After several failed attempts to reach Bryce on his cell phone, Chuck rounds up Casey and Morgan, and when they get to Castle, it's dark.

Casey hits the lights, and there's Bryce, lying unconscious on the conference table.

"Oh. Oh. That's not good," Chuck says, and rushes over, checking him over. "Bryce. Buddy." He starts tapping the other man's face with a hand.

Casey grunts and pushes Chuck out of the way. "You're doin' it wrong." He slaps Bryce full across the face the face, and somehow it works.

"Oooow," Bryce complains, his eyes opening.

Chuck looks at him worried. "Hey. Hey."

"What happened?"

"I'd say Shaw got the drop on ya, double-oh-seven," Morgan says. "Nice going. Now he knows we know."

Bryce glowers and rubs the back of his head delicately. "'We'?"

Chuck fidgets. "Well...Morgan does know everything now...and...and he is coming to Rome..."

"What?"

"Morons!" Casey growls. "Shaw knows we're onto him, and Walker's with him. Stop fighting like a couple of old ninnies and get ready to move out!"

The plane ride is tense. They fought over whether Morgan should come with, but in the end Bryce had won out, because he was right. Morgan is too inexperienced.

Chuck pours over Shaw's file, flashing on things he's flashed on dozens of times before.

"There's nothing here," he says, his voice a touch desperate. "Where the hell would he take her? Where would they go?"

Casey shakes his head. "Before you got the Intersect you were smart. Use it."

"Casey's right," Bryce nods, pressing a cold pack to the back of his head. "You've always been the brains of the operation, you can do this."

She knows she's going to die.

In the hazy place her head is in, watching Shaw and the director of the Ring talk, she knows.

She always knew that someday it would happen. She's a spy, and no matter how good she is, how careful, she was always going to die.

One way or another that's what happens to spies. It happens all the time.

The director gets up, and she thinks about Chuck. She'll never see him again. Or her father; her mother. Not Casey. Not Ellie, and she hopes that Chuck can do for her what she promised to do for him.

"Say something that will make it all okay; that will make them feel alright. Just make sure they know how much I love 'em."

She wishes she'd told Chuck... There are so many things that she wishes, and sitting paralyzed at this cafe, unable to see straight, looking her soon-to-be killer in the eyes, she has plenty of time to think of them all. Despite her inability to move, she feels a tear slip down her cheek.

She's known that something was off with Shaw ever since the details of her red test came to light. She wasn't on guard enough. She hadn't paid enough attention, and she'd told Chuck and Bryce to wait an hour before coming to get her.

All rookie mistakes. She should have known better.

When she sees Chuck standing above Daniel, gun outstretched, aimed and ready, she wonders briefly if the toxin causes hallucinations.

When Shaw addresses him, she knows it doesn't. She knows he's really there; there to save her. She wants to yell for him. She wants to scream and she really wants Daniel Shaw's head on a platter, but she can't move. She can only watch.

Bryce cuffs the Ring operatives together at a lamppost and watches as Casey punches the director in the face.

He flinches and looks around. "You think it was a good idea to let Chuck go off after Shaw on his own?"

Two gunshots ring out and Casey stands at attention. "Take three guesses, genius."

Bryce starts running. "That came from the bridge!"

"I'll meet you there once I've got this dirtbag taken care of," Casey calls after him, and Bryce is off like a shot.

When he gets to the bridge, he finds Chuck sitting there with Sarah in his arms.

"Chuck? Chuck, what happened!"

He looks up, his face pained. "He...Shaw he...he drugged...he was...he...he was gonna...I...and I..."

Bryce slows and puts his hands up. "Deep breaths. Take it slow."

Chuck swallows and takes a couple of deep breaths. "Shaw was...he was gonna...he drugged Sarah he was gonna throw her off the bridge I..."

Bryce surveys the scene, looking around for any sign of Shaw, but there's none. there nothing's on the bridge except Chuck, Sarah, and a gun.

"You killed him."

"I...I had no choice he was...there was no other...I..."

Bryce kneels down and puts his hands on Chuck's shoulders. "Welcome to the spy life, buddy. I'm so sorry."

It's a nice hotel. They can lay low; contact the General about the Ring director, and get Sarah settled to recover.

Chuck, too. He's still shaken; still in shock over what he's done.

Bryce peeks into the bedroom of the hotel suite and quirks an eyebrow, watching Sarah lay back after having gotten changed. "Hey. You didn't need any help."

"Toxin's wearing off," she tells him. She's obviously exhausted. "What did you need?"

"Huh? Oh. Nothing. Y'know. I just wanted to check on you. Make sure you didn't need help untying your shoes or anything."

She doesn't buy it. She never has, and it's not surprising. She's Sarah. "Bryce."

He shrugs and walks in, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. "Don't be too hard on Chuck, okay?"

Sarah blinks, confused. "What?"

Bryce grins and takes her hand. "Take care of each other, okay?"

"You're acting weird."

His grin turns to a full-on smile and he pats her hand. "That's something you never knew about me, huh? That underneath all the spy crap...all the smooth-talking whatever-it-was...I'm a little weird."

She blinks again, but this time it's because she's tired. "I knew. I just never said anything."

Bryce laughs and shakes his head before getting to his feet. "I'll see you in the morning."

Sarah's drifting off to sleep now, but the words "no I won't," come out pretty clearly before she's out completely.

With a shake of his head, Bryce slips out of the room.

They're waiting down in front of the hotel for the cab to arrive, sitting shoulder to shoulder.

Chuck looks beat, but Bryce knows he won't get any sleep. Not with all that's happened.

"You sure you won't change your mind?"

"I'm sure," Bryce says. "You're a real spy. Even before tonight you were a real spy, and my job was to make that happen. Mission accomplished, buddy."

"And you're sure that you don't want a new mission as...y'know...part of the team?" Chuck asks.

Bryce shrugs. "Not right now. I think I need some alone time. Do some solo work. But I'll be around, and if you need me, you know how to reach me. Right?"

Chuck nods. "Yeah. Yeah, I do. I just...I'm gonna miss you."

"Don't worry, Sappy McCheesey Breath," Bryce jokes, nudging him. "You're gonna be fine."

"I hate you."

Bryce laughs. "I know."

"Lazypants."

"I am not lazy!"

"Uh-huh. Can't even be bothered to be part of a team."

"I am a lone wolf," Bryce tells him. "Lone. Uno. One. Me."

"Lazypants," Chuck sings in a high voice and they both laugh.

The cab pulls up and Bryce gets to his feet, Chuck following him. "Take care."

Chuck nods. "You too, buddy. Don't die again, huh? Or else you're gonna have a new nickname."

"Oh?"

"Zombie!Bryce."

"Shut up."

Chuck smiles and then hugs him. "Happy trails."

Bryce smirks. "Happy hot-girlfriend-in-a-romantic-hotel-room."

Chuck's eyes grow wide and his face turns red as he shoves his friend toward the cab. "Go. Leave. Away. Now. Before Sarah's douchebag meter goes off and she comes down here to give you a farewell ass-kicking."

Laughing, Bryce swings open the door and then looks back at Chuck. He thinks about all the things he could say. That he's proud. That he's still sorry for what he did to him in college; that he's glad they're friends again.

Instead, he just waves and hops in, telling the cabbie in French to take him to the airport.