A/N: Hello everyone! I know it's been a couple of weeks since I've updated this, but life has been pretty busy lately. Plus, this chapter was one of the hardest to write so far because this was the first funeral that I've written and I wanted to make sure that it was good.
Anyway, a huge thank you/shout-out to everyone that read and reviewed last chapter! :)
I hope you all enjoy!
Kendall's fingers fumbled with the tie as he tried to loop it into something resembling a decent knot, working and re-working the already rumpled fabric until he ended up clenching the cheap length in his hands. He'd found his suit in the pile of old laundry at the back of his closet and brought it into work to change for the service. Kelly's service.
He resisted the urge to growl at the tie and yanked it off his neck.
"Here." Lucy tapped his knuckles to move his hands and fastened an elegant half-Windsor around his neck. "I don't know why you hate ties so much."
"I don't hate ties." He spoke too quickly, and she regarded him with a raised eyebrow. "I only ever wear them to funerals. And it's not fair that Kelly's..."
Lucy nodded in mute understanding. When she finished, she took a half step back to look him over. "You're passable."
"Gee. Thanks."
She, of course, looked as impressive as ever, professionally put together in a black skirt-suit and shoes that probably cost more than I could imagine. Next to her, he was sure he'd look like a half-rumpled mess.
"I should've dry cleaned this. Or ironed it. Or something."
"Hey, Kelly knew you. She wouldn't mind."
It didn't make it better, but he wasn't sure anything would.
They left the office together, Lucy a half step in front of him. Others, agents. assistants, even admin. personnel, crowded the hall around them, all dressed in black, each person a somber face in the sea of bodies moving toward the lobby.
Kelly had touched a lot of people.
They shuffled along with the others to the back of the room. Someone had spent tireless hours cleaning out the furniture and temporarily relocating their reception to block everything off to the public to give them space for the service. Every agent from their head office, and a few people he didn't recognize, squeezed into the small place, facing the bottom of the staircase at the head of the room.
Kevin sat alongside a small gathering of the senior leaders in the Society's investigative division, partially hidden by a podium they'd set up at the front of the room.
He recognized one or two retired Society members from the early days of Kevin's takeover who must have been close to Kelly. Aaron Anderson stood out especially, Kendall's personal hero, whose 96% success rate he'd been chasing since he'd walked in the door.
There were small handful of others whose portraits hung with care in various places in the building. A group of private heroes who'd brought the Society out of darkness. Agent Wainwrights picture hung in a gilded frame before them, surrounded by a semi-circle of lit candles.
When the filled room couldn't fit another person, and each agent was rubbing shoulders with the person beside them, Aaron stood and moved to the podium. He shuffled a few papers and stared at the pages for a second. Finally, without comment, he carefully folded them and tucked them into his side jacket pocket.
"My name is Aaron Anderson. I'm sure many of you don't know me."
There was no mass murmur of denial or agreement. Aaron had retired soon after the Society's restructuring but remained a very real presence.
"But I was a good friend of Kelly's, so Kevin and I decided that I'd be the best person to talk about her.
Standing up here now, it's hard to figure out what I'm supposed to say. We all knew Kelly. We knew her work ethic and we knew her way with people. Some of us better than others. Old farts like me can tell you that in her day, when the days were more like nights and we didn't have any of the support and guidance that you do now, Kelly was an outgoing advocate for what the Society could be. She knew that this organization and many of the people in it were capable of great things, and she wanted nothing more than to give everyone the chance to prove it. Those were dangerous thoughts, once."
Kevin shifted uncomfortably. Had anyone else noticed?
"But today, as we all stand here together to mourn her loss, I ask you all to put yourselves in her shoes. Kelly could've left or quit. She was entitled to it, and God knows she deserved it after everything she's done for the Society. The reason she stayed was because she wanted to be the person who set an example and led by that example. When the path was cluttered with sharp debris, she wanted to be in front, showing people the way, even if the way wasn't easy. She wanted to everyone around her to become what they were capable of being and realize their potential in a way that inspired others.
Kelly was responsible for the way the society changed over the years. Hell, she's even responsible for many of you and how successful you are in your roles. Without Kelly, it feels like the Society has lost a large part of itself, and I'd like everyone to take a second to think about what that absence will mean."
Kendall bowed his head and stared at the floor.
"Kelly Wainwright was one of the founding members of our new Society. She was an agent, a wife, a companion and, to me as well as many of you, a friend. And I know I'll remember her for what she brought to us through her actions and her willingness to step forward as a leader among her peers."
Aaron nodded curtly and stepped away from the mic. With a nod to Kevin, he returned to his place among his colleagues.
Kevin stepped forward and looked out at the room. Kendall couldn't think of more than a dozen people in the room who the Society Head hadn't personally checked over before they'd come aboard. Now, as their leader considered them, there was a sad aura hanging on him like a shroud Kendall had never seen him wear.
"Kelly deserved more."
The words hit the crowd like a wave breaking against a seawall. Kevin stared ahead blankly, struggling with something. Something big. Kendall could tell.
Finally, his eyes refocused. For a moment, they appeared pitch black all the way through. Somehow, Kendall didn't figure it to be a trick of the light.
"You should all know that Kelly reviewed the performance of every agent standing in this room. And if she found you worthy of being here then you are not going to let her down."
Kevin stepped away from the podium. It released them all from their reverent silence.
Then it was over.
Aaron hung back with Kevin, tempting Kendall to stay and try and get a few minutes with him. But it felt too much like an invasion of privacy so he let himself get pulled along with the flood as the sea of bodies started for the doors.
He had work to do.
He sensed a presence close behind him and rolled his eyes when he spotted Jett hovering over his shoulder. Before Jett could say anything, Kendall dodged between two large men and joined the crowd heading toward a different exit. He wasn't in the mood to deal with Stetson's bullshit.
Sneaking out from between the two muscle-bound agents, he found himself trapped in an empty corner of the foyer, waiting for an opening in the wall of bodies. From where he stood, he could hear Kevin speaking with Aaron, their peers disappearing along with the remainder of the crowd.
"...and her personal files?" Aaron's voice stood out from Kevin's.
"Gone, along with the rest."
"Don't you think it's dangerous to have that sort of information floating around? Kelly knew all of our secrets. Yours, especially, might be damaging if they were to fall into the wrong hands."
"It's too late to prevent that now. All we can hope for is that my agent finds them quickly and deals with whoever has them in a way that doesn't inconvenience anyone's need for secrecy."
"Well then I hope whoever you have on it is good."
"He's the best."
"Mind if I ask..."
"Kendall Knight."
"God, Kevin... you really like taking chances, don't you?" The voices faded as Kevin and Aaron made their way up one of the adjoining staircases.
Kendall leaned against the wall, considering the words. He was Kevin's best? And Kelly had reviewed every agent, including him. He couldn't let them down.
Done! Like I said, I'm sorry that this chapter took a little while. I hope that I did Kelly's funeral justice.
From here on out things start to get more interesting as Kendall starts looking more into Kelly's murder. And to make up for the long wait, I will be updating tomorrow and hopefully either Saturday or Sunday! Next chapter is practically finished so it'll definitely be up tomorrow!
Until then, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the chapter, as well as your thoughts on the funeral!
P.S. I've made a Twitter account! It's not completely setup just yet, but I will set it up over the weekend! You can follow me for updates on upcoming stories and updates, you can also contact me with story ideas, opinions or just to talk in general :) If you want to follow me, my Twitter username is EpicObsessed! ;)
Until next time!
-Epically Obsessed
