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

Sarah has turned this training into a mini version of the CIA Agent Academy. First phase was to get in shape. The second phase was learning self-defense. Guess what the next phase will be…

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.

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Inducement of Enemy Personnel

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Even though Sarah had generally a very lousy day yesterday, a few good things actually happened to her last night. First, Bryce finally called. He clearly sounded as relieved to hear his mom's voice as Sarah was to hear his. But it took talking to Ellie for Sarah to learn of the 'nightmare' that Bryce was undergoing. Sarah actually laughed out loud when she imagined poor Bryce lying by the pool, surrounded by bored teenaged girls in bikinis. She did warn him to start getting in top shape. After all, he would be joining the training sessions as soon as it was practical. He was instructed to run five miles every morning and afternoon. Devon was enlisted to make sure that he did it. Since Bryce had always clearly been Devon's favorite and Devon was always looking for someone to run with him anyway - that worked out perfectly.

The second thing was even better. Kate came by and tearfully apologized. Well, she eventually apologized. She spent the first several minutes clinging to Sarah sobbing. But even that part felt great. It had been a long time since that had happened. After all, Sarah knew that Kate depended on Janice and lately Elise for a lot of the mothering stuff. And she was fine with that. But it also felt great to be just pure mom herself – if only for a few minutes.

The third thing was almost as good. Heather stopped by… again. Her third visit of the day proved to be the best. She didn't exactly apologize – but she did agree to hold off on making any permanent judgments until after their training sessions were over. She even admitted that maybe Sarah was doing a good thing… and that she would try her best to live up to her expectations – both in training – and as the girl in love with her son. Sarah smiled at how she said it. Not only was it very cute - it showed that Elise was clearly coaching her. Her style was very obvious. That was a good sign. After all, Elise was fanatically protective of Chuck Junior. If Heather was good enough for Elise… she must be doing something right.

But the forth thing beat them all – put together. Chuck obviously had decided that her day had been bad enough – and that she needed to forget about it for a while. And when Chuck put his mind and the power of the intersect to work – he could make Sarah forget her own name. It had been a while since he had made that kind of effort – maybe her birthday.

So, all in all, Sarah was in a pretty good mood. Of course that didn't really change anything. They still needed to get in shape. And Shaw was still out there. They were still only kids. They still needed to learn some things to have a chance to defend themselves. And Sarah still only knew one way to do that…

But one thing that her good mood did change – she set the pace for the first mile a little slower. After all, she knew that they all, and especially the older ones, would have some stiff muscles from yesterday's workout that would need to be loosened up. But that was as soft as she would allow herself. After all, Agent Walker had to whip these rookies into shape. Enough with the lady feelings – it's time to pick up the pace.

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As soon as they were done with their run, Sarah assembled her team. "We're going to do something a little different this morning," she said. "We will split up into four groups. The same pairings as yesterday. I have provided transportation that will take each group to different locations – all approximately twenty five miles away. You will be provided a map that shows your current location and a compass. It will be the junior agent's job to develop and execute a plan to get back to this point as quickly as possible – using any means necessary. The senior agent will act as someone of unknown allegiance. They will not assist in any planning – but they will carry out reasonable assignments as directed by the junior agent. The first team back will get a substantial reward. Are there any questions?"

"No, ma'am."

"Heather," Sarah said. "Chuck will be taking my place on your team this morning. Any objections?"

Heather looked confused for a moment. Was Sarah actually asking for her input? Or did she just feel badly because of yesterday? "No ma'am," she said quickly.

"Okay," Sarah said. "Good luck. And remember – your orders include using any means necessary."

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Kate and Janice got into the jeep that Sarah indicated to them. They drove for about forty-five minutes. Kate was trying to keep track of any landmarks that might help – but there weren't many. For one thing, it was still pretty dark. And all of the scenery looked the same. Indeed, a good part of the journey was off road. When the driver finally stopped, he simply handed Kate a packet. Oh, he also clearly was checking her out. Kate's patience for unknown men ogling her was never high – but at this particular time, it was non-existent. Her scowl when he asked if there was anything else he could do for her left very room for interpretation. So he simply drove off.

