05x08 - Grounded

[bunniefuu]

Previously on Covert Affairs..

Everyone in the Chicago facility at the time of detonation has d*ed.

We know the money came from Kredit Krepost, a private bank in Paris.

It's run by Ivan Kravec.

He admitted to buying CIA intel, but he was working for someone else--

Nathan Mueller.

He's CIA.

We don't get too many visitors way up here.

Nathan, listen to me.

There is a Reaper on its way here to take out this entire camp.

[Jet flying overhead]

Target has been neutralized.

I know a guy off campus who might be able to help.

His name's Roger Bennett. He's former CIA.

"Former"?

He had a late-onset chemical imbalance, but he's a good guy.

And more importantly, he's an expert in black market intelligence.

We need to talk about Nathan Mueller.

There's a lot you don't know, Auggie.

[Gasps]

Myocarditis.

It's a heart condition. Annie has it.

It's dangerous for her to be in the field.

You have evidence to back this up?

Yes. She lied.

Something personal like this, is it really that black and white?

I am all yours for the rest of the day.

I'm leaving, Auggie.

Why? Because of Hayley?

It's not that simple.

I'm sorry, but I have to go.

Tash?

[Tires squealing]

You got to be kidding me.

You've been dodging my calls, Mr. Michaels.

I was busy trying to catch the t*rror1st behind Chicago.

Being second-guessed by the NCTC isn't high on my priority list.

Well, you're going to want to hear what I have to say.

Almost home.

You didn't sleep at all.

Must be the pilot in me. I can never sleep on planes.

What's your excuse?

[Sighs]

I can't kick the feeling like there's work to be done.

[Chuckles]

Sharks can't stop swimming.

So I'm a shark?

You're wired for a mission, and so am I.

There's nothing wrong with that.

Ryan, welcome back.

And you must be Annie Walker.

Ryan's told me so much about you.

Caitlyn Cook. Nice to meet you.

Can we give you a ride?

Oh, no.

I-I have my car here.

Well, my best to Joan, then.

Will do.

Um, bye, Ryan.

Uh, bye.

State needs to get on the phone in 15 minutes to discuss the Georgian delegation.

Ryan? Hmm?

Yeah, 15 minutes-- that's no problem, yeah.

Eight calls?

This must be urgent.

Two urgent things, actually.

The first four calls were about you.

Me?

Remember when I told you NCTC was drilling down on everything?

Yeah.

Hayley Price found out about your heart condition.

How'd she find out?

Not from me.

Has she told anyone yet?

I don't know.

I worked hard to make sure she trusts me, but I can't imagine she's going to sit on this thing for long.

Oh.

I assume because we're here, the other four calls were about Roger?

Yeah, he has more intel.

Intel about what?

Wouldn't say over the phone.

You get on a plane for 14 hours, a lot can happen.

Whoa. It looks like someone did some spring cleaning.

Tracking the Postman got me reinvigorated.

I just kind of kept going.

I've adjusted my meds. I feel good.

That's good.

But you still droned the wrong guy.

Excuse me?

That's a big statement, Roger.

I'm not saying Mueller didn't deserve it.

He did some very bad things, but he didn't do Chicago.

Enlighten us.

You followed the right path-- from Borz to the Postman to Ivan to Mueller.

It's exactly what I would have done.

Except there's a missing link in your chain--

Ivan Kravec never met Nathan Mueller.

Ivan said he did.

Speaking of stuff Ivan said, look at this.

It's a CNI file.

Spanish intelligence rounded Ivan up six years ago in Barcelona in conjunction with the Atocha Station bombings.

He gave up some names and then walked.

By the time the CNI realized he was lying, he had already moved to Paris, where there's no love lost between intelligence services.

So you think Ivan also lied about knowing Mueller?

I'm saying there's a pattern.

Okay, so he lied then.

It doesn't necessarily mean he lied about this.

But you built your whole intel chain on the guy.

He's your key witness and not a reliable one.

