The devotion of a partner

This short story about 3 chapters, is about Jill Valentine's POV after the chapter 6 of The Flaw of The Flawless man. I'hope you'll like….

Jill came home, finding with no surprise her apartment ransacked. Normally, she would have thought of a burglary. But she knew what was it. She knew that men from Umbrella were looking STARS. Barry, Brad, Rebecca and Chris ... all became targets in a few weeks. But Jill was the only one among them to have remained in Raccoon City. This city had brought her so much joy in her life she did not want to leave ... not in these circumstances.

Jill pushed her way into her room from the mess and broken furniture. It had been days since she had not returned home, but her instinct told her that the men from Umbrella had recently come.

"Your instinct is the only thing you can trust. Never give your trust to anyone " Said his father, Dick Valentine.

Since her arrival in Raccoon, Jill was eager to forget her past. For her it was the beginning of a new life, which is why she refused to talk about, even to his closest friends. Today more than ever, she would fight to preserve this life.

"CRAAAAAK"

Jill had felt something cracked under her foot. She leaned over and took the object..a photo in a glass frame. It contained both teams ALPHA and BRAVO, group photo that was taken on her arrival in ALPHA. Jill's weight cracked the glass in the exact point where was Richard Aiken, a member of the BRAVO killed in the mansion incident. But above all, Richard was her first friend in Raccoon City, the man who convinced her to join the STARS.

"Oh..Richard ..." she said with emotion, while sliding her finger in his face.

Umbrella was taking from her everything she had, and that she could not bear it. It was one of the reason that pushed her to stay. She took the picture out of the frame damaged and put it in her backpack, which contained her gun, ammunitions, some clothes ... and her badge of STARS Chris had given to her before leaving.

"Do not forget one thing Jill Valentine: A STARS will never die".

Words that warmed her heart. Chris was someone special. Over time they became more than just partners, perhaps even more than friends if she thought deeply about it... She hoped to see him again one day. She had to believe.

An old woman entered the apartment of Jill, who had not closed the door. The sight of the mess inside had probably encouraged her to see what had happened.

"Miss Valentine ! Are you okay? For several days you have gone! "She exclaimed anxiously.

"Oh Janice! Sorry to have make you worried ... but I'm fine ... I think. Do you know what happened during my absence? "

"I was not there when it happened, but neighbors said they saw masked men leaving the building after hearing some suspect noises from your apartments. Then, they saw your door was forced. Certainly some burglars"

"Yeah ... probably" replied Jill, knowing that they weren't burglars. Even in another circumstance, Jill could recognize the methods of a real burglar, for having exerced the same job with her father before.

"I'm sorry for that Janice. I will pay three months rent in advance and a little more for the inconvenience. The situation is tense at the moment, I have things to do to ensure that Raccoon is safe. It's a long story ... "

"Listen, I know that newspapers are not nice with you since some days, but i know you, and I know you are a good person. So I do not care what happened that night, you have my support Miss Valentine. "

Jill smiled and put her hand on her shoulder.

"Thanks for that Janice. By the way how is your son? "

Janice looked suddenly embarrassed.

"Still in a coma, it's been six months now, and i continue to pay the hospital for keeping him alive, but I couldn't continue forever ... I do not know what to do, the doctors said he could wake up at any moment…"

Jill had an idea. Her father had left her a large sum of money from his burglaries. She refused to touch it until then, but if it could save a life or at least extend the hope of a mother, it had to serve in a good cause...even if it was not honest money. Jill preferred to feel guilty about money than about a life ...

"Do not lose hope. Like I said I'll give you an extra with my rent. This will give you a little more time to think calmly. "

Janyce thanked Jill, with tears in her eyes, and walked away.

Jill took an hour to restore some order in her living room and decided it was time to leave. If Umbrella was already on the track of STARS, she had to cover their tracks mainly on the destination of Chris. Barry and Rebecca were already safe, and Brad ... she did not care. She felt bad for a moment she could think as codly the fate of one of her colleagues, especially since it was he who had warned them that Umbrella was after them ... But he was an expert to run away from the danger, he was probably already gone far away now. Chris's location was more important than anything else. Umbrella will understand soon that he left, so they'll make some research…She wanted to avoid that.

To do this, Jill had an idea. But she must have access to a computer, and she didn't have one. And given the current situation, she couldn't go to the RPD. This would easily bring the Umbrella's attention. Jill was thinking ... Everyone does not have the means to afford a computer, her neighbors had probably not, Janice either. But maybe ... yes..maybe that Chris had one. She knew where he lived but never had the opportunity to visit. Chris had never invited her...

"Well since you're slow to catch'up, I think I'm gonna invite myself in your home" she thought with a sudden urge to laugh.

As she left her home to take her car, she met an elegant man, wearing a suit and tie who spoke to her.

"Excuse me miss, are you a member of STARS? "

Jill froze, not knowing what to say.

"Do not worry I do not mean to harm you. I was contacted by a friend of Barry Burton. Hold a sec, here is my badge. I work for an organization that wants to help you return to the STARS. You will be under our protection for the time we need to solve this case. I'm Jack Divington. "

Mentioning Barry, was a proof that Jill could trust him. But she remained cautious and continued to stare at him suspiciously.

"I understand your attitude. Look, I give you this, so you can call me. Contact Barry first to confirm that I am someone reliable. And when you have done, I hope you will trust me enough to allow me to help you. Have a nice day. "

Jack walked away without looking back. Jill still did not believe her luck. If only she could contact Barry ... but he moved to Canada, and had nothing left for joining him.

She continued to think about this "Jack" while she was driving for about twenty minutes to reach the apartment of Chris Redfield.

"Here we go Chris. I just wished that it would happen in other circumstances, and with you ... ". Jill thought, nostalgic of good times she spent with her partner.

