Chapter 2: Something isn't right
Season 3: Day 1, 3:30pm
Kate sat at her desk and tried to work, but it was useless. She might as well just leave now and beat the rush hour traffic. Anyway, she wanted to stop at the mall not far from her house. A new maternity store had just opened up there and she needed some clothes. She was 20 weeks pregnant now and was rapidly growing out of even her biggest clothes. It was time to invest in some maternity clothes.
She said good night to her secretary and left thinking about getting doing some serious shopping and getting dinner at the mall. She turned on the radio but after checking several different stations gave up trying to find one that would fit her mood. There isn't anything to fit this mood, she thought. Driving in silence, her mind began to wander. It always wandered to the same place...Jack.
She had met Jack at the most vulnerable time in her life. He had saved her life three times in the same day and who could blame her for seeing him as her knight in shining armor. He could shout orders and plan strategy and shoot the bad guys and then turn to her and ask if she was okay or take a second to hold her and tell her none of the bad things that were happening were her fault. He was there for her when she was afraid to go to sleep at night for fear of the nightmares that haunted her for months after that day. He was there for her during Marie's trial. Even when he testified against Marie, he told Kate how sorry he was but he had to do it. Kate understood. She had no loyalty to Marie any more not after Marie held a gun to her head.
Of course, she was there for him too. Who did he call when Kim was in trouble? When he was in the hospital, she was right there waiting with Kim. When it was time for him to go home, she refused to let him go back to his dingy little apartment. She took him home to her house. He could recuperate in comfort there, sit on the patio near the pool, just relax and get well. Kim was there a lot. She was living with a girlfriend, but would stay with her father during the day while Kate was at work. She often made dinner and the three of them ate together when Kate got home. Kate and Kim got along well, very much like sisters. Bob Warner came over a couple of nights a week, as well. He and Jack became fast friends. Bob couldn't thank Jack enough for saving Kate's life. For all intents and purposes, Bob had lost Marie and felt he couldn't have gone on if he had lost Kate, too.
Kate and Jack enjoyed that time together. They talked and laughed and got to know each other. Jack opened up to Kate like no one else he had ever known. He was amazed at how well she understood him. When Kate awoke screaming from nightmares, Jack ran to her room to calm her. He held her until she fell asleep again, then either returned to his own room or fell asleep next to her, but the relationship was not intimate.
It was eight weeks before Jack was cleared to return to work at CTU. Tony had asked him to take a newly created position as Director of Field Operations. He liked the idea and accepted the offer. He decided that since he was well enough to return to work, he should move back to his own apartment. Although they talked almost every day, Kate missed having him around. Most of all she missed having him to help her though the nightmares.
She did have one thing to look forward to, though. She had asked Jack to be her escort at a black tie dinner that the LA Businessmen's Association was having the next week. Kate usually hated these dinners and went only because she was the organization's treasurer and felt obliged to go, but this year she couldn't wait.
Kate was so excited that she could barely get dressed for the dinner. She had had her hair and nails done that afternoon. All she had to do was put on makeup and her dress, but her hands were shaking so badly it was nearly impossible. She had just zipped her strapless black dress when the doorbell rang. She ran down the stairs carrying her shoes in her hand, she was so nervous that she was afraid she would trip in the heels on the stairs. She stepped into the shoes at the bottom of the stairs, smoothed her hair and dress and opened the door for Jack. He looked so handsome in his tux that it left her breathless. For his part, he seemed to be equally impressed with how she looked. She knew she blushed when he complimented her.
The dinner was boring as it was every year, but this year was different for Kate and she floated through the evening on a cloud. It was just before midnight when they got back to Kate's house. She invited Jack in for coffee. He took off his jacket and tie and opened the collar of his shirt while the coffee brewed. They sat on the sofa drinking coffee and talking for a long time before Jack said he had to go home. Kate hated to see him go and had secretly hoped he would consider spending the night since it was almost 2am. They walked to the door and Jack leaned forward to give her a goodnight kiss. Their lips brushed lightly and Jack turned to leave. He stopped, his hand on the doorknob.
"Kate" he said in that husky whisper that she loved. "I'd like to stay."
