25 Mind map - Considering Everything and Everyone

"I-I have n-not forgotten my manners, Sir," Samuel replied swiftly, stuttering at each word. "It was a grave mistake."

Nancy couldn't believe this was the same emotionless Samuel she had to see every day. What was she even witnessing? He usually had perfect speech. And now he was stuttering at each word?

"Grave mistake?" Bradley's questioning tone was fearful to even listen to.

Just a second ago, he was cheerful about it. Nancy almost thought they were distant relatives or something.

Samuel swallowed the lump in his throat as Bradley stood up. All while the prosecutor slowly watched.

"When are you coming back?" Bradley asked with serious eyes.

The prosecutor stood up.

"General Bradley?" He called him hesitantly. "I think your ride is here."

"Is it?" The general asked in disappointment, only to have the prosecutor nod once again. "Coffee next time, Samuel."

"Yes, Sir!" Samuel tried to reply diligently.

With that, the General left the room. Nancy realized he had dressed casually. He didn't even look like a General. He looked too young to be a General. 

The prosecutor quickly poured water and offered it to Samuel.

"I'm so sorry! He was uninvited." The prosecutor quickly apologized. 

Samuel pushed the glass away before sighing deeply as he sat back.

"I am alright, Marco," Samuel assured him nonetheless. "What was he here for? After all these years?"

Prosecutor Marco shook his head as he leaned back in his chair.

"First, you tell me. What kind of trouble did you get yourself into for the General to walk to my office telling me not to file a single suit against this guy named Sebastian?" Marco asked. "Don't tell me you came here for that…"

Samuel sighed.

"He warned me. I should have known." Samuel grabbed his head with his hands.

"What the fuck is this? Mind explaining to me?" Nancy asked amidst the tension.

Everyone looked at Nancy for a minute, wondering if she had to say what she just said.

"What?!" She complained. "This is about me. I deserve to know."

"We cannot… Do anything about whatever happened in Russia. We cannot file a suit. We cannot charge Sebastian. We cannot do anything at all." Samuel sternly explained. "We cannot."

"Why? Because a General-"

"He is General Bradley, Nancy." Samuel clarified. "Going against him means…" He sighed.

The tension was real.

Prosecutor Marco decided to lighten it up somehow. He looked at Amy, who seemed to be the most cheerful and upbeat out of all of them.

Amy gazed back at Marco.

"We can still ask the higher-ups, no? Or use social media to bring light to this?" Amy suggested.

"We cannot." Samuel shook his head. "Higher-ups cannot do anything about a General. Neither can social media. At the end of the day, anonymous social media posts can be tracked by the General, and we can get convicted for spreading alleged false information about the highest ranking military officer."

"They happened to be a step ahead of us," Marco concluded. "But I'll try my best to find a way."

"What way?" Nancy asked.

"I can try to work independently on this matter. If we can get enough evidence, not even the higher-ups can deny us. I can't have the police working for me, so it's a one-man operation and might take a long time." Marco assured.

"You cannot." Samuel objected. "We cannot have you take part in such illegal activities. Searching through something without a warrant is illegal. You will not only get removed from your current occupation but receive a penalty for life and a criminal record. And you are a District Attorney. This is not your work to begin with."

"Shut the fuck up, pessimist!" Nancy complained before standing up and walking towards Marco's desk.

She placed her hand on the desk for support.

"Do it." Nancy seconded his opinion.

Marco nodded as it was the only way left. Even with Samuel's objection, there was nothing else they could do.

"So you want me to double the protection for Ms. Nancy?" Marco asked.

"You know about the thing?" Nancy asked him indirectly.

"Yes. I was told about it when you and Mr. Roth first tried to charge Sebastian."

Nancy and Amy both nodded now that everything was coming together.

"You need not double the protection as I accompany her throughout the day," Samuel replied bluntly as ever.

Nancy slammed her hand on the table.

"Samuel, you're fired. Mr. Marco, I am looking forward to working with you." Nancy independently made her move.

"You cannot fire me." Samuel backfired.

"I can."

"No, you cannot."

"Why can't I? I'm the employer!"

"No, you are not."

"Shit!"

At least their back-talk lightened the mood a little, with Amy and Marco hysterically laughing.

"Looks like no one likes you, Samuel…" Marco chuckled.

"I like him. Nancy's just overdramatic and thinks weird shit about him." Amy explained.

"Amy!" Nancy complained.

Marco chuckled at the moodmakers.

"So, all I want you guys to do is avoid Sebastian in the meantime," Marco muttered. "And General Bradley… If possible."

Everyone looked at Samuel, still sitting down on the couch, almost looking devastated but keeping his composed self.

Just mentioning Bradley's name gave him a strange expression. Nancy wondered what could be their history for the calm and composed Samuel to act this way.

Seated there, as Amy and Marco conversed about the situation, Nancy ran a map inside her brain.

So far, she had learned about the chip and about the fact that she was the sole survivor who led a normal life with chip implantation.

She had also learned that Sebastian was allegedly after the chip to 'save someone dear to him.'

The picture in his lab, in a black and white film, had a boy roughly 8-9 years old. She couldn't remember his face or even his hair tone.

But considering he was someone close to Sebastian, it could be David. However, that was only if David was distantly related or not biologically related at all.

Because Sebastian and David didn't share a single feature.

David had blonde hair and brown eyes, a buffed figure, and soft features. On the other hand, Sebastian had dark hair and dark eyes, sharp features, and a slim figure.

If David and Sebastian weren't related biologically, why would Sebastian go that far for him?

Was the child in the picture David?

Nancy looked at Samuel amidst her brain map.

Dark hair, and dark eyes.

Sharp features, and slim figure.

Utterly handsome, though. Unlike Sebastian. But that was maybe because of his age.

She had considered Samuel before, but she never confronted him on the topic.

She wondered why Sebastian had to save someone like David. But then she thought the same for Samuel. Everything was coming together!

"Nancy? You okay?" Amy broke the mind map.