Found
Chapter Three
Lost
Will felt his eyes drooping, but didn't even seem to have any control over it. It was an involuntary action that was driving him crazy. He'd been scanning videos with Marshall for any sign of Sydney for the last six hours. He was exhausted and tired of being seated in front of the wide screen. He was contemplating a break to take a shower when Sydney's wiry form glided across the screen. Will immediately paused the tape. The missing Mr. Sark walked in front of her and she held onto his arm. She didn't seem to be in severe distress, but perhaps she didn't want to make a scene. It didn't really matter. He'd found her. "Jack! Come quick!" Marshall clamored to Will's side and they waited impatiently for Jack to come into the visual room. "I found her at Chong Ming Hotel. This was from last night. If we leave now, we'll still be able to catch her, hopefully." Will informed Jack when he had entered. "I need to make a quick stop before we go to the airport. Marshall, get three plane tickets. Do not tell anyone about the third ticket. And do not tell Mr. Vaughn where we went." "Yes, Sir." Marshall, shaking severely from happiness, started to dial the airport number. Will followed Jack, matching his fast-paced steps.
Sydney looked out the jeep window, the sun blaring down on her. Her hair was in a black ponytail and she wore green contacts. She almost looked Egyptian, which was fitting since they were in Cairo. Sark had dyed his hair a dark brown and his eyes were still blue. He looked quite handsome, though, secretly Sydney admitted she missed the blond curls. She studied Cairo, the beautiful city, where pyramids loomed on the horizon. Sand blew across the streets. She'd always liked Egypt for as long as she could remember. She always enjoyed her visits to the country, no matter what the mission. Sark pulled the jeep over in front of an inn. It was outside of the city on the outskirts of Cairo. She noticed a path that led to a row of warehouses and she wondered if maybe the Rambaldi device was inside. Sark took her hand. "Darling, we'll tour later. For now, let's go welcome our room." "Darling." Sark smiled, but his eyes clearly told her to go along with it. They had a cover. They had driven to the hotel and he had not once mentioned the cover. Sydney seethed inside. He had several hours of silence that he could have brought this topic up. "I absolutely agrhee, dahling." She placed her Southern drawl on. "I just love this countrhy, deah. I cannot help examining ever-y-thing!" Sark nodded to the door man, who was watching them cautiously. Sark knew for a fact that he was one of Sloane's spies. "Hello. I'm Thomas Sinclair. This is my girlfriend, Scarlett O'Hare." "Nice to meet ya, sih." Sydney added in to the receptionist. "Yes, Mistress. Your room is ready." "Thank you." He continued on in his clipped British accent. As soon as they stepped inside the elevator, Sydney burst into laughter. "Scarlett O'Hare? I never pictured you as a Gone with the Wind type." "With that blasted accent, you sounded like Scarlett O'Hara, so I improvised. It was all I could do not to say we just came from Tara." "Does that make you Rhett?" "I suppose so." The two fell silent for a moment, but considering the implications that had made. Scarlett had despised Rhett, and still they'd fallen in love and married. He told her seriously, "Sloane's spies always crawl all over this place. That's why I disguised us." Sydney snorted in disgust. "Two years and he's still a thorn in my side. Much like you are." Sark nearly let a laugh escape. "Well, with my plan, we'll be able to fix all of that." Sydney cocked her head, curiosity washing over me. "What are we going to do? When are you going to tell me exactly what this plan is?" Sark shook his head. "Not until we're completely alone." The bell dinged and the doors opened. Sark flicked his eyes to the camera that was hidden in the light fixture. "Thank you eveh so much for bringing me heah, Thomas." "Anything for you, Scarlett." Sark wondered how much truth was in that statement. He obviously was willing to go to the ends of the Earth to help her, even if she wasn't aware of it. He unlocked the door and they slipped inside.
Jack opened Irina's bedroom door. She had a phone up to her ear and she was speaking in Russian. Her eyes traveled to Jack and she allowed herself to send him a small smile. She'd become closer to Jack since Sydney's disappearance. It was almost like he'd forgiven her. Almost. Her face darkened considerably at the thought and then even more so when she saw an open-mouthed Will standing in the doorway. Irina thanked her contact and hung up the phone. She demanded quickly, "What is Mr. Tippin doing here, Jack?" Her lightly Russian accented voice lilted out. "We've found..." "Sydney. At the Chong Ming. Yes, Randall found her, too. I was going to tell you when you came home." "There is a plane that's waiting for us, Irina." "We must leave now. She was spotted with Mr. Sark." "We're aware of that." "I don't know if he will come to her aide or force her into her power." "What exactly does that mean, Laura?" He flinched the moment he uttered those syllables. He rarely called her Laura, sticking with Irina. Irina felt pangs of guilt fly over herself. She looked down at her shoes so no one would see her eyes shining with wetness. She grabbed her purse off the bed and walked out the door. Will, standing awkwardly and silent, followed her, Jack rounding out the back.
