Earthly Posessions: The Escape
18 Months EarlierSydney rang the doorbell of the small house she shared with Sark in Turkey. She heard some voices inside and she wondered what was happening. Sark's voice was unmistakable. A few months ago she would have shuddered when she first heard it, knowing that she would have to defend herself, but things had changed.
They had a child together. Although Adana was known to the Covenant they had let Sark's nanny take care of her. The Covenant, at the time, had felt sure that Sydney and the CIA were unaware of Adana.
Sydney knew that if the CIA hadn't been working so hard on bringing down the Covenant they would be keeping tabs on Adana, but as it stood the Covenant trusted Sark and never thought that he would betray them. 800 million dollars was enough to buy Sark.
Sydney heard Adana scream in excitement from inside, and Sydney smiled, knowing how much Adana looked forward to Sydney's visits. The door opened and Sark stood in the doorway, smiling sheepishly at Sydney as Adana hid behind his legs.
Sydney leaned down and put her hands over her eyes. "Peek-a-Boo!" she exclaimed, grabbing Adana and rubbing her stomach.
"Peekieboo!" Adana giggled and tried to squirm out of her mother's grasp. Sark looked on, smiling from ear to ear.
Sydney loosened her grasp on Adana and hugged her. Adana curled her arms around her mother's neck and kissed her cheek. "Mommy," she said, kissing her mother's other cheek.
Sydney smiled at Adana and kissed her forehead. "I love you", she told her. Pulling away from the hug, Sydney held Adana's hand in her own, smiling to herself as mentally traced every part of her daughter's hand. It looked exactly like her own hands.
She was almost two years old; she would celebrate her birthday in three and a half months. Sydney was proud of Adana but at the same time felt a rush of melancholy burst through her veins and rush throughout her entire being, thinking of how Adana had to be kept a secret from the world. Sydney wanted more than anything to tell her father about Adana but she knew she couldn't. It wasn't that so much that she didn't trust her father, but more that she and Sark had agreed that it would be safest if no one knew about Adana.
She picked Adana up into her arms and walked towards Adana's bedroom. "Has she had breakfast?" Sydney asked Sark, who followed Sydney into their daughter's room.
Sark didn't say anything but gestured towards an apron splayed across Adana's high chair. Sydney laughed when she noticed most of Adana's breakfast scattered across the apron. "I think the appropriate phrase should be 'has she swallowed anything,'" Sark told her.
Sydney placed Adana in her high chair and grabbed the half-finished bowl of baby food that Sark had prepared. Sydney smiled to herself when she remembered an argument she and Sark had about Adana's feeding habits. Sark had become quite the father figure, pouring over child development journals. He even joked that he would abduct famous child psychologists and make them tell him how to deal with all of Adana's habits.
Sydney sighed, thinking of how Sark had decided that when it came to his daughter, fresh food was best. She wondered what Sark must look like, cooking Adana's food in the kitchen, mixing her milk, balancing every aspect of Adana's life while Sydney was gone. She felt sad just thinking about all the things Sark and Adana did without her.
"She can walk around the house by herself now," Sark said, moving behind her to place his arms around Sydney's waist. "You're cold," he told her, his breath inches away from her hair as he rested his chin on the top of her head. She felt shivers run up and down her spine. Sark must have felt it too, because he snuggled into her, letting Sydney's back warm up from Sark's jumper. "I made a tape of her walking for you."
Sydney closed her eyes and didn't say anything. She wondered what it would be like if she was with Vaughn instead. She had wanted so much to be with Vaughn, but ever since Lauren she felt as if she was Vaughn's second-hand prize. She didn't want to be anyone's left over prize, and there was a comfort, a bond she found in Sark that she knew she couldn't share with Vaughn.
She couldn't have possibly imagined that she'd be in this position with Sark. This situation was making her vulnerable, she knew it. She had refused to go on missions where she knew the risk of being made was very high. She wasn't thinking about herself now, or her missing two years, or of Vaughn, but of Adana. The whole focus of her world had shifted into the form of a small child with dazzling blue eyes and a large, cheerful smile.
