A/N: I continue to be amazed by the positive response to the story. My deepest thanks to those of you who are following and/or favorite-ing, OCSS!
Chapter 9 has some adult content, again, nothing overly explicit or graphic, hence the "T" rating.
As always, a special thanks to Nevr, who somehow manages to pre-read and beta my work, while constantly releasing wonderful new material. If you have not yet had a chance to, please check out his latest start – SAVED!
If you enjoy Chapter 9, please let me know through a review, follow or favorite. I love the interaction, and respond to all reviews and PM's pretty promptly. Your support means a great deal to me, and I look forward to your feedback.
I don't own Chuck or make any money from writing this story, and I think I am going to give up searching for whoever does…..I just don't have the energy….!
Chapter 9 – A Fox in the Hen House:
Friday 2 December 2011 - 09:00 Pacific Standard Time
Los Angeles, California - Bonaventure Hotel
Jill Roberts was a beautiful woman. She was tall and slim with long shapely legs, soft brown eyes, and a luxurious head of long dark brown hair. A former CIA spy, Roberts was recruited into the Fulcrum project as a contractor. She was a skilled assassin and seductress, and she knew she had exactly what the Fulcrum project leaders wanted, and they were willing to pay very well for her talents. She was confident that with success would come more lucrative opportunities, more wealth, and more power to map her own future. She just needed a little time and some patience. But that didn't bother her too much as she felt confident this morning. The first step in her assignment, securing employment at Orion Cyber Security Systems, had gone off without a hitch, and this morning she had a meeting with her handler where she would be given further instructions. She went to the elevators, selected the floor, and walked to the door with the key in hand. She waited for a beat, then opened the door to find Bryce Larkin standing in the middle of the room wearing nothing but the hotel robe. She silently walked to the bed to pick up a pillow, placed it on the floor in front of him, and dropped to her knees to prove her loyalty.
Bryce Larkin was bathing in the pleasure he was receiving from his operative and basking in the power that the Fulcrum project afforded him. With their introduction completed, he closed his robe and sat down at the small table where a pot of coffee and two cups were waiting, motioning for Roberts to sit.
"Coffee?" offered Larkin
"Please," responded Roberts
"Great…I take mine with a splash of milk," he added dismissively.
Roberts dutifully poured two cups and added the milk to his, then sat back and smiled.
"Jill…excellent work getting into Orion. When do you formally start?" asked Larkin.
"Thank you, sir." She paused for effect with her head slightly tilting down to show deference while looking through her eyelashes seductively. "Everything is in place, and we are just waiting for the security clearance. This normally takes about 2 weeks, so it should be coming through shortly. As soon as I am cleared, I will start work immediately."
"And why did you fail to request we expedite your clearance?" inquired Larkin with some displeasure in his voice
"Sir," Roberts continued, "Orion is familiar with how long it takes to get clearance. All their employees must go through the vetting process. It might have been perceived as suspicious if we accelerated my clearance, and I did not want to raise any red flags. I presume the objective can't possibly be just getting hired, so I wanted to ensure we positioned ourselves to play the long game."
"Ok…makes sense," replied Larkin more calmly. "The next step of the operation will be to gain access to Orion's servers." Larkin got up and walked over to his briefcase, extracting a small device that looked like a digital music player, and put it on the table in front of Roberts. "You open this cover, and inside is a USB connector that can be extended out of the device. Just plug it into any USB port on the server stack, and wait for the green light to come on. The green light means that the virus is uploaded, and you can disconnect the device."
Jill Roberts nodded her head in acknowledgment. "Once they offered me the position, they gave me a tour of the place, and to get into the server room, I will need to get Bartowski's access card and his passwords. Apparently, the server room is Bartowski's exclusive domain, so he is the only one with access."
"That seems a little stupid. What if Bartowski gets hurt or killed?" Larkin asked.
"Yes and no. I asked Grimes, Bartowski's partner, about that. He confirmed that he can get access to the servers if something happens to Bartowski as part of the business continuity plans. Still, the backup access cards and passwords are stored remotely and accessible only by their attorneys. But before we start considering plan B or plan C, let me see if I can sort out how to get what Bartowski has. The key will be to discreetly do this because if they think they have been breached, they will immediately change their setup. This will need to be subtle," Roberts replied as she put the device in her pocketbook.
"As soon as your clearance arrives, get to work on your plan to access the server. This is urgent, and timing is critical."
"Yes sir…anything else," Roberts asked salaciously from under her eyelashes.
