DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters, except for the original ones, so please don't sue. I'm just a financially bankrupt high school student who pukes whenever the water in the shower is too cold (disgusting but true).
A/N- Hello, I am so sorry if the chapter is two weeks late… The teachers found new ways of torturing their students since Christmas is so near. Chapter 34 will be uploaded on Wednesday and the last chapter on either Friday or Saturday. Thank you for reading, it's a bit long :D
CHAPTER THIRTY THREE
(30 December)
Nadia's mouth is set in a straight line and she is sitting in the far end corner of the cargo plane. She is thinking about her mother, her father, her sisters, her adorable baby brother, Will and Rambaldi. They are all factors in her life.
"Your Aunt Yelena planned the kidnapping of you mother. She is in league with Sloane."
Total betrayal. Her mother's own sister, her aunt, sold her to the devil.
"You know, after we've rescued your mother, maybe we'll still have time to see the fireworks for the New Year."
Nadia turned to the person beside her and saw Will smiling at her. Nadia nodded her head and smiled back at him. "Okay, sure."
"The smile on your face suits you better." He remarked playfully. Then, his face turned awfully serious. "Now, I know that I'm not a field agent for the CIA, but I know the place, I've been there before-"
Nadia gently touched his lips with her fingertips, motioning to stop. "You don't need to assure me. They asked you to come. That must mean something."
He let out a deep breath. He normally frequent Prague when St. Aidan, plus a couple of more contacts, get in touch with him "You're right." He looked at her again. "We'll rescue your mother. And then we'll go see the fireworks."
Meanwhile, at the opposite side, Sydney and Vaughn are talking about the operation.
"What if they're more than we expected? What if Rambaldi's endgame really happens and Nadia and I will kill each other?" Sydney whispered. "Why did Sark say this is a trap? What did he mean with that?"
"Syd, easy, it's going to be okay." Vaughn said and looked at her face. "It will be okay. With the blueprints and the security outline Sark gave us, Will's knowledge of the area, plus our strategy who was planned by the best, I think this is going to be a pretty successful mission. We're going to get your mom, alive."
She saw the confidence, the comfort and the hope in his beautiful, green eyes and instantly felt that grateful that he is part of her life. She nodded her head and then sighed.
"I'm just worried, that's all."
Vaughn took her hand. "Well, I'm always here. We'll help each other out."
His reassurance calmed her a bit. "Thank you." She said and gave him a quick kiss in the cheek.
"Take a rest, we'll be landing soon." Vaughn whispered. Sydney nodded her head and leaned a bit on his shoulder.
Vaughn's eyes traveled around the plane. Spicah Michelson and Weiss are sitting beside each other, near Nadia and Will, talking in hushed tones. Nadia and Will are also talking and a couple of feet from them is Katya, who is inspecting the blueprints. In front of her is Agent Shane Barone, who is asleep.
Jack is seated next to the slumbering Ana, lost in his thoughts. He must be thinking and worrying about Irina. He noticed that Ana suddenly jerked awake, which snapped Jack back to reality. Sydney's younger sister looks distraught.
'Must have been a bad dream.' Vaughn thought when he saw Ana looked at Jack with a mix of confusion, fear and shock in her gray eyes. This made him wonder what Ana dreamed about.
He glanced at Sydney. Her breathing has evened and her eyes are closed. She is sound asleep. Vaughn sighed and carefully leaned back as not to wake her up.
'Irina Derevko wants to sacrifice herself so that her children will at be free. Is that how much she loves them?' He thought as he re-evaluated his assessment of his father's killer.
-x-x-x-
"I'm getting tired of waiting, Arvin."
Sloane looked at Yelena, who is seated in front of him. She looks extremely bored.
"Patience, dear. They will come."
Yelena looked at him, her brown eyes glittering with doubt. "And what if they don't?"
He smiled. "Then you are underestimating Jack Bristow's love for your sister. That man will do anything for her."
She sighed and stood up. Yelena went to the mini-bar to get herself a scotch. "And how did you know that? I doubt that you asked that to Irina. She could be so blind to what other feels for her."
"I was Jack Bristow's friend."
Yelena snorted. "Arvin, did you know that your name means friend to all? And yet, your list of enemies seems to outnumber the number of your friends."
Sloane sighed. "That is, if I have any friends, my dear."
Yelena laughed. "That's a very honest realization. Another contradictory thing I noticed is that my niece's name, Arriana Giselle, literally means holy pact. But her parent's promises… they are so hollow. By the way, Irina's name, which means peace, is so paradoxical to her true nature."
He looked at her. Yelena is a beautiful woman which is not so surprising because she is a Derevko. The Derevko's is a clan of beautiful people. But the woman inside isn't. The person inside is a hardened, bitter woman.
