aricadavidson (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
aricadavidson) wrote2004-06-08 05:20 pm
aricadavidson) wrote2004-06-08 05:20 pm
FIC: But for the Grace of God
***********************
But For the Grace of God
by Kara B.
© 2002
***********************
An Alias Story
Rating: PG-13
Archival: FanFiction Universe Archive, All others ask before using!
Disclaimer: SUE ME NOT. ME IN COLLEGE. HAVE NO MONEY.
***********************
RUSSIA
"Remember that all you have to do is grab the code and call it out to us. Give the same code to SD-6." Vaughn reminded Sydney.
"Right." Sydney whispered into her headset, clearly not happy with SD-6 actually getting the information. Vaughn and Weiss were watching and listening from a trailer a few miles away.
"Observe radio silence until the code . . ." Weiss reminded them.
Vaughn nodded and they went silent, waiting for Sydney to give them the code.
Weiss yanked off his headset, and reached over to grab a coke from the trailer's ice chest. "Want one?"
Vaughn rolled his eyes, but said, "Sure." and pulled the headset off his ear, to hang on his neck. He walked over to the door and cautiously opened it.
"We shouldn't do that." Weiss warned, "Someone could see us."
Vaughn peered out and quickly closed the door back, "It's not like there's anyone out there to see us . . ."
Weiss sighed, "Devlin might assign me to work with Lambert on his latest boring case." He grimaced.
Vaughn nodded sympathetically, "I'll talk to Devlin - make sure you stay working with me. Besides, he seems to think that I need someone to watch me."
"Thanks," Weiss grinned, "I was hoping you'd say that. I'd rather do anything than work with Lambert . . . even clean the CIA bathrooms . . ."
"Yeah, I know . . ." Vaughn laughed, "What are friends for?"
Suddenly, the trailer was rocked by an explosion and darkness followed.
***********************
Vaughn woke moments later to find the world around him in flames, "Weiss?" he called questioningly, hoping his friend was all right . . . Vaughn was hurt, but he ignored the pain and pulled himself up . . . When he did, he saw an unconscious Weiss on the floor near one of the burning walls.
The smoke in the trailer stung his eyes as he crawled across the hot metal floor, "Weiss." He shook him. When there was no response, Vaughn grabbed the other agent and pulled him toward where the door was. He managed to get them both out of the smoky death trap and to a safe distance just before the trailer exploded and pelted the ground and them with hot bits of metal.
It was winter in Russia and the temperature was well below freezing. Vaughn knew that they needed shelter soon as neither had their heavy coats on. They had been in the trailer. Vaughn cursed. This was his fault . . . He should have been more careful, should have paid more attention to their surroundings . . .
Speaking of . . . he looked up and glanced around. Nearby, in some rocks, was a small, cave-like hole. He quickly pulled Weiss inside it. At least it would give them some protection. He then began inspecting Weiss' injuries. Blood was streaming down his fellow agent's face and both his face and hands were badly burned. His clothes and hair were also singed. Vaughn imagined that his own clothes were in the same state of disarray. And his hands were definitely burned, from crawling across the metal floor of the trailer.
"Gosh it's cold out here . . ." he muttered. A quick look at his and Weiss' cell phones told him that they were worthless. Even worse than that, the trailer had contained state of the art communication technology . . . which had been turned into a flaming pile of rubble. Worst of all, whoever had done this could still be nearby.
At that nasty thought Vaughn pulled out his gun. It seemed unharmed, thankfully. And it was all he had to keep both of them alive until the CIA rescue team could arrive, which itself presented several problems. Only a few people knew their location . . . Devlin and a couple other senior administrators. In addition, it wouldn't be until Sydney got back that they would suspect something was severely wrong. Agents on high security projects often cut communication. It would only be when Sydney got back and realized that the CIA had no code and that Vaughn and Weiss had not come back that anyone knew anything was wrong.
He cursed again and Weiss moaned, startling him. Vaughn knelt next to him, "Take it easy."
"What happened?"
"The trailer exploded," Vaughn said as calmly as he could. "Someone must have seen me."
"S'ok." Weiss sighed, "What about calling in the team?"
"Our cell phones are fried."
"Figures." Weiss said, trying to grin.
He moved, as if to sit up, but Vaughn put his hands on Weiss' shoulders, "Take it easy."
" . . . 's getting cold."
"I know." Vaughn said.
Suddenly, a panicked look crossed Weiss' face.
"Eric? What's wrong?" Vaughn was immediately concerned.
"I can't move my legs . . . I can't move . . ."
"Relax Eric, you're probably just in shock. Don't panic." Vaughn said the words automatically, hoping it would be okay.
"Mike . . ."
"Eric . . . calm down. We have to stay calm." What did you say to a friend who might now very well be paralyzed? Another horrible thought occurred to Vaughn . . . what if in moving Weiss and saving his life he'd caused some sort of damage?
"Okay." Weiss mumbled.
"I'm going to go look and see if there is anything salvagable from the trailer. I'll be just outside and I'll be right back. Our guns survived the blast, so be ready to reach for yours just in case." He hated to leave Weiss alone right now given the news, but it was now up to him to ensure that they didn't freeze to death.
He stood up, pulling out his own gun.
Weiss nodded, "I'll be okay."
***********************
An hour later, Vaughn returned with nothing but a few scraps of metal he thought they could use to close the opening of the 'cave' that night. Nothing else had survived. Their coats, computers, food, everything was gone. Weiss didn't even ask when he entered.
