It was oddly flattering.
Amélie sat off to the side, Lauren standing beside her, staying out of the way as nurses slipped a kelvar vest over her mon petit and then covered him meticulously with several heavy blankets. "Just in case," the head nurse told her. She nodded her thanks.
"We've arranged for three decoy processions," the NSC agent explained, speaking quietly for Aaron's sake. "All will be flanked with a motorcade of police and FBI agents believing they have the honor of escorting a genuine spy. The only people that know the truth will be inside the ambulances."
Amélie nodded, sharing a smile with Neil. The Caplans snuggled together in a chair by Aaron's bed, Elsa's head resting on her husband's shoulder while he stroked her back and watched both his loved ones sleep. His eyes would close from time to time, but he mainly stayed awake and just admired his good blessings. Any time he had with his family were moments to treasure, far more precious than work or sleep.
"See you later," Neil mouthed to Vaughn's mother, nodding a salute to Lauren.
"Goodbye," she murmured, not helping a little wave to Aaron, even though he slept as deeply as her own son. Nurses swept in, wheeling Vaughn away. With one last glance at the adorable family, Amélie turned and followed Michel's former rescuer out of the room.
"It was a message for me," Sydney said quietly.
Sark leaned with casual, unconcerned elegance against the doorframe, hands buried in his pockets. "Saying your cover has been blown?"
"No," she snapped back, tensing automatically at his somewhat-close proximity. "No. If it had been, he wouldn't have let me come back here."
"Unless Sloane sent me as your warden." Sark's voice was studiously neutral.
She ignored him deliberately, not even affording him the amount of attention she'd grant to a buzzing fly. "He wanted to test my loyalty to him," she thought aloud. "By letting me know that he could get to Vaughn any time he wanted to."
"I wasn't sure you'd come," he thanked her.
Irina merely looked at him. "I am not accustomed to being doubted by a business partner," she informed him, absently shaking loose shards of glass off her clothing. None had pierced her, of course.
"My apologies," Sloane answered. "But I was under the impression that you and Jack - "
She looked at him again, brown eyes hardening into flints of steel.
"Does he suspect anything?" he asked her, meeting her glare resolutely.
"Jack knows nothing."
Amélie held Vaughn's hand tightly, as though she was drowning in a lake and he was her life preserver. He didn't stir, of course, but she still sat close and ran her other hand through his hair, counting the minutes until they arrived.
"Five more blocks," Lauren whispered, not knowing why she did so. It wasn't like she could wake him up. But whispering at a time like this seemed fitting.
It made the shame in her voice harder to hear.
"Your logic is uneven, Sydney."
She studied him with exaggerated interest. "Oh?"
If anything, the younger man looked disappointed in her. "Should Mr. Sloane still believe the rhetoric you handed to him, he would also be convinced in your lack of interest regarding Mr. Vaughn." Sark's voice was equal parts smug amusement and dry sing-song mockery. "In which case, he would not bother risking a visit to the agent to present you with a message."
All quiet in the ambulance.
Lauren and David sat side-by-side on the other side of Vaughn's bed, facing Amélie. All breathed unconsciously in tandem with the light beeping of Vaughn's heart monitor. The presence of the deeply sleeping agent was enough to anchor the peaceful and quiet quality of the room. No one spoke. No one moved.
Until the ambulance slammed to the right and jerked to a screeching halt, and Amélie flew across her strapped-down son to land on Lauren and David. For a moment they just sat there, frozen. And then someone began banging on the doors, the sound ricocheting through the metal enclosing. Amélie jumped with every blow, while David and Lauren exchanged grim looks. Whoever was doing that was not an ally.
"Here," Lauren snapped, snatching a spare pistol from her ankle and tossing it to David. He accepted it, cocking the gun with expert ease. Amélie's eyes widened at the foreign sight. Gone was the good-natured, wise-cracking doctor. In his place stood a trained killer.
"Madame," David said to her with quiet regret, realizing some of her fear was directed at him. "No one will get to Michael, I promise. But whatever happens, stay back here with him, all right?."
She nodded, scared but strong. "Do you have another of those?" Amélie asked Lauren, watching as she drew her own gun. The agent arched an eyebrow but surrendered it over to Vaughn's mother and pulled her final spare from behind her back.
"We know he can't fight back," one attacker called from outside, and all noted the unusual, slightly high pitch. "Surrender and I might even be nice to him."
