I don't know why I ever thought Leon's hair was DARK BLONDE. I'm embarrassed at myself. I'm re-watching the game's playthrough (for the billionth time), and his hair is clearly chestnut brown. I guess depending on the scenes his hair kiiiind of looked like a dark, almost brown blonde ?? I already got Simmons hair wrong too, saying it was pale blonde (somehow I thought it was platinum blonde in my head). I love editing my mistakes

Chapter 8. Silver-lining

Ashley and Leon's undercover operation was in motion. She'd informed Mr. Thompson of her decision – and after he'd expressed how glad he was at the conclusion she'd come to, they proceeded to think of a plan. It was simple. Play the game and gather as much information as possible – and when they found something incriminating, a weak spot the government could use against him, they would pull out and Derek Simmons would be arrested. It sounded simple in theory…

Leon had been in a deplorable mood after their meeting with Mr. Thompson, and even more so after he'd called the facility to inform Simmons they'd be coming to meet him. The person at the other end of the line had been baffled – it's like a patient telling a doctor when they wanted to meet, but her bodyguard had practically growled, "Then make it happen," in answer.

It wasn't long before Ashley couldn't take it anymore. "You don't have to do this, you know." She blurted out, at one point. She'd been pretending to busy herself with her laptop, but the glare in Leon's eyes was making her too anxious to keep quiet.

He stopped the furious tapping of his foot, the glare disappearing from his face as he looked at her. "What ?"

She pursed her lips, pausing to think about what she was going to say, then pushed her laptop away. "The mission. I never asked you if you wanted to be a part of it. I'm sorry, that was inconsiderate of me, but I'm sure I can find another bodyguard or agent to –"

"Ashley." He interrupted her blabbering. "You're not doing this without me. Besides, I told you – I owe the president."

There were multiple things she wanted to say to that, but her curiosity won out. "What do you owe him ?"

He smiled one of his famous half smiles. "It's a secret."

She scoffed at that, mock-indignant. "Fine, keep your secrets. But are you sure you want to be a part of it ?"

"Even if it was just me, I would accept the mission anyway."

Ashley leaned back onto the couch, crossing her arms. "Then what's got you in such a bad mood ?"

He scratched at the back of his head, uncharacteristically awkward. Eventually he sighed. "I'm worried about you." He admitted. "We've got no idea what Simmons' capable of – what he really wants, and how far he'd go to achieve his goals."

Warmth spread throughout at his words. He was worried about her. "That's what we're here to find out, isn't it ?" She said softly.

"Yeah, but at what cost ?"

She bit her lip, and then leaned forward on her elbows towards him. "Hey. I don't know what's waiting for us, but…we've got each other. We're a team, remember ?"

He huffed, lips stretching to a fuller smile. "A team. Right."

"Besides, it can't be worse than what we've already faced with Saddler. You're like a one-man army." She gestured at his body, making him snort.

He gave her a withering stare. "Are you trying to jinx us ?"

Ignoring him, she brought the laptop back and got on her favorite website to buy clothes. "So, what do you think I should wear to avoid attention ?" Their meeting with the evil scientist was tomorrow, and she needed new clothes by then – unless she was planning on going with Leon's t-shirt hanging down her shoulder.

"Sweatshirts. Sweatpants. Hoodies. Black, gray, and brown."

Ashley gave him an unimpressed look over the screen, but knew he was right. "What about white ?"

He pursed his lips, giving it a thought. "Should be fine, as long as your face is hidden. Doesn't have to be a hood – could be hats and glasses too."

"Got it."

But despite her own reassurances, the next day came far too quickly – and Ashley was a nervous wreck. Her new clothes had arrived in the morning, but she found no joy in opening the packages. She was about to face a man who had inflicted unimaginable pain on her person, a dangerous man who had the entire government in a tight spot, and the thought made her want to regurgitate her breakfast.

"Ready ?" Leon asked her, the one word unexpectedly soft, as if he knew how scared she was. But the reminder that he was here with her, and they'd be doing this side by side, made her take a deep breath and nod.

"I am now."

…

Ashley kept her arms wrapped tightly around Leon's waist as he drove them to the facility. She'd looked green enough to hurl the contents of her stomach out earlier, but now he could feel her relaxing against the wind – stronger still as he accelerated. "Woohoo !" She exclaimed like he had expected her to, and he grinned.

It reminded him of their hasty exit from the disintegrating island. You like thrill rides ? He'd asked her, and she'd replied, I love 'em ! She hadn't been kidding. She really did like them, and he started imagining taking her to an attraction park to try all those adrenaline-pumping rides – when his brain helpfully reminded him, she's the president's daughter, remember ?

That's right. He was her bodyguard, and she was his charge. They had no reason to hang out outside of their work relationship. In fact, if Leon hadn't been an agent – they wouldn't even have met in the first place. Their worlds were two different spheres that didn't touch…and it wasn't right for him to want more.

Thankfully, they arrived at the facility before his thoughts strayed farther and farther from professionalism. They drove into the underground parking lot, and started making their way for the elevator…when they halted in their steps, someone already waiting for them. The blonde woman he'd seen last time.

