Together Again Season 2

by 24rocks05

After Jack's miraculous escape from the Chinese prison a little over a year ago, he and his wife Audrey are expecting a child. But, when Jack is faced with possibly the biggest threat to Amreica yet, can he hold together his new life with the ones that he

Prequel/Last Season Ending: A New Day

Jack Bauer stared at the ceiling in his bedroom. It was 11:49 and he couldn't get to sleep. It was one of those nights where he had one million thoughts running through his mind, and his bedroom just seemed too small to contain them He looked over at his wife Audrey, asleep and facing him. Her eyes were closed and she looked so peaceful. Jack reached over and swept her hair off of her face, laughing at how he had to reach over her large stomach to get to her. He kissed her on the forehead and she smiled in her sleep, and then walked out onto the porch.

He sat in a chair, a new one that he and Audrey had bought together for their new house. It had been the best thing in the world to create a new life for himself with the people that he loved.

Kim was living in a house a few minutes away, raising Angela. Like when Terri died, Jack hadn't been able to protect Kim from the terrible thing that was losing a loved one. That scared him. His daughter needed protection from the evil that always surrounded her, didn't she?

Kim had needed her father when her mother died. She had been terrible to him and said things that she didn't mean, but he had taken it lying down, and been loving and kind to her in return. He understood her pain, and wanted so desperately to protect her from it, but he couldn't.

And then Jack had disappeared, leaving the world to think that he was dead. Kim had needed protection there, and when she didn't get it, she broke down. Who was there to reassure her that everything was okay?

Then, Chase died. She had her father to reassure her that everything was going to be okay, but she found that she didn't need him. She was miserable and desperate in the first few days in his absence, but found herself with a new set of emotions. She could finally accept all of the pain that she felt. She could understand that although she felt so terrible now, there would be better times, and she had to work towards those. She had grown up, and found that instead of needing the protection of others, she had to protect her daughter. She was doing what Jack did, trying to help Angela through the loss of her father. Kim had switched from the one that needed protection from the world to the one that gave it.

Jack was proud of her. He loved her more than anything, and it pleased him to see that she could now rescue herself from all of her pain. And now, he was going to have a new child to protect, and that pleased him as well.

Jack sat back in his chair and looked up at the stars. He and Audrey had a family now, a life. He sighed and realized what a miracle it was that, after all that they had been through, they were together again.

He loved her so much, and he knew that she loved him as well. Finally, they were happy. Jack couldn't help but think that they deserved it.

The phone rang in the kitchen. Jack walked inside, past a sleeping Audrey. It was now nearing midnight. Jack checked caller I.D. It was CTU.

Jack held the phone in his hand as his mind raced.What if it was another one of those days? What if, after he was finally happy, he lost it all again? Jack considered not answering the phone. He could turn his back on the world, leaving others to save it, and stay with Kim and Audrey and the child that was soon to come… No, he couldn't. What Chase had said to him the day that he died really was true; they were the same people. They both would never be truly satisfied until they had done all that they could to protect the people. Jack paused a second, and looked around. Could he bear to lose Audrey again? No. But he couldn't bear to stop doing what he could to protect the world from evil. He would have to save the world and continue to keep the promise that he had made to her. They would be together again.

Jack held the phone to his ear.

"Bauer," he said, and as the clock switched to twelve o'clock, a new day began.

Chapter 1: Protection

"Jack, we need you here now," said Bill Buchannon, sitting warily at his desk at CTU. His wife Karen sat on the couch in his office, looking depressed.

"Bill, it's midnight. What is going on?"

"Samuel Edmunds started making a commotion in his prison cell tonight. He started crying and saying that he had to tell someone about a threat. It concerns old "friends" of his. They are terrorists and, according to Edmunds, definitely know what they are doing. Jack, we need to follow up on this. Edmunds seems genuine. The death of his brother changed him. I need you here. We need to make sure that he's telling us everything."

"What is the threat?"

"What he has said so far has been pretty vague. I'm not sure what we're dealing with here, Jack."

"How big is it? Does this concern thousands, millions?"

"It's looking like millions."

"I'll be there."

"Jack, if she's up to it, Audrey should come too. We need everyone that we can get here."

"Bill, from what you said to me, it seems like this threat is serious. And huge. I don't want her involved."

"Jack, I can understand, but we could really use her. I'm not going to force either of you to come, but we do need all hands on deck."

"She's not coming, Bill. I'm not putting her in that danger."

"Jack, what's going on?" Said a voice behind him.

He turned around to see his wife in the doorway.

"I have to go, Bill. I'll be there soon. "

"Alright, Jack."

"What's going on? What did Bill want?" Audrey asked.

"There's something going on at CTU. It's no big deal. I'll be back soon. You should go back to bed," Jack answered, averting her eyes and walking quickly to their room and changing into a clean shirt.

"Jack," Audrey said, looking concerned, "You interrogate people all the time. You know when someone is lying to you. So do I. What is going on?"

"It's just, nothing. Samuel Edmunds has something to reveal about a terrorist threat, or something."

"How big is this threat?"

"It's not a big deal. We can handle it. In the meantime, you should get some sleep," Jack said, putting on his coat and kissing her goodbye.

"You wouldn't have lied to me if it wasn't big, Jack. I heard the last part of your conversation. I'm not putting her in that danger, I remember you saying. Jack, this is serious, I can tell. I'm coming with you."

"Bill said that these terrorists know what they are doing. We are married now, Audrey. They will know how to get to me, and they will know about us. Before, it was different. But now, we are facing a serious threat, and they will know how to get to you."

"Jack, I—"

"—All that I can think about when you come to CTU is Terri. She died there, Audrey. I thought that I could protect her. I was wrong. I'm not making that mistake again," Jack said. With a sudden wave of sadness he remembered that when Terri died, she had been pregnant, too, just like Audrey. If Audrey died…

"Jack, just listen to me. I knew that I was putting myself in danger when I married you. I am willing to accept that. But Jack, I am in a much higher danger here at the house. They will find out where we live and can get to me easily. No matter what you say, I'm safer at CTU."

Jack couldn't ignore her reasoning. He grudgingly agreed to let her come. But, even though what she said was perfectly true, she probably was safer at CTU, he wasn't sure that he wanted her there. He was going to have to play dirty again, and he knew it. Audrey had expected his field-agent approach a year ago. The Jack that had to do those terrible things was fresh in her mind back then. She had accepted it. But Jack hadn't faced a serious threat like this since the day that he got back from China. For a year Audrey had seen the side of Jack that she loved, the way that he was at home and when there weren't millions of lives on the line. Jack didn't want her to witness him getting his hands dirty again, which he was sure that he would have to. As a matter of fact, Jack himself didn't want to see that side of him. He certainly didn't want his wife to.

Jack wanted to shield her eyes, let her forget all of the terrible people that were out there. He wanted to let her forget the things that he did and would have to continue to do to stop them. He wanted her to be miles away from the evil that he faced every day. But instead, she would witness it all again. She was coming with him. Like she had stood there and watched while Jack tortured Paul, she would stand and watch as he did what he had to do to save the world.

They got in the car. Jack pulled out of the driveway. Today, he would again have to pay the price of loving someone.

Chapter 2: Vacant Streets

Audrey and Jack Bauer drove across Los Angeles in silence. They were both thinking about the threat that was theirs to resolve. They were both thinking about what they would have to do to stop it. Suddenly, Jack's voice broke the silence.

"Remember what you said to me when I arrived back from China about a year ago? Remember the promise that I made to you?"

"How could I forget? It was the only thing that got me through that day," Audrey said with a half-smile. The mood in the car was so depressing, it was all that she could manage.

"Can you promise me the same thing? Promise that, after this day is over, that we will still be together."

Audrey looked out the window. She was silent. She was thinking back to all the other days that she had had, with Jack at CTU. They had been the hardest of her life. Was that what she was facing again? When she looked back on their experiences, the chances of her being able to keep promise like that seemed small.

"Audrey?" Jack said, interrupting her train of thought.

She turned her head and looked into his eyes. There was sadness and determination, but there was also hope. He could see his family coming out of this day, alive and happy. He was scared for them, but he could see a way that it could all happen. When she stopped looking at all of the evil that they had faced and started looking at all of the good times they shared, she could see them coming out of this together as well.

"I promise. I will do everything in my power to make sure that this ends well."

At one o'clock in the morning, the streets were traffic free. Jack paid no attention to the traffic lights and stop signs. It had rained earlier that night, and the streets were shiny. They reflected the street lights, blurring them together and spreading their light across the road. A disheveled man lurked on a sidewalk, walking slowly and pushing a shopping cart filled with junk. To everyone else, this would seem like just another homeless man roaming the streets of Los Angeles. And it probably was. But still, it made Jack feel very uncomfortable. He immediately switched into his field agent mode. He was roaming the streets of Los Angeles at night with his pregnant wife, heading to a place where he would learn about a threat to the lives of millions. How could he not feel the need to protect?

They continued to drive, until they reached the only lighted building on the street. CTU Los Angeles. So many good memories there, Jack thought grudgingly.

As they walked into CTU, it was like the world sprang to life. Phones were ringing, people were walking, papers were being shuffled. They saw the majority of CTU workers gathered in the Situation Room. The briefing had already started. Jack and Audrey hurried inside to find Bill explaining there situation. Jack couldn't help but notice the similarities in this day and the day that Terri died, all those years ago. When Jack entered, Bill stopped talking. He turned to Jack.

"Jack, I'm glad you're here. Audrey too?" Bill flashed them a knowing smile. He could just see Jack not wanting Audrey exposed to all that they would face today, and Audrey knowing that she could handle it fine. His wife Karen had the same look on her face behind them. Jack couldn't help but think that they had experienced similar situations in their 2 years of working at this place.

