A Face from the Past Part 4 2pm3pm

by Little Si

More action and more suspense as the story continues. Be sure to read the prologue along with parts 1-3 first!

The following takes place
between 2pm and 3pm.....

Events occur in real time.....

2:00

Jack and Baker are still engaged in a fierce gun-battle with the 3 mercenaries, who desperately go for cover. One of them radios the back-up team and frantically asks for their ETA. The men inform him that they are almost there. With Baker covering him, Jack breaks cover and makes for a series of barrels and crates positioned just in front of the mercenaries. He reaches it, just as a series of hits clip the wood and send shrapnel high into the air. Baker is meanwhile shielding himself behind a warehouse, pinned down by two men with Uzi's. He looses off a series of shots in their direction, as Jack reloads and opens fire on the men, hitting one of Baker's attackers. The man screams and drops his Uzi, clutching his stomach in pain...... Dean, who can hear the firefight going on, stops alongside a small porta-cabin and gently releases the wounded man he is carrying. He contacts Paul on his cellphone urgently. Once Slater is through, he explains that they've been double-crossed and that Gutierrez had men waiting for them, they are currently trying to fight their way out. They've already lost 3 men in the ambush, as well as 2 of his shooters, and his second in command is severely wounded. Mayersberg is understandably annoyed, Slater was already on thin ice and this seems to have cracked it. Paul made it clear at the bungalow that any further setbacks were unacceptable, the terrorists should have been kept under control. Dean obviously did not do enough to enforce this. Slater angrily tells him that they placed a tracker on the man they sent with Gutierrez, but apparently he found it. Paul points out that in that case, he should have been a lot more careful. It is not just his ass on the line here. Dean demands that he back off, Paul was the one who wanted to comply with the terrorists, he warned him it was a bad idea and now look what's happened. Mayersberg says that he is simply following orders, something Dean clearly can't do very well. If he can't clear this up now and get those files, Paul's employers will take action and he will never see a cent of the money. They will find someone else to take over. Dean promises to get the files as agreed and hangs up, just as a bullet ricochets off the wall next to him, Gutierrez's men have caught up. Slater grabs the wounded man and takes off.... Humberto, by now, has climbed down from the rooftops and is racing between the buildings at the dockyard. He stops and spots the gunfight between Bauer and the mercenaries up ahead. He can also see reinforcements headed their way, in the form of two large vans. He decides to run..... Still locked in a shootout, Jack also clocks the vans and shouts over to Baker, warning him that they are en route. The mercenaries, still firing, start to make their way toward the approaching vehicles, as Slater comes up behind them. He warns them that the terrorists are not far behind, and ducks away from Bauer's shots. Dean believes that more of Gutierrez's men are the source of the gunfire, until he is told that it is Jack! Slater is pissed and takes one of his men's automatic weapons, telling them to go, and take the wounded man. He says he will cover them and starts to fire on Jack's position.... Jack stays down as Baker tries to fire, the other mercenaries forcing him back behind the safety of the warehouse. The two of them make a break for the vans, with one firing heavily, and the other just behind him carrying the wounded soldier. Dean keeps Jack at bay.... Unseen to Baker, one of the mercenaries reaches the mass of buildings adjacent to the one he is using for cover and makes his way in between them....

2:03

Gutierrez's men watch from behind cover as the firefight continues. They are about to ambush the mercenaries, when the remaining 3 shooters from the rooftops come from nowhere and begin shooting at the terrorists. They are now on the ground and push forward towards them, barraging them with automatic weapon fire..... Elsewhere, the vans finally arrive, pulling up in a large open area of the dockyard next to the water. 5 more men pile out to help Slater and one of the drivers radios Dean to let him know they are in position.... Slater is busy taunting Jack from his spot behind a large freight container. He says that if he couldn't stop him all those years ago, he hasn't got a hope in hell now. Jack listens, fuming, and then nods to Baker. Agent Baker advances on Dean, loosing shots in his direction to force him back. With Slater distracted, Jack makes his move..... He sprints quickly across the open ground towards him, keeping low and firing. Dean moves as Jack dives behind a forklift truck, a mere few metres from the container. Slater sees his other men have now safely made it away from the area and decides to go for the vans. He fires a series of short bursts in Jack's direction and then heads for the parked vehicles. Baker quickly reloads as Slater runs toward his back-up. He fires, but Dean is too fast and slips into the maze of buildings unscathed..... Jack turns to look for Baker, who is now beginning to stand, failing to notice a mercenary step out from behind the warehouse he was using for cover only seconds ago. Jack calls for the agent to duck just as the man pulls the trigger of his gun. Baker goes down, two shots striking him in the back, as Jack shoots the assailant dead. He hurries over to help him, but it doesn't look good. He is hurt bad. Suddenly, Jack's phone rings.....

Counter Terrorist Unit:

Tony is on the line from CTU, asking what Jack's status is now. Jack has no choice but to tell him they were forced to move in. Gutierrez betrayed the mercenaries, he killed Humser and is now trying to kill them. Slater is making a run for it and this could be Jack's only chance to get him. Tony informs him that back-up is only seconds away, he needs to hold on just a little longer. It is then Jack reveals that Baker has been badly injured, he'll need an emergency medical team within the next few minutes or he could die. Tony assures him it will be taken care of. Jack hangs up and immediately attends to the wounded agent. He tears a piece of fabric from his clothing and tells him to apply pressure to his wounds. Baker orders him to stop the mercenaries but Jack is cautious about leaving him behind. Baker is certain he will be fine and orders Bauer to go.....

2:05

Gutierrez exits the boarded up nightclub, and heads for a parked car along with Pedro and one other. His phone starts to ring, it is his men from the dock. The leader warns Gutierrez that the mercenaries have dug in hard and are putting up a heavy resistance, they've lost a lot of men already. As he speaks, another goes down, the shooters have taken up positions all around the terrorists, backing them into a corner. The man stays low as he talks, unable to see one of the shooters change position......BANG! Before he can finish his call, there is a shot and Gutierrez's line goes dead..... Back at the dock, Slater's men converge on the terrorist's, the last of them bolts as they make their way toward him. The men fire but he manages to get away. They radio Dean as he reaches the vans, to let him know they took care of Gutierrez's men. However, the last of them has fled. Dean orders them back to the vans now.... Meanwhile, Gutierrez's last man is running in a panic in between the warehouses, still carrying his MP5 assault rifle. As he passes by a small alleyway, he spots something move in the corner of his eye and turns, just as Jack hurries out of the shadows and shoots him twice in the chest, emptying his gun. He takes the MP5 and heads for the vans.... Slater makes to step into the passenger seat of the lead vehicle, whilst the driver helps the wounded man scramble into the back. Dean begins to hear the sound of approaching rotor blades, and stops to look up. He immediately sees the CTU helicopter headed his way and orders his men to take it down. They open fire, the driver dropping the wounded mercenary in an effort to protect himself.... Inside the helo, Alex and the other agents are stunned by the sudden gunfire, and clock the mercenaries not far ahead of them. Alex leans out of the side of the chopper and starts to fire back. He shoots two men dead as the helicopter sweeps over the parked vehicles, and turns to make another pass.... Slater orders everyone to get on the vans and to get out of there now. However, before the 5 of them can comply, two of them are ripped apart by Jack's rifle, and the window of Dean's van shatters. Slater tries to use the other side of the vehicle as cover while his men return fire, attempting to do the same with the other van. Jack takes another one down as he goes, shortly before Alex returns in the helo for another sweep. Together, they shoot the remaining two men. Dean is left alone with his wounded second in command and the driver, ducked behind the lead van. Jack makes his way cautiously out into the open and steps toward the vehicle. He calls out to Dean, begging him to give himself up now. The driver makes a last ditch effort to escape and reveals himself from behind the van. Jack shoots him dead easily. Slater is alone now. He can see the helicopter is on it's way, and shouts back at Jack, telling him that he hasn't stopped anything. The people he works for he will get around this, he can do nothing to halt their plans. Jack edges closer, the helicopter now hovering overhead. Finally, Dean can see there is nowhere to go, and throws out his weapon. Jack orders him to stand, and he complies, staring coldly into Bauer's eyes. Jack shouts angrily for him to raise his hands. He then calmly walks over to him, and punches him hard in the face! Alex's helo lands alongside the vans, and the CTU field team jump out. Alex orders them to secure the area and heads over to Jack, who is busy cuffing Slater. Dean sees Alex and begins to curse him, telling him he will pay for everything and desperately trying to lash out, despite Jack's efforts to restrain him. Alex looks at him coldly and Jack can see there is something between them, but for the moment lets it slide. He pulls Dean away from his partner, shouting for him to shut up. Alex watches them go, as another chopper flies overhead....

2:07. Counter Terrorist Unit.

