DOD, Conference room

Tony lifts his head as Jack and Heller walk in, followed by someone else.

"Tony." Jack gestures to the new guy. "This is Pete Hanson. He'll walk us through the facts. Pete, Tony Almeida. He'll be co-ordinating the information flow. I want you to give him the necessary clearance to access everything we have from Division and CTU. He answers directly to me."

"Yes, Sir.", Pete replies and he and Tony shake hands as Tony stands up for a moment.

Heller takes a seat at the head of the table, Jack sits opposite Tony, Pete remains standing.

"Alright, Pete. What do we know?", Heller asks.

Division / CTU

"Helen, where are you on the number plate? Got anything yet?", Steve asks her as he joins her at her desk.

"Yeah. Only a part of it is visible, FNC-24, I can't quite make out the last number, but I'll keep trying."

"Alright, I want you to send this to cross-check this with the DMV database, let me know when you find the holder."

Steve picks up the phone.

"Chloe, it's Steve over at Division. We've got a partial number of the car. Foxtrot-November-Charlie-2-4. It's a black Ford Explorer. Got that?... OK, can you see if you can pick it up on satellite? We're searchiing through the DMV database. Check CalTrans traffic cameras too."

"Yeah; I'll let you know if anything comes up." Chloe logs into the DMV system and begins the search.

DOD, Conference room

Pete has set up his computer and a projector and he begins the briefing: "OK... Here is what we know so far with the information gathered from our inter-agency sources:

Around 11:24 am today, the name Greg Cradock was red-flagged on the FBI's no-fly watchlist. At first the analysts thought it was a mistake since the name belonged to a dead man," Pete projects the ID of the deceased man on the screen, "but upon cross-checking with our lists, it turns out this name was also on the dormant terrorist alias watchlist."

Pete projects a Fox News report next, showing firefighters trying to put out the fire from the explosion. "At 11:40 am, CTU LA received a phone call from a man talking about the rebirth of the nation and saying "this" was only a warning of things to come. Shortly thereafter a tanker truck carrying 10 000 gallons of gasoline exploded outside a residential area at an LA suburb, as a result of an obvious terrorist attack. We assume the attack was carried out by using 50 caliber sniper rifles and other weapons. The perpetrators are still unknown and at large."

"At 12:03 pm we have security footage from LAX, with an unknown male coming into the country using the said alias. He was last seen entering a car on the LAX parking lot." Pictures of the man passing the custorms area and entering a vehicle are shown. "We were unable to apprehend him at the time because he had already left the airport by the time he was ID'd. He came up a Jim Smith, although there is a possibility that this name is fake. CTU and Division are working with local authorities to locate the vehicle and confirm his ID. We are currently investigating the possibility that these two incidents are connected."

Jack glances up from the notepad he had been taking notes on. "Who is in contact with CTU and Division?"

"I am.", Pete confirms.

"I want you working closely with Tony.", Jack instructs him.

"Yes, sir.", Pete nods and Jack continues.

"Our first priority is finding this man from the airport. Tony, get in touch with CTU and Division and see if they have anything new on him. We need to ID that man and find him now." Tony nods in agreement.

"Is there anything else?", Heller asks Pete.

"No, Sir. We are expecting an update from CTU in 15 mintues."

"Alright, then get to work." Heller stands up and walks towards the door. "Pete, make sure Mr. Almeida has the access that he needs."

"I will, Sir."

The four men stand up to go about their work, when Tony walks up to the Secretary taking him aside for a moment:"Umm. Sir, I know this wasn't an easy decision to let me here today, but I assure you that I will do everything I can to help to stop these people. I hope I can prove that to you. Thank you."

Heller briefly glances at Jack before replying. "Jack believes you can be a real asset to us, Mr. Almeida, and I am willing to accept any help within reason. Just don't let me down."

"No Sir. Now if you'll excuse me. I need to get to work."

Heller nods and walks out.

Tony turns to Pete: "I need you to get me in contact with CTU and Division, ASAP. We need to know where they are on tracking this guy."

"Will do."

"Jack, where are you going to be in case I need to reach you?"

"My office, right down the hall." Jack walks to the door, then faces Tony again.

