Chapter SIX: Double Agent.
PretoriaIt's the start of a new academic year for the professors including Sydney; they are going to debate about the composition of the classes, the files of difficult students and the objectives to be attained during the semester.
She came early this morning while there wasn't a soul inside the building but for the staff of a cleaning firm. She walked in all the corridors of the main building, breathing deeply the scent of ink and chalk (,) which were flying in the fresh and damp morning air. She scouted several classrooms and amphitheatres and she stopped in while she whispered her impressions of each room as much for herself than for Carrie who was listening via Syd's comm link. She assessed every room knowing that this little inspection could be useful for the two geniuses who, undoubtedly, would be asked to design some technical marvels for this mission.
The professors' room seems to come out of a dream, legacy of a particularly turbulent recent past ; it's huge and luminous, ornamented with precious wood furniture and heavy purple curtains falling along a large windows. A studious and bright atmosphere reins inside. Sydney is immediately feeling comfortable; this place most certainly will be an inspiration to her. She runs her eyes over the book and magazine shelves which cover two of the four walls.
Yes, she is going to like to work here.
Her heart beating faster, she heads for the particularly stylish lockers assigned to professors. She brushes them with her hand and reads the refined written names, almost calligraphic handwriting. She quickly finds hers and she can't prevent herself from feeling pride.
She feels the adrenaline run through her veins while she picks the lock of several of them, looking for evidences. Her heart beating wildly, she stops with every creak, every rustle and then she resumes her task.
Suddenly the door opens!
She freezes. All her senses on high alert. She had not heard anything!
With grace combined with a great promptness, she shuts the locker's door with a hand leaning on it and pretends to put her shoe.
A charming young woman, obviously the same age as Sydney, enters the room at the very same moment and walks directly towards her with a large smile.
"Good morning!" she says cordially ."You must be Ms Jones! Welcome to Pretoria and to our splendid campus. I'm Dora Tang."
Straightaway, Sydney likes her.
"Hi!" Sydney answers still on the grip of a powerful emotion. "Yes, it's my name, but I prefer Sydney from now on."
"OK, Sydney .I'm Dora, and I'm a European Medieval literature professor. We are going to share the same office. We have the same habits, as I see. Every year, it's the same thing. I have to come early. I love to breathe the scent of this room, to be filled by the emotions it contains, by its serenity… It's odd, I'm talking about it as it's a human being…" She smiles warmly at Sydney and takes a deep breath again.
"Not at all. It's the same feeling I have had when I came in earlier." Indeed, she likes this Dora; she had translated with words what she is feeling in this room.
"Ok, did you visit our university?"
"Only a little part of it."
"Well, follow the guide. First stop, our office."
Raasdaal DistrictVan Der Meer is lying on a deck chair on Jack's vast appartment terrace. His apartment is situated on the last floor of a stylish and high-priced - building, which is located in the centre of the city, in the Raasdaal District. Below Jack's floor, a swimming pool, surrounded by lush and aromatic vegetation, is available for the exclusive use of the four owners of the apartments. Jacks's apartment consists of (two spacious bedrooms separated by a private living room , a second vast living room, a library, a dining room, a kitchen and a spacious bathroom. Juxtaposed to Jack's bedroom, an office filled with the latest high tech equipment is hidden behind a secret door that is hidden to the eye behind shelves ; it is perhaps a solution that lacks originality , but it remains very effective. This room is the operation command centre , Van Der Meer had fitted out with an alarm and surveillance system every room in the apartment.
Presently, the young agent thinks of the previous evening; their first meeting in a hangar in the outskirt of Pretoria, with Sydney, Vaughn, Weiss, Marshall, Jack Bristow and himself. He will always be surprised by Marshall's attitude: so brilliant and yet lacking in self-confident, afraid of Agent Bristow Senior and yet admiring of all the operatives.
