Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Chuck
Chapter 8 – The Door Crumbles
They had expected heavier resistance than the raid on the first cargo ship, they never expected a small army waiting for them. They had immediately lost two of the Coast Guard officers as they were walking up the ramp and then all hell broke loose as hostiles popped up from railings and windows.
The radio was crackling with gunfire volleys exchanged between groups, voices from the teams were calling in hostile contact from all directions. The NSA and CIA snipers were having a field day, calling in downed tangos one after another as they were picking free moving and partially hidden targets.
The two patrolling helicopters were letting loose with their on-board gunner providing the ground team cover for movement as well as picking off some of the enemy combatants.
Chuck felt useless, all the video feeds were too far from any actual hostile for him to see anything and trigger any flashes. He looked over at Agents Woods and Kramer. They were in their element, calling out commands and locations, telling the team members to switch targets to either supply cover or to focus fire on a specific target. And though Chuck felt useless, he watched them, in awe.
This was what staying in the car meant for these two. Providing strategic and tactical information as well as decisions to ensure the safety and success of their team. This was what he needed to strive for. Chuck made a mental note and added it to his list, never be just a body in the car.
The team took a full twenty minutes just to fight their way to board the ship and once they boarded Chuck's duty picked up. The data that flowed in front of him was a hurricane of information as he flashed on bodies that littered the deck and hallways.
Calling out demolition experts and their signature styles and naming fallen enemies and possible partners were Chuck's primary tasks. His eyes soon felt raw, the headache he developed thirty minutes after the ground teams had boarded was slamming at the back of his skull. He assumed he was lucky enough this time that he hadn't started to get a nose bleed, yet.
The final all clear was given an hour and fifteen minutes after initial boarding.
"Bring a perimeter up, Rifles keep eyes open for incoming. Let's get the schematics and locate the package." Agent Kramer's tired voice sounded into his mic, "Great job people."
Chuck cradled his head in his hands, everything from his neck up hurt something fierce.
"Why don't you grab the seat at the front Carmichael, take a nap." Agent Woods sympathetically said.
"Thanks. Wake me for the ID yeah?" Chuck stated as he unbuckled himself from his seat and went to the front passenger seat and reclining it.
It hadn't been more than an hour when Chuck felt a tap on his shoulder.
"We're at the package's container, ready for ID." Agent Kramer said as he went back to his seat.
Chuck looked at his watch, "That was quick."
The other agent nodded, "The container was near the top this time, lucky us."
Chuck watched as Sarah and another agent threw open the container doors and about a dozen flash lights shown into the recess of the container, illuminating the second pulse generator.
"Can you ID?" Sarah asked over the line.
"Package confirmed." Chuck said as he walked back to the front seat and fell back asleep.
At the shipping container, Sarah relaxed, she was soaked through in sweat. She looked over at Casey as the man's eyes glowed with excitement. She looked around the rest of the team that was set in place, a few of them strategically placed for perimeter security. She spotted two of the assault members that had bandages on their arms or legs. They had taken bullets during the battle and now that it was secure with the package identified she could hear agent Woods calling in an ambulance.
"4-3, we need to get a clean up team here." Sarah triggered her mic and spoke.
"Affirmative 4-3, they are en route." Agent Kramer responded.
Sarah started to walk towards Casey to begin orchestrating the removal and secure passage of the package on the 18 wheeler waiting in stand-by. The first thing she registered was a large cracking sound as one of the agents in her peripheral vision jolted back and fell onto the ground.
"Sniper! Sniper! Sniper!" Echoed through her ear piece as she dove behind the container for cover.
"2-2 is down! 2-2 is down!" Someone's voice echoed in her ear.
"Rifles do you have eyes?" Agent Woods demanded through the communications line.
Three more shots were heard echoing around the area.
"Sniper is behind B3, 10th floor from top, 4th window from West side of building."