David fought to control his breathing, moving to stand beside Lauren with his gun ready. Amélie returned to Michel's side, gripping her own pistol so hard that her knuckles turned white. She'd never fired one before, but she'd gladly shoot every damn bullet to protect her unconscious child.
"Ready?" she murmured. He nodded.
Without further ado, they kicked the ambulance doors open and fired wildly. David moved, putting himself in the direct middle of the opening as he jumped down, providing a shield for Vaughn with his own body.
Lauren waited, eyes flying as she scanned the perimeter. They were surrounded.
"Get down from there!" David yelled at her from the street, even as he struggled to find and shoot the man that had spoken to them; the one that was leading whoever these people were. "Close the damn doors!"
Flushing at her belated realization, Lauren did so. Amélie let out a gasping breath as safety once more closed in on her. The gun slipped from numb fingers, and she buried her head on Vaughn's left shoulder.
Sloane checked his watch, trying to ignore the beautiful woman perched unconcernedly in a chair on the other side of the room.
"I am aware of your difficulties with my current proceedings," Irina mused into the silence.
He raised his head, glaring. "I did not approve his involvement!"
Irina flashed him a smile, shoulders rising with innocent charm. "I did."
There had to be at least 20 ambushers, all arrayed around them in a circle. David continued to fire, crouched on his knees and nearly underneath the bumper. If he had time, he'd wonder how and why he hadn't been hit. But he didn't. So instead he aimed and shot, and was dimly aware of Lauren doing the same.
And then it was all over.
David swore grotesquely to himself as the trigger clicked on his now-empty chamber. Burning with frustration, he tossed the useless gun aside and raised his hands, rising to his full height and moving to stand in front of the doors. Beside him, Lauren followed suit.
"You're one brave doc," a man spoke up, appearing with a swagger from the side of the ambulance. Lauren went rigid, eyes shooting sparks of utter hatred.
"Gotta say," McKenas Cole said cheerfully, "I'm impressed."
Something was wrong with him.
Images and sounds flowed wildly through Vaughn's sedated mind, melding past and present together into an endless kaleidoscope of shimmering energy. Though he remained forcibly comatose, unaware of his present danger, his subconscious worked with almost frantic pace, knowing time was long past to solve his problem.
Something was wrong with him!
It was akin to the incessant beeping of an alarm clock, or the crying of a needy infant. He tried to shy away from it all, tried to return to oblivion. But his mind persisted over his wishes. Amidst the nagging, Vaughn dreamed.
Sydney was there. Or at least a woman he would normally recognize as the woman he loved, though his subconscious, dampened somewhat by drugs, failed to register her. All he felt were stirrings of emotion. This woman was warm. Loving. Kind. Beautiful. Her mere presence put him at peace. He relaxed.
But then the dream changed. Suddenly another corporal portrait entered his mind. Beautiful as well, though there was an edge to her.
Something was wrong with him!
He tried to focus on her, tried with all his strength to see who she was. And he succeeded, somewhat. She turned his direction, standing a football field away, a soft smile on her lush lips. He relaxed farther, knowing he could trust her, too.
Then the light around her darkened as she tossed her hair. Steel permeated her lithe frame and ice clenched her fists. Where she had previously been so kind, nothing but cruelty remained. He recoiled, repulsed by the emotions emanating from her.
She moved closer, speaking in tones that were both soothing and threatening. He tried to withdraw, fighting desperately as her senses smothered his own. She laughed, horrible sounds that echoed like gunfire. And then she leaned over him, stifling his resistance with one touch from hands as painful as a lash. Only then did he see her for what she truly was.
She didn't have one face. She had two.
And then the drug won out once more, dissipating his internal struggle into a million shards of meaningless flashes of light. The information continued its onslaught, but Vaughn was now kept from recognizing anything for what it was. His fear disappeared, because it hadn't happened in the first place.
Something was wrong with him!
And then the drug won out once more, wiping his memory clean entirely. Nothing was wrong with him, because he was nothing. He was oblivion.
Vaughn faded even more into himself, forcibly comatose in more ways than one.
"You," Lauren spat. David glanced at her, noting in surprise that she was trembling in utter hatred. She had seemed so collected before.
