#so many facial nuances go out the window thus far | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

sablelab · 6 years ago

Text

Covert Operations - Chapter 47

DISCLAIMER: This is a modern AU crossover story with Outlander and La Femme Nikita. LFN and its characters do not belong to me nor do those from Outlander.

SYNOPSIS: Madame Cheung has business in Thailand so Jamie and Claire return to Section One to debrief and to plan their strategy for capturing her.

THANK YOU for reading the last chapter and I appreciate the lovely feedback. Much appreciated. xox Previous chapters can be found ...https://sablelab.tumblr.com/covertoperations

CHAPTER 47

Returning to the secret located central headquarters of Section One after their flight from Hong Kong, James Fraser and Claire Beauchamp headed towards the elevator that would descend into the hub of Section. Buried 500 feet beneath the earth Section One was a high tech, covert anti terrorism organisation which contained multiple levels of busy activity. Activating the secret code, the doors opened, and they entered the compartment. Once the metal doors closed behind them, the elevator whooshed quietly into the depths of the earth, then when it came to a stop, the elevator doors opened and Jamie and Claire exited. With eyes fixed ahead and with footsteps that never faltered they passed through the inner portal to Van Access where mission teams arrived and departed and entered the main corridor to the Common Area. Claire's heels clicked out a resolute rhythm against the concrete floor of the corridor, while with each step he took Jamie’s determined gait indicated that he was in total control of the situation. Guardedly, she glanced at him, but Jamie just gave Claire his blank Section stare as they strode purposefully in unison along the corridor to where their leaders were waiting for their return. They were greeted by Operations and Madeline who stood side by side watching as their two top operatives approached. Operations looked well pleased. “Jamie? Claire?” “Yes?”

“We're glad you're back.” Although there was a smile on Dougal Mackenzie’s face it didn’t reach his eyes and seemed a little too ingenuous to be sincere.

“Thank you,” they answered in unison not giving their leaders any facial expressions that would allude to anything more than that they had returned to Section to debrief on the mission. “Well done. I was at Centre. I heard the Cheung mission was a success.” “Thank you.” Madeline on the other hand looked somewhat sceptical and added. “Yes ... so it would seem ... so far.” Ignoring her veiled answer Operations continued, “I look forward to reading your debrief.” “I'll have it on your desk this afternoon,” Jamie replied in the levelled voice he used at all times in Section. The cold operative was standing before his leaders and James Fraser gave away absolutely nothing for Madeline to interpret. . “Good.” Madeline watched Claire as she stood resolutely beside her partner and her eyes travelled between the two operatives surreptitiously. Much to her chagrin, she found nothing unusual or different about the two of them despite their separation and the tenuousness of their past mission. Her one redeeming thought though, was of her impending briefing with Claire. Knowing that Jamie’s presence at Madame Cheung’s home would have been timely, especially given Claire’s reluctance to perform valentine missions, Madeline relished the thought of Claire’s responses to her questioning. Both debriefs would certainly provide an interesting analysis of the mission and target and not to mention Jamie and Claire themselves. With a slight tilt of her head, Madeline turned her attention towards her. “Claire ... I look forward to your debrief as well.” Although her voice and demeanour were warm, her Mona Lisa smile indicated that her mind had already made some assumptions about Jamie’s change of mission profile for her that she would relish investigating. However, just like Jamie, Claire showed no outward emotional response and glancing at Madeline’s face she replied, “Of course.” Having declared their intentions succinctly to both of them, Madeline and Operations then left and made their way to their respective offices to await the debriefings from their operatives. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Watching their leaders proceed across the floor towards the Perch, Jamie and Claire poised a moment before continuing on towards his office. They passed through the central nerve centre of Section One, a vast open space, a circular cone shaped structure. Towering two stories high, it comprised of various workspaces on the perimeter along with four separate entrances and looking down over the entire level was the observation deck that was Dougal Mackenzie’s office where he could observe the comings and goings of operatives. They crossed the main floor at the same time, walking together with their eyes straight ahead and their steps unwavering.

