Sark walked into SD-6 and headed straight for Sloane's office. He tapped on the doorframe before waiting a moment to be called in. Sark closed the door behind him while Sloane finished his phone call.
"Is this a good time?" Sark asked.
"Yes." Sloane waited for Sark to sit down. "I wanted to speak with you after the mission in St. Petersburg."
"So have I passed your test?" Sark smiled at Sloane before adding, "I assume I have since I am still alive." Sloane just returned his smile and ignored Sark's last comment.
"I wanted to congratulate you on the good work. You have proved your loyalty to SD-6. You and Sydney obviously make a good team."
"Thank you."
"Was it your idea to destroy the vault?" Sloane asked. Sark stopped for a moment to think what Sydney might have said to him.
"It was a joint decision." Sark said carefully.
"Well regardless, it means that K-Directorate won't get their hands on the artefacts."
"Good. So where are the artefacts now?" Sark asked.
"They have been taken to London, for analysis." Sloane replied. Sark just nodded his head.
"If that's all for now?"
"Yes." Sloane said. Sark then stood up and reached his hand out across the table to shake Sloane's hand.
"I think I will enjoy working here." Sark said.
"I hope so too." Sloane smiled in return.
Sark then put his hand in his pocket and took out what looked like an Asthma inhaler. He shook it a few times as if he was about to use it himself, but instead he sprayed it twice in the direction of Sloane's face. A few moments later Sloane's lifeless body slumped onto his desk. Sark walked over to his chair and propped Sloane back in his chair. He turned the chair around to make it seem as if Sloane was still talking on the phone. Sark then walked out of the office and turned the corner to speak to Sloane's Assistant.
"Mr. Sloane said he wasn't to be disturbed. He's on the phone at the moment. It's probably a good idea to take your lunch break while you have the chance!" Sark smiled broadly at the young dark haired woman and then casually walked out of the SD-6 quietly whistling a tune.
~~~
Vaughn's mind began to race with questions for Jack. "Do we know where Sark is now?"
"At the CIA. We can question him once we get there." Jack said.
"He chose to give himself up? I don't get it. He had the chance to run, but didn't." Sydney said.
"Devlin told me he just walked in and announced that he had killed Sloane."
"What did the Alliance say when they found out that Sark killed him?" Vaughn said.
"They don't know. For now it just looks like Sloane died of a heart attack."
"Is your appointment temporary?" Sydney asked.
"Two Alliance members will be in LA tomorrow. I'll find out then." Jack answered.
~~~
Jack, Sydney and Vaughn walked into Vaughn's office where Sark was waiting for them.
"How could you just kill Sloane without letting us know your plans?!" Vaughn asked.
"Can someone tell me exactly what I've done wrong?" Sark's voice rose in anger. "I did everyone a favour by killing Sloane!"
"Don't you know what the Alliance will do to you if they find out you're the one responsible?" Jack retorted.
"They won't find out. The chemicals in the spray I used can't be detected in the body. Even if they do blame me I'm not going to stay around here." Sark responded.
"You do still work for the CIA." Vaughn stated. "You might have thought that killing Sloane would free you of your obligations here, but it doesn't."
"As much fun as the last mission was, the idea of being a double agent for the next five years doesn't really appeal to me!" Sark replied.
"This is what we wanted, isn't it Dad? It will be so much easier to destroy SD-6 now that Sloane is gone." Sydney said.
"There is no guarantee that The Alliance won't have a replacement from another section." Jack said.
Sark stood up and sighed, "Look, I've had enough of this. I've done more than my fair share so just send me to jail or get me into a protection program if you want, I don't care anymore."
"We have to wait until tomorrow to find out what The Alliance will decide to do. If I get to be the new head of SD-6 then your double agent days may not be over." Jack said to Sark.
"Great!" Sark said sarcastically.
"Can you wait here Sydney? We have to go and speak with Devlin." Vaughn said to Sark. Jack and Vaughn left the office leaving Sydney and Sark alone. Sydney turned to face Sark.
"Thank you. If this speeds up the end of SD-6 then I should be grateful to you."
