(Sydney hears banging around in the vents. Thinking it's one of Cole's goons, she braces herself... until she sees Jack.)
SYDNEY: Dad! What are you doing here?
JACK: Just stay there.
SYDNEY: No, Dad, don't!
JACK: Hold your fire! I'm coming through! I'm coming out!
(Jack gets out. Sydney hears him getting punched.)
(In SD-6's main part, the goons hold their guns on the agents. Dixon looks over at Marshall, who has blood running down the side of his head.)
DIXON: You okay?
MARSHALL: Except for my head injury, yeah.
(Cole and two goons bring Jack in, his hands behind his back.)
COLE: Mr. Cool Customer here was caught crawling around the vents. Sit his butt down.
(They put Jack in a chair next to Dixon. Cole talks to FGOON.)
COLE: So, how long is it going to take to open the vault?
FGOON: The sooner I get started, the sooner I'll know.
(They kiss.)
COLE: I need, like, awesome good news, baby.
FGOON: I know.
COLE: Endo, Chen, I'll be in the conversation room.
(Jack looks up to the vents, knowing Sydney's somewhere up there.)
(In their control room, Sydney comes out of the vents and sees a note left by Jack on top of the monitor.)
JACK: (voice over) Follow this map to the three locations where the C-4 explosives are set. You must deactivate all three C-4 packages before the vault door opens. Good luck.
(She takes the map and a flashlight and starts.)
(FGOON runs in to the vault and sets up her laptop. She starts working on opening it.)
(Dixon and Jack whisper to each other.)
DIXON: I think I can get to the PDA and e-mail Langley.
JACK: You know that's not an option.
DIXON: Look, I understand the need for plausible deniability here.
JACK: The C.I.A. cannot acknowledge its affiliation with SD-6.
DIXON: I know that, but they can't afford to let these people get whatever it is they're here for.
JACK: Do nothing.
DIXON: The man running this group claims to be a former SD-6 freelancer. He says Sloane left him for dead in Chechnya. He's interrogating Sloane now... maybe killing him. And we're next.
JACK: Sydney's in the ducts.
DIXON: What?
JACK: Failsafe's been activated. If the vault's opened, it'll detonate C-4 charges hidden throughout the building's sublevel. Sydney has a chance to disarm them but only if there are no surprises.
DIXON: All the more reason we need to call Langley. Jack, under normal circumstances, you can pull rank. These are not normal circumstances.
(Sydney moves down a dark hallway underground, map in her hand. She sees a steel door up ahead.)
JACK: (voice over) Each set of C-4 charges are located behind the steel plate at the end of the corridor marked on the map.
(She knocks on the steel plate to see if it's hollow or if something's behind it. She sees there are large bolts holding the steel door in place around its perimeter. She sees a fire extinguisher nearby and takes it.)
(FGOON is working on the vault. The laptop is hooked up to determine the numbers in the vault. She gets on her radio.)
FGOON: Two numbers down, ten to go.
(Conversation room, Cole and Sloane.)
COLE: Copy that, baby.
(He looks at Sloane who is sweating and shaking slightly.)
COLE: You know, as bad as you feel right now, with all that pain, that is just the puddin' next to the pie.
SLOANE: Mmm... So easy for you to blame me, huh? When you know the truth. You got your own men killed. That helicopter was waiting for you...
COLE: I had a man down! I was saving Whitney's life. You know that!
SLOANE: Yeah, at the expense of all the other men. Those men counted on you to lead them to safety. They trusted their life to you and you led them to slaughter.
(Cole takes a needle from the box and calmly inserts it into Sloane's upper arm. He grunts in pain.)
(Sydney sprays the bolt with the fire extinguiser and then knocks it off with the bottom of it. She gets another one sprayed.)
(Goons with guns murmur to themselves. Dixon sees his messenger on his desk next to him. He slides it closer to him with the plastic tie on his hands. He hides the messenger under his tie. Jack watches. Dixon turns it on under his tie and starts typing by pressing the buttons on the screen with the plastic tie holding his hands. He types, "I am Marcus Dixon. Agent of SD-6. Employee ID 8736B. We are under attack. Help us.")
(Sydney gets another bolt off. Sprays it. Gets it off. She goes to spray another one but runs out of juice in the extinguisher.)
SYDNEY: No, no, no, no, no, no, no!
(She kicks a shelf next to her, takes two of the steel legs. She then cuts the wire for the security camers above her.)
(Control room. A goon walks by and sees the cameras are out.)
GOON: Three of the security cameras just lost picture.
COLE: Check it out.
GOON: Yes, sir.
(Sydney uses the wire from the cameras to join the two steel legs together. She makes pliers and starts to turn the last bolt.)
(Vaughn's office. Weiss walks in with a sheet of paper in his hand.)