Surreptitiously surveying her surroundings, Claire came to the conclusion that nothing had changed. She may have been out of Section One for nearly six weeks but the wheels of time moved as if it was only yesterday. Her mind however, was also on the debriefing she would give to Section’s second in command.

“Are ye okay Sassenach?” Jamie asked noticing the reticent look that fleetingly crossed Claire’s face.

Looking toward him she replied, but her face and voice were deadpan. “Yes.” “Madeline?”

Nothing escaped Jamie when it concerned Claire. He had come to know her nuances very well and he could tell by just sensing her demeanour that her mind was thinking of the briefing. It was inevitable that she would need to debrief as her deep cover mission had been the keystone to finding Intel about the Rising Dragons, Madame Cheung and ultimately Sun Yee Lok. Madeline would have questions, lots of questions to ask of her but he had faith and confidence in his Claire and how she would report.

“I’m prepared.” “Good.”

Claire saw the wry smile that appeared slightly across his mouth but it very quickly disappeared and Jamie‘s cold operative persona remained stoic as they continued walking.

They walked side by side together until they neared Jamie’s office where they would separate and go in opposite directions. As they walked their bodies merged closer to each other and clandestinely their hands touched with a light caress of reassurance, a gesture that went unobserved by those around them. With corresponding open palms their skin touched. Jamie’s fingertips slid along hers caressing her soft skin. His hand cupped Claire’s in a protective manner, as her fingertips rested on his hand. She felt a bolt of electricity shoot through her fingers the very second that her skin touched his. Jamie continued to walk away as too did Claire yet their hands still held a tentative light touch that sent erotic tinglings zinging along the nerve endings in both of their fingers. Her hand followed his as Jamie appeared to pass her by before entering his office. Unseen by those who may be watching was the gamut of feelings that the light touch evoked within each of them. Jamie’s thumb lightly scraped her open palm and the caress made her shiver causing Claire to close her eyes momentarily to savour the feeling his touch gave to her. His little finger slowly glided across her open fingers until with reluctance and all too soon ... they were gone. Although Jamie’s touch would have measured only milliseconds in time ... to Claire it was as if his caress had lingered for a long while. She felt the sensation of his touch long after his fingers had been removed ... but it was over all too soon.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Without casting a look her way, Jamie continued on to his own office located just beyond Comm. as Claire walked away in the opposite direction. Section One’s most well respected Level 5 field operative’s office was minimal but he had several devices to make it secure if needs be. The picture window with shutters could be blackened to keep out prying eyes and Jamie had installed a surveillance jamming control panel located on his desk for the same reason. However, it would not be necessary to activate it this time although it had served him well on many occasions if he needed to talk clandestinely to Claire, Murtagh or Fergus.

Opening the door, he entered the room, then closed the door behind him. James Fraser made for his desk and sat down activating his computer, then gathering his thoughts he began to write his debrief. Operations would expect all the details on what had occurred especially given the circumstances of him changing the mission profile and his presence at Madame Cheung’s. His subterfuge as Le Comte St Germain would also have to be explained and clarified to his leader’s satisfaction. Dougal Mackenzie would no doubt question the validity of such a change even though he had given his approval to go ahead.

However, the news of Madame Cheung’s open invitation to meet with her in Bangkok with Claire would no doubt be met with endorsement. They had cause to suspect that Sun Yee Lok may have called her back to Bangkok for a meeting and this may be the impetus they needed to finally capture him and Madame Cheung. It was inevitable that both he and Claire would be able to follow through on her invitation and thus capture two birds with one stone.

This last minute invitation had so many meaningful possibilities for Section One to pursue the elusive Rising Dragons’ target. Jamie knew that Dougal would approve this new mission to Thailand and he set to work on his report. His fingers soon whizzed across the keyboard as his debrief began to materialise.

Some time later on the way to Madeline’s office ...

