Option 4: Sloane

Disclaimer: If Alias were mine, I still wouldn't have had this happen. But it's a good idea. I like the idea of Sark, too. We'll see…

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The man sighed. He was beginning to feel every one of his long years. He was thinking, for the first time since he'd been an eager 20-year-old recruit, that may be he didn't belong in espionage any more. He'd seen too much. He'd seen people he loved suffer too much.

Which brought a whole new plague of thoughts on him. There was no doubt anywhere in his mind that there was something off with Lauren Reed. Far enough off--to his eye--that he felt it his duty to somehow remove her from Sydney and Vaughn's lives. If only there was some was to do it without killing her. Until he had proof. Because if what he suspected was true…

Arvin Sloane jumped two feet out of his comfortable desk chair when his phone rang, jolting him from his thoughts.

"Sloane," he answered a little more shortly than normal.

A highly distorted voice reached his ears: a Covenant contact.

"Sloane, we are in need of your services," the voice said cryptically. "It seems we have developed a problem with one of our most trusted operatives. Can you take care of it?"

"Of course. What did you have in mind?" he asked, keeping the resignation from his voice carefully.

"Her assassination."

Sloane cringed. He knew where his next call would have to be directed, and as fast as they could get to Zurich there'd be agents crowding his office.

"That can be done."

"The operative is one Lauren reed. Are you familiar with her?"

"I don't believe we've ever met," he lied.

"I'll send you her file within the hour."

"I'll be waiting."

Sloane hung up the phone, but made no move to dial the CIA. If he played this right, he could win wither way. Perhaps he'd just wait for her file, then decide how to spin it.

The file was placed on his desk by his secretary barely thirty minutes later.

Perfect, he thought gleefully as flipped through it. Just enough to involve the CIA.

The file revealed all. Lauren Reed was the mole inside the CIA. Now, he'd just have to get in tough with Jack…

No, he thought with a smile. He would initiate things first. After all, the Covenant would expect it, and might even check up on him.

He picked up the phone and dialed a number familiar to him, even though he hadn't called it in years.

"This is Arvin Sloane. I believe I have work for you," he said when the phone was answered. "I need to see you in my Zurich office within the hour, or I'll find someone else."

He hung up sharply. Exactly one hour later, his secretary buzzed him over the intercom system.

"Mr. Sloane, there's a man here to see you. He didn't give his name, but says you're expecting him," she said uncertainly.

"Send him in," Sloane replied.

"Arvin Sloane," the man said, grinning. "I was under the impression you'd gone soft. Or is this just a one time, free-lance job?"

"You always were too curious, Joseph," Sloane muttered. He slid a copy of Lauren's file across his desk. "Take three days, familiarize yourself with the target. Do not act until the three days are up. If you do, I will not take responsibility for you. And if you link this back to me in any way, I have connections you wouldn't believe now."

"Gotcha, sir. The usual payment, I assume?"

"You'll get paid when the job is done, Joseph. My word is still the same."

"Yes, sir," Joseph took the file, grinned, and strode out.

Sloane waited only until the man was out of the building before he picked up the phone again.

"Jack Bristow, please," he told the operator.

"Bristow," Jack answered briskly.

"Jack. We need to talk. I'll come to you."

"I am not your handler. Perhaps you should contact that poor soul."

"This personal, Jack. In a roundabout way, this may involve Sydney."

"Fine. I'll meet you at contact point seven. Call my cell when you get there."

"I'm leaving now."

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Jack debated with himself for hours; to tell Dixon, or to keep it to himself? Sloane said it was personal, so to involve the CIA might be overkill. But when it came to Sloane, it never hurt to have a few allies Sloane was unaware of.

"Dixon?" Jack said, tapping lightly on Dixon's open door. "Got a minute?"

"Sure, Jack. What's going on?" Dixon asked carefully.

"Sloane contacted me today. I'm not sure what to make of it, so I thought I'd best bring it to you."

"What did he say?"

"Not much. He wants to talk to me. He said it was personal, and that it might involve Sydney. I expet to meet with him sometime tonight."

"Did he threaten Sydney?"

"No, he just hinted that whatever this is involves her somehow. Has the call log from Sloane's building been swept today?"

"No. I'll get someone on it. Tell me the truth, Jack. Are you worried about this?"

"I think at the very least Sloane has created another mess for this agency."

"I'll check him out myself, then."

"Thank you." Jack rose and left Dixon to make calls and issue orders.

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Jack answered his cell phone without a trace of the anxiety he felt, mostly because he was expecting the call. He was watching the meeting point he'd agreed upon, an old SD-6 contact point rather than a CIA point. He wondered if Dixon would recognize it as he told Sloane he was coming.

He dialed Dixon's number immediately after hanging up with Sloane.

"He's here." Then he gave Dixon directions to the remote corner of the city park that few people arrives, even by chance.

"That's SD-6," Dixon said, irritated by the memory.

"Yes. I avoided CIA points because I wasn't sure how I was going to handle this."

Jack waited ten minutes before striding up the path to meet Sloane. Sloane just stood and smiled as Jack approached.

"You're going to like this, Jack," Sloane decreed when Jack stopped.

"What?" Jack asked flatly.

