"I'm a spy, remember? It doesn't matter if I'm okay."

Chapter 16: Everything

Disclaimer: Vaughn and Syd and Jack and Irina and Dixon and Sark and any other recognizable characters in this fic belong solely to JJ and do not in any way shape or form belong to me.

Sark fumed, and would have stormed around the plane if it hadn't been a commercial jet and a rough flight anyway.

"Damn her! He'd known better. He'd been an idiot. That damn woman had caused more chaos and pulled off more double--and triple--crosses than anyone he'd ever met. She was unbeatable, and utterly untrustworthy.

She had Kelly. There was no doubt in his mind that she had her.

And he'd been stupid enough to let her contact the Informant. She'd been planning this all along, and the Informant had given her the perfect opportunity. Hell, she probably knew who the Informant was. They might even be in league, for all he knew.

But he'd find her. He'd comb that whole damn city if he had to, after he left a trail out of the city, and he'd get Kelly back, and he'd kill Derevko.

Sydney and Vaughn huddled in an empty office that had been utilized as a storage closet on the top floor. Vaughn's fury seemed to fill the limited space, suffocating them.

"What in the hell did you trust her with our daughter for?!?" he demanded in a harsh whisper, fearful of being overheard.

"I had no choice, Vaughn! We bring Kelly back here now or tell anyone anything my mother said, and we implement her. I believe what she said about Sark, and Kelly, and even Dad. So we can't say anything. We have to direct them toward the information somehow. Until then, it's not safe for Kelly."

Vaughn huffed out an annoyed breath.

"I want to confront your father. Find out why he lied. He knows that you were the one referred to, that we interfered with that. It's almost as if he has another prophecy or something."

Sydney stared, suddenly realizing how much sense that made.

"Damn it! Syd, I'm sorry, I didn't…" Vaughn rushed to explain, thinking Sydney was staring because she couldn't believe his asinine statement.

"No, no, it just makes sense," she broke in, the light still flickering. "It would explain so much. Hell, I could see him keeping something like this from the CIA for years. Oh, shit. That could be true. He could have known something like this for years. Vaughn, he could have…" She froze. "SAB47," she muttered, talking to herself now more than Vaughn. "That's got to be it. He found a prophecy, and he controlled my whole life. He used the damn CIA to do it!" she growled.

"Shh, shh," Vaughn whispered, putting his arms around her. "It's okay."

That's when Sydney realized she was crying. Angry now, she pushed away from Vaughn.

"No, no, I'm fine." She brushed at her eyes impatiently. "We've got work to do. We don't have long. My mother can't stay in LA indefinitely, or Sark will find her."

Sydney started to leave, but Vaughn put a hand on her shoulder.

"Are you sure you're okay, Syd?" he asked.

Sydney stopped, and her breath caught, just a little hitch. But she recovered quickly and gave him a half smile.

"I'm a spy, remember? It doesn't matter if I'm okay. They'll all think I am," she reminded.

Vaughn studied her face for a long time.

"Don't forget, I'm here, too," he said finally.

She smiled, and leaned up and kissed him.

"I won't forget. I'd never forget about you," she murmured.

Then she opened the door and merged back in with the rest of the CIA.

"The other file," Sydney told Dixon, after hours of phone calls to a dozen contacts. "Is a file belonging to the doctor Sark used for…the work he did. Dr. Eugene Reeves, in Geneva. The file is in his office in a safe."

"We have an agent in Geneva that is on standby right now," Dixon said, glancing toward his closed door, where he could see several agents working. "I'll get him on it, and we'll have the file in about twelve hours."

Sydney nodded.

"From what I can get, the file should reveal the DNA sequence of the father, if nothing else, as well as the conditions of the…pregnancy," Sydney said.

Dixon nodded.

"Good. Hopefully we can get all this cleared up soon."

Sydney nodded. Business out of the way, she asked," Have you seen Vaughn?"

Dixon gave her a speculative look, then tried to hide a grin.

"He left an hour ago. You've both been here nonstop for days. You're welcomed to take off for a while. In fact, I strongly recommend it." He walked around his desk to get a closer look at her. "You need a break, Syd. Take a few hours."

Sydney shook her head.

"You know I can't do that. Kelly is my priority right now." She only felt slightly guilty about not telling Dixon the truth. It was better for him not to know.

"Take it easy, Syd, "Dixon advised. "Keep this up much longer and you won't be worth much when we get Kelly back."

She nodded vaguely before leaving the office. She didn't know which to worry about more: why Vaughn had left without telling her, or what he was doing.

Sydney shook her head. It worried her, but she pushed it aside. She had more urgent matters to think about.

She'd already decided confronting her father might be the only way of protecting her daughter. She had to find out what her father had done, and fix it.

A quick phone call, and her father would, without question, meet her in the parking garage. No one would be there this time of day, except may be Vaughn. And he'd be smart enough not to show himself.

Jack had only to take one look at his daughter's face, even in the dim parking garage, to see he was in trouble. He moved silently to stand in front of her.

"Dad," Sydney said fiercely. "What happened today? What are you not telling me?"

"Just as I told Dixon, Sydney, I didn't see who hit me," Jack said. "What is this about?"

"Don't give me that bullshit!" Sydney yelled. "I want to know what the hell your game is, because I'm tired of it! You will not control my life any more!"

