A/N: A big thanks as always to those who have favorited and followed this story, as well as to Heimolainen, geoavenger, DandereGoneFishing, Mei-chiri, SpartanEra, hiddenshadows218, Blausen, and KrystylSky for your reviews last chapter!

-15-

The sound of music waltzing through the air was what brought her away from the very important task of making meadow flower crowns for herself and one for her stuffed companion Miss Rosie-Posie from the ones she had collected earlier that day. Only the best for Miss Rosie-Posie's coronation.

She toddled out of her room, holding Miss Rosie-Posie by the arm. She made it into the hallway, the sound still drifting up from downstairs. She took the stairs two at a time to discover its source, finding it in her papa, propped up in his favorite armchair, the radio glowing as it pulsed along with the music. He didn't hear her coming, seemingly too entranced by the notes coming from the radio.

She didn't want to disturb him. It was one of those things she had picked up that he liked to soak in music in silence. But when it got to a quiet section he did turn in his chair, finding her at the stairs.

"I'm sorry, Jane, I didn't hear you come down."

She hugged her doll tightly to her chest, casting her eyes down on the floor. He didn't sound mad about her interrupting him. "I heard the music."

He sent her a warm smile, his whole face lighting up. "Do you want to listen together?"

All she could do was nod vigorously.

He opened his arms invitingly. "Come here, dove."

She scurried over to the chair, crawling onto his lap, getting herself comfortable as one of his arms came around her. She wasn't going to ask what this was until it was over, but he told her almost immediately upon her getting herself settled.

"This is called Adagio in G Minor for Strings and Organ. Some also call it Albinoni's Adagio. What do you think of it?"

"It's pretty," she said, listening to the high notes of the ending violin solo. "But it sounds so sad. Are you sad, Papa?" He didn't look sad at all, so that couldn't be, but her young mind couldn't make any other connection.

"No, I'm not sad. But I still like to listen." An organ took over the solo section from the violin, a symphony of strings having filled in between the two. "Let my mind wander."

Now she was curious. "What do you think about?"

He bounced her gently on his knee. "Well, now, that depends."

"On what?"

The accompanying strings took over the melody again. "Each piece of music can tell a story, dove. Sometimes happy, sometimes sad, sometimes loving, sometimes playful. Sometimes a little bit of everything. Just like with books and art and vids. Composers want to express something about life and the world around us; they just have a different way of telling it."

She furrowed her brow. "But how do you know what story they're telling if there are no words or pictures?"

He gently tapped his finger against her nose. "That's the great part. They create their own story, but so can you. The music becomes anything you want it to. You just have to imagine it."

That sounded like fun, even if the song was sad. She always liked to spend time daydreaming on warm days, watching fluffy clouds go by in the blue sky. "I want to imagine too, Papa."

So curled in her papa's lap, she thought of a story, of Miss Rosie-Posie and her evil brother Mr. Pennywhistle chasing her, trying to claim her crown for himself.

The blast of an organ jolted Shepard back to consciousness, the strength of the sound matching the pounding of her head. Her eyes begged her to stay closed, also due to the translucent light shining directly in her face, but she forced them open, sensing there was an important reason she had to get up and moving. She had been put on mandatory shore leave, she remembered that part. But there was something else, something about Joker and dinner, but she never got to it, having gone to...

She raised herself up by the hands as it all came rushing back to her. Brooks, the Archives, the clone, Laura, the CAT-6 mercs, Melrose and Hawkes, the C-Sec agent Ridgefield. The last thing she remembered was leaving that security room, then there had been nothing. Nothing to explain how she had gotten to wherever she was, with random organ music blaring into her skull, the kind of music she had listened to alongside her father. Music that she knew she should have been able to place.

