Chapter 6

Sydney's POV

I laid there in my hospital bed for several minutes, letting the words sink in. Then I turned, studying my visitor's face. I was sure I could see both my mother and father in her face, and I was sure she was telling the truth. I smiled at her again, then reached for her hand as we started talking. After a few minutes, Michael asked Jacqueline to step outside so he could talk to me in private.

Once she had stepped out, I turned to Michael, my eyes hard and angry. "What did you have to do that for? She just got here!"

"She can come back after I'm finished saying this." Michael's voice was firm, but soft. "Sydney, I don't think it's a good idea to accept her as your sister so quickly. She could be lying to you, taking advantage of you when you aren't at your best."

I opened my mouth to protest, but Michael didn't pause long enough to let me get a word in. "Sydney, with both of your parents being gone now, I understand that you want to have some family to go to. But you know we need to be careful, and be suspicious of other people. That's a horrible thing to say, but it's true. I know you want her to be your sister... I want her to be too. But before you get too friendly with her, let me do some checking, and see if I can find out anything."

I sighed. "I know you're right. Dad would be saying the same thing, if... Well, you're right. Go ahead, find out what you can. But if she's... If it's not true, we'll just have to get rid of her. And we never have to talk about her again. But for today... Just let me hope for it, and enjoy her being here. It makes me feel better... I can see Dad, in her eyes. They look the same as his."

"Okay, Sydney. Just for today."

After this, Michael let Jacqueline back into the room and left us alone. As Michael went out, I heard Francie ask him why none of them had been allowed back in yet. I knew she must be worried, and I was sorry. Still, it would be too awkward explaining my most recent visitor to everyone else. Just as I thought this, Jacqueline glanced uneasily at the door.

"Your friends are waiting. I could go away and come back tomorrow. I can get a hotelroom and stay over a few days."

"No!" I protested, more loudly than even I expected. Jacqueline looked a little startled. "I'm sorry," I apologized quietly. "I want you to stay, that's all. I'm glad you're here. You must have questions you want to ask."

Jacqueline admitted she did, but we spent only the next half hour in conversation before she felt too guilty about keeping my other friends out to stay any longer. She left, promising to return the next day. Eric, Dixion and Francie returned, with Michael following close behind. We all talked for a short time, but then I admitted I was too tired to visit anymore. Everyone said their goodbyes and left, except for Michael.

"Sydney, I don't think the doctors will let me stay here with you, not overnight. If you have trouble and start getting upset, I've asked the staff to call me. I'll come here and help you, okay?"

I smiled. "Yes, thank you. Are you going to leave now, too?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "I thought I would, if that's okay. I can start checking things out for you as far as Jacqueline goes. I'll be here as soon as I can tomorrow though. I feel bad, leaving you here. Whenever you were sick before, I took care of you, I didn't let a bunch of strangers do it. I know this is what you need, but I still feel guilty."

Michael sat down on the bed again and hugged me, then kissed me gently on the lips. When we pulled apart, I smiled, trying to ease his mind even though I was nervous myself at the thought of being separated. "It will only be a few hours before you can come back," I said as firmly as I could. "I shouldn't be tired, but I am. And you look exhausted. I hope you'll get some sleep, too."

"I'll try, Sydney. I love you, and I'll see you tomorrow. I'll miss you."

I told Michael I loved him and would miss him too, then he reluctantly left for the night. Though it was almost dinnertime, as soon as I was alone I laid back in the bed and began to drift off to sleep.

Michael's POV

As soon as I arrived home that evening, I didn't sleep, or have any dinner. I headed straight for my phone to dial Jack's hotel again. When he heard my voice, he was immediately worried. "Has something else happened to Sydney?"

"No, I just left her a little while ago at the hospital. She's fine. Jack, this afternoon someone showed up there, claiming to be Sydney's sister. She said her name is Jacqueline, after you. Do you have any idea if she's really telling the truth? Sydney wants it to be true, but if it isn't I want to keep that woman away from her. She's been hurt enough."

There was a long pause on the other end of the line, but I knew Jack hadn't hung up. I waited patiently for his reply. "As far as I know, I have no children except for Sydney. Though for all I know, Irina could have been pregnant when she left the country. It certainly wouldn't have been the first thing she kept from me. What else did this woman say?"

"Well, she did know your given name is Jonathan. She says she grew up in France, and that her adoptive parents met her mother, but never you. They were the ones that told her she had a father and sister in America. That's what made me suspicious. If Irina didn't even tell you she was going to have another child, why would she tell those other people about you and risk that they'd tell Jacqueline when she grew up?"

Jack sighed. "I don't know. But if that young woman is lying, she'll have to deal with me, for playing such a cruel game with Sydney's feelings. I know how my daughter is... She'll want to accept this person without a second thought. All she's ever wanted is a family. I'm glad you'll be there to help her, because I can't. I'll do what I can from here to find out about this woman. I'll need a last name to really get started, so the next time you see her, try to be just a little more friendly, all right? If she won't talk to you, this will be very difficult."