"Sydney, what…"

"SAB47! This is all part of that, isn't it?!? Where's the prophecy, Dad? Where's the god damn prophecy that led you to hand me over to the Covenant five years ago?!?" Sydney saw the crack in Jack's composure. She'd managed to shock him into a reaction, however small.

Knowing he was screwed, Jack opted for pieces of the truth.

"SAB47 was designed to keep you safe. You are the Chosen One, Sydney. The prophecy the CIA has is just the beginning."

"How could you think I'd just give up my child…"

"You weren't supposed to know…"

"You set me up…"

"I protected you…"

The shouting match continued to grow louder.

"You let them take my child!"

"I preserved what was meant to be!"

"You know who the father is!"

"Sark is part of the prophecy!"

Sydney froze, her mouth wide open with another shouted accusation.

"Enough!" Vaughn shouted loudly, appearing from between two cars and effectively covering Sydney's shock. He grabbed Sydney by the arm, giving Jack an acrimonious glare. "We don't have time for this." He pulled Sydney toward his car.

So much for the elated frame of mind he'd achieved during his two hour hiatus. He'd finally made a decision, took action to cement his and Sydney's happiness, but he realized angrily that this wasn't the time for happiness. This was a time for hard work, to procure a safe environment for Kelly.

"Where are we going?" Sydney asked softly as Vaughn opened the car door for her.

"Anywhere but here," he responded.

"Vaughn," she said once he'd gotten in the car. "When he said Sark is part of the prophecy…he couldn't mean what it sounds like, could he?"

"It sounds like he believes Sark is Kelly's father," Vaughn said. "But Syd, your mother is really in a better position to know the truth than Jack is."

"I hope so," she murmured. "I guess we're waiting for…oh, wait, you don't know about that." Her eyes narrowed. "Vaughn, where did you go? You knew where I was. You could have at least let me know you were leaving."

"I just had…I just had to get away for a little while," he amended. It was true; he had needed a little time away. That just hadn't taken up the bulk of his break.

"Vaughn, don't lie to me. This is exactly what bothers me so much, "she said, her voice a tiny bit shaky. "You asked me to lean on you, Vaughn, and you weren't even here when I needed you."

"Syd, I'm sorry." He wanted to say so much more, but he reminded himself this wasn't the time. "You're right. But I'm here now. Tell me what I missed."

Sydney sighed.

"I found the doctor Sark employed for the procedure. The file referred to in the documents Harte and I recovered is in his office. Dixon has an agent retrieving it. It should confirm the DNA sequence of the father, and hopefully somehow explain why my father believes Sark is Kelly's father."

"Great. How long?"

"Dixon said twelve hours."

"May be that'll help up get Sark to give up on getting Kelly."

"I doubt it."

Vaughn didn't respond, mainly because he felt the same way. Eh drove aimlessly, going anywhere but back to the CIA, just as he'd said. They rode in silence, but it was a reflective, comfortable silence.

Before either of them knew it, they'd driven out of the city into the suburbs, then on into the country. Not farm country like you'd find in a Southern city, but vast oil fields and deserted roads all the same. Vaughn pulled to the side of the road when he realized how far they'd gone.

Sydney emerged from her own haze as the car slowed.

"Where are we?" she asked disinterestedly.

Vaughn shrugged.

"Somewhere outside of LA," he said.

"Let's get out for a minute," Sydney suggested after a few moments. "We're both tired. If we stay like this much longer, we won't get back to LA tonight."

So they got out and began walking along the deserted road a little ways.

"Do you want me to drive back?" Sydney asked.

Vaughn shook his head. They walked a few more lazy paces, then Sydney spoke again.

"Are you okay? You seem distracted."

Vaughn heaved a heavy sigh, then surprised Sydney by turning and grasping both of her hands in his.

"Marry me, Sydney," he said quickly.

Sydney gasped.

"Vaughn, I don't…I just…"

"Really, Sydney, marry me!" He pulled a ring box from his pocket to reveal a simple teardrop diamond set in an embossed gold band. "Sydney, this is where I went today. I love you. Please marry me. Say something!" he added when Sydney just stared at him.

"But…Kelly…she's mine, I…"

"I don't care!" He laughed. "I mean, I care, but I love her, too, even if she's not really mine. We could be a family, Sydney. I love you."

Slowly, a smile crept across Sydney's face until Vaughn could have screamed. He wanted to hear her say it. Here he was, offering her everything she wanted, family, a life, the guarantee that they'd be there for each other. She couldn't turn him down. He grasped the ring box a little tighter. Could she?

"Yes!" Sydney finally cried, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him until he couldn't breathe. He hugged her back, all the doubt and worry gone, and he grinned like crazy.

Finally he disentangled himself from her and took her hand again. Sydney laughed and smiled as he slid the ring on her finger.

"I love it," she said when he asked her what she thought of the ring. "It's me. You knew I wouldn't like anything gaudy. I love you," she added in a murmur as she wrapped her arms around him again.

"Now," Vaughn said several minutes later. "Let's go get the bastards trying to steal our little girl."

I couldn't help myself. I had to do it. Come on, we all know that the ideal fourth season ends up with them married, or at least engaged! If the show keeps up long enough, they have to go there sooner or later!