She pulled out her gun from her bag, and put it in her belt, just "in case". Maybe Umbrella came here too. It is only when she put her hand on the door handle to open it, that she realized they didn't come. It was strange, they had time to come, but it seems they didn't show any interest on Chris's home. She pulled out of her pocket an important item of her past, which was usefull during her burglaries: her lockpick.

Jill looked around her before, to be sure no one would catch her. But it was also a reflex for her to know the environment in case of unexpected situations. Her father wanted her to be a worthy successor, and even if he was hard with her sometimes, she had to admit that no one had ever surprised her, and never been suspected of something . Richard Aiken was the first and only one to have discovered the truth about her. But he didn't judged her. Instead of that, he asked her to put her skills to a better cause ...

Less than a minute. This is the time that it took to Jill to unlock the door of his partner. Everything seemed clean, if we forgot all the mess . And this mess was obviously not due to Umbrella. She now understood why he had never invited her. A box of pizza on the couch, a few cans of beer on the table, paperwork and clothes everywhere ... The dishes waiting desperately to be washed. And the list is still long, but Jill was not there for that. She focused on the search of a computer.

After a few minutes she was distracted by a photo album she decided to look in it , she was curious.

"Here she is. Claire Redfield your little sister. You're both cute. " Jill though, taking a pleasure to discover the joyous childhood of this small family. However, she found that their parents were only present when they were about 6 year's old. The following photos, it was either Chris or Claire. The one who was not in the picture was probably the one who took the shot. Jill realized that Chris has done everything to make her sister happy in the absence of their parents. And he succeeds. For a brief moment, she hoped that when this case would come to an end, she could be the one that would bring him some happiness. This man deserved it ...

Before falling into emotion, Jill closed the album and continued to search. When she finally started to believe that Chris did not have any computer, she noticed a large cardboard box she did not think to search. And finally here it is! A computer with every cables. It surely had already been used, but for some strange reason Chris did not want to use it anymore. Invoices within the board said that the connection was still active until the end of August, which was close.

"It's my lucky day today"! she said aloud, while also referring to the photo album of Chris, and that she had met Jack. Maybe she could trust him after all.

It took her over an hour to install the connection, but the computer was working which was good news. Jill had been a doubt for a moment, because Chris wanted to get rid of it ..

"The computer is not your thing Chris, but luckily for you I know how to use it"

Finally, Jill managed to do what she wanted: send an email to the Chief of Police Irons and Mayor Warrens to tell them that STARS got tired of all this case, and had decided to leave Raccoon city to go on Africa, and would never mention the mansion incident again. Jill also apologized on behalf of the team. She used Chris's user account to made the email. With a little luck, it would stop Umbrella, even if it did not. The most important thing is to believe that all the STARS were out of town, without letting them think about Europe. So from now, Jill need to be discreet in Raccoon, while Umbrella would look elsewhere.

While she unpluged the computer to put it back in its box, Jill decided at least to talk to Jack. She took the opportunity to use the phone of Chris, and dialed the number on the card that he given to her.

"You are already ready to discuss? "

"I have no time to waste. If you really want to help, join me at Joe's bar in 30 minutes "

"Joe's bar.. I see where it is. I will wait for you "

Jack was already there when Jill came into the bar and took a seat in front of him. After ordering a juice leaking for Jill and a whiskey for Jack, he started the conversation.

"Thank you for accepting to see me so quickly. I am aware of your difficulties since the incident at the mansion. "

"Allow me to doubt it. That night was unimaginable for those who have not experienced it. But first tell me more about you "

"Well many of us you believe about these things you have seen, contrary to what you think. But I myself have always had the highest opinion of STARS. So when I read in the newspapers that you were considered as alcoholics, I realized that something was wrong. Many facts are unexplained in newspapers..For example, the BRAVO team who was investigating for the cannibal. They say nothing about them, and you know why? Because it would make your reports believables on the events of that night. In addition, lay charges on Umbrella corporation is something very embarrassing for guys like Irons and Warrens who are working with them. "

The waitress brought the drinks ordered, then Jack continued :

"Now I need to know in detail what you have seen, and all the things you did not say. After that, we can think of a way to act. My organization has biggest resources, we could put an end this case, together "

Jill hesitated a moment. The idea of telling her story in every details was not comfortable..But she had to. If this man could help, she had to try.

For 15 minutes, Jill told everything that had happened at the mansion, also speaking of Wesker, and describing the creatures she met, including the Tyrant. Jack seemed fascinated and did not lose a word by listening Jill.

"I see. I'm sorry for you and your companions. But this case will soon be over, thanks to you."

"And now? What should we do? "

"Come with me. I'll introduce you to my organization»

It was the first time since long time ago that Jill felt relieved. Having an ally with her was reassuring. And it was thanks to Barry. She has wanted Chris to be there, there were probably no need to attack the headquarters of Umbrella anymore ... she deliberately avoided to tell this to Jack, the position of STARS had to remain secret in all circumstances . But she should quickly contact Chris before something happens to him.

Jill and Jack took their cars, and Jack motioned for her to follow. They left the city and borrowed an abandoned road through fields after 20 minutes of driving. When Jill began to ask questions about where they were going, Jack's car stopped. Jill did the same.

"What's going on? "

Immediately, Jack drew his gun and pointed it at Jill, who immediately understood what actually was going on ...

"Captain Jack Divington, Umbrella Corporation. Head of the mission of eliminating STARS. It is a pleasure to meet you Jill Valentine. Soldiers, you can show you! "

3 Hooden men hidden in the fields immediately appeared from the side, armed with laser guns all pointed in the direction of Jill.

"This is the end for you. Turn around and put yourself on your knees "Jack ordered.