Special Agent | ✓

Twenty-Nine

TWENTY-NINE

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While hiding out in Katya's apartment probably wasn't a move that would keep Quinn safe forever, it was one she would have to make do with thanks to her current situation. There had been an uneasy feeling stirring in her head for the better part of the day, mostly because she knew that back in the Knightsbridge HQ her superiors were busy discussing when, how, and if they should put a bureaucratic bullet in her head.

Quinn wondered, very briefly, if she'd have the courage to do it herself, should she find herself in a situation escalating to that point.

"Stop thinking so hard, kiska," Kat said, slipping onto the chair beside Quinn, "You'll get wrinkles."

"I'm not a ballerina, so they won't bother me much, Kat." Quinn's response was more than a little sour, which she realized with a sigh, "I'm sorry, Kat, I shouldn't be such a -"

"Bitch?" Kat filled in, raising a perfectly arched brow. Quinn met her flat look and nodded, wincing in turn.

Rising from her chair, Kat strode over to her freezer.

"I would be a bitch too, if I was in your situation. It's why I could never do what you do, and why you're so good at it."

"Obviously not good enough, considering I landed myself here."

Kat shook her head, rummaging through her freezer, "You're saying my apartment's ugly?"

Quinn smiled, briefly, shaking her head while Kat echoed the smile. She was trying her hardest to lift her friend's spirits, but in truth there was little she could do without a little help. And she'd found just the right companion to help them, withdrawing a bottle of Russian vodka from her freezer.

Kat held it in the air triumphantly, grinning at Quinn.

"You're free to hide out here however long, Quinn, but you're not free to disappear into your own head. That's my only rule."

Sauntering over to the table again, Kat slammed the bottle down between them, then retreated to fetch two shot glasses.

"I know you, kiska, even if we may not see each other often. Your job is to analyze, but you bring that work home, overanalyzing yourself. You never give yourself a break, and that's what you need to do now."

"By getting drunk?"

"Exactly." Kat opened a cupboard, withdrew two slim glasses, then went back to the table, " — but since I know you will never get that drunk under these circumstances, I suggest we simply share a toast."

Quinn drummed her fingers on the table, eyes darting to Kat's.

"Toast to what?"

"A toast to the fact that I was just named principal dancer in my company."

Eyes widening, Quinn gaped at her long-time friend.

"Really? I didn't know, and I usually check on you —"

"Happened today." Kat grinned, unscrewing the bottle, "And that's why I want to share a drink with a good friend."

Smiling lightly, Quinn tried her very best to shove all of her doubts to the back of her mind. She'd already spent a solid hour erasing almost all of her data remotely from her home units, taking meticulous care to not reveal any hints as to her location as she did so. Adina had also followed her instructions perfectly, which Quinn knew as she'd double-checked to make sure she wouldn't run into further trouble.