Kate knew one thing. She was going to be the first one back. She needed to prove to her mom that she had what it takes. Alex and Sparky had already proven to her that they could be heroic. Heather was in the Army. Kate was the one that needed something to impress Mom with. Mom made a huge point out of saying to use any means necessary. But what did that mean? The only thing around her was rocks – for as far as the eye could see. Maybe Aunt Janice could help. So she put on her most pathetic face. "Do you know what to do?" she asked.

"Maybe," Janice said with a grin. "But my instructions are to follow your lead. You know your mom. If she finds out that I violated my orders, she'll have my guts for garters."

That actually sounded hopeful. Maybe she could talk Aunt Janice into helping. So she allowed some tears to flow. It was easy – all she had to do was think about her dad last night. "Please, Aunt Janice," she said. "This is hard for me. I'm not used to my mom acting like this. I really need to impress her. Can you please help me? This would just be between us."

Janice smiled. "Actually," she said. "Your mom is taking it easy. I remember her when she was your age. When she was on a mission, she was unbelievable. That's a main reason why she was so successful – but it also makes her tough to be around sometimes."

Kate just nodded. She didn't make any effort to wipe the tears from her eyes. "Can you help me?" she asked.

Janice sighed – and finally nodded. She held out her arms as an invitation – which Kate eagerly accepted. They held each other for a long moment. Unfortunately for Kate, she didn't feel a thing until the handcuff was already securely fastened to her wrist. Once it was in place, it was easy for Janice to use it as leverage to force her around and fasten the cuff to her other wrist behind her back.

"Aunt Janice," Kate cried. "What are you doing?"

Janice stepped up to face her. "Shut up," she said harshly. "You are my prisoner. If you say another word, I'll gag you. Nod if you understand."

Kate was stunned. She sure didn't want to be gagged – so all she could do was nod.

Janice took a phone out of her pocket. "I have her," was all that she said. It didn't take five minutes before two jeeps pulled up. Two men with masks hiding their faces stepped out of the lead jeep and up to Janice. "Take her to our base," Janice said to the men. "Find out what she knows – using any means necessary." Then she climbed into the other jeep and it took off.

x-x-x-x-x

That left Kate alone, hands cuffed behind her back, out in the wilderness, with the two masked men. They fairly roughly took her to their car and pushed her face first against it. Without the use of her arms, she was forced to lean against it. They kicked her legs apart and conducted a very through search. If they appeared to pay special attention to her chest – well it was because they did. They didn't go inside of her clothes – but it was well beyond any legitimate search for weapons. After they were finally satisfied that she wasn't hiding a Stinger missile inside of her bra, they put her in the back seat and put a hood over her head.

This drive wasn't nearly as long as the first one. But with the hood on her head, Kate had no clue where they were going – or even what direction they were traveling in. She knew better than to speak.

Once they stopped, Kate had no clue where she was. She guessed that she couldn't be back at the base, they hadn't driven long enough. She was dragged out of the car and led for a while – and then forced to sit in a chair. Her wrists, which were still cuffed behind her back, were fastened to the chair. Her ankles were securely fastened to the legs of the chair. She was completely secured and totally helpless. When the hood was removed all she could see was the bright light shinning into her face. The rest of the room was dark. She could only see the shadow of someone who she assumed was a man. Once he spoke, there was no longer any doubt.

"Agent Bartowski," he said calmly. "I'll bet you're wondering why you're here. Let me tell you. It's really pretty simple. I am going to ask you some questions. Cooperate and this phase of your interrogation will be over - painlessly. We might even become friends. Fail to cooperate and I'll be forced to find some way to convince you. Understand?"

He didn't wait for a response – and indeed, Kate knew better than to offer one anyway. "We are well aware that you know where your brother Bryce and Aunt Eleanor are," he said. "I want you to tell me where that is."

Kate's blood ran cold. She did know. Mom told her that Bryce called last night. She even knew the name of the resort. She just really didn't know what to do. She was pretty sure that Aunt Janice wouldn't really deliver her to bad guys. This must be part of the exercise. But she also was scared. Aunt Janice was nowhere to be found – and this was getting a little too real. Even if it was part of an exercise, she knew that she couldn't tell him. She would have to hold out for as long as possible. Mom would have a fit if she gave up Bryce and Aunt Ellie. So she just looked straight ahead.

