Thank you everyone for your wonderful comments. I am so happy you are all enjoying my story and I hope you continue to enjoy it.

Chapter 12

Chuck sat motionless, propped up against a dumpster in the alleyway next to the hospital, hid away from the public eye. Darkness was setting in and it had been some time now that Dan had left him to go find medical supplies. Chuck was beginning to wonder if maybe Dan had been captured by the Ring and he had debated with himself several times whether he should go in after him or not. Chuck had even tried on more than one occasion to do just that, but with his injuries he was having a difficult time working up the energy he needed. Chuck drifted in and out of consciousness as he continued to wait for Agent McKinley to return.

"Chuck?" McKinley gave him a shake as he knelt down beside him.

"Chuck?" he gave him another jolt. This time causing Chuck to stir.

"Hmm." Chuck opened his eyes, he strained them as they adjusted to the night sky.

"You doing okay?" McKinley asked.

"Yeah….I… thought..maybe you got caught." Chuck replied.

"No, it just took longer than I expected….Here…drink this." Dan unscrewed the top off of a bottle of water and handed it to Chuck. "I was able to get us some bottles of water and some cracker packets. Sorry it's not more, it's all I could get."

Chuck took the bottle from him. As weak as he was, it was a struggle for him to bring the bottle to his lips. Despite his weakened state he was able to take a small swig from the bottle before his arm dropped back down to his side. Dan took the bottle from him before all of it's contents spilled out onto the concrete.

"I need to change your dressings Chuck." Dan went to work removing the old dressings that were completely drenched in blood now. Dan strained to see what he was doing. Fortunately there was enough light coming from the street lights to allow him to see enough to do what he needed to do.

"I'm…losing a…lot of…blood Dan." Chuck noticed the blood soaked bandages that Dan had removed.

"It's not that bad Chuck." Dan tried to sound convincing.

"Dan…if I…don't make it…"

"Chuck you're going to make it." McKinley didn't let him finish.

"Dan!…Please…you have to…find Sarah..please…tell her…I..love her…promise me?"

"Chuck, you're going to be fine."

"Promise..me?" Chuck asked once again.

"I promise, I'll tell her Chuck."

Chuck nodded. "Good."

Chuck groaned as Dan applied heavy pressure to his wound in an attempt to control the bleeding. After finally slowing the bleeding once again, Dan packed the wound and wrapped it securely.

"Chuck you need to put this on. Take what's left of your shirt off." Dan pulled out a heavy hooded sweatshirt.

"Where did you.. get that?" Chuck asked. Dan couldn't help but notice that Chuck's breathing seemed to be a little more labored now.

"I stole it from the locker room." Chuck just realized that Dan too was in different clothes. Clean clothes that weren't torn and stained with blood and dirt.

"And I got you these." Dan pulled out a small piece of card board, containing 4 pills attached to it.

Chuck gave him a questioning look. "What… are those?" he finally asked.

"Vicadin. It's all I could find in a hurry." Dan popped two of the pills out of their bubble and placed them in Chuck's hand. "Here. Take them."

Chuck sighed before finally popping the two pills in his mouth. Dan handed him his bottle of water and he took another swig.

"Now what?" He asked.

"Now, I go find us a car so we can get out here. I'm going to scope out the parking lot over here. You just sit tight. Drink your water, I'll be back in a few."

"Sure….I'll just..sit tight." Chuck replied as McKinley made his way out of sight.

The dreadful, piercing, buzzing noise, radiating from her alarm clock sent Sarah into a rage. She emerged from underneath her covers, grabbed the noisy device from her night stand and threw it across the room. The clock shattered to pieces when it hit the wall.

Sarah smirked when she saw the pieces scatter to the floor, followed by silence. She laid back down and pulled the covers up over her head.

Sarah couldn't even remember coming home last night. The last thing she remembered was sitting on the beach watching the sun set. Ellie had called her twice but Sarah had ignored the calls. She just couldn't talk to her right now. She wouldn't even know what to say to her. The past 24 hours had been unbearable for Sarah. She had gone from overwhelming joy and happiness over the prospect of Chuck returning home, to pure devastation and pain over the loss she was now experiencing. A pain no one should ever have to suffer. And just when she thought she couldn't possibly shed another tear over her loss, she found them making their way down her face once again.

