Well here I am again. Now I'm sure we all know where the disclaimer is.
And the adventure continues...
Discovering The Waterfront
Chapter 13
Comfortably Numb
Mark read the plan over and over again. Sloane was going to use Isabelle to do his work. There were other papers lying around, ones that made references to the former agency called SD-6. Was Sloane actually repeating everything? Using Isabelle, just like he had used Sydney. Mark knew the story, his mother had told him the tale. She knew it due to the fact she had worked with Sydney for a little while and had read her file, while she decieved the C.I.A.
Isabelle sat quitely in the chair she was forced to sit in. She looked out the plane window to see the passing clouds. She hoped her mother would show up soon.
"You're mother worked for me you know?" Sloane asked Isabelle breaking her daze.
"I didn't know that." Isabelle stated quietly still making her wish.
"That was before she turned." Sloane told Isabelle waiting for the right reaction.
"What?" Isabelle asked, her wish now gone.
"You're mother, Sydney, she used to work with me in several organizations. You see they were covert ops for the C.I.A. but she didn't want to belive me so her and you're grandfather, Jack, began to work against me. Eventually my organizations fell and well, the rest is pretty much history." Sloane explained, leaving out a few select details.
"Those organizations were bad. My mother wouldn't go against anything good." Isabelle defended her parent.
"I was doing something important. Everything I've done has lead up to this endgame and you can either help me or I'll kill them all." Sloane threatened, realizing she wouldn't fall for his usual tricks so easily.
"That's all you've got to threaten me with. You'll kill them? I don't even know who you're talking about." Isabelle tried to cover the worried feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"I'll start with Mark, then I'll move to you're grandfather, then you're grandmother. Until I get to you're mother and then finally you're father. And I'll make you sit through each and every one so they'll know that you betrayed them." Sloane told Isabelle in a malicious voice. Isabelle's eyes held anger and hate, but they also held a worry that knew he would do as he said. She turned to look at the inside of the plane and away from Mr. Sloane.
"Fine. I'll help you." Isabelle monotonously complied, apologizing in her mindto each and every person Sloane had threatened. Especially her mother, she wasn't sure she would ever be forgiven. Isabelle thought about Mark and how much he had helped her through everything, she couldn't believe she was about to help a villain.
Sydney, Vaughn, Rachel, Tom, and Jack walked into APO each one heading off into a different direction to find information on Isabelle. Sydney and Vaughn went together to go talk to Marshall.
"Sydney, you're back." Marshall said excitedly.
"Mr. Vaughn, I knew you weren't dead." Marshall gave Vaughn a hug before sitting back in his chair. Vaughn and Sydney shared a smile at Marshall's actions, somehow he always made them laugh.
"Marshall, Sloane's taken Isabelle." Sydney said feeling emptiness when she told him.
"Now Sloane's involved...as if things couldn't get anymore complicated." Marshall said absentmindedly to the room.
"We're not sure where he's taken her but she disappeared from the C.I.A. wharehouse in Rome, well at least somewhere on the road to the wharehouse. I also think that there might be another person with her, his name is Mark and he's about seventeen so just watch out for him. I need to know where they might have taken her, please Marshall find her." Sydney pleaded with her friend.
Marshall nodded and began to type up things in the computer.
"She disappeared outside of Rome?" Marshall confirmed.
"Thank you." Sydney said before she walked out of the room and sat at her desk, she didn't have any reason to sit there but rather she needed a break. Vaughn followed Sydney and stood next to her. He laid his hand in hers and that small gesture comforted Sydney a hell of a lot.
"Untie her, she's not going anywhere." Sloane told the soldier, who took out a knife and broke the ropes. He didn't seem to have any care about what he was doing, he probably would have acted the same way if he was cutting open boxes. Isabelle rubbed her wrists where she had slowly been getting rope burn. There were red marks from the rope but they would soon fade.
Isabelle could have done her best to run and hide throughout the plane, but she didn't want to risk her family's and Mark's lives. Besides, what was she going to do on a plane.
