Revelations

by: MySoapBox

Chapter 6: A Promise Broken

Chuck and Sarah were left alone in Charlie's messy living room while their son cleaned up for dinner. Chuck hadn't been here since they helped him move out of his old apartment last fall. Even with all the stacks of boxes, it had been a lot cleaner then. Sarah was straightening up; mostly tossing things in the trash from what Chuck could see. She always had liked things neat and uncluttered.

As soon as he heard the shower turn on Sarah asked, "How do you think its going?"

"Good, I think." He shrugged his shoulders. "I know this sort of thing is never easy for you."

As he watched her fold an old pizza box and toss it in the garbage can, he said, "For what it's worth, I think you're doing great. And Charlie… he seems to be taking it better than I could have expected."

"He is resilient," Sarah said, "always has been. I think he gets that from you."

"No, I that's all you. You were always the one with the survival skills," he shot back. She turned to look at him and smiled.

As he moved around the room, Chuck noticed Charlie's Kung Fu trophy in the corner. Sarah must have caught him looking at it. "You know, I think the CIA was there that day."

"Where? At the state tournament?"

"Yes, I'm almost sure of it now. Maybe the CIA has been watching him all along."

Chuck rubbed the dust off Charlie's name plaque with his thumb. "I suppose it's possible, knowing those people." He paused before asking the question that had been in the back of his mind all day. "Sarah, do you think that he might have my…you know…special talent?"

Sarah shook her head. "I don't know."

"But if he can, you know, flash, couldn't they use him? Use him the same way they used me?"

"Yeah, I suppose they could. But, as far as I know, the human intersect project was closed down years ago."

"I mothballed it myself," he agreed. Chuck felt a knot in his stomach. Just because a program was terminated doesn't mean it couldn't be reinstated. He could see from the way Sarah glanced away just now that she had the same thought.

She put her hand on his chest. "Regardless, that's why we're doing this, right? So Charlie knows what he would be getting into?"

Chuck pulled her into his arms, naturally, lovingly. "Absolutely."

He felt her slide her arms around him in response, and he took comfort in her familiar embrace. As he felt her sigh against his chest, he ran his hands up and down her back to comfort her. He closed his eyes and let himself get lost in her smell and the way she felt against him. It was the familiar feeling of home.

"Hey!" Charlie called from where he entered the room, "none of that!" Chuck and Sarah broke apart. "No PDA in your kid's apartment. That's just...wrong."

Chuck chuckled as Sarah looked at her watch. "It looks like we still have an hour until our reservations." She looked to Charlie, "And when do you have to be at the fire station?"

"My shift starts at seven."

Chuck nodded. "Good. That should give us enough time."

Charlie sat down on the sofa and looked around. "Hey! Thanks for picking up! Now we can all sit down at once."

"Imagine that," Sarah deadpanned.

"So, you said we had some time, can you tell me what happened next? What happened after mom clobbered that CIA guy?"

"I wouldn't say 'clobbered'," Sarah argued.

"I would," Chuck replied.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Can I just tell the story?"

Chuck gestured for her to begin.

"We decided to change tactics. Rather then hiding out in the countryside we started hiding in the big cities."

Chuck ticked them off on his fingers. "Managua, Tegucigalpa, Guatemala City. We even got as far south as Caracas and Medellin."

"Wow, you hit all the hottest tourist spots. You were quite the world travelers."

"We had to be," Sarah answered. "We never knew how close they were to finding us; we had to keep moving."

"We'd stay in one place a few weeks or a month and try to find work," Chuck explained.

"At this point our cash reserves were basically gone-"

"And babies need a lot of stuff," Chuck interrupted. "I can't believe how many diapers you went through."

"What did you do?" Charlie asked. "For jobs, I mean."

"Whatever we could find," Sarah answered. "I did secretary jobs, waitressing; I was even a personal trainer for awhile."

"And I worked as a store clerk, kitchen help and a few lucky times I found some temporary work fixing computers. It felt good working with computers again."

"So no more run-ins with the CIA? That Bryce guy kept his promise?"

Sarah's face darkened. "We don't know for sure, but we think so."

"Only think?" Charlie asked.

"We never saw him again. I heard that he was killed not long after his encounter with us, but with the CIA, you never really know for certain," Sarah said sadly.

