Renegade

Chapter 3

June

1708 hours

Los Angeles Central Hospital

72 degrees, indoors

"And this one here?" The nurse's voice trailed off as she held up a white laminated card that held a complex math equation across it.

I looked down at the card, read it quickly and calculated the answer. This was an easy one.

"Seventy-four." I answered.

The nurse nodded as she folded the last card back into her deck. Then, after writing something on her clip board, she scooted away on her rolling stool.

A prickling pain shot across my right temple.

"Ouch!" I winced, flinching away.

"Sorry." Tess's nose crunched up as she apologized and dabbed an antiseptic wipe on my cut.

Turns out Kerrigan managed to give me a pretty good scrape.

Tess's cold fingertips gently pressed onto the skin around my cut. "Does it hurt anywhere else?"

I shook me head. "No."

After each mission, injured or not, you were required to have a medical check up. They would test your reflexes and your brain (with a series of questions and memory games) as well as checking out your body for any wounds, like the one I now have on my forehead.

The intention for having this requirement may be good, but it's such a time waster.

"So," Tess began. Oh gosh. "How was he?"

My stomach flipped and my cheeks grew hot, but I smiled at her like they didn't.

"Who?" I asked even though I knew quite well who she was referring to.

She meant Day.

After every encounter the both of us have had, Tess has demanded a story of how everything went down. She craves the gossip of what's going on between me and Day, but I disappoint her almost every time because there isn't anything.

Tess nudged my shoulder and I grinned.

"He's fine." I sighed. "Same as always."

Tess pouted. "Well everything's still very new to him." She explained to me for the hundredth time.

I rolled my eyes. "It's been a year!" I exclaim.

Tess tilts her head to the side. "And who's fault is it that he won't remember?" she says and I hang my head.

She's right. I haven't told Day anything about me. Or us. Or anything that I was associated with in his life. He doesn't need to know.

"Yeah, yeah." I flick her hands away and slide off the table.

"Wait!" she calls after me, and within seconds Tess is putting a thin white bandage over my wound before letting me leave the hospital room.

* * * * * * * * *

It took me a total of 17 minutes and 26 seconds to get from Los Angeles Central hospital to HQ. They aren't that far apart location wise, but between the stop lights and crowded sidewalks full of men and women who decided that today is the day they'll take their time, it took longer than I had hoped.

Our HQ was two levels down below Batalla Hall. They added the second level two years ago.

Long after the events that happened 11 years ago, Anden thought it would be well worth it if he organized a special forces group specifically for secret operations. After many terrorist actions started to come through from the Colonies, Anden's cabinet didn't disagree.

"I want the best and brightest of the fields." Anden had said. And that's how we ended up here.

I was asked in person by Anden to take a position and that's how I met Cecil. A former councilman and trusted war officer during the events at Denver. He had been elected as the head of our secret operation.

Pascao was recruited by Cecil and recommended by Anden himself after all his dedication and service in Drake University's training program

The whole project was introduced months before Day's arrival back to the Republic, so once it was known that he was back, he was immediately offered a position.

His younger brother, Eden, just recently joined our team as well. Well, part time. He still holds the job he was interviewed for a year ago. It hasn't even been 3 months since he was asked to be our "little scientist".

Tess wasn't officially part of the operation, but she was definitely the one who you went to if you had an injury. She wasn't too bad at hacking into systems either.

There are also many other new people that I was introduced to on this team. We were a secret, so there weren't many, but that made us close. It also gave you a family, something a few of us have been lacking for longer than we'd care to admit. It was nice to have a group of people that you could trust wouldn't stab you in the back.

I opened the large doors that led into the great hall and made my way towards the elevators. As I rounded the corner, I noticed I'd have company on my way down.

Day

I pushed the elevator button for the 7th time before it finally decided to open it's doors. You would think that a top secret building in the heart of the Republic would have working elevators.

"Hey." a voice called after me as I went inside. I looked up. It was June. She was jogging down the hallway. Her hair pulled high into a bun, but loose strands found their way out. I placed my hand out on the side of the elevator to keep it open.

"Thanks." she huffed as she's stepped inside.

I didn't say anything and pushed all the possible buttons on the key pad, making sure I hit the one with a star on it twice. There isn't a button for where we're going, so that's how you get to the second level of the basement.

I could feel June's eyes burning through the back of my head. I sighed.

"You're welcome, by the way." I said.

"I already said thank you." I could hear the confusion in her voice.

"I didn't mean about the elevator." I turned to face her. Her beautiful face stared at me, waiting for an answer.

"Then for what?"

"For saving your life." I said matter-of-factly.

Her jaw dropped and I couldn't help but laugh to myself. "Well excuse me for trying to fulfill my orders."

"I gave you orders to leave."

"So you're angry with me. Is that what this is?" she asked quietly.

I shook my head. "I'm not angry at you. I'm angry at the situation." I paused. "Which you created."

"Oh I'm sorry," she placed a hand on her hip and a playful smile spread across her lips "but I don't take orders from you."

Narrowing my eyes, I grinned and I saw something flicker in her eyes.

"Well we're going to have to change that."

She slipped. Only for a moment. But I could tell that what I said caught her off guard. She huffed and folded her arms turning away from me.

"I didnt ask you to save me." she hissed. The elevator dinged.

I raised my eyebrows as we walked out of the doors. "Ha! so I did save you."

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(I know this was short, and not a lot happened. It was mostly just to let you know who June and Day were working for and what they do. Thank you for reading!)