Don't own Chuck
Tien went back to his office and had an artist come in so they could do a sketch of Chuck. As they were working the lights blinked and systems came back on line. He heaved a sigh at least things were going back to normal. But what had Chuck hoped to accomplish grand standing like that. Surely, he had to expect people to get pissed off but was that what he really wanted?
"We're missing something here," said Tien. "There's more going on than meets the eye here and I want to know what it is."
"How's this," said the artist as he turned the drawing around. "I've done the best I can do but you know these people all look the same."
"Well we have to try. It looks good. Make sure everyone gets a copy and I want all reported sightings sent back to my office. We'll sort them out. Now go get that out on the street," said Tien as he leaned back in his chair.
"At least we got the system back on line. Now we can feed the sketch into the computer and use facial recognition," said Tien but as he as talking to himself his phone rang. He recognized the number which made him hesitate before answering. He put the call on speaker then prepared himself for the blast that was about to come.
"Good day Minister," said Tien. "How are you today? Is there something I can do for you?" he said then he braced himself for the reply.
"How am I? You have the nerve to ask me, how am I? I'm pretty pissed off is what I am with your incompetency. How could you let this man… one man… slip through your fingers?"
"He didn't really slip. It was more he flew to be precise but I've got men looking for him now and I hope to have him in custody by the end of the day."
"Let's hope you do. I just received word that our friend will be arriving today on the Shang. You are to stay out of his way. I've sent a special detachment to work with him."
"But Minister, Agent Carmichael told us that your guest has kidnapped two Americans, one of whom is his sister…"
"So? That's Ettore's business not ours. As far as we're concerned anyone with Ettore is our guest too but Ettore is responsible for them. Agent Tien, don't worry about things that are no concern of yours. If you leave them alone you'll have more time to take action on what you need to take care of like finding this man."
"Yes sir, like I said I've got everyone out and I've notified all the other agencies. The city is in lock down until I get my hands on him."
"Then let's hope that will be soon. I want a complete report on what happened and how he got away. But tell me this, how did he introduce the virus into your network if you have a closed system? You don't think he had any help, do you?"
"We're still looking into it and I'll make sure you get a detailed report from the techs who came over and eliminated the bug. But I can tell you that we're back in business and fully operational now."
"Good, you know what your problem is? I'll tell you, you're like all the people from your generation you're too attached to your toys. If anything happens to them you're like a fish out of water. You don't know what to do."
"Yes Minister, I'll remember that. Maybe you're right," said Tien. He wanted to tell him something different but there was no need in poking the bear.
"There's no maybe about it. Back in my day this would've never happened. We knew what we were fighting for and what needed to be done. We had the Great Leap Forward then we had the cultural revolution followed by the Gang of Four. No, we had no time for toys."
"No, you didn't," said Tien as he clinched his teeth trying to hold his tongue. "But those were difficult times not like now."
"Oh, that's right. I'm sorry, I forgot you lost your father in the purges. He was a good man," said the Minister. "Well, I'll let you get back to work. Keep me informed," said the minister then he hung up.
"What a self-serving butthole," mumbled Tien as he hung up the phone then dialled an in-house extension. The minister had ridden the currents aligning himself with the right people at the right time even if it meant selling out his former friends to get ahead. One of those people he'd betrayed had been his father.
"What?... No, I wasn't talking about you. I need the name of the tech they sent over to repair our system then patch me through to our cyber division. I need to talk with whoever's in charge over there but give me that name first… What did you say his name was? Charlie Chan. That's the way the work order is written? Okay, I'll hold while you patch me through," said Tien as he turned the name around in his head.
"What Chinese family would name their kid Charlie even if they were from the Chan clan," he said to himself as he waited on line. There was a click then a voice on the other side. Tien put the man on speaker as he started checking his computer.
"This is cyber division. How can I help you? I was told your network was back on line. Don't worry I won't tell anyone about the accident. It can happen to anyone."