Chuck wrung his hands. "But Bryce keeping his promise isn't the only explanation. Around this same time there were quite a few…terrorist bombings. It could be that the CIA pulled all their resources to work on that." Chuck knew that the CIA was in a full out war with Fulcrum but he couldn't share that with Charlie.

"So what happened then? It sounds like you guys were getting along okay."

"We had a run-in here and there, but they were mostly incidental," Sarah said.

"What do you mean, like you bumped into government agents accidently? Are there really that many out there?" Charlie asked.

"You'd be surprised," Chuck answered, "and with all the information I had in my head, we ran into the unexpected more then once…."

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Chuck was working at a small table in a back room; computer parts were sitting around on shelves and in heaps on the floor. He had been fortunate enough to pick up some piecework at this little computer repair shop in an industrial part of the city. It was low profile; the owner didn't ask any questions and it put food on the table. As he worked on installing a DVD ROM drive, he listened to a TV blare in the corner of the shop. The reporter was talking about a series of terrorist attacks that had occurred in the US over the past several months. Chuck knew it was evidence that Fulcrum was winning the battle against the government and for a minute he thought of Casey and he wondered what he was doing and if he was okay.

A jingle of the bells on the front door took his attention away from the television. The owner of the shop was working at the front counter.

"Excuse me?" he heard in English.

"Hola" he heard the owner say, ¿Cómo puedo ayudarle?

"Necesito un…damn," the customer muttered, "Do you speak English?"

There was a pause and then Chuck heard the owner's footsteps.

"Rafel!" he called. That was the name on the ID Chuck was using at the moment. He found it easier if he chose names that he could easily recognize and he liked the idea of being a Ninja Turtle. "¿Habla Inglés?

Chuck cleared is throat. "Yes, a little," he said in as thick an accent as he could manage.

The manager smiled and beckoned him to come to the front counter. Chuck put down his screwdriver and followed.

As soon as he turned the corner and saw the customer, a tall man in his 30's, Chuck felt that familiar sensation of dizziness and nausea.

*A palm tree * a DEA name badge * a police dog on a leash * a surfer * a pile of seized cocaine bundles * a LAR-15 rifle * a palm tree*

Chuck raised his eyebrows and blinked his eyes, to disguise what had just happened. The man standing in front of him didn't seem to notice anything. Fighting down his fight or flight instincts, Chuck looked down and tried not to make eye contact.

"Um…How can I help you?" he asked, continuing in the same accent he had used with the store owner.

"You see this?" the man said loudly, holding up an older model of Blackberry, "I need a charger. A CHAR-GER," the man said even louder, waving the Blackberry and pointing to the spot where the charger would attach.

"Oh yes!" Chuck said looking at the floor, "a charger. Un momentito."

Chuck went back to the back room and after sifting through inventory boxes, found the replacement charger the man wanted.

He returned to the front, put the charger box on the counter and the owner started ringing up the sale.

As he turned to go the agent said, "Hey, do I know you?"

Chuck turned half way and smiled innocently, "I do not think so."

The man squinted at him, "You look familiar somehow; I just can't place it."

"It must be my good looking face, yes?" Chuck responded laughing and turned and walked away.

"I guess so," Chuck heard the agent mutter.

Once in the back room, Chuck quickly walked out the back door of the shop and into the alleyway. Staying in the shadows he watched the DEA agent exit the store, charger in hand, get into a black sedan and pull away. Chuck sighed in relief. The agent hadn't made a phone call; he hadn't even taken a second look at the store front. Chuck's cover was probably safe.

As Chuck sat back down at the little table, he shook his head and leaned in over his work. He would not tell Sarah what had happened, he decided. He knew Sarah would want to move again, and frankly, Chuck was sick of running. He was sick of changing names and apartments and accents. And more importantly, he didn't want to uproot Charlie when the little guy had just started sleeping through the night again for the first time since moving here. No, he thought as he picked up his small screwdriver, Sarah didn't need to know at all.

