A/N: Thank you Eyghon, Fair Cate, Natalie, and Grouchy for reviewing! Glad to know that I still have some loyal readers! Chapter 17 is up in no time flat, aren't you proud? No long waits this time! Oh, and one side note about this chapter. The coordinates that Sydney gives are completely fake. So fake that I don't even know where they lead to. So even if the location actually means that they're digging in the ocean when they're actually supposed to be digging on land, just go along with it. Thanks again!

SPOILER ALERT: If anyone is reading the Alias prequel series and has not yet read or plans on reading Infiltration, this chapter has major spoilers for the book! So do not read this chapter or skip over the part where Anna explains their history if you do not want to know what happens.

Eyghon: I knew that everyone was probably thinking Irina so that's why I wanted to do something different. I'm glad you're still reading though!

Chapter 17

            Vaughn had a team assembled in ten minutes flat. They arrived at Sydney's house to find no cars in the driveway and no visible signs of break-in. Vaughn felt his heart soar slightly. Maybe it was Sydney who made the call, he thought briefly, but the idea was dismissed just as quickly. Sydney would find better means to contact him if that was what she was doing. Besides, if he remembered correctly, the woman on the phone sounded completely different from her. Her voice had been quieter and softer, and maybe even slightly higher than Sydney's.

            Vaughn signaled part of the team to the back and held the other half to the front. When he was assured that they were in position, Vaughn led his team to the front door. He took a look at the knob, and didn't see any scratches around the edge, but that didn't necessarily mean anything. He jiggled the knob slightly to determine whether or not it was locked. It was unlocked. He took a deep breath before he shouted, "Move in" into his com.

            Vaughn opened the door with one gloved hand and entered the familiar living room with his gun raised. He could hear the shattering of wood in the back and realized that they had to break down the door. Vaughn cringed slightly; he wasn't looking forward to explaining to Sydney why they had to replace her door.

            The team spread out and all rooms were searched, but every room turned up empty. Once the room had been secured, a forensics man began investigating the locks as Vaughn made his way over to the phone. The table it was sitting on had a drawer that was slightly open. Vaughn pulled it open and found various magazines, but on top of it all was a bumpy textured blue book with "Phone Book" written across it. He opened it and found that the only page with a slight bend in it was his name.

            He smiled when he saw that he was just entered as Vaughn, but frowned when he saw that his home number was replaced with the number he knew now. The one that had been his original number was crossed out so furiously that he could barely read it. His office number was also written above his new number. Vaughn felt his hand clench tightly on the book as he glared at his new number. He hated it now that he had to share it with Lauren and that he had caused Sydney so much pain.

            "Agent Vaughn." Vaughn looked up at the forensics guy. For some reason he couldn't recall the man's name.

            "Yes?"

            "It seems as if the caller used a lock pick to get in, but there were too many sets of prints on the knob to determine exactly who it was." Vaughn nodded dumbly then looked back down at the notebook he was holding.

            "Here, I want you to search this for prints. Hopefully there will only be two sets on them." Sydney's and the intruder's.

            "Come on, guys, lets pack it up," he called to them. Whoever had called him probably had assumed that the line was being tapped and ran soon after the call had been completed. What puzzled Vaughn is why she had called him, and why she had left the phone book there. If she truly was hoping to get in touch with Sydney, it was likely that she would call again. Unless she memorized the number. Vaughn shuddered. All the evidence seemed to pointing to the idea that they were dealing with a spy.

            No matter how many times a person gets knocked out in their life, there really is no quick method to get over the aftermath. Sydney hated this groggy feeling that hindered her ability to think and react. Her tongue didn't seem to fit in her mouth and her limbs felt heavy. All she wanted to do was fall back asleep but most likely because of the drug, she wasn't able to.

            "Greetings," Anna said through her haze. Sydney opened her eyes dismayed to find herself in the same room as before. "You know the best form of torture they say is psychological. It can drive a person mad. But that, Sydney Bristow, was just fun." When Sydney didn't say anything Anna turned more serious and switched to Russian.

            "Do you remember how we first met?" Anna asked her fluently. Sydney didn't answer. "After all this time, all those missions, we never had time to reminisce." Sydney wasn't looking forward to this. She remembered quite clearly the first time she had met Anna, and after that date, she remembered hoping that she would never cross Anna's path again.

            "You went undercover for SD-9 into K-Directorate and met with Diana," Anna clucked her tongue. "You were only nineteen when she died. How young." There was no sympathy in Anna's voice. In fact, it had been Anna who had shot Diana, whose real name was Demetria, because they had discovered that she had been a mole for SD-9. In actuality, Petri Gregoran, the head of K-Directorate at the time had had no idea that Diana was the mole. Diana had saved Sydney's life.

