July 25, 1998

Alex leaned against the kitchen counter, watching the coffee machine perk with bleary eyes. She yawned, idly pushing a S.T.A.R.S. coffee cup back and forth. The clock on the microwave read 5:49 a.m. The sun had barley risen and she was already up and ready for a day at work. She didn't need to be up this early of course, is was her day off. The only explanation was that she was used to getting up early and Birkin's sleep habits, or complete lack of sleep, was rubbing off on her.

"Finally." She mumbled, reaching for the pot. "Damn thing is slower than molasses in January."

Suddenly the phone rang. Alex snapped her head around, taking several seconds to recognize just what the sound was. Three thoughts ran through her head as she grabbed for the phone on the counter. Two; Their was some kind of outbreak at the labs. Three; There was an outbreak and something had escaped. But her number one concern was Birkin. As head of security, not to mention the personal bodyguard of William Birkin, she would be the first informed should there have been an incident.

"Hello."

"Alexandra Wesker?"

The voice was unfamiliar. She knew everyone that worked in those labs and this wasn't an employee.

"Yes."

"This is detective Martin's at the R.P.D. There's been an incident…"

"What kind of incident?"

"If you could come down to the station, we could…"

"Listen here buddy." Alex's voice was clipped and tinged with anger. "You tell me what the hell is going on."

"Miss Wesker, we don't like to give out this kind of information on the phone. As I said, if you could please…"

"Fine."

Alex hit the end button and tossed the phone on the counter. She didn't bother to notice that it slide into her coffee cup, or that both hit the floor with a crash. Instead she stalked through the living room, snagging her glasses and keys before storming out the door.

It normally took her twenty minutes to get to the R.P.D., on this morning it took her a flat five. She abandoned the car in front of the R.P.D., with the right front tire sitting on the sidewalk. As soon as she stepped into the lobby, she headed directly up past the fountain to the Reception Desk. A young woman with straight black hair was typing on a computer when Alex cleared her throat.

"Excuse me…"

"You'll have to wait."

Alex narrowed her eyes at the woman's snotty tone. She was already upset and worried. When she got like this, she had the tendency to get very easily pissed off. However, she was trying to control her anger. So instead of pulling her gun, which she hadn't realized till now she'd even grabbed, she took a deep breath and cleared her throat again.

"Miss, I received a…"

The woman sighed heavily, but never took her eyes from the computer.

"I'm sorry but you'll just have to wait, some of us have work to do you know." The Receptionist flicked her fingers back toward the front doors. "Just have a seat Missy and wait like a good little girl."

For a moment, Alex was completely stunned. However, surprise turned to anger, fueling the anger already present from the worry over Albert. Finally Alex smiled.

"Alright."

The woman grunted in reply as Alex carefully scrutinized the desk. After a full minute Alex found what she was looking for. She reached down and yanked the CPU's power cord.

"Oh no!"

The Receptionist stared at the computer like the world had ended, before turning her shocked gaze to Alex.

"Now, if you don't mind, I need some information."

Alex smiled, the CPU's power cord dangling from her right hand. The smile was cold, it went a long way toward convincing the Receptionist she wasn't someone with which to fuck. The fact she was in cut-off sweat pants, a wife beater, and no shoes helped to push the Receptionist toward the conclusion that perhaps she should tell Alex whatever she wanted to know. Of course the gun in the shoulder rig wasn't helping the Receptionist's nerves either.

"Uh…how can I help you miss?"

"Detective Martin's office."

"Eastern door, first door on your right."

Alex dropped the cord, pushed her sunglasses up with her index finger, and headed through the eastern door. She knew where she was going. Back in her time with the R.P.D. the offices she was heading to were used for I.A., Internal Affairs. She stopped in front of the double doors, immediately noticing the sign at eye level.

"Things haven't changed."

As soon as she stepped through the door, she was met by a young slim man in a dark blue suit.

"Can I help you miss?"

His tone was slightly clipped as he looked her over. Her response was also clipped.

"I received a phone call from a Detective Martin, concerning my brother Albert."

The man's eyes widened slightly and he nodded. "One moment."

Alex sighed heavily, tapping her foot impatiently as the young detective stepped over to a glassed-in office. He knocked lightly then stepped inside. A minute later he reappeared.

"Detective Martin will see you now Miss."

Alex stepped past him into the office. As the door shut behind her, the man behind the desk stood and extended his hand.

"Miss Wesker, I'm Detective Martin." He motioned toward one of the chairs in front of his desk. "Please have a seat."

Alex sat down, crossing her legs. Despite the clothing, or lack there of in the case of shoes, she somehow managed to look professional and lady-like. Martin absently straightened his tie and again took his seat. Alex was competent at reading people, one might go so far at to say she was rather good at it. What she saw in front of her was a broad-shouldered man with thick black hair, chiseled features, and a very nervous expression. As if to reinforce this observation, Martin again fiddled with his tie.

