Ryan Archer
Jasmine settled her crosshairs on the human bent over a crate on the warehouse floor down below. She swallowed against the knot in her throat and the trembling in her fingers as he used a small razor blade to slice through the red sand on the crate's polished surface, separating out the fine powder into neat little lines. Eight others gathered around him, their anticipation palpable as he sampled the shipment.
The irony of her current situation wasn't lost on her. She'd been fighting her own cravings for days, and now she lay on her perch about to kill a man in the process of saiting the same addiction. Maybe someone in the Alliance really did hope she'd fuck up and fall on her ass. It might just be the day for it to happen, but it damn well wouldn't be because she couldn't handle the sight of a little red sand.
The men and women surrounding her target weren't on her kill list, but after reading up on them she knew she wouldn't lose any sleep over them either. If they died in the warehouse along with her target, the galaxy would be a better place. Still, she wouldn't be putting them in her crosshairs unless her life depended on it. She'd rather have cornered her target alone, but Ryan Archer never seemed to be alone. She tracked him for four days, completely throwing herself into the job, desperate to distract herself from Rift's absence and the incessant itch of ants crawling under her skin.
If she had to put other lives at risk, she'd rather it be the group of drug and arms traffickers gathered below her than a crowd of innocent people out on the streets of the Citadel. Jasmine knew the moment she pulled her trigger, bullets would start flying at her from below. She picked a secure location, high up in the loft where she could pull back out of harm's way and make a break for the catwalks to get the hell out of there once her job was done. She'd worry about target verification later. By her estimates, they'd never even see who they were shooting at.
She held her breath as Archer pulled a small metal straw from his pocket and lifted it to his face. Easing the straw into his left nostril, he used the thumb of the same hand to hold his other nostril closed. Jasmine forced herself to breathe through it, licking her lips as Archer sucked up first one line, and then another of the red sand.
Straightening to his full height, Archer threw his head back. Mouth opened wide, gasping with the euphoria Jasmine remembered all too well, Archer pushed his shoulders back and squeezed his hands into fists. Miniscule tendrils of biotic energy flared to life, dancing and licking across his bare arms. She could almost taste the blue manna, metallic and bitter on the roof of her mouth. Lifting his head, Archer turned to unleash the energy on a desk chair a meter away, throwing it against a nearby wall.
The maniacal grin spreading across his face matched the edge of insanity dancing in his eyes. He turned back to the group, laughing and extending his hand to seal the deal. Jasmine lined up her shot, took a breath and squeezed the trigger. Archer's eyes bulged, his jaw going slack as a thin trickle of red spilled out of the hole in his forehead.
Jasmine used her elbows and knees to push herself back, her tank top sliding up in the process, dirt and grime scraping across her bare skin. Chaos broke out down below, the cacophony of angry shouting and weapons being fired filled the air. She pushed herself further back, not daring to stand until she felt certain she couldn't be targeted from the warehouse floor.
Lifting herself up to a crouch, she quickly collapsed her rifle, holstering it on her back. Ears straining for sounds of anyone approaching, Jasmine realized not a single shot came near her, not even to ricochet off the thick metal beneath her feet. She hesitated, torn between fleeing the scene and moving forward to peer over the edge. The shouting and gun report dwindled, fueling the fire of Jasmine's curiosity, keeping her glued to the center of the loft floor.
A few pounding beats of her heart later, the room fell silent, the only sound the roar of her own blood rushing through her veins. Jasmine crept forward, staying low to the floor and peered over the edge.
"Jesus Christ," she whispered, counting nine bodies scattered across the warehouse floor.
Thane just closed his omni-tool—having read and deleted the message from Beleno informing him the hanar were safely transported back to Kahje—when his omni-tool pinged again. He smiled, finding himself hoping it was Jasmine. They hadn't seen one another since the day they said goodbye to Rift, but she had messaged him twice asking for updates on the hanar. A third message came that morning, she'd forwarded him a video of Rift, squealing in delight as the small, golden-furred creature he called a 'puppy' wiggled in his arms and licked his face.