She smiled and closed her eyes. She knew exactly what he meant. "I want you to stay, Jack." She answered.
He turned and took her in his arms. They kissed deeply, passionately. These were the kisses that they had both wanted for weeks. All of those nights Kate had awoken with nightmares and Jack had held her, she silently hoped he would kiss her, make love to her. She knew she had fallen in love with him.
The next thing she knew, they were in her bedroom. She only vaguely remembered leading him up the stairs, turning toward him more than once to steal another kiss. They undressed each other and fell onto the bed. He was the most tender lover she had ever had. She never remembered being as happy as when she woke up the next morning in Jack's arms. They ate breakfast by the pool and somehow ended up skinny dipping. She remembered giggling like a child as she wrapped her arms and legs around him and they kissed.
Jack moved back into Kate's house within the week. He finally got rid of his own apartment, thus making this move more permanent. Everything was great at first. Jack was working regular hours and was home by 6 o'clock every night. As the months passed, he started working more and more hours and sending himself out on some of the field assignments. Kate hated when he was on an assignment. She worried about him constantly.
They had been together well over a year when Jack went undercover on a new assignment. Kate didn't know he was infiltrating the Salazar drug cartel. His personality changed, he became distant and was rarely home. Sometimes he left for a week at a time. When he did come home, it was usually late and he would sleep on the couch or the guest room so as not to disturb her. When they were together one morning for breakfast, Kate tried to talk to him about it. When would this assignment end? she asked. Why was he so distant, pushing her away? Jack couldn't or wouldn't answer. He told her coolly that this was part of the job and if she wanted him she would have to live with it. He could move out it she preferred. She assured him that moving out was not what she wanted.
Kate was becoming more and more disenchanted with their relationship. They hadn't made love in months and in a fit of anger one night, she threw away her birth control pills. Why take them when she didn't need them. She certainly couldn't get pregnant if they weren't even having sex, she thought wryly.
Kate had just stepped out of the shower one night when she heard Jack coming up the stairs. She wrapped her robe around her and walked into their bedroom. "Jack, what are you doing here?" She asked.
"I thought I lived here." He answered defensively.
"You do, Sweetheart." She said softening her tone. "I just mean, that you aren't usually home this early."
"I'm sorry" he whispered. "I know I've been neglecting you. I'm sorry. I love you, Kate. It's just this job..."
"I'm sick of your job, Jack" Kate said raising her voice. "I want you back."
They moved toward each other eagerly and began to kiss. They were hard, passionate, hungry kisses. Jack took off her robe and pushed her gently but insistently to the bed. She opened his belt and his pants and he took them off and climbed on top of her not even bothering to remove his shirt. They didn't waste time with foreplay. This wasn't about love nearly as much as it was about sex; raw, lusty sex between two people who were starved for physical contact with each other. They both cried out loudly with each thrust. Their climax did not seem to slow them down. They continued to kiss roughly and Kate raked her nails up Jack's back. She knew how aroused he was as she pushed him to his back and took control. They continued until they were both exhausted. Kate fell into a deep dreamless sleep.
It was still dark when Kate awoke. Moonlight was spilling into the room through the open French door that led to the balcony. Jack was standing just outside the door smoking a cigarette, something he had started to do during his current undercover assignment. Kate watched the smoke drift lazily across the balcony, away from the house, on a soft breeze. She reached up and touched her lips, they felt tender and pulpy. She winced as she stood up. It had been a long time since they had made love and tonight had left her feeling sore and bruised.
Jack looked up as she took a careful step toward him. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so rough. There was no excuse for that. I'm really sorry, Kate. I shouldn't have come home tonight."
"No, Jack, I would have stopped you if I didn't want it that way, too. Don't apologize."
They were silent for a long time. Kate finally spoke. "You're leaving me, aren't you, Jack." It was a statement rather than a question.
"I'm doing deep cover work, Kate. I will be gone for months and I will only contact CTU every couple of weeks. I can't get in touch with you or Kim or anyone else. Its part of the job, Kate, I don't have a choice."
