Chapter 1
"I'm going to ask you again, Irina. What were you planning on doing with that thing?"
Irina remained silent and continued to look out the window. Devlin was now growing impatient with her. He knew she would never tell him anything, but maybe she would tell Jack. He spoke to her one last time before heading out the door.
"It doesn't matter, we've destroyed the thing already. And by the look of things, we don't have to worry about you making another one."
Irina wasn't at all surprised. In fact, she had known that the CIA would. She didn't even worry that she was under their custody, because she was certain that she wasn't going to stay long.
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Vaughn quietly waited for Sydney to arrive. He felt anxious and exciteed at the same time. He wondered if the feeling was mutual. Somehow, he couldn't help but think of Sydney. Every time she entered a room, his heart would start to pound and his attention would quickly focus on her. She soon walked in, and it seemed to him that she was gliding.
"Hey, what's up?"
"Well, your mother won't tell us anything regarding that Rambaldi device. She's quite stubborn."
"Well, what does the CIA plan to do with her?"
"They plan to keep her until they can get anything useful out of her. Then she'll be put on trial for treason."
Sydney didn't know how to react to that. A part of her felt sorry for her mother, and another said that she's getting what she deserves. For a moment there was complete silence, until Vaughn spoke.
"So how was your dinner…with your father, I mean."
"It was good. I mean, it started kind of slow at first, but then we finally got somewhere. We talked about some of the missions he's done and he asked how Francie was doing." Sydney started to laugh, "He thinks she doesn't like him. Actually, part of it is sort of true. It doesn't matter though, I'm inviting him to dinner with us."
"You and Francie?"
"Yeah and Will. Vaughn's forehead creased a bit at the mention of Will. "I don't know if my father will go though. It's worth a try."
"Oh…I'm glad things are working out between you two."
"Yeah, me too. Well, I better get going."
"I'll walk you out."
Sydney smiled at him, "Thanks."
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"Abby, would you just listen for a second?"
"Will, I don't really want to talk to you right now."
"I understand you're mad at me, but…" she soon cut him off. "Listen Will, I understand that you were sick, but you really mad me look bad. I mean I was a laughingstock. Everyone officially knows me as the girl who had the psycho's story printed."
"Yeah I know, but…wait, they're calling me a psycho?"
Abby sighed, "Will, I have to go. Bye."
"Abby, wait." By that time, she had hung up.
Will slumped a bit while hanging up the phone, "Great, my career is so down the toilet now."
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"Hello?"
"Jack, it's me Ben. I need to speak with you regarding Irina."
"What about her?" he asked hastily.
Devlin paused for a moment, trying to find the best way to ask for Jack's help, "Jack, she won't talk. Jacques won't either."
"So you want me to come in," he said, his tone still not changing.
"Yes, only if you're up to it. I'll understand if you choose not to accept."
"No, it's fine. I'll be there right away."
"Thanks, Jack."
"No problem."
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Sydney walked in to find Francie on the couch with Will.
"Hey guys. What's up?"
"Nothing much. Francie and I were just arguing over whether or not that news anchor's wearing a toupee."
"What do you think, Syd?"
Sydney looked at TV and then at Francie, "I think he is."
"Ha, I told you, Will."
"Fine, you win." Will wasn't going to pursue their conversation, for he knew Sydney would know all about wigs. After all, she is a spy.
"Um…oh yeah, my dad's gonna have dinner with us. I mean I haven't asked him yet, but I'm sure he'll be up to it."
Will looked at Sydney questioningly, "Are you sure he's gonna show? He might be busy."
Sydney gave him the same look back. "Since Sloane's given us a month off, I think he'll make it."
"Your dad coming to dinner with us? I don't know, Syd. I mean, he's not much of a talker. We might as well set up a dinner for three since we'll barely know he's there."
Sydney set her hands on her hips, "You know that's not fair, Fran. He's really trying here and I'd really appreciate it if you both give him a chance."
Will silently watched the two of them, trying hard not to attract their attention.
"All right, Syd, fine. I'll do it for you. But my opinion still hasn't changed about him."
"All I'm asking is that you give him a chance. And hopefully you'll come around."
"All right, if you say so."
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Jack slowly walked over to where Irina sat.
"Nice to see you again, Jack. How are you feeling?" she asked, trying to sound concerned.
"Fine, no thanks to you."
Irina lightly touched Jack's hand, "Now Jack, you know I didn't shoot you."
Jack quickly pulled away from her, "Don't touch me."
Irina gave him a slight smile, "Very well."
His voice was demanding and quite firm when he spoke with her.
"What do you know about the G-Virus?"
"Oh yes, that. I know enough to negotiate a deal with you."
"The only offer I'm going to give you is a bigger cell. And this…is non-negotiable."
She ignored him and walked toward the window, "I've got a better idea. You give me a better view and more comfortable surroundings and I'll tell you what you need to know."
"You do realize that you'll be heading to prison soon? The only time you'll be comfortable is when your cellmate's sleeping."
Irina gave him a threatening look, "Fine! Then you might want to ask Jacques then, because you'll get nothing out of me."