"I didn't think so," the man said. Kate could only watch in horror as he reached forward and slowly and methodically unbuttoned the top button of her shirt. "One thing that you should know about me," he said as he moved to the next button. "I enjoy my work. In a few minutes, I'm thinking that I might really start to enjoy it. After all, Agent Bartowski, you are really quite lovely. Unfortunately, this plain uniform doesn't come close to doing you justice. Maybe I can help you with that. Now, Kate, please - where are your brother and Aunt?"

Kate couldn't see his face. All she could see was a shadow. But his words – and the smug arrogance in his voice was plain. It was clear what was going to happen if she didn't speak.

"I'm sorry. May I call you Kate? I don't want to appear forward." the man said sarcastically after waiting for a moment for her response. When he was satisfied that she wasn't going to offer one, the next button was opened. And then the final one. "Come on, Kate. You seem like an intelligent young lady. Let's face some facts here. You're eventually going to tell me everything I want to know anyway. We both know it. Why don't you make it easy on yourself? Pretty soon, you'll be wishing that you had even some more things to tell me. You might as well do it while you still have some clothes on, right? After all, it would be a shame if your new fiancé had to see a tape that – well, quite frankly might disturb him." He slowly pulled each side of her shirt open exposing her lacy bra. "I was right. It's criminal to put such a lovely woman in such a plain uniform. I'm going to ask you one last time before this gets serious. Where are your brother and Aunt?"

Kate knew that she couldn't tell him. But how far was this going to go? She was having a hard time keeping the tears away. The last thing that she wanted was to show him that she was afraid – but she clearly was.

"Okay, Kate," he said. "I guess we're going to have to do this the hard way."

But suddenly Kate's question was answered. The bright light was turned off and the regular lights in the room were turned on. As soon as Kate could focus, she saw her mom standing there. Kate had never been happier to see her – ever.

Sarah walked up to stand directly in front of Kate. "Okay, Katie, I'll give you one guess as to where that was quickly headed," she said. Then she turned to the man. "Captain Green, thank you and your men for your assistance. They all performed admirably. I will write a personal letter to Colonel Blum expressing my gratitude."

"Thank you, ma'am," Green said. "I appreciate that very much. Trust me, I and my men are incredibly honored to even meet you, let alone assist you in some way. If I can be of any further assistance, please let me know. Good luck with the rest of your training." Then he turned to semi-face Kate. He didn't look directly at her – clearly he was being respectful of the fact that she was only wearing a sheer bra. "I hope that wasn't too traumatic for you, Miss Bartowski," he said. "I needed it to seem as real as possible – but I have a daughter of my own about your age."

As soon as Captain Green left the room, Sarah turned to face Kate again. "Needless to say," she said. "Your performance in this exercise was beyond abysmal. I'm truly sorry that you had to go through that. In real spy training, that would have gone much, much, much farther. You just witnessed a tiny, tiny sample of what a female agent can expect when she is captured. The only positive about your performance is that you were able to hold out for a while. But you would have certainly given up your brother and Aunt Ellie – and eventually anything else that they wanted to know. You also would have been killed. But ask your Aunt Janice sometime how they would have done it. They sometimes would have gone so far as to tape your last few hours of life – and made sure that your parents – and Alex got a copy. Katie, I'm not telling you this to try and scare you. You simply need to understand what you're facing."

Kate was too relieved to be scared – or angry. "Yes, ma'am," she finally said with a sigh. "Actually Aunt Janice and I have already had this discussion. She told me all about Bogotá – and how you rescued her at the last minute."

"You were told that your agent partner was of unknown allegiance," Sarah said. "Wasn't that a tip off that you should have been wary of her?"

Now Kate was embarrassed. She could feel the redness rapidly creeping up her neck. "Yes, ma'am," she said.

"Trust me," Sarah said. "I understand that you love Janice – and would trust her implicitly. But Daniel Shaw can also be quite charming when it suits his purpose. All agents can be. They are trained to get close to people. And that's not always by using sex. Sometimes they will pretend to be your friend."

"Yes, ma'am," Kate said. "Will you please release me?"

"In a few minutes," Sarah said. "You need to spend some time learning how awful it feels. Feeling helpless is the worst feeling in the world, isn't it?

"Yes, ma'am," Kate whispered.

"The real shame is that none of this was necessary," Sarah said. "Your mission was ridiculously easy. Janice tells me that your driver was giving you every indication that he was interested. A little bit of flirting, and he almost assuredly would have driven you right back to the base. Your instructions said to use any means necessary. Just what do you think that means anyway?"

