Taking the elevator down, she went directly to the clerk. He smiled
brightly as she approached.
"I need a room, preferably one on the ground floor." She said politely.
"Alright I need your name and a major credit card." He smiled.
"How bout you call me Ma'am, and you can write whatever you want in your little book." She said sliding a hundred across the counter.
"Alright Ma'am. Room 112, it's just down the hall that way." He said pointing, and then handed her a key card.
"Thank you, here's another hundred. Go to the convenience store and get me these things." She said grabbing a pad of paper and a pen. "Don't say a word to anyone, and be quick about it. There'll be another hundred waiting when you get back." She smiled widely again.
"Hair dye, lip stick, a sweatshirt. It all sounds good. I won't be more than fifteen minutes." The clerk smiled.
"Make it five and you've got yourself a hundred more." She smiled back.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Sydney locked you in the bathroom." Jack said, so surprised he forgot the irony of what he was saying.
"Yeah she was here with Kovalev when I arrived. She hit me in the head, and had Kovalev interrogate me when I came to. She said the Covenant kidnapped her, tried to brainwash her, but it didn't work. She's really working for the DSR undercover. She said they named her Julia Thorne and that she had to work for them or they'd kill her." Vaughn said, barely believing the words that were coming out of his mouth.
"Julia Thorne." Irina repeated.
"Do you recognize the name?" Jack said instantly.
"No. You haven't explained why you were locked in the bathroom Mr. Vaughn." Irina replied.
"Sydney said that she had to stay away, that the Covenant would kill everyone she loved if they knew she was deceiving them. She didn't want me to follow her." Vaughn said, shaking his head. "I did hear her interrogate Kovalev. She asked about someone named Savin. Kovalev said that he worked out of the Lexington under the name R.S Industries." Vaughn said, searching Jack and Irina's faces. "Savin, I know of him. He works mostly in black market arms deals." Jack said looking back to Vaughn. "Do you have any idea what Sydney wanted with him?"
"None." Vaughn said shaking his head.
"Did Sydney say anything else?" Irina prompted hoping to find out more.
Vaughn thought for a moment, trying to decide whether to tell them more about what had gone on between them. "No, she shot Kovalev and left." He shook his head.
"Alright. She's here to see or get something from Savin, we know that much. I'll have a team stake out the Lexington tonight, but I'm almost positive she'll wait until tomorrow to hit it." Jack said looking between Vaughn and Irina.
"Jack," Irina said, before he could say more. "Sydney believes that she is trying to protect us. If the Covenant tried to reprogram her to be someone else, than she has no doubt gone through severe trauma. We need to handle this gently." Irina watched Vaughn's face as she said this. He simply looked down at the floor as she spoke.
"Sydney may think that we need to be protected from the Covenant, but she's wrong. She is the one that needs our protection. This has gone on long enough." Jack said, his tone clearly angry.
"She doesn't want to be protected," Vaughn said softly, not moving his gaze from the floor. "She's different Jack, even she doesn't believe she's Sydney anymore. She's working to take down the Covenant, which isn't a bad idea." Vaughn finally looked up at Jack. "We can't compromise her now. I believe her when she says the Covenant will never stop. She's scared, and reasonably so."
Jack stopped for a moment taking in Vaughn's words. "Vaughn I know you think that you're doing what's best for Sydney by defending her, but you're not. My daughter has been exploited by the Covenant and the US Government long enough. She is here in LA, and within our reach, I am not going to let her slip by and keep living the way she is. I won't allow it." Jack's voice was raised substantially by the end of his little speech."
"Jack," Irina said softly touching his arm.
"What?" He turned to look at her harshly.
"Vaughn's right."
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lauren continued to wait in the concealed darkness of the storage room. No one had entered or exited Kovalev's room in a few long minutes. She kept her eyes trained on the door even as she reached for her cell phone. Ironically the cell phone rang just as she and grabbed it in her purse. She pulled it out, flipped it open and pressed it to her ear. It was still ringing. Only, it became increasingly clear that it wasn't her phone that was ringing.
She whirled around instantly her eyes staining in the darkness. Quieting her senses she listened, and sure enough there was the steady sound of breathing coming from the back of the room. She reached behind her feeling the wall for the light switch. After several excruciating seconds her fingers grasped the switch and flipped it up.
