here's the next chapter---sorry i took so long. there's not a lot of fluff but more serious stuff. a little bit more of nad's past is revealed here and the meeting may not completely make sense, so don't blame me!!! anyways, enjoy, read and review!
Chapter Seven
Vaughn was driving down one of the main streets. He was already uptight and the lack of sleep was slowly beginning to creep up in his mind. He would occasionally side glance at the passenger seat beside him where his niece sat, looking out of the window. The window was cranked down and he was suddenly worried that she might fall out or something.
Stop it, he told himself gruffly, she's no longer seven years old. She's almost twenty and you're still treating her like a seven year old. It's not good to think that way. She's even smarter than you in some areas and mature for someone her age. He sighed. I suppose it's hard on me. Every time Raidon was out on a mission, he would always leave her with him.
He basically watched her grow up.
Hell, he was the one who requested training for her in the CIA.
In short, she was like a daughter that he had never known. He could never replace her father no matter how little time she spends with him but nonetheless he cared for her a great deal. He remembered telling her father years ago when he was just a rookie;
"Don't worry, I'll take care of her when you're gone on those missions."
"You sure? I mean, you are quite young and I do not wish to burden you with my daughter---"
"Never, sir, never a burden."
"When I return from this mission, I would prefer you call me Raidon."
"Yes…sir."
The car suddenly swerved between lanes without thought. Nads yelped in surprise and some cars behind them honked their horns and started yelling at them. It was a very varied speech of vulgar words, but he didn't pay attention. Vaughn swung the steering wheel again and they got back on the same road again.
"Unc," Nads said slowly, "maybe I should drive. You're tired."
"I'll be okay," he assured, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "It was just a little slip, besides, we're almost there." Silence drew on between them. "Look, Nadia, I'm sorry for snapping at you back there, in the house. You're right, I'm so tired now---and I'm worried about this entire situation about SD-6 and Sydney. I'm not blaming you, you know…you've been a great help to me throughout this entire time. I know it's cutting you back from your studies though."
"It's only university," she said with a snort. When Vaughn gave her a wary look, she laughed. "I'm joking---I got it covered. I'm reading as much as I can every night. Do you know how much you have to learn just to get into medical school? Gosh, I'm going to be fifty by the time that I graduate." She sighed heavily. "It's just good to know I can always jump back from that just in case."
"Are you thinking of staying in the CIA?" he asked seriously. "I mean, you don't have to…"
"I want to."
"Oh," Vaughn said, trying not to sound. "You never told us what you did to the hit man."
Nadia grinned toothily at him. "You'll find out soon enough."
Will and Sydney did not exchange a word during the ride back to her place. Will kept his hands on the steering wheel and his eyes on the road, but he would occasionally sneak a side-glance at Sydney, who was sitting beside him. She looked distant and worried, looking out the window and away from him. It was clear she didn't want to discuss anything with him.
A million questions were zipping through his mind at the moment. What the hell was going on between her and that Vaughn guy? Sure, it was clear there was something going on that was more than just friendship. Why was he worried about her well-being? Why was there so much secrecy going on around them? When Sydney and Vaughn saw him, there was some kind of emotion that was clear besides disbelief.
Fear.
What were they afraid of? Were they afraid of being seen together publicly? Why the closed doors relationship, that is, if they had one going on. And that girl that was with them in front of the house…what was her actual purpose there other than standing watch? It appeared that she was more than just any normal girl on the street. Her face read eighteen or nineteen but her movement and reaction was a lot older than that. She was strange under his reporter eyes.
Then again, everyone was strange under his eyes.
Will pulled over in front of Sydney's house and killed the engines. "Sydney."
"Yes, Will?" she asked demurely, turning to face her friend. There was no sort of nervous emotion present in her eyes. No sort of emotion going on other than some sort of strange patience. That was clearly not present a while ago.
"What the hell is going on?"
Sydney was visibly taken aback by his question. Her jaw muscles contracted and her eyes widened. Her lips were pressed together and she brushed her stray strands of hair back. Will had never seen her angry like this before. What truly was going on? All of a sudden, he was seeing things he never saw in Sydney. She was more cool and reserved. What was up with that? "What do you mean, Will?" she asked calmly.