WEISS: Okay, you ready for this? Langley general POP server just received an incoming e-mail from SD-6.
VAUGHN: From who? Jack?
WEISS: No. Not Jack. Dixon.
VAUGHN: Why is Dixon sending me e-mail? He doesn't know me.
WEISS: He's calling the C.I.A. for help. They're forwarding this message to you.
(Vaughn takes it and reads.)
VAUGHN: "I am Marcus Dixon. Agent of SD-6... We are under attack, help us"?
WEISS: What do you think is going on down there?
(In the hallway outside Devlin's office, Vaughn sees Haladki.)
HALADKI: Vaughn, hey--
VAUGHN: No, not now!
(He walks in Devlin's office with the e-mail.)
VAUGHN: Sir, we have a situation.
DEVLIN: Mr. Vaughn--
VAUGHN: I really think you should look at this.
(He gives him the e-mail.)
DEVLIN: You've had a bad day. You better hope this doesn't make it worse.
(He reads.)
VAUGHN: Look, I know I've been suspended as Sydney Bristow's handler--
(Haladki enters behind them.)
VAUGHN: But this message was routed to me.
HALADKI: Sir, if you don't mind, may I see the communication please? It is my province, and Vaughn is off the Bristow case.
(Devlin hands over the sheet. Haladki looks at Vaughn.)
HALADKI: Do we have any independent confirmation?
VAUGHN: What, like a dead body? No.
DEVLIN: It's a fair question.
VAUGHN: No, sir.
HALADKI: Any local authorities? Fire, police?
VAUGHN: No.
HALADKI: Any irregularities at all?
VAUGHN: What, you mean other than a desperate message from an agent begging for help?
HALADKI: Let me guess. You want to send in an extraction team.
VAUGHN: Well, we have to do something!
HALADKI: What, like we had to do something at Donatti Park? I think this is Sloane.
VAUGHN: What?!
HALADKI: I think he's bluffing again, trying to compromise our operation.
VAUGHN: By sending C.I.A. into the SD-6 offices? What, are you nuts?
HALADKI: Sloane is bold like that, and you are reactive!
VAUGHN: Sir, why is he even in this office?
DEVLIN: We wait for now.
VAUGHN: But, sir--
DEVLIN: We wait. Is that understood?
(Sydney unscrews the bolt with the help of her new pliers.)
(Vaughn walks down a hallway in the C.I.A., walking to his locker. Weiss trails behind.)
WEISS: Go back to Devlin's office without Haladki and convince him on your own.
VAUGHN: There's no convincing Devlin.
WEISS: You can't go down there by yourself!
VAUGHN: Look, I have a friend who's a cop. He went down to the lobby. The guard told him the bank closed early.
WEISS: And maybe it did.
VAUGHN: I would've known about it!
WEISS: And what if there has been a takeover?
(Vaughn gets his gun out of his locker and loads it. He takes it with him.)
VAUGHN: If I'm not back in a couple of hours, I'm probably dead.
WEISS: Good to know.
(Sydney takes off the last bolt and removes the steel door, putting it aside. She enters and sees the C-4.)
(FGOON is at work in the vault.)
FGOON: That's five.
(In the conversation room.)
COLE: Copy that, baby. Well... it's almost over.
(Sydney inspects the C-4. It's enormous, formed like pillars. She takes a look at the deactivation panel on the package and cuts through the plastic that's covering it. She hears radio static and looks up. Down the hall, the goon from the control room is walking with his gun cocked and his flashlight. Sydney hides behind a corner, waiting 'til he gets closer. She kicks him twice. She punches him. He blocks her punch. She grabs his arm with the gun, twists it over his head and elbows him in the back. He blocks her punch. She does a roundhouse kick in the gut, and he falls back to the ground.)
(Vaughn enters the Credit Dauphine parking garage and sees the gate doors are closed. He gets a splicer card out from his jacket pocket, inserts it in the security stand. The gate doors open. Vaughn hesitantly walks through, all alone. He spots Sydney's SUV. When he comes up behind it, the driver in the McTiernan van spots him. He puts out his cigarette and cocks his gun. Vaughn puts his hand on the hood of Sydney's vehicle to feel if it's warm and sees the driver in the van watching him. Vaughn sees the vent that they welded off, and realizes that's how they entered the building. He walks towards the van and pulls out his badge/ID.)
VAUGHN: I'm a federal officer! Step out of the car, please. I'd like to ask you a few questions.
DRIVER: No problem.
(Once he opens the door and slides out of his seat, Vaughn sees his gun and kicks the van door. The van door hits the driver. He stumbles back against the van. Vaughn pulls out his gun and points it at him but the driver kicks it away, then punches Vaughn in the stomach. He grunts and doubles over. The driver grabs Vaughn and pushes him up against the side of the van. They struggle. Vaughn has the driver by the throat. Driver takes out a gun but Vaughn flips them and has the driver against the van. They struggle for the gun. It goes off and the driver slumps to the ground. Vaughn looks around, making sure no one saw.)