She blinked twice more, trying to clear the remaining blurriness and the darkness at the edges. Next she just had to get herself back on her feet. She clutched the nearest stand closest to her to help give her the boost and stability she needed while her head took its merry time to stop spinning. Once she was finally upright, she took a moment to look at what she had been holding onto. It wasn't just some stand; it held a case on top of it, a barrier acting as glass to protect the contents inside. Her eyes widened as she realized it was a piece of sheet music. One of the edges was slightly burnt and the paper showed the discoloration and fading common with age, but the black notes that dotted the sheet could still be made out clear as day.

Her eyes darted down to the attached datapad, the source of the music, strings accompanying the organ in a haunting yet beautiful way. It read: Vault R-439. Music Fragment by human composer Tomaso Giovanni Albinoni. Discovered by Remo Giazotto in the 20th century. Used to construct the piece Adagio in G Minor for Strings and Organ, also known as Albinoni's Adagio.

She knew that piece sounded familiar, one of the first ones she listened to with her father.

The greater implication of the manuscript's discovery then hit her. The datapad had said "vault." And it didn't look like the insides of vaults she had encountered that evening...

Oh, shit...

She could feel the bottom of her stomach drop as she slowly tilted her head up and saw the metal ceiling above her. She rotated herself around, even though she knew she would see more walls surrounding her, taunting her. A barrier covered the metal sides, a red grid floating above that. At both ends of the capsule was an eerie translucent infrared light, similar in quality to the shade of the other vaults. Someone must have discovered her, knocked her out, and then placed her in one of the capsules, just as the clone had ordered. All because she had insisted on stopping inside that security room. All because she had placed her trust in the wrong people.

Don't panic, Jane. Nothing's fool-proof. Even an iridium vault. There has to be an override somewhere.

The capsule wasn't that long. She started out upright, desperately searching for a hidden switch or panel along the walls and on the ceiling. She then ended up on her hands and knees once she had made her first roundabout on two feet to search the floor, but had just as little success.

This whole night had just become one downward spiral. And the music playing in the background wasn't doing anything to lift the bleak mood, even if it was on its closing notes.

She remembered what the clone had said. Hers would be a drawn-out death. That she would only have enough air for an hour, maybe two if she was lucky. But it was something, even if it wasn't an endless amount. The hope she could come up with a plan in that time would have to sustain her. Otherwise she may as well keel over now and get it over with. But she had a fight to finish. It wasn't her time, not yet. Not before she made her peace and said proper goodbyes (on the chance things went south). Not before she had more time with her friends. With Garrus.

She cycled through the different frequencies on her communicator on the off chance the thick layer of iridium wouldn't block the signal and Ridgefield had made it out unscathed, but all she heard on the other end was complete silence, not even static. Which also meant her ability to send messages omni-tool to omni-tool was a no-go. Course who would she have been able to send a message other than to the mercs since she had switched out Sara's omni-tool with Melrose's.

As she went on another pass through, her thoughts drifted back to Laura, how she got mixed into all of this. Had she been threatened? Had her sister and mother been? Was her sister's death to prove a point or had that been pure coincidence (though Shepard had long ago given up denying the existence of coincidences)? Had she been tempted by an offer of money to pay for her mother's treatments? She had said they had only been able to afford it recently. She had also said she hadn't meant for any of this to happen. She had sounded contrite about all this, the role she played. But her regret did not change what happened here.

Hopefully Shepard would be able to get answers once she figured out how to pull off her greatest escape yet.

"I take it things didn't go well in there."

Liara and Tali had been waiting with bated breaths further down the hall for his report. He motioned them both into what was becoming their hiding place in the secondary upstairs bedroom's bathroom. Garrus hoped it was sound proof enough.

"She shut me out again," Garrus murmured back to Liara. He rubbed at his jaw for a third time, wincing when his talons hit the sweet spot. "Didn't realize she had such a mean cross. Guess those hand-to-hand lessons are paying off."

Both Tali's and Liara's eyes widened. "She actually hit you?"

"Believe me I didn't see it coming either."

