Don't own Chuck
Sarah and Casey sat in the van outside of Morgan's apartment on 9000 Burbank. The great debate was on what type of sandwich would be best on a desert Island. Casey just shook his head as the various ingredients were mentioned and before long he wanted to bang his head against something because he couldn't take it anymore.
"It's been over an hour and all they've been talking about is if mustard and mayo will keep under the sun. I've been in the desert, eaten scorpions for breakfast, drank camel's blood and my own urine to survive but none of that can compare to this torture."
"Casey, don't blame them too much. I know Lou asked Chuck for ideas because she was having trouble with her competition next door. Her prices are higher but her ingredients are fresher. But really, urine I think that was a little overshare."
"Is she still smuggling her meats in?"
"Don't know and don't care. I just like eating there."
"I do like Sardinian Cheese," grunted Casey, "rich in protein."
"John, remember what I said about overshare."
"Perps on the move."
"Casey! Don't call Chuck that if you have to say something, say subject or just Chuck."
"Okay perp subject Chuck is on the move."
"You're going to make this a long night, aren't you?" Casey gave a jovial grunt, grunt number four.
Chuck drove around a bit before he pulled into the parking lot of the Waldron hotel and got out. The way he drove was either he was checking for a tail or he was lost. They didn't understand the real reason which was he almost turned around three times to give up.
"There he goes inside we've got ears up. How are you holding up?" asked Casey. "I'm sure he has a good excuse for this so let's just listen." Up until then Casey had joked about Chuck having a tryst with Jill but now that things were in play he was concerned how Sarah would take it or not given the fact that she kept touching her Smith and Wesson.
"Focus on the mission. Okay room 622 Olga Myer I'll run that name through the computer," Sarah said as she typed. "Casey, I've got subject unknown. I'm going to try and tap into the video feed from the hotel.
"The receptionist sent him to the bar. Can you see him?"
"Yeah he's there and crap there's Jill. No need to run facial recognition that's her. What's wrong with audio?" Suddenly the sound dropped out and all they got was static.
"I'm trying to clean it up but it's as if our signal is being over powered."
"There may be other players on the field we need to keep an eye out for Chuck. He might be in over his head. They've moved to a booth. Casey sound. We need sound. He refused her drink."
"Not dump at least," said Casey as Sarah gave him a look. "Hey, I was giving him a compliment. You never know what she could've put in that. He's up good boy now leave. No, no don't sit down again."
"Casey you don't need to give me a blow by blow okay. I can see." Her stomach was doing that for her. "When are you going to have that audio up? Have you tried boosting the signal?"
"Yeah, but no luck the source of the interference must be between us and them."
"Perps sorry, I mean subjects are on the move heading for the elevator and they're in."
"Casey, we've got a situation. The two men that got into the second elevator are armed. See," Sarah played back the tape and in their belts under their coats they could see Markov pistol handles. "We got to go after Chuck."
"Beckman's orders?"
"We arrest Jill and stop any possible shooting. If I have to choose I'd choose to have him alive pissed than dead and happy. Are you coming?" They jumped out of the van and headed through the lobby to the elevator.
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ON THE SIXTH FLOOR
Chuck and Jill walked down the hall towards her room. Chuck took up post outside while she opened the door. As Jill slid her keycard in the door two men came out of room at the end of the corridor and walked towards them. At the same time the elevator rang and two more men stepped out. They headed straight for them. Chuck flashed: Code Named Wolf came to his mind along with the images of various kills Wolf had done through his career as assassin for hire. The other men were his associates, other assassins for hire, part of the Wolf Den.
"Inside," said Chuck as he pushed Jill in. "We've got company. There are four assassins headed our way are you armed?" Chuck asked as he activated his emergency beacon.
"Yes," she said as she pulled out of her bag a Sig 9mm. "Chuck, they can't come into this room." Jill pointed over to a little girl hiding behind the bed. "I don't have time to explain but we have to stop them."
"Do we? Are you up for a little acrobatics?" Chuck took Jill and the girl out on the balcony tearing off the cord from the curtain. He took the little girl in his arms then tied her to himself. "Okay Jill remember the Morgan well this is called a modified Montgomery."
"A what?"
"We're going to climb over to the room next door then when they break in you two run for the elevator and I'll cover."
"Chuck, are you sure?"
"No but I don't see another option. Let's just get a move they're at the door right now. Kid, don't look down just close your eyes and before you know it we'll be safe." Chuck climbed over with the little girl tied to him then he helped Jill over just as the men broke the door in.
"Thanks, Chuck. Not bad for someone afraid of heights."
"You can thank me later now head for the elevator." Chuck throw opened the door and flashed pistol whipping the guard at the doorway across the face. Then he darted two men who were next to the balcony trying to figure out how Chuck and Jill had escaped. Unfortunately they were too close and fell over the side.