"Come to think of it….one more thing," replied Larkin putting down his coffee and shedding his robe.
= ! =
Friday 2 December 2011 - 11:00 Pacific Standard Time
Van Nuys California - Van Nuys Airport
The Citation X rolled to a stop in front of a shiny black suburban. Major John Casey leaned against the vehicle with a less than pleased expression. Casey had expected to have some time off before flying to Florida to train Bartowski and his detail. Instead, he wound up being assigned to Bartowski as his taxi driver.
"Major Casey, good to see you again," said Chuck amiably. "Is something wrong…you seem upset….we are right on time."
"Bartowski….this L.A. traffic is damaging my calm," he growled.
"Yeah…sorry about that," smiled Chuck. "With great weather comes great traffic…" he chuckled. "Oh…please forgive me….let me introduce the team. Ladies, this is Major John Casey. The Major heads up the Special Actions team at the NSA and has been assigned as my "publicly visible protection." He will also be our training officer in Florida after New Year's…Major, I would like to introduce you to Agents Carina Miller and Sarah Walker, who will be my covert protection detail."
Casey, Miller, and Walker exchanged handshakes and some very quick pleasantries. They knew who each other was, and aside from seeing their handy work at a certain garage in Gerogetown, Casey had complete dossiers on both, but they had not formally met before. Then Casey asserted himself.
"Ladies, your cars are just in the lot outside the gate," he said, offering each a set of keys and a communication device with an earbud. "In the trunk, you will find a bag containing your requested weapons, ammunition, medkits, go bags, etc. You can decide how to inventory the car versus your overwatch positions. In the meantime, I want to see a soft tail for the whole drive to Orion while you sweep for any trailers. When Bartowski is safely in the building, you can release and get settled at your hotel. This evening, we will meet at my hotel at 18:30 to finalize covers, transport strategy, evac routes, "PINEAPPLE" contingencies, etc. Let's go, Bartowski."
Casey put the truck in drive and did his best to confuse and lose the soft tail behind him for the first twenty minutes of the ride. Halfway to Orion, he spoke into the communicator, "Nice job, ladies. Sorry for the runaround, but I needed to assess your abilities. Anything to report?"
"One is Clear," said Sarah, immediately followed by Carina's "Two is Clear."
"They're good Bartowski….well trained…efficient. We might keep you alive after all," Casey added with a bit of a smile.
At the end of the working day, the Major drove the CEO, followed by the two agents in a soft tail to the Hampton Inn & Suites in Santa Monica. On arrival, Casey ordered room service for everyone, and they got down to business.
Casey started, "The first thing we will do is relocate you from Echo Park Bartowski. The drive is too long, and you are way too exposed with the traffic. Besides, with all the money Orion is making, surely you can afford to pay a little more rent. I want you here in Santa Monica, close to the office, to reduce your exposure. Walker and Miller, I propose you two do a little house hunting and find something suitable, defensible, and close as possible."
"Ok…ok… that makes total sense," said Chuck. "But please find two apartments close to or next to each other so Morgan can move as well. This way, he can also commute with me having your protection. Morgan is not only my friend, but he knows everything about our business and our clients, and while he is not the tech guy, he does know a great deal about the technology. This is non-negotiable."
"Smart, Bartowski," added Casey.
The discussion carried on for some time as they ate until the topic of the covers was breached.
"I've been thinking about the covers and would like to propose a slight modification, for security purposes, of course," Sarah spoke. "If Miller and I are only employees, then we have no protection for Mr. Bartowski when he is not working or traveling."
Carina raised an eyebrow, curious to see where her partner was going with her thinking, but she suspected she had an idea.
"Assuming Mr. Bartowski does not object, I would propose to alter our cover set up so that I can be his 'girlfriend,'" Sarah added the air quotes for emphasis as she continued. "As his girlfriend I can provide protection in residence and justify traveling with my 'boyfriend' when he takes business trips. I would also be logically expected to be with him at social events, etc. And since we are looking at relocating the residence, we can find something that supports the amended cover. At a later date, he could ask me to join the company, at which point we have all the benefits of the original cover plan plus the benefit of the 'girlfriend' scenario. It would also be less conspicuous if Miller and I separated our joining the company by a few months. Miller's cover would continue as planned, and your public role would remain unchanged."
At this point, Chuck saw three very different expressions staring at him.
Sarah had a soft, expectant look that wanted his agreement. Carina had a shit-eating grin on her face and was literally pinching her own leg to stop her from bursting out laughing. And Casey had a pleased look on his face as he considered the tactical advantages that Sarah's plan offered.
