A/N: Maybe Roan owns Chuck? If he's on a bender, that would explain why I can't find it.
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Somewhat later, the team reassembled in Castle. Chuck was sitting in front of the computer with a half full bottle of Chardonnay.
"Good timing, guys," he said with a smile. "I just finished."
"What did you find, Sweetie?" asked Sarah.
"No surprise, but as they told us his CIA file didn't contain a current address. Tax returns list a P.O. Box in rural Oklahoma. That seemed unlikely to lead anywhere productive. So, it was his pension check that I started with. I figured that so long as he wasn't cancelling it or something, no matter how much other money he had stashed away, he'd still want that pension money. He has it direct deposited into a bank account in Geneva. So, I went in there and..."
"Kid," said Casey.
"...it's swept from there every six months into an account in the Caribbean..."
"Kid," said Casey, slightly raising his hand.
"...and from there to...Yeah, Case?"
"Just tell us where we're going," said Casey.
"Oh. Yeah. Maui. We're going to Maui," said Chuck. "He's living with a rich divorcee named Susan Case. House on Hale Malia Place. On the northwestern side of the island, near the water."
"Maui. Nice. We might have to stay there for a bit to work it out with him," said Amy with a happy smile.
"From everything I've heard about him, shacking up with a wealthy divorcee is right up his alley," said Sarah.
"Yeah," said Casey. "It's why he was teaching the seduction course. He's a real hound-dog."
With a glance at her watch, Sarah said, "Best we leave in the morning. With the time difference and flight time we'll arrive only an hour and a half after we leave here."
"Ok," said Chuck.
Sarah said, "I suggest we go wheels up at seven. That will get us to Maui at 8:30 in the morning, or so, their time." When the others nodded their agreement, she continued, "I'll alert the flight crew."
"Great. And we should probably bring the gear for the mission to Miami. My guess is we'll go there directly after," said Chuck.
Amy smiled and said, "From Maui to South Beach? You know, sometimes this job doesn't suck too bad."
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Chuck was chopping the tomatoes for the salad while Sarah, standing next to him, had the spinach under the running faucet for cleaning. There was a big pot of salted water on the stove, waiting patiently for a flame to rouse it to action.
The radio, tuned to a classic rock station, started to play a song.
After a few moments, Sarah started to sing softly, "...all my life, though some have changed..."
Chuck joined her, "Some forever, not for better..."
"Some have gone, and some remain..." they sang. "All these places have their moments, with lovers and friends I still can recall. Some are dead and some are living." Chuck and Sarah looked at each other and sang, "In my life I've loved them all." Chuck held the knife up to his lips like a microphone and gave her the Bartowski eyebrow dance.
Sarah wiped her hands on a dishtowel and held her hands out to her fiancée. He put down the knife he was using and took her hands. Arms around each other, they began to dance around the kitchen singing along to the music.
Looking deep into each other's eyes they sang, "But of all these friends and lovers, there is no one compares with you. And these memories lose their meaning, when I think of love as something new."
Chuck spun her away from him, still holding her hand. She did a graceful twirl, grinning with joy, and came back into his arms.
They continued to sing to each other. "Though I know I'll never lose affection for people and things that went before, I know I'll often stop and think about them, in my life I love you more." They looked deep into each other's eyes with love, swaying in each other's arms to the soft music.
Chuck bent to kiss her and, with their lips together, muffling their words, they sang, "Though I know I'll never lose affection for people and things that went before, I know I'll often stop and think about them, in my life I love you more. In my life I love you more."
As the song ended, the kiss deepened and the passion rose. Chuck backed Sarah up to the kichen counter. She hopped up onto it and kept kissing him. He stepped forward to stand between her knees. Never taking her mouth from his, she wrapped her ankles behind his knees and pulled him towards her, running her hands through the curls at the back of his head.
There was a knock at the door.
She took her tongue out of his mouth and whispered, a little breathlessly, "Dammit."