"Anyway, Jack. Edmunds has said that he won't talk to anyone but you. He has revealed to us the time frame and casualty estimates of this threat, but nothing else. He demands to see you as soon as possible."

"Why me?"

"Because you are the only one here who knew his brother well. You are the only one here that witnessed his death."

Chapter 3: Worst-Case Scenario

The rectangular blue lights reflected on the cold concrete walls, giving holding room one its usual feeling of terror. Samuel Edmunds sat chained to a chair facing a table, waiting for Jack Bauer to come and interrogate him. Most people would be dreading the sight of Bauer as they sat in a CTU holding room, but Sam was getting impatient waiting for him. Sam knew how little time CTU had to save Los Angeles, and he wanted to help.

Samuel's prison guards had been very surprised when, earlier that evening, he had all of the sudden made a scene, demanding to be connected to Jack Bauer and the Counter Terrorist Unit. Sam had been a model prisoner since he had been started his life sentence, being helpful and kind and trying to find ways to help the world while restricted to a prison cell. He didn't think that the things that he did to help people while he was locked up would make up for all of the evil that he had created before. But still, he had to be the best person that he could be. He had promised his brother. And keeping that promise was the least that Sam could do after killing him.

But even if he hadn't made that promise, Sam still would have been the same person. The death of his brother really made him realize what it takes to be happy. And Sam was happy. He had years of prison before him, and that thought alone would make most miserable. But Sam, before he had gotten so lost, had always been one to find the best in things. And you really didn't have a bad life in prison, if the ones in charge noticed that you had changed from the person that you were before. So Sam was his old self, preaching what his brother had taught him on the last day of his life to his fellow prisoners. Sam had made progress. Slowly, the whole prison was looking for guidance in Samuel Edmunds. Everyone had some good in them, and one of the rediscovered talents in Sam was that he could always find it in people.

Sam had been brought to CTU after shouting to the prison that he knew about a threat to national security. The guards had allowed him to speak with Bill Buchannon from the Counter Terrorist Unit, but only because they had grown to love and trust this prisoner that had done so much evil.

And Samuel had been brought in by Buchannon, along with CTU's entire workforce. He had begrudgingly agreed to let Edmunds talk with Jack Bauer. So here Samuel was now, awaiting the arrival of Bauer, very impatiently. Time was of the essence, and Sam understood how hard losing someone was. If he could protect others from his pain, as Chase had dedicated himself to doing, then maybe, just maybe, he could begin to redeem himself from the person that he used to be.

The door to the interrogation room was opened. Sam looked at his face in the mirrored window that was across from him at the man entering the room.

Jack Bauer was basically the same as Sam had remembered him. Except he could already tell just from looking at him that Jack Bauer's life had improved at least a little bit from the last time that he saw him. The last time they had met, Jack had just been released from a Chinese prison. Now, Jack was tanner, blonder and more muscular. His body looked more lived in, like he had been out in the sun. But, in addition to his appearance, there was a certain aura around him--Sam couldn't really explain it. Before, Jack was a person that had been miserable for a long time, and you could almost feel his pain. Now, he was happy, and content. Maybe it was something in his face. Yes, that could be it. You could tell that Jack had smiled a lot more in this past year than he had since the last time that he and Samuel had met.

In addition to his changed appearance, Jack Bauer walked into the interrogation room in a very different style than he was used to. Usually, he wanted to appear frightening, in charge, and willing to do whatever it took. Today, he wanted to appear more kind.

Jack had seen Sam fall apart and promise to change. He had seen Chase forgive him. And Jack trusted his old partner, especially when it came to his brother. Jack accepted, based on his actions after he killed his brother and Chase's reactions to his repentance, that Samuel really had changed.

"Jack, I'm so glad that you're here. I need to tell you something."

"I'm listening, Samuel," Jack said, sitting down in the chair opposite the ex-terrorist.

"Today, someone came to see me. I met her when I came to Los Angeles before I went back to Afghanistan and captured my brother. I had gotten her in with my crowd in the time that I knew her. Today, I learned that she still trusted me, thought that I was still the terrorist that I once was. I let her believe it. I needed to hear what she had to say."

"Go on."

"She told me that she needed my help in an attack that my old friends had promised to assist a larger group in. They were struggling after the death of their leader."

"What leader are you speaking of? Surely not…"

"Yes. The terrorist that was recently taken out by our government, leader of the largest Islamic Terrorist group in East Asia."

Jack looked down at his hands. This threat was going to be big. And these terrorists were sure to be well trained and hard to stop. The hard thing about these types of terrorists was that they believed in what they were doing. They weren't tempted by money or personal freedom. It had been very, very difficult to stop Syed Ali when he had threatened the U.S. country years ago. It had required the pretended killing of his son. Even though the child hadn't really died, it was a terrible thing to do, and Jack still felt guilty about it. These terrorists were serious, and the hardest to stop.

"Well, the people that she was with were the lowest level of this plan. They were being paid. She was only doing the small things, but had overheard a conversation and knew their overall goal. She trusted me with this information. I could disclose it only to you because I knew that no one else would believe me. You knew my brother, knew me. You saw him die, with me at his side. Surely you remember our conversation?"

"How could I forget, Sam?"

"Then you know that what I am saying isn't part of an act. I have changed. I really am doing this to save lives, I swear."

"What is the threat?"

"It's a hydrogen bomb, Jack. It was stolen from India yesterday. It is somewhere in Los Angeles now, my source didn't know where. Jack, this is worse than an Atomic Bomb. It is a Worse-Case Scenario if you could ever imagine it. The first stage of the operation, the one that I was supposed to participate in, has already taken place, according to my source. Hours ago. Jack, all that she said was that the bomb was going off today. I don't know when, just sometime today."

"Alright, Sam. Who was your source?"

"Myra Turner. Angela, Chase's daughter's, mother. Chase told everyone that he go back to her because she had done no

thing with her life. But, really, she had done something with it. It was just evil."

Chapter 4: Abandoned

Myra Turner sat in a dark room, facing a computer. It was useless, she thought. She didn't even try to fake another password. Samuel had chosen his access code carefully, and she couldn't think of any other words and numbers to try.

Myra wondered whether he had been lying to her or not as she walked over to the window. The view was certainly nothing special, just baron land and a large fence that had signs every few feet saying:

CAUTION! DO NOT ENTER FENCED-IN AREA!
A Nuclear bomb was detonated here several years ago. Radiation from that explosion is still present. Serious and fatal consequences will follow if area is entered. Thank you and please enjoy the delights of the Mojave Desert!

Myra chuckled. Travel another mile inside the fenced in area and you'd still be fine. The radiation didn't get bad for a while.

Myra's mind wandered back to Sam. Had he been lying? Would Samuel Edmunds, the one who had taught her all she knew, have forgotten the password to his own database? Sadly, she doubted it. Had he abandoned her too?

Myra thought back upon her life. How many times had people left her in the cold, alone to fend for herself?

Danielle Turner had been 13 years old when it happened. It had been a perfect day at school. She had gotten her first kiss from her boyfriend and was ecstatic. She had been walking home from school, looking out over the vast cornfields and replaying that kiss again and again in her head, when a man that she didn't know walked up behind her and whispered something in her ear. She jumped. Danielle had thought she was alone and was startled.

"What?" She said to him, not having heard his comment.

"Come with me," he said. He was a middle aged man, dirty blonde. You could tell by his clothes that he didn't have a lot of money.

"I'm sorry, I have to get home," Danielle replied, scared of the man but a little curious to what he wanted with her.

"No, you'll come with me," he said, smiling still.

Now, Danielle wasn't the least bit curious, just scared. She turned and ran towards her house, which was still several miles down the dirt country road. Something grabbed her. It was the man. He was still smiling and had a glint in his eye. He took her to his house, an old shack in the country, and committed a terrible crime.

Like her first kiss, that scene would replay again and again in her mind, forever. But remembering her first kiss made her happy. Remembering that made her scared, ashamed, and fearful.

Nine months later, in the hospital in a city unfamiliar to her, Danielle screamed in a bed with white sheets. Her stomach was large and her parents were watching. Myra was born. But Danielle didn't even hold her child. She caught one glimpse of her before the baby girl was swept off to live a life away from her birth mother. That was the first time that Myra had been abandoned. Not even an hour old, she was left parentless.

Myra grew up in several foster homes, each with at least eight children and varying in terms of cleanliness. As a young child, Myra never understood her mother's decision. One of her foster parents had explained to her that her Daddy hadn't been a very nice man and couldn't raise her, and that because of that, Myra's Mommy didn't want her. But Myra couldn't understand this. She thought that, because she didn't have a father, her Mommy would want to love her more, to make up for the love that her Daddy couldn't give her. Why couldn't her Mommy understand how much she needed her?

The decision that Danielle Turner made to put her child up for adoption would never be understood by her daughter. The way Myra saw it, her mother didn't want her. Her father didn't want her. The foster moms that Myra had been exposed to had enough on their plate already. They certainly didn't want her. She had been abandoned by everyone that she had ever met. She was left alone on the path of life, with no one to show her the way.

When Myra was 16, she was still confused. The only logical reason in her mind that everyone had abandoned her, passed her off to another caretaker, was that she was no good. She didn't know why, but Myra remained convinced that she was evil. Myra's foster mother at the time saw this low self-esteem in her, and decided to explain to her that she was the result of a rape, and that it was her father's evil that brought her into the world. Myra's foster mother had hoped that that would explain to the young girl why she had been left behind so many times in her life, but it didn't have the affect that the foster mother had hoped for. Myra just figured that that was where she got all of the terrible traits that caused nobody to want her from. They were passed down from her father.

