Love is easy. Commitment is a bitch. Commitment requires you to make sacrifices. – Dannika Dark, Deathtrap

Irin – Pronounced similar to the girl's name 'Erin' – Zaeed Massani's shortened form of 'Iringù-Eßizkur'
Kaffe – equatorial Thessian vine, the seeds of which are used to produce a non-alcoholic beverage of the same
· · · · · · name, the taste described as a mix of coffee and chocolate. (Thessian/Source: CDN)
Ø7 – An allegedly discontinued vocational code in the Systems Alliance military.
· · · · The Ø designates covert operations; the 7 refers to the highest level of proficiency.
Qíngfū or Qíngrén – [情夫 – lover]

• AHN'KAHAR STATION · STRENUUS SYSTEM, HORSEHEAD NEBULA •

"This is the Shadow Broker."

"One of our agents found her, Sir … Savina Delarosa. She's here in Vancouver." Amber Watson appeared a bit nervous—embarrassed, even—to be speaking with the Broker again so soon.

"Are you sure it's her?"

"Perfect match to the vid-still you forwarded, Sir. She arrived at the spaceport just over three hours ago … the agent attempted to follow, but something he did must have tipped her off." She added an afterthought. "Unfortunately, a knife in the throat was his reward—not that he appreciated it—blade severed his left carotid … Medtechs said he probably bled out in less than a minute."

"Am I to presume from your report she then disappeared into the city?"

Watson shook her head as she replied, "Not completely, Sir. That is, we haven't sighted her, but several operatives have been keeping a close watch at hotels close to the Alliance base. She hasn't been seen in the vicinity of any of them, nor has she been seen outside that base; despite this, we still believe she's here to assassinate General Park. "

"Find her, Ms Watson. One of my operatives on Elysium confirmed Ms Delarosa accepted a modified contract … she has just fifteen days to complete the assignment, including travel time. To say she was less than pleased would be a monumental understatement." I paused for a moment before concluding, "While you ascertain her location, I will send a team of specialists to meet you; as soon as Ms Delarosa is located, she should be captured if it can be done so safely. I have my own plans for General Park … plans that absolutely depend on her remaining alive."

"We'll get her located, Shadow Broker."

"See that you do." I terminated the connection and sat back in my chair to think for a few moments. Jack had contacted me in the wee hours of the morning to confirm what I already felt to be true … the woman she had seen entering the departure area of the Illyria spaceport was the same one in the vid-still I had forwarded to her after our first conversation; the assassin had arrived on Earth and was now at large in Vancouver.

As I was still in front of the console I used for 'official' Broker calls, I entered the required code that would connect me with the leader of the team I intended to send to Vancouver. In only a few moments, the comms request was answered from a hidden location half-way across the galaxy.

The image that resolved itself on my monitor was of a man, whose pale complexion did nothing to detract from his pleasing looks. With bright hazel eyes gazing inquisitively at the Broker's image, he said, "Shadow Broker? … what may I do for you today?"

"Jonathan Dokken. I have an assignment for you and your companions. I need you to travel to Sol System, Terra – Vancouver, BC, to be precise. There is an assassin there I need you to deal with … before she can complete her contract."

"A woman? No more than a handful of female assassins, of any race, are still alive and employed since the war's conclusion, Sir." Dokken paused for a moment before continuing. "If I may ask, who is the unlucky target of this hired gun?"

"A general—RaeLee Park—in the Systems Alliance Marine Corp, assigned to their western North American HQ."

"I see." At the sound of a chime from his own console, he glanced down, then returned his steady gaze to the image on his monitor. "It appears I have just received a full briefing from you, Sir. May I presume this vid-call is to emphasize the importance you attach to this particular assignment?

"Failure to prevent the successful completion of this assassin's assignment is not an option, Mr Dokken. The Vancouver contact's name and location are included. Review all the data you just received; expect to receive updates upon your arrival in the city."

"Very good, Shadow Broker. I will contact you when we arrive."

I decided to grab a bowl of soup and a sandwich before continuing the search for all the bolt-holes and hidden passages available to Garrett Sutton. Moving to the lone occupied table, I sat down and began eating. Oriana was sitting next to Griff, whom was now seated across from me. They're sitting unusually close together, I silently noticed, as Ori slid a datapad across the table to me.

