Seri tensed as they reached the walkway into the floating building, eyeing the people all around him. He felt…exposed. There were so many running about, and he wasn’t really used to being out in the open. He only tensed up further when they made it past the doors.
Severo rubbed the back of his neck. “You’re safe, I promise… Ah…maybe I should have just asked Killian to bring her down to us.”
“Y-you said you needed to do paperwork. It’s fine.”
He eyed the décor instead of the people they were passing, trying to find his calm center. The lobby of the CEB had silver floors, and black walls with line light accents in purple, and mostly green and black furniture. A variety of things were accented in purple; potted plants, trash cans, tables, and whatnot.
The first part of the lobby seemed to be fully open to the public. Chairs and coffee tables everywhere, a place for people to wait until they were called up for whatever appointment they made. As everything was done here by appointment. Though as he had personally learned a long while ago, they did take walk-ins. They just didn’t call them that. But you basically would come in and get an ‘urgent’ appointment set up, where they’d take you back for help immediately.
Seri eyed the large circular reception desk they were approaching, CEB logo on the front of it. The desk sat before the elevators, along with gates going off both sides blocking the way for anyone except those with permission to pass on to the upper floors. Severo went to one of the gates and scanned his eye.
“You know…it can wait…” Severo suddenly said. “Actually, I’ll just grab what I need and do it at home. That way we won’t have to stay long.”
Seri grunted in response, afraid if he actually opened his mouth he’d ask ‘what home’? Because…he had no clue where he was going to go, or what he was going to do after this. And he was too afraid of the answers he’d get, so he kept the questions in his head as the man moved him into one of the elevators.
When the doors opened on the sixth floor, Severo stepped out with him. Seri’s gaze flicked to the large silver sign on the wall—Intelligence and Technology Department.
The color scheme looked to be the same here, but there were now computer desks everywhere, dissecting the room. More green and purple. He supposed he shouldn’t be surprised by purple and green being everywhere. They were the agency's official colors. Based on the eyes of the family who ran it—the Grimms. The eyes of a Fate were all some variety of purple, that then changed to green when they were looking at their threads.
Severo took him past the desk and towards a door on a section of wall that looked to be two-way glass, creating a large bubble. The door on that bubble said,ExecutiveDirector Killian Neftlem.
“Here we are,” Severo announced as he opened the door and pushed him into an office.
Seri found he had been correct, it was two-way glass. While you could see nothing from the outside, inside you could see the rest of the floor.
There were three large monitors floating above a curved desk, underneath them he saw…
“Skya,” he called out on spotting her sitting in the lap of a frowning, yet breathtakingly beautiful man.
The man, who he was assuming was Killain Neftlem, peered through the crack between two monitors. “Oh thank f—frick. Take,” the man hissed. He waved the monitors out of the way with his hands, and as they moved to the side, Killian picked Skya up and held her out.
“Dah-Dah, DAH-DAH, DAH-DAH!” she yelled on seeing him, before starting to cry and frantically wave her arms as she screamed.
He jumped from the wheelchair. Stumbling forward, he pulled her into his arms, and burst into tears. “I’m so sorry, Skya. I’m so sorry,” Seri sobbed.
“I’m…going to give you all some privacy,” Killian mumbled, before rushing out of the room.
Seri ignored him, and stepped back, intending to return to the chair, when his leg gave out. He gasped as he began to fall. But he never hit the floor. Severo was suddenly there holding him up, and helping him back into his seat.
No longer at risk of falling, he examined her, hands smoothing over her limbs, making sure no harm had come to her. Sniffling, he cupped her face. “Ah, my little dewdrop. Daddy is so sorry.”
She stared, bottom lip wobbling while she rubbed her face against his hands. “Dah-Dah.”
He eyed her outfit and a giggle slipped out. “She’s dressed like a bee.”
On top of the antennas on her head, she even had a little stinger on her butt, and wings on her back.
“Of course. It keeps her warm, and she is just the cutest little bee ever,” Severo said firmly, but his wavering voice told Seri the big man was likely bawling.
He glanced up. The man was indeed crying, but then again, so was he.
“Oh, you big old softy.” Seri laughed, even as his own tears still came.
Severo’s face scrunched, obviously trying to stop.
“So, what else did you buy while I was away?”
The man's tears seemed to dry up at the question. “Well…she couldn’t go around naked, and everything was lost in the explosion!” Severo rasped defensively…too defensively.