Thane opened his omni-tool, accepting the incoming video call—not from Jasmine, but Talak. The young, barefaced turian's image filled the screen, his mandibles flared in distress. Thane sat forward, staring at Talak intently, cold dread trickling down his spine.
"Sere Krios," Talak said turning his head to glance over his shoulder before continuing, "I thought you might want to know I saw Jasmine go into a warehouse awhile ago. There were a lot of gunshots and people yelling inside. She hasn't come back out yet, not that I've seen anyway."
"Where?" Thane bolted from the couch, making a beeline for his front door.
"I'll send you the address, it's in the Lower Wards. I've been listening to C-Sec's chatter, no one's called it in yet." Talak looked over his shoulder again. "You want me to stick around?"
"No, thank you. I'm on my way. You should go somewhere safe." Thane closed his omni-tool, cutting the call as he locked his door behind him.
He'd chosen his newest apartment in part because it was located very near a rapid transit stand. Grateful for that decision now, he called up a cab and climbed inside. Using his omni-tool to hack through the system, he disengaged the default settings to allow him to take manual control. Talak's message came through with the address as Thane lifted the skycar into the air, racing high above the flow of traffic toward Zakera Ward.
Fear of what he might find once he got there wrapped itself around his throat, threatening to close his airways. The ache in his chest flared to life, dull and throbbing. Fingers tightening on the steering, he accelerated the skycar, surpassing legal speed limits by half again as much. Images of a blood splattered apartment flashed in front of his eyes. Thane clenched his jaw and shoved them away.
Arashu, please have mercy. Keep her safe.
He landed the skycar at the closest rapid transit station, a few blocks away from the warehouse. As soon as the door opened, he darted from the skycar, not bothering to close the door, and ran, pushing his legs to carry him faster.
Amonkira, guide me.
Wailing sirens in the distance drew his attention to the air above. C-Sec were on their way, he had to be faster. He had to get to her before they did, and should the worst come to pass … he must return her body to her loved ones.
Kalahira, if I'm too late, guide her soul across the sea.
"Jasmine?" Thane's voice drifted to Jasmine's ears, barely cutting through the haze.
Still, she couldn't tear her eyes away from the crate in front of her. Kilos of red sand, neatly wrapped in clear plastic, called to her. Her whole body trembled … thoughts trembled with want, with need. Jasmine swallowed, her mouth and throat so dry they ached, but the feeling felt far away; a lifetime away.
This is all I've ever been. Did I really think I could escape this?
Her hand moved, she didn't tell it to, but there it was nonetheless, reaching out for the one thing that would make her pain stop. It would make her forget Rift; forget Quin'Nal vas Usela and Leon, forget the sight of hanar crowded against one another in desperation, bullets flying, elcor rampaging. Forget the emptiness in her chest, and the face of Thane Krios. Blue energy surrounded the crate, lifting it up as if to meet her hand for one precious, fraction of a second before flying across the warehouse and shattering against the wall.
She gasped, panic welling up inside of her, clenching its greedy fists around her lungs and squeezing the breath out of her. Gentle fingers grazed her shoulder. Her eyelids fluttered closed, her head tilting toward the sensation.
"Jasmine, you must leave here. C-Sec has arrived." Thane's voice soaked through the panic, chasing away the darkness. "Please."
She dropped her head, shame washing over her, clearing the last of the fog enveloping her mind. Unable to meet his gaze, unable to bear the pity she thought she would surely see there, Jasmine activated her tactical cloak and ran. Ran from the red sand. Ran from the death and blood surrounding her. Ran from emerald eyes of Thane Krios.
The walls closed in on her. She couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, couldn't breathe. She hadn't felt like this in years. Jasmine found herself on her hands and knees, forehead pressed to the floor as tears dropped from her eyes to splash against the carpet. The little voice in the back of her head screamed at her, telling her she knew what she needed to do if she wanted to make it all go away.
God, why is this happening to me? What is wrong with me?
Rift's smiling face floated behind her closed eyes, the jagged tear in her heart ripping a little further. Jasmine gasped, sucking in a wet, harsh breath. She crawled forward, scrambling for the bed to pull herself up and perched on the edge. Wrapping her arms around her stomach she leaned over, putting her head between her knees, forcing herself to take slow, deep breaths.
