Episode 18: Mirage
5/4/2005
Posing as a waitress at a Vienna club, Sydney serves drinks
to Kradic's crew, which includes an undercover Dixon. Syd
reports to APO that she overheard Kradic tell Dixon that the
Hydrosek will arrive soon. Sloane realizes that Jack did not
arrive that morning.
The lurker - call him Coke-Bottle Glasses - has followed
Kradic from Amsterdam and begins planting explosives in the
club. Vaughn, observing by the bar, sees two suited men carrying
a briefcase containing the Hydrosek.
Coke-Bottle Glasses (CBG) puts a glass down on Sydney's tray.
Realizing that it's a bomb, she throws it to an empty corner,
where it explodes. CBG detonates another bomb and, as the
crowd panics, he grabs the briefcase and heads toward the
exit.
Syd tackles CBG and they exchange blows as the Hydrosek case
skids across the floor. He escapes. Dixon shoots a thug about
to kill Vaughn as he goes after the briefcase. Kradic gets
to the briefcase first and runs.
Dixon and Vaughn follow Kradic into the basement. Cornered,
Kradic threatens to drop the Hydrosek in the filtration grate
of the city's drinking water. Dixon pretends to lower his
gun, then shoots Kradic.
After learning of CBG's failure to steal the Hydrosek, Sophia
invites Nadia and Weiss over for dinner. Upon their arrival,
Sophia takes Nadia's belongings - which include a laptop -
to a back room. CBG emerges from the shadows and hacks into
the laptop, gaining access to APO files.
At APO, Syd tells Vaughn that she hasn't seen her father
in two days. They go to his apartment and find a notebook
with recent records of Jack's vitals. Inside the bathroom,
they find containers of medication and blood-soaked bandages
in the trash can.
Jack visits Dr. Liddell, who says that years ago during an
experiment he discovered that a lethal dose of an alkylating
agent cured a few genetically mutated rats --but 84 percent
died. Despite Dr. Liddell's warnings, Jack acquires the lethal
chemical.
Based on the meds she saw at Jack's place, Syd asks Marshall
to research cures for radiation sickness. Marshall reveals
that Jack got sick when he removed the fuel rods in a radioactive
lab in order to save Sydney. Marshall adds that there is no
cure.
Sloane tells the team that Jack needs help and Syd adds no
area hospitals have any record of his admittance. She says
Jack's mental capabilities might be impaired at the moment
and someone might be preying on him, promising a cure.
Jack returns to Liddell's office. Meanwhile, the APO team
locates Jack's car in a seedy neighborhood. Syd and Vaughn
drive to the location and arrive at an abandoned building,
where they find Jack on a bed in the middle of a big empty
room. He injects himself and begins convulsing.
At the APO office, Vaughn explains to Sloane that Jack thought
he had a cure, and unfortunately, Jack's condition is irreversible
after 72 hours. Vaughn also mentions that Jack has been suffering
from hallucinations and woke up briefly to look for a "Dr.
Liddell." Sloane tells the team that 25 years ago, Liddell
developed a thesis on the treatment of genetic mutations.
He went to the Soviet Union in 1981 to spy for the US. When
his cover was blown, Jack's extracted him and gave him a new
identity. Only Jack knows where Liddell is.
Jack wakes up and talks to Sydney, referring to her as "Laura,"
Irina's cover name. Sloane suggests using these hallucinations
to convince Jack that he's living in '81 -- specifically,
the day he extracted Liddell from Russia. He proposes recreating
Jack's surroundings to guide his delusions and make him reveal
where the actual Liddell is located.
Looking like Irina, Sydney enters a room built to resemble
her old house. As the team observes, Jack responds to the
scenario. Vaughn calls, pretending to be Jack's handler, and
asks what arrangements he needs to make for Liddell. Jack
reveals where Liddell should go -- in code.
Believing that Syd is his wife, Jack tells her that he needs
to leave town and help Liddell get a new identity in Finland.
Jack continues on about his deep regret of missing Sydney's
birthday and his lack of involvement in her life. Syd listens,
deeply touched.
Marshall asks Nadia why she requested that the Hydrosek be
moved. Realizing that someone has hacked into the system,
Nadia and Weiss go to the facility where the Hydrosek is stored
and find that it's been stolen. CBG lies dead in front of
the vault.
Syd finds Dr. Liddell in Helsinki. He accompanies her back
to APO and sees Jack, who asks if he's cured yet. Liddell
answers, "Not yet… but I'm going to make you better."
- description from ABC.com
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