It took only 10 minutes for Sydney and Vaughn to reach her apartment from headquaters, thanks to Vaughn's erratic driving. Once there, they rushed to her apartment, almost running down a little kid who had jumped into their path from out of nowhere. Avoiding the kid, they reached the door in record time. Sydney slowly opened the door and stepped inside, Vaughn close behind her. The scene that lay before their eyes made Sydney gasp in shock, and Vaughn turn away for a moment.
Just inside the doorway, covered in blood and riddled with stab wounds, was one of Sydney's closest friends. Sydney fell to the ground next to Francie in complete shock as she stared at the numerous 3-pronged stab wounds that scarred her body. The offending weapon, a metal spork, lay mere inches from her.
Vaughn glanced around the room, looking for signs of the murderer. He noticed Will sitting in a dark corner across the room, arms wrapped around his knees as he slowly rocked back and forth, staring blankly into the distance. As Vaughn approached Will, he heard him mumbling to himself, so quietly that it was barely audible. Moving in a bit closer, Vaughn managed to hear what Will was saying, almost chanting, to himself.
"Not real… not real…"
Vaughn turned to Sydney, who was still kneeling near Francie. "Syd?" He asked. Sydney looked up as she wiped tears from her eyes.
"How's Will?" She asked, voice cracking slightly as she rose to join them. Vaughn shook his head.
"He's muttering about something not being real." Vaughn frowned, scratching his head. Sydney turned to Will and lightly set her hand on his arm. He flinched slightly from her touch, otherwise, he continued to stare blankly at the far wall.
"Will, what happened?" Sydney asked softly, trying to mask her overwhelming sorrow. After several moments of silence, Will's eyes refocused, however he continued to stare at the far wall.
"Not the real one…" Will said softy.
"What's not real?" Sydney inquired, confused. There was a long silence as Sydney and Vaughn, filled with tension, waited for Will's reply. When the silence was almost unbearable, Will spoke again.
"Not… real… Francie…"
Sydney and Vaughn glanced at each other, not knowing what to think about that statement. Sydney shook her head and turned back to Will. "How can Francie not be real?"
Will slowly turned to face Sydney, his eyes red and swollen, and his cheeks stained with tears. "She wasn't the real Francie. She was someone else… who looked like Francie…" he answered, a multitude of contrasting emotions cracking his voice as they flashed across his face. "She said… she said that I was a fool… for believing she was the real one.." Will stated, obviously predicting their next question, or, perhaps, merely needing to talk about the incident for his health, or, more likely, his sanity.
Vaughn and Sydney glanced at each other again, this time very concerned.
"How could she not be the real…" Sydney started.
"Project Helix," Vaughn interruped, as the realization of the truth struck him. Sydney became very quiet as considered the implications of this statement, and, as she did so, Vaughn turned back to Will.
"Will, did she say any other names? Any at all?" He questioned. Will continued to rock back and forth as he stared at Sydney.
"Sloane…"