Here's Part 3, where Sydney finally makes her appearance.
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For disclaimers, etc. see A/N at the beginning.
~~~~~
Vaughn glanced at Weiss before returning his eyes to the road in front of him. He had remained silent when he'd called Sydney and throughout his entire conversation with Jack, which had ended over five minutes ago. Thinking about it, Vaughn realized that Weiss had not said a word since they'd left Zoe's. He'd just sat there looking out the window at the passing buildings.
He honestly didn't know what to do for his friend. Vaughn remembered Sydney describing what it was like to find Danny the way she had, but he'd never thought he'd witness something similar. Unfortunately, tonight he had.
Knowing he had some time before they had to be at the warehouse to meet Sydney, Vaughn decided to stop for some coffee. With what little sleep he'd had, he was going to need all the help he could get to stay awake for what was looking to be a very long day.
"Hey, do you want anything?" Vaughn asked.
For the first time since they'd left Zoe's apartment, Weiss looked at his friend. "Huh?" he replied, his voice cracking slightly as he spoke. He hadn't really paid much attention to the second phone call Vaughn had made, choosing instead to stare out the window, ignoring everything but his reflection in the glass.
He didn't have to guess where they were going or who they were going to meet; Vaughn uttering the "Joey's Pizza" code had told him everything he needed to know. Finally, he couldn't take his reflection staring back at him any longer and he'd closed his eyes, resting his head against the window. He hadn't realized they'd stopped until Vaughn nudged his shoulder.
"I'm gonna get some coffee. Do you want anything?"
Yeah, I want to wake up and find out this has all been some horrible mistake, Weiss thought sadly. I want to wake up and find Zoe curled up next to me. I want a lot of things. Shaking his head, he just looked back out the window. "I don't care."
Vaughn shook his head at Weiss's response. He had a feeling that he was going to regret bringing him along, but he hadn't known what else to do. He certainly wasn't about to leave him at Zoe's by himself.
Stepping from the car, he went into the small mom and pop store. He wandered around for a few minutes, trying to figure out what supplies they might need for the day ahead. Stopping in front of the coffee dispenser, he grabbed four large cups and began filling them.
He grabbed one of the carry-out trays and placed the cups in it. Carefully balancing the tray, he grabbed a bag of cookies and then returned them to the shelf when he saw the donut case.
Placing the cups on the ledge, he grabbed a bag and placed an assortment of pastries inside. Picking up his tray, he made his way to the register.
"My, you certainly like your coffee, don't you?" the clerk asked, putting down the comics. When Vaughn didn't reply, she just shrugged. "Did you find everything you were looking for?"
Vaughn looked at the woman, and then saw what he'd been looking for. "Actually, I was looking for the aspirin, but I see that it's behind you."
"Which one do you want?" she asked.
"Um, a bottle of Excedrin and maybe a bottle of Tylenol. Oh, and some Vivarin?"
The girl laughed. "You aren't planning on taking all of that at once, are you?"
Vaughn smiled for the first time in what seemed a lifetime. "No. I just have a headache from hell and a meeting to go to. How much do I owe you?"
"That'll be $17.92," she answered.
As Vaughn handed her the money, she looked back outside. "It's too bad you have to go to a meeting. If the sunrise is any indication, it looks like it's going to be a beautiful day."
Vaughn waited for his change as she continued. "You know, I think that is one of the things I like most about this shift."
Stuffing the money in his pocket, he glanced back at her. "What's that?" he asked, not really wanting to chat, but not wanting to be rude either.
"I get to see every sunrise. I don't know what it is, but I just never get tired of seeing them. Each one is always so different, but it's always the same, you know?" she asked, looking at Vaughn.
"Yeah," Vaughn replied distantly as he gathered his purchases. He glanced back at the young woman behind the counter, noticing her name tag for the first time. Joy. It fit her perfectly. "Um, thanks."
"Sure thing. Hope your meeting doesn't ruin your day," she added before going back to her paper.
He didn't have the heart to tell her his day was ruined at one-fifteen that morning or that no matter how beautiful the sunrise, it wasn't going to be a beautiful day. Instead he just told her thanks once more and left the store.
Seeing Weiss staring out the window again, Vaughn didn't even bother asking him to help. Setting the donuts and the tray of cups on the roof of the car, he opened the door and placed everything on the floor behind the driver's seat before slipping behind the wheel and closing the door.
He glanced at the motionless Weiss again before looking back inside the little store. He could see the girl behind the counter smiling. God, he wished he could be that carefree, that innocent again. But that would never happen. He knew too much about all the bad things that could happen to good people. Shaking the thought from his head, he started the engine and got back on the highway. No matter how gorgeous the sunrise, it was going to be a very long day.