"It's bad." Vaughn stated flatly.
"We could make some fire . . ." Weiss suggested. "Get a couple of sticks and rub them together."
Vaughn rolled his eyes.
"Hey, it worked for Tom Hanks . . ."
"Oh gee . . ." Vaughn said sarcastically, "That inspires confidence." A pause, "Nice to see your sense of humor is back."
"Yeah, well my legs are still taking a vacation . . . How long till you expect them to come looking for us?"
"Sydney should get back tomorrow around noon. So, we shouldn't have to wait more than a day or so."
"Yeah, well, I guess the CIA'll miss out on the code this time." Weiss said, "C'mon man! At least try and make a fire."
Vaughn sighed and rolled his eyes again, grumbling, "I don't know what the heck I'm doing." However, he picked up two sticks and began the long process of trying to make fire.
Five hours later, Vaughn had finally succeeded, which was a good thing because it was nearly dark. His hands were bloody and full of splinters and they hurt when he moved. He leaned back against the wall.
"You care about Bristow, don't you?" Weiss suddenly asked.
"Why do you ask?" Vaughn responded.
"Okay, now that tells me all I need to know."
"You don't know what you're talking about."
"Getting defensive . . . hmmmm. I must be hitting it right on the mark." Weiss said playfully. "You know what they say, the hit dog barks the loudest."
"At least till he beats up one of the other dogs . . ."
"Like you were gonna do to Haladki the other day, Vaughn?"
"Leave it alone, Weiss."
"You brought it up."
"No, I didn't."
"Yeah man," Weiss grinned, "Fraid you did."
"Okay, I care about her . . . so what?" Vaughn finally admitted.
A triumphant look crossed Weiss' face.
"Wipe that look off your face . . ." Vaughn started warningly.
"What look?" Weiss asked innocently.
Vaughn just glared in reply.
"Well, that's the first time I actually got you to admit it . . ." Weiss smirked.
A look of surprise came over Vaughn's face when he realized he had and he did care about Sydney. "Look, I care about all my friends . . ."
"She isn't just a friend . . . or rather you want her to be more."
"Stop putting words in my mouth." Vaughn said indignantly.
"If they're true, how am I doing that?"
Vaughn snapped, "Just shut up."
After a moment of silence, Weiss said softly, "Chill out man. We're the only ones here. It's not like Devlin'll take you off the case. He won't hear this from me." A pause. "I know you've wondered if it might be me who told Devlin about the Christmas present and everything else. I give you my word that it wasn't me."
Vaughn considered, then nodded, "Sorry I snapped at you. But thank you for telling me. Are you feeling any better? Can you move your legs at all?"
"Nope. I gather that's usually not a good thing."
"That's what I've heard."
"Sydney's probably on her way back by now, don't you think?" Weiss said, "That rescue team should be here by tomorrow . . ." He yawned.
"Yeah, probably." Vaughn answered in a noncommital tone. "Now why don't you get some sleep before you make me kick your butt."
"You'd do that to me, when I'm down?" Weiss asked in mock horror.
"In a second." Vaughn grinned.
"Gee, I'm scared." Weiss retorted sarcastically.
"You should be."
They lapsed into silence, and so both were startled when they heard a string of curses coming from somewhere outside. Vaughn immediately pulled out his gun, aiming it at the entrance. He noticed Weiss do the same, as best he could.
***********************
Vaughn moved closer to the opening and listened. The words were in Russian, so he couldn't understand them, but he did hear the name "K-Directorate".
Weiss had apparently heard as well, as his eyes widened slightly.
Moments later, the voices grew fainter, as if they were walking away from them.
"Vaughn . . ." Weiss hissed. "You've got to go get help. We can't stay here."
Vaughn knew he was right but wasn't sure what to do. If they stayed here, they would freeze . . . if they weren't found by K-Directorate first. If he left, Weiss would freeze. Before Vaughn could decide anything, the voices returned again.
"You stay here and keep quiet. I'm going to lead them away and double back for you."
Weiss nodded and Vaughn shifted the metal and went outside. The men were just around the corner, so Vaughn took off running. He was spotted almost immediately, judging by the harsh sounding shout, but neither of the men chased him. That was odd. Why was that? He got his answer moments later, when Weiss' gun went off.
Fear does strange things to a person's perceptions. Time and memory become distorted and twisted around. And sometimes the most mundane of things can be brought into the notice of a person's senses. Noises become louder, color become brighter. To Vaughn, the gunshots echoed through his mind, again and again. The snow seemed whiter and brighter than normal and he no longer noticed the chill of the air around him. He was torn. The likelihood was that if they had decided to kill Weiss, then he was already dead. If they hadn't, could he really just leave? But if he didn't then no one would have any idea about what happened to them.
He had to decide. The fact that they hadn't chased him probably meant there was nothing nearby, or at least nothing they don't already own. Either way, they'd be after him momentarily. He looked back. There was really nothing he could do to help Weiss . . . so he had to do what he could to get help. Turning around, he ran away from the area as fast as he could.
***********************
Vaughn ducked into a thin patch of trees. There was no one coming, but his conscience was knawing at him. He couldn't leave Weiss there. What if . . . He spotted something that made his decision for him. Mentally cursing, he turned back and slowly made his way back to the small cave. He had no clue what he was going to do, or how in the world he'd accomplish it.
He was able to get close enough to see that there were only two of them. Of course, one of them was nearly as big as three men put together . . . but well . . .