"Ophs! I'm so sorry about that," said Chuck feeling kind of bad and hoping they weren't dead when Wolf fired two shots. Chuck's first reaction was to stand and fight but he had Jill and the kid to get to safety.
"Chuck run," yelled Jill as she held the elevator for him. He ran to her and was about to step inside when Sarah and Casey came out of the second one.
"Back!," yelled Chuck as he fired a dart that passed between them at Wolf who returned fire but missed then ducked back into Jill's room. "Boy that was fast. Sorry, can't talk now but I'll explain," he said as elevator doors closed. Sarah heard a muffled "I love you" as it headed down.
"Sarah, we need to clear the room," said Casey. Sarah realized they needed to neutralize the immediate threat but she couldn't help but want to go after Chuck. They made their way down to room 622.
"On my mark," said Casey in a low voice. "Go!" he yelled as they began to swept the room but Wolf was gone.
"I'm calling Chuck," said Sarah but her call went to voice mail. "He's not answering. What's going on?" Casey walked back in from the balcony.
"I don't know but we need to get a team in here pronto. Two perps went over the balcony and they're ruining the calm in the Zen garden below."
"What's this?" said Sarah as she held up pieces of paper. "Jill's taken up drawing?"
"I guess you have to do something to pass the time when you're not working for commie dictators or maniacs who want to destroy the world."
"There actually quite nice. They kind of remind me of Renoir, and this one in particle. What was it called? I can't remember."
"Let me look," said Casey. "That's the two sisters." Sarah looked at him amazed. "What I wasn't hatched. I took three years of art in high school along with gun shop."
"Where is Chuck?"
"When we get back to the van we can check his tracker and if worse comes to worse we can triangulate the signal from the bug using its GPS signal. So don't worry."
"You know what Chuck always said about telling someone not to worry and he was right."
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IN THE HERDER
Chuck got both girls in his herder then disabled the tracking signal not wanting to be followed or found and then headed out with no direction in mind. He had to come up with a place that was safe and obviously the Wolf had some system for finding Jill that was the reason the assassins knew about the hotel. But what was it and why hadn't he taken her before tonight?
"How do you feel about a late night electronics shopping spree? But there'll be some blindfolds involved." Chuck was thinking about heading for Castle but that wouldn't work what if they brought the guy he knocked out back for interrogation. He couldn't risk having Jill and the child in the same place with a man who had just tried to kill them.
"Chuck, you aren't making any sense." Jill was worried that maybe Chuck got hit in the head during the fight.
"Sorry but you're right I'm not. And you my little friend," said Chuck glancing at the little girl in the rearview mirror. "What's your name? Don't tell me let me guess? Pippi Longstocking."
"No," said the little girl laughing. Chuck made up absurd names as he drove trying to distract the child from what was going on using laughter as a medicine.
"Her name is Judy but everyone back home called her Jug," said Jill.
"What? Hey Judy do you like being called that?" asked Chuck noticing the kid got quiet and stopped laughing. "Well, let's do this. We've just met and you know my name is Chuck but my real name is Charles. What if we decided on a new name for you? It'll be one that only you, your mother and I know and maybe a couple of other friends of mine will know. What do you say to that?"
"You mean like a codename?" said the Kid.
"Yes a codename. Jill I want an explanation later on." Chuck wanted to know how a child would know anything about a codename. Sure he grew up watching TV but Alias, Covert Affairs and the Pretender weren't programs for small children. "So what's it going to be? Or do you want your mother and I to come up with one?"
"No, Skye, I like Skye."
"Then Skye it is. Do you mind if I ask why?" Chuck couldn't get over the fact that to be so little the kid was extremely articulate.
"I just like the name," said the little girl pretending to be bashful. Glancing back looking at both Jill and Skye in the mirror he could see the resemblance. There was no doubt in his mind that Skye was Jill's daughter. Talking to Skye was like talking to a miniature adult and in a certain sense more grown-up then Morgan, Morgan. Chuck knew where he'd go. Alex was working late they could get some rest and maybe a pizza that would give him time to think.
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BACK AT THE HOTEL
Casey and Sarah had just handed off the scene to local agents posing as police. They gave them orders to take the bodies back to the CIA morgue for examination and the one man that was found unconscious was sent to a black site for interrogation and further extradition to Gitmo.
"I don't know why the General won't let us interrogate him? We're just wasting time and Chuck is out there."
"You mean out there with Jill and the last time I let you interrogate someone on your own we invade a Thai Embassy. And well as far as your techniques go, they weren't exactly sanctioned under the Geneva Convention."
"We got Chuck back, didn't we?"
"Yes and we will again. Look we found pictures of Jill on all three men and some sort of listening device. Let's go back to Castle and try to decrypt it that might give us a hint where they are and what they're up to."
"Casey tell me we did the right thing following Chuck. I mean spying on him."