"Would you like.."

"Detective, can we cut the bullshit?" Martin's eyes widened slightly as Alex pulled her sunglasses off. "What interest does Internal Affairs have with my brother."

"I'm afraid, Miss Wesker, there has been an incident. I can't discuss the full details with you at this time, but it appears…" Martin lowered his eyes, not eve able to meet her gaze. "I'm afraid your brother is dead…"

Chris approached the gate of the cemetery, looking apprehensive. It was raining again and his dark brown hair, even as short as he kept it, was plastered to his face. The water rolled off his leather jacket in rivers as he stepped inside, heading toward a certain grave.

Four days had gone by since he'd been forced to survive a nightmare straight out of horror movie. But he hadn't been the only one. Jill, Rebecca, Barry, and Brad had survived as well. Considering Brad abandoned that that night, Chris chose not to include him in the plans he and the others were making. Because right now, no one believed their story. No one believed that world's largest pharmaceutical company, and biggest employer in Raccoon, was creating bio-weapons.

No, they were believing umbrella…

The mansion hadn't been used in years, except for storage. The explosion of said mansion, caused a chemical reaction. This of course was the reason behind the hallucinations the remaining S.T.A.R.S. members had experienced. That was what the media and the high ranking brass at the R.P.D. were believing, that the S.T.A.R.S. team had been investigating the mansion for signs of the people responsible for the recent cannibal murders, something happened, and the mansion went up in flames…taking most of the S.T.A.R.S. Alpha and Bravo teams with it, not to mention the people responsible for the cannibal murders. And that was it, case closed. The truth they had been telling the entire time, was swept under the carpet. Their story considered to be nothing more ramblings from people who'd been influenced by some stray chemical fumes.

The funerals had been yesterday, all of those killed because of Umbrella's science projects were laid to rest with full police honor. All except one that is. Chris stopped, spotting Alex standing in front of a grave. She was soaked to the bone, but didn't seem to notice. He was particularly grateful that the media hadn't found out about her private viewing and burial of her brother. Perhaps she was the one the media had been hounding the most, despite the fact she hadn't been near the mansion that night.

Stories about zombies, man eating plants, and giant killing machines hadn't been the only things swept under the carpet. The news of Captain Wesker's betrayal had also been left out. How Chris had stood there, watched Wesker shoot Rebecca point blank in the chest, and then release an eight foot bioengineered Tyrant. That's how Wesker lost his life, speared through the chest by an out of control science monstrosity, not in some explosion. Even with the cover-up, the story had leaked to the media and the circus had been going on ever since. In fact Chris hadn't talked to Alex since she'd come to the R.P.D. a couple days ago…

Chris sat at his desk, absently looking over an official report of the 'Spencer Incident'. It was a load of crap really, the only reason he was scanning it over was to give himself something to do while he though over what had really happened that night…especially concerning Wesker…

Chris had always thought the Captain was rather cold and closed off, but he had never expected him capable of betrayal and outright murder. He supposed that if he had been wrong about the Captain, might he not also be wrong about Alexandra?

Chris's head snapped up and his hand reached for his gun, as the office door creaked open. Alex stood framed in the doorway, a cardboard box tucked under one arm. He had expected her not to look too well, after all she had lost her brother and Chris suspected they had been close. Still, he was shocked to see just how bad off she was. She had always been pale, but now she was so white she was almost translucent. Her sunglasses were atop her head, so Chris could plainly see the heavy dark circles under her eyes. Her eyes themselves were red and he suspected it was the result of crying and lack of sleep. She also looked as though she may have lost some weight, her clothes hung on her like they were three sizes too big. Even her hair had not escaped unscathed; it looked limp and had lost its sheen. It was the first time he had ever seen her do nothing with it, it had always been pulled back into a ponytail or slicked back like her brother's. Now it hung over her face like a veil.

"Going to shoot me Chris?"

Her voice was hoarse and gravely, making her sound older than she was. She smiled weakly at him as he released the grip on his Beretta. For the first time, he noticed she wasn't wearing a gun herself. For as long as Chris could recall, he only knew of two other instances when she hadn't been carrying her ID badge and gun.

"Sorry, bit jumpy as of late."

"I think…I think, I can understand why."

And at that moment, Chris knew there was more to Alex than met the eye. The tone of her voice told him she knew what he knew, what all the mansion survivors knew…the truth about Umbrella's real source of income. He wasn't entirely surprised, not like he would have been before the mansion. His only questions was just how much did she know and how much of her feelings toward him were true or a simple act.

"IA said I could collect Albert's things, now that the investigation is closed."

