Sydney and Francie sighed. They had just finished going through Will's house. They'd left things in piles to be packed up later on. Francie glanced at Sydney, she seemed to be distracted.
"You ok?" she asked. Sydney nodded and flashed a smile, which Francie saw straight through, "You're not ok. Syd, I know this is hard," Francie began. Sydney looked at her friend. She didn't know how hard. "In time it'll get easier, not that I'm trying to say we should forget him or anything," Francie knew she was getting nowhere. She looked at Sydney again, this time closer. "I know what's going on!" Francie exclaimed. Sydney snapped her head up.
"You do?" Sydney questioned. Francie nodded confidently.
"You're thinking about Danny," Francie saw the look in Sydney's eyes. "Aren't you?" she asked, less confident.
"I am now," Sydney muttered. Francie sheepishly apologised, which Sydney dismissed, "Don't worry. It's just…I've got a lot on my mind," Sydney told her friend. Francie looked around.
"Do you want another Slush-O?" she asked. Sydney smiled broadly.
"Why? Did you like it?" Sydney asked. Francie nodded violently.
"I love them. Why didn't you tell me about them earlier?"
"I never really tried them…Vau- a friend introduced them to me," Sydney hoped she didn't let anything noticeably slip. Luckily, Francie didn't catch it.
"Well, tell your friend that they've got good taste,"
"I will," Sydney said, finishing off the very last drop of her Slush-O. Just then Sydney's pager rang. She looked at the message '911'. She cursed Sloane.
"What?" Francie asked. Sydney looked at her friend as she got up.
"I've got to go to work," Sydney said apologetically. Francie groaned.
"I thought Sloane gave you time off. What do the bank want now?"
"That's what I need to find out. Maybe he just…I don't know, wants to tell me the status of one of the deals. Maybe it's just to check up on things," Sydney said as she got her things together. "I'll meet you at home, ok? I won't be long," Sydney promised as she left for Credit Dauphine.
SD-6 - Sloane's Office
Sydney sat alone with Dixon and Marshall waiting for Sloane to arrive. She wondered where her father was. Sloane sauntered in the annoying way he did, making Sydney look at him with hate raging in her eyes. By the time Sloane looked at her, the look wasn't gone – only a flicker of it remained.
"I'm sorry to call you out in this moment of mourning Sydney, but there is some very important work that needs to be done," Sydney slowly nodded in acknowledgement as Sloane continued "We've received word of a document located in a warehouse in Mongolia's capital, Ulaanbaatar," Sloane projected a picture of a warehouse on the screen. "It is a military warehouse so there are a lot of guards and cameras around. The document is in a room on the top floor, it should be easy to find,"
"What's so important about this document?" Sydney asked. Sloane licked his lips.
"It's Rambaldi," Sloane replied. Sydney nodded. 'Explains a lot,' she thought to herself. "You need to get into the warehouse posing as the daughter of one of the Majors, Fareeq Tuminsu," Sloane switched the picture to a surveillance photo of a woman about Sydney's age. "As you can see, his daughter has an extravagant taste in clothes," he said motioning to the PVC catsuit Major Tuminsu's daughter modelled. "You will go alone. Dixon will remain here, keeping a track of where you are and directing you," Sydney looked over at Dixon. A solo mission?
Sloane turned to Marshall. "Marshall?"
"Ah, yes. Well, Miss Bristow…um…" Marshall fumbled with a pair of earrings, "These are a pair of earrings, which is fairly obvious. Anyway, they look very normal, but its actually a tracking device. With these, Dixon will be able to see where you are in the building. He'll have a radar screen and a set of blueprints so he can…you know, direct you," Marshall finished off. "Oh, and I took the liberty of making them the same colour of your outfit…" Marshall mumbled at the end. Sydney smiled.
"You will leave tonight," Sloane said passing Sydney her details. She nodded before she followed Dixon and Marshall out the room. She needed to find her father.
Jack's House
"Did you know Sloane was sending me to Mongolia?" Sydney asked as she walked through her father's front door. Her father gave her a blank look.
"He is? I haven't heard of any recent operations. I thought her granted you leave? Drink?" Jack offered. Sydney nodded.
"Water, please. He did. But then he said there is a Rambaldi document in a warehouse there,"
"I thought we were done with Rambaldi. He's never mentioned it to me?" Jack handed his daughter a glass of water and took one for himself.
"Me too. He's also sending me on my own," Jack almost spat out his water.
"What? What happened to Dixon?" he asked.
"I don't know. He's going to guide me from LA. Marshall got a tracking device. It's heavily guarded and I have to pose as Major Tuminsu's daughter; whoever he is," Jack made no reply. Sydney looked at her dad and waved her hand in front of his face, "Earth to Spydaddy…hello?" she called jokingly.
"I'm sorry, honey. But…I was under the impression Tuminsu was dead. I'm sure of it," Sydney's yes widened.