Depressed and hopeless, Myra ran away. Her last foster mother had lived on the outskirts of Los Angeles, and so Myra headed for the city. That was where she met Chase. Chase, despite his history, was positive and happy. He changed her mind about her being a terrible person. He convinced her that they didn't bring the all of the terrible things that happened in their lives upon themselves. He convinced her that they had to stick together, being stronger as one than they would be as two individuals.

So she listened to every word he said. They had a wonderful several years together, changing from "siblings" (they called themselves brother and sister to avoid complications) to a couple. They were happy together, and Myra finally had someone that she thought wouldn't leave her.

She was wrong. He left to serve in Afghanistan, promising to be back soon. Again, she didn't understand why she was abandoned. She didn't see the need that Chase had to help people, do his part to save others from his pain. So, she slumped back into her old self, more and more convinced that she was a terrible person. And, to make matters worse, she was pregnant. She could imagine telling her daughter what she had been told so many times before: "Your father was a terrible man who abandoned you."

Again, while she was desperate and in need of help, one of the Edmunds brothers came to her rescue. However, they rescued her in very different ways. Chase told her that she wasn't evil, she was wonderful, and they had to stop the people that put those thoughts in her head. Sam told her that yes, she was evil, but everything was, so she wasn't a bad person by comparison, and the only way to live in this world was by creating evil so that she wouldn't be a victim of it. With a new view on life, Myra decided that she would follow in her evil (in Myra's opinion) mother's footsteps and abandon her own child.

A part of her felt terrible, leaving her daughter to be abandoned by her mother and experience the pain that Myra had grown up with. But the other part was filled with the voice of Samuel Edmunds, telling her that evil was the way that the world worked, and you could choose your role as an attacker or victim. She left her daughter Angela with her father, shoving the guilt and sadness that filled her heart to the back. It would lay there in years to come, forgotten, but forever present.

Now, Myra came to a conclusion. Like everyone that she had ever met, Sam had left her. He had lied to her about not knowing the password to the information that he had. Information that she needed. Information that would tell her how to steal a plane suitable for dropping a hydrogen bomb over Los Angeles. Chapter 5: Miserable

Even if you didn't have a clue where you were, what was happening, or who the people in CTU were, you would know that something was wrong the second that you opened the door to the building. The enormous room was in a sort of organized chaos. People were walking briskly and with a purpose, papers and notebooks in hands. Analysts were staring at their computer screens, muttering to themselves. Field agents were getting things ready, waiting to be told to go into action. Phones were ringing off the hook; people were racing up and down the stairs to the upstairs offices. On these days, this was as smooth as things ever went at CTU.

But the other reason that you could tell that something was wrong was the look on everyone's faces. It was some sort of a frozen panic, like they would be screaming and jumping up and down if they didn't have so much work to do, and if they hadn't felt like this for hours. On some faces, there was just sadness. Tragedies would and already had happened and would continue to throughout the rest of the day.

Jack Bauer walked over to Chloe's station.

"Chloe, Edmunds is going to come over here and tell you all of the places that Myra Turner may be. Right now, she is our only lead. Get the best analyst here to help you with locating her and assign others to bring up everything that we have on the terrorist group mentioned by Edmunds. I'm sending him to your station now."

"Fine, Jack. And I know that you want the best working on this, but I don't know if I can work with Morris. He's driving me crazy."

"Chloe, just get the job done."

"Whatever, Jack."

Audrey was in the situation room, waiting for the videoconference with her father to begin. Bill Buchannon walked in, and they were ready to start.

"Mr. President," Bill said, and they began.

James Heller had started his campaign about a year before, while he was still Secretary of Defense under Hal Gardner. Everyone had thought that the Republicans didn't stand a chance after the hazardous Keeler/Logan/Gardner term, especially since it followed a man that was widely considered a president to join the ranks of Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. There was already a large monument in Washington D.C, in honor of David Palmer.

But Heller had proved them wrong, campaigning hard and making sure that the world knew that he wasn't going to be another Charles Logan. The stories about Heller didn't hurt either; there were (for once true) rumors of Heller trying to sacrifice himself about his country, internet footage that showed him in action, kicking some serious terrorist butt. Everyone loved a hero, and that is what they saw in the ex-army officer whose wife had died when he was still young. So Heller was the next president, with his friend Mike Novic as the second-in-command. So far, there term had been successful, but it was only just beginning. Heller hadn't experienced a true crisis in office yet. He hadn't been put to the test. Today, Audrey thought sadly, might be the day when he was. She hoped that he did well.

As Buchannon briefed the president and his vice on the situation, his voice became louder and louder in Audrey's mind. It was all suddenly very real to her, as he informed and advised her father on the situation.

"We do know that Islamic terrorists are in possession of a Hydrogen bomb. From what the Indians have told us about the stolen bomb, casualty estimates are about three million dead immediately, plus countless cases of cancer and birth defects after the explosion. Not to mention the entire area will be completely destroyed and uninhabitable for many years. The nation would be crippled of resources…"

The chaos in Audrey's head droned out Bill's words. She had the certain realization, like when you are on an exciting trip or it is your birthday, and you just keep reminding yourself where you are or what day it is, and it makes you so happy. But for Audrey, the reminders had the opposite affect. She was making herself miserable. She felt her child kick in her stomach and was suddenly very dizzy. It all hit her, the danger that her husband was in, that she was in, that her child was in. Los Angeles was being attacked, and she was in the thick of it. She was hot and dizzy, and all of a sudden just couldn't take it anymore. She excused herself quickly from the conference, leaving her father and Bill looking worried. She put her freezing cold hand on the forehead that was burning up. She leaned against the wall, taking it all in.

Jack looked up from a workstation where he was helping Chloe, Morris, and Samuel find Myra. He saw Audrey through the glass walls of the Situation Room and walked over to her. He took her in his arms and all of a sudden, she was leaning on him instead of a cold concrete wall. He was there for her as she quietly sobbed into his coat. He stroked her hair and they just stood there for a while.

Audrey looked up, and he wiped the tears off of her face. He held her tight, and she leaned on him, relying on him, trusting that he would never leave. Because if he did, Audrey suddenly realized, she would fall flat on her face, desperate. She feared that more than anything.

Audrey knew that he was everything to her. She had given her full heart to him, and so losing Jack Bauer would be like losing her heart. She suddenly understood his senseless attempts to keep her away from all of this. He knew how hard it would be for her, when they had such a wonderful life, to see it all be so close to falling apart. He knew how many moments there were on days like this when you doubted that things could ever be the same. He had wanted her to stay away from all of this. Doing what he did was so much easier when he was miserable.

And, of course, being pregnant didn't help the situation. Eight months already, Audrey was feeling very sick, almost all of the time. And, on a day like today, it just constantly reminded her, like it was teasing and nagging her or something, all that was in danger of falling apart.

Jack closed his eyes, imagining the day ending with her still in his arms. He wanted that so badly. He wouldn't stop until he had it. He whispered in her ear, softly and sweetly, "I'm here. I will be when this all ends. And you'll be here with me."

Audrey was suddenly not dizzy anymore. She didn't feel hot. She looked into his eyes. Those words were said with such determination, they almost seemed true, like facts written in a textbook. Her fear was nearly gone, because that, more than anything, made Audrey sure that she would still be standing, supported by her husband, when it all ended.

Chapter 6: Interrogation Report

Bill Buchannon stared blankly at his computer screen. He was supposed to be reading a report from the Indian government regarding the stolen bomb, but he found the words blurring in front of his eyes. He was already terribly tired and overwhelmed.

It had been a while since the last huge threat to the country, nearly a year. Bill missed the relative calmness of those days. Life seemed so simple when there weren't so many lives at stake. On a regular day, Bill looked forward to the weekend. On these days, Bill wondered if he would make it to the weekend.

He snapped back to awareness and realized how important this document was. He couldn't afford to be concerned about his personal needs (sleep, food, shower) right now. There were too many lives that so close to being lost.

But Bill found himself concentrating on something else. He stared at the picture of his wife Karen and himself on his desk. It was his favorite picture of them. Bill was smiling, the collar of his white button up shirt sticking up a little. The background was filled with lilac bushes, blooming and giving their backyard the sweetest aroma. Karen was a wonderful gardener. And there she was, smiling with her bright blonde hair falling gracefully at her shoulders, just above him with her arms around his neck. Bill remembered the evening that that picture had been taken. It was a barbeque at their house, about half a year ago. Jack and Audrey, who had gotten to be good friends with Bill and Karen, were there, along with many other friends from work and elsewhere. Chloe and Morris had been there usual selves, Morris following Chloe around and flirting with her, Chloe pretending that she was annoyed as her cheeks turned bright red and she made some sarcastic comment and turned her face. That had been the evening when Jack had told everyone that he and Audrey were two months pregnant. Everyone was just so cheerful, forgetting the usual horror that they delt with daily, forgetting the true terror that faced them occasionally. Bill remembered it now, clearer than ever.

It was so easy to forget the horrible things that they experienced on these days because you didn't want to remember them. You didn't want to spend any more time dwelling on what faced you on those days. You slipped back into your usual schedule. They were supposed to attend a dinner with their friends, Joe and Mary Hill, that Saturday. Bill and Karen were supposed to be at the dancing class that Karen had forced him to sign up for at 4:00 the next afternoon. Audrey's baby shower was planned for the later the next evening. All of these things seemed so unimportant now, almost juvenile. It seemed so wrong to be out enjoying life when a hydrogen bomb was being stolen, getting ready to threaten the lives of millions.

So Bill, again remembering the threat at hand, forced himself to concentrate. He read the document carefully.

