Title: "Redoubled" (1/1)
Author: Kerry
Summary: Sydney's past comes back to haunt her when her SD-6 handler comes back to L.A.
Rating: PG
Timeline: Post-Phase One, still in Season Two, no ring in sight. (No cow, either)
Spoilers: Phase One generally, Alias Book Father Figure specifically. Specifically the ending of the book. You've been warned.
Disclaimer. Well, Valentine's Day is drawing near, so I'm still hoping for a chocolate Vaughn, but nothing else belongs to me. (Neither does Vaughn, but I'm hoping it's a matter of time.)
Ship: As much as any, S/V, but the story's not really about that.
Thanks to: My beta LMichelle—if she's still alive after the shock of me actually *writing* something.
A/N: Flip, you should be ashamed of yourself when I'm posting a story before you. *G* Dani, this is for you 'cause I was so worried and so relieved to hear from you.
"Redoubled"
Walking across the rotunda, I head over to Vaughn's desk, holding the memo in my hands.
"What's this meeting about, anyway?" I ask him, a small smile on my face.
Vaughn shrugs. "I don't know anymore than you do, Syd. All I know is that there is some agent who's being transferred back into the L.A. branch."
"And we're the ones who get to reintroduce him to L.A.?"
"From what I understand, he had something to do with SD-6, so now that it's destroyed, he's getting debriefed by us—after all, who's got a better knowledge of what went on than we do?"
I roll my eyes. "Oh, this is gonna be a fun meeting." As I'm speaking, Vaughn stands up and gathers some folders.
"Come on. Let's get going. We don't want to miss any of the fun." Vaughn and I head over to Weiss's desk, and we pick him up on the way over to the conference room.
When we enter, Vaughn and I take our seats on one side of the room, with my father sitting across from us. I smile over at him, but he is giving me the strangest look. Before I have the chance to ask him about it, Kendall comes in. He looks at my father.
"Is he here yet?"
Dad nods. "He's just getting his paperwork sorted out, he'll be here in a minute."
"Fine. Alright," Kendall huffs. "While we're waiting for him, let me just tell you all why you're here. No one has a better understanding of Sloane than the people who have worked the closest with him. Jack, Sydney, that's why you're here, and Vaughn and Agent Weiss—you two have shown an aptitude for ascertaining his plans, and you've also been involved with the SD-6 case, so you also have a unique understanding of Arvin Sloane. The J.T.F.'s primary goal from this moment forward is to find Arvin Sloane and get him out of working order—arrest him, kill him, I don't really care how we do it. So you five are the frontlines—"
"Five?" Weiss interrupts. "This new agent who's just been transferred in will be part of this group? Does he know anything about Arvin Sloane or SD-6?"
"He knows a thing or two about SD-6 and Arvin Sloane," a voice from the doorway behind me replies.
I twist around in my seat, looking to see who the newcomer is, and why his voice sounds vaguely familiar. The tall, kindly looking gray-haired man walks to the front of the conference room.
"Agent Kendall, I'm Reginald—"
"Wilson," I gasp, my jaw dropping. "How in the—what the—I don't understand," I barely manage to get out.
"Sydney," he says, and it's obvious that someone told him I would be here. Glancing across the room at my father confirms that he was the one who told Wilson. "It's good to see you again." He smiles at me.
"But—" I try and intercept, but to no avail. Kendall shakes hands with Wilson, who then takes the open seat next to my father.
"So you are each going to talk to all your contacts. Just talk to them. Chew the fat. Shoot the shit. Find out if there's anything interesting happening in the intelligence world that has the slightest connection to Sloane. In five hours come back here and put together anything that when combined with other reports it suddenly becomes evident that Sloane is playing a part." Kendall nods curtly and stalks out of the office.
Weiss also heads out. "Gotta contact my friend in the Polish mafia before he leaves the office," I hear him mutter.
I can feel Vaughn looking at me, but I'm staring intently at the monitor in front of me, deciding whether or not I want to look at Wilson. It's been so many years. The feelings of guilt I had right as I turned him over to SD-6 return in full-force, but they are even more painful now, as I realize exactly what I did to him.
"Reg, I will be at my desk," My father's voice cuts through my thoughts, and I dare to glance up at him. He gives me a definite glare, nodding towards Wilson.
