AN: Casting Call – Trevor Brennan: Gavin Macintosh
Chapter 01: Fight and Flight
~ May 30, 2037 0600 ~
Charlie Donovan woke up earlier than he normally would have but as he had to break into his cousin's home and try and sneak out some of her personal effects he thought it best to do so when people were still sleeping. He currently did not have a Phoenix Police Cruiser as he had not yet gone into work so he had to park a few houses down from the Brennan house and walked to Chloe's home. When he reached the front door Charlie's nerves were on end as the police tape that he attached to the door was cut. The tape was cut at the seam of the door and was being held by clear adhesive tape to not draw attention at a distance.
Charlie arrived in uniform so as not to draw suspicions just in case pedestrians were about at this hour. Drawing his weapon, Charlie slowly opens the door without making any noise and closes it without taking his eyes off the room. The crack in the drywall and blood from Sean Brennan's body is still the first thing that anyone sees upon entering the home. Charlie turns to his right and makes his way down the small hallway towards the family room. He slowly makes his way to the main section of the house. Before he clears the hallway Charlie finds himself pulled forward off balance, his weapon knocked from his hands and flipped onto his back. Charlie lands with a loud thud and is momentarily dazed when his head strikes the floor. Somewhere in his head, he was wishing the Brennan's had padded carpet as opposed to hardwood floors right about now.
"Sloppy Charlie... very sloppy." An all too familiar voice admonishes him. Once Charlie's vision clears up he realizes he is staring at Jackson looking down on him.
"Jackson... what are you doing here?" A bewildered Charlie Donovan inquires.
Jackson holds out a large black bag over Charlie's head.
"Chloe's things?" Charlie asks. Jackson simply nods his head in acknowledgment.
"How long have you been here?" Asks Charlie.
"Since 4 AM."
"You got here at 4 AM, I wasn't even awake at that time." Charlie states as he finally pushes himself off the floor and with Jackson's assistance pushes himself back onto his feet. Charlie collects his service weapon and holsters it.
"That's why I picked 4 AM. It was dark, no one could see me and it made gaining access to Chloe's home that much simpler." Jackson explains.
"So you cut the tape, used clear packing tape to make it look like the seal hadn't been broken and, then what... picked the lock?"
"Close. I used the key. It makes it much quicker." Jackson says tossing Charlie said key. Charlie recognized it as the hide-a-key that the Brennan's kept under a fake rock by the main door.
"So what's the plan now?" Charlie wonders aloud.
"I will take the bag and sneak out the back. You just make your way out the front door. It's not odd for a law enforcement officer to re-investigate a crime scene. I will meet you back at my place at your leisure." Jackson says.
Charlie watches as Jackson moves to the back door, checks his surroundings and, then makes his way out of the house. Charlie takes one last look around the house before he makes his way out.
Chloe Donovan felt odd. No that wasn't the term, something was off but she couldn't place her finger on it. She slowly began to open her eyes and the setting was different, yet familiar. Sitting up she stretched and took in her surroundings and then realized why she felt safe. Looking at the clock to her right she sees that it is 7:45 AM. She is dressed in Rocki's nightshirt and her panties but she is in the bed that she used to share in Jackson's master bedroom. It still had the same comfortingly soft mattress that she spent many nights on after moving into her fiance's home. Chloe quickly realized that at some point in time Jackson must have moved her from the couch to the bed without waking her. Looking about she notices that the room has not changed since the last time she was in it when she brought Jackson's mother here. Chloe notices that Rocki is sleeping soundly on her right side near the edge of the bed. Chloe slides out of the bed and makes her way down the little hallway to the kitchen area.
"Good morning Chloe," Jackson says from the kitchen table. He is sitting with his back to the back wall of the house they once shared. He was holding the chopsticks in his hand as he eats the food that they bought for him the previous night.
"Good morning," Chloe says. She feels underdressed as she notes Jackson looks very much like he did when he walked back into her life yesterday.
"Can I get you something to eat? Drink?" Jackson politely asks.
"You don't have any food or drinks." Chloe states having taken stock of his refrigerator the previous day.