"…One man was caught during the attack on the weapon's warehouse. He was interrogated by TTI (Tegenwerkend Terrorisme Indië). The interrogation was led by special agents 051393, 110190, and 071596. Results of interrogation click here…"

"…Hyed's interrogation began at 1700 hours. After several hours with no results, Hyed, at 1900 hours, broke. He revealed the one giving him instructions, identifying her as a Miss Marie Elizabeth Warner…"

Bill knew that name, and he knew that many others at CTU knew it a lot better than he did. He remembered Jack telling him about Marie's sister, Kate. Jack had been dating her. The way Jack talked about her, it sounded to Bill like he really cared about her, even after a very rough and sudden break up. Bill picked up the phone and dialed the number to Chloe's station, where he could see Chloe, Morris, Samuel Edmunds, and Jack and Audrey, Jack's arm around Audrey's waist, huddled around a computer, trying to find Myra Turner.

"CTU O'Brian," Chloe answered.

"Chloe, its Bill. I need to Jack."

"One second, Bill. He's right here."

"Bill?" Jack answered curiously.

"Do you still have Kate Warner's number?" Bill asked quietly, knowing how awkward it would be for Jack standing next to his wife. Jack walked away, looking back at Audrey and switching the phone to another ear. It still bothered Jack how he had left Kate. He hadn't wanted to; in the time that they were together, he had started to love her. She was the first that he felt that way for since Terri. But Jack's Heroin usage had kept them apart.

Jack always wondered how his life could have been different if he hadn't agreed to go undercover in Mexico. He and Kate had been getting ready to build a future together. If Jack's fragile life hadn't fallen apart, then would it be Kate that he was walking away from now, not Audrey? Would he have become a father again with Kate, as he had with Audrey? When Jack had first quit the drugs, he had been getting himself ready to call Kate. He hadn't forgotten the way that he had felt about her. He figured she needed time to repair the damage that he had certainly caused from his sudden withdrawal from her life. And then, Erin Driscoll had sent him away, left alone to find a new life in Washington D.C. He had tried to forget her, but she never really left his mind. Jack loved Audrey with all of his heart, but he would never completely forget Kate. He really had cared for her.

"Yes, I have her number…Why?" Jack said as he walked down a dark hall, leaving the crowd at Chloe's workstation to continue the search

"Her sister may be involved in today's attacks."

"Her sister? Marie Warner has been locked up for years," Jack said, confused.

"Apparently not," Bill said with a sigh. He already knew that today was going to be a very long day.

Chapter 7: Far from Fine

Kate Warner stared blankly at a muted television. As the picture on the screen changed, so did the light in her dark living room. It cast a bluish glow across the crème colored walls; gave the closed curtains the appearance that they were moving. She turned it off. The room still felt very eerie. She walked back to the couch and stretched out next to her husband, Lucas Chaplin, who was sleeping. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep as well. She couldn't. Her sister was on the loose again. Thoughts raced through Kate's mind.

It had been earlier tonight when her father had called, distressed and tired. He had been getting ready to leave his office at Warner Enterprises International when he had gotten a call from Homeland Security saying that Marie Warner had escaped from prison, about a month ago. Bob Warner had called his daughter Kate and told her the news. When Kate's husband had come home, they had locked all of the doors. Kate's adorable, blonde, four year old son, Ben, had been terrified as Kate and Luke talked in hushed voices about his Aunt. Hours later, Kate's husband and child fell asleep on the couch. But ever since that call from her father, Kate stayed awake in fear. Several scenes kept playing in her mind.

Kate was about ready to go home after the longest day of her life. She had seen Marie with her father, and had been exiting the room when Marie stopped her.

"You think you'll be safe out there, Kate? You won't be," Marie had said to her. That was especially disturbing to Kate because she knew that it was true. With a sister like Marie, she was anything but safe.

And then, earlier that same day, in the airport in the dark of night, Marie had pointed a gun at her face. All that Kate could see was a long metal shaft and behind it, her sister's eyes, now full of hate. Marie wasn't afraid to hurt Kate. And she would. Kate was scared for her family.

But then, Jack Bauer had saved her. Kate was still hurt and confused when it came to that man. He had been there for her, protected her from her sister and then helped her fill up the hole that her sister had left in her heart. Kate could go so far to say that she had loved him, and he had loved her. They had talked about a future together. It seemed that nothing could stop them from being together. She was wrong. Jack suddenly left, with no reason, not even one of the lame ones, like "I just need some space." He was just gone, away from her life. That is when she realized that he, at the time, was her life. She had fallen apart.

But she had moved on. Kate was strong and mature about the whole thing. She met a lawyer from Seattle and fell in love again. Jack never disappeared from her mind, but he found a place at the back to stay, leaving with him one million unanswered questions and a lot of hurt on her behalf.

But now, he was leaving his place at the back and becoming the center of attention. She felt now that she needed him; she needed the one that had protected her from the evil that her sister was a part of. He was there for her when no one else was, saved her life in more ways than one. Now, when she was scared of her sister, she felt she needed the only one that had ever protected her from her. But that was stupid. Kate had a family that she loved, and Jack had probably moved on as she had. And besides, Kate loved her husband, more than anything. But he was a very different person than Jack, and right now, Jack was what Kate needed.

The phone rang. Kate looked down at the caller I.D. to find a blocked caller. Kate wasn't sure what to do, but it could be her father, so she picked it up.

"Hello?" She said, whispering and walking into the enormous kitchen.

"Hi. Kate?" Her heart skipped a beat. She knew instantly who it was. That voice was unmistakable. But no. No way. It couldn't be. It just…couldn't.

"Kate? Its Jack Bauer."

"Jack?" Kate said in disbelief. She hadn't spoken to him in years. How was it possible that he called right as she was thinking about him? Was it too much of a coincidence that he called the day that her sister was broken out of prison? Wait, of course not. The reason that he had called was BECUASE her sister broke out of prison.

"Kate, I'm sure that they have told you about the situation with your sister," Jack said. Yep, Kate thought. He was being a Federal Agent, because that was what he was to her. That was all that he was to her.

"Not really, actually. All that they have told me was that they discovered today that she has been on the loose for about a month and she could be involved in a threat to National Security."

"Well, I'm on my way to your house. I'm coming to bring you in to see if you could assist us in our search for the bomb in any way."

"The bomb?" Kate asked, suddenly even more scared and confused.

"Yes. I'm afraid that today is going to be a day similar to the day we met." Kate felt a pang in her stomach, hearing him talk so casually about their old selves, about that day. She was silent.

"There is a hydrogen bomb in Los Angeles, going off today. We have few leads, and, well, it's hard to see if they will get us anywhere. Kate, this threat is very, very serious. This bomb is even bigger than the one that we stopped that day. Can you come with us to CTU to help?"

Kate felt sick. Her eyes were watering up. Could she get through a day like that again? She wasn't sure. That day had torn her life apart. She liked her life now. She didn't want to experience that all again. She swallowed. She had to.

"Yes, Jack, yes I can."

"Good. I'm pulling into your driveway now."

Kate took a deep breath and tried to hold back the tears. How could she have a sister that was so evil? Ben walked into the kitchen, holding his bottle.

"You okay, Mommy?"

"Yeah, honey, I'm fine," she said as she looked out the window to the two black SUV's and agents climbing out of them. She had lied. She was far from fine.

Chapter 8: Mrs. Bauer

Kate took the little boy to his room and tucked him in, reassuring the child that everything would be okay. She walked outside, where Jack was standing on her front porch. When she saw him, she got chills.

He didn't look much different than she remembered him. He was tan and muscular, as he had been when she had known him. As he had been when she had loved him. His hair was a tad longer and blonder, and was sticking up in a way that it looked just perfect.

"One second," she said to Jack as she entered the kitchen to write Luke a note. As she wrote it, she felt Jack reading over her shoulder. Kate blushed and moved a little so he couldn't see more. She was feeling very uncomfortable.

"Kate, I need to talk to you."

"Alright…" Kate said, wondering what he could have to say that he had to say in her kitchen.

"You can't tell the man that you're writing to about the bomb. Remember the last time we went through this? It is all top secret; we can't let anyone know about the threats."

"You don't trust that he won't tell anyone?"

"I don't know him, so no, I don't trust him. But even if I did, I wouldn't let you tell him. No one can know about this threat. It would cause a panic, which is a weapon of mass destruction in itself."

"He needs to know where I am, Jack. Sorry if you don't understand, but my husband will need a reason for my sudden disappearance," Kate said. Jack's eyes widened a little in surprised. He had suspected that Kate might be married, but well….He just couldn't picture it.

"I know exactly what you mean, Kate. You can tell him that you're going to CTU, that it's about your sister. But trust me when I say that telling him more would be a danger to his own life."

"Fine. I won't tell him," Kate said, finishing her rather vague note about her sudden disappearance. She and Jack climbed down the walk and entered one of the black SUV's. Jack walked around with her and opened the door for her. Such a gentleman, she thought. She had liked that about him.

Another agent got in the middle seat, and they were off.

The ride was awkward to say the least. Jack told Kate details of the threat and explained what would happen to her when she got to CTU.

Then, Jack's phone rang.

"Jack! It's Bill. I'm so glad I caught you," Bill said, not taking his eyes off of a satellite photo on Chloe's screen.

"What is it?"

"We may have a location on Turner. Edmunds remembered a place that they used to go to store information. It's on the edge of the Mojave Desert, right before it gets radioactive. I'm sending teams there now. I want you on one of them."

"Alright, Bill. I'm a few minutes away now. I need someone to debrief Kate Warner and then she'll tell all that she knows. She and her sister were close; she'll be able to help, I'm sure."

"Copy, I'll send someone down, Jack."