Making her way to Madeline’s office, Claire stopped when she heard the sound of her name. Turning in the direction of the sound, a smile bowed her mouth when she saw who it was walking briskly towards her.

“Ah Sugar,” Murtagh said, as he took a breath to compose himself. He had been waiting for her return for ages. Not having Claire Beauchamp around in Section for some weeks had been disquieting. He had missed her laughter and the conversations they had in Munitions, even if only in passing before a mission. Murtagh was smiling broadly and the skin around his crinkly eyes wrinkled a little more. He was looking at the better part of his day. “Murtagh,” Claire responded beguilingly on seeing her friend. “I missed you. So how are you doing Sugar?” “I'm okay.” “How did things go?” “Oh you know ...” Claire replied not elaborating on any details of her mission. With a raised eyebrow he answered rhetorically, “As well as could be expected?” “Hmmm, something like that ... yeah.” “So what happens now?” “We’ll go out again.” “When? How much time do you have?” “Don’t know. It depends on what Madeline and Operations want.” “Well it’s great to have you back. You look just as beautiful as ever.” “Thanks, Murtagh ... but I’d better go ... Madeline is waiting for me to debrief,” Claire replied pensively and walked away. Murtagh Fitzgibbons watched his friend head towards her inquisition with the doyen of Section One. Once she had disappeared from sight he turned and walked back to Munitions hoping that the she devil wouldn’t tear strips off his Sugar. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Madeline had issued her orders and Claire Beauchamp now made her way to her office. She had not been in Section for nearly six weeks and knew that her leader would have many questions to ask of her. Claire had walked these steps a hundred times before to debrief with Madeline to give her a progress report on a mission, face the music or be issued with orders from her superior. Standing poised on the threshold of Madeline’s office, she faced the cold steel of her door waiting for them to open. Knowing that the next step forward would activate the opening mechanism pad in the floor, Claire hesitated a moment before placing her foot to the device and the doors automatically whooshed opened. Quietly she stepped down onto the floor ... and waited. Sitting at her consol reading a report on another mission summary, Madeline looked up when she heard Claire approach.

“Come in, Claire.”

Entering further into her office she waited for commands from her superior. “Sit down.”

Closing the program, she finally looked at Claire who did as she was ordered. “I know this has been a difficult mission, but you’ve performed well.”

Praise from Madeline was indeed rare, nevertheless Claire acknowledged her congratulations. “Thank you.” Without preamble Madeline then went to the crux of the matter ... the target. “Tell me about Madame Cheung.” “She is very forthright, and runs a tight ship.” “And her association with the Rising Dragons?” “It’s well ingrained.” “Did you ever meet with Sun Yee Lok?” “No, but Madame Cheung had contact with him. He was supposed to come to her residence this weekend but she was called away for about a week.” “I see.” Changing the subject Madeline pulled no punches and got straight to the point of the changed mission profile stating, “We know what Jamie did. Tell me what happened.” Claire gave nothing away except for the bare bones of Jamie’s subterfuge. “He won Madame Cheung over.” “Yes I’m sure he did,” she replied knowingly giving Claire a pointed look. She did not acknowledge Madeline’s sly dig about Jamie’s prowess at charming women and remained just as stoic as when she had entered her leader’s office. Her reply gave Madeline noting more and noting less than that Jamie was successful in dealing with Madame Cheung. “She was very impressed with Le Comte St Germain.” “Good.” “She wants to meet him again.” This Intel raised a positive reaction from Madeline and in her ever active mind the ideas spun in her head as to how this could impact favourably for Section One. “Where?” “Bangkok.” “Excellent ...”

In Madeline’s mindset, she saw this Intel in two different ways. Firstly, it was a possibility that Madame Cheung’s reason for going to Bangkok was twofold ... business with Sun Yee Lok and secondly to further her association with Le Comte St Germain by asking him to meet her there. The invitation for Jamie resonated that Madame Cheung was ready to do business with him because his subterfuge had been very successful. The wheels were automatically set in motion for a new profile scenario. Madeline sat back in her chair as a slight smile registered on her face, but then as quickly as it appeared it was gone.

