FIC: In the Arms of the Wicked, 25 (Don, McGowan, OMC, Liz, PG-13)
Title: "An order to follow"
Series: In the Arms of the Wicked, Part 25/?
Characters: Don, McGowan, OMC, Liz.
Rating: PG-13.
Spoilers: Season 5.
Warnings: None.
Summary: Carl McGowan has some news for Don.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything (characters, situations, etcetera) except my OCs.
Beta: The wonderful twins_m0m and the great lillyg.
Previous chapters: Click here.
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25: An order to follow
Let’s see what you do. From the war room door, Carl observed what Don’s team did when an emergency arrived. It seemed that something or someone had fallen to the floor at Dr. Farrow’s Arizona house. Then there was silence, and after that, footsteps.
“You… son of a…” the archeologist’s voice came out.
They were in danger. Don shouted, “What’s going on? Ian! Farrow!” There was no answer. Whoever was there, had hung up.
Tension filled the room. Don held the edges of the table as Agent Warner ran her hands over her hair. Her eyes soon landed on his, but they suddenly changed their direction. When Don turned around, Carl stated, “You better start putting together an operation, because if any of those men gets killed, you can be sure Cameron’s going to come down on you.”
Taking a deep breath, Don turned to the phone and threw the pictures of Sergio García to the table. “Megan, I want you back at the office ASAP with everything you got from that crime scene, do you understand me?”
“Yes, Don. We’re moving!” Megan said, and then she hung up.
Carl let his fingers tap the doorframe in a frenetic rhythm that cut the air. It wasn’t that he was nervous. He wanted to share his expectation, his impatience when it came to solving a case like this. He usually never did this; an agent who had high security clearance level had to stay calm, after all. But in this opportunity, he wanted to test Don.
It was Don himself who pointed at the phone and said, “Liz, put David and Colby on the line, tell them to get out of that motel and get to that house!” He looked so worried, passing his hands over his face over and over again, that Carl thought his work there was done. He would monitor every step of the operation as soon as there was news, but there was something he had to take care of first.
With steady footsteps, he returned to his office and sat at his desk. Calmly, he took out his cell phone and dialed a well-known number. He waited for the other person to pick up.
“Cameron.”
“Sir, I’m calling to update you on the Arizona case… Agent Edgerton and Christopher Farrow were assaulted two minutes ago. The assigned team is taking action on it as we speak.”
Cameron didn’t answer immediately. To Carl, that wasn’t a surprise. After all, the EAD had interest in the people involved. “Is Agent Eppes still leading the operation?”
Something had to be going on for Cameron to ask such thing. “Yes.”
“Okay. Carl, check your computer. See the last entries to your database.”
Frowning, Carl did what he was asked. Using his password, he entered the system and some numbers caught his attention among the displayed entries. “I got an intrusion… at 3 p.m., dated two days ago.” He could hear Cameron take a deep breath.
“Eppes came to see me.”
So that was what this was about. Don had broken into his computer, found Cameron’s data and gone to see him. It was probably because of those tapes that had disappeared. Carl didn’t know what kind of information they contained, but he should find out soon if they were in his boss’ hands. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes, everything’s fine.”
“Should I…?”
“No. Not right now because I want him to finish this case. But let him know. You know what to do. I’ll take care of the rest.”
So the decision had been made. “Of course.” With quiet manners, Carl hung up and entwined his fingers over the table. He could remember the calls he’d made so that Don’s team could work on Arizona. He could also remember Don’s expression when he’d told him that the tapes were missing. Why would he go visit Cameron, especially considering that he could be considered a suspect of intent of attack? Looking for a man who’d gone into Protective Custody wasn’t the smartest move. There had to be a secret there, and he had to find it out.
Very worried, Carl took a deep breath and spent a while just thinking about what the next steps would be. After a short time, he made a decision. There were higher priorities right now. Too many things were happening in Arizona - uncontrolled, out of his hands. Besides, he had to follow Cameron’s orders.
Someone had to check that everything was being done according to the book, so he went back to the war room. Don and Liz were talking to Agents Granger and Sinclair over the speaker phone. He watched the scene from the door again.
Don had taken the lead. “David, Colby, where are you?”
