Liam sat on a couch in the middle of the hideout and watched Sandoval as the other man worked diligently at a computer station, analyzing data. Memories surfaced of Sandoval's intelligence work during the S.I. War. Apparently he was now lending those same skills to the Resistance. Assuming, of course, that this Sandoval shared that part of his past with the other Sandoval. It was possible that this Sandoval had fought on the ground and proven himself there, as Liam remembered the other Sandoval longing to. Or he might have avoided the war altogether. One of those changes might even have been the difference that had led this Sandoval to the Resistance, while the other more-or-less faithfully served the Taelons.
It was an odd thought, working on the same side as Sandoval. Really on the same side, not just allying for the odd mission and then separating again, with all the lies between them. A chance to see his father as he might have been, to form a relationship less clouded by secrecy, though not completely free of it. Of course, this Sandoval was not the other Sandoval. But he was close. Certainly closer than Jason had been. Another side of the same man, another might-have-been version of his father. Perhaps a better man than the other had had the opportunity to be.
Liam turned his attention to Lili, who sat in a corner quietly cleaning her gun and casting the occasional glances in their direction. Well, in Augur's direction. She seemed to be quite shaken by Augur's unexpected return from the dead, a feeling Liam understood well. In some ways her presence was even more unsettling than Sandoval's. His relationship with Sandoval--a relationship he wasn't at all sure he really wanted--existed primarily in his head. His relationship with Lili, however, had been real and it had been important to him. Lili had been one of the few people who had known the truth about him and hadn't flinched because of it. She had cared about Liam the person as well as Liam the Companion protector and Liam the Resistance fighter. His first glimpse of the alternate Lili had brought the memory of her death into sharp relief, and with it the first potent rush of grief. Now, watching her sit there, he began to find her presence comforting. It meant that Lili Marquette's courage and kindness lived on somewhere, though he could no longer claim them for himself.
His reverie was broken by the beep of a global echoing loudly in the strangely quiet room. His attention returned to Sandoval as the man reached down to answer. Sandoval spoke quickly to the caller, then slid his global shut with a worried look. Curious, Liam got up and walked over to where Sandoval was working. Augur, who had been doing his own survey of Liberation headquarters from the next seat, followed.
Sandoval barely glanced at them as they approached, turning instead to Doors and Boone, who had also approached when they heard the global.
"That was Ryan's nanny. She went to his school to pick him this afternoon, and he wasn't there. The school said that that he was present for his morning classes, but not his afternoon classes."
Augur turned to Liam and silently mouthed "Ryan"? Liam shook his head, puzzled, and turned his attention back at Sandoval.
"Could he have decided to skip school in the afternoon?" asked Lili. "Maybe he went to visit a friend?"
"That doesn't sound like Ryan," said Sandoval. "And Rosita has already checked with his friends. They call claim they don't know where he is."
"You'd better call the police," said Boone. "Have them question the teachers and students to see if anyone saw anything unusual. Use your contacts at the FBI if you need to. In the meantime, I'll try to do some investigating of my own. I think I can justify it on the grounds that you're a former Companion agent and therefore entitled to some help from us."
"You worked for the Taelons?" asked Augur in surprise. "I thought you were a Resistance supporter, Sandoval?"
"I am," said the man sharply. "I resigned my position with the Taelons when they requested that I become an implant. They indicated that they would be...very reluctant to entrust their safety to a non-implant."
"So you joined the Resistance instead?" asked Liam curiously.
"That came later," said Sandoval. He scowled. "I don't have time for your questions right now, Major. I need to find my son." He picked up his global and asked for the police.
Liam watched Sandoval silently, unable to tear his eyes away as the man paced from one side of the room to the other and back again, waiting for word from the police. Word about his son. My brother, thought Liam. Not really, of course, though they shared some of the same genes minus the subtle changes wrought by dimensional divides. This Sandoval was not his father, his family not Liam's family. Augur was still recovering from his shock at the revelation that Sandoval had a child. Liam, possessor of the other Sandoval's memories, was less surprised. Sandoval had never felt particularly strongly about children one way or the other, but DeeDee had desperately wanted a baby, and pre-CVI Sandoval had been willing to do almost anything to keep his wife happy. Assuming, of course, that DeeDee had married Sandoval in this dimension. Liam rather suspected she had, Jason and Maiya notwithstanding. The universe seemed to draw certain people together, regardless of Augur's comments on fate and the other choices people might make. How else to explain the existence of identical individuals in dimensions that held nothing else in common?