Her next words though caught Claire by surprise, “By the way, Madame Cheung will be watching you ... She will be curious to know if her plans for you with St Germain have been successful.”

“Plans?”

“She has to remain certain that you have wooed him sufficiently that he will be putty in your hands and thus her hands. Therefore, you and Jamie have to be convincing.” “Right.”

Claire realised that once again Madeline was going to manipulate the two of them to foster a deeper relationship with Madame Cheung and utilise their connection for Section’s benefits. The question really was though ... was it purely for the benefit of the mission or did Madeline have ulterior motives concerning her and Jamie that she would use against them at a later date? Everything Madeline did concerning the two of them had a double meaning and this mission was no different. If she could garner any Intel that she could use for her own purpose then she would not hesitate to do so. Jamie and she were always wary of Madeline’s intentions. They would also be in this mission despite the fact that Section’s second in command had also given permission to continue as if a couple to impress Madame Cheung.

“That will be all ... You may go Claire,” was her curt reply.

Once dismissed, Claire got up to leave Madeline's office. She gave her a vacant non-committal glance so as not to alert her superior to any misgivings she may have at these new directives. Everything with Madeline was a double edged sword that she would use if she could. Her Machiavellian mind was always plotting, always scheming, always devious and she had set her sights on her and Jamie, hence they would need to be careful but still competent in the role they were to play in this continuing mission. Claire had confidence in her partner and the competence of James Fraser was something Madeline and Operations had never been able to suppress. They would achieve what they were trained to do and Madeline would have no recourse but to acknowledge that together they were a formidable pair to be reckoned with.

Turning on her heels Claire left her superior with her thoughts of a new profile for Jamie and herself for which she had probably already set the wheels in motion.

Meanwhile in Operations’ office...

In the eerie silence of his perch Dougal Mackenzie waited for James Fraser to arrive to go over his debrief. He stood looking out over Section observing that the hub was buzzing with action. There was nothing worse than peering out from the perch and finding inactivity. This was an anathema for him because from all corners of the world there were terrorist movements and insurrections that threatened a peaceful humanity. It was Section One’s role to deal with these fanatical individuals and groups that other authorities could not. Hence to see that Section was a hive of activity on any given day, Operations knew that they were making inroads to eradicating these blights on humanity.

From his elevated position Dougal Mackenzie watched as operatives moved about in the course of their duties and others crossed the Common Area on their way to Munitions to prep for a mission. As he waited for his Level 5 field operative, he contemplated his own meteoric rise in the ranks to the position he was in today.

A former U.S. military special intelligence officer captured by the Viet Cong, he was tortured for fifteen days straight and spent seven years in an internment camp before himself being recruited into Section One. Those survival skills during the Vietnam War had been used to mould him into a deadly anti-terrorist operative who had eventually found himself as the leader of the organisation. With allies like his second in command, he had developed operatives in the same ilk as them – cold, merciless and efficient. Both he and Madeline were of the understanding that one had to be more ruthless than the enemy in order to defeat it and any means necessary would be used to get the job done. His thoughts were always on the end game and how it could be achieved and the Rising Dragons mission, although progress had been made, was still not to his satisfaction.

Like Madeline, the leader of Section One was formidable but his arrogance in his demeanour was not conducive to Section being a happy place. Operatives were always under surveillance and relationships between them were frowned upon because any romantic liaison could be detrimental to the success of missions if an operative let his or her feelings affect their decisions. Dougal Mackenzie and Madeline ran a tight ship and they liked it that way. James Fraser and Claire Beauchamp were a conundrum but Operations could not fault the success of their partnership when on missions together.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Suddenly he was roused from his concentration when his Comm. beeped alerting him to a visitor to the Perch.

“Sir, Jamie's here.”

“Send him in.”

When James Fraser slowly entered, Operations turned to face his Level 5 operative.