From her position Sarah couldn't see the sniper and only got the eastern edge of the building. She watched as the two helicopters roared above her to get into position. She was about to move forward from her position when another three shots sounded out.
"3-1, I'm hit." An anguished voice sounded out in her ear.
"Sniper! Sniper! Sniper! We have a second sniper!"
A cacophony of single shots were heard from the snipers as well as the assault teams and the NSA and CIA snipers that fired back returning shots.
"Rifle 7, sniper 1 down."
Sarah stayed low and moved forward, sweat poured down her face as she scanned the buildings looking for the second sniper. Her ear pierce was belting out shouts from her team as they were looking for the second sniper. She heard one of the agents breaking up over the communications line as she rounded the edge of a wall and spotted a muzzle flash from a window in the building behind B3.
"4-3, Sniper 2 is in building behind B3, 4 floors from top, 10 windows from West side." Sarah called through her mic as she got behind a set of metal containers.
Getting down on one knee, she brought her MP5 up and sighted down the barrel to where she saw the flash. Sarah let loose 3 quick bursts but her shots were low and wide, the grouping spread out. The distance was too far for an MP5 to provide accurate shots. Her peripheral vision noticed scattering of her team members adjusting their position to gain better access to the window.
Sarah saw the area around the window literally disintegrate as a hail storm of bullets from various sources rained in, her index finger pulling down on the trigger repeatedly as she intended to empty the clip.
"Rifle 6, sniper 2 down." Rang out through the communications line.
The smattering of gunfire stopped immediately as they waited for the all clear signal.
Sarah listened to the static that filled the line, the agent that seemed to be breaking up through the line still yelling brokenly. She glanced up and spotted Casey, her hand pointing to her ear. Casey just shook his head and shrugged his shoulders.
Then in a moment her face drained of color as her world turned upside down.
"...arhmi..el ..s...own... "
"rep.at...car..chael... is...dow..."
Her legs were carrying her with another boost of adrenaline, her body's fatigue forgotten. Sarah's field of vision became clearer and focused as it narrowed down the path that would take her to where mobile command was hidden.
If she had not been so focused she would have noticed Casey hurdling a group of steel barrels as he tore down the alley way to get to the same location. Her breath came out in short angry bursts of air, reminiscent of a race horse coming down the last stretch.
The whispered words of, "This can't be happening", echoing in her mind. Rounding the last corner her face spoke it all. Like she had just been told that someone she cared about had died, her eyes opened wide as she whispered, "no.."
As Sarah got closer she saw a grouping of three bullets neatly placed in the left side of the front windshield, the cracks in the glass spidering out. The passenger door was open as the profile of one of the agents could be seen halfway through. The agent's upper torso was moving up and down.
Sarah started to hear agent Kramer's voice as she came to a halt at the van's open side door, "No pulse still."
Agent Woods saw her as he was giving Chuck CPR, "Medi-vac, ETA 5 minutes."
"Got a pulse!" Kramer exclaimed, as Chuck gave a little gasp of breath, a few droplets of blood spluttered out.
"At a boy Carmichael." Woods sat back. Both agents were covered in blood, Chuck's whole shirt was stained a deep red, "Just hang on buddy."
"What... what happened?" Sarah asked breathlessly, Casey just arriving by her side, his eyes wide once he saw Chuck. Agent Kramer was still holding onto the makeshift bandages as he was applying pressure to the bullet wounds, trying to keep too much blood from flowing out.
"He was napping in the front seat when the snipers started firing. He woke up and was making his way back to the van when he was hit three times."
Sarah had worked her way into the van, kneeling with his head between her legs.
"Chuck?" Sarah's hoarse whisper sounded in the van, tears coursing down her cheeks, her hand smoothing his hair gently.
Chuck's eyes were drowsy, shifting around and not focusing on anything. A trickle of blood ran down the edge of his mouth as he coughed up another bubble of blood.
