jlm110108
05-25-2007, 12:15 PM
Charlie and Amita listened to the voice mail recording of Taylor Ashby's voice. “United States FBI Agent Colby Granger; also by the Chinese....”
Charlie exchanged glances with Amita then picked up his cell phone with shaking hands. “Don?”
“Hey, Buddy, we're kind of busy here. What's up?”
“We got the Janus list.”
“That's great...”
“Colby's name is on it. He's an agent for the Chinese.” There was no reply. “Don?”
“I... I... thanks.” The connection went dead.
Charlie slumped into his chair.
Amita looked at the desk phone. Ashby's voice continued, listing agent after agent who had been co-opted by a hostile government. “Should we record this?”
Charlie nodded. He pressed a button on the console. “There. If it doesn't loop, I'll call the number again when it finishes.” He buried his face in his hands. “I don't believe it. Not Colby.”
“What did Don say?”
“All he said was 'Thanks.'”
“It's got to be hard on him.”
Charlie nodded. “It's hard on all of us. Colby was a good agent, a good friend. Why... why would he do something like this?”
Amita shook her head. “Do we really know he did this?”
“We don't. But this,” he gestured at the phone, “is pretty damning evidence.”
She nodded. “You've known him for two years. Have you ever had any reason to be suspicious of him?”
“Just once. When that Chinese lady was murdered. Colby recognized Dwayne Carter in the surveillance tapes of the woman's apartment building, and didn't tell Don. But I still don't understand this.”
Later that night, Alan, Don and Charlie sat on the floor of their living room, in front of the fireplace, drinking whiskey and discussing Taylor Ashby.
Alan lifted his glass in a toast. “'Light many lamps and gather round his bed.
Lend him your eyes, warm blood, and will to live....
But Death replied: ' I choose him. ' So he went,
And there was silence in the summer night;
Silence and safety; and the veils of sleep.
Then, far away, the thudding of the guns.'”
Don grinned. “Yeah I like that. When it's your time, just go in peace, huh?”
Charlie finished his whiskey in one gulp, and grimaced from the burn. “See, to me I think, I think it's more about having to face a new fight tomorrow, so rest while you can.”
Alan leaned back and looked at his sons. “You know this proves something your mother and I always knew about you.”
“What's that?” Don asked
“You're both right.”
Don sighed and shook his head as he finished off his whiskey. “I was definitely not right when it came to Colby.”
“Well,” Alan said, “he's obviously very good at what he does. You weren't the only person he fooled, you know.”
“Yeah, but I was the one who worked with him every day. I was the one who should have seen this coming when he didn't tell me about Dwayne Carter. But he fooled me again and again.”
Alan poured another round and Charlie said, “Don?”
“Yeah, Buddy?”
“Do you have any idea why Colby...”
“No.” Don cut him off abruptly. “I don't know why Colby sold us out to the Chinese. I don't know why, of all the teams he could have joined, he joined mine. I don't know why Taylor Ashby decided to give us the Janus list. There's a lot of things I don't know, and the biggest one is 'why.'” He downed his glass of whiskey and held it out for Alan to refill.
Instead of filling the glass, Alan patted Don's hand. “Donnie, even if Colby opens up to you, you may never know why he did what he did. All you need to know is that the two of you working together caught Colby and Carter before they could do any more harm.” He filled the glasses again.
Don brought his glass to his lips, but paused before drinking. He smiled ruefully. “'Ours is not to reason why...'”
Charlie lifted his glass somberly. “Let's hope we can continue to 'do' before anyone else dies.”
Author's Note: Alan's quote was an excerpt from “The Death-Bed” by Siegfried Sassoon. That excerpt and the five paragraphs following it were shamelessly stolen from the episode “The Janus List.” Don's quote was from Alfred, Lord Tennyson.
P.S. I still think Zubeneschamali pulled more emotion out of this scene than I did, but this is my take on it.
Charlie exchanged glances with Amita then picked up his cell phone with shaking hands. “Don?”
“Hey, Buddy, we're kind of busy here. What's up?”
“We got the Janus list.”
“That's great...”
“Colby's name is on it. He's an agent for the Chinese.” There was no reply. “Don?”
“I... I... thanks.” The connection went dead.
Charlie slumped into his chair.
Amita looked at the desk phone. Ashby's voice continued, listing agent after agent who had been co-opted by a hostile government. “Should we record this?”
Charlie nodded. He pressed a button on the console. “There. If it doesn't loop, I'll call the number again when it finishes.” He buried his face in his hands. “I don't believe it. Not Colby.”
“What did Don say?”
“All he said was 'Thanks.'”
“It's got to be hard on him.”
Charlie nodded. “It's hard on all of us. Colby was a good agent, a good friend. Why... why would he do something like this?”
Amita shook her head. “Do we really know he did this?”
“We don't. But this,” he gestured at the phone, “is pretty damning evidence.”
She nodded. “You've known him for two years. Have you ever had any reason to be suspicious of him?”
“Just once. When that Chinese lady was murdered. Colby recognized Dwayne Carter in the surveillance tapes of the woman's apartment building, and didn't tell Don. But I still don't understand this.”
Later that night, Alan, Don and Charlie sat on the floor of their living room, in front of the fireplace, drinking whiskey and discussing Taylor Ashby.
Alan lifted his glass in a toast. “'Light many lamps and gather round his bed.
Lend him your eyes, warm blood, and will to live....
But Death replied: ' I choose him. ' So he went,
And there was silence in the summer night;
Silence and safety; and the veils of sleep.
Then, far away, the thudding of the guns.'”
Don grinned. “Yeah I like that. When it's your time, just go in peace, huh?”
Charlie finished his whiskey in one gulp, and grimaced from the burn. “See, to me I think, I think it's more about having to face a new fight tomorrow, so rest while you can.”
Alan leaned back and looked at his sons. “You know this proves something your mother and I always knew about you.”
“What's that?” Don asked
“You're both right.”
Don sighed and shook his head as he finished off his whiskey. “I was definitely not right when it came to Colby.”
“Well,” Alan said, “he's obviously very good at what he does. You weren't the only person he fooled, you know.”
“Yeah, but I was the one who worked with him every day. I was the one who should have seen this coming when he didn't tell me about Dwayne Carter. But he fooled me again and again.”
Alan poured another round and Charlie said, “Don?”
“Yeah, Buddy?”
“Do you have any idea why Colby...”
“No.” Don cut him off abruptly. “I don't know why Colby sold us out to the Chinese. I don't know why, of all the teams he could have joined, he joined mine. I don't know why Taylor Ashby decided to give us the Janus list. There's a lot of things I don't know, and the biggest one is 'why.'” He downed his glass of whiskey and held it out for Alan to refill.
Instead of filling the glass, Alan patted Don's hand. “Donnie, even if Colby opens up to you, you may never know why he did what he did. All you need to know is that the two of you working together caught Colby and Carter before they could do any more harm.” He filled the glasses again.
Don brought his glass to his lips, but paused before drinking. He smiled ruefully. “'Ours is not to reason why...'”
Charlie lifted his glass somberly. “Let's hope we can continue to 'do' before anyone else dies.”
Author's Note: Alan's quote was an excerpt from “The Death-Bed” by Siegfried Sassoon. That excerpt and the five paragraphs following it were shamelessly stolen from the episode “The Janus List.” Don's quote was from Alfred, Lord Tennyson.
P.S. I still think Zubeneschamali pulled more emotion out of this scene than I did, but this is my take on it.