Sydney slowly put a spoon with some of Sark's mysteriously delicious baby food to Adana's mouth, and she graciously accepted it. Chewing hungrily on the food, Adana flashed Sydney a gigantic smile, showing off the dimples she inherited from her mother.
"Now that is just not fair," Sark told Sydney. "Why does she always eat from you? You like daddy more, don't you?" Sark kissed Adana's nose. "Yes you dooo…" Sark kissed her nose again and she giggled. Sark stood up and looked at Sydney, who was getting ready to give Adana another spoonful. Just then his phone rang, and he picked it up. He didn't say anything into the phone, and Sydney wondered what he was keeping from her. She looked at him questioningly; they had a deal that they would not keep anything from each other regarding the Covenant, but Sydney had already broken her promise to him and she knew that it was only a matter of time before he would too.
Sark turned his phone off and walked out of the room. "I'm going to be in the study if you need me," he told her as he closed the door behind him.
Sydney simply nodded and turned her attention to her daughter.
- - -
Sark rolled the blinds so that no one could see what was happening in the living room from outside. He grabbed two wine glasses and poured some wine into each, carefully handing Sydney a glass.
She graciously took it into her hand and sipped on it. She moved her hand to the remote control and turned off the home movies Sark had made of Adana.
"How long are you here for this time?"
"A couple of days," she told him.
"She really misses you when you're gone." Sark put his glass on the coffee table and looked directly at Sydney.
"I know," she told him in almost inaudibly. "But there's nothing that I can do. The CIA will get suspicious."
"Is Jack suspicious?" Sark looked at his wine.
"If you had family you'd know what it's like."
"I have you."
Sydney turned to look at Sark at the same instant he looked at her. Their eyes met for only a brief second but Sydney sensed that this was the first time in his life that Sark felt he belonged somewhere, and although it wasn't the most ideal situation for either of them the love they both had for Adana had changed things.
Sark's phone rang again, and he picked it up quickly. "Yes?" He answered. Sydney watched him closely, trying to read his facial expressions, but he gave nothing away. "…I understand… Yes, I will." He turned his phone off and took a deep breath. He moved across the living room and sat next to Sydney, looking at her. Taking a deep breath, he spoke calmly, precisely, as if every word was measured so as to lessen the impact of what he had to tell her. "The Association… I'm assuming you've been briefed about them."
"Yes," she said worriedly, thinking the worst.
"My contact with the Association, Mr Duvall, has alerted me to an important matter regarding Adana."
Sydney looked at him questioningly.
"The phone call I received this morning… The Association infiltrated the Covenant last night, hours after you left Los Angeles. They extracted the scientists who had been working in Patagonia. The Covenant was holding them in prison-like conditions." Sark looked at Sydney, a look of regret on his face. "Syd… they talked. My contact has just informed me that The Association knows about Adana."
Sydney felt a lump form in her throat. "What… do you they know where she is?"
"No, but we should get moving. If they put all their agents on it they'll find us in hours."
Sydney nodded and got up, walking towards Adana's room. Sark walked quickly behind her, grabbing a suitcase from Adana's cupboard and placing some of her clothes and food in the bag. "Let's go," he told her.
"Wait," Sydney said, grabbing a large figure of St Aiden near her daughter's crib. "It's her favourite." Sydney looked around the room, making sure there was nothing important left.
She turned to Sark. "Do you have a plan?" Sydney asked as she wrapped Adana's sleeping body in a blanket and scooped her up in her arms. Adana opened her mouth, sighing, and fell asleep again.
"We'll take the car to an open field not far from here, where a plane will take us to Rome. We'll then go to Glasgow." Sark grabbed his keys and realised that Sydney was still staring at him. He walked up to her and stroked Adana's hair and kissed Sydney's forehead softly. "We'll be safe there. I'll keep us safe. I promise."