“We just checked in at the motel. We landed like an hour ago,” Sinclair responded.
“All right, you two listen to me. We’ve got a very bad situation in Arizona. Ian and Farrow have been attacked.”
“What? By whom?”
“We think it’s Sergio.”
“The butler?” Granger asked.
“Yeah… He’s doing the inside job for the cult. The point is, we were talking to them on the phone, then the line went dead. We're sure something happened, so you gotta go there and be my eyes while the rest of us work here. Are we clear?”
“Consider us there already, Don,” David announced.
Carl decided to enter the room. This has to be done now. “Please, follow me. I need to talk to you,” he told Don, and he guided him into an empty office. “Please, take a seat.”
Don sat down and remained silent; Carl walked around and slid his hands into his pockets. “Do you know what I found what I checked the entries to my database?” In response, Don frowned and opened his mouth, but Carl stopped him. “No, no, please. Don’t even bother.”
There was no point in explaining everything to Don. So Carl continued, “So that’s how you found EAD Cameron’s address… Did you ever consider how suspicious that would make you look? You could even be considered as an intruder, as a possible suspect of breaking into Protective Custody. You did know that Cameron’s father was killed by a double agent, didn’t you?”
Rubbing his forehead, Don explained, “I did, but only because he told me when I went to see him. Apparently, he knows Agent Ian Edgerton…”
“Of course he does.”
Don didn’t understand what Carl meant by that. He added, “I just wanted to talk to him about what happened at my house and Amita Ramanujan’s case…”
“But you weren’t allowed to. Protective Custody exists for a reason,” Carl stated, and then stood in front of Don. “You made a very bad decision, Don. And for that, when this case is over, your security clearance will get suspended until we decide if you’re trustworthy enough to work with us again.”
Don’s face tensed and his mouth hung open in protest. But before he could say anything, a familiar voice said, “What?”
When Carl turned around, he could see Dr. Charles Eppes, Dr. Fleinhardt and Agent Reeves at the door. They all looked consternated, as they’d heard his last words.
“Don, what’s going on? Why is he saying you’ll get suspended?” Charlie asked, but the only thing Don did was shake his head, get up and leave the room.
Series: In the Arms of the Wicked, Part 25/?
Characters: Don, McGowan, OMC, Liz.
Rating: PG-13.
Spoilers: Season 5.
Warnings: None.
Summary: Carl McGowan has some news for Don.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything (characters, situations, etcetera) except my OCs.
Beta: The wonderful twins_m0m and the great lillyg.
Previous chapters: Click here.
Previous chapter
Next chapter
25: An order to follow
Let’s see what you do. From the war room door, Carl observed what Don’s team did when an emergency arrived. It seemed that something or someone had fallen to the floor at Dr. Farrow’s Arizona house. Then there was silence, and after that, footsteps.
“You… son of a…” the archeologist’s voice came out.
They were in danger. Don shouted, “What’s going on? Ian! Farrow!” There was no answer. Whoever was there, had hung up.
Tension filled the room. Don held the edges of the table as Agent Warner ran her hands over her hair. Her eyes soon landed on his, but they suddenly changed their direction. When Don turned around, Carl stated, “You better start putting together an operation, because if any of those men gets killed, you can be sure Cameron’s going to come down on you.”
Taking a deep breath, Don turned to the phone and threw the pictures of Sergio García to the table. “Megan, I want you back at the office ASAP with everything you got from that crime scene, do you understand me?”
“Yes, Don. We’re moving!” Megan said, and then she hung up.
Carl let his fingers tap the doorframe in a frenetic rhythm that cut the air. It wasn’t that he was nervous. He wanted to share his expectation, his impatience when it came to solving a case like this. He usually never did this; an agent who had high security clearance level had to stay calm, after all. But in this opportunity, he wanted to test Don.
It was Don himself who pointed at the phone and said, “Liz, put David and Colby on the line, tell them to get out of that motel and get to that house!” He looked so worried, passing his hands over his face over and over again, that Carl thought his work there was done. He would monitor every step of the operation as soon as there was news, but there was something he had to take care of first.
With steady footsteps, he returned to his office and sat at his desk. Calmly, he took out his cell phone and dialed a well-known number. He waited for the other person to pick up.