"M Van Der Meer, once you have put on all the devices in place, you'll have to launch the system by typing the following code: 785893#. Now, it may look like any alarm system but the cameras are undetectable and… Agent Bristow will be able to switch on or off the optimum security by only using his cell phone." Marshall smiles, "It's clever, isn't it? It's Carrie's idea!"
Sydney smiles to him, she likes this guy very much. I've heard that she saved his life once. She congratules him often, "It's wonderful, Marshall!" In fact, she cheers Marshall on every time she can. I like her. I like this Sydney.
" And this is another little device… It's for you… Ms Bristow. I called it "the dumb"." And he starts laughing, "It's an intelligent bug. It activates itself at the slightest sound, even a whisper will be picked up and above all... if someone tries to detect it, that's when it becomes interesting..." He mimes the actions of someone listening and searching... "It shuts itself off. And the bad guys can't find it. I'm truly very, very proud of this one."
" Thank you, Marshall." Jack says.
The meeting continued with a lighter atmosphere and there were not many news from our side since we had just arrived. I gave the last news about the traffic branch to the team. No big result, we make progress little bit by little bit, some contacts identified.. That's all.
At last, we talked about Rambaldi. And there, the atmosphere irremediably became strained. The conflict between father and daughter was obvious. On one hand, Sydney's giving the cold shoulder to Jack, and on the other, Jack was actually icier with her. In fact, I think that he feigned indifference.
"Did we make any progress in our search about Rambaldi?"
"Most of the office of the UNISA will be under close watch the next week, only three of them are under our surveillance for the moment,"answers Vaughn. "We've got the list of staff names, I sent it to Dixon. We'll have the preliminary enquiries in the few next days."
"And with the FoPeSA2H, the foundation? Any progress? "
"Not yet! I took several pictures of every sites," continues Vaughn while he gives the photo to Eric.
We broke up several minutes later. Weiss told me every thing would work out between Sydney and her father, but I 'm not as certain as him, and when we left they stayed alone in the room.
"Sydney."
"Yes, Agent Bristow?" she answered cooly. When she was with him, she couldn't calm down. Her quick-tempered character resurfaced occasionally.
Ever the professional, Jack ignored her latest comment (.) " We have to elaborate a mean for us to meet, apart from our weekly meetings, that will not arouse suspicion and will appear natural. "
"Well, what do you suggest?"
" The pool at my apartment provides a valid alibi. You'll come there to swim when you have to give me news." Jack's tone was as icy, even icier than Sydney's. His face was, as usual, expressionless.
She challenged him, trying to provoke an emotion inside him. "Very well, I'll tell Vaughn"No!" He interrupted her dryly ."I said you, not Vaughn. We have to pretend to be close relatives. So, it's necessary that…"
"What? That I start training right now? That it's necessary that we actually try to get closer so that our joke of a relationship will be more credible? That's it, isn't it?" She was angry. Her head was buzzing with feelings: rancour, sadness, love and jealousy too.
"Yes, in a way." Iceman!
A moment passed without a word as they just stared at each other. Sydney felt her heart beating inside her chest and a little hope was growing.
"Ok! Who are you?"
Jack wavered after this surprising question ."Sydney, what are you looking for?"
"We won't make progress if you answer my questions with other questions."
She had to deal with him in another way. She had a thousand questions to ask him. Who am I for you? Do you love me? Do you still love mom? Who are you? … And a feminine curiosity, with an ounce of jealousy, took over . Brusquely, she added, "What is her name?"
Jack sighed, but Sydney changed again without leaving him any time to answer. "I'm trying to get to know you, so I have to start somewhere! You're so secretive. I've never even been sure if there had been other women. What is her name?"
"This doesn't mean anything, " Jack answered her annoyed, then he added when he saw Sydney's reproaching gaze, "Kristina." A little lie.
This was a little victory. "How long?"
"Some weeks."
The little jealousy pinch sprang again; there was a woman indeed. "Do I know her? Is she from LA?"
"No, she is Swedish." He lied again.
"Is it serious?"
"I have to go. Goodbye." And he quickly left her. But he did not fool her; she knew that he was fleeing.