"Thane is not your typical assassin. He was calm, collected, refined. Oddly compassionate when he needed to be. More moralistic than I thought. He wanted to protect his son from the worst of society. And we were running out of time to stop that kid from doing something he would regret."

After once again checking in with Bailey, Kacey and Thane headed towards Dark Star, where they were told they could find 'Mouse', the errand boy that was last seen speaking to Koylat. Kacey knew it wasn't too far away from where the C-Sec desk was, and was curious as to why Bailey hadn't thrown him in a cell. Once they had found Mouse, loitering around outside Dark Star, Kacey overheard Mouse finishing up his phone call.

"Yeah. Sure. I can get you two cases by the end of the day." Mouse said.

"You Mouse?" Kacey said.

"What do you–oh, shit!" Mouse said as he turned around to face the pair, "Kois? I thought you retired! Commander Shepard?! I thought you died! What do you want with me?"

"Be still, Mouse." Thane said calmly, "You can change your pants in a moment."

"You know Thane?" Kacey mused.

"Koris? He didn't–?" Mouse said, "Uh, if he didn't say nothing, I ain't either."

"When we heard the name, I didn't think it could be the same Mouse." Thane explained, "He was a contact on the Citadel when I was active. He and some other children would gather information on my targets."

"You put children in danger to spy for you?"

"Children. The poor. My people's saying for their kind is 'drala'fa': the ignored. They're everywhere, see everything. Yet they are never seen." Thane replied before turning his attention to Mouse, "You gave another drell instructions for an assassination. Who's the target?"

"I…I don't know. I didn't ask." Mouse stuttered, "Cause the people I work for? They can make me disappear. I'd like to help you, Krois. You always done right by us. But I ain't gonna die for you."

"Look, you know Thane." Kacey reasoned, "He wouldn't ask if it wasn't important. Do it for him."

"I want to. He was always nice to us. But these people ain't nice, Krois."

"Nobody's going to know that you talked to us."

"Mouse, I swear that you won't be named." Thane said.

"All right…all right." Mouse relented, "He came with that holo you took of me. He said he wanted a job. Didn't matter what it was, he just wanted one. I ran through all your old contacts to see who might give him a shot. The guy who offered was Elias Kelham."

"Elias Kelham?" Kacey mused.

"Human. Moved to the Citadel about ten years ago." Mouse explained, "He was little people when you were here, Krios. He got big after the geth attack. Lots of the big guys from before got cacked. All of them big fancy apartments up on the Presidium. Now he runs the rackets on the lower end of the Ward. Shin Akiba. He's seriously bad news."

"You did good, Mouse."

"Yeah. Hope I live long enough to pat myself on the back."

"Kelham will never know." Thane replied.

"I hope not." Mouse replied, "I'm out of here, Krios. Next time you're in town, just don't bring family."

…

Kacey and Thane walked down the stairs, Kacey observed Thane's concerned expression. She could see that he was worried about his son.

"You all right, Thane?" Kacey asked.

Thane sighed, "Mouse knew more about my life than Kolyat ever did. He smiles up at me, broken teeth and scabby knees. Bare feet black. A dead-end future looking up at me. Worshipping the petty gifts I offer. I was the only good thing he had, back then. But I left him, as I left Kolyat."

"Don't blame yourself."

"If I don't, who will?" Thane replied, "We must carry the weight of our decisions, Shepard. You of all people, know this"

"I know." Kacey responded, "Still trying to bear that weight."

The conversation dropped off there as they reached Bailey's desk. She hoped that they could reach Kolyat soon and that this mission was over soon.

"It was hitting a little too close to home. It was making me uneasy."

"You talk to Mouse?" Bailey asked as Kacey approached, "Did you get the name of the guy he's working with?"

"Elias Kelham." Kacey replied bluntly.

"Kelham? Shit." Bailey mused, "Ah look. This is awkward. Kelham and I have a–an agreement. He doesn't cause too much trouble, and 'buys' tickets to the C-Sec charity ball from me. In return, I ignore him."

"So, he bribes you?" Kacey scoffed, arms crossed, "So, is helping us too inconvenient for you now?"