Chappelle and Tony patch into the field team's comm frequency through Russell's phone, and listen as Jack briefs them. Their agents are locking the dockyard down now and they have Slater in custody. Tony informs him that the LAPD are already in the process of setting up a hard perimeter around the site, and Jack makes it clear that although the remainder of the mercenaries were killed, Gutierrez's men have not yet been caught. Tony is confident it will be taken care of. As soon as they got the dockyard's location off of the phone triangulation, he had Division obtain the authority to reroute the nearest satellite into a position right on top of them. Hopefully, anyone who escaped will have been captured on camera. Russell goes to set about downloading the images.... Before the call ends, Chappelle chastises Jack for letting things get this out of hand. In the last 3 hours they've had to account for several incidents across the city, all involving CTU. First, there was the gun- battle at the warehouse, then they had to shut down a parking garage, an apartment building, and now the dockyard. On top of that, dead bodies are popping up everywhere, including that of a civilian who was taken hostage and later executed. If they're worried about discretion this is certainly not the way to go about it. Division want answers and so far he can offer them nothing as consolation. They are not going to tolerate this reckless behaviour for much longer. Jack, frustrated, insists that they are making good progress. They have Dean and will begin an interrogation soon. Besides, this is no longer just a CTU investigation, since the revelations of the President just under an hour ago, this thing has become a nationwide case. Chappelle claims that that is exactly why he is worried. He does not want to screw this thing up. Jack assures him they will get the people behind this and secure the files. Reluctantly, Ryan concedes, and hangs up, giving Jack another 2 hours to make some significant headway. He then turns to Tony and requests that he be kept updated of everything that comes in the moment it happens....

2:08

Gutierrez is now travelling, along with Pedro and the other man from the club. He looks restless. Pedro nervously looks over to him, asking about the men they sent to the docks. Gutierrez admits that they are probably all dead. As this sinks in, the terrorist's phone rings. It is the man he spoke to earlier about the bomb, who says it is nearing completion. They should be ready to move forward within the hour. As the man is talking, someone behind him is setting up a complicated array of monitors and wires: an American. They are currently standing in the basement of a very worn-down shop. The upstairs has been empty for a while now. In front of the man talking, is another who is busy working carefully on a large explosive device, complete with a digital timer. The man on the phone eyes up the one in the corner with the computers, and tells Gutierrez that Nestor sent over the guy he asked for. The terrorist is pleased, and estimates that he will be there soon. He also makes sure that the man keeps his eyes peeled, as they have a lot of heat coming their way today. Gutierrez then asks to be put on the line with the computer guy, who takes the phone, identifying himself as Reese. Gutierrez asks him how long it will take to decode the files, to which he replies that until he can see the type of encryption they have he can't say for sure. However, he believes it could take up to 3 hours. Gutierrez tells him that he must do it quickly, his buyers won't wait around forever. Reese tells him not to worry, he will deliver. Nestor didn't recommend him for no reason. He's had a lot of experience with this kind of thing, back when he handled data for the FBI. Gutierrez hangs up and Reese takes the CD from the case, now ready to go. As his computer finishes loading, he inserts it into the disc drive..... Back on the road, Gutierrez informs Pedro that they have begun decrypting the files, but he is suspicious of the American. How do they know they can trust him? Gutierrez is confident that if Nestor vouches for him, then they can. Pedro pauses, before questioning the man's background. All his boss can tell him is that he used to be a freelance technician for the FBI, despite holding some strong political views in regards to the government, which he kept mostly suppressed. Eventually, they offered him a job once they realised how skilled he was. However, a member of a small group of political extremists had already made contact with him and gradually built on his opinions. He managed to convince him to agree to trade information for a hefty sum. Reese was found out after a couple of months, before he could gain access to anything too serious, and went on the run. He has been in hiding ever since, offering his services to whoever would buy it. Nestor has worked with him a couple of times now and is sure that if anyone can access this data, he can. Just then, Gutierrez's phone goes again, it is Humberto! He tells the terrorist that he has just left the dockyard and that as far as he knows the rest of the men were killed and the place is now crawling with cops. Gutierrez orders him to make sure that he is not being followed and to head for Carlos' place.....

2:09

Paul is on the phone with his Arabic employers, trying to explain what has been happening. They question whether they should of even given him the assignment to start with, especially something of this importance. They had been told he was good at this sort of thing, obviously they were wrong. Paul reminds them that Dean was not his first choice, the man had a bad history, but their associate had assured him Slater's team could handle it. Before they can respond to this, Paul's cellphone rings. He brushes off his employers, promising to sort this out, and takes the other call. It is one of Dean's shooters, who is hiding out at the dockyard. He tells Paul that the mercenaries are all dead, only Slater remains and CTU currently has him in custody. Mayersberg asks if the shooter is able to get out, but he believes his chances are slim at best. He asks Paul what he should do, his boss thinks, then asks if Jack Bauer is there. The shooter says he is.....

2:10. Washington DC.

Wayne is on the line with CTU from Palmer's office. He thanks Tony for the update and hangs up. The President asks what's going on and is told that they managed to get a location on where the exchange for the files was supposed to go down. However, Gutierrez betrayed the mercenaries and ambushed them instead. The other terrorist Humser was killed in the attack, and, although Dean's men managed to fight their way through them, CTU was able to intercept them before they could escape. Now, they still don't have the files, but they do have Dean Slater in custody and Jack Bauer is preparing to speak to him. Agent Almeida has agreed to keep them up to date with what happens. The President takes all this in.....

Over at the dockyard, Baker is wheeled towards a waiting ambulance on a stretcher. He is quite pale and has an oxygen mask on to aid his breathing. Jack asks one of the agents if he is going to be ok, and he tells him that the medics believe he has a 50/50 shot. They will do everything they can to help. Jack thanks the agent and looks over to Alex, who is coordinating the sweep of the dockyard. They have found the bodies of Gutierrez's men and Alex orders them to set to work on ID'ing the dead terrorists, to see if it will give them any leads. He then walks over to Jack to check on Baker. Jack tells him it is unclear yet whether the man will make it or not. Alex pauses, watching over Jack's shoulder as two agents keep an eye on Dean Slater, who has been propped up against the wall of a building. He tells Jack they should probably speak to him now and makes to head over, but his partner stops him. Alex asks him what's going on: "Before we do anything, you tell me: what is the history between you and Slater?" 'What do you mean?" "Come on Alex, It's obvious he's pissed at you for some reason, now tell me, what is it?" "It doesn't matter Jack, it's in the past." "Are you sure about that?" Alex looks at him steadfast. "Yes." Jack pauses before finally relenting. "Fine. Let's go talk to him." They head over to Slater, who watches them approach.

2:11

Dean stares straight at Jack, letting him know that an interrogation is pointless. Jack knows as well as he does that he won't break, they received the same training at resisting torture while they were in Delta. Even if he did eventually crack, it would be too late. If he wants Slater's information, all he can do is receive it on his terms. Jack is quick to assert that that is not going to happen, to which Dean responds that in that case they are wasting each other's time. He will not talk. Jack leans in, whispering that everyone has a breaking point, and no matter what he will find out what Slater knows. Besides, he believes Dean is weak. This seems to get a rise out of Slater, and Jack goes on to say that his only motivation is money. He doesn't have anything to hold on to, no cause, nothing. It was his weakness that made him an easy target for the enemy in the first place, they knew he would not be hard to compromise. Dean stops himself from getting angry, he tells Jack that he's been on the other side many times, he knows how these things work, and how to resist them. Jack asks: if he's so smart, how did he let Gutierrez betray him? Dean thinks about this as Bauer continues. He's an amateur, he let a bunch of gun-crazy terrorists outsmart him. That's why Jack's still standing, if Dean had had brains, he would've been able to kill him all those years ago. Slater tells Jack abruptly to piss off, he has the upper hand here because he has what everyone else needs, and that's all that matters. Jack can talk all he wants, he will get no closer to his goal. Besides, the clock is ticking. Jack asks him what that means but he ignores him and looks to Alex. He asks him outright if he enjoyed killing his sister, if it helped to relieve the pain of his betrayal at all. Alex insists that it was an accident but Slater continues to grill him, telling him that he can keep lieing to himself if it'll make him feel better, but the cold hard truth is that he shot a civilian. Alex snaps and grabs Slater by the throat, telling him that if he doesn't reveal everything he knows he will make him suffer, and it will be a lot worse than anything he thought he could do to him. Jack pulls his partner back and forces him roughly away from Dean. He demands to know right now what happened. Alex tells him that after Jack left the team, he was assigned to tracking down Slater, along with his conspirators. He eventually uncovered a series of recent communications between Dean and his sister Brigitte, who lived in London. It was believed that that was where they would find Slater. He and some men liaised with a team of MI6 agents to try and track the pair down. Eventually, they found Brigitte, who had set up a meeting with Dean in the next couple of days. She had no idea what he'd done and was heartbroken when Alex told her. He finally coerced her into going ahead with the meeting, to act as bait to draw Dean into the open. However, the mission went bad. MI6 had screwed up and Slater found out about the op. He sent two guys to grab his sister and take her away. There was a firefight and, in the confusion, Alex shot Brigitte. It was dark and she had taken a gun from one of the dead men because she was scared. He had mistaken her for a hostile and pulled the trigger. After that, he took off after Dean's men, leaving her to die...slowly. Before hand he had assured her she would be fine, he had convinced her to go through with it....and then he had killed her. Jack tells him he is sorry. He is going to have to talk to Dean alone from now on. Alex understands and walks off......