"I didn't yesterday, today I do," Jackson says. Standing up he moves over to the refrigerator and opens it. Chloe sees that the refrigerator is now fully stocked. She moves over to the kitchen cabinet that they once stored coffee, tea, and other such things and sees that it too is stocked.
"How long have you been awake and when did you move Rocki and me to the bedroom?" A dumbfounded Chloe asks.
"I woke up at 3 AM. I'm on a heightened sense of alert so I don't sleep long in this state. It's a carry-over from sleeping in bad places while you're being shot at. I moved the two of you over to the master bedroom twenty minutes later because I was planning to go get the groceries and didn't want to disturb your sleep. Oh, and your clothes are in that bag on the couch, you can put them in your old dresser in your old room." Jackson states before he sits back down for a bite.
Chloe takes a small mint green tea bag and prepares a cup of hot tea. She then takes two eggs from the carton in the refrigerator and whips up a quick scrambled egg. Sitting at the square table to Jackson's right Chloe eats her breakfast. Nothing is said during this time as the only sound in the room is the occasional sound when Chloe's metal fork stabs through the egg and strikes the glass plate.
"You broke up with me for keeping secrets. I think it's time you ask what's on your mind, Chloe." Jackson tells his former fiance. "If you want to yell at me now is the perfect time to do so."
Chloe's fork hits the plate as Jackson finishes his statement. She has so many conflicting emotions at this moment in time. She's mad that her life has been turned upside down but knows that Jackson was only indirectly responsible for that.
"I'm not mad at you about Sean..." Chloe starts.
"I know that. I also know what you want to discuss with me." Jackson states looking into Chloe's eyes.
"I don't..."
"Yes, you do Chloe. Otherwise, you wouldn't have mentioned it when you were held at gunpoint yesterday afternoon." Jackson says calling her on her omission of the truth.
Chloe stiffened at the reference to what she said. Thinking back to that moment she still didn't know why that was what she told him. "Did you do it? Did you rape Jasmine just to buy her silence?"
Jackson did not answer right away. Chloe watched him maintain eye contact with her. His eyes stared straight into hers, never breaking contact. "I have to clarify what was done, and why I did what I did. Firstly, I needed to protect you. The agency was watching over you and put an agent into your accounting firm to monitor your activities and to see if I made contact with you. Jasmine was a deep-cover operative and I knew that disabling her like I did the other agents around your apartment would mean that they would only put someone else in at a later time, maybe in another department. I needed to control the situation and the person directly overseeing you." Jackson begins.
"How does sexual assault accomplish that?" Chloe asks crossing her arms in front of her breasts.
"I used a lower-dose tranquilizer to disable Jasmine. She woke up fifteen minutes after you left. By that time I had already accomplished my task. What I did was use your bedroom as a photo stage and I took pictures of Jasmine and myself dated and time-stamped in compromising poses. Now I had to make the photos look like we were intimate. If the photos were released they would be analyzed by the best experts to verify their authenticity. So I had to make it look real and there is only one way to do that." Jackson explained.
"Really. The only way?" Chloe skeptically asks.
"With magnification software and being able to clear up pixelation it would be very easy for them to verify fake penetration to clear her name. I'm not making this up, I have seen it done more times than I can count." Explained Jackson.
"What did it truly accomplish though? Sure she went through serving as my bridesmaid but... why hasn't she reported the incident to anyone? She's still working in my firm." Chloe ponders aloud.
"That's the second reason really and that was to buy her silence and cooperation. If she reported the incident to anyone I would have released the photos to certain powerful individuals in the intelligence field. If the photos are released they will believe that she and I have a relationship. That would earn her an immediate burn notice. She would be in the same situation that I am and it would be worse for her as my associate... or at least until yesterday it would have. I'm still out of a job but I am now cleared of all the trumped-up charges against me and all of my accounts have been unlocked and I'm off the no-fly list." Jackson tells Chloe.
Chloe absorbs the information she has been given and does her best to process it. "Did you ever read the second envelope I gave you before your wedding?" Jackson asks.
"I did. I never came to collect the item though... never found the time." Chloe states. Jackson stands and makes his way to Chloe's old room. Walking into the closet he presses the middle of the wall and the panel comes down. Inside the hollowed-out wall is a box similar to the run box in his room.