Jack was the first one inside the Chong Ming. He scanned the scenery for any sign of Sydney. He found none. No clue to Sark either. Irina walked to the front desk to ask the concierge for any information. "Is a Mr. Sark registered here?" The receptionist typed the name into the computer. He clicked the mouse a couple of times. "No, Missy-Sahib." "What about Mr. Andrews?" Irina asked, remembering Sark's fondness of combining his first name with an S. "Well, yesterday. Today, they checked out early morning." "Did they tell you were they were headed?" "The airport. Plane to catch." "Where was the plane headed?" "I do not know, Missy-Sahib." "Thank you." Irina walked over to Jack, putting a hand on his shoulder. "They're gone." "No!" Jack threw a vase down off the table in anger. "No! Sahib! No!" The receptionist ran from behind the desk. Jack threw several bills on the ground to pay for the damage before stomping out of the hotel in frustration. Irina threw Will a pitied glance before chasing after Jack. Will stayed back, deciding to ask to see Sark's room. "Where did Mr. Andrews stay?" "Please, Sahib, go. No more questions." The receptionist pleaded while picking up pieces of the vase. Will pulled him up, staring him in the eyes. "My friend has been missing for two years. We just got our first clue as to where she was. That man is her father and he's taken this harder than anything. Just let me see if I can find a hint of where she went." The man sighed before nodding slowly. "Room 47." Will smiled, shaking his hand. "Thank you." He slowly walked up the stairs to find room 47, not realizing the significance of that cursed number.
Will had searched the room from top to bottom. He'd ended up empty- handed. The maids had already cleaned the room, so all remnants of Sydney's stay had disappeared. Still, he searched dilligently and for once, it paid off. He found a crumpled slip of paper under the bed. Will slid it out and unfolded it. In slanted, precise hand writing it read:
Sloane l'hotel de Paris Egyptian Cat English Rose
Will felt relieved. A clue. The list were three hotels, seemingly connected to Sloane. Maybe Sark went to one of them. Or maybe Sloane owns them. Or maybe it'll help. He hurried outside to find Irina and Jack.
Will felt his eyes drooping, but didn't even seem to have any control over it. It was an involuntary action that was driving him crazy. He'd been scanning videos with Marshall for any sign of Sydney for the last six hours. He was exhausted and tired of being seated in front of the wide screen. He was contemplating a break to take a shower when Sydney's wiry form glided across the screen. Will immediately paused the tape. The missing Mr. Sark walked in front of her and she held onto his arm. She didn't seem to be in severe distress, but perhaps she didn't want to make a scene. It didn't really matter. He'd found her. "Jack! Come quick!" Marshall clamored to Will's side and they waited impatiently for Jack to come into the visual room. "I found her at Chong Ming Hotel. This was from last night. If we leave now, we'll still be able to catch her, hopefully." Will informed Jack when he had entered. "I need to make a quick stop before we go to the airport. Marshall, get three plane tickets. Do not tell anyone about the third ticket. And do not tell Mr. Vaughn where we went." "Yes, Sir." Marshall, shaking severely from happiness, started to dial the airport number. Will followed Jack, matching his fast-paced steps.