At last the global beeped and the pacing stopped. Sandoval spoke for a few minutes, then slid his global shut with an angry snap.
"Any news?" asked Doors.
"One of the children reported seeing a Taelon shuttle near the school just before lunch. The police originally thought he was making it up, because no Taelons or Taelon agents were scheduled to be in the area at that time, but several other children supported the original story."
"I'm sorry," said Doors.
"I'll go to the embassy and update Boone," offered Lili. "If the Taelons are involved, we'll find out."
Sandoval resumed his pacing, and Liam resumed his musing, fighting a strange urge to offer comfort where none could be had. It was over an hour before Lili finally contacted them.
"Da'an doesn't know anything, but there's definitely something going on," she said. "Boone hasn't been able to find out much, but he did manage to download this month's passwords for the mothership's computers. We thought maybe Augur could hack in and get more information while we try other avenues. I have to go. I'll send you the info." The passwords scrolled down the screen and Lili disappeared.
Doors frowned and looked at Augur. "Can you do it without getting caught?"
Augur looked insulted. "What do you think, Jonathan?"
"I don't know," said Doors. "That's why I asked. I know the other Augur could have done it. I don't know you."
"I assure you, I'm at least as good as he was. Probably better. After all, I'm still alive."
"Is that because you're better? Or because you traded your allies for your life?"
"I'm not a traitor," said Augur, leaning in close to Doors.
Doors stared silently at him for a moment. "Then get to it. I want to know what the Taelons are up to."
"There's definitely something going on up there," said Augur a couple of hours later. Sandoval walked over to look at the screen. He had spent the past hour fruitlessly demanding updates from the police and his FBI colleagues while his frustration mounted. It had been all they could do to keep him from leaving headquarters to look for his son himself. At one point, only Doors' explicit orders to the pair of armed fighters by the exit had kept him inside.
"Look at this," said Augur, gesturing towards the screen. "Over two dozen extra Volunteers have been reassigned to the mothership in the past week. And it looks like they've been doing some security modifications in a few places. There's definitely something happening."
"Is it related to the boy?" asked Doors.
Augur shrugged expressively. "Hard to say. There's nothing explicitly on file. Whatever they're doing, they're keeping it quiet."
"But a Taelon shuttle near his school around the time he disappeared is pretty suspicious," said Liam, rubbing one palm absentmindedly.
"Don't you think two dozen guards for one boy is overkill?" asked Augur.
"The guards aren't for Ryan," said Sandoval quietly. "I've known for some time that some of my colleagues have entertained suspicion about my activities. One of them must have finally tipped off the Taelons."
"And they grabbed Ryan as bait," said Liam.
"Well, it isn't going to work," said Doors. "You aren't going after him."
"How do you plan on stopping me?" asked Sandoval flatly.
"Anyway I have to," snapped Doors. "We can't afford to lose you--you're too valuable to this organization. As of now, you're underground. You will not be returning to your house or job, and you will not be going after your son."
"So you're just going to leave a child in the hands of the Taelons?" said Liam disgustedly. Doors glared at him.
"I'll order Boone and Marquette to investigate further. If they can devise a plan to safely get the boy off the mothership with minimal risk to this organization, we'll implement it. In the meantime, no one is doing anything that risks the lives and security of the people here." He paused, and his tone softened a little as he turned back to Sandoval. "Ron, they're not interested in Ryan. They only grabbed him to get to you. He'll be fine for a few days. He probably thinks it's a treat, getting to see the mothership."
Sandoval looked at him impassively. "It doesn't look like I have much say in the matter."
"I'm sorry," said Doors, looking away. Sandoval stared at him a moment longer, then stalked away. Liam regarded him thoughtfully as he left the room.