"I could use your assistance on this, Sammy. I discovered a bank on Terra Nova with some rather shady connections … all of them pro-human. That would not be so remarkable in and of itself, except … they are also extremely anti-alien … rabidly so, I'm afraid." She ate several spoonfuls of soup as I glanced through the highlights of her discovery. Cocking her head slightly, she narrowed her eyes as she offered, "As you can see, Cerberus wasn't the least of their anti-alien depositors. There are also rather large accounts belonging to Earth First, Terra Firma, and, strangely enough, Homeward Sol."

Taking another bite from my sandwich, I chewed slowly, then swallowed as I studied the data slowly scrolling up the screen. "Why do you find the presence of Homeward Sol's account strange, Ori?"

A small giggle preceded her reply. "Their manifesto."

I finished my soup while listening to Ori add to her explanation. "They're advocating for a complete end to extra-solar colonial expansion, Sammy!" With a laugh, she said, "I mean … really? They have a major bank account on an extra-solar planet, but want to put a stop to colonial expansion? It's not like they would ever trust a non-human agent with their extra-solar accounts!" With a dismissive shake of her head, she added, "They are also campaigning for divestment from alien business ventures, stricter controls on alien immigration, and mandatory registration and isolation of any human …" raising her hands, she fingered air quotes while saying, "… contaminated—to use their description—with biotic powers."

I split my attention between Oriana and Griff as I asked, "Seriously? Isn't it a bit late for all of that? Of all the stupid, ill-advised… " I sputtered. "Cerberus … the Illusive Man … wanted humanity to sit on the throne! … rule all the galaxy's other races! This bunch of backward-thinking xenophobes wants to eliminate any exploration beyond Charon's orbit … oh, but let's simply ignore their investment accounts on extra-solar planets like Terra Nova." I mirrored Oriana's previous headshaking. "It really makes me wonder why in hell the other races tolerate us!

Buchanan finished his sandwich and downed the last of his beer, then prefaced his opinion with a quiet belch. "Some of them don't even pretend. Batarians, a portion of the salarian population, vorcha, most of the krogan? Humans are not well-liked anywhere in the galaxy, Samantha. There are a number of places on Omega Station where one is as likely to get their throat slit as not."

"Nothing unusual about that, Griff … and vorcha can barely tolerate krogan, much less every other race in the 'verse." I looked at Oriana and said, "Come on, then. Let's see what we need to do in order to syphon off some of the ill-gotten credits sitting in that Cerberus account."

I sat next to Oriana and watched as she silently used her expertly forged credentials to gain access to the customer accounts sections—there were three distinct divisions—of 1st National Savings & Loan of Scott, Terra Nova. Our plan involved using the company's own computers against them; we would begin making small credit transfers from Cerberus accounts into a new account Ori had created. Any inquiries made by company officials into account balances would show nothing out of the ordinary … every credit she siphoned off would appear to still be securely resting in its original account.

With a tiny grin playing at the corners of her mouth, she remarked, "Once I reach their company's withdrawal reporting threshold for each account, I'll begin transferring credits from the account I created. By the time officials there realize something's wrong, it will be too late for them to track the money … multiple accounts in several systems, each one closed when emptied."

"How many credits are we talking about, Ori?"

"From Terra Nova? … just under 12.5 million, all from Cerberus. Want me to get into the accounts belonging to Earth First, Terra Firma, or Homeward Sol?"

"No." I didn't need to think about my answer. "Those organizations are still active … very much so. We'll need to employ different methods to bring them down." I leaned back in my chair as I thought about the three human-centric organizations – while not as openly fanatical as Cerberus, they were still espousing Cerberus-like ideals. "Good job, Ori. Let me know as soon as you're ready to hit the next Cerberus credit cache. I'm going to enjoy bringing some measure of closure … and justice … to the turians for the loss of the Anixara."

Of all the information searches I had ever undertaken—before the war and since I had become the Shadow Broker—successfully searching for the names and location of Heather's parents turned out to be one of the easiest, shortest searches ever. I had access to the military records of all my classmates, so quickly discovered her parents lived in Santa Fe, New Mexico prior to the war. The records pointed to Heather's remains being interred in that city's National Cemetery.