"Yeah, I know," he said quietly, "but it's not like we were going to finish anything anyway."
"Just you wait, buster," she said, giving him a look that made him warm all over.
She hopped off the counter and went to open the door to their guests.
Morgan and Lou greeted her with hugs and a couple of bottles of wine.
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"Oh, you can't believe how easy it is," said Sarah. "Hot oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, capers and anchovies. Some cheese on top after you've mixed the sauce with the pasta. It's a snap."
"What's it called?" asked Morgan.
"The recipe I read calls it Midnight Pasta. They said it's made by the chefs for themselves when they get home at midnight and are tired of cooking."
"I'm going to have to remember it," he said. "Thanks."
Lou said, "Hey, Honey, can I have some more wine?"
"Sure. Here you go," he said, pouring some into her glass.
Chuck said, "Well, you guys have heard all about the goings-on at CI. Your turn. What's new with you, Lou?"
"Nada. Sandwich shop is chugging away. Nothing new there. Family is all ok. Dad just bought a hotel in New York. He's excited about it. It's his first hotel outside Europe."
"Big?" asked Sarah.
"Naw. Small...well, medium sized, I guess. One hundred and sixty rooms. Downtown Manhattan. It needs a ton of renovation and upgrade. The prior owner really let it slide. Probably won't be open to the public until next year. He's hoping to get the restaurant and bar opened sooner though. He's going to have to go through the whole liquor license thing, though. Can't rely on the prior owner's in New York. That'll take some time."
"Cool. That's exciting for him. For the family," said Chuck.
"How about you, Morgan?" asked Sarah. "How are things at Jackie's?"
"Weird," he said, looking a little pensive. He took a sip of his wine. "I can't really figure Jackie out. I knew I'd start at the bottom. Cleaning the bathrooms and stuff. And that was ok. But I figured he'd give me a shot at cooking. That's the part I love."
"So, what's he been doing instead?" asked Chuck.
"I've been doing all kinds of things there. A little cooking, yeah, sometimes. I did start with cleaning stuff, the whole place, the kitchen, everything, but then he moved me to busboy jobs, then dishwasher, and now he's sending me to bartender school."
"He's sending you?" asked Sarah.
"Yeah. He's going to pay for me to take the class. He insisted that I get my salary for the hours I'm taking it. Which I think is a little weird. I'm worried that he thinks I'm messing up the jobs he gives me and keeps moving me around until he finds a job I don't suck at."
"Which is so totally the wrong take on what Jackie's doing," said Lou with frustration. "Completely the opposite of what's really happening."
Morgan pulled at his beard and sipped his wine, but looked at Lou with affection. "I know, you keep telling me that. But I worry anyway."
Lou addressed Chuck and Sarah. "He's working his ass off for Jackie. He's trying so damn hard you can see it in everything he does. Determined to be the best dishwasher ever. The best busboy who has ever cleaned a table. Everyone can see it. Ask Eileen. The other staff loves him. He does his share of the work and then picks up tasks for others. And there's no bitching and moaning. He's delighted to be there. I'll tell you, when Morgan isn't looking, Jackie has got a big look of pride on his face. I think Morgan is impressing him with each new position and he keeps moving him around to see how much he can handle," she said. "That's what I think."
"Little Buddy, Jackie is a really straight shooter. If he thought you were messing up, he'd tell you right to your face. No question," said Chuck.
"Well, he has … I don't know...corrected me sometimes," said Morgan.
"To teach you how to do the job, right?"
"Well, yeah," said Morgan.
"I agree with Lou," said Chuck. "I think you are doing great. Hell, Morgs, he's sending you to bartender school on his own dime. That proves it. If you were a screw-up, he'd never do that. Not in a million years."
"Well, I hope you guys are right," said Morgan.
Once they'd finished dinner, Morgan said, "Hey, Chuck. Up for a little Call of Duty tonight?"