Casey had arrived at Castle a little earlier this morning than usual. He wasn't quite sure what to expect today. He thought he might find Sarah there when he arrived and was actually surprised to find that she hadn't arrived yet.

Casey sifted through the reports from yesterday, looking for anything they may have missed. He worked diligently for the next two hours and came up with nothing. Casey glanced at his watch, it was almost 11:00am and Sarah had still not arrived. Casey pulled out his cell phone and dialed her number. Casey grunted when it went right to voice mail.

"Colonel Casey any new developments on your end this morning?" General Beckman appeared on the large monitor.

"Nothing new General. I've been going over the reports from yesterday, thinking we missed something, but I can't find anything."

"Has Lieutenant Walker had any luck?" the General asked.

"Umm…Walker…No, not that I'm aware of."

"Speaking of Walker, where is she?" Beckman questioned.

"Walker, she….uh, she's a bit under the weather…this morning." Casey muttered, hoping the General would just accept his excuse and leave it at that.

"Under the weather? That's no excuse Colonel. We just lost the most important piece of intelligence in the world, There is much work to be done. Protocol that needs to be followed. Lieutenant Walker is heading up this project, so unless she is on her death bed I expect her to be here."

"General, with all due respect, yes we just lost the world's most important piece of intelligence in the world, but it's a little more than that for her."

Beckman sighed. "Yes well, life goes on Colonel. Walker has a job to do and I expect her to do it. I'll let this whole thing go this morning given the circumstances, but I expect her back in action by this afternoon. Find her Casey." Beckman ordered before signing off and disconnecting the call.

Casey grunted. "Sometimes this job really sucks." He grabbed his jacket and headed out of castle in search of Sarah.

" I can't believe… you… stole a car… that… only had a quarter… tank of gas in it!" Chuck exclaimed as Dan brought the vehicle to a stop in a supermarket parking lot.

"How was I supposed to know there was only a quarter tank gas in it." Dan replied.

"So now what? …We… steal another car?" Chuck coughed and Dan couldn't help but notice he seemed to be wheezing as well.

"Pretty much. But first we need to wipe this one down. Get rid of any trace of our being here. I'm talking prints, clothes, DNA of any kind. Anything that the police could trace back to us."

Dan went to work cleaning the car. He moved quickly but efficiently. Once he was done, he and Chuck grabbed all of their belongings from the car and exited it, being sure to wipe down the door handles in the process.

"This way Chuck." Dan motioned for him to follow him. Chuck staggered behind him. He seemed to be moving a little quicker and appeared to be in a lot less pain since he took the pain killers Dan had secured for him at the hospital. Unfortunately by this time he had taken them all and until Chuck received some medical attention, there was no way for them to get any more.

The two men made their way to the back of the parking lot, towards a dark blue Camaro. Dan approached the driver's side door. He pulled a small wire like tool from his pocket and went to work opening the door. Once inside he opened the passenger side door and Chuck hopped in alongside of him. It didn't take Dan long to hot wire the car and before they knew it the two were back on the road.

Standing before her door, Casey brought his hand up, he hesitated briefly before knocking on her door.

There was no answer.

"Walker?" he called out before knocking once again.

Still there was no answer.

Casey reached for the doorknob and tried to open the door. The handle turned and the door opened slowly. It wasn't like Sarah to leave her door unlocked. No agent in their right mind would ever leave themselves that vulnerable to the outside world, but then again, Sarah wasn't exactly in her right mind right now.

Casey peeked inside. The shattered pieces from Sarah's alarm clock on the floor immediately caught his eye, sending him into spy mode. Casey quickly drew his gun and slowly proceeded through the doorway. He moved in closer to get a better look at the remnants of the clock on the floor. Nothing else appeared to be out of place that would indicate any kind of attack.

"Sarah?" he called out to her, looking for any signs of his partner. He turned his attention to the mound of blankets on her bed and made his way over to them.

"Sarah?" he called out again as he approached them. Reaching out with his free hand, he grabbed hold of the blanket and pulled at it, revealing a sleeping Sarah.

"Sarah!" he called out again, waking her from her slumber.

"Casey?…What are you doing here?" She grumbled as she tugged at the covers and pulled them back over her again.