"Bartowski….I appreciate this is perhaps a little uncomfortable, but from a tactical perspective, it's a very sound approach…good thinking, Walker. Besides, don't all you tech geeks chase arm candy and trophy wives? This is good for the cover."
Chuck stumbled for a moment. It was not that he did not love the idea. It's just that he had been so completely blindsided he needed his mind to catch up.
Sarah saw his hesitation and jumped in. "If this is not ok with you, we can go back to the orig…."
Chuck cut her off mid-sentence, "No, no, no…..it's a great idea. It's just that I've always been a bit of a planner and was not expecting this at all….I understand that things are different now and that I need to be more flexible and have faith in others, like you guys protecting me, but this is all new to me, so bear with me…..and Casey, we prefer nerds."
Casey grunted, "Remember what I said about lady feelings….if you are going to blubber about bad experiences trusting people or whatever, I will grab a cigar and go outside….."
"Sorry, Casey…I'm good …all good…no lady feelings here."
The team agreed to move forward as discussed, but before breaking up for the evening, Casey pulled out a large box and placed it on the table. Inside, several smaller boxes contained what looked like a G-Shock watch in men's and women's sizes.
"All right, before we all go our separate ways, some tech for you to keep on your person at all times. In addition to being fully functional watches, with all the features you would expect, each watch also has a GPS locator, a panic button, and a communicator function that automatically links your mobile phone and our standard earpieces. The GPS locator is permanently on, so you never need to worry about it. In the event you are in an emergency, you can activate the panic button by pressing the chronometer button 3 times. To cancel the panic button, press the same button 4 times in rapid succession. Once you activate the panic button, the microphone automatically activates and transmits to a receiver that any of us can access." Casey then handed the watches out to Chuck, Sarah, and Carina. "If there are no questions, we are done for the evening."
Chuck spoke up. "Thank Casey. This is very cool. By the way, if you are ok with it, can I ride back to Burbank with one of the ladies and spare you the round trip. At this hour, traffic should move ok, so lower risk of exposure."
"Walker, Miller, you guys ok with this?" asked Casey.
"We're good," jumped in Carina.
The CEO and the two agents left Casey to his bottle of Johnny Walker and cigar and headed to the cars.
"Chuck, I'm sure you and Sarah need some time to talk. Ride with her, and I will follow" Carina smiled.
Sarah and Chuck were driving in slightly uncomfortable silence when Sarah broke the ice.
"Chuck…are you ok? I hope I didn't upset you with my change in the cover plans…." Sarah was now emotionally exposed and was preparing herself to either reinforce her romantic intentions or pull back and focus on the tactical benefits of her plan….all depending on Chuck's reaction.
"Sorry Sarah….I was just spacing out a little…I do that sometimes when I get….never mind. The opportunity to spend more time with you and be closer to you makes me happy, but to be honest, I'm a little uncomfortable with what this cover might do for your reputation."
Sarah was gob smacked…his first thought was about protecting her reputation. She would need to tread carefully with how she explained her training in this area.
"Chuck, you don't need to worry about my reputation. Cover relationships are very standard, and no one expects that an agent could be forced into having sex with her cover partner for the sake of the cover. If sex happens, and sometimes it does, it's consensual, and agents do it to relieve the stress and anxiety from their missions. Everyone in the agency understands this. You should also understand that I want to be with you, not because I have to be. Do you understand? I am NOT concerned about my reputation as an agent, and you shouldn't be either. I also want to tell you about me, my background, my life story, but it's a lot for me, so I'll need to do it a little at a time….you will need to be patient with me, or you might go running off. I don't want that," she said softly.
"Ok, Sarah, but fair warning, if you choose to go down that road, I will have no choice but to tell you about my life, including my relationship with Morgan, my video game addiction, and some other generally uncomfortable stuff that might make run for the hills as well…." responded Chuck with a wry smile.
"You won't get rid of me that easy, Mr. Bartowski," said Sarah with a loving smile on her face.
"Ok. I need some time with Carina to make sure she is cool with this, and I don't want Casey to know that we have been seeing each other yet…..but tomorrow evening, we will go on our first cover date, and we'll talk and agree on some rules for how we do this. You should know that we should probably have a few public dates for the cover before we can be seen to be sleeping together and Chuck….I want you to know that it's gonna kill me not to be able to be with you until we sell the cover properly….I mean…right now…I want to eat you alive," Sarah said in a voice that had Chuck's pulse rate start to rocket.
