Chapter Forty-Six – Kris Cole

 

One thing Kris could say about the bunker: at least the shower had plenty of hot water.

So what if she hadn’t seen the sun in months? Or been able to change into her true draconic form for months because of whatever wards were on this bunker? Or if her only contact had been some black masked interrogator, with all his questions about what she was really doing here, and how much she knew?

At least she had a hot shower, and he let her take them.

Being a captive could always be worse.

“For the last time,” the interrogator said as he circled around her, hands grasped behind his back. “Who is she? Who’s the woman on the phone?”

Every day, for hours on end, they were together in this small, concrete-walled chamber. For hours and hours, he asked her the same series of questions. And for hours and hours, she gave him the same answers. And for hours and hours, he was unsatisfied with them.

“For the last time,” Kris said, her eyes staring straight ahead, “I don’t know. Look, if I knew, I’d tell you. Why do you think I wouldn’t?”

“Because you’ve been working with her,” the man growled behind his mask.

“Dammit, I thought she was working with the colonel! How else would she have had the number for that phone? Look, if you don’t believe me, ask Hunter! Where are you keeping him, anyways? Why won’t you let me see him?”

“I’ll ask the questions here-” A heavy fist sounded on the metal door, cutting off the interrogator mid speech. Growling again, he went over to the door, pulled it open, saying, “I gave orders not to be disturb-Excuse me, sir! I had no idea.”

She looked past the interrogator, caught the gray hair of her former CO, Col. Harrington, green folder tucked under one arm.

“Leave me,” he said, his voice smooth as he walked past the soldier, who’d already stepped back and snapped to attention, his hand raised in a snappy salute.

“Colonel!” she barked, going to stand. “What the hell’s going on here?”

The colonel was unfazed at her words, and the interrogator slipped out from the room like a bad memory. “Before we speak,” Harrington said as the door shut behind him, “I need to apologize to you. We were afraid you might have been compromised in one way or another, and we needed to be sure you were fine.”

“Compromised?” she asked. “Are you fucking kidding me? Just call Tabitha, she’ll tell you I’m the same as I’ve always been. Probably worried sick about me, anyways.”

He stopped his walk, took a deep breath. “Believe me, she’s not worried about you. You’ve already called her and told her you’re taking a sabbatical, that you’ll be back soon.”

“I what?” she roared, trying to get up from the metal chair she was cuffed to. The chair, bolted to the ground, didn’t budge, and she was yanked back to the seat. “How?”

He waved a hand. “We’re not just about magic here, Kris. You know that. We’ve got our ways for voice masking. And I’m a believable you.”

She bared her teeth, kept herself from going over the table at him. “Goddammit, Harrington! What do you want from me?”

He turned to her. “The same thing I’ve always wanted, Kris.”

“What? Someone to clean up your mess? To hold the bag for you when you’re bored, and decide to go wandering off? Or just some fucking patsy to sit around all moon-eyed when you decide to drop back in?”

Col. Harrington chuckled. “Know what I’ve always liked about you, Kris? You’ve always told me exactly what you thought, no matter what the consequences might be.” He smiled a little. “Maybe it’s because you’re able to bite me in half in your true form, or maybe it’s because you just don’t give a shit. But you’ve always done what needed to be done, no matter what.”

Arms crossed over her chest, she looked away. “Kept me in a hole for three months just to tell me that?”

Idly, he looked around at the walls surrounding them, at the concrete and metal structure. “I wouldn’t call it a hole, necessarily. More like a bunker.”

She snorted. “Shut up, Colonel. Say what you needed to say.”

“See?” he asked. “That’s what I like. Even after three months in here, you still haven’t lost your spirit.”

“Say what you want to say, Colonel, then get out.”

“Alright,” he said. “I can respect that.” He paused, smiled a little. “Kris, I want to offer you a job.”