Brian
Katherine ordered a meeting when we arrived home with the entire team. She seemed annoyed and upset. We even called Kaleb and put him on speaker phone. He sounded better. Sounded healthy in a way.
"Kaleb, how are you?" Dom asked him.
"I'm fine. Soon reach my thirty day mark and get my pin." Kaleb replied.
"That's great. We all miss you." Rome expressed.
"Is that my beautiful chocolate man?"
Rome looked confused.
"All right. We're going to get to the main gist of the meeting. The council wants to strip me of my honorary. Me and Kaleb both."
Kaleb sat quietly. We were all quiet.
"Our combat badge, our privileges in the building, our access to files...and my position at Nobody Inc."
"Uhm, what for?" I spoke up.
"Merely the fact that Kaleb is a drunk and I am a mother." Katherine paused. "They believe me taking the role in my children's life after ignoring it for so long means that I am not able to handle such a position. But we all know that once I drop this boy, I'm releasing it to Dom. I can handle stepping down from Nobody Inc but I refuse to let them erase everything Kaleb and I have worked for since we were children."
"What did you tell the Council, Katherine?" I had an uneasy feeling.
"The summary of it...I challenged them to try and take my badge from me." She crossed her arms. "Basically spat at them."
I sighed. She's crazy. This isn't her mother or the team or even Mr. Nobody. This is the council. And Katherine threatened them. WHILE SHE'S PREGNANT!
"I find it comforting." Kaleb finally managed to say. "Having a choice finally. Before it was never a choice. Killing and hurting was the only option. I'd gladly hand over my badge."
"Kaleb, you won't." Katherine snapped. "We made an oath. The only reason why I'm stepping down is because I'm having a baby soon."
"And that is amazing. But what do I have except an addiction to a bottle."
Alina took a deep breath.
"Without this job, I have nothing. That's obvious. But with it.... I have nothing but with something. I'd rather take the route of peace and nothing rather than pain and nothing."
"I don't think they should take your badges. Nobody gave you the throne. The council should honor that." Tej said. "It's your legacy."
"I don't believe we have that right anymore." Kaleb hissed.
"Kaleb." Katherine began reaching for the phone.
"Considering we killed the man."
The room got quiet. Deadly quiet. Everyone's eyes shifted to Katherine. Katherine didn't look up at any of us. Only stared at the phone.
"You what?" Dom frowned.
"Wait! No! Don't do that blame thing." Kaleb quickly said. "He begged us to. He was dying and in pain and he begged us to inject him with a nightlock. I didn't have the courage to so we all know who took the fault. He wouldn't take no for an answer."
"We weren't going to be told this...were we?" Dom asked Katherine.
"No. Because it was family business."
"We're a family." Letty snapped.
"No. Kaleb, Nobody and I are family. Family that wasn't put together by fate. Family that was forced together and broken repeatedly to wrap around each other and in the end, it was broken. By me. Me. I did it. Despite his begging and cries, I should've said no. But I didn't. And I live with it everyday so if you lot want to chastise me about it, go right ahead. You aren't going to say anything I haven't said to myself."
It got quiet again. Dom scratched his eyebrow and began making his way to Katherine. I got tensed up. The whole time, I was sitting there, watching everything go down.
He pulled her in for a hug. A tight hug. She looked confused.
"You let him go in peace. Can't hold you accountable for that. None of us will hold you accountable for that." Dom expressed to her.
My heart was fluttering.
"You're keeping your badges, Katherine. You deserve those badges more than anyone I've ever met." Dom pulled back. "We won't lose you without a fight."