Weiss was nowhere in sight. So, he had to be in the cave, which the two men were sitting in front of. The large man stood and picked up his rifle, as if to scout the area, probably looking for Vaughn.
Now was his only chance. He could feel his stomach clench. He'd been behind that desk too long . . . Raising his arms in the classic surrender pose, he started walking slowly toward the remaining man. The man immediately leapt to his feet, aiming his rifle at Vaughn's chest and shouting something in Russian.
Vaughn stopped when he got within a few feet of the man, staring at him suspiciously. When the man's posture relaxed slightly, realizing that he was in charge, Vaughn said the only Russian word he knew. Suffice to say, it wasn't the kind of word that was slipped into his everyday conversation in English. Anger flashed over the man's face and he raised the butt of his rifle as if to hit Vaughn, who ducked, falling backwards. He then kicked his foot out, sweeping the man's feet out from under him. The man fell backwards, hitting his head hard on the ground. Vaughn sprang to his feet to find his adversary was out cold.
He rushed into the cave to find that Weiss was very much alive. His face was bruised, but other than that, he looked fine. "You okay?"
Weiss nodded, "Yeah." He paused, "He may be knocked out man, but how are we going to get anywhere . . . And you do know that there's another one of them out there somewhere?"
"Yeah," Vaughn nodded, "Saw him earlier. There's a thin patch of trees up ahead and some small shelter is inside it." He added.
"They'll find us . . ." Weiss said.
Vaughn shrugged, "We risk that whether we go there or stay out here. Out in the snow we're more likely to freeze, however."
"True," Weiss nodded, "Did you get his rifle?"
"What do you take me for? A junior officer?" Vaughn asked.
"Nope. Just a senior officer with a big head."
***********************
The small shelter was something of a cross between a lean-to and a cabin. It was extremely small. There wasn't enough room for either to stand up inside it, but it made the cold more bearable. At least they wouldn't freeze to death . . . or so Vaughn hoped.
Weiss shook his head. "Hey, Vaughn, thanks for coming back for me."
"No problem." Vaughn replied, not sure what else to say.
"I just have one question."
"What?" Vaughn asked.
"What exactly did you say to that guy?"
"Let's just say it was a colorful metaphor and leave it at that." Vaughn replied.
Weiss smirked.
"Hey, I got you out didn't I?" Vaughn asked.
"My hero . . ." Weiss said mockingly in a high pitched tone.
"Oh shut up!" moaned Vaughn. They sat in silence for a moment, then Vaughn asked, "Why did you join the CIA anyway?"
Weiss shrugged, "I always wanted to . . . at first the appeal came from the 'action' that I thought had to be associated with the job. After I realized what the job really was, well, just the idea of doing good for my country and all that . . . My parents didn't want me to join, so I got a degree in Economics and then joined." He shrugged again. "You joined because of your father, didn't you?"
"Yeah," Vaughn said, "I always had this picture of him as someone who, you know, died in the line of duty. I never realized that he only died because a KGB agent got a list of some of our agents."
"He's still a hero you know."
"But it's just so stupid." Vaughn said.
"I bet it hurts knowing that the KGB agent was Bristow's mom."
"I don't blame Sydney for what happened." Vaughn objected.
"That's not what I asked." Weiss said calmly, "It hurts, doesn't it?"
"It also hurts that everyone seems to think I can't handle it." he retorted. "And everyone suddenly finds my life as one of the most interesting topics of discussion. Do you know how many comments and jokes I've heard about it?"
"I can imagine. I've heard most of them myself. It really sucks."
"I think you scared the crap out of Haladki though, when you nearly punched him. He stopped me in the hall later and asked me if you were on something. Also asked if I'd back him up on some sort of action against you. I told him that what I saw happen was that you tripped and nearly hit him. And that was my story and I was sticking to it. I gather no one will support him. The other agents there are pretty much newbies and they like you better. He's a jerk anyway."
Vaughn laughed. "Bet that made him happy."
"I've never seen him so ticked off." Weiss replied. "He's out to get you, Vaughn. He doesn't like the fact that you were handed a promotion so early and he's determined to take you down."
***********************
Devlin smiled at Vaughn, "You did a good job. Agent Weiss told us the whole story, For all we know, they picked up the radio signals. We thought we detected a leak from here . . ." Devlin misread Vaughn's look of confusion and took it for guilt, "You shouldn't feel badly about this. You did a great thing - keeping both of you alive." Devlin nodded, "All right then. Now, why don't you take a week off?"
Vaughn nodded again, "Thank you, sir." He then turned to enter Weiss' hospital room.
"How are you doing?" Vaughn's expression turned to one of concern.
"K-Directorate couldn't really do too much, ya know. They mainly had me to try and get you." Weiss sighed. "I can move my legs. Doctors say I should be able to return to my normal 'range of motion' soon."
"And what exactly is normal?" Vaughn snorted.
***********************
Vaughn waited in the warehouse. Sydney had called, needing to meet him, so he'd come here. He started pacing. She had called over an hour ago.
"Sorry I'm late." she said, running inside. She looked up at him, "How are you and Agent Weiss doing?"
"I'm fine. Weiss is going to be okay too."
"Good. I was worried when no one was on the other end."
"Yeah, we lost the code and I bet you were worried about your cover being blown. Anyway, what's up?"
"Actually I was worried about you." Sydney said, then adding, "And Agent Weiss."
Vaughn smiled, "Thanks."
She held out a photograph, "Are these the men who attacked you?"
