Page 15 of Draco's Fire

She’d prepared a careful response for this moment—and every syllable of it slipped away, leaving her tongue-tied and scrambling for ideas. She pushed away the memory of Tyson’s body pressed against hers and instead latched onto the meeting in the park. Their debate had been fruitless.

Bingo! Hello there, Plan-B.

She began with an appeal to both Phil’s reason and his vanity. She said, “I stand behind the formation of the detail. It was a good call. However, I do think there are better agents to serve on it than me.” She pulled out her laptop, placed it on his desk, and fired it up.

After a few clicks, a spreadsheet appeared on the computer’s screen. She faced it toward him. “I took the liberty of making a preliminary list, though I don’t have your expertise with personnel,” she said.

Phil gave the display a cursory glance. “That’s not a reason,” he said.

She answered, “Well, in my book, fighting for those who can’t is one thing—an honorable thing. But putting my ass on the line for someone who is capable, but refuses to help themselves—even after personal tragedy? No, I have zero patience for a dude with a death wish.”

He blinked. “That…that sounds like a load of crap and not like you at all, Simmons. Since when do you care about philosophy? You give zero fucks about what people think of you. Heck, I’d half expected your unique social skills would’ve goaded the pacifist into violence and it’d be HOPE on the horn demanding someone new,” he said.

Get it together, girl.Shayla could feel her composure shredding and took refuge in bravado. She shrugged and said, “First time for everything, right boss?”

Phil banged his palm against the desk. His voice was almost a shout when he said, “That’swhat was bugging me. You came in here about theStallarddetail. Not the HOPE detail. Not the Pacifier Protectors or any one of the other sarcastic little nicknames you like to give your assignments. No, you led with Stallard.”

Her face flushed hot. She wanted to give him a sure denial and she wanted to run out of the building. Instead, she sat there and didn’t utter a sound.

His eyes widened in response and Shayla knew she’d seriously miscalculated the whole situation. And she knew exactly what was going to come out of his mouth next.

He said, “Aw jeez. You slept with him, didn’t you? After all the grief you hand out on a daily basis, and you couldn’t keep it in your pants.”

Yep. There it is. Though, honestly, I thought he’d go with “banged him.”

Phil continued, “Since you haven’t admitted anything, I’m going to skip the lecture about any of your alleged indiscretions and suggest you refresh yourself on the professionalism and conduct standards sections in the handbook.” He paused for acknowledgement.

Shayla cooperated and gave him a nod.Maybe I’m going to get a win out of this, after all.

He fixed her with a hard stare and said, “Oddly enough you’ve made my decision easier. The brass wants Tyson alive and aside from this nonsense, you’ve done good enough work to be noticed by them. So, here’s the deal: You are not going to be reassigned. You are not going to complain. And you are not going to make the same mistake again. Do you understand?”

Shite, shite, and more shite.

“Yes,” she said. It was disappointing and she wanted to crawl in a hole, but he could be sending her to HR. Tyson and HOPE needed protection. They needed her.

Phil waved his hand in her direction, demanding more. He said, “Yes what?”

Oh, hell no.Her embarrassment tipped into irritation. She didn’t bother trying to hide the chill in her tone when she replied, “Yes, I understand I will remain on the detail. I will focus on the job and only the job. I will not complain about it.”

Phil smiled, clearly enjoying the power play. He said, “And why is it we’re going in this direction?”

Irritation turned to anger. She fought it back and ground out her reply, “Because the bad press we’d draw if a prominent shifter gets killed is more important than any personal bullshit I might be going through.”

“And?” he said, practically singing the word.

She imagined leaping forward to deliver a strike to the side of Phil’s neck, right on the brachial plexus nerve cluster, and relishing the meaty thud when he hit the floor. It was a supremely satisfying ten second daydream; however, reality intruded. She gripped her hands on her knees to keep them still.

“And because you say so,” she said. Her anger was burning brighter by the second.How much do I need this bloody job, anyway?She put her hands on her laptop’s keyboard to keep from strangling the man in front of her.

Phil replied, “That’s exactly it. Well done, Simmons. I think you’ve got the picture now.”

A rapid series of keystrokes brought up both her retirement plan and the most popular job search site of the moment. The logo was unmistakable and strobed on the homepage. She said, “Oh, I do. Thanks, sir.”

His gaze was drawn to the screen and his expression tightened. He tilted his head toward the door. “Glad to hear it, Simmons. Looking forward to the reports. Now get out and remember to stay safe out there,” he said.

The intelligent move would be to swallow her pride, get back to work, and take solace in the backhanded vote of confidence. But as she exited Phil’s office she called out, “Hey, Grisanti! You still got a friend in the bureau? They hiring?”

A voice from a nearby cubicle answered with a braying laugh. He said, “Nah. She retired last year. Got a mall cop cousin who may have something out on Staten Island, though. Interested?”

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