Having the search program account for slight differences in spelling proved fortuitous … Heather's father, Rubén, had revised the spelling of his surname from 'González' to 'Gonzales' just before marrying Octavia Tia Ruiz in 2156; Heather made her debut nearly two years later.

It appeared that, after the conclusion of the Reaper War, Rubén had seen no reason to move from Santa Fe, especially after burying his only child there. While his job was never going to make him a rich man, he had always managed to afford a comfortable living for himself and his family.

Unfortunately for them, the Reapers had absolutely pounded many areas around the city; the Los Alamos National Laboratory and nearby city, both northwest of Santa Fe, were now collectively a 35-to-40 square kilometer crater. Sandia National Laboratories in nearby Albuquerque was an even larger sized crater, as it included most of the city.

I couldn't think of many higher value targets worldwide … that Santa Fe escaped the obliteration visited on LANL and SNL—mostly—was a minor miracle, perhaps aided by LANL's location atop a set of four plateaus in the nearby mountains and SNL's location southwest of a different, smaller mountain range. The Reapers were not indiscriminate in their destruction, using focused energy weapons to precisely obliterate their targets, leaving nearby areas relatively untouched in order to perform subsequent harvests of the remaining citizens.

After Commander Shepard made her choice to end the conflict by merging synthetic and organic life, and despite some short-term shortages of a few essentials in the North American Southwest, postwar recovery had been relatively quick and painless for the people living in Santa Fe.

Now that I had the location of their home, I had Oriana 'hide' a substantial amount of credits in a special savings account … I wanted to provide the couple with a nest egg of which the Alliance government would be ignorant; even as a gift, it would be subject to rather heavy taxation, and as far as I was concerned, Cerberus still owed the couple for the murder of their daughter.

Aside from providing a small death benefit and arranging for her funeral, the Systems Alliance had done little to assuage the Gonzales family's loss, and certainly didn't deserve to share in any funds I managed to broker for them.

Now all I needed to do was contact Rubén and Tia and ask if I could visit them.

Buchanan tentatively gripped my shoulder as I turned to enter the airlock. "Do you honestly believe traveling to the Citadel after visiting Earth is a good idea, given how much is going on here, Sammy? Are you sure you cannot postpone for a week or two?"

"I'm not doing this on a whim, Griff, and you are not alone here! Oriana and Chinami will be here, and you have your own searches to complete. I'll never be far from Iringù-Eßizkur, so can assist with whatever stumbling blocks appear in your path. You'll be fine."

He shook his head slightly as he replied, "Sammy, I really depend upon you here." A hint of a blush coloring his cheeks, he added, "It's just … I don't want to lose you … out there. Mercs, pirates, ex-Cerberus, Blue Suns … you have made a shit-load of enemies in your short life; if you're not on this station or traveling inside Irin or staying at the T'Soni estate, your life is at risk."

By this time, I had turned to face him. Sliding my hands under his arms, I gripped his back and drew him into a tight embrace, to which he responded in kind; with the side of my face firmly against his chest, I listened to the measured cadence of his heartbeat while pondering how to address his concerns for my life.

Pushing back slightly, I looked into his eyes and whispered, "Griff, I'm not going on some black ops assignment. You know my itinerary … after I visit Heather's parents, I'll be meeting Xiùlán for dinner and an overnight stay at the Broker nest on the Citadel. I'll be returning here the morning after … you'll hardly even know I'm gone." Pointing to the comlink in my ear, I added, "I'll be in constant contact with Iringù-Eßizkur whenever I am not inside her structure."

His expression was skeptical. "Sammy, promise me you won't deviate from that schedule?"

"I promise, Griff … no deviations." Grasping his shoulders, I pulled him down slightly while I reached up and kissed him on the cheek. "See you in a couple of days."

"I'm going to hold you to that, Samantha."