"Thank you Tony." Jack smiles slightly to himself. Just like old times.

Tony nods: "Yeah." We'll see if I'll regret it, but you're welcome for now., he thinks.

Then Jack leaves the conference room.

Back in his office, Jack places his case and laptop on his desk, and, still standing, dials Erin's number.

"Erin, it's Jack Bauer."

"Hello, Jack." Erin gets up from her chair and walks to the glass wall of her office, looking down at the main floor.

"Erin. That phonecall CTU received this morning, about the attack, who was it placed to?"

"Chloe O'Brien."

"Have you been able to pinpoint the location of the caller yet?"

"Yes, it came from a cell phone, we have been able to trace the signal to North Hollywood. LAPD found the phone on the roof of a building we assume was where the tanker was shot at."

"So does that phone help us at all?"

"Not really, Jack. No prints have been found and it has no numbers saved in the directory. It's clean."

Jack sits down, turning on his computer. "OK, what are you working on now?"

"We've just received confirmation from Division. They've ID'd the man who was spotted at the airport earlier today and we have a partial number plate of the car he escaped in. We are trying to locate him as we speak. I'll send the file over to you."

"Alright, thanks. Keep me posted. I wanna know as soon as you've tracked him down."

"I will."

"Erin, one more thing. I have Tony Almeida working with me here at the DOD. I want CTU co-operating on all levels with him and us."

"Jack, are you sure about..."

"Erin, I don't wanna hear it! Secretary Heller has agreed to this, you are not in position to disagree."

"Alright Jack.", Erin sighs. "I'll keep you posted."

"Thank you." Jack hangs up and takes a good look around the room. His vision is stiill a little blurry, but it's getting better.

As Erin hangs up the phone, for a moment there she almost regrets her decision to fire Jack. At least while he was working for her, she was his superior. Luckily, you don't have to deal with him on a daily basis any more., she thinks to herself.

Tony walks to a com-room with Pete and after starting up a terminal, he picks up the phone, dialing the number to Division: "This is Tony Almeida, Jack Bauer asked me to act as a liason between you and the DOD. So I need an update. Where are you on tracking down the man from the airport? Anything from Caltrans or LAPD?"

"This is Steve Sheldon, I will be co-ordinating things from our end. We have an ID on the man from the airport. It's a Jim Smith, I'm not sure if that's his real name, but we did manage to pull some satellite footage of the car he escaped in and we got the licence plate number. I sent everything over to CTU, they are trying to locate him now. You'll need to talk to Chloe O'Brien about any progress they might have made in the last few minutes."

"Alright, thanks Steve. Look, keep me informed if anything comes up."

"Sure."

Having set up in his office again, Jack tries Audrey's number, but she doesn't pick up. He places his phone on the desk, then accesses the files on the DOD server and starts reading through them. There might have been something they missed.

Several moments later, his cell phone rings. He picks up. "This is Jack Bauer."

"Come to the Griffith Observatory park. Be there in 20 minutes."

"Who is this?", Jack asks.

"A friend. I can't stay on any longer, Jack, your people will trace the call." The line disconnects.

Jack instantly grabs his cell phone and car keys, and leaves his office. "Mark!", he calls to a tall man, obviously one of the guards on Heller's staff. "You're coming with me, now."

Mark obeys instantly, grabs his gun and follows Jack. In the elevator, he chances a question. "Where are we going?"

"Griffith Observatory. We have 20 minutes. We're following a lead. I need you to drive and watch my back.. Can you do that?"

"Sure, Jack."

"Good."

Jack checks that he has a fresh clip in his gun, then holsters the weapon and silently waits for the elevator to stop.

When it stops at the ground floor, Jack and Mark quickly leave the building, climb into a government SUV and Mark drives off, while Jack looks out of the window, still visibly annoyed that his vision is not 100 and aware that this might be a very dangerous situation. He mentally curses himself for choosing this day for his treatment.

DOD / CTU

Tony dials the number to CTU.

"CTU, Annie Bradley.", Annie picks up while glancing up at Erin's office.

