Author's Notes: Well. the idea for this story came to me in a dream, so I'm
taking it for a test spin. I have through half of chapter 4 written and
expect long chapters. It starts of S/S, but it eventually will be S/V (I
know, a shocker for me!). Anyway, it's a total AU and I hope you enjoy it.
It you don't like the first chapter. stay tuned for the second. Reviews,
please, I'd love to hear from you.
Disclaimer: I am not the rightful owner of the characters of Alias and I don't plan of taking credit for them. They are owned by ABC and J.J. Abrams.
Description: AU. What would have happened if Irina had taken Sydney with her when she was six? How is she a different prisoner? S/S, but will be S/V eventually (chapter 2/3)
**SYDNEY POV**
I woke up early that morning and felt Andrew's body intertwined with mine. His hands rested on my sides and I paused and observed the beauty of it all. Our relationship was hitting a peak and I knew he could ask me to marry him any day now.
My mother was pleased when we first got together. She assumed that we would some day get married and run the organization together. She beamed at all the parties we held when we would waltz around together. We were her trophies.
I could feel Andrew waking as well. Neither of us slept very late to begin with because of our busy schedules. Our morning ritual was always the same, get up, run 3 miles, shower, breakfast, work.
"Morning, love," he says to me.
I give him a short peck on the cheek, "Morning."
"Excited for tonight?" he asks me, pulling me closer to his body.
"Of course I am," I tell him. Tonight my mother was holding a small party for all the important employees and contributors to the organization. It was a yearly event and this year I had picked out the most wonderful dress.
"Ready to run?" he asks me, slipping out of bed getting some jogging clothes on.
"When aren't I ready to run?" I ask him, doing the same routine. We had both moved into a new house together once we had been dating for a year.
Once we were both ready, we headed out and started the usual route. Andrew headed up the front and I took the back and we maintained a steady pace the entire time. It was our alone time, time to sort out our feelings and thoughts at the time.
I always end up thinking about my father. I didn't know much about him, only what I had found in his file back at the organization. He was CIA and my mother had married him to get information from him. Once her assignment was up, she faked her death and mine as well because she knew I was destined for great things. Not the stupid CIA, that was for sure.
I passed by the local school and it was barely light out, but I could see the swings and slides in full view. Hopefully, one day my children will play there. Every time I run by I can imagine a little girl and boy.
I just remember what we had to deal with at the office today. Andrew and I had gone on a mission two days ago and had retrieved a major manuscript of Rambaldi's. It was a major score for our side. We had run into a few CIA agents, but they were nothing compared to us. Some people claimed we were the best in the business, ever. We were on the CIA and MI6 and every other intelligence agency's most wanted lists. However, they never could find us. We protected each other and never got caught.
Every time I ran I took the time to reflect on the past and see into the future. I could only imagine what Andrew thought about, but it wouldn't surprise me if it were some of the same things. I still remember the day we met like it was yesterday.
~~FLASHBACK, 2 YEARS AGO~~
"Sydney," my mother says to me.
"Yes, mother?" I reply.
"There's someone I'd like you to meet," she says.
"Alright," I say.
He walks in, with his gorgeous blue eyes and blonde hair. I am taken aback for a second, but compose myself in order to properly introduce myself.
"Hello, I'm Sydney," I say, introducing myself to mystery man.
"Hello, I'm Mr. Sark," he says in an adorable British accent.
"Sydney, Mr. Sark here will be your new partner," my mother adds.
"I'm sure we'll be able to work well together," he adds.
"Definitely," I add in.
"Perfect," Irina says. "How about you two have lunch and we'll talk about your first mission later?"
"Sounds great, Mother," I say to her.
She leaves, and we both stand in an uncomfortable silence for a minute.
"So, where would you like to have lunch?" I ask him.
"You choose," he says quickly.
"Alright, we'll go to the restaurant downstairs," I inform him.
We start walking and he pulls his hand up to touch my shoulder and I felt a shockwave move down my body from his touch.
"Wait," he says.
"What is it?" I ask.
"You can call me Andrew," he says.
"Alright, I think I can do that," I reply, adding in, "Andrew."