If you think Mueller didn't do it, who do you think did?

I'm working on that. I'm--I'm close.

We need more than close.

Guys, I'm telling you--

Langley got this wrong. And I'm gonna get it right.

What do you think of Roger's theory?

I think it's good, but it needs work.

Has he ever steered you wrong on intel before?

Nope.

He found us the Postman.

Let's keep looking into it, but not go wide until we have something concrete.

Okay, I'll get into it.

Yeah.

Annie, welcome back.

Nice work in Azerbaijan, by the way.

Team effort.

So what do you think you'll get-- the service medal, intelligence star?

I don't deserve a medal. Just doing my job.

Yeah, yeah, but you know you might even get the distinguished intelligence cross, right?

Thanks, Eric. I should get back to work.

Oh, yeah, supreme work ethic-- that's baller.

[Chuckles]

[Keys clacking]

[Computer beeps]

Annie, DCS wants to see you in his office right away.

Okay.

See? I told you, I knew it.

You're getting the Cross.

[Computer beeps]

Thanks.

You wanted to see me?

Have a seat.

Annie, it's time we talk about your heart condition.

♪ Covert Affairs 05x08 ♪
Grounded
Original Air Date on August 12, 2014

You'll be reassigned as a language officer in the DPD.

Joan's already pulled the paperwork.

Don't you want to hear my side of the story?

Unless it's you telling us you don't have a heart condition and therefore you haven't been lying to your Agency, it's not going to change our position.

My condition is manageable with nitrate medication.

So you've never had an incident in the field?

I've always gotten the job done.

That's not an answer.

Annie, we don't want to lose you as an officer.

We're closing the case on the Chicago att*ck because you identified and helped remove Nathan Mueller in Azerbaijan.

Exactly.

You know...

There comes a time in everyone's career...

Where they get reassigned a desk job.

It happened to me.

It happened to Joan and Arthur.

It happened to Auggie. It happens.

What I am good at is working in the field.

Well, this isn't just about you.

What happens if you collapse in the field?

You could be putting someone else's life at risk as well.

So that's it?

What else did you expect?

I expected more...

More of a fight, more anger.

Over and over I risk my life for this Agency, for this job, for this country, and you are standing there like a bunch of H.R. reps!

Oh, we're angry, Annie.

We're very angry.

We placed a lot of trust in you.

But we are putting that aside so we can find a way to move forward together.

I don't see any together in this.

[Door slams]

Auggie.

You mind telling me which side the graffiti's on?

I hate standing on the wrong side of the Cold w*r.

I just heard. I'm sorry.

They want you to be a good soldier until you die or are no longer of use to them, and then they put you behind a desk.

Come on in. The water's fine.

Doesn't it bother you?

It did.

Sure. And I miss it.

But you can still do valuable work.

The only thing I want to do right now, is follow down Roger's intel.

Well, then do that.

Just be careful about it, because the expectation with a desk is that you stay seated.

So things are moving pretty quickly.

The White House and the DNI are concerned about the Mueller situation.

Concerned about what exactly?

Our decisions and protocols leading to the strike.

The DNI wants to meet with both of you tomorrow.

We think it best if there's a lawyer present.

I'm gonna come.

Moments like this are why you brought me over from Justice.

So this is a legal issue?

Everything we did to get Mueller was by the book.

Was it?

Damn straight it was.

You're saying the White House is concerned, but the target was vetted through them.

Yes, but the lead operative on the ground, Annie Walker, has just been called into question for lying to her Agency.

What are you suggesting?

I'm not suggesting anything.

I'm telling you this looks bad.

Walker was gone for several months.

She covered up her heart condition.

Why? Was she lying about anything else?

No, she wasn't.

She lied because she wanted to keep doing her job.

Regardless, Annie Walker needs to be at the inquest as well.

You referred to it as a meeting.

Well, I expected you to read between the lines.

This is politics now, not espionage.

And if it seems appropriate, you can create daylight between yourselves and Walker.

