By now, Edis would have had time to ruminate on recent events. Mia would have told Edis everything, out of both spite and professional courtesy. Edis must know about Ella’s meetings with Tobias Campbell, but it was only a month ago that Edis gave Ella the choice to see Campbell or not. She’d done it, but the crime was that she didn’t inform the higher-ups. She also spilled details of ongoing investigations to the killer, and Edis would no doubt have something to say about that.
“Come in,” Edis bellowed from behind the door.
Ella opened slowly and entered. “Morning, Mr. Edis.”
“Miss Dark. Please sit down.”
He looked like he’d lost a few pounds since she last saw him. His stocky frame still obscured most of the window behind his desk, but there was new shape to his usually circular face. The rumor around HQ was that he was going through a divorce so maybe this was a side-effect. He pushed his glasses up with one finger and motioned to the leather chair against the wall.
Ella took a seat. Her heart raced like a trapped bird in her chest, and she wondered whether this might be the last time she ever saw the interior of this office. Maybe this would be her last day at the FBI. A seven-year career, from Intelligence Analyst to Special Agent to disgraced ex-employee. A common career path but not one she ever envisioned for herself.
She tried her best to stay calm. She kept her feet flat on the ground and controlled her breathing. She had an answer for everything; God knows she’d rehearsed her lines enough over the past two weeks.
Edis sat back in his chair and looked up to the ceiling. He took a deep breath. Ella braced herself.
“I’m sure you know what this is about,” Edis said.
Ella nodded. She clasped her hands beneath her chin. “Yes, I do, sir.”
“Agent Ripley has informed me of everything. Everything. So, I’m not sure how to put this.”
“Please, sir, I can handle it. I know I made a big mistake. I’m ready to deal with the consequences.”
The director cracked his knuckles then tilted his head to one side. “What you did was foolish and irresponsible. Agent Ripley had every right to suspend your working relationship.”
“I understand why she did it,” said Ella, somehow holding herself together. This felt like the lead-up to a final crushing blow. Ella grabbed her leg to stop it twitching. She wished Edis would just get it over and done with.
“But it should be said that Agent Ripley and I regularly have a difference of opinion. Personally, I don’t blame you for what you did.”
The dread numbed a little. Ella wasn’t sure she was hearing him right. “Excuse me? Really?” she asked.
William Edis blew a gust of air out of his nose. “You had an opportunity; you took it. Yes, I wish you would have been a little more transparent about things. I know it was a personal invitation from Campbell, but given his history with Agent Ripley, I think you had a duty to keep her informed. You had a moral duty, but no legal duty, so it’s a tricky one for me.”
“Sir, I understand, but the reason I didn’t tell Agent Ripley is because I didn’t want to hurt her. I thought I would meet Campbell, learn a few things from him and part ways. Nothing more. I didn’t know the extent it would go.”
“I get it, Miss Dark. You’re young and hungry, desperate to make a difference. I was young and hungry once too, before paperwork and politics got the better of me. If this was thirty years ago and I was in your shoes, I’d have done the same thing. I might have told my partner, but I’d have done the same thing.”
The abyss beneath her grew smaller. Ella was suddenly overwhelmed with relief.
“Oh, well, I must say I didn’t expect that response. Thank you for having mercy,” she said.
“You’re most welcome, but there’s still the matter of you divulging vital information about an ongoing investigation to Mr. Campbell. Now that, I do have an issue with.”
She wasn’t out of the woods yet, she thought. But her punishment was deserved, and she was ready to take it.
“You’re absolutely right, sir. I shouldn’t have done that. It was reckless and unprofessional. Campbell seemed to have all the answers and I was desperate. But I’m not here to make excuses.”
Edis picked up a brown folder and leafed through it. The sticker on the front declared it was the folder for an active case.
“The good news is that since that case is now solved, the information Tobias has isn’t really an issue. But under other circumstances, this would be a disciplinary, maybe even a suspension without pay. Do I make myself clear? No more secret rendezvous with Campbell and no more divulging confidential details. Understand?”
“Crystal clear, sir,” Ella said. “I assure you it won’t happen again.”
“Good. Now, with that said, I can’t speak for Agent Ripley. Like I said, she and I have our differences of opinion, and this is one of them, which is why I’ve assigned you a new partner.”
Ella involuntarily stood up. The frustration burned her limbs. “What? She actually went through with it?”
Edis held up his palms. “Please Miss Dark, sit down. This isn’t a time for overreactions.”
Ella forcefully rubbed her temples. “I can’t believe that. I thought she was just bluffing. After everything she and I have been through, all the times she didn’t believe my theories when I was right all along, and she ditches me?”
In the back of her mind, Ella expected Mia to request a new partner, but the reality of it actually happening stirred up a new level of grief.
“She requested it, Ella. There was nothing I could do.”
This was it. Her career in the field coming to an abrupt end. She felt like she was on a treadmill chasing a never-ending finish line.
“I have to call her,” Ella shouted. She pulled her phone out and dialed Mia’s cell phone. Her call history already showed 16 calls to Mia in the past two weeks, all of which went unanswered. Something told her that this one, under the bright lights of working hours, might prompt her to pick up. She burst out back into the foyer leaving Edis alone, foregoing all professionalism in the process. Emotion drove her. She listened to the dial tone. Two, three, four rings.
With the phone pressed to her ear, she scanned the area, hoping that by some miracle Mia might appear. There were faces she recognized, but no sign of her ex-partner.
The line cut out.
Not voicemail. Her call had been rejected.
“Hello?” said a voice. “Ella Dark?”
Ella spun around to find a man staring at her. Shaved head, slightly taller than her. He was wearing a gray suit with a red tie. He had deep brown eyes, sharp cheekbones, and a skinny physique.
She pocketed her phone. “Yes? That’s me.”
The man reached out his hand. “Agent Byford. Good to finally meet you.”
Ella retraced the last few minutes. Had she missed something? She’d never seen this man or heard his name before. She returned the gesture with a confused look.
“Ella Dark. What do you mean, finally meet me?”
Agent Byford passed his briefcase between his hands. “You haven’t been told?”
The door behind them opened and Edis stuck his head out. Ella turned to him.
“Miss Dark,” Edis said, “this is Agent Nigel Byford. He’s your new partner.”