I still don't own Chuck. Not sure who does at this point. Maybe Subway.

This is the story of Chuck and Sarah's eldest daughter Kate's struggles on her own. The people who would seek to use and destroy Kate have made a serious miscalculation. They think that if they can take away Chuck, Sarah, and Paul that Kate will be all alone and easy prey. Fortunately, that is not close to being true. Kate is surrounded by people who love her. First, we saw Elise and Robbie. Then we saw Casey. Now, let's see who else will step up.

I'll be sure to post warnings on chapters that have violent or sexual situations. I'm going to keep this T – but I might dance on the edge for a bit.

If you enjoyed this or any of the stories on this site, please take a second and send the author a review.

Office Politics

x-x-x-x-x

The one part of her new job where Kate had no experience was managing people. Well, who was she kidding? She didn't have any experience in any part of her new job – but she was particularly green at managing people. Except for Chuck Junior and Bryce, she had never done it before. And even that was a bad example – Chuck Junior never did anything that she said anyway. So she was very happy when the breakfast interview went well. She and Angela hit it off right from the start. It felt great to be able to offer her the position. She acted very grateful.

Kate just got back to the office in time for the staff meeting. Admittedly, it wasn't much of a staff. Since Janice wasn't officially a senator yet, the office wasn't fully staffed. It was just Janice, Kate, and three people on loan from the National Party. All three were seasoned political staffers. The party was clearly trying to make sure that they were being taken care of.

Jennifer was a pleasant, if a little introverted, woman in her mid-thirties. She was always on time and worked hard. But she wasn't much of a conversationalist. Kate couldn't get much out of her – only that the picture on her desk was her husband of eight years and he worked for one of the lobbyists. Fortunately, she wasn't much of a management challenge.

Julie was the polar opposite. A live wire in her mid twenties who never stopped talking and looked like she always knew where the next party was. Aunt Janice said that Julie reminded her of herself at that age. Kate wasn't completely sure that was a compliment. Julie reminded her of the girls at school. More boy crazy than anything. She was never sure how much actual work Julie was getting done. But she made you tired just talking to her.

Then there was Alex. To Kate, Alex was the most interesting - certainly not in any romantic way. He just reminded her of a younger version of her Uncle Morgan. He was pure geek. He also clearly had something of a crush building – oh, not for Kate – thank goodness. He clearly had eyes for Senator-elect Beckman-Casey. Good luck with that.

The staff meeting didn't last very long. After all, they were just answering mail and responding to requests for appointments. All of the political strategy stuff was clearly being handled by Kate – and Janice, of course. Since they really didn't know these people very well, they made sure not to talk about any presidential aspirations in front of them. You were never quite sure who could be a mole. It was a town without morals.

As soon as the meeting was over, as usual, Janice asked Kate to step into her office. Kate had a very nice office of her own – but it was on the other side of the building. Kate was always mesmerized by the striking view of the White House from Janice's office. This, more than anything, was a clear indication that Janice was the party's new rock star. Freshman Senators usually got the bottom of the barrel office locations. The typical view was of a parking lot. Not this prime spot – complete with an awesome look at where she hoped to be living in two years.

Kate remembered the first time she was in this office. Of course, it was only two weeks ago. When Janice and Kate first saw the view, Janice laughed. She told Kate that if she looked really hard, she could look through the windows and see their opponents plotting strategy against them. Janice said that she could see them shaking. Kate wondered if they were shaking as hard as she was.

Janice was grinning broadly as she put her arm around Kate and led her into the private office. "So," she said. "Do we have a new Administrative Assistant?"

"Yes," Kate said. "She starts Monday. Her name is Angela. I think you're going to really like her. She is aggressive but not pushy. Her references were impeccable."

"Good," said Janice as she closed the door. Then she reached out her hand to Kate.

Kate immediately winced in pain as Janice twisted her finger.

The smile never left Janice's face. "Tell me, Katie," she said calmly. "There is something that I really want to know. Have you ever been raped?"

x-x-x-x-x

Chuck Junior and Bryce sat at the kitchen table. As usual, they were concurrently eating breakfast and getting ready for school.

"So dad," Bryce said. "Business trip? How long are you and mom going to be gone?" Bryce knew better than to ask any specific questions about the trip. They really didn't even know what kind of business dad was in - something about investments – they had learned not to ask. He must be a big shot. He was always home and they lived a very comfortable life style."

