'Don't take a life, don't save a life, unless otherwise directed. Do not interfere.'

Protocol 3 ran through Carly's head on a continuous loop. As much as she believed in the director, and as much as it was ingrained in her to follow the rules like a good little soldier, she couldn't for the life of her understand why Jeff Conniker was still alive.

Sure she could have attributed it to plain old dumb luck, but honestly? The guy was a death waiting to happen. All his drinking, bullying, and disregard for general civility (at least where she was concerned) should all be adding up to him ending up six feet under.

But, no. He lived on.

He lived on to terrorize her, and put his own son in danger, and it seemed nobody cared! She wasn't sure what his family situation was like, but she was sure his "friends" at work would manage to get over his death pretty quick. He was just a cog in the system, another body, another potential host just waiting for a traveler to jump into.

That night when he came home drunk was the first time she had come to breaking Protocol 3, and truthfully if Philip had not broken in singing to her with his soft voice, she was sure she would have killed him. At the time, she was pissed at Philip, but eventually she recognize that that would have been a huge mistake.

It didn't mean the thought ever went away.

Every time she had to deal with him, every time she had to just sit and smile in his face in order to keep her son, she felt a piece of her shrivel up. She felt sorry for her host, the girl was obviously stuck in a no win situation, and it would have continued until he killed her. Which, come to think of it, he eventually did.

She was a little resentful of the life that she got tossed into, but felt she couldn't really complain too much. At least she didn't get a host that was a drug addict like Philip, or dealing with mental issues like poor Simon. Hell, Trevor was locking up for increasingly varied amounts of time, and they couldn't predict when it would happen. However it did sting a little that Marcy got to go home to someone like David, who wouldn't even dream of raising his voice to her, let alone a hand.

Or Mac, who seemed to have truly embraced Protocol 5 with Kat, even going so far as to try and break Protocol 4. The fact that Hall was tasked to put a stop to that only reinforced the notion that the director was aware and watching at all times, so her little fantasy about taking one of her high powered rifles and doing the world a favor by ridding them of Jeff had to stay just that, a fantasy.

Until she couldn't take it anymore.

She had lost her son. He had been taken away for his own good, and Carly was inwardly seething that no one seemed to give a shit. She was going through an emotional whirlwind inside, but to everyone else, it was business as usual. So when Jeff cut them off mid-mission, she was done. This asshole had taken so much from her, and it didn't really matter if she was overwritten or died, because she couldn't go on living like this, and doing nothing in response.

Every second she held that gun on him, she was expecting the director to intervene and replace her. She honestly believed she would have welcomed not feeling like this anymore. But the next best thing possible happened instead, she got her one wish.

Jeffrey Conniker was no more.

She couldn't believe it when he dropped his weapon and clutched his head. This was why the director left him alive all this time? She held her weapon on him until he stopped screaming and introduced himself.

"I'm Traveler 5416." He managed to get out, still kneeling on the ground.

"Welcome to the 21st." She holstered her weapon. "Someone drive him home, he's drunk."

Maybe it was a good thing she didn't break Protocol 3 after all.