The wracking sobs subsiding, Jasmine rubbed tears from her cheeks, raw skin burning in protestation at the rough treatment. She stood, making her way to the refrigerator, finding only a near empty bottle of rum on the shelf inside. Barely more than a swallow inside; Jasmine dumped it down her throat anyway before tossing the bottle in the garbage.
She sat back down on the edge of her bed, shoving her feet back into her boots and sliding her jacket on over her arms. She stopped in the bathroom to glare at her reflection and splash water on her face before leaving her new apartment. She'd hoped moving to a new place after Rift left would help ease some of her cravings; a fresh start so to speak, in a place not haunted by memories of his smiling face. It only tore the hole in her chest wider.
A half an hour later, Jasmine couldn't say she was surprised to find herself standing in front of Thane's door. She'd meant to go to Chora's Den, drink until she couldn't walk straight, but somehow she ended up blankly staring at his door instead, debating on whether or not to knock.
Thane lay in bed, the darkness unable to save him from the memories of Jasmine's haunted face as she reached for the crate of red sand. Rolling to his back, he draped his arm over his forehead and stared at his ceiling, letting out a resignated sigh. As the hours passed, he prayed for her again and again, wishing nothing more than she'd call him and tell him she was alright.
He'd been terrified … truly terrified he'd find her dead in the warehouse. Although he'd been grateful to see her standing there, her targets lying dead at her feet while she remained unharmed, he now feared for her in a manner that somehow felt worse. It filled him with despair and helplessness. The evil hearts of men he could defend her from; wounds of flesh and bone he could help her mend … but this … this went beyond him; a wound of the soul only her god could heal. He didn't know how to help her, as much as he wanted to, and she fled from him.
His omni-tool beeped, flashing once to grab his attention. He sat up, opening it to see the apartment's security system alerting him to movement outside of his door. Throwing the covers aside, he slipped from the bed, not bothering to take the time to pull a shirt on before padding across the cool floor on bare feet. Making his way to the front door, he activated the security camera's monitor.
Jasmine … Thank you, Arashu. Thank you.
Watching as she chewed her lip, he hesitated to open the door. She hadn't knocked or rang the comm. If he opened the door before she did, would she flee from him again? Jasmine blew out a heavy breath and raked a hand over her hair, tangling her fingers in the dark mass, pulling strands free from their binding.
She spun on her heel, but before she could walk away, Thane's palm slammed into the door's control. The door slid open and she froze, her shoulders tense. Thane didn't speak, he didn't know what to even say. Tilting her head back, she let out a heavy sigh before turning to face him.
Her gaze swept over him, her neck and cheeks blushing a soft pink. "You were in bed … I'm sorry, I should go."
"I wasn't sleeping." The words sounded ridiculous to him; inane, but it kept her from leaving. Thane stepped aside, waving his hand out at the apartment. "Please, come in."
"I didn't realize how late it is. I just … ." Jasmine took a deep breath, her shoulders shuddering as she blew it back out. "I didn't kill all of them, just my target. They killed each other after that. And I didn't … I wasn't going to … ." She cleared her throat, dropping her eyes to her boots.
"I didn't think you were going to." Thane tucked his hands behind his back, fighting the urge to reach out to her.
Jasmine snorted and shook her head, her voice croaking. "Liar."
Thane licked his lips, trying again. "I hoped you wouldn't."
"Yeah, well anyway, I just wanted to make that clear." Jasmine's gaze roamed over him again, failing to meet his eyes in the process. "I'll get out of here, let you get back to bed." She took a step back, preparing to turn.
His hand darted out, possibly surprising him more than her, when he grabbed her wrist. Shocked by his own audacity, he stared at the offending hand before clearing his throat and pulling it away.
Tucking his hand back behind him he clenched it into a fist. "My apologies." Thane shifted, taking a step back. "I—You were upset with me," he said softly, hesitantly, unsure if it was the right path to take, "for not asking for help when I needed it."
Jasmine swallowed, her eyes shining with unshed tears. She shook her head. "This isn't something you can help me with."