"How did you manage to work for Sloane after SD-6 killed your fiancé?" Sark asked.
"I just keep thinking of the life I can have after all this is over." Sydney sighed. She then looked directly at Sark and was surprised to see sympathy in his eyes. "So what are you going to do now?" She said changing the subject.
"It seems that I don't have any say in the matter."
"But I'm sure you have a back up plan?"
"Of course!" Sark said smiling.
~~~
Vaughn returned to his office to deal with Sark and Sydney headed back to her apartment to wait for her father to get in contact with her with news about him being in charge of SD-6. This gave her the time to think about the relationship with her mother and her decision never to see or speak to her again. She knew that the only person that could give her the honest advice she needed was Vaughn. She grabbed her cell phone and made the call to see him at the warehouse. She drove to the warehouse as soon as she had arranged the meeting and waited patiently for Vaughn to arrive.
"Hey." Vaughn said. "Am I late? Have you been waiting long?" He then asked.
"No, you're okay. I didn't want to stay at home that's all." Sydney explained.
"What's the matter?"
"I have a favour to ask of you."
"Sure."
"I want you to help arrange a meeting with my mother." She slowly said. She took a breath before adding, "I know she's being held in a CIA safe house."
"What?!" He responded incredulously. "This is crazy. You said you didn't want to see her again." Vaughn said. He saw the sad look on her face and instantly regretted his outburst.
"I know." She chuckled bitterly. "I still don't want to see her really. But I've realised that I haven't been able to move on with my life since she reappeared. I just want to see her once and put an end to all this." Vaughn nodded his head when he understood what she meant.
"I could go with you if you want." Vaughn suggested.
"No!' Sydney exclaimed. "I couldn't ask you to do that. I've already been so selfish."
"I've been to see her once so I can do it again." Vaughn replied.
"I appreciate the offer. But you shouldn't have to see her again. I just." Sydney's voice trailed off.
"What is it?'" he coaxed.
"I just don't want to be in front of her and fall for her lies. I want to be strong enough to stand up to her." Sydney said quietly.
"You're the strongest person I know Sydney." He said firmly. "But the offer still stands."
"Thank you." She replied visibly relieved that Vaughn would be there too. "Just one more thing. Please don't tell my father I'm going to see her. I know how upset he'll be if he ever finds out."
"I promise." Vaughn then gave Sydney directions to the safe house where her mother was being held and a time for her to meet him there.
~~~
Jack sat down in the SD-6 conference room and waited for the two men from the Alliance. He knew how important it was for him to convince them he should become the head of SD-6 not only for his life, but for Sydney too. A few minutes later two dark haired men were shown into the conference room.
"Nice to finally meet you Jack. I'm Richard Atkins and this is Matthias Sobel."
"Nice to meet you too. I just wish it were under better circumstances." Jack said after shaking both their hands. The men sat down around the table.
"Yes. We were both saddened to hear about Arvin's death." Atkins said.
"Arvin had been a very good friend to me for over twenty years, especially when my wife died. I'm still in shock about his death."
"Arvin was also extremely valuable to SD-6." Sobel added.
"We are all aware of how vulnerable SD-6 could be once others find out about this. Jack we are relying on you. We cannot let this affect the stability of SD-6." Atkins said.
"I understand the importance of this situation. I will do everything I can to keep SD-6 running as smoothly as possible." Jack replied.
"Good. That is exactly what we wanted to hear. We want you to oversee all SD-6 operations for the next three months and then after that we will review the situation. But I am sure your record for SD-6 will speak for itself." Atkins smiled at Jack.
"Thank you." Jack said.
The three men stood up and Jack shook Atkins and Sobel's hand. He waited for them to leave the conference room before he sat down and sighed with relief. One of the most difficult hurdles had been crossed and now he knew exactly how long they had to destroy SD-6. He quickly began to think of a plan of action.
~~~
Sydney drove to the safe house, making sure that she wasn't followed along the way. She realised that she was feeling more and more nervous as time passed. She knew how she should react, but in reality she had no idea of what effect her mother's response would have on her.