            "Petri didn't see it that way," Sydney shot back in Russian. Anna's eyes flared. During that time period Anna had had a serious crush on her boss. Whether Anna really loved the man, or had intended to use him for her own needs Sydney would never know. In the end, because of Sydney's association with Diana, she too had become under suspect, but during her trial, she had been able to finger Anna as the traitor and trick Petri into backing her up.

            Anna suddenly smiled. "You know when I first saw you enter the office and introduced to me as Sasha Petrova, I saw the same expression in your eyes as I saw in every other person in the office: fear. I thought that first mission we went on, even with you just doing tech, would kill you because you were so young and naïve. But the minute you walked out the doors of K-Directorate alive I knew I had a formidable opponent and that we would meet again. Now here we are. Both of our past alliances lie in ruins but we're still fighting for the truth. Now, I know how much these past few minutes disagree, but you of course know that I am not a talker." Anna ran a hand through Sydney's hair as Sydney stared daggers at Anna.

            "So tell me Sydney," Anna said lowering her voice down to a whisper. "Where is the final Rambaldi artifact?"

            "Up your ass," Sydney said with challenging eyes and a satisfied smile. Anna as if expecting such an answer pulled out her gun and held it to Sydney's temple.

            "Guess again," Anna growled.

            "Sark has it," Sydney said unflinchingly. Excitement filled Anna's eyes for a moment before she flung the gun away from Sydney's temple and shot her in the leg. Sydney's body flinched and she gave a cry of pain.

            "I hate twenty questions, Sydney. I'll give you a chance to reconsider," Anna said as she re-holstered the gun and left the room.

            Vaughn hated the idea of not being at the office, but he had to give Weiss credit for keeping his mind off things. Yeah, he had to thank Weiss and the shot of tequila that sat newly refilled in front of him. He had successfully turned away from the dark ages two years ago when he would sit at home with vodka and drink it all up alone. Tonight however, Vaughn had no intention of drinking away his worries. He just wanted an out. A way to put what other wise would be nervous foot-tapping to ease, and that was where Weiss came in.

            Eric Weiss had to know every bartender in town. When they had arrived he had asked their bartender, Jeff was his name, how his three kids were doing and what his wife thought of that new thirty-two inch screen TV he had bought on a splurge because it had been on sale. Seconds later Weiss was chattering on about a guy name Vinny who tended drinks at some place called "Pops." Vaughn however, was intrigued. It was the same sort of feeling of normalcy that he could only get in a few places. One major place that came to mind was the hockey rink. The CIA could never take away his childhood memories as a kid playing hockey.

            "So do I provide relief or what?" Weiss asked grinning.

            "You take the cake," Vaughn said giving him a sideways glance. He found himself tensing. He didn't feel good about sitting at a bar drinking when Sydney was somewhere in the world, probably with his wife, possibly being tortured. Vaughn hated all the possible scenarios he could conjure up in his head of Sydney being tortured. He grabbed his glass of tequila in pain.

            Vaughn heard Weiss sigh as a bottle of port came into focus on the shelf behind the bar. "Well, it was a good idea," Weiss grumbled.

            "What?" Vaughn asked as he saw the money Weiss had thrown on the counter.

            "You're impossible. I can't even get you to focus on something as trivial as drinking! Come on, we're going back."

            "No, it was working, I just…I'm worried about her."

            Weiss looked at him with understanding. "I know. I am too. C'mon, let's go." Vaughn picked up his last glass of tequila and was prepared to finish it in one swig when his phone rang.

            "I bet you a round that its Lauren," Weiss said as Vaughn pulled it open.

            "Vaughn," he answered as he glared at Weiss.

            "Hey, honey, I got your message," Lauren's British accent filled the line. He cringed. He had once found that accent adorable. Weiss meanwhile winked and nodded that he had guessed right. Vaughn quickly pressed two.

            "Sorry, I almost dropped the phone," he said quickly to explain the noise.

            "So, an old friend, huh? Must be pretty important for you to call me for the cufflinks? Have I met him?" she asked.

            "No, we go back to high school. He went to Penn State after we graduated. Besides, you know I would look for any excuse just to hear from you. Any update on when you'll be home?"

            "Well, they've finally found a replacement to lead the conference, but it still might be a day or two."

            "I miss you," Vaughn said forcefully making his voice low.

            "I miss you too. I'm anxious to come back home."

            "Good-bye," Vaughn said prepared to hang up, but Lauren's laugh stopped him.