Jackson closes the panel and walks the box to his former fiance. Jackson places the box in front of Chloe. Chloe looks at the box a bit perplexed.
"How do I open it?" Chloe says running her fingers along the seam of the box.
"Fingerprint scanner." Jackson answers.
Chloe places her right index finger on the scanner and the lock clicks. Opening the box Chloe sees two passports. Opening the first she sees a picture of her dear departed husband. He had a new identity, birthdate and from the photograph, Jackson had digitally colored his blonde hair black. Chloe's passport likewise was doctored with an alias her hair had been dyed red and she had glasses. She had to admit that she barely recognized herself. Under the passport was an envelope with false birth certificates and driver's licenses to corroborate the information on the passports. Underneath the envelope were stacks of cash in twenty, fifty, and one hundred dollar denominations.
"I didn't know if you would ever need it, but I wanted the two of you to have an escape route if you needed one."
"I... I... need some air," Chloe says as she feels overwhelmed.
Before Jackson can say anything Chloe has pushed herself away from the table and has made her way out the front door.
"Well, that was enlightening," Rocki says as she pads her way from the side hallway into the dining area.
"Sooo... how much of that did you hear?" Inquires Jackson.
"Everything from if you want to yell at me onwards." Rocki says moving to get a cup of tea. "Thank you for moving me to the bed. Your couch is comfy but your bed is sooo much better." Rocki says carrying her tea over to the table. She sits to Jackson's left side contemplating what she wants to say.
"You have never been one to hold anything back Rocki. Let's have it." Jackson states.
"I get why Chloe might be having a harder time dealing with the situation as a whole right now. Yes, you finally came clean to her about yourself but then you left and she didn't truly have to deal with the truth nor did she have anyone to talk about it with. She is then forcefully dragged back into your world at gunpoint and the cost is her husband's life. Add to that your little photo session and she has to try and reconcile who she thought you were, with the man you truly are. Don't get me wrong, I see your point of view and I suspect she will too... eventually. Right now it's just too much for her."
"Suggestions?" Jackson asks laconically.
"Give her time, she'll come around." Rocki states.
Chloe walked for quite some time that morning. She eventually called an uber and rode to the restaurant that she first met Sean at after her breakup with Jackson. It was four months after their split and she was out by herself wallowing in self-pity. Sean had been out with his family and noticed the pretty yet depressed young woman. He excused himself from his table and went to see her. He politely asked to join her for a spell and the two struck up a conversation. Sean reminded Chloe of Jackson in many ways but was also very unique in his own right. The two started spending all their free time together but Sean always prioritized Chloe's needs over his own. Chloe almost had a hard time believing another such a man existed and everything would have been perfect if not for the resentment she received from Sean's younger brother. Trevor Brennan took an instant disliking to Chloe for no reason whatsoever. Chloe could not think of a single instance where she might have wronged Sean's brother and Sean did his best to keep Trevor from voicing his disdain of Chloe.
Chloe found herself at her home and as she knew Jackson had already been inside the house tried the front door and found it still unlocked. Chloe walks inside in a daze until she sees the spot where Sean died. Chloe covers her mouth and tries to contain her tears as she enters to retrieve something precious to her. She is barely in the living room before someone yells, "Freeze!" In her grief, Chloe had lowered her eyes and did not see the four individuals standing in her living room. The men were wearing regular clothes but doing a quick survey of the weapons pointed at her they were all carrying STI 2011's which indicated to Chloe that they were in the same line of work as the angry young man before her.
"T... Trevor?" Chloe says as she stares at her brother-in-law standing in her living room pointing a weapon squarely at her.
"Chloe Donovan you are under arrest for the murder of Sean Brennan." Trevor states.
Just as one of Trevor's associates holsters his weapon and reaches for his handcuffs the front door opens again and in walks Rocki Mahan. Rocki is only two steps into the house when one of the other men points a pistol at her. Rocki puts her hands in the air and stops moving after she clears the hallway.
"Who the hell is this?" Trevor yells at Chloe.
"She's an old friend," Chloe informs her brother-in-law.
"I'll bet you were in on her murdering my brother, weren't you?" Trevor yells at Rocki.