"Oh yeah, that's them. Where'd you get this?"
"They're contacts who play both sides. They work for SD-6 AND K-Directorate. The only reason no one has killed them yet is their uncanny ability to get what each organization wants. You and Weiss weren't attacked by K-Directorate."
"That's why they never found us . . ." Vaughn mused.
Sydney nodded far too seriously. "There's more. They did SD-6 a huge favor a few weeks back and now they're calling in the favor."
"Which is?"
"They want the two people who infiltrated their base and disrupted their operations dead."
"Meaning me and Weiss?"
Sydney nodded, "They actually have already identified Weiss. They're planning to take him out when he returns home."
Vaughn immediately opened his cell phone, but Sydney grabbed his arm, "My father is taking care of it. He'll be safe."
"Okay."
"They haven't identified you yet. But that's what I've been assigned to do . . . to track down and kill you."
***********************
"What?" Vaughn asked, not believing this. Sydney had been assigned to find and kill him? It was the irony of ironies.
Sydney touched his shoulder gently, to get his attention, "They won't accept failure on this mission but they don't know who you are . . ."
"But someone has to die." Vaughn was horrified by the prospect. "We'll figure something out." he finished more confidently than he felt.
"But what?"
"I don't know yet." Vaughn's cell phone rang, startling both. "Yes? Eric, thank God! Yeah, Sydney just told me . . . . . . . . Are you alright? Okay . . . Alright. Yeah, you take care and thanks for what you did. You're a good friend. Bye."
Vaughn looked up at Sydney, "Weiss is on his way somewhere safe. They're going to put him in the Witness Protection Program."
"You won't see him again." Sydney added.
"He'll be safe." Vaughn replied, "But, no, most likely I won't."
Sydney could detect the sadness in his voice.
"He's been the only real friend I have at work . . . Everyone else either hates me or doesn't seem to care."
"You have me." Sydney said seriously.
"I know. Thank you. Now let's get this done . . ."
"Look, you really should go home and get some sleep. This will wait until morning." Sydney smiled, "Besides, I need to talk with my father first, see what he knows."
"I can get that from Devlin . . ."
"No. You're going home to sleep or I'll have Devlin order you to . . ."
Vaughn threw up his hands, "Fine. I'll see you tomorrow on campus I guess . . ."
"Oh yeah, the wonderful blood-mobile . . ." Sydney laughed. "Wouldn't miss it."
Vaughn nodded.
"And hey, if you need to talk . . . I'm here for you."
Vaughn nodded a second time, before turning to leave. How in the world was he supposed to sleep?
***********************
Vaughn lay in his bed, wide awake, staring at the ceiling.
It was 3 AM in the morning and he'd been laying there since 11 the night before. He'd spent the entire time thinking of the latest mission, Sydney, Weiss, the CIA, SD-6, Khasinau . . . Sydney had told him that the two men that attacked him and Weiss had not been SD-6 or K-Directorate. Maybe they were affiliated with Khasinau's organization? Or maybe they were rogues?
Vaughn rolled onto his side. His brain was going 100 mph and wouldn't stop. And he couldn't sleep. All he could think about were the possibilities, the what ifs, and the could be's. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore and got up. If he couldn't sleep and couldn't work, maybe he could watch TV or something.
As he walked into his living room, he heard an odd noise. Before he could turn to see what it was, something impacted his head - hard and his vision turned black.
When he awoke, he found himself, blindfolded, gagged, and tied.
"Agent Vaughn." someone softly kicked his side.
Vaughn moaned . . . which the gag muffled considerably. He had some headache . . . felt more like a hangover.
"Oh, don't worry, we're already where we need to be . . . You won't have to worry about the next trip for awhile."
Vaughn knew that voice . . . Hands untied the gag from his mouth, "Haladki, what the heck is going on?"
"You haven't figured it out?" Haladki's voice was mocking. "What a shock!"
"Untie me, Haladki." Vaughn said in a commanding tone.
Haladki laughed. "Sure Mikey. I just kidnapped you as a prank."
"What do you want?"
"Some of us at the CIA feel that some sacrifices have to be made, in order to maintain our operation."
"You're planning to turn me over to those men? That's stupid."
"They won't get any information from you, if that's what you're referring to. You'll be dead by then." Haladki laughed.
"There's no way Devlin would authorize this. Where's Weiss?"
"He's dead. And just who do you think could give this order other than Devlin?"
Vaughn winced at the thought. "You're lying."
"Really now?" Haladki laughed, "Well sorry to say, but it's time for you to die . . ."
Vaughn took a deep breath to relax himself and then the shot echoed through the house. Something fell heavily across Vaughn's chest.
Moments later, someone lifted the burden from him and untied the blindfold. Jack Bristow then began to untie Vaughn's hands and feet.
"What . . .?" Vaughn started, seeing Haladki's body draped across the floor.
"He's dead." Jack confirmed, "We suspected he might try something of this nature. Devlin sent me. He did not order this."
"Weiss?"
"Is safe. Come on. We have a plan." Jack helped Vaughn from the floor and began to explain the situation in greater depth.
***********************
Several days later, Vaughn sat silently in his apartment. Jack and Sydney had taken care of Haladki's body . . . turning it in to SD-6 as 'Vaughn's'. He was back on duty . . . as Sydney's handler. He'd been assigned a new partner. The man wasn't Weiss, but he seemed decent enough. Jack had assured him that Weiss was safe, but Vaughn missed his friend. But now, maybe everything was going to be okay.