"You think there's something up? Maybe he's trying to see if I'm a double. He's done it before," Sydney reminded him.
"Maybe…" Jack faltered, "I'll check it out, I'll speak to you tonight," Jack told her.
"Dad, I'm leaving tonight. I've already made a dead drop for Vaughn," She told him. Jack cursed Sloane. "Look, if you find anything out, tell me or Vaughn. I can't get out of this. Maybe it's nothing," Jack wasn't totally convinced. He knew how deceitful Sloane was.
"Maybe it's something. Please be careful. I'll find out whatever I can. Talk to Vaughn," Jack told her. She nodded. He sighed, "I love you Sydney,"
She smiled, "I love you too, Dad," she said planting a kiss on his cheek.
The Warehouse
Sydney and Vaughn stood in uncomfortable silence. It was strange Sloane wanted Sydney to go out on a solo mission, especially since he had granted her leave due to Will's accident. Sydney bit her lip, something was up - she didn't know what; maybe she didn't want to know - but she knew she had to go on this mission.
"You're clear on your counter mission?" Vaughn asked for the third time that night. Sydney nodded.
"Take pictures of the files Sloane wants. I got it. Same old, same old," Sydney said whispering the last words. Vaughn looked at her with those piercing green eyes.
"Syd…this is different. It seems…" Vaughn searched for the right words.
"Fixed?" Sydney finished off for him, "I know. Maybe he just wants to make sure I'm not a double agent…like that last time," Sydney reassured; herself rather than Vaughn.
"But still…we can't keep dibs on you like before," Sydney nodded in agreement. Vaughn sighed. "I just…I want you to be careful," his voice seemed softer. He inched closer. Sydney kept her eyes on him, "If anything should happen to you…I don't…I'd have thought I'd failed you," Vaughn knew he had to keep himself professional, but with every day it seemed harder and harder.
"If you lost me, I'd have thought I'd failed you," Sydney added with a small laugh. Vaughn didn't see the funny side of it.
"No. You've done more work in a year than the CIA have done since this operation began. I can't lose you," Vaughn said.
"Yeah, because that'll look bad on your report," Sydney didn't know why she kept trying to joke around about this, she was as scared as Vaughn was.
"No, not the agency, I can't lose you," Vaughn said more compassionately. Sydney noticed that by now, Vaughn was right in front of her. She could see her reflection in his emerald eyes. His eyes were visibly tearing.
Before she knew what was happening, their lips came crashing together like a tidal wave to the rocks.
"You won't lose me…" she said in between breaths, "I won't let you,"
~*~*~*~*TBC*~*~*~*~
"You ok?" she asked. Sydney nodded and flashed a smile, which Francie saw straight through, "You're not ok. Syd, I know this is hard," Francie began. Sydney looked at her friend. She didn't know how hard. "In time it'll get easier, not that I'm trying to say we should forget him or anything," Francie knew she was getting nowhere. She looked at Sydney again, this time closer. "I know what's going on!" Francie exclaimed. Sydney snapped her head up.
"You do?" Sydney questioned. Francie nodded confidently.
"You're thinking about Danny," Francie saw the look in Sydney's eyes. "Aren't you?" she asked, less confident.
"I am now," Sydney muttered. Francie sheepishly apologised, which Sydney dismissed, "Don't worry. It's just…I've got a lot on my mind," Sydney told her friend. Francie looked around.
"Do you want another Slush-O?" she asked. Sydney smiled broadly.
"Why? Did you like it?" Sydney asked. Francie nodded violently.
"I love them. Why didn't you tell me about them earlier?"
"I never really tried them…Vau- a friend introduced them to me," Sydney hoped she didn't let anything noticeably slip. Luckily, Francie didn't catch it.
"Well, tell your friend that they've got good taste,"
"I will," Sydney said, finishing off the very last drop of her Slush-O. Just then Sydney's pager rang. She looked at the message '911'. She cursed Sloane.
"What?" Francie asked. Sydney looked at her friend as she got up.
"I've got to go to work," Sydney said apologetically. Francie groaned.
"I thought Sloane gave you time off. What do the bank want now?"
"That's what I need to find out. Maybe he just…I don't know, wants to tell me the status of one of the deals. Maybe it's just to check up on things," Sydney said as she got her things together. "I'll meet you at home, ok? I won't be long," Sydney promised as she left for Credit Dauphine.
SD-6 - Sloane's Office
Sydney sat alone with Dixon and Marshall waiting for Sloane to arrive. She wondered where her father was. Sloane sauntered in the annoying way he did, making Sydney look at him with hate raging in her eyes. By the time Sloane looked at her, the look wasn't gone – only a flicker of it remained.
"I'm sorry to call you out in this moment of mourning Sydney, but there is some very important work that needs to be done," Sydney slowly nodded in acknowledgement as Sloane continued "We've received word of a document located in a warehouse in Mongolia's capital, Ulaanbaatar," Sloane projected a picture of a warehouse on the screen. "It is a military warehouse so there are a lot of guards and cameras around. The document is in a room on the top floor, it should be easy to find,"
"What's so important about this document?" Sydney asked. Sloane licked his lips.
