Don't own Chuck
Sarah and Jamil walked off the plane and were immediately greeted by the girls. Not even Casey could hold them back as they broke free running to their parents. The C.O. shook their hands then went onboard to welcome the flight crew to his base. John realized what was really going on. The Old Man was an aviator and this was his opportunity to get a peek at the cockpit. He was like a little boy in a candy shop looking around at all the marvelous things. John walked up behind him to tell him they were out of there but the C.O. just waved goodbye.
"I guess it's true you can't take the boy out of the man" said Casey as he looked over at his Crown Vic before getting in.
"I guess you would know," said Sarah from the back seat sitting between the two girls. Jamil got to ride shotgun only because Sarah wanted to be near Sam.
"That goes for the girl too," said Casey as he looked at her in the rear view. Sarah wondered what that was about but decided to let it alone she had just gotten back and there was no need in stirring up trouble.
"Colonel Casey, John, if I may what do you think of my wife's cousin, Banai? I assume I'll be able to meet him when we get to… where are we going?"
"Echo Park," said Casey. He glanced up at Sarah for some help but she just shrugged her shoulders as she continued her conversation in the back with the girls. "I'd have to say he's very good at what he does."
"So he's a good greeting cards salesman or that's what Noora told me but a man in London called him Colonel Banai. Since when do they have military grades for salesman or are things different in Tehran?"
"That you're going to have to ask Banai and your wife but I do know from his dossier that he was drafted like most other men during the war with Iraq and he serviced in the Army on the front lines with valor before he went into the greeting card business. I guess he could've been a Colonel."
"You have a dossier on him? Why would you have a file on a greeting cards salesman from Teheran? This whole thing's a little fishy to me."
"Certainly we do," said Sarah. "After everything that's happened we're vetting any and every one that comes near you as a precaution."
"I guess that's supposed to make me feel better but it actually is doing the exact opposite. I probably would've been better off if I hadn't known..."
The conversation ended suddenly when Samaa said something in Arabic to her father that set Sam off. There were words that started flying back and forth between the two girls with Sarah in the middle. She didn't know what to make of this sudden squabble or what it was even about. She did recognize her name being batted about so she was certain it had to do with her.
"Okay enough is enough. Let's have a time out," said Sarah as she held both their hands to make them stop. "Now do you two mind speaking English so I know what's going on? I understood your talking about me so what gives and I don't want to hear 'nothing'."
"Now you know what I mean when I say I feel like the little fat boy that always gets picked last," said Casey as he smiled back at her in the mirror. "It's not nice being the red headed step child is it?"
"What part of not helping don't you understand?" said Sarah. Then she turned back to the girls. "Now can one of you explain to me what's going on? I'd like a recap but with at least English subtitles." But neither girl wanted to speak up.
"I think I can tell you," said Jamil. Samaa protested in Arabic which made Jamil upset. "Are these the manners you've learnt here? Do you talk back to your parents now? I've very disappointed in you Samaa."
"I'm sorry bâbâ," said Samaa as she became sullen. Sam felt sorry she'd gotten Samaa in trouble so she decided to confess.
"I'll tell you but really it's nothing," said Sam. "This is all my fault Mr. Al-Bayati, so please don't be cross with Samaa. Samaa told her father that I beat up Morgan but I didn't... I swear I didn't… well not a lot at least."
"I didn't say beat up I said slay like the wolf in Red Riding Hood. Your Arabic needs a little work. If we were going to be here longer I'd help you."
"Sam, you can't go around beating up on adults or anyone especially those you know. Morgan was there to watch you not to be your punching bag. I know Morgan can be... well Morgan sometimes but you can't beat up on him."
"You might want to take that down a notch. It wasn't the runts fault," added Casey. "The Troll asked for it by egging her on and he got what he deserved. I stopped her before there was any permanent damage and you know what they say like mother like daughter. I remember I used to spar with a pit bull once she was that way."
"Remember what I said before about not helping. Well you're doing it again," said Sarah. "Sam you have to control your temper before your temper controls you. I want to know what happened."
"I can do better," said Casey as he smiled back at her. "I caught the whole thing on video for use later on. I have to say the kid's got skill and she doesn't back down. Sound familiar back there."
"Instead of filming did the thought ever crossed your mind that you ought to have stopped her before it got out of hand?"
"Now where would the fun be in that? Like I said the Troll had it coming he even told her to show him what she'd do and she did. Boy, did she ever."
Well you can explain yourself tomorrow when we go visit your father in the hospital. But I want to preview that video first. If nothing else so I have all the facts straight."
"We're going to see Chuck! I mean they're going to let me see him?" said Sam as she lit up and became excited. "I'm going to need my medical bag. Can I take my assistant along? I'm going to need someone to record my diagnosis."
"You can say 'diagnosis' but you need someone to write for you," said Casey as he glanced back at them. "You're going to be so bored having to read about Tip and seeing Tip run."
"Who's tip" asked Sam. "Why do I have to watch him run? Does he need a doctor? I could test his reflexes for him. I've got the right hammer now."
"Do I want to know?" asked Sarah as she looked up at Casey who shook his head.
