ILOVEALIAS4EVER, RoutineRiot, o-see-no-evil-o, AliasFan79, agent belle, Muddy Poodle: Thank you all so much for your feedback.

o-see-no-evil-o: I have to say that I love baddie Lauren as well and that there will be plenty, plenty, plenty of her in this fic.

Disclaimer: The title of this chapter comes from the song 'Fade Into You' by Mazzy Star

I Look To You To See The Truth

Lauren's expression hardened slightly. "Fair enough," she said. "So, why don't you go home? Take that folder and read over it carefully. You say that you know your father, which means that you'll know if something he tells you about me is a little off. You're an intelligent girl Summer and I realise that I cannot tell you what to believe. But what you need to realise as that as your mother all I want to do is protect you. Think it over for a couple of days, form your own opinion and then let me know."

"Let you know what?"

"Whether you want to forget that this meet ever happened or whether you want to continue the work you started with us, serving your country."

Summer stood up, clutching the folder to her chest. "A couple of days?"

Lauren nodded. "I will be contactable through Thea."

"Ok," Summer whispered and then made to head out of the room.

"Summer." Lauren's voice stopped her.

"Yes?"

"It was…" her mother's voice faltered. "It was wonderful to finally meet you. I have been waiting for this day for nineteen years."

Not knowing how to respond to such a comment, Summer turned on her heel and walked out of the door.

As Summer exited V.O.J Insurance, she was completely oblivious to the sounds and movement around her. What on Earth was she supposed to do now? How could she even begin to…

With a sudden flash of inspiration, she reached into her bag for her mobile phone and hit one of the speed dials. Is she was going to try to disprove or corroborate what Lauren had just told her, there was only one person who could help her.

"Hello?"

"Hey Mitch, it's Summer."

"Oh, hey ya- what's going on?"

"Are you home?"

"Yup- no classes for today," he replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Would you be able to help me with something?"

"For you Sum, anything. How far away are you?"

"Ten minutes."

"See you then."

The Flinkman house was surprisingly empty and quiet. With Mitch, his parents and his three younger brothers, it was usually a hot bed of activity.

"I've got Bob all fired up," Mitch said as he let Summer into the house. "I figured that was the sort of help you needed."

Summer shook her head, a smile playing on her lips. "Have I ever told you how weird it is that you name your computers?"

"Ever since you learned to talk," Mitch shot back, a grin on his face and Summer had to laugh. The two of them had been best friends for as long as she could remember. With their parents in the same line of work and only a year between them, they had practically grown up together.

Summer felt a small jolt in her stomach. Their parents in the same line of work. If Lauren had been telling the truth then…

"Hey," Mitch put a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong? You look like your gonna throw up…what did you get up to last night?"

Summer shook her head. "I'm fine- I just need you to find out some things for me."

"Is that all?" Mitch asked with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Maybe there is something else that I can help you with. Because you are well aware that my talents supersede—"

"Mitch!" Summer gave him a small push. While he had inherited the genius of both Marshall and Carrie, there was no sign of his father's awkwardness. That's not to say that he was too confident, as he certainly had his endearing qualities. Qualities that had perhaps, over the past few years, led to the flirtations between Summer and himself. Both we were well aware of them, though nothing had really eventuated- yet.

"What?" His expression was one of pure innocence.

"Bob. Now."

"You know, I love it when you refer to my computer by name," he said, leading Summer into his bedroom. "So what do you need?"

Summer hesitated. "I need you to promise me something first."

"What?"

"That what I ask you stays between us. You cannot breathe a word to anybody."

Mitch frowned. "Ok, just how illegal is what you're about to ask me to do?"

"Nothing more than what you're usually up to," Summer assured him. "I just want to find out some things about my mother."

"Oh ok…" Mitch trailed off. "Your mother?"

"Yeah, I've got questions and I can't ask dad. I mean, you know how much he hates talking about it. Bad memories and all." Summer paused. Was it really bad memories or something else that made her father so hesitant to talk about Lauren? "Anyway, I just want to look at the hospital records around the time she was admitted. I need to know exactly what happened to her."

Mitch was nodding, as he turned to the computer screen. "That I can do… what was the date? Do you know?" Summer gave it to him, as his fingers worked effortlessly at the keyboard.

As usual, Summer was in awe of what Mitch could do with a computer. But it was really no surprise. He had, after all, learnt from the best…though not always to his father's knowledge.

"Here we go…I'm into the database," Mitch announced. "Lauren Reed, right?"

"Yes," Summer replied quietly, leaning forward slightly.

"Ok, she was admitted into Emergency with-whoa," Mitch turned to look at Summer. "I thought you said that she had been in a car accident."

"What does the record say?"

"It says here 'multiple GSW'…gun shot wounds," Mitch replied. "There is nothing here about a car accident."

"But…" Summer trailed off, suddenly realizing something. Vaughn had always told her that her mother had been involved in an accident, but had he ever specifically mentioned a car? Or was that something that she had created herself?

"Hey," Mitch's voice broke into her thoughts. "Are you ok?"

Summer nodded. "It's just…a shock."

"You know, this sounds like pretty serious stuff. Your dad probably just wanted to spare you from the image of your mother being pumped full of bullets…which I just did. Sorry."