Jack and Kate drove down the vacant streets in silence. Several minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot of CTU. Jack immediately ran to go and get his teams ready, as did the other agents. One stayed long enough to direct her to a door, where he said someone should be waiting for her.

She opened the door to find a tired looking woman. She was beautiful and very pregnant, and walked over to Kate with a smile as she entered.

"Hi, I'm Audrey Bauer," the woman said. Kate tried to freeze the smile on her face. Bauer? As in…wife of Jack Bauer?

"Then you're Jack's…." There was silence.

"I'm Jack's wife," Audrey said, looking a little confused and wondering why the Kate's smile looked so forced.

"I'll be debriefing you and then we'll work up all of the information that you can give us and see if it will help," she said as she started walking down the hall. She gave her key card to one of the guards and they gave Kate a Visitor's tag. Audrey and Kate walked down the hall in silence.

Jack? Married? She certainly hadn't suspected that. She had heard many ridiculous rumors that he was dead, on drugs, kidnapped by the Chinese, or some other outrageous claims. Of course these were untrue, Kate thought.

But even though she didn't believe the horrible things that she was hearing about him, she didn't expect him to be happily married and expecting a child. Had he really just forgotten her, just let her go with no emotions attached? That wasn't the Jack that she knew…Well, then again, maybe she didn't even know Jack.

The two women walked down the hall in silence. Then Audrey realized why Jack had acted so strangely. Now that she thought about it, she remembered him mentioning a Kate that he had dated after Terri had died. This was her.

So both women found themselves wondering about the same thing. Could things have been different? Maybe, if something hadn't happened the way it did, then Audrey would be in Washington D.C., working for her father, alone. Maybe, if something in the course of their lives hadn't happened, then Kate would be Kate Bauer, and she never would have met the husband that she, though they did have difficulties, really truly did love.

Both of them realized, as they sat down to begin the briefing, that they were perfectly fine with the way things had turned out.

Chapter 9: Determined

Jack drove along, looking out at the scenery as the buildings changed into desert brush, and then the brush changed into nothing but sand. Next to him, Samuel Edmunds sat, leaning his head back on the seat and closing his eyes.

Jack hadn't bothered to handcuff or chain him to the seat. He trusted Sam completely. Sam was a good person now; he tried his best to be the best he could be and help others. He had changed from someone that Jack despised to someone he admired. Sam would do anything for you.

Jack also pitied Sam. He knew that Sam was aware that he could tell the president that he would say nothing else about the threat without immunity, and the president would give it to him. Jack figured that he was punishing himself for being the person that he had been; punishing himself for killing his brother. Jack could understand Sam's guilt. He had felt the same way with Terri.

Jack's phone rang. It was CTU.

"Bauer."

"Jack, its Chloe. I've got tactical all set up."

"Alright, Chloe. Sam Edmunds is helping in the field. There's another man on Team A."

"Copy."

The Black SUV's stopped before the house. The desert was a terrible place to invade covertly; that was why Sam had picked the house in the first place, all of those years ago. Quietly, hoping that Myra Turner wasn't looking out of the window, they approached the house.

Unfortunately, she was looking out of the window. As she stared down at the agents, she ended a call.

"Yes, they've got me. I've sent all of the information to your screen. I cracked the password."

"Good," said a voice. "What was the password?"

"Chase. His password was Chase."

There was silence.

"I have to go," Myra said. "I may not see you later."

"May Allah be with you."

"Make sure that you transfer the money to my account."

Myra closed the cell phone and gasped. One of the men had turned around, and the face was none other than the face of Samuel Edmunds. Abandoned again, she thought as they made their way up the front walk.

Jack led the teams. They had seen her face in the window and had given up trying to enter in secret. She didn't have anywhere to go, anyway.

"Chloe, check the infra-red scans. Make sure that there is no one else in the house."

"Nope Jack, you're clear," Chloe said from her workstation at CTU. Bill was next to her, dialing a number.

The phone in the room with Kate and Audrey rang. It was Bill.

"Audrey, you may want to come up here. Jack is closing in on Turner."

"Thanks, Bill. I'll be right up," Audrey said anxiously. She was worried about Jack, and was in an immense amount of pain, though she tried to hide it to the people at work. Her due date was in little more than two weeks, and she was definitely feeling pregnant. Kate and Audrey walked quickly out a door and up some stairs. All of a sudden, Audrey gasped. She sat on a stair and started breathing heavily.

"Are you alright?" Kate said. Audrey's gasps became more desperate. Gosh, she was in a lot of pain. Noticing that she wasn't all right, Kate called for help.

"Help, help! Somebody!"

Bill ran to the top of the stairs.

"Oh my gosh," he said. Into his earpiece, he muttered something to Jack.

"Jack, Audrey is in labor."

"What?" Jack said, letting other members of his team arrest Myra Turner. He was still and silent for a long moment. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"Can I talk to her?" He asked Bill.

"Jack?" Audrey whispered, while sitting with her back against the concrete wall. Kate and Bill knelt down next to her.

"Audr—"

"Agent Bauer!" An agent yelled from the computer, an urgent look on his face.

Jack turned around and wiped his eyes.

"What is it?"

"She's already sent all of the information to another computer."

"Sam," Jack yelled, worried. "What information was on that computer?"

"Everything that they need to know, Jack," Sam said, a terrified look in his eyes.

Jack turned around and ran his fingers through his hair. Worried agents stared at him. He could hear Audrey cry out in pain as another contraction began. The sun was rising in the window, filling the room with light.

Jack needed to be a father to his soon to be born child, a husband to his wife. But what good would it do if they were blown up right after anyway? Jack had to finish his search for the bomb, before it was too late. He wouldn't let his family die. He would stop the evil that was surrounding Los Angeles today. He was determined.

Chapter 10: Not a Care in the Destroyed World

A pale, black haired woman sat facing a computer. If you just saw her on the street, you probably wouldn't recognize her, except if you were her father or her sister, that is. Marie Warner now wore glasses, and her dyed dark hair was flowing and beautiful. Her facial features were the same as always, for the most part, but there was a new aura around her. She had abandoned her spunk and charm for darkness and evil.

When she was ordering people around or organizing another attack on the United States, Marie seemed totally sure of herself. She was an actress; could get anyone to believe that she had confidence in herself, in her cause. But the truth was, she didn't. Inside, Marie was lost.

Marie had always been this rich little girl, overshadowed by the talent, compassion, and beauty of her older sister Kate. The one that hadn't looked down upon her, treated her like a child even when she wasn't, was her Mother. It was ironic, as usually the ones that continue to treat their children like children even after they grow up are mothers. But Heather Warner was different. She was a best friend to her two daughters, spending most of her time with them. To Marie, she wasn't only a mother, she was a best friend. Marie's mother guided her through the hard times in her life. But Heather couldn't be there for the hardest time of all: when the best and closest friend and parent to Marie died.

Marie had run away, searching for answers. She couldn't make any sense of her life. She had been raised Christian, had always been taught to believe that God was looking out for her. After her mother died, Marie abandoned this faith completely. She was sure that a God that loved her and was with her always wouldn't have let that man fall asleep at the wheel.

While Marie was searching for something that explained it all, she came across a man by the name of Syed Ali. He seemed to know everything about her, and had answers to all of her questions. Why had her Mother died? Allah needed her up in Paradise and took her up to help him. Could she ever see her Mother again? Yes, if she just followed Allah, she and her mother would live eternally in the highest level of Paradise. It was the only way that she would again see her Mother's face.

At first, Marie didn't believe any of it. But she did what Syed told her to do anyway, holding on to a little hope that she would see her mother again in paradise. At first, the things that he had her do were little, but she found herself being pulled into Second Wave like a whirlpool, not being able to stop but not wholeheartedly wanting to. Meanwhile, she kept telling herself that what she was doing was right, without much conviction.

Then, in jail, the things that Syed Ali had told her about the evil Americans were confirmed in her mind. How could they lock her up like that? And her father and sister, letting her rot in a prison cell while they enjoyed their evil life? But still, she didn't really want to kill millions. She wasn't willing to die for Allah; she wasn't even sure that she believed in him.

After years of being in prison, her old terrorist friends began to visit her. Together, they devised a plan for breaking her out. Finding the trigger for the Nuclear Bomb had earned the respect of all of the terrorists, and she found herself, when she broke out, in a position of high importance in the organization. She began to love the power, get caught up in being looked up to by everyone in the group. She began organizing attacks. She didn't pray to Allah like the people that she ordered, but she was every bit as evil. When the leader of the group died, Marie willingly took his place, approaching the position with the false confidence and power that she had begun to live by.

So now, here she was, getting ready to kill millions and not even knowing why. How had she gotten so caught up in this evil? She didn't know. She didn't even care. The way she saw it, she was too bad of a person to ever become good again.

Marie pecked at the computer keys. C-H-A-S-E

A screen appeared.

"Username: Samuel Edmunds Password:

ACCEPTED

Click HERE to Continue…"

"Files:

General W.E.T. list Access Codes Personal Information Phone Numbers Airport Schematics and Information Government Building Schematics Plane Diagrams Bomb Information Bomb/Plane/Weaponry Warehouse Access Codes and Information"

"Got it," Marie said to no one in particular. In a few hours, she would lead the attack that would cripple America and kill millions of innocent people. And why was she doing all of this? She didn't know. Why not do it? Marie had stopped caring a long time ago.

