Chapter 1

The news of Palmer's death was creating that sick, sinking feeling in his gut. It was so sudden, so unexpected, especially considering he wasn't even president anymore. Part of Jack wondered if CTU could have prevented it, or more specifically, if he being at CTU could have prevented it. After all, that was how he helped him the first time. He'd hate to think this assassination was foreseeable.

When Jack heard the burner phone on his desk buzz however, it snapped him out of his numb trance.

That phone very rarely received calls, maybe a handful of times over the past year and a half. He kept it in his bedside next to his gun, knowing that besides some periodic updates, it was for emergencies. It was for the days when he needed to be and feel like Jack Bauer again, and not Frank Flynn, as he'd been calling himself for a while now. He had Diane, and her son, who although seemed to dislike him, Jack was still certainly fond of. After all, it wasn't like he had his own kids to take of anymore. Last he heard, neither Tony, Michelle, nor Chloe had been able to stay in contact with Kim and Chase, which had worried him, and them. But she was an adult. So they couldn't do much about that either.

Jack hated the lying though. He hated the facade he was putting up. He hated that everybody he interacted with was inherently trusting him, the way most humans do when faced with a seemingly nice person. He also hated that he'd lied to Kim and Audrey, the two people left in his life that he loved the most. Kim hadn't even been at CTU when his 'death' had been staged, meanwhile Audrey had been furious and shocked over Paul's death by his hand. There was no telling how either of them could have reacted to his death, but Jack knew it likely wasn't well.

In any case, Jack Bauer was being phoned right now.

When Jack pressed answer, he immediately drew the phone away from his ear at the sound of glass smashing and a car alarm. He heard a faint scream, female. It sounded like Michelle. There was a large bang, footsteps, and then an ominous dial tone. The connection had been lost and he had no way of calling back.

That didn't matter though, because he knew that at least one of Michelle or Tony was in danger. And although part of him hesitated, part of him wondered if this wasn't an accident but something far more devious, and whether his presence would simply make things worse. He pursed his lips, and switched the television off.

The only thing he could think of was to call Chloe, at least inform her that he thought something had happened. After all, if Tony and Michelle were currently unavailable, and Palmer was now dead, Chloe was the only person left he could trust. The only person that knew the truth.

Her phone went straight to the automated message.

His heart pounded in his ears. Something was wrong. Seriously wrong.

And there was no way to figure out what, or how to fix it, except to return to Los Angeles.

—

Five Minutes Earlier

"Ms. Dessler?" Edgar's trembled voice sounded through the phone.

Michelle furrowed her brow at Tony. "Edgar?"

"I-I have some bad news, Mr. Buchanan wanted to tell you but he's too busy getting information on P-Palmer."

"What happened?" Michelle's heart thundered. His voice was normally timid on a good day, but something about the way he was speaking now sent chills down her spine.

"Chloe's dead."

Her eyes widened. The words didn't sound real in her ears. How could they? It didn't make any sense. Chloe wasn't a field agent. Why would someone from CTU be informing her of Chloe's death then?

"What? H-how?"

"Someone planted a bomb in her car. Mr. Buchanan thinks it's linked to Palmer somehow. I-I'm sorry."

A hand clasped itself over her mouth, Tony now moving towards her, curious.

"Tell Bill we'll be there right away." She managed to keep her voice even as she hung up, despite the shakiness coursing through her.

"I told you we can't go to CTU today, we have tha-"

She looked up at him. "Chloe's dead." The words lingered hauntingly. "Someone put a bomb in her car, Tony, this wasn't an accident."

He slumped his shoulders, the annoyance in his voice immediately fading. "Oh my God…H-how? Who would want to hurt Chloe? She's never been undercover or done any field work."

Michelle sniffled before speaking firmly. "I don't know, but we're going to CTU to find out."

Tony nodded. "I'll go get your car started." He grabbed the keys from the counter and walked out. Before he opened the door, he stopped, pressing his lips into a thin line. "You should call Jack." His voice was sombre.

As she listened to the dial tone and gathered her things, the more analytical side of Michelle's brain took over, pushing down pain and shock in favour of logic and calculations of why such a thing could have happened. Maybe it was linked to Palmer's assassination as Edgar had said? But Chloe had only come to CTU LA in the second half of Palmer's term, and it wasn't like she ever knew him personally. Hell, the last time Michelle interacted with Palmer was when she was directing him to Jack's burner phone. Jack. Jack. The man who was believed to be dead by everyone except her, Tony, Chloe, and Palmer. Chloe and Palmer. Both of them were dead, which just left her and Tony. Her and Tony.

Her and Tony.

What if they were next?

Quickly, she ran towards the door, calling out his name.

Then her ears were filled only with ringing. Light had flashed into her eyes. She fell to the floor, along with her cell, tiny pieces of glass piercing her hands. Stumbling, she ran outside towards the inferno. Michelle couldn't tell what was and wasn't on fire, smoke filling her airways. She couldn't see Tony in the blazing skeleton of the car. Coughing again, she squinted to see a collapsed, charred figure on the grass.

Too shocked to move, she could only stare agape at him before the gas tank blew, and everything went black.