"What are you talking about? I was calling to speak to the guy you sent over. I need him to write up a full report for the Minister about what was the matter, how it got into our network and what he did to fix it."
"Hold on a moment, it's one thing if I fudge a little bit for something local but I can't risk it when the report is going to the minister."
"I don't understand what you're talking about. Look, I need to talk to your man… a certain Charlie Chan you sent over here who fixed our system."
"That's going to be hard to do since we don't have anyone here by that name. You know Charlie Chan was fictional character… a private detective if I remember right who lived in Hawaii. Some people think he was a sell-out but personally I think he did what he had to do given the times. However, he always got his man. But I'm getting off track, where did you come up with that name?"
"That's the name that was on the work order this Chan brought over before he fixed our network. Are you saying you never sent anyone over?"
"Oh, I sent a crew over but they told me that your system was off line because someone shorted out your main circuit breaker. Let me find out what's going on and I'll call you back."
"I know exactly what went on. Chuck's what went on. I need someone over here asap to check out our system from top to bottom. I think we've been hacked."
"You got it. I'll come over personally and look at it," said the man. "My name is Lee Jun Fan by the way and before you ask no I'm relation to Bruce.
"I'll be waiting," said Tien. Suddenly Chuck's dramatics made sense. He'd gotten them to clear the building then with a little stage make up he just waltzed back in. Tien realized Chuck had been given the keys to the kingdom and it would be difficult that he'd be able to keep his job after this.
"Crap, you might even be headed to a force labor camp," he said as his phone started to ring again.
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Devon got up early changed then went out for an early morning run. No word from Chuck or Casey had him feeling worried about Ellie. The General dropped him off at Whidbey island as she hurried back to Langley to put out fires Chuck had lite and get ready before he opened up any more cans of worms. Devon was staying in their old apartment in Echo Park with Clara where Sarah could keep an eye on the both of them.
"I've got to clear my head," he said as he tied his running shoes then stepped out in the courtyard where he stretched a little then took off. His circadian rhythm was so out of sync he didn't know night from day.
"I really need this run," he said as he kicked it into high gear. He wanted to tire himself out and maybe for a little while put everything that had happened to them out of his thoughts.
"I wonder is this isn't some sort of PTSD," he said as he ran down the street cutting back through the park. "I'll have to talk to Ellie about that. This is her area of specialize," he said to himself.
"Heck," he said as he ran. This brought back everything he was trying to block out of his head and more. Now he felt guilty because he'd been saved while Ellie and Alex hadn't. It seemed so unfair to him.
Meantime back at the apartment Clara had a nightmare and woke up. She'd dreamt that Ettore had come back for her and her father. However, this time there was no one to stop him and he took both of them.
"You're not going to take Clara," yelled Devon. Then he got into a fight with Ettore's men. They held him and Ettore pulled out a knife. She saw it shinning the light.
"No! Don't hurt him," she yelled as she stood up bed with closed fists ready to fight. Then she looked around and remembered where she was.
"Phew, that was a bad nightmare," she said as she climbed out of bed. She left her room then went into the kitchen and got herself a glass of milk. There was something about a glass of milk that made nightmares go away or that was what her mother told her. But drinking the glass made her miss Ellie that much more.
"I wonder if dad will let me sleep with him," she said to herself as she put her glass in the sink. She just wanted to be held. She walked back to the bedrooms then opened her parent's door slowly but she found Devon was gone.
"Crap, they took him for real," she said. She ran outside then over to Sarah's as fast as she could. She tore open the door and started running back to Sarah's bedroom screaming. "They took him... they took him!"
Sarah jumped out of bed grabbed her Smith and Wesson from under her pillow then met Clara halfway down the hall.
"Calm down," said Sarah as a sleepy-eyed Sam came out to see what was going on. "Who took whom? Take a deep breath and tell me what happened."