2:13

Jack heads back to Slater and asks him what he meant before about them being against the clock. Dean smiles, he must know by now. Gutierrez, along with the people he works with, were planning a bombing in LA. Now the terrorist is free, he will almost certainly go through with it. Jack asks for a target, and Slater scoffs. All he will say now is that they are running out of time, and their best move now is to do as he asks if they want a hope of stopping this attack. Jack looks hard into his eyes. He is about to say something else when, all of a sudden, a shot rings out.....Boom! The bullet rips through Slater's skull, killing him instantly. Jack and the surrounding agents react, dropping to the floor with their weapons raised, scanning the rooftops. Jack gets on the radio straight away: "All teams this is Bauer, Dean has been shot, I repeat Dean has been shot. We have a shooter somewhere at the docks, I want you to initiate a sweep now!" He finishes. "DAMMIT!"

2:13:48 2:13:49 2:13:50.......

2:17:41 2:17:42 2:17:43 2:17:44.......

Over at the dockyard, the shooter who spoke to Paul earlier, reaches the ground having clambered down a ladder from his perch on top of a warehouse. Rifle in hand, he heads for the next building but is forced to stop abruptly when a CTU car pulls up in front of him. The shooter rapidly turns round, and sprints in the opposite direction, hoping to lose the agents amongst the throng of warehouses and other small buildings at the dockyard. The agents reverse quickly, and drive around the large building, hoping to cut him off. As they go, the passenger radios Jack and Alex, who are busy sweeping the area in a large black Humvee. He tells him they have the shooter, he is on the run and just left warehouse C6. Jack speeds off to intercept him..... The shooter hears a helicopter flying over head and starts to panic, it is becoming more and more apparent that he will not make it out of this. He reaches the edge of one of the offices, and spots more CTU vehicles headed his way. With no options left, he sets his gun to fully automatic and opens fire. The bullets splinter the windshield of the lead car, which spins wildly out of control, nearly crashing. The other agents stop their vehicles and get out, guns raised. The shooter runs over to the next warehouse and uses it for cover. He reaches the other side and spots Jack's hummer headed straight for him. The man goes for another stray freight container, which has been placed near a crane, ready to be loaded, and takes cover. Jack pulls over and jumps out, just as the shooter opens fire on him and Alex. The pair duck as more agents start to arrive, ordering their snipers to get into position. The CTU helo flies overhead. Jack makes it clear to his agents that with Dean now dead, they need this guy alive. The shooter cowers once more behind the container as Jack approaches cautiously, gun in hand. Alex and the others back him up. Jack orders the man to give himself up now, it is not too late, he can still get out of this thing. All he wants is the name of the person who ordered Dean to be killed, and then he'll let him walk, no questions asked. The shooter clearly doesn't believe him and readies his weapon. Jack tries again: the man is running out of options, if he tries to run he will be killed, he has to give up now. Unseen to either of them, a CTU sniper is now in a position to take out the shooter. Jack's earpiece crackles and the sniper whispers that he has a clear shot. He quietly orders the man to stand down, they cannot afford to lose this guy. The sniper is a little more cautious but Jack orders him once again to hold. He agrees. Jack tells the shooter he has 10 seconds to make a decision, he is now completely surrounded. The cowering mercenary has no idea what to do, he knows he can't give himself up. Jack appeals to him again: "Come on! Give yourself up and we can help you. You've got nowhere left to go." The shooter makes his decision, he breaks cover and raises his gun....Jack hits the deck as the sniper shoots the man three times, he goes down. Jack is pissed off: "Dammit, what are you doing?! I told you no shooting!" Jack and the others advance and check the body, but the shooter is already dead. They have lost their only lead. Alex looks to Jack: "What do we do now?".......

2:18 In his office, Paul Mayersberg and his assistant are busy scrolling through a series of computer files. The assistant begins to show his boss a number of bank accounts they managed to hack into that are allegedly linked to Gutierrez, but they are interrupted by the phone. Paul puts it on speaker. His head of security informs him that there is someone insisting to speak with him outside. His name is Tom Garrett and he claims to be a member of Mark Lawrence's militia. Paul brings up the security feed from outside the office on his computer and studies this man Garrett carefully. He eventually orders his men to search him for weapons and then let him in. The assistant believes this is not a wise move to make but Paul tells him it will be fine. As ordered, his men search Garrett and remove a pistol from his waistband. They lead him into the office and stand ready behind him. Garrett looks at Paul for a second and then tells him outright that he doesn't need to hide behind all this security. Mayersberg smiles, and says that it makes him a lot more comfortable doing things this way. It's worked so far after all. He then asks the soldier to tell him again who he is exactly. Garrett repeats his name and that he is a member of the militia set up by Mark Lawrence, the same militia that were following Gutierrez's people for Slater, as well as responsible for getting hold of the explosives needed to bomb the hospital. Paul is suspicious, he thought that the militia had all been caught or killed in CTU's raid that afternoon, but Garrett asserts that he wasn't there. He was busy watching the apartment building of a man they discovered had been working closely with Gutierrez. It turned out that this is where the files were being kept, but when he went in to secure them, they had already been moved and he narrowly avoided CTU yet again. Paul thinks about this, and then asks why he came here. Garrett reminds him that most of his people are either dead or in government custody, and he is a fugitive from the law. He wants safe haven and knows Paul can provide it. Mayersberg asks why he thinks he would do this and Garrett points out that he can be a big help to him. He was one of the key people responsible for collating data on Gutierrez and his brother. Paul finally informs Garrett that the mercenaries are all dead, the terrorists betrayed them and made off with the files. This comes as a shock to Garrett, and Paul asks if there's anyway he can help to locate Gutierrez before he leaves the country. The soldier admits that a lot of his data was seized by CTU, so there is very little information he can access. However, he still has people watching some of Gutierrez's known hideouts, as well as the regular haunts of some of his associates. He assures Paul that if the terrorist makes contact with any of these people he will know. He can also have the search widened if necessary, although it will take time. Mayersberg believes that on it's own this will not be enough. At the moment, all they know is that Gutierrez will most likely try and continue with the bombing on his own, therefore in order to find him, they need to know where he can get access to the explosives needed and work back from there. Garrett promises to look into it right away, but in order to do so effectively, he will need a lot more men. Paul looks to his assistant, then writes down an address on a scrap of paper and hands it to Garrett. He tells him to go there and then he will get the resources he needs. The soldier looks at the address, confident he can find it. He checks with Paul that after this he will be taken care of, and Mayersberg assures him he will be. Garrett is a little wary of this but decides to go along with the man. He leaves.....

