Three Days
They watched the tape again:
"Agent Bristow, please detail the events as you remember them."
Sammy, obviously emotional, responds, "Vaughn turned onto Sunland Avenue, then when I asked why, he pulled out his sidearm and pointed it at my head. He told me to follow his instructions and I wouldn't get hurt. When he stopped the car, there was a grey van and two armed men. One opened my door and pulled me out, took the key and the other released Sark. They loaded him into the van. Vaughn shot me before he got into the van. He just left me there... bleeding. I don't understand... Vaughn wouldn't..."
"Agent Bristow, your comms were working and then switched off... at the same time we lost the car's tracking signal. Did you notice a jamming device that Agent Vaughn may have used?"
"No... One hand held the steering wheel and his other hand held the gun pointed at my head. Agent Vaughn could not have activated a jamming device... maybe someone in controls is working with him..."
"Interesting. Is there anything else you would like to report?"
"No... I just... I don't understand why Vaughn would do this... would shoot me... I don't understand..."
"Agent Bristow, we will report back our findings. Thank you."
Jack got up and shut off the tape. "Nothing... there's nothing here!"
Will Tippen rose from his seat. "Wait Jack." He switched the tape back on.
"I'm not going to watch this again!"
"No Jack, just watch... the rest."
The tape showed the agents leaving the hospital room. The patient's demeanor instantly changed. An overwrought, emotional visage became calm and relaxed. The group watched as Sammy lay back onto the pillow. Her anxious expression automatically removed, leaving a slight smile across her lips.
Will paused the tape. "That..." Will pointed to the screen for effect. "...is not the Sydney Bristow I know. Sydney Bristow would not be lying back in the hospital, relaxing after being shot. She has led missions with worse injuries than this one. Sydney Bristow has a drive that would have gotten her out of that bed long before this. She would want to lead the investigation to recover Sark and find Sloan and Vaughn. She also would not blame others at CIA without solid proof."
"OK, what else do we have?"
Weiss spoke up. "The bullet went right through her upper thigh, not affecting any muscle. She was shot at point blank range and had already fallen when she was shot. The lab CSI reported the bullet was embedded into the pavement and the direction of the bullet was practically straight down. This means someone stood over her and shot into her leg without her moving. She either allowed this attack or was somehow incapacitated prior to the shot. This goes against her story."
"So, what do we do? How do we use this... woman..." Jack looked at the screen and the visage of his daughter. "...to our advantage?"
Marshall, who had previously been uncharacteristically quiet, spoke up. "We need to put a microphone on her."
"How can we wire her, without her knowledge?"
Everyone looked at Marshall. "Well... I have a small wireless transmitter that can be used, but we need to place it somewhere on her. Her clothing isn't a good place, she could easily change clothes... um... not that I think about that... but...the microphone needs to be somewhere that she takes with her... everywhere."
Will spoke up. "How
about her holster?"
Jack retorted. "Sydney
never wears a holster."
"Jack, this is not Sydney... this woman has worn a side arm holster every day for at least the last three weeks."
The room was silent until Marshall spoke again. "So... ah... we are saying this is not Sydney Bristow? Because, I would not want to bug a fellow agent and a friend... but then... she is... whoever she is... is working with Sloan and against us... right?" Jack nodded. "Well then... do we really want her to have a gun?"
"No Marshall, but if we refuse her a sidearm, she will suspect we know and she will disappear."
"But we have access to her gun now?"
"Yes, the hospital gave it to me when she was admitted. I will give it back to her when she is released."
"OK... we exchange her bullets with blanks and I will put the transmitter into her holster."
Jack took over the meeting. "OK Marshall, do that. I will give you her sidearm. Between the four of us, we will need to monitor her communications until we know something. Agreed?" Everyone nodded. Jack ejected the tape and left the meeting room. Everyone followed.
Jack entered her room. His daughter was lying with her head resting comfortably on her pillow. Her eyes were closed and she looked serene. She opened her eyes when she heard him stirring.
"Dad."
"How are you feeling Sydney?"
"OK, my leg hurts, but I'm fine. I need to get out of here, Dad. I need to get back to work."
"Well you are in luck. The doctor said you could go home, as long as you don't start work until Monday."
"Dad... I'm ready now. I need to get back to work... my leg is fine."
"Sydney, I am not a doctor. I have to defer to their..." Sydney gave Jack Bristow a look. "Syd... let's get you out of here first. Your clothes and sidearm are here, the nurse gave me this bag when you were brought into the hospital. I'll let you dress and come back to take you home in about ten minutes."
"Thanks Dad."
Jack Bristow left the room, opened his cell phone and dialed. "How is the transmission? Great... I'll be there after I drop her off... OK." He hung up.
They rode together, away from the hospital. "Thanks Dad, for getting me out of there."
"Sydney... I'm so sorry you were hurt... I don't know what we missed..."
"Dad, if I had to place odds, Vaughn would have been the last agent I would have guessed. He never gave us any clues that he was in contact with Sloan."
Jack watched her close her eyes and laid her head back. A tear formed in the corner of her eye. 'She had a good act. Too bad Sloan didn't count on her friends, those who know Sydney and her habits. Maybe he thought after two years she wouldn't be surrounded by so many old friends. He always underestimated Sydney's social entanglements.'
"Dad? Has anyone spoken to Meelon?"
"She has been told that the mission was extended. But not..."
"You don't want me to tell her! Do you?"
"No Sydney. I will tell her. I brought Vaughn back to CIA. There was just a minimal background check. I never thought Vaughn would work with Sloan. This is my doing, I will talk to Meelon. We will have to take her to a safe house; we wouldn't want Sloan and Vaughn recruiting her too."