"I'm not sure," Chuck said as he folded a pair of dress slacks into his suitcase. "At least a few days. We'll call if it's going to be longer."

Chuck Junior yawned. "Kate called me this morning," he said. "The rat waited until three thirty."

That certainly got Sarah's attention. "What did she want?" she asked.

"She said that she was going to call you tonight," Chuck Junior said. "She didn't want to wake you so early in the morning. She clearly didn't mind waking me."

"Okay," Sarah lectured as she snapped her suitcase closed. "No parties." The boys had learned a long time ago that when their mother took that tone – you stopped whatever you were doing and gave her your undivided attention. Mom had sort of mellowed lately. And they were both good kids. Actually, Chuck Junior wasn't even a kid. There really wasn't much cause for discipline. But they both knew that she could put the hammer down – anytime she wanted too. When she was pissed – you got out of her way. "Aunt Elise is going to check on you guys every once in a while. I'd better be getting good reports."

The mere mention of Aunt Elise was enough to cheer the boys up. Ellie had offered to stop by. But Sarah knew that she had a busy schedule at the hospital this week. Besides, if the boys knew that Elise might show up, they would keep the house clean. It probably assured a house full of Bryce's friends eagerly waiting for her next appearance. But, at least, they would be well behaved. And Elise seemed to get a kick out of their schoolboy affections.

"What car are you taking?" Bryce asked.

"We're being picked up," Sarah said. "The car should be here any minute." Sarah saw the light in Bryce's eyes. "Bryce…," she said warningly.

"Don't worry, mom," Bryce sighed sadly. "I won't touch your Porsche."

For the past couple of years, Sarah was beginning to seriously consider if she should even have a Porsche anymore. She hardly ever drove it. It was worthless for more than two people. And after all, she was almost fifty. With two teenage boys in the house – why put them through that kind of temptation? Bryce had only gotten his driver's license two months ago. There was no way he was driving the Porsche.

But Sarah had to admit, she still loved that car. So every time it was time for a new one, she couldn't bring herself to settle for anything but a Porsche. After all, it was what a spy should drive, right? But, the honest truth was – Sarah had also mellowed about her car. It was a machine. It could be easily replaced. Sarah even surprised Chuck Junior and let him take it on a date once for his eighteenth birthday. But it was far too powerful for an inexperienced sixteen year old boy to drive. Bryce couldn't be replaced. So, if it took instilling the fear of God to keep him safe…

"You know what happens if you do," Sarah said with as serious a look as she could manage. She saw the look of wonder in Bryce's eyes. "Of course, you'll be grounded for the rest of your natural life."

"Tossed into a dark hole for years," Chuck added as he passed by.

"Thrown naked out of a moving airplane," Sarah said as she allowed the smile to come to her face. "You know – the standard punishment."

"Then," Chuck added as he paused for emphasis. "We turn you over to Uncle Casey for the non-standard punishment."

Sarah walked over to where Bryce was sitting and rustled his hair. Of course, she knew how much he hated that – but Bryce was her baby. He would still be her baby when he was fifty and had grandkids of his own. "Sweetie," she said. "You'll get to drive the Porsche someday soon. I promise - when you're ready. But please promise me that I can trust you to not ever try on your own. It's just too dangerous."

Bryce knew – all of the kids did – that trust was Sarah's number one thing. And when you violated that trust – getting pushed naked out of a moving airplane would be the fun part. There was nothing colder than the cold shoulder from Sarah. Once you experienced it – like they all had at one time or another – you never wanted that feeling again. So when Bryce nodded, Sarah knew that he meant it.

"Thanks, sweetie," she said as she gave his hair a final shake. "Have a good day at school. We'll call you tonight."

x-x-x-x-x

Kate knew the question was rhetorical – but she also knew better than to try and argue the point. The fastest way to get the pain to stop was to let Aunt Janice make her statement. So she just quickly shook her head.

"Well I have," Janice said as she dropped Kate's hand. There could be no doubt now of how angry she was. "Have you heard the story?"

Wow. She knew that Aunt Janice would be mad at her – but she really didn't expect this. Kate really didn't know how to answer. Of course, she had heard many times the sanitized version of the story in the campaign. It was what their opponents tried to use against her and backfired so completely. Her mom had tried to tell her the real story of Bogotá in Vegas – but she broke down and couldn't finish it. That alone told Kate how horrible that it must have been. Her dad tried to finish the story as best as he could. He told her the facts as her mom had once told him. But since he wasn't there, he couldn't truly express the horror. "Some," she finally whispered. "I know that it was horrible."