Chris shrugged as Alex sat down at Wesker's desk, sitting the box at her feet. She sighed, looking over the open drawers and litter that covered the top of the desk. Chris said nothing. He knew what had happened of course, because he and Jill had been responsible. They'd gone through the desk like a tornado, looking for anything that would prove their story. They hadn't found anything, not even a stray memo.

"Damn Internal Affairs." Alex snapped, eyeing the mess. "They didn't need to go this far and even if they did, they could have at least cleaned up after themselves."

Slowly Alex picked through the mess, absently straightening papers as she went. Chris leaned against the wall behind her, watching with great interest. She carefully picked dup a small 5X7 frame and placed it in the box. Chris remembered snapping the picture for her last year, about six months after he had arrived in town. Wesker and Alex were standing in front of the R.P.D.'s gate. Wesker was wearing his blue S.T.A.R.S. uniform and Alex was wearing a black Umbrella security uniform. It was the first and only time he ever saw her wear it.

"Looks like they weren't smart enough to figure this one out."

Chris stepped forward slightly, as Alex produced a set of keys and unlocked the lower left drawer. He was more than interested in what was in there, even Jill and her lock picks couldn't get that thing open. However he was slightly disappointed as Alex pulled out a chrome Desert Eagle.50 caliber Magnum. She popped the clip and pulled the slide back to eject the round in the pipe. She set the safety and laid the gun in the box, it was then Chris noticed the R.P.D. emblem set into the grip.

"I thought the Captain only carried the M92F that Kendo did up for us."

"Sometimes you need more stopping power that even a modified 9mm can provide."

Chris arched an eyebrow as Alex pulled out eh last item in the drawer, the Captain's S.T.A.R.S. shield. She ran her fingers lightly over the badge, emitting a small sob. Chris stepped up and laid a hand on her shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze. She dropped the badge in the boas she reached up and touched his hand.

"I'm sorry Alex."

Alex smiled dimly. "Not really, but I thank you for the sentiment."

She squeezed his hand, stood up, and lifted the box off the floor. Her eyes strayed to one of the photos on the wall, as she shifted the box into a better position. The photo in question had been taken only two weeks ago and featured the S.T.A.R.S Alpha and Bravo teams in front of the S.T.A.R.S. chopper. Alex started to reach for the picture, then suddenly thought better of it, letting her hand drop to her side. Without another word, she turned and headed for the door.

"Hey, Alex, wait a second."

Chris quickstepped to his desk, as Alex turned in his direction. He yanked one of the drawers out and up-ended it on the desktop. The contents of said drawer spilled across the desk, some of it landing on the floor. Chris pushed the contents around, ignoring the strange look Alex was giving him, his attention more focused on whatever it was he was digging for.

"Here." He held out an 8X10. "We all got a copy, Wes…the Captain hung his up."

"You don't want it?" Even as she asked, she reached out and took hold of the pictured by the offered corner. "I mean Forest was…that is..."

"It's alright..." He murmured, briefly recalling the friendship she was hinting at. "You keep it."

Chris released the picture and Alex carefully laid it in the box. She looked up, her shiny with tears. She stepped forward and kissed Chris gently on his cheek, whispering in his ear as she drew back.

"Thank you ."

She flashed him a tired smile and slipped out the door.

And now here he was was, standing in the middle of a cemetery in the rain. Alex was standing in front of her brother's grave, her back toward him. Between them lay an ocean of questions. Chris tightened his shoulders and walked forward…

Alex stared down at the grave, ignoring the rain running down her face. There had been no viewing, and no service. She hadn't even been there for the actual lowering of the casket. There was no body, but she'd buried a coffin anyway. In fact, Albert's was the only body not found in the wreckage. Umbrella's excuse to the R.P.D. was that Albert had been too close to the initial blast.

But Alex knew the truth. ..

Alex was barley home a minute when her phone rang. She grabbed the receiver from the end table, already anticipating who was calling.

"Wesker"

"Ms. Wesker, your presence is required at the head office."

A second later, the dial tone clicked on. She dropped the receiver on the cradle and stepped into her bedroom. She had not worried about her appearance during work or even outside of work in a long time. This meeting, however, was a different matter.

Douglas was not a board member, nor was he head of operations for this city or any other. No, Douglas was the cleanup man. His job was to investigate situations, deem a course of action, and report to whomever was in charge his findings.

He had not been in Raccoon for this current situation, he was here on another matter. With the latter taken car of he had been asked to look into the mansion incident. He had already looked over the tapes recovered from the security system and reported his findings. All that was left, was a simple conversation.

"Mr. Douglas."

Douglas looked up, his piercing emerald green eyes revealing none of his thoughts. The young secretary smiled back at him, no fear in her face or gestures. Ice, as she had come to be called had been his right hand for years, she knew his moods better than anyone…living or dead.

"Yes?"

"The young woman is here."