2:19

As the shooter is loaded into a body-bag, Jack puts a call through to CTU. Alex listens in as he speaks. Tony answers, and Jack informs him that Dean Slater was shot and killed by a sniper at the docks not long ago. Tony is taken aback and asks if they have managed to catch the shooter yet, Jack regretfully informs him that unfortunately while they were attempting to catch him, one of their agents was forced to open fire. The man's dead, which means they've lost any chance of finding these files unless they can locate Gutierrez. Slater was also able to confirm before he died that the terrorist is planning an attack in LA and that they don't have a lot of time before it is carried out. Jack is desperate for leads and asks Tony if he has anything at all to go on. Tony tells him that all they've ascertained so far is that Gutierrez was dropped off by the mercenaries somewhere between the dockyard and the address they gave him earlier from the phone triangulation. It was a small bungalow near-by and they have agents headed over there now. Russell is currently using reverse time satellite to try and find out when Slater and Gutierrez first separated. He is also monitoring the terrorist's bank account which shows receipt of a transfer to the value of a million dollars at around 1:55. They are hoping to trace the terrorist if and when he attempts to access the account in order to either check or move the funds. They've also received police reports of a body that was discovered about 10 minutes ago in a dumpster, complete with a working transmitter. The body belonged to one of the mercenaries they had ID'd back at the warehouse. One other lead they have came from the satellite images that were taken over the docks. They show a vehicle speeding away from the area at approximately 2:05, right before CTU arrived to lockdown the area. Although they were unable to get a full licence plate, they've sent a description of the car to all units in the area. Jack asks about the men they have in custody but Tony says they are still refusing to talk. It could take a while to break them, all these men have been trained to resist torture. One, Jake Hunt, a mercenary they arrested at the church, seems to be the most promising lead but he too is keeping his mouth shut. According to his file, he used to work with Dean a lot and most of those incidents are full of gaps, which require DOD clearance. Jack is getting impatient, they need something to go on if this attack really is going down as soon as Dean suggested. Tony is apologetic but so far that's all they have. He asks what they found at the dockyard and Jack says that like the parking garage, the CCTV in the office and around the site had been disabled. They are in the process of ID'ing the terrorists now but it is unlikely this will help much with the investigation. They did seize a laptop belonging to one of the mercenaries, and are going through it now. So far it's produced nothing helpful. Jack continues by informing Tony that the shooter who killed Dean was in fact one of the mercenaries, which leads him to believe that the person who ordered him dead is the same guy that hired the team in the first place. He didn't want him talking to CTU. This makes finding him, along with Gutierrez, essential, as it is likely he has the intel they need. Jack knows that the CIA have been tracking Lawrence up till a couple of weeks ago, and asks Tony to get in touch with them and get a list of his movements over the last few months. They can cross-check these with the surveillance data compiled both by them and the militia on Gutierrez and his people, including Alvaro. Hopefully, they'll find a connection which could lead them to the employer. Tony makes a note of this and says he will get Michelle on it right away. He also expects the President to get back to him pretty soon about accessing Slater's file which so far has been difficult to do. Once inside, it could help them a lot in tracking the people he's worked with in the past. Tony finishes, as Russell comes over and asks to speak to the two of them. Tony puts the phone on speaker so Jack can hear and tells him to go ahead. Russell tells them that they traced the explosives they found at the militia's base of operations, which matched the powder residue they got at the warehouse. It led back to a military transport that was hijacked just outside of LA two months ago. The driver of the transport who later disappeared was David Breeson, the man Tony arrested earlier. No sooner has he told them this, when the phone at his station begins to ring. He goes to answer as Jack finishes with Tony. He asks him to call as soon as he gets anything, he and Alex will finish up at the dockyard and then head over to CTU where Hunt is being held. He wants all information on the man prepared so they can start the interrogation as soon as they arrive. Tony says he will start working up the potential leads Jack gave him and goes to hang up. Before he does, Russell comes back and alerts him that Milo may have found a significant lead on the files he is trying to decode. Tony patches Jack in on the call, and switches to line 3 where Milo is waiting. He outlines to them what he has found: it is a name: Nestor Almendro. This immediately rings a bell with Jack, who says he recognises it from the names of contacts he compiled during the investigation. Milo ran a background check, the man has dealt with Gutierrez on and off for the last three years. He controls a lot of his smuggling routes in and out of the US and allegedly has a long history with Diaz, the man from the apartment. They originally entered the drug trafficking business about 6 or 7 years ago before they crossed paths with Gutierrez. As well as smuggling coke and weapons for him, as a means of financing his other illegal activities, they also helped sneak criminals across the border a few times. He used to operate out of Colombia, handling the recruitment side of things for Gutierrez's rebel group down there, before his base was raided by US forces. He is believed to have fled to the US since then. However, before he left, he had already established a connection to several military figures through corrupt Colombian officials in the region. This gave him access to military weapons and, potentially, a large amount of explosives. If Gutierrez has planned an attack, it is likely he is involved. The only bank account the government has been able to link to him directly, shows a series of large deposits that seem to have come from Gutierrez for similar services - including providing the explosives needed for the terrorist's suicide attack on the subway station last year. He is slippery as he has only been caught once, and at the time there was not enough evidence to convict him. The militia had compiled a lot of information on the man so he was obviously important, they seem to think he got the files in and out of the city. The one thing they never had though, was a location. After scanning the CTU computer systems however, Milo managed to get a list of several suspected addresses, one right here in Los Angeles. He and Gutierrez were definitely close, so if he is in on this attack, it is more than likely he'll be there. Jack is pleased and asks for the details so he and Alex can head over there. Milo gives it to him and Tony warns him to be careful. Jack says he will be, before congratulating Milo on the good work. He asks to be told if anything new comes in and hangs up. Jack gives Alex a quick summary of what he was told and heads for his car. Alex believes this to be a pretty weak hunch, they don't know if Nestor will even be there, let alone if he is involved. Jack insists it is all they have to go on and gets in the driver's seat. Alex pauses before joining him and together they head for Nestor's place....

Counter Terrorist Unit:

As Tony goes through with Michelle the intel he needs her to check out for Jack, Russell heads over to let him know that the phone company have records of a series of phonecalls definitely being made from the address Milo provided in the last couple of days. Someone is there. Tony tells him to call Jack immediately with the news.....

2:22

The man responsible for supervising the construction of Gutierrez's bomb, exits the basement and heads into the closed down shop upstairs. He goes to the door, the glass on which has now been painted over, and peers through a crack in the paintwork. Gutierrez has arrived outside. The bomber unlocks the door and lets both him and Pedro inside, along with the other man from the club. He tells the terrorist that everything has been prepared and leads them back downstairs, where the bomb is nearing completion. One of Gutierrez's men is busy attaching the detonator to the main casing, which houses enough plastic explosive to take out the foundations of the hospital. Reese has begun work on the files over in the corner. Gutierrez looks at the bomb, a small smile creeping onto his face. He is impressed, they are really going to do this. He asks his man working on it if it will cause enough damage, to which he replies: "No-one in that building will make it out alive." The terrorist is pleased and turns his attention to Reese, who tells him that he should be able to crack the files in about an hour and a half or so. The software he has on his system wasn't quite enough to crack the code alone, so he's had to upload some additional material to help him read it. It's in process now. Gutierrez asks if it can be done any quicker, but Reese assures him that if it could then he'd already be doing it. The encryption is a very sophisticated one, a lot more complex than anything he handled for the feds. However, he is confident it can still be done. The terrorist leaves him to it. The bomber who answered the door is a little edgy and asks his boss if everything is going to be okay after all that's happened so far. Both CTU and the mercenaries are going to be working to track them down now, the window of oppurtunity for this attack to take place is only getting smaller. He adds that it may have been foolish to try and go through with it under the circumstances. Gutierrez is adamant that this mission is going to happen. He did not lose a year of his life to put this thing together, only to chicken out at the last minute. Besides, because of what's happened it is even more imperative that they push forward, the Americans need to pay. They lost two of their best today, and he is not about to let that be in vain. Those deaths will be repaid in full to the US government. The bomber is obviously a little frightened by the sincerity with which the terrorist utters these words and wisely decides to back down. Gutierrez tells him to just keep his eyes peeled, he will do the rest. Nestor is working on securing their exits from the country and when he is home again he will see to it that all of his men are rewarded greatly for their efforts. The bomber is a little more appeased by this and goes about his work.....

2:23

Across the street, on the second floor of a small office, three unidentified men are surveying the empty shop. One of them is checking through a series of digital photographs on his computer, which show Gutierrez entering the building. He confirms to the others that it is definitely the terrorist. They seem pleased and one of them goes to make a call.... On his way to the address Paul gave him, Garrett's phone rings. He answers to find the man from the office on the other end. He tells Garrett that they maintained their surveillance on Carlos' shop like he asked and spotted Gutierrez arriving less than two minutes ago. Garrett gets the man to confirm it was the terrorist, then tells him to prepare to go in. Once ready, they are to hold their position until he gets there. He's on his way to collect reinforcements now. The man agrees and hangs up. Garrett immediately dials another number... Paul Mayersberg is getting ready to leave with his assistant, who is carrying a small case. As he puts his jacket on, Garrett gets through to his office. Paul listens as the man explains that one of his leads has paid off. They have found Gutierrez, he and two others just entered a shop that some of his men had been watching. It was used by one of his dealers as a front up until a couple of months ago, a man named Carlos who he and Breeson had been keeping tabs on. Mayersberg is pleased and asks him to call him the second he arrives. Garrett agrees. Before he hangs up, Paul tells him that from now on he'll have to call him on his cell, as he's heading out of the office to follow up on a lead of his own. He also makes it clear that Gutierrez must not be hurt until they have the files. Garrett acknowledges this, and says he will head over to the shop once he has collected the extra men Paul provided.......

2:24

Tony hurriedly makes his way towards the IT room at CTU where Milo is currently working on the files from the militia. He heads inside and tells the man that Michelle had said he wanted to see him as soon as possible. Milo confirms this and shows his monitor to Tony. All it has is a date and a time: Monday 26th July, 4pm. This strikes a chord with Tony, that date is today. Milo tells him that he had managed to access a file pertaining to the explosives and the transport that was hijacked. Although a lot of it was still encoded, he managed to uncover a small section, which is what he is seeing now. Tony asks if that's all and Milo says it is. He also believes that there is a lot less data in this particular section than it looks like. Apparently, a lot of the information seems to be relatively meaningless junk code put in there to help conceal this date and time. Tony asks if he thinks this is pertaining to the attack and Milo admits he is not sure, however this file was embedded pretty deeply into the rest of the data, which means the militia had gone out of their way to conceal it, and with it were several references to the terrorists. Tony realises that this, combined with everything they have so far, and what Dean said to Jack at the docks, must be when the bombing is due to take place. He asks Milo to keep searching to see if he can find a potential target, names of buildings, landmarks in LA, anything that could hep them stop this attack. He assures him he will keep trying and Tony calls Michelle with the news. He also asks her to get someone to interrogate Breeson again, he obviously knows more than he's been letting on. She agrees and lets him know that the extra personnel they requested from Division have just arrived. Milo continues filtering through the information, when all of a sudden, an alert menu pops up and the reams of code begin to disappear. "Sonofabitch!" Tony hangs up the phone and asks him what happened. Milo tells him that some kind of worm was hidden in the files, and a command he entered must have triggered it. It is now wiping everything on the disc! Tony urges him to stop it and shouts for the other IT people to come and help......

2:25:50 2:25:51 2:25:52.....

2:29:57 2:29:58 2:29:59 2:30:00....