"Naw. Sorry, buddy. Sarah and I have to be up early. We've got to go out of town in the morning."
"FDA stuff?" asked Lou, with a sparkle of humor in her eyes.
"Yeah," said Sarah, smiling at her friend. "FDA stuff."
Lou gave Sarah a hug and said, "Stay safe, girlfriend."
"Thanks," said Sarah, hugging the other woman back.
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The next morning, the Citation's twin engines were roaring, but the soundproofed cabin made it easy to have a conversation. The only thing to be seen outside the cabin's windows was the blue of the sky.
Chuck held the floor. He showed them a picture of a man in his fifties with snow white hair. In the picture, the man was dressed in a dark blue suit and striped tie. Although the man was handsome, he was far from pretty. He had a serious, hard look and intelligent eyes. "Montgomery was born in 1951 in New Orleans. Earned a scholarship to Yale and became a member of Skull and Bones, the secret society, in his senior year. Graduated with honors. Fluent in five languages. In 1974, after a year traveling in Europe with some buddies, he joined the CIA."
"Height of the Cold War," said Casey.
"Yeah. Dozens and dozens of missions. Almost all successful. Stopping KGB operatives. Recruiting and running almost a hundred agents behind the Iron Curtain. Extracting them when things got too hot for them at home. He was in Berlin when the Wall fell. Interestingly, almost seventy percent of his agents were women. Seems he had a real talent for recruitment of the opposite sex."
"Yeah. It's why he was brought in to teach the class," said Sarah.
"Why didn't you take that class?" asked Chuck.
"I did. I missed having him as an instructor though. He was rotating in and out of the teaching gig," she said with a shrug.
"Me too. I also missed him," said Amy. "He had a reputation at the Farm for sleeping with the women students. It was gossiped about, at least among the women there."
Chuck continued, "He destroyed the Apos terrorist organization in Tunisia. He wrapped up a Hamas pipeline of heavy weapons into Gaza. He saved a cruise ship from a bombing. On and on. He was awarded the Distinguished Intelligence Cross and five Intelligence Stars. I can't tell, but that might be a record."
"He was wounded many, many times. The doctors wanted to pull him out of the field a few times. Each time he fought it and appealed their decision, winning the right to go back overseas."
"After thirty years with the Agency, he pulled the pin in 2004. Retired and dropped off the grid. No one in the IC has seen or heard from him in almost four years."
"But you found him," said Amy, looking at her partner with pride.
"Yeah. I found him," said Chuck. "So, we knock on his door and ask him to come back into the game to help us stop Sasha Banacheck."
"Yeah, we do," said Sarah.
"Chuck, I know you by now. You are about to tell us everything there is to know about Ms. Banacheck," said Amy, with a chuckle and a wave of her hand for him to proceed.
With a grin, Chuck replied, "Yup." He switched the picture on his screen to the one they had seen in Castle. Chuck said, "She was born in 1970...making her thirty-seven...in Moscow, USSR. She studied languages in school and joined the KGB right out of university in 1990. And then the Soviet Union dissolved and the KGB went out of business in 1991. She stayed on in the new FSB as it replaced the old KGB, but in the chaos of Russia in those days she left in 1994."
"She spent time in Eastern Europe as it was moving away from Communism. Might be a true believer or something, because she hired herself out to the Communist elements in those countries as they were trying to stay relevant. And that brings us to Bulgaria. She was in Bulgaria in 1997 when the Bulgarian Socialist Party, composed of all ex-Communists, fell from power thru street protests. She was arrested by the Bulgarians, the new regime, and charged with planning to bomb the street protests into submission. Seems she'd planned a series of terrorist attacks to intimidate the protesters and leave the Socialists in power. Didn't work out, obviously. She was tried and convicted and sentenced to ten years. They badly wanted to know the men and women she'd been working with...the government officials from the previous regime who might have been involved in the plot. I'm pretty sure the Bulgarians didn't ask nicely. She never said a word."
