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"Sir, doesn't it seem a little dead in here?"
"Hm.. haven't been back through here since the renovations started. This place used to be a real sty, now it's.."
"Corporate." Kimble adds, his own eyes wandering the room. "After I got out I looked into working private before settling on the academy, and this is straight out of their admin buildings. Even the lack of people, this shit ain't cheap after all."
"Makes me think twice about what V-" You stop as a dull force hits you.
Hawthorne elbows you in the chest, your vest padding the blow, he whispers out of the side of his mouth as he keeps walking.
"Quiet. Big brother."
You glance up and see them in every corner and more than a few spaces near the center of the ceiling: small domes of black glass. You take the hint and clear your throat.
"Makes me think twice about what vexes me at the precinct, sure it's a mess but at least it has soul. This is just depressing."
"Save the small talk, both of you." Hawthorne barks as you round a corner and see a set of thick wooden doors with brass handles. Hawthorne scoffs. "Course he wouldn't change up his office."
Hawthorne pauses before the door, you hear him slowly breathing in and then letting it out through his mouth in the form of a very long sigh. His eyes are closed. His hands clench and relax as he rolls his neck side to side. You consider checking on him, saying something, but you decide against it. It feels.. wrong. Let him have his moment. Before long he speaks again.
"Remember the plans. I'm not wasting any time, not giving him a chance to get dug in, so be ready."
"Yes, sir." You and Kimble respond in unison, quietly.
The doors open and a wave of expensive cologne and heat wash over you as the warden's opulent office opens up before you. Hawthorne wastes no time stepping inside, you along with him. Straight through the center, between two oversized armchairs, he stands tall on the opposite side of a gorgeous wooden desk adorned with a brass nameplate that reads:
Warden Adam Quinn.
