"Did I just hear what I think I did? Logan's involved in this?" Tony gritted through his teeth.

It was incredible how Tony had gone from apathy and helping him begrudgingly to suddenly caring so much now that Charles Logan was apparently involved. But Jack couldn't blame him because he shared his anger. Charles Logan had gotten away with so much. Despite how many lives had been lost to prove his guilt, the government had deemed it better to privately remove him from office lest the American public trust the government even less than they already did. Michelle had been collateral in that, and now Renee was collateral in this. Logan was an idiot if he tried to get away with it again, but, well… given how he was caught the first time, Jack supposed it actually wouldn't be that surprising.

"We need to confirm before we do anything," Jack reminded him.

Tony huffed, furiously working at the phone's buttons, presumably to try to run a trace. It didn't take long before he shook his head. "Let's go back to my place. I need decryption software."

They got Reed out with them as well. Jack reiterated how imperative it was that she not use traditional means of communication. She was understandably nervous, but there was a level of determination in her eyes that made Jack believe he had been right to trust her and give her a chance. He could see why Hassan had, too.

Tony led them back to his place via a route that minimised the risk of being identified on street camera. When they got back, Tony confirmed it was indeed Logan's personal cell that Tokarev had called. He also managed to get the location of his motorcade.

"So, what now?" Tony asked.

"We go to Logan and find out what's going on."

"What- You want to just walk right up to his limo and ask him to roll down the window?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "I called you for a reason, didn't I? I'll need full body armour and a shotgun."

Tony laughed. "What am I? Your personal ammunition supplier?"

"Right now, yes, you are."

He motioned with his head towards a large cupboard. "Knock yourself out. It'll probably help to carry light once I have to pack all my shit and run because of what you're about to do."

As Jack stood up, he realised that something about how he spoke didn't sit right with him. He was upset, sure, probably just the stress of having to relocate — which, really, for someone in his position, would have been inevitable — but Jack believed there was more to it.

"You don't have to come with me. You can get a head start, if that's what you want-"

"I'll manage just fine on the run, Jack. You don't have to worry about me like I don't have to worry about you. Knowing you, you'll get away with it. You always do."

He stilled, turning to look at him. "Get away with it? The fuck do you mean get away with it?"

Tony scoffed. "Taylor will probably give you another medal, and you'll be on a first-class flight back to LA before you know it."

"Yeah, after the Senate nearly fried my ass and used me as a scapegoat for CTU," he pointed out. "You think I'm getting some kind of special treatment? They left me to rot in a fucking prison, then they were willing to let me die. At least they protected you in prison."

"That doesn't mean it was paradise for me, Jack! You know I didn't do well in there," Tony defended. "You were alone. I had people try to kill me more than once, and instead of getting me out, you looked down on me like I fucking deserved it-"

"I did the best I could," Jack insisted, cutting him off.

"Bullshit."

Although Jack and Michelle were both being pushed away towards the end, Jack recognised that he still could have been a better friend. There was truth to Tony's words. Jack might have been dealing with a lot at the time, too, but it was no excuse.

"Why didn't you get me out of China?" Jack found himself saying, too far gone in the memories of their past to stop himself. "You were with Emerson. You had the means. You had the resources. Any day, any fucking time, you could have saved me-"

"It wasn't that simple," Tony defended, his voice softer. Jack would later reflect and realise that there was sadness in his eyes, too. But he was too angry right now, from so many things, big and small, past and present. It didn't help that his choice of words reminded him too much of what Heller said to him that day at the beach house. "I wanted to, okay? I just- I couldn't. I couldn't, and I'm sorry."

"Not sorry enough."

He half-expected Tony to tell him to get the fuck out, and he would be justified, but instead, he just sighed. "At least let me make it up to you by helping you now."

"Don't act like going after Logan is something you're doing for me. You're doing it for you again."

"It's both, alright? Let's just get going."

The car ride was silent, the tension even more tangible than before. They parked about a block away and reviewed their plan one last time. Admittedly, their history still meant communication was easier than it could be, always one step ahead of each other. However, Jack emphasised this had to be as clean as possible. They could shoot Logan's guards and aides, but they would avoid injuring any innocents in the nearby cars.