"Follow me, we have a lot of work to get done." Sloane said before they walked to another part of the private jet.
Isabelle held her head down and followed Sloane into the other room.
Mark shuffled around the storage room. He couldn't find a way out, not that it mattered much, he wasn't getting out of the plane until it landed anyway. He tried to open some of the wooden crates thinking there might be some weapons or form of communication in them. After he managed to open one crate he found what he was looking for, a cell phone. He had seen the number Isabelle had dialed before in the coffee house. He had a photographic memory and recalled the numbers. The first try he messed up the two middle numbers but soon enough got the right combination.
The phone rang on the other line and a woman's voice answered.
"Miss Bristow?" Mark asked before he got a confirmed yes.
"My name is Mark Reed, I'm on a plane somewhere and I need you to trace this call." Mark said his message quickly but Sydney understood.
Sydney rushed into Marshall's office and told him to begin the trace. Marshall complied and typed rapidly on his computer, the trace began.
"It'll take a minute, you need to stay on the line." Marshall told Sydney quietly.
"Mark this'll take a minute just keep talking." Sydney told him.
"Is Isabelle alright?" Sydney asked trying to get as many answers as she could.
"I'm not sure. They came out of nowhere, we tried to get away but they were too fast. They tied us up, put bags over our heads, and shoved us into the back of a trunk of some car. Then we were on a plane, Sloane's plane." Mark explained to Sydney.
"Done!" Marshall exclaimed.
"Where are they?" Vaughn asked as he had followed Sydney.
"Over the Atlantic Ocean, it looks like they're headed towards the U.S. but I'm not sure where." Marshall said after he had locked on to the phone signal.
"Can we follow the plane?" Vaughn asked hoping they could.
"Yeah. Marshall typed a few more things before a dot appeared on a map. When the plane moved the dot shifted slightly, the trace was on.
"Mark, listen we can see the plane now. When it lands we'll be sure to get you two back." Sydney told Mark.
"Thanks." Mark said before he hung up the phone.
Sydney hung up her own phone and looked at the blinking dot.
"We've got you now." Sydney said angrily at the computer screen.
"There's an artifact I would like to contain. This artifact is located in a bank just outside of Las Vegas. My team will create a diversion and take down any security measures." Sloane directed while an image of the bank was passed around. Isabelle looked at the picture of the bank, she wondered how she would pull off anything they wanted her to do.
"Isabelle you will crawl through the air ducts and into the main safe room. There you will use this decoder and the safe will open. You will have a minute to grab the artifact before the fail safe is activated. The artifact is located behind a piece of the wall where money will be covering it." Sloane told Isabelle who looked terrified that she might be trapped in a safe.
"So all I have to do is find the wall before the safe closes on me, great." Isabelle said sarcastically.
"Lucky for you it's a wooden piece of wall whereas the rest is solid metal. All you need to do is knock off all the money and you should see the square. It'll open like a door and the artifact will be inside, it will be wrapped in paper so put it in this bag and hurry out of the safe." Sloane said to Isabelle in a friendly voice that seemed out of place for the situation.
The plane will land in the airport in Las Vegas then we will be provided transportation to the bank. Here you are Isabelle." Isabelle took the messenger bag and the decoder that looked like a calculator. She shoved the decoder into the bag and waited for further direction before she realized she had no idea how to use the decoder.
"How exactly do I use this?" Isabelle held up the decoder after she had pulled it from the bag.
"Just press the red button after you stick it to the code box." One of the agents explained to Isabelle.
"Thanks." Isabelle said before she shoved the decoder back into the bag.
"The plane should land in about an hour, take that time to prepare yourselves." Sloane said to the group.
"Isabelle." Sloane stated her name indicating she was to follow him. She grabbed her things and followed Sloane to his small office at the back of the plane, right before the storage room.
"Don't think about running." Sloane ordered.
"I wasn't...I won't run away." Isabelle said determined to follow through with the plan. She wasn't about to ruin other people's lives because she didn't want to steal from anyone.