"Twenty-eight hours," Janice replied through gritted teeth. "Five men took turns at me for twenty-eight hours. It's not just sex, you know. That's not even the worst part. First they hold you down and kick the shit out of you. Then when you're helpless, they violate you – over and over and over again. Then they kick the shit out of you again – just for fun. Sure, it was the incident that made me a famous war hero. But I would rather die than have it happen again. If your mom hadn't saved me, they would have kept going until I was dead. As it was, I was in the hospital for over a month. I couldn't work for over four years. If it wasn't for meeting your dad, I'd still be a basket case. I didn't truly completely get over it until I married your Uncle Casey. I still have nightmares sometimes thirty years later. Are you ready to be a basket case, Katie?"

"I'm sorry," Kate whispered as she looked at the floor. The tears were quickly filling her eyes.

"Look at me, damn it," Janice said firmly. "I asked you a serious question. Are you ready to be a basket case, Katie?"

When Kate jerked her head up, she could see the tears on Aunt Janice's face. She had never seen her anything close to this angry before. "No," she whispered.

"I know that you've been running around town non-stop for the past two weeks," Janice said. "You're trying to make me President. But do you really think that I give a damn about being president if something happens to you?"

Kate just looked at Janice numbly. She was really pissed.

"I wouldn't," Janice said softly. "Kate, I have no burning desire to be president. The only reason that I'm even considering running is because they made fun of us. They said we were too inexperienced and naive to make it at this level. That pissed me off. Now I really want to see if you and I can prove them wrong. Even I had my doubts in the beginning. But now I really think that we can pull this off. We make a hell of a team. By any sort of conventional wisdom, neither of us should be here – but look at us. It would be something that we can accomplish together. From being nearly gang raped to death - to being president. That would be an amazing journey, wouldn't it, Katie? But, trust me, it wouldn't mean a thing without you there beside me."

"Aunt Janice," Kate pleaded. "Okay – yes, it was foolish not to ask who was at the door. And I'll admit that my sleep clothes could probably use some updating. But aren't you overreacting a little? I didn't get hurt. It was just Uncle Casey. He's not going to hurt me."

"This time," Janice corrected. "You didn't get hurt this time. Let me show you something." Then she dragged Kate to the full length mirror that was hanging on the back of the door. "Look at her," Janice said as she pointed to Kate's image. "See that woman? She is absolutely gorgeous. She could be an actress or a model. They ask her to be on television multiple times every night – in a town with one of the highest crime rates in the country - a town where even the good guys have zero morals. If she opens her door to a man virtually naked enough times, what do you think is going to happen?"

"I'm sorry," Kate whispered. "I don't want you to be mad at me. I'll be more careful. But please don't be mad at me. I hate that feeling."

Kate wasn't ready for Janice's reaction. She grinned. "Katie," Janice said. "Do you really think that I'm mad at you?"

Kate just nodded.

"I'm so not mad at you," Janice said as she hugged her. "I'm scared for you. Your Uncle Casey is scared for you. Look – I know that you have parents – and we're not them. But hear this, Katie. Uncle Casey and I think of you, Chuck Junior, and Bryce as our own kids. We always have. You're the closest thing that we're ever going to have to a family. You're in both of our wills."

Kate just nodded. She always knew how Janice and Casey felt about them. All of the kids did. And they all felt exactly the same way. The fact of the matter was – during the summer months they always spent more time at their place on the lake than they did at home.

Janice smiled – a little. "The truth is," she said. "I was scared to death of you when your mom first brought you home. She had to force me to hold you for the first time. Then something amazing happened. One day you smiled at me – and I was hooked. I have been every since. I love you, Katie. If something happened to you it would kill me - and even if it didn't, your mom would make sure to come and finish the job."

"I love you too," Kate said. "I know that you know that. Just like I've always known how you feel about me. I'm really sorry that I messed up. This is all new to me. I'm trying hard to do the right thing."

Janice smiled again. "I know that you are, Katie," she said. "Trust me - I'm not trying to tell you how to live your life. You're a big girl. If you want to sleep around – well, that's between you and Paul. Lord knows I did. There are some things that you just need to find out on your own. But, Katie, getting raped isn't one of them. You have to protect yourself. And that means more than just being careful about what you sleep in. I never want to have this conversation again. Are we clear?"

