Vassal by Alice Shieh

Author:Alice Shieh [Shieh, Alice]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-08-18T04:00:00+00:00

Fairfax and I both take it easy the day before the actual assessment to give our bodies a chance to rest and recover, but we’re still bundles of nerves when the big day itself finally arrives. He hides it better than I do, but it’s a big deal that our station chief is also getting evaluated. I try to not get snappy over stupid things, but my nerves are frayed and I’m not sure that I’ve actually succeeded at hiding my shortened fuse. The cadets and the staff all give me a wide berth. I’ll apologize and make my amends for any hurt feelings after the test is over.

On the day of the assessment, our instructions are to wait for the proctors to arrive to administer the test at the station. Both Fairfax and I have very little to say that morning. Fairfax works in his office while I keep myself well hydrated. I keep depleting the contents of my water bottle and refilling it repeatedly. It’s a dumb, nervous habit that’ll only have me visiting the toilet all day, but sipping from a bottle gives me something to do. Dani and Aaron aren’t in the office with me, and I’m glad for that because I want to hide in there and be alone. The idea of facing down the sitch makes my stomach churn.

At around ten in the morning, Fairfax knocks on the door to tell me that the Advisory’s representatives are arriving. I put away my water bottle and head downstairs to the front door with him. I watch a gray SUV pull up in the driveway. People file out of the car and walk toward the front entrance, and my stomach sinks when I recognize the woman who walks through the door.

Lillian Jung is a thin, middle-aged blonde with high cheekbones and a sharply angled face. Her fair hair is tied back into a severe, no-nonsense bun. She wears a straight skirt topped with a suit jacket, and her feet are perched in pumps with heels of a sensible height. She’s exactly the way a manager might dress, despite actually being quite higher up in our food chain than mid-level management.

This is not to say, however, that Lillian isn’t sharp. She’s sharp in every sense of the word. She’s not warm and fuzzy, which is exactly how she likes it. I might also say that she’s got all the bite of Eva Flowers, but none of her charm or charisma…but no one would ever dare say that to Lillian’s face.

The last time our paths crossed, circumstances were anything but ideal. She oversaw the probe into the Pasadena incident in L.A. and investigated my involvement to determine my culpability. It was ultimately her decision to send me away to Seattle. I hated being sent away, but I was also glad to not get sent into lockup.

Something doesn’t sit right with me, though. Lillian’s one of the big guns in the Agency. She’s a deputy advisor who answers only to the bosses who sit on the Advisory itself.

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