Drew Karpyshyn - Ascension

Handing the register back, he gave the nurse one last smile, then turned to see Gillian standing silently at the threshold of her room, watching them intently.

"Time to go," he told her, and she obediently moved forward and fell into step beside him.

Kahlee wasn't surprised to find the door to Hen-del's office closed when she got there. She could only imagine all the things he'd had to deal with over the past twenty-four hours.

"Door — open," she heard him call out in response to her knock.

When he saw her standing there he motioned for her to come in before saying, "Door — close."

Hendel's office was a mess, but that in itself wasn't unusual. He didn't like paperwork, and it tended to pile up quickly. He always had stacks of printed reports piled on his desk, with a few more piles stacked on the floor beside it, waiting for his review. The tops of the tall metal cabinets along the back wall were covered with all manner of forms, requests, and waivers needing signatures or waiting to be filed in the proper folder.

The security chief was seated behind his desk, staring intently at his computer screen. She crossed the room and took one of the two chairs across from his. He reached out and flipped off the monitor as she sat down, let out a long, weary sigh, then leaned back in his chair.

He'd changed his soaked, food-stained clothes since she'd seen him yesterday outside Gillian's hospital room, but it looked like he hadn't taken the time to shower. She could still see tiny bits of bread caught in his hair and clinging to the short, reddish brown whiskers of his beard. There was a day's growth of stubble on his cheeks, and his eyes were bloodshot and baggy.

"Were you working all night?" she asked him.

"Damage control," he answered. "Some anonymous jackoff on staff already leaked the story. I've got calls coming in from media, school administrators, government officials, and angry parents. The parents are the worst."

"They're just worried about their kids."

"Yeah, I know." He nodded. "But if I find out who leaked the story I'll make damn sure their ass gets fired." He sat forward in his chair, thumping his hand hard on the desk to punctuate his words.

"Did you get in touch with Grayson yet?"

Hendel shook his head disapprovingly. "I left a message, but he didn't call back."

"Maybe he's not available."

"An emergency contact number's no damn good if you're not there during an emergency," he snapped back at her, then immediately apologized. "Sorry. I've got a lot of things on my mind."

"Anything you want to talk about?"

"No," he said, resting his elbows on the desk and placing his head in his hands.

Kahlee stayed silent, waiting patiently. A few seconds later he looked up at her and said softly, "I think we might have to pull Gillian out of the program."

"I was thinking that myself," she said with a sympathetic nod.

Hendel leaned back in his chair again and put his feet up on the desk, tilting his head back to stare up at the ceiling.

"I'm thinking of offering the board my resignation," he said, the casualness of his voice at odds with the bombshell he'd just dropped.

"What?" Kahlee exclaimed. "You can't quit! The children need you!"

"Do they?" he wondered out loud. "Yesterday I let them down when they needed me the most."

"What are you talking about? Nick and Gillian were the only ones hurt, and they'll both be fine in a few days. You did everything right!"

He swung his feet down from the desk and sat up, leaning forward intently.

"No, I didn't," he told her, his voice gravely serious. "When I realized Gillian wasn't going to stop, I should have hit her with my stunner without a second thought. But I hesitated."

"I think that's a good thing," Kahlee protested. "I'd be more worried if you didn't think twice about it."

"Everyone in that cafeteria was in danger," he explained, speaking slowly. "Every second I let her keep going there was a chance someone else could get hurt. Or worse."

"But that didn't happen. There's no point beating yourself up over it."

"You don't understand," he said, shaking his head in frustration. "I put the safety of Gillian ahead of every other student at this Academy. I can't afford to do that in my position. I'm trained to react in emergency situations, and I can't let my personal feelings get in the way."

Kahlee didn't say anything right away, her mind reeling as she processed the information. She thought he was overreacting, but he wasn't a man prone to empty comments; she had no doubt he was serious about leaving.

"What will you do?"

"I was thinking of asking Grayson to hire me as a private tutor for Gillian."

Suddenly everything made sense. Kahlee realized this wasn't about Hendel feeling guilty over what had happened. Not really. Hendel cared about all the kids in the program, but Gillian was different. She needed more help than the other children. She needed more time and attention. Because of this, Hendel had grown more attached to her than the others. It wasn't fair, but who ever said life was fair?

Gillian was special to him. Hendel cared for her. He loved her. And he was willing to do whatever it took to stay in her life, even if it meant throwing away his career.

"Hold off on that resignation for a while," Kahlee said, reaching out to pat him gently on the hand. "At least until we know for sure if the board will let Gillian stay."

"They're not going to let her stay. We both know that."

"Probably not," she admitted. "But there's always a chance." Her mind went back to her conversation with Jiro from the night before. "If I have to, I could get my father involved."

"Your father?" Hendel asked, confused.

"Admiral Jon Grissom."

HendePs jaw gaped. "Grissom's your dad? 1… I

didn't know that."

"I don't like to talk about him," she said. "Jiro's probably the only one who knows."

"What did he say when you told him?" Hendel asked, still stunned.

"I… I don't remember," Kahlee answered uncertainly, trying to think back. Funny. I should remember telling him something like that. "I actually can't remember telling him. But he knows. We were talking about it last night." But if I didn't tell him, then how does he know?

Hendel's expression changed from disbelief to one of concern. "Kahlee? What's the matter? What's wrong?"

"Nobody knows who my father is," she said slowly, still trying to work out the implications for herself. "It's not even listed in my Alliance personnel file. There's only one document that mentions my father: the classified report Anderson filed twenty years ago. Top secret clearance required."

"And you're positive you never mentioned it to him? Why the hell would one of your lab techs have top secret clearance?" Hendel asked, worried. "Something doesn't add up."

Kahlee could only nod, numb from the possibility that the man she'd been sleeping with had been lying to her all along. Lying about how тисЫAnd why?

"I need to talk to Jiro. Now!" Hendel told her, yanking open the drawer of his desk and pulling out a pistol. "Where is he?" he demanded, strapping the pistol onto his hip.

"He went to see Gillian."

Hendel slammed the buttons of the speaker-phone on his desk, moving quickly, but still staying calm and focused. Kahlee was upset as well, but even so, Hendel's urgency surprised her. Perhaps he was eager to get back to being in control, anxious to focus on something other than the events of the past day.

"Quarantine ward," the nurse's voice answered.

"This is Security Chief Mitra. Has Dr. Toshiwa come to see Gillian yet?"

"Yes, sir. He took her to the atrium. Would you like me to—"

Hendel killed the call, barking out, "Door — open!" as he sprinted from the room. He moved so fast it took Kahlee a full second before she reacted and took off after him.