Adrian stepped in front of the others, though he could feel their presence as they filed in around him.
Kasumi was the first to speak. “Welcome, Renegades,” she said—congenial enough, but so formal. It felt surreal to be standing there before them, in this magnificent hall. Kasumi, Evander, and Tamaya had all been to their house for a dozen dinner parties. He’d met their spouses at backyard barbecues. He’d babysat Tamaya’s kids when he was younger.
But they weren’t those same people here. They were Tsunami and Blacklight and Thunderbird. They were the Council. It almost made Adrian laugh, which is how he realized how nervous he really was.
“We are here,” said Captain Chromium, “to discuss what happened at the Cloven Cross Library. I have already informed the Council of what you told me, but I think we all want to hear it again, from your perspective. I hope you all can recognize the tricky position you’ve put us in. On one hand, we are of course grateful that a major supplier of black-market weaponry has been shut down, and that your efforts revealed the active status of the Detonator and the Anarchists.”
“On the other hand,” said the Dread Warden, “you were expressly ordered not to engage with the Librarian, and not to even enter the library without backup. You disobeyed a direct order, and as such, we feel some consequences are in order.”
“First things first,” said Kasumi. “We want to commend you for following the protocol of prioritizing the safety of civilians. We understand you all acted fast to clear the library of innocent bystanders, and we have heard how Miss McLain went back into the library to rescue a young boy from the fire. We praise you for your bravery and selflessness.”
Adrian glanced sideways at Nova, sending her a small smile, but she kept her gaze straight ahead and her expression neutral.
“That said,” continued Kasumi, “we cannot overlook the protocols that went ignored, or how the need for rescuing said civilians might have been avoided entirely had you acted more responsibly.”
Adrian swallowed.
“It’s important that we get all the facts straight,” said Tamaya. “You aren’t in trouble, necessarily.” She paused, and Adrian had the distinct impression that she was glancing over the word yet. “But it is of utmost importance that we all abide by our own rules. Otherwise, we’d be no better than the Anarchists.”
Beside him, Nova tensed, and he heard her mutter, “Because that would be terrible.”
Tamaya’s eyebrows lifted. “What was that, Miss McLain?”
“Nothing,” said Nova. “Just agreeing with you. Rules, consequences, etcetera. All sounds very authoritarian.”
“Mr. Everhart,” said Tamaya, and it took Adrian a moment to realize she meant him, not the Captain. “Why don’t you start from the beginning?”
Adrian inhaled deeply and told them—starting with their surveillance in the office building that turned up nothing all night. He mentioned the patrons they’d seen enter the library, including a group of children. Then they saw the Detonator.
“Did you recognize her?” interrupted Evander. “Had you ever seen Ingrid Thompson before?”
“Only in pictures,” said Adrian, “but I knew it was her. Those armbands, you know.”
“So you suspected it was the Detonator,” clarified Evander.
“No,” said Adrian slowly, “it was the Detonator.”
Evander leaned against the back of his chair, scratching his red beard. Adrian went on, explaining their conversation, as well as he could remember, and their decision to enter the library.
“Why didn’t you wait for backup?” said Simon. “That was all we asked of you, Adrian.”
Adrian sank inward a bit. The question felt more personal than professional. A father disappointed that his son had broken a promise. And in this case, that broken promise might have gotten him killed.
“We were afraid the lives of those children were in danger,” said Ruby. “We didn’t know what the Detonator had gone there for. We didn’t know if she would do something … rash.”
“Like blow up the building,” added Oscar. “Just as an example.”
“We were also concerned that the Detonator would leave before backup arrived,” said Adrian. “We didn’t know how long she would be at the library and we were worried we would miss our chance to … to prove she was there. That she was dealing with the Librarian.”
“But you were a surveillance team,” said Tamaya. “You were intended only to conduct surveillance, not to engage.”