"That's bullshit, Jack and you know it!" Kate said pointedly. "You are the Director of Field Ops. You don't have to go on assignment. You can make someone else go. You could easily assign Chase to go. You are going because you want to, because you haven't grown up, because you need to prove something to yourself."
"I never meant it to end this way, Kate. I love you so much..."
"I believe you love me, Jack." Kate said quietly, "but you will never love me as much as you love CTU." She suspected that that last remark stung. Jack averted his gaze, unable to look at her. She turned and walked through the bedroom and into the bathroom. She turned on the shower and stepped into the hottest water she could stand. She wasn't sure why. She wanted to wash him off of her: his touch, his kisses, his warmth. When she came out of the bathroom, he was gone.
Jack moved out the next day while Kate was at work and left his house key on her nightstand. She spoke with Kim a couple of weeks later. Kim didn't know her father's location, but Tony or Michelle called her every week or so to let her know he was alright. She was finishing up junior college in the next few weeks and had taken a job at CTU. She hoped to be able to keep closer tabs on her father. Kate suspected that Jack arranged the job to keep a closer eye on Kim. "By the way, "Kim said, "before he left, my Dad said he was missing a leather jacket. He thinks he lost it, but it might be at your place. If you find it, let me know, I'll pick it up." Kate had found the jacket a day or two after Jack moved out. She tried to call him but he didn't answer and she didn't feel like leaving a message. For now she would keep the jacket, maybe he would come back for it some day.
It was eight weeks before Kate realized that she was pregnant. She was so upset about losing Jack that she didn't notice that she had missed two periods. It wasn't until she spent three consecutive mornings in the bathroom throwing up until she was dizzy, that it dawned on her that this might be morning sickness. She realized that she hadn't had a period since before Jack left. Her head was spinning. She couldn't be pregnant, she thought. Kate called her father and told him she didn't feel well and wouldn't be in to work that day. Then she went to the nearest pharmacy for a pregnancy test kit.
She held her breath, praying for the test to be negative but was forced to watch as the stripe on the test strip turned blue. Yes, she was pregnant. She staggered out of the bathroom and grabbed her phone. She had to call Jack. As she dialed his number at CTU, she remembered that he wasn't there. She hung us realizing that she had no way to contact him. Only immediate family could get messages through the CTU director to a deep cover agent. Even then, only urgent messages such as illnesses or deaths in the family were considered important enough to risk blowing the agent's cover and possibly risking his life. Even if she were his wife, Tony would not have agreed to contact Jack to tell him that she was pregnant.
She dropped to the bed trying to figure out what she should do. She had to face the fact that even if Jack knew about the baby, it may not change their relationship. The truth was, she didn't even know if she wanted Jack back in her life. She loved him, that she was sure of, but it would be more of the same as long as he worked at CTU. What role did she want him to play in the baby's life? He loved his daughter, but admitted that he had not been a good father. Did she want to be a single parent? Money wasn't an issue; she could easily afford to raise a child. Maybe she should consider an abortion. She was so scared and confused. She covered her face with her hands and cried. She lay on the bed crying for hours until she was too exhausted to cry any more, but too upset to sleep.
As the weeks passed, she found herself falling in love with the tiny life growing within her. She saw the baby on ultrasound and heard his heart beat. (Although the doctor told her that the baby's sex wasn't clear on ultrasound yet, she already knew in her heart that it was a boy.) Jack didn't need to be a part of this, she thought. This was her baby. She named him Robert John, after her father and Jack. And she spent countless hours practicing how she was going to explain to her son why his father was absent from both of their lives without sounding bitter or unhappy about it.
At 16 weeks she still had told no one about the pregnancy but her clothes were getting tight and she knew that she could not wait much longer. She ran into Michelle one day and found out that Jack was back from his assignment. Jack had changed, Michelle reported, and Jack and Tony were working more hours than ever. Tony was never home any more and she was tired of it all. Tony was flying to Virginia to interview for a job at Langley. Michelle was hoping that he would get it. He needed to get away from CTU before their marriage was ruined. Kate considered telling Michelle about the baby, but decided against it. She knew Michelle would tell Tony and he would refuse to keep it a secret from Jack. Tony felt a strong sense of responsibility to Jack ever since Teri was killed. He had never forgiven himself for not doing a better job of protecting her.