Once she got cleared the security checks and got into the safe house she found Vaughn waiting for her.
"Are you sure you still want to do this?" Vaughn gently asked.
"Yes." She replied, but she didn't sound very confident.
"Just checking." Vaughn smiled trying to reassure Sydney. She managed a brief nervous smile back before taking a deep breath and walking in to the room where her mother was being held.
Sydney sat down opposite Irina. She then waited for Vaughn to sit down in the empty chair next to her.
"What are you doing here?" Irina asked Vaughn.
"I asked him to be here." Sydney retorted. She looked across at Vaughn and smiled briefly. She knew she was strong enough to cope with anything her mother said, but she was still grateful that he was with her.
"I'm so glad you're okay, Sydney." Irina softly said.
"I just want to know one thing." Sydney replied ignoring Irina's comment.
"Anything." Irina gently smiled at Sydney, but she quickly stopped when she saw the anger on Sydney's face. "No-one told me how your mission had gone. I only knew you were alive when you walked through the door just now." Irina added.
"I only want to know why you helped us with the correct vault code. That's the reason I came here, not for some fantasy reunion."
It's simple, Sydney. You might not thing I'm a good mother."
"might?!" Sydney exclaimed with incredulity.
"But I am still your mother. The thought of losing both of my children was the only reason I gave Agent Vaughn the correct code." Irina looked across at Vaughn and studied the look on his face. He quickly looked away when his eyes met hers.
"A mother doesn't leave their child like that." Sydney responded.
"I didn't have a choice."
"Did you ever love Dadand me?" Sydney asked scared to know her mother's answer. Without looking at Vaughn, Sydney searched for his hand under the table. He initially looked at Sydney with surprise, but Vaughn let his fingers intertwine with hers and she tightly held onto his hand.
"Yes. Your father was very kind to me and I could tell he loved me a lot. And of course I loved you Sydney. Having to leave you was the most difficult thing I've ever had to do, but the KGB would have killed me if I hadn't followed their orders."
"That's all I wanted to know." Sydney said quietly as she pushed her chair back. Vaughn then quickly let go of her hand. Sydney stood up and took one last look at her mother before she walked out of the room. Vaughn then stood up, but was stopped from leaving by Irina.
"Agent Vaughn?"
"Yes." Vaughn replied coldly.
"I know you don't owe me anything, but can you do me a favour?" Irina asked.
"You're right. I don't owe you anything at all."
"It's not just for me. It's for Sydney as well. I had a photograph of us, of me, Jack and Sydney in the hospital just after she was born. I want her to see that we were a happy family once, even if it was a long time ago. I kept it all these years, but the guards took it from me after I was arrested. Can you make sure she gets the photo?"
"I'll see what I can do." Vaughn answered reluctantly.
"Can you promise me?" Irina asked.
"I'll try my best, but I can't guarantee that she'll want it." Vaughn then turned around and finally left the room.
Vaughn closed the door and turned to see Sydney resting against the wall with her hands covering her face.
"Sydney?" Vaughn whispered.
"I'm okay." She desperately tried to wipe away the tears that had fallen down her face with her fingers.
"Here." Vaughn said after fishing out a pack of tissues from his jacket pocket.
"Thank you for being here with me..." She said hiccuping as she stopped crying. "and for these." Sydney then opened the pack and wiped her eyes and face.
"No problem, Syd. And you can even keep those tissues!" Vaughn replied. Seeing Sydney smile through her tears was reason enough for him to have been in the same room as Irina Derevko yet again.
~~~
Vaughn left the safe house and headed back to his office. He was surprised to see Jack there waiting for him.
"Devlin said you were out of the office. Did you go to see Sydney?"
"No." Vaughn replied after quickly debating how much he should tell Jack.
"I need you to do something."
"What is it?" Vaughn asked as he sat down in his chair.
'"I want you to come to the SD-6 offices and help me prove to Dixon and Marshall who they really work for." Jack said. Vaughn just sat there stunned, unable to respond. That was the last request he had ever expected from him.
"Are you insane?!" He exclaimed when he eventually managed to think of something to say to Jack.