"Chloe did not kill your brother you stupid schmuck," Rocki tells Trevor.
"You're wrong." Trevor states. "I've seen her shoot, she's not the innocent little princess that everyone believes her to be."
"You're still sore that I can shoot better than you?" Chloe asks. She thinks back and remembers the day Trevor is referring to.
Chloe and Sean were dating for about seven weeks when she agreed to hang out with Sean and his younger brother Trevor before they went out for dinner. To Chloe's surprise, the address she was given was to a shooting range. Chloe had not fired a weapon in almost nine months. Jackson had taught her how to shoot a variety of weapons during their tenure together, for her own safety, and she had gotten quite adept for someone who had never picked up a weapon for most of her life. Chloe had never told Sean that she knew how to shoot as it had never come up but now was as good a time as any. Trevor had forced his weapon into her hand and ordered her to shoot. Chloe hoped that the two could bond at the range and decided to show her boyfriend and his brother what she could do. The paper targets were in the silhouette of a person mounted on an overhead rail to send out and retrieve targets. The weapon that he had shoved into her hands was an STI 2011 chambered in 9mm. As the weapon was locked back the weapon was empty. Trevor hands her the new magazine and was about to "mansplain" how to reload the weapon.
Before he can utter a single syllable Chloe presses the magazine release and the empty mag strikes the stand in front of Chloe. Sliding the pistol mag into place she hears the click indicating the magazine is secure. Using her thumb she hits the slide release and the slide moves forward chambering a round into the barrel. Trevor is a bit taken aback but he informs Chloe that the magazine holds 17 rounds. With this knowledge, Chloe fires nine rounds into the center of the target. Putting the weapon on safe she places the weapon on the stand and retracts the target. Trevor and Sean are surprised that the bullets she fired all hit the center of the target. The grouping was so tight that the center was gone.
"How..." Trevor started to say.
"My ex taught me how to shoot." Chloe smugly informed Trevor.
"Impressive." Sean states. Even he realized Chloe had a gift.
Chloe opts not to change the target and sends it downrange to about three-quarters of the way down the range. Sean and Trevor watch her unload the final eight shots. The target flinches each time a bullet is fired indicating the target is hit. When Chloe brings the target back a similar grouping is in the spot where the face would be if it hadn't been blown out. Chloe did not know at that time that she had not done herself any favors with Trevor Brennan.
Rocki knew this was a bad situation. Chloe's agitated brother-in-law looked like he was about to pull the trigger on Chloe if she so much as twitched. "I never said Chloe was an innocent little princess, but I know for a fact from talking to her that she loved your brother very much and wouldn't have killed him." Explains Rocki.
"Well, as endearing as that is I don't know you and don't have any reason to believe you. Your word means nothing to me." Trevor states for the record.
"I'm sorry you feel that way." Rocki states.
Rocki tackles Chloe to the ground just before something smacks into the picture window. The window explodes sending shards of glass flying into the room. Trevor and his men do their best to shield themselves but the ones closest to the window are coated in glass shards cutting into their bodies. Trevor turns back and moves towards the window, weapon at the ready, to see who or what caused the explosion. Before he can look out he is met by Jackson Fuller leaping through the destroyed picture window following the explosion he caused. Jackson's knees strike Trevor's sternum causing him to fly backwards across the room. Landing on his feet Jackson turns his attention to the final standing person. As the man was in the process of cuffing Chloe before everything went to hell he is unarmed save for the cuffs. The man closes the cuffs and uses them like brass knuckles. Jackson evades the first blow, followed by a second. Seeing his opening Jackson delivers a swift left kick to the man's right shin. The sharp pain reflexively brings the man forward where he is met by Jackson's right hand and as his foe is still upright the man is hit with a leaping right knee to the face knocking the man unconscious.
In the interim Trevor has managed to catch his breath but his sidearm is out of reach. Trevor reaches behind his back and pulls out a black cylinder slightly bigger than his hand. With a flick of his wrist, the cylinder expands revealing that it is a tactical baton. Trevor growls in rage and begins swinging wildly at Jackson. Jackson for his part does his best to keep Trevor's focus on him and to forget about the two women currently scampering away from Trevor so as not to bring his attention back to Chloe. Jackson moves back out of the reach of the metal baton as Trevor presses his attack. Jackson hands are in position ready for the next strike or so he lets Trevor think. He starts to move in but just as Trevor anticipates the move Jackson feints back causing Trevor to over-extend his reach while missing Jackson's head.