Chapter 11: Someone to Rely On

Where is Chloe when you need her? Jack thought as he tried to maneuver his way around the complex computer. Jack wasn't retarded when it came to computers; he was usually fine with them. But he needed an analyst to get to the bottom of this. How in the world was he supposed to find out who the receiver was of practically all of the information on the computer? To make matters worse, everything that he was working with was encrypted. Jack ran his fingers through his hair. This was getting no where. And he couldn't concentrate, either. Where was Audrey now? Was she doing okay? Was it going to be a girl, or a boy? Why couldn't he just go be with her? What if she was hurt? What if she…died?

"Stop thinking about that, Jack," he told himself, firmly shutting his eyes. But, honestly, how could he not? "Maybe I should just go be with her after all. This is getting no where," he thought with a frustrated sigh.

Who else was there that could figure something like that out? Field agents, no matter what training they endured, were never good with computers. Jack scanned the room. Of course! Why hadn't he thought of it earlier? After all, HE encrypted the information. It was HIS computer. It was so easy to forget the person that Sam used to be.

"Hey Sam!" He yelled. Samuel Edmunds, once the man that threatened the lives of millions, would make up for his crimes by saving them.

So, Jack, now happy with the way that things were going, sat down next to Sam and thought again about his wife.

Audrey had never thought that labor would be this bad. She had heard stories, and the morning sickness had been about enough to do her in, but she hadn't thought that labor would be this painful. And it had barely started! She tried to concentrate. She was already so tired.

And she was scared. After this, she would be a mother, responsible for a person that wasn't herself. What if she failed? What if she couldn't do it? She feared for the child that was about to be born.

Audrey tried to make sense of what was happening outside of her mind. Bill was on the phone talking in an urgent voice.

"Yes! Counter Terrorist Unit! Get here now!" He was saying. "No, the woman in labor is not a terrorist! Just be here, okay?"

And next to her, a soothing female voice was comforting her, reassuring her. It made Audrey slow her breathing a little. Someone was by her side. She was not alone.

"Audrey, listen to me. Listen, come on. You can do this. CTU Medical doesn't have the right supplies or doctors for giving birth, so help is on the way. Just breathe. In, out. I know you are in pain. I know. Just squeeze my hand as hard as it hurts."

Audrey smiled. She was so grateful for the kindness that she was receiving. Then, another contraction started. The smile faded from her face and she squeezed Kate Warner's hand, hard.

Kate looked at Audrey. You could tell she was scared, could tell that she was in pain. Kate remembered the feeling well. But she also remembered the feeling when she looked into baby Ben's eyes for the first time. She would help Audrey experience that feeling.

"Come on, keep squeezing my hand. We'll get through this. People are coming for help, Audrey."

Kate's hand was hurting. It was being squeezed and pinched. But, as much as it hurt, Kate loved the feeling. She knew that Audrey needed someone to be there, to share what she was experiencing with. You couldn't do that alone.

"Think about when this is all over. Think about the time when you and Jack have a new baby to raise together," Kate laughed internally. How incredibly awkward was this? But, strangely enough, she didn't feel weird. She just felt fine. She knew that the words of comfort that she provided to Audrey needed to be said.

Audrey thought about what Kate had told her to, and it did make her feel better. Her, the new baby, and Jack—wait, where was Jack? He had been talking to her, and then someone said something about a new update on the mission that he was on…

Of course. Audrey closed her eyes. Jack wouldn't be there for their child's birth. In the sudden crisis that she was experiencing, she had forgotten about the old one. Jack was out saving the world, saving her and his unborn child. She wasn't mad. How could she be? She was just…lonely.

"Audrey, the ambulance is here. I'm going to stay with you, okay? I'll be sitting next to you. I'll be there with you."

Audrey was suddenly filled with a warmth unlike any other she had ever experienced. Audrey remembered a conversation that she had with Kim once, while Jack was off playing with Angela. Audrey had asked about Chase, and Kim had told her everything that had happened. But one thing that she said stuck out in Audrey's mind.

"I learned to forgive Chase for not being there for me when I most desperately needed him, after my father supposedly died. I realized that there are so many things that are out of our control, it is impossible for the ones that we love to always be there for us. There will be times when we feel so alone, but their hearts are there with us. And, while they are absent, there are countless others that will be there for us; that we can rely on."

Those words took upon a new meaning to Audrey. Because that was what Kate Warner was being for her now: someone that would be there for her, someone that she could rely on. So, as Audrey was put on a stretcher and loaded into an ambulance, Kate was by her side. She was by her side as Audrey said a faint goodbye to Bill, making sure that she could reach Jack if she needed to. Kate was there, by her side, as the ambulance left the CTU parking lot and drove into the sunrise. Audrey had never in her life been more grateful for a friend.

Chapter 12: Nothing to be Sorry For

Jack sat with his head in his hands, sitting next to Sam, who was getting closer and closer to discovering who the information was sent to. Agents were searching the house for any objects that could give them some clue to the threat, but Myra had been careful. She hid her things well.

Agents were searching the house for evidence. Sam seemed to be making progress and Jack knew that he wasn't helping anything by sitting there. If there was ever a moment to talk to Audrey, it would be now.

"Hey, ah, Sam," Jack said.

"Yeah Jack?" Sam responded, keeping his eyes on his computer. He was so grateful to be able to help. He felt like he was furthering himself on the road to making up for the debt he owed the world. He knew that he would never repay the people of America for how he threatened them, and certainly never the countless others that he hurt or killed. But he could try. And, from what people had told him about God, he was understanding and merciful. If Sam was just a good person, he could be forgiven. And he wanted that more than anything.

"I'm going to go make a phone call to Audrey. I'll be in the first floor bathroom. Come get me if you find anything, okay?"

"Sure, Jack," Sam answered, still keeping his eyes on the computer screen. He was listening; he heard Jack, but time was of the essence. He needed to get this name.

Jack quickly walked down the dark hall filled with agents still searching for clues until he came upon a bathroom that he had seen in the schematics of the house. He pulled out the phone even before the door clicked shut and dialed the number with the speed of children running down the stairs on Christmas morning.

Jack turned and examined the bathroom while the steady beeps in his ear told him that Audrey wasn't picking up.

"Come on, Audrey…Pick up!" Jack murmured. He paused as he looked at the wall facing the toilet. It was bare, with only a painting on it. That's weird, Jack thought. He was good at remembering little details, and could have sworn that there was a shower there.

"Jack!" Said a woman's voice in his ear.

"Audrey! I'm so glad you answered. How are you doing?" Jack said, sitting down on the closed toilet and smiling.

"Um, fine," she said, her voice shaky. She was propped up in a hospital bed, as a nurse filled out papers on the desk.

"Fine?" He asked.

"As fine as I could be in this situation. You really are lucky you don't have to go through this, Jack. I'm jealous. The baby is just handed to you," She said. He could almost hear her smiling through the phone.

Jack chuckled. Then, a look of sorrow crept onto his face. He knew that she was in pain. He also knew that she was strong, strong enough to joke about it.

"I'm really sorry that I can't be with you right now, Audrey. You have no idea how much I want to be there," Jack struggled to say.

"I'm alright, Jack. I know that you have to be where you are now, it's not like you have a choice. Stay concentrated. You'll see our son or daughter soon enough." Audrey gasped. The pain was intense again.

"Audrey? Are you okay? Audrey?"

"Yep. Fine," She managed, knowing that if he understood her intense pain he would feel guilty and wouldn't concentrate. She had to hide her pain and her desire for him to be there. The lives of millions depended on it.

"Um, Audrey?" Kate said from the doorway.

"Yes?" Audrey said, knowing full well that Jack was listening with all of his might on the other side of the phone for updates.

"Doctor Caldwell will be right in to check on you. Would you like me to tell him to wait until you guys are done talking?"

"No, send him in," Audrey answered, feeling the need to scream from the pain but deciding firmly against it.

"Alright. I'll be outside, if you need me."

"Okay. Thanks, Kate."

"Kate? Kate Warner is there?" Jack asked, incredulous. How was THAT for awkward?

"Yes. She's a great person. Listen, Jack. The doctor is coming, so I'm gonna have to say goodbye," she said. She desperately wanted to keep him on the phone, never stop listening to his voice until it was all over. But she couldn't. The doctor was coming and Audrey didn't think that she could continue her conversation without him beginning to understand just how much she needed him there.

"Goodbye, Audrey. I love you, sweetheart. So, so much."

"I love you too," Audrey said, smiling. "I'll see you soon. Hurry and save the world so that you can get over here, okay?"

Jack laughed. "Okay, I promise. And I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"Not being there."

"There is nothing to be sorry for, Jack."

Jack hung up the phone, feeling like crying. He knew her better than she thought. He knew that she wanted him desperately to be there, and he wanted that too. He felt terribly guilty. But he also knew as well as she did that there were things that he needed to do, and the sooner everything was okay again, the sooner he would be with her.

Jack set his mind to work. He looked up at the painting, and knew that it had no place being there. It was huge, probably 4 feet by 3, and still had a little orange price tag on it, right in the bottom corner. The picture in the frame was the one that it had come with. Jack lifted the painting off the wall. He wasn't surprised to see the door to a large safe there. He smiled. However, he was soon interrupted.

"Jack!" Samuel Edmunds yelled, opening the door nearly out of breath.

"Have you gotten anything?"

"Yeah. She complicated the process using a technique that I taught her and it sped up the process a few hours, you know, seeing as I knew exactly what she had done. But anyway, we know the person it was sent to."

"Good job, Sam. That's great news."

"It gets better. I was also able to find the computer where the file was opened. I traced it. We have got a location."

"On who?"

"Marie Warner."

"Well, no surprise there," Jack said. He was in a considerably better mood. They had the whole safe to search through, as well as a location on one of the lead terrorists in the day's events. It was looking like Jack could find the bomb and be there for Audrey. What if he was still able to see his child born?

