Chapter 6: Smoke Screens

Tonight 8/19 is Episode 9, I can't wait! Worked on chapter 4-6 over the last few days because I had chunks of free time. Not sure when that will happen again, but I do have more outlines and bullet points for what is to come. Maybe will be inspired after tonight's episode. Writing it so there is a push/pull, trust/mistrust between Annie and Ryan. It will culminate in some drama before they settle down. That seems to be the end game for me now.

Annie can't be sure that she's not being followed by one of McQuaid's men. She goes a roundabout way to make sure she is not being followed. The last thing she needed was for McQuaid to know she was going straight to Auggie's apartment.

Auggie was waiting for her. They talk through Roger's claims that there was a source deep in the Russian embassy who knew more about Kravec and the Chicago attack. It is agreed that Auggie will dig into what the sweep team found at Bennett's apartment and look at calls made from his frequently used pay phones. With Annie's eyes and Auggie's tech know-how, they find more evidence that the dog walker had been following Roger. Roger wasn't being paranoid afterall he was still-deep inside, despite all that muddled his brain- a seasoned spy. Against Auggie's wishes, Annie said she would get closer to McQuaid.

It's only 8 am when Annie leaves Auggies and heads home. With the rest of her day free until dinner with McQuaid, Annie goes home for some rest. A wall of exhaustion hit her after she left Auggie's. She was so tired from her sleepless night on the flight home and last night with Ryan. Also, She hadn't had a good night's sleep since she returned from her "sabbatical" She wakes up around 1pm and goes for a run and works out at home. During the run she thinks about how she was starting to enjoy Ryan's company, she genuinely had a great time with him until she learned that he was hiding so much from her. Again, Annie thought. Again, she was getting involved with someone who wasn't what he seemed and for the wrong reasons.

After her work out, Annie feels better and has no negative side effects from her physical exertion. She works fast to tidy up around her already neat apartment. Her apartment was simple, she wasn't sure how long she'd stay there, she signed a month-to-month lease when she returned. Annie was going to see how the hearings into her suspension would turn out, but she was sure she needed to look into other career options at some point. She just needed to figure out this McQuaid and Roger connection and see if she could find out more about Roger's contact in the Russian Embassy. Annie also sends Eyal a message through the message board they set up.

Hi Old Friend. Grounded, but still ticking. Tying up loose ends, then looking for next place to hang up my hat. Maybe take you up on your offer to sail in a couple of weeks. XXXOOO Neshema.

Then Annie does the most mundane things she had not had done in a long time, laundry and grocery shopping. Her constant travel since returning from the beach meant there was next to nothing in her refrigerator or pantry and few clean clothes left. She usually ate at work or on the road. If she needed to eat, she picked up food and had the bad habit of eating cereal for dinner.

Annie was never the cook in the family, she could manage eggs, pasta, throwing together a simple salad and reheating frozen entrees. She stocked her small fridge with milk, beer, cheese, salami, greek yogurt, probiotic drinks, bagged salad, eggs, and bought some bread, granola, coffee and peanut butter and jelly. When Annie arrives home she finds a package at her door. Once inside, Annie puts her groceries on her kitchen table and then opens the package. It contains a book, Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevsky and a note reading:

Thanks for the vote of confidence. Need to disappear for a while. You and Mingus can take it from here.

Annie pours over the book and hides it in her safe when she hears knocking at her door. It's McQuaid and he's 5 minutes early for their dinner date.

Annie was already beautifully dressed in a black silk sleeveless V-neck dress. She always looked elegant and simply put together. She opens her door and says, "Sorry I kept you waiting. Just putting on my make-up."

"You don't need any." McQuaid peeks in, hoping to be invited inside Annie's apartment. "Nice place you have."

Annie smiles.

"I'm ready."

At dinner Ryan toasts Annie and says, "If we're to make this work, no secrets." Annie takes the direct approach.

"Make what work? We're just having one dinner and you above all know that's not possible."

McQuaid sees she still resists his charm, he looks at Annie intently, "Excuse me?"