Inside an apartment somewhere in LA, a dark-skinned man is busy working under a desk lamp on a forged passport. He is carefully placing a picture of Gutierrez into the correct spot. Another person enters from the next room, this is Nestor. He asks the man if he is nearly done, to which he replies that he is. Nestor's cell-phone rings and he answers, it is Gutierrez. The terrorist is keen to know that they are making good progress, as the attack will take place exactly an hour and a half from now. Nestor assures him that everything is fine, their travel documents have been prepared and he has organised an exit route out of the country for him. He will need to leave by 4:30 at the latest. Gutierrez informs him that unfortunately some of his people will no longer be going, they were killed not long ago by the mercenaries. Nestor is a little shaken, but remains calm. The terrorist continues to say that he'll need to call his associates overseas and put them on standby, ready for his arrival. Once the hospital is taken out, he will not have very many places to hide, the US government are already working furiously to track him down. He will need to lie low for a while, and everything must be cleaned up after this operation. There can be no trace of him left behind in LA. It would perhaps be a good idea for Nestor to leave as well, at least for a few months to let the heat die down. Nestor agrees, and says he will start to dispose of any evidence he has that could lead back to Gutierrez. The terrorist thanks him and hangs up. Nestor looks to his partner, who is still working on the passport, and tells him they are leaving in 15 minutes. In the meantime, he has to get rid of all their records at the apartment. He goes back into the next room to take care of it......

Gutierrez watches Reese work, when he hears someone enter the shop upstairs. It is Humberto. The terrorist asks him if he is alright and he says he is fine. He was not followed. Gutierrez tells him they will be leaving soon, the bomb is almost ready and it won't be long before they have access to the files....

Inside their car en route to the address Milo gave them, Alex is busy examining a photo of Nestor that CTU has uploaded to the on-board computer. Jack tells him they should be there in the next couple of minutes. As they drive, Jack's cell rings and he turns on the hands free kit so Alex can listen in. It is Tony calling from CTU, to let them know what has happened with Milo. The virus embedded in the files successfully wiped a significant portion of the data he was working on, and most of what he salvaged seems to be pretty useless. He is still working on it however, in case they've missed something, but it's not looking good. This hits both Jack and Alex hard, they know that they were relying on these files for a lot of their intel. Jack asks Tony what Milo was looking at when the worm was triggered, and he pauses before answering. Eventually, he informs them both that he had uncovered a date and a time that was connected to both the terrorists and the explosives: 4pm today. Jack does not need to be told what this means. Tony confirms that the rest of CTU has come to the same conclusion. Jack then asks if he has had time to follow up any of the other leads they were working on, to which Tony admits that they've been moving a mile a minute here and are a little pushed as far as resources are concerned. Everyone over there has been trying to process at least 3 different things for the past hour or so. However, the extra personnel they requested from Division have arrived which should help to move things a little faster. DOD has also finally given them clearance to get into Slater's file and they are sifting through it now to see what they can find. Jack thanks him for the update and hangs up. Alex looks at him. If the information on those files is correct, they only have an hour and half to stop this bombing, and they're no closer to finding a target, or Gutierrez....

2:32 Garrett pulls up at the address given to him by Paul, where there is a black van waiting for him with 6 men inside: 2 drivers and 4 in the back. One of them gets out and approaches Garrett, confirming who he is and that their instructions are to help him track down Gutierrez. They are aware of his current location as Mayersberg called them about 5 minutes ago to let them know that Garrett's people had spotted him. Garrett tells them they need to head over there now, as they don't know how long the terrorist will remain at this address. The man agrees to follow him and heads back to the van.....

Nestor finishes deleting the files on his computer and, while it is shutting down, takes some papers from the desk and casts them into the wastepaper basket. He then throws in a match which sets them alight. In the other room, his partner has finished work on the passports and is placing a series of documents into a duffel bag on the floor. He takes a gun from a nearby drawer and tucks it into his waistband. Nestor tells him they are nearly ready to go and goes through to the bedroom to pack up his things. While he does this, his partner becomes aware of movement elsewhere in the apartment. He removes his gun and steps into the hallway facing the entrance to the room. Suddenly, an attacker leaps from one of the neighbouring doorways and tackles the man to the floor. At the same time, the door is kicked in and Paul, along with his assistant and two others, enter the apartment! Nestor hears the commotion outside and grabs a shotgun from the wardrobe.... His partner is dragged back into the room where he worked, still fighting against the assailant, cursing him constantly. Paul orders his men to shut the man up. As he does, Nestor bursts into the room and fires off a shotgun round, narrowly missing Paul as his assistant pushes him to the floor. One of the other men quickly draws his gun and shoots Nestor in the shoulder, forcing him to drop his weapon. Nestor's partner tries to make a run for it amid the chaos, but is shot dead by Paul, who orders his people to secure Nestor. They grab the man and force him into a chair, baring no regard for his wounded arm. Nestor screams as they tie his wrists to the arms of the chair and place him in the centre of the room. Paul shouts for him to be quiet and punches him in the face. Meanwhile, his assistant calmly opens up the small case he brought with him. Mayersberg looks hard into Nestor's eyes, forcing him to look back. He tells him that he has come here for the files, that's it. Once he knows where they are he will let the man go. Nestor weakly tells him he is not about to say anything, which angers Paul. He lets the man know that they already have a location on Gutierrez, so whether he talks or not the terrorist will die, but he can still save himself. Nestor insists that he does not know a Gutierrez and Paul laughs. "What then, is this?" He holds up a a bank statement which clearly shows a long history of dealings between the two men. Once they had these, he claims, it wasn't long before his employers were able to backtrace the account to this address. There is no point trying to lie....Nestor says nothing. "Fine, have it your way." Paul steps aside as his assistant comes forward with a syringe prepared from the contents of the case. Mayersberg tells Nestor that this chemical is very unique. It is a vast improvement on the so-called 'truth serum' - "Sodium Pentathol." As well as reducing your inhibitions, this drug, given time, will actually successfully remove all elements of self control within the host. Thus, defeating his ability to lie to, or deceive, an interrogator. In a few minutes, Nestor will tell him everything he needs to know, whether he wants to or not. The only disadvantage of the drug is it has some rather nasty side effects, in some cases causing permanent brain damage. It is so bad, even the military are afraid to use it. The senate demanded it be destroyed mere weeks after it was put into circulation. It was ruled as barbaric and inhumane, after it transpired that unwitting test subjects had suffered severe illnesses as a result of an increased dosage. Paul claims it was such a shame, such a clever little invention. Lucky for him it's makers knew better than to dispose of something so valuable. As such, it is still used today in some circles of the military, by those that have escaped the watching eyes of the government. He was so pleased when his employers got ahold of it. Nestor tries to break free as the assistant walks slowly behind him: "No, please, noooo!" "Don't worry Nestor, the side-effects won't kick in for a good 6 hours or so. We've got plenty of time..." The man grabs his neck and jams in the syringe, Paul watches and smiles.....

2:34

Outside, Jack and Alex are almost at the apartment. In the parking lot, a lone man stands guard by Paul's car. His boss contacts him over the radio to let him know they are inside, and to ensure he keeps an eye out. "Copy that." As he talks, Jack and Alex pass by the entrance, both clocking him straight away. Immediately suspicious, Jack keeps driving past and turns the corner up ahead......

Back inside, Nestor grits his teeth as he feels the drug starting to take effect. He is beginning to feel a little groggy. Paul watches: "It won't be long now Nestor." Just then, one of his men approaches to let him know that these guys must have been preparing to leave, the files on his computer have been erased and any paperwork burned. Mayersberg orders him to keep searching and turns back to Nestor. "You planning to go somewhere my friend?" Nestor looks down at the floor, avoiding eye contact and feebly muttering the word "Bastard."

The guard outside continues to scan the area cautiously, well aware that if they could find this guy, so could CTU. Satisfied there is no-one around, he begins to relax a little and take out a cigarette. Suddenly, Jack leaps out from the shadows and brings his pistol down hard on the back of the man's head, knocking him to the ground unconscious. Alex checks for others while Jack drags the man over to a fence behind the car, and handcuffs him to the railings. "Let's move." Together, they make their way into the apartment....

2:35

Nestor is gradually getting weaker, letting his head flop limply onto his chest. Paul takes his chin in his hand: "Come on Nestor, stay with me. Where are the files? Does Gutierrez have them with him?" Nestor looks as if he is about to pass out, his vision has become blurred. He eventually lets out the word 'yes', which has now become slurred, to the point that it is almost incoherent: "He...wanted...someone...to..to" "To what? Huh? He wanted someone to what? Talk to me you sonofabitch!" "Reese, I sent him...to...decode....files..." "Decode them, Gutierrez is decoding them?!" "Gonna sell....Reese....used to work with feds....he's...tak...taking care of it..." "Sonofabitch." Paul turns to his assistant, it looks like the terrorist is planning to decrypt this information and sell it on himself. He looks back to Nestor: "Where's Reese, is he with him now?" Nestor nods pathetically. Paul tells his men to get Garrett on the phone immediately, he has to move in on Gutierrez now otherwise they could lose these files. For all they know, the sale could be going down any minute. The assistant believes this to be unlikely, no matter how good this Reese guy is, he won't be able to access the data in a hurry. Paul is not about to give him that chance. Just then his phone rings, one of his employers is on the line, demanding an update. Paul assures him that they have Gutierrez's location and that they are preparing to go in. As far as they can ascertain, the files are with him. His employers urge him to get this done, they have been patient enough already. Paul tells them angrily to calm down. They have paid him to execute a service and he will deliver....