Kate waited two more weeks before telling her father. That was the hardest thing she had ever done. He just put his head in his hands and said "Oh my God, Kate, how could you let this happen?"
She turned on him angrily. "I didn't LET it happen, Dad. It was an accident. Jack is as much responsible as I am."
They argued for an hour over whether or not she should tell Jack. She finally agreed, against her better judgment that she would tell him. She had her chance this morning and hadn't done it and she wasn't sorry either. She was having this baby on her own. She couldn't have Jack Bauer, but she could have a piece of him that he could never take from her.
It was 4 o'clock as she pulled onto the exit ramp. The shopping mall sat just off the exit and was surrounded by the flashing lights of emergency vehicles. Even from a distance Kate could see that several jurisdictions were represented. Local and California state authorities and FBI were all there. She also noticed several vans with the unmistakable CTU logo. Whatever happened was big to have attracted the attention of the FBI and CTU. She turned on the radio to find out what was going on but they were not yet reporting anything. Police had the mall cordoned off, and her desire to shop had faded after spending the last 30 minutes thinking about Jack, so she decided to head home. She was forced to wait as a speeding ambulance passed her. She watched it turn left at the next intersection. Probably going to Good Samaritan Hospital, she thought. The hospital was only a couple of blocks away.
She walked in the house ten minutes later and turned on the television to get some news. Channel 2 was reporting that a federal agent had been shot at the mall. Details were sketchy, the reporter said, but an agent of the elite Counter Terrorist Unit was shot while trying to apprehend a suspect. Witnesses said the agent was shot in the neck, but his condition was not known. The agency had not yet released his name pending notification of his family.
Kate sunk into the nearest chair, a feeling of dread coming over her. "Oh, God, not Jack" she said out loud. "Not Jack, please. Please don't let him die." She wrapped her arms around her abdomen as if to shield the baby from any possible pain. The thought briefly crossed her mind that if it was Jack and he died, it would be a much easier explanation for the baby. 'Your father died in the line of duty.' Would be all she had to say. Suddenly Jack would be a hero instead of an absentee father. She brushed that thought away quickly, angry with herself for even thinking it.
It wasn't until the 6 o'clock news that they reported the name of the shooting victim: Tony Almeida. Kate was in the same moment both relieved that it wasn't Jack and horrified that it was Tony. Poor Michelle, was all she could think. Her phone rang and startled her.
"Hello."
"Kate," it was her father, "Have you heard the news?"
"Yeah, just now. Dad, something isn't right. Tony isn't a field agent. Why was he arresting a suspect? I guess I was around Jack too long, but I don't like the way this feels. I think something bad is happening. I drove past the mall, and you should have seen the number of police cars along with FBI, and CTU vans. More than you would expect even if an officer was down."
Bob could hear the apprehension in his daughter's voice. "Kate, I'm on my way home. Would you like me to come over there?"
She felt like a scared child, "Do you mind?" She asked.
"I'll pick up some dinner for us and be there in a half hour."
Neither Bob nor Kate had much appetite for dinner, but they ate in silence as they channel surfed hoping to get more news on Tony's condition. It wasn't until the late news came on that they finally got an update. A hospital spokesperson said Tony had a bullet wound to the neck which required surgical repair. He had been released from the hospital against medical advice and had returned to work.
"There is definitely something wrong." Kate said to her father. "There is no way Tony would be allowed to return to work the same day as he was shot unless they absolutely needed him. He would have to be cleared both physically and emotionally after being shot before he could go back to work. Why would they let him work just hours after surgery? This doesn't make sense, Dad."
They continued to watch the news networks for another couple of hours but got no more information. Bob suggested that Kate get some rest. He would monitor the news for a while longer. Kate was tired so she didn't object. She smiled as she said goodnight to her father who she knew would be asleep on the couch within the hour.
Kate and Bob had no idea that while they slept, Los Angeles was in the grips of a bioterrorist attack. They awoke to little real information and a lot of rumors. There were quarantine zones and road blocks and airports had been closed. Like most of the country, they sat glued to the television hoping for good news.