He hit his palms on the steering wheel in frustration. "God, Syd, don't even think of lying to my face," he told her sharply. "You say you're sick and the next day this guy that I have never seen in my life is in your house. Okay, I'm cool with that. I drive to work and my paper flies and I see you with that guy again. The question is; what's going on between you two?"
"Nothing," she replied quickly. "We're just friends."
"And yet you kissed him."
Her jaw dropped. "So you were spying!" she accused in absolute disgust.
"I just stumbled upon that!" he cried back in defence. Why was he suddenly so defensive of himself? What was Sydney going to do? Kill him? "I couldn't help it. I didn't know you were there---ah, I get it now. All those late-night meetings and bailing out on Francie and the rest of us…it was because you were meeting up with that Vaughn guy." Vaughn's name came up as a curl of disgust in his voice that he tried to hide. "And this guy---it's like he doesn't exist to society. His files are all locked up or simply not there…why are you hanging around guys like that?"
Sydney narrowed her eyes at him. Will suddenly saw her anger at what he had done. He realized that he had gone far with the account of his investigation into the life of Vaughn. "Thank you for taking me home," she said icily before getting off the car, slamming the car door shut and storming towards the entrance of her house.
Will hit the steering wheel again, this time harder. "Damn!"
"She's brilliant, I tell you," Weiss told Vaughn as they walked down the corridors of the Headquarters. "I mean, she's tough and stubborn and cynical but she's brilliant. I guess that's a rub-off from you." He nudged Vaughn manly and grinned like an idiot. "She goes into the warehouse, armed with only one of those high-tech, up to date guns and bam! She was able to catch him single-handedly with no help from the boys outside."
Nads smiled politely. "It's not that big."
"Oh yes it is," Weiss said with a big grin. "Weren't you afraid of him?"
"As in, afraid I'd be splattered into a pancake? Oh course."
"She's being modest," Weiss told Vaughn, waving dismissively at Nads, who shook her head and walked over for some coffee. "Even the boys are pretty surprised at her capabilities. And she's been on training for how long?"
"About seven months, I think," Vaughn replied. "But it's taken her out of her classes often."
"You should think about recommending her as a full field agent."
"Maybe."
Weiss grinned again, this time wider. "Well, anyways, the boys have your hit man down in the jail sector downstairs in the basement," he continued. "He's on constant surveillance, but don't worry, we're still feeding him and giving him some air to breathe. We don't want a dead man in there. We're going to get an interrogator and some shrink or something in there sometime after this meeting."
"I see." Vaughn looked troubled.
At the same time, they caught up with Jack Bristow and Norman Valenti at the other end of the hallway. They both wore dark business suits and they looked more like conspiring than carrying on a normal conversation. Vaughn felt his hands go cold when he saw Jack Bristow; they weren't exactly on the best of terms at the moment.
"Ah, Vaughn, Weiss," Valenti greeted, turning to them. "So glad you can join us."
"Where's Devlin?" Vaughn asked curtly.
"He had other matters to attend to so here I am," Valenti said with a smile.
Vaughn fought the urge to groan. Valenti was a pain; he wanted to talk to Devlin personally, not this brass knuckle. This man reminded him of Mr. Burns from the Simpsons but there was something else going on with this guy. Either way, he didn't want to confide with this guy.
"Where's Sydney?" Jack suddenly asked.
Vaughn looked at Sydney's father. "Devlin gave the consent to Sydney to return to work."
"What?" he demanded.
Beside Vaughn, he heard Weiss squeak deep in his voice. Vaughn cleared his throat. "I was not contacted by Devlin himself," he told Bristow in a cautious voice. He didn't want to get on his bad side, especially today, out of all days. "Weiss here was the one who was given the orders. Anyhow, I will inform Sydney about any new developments to our meeting."
"Then let's enter, shall we?" Valenti asked, gesturing towards the conference room.