"I said I'd help." Bailey replied, "It's just…There'll be repercussions if I don't handle it right. It's a delicate matter. He and I…give each other space to keep the peace. I'll get some of my people to bring him in and set him up in a private room. Shepard, you can interrogate him yourself and I'll stay out of sight. If I'm lucky, Kelham will believe that I had nothing to do with it."

"Good. Now haul his ass in here." Kacey said.

…

"We've got Kelham." Kacey said as Elias was dragged kicking and screaming into the interrogation room, "Tell Bailey we're ready."

"He'll expect me to get him out of this." Bailey said as he approached.

"Not today, I think." Thane replied.

"Bastard's luck is about to run out." Kacey mused.

"Maybe not." Bailey said, looking over towards the C-Sec entrance, "His lawyer's just showed up. I'll stall him the best I can, but you two need to work fast."

"Can I not just wave my Spectre status around and make him go away?" Kacey asked.

"Maybe. I'll tell him Kelham's being questioned by one, but whether or not he'll believe me is another story. Good luck in there."

Bailey walked off towards Kelham's lawyer, hopefully to pacify him before he stormed in to see his client. Kacey knew they needed to work fast however interrogations were never a fast process; in her experience, they could take several hours. She wasn't that patient and she knew that Kelham was probably going to be a complete asshole. If they were going to do this, they needed to play it smart.

"Any thoughts on how we approach this?" Thane asked.

"You talk to him, be the 'Good Cop'." Kacey said, "Try to appeal to self-interest and his ego, and I'll kick his ass if he doesn't play ball."

"Very well. If you are certain that'll work." Thane replied.

"It might, but if it doesn't, I do have a plan B." Kacey mused, "And for his sake, he better not make me use plan B."

Kelham was shouting for Bailey as they entered the room, strapped down to a chair. The guy had a pretty punchable face, and Kacey wanted to hit it the moment they walked in. particularly as Kelham scowled at the pair as they entered, snapping, "Who the hell are you two?"

"We are not C-Sec and they have nothing to do with this." Kacey said plainly, "We just want a few answers from you, off the record. Answer our questions, and we'll let you go."

"Yeah right." Kelham replied sarcastically, "Not C-Sec but using their interrogation room? Hmph, whatever you say, lady."

Kacey scoffed, "Word is, you hired an assassin to take somebody out. Who's the target?"

"I want a lawyer." Kelham said.

"He has yet to arrive." Thane replied, "We are trying to locate him."

"Then I ain't saying a damn word until he gets here." Kelham smirked, "I don't know who the hell you two are, but you're in way over your heads. Bailey won't let you lay a finger on me."

Kacey slapped the side of Kelham's face, wiping the smirk off his face, "Would you look at that? He let me hit you."

"What the fuck–?"

"Hey, hey." Kacey said, snapping her fingers in front of Kelham's face, "Pay attention, Mister Kelham, or things are going to get a hell of a lot worse for you."

"Control your temper. We want him to talk." Thane replied before turning his attention back to Kelham, "Sorry. My associate gets a little…excited during interrogations."

"Hit me again, asshole." Kelham said to Kacey smugly, "Every punch is–"

"Don't have to tell me twice." Kacey said excitedly as she punched him, leaving Kelham with a bloody nose.

"Do you know what I'll do to you when I get out of here?"

"Nothing. Cause you'll be leaving here in a body bag."

"Who the hell do you think you are?"

Kacey grabbed a hold of his neck, applying a small amount of pressure, "I'm a Council Spectre and I'm done being patient. Give me the name or I'll drag your ass outta that chair and beat you so bad the only person you'll need is the coroner!"

"Bullshit!"

Kacey applied a bit more pressure, "You want to fuck around and find out?"

"That was plan B?" Kaidan asked, "Threatening him?"

"No, plan B was dragging his ass out of the chair and pinning him up against the wall." Kacey answered, "Look, we didn't have a lot of time and you know I'm not that patient."

"Joram! Joram Talid! A turian from the eight-hundred blocks!" Kelham wheezed.

Kacey let go as Kelham took deep breaths, "See, that wasn't so hard now, was it?"

"You bitch!" Kelham shouted, "I swear, when I get out of here–"

"You'll do what?" Kacey scoffed, "What is it that you plan to do to me exactly?"

"Let's leave." Thane said, "We have Kolyat's target, we don't need to antagonise Mister Kelham further."

