5.00pm, Northwest Region Operations Complex, Oregon

President Palmer was visibly relieved as he was informed that Jack Bauer was safe and Nina Myers was in custody. Informing CTU to keep Nina in Los Angeles until the threat was well and truly over, so that she would be in the same situation as millions of other people, he had a look of deep satisfaction on his face.

"It went well, David. I think you handled that as good as you could have done," Novick spoke. He had worked with David for years, and the President had always shown such determination and ability to make hard decisions.

"Thanks, Mike. I can't take the credit for the outcome, that's all Jack's," Palmer replied. He admired the bravery of the CTU agent, and could only be glad that Jack was on his and the country's side.

5.05pm, O'Connor Hospital, San Jose, California

As Alex, Kim and Megan got out of the back of the ambulance, a worried Aunt Carol rushed up to them and embraced her niece, before looking at Alex.

"Thank you so much, Alex," Carol spoke gratefully.

"It's OK, Carol, I'm just glad that Kim is out of danger now," Alex replied. As paramedics took an unconscious Miguel out of the ambulance, Kim looked at him with anxiety.

"Kim, will you be OK here whilst I take Alex to CTU San Jose?," Carol asked her niece, who nodded, although she would have preferred for him to stay in San Jose.

As Miguel was wheeled into the hospital, Kim squeezed his hand tightly. She had been told by the paramedics that he might have suffered brain damage, and would probably be in a coma for at least a few hours. His face was slightly paler than normal, which worried her, but the doctors had said that he would most likely make a full recovery thanks to treatment being administered soon after the accident.

Whilst the trio walked towards the car, Alex was feeling slightly concerned. It was already late in the afternoon, and the intelligence that CTU had pointed to the nuke going off by the end of the day. Looking up at the cloudless blue sky, he could only hope that the threat would be stopped and he could try to return to some sort of normality, which had been very much absent from his life for a year and a half.

5.10pm, helicopter, Los Angeles

As the helicopter carrying Jack and Nina flew over the city on it's way to CTU, Jack was looking at Nina, who seemed uncomfortable as they moved deeper into LA skies, and Jack could sense this.

"You seem doubtful that we can stop this nuke, Nina," Jack commented, and she flashed him an angry glare. Although minutes before she had been closer to terrified of him than she had ever been, she was now not so scared of him and was not intent on allowing him any more fun at her expense.

"You couldn't stop me, Jack, could you?," Nina replied with an arrogant tone, and Jack was close to springing out his chair and hitting her, but he told himself that it she was looking for just such a reaction from him.

"Comparing yourself to a nuke, Nina? You think you're that dangerous?," Jack retorted, and Nina decided to ignore him. She knew that she would soon be away from him, and that she was hours away from some sort of freedom that was better than the situation she had been stuck in since her arrest. They hadn't just left her to rot in jail – they had dragged her back and forth on many occasions, attempting to extract any information that they could, but she had not given them a single sentence of usable intelligence.

5.15pm, road, San Jose, California

Megan was sitting quietly in the back of Carol's car, as Carol had decided that Kim needed to be alone with Miguel. Meanwhile, Alex and Carol were talking quietly as they made the journey from the hospital to CTUSJ.

"I still feel as if she died yesterday," Carol spoke, and Alex knew that she was referring to Teri, and he could only hope that news of Nina's pardon would not reach her, especially as she had been badly affected both mentally and physically by her sister's death.

"She's at rest now, Carol. All you can do is move on," Alex replied gently. He knew that Jack and Kim had been trying to do just that, with Kim having slightly more success than Jack had, although he was still blaming himself for his wife's death, almost as if he had pulled the trigger himself.

"It's hard when you've lost the person you were closest to," Carol replied sadly, her blue eyes watering slightly. Teri's death had meant an abrupt change for Carol that she was just not ready for. She had not expected to lose her sister at such a young age, and now the days wore on so slowly without the regular telephone conversations she used to have with her sister. Alex had not lost Nina in the same way as she had lost Teri, and knew that he couldn't understand what it was to lose a sibling. A parent, yes – both his parents were dead – but not a brother or sister.

5.25pm, CTU Los Angeles

For the second time today, Nina Myers was led through CTU, shackled, to the holding room where she would be kept until the threat was over. Michelle had managed to keep Tony busy so that he didn't have to see Nina, and as the former CTU agent was brought past her, Michelle couldn't help but stare. As Nina was taken around the corner and out of view, Michelle looked around at the mess that CTU had become, with rubble everywhere and dried blood on the floor and walls. It was a reminder to Michelle, a plea from those who had died to make sure that the nuke was secure and the people of Los Angeles saved from a disaster.

5.30pm, CTU San Jose, San Jose, California

Carol had just dropped Alex off, and as he entered the building, he noticed that almost everyone inside was staring at him, and he had a good idea why. Deciding that he didn't need the annoyance, he stood near to the centre of the bullpen until there was silence.