But as he worked, a feeling of anxiety overtook him. Last night had been little Charlie's first birthday. They had gone to a restaurant across town and when the staff had learned about the special occasion they had sung to him. Charlie bounced in the high chair and clapped his hands to the music. He had even been a good sport when the waitress put a funny birthday hat on his head and snapped a Polaroid for Chuck and Sarah to keep. Sarah had destroyed the picture as soon as they got home. It was one of the rules: pictures were not allowed. So Chuck concentrated extra hard during those blissful family moments, so he could at least have the picture of them in his mind always.

Chuck stood so fast that his chair went clattering to the floor. What was he doing? He had been recognized by a DEA agent and through his own selfishness he was putting the people he loved most in jeopardy. It wasn't worth the risk. He tossed down his screwdriver, grabbed his lunch bag and headed out the back door.

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There was silence for a moment and Chuck caught Sarah's eye. A little nod of her head told him to continue. "Charlie, the truth is our life on the run was…well, it was a mess really."

"I wouldn't say it was a mess," Sarah said glancing over at Chuck. "We were happy, we had good times, but your father and I knew that it wasn't the life we wanted."

"The first year after you were born went alright…you know…all things considered. You were just a baby, so it didn't matter that we were moving from place to place. But as you got older, walking, talking, it got tougher," Chuck said.

"We had to be careful. We didn't let you outside much; you weren't allowed to play with other children. You hated it," Sarah explained.

"It was miserable having to keep you locked down. It was like we were living in our own self made bunker," Chuck said. "And I wanted you to know your Aunt Ellie and your cousins, you know? I wanted us to have family dinners and holiday parties." Chuck shrugged his shoulders. "I just wanted you to have everything that your mom and I didn't have growing up."

"It tore both of us up, that we couldn't give you the kind of life we wanted to…the kind of life you deserved," Sarah continued. "But we didn't see any other options."

"I saw an option. But I didn't seriously consider it," Chuck said, "as least not at first. And then one day, when I was watching the news…."

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Chuck was glad to have found work at the little ocean side resort. There were enough TV, phone and WiFi problems here to keep him busy several days a week and it was good money, better than they had seen for awhile. Today he was working on the computer at the front desk that had contracted something nasty. While he worked, some news on the lobby TV caught his attention.

"I'm reporting from the Nevada/Arizona border, about 30 miles outside of Mesquite, where an IRS records storage building has been destroyed by an apparent gas explosion," the television reporter said. "Fire officials are on the scene and say they will have the blaze under control within the hour…."

The TV camera swept the burned out shell of a nondescript warehouse still smoldering as a witness was being interviewed. "It was like a bomb went off," he said as the camera took in the scene behind him. The shot panned past a piece of the wreckage that had a symbol on it, a stylized eagle with an olive branch in its mouth. As soon he saw it, Chuck felt his eyes roll up into his head.

* a turkey dinner * a computer schematic * the word "ORION" * an image of the president * a room of plasma screens * a turkey dinner *

Chuck moaned and shook his head back and forth to clear it. Once his mind was back into focus one thing was clear to him: the new Intersect, the one that had replaced him three years ago, had just been destroyed.

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"What's the Intersect?" Charlie asked.

"We can't tell you much," Chuck said, "we're already breaking half a dozen rules by even telling you the name of the program. So don't tell anyone you even know that word."

Charlie nodded solemnly.

"Listen carefully," Sarah said. "The Intersect was a government computer that was designed to look for patterns. You father seems to have the unique ability to memorize and process these patterns."

Charlie looked confused.

Chuck laughed nervously. "Look I don't even know why it works this way, but my brain seems to be wired a little different from most people. Your mom and I think that there's a small chance that yours might be too.

"Mine? Like, what? This 'ability' might be hereditary?" Charlie asked.

Chuck shrugged. "We don't know."

Sarah leaned forward to drive her point home. "Just know that if you go to work for the CIA they may want to use you the same way they did your father."

Charlie seemed to think about that for a moment. "But we don't know right?" he said, worry creeping into his voice. "We don't know if I can do whatever it is that dad does…or if they even would want me to."

"That's right," Sarah answered, "But we wanted you to know that it's a possibility - just in case."

Charlie's face looked grim but he simply nodded. "Okay," he said, sounding resolved. "So what did that mean to you - that this Intersect had been blown up?"

Chuck reached out and took Sarah by the hand. She is the one that answered, "It meant that our situation had just gotten a whole lot more complicated….."