"Fine, fine." Kacey mused, walking out of the room.

Thane followed Kacey out, while Kelham's lawyer ran into the interrogation room. Bailey looked exasperated as the pair approached.

"You get anything out of Kelham?" He asked.

"Assassination." Kacey replied, "He ordered an assassination hit on a turian named Joram Talid. Know anything about him?"

"Joram? Yeah. You've probably seen his posters around the Citadel. He's promising to end organised crime on the ward, but his message is all wrapped up in race politics. The guy is anti-human."

"You can openly campaign as anti-human now?" Kacey mused.

"Before the Battle of the Citadel, the alien population thought we were nothing more than violent upstarts. Look what's happened since then; a human fleet guarding the Citadel and a C-Sec filled with humans. Udina tries his best but a lot of the people who've been here long before us see this as a coup."

"You make it sound like it's my fault." Kacey said uneasy.

"You certainly kicked the hornet's nest, that's for sure." Bailey replied, "You showed up, and showed everyone what humans are capable of, became a Spectre and defeated Saren, the geth and that bastard's flagship. Like I said, you kicked the hornet's nest. And there's a lot of people who aren't happy with you upsetting the apple cart like that."

"Story of my life." Kacey sighed, "If that's what the people want, then there isn't much we can do about that. Democracy and all that."

"Yeah, pretty much." Bailey replied, "Sergeant! Get these two a patrol car to the 800 blocks."

…

"There he is." Kacey said as they exited the patrol car, "Thane, how do you want to play it?"

"You can follow Talid on the maintenance catwalks." Thane explained, "You tail him from the catwalks and keep me informed on what he's doing."

"Shouldn't be too hard with that krogan following him." Kacey mused, "And you?"

"In the shadows, with the best view of the subject." Thane replied.

Kacey headed up the maintenance catwalks; it was dark and only the keepers were crawling up here from what she could see. She looked down and saw Talid talking to some people.

"I'm on Talid." Kacey said via the comms, "He's talking to some voters, and…he's on the move."

"Understood." Thane said, "I'm in position."

Kacey headed along the catwalk and through a door, keeping her eyes on Talid as she moved along the catwalk.

"Talid is talking to some more voters and I don't see any sign of Koylat." Kacey said.

"I don't see him either," Thane mused, "I'm moving to another position up ahead."

"Okay, I'll keep tailing him from here." Kacey said.

She went through two more doors and along the catwalk, watching as Talid walked past many storefronts, before stopping at one of the stores and waiting outside while the krogan went inside the shop.

"Any updates?" Thane asked.

"Krogan bodyguard just entered a store called Aouila." Kacey said, "Talid's waiting outside, looks like the krogan's making threats at the clerk but it's hard to tell from this angle."

"He is." Thane confirmed, "Talid is letting the bodyguard do his dirty work so he can deny involvement should this come out."

"Sounds like every politician in the galaxy." Kacey scoffed, "Hoo, that krogan looks pissed."

"The clerk must not be complying with whatever the krogan is demanding." Thane mused.

"Hmm, maybe." Kacey said, "Oh, krogan is on his way out, Talid is running up ahead with the krogan behind, probably trying to make it look like they're not associated."

Kacey darted along the catwalks after Talid and through another door, and onto catwalks with no railguards. She carefully moved along the catwalks to avoid getting too close to the edge. She walked along the catwalks as Talid entered a club.

"I don't have a good angle on him, what's he doing?" Thane asked.

"His bodyguard is talking to the bartender, it looks like a shakedown." Kacey said, "But he's on the move now."

She moved along the catwalk and entered what appeared to be a stock room. It didn't take long before someone stopped Kacey in her tracks.

"Hey! Hey!" A man said as he approached Kacey, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

"I'm with Citadel Health and Safety." Kacey said quickly, "We've had vermin reports in storage areas around I'm just…investigating."

"What?" The man said, "You can't be serious! How did you get up here?"

"Do you think I could get up here without authorisation?"

"Okay, fair." The man said, "Just, be quick. Before my boss sees you."

"Thanks." Kacey said bluntly before heading through and out the next door.

She caught up with Talid, who was still walking along past the stores. As Kacey looked around the area, she spotted a drell in blue who started to follow Taild. He pushed a human out of the way as he drew his gun, pointing it at Taild.