"OK, so I'm her brother. That does not make me anything like her, and it does not mean that I'm a terrorist or a mole. Now, I'm just here for a few minutes until I get onto a helicopter and go back to Los Angeles to help stop this nuke. Does that sound like the action of a terrorist? To head towards danger?," Alex spoke, before noticing a middle-aged man with balding black hair and large brown eyes. The other agents decided that Alex wasn't interesting any more and returned to their work – Alex could understand the curiosity that any CTU agent would have about anyone so closely associated with Nina Myers, but that didn't mean that he just accepted being stared at, or even on rare occasions shouted, and once an agent had even pointed a gun at him simply for being Nina's brother. Of course, the man had been drunk, so Alex had let that one go as the gun had turned out to be empty.

"Hello Agent Myers, I'm Henry Jones, Special Agent in Charge here. The helicopter's waiting for you now," Henry spoke as the pair shook hands. He hoped that Alex didn't think too badly of CTUSJ, and Alex confirmed that he didn't as they walked towards the helicopter.

5.35pm, Syed Ali's house, Los Angeles

Having taken out the one remaining terrorist, Jack approached the shaking blonde woman slowly. Looking up at him with terrified blue eyes, Jack assured her that he was there to help her.

"I'm Jack, I work for CTU. What's your name?," Jack asked as he crouched down close to the woman.

"Kate Warner. My father was taken to CTU earlier, along with my sister and the man she's engaged to," Kate replied.

"OK. Look, I'm going to take you to CTU now, where we'll get a doctor to look at you, and then we need to ask you a few questions if that's alright with you?," Jack asked as he helped Kate to her feet.

5.40pm, Holding Room 1, CTU Los Angeles

Unlike her last stay in the holding room, Nina wasn't looking around at her surroundings. Now, she had her eyes fixed on the door, not sure when or if anyone would come through there. Knowing that Jack would be busy in the field trying to stop the nuke, she mentally gambled with herself as to who would be first to come into the room, and how long she would be left alone before they did. She expected Tony or Mason, and was surprised when a woman she didn't know walked into the room, although she had seen this female agent before when she was originally brought into CTU. She appeared to be a similar age and height to Nina, with brown eyes, curly brown hair and a look of curiosity on her face, and Nina could only assume that she was the person who had replaced her.

"Hello Nina, my name is Michelle Dessler," Michelle announced as she sat down opposite Nina, who decided not to reply, her cold eyes fixed on Michelle, who tried not to return the stare.

"As I'm sure you've been told, you are to be held here until the nuke threat is eliminated. Afterwards, you will be taken by plane to a US base somewhere in North Africa where you will have a limited amount of freedom. Do you understand your pardon and the consequences of breaking the conditions?," Michelle asked her.

"Yes," Nina replied abruptly, not impressed with the newcomer. She could tell that the agent was slightly fearful of her, even though she was shackled and Michelle was armed. Although Nina had little idea, she was something of a dark legend amongst CTU staff new and experienced, and her name and actions were known to almost every CTU agent in the country

"Do you have any more information that could help the investigation?," Michelle asked, although she knew that it would be impossible her to get anything out of Nina unless it was in her interests. Nina looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, deciding if she did have any useful information.

"No," Nina replied, and Michelle decided to accept the answer. Checking the time, she knew that Alex would be returning to CTU soon. Ever since finding out about Nina, she had been curious about Alex and Nina, their childhood and their lives before Nina was arrested, but Michelle had decided not to ask him. Standing up, she didn't turn around but simply looked at Nina, apprehensive about whether to say something that was on her mind.

"Do you regret anything, Nina?," Michelle asked, and Nina looked up at her with confusion. Here was this agent who she didn't know, asking her if she regretted any of her actions.

"Some things, yes. Others, not at all," Nina responded, a smirk beginning to form on her face, and she wondered if Michelle could tell what things she was talking about.

5.55pm, CTU Los Angeles

The helicopter had just landed on the helipad, and Michelle was there to greet Alex.

"Thanks for coming back, Alex, we need all the help we can get," Michelle spoke as the pair headed back inside CTU.

"I had no intention of staying in San Jose, and I couldn't abandon you now. How are Jack and Nina?," Alex asked, hoping that neither had killed the other since his last call to CTU.

"Around the time of your car crash, their plane was shot down. Both survived, but Nina managed to take Jack hostage. She's here now, in a holding room and Jack's out following up on the information Nina gave us," Michelle replied, and Alex didn't find any of it surprising. In fact, he would have found it more strange if Nina had not tried something, if the plan had not been shot out of the sky, if things had been normal between Jack and Nina when they were together.

"Is it OK if I talk to her?," Alex asked, and Michelle nodded.

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