• GONZALES RESIDENCE · SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO · EARTH, SOL SYSTEM •

Rubén Gonzales welcomed me into his home as if I was the couple's own daughter, long since dead and buried in the city's national cemetery; after firmly shaking my hand, he nodded towards his wife, saying, "This is Heather's mother … my wife, Octavia." After greeting me, she waved towards an upholstered chair placed at ninety degrees to the couch, saying, "Please, have a seat."

As I carefully sat on the edge of the chair, Rubén said, "We really appreciate you coming to visit us, Ms Traynor. Heather always spoke very fondly of you, and of your friend … a Chinese woman? … what was her name? …"

"Yuán Xiùlán."

"Yes, that's the one! The Systems Alliance did their best when … when my daughter came home. I felt great sorrow that they would not grant you and … Ms Xiùlán … emergency leave in order to attend the memorial service here." The man's eyes were awash in unshed tears at the memories my visit had dredged up. "A general … Park? …" he looked at his wife, who silently nodded in agreement, "… spoke with us, explained why you could not travel here for our daughter's funeral."

Octavia shook her head in seeming denial as she admitted, "It seems incredible they would have dropped you from that program if you had left Mars to pay your respects to your friend and her family. I'm afraid I spoke rather harshly … told General Park in no uncertain terms the Alliance lacked compassion for its people."

With a slight chuckle, I replied, "Oh, I agree with you, Ms Gonzales. Unfortunately, General Park had no say in the matter. Even though I felt Heather was my sister, I wasn't an immediate family member, so the best I could do was bid her farewell as her stasis pod was loaded for transport."

A framed photo on a nearby table caught my eye; I rose from the chair and moved to inspect it closer. It was a picture of a newly promoted Heather, wearing her dress blues with teeth showing in a huge grin; it was dated 31 October 2179, just after our graduation from the basic Ø7 course, before our transfer to Mars to begin six months of advanced training.

Next to the photo was a presentation box covered in a dark blue fabric. I turned my head to look at the couple; Octavia responded to my silent entreaty with, "Oh, by all means, Ms Traynor." I gingerly opened the case to reveal a pair of highly polished, stainless steel rectangles with rounded corners, on a beaded chain with edges guarded by a thin, red polymer … her dog tags.

Octavia spoke softly as I inspected the embossed tags. "They never told us, Ms Traynor … what became of her killers? Was there a trial? … or punishment?"

Frowning at the memory, I gently closed the case and set it back on the table as I replied in a solemn tone. "I don't know how much information General Park shared with you, Ma'am; through no fault of her own, Heather was, quite simply, in the wrong place at the worst possible time. A group of human-centric zealots known as Cerberus had placed an agent—Marianna Walsh—in our class. She and a confederate were attempting to steal research notes concerning the Prothean cache discovered on Mars."

It took a great deal of effort for me to keep my voice steady as I turned around to face the pair. "Heather had notified security of the breach, but the other intruder—Darius Holden—trapped her in the women's restroom. Unfortunately, Heather didn't learn Walsh was also an enemy agent until it was too late." I paced slowly about their small living room as I recalled that terrible time.

After a few moments, I stopped and again faced Heather's parents. "Once in custody, Walsh and Holden didn't live very long; someone murdered them in their cells a few nights after Heather was … transported home. Xiùlán and I believe Cerberus assigned an agent to eliminate any evidence that could lead back to their involvement in her murder."

The expression on Octavia's face tore at my heart. "We did not know this … the Alliance never told us what became of Heather's killers." She rose from the couch, stepped in front of me and placed her hands on my upper arms. "Thank you for telling us, Samantha Traynor," she said softly. "I think a formal inquiry or a trial would have been so much better, but it is good to know those two criminals did not escape with their lives after killing my Heather."

She released me and, after wiping the tears from her face, dropped her hands as she returned to sit back down next to her husband; my next revelation proved to be more of a shock to them than the facts concerning Heather's assailants. I retrieved a compact datapad from a thigh pocket, thumbed it on and handed it to Octavia, who held it so Rubén could view the small display. He asked, "What is this, Ms Traynor?"

"A future … for both of you, Mr Gonzales. You'll need to keep the information on that device—which I will leave with you—a secret, from everyone, especially the local government and the Systems Alliance.