(Haladki's office. A secretary enters.)
SECRETARY: Have you seen Mr. Weiss? I have Mr. Vaughn calling for him.
HALADKI: (smiles) I'll take the call.
(He picks up the receiver.)
HALADKI: Extraction Teams "R" Us?
(Vaughn is in the garage on his cell phone.)
VAUGHN: Haladki, where's Weiss?
HALADKI: Probably out getting another pizza.
VAUGHN: The confirmation you wanted. I got it. I'm at SD-6 right now.
HALADKI: You're at SD-6?!
VAUGHN: Did you hear what I said?
HALADKI: That's a massive breach of protocol!
VAUGHN: Screw protocol!
HALADKI: Devlin specifically told you to wait!
VAUGHN: The break-in is confirmed. Check with the duty officer. It's probably Bendis. Tell him to send in a team. They can get in the garage using a standard card splicer.
HALADKI: You're finished, you know that?
VAUGHN: Just DO IT!
(Vaughn hangs up.)
(Sydney is staring at the C-4, trying to work on it. The goon she took down's walkie talkie is at her feet. Suddenly Cole's voice can be heard from it.)
COLE: Chen, hey, what's up? Where are we? I need status.
(Sydney grabs it and runs down the hall where she tied up the goon. She rips off the tape from his mouth and twists his crotch.)
GOON: AHHH!
SYDNEY: Tell him everything's cool. You're still checking it out.
COLE: Chen, where the hell are you, man?
SYDNEY: Do it!
GOON: Screw you.
(She grabs him by the shirt and throws him against the wall.)
SYDNEY: I'm disappointed!
(She punches him.)
(Francie and Sydney's. Francie sits at the table figuring out the seating plan for the wedding. Mini-tables are sitting on sheets of paper. Knock on the door. She opens it. Will stumbles in.)
WILL: Being a reporter sucks. Can I just establish that?
FRANCIE: Okay...
WILL: Hi.
FRANCIE: Hi, and what have you been drinking?
WILL: Uh, I don't know...
(Opens the fridge, looking for alcohol.)
WILL: There was a little horse on the label. A dog. I don't know. A doghorse. I think. Some kind of mythical creature condemned to live in a bottle for eternity. It's a doghorse. A doghorse.
(He stumbles over to the table, sits next to Francie and picks up one of the mini-tables.)
WILL: Oh, did I mention that my life sucks? Did I mention that?
(Francie takes the table back.)
FRANCIE: The Rileys forgive you. It's the seating arrangement for the wedding.
WILL: My God, that's so normal. Your life is so normal, Fran. Sydney's life is normal. I mean, kind of. Outside from her obsession with the bank. But my life is just not normal. This story I'm working on is about this guy and he's in jail and his wife committed suicide. And it's just... it's just very suspicious. This guy's been totally set-up. I mean, he's a good guy, apparently. He's got, like, no criminal record. Well, he's got two speeding tickets in his life. In his life! I mean, he's been in jail for, like, eight years already. And he's got another eight years to go. So I went to see him. 'Cause I thougth that maybe I could shed some light on the thing, maybe I could research and write an article that might, you know, do some justice but... he was so scared, man. He had this look in his eyes. It was like... horror. I stopped doing the story. I figured, it's his life, he wants to make his own decisions, you know?
FRANCIE: Yeah...
WILL: And then his kid comes to see me.
FRANCIE: His kid?
WILL: His kid. And she begged me to help her and she was so desperate. And then I got this key.
(Takes it out of his pocket and puts it on the table.)
WILL: Pier 19, number 305. I don't know.
FRANCIE: What's there?
WILL: I... I don't know.
FRANCIE: How'd you get it?
WILL: I don't want to tell you.
FRANCIE: Why?
WILL: Francie, it's very dangerous.
FRANCIE: (laughs) Okay.
WILL: Francie, I'm serious.
FRANCIE: Well, if I were you and I thought I might be able to help somebody, I would.
(Cole walks in the area outside the vault where FGOON is still working on cracking the code.)
COLE: Have you seen Chen?
FGOON: Not lately.
COLE: I feel like I'm a mom at the mall! He said he was going down to the sub-basement. I don't know if his walkie's not working, if he's on a coffee break--
FGOON: Five numbers down, seven to go. The code program's working. I'll go get him.
COLE: Who is more tought-assed than you, huh? Who? Nobody, baby!
