"You'll have to stay here overnight," Sydney said to Julia. "We've received word that your father is on the hunt again, so you won't be safe at home. Do your bandages need to be changed?"
Julia nodded. "I'll do it."
"Good girl. I would tell you to do some homework, but the sisters tell me you've already done most of it." Sydney put on her coat. "You can sleep on the couch in here. I'll come by to take you to school in the morning."
"Mom! You can't be serious. You're leaving me here?"
"Marshall will be here until three," Sydney said. "There's Spaghettios in the break room."
"This is your safest place for me?"
"I'm not going to impress upon you how dangerous your father is, as you already know."
"He didn't do anything to me!" Julia cried.
"Not yet he hasn't," Sydney snapped fiercely. "But when he finds you, there isn't any reason to suggest he won't use you for his own twisted purposes."
Julia flung her hands into the air, angry but unable to figure out what she wanted to say. Then, in a fit of rage, she yelled, "If he's so horrible, why the hell did you have me?"
Sydney turned around, looking intently at her daughter's pale face. "You were not a mistake," she said firmly, taking Julia's wrists in her hands. "Your father… he has not always been this way. He loves you, but his greed overshadows that right now."
Julia took a deep breath and pulled her arms away from her mother.
"Sorry," Sydney apologized quietly.
"It's okay," Julia replied, just as quietly.
"Finch offered to play some cards," Sydney said briskly, picking up her tote bag. "She and Marshall are down in the break room."
Julia wrapped her arms around herself and stared blankly at the wall. "Fine," she said noncommittally.
Sydney sighed. "I don't like this any more than you do. Please, just do this for me."
"Fine," Julia repeated.
Her mother left, and she curled up on the lumpy couch. She was so confused. She had done everything the way her mother had wanted, and she was trying to hard to make someone proud.
She sighed in disgust and got up. The rest of the offices were still bright; apparently the only agent who went home at 9:30 was her mother.
Finch and Marshall were playing canasta in the break room. Marshall's Bugs Bunny tie was askew, and Finch's red blazer had been tossed over a low ottoman.
"Julia!" Finch said pleasantly.
"Hi," Julia said morosely, standing in the doorway.
"Weiss called," Marshall related. "They'll be here in an hour." He threw in a card.
Finch frowned, then moved her chair back from the table, gesturing to the plastic chair next to her. Julia sat dutifully as Finch wheeled over to the counter to grab a muffin. Marshall considered his hand. Finch broke off part of the muffin and chewed thoughtfully. "Julia, honey, what's wrong?" she asked, rolling back up to the table. She picked up her hand.
"Mom, and Dad, and Lena, and…" Julia trailed off, frustrated. "I do what they tell me to but it's never enough. I want to know my dad for who he really is, not as some renegade spy. I want to make them proud of me."
"They are proud of you," Finch said. "And as for your father, when he is captured by the CIA, he will see that he was fighting for the wrong side."
"Uh, Finch?" Marshall asked tentatively. "Could you… uh.. play a card or something?"
Finch threw in a king. "You will be able to know your father. But you need some sleep. You've got school tomorrow."
Julia smiled and hugged her hacking buddy. She went around the table, hugged Marshall, then left the break room.
She passed by a few empty offices as she headed for her mother's small quarters. As she passed Sloane's office, she was surprised to hear two people arguing – Sloane and Agent Hemingway.
"We have no idea as to determine if she is dangerous, Mr. Sloane," Agent Hemingway was saying. "And pardon my saying so, sir, but until Michael Vaughn is captured we have no way of knowing."
"I understand, Mariel," Sloane replied easily. "It is, to the best of my knowledge, still a fact that she is not working for them."
Julia pressed her back to the wall as Agent Hemingway continued, "Until operative Vaughn is brought down, none of us can sleep safely."
Sloane didn't say anything for a few seconds. When he spoke, Julia could clearly hear every word he said, as though he was standing next to her. "Agent Vaughn is dangerous, possibly brainwashed. I'm not sure what kind of recovery we can expect him to make if and when he is captured."
Julia sighed and walked away from Sloane's office, down to the end of the hall. She opened the door to her mother's office and let it click shut behind her. She went over to the couch and curled up in a ball. She only had time to wonder where her father was before she fell asleep.