Summer had not even heard what he said. "Mitch."

"Yeah?"

"Are you able to get onto a CIA server?" Summer asked. She needed to find out, somehow, whether the files Lauren had given her were legitimate.

"Sum, do you have any idea how much trouble I could get into?"

"Yes—"

"My dad would kill me and then mum would kill me—"

"I know, but—"

"And then their bosses would kill me and then throw what's left of me in prison."

"I know…but can you?"

"Of course I can," Mitch replied matter-of-factly. "But did you not just hear what I said?"

"You know that I wouldn't ask unless I was desperate," Summer said. "If my mother was shot, then it probably had something to do with her work at the CIA. I don't want you to go poking around in government secrets- I just need to know what happened."

"Summer, I know that you do, but seriously. If I were caught—"

"Isn't there something you can to, make it untraceable?"

"I can try…"

Summer looked him directly in the eyes. "Mitchell, please."

He threw up his hands. "Now there you go with the Mitchell and the face. You know I can't resist the face." He turned back to the computer. "You are so going to owe me after this like unbelievably so."

"Thank you," Summer sighed with relief, sitting back as Mitch went to work. The only sound between them was his pounding of the keys and Summer began to lose track of time, her mind wandering back to the events of the morning. Would anything ever feel the same again? Even if she did discover the truth, there was still the fact that her mother was alive and well. How was she even going to begin dealing with that?

"Sum." Mitch's voice caused her to jump slightly. "There's nothing."

"What? There can't be."

"Well, there is. But I don't exactly have a high level access here. It is CIA security that I am breaking into."

"So you can't read anything on Lauren?"

"From what I can see, anything related to Lauren Reed has been classified at the highest possible level. My dad couldn't even get into these files…" Mitch paused for a second. "Well, actually he probably could, but I certainly can't. I'm still a long way from being on par with him."

"So I am at a dead end," Summer murmured, her heart sinking.

"Maybe you should ask your dad. I know you don't want to cause him any grief, but if you're desperate…"

Summer ran a hand through her hair. "I should probably go," she said. "Thank you…I don't know—"

"Just so you know," Mitch grinned. "If I am caught, I am so giving you up."

Summer returned the smile. "You know, I wouldn't expect anything less from you."

"Oh thanks, Sum. That cuts real deep, you know."

"I'll see you, Mitch. And remember- not a word."

"Your secret is safe with me, Summer."

Vaughn scanned the park, looking for the familiar face of his daughter. It took him a few seconds, but he soon spotted her sitting on the bench in front of the sandpit that she had loved to play in when little.

"Summer," he said when he reached the bench and sat down. "What is it? Your message sounded urgent."

"I just…needed to talk to you, dad," Summer replied quietly.

"About what?"

"I…I feel like I am in such a weird place at the moment. I'm doing this stupid family tree assignment for my genealogy class. And when I was researching, I realized that I know absolutely nothing about my mother. Nothing. And meeting that doctor the other day just weirded me out even more." She drew in a deep breath. "I just want- need to know something about her."

Vaughn's expression had turned oddly blank. "Summer, I don't know what you want me—"

"Just tell me something, anything."

"Summer, I have told you everything," Vaughn's tone indicated that this was the end of the subject, but Summer wasn't going to let him get off that easily.

"But that is barely anything! You were married- surely…" She trailed off, taking in the pained expression in his eyes. "Ok, I get that you don't like talking about her…but could you al least give me some details on how she ended up in a coma. You said an accident, and I always thought car accident. Am I right? Was that it? Or did she…I don't know, fall down a flight of stairs, or did she hit her head somehow…maybe, she was even shot…what exactly happened?"

Vaughn so quiet for so long that Summer thought that he wasn't going to answer her question. She was about to say something when he finally spoke up.

"A drunk driver ran a red light and hit her car. That is all."

"So I didn't imagine that it was a car accident?" Summer probed.

"No." For the first time since Summer had mentioned her mother, Vaughn looked her in the eyes. "I wish I could give you all the answers. I really do."

With the threatening rolls of her stomach, Summer was having difficulty keeping up a calm façade. "I know that you do…I'm sorry for calling you away from work."

"Hey," Vaughn ran a hand over her hair. "I am always going to be here for you, Sum. I may not be able to give you what you want, but I am always going to be here."

Long after Vaughn returned back to work, Summer was still sitting on the bench, staring at her mobile. She was still not willing to accept Lauren's story as the truth, but she could not deny that there were many things that did not add up. And if she was going to discover what was true, then she was going to have to take some action.

And so, with one last deep breath, Summer began to dial a number.

"We were surprised when you called back so quickly," Thea commented as she led Summer down the hallway, and unto the same room where they'd converged that morning.

Lauren looked up, her eyebrows raised slightly. "Have you made a decision?"

Summer cocked her head to one side. "All CIA files concerning you are classified."

"Yes," Lauren replied. "To ensure that the wrong people do not discover that I am alive—" She stopped short. "How did you get access to CIA files?"

Summer ignored the question. "I don't trust you. I don't trust anybody anymore. But what I do trust is that there is a whole lotta truth out there- truth that I deserve to know."

Lauren gazed intently at her. "Does this mean?"

Summer nodded. "What do you want me to do?"