(A very tough-assed Sydney walks down the hall. She's about to come to a door to go back to the C-4 when she sees someone on the other side is opening it. She hides behind the door, sees that this someone is entering with his gun pointed. Seeing the gun, she grabs this stranger's arm and flips him. Vaughn rolls on the ground, gets into a shooting stance with his gun pointed. Sydney flops over against the wall and points her gun at him. Then they both realize.)
SYDNEY: What the hell are you doing here?
VAUGHN: Dixon contacted us. What the hell's going on?
SYDNEY: Dixon contacted you?
VAUGHN: Not directly. Through Langley. Said SD-6 was under attack. Are you okay?
SYDNEY: It's true. There's a team of six, maybe seven. They've got the latest military specs. They're after something in the vault.
VAUGHN: I know. I took one of them out in the garage.
SYDNEY: Russian accent?
VAUGHN: Yeah. I was thinking K-Directorate.
SYDNEY: I don't think so. I don't think they'd do something as wild as this.
VAUGHN: Then who?
SYDNEY: I don't know. But right now, what do you know about deactivating C-4?
(At the C-4 pillar, Vaughn and Sydney are both looking at the deactivation panel.)
VAUGHN: There's got to be two hundred pounds in here. Damn. That's enough to level the building.
SYDNEY: It's a failsafe. Sloane has three of these--
VAUGHN: Three?!
SYDNEY: --rigged to the vault. If the vault doors open, they all blow.
VAUGHN: Maybe they shouldn't open the vault.
SYDNEY: "They" being the six men with machine guns?
VAUGHN: How long before they hack the code?
SYDNEY: Soon. Did you study bomb defusion at Langley?
VAUGHN: Just seminars, though. Nothing field-specific.
SYDNEY: Does anyone ever learn anything in seminars?
VAUGHN: Let's just take this one step at a time. This is a charge of C-4. I can tell, 'cause it says "C-4" everywhere.
SYDNEY: There are eight black and yellow wires and six red, blue and black. Which of these fourteen wires do we cut?
VAUGHN: Maybe none. What are those prisms?
SYDNEY: I don't know. But there might be more than one lead spliced to the firing mechanism.
VAUGHN: That pin...
SYDNEY: Where?
VAUGHN: Right there in the back.
SYDNEY: What is it?
VAUGHN: It's a crystal. That thing is a radio receiver. That's probably how opening the vault triggers the C-4.
SYDNEY: So all we have to do is pull out the crystal?
(Vaughn takes a pair of pliers - not homemade this time - and tries to do it.)
SYDNEY: Wait. No, it can't be this easy.
VAUGHN: What, you think there's a tamper alarm?
SYDNEY: Or a second trigger.
(Vaughn takes something out and sprays the area. Red lasers criss-cross around the pin they have to take out.)
SYDNEY: Now we know what the prisms are for. Spray it again.
(He does.)
VAUGHN: You know, I think I can pull out the crystal without touching the lasers.
SYDNEY: You want me to do it? My hands are pretty skinny.
VAUGHN: Well, so are mine.
(Embarrassed smile. Beat. He gives the pliers to her.)
SYDNEY: One more spray on three.
VAUGHN: One...
SYDNEY: Two...
VAUGHN: Three.
(He sprays it. Sydney takes it out.)
VAUGHN: (deep breath) One down.
SYDNEY: We better get going.
(A gun cocks behind them. Vaughn and Sydney turn to see FGOON with a gun pointed at them.)
(Down a hall, Vaughn and Sydney have their hands up behind their head. FGOON walks behind them with a gun pointed at their backs. They come to a room.)
FGOON: Inside! Over there!
(Sydney and Vaughn head over to one side. FGOON gives Sydney a plastic tie.)
FGOON: Tie his hands!
(Vaughn puts his wrists together. Sydney gives him a look, and then a slight nod. Sydney whirls around and throws the plastic tie in FGOOn's face. When she turns her head, Vaughn grabs her gun and Sydney takes out her own gun. They point both guns at FGOON. She goes for a gun on her leg.)
VAUGHN: Don't! (to Sydney) Why don't you tie her up?
(Sydney moves to do so.)
FGOON: Wait!
SYDNEY: Shut up.
FGOON: (British accent) I'm British SIS! For the past year, I've been on covert duty trying to penetrate Cole's intelligence network!
VAUGHN: Cole?
SYDNEY: McKenas Cole. Former SD-6. Now he works for a third-party. A new player on the scene. Someone he calls The Man.
FGOON: SIS has been trying to identify The Man for the past three years!
SYDNEY: Give me your tie.
VAUGHN: My tie?
(He starts taking it off. Sydney has FGOON's arms tied behind her back and takes Vaughn's tie for FGOON's mouth.)
FGOON: And if this mission's a success, Cole will trust me enough to tell me who The Man is.
VAUGHN: So what's in the vault?
FGOON: I don't know. None of us do. But it has to do with someone named Rambaldi. Look, if you don't let me go, Cole will send someone looking for me! He'll know there's someone else here and they'll find you.