Tali rested her back against the shower door. "That just isn't like her. It's almost like she's a completely different person."

"Not entirely, just in certain aspects," Liara supplied.

"The more important question is what to do about it," Garrus said.

Liara tapped her fingers against the rim of the sink. "We could always take Javik up on his offer."

"I've thought about that. But she'd never agree to her mind being probed," Garrus said.

"If she won't tell us what's wrong, we may not have a choice," Liara said, though she looked just as reluctant as Garrus felt. "She can't be losing her calm during the mission."

"She won't. I think she's well aware of the stakes." What transpired in the past couple of minutes made that crystal clear.

Tali pushed herself away from the shower. "I hope you're right. Just wish we could know what was going on. I really hate being in the dark."

So did he. Especially where Jane was concerned.

"I'll talk to Javik, make sure he volunteers himself to be in the main group with Jane. Just in case."

Tali made a disconcerted noise. "There's nothing else we can do?"

"We don't have many options. And the possibility that Brooks is mobilizing her forces as we speak certainly complicates things."

How many times had he heard that over the night, told himself time was a luxury they did not have to sort all this out? He didn't know what he had been hoping for. That brainstorming among the others they could come up with a solution, maybe even figuring out what was wrong on their own. But he should have known. A lifetime of experience had taught Garrus that things were never so simple. Despite the sensible part of him knowing that, it would have been nice to be pleasantly surprised for a change.

Garrus made his way backstairs with Liara and Tali at his heels. On his way into the kitchen and meeting room area, he spotted Kasumi in his peripherals coming out of the first floor bedroom and heard Tali ask what she was doing in there.

"Going through Shep's drawers. Got to have something to do," she said as if it was the most natural thing in the world to go rooting through someone's belongings without their permission. Not that Jane or him had any material item they were trying to conceal from the general public, but he wasn't about to invite anyone for a free look.

Garrus turned into the kitchen part of the center room, his feet finding their way towards James at the counter, who was chewing away with a grimace on his face, with Ash watching. The pizza delivery volus was nowhere to be found; they must have dealt with him while he was upstairs engaging in his battle of wills with Jane.

"Agh! Can't believe they burnt the pepperoni after all the time it took," he exclaimed once he swallowed his bite down.

"So why the hell are you still eating it, Vega?"

"Gotta listen to my stomach, Williams. Who knows how long it'll take to deal with Brooks." He picked up the half-eaten piece with charred circles of meat on cheese. "Nothing gets between a man and his pizza, even burnt pepperoni; it's a sacred bond."

Garrus didn't hear Ash's sarcastic reply, his attention becoming focused on another sight at the entrance to the library/study unfolding before his eyes and his feet once again taking on a mind of their own and guiding him in said direction.

He seemed to be a glutton for punishment, willing to go from one battlefield to another, from facing the ire of his mate to two biotic women in a heated exchange. Eezo was sprawled on the floor by Jack's side, happily munching on the handle of what appeared to be a kitchen pan. Hopefully Jane had more. He couldn't imagine she'd want it back after Eezo was done with it.

"Will you get it through your thick cheerleader head I don't take orders from you?"

"This isn't about taking orders; this is about ensuring that pet of yours isn't more of a liability than it is worth."

"His name is Eezo. Try using it for once," Jack replied, insulted on Eezo's behalf, who was still chewing away on his substitute chew toy.

Miranda continued as if Jack hadn't breathed a word. "Course I shouldn't be surprised. Your pysch profile suggested you were mainly interested in yourself."

"You're telling me I'm only interested in myself? That's just fuckin' perfect," Jack said with a dark laugh. "Did it ever occur to you that I'm trying to grow as a god-damn person?"

"Oh, I could tell you were growing. I assumed it was…whatever that it is you're wearing."

Since Jane was currently in isolation and seemingly less likely to be lenient if she caught the two of them arguing when she explicitly told (ok, ordered) them not to, he decided to take charge of the situation before it escalated into something serious. And things were broken once they served their purpose as projectiles.