********
Sydney sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the clock beside her. The red numbers glared 7:05 a.m. As she watched the time change from 7:05 to 7:06, she thought about getting a new alarm clock. She hated seeing the red glow from her clock as she tried to sleep at night. She'd seen more than enough of that color to last her a lifetime.
As the clock flipped to 7:07, she stood up. Jesus, Syd, concentrate, she thought. Something had to be wrong. Vaughn never called her this early in the morning. And he'd sounded so strange. She'd almost asked him what was wrong instead of saying the standard "wrong number." Sydney grimaced. She'd find out as soon as she got her ass in gear and started moving.
With that thought foremost in her mind, she grabbed a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, changing out of her pajamas and dressing quickly. She picked up her tennis shoes and slipped into them, all while trying to be quiet so she wouldn't wake Francie.
"Syd?" Francie called sleepily.
Sydney dropped her head, hating the fact that she would, once again, have to lie to her friend. Poking her head through the doorway, she smiled. "Yeah?"
"What are you doing up?"
"Oh, some idiot called wanting someone named Carly. And when I told them there was no one named Carly at this number, the guy said to stop lying and get her. He just knew she was here."
"Jeez. What did you tell him?" Francie asked as she propped herself up slightly.
"I tried explaining that no one named Carly was here, that I didn't even know anyone named Carly and then I asked what number he was calling. Stupid jerk had transposed the number."
"So why are you up?"
"After arguing with the idiot, I didn't think I'd be able to get back to sleep so I thought maybe I'd go for a run this morning. Haven't done that for awhile."
"Oh, ok," Francie answered, trying unsuccessfully to stifle a yawn as she lay back down. "You want company?"
Sydney smiled. "That's ok. You look like you need some more sleep."
"Hey!"
"You know I didn't mean it like that."
Francie mumbled something into her pillow and Sydney laughed. "Ok, tell you what. You got back to sleep for a bit. I'll go for a run and maybe I can pick up something for breakfast on the way home?"
"Sounds good," Francie answered as she buried herself under the covers. "See ya."
"Ok, Fran. I'll see you in a bit," Sydney stated as she started to close the door to Francie's room.
"Hey Syd?" Francie called before the door closed.
Sydney poked her head back in. "Yeah?"
"Did you hear anything from Will yesterday? We were supposed to go out and he didn't show."
Sydney froze, trying to remain calm. "No. I didn't hear from him yesterday," she lied, her voice tight.
"Ok. Just wondered," Francie answered as she burrowed further underneath the covers.
She closed the door quietly behind her, walking quickly into the living room, she grabbed her keys. Stepping outside, she made sure the door was locked behind her before she ran to her car and took off for the warehouse.
********
"This is your captain speaking. Welcome to Newark International Airport. Local time is 10:15 a.m. and currently the temperature is 85 degrees."
Will shifted in his seat. It was 10:15 already? Wait a minute--he was on the East Coast now. So really it was . . . . He did some quick mental calculations. So really it was 7:15 in L.A. Will shook his head. He had never liked time changes; it always messed with his system somehow.
But right now there were more important things to worry about than the time. Where were they going to take him? Another safe house? Drive him down to Langley? Wow. Maybe he could even meet Hoover.
Will, the little voice inside reminded him, Hoover's been dead for years. And besides, he was FBI, not CIA.
When did the little voice get so smart?
"You may unbuckle your safety belt. Thank you for flying with us, and have a great day," the captain said over the intercom.
Relieved, Will unbuckled the safety belt and stood up, stretching his legs. It was hard to tell he was on an airplane. This was unlike any he had ever been on--plush, comfortable seats whose backs were against the walls, so that the two rows of seats faced each other. Plenty of leg room. No annoying let-down meal tray. No crying baby three rows back or chain smoker sitting beside him, unlike his flight from Paris to L.A. just two days ago. In fact, Will noted, it didn't seem like there were any other passengers. Since he didn't know where he was supposed to go, he stepped towards the curtain that the British guy had walked through, hoping to find answers.
Will's hand was on the curtain when he bumped into the British guy. "Mr. Tippin, please come with me," he ordered. Will followed the man through the curtain and a private section with just four seats. He reflexively held a hand to his face to block out some of the bright sun as they walked down the steps of the plane. A man on what looked like a golf cart was waiting for them on the ground.
"Where are we going?" Will asked as the private plane grew smaller in the distance.