VAUGHN: And if we let you go and you're lying, you'll make sure that happens.
FGOON: When they find me I'll tell them there's only one of you.
(Sydney puts it over her mouth and ties it tight.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
(Pier 19. Will walks around until he sees the lockers. He opens locker 305 with the key. A plain white envelope is inside the locker. He takes it out -- "Pathology Report" is written on it. He looks through it. It's an autopsy report for Karen McNeil, including graphic autopsy photos.)
(Sydney and Vaughn walk down a hall. Sydney points to the map.)
SYDNEY: The other packages are here and here.
VAUGHN: All right. We'll split up and each take one.
SYDNEY: The explosives are located behind steel plats that are bolted to the walls.
VAUGHN: Which you opened by yourself?
SYDNEY: There are fire extinguishers at regulation points. Find one. Use the C02 to freeze the bolts. But go easy or you'll run out.
VAUGHN: Here.
(He gives her the spray. She waves him off and rips the map in two.)
SYDNEY: I memorized the laser grid. Here. (gives him the map) Your C-4 is located along this corridor. You cross through engineering sublevel over to electrical. It's far, so run.
VAUGHN: The storage room where I got in. That's where we'll meet.
SYDNEY: Then maybe we can go to that hockey game.
VAUGHN: (small smile) Maybe. Be careful.
SYDNEY: You, too.
(They both run off in different directions.)
(Weiss enters Haladki's office.)
WEISS: I understand you took a call from Vaughn.
HALADKI: Uh, yeah, now that you mention it...
WEISS: A call he made to me. What did he say?
HALADKI: I don't know. It was a bad connection.
WEISS: Did he confirm the attack?
HALADKI: He was hysterical, per usual.
(Weiss starts to leave.)
HALADKI: I wouldn't read much into it!
(Vaughn sprays the bolt. Hits it. Sprays. Hits it. Sprays. Hits it.)
(Endo doing patrol. Walkie-talkie.)
COLE: Chen, Tony, does anyone copy?
ENDO: Cole, this is Endo.
COLE: Endo! This has got to stop. Look, you find Tony, you find Chen, you find the problem and you FIX IT!
(Syd freezes the bolt. Vaughn sprays, hits, sprays, hits. Syd sprays, hits, sprays, hits. Endo finds FGOON and runs to take the tie off her mouth. Vaughn takes off the steel door and goes inside. Endo starts untying FGOON's hands.)
ENDO: How many were there?
FGOON: One. Only one.
(Vaughn sprays the prisms, sees the lasers, takes a deep breath, and starts going in with the pliers. He sprays and sprays. Gets closer... he has the pin... and takes it out. He sighs. Sydney sprays and just as she's about to hit the bolt off, she hears a thud somewhere. She stops. Down the hall, Endo has a heartbeat detector in his hands and it beeps. He comes closer. The heartbeat is standing still. He spots a tall closet with its doors closed -- someone's inside. He takes out his gun and fires a half a dozen times. In SD-6, Jack and Marshall hear the gunshots. Endo opens the door and the goon who Sydney took down earlier who caught her via the security camers with tape over his mouth falls out of the closet, dead. Cole's in the conversation room. He gets on his walkie-talkie.)
COLE: Endo? Endo, Chen? Somebody, come in! Who the hell's shooting?
ENDO: Cole... Chen's dead.
COLE: Well, who the hell killed him?
ENDO: ...I did.
(Sydney comes from behind and kicks him. Cole can hear the punches and kicks through his walkie.)
COLE: Endo? Endo? ENDO?
(Cole gets up and leaves. Sloane slowly smiles.)
(Sydney is running back to her C-4. Vaughn is running. They both stop when they hear Cole. He flicks on the intercom switch on Sloane's phone and begins talking.)
COLE: Dear person beating up my men: I assume that you're an employee here. I am now standing in Sloane's... tastefully minimilastic office and if you are not here standing in front of me in the next twenty seconds, I am going to start executing your friends. Starting with the man that I assume to be your partner...
(He reads a piece of ID.)
COLE: ...Mr. Jack Bristow.
(Jack stands in the office, staring at Cole coldly. Sydney leans against the wall.)
(Vaughn enters the control room where Sydney and Jack once were. He sees the monitor and the wires, puts two and two together. He starts flicking through the camera angles.)
(In Sloane's office, a goon has a gun pointed to Jack's head. Sydney walks in, her hands up.)
SYDNEY: I'm here.
COLE: You're the bad ass that's been killing my men? I don't know, I just kind of thought you'd be an ugly guy. Step in, girlie.
(Vaughn clicks from camera to camera and sees Sydney with her arms up.)
VAUGHN: Damn it!
(Vaughn sprints down a hall.)