"I'm not naïve, there are secrets among spies even spies in the same agency. Look at Joan and Arthur, they had secrets while they were both at the CIA and now they have even more being on opposite sides of the same coin. Sure they are still together, but it came at a huge cost."

"But, you're not a spy anymore," says McQuaid with a bit of a question in his voice.

"I'm not in the field if that's what you mean, but the field will always be in me. I can't make that promise. And, come on McQuaid, you can't either. You disappoint me, I thought you were more practical that that."

"Annie, I've learned the hard way that being honest is the basis for a lasting relationship and again to be clear, I want to. . . explore that with you."

Hmm. . .Annie wonders to herself about McQuaid's past and thought to herself that he can forget about exploring anything with her in the romantic realm. He dug a hole for himself and she was going to find out what he was up to as soon as they were done with this date.

"As long as we are pretending to be honest, why did you give me the money? I'm curious. 100K, just like that and you didn't bat an eye when I said you weren't getting it back. Why?"

McQuaid sits straight and leans in across the table, "You're acting like you're still on the mission, still running it down. What's going on Walker?"

"I'm not."

McQuaid thinks to himself the dinner wasn't turning out the way he imagined. Annie isn't as carefree as she was earlier, the air between them wasn't casual and relaxed as it was the night before. He had hoped to continue where they left off because he enjoyed getting to know her, hearing her laugh and smile. He had not looked forward to seeing anyone in a long time. All day long, he worked quickly and efficiently to make all his calls, looked through emails and read mission updates while at client and internal meetings, and reviewed his budgets for ongoing missions, etc. He worked all through lunch, barely eating so he could make it to Annie's without work on his mind. But he could see now that this wasn't the date he had hoped for. Annie was after something.

Could she have found out he was the one who caused her condition to be leaked? No, she'd be angrier than she was now. She'd decked him by now.

"All right, Walker, what's going on? I know you well enough by now to know you have something to ask me. What is it?"

Annie is surprised by McQuaid's directness. The gig is up. Annie figuring she should take her own advice about how sometimes the best course of action is the obvious one, looks straight into McQuaid's eyes and says, "the man who visited you this morning. Who was he?"

Ryan looks relieved and looks down. "Is that what all this is about? Is that why you left so abruptly instead of continuing where we left off? He smiles and shakes his head. Why didn't you ask me this morning?"

"I wasn't sure what was going on. I had to get out of your house."

McQuaid's brow furrows, he didn't mean to give her reason to be afraid. "You were scared?"

"Scared, no. I can take you. Concerned, yes."

McQuaid knows she has put on her game face and he does know she could very well take him in more ways than one.

He decides to come as clean as he can and thinks to himself, she's right. He's the one being the hypocrite. He's the one with secrets. Many secrets. God, what was he doing? He needed to be honest with her if he were to ever have a real chance of being with her. But he knew she could never find out the whole truth, they would be over before they even began if she knew everything. He made a choice back in Paris and there was no turning back.

"He is one of my operatives."

"Why was he at Roger Bennet's building?"

McQuaid looks surprised. Well, she is a spy afterall. He shouldn't be surprised that she noticed him. He relents. "He was following you. Or more accurately, the 100K I loaned you."

"Why? You could have blown the operation if there had been a real one."

Annie didn't want to let on that she and found something and that she has suspected him even more. She didn't know what Roger's book meant yet.

"But there was nothing to be blown right?"

"So then, did he see where the money went?"

"No. No, your turn Walker." Just like she switched her tone with him, he switched over to the attitude he employed when they were talking shop and going head-to-head in Venezuela.

"What did you come across?" asks McQuaid.

"Nothing. Nothing at all," says Annie.

McQuaid sighs, "Guess we're right back to where we started."

"And where's that?"

"With you unsure of whether to trust me or not."

"You've given me pause and that just goes back to the start of this "date", there's no reality where people like us don't have secrets."

"What can I do to prove to you that there's no more to the dog walker?"

Annie looks at McQuaid and says with certainty, "I want to talk to him."

"Sure, I can make that happen, but under one condition."