"We will be traveling in my employer's private plane for the rest of our journey. I assure you that you will find yourself most comfortable," the young man answered as he stared straight ahead, eyes never blinking.
Will took his cue from his companion and did not say another word, even as they boarded the new plane. This plane was so ornate and grandiose that it made the first one look like a broken-down piece of junk. Once again, the stairs of the plane led them to what appeared to be a private section with a curtain at the back.
The young man nodded towards the curtain. "You can buckle up in the other room," he said, as if it were a request and not an order. "We will be taking off shortly."
"Where are we going?" Will asked again.
"For now, let's just keep that a surprise, okay?" the man answered, another smirk crossing his features. "You will know soon enough."
********
Will walked through the curtain and blinked. There were cats everywhere--in the seats, tangled in the seat belts, meowing from the lone lavatory, even hanging out of what Will presumed was a storage bin. White cats, brown cats, calico cats, even a black cat that seemed to be staring directly at him.
Will gulped. This was not going to be a fun flight. Obviously the CIA didn't know too much about him, because if they did they would know about his allerg--
"Achoo!" Will sneezed, startling the cats.
"Is everything all right in there?" British Dude called from behind the curtain.
"Um, just fine," Will called back.
After all the CIA's done to save my ass, wouldn't it be rude to point out something as minor as a little allerg-- "Achoo!" he sneezed again. "Man," he groaned, "this is not good." Will looked around the cabin--cats everywhere. He swore under his breath as he fought another sneeze. "Would you happen to know where the Kleenex is?" he asked the cats as he sneezed for the third time.
Will could hear a muffled noise behind him, signaling that the plane's door was closing. "Hello, this is your captain speaking," a woman's voice came over the intercom. "Please fasten your safety belt at this time. We are eighth in line to take off."
Will looked longingly outside at the fresh air, the cat-free air. Maybe it's just a short flight to Langley, he thought hopefully. As the plane soared in the sky twenty minutes later, he looked at the cats surrounding him, sleeping on him, going to the bathroom on his shoe. And then he remembered everything else about the last few days and how well everything had gone.
Or maybe it's the never-ending flight to hell.
********
Sydney entered the warehouse, checking as she always did for signs that something, anything, was wrong. The traffic was unusually bad for a Sunday morning because of a four-car pileup on the highway. As she impatiently sat in her car, wishing it would sprout wings, she cursed the traffic, becoming more frantic with each passing minute.
She walked quickly towards the fenced-off room they used for their briefings, each step coming faster than the last until she was running. Reaching the fence, she came to an immediate halt when she saw Vaughn at the table, his head in his hands.
"Vaughn?" she questioned as she opened the metal gate. "What's wrong?"
Vaughn looked up, startled by her presence. "Um, why don't you sit down."
Sydney did as she was asked. Once seated, she had to turn to find Vaughn, who'd begun pacing behind her. "Vaughn, you're scaring me. What's wrong?"
Vaughn moved back to the opposite side of the table and sat down, still unsure of how to tell her about Will's abduction. He grabbed one of the packets of sugar he'd picked up at the convenience store and began playing with it. "Sydney, I don't know how to tell you this," he began.
Sydney grabbed the edge of the table tightly. "Tell me what?" Looking directly at Vaughn, she waited for a second before she haltingly asked, "Is it about my... my dad?"
"No. It's not your father. Syd, there was a problem at the safe house. Will's missing."
Sydney sat gawking at him, certain she hadn't heard him correctly. A short, nervous laugh was her only immediate reaction. "How can Will be missing? He was at a safe house. He was being watched. Maybe he..." she babbled.
Vaughn was beside her before she could finish the sentence. "Sydney. We will find out what happened to him."
Sydney looked at Vaughn, searching for some sign that it was all some horrid mistake. The look of pity, however, was more than she could stand. Pushing back from the table, she stood, turning away from him and back towards the gate.
Vaughn grabbed at her shoulder, but she shrugged him off. "Syd, where are you going?"
"I'm going to see what happened for myself," she stated as her hand rested on the metal latch, only to be turned back around by Vaughn.
"Sydney, you cannot go over there," Vaughn protested.
"Why the hell not? I mean, is someone going to see me going in there and if they do, so what? Vaughn, they walked in there and they took Will. Where the hell were the guards when all this happened?"
"Those agents are dead," Weiss stated flatly.
Sydney turned to see Weiss emerging from the other side of the enclosure. "Weiss? What are you doing here?"
"Nice to see you too, Agent Bristow."
Sydney turned back to Vaughn. "What the hell is going on here, Vaughn? You tell me that Will is gone and no one knows where he is. Then Weiss says the guards, no sorry, agents are dead. Who the hell was on duty last night, Barney Fife?"