"Good." Sloane gave her a hint of admiration.
"You look just like you're mother." Sloane acknowledged, Isabelle felt sick.
"Stay in here until the plane lands." Sloane ordered before he left Isabelle alone with her thoughts.
Sooner than Isabelle would have liked, the plane landed in Las Vegas. She was taken hold of and pulled into a car where she would be riding with Sloane. A van followed the car, this van held the agents, Mark had been left in the storage area of the plane.
"Sydney the plane's landed." Marshall told her.
"Where?" Sydney asked from her desk.
"Las Vegas."
The C.I.A. raid was useless. Sloane and his group including Isabelle had left a little while ago. Agents surrounded the plane and pulled Mark from the storage area. Sydney and Vaughn went with the agents, they hoped Mark had some information.
"Where did they go?" Vaughn questioned Mark.
"I'm not sure. I heard an agent say something about a bank outside of here." Mark shouted over the sounds of agents emptying boxes and boxes of things from the plane.
Mark had been standing behind the door to the storage area when two agents had passed by. They were supposed to be guarding Mark but there was really no point. The first agent had said something about heading for the bank soon and then the second agent said Vegas would never be the same, naturally Mark put two and two together.
With eyes closed tightly
I march so blindly
Pretending everything's fine
'Cause you're there to keep me in line
"We need to go." Vaughn told Sydney as they ran towards a car that would take them to the bank. Vaughn called Marshall and told him to find the right bank. Marshall returned the call a few minutes later and gave them the right address, he also said to hurry.
Isabelle waited outside the bank as two agents went inside. There was loud shooting heard from inside, a few more agents ran in to take care of the security measures. A voice came over her com and told her it was safe to enter.
She walked into the bank wearing a new outfit, this one all black. She looked just like them, an agent, she became another person with the mission. She couldn't handle everything and was fastly headed for a breakdown, but who wouldn't be?
I don't want your guidance
I'll break my silence
So sick of asking and being denied
And now I realize
"Find the artifact." An agent told Isabelle, who soon took off in the direction of the safe. She broke open the air vent and climbed inside.
Sydney and Vaughn drove up to the bank quietly. They noticed the van but didn't see another car. They loaded their weapons and headed into the bank, taking down several agents with no problem.
"You go this way." Vaughn told Sydney running off in a different direction.
We're holding the key
To unlock our destiny
We were born to lead
We're finally free
No longer following
We were born to lead
We were born to lead
Sydney ran through the bank finally stumbling upon the open air duct. She followed suit, knowing full well that Isabelle would be the one on the other side. She wasn't sure why Isabelle would be in an air vent but she thought maybe Isabelle had gotten away.
Isabelle shuffled around in the vent seeing a mouse pass by every so often, each time however she would completely freak out but she would have a silent freak out.
"Sure, I'll help you. Stupid." Isabelle told herself quietly.
"Then again..." Isabelle said as she thought about the iminent threat.
Isabelle reached the spot she was told about and kicked open the air vent. She was pretty high up but it was no higher than being on top of the jungle gym and jumping off. She let go of the edge and landed on the ground with a thud. She took a moment to catch her breath before she stood and looked at the safe door.
"Oh my God." Isabelle said as she looked at the huge safe door. She found the code box and placed the calculator like decoder onto the box. She pressed down the button and waited for the safe to open. In a matter of seconds, the sound met Isabelle's ears and the safe door opened.
You can't ignore me (you can't ignore me)
You can't think for me (you can't think for me)
Your world will come crashing down to the ground
'Cause I figured you out
She ran inside and knocked all the money off of the shelves. Her eyes scanned the room before she found the one small wooden piece of wall. She slid it open and reached inside, pulling out a small wrapped package that held something inside. She stuffed the artifact into the bag and ran out of the safe just before it closed.
She let out a large breath after the safe had closed. She rested for a second before she unlocked the metal door to the room and opened it. She walked out of the sealed room and casually made her way to the rooftop.
