A/N: A lot of you liked the Mellie-Fitz interlude in the previous chapter. Glad you liked it!

This update is a long one. A lot of people in this chapter, several of them new characters. To keep the dialogue easy to follow, I structured one section almost as though it were a script with the format of name of character: line of dialogue. It makes that section easier to read since multiple people are speaking in that one scene.

And just to jog your memory, this opening section about Pakistan and the doctors is a reference to the news story mentioned in Chap. 14 ("Something Wicked This Way Comes") about the Taliban being worried that the CIA was using medical doctors to spy on them.

Chapter 25: Twist of Fate

Little Malik was a 10-year-old Pashtun boy. He lived in a remote village in the North Waziristan region of Pakistan. One day, a group of foreign doctors came to his village. They brought medicines and supplies and people came from across the region to see the doctors to get some basic medical treatment.

One of the doctors was very friendly with the tribal children. He played games with them and offered them sweet treats. One day this doctor took a small group of boys aside and asked them if they would like to be his helpers. The boys said yes! The doctor said he needed helpers who could find new patients. He told the boys that he would give a soccer ball to the boy who told him about any strange or unusual people who might need to see a doctor. But the doctor said the children had to report directly to him and not tell any other adult about their little game.

Malik, who had no toys to speak of, wanted that soccer ball. But he didn't know of any people who needed a doctor. Malik sighed. That soccer ball would be forever out of his reach.

A week later

The sound of gravel crunching signaled that a vehicle was approaching. Little Malik and some of the other village boys came running out of the various small shacks lining the road to get a look at the car that was approaching. It was a black Land Rover and it left a plume of chalky dust as it drove past the group of boys.

Malik and his friends ran after the vehicle as it made its ascent up the winding road. It took only a few seconds for most of the other boys in the group to fall back but little Malik was curious. He wanted to see who was in that car.

At the end of the road at the top of the hill was a medium-sized concrete building. The place had been empty for months but the location was the Land Rover's destination.

Little Malik took a shortcut through a lightly wooded area that bordered the road. He saw the Land Rover circle the building twice and then come to a halt. Malik stood behind a tree and watched to see who emerged from the vehicle. There were three men and one woman. The woman obviously wasn't local. She was wearing pants and her skin was brown and Malik could clearly see her entire head, including her hair because she wasn't wearing a hajib. For Malik, it was a very unusual sight to see a woman without her hair covered. Another strange thing he noticed was that the woman's hands were tied and there was a cloth in her mouth preventing her from speaking.

One of the men stepped forward and said something to the brown-skinned woman. The man was unusual looking too. He only had one arm and he needed a cane to walk.

Malik got scared and stayed hidden behind a tree. These were very strange people. He waited for them to go inside the building before he turned around and left.

As he scrambled back down the hill toward his village, he was thinking of telling his best friend what he had just seen when the image of a soccer ball popped into his head. He remembered that the foreign doctor wanted to find new patients. The one-armed man with the cane probably needed to see a doctor, Malik thought. That bright, shiny new soccer ball was now well within reach.

Three days later. 2 a.m. in Washington, DC.

The phone in the private residence of the White House rings. Hal, the Secret Service agent on duty, answers it. Normally he'd be reluctant to disturb the President and the First Lady at this late hour, but the call is important.

Hal knocks lightly on the door to the presidential bedroom suite. "Mr. President, there's an urgent phone call for you."

Fitz knows the call has to be important coming at 2 a.m., so he doesn't ask who's calling. "Transfer it to the secure line in my private study," Fitz says, pulling on a pair of sweats over his boxers. "I'll be out in a minute."

A few moments later...

"Yes, this is the President speaking," Fitz says into the phone's receiver.

"Mr. President, it's Cam. Sorry to get you out of bed at this ungodly hour, but it's important."

"That's quite alright, Cam. What is it?"

"We found her. We found Olivia," comes the reply.

There's a long pause. Fitz exhales sharply. He can't believe his ears.

"Sir, did you hear me? We found Olivia. She's being held in a compound in a northwest province in Pakistan," Cam says.

"Are you sure? Is she alive?"

"Yes, but we're going to need to move fast to rescue her," Cam replies. "Omar Hazib Bahar, one of the world's most wanted terrorists, is the person who is holding her."