"Me," Cole repeated with a chuckle, waving his hands around for emphasis. He cocked his head, eyeing her with interest. "You look familiar," he said, squinting. "Have you and I…" he inclined an eyebrow, licking his lips lasciviously.
"How dare - "
"Look," David cut in quickly. He edged a step toward Lauren, his hands still in the air, keeping his voice and eyes calm. Two helpless lives inside the ambulance depended on him. "What do you want?"
"What do I want?" he echoed. Sirens began to rush towards them. "I want a shot of whiskey, and maybe the company of a beautiful and naked blonde woman."
Lauren clenched her jaw and looked away.
"But I'll take a hostage to torture in consolation," Cole mused. He smirked at them. "Especially the guy that screwed me over back at SD-6."
David gulped. He'd read Vaughn's file before the patient had arrived from Spain, he knew exactly who Cole was and what he was referring to. If he got his hands on Vaughn, a currently vulnerable man he already held a grudge for…
"The police and the Agency will be here any moment," David warned him, thoughts racing along like their rescuers hopefully were, too. "Prison escapee, known terrorist, shooting at and attempting to kidnap CIA agents and an NSC representative… you stay here and you're looking at a needle."
Cole applauded him, grinning broadly. "Man!" he exclaimed. "The next time I need a doc, I'm sending someone to get you!"
"I'm flattered," David replied calmly, an emotion he was far from feeling. No one was kidnapping his patient on his watch!
"What's it going to be?" Lauren snapped. Her raised hands clenched into fists, and her gaze burned both men. She was enraged, far more angry than David thought she should be.
In response, Cole shouldered his rifle and stepped between them, towards the doors. David watched powerlessly. Other henchmen moved forward, holding the two of them in place.
"Hey!" Cole yelled at one of his men, resting his hands on the door handles. "Where's the van? I'm not wheeling this guy down the road!"
"Coming, sir!"
"You're talking about kidnapping a man that can't even breathe on his own," Lauren interjected. "Shit-for-brains! What would that gain you?"
"Mula," he drawled in return. The doors opened with a clang, startling a still-shocked Amélie. "Lots and lots of mula."
He swung himself into the ambulance by the handles, smirking broadly at his still-sleeping prisoner. "Hello again, you son of a bitch," he greeted Vaughn, smiling nastily at Amélie. "We're gonna have all kinds of fun when you wake up, hmm?"
"Stay away from him!" the mother ordered, stepping up to block Cole's way. He rolled his eyes, bringing up a hand to swat at her face in the same innocuous way a kitten would strike at a teased ball of string. But far harder.
Amélie flew against the end of Vaughn's cot, the small of her back colliding painfully with the metal edge, her breath escaping in a whoosh of cold air. Reeling from the impact, she pitched forward uncontrollably - and would have fallen face-first into the hard gravel of the road if David hadn't lunged out of his guards' grips, raced forward, and caught her.
Cole cocked an eyebrow, golf-clapping his approval at David's aerobics, even as he glared pointedly at his men. Within minutes, the two were forcibly separated and held in unyielding grips.
"So," Cole said brightly, taking his own sweet time to move to Vaughn's side. He turned to face his furious audience, crossing his arms and leaning against the right side of the cot. "You can't come with us, even though that would be fun. But - "
He reached over, tucking a few loose strands of Vaughn's hair into place. Amélie jerked against the men holding her, furious. "You gave me a year in Solitary," he hissed, leaning in mockingly towards Vaughn's ear and flashing his audience a savage grin in the process. "You stole a year of my life!"
And with that, he reared back and slapped him, an open-handed blow that wrenched Vaughn's head to the side and left an angry red mark on his cheek. He didn't react, still defenselessly unconscious. But Lauren did.
"You twat-faced wanker!" she exploded, moving towards the man and actually dragging her restrainers with her. Another of Cole's men was forced to hold onto her; hair flying every which way and eyes flashing with rage, she seemed a mad banshee. David watched in fascination; there was no fear in her stance. "You absolute toss-pot! How can you attack an injured man?"
Cole shrugged. Amélie struggled harder as the awaited van arrived. "Like this," he informed them, raising a hand for another blow.
The sirens had stopped. David sagged against the men holding him, waiting impatiently. His efforts were rewarded. The henchmen restraining him, while doubtlessly wondering why he had suddenly fainted, loosened their grips.
