Don't own Chuck
Twelve had been called into talk with One earlier. He had no idea why he'd been called for but didn't like the fact that hat little weasel secretary was hovering around One when he walked in. One went straight to the heart of why he'd summoned him. He wanted to know what he knew about what was going on in Montenegro. He looked over at One's secretary who was still hovering this time standing behind his boss and realized the weasel had fingered him. There was no use in denying that he'd let the Major go but he decided to put a twist on it.
"I'm sorry but I haven't heard anything from the Major lately and yes, he asked me if he could go as you've probably already been told and no, I didn't try to stop him. I wasn't taken in by White's false promises and I believe I've been proven right."
"I hope you aren't trying to hint that I was taken in," said One as he looked up over papers he had in his hands.
"No, I didn't mean you but there were others who were for whatever reason supporting White and his late partner. But in the long run one or the other should get us what we want and that's what matters."
"Yes, results. I want to know what's going on and I don't like it when I'm out of the loop. I asked my secretary and he tells me doesn't know anything. Now I ask you and you tell me the same. I want Jack Burton brought to me and I want he here now. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes Sir...Sir might I suggest you ask the Russians? You still have to meet with that Russian Colonel so why don't you ask him? They had a lot of contact in the past with the people in that area. Maybe he could find out something about what's going on for us?"
"And how am I supposed to do that without looking like an idiot? I have to ask him for intel that my own people should be able to get for me. Think about it... how do you think that makes us look? I want you two to go and get in touch with your people. I don't care who brings Burton to me I just want him and you people had better not muck it up or heads will roll."
"Yes Sir... Oh and I'd like to take this opportunity to tell you that Viktor is back under lock and key. We're holding him in the town jail after he eluded the men your secretary put on him..."
"I'm having those idiots disciplined and it won't happen again. They'll serve as examples for what happens to those people who fall short. But Twelve I understand you had help in finding him. I heard the Russians turned him over."
"I gave orders that they were to stay under lock and key until I decide what I want done with them," said One as he got angry slamming the papers he had in his hand on the desk.
"Let me explain," said Twelve as he looked over at the Secretary standing behind One smiling. "You see Viktor ran to them for assistance... he's Russian too remember but they simply turned him over to us as a sign of good will. They never left the house they're staying in so their intervention was to a bare minimum."
"That's different then... okay, good," said One as he thought. "So, keep Viktor in a cell and tomorrow the Circle will decide what to do with him. I guess I should meet the Russians and thank them."
"You seem reluctant to meet with them," said Twelve. He didn't mean to say it out loud he was thinking it but it came out then he had to cover himself. "I mean I'm sure you have your reasons... good ones."
"Everything isn't as it seems with them but I'll deal with them tomorrow too. It's getting late and we have a long day tomorrow. I need Jack Burton here to parade before the rest of the Circle and if he's not here then I'll use one of you. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes Sir," said Twelve and One's Secretary nodded then the two men left together. Just outside the door Twelve saw the Secretary pull out his phone.
"You might want to listen in on this," said the man smiling at Twelve. "I'll put the call on speaker so you can hear too."
"That's awfully generous of you," said Twelve sarcastically. Twelve felt like strangling him but that wouldn't solve his problem. However, it would make him feel better. "Who are you calling? Domino's doesn't deliver here."
"Funny, but let's see if you're still laughing after this call," he said as they heard a voice recording saying the number they had dialed was either out of order or turned off.
"Now that was rather anticlimactic. Maybe I should call the Major too and have him hurry?" said Twelve as he pulled out his phone. But the secretary dialed another number. The number start to ring then there was a click. He didn't wait for the person to speak. "Is White or Oscar there?"
"Mr. White is sitting behind me," said a male voice. They heard the man tell White he had a phone call then there was a series of clicking sounds and he was on.
"White, it's me the Secretary. I tried calling your number but got no answer so I called the plane. I need a progress report for One right away and I didn't want to bother Oscar."
"Yeah, my phone got broken in a little mishap. Look, I'm not going to be able to talk to you for very long. Oscar is busy grabbing Jack Burton and I expect him here anytime now. I'm not sure exactly what his plan is but he sent me here to the airport. As you know I'm on our plane now with the pilot. We've gone through all the preflight checks and notified the control tower so as soon as he shows up we can take off."
"Just to be sure I've understood what you said is that Oscar should be there soon with Jack under tow then you're going to take off and fly back here?" said the Secretary smiled over at Twelve and how Twelve wanted to knock those teeth down his throat.
"Yes, that's exactly what I said. Look there's movement outside I need to go. Yea, this could be it so I've got to go. If you want to know our ETA you can call back in an hour and by then we'll be airborne and I'll know more.
"Will do, thanks," said the Secretary as he hung up. "If you want to call the Major go ahead but I don't think it's going to do you any good.
Twelve so wanted to throttle that smirk off the man's face but they were interrupted when one of their security men showed up.