"Those were our orders and besides if we hadn't been we wouldn't have been able to help him out with those killers."
"Not that we did a lot. He already had the situation in hand. He only kept us from being shot," Sarah said feeling angry and worried as she got in the van. "Look he activated his emergency beacon before. That's what he meant when he said boy we got there fast. He thought we were responding to his call for help."
"If that's the case why is he hiding from us?"
"Casey you look at life like a soldier. You have your orders and that's what you do. Everything is black and white – you're told and you do."
"I might have been that way before but I don't think I'm like that now. Well maybe some."
"Whatever, but we need to look from Chuck's perceptive if we're going to understand. Jill is, was a friend."
"I think we both know more." Sarah was getting a little upset with Casey's interruptions, innuendos and finger pointing but she kept on going.
"What I'm saying is he knows she's wanted but that doesn't matter she's in trouble. Evidently there are people who want to kill her. Chuck being Chuck has to help her. It's in his DNA and no matter what orders Beckman gives Chuck can't change. There truth, I don't want him to that's what makes him great."
"Like you said whatever, we're here at Castle let's get the decryption started and don't say if Chuck were here he'd have it done in no time."
"Your words not mine and besides I know you're worried about him to John." Casey responded with a grunt but both of them knew what she said was true.
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9000 BURBANK MORAN'S HOUSE
Chuck pulled up on the street outside Morgan's house and turning around he found Skye asleep lying across Jill's lap. The sight helped him a little with justifying his actions to himself. He knew that somewhere along the line there would be hell to pay and the longer they were on the run the greater the interest would be. However, he also understood that couldn't be helped.
"Okay, follow me in. Leave any electronic devices you might have here in the car. I've got a jamming device activated so it will block all out going signals along with Morgan satellite reception."
"Chuck, do you think we were followed?" asked Jill as if she suddenly understood how dire her situation was.
"I don't think we were tailed but I don't want to take any chances. We're going to stay here only for a few hours while I have this car ditched then I'll secure us other transportation. After that we can proceed to your parents. I think you need to come with us."
"I don't know if that's a good idea."
"Let me get you two inside and get rid of this car then we can talk. Come on Skye," said Chuck as he gently took the girl out of the backseat. "I want you to meet my friend Morgan. He's a good friend about as tall as you but between me and you I think you're smarter." The little girl laughed then threw a big huge around Chuck. It felt nice and warm. "What's that for?"
"Because you're nice to me not like those people back home." Chuck looked up and saw a tear running down Jill's cheek there was something she hadn't told him and he was afraid to ask. So much for no more lies, no more deception but there was no time for talk.
"Okay. Let's get you two inside." Soon they were in Morgan's living room standing around. Skye was sleepy dangling on Jill's leg.
"Morgan I need the secure phone I left with you. You know my father's."
"Hi," said Morgan to Jill. "You know you look like the woman Chuck used to date back in Stanford." Then he thought maybe that wasn't the coolest thing to say to someone so he turned to Chuck. "Hey I don't know if you noticed but she looks just like Jill. Wow, I mean she can't be Jill because you wouldn't see Jill, right. But Christ! She is Jill. Chuck, do I need to remind you what this woman did to you?"
"Morgan, she's standing right here."
"Chuck, she dumped you, broke your heart and slept with your best friend."
"Morgan, all that isn't true and I know all this is hard to explain but I really need that phone Little Buddy."
"Chuck, she was also a part of Fulcrum and they tried to kill you."
"Morgan, she also tried to help me rescue my father and more importantly there are assassins who are trying to kill her and her daughter. Now the phone, please and can you put Skye in your guest bedroom. She's tired and could use some rest."
"Okay, but you know she's still wanted."
"He knows," said Jill "and I don't know how to thank him."
"You can start with disappearing from my life when this is over." The words came out harsher than he meant but the feeling was the same and there was a long pause of uncomfortable silence. But Chuck forgot the kid was still there and heard. He knelt down to be at eye level with the child and as he did she moved behind Jill.
"Skye, I'm sorry you heard that and believe me I'm going to get you through this. Can we still be friends? I know what you can be my partner like Wookie's, Hans partner and when you grow up I'll let you fly the Millennium Falcon. Morgan, show our young pilot her ship."
"What?"
"Show her your model." Morgan made a face and Chuck made one back telling him to do it then he whispered in Skype's ear, "You want to know a secret." And the little girl nodded her head rapidly. "Morgan's secretly a Wookie."
"I heard that. You're just jealous because you're missing facial hair. People respect the beard."
"Morgan take care of Skye and the phone, please we don't have much time."
"The phone is on my desk next to my computer in front of my dvd stack. You know the games I burned from work. Oh, you might have to look under the pizza box and the keys could be a little oily."
"Morgan, you were supposed to safeguard it not turn it into a condiment for a Cesar salad. Jill, why don't you go with Morgan and Skye? You look like you could use a little sleep too."