"Yes, ma'am," Kate said. "It's just that I hate flirting with men. It's demeaning. And I'm engaged."

Sarah actually smiled. "As your mother that sort of makes me happy," she said. "Unfortunately, as your instructor, it's completely unacceptable. Katie, you have a weapon that most agents can only dream about. Think about your choice today. If you're worried about Alex, tell me which he would have preferred. Hearing about a little harmless flirting with a guy that you're never going to see again… or having to watch a tape of you being gang-raped to death? There is simply a stark reality here. If you're going to live in this world, you need to learn how to use that weapon. It's the main one that you have. I think that Janice and Elise will have to take charge of this part of your training. It would be too awkward for both of us. Besides, they're both better at it."

"Yes, ma'am," Kate said.

"If it's any consolation," Sarah said. "Heather is in a room just down the hall. She is in the same exact situation as you are. Her Army training probably helped her keep her composure a little better than you did. But only a tiny bit. Elise is having this very same conversation with her as we speak. Chuck Junior also failed almost as miserably. He put up a better fight – but still…"

Kate's eyes got big. "What about Alex?" she asked. Then she remembered her place. "I mean, ma'am."

Sarah's smile turned into a huge grin. "Alex actually passed," she said. "You are going to be very proud of him. Elise attempted to distract him by pretending to be hot and taking off some clothes. He didn't go for it at all. He saw the cuffs coming and was able to turn the tables on her. Trust me, Elise is very embarrassed. Seduction is her specialty."

Kate didn't say anything. But she was, indeed very proud.

"Let's you and I make a deal," Sarah said. "I understand that you are very bashful about showing men your body. You always have been. There is not a thing in the world wrong with that. I'm not trying to turn you into Elise or Janice. As a matter of fact, I would be horrified if that happened. But you do need to learn how to manipulate men. It could very well save your life some day. Flirting is part of that. If you and Heather will go with Elise and Janice this afternoon – and promise to really try, I'll release you. I'll get your dad and together we'll talk to Chuck Junior and Alex to make sure they understand. After all, we don't want to hurt your relationships. Elise and Janice are going give you some instruction and then give you an exercise – a final exam of sorts. If you pass, I'll drop the punishment for your ridiculous performances today."

Kate sighed. "Mom… umm… I mean ma'am," she stammered. "I don't want to do anything that would hurt Alex. Please don't make me cheat on him."

"I understand," Sarah said. "Katie, right now, I'm your mom. It's okay to call me that. Trust me, sweetie, I don't want anything to hurt Alex either. There is no way that I would ever allow you to cheat on Alex in an exercise. If you learn the right methods, you'll never have to cheat on him. I've never cheated on your dad – and I never will. And I've been a spy and with him for some twenty-five years now. I promise that nobody will ask you to do anything that Alex won't be completely on board with – after I talk with him anyway. I'll also drop the drill instructor routine. Do we have a deal?"

"You'll stop screaming at us and tricking us?" Kate asked. 'I'd do almost anything for that… deal."

"Only if you pass," Sarah said. "Because then my job will be done. I'll be confident that you have a chance. We'll still work out every morning. There are still some things you need to learn. I want to teach you how to effectively use a gun. But we'll do it together – as your mom. I won't be the instructor."

Kate looked at her mom's face for the first time – and the light went on. "This morning was harder on you than it was on me," she said. "All of this training stuff has been harder on you. Admit it."

Sarah tried to blink away the tears – but she wasn't totally successful. "I never wanted you kids involved with this life," she said. "Watching you being interrogated this morning was perhaps the worst moment of my life. I kept imagining it happening for real. That would destroy me. But there is only one way to keep that from happening. If you are going to be involved, you have to learn to survive. I only know one way to do that. Believe me - I never wanted to be Sarah Walker again. Trust me on this, sweetie - I hate her way more than you do."

Kate's arms were still secured. She couldn't reach out and hug her mom like she desperately wanted to. So all she could do was smile at her. "In that case, I'd better pass," she said as her smile turned into a huge grin. "Because we really need to kill that bitch."

Sarah made no effort to wipe the tears that were freely flowing down her face – but she joined Katie in her big grin. "You're right, sweetie," she said. "We really do."

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