Page 104 of Gates of Tartarus

Seef looks somewhere over my shoulder. “It’s not your fault that you’re the first woman… that you remind me…” He grimaces. “I was engaged,” he says quietly. “Probably too young; I don’t know. Maybe it would have worked out. But when I came back after the attack, well, I wasn’t doing too well.” He reaches out and takes a big gulp of my wine. I’m not sure he’s even noticed. He’s staring into the distance, into somewhere and somewhen far away. “I had the usual symptoms: flashbacks, nightmares, feeling sick, difficulty concentrating. It was a… difficult time. And I guess it was too much. Not what she signed up for.” He takes another swig. “So, she started seeing someone else, and I found out and broke things off.”

“Tell me that you love me, and stop driving me mad / Ooh, because I, I need your love so bad.”

“I got a text just before you invited me out. She’s getting married – to the man she cheated on me with. It’s not that I’m in love with her any more. It’s just that she’s moved on, I guess, while I’m still stuck in that burning building.” He runs one hand tiredly over his face. “And with you and–I guess I’m jea–”He sighs again. “I’m sorry, Maela.”

“Listen to my plea, baby, bring it to me / Because I need your love so bad.”

“It’s OK.” I want to say more, to tell this man, wounded on so many levels, that I understand why he lashed out, to ask about the ex-fiancée and how exactly I resemble her, but my heart is too full.

“It’s not, but I’ll take it. Forgiven?”

I nod: “Forgiven.”

Seef looks down for a moment and clears his throat, then back up, giving me a small smile. “So, still fancy that pint?”

All of a sudden, I’m happy. Maybe the booster’s still messing with my emotions, maybe it’s the realization that Seef and I have just become, if not friends then at least not adversaries, but I’m feeling almost giddy. “Mm-hmm. You owe me one.”

“What?” He looks startled, then his eyes light on my almost empty glass, and he blushes. He actually blushes, which is adorable. “Ah. One large Chardonnay, coming right up.”

By mutual consent, we keep the conversation on neutral ground for the rest of the evening. I tell him about my parents and life in California; he regales me with stories about growing up in Johannesburg, or Jo’burg, as he calls it, where his parents and older sister still live, and working at the Madikwe Game Reserve before joining the marines.I knew it, I think.I knew he was a ranger. He joined MI6 after his convalescence. At first, the desk job drove him crazy, but Babylon is proving endlessly fascinating. I say I feel the same way.

Seef, with his defenses down, is good company. He tells me about some of the stunts he pulled in the royal marines, and I’m almost surprised that he wasn’t kicked out before being invalided out. Did he spend time in the brig, I ask? No, he answers, eyes dancing, but he may or may not have needed to bribe his commanding officer with a bottle of limited-edition, single-malt scotch. I suspect that he and Kavi, with their predilection for practical jokes, would get on well.

Seef asks me about far-seeing, what it’s like, how the training went, and how I think my ability will progress, and really listens when I talk. And I can tell he’s interested in what I think and how I’m feeling and not just in gathering material for a Babylon manual. I’m telling him about precognition and how I’m not sure if or how I’ll be able to develop it, when we get to the front door of the house later that evening.

“I wouldn’t worry. Telesthesia alone is enough. And I’m kind of glad you don’t have precog yet.”

“Really, why?” If I could have even flashes of foresight, it would shorten the battle with Kronos. You’d think he’d want me to develop the skill, and the sooner the better.

“Because,” he says, eyes gleaming in the hall light, “you’d know I was about to do this.” And he leans down and brushes his lips against mine. “Night, princess,” and this time it’s an endearment. “See you tomorrow.” He straightens up and walks off down the street, leaving me staring after him.

Well, hell’s bells.

All Things Fall Apart

Monday, 26 November – Kailani

“... and rerun her MRI,” the doctor finishes, face heavy with disapproval, looking at Smith, Walker, and Tanaka like they personally did this to me. “And,” she adds, emphasis heavy on the following words, “May I remind you that policy is two family members only,duringvisiting hoursonly. You’reclearlynot family members, and it’sclearlyafter visiting hours.”

Smith frowns and flashes his badge at her, followed reluctantly by Tanaka and Walker. “I apologize for going in the face of hospital regulations,” Smith says firmly, “but Ms. Reed needs a protection detail, and I don’t see any of us leaving in the foreseeable future. How soon do you think she’ll be able to answer questions?”

My doctor frowns at him, clearly not intimidated, and snarks back, “Obviously my opinion doesn’t matter in the slightest, Agent…”

“Smith.”

“Agent Smith. If it did, none of you would be here. You have the potential to irreparably damage the young lady lying before you, but it’s obvious your priorities run contradictory to mine. If I were able to, I’d kick you out of my hospital, but as it stands…” She motions to me with evident reluctance. “I have no say over my own patient.” A small beeper on her hip makes a noise, and she glances at it before leveling one last look at the men.

“We need to go through your results, Ms. Reed, and discuss a care plan. I can come back when your workmates leave. Maybe half an hour?”

“You can discuss that with us here,” Maddox says firmly.

The doctor raises a brow at me, and I shake my head minutely. “Sorry,Sir,” she replies caustically, clearly at her limit and not sounding sorry at all. “That’s privileged information, which you are not privy to. Ms. Reed, I’ll return in half an hour, at which point security will escort these men out of the room should they continue to refuse.” She checks her pager again, frowns, and then leaves.

Smith moves to my bedside and says my name softly. “Kailani?”

I try to focus on him, but my eyes aren’t working, so I close them instead and answer him in a short, sharp whisper. “What.”

“I’m sorry, Kai. I am. But we have to review what happened…”