"What's that?"

"We start over. How about afterwards, you start trusting me, that you make an effort at not keeping secrets and I'll do the same." McQuaid is lying to her, but he doesn't consider it wrong because in his heart, he justifies it by believing he is protecting her. Annie looks pensive, then responds, "If you want this relationship to have no secrets, it won't happen. I can't, I'll end up breaking that promise and you will too. I'm just keeping it real Ryan. I've been in this game long enough to know."

Annie knew she had him.

McQuaid motions to the waiter, "Check please." He pays and says, "I see, we're going to butt heads about this, I'm going out on a limb here to prove to you that I want no secrets between us." McQuaid throws down enough cash to cover their drinks. They hadn't ordered any food yet. "Let's go then."

"Where we going?"

"I'm going to give you what you want Annie because that is what a man does when he wants to make a woman happy. We're going to see the dog walker. Just let me make a call."

McQuaid steps off to make a call to the dog walker, he wants the dog walker. As he does so, he thinks that Annie is spot on about the inability to have a relationship free of secrets and lies. Her honesty and directness was refreshing, it was what had gotten him the first time they met. And here he was the one needed to keep a huge secret from her. He just hoped that he could trust Dex did a well enough job covering his tracks.

They get in McQuaid's silver Aston Martin and drive off. Annie is not quite sure if she trusts that McQuaid is really bringing her to the dog walker. She is completely on guard and holds her clutch closer to her. Her gun, ironically the gun McQuaid gave her is in the purse. She is at his mercy. At least Auggie knew she was with McQuaid. On his part, McQuaid notices Annie reach into her purse. He is sure it contains more than her phone and make-up. He's actually not offended, but impressed that she is so good at keeping herself safe. He knows she can handle herself in any situation and it makes him even more attracted to her.

They drive to the headquarters of McQuaid Security. The dog walker is there already. He shakes McQuaid's hand and while McQuaid apologizes for taking him away on his night off, the dog walker says, "No problem, Boss. How can I be of assistance."

"Let me formally introduce you to Annie Walker. She has a few questions for you."

"Nice to meet you. We met in the hallway of Roger Bennett's. You covered for him very well."

"Uh, thank you. So what were you doing there?"

"I was ordered to follow you right after you left here with the 100,000. I was tasked with following the money."

"But Roger thought he had seen you before the money came into play."

"The first time I saw Roger was when I followed you to his apartment. When you came out, I was trying to get closer to the apartment to hear what you were saying."

"Where did Roger go after I left?"

"He went to the deli downstairs to make a call, then he went back upstairs."

"About an hour later he emerged with the suitcase and he walked southbound towards the bus stop. Since he had noticed me, I could not follow on the bus, so I followed the bus in my car."

"He stayed on for a few stops and got off at Union Station. The busiest Metro station in all of DC. I couldn't park my car and get out in time to see which line he went on. I searched Union Station, but never spotted him again." The dog walker looks at McQuaid and says, "Sorry again, Boss."

Annie is thinking. "What did the suitcase look like? It was silver, the same one you left McQuaid Security with."

"What were you doing at McQuaid's home this morning?"

"Mr. McQuaid asked me to go back to Rogers to look through his apartment for any clues about where he could have gone or who he was meeting with. He wanted me to look for leads on where the 100K was delivered."

"And what did you find?"

"Nothing, another group had already gone through and removed everything by the time I got there. I waited outside until they were done and then went in to take a look myself."

"Thank you, thank you for your time."

"Look, I'm sorry about you brother Roger."

"He wasn't my real brother, but thank you anyway."

The dog walker goes to McQuaid, they say a few words before he leaves.

McQuaid walks over to a pensive Annie. "Satisfied?"

Annie isn't satisfied, there had to be more. Roger died with a different suitcase. Where did he put the money or who had he given the money to? He had to have gotten the information, he sent her a Crime and Punishment, it had to be a key to some cipher. But she chose to keep it to herself. She wanted McQuaid to think he had the upper hand and she was done questioning his actions. She would later ask for Auggie's help to look at the security cameras at Union Station and near the bus route on the way to Union Station.