Season 3: Day 1, 3:30pm
Kate sat at her desk and tried to work, but it was useless. She might as well just leave now and beat the rush hour traffic. Anyway, she wanted to stop at the mall not far from her house. A new maternity store had just opened up there and she needed some clothes. She was 20 weeks pregnant now and was rapidly growing out of even her biggest clothes. It was time to invest in some maternity clothes.
She said good night to her secretary and left thinking about getting doing some serious shopping and getting dinner at the mall. She turned on the radio but after checking several different stations gave up trying to find one that would fit her mood. There isn't anything to fit this mood, she thought. Driving in silence, her mind began to wander. It always wandered to the same place...Jack.
She had met Jack at the most vulnerable time in her life. He had saved her life three times in the same day and who could blame her for seeing him as her knight in shining armor. He could shout orders and plan strategy and shoot the bad guys and then turn to her and ask if she was okay or take a second to hold her and tell her none of the bad things that were happening were her fault. He was there for her when she was afraid to go to sleep at night for fear of the nightmares that haunted her for months after that day. He was there for her during Marie's trial. Even when he testified against Marie, he told Kate how sorry he was but he had to do it. Kate understood. She had no loyalty to Marie any more not after Marie held a gun to her head.
Of course, she was there for him too. Who did he call when Kim was in trouble? When he was in the hospital, she was right there waiting with Kim. When it was time for him to go home, she refused to let him go back to his dingy little apartment. She took him home to her house. He could recuperate in comfort there, sit on the patio near the pool, just relax and get well. Kim was there a lot. She was living with a girlfriend, but would stay with her father during the day while Kate was at work. She often made dinner and the three of them ate together when Kate got home. Kate and Kim got along well, very much like sisters. Bob Warner came over a couple of nights a week, as well. He and Jack became fast friends. Bob couldn't thank Jack enough for saving Kate's life. For all intents and purposes, Bob had lost Marie and felt he couldn't have gone on if he had lost Kate, too.
Kate and Jack enjoyed that time together. They talked and laughed and got to know each other. Jack opened up to Kate like no one else he had ever known. He was amazed at how well she understood him. When Kate awoke screaming from nightmares, Jack ran to her room to calm her. He held her until she fell asleep again, then either returned to his own room or fell asleep next to her, but the relationship was not intimate.
It was eight weeks before Jack was cleared to return to work at CTU. Tony had asked him to take a newly created position as Director of Field Operations. He liked the idea and accepted the offer. He decided that since he was well enough to return to work, he should move back to his own apartment. Although they talked almost every day, Kate missed having him around. Most of all she missed having him to help her though the nightmares.
She did have one thing to look forward to, though. She had asked Jack to be her escort at a black tie dinner that the LA Businessmen's Association was having the next week. Kate usually hated these dinners and went only because she was the organization's treasurer and felt obliged to go, but this year she couldn't wait.
Kate was so excited that she could barely get dressed for the dinner. She had had her hair and nails done that afternoon. All she had to do was put on makeup and her dress, but her hands were shaking so badly it was nearly impossible. She had just zipped her strapless black dress when the doorbell rang. She ran down the stairs carrying her shoes in her hand, she was so nervous that she was afraid she would trip in the heels on the stairs. She stepped into the shoes at the bottom of the stairs, smoothed her hair and dress and opened the door for Jack. He looked so handsome in his tux that it left her breathless. For his part, he seemed to be equally impressed with how she looked. She knew she blushed when he complimented her.
The dinner was boring as it was every year, but this year was different for Kate and she floated through the evening on a cloud. It was just before midnight when they got back to Kate's house. She invited Jack in for coffee. He took off his jacket and tie and opened the collar of his shirt while the coffee brewed. They sat on the sofa drinking coffee and talking for a long time before Jack said he had to go home. Kate hated to see him go and had secretly hoped he would consider spending the night since it was almost 2am. They walked to the door and Jack leaned forward to give her a goodnight kiss. Their lips brushed lightly and Jack turned to leave. He stopped, his hand on the doorknob.
"Kate" he said in that husky whisper that she loved. "I'd like to stay."