Jack seemed to take pleasure at her reaction. He walked out the room without even glancing back at her. Jack entered the other end of the interrogation room, to find Devlin massaging his temple.
"Jack, we have no choice right now. Irina's the only one who's cooperating. Jacques won't give up anything. You should know, you tried."
"Trust me, I'll get him to talk."
"Jack, we've just got word that a few of Jacques's employees, who worked on the virus, are trapped in his plant. They're sealed tight in there. Since you have a month off, I thought you might want to coordinate the mission? His plant's in Toledo."
"I'll do even better….I'll go."
Devlin looked shocked by Jack's answer, "Jack, I don't know if you're well enough to go."
"Ben, it's been almost three weeks. I assure you, I'm quite fit to go. Getting an appendix removed isn't life threatening."
Devlin tried to argue with Jack, but once his mind was set, there was no use changing it, "Fine, are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
"All right then." As Jack was about to leave, Devlin called him back, "Oh and Jack."
"Yes?"
"I think I'll be reconsidering Irina's offer. It wouldn't hurt just to transfer her. It's not like she's going to get anywhere."
"Yes and while we're at it, we should ask if Jacques would like a pillow. After all, we wouldn't want him to be uncomfortable, now would we?"
Devlin rubbed is temple once again, "Jack, we really don't have a choice. Right now, this is for our national security. If this virus is let out, it'll be a complete disaster."
"Fine, I'll see you later then."
Devlin nodded in acknowledgement as Jack walked out.
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As Sydney walked into the warehouse, she noticed Vaughn wasn't in his usual suit. She was actually quite taken by his ensemble. He had on a perfectly faded denim jacket with matching jeans, and a tightly fitted white shirt, which showed his nicely toned body. His sneakers were all white too; K-Swiss, if she saw right. Vaughn noticed her staring at him.
"Is there something wrong?"
Sydney quickly shook the look off her face. "No, nothing…um, you wanted to see me about something?"
"Yeah, well…I thought you should know that your father's going to…to Toledo…What?"
Sydney hadn't noticed that her eyes were wandering again. "Nothing, I'm just not used to you without your suit….or the…"
"Or the messy hair and pj's" he said, laughing. "Yeah well, I'm actually going to see a friend."
"Oh…so what about my father again?"
"Yeah well, he's going to Toledo to extract some of Jacques's employees. Only problem is, they're trapped in his plant."
"What? My father can't go!"
"Well, obviously Devlin agreed to send him."
"Then I'll go too," she blurted out.
"You'll have to discuss that issue with Devlin. I'll go with you, if you want."
Sydney smiled at him, "Thanks, I'd like that…I mean… well, you know."
"Yeah, I know."
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Chapter 2
A man was rapidly running through an empty hallway.
"Halt!"
He ignored the warning and continued to an elevator. As he was inside, it completely shut down. He had no other choice but to try to get out by forcing the elevator doors open. He noticed that the elevator had stopped halfway down from where the next floor was. He decided to be bold, and squeeze through the little opening he had and climb out.
Then the speakers came on again, "This is your final warning. Please remain inside."
He ignored the warning and continued to squeeze through. He had already removed half his body from the cart, when the elevator switched on again. He frantically tried to pull the rest of his body out, but it was too late. The elevator came up too quickly, splitting him in half.
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"Mr. Devlin?"
"Yes?"
"Agents Vaughn and Bristow are here to see you, sir."
Devlin quickly put away Irina's file and signaled his secretary to let them in.
"You can come in now."
Sydney and Vaughn walked in together, which didn't shock Devlin at all.
"Sydney, so glad that we can finally meet," he said greeting her. "Tell me, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"
Sydney was a bit hesitant to ask for Devlin's help. "Well, I was….".
"What she means to ask is if she and I…"
Sydney looked at him surprised but quickly changed her expression once Devlin noticed.
"…can accompany Jack to Toledo? I think it would be more efficient if we went along. I assure you, Sydney's quite capable for this mission." Vaughn felt quite proud of himself for some reason. He wanted to see if Sydney was looking at him, but didn't.
Devlin cut him off before he can finish his sentence.
"Yes, I know she may be capable, Vaughn, but I think it would be best if Sydney stayed. We wouldn't want Sloane to hear about this."
Sydney quickly spoke up, "But you see, this is the perfect opportunity for me to assist. He gave both me and my father time off, and to top that off, he appointed Peter Lawrence to head up SD-6 while he's gone. He has been known to ignore facts, and if I may say he's pretty incompetent."
Sydney's argument was quite persuasive. She reminded Devlin so much of her father, and if he knew better, she wouldn't take no for an answer.
"Well, your father's in charge of the extraction team. You might want to ask him."
Sydney knew that was the go ahead, so she politely thanked Devlin.
"Thank you, sir."
"No problem. Vaughn, you and Miss Bristow better not disappoint me."
"I assure you, we won't."
Sydney and Vaughn waited silently in the elevator. She briefly gazed at him through the corner of her eye, and saw that he was standing up straight, hands crossed behind his back.
"So are you still going to meet up with your friend?"
"Yeah, I'm only half an hour late. You have any plans?"
"Yeah, I'm having dinner with Will and Francie."