I chuckled. "Am I really that obvious? I'm sorry... I don't trust her. And you're right about how Sydney feels. She did agree with me about checking Jacqueline out, though. It wasn't easy for her... The two of them sat and talked, she wants so much for her to be telling the truth. Afterwards, Sydney said that she can't help believing Jacqueline is her sister, because... Because she has your eyes."

When Jack spoke again, his voice sounded so odd I had to wonder if he was actually trying not to cry... But I knew better than to ask. "Michael, when Jacqueline shows up to see Sydney tomorrow, figure out a way to talk to her alone, where you'll be absolutely SURE Sydney can't hear you. Explain to Jacqueline about me, and why Sydney can't know yet that i survived. Ask her if she'd be willing to take a DNA test... That way we'll at least know if she's Sydney's half sister. As for the rest, I will find out, on my own."

"Jack, you sound like you know where Sydney's mother is. Noone has been able to find her for a long time. How do you know?"

"It's not important... Not now. I will take care of it. I only want to answer this question for Sydney. If you'd rather not get anymore involved, I'll figure out a way to approach Jacqueline on my own."

"Jack, of course I'll help. The sooner we sort this out, the sooner Sydney can feel a little better. But Jack... I feel horrible about lying to Sydney about you. I know it's necessary; She's nowhere near ready to see you. At the same time she NEEDS you so much. I'm hoping that once she's on the medication the doctor talked about, I can give her your letter. Have you written it yet?" I felt like I was prying by asking that question, but I couldn't seem to keep it inside.

:"Yes, Michael, I have. I wrote it that night I came to see you the first time." Jack abruptly changed the subject, and I knew for certain I had asked the wrong question. "We've both had a very long day, we should hang up now. Let me know tomorrow whether Jacqueline agreed to the test, and we can meet at the hospital nearest my hotel to have it done."

"That sounds fine, Jack," I assured him. "Try not to worry so much... I'm taking care of Sydney for you. With her being sick, the wedding is on hold, so now we can wait until she's ready to have you back in her life. All she wants on her wedding day is to have you give her away."

"Yes... Thank you for saying that. I have to hang up now. Hopefully I will see you tomorrow. Goodbye, Michael."

I said goodbye and hung up. Even though it was only around six in the evening, I headed straight to bed.

Jack's POV

After hanging up my phone, I sat for a very long time, thinking. Though I had hoped never to see Irina again, it seemed I had no choice. I sighed, looking down at my hands. I slowly removed the gloves I nearly always wore, studying the web of scars on both of my hands. I was surprised Michael hadn't yet asked me why I kept a pair of gloves on, but I was glad. When the time came to explain to Sydney, that would be bad enough.

Sydney... I wondered if she was asleep in her hospital room, or if she was awake, feeling as lonely as I did. Staying in this hotel room made me feel as if I were the only person in the world. Noone came to visit me here...Things got too quiet most of the time. I had too much time to think of all the things that had been done to me, and how I had failed Sydney by being absent. I wanted nothing more to see her in her waking hours, to tell her I was alive and well. But as Michael had said, I would have to wait to see how Sydney did on the medication before I could even think about it.

Until then I had too many other things to think about. My arm felt like lead as I lifted it to pick up the receiver again. I dialed as slowly as possible, and wasn't surprised when the phone on the other end was picked up with barely one ring. When I said hello, I was rewarded with a laugh from my former wife.

"Didn't I tell you you'd have to be in touch with me again? This is sooner than even I expected, though. What do you want, Jack?"

"I want to hang up this phone and never hear your voice again," I snapped. "But what I need is for you to tell me if you had another child after you left. A daughter named Jacqueline."

I cringed with every word I said to her, but I forced myself to go on for my daughter's sake. I needed to find out whether she was being honest or not and even though Irina's word was not credible in the least, it was a step toward proving this girl named Jacqueline's story. Irina's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"Oh, so that is where she went. Jacqueline Simone Bristow. I bet you never thought it would have happened in a million years. But in case you are wondering, it was not I that sent her over to you. It was her own instinct. I have had no contact with her since I sent her to an adoption agency in France.

I wanted to be sure she would never find me. And for that matter, I wanted to make sure she would never find you either. How did that come to pass?"

I was hesitant to answer, because I didn't want to show her how weak I really was in this area, but I had to go on. I had to know more of both hers and Jacqueline's story. "I don't know," I said, making myself keep as forceful and unemotional a tone in my voice as possible. "I haven't actually seen her yet. I was just hoping you could verify that she is or is not my daughter."

"Our daughter." She taunted me with every word. In this moment I knew. She had kept this secret all these years in order to torture me with it

someday. She could now claim that I had not been a responsible father to either of my daughters, and she would have been right. That's the sad part. She would have been right. After all of my training and all of my experience in this field, I had let this woman step in and ruin my life and destroy the only daughter I had known. She had taken advantage of my feelings and played on every one of them just to make me suffer.