Gonzales' mouth fell open upon seeing the total number of credits Oriana had transferred into nine newly opened accounts, spread among small-to-medium sized Broker-owned financial institutions, one of which had a small branch just over the eastern border in the Texas panhandle city of Amarillo. Looking at me, his voice shook with disbelief. "That … is an awful lot of zeros, Ms Traynor!"

Thanks to Ori, I had been privy to just how slim the financial margin was for this couple, especially since the end of the war. Prices for everything everywhere had rapidly increased, even with controls imposed by the commercial division of the Alliance; unfortunately, wages for the majority of workers had not kept pace. The Cerberus funds I had appropriated would be a huge help.

"What you are seeing is the total amount of credits deposited in nine hidden accounts, all set up in your names; the contents came from a Cerberus account on Terra Nova, and those credits are no less than both of you deserve." I cupped my elbows with my hands as I added in a firm tone, "There's no amount of money—from any group, anywhere—that can adequately compensate you for the loss of your daughter. My hope is that you never again need worry about financial security."

Tears were once again traveling down Octavia's cheeks; Rubén, an expression of astonishment fixed on his face, sat quietly with an arm around his wife's back in a comforting half-embrace. He finally turned his gaze back to me and asked, "How do we access these funds, Ms Traynor? It's blood money, no?"

"Actually, it's not … well, mostly not. Before the War, Cerberus created a number of independent, legitimate businesses; most were setup to pursue genuine research avenues, but there were also a few manufacturers … some of which are still in business today." I paused for a moment, then added, "As for access to those credits, there are instructions on that datapad, explaining how to request credit chits be sent to you. Each chit in the batch will be loaded with a portion of the entire contents of an account, which will then be closed."

Rubén looked nervous. "What makes you think the banking authorities will not notice our sudden, inexplicable wealth?"

"The total creds in each of the accounts we set up is relatively small, and the chits will not have an overly large sum applied to them. Also, no two chits will have the same number of credits loaded. I've included my contact information, should you encounter any problems I haven't anticipated."

The man nodded slowly as a smile of acceptance slowly spread across his face. "Thank you, Ms Traynor. I don't know how you managed to do such a thing, and it won't return our daughter to us, but I am grateful for your gift. It will certainly make a difference in our lives."

With a thin smile, I replied, "I'm happy you feel that way, Mr Gonzales. Heather was a good friend, to me and Xiùlán." I removed the contents of another thigh pocket, hefted the small purse in my hand, then handed it to him. As he released the clasp and withdrew one of the fifteen or so thin, plastic 'smart' cards I had brought for them, I explained, "I hope you will use the contents of that pouch in a judicious manner … there are lots of unscrupulous people in the world. Don't allow them to take advantage of your sudden good fortune."

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE DOCK C-7, BERTH 04 · CITADEL •

Iringù-Eßizkur had floated to a stand-still a half-klick above the surface, allowing me to slide out of the small space in which I stored my X3M. As I floated down, she lifted back up, where she would travel to a close-by holding area meant for large vessels, until I called her to come pick me up. I traveled the short distance to our former residence, there to leave my travel bags and a few basic food supplies.

After traveling from the Bravo Ward apartment, I was parked and waiting somewhat impatiently outside the guarded checkpoint near the Alliance docks where the Normandy, and more importantly—to my mind, anyway—the Hong Kong were berthed. Xiùlán had used her secure comms device to send me a short text message while Iringù-Eßizkur and I were traveling from Earth to the Citadel, informing me she had reached the massive station and was awaiting my arrival.

Rather than pace around outside, I tried to relax inside the X3M as I waited for the Hong Kong's captain to leave her ship and join me for the afternoon and evening. I needed to shop for some new clothes and wanted her opinion on what I intended to buy; afterwards, we would be going to the Captain's Table restaurant for what I envisioned would be an intimate dinner.

I was reviewing several messages on my omnitool when I noticed movement at the gate. A tall woman with an exotically beautiful face and long, ebony hair had paused briefly at the gate to speak with the guards. I closed my omnitool and released the latches on the overhead canopy, allowing it to slide forward; the motion caught the woman's attention, who reacted by turning to look at the speeder—and me.