Fitz gasps.

"Sir, you know what this means, don't you?"

"Yes, that the rescue of Olivia has now turned into a search and destroy mission," the POTUS replies.

"Yes, sir. I'll call Cyrus and ask him to call an emergency meeting of the National Security Council in the next two hours," Cam says. "I'll find a way to present the information so that the idea to launch a military strike in Pakistan won't seem like it was your idea."

"Sounds good," Fitz replies and then quickly adds, "And Cam…"

"Yes, Mr. President?"

"Thank you."

Fitz hangs up the phone and then sinks into a nearby armchair. Can it be true? Is this six-week long nightmare almost finally over? A wave of emotion comes over him and for the first time in six weeks he finally allows himself to do something that he didn't allow before - He breaks down and cries.

5 a.m. the same day

The Situation Room, White House

Emergency Meeting of the National Security Council

In the room:

Fitzgerald Thomas Grant III, POTUS

Cameron ("Cam") Reynolds, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency

Ian ("Mac") MacMillan, National Security Advisor

Sally Langston, Vice President

Jethro ("Jet") Mazulla, Secretary of Defense

Cyrus Beene, Chief of Staff

On the large flat screen TV there is a still image and basic stats about one of the world's most wanted terrorists:

Omar Hazib Bahar

58 years old

Born in Kabul, Afghanistan

Bio: Became radicalized in his 20s during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. Trained for jihad in Chechnya, Russia. Skilled bombmaker for hire. Legend has it that when he was captured by the Israelis, he made a daring escape by cutting off his left arm while in custody to get out of the handcuff that chained him to the prison wall. Evidence connects him to numerous bombings in Asia, Europe, Africa, North and South America. British and Americans were generally the primary targets.

Cam Reynolds: "British intelligence has informed us that they have identified the current location of Bahar. Their source indicates that Bahar is hiding out in a small compound located in an isolated region of the Pashwar province and that…."

Ian "Mac" MacMillan interrupts: "Who's the source of this information?"

Cam: "MI-6 has a Pakistani asset that has been able to acquire this information for us. Now, as I was saying, Bahar is hiding …"

Mac interrupts again: "Bahar is one of the world's most notorious terrorists, wanted on almost every continent. He's as slippery as an eel and has done a very good job of staying off the grid in recent years. In fact, there hasn't been a Bahar sighting in over five years. How do we know that this intel is reliable?"

Cam: "A man fitting Bahar's description was spotted and identified by a reputable source in Pakistan."

Jethro Mazulla: "If what you're saying is accurate, this sounds like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to cut off the head of the snake of a terrorist organization."

Cam: I agree, and that's why I called for this meeting. It's obvious that Bahar moves around a lot, never staying in one location for longer than a few days. If we're going to get him, we'll have to move fast.

Cam brings up some satellite footage of the region on the huge flat screen TV at the front of the conference room: "British intelligence informs us that a one-armed man fitting Bahar's description has been spotted entering this compound." Cam taps the screen and the picture zooms in on a low-slung concrete structure. Both Fitz and Cyrus, lean forward in their seats. "A U.S. citizen has also been spotted entering this structure with Bahar and his men. A female who appears to be their hostage…"

Sally Langston: "An American female? Who is she?"

Cam: "We believe she is Olivia Pope."

Sally: "Olivia Pope? The Olivia Pope who worked on the Grant campaign and was the White House Communications Director? That Olivia Pope?

Cam: "Yes, I'm afraid so."

Sally: "How on earth…?"

Cam: "Madam Vice President, I'm sorry, we don't have all the details. But we are certain that the woman being held by Bahar is Olivia Pope."

Fitz: "Cam, let's stay on topic," the POTUS says authoritatively, not wanting the conversation to linger on Olivia for fear that Sally and Mac may start asking too many questions. "What is your recommendation to the Security Council."

Jet: "Mr. President, if you will allow me, I say that we mobilize an elite team, such as Navy Seal Team 6, and do a night-time raid to capture Bahar and to rescue the hostage.

Sally: "Mr. President, must I remind you that our current relationship with Pakistan is strained. If we do this raid and something goes wrong…"

Cyrus: "Are you actually advocating that we do nothing? That we allow this snake Bahar to get away? How exactly do you think that will play with the American people?"