When my father stands up to leave, Vaughn stands up, as well. The look he gives me is confused, but he covers it quickly. "Come see me and we'll discuss splitting the contacts," he says quietly. I nod and smile at him.
Finally, with no one but Wilson and me in the room, I have to no choice but to look up at him, only to find him gazing intently at me.
"All this time," I start out. He nods.
"How did you—how did you get away from SD-6? I had... last time I saw you... you were in the back of their van..."
"Your father was one of the men who came to take me away."
"You certainly acted scared," I tell him, just a touch of bitterness in my voice.
"I didn't know it at the time. It wasn't until he sent the others home. I didn't know he was a double until that moment. Your father saved my life."
"After I almost ended it."
Wilson nods. "You had no idea what you were doing. And while I suspected that I was being watched, I never imagined it would be from you. Did SD-6 put you up to it?"
I shake my head. "No. I remember you acting weird. But then when the device that Noah and I stole turned out to be bogus, and I looked at it and knew it wasn't the same one, that was when I really knew."
"And you compromised my dead drop."
"And turned it over to Noah, who reported you."
"And then they used you to lure me to the warehouse."
My eyes are glued to the monitor in front of me. "When you recruited me, did you know the truth then?"
When I don't hear an answer, I look up at him. He nods, slowly. My chair goes flying against the back wall as I stand up and rush out of the conference room.
"Sydney, wait," I hear him call after me. I'm half tempted to go back to him and pummel his head in, just like he taught me so many years ago. But instead I continue on my course, moving through the rotunda as quickly as possible without actually running.
"Syd!" My mind registers that this is a different voice, and as soon as I slow down, Vaughn reaches out and grabs my arm. "Sydney, what? What's wrong?"
I shake my head. "I just—I have to go." Pulling my arm free, I continue towards the elevators, which I take to the lobby. Pushing through the main doors, I head towards my car and get in, driving in any direction I can move quickly.
When I cut my engine, I find that I've driven to the bluffs. Getting out of my car and walking to the edge of the cliffs, I lean against the railing and look out to the ocean below. The sea wind whips around me, and I slowly breathe in and out, trying to push away the painful feelings, and to breathe in a sense of calm and peace.
Wilson. He had been the one to approach me in the first place. He was the one who told me I fit a profile. He was the one who had overseen my placement and advancement through SD-6. He was the one I had trusted with my life.
And then I had discovered him to be a double. I still remember that sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach when I realized that he was working for someone else.
And I still remember the guilt.
My father and I were barely on speaking terms in that point of my life, and though Wilson wasn't exactly a sentimental fool, in so many ways he came to be a father figure in my life. He gave me advice, support, and encouragement. And his primary concern was always for my well-being, even when SD-6 had invented a scheme whereby I would lead him to a warehouse so he could be... dealt with. Before he realized I had been involved in the setup, and when he realized he couldn't escape, all he wanted was for me to be able to get away.
But the look on his face when he realized I was the one to report him.
It took me months to get over that. Weeks after I had turned him in, I would have nightmares about him, in jail, begging me, pleading with me to tell him why.
I always rationalized it by telling myself I was protecting the country, and Wilson was working for the enemy.
When all along our roles were the opposite of what I had known to be true.
When Danny died, and when I learned the truth, Wilson had been a small dot in my memory for a long time already. I didn't bring back his betrayal of SD-6 and try to determine if he had known. At that point in time, I was consumed with the idea of revenge.
But now, looking back, all the pieces fall perfectly into place. If my head hadn't been stuck so far up my own ass with my patriotic pride, perhaps I could have learned something sooner that would have given me a clue as to SD-6's true identity.
That being said, if Wilson cared so much for me, then why the hell did he recruit me to work for SD-6 in the first place?
The sound of crunching gravel alerts me as to another car's presence. I hear the occupant slam the door and walk up behind me. I know without looking that it's Vaughn.
"You know, you're a lot easier to tail when you're upset."
"How often do you tail me when I'm not upset?"
I hear a little chuckle to my left. "Fair point."
I look over at him as he leans on the railing, content to give me time to collect my thoughts. After a few minutes he looks back at me. "What happened?" He asks softly, his green eyes full of concern.
Sighing, I tuck my hair back. "Wilson. The transfer. I know him. From SD-6."
"What do you mean, you know him from SD-6? How?"
"He was the one that recruited me."
That causes Vaughn to stand straight up. "What? But he's CIA."
