Chapter Twenty-Five: Change in Plans

"There's been a change in plans, Mr. and Mrs. Vaughn."

It was only then that Sydney realized that her dad was holding a gun, as if he were afraid the two of them might be dangerous.

"Why?" Sydney gasped. "What happened? Are the kids--"

"They're fine, Mrs. Vaughn," Jack interrupted curtly. "Except for the fact that your son is quite under your mother's thumb. Is that your doing, or hers?"

"Hers," Sydney said without thinking. "I mean, I don't know, I never told Jack anything bad about his grandmother, but--"

"What happened, Jack?" Sydney felt relief wash over her as Michael's voice cut through the darkened room. She reached for his hand, and he pulled her to him, his arm firmly around her waist. Her protector, her guardian angel.

"I--" her father hesitated, and Sydney regarded him curiously. "I did a foolish thing today."

"What?" Sydney felt hysterical. No escape, never an escape…

"I was parked across from your house," Jack said, concern knitting his brow. "Your children came out into the yard, slithering along the side of the house like they were trying to avoid being seen. Playing a game, I suppose. Then Emily went running back into the house, and I thought, 'This is my chance. He's alone, the nanny's watching Emily--'"

"Your chance to what?" Sydney cried, and she felt Michael's arm tighten around her waist.

Jack sighed. "I only wanted to speak to him."

"Jack, what happened?" The urgency in Michael's voice was almost enough to make Sydney completely lose it.

"He saw me, and he fell backwards out of the tree he was climbing--"

"Is he all right?" Sydney knew her voice was practically at a shriek, but she couldn't help it.

"He's fine, Mrs. Vaughn." The annoyed look on her father's face confused Sydney. Why was he still calling her Mrs. Vaughn? Didn't he know they were on the same side? "Fine enough, in fact, to scamper right into the house and call and tell his loving grandmother that a strange man was watching him."

Sydney gasped. "Jack was acting so strange before we left-- Mom must have told him something was up! She must have told him to let her know if he saw anything suspicious!"

"Did she, Mrs. Vaughn?" Jack's voice was as hard and old as Sydney had ever heard it. And that was saying something. "Or did you?"

Sydney gasped as he aimed his gun at her.

"Hey, Jack, hold on!" Oh, God, now Michael sounded downright panicked. Sydney didn't know if she could handle it if Michael panicked. "Sydney would never do anything to invalidate the deal you offered her."

"Wouldn't she?" Jack challenged. "How well do you know your wife, Mr. Vaughn?"

Sydney heard Michael's breath catch in his throat. "As well as I know myself."

"Do you? Wasn't it only a week a go that you told her you didn't know who she was anymore?"

Sydney felt a sob escape her lips. This wasn't happening, couldn't be happening.

"Maybe she told you she'd take my deal," Jack continued. "And then used the first opportunity-- used your own son-- to sabotage me. Irina would not have hesitated to kill me if she would have found me, you know that, don't you?"

"I swear, Dad," Sydney said, trying desperately to keep her voice from shaking and failing miserably. "I would never do anything to put you in danger."

"The hell you wouldn't." Jack's gun was still pointed at her, and Sydney felt herself sag against Michael. "You put mine and countless other lives in danger every time you carried out one of Irina Derevko's orders. I can't even say how many have died at the hands of your hired henchmen."

"Dad, I swear." Sydney had never imagined she would have to beg her father for her life. It felt unreal, like a dream. A nightmare. "Will you please just tell me what happened? If Mom knows something's up-- oh, God, she must have taken the children somewhere!"

"Isn't that what you want?" Jack asked coldly. "For your kids to grow up safe within the Organization?"

"No!" Sydney gasped. "No, Dad. We never wanted to bring them into this life."

"If that were true," Jack responded. "You wouldn't have had children at all."

The statement made Sydney's blood run cold. It was true, the births of Jack and Emily hadn't exactly been accidental, but-- "We never thought we'd be with the Organization this long," Sydney struggled to explain.

"That may have been true when Jack was born," her father allowed. "But by the time Emily came along, you must have had a pretty good idea of what your lives were going to be like."

"Just tell me what's happened to them," Sydney whimpered.

"They've been taken somewhere safe," Jack said shortly.

"What about Emily?" Sydney gasped. "She's--"

"Those taking care of her have been alerted to her condition, and they have the appropriate medications," Jack snapped. "She's not made of glass, and maybe if you didn't treat her as if she was, Jack wouldn't be listening to his grandmother more than he listens to his own parents."

"That's not fair, Jack," Michael cut in.

"Perhaps not," Jack allowed. "But I believe that I didn't make your choices clear enough before. Before, I instructed you to do as I said or face possible future imprisonment. I'll make things a little easier for you this time."

He turned his attention back to Sydney, his gun pointed directly at her. "You will do exactly as I say. Or I will kill you."