They filed inside and Valenti closed the door behind them. "Okay, men," he told them, clasping his hands together. "This morning, around 0200, Agent Weiss here picked up something unusual on the SD-6 server. There are some command fluxes that are being sent from an unknown location of Los Angeles. Intelligence division suspects that this may be done by one of the fractions that are---"
Someone banged at the door.
Valenti turned to the door. "Who the hell is that?"
Vaughn turned red and stood up. "Sorry, sir," he murmured, walking over and opening the door. It was Nadia holding a cup of coffee and with an annoyed look on her face. Vaughn motioned for her to enter and not to say a word of protest or in sarcasm for his sake. "Um, sir, you locked out one of the people that should be in this meeting."
The representative studied Nadia from head to toe. "Have I met her before? A newbie?"
"Sir, she's not fully a CIA agent---yet."
"Then why the hell is she here?" Valenti demanded.
Before Vaughn could reply, Nadia cut in and said, "Because I'm the one who's been keeping tabs on Agent Bristow and whoever is after her. I'm the one who has been gathering up information from all contacts who have come across our little private war with SD-6 and I also happen to be the one who nabbed the hit man that was on Agent Bristow's tail the past two days."
There was a silence in the room.
Valenti didn't look pleased but he gestured for her to take her place anyways. Nadia gave Vaughn and Weiss a tight and private smile before taking place at the end of the table. Vaughn sighed; Nadia had saved his rear from being roasted by a senior officer like Valenti.
Valenti continued as though Nadia had never entered the room and interrupted his little speech. "So there's a flux in their computer grid. Analyses compile that they are sending a series of pulses embedded in these fluxes that are causing their computers' protection from outside hacking. It's making them vulnerable and this is perhaps our time to crash in."
"Mind you that SD-6 will be monitoring their computer lines carefully," Jack Bristow told them. "Especially since Sydney's nearly blown cover was completely exposed, they'll be busy tightening their security. Sloane is definitely trying to keep things under wraps. If he's worried about a takeover or a Crashdown, he is certainly not showing it."
"Well, either way---"
"Mutiny," Nadia murmured.
All eyes went to the girl that sat at the end of the table.
"What are you talking about?" Valenti demanded.
She looked up at them. "Those fractions both external and internal that are against Sloane and SD-6 think that Sloane is a weak leader and they believe that they can do a better job," she explained slowly. "But they can't just go up to the Alliance and say, 'Oh, I think Sloane's a crappy leader, I should head SD-6.' They have to somehow prove to them that Sloane is a faulty head and that he should be ousted. How? They send the fluxes through computer commands. They must have a brilliant guy within SD-6 Headquarters to spread the flux throughout the entire server after receiving it from wherever it is coming from. That way, Sloane will have his hands full and if they send the right amount of fluxes through the server, they might be able to shut down the entire network."
"What about Sydney?" Bristow asked stiffly. "How does she fit in all this?"
She nodded slowly, thinking deeply. "Isn't Sydney one of the best in SD-6?" she inquired. "I've read her database---she's an impressive agent for them and she may be considered Sloane's favourite. They must see her as some sort of way or key to get to Sloane. So they send the Incredible Hulk after her to get rid of her as a message to Sloane that something is up and that he's the target. This is one sick game, if you ask me. One very sick cycle," she added.
Vaughn nodded thoughtfully. "I get it now," he replied huskily.
"And I'm assuming that they don't really know Agent Bristow's involvement with the CIA so there's the twist," she continued, taking a swig at the beer. "So when our hit man followed Sydney to the warehouse, he must've been thinking who the hell she was meeting at that hour. If he has any idea that she's meddling with the CIA, then I'm afraid our little friend in the basement is a security risk."
"Yeah," Weiss replied, ruffling his hair back, "I suppose we wouldn't want him telling the Alliance about our agents and we sure as hell don't want him to sell the information to let's say the K-Directorie or maybe SD-6. It'd be like sending Sydney to her own execution parlour." He shuddered at the thought of it.
