CIA Los Angeles Archives

          "You go first."

          "Um… no."

          "All right, fine."

          "Fine."

          "Okay." I sighed, resting my hands on my hips in the way I used to do every time I'd be stuck standing around doing nothing during another exceptionally long security briefing. "I work for the Counter Terrorist Unit. It's a sub-section of the CIA. I'm a civilian technology and research specialist, an advisor to the agent in charge." Beat. "Your turn."

          "I … I'm an entry-level operations recruit for the Agency. Basically, I just do little errand runs, look for information."

          "Right. How long?"

          "Um … since about senior year of high school."

          "I'm a year ahead of you then."

          "They recruited you the same year we were in class together?"

          I nodded. "Not the point though. I … I have some work to do, and…"

          "I heard screaming," Lex piped up helpfully as he walked over and laid more files on the table in front of me. I rolled my eyes. "It wasn't screaming," I deadpanned. My co-worker looked at the both of us, then asked me what was going on. I tried to be as expedient and simple as I possibly could. "Um, Lex, this is Leticia, a friend of mine. Apparently we both work for the CIA. Leticia, this is Agent Lex Richards, we work together."

          Introductions came and went. While they were talking I slipped away back to the stacks and rubbed my eyes with my palms. This was a little crazy. I could understand why I didn't know, given that CTU was relatively small compared to the rest of the Agency, but not knowing was still kind of irritating. Thankfully for me, before I could go really crazy, my cell phone buzzed.

          "Go ahead."

          "Brittany, it's Jack."

          "What…"

          "Grab whatever you've got and get back here. Change of plans."

          "What?"

          "Remember that file in your locker? Chances are you're going to need it." Jack exhaled. "Listen, I trust you. You'll be fine. Just get here."

          "Right." I clapped my phone shut, grabbed the final files, and went running down the aisle. Stopping to make the turn, I came up a little fast and banged my forehead on the bookcase. I swore and kept going over to where Leticia and Lex were still having a conversation and snapped my fingers.

          Lex walked over to me. "You snapped your fingers."

          "Yes."

          "Why?"

          "To get you to come to me quickly." I sighed. "Jack wants us back now. Get the files and let's go."

          He nodded. "What about your friend?"

          I looked over with him. "What can I do?"

          Lex just sighed. "Listen, I'll take this stuff out to the car."

          Reading what he didn't say, I nodded and waited until he grabbed the box of files and walked out of the archives. Taking several deep breaths, I wandered back over to the table.

          "I need to go."

          "Okay."

          "I guess they're sending me to London."

          Now she smirked. "You always wanted to go back."

          "I know."

          "You wouldn't shut up about…"

          "I know." I couldn't hold back a smirk. "Listen, I'll see you in class … or God knows where."

          "Yeah."

          "Stay safe," I told her before getting up and walking away. I did have a job to do.

Counter Terrorist Unit Los Angeles

          Jack Bauer was having another one of 'those' days. I mean, obviously not as bad as the last one, but you could totally tell in his eyes that he was starting to get irritated. I would if I were him. I mean, come on, after all that man has been through … but he's like Superman. You just can't keep him down.

          I spotted him on the floor immediately and the two of us began striding over to meet each other. I told Lex to make sure my identification package, under my given alias of Siobhan Natalie Lawrence, was still up to date and ready to go, then took a deep breath and hoped Jack wasn't going to tell me that I got to tango with Nina Myers. I'd known her when she was still one of us, and I was no match for her.

          "Spill."

          "You're going to England after all." He cut me off from any further comment. "No, she's not there. But according to Alberta Green, Ryan was getting ready to do some business with the U.K.'s Counterterrorism Center. She knows only part of it was in the clear, so it needs to be checked out. In person. Very carefully. If this is what got him killed, and it involves Nina…"

          "Trouble." I nodded. "Tell me you're sending me with a field team, Jack…" I hated saying this, but I did anyway. "I'm only seventeen, for Christ's sake."

          "I know. And yes. Put a team together. Take a field op and take Lex with you. The three of you are on the next flight to London." He handed me the tickets, and I started toward my locker, then turned around.

          "Jack?"

          "Yeah."

          "What about other Agency operatives?"