"This is Tony Almeida. I've been given authority by Secretary Heller to coordinate the information flow between the agencies. I need input from your end. Division said you are trying to locate Jim Smith. Are you getting anything from Caltrans? I heard you have some satelite footage of him. Have you ran Smith's picture through the databases to come up with a positive ID? We need to find him ASAP, because he might have intel on where these terrorists strike next and who they are."

"Yeah, we're working on it. We're tracking him down on satelite feeds, we're making good progress. We should have a location in a few minutes. We've already sent everything we have over to the DOD server. I'll send his location directly to your computer, just open up a new directory."

Unknown hotel in LA

The man is just stepping out of the shower, he dries himself and looks at himself from the mirror but decides not to shave. He gets dressed in black slacks and a shirt. He doesn't seem to be in any hurry, feeling safer at the hotel room than he did at the airport.

After this, he gets his cellphone and dials: "Yeah it's me. The meeting is still a go. In about two hours. Yes."
He puts the phone back on the table and starts up his computer.

DOD / SUV

Tony opens up the directory and starts sorting through the intel Annie sent him. As he is sorting through it a new update from CTU comes in announcing the location of the businessman.

Tony tries calling Jack in his office but not getting a reply, he dials Jack's cellphone:

"Jack, it's Tony. Where are you? We just got a location on the guy from LAX. "

"Tony, I got a call a few minutes ago. I'm on my way to Griffith Observatory to meet a contact. I don't know who it is yet. Sorry I had to leave like that, but he gave me no time to waste. I'm meeting him in about 10 minutes."

"Copy that. Wait a minute, Griffith Observatory? This Smith guy is staying at the Oakwood Worldwide Riverside Park, that's near Griffith Park. I'm about to have CTU dispatch tactical teams to the site." Tony sighs to himself. This has the makings of something he'd rather not believe. "Be careful Jack, this might be a trap."

"Yeah..." Jack pauses for a moment. Coincidences are rare in his line of work.. "Alright, Tony, send CTU tactical to the hotel, but make sure they stay covered. You have to make absolutely certain that we're hacked into the surveillance system of the hotel before anyone goes in and that we're following Smith's footsteps in real time. Don't do anything until it's absolutely confirmed that he's inside that building. I'll be there as soon as I can. I have to see what information I can get out of this informant. If this is a live lead, I have no time to waste."

"OK, Jack. Pete is having LAPD establish a soft perimeter around the hotel, Tom Baker is leading the tac teams, I'll let him know about the stealthy approach. CTU has already been in contact with the head of security at the hotel. We'll have full access to their security cams. We're sending all the information to Division for their logs as well. CTU should notify you as soon as they have confirmation that Smith is in the building."

"OK, Tony, thank you. Great work. Let's make sure we get him."

"Yeah. We will." Tony hangs up with Jack and then calls Baker.

"Baker, it's Tony Almeida. What's your status?"

"We're ready when you are.", Baker answers, hiding with his men inside a parking lot opposite the hotel.

"Alright. Make sure your men stay hidden.We don't want to scare this guy off."

"Yeah, we're at a concealed location inside a parking lot, we'll be waiting for the go from CTU."

"OK, copy that... CTU will let you know as soon as we have confirmation that he's in the building. Stay low until then."

"Copy and out."

DOD SUV

"So, Jack.. Where are we meeting this guy?", Mark asks, as he approaches the premises of the Griffith Observatory.

"I'm not sure.", Jack answered as he adjusted his sunglasses and once more made sure his gun was where it was supposed to be. "Mark, I don't know who these people are, and I don't want to scare this guy away. I want you to stay at a distance, observe the ground, alright? I'll try to stay in sight."

"Yeah. But I thought you wanted me there to watch your back."

"I do. I just don't want you too close. If Tony is right, and this is a trap, at least one of us should get out, understood?"

"Whatever you say, Jack.."

CTU

Erin comes down from her office. "Where are we on catching this guy Smith? Someone give me an update, now!"

Annie calls over to Erin. "We're using the hotel's surveillance to track him. We've just gotten confirmation that he's still in his room."

"Alright, get that to the teams on site."

"Right away." Annie connects to Baker and Tony: "Baker, come in."