But Jack wasn't paying attention to Weiss or anyone else for that matter. His dark eyes were immediately upon Vaughn's fatigue figure. It was obvious that he didn't approve of what happened in the morning when Nadia mentioned the warehouse. In fact, Nadia clenched her jaw when she realized that she slipped up. "What the hell was Sydney doing in the meeting place in the early hours?" he demanded to his handler, his voice stone cold.
"I have some information to her early this morning," he replied coolly.
"You idiot!" Jack shouted, bolting to his feet. "Do you have any idea what kind of danger you placed on the two of you? You have also exposed Sydney's involvement with the CIA to a hit man! Do you not know about protocol? Do you not know the risks involved with her mission?"
"This is her life we are talking about!" Vaughn shot back.
"For a senior agent, you make a lousy handler," Jack accused angrily. His eyes were boiling with an unknown rage that made Weiss back away from the table. Valenti said nothing, watching the argument ensue. "However you got the promotion, I do not want to know but I do know that you do not deserve it in any form of degree. You rush in before you think and you do not think of all of the alternatives and the consequences of doing something."
"Yes, and thinking of all the alternatives will make things too late to act upon!"
"You know what, Mr. Vaughn?" Jack asked coldly. "You are inadequate to be a handler. Maybe you're just there to impress my daughter, I don't know---either way, I ought to kick you ass---"
"Okay, that's enough!" Nadia cried. She was still sitting down, her head facing the ebony table. Her right hand was on the table and it was clear that she was prepared to break the table---or worse. Silence slipped in even between the feuding duo. She looked up at them dangerously that even Valenti stood back from the table. Somehow, they had a feeling that if they pissed her off, there would be damage done. "We're all having a hard day as it is…a hard start, if I may say so. And, Mr. Bristow, Vaughn has already been coached about what has happened. I assure you that it will not happen again."
Jack was going to snap something at Nadia when Weiss added seriously, "We must not simmer about the past but rather about what we have now. We must deal with the problems now accordingly." He looked towards Valenti. Vaughn was surprised; he usually had some smart-ass comment to remark but today he was relatively serious.
He was glad for it.
Valenti cleared his throat and shifted back to his professionalism. "Agreed," he replied non-chalantly. "Now, Agent Vaughn, you will inform Agent Bristow of the latest developments and will order her to help her father drain out whoever is in the receiving end of the computer command fluxes. Agent Weiss, I want you to monitor those fluxes and inform Agent Vaughn about any new changes to the intervals."
"How about Sydney?" Jack asked. "Do you think it's safe to tell Sloane about this…mutiny?"
"As long as she doesn't expose how she knows of this information, and if she doesn't reveal us, then we're good," Valenti replied curtly, turning to Nadia. "Agent Nadia---"
The door suddenly swung open to reveal a skinny technician with an earpiece still connected to his ear. He was clearly oriental with dark hair. He wasn't wearing a jacket and his tie was loosened. His eyes were wide as he said breathlessly, "Sir! Request permission for you to come with me to the basement."
"Why?" Valenti demanded.
The young officer told her, "The subject has just woken up. We tried interrogating him but he won't talk. Devlin gave the order for Doctor Tamakawa to check him out. He is already downstairs and ready to begin the second phase of the interrogation---but they need the presence of a senior officer down there before they can actually commence."
Valenti turned to Nadia. "Well?"
"Well what?" she stammered, her face gone ash white.
"You caught the guy," he told her, "don't you want to know what's going on in his mind?" Vaughn could've sworn that Nadia shuddered ever so slightly but nonetheless gave Valenti a nod of participation with sheer determination and confidence. Valenti turned to the others. "You have your orders." He then stalked out of the room.
Nadia drained her cup and turned to Vaughn. "I'll call you if there's any new developments," she told him as she rushed to the door and shut it behind her. Vaughn watched her silhouette chasing down the street, trying to catch up to Valenti.
Weiss shook his head. "I feel so damn sorry for her."
"Why?" Jack Bristow asked curiously as he rose to his feet once again.