"Kolyat!" Kacey shouted.

She had clearly startled Kolyat, as he turned and looked at her, before wheeling round and opening fire on Talid. The kid clearly hadn't had as much practice with a firearm given how he missed Talid by a long shot and barely managed to hit the krogan. Once Kolyat drew closer to the krogan, he managed to shoot him and kill him. Talid bolted it with Kolyat in pursuit.

"Thane!" Kacey said as she pursued Kolyat from the catwalk.

"I saw it." Thane said.

"They're heading for Taild's apartment." Kacey said.

…

After running down a few blocks and up far too many stairs, Kacey and Thane managed to reach Taild's apartment, where they found Taild on his knees with a pistol pointed at his head. Kolyat held the gun and pushed it against Talid's head. Kacey raised her own pistol and pointed it at Kolyat.

"Kolyat." Thane said firmly.

Kolyat scoffed, "This…This has to be a joke. Now? Now you show up?"

"Help…" Taild whined, "Help me, drell. I'll do whatever you want."

"Notice how he's asking you and not me." Kacey quipped.

"C-Sec!" Bailey said as he appeared from behind Kacey and Thane, "Put the gun down, son."

"Get out of my way!" Kolyat shouted, "I'm walking out of here! He's coming with me."

"They'll have snipers outside, Kolyat." Thane reasoned.

"I don't need your help!" Kolyat snapped.

"Like I said, I'm patient but not that patient."

Kacey shot the lamp next to Kolyat, then while Koylat was startled by the blast, Kacey punched Kolyat lightly but heavy enough to stun the drell as Taild stood up, dazed.

"Taild, get the hell out of here." Kacey said bluntly.

"Yeah yeah, sure. I will." Taild said as he limped out of the room.

"Take the boy into custody." Bailey said to one of his men.

"You son of a bitch!" Kolyat spat.

"Kolyat, listen." Kacey said firmly, catching Kolyat's attention, "Your father doesn't have much time left. He's trying to make up for his mistakes."

"What? So you came here to ask for my forgiveness? So you die in peace in something? After you walked away and left me behind?!"

"I came here to grant you peace." Thane said calmly, "You're angry with me because I wasn't there when your mother died. I wasn't there for you when she died."

Kolyat scoffed, "You weren't there when she was alive! Why would you be there when she died?"

"Your mother…they killed her to get to me. It was my fault that she died." Thane said, "After her body was given to the deep, I went to find them. The triggerman, ringleaders. That's why I left you with your aunts and uncles. I hurt them, killed them. When I came back to see you, you were older. Back then, I should've stayed with you."

"I guess it's too bad for me that you waited so long, huh?"

"Kolyat, I have done many bad things, and taken many things out of the world. You are the only good thing I ever added to it."

"This isn't the type of conversation to have in front of strangers." Bailey said, "Boys, give Kolyat and his father back to the precinct. Give them a room and as much time as they need."

"That's quite generous of you, Bailey." Kacey said.

"He's not the only one who screwed up raising a son." Bailey replied, "Come on, I'll give you a lift back to the precinct."

…

Kacey walked towards Life Support, after EDI informed her that Thane had returned to the Normandy. As Kacey entered the room, she found Thane looking out of the window that overlooked the shuttle bay.

"So, how'd it go?" Kacey asked.

Thane sighed, "Our problems…they aren't something that can be fixed with few words. We'll keep talking, see where it goes."

"That's all you can do." Kacey replied, "Not many estranged or absent parents try to reconnect with their kids."

"It seems that this affects you personally."

"In a sense."

"You had an absent father?"

"Estranged more like." Kacey said, standing next to Thane, "Our relationship was…complicated. He cared about me, I cared about him but…we just…drifted away from each other. I empathise a bit with Kolyat. I get where he was coming from but…if I got the chance to make things right with my father, I'd take it. And Kolyat should too."

"Maybe. But I don't think it will be easy." Thane mused, "Kolyat is angry. Upset."

"And you hope to make things right soon, before you die."

"Yes. No matter what it takes."

"You're trying, that's all you can do."

"Thank you for your aid, Shepard." Thane said, "And I can assure you that I will remain focused on the mission at hand."

"Thank you, Thane." Kacey replied.