She smiled and closed her eyes. She knew exactly what he meant. "I want you to stay, Jack." She answered.
He turned and took her in his arms. They kissed deeply, passionately. These were the kisses that they had both wanted for weeks. All of those nights Kate had awoken with nightmares and Jack had held her, she silently hoped he would kiss her, make love to her. She knew she had fallen in love with him.
The next thing she knew, they were in her bedroom. She only vaguely remembered leading him up the stairs, turning toward him more than once to steal another kiss. They undressed each other and fell onto the bed. He was the most tender lover she had ever had. She never remembered being as happy as when she woke up the next morning in Jack's arms. They ate breakfast by the pool and somehow ended up skinny dipping. She remembered giggling like a child as she wrapped her arms and legs around him and they kissed.
Jack moved back into Kate's house within the week. He finally got rid of his own apartment, thus making this move more permanent. Everything was great at first. Jack was working regular hours and was home by 6 o'clock every night. As the months passed, he started working more and more hours and sending himself out on some of the field assignments. Kate hated when he was on an assignment. She worried about him constantly.
They had been together well over a year when Jack went undercover on a new assignment. Kate didn't know he was infiltrating the Salazar drug cartel. His personality changed, he became distant and was rarely home. Sometimes he left for a week at a time. When he did come home, it was usually late and he would sleep on the couch or the guest room so as not to disturb her. When they were together one morning for breakfast, Kate tried to talk to him about it. When would this assignment end? she asked. Why was he so distant, pushing her away? Jack couldn't or wouldn't answer. He told her coolly that this was part of the job and if she wanted him she would have to live with it. He could move out it she preferred. She assured him that moving out was not what she wanted.
Kate was becoming more and more disenchanted with their relationship. They hadn't made love in months and in a fit of anger one night, she threw away her birth control pills. Why take them when she didn't need them. She certainly couldn't get pregnant if they weren't even having sex, she thought wryly.
Kate had just stepped out of the shower one night when she heard Jack coming up the stairs. She wrapped her robe around her and walked into their bedroom. "Jack, what are you doing here?" She asked.
"I thought I lived here." He answered defensively.
"You do, Sweetheart." She said softening her tone. "I just mean, that you aren't usually home this early."
"I'm sorry" he whispered. "I know I've been neglecting you. I'm sorry. I love you, Kate. It's just this job..."
"I'm sick of your job, Jack" Kate said raising her voice. "I want you back."
They moved toward each other eagerly and began to kiss. They were hard, passionate, hungry kisses. Jack took off her robe and pushed her gently but insistently to the bed. She opened his belt and his pants and he took them off and climbed on top of her not even bothering to remove his shirt. They didn't waste time with foreplay. This wasn't about love nearly as much as it was about sex; raw, lusty sex between two people who were starved for physical contact with each other. They both cried out loudly with each thrust. Their climax did not seem to slow them down. They continued to kiss roughly and Kate raked her nails up Jack's back. She knew how aroused he was as she pushed him to his back and took control. They continued until they were both exhausted. Kate fell into a deep dreamless sleep.
It was still dark when Kate awoke. Moonlight was spilling into the room through the open French door that led to the balcony. Jack was standing just outside the door smoking a cigarette, something he had started to do during his current undercover assignment. Kate watched the smoke drift lazily across the balcony, away from the house, on a soft breeze. She reached up and touched her lips, they felt tender and pulpy. She winced as she stood up. It had been a long time since they had made love and tonight had left her feeling sore and bruised.
Jack looked up as she took a careful step toward him. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so rough. There was no excuse for that. I'm really sorry, Kate. I shouldn't have come home tonight."
"No, Jack, I would have stopped you if I didn't want it that way, too. Don't apologize."
They were silent for a long time. Kate finally spoke. "You're leaving me, aren't you, Jack." It was a statement rather than a question.
"I'm doing deep cover work, Kate. I will be gone for months and I will only contact CTU every couple of weeks. I can't get in touch with you or Kim or anyone else. Its part of the job, Kate, I don't have a choice."