Weiss looked like he was going to laugh and cry at the same time. "For those who have ever seen an actual interrogation---God knows how our crisp and young and brilliant informant will be after it," he told him before following Vaughn out the door.
Chapter Seven
Vaughn was driving down one of the main streets. He was already uptight and the lack of sleep was slowly beginning to creep up in his mind. He would occasionally side glance at the passenger seat beside him where his niece sat, looking out of the window. The window was cranked down and he was suddenly worried that she might fall out or something.
Stop it, he told himself gruffly, she's no longer seven years old. She's almost twenty and you're still treating her like a seven year old. It's not good to think that way. She's even smarter than you in some areas and mature for someone her age. He sighed. I suppose it's hard on me. Every time Raidon was out on a mission, he would always leave her with him.
He basically watched her grow up.
Hell, he was the one who requested training for her in the CIA.
In short, she was like a daughter that he had never known. He could never replace her father no matter how little time she spends with him but nonetheless he cared for her a great deal. He remembered telling her father years ago when he was just a rookie;
"Don't worry, I'll take care of her when you're gone on those missions."
"You sure? I mean, you are quite young and I do not wish to burden you with my daughter---"
"Never, sir, never a burden."
"When I return from this mission, I would prefer you call me Raidon."
"Yes…sir."
The car suddenly swerved between lanes without thought. Nads yelped in surprise and some cars behind them honked their horns and started yelling at them. It was a very varied speech of vulgar words, but he didn't pay attention. Vaughn swung the steering wheel again and they got back on the same road again.
"Unc," Nads said slowly, "maybe I should drive. You're tired."
"I'll be okay," he assured, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "It was just a little slip, besides, we're almost there." Silence drew on between them. "Look, Nadia, I'm sorry for snapping at you back there, in the house. You're right, I'm so tired now---and I'm worried about this entire situation about SD-6 and Sydney. I'm not blaming you, you know…you've been a great help to me throughout this entire time. I know it's cutting you back from your studies though."
"It's only university," she said with a snort. When Vaughn gave her a wary look, she laughed. "I'm joking---I got it covered. I'm reading as much as I can every night. Do you know how much you have to learn just to get into medical school? Gosh, I'm going to be fifty by the time that I graduate." She sighed heavily. "It's just good to know I can always jump back from that just in case."
"Are you thinking of staying in the CIA?" he asked seriously. "I mean, you don't have to…"
"I want to."
"Oh," Vaughn said, trying not to sound. "You never told us what you did to the hit man."
Nadia grinned toothily at him. "You'll find out soon enough."
Will and Sydney did not exchange a word during the ride back to her place. Will kept his hands on the steering wheel and his eyes on the road, but he would occasionally sneak a side-glance at Sydney, who was sitting beside him. She looked distant and worried, looking out the window and away from him. It was clear she didn't want to discuss anything with him.
A million questions were zipping through his mind at the moment. What the hell was going on between her and that Vaughn guy? Sure, it was clear there was something going on that was more than just friendship. Why was he worried about her well-being? Why was there so much secrecy going on around them? When Sydney and Vaughn saw him, there was some kind of emotion that was clear besides disbelief.
Fear.
What were they afraid of? Were they afraid of being seen together publicly? Why the closed doors relationship, that is, if they had one going on. And that girl that was with them in front of the house…what was her actual purpose there other than standing watch? It appeared that she was more than just any normal girl on the street. Her face read eighteen or nineteen but her movement and reaction was a lot older than that. She was strange under his reporter eyes.
Then again, everyone was strange under his eyes.
Will pulled over in front of Sydney's house and killed the engines. "Sydney."
"Yes, Will?" she asked demurely, turning to face her friend. There was no sort of nervous emotion present in her eyes. No sort of emotion going on other than some sort of strange patience. That was clearly not present a while ago.
"What the hell is going on?"
Sydney was visibly taken aback by his question. Her jaw muscles contracted and her eyes widened. Her lips were pressed together and she brushed her stray strands of hair back. Will had never seen her angry like this before. What truly was going on? All of a sudden, he was seeing things he never saw in Sydney. She was more cool and reserved. What was up with that? "What do you mean, Will?" she asked calmly.