You're saying throw Annie under the bus.

Only if you disagree with the decisions she's made.

So this is the desk, the desk we have for you.

I-it's a good desk.

I mean, I know a lot of people who have worked here, and they've had very positive comments about, um...

About, well-- the sightlines are...

Good.

Thanks, Eric.

Yeah.

Annie...

Calder and I are meeting with the DNI tomorrow to discuss Mueller and Chicago.

We need you there.

Sure.

We also need a timeline laying out your every move since Chicago.

Every move?

DNI's gonna have a lot of questions.

I'm sure you can supply some of the answers.

Okay.

Annie, listen, about your work in the field...

You weren't just good.

You were exceptional.

Thanks, Joan.

[Keys clacking]

[Sighs]

[Telephone rings]

Annie Walker.

[Altered voice] Go to your car in the parking lot.

I'll call your cell in five minutes.

Who's this?

[Line clicks]

Auggie.

Joan, great.

You got a minute?

Sure.

I was going through Ivan Kravec's interrogation transcript, and I had a question.

Did H.I.G. second-source Ivan's connection to Mueller?

There wasn't time. We had to act.

All right, well, then do you think that giving up Mueller's name might have been a survival mechanism?

It checked out.

We found Ivan's courier on his way to Mueller's camp.

Yeah. Listen, can we reopen Kravec?

No. Kravec is no longer in our custody.

What?

Oligarchs tend to get unhappy when you grab their money guy, so we swapped Kravec for two of ours, which was a pretty good deal, if you ask me.

So we do make some deals.

And now we're talking about Annie.

There had to have been another way to keep her in the field, Joan.

Auggie, I wish there was. My hands are tied.

It's agency policy. She can continue to succeed in the field with her condition.

We need her out there.

Which is a decision you made unilaterally.

Annie could not have kept her secret hidden without your help.

So you should have told me about that--you know that.

I stand by my decisions and you should stand behind Annie.

[Sighs]

[Cell phone ringing]

Hello?

Are you alone?

Yes, Roger, I'm alone.

Mueller definitely wasn't responsible for Chicago.

I've got a guy deep in the Russian embassy who says he has proof someone else was behind the att*ck.

Definitive proof?

Internal FSB files on Borz Altan.

The Russians were monitoring him too.

They have intel linking him to a single perpetrator.

You have a name?

My contact wants payment.

He says he'll only tell me for $100,000.

Needs it by tomorrow.

That's why you called me instead of Auggie.

He's a tech op. He can't get that much cash without a lot of time and paperwork.

You operatives have carte blanche with the Agency's accounts.

All right, uh...

Let me see what I can do.

So how are you gonna get the money?

I don't know.

I was hoping you could put in for it.

Roger's right.

Tech ops get to play with expensive equipment.

They don't let us play with cash.

You didn't tell him you'd been sidelined?

It didn't come up.

I could talk to another one of my operatives, piggyback on another mission.

No.

I don't want to add misappropriation of Agency funds to our list of sins.

Then how are you going to get 100 grand?

Annie Walker to see Ryan McQuaid.

Thanks.

So you finally decided to come and work--

There's a good chance Mueller wasn't behind the Chicago att*ck.

Of all the things I thought you might say, I wasn't expecting you to say that.

I've got an asset who can get definitive proof who did it, which is why I need you.

Okay. sh**t.

The asset needs $100,000 to get the information.

Your Agency won't give it to you?

The Agency found out about my heart... and transferred me to a desk.

Langley would go ballistic if they knew I was following this down.

Jesus, Walker. I'm sorry.

Yeah, me too.

Then we'd better get this intel.

I'll get the cash out of the safe.

Thanks.

I have spent far more on much less.

Maybe you keep that to yourself.

[Chuckles]

Got a sec?

Sure. What's up?

I noticed Annie Walker just entered the building.

She didn't have an official appointment.

I thought maybe she was coming to see you.

No, she's not here to see me.

Did you know Annie when you worked at the Agency?