We both smile and head into the elevator. The main offices were located on the 5th floor and the restaurant was on the 2nd. We got off and as soon as the Host saw my arriving, he grabbed two menus and led us to my usual table I ate with my mother.
"Will Ms. Derevko be joining you this afternoon?" he asks me.
"No, but thank you," I say after sitting down.
We get our food order and our drinks come and we get settled in to a pattern of small talk and conversation.
"So, when did you begin to work for the organization?" he asks me.
"My mother trained me when I was 15 and I've been doing working ever since," I inform him.
"How old are you now?" he asks me.
"Don't you know better than to research your friends and your enemies before you meet them?" I say, almost scolding him.
He stands in awe for a second, but then replies, "Your mother never gave me your name."
"Good, for now, I'm 22," I tell him.
"Really?" he says to me.
"I know, and you are as well," I tell him taking his reaction in to my knowledge of him.
"What else do you know about me?" he asks me in his British voice.
"You scored very well on all your entry level tests, higher than everyone, except me, and your originally from Liverpool, went to Oxford for a semester, and recruited from there," I inform him.
"What I want to know is, why did you decide to join our organization?" I ask him.
"Your mother is very convincing," he says to me.
"She can be sometimes," I say and a grin reaches across my face.
"Your very much like your mother," he states.
"Oh really? What gave you that impression?" I ask him playfully.
"Everything about you," he starts, answering seriously, "From your intelligence, to your absolute beauty."
~~END FLASHBACK~~
And that's when I knew it. From the first day we met, I knew that there was fate pulling us together. Our missions together were always wonderfully executed and always successful. We had never fulfilled our objective and always were on the winning side. We were the best partners ever known in the intelligence world.
We both stopped at the usual park for stretching. I pulled down to stretch my calf and felt the cold air against my skin ever so presently. It was only 7 am and the dew was still present in the air and ground.
As soon as we both were done with our usual routine, we jogged the short distance back to our house. I opened the door and felt the fresh spring air throughout the house.
"You want to shower first, love?" he asks me, wrapping his arms around my waist to pull me in for a kiss.
"You like my stinky smell enough to kiss me?" I say to him playfully after we pull away.
"I love any smell of yours," he tells me.
"I love you," I can only reply, pulling back in for another kiss.
"I love you too, now go shower and I'll make us breakfast," he tells me and I head to the bathroom and strip down.
As soon as I came out of the bathroom, I could smell pancakes throughout the house. My favorite, hopefully with Blueberries. Of course they would be, he does everything to make me happy.
"Hey," I say, walking up to him and giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.
"I made your favorite," he says to me.
"I could smell, even with blueberries?" I ask.
"Of course, I wouldn't want to let the lady down, now, would I?" he says.
"It smells great, now, you run along and shower, we don't want to be late with the meeting with my mother," I tell him, ushering him out of the room.
I sat down with my pancakes and flipped through a few memos that my mother wanted me to be informed about before the meeting. New policy on this, a new office here, etc, etc. Nothing too interesting. Then, one at the bottom of the stack caught my eye. I pulled it out and it said "confidential" and "for top clearance only". The only people that could read this were my mother, Andrew, and myself. I flipped it open and it was the bio of an agent that we suspected of treason. That could be the reason for our meeting.
When Andrew came out of the bathroom, I had the kitchen clean and it was 8:30. We had to be to headquarters by 9 and it was definitely a convertible day.
"Want to take the Mercedes?" he asks me.
"Definitely," I reply to him.
"Let's go," Andrew says and we head out the side door to our four car garage. We had four cars, a Mercedes convertible, a Land Rover for the winter, a BMW for the fall, and an old Porsche for the occasional drive. My mother of course, gave us practically any money we wanted for ourselves. The organization had millions and we used a lot of them, that was for sure.
**JACK POV**
I could see them pulling out of their driveway. I was right, those stupid CIA fools. I had gained some information on where the infamous Sydney and Sark might live, but I had to see it for myself. The CIA wouldn't sanction it, so I went solo. My intel was correct. Now, I would hopefully find their beloved headquarters.