He hit his palms on the steering wheel in frustration. "God, Syd, don't even think of lying to my face," he told her sharply. "You say you're sick and the next day this guy that I have never seen in my life is in your house. Okay, I'm cool with that. I drive to work and my paper flies and I see you with that guy again. The question is; what's going on between you two?"
"Nothing," she replied quickly. "We're just friends."
"And yet you kissed him."
Her jaw dropped. "So you were spying!" she accused in absolute disgust.
"I just stumbled upon that!" he cried back in defence. Why was he suddenly so defensive of himself? What was Sydney going to do? Kill him? "I couldn't help it. I didn't know you were there---ah, I get it now. All those late-night meetings and bailing out on Francie and the rest of us…it was because you were meeting up with that Vaughn guy." Vaughn's name came up as a curl of disgust in his voice that he tried to hide. "And this guy---it's like he doesn't exist to society. His files are all locked up or simply not there…why are you hanging around guys like that?"
Sydney narrowed her eyes at him. Will suddenly saw her anger at what he had done. He realized that he had gone far with the account of his investigation into the life of Vaughn. "Thank you for taking me home," she said icily before getting off the car, slamming the car door shut and storming towards the entrance of her house.
Will hit the steering wheel again, this time harder. "Damn!"
"She's brilliant, I tell you," Weiss told Vaughn as they walked down the corridors of the Headquarters. "I mean, she's tough and stubborn and cynical but she's brilliant. I guess that's a rub-off from you." He nudged Vaughn manly and grinned like an idiot. "She goes into the warehouse, armed with only one of those high-tech, up to date guns and bam! She was able to catch him single-handedly with no help from the boys outside."
Nads smiled politely. "It's not that big."
"Oh yes it is," Weiss said with a big grin. "Weren't you afraid of him?"
"As in, afraid I'd be splattered into a pancake? Oh course."
"She's being modest," Weiss told Vaughn, waving dismissively at Nads, who shook her head and walked over for some coffee. "Even the boys are pretty surprised at her capabilities. And she's been on training for how long?"
"About seven months, I think," Vaughn replied. "But it's taken her out of her classes often."
"You should think about recommending her as a full field agent."
"Maybe."
Weiss grinned again, this time wider. "Well, anyways, the boys have your hit man down in the jail sector downstairs in the basement," he continued. "He's on constant surveillance, but don't worry, we're still feeding him and giving him some air to breathe. We don't want a dead man in there. We're going to get an interrogator and some shrink or something in there sometime after this meeting."
"I see." Vaughn looked troubled.
At the same time, they caught up with Jack Bristow and Norman Valenti at the other end of the hallway. They both wore dark business suits and they looked more like conspiring than carrying on a normal conversation. Vaughn felt his hands go cold when he saw Jack Bristow; they weren't exactly on the best of terms at the moment.
"Ah, Vaughn, Weiss," Valenti greeted, turning to them. "So glad you can join us."
"Where's Devlin?" Vaughn asked curtly.
"He had other matters to attend to so here I am," Valenti said with a smile.
Vaughn fought the urge to groan. Valenti was a pain; he wanted to talk to Devlin personally, not this brass knuckle. This man reminded him of Mr. Burns from the Simpsons but there was something else going on with this guy. Either way, he didn't want to confide with this guy.
"Where's Sydney?" Jack suddenly asked.
Vaughn looked at Sydney's father. "Devlin gave the consent to Sydney to return to work."
"What?" he demanded.
Beside Vaughn, he heard Weiss squeak deep in his voice. Vaughn cleared his throat. "I was not contacted by Devlin himself," he told Bristow in a cautious voice. He didn't want to get on his bad side, especially today, out of all days. "Weiss here was the one who was given the orders. Anyhow, I will inform Sydney about any new developments to our meeting."
"Then let's enter, shall we?" Valenti asked, gesturing towards the conference room.