The rest of the ground team arrived on site, not sure if there had been another group of hostiles that had taken down their hidden mobile command center. Agent Woods intercepted them and ordered 5 of them to form a perimeter around the vehicle while the rest went back to secure the pulse power generator to the 18 wheeler and get it ready for transport.
Casey was on the phone to General Beckman, "General, we've got a situation."
..
"No, we've secured the package, but Carmichael is critically wounded. Three shots to the torso."
...
"Snipers ma'am, towards the end of the mission."
...
"No ma'am, he followed orders and stayed in the car. Some how mobile command was compromised."
...
"Medi-vac is in-coming."
...
"Yes General."
Casey slammed the phone shut, his eyes fixed on Chuck. Blinking his eyes, Casey narrowed them immediately as he stepped back surveying the area.
"Chuck..." Sarah was bent over, her face about two feet away from his. Her gear hindering her from closing the distance any. "You gotta stay with me OK?"
Chuck's eyes somehow focused on her even through the haze of pain, "Sa...rh?" came the weak whisper.
Sarah gave him a little laugh and bright smile, "Yeh, I'm here Chuck."
"S'..kay." Chuck whispered, coughing more droplets of blood. "You...can...go."
"Chuck?" Sarah asked perplexed? "I'm not leaving you Chuck, I'm nev..."
"to...Bry..ce." he finished.
Sarah's face crumbled a little, fresh tears falling, "No Chuck. I'm staying here with you. I..."
She was interrupted as Agent Kramer's face popped into the van, "Chopper just landed, we need to move him."
Sarah nodded her head before looking back down at Chuck, "You're gonna be OK. Everything's going to work out."
She got out of the van as she watched the EMT's stabilize him before putting him on the gurney. Following closely behind them, jumped into the chopper the moment Chuck was loaded up, not even throwing another glance behind her.
An hour later Casey walked into the waiting room, and found Sarah sitting hunched over in a chair, her hands shaking violently as her right leg was bouncing nervously. She was still fully geared.
"Any word?" Casey asked as he sat down next to her. He had removed most of his gear, now only in his TDU's and armed with just his sidearm and the ammo clips for it.
"No," Sarah's hoarse voice whispered. She brought her head up slightly and wiped her eyes forcefully with the back of her right hand. "They went in an hour ago and not a word since."
Sarah was suddenly up, pacing the waiting room frantically. "He stayed in the car Casey, he did what we asked him to. He stayed in the car! This shouldn't be happening."
"What the hell went wrong Casey?" Sarah was hyperventilating, her nervous worried energy now turned to anger.
"Calm down Walker." Casey calmly stated.
"Calm down? Chuck died Casey, he died!" Sarah stopped, her wild eyes looking deep into his.
"He was dead Casey." She whispered, her eyes tearing up again as she leaned against the wall, sliding down till she sat on the floor.
"So he was dead, Kramer and Woods got him back..." Casey began.
"You don't understand, he was dead." Sarah whimpered, "I... I felt destroyed."
Sarah was surprised when she found herself lifted up. Casey looked furious, his hands gripping her body armor and hauling her up and pinned her against the wall.
"What the fuck are you playing at Walker? Bartowski isn't here, you can cut the cover crap." He growled out.
"What.. what are you talking about?" Sarah whispered, still in a state of shock.
"Listen, everyone's caught on that you're still in love with Bryce. Fine. You still need to stay friendly with Bartowski. Fine. But he's not here, no need to put on this emotional show. I'm not in the mood for it."
"Bryce...?" Sarah began blinking, her eyes locking in on Casey's. "Why Bryce?"
Casey rolled his eyes, letting her go as he walked away. "I always suspected you were falling for Bartowski. Didn't think I was wrong about that. But you proved us wrong yesterday."
"What? ... What are you talking about?"
"Bartowski and I saw you and Bryce sucking face as if there was no tomorrow last night, just before you two went into your hotel room." Casey sneered at her.
Sarah collapsed on the ground, her eyes wide. "No...Please no. Chuck, Chuck saw that? Did he stay?"