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Sarah and Charlie were in Charlie's room playing blocks when Sarah heard the click of a key in the front door. She didn't carry any weapons on her person anymore because of Charlie, but she kept several hidden in the house. She quickly put the toddler into his crib and then she reached for the gun hidden high in his closet. She held it in her hand and readied herself to open the bedroom door.

"Sarah?" she heard Chuck call. She breathed a sigh of relief, and put the weapon back in its hiding place.

"In Charlie's room," she called back. "What are you doing home? I didn't think your shift was over until five."

She pulled an unhappy Charlie out his crib and sat down with him again. When Chuck entered the room Sarah noticed his face was pale and his eyes dark with worry.

"Chuck, what happened? Are you alright?"

Chuck nodded and sat stiffly in the wooden rocking chair by the crib. "Have you been watching the TV today?" he asked.

"No," she answered. "What happened?"

"There was another explosion in the states," he said, watching his son play with the blocks.

"Another terrorist attack? Where?"

"In the desert outside of Mesquite. They said it was a gas explosion. Sarah, it wasn't gas. It was a bomb."

"Another bomb?" she repeated. "Chuck, how do you know that?" she asked seriously, kneeling to see his face more clearly. When he didn't answer immediately she asked, "Did you flash?" Chuck sighed and nodded his head. "What? What did you flash on?" she asked.

Chuck swallowed and looked up from Charlie to Sarah. "It was the Intersect computer."

Sarah sat back heavily on the floor; she felt like the air had been knocked from her. "First all the terrorist attacks, and now this? The new Intersect destroyed?"

"I think that all those attacks were related," Chuck reasoned. "It's been Fulcrum gunning for the Intersect."

They sat in silence for a moment, both pondering the implications.

Chuck finally spoke, "Sarah, what if Fulcrum has an Intersect, and the government's has been destroyed? What would that mean?"

Sarah shook her head. "I don't know. The tables are tipped in Fulcrum's favor, I guess."

Charlie squealed and knocked down the block tower that he and Sarah had been building together. The blocks crashed to the ground in a heap. Chuck and Sarah both looked at the rubble on the floor. Sarah quickly reached down and started picking up the blocks and putting them in the toy box. Always the helper, Charlie started to pick up too, plopping blocks in the box with unsteady hands.

"Whatever happens, it has nothing to do with us," Sarah said.

"Nothing to do with us? Sarah, how can you say that? That's our country you're talking about."

"WAS our country," she corrected him.

"Was our…Sarah, you can't mean that!"

"The government betrayed you – betrayed us!"

"It wasn't the whole U.S.; it was one agency; a few evil people who forgot what it means to be American. I still believe in America, Sarah. In what it stands for."

"Even if the leaders there want you dead?" Sarah's voice rose.

"I doubt they want me dead anymore," he said grimly.

Chuck's response took her off guard. That was something Sarah had not yet considered and the reality of his words cut to her heart. "Oh my God, Chuck. You're the only Intersect!"

Chuck's ashen face acknowledged that he had already thought of that. With the functioning Intersect destroyed, Chuck had once again become the government's most valuable asset. Pretty soon agents would be combing through every place they had ever been, looking for them.

Chuck must have noticed the expression on Sarah's face because he said, "Why don't I put Charlie down for a nap, and then we can talk about our next move."

As Sarah kissed little Charlie on the forehead and left the room, her head buzzed with questions. Was the Intersect destroyed today the only one, or were there others? The other bombings, could those possibly been Intersects as well?

As she thought about the possible connections, she heard the creaking of the floorboards under the rocking chair and Chuck softly humming a lullaby. As she imagined the picture in her mind of her husband and her son, an overpowering urge to protect them swelled in her chest. She would do whatever it took to keep them safe.

A few minutes later Chuck came out of Charlie's room and headed for the small kitchen in their apartment. It wasn't really a kitchen, it was just a sink, a stove and a half sized refrigerator. "I'm getting a coke, you want one?"

"No thanks," Sarah said.

Chuck sat by her on the sofa and placed his drink on the coffee table. "Sarah, I want to talk to you about something. But I need to you just… just hear me out before you say anything."

Sarah sighed; she had heard this build-up before. Chuck always used it when he was going to tell her something she didn't want to hear.

