A/N: Well this should be fun…thanks to everyone for playing along…yo, retro panda, back to work…Prince Boo Boo…pffffffttttt!…was re-reading some APR…man I miss that guy…man, long hot weekend…hopefully everyone dodged Irene…still haven't found a better title…not for lack of trying…have had a few good suggestions…little out of it…got some swimmer and TRFW worked on today…maybe soon…as always, I rushed this and ignored a perfectly great beta(sorry STN) in my frenzied rush to drop this update…esardi was hounding me…what you find at the end of this is all his fault…reviews are encouraged and always appreciated…been a while since any Shate fiction…c'mon Shaters, publish. Still having fun so, Jim, thanks for the nudge…don't own Chuck or anything in the Chuckverse and still not making money at this…although some one did get me a membership in the lipton soup of the month club…so, I got that going for me….JT
Bryce Larkin - Douche Bag At Large - Chapter 9
Sarah Walker looked down at her watch for what felt like the hundredth time in the last fifteen minutes, wondering where Chuck Bartowski was. She'd been sitting in her Porsche, struggling with her desire to charge into the Buymore store she was parked in front of and find out what was taking Chuck so long. He'd told her to pick him up at five minutes past six and she'd been waiting, impatiently, for him to appear. Just as she had decided to go find Chuck, she saw him walking out the front doors of the store and couldn't believe the surge of relief she felt when he'd appeared. As he approached her car, Sarah found herself questioning the feelings that had been swirling inside of her for the last few hours, the most surprising of which had been the apprehension she'd felt when her phone rang and she'd been sure it was Chuck, calling to cancel the dinner because he'd come to his senses and didn't want to go out with someone who had a past like hers. The caller ID had identified the incoming call as being encrypted and she'd smiled with the realization that the encryption meant that the call was coming from someone she worked with and not Chuck Bartowski.
She remembered answering the call and having Director Graham ask for a situation update. Ten minutes later, she'd hung up after bringing her boss up to date on everything, including their date that night, only, she hadn't referred to it as a date, choosing instead to label it as a meeting to discuss the intersect. She smiled as she recalled the Director's chuckle when she'd described how Chuck had dropped Major John Casey. The passenger door opening snapped her back to reality and she mentally kicked herself for losing focus, yet again.
She watched as Chuck folded himself into the passenger seat, admiring the smooth way his body almost seemed to flow, effortlessly into the small car. She felt the smile on her face disappear when she noticed the worried look on his face and she waited for the bad news she was sure was coming.
"I'm afraid that we're going to have to cancel our date" he said and she thought that he actually looked like he was genuinely sorry. "Miss Walker, if I didn't know better, I'd swear that you were looking forward to our dinner as much as I was…or was it the undressing me so you could pick out the 'pretty' clothes I was going to wear for you?"
"Oh yes" she responded and immediately threw her hand over her mouth even though she knew it was too late and her only hope was that he'd think it was just an attempt at a joke. Looking into his eyes, she knew that he'd caught her and there was no way he'd believe that her response, and the clearly husky voice she used, had been a joke. She watched as the look of surprise on his face was immediately followed by blush that climbed up his neck and settled into his cheeks. She decided to wait for his response and watched as he struggled to figure out what he was going to say next.
"Well, um.." Chuck stammered, not sure what to say next, "as much as I hate to ignore that admission, and as odd as this may seem for a follow-up, we need to get over to Major Casey's place. Something's about to happen and I only want to go through what I have to say, once. I know that the Major's here for basically the same reason as you and what I've just found out could have a big impact on how your bosses decide to 'deal' with me.
Sarah simply nodded her head and started the car, pulling out of the parking space and heading out of the parking lot without saying a word. She drove effortlessly while she wondered what had happened that Chuck felt required Casey's input and almost immediately gave up, telling herself that guessing would do no good, that she'd just have to wait to find out until Chuck decided to talk. Changing gears, both literally and figuratively, she started asking herself about Chuck's response to her earlier slip. Despite her fervent hopes that he wouldn't notice the desire in her voice, she'd seen the recognition in his eyes and found herself wondering if he'd been thinking about her wanting to play 'dress-up', and more importantly, 'undress-up' with him as much as she had. 'Hopefully' she told herself as she slid the car into a vacant parking space in front of Chuck's apartment complex.
Sarah was out of her car before Chuck could make his way around and open the door for her but she did make note of his effort, wondering if Ellie had been responsible for his polite nature and good manners. She promised herself to look into it as part of her side mission which included learning everything she could about the man who she found so interesting. She took note that he was waiting for her at the sidewalk and matched her, step for step, as they made their way to John Casey's apartment.