"Probably not but don't blame me that wasn't my doing. If you want someone to blame you need to look at Ellie for that one. But it's probably better than the ball peen hammer she was going to use. Remind you of anyone you know?"
"Shut up and drive."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Dr. Greg cut short his visit with his patient when the man arrived with the canister. He brought him into his office then sent his secretary slash nurse, Anna, off on an errand then an early lunch. She looked at him strange as she left. Normally it was like prying teeth loose to get time off for lunch now he was giving her extra time.
"Are you sure you feel okay," said Anna as she looked him over. "You look sickly this morning when you came in. Now you're giving me extra time off for lunch."
"Well if you want to stay here you can go down the archives and pull out all patient files for the last year then make a copy of them for me."
"But that will take forever and I'll miss lunch all together."
"So which will it be? Go run that errand for me then take lunch or... well what I just told you I wanted you to do."
"I'm gone then. I'll be back after lunch would you like me to call first to make sure the gentleman in your office is gone?"
"Just lock the outer door on your way out," said Greg. He stood in the outer office waiting to hear her lock the office door before going back into his office where a man was sitting waiting for him.
"I see you've made yourself at home. I trust you brought what I asked for," said Greg. The man nodded and responded first by laying his Glock 9 on Greg's desk.
"The Boss just wanted you to realize we mean business," said the man as he looked into Greg's eyes with an icy stare. "If this is some sort of trick," he continued to say. "Well you won't like the consequences because we don't play around."
"I think you've gotten that point across to me. Now that we've gotten the stick out of the way, let's see the carrot or would you like to threaten me some more. After all you can die only once."
"But there are ways and ways to die. Here it is," said the man as he pulled out of his brief case a small canister that looked like the ones they use for compressed air. "You need to be careful with this. A canister this size can take out this whole hospital not to mention how the virus would mushroom from here. Half of this city could be gone before anyone can do anything. Are you sure about this?"
"Absolutely now give it to me and explain to me how I can activate it remotely. I need to plant this inside the quarantine area then release the gas while the people are inside."
"I thought you might want sometime like that so I brought this," said the man as he showed him a device that looked like a regulator for a scuba tank. "This fits on top of the canister. Make sure you've got it on tight or you'll contaminate yourself. Once it's on you can open the valve and the weapon is ready for use. Here take this," said the man as he handed Greg what looked like his remote for a car alarm.
"What am I supposed to do with this and how does it work," said Greg as he looked at it turning it over and over in his hand. "It doesn't seem like much."
"Be careful with that thing and don't drop it. Go ahead and press the button," said the man. Greg pressed it and the light turned green on the regulator device."
"That means the valve is open and the gas is being released. Press it again," he said. Greg did and the light went out. "Now it's reset easy no?"
"So I can plant this canister then leave the hospital and activate if from the parking garage then drive away like nothing. What's the range on this?"
"That's the one drawback on this, it has a limited range but for good reason. The parking garage is too far away you're going to have to get closer. My best guess is with the way the hospital is made you're going to have to be on the same floor to guarantee that this is going to work."
"Geez, you don't have anything with a longer range do you? I'm kind of persona non grata there," said Greg. He saw the man's perplexed look. "That means they don't like me up there."
"I wonder why? Could it be your radiant personality? This is what you've got to work with anything else would require a large power supply and would be less inconspicuous. You've got to get this canister in without being caught then activate from somewhere nearby then get out of Dodge as fast as you can."
"Yes of course you're right. This is your profession after all. Okay I've got this," he said as he started to assemble the canister with the regulator device.
"What are you doing? Don't do that now. Okay you can but the device on but don't open the canister valve. You don't know some idiot could be playing with his car's remote and accidently open it. These frequencies overlap sometimes which in this case would spell disaster. That's why your garage remote can open your neighbor's garage. You don't want to take the risk and before you open that valve check the light just to make sure that sometime during the day some idiot hasn't done what I just told you they could do. You might as well just open the valve on the canister and breath in."
"Crap is this really that safe for me to handle?" said Greg. He watched the man pick up his Glock. "I think I can make this work."
"I'm glad you see it our way. I'm also going to leave you this," said the man as he handed him his weapon. "Have you ever fired a handgun before?"
"I'm a physician dam it not a paid assassin like you. How am I supposed to know how to use this thing?" he said as he took it gingerly with two fingers.
"Go ahead and take it. It won't bit. Using a handgun is easy you point the business end at the person you want to shoot then pull the trigger. He drops down dead. The Glock is an easy weapon to use but there is no side safety once the gun is cocked it's ready to shoot. You might not need this but if you get in a bind on the floor… well failure is not an option. You've got a full clip so you can shoot until you're out or you get shoot whichever comes first."
"Boy this just gets better and better. I don't suppose you could give me another clip in case I run out or is that asking too much."
"Here you go. The magazine release is on the side," said the man as he reached into his pocket and took an extra one out. I'd tell you that this isn't going to be like what you see on TV but as a doctor you should know what a GSW can look like. It's normal to lose your cookies the first time. It's kind of like having sex you never forget your first."
