Undesirable News



Sydney drove well under the speed limit as she made her way to the CIA. She was nervous about what she might learn when she arrived. Chills coursed through her body and she turned on the heat, even though she knew it wouldn't help.

She felt tears form in her eyes and sobs begin to rise in the back of her throat. She swallowed hard and struggled to keep the tears at bay as she pulled into a vacant space and killed the engine.

She sat for a moment, staring at the building in front of her, her stomach twisting into a remarkably tight knot. She finally worked up the courage to get out of her car and go inside, and when she entered, a deathly silence fell over the room.

Something wasn't right.

She made her way through the rotunda trying to ignore the stares from the agents around her as she looked for Kendall.

Someone pulled her aside and she gasped as she turned to see whom it had been.

Her father.

"Dad—" Her eyes were wide and glistening as she anticipated the (hopefully good) news.

"Sydney," Jack said firmly, cutting her off before she could say more, "it appears the Panama mission was a failure."

Sydney's eyes darkened considerably and Jack saw the pain and worry etched into them clear as day. "What do you mean?" she asked timidly.

"Sydney, your mother took the Rambaldi book."

Sydney's lip trembled and she took a step backwards, her hand finding the edge of a wall on which she attempted to steady herself. "So is she working with Sloane?" Sydney asked quietly.

Jack nodded solemnly. "It would appear that way."

Sydney suddenly felt sick. "I trusted her."

"I know."

Sydney clenched her fists as she slowly regained her strength. "She told me she loved me."

Jack sighed and took a tentative step towards his daughter, trying to decide if now was the time to embrace and comfort her.

"How could I have trusted that woman?" Sydney asked, her voice breaking as she started to cry. "How could I have thought that she would have changed?" She gripped the wall tightly as it was the only thing preventing her from collapsing. "How could I have been so stupid?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Before replying, Jack took a moment to stare into his daughter's eyes. The fluorescent lights had made her tears all the more obvious and had made her eyes appear to be a dark amber color, considerably lighter than their usual chocolate brown. Jack saw in them fear, vulnerability, and even shame at Sydney's belief that she was a fool for falling into the trap set by Irina. His voice was soft yet stern as he spoke.

"Sydney, neither one of us could have predicted that Irina would betray us—again. There had been no signs to indicate that she had something planned."

"Dad, you didn't trust her from the start. You had your suspicions and they turned out to be correct. I foolishly began to trust her, eager to rebuild what we had. You were right when you said that I wanted a mother. But I should have known better," Sydney shook her head sadly, "and I fell right into her trap."

Jack focused his eyes of stone on Sydney and noticed that her eyes had hardened. He could see that she was angry now, partially at herself, partially at Irina, and partially at him—frustration—most likely because she thought that he had had more sense when it came to Irina, that he had never thought her trustworthy. He couldn't have her think that when he was just as naïve and trusting as she had been, maybe even more so.

"We both made a mistake in trusting her," he said firmly.

Sydney shook her head vigorously and set her jaw. "You didn't, I did. You never trusted her."

Jack clenched his teeth. "Yes, I did."

Sydney narrowed her eyes at him. "When?"

"In Panama." He watched Sydney's eyes widen. "The night before she was supposed to meet with Sloane, we—" he cleared his throat, "—picked up where we left off."

Sydney felt her knees buckle and she grasped the wall again. She looked down for a moment, then back up, staring into her father's eyes, finally learning just how manipulative her mother could be, especially on a man as tightly guarded as Jack Bristow. When Sydney finally spoke, her voice was dripping with venom.

"I want to kill her. I want to make her suffer for everything she did to us."

Jack's eyes softened and took on a look of understanding. He saw Sydney's shoulders shake and he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her. He held her as she buried her head in his chest and her body shook with sobs. He could handle the fact that Irina had fooled him, but it was hard for him to accept what she had done to his daughter. If Sydney wanted to make her mother suffer, he would be more than happy to let her. Anything that would provide her the comfort of knowing that Irina would never be able to hurt anyone again.

"What's the earliest we could get a team together to go find her?" Sydney asked, pulling away from her father.

"Tonight," Jack told her. "But first, we have a briefing to go to. Apparently, we've received some new intel."

"Okay," Sydney said, wiping her eyes. "Dad?" she asked as her father began to head towards the briefing room.

Jack stopped and turned back to his daughter, raising his eyebrows at her expectantly. Sydney glanced around nervously and stepped closer to him so she wouldn't have to talk very loud.

"I can't remember the last time I ever told you I love you," she said with a sigh. "With all you've done for me, Dad, I want you to know that I love you." Sydney smiled at her father, warming his heart more than she could ever know.

Jack felt his throat tighten and his eyes begin to moisten a bit, but not enough so that Sydney could see. He swallowed and hoped his voice wouldn't fail him when he tried to speak. His mouth turned up in the tiniest of smiles.

"I love you too, sweetheart."

Sydney smiled again, truly touched that her relationship with her father was steadily improving. She walked towards him and he put an arm around her shoulders as they made their way to the briefing room.