Sarah noted the look of surprise on Chuck's face when John Casey pulled his door open just as he was about to knock. She watched Chuck close his eyes briefly and when he reopened them, he did a slow inspection of the surrounding area followed with a knowing smile. He waited until she had walked through the door and then stepped in, closing the door behind him. She noted that Major John Casey watched Chuck carefully and waited until he found a place on his couch before finding a seat of his own, one that insured that he had the tactical advantage if anything was to happen.
"So, Walker, what brings you and your…" Casey started but then seemed to be at a loss for words to describe Chuck. "…asset here?"
"I don't know, Casey. Chuck asked me to bring him here. Maybe he wants to show you how that nerve strike works…again" Sarah responded, not above snarking back when she felt the situation warranted it.
"Major Casey, Agent Walker" Chuck said, hoping to put a stop to whatever seemed to be going on between them. "Just before the end of my shift at the Buymore, Anton Skedry entered the store and asked me to check his new Prism Express laptop, which didn't seem to be working."
"Well, that's wonderful, Bartowski. Glad to know that you're work…"
"Shut-up, Casey!" Chuck said, the firm tone in his voice, more than anything else, convincing the Major to be quiet. "As I was saying, Anton Skedry brought in his new laptop and asked me to take a look at it. He said it wasn't working the way he needed it to work and asked me to run a quick diagnostic on it" seeing that Casey was eager to say something, Chuck hurried on, hoping that what he said next would get the attention he needed. "The problem is that Mr. Skedry is a Serbian demolitions expert who is wanted in connection to almost a half dozen terrorist attacks throughout Europe. The last three attacks he is credited with masterminding used that same type of laptop for the triggering device" he finished and sat back, waiting expectantly.
"And that means exactly what?" Casey said as he cast a nervous glance towards Agent Sarah Walker, already afraid that he knew exactly what it did mean. "So you fixed his laptop…so what?"
"Didn't you hear what I said? A terrorist came into my place of work and asked me to repair his laptop…which he may, or may not, be planning to use to build and, possibly, detonate a bomb hear in Los Angeles" Chuck answered, obviously not happy with Casey's response to his news.
"Do you know for a fact that he's intending to build a bomb?"
"No…"
"And do you know his exact whereabouts, right at this moment or do you think Agent Walker and myself should just start driving around, hoping to run into this guy that you claim is a terrorist?" Casey asked, keeping his voice calm but laying on the condescension.
"Listen, Major, I know who he is and what he's done. This thing" he said as he tapped his head, "isn't wrong. The man is dangerous and you need to take what I have to say, very seriously"
"And what 'thing' is it that I have to take 'very seriously', Bartowski?" Casey asked, once again sure of the answer but wanting to hear it from the young man currently sitting on his couch.
"The intersect upload, you asshole!" Chuck blurted out, tried of John Casey's attitude. He briefly closed his eyes and when he reopened them, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. "How about I give the general a call and see if she ordered you to act like such a douche?" he said as he started running his fingers of the display on his phone.
"Oh, like you've got General Diane Beckman's phone number, memorized." he responded, figuring that the kid was just trying to yank his chain. Sure, he'd heard about him calling Director Graham but he wouldn't be stupid enough to call a two star general…would he? He wondered to himself.
"You really should apologize, Casey" Sarah Walker said as she watched with a weird sense of deja-vu as Chuck was dialing.
Casey had just decided that maybe, just maybe, a little discretion was exactly what the situation called for. "Ok…ok, Bartowski" he said, using one hand to make a calming gesture while he watched the amused expression on Agent Walker's face fade back into a look of concern. "What would be your suggestion?"
"Well, Major" he began as he slid his phone back into his pocket. "When I was running a quick diagnostic on his laptop, I also activated his GPS which, somehow or other, had been turned off. We could use it to trace the computer but while I was servicing the laptop, I saw a few programs that I have no clue what their functions are…."
"Why didn't you…"
"Because, Major Casey, I only had fifteen minutes and he was watching me, the whole time. If I'd tried to do something, he might have taken it somewhere else for repairs, somewhere that didn't have an intersect of staff. I would hate to find out that one of the programs was some sort of fail safe and when I the 'pinged' the GPS, it activated some sort of triggering program."
"That makes sense" John Casey answered, not happy about admitting that the kid had done the right thing at the moment. "So 'pinging' the laptop should be our last resort. In the meantime, what are we going to do? Maybe you should call the general."
Sarah sat quietly, waiting to see what Chuck would do next, curious to see what his thought process would be. She knew he was a genius, the question was, could he apply that genius to tactics. She wasn't disappointed when Chuck offered his idea.
"Well, first, I think we might see if there is an obvious target. If so, then we start there. If there's more than one, we'll have to start with the most obvious and work back" Chuck replied and then paused, both to catch his breath and to let Major Casey consider what he'd just said. He turned to look at Sarah and happened to catch sight of Casey's television that was set up in the far corner, on, but muted. Chuck froze when the figure on the screen caught his attention and he felt the now familiar information dump that accompanied the activation of the intersect program.