"Everything ok here?"

Miranda and Jack both looked up at Garrus's query, though neither of their tense postures relaxed.

"Couldn't be better," Miranda offered an answer that everyone knew was false.

Garrus crossed his arms, his head tilted sideways and browplate raised in what Jane had once termed his "skeptic look." "That's not what it looks like to me."

"Yeah, well, nobody asked your opinion, Garrus," Jack said with as much bite as he had come to expect from her.

"It was just a reminder to keep an eye on her varren. Nothing more. Least that's what I intended."

"Don't you go pinning this on me. You're the one attacking Eezo for no damn reason." Eezo's head rose at his name, craned up at Jack to silently ask what she wanted from him. "Guess getting your big, bubbly butt kicked by some guy with a sword wasn't enough to deflate your cheerleader head."

"You see, best of friends." Miranda gestured between the two of them, the sarcasm practically oozing from her mouth.

"Why do you guys always have to fight? Why can't you just kiss and get it over with?"

The disembodied voice once again belonged to Kasumi, materializing right beside them. He would have had more time to wonder how she had managed to get from one end of the apartment to the other so fast when she had just been talking to Tali, but his brain was still trying to process Kasumi's comments. Which could also be said for Miranda and Jack.

"What?" Miranda asked incredulously.

"Isn't this all just sexual tension? Two powerful biotics, forceful personalities, confident in their sexuality?"

This was just as awkward to watch and listen to as EDI's conversation with Traynor, though the flabbergasted looks on Miranda's and Jack's faces mirroring the other was definitely picture worthy.

"You are shitting me!"

Miranda buried her face in her hands. "Oh my God…"

Least it had given them both something else to focus on other than their hatred for each other. He had to remember to ask Kasumi if that was her master plan all along.

"And just FYI, I'm ready to record it anytime. I'm sure there's a market for it somewhere."

Kasumi then wisely disappeared before either of the two women in question could react. That still didn't stop Jack from issuing a threat once the shock wore off. Fortunately, she recognized that she'd have to put off trying to hurt Kasumi when, as she put it, "the Queen of the Girl Scouts isn't on a war path" and led Eezo back over to the couches by the bar, with Eezo dragging the pan along with him.

"You two really can't be left in the same room, can you?"

Miranda shot him a stern glare. He didn't know how Jane could stand to constantly be a mediator. It seemed like exhausting, thankless work. "Don't you start, Vakarian."

"You can't be at each other's throats during this. Can't you both find common ground? For Shepard's sake?"

The rigidity in Miranda's body released ever-so-slightly at his mention of Jane. "As I said, it was not my intention to pick a fight." She paused a good moment, making Garrus wonder if she would leave at that as before. Then she admitted softly, "Perhaps I am being a bit severe. Letting old wounds fester."

It was a start. "Maybe it would help for Jack to hear that." Possibly. Or it could start another fight, but anything was worth a try.

"I'll…consider it." Miranda then quickly changed the subject. "So how did your talk with Shepard go?"

No sense in sugar coating with her when he hadn't with Liara and Tali. "Think I would have had a better chance with a wall."

"That sounds promising." Miranda sighed. "I suppose that means we're back to square one."

"I didn't realize we even had a square one to go back to."

"It was to keep an eye on her, was it not? You seemed to have done a well enough job in that regard. Suppose if we wanted a more definitive answer, we could always ask your Prothean friend for assistance."

"Liara suggested the same thing."

"The idea certainly has merit, but I'd consider it as a drastic, last resort measure."

Miranda then shifted her focus away from Garrus and towards the stairs. He turned on his heel, watching Jane march down the stairs, fully armored with sniper and pistol. That reminded him he needed to retrieve weapons (he had asked for time to change back into his armor before going out to the arena) before Jane got on him about not being prepared to head out. But to be fair to himself, he hadn't been in much of a position to grab them before.