"I had a nightmare so I got up and went into the kitchen. I got a glass of milk then I drank it. After that I went to my parent's bedroom thinking I'd like to sleep with Dad but he's gone. I know someone came and took him during the night."
"Just calm down a bit. I'll go check but in the meantime why don't you and Sam go sleep in my bed. Sam keep an eye on Bunny if she wakes up come and get me."
"But I'll be asleep, how am I supposed to know if she's awake?" Sarah gave her a look. "Okay I understand. Come on Clara, Mommy wants me to keep you and Bunny company."
"Okay now to check on this," said Sarah. She thought about calling Kat and asking her to come over to watch the girls but something told her to investigate the situation first. She was walking across the courtyard with her weapon in hand when Devon came walking in sweaty after his run.
"What's going on? Why do you have the hardware out? Is everything okay?" said Devon as he did a few stretches before stiffness had a chance to set in.
"I ought to shoot you, is what I ought to do. Clara had a nightmare then went looking for you and when she couldn't find you she thought someone had gab you again."
"I only went out for a few minutes to go running and I really needed this to clear my head. You might be used to this but I don't know how you can take it. I worry about Ellie being with that lunatic Ettore and it scares me…"
"It scares us all and I can understand what you're saying but running in the early morning hours all alone isn't smart. Clara has good reason to be concerned that Ettore might try to grab you again. Especially if he doesn't think Ellie is doing everything she can do for him."
"What do I do then? Do I get a treadmill and run in doors? Living underground is not living. I need to get back to work or I'm going to go crazy."
"Let's take this one step at a time. If you want to go running I can go with you just let me get someone over here with Kat to watch the girls. As far as going to work that might have to be put on hold for a little while longer. Look, I don't like this any more than you do but this is what we've got and we need to keep it together for the kids. Can you do that for them?"
"Sure, I just wasn't thinking this morning. It won't happen again. Now I need to hit the showers then whip up some breakfast. I saw there's fresh kale in the fridge I can make my famous power shake for everyone."
"You realize I still have my weapon in my hand? I think we'll all pass on the power shake. Clara is sleeping over with us. She and Sam have taken my bed so I'm going to grab a few winks on the sofa before Kat arrives. Then we'll throw breakfast together and make a plan for the day."
"Sure, I can't interest you in a shake. You should try it you never know you just might like it. I can make two just as easily as I can one and your colon will thank you."
"There are just somethings you know you're not going to like before you try them. Like being shot for example. You don't need to know you're not going like then you get shot," said Sarah as she put her other hand on her weapon. "And you find out it's the mother you always thought it would be."
"Well, if I don't see Kat is here I'll ring the doorbell before I come in."
"I think that would be a prudent thing to do. Unless you want to get shot but who knows you might like it. Though I can't think of any internal organ that would thank you."
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The Shang class 093 pulling into the Zhujiang river estuary and they proceeded for Longxue island shipyards. The Skipper and the pilot brought the sub in port then they tied her outside a tender. The old man made sure the bumpers were over the side before they came in close. The Skipper was well aware that with the wrong breeze everything could go to crap in handbag.
Everyone on the island knew something was going on when security personnel poured in then closed the shipyard off to all non-authorized personnel.
"Okay get those lines over and let's get her tied off. Be careful to the sides and make sure those bumpers are in place. We've come too far to screw it up now," barked the Skipper through a megaphone so the line handlers could hear him. A few minutes later the brow was over and the Skipper and XO watched breathing a sigh of relief as Ettore departed taking his men and the two American women.
"My name is Wong and the minister sent me to see to your needs," said a tall oriental man dressed in black.
"I want the Skipper removed for cause. You can pack him up and ship him to some backwater port," said Ettore to the Chinese Officer who greeted him.
"But what did he do… I'm going to have to justify this with the People's Liberation Navy," said Wong as he looked at Ettore with surprise. "He did just bring you to port and we sent him to save you from being grabbed by the Americans."
