but by the same token if there are any other hostiles out there your being there will draw them out in the open so we can take them down."

"I'm not sure I like my family being used as a bullet magnet but it does get me what's best for them and it's what I asked for. Please let me know as soon as you can if anyone of the team has been taken. I can put together an extraction team and have them out in no time."

"That's exactly what I don't want you to do. You're too close to this. Look, I'll keep you abreast of everything that going on just so I know you won't do anything stupid. I'm meeting with Ambassador Mei Sheng in a little while for breakfast. I'll drop this in his lap then we can go from there but you don't lift a finger out of Echo Park."

"But the Ambassador is out of the loop on this. I don't see how he can do anything for us against someone as well connected as Minister Wang. Wang has the political clout and friends in the right places. If the Ambassador goes up against Wang it might not go so well for him."

"You worry about your family and protecting them leave the rest of this to me. I need to run now the traffic on the beltway is going to be a bear at this time of day. Get some rest you've been up all night. You won't be good to anyone if your suffering from sleep deprivation."

"I'll get rest when all this is over," said Sarah. Then the General signed off. Sarah sat in Casey's apartment looking at the now dark screen. She wanted to make sure no one else overheard her talking with the General but now she felt so terribly alone. She'd never noticed it before but little by little she had grown accustomed to there always being someone around her. Now with Chuck gone and the girls being in their apartment so felt this void inside and silence outside. The silence around her was so deafening she wanted to scream but she couldn't.

"I swear Chuck, if you go get yourself killed I'll shoot you dead," she said as she pulled out the photo she had in her purse and looked at it. "Oh crap, I just want you to come home soon," she said as she caressed his image in the picture.

"Well this isn't helping anyone," she said as she dried her eyes then put away the photo. She forced herself up then headed back to their apartment. She open the door a quietly as she could she didn't want Sam to wake up and not find her in her bed.

Meanwhile back in Washington Beckman drove her own car out of Langley to the prearranged meeting point. They had reservation at a small diner located off the Washington Mall that would guarantee them the privacy they needed as well as a good breakfast at a reasonable price. When Beckman got there the Ambassador was already sitting in a dark booth smelling his Chai tea.

"You know that thing is going to give you a stomachache," said Beckman as she slipped in on the other side of the booth getting comfortable.

"I know but it will taste good going down. I need to put something on my stomach before I start to drink this elixir of the immortals," said Mei as he waved for a waitress to come over. "I'll have your breakfast special. Eggs over easy, bacon instead of sausages and can I get an English muffin."

"Certainly, and would you like grits or hash browns with your breakfast special" said the woman as she wrote down the Ambassadors order.

"I'll have the grits. I come from canton so I'm a southerner at heart," said Mei as he smiled at the waitress."

"And for you Ma'am what would you like?" said the waitress but Beckman caught the way the woman was eyeing Mei.

"You can bring me over a cup of black coffee and I'll have your bagel with cream cheese… no make that lox and bagel," said Beckman as she shook her head.

"Yes, Ma'am I'll bring you coffee right way while you're waiting for your orders," said the waitress. She left and came right back with a coffee pot filling the General's cup then she disappeared.

"So, Diane you called me here. I assume you have something you wish to share or were you just hungry?"

"Look at the photos in this folder. See if there's anyone you recognize," she said as she passed him a brown folder. He opened it then thumbed through the pictures and while he was looking at them their orders were served.

"Are you trying to say these people are ours? I can't know everyone in the MSS but these people could be triad too," said Mei as he sat the folder on the table then started eating.

"Oh, I think you recognized at least one. His name is Huan and he's one of the goons who works for your Minister Wang. They tried to capture Sarah Carmichael to coerce information out of her. But as you can see they got caught instead. I'm about to ship them off to a dark sight but I'm also willing to negotiate the release of our people you're holding in exchange."

"I'm not admitting I know these people but if our government… in a purely humanitarian effort were to agree to such terms we would have to know who you want before any decision can be made."

"Now that bring us to a dilemma. You see rumor has it that one of our people was taken in Guangzhou…"

"You're talking about Chuck? Of course you are, why am I even asking. I told you before I don't know what's going on in Guangzhou. Wang has put a net over the whole province under the excuse of national security so there's nothing going in or coming out. It and when I find out Chuck has been taken we can negotiate. As far as I care about Huan you can take him to your black site. The man makes me sick along with his master."

"I have something else for you," said Beckman as she took a sip of her coffee. She slid Mei a digital player.

"What's this," said Mei as he took a bite of his eggs. "You Americans... you're so wasteful. You throw away the best parts of the chicken."

"I've eaten chicken feet and I have to say I didn't dislike them. Now listen what we caught on tape," said Beckman. She was starting to wonder if Mei was stalling.

"We feed feng zhao or Chicken feet to babies. You need to eat the head and crack the skull open to get at the brains," said Mei as he turned on the player. "This is Wang's voice but who is he talking to?"

"That doesn't matter but what he says does and for your information I have eaten a chicken head. Roan and I were in Luzon and had way too many San Miguels. An old woman came by with fried chicken heads on a stick. Roan bet me a round I wouldn't eat it."

"I guess he bought the next round. I need to take all this with me and send it to the President personally. I guess breakfast is on me. This might be what I've been looking for."

"Tread lightly Mei, Wang has people everywhere. I never finished my story. We left the bar that night and on the way to our hotel we found the police next to it. We asked what happened and they told us they'd found an old woman with her throat slit in the alleyway. They said it had been the communist guerrillas. They wanted to make an example out of her for everyone else not to have anything to do with us."

"I hear what you're saying and I'll be careful. Now I have to go," said Mei. He left money on the table then left.

"I hope you do," said Diane as she took a sip of her coffee then helped herself to the bacon Mei had left on his plate. "No sense in letting you go to waste. From snout to tail just like the Chinese with their chickens."