Annie, "I'm sorry your betting on me didn't pay off."

McQuaid, "No, it's done. I told you before I've spent far more on far less. I chalked it up to a gamble, a bet I lost. I'm only sorry that it led to your suspension."

Annie was reminded that she didn't have a job to go to and was pending review, but she wasn't going to go down without a fight. She was going to call Auggie as soon as she freed herself from McQuaid, but she suddenly felt exhausted. Little sleep the night before was catching up with her. On McQuaid's part, he was hoping the night wasn't over yet.

They walk to McQuaid's car. He says, "Let's go resume our dinner date". Annie looks over at him and says, "Ryan, I'm exhausted, aren't you?"

"Ok, then we'll go to bed, he says with a mischievous smile."

Annie says nothing. She pretends to ignore the remark.

During the drive back to Annie's there is awkward silence.

McQuaid asks her what she's thinking.

She says, "Just thinking about Roger. How in a split second his life just ended, like it was nothing. I wonder who is mourning him, what his family must be going through. He was lucid and coherent at times, the agency dropped him the moment he showed signs of being compromised. . . Wish you could have met him." It made her think of what her family went through when she died at Calder's hands and what the agency was doing to her.

McQuaid shakes his head and says, "If I had a guy like Roger, I'd find a way to help him, my employees don't get sidelined or dropped if they don't fit the conventions. I don't abandon them the first sign of trouble. In fact, I like to hire people who are unconventional and you fit that bill. I know I've said it before, but we make a good team."

Annie, "Honestly McQuaid, you'd trust me out in the field despite knowing more details about my condition than I think the CIA knows?"

"I am up for no secrets between us. I told you back in Maracaibo that spies are underappreciated. You are a prime example. The CIA just wants to cover their asses. If you worked for me, I would worry less about covering my company's ass and more about covering yours, no pun intended. I'd make sure you have the resources to do your job safely because I know you are a talented and capable operative."

Annie looks over at him in the driver's seat. He sure knew what to say to her, the very words she wished the agency would say after all she had done to take down Lena Smith and Henry Wilcox. But she wasn't having any of it, "Boy, you're laying it on thick."

"I'm not trying to flatter you Walker. I'm just telling it like I see it. I've seen first hand how you handle yourself in the field. You have an uncanny ability to think fast and improvise. I have been impressed time and time again with what you do and how you risk everything to get the job done. We're the same in many ways, you and me, but you're a better covert operative than this Navy man will ever be. When I wanted to shoot my way out of the safe house in Caracas, you came up with that brilliant druggie ruse and it worked. You proved me wrong and I'm man enough to admit it. I haven't had a chance to tell you, but just when I think you can't amaze me more, you do it again. You have a dedication that I don't come across everyday and I've interviewed and worked with dozens of men and women in our line of work. I am sure the agency never told you this, but you are one-of-a-kind Annie Walker and if you worked for me, I'd make sure you knew it and I'd pay you accordingly."

After McQuaid returned from Azerbaijan and took care of his many tasks as CEO of McQuaid Security, he put his carefully laid out plan in motion. Ryan is often conflicted about his decision to put Annie under surveillance and tank her career with the CIA. He ordered Dex to leak to a friend at the NTCT that operative Annie Walker might have a medical condition. He wanted the agency to find out about Annie's myocarditis so that she would be sidelined. He had to be careful to do it in a way that would not lead back to him. He knew she would never forgive him if she found out he was sabotaging her career at Langley. He figured she was so intent on being in the field, he would find a way for her to do it safely. He knew her condition was perhaps worsening. She seemed to have an episode every time she exerted herself or got into a fight.

McQuaid banked on the fact that he had planted the idea of her working for him enough times that he was certain she would show up at his company to ask for a job sooner or later. He did make it clear to her that her medical issues were her business only. He would make sure she remained a field operative, but with the needed support in case she had an episode. He had fallen for her and he fell for the woman who was not only beautiful, direct, mysterious, strong and full of courage, but also incredibly talented as a covert operative. He wanted to make sure she stayed out of danger and the only way was to have her work for him. And he was satisfied with how his plan was working out. She didn't suspect that he was behind her being benched and then she got suspended all on her own.