"Tough customer," said Casey with respect.
"Anyway, she served every day of her ten year sentence. She was released last August. But here's the thing. The Bulgarians were tipped off to her plans by the CIA. Only one guess as to the CIA officer who fingered her."
"Montgomery," said Casey.
"Bingo," said Chuck. "Seems she's become a mercenary now. Selling something to Fulcrum. Maybe her political activities are behind her?"
"Maybe," said Sarah. "How did we find her?"
"She screwed up. Used an encrypted phone to make her plans with Fulcrum for the sale, but the NSA had broken that particular encryption a few months earlier. Just bad luck, I think."
"Well, I hope she continues to have bad luck," said Amy.
"Yeah," said Sarah.
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A few hours later, they landed at Kahului Airport on Maui and found the minivan the CIA had left for them. The day was sunny and very windy with a temperature in the high 60's. As they began the drive to Montgomery's home, the vast blue of the Pacific Ocean stretched away to their right sparkling in the strong sun. To their left were the green slopes up Puʻu Kukui, the peak on the northern part of the island. Montgomery's location was along the northwestern part of the island, just on the western side of the peak. Chuck had never been to the islands before. The vegetation was lush, almost jungle-like in places. The road they were on was frequently carved straight out of the gray volcanic rock. The serpentine drive climbed and curved around the edge of the volcanic mountain. Between the beauty of the island and the perfect weather, Chuck could easily see why it might be considered paradise. They were surprised that the drive took over an hour. Finally turning onto the small road, the houses on either side increased in size with higher walls. Flowering bushes lined either side and framed the driveways. If the homes were an indication, it seemed Ms. Case lived among some of the wealthier residents.
Chuck pointed out the house they were looking for. The gate was ajar and they drove in. It was a large ranch-style home with a lot of glass looking out on a trimmed green lawn. Flowers were everywhere along the front of the house. As they turned in the driveway, they caught a glimpse of a pool deck behind.
Three cars were in the large driveway and in front of the garage. Chuck nodded at one and said, "That's the car I expected to find here." He pointed at one of the other cars. "That one is also registered to Ms. Case. I don't know about this one," he said, pointing to the last car.
They approached the front door and knocked. There was no answer so they tried again. "Maybe out by the pool in back?" asked Amy.
They shrugged and started around the side of the house. A large pool with a handful of pool chairs was laid out behind the house. They were high on a cliff by the water and the crystalline blue of the Pacific stretched to the horizon beyond. The house was almost entirely glass walled in the rear.
The farthest sliding door was open to a bedroom.
There was a naked woman asleep on the bed face down, not covered by a sheet or blanket. There was another naked woman asleep on her back on the floor next to the bed. Also face down and also naked, was Roan Montgomery, his head pillowed by the belly of the naked woman on the floor. His left hand was clutching the neck of a bottle of Bombay Sapphire gin. He seemed to be sleeping peacefully.
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A/N2: "In My Life" is my wife and my wedding song, so I incorporated something personal into Chuck and Sarah's life here. I had the pleasure of visiting the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio last week. One of the placards in one of the exhibits explained how the song came about. John Lennon had been encouraged to write about his own childhood. He meditated on that suggestion while on a bus route through Liverpool and wrote lyrics about the places he knew from childhood...Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields, for example. But he abandoned that idea in place of a more generalized reflection on his past. I think it's a beautiful song and never get tired of it.
A/N3: The Bulgarian Socialist Party was, in fact, removed from power as a result of street protests in 1997.
A/N4: We've glimpsed Roan. Like canon, asleep on the floor with a bottle in his hand. Now we've got to talk him out of retirement and convince him to help Team B go after Ms. Banacheck. Hope you guys and gals come back next week to see how that goes for our friends. Let me know what you think, please. It's what makes us authors auth.