"Christ, Jack, you act like I'm some kind of psychopath. I didn't want to hurt innocent people then, and I don't want to hurt them now. I don't get this. One second, you're saying you trust me, that you have nobody else and that you need me. The next, you're acting like you're morally superior."

"Well, how was I supposed to know? That's my problem, Tony: I don't even know you anymore after what you did."

He groaned. "You're the one who said you didn't want to bring up the past and that we're on a timeframe, so why do you keep doing this?"

Jack really didn't know why he kept bringing it up. Maybe it was the awareness that he might not see Tony again for a very long time, if ever, and likely under similar circumstances to now, so he just had to get everything off his chest that he hadn't been able to for eighteen months since his imprisonment. But it wasn't just Tony he was thinking about, although he was certainly a prominent figure. Everyone and everything from his past kept coming to mind in flashes. He felt like he couldn't control them. He knew he was being erratic — more than usual in these situations — but he didn't stop. He wasn't sure if it was because he wouldn't or he couldn't. He just knew he was angry. And tired. So, God-damned tired.

"Forget it. I'm just-" Jack huffed. There were more important things to focus on right now. If they didn't get Logan here, then they would have to attack his motorcade much more publicly, and that was much riskier.

"Let's just go get our ex-president," Tony decided, ending the conflict for now.

The attack itself was thankfully smooth. Tony covered one exit while he covered the others. The gunfire distracted the other cars and made them stop, sandwiching the motorcade between two arrays of standstill traffic. People started to flee. There was immediate retaliation from Logan's guards. However, they were ill-prepared for someone attacking them with the weapons he and Tony had. Jack observed the cars as he made his way down, checking that there were no witnesses. It helped that they had sprung for the face shields, too. He forgot how heavy full-body armour could be. Twenty years ago, he could have worn all this with a rucksack and not had an issue. But now, with so many years out of action and his body weakened from the bioweapon, it was hard not to feel every bit of his years.

He jumped onto the hood of the car. The glass was tinted and most certainly bulletproof, but Jack could just see the driver and Logan inside. In the corner of his eye, Tony came towards the back, giving him a nod. Jack reloaded his shotgun and kept it still as he fired once, twice, three times, creating a dent the size of a golf ball in the windshield. It wouldn't shatter, but he could see he had made a small chip, and that would be enough. Jack retrieved the tear gas canister from his pocket, opening the seal. He punched through the small hole to shove the canister inside. Within seconds, the driver and Logan, who had a look of sheer horror in his eyes, were coughing and trying to hold their shirts over their noses.

Logan lunged to open the door, giving Tony the perfect opportunity to grab him by the arm and press the rifle into his back. Jack came to meet the driver, who was doing similarly from the other door, knocking him out with the butt of his gun. Logan's eyes kept flitting between the two of them. Logan probably expected his presence but wouldn't know of Tony's.

They moved through the tunnels' connecting doors to the boiler room. Unlike the last time he and Logan were in this situation, when he had been smug and firm in his belief that he was untouchable, now he was whimpering and begging for his life before either of them could speak.

"Through here," Jack directed before shoving him against the fence.

He and Tony both took their masks off.

"Look at me," Jack demanded, but Logan recoiled, making the fence rattle. "I said, look at me! You're gonna tell me everything I want to know."

Logan's head happened to be turned to the side where Tony was. His eyes widened. "T-Tony Almeida. I... I knew Bauer was here, but... but you?"

"Oh, so you remember me," Tony observed, and Logan nodded.

"Don't look at him. Look at me," Jack ordered.

Logan obliged immediately. "Jack, you're making a mistake."

"Don't you even try to pretend you're not a part of this," he spat. "l found the man who killed Renee Walker, the Russian operative Pavel Tokarev. l got his cell phone. The last call he got was from you."

"l know how it looks. You've got to let me explain."

He was so tired of excuses, especially from people like him. He wanted the truth, and he wanted it now.

"Explain what? Τhat you sent him to kill me?" Jack seized his neck. "You sent him to kill me, right?"

"Yes, damn it, yes!"

"Why did you take out a hit on Renee Walker?"