"Allow me to try, please." Thane held her gaze, unblinking, praying she could hear the sincerity in his voice.
She pulled her lip between her teeth, scraping them across the fragile skin, her lip red and swollen when she finally let it go and shook her head, giving him a sad smile. "Thanks, but … it's really not something I think I can talk about."
Thane lifted his shoulder. "I don't have chocolate, but I have cinuela. We can talk about whatever you'd like."
Jasmine snorted and rubbed her eyes with thumb and forefinger. "And what if I want to talk about the color of leaves in the fall on Earth, or furry little kittens?"
"Then I'm afraid I won't have much to contribute to the conversation, but will gladly listen to you tell me about them." Thane smiled, knowing she tested him.
Jasmine dropped her hand, rubbing her fingers absently over her thigh before shoving both hands in the pockets of her jacket. "And what if I just want to know all about Thane Krios?"
His blood ran cold in his veins, and he sucked in a deep breath through his nose, catching her scent in the air. "Then I shall do my best to tell you about him … though, I can't promise to answer every question you might have."
Jasmine narrowed her eyes, studying him intently. "Why? Why would you want to help me with … this? Christ, why are you being so nice to me when I've been a colossal pain in your ass?"
His eyebrow twitched. "Colossal? I thought I'm supposed to be the arrogant one?"
Jasmine smirked but lifted her eyebrow, the sculpted, brown arch insisting that he answer her question.
Thane dropped his eyes, studying the stretch of floor between the two of them. "I'm afraid I don't have a simple answer for you." He met her gaze again. "But if you'd care to come inside, I'll see if I can find a way to adequately explain myself."
Sighing, she waved a hand at his bare chest. "Alright, but you've got to put a shirt on or something because right now I can't see all of that without thinking of you as drugs in a neat package."
Thane blinked as she stepped past him into the apartment. He hadn't considered drell venom might be a temptation to her, many species enjoyed the effects recreationally but they were mild and not addictive. Drell venom was nothing like what he'd heard described of red sand. "Yes, of course. My apologies, I hadn't considered … ."
Jasmine shook her head as she walked down the hall. "Stop apologizing, Thane. I'm the one who's afraid I might get desperate enough to try and lick you."
A strangled sound escaped his throat before he could stop it, sputtering he coughed in his fist.
She grinned at him over her shoulder, mischief dancing in her eyes. "What do you know, you are helping. I don't think that'll ever get old."
"Colossal, indeed. I'd tell you to make yourself at home, but I'm afraid it would take a full year to clean up after you." Thane chuckled, pleased to see her mood already lifting. Closing the door and adjusting the lights so the apartment glowed dimly, he hoped the gentle light would help keep her calm and open to talking.
Her soft laughter trickled back down the hall as he left her to make her way to the living area while he ducked into his room to grab a loose linen shirt. He found her sitting on the couch, her jacket draped over her lap, absently running her hand back and forth across the cushion next to her creating swirls in the nap of the fabric. She turned her head, smiling at him when he entered the room. It pleased him, no longer unexpectedly, to see her smile at him so easily now, even while feeling so distressed.
He returned her smile, moving into the kitchen to put a pot of water on for cinuela. The soft scrape of her boot moving from carpet to tile alerted him to her presence. "Are you hungry?"
"I'm always hungry." Jasmine leaned against the doorframe. "But I doubt you have anything greasy enough to satisfy in there."
Thane chuckled, reaching into the cabinet and pulling out a bottle of herbal supplements. He sat the bottle down in front of Jasmine. "You would be correct, but I do have meats, fresh from the deli, cheeses, fruit … if you'd like."
Jasmine picked up the bottle, turning it over in her hand as she read the label. "Sure." She turned the bottle toward him. "What's this?"
"Ah." Thane ran a thumbnail across his brow, moving to the refrigeration unit. "After we were introduced to galactic society, the salarians studied drell venom, and found chemical compounds to counteract its effects." He pulled out several packages wrapped in butcher paper and laid them on the counter. "That's a common supplement sold—herbs found on Thessia—it contains those compounds."