The solemn expression on her face, completely opposite to what I had expected to see, turned my heart into a lump of lead. I held my breath as Xiùlán walked up to my speeder and carefully set a familiar looking black carrying case in the back; rather than get in and sit beside me, she remained standing outside, leaning on the rear edge of the canopy. "Sà mi, I asked you to meet me here because there are some things I need to discuss with you … none of which I care to do over an unsecured comms channel."

I started to ask, "What the 'ell, Luv? …" when she held up a hand to interrupt.

"Not here. Let's go to your apartment in Bravo Ward, Sà mi … please?"

I studied the sable-brown eyes. There was a sadness in them that I had seldom witnessed. I waved a hand at the passenger seat while saying, "Okay, Ai, get in."

She cocked her head slightly; after studying me for a few moments, she heaved a heavy sigh, nodded once and folded her long legs to sit down beside me. "Thank you," she whispered into the suddenly oppressive silence.

I closed the canopy and door while spinning the speeder about on its axis; as I engaged the small powerplant and accelerated away from the docks, she swallowed nervously but remained silent, even though tears had begun creeping down her cheeks. It was the most uncomfortable twenty-five minutes I had ever spent in her company, including the time of our major disagreement on Arcturus before the war. Whatever she intended to discuss with me could not be good.

• SHADOW BROKER'S RESIDENCE · BRAVO WARD, CITADEL •

After carefully parking inside the rooftop loft, I carried the comms device and preceded her down the circular stairs to the living room; I set the device—still in its case—at the base of the stairs as she walked past me to stand in the center of the room. I approached her, intent on giving her a hug … maybe even kissing her, only to be halted in mid-stride by a pair of upraised hands, palms outwards in a motion to stop.

"Xiùlán, what in 'ell is the matter? Have I done something to displease you?" My voice took on a pleading tone. "If so, first tell me what I did, then explain what I need to do to fix it!"

With a slight shake of her head, she murmured, "You have done nothing wrong, Sà mi." Apparently coming to a decision, she faced me as she opened her arms. "Come here."

I quickly closed the distance between us, wrapped my arms around her and kissed her passionately as her arms came around to hug me. Her lips and tongue ignited a fire in my core, nearly making me forget the worrisome beginning to our reunion. When she finally broke away to take a breath, she seemed very much the same Xiùlán with whom I had spent the night at Grissom Academy.

In a voice thick with emotion, she sighed, "I apologize for causing you distress, Sà mi." Bringing an arm up between us, she placed fingertips against my lips to halt an incipient protest. "I have a lot of things on my mind, Ai, and I truly regret they have spilled into our limited time together."

I gently cupped her face between my hands. "Do you want to sit down with me now? … Tell me what's on your mind? We can stay in, if that is what you wish. There are a few frozen meals in the cooler." I placed a small kiss on the tip of her nose; she reacted by closing her eyes for a few moments while tightening her remaining arm around me.

Reopening her eyes, she offered me a hesitant smile. "I can have reheated frozen whatever anytime I'm on the ship, my darling. We absolutely must go to a restaurant for dinner."

"And shopping?" I looked at her expectantly. "I need some new clothes."

"Of course. Should we do that first so we can bring our purchases back here and drop them off, then change clothes?"

Relieved by her shift in mood, no matter how minor, I showed my teeth in a happy grin. "Sounds like an excellent plan. Let's be off."

Several hours had passed, during which time I purchased a few blouses, a couple pairs of casual pants, several bras and a couple dozen pairs of panties and socks. Xiùlán had good naturedly commented on my selections and held the shopping bags containing my purchases as I shopped, all the while refraining from buying anything for herself. When I called her out about it, she replied she hadn't seen anything she liked; I chose not to press her on the matter.

After returning to the apartment to drop off my purchases, I changed into dressier clothes; I looked admiringly at Xiùlán, dressed in a manner similar to how she had dressed for our last restaurant date – tailored black pants paired with a sleeveless, V-neck top in pale green. After she brushed my hair out—commenting approvingly about how long it had grown—I brushed hers and clamped its length in a wide, ivory-toned barrette, placed at the juncture of neck and torso. Short black boots and a loose-fitting black leather jacket completed her outfit as did the Karpov model-10 pistol in its specially designed and fitted holster under her left arm.