Weiss came to a halt in front of Sydney. "No, as a matter of fact, Johansson and Parker were on duty at the time. Two of our most reliable men," he stated coldly.
"Well, obviously they weren't reliable enough," Sydney shot back.
"Listen here, Agent Bristow," Weiss snapped. His caustic tone and the sarcastic way he had said "agent" were not lost on Sydney. For some reason he was taking this far too personally, but she couldn't understand why. "Those men were outstanding agents who were trying to protect someone who should have never been there in the first place. And why was he there?" Weiss paused, giving her an icy stare. "Hmm, let's see. Could it possibly be because of you?"
"Now wait a minute," Sydney countered. "I didn't bring him into this. My father..."
"Stop it!" Vaughn shouted as he moved between the two of them.
Weiss just looked around his friend and glared at the woman who was standing behind him. "Yes, your father. Will, your friend. You know, contrary to what you might think, the world does not revolve around you and your father or your friends. And this will probably come as a shock to you, but there are some of us at the CIA who don't think we should have to go around cleaning up your messes or take care of your problems."
Sydney's arm lashed out from behind Vaughn and before he could block the movement, her hand connected soundly with Weiss's cheek. "You son of a bitch," she swore, trying to rub away the stinging sensation in her palm.
Vaughn turned and pushed Sydney back a bit, not realizing that for every step he forced Sydney to take, Eric took one to match.
"You're a real piece of work, you know that? Not once did you express concern for the agents who were guarding your friend. You just automatically assumed that whoever had been on duty was incompetent. Well, guess what? They weren't. She wasn't."
Vaughn turned back around to face Weiss. "Back off, Eric," he stated menacingly.
Weiss looked like he was about to say something else but instead just walked away and sat down at the table.
After Weiss had seated himself, Vaughn followed, grabbing for the aspirin that was placed next to his cup. After finally opening the bottle, he dumped a few into his hand, replaced a couple, then popped the others in his mouth and grabbed his coffee.
At that moment it didn't matter that the coffee was still a little too hot; he just needed something to stop the pounding in his head. He set the cup back on the table, looking at Weiss as he did. As quickly as Weiss's anger had surfaced, it had disappeared, leaving behind a man who was desperately trying to hold on to what little control he had left.
Vaughn gripped Weiss's shoulder before slowly walking back to where Sydney was still standing, rubbing his eyes as he did. "Sydney..."
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah. Just have a really bad headache."
"Oh." Sydney was still confused by what had transpired a few minutes before. She had never seen Weiss lose control like that before and it had scared her a bit. Glancing first at Vaughn and then back at Weiss, she recognized, no, she understood that look on his face. She thought quickly about the last thing he'd said. She who? Who the hell was there who shouldn't have been?
"Vaughn, he said she wasn't. What did he mean? She who?"
Vaughn let his head drop for a moment before looking at her. "Johansson and Parker weren't the only ones who were killed tonight. A really good friend of Eric's was murdered as well."
"Oh God." This was not happening. Not again. Not to someone else she knew, even if she didn't know him well. "Why was she there?"
"She was dropping something off for him."
"Weiss sent her?" she whispered.
"Yes."
Sydney looked at Weiss briefly, before focusing again on Vaughn. "Did the video show anything?"
"Something happened to the tape. It was... The video was blank. But thankfully, the audio was intact."
"Audio?" Sydney questioned.
"Yes. Like I said, the audio tapes were sent for analysis, we should hear something soon."
Had they been recording everything Will said, Sydney wondered. And if they had, did that mean Vaughn had heard what he said to her?
She moved away from the wall, still thinking about exactly what Vaughn had heard. She walked over to the table where Weiss sat, his head resting on his arms. "Weiss," she began. Clearing her throat, she started over. "Eric." It sounded strange using his given name. "I'm sorry. About what I said. And I'm sorry I slapped you. You were right. I was worried about Will. I wasn't thinking."
Weiss raised his head and sat back, watching her for a moment. The expression on her face was genuine. "I shouldn't have snapped at you like that."
"It's ok," she smiled sadly. "I do understand."
I'm sure you do, he thought as he felt a tear slide down his face.
"Shhh," Sydney said softly, wrapping her arms around him. She was surprised when he wound his arms around her waist, resting his head just below her breasts.
Vaughn walked behind Weiss, standing in the shadows. He caught Sydney's eye and silently thanked her. At her confused expression, he just pointed at Weiss. He watched as she nodded slightly before she tightened her embrace around his friend.