He shrugged his shoulder, moving to a cabinet to retrieve the rolls he purchased at the bakery the morning before. "You picked up my glass the other night, at Le Bleu after drinking heavily at Chora's Den … I thought perhaps it might be beneficial for you … but then thought it might offend you, so I left them here instead."
He stopped to watch her as she twirled the cap around, chewing on her lip. Filling a glass with water, he set it on the counter in front of her. "Two capsules will provide you with a few hours of protection, or negate the effects within a few minutes in case of accidental ingestion … or if you find the urge to lick me too irresistible." Thane smirked, holding her gaze when she met his eyes. He let the humor fade from his voice before he continued. "Perhaps taking them now will ease your mind a little?"
Jasmine snorted, opening the bottle and dumping two of the pills into her hand. "Now I think you want me to lick you." She tossed the supplements in her mouth and chased them down with water.
He scoffed and cleared his throat, turning away from her—hopefully before she could see the red of his frills darken. Busying himself with preparing food and drink for the two of them, he let the silence stretch, leaving her to fill it as she willed.
With his task completed, and the silence still lingering, Thane decided to give her answers to her earlier question. He picked up the tray with the tea, snickering as she struggled to work the bottle of pills into her too-tight pants pocket. She picked up the tray with their plates, following him to the dining table.
Pouring cinuela into cups, he passed one to her, accepting a plate from her in return. "I've spent many years now lost to my battle sleep."
"Battle sleep?" Jasmine lifted the cup to her lips, blowing gently on her cinuela.
Thane leaned forward, turning his plate around to give him better access to the pile of diced mahata fruit. "Surely you're familiar? With your chosen profession?" He looked up at her to see her watching him over the top of her cup, her eyebrow raised. "Mmm. The separation of body and soul, allowing the body to do as it's directed without concern?"
Her eyebrows twitched, understanding dawning in her eyes. She nodded, and lifted a shoulder. "For brief moments … though, it isn't always easily obtained. Certainly not for years at a time?"
"You are fully present when you take your target's lives?" Something in his mind shifted, pieces of a puzzle falling into place. It'd explain so much about her; certainly the sleeping pills and alcohol, if not her current struggle with her past drug abuse.
"Less and less so the longer I do my job, but certain circumstances still make it difficult for me to make that separation, yes." She took a sip. "I take it you don't have that problem anymore?"
Thane sat back in his chair, letting both sets of eyelids blink opened and closed several times. "It's never been an issue, perhaps it comes easier for drell. Our minds work very differently." He didn't tell her he chose to be present while he hunted down and killed the men responsible for his wife's death, but otherwise, not even his earliest kills touched his soul.
Jasmine smiled. "Oh, I don't know, I think we do a decent job relating to one another when we try."
Thane leaned forward again, resting his elbows on the table and clasped his hands together. "Indeed." He picked at his plate a moment. "Some things happened a few years ago, leaving me without reason to ever wish to leave my battle sleep. I was … content there, in my isolation, unfeeling." He lifted his eyes to hers once more. "Until I met you."
Jasmine froze with a piece of cheese halfway to her mouth. Slowly, she lowered it back to her plate and leaned back in her chair, a slight tilt to her head as she watched him.
"Needless to say, knowing you has made it quite difficult to remain indifferent to the world around me. I confess, at first it did nothing to endear you in my eyes. Your persistence, your … fire, there demanding to be seen, to be heard … I thought the gods sent you to punish me." Thane raked his thumbnail over his brow, letting his eyes drop to his plate. "Emotions began breaking through. Annoyance, fear, anger … pain. Memories I didn't want to be forced to deal with … moments of my past. I prefered dealing with them on my own terms, in my own way. Now, I'm finding it less and less under my control."
Jasmine frowned, picking up her cup to hold in front of her face, sipping here and there but never putting the cup back down. Grateful she didn't speak, giving him the time to process his thoughts, he took a moment to do just that before continuing.
"Still, the more I observed you, the more I realized you possessed certain qualities I admired. The depth of which you cared for Rift … and seeing how attached he'd grown to you. Your stubborn willingness to risk your life for him." Thane lifted his shoulder in a shrug, blinking away memories of Jasmine. Fighting against the way they tugged at memories of Irikah, he refocused his thoughts on what he wanted to say.