Kate nodded. "Very clear," she said.

"Good," Janice said in a mock serious tone. "I'd talk about some kind of punishment but you are a grown woman. Maybe you should be grounded – but Uncle Casey tells me that he's cooking you pancakes tonight. That's probably punishment enough."

Kate breathed a sigh of relief as they shared a smile. It was time to change the subject. "Julie keeps asking me to go out for a drink with her," Kate said. "Do you think I should go?"

"I don't know," Janice said cautiously. "Are you pregnant?"

"What?" Kate asked in amazement. "Why would you ask me that?"

"Because," Janice said with a grin. "That's the only reason I can think of for not going out for a drink with Julie. Certainly, you're not asking for my permission, Katie. I know that I just gave you the heavy mom lecture – but come on. You're a grown woman."

Kate's face got red. "I'm not asking for your permission," she said. "I'm asking for your advice."

"Katie," Janice said soothingly. "Relax. I'm just teasing you. There is nothing wrong with going out for a drink or two. But be careful. Julie is the kind of girl who will talk you into entering a wet t-shirt contest if you let her. Please don't do that. It would be embarrassing for it to wind up in the press."

Kate noticeably grimaced. The very last thing that she would ever do would be to enter a wet t-shirt contest. She hated it when guys stared at her chest. It happened all the time and it was her biggest turn off. Not only was it demeaning, it made her very self conscious. One of the early things that had attracted her to Paul was that he had looked into her eyes when they first met. "Okay," she said. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."

"Now let's talk some strategy," Janice said. "They want me to go on Hardball tonight to talk about the meeting with the ambassador. Let's go over some talking points."

"They don't call it Hardball for nothing," Kate said as her face broke into a smile for the first time. "That is not going to be friendly territory for us. I think you should be ready for him to be confrontational. After all, that's his style. He is going to ask you why a Senator would be talking to a foreign ambassador. He is going to say that foreign policy traditionally is handled exclusively by the president. He is going to accuse you of usurping the president's authority. So we have to be ready for that."

"You're right," Janice said. "That's a good point. I'm not sure how openly confrontational he'll be – at least, not at first. They are afraid of appearing to insult me."

"Maybe," Kate said. "But I wouldn't count on it. It's who these guys are. And I hope he does. The more he looks like a jerk, the better you look by comparison. By the way, speaking of you looking good, our guy Alex has something of a crush on a certain Senator-elect."

"No kidding," Janice said sarcastically. "He's kind of cute. He reminds me a little of your Uncle Morgan. Do you think I should drag him back here and rock his world? It might make him work harder."

"You're kidding," Kate gasped. "Please don't do that."

"Katie," Janice said with a laugh. "I'm kidding. Did I ever tell you the story of when I was showing your Aunt Ellie how to seduce men?"

"My mom did," Kate said with a grin. "She told me in Vegas. If I remember, it didn't work out too well for you. Something tells me that you might not want to tell that particular story on Hardball."

"I'm not so sure," Janice said with a laugh. "That would certainly fluster him, don't you think?"

Kate and Janice shared a genuine laugh that lasted for a long while. It was clearly something that they both needed. After all, they had just finished an exhausting two weeks – and the next two years were going to be every bit as demanding. Suddenly Kate got serious. "Aunt Janice," she said as she grabbed her arm. "I promise you one thing. We're going to prove them wrong. You're going to finish that journey. You're going to be president. And if you'll let me, I'm going to be standing next to you when it happens."

x-x-x-x-x

Chuck sat in the limo trying to suppress the grin. Sarah was clearly trying to hide how excited she was – and failing miserably. He thought about teasing her about it. After all, he had a couple of hanging curve balls to hit out of the park.

He could tease her about being excited about seeing Director Shaw again. But he knew where that would lead. After all, he was pretty tired from last night. Even with the intersect, he really wasn't up for any more 'convincing' in the back of that limo.

Of course, there was always family tradition to rib her about. After all, they were flying east – all the way across the country. But he also rejected that. After all, some things were best left as a surprise.

Besides, Chuck had to admit. He was just as excited as Sarah was. Well, not maybe just as – but he was pretty excited.

They were going to see Kate.

x-x-x-x-x