By now, Jack and Alex have stealthily made their way up to the third floor that houses Nestor's apartment. The door is closed and Jack nudges it open a crack, Alex watching his back. He can see a lot of hurried movement in the kitchen doorway, and is able to catch a momentary glimpse of Paul speaking into his phone. He nods to Alex and they step inside, guns raised in front of them, sticking to the shadows of the hallway....

Paul, frustrated with his employer's constant nagging, tells him he has to go and hangs up. His assistant lets him know that Garrett is on his way with their people now, he should arrive at the shop in around 10 minutes. Whilst they talk, one of the men hears a noise just outside, and goes to investigate. Paul is convinced it is time to go and raises his gun to shoot Nestor. The second he does, his henchman looks out into the corridor and is struck across the face by the butt of Alex's gun, breaking his nose! Alex kicks him back into the kitchen, where he topples over, and together he and Jack burst in. Jack orders the men to get their hands in the air now. Paul looks at Jack, a slight smile on his face. "Drop your weapons now!" Mayersberg throws his gun to the ground and starts to raise his hands. The assistant is starting to look a little afraid. Nestor is way too out of it to see what is going on. The rest of the men place their guns on the floor as instructed and turn to face the wall. Paul looks to Jack: "Very impressive agent Bauer." Jack is surprised that this man knows his name and trains his gun on Paul. "Who the hell are you, how do you know my name huh?" "I know all about you Jack. You've got quite a history. Your mercenary friend had a lot of fascinating stories to tell." "Oh yeah? Well guess what, Dean's dead. Looks like you picked the wrong partner." "I think I picked the right one Jack." Paul is looking very smug, and Jack rushes him, slamming him backwards into a wall. "Start talking asshole. Who are you?!" Unseen by Jack, the man who was sent to search the other rooms is slowly making his way toward them, Nestor's shotgun in hand.... "You really have no idea do you Jack?" The assistant spots the lone henchman lurking in the shadows. Alex notices his reaction, and spins, just in time to see the man leap out into the open: "Jack, get down!" Alex goes to push him back, just as the shooter pulls the trigger, hitting the wall behind them. A piece of shrapnel flies out and hits Alex in the side, right under his ribcage. Paul dives to the floor and the other men reach for their weapons as Jack shoots the one with the shotgun in the chest. The assistant pushes him aside and goes for the door, by which time the other men have retrieved their guns. Alex fires off a shot from the floor, straight in to the assistant's leg. He drops to the ground screaming. Jack acts quickly and shoots at the other two, who fire back wildly. He hits one, whilst the other dives for cover behind a cabinet, barely able to conceal himself behind the small piece of furniture. He lets out an exasperated curse as the bullets narrowly miss him, tearing holes in the woodwork. Staying low, he sticks his arm out in Jack's direction, loosing off shots blindly. Jack ducks while Alex gets into position...and pulls the trigger. The man falls dead. As the two agents lower their guns, they realise that one of the stray bullets has struck Nestor in the head, killing him instantly. Mayersberg crawls frantically over the tiled floor toward one of the fallen guns, but Jack grabs him and hoists him up onto his feet. "Oh no you don't.." Jack knees him roughly in the stomach, before instructing his partner to untie Nestor. Alex does so, and lets the man's limp body collapse in a heap onto the now bloody floor. Jack violently forces Paul down into the empty chair, and cuffs his hands behind his back. He asks Alex to go and check the other rooms and then calmly leans in close to Paul. He explains that he is well aware of the impending attack and that there is no way in hell he is going to let Gutierrez take any more lives today. He wants to know exactly what the mercenaries deal with the terrorists was and he wants to know now. Paul smiles: "You know what Jack, even if I talked there's nothing you could do." Jack makes it clear that he has nothing left to gain, he will not be able to get his hands on the files, despite anything he might think. He is not getting out of this. "You do what you want Bauer, my employers will ensure you get the same treatment. They won't rest until they have what they want." At this point, Alex comes back in and lets Jack know that the rest of the apartment is clear. Also, he found the remains of some burnt files in the bin and a half-packed bag in the bedroom, these guys were getting ready to leave. Jack turns back to Paul: "Why did you come here, what were you looking for?" "Same thing as you Jack, Gutierrez." He pauses. "Looks like we were too late." "What do you mean?" Paul looks at him stone-faced and Jack strikes him across the face: "What do you mean!" "He's already started to decode the files, then he's gonna sell 'em on." Both Jack and Alex are stunned. "How the hell did he manage to get round a government supercode?" "I'm not saying anything else Jack. You don't frighten me." "Is that so?" Jack turns to Alex and tells him to get CTU on the phone, he wants back-up sent over to the apartment immediately, he also wants Milo to set up and be ready to interface with Nestor's computer. Although most of the files have probably already gone, he might be able to find something. As he goes to turn his attention back to Mayersberg, he spots the open case on the counter-top, along with the empty syringe and the half-empty vial. Paul can see he's noticed it and starts to look worried. Jack walks over and examines the vial, carefully reading the label on the side. He looks again to Paul: "This stuff's pretty rare, you must have some very influential people behind you to get ahold of such a heavily restricted item." He starts to fill the syringe, Mayersberg knows what's coming. "I assume you're well aware of what this stuff can do, so I won't bore you with the details." He makes his way over, Paul visibly flinching in his seat: "Jack, this is pointless. Even if I talk you won't find Gutierrez, the attack is in a little over an hour. This is useless Jack! You're just wasting time...Jack!" Jack hits him again hard and inserts the syringe, covering Paul's mouth. Alex finishes on the phone and steps into the kitchen to see what is going on: "Jack what are you doing?" "I'm finding out what this sonofabitch knows!"

2:39:53 2:39:54 2:39:55..... 2:43:48 2:43:49 2:43:50 2:43:51.......

Jack watches as the drug begins to take hold of Paul Mayersberg's system. He starts to squirm, visibly getting weaker. The man is trying to stay in control but is merely losing it more rapidly. His head rolls back as he lets out a small gasp, his eyes looking as if they've glazed over. Alex is busy nursing his wound, trying to conceal the pain. He keeps his eye on the wounded assistant, who lies pale and disorientated on the floor, cuffed to a radiator groaning.The bullet in his leg hit an artery and, although they attempted to patch up the wound, he has lost a lot of blood. Alex is a little concerned that his partner may have gone a step too far. He's read the research file on this drug he gave the suspect, he knows what it can do. Jack asserts that he is well aware of it's effects, but that this is not up for discussion, they need this guy's information and that's all there is to it. Just then, his cell rings, it's Tony. He lets Jack know that he has dispatched two of their agents, Noel and Miller, to his location and that they should be there soon. Also, Milo is setting up the interface with Nestor's computer now, he just needs Alex to help him take control from the other end. He then asks if they've got anywhere with the man they're interrogating, to which Jack simply replies that they're working on it. Tony is afraid that this may be a waste of time, but Jack is certain that this man has the intel they need. He knows both himself and Slater. Plus, he's confessed that the people he is working for are the same ones who are after the files. Tony then tells Jack that they may be able to help identify him if he is indeed connected to Dean. They've been searching through Slater's file and have compiled a list of people who've allegedly made recent contact with the man. They are currently reviewing Interpol records on the 5 of them believed to be in LA. Jack asks that all these pictures be sent to his PDA right away.Tony orders Russell to upload the photos, whilst Jack ushers Alex over to take a look, and removes the PDA. The images start to come through. The first is a man with very dark hair who looks to be of Asian origin, Jack tells Tony it is not him. The second comes up....it is Paul. "Okay Tony that's him!" "Are you sure?" "Yeah." "Okay, Paul Mayersberg, he's a suspected arms dealer with ties to several underground terrorist networks. He apparently works freelance now, offering to act as a representative for employers engaging in risky deals. In exchange for his help, he receives 40% of the profits. He apparently has an office right here in downtown LA." Jack orders Tony to get someone over there immediately and thanks him for the information. He also asks him to do whatever he can to find out who Paul is doing business with right now. Tony says he will take care of it and hangs up, leaving Jack to finish the interrogation. Jack heads straight over to Paul, smiling. He tells him that they now know who he is, and that it won't be long before they find the people he is in this with. He has failed, now that they have him in custody, his employers will try to cut any ties to him and his organisation. Paul seems unresponsive, barely making eye contact. Jack continues: he has to tell him, right now, everything he knows. Paul opens his mouth as if to form words, but nothing comes out. Jack urges the man to stay with it. Paul starts to speak: "They...needed...terrorists.." Jack interrupts him, asking impatiently who 'they' is. Paul strains his neck, forcing himself to look away as if in an attempt not to speak. He cannot help himself and practically spits out the words: "My...employers...middle-eastern guy....only..talk to him..." "Who is he...what's his name?...Paul?....What is his name?" "I...knew him...as.....Alam..probably..an alias...." "Alam, are you sure?" Paul nods faintly. Jack turns to Alex and tells him to relay the information back to CTU, they need to search their database for the name 'Alam'. They're looking for anyone using that name with a criminal record and then they need to cross-check that with everything else they've got. His partner goes to make the call as Jack asks Paul why this 'Alam' needed the terrorists. Paul, who is struggling to pronounce his words, his expression faint and distant now the drug has kicked in, eventually mumbles something about smuggling. Alam wanted access to the terrorist's pipelines in and out of the US. Up till now their activities had been low key, secretly pulling together an organisation whilst keeping their movements out of the public eye. Now they needed the ability to operate unimpeded throughout the United States, their resources had to be transported covertly and quickly in order to support their agents hidden around the country. They knew the terrorists would provide this if they offered to support their cause, providing such things as weapons, items they knew the terrorists were keen to get their hands on. Paul approached them and brokered the deal just a few months ago. Shortly after, Humser came to him with a request. They had planned a major strike in Los Angeles and needed the help of his employers to get ahold of the explosives. They knew that getting it themselves would be risky, as their people were watched daily and this plan had to go off without a hitch. By this time, Alam knew of the files, he had attempted to purchase them from the American who stole them in the first place, but the man was killed in Colombia before the sale. They agreed to help Humser as long as they were given the files. Jack asks desperately where the strike is going to take place. Paul is silent. "Dammit Paul, where are they going to strike?!" Paul splutters briefly and lifts his head: "Jack..." Suddenly, he lapses into unconsciousness! "Dammit! Alex!" The two men attempt to bring him round....

