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Blaming not yourself, said the fault lies somewhere else
Repeated when the feelings high
I wish it all could just rely

Alice tapped lightly on the office door. "You wanted to see me, sir."

Sloane looked up and motioned towards a chair. "Yes, come in." He leant back in his chair as Alice entered and took a seat. "I wanted to discuss your report."

"Is there a problem?"

"Not specifically. I was just curious about what you had to say about Sydney Bristow."

Alice looked at him closely. "I thought I made it clear. I'm concerned."

"Yes, you did mentioned that, but there was nothing solid to support your feelings." Sloane paused as he stroked his chin. "Sydney Bristow is an exemplary agent and an asset to this organization. If you are willing to put your suspicions of her onto paper, then you are going to need to support these claims."

Alice smiled knowingly. "I am aware of that, sir. I did not accuse Agent Bristow of anything specific because at this point I have nothing to accuse her of. All I said that her demeanour during the interview gave me a reason to take further action."

"I take it you have already contacted security section?"

"Of course. There's a tracker on her now."

Sloane was nodding slightly. "Well, I want you to tell me as soon as you find anything."

"I will." Alice made to stand up. "May I go? I need to see McCullough."

Sloane waved her off. He was worried. Very rarely was Alice's intuition off. He hoped desperately that this was one of these times, because if not…well, the days were numbered for one of SD-6's best agents.

"Sydney." She stopped and turned around outside the Credit Dauphine building. Jack was striding purposefully towards her. "I wanted to ask about our conversation the other day."

"What about it?"

"Did you tell him?"

Sydney hesitated, glancing around at the few people milling around.

"It's ok." Jack said, quietly. "It's safe out here."

"Yes, I told him."

"So will the CIA be taking action?"

Sydney eyed her father carefully. There was something odd about his expression. "I don't know. I'm not even sure if Vaughn has passed on the information yet."

"What? Why not?"

"Because I assume that he has a lot to wrap his head around. Alice has no idea about his real profession. There is no immediate risk. Let him have a little time."

"Sydney, in case it has slipped your mind, this woman is investigating the possibility of a mole within SD-6. Of course there is a risk and now we have a way of taking her into custody and keeping you protected. You handler should inform the CIA as soon as possible."

"Dad, Vaughn has just discovered that the woman he is involved with is an enemy of the United States. You couldn't possibly know what that would feel like. So please, just let it go. For the time being I am safe and we should let Vaughn make his move in his own time.

Jack stared stonily at her, before turning on his heel and walking off without a word. The sudden exit left Sydney feeling a little rattled. Why was this business with Vaughn and Alice affecting him so much?

"Good morning." Sloane said brusquely, as he entered the conference room where Sydney, Dixon and Marshall were already seated. Pressing a button on his keyboard, a face of a distinguished beared man appeared on all their screens. "Edward Callosi. A self-made millionaire who now resides in Paris. SD-6 has recently come into some intel claiming that he is a follower of Rambaldi. It is believed that he has been cataloguing the whereabouts of several Rambaldi artefacts."

"Why is he only cataloguing them?" Dixon inquired. "Why not collect the artefacts?"

"The rumour is that he is looking to sell the locations to the highest bidder." Sloane replied. "Which is the last thing we want to happen. We cannot risk enemies of this country getting hold of this information."

"So what's our mission?" Sydney asked.

"Callosi is having a party tomorrow evening. You'll need to get into his office, make a copy of this catalogue and then destroy the hard drive to ensure that nobody else gets their hands on this information." Sloane passed a manila folder to both Sydney and Dixon. "Sydney, you'll be on point, Dixon you're on comms."

When the meeting was over, Sloane stopped Sydney from exiting. "Sydney, stay a moment please."

"What is it?"

"If you have time, Ms Williams would like to see you tomorrow before your flight."

"May I ask why?" Sydney asked, keeping her composure.

"She just wants to follow up your evaluation."

"Oh, ok." Sydney went to walk out but turned around. "If I don't get a chance tomorrow would it be ok if I met with her after I return?"

Sloane nodded. "I'm sure that would be fine. Be careful on your trip."

"I will." Sydney replied and then headed off. Inside she felt sick.

"If the locations that Callosi has acquired are accurate, we cannot let SD-6 get their hands on them." Vaughn handed Sydney a disc. "This is a bogus catalogue. You'll hand this to SD-6. When you get back to LA, just go through our usual channels to dead drop the real catalogue."

Sydney nodded mutely as she took the file. Her passive demeanour didn't get past Vaughn.

"Look, I know that things are precarious for you at the moment, but there is no risk in doing this. SD-6 is not even sure if Callosi's intel is accurate. When they find nothing at these locations, the finger will be pointed at him, not you."

"Yeah, I know that." Sydney sighed, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "It's something else."

"What?"

Sydney shifted uncomfortably. "It has to do with Alice."

Vaughn visibly recoiled at the sound of her name. Alice was not a subject that Vaughn wanted to discuss with Sydney. He wasn't sure what made him feel more awkward- discussing the fact that his girlfriend worked for a terrorist organization, or just talking about his girlfriend full stop. Talking to Sydney about Alice would only make him feel even more confused.

"Alice?" He avoided Sydney's eyes. "Is this about turning her into the CIA?" He rubbed his temple. "I just need some time, ok. Just so I can accept things. Right now—"

"Vaughn," Sydney cut him off gently. "This isn't about that. This is to do with me."

"You?"

"Yes. I've been ordered to see Alice again- a supposed follow up to my evaluation. The only thing is, as far as I know, I'm the only one with a second meeting. Which means…"

"They're suspecting you of possible mole activity." Vaughn looked at his feet. "Alice suspects you."

"Things can't be too bad, otherwise they would never send me on this mission. But if this next meeting doesn't go to plan, I could be in big trouble."

Vaughn drove back to work the long way, trying the piece together his fragmented thoughts. He could do nothing about the Alice situation and things could continue as is. If only Sydney had never seen her, he could have continued his life in blissful (well, happy) ignorance.

Deep down Vaughn knew that he couldn't sit back and do nothing. Both his heart and his mind were telling him he had to turn Alice in. But when he did, there would be two possible courses of action. Bring her into custody, or use himself as a means of monitoring her exploits at SD-6.

The former would be one of the hardest things he'd ever have to do. Would he be able to play a pivotal role in the arrest and incarceration of his girlfriend?

The latter would be easier, except for one problem- the risk for Sydney if Alice were allowed to continue at SD-6. Vaughn couldn't allow that. Sydney was his asset and it was his job to protect her and the CIA's operation within SD-6. If any harm ever came Sydney's way, Vaughn knew that he would never be able to forgive himself.

Something jolted inside him as he pulled into a car park. Just why exactly was he so torn up inside- because of the truth about Alice, or because his main concern was focused on Sydney?

He had to ask himself- if he felt differently towards Sydney Bristow would he be more or less inclined to turn Alice in?