I followed closely behind them, far enough behind that I don't they as experts could even see me tailing them. I knew Sydney would group up to work in Intelligence, I just imagined the CIA, not her wretched mother's organization. I'm not to sure what would happen if we were ever to meet. Chances were she would kill me on sight.
I pulled back because it became clear to me they knew they were being followed. I was going to catch them, even if it was the death of me. I wanted to get back at that woman for doing all the wrong she has ever done.
**SYDNEY POV**
"We're being followed," I tell him.
"Alright, hold on," Andrew replies, quickly turning different directions, and in no time, loses the tail. I wonder who it was? Probably some one in stupid K-Directorate. They come sniffing around here every few months, but never have been successful. Within no time, we arrive at the building and head to the back parking entrance.
We get out and quickly walk to the entrance of the building. We punch in our codes and the door opens quickly. We walk in briskly and everyone we pass is always taken back by our power in his or her presence. We head for the executive elevator and punch in the correct code again.
Once we're in the elevator, we share a quick kiss for the day and get out once it reaches the fifth floor. Andrew heads to his office to get ready for the meeting and I head to mine. Once I walked in, I saw my assistant rise to her chair.
"Hello, ma'am," she always greets me.
"Good morning, Sarah," I reply back to her every morning.
I walk behind my desk and Sarah follows me in to the second room.
"Ma'am, your mother is dropping by before the meeting," she says.
"Oh really?" I saw, perking up and continuing to go over some of the issues that were on my desk.
"Good morning, Sydney," my mother says waltzing into my office. This is always Sarah's cue to leave, and she always does.
I come out from behind my desk, and go over and give my mother a brief hug.
"Good morning, mom," I respond.
"Did you read the papers I gave you?" she asks.
"If by "the papers" you mean the one you so conveniently placed on the bottom of the pile?" I ask her.
"Good, you noticed," she says. "What'd you think?"
"I really don't know her at all, so have you captured her yet?" I ask my loving mother.
"You think we should?" she asks me, asking for my opinion was something she had taken a like to, almost to see if my actions were ones that would benefit the organization.
"Yes, I'll interrogate her and see if she's a double," I inform her. One of my best talents was interrogating and getting information out of people.
"Sounds great, oh, and your father is in town," she says, dropping the bombshell in a quick phrase.
"So that's who was tailing us," I say.
"He was tailing you?" Irina says, getting nervous.
"Don't worry, Andrew totally lost him," I inform her.
"Of course," she says and sighs a breath of relief.
"So, what are you going to do?" I ask her.
"I wasn't too sure yet," she says, walking around the room. "Should I capture him? Or wait to see if he does anything?"
"If he tries to contact me, I'll bring him in," I tell her.
"Fine, that's a first step, now, make sure to get Mr. Sark up to speed, okay honey?" she says. That was the one thing that bugged me, she refused to call Andrew by his first name. Maybe if we get married she will, but I doubt she will.
"Is everything ready for tonight?" I ask Irina.
"Of course, is your dress ready?" she replies in question.
"Oh, it is. You're going to love it."
"I can't wait, now we must run along, the meeting should be starting soon," she says, and we both walk out of my office and head to the conference room. I enter and I see that Andrew is already there in his seat. It is customary that my mother sits at the head of the table and I sit to her right and Andrew sits next to me.
I take my seat and pull out my briefing materials and the meeting begins as usual.
**JACK POV**
I keep driving around, hoping to see some building that might resemble the world headquarters for the most deadly international espionage organization. No such luck appeared on my side, so I headed back to my hotel.
When I walked into the lobby, I saw my contact there. She sat in a chair and I knew that Irina owned everything in this town. We couldn't talk here, so I wrote on a piece of paper to meet and the park in a half hour. As I walked passed her, I dropped the paper into her lap and she recognized it.
I checked in, and headed up to my room.
**SYDNEY POV**
As soon as we all dispersed from the meeting, Andrew followed me out and pulled me into his office. We leaned into a kiss and he pulled away a second.
"Let's have lunch in the park," Andrew says to me.
"What, a picnic?" I ask him.