"That's bullshit, Jack and you know it!" Kate said pointedly. "You are the Director of Field Ops. You don't have to go on assignment. You can make someone else go. You could easily assign Chase to go. You are going because you want to, because you haven't grown up, because you need to prove something to yourself."
"I never meant it to end this way, Kate. I love you so much..."
"I believe you love me, Jack." Kate said quietly, "but you will never love me as much as you love CTU." She suspected that that last remark stung. Jack averted his gaze, unable to look at her. She turned and walked through the bedroom and into the bathroom. She turned on the shower and stepped into the hottest water she could stand. She wasn't sure why. She wanted to wash him off of her: his touch, his kisses, his warmth. When she came out of the bathroom, he was gone.
Jack moved out the next day while Kate was at work and left his house key on her nightstand. She spoke with Kim a couple of weeks later. Kim didn't know her father's location, but Tony or Michelle called her every week or so to let her know he was alright. She was finishing up junior college in the next few weeks and had taken a job at CTU. She hoped to be able to keep closer tabs on her father. Kate suspected that Jack arranged the job to keep a closer eye on Kim. "By the way, "Kim said, "before he left, my Dad said he was missing a leather jacket. He thinks he lost it, but it might be at your place. If you find it, let me know, I'll pick it up." Kate had found the jacket a day or two after Jack moved out. She tried to call him but he didn't answer and she didn't feel like leaving a message. For now she would keep the jacket, maybe he would come back for it some day.
It was eight weeks before Kate realized that she was pregnant. She was so upset about losing Jack that she didn't notice that she had missed two periods. It wasn't until she spent three consecutive mornings in the bathroom throwing up until she was dizzy, that it dawned on her that this might be morning sickness. She realized that she hadn't had a period since before Jack left. Her head was spinning. She couldn't be pregnant, she thought. Kate called her father and told him she didn't feel well and wouldn't be in to work that day. Then she went to the nearest pharmacy for a pregnancy test kit.
She held her breath, praying for the test to be negative but was forced to watch as the stripe on the test strip turned blue. Yes, she was pregnant. She staggered out of the bathroom and grabbed her phone. She had to call Jack. As she dialed his number at CTU, she remembered that he wasn't there. She hung us realizing that she had no way to contact him. Only immediate family could get messages through the CTU director to a deep cover agent. Even then, only urgent messages such as illnesses or deaths in the family were considered important enough to risk blowing the agent's cover and possibly risking his life. Even if she were his wife, Tony would not have agreed to contact Jack to tell him that she was pregnant.
She dropped to the bed trying to figure out what she should do. She had to face the fact that even if Jack knew about the baby, it may not change their relationship. The truth was, she didn't even know if she wanted Jack back in her life. She loved him, that she was sure of, but it would be more of the same as long as he worked at CTU. What role did she want him to play in the baby's life? He loved his daughter, but admitted that he had not been a good father. Did she want to be a single parent? Money wasn't an issue; she could easily afford to raise a child. Maybe she should consider an abortion. She was so scared and confused. She covered her face with her hands and cried. She lay on the bed crying for hours until she was too exhausted to cry any more, but too upset to sleep.
As the weeks passed, she found herself falling in love with the tiny life growing within her. She saw the baby on ultrasound and heard his heart beat. (Although the doctor told her that the baby's sex wasn't clear on ultrasound yet, she already knew in her heart that it was a boy.) Jack didn't need to be a part of this, she thought. This was her baby. She named him Robert John, after her father and Jack. And she spent countless hours practicing how she was going to explain to her son why his father was absent from both of their lives without sounding bitter or unhappy about it.
At 16 weeks she still had told no one about the pregnancy but her clothes were getting tight and she knew that she could not wait much longer. She ran into Michelle one day and found out that Jack was back from his assignment. Jack had changed, Michelle reported, and Jack and Tony were working more hours than ever. Tony was never home any more and she was tired of it all. Tony was flying to Virginia to interview for a job at Langley. Michelle was hoping that he would get it. He needed to get away from CTU before their marriage was ruined. Kate considered telling Michelle about the baby, but decided against it. She knew Michelle would tell Tony and he would refuse to keep it a secret from Jack. Tony felt a strong sense of responsibility to Jack ever since Teri was killed. He had never forgiven himself for not doing a better job of protecting her.