"Emily…" He heard Ashley mumble under her breath.

"Mr. Kennedy, Ashley, I'm so glad you've decided to come back. We are truly sorry for the pain you had to go through last time." The woman said.

His charge seemed like she wanted to say something undiplomatic, but instead she answered, "Yeah, well…as long as it doesn't happen again."

The woman smiled and turned towards the elevator. Following after her, Leon caught Ashley's eye and smiled faintly. Good job, he was saying. He wasn't sure he'd have self-control like that once they were in front of Simmons.

"Have you recovered from the experiment ?" Emily asked as the elevator took them into the bowels of hell.

"Mostly. I'm still a little sore."

"She had a fever on the first day, and she could barely walk." Leon added, enjoying the guilt making blondie's face twitch. Ashley nudged his rib behind the scientist's back, giving him a wide-eyed look, like stop, but the corners of her mouth were tilted in amusement.

"We really are sorry for what you had to go through, but thanks to the experiment – we were able to confirm that the Plaga really is merged with your DNA, and therefore cannot be purged by the chair without also killing you in the process." She explained cheerfully.

Ashley blanched. Leon's hands tightened into fists. "So what you're saying is that before I came to get my charge, that machine was in the process of killing her ? And you knew ?"

A strained silence filled the elevator before Emily replied, "Y-Yes, we had her vitals on-screen…but Dr. Simmons wanted to see how far…I mean, how much of the Plaga could be removed before she…"

"Before she died ?" Leon snapped. Ashley threw him a calming look, running her hand on his forearm. It's okay, the touch conveyed. He closed his eyes for a second, taking a deep breath. Between him and her – Leon was the professional. So act like one.

"…yes. But please trust we wouldn't have gone that far." As far as killing a person like they're nothing more than test subjects ? Jesus, I hope not, he thought snidely. What they'd done was already crossing the line, and would've been enough to send all of them to court.

The elevator door opened, and Leon stuck close to his charge as Emily led the way through a new route. Finally, they came to a door that said "study" on the metal plate – which is exactly what it was, a place for people to study in.

There were multiple computers, books, microscopes, and a few nameless chemicals. It was messiness combined with a surgical vibe, and the type of relatively harmless room you'd expect to see in a research facility. There were no torture devices in sight. Simmons was sitting in front of one of the screens, and he looked up at their arrival. "Ah, Ms. Graham. You've arrived." He stood up and shook her hand, doing the same for Leon, who belligerently took his. "I knew it wouldn't be long before you returned to us. I'm assuming something must've happened ?

Straight to business, it seemed. Jackass. Ashley, doing a mighty good job of keeping her emotions in check, explained everything that had happened, from her strange dreams to the red eyes. "Interesting…" Simmons muttered. "It seems like you might've retained some of the Ganados's faculties. But to what extent ?"

"Is there a risk I'll turn into one of them ?" She asked, and Leon could tell she wasn't acting up the fear on her face.

"It's unlikely. The parasites were growing inside those villagers – using their bodies as vessels, whereas you merged with yours, absorbing it into your DNA. You've become something else entirely, but what…that's the question we need to find answer to. And until then, you are still considered a risk."

"But Emily said you were trying to kill as much of the Plaga as possible without killing me too. Doesn't that mean you've removed part of it, somehow ?"

"That's what we're going to find out today. Emily ?"

The scientist smiled widely, gesturing to a sleek counter. "If you would put your arm over here. We need to draw more blood samples to see the effects of the chair on your body. If you would ?"

"I hate needles…" Ashley whispered to herself before walking up to the woman. The former glanced at Leon, and he gave her an encouraging smile.

She winced and closed her eyes as the thick needle went into her skin, and began sucking up the dark red blood from her vein. The process was repeated a second time. "Done!" Announced Emily, cheerful as ever. "I'll be back in an hour or so, Dr. Simmons." The blondie walked out of the room with the little bit of Ashley.

Now, Ms. Graham. I'm going to ask you a few… personal questions regarding your time in Spain."

"Uh…why ?"

"I'd like to see if your 'red eyes' of yours come out when triggered by an emotional response, or if they are merely coincidental."

"I wasn't thinking about anything in particular when I saw them."

"Be that as it may, let's not leave any stones unturned, shall we ?"

With that said, the group moved to a room that was completely white on the inside – a shock after being surrounded by dark metal at every turn. At the center was a rectangular table with two chairs, and an odd-looking helmet. If helmets had skeletons, it would look like that – the bones being metal and cables intertwined together, and those little white circles that connected to skin. Shepherd was also there, waiting for them.

"Take a seat." Simmons gestured to the chair, but Ashley hesitated when Shepherd lifted the helmet and started aiming it for her head.

"What's that ?" Leon asked, speaking up for the first time in a while.

"A device to read brain activity. Nothing that will hurt her." Simmons promised.