"You are messing with the wrong man," Trevor tells Jackson as he prepares to strike again. "I am a U.S. Fucking Marshal and I am taking that murdering bitch in."
Jackson's stance was head-on facing Trevor. His right arm was fully extended and his left arm was up protecting the left side of his head. Trevor loses his patients again and downward slashes at Jackson only Trevor doesn't truly realize how fast Jackson is and doesn't see Jackson move in at the same time he does and bringing his right arm up rams his elbow under Trevor's chin. Trevor manages to graze Jackson in the left shoulder with the baton. The strike sends a sharp pain through Jackson's clavicle bone. Fortunately for Jackson, he was thrown off by Jackson's strike. Had Trevor scored that blow at full strength Trevor would have shattered Jackson's clavicle, as much as the blow hurt Jackson preferred the sharp pain. Jackson follows through with a strike from his left elbow to Trevor's face. As Trevor's head swings in the direction it was struck Jackson follows this up with a push kick to Trevor's face which knocks him off his feet and out of the fight.
Trevor is dazed on the ground and moaning in pain as Jackson dusts himself off and rotates his left shoulder. Looking at Trevor it looks as if Jackson dislocated his jaw. "Three things Trevor. Firstly, I don't care who or what you are. Secondly, you're after the wrong person, Chloe did not kill your brother. Finally, if you ever call Chloe a bitch again... federal agent or no federal again... I will kill you." Jackson tells the downed U.S. Marshal.
Jackson helps Rocki and Chloe to their feet and Chloe quickly makes her way to her bedroom to get the one thing she wanted from the house. Neither Jackson nor Rocki asks her what made her come here, Jackson just insists they leave. Jackson collects the keys and cellphones from all present as he reaches for his cellphone. Jackson drops the items in question in the neighbor's garbage can.
Hitting a contact in his phone he listens to the tones until the person picks up the call."Hello?"
"Yes officer, I'd like to report a break-in at the Brennan crime scene. You might want to check it out." Jackson says giving Trevor and his associates something else to worry about besides Chloe.
It was 8:00 PM and Charlie Donovan was relaxing at Jackson's kitchen table for the second time in two days, this was a record for him. Unlike last night, however, Jackson made dinner. The refrigerator had been filled and while Chloe and Rocki were in Jackson's master bedroom the two males were outside grilling steaks and corn on the cob for dinner. When dinner was ready Charlie brought the food inside to the dining room table and set the food out while Jackson threw on a few chicken breast for the following day.
Rocki came out first dressed casually as she normally did. Charlie had never seen her normal wear before but he had to admit it suited her personality. Chloe exited the master bedroom area and Jackson and Charlie gave her a wolf whistle in appreciation. Chloe and Rocki traveled to the local beauty store and purchased the red hair dye that she would need to match the photograph that Jackson doctored. Jackson provided her with a set of green color contacts for her eyes and to finish the picture the girls bought a pair of stylish frames. Chloe was wearing a simple evening dress, for now, something nice but that she normally didn't wear.
"Trevor won't recognize you at a glance now." Charlie states.
"We aren't going to give him the chance," Jackson tells everyone in attendance.
"What do you mean?" Rocki asks before anyone else can.
"I didn't get a chance to go into why I was detained yesterday and as time is now of the essence due to Trevor hunting for Chloe I will just summarize for now. I have taken a job for an unnamed branch of the government. I have to fly to Florida tomorrow and I think it would be best if Chloe broke in her new passport and traveled there until I can get your situation here cleared up."
"But I don't know anyone there..." Chloe starts to say.
"I have an associate that lives there. You will be safe with them for the duration of the operation. The operation shouldn't take long and after it is complete your status will be resolved." Jackson informs the group.
"Who is this friend?" Rocki asks her boyfriend.
"Someone I trust, which is a very short list these days."
To Be Continued