Tessa obviously has a thing for Duke. He had to caress her hair until she fell asleep.

I'm not surprised. Duke is the most handsome man I've ever seen. He has the most beautiful mouth in the world, and, as long as it's not my hair, I enjoy watching the way he does the caressing, too. It's not too gentle and not too firm.

I like his eyes too. He has a very intelligent, piercing look. I know it's just for the show, but I still find it fascinating. Almost as if he was calculating the odds in the background, just like me. I know he's not, but sometimes I imagine that he is. Time and again, it feels good not to be entirely alone in the world with it.

"He won't break her neck."

It's Mint. He rouses me from my reverie.

"You're watching Duke as if you were worried for the child," he goes on.

I'd like to protest, but Duke is faster.

"Maybe she just likes what she sees," he answers with a cocky smirk.

Before I could affirm his statement, Mint goes on.

"Safety before drooling, you know. These are her priorities."

"Regarding you," Duke points out. "She never said anything like this about me."

"It goes without saying," Mint retorts. "Besides, I said something nice about you, bro. You should thank me."

"What? That I won't break Tessa's neck? Right. This is what goes without saying, bro. In my case, at least."

"Meaning what?"

"Have you ever killed a child on purpose, Mint?" Duke asks casually. "I wouldn't be surprised in the least. Your new career involves some questionable moments, right?"

"My old one involved more than one of those too, asshole," Mint snaps back.

I could affirm that as well, but they are too fast for me to cut in.

"There is a difference," Duke objects.

"There is zero difference. Killing is killing, bro."

"You're taking orders from criminals," Duke says, folding his arms on his chest.

"No," Mint spits with disgust. "I'm accepting commissions. The one who takes orders is you, dickhead."

"Another round in the gym?" Duke proposes.

"Any time, bro. You still never hit first. This noblesse oblige nonsense is going to be the death of you one fine day."

"And you never hit strong enough to not allow me a second blow."

"I could," Mint says, shrugging, "but it's hard to dispose of a body in a kindergarten. Not impossible either, though."

"Okay," I interrupt them. "I've heard enough. And I've got good news for you. You can stop this dick measuring contest. I already know for a fact who is bigger."

I successfully put a halt to their bickering. They stare at me as if I stated that I'd killed a few children here and there when singing has been proved inefficient. I don't understand them. I'm just telling them the truth.

"Um... what?" Duke asks.

"I watched you when you were taking a shower," I inform them.

"Um... when?"

"After missions. Several times. You know, the bathroom had cameras, too. I just had to stay a bit longer, and that's it."

"Isn't it against the rules?" Mint inquires.

"Not really." I shrug. "There aren't many rules regarding tactical controllers, and those few exist in order to protect our identity. There's a five-step identification process, and one of those steps is that no one registers when we leave the building. Tactical controllers are rare and precious creatures. When I worked there, my security was more important than Mr. Toe's. And the rules ensured that."

"That, and your undisturbed right to peep at us," Mint says, sounding a bit offended.

"It was nothing like that," I assure him. "I had to do it."

"Why? To make sure that we don't slip on a bar of soap and suffer a fatal head injury?" Duke guesses.

"No." I spread my hands. "I had no idea of the basics of male anatomy. And I had no one else to turn to."

I see them exchanging looks. That kind of looks. The ones I hate. The ones that make me feel the tightness in my chest.

"I needed information, okay?" I try to explain to them the direness of the situation. "I decided to pick up a man for sex, to try it once, you know. And I really couldn't do it without proper data. Could you? I guess you wouldn't try a mission like this without proper preparations either, right?"

They exchange looks again. I feel like I should tap my forehead and breathe out, but I don't want to do it in front of them. They already look at me as if I was Jack from the Shining, hiding an ax behind my back.

"Right." Mint nods, still with a strange look on his face. "And how did the experiment go?"

"Not very well," I admit. "69% creepy, 18% gross, and 13% interesting, in a short summary. Let's not talk about it, okay?"

"Okay," he answers. "Did you have feelings for him, by the way?"

"No," I answer. Now it's my turn to stare at him as if he was a full-blown nutcase. I'm obviously not suitable for those kinds of feelings, and he should have noticed it by now.

"Maybe he wasn't the right person," Duke says. "Maybe you should try it with someone you trust."

"With someone you've known for a long time," Mint agrees.

"With someone experienced," Duke goes on seamlessly.

"Definitely." Mint nods. "Someone who knows how to please a woman. Not necessarily to the point of screaming, but it wouldn't hurt either."

"Yes, obviously," Duke concurs. "You know, someone who's gentle, but also firm enough to help you through initial difficulties."

It's good to see them finally agree on something. I wish it weren't me, being a weirdo, though. I tap my forehead with my middle finger three times, and I breathe out.

"Why are you flipping us the bird?" Mint asks. "It's rude."

"We're just trying to help you," Duke says.

"I don't need your help," I declare, finding my voice finally. "I need you to be gone from my life."

For a moment, they look genuinely hurt, but I go on.

"So please, say what you wanted to say, and then leave."

They both take a deep breath. I know what they're about to say, and there's a 99.5 % chance that it's not what I want to hear. Not why I let them in here, either, so I cut in before they can open their mouths.

"No. Don't even try. It's sick."

They look clueless, so I go on.

"It's not me you're talking to. It's Gabriel. Your version of her. But I'm nothing like you imagined her. I'm a woman you'd never notice, or if you did, you'd just laugh."

They try to open their mouths again, but I'm still not finished.

"Yes, I'm strange. And, just for the record, I'm not your mother. So I guess your reeking oedipal complex needs to find another target. I'm quite aware how your fixation developed, you didn't have a life outside the Agency, I was the only person who cared for you, I was your guardian angel—but it was just a role. A role I chose to play in order to make you execute my orders without thinking, and to make you feel bulletproof. Just because it made you fight more effectively, not because I liked you. And now, I don't care about you either. I only care about your safety. It's my duty. I may be a guardian, but I am not an angel in real life at all. Understood?"

They stare at me with their mouths agape. They must have a hard time accepting reality, but I take another deep breath, and I deliver the last blow.

"Gabriel never existed."