It was funny how in her moments of deep duress, Sydney's childhood habit of calling her father 'daddy' came through. Before she knew what was happening, she found herself in her father's arms. "Oh, my God, dad! I've been so worried about you. Are you ok? Where have you been?" Her questions died off as she noted the look that passed between her parents. "What is it?" she questioned.
"Sydney, as you can see, I'm fine. I've missed you so much, honey. I thought I had lost you." He said, caressing his daughter's hair as he held her tightly. He fought to keep the emotion out of his voice, but the tears pooling up in his eyes betrayed him. "Your mother has some things that she wants to talk to you about. Hear her out, then we'll have time to talk some more." Jack knew that after she talked with Irina, she might not want to talk to him, but she needed to know where he had been. Irina had insisted on being the one that told her, and he was more than willing to let her. He had never been that adept at confrontations with his daughter. "I'll see you in a while."
"If you'll follow me, Mr. Bristow, I'll show you around," said Sark. "It will give them a chance to talk." He wasn't overjoyed with this prospect, but he didn't have much of a choice. Jack Bristow was one of the few men that he respected, simply from his sheer determination and attitude. That being said, he was also one of the few people that Sark feared. He was glad to escape the kitchen though. He didn't know what was going on, but he didn't want to be anywhere near the mother and daughter confrontation. Besides, it effectively diverted Sydney's attention from their prior conversation.
Jack wasn't that happy with Sark being involved in this, but after talking with Irina, he understood the boy better. He wondered how Sark would deal with the information that was to be told later. Also, if Irina was right, and she usually was about things like this, he might someday have to accept Sark as his son-in-law. The thought exasperated him, but he wanted his daughter to be happy. At least Sark was more of a man than Agent Vaughn ever was. He followed Sark silently.
"It looks as if you and Sark have gotten closer, " said Irina as she studied Sydney. If she wasn't mistaken, the argument they were having was one of a more personal nature. "You seemed upset with him though, is anything wrong?" She waited to see what her daughter's answer would be.
Sydney sat down at the table across from her mother. "It was nothing, just a little argument." She wasn't about to discuss Aidan, of all things, when her father was here and something was obviously going on. "Where did you find dad? Was he with Sloane?" she demanded.
"Sydney, just stop for a minute. I have a confession to make, and it will make it easier if you will just listen." Irina knew that Sydney would be angry with her and Jack, but they had only done what was necessary after Jack walked away from the CIA. She sighed as she prepared to hurt her daughter yet again.
Something told Sydney that she would not like what her mother was going to say. You would think she would be used to it by now, but it still hurt. What was it this time? "Fine, mom, what is it?" She steeled herself for what was to come.
"Your father hasn't been with Sloane, Sydney. He's been in Russia, gathering intel and working with me. He came to me shortly after leaving the CIA." She paused, knowing full well what was about to come.
"What? You knew where he was this whole time and you didn't bother to tell me? What the hell were you thinking?! What was he thinking?! I was worried sick, thinking the worst, and he was safe the whole time? I don't believe this!" She was raving mad. She didn't have any illusions about what kind of person her mother was, but this was too much. "I can't believe I trusted you. I can't believe dad wouldn't contact me. I had been gone for two years, not knowing where I had been, I show up, my father is gone, you contact me…" Sydney was too angry to continue. She sat, seething, gripping the edge of the table.
Irina stood up, taking an authoritative tone. Sometimes her daughter was as stubborn as she was. "Sydney, be quiet and listen to me. In your father's defense, I convinced him that it would be a mistake to contact you. I finally got him to agree. It was very difficult, he wanted to see you so badly, but we couldn't take a chance on the CIA finding him. I contacted you because I knew that you could hide the fact that you had talked to me. You have done it before. I was not sure that you could do that with your father. You've never been able to hold your emotions in check concerning him. Everyone at the CIA would have known that something was up."
"I am not some child who can't hold my emotions in check. I am a grown woman, who has been through hell. I deserve better treatment than this!" With this, she broke into angry tears. "I wouldn't expect you to know anything about how to treat someone with respect and decency, would I, mom?"
Irina wisely decided that Sydney needed time to cool off and to think about it. She knew that she would be more reasonable when she calmed down. "I guess that is your opinion, Sydney. But, you know, deep down, that your father and I love you more than anything. We will talk more later." After stopping to lay a hand on her daughter's shoulder, she left Sydney alone.
Sydney sat in silence after her mother left. How could they do this to her? After everything that she had been through, what she had needed on her return was her father. He was the one person that still loved her, that hadn't changed with time. But, they deprived her of that because they didn't think she could handle it. She was trained to compartmentalize and to lie. It wouldn't have been a problem. The clock ticked as she sat thinking about what had just happened. She stayed that way for some time, occasionally hearing the murmur of voices in the living room. She finally decided that even though it made her angry and hurt her, she could see their point. She wanted to know what they found out about Sloane, her disappearance, and the prophecy. She slowly stood and walked into the next room. Irina and Jack were sitting on the couch, while Aidan was standing by them. He looked slightly uncomfortable, but stayed where he was when Sydney entered. "Ok, I'm willing to say that I can understand why you didn't tell me. That doesn't mean that I'm happy about it, or that I've forgiven you both yet." Sydney said as she looked squarely at her parents. "Right now, it's more important that Aidan and I be told everything that you know. We've been in the dark long enough."
Irina sighed, but realized that Sydney was right. It was time to tell them both the truth. She looked at Jack for support, and he took her hand in his. For once, she was going to let him help her shoulder the burden that she had been carrying for years. " Sark, you've been working for years to help me find information about Rambaldi and his works. You even sacrificed your freedom for two years. You believed that you were helping me solely for Sydney's sake. That wasn't entirely true. I was also trying to find information for your welfare. I think you should both sit down. This will take some time, and be quite a shock, especially to you, Sark.
At this, Sydney quickly looked at Sark. What did her mother mean? Was she actually trying to say that he had been working with her mother on her behalf? She sat, looking to her mother to start the tale that would possibly be an insight on her missing years.
Sark wasn't sure what to think. He was already angry because Irina had hidden things from him. Now, she was trying to tell him that she was looking out for him too? It didn't make sense. He would know if something involved him, wouldn't he?
Irina decided to get the worst out of the way first. "Rambaldi was a tricky man. He had double meanings and hidden truths in all of his works. The most important though, was the prophecy. Sydney, you have first hand knowledge of what the prophecy says about you. What neither of you knows is what it says about Sark. It will be easier if I am straight about it, even though it will be a shock. There was another part to the prophecy. For years, I protected the information, making sure that no one else found out what it said. The next part of the prophecy was this:
'The man here depicted will possess unseen marks, signs that he is my heir. It will be his duty to ensure that the power of my works is brought forth for the greater good and not for malevolence. On the path to fulfill his destiny, he will face many choices, and his actions will decide the fate of the future.'"
Irina gauged Sark's reaction. He looked confused as he sat with his head in his hands. "Sark, it is a picture of you. You are Rambaldi's heir."