However, there was one thing that Jack had forgotten. Although they had just found some really helpful pieces of information, the bomb still had to be found, and, as they had learned before, it had to be taken to a new destination, not disarmed. Jack Bauer, in all of his brilliance, found himself looking at the prize at the end of the road and not the path that lay ahead of him. As Jack got the teams ready to go to find Marie Warner, he found himself forgetting how much work there still had to be done.

Chapter 13: News

The doctor entered the room with a look that made Audrey very worried. Had something gone wrong?

"Hello, Audrey. How are you feeling?" He asked.

"Fine, considering the circumstances. I am in a lot of pain, but I don't think that it's anything irregular," Audrey said.

"Um, is your husband here?"

"No," Audrey said, and again that sad, lonely feeling took her over. "He is trying his best to be here, but, um, he probably won't be here when the baby is born."

"I'm sorry to hear that…. Audrey, I have something to tell you. You may be a little surprised at first." Oh, Gosh, Audrey thought. Her heart sped up. What could he possibly have to say to her?

"When you came in several minutes ago, your stomach and weight were abnormally large, considering you aren't supposed to give birth for more than two weeks and previous ultrasounds showed that your child was rather small. We wanted to make sure that everything was okay before we encouraged the labor process further. We did another ultrasound, and found something. The chances of this are incredibly small. I can't believe that I missed this earlier, but you didn't want to know the baby's sex, so we didn't look too closely, and, well…"

"What is it, Doctor Caldwell? Is the baby okay?" Audrey was getting VERY concerned now. What if something happened?

"Yes, Audrey. The babies are okay."

"Babies? As in more than one?" Audrey was confused now. Surely not…

"In your previous ultrasound, one of your children was covering the other. We couldn't see it then, but you are carrying twins."

Audrey was mystified. She felt a mixture of emotions. First, she was surprised. Of all things that she had expected based on the endless research and stories from friends, that was the LAST thing she expected the doctor to tell her. But she was also relieved. Thank goodness her and her baby—well, babies, she would have to get used to that…—were alright. When she had seen the look on the doctor's face-well, 'everyone's fine' was more than she had hoped for. She was sad, sad that Jack wasn't there to hear this news, sad that she wouldn't be able to hear what he thought about this new child, and lonely. She wanted him here. However, she was also overwhelmed. She had been scared to have one baby to take care of, now she had two! She was scared, scared to be responsible now for not only her, but TWO more people in addition. But last of all, she was happy. She knew when she first found out that she was pregnant that becoming a mother would give her great joy, and now, since it was happening twice, didn't that mean twice the happiness?

She wanted desperately to share the news with Jack. He always helped her straighten out her thoughts. Was it even possible for one single person to be surprised, relieved, sad, happy, overwhelmed, and scared, and joyful all at the same time? Apparently it was.

The doctor excused himself, promising to be back in a few minutes. That was when Kate came in.

"So, what did the doctor say?" Kate asked. Audrey took a minute to respond, as she was overcome by a sudden wave of pain, Do twins hurt more? She thought. Because Audrey didn't know how much of this she could take.

"He said that, um, well, I'm pregnant…." Audrey said, pausing.

"Glad we established that," Kate said, laughing. Audrey chuckled too.

"With twins."

"Oh my God," Kate answered, openmouthed. "How could you not have known?"

"Apparently, one child was covering the other when I had my ultrasound a while ago. They searched harder and found two."

"Really," Kate said, not really as a question. "So, how are you feeling about all of this? I can't even imagine…while IN labor you find…"

"I'm kind of…I don't know. Confused, I guess. I'm happy more than anything. Sad that Jack won't be here. Scared. Really overwhelmed, too. It'll be hectic when they arrive."

"It will. But you'll be okay." Audrey smiled. Kate seemed so sure.

"I hope."

"You will. Trust me."

Audrey gasped and tensed as another contraction started. Kate fulfilled her promise and stayed next to her, soothing and calming her until the doctor came in. Not soon enough, it was over. Kate's cell phone rang. She looked down and saw that it was her husband.

She turned to a moaning Audrey and told her that she would be back in a second.

"Luke!"

"Kate! Where have you been? I've been so worried!"

"I'm at the hospital?"

"WHAT?" Luke yelled, accidentally waking a stirring Ben. Was his wife okay? That one comment had made him terrified.

"Don't worry honey, I'm alright," Kate said. Luke's heart rate slowed, relieved.

"What in the world is going on? All that your note says is that you left with Jack Bauer to take care of something with your sister. What are you doing with your ex boyfriend, Kate?" He asked, still worried but calming down a bit.

"Yes, well. I can't tell you all that is going on, it's a matter of national security." Luke scowled. He hated being treated like that. He was a lawyer and was a proud man, but not cocky. Still, he hated being treated like he was less or worse than someone else, especially when that someone was the only man that his wife had loved before him.

"Kate, you can't just disappear and not tell me anything about where you are or what you are doing," he said, trying to hide his annoyance at being kept out of the loop.

"I know, Luke. I was at the Counter Terrorist Unit clearing things up when Audrey Bauer suddenly went into labor. I am with her at the hospital now."

"Okay, well. Let me get this straight: you left your family worried sick to help your ex boyfriend's wife deliver her baby?"

"Yes," Kate admitted, knowing how stupid it sounded. "Well, actually, babies. She is carrying twins. She just found out. I am going to help her, Luke. I'll be with you and Ben again soon enough. Just hang in there with me, okay? I love you."

Luke sighed at the determination in his wife's voice. Kate had made up her mind, and Luke knew that it would be foolish to try and change it. She was going to help this woman, and Luke decided that he was perfectly okay with it, awkward as it may be.

"I love you too, Kate. Be back as soon as you can, okay?"

"You know I will, Luke. I promise."

Kate walked in to a nearly screaming Audrey. She could understand her pain. She remembered it. Kate couldn't even imagine having twins.

"Audrey? Calm down. Breathe with me, in, out, in out," Kate said, remembering the exercises from her recent pregnancy.

Kate stayed with her, helping and calming her, until the contraction was over. Kate was tired. She was just starting to drift off in the chair next to Audrey's bed when Audrey startled her.

"Thanks," Audrey muttered. "For everything."

Chapter 14: "I Have Something to Tell You"

The hunt for the bomb was in good shape. That was, Jack marveled, the first time that he had ever been able to say that on a day like today. They had hit the jackpot with the safe and agents were now filling a car with documents and evidence to be sent over and analyzed at CTU. Meanwhile, Jack and Sam were getting in the car, heading for Marie Warner's location.

After Jack had spoken with countless CTU personnel about the upcoming mission, he got off the phone. Jack and Sam were silent for several minutes. Jack was thinking only of his wife, and what she must be going through now. But Sam was sitting there, not letting Jack know that he was fighting an inner battle. Should he tell Jack?

Sam let his thoughts wander to that day, years ago…

Sam had been helping with a terrorist attack targeted at LA. His friend Aladmir Hekbar had introduced him to Syed Ali, who had then asked Sam to help with his plan to destroy America. Sam accepted Syed's generous offer. He was glad to be a part of such a large and committed group of attackers.

He was delivering something to Syed one day when he saw a woman in their headquarters that he didn't quite recognize. She stood out, with her blonde hair shining so bright in the sea of black. He was naturally drawn to her, him being the only other American among the many others. He wandered over and asked her name.

"Marie," she said. "Marie Warner. What's your's?" She noticed how attractive he was. She wasn't wearing her engagement ring.

"Samuel," He replied. "Samuel Edmunds. I have an idea. How about we get out of here, and I take you to the best restaurant in town?"

Marie was surprised. Most terrorists, she had found, just weren't very flirtatious or charming. And here he was, this man, asking her out. She was delighted.

"Okay," she said with a smile, which was a rare thing at that time in her life. She simply didn't have a lot to smile about.

In the middle of the night that same day, Marie and Sam lied together on Samuel's bed. Marie felt a stronger connection to him than she ever had anyone else, and she found herself pouring her heart out to him. She told him of her mother's death and sister's protection of her, and how she was so lost and didn't know what to do.

Sam was surprised by the similarities between their lives. He felt the connection to her as well, and, like her, decided to tell him his life's story and his thoughts. That night, Marie Warner became the only one except Chase that really knew Sam, and what went on in his mind. He admitted to her that he was scared, scared of something terrible happening to him or someone that he loved. She understood, and they lied there talking until the sun rose.

Marie went home to make an excuse to Reza. She waited for Samuel's call. But she didn't get it.

The next day, after Marie left, Sam got a call from one of his terrorist friends, Max, telling him of the possibility of working with oil companies to start a war after the bomb went off. The pay was heavy and Sam simply couldn't resist. He left Second Wave and Marie for ten million dollars.

Sam never forgot the night when he had poured out his soul to that woman. But he didn't dwell on it. It was at the back of his mind, always present but never commanding his attention except for those times when he was on the verge of sleep, thinking.

Marie never forgot that night either. She waited for days for his call. But days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. That was the point in Marie's life when she stopped caring. She came to terms with the fact that she was evil and would never see her mother again and simply became a shell of her former self, doing everything that her terrorist friends told her without question. She believed that the American's were evil. She didn't really have the desire to kill so many people, but what else was she going to do? If she left Second Wave, she would be killed. Besides, she liked being the one that inflicted pain on so many others. It made her feel powerful.

Across Los Angeles, Marie sat in front of the computer open-mouthed. They had found her. Only one person could have done that. But it couldn't be. She didn't believe it. Myra Turner had told Marie several days ago that she could trust Sam, not knowing that Marie knew him ten times better than Myra herself did.

As Marie took the hard drive of the computer with the information out, left the building, and ordered people to blow it up, she continued to think about her life, this time focusing on the man that she had purposefully avoided thinking about earlier. There was so much hurt when it came to Samuel Edmunds.

