Chapter Twelve: Sarah

"I can't believe I agreed to this." Said Sydney sighing as she spotted another man giving Will a thumbs up. Will and Sydney had just finished checking into the hotel where Will's 11th year high school reunion was being held. They had spent a half and hour trying to sort out the room reservations.

"Hey you promised in college that we would be each other's dates to our high school reunion if we were both single and I'm holding you to it." Said Will smiling and waving to someone behind her.

"But you didn't have to go to mine!" Argued Sydney.

"Hey, I would have gone with you but you missed it and that's no one's fault but your own." Will said pulling her along.

"Hey, I was in Calcutta stealing a nuclear bomb." She hissed.

Will stopped and pushed the UP elevator button. "Will you stop complaining? Just pretend that you're on a mission. I'm your partner and we're going to seek and destroy the evil Roy Conrad, a man who made my high school years a living hell. Then we're going to find the beautiful Natalie Green the love of my life, ok my fantasy life. Now smile and look pretty!"

Sydney plastered a made by Matel smile on her face and entered the elevator. As the elevators closed she did a double check of man in a leather jacket removing his sunglasses. Sark! It couldn't be thought Sydney.

"What is it?" Asked Will noticing the shock on Sydney's face.

"I thought I saw someone I knew."

"Hey, I read this study about how everyone in the world can be linked together by six people. So if that person wasn't the person you know, he probably knew him. Six people removed of course though."

"You mean like the movie?"

"What movie?"

"Six Degrees of Separation, it had Will Smith in it."

"What? What does a Will Smith movie have anything to do with.um Sydney?" Will stopped as he realized that Sydney wasn't listening to him. She was staring at the man who had just entered the elevator.

Vaughn and Sydney stared at each other both surprised to see each other there.

"Hi, I'm Will." When neither spoke, Will introduced himself to Vaughn holding out his hand.

"Will Tippin?" Vaughn looked at him in surprise and shook his hand.

"How did you know my last name?" Will asked suspiciously momentarily forgetting that his face had been plastered on the news only a few weeks ago.

"Oh, Will, this is Michael Vaughn, my handler at the CIA. Michael, this is as you already know my friend Will." Sydney introduced.

Will smiled as the confusion was cleared up. "Oh, you're Vaughn. I thought you'd be older."

Vaughn smiled saying, "It's great to meet finally meet you, I've heard so much about you." The elevator pinged and they all got off. They walked down the hall together not knowing what to say.

"This is our room," said Will breaking the tension. He opened the door and went in.

"Let me help you with that." Vaughn took Sydney's bag and entered the room hoping that his suspicion about the relationship between the two of them was unfounded. She almost bumped into him as he stopped abruptly. "There's only one bed."

"What?!!" Exclaimed Sydney peering around Vaughn.

Vaughn moved forward and set down the bag at the foot of the bed. "Oh, I didn't know that you were, um, I'm going to go."

"No wait, this isn't what it looks like." Said Sydney trying to explain the situation. She followed him out into the hallway.

"You don't owe me any explanations." He said unable to look at her.

"No I don't, but I want to."

"Look, Sydney, it's none of my business and I really don't want to hear it." He wasn't sure why he was angry. It wasn't as if he and Sydney had a relationship or ever could. He should be happy for her, but he wasn't. He felt his stomach knot with jealousy. He didn't want to hear how happy she was with Will.

"Oh!" Sydney drew back, hurt. She masked her feelings quickly and become professional. "What are you doing here Vaughn? Does your presence here have anything to do with Sark?"

"Sark? No, why would you think that?" Vaughn asked alarmed.

"I thought I saw him in the lobby. Why are you here?" She changed the subject abruptly not wanting to talk about Sark.

"It's not a good idea to discuss this out here, maybe I can meet you later?"

"Why don't you just come in here and talk now? She's going to be busy later." Will interrupted from the doorway.

They all entered the room and sat down, Sydney and Vaughn at a small table and Will on the bed. Sydney pulled out a small device and fiddled with a knob and put it on the table. Vaughn was looking at Will pointedly, asking him to leave.

"Come on man, I know I'm not CIA but I can help. What's that?" Will asked pointing to the device on the table.

"It's a little something that makes sure that anything we say can't be heard outside of this room or recorded. Continue." She said looking at Vaughn.

Vaughn jerks his head toward Will.

"Is it classified?"

"No."

"Then he stays."

"I'm here because a couple days ago, Weiss's cousin, Violet Mathews e- mailed him her wedding photos that had been taken 8 years ago."

"How's he doing?"

"He still in a lot of pain and he can't talk. He gets frustrated but he's going to be ok."

Sydney moved her hand to squeeze Vaughn's hand in comfort but she against it.

"So what does this Weiss guy and wedding pictures have to do with you being here?" Asked Will.

Vaughn pulls out a photo and hands them to Sydney. She looks at it and gasps.

Will gets up from the bed and looks over Sydney's shoulder at the picture. The picture contained the bride and groom and the wedding party. The women next to the bride was holding a baby and laughing up at a man behind her.

"That's you!" Exclaimed Will leaning closer to the photo.

"Is the photo doctored? It's can't be me, I would remember being at a wedding."

"No, it's not you. The women's name was Sarah Radcliff-King."

"Was?"

"She was killed two months after that picture was taken. I'm here to get more information about her since all records of her and her family have disappeared, birth certificate, D.M.V., school, it's like she never existed except in that photo. I'm here to meet Violet and get more information about Sarah. Violet is here for her 9th year reunion." He said the last sentence confused since he'd never heard of a 9th year reunion.

"The school wasn't that big so they do reunions for 4 classes at a time." Explained Sydney reading Vaughn's confusion.

"We're here for my 11th year reunion." Said Will "I vaguely remember Violet, she was a reporter for the school newspaper."

"Good then you can help me get information. Violet wasn't willing to tell me much but she was willing to meet me for 15 minutes. Maybe she'll talk to you since she knows you."