"I'm sorry to bother you but there's been a development with the Russians. That old Colonel is standing outside his front door. We don't know what he's up to but you told us to come and notify you if they did anything."
"Yes, you should go check on them," said the Secretary. "Maybe you can handle that better than you could Jack Burton."
"Let's go see what he wants," said Twelve as he pushed past the Secretary. He was burning up inside and trying to figure out his next move. Any way he looked at it, this was a grieve embarrassment for him and one he didn't know if he could recover from.
They went outside and got in one of their vehicles then drove through town. Past the Comms trailer and then past the jail before pulling up outside the house they'd put the Russians in.
"See there he is just standing there in the doorway looking out. We couldn't understand what he was doing so we came for you."
"Well let me got see. I think I might know what he wants and that's to talk to me," he said as he yawned. "Looks like I'm not going to get any sleep tonight." Juri waved to him as he got out of the SUV then went back inside.
"I hope he's got a pot of coffee on," yawned Twelve again. "You guys stay here and let me handle this alone."
"Are you sure about that Sir?" said the security guard. "I mean they aren't one of us. What if they do something?"
"Like what? They're surrounded and besides they handed Viktor over as a sign of friendship so I think we need to extend a little gratitude back. I'll be fine and hopefully I can wrap this up in a hurry so I can get a little shut eye. Well, here goes nothing," said Twelve as he started up the path to the front door.
"With the way things are going I could be with Viktor tomorrow. I bet that little rat secretary is over pleased with himself. I wish I could put my hands around his neck and squeeze until his eyes pop out. Put that out of your mind for now and think about the Russians," he said as he knocked on the front door.
"Come in," said a voice coming from inside.
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The Secretary thought he'd done it. He was in the process of reaping his rewards and soon he'd be able to eliminate two possible contenders as well as pains in his side. If he could get White put on the Circle then White would owe him big for his ascension so when the time came and One retired his position within the Circle would be assured.
"Yes, you need to be thinking three moves ahead to win at this game," he said to himself as he walked over to the Communications trailer. "Twelve didn't have a chance against me."
"How's it going boys," he said as he walked inside. Everyone stopped and gave him a look. The only time the man was this cheerful was when he'd gotten someone whacked.
"Fine Sir," said the watch leader. "Everything is quiet now after that problem we had with the escaped prisoner."
"Good, I need to get word to the airport to have them prep the chopper and be on standby. It'll need to take off as soon as our plane arrives from Montenegro. They are to shuttle all the passengers here as soon as they touch down and they are for no reason supposed to hang around the airport."
"Yes Sir, I'll get right to it," said the man sitting in front of a radio with headsets on. He began relaying the Secretary's message.
"As for the rest of you, make sure the word gets out that we're expecting the chopper in sometime in this morning. I don't want anyone getting trigger happy and shooting it down. As soon as it lands I want the prisoner and White escorted to me. If White asks I'm supposed to escort him into One and above all the prisoner is not to be taken to Twelve. Do you understand?"
"Yes Sir," said the watch leader but the Secretary motioned for him to repeat what he'd just said. "Right, you want us to escort the prisoner and White to you in your quarters as soon as they get off the plane. I'll radio everyone and make sure they know not to shoot at it."
"Good, so now I can go get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a good day for me," said the Secretary as he left the trailer. "I almost feel sorry for Twelve... I did say almost," he said as he started whistling as he walked back over to the City Hall where he and One had set up rooms. One had taken the Mayor's office while he had to make do with a small adjacent room.
"There will come a day when I'll have the big room," said the Secretary as he got ready for bed. One was listening to Opera very loudly in the room next door.
"I can't stand Opera, especially Leoncavallo's 'Pagliacci'. I hate clowns and this opera is so depressing. I don't know why he listens to it," said the Secretary as he put earplugs in.
"Much better, now for some well-deserved sleep. I bet Twelve isn't going to sleep tonight," he said as he laughed. "If I have anything to do with it he's going to get some eternal rest along with the Major. I bet Oleg doesn't have the courage to show his face up here again. It doesn't matter I can put a hit on him. He can run but he can't hide," he said as he switched the light off.
[Meanwhile back at the Communications trailer]
"I got the word to the chopper crew. They didn't like being rolled out of bed but their getting the chopper prep'd and are standing by."
"I've got everyone notified that the chopper's coming in so that's taken care of too. That little guy for not having a number sure acts like he's in charge."
"I know what you mean but you need to watch what you say. The man doesn't like being talked about behind his back and he does get even. Just between you and me I was hoping the Major would take care of him once and for all."
"Now talk like that will get you in trouble. We just need to do our jobs and keep our heads down. Leave everything else up to the men in charge and we'll get out of here safe and sound and in one piece."
"Hey, did you see that," said the one man sitting in front of the monitors. "I thought I saw a shadow outside the jail."
"It's just that little guy's gotten under your skin with his talk. I'd rewind the tape and check it out before I do something that I can't undo."
"Maybe you're right," said the watch leader. "If I dispatch a patrol Twelve is going to want to know what's going on," said the man as he looked at the monitor.