***********************
The End
But For the Grace of God
by Kara B.
© 2002
***********************
An Alias Story
Rating: PG-13
Archival: FanFiction Universe Archive, All others ask before using!
Disclaimer: SUE ME NOT. ME IN COLLEGE. HAVE NO MONEY.
***********************
RUSSIA
"Remember that all you have to do is grab the code and call it out to us. Give the same code to SD-6." Vaughn reminded Sydney.
"Right." Sydney whispered into her headset, clearly not happy with SD-6 actually getting the information. Vaughn and Weiss were watching and listening from a trailer a few miles away.
"Observe radio silence until the code . . ." Weiss reminded them.
Vaughn nodded and they went silent, waiting for Sydney to give them the code.
Weiss yanked off his headset, and reached over to grab a coke from the trailer's ice chest. "Want one?"
Vaughn rolled his eyes, but said, "Sure." and pulled the headset off his ear, to hang on his neck. He walked over to the door and cautiously opened it.
"We shouldn't do that." Weiss warned, "Someone could see us."
Vaughn peered out and quickly closed the door back, "It's not like there's anyone out there to see us . . ."
Weiss sighed, "Devlin might assign me to work with Lambert on his latest boring case." He grimaced.
Vaughn nodded sympathetically, "I'll talk to Devlin - make sure you stay working with me. Besides, he seems to think that I need someone to watch me."
"Thanks," Weiss grinned, "I was hoping you'd say that. I'd rather do anything than work with Lambert . . . even clean the CIA bathrooms . . ."
"Yeah, I know . . ." Vaughn laughed, "What are friends for?"
Suddenly, the trailer was rocked by an explosion and darkness followed.
***********************
Vaughn woke moments later to find the world around him in flames, "Weiss?" he called questioningly, hoping his friend was all right . . . Vaughn was hurt, but he ignored the pain and pulled himself up . . . When he did, he saw an unconscious Weiss on the floor near one of the burning walls.
The smoke in the trailer stung his eyes as he crawled across the hot metal floor, "Weiss." He shook him. When there was no response, Vaughn grabbed the other agent and pulled him toward where the door was. He managed to get them both out of the smoky death trap and to a safe distance just before the trailer exploded and pelted the ground and them with hot bits of metal.
It was winter in Russia and the temperature was well below freezing. Vaughn knew that they needed shelter soon as neither had their heavy coats on. They had been in the trailer. Vaughn cursed. This was his fault . . . He should have been more careful, should have paid more attention to their surroundings . . .
Speaking of . . . he looked up and glanced around. Nearby, in some rocks, was a small, cave-like hole. He quickly pulled Weiss inside it. At least it would give them some protection. He then began inspecting Weiss' injuries. Blood was streaming down his fellow agent's face and both his face and hands were badly burned. His clothes and hair were also singed. Vaughn imagined that his own clothes were in the same state of disarray. And his hands were definitely burned, from crawling across the metal floor of the trailer.
"Gosh it's cold out here . . ." he muttered. A quick look at his and Weiss' cell phones told him that they were worthless. Even worse than that, the trailer had contained state of the art communication technology . . . which had been turned into a flaming pile of rubble. Worst of all, whoever had done this could still be nearby.
At that nasty thought Vaughn pulled out his gun. It seemed unharmed, thankfully. And it was all he had to keep both of them alive until the CIA rescue team could arrive, which itself presented several problems. Only a few people knew their location . . . Devlin and a couple other senior administrators. In addition, it wouldn't be until Sydney got back that they would suspect something was severely wrong. Agents on high security projects often cut communication. It would only be when Sydney got back and realized that the CIA had no code and that Vaughn and Weiss had not come back that anyone knew anything was wrong.
He cursed again and Weiss moaned, startling him. Vaughn knelt next to him, "Take it easy."
"What happened?"
"The trailer exploded," Vaughn said as calmly as he could. "Someone must have seen me."
"S'ok." Weiss sighed, "What about calling in the team?"
"Our cell phones are fried."
"Figures." Weiss said, trying to grin.
He moved, as if to sit up, but Vaughn put his hands on Weiss' shoulders, "Take it easy."
" . . . 's getting cold."
"I know." Vaughn said.
Suddenly, a panicked look crossed Weiss' face.
"Eric? What's wrong?" Vaughn was immediately concerned.
"I can't move my legs . . . I can't move . . ."
"Relax Eric, you're probably just in shock. Don't panic." Vaughn said the words automatically, hoping it would be okay.
"Mike . . ."
"Eric . . . calm down. We have to stay calm." What did you say to a friend who might now very well be paralyzed? Another horrible thought occurred to Vaughn . . . what if in moving Weiss and saving his life he'd caused some sort of damage?
"Okay." Weiss mumbled.
"I'm going to go look and see if there is anything salvagable from the trailer. I'll be just outside and I'll be right back. Our guns survived the blast, so be ready to reach for yours just in case." He hated to leave Weiss alone right now given the news, but it was now up to him to ensure that they didn't freeze to death.
He stood up, pulling out his own gun.
Weiss nodded, "I'll be okay."
***********************
An hour later, Vaughn returned with nothing but a few scraps of metal he thought they could use to close the opening of the 'cave' that night. Nothing else had survived. Their coats, computers, food, everything was gone. Weiss didn't even ask when he entered.
"It's bad." Vaughn stated flatly.
"We could make some fire . . ." Weiss suggested. "Get a couple of sticks and rub them together."