"It's Rambaldi," Sloane replied. Sydney nodded. 'Explains a lot,' she thought to herself. "You need to get into the warehouse posing as the daughter of one of the Majors, Fareeq Tuminsu," Sloane switched the picture to a surveillance photo of a woman about Sydney's age. "As you can see, his daughter has an extravagant taste in clothes," he said motioning to the PVC catsuit Major Tuminsu's daughter modelled. "You will go alone. Dixon will remain here, keeping a track of where you are and directing you," Sydney looked over at Dixon. A solo mission?
Sloane turned to Marshall. "Marshall?"
"Ah, yes. Well, Miss Bristow…um…" Marshall fumbled with a pair of earrings, "These are a pair of earrings, which is fairly obvious. Anyway, they look very normal, but its actually a tracking device. With these, Dixon will be able to see where you are in the building. He'll have a radar screen and a set of blueprints so he can…you know, direct you," Marshall finished off. "Oh, and I took the liberty of making them the same colour of your outfit…" Marshall mumbled at the end. Sydney smiled.
"You will leave tonight," Sloane said passing Sydney her details. She nodded before she followed Dixon and Marshall out the room. She needed to find her father.
Jack's House
"Did you know Sloane was sending me to Mongolia?" Sydney asked as she walked through her father's front door. Her father gave her a blank look.
"He is? I haven't heard of any recent operations. I thought her granted you leave? Drink?" Jack offered. Sydney nodded.
"Water, please. He did. But then he said there is a Rambaldi document in a warehouse there,"
"I thought we were done with Rambaldi. He's never mentioned it to me?" Jack handed his daughter a glass of water and took one for himself.
"Me too. He's also sending me on my own," Jack almost spat out his water.
"What? What happened to Dixon?" he asked.
"I don't know. He's going to guide me from LA. Marshall got a tracking device. It's heavily guarded and I have to pose as Major Tuminsu's daughter; whoever he is," Jack made no reply. Sydney looked at her dad and waved her hand in front of his face, "Earth to Spydaddy…hello?" she called jokingly.
"I'm sorry, honey. But…I was under the impression Tuminsu was dead. I'm sure of it," Sydney's yes widened.
"You think there's something up? Maybe he's trying to see if I'm a double. He's done it before," Sydney reminded him.
"Maybe…" Jack faltered, "I'll check it out, I'll speak to you tonight," Jack told her.
"Dad, I'm leaving tonight. I've already made a dead drop for Vaughn," She told him. Jack cursed Sloane. "Look, if you find anything out, tell me or Vaughn. I can't get out of this. Maybe it's nothing," Jack wasn't totally convinced. He knew how deceitful Sloane was.
"Maybe it's something. Please be careful. I'll find out whatever I can. Talk to Vaughn," Jack told her. She nodded. He sighed, "I love you Sydney,"
She smiled, "I love you too, Dad," she said planting a kiss on his cheek.
The Warehouse
Sydney and Vaughn stood in uncomfortable silence. It was strange Sloane wanted Sydney to go out on a solo mission, especially since he had granted her leave due to Will's accident. Sydney bit her lip, something was up - she didn't know what; maybe she didn't want to know - but she knew she had to go on this mission.
"You're clear on your counter mission?" Vaughn asked for the third time that night. Sydney nodded.
"Take pictures of the files Sloane wants. I got it. Same old, same old," Sydney said whispering the last words. Vaughn looked at her with those piercing green eyes.
"Syd…this is different. It seems…" Vaughn searched for the right words.
"Fixed?" Sydney finished off for him, "I know. Maybe he just wants to make sure I'm not a double agent…like that last time," Sydney reassured; herself rather than Vaughn.
"But still…we can't keep dibs on you like before," Sydney nodded in agreement. Vaughn sighed. "I just…I want you to be careful," his voice seemed softer. He inched closer. Sydney kept her eyes on him, "If anything should happen to you…I don't…I'd have thought I'd failed you," Vaughn knew he had to keep himself professional, but with every day it seemed harder and harder.
"If you lost me, I'd have thought I'd failed you," Sydney added with a small laugh. Vaughn didn't see the funny side of it.
"No. You've done more work in a year than the CIA have done since this operation began. I can't lose you," Vaughn said.
"Yeah, because that'll look bad on your report," Sydney didn't know why she kept trying to joke around about this, she was as scared as Vaughn was.
"No, not the agency, I can't lose you," Vaughn said more compassionately. Sydney noticed that by now, Vaughn was right in front of her. She could see her reflection in his emerald eyes. His eyes were visibly tearing.
Before she knew what was happening, their lips came crashing together like a tidal wave to the rocks.
"You won't lose me…" she said in between breaths, "I won't let you,"
~*~*~*~*TBC*~*~*~*~