Hours passed and no one came in to check on her. Since her mother's visit,
Sydney had worked relentlessly on freeing herself from the handcuffs with
which they had bound her, and in the process, she had rubbed her wrists
almost raw.
Just as she succeeded in almost getting one hand free, she heard someone open the door. It was a guard carrying a tray of food, but he got no more than a few feet into the room when someone hit him over the head with a gun. The guard slumped to the ground, his head hitting the hard concrete floor, while the tray he had been carrying flew from his hands, skidded, and finally crashed against the wall.
"Dixon!" Sydney gasped. "What are you doing here?"
"There's no time to explain. We'll talk later," Dixon stated, crouching down to seize a gun from the recumbent guard and grab the key for Sydney's handcuffs off his belt ring. He then came over to Sydney and released her. "I've been in radio contact with your father. He's secured the north entrance to the building, but there's no telling how long he can hold out without back up. He told me there would be another agent with you. An Agent Vaughn. Is he being held in another room?"
"He was trapped behind the security doors when the Mueller device exploded and flooded the lab. I tried to save him, but I couldn't get the doors open once they sealed! Dixon, we can't leave without him."
"Syd," said Dixon looking grim. "If what you say is true, he's probably dead. We can't waste time searching the building for a man who's beyond our help. We have to get out of here now!"
"I don't care!" Sydney exclaimed, grabbing him by the arm. "I need to know if Vaughn got out. I need to know if he survived. Dixon, please, please, help me find him. I can't leave without him."
Her grip was like steel, but her eyes pleaded with him. Dixon gazed at his partner and sighed.
"Okay," he replied, conceding, against his better judgment. "We have to go through the main part of the building in order to get to the north entrance, anyway. Here, take this gun. We'll search as we go along, but if we don't find him before we reach the north entrance, we can't go back inside. You understand?"
Sydney nodded. She took the gun Dixon handed to her and cocked it. "Let's go."
***
Vaughn heard footsteps and pressed himself against the wall, with his gun extended, waiting for the inevitable. There were clearly two guards by the sound of it, and there was only one bullet left in his gun. He barely had enough energy to stand, much less the energy required for hand-to-hand combat or an extended gun fight. What a stupid way to die. Drowning would have made more sense then dying in this hallway, knowing Sydney was in danger somewhere in this building, and he had failed to reach her.
Dixon rounded the corner first and immediately trained his gun at the figure he saw there.
"Dixon, it's Vaughn! Don't shoot!" Sydney cried, running forward.
Vaughn spotted Dixon first, and seeing him lower his gun, he shut his eyes, and slumped against the wall. It didn't occur to him to wonder at Dixon's sudden appearance or question why he would lower his gun. Instead, relief washed over him at not having to fight yet another guard in his weakened condition. However, his lids fluttered slightly at the sound of Sydney's voice, and he glimpsed her briefly through the fringe of his eyelashes.
That was all he needed. In an instant, a last surge of adrenaline coursed through his body, giving him enough energy to get up, drop the gun and take the remaining steps between them. She collided with him so forcefully, he almost fell backwards from the impact. Ignoring the pain in his ribs, he crushed her fiercely to his chest, then suddenly pushed her away, just far enough to see her face.
"Sydney, Oh, my God, Sydney!" His voice was hoarse from all the water he had swallowed and husky with emotion. His hands clasped her face now, searching her eyes, trying to take in the fact that she really was standing before him. He watched as disbelief, then joy, and finally a ghostly, residual sense of panic played across her face, as she relived the horror of their parting.
"Vaughn! Your face! Seeing your face through that window! I thought I'd lost you. I thought you were gone. It didn't seem possible I could lose you. Not here. Not now. Not this way."
She couldn't stop herself. She was sobbing now, and yet the words kept fighting their way out of her, despite her gasps for air. As one hand gripped his jacket, the other flew up to caress his cheek. She felt the stubble beneath her fingers, and looked up into Vaughn's dark green eyes. The depth of emotion she found there took her breath away.
Now it was she who was drowning. Gently, Vaughn drew her back into his arms, and she buried her head in his chest, completely overcome at the idea of just how close they had come to being parted forever.
There wasn't a single bone or muscle in Vaughn's body that wasn't aching or throbbing painfully. He had never felt so physically exhausted in his life or so blissfully happy. Sydney was in his arms and that was all that mattered. Vaughn closed his eyes and rested his cheek on her hair.
"Shhh" he murmured, holding her close. "Ne pleure pas. Ça va aller. On est ensemble, mon amour. Je suis là. Ne pleure pas. Je t'aime," he whispered, kissing her hair, as her sobs receded. *
He had slipped into French without thinking, only now realizing what he had said, but unwilling to take it back- life was too precarious, he thought, and every moment with Syd was precious. He couldn't afford to waste any more time thinking about protocol or what the CIA may deem "appropriate" interaction among agents.
"Je t'aime," he repeated softly, brushing a wisp of hair from her cheek. His heart skipped a beat as Sydney raised her head and gazed up at him, her eyes suffused with wonder...
Dixon had purposely adverted his eyes from Sydney and Vaughn's embrace, as he kept a look out for guards, but now he cleared his throat and approached the couple. He laid a hand on Sydney's shoulder and said, "Syd, we gotta go. I don't like how quiet this place seems. There should be more guards around. Something's not right. Let's find your father."
Sydney nodded. Dixon looked at Vaughn inquiringly, but formal introductions would have to wait. Vaughn let his arms fall, and Sydney stepped out of his embrace. Just as all three turned to go, Jack and Will rounded the corner towards them.