“Cameron.”
“Sir, I’m calling to update you on the Arizona case… Agent Edgerton and Christopher Farrow were assaulted two minutes ago. The assigned team is taking action on it as we speak.”
Cameron didn’t answer immediately. To Carl, that wasn’t a surprise. After all, the EAD had interest in the people involved. “Is Agent Eppes still leading the operation?”
Something had to be going on for Cameron to ask such thing. “Yes.”
“Okay. Carl, check your computer. See the last entries to your database.”
Frowning, Carl did what he was asked. Using his password, he entered the system and some numbers caught his attention among the displayed entries. “I got an intrusion… at 3 p.m., dated two days ago.” He could hear Cameron take a deep breath.
“Eppes came to see me.”
So that was what this was about. Don had broken into his computer, found Cameron’s data and gone to see him. It was probably because of those tapes that had disappeared. Carl didn’t know what kind of information they contained, but he should find out soon if they were in his boss’ hands. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes, everything’s fine.”
“Should I…?”
“No. Not right now because I want him to finish this case. But let him know. You know what to do. I’ll take care of the rest.”
So the decision had been made. “Of course.” With quiet manners, Carl hung up and entwined his fingers over the table. He could remember the calls he’d made so that Don’s team could work on Arizona. He could also remember Don’s expression when he’d told him that the tapes were missing. Why would he go visit Cameron, especially considering that he could be considered a suspect of intent of attack? Looking for a man who’d gone into Protective Custody wasn’t the smartest move. There had to be a secret there, and he had to find it out.
Very worried, Carl took a deep breath and spent a while just thinking about what the next steps would be. After a short time, he made a decision. There were higher priorities right now. Too many things were happening in Arizona - uncontrolled, out of his hands. Besides, he had to follow Cameron’s orders.
Someone had to check that everything was being done according to the book, so he went back to the war room. Don and Liz were talking to Agents Granger and Sinclair over the speaker phone. He watched the scene from the door again.
Don had taken the lead. “David, Colby, where are you?”
“We just checked in at the motel. We landed like an hour ago,” Sinclair responded.
“All right, you two listen to me. We’ve got a very bad situation in Arizona. Ian and Farrow have been attacked.”
“What? By whom?”
“We think it’s Sergio.”
“The butler?” Granger asked.
“Yeah… He’s doing the inside job for the cult. The point is, we were talking to them on the phone, then the line went dead. We're sure something happened, so you gotta go there and be my eyes while the rest of us work here. Are we clear?”
“Consider us there already, Don,” David announced.
Carl decided to enter the room. This has to be done now. “Please, follow me. I need to talk to you,” he told Don, and he guided him into an empty office. “Please, take a seat.”
Don sat down and remained silent; Carl walked around and slid his hands into his pockets. “Do you know what I found what I checked the entries to my database?” In response, Don frowned and opened his mouth, but Carl stopped him. “No, no, please. Don’t even bother.”
There was no point in explaining everything to Don. So Carl continued, “So that’s how you found EAD Cameron’s address… Did you ever consider how suspicious that would make you look? You could even be considered as an intruder, as a possible suspect of breaking into Protective Custody. You did know that Cameron’s father was killed by a double agent, didn’t you?”
Rubbing his forehead, Don explained, “I did, but only because he told me when I went to see him. Apparently, he knows Agent Ian Edgerton…”
“Of course he does.”
Don didn’t understand what Carl meant by that. He added, “I just wanted to talk to him about what happened at my house and Amita Ramanujan’s case…”
“But you weren’t allowed to. Protective Custody exists for a reason,” Carl stated, and then stood in front of Don. “You made a very bad decision, Don. And for that, when this case is over, your security clearance will get suspended until we decide if you’re trustworthy enough to work with us again.”
Don’s face tensed and his mouth hung open in protest. But before he could say anything, a familiar voice said, “What?”
When Carl turned around, he could see Dr. Charles Eppes, Dr. Fleinhardt and Agent Reeves at the door. They all looked consternated, as they’d heard his last words.
“Don, what’s going on? Why is he saying you’ll get suspended?” Charlie asked, but the only thing Don did was shake his head, get up and leave the room.