"Our daughter, then," I echoed. "I needed to know, and you've told me. So this conversation is finished, Irina." I moved to put the phone down, but she practically commanded me to wait.

"Jack, I want to see Sydney. If you haven't even seen her since you got home, one of us should be there, don't you think?"

"I have seen her," I barked. "Twice. Not when she was awake, because I refuse to risk frightening her. You wouldn't make her feel better, you'd make her feel worse. I won't let you see her. I won't!" I heard Irina begin to reply, but I slammed down the receiver anyway. I couldn't hear her voice for another second. Still, I knew that it made no difference that I'd denied her request. She'd try to see Sydney, by any means she thought would be successful. I immediately called Michael back to warn him. I woke him out of a sound sleep, but he promised to go back to the hospital right away, and stay there whether the staff liked it or not. I thanked him, and expected to hear him say goodbye, when he went on.

"Jack, why don't you come see her? It will make you feel better. She should be asleep, she was exhausted."

"I'd like to, but she may wake up, Michael. I can't risk it. Please go, take care of her for me."

Michael's POV

As promised, I went straight back to the hospital to be with Sydney. Her mother never showed up, though. Not that night or any others during that week. Late on Thursday, the doctor said that he'd finalize the details of a perscrption for Sydney first thing the next morning, and after that she would be free to go home. I went home feeling good about the news. When I got home I found more important news waiting for me, in the form of an answering machine message from Kendall. I listened to it twice, then picked up my phone to call Eric.

"Hey, I'm sorry to call you so late. I just got a call, I have to go out of the country first thing tomorrow morning. I was supposed to be with Sydney when she's released from the hospital tomorrow. Do you think you could go pick her up?"

"I can... But you promised her you would be there. What's more important all of a sudden? You're on leave from work, so that's not it."

"Eric," I said with a sigh. "I can't talk about it yet. I just have to go, I might be able to tell you something when I get back."

Eric was silent for a minute on the other end of the line, and I knew I'd lit his fuse. I tried to do what I could to head off his anger. "I'm not trying to leave Sydney all alone tomorrow," I began defensively. "That's why I called you."

"Yeah, but the problem is she doesn't want me there. She wants you. So I'll ask you again; Where are you going that's more important than being with Sydney? Don't give me that 'I can't tell you" crap, Mike. I'm your oldest friend, and I want to know what can possibly be more important than being there to take your fiance hiome from the hospital, after you promised her you would!"

I knew Eric wouldn't give up until I explained. I briefly considered making something up, but knew a lie would only make it worse in the long run. So I went ahead, wanting to get this over with. "A while back, Kendall told me the agency had received information that my father may not be dead after all. When I got home tonight, there was a message from Kendall saying he may be in Florence, Italy. There's more details than that, but he asked me not to talk about those. I have to find out, Eric. I'll be back as soon as I can. I'm not leaving Sydney forever you know."

"Maybe not," Eric said, sounding more angry now than before. "But you're ditching her after making her a promise. All for a lead that says your dad MIGHT be alive? Tomorrow, of all days! And don't even get me started about how you haven't said anything to ANYONE about this! Yeah, Sydney's been sick, maybe you didn't want to make her worry about this. But what about me, Mike? When did you stop telling me things? Just how am I supposed to explain this to her in the morning?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "Say whatever you think is best. Just take care of her, okay? I'll be back as soon as I can It's important that somone be there... And if there is anything you can't handle, you can call her father at his hotel." I gave Eric the number, and listened to the silence for a few minutes as he took in the shocking news.

"Mike, are you kidding? After everything Sydney's been through... How long have you known about this?

"A few weeks. I couldn't tell her. I was afraid of making her sicker. Just take care of her, okay? I'll get back as fast as I can, I really will."

"Of course I'll take care of her. But I won't pretend I think your leaving at a time like this is fair. You two have been through so much together, and now when she's still sick and really needs you, you have to go running off. Yeah it has to do with your dad, but all the stuff you told me is one huge maybe. How can you turn your back on what already is for something that might be? I always knew you missed your dad a lot, but are you so desperate that you'll go all the way to Italy by YOURSELF and risk walking into a trap, while Sydney will be back here asking me over and over where you are and how you could leave at a time like this?"

"Shut up, Eric! I've spent more than a year doing almost nothing besides taking care of her! She only stopped seeing the psychiatrist nine months ago, now it's starting all over again. It can be someone else's turn for a change. It's time I did something for myself!"

"You always said you spent that time taking care of Sydney because you wanted to. Were you hiding the truth from her then too, trying not to hurt her feelings? You sound like such a jerk right now, Mike. I'm not going to pretty this up for you, not after what you just said. Tomorrow when Sydney asks me why you aren't there, I'm going to tell her the truth. You've never kept things like this from her before. If you can't be honest, I will."

I opened my mouth to defend myself once more. Before I could say a word, Eric hung up the phone.