Vaughn rolled his eyes.
"Hey, it worked for Tom Hanks . . ."
"Oh gee . . ." Vaughn said sarcastically, "That inspires confidence." A pause, "Nice to see your sense of humor is back."
"Yeah, well my legs are still taking a vacation . . . How long till you expect them to come looking for us?"
"Sydney should get back tomorrow around noon. So, we shouldn't have to wait more than a day or so."
"Yeah, well, I guess the CIA'll miss out on the code this time." Weiss said, "C'mon man! At least try and make a fire."
Vaughn sighed and rolled his eyes again, grumbling, "I don't know what the heck I'm doing." However, he picked up two sticks and began the long process of trying to make fire.
Five hours later, Vaughn had finally succeeded, which was a good thing because it was nearly dark. His hands were bloody and full of splinters and they hurt when he moved. He leaned back against the wall.
"You care about Bristow, don't you?" Weiss suddenly asked.
"Why do you ask?" Vaughn responded.
"Okay, now that tells me all I need to know."
"You don't know what you're talking about."
"Getting defensive . . . hmmmm. I must be hitting it right on the mark." Weiss said playfully. "You know what they say, the hit dog barks the loudest."
"At least till he beats up one of the other dogs . . ."
"Like you were gonna do to Haladki the other day, Vaughn?"
"Leave it alone, Weiss."
"You brought it up."
"No, I didn't."
"Yeah man," Weiss grinned, "Fraid you did."
"Okay, I care about her . . . so what?" Vaughn finally admitted.
A triumphant look crossed Weiss' face.
"Wipe that look off your face . . ." Vaughn started warningly.
"What look?" Weiss asked innocently.
Vaughn just glared in reply.
"Well, that's the first time I actually got you to admit it . . ." Weiss smirked.
A look of surprise came over Vaughn's face when he realized he had and he did care about Sydney. "Look, I care about all my friends . . ."
"She isn't just a friend . . . or rather you want her to be more."
"Stop putting words in my mouth." Vaughn said indignantly.
"If they're true, how am I doing that?"
Vaughn snapped, "Just shut up."
After a moment of silence, Weiss said softly, "Chill out man. We're the only ones here. It's not like Devlin'll take you off the case. He won't hear this from me." A pause. "I know you've wondered if it might be me who told Devlin about the Christmas present and everything else. I give you my word that it wasn't me."
Vaughn considered, then nodded, "Sorry I snapped at you. But thank you for telling me. Are you feeling any better? Can you move your legs at all?"
"Nope. I gather that's usually not a good thing."
"That's what I've heard."
"Sydney's probably on her way back by now, don't you think?" Weiss said, "That rescue team should be here by tomorrow . . ." He yawned.
"Yeah, probably." Vaughn answered in a noncommital tone. "Now why don't you get some sleep before you make me kick your butt."
"You'd do that to me, when I'm down?" Weiss asked in mock horror.
"In a second." Vaughn grinned.
"Gee, I'm scared." Weiss retorted sarcastically.
"You should be."
They lapsed into silence, and so both were startled when they heard a string of curses coming from somewhere outside. Vaughn immediately pulled out his gun, aiming it at the entrance. He noticed Weiss do the same, as best he could.
***********************
Vaughn moved closer to the opening and listened. The words were in Russian, so he couldn't understand them, but he did hear the name "K-Directorate".
Weiss had apparently heard as well, as his eyes widened slightly.
Moments later, the voices grew fainter, as if they were walking away from them.
"Vaughn . . ." Weiss hissed. "You've got to go get help. We can't stay here."
Vaughn knew he was right but wasn't sure what to do. If they stayed here, they would freeze . . . if they weren't found by K-Directorate first. If he left, Weiss would freeze. Before Vaughn could decide anything, the voices returned again.
"You stay here and keep quiet. I'm going to lead them away and double back for you."
Weiss nodded and Vaughn shifted the metal and went outside. The men were just around the corner, so Vaughn took off running. He was spotted almost immediately, judging by the harsh sounding shout, but neither of the men chased him. That was odd. Why was that? He got his answer moments later, when Weiss' gun went off.
Fear does strange things to a person's perceptions. Time and memory become distorted and twisted around. And sometimes the most mundane of things can be brought into the notice of a person's senses. Noises become louder, color become brighter. To Vaughn, the gunshots echoed through his mind, again and again. The snow seemed whiter and brighter than normal and he no longer noticed the chill of the air around him. He was torn. The likelihood was that if they had decided to kill Weiss, then he was already dead. If they hadn't, could he really just leave? But if he didn't then no one would have any idea about what happened to them.
He had to decide. The fact that they hadn't chased him probably meant there was nothing nearby, or at least nothing they don't already own. Either way, they'd be after him momentarily. He looked back. There was really nothing he could do to help Weiss . . . so he had to do what he could to get help. Turning around, he ran away from the area as fast as he could.
***********************
Vaughn ducked into a thin patch of trees. There was no one coming, but his conscience was knawing at him. He couldn't leave Weiss there. What if . . . He spotted something that made his decision for him. Mentally cursing, he turned back and slowly made his way back to the small cave. He had no clue what he was going to do, or how in the world he'd accomplish it.
He was able to get close enough to see that there were only two of them. Of course, one of them was nearly as big as three men put together . . . but well . . .
Weiss was nowhere in sight. So, he had to be in the cave, which the two men were sitting in front of. The large man stood and picked up his rifle, as if to scout the area, probably looking for Vaughn.
