Chapter Two:
(ONE MONTH EARLIER)
Sydney Bristow could barely remember the events of the past 48 hours. A fog clouded her mind as she tried to think back to the beginning of this nightmare. That's what this has to be. She thought. This is what nightmares are made of, right? Waking up, not knowing where you are, cold and shivering, only to realize that you are in a dark ally. It took Sydney several long minutes before she even realized that she was in a foreign country. Several more minutes ticked by before she discovered that she was in Hong Kong. But how?
At some point, her subconscious must have taken over because she was able to fumble her way to a payphone, and call the first person she could think of to help her. Her father, Jack, had given her directions to a safe house where she was to stay until he arrived. Warm food, a hot shower, and a tearful embrace with her father, as he walked in the door of the safe house, were the only things that Sydney could be sure of. That, and she was now in a plane that was taking her back to her life. Or so she thought.
As she looked out over the water, Sydney shifted uncomfortably in her seat. A sharp pain stabbed at her right side. An inch long scar on her lower abdomen was the culprit. The doctor, whom examined Sydney before she left Hong Kong, noted that it couldn't have been more than a few weeks old. The fact that Sydney had no idea what caused the scar bothered her more than the pain. She needed some answers.
Sydney needed to talk to her father. He had been quick to get her to a doctor and then on the plane. Sydney and her father hadn't even had a chance to talk. The instant they boarded the plane, Jack had ushered Syd to her seat, made sure she was strapped in, kissed her on the forehead, and told her he'd be back to check on her. He walked to the back of the plane, where the rest of the extraction team had assembled. Jack then began to quietly go over the procedure for getting Sydney off the plane and to a safe destination once they were back in L.A.
Just as Sydney reached down to unbuckle her seatbelt, she felt something grip her shoulder. She looked up to see her dad smiling down at her. She felt the tears well up in her eyes as she smiled back at him. Jack moved in from behind Sydney and sat in the seat across from her. He took both her hands into his and gave them a little squeeze.
"Hey sweetheart." Jack said in a soft tone. He wasn't sure if he would be able to hide the concern in his voice or the look of worry on his face. But he tried.
" How are you holding up?"
Sydney tried not to let her weariness slip into her response.
"Fine, I think. Dad…" Sydney paused. So many thoughts were crashing over each other, that Syd needed a second to gather herself before continuing.
"What was I doing in Hong Kong? How did I get there? How long have I been there? What happened to Francie? Dad, the last thing I remember was fighting with Francie's double. What happened to Will? Is he alive? Where's Vaughn?" Sydney stopped for a moment to catch her breath. Her heart was pounding so hard it felt as if it were breaking through her chest.
Jack sat there, still holding on to his daughter's hands, looking into to her wide eyes. How the hell am I going to tell her? What am I going to tell her? Now it was Jack who shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Avoiding his daughter's wild gaze, Jack struggled to find words.
"Sydney, I know you must have a million questions, and I will do my best to answer them. But before I do, there is something I need to know first. Do you have any idea where you've been for the last two years?" Jack kept his eyes on Sydney's, to gage her response. She brushed back her long brown hair and tucked it back behind her right ear. Sydney's eyes widen in a look of shock. This is what I was afraid of. She doesn't remember. Jack thought.
"T-two… TWO YEARS?" Sydney's voice rose as panic washed over her. Her head began to swim as she tried to conceive of what her father had just said. Two Years? While Sydney was lost in confusion, the plane hit an air pocket, causing it to dip suddenly. The unexpected jolt brought Sydney back from her trance. She blinked and looked back at her father.
" I have been gone two years?" She asked her father, still confused.
Jack let go of her hands and looked toward the back of the plane where his small team of men had been gathered. They were all busy with the assignment Jack had given them. None of them seemed to even notice that Jack and Sydney where in the plane. Good. He thought. Jack's eyes fell back on Sydney. He leaned back, and lowered his voice to a whisper that only Syd could hear.
"Honey…" he began, but Sydney interrupted.
"Wait a minute. The last thing I remember, before waking up in that alley, was fighting with Fancie's double in our apartment. That was two days ago. How could it be that I lost two years of my life?"
"Sydney…" Jack whispered again.
" I want you to listen to me very carefully and I need you to try to remain calm."
She was shocked that her father would even think that she could remain calm. Sydney began to protest but was stopped short when Jack raised his hand up to silence her. It was at this point that Sydney realized that something was very wrong. Fear crept up on Sydney like the light creeps up on darkness. She took a deep breath and tried to gain some control over her emotions. Syd leaned forward to ensure no one overheard them.
"Dad, you're scaring me. Why are you avoiding answering my questions?"
"Honey, this situation is very complicated. We are trying to piece together the bits of information we have so far, and I was hoping that you would be able to remember anything that would help us do just that. Right now, we have more questions than we have answers." He stopped for a moment to make sure that he Sydney was still following what he was saying. She was hanging of every word.
" All we know at this point is that sometime before the fight with that woman in your apartment, Francie was double, killed, and replaced." Jack hated to be the one to confirm the death of his daughter's best friend. Sydney looked down and blinked back the tears that began to pool in her eyes at the mention of Francie's death. Jack continued.
" Some time after the fight in you apartment, it caught fire. Two bodies were pulled from the ashes. DNA testing matched one of the bodies to you. There was no murder investigation because the fire department deemed the fire an accident and that you and Francie must have died in your sleep. I believed otherwise."
"What made you believe that I was alive?" Sydney asked.
"Being married to your mother has taught me not to take what people say as gospel. Just because a death certificate says someone is dead, doesn't mean much to me these days. I needed to prove to myself that you were dead or alive." Jack answered.
"So everyone thought I was dead? Syd asked, "The CIA? Vaughn?"
"No Sydney. Everyone thinks you're dead. Sydney, it is very crucial that your being alive is kept a secret, even from the CIA, until we can figure out where you've been. For all we know, the CIA could have been behind your kidnapping. That could be why they were so quick to buy the fire story." Jack looked around the plane again, checking to make sure that no one had been in a position to hear them talking.
"Dad I don't understand? Why would the CIA have me kidnapped? I mean they know the Rambaldi prophecy wasn't about me, so why would they keep me for two years?"
"I don't know, Sydney, but we can't rule out anything until we know what happened to you. But I promise that we won't stop until we find out who did this to you and for what reason. We will be landing in a couple of hours, why don't you try to get some sleep." Jack rose up out of his seat, cupped Sydney's cheek in his hand and said,
"Honey, I have to check in with my men and make sure everything is on schedule for when we land" As he started to walk to the back of the plane, Sydney turned and grabbed his arm.
"Dad?" She asked.
"Yeah?" Jack said as he turn back to look down at Sydney.
" Where's Vaughn? He knows I'm alive, right?"
End Chapter 2