When she didn't say anything he continued, "I've already been thinking about this a lot recently, and what happened today just confirmed it."

Sarah focused on the wall. These talks were always easier if she didn't look at him. Looking into his eyes always made her feel worse.

"Things are getting harder, you know, with Charlie getting bigger and everything. He wants to play with other kids, and it won't be long until he'll want to play soccer and T-ball and go to school. We both know that no matter how well we hide, we can never give him those things."

Sarah felt her heart sink in her chest. She had been thinking that too, but it made her concerns more real somehow, hearing them from Chuck.

Chuck continued. "And now with the Intersect destroyed, we both know it's only a matter of time until they find us."

"It'll be okay, Chuck." Sarah assured. "We'll find a safer place to go. Cuba… or Brazil… or…."

"Sarah, running further away isn't the answer. It's a pretty safe guess that the government wants me alive now – we can use that to our advantage."

"Advantage? There is no advantage with those people. If they want something, they take it. They wanted you, they took you. When they were done, when you were no longer useful, they tried to throw you away. That's how these people operate."

"But what happened today is provides the leverage we need. I've been thinking about this for a long time." He paused and took a deep breath. Sarah braced herself for the bombshell she was sure he was about to drop. "I think I should trade myself for amnesty for you and Charlie."

"What!?" Sarah gasped

"You heard me. A trade. The government's most valuable asset for one rogue spy and her son. They'll think it's a bargain."

"Don't tell me you're thinking about dealing with those people?" Chuck looked away, anger masking his face. "Why haven't you ever talked to me about this idea? You thought I would shoot you down? Well you were right. The only way for us to live is to go somewhere they will never think to look for us."

Chuck, raised his hands in the air. "See Sarah, THIS is why I haven't talked to you about this before. I knew you'd want to keep running. I'm sick of running."

Sarah, clenched her hands into fists. "It doesn't matter how you feel about it! This is how we survive!"

"But that's all it is. Surviving!" Chuck stopped to take a breath. When he spoke again his voice was more controlled. "Sarah, these past few years have been like a nightmare. The only bright spot is that we've been together. The times we've had with Charlie have been better then I could have imagined… but Sarah," he took her hands, "I want Charlie to have a normal life. I want us to have a normal life."

"I want that too, but I don't know how we can have a normal life…I never have." Those last three words were only a whisper. Her eyes met his. "But I do know how to keep us alive."

"Yes, yes you do. And you have. But maybe it's time to stop hiding, to...start living, not just surviving."

"You just don't get it! You can't trust them, Chuck! I don't care what they promise, the minute they have you, they have all the power! What's to stop them from taking Charlie and me and throwing us in some bunker and holding us hostage to make you do what they want?"

"They aren't the only ones with power. All the things my dad taught me about the Intersect, how it's designed, how it works; I still have all those schematics in my head. They can't force that information out of me, Sarah, I have to give it willingly!"

Sarah could not believe what she was hearing. She couldn't stomach sitting next to him at that moment. She stood and walked to the window. It was only a half window with limp yellow curtains hanging on either side; it looked out over a narrow street that separated their apartment building from the next. Looking down, Sarah saw a lone grey cat, winding its way among the boxes and cans.

"Did you hear what I said?" Chuck asked.

Sarah continued to watch the cat until it jumped through a dark space between buildings and was gone. "I heard you," she said flatly. With the cat gone, Sarah suddenly became aware of her heart, how it beat quick and steady in her chest. She put her hand up to feel it. If he were to leave her, would it even keep beating, she wondered, or would she just disappear back into the shadows like the cat had done?

"Well?" he asked.

"I'm not sure what you want me to say," she said.

Chuck snorted. "Well, I expect you to keep arguing at least."

"You want to leave me. You think you can deal with the devil. I get it," she answered.

She felt him approach, but still she did not turn. She didn't want him to see the anger, or the hurt, in her eyes.

"I don't want to leave you; I just want you and Charlie to have a better life."

She felt his hands on her shoulders but she shrugged him off. "Don't," she warned. A moment passed and she heard the squeak of the sofa springs. She turned to see him sitting, his face in his hands.