"Exactly," he claims.
"Did you clear it with my mother?" I ask him.
"She said we could have the rest of the day off to get ready for the party," he informs me.
"Alright, I'll go swing by my office and get my things for the night, and you come pick me up, okay?" I ask and tell him.
"Perfect," he replies and I head out.
Hm. a lunch picnic in the park? Could it be he's proposing? One could only hope.
We arrived in the park soon after we left and Andrew pulled out a basket with food and such.
"Did we plan ahead?" I ask him.
"Somewhat," he says sheepishly.
I grin at him and we walk arm in arm to a lovely spot in the park.
**JACK POV**
I entered the park, and very much to my surprise, I saw Sydney and Sark there as well. I placed myself behind a tree in which I could see them very carefully. I pulled out a pen I had in my pocket that would pull their voices from a distance and took out a headphone so I could listen to their conversation. If I could get them on tape talking about the organization, then I could nab them and lock them up forever.
**SYDNEY POV**
We both had finished our lunch and were both relaxed. I was lying against Andrew and we were just admiring the beauty of the situation. Any passerby could never imagine who we really were. I was sitting motionless for a few minutes, just watching the flowers and trees sway.
"Sydney," he whispers into my ear.
"Yes, love," I reply back into his ear.
"Your beauty, your love, your intelligence, your wit, you make me complete. Waking every morning to your shining face makes my world so much more bright," he starts. This could be it.
"Sydney, I would be honored if you would take me as your husband, for forever, to share our wonderful lives with," he says, pulling out a beautiful diamond ring.
"Yes, of course," I tell him and we start kissing affectionately. We end up on the ground, lying together making out like a bunch of teenagers.
"I love you," I tell him.
**JACK POV**
I could hear his British voice come through my headphones ever so clearly, "Sydney, I would be honored if you would take me as your husband, for forever, to share our wonderful lives with."
He was proposing to her? Just my luck. Normally, if we were normal, he would have had to ask my permission to marry her. Probably asked Irina her permission and she probably praised him, figuring they would continue the organization and make it stronger than ever.
I had to stop them, I had to capture them. I wonder how Irina would feel if I were to capture her beautiful trophy assets. So, I took my gun and started towards them. It was now or never.
~~Reviews make my day! Leave one or two with a few thoughts~~ Masquerade
Disclaimer: I am not the rightful owner of the characters of Alias and I don't plan of taking credit for them. They are owned by ABC and J.J. Abrams.
Description: AU. What would have happened if Irina had taken Sydney with her when she was six? How is she a different prisoner? S/S, but will be S/V eventually (chapter 2/3)
**SYDNEY POV**
I woke up early that morning and felt Andrew's body intertwined with mine. His hands rested on my sides and I paused and observed the beauty of it all. Our relationship was hitting a peak and I knew he could ask me to marry him any day now.
My mother was pleased when we first got together. She assumed that we would some day get married and run the organization together. She beamed at all the parties we held when we would waltz around together. We were her trophies.
I could feel Andrew waking as well. Neither of us slept very late to begin with because of our busy schedules. Our morning ritual was always the same, get up, run 3 miles, shower, breakfast, work.
"Morning, love," he says to me.
I give him a short peck on the cheek, "Morning."
"Excited for tonight?" he asks me, pulling me closer to his body.
"Of course I am," I tell him. Tonight my mother was holding a small party for all the important employees and contributors to the organization. It was a yearly event and this year I had picked out the most wonderful dress.
"Ready to run?" he asks me, slipping out of bed getting some jogging clothes on.
"When aren't I ready to run?" I ask him, doing the same routine. We had both moved into a new house together once we had been dating for a year.
Once we were both ready, we headed out and started the usual route. Andrew headed up the front and I took the back and we maintained a steady pace the entire time. It was our alone time, time to sort out our feelings and thoughts at the time.
I always end up thinking about my father. I didn't know much about him, only what I had found in his file back at the organization. He was CIA and my mother had married him to get information from him. Once her assignment was up, she faked her death and mine as well because she knew I was destined for great things. Not the stupid CIA, that was for sure.