"But with the bad, so comes the good. Pleasant memories, still painful in their own right, but a reminder … I've been doing a great injustice to others by only remembering the ways I failed them." Thane cleared his throat, swallowing against the knot trying to choke him.
"My own fondness for Rift and the other drala'fa became apparent. I began seeing you less as an adversary and more as a mystery to be solved. Or perhaps a chance at redemption. If I could convince you the path you're on wasn't in your best interest … If I could save you from losing everything as I did." Thane scoffed and shook his head. "I only succeeded in offending you further … perhaps pushing your further down your path and putting you in danger."
The air felt heavy in his lungs, the dull ache in his chest threatening to rear its head once more. "I digress. I suppose the simple answer would be: I'm nice to you because I've come to care about your well being and it pleases me to do so."
Jasmine settled her cup back onto the saucer and pulled her leg up, bracing her foot on the edge of the chair. She wrapped her arms around her knee, pressing it to her chest and picked at the mahata on her plate. Chewing thoughtfully, as she cast flitting glances at Thane.
After a moment she smiled and cleared her throat. "Well, I can't even say you're the first person to think being roped with me was a punishment." She chuckled, the sound hollow. "Though I don't think anyone's ever thought they could find redemption through me." She picked at the food on her plate, tearing a piece of elyine meat into bite sized pieces. "Thane, you've got to know that my life, my choices and mistakes are mine to make. I can't pretend to understand whatever it is you've been running from, but you're not the only one with demons. You can't fix me; it's on me to do … and it sounds like your energy would be better spent trying to fix yourself."
Jasmine popped a piece of the mahata in her mouth, chewed twice and smirked. "But uh, if it helps, I like you better this way, and if fills my twisted little heart with glee knowing I got under your skin without even realizing it."
Thane scoffed but smiled, pouring them both fresh cinuela.
"Though, knowing it actually hurt you takes some of the joy out of it." She cleared her throat, changing the subject. "So, you said a few years … how long exactly have you been doing this work?" Jasmine lifted the cup to her lips, blowing across the surface.
"I first began my training twenty-six years ago." Thane waved a hand at nothing, picking up his own mug. "I spent some time doing other work, an attempt to leave this life behind. Inevitably, I found my way back to what I do best. It's all I really know."
Jasmine sputtered, nearly choking on her tea. "Twenty-six years? Christ, how old are you?"
Thane laughed and handed her a cloth napkin. "I will soon be thirty-three. And you?"
Jasmine's mouth hung open, her eyes wide. "Just turned twenty-five." She shook her head. "Wait. You started training to be an assassin at six-years-old?"
You're still so young, even more so being human.
"Indeed." Thane folded his hands on the table.
Jasmine plopped back against her chair, pulling her other leg up to rest both feet on the seat. "God, I thought I had a fucked up childhood."
"It wasn't as bad as you might imagine. My family is a part of the Compact, and they gave me to the hanar to serve as part of that. It's an honor, and I was well cared for." Thane smiled, trying to reassure her.
Jasmine covered her mouth with the napkin and stared at him, unblinking for nearly a minute.
Thane shifted, uncomfortable under the weight of her gaze and lifted his cup to his lips. "Will you tell me about it?"
"About what?" Jasmine dropped the napkin back to the table.
"Your childhood." He took a swallow of his tea before setting the cup back down. "If you're comfortable sharing."
"Uh… ." Jasmine croaked, the strangled sound dragging the word out. "Uh, yeah. Okay. Um, well the first few years were pretty normal I guess. Nothing major. I had a mom and a dad, a dog named Max." Jasmine lifted her shoulder. "Then at about five or six my father had an affair with the lady next door. Things got really ugly between my parents over the next few years."
She took a sip of her cinuela. "At eleven, my dad walked out on us. Just left, and never came back." She settled the cup on her knees, letting her gaze roam over the room, looking everywhere but at Thane.
He winced, lifting his cup with trembling fingers to hide his face; to hide his shame.
