Chapter 2
Vaughn and Jack just stood there staring at the screen. Jack suddenly broke the silence. "I'll get Kendall and get a team out there immediately," Jack said with authority, but Vaughn could tell he was shaking.
Vaughn turned to Agent Kenmore, "Rerun the tape and see if you can find any important characteristics of the shooter," Vaughn said mechanically. He turned away so he wouldn't see it all over again. He couldn't handle it. She has to be okay, he thought. She just has to be.
SWEET WATER
The investigation team consisted of Vaughn, Kendall, Eric Weiss, and Jack Bristow. Kendall had insisted that they stay small in order to keep from being noticed. They arrived in Nevada within two hours.
"Jack, you will go to the police station to inquire about Agent Bristow through your contact," Kendall said. Weiss, you'll go to Sweet Water hospital and inquire about the admission of a recent shooting victim. Vaughn, you'll come with me to investigate the crime scene."
"But Sir," Vaughn protested. "Can't I go with Weiss?"
"No," Kendall said, shaking his head forcefully. "Right now your emotional state is not in consideration of logic. We need to keep a low profile so we need an uninvolved agent to go in. Now lets go." Kendall had rented three cars for them to use. Jack took the first one, Weiss the second one, and Vaughn and Kendall the last one.
Vaughn and Kendall proceeded to Demark Avenue, in silence. When they arrived. The scene had been marked off, but most of the evidence had been removed. However, as Vaughn walked by, he could several blood spots on the pavement. Sydney's blood, he thought. He walked towards the trashcan and looked inside. Surprisingly, the manila envelope was still there. He reached in and pulled it out.
He lifted the metal tabs that kept the envelope closed on the back, and took out the contents. It contained the documents that Sydney had been sent to retrieve. Her counter mission had been to make copies of the documents for the CIA and put them in the trashcan in an unmarked manila envelope. He handed the documents to Kendall.
"She was here," he said quietly. Kendall's cell phone rang.
"Kendall," he answered.
"I've made inquiries with my contact," Jack Bristow said. "He confirms what the tape showed us. Two chest wounds in a Caucasian female with brown hair. They have yet to identify her. They said," Jack Bristow stopped, having a hard time getting out the words. "They said she died on contact with the second bullet."
Kendall nodded grimly. "Go to the hospital, we'll rendez-vous there."
"Who was it? What did he say?" Vaughn asked after Kendall had hung up.
"It was Jack. We've got an unconfirmed report that the girl died. We still don't know if it's Bristow." Vaughn nodded and sat back in his seat. Just the idea that it might be Sydney was driving him crazy.
Kendall glanced over at him. "You got to get your head in the game, kid. You can't be wallowing in your own sea of self-pity. We don't know if it's Bristow, and until we do, you're to think straight and optimistically." Kendall was glad to see Vaughn sit slightly straighter, but he couldn't help thinking that it might not be a good idea to get the boy's hopes up.
They arrived at the hospital well within twenty minutes, but Jack had still beat them. By the time they had parked and entered the reception area, Jack had already been well informed in the information that Weiss had obtained from the doctors.
Upon Vaughn's question of updated news Jack replied, "She didn't make it. We've requested to view the body. The coroner will be with us in a few minutes." As if on cue, a man of about forty walked up to them.
"Mr. Bristow?" The man inquired, while looking at the somewhat large group interested in this one particular body.
"They're with me," Jack said agitated. Vaughn could tell from his face that the tension was getting to him. He had seen the tape, he had heard the audio, and now he had to see the body to see if all of this was real.
"Of course. Follow me." The man, whose nametag read Dr. Ryan, led them to the nearest elevator. The wait was short but for at least two members of the group, time ticked by agonizingly slow.
The elevator took them deep down into the depths of the hospital. The doors opened into a stark white hallway. It was completely sterile, and devoid of all color. Devoid of all life. To call the room a crypt was quite adequate.
Slowly the group walked forward down the hallway, until Dr. Ryan stopped in front of a set of automatic doors. He bent down and slid his key guard into the slot and they entered the room.
This room was white, like the hallways, but on either side of the walls were long metal cabinets. They resembled metal filing cabinets, and each one had a number. There were a few metal tables laid out but all were empty, except for one. One that was covered with a white sheet, that undoubtedly covered a body. They approached the table.
They filed around the table. Jack, Vaughn, Weiss, and Kendall remained on one side with the coroner on the other. The coroner looked at the group briefly before reaching for the top of the sheet. He pulled it back slowly, letting the crease of the sheet rest on her pale neckline.
"Oh my God," Vaughn exclaimed. He wanted to turn away, but he couldn't. Her limp brown hair fell around her shoulders. Her eyes, most likely brown, were closed. Her normally peach face was ashen. Her lips were no longer a rosy natural red, but a lighter shade of their once vibrant color. It was indeed Sydney Bristow.