"Walker, it's almost noon. Beckman is expecting an update from you. She wants it this afternoon. She wasn't very happy with your absence this morning."

Sarah threw down her covers and shot Casey a disgusted look. "An update? What the hell is there to update her on? Beckman can kiss my ass!"

"Yeah." Casey sighed and sat himself down on the edge of Sarah's bed.

Sarah laid back down and stared up at the ceiling.

"Look Sarah,… yesterday…was horrible for everyone, more so for you… I get that…." Sarah refused to break her connection with ceiling. Her eyes remained fixated on one spot in particular directly above her head.

"Chuck would hate to see you like this…He was a good guy, our partner…I'm going to do whatever it takes to find Haz… Make him pay…I owe Chuck at least that… but I need your help Sarah. You're my partner, all I have left…I need your help…for Chuck.

Another tear made it's way down Sarah's cheek. After a long silence, she finally spoke.

"He never wanted this life. He didn't deserve this."

"I know." Casey replied. "Let's make this right for him Sarah."

"Nothing we do can make this right Casey."

"Yeah…but we have to try Sarah…Don't we owe him that much?"

Sarah wiped at her eyes and Casey stared down at the floor. They remained in silence for a few more minutes.

"I need to take a shower." Sarah finally spoke up. "I'll meet you at castle."

Casey just nodded. He stood from the bed. "I'll see you at castle." he said making his way to the door. Sarah watched him leave.

Forcing herself to get up, Sarah made her way to the bathroom. She turned on the water in the shower and shed herself of her clothes. Not even caring what the temperature of the water was Sarah stepped into the shower, allowing the water to rain over her. Sarah would get ready, go to work, go through all the motions, shut her feelings off. That's what an agent did. She would mask her emotions, it was a reality she had become accustomed to whether she wanted to or not. Sure she could wash away the tears, but she would never be able to wash away the pain.

Haz watched his surveillance video. He was able to plant a small camera and another bug at the Orange Orange, the day before when he had disguised himself as an elderly patron of the yogurt shop.

Haz had watched Colonel Casey enter the yogurt shop and proceed into the freezer to enter castle. Half an hour or so later he witnessed a very somber looking Lieutenant Walker do the same.

Grabbing his phone, Haz dialed a familiar number.

"Yeah?" the voice on the other end answered.

"There's a new plan." Haz informed his operative on the phone. "Like I said before if I can't have my intersect, someone is going to pay and I know just who it will be." Haz chuckled into the phone. "Meet me at headquarters in an hour to go over the plan."

"Yes sir." the man on the phone replied before hanging up.

"Lieutenant Walker, I assume you are feeling better. "General Beckman stated as she greeted her agents once again.

"Oh yes General, I feel much better now." Sarah replied overly sarcastic which did not go unnoticed by the General who in turn gave her a disapproving look.

Glancing at his partner, Casey chimed in before a fight broke put between the two.

"General, anything new to report?" he asked.

Beckman turned her attention to Casey. "As a matter of fact Colonel there is."

Both Sarah and Casey gave the General their full attention. "We have reason to believe that Haz is on the move. We believe he has set up a new base somewhere in L.A. We're not sure if he was waiting for the intersect to return or if he was only setting up a temporary base while he put his plan in motion to take the intersect out."

"Any idea where this base is located General?" Casey questioned.

"No, but that is what I want you to find out. This is Agent Simon Burke." A picture of a young man in his late 20's appeared on the screen before them. He had light brown hair, big brown eyes, a distinguished smile and actually appeared to be quite handsome. "He's ex-CIA, spent a couple years with Fulcrum and is now a known Ring operative. There's a governor's luncheon taking place tomorrow at the Bellagio Hotel. Burke will be there. I want you two to attend. Walker get close to Burke by any means necessary. He has a fascination for pretty blondes, so use that to your advantage. Burke may very well be the key to finding Haz."

"General, these luncheons don't usually accept walk-ins" Casey responded.

"The luncheon is by invitation only. Yours are en route to you as we speak, along with the information for your covers. Good luck agents." Beckman ended the conversation abruptly and disconnected the call.

"Always so pleasant isn't she?" Casey stated before heading back over to his computer.