          "What do you mean?"

          "Pulling people from the main Agency. How big can my team be?"

          "I don't want any more than five people. You'll get noticed. You're supposed to be a PV review agent, not a caravan." He blinked at me. "Why? Did you have someone in mind?"

          "I know someone who's good at recon. Her name is Leticia Gallegos, she works for the main Agency, but she'll need a handler, that's why I asked. Phone up and see if she's available, but I think she is."

          "I'll do that." He nodded. "How do you know her?"

          "We go to college together," I explained as I walked off, leaving him to stare after me.

Central Intelligence Agency Los Angeles

          Leticia was trying really hard to glare at Vaughn and Weiss but she wasn't really good at it. I mean, how do you really glare at CIA agents and actually intimidate them? "You should have told me she works for us!"

          "We didn't know!" Vaughn protested. "CTU basically operates on its own, we've only heard of it."

          "Still … she's my friend!"

          "We know that, and we're sorry." He sighed. "Now, the key files?"

          "I've got basic background on them, not much more. Like you said, they're DOD, not CIA."

          The phone on the table rang and Vaughn picked it up. "Agent Vaughn. Yeah, she's here. What? When? Who? Right." Just like that, he hung up, and he just stood there for a moment.

          "What?" Weiss said.

          "That was Jack Bauer, head of CTU. Apparently Leticia's friend," he said this looking at her, "is on her way to London on an assignment, needs a recon specialist, and requested her." He paused. "They're leaving to get ready in ten minutes and they want us to release her."

          "What about the key files?"

          "That's what I said. Those are priority."

          "I can't do much more with them anyway," Leticia protested. "I did what I could do. If she needs me, why would you leave me here with paperwork?"

          Vaughn and Weiss considered this.

          Finally, Vaughn spoke. "Looks like you're going to London."

          "All right." She cracked a smile.

          "Is that safe?" Weiss interjected.

          Vaughn nodded. "Yeah, because so are you."

Counter Terrorist Unit Los Angeles

          I threw my travel bag into the trunk with all the other luggage. Each member of my team was carrying one bag, and that made the trunk almost full. With that done I opened the passenger side rear door. If I'd had it my way I would've taken Jack, but for obvious reasons you can't do that, so Tony was buckling his seat belt. "Anything else?" I said. I knew I was not experienced, so he was the unofficial field leader and I was always asking him questions.

          He shook his head. "Not unless you can see the future."

          "Right." I sounded unconvinced. "Lex?"

          "Good to go," my semi-sort of partner replied from the driver's seat. "Just waiting on them."

          "Uh-huh." I watched the parking lot until I spotted the familiar red Neon. "Wait, here they come."

          I moved around the car as she pulled into a space, ready to accept my friend and my new mission at the same time.

*Of all the things I've believed in
I just want to get it over with
Tears form behind my eyes
But I do not cry
Counting the days that pass me by*

          She stepped out of her car and locked it. With her was a man who I presumed was her handler. I didn't recognize him, and I realized I hadn't bothered to look up her record and see who was administering her.

We didn't say much. There wasn't really time.

I just took their luggage from them and walked with her to the car, where I held open the back seat for the both of them.

I didn't even bother with introductions, lost in my 'show mode.' This was for real. And it was kind of creepy. You think all those spy shows are over the top, and they are, but still, here I was on my first mission, if you could call it that.

*I've been searching deep down in my soul
Words that I'm hearing are starting to get old
It feels like I'm starting all over again
The last three years were just pretend
And I said*

          I put everybody's luggage in the trunk, closed it, circled round and climbed in. Lex knowingly started the car as soon as I shut the door, leaving me to buckle my seat belt.

          Ironically, Leticia's words rang in my ears:

          "Well, you did always want to go back."

*Goodbye to you
Goodbye to everything I thought I knew
You were the one I loved
The one thing that I tried to hold on to*

          "Oh, God, it's going to rain, isn't it?" I blurted.

          Tony nodded. "You know it does that in London."

          I rolled my eyes. "Great. All this and now I'm going to be cold…"

          "Are you complaining?"

          "I don't know. Any chance we can see Jack Davenport?"

          Leticia and I shared a little smile.