Lying in front of her on the floor, were to large men in dark suits.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"I need a room, preferably one on the ground floor." She said politely.
"Alright I need your name and a major credit card." He smiled.
"How bout you call me Ma'am, and you can write whatever you want in your little book." She said sliding a hundred across the counter.
"Alright Ma'am. Room 112, it's just down the hall that way." He said pointing, and then handed her a key card.
"Thank you, here's another hundred. Go to the convenience store and get me these things." She said grabbing a pad of paper and a pen. "Don't say a word to anyone, and be quick about it. There'll be another hundred waiting when you get back." She smiled widely again.
"Hair dye, lip stick, a sweatshirt. It all sounds good. I won't be more than fifteen minutes." The clerk smiled.
"Make it five and you've got yourself a hundred more." She smiled back.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Sydney locked you in the bathroom." Jack said, so surprised he forgot the irony of what he was saying.
"Yeah she was here with Kovalev when I arrived. She hit me in the head, and had Kovalev interrogate me when I came to. She said the Covenant kidnapped her, tried to brainwash her, but it didn't work. She's really working for the DSR undercover. She said they named her Julia Thorne and that she had to work for them or they'd kill her." Vaughn said, barely believing the words that were coming out of his mouth.
"Julia Thorne." Irina repeated.
"Do you recognize the name?" Jack said instantly.
"No. You haven't explained why you were locked in the bathroom Mr. Vaughn." Irina replied.
"Sydney said that she had to stay away, that the Covenant would kill everyone she loved if they knew she was deceiving them. She didn't want me to follow her." Vaughn said, shaking his head. "I did hear her interrogate Kovalev. She asked about someone named Savin. Kovalev said that he worked out of the Lexington under the name R.S Industries." Vaughn said, searching Jack and Irina's faces. "Savin, I know of him. He works mostly in black market arms deals." Jack said looking back to Vaughn. "Do you have any idea what Sydney wanted with him?"
"None." Vaughn said shaking his head.
"Did Sydney say anything else?" Irina prompted hoping to find out more.
Vaughn thought for a moment, trying to decide whether to tell them more about what had gone on between them. "No, she shot Kovalev and left." He shook his head.
"Alright. She's here to see or get something from Savin, we know that much. I'll have a team stake out the Lexington tonight, but I'm almost positive she'll wait until tomorrow to hit it." Jack said looking between Vaughn and Irina.
"Jack," Irina said, before he could say more. "Sydney believes that she is trying to protect us. If the Covenant tried to reprogram her to be someone else, than she has no doubt gone through severe trauma. We need to handle this gently." Irina watched Vaughn's face as she said this. He simply looked down at the floor as she spoke.
"Sydney may think that we need to be protected from the Covenant, but she's wrong. She is the one that needs our protection. This has gone on long enough." Jack said, his tone clearly angry.
"She doesn't want to be protected," Vaughn said softly, not moving his gaze from the floor. "She's different Jack, even she doesn't believe she's Sydney anymore. She's working to take down the Covenant, which isn't a bad idea." Vaughn finally looked up at Jack. "We can't compromise her now. I believe her when she says the Covenant will never stop. She's scared, and reasonably so."
Jack stopped for a moment taking in Vaughn's words. "Vaughn I know you think that you're doing what's best for Sydney by defending her, but you're not. My daughter has been exploited by the Covenant and the US Government long enough. She is here in LA, and within our reach, I am not going to let her slip by and keep living the way she is. I won't allow it." Jack's voice was raised substantially by the end of his little speech."
"Jack," Irina said softly touching his arm.
"What?" He turned to look at her harshly.
"Vaughn's right."
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lauren continued to wait in the concealed darkness of the storage room. No one had entered or exited Kovalev's room in a few long minutes. She kept her eyes trained on the door even as she reached for her cell phone. Ironically the cell phone rang just as she and grabbed it in her purse. She pulled it out, flipped it open and pressed it to her ear. It was still ringing. Only, it became increasingly clear that it wasn't her phone that was ringing.
She whirled around instantly her eyes staining in the darkness. Quieting her senses she listened, and sure enough there was the steady sound of breathing coming from the back of the room. She reached behind her feeling the wall for the light switch. After several excruciating seconds her fingers grasped the switch and flipped it up.
Lying in front of her on the floor, were to large men in dark suits.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++