"Do I need to have you relieved too? He questioned me and who is he to do that and you for that matter. If you have all the knowledge I have in my head then you could question me but you don't and you should remember that. Now do as you're told," said Ettore as he climbed into the waiting vehicle with Ellie and Alex.
"What's the matter Ettore? You were expecting a better ride or did something not go the way you wanted," said Alex. They'd heard the commotion outside but could understand what was going on.
"Nothing that concerns you," said Ettore as he watched Wong talking to two other men dressed in black pointing at the tender. They nodded then went on board the tender to cross over the sub then Wong walked back and got in. "I assume what I asked for is being taken care of," said Ettore in English.
"Yes, my men went to the sub to arrest their captain. He'll be detained by us pending trial then transferred to another command," said Wong answering in English.
"You know you are one big SOB," said Alex. "What did that man do to you? He got you where you wanted to go. And you people, what has he offered to give you that's so great that you'd sell your souls to him? Whatever it is you'd better be sure he can deliver. We want to be taken to our consulate," said Alex. "This man is holding us against our will and don't pretend you don't understand what I'm saying because we just heard you speak flawless English."
"Alex, if I were you I'd keep my mouth shut. You'll be happy to know that my people contacted me and they picked Morgan up at the airport in Shanghai. So, it was him in the airport in LAX. Maybe you and Ellie need your eyes examined. Morgan is in perfectly good health right now and if you want him to stay that way you'll sit back and enjoy the ride. Let's go."
Alex started to say something but Ellie took her hand then shook her head. They sat back in their seat and looked out the window.
[On the mainland]
Anna's men waited in their van monitoring the activity going on the island as best as they could. They'd set up look outs at the various bridges over to the island screening vehicles coming and going. Then a dark colored Nissan drove across a bridge with a vehicle in front and behind all three had official plates.
"This is him," radioed a lookout as he looked up at a tall building nearby. "He's all yours Lin make it count," he said then he disappeared regrouping in the van.
"I got him" said Lin from her sniper's nest. "I've got a clear shot. I'm going hot," she said as she squeezed off a round. "Okay it's done," she radioed in as she broke down her weapon and got out as quickly as she could.
"Good work, the tracker signal is coming in loud and clear," said the man in the van. "Now we just have to tell Anna that we put a tracker on Ettore's vehicle. "When both tracker signals meet that will mark the spot."
The side door opened and they quickly recovered their people then started pursuing the Nissan with Ettore inside.
"You know this has been easy… maybe too easy," said the driver. "I mean think about it. When have we had a mission like this where everything has fallen into place?"
"Keep quiet Chen or you'll jinx it. You don't talk like that in the middle of a mission," said Lin as she cleaned her weapon.
"Think about it Lin. You could've taken everyone out in that Nissan but instead we just attached that blood tracker. I mean wouldn't it have been simpler just to take Ettore and everyone out?"
"I don't know what you're trying to say. You're upset because it's going to well or that we should've taken the target out back there? You're not making much sense Chen."
"Well, I'll explain it in a few. Right now, I need to make a pit stop and get some gas. We're running on fumes."
"Why didn't you get gas when we were got here? Now isn't a good time to make a pitstop," said the agent as he monitored the trackers. "They are pulling away from us."
"I'm sorry, I just didn't think about it but it won't take long," said Chen. He signalled then pulled into a gas station. "I'll be right back," he said as he jumped out locking his door behind him.
"What was he thinking we're still in the van," said Lin. "I'm going to run in quickly since we're here," she added but she found her door locked. She looked out of the window and saw Chen walked out of the bathroom carrying a phone.
"Crap, he sold us out," she said.
"It's taken care of like you wanted," said Chen as the van erupted in a ball of fire. He watched it burned. "The white lotus is on the train following Morgan. She doesn't know her team is gone… Where do you want me to meet you? I'll meet you at Yuexiu Park by the statue of the five-rams," said Chen then he hung up smiling.
"Money in my bank account… fortune is smiling on me," he said.