"That right and now he's in the doghouse looking for a way out. You don't want that way out to be you."
"Rewind the video and let me look at it one more time."
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The shadow the man had seen in the Communications trailer was Anatoly as he and Mary neared the back of the jail. Mary grabbed him and pulled him away before he was caught in full view of the camera but she wasn't happy with him. He started to apologize but she just held up her hand for him to keep quiet. She looked at her watch and waited.
"Okay, John should've taken out the guys watching the video cameras. Come on we don't have much time," said Mary as they walked around to the front door of the jail.
"All right we're here so what do we do now?" asked Anatoly as they stopped outside the entrance. "Do we shoot our way inside?"
"We're not sure that Casey took out their comms so we should be a little cautious," she said as she pulled out a ball cap from under her jacket and put it. She made sure her hair was hidden underneath then pulled the bill down over her eyes. "Give me you weapon then play along."
"I don't know if I like this," he said as he handed her his Makarov. "Are you sure you know what you're doing? You have done this before?"
"No, not really but the way I look at it we fake it as long as we can make it and do you really have to ask if I know what I'm doing," she said as she slipped his weapon down his belt in the back. Then she tapped on the glass with her pistol butt until someone came to the door.
"What's going on," asked a man who came to the door holding Beretta 9 in his hand. "I asked a question. What's going on and who is this?"
"This is one of those Russians that came in today. I found him roaming around the street. He says he was looking for someplace to get a drink and I didn't know what to do with him so I brought him here. This is the jail after all."
"No, no, you should've escorted him home but since you're here come on in. I'll call around and get him a ride home."
"Good, my feet will appreciate that," said Mary as she and Anatoly walked in behind the man. "How are things in here? We heard you've got that Viktor guy locked up in here. I'd hate to be the guys who let him slip away."
"Yeah, they're in hot water," said the man as he walked ahead of them leading them inside. Mary looked around and saw there was another man in a cubical behind glass on a radio. She heard someone in the back so with the man in front of them there was three total.
"The radio just went down," said the man in the cubical. "Sorry, I can't call for a vehicle so it looks like you're going to have to hoof it."
"Sorry," said the man who'd brought them inside then he just realized Mary wasn't one of them. "Hey, you're a woman? We didn't bring any women in our security detail." He reached for his weapon.
"No, you didn't," said Mary as she planted a foot in the man's groin sending him to the floor moaning. She tossed Anatoly her weapon as drew a steel spike from her sleeve throwing it threw the grid in the glass where people spoke. The spike flew home catching the man on the radio in the neck. He made a gurgling sound as he dropped to the floor.
"Where are you going," said Anatoly as he cracked the man Mary had kick across the back of the head. He went down with a thud but Mary was on him too. She pulled out another spike and stabbed him in the back of the neck.
"We don't have to tell Chuck about this," she said as she looked up at Anatoly. He didn't have time to answer when the man in the back walked in to find his partners down.
"What the heck," said the man as he stood there for a moment then went for his weapon. Anatoly didn't hesitate putting a round through his face.
"Here you're going to need these," said Mary as she tossed Anatoly a set of keys and started retrieving the dead men's weapons. "You go get Viktor then we need to free the town's people after that we have to hustle to get over to the soccer field."
"I wonder how things are going with Chuck," yelled Anatoly as he went back to the cells. "I really didn't understand what he and Stefan were going to do."
"That's their mission so there was no need for him to explain it to us. But I'd feel better too if he'd been a little clearer but we have to hope he knows what he's doing."
"What? You don't think he's winging it?" said Anatoly as he came out with Viktor under tow. He looked around a little perplexed.
"What's going on? Am I supposed to trust you after what you've done to me? And who is this woman? I demand some explanation."
"You can stay here and get your explanation in the form of a nine-millimeter round to the back of the head or come with us and you just might live to see another day. The decision is up to you but we have places to go and people to meet."
"Translated," said Anatoly in Russian. "Keep up or we'll leave you behind. Now let's move out and stay close."
"K Chertu," said Viktor as he followed them out the door.
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Twelve walked in the house after Chuck told him to come in. he noticed something was off as soon as he walked in but couldn't put his finger on it. Chuck showed him to the table then pulled out a chair for him to sit down. In the meantime, Stefan set up glasses then poured everyone the rest of the Rakia that was left in the bottle setting a glass in front of him.
"I'm sorry to tell you that One won't see you until the morning. Something came up and then it got late," said Twelve as he picked up his glass and took a sip.
"Really? Like what?" said Chuck as he turned the glass around in his hand then sat it down. "I was thinking about seeing him now."
"That's not possible," said Twelve as he noticed neither Chuck nor Stefan were drinking then he noticed Anatoly was missing. "Hey where's the other guy?"
"You don't need to worry about him but what was in your drink," said Chuck as he sat a vile on the table. "This is the antidote for what you just drank. You behave and I just might give it to you. Now, let's try this again. I want to talk to One right now and I want you to take us."