"I had nothing to do with that!" Logan insisted. "l was brought in after that happened."

"Who brought you in?"

Logan proceeded to explain how Taylor had requested his help to negotiate with the Russians regarding the treaty. Logan's tactic had been blackmailing the Russian delegation with evidence of their connection to Hassan's assassination. The evidence apparently did not exist, to Jack's immense frustration. It had been a bluff but a successful one. Logan reiterated that he had nothing to do with the conspiracy itself, including any terrorist attack or Renee's murder. His voice raced with every word.

"l-l- l'm not the bad guy here," Logan pleaded.

Tony had been surprisingly stoic through most of this, but when Logan said that, Jack immediately heard scuffling. As he turned, Tony shoved him aside, taking his place and pushing Logan against the wall.

"Not the bad guy? Not the bad guy after you murdered my wife, you son of a bitch?!"

Logan shook his head. "I-It wasn't personal! Cummings took it out of my hand. I never thought it would get that bad. I'm sorry about your wife, I am-"

"Shut your fucking mouth!" Tony roared. "You're not sorry. But you will be when I give you what you deserve-"

"Hey!" Jack grunted, yanking Tony back by the collar and meeting his eye. "We don't have time. You had your chance with Wilson. Don't do this again."

"Oh, so you get to eviscerate the guy who murdered your one-night stand, but I have to play nice with the man who murdered my wife and got away with it. You are so full of shit if you think any of what you're doing is for the greater good. You're doing this for you, too-"

"Shut up!" Jack yelled, shoving him back. "Go keep watch. We don't have time."

Tony shot him a dirty look, squaring his jaw, but ultimately did as he had said. Any arguments or disagreements when they were in the field always came back to control and who was in charge. It wasn't that they didn't trust each other to be in charge; they did, implicitly. But when the stakes were high, and they always were, everything felt too important, and every detail mattered, so mistakes couldn't be afforded. The worst period was when he returned from being undercover with the Salazars for the first time. He had been demoted by Division for 'not bringing back enough evidence' when the truth was a lot of it was kept secret to make the sting operation work later on. He had been navigating his barely repaired relationship with Kim. He had been dealing with trying but failing to quit his heroin habit. But while his life had fallen apart, things had become better than ever for Tony, from his marriage to his and Michelle's promotions. Although Jack had trusted Tony's judgement and believed him to be a good candidate for running CTU, from his own security and arrogance, he had, on more than one occasion, tried to overrule Tony's authority by claiming that his extra years of experience over Tony still made him the better leader. It had been childish, and he could see that plainly now. Jack knew those same feelings and thoughts were coming back at this moment. He was still trying to convince himself that this was all for the greater good when he knew his heart was aching for Renee. It wasn't that he had been in love with her; he couldn't have known that so soon. But he was mourning what he could have had because the connection he had felt with her had had so much promise. Just seeing her walk into CTU had brought him happiness he didn't think he had left in him, but, like most other good things in his life, it had been snatched away just as cruelly.

That reminder brought him back to the task at hand. He pointed his gun under Logan's chin. "You say you're not the bad guy, but you know who is. You know the person inside the Russian government who's giving the orders. I want that name."

"Jack- Jack!-"

"Give me the name!"

Logan continued to protest, but flicking the safety off his gun and threatening to shoot him did the trick, leading him to confess that the head of the Russian delegation, Mikhail Novakovich, was the one he wanted, the one ostensibly behind everything. Still, he blubbered about how he wasn't involved, how he wasn't the one to be punished, and how he was just one part of a big machine. Jack became aware of a noise behind him and realised Tony was saying his name. He cupped his hand over Logan's mouth to shut him up, turning to see Tony had come back over.

He looked worried. "We've got company. We have to move."

Jack dragged Logan along and forced him to his knees.

"No. No, please. Don't kill me, Jack," he whimpered.

He leaned down. "If I was going to kill you, you'd already be dead," he reminded him before locking his arms around him in a chokehold. Logan didn't last long before he fell to the floor, and Jack ran to meet Tony.

"Where to, now?" Tony asked.

Jack met his eyes. "The Russian embassy."