CHAPTER I
Echo took a deep breath.
She closed her eyes for a moment, as if gathering the strength, and finally pulled it together. She pushed the large doors open and stepped into the Church. She looked around, it was empty, as Church almost always was. At the end of the aisle was Jesus on the Cross.
Echo took a moment to take it in before shrugging it off slightly and heading towards the confessional box. She took another look around, making sure there were no other people, before stepping inside and closing the wooden door behind her.
There was a long silence as the brunette eyed the box she had climbed into. It was dark, musty, and definitely not the place for clostraphobics. Luckily for Echo, she wasn't one of those -- today.
"Hello, child."
Echo turned slightly to the partition, eyeing the shadowed figure behind the wall. "Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. It's been seven months since my last confession."
"And what sins do you have to confess?"
She paused, her fingers fidgeted, as if she were suddenly uncomfortable.
"Come now, child."
"This world... there's so much darkness in it," she started, her tone so soft and delicate. "I feel... bad, for not doing more to stop it. And when I try... I feel God would reject me."
"You take revenge on people?"
"I seek justice," Echo let her head hang, her eyes closed.
"We all seek justice," the Priest replied. "And if our hearts are in the right place, then the Lord shall forgive us for our mortal sins."
Echo smiled out of relief. "Will he forgive those who take children's innocence, Father? Will he let those, who manipulate and abuse, live on for their sins?"
The Priest was silent.
"I didn't think so," Echo said as she suddenly pulled out a gun and shot three rounds through the partition.
The Priest barely had time to shout out before his brains were splattered throughout the confessional box. She sat there for a moment, staring blankly ahead. Then she tucked her gun away and left the box. As she turned to leave she stopped, turned back, and saw the statue of Jesus once again. She cocked her head slightly, as if trying to comprehend something, but whatever it was, it wasn't becoming any clearer.
"Echo?"
She turned to see Boyd in the doorway. He was about to ask her something until he saw the blood seeping from the confessional box. He grunted a little, looked back at her. "It's time for your treatment."
She only nodded as she headed towards him. "He shouldn't have done what he did."
"No," Boyd said, almost sadly. "The client will be pleased."
Echo nodded as she left the Church.
Boyd took a moment as he stared at the pool of blood. His eyes lowered, a deep regret painting his expression. It was only for a moment though. He had a job to do.
Dozens of images were sucked from her mind, scattering, re-forming, and being pulled, until there was nothing but Echo, opening her eyes to see Topher standing over her. She took a moment to let her eyes adjust to the Imprint Room, and then she turned to him. "Did I fall asleep?"
"For a little while," he answered with a familiar smile.
"Should I go now?"
Topher shrugged a little. "If you like."
Echo paused, staring into his eyes, before returning the slightest of smiles. She pulled herself out of the chair and walked towards the door.
"Echo," Topher called.
She turned back to him with a curious, almost surprised, expression.
"At lunch... you should find a new friend," he said. "Someone else to sit with."
"But I have somewhere to sit," she replied innocently, not understanding his suggestion.
"I know, but... maybe you shouldn't sit there today."
It took a while for Echo to nod, still not comprehending, but agreeing nonetheless. She forced a smile before leaving Topher's lab, trying to put the pieces of their conversation together in her head, but clearly finding it more difficult than it should be.
As she headed through the warm and comforting Dollhouse, her eyes carefully scanned the areas around her. She could see Doctor Saunders talking to another Active; a man massaging another; and then there was Laurence Dominic. Her eyes instantly looked away from him, as if she were a child being scolded. She hurried through to the Dining Room where she instantly saw Sierra and Victor, sitting at a table.
Echo eyed them as Sierra noticed her presence, her eyes instantly lit up, and a warm smile crossed her face. She was looking right at her, expecting something, but Echo made no gesture. Her eyes darted around the room until she saw a table and a lone man. She turned and approached, oblivious to Sierra's dejected expression.
"Good day," she said.
His name was Quebec and his eyes were so brilliantly blue, Echo couldn't help but stare in awe. "Would you like to sit?"
"Yes," she said as she lowered herself into the chair.
There was a long pause between them as they exchanged several glances. Finally, Quebec noticed something. "Are you not eating?"
Echo looked momentarily confused before looking down at the table to see the empty spot where her food should be. She furrowed her brow as she looked up. "I must have forgotten."
"You need to eat. It helps us stay strong," he said, almost forcibly.
Echo nodded but as she went to rise, she saw Dominic not too far away, lingering around the Dining Room. She instantly stopped and sat back down, as if to hide from him.
Quebec looked to her, to Dominic, and back again, seemingly knowing why she had remained. After a moment, he nudged his tray towards her. "I think I've eaten enough."
"No, I couldn't --"
"You must," he said, he eyes fixed on hers.
Echo studied his expression. So determined and for some reason, almost protective. She couldn't refuse him so, she just nodded, and quirked a smile.
"Be strong," Quebec said as he stood and casually walked away.
Echo looked on after him, watching him leave. She didn't know what to make of him but she knew there was something about him, something distant, but yet familiar at the same time.
"Then the mission was a success?" Adelle DeWitt asked.
Boyd nodded with a distant gaze. "Echo killed the priest, just like she was hired to do."
"I sense you're not happy about the engagement?" she moved around her desk and lowered herself into the chair, pulling out some files.
"Well... he was a man of the Church."
"Indeed. He was also a man who molested over a dozen children, all but one of whom were too scared to come forward and accuse him."
"So you believe that Echo murdering him was justice?" he asked, clearly not convinced of the fact.
Adelle smirked a little. "What I believe has nothing to do with it. Echo was hired to kill the priest, she completed her engagement, so everything worked out fine for us."
"Yeah... for us," Boyd hung his head slightly.
"Chin up, Mr Langton," she said. "I'm sending Echo out again."
"She hasn't been back long, she needs time to --"
"Nonesense. Echo is at peek performance, and besides, the client has requested her above any other."
Boyd sighed, knowing full well he couldn't stop it. "What's the engagement?"
Adelle looked to him and then to an evelope in her hands. She opened it and emptied the contents onto her desk. Two golden wedding bands dropped out and fell neatly side by side.