Excusing himself, he made his way back upstairs, trying hard not to look down at his bag on the way in, at the wine just lying there which should have been opened long ago. The jury was still out whether Jane would even be in the mood to partake in it with him after this was all said and done.

He reached down to grab his Viper, then his Mattock, noticing that Jane had taken both the Widow and the Predator with her along with that new pistol. She'd finally be able to test out that upgrade in real-time. It had seemed to do well for him.

Once back down on the first floor, he was treated to another view of Miranda standing across from Jack and Eezo, who was raised on all four paws, his body giving off a light biotic glow. He clearly realized Miranda was not one of Jack's favorite people in the world. At first he thought he'd have to play referee again when he heard Miranda say that Jack was still violent and maladjusted, but he stopped when she continued.

"But the Illusive Man would never have predicted you'd bond with the Grissom Academy kids. Or this varren. You are growing, despite everything Cerberus did to you."

Jack looked surprised at what seemed to be a sincere admission on Miranda's part when since Jack's arrival they had been at each other's throats, just as surprised when Kasumi hinted they had a thing for each other.

"Wow. Thanks," she said, sounding like she wasn't entirely sure what to make of this, but ending in typical Jack fashion, "I still hate you, but you have fantastic tits."

Miranda let out an unfamiliar sound to Garrus's ears, airy and brief yet genuine. It took a moment for it to register she was laughing. With Jack. "All right. I can live with that."

The biotic aura around Eezo disappeared once he heard the laughter, wagging his tail enthusiastically now that he knew Miranda was not a threat. Garrus just hoped it would last long enough to get this mission done.

He felt a presence nearby and saw Jane. Any other time when Jane helped or saw disparate groups come together, put aside differences, she'd get a look of satisfaction on her face. Not a grin, but just a faint contented smile when she thought no one was watching, happy that another moment of peace had been created in the galaxy.

Jane was not even cracking a smile.

Like with going over to stockpile on weapons and armor over at the arena, they decided to go in groups down to the skycars, make their movements less suspicious considering they were going to go out fully armed. Miranda asked Jane point-blank who she was picking to take point with her, but she told everyone the decision would be made right before they entered the Archives. He caught the eyes of Liara and Javik, who gave a curt nod. Liara must have been able to tell him. They would both volunteer, whether Jane had them in mind or not.

Since there were seventeen of them in total, they'd go down two groups of four at a time, with Joker riding alone. Garrus was in one of the last two groups, not heading out until they received confirmation from the others that they were heading out in the cars.

Two trips down the elevator later, the apartment lobby door opened to reveal a crowd gathering ahead by the entrance to the arena. As they approached the area, Garrus realized the crowd was gathering around the vorcha dealer he had seen before, angry words being exchanged between dealer and a player.

"You cheated me, vorcha! I want my credits back!"

"Human played, human lost! No refund!" the vorcha hissed, already packing up his station for the night, making himself not the least bit suspicious in Garrus's eyes.

The cop in him unable to allow a grifter to continue walking the streets wondered if they should take action, but it turned out they didn't have to left a finger as someone else stepped forward to assist in the situation, in a distinct red armor piece, stepping as gracefully as if gliding on water, a serene exterior concealing what some may call ruthless nature defined by an unyielding code of conduct.

This really was becoming a family reunion.

"You claim this vorcha cheated you?" Samara asked calmly, first gathering the facts before striking against the con-man.

"I saw it! All the cards are exactly the same!"

The vorcha folded his table, making to begin his push through the crowd. Until Samara grabbed him by the arm, the fire in her eyes the only visible sign of emotion on her blank face.

"Asari leave now! Let go of arm!"

"You are going nowhere. By the Justicar Code, I place you under arrest."

No sooner had he heard the word "justicars" did the vorcha succeed in pushing Samara off him and taking off at a sprint. But he didn't get far before he was roped back in with Samara's biotic pull.