Kate waited two more weeks before telling her father. That was the hardest thing she had ever done. He just put his head in his hands and said "Oh my God, Kate, how could you let this happen?"
She turned on him angrily. "I didn't LET it happen, Dad. It was an accident. Jack is as much responsible as I am."
They argued for an hour over whether or not she should tell Jack. She finally agreed, against her better judgment that she would tell him. She had her chance this morning and hadn't done it and she wasn't sorry either. She was having this baby on her own. She couldn't have Jack Bauer, but she could have a piece of him that he could never take from her.
It was 4 o'clock as she pulled onto the exit ramp. The shopping mall sat just off the exit and was surrounded by the flashing lights of emergency vehicles. Even from a distance Kate could see that several jurisdictions were represented. Local and California state authorities and FBI were all there. She also noticed several vans with the unmistakable CTU logo. Whatever happened was big to have attracted the attention of the FBI and CTU. She turned on the radio to find out what was going on but they were not yet reporting anything. Police had the mall cordoned off, and her desire to shop had faded after spending the last 30 minutes thinking about Jack, so she decided to head home. She was forced to wait as a speeding ambulance passed her. She watched it turn left at the next intersection. Probably going to Good Samaritan Hospital, she thought. The hospital was only a couple of blocks away.
She walked in the house ten minutes later and turned on the television to get some news. Channel 2 was reporting that a federal agent had been shot at the mall. Details were sketchy, the reporter said, but an agent of the elite Counter Terrorist Unit was shot while trying to apprehend a suspect. Witnesses said the agent was shot in the neck, but his condition was not known. The agency had not yet released his name pending notification of his family.
Kate sunk into the nearest chair, a feeling of dread coming over her. "Oh, God, not Jack" she said out loud. "Not Jack, please. Please don't let him die." She wrapped her arms around her abdomen as if to shield the baby from any possible pain. The thought briefly crossed her mind that if it was Jack and he died, it would be a much easier explanation for the baby. 'Your father died in the line of duty.' Would be all she had to say. Suddenly Jack would be a hero instead of an absentee father. She brushed that thought away quickly, angry with herself for even thinking it.
It wasn't until the 6 o'clock news that they reported the name of the shooting victim: Tony Almeida. Kate was in the same moment both relieved that it wasn't Jack and horrified that it was Tony. Poor Michelle, was all she could think. Her phone rang and startled her.
"Hello."
"Kate," it was her father, "Have you heard the news?"
"Yeah, just now. Dad, something isn't right. Tony isn't a field agent. Why was he arresting a suspect? I guess I was around Jack too long, but I don't like the way this feels. I think something bad is happening. I drove past the mall, and you should have seen the number of police cars along with FBI, and CTU vans. More than you would expect even if an officer was down."
Bob could hear the apprehension in his daughter's voice. "Kate, I'm on my way home. Would you like me to come over there?"
She felt like a scared child, "Do you mind?" She asked.
"I'll pick up some dinner for us and be there in a half hour."
Neither Bob nor Kate had much appetite for dinner, but they ate in silence as they channel surfed hoping to get more news on Tony's condition. It wasn't until the late news came on that they finally got an update. A hospital spokesperson said Tony had a bullet wound to the neck which required surgical repair. He had been released from the hospital against medical advice and had returned to work.
"There is definitely something wrong." Kate said to her father. "There is no way Tony would be allowed to return to work the same day as he was shot unless they absolutely needed him. He would have to be cleared both physically and emotionally after being shot before he could go back to work. Why would they let him work just hours after surgery? This doesn't make sense, Dad."
They continued to watch the news networks for another couple of hours but got no more information. Bob suggested that Kate get some rest. He would monitor the news for a while longer. Kate was tired so she didn't object. She smiled as she said goodnight to her father who she knew would be asleep on the couch within the hour.
Kate and Bob had no idea that while they slept, Los Angeles was in the grips of a bioterrorist attack. They awoke to little real information and a lot of rumors. There were quarantine zones and road blocks and airports had been closed. Like most of the country, they sat glued to the television hoping for good news.