2:45

Meanwhile, in the basement of the shop Gutierrez is using, his men add the finishing touches to the bomb, ensuring that the timer is working and that the detonator has been correctly attached to the main casing. The terrorist keeps his eye on Reese, who claims to have just broken through the outer layer of encryption. Although he was able to get in faster than he thought, the last layer of code is going to be a lot harder to break and will take longer. Humberto tells him to just get it done. Gutierrez is then told that the bomb is ready. He is pleased and tells the men to pack up and be ready to go.... Across the street, Garrett pulls up behind the small office block, the black van just behind him. The men all pile out and head inside, their weapons at the ready. Garrett liaises with his three men and confirms that they are ready to go. They assure him they are, they have set up positions to cover every possible exit to that shop and no-one has come in or out since they last spoke. Garrett lets them all know that Paul's assistant has confirmed that Gutierrez has the files with him and is trying to decode them. Their priority now is to secure them undamaged. The men are keen to proceed but Garrett orders them to hold for just one moment......

2:46

Back inside Nestor's apartment, Paul is beginning to come to. Jack and Alex both look relieved as the man mutters something weakly, lifting his head and looking at both men with a hint of confusion. Jack gets in close to him and holds his head steady, forcing him to look at him: "Paul, it's Jack. You need to focus ok? Tell me, where are the terrorists going to strike?" Mayersberg looks at him questioningly, almost like he has no idea what the man has just said. He looks pale, worse than Nestor. "Come on Paul, think. Gutierrez, where is he going to strike?" Alex suddenly notices a rather nasty mark on the man's neck, right where Jack injected the chemical into him. The skin is red and swollen. He alerts Jack, who takes a look at it. "Sonofabitch...it looks like some kind of allergic reaction to the serum." He looks back at Paul. "Please Paul, we don't have a lot of time, what is he going to do?...Paul!" Jack is desperate. Before he can ask again, they hear a phone ring. It is Mayersberg's. The two men look at each other - what are they going to do now? Jack casts his eye over the various equipment scattered around the room and spots what he is looking for. He grabs the hands free kit from the table and brings it over to the counter alongside Paul. He then takes the phone and puts it into place, connecting it to the speaker so both he and Alex can hear. Jack looks back to Paul before taking the call. "Paul, you need to answer the phone okay?" There is a hint of a nod and Jack hits 'accept' on the cellphone. It is Garrett, calling from the office: "Paul..." Jack looks nervous, he needs Mayersberg to stick with it. "Paul...you there?" The man looks awkwardly at the phone, mumbling his answer: "Yeah...sure." Garrett is a little suspicious of his tone of voice, but continues regardless: "We're in place at Gutierrez's location. My men confirmed he's still inside and we're ready to go in." Jack and Alex are instantly taken aback, this could be their chance to nail the terrorist. They listen: "Are we still good to go on the attack?" No answer. "Sir?" Paul looks as if he doesn't even know the words anymore, merely repeating his previous response: "Yeah...sure..." Jack grabs the phone and hangs up. Garrett looks confused. Jack goes to Paul: "Where is Gutierrez Paul? Where are your men calling from?" Paul looks right at him, dazed. "Shop...Carlos..." Jack takes out his own phone and dials hurriedly. Tony answers: "Tony it's me, we got a location on Gutierrez, he's at a shop owned by a guy named Carlos. I've heard that name before, I think he used to handle sales for the terrorist's. Check your records." Tony tells him to hold on....

Outside, Noel and Miller pull up next to Paul's car and rush inside...

At the office building, Garrett is still thinking about the call he just made, his men ask him what's wrong: "I'm not sure." "Do we move?" Garrett considers this......

Tony gets back to Jack to tell him that they have a match. He was right, a Carlos Menendez used to distribute for Gutierrez from a shop he owned in the valley. He gives Jack the address and lets him know that they will get a team over there as soon as they can. Jack warns him that Paul's men are there too and that they will attempt to intercept the files which the terrorist has with him. Tony assures him he will alert the strike team and asks about Paul. Jack says that he knows about the attack, including where it's going down. At the moment they are having trouble speaking to him because he seems to be having some kind of allergic reaction to the drug they gave him, in an attempt to make him talk. Jack identifies the serum to Tony's surprise: "Where the hell did you get that?!" "It doesn't matter, just get some medics over here so we can keep this guy conscious long enough to talk!" The moment he says this, Mayersberg begins to spasm violently in his chair, letting out intermittent grunts of pain. His eyes roll back. "Dammit!" Jack hangs up and hurries over with Alex to try and help. They uncuff him and lay him on the floor just as Miller and Noel enter the apartment. Jack shouts for them to keep the man alive, he's having a seizure.....

2:49

Whilst Michelle is on the line with the strike team, Tony rushes over to Russell's desk. He wants him to head up the team at the shop. If they can't apprehend Gutierrez now, they could lose both the files and their only chance to halt the attack. He wants someone on-site he can rely on to coordinate with, as Jack won't be able to get there in time. Russell agrees and says he will pipe all his files over to Michelle's desk so she can finish working up the leads he was following. Tony also asks him to send some of it to Milo who's having no luck as of yet with the encrypted data. Russell heads off as Chappelle comes down from his office, demanding an update.....

At Nestor's place, Jack and the others are still tending to Paul. Noel gets off the phone to let him know an ambulance is on it's way. Jack tells the two agents that he has to leave to go get Gutierrez. Whatever happens they cannot let this man die, if the terrorist slips past them then Paul will be their only way of getting to the bomb in time. Jack and Alex rush out of the apartment.....

At CTU, Russell removes a weapon from the armoury and exits the building.....

Jack and Alex reach their parked car, jump in, and speed off toward the shop......

2:49:59 2:50:00 2:50:01.....

2:54:00 2:54:01 2:54:02 2:54:03......

Inside Carlos' shop, Gutierrez's men lower the now fully constructed bomb into a large case and seal it shut. The terrorist watches them work. Once done, the men confirm that they are ready to go and Gutierrez orders them to leave via the back. They estimate it will take them around 12 minutes to reach the hospital and he asks to be contacted once they have arrived. Two of them will need to stay on-site in case the bomb is compromised. Whilst this is going on, Pedro and his henchman watch nervously from the corner of the room. Gutierrez walks over to the rear wall and takes hold of a narrow pipe, pulling it towards him. As he does, a section of the wall comes with it, revealing a doorway into a small tunnel. This was originally installed by Carlos, in case the police ever found out about the drugs lab he was hiding beneath the shop. The four men pick up the case and leave through the hidden exit. Gutierrez pushes the wall back into place behind them and looks at Pedro, he can see the man is concerned and asks what's wrong. He should be happy, their dream is about to become a reality. Pedro reminds him that this mission is not yet complete, CTU and the mercenaries are still looking for them and until they're out of the country this thing is far from over. Gutierrez tells the man he worries too much and heads back toward Reese and Humberto. Reese believes he has found a way around the inner layer of code and has begun running it through a program on his computer which should be able to break part of it open, enough for him to tunnel in. He claims the process should take about 20 minutes. Gutierrez thinks for a moment and then looks at Pedro. He turns back to Humberto, stating his belief that it is dangerous to stay in one place for too long and that they should keep moving. The terrorist asks Humberto to call Theo and tell him that they are coming over. The man goes to take care of it. Reese is unhappy about moving, doing so could slow down the decryption process and he was under the impression that Gutierrez wanted this done sooner rather than later. The terrorist claims that testing his buyer's patience is a smaller price to pay than jail and orders him to start packing up his equipment. Across the street, the militia are ready to go, but Garrett is still hesitant. The phone call to Paul keeps going through his head, something is amiss. He knows it. One of the men tells him that even so they cannot afford to stand around and debate it, they have had positive confirmation that both Gutierrez and the files are in that shop, which should supersede any doubts Garrett may be having. The man thinks for a moment, unable to shake off this uneasy feeling. Finally, he realises the man is right and tells his men to move out, they are doing this thing now. However, the second anything goes wrong, they're bailing. As much as they need the terrorist, getting caught or killed in the process is not an option. The men exit the office......