------------
* The French translation is available in Ch. 4. Read on!!
Just as she succeeded in almost getting one hand free, she heard someone open the door. It was a guard carrying a tray of food, but he got no more than a few feet into the room when someone hit him over the head with a gun. The guard slumped to the ground, his head hitting the hard concrete floor, while the tray he had been carrying flew from his hands, skidded, and finally crashed against the wall.
"Dixon!" Sydney gasped. "What are you doing here?"
"There's no time to explain. We'll talk later," Dixon stated, crouching down to seize a gun from the recumbent guard and grab the key for Sydney's handcuffs off his belt ring. He then came over to Sydney and released her. "I've been in radio contact with your father. He's secured the north entrance to the building, but there's no telling how long he can hold out without back up. He told me there would be another agent with you. An Agent Vaughn. Is he being held in another room?"
"He was trapped behind the security doors when the Mueller device exploded and flooded the lab. I tried to save him, but I couldn't get the doors open once they sealed! Dixon, we can't leave without him."
"Syd," said Dixon looking grim. "If what you say is true, he's probably dead. We can't waste time searching the building for a man who's beyond our help. We have to get out of here now!"
"I don't care!" Sydney exclaimed, grabbing him by the arm. "I need to know if Vaughn got out. I need to know if he survived. Dixon, please, please, help me find him. I can't leave without him."
Her grip was like steel, but her eyes pleaded with him. Dixon gazed at his partner and sighed.
"Okay," he replied, conceding, against his better judgment. "We have to go through the main part of the building in order to get to the north entrance, anyway. Here, take this gun. We'll search as we go along, but if we don't find him before we reach the north entrance, we can't go back inside. You understand?"
Sydney nodded. She took the gun Dixon handed to her and cocked it. "Let's go."
***
Vaughn heard footsteps and pressed himself against the wall, with his gun extended, waiting for the inevitable. There were clearly two guards by the sound of it, and there was only one bullet left in his gun. He barely had enough energy to stand, much less the energy required for hand-to-hand combat or an extended gun fight. What a stupid way to die. Drowning would have made more sense then dying in this hallway, knowing Sydney was in danger somewhere in this building, and he had failed to reach her.
Dixon rounded the corner first and immediately trained his gun at the figure he saw there.
"Dixon, it's Vaughn! Don't shoot!" Sydney cried, running forward.
Vaughn spotted Dixon first, and seeing him lower his gun, he shut his eyes, and slumped against the wall. It didn't occur to him to wonder at Dixon's sudden appearance or question why he would lower his gun. Instead, relief washed over him at not having to fight yet another guard in his weakened condition. However, his lids fluttered slightly at the sound of Sydney's voice, and he glimpsed her briefly through the fringe of his eyelashes.
That was all he needed. In an instant, a last surge of adrenaline coursed through his body, giving him enough energy to get up, drop the gun and take the remaining steps between them. She collided with him so forcefully, he almost fell backwards from the impact. Ignoring the pain in his ribs, he crushed her fiercely to his chest, then suddenly pushed her away, just far enough to see her face.
"Sydney, Oh, my God, Sydney!" His voice was hoarse from all the water he had swallowed and husky with emotion. His hands clasped her face now, searching her eyes, trying to take in the fact that she really was standing before him. He watched as disbelief, then joy, and finally a ghostly, residual sense of panic played across her face, as she relived the horror of their parting.
"Vaughn! Your face! Seeing your face through that window! I thought I'd lost you. I thought you were gone. It didn't seem possible I could lose you. Not here. Not now. Not this way."
She couldn't stop herself. She was sobbing now, and yet the words kept fighting their way out of her, despite her gasps for air. As one hand gripped his jacket, the other flew up to caress his cheek. She felt the stubble beneath her fingers, and looked up into Vaughn's dark green eyes. The depth of emotion she found there took her breath away.
Now it was she who was drowning. Gently, Vaughn drew her back into his arms, and she buried her head in his chest, completely overcome at the idea of just how close they had come to being parted forever.
There wasn't a single bone or muscle in Vaughn's body that wasn't aching or throbbing painfully. He had never felt so physically exhausted in his life or so blissfully happy. Sydney was in his arms and that was all that mattered. Vaughn closed his eyes and rested his cheek on her hair.
"Shhh" he murmured, holding her close. "Ne pleure pas. Ça va aller. On est ensemble, mon amour. Je suis là. Ne pleure pas. Je t'aime," he whispered, kissing her hair, as her sobs receded. *
He had slipped into French without thinking, only now realizing what he had said, but unwilling to take it back- life was too precarious, he thought, and every moment with Syd was precious. He couldn't afford to waste any more time thinking about protocol or what the CIA may deem "appropriate" interaction among agents.
"Je t'aime," he repeated softly, brushing a wisp of hair from her cheek. His heart skipped a beat as Sydney raised her head and gazed up at him, her eyes suffused with wonder...
Dixon had purposely adverted his eyes from Sydney and Vaughn's embrace, as he kept a look out for guards, but now he cleared his throat and approached the couple. He laid a hand on Sydney's shoulder and said, "Syd, we gotta go. I don't like how quiet this place seems. There should be more guards around. Something's not right. Let's find your father."
Sydney nodded. Dixon looked at Vaughn inquiringly, but formal introductions would have to wait. Vaughn let his arms fall, and Sydney stepped out of his embrace. Just as all three turned to go, Jack and Will rounded the corner towards them.
------------
* The French translation is available in Ch. 4. Read on!!