'It might have been because she refused to embrace the children that her sister has… shared.' He thought, letting his eyes roam around the tall figure.
"Don't you think you're drinking too much?" Sloane asked when he saw her drink her third glass of scotch.
Yelena shook her head. "I don't think so." She said, her Russian accent more prominent than usual, and then looked at him. "So, if they do come. Who are we going to choose to eliminate? The father or the mother?"
Sloane shrugged. "I don't really know. I want it to be Jack, but…" His cell phone cut their conversation short. "Excuse me." He said and took the call.
"Hmm… they are? Thank you." He smiled at her as he slid the phone back to his pocket. "They're here. Everybody is here."
-x-x-x-
Gunshots echoing outside her cell roused Irina from her dreamless sleep. The moment her mind became aware of her surroundings, she felt a prickling sensation in her chest. Her bruise is making trouble again.
Irina winced when she tried to wiggle free. Every time she moves, her bruise act up and limits her mobility.
The door burst open. Irina couldn't see who went in so she closed her eyes and feigned sleep (or unconsciousness…). She tried to relax but the hard pounding of her heart prevents her from doing so. She felt someone hover by her bedside. She slightly opened her eyes but all she could see is black clothing.
"Irina, wake up."
She recognizes the voice. Jack. Her eyes flew open and looked for him.
"What are you doing here?" Irina asked.
Jack unfastened the straps that are binding her in the bed. "We're here to get you from Sloane. Do you really believe we'll leave you to die?"
"It's a trap. Didn't Sark tell you that? And where are my daughters?"
Jack shook his head at the woman's stubbornness. "Your daughters are securing the area." He replied as he assisted her to sit up. "Are you okay? Anything broken?"
Irina shook her head. "I just have a bruise in my chest, that's all." She answered and slid out of the bed.
They ran out of the room and were met by Katya outside.
"Dante and Francis are looking for Sloane. Take her to the extraction point." Katya said as she looked at her sister's appearance. Irina's clothes are soiled but she still looks presentable.
Jack gave a nod and led Irina away from Katya.
"Black eagle, we have a man down, I repeat, a man down."
"Who is it?" Jack asked while at the same time, assisting Irina, who almost tripped.
"Bamboo."
-x0x-x0x-x0x-
"Drop your gun."
Agent Shane Barone did what he was told to do, while at the same time looking warily at Ana's unconscious body in front of him. She's been lying face down for a couple of minutes and he's getting worried. The bullet-proof vest might have not stopped the bullet after all.
Mckenas Cole grinned at the CIA agent and then looked at Sark, who is behind him. A straight line is set in his mouth. He then turned his attention back to Agent Barone.
"Now place your hands behind your head and kneel."
Sark watched as the agent follow Cole's orders. He looked at the Ana's sprawled body and he's getting nervous at her reaction. She's not moving at all.
He tightened his hold on his gun. He doesn't want to kill Mckenas Cole but he wants to turn him in to the CIA.
Sark saw Ana stir a bit. He immediately looked at Cole. He didn't notice her move.
Raising his gun, Sark targeted for Mckenas Cole's shoulders and fired. The impact of the bullet sent Cole reeling forward.
"What the f-ck, Julian?!" Mckenas exclaimed. Pain squeezed out of his wound and he bit his lips to keep from shouting in pain.
Sark threw two handcuffs from his pocket to Barone.
"Tie him up." He ordered and then hurried to Ana's side. He gently turned her over to her back and opened her black shirt. The Kevlar vest she is wearing prevented the bullet from killing her.
"Ana are you okay?" Sark asked and rubbed her hands. They are cold. Ana groaned but she's still partly unconscious.
"Your man is calling you."
Ana looked at him, an eyebrow raised. The monk bowed and then smiled at her.
"Remember what I have told you." he said and turned to leave.
Ana grabbed his hand. "You haven't told me your name."
The monk smiled at her.
"It's Hector."
Her eyes fluttered open saw Sark's blue eyes filled with concern.
"I need to get to mom and dad." She gasped and sat up. Her nimbleness caught Sark off-guard.
"You're hurt."
Ana looked at him and stood up. "I need to get to them. He's going to kill them." She wheezed and staggered off.
"Ana-" Sark looked at Barone, who has now tied Mckenas Cole's hands and feet. "Radio for back-up, Barone. I'll follow her."
-x0x-x0x-x0x-
Nadia stared at Yelena and Byron, as if trying to shoot them with darts from her icy glare. At the corner of her eyes, she watched Byron tie up Will by the crates. Will's lips are bleeding after being punched by Byron.
"You are the most susceptible of the three." Yelena said, smiling at her. She holds no gun, since she trusts that Byron will protect her. "You didn't grow up with you mother, like Ana, nor did you grow up with your father, like Sydney."
Nadia can feel anger pulsating in her veins. "So all those things you showed. Your compassion, your kindness, they were all an act?"