Back in the shop, Reese closes down his computer and pockets the files. Humberto finishes on the phone and lets Gutierrez know that Theo is ready for them. The terrorist is pleased, it is time to go. He tells his men that he has a car parked in waiting a couple of blocks away and as they head off, is stopped by his ringing phone. On the other end, is an impatient man named Martin, one of Gutierrez's buyers. He makes it clear that they are not intending to wait around forever for this deal to go down, they are well aware of the attention these files have been getting and are close to pulling out. The terrorist tells them to hold on just a little longer, he expects to be ready to trade within the hour. Martin insists that he had better be right. He then reveals that he is well aware of how Gutierrez and his people double-crossed the mercenaries earlier in the day, and that he will not be as easy to betray. He hangs up....

Meanwhile, Jack and Alex are still en route to the shop. Jack's cell rings and he takes the call, it's Tony. He tells the two agents that the LAPD have been alerted and that they have dispatched all available units to the shop. CTU also has a strike team on it's way over, their ETA is 5 minutes. Jack asks who has command authority and is told that agent Russell will be in charge, he left CTU around 7 minutes ago which means he'll be there soon. Jack advises that he and Alex are still a good 6 minutes out and asks to have his cellphone patched into the radio frequency being used by the team on-site so he can hear what's going on. Tony says he'll take care of it and lets Jack know that paramedics have arrived at Nestor's apartment, they are taking care of Paul now. Jack thanks him....

2:56

Garrett checks with all of his men over the radio to confirm that they are ready to go and then gives them the order to move in: "Alright, this is it, everybody go now!" He jumps into the black van along with three others and heads for the shop. More men head across the street on foot.....

In the alley behind Carlos' place, the bombers ascend a narrow stairwell at the end of the tunnel and carry the large case toward a transit van parked alongside the building across from them...

The militia's van slows down briefly to enable Garrett to jump out and then drives full speed into the front of the shop, shattering the glass windows and tearing the door off it's hinges. Downstairs, Gutierrez and the others are stunned. The terrorist runs toward the basement steps with Humberto, while Pedro, Reese and the other man, go for cover. The bombers hear the noise from behind the shop and hastily slide the bomb into the back of the van, just as two of the militia enter the alley and open fire. The men duck and pull out their own weapons, using the van to protect themselves. The soldiers take cover behind a dumpster...

The men inside clear the ground floor and make for the stairs. Gutierrez emerges at the bottom, Uzi in hand, and fires in a panic at the armed assailants. One of them is struck dead instantly while the others dive clear of the hail of bullets. Garrett hurls a smoke grenade down into the basement, which explodes in Humberto's face. Gutierrez shouts for the others to get out. Pedro runs over to the rear wall and ushers Reese and his henchman into the small tunnel......

At the end of the block, a convoy of three police cars swerves around the corner, sirens blaring, and heads for the shop. Garrett hears them coming and shouts to his men. One of them calmly steps out into the road and fires his machine gun at the oncoming vehicles. The bullets splinter the windshields and all three cars are forced to stop, pulling across the width of the road to act as a barrier. The officers pile out in a panic as more shots tear through the chassis of their cars. They take cover behind the vehicles and return fire. Garrett joins his man in the road and hides behind a parked car, drawing his own pistol and firing intermittently at the police....

In the shop, the other soldiers hurry down the basement steps and use the wall at the bottom for cover. Gutierrez and Humberto make for the tunnel, firing as they go. The terrorist shouts angrily at the militia, goading them on: "Come get me you assholes!" In the alley, Reese reaches the stairwell, only to find the firefight between the bombers and the two soldiers still going on. Pedro and his man draw their weapons and tell Reese to stay low, they have to make it to the car. Together they break cover and open fire, shouting for the bombers to cover them. One of the militia is hit, leaving his partner to fend for himself. The bombers begin to pile into the van as the last man radios Garrett for help. Reese and the two others go for the high fence at the other end of the alley..... Garrett hears his man's plea for help and radios his people inside, telling them to get round to the back immediately. In the basement, Gutierrez empties his clip in the direction of the attackers and makes a break for it down the tunnel. The militia give chase, only one of them noticing the grenade the terrorist dropped in time. He shouts for everyone to get down just as it detonates, killing two of the soldiers. The remaining two head back upstairs.....

Russell is still en route, and is listening to the police over the radio. He can hear the gunfight going on and advises Tony, who is listening from CTU, that he will be there soon....

Garrett and the other soldier are keeping the officers pinned down outside from their position behind two parked vehicles....

The last bomber jumps into the passenger seat of the transit van and shouts for the driver to floor it. Ahead of them, the lone soldier attempts to take out the tyres but is shot dead by the passenger, who is leaning out of the window as the van speeds past. Gutierrez enters the alley in time to see them go and sprints toward the fence....

The militia exit the shop and see the chaos that is unfolding in the street. With one of them helping Garrett and his accomplice to provide covering fire, the other makes a mad dash across the road toward the office and the parked up SUV. Another of them is hit by the police and Garrett orders the last man to pull back when he sees more cop cars arriving. They head off, keeping low, shielded by the van now protruding from the front of the shop......

Gutierrez and Humberto land on the other side of the fence and move down a smaller alleyway to a wire mesh gate, leading to a series of run-down bungalows. They are about to kick it open when they see Garrett appear just ahead of them, in an attempt to get off the road. Gutierrez fires in his direction and the man ducks in surprise as the shots splinter the brickwork behind him. The other member of the militia rushes to protect him and the terrorist heads through the gate.....

A helicopter sweeps overhead as a SWAT team finally arrive and the police converge on the shop.....

Gutierrez and Humberto sprint in between the assortment of bungalows and houses, eventually reaching a small parking lot. Reese and the others are waiting nervously for them. He heads for one of the cars, failing to notice Russell, who clocks the terrorist as he drives toward Carlos' place.....

Garrett and the other man are now on the run. Over the radio, the soldier who went for the SUV lets them know that he has retrieved the vehicle. As he pulls out, he almost hits an oncoming police car. He slams on the brakes and quickly reverses whilst the cops radio for back-up.....

2:58

Jack and Alex are listening intently to the police feed. They are given the current heading of the vehicle and Jack realises that they can cut him off. He makes a left....

Gutierrez has unlocked a parked 4 door Mercedes that was waiting for them and urges his men to get in. He is about to do the same when Russell turns into the parking lot entrance and heads straight for them. The agent shouts to Tony over his radio: "Tony I got Gutierrez, he's in a parking lot two blocks away from the shop, I need additional units here now!" The terrorist lifts his gun as does Russell, firing through the windscreen. The driver side window of Gutierrez's car shatters and he pulls the trigger. One of the shots hits Russell just below the neck and he lets go of the wheel. Blood spurts out as his car veers out of control and collides with another. Russell is thrown forward into the dashboard, knocking him unconscious. Tony hears the gunfire over the radio: "Russell? Russell come in.....Russell?!" He and Michelle are horrified. He orders her to get onto the strike team and get them over there immediately. Gutierrez speeds off, passing Russell's wrecked car as he goes......

The SWAT team storm the shop.......

Not far away, the SUV pulls over to the side of the road and Garrett and his accomplice jump in, seconds before the police turn the corner just behind them. The driver hits the accelerator......

A police car pulls into the parking lot and finds Russell, they order some paramedics to the scene urgently.....

2:59

The bombers check behind them as they head for the hospital inside the van. One of them calls Gutierrez and tells him that they have managed to escape...in one hour's time, LA's County General hospital will be blown apart........ Back at CTU, Tony listens as the police tend to Russell, who has been severely wounded. He is bleeding heavily and....there is no sign of Gutierrez. Chappelle looks at Tony sternly: "Almeida, we've got 3 dead police officers, a host of other unidentified bodies and on top of that one of our own agents is in critical condition. Don't tell me we're no closer to solving this thing." Tony admits that without Gutierrez there's not a lot they can do. Not only is he behind the attack but Jack has confirmed that he has the files with him. "Tony if we don't get those files back the President's gonna have my ass, I gave him my personal assurance that.." "Dammit Ryan, back off! We have got every angle covered and if you can think of a better way to bring these people down then I'm open to suggestions. Now our priority at the moment is to stop this attack, so...." "Which by the looks of things you're no closer to doing either!" "That's not exactly true, Gutierrez is not our only link to this bomb. About 30 minutes ago Jack arrested a man who Dean worked for. At the moment he's on his way to the hospital to be treated, but once he comes to we expect he'll be able to give us the location of the strike." "You better be right."

Just then Michelle hurries over: "Tony, Miller just called. Paul Mayersberg flatlined on his way to the hospital...He's dead."

2:59:57 2:59:58 2:59:59 3:00:00.......

Imagine this next bit being read out over a cool movie trailer (you know, with the deep voice and all that!)

Coming up: Jack has one hour to stop the hospital from being blown up – Gutierrez has escaped and Paul is dead. CTU are running out of options, and running out of time. What will happen next? Find out in the most exciting, the most action packed, and the most tense hour of the day! The penultimate episode......coming soon!