Sarah didn't say a word she just went back to the file she had been reading before their debriefing with the general.

The two men had waited nearly an hour for nightfall. Chuck was happy to see the familiar scenery as the two hid out of sight outside of Chuck's apartment.

"Are you sure about this Chuck?" Dan asked the weak man by his side.

"We need it…it's the..only way…in." Chuck replied.

"Where is it again?"

"Bottom drawer…of my..dresser….left ..side…tucked under…some..shirts in the back." Chuck coughed, this time bringing up a small amount of blood.

Dan looked more concerned than ever. "Alright, I'm going now, we can't wait any longer Chuck." Dan pulled the hood from his sweatshirt up over his head and exited the car.

"Dan!" Chuck called out to him.

"Yeah?"

"Go in…through…the window."

Dan nodded and headed towards Chuck's apartment. Careful to stay out of view of the security cameras Chuck had pointed out to him.

Chuck waited patiently for Dan to return to the car. The pain was becoming excruciating for him. Glancing down at his wound, he noticed the blood starting to seep through once again. Chuck closed his eyes and said a silent prayer, not for himself, but for Sarah. He prayed that he would get to her in time. There was so much he wanted to say to her. And if God forbid he didn't survive all this. He at least wanted to say goodbye for her sake. She had been so shut off from love, from feeling anything when she had lost her one time partner and former lover Bryce Larkin. The last thing Chuck wanted was to see her revert back to that Sarah. The Sarah that didn't feel. Robot Sarah.

Chuck was shaken from his thoughts when the driver's side door flung open. Dan jumped inside behind the wheel.

"Did you..get it?" Chuck asked waiting in anticipation.

Dan reached under his shirt and pulled out the wrist computer that Chuck's father had given him. "What do you do with this thing anyway?" he asked handing it to Chuck.

"You'll see." Chuck strapped it on his wrist. "Now we..can..get into…castle."

McKinley started the car and put it in drive.

"Take out ….of here…then a…right onto the …highway….it's not far."

Chuck went to work on the computer as Dan drove.

"Beckman's courier just dropped off our package." Casey said tossing the box down on the table where Sarah sat. "Invitation is in there, along with our new ID's. We are Clara and James Sinclair II, Son and daughter in-law of James and Elaine Sinclair; a couple of rich socialites, big beneficiaries of the Governor. They will not be in attendance tomorrow due to a prior engagement and have opted to send their son and his new bride in their place. Getting in will be a piece of cake.

"Great." Sarah replied without giving it much thought and went back to work.

"Have you eaten anything today? I was thinking about ordering a pizza."

"I'm not hungry." She replied not even looking up this time.

"Walker, are you going to be able to complete this mission tomorrow?"

"Why wouldn't I?" She glanced up at him.

"You just don't seem to have your head in the game. Like you're not focused on the mission."

"Not focused! Casey I am nothing but focused on this mission. I have been studying these reports for hours now. How can you say I'm not focused?"

Before Casey could respond. The lights went out. The back-up generator quickly switched on, supplying them with enough light to maneuver.

"What the..?

"Security's down." Casey stated as he played with the computer. "All our surveillance is out."

"You think someone's trying to infiltrate Castle?" Sarah asked.

"Well, this is state of the art equipment we're working with, it doesn't just shut itself down. Come on." Casey pulled his gun as he made his way to the door. Sarah did the same. The door controls were jammed and Casey had to work hard to try to open it manually. "Cover me Walker." He said giving the door one final tug. Sarah stood ready gun cocked ready to fire if necessary.

As the door flung open two hooded figures stood in their path.

"Freeze!" Sarah yelled out as she pointed her gun directly at them. One of the men took a step forward into the light.

"Sarah." he managed to get out as he took another step forward before collapsing into her unexpecting arms.

"Chuck!" She cried out in disbelief as she struggled to hold his now unconscious body up. Dan rushed to her side and grabbed hold of Chuck and propped him back up throwing Chuck's arm over his shoulder and wrapping his own arm securely around his waist to support him.

"Chuck? You're alive." Sarah cried. Casey looked on in disbelief.

Hope you enjoyed! I look forward to your feedback. Thanks for reading..

Spoilers for Chapter 13: An unexpected surprise for Colonel Casey and of course a Charah reunion.