Sydney looked out the jeep window, the sun blaring down on her. Her hair was in a black ponytail and she wore green contacts. She almost looked Egyptian, which was fitting since they were in Cairo. Sark had dyed his hair a dark brown and his eyes were still blue. He looked quite handsome, though, secretly Sydney admitted she missed the blond curls. She studied Cairo, the beautiful city, where pyramids loomed on the horizon. Sand blew across the streets. She'd always liked Egypt for as long as she could remember. She always enjoyed her visits to the country, no matter what the mission. Sark pulled the jeep over in front of an inn. It was outside of the city on the outskirts of Cairo. She noticed a path that led to a row of warehouses and she wondered if maybe the Rambaldi device was inside. Sark took her hand. "Darling, we'll tour later. For now, let's go welcome our room." "Darling." Sark smiled, but his eyes clearly told her to go along with it. They had a cover. They had driven to the hotel and he had not once mentioned the cover. Sydney seethed inside. He had several hours of silence that he could have brought this topic up. "I absolutely agrhee, dahling." She placed her Southern drawl on. "I just love this countrhy, deah. I cannot help examining ever-y-thing!" Sark nodded to the door man, who was watching them cautiously. Sark knew for a fact that he was one of Sloane's spies. "Hello. I'm Thomas Sinclair. This is my girlfriend, Scarlett O'Hare." "Nice to meet ya, sih." Sydney added in to the receptionist. "Yes, Mistress. Your room is ready." "Thank you." He continued on in his clipped British accent. As soon as they stepped inside the elevator, Sydney burst into laughter. "Scarlett O'Hare? I never pictured you as a Gone with the Wind type." "With that blasted accent, you sounded like Scarlett O'Hara, so I improvised. It was all I could do not to say we just came from Tara." "Does that make you Rhett?" "I suppose so." The two fell silent for a moment, but considering the implications that had made. Scarlett had despised Rhett, and still they'd fallen in love and married. He told her seriously, "Sloane's spies always crawl all over this place. That's why I disguised us." Sydney snorted in disgust. "Two years and he's still a thorn in my side. Much like you are." Sark nearly let a laugh escape. "Well, with my plan, we'll be able to fix all of that." Sydney cocked her head, curiosity washing over me. "What are we going to do? When are you going to tell me exactly what this plan is?" Sark shook his head. "Not until we're completely alone." The bell dinged and the doors opened. Sark flicked his eyes to the camera that was hidden in the light fixture. "Thank you eveh so much for bringing me heah, Thomas." "Anything for you, Scarlett." Sark wondered how much truth was in that statement. He obviously was willing to go to the ends of the Earth to help her, even if she wasn't aware of it. He unlocked the door and they slipped inside.
Jack opened Irina's bedroom door. She had a phone up to her ear and she was speaking in Russian. Her eyes traveled to Jack and she allowed herself to send him a small smile. She'd become closer to Jack since Sydney's disappearance. It was almost like he'd forgiven her. Almost. Her face darkened considerably at the thought and then even more so when she saw an open-mouthed Will standing in the doorway. Irina thanked her contact and hung up the phone. She demanded quickly, "What is Mr. Tippin doing here, Jack?" Her lightly Russian accented voice lilted out. "We've found..." "Sydney. At the Chong Ming. Yes, Randall found her, too. I was going to tell you when you came home." "There is a plane that's waiting for us, Irina." "We must leave now. She was spotted with Mr. Sark." "We're aware of that." "I don't know if he will come to her aide or force her into her power." "What exactly does that mean, Laura?" He flinched the moment he uttered those syllables. He rarely called her Laura, sticking with Irina. Irina felt pangs of guilt fly over herself. She looked down at her shoes so no one would see her eyes shining with wetness. She grabbed her purse off the bed and walked out the door. Will, standing awkwardly and silent, followed her, Jack rounding out the back.
Jack was the first one inside the Chong Ming. He scanned the scenery for any sign of Sydney. He found none. No clue to Sark either. Irina walked to the front desk to ask the concierge for any information. "Is a Mr. Sark registered here?" The receptionist typed the name into the computer. He clicked the mouse a couple of times. "No, Missy-Sahib." "What about Mr. Andrews?" Irina asked, remembering Sark's fondness of combining his first name with an S. "Well, yesterday. Today, they checked out early morning." "Did they tell you were they were headed?" "The airport. Plane to catch." "Where was the plane headed?" "I do not know, Missy-Sahib." "Thank you." Irina walked over to Jack, putting a hand on his shoulder. "They're gone." "No!" Jack threw a vase down off the table in anger. "No! Sahib! No!" The receptionist ran from behind the desk. Jack threw several bills on the ground to pay for the damage before stomping out of the hotel in frustration. Irina threw Will a pitied glance before chasing after Jack. Will stayed back, deciding to ask to see Sark's room. "Where did Mr. Andrews stay?" "Please, Sahib, go. No more questions." The receptionist pleaded while picking up pieces of the vase. Will pulled him up, staring him in the eyes. "My friend has been missing for two years. We just got our first clue as to where she was. That man is her father and he's taken this harder than anything. Just let me see if I can find a hint of where she went." The man sighed before nodding slowly. "Room 47." Will smiled, shaking his hand. "Thank you." He slowly walked up the stairs to find room 47, not realizing the significance of that cursed number.
Will had searched the room from top to bottom. He'd ended up empty- handed. The maids had already cleaned the room, so all remnants of Sydney's stay had disappeared. Still, he searched dilligently and for once, it paid off. He found a crumpled slip of paper under the bed. Will slid it out and unfolded it. In slanted, precise hand writing it read:
Sloane l'hotel de Paris Egyptian Cat English Rose
Will felt relieved. A clue. The list were three hotels, seemingly connected to Sloane. Maybe Sark went to one of them. Or maybe Sloane owns them. Or maybe it'll help. He hurried outside to find Irina and Jack.