That's funny. Ryan asked me that when I joined the company.

He did? What'd you say?

I told him Annie was one of the finest operatives I'd ever seen.

Here you go.

[Sighs]

It's been a long time since someone's been willing to back me like this.

[Sighs]

[Safe beeps]

What did the Agency say?

They said this better pay off.

I bet they did.

Call me when you have something.

Hey! What are you doing here?

You don't live in the building!

You talking to me?

You're following me!

I do. I live in--

I've seen you before. I know you're following me.

I'm sorry. My brother has troubles--

He's following me!

Your brother just att*cked me.

Please leave.

Do it again, I'll call the cops.

Stop following me!

Nobody is following you.

It's okay. Just calm down.

[Kicks wall]

[Sobs]

It's okay.

I'm sorry, Annie.

I'm sorry.

Doughnut's good.

Good.

Look, I'm--I'm sorry.

You don't have to explain.

I thought I had it under control.

You know, the mission was really helping me focus, getting to work with you and Auggie, who I respect more than anyone at the agency, and the meds were helping.

But then...

I could've sworn that guy had been following me.

You're working on it.

That's what's important.

Have you ever had any kind of illness?

Mental illness? No.

Funny thing, the brain...

It's your reality.

Spy work messes with that.

Reality becomes less real.

You're in the wilderness of mirrors.

What are you going to do, smash every mirror?

Spy craft-- the thing that I'm best at, the very thing that gives me a purpose-- is also k*lling me.

What kind of life is that?

It's the life we choose.

Look, I know you have to take back the money.

I know how the Agency regards people with illnesses.

But, please... give me one more chance.

I'm not the Agency.

I trust you.

[Indistinct chatter]

Thanks.

Auggie.

We agreed you would talk to me before you moved on Annie, but your agenda was more important than her career, I guess, because the minute she got to the bottom of Chicago, you didn't have any more use for her.

Is that about right?

If that's how you want to look at it.

Change my perspective.

I was doing my job.

You knew she had a condition, and you were hiding it.

I was looking out for her best interest.

Okay, so how are you gonna feel if you get a call that Annie had an episode on a mission and her heart got the best of her and she d*ed?

She knew the risks.

That was her decision to make, not mine and not yours.

Okay, did you call me here to read me the riot act?

Because you could have done this in an e-mail.

No.

Oh.

[Chuckles]

You asked me here to break up with me.

Look, I wanted to do it in person.

Well, if this is your version of chivalry, don't do me any favors.

[Keys clacking]

Annie, I haven't received your timeline.

I know. I'm still not finished yet.

That was the only task on your desk, and it was crucial.

What have you been doing?

Annie, if you walk in there unprepared, it could be seen as an evasive move.

Seen by who?

By the DNI, by the lawyers, by the White House, by anybody who wants an answer.

It seems like I'm being called to the mat on this.

I'm trying to protect you here.

We're all being scrutinized for Mueller, and I'm just trying to make this work.

You can give verbal answers where you don't have the proper documentation.

Hopefully that works.

You signed out $100,000 from the vault?

That's right.

For what?

I understand.

It's your company. It's your money.

Yes, it is.

Well, you don't have to explain.

But you hired me to look after the bottom line, and that's all I'm trying to do.

With the number of new contracts we've gotten recently, we can afford the money.

So budget the 100k to asset maintenance, if that helps.

So now Annie Walker is an asset for McQuaid Security?

I noticed the money was signed out when she was in the office yesterday.

Anything you want to loop me in on?

Caitlyn, I have everything under control.

I just hope you're running Annie and it's not the other way around.

[Cell phone vibrating]

[Vibrating continuous]

[Both whispering indistinctly]

Alex.

Joan. Good to see you, Bill.

Mr. Michaels.

Deputy Director.

I'd like to introduce you operative Annie Walker.

She was on the ground in Azerbaijan during the drone strike.

Hello, Miss Walker.

Good to meet you, sir.