Sydney nodded and together they walked briskly out of the house, running towards the car. They didn't bother locking the door behind them.
- - -
Sydney stepped off the platform of the plane, Sark right behind her. It would be some three hours until dawn in this picturesque city. The Rome wind was cold, and Sydney cuddled Adana up underneath her jacket, hoping she wouldn't wake up.
She looked around at their surroundings. "Where's the car?" She asked Sark.
Sark looked around, trying to measuring his environment. "Over there!" he shouted above the roar of the wind.
He grabbed her hand and ran towards the vehicle. Sark reached the car first and opened the door, motioning for Sydney to get inside. She scrambled into the car seat, looking to make sure no one was watching them as she closed the door.
The driver started the engine and the car sped towards the plane.
"What the…?" She said, looking at Sark in panic.
Sark tried to unlock the passenger door but something was jamming it. Sydney grabbed Adana's baby bag, taking out of it the St Aiden figurine. Sark took it, glancing at Sydney. She nodded in acknowledgement. She tightened her grasp on Adana, making sure she was secure underneath the jacket. Adana woke up screaming and crying.
"It's okay sweetheart, it's okay… shhhhh," Sydney tried to console her.
Without thinking, Sark slammed the figurine against the window, his arm flying out with small pieces of glass. A large piece of glass stabbed his hand, but he didn't care. As blood shot out of his hands he opened the door from the outside.
Sydney grabbed Adana's bag and rummaged through it, throwing away the food that was inside. She nestled Adana in between the clothing.
"I'm scared mommy," Adana told her.
Sydney kissed Adana's hand. "I love you more than anything sweetie, you'll be okay, go back to sleep, it's okay…"
Sark jumped out of the car, and Sydney slid the bag – with Adana inside – towards him. He grabbed Adana as Sydney jumped out of the speeding car.
Adana was crying non-stop now, barely able to catch her breath. Sark freed her from the baby bag and picked her up. Sydney ran towards them, pointing to the plane.
They ran towards it.
"We're being ambushed!" Sark yelled, spotting a group of five people running towards them.
Sydney and Sark ran up the stairs to the entrance of the plane. The group of people opened fire.
Dodging the rain of bullets Sark and Sydney made their way into the plane. Sark sighed in relief, putting Adana down, and ran towards the pilot's door. Sydney started to close the plane door.
"Peekieboo!" Adana yelled, unaware of the situation. All she could think about was the smashed St Aiden figurine. Without thinking, she ran towards it.
"Adana, no!" Sydney yelled, braving the bullets to run after her daughter, but it was too late.
Adana leaned down on the ground, her tiny hand trying to pick up her beloved statue. A bullet made its way across the airstrip, past the car and into Adana's small body. Sydney watched as her daughter cried out, falling to the floor. She started to run towards her again but another bullet hit Sydney's leg. She fell to the ground, watching, unable to do anything as one of the armed men grabbed Adana's body off the ground and shot towards Sydney.
The man held Adana's body close to his own. Sydney screamed as she saw his face, but couldn't run after him. She tried to slide across the floor, but it was no use. The black car that she and Sark had entered only minutes ago picked up the man and her daughter. The man shut the door, saying something to the rest of the group. The car sped out of the airport.
Sark ran out of the plane, grabbing Sydney he dragged her up the stairs. He had the same look of sheer pain and hatred etched across his face.
"They wanted Adana," she said, between tears.
Sark held Sydney close, his bloody arm colouring Sydney's face a fierce red. He cupped her face in his hands and looked into her eyes. "I'll find who did this, I'll do whatever it takes," he whispered.
Sydney sobbed harder, trying to catch her breath. He held her close and they both sat there, on the floor of his private jet, sobbing in each other's arms. "I… I… saw his fa-ace," she told Sark.
"Syd? Who was it? Who did this?"
Sydney looked deep into Sark's eyes and tried to find the words, but all she could think of was Adana. After what seemed like an eternity she found her voice. "I…it was… Va-Vaughn," she told Sark inbetween tears.