Chapter 14

The next few days were uneventful but the atmosphere in the bunker was nervous. People were suspicious. Eyeing each other, expecting everyone to be the killer. But despite that, no major incidents happened.

Abby spent most of her time working on the database but the progress was slow and there was nothing she could do to speed it up. So far, the samples they collected didn't match anyone in the database, and processing new samples took a long time. Desperate to solve the murder, waiting around for the data to be processed was frustrating for everyone involved.

Sitting on the couch in Kane's office, Abby was focused on her datapad, waiting for new results to come in. Naively hoping that staring at the screen would make them appear faster.

The office décor was traditional, from before the bombs, cozy even. A bright room filled with orange and brown tones gave it a homely feeling. A comfortable couch was placed opposite the chancellor's desk which Kane was currently sitting at trying his hardest to focus on papers lying in front of him but the words he read didn't make any sense. His mind was too preoccupied, wondering about the results they were waiting for.

His head shot up as Abby's datapad finally pinged. With her fingers Abby tapped and scrolled, muttering under her breath as she read. Her brows furrowed. Marcus twirled his pen trying to stop himself from distracting her with questions.

"It's not Joe," Abby finally said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, the evidence is clear. There's a minuscule chance of them being wrong but it's so small that there should be no doubt about it. Joe may be an asshole but he's an innocent one. At least in this instance."

"What about Frank?"

"Haven't I told you?"

"Told me what?"

"Frank refused to give a sample."

"Why?"

"Because we asked him to. He's not going to cooperate unless he gets something out of it. You know that better than I do."

"Damn it!" He slammed his hand on the desk causing Abby to jump in surprise. He leaned back in his chair. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "But we're back to square one if we can't get his sample."

"If he is guilty, we'll be able to eliminate everyone else from the suspect pool, then we will know it's him. He'll be forced to give us a sample to prove his innocence," Abby reassured him.

"But that'll take time. What if he attacks again? We could force him—"

"You know that we can't do that!" Abby stopped his train of thought. She watched him as he closed his eyes and ran his hand through his face with a sigh. His eyes were tired, dark circles more prominent than ever. She placed her datapad on the table, stood up, and walked over to the small counter in the corner of the room with an electric kettle. She could tell how stressed he was. As she turned on the kettle, she grabbed a bag of chamomile tea and dropped it in a mug. Waiting for the kettle to boil, she fished out an energy bar from her bag and placed it on his desk.

"Drink," she instructed. "And eat." She put his tea next to his food.

Marcus opened his eyes. Surprised, he looked at the tea, then at Abby, and back at the tea again. He appreciated the gesture; she didn't even know how much it meant to him.

"Thank you." He reached out for the mug. The tea was too hot to drink so he nursed it in his hands, warming them as he blew some air into it trying to cool the liquid down.

"He left enough evidence for us to catch him," Abby said. Kane seemed unconvinced. "We will catch him," she reassured him. "Sooner or later, we will get whoever is responsible and they will pay for their crime. It's not like they can run away." She certainly hoped she was right. A chill ran down her spine at the possibility that the person could never be caught.

Without a word, Marcus nodded staring at his tea as he slowly brought it to his mouth to take a sip. The delicious liquid warmed him inside. "Thank you," he said again, not quite sure if he was referring to the tea or her reassuring words.

Abby's eyes scanned him carefully, her doctor's hat on.

"Have you been sleeping?" she asked.

"Have you?" he fired back.

"It's not about me."

Marcus weighted his reply before opening his mouth to speak but she beat him to it. "You're the chancellor. You can't help others when you're not well." She lectured him.

"I could say the same thing about you."

Abby pressed her lips together, a snarky remark ready to slip but she stopped herself not wanting to go there. Instead, she chose a more diplomatic approach. "We need you in top shape if we want to catch this guy. Please, get some rest."

Sipping his tea, Marcus nodded in reply and silence fell between them. Realizing she was no longer needed in his office; Abby went over to the couch and packed her things.

"I'll see you in the morning," she said walking out of the room without looking at him. She could feel his piercing gaze at the back of her head as she crossed the room, but she didn't turn around.

"See you in the morning," Marcus muttered under his breath once the door closed behind Abby.

Over the coming days, the bunker was filled with a sense of mourning and fear, but life had slowly been coming back to normal. It always surprised Abby how life just went on despite tragic events and how quickly people moved on. As for the case, there was not much they could do except wait for the sample analysis to be finished. There were no witnesses, the crime scene didn't give them anything besides some more DNA evidence. Waiting around for Abby to get results and doing nothing frustrated Marcus. He felt useless. Abby worked around the clock to finish their database but there was only so much she could do. The rest was up to their equipment.

In the meantime, Leanna started working in the medical. She had a lot to learn. While she was experienced in some things, without access to all of humanity's knowledge, her abilities were severely limited. That's where Abby came in, trying to teach her new techniques, and giving her access to resources to learn from. To practice, Leanna was also allowed to work with pregnant women under Abby's watchful eye.

Abby found Leanna to be a quick learner, but she was reluctant to change and apprehensive of new methods. On a few occasions, Abby found Leanna rolling her eyes when she received corrections. It wasn't an attitude Abby expected from an adult in a professional setting, but she was too exhausted and chose to ignore it, pretending she hadn't noticed.

Apart from her attitude problems, Leanna seemed nice. Polite and hard-working, even if a bit set in her ways. She seemed unsure of Abby and she didn't quite trust her expertise but there was nothing Abby could do but be patient.

"Done." Leanna plopped down in a chair by Abby's desk.

"How did it go?"

"She's not pregnant. Yet. But she said that she'd keep on trying." Leanna winked at her suggestively. Abby nodded from under her untamed hair that was flowing wildly.

Leanna chewed on her lip as she played with the fabric of her coat. "Can I ask you something?" She braved.

"Of course," replied Abby.

"You and Marcus…"

Abby's head snapped up. She expected a medical question, not this.

"What's the deal with the two of you?"

"Umm," Abby mulled over her reply. It wasn't a conversation she was willing to have. "What do you mean?"

"There's clearly some history there."

"We're friends." Abby hoped a short reply would put a stop to this.

"Uh-huh." Leanna clearly didn't believe her. "There's more to that than that."

Abby clenched her hands and sighed.

"Like I said, we're friends." Her voice was firm. If Leanna wanted to know more, she would have to ask Marcus. Abby wasn't going to open up to a complete stranger but if he chose to share their history with Leanna, he was free to do so. "Now, what time is your next appointment?" She swiftly changed the topic.

Leanna sighed, annoyed with the outcome of the conversation.

"I'm done for the day."

Abby nodded. The conversation was over, and they both knew it. Leanna rubbed her knees and got up.

"I, uh-huh, am going to go and get lunch." She pointed in the direction of the mess hall.

"Enjoy your afternoon," said Abby turning her attention back to the screen next to her.

End of Chapter 14