"I'd love to forget this but I don't think I'll be able to," said Greg as he looked at the weapon. He couldn't get over how light it felt.
"No probably not. I know it feels like a toy but it isn't and that you'll find out soon enough. I'd recommend you taking a hit of something first. I can't tell you to drink it's against my religion but in your case it might not hurt."
"I'm glad to hear there's something that's against your religion," said Greg as he tried to find a comfortable place to put it. He didn't trust it in his belt in the front not without a safety and in the back he couldn't figure out how he could sit down so he opted for his jacket pocket wearing his white coat over the top.
"Now that I've got you situated I need to go report back to our boss. Use your burner phone and call once the deed is done. We'll be in touch."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Chuck looked out of the window from his quarantine room at the clock on the wall. Sarah should've landed by now. He realized that by the time she got home it would be late but he still hoped she'd make time to call him. He guessed and Ellie confirmed that Sam and Samaa aggravated Casey until he gave in and let them ride along. With the threat he'd put them on the hood if they misbehaved. He only wished he could've gone along too.
"Doc come on I've been a patient patient long enough," said Chuck as his Doctor came over to check on him. "I think I should be able to blow this joint by now. Don't get me wrong I've enjoyed our time together and your bright glowing personality but I've got people to see and places to be and this is getting old really fast."
"Sarcasm, a sure sign a patient is doing better. Well your immune system is still fighting off the virus," said Doctor McCoy as he read Chuck's labs. "And your white blood cell count..."
"Is almost normal which means the virus is almost gone so my immune system isn't fighting off the virus. Actually, if you look at those lab tests again it says my tests came back negative for the VHF virus. I know how to read a chart Doc."
"You've obviously had medical training so I won't B.S. you. I've been kind of holding you here a little bit longer than necessary to look for your secret..."
"My secret," said Chuck. Suddenly alarms went off in his head. Could the doctor find the intersect in his blood? Chuck realized what he was thinking was ridiculous but he was going stir-crazy in his room so he wasn't thinking crazy thoughts. "I don't have any secrets. I'm just a normal Joe... well actually Chuck but no secrets here. None whatsoever I'm as open as a book."
"A book I'm trying to decipher. What I'm talking about are your antibodies. Your body has synthesized an antibody to fight off the VHF virus and if I can isolate it we can reproduce it in our laboratory to make a cure that can save thousands. Think about it, all the lives this can save," he said as he held up a vial of Chuck's blood."
"You're joking right," said Chuck as he looked at Dr. McCoy. The Doctor reached up and started to take off his hazmat helmet. "Hey what are you doing? Stop! Put that back on. I'm sorry I didn't mean anything when I asked if you were joking."
"You're no longer contagious. This is me being honest with you so you ask if I'm joking? I don't joke when there are lives at risk. I don't know you well but I don't think you do either or you wouldn't be in the line of work you're in."
"You could've given me a heads up first. Geez, Doc you almost gave me a heart attack. I have to admit I like the idea of helping other people," said Chuck. "My father liked helping people. I think that's something Ellie got from him and why she became a doctor." He would've liked to have been able to tell the Doctor more but he couldn't. But what he was thinking was this would be a good legacy for his father. Stephen had created the intersect to help people now it actually could through him.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Casey pulled up in the parking lot at Echo Park and everyone got out. Sarah walked across the courtyard holding Sam's hand. Jamil followed up behind her with Samaa walking with him. There waiting to meet them outside the apartment was Banai and Noora.
"Banai, this is the first time we've met but I think I need to start this by saying thank you," said Sarah as she put out her hand. "Oh I'm sorry."
"Don't worry about it," he said as he took it and shook. "Actually from the way Chuck talked to me about you I feel I know you. You have an extraordinary husband."
"He might be extraordinary but you're going to be in jail soon if you don't get back over the border," said Casey as he came into the courtyard. "We've kept your presence on the down low but that won't work forever."
"Jamil, we need to talk," said Banai. Jamil looked at him strange trying to figure out what was going on. "I can explain everything but I want you and your family to be my guest tonight. I have a house near here where I can put you up with a good Muslim family..."
"But I want to stay with Sam," said Samaa. "Why can't we stay here?"
"Banai, if they go with you you'll be in charge of their safety," said Sarah. She could tell Sam didn't want Samaa to leave either but Sam realized more than Samaa that sooner or later this had to end.
"Of course I will be and then we can go from there. I just think it's better for everyone if they stayed with... well I don't want to say a cliché."
"We'll go," said Jamil then he turned to Noora. "We've imposed enough on these people. It's time we go it on our own and try to go back to being normal."
"Jamil, you know what Cole told you about the IRA. My offer is still on the table but you have to do what you have to do. You need to think about your family."
"That's what I'm doing. I'm going to have to go with family," said Jamil. "Noora get your and Samaa's things together we'll leave with Banai."
"Come on Jamil," said Banai. "I'll take you first then send someone back for the women. That will give us time to talk..."
"Talk about what? I don't know much about the greeting card business."
"Hey Banai, I've got a line for one of your cards. You can use this... there once was a man from Tehran...'" said Casey but Sarah cut him off.
"John, remember we've got children present."