"This is Baker."

"We've got confirmation. The room is 1013. He's still in there." Annie sends the live feed over to Tony's computer at the DOD and to Tom's panel.

"This is the view from the cameras outside his room, the floor has been evacuated, all is quiet. And here..." she sends another feed "...real-time footage from an apartment opposite the hotel. Smith has the curtains closed so they're obstructing the view but infrared shows us one person moving in the room. He should be alone in there. He never left the room since he arrived."

"Copy that." Baker switches the channel: "Tony, how do you want us to proceed?"

Griffith Observatory

Jack puts an earpiece in his right ear, exits the car and walks slowly towards the monument that dominates the front part of the park in front of the Observatory.

"Mark, do you copy?", he says quietly, turning away from the bulk of people.

"Loud and clear, Jack."

"Okay. I'll wait by the Monument. I should have a clear view of the surroundings from there.", he says as he begins walking towards the white obelisk in the centre of the lawn.

DOD

Tony is watching the video-feed from the hotel halls and corridors.

"Baker, do you copy?"

"Affirmative."

"Alright. This guy seems to be in his room right now, but we don't know when he's leaving. I need you to position your men around the floor's exits, minimum three men per exit and then get an entry team standing by at his door. See if you can get him to open the door by posing as hotel staff. If not, initiate a full breach. We don't want to alarm the other residents of the hotel. Try to do this as stealthily as possible."

"Copy that, Tony. We need three minutes to set up. I'll get back to you."

Division

Steve walks up to Michelle's office. "Michelle, the teams are about to strike, you want me to put the live feed to your office?"

"Yes."

Steve exits.

Griffith Observatory

Jack stands by the monument, there aren't too many people in the park. He glances around, no-one particular catches his attention.

Mark leaves the car and walks over to the main staircase in front of the Observatory, and sits down on the highest step. "I got nothing, Jack.", he utters, keeping his head low.

"Copy that.". Then, a car pulls up nearby. Jack turns away. "Mark. Black sedan at two o'clock."

"Yeah, I've got 'em."

When Jack turns around to face the vehicle, three men exit the car. Two stay behind, surveying the area, while the third man continues walking toward Jack.

Jack removes his sunglasses. "Are you the one who called?", he asks.

"Yes.", the man replies curtly. "If you'll allow me.", he says as he starts to check Jack for wires. Jack stands still until he's done, then puts out another question. "Who are you?"

"Let's not waste time here, Jack.", the man says. "You don't need to know that."

"Alright, what do I need to know? You said you have some information."

"Yes, I do. But first, I want you to do something for me."

Jack eyes the man carefully. Who is this guy? What does he want? He thinks this over for just a second. "What is it?"

The man grins.

District

Brad Hammond is at District, stuck in a meeting. They take a small break and he decides to call Division for an update.

"This is Brad Hammond, patch me through to Dessler." He waits impatiently to be connected. "Michelle, what's the status on the operation?", he finally asks.

"Brad. We have been able to locate the man we flagged at the airport, CTU field teams are in the process of apprehending him now. The op is about to begin."

"Has DOD been brought in, and who is their liason?"

"We're in contact with the DOD. Secretary Heller asked Tony to act as their liason.", she sighs inwardly, knowing he won't like hearing this.

"What! How'd that happen?"

"It happened, Brad. I didn't put him there, Heller did.", Michelle sighs.

Brad shakes his head, but lets go, because he is called back into the meeting. "Alright, let me know when the suspect yields any new infomation."

Griffith Observatory

Jack's face is a cold mask as he stands wordlessly, facing the man opposite him. "That is out of the question.", he finally replies, puts on his sunglasses, turns to leave and begins to walk away.

"Jack!" The man calls to him. "Jack, you cannot afford to miss out on what I have to say. You have no choice, Jack."

"NO!", Jack stops and turns around, pointing his finger at the man. "There has to be another way."

"Great. Then go.", the man says. "And hundreds and thousands of people will die."

Jack closes his eyes for a second. He cannot condemn all those people to death. He approaches the man again. "Fine. You are going to tell me everything I need to know. And I'll deliver David Palmer's head to you. Start talking."