"He was a double."
"He was a double, working at SD-6, and yet he *recruited* innocent people into that hell?" Vaughn asks, his voice becoming harder with each word.
"Vaughn," I start out, wondering why I feel the need to defend Wilson when I had been questioning the exact same thing only moments earlier.
"Sydney, he's the one who brought you into all this. He's the one who gave you the life that you hated. Because of his recruiting you, Danny was killed. He's the one—"
"Who led me to you." I pause, as I can feel his eyes widening. Vaughn loves me so much that he would rather that I never went through all the pain I went through, even if it means that I never would have met him. "I know what you're thinking. And yes, all that is true. But Vaughn... when I thought I was working for the CIA I was happy. And when the Alliance finally fell... I have many regrets in my life. And I will always feel some guilt for being the cause of Danny's murder. But I will never regret a single action that caused me to meet you."
"Syd..." he whispers. Looking up, I can see his eyes full of tears. He pulls me to him and kisses the top of my head. "I love you. So much. You know that."
I nod into his chest. "I do. And I love you, too."
"So... you're telling me I shouldn't pummel Wilson's ass for bringing you into this life... bringing you into my life?"
"I think Wilson's already paid his dues."
"If he was SD-6, why don't I know him?"
"He was exposed as a double, and so I guess they transferred him away so he wouldn't be in danger."
"When was he exposed?"
"About a year after I was recruited," I tell him, my voice becoming slightly bitter. Vaughn hears the change and pulls back from me a bit.
"What happened?"
"I was the one who exposed him." Vaughn's eyes widen.
"Quick study, huh?" He grins, but it fades when he sees the pain in my face.
"Throughout my training, and even throughout my first field missions, Wilson was my contact. He was my overall trainer, and kept track of my progress. But even more than that. For the first time, I had someone who made me feel like I belonged somewhere. Wilson was always praising the work I did, or how quickly I picked something up. He was my guide. He was almost like a father to me. When I became suspicious of him, it broke my heart. At that point in time, it would have been easier to turn my father in than to turn him in."
"But you believed you were working for the CIA."
"And that he wasn't."
"You didn't mention him in your initial debrief."
"I wasn't thinking of him. The guilt was so bad for awhile. That was when I first learned to compartmentalize. And when I came to the CIA, my primary goal was avenging Danny's death."
"You have to talk to him, Sydney. There's so much to say. On both sides."
He takes my hand and kisses it.
I pull back slightly. "I don't know. Part of me hates him for recruiting me to work against the country, but then I feel so guilty about turning him over to SD-6."
"Why wasn't he killed?"
"Turns out my father was one of the people assigned to bring him in... I don't know how he did it, but somehow I guess he let Wilson escape. Wilson said he didn't know my father was another double until that moment."
"But if—" Vaughn starts out, before he's interrupted by the ringing of his cell phone. He pulls it out of his pocket. "Vaughn." He pauses while waiting for the voice at the other line to speak. "Yeah. We'll be back in about 30 minutes." There's another pause, and Vaughn sighs. "Yes, Weiss, we'll bring you back a cheeseburger."
Pocketing the phone, he looks at me. "We need to get back."
I smile. "And get Weiss his burger."
Vaughn grins. "The man is a human trash can."
"So… we split the contact list seventy-thirty?" I ask, giving Vaughn my sweetest smile.
"Alright, but why do you want to make so many more calls than me?"
"Haha. You're a funny guy." With both hands, he reaches out to my waist and pulls me into him.
"That's why you love me."
"That, and the fact that you've got a pretty damn good body," I tell him, looking him up and down appraisingly.
"So you're just using me for my body then, is it?"
"Well, I'm certainly never gonna use you as my personal stand-up comedian."
He kisses the side of my head. "Just don't give that job to Weiss and I'm a happy man."
I laugh as I bring my arms up around his neck. "Deal," I tell him, smiling up into his eyes. He leans down and brushes his lips against mine.
"Good. Then we'd better get back. Since I have to stop off and get Weiss his fast-food fix, do you want anything?"
"Grilled chicken sandwich?"
Vaughn nods. "You got it. Are you okay to drive back to the office?"
I refrain from rolling my eyes. "I'll be fine."
Vaughn watches as I get into the car and pull out of the parking lot, and a moment later, I see him on the road behind me. It's a great feeling—having Vaughn as my backup.