Many thanks to leggy9591, src13, froggygrl101, irionelissa, o-See-No-Evil-o, Meadow, sid47, ArodLoverus2001, and Sydney for their reviews!

I am sorry for the long update period. I am currently taking a summer course on writing, and I have had to do a lot of writing for that, so I haven't had as much time as I would have liked to work on this. I will continue to try to update as often as possible given the circumstances.


Chapter 5: The Mission

Sydney was looking out her window in the plane. She had reviewed the mission until the words swam before her eyes in an effort to avoid an awkward silence, but she couldn't do it any longer. To her surprise, he walked over and sat down in the seat next to hers.

"So, how are you doing?" he asked conversationally.

Sydney hesitated a moment, then decided to make the effort to respond in kind. "I'm doing well, thanks, and you?"

Vaughn just looked at her a moment. "Syd, it's me. A year may have passed, we may be in somewhat different circumstances, but it's still me. That cookie cutter answer isn't going to fly. So, let me ask you again. How are you doing?"

She looked at him in surprise for a second, then smiled and blushed a little. "Sorry, that's my automatic reaction, you know. Honestly, I'm okay. It was kind of tough not seeing my work friends as much, or at all, in some cases. Strangely, it was also hard not seeing my mom. Who would have thought, right? But I like teaching, even if it's not as invigorating sometimes, I've stayed close, well, closer, with my Dad, and I feel like I can finally sleep peacefully at night. So I guess overall, I really am doing well. Was that better?"

He smiled back at her. "Definitely. Oh…" The smile wavered somewhat. "How's Danny?"

"He's good, too. He has a full-time medical career now – his own practice – so no more long hours. We're getting married next month."

"Oh. Congratulations."

"Thank you. You're welcome to come, if you want, but I wasn't sure considering the circumstances…"

"Which?" He suddenly looked intense. Sydney found herself nearly stuttering.

"What… what do you mean?"

"Which circumstances? I mean, we were close friends and co-workers who happened to have a one night stand. And that was it, right?"

"Vaughn…"

"Well, wasn't it?"

Vaughn was trying to maintain a nonchalant demeanor, but Sydney could see right through it to the hurt that lurked just underneath. She felt her voice catch in her throat as she replied, "Of course not, Vaughn. Of course not. I wouldn't… I couldn't do that to you."

"Then why…?"

He looked deep into her eyes as if he could find some answer there. As green met brown she felt a spark between them and suddenly she was overcome with the urge to touch him again, to be held in his strong arms, to feel his lips on hers. A voice in the back of her mind warned her that she shouldn't be thinking such thoughts, but she could not longer remember why. She felt herself inching closer to him, then closer…

"Sydney," he breathed, forcing himself to draw back a little. "Why did you choose him?"

"I didn't," she found herself saying before she could stop and edit her words. "You left. You made the choice for me."

Pain came into his eyes. "I just wanted you to be happy, Syd."

"Couldn't you have waited? Just one day, and who knows what could hae happened. If only…"

"We can't dwell on if onlys," he said, his voice suddenly sharp. He rose abruptly and walked towards the front of the plane. "I'm going to check with the pilot to see how much longer we have until we arrive."

He stepped through the door.

By the time he came back a few moments later, Sydney had wiped the tears from her eyes and was once again studiously examining the mission briefing. This time, Vaughn quietly took a seat on the other side of the plane and stared out the window. The remainder of the flight was passed in silence.

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The mission had been a success. Of course it was, Sydney thought. Vaughn and I are good together. Work well together, I mean. Right.

She took a deep breath and continued running. After breaking into the compound, they had used Irina's intel to locate Pignon. It had been almost too easy. Now, Vaughn was escorting Pignon to the extraction point while Sydney was securing the perimeter one more time. They could not afford the risk of someone sneaking up and shooting them in the back on the way out.

She encountered another group of guards on the way and took them out. It had come as a surprise to her to find that she was getting back into the swing of her old job rather quickly. It was almost enough to make her reconsider her career change.

Almost.

As she finished off the last guard, she heard the fall of footsteps behind her. She whirled around and came face to face with none other than Pierre Devrier, his gun pointed directly at her head.

"Sydney Bristow," he said good-naturedly. "What a pleasant surprise. I had heard that you were coming back, but I have to admit that I didn't believe it. You had seemed so content in your new life. Wasn't thrilling enough for you?"

"How… How do you know about my life now?"

His voice grew hard. "I tend to want to keep tabs on the people who break into my compound and escape successfully, leaving my beloved wife bleeding to death on the floor. Wouldn't you?"

Sydney said nothing. She tried to surreptitiously glance around, searching for an escape route, but Devrier caught on. "My dear," he said. "You must understand that I cannot let you go without taking my revenge. No, not on you, don't worry. You can carry on with your mission when we're done here. Pignon is a fool, and he does not have the information that either of us desire. You can have him."

"Then what do you want?"

"You'll find that I am a fair man, Miss Bristow. I only seek to take from you that which you took from me."

"Vaughn," Sydney breathed. "Where is he? What have you done to him?"

Devrier raised his eyebrows. "Well, that makes things interesting, doesn't it? According to my information, your fiancé is named Daniel Hecht."

Sydney gasped. She stared at Devrier in horror, then managed, "You have Danny?"

"I have both of the main men in your life. However, as I said, I only want vengeance. I am a fair man. You killed one that I loved, I too will only kill one. Your choice, my dear. I suppose, technically, it's not fair because you would choose one you loved less if you had any sense so you could walk away and have a nice life with the other, but no matter. I'm feeling generous today." He smiled cruelly at her, then called to his guards. "Bring them in."

Two pairs of heavily-armed men entered, each with a hooded man between them. At Devrier's signal, the men were released and the hoods taken off. Vaughn and Danny stumbled, then righted themselves. All four men trained their weapons on them. Vaughn looked angry as hell. Danny's eyes were wide with terror. When he looked at Sydney, he tried to call to her, but one of the guards hit him and he went silent.

"Well, Sydney, it's getting late. We all have other places we'd rather be, other things we wish to do. Please, don't hold us in suspense. Which one will you have me kill?"

Sydney's face had gone chalk white. She looked from Danny to Vaughn, wishing desperately that she would open her eyes and this would all have been some sort of sick nightmare. Images flashed before her – Danny singing his proposal, Vaughn comforting her on the pier, Danny telling her about his plans for their family, Vaughn kissing her amidst the ruins of SD-6…

Devrier cleared his throat, and Vaughn's words from nearly a year earlier came back to her, You can't just keep sitting here waiting for someone to wake you up and say that this is all over. It's real.

Sydney took a deep breath, and sudden resolve came into her face. Making every effort to keep her voice from cracking, she turned to Devrier and said, "I've made my choice."

"Out with it, then."

She looked directly into Vaughn's eyes. "Etchings of the past float back to me now. I see what could have been…"

Devrier rolled his eyes. "I grow impatient. Say the name, or I'll kill both of them right now.

Sydney nodded, still looking at Vaughn. "Free Danny. Kill Michael Vaughn."


Only a few chapters left after this, I think. Please continue to review!