(Out by everyone else who is still tied up, Chopper has a gun pointed at Sydney.)
COLE: Get her bag. Search her good and tight.
(Chopper empties her bag on the ground. FGOON talks on a walkie-talkie to Cole.)
FGOON: Seven numbers locked, five to go!
COLE: If she moves a muscle, you drill her!
(Sydney looks at Jack. He mouths, "Did you get it?" She shakes her head.)
(At the C.I.A., Weiss walks down a hallway with a couple of agents.)
WEISS: I want LAPD notified, roadblocks at appropriate intersections and an ambulance standing by.
SECRETARY: Weiss, you've got a call.
WEISS: Not now!
SECRETARY: It's Vaughn. Line three.
(Weiss picks it up.)
WEISS: Talk to me.
VAUGHN: Where the hell are you?
(Vaughn's underground somewhere, on his cell.)
WEISS: We're on our way.
VAUGHN: The place is wired to blow. Three packages of C-4. We deactivated two. Sydney was supposed to deactivate the third. I don't know if she did.
WEISS: Okay. Can you get to it?
VAUGHN: I don't know where it is! They've got everyone. Including Sydney. As soon as they open the vault, the C-4 is going to go off.
WEISS: How soon is that?
VAUGHN: Soon. Hurry up.
(Weiss hangs up. Haladki walks up.)
HALADKI: What the HELL is going on?
WEISS: If I find out that you screwed Vaughn, you do understand that your ass is mine.
HALADKI: I'm not scared of you.
WEISS: Well, you should start being scared of me.
(Cole is walking alone. He stops and smiles. Then he turns back. In Sloane's office, Sydney is sitting on a chair, her arms tied behind her. A goon has a gun pointed at her head. Cole comes in with a bottle of champagne.)
COLE: You know, a lot of guys... it's their socks. Or their piece. Their gun, bullets, custom hollow tips. But for me, I have always sucked my luck from a bottle of champagne. I bring one with me every job.
(He pops it and takes a swig.)
COLE: Mmm mmm mmm mmm! Would you care for some?
(She looks away. Cole yanks her back by her hair and shoves the bottle in her mouth. Some dribbles out. She gives him a dirty look and swallows.)
COLE: You don't remember, do you? I didn't at first either. We've met before. It was about five years ago, here at SD-6. Which was really rare for me, 'cause I was a freelancer but I was here. And I saw you in the coffee room. You were wearing pigtails and I asked you out. Now, I know I'm not the subtlest guy when it comes to women and I probably said something insanely inappropriate because you told me if I ever talked to you again, you'd break my kneecaps. (beat) Which just made me love you. I've thought about you these last five years. I have. Uh, just every once in a while I'd think, "I wonder whatever happened to Pigtails." And, um, what I took away from that encounter in the coffee room was the fact that you didn't want to go see some mediocre romantic comedy with me, sit in my Pontiac in the parking lot, while we talked for an hour before I made my move. You didn't want to kiss me. Remember?
SYDNEY: No, I don't. But I can see not wanting to kiss you.
COLE: Well, you make bad choices. Yeah, you didn't wnat to kiss me but working for a scumbag like Sloane, that's all right by you, huh? Let me tell you something about that weasel boss of yours. He will disappoint you. And one day, and I hope to God I'm here when that day happens, you will hate him.
(She looks away. Little does he know, she already does hate Sloane. He takes another swig of champagne.)
COLE: It was good to see you in the office again, Pigtails. I know you didn't want to kiss me, but when I was taking a hit off that bottle before? I backwashed in it. I mean, like, really big-time. See ya!
(Restaurant. In the kitchen, Will meets up with Kelly who works there.)
KELLY: I didn't think you'd come.
WILL: I know. I know. Me neither. Yeah, well, look. I made sure I wasn't followed. I took, like, two cabs and a bus just to get here and I wore this thing the whole time... I looked like Gabe Caplan.
KELLY: Who's that?
WILL: Doesn't matter. Are you sure you still want to do this?
KELLY: You know I do.
WILL: Okay. You've got to give this to your dad, then.
KELLY: What is it?
WILL: I don't want you to look at it.
KELLY: At least tell me what it is.
WILL: It's an autopsy. Your mother's autopsy. I mean, there are some photographs in there that you're not going to want to see, okay?
KELLY: Okay.
WILL: Do you understand?
KELLY: Yeah.
WILL: Okay. What you said to me about going away... if your father's going to pursue this, you have got to do that.
(She nods. He pats her shoulder and walks away.)
(Conversation room. Cole enters.)
COLE: Hey, do you remember Griff? That big guy? Well, the MVDs, they worked him over really hard. They had straps with blades in them. These tricky glass syringes. Acid. They were really creative. But he didn't go down. Not until the opened the box. It took him about three needles and his heart gave out.
