Chapter Three

Two months later…

It wasn't everyday that an eighteen year old college graduate gets their dream job right out of the gate. Then again, I don't know any other eighteen year old college graduates.

Nonetheless, my time at Wexler put me in prime position to earn my Master's degree in Chemistry, with a minor in medicine. I would be the first to admit my gluttony for science. Ever since I was a little girl, all I wanted to be was a doctor, just like my dad. In our small town of Opine, just a few miles from Raccoon City, my dad was the most well known physician there was.

A lot of people would day that I got my genius from him, but as good as I had done in school, I still couldn't compare to what he accomplished. I'd have plenty of time to catch up, though.

I wanted to be a doctor, just like him, but I felt that even in a place like Raccoon City, being a doctor just wasn't enough. I needed something else. Something that would balance me out physically and mentally. Much to my mother's chagrin, I signed up for the police academy right after graduation. With the right work ethic and determination, I was putting myself in position to be a jack of all trades. Something I could truly be proud of and say was all mine.

Basic training wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be, and in just eight weeks, I found myself in Raccoon City, standing in front of the police station. A hot summer afternoon in July, I was both nervous and excited as I gripped the door handle to step inside. The air was cool and smelled faintly of oil. There were police officers everywhere, and even now, I felt out of sorts even being here.

I stepped up to the small receptionist desk, met by the awkward stare of a middle aged woman with glasses bigger than Dean Harrison's, resting on her face.

"Good afternoon," I said, a pitch higher than I intended. "I'm Rebecca Chambers, reporting for duty."

"You're the new girl in S.T.A.R.S.?" she said pointedly. "The medic, right?"

"That's me."

She scribbled something on a yellow piece of paper and handed it to me. "Second floor, West wing. Can't miss it."

I took the paper, but was barely able to read anything written on it. She did give me the directions, so I'd have to make the best of them.

Walking through the sea of RPD's finest, one of them pointed me in the right direction when it became obvious that I had a poor sense of navigation. I didn't always know left from right, let alone East from West.

I walked up a flight stairs, my eyes still trying to adjust to the seizure inducing scribble on the small slip of paper. So much so that I was completely oblivious to someone walking towards me from the opposite direction. I crashed right into them, and it felt like walking into a brick wall. The sudden stoppage of my momentum caused me to look way up into the brown eyes of a senior officer.

"Oh my gosh!" I said, embarrassment all in my voice. "I am so sorry! I should have been watching where I was going!"

He put his massive hand up to stop me and stop I did. "Easy there, bright eyes. It's no big deal."

This guy was a freakishly large man! He was well above six feet and built like a Greek god. He had muscles in places I didn't even think people had places...and I knew human anatomy very well! With skin as brown as a mocha brew, he stood out in more ways than one.

"Where are you headed?" he said in a surprisingly polite tone.

"I'm looking for the S.T.A.R.S. office. Today is my first day."

He fixed me with a broad smile. "Ahh, you must be Rebecca, the new medic. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Lieutenant Marshall."

He extended his hand to me and I took it. Needless to say, his hand swallowed my arm down past my wrist. It was a testament of two things: How freakish size in comparison to my small and slender frame.

"It's nice to meet you, too, sir," I said nervously. "Excuse me if I seem a bit overwhelmed."

"Nothing to be ashamed of. I was the same way when I was a rookie."

For no reason other than the obvious, I had a very difficult time believing that.

Marshall stepped to the side, his huge finger pointing in the direction of the hardwood door down the hall. "The S.T.A.R.S. office is right through there. Should still be some knuckleheads inside."

I regarded him with a friendly smile. "Thank you, sir."

"Good to have you aboard, Rebecca."

With that, Marshall disappeared down the stairs I just came up. Steeling the little bit of resolve I had left, I marched forward to the door, resting my hand on the knob for only a minute before I turned it.

When I stepped inside, everyone turned to the door, looking at me like I was lost.

"Hi," I said shyly, squeezing my arms closer to my body. I hated that nervous drip from armpits. "Is this the S.T.A.R.S. office?"

A young guy, a few years older than me, spun his chair in my direction. His short cropped hair, taut muscles and strong jaw, for whatever reason, made my body flush. That had never happened to me before. I smiled to diffuse the awkwardness the best I could. "The one and only," he said, returning a smile. "And you are?"

"My name is Rebecca," I said, my voice catching fire in my throat. "Rebecca Chambers. I officially joined the team on Monday, but today is my first day on duty."

A young brunette woman with a blue beret and fierce blue eyes looked at me from her desk, then back at the young man. "That's odd. No one told us about any rookies coming on board." He said nothing, so she returned her steely gaze to me. "Were you assigned a particular unit?"

If there was anything on that yellow slip of paper I had that was partially legible, was the word BRAVO written on it. I reached into my pocket to dig it out, looking it over to confirm. "I'm not sure, but I think this says S.T.A.R.S. Bravo team," I said, scratching the back of my head. I then looked at them expectantly. "Are you two part of Bravo team?"

"No," the young man trying to stifle a chuckle, but failing. "If you're looking for Bravo team, you just missed them. You can catch them on the roof, on the heliport."

"Thank you," I said with a shy smile. "Excuse me if I'm being forward, but I didn't get your name."

"I'm Chris, and that's Jill," he said, thumbing over his broad shoulder. "We're part of the Alpha team."

"Cool!"

I started to feel a little more relaxed, knowing that I'd already met two of my comrades without having a nervous breakdown.

Jill got up from her seat, stretching her legs and arms until she heard the satisfying pop. "I'll show you to the roof. I need to get some blood pumping in these legs of mine, anyway."

"Thank you, Jill. I really appreciate that." I turned to face Chris, and said, "I'll see you later, Chris."

He waved at me. "Later, kiddo."

Normally, I hated being called "kiddo", or "shorty", or "little girl", but in the presence of these guys, I would not object because in the end, I was all of those things.