Admiration

Justin shifts on the bench just a little so he can see Beth as she speaks. Her tone had a quiet strength about it. A sadness lurked behind her eyes and a frustration for the cards life had dealt to her. But her voice remained steady, determined not to crumble under the weight of the world. The only sign of sorrow was the single tear that escaped her eye but did not escape Justin's gaze.

Beth's final statement brings Justin's grin back and he chuckles softly, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. If he made her smile, then days he considered unsuccessful really weren't. "If a person can't find something to smile about, the point of life just seems to get lost somewhere in the chaos."

Still bent forward, he turns his head again to study Beth once more. He didn't know her situation. He didn't know why her sister was here or why she was the only family she had left. But it didn't really matter right now. "A visit is never in vain and a word to the ones we love is never worthless... even on bad days." His eyes fall to the sidewalk as he thinks about people in his past, his job, and people like Beth. "It takes someone strong to keep coming here day after day. I admire that."


Reese couldn't imagine being in Destiny's shoes. Not only was she afraid for her life, but she had to worry about arrangements for her parents as well. After just having received thew news for Hope and feeling badly about that, now Reese was overcome with another wave of compassion for this young woman. This just wasn't a good day.

"Any help you need with arrangements for your parents, don't hesitate to ask." Reese felt it was the least he could do. "As for someone to take you to your apartment today..."

He reaches for the phone, pausing a moment before punching the right button. "Hey, Hotshot... please come to my office."

It was only a minute or two later that Jason was in Reese's office, wondering what was going on. He looked down at the woman, to Alec, then to Reese. "What's up?"

"Jason, this is Destiny Rose. Starting now, she's under the protective custody of the Elite." His tone becomes grim. "The Agency would like to see her dead."

Jason's eyebrows rise. That was heavy. "Whoa. What for?"

"Her father was Agency. He wanted to turn and they killed him and Destiny's mother. Destiny is a witness, along with possessing too much Agency information for them to leave her alive."

Jason looks down at Destiny again, now feeling more sorry than curious. "What do you want me to do, Reese?"

"Take her to her apartment so she can pick up a few things, then bring her back here. I want Alec to go with you."

Alec looks up quickly. "What?"

"I want you to go along," Reese states flatly. "You know all too well what angles the Agency might come from in order to kill somebody and I want your eyes and ears out there."

"But-"

"You wanted to get out of here, now here's your chance. You're going with Jason and Destiny and that's final."

Alec sighs and looks to Destiny, shrugging lamely. "Alright."

Jason nods kindly to Destiny. "We'll take my truck. If you're ready, we can head out now and get back before they have time to realize we've got you."