I passed by the local school and it was barely light out, but I could see the swings and slides in full view. Hopefully, one day my children will play there. Every time I run by I can imagine a little girl and boy.
I just remember what we had to deal with at the office today. Andrew and I had gone on a mission two days ago and had retrieved a major manuscript of Rambaldi's. It was a major score for our side. We had run into a few CIA agents, but they were nothing compared to us. Some people claimed we were the best in the business, ever. We were on the CIA and MI6 and every other intelligence agency's most wanted lists. However, they never could find us. We protected each other and never got caught.
Every time I ran I took the time to reflect on the past and see into the future. I could only imagine what Andrew thought about, but it wouldn't surprise me if it were some of the same things. I still remember the day we met like it was yesterday.
~~FLASHBACK, 2 YEARS AGO~~
"Sydney," my mother says to me.
"Yes, mother?" I reply.
"There's someone I'd like you to meet," she says.
"Alright," I say.
He walks in, with his gorgeous blue eyes and blonde hair. I am taken aback for a second, but compose myself in order to properly introduce myself.
"Hello, I'm Sydney," I say, introducing myself to mystery man.
"Hello, I'm Mr. Sark," he says in an adorable British accent.
"Sydney, Mr. Sark here will be your new partner," my mother adds.
"I'm sure we'll be able to work well together," he adds.
"Definitely," I add in.
"Perfect," Irina says. "How about you two have lunch and we'll talk about your first mission later?"
"Sounds great, Mother," I say to her.
She leaves, and we both stand in an uncomfortable silence for a minute.
"So, where would you like to have lunch?" I ask him.
"You choose," he says quickly.
"Alright, we'll go to the restaurant downstairs," I inform him.
We start walking and he pulls his hand up to touch my shoulder and I felt a shockwave move down my body from his touch.
"Wait," he says.
"What is it?" I ask.
"You can call me Andrew," he says.
"Alright, I think I can do that," I reply, adding in, "Andrew."
We both smile and head into the elevator. The main offices were located on the 5th floor and the restaurant was on the 2nd. We got off and as soon as the Host saw my arriving, he grabbed two menus and led us to my usual table I ate with my mother.
"Will Ms. Derevko be joining you this afternoon?" he asks me.
"No, but thank you," I say after sitting down.
We get our food order and our drinks come and we get settled in to a pattern of small talk and conversation.
"So, when did you begin to work for the organization?" he asks me.
"My mother trained me when I was 15 and I've been doing working ever since," I inform him.
"How old are you now?" he asks me.
"Don't you know better than to research your friends and your enemies before you meet them?" I say, almost scolding him.
He stands in awe for a second, but then replies, "Your mother never gave me your name."
"Good, for now, I'm 22," I tell him.
"Really?" he says to me.
"I know, and you are as well," I tell him taking his reaction in to my knowledge of him.
"What else do you know about me?" he asks me in his British voice.
"You scored very well on all your entry level tests, higher than everyone, except me, and your originally from Liverpool, went to Oxford for a semester, and recruited from there," I inform him.
"What I want to know is, why did you decide to join our organization?" I ask him.
"Your mother is very convincing," he says to me.
"She can be sometimes," I say and a grin reaches across my face.
"Your very much like your mother," he states.
"Oh really? What gave you that impression?" I ask him playfully.
"Everything about you," he starts, answering seriously, "From your intelligence, to your absolute beauty."
~~END FLASHBACK~~
And that's when I knew it. From the first day we met, I knew that there was fate pulling us together. Our missions together were always wonderfully executed and always successful. We had never fulfilled our objective and always were on the winning side. We were the best partners ever known in the intelligence world.
We both stopped at the usual park for stretching. I pulled down to stretch my calf and felt the cold air against my skin ever so presently. It was only 7 am and the dew was still present in the air and ground.
As soon as we both were done with our usual routine, we jogged the short distance back to our house. I opened the door and felt the fresh spring air throughout the house.
"You want to shower first, love?" he asks me, wrapping his arms around my waist to pull me in for a kiss.
"You like my stinky smell enough to kiss me?" I say to him playfully after we pull away.