Hope you've cleared your schedule.

We're gonna have you here for a while.

Of course.

The Director will see you two first.

There are a few items that are above Miss Walker's clearance.

Miss Walker, we'll retrieve you in a few minutes.

See you in a bit.

[Cell phone vibrating]

Hello?

Annie, it's Roger.

[Whispering]

Roger.

I can't talk right now.

Hold on.

Did your contact give you the intel?

Do the files say who was behind Chicago?

Yes, but they know I'm looking into them--I don't know how.

But I need to get out of town immediately.

Are you sure about this?

This is not like with the dog walker. This is real.

This intel is real. You'll see when I show you.

Meet me at the train station in Brunswick at 5:10.

No, there's not enough time.

The Agency has resources for urgent asset meetings.

This is urgent.

[Sighs]

Annie.

Hayley Price.

I--I remember.

Listen, I was just doing my job.

I...

I have to go.

[Sighs]

Miss Price, Annie Walker was here a moment ago.

Did you see where she went?

Yes, Deputy Director. She just left.

[Sighs]

[Cell phone ringing]

Thanks for the lift.

Of course.

You think we can make it to Brunswick by 5:10?

It's about 40 miles away. I think we'll make it.

The train's only there for three minutes.

Who are we chasing, anyway?

Remember your $100,000?

Mm-hmm.

Roger Bennett. He's an ex-CIA tech op.

Why is Roger Bennett making life so difficult?

He thinks he's being followed.

Well, he's a spy.

There's a pretty good chance he's right.

[Telephone rings]

Yeah?

Do you have anything to do with Annie leaving ODNI?

Leaving? I thought she was with you and Calder.

She left us standing in director Fitzgerald's office, and then out of the blue, Caitlyn Cook calls me and asks me about an Op Annie's working with Ryan McQuaid.

We should talk.

[Cell phone ringing]

Auggie, I'm on my way to meet Roger in Brunswick.

He's got the intel, but he wouldn't give it to me over the phone.

Why is he on the move?

He's scared.

He thinks he's been b*rned.

He's enacting exit protocols.

Annie, you left Joan and Calder at ODNI.

I had no choice.

Well, if Roger's intel doesn't pan out, they're gonna suspend you.

Yeah, I know.

Good luck.

You get all that?

What, they're gonna suspend you for trying to get the truth?

There, that's the train right there.

Excuse me.

There.

Roger.

Roger.

I'm sorry.

[Tires screech, car crashes]

[People gasp]

[Crowd murmuring]

Are they gonna call security?

I guess.

What happened?

Did you see?

[Murmuring continues]

Excuse me.

Come on, stand back.

Roger!

He's gone.

What about the intel?

This is Revelations 19.

Freemasons.

Roger said he respected you more than anyone else at the Agency.

I wish he hadn't d*ed for nothing.

I dragged you into this.

Annie...

We may not be operative and handler anymore, but we're still a team.

Nothing's gonna change that, no matter what happens in there.

I know.

[Telephone rings]

Yes?

Please go in, Miss Walker.

[Sighs]

Where's Calder?

He's still at Liberty Crossing.

After you disappeared, the DNI was so pissed off at our disorganization and Calder's seeming lack of control over his people that he asked Calder to defend every decision he's made since being named interim DCS.

The director made sure to underscore "interim."

He could lose his job, Annie.

I had to go.

I had find out who Ivan Kravec was really working for.

Besides Nathan Mueller?

Yes.

But I knew I needed unassailable proof to bring it in. And do you have proof?

Roger Bennett said he had an FSB file from a source deep in the Russian embassy.

Roger Bennett was found with conspiracy theories, nothing relating to Mueller or Chicago.

Just because someone has an illness doesn't mean they're not valuable.

He gave his life for the Agency.

Are we talking about Roger or you now?

I needed to find the truth.

Why didn't you let me in, Annie?

It's because you didn't trust me enough to know that I would help you.

But I would have helped you.

And now we're here.

