At 21:00 hours, it was still early to call it a night, so he wandered over to the training levels to hit the gym.
In the corner of the weight room, Zane deadlifted a kettlebell. Lee wasn’t the only night owl, skating crowds tonight.
Picking up a set of dumbbells, Lee claimed a space further along the length of mirrored wall, offering only a nod towards the broad-jawed Gamma opposite him.
They ignored each other for their first few rounds of reps.
On a mutual break while Lee gulped down water, Zane turned his way. “No she-fiend tonight?”
“Nope,” Lee said, closing the cap on his water bottle tighter than he’d intended at the not-so-subtle dig at Kat.
“Did you get my confirmation about the upgraded security clearance?” Zane asked, almost consciously backtracking.
“I did.” Lee flattened his hand against the cap of his water bottle, savoring the hollow thud under his palm.
“And?”
“And—I’ve got nothing. I’m laying low.”
“And how’s that working out for you?”
“Get off it,” Lee said, batting his water bottle at Zane. But he loosed a breath. “I have my suspicions. And I keep getting the feeling that I’m missing something obvious—that something’s off, but then the trail goes hazy, like we’re being purposefully left out in the dark, and I pull back. I can’t make any sense of it.”
Lee flattened his hand once more against his water bottle, mentally gearing up for another set of reps, but then he caught sight of Zane’s reflection, standing there motionless in the glass.
“Say it is intentional.”
Lee straightened, instinctively steeling his spine for whatever point Zane was about to make.
“Say there is more going on—maybe it’s even relevant to our experience with the General this past term and that the Commander or her secretary, or whoever, left us that clearance, did so on good faith. To what end?”
“I don’t follow.”
“No one has asked for our help. No one has said hardly anything to us for months. Meanwhile, our Placement applications roll out bright and early to usher us along.”
Zane lifted his own water bottle to his face to take a drink, but stopped himself. “Look. You said before that we could shoulder it, right?” Zane asked. “I think you’re right. I think we’re in a unique situation right now, that as cadets—under the Commander’s wing—I think we can get away with a lot more than we otherwise could. But I’m just saying, I think it’s worth considering whose game we want to be playing before we start down a path.”
“These are shit games.”
“Aren’t they?” Zane laughed darkly under his breath. “Welcome to the AMG.”
Lee tossed his water bottle between his hands, while Zane scooped up the kettlebell, returning it to the rack.
Lee would be a fool not to consider all the facets. His entire career hung on the balance of how they ran this term. Not to mention who had their best interests in mind.
“I take it the Colonel finally weighed in on Placement,” Lee said, once Zane returned from stacking the kettlebell.
“He’s already worked everything out for me where my future with the AMG is concerned.”
“You’ve filled out your application, then?” Lee asked, the news for some reason catching him off guard. He steeled his spine as he straightened.
“All but submitted,” Zane said, his brow furrowing as he glanced to Lee. “You?”
Lee shook his head. “Not yet.”
Zane frowned, his brow dipping further, looking very much like he wanted to say something else.
But the door opened behind them, a small gaggle of cadets drifted in. They fluffed their hair, giggling as they clustered around the edge of the room for their “workout.”