"General Stanfield" Chuck blurted out. "That has to be the target. He's addressing a huge gathering of allied leaders at a hotel downtown in less than an hour."
"What?" Casey said as he got quickly to his feet, a look of concern on his face. He knew the General and would hate for anything to happen to him, even if he didn't always agree with his politics. "Alright, Walker. Well head down town and take a look" the big man said as reached out and appeared to hit some hidden release on the lower edge of his coffee table which suddenly slid open, revealing a hidden cache of weapons. "Grab what you need, Walker. I'm gonna go and get changed and then we can dump the 'kid' at his place before we head out."
Sarah simply nodded her head and then reached for a Smith & Wesson 9mm. She also grabbed a few extra clips, tucking them into her pockets. When she finally looked up, she noticed the upset look on Chuck's face. Not sure what he could possibly be upset about, she decided to shorten the process and just ask. "What's up, Chuck?"
"Well, as much as I hate to say it, you are going to have to take me with you"
"Oh, and why is that? Sarah asked, trying to keep the superior tone from her voice. "Have you dealt with a lot of terrorist bombs before?"
"No. of course I haven't" he answered and then briefly closed his eyes, "but neither have you…or Casey. At least, not this kind of bomb." he finished and crossed his arms over his chest, leaving little doubt that, even though he wasn't thrilled with the idea, he was going to be accompanying them.
Giving her head a quick nod, she reached back into the 'arms table' and picked up another 9mm and, after slamming home a clip and making user the gun was safed, she tossed it to Chuck who caught it , deftly, and then tucked it into the waist band of his black slacks and then pulled his white shirt over the butt of the gun, effectively hiding it from sight.
Casey chose that moment to reappear, dressed head to toe in black. "Alright, Walker, let's get going. We'll talk to you later, Bartowski." he said as he made his way towards the front door.
"So, do you know where you're going?" Chuck asked and without waiting for an answer, continued on, "do you know the floor plans for the hotel? Do you know anything about working on a Prism Express laptop that might be part of a very large bomb? Didn't think so…let's go" he finished as he crossed the living room and, having reached it, pulled open the front door. "Well, let's go" he said as he stood with the edge of the open door in his hand.
Casey looked at Walker who simply offered a slight shrug before she started to move in Chuck's direction. "Why don't you follow us, Casey?" Sarah said back over her shoulder before pausing at the door to grab Chuck's tie and then pulling him along behind her out towards where she'd parked her car earlier. She felt a moments hesitation from Chuck and then he was moving along behind her, seemingly matching her pace without difficulty.
"Just great" Casey mumbled to himself as he pulled the door closed behind him, not believing that they were about to rush headlong into a potentially catastrophic situation with an untested variable acting as their back up.
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Casey could not believe what he was looking at. He'd somehow managed to stay on Walker's ass as she drove her Porsche like she was attempting to set some new land speed record. More than once, he was glad that his Crown Vic was about as far from stock as a car could be and not be covered with stickers and have an emergency drag chute.
Once out of the cars, he and Agent Walker had followed Bartowski as he ran through the lobby, splashed through a decorative fountain and then pushed his way into a rather large conference room, dropping one of the door's guards with the same nerve strike he'd used on Casey. He was about to reach for the second guard when Casey showed up and waved his badge which got them immediate access. When the stepped into the room, they all froze and then slowly began casting about, hoping to catch sight of something suspicious looking.
Chuck took the lead again when he spotted a serving cart that looked like the same type that the bomb maker had used on his last mission. Stepping up to the cart, he tentatively reached out a hand and when he touched the large domed serving tray, the cover rolled back, revealing a laptop and a huge amount of what looked like C4, all wired together and looking very unfriendly. He felt both Sarah and Casey, standing to either side of him, both keeping quiet as the scanned the room, not quite sure what they were looking for, just intending to make sure that no one approached them that they didn't want to interact with.
Chuck watched as the timer on the laptop's display counted down, telling him that something very unpleasant was very close to happening.
-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-
Sarah stepped closer to Chuck and gently placed her hand on his arm as his fingers flew over the keyboard. She didn't have a clue what he was attempting to do and her brief glance at the timer worried her. Chuck paused and she saw him punch the enter key and then he cursed when the countdown continued. He looked up and into her eyes and she saw the fear and guilt there.
"I tried…I'm so sorry, Sarah" he said.
"That's ok…you tried" she said at the same time, already knowing what he was feeling by the look in his eyes. She started to lean in, hoping for one last kiss.
"Oh Fuck!" Casey said as he watched the digital display click to all zeros.
Chuck wondered if there would be much pain and, for Sarah's sake, he hoped there wouldn't be. His lips were almost touching the beautiful blonde agent's when everything went an unbelievably bright white….
A/N : Cliffy? esardi, this is your fault! (hehe)