SLOANE: How many did you take?
COLE: I want to hear you scream.
(He takes a needle out and calmly puts it in Sloane's neck. He gasps in pain.)
COLE: Just the way Griff did. Scream for me.
(Sloane looks at him.)
SLOANE: They broke you, didn't they? They made you beg!
COLE: Don't you wish.
(FGOON walks in.)
FGOON: Only one number left.
SLOANE: "Please, sir, I can't take anymore!" Isn't that what you said to them?
COLE: Do you know how many more needles I have here, huh?
SLOANE: Isn't that what you said to them? You cried for mercy!
FGOON: Let's go!
COLE: That is NOT what happened!
FGOON: The vault's almost open!
SLOANE: You wept like a baby!
COLE: That is NOT WHAT HAPPENED!
SLOANE: Like a little baby!
FGOON: We have to go!
COLE: That is NOT! WHAT! HAPPENED! Shut up!
FGOON: Come on!
COLE: Shut up!
FGOON: Cole, come on!
COLE: Shut UP!
(He turns and shoots her twice. FGOON gasps and twitches, sliding down to the ground. Cole runs over to her.)
COLE: Baby? Baby?
(She's dead. Cole fixes his tie.)
COLE: I have to go to the vault.
(Chopper and another goon have their guns pointed at everyone. Sydney now sits right where Chopper emptied her bag on the ground. Marshall looks and sees the ring she lifted in the last episode from his office right by her. He gets her attention with his eyes and motions over to the ring, then at chopper. She looks down at the ring.)
(Cole walks to the vault.)
COLE: Chopper? I want you to kill 'em all.
(Chopper and his other goon start ushering everyone to one side.)
CHOPPER: Back up! All of you, up against the wall! NOW! All of you!
(Marshall is trying to get Sydney's attention, trying to tell her what to do with the ring.)
MARSHALL: Lisbon!
SYDNEY: What?
MARSHALL: Last July!
(He's pushed against the wall with everyone else. Sydney grabs the ring just as Chopper grabs her, stands her up with everyone else.)
GOON1: NOW! Get up against the wall, come on!
CHOPPER: Don't look at me like that! You heard him, against the wall now!
(Sydney takes the ring, unhooks it, and throws it at the goon. A small explosion goes off. One of the goons falls, dead. Sydney starts fighting, her hands still tied behind her back, with Chopper. She kicks him high in the gut. Dixon takes his gun behind his back and shoots him. Chopper falls. Everyone starts gathering around, untying each other.)
SYDNEY: Can you shut off the failsafe?
JACK: No, only Sloane can do that!
SYDNEY: (untying Jack) I'm going to the vault!
DIXON: I'm going with you.
SYDNEY: Dixon, you just had surgery!
DIXON: I'll meet you there!
(He runs.)
(Conversation room. Jack runs in and starts plucking the needles out of Sloane.)
JACK: Arvin! Did you execute the failsafe?
SLOANE: Yes.
JACK: We need to deactivate it.
SLOANE: Are they still in the building?
JACK: Only one left. (takes out needle)
SLOANE: I won't let anyone in the vault...
JACK: Sydney's going to stop them.
SLOANE: Is Sydney here?
JACK: How do I shut off the failsafe?
SLOANE: The override is a keypad in my office but it's biometric. It won't deactivate without my fingerprint.
(Jack tries prying off the steel bars around Sloane's wrists with a bar from the table.)
SLOANE: Oh, come on, Jack! It's going to take hours to get my hands out of here!
JACK: Ugh!
SLOANE: Marshall has a device that can duplicate fingerprints but we haven't got the time! You could take my fingerprint. Jack, take my right index fingerprint.
(Jack stares at him.)
SLOANE: Just take it!
(Jack gets a rubber hose and ties it around Sloane's wrist so no major blood is lost.)
SLOANE: Right... index...
(Jack takes a pair of pinchers. Sloane looks away. Snap. Sloane gasps and shakes in pain.)
(Cole applies Chapstick and waits for the laptop to hack the code. The code is finished. He stands up, claps his hands together.)
COLE: Yes!
(Dixon is behind him. He punches Cole. Cole punches Dixon three times in the gut, and he falls. Sydney comes in.)
COLE: Lookin' for me?
(She kicks and misses. He blocks her punches. He punches her in the stomach. She grunts.)
COLE: Oooh! Felt that one, didn't ya? Kickboxer, eh? I love me some kickboxers!
(They fight. She punches him. He throws her against the wall.)
COLE: I got your kicks! And I got your moves. Bring it on!
(She kicks and misses. She hits him. He punches her twice. She kicks him. He punches her.)
COLE: See, the problem with you kickboxers, ain't none of y'all can take a punch!
(He punches her one final time. She falls to the floor. The panel to the vault behind him reads "Access Granted.")