"I love any smell of yours," he tells me.
"I love you," I can only reply, pulling back in for another kiss.
"I love you too, now go shower and I'll make us breakfast," he tells me and I head to the bathroom and strip down.
As soon as I came out of the bathroom, I could smell pancakes throughout the house. My favorite, hopefully with Blueberries. Of course they would be, he does everything to make me happy.
"Hey," I say, walking up to him and giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.
"I made your favorite," he says to me.
"I could smell, even with blueberries?" I ask.
"Of course, I wouldn't want to let the lady down, now, would I?" he says.
"It smells great, now, you run along and shower, we don't want to be late with the meeting with my mother," I tell him, ushering him out of the room.
I sat down with my pancakes and flipped through a few memos that my mother wanted me to be informed about before the meeting. New policy on this, a new office here, etc, etc. Nothing too interesting. Then, one at the bottom of the stack caught my eye. I pulled it out and it said "confidential" and "for top clearance only". The only people that could read this were my mother, Andrew, and myself. I flipped it open and it was the bio of an agent that we suspected of treason. That could be the reason for our meeting.
When Andrew came out of the bathroom, I had the kitchen clean and it was 8:30. We had to be to headquarters by 9 and it was definitely a convertible day.
"Want to take the Mercedes?" he asks me.
"Definitely," I reply to him.
"Let's go," Andrew says and we head out the side door to our four car garage. We had four cars, a Mercedes convertible, a Land Rover for the winter, a BMW for the fall, and an old Porsche for the occasional drive. My mother of course, gave us practically any money we wanted for ourselves. The organization had millions and we used a lot of them, that was for sure.
**JACK POV**
I could see them pulling out of their driveway. I was right, those stupid CIA fools. I had gained some information on where the infamous Sydney and Sark might live, but I had to see it for myself. The CIA wouldn't sanction it, so I went solo. My intel was correct. Now, I would hopefully find their beloved headquarters.
I followed closely behind them, far enough behind that I don't they as experts could even see me tailing them. I knew Sydney would group up to work in Intelligence, I just imagined the CIA, not her wretched mother's organization. I'm not to sure what would happen if we were ever to meet. Chances were she would kill me on sight.
I pulled back because it became clear to me they knew they were being followed. I was going to catch them, even if it was the death of me. I wanted to get back at that woman for doing all the wrong she has ever done.
**SYDNEY POV**
"We're being followed," I tell him.
"Alright, hold on," Andrew replies, quickly turning different directions, and in no time, loses the tail. I wonder who it was? Probably some one in stupid K-Directorate. They come sniffing around here every few months, but never have been successful. Within no time, we arrive at the building and head to the back parking entrance.
We get out and quickly walk to the entrance of the building. We punch in our codes and the door opens quickly. We walk in briskly and everyone we pass is always taken back by our power in his or her presence. We head for the executive elevator and punch in the correct code again.
Once we're in the elevator, we share a quick kiss for the day and get out once it reaches the fifth floor. Andrew heads to his office to get ready for the meeting and I head to mine. Once I walked in, I saw my assistant rise to her chair.
"Hello, ma'am," she always greets me.
"Good morning, Sarah," I reply back to her every morning.
I walk behind my desk and Sarah follows me in to the second room.
"Ma'am, your mother is dropping by before the meeting," she says.
"Oh really?" I saw, perking up and continuing to go over some of the issues that were on my desk.
"Good morning, Sydney," my mother says waltzing into my office. This is always Sarah's cue to leave, and she always does.
I come out from behind my desk, and go over and give my mother a brief hug.
"Good morning, mom," I respond.
"Did you read the papers I gave you?" she asks.
"If by "the papers" you mean the one you so conveniently placed on the bottom of the pile?" I ask her.
"Good, you noticed," she says. "What'd you think?"
"I really don't know her at all, so have you captured her yet?" I ask my loving mother.
"You think we should?" she asks me, asking for my opinion was something she had taken a like to, almost to see if my actions were ones that would benefit the organization.
"Yes, I'll interrogate her and see if she's a double," I inform her. One of my best talents was interrogating and getting information out of people.
