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No, this wasn’t happening. No.
I fought off the man holding me to get to her. So did Ghost. A fight erupted.
“Fuck. Take everyone in. We will sort this out on our way to the Commander.”
That was the last I heard before someone hit me behind the head and darkness took over.
***
The men separated me from Ghost and dragged me to the Commander’s home in La Jolla.
There was a tense moment when Sorenson informed his commanding officer about what went down at my mentor’s home. I thought for sure Moore was going to lose it when he ordered his men to detain Hayes in another room.
But alas, I couldn’t give a rat’s ass because my hatred for the Guild mixed with my grief over Connie’s death.
They killed the sweet woman who took me in. I had to watch as life drained from her body.
And for what? Because Jacob Hayes wanted his gun back. He hadn’t liked being disarmed in front of the others and had to make his point known.
What I didn’t understand was why they were there in the first place?
The Commander took his seat in front of me, crossed his fingers, and gave me a big smile.
“I wanted to congratulate you, Orion.”
“On what?” I asked stoically. By now, my mind had processed everything going on, and I filed away the pain in a compartment in my brain. I needed to be sharp for my meeting with these people and wallowing in grief would not get me anything.
“On successfully becoming an analyst.”
“We would like to fast track you to the intelligence officer program. We believe your talent would be better suited elsewhere.”
I remained unmoved, the evening’s event having neutralized any joy I could have felt.
“You don’t seem thrilled by the news.”
“Your man killed my legal guardian. I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
The Commander sighed in irritation. “What happened tonight was unfortunate. Please be reassured, Head Chief Hayes will be punished for his part in this terrible tragedy.”
I didn’t bother asking what the punishment would be because, short of killing him, there was nothing they could do that would make up for what they took from me tonight.
In any case, I know how these people work. They wouldn’t take out the Irish Butcher for killing Connie. She wasn’t even a blimp on their radar.
“As for the other shoe, well, you will need to do a thorough assessment by a senior officer to get into the program. Once that is completed, you will return to the Academy to continue your training.”
I knew this already. A Guild assessment is similar to an interrogation. The people doing the assessment want to make sure you won’t break cover in any circumstances and submit you to a mental pressure that is relentless.
“So, why was I brought here?”
“Because I volunteered to do your assessment,” he smiled.
Great. Just. Fucking. Great.
***
They drove Ghost and me back to our home two days later, a bit more beat up than when we arrived.
My mentor’s arm was put in a cast, and I was fairly sure I’d be having nightmares about dead bodies for the next month or so, but we were lucky, considering.