And he wasted no time, again jerking himself free and tackling Amélie and the men flanking her, sending all four of them to the ground. Lauren too, noticing the odd silence, wrenched herself loose and also threw herself down.
"What?" Cole snapped, incredulous. He moved away from Vaughn and stood on the edge of the ambulance landing, scowling dangerously. "Get them up!"
But they were out of the way now. David, Lauren and Amélie stayed low, not daring to move as bullets suddenly rang over their heads. Weiss, Dixon and others fired continuously, each one careful to not hit their assets, but also aiming without mercy.
Cole leaped down, head bowed, and ran to the nearby van without looking back. His hired help followed suit, releasing the hostages. One risked the driver's seat. The van peeled away in a hail of sparks from fired rounds. Sirens began to sound once more as police abandoned their hiding spaces to make chase.
"Go!" Dixon yelled at David, waving an operative forward to nudge the dead driver out of the way and fire up the ambulance's engine once more. David didn't hesitate, vaulting through the doors and hurrying to Vaughn's side while Lauren helped Amélie up. The doctor didn't look up as the NSC Agent closed the doors, instead bending over his patient.
For his part, Vaughn remained in a peaceful, albeit drugged state, his breathing and heartrate steady. No stray bullet had come near him, and aside from the fading red mark on his cheek from Cole's blow, he remained undisturbed. David breathed a sigh of relief.
"He's all right?" Amélie murmured, sinking back down into her seat with a wince as her bruised back touched the cold metal side. Lauren reached across her, pulling an ice pack from the cabinet to her right and offering it helpfully. Vaughn's mother accepted it gratefully.
David glanced down at himself, noting the blood on his knees from where he had thrown his aging body against the rough pavement. "I'd say he's best out of all of us," he replied, watching as Lauren rubbed at bruises on her arms. "For once."
Amélie was the first to laugh, a brief hiccup of hysteria and relief. It was enough to break the tension; Lauren and David joined her shortly afterwards. The merriment increased when David glanced out the ambulance windows to spot Weiss driving the car directly behind them. The agent waved, the utterly casual action sending all of them into stitches.
"We need to talk."
Kendall glanced up from the helicopter camera following Vaughn's suddenly very well-protected emergency vehicle, fighting a yawn. That had been close - too close. Would it not have been for Lauren's quick action…
Watching it from afar, he felt as though future years of his life had exhausted itself in worry. And he didn't even have slightly more familial attachments.
"What about, Jack?"
He compressed his lips together. The other directors flocked to join them, sensing something was up.
"Irina."
"How'd we do?"
"I am to be commended for my quick action in saving Agent Vaughn from you. Any questions concerning my loyalty have been laid to rest. Just as she predicted."
"Excellently done, sister dear. She will be very pleased."
Up next: Is she evil? Is she good? And who is 'she'? There's more than one.
Review Responses
Ouch. Only 9 reviews? :sniffle: I know I disappeared, but I came back! Don't leave me! Come back, too!
Mgterps: You people that marathon-read are my heroes, seriously. May I get you a pillow? S/V in the same room, hmmm? I'll see what I can do. ;)
Anonymousthinker: I am a proud lactose intolerant viewer, too! ;) Although I confess, I like my Lauren. Maybe because she seems to be so OOC from the show, or maybe because I picture Kelly Rutherford starring in my story? Who knows. lol
Kay10197: Yes ma'am!
Liz: Another marathon reader! My profound apologies to your buttocks. lol
Ginnie: Hee, yes it was! And Lauren-aka-Master-of-Subtlety just kept going! Oops.
valley-girl2: Lemme tell you a secret. I named him "Dr. Matthews" first, and only put in "David" as an afterthought 'cause I was tired of him being all-official. I didn't even notice what I'd, you know, actually named him until someone asked me if I was a fan. D'oh. And adore your review-zillas! ;)
Teaser: "Madame, my name is Dr. Judy Barnett and I'm the staff psychiatrist. May I speak with Agent Vaughn alone, please?"
Ilovemypenguin: No, you rock! You're so sweet! :hugs:
Delordra: Oh my goodness! Hi! I must say, it was thrilling to to see your name and recognize a fellow Toaster! Hmmm… Irina and Sloane seem quite buddy-buddy at the moment. Or they're playing each other. Take your pick.
Kittyfantastico: At their graves? You're meaner than me! But I confess, I should probably add a character death warning for a few chapters from now… :x