You're suspended... effective immediately.

[Sighs]

Hey.

Hey.

Here's your stuff.

It's not a very big bag, because we weren't together for very long.

No, I guess not.

You know what really bugs me?

Is that in your version of this story, you're the good guy.

All I wanted to do was find out the truth.

Yeah, well, you found it.

It's what you did with it that bothers me.

I wasn't the one keeping secrets or going behind people's backs.

What is that supposed to mean?

It means that the truth matters to me, which seems to be a pretty rare quality to find in this line of work these days.

You turned on Annie because you were angry with me.

Do you really think I'm that unprofessional?

Please. Auggie, I saw you on the street with that girl.

That doesn't matter.

The point is, you used me.

I was just another Op.

It's more complicated than that.

And then you broke it off because I wasn't necessary anymore.

You know, my only mistake in this entire thing is that I trusted you.

And you hold yourself up like this m*llitary man, like you're morally superior to all the other Langley spies.

Well, you're not.

You're just like all the rest of them.

[Footsteps departing]

Well, look on the bright side. You held on to your job.

You must be a real glass-half-full kind of guy, 'cause to me, any meeting that goes so long they serve a meal in the middle is bad.

Well, it would have been shorter if you played it a little differently.

Differently how?

By not defending Joan so much.

Walker made her own bed, but Joan-- it felt like you were protecting her in there, when you didn't need to.

Look, I have my reasons for doing everything I do.

All right. Whatever.

I'll call you when they have follow-up questions, which they surely will.

You're back quick.

Well, he's sleeping peacefully...

[Sniffs]

Unlike his mom.

Got a lot on my mind.

I know what you're thinking about.

You're thinking about Annie.

The truth is, you were a fantastic mentor.

But she's a seasoned operative now.

She--she makes her own decisions.

It's not Annie's decisions I'm thinking about.

No?

I've just witnessed how quickly we, the Agency, can turn against our own when we don't agree with someone's choices.

You're talking about the Balkans.

You're concerned about your secret getting out.

That's not gonna happen.

Well, how do you know that?

'Cause it was a long time ago, and you were careful.

And we have each other now.

Well, I hope you're right.

[Teakettle whistling]

[Sniffles]

[Sighs]

Walker.

I just wanted to tell you you're not gonna get your $100,000 back.

Sorry.

There's no shame in taking a sh*t downfield.

We'll get it on the next one.

There's not gonna be a next one, not for me, anyway.

They suspended you?

You're staying for a drink.

No, it's okay. I don't--

It wasn't a question.

Thanks.

So what now?

I don't know.

I me--it looks like we're not gonna be seeing each other anymore.

So this is good-bye?

Yeah.

Well, it's been nice knowing you, Annie Walker.

It's been a long time since I stayed up all night talking.

Well, I am an exceptionally good conversationalist.

[Both laugh]

Coffee?

Yeah. Thanks.

It's not like I have to be at the office.

[Laughs]

It feels strange not having anywhere to go.

Or another way of looking at it is that you can go anywhere you want to be.

Thanks.

[Doorbell rings]

[Laughs]

Were you expecting somebody?

I am gonna get rid of whoever that is immediately.

Okay.

[Cell phone vibrating]

Auggie, it's, uh, a little early.

Yeah, I'll make it quick. Listen, I was up all night thinking about what happened to Roger.

I dug through the papers you found on him, looking for anything he might have left us-- a message, a clue.

Did you find anything?

No. And that's the point.

Roger, even at his most paranoid, was too smart to buy into any of that conspiracy-theory crap.

Do you think somebody was trying to frame him?

What exactly did you see at the train station?

Did you see Roger run into traffic?

Auggie, he's here.

Who?

Annie, who is it?

The dog walker that Roger said was following him-- he's here at McQuaid's house.

You're at McQuaid's?

Yeah.

You think Roger was right?

Come over here as soon as you leave.

Okay. I got to go.

[Clears throat]

[Zipper closes]

What'd I miss?