Day 5
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"Door's open!" Julia announces loudly from inside her office after Colette knocks on the door; the sound of hurried movement and shifting papers can be easily heard even outside.
Granted permission, the accompanying agent extends her hand past me, prompting me to step back as she twists the knob and pushes open the door; though she doesn't say a thing, it isn't hard to read that the fact she stops and meets my eyes means she's waiting for me to go in first.
Gratefully, I nod to her, mouthing a quiet thank you, and do exactly that.
A few steps inside, smelling the fragrance of a sweet perfume that resides in the room, she closes the door behind us and rejoins my side.
"Give me just a second; I'm sorting through some important paperwork. Do make yourselves comfortable though." The woman says while crouched behind a wooden table, out of immediate view, shifting through some papers inside what I believe by the sound to be a file box; her blonde hair pokes from out of hiding, swaying with each frustrated movement. "Now, where did I put yesterday's report?"
As she does her search, I take advantage of the opportunity to have a quick look around. The room is fairly simple and tidy. Near the door is a nice leather couch, Julia's work table, which currently holds many tall stacks of paper that she was surely working through, and two armchairs in front of it calling for me.
Sure enough, there's no window here either, a fact that serves to enforce the fact that we are underground.
How a facility like this even exists in the first place, hidden underneath somewhere, is a question I refuse to ask since I'm sure not looking forward to the answer—that is, for now.
"Ha, finally found the little troublemaker; what a relief." An audible sigh takes her throat as the woman begins to get up; in hand, she holds an unmarked, thin folder. On her lips, a polite smile grows as she welcomes me with a bow that leaves me feeling inadequate. "Thank you for coming here on such short notice, puppy; I heard your little walk has been full of adventures. I hope you are enjoying the facility; while you were at it, did you manage to get a hold of the other two?"
"Yes, I did." I awkwardly half-nod while trying to subconsciously perform a bow back to her, one that ends up lacking the movement to be either since I give up mid-way; I swear I catch an amused smile on her face, but it disappears so fast that I can't tell if it really happened, so I continue. "Yui showed me around the place before they had to leave urgently, and Dalia should still be working on something related to the case at the library."
"Splendid, then you managed to talk with each other before coming here; that means it is time for our little talk."
Laying the file down, Julia uses her now free hand to fix some of her hair that was standing wild due to her hurried search, and with the other, she gestures towards the armchair. "Do take a seat, please; I promise our talk will be short. After all, the doctor wishes to see you soon, just to be sure you're in condition to be released from their care."
This feels inevitable, but at least I sense that, strangely, I'm more prepared to do this after all that happened today, so I politely take a seat and quietly wait for her to go on as Colette, like a statue, freezes beside me with arms crossed and her usual inexpressive face.
"If everything goes according to plan, tomorrow you should return to normal activity and continue the assigned investigation." Julia sits down and crosses her legs, resting both elbows at her table and assuming a more professional demeanor. "Before we start, if you have any questions you would like to ask, the time to do so is now."
A question, huh? I don't think there is much I can ask her that I won't learn anyway, but there's something that has been eating at my head since I woke up.
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
"There's only one worth asking." I take in the room's feeling and adapt to it, keeping a straight face and crossed arms. "I need to know if my sister is safe; the rest doesn't matter—I'll learn them as I go."
"Worry not, she is safe and currently unaware of your presence here." One small smile cracks through her professional mask, reassuring me to the point I let out a heavy sigh I didn't know was trapped inside. "After the incident, I asked Agent Dalia to check on any family members and friends of yours to be sure of their safety, and, just in case someone started to question your absence, we told them you came to our head office to discuss some important evidence and wouldn't return for a day or two."
"...Thank you." The way she says it and how she did all of this while I didn't even stop to consider it as a possibility leaves me looking down, embarrassed. "I believe I should apologize for how I treated you earlier; I shouldn't have lost my cool so easily. I'm sorry."
"It is okay, dear; considering what you've gone through, I would say you did very well in keeping your emotions at bay." This talk, I didn't know it was so necessary, and by the way Julia's shoulders relax, I can say she does think the same. "That solved; there are only two things I would like to discuss with you. The most important one first: do you accept your role as a temporary member of unit zero and understand that, in doing so, you'll be placed both under my command and Dalia's?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Then from this moment on it is done; welcome to the team." The woman raises from her chair, walks around her table, and stops in front of me, where she lightly taps my shoulder. "Now that takes me to the second thing I would like to discuss: The doctor responsible for you has come to inform me about an irregularity in your physical condition. She informed me that you don't seem to be eating much, and that will inevitably lead to you being less efficient as an agent; so, with immediate effect, Dalia is entrusted to make sure you eat three meals a day. Yui will also help by sharing some snacks from time to time."
Sensing I'm about to say something to dismiss her worries, I feel her hand grasp my shoulder a little stronger. "This is not open to discussions; nod if you got it."
Disarmed, I do the only option left and comply, nodding my head under her glare's pressure. "I-I understand."
This woman is sure scary when she wants to be; now that I'm thinking, is she human? I mean, she doesn't look NOT human...You know what? I'm better off not knowing anyway.
"It is good that you are a quick learner, puppy." Her smile gives me the creeps for a moment before going back to normal like it never existed. "One more thing before I let you go, a last question, and probably the most important one: did you have fun?"
"What?" Genuinely confused, I tilt my head; if she's asking that, there must be a reason, but what would she get with an answer to a question like that? There's no way to know if I don't ask. "What do you mean?"
"Think nothing of it, puppy; just answer as truthfully as you can, taking into consideration your walk with Yui, the meeting with Dalia, and the situation with Colette."
Okay, there is no way this isn't a test of some kind, but, seeing she's not willing to tell me, it is best I just answer.
"..."
Fun, huh? Did I have fun today? Did I have fun in this hell of a week? The spiral starts to rotate and trap me far away from the moment.
I mean, the murders sure weren't fun; instead, they only brought me headaches and pain, but meeting with the agents was...nice, even if I wouldn't like to admit that out loud. Getting to, for the first time, work on something bigger than a drunken man jaywalking; walking with them around town trying to piece things together, and their presence as a whole—it sure was reassuring.
The way Dalia's gentleness and understanding nature help me keep calm and ready, the way Yui's flirtatiousness became something fun and amusing to watch, and the confidence and strength Colette possesses that somehow makes me feel safer...
"No," I say, and immediately Julia's hand leaves my shoulder. Having to watch her face lose all expression is strangely painful, but before she can do anything else, I continue. "That is what I would say if you asked me the same question yesterday or when we met, but now, I'm not so sure myself anymore; it is hard to be sure of anything anymore."
"I see. Thank you for answering truthfully, Olivia; I appreciate your honesty. That was all I needed to hear; you're free now. Go get your wounds taken care of."
Julia offers me a hand to get up, one that I accept without a second thought. Once up, she smiles. "When you're out the door, follow to your right and rest there; Doctor Yavia should meet you in some minutes."
"Okay, uh, thank you for this conversation." I put a hand to my chest, feeling it a lot less panicky than when I first woke up today. "My chest feels a lot lighter now."
"No, I thank you, puppy." I nod and turn around, ready to leave the room, before noticing Colette doing the same to apparently follow. "Colette, you stay; that's an order. I need to run some things with you for tomorrow's job."
Hesitantly, the woman's gaze meets mine, but in the end, she complies and turns back to Julia.
Having ended this so-needed talk, I leave the room with a lighter heart, knowing that my sister and friends are safe.
Tomorrow this will come to an end, even if I have to tear heaven and hell for that.
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