The man in black who stood before him reminded him a little of himself. Jamie was a formidable Section One operative - clever, perceptive and intelligent. He was a man to be reckoned with who could turn on the charm when necessary to lure a target or could be cold and calculating in apprehending terrorists. James Fraser was Section’s penultimate operative who had been assigned the recalcitrant new recruit Claire Beauchamp to mould into an amenable operative. Never did he and Madeline think or know that their bond would be one that Section would use again and again to take down terrorist organisations or would be a relationship that Madeline would question.

“You wanted to see me?”

Operations had examined Jamie’s report and he was impressed with how things had panned out. “Congratulations. I read your debrief. You carried off what seemed an impossible task.” “Thank ye.”

“My brother Colum at Oversight was very impressed with you. He can’t stop talking about the mission.”

“It was possible after all.” “Yes, I suppose it was. You took a big chance taking St Germain’s place.” Operations moved over to his window and looked out again as he continued to discuss his debrief. Jamie joined him at the window. “Your skills were impressive. The scenario worked to our advantage.” “Thank you.” “Everything went according to contingency.” “Not everything.” Turning Operations looked at Jamie with a frown on his face. “Is there something you want to tell me?” “Madame Cheung has gone to Thailand. She wants to meet with St Germain.” “You think there’s another prostitution agency being set up?” “Yes, but I believe we can locate the nucleus of her operation there. I've gone over the layout with Fergus already. He’s going through what Intel we've relayed from Madame Cheung.”

“Was there any indication that Sun Yee Lok would be in attendance?”

“Not to my knowledge, but given what we know about him it is possible.”

“Yes ... Anything is probable with the elusive leader of the Rising Dragons. Have you worked up a new profile then?”

“Yes.” “Okay let me know when you have something definitive.”

“I’d like to take a small team to Thailand with Claire and I.”

Contemplating Jamie’s request, Dougal asked, “Who do you recommend?”

“Geillis Duncan, Rupert Mackenzie, Roger Wakefield and Davenport’s team.”

“Consider it done. Leave nothing to chance.”

“I understand.”

“We’ll have a briefing in an hour. Both of you will be in play. That will be all. You can go, Jamie.”

“Yes, of course,” he replied, then James Fraser turned around, left the Perch and walked downstairs to prepare for the briefing. Operations watched his Level 5 operative as he left the perch. James Fraser’s back was ramrod straight and his movements were calculated and precise. This operative showed complete control while his bearing was that of a man of action and results. Jamie was a confident man who knew his worth and ability to succeed. Unfortunately, he gave nothing away with his blank stares and was difficult to get a handle on other than he was the best cold operative Section One had ever seen. If all operatives had the success rate that James Fraser had on missions then the fight against terrorists would be a winning formula for Section One. However, this was not always the case as some missions were not successful.

The one thing that he had noticed was that when paired with his partner Claire Beauchamp the competency and expediency of a mission’s success escalated. They were a good partnership but it was a relationship that needed careful monitoring. Madeline was wary of their bond and Section could ill afford for his best operative to become reckless in protecting his material if it could jeopardise a mission. So far they had been successful but would this always be the case? He too had some doubts to the validity of their connection.

Despite his escalating reservations, Dougal had confidence that Jamie and Claire would eventually capture the man who seemed to be faceless but whose influence stretched far and wide. So far Jamie and Claire had managed to make extensive inroads into the Rising Dragons’ Triad hierarchy that had meted Section One far-reaching leads to the Dragon Head himself despite his elusiveness. At some stage he would appear and maybe this trip to Thailand would be that moment. By peeling away the layers of his organisation as they had been doing, then when the time came when Sun Yee Lok was captured, then Dougal knew that all their efforts had not been in vain. He would be a prize capture but if not, then Madame Cheung would most certainly be Madeline’s next inquisition victim destined for the White Room.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ to be continued

#jamie and claire #James Fraser #claire beauchamp #outlander fanfiction #covert operations

43 notes · View notes