At his front door, she stood on her tiptoes to hug him, moaned softly in his ear, then gave him a chaste peck on the cheek and left as he entered.
The next few days went smoothly as Chuck and Sarah worked on the ground rules and sold their cover by going on a few dates but not sleeping together. And she was introduced to Morgan Grimes.
XXX
"So you met in D.C.?" Morgan asked.
"Yes….well, Baltimore to be precise," replied Sarah. The latter recounted the real story of how they met at the restaurant in Baltimore and the whirlwind nature of the way they connected. "It was magic." Sarah smiled warmly while Chuck beamed.
"You know...I need to know all about you, Sarah. Chuck is my boy and one of the few really good guys out there. And as his heterosexual life partner, I need to make sure you are...you know...good for him," said Morgan as Sarah bit her lip in amusement. "And we will save the interrogation on best video games, Star Wars characters, and sandwiches to take to a deserted island for another time," continued Morgan.
The evening went smoothly as Sarah really enjoyed listening to stories about Chuck and Morgan and getting a better understanding of who Chuck Bartowski was…and the more she heard, the more she liked.
= ! =
Monday 5 December 2011 - 09:00 Pacific Standard Time
Santa Monica, California - Orion Cyber Security Systems HQ
Carina was welcomed to Orion Cyber Security Systems by Morgan Grimes, its President, and led to a small conference room. Waiting for her was the CEO, Chuck Bartowski. Morgan was impressed with Carina's background as an investigator for the DEA, but he was even more impressed with how she carried herself. She was effortlessly stunning and walked with a confident grace that made her a little scary. Chuck and Carina had prepared for the interview to ensure that Morgan would not have any reservations, so the interview went as expected. Carina accepted the offer immediately, with the proviso that she needed to be away in January for a previous family commitment. Before Carina left, Chuck invited her for a coffee, knowing that Morgan had a client appointment on his calendar and would not be able to join.
"Carina, would you mind waiting for me downstairs for just a second…there is a great coffee place just around the corner," said Chuck as she left the room and closed the door behind her. As soon as Carina left, Chuck turned to Morgan and said, "Great hire, pal….she fits the bill perfectly. Where did you find her?"
"She was referred to us by her former boss at the DEA, who knew about the work we were doing for them and thought she would be a great fit. I spoke to her just the other day while you were out, and she was immediately available to come in for an interview." Replied Morgan excitedly. "She is a little scary and has a lower nerd quotient, but she will be awesome as an investigator. Her eyes seem to drill into you, and I would be terrified trying to lie to her….I mean, wow…."
Chuck gave his partner a fist bump followed by the requisite hand explosion and headed downstairs to grab Carina and head out for coffee.
XXX
Chuck and & Carina sat at a table outside with their coffees and looked around to make sure no one was within earshot of their conversation.
"Carina, we've hired someone named Jill Roberts, and she will be starting as soon as her clearance arrives. I'm a bit nervous about her, so I'd like you to keep an eye on her. You will be starting at about the same time, so…you know…two new employees…make her a friend and stay close. I want to know if you see anything suspicious, you know?" Chuck spoke softly and with some concern on his face.
"If you are nervous about her, why did you hire her?" Carina asked plainly.
Morgan hired her while I was in D.C., and to be honest, she seems to have a perfect background. She was a year ahead of me at Stanford, studying computer…." Chuck was explaining until Carina cut him off
"Chuck, are you suspicious because you had a thing with her?" Carina grinned.
"What?...No…it's not like that at all…She was a year ahead of me, and I barely knew her, but she had a habit of going after other people's boyfriends. She slept with half of my fraternity brothers, breaking up their existing relationships, then moved on to the next target. But hey, that was college. What concerns me is her work history. We hired her from a competitor I had never heard of. Apparently, the same one Shaw hired to do the cyber security for the CIA…Anyway, I know our business, and I've never heard of Fulcrum before, so when the name suddenly pops up twice, and under odd circumstances….." Chuck paused as Carina's expression changed dramatically.
"Carina? Was it something I said?... You suddenly seem a million miles away," Chuck asked as Carina's mind was searching for a connection.
Yeah…Sorry, Chuck….it was. Fulcrum…I mean, it's not a word you hear ordinary people using in their everyday conversations, so it kinda sticks out….." Her expression once more changed, but this time it was shock. "Augusto Milan, that disgusting piece of shit in Miami!" she exclaimed quietly as her recall sharpened.