"I'm done, take the van and get out." Isabelle ordered.
"Good job Sparrow, head to the rooftop for extraction." An agents voice spoke over the com.
Isabelle let out a small laugh at her codename. She couldn't get over the fact that she had actually been given a name like an agent.
Sydney noticed the empty room and the sealed safe. She headed through the open door and saw Isabelle walking down the hall, she looked like she was laughing. 'She might be happy she got away or she's laughing because she outsmarted them.' Sydney thought to herself, trying to ignore the fact that Isabelle might have been compromised.
"Isabelle." Sydney called down the hall, watching for agents.
Isabelle turned around to see her mother standing outside the room she herself had just exited. She felt a pain in her heart for having to do what she was about to.
"I'm sorry." Isabelle apologized quietly before running towards the stairs.
We're holding the key
To unlock our destiny
We were born to lead
We're finally free
No longer following
We were born to lead
We were born to lead
Sydney raced after Isabelle trying to catch up but Isabelle was too far ahead. Isabelle reached the door to the stairs and slammed it open with a loud bang. She started up the stairs knowing her mother was in hot pursuit.
"Give it up." Isabelle said loudly down the stairs as she heard her mother enter the staircase.
We were born to lead
"Why should I?" Sydney shouted up at her daughter.
"Because you can't win." Isabelle stopped for a second but began to head up the stairs again.
Fourteenth floor, fifteenth floor, they had a few to go before they reached the roof. Isabelle could feel her legs begin aching as she ran up the stairs. Sydney wasn't in good shape either but she wouldn't stop, not until she reached Isabelle.
"Isabelle, you need to stop." Sydney told her daughter, trying to find the source of the sudden betrayal.
"I can't!" Isabelle shouted, her vent up anger showing.
I used to think I'm all alone
But now I see our numbers grow
I'm not afraid to break away
Think on my own
The two finally reached the floor before the roof. Isabelle pushed open the door and ran outside, seeing the helicopter coming to the roof to get her. Sydney emerged a few seconds after Isabelle noticing Isabelle waiting for the helicopter.
"Isabelle why are you doing this?" Sydney shouted over the helicopter.
"I told you, because I have to." Isabelle yelled back.
"What did you take?" Sydney questioned.
"I can't tell you." Isabelle angrily shouted.
With eyes wide open
My new life begins
Without you there to tell me when
We're in hell when you can't stop me now
"Don't do it." Sydney pleaded as the helicopter landed.
"I have to, I'm sorry." Isabelle ran towards the helicopter with Sydney in tow. Isabelle jumped inside handing the bag to Sloane. Sydney watched the exchange and watched helplessly as the helicopter left, taking Isabelle with it.
Isabelle watched her mother and couldn't bring herself to look anymore so she looked at the inside of the helicopter.
We're holding the key
To unlock our destiny
We were born to lead
We're finally free
No longer following
We were born to lead
We were born to lead
"Good job." Sloane told Isabelle but she didn't care. She had already destroyed her family, there was nothing left. She couldn't let them die though, so she had to continue with her new life. It sucked but she had to do it, otherwise everyone would die.
"Thanks." Isabelle said without feeling.
The helicopter landed at a base in the desert of Nevada. Isabelle was shown to a room in the base, she sat on the bed helplessly. Before long she fell asleep, her only escape.
We're holding the key
To unlock our destiny
We were born to lead
We're finally free
No longer following
We were born to lead
Sydney met up with Vaughn in the bank. As they walked back to the car, she explained the situation.
"What are we going to do?" Vaughn asked hoping Sydney had a plan.
"I'm going to ground her and then I'm going to kill Sloane." Sydney said, her instincts finally showing through.
That would be the next chapter, tell me what you think? I hope it was long enough to suffice for the two week time off I took. Thank you to the readers who are hanging on every moment. I want to do the show justice and there is only so many things I can do on paper that they can make better on the show, you know?
Born to Lead - Hoobastank - Every Man For Himself