They filed inside and Valenti closed the door behind them. "Okay, men," he told them, clasping his hands together. "This morning, around 0200, Agent Weiss here picked up something unusual on the SD-6 server. There are some command fluxes that are being sent from an unknown location of Los Angeles. Intelligence division suspects that this may be done by one of the fractions that are---"
Someone banged at the door.
Valenti turned to the door. "Who the hell is that?"
Vaughn turned red and stood up. "Sorry, sir," he murmured, walking over and opening the door. It was Nadia holding a cup of coffee and with an annoyed look on her face. Vaughn motioned for her to enter and not to say a word of protest or in sarcasm for his sake. "Um, sir, you locked out one of the people that should be in this meeting."
The representative studied Nadia from head to toe. "Have I met her before? A newbie?"
"Sir, she's not fully a CIA agent---yet."
"Then why the hell is she here?" Valenti demanded.
Before Vaughn could reply, Nadia cut in and said, "Because I'm the one who's been keeping tabs on Agent Bristow and whoever is after her. I'm the one who has been gathering up information from all contacts who have come across our little private war with SD-6 and I also happen to be the one who nabbed the hit man that was on Agent Bristow's tail the past two days."
There was a silence in the room.
Valenti didn't look pleased but he gestured for her to take her place anyways. Nadia gave Vaughn and Weiss a tight and private smile before taking place at the end of the table. Vaughn sighed; Nadia had saved his rear from being roasted by a senior officer like Valenti.
Valenti continued as though Nadia had never entered the room and interrupted his little speech. "So there's a flux in their computer grid. Analyses compile that they are sending a series of pulses embedded in these fluxes that are causing their computers' protection from outside hacking. It's making them vulnerable and this is perhaps our time to crash in."
"Mind you that SD-6 will be monitoring their computer lines carefully," Jack Bristow told them. "Especially since Sydney's nearly blown cover was completely exposed, they'll be busy tightening their security. Sloane is definitely trying to keep things under wraps. If he's worried about a takeover or a Crashdown, he is certainly not showing it."
"Well, either way---"
"Mutiny," Nadia murmured.
All eyes went to the girl that sat at the end of the table.
"What are you talking about?" Valenti demanded.
She looked up at them. "Those fractions both external and internal that are against Sloane and SD-6 think that Sloane is a weak leader and they believe that they can do a better job," she explained slowly. "But they can't just go up to the Alliance and say, 'Oh, I think Sloane's a crappy leader, I should head SD-6.' They have to somehow prove to them that Sloane is a faulty head and that he should be ousted. How? They send the fluxes through computer commands. They must have a brilliant guy within SD-6 Headquarters to spread the flux throughout the entire server after receiving it from wherever it is coming from. That way, Sloane will have his hands full and if they send the right amount of fluxes through the server, they might be able to shut down the entire network."
"What about Sydney?" Bristow asked stiffly. "How does she fit in all this?"
She nodded slowly, thinking deeply. "Isn't Sydney one of the best in SD-6?" she inquired. "I've read her database---she's an impressive agent for them and she may be considered Sloane's favourite. They must see her as some sort of way or key to get to Sloane. So they send the Incredible Hulk after her to get rid of her as a message to Sloane that something is up and that he's the target. This is one sick game, if you ask me. One very sick cycle," she added.
Vaughn nodded thoughtfully. "I get it now," he replied huskily.
"And I'm assuming that they don't really know Agent Bristow's involvement with the CIA so there's the twist," she continued, taking a swig at the beer. "So when our hit man followed Sydney to the warehouse, he must've been thinking who the hell she was meeting at that hour. If he has any idea that she's meddling with the CIA, then I'm afraid our little friend in the basement is a security risk."
"Yeah," Weiss replied, ruffling his hair back, "I suppose we wouldn't want him telling the Alliance about our agents and we sure as hell don't want him to sell the information to let's say the K-Directorie or maybe SD-6. It'd be like sending Sydney to her own execution parlour." He shuddered at the thought of it.