"Very well." Douglas flipped the file shut and stood, buttoning his suit jacket. "Show her in."

Ice nodded and disappeared. Douglas leaned against the edge of his temporary desk, lighting a cigarette. He looked up as the door opened. Ice entered first, followed by a tall woman wearing a black UBCS combat uniform and dark lensed sunglasses. This was the first time Douglas had come face to face with the younger of the Wesker siblings He had, of course, read all the files concerning her. Sill, it did not entirely prepare him for the icy presence standing rigidly before him.

"Ms Wesker."

Douglas shook her hand, taking note of her strong sure grip. He had met the older sibling on several occasions and found their resemblance to be uncanny. He was also mildly turned on by her superior height and slicked back white blonde hair. Douglas himself was a slight 5'5" with light ash brown hair, that he always wore in a crew cut.

His eyes flickered between Wesker and Ice, noting the drastic differences between the two women. Ice was short, standing only 5'1", with a slim build than almost made her look malnourished. Her hair, always won in a tight bun at the bas of her neck, was dirty dishwater blonde. Her eyes were a pale almond an perhaps her best feature. Ms. Wesker's were hidden at the moment, but he knew them to be a dark cobalt blue.

Night and day, yet both radiated strength and resolve. A smirk flickered across his features briefly, as he wondered just who would win if the two were pitted against one another. Looking as Wesker's file, he knew she was qualified, but there was more to Ice than met the eye.

"Please have a seat Ms. Wesker."

Douglas inwardly smiled at her catlike grace as she took her seat in front of his desk. A second later, Ice was at his side, standing in her customary position on his right.

"Ms. Wesker, I expect you know why you've been called here today?"

"Indeed." Wesker's voice was calm, cool, and professional. "The Arklay facility is nothing more than a very large hole, the surviving S.T.A.R.S. members are screaming zombie, and my brother is no longer among the living. I expect this meeting has something to with the latter situation."

"You are very sharp Ms. Wesker"

"I did not gain my current position by being ignorant Mr. Douglas."

Douglas was only mildly surprised that she knew who he was. After all, his reputation was as notorious as both the Wesker siblings. A small smile flickered across his lips as he opened the file in front of him.

"Indeed Ms. Wesker, your file documents your rise through Umbrella well. As does your brother's file, document his rise. But you see, there in lies the problem." Douglas flipped the filed closed and leaned back in his chair. "Your brother appears to have chosen the road less traveled. In other words, he attempted to betray Umbrella."

He let the statement sink in, watching Wesker's reaction closely. She betrayed nothing. Her shoulders never tightened or slumped, her head stayed erect and facing him. Douglas was neither surprised nor upset as this development. True,. It would have made his job easier is she had showed some sign of knowing or surprise at his disclosement. But there were other ways.

Douglas always had other ways of finding out what he wanted to know…

Alex snapped out of her thoughts, unmindful of the rain running down her face and soaking through her dress. Her haggard appearance had changed little since she had seen Chris on the 27th.

A lot of it had to do with Albert's death, the rest had to do with the four hour talk and moving viewing. Watching her brother being impaled, over and over again had done little for her physical and mental state. Still, she had come out unscathed…relatively speaking of course.

As far as she knew, her job position was secure, as secure as it could be given the situation. It also appeared that Umbrella ad no intention of turning her into a science experiment any time soon, which was always a comfort.

She stepped forward laying a single white rose on Albert's gravestone, his favorite. As she turned away, she saw Chris walking towards her. He was as soaked as she was. He stopped just in front of her, hands stuffed into his pockets. She shivered, it was late July almost August but, the rain was cold as ice. Chris shrugged out of his jacket, the one Claire had given him with the Made in Heaven logo on the back. He stepped forward and slipped the jacket over her shoulders. She gave him a strained smile and slid her arms into the sleeves.

"Do you want to talk about it?", he asked, genuinely sympathetic.

"No."

That word alone was enough to stop any more questions. Alex turned, gave him a peck on the cheek, and walked away from the grave stone. Suddenly she stopped, remembering her last few minutes with Albert. She turned, looking back at Chris, the rain now starting to soak through his blue tee shirt.

"Chris I want you to listen carefully to what I'm about to say, there are things going on in Raccoon. The Spencer Installation is just the tip of the iceberg. If you value your life, you'll let it go."

She started to walk away again, but Chris grabbed her arm, swinging her around to face him.

"What are you talking about?"

"There are things I know that would make you despise me. I know, or should I say, knew what they were doing at those labs under the mansion. I knew about the Tyrant. I also know that if you don't stop, if you continue to go after this, you'll wind up just like the rest of the S.T.A.R.S." She started walking away again, and this time Chris didn't stop her. "Please, forget about the Mansion and Umbrella. I don't want to see you end up like my brother."

She walked out of the cemetery and never once did she look back…