Disbelief etched all over his face, "What, so that you can have the puppy hear you two go at it?"
"No..." Sarah whimpered in a small wounded voice, "Nothing happened.. nothing happened last night."
"Right...So were we wrong when we saw the busy hands playing grab ass?" Casey was relentless.
"Yes. Yes, I... I was weak," The statement shocked Casey. "Bryce said all the right things, it was familiar... but once we were inside, I knew it was wrong. I... I told Bryce to leave. Nothing happened."
"I don't believe you."
Sarah looked up, her face angry and defiant, "I don't care what you believe Major."
"You better start caring Walker. Because if you can't make me believe how do you think you'll ever convince Chuck?"
Sarah seemed to fold. Casey looked at her, he needed to keep pressing her. She was never going to be this vulnerable, so he needed to work it to his advantage.
"What about that shit eating grin you sported all this morning, that post coital glow?"
Sarah looked at her hands, Chuck's blood still staining them. She was hesitant, "Ever since this assignment started, I've always taken his presence for granted. I've always felt that I had so easily grabbed his attention, that I could always easily grab it again. Just like with any of the men I was assigned to get near.
"I've been confused, with Bryce. We had ended so abruptly, and I kept feeling things for him. We had always been so happy together and those feelings never died. I had thought that there was still something with Bryce and when I found out that he was alive, I thought I was still his girlfriend. But something changed along the way these past few months.
"When I finally understood that Chuck might be giving up on me, on any potential us, something inside hurt so deep I can't even begin to describe it. I realized that he wasn't like any of the men that I was assigned. He wasn't like Bryce. He's Chuck. He gave me space, he let me know his feelings but never forced himself on me. He demanded my honesty and that too is so rare. I had an epiphany. I realized last night, what Chuck really meant to me.
"I realized," Sarah's voice got stronger as she looked up into Casey's smirking face, "that no one, not even Bryce, can ever compare to my Chuck."
Sarah stared directly into Casey's eyes, "I will convince Chuck, and I'll be damned if anyone tries to stand in my way."
Three hours later Sarah and Casey were still in the waiting room, each sitting on the opposite side of the room. Casey had the same smirk smeared across his face since her confession. For once, Sarah didn't mind. She felt a little lighter now. The small smile she was wearing earlier had grown into a worried frown as the time passed.
Casey's cell rang, "Casey."
Sarah got up, "I'm going to check the nurse's station again." Casey nodded his head.
"Is there any word on Agent Carmichael? Multiple gunshot wounds to the chest?" Sarah asked the same nurse that had been at the counter.
"Sorry ma'am, still haven't heard anything." The nurse replied.
Sarah sighed.
"Then call them up and find out what's taking them so long!" Casey ground out between clenched teeth. His sudden appearance startled both ladies.
"I'm sorry but, I can't interrupt..." The nurse stopped talking as she noticed Casey's gun pointing directly in her face.
"Casey!" Sarah nearly shouted, looking around.
"I'm giving you till the count of 3 to call into that operating room." Casey was dead serious, as he pulled the hammer back on his gun.
"1."
The nurse scrambled for the phone and began dialing. She waited for the longest 15 seconds of her life, "No one's picking up."
"What operating room are they in?" Casey demanded, lowering his gun.
"You can't..." Casey raised his gun again.
"3, operating room 3. Down the hall, through the double doors, second door on the left."
Casey began sprinting down the hall, Sarah right behind him.
"Casey! What was that all about?" Sarah shouted at him.
"Beckman called. The package that we picked up today never reached NSA's holding facility and the first package that we had secured has gone missing." Casey shouted back as he slammed through the set of double doors.
"What?" Sarah exclaimed.
"They also found Agent Kramer, shot in the head at close range. Woods is missing." Casey nearly spat out as opened the door to the operating room.
Blood and bandages littered the ground; tools were scattered everywhere. Sarah fell to her knees, an anguished wail escaped her lips.
Other than the two of them, the room was empty.