At that moment while listening to McQuaid wax on about her talents, she wished she could ignore her gut. If she had not seen the dog walker at McQuaid's, if she didn't mistrust him, she'd lean in and kiss him right there. And it wouldn't be because he was puffing her up, it would be because someone understood her and saw who she really was. If McQuaid was genuine, she could see herself working for him and it would be her chance to remain in the field. Then on second thought, the chance to work at McQuaid Security could be her in. McQuaid really wanted her to work for him and she was out of a job and in need of resources to further explore Roger Bennet's intel and McQuaid seemed somehow involved with all of it.

"Wow, I've left you speechless," chuckles McQuaid.

"I'm just thinking. If I worked for you, we're back to no mixing business and pleasure. We wouldn't be on this date and if you kept flirting with me, you'd be in danger of sexual harassment."

"Walker, I've come to enjoy harassing you if that's how you want to view it. So, really don't care to rethink mixing business and pleasure?"

Annie replies, "Done it one too many times and because I had to for the job. It didn't get me anywhere, I have to learn from the past or else, I'm a big fool."

McQuaid, "I'm used to getting what I want, so I have to say, you can remember the past, mourn it, but also not repeat it. You're only a fool if keep the past from letting you move on."

Annie thinks about her relationships with Ben Mercer, Simon Fischer, and lastly Auggie Anderson. Each time she was hurt and left alone with nothing but painful memories. She and Auggie seemed to move past it. She wasn't angry anymore by the realization that he slept with Helen while she went dark. She understood, she left him first, but it didn't mean she wasn't hurt by it. Was she ever going to find someone and be in a normal relationship? How could she when she probably could never let that phantom person see the real Annie Walker?

Once they reach Annie's door, McQuaid says, "So, this is where our night ends. Is this really good-bye because I don't want it to be and I don't think you do either."

Annie says, "Maybe if we met under different circumstances. I have a lot to deal with now. And to be honest, it's been nearly a year since I've been with anyone . . ." before trailing off.

"Well, you're in good company, it's been a long time for me too. We can trudge through the mud together," says McQuaid. "Look you don't have to think about my offers to work for me. You've been through a lot and you do need a vacation. McQuaid Security is going to be around a long time and the job offer will stand."

When Annie does not say anything, he continues, "I've come clean about following you, will you give this—what's between us a chance?"

Annie knows she needs to get to Auggie to tell him about the new intel she found out about the dog walker and the book, but she also needs to keep McQuaid close. She decides to let him in for a bite and a drink.

"Ok, we still need to eat. I'm not much of a cook and I only have a half sized fridge here, but we'll find something to eat. Just give me a few minutes to change into something more comfortable. You can look around in the fridge if you'd like."

Annie grabs her lounge pants and tank, goes to her bathroom to call Auggie. She fills him in on what she knows and says she will call when McQuaid leaves. Auggie is worried that she is getting into dangerous territory.

While Annie is in the bathroom, McQuiad looks up at the cameras that he had Dex install for him. He has a guilty look on his face. He starts for the small fridge.

Annie comes out of her bathroom, Ryan looks up and thinks she's beautiful no matter what she's wearing. "This is pathetic Walker!" Your fridge is worse than that of a bachelor. I mean I have more food, if you can call it that, at my place than this."

"Look if you don't like it you can go find yourself another place to grub."

Annie takes out her bread and a jar of peanut butter and jelly. "If you're hungry, you can stay. If you don't like what's on the menu, you're free to go."

Of course McQuaid wants to stay. He says, he hasn't had peanut butter and jelly since his days in the Navy. They spend a couple of hours eating, drinking and talking before Annie says she needs to turn in. McQuaid knows not to push though he really wants to spend the night with Annie. He loves the smell of peanut butter and beer on her lips as he leans in and gives her a long kiss goodnight.