A little while later, I was seated on my couch, staring numbly at the floor. Weiss sat beside me, hands on my shoulders, while other CIA agents cleaned up Francie's room.
"I need to see my mother," I said softly. He nodded and reached for his phone.
"In private." He stopped and glanced at me for a moment.
"Syd, I don't know that I can…" I interrupted.
"Please, Eric. I've lost everything else. I need to see her, I need to know I have something left." He looked into my eyes for a long moment, before sighing and nodding.
"Ok, Syd, I'll see what I can do." Weiss pulled out his phone and walked off for a minute. When he came back, he smiled gently.
"Can I give you a ride?" I was about to argue when he cut in.
"Please?" I agreed, and he led me to his car, leaving the team to gather the rest of the evidence and take care of the bodies. We made the drive in silence, my thoughts on how many lives I had screwed up. Francie and Will were both dead; I was pretty sure Dixon was too. As for my father and Vaughn… I didn't know what to think. They were still alive when those pictures were taken, but they might not be anymore.
Suddenly, we were at my mother's cell. I looked around in bewilderment, having not even noticed that we had pulled up and exited the car. I found my mother staring at me with concern plainly written in her eyes. Weiss also gave me a worried look as he signaled the guard over.
"Let Agent Bristow in, and leave them alone until Sydney calls you." The guard gave him a questioning look, to which Weiss responded with an uncharacteristic glare.
"Syd, have the guard get me if you need anything. I can only guarantee you 5 minutes before the cameras come back on." I nodded mutely and waited for the guard to open the cell. As soon as he did, I walked in. Weiss led the guard out as soon as the cell closed. The moment they were out of sight, I fell into her arms. I think she was surprised, but she caught me with her usual grace and led me to her uncomfortable bed. We sank down slowly, and as the tears subsided, I managed to speak.
"Francie and Will… and Dixon… they're dead," I sobbed. She ran her hand over my hair soothingly.
"Sydney, tell me what happened." The next minute was spent quickly explaining all that had transpired, including my theory about Project Helix.
"Sloane set it all up," she surmised. I nodded, resting my head on her welcoming shoulder.
"How much longer until cameras are back up?" she asked quietly. I checked my watch.
"About 2 minutes."
"Ok. Sydney, you need to get in touch with Sark."
"What? He's part of all of this, he's responsible for what happened to Francie!" Mom raised a hand and placed it softly over my mouth.
"Listen to me, Sydney: Sark is still working for me. He's with Sloane in order to get all of his Rambaldi artifacts, and to bring him down for what he's done to you. Whatever happened to your friend, he was not willingly a part of it. If you get in touch with him, he can help you break me out of here, and we can all get rid of Sloane immediately."
"And after that? What happens to you, and to Sark?" I heard her sigh, her breath whispering over my hair.
"I don't know. We'll discuss that later." I nodded hesitantly.
"Ok. How do I get in contact with him?" She whispered a number into my ear as we heard the guard walking down the hall.
"Call that number, tell whoever answers that your name is Amy Farrell, and you have an interest in their company. That's all, Sark will take care of the rest." I looked up at her in a mixture of awe and fear, the fact that she had all of this planned out both amazing and worrisome. But at that moment, all I wanted was to take Sloane down, and get Vaughn and Dad back.
"Cameras are back, and your time is almost up," the guard said before he went back down the hall. We both stood, and I looked at her. She reached over and wiped away my tears.
"I'm here for you, Sydney. No matter what you need. Come see me at any time."
"Thank you Mom."
"No, Sydney, thank you, for giving me a second chance that I never deserved." With the cameras on, and who knows how many agents watching, all I could do was nod. I tapped on the glass, and the guard reappeared, gun in hand. He opened it and stepped back quickly, training it on my mother. She gave me a half-hearted smile and returned to her cot to watch me leave. I heard the doors and gates closing behind me as I made my way back out to Weiss.
"Are you ok?" he asked quietly. All I had to do was look into his eyes. He nodded at me seriously, the usual Weiss replaced by someone who looked to have no time for jokes. I spared a thought to hope he wouldn't be forever changed by this.
As we walked back to his car, Marshall caught us.
"Sydney… Dixon… is it true?" I could only look at Marshall and nod to the affirmative. I felt what was left of my heart begging to be ripped out, as Marshall's eyes slowly filled with tears.
"Sloane did that to him? I didn't… he was… I thought…" his words stopped as the tears came. I stepped away from Weiss to wrap my arms around Marshall. He returned the favor, tightening his grip around my back.
"I'm so sorry," I whispered.
"This isn't your fault." As I pulled away, Marshall's kind and now haunted eyes assured me that he believed this statement. But I knew the truth.
"Yes, it is. It's all my fault. And I have to make things right, or die trying."