"Ok…So I was trying to get close to a guy for a big DEA op, his name is Augusto Milan, and he's the front-man for the Culiacan Cartel. These guys are bad people, drugs, guns, extortion, human trafficking, you name it, they are into it all, and in a big way. Anyway, I'm watching him meet some of his fellow thugs, and I overhear the words Fulcrum project," Carina said breathlessly
"And?" asked Chuck
"And nothing. I had the fat bastard on the hook when I was waved off and ordered to report to Langley to join the Piranha task force. It's where Sarah and I met for the first time and were assigned as partners."
Chuck was suddenly pale as his own recall of a particular phone call from an Agent Walker shook him to the core.
"Chuck…You ok? You look like you've seen a ghost." Carina looked at him carefully.
"Yeah…I'm fine. The Piranha task force, you say?" Chuck managed to calm himself but temporarily forgot all about Fulcrum. "I thought that guy was dead."
"Yeah…about that…." Carina said, "Apparently he is, but there is some stuff that doesn't really fit, but that is another story. By the way, didn't Sarah tell you she had spoken to you about this?"
"Holy shit…Yes, she did speak to me about having had a phone call a few months back…What a weird coincidence….but in the call, she never mentioned her first name or that the purpose of the call was related to the Piranha. I remembered the call because the line was bad, and I was super busy, so we rescheduled for the next day, but she never called back. I told her I was upset that she stood me up, but I didn't put it together until she mentioned it the other day before lunch.….. Why do you think there's something odd about the Piranha?" he asked.
"Beckman told us he was killed in a raid by the Mossad in Germany, but Sarah and I were building a profile of the guy, and what was coming together did not match the official story. Anyway, they shut down the task force, and we were ordered to drop it after his death was officially confirmed, which is why Sarah never called you back. What did you know about him?" asked Carina
"The guy was a legend…We make our living at Orion, trying to keep guys like him from doing bad things and…." Again Chuck was interrupted.
"See, that's the main thing about this guy that never made sense. Yes, hacking is illegal, particularly if you go after people like the CIA, the NSA, the FBI, etc. Still, aside from hacking, he never caused any damage or threatened to do so. He even gave his victims advice on how to improve their defenses. There were more inconsistencies with the story, but it's all behind us now….I hope," Carina said with a smile. "Now back to Fulcrum and keeping an eye on this Jill Roberts."
After his coffee with Carina, Chuck returned to his office and called Beckman.
"Beckman secure."
"Bartowski secure…good morning, Diane. I need a favor, please. I was speaking with Carina, and she remembers hearing a man named Augusto Milan, the Culiacan Cartel's point man in the U.S., mention the phrase Fulcrum project. She remembered it because it's not a common word, and given that it's now popped up twice in our dealings, I thought perhaps you could have Echelon see if it picks up any chatter?"
Echelon was the NSA's most sophisticated electronic communication surveillance system. It scanned millions of communications globally in real-time, looking for specific keywords or phrases, which, when found, would be relayed to intelligence analysts for further investigation.
"Interesting….let's see if the drug cartel angle has any legs. I'll look into it and let you know what I find out." Beckman terminated the call and called John Walden to check for Fulcrum, Fulcrum Project, and Culiacan in the system, and now they would wait.
= ! =
Wednesday 14 December 2011 - 12:00 noon Pacific Standard Time
Santa Monica, California - Orion Cyber Security Systems HQ
Morgan Grimes checked his email and saw the notification from the FBI that Jill Roberts had been thoroughly vetted and cleared. He called out to his partner, "Chuck, the clearance on Jill Roberts just came in. Are we good to notify her?"
"We're ready, right Morgs?" asked Chuck, raising his brow.
"Yeah, we are, Chuck…..wanna tell me what all this is about? I trust you completely, pal, you know that….but we're partners, and I need to know what is going on," Morgan replied a little annoyed with his partner's obfuscation.
"Morgs, everything is cool, and I will fill you in very shorty…I promise," Chuck added. "Go ahead and let Jill know she can come in and start."
XXX
"This is Jill…" Roberts answered the call.
"Hi, Jill, Morgan Grimes here. Just wanted to let you know that your clearance arrived this morning, so you are welcome to come in starting tomorrow. You have already been set up on the payroll, and your I.D. and access codes are all set up, so you are good to go."
"Thank you, Mr. Grimes. I'll be in tomorrow at 09:00."
"Great," added Morgan. "Come in, get settled, and then we'll meet at 10 to go over some of the projects you will be working on. Look forward to seeing you tomorrow."
They closed the call, and the first stage of the trap was put into motion.