"I was just thinking today that Lauren Reed was a problem in Sydney's life right now. I was wishing I could get rid of her. For Sydney, Jack. Then the Covenant contacted me. They want me to eliminate one of their operatives that they believe has become a threat more than an asset. I have your mole, Jack." Sloane grinned and passed the file he was holding over to Jack.

Jack opened the file to a picture of Lauren Reed.

"And what did you do?" Jack asked, knowing to Sloane to well to assume he had handed over the information without acting on it, first.

Gauging Jack's attitude carefully, Sloane said, "You have reason to believe there is a hit out on Lauren Reed. Confront her. Explain that to her. Then you tell her she had another option. She can confess to being Covenant, and a mole, and she lives. I believe she'll chose life in a cell over death, Jack, and then Sydney's Michael Vaughn will know the truth, and Sydney can be happy again."

"Your pardon agreement will be revoked if the CIA finds out about this," Jack commented.


"Tell then only that the Covenant wanted me to execute their mole. If Lauren should escape, she'll be killed. You win either way, Jack."

Jack pulled a small device from his pocket and held it out in his hands.

Sloane's eyes twinkled as if he'd been waiting on this revelation.

"Who's on the other end?"

"Only Dixon. What he does with this will be his decision. I suggest we go meet him now," Jack said, his voice not as cold as it could have been.

Sloane nodded. "Good."

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Dixon was in an empty CIA safe house when Jack and Sloane arrived.

Dixon smiled softly. "I didn't hear a thing, Jack. I'm not a vindictive person, but I think our mole is going to get what's coming to her. Sloane, I assume that evidence will make it through the proper channels tomorrow?"

"Of course. It's nice to have you backing us, Marcus," Sloane said.

Dixon's eyes flashed briefly. "I should get home. I promise the kids I'd play video games with them tonight."

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"Lauren," Jack said with customary hardness. "Do you have a minute? I believe there's something we need to discuss."

"Of course," Lauren said, smiling. "Did I miss a briefing?"

Jack didn't respond, but led her into an empty office, closing the door behind them.

"You're Covenant," he said sharply. "I know it. I'll prove it. I also came across the information that there's a contract out on your life. Your best bet, Miss Reed, is to turn yourself in. I'm not reporting the contract. Turn yourself in, because if you try to run, you'll turn up dead."

Lauren looked shocked, but then, she probably was shocked that someone had found her out.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Agent Bristow! But that sounded an awful lot like a threat! I should report you for harassment!" she snapped, pushing past him and out of the office.

Jack allowed himself a small grin. This was going perfectly.

Dixon called a briefing for the task force just after noon. Both jack and Dixon noted with satisfaction that Lauren seemed to be off center.

When everyone had assembled, Dixon stood up.

"Everyone, I have good news. Thanks to Arvin Sloane, I have intel that identifies the mole we have suspected existed in the building for months."

Dixon paused, just as Lauren did a very good job of faking sick. Good enough that Vaughn rose to go after her.

"Sit down, Agent Vaughn," Dixon said with a glance at Jack, who rose to intercept Vaughn.

"But Lauren…" Vaughn protested.

"You need to see this. Please sit down," Dixon said more gently.

Vaughn's eyebrows drew together in confusion, but he sat.

Dixon nodded to jack, who also sat.

"I've identified our mole," Dixon repeated softly, pressing a button on the remote he held in his hand. The screens in front of the agents lit up, and there was an audible gasp. Vaughn remained silent.

Sydney was the first to speak up. "But…she's probably gone, right now!"

Dixon grimaced and nodded to Jack again, who produced an anti-eavesdropping device.

"Three minutes," he announced.

"What I'm about to say can never leave this room," Dixon began. "If you have a problem with that, leave now." He shot a glance at Vaughn while Marshal scrambled for the door.

"Sorry, I just…I'd really rather…" Marshal stuttered. Dixon nodded understandingly.

"There's a contract out on Lauren Reed right now. She's aware of it, and aware that her options right now are to turn herself in or be killed. Sloane also reported the contract," Dixon added.

Vaughn paled visibly, but remained silent and still.

"And we're not going after her?" Sydney asked softly.

Dixon shook his head. "She not only compromised CIA ops, but she screwed with the lives of our agents. In this task force, we take care of our own, with or against the rules."

Jack's device beeped, and everyone was silent.

"So now we wait," Dixon finished. "That's it."

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Two days later, Sloane held the sights of a sniper rifle trained on the door of the opposite building, and a remote detonator in his left hand. He knew the way his assassin worked, and he would be the one to pull the trigger on Lauren Reed.

When she walked out in a brunette wig and sun shades, he pulled the trigger and pushed the detonator simultaneously. Lauren fell, and a small explosion blew on a building on the other side of the street, sending down debris to pelt onlookers on the street.

Sloane smiled. Lauren was dead, and so was the assassin. The Covenant would assume the CIA had attempted to stop the hit and failed, and the CIA would think the Covenant hadn't trusted the assassin.

He'd taken care of the competition. Now Sydney could get what she wanted, without the guilt hanging over her head every time she came close.

No one would ever believe him, but it was all for Sydney.

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Creepy, huh? I'm thinking out a plot for Sark to kill her of next, cheating bitch! Er…uh…I didn't mean…Okay, so I meant that. Deal with it! Hehehe.