Jane waited til Samara had handed the grifter over to a C-Sec officer who had been nearby and rushed over at the commotion to catch her attention.

Her eyes widened slightly at the sight of Jane, but the shock quickly washed over. "Shepard."

"Good to see you, Samara," Jane said, no hint of her previous mood anywhere to be found. Like nothing unusual had transpired the past couple of hours. "Just passing through?"

"I heard about the attack on the restaurant," Samara said when she came up to them. "Your name was thrown around as being at the scene. Rumors, but I wanted to be sure. I canvassed the area without much success and then I happened upon this. Do you know who staged the attack?"

"We're actually about to head out to deal with it now," Jane said, pointing at the others by the skycars. "You can come along if you like."

"It would be an honor to fight alongside you again, Shepard. And to bring justice to the ones who did this so they do not harm anyone again. Or any more marine life," she finished with a less serious demeanor.

That got a smile out of Jane, but he'd barely consider it a full one. Or genuine.

They went back over to the others, who welcomed Samara's presence. As James put it, it never hurt to have an extra gun.

With Samara adding an extra body to the group, Jane decided she'd go with Joker in the third car while the others spread out among the other two.

James called shotgun on the one, with Ash following him. Miranda climbed into the back, Eezo following her in. Looked like Eezo was taking an interest in her now that she and Jack were (for the moment) less hostile. That left Samara, Garrus, Cortez and Zaeed with the last one.

"Alright, everyone, strap in. EDI's says the Archives aren't far from here, but we won't know what to expect. It could get bumpy," Cortez said as he powered up the skycar.

The rest of the group hadn't gotten too far ahead, having kept their speeds slow until they had caught up. So far everything seemed to be going according to plan.

"So what brought you to the Citadel, Samara?" Cortez asked the asari behind him, whose hands were folded carefully in her lap.

"I wanted to take care of some matters before I headed off to battle. I was meant to go out a few days ago, but my transportation arrangements were interrupted by Reapers attacking the vessel I was to travel on. I was to go today until I heard about the restaurant attack. Suppose I will have to find new arrangements again if the crew does not wait for me." She did not sound as if she felt inconvenienced by that. He couldn't imagine any asari transport ships turning down a justicar's request to travel with them.

"Is everything good with your daughter?" Garrus asked, remembering the last time he had seen Samara's daughter, the devastation and abominations created at the monastery.

"It has not been easy for her, but she is safe. Given time, the pain of Rila's passing will fade."

As Samara finished, the vehicle faded to silence, leaving Garrus alone with thoughts he didn't really want to be alone with. As they got closer to their destination, Garrus couldn't shake the feeling that the answer to Jane and her behavior was there, practically screaming in his face, but he just couldn't make it out.

They encountered heavier traffic the closer they got to the Archives, further proving that life was seemingly going on like normal, like there wasn't a machine race out there going on a genocidal rampage. They landed without much fanfare on the roof. He would have thought Brooks would have already laid a trap for them there. She must have been in too much of a hurry to think of stationing people there.

"Ice cold, that one," Zaeed said after Samara and Cortez had exited the skycar. "I always liked that about her."

He could see where this was going, just like with James. "Think you can get her to warm up to you, Zaeed?"

Zaeed turned into his seat to face Garrus. "Even a ruthless killer's got to have a soft side, Vakarian."

Garrus climbed out of the car, spotting Jane getting out of Joker's car and motioning everyone getting out of their cars over.

"It was Shepard."

Garrus turned back to Zaeed who was just exiting the car, his expression serious.

"What?"

"The job the Illusive Man was willing to pay a shit-load of credits for. He wanted me to kill Shepard, take her out. He contacted me personally for it."