But Jack wasn't paying attention to Weiss or anyone else for that matter. His dark eyes were immediately upon Vaughn's fatigue figure. It was obvious that he didn't approve of what happened in the morning when Nadia mentioned the warehouse. In fact, Nadia clenched her jaw when she realized that she slipped up. "What the hell was Sydney doing in the meeting place in the early hours?" he demanded to his handler, his voice stone cold.
"I have some information to her early this morning," he replied coolly.
"You idiot!" Jack shouted, bolting to his feet. "Do you have any idea what kind of danger you placed on the two of you? You have also exposed Sydney's involvement with the CIA to a hit man! Do you not know about protocol? Do you not know the risks involved with her mission?"
"This is her life we are talking about!" Vaughn shot back.
"For a senior agent, you make a lousy handler," Jack accused angrily. His eyes were boiling with an unknown rage that made Weiss back away from the table. Valenti said nothing, watching the argument ensue. "However you got the promotion, I do not want to know but I do know that you do not deserve it in any form of degree. You rush in before you think and you do not think of all of the alternatives and the consequences of doing something."
"Yes, and thinking of all the alternatives will make things too late to act upon!"
"You know what, Mr. Vaughn?" Jack asked coldly. "You are inadequate to be a handler. Maybe you're just there to impress my daughter, I don't know---either way, I ought to kick you ass---"
"Okay, that's enough!" Nadia cried. She was still sitting down, her head facing the ebony table. Her right hand was on the table and it was clear that she was prepared to break the table---or worse. Silence slipped in even between the feuding duo. She looked up at them dangerously that even Valenti stood back from the table. Somehow, they had a feeling that if they pissed her off, there would be damage done. "We're all having a hard day as it is…a hard start, if I may say so. And, Mr. Bristow, Vaughn has already been coached about what has happened. I assure you that it will not happen again."
Jack was going to snap something at Nadia when Weiss added seriously, "We must not simmer about the past but rather about what we have now. We must deal with the problems now accordingly." He looked towards Valenti. Vaughn was surprised; he usually had some smart-ass comment to remark but today he was relatively serious.
He was glad for it.
Valenti cleared his throat and shifted back to his professionalism. "Agreed," he replied non-chalantly. "Now, Agent Vaughn, you will inform Agent Bristow of the latest developments and will order her to help her father drain out whoever is in the receiving end of the computer command fluxes. Agent Weiss, I want you to monitor those fluxes and inform Agent Vaughn about any new changes to the intervals."
"How about Sydney?" Jack asked. "Do you think it's safe to tell Sloane about this…mutiny?"
"As long as she doesn't expose how she knows of this information, and if she doesn't reveal us, then we're good," Valenti replied curtly, turning to Nadia. "Agent Nadia---"
The door suddenly swung open to reveal a skinny technician with an earpiece still connected to his ear. He was clearly oriental with dark hair. He wasn't wearing a jacket and his tie was loosened. His eyes were wide as he said breathlessly, "Sir! Request permission for you to come with me to the basement."
"Why?" Valenti demanded.
The young officer told her, "The subject has just woken up. We tried interrogating him but he won't talk. Devlin gave the order for Doctor Tamakawa to check him out. He is already downstairs and ready to begin the second phase of the interrogation---but they need the presence of a senior officer down there before they can actually commence."
Valenti turned to Nadia. "Well?"
"Well what?" she stammered, her face gone ash white.
"You caught the guy," he told her, "don't you want to know what's going on in his mind?" Vaughn could've sworn that Nadia shuddered ever so slightly but nonetheless gave Valenti a nod of participation with sheer determination and confidence. Valenti turned to the others. "You have your orders." He then stalked out of the room.
Nadia drained her cup and turned to Vaughn. "I'll call you if there's any new developments," she told him as she rushed to the door and shut it behind her. Vaughn watched her silhouette chasing down the street, trying to catch up to Valenti.
Weiss shook his head. "I feel so damn sorry for her."
"Why?" Jack Bristow asked curiously as he rose to his feet once again.
Weiss looked like he was going to laugh and cry at the same time. "For those who have ever seen an actual interrogation---God knows how our crisp and young and brilliant informant will be after it," he told him before following Vaughn out the door.