Now was his only chance. He could feel his stomach clench. He'd been behind that desk too long . . . Raising his arms in the classic surrender pose, he started walking slowly toward the remaining man. The man immediately leapt to his feet, aiming his rifle at Vaughn's chest and shouting something in Russian.
Vaughn stopped when he got within a few feet of the man, staring at him suspiciously. When the man's posture relaxed slightly, realizing that he was in charge, Vaughn said the only Russian word he knew. Suffice to say, it wasn't the kind of word that was slipped into his everyday conversation in English. Anger flashed over the man's face and he raised the butt of his rifle as if to hit Vaughn, who ducked, falling backwards. He then kicked his foot out, sweeping the man's feet out from under him. The man fell backwards, hitting his head hard on the ground. Vaughn sprang to his feet to find his adversary was out cold.
He rushed into the cave to find that Weiss was very much alive. His face was bruised, but other than that, he looked fine. "You okay?"
Weiss nodded, "Yeah." He paused, "He may be knocked out man, but how are we going to get anywhere . . . And you do know that there's another one of them out there somewhere?"
"Yeah," Vaughn nodded, "Saw him earlier. There's a thin patch of trees up ahead and some small shelter is inside it." He added.
"They'll find us . . ." Weiss said.
Vaughn shrugged, "We risk that whether we go there or stay out here. Out in the snow we're more likely to freeze, however."
"True," Weiss nodded, "Did you get his rifle?"
"What do you take me for? A junior officer?" Vaughn asked.
"Nope. Just a senior officer with a big head."
***********************
The small shelter was something of a cross between a lean-to and a cabin. It was extremely small. There wasn't enough room for either to stand up inside it, but it made the cold more bearable. At least they wouldn't freeze to death . . . or so Vaughn hoped.
Weiss shook his head. "Hey, Vaughn, thanks for coming back for me."
"No problem." Vaughn replied, not sure what else to say.
"I just have one question."
"What?" Vaughn asked.
"What exactly did you say to that guy?"
"Let's just say it was a colorful metaphor and leave it at that." Vaughn replied.
Weiss smirked.
"Hey, I got you out didn't I?" Vaughn asked.
"My hero . . ." Weiss said mockingly in a high pitched tone.
"Oh shut up!" moaned Vaughn. They sat in silence for a moment, then Vaughn asked, "Why did you join the CIA anyway?"
Weiss shrugged, "I always wanted to . . . at first the appeal came from the 'action' that I thought had to be associated with the job. After I realized what the job really was, well, just the idea of doing good for my country and all that . . . My parents didn't want me to join, so I got a degree in Economics and then joined." He shrugged again. "You joined because of your father, didn't you?"
"Yeah," Vaughn said, "I always had this picture of him as someone who, you know, died in the line of duty. I never realized that he only died because a KGB agent got a list of some of our agents."
"He's still a hero you know."
"But it's just so stupid." Vaughn said.
"I bet it hurts knowing that the KGB agent was Bristow's mom."
"I don't blame Sydney for what happened." Vaughn objected.
"That's not what I asked." Weiss said calmly, "It hurts, doesn't it?"
"It also hurts that everyone seems to think I can't handle it." he retorted. "And everyone suddenly finds my life as one of the most interesting topics of discussion. Do you know how many comments and jokes I've heard about it?"
"I can imagine. I've heard most of them myself. It really sucks."
"I think you scared the crap out of Haladki though, when you nearly punched him. He stopped me in the hall later and asked me if you were on something. Also asked if I'd back him up on some sort of action against you. I told him that what I saw happen was that you tripped and nearly hit him. And that was my story and I was sticking to it. I gather no one will support him. The other agents there are pretty much newbies and they like you better. He's a jerk anyway."
Vaughn laughed. "Bet that made him happy."
"I've never seen him so ticked off." Weiss replied. "He's out to get you, Vaughn. He doesn't like the fact that you were handed a promotion so early and he's determined to take you down."
***********************
Devlin smiled at Vaughn, "You did a good job. Agent Weiss told us the whole story, For all we know, they picked up the radio signals. We thought we detected a leak from here . . ." Devlin misread Vaughn's look of confusion and took it for guilt, "You shouldn't feel badly about this. You did a great thing - keeping both of you alive." Devlin nodded, "All right then. Now, why don't you take a week off?"
Vaughn nodded again, "Thank you, sir." He then turned to enter Weiss' hospital room.
"How are you doing?" Vaughn's expression turned to one of concern.
"K-Directorate couldn't really do too much, ya know. They mainly had me to try and get you." Weiss sighed. "I can move my legs. Doctors say I should be able to return to my normal 'range of motion' soon."
"And what exactly is normal?" Vaughn snorted.
***********************
Vaughn waited in the warehouse. Sydney had called, needing to meet him, so he'd come here. He started pacing. She had called over an hour ago.
"Sorry I'm late." she said, running inside. She looked up at him, "How are you and Agent Weiss doing?"
"I'm fine. Weiss is going to be okay too."
"Good. I was worried when no one was on the other end."
"Yeah, we lost the code and I bet you were worried about your cover being blown. Anyway, what's up?"
"Actually I was worried about you." Sydney said, then adding, "And Agent Weiss."
Vaughn smiled, "Thanks."
She held out a photograph, "Are these the men who attacked you?"
"Oh yeah, that's them. Where'd you get this?"
