In an office with large windows, brown wooden walls and furniture, Ima stood in front of the large executive-style desk. The morning light beat through the windows onto Ima and the two men in the room with her. One man sat behind the desk. He was an older man with gray hair and an aged face. Dressed in a black business suit, he had a cold, professional look on his face. The other one, a young, clean cut brunette man sporting a blue business suit, stood off to the right side of the desk. He too had the same expression on his face as his superior.
Ima opened the metal clipboard and presented it to the man at the desk. The man stood up in awe as Ima approached the desk and handed it to him. He took the clipboard from Ima’s hand, looking into the metal clipboard, seeing a wooden rack filled with glass test tubes with the liquids in each. Ima took a few steps back with a satisfied look on her face.
The younger man looked at the clipboard in shock. “That’s it, Director Grey,” he said. “She retrieved them.”
“Excellent,” Grey whispered and as his eyes rolled up to Ima. “We knew you could do this.”
“Thank you, Director,” Ima said emotionless.
Grey then looked to the younger man. “Red, you made an excellent recruitment choice.”
Red smiled and nodded. “Thank you, Director. But Sir, you were the one who suggested Ima take on the job. I merely sort her skills.” This made Grey chuckle.
Ima studied the younger man, irritated by his apparent brownnosing. She glared at him, knowing he was not someone she would want to work under.
Grey looked back to the metal clipboard and glass vials with relief. Suddenly, the look on this face turned sour. Inside the rack was a broken test tube; it’s contents at the bottom of the compartment. Grey picked up the broken tube, lifting it to his face and examining it. He then looked to Ima who smiled nervously.
“A broken vial,” Red whispered in shock. “The Burberry Group will not accept this,” he said.
“Please explain this,” Grey said sternly at Ima.
“Hmm, I guess it must have happened when I whacked those two security guards,” Ima said lost in thought.
“You attacked the guards?” Red exclaimed.
“I was discovered,” Ima explained. “I had no weapons, so I had to improvise.”
“What, by chucking the vials at them?” Red asked sarcastically.
Ima glared at Red. “No, I used the clipboard.”
Grey sighed in disappointment. “You were not supposed to be detected,” he told her.
“No,” Ima argued, “I was supposed to get these cloning agents AND I did!”
Grey sighed. “At the beginning of this operation, we strictly informed you that the cloning agents that you were to retrieve were extremely sensitive and had to treat it with the utmost care—direct words from Burberry Group officials,” he said.
“Yes, but I told you that this mission was dangerous and a situation may occur where the agents would be in danger of being taken away or destroyed,” Ima said.
“But you used the damn vial containment as a weapon!” Grey cried.
“Because you had no weapon for me to use!” Ima argued loudly. “I was on this mission for seven months, monitoring this group’s movements and where they kept this stuff. I had no help from you, no help from your people AND limited equipment. You basically threw me to the wolves while you and your men stood there watching me because they were all scared to do it themselves!”
“Scared?” Red asked. “We were not scared.”
Ima looked to Red. “Then why hire an outside source to do your job?” Ima asked. “Isn’t your group supposed to monitor and keep the Gangi Federation at bay?”
Red stared angrily at Ima.
“You were scared,” Ima said in a low tone.
“Ima, you jeopardized this mission with your actions,” Grey said and sighed again. “The Burberry Group will not accept this. How are we to explain this to Mr. Burberry?”
“Mr. Burberry?” Ima asked. “Who is this Burberry guy you keep referring to?”
“You don’t know Benjamin Burberry?” Grey gasped.
Ima made a confused look on her face.
“Benjamin Burberry is the president and CEO of the Burberry Group, the largest corporation in the city of Neotropolis. He owns approximately a third of the city’s businesses and buildings and has international offices. He is also a large contributor to the GMA,” Red said.
Ima frowned and shrugged her shoulders.
“Mr. Burberry will not approve. He will surely dismiss our services, and in the end results, I will not show you compassion,” Grey said.
“Hey, I should be getting gratitude, not grief, from you who can’t even do the things they order others to do,” Ima said.
“Maybe if you did you job right, you wouldn’t be complaining!” Grey cried.
“What!” Ima cried harshly.
Suddenly, a knock came at the closed door of the office. Grey and Red both looked up at the door, while Ima glared at Grey, not moving. Red then opened the door and saw a man standing in the hall. He had very dark skin, was tall and visibly muscular by the tightness of the sleeves in his black business suit that he wore. He also had a clean-shaven head and piercing green eyes. The man looked at Red and then entered the office.
“Mr. Tariq, we were expecting you,” Red gladly said.
Tariq walked into the room passing Ima’s who studied him as he approached the desk.
“Mr. Tariq, we’re so honored to have you grace us with your presence,” Grey said, standing up straight. “My people and I retrieved the DNA samples as Mr. Burberry had requested.
The silent dark large man grabbed the tray from the director’s hands and looked at the contents inside. He saw the broken test tube and picked it up. He then looked at Grey.
Grey’s face turned white and he became frightened. “We-we regret to tell you that one of the vials were accidentally broken on the way to our office.” He then looked to Ima with anger in his eyes. “You can thank Ima for that,” he added.
Ima flung her head toward Grey, glaring at him.
“We are cutting her pay for this failure, as punishment,” Grey said.
“What!” Ima cried.
“I know you had precise orders that if anything were to happen to the agents, you would severely punish those responsible.”
Ima looked at the silent dark man who studied and looked at her coldly. Tariq then grunted, throwing the vial into the case and closing it. He then put it under his arm and walked towards the door.
“Mr. Tariq?” Grey asked wanting a comment from the man. “What about the broken vial? Punishment for those responsible?”
Tariq walked out of the office.
Ima watched him leave. She then looked to Red. “Who was that?” she asked.
“That was Mr. Burberry’s body guard and trusted associate. He is not to be trifled with,” Red said and then looked to Grey. “He didn’t look to happy,” he commented.
“No, he did not,” Grey replied. He then looked to Ima. “You’re lucky, you’re only getting a cut in pay,” he said and sat down. “Your account will be funded in the amount we discussed at the beginning of the mission, minus fifteen percent. You are dismissed.”
Ima growled and flung around, heading towards the door. Red then took a step in her path and Ima looked up to him.
“You’re lucky he only took fifteen percent,” he said, “he wanted to take forty.”
Ima scowled at Red and walked out of the office. “I hate local government appointed associations,” Ima mumbled and slammed the door shut.
The bright white moon hung high in the night sky. Ima slowly walked down the silent lifeless sidewalk. It was two o’clock in the morning. She headed from the GMA building towards a tall apartment building down the street.
“Damn that damn Grey,” Ima mumbled, “Screwing me over like that just to suck up to those damn Burberry people.” Ima then stopped and looked up to the night sky where she caught a few stars peeking out form the city’s radiating orange hue. Ima then dropped her head down and shut her eyes.
“Maybe this was a mistake,” she said softly, opening her eyes to see her tarnished white tennis shoes. “Hired help is so different than being part of a team with a purpose. But how else am I going to survive out of the project? Things don’t pay for themselves… especially in a damn expensive city like this.” Ima then looked back up to the night sky.
“I really do miss it… I miss everyone,” she said. “Everyone’s gone…” Ima then saw the same stars shine brightly in the black sky. Ima then sadly smiled. “No… I guess not everyone,” she said, looking forward to the tall buildings of the city. “After this mess, everything will be okay.” Ima then walked down the sidewalk with a hop in her step.