Yelena laughed. A sound so shrill in Nadia's ears.
"Of course not. I understood you. I love Ana and Jacob, I liked Sydney. But I need to do this for Rambaldi's greater glory."
"You're crazy."
Yelena laughed again. "Maybe I am. But I guess if one of your parents dies, you wouldn't really miss him or her, would you?"
Nadia's eyes widened. 'Oh no, I got to get away from her, but Will…' she thought as she looked at Will. Byron is blocking her view.
"Byron, tie her up after you've done with him." Yelena said as she and Nadia stare at each other.
Both froze when they heard the click of the gun. Nadia realized that Byron is pointing a gun at her aunt.
"Yelena, put your hands behind your head. I don't want to hurt you."
Nadia stared at Byron confusedly. 'Okay, what the hell is going on?' she thought as she tried to understand. A few minutes ago, Byron was hitting Will like he's some sort of punching bag and now, he's pointing a gun at her deranged aunt. Which side is he on?
"Estel, go to your mother and your father. Stop everything at all cost. I'll restrain Yelena."
Yelena suddenly elbowed Byron in the stomach. She can't believe she'd been fooled by him, of all people. "Bastard! Who's side are you on?" she hissed as she tried to catch the gun mid-air.
"Your sisters' side, Yelena." Byron answered and pushed Yelena away from the gun. He then turned to Nadia. "Just go!"
Nadia moved, not in the direction of the door, but towards Will.
"Nadia, I'm okay. Just go." Will sputtered. "He's telling the truth."
He can see the conflicted expressions on Nadia's face. And in the background, Will can hear Yelena and Byron fighting. "Just go."
Nadia felt rooted at the spot. She doesn't want to leave him. What if Byron kills Will after he's through with Yelena?
"JUST GO!" Will shouted.
She took one last look at him and ran out.
-x0x-x0x-x0x-
They are trapped. Arvin Sloane has managed to trap both of them inside a room.
"Leave Jack out of this." Irina said to Sloane, who is standing a few feet from them, and pointing a gun at Jack. Jack is standing protectively in front of her. Sloane's gun can penetrate a Kevlar vest. Irina is very vulnerable since she's not wearing any bullet proof vest.
Sloane smiled. "I can't. He went here by his own free will. How can I not include him in this little… get-together?"
Irina stepped away from Jack and into Sloane's clear sight for shooting. "Rambaldi didn't include him."
An amused expression passed his face.
"Actually, Irina. He did. I overlooked this simple fact but your sister enlightened me."
Irina felt fear prickle her body. She looked at Jack, a bit horrified at their predicament. Sloane wants Rambaldi's word to be fulfilled. And both know that he'll get what he wants, no matter what.
"Rambaldi stated that for his prophecies to be accomplished, one of his chosen children's parents must die. I searched for Him for the past thirty years and this is all I've got to do. Eliminate one of you."
Jack stared at Sloane. He looks so different from the Sloane he used to know. The Arvin Sloane who was once his best friend.
"So who do we choose?" Sloane said, pointing the gun at Irina and then to Jack. "Who wants to die, right now?"
Irina felt Sloane is now clinically insane. And the gun in his hands might go off any minute.
"No one is going to die." Jack said. Irina is near him and he can push her out of harm's way if ever Sloane decides to shoot her. "Rambaldi always have double meanings for everything."
Sloane laughed. "So now, you've become the expert?" he said. "I don't want to end everything now. I want Yelena to witness this too."
The door burst open, and Sloane, thinking that it was already Yelena, lowered his gun and took his eyes off them. This gave Jack a chance to take on their opponent.
But Jack stopped mid-way when he saw that it was Ana who walked in, not Yelena.
"Ah…the Protector." Sloane said and then looked at Jack and Irina. He raised a brow when he saw Jack is halfway to him, leaving Irina in her spot. "Don't do this Jack."
He raised his gun at Irina. Ana looked at her father and then to her mother. This is what the monk told her. This is what's going to happen.
'No, its not. It's their choice if they want to die. But how will they…?' She frantically thought as she looked at Sloane. He's not paying any attention to her.
Sloane smiled at Jack and Irina. He has made up his mind. One must die so that he can see Rambaldi's word. And he has decided.
He fired his weapon. The sound of the gunshot echoed throughout the room. Sloane watched as the figure fell down the floor. A scream followed.
But another shot was fired. It was only too late did Sloane realize that he too, was shot. Looking at the direction to where the bullet came from, he saw the child, The Protector, pointing a gun at him. She's crying.
Ana watched, as if in slow-motion, Arvin Sloane falling forward, bleeding. She ran towards her mother and her father. Tears blurred her vision, but she dared not to lose hope.
But a thought lingered in her mind.
'I let it happen again. I let my father die in front of me without doing anything.'