"Sounds great, oh, and your father is in town," she says, dropping the bombshell in a quick phrase.
"So that's who was tailing us," I say.
"He was tailing you?" Irina says, getting nervous.
"Don't worry, Andrew totally lost him," I inform her.
"Of course," she says and sighs a breath of relief.
"So, what are you going to do?" I ask her.
"I wasn't too sure yet," she says, walking around the room. "Should I capture him? Or wait to see if he does anything?"
"If he tries to contact me, I'll bring him in," I tell her.
"Fine, that's a first step, now, make sure to get Mr. Sark up to speed, okay honey?" she says. That was the one thing that bugged me, she refused to call Andrew by his first name. Maybe if we get married she will, but I doubt she will.
"Is everything ready for tonight?" I ask Irina.
"Of course, is your dress ready?" she replies in question.
"Oh, it is. You're going to love it."
"I can't wait, now we must run along, the meeting should be starting soon," she says, and we both walk out of my office and head to the conference room. I enter and I see that Andrew is already there in his seat. It is customary that my mother sits at the head of the table and I sit to her right and Andrew sits next to me.
I take my seat and pull out my briefing materials and the meeting begins as usual.
**JACK POV**
I keep driving around, hoping to see some building that might resemble the world headquarters for the most deadly international espionage organization. No such luck appeared on my side, so I headed back to my hotel.
When I walked into the lobby, I saw my contact there. She sat in a chair and I knew that Irina owned everything in this town. We couldn't talk here, so I wrote on a piece of paper to meet and the park in a half hour. As I walked passed her, I dropped the paper into her lap and she recognized it.
I checked in, and headed up to my room.
**SYDNEY POV**
As soon as we all dispersed from the meeting, Andrew followed me out and pulled me into his office. We leaned into a kiss and he pulled away a second.
"Let's have lunch in the park," Andrew says to me.
"What, a picnic?" I ask him.
"Exactly," he claims.
"Did you clear it with my mother?" I ask him.
"She said we could have the rest of the day off to get ready for the party," he informs me.
"Alright, I'll go swing by my office and get my things for the night, and you come pick me up, okay?" I ask and tell him.
"Perfect," he replies and I head out.
Hm. a lunch picnic in the park? Could it be he's proposing? One could only hope.
We arrived in the park soon after we left and Andrew pulled out a basket with food and such.
"Did we plan ahead?" I ask him.
"Somewhat," he says sheepishly.
I grin at him and we walk arm in arm to a lovely spot in the park.
**JACK POV**
I entered the park, and very much to my surprise, I saw Sydney and Sark there as well. I placed myself behind a tree in which I could see them very carefully. I pulled out a pen I had in my pocket that would pull their voices from a distance and took out a headphone so I could listen to their conversation. If I could get them on tape talking about the organization, then I could nab them and lock them up forever.
**SYDNEY POV**
We both had finished our lunch and were both relaxed. I was lying against Andrew and we were just admiring the beauty of the situation. Any passerby could never imagine who we really were. I was sitting motionless for a few minutes, just watching the flowers and trees sway.
"Sydney," he whispers into my ear.
"Yes, love," I reply back into his ear.
"Your beauty, your love, your intelligence, your wit, you make me complete. Waking every morning to your shining face makes my world so much more bright," he starts. This could be it.
"Sydney, I would be honored if you would take me as your husband, for forever, to share our wonderful lives with," he says, pulling out a beautiful diamond ring.
"Yes, of course," I tell him and we start kissing affectionately. We end up on the ground, lying together making out like a bunch of teenagers.
"I love you," I tell him.
**JACK POV**
I could hear his British voice come through my headphones ever so clearly, "Sydney, I would be honored if you would take me as your husband, for forever, to share our wonderful lives with."
He was proposing to her? Just my luck. Normally, if we were normal, he would have had to ask my permission to marry her. Probably asked Irina her permission and she probably praised him, figuring they would continue the organization and make it stronger than ever.
I had to stop them, I had to capture them. I wonder how Irina would feel if I were to capture her beautiful trophy assets. So, I took my gun and started towards them. It was now or never.
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