"They're contacts who play both sides. They work for SD-6 AND K-Directorate. The only reason no one has killed them yet is their uncanny ability to get what each organization wants. You and Weiss weren't attacked by K-Directorate."
"That's why they never found us . . ." Vaughn mused.
Sydney nodded far too seriously. "There's more. They did SD-6 a huge favor a few weeks back and now they're calling in the favor."
"Which is?"
"They want the two people who infiltrated their base and disrupted their operations dead."
"Meaning me and Weiss?"
Sydney nodded, "They actually have already identified Weiss. They're planning to take him out when he returns home."
Vaughn immediately opened his cell phone, but Sydney grabbed his arm, "My father is taking care of it. He'll be safe."
"Okay."
"They haven't identified you yet. But that's what I've been assigned to do . . . to track down and kill you."
***********************
"What?" Vaughn asked, not believing this. Sydney had been assigned to find and kill him? It was the irony of ironies.
Sydney touched his shoulder gently, to get his attention, "They won't accept failure on this mission but they don't know who you are . . ."
"But someone has to die." Vaughn was horrified by the prospect. "We'll figure something out." he finished more confidently than he felt.
"But what?"
"I don't know yet." Vaughn's cell phone rang, startling both. "Yes? Eric, thank God! Yeah, Sydney just told me . . . . . . . . Are you alright? Okay . . . Alright. Yeah, you take care and thanks for what you did. You're a good friend. Bye."
Vaughn looked up at Sydney, "Weiss is on his way somewhere safe. They're going to put him in the Witness Protection Program."
"You won't see him again." Sydney added.
"He'll be safe." Vaughn replied, "But, no, most likely I won't."
Sydney could detect the sadness in his voice.
"He's been the only real friend I have at work . . . Everyone else either hates me or doesn't seem to care."
"You have me." Sydney said seriously.
"I know. Thank you. Now let's get this done . . ."
"Look, you really should go home and get some sleep. This will wait until morning." Sydney smiled, "Besides, I need to talk with my father first, see what he knows."
"I can get that from Devlin . . ."
"No. You're going home to sleep or I'll have Devlin order you to . . ."
Vaughn threw up his hands, "Fine. I'll see you tomorrow on campus I guess . . ."
"Oh yeah, the wonderful blood-mobile . . ." Sydney laughed. "Wouldn't miss it."
Vaughn nodded.
"And hey, if you need to talk . . . I'm here for you."
Vaughn nodded a second time, before turning to leave. How in the world was he supposed to sleep?
***********************
Vaughn lay in his bed, wide awake, staring at the ceiling.
It was 3 AM in the morning and he'd been laying there since 11 the night before. He'd spent the entire time thinking of the latest mission, Sydney, Weiss, the CIA, SD-6, Khasinau . . . Sydney had told him that the two men that attacked him and Weiss had not been SD-6 or K-Directorate. Maybe they were affiliated with Khasinau's organization? Or maybe they were rogues?
Vaughn rolled onto his side. His brain was going 100 mph and wouldn't stop. And he couldn't sleep. All he could think about were the possibilities, the what ifs, and the could be's. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore and got up. If he couldn't sleep and couldn't work, maybe he could watch TV or something.
As he walked into his living room, he heard an odd noise. Before he could turn to see what it was, something impacted his head - hard and his vision turned black.
When he awoke, he found himself, blindfolded, gagged, and tied.
"Agent Vaughn." someone softly kicked his side.
Vaughn moaned . . . which the gag muffled considerably. He had some headache . . . felt more like a hangover.
"Oh, don't worry, we're already where we need to be . . . You won't have to worry about the next trip for awhile."
Vaughn knew that voice . . . Hands untied the gag from his mouth, "Haladki, what the heck is going on?"
"You haven't figured it out?" Haladki's voice was mocking. "What a shock!"
"Untie me, Haladki." Vaughn said in a commanding tone.
Haladki laughed. "Sure Mikey. I just kidnapped you as a prank."
"What do you want?"
"Some of us at the CIA feel that some sacrifices have to be made, in order to maintain our operation."
"You're planning to turn me over to those men? That's stupid."
"They won't get any information from you, if that's what you're referring to. You'll be dead by then." Haladki laughed.
"There's no way Devlin would authorize this. Where's Weiss?"
"He's dead. And just who do you think could give this order other than Devlin?"
Vaughn winced at the thought. "You're lying."
"Really now?" Haladki laughed, "Well sorry to say, but it's time for you to die . . ."
Vaughn took a deep breath to relax himself and then the shot echoed through the house. Something fell heavily across Vaughn's chest.
Moments later, someone lifted the burden from him and untied the blindfold. Jack Bristow then began to untie Vaughn's hands and feet.
"What . . .?" Vaughn started, seeing Haladki's body draped across the floor.
"He's dead." Jack confirmed, "We suspected he might try something of this nature. Devlin sent me. He did not order this."
"Weiss?"
"Is safe. Come on. We have a plan." Jack helped Vaughn from the floor and began to explain the situation in greater depth.
***********************
Several days later, Vaughn sat silently in his apartment. Jack and Sydney had taken care of Haladki's body . . . turning it in to SD-6 as 'Vaughn's'. He was back on duty . . . as Sydney's handler. He'd been assigned a new partner. The man wasn't Weiss, but he seemed decent enough. Jack had assured him that Weiss was safe, but Vaughn missed his friend. But now, maybe everything was going to be okay.
***********************
The End
no subject
This is really good! I miss Season One!
no subject