1Chapter 2: New Place: Same Enemies
Sydney Bristow strode through the entrance to the Springs Casino in Las Vegas wearing a periwinkle dress and high heeled boots.
"Thank You," a man took her coat and she weaved through the infinite numbers of rows of slot machines.
As she passed one of the rows she eyed her target: Gordon Dean. The CIA had received a tip that it was Dean's men that had come after them. Jack especially wanted to know why.
She clamped a listening device on the back of a slot machine near Dean, turning her head so he couldn't identify her. Then she took off to one of the back hallways and listened in on the conversation.
"Did you succeed? Are they dead?" Sydney thought she recognized the voice, but couldn't be sure.
"No. They got away." Syd identified him as Dean.
"I paid you ten grand to kill them and you couldn't muster a good team?" the man raised his voice.
"They figured out my men weren't actually paramedics."
"Here's ten grand more. Finish the job, or else."
Sydney heard the man get up and leave. Dean heaved a sigh of relief.
"Vaughn, what's your position? Can you see Dean?"
"Now I can. Some fat lady was blocking my view. I couldn't make out the other man."
"That's okay, you take Dean. I'll scout out the perimeter."
At that moment the doors burst open and a dozen armed men stormed the hallway. They parted for a second as a woman walked through. Anna Espinosa.
"Hello Sydney. Miss me?" That was the last thing Sydney remembered before being knocked out by a punch from Anna.
"Ugn..." Sydney opened her eyes. She was tied to a chair, sitting in a bland, whitewashed room with only a table and two chairs. Vaughn was tied to the other one.
"Vaughn." His eyes snapped open and he turned to face her.
"They got you too?"
"Yeah. Where are we?"
"Probably in the basement of the Springs." She told him as she struggled to get out of her bonds.
"I've already tried it." he motioned with his head towards the knot. "Devil's knot. It's no use."
Sydney looked around for something to cut the rope with. Her eyes fell upon the torturing tools that lay five feet away on the table.
She looked at Vaughn.
"Quietly."
She nodded and as quietly as possible, made her way across the room by sliding the chair. It took her a few moments, but she made it and grabbed the largest tool, using it to sever the rope.
It was easier once she had her hands free. The skin around her wrists had been rubbed raw. Soon, she had her legs free and ran to help Vaughn.
Syd had gotten his arms free when they heard Anna's voice from outside.
"Anna Espinosa." There must have been a voice activated lock on the door.
Syd hurriedly tried to cut Vaughn's legs bonds...
They heard her type in the code...
The last string was cut just as Anna entered the room.
"Guards!" She screamed as the knife Sydney was holding wedged itself in her leg. She ripped it out, angrily.
Vaughn tumbled off the chair as a bullet wizzed over his head, allowing Sydney to throw the chair at Anna. It knocked Anna and an entering guard off balance.
The sirens went off.
"Come on!" Vaughn shouted as he darted for the door.
Syd tried to follow him, but was stopped by a firm hand gripping her shoulder.
"Thought you could get away so easily." Anna stepped on her foot. "I don;t think so."
Vaughn struck down a guard with a fist to the head and then kicked the other guard to the ground. Turning he saw Anna grasping Syd breifly before the security door slid shut.
"Sydney!" he screamed and ran to the door. "Sydney!" He pounded on the door mercilessly.
Realizing that pounding wouldn't help, Vaughn looked for another way in. After a moment, he saw it. The keypad...
Syd broke loose from Anna's grasp, elbowing her in the stomach, and then knocking her back with a kick to the side.
"Ugn..." Anna grunted. Grabbing onto the table, she tossed it and all the tools on top of it onto the floor.
She clicked on her walkie-talkie. "Sar-" she started to say, but was rudely interrupted by a kick to the stomach.
Anna blocked the next two punches Sydney threw at her, twisting her arms and sending her flying.
"You should've died a long time ago." Anna pulled a gun from her boots. "Goodbye, Sydney."...
Vaughn's fingernails worked the screws out of the wall. It was painful, but he persevered. The last screw came out and he took off the panel just as another guard rounded the corner.
Bullets ripped through the wall, one hitting a wire and igniting sparks. Vaughn blocked a bullet with the panel and then threw it towards the guard. It hit him square in the head and he fell over, unconscious, his gun skidding across the floor to Vaughn.
"Come on, come on." Vaughn kept saying as he fumbled through the jumble of wires.
He found the one he wanted and ripped it out of its socket. Then he took another wire, ripped it out, and connected the two.
"Yes!" Vaughn said to himself as the door slowly opened...
Anna's finger rested on the trigger of her gun, ready to blow Sydney's brains out. But Sydney wasn't about to let that happen.
She gripped the chair leg, and with a hard kick to the bottom of the leg, it broke off. Sydney thrust it upwards, knocking the gun from Anna's hands, and then towards her head.
It connected with violent force, forming a long gash across he chin. Blood dripping down her face, Anna did a front handspring over Sydney and snatched a knife off the ground.
"You're trying my patience." Anna glared at her with fiery hatred.
"I don't think you have any patience."
Sydney kicked Anna's legs out from under her and rolled on top her, pinning her arms to the floor. The sharp pain made Anna drop the knife.
She struggled to get free.
"Syd!"
Sydney looked toward the door, which was now open. Vaughn stood in the hallway.
"Sydney, come on!"
Sydney jumped off Anna and ran for the elevator with Vaughn.
Anna scrambled for her gun.
Vaughn and Sydney, panting, made it to the elevator and oushed the up button.
"These elevators are too slow." Sydney complained, glancing behind them.
"Don't lose hope just yet."
Anna ran around the corner, firing her gun rapidly just as the doors opened.
Sydney grabbed Vaughn and pulled him into the elevator, bullets ridling the interior until the doors closed.
Anna picked up her walkie talkie. "Sark! They're headed up."...