COLE: Oooohhh yessiree!
(Jack runs through SD-6 with the finger in a cloth. He runs in Sloane's office and starts typing. He takes out the finger. Down in the vault, Cole gets ready to enter. Jack presses the finger to the keypad. "Failsafe Deactivated." Cole goes in the vault and looks around. He pries off a panel and reaches in for a silver box, about the size of a ring box. On the top is the Rambaldi sign . He walks out as Sydney comes to. In the parking garage, Cole jumps in the McTiernan van and sees the dead driver that Vaughn shot. He takes over the driving. He climbs in the front seat and takes off. Up ahead, a van is parked and four agents, two of which are Weiss and Vaughn, have their guns pointed at the van wearing bullet-proof vests. They shoot several times at the windshield. Sydney comes in the parking garage and sees Cole running out the back of the van. He runs. Sydney runs after him. Sydney kicks and punches him twice. She elbows him in the neck. Roundhouse kick. He falls to the ground on his stomach.)
SYDNEY: I think you're right. Taking a punch is something I got to learn how to do.
(She kicks him in the head. Blood comes out of his mouth. Vaughn and Weiss run up. Vaughn takes her aside.)
VAUGHN: What's happening downstairs?
SYDNEY: I think everything's taken care of. We got lucky.
VAUGHN: Get my guys out of here. SD-6 will never know we were here.
SYDNEY: Then you should go.
VAUGHN: Are you okay?
SYDNEY: Yeah. Thanks for coming.
(Weiss walks up with the silver box.)
WEISS: He had this.
(He gives it to Vaughn then looks at Sydney.)
WEISS: Hey.
SYDNEY: Hi.
(Vaughn opens it. A vile of liquid is inside.)
SYDNEY: What is that, perfume?
VAUGHN: Whatever it is, we have it now and they don't. Because of you.
SYDNEY: Not just me.
VAUGHN: Because of you.
SYDNEY: Well, it'd better be good perfume.
VAUGHN: I'm not kidding. Think about it. What you do. Hockey can wait. I don't think what you're doing here can.
WEISS: Let's go, let's go.
VAUGHN: Okay. (to Sydney) Bye.
SYDNEY: Bye.
(Inside SD-6, everyone gathers around. Hugs. They pick up fallen chairs. Sydney shakes hands and hugs someone. Sloane stands against the wall, a bloody cloth around his hand, and watches everyone. Dixon hugs Sydney. She sees Sloane and goes to him.)
SYDNEY: Are you all right?
SLOANE: None of us are. What happened here tonight is... this is unacceptable. The people who did this... we're going to find them and retrieve what they've taken. Even then... this has changed everything.
(Marshall walks up with a thermos.)
MARSHALL: Sir, I, uh, I got the digit right here and the medics are on their way.
SLOANE: Thanks, Marshall.
MARSHALL: (to Sydney) Hey, Sloane gave me the finger.
(He chuckles and walks off. A man comes and gets Sloane.)
SYDNEY: Okay?
SLOANE: Yeah...
(He leaves. Jack goes to Dixon.)
JACK: You okay?
DIXON: I sent the e-mail to Langley... but I guess it didn't go through.
JACK: It's okay. You did a good job.
(Sydney goes to Jack.)
JACK: This morning, before all this, you wanted to talk to Sloane. What did you tell him?
SYDNEY: I told him that I'd see him tomorrow. Thank you.
Plan: A: Vaughn; Q: Who helps Sydney out of SD-6? A: orders; Q: What does Vaughn disobey? A: SD-6 headquarters; Q: What does Vaughn try to save from destruction? A: Sloane; Q: Who does McKenas Cole want to kill? A: a mysterious device; Q: What is McKenas Cole searching for? A: David McNeil; Q: Whose daughter convinces Will to continue his investigation? A: a convict; Q: What is David McNeil's status? A: life; Q: What was David McNeil sentenced to for his involvement with SD-6? A: an affair; Q: What did David McNeil's daughter believe he was guilty of? A: her imprisoned father; Q: Who does the daughter of David McNeil want Will to help? A: a recurring symbol; Q: What is the inscription O>? A: manuscripts; Q: What else is the symbol O found in Rambaldi's inventions? Summary: Vaughn disobeys orders and attempts to help Sydney and Jack avert the destruction of SD-6 headquarters and all its occupants. Meanwhile, McKenas Cole continues his vendetta against Sloane searching for a mysterious device. The daughter of David McNeil, a convict condemned to life for an affair having to do with SD-6, convinces Will to continue his investigation and help her imprisoned father. Vaughn helps Sydney out of SD-6 and they recover what Cole was there to get, a mysterious vial of liquid with the inscription <O>, a recurring symbol found in Rambaldi's inventions and manuscripts.