"And your father?"
"I'll ask him." They soon ended their conversation when the elevator opened.
"Well, I'll see ya."
"You too. Bye."
"Bye Sydney."
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"Syd, where've you been? I've been trying to call you, but your cell was off."
"Yeah, sorry about that. I was in a meeting."
"Oh…well is your dad coming tonight?"
"I don't know, I'll call him right now."
"Ok."
Sydney picked up the telephone and dialed her father's number. After a few rings, the machine picked up.
"BEEP."
Sydney laughed, that was so typical of her father, not even taking the time to record a little message.
"Dad, it's me. Umm, I'm having dinner with Francie and Will…and I thought you might want to come. It would really mean a lot if you do. Well, call me when you get this. Bye."
"Not home, huh? That's so predictable, Syd."
"Francie, please."
"I'm just trying to look out for you. I don't want you to get your hopes up like last time. What happens if he doesn't show?"
"Then he must have a good reason not to."
Franice sighed, "Fine Syd, you know, that's the problem with you. You let things go too easily."
Sydney laughed, "I know… oh my gosh, Francie!"
"What?"
Sydney pointed to a pan on top of the stove, "Your chicken, it's burning."
Francie quickly rang to the stove, "Ha ha, very funny," she said, throwing her an apron.
"Since you want to be a little comedian you can help me cook."
"Francie, you know I can't."
"Fine, you're in charge of boiling water. I'm sure you won't have any trouble doing that. Will can do it for Pete's sake!"
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"Abby," Will said, calling out to her.
She slowly turned around and rolled her eyes at the sight of Will, "Will, what do you want?"
"I just want to apologize….you know, for making you look like an idiot," he said, laughing.
Abby, on the other hand wasn't. "Yeah well, you're gonna have to do a lot better than just apologize."
"What do you have in mind?"
Abby thought for a moment, trying to figure out what kind of punishment was worthy enough for Will.
"Let's see," she said grinning. "You ever babysat a fourteen year old before?"
"A teenager? Forget it, they're the worst! I mean, the last time I did that was for my cousin's kid….and it was torture. God….please, Abby, anything but that!"
By the look on Abby's face, she seemed to be enjoying Will's agony, "Do you really want my forgiveness?"
"Yes, but…all right," he said letting out a short sigh. "I'll do it."
She smiled at him. "Excellent! Oh and Will, I talked to the boss lady for you."
Will had a look of surprise on his face, "You did…what did she say?"
"Well, I told her you were really stressed out and that she should give you a break. I mean, you don't deserve to lose your career. You're a pretty talented guy…and yeah I'm complimenting you. God help me.
Will let out a short laugh.
"Anyway she decided to give you short human interest pieces for now. And then you have to work your way back up again. I tried, Will, but that was the best I could get out of her."
Will engulfed Abby in a big hug and squeezed her tightly, "Thank you, thank you. You are THE best."
"I know, I know. Now get off me, will you. Someone might see."
Will let her loose, "Thanks Ab, you're the best."
"Yeah, well, you can repay me when you pick up my niece tonight. And I trust her staying with you won't be a problem? I mean I'll only be gone for a few days."
Will was so into the moment that he didn't even mind.
"Sure, not at all. I'll pick her up tonight," Will said running to his car.
Abby called out to him, "Eight o'clock!"
"Eight o'clock. I'll be there."
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Jack entered his house and walked into his den. He sat by his desk and saw a red light blinking. He walked over to his answering machine and played the message.
*Message*
"Dad, it's me. Umm, I'm having dinner with Francie and Will…and I thought you might want to come. It would really mean a lot if you do. Well, call me when you get this. Bye."
*End Message*
Jack sighed and decided to call Sydney. After a few rings, she picked up.
"Hello?"
"Sydney."
"Dad, I'm glad you called."
"About dinner, I don't know…"
Sydney interrupted him before he could finish. She thought if he heard how excited she was, he might reconsider.
"Yeah, about that…we're gonna have such a great time. I mean, Francie made everything, and it's safe to say that it's definitely worth driving fifteen minutes for."
Jack knew that if he was serious about being there for Sydney, he'd have to meet her friends.
"All right, Sydney, I'll be there."
Sydney paused for a moment, a huge smile implanted on her face, "Sydney, are you still there?"
"What…yeah, thanks Dad. This really means a lot."
"Don't mention it…I'll see you soon."
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"Access denied."
The man fiercely pounded on the key pads again.
"Access denied."
"Damn it!"
"Jeff, give it up. We're trapped in here."
He ignored her and tried yet again.
"Access denied."
He sighed heavily and placed his hands on top of his head, "We're never getting out of here, are we?"
"Yes, we are. We just have to find another way out."
"How, if we can't even get out of this room? I mean, how long will this food last us?"
"A few days. Just thank God that we got locked in the staff room."
"Ok then….How do you expect to get out of here?"
He thought for a moment before answering her, "Since this place is in lockdown, someone must have received a distress call. The security in this building is very advanced. Once we're in lockdown mode, a signal's sent out and someone who works for Jacques intercepts it."
"How long before they come?"
"Let's not worry about that for now."
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