Kat had always looked up to Commander Blanche, with her fancy title, and her accomplishments; her importance and her power. And an office full of nice things.
But daydream as she liked, Kat had never cared much for nice things—she’d never had any. And all the prestige here? Under these current circumstances, it just felt empty. Hollow.
She wondered what it would have been like had she seen this office at an earlier time. Because here, today, it was just another reminder of what Commander Blanche hadn’t been willing to give up. The discipline that had gotten her here in the first place, Kat realized with a sigh.
She also realized that sitting here now, with the paths they’d chosen and the choices she’d made, this was the closest she’d ever come to being like her.
Right before she left that dream behind.
“Uh, Kat—”
Kat startled, looking over just as the holograms blipped dark.
“Pretty sure we were just shut out…”
Kat blinked, still drawing out of her head.
The holograms didn’t regenerate. Ten or fifteen minutes, their time was up. “Void. That’s it?” The sudden disappearance of the mainframe’s holograms made the lighting in the room seem off. A certain darkness settling in. “Did you have a chance to save that last message?”
“I didn’t.” Lee’s face fell, but it was probably for the best. It didn’t prove anything. It gave her false hope, if anything. Their Commander had still given up and conceded everything shortly afterwards.
There weren’t any obvious alarms blaring, despite the mainframe having locked them out, but Jed’s warning still rang in her ears.
“Think anyone’s coming for us?” she murmured.
“I’m not too anxious to find out,” Lee said, already straightening the holoblock back to where they’d found it on her too-clean desk and wiping down the surface with his forearm. She stole one last look about the luxurious office. She wouldnever learn what lay throughout the rest of the suite. If the Commander had her walk-in closet. She would never find out what could have been.
“Let’s get out of here.” Heaving herself out of the extravagant chair, Kat didn’t even glance at the office around her. She’d already bid this life farewell.
They paused before the door. This was it, this would be their tell if all was well. She didn’t need Lee to say it, but she was grateful when he did, as he placed his hand to the glass panel and breathed, “Let’s see what you’ve got.”
Lee stepped out first. Kat was sure her heart was pounding even louder than her feet on the grates as she wordlessly followed him out into that broad hallway.
So far so good.
“Maybe Jed was wrong,” she mused as they cleared that first section of hallway.
Lee just looked over at her. “Maybe.”
They were within leaping distance of those split-paneled double doors when Nolan rounded the corner.
Both she and Lee stopped in their tracks. She was slow to catch herself and wipe her features as surprise and suspicion illuminated the Commander’s secretary’s face.
She didn’t dare glance over at Lee or the gig was already up.
“Nolan,” she called dismissively with much more bravado than she could feel with her already-bouncing heart. Swishing her ponytail behind her, she strutted right past him, praying to the cosmos that Nolan didn’t call her back.
And then she heard Lee’s murmured, “Good evening,” his steps corporate and measured as he strode after her.
Placing a hand to the glass, the doors split open. Hastening her pace by several hairs, Kat didn’t stop walking until she’d cleared that entryway and heard the doors close again behind them.
The doors were just out of sight, when she pivoted, leashing the Command wing at her back as she pressed herself against the wall. She listened to her breaths come in heavy gusts, as Lee slumped back against the wall beside her, his breaths matching hers.
“That was a close one,” she huffed, backtracking through the last sixty seconds in the Command wing. “Too close.”
“Eh. We’ve had closer. That Kafron beast?” he said on short breaths. She looked over to spare him the glance and found his eyebrow arched, face still devoid of tension—or buried with humor.
“I’ll give us that,” Kat laughed, breathlessly, still watching him. The thinnest layer of sweat beaded across his brow. With a finger, she trailed it over the moisture on his forehead.