I had chosen clothes a bit more modest than the shift dress I had worn previously … pairing a deep red, long sleeve, button-up silk shirt with a pair of dark blue, boot-cut pants; after pulling on a pair of short heeled black leather boots, I applied a bit of dusky, blue-gray eye shadow, mascara, dark eye-liner and some lipstick, looked to Xiùlán and said, "Let's go."

• CAPTAIN'S TABLE RESTAURANT · CITADEL, WIDOW SYSTEM •

The restaurant was fairly busy when we arrived, so we sat at the bar while waiting for a table to become available. Xiùlán ordered a vodka martini, while I had whisky with a twist of lime. After sampling her drink, Xiùlán nodded slightly in appreciation as the alcohol burned it way down to her stomach.

Leaning on the polished wood surface with both forearms, I had taken several sips of my own drink before turning my head to look at my Inamorata. "Talk to me, Xiùlán. I have never seen you so seriously apprehensive. What's going on, Luv?"

Her gaze remained fixed on the drink in front of her for a few moments before she leveled me with her eyes. "Unfortunately, I cannot speak in any great detail about what is going on, Sà mi … not here in public." She took a nervous swallow from her glass before continuing. "I have recently been reminded of certain … rules and regulations … which I must faithfully heed as an Alliance Naval officer."

The lead weight in my chest had returned as she spoke. I took a swallow of whisky and waited as it seemingly set fire to my esophagus on its way down. Finding my voice again, I calmly said, "This is about me … my new profession, isn't it?" I watched in disbelief as she ducked her head in seeming embarrassment. "I cannot believe this, Xiùlán! Someone has been filling your head with …"

I clamped my mouth shut before I managed to spiral out of control. I was trying to formulate a coherent response when my omnitool lit up; it had received a message that a table was ready for us. I finished my drink and stood from the bar. "Come on, Luv. Our table is ready … let's have our dinner. Then we can return to the apartment … have a calm discussion concerning what's troubling you." Gently taking her hand, I added one word. "Please?"

• SHADOW BROKER'S RESIDENCE · BRAVO WARD, CITADEL •

Our dinner was a blur … to me, anyway. Being unable to speak publicly about what either of us did for a living, the little bit of conversation we did manage was inconsequential. I believe the climate on Earth was one of the topics; perhaps another was how reconstruction of Earth's major cities was progressing. The only thing I knew for certain was our time together in the bar and during dinner had been nearly as uncomfortable as the twenty-five minutes we had spent earlier in the aircar between the Alliance docks and my apartment.

After dinner and once safely back inside, I made a couple of mugs of Kaffe; after handing one to my Qíngfū, I sat down in one of the two chairs in the living area. Motioning to the other, I asked her to sit as well. "I'd rather stand, Sà mi." She began slowly pacing back and forth as she sipped the warm beverage. After several minutes of silence, I prompted, "Is my recently established identity as the Shadow Broker what's troubling you, Xiùlán?

She stopped and faced me, the solemn expression on her face speaking volumes about her state of mind. Rising, I set my mug down and moved to stand in front of her. "We have always been honest with each other, Xiùlán." I took her nearly empty mug, set it with mine and returned to her; wrapping my hands around her upper arms, I looked into a pair of troubled eyes and asked, "What do you want me to do, Luv?" Outwardly, I was completely calm; inside, I was crumbling.

Her words, when they finally came, nearly crushed my heart. "Sà mi, I lied earlier when I said you had done nothing wrong … you have my apologies for that. I've been thinking about this for a number of weeks now, and I've finally come to a decision." She tentatively grasped my waist before continuing. "I need you to give up your job … your title … as the Shadow Broker. Our only hope for a future together is for you to leave it behind … all of it."

My mind was reeling, and not just because of the alcohol I had consumed. "Xiùlán … Luv! … what the bloody 'ell? Really? After all this time, it's suddenly a problem for you? You know I love you! My position as the Shadow Broker hasn't changed that!"