Marie had thought for all of those years that he had left her. But this was much, much worse. He had BETRAYED her! How could he? The small, rational part of Marie that still barely existed told her that she would betray anyone on this Earth in a heartbeat. But it was clouded by the fire that had suddenly erupted in her, like the exploding building that she was driving away from.

However, like the fire being put out as fire trucks approached the ashes with gallons and gallons of water, the anger died. Hating him would be too painful. Like everything else in her life, Marie stopped caring about him.

But this time, when Marie let go of all hope and expectations, it was different. Different because she had stopped caring about the last thing remaining that had any value to her. Marie arrived at one of their backup locations. She started ordering people around, trying to get the operation back in motion. She sighed. Nothing really had changed. Except now was the first time in her life that she truly, honestly, didn't care if she died.

Back in the car, Sam and Jack were approaching their destination. Jack stopped the car abruptly several blocks away. Black smoke was rising from the building. They both knew what happened. The two men didn't say a word.

Jack's phone rang. It was Karen.

"Bauer."

"Jack, I'm afraid we have some bad news. The car with all of the evidence just exploded in the middle of the desert. It was on its way to CTU. Apparently, the bomb attached to some of the evidence that was triggered when the safe was opened."

"Oh my gosh, Karen."

"Jack, bringing Marie Warner in is now critical. Except for Myra Turner, she is now our only lead. How is that going?"

Jack's heart sank. He would never get to see his child born. Actually, how things were going, he didn't know if anyone in his family would survive the day, or anyone in Los Angeles, for that matter. In several minutes, all of the hope that he had had left him. Now, the path to get to the prize at the end was in clear view. He had a lot of work to do.

"Not good, Karen," he said. "Not good at all."

He proceeded to tell him of the current situation. As he was hanging up, getting ready to head back to CTU to interrogate Myra Turner, Sam sighed and looked at Jack.

"I have something to tell you," he muttered, angry at her and, more than anything, ashamed at himself.

Chapter 15: Mr. President

James Heller sat in his office on the verge of tears. The door was closed and the shades were drawn. He let NO ONE see any signs of weakness. Except maybe his daughter and Vice President, and, when she was alive, his wife. But he couldn't hide anything from them. They knew him too well.

James Heller thought that he knew what he was getting himself into when he ran for president. He had been the Secretary of Defense and had dealt with plenty of National Crisis's. He had seen previous presidents deal with these days, and knew exactly how a president should act in times like these.

But President Heller found himself scared, sitting at his desk and waiting for news. There was a strange comfort in having to confirm with someone else before giving an order, having someone that would ultimately make those impossible decisions instead of him. And, of course, finding out that he was about to become a grandparent an hour earlier didn't help. And finding out that he was going to be a grandparent TWICE fifteen minutes earlier certainly didn't help. He wanted desperately to be there for his daughter, especially when her mother and husband couldn't.

But instead, he was here. Jim found himself wondering why he hadn't just retired when Gardner's term was through. That was what people were expecting him to do, being into his sixties. It would be nice to just live a citizen's life, be there for his daughter, son, and grandchildren. It would be nice to have time to mourn his wife, who had died so many years ago. Heller still hadn't quite come to terms with what had happened, and it was about time he faced the truth about her.

Actually, most of the time, Heller really was delighted to be president. There were times like these when he couldn't see at all why he had run, but being president was something that Heller had dreamed of his whole life. He had always been a leader, and the position of power made him feel good about himself.

Jim looked over towards his window and was blinded. Morning sun filled the office. He thought back to the stressful night and was glad that they were making progress. He could practically see how the day could possibly play out, and that made him feel a little better. Sitting tiredly at his desk, he imagined a perfect rest of the day.

Any second now, he would get a call that would tell him to come and oversee the takedown of Marie Warner. They would find a lot out from her and disarm the bomb soon. Then, President Heller would deal with the threat of the attack for most of the rest of the day. That night, after the crisis was over, he would board Air Force One and get some sleep while they flew him to Los Angeles. Sleep sounded so good to Jim right then. When he arrived in California, he would go and see his grandchildren for the first time. Just the thought of seeing them and his daughter and son in law as one happy family filled his heart with joy, like the sun flooding the office with light. He could see a fairly painless way for this day to end.

The phone rang. Yep, he thought. There is the call telling me to come and oversee the Marie Warner take-down operation. He smiled before he answered the phone. They would get through this crisis, he thought. Being president wasn't so bad after all.

"Mr. President, I have Bill Buchannon on the line for you," his assistant, Jean Baites, told him.

"Patch him through."

"Mr. President?" Bill said.

"What is it, Bill?"

"I'm afraid I have some bad news."

The presiden'ts heart sank. This wasn't going to be a call telling him to oversee a successful mission.

Bill continued. "Marie Warner is smarter than we thought. She saw that we were on to her. She left her previous location and blew it up."

James Heller slowly closed his eyes. His day's plan obviously wasn't going to happen.

"Well, we still have all of the evidence in the safe, so we can get something from that, can't we?"

Bill paused. "Actually, no sir. A bomb was attached to some of the evidence and the countdown was activated when the safe was opened. The car that the evidence was being transported in exploded a few minutes ago."

"Buchannon! Why didn't your people take care of this?"

"You know that we did everything that we could, sir. Believe me, we are every bit as saddened by this news as you are, if not more." Bill was silent. He hated to say what was next. Why hadn't they caught the bomb? He found himself angry at his own stupidity, even though he wasn't there; he could've have been smart enough to order people to check for traps. "We lost people in the bomb."

A sudden thought occurred to Heller. Surely not….

"Jack! Bill, where is my son in law? Is he okay?" Heller was panicking now. Jack was part of the family. Heller loved Jack like a son, but he knew that his feelings for him didn't amount to half of the feelings of his daughter. If the father of her children was lost on the day that they were born….He couldn't bare to think about it. He waited in anticipation of Bill's answer. It didn't take long for Bill to reassure him.

"Jack is okay, Mr. President."

"Thank God. How is my daughter doing?"

Bill's heart ached when he thought of Audrey. News had been given to him by Kate Warner several times, and Bill was filled in on everything. Kate told him of how Audrey screamed Jack's name once when the pain was especially intense. She wanted him there desperately.

It also hurt Bill that nobody had told Jack that Audrey was to have twins. It had been her choice not to tell him. As much as she longed for him to be there, she understood that he had to do what he had to do, and distracting him more certainly wasn't going to help.

"Audrey is fine," Bill reassured the President. "The babies are expected to be born in several hours.

"Good. Please alert me right away of any more developments in the search for the bomb or the condition of my daughter and son-in-law."

"I certainly will, Mr. President."

Heller sat down in his desk chair and looked up at the ceiling. Suddenly, he missed his wife desperately. She would always be there to comfort and help him through these situations. She would have reassured him that everything would be okay.

Jim so desperately wanted her to be there on the day that their daughter's children were born. He let his mind wander to that night, years and years ago.

He had walked in to kiss a six year old Audrey good night, but had stopped in the doorway when he saw his wife sitting on the edge of her bed. Audrey had reached out to feel Susan's pregnant stomach.

"Mommy? Is this where I came from, inside your belly?"

Susan had laughed. "Yes, Sweetie. You did. And someday, you are going to have babies in your belly, and will raise children of your own."

"Eeew!" Audrey had said, making a face. Susan laughed again.

Heller had closed the door softly and let his girls rest on the bed, where they both fell asleep. He was awoken at night to the sound of screams from that room. It was that very night that their son was born. A tear rolled down Jim's face as he imagined Audrey's smile as she first saw her baby brother.

All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door. Heller didn't say anything, still thinking of that day. His vice president, Mike Novic, walked in.

"Jim!" He said. Mike and James had become friends shortly before they decided to take on the Oval Office. And, as they campaigned and worked together, their friendship had done nothing but grow.

Mike was the best friend that Jim had had in years. They were a lot alike, each very opinionated. The two men disagreed on many issues, but found ways to agree to disagree. They found that it really helped their administration. They each provided a different yet logical viewpoint on something, and it made everyone see clearly both sides of the issue. Both of them also had families that they loved more than anything in the world, Heller with his children, and Mike with his daughter Elizabeth and wife Carol. The Novic family was a common feature at the White House dining table. Mike knew enough about his friend to see how much it bothered him to live alone in that three hundred room mansion. He knew how much it made him miss his wife and made sure to stop by whenever he could to provide some company.

"What's the situation?" Mike asked.

Jim told him all about their current situation, ending with an explanation of what was happening with Audrey, who Mike really bonded with. When they were done, there was silence. Heller's eyes were fixed on a point to the side of Mike, and Mike looked into his friend's eyes as they stared into space.

Mike put a hand on Jim's shoulder. He didn't appear to notice, but inside, Heller found himself so deeply grateful for his friend.

Mike knew what a hard thing this was for James. He was one of the few on this Earth that ever got a glimpse of what was behind that sharp voice and aura of control, and he also knew that he had to be there for his friend.

"I miss her," Jim muttered.

Mike was caught off guard. His eyes watered up. He hadn't ever seen Jim and Susan Heller together, but it was the rare comments like these that made Mike understand how much he had loved his wife.

Jim picked up a picture of his wife on his desk. He stared into those huge eyes that had been passed down to his daughter. He took a deep breath. That picture had been taken years ago. He needed to concentrate on what was happening here and now. He snapped back into President mode.

"Alright, Mike. We should pull together the top ten probability locations for the bomb…."

Heller got back to work. As he left the office with Mike to go continue the search, he looked back at the picture one more time, not wanting to leave a wife that had been gone for years.