Silence surrounded them. Sammy allowed her mind to wander. She had to meet with Meelon before Jack took her... They made a good start with Vaughn. Maybe she could start on her second objective. "Dad, what happened to our comms? On the mission?"
"Comms were interrupted; I guess I assumed Vaughn had used a jamming device."
"Vaughn had one hand on the steering wheel and another holding a gun to my head. I didn't see any blocking device."
"Our search didn't find anything in the vehicle or the general area."
Sammy inwardly smiled; glad she had given the blocking device to Meelon before she left the scene. "Dad, is it possible someone in comms was working with Vaughn?"
"We will have to investigate that Syd. I hate to think we have more than one double implanted in the CIA."
Sammy didn't say anything, but basked in the doubt she had planted.
Jack parked in the CIA garage. "Syd, are you sure you will be OK to drive home? You can always stay with me."
"Dad, I will be OK. I will rest today and come back tomorrow."
"The doctor said to take the weekend off. Sydney, I don't want to see you until Monday..." At her non-verbal protest Jack gave her an 'I'm serious' face.
"OK Dad. See you on Monday."
She got into her car and drove out of the garage. Jack walked to comms.
Sammy moved her car out of the parking garage and away from the watchful eye of Jack Bristow. 'He scares me. He takes everything I say as being truthful. I know he is a better agent than that, but I guess he trusts his daughter.' Sammy parked the car and hid in the shadows of the medical building and waited. It was 5:23 pm, past Meelon's quitting time; she should be exiting the building soon.
Sammy waited and followed Meelon to her vehicle once she exited the building. Sammy opened the door and slid into the passenger seat. "You're lucky you didn't hit bone or muscle. I could have been hurt."
"I'm a better shot than you obviously believe. You were lying there not moving, it wasn't difficult. Tell me, what's going on?"
"I have only had communication with Jack Bristow, but they believe Vaughn is the mole. Then, since our most recent conversation, I have introduced suspicion of the comm group. I will know tomorrow the investigation plans."
"Good, I will inform Sloan. You better go before we are seen together. Keep me updated as soon as you receive further information." Sammy slipped out of Meelon's vehicle and returns to her own. Both women leave the CIA complex.
Jack entered the communications office. Will Tippen, Marshal and Weiss were grouped around a speaker. "She drove out of the parking deck, but did not leave the base. Where did she go?" Jack asked.
"She met her contact... in medical." Will said. "Jack... she met Meelon."
Jack's countenance was visibly affected. "Are you sure?"
Marshall rewound the transcriber and hit the play back, "...I will inform Sloan, you better go before we are seen together..." Jack fumed.
"Weiss, get Dixon. We will pick up Meelon. Tippen, you stay with Sydney. When we get information from Meelon, I will call her in. We need to get Sydney and Vaughn together in order to get Sydney back, but first we need to find out where Sloan is keeping him."
Will looked up, "Jack, watch out for Meelon. She can hypnotize you with a look. Don't look into her eyes."
"That's how she gets her way all the time. But I have my own methods of extracting information. Between the three of us, we will keep our eyes away from hers."
Meelon hit send and the email exited her computer into the ethernet. "There, Sloan will definitely enjoy receiving this information." She shut down the computer and heard the door bell ring. Peeking out through the bay window curtains, she recognized Jack Bristow, Eric Weiss and Marcus Dixon. "Here to offer support to the soon to be grieving widow." Meelon said to herself. She went to open the door.
"Yes... may I help you?"
"Mrs. Vaughn, I am agent Jack Bristow..." The three at the door showed their badges. "We need to talk to you, could we come into your house?"
"Of course" Meelon held the door open for them. "Is there something wrong? Is Michael OK?"
Meelon looked directly into Jack's eyes. "Ma'am... I..." Jack froze into place. 'Fight her, Jack.'
Dixon stepped to the front, knocking Jack to the side. He placed his hand on Meelon's shoulder and twisted her around and pushed her against the wall. "Ma'am, you are being taken into custody of the CIA for treason against the US and for the kidnapping of Agent Michael Vaughn. You will come with us quietly, or you will be quieted physically."
Jack quickly recovered from his fugue. He held the door open as Dixon led Meelon to the car.
Will opened the door and saw her on the couch. "Sydney, great to see you at home." Will had to remind himself to keep his voice and expressions calm. "How are you feeling?"
"A bit achy. I need to get back in the game. What's going on Will?"
"Ah... I was warned about you. Your dad told me to tell you that they are following some leads and he will call you if something breaks. But in the mean time, I have movies and a pizza."
"Will, thanks. This will really help my confinement."
Will smiled and put a tape in the VCA and passed out the pizza.
Jack was putting away his tools as Dixon entered the room. "That was easier than I thought."
"Yeah. I think she hasn't had much interrogation training. She relied mostly on her hypnosis skill up to now, but take that away..."
Dixon removed the blindfold from their sleeping prisoner. "What's next?"
"Get a team together. We will break into two teams. One will go after Sloan and another after Vaughn. Sydney will be on my team... you have thirty minutes to get the teams into prep. I'll bring Sydney in an hour later. We will have to explain this to the agents. They will want to know why they are being prepped twice, and they will have to know to ignore the second accounting that we give for Sydney's sake."
"OK Jack... you know... I didn't ever think I would have to go back."
"Yes, you would think that the US government would screen their potential buyers better. But... it seems Sloan is back... at Credit Dauphine."
A/N: Well, we are coming to the end quite shortly. I have two more episodes in my mind as of yet. I hope you are enjoying this and are not turned off by the enormity of this story. I hope to finish this before the season premiere of Alias on September 28th. That way the totally better writing of the professionals will not alter your opinion of me. Thanks for all the great suggestions and feedback.
Maxie.