"I love you as well, Sà mi," she cried. "It breaks my heart to ask this of you, but I've come to realize my love for the most wanted criminal in Council space has placed me in an untenable position! Don't you see?" She placed her fists together in the center of her chest. "I'm an Alliance Naval officer! The fact that I know you … know what you are … what you do for a living? Forget fraternization between us when you were still in the Navy, Samantha! I'm duty-bound to arrest you and turn you over to the authorities. It's something I cannot bring myself to do, so there's my quandary."

"Must I point out that you owe your life to me?" I asked. "Does that not mean anything to you?"

Her face blanched at the reminder of how she'd nearly died on Cartagena Station … and the extraordinary efforts I had taken to save her and get us rescued. After several moments, she quietly responded. "Of course it does … and for you to hold that up as a club with which to beat me is completely unworthy of you … and our love! If you really must know, that is the only reason I haven't already turned you in."

"Turned me in? For what? How am I a criminal, Xiùlán?" I cried. "How!? Nothing I am doing now or have done in the past is against the law! The Broker has helped the Alliance … we've helped the Alliance! … and you! Dammit all to 'ell and back! Buchanan and I have been careful … exceedingly so. Researching, extracting and selling information? … all perfectly legal. What I'm doing now is really no different than my former job on the Normandy!"

"No! It is different, Samantha! … you are different! Can't you see!? No matter how you attempt to sugar-coat it, the Shadow Broker rules a galaxy-wide organization that arranges assassinations! … Thefts! … Regime change and illegal replacements of government officials, galaxy-wide! All done under the direction of the Shadow Broker! … your direction!" The anguish in her eyes … her facial expression, clawed at my heart as she continued in a voice choked with raw emotion. "Whether you realize it or not, you have become a vigilante … operating outside of Alliance and Galactic laws. It doesn't matter that you may not have personally done these things! … You are the leader of the entire organization! The responsibility for that is completely yours!"

Pulling me close, she buried her face in my shoulder and wept as I continued to hold her. If she had consciously set out to crush my heart this evening, she had succeeded beyond her wildest expectations. I had never thought of myself as a criminal … until this very moment, holding this woman who meant more to me than life itself. After this, I did not know how in hell I could continue running the organization. It took a fair amount of time for me to calm her down; once the ragged weeping had stopped, I pushed back enough to gaze into red-rimmed, pain filled eyes.

"Come on, darling … let's go to bed, get some sleep. I am beginning to understand why Liara felt compelled to walk away from it … with her bondmate being a Spectre … but right now, I'm too tired to think clearly. We're too tired. We can talk in the morning before we have to part company."

"I don't know if I can bring myself to sleep in the same room with you, Sà mi."

"Xiùlán, please. We still need to talk this through." I kissed her knuckles, then clutched her hands to my chest, adding, "Please?"

After staring into my eyes for the longest time, she finally nodded her head slightly and allowed me to lead her to my bedroom. Unlike the last time we had shared this room, my only desire tonight was to get a good night's rest. If she wanted to make love to me, I'd let her initiate the act … I was not about to take advantage of her seeming vulnerability.

We each undressed in silence. She washed her face and brushed her teeth, after which I did the same. She watched me as I brushed out my hair and tied it into a ponytail, then crawled into bed with her, rolling onto my side with my back towards her after kissing her cheek. She waited less than a minute before moving close in order to tightly spoon me from behind. With her right arm over my side and her hand cupping my left breast, she sighed heavily before whispering, "Wan'ān, Sà mi … [晚安，薩米 – Good night, Sammy] … wo ài ni!" [我愛你！– I love you!]

"Wo yě ài ni, Xiùlán," [我也愛你 –I love you too.] I whispered in reply. Reaching around, I caressed the side of her hip, adding, "No matter what the future brings, don't ever think otherwise."

It seemed as if it took me forever to fall asleep, even while being cuddled by the woman that owned me heart and soul. Unfortunately, my sleep was fitful, disturbed by Xiùlán's ultimatum—for that was what she had given me—intruding on my dreams; my restless sleep was punctuated by bouts of tired wakefulness. I knew without any doubt that she loved me; I also knew that—because of my actions since leaving the Navy—our relationship had reached a crossroads. How I moved forward from this point would determine our shared future. As I was finally losing conscious thought to sleep, I silently vowed I would not break her heart again, even if the actions she was taking crushed mine.