Mac angrily says: "Cyrus, the vice president said nothing of the sort. She's raising some legitimate concerns. Don't any of you remember what happened in 1993 to Clinton in Somalia with Black Hawk Down? A search and rescue mission can go to hell in a handbasket in the blink of an eye."

Fitz: "We have the finest military in the world. Nothing will go wrong."

Cam: So it's decided then, Mr President? You support Sec. of Defense Mazulla's recommendation that we launch military measures in Pakistan to capture this known terrorist?

Fitz: "Yes, I do, and I want to make this happen as soon as possible. This meeting is adjourned." Fitz stands up and so does everyone else seated at the table. "Cam, walk with me."

As the two men exit the Situation Room together, Fitz turns to Cam and asks in a low voice, "Did you prep Jet? (referring to the Secretary of Defense) Because that whole thing went down very smoothly."

Cam simply nods and smiles.

30 minutes later in Sally Langston's office

It had been several weeks since Billy Chambers had been able to get any new dirt about the White House's plans to save Olivia Pope and Farheed Davi was getting restless. Billy decided to come into the White House a few hours early and snoop around and see what information, if any, he could scrounge up. To his surprise, when he arrived at 6:30 a.m., Vice President Sally Langston was already at her desk.

"Madam Vice President? What brings you in so early?" Billy asked, alarmed.

Sally looked at her watch and then remarked, "Gosh, yes, it is still early. I've been up since 4 a.m. because the President called a special emergency meeting of the National Security Council."

"Oh really?" Billy ears pricked up. "What's going on?"

"Billy, I'm afraid your security clearance isn't high enough for me to tell you," Langston replied. "I wish I could tell you but I can't."

Now Billy was more curious than ever. An emergency meeting of the National Security Council was an extremely rare occurrence. Something was brewing. Something big.

"Madame Vice President, I'm your Chief of Staff," Billy whined. "You know that you can trust me with this sort of information."

Langston, who was seated at her desk, peered at Billy over the rim of her reading glasses. She thought about it for a moment and then said: "The CIA has found Omar Hazib Bahar and they want to take him down immediately."

Billy gasped. This was huge. The architect of some of the world's most heinous terrorists acts was close to being caught.

"And, Billy, you're not going to believe this part, but the CIA says that Bahar is holding Olivia Pope hostage. Can you believe that?" Langston asked incredulously.

Billy choked and started coughing. "Say what?"

"I said that the CIA says that Bahar is holding Olivia Pope hostage," repeated the vice president. Billy's face drained of all its color.

"Hey are you OK?" Langston asked as she got up to get Billy a glass of water. "You look like you've seen a ghost!"

"I'm, I'm, mmm, OK," Billy stammered as he stumbled out of Langston's office. He felt like he was going to be sick. He ran to the men's restroom and splashed water on his face.

"Shit, shit, shit, SHIT!" he screamed as he kicked the wall in the bathroom. What the hell had Farheed Davi gotten him involved in?

When Billy had made his pact with the Devil, he never imagined that the Devil would be connected to one of the most notorious mass murderers of all time! "FUCK!" Billy screamed. Now what was he supposed to do? Warn Davi that the U.S. military was about to strike? Or keep quiet?

Billy paced back and forth in the restroom. When he started down this path to get Pres. Grant out of office, he never thought that his actions would lead him to be affiliated with Public Enemy #1 of the United States. Yes, he had been naïve, but helping Omar Hazib Bahar escape would be like helping Osama bin Laden. No, Billy had to draw a line in the sand. He would keep quiet and not say anything to Farheed Davi. Let Bahar burn! Let all those ragheads burn! Billy thought. Taking down Pres. Grant would have to wait for another time.

A/N: If you looked up the term "opportunistic scumbag" in the dictionary, there would be a photo of Billy Chambers right next to the definition. Well, at least he's picked the right time to develop a conscience! But Billy hasn't stopped to think about what Farheed Davi's reaction will be. Davi isn't just going to give up and go away. Billy has made a pact with the Devil, and the Devil is going to want his pound of flesh, one way or the other.

Next update within 12 hours! The chapter you've all been waiting for finally arrives! YAY!

Thanks for reading!