            "Don't you want to know where the cufflinks are?"

            "Nope, I found them," Vaughn said with a fake laugh. How could he have been so stupid as to forget the cufflinks?

            "Good, because I had no idea," Lauren laughed again. "Love you."

            "Love you, too," Vaughn replied before he hung up. He looked at Weiss. He was eager now to head back to the JTF. They finally had a lead.

            "Wow, you deserve an Academy Award for that performance," Weiss said. Vaughn rolled his eyes. "Well, actually, Syd deserves the Academy Award for deceiving Sloane for so many years, but you definitely deserve a Grammy or something," Weiss continued. Vaughn however had already turned his back on his friend and was heading towards the door.

            "You still owe me a round!" Weiss shouted after him, but his words were lost. "Oh never mind. I'll just drink this one," Weiss said as he grabbed Vaughn's untouched tequila glass and finished it before following his friend out the doors.

            Sydney didn't remember when she blacked out. In fact, the only reason that she did know she had blacked out was the fact that she was in a different room and she had no idea how she got there.

            It was a white room, same as before, but a large machine to one side was measuring a heartbeat. It took her a moment to realize that it was her own. There were no cabinets like there had been in the other room. She was still strapped down to the same kind of chair as before, and unfortunately her leg still throbbed.

            "Hurts doesn't it?" Lauren asked with a lopsided grin. Sydney looked over to her left. She hadn't realized Lauren was in the room.

            "Yes," Sydney answered. She didn't know what compelled her to answer. Then realization spread through her body like a cold breeze. They had injected her with a truth serum.

            "She's ready," Lauren said to someone to Sydney's right. Sark suddenly appeared into her line of vision before he left the room. "We have a few minutes," Lauren said turning her attention back to Sydney.

            "Tell me, do you love Agent Vaughn?" Lauren asked with pleasure.

            "Yes," Sydney grudgingly felt herself answer. She hated being manipulated.

            "Did you know that he was the one who gave you up to the NSC?"

            Sydney's eyes narrowed as she wished she didn't have any restraints to restrict her from killing Lauren at that moment. "You're lying," Sydney answered honestly. The lines on the heart monitor also increased. Lauren seemed to be enjoying Sydney's reaction.

            "He did. He told the NSC that you killed Lazarey. It was because of Vaughn that you had to hide. And you know it too," Lauren said smiling. Sydney did know it. Just when she was at the moment of defending Vaughn's honor, she had remembered his awkwardness around her. She now understood all those nervous moments when Vaughn had seemed about to tell her something important. This had been Vaughn's secret. Vaughn had betrayed her.

            The lines on the monitor nearly doubled in height but shortened in distance. Lauren seeming satisfied by this reaction pulled back and seemed content with waiting for whatever the next phase was. The wait was short. Sark walked in followed by Anna.

            "So Agent Bristow, we'll start easy and work our way up. Does that sound good to you?" Anna asked.

            "Yes," Sydney answered without seeming to have any control over her mouth. Anna just smiled.

            "Let's begin. What's your name?"

            "Sydney Bristow."

            "What are the names of your parents?"

            "Jack and Laura Bristow."

            "Where did you go to college?"

            "UCLA."

            "What agency recruited you while you were in school?"

            "SD-6."

            "What agency do you currently work for?" Sydney fought hard to prevent from answering this question. If she were in enemy hands and they didn't already know what agency she worked for, this is the one question she couldn't afford to answer. However, this situation was different. Everyone in this room already knew she worked for the CIA.

            "The CIA."

            "What agency were you working for as a double agent for two years?" There was more of a delay between this question than there were the others. She was starting to fight the drug, but besides that, this question presented information that she otherwise wouldn't have known unless she viewed that one single piece of paper.

            "The Covenant."

            "Where did you hide the final Rambaldi device?" Sydney tried to let the answer come into her mind like all the others, but it didn't happen. No location, no coordinates, no nothing. There was just one name that kept appearing, Nadia. Sydney allowed her lips to form the beginning of Nadia, but she changed the words just moments before they left her lips. "North 63, East 32."

            Anna raised one eyebrow at Sydney, and Sydney began to wonder how long she had been thinking about Nadia and who she was. She seemed to be thinking this over as she glanced at the heart monitor for confirmation. It had slowed down considerably from the news that Lauren had so gently broken to her.

            "If your wrong, Sydney Bristow," Anna warned. "You're going to regret ever being born." Sydney looked at the fire burning in Anna's eyes as she prayed that she wouldn't be here long enough for Anna to fore-fill her threat.