"My mom couldn't handle it, she killed herself about a month later. I came home from school one day and found her dead on the bathroom floor." Jasmine swallowed. "There was so much blood. I'd never seen so much blood before."
So much blood.
Thane bit down on his tongue, begging Arashu not to allow him to give voice to the memories he couldn't fight back. Jasmine's voice still reached him, but her words barely cut through the horror surrounding him.
She cleared her throat. "They put me in foster care, but I had trouble adjusting, and I ran away. Ended up living on the streets. About a year later I learned my father died in a plane crash."
Thane blinked, the images of his blood soaked apartment fading away once more, leaving him exhausted and rattled to his core. A part of him insisted he make her leave. Too much, she pulled too much from him, and she was going to destroy him. He found he couldn't though, not with her making herself so vulnerable to him; sharing her secrets, letting him see her soul.
Jasmine drained the rest of the tea in her cup before setting it back on the saucer. "I managed on my own. Did some things I'm less than proud of to survive. Then later, some things I'm completely ashamed of to keep red sand in my system." Jasmine ran a hand over the top of her head, smoothing down her hair.
"I met Geoffrey when, at seventeen, I got attacked by some assholes a few blocks from the Alliance recruitment office he worked at. He uh, he saved me. Then he took me into his home, and his wife helped me get sober." She smiled, turning her attention back to him. "They're good people; they'll take excellent care of Rift."
Thane swallowed hard, using his cup again to hide the emotion. He cleared his throat, assuring himself his voice would be steady when he spoke. "You care for them greatly."
"I do." Jasmine fidgeted with her cup, using the handle to turn it back and forth on the saucer. "I know this isn't the life he wanted for me … and oh, he was so proud when I told him I wanted to enlist, but we both know this is still far better than what I would've had without Geoffrey and his family."
"He knows what you do?" Thane's brow twitched.
"Yeah." Jasmine tapped the side of her cup with her index finger. "My handler wasn't happy about it, but he knew me well enough to understand keeping that honest connection with Geoffrey was … necessary. Karin and the girls don't know, of course. They only know whatever I do is classified … I think it would break Karin's heart." Jasmine shook her head and drained her cup. "I really shouldn't be talking about this; about them."
Jasmine dropped her feet to the floor and stood up. "I should go. Thank you, though." She waved her hand at the contents of the table. "For all of this. It actually did help. It's nice, you know, to just sit and talk. Get out of my own head for awhile, but it's late."
Thane stood, blinking as he processed her sudden shift in behavior. She was fleeing from him again, and he hated the relief it brought. Jasmine smiled in his general direction, moving past him to retrieve her jacket still on the couch. Thane followed her, watching as she slipped her jacket on. Pulling the bottle of herbal supplement free of her pants pocket, she turned it over in her palm, her brow furrowing as she shoved it in her jacket pocket and zipped it closed.
Thane took a hesitant steps closer, stopping when she turned to face him. "Jasmine, I understand your hesitancy to speak about your family—"
She shook her head, avoiding his gaze. "They aren't … they aren't my family."
"They are, and you love them dearly otherwise you wouldn't be in such a hurry to leave now." Thane frowned, sympathy for her a crushing weight on his shoulders. "I hope you know they are safe from me, and I won't betray the trust you've shown me tonight."
Jasmine took a deep breath and met his gaze. "I really want to believe you."
"You have my word." Thane extended his hand to her, nearly pulling it back when she stared at it without accepting.
Jasmine swallowed, nodding her head and slipped her hand into his. "Thank you."
Thane dipped his head to her before walking her to the door.
Jasmine reached for the door controls and stopped, chuckling as she turned back to him. "You should be careful, things keep going like this and I might actually stop thinking you're an arrogant ass."
Thane scoffed. "And I might stop thinking you're an obstinate child in need of time out."
Jasmine tilted her head back in laughter. "See, you had the perfect opportunity there to say 'spanking' and you totally missed it. Christ, I've taught you nothing."
Thane blinked, tilting his head to the side. "I'm afraid I don't understand."
Jasmine grinned, mischief sparkling in her eyes. "Goodnight, Thane."
He frowned, even more confused by her lack of explanation. "Goodnight, Jasmine."