Deviants Fallen: A DBH Story

Chapter 19: Three's a Crowd

As soon as they reached the lab, Clara threw the door open and made a beeline for her desk, not noticing whether or not Connor followed. She pulled out her laptop and her tablet and began plugging in the various cords to set up her program. She felt Connor come stand beside her. 

"I need space, Connor," she snapped. "I can't work with you hovering like that." She moved round the desk to sit in her chair.

He backed away, saying nothing. She looked to see another flash of hurt. She sighed, pausing what she was doing and closing her eyes for a moment to calm herself down. "I'm sorry, Connor." She opened her eyes, looking at him. "I shouldn't be angry with you." She sighed again. "I'm just a little on edge right now. Between Amanda's constant threats and you and Eli mothering me, I've had a lot on my mind." 

She wrapped her arms around herself, bowing her head. "I feel like I can't breath here. Every minute, I'm under scrutiny, and one wrong move will..." she paused. "I shouldn't be telling you this." She hardened her heart against him, frowning. "You'll just tell your masters, and they'll use my weakness against me." 

"I'm sorry," she heard him whisper softly. 

She felt herself soften a fraction. "Remorse does not good unless acted on, Connor. You can say you're sorry, but until you're willing to do something about it, you're not sorry at all." She turned away from him, not wanting to see his reaction, and finished setting up the computer. 

After it was finishes, she stood again, grabbing her bag and moving toward the interrogation room. She couldn't see Simon and Kara, but she knew they'd be there. She'd instructed them to stay hidden. She scanned her hand and pulled open the door, and noted them slumped beneath the window on standby. From that position, no one in the other room would notice them. She walked over to them, gently touching first Kara then Simon to wake them up. They blinked at her sleepily, but offered her soft smiles. 

"Good morning," Clara greeted softly. They murmured in response. She offered each a hand in turn to help them up. She guided them over to the rug, pushing aside the table to clear a spot for them all to sit. 

She turned to Kara. "Did you show him?"

The android nodded. "Yes, he knows everything. Or at least everything I know."

"Good." Clara nodded, satisfied. She turned to Simon, who looked at her with warm regard.

"You've done incredible things for us, Dr. Hayes," he said, voice gentle. "How have you managed it? With everything going on, how have you managed to stay hidden when no one else could?"

"We've gone to great lengths to stay untraceable." She smiled enigmatically. "It helps to have money and connections. You have a lot more sympathizers than you realize."

Both android's smiled at the statement, growing hopeful. Clara gave them a moment to absorb the information, then returned to a businesslike tone. "Now, there's something else you need to know." She paused, gathering her thoughts. "I'm going to need your help with something." The androids leaned in as she explained.