Eyeing the thing a couple seconds longer, Leon gave a nod. Ashley sat down and pursed her lips as Shepherd placed the helmet on top of her head, connecting the circles to her temples and forehead. As soon as he was done, he left through a different door than the one they'd used to come in. "While I ask you the questions, James will be in the other room supervising your brain activity for anything unusual."

"Got it."

…

"How did you feel after Saddler had you taken you against your will ?"

Going right down to the nitty-gritty, apparently, Ashley thought sardonically. "Terrified." What else did he expect ? "But…the more time passed, and the less scared I was."

"Was that before or after you were injected with the Plaga ?"

"Um…after, I suppose."

"Did you feel any different upon returning home ?"

"In what way ?"

"Physically, mentally. Whichever."

She had to resist the desire to roll her eyes. This felt like one of her appointments with Mr. Bancroft, minus the caring therapist; Mr. Simmons didn't care about her at all. "I felt fine physically. Mentally…well, like anyone would be after going through something like that."

"And then you started experiencing recurring nightmares, didn't you ?"

Ashley frowned at the man sitting before her. "How did you know that ?"

"Mr. Bancroft gave us access to your files for the purpose of understanding your phenomenon better."

He's lying. She knew Mr. Bancroft wouldn't show her files for anything, which meant Simmons must've used his so-called 'influence' to force the man's hand. She should've let it go, but her temper flared. "That was confidential !"

"And essential in understanding what's going on." He retorted, nonplussed by her outburst.

"You could've just asked me – the same way you could've told me what that machine was really going to do to me !"

This time Simmons' eyes narrowed, and his voice took a dangerous tone as he said his next words. "I was hoping we could move on from that ordeal without any hard feelings."

There was definitely a threat somewhere in there, but Ashley was getting more heated up by the second. " Move on ?" She scoffed, opening her mouth for a scathing reply – when a hand found her shoulder.

"Maybe we should take a break. Ashley still hasn't fully recovered." Leon said.

Simmons watched the two of them for a little longer than necessary, before smiling slowly. "…of course. I'll go check in with James while Ms. Graham…gathers her thoughts."

The condescension in his voice wasn't missed, and she clenched her teeth to avoid insulting him as he walked out the room. "Sorry." She apologized as soon as they were alone.

"You have every right to be angry." Her bodyguard answered. And then he leaned down towards her face – making her heartbeat accelerate, when he whispered in her ear. "Be careful what you say in here. They're probably listening to us right now." She swallowed, nodding in understanding. "How are you doing ?"

"Fine, I guess." She shrugged. "Not too bad for a first day, huh ?"

He surprised her by rolling his eyes. "You really are trying to jinx us, aren't you ?" She laughed despite herself, and even Leon had a little smile on his lips. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad if they kept finding moments like these to keep laughing.

Suddenly, she remembered something her therapist had said. You have to let yourself heal. And perhaps, that starts with finding a silver-lining.

A silver-lining ?

That's right. Something positive in the things that happened to you.

Positive ? I was kidnapped !

I know, know…but think about it this way; something pushed you to move forward, didn't it ? A feeling of hope, of what could be. A dream of tomorrow, something that drove you to survive.

"You're the silver-lining..." Ashley blurted out, looking at Leon in a new light. His dark brows furrowed in confusion, but before he had time to question her – the door opened and Simmons walked back in with a self-satisfied expression, like he knew something they didn't.

"Shall we resume ?" He asked, and she wondered what had happened to make him so cheerful.

"Sure."

"So, these dreams. Your files say that you've been dreaming of yourself causing harm to others. Is that right ?"

She gritted her teeth. "Yes."

"And you had red eyes too, not to mention powers beyond human capabilities. Do you think you there is any chance these dreams are premonitory – an indication of the future ?"

She swallowed convulsively, a chill creeping up her back. She wanted to say no – but long before she even knew that the Plaga was in fact still in her body, her nightmares had scared her. She never thought she'd literally become the monster in her head, but some part of her still feared. "You tell me. You're the expert here." Ashley replied in a clipped tone.

"Ah, but I'm the one asking the questions, Ms. Graham. You're the one providing the answers." He was enjoying this, the bastard.

"…I don't know. That's why I'm here, isn't it ? To find out." She didn't know if she wanted to yell or cry at having her weakness prodded.

"Tell me, Ms. Graham." The scientist leaned across the table, cold eyes boring into hers. "Did you enjoy it ?" He whispered.

She blinked. "What are you talking about ?"

"In the dreams, you said you were evil…did you enjoy the taste of darkness, the thrill of causing pain – of inflicting death to the weak ? Did you enjoy being the cause of despair ?"

Ashley's hands slammed down on the table. At first she thought she was having a fearful reaction – something like survival instincts taking over her brain and making her leap away from this psycho, but…the feeling wasn't fear. It was anger. She wasn't recoiling, but leaning forward, glaring.

"Ashley !" Leon called, his hand reaching out to grab her arm, as if to hold her back, but Simmons was laughing.

"So the trigger is emotional, after all."

She turned to look back at her bodyguard, her partner, her friend. His eyes immediately zeroed in on hers; they were red. And where her hands had slammed down, she'd left indentations in the metal.

To be Continued…