Burnt; TDC ➵ Thomas [DISCONTINUED]

PROLOGUE

THE SOUND of heels clicking against the marble floor could be heard from Janson's office. Whoever wore them entered the room. Suddenly, the atmosphere changed. From being calm and silent, Janson felt tension and anger.

He turned around, hands behind his back and maintained his posture. He bowed his head in respect. "Good morning, Chancellor."

"You can say that all you want, Janson," Chancellor Ava Paige told him curtly. She stormed towards the assistant director, her blood boiled. "Why would you go against my orders like that?"

Janson was calm, he sighed. He shifted his weight on the balls of his heel. "Chancellor. With all due respect, even the Psychs doubted the survival of the subject without the substance."

"You knew it too, Chancellor. The Candidate is needed, it'll take about 26 days. That's all we need before telling the other subjects about their immunity," Janson reasoned. Ava straightened her back to seem more professional. She glared at her assistant before staring out the large window.

"The survival of the human race is in our hands." Ava didn't turn around, but she looked at Janson through the reflection.

"Chancellor, you can't be giving up now. We're so close to finding the cure." This made the Chancellor turn swiftly. She stared Janson down.

"It's not about giving up, Janson. It's about knowing when you have lost."

With that final sentence, Chancellor Ava Paige walked out of Janson's office. She left the Assistant Director thinking about what she had said.

[Written 6 February 2018]

[Edited 16 February 2018]