Given the number of enemies Jane seemed to make, it was amazing no one had been hired to murder her sooner. And if anyone wanted Jane out of the picture, it would be the Illusive Man, though Garrus had seen him as more wanting to capture Jane and re-purpose her for his own needs (installing a control chip, for one). Sending her out as Cerberus's weapon instead of outright killing her.

"Why are you telling me this now?"

Zaeed shrugged as if to say "why not?" "Because you asked. And had a change of heart about keeping it secret. I should've told her before when I met up with her, but didn't see the point. Hardly the time to hear someone you know was hired to kill you, eh?"

"I don't think that's something there's ever going to be a good time for."

"You got a point." They began heading towards where the others were gathering. "Right after Vido escaped, I might have thought about it. But being on her ship, on the suicide mission…she's a hell of a woman. She may get under peoples' skin, mine included, but she can win anyone over to her side and is strong as hell. She's earned my respect." Zaeed roughly patted the back of Garrus's shoulder pad. "You're lucky, Vakarian."

He didn't need to be reminded of that. He was already well aware how fortunate he was to have her in his life.

"So you didn't say what you told the Illusive Man when he revealed the job," he said instead, not wanting to confess such personal things to Zaeed. Jane was the only one who needed to hear them.

A slow, satisfied smirk crept up onto Zaeed's face, entertained by the memory. "I told him to shove those credits up his arsehole."

It was finally happening. After all the planning, the waiting, the close calls, it was finally happening. The moment when she reveals herself to Shepard's crew and have them executed.

It was strange. She felt triumphant, certainly. Despite Shepard's thoughts to the contrary, she had been able to fool them all well enough to lure them here. But the clarity she had been hoping to have by the end, the reason for this charade, was nowhere to be found. All she had were theories, no definitive answer for why, why they followed Shepard. The asari justicar was yet another example. Without even flinching, without knowing the enemy she was about to face, she offered her assistance.

Could she inspire such loyalty among her mercs?

She scolded herself for even asking that, for such weakness. Of course they would follow her; she had the credits, she had the authority, she held the keys to the freedom of some of them in her hands. Why wouldn't they follow her? Who else would they follow?

Perhaps Brooks had been right. She didn't need to know what made Shepard so special. She could command, lead, without whatever quality Shepard had. After all, wasn't she the true Commander Jane Shepard? The other was just a pretender who refused to acknowledge her full potential. Who got lucky.

When Lawson asked her who she'd take with her, she had not been lying when she said she wanted time to think about it, that she'd prefer the decision be made at the Archives. She wanted to note the biggest threats to her. Who could figure out what was going on before she was ready.

The turian, of course. She could sense he would push himself into her squad anyway, despite their fight, and she would oblige him. Fulfill her vow to Shepard she would take care of him herself.

The Prothean, who was suspicious by nature and had that sensory ability. She was not about to take any chances with that.

It was unknown how much Lawson knew about her, found out she made it out of the attack. Being in charge of the Lazarus Project and having her nose in every detail, she had to have known something. And it would certainly please Brooks to axe her off.

And the asari. A cheerleader for Shepard, certainly, but perhaps able to put the pieces together and realize she was the one leading them all into a trap if given the chance. There was the possibility the quarian might too, given her just as close relationship with Shepard as the asari and the turian, but the asari was an information broker by trade. She would be the more likely to recognize deception. Then she remembered that drone of hers the asari insisted dragging around. That damn VI could cause problems. But she would just have to ensure the asari and the drone were separated from one another, insist that it would be more useful elsewhere in the Archives.

She was certain they would be surprised by the larger than usual number she'd take with her (for what she knew of Shepard, she only brought two at any time with her), but they would not argue it.

Then once inside, she could contact Brooks and the mercs, tell them to lie in wait.

Phase one of the plan was over. Phase two was about to get under way.

For anyone interested, there are multiple versions of the piece Shepard hears on YouTube. I'd recommend taking a listen if you are into classical music. In my opinion, it's a beautiful piece.

Stay tuned for the next, much anticipated chapter :)