Her anger bubbled over and she spun to face him. "Do you know what I don't get?" she asked bitterly. He looked up to her. "I don't get how, after all that we've been through… how you could even suggest this."

"Sarah, we talked about it. I'm the only Intersect. The last three years? They're going to be a picnic compared to what we're facing. If they were trying before, they'll be relentless now. We won't have a moment's peace. Is that what you want for us?

Sarah stepped towards him. "I don't care, Chuck. I don't care if all hell rains down on us. I cast my lot with you the day we left for Mexico and I'll be damned if I'm going to give up now."

"But it's not just us anymore Sarah, it's Charlie too. If they catch up with us, Charlie's life would be in danger. This – this half life – isn't the kind of life I want for him."

"I don't want that either, but we don't have a choice."

"We do have a choice," Chuck said. "I'm going trade myself for your amnesty – yours and Charlie's. And I'll do it with or without your permission!"

Instinctively, Sarah's hand flew and struck Chuck across the face. "Don't you dare leave us," she growled.

Chuck grabbed her by the shoulders. "Don't you get it! I don't want to leave you!" He held her firmly and she was surprised by his strength. "You and Charlie are my life."

"How can we be your life if you don't love us enough to stay? You're going to abandon your son, just like your father did to you!"

He shook her and then seemed to realize what he was doing and dropped his hands. He turned and stepped away and then whirled around and pointed his finger in her face. His jaw clenched, and his eyes wild. "Don't you ever, and I mean EVER," he yelled, "accuse me of not loving you." He pounded his fist on his chest. "I would never even consider handing myself over to those people if I didn't love your lives more than my own." A lone tear ran down his tight face.

"Then don't do this," she said, pleading. "We can run. We can find a place. A place to settle down permanently. We can find another way; we always have."

Chuck shook his head. "There will be no peace for us and long as I have this," he pointed to his head. "So long as I'm the Intersect." He spat the last word, as if it were profanity.

Sarah stared in his desperate looking eyes for a moment, and was sure the expression was mirrored in her own. She hadn't realized before now but her hands trembling. She clasped them together to try to regain control. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. She felt a pair of hands on hers and when she opened her eyes she saw Chuck's face, softened now, close to hers.

"I'm sorry, Sarah. I'm sorry...for yelling…for everything," he breathed.

"Me too," she answered.

"Listen, can we talk about this later? Maybe give ourselves more time to think about it?"

"Sure," she said, "Maybe things will be clearer to both of us after some dinner and a good night's rest."

"I think that's a very good idea."

Chuck took her into his arms. She leaned into him, clutching him tightly. "We need to make this decision together." She reached up and put her hand on Chuck's cheek, guiding his eyes to hers. "Promise me you won't do anything until we've talked this through."

Chuck looked her in the eye. "I promise."

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"I think that's the only time your father has ever lied to me," Sarah said, blinking away the moisture in her eyes. "He had no intention of talking about it again. He had already made up his mind."

Chuck put his arm over Sarah's shoulders and pulled her in against him. He shook his head sadly. "I didn't feel like I had any other choice. It was the only way I could give you and mom the life that I wanted you to have."

"So what happened?" Charlie asked.

Sarah's lips tightened. "A couple of weeks later, your dad went to work and he never came home. Late that night a messenger dropped an envelope at the motel we were staying in. In it was a letter from your father, some money, and two airline tickets to LA."

Sarah remembered opening the door to the messenger that night, and the brown envelope he held. She had opened the seal with shaking hands, only to reveal the contents she most feared. The note from Chuck gave her no answers and little comfort. Only one thing was clear, he had abandoned her and their son.

Sarah shook her head at the recollection. Some old hurts had long scabbed over, but maybe they could never completely heal.

I'm sorry for the long delay in posting this chapter. The delay is the result of needing to seek some advice, a beta copy covered in red ink, an obscure pop reference to blue pills and some mo-hee-tos (not mine, I never touch the stuff) - all in all a dull story so I won't repeat it here. Needless to say, I'm very glad to finally be getting this chapter posted.

Many thanks to Sharpasamarble who has again pushed me to my limits in producing a quality product. Additional thanks go to Timewalker who helped me sift through some plot challenges and helped my dialogue "crackle." I admit to lifting a few lines directly from these gentlemen's ideas. I can't thank them enough.