Breaking The News

Posted on Tue Jun 24th, 2025 @ 9:01 by Claire Cavendish & Phoebe Hunter

Chapter: Besieged
Location: Administrative Offices, Avalon Institute / Porterfield Prison, Inverness
Timeline: Early morning, Monday February 8th, 1993
1232 words - 2.5 OF Standard Post Measure

The phone was in her hand and she hated how she was shaking as she finally heard the hello from the other end. “Hello Claire.” She finally said quietly Hopi by that the woman would not hear the edge in her voice so soon. She needed a few moments still to work out how to tell her. The History Teacher had promised to make the phone call to Claire but having slept through until after lunch it was early afternoon when she finally sat in the office waiting for Claire to make her phone call of the day. She glanced at the whisky cabinet locked but it would be easy enough to break into if the mood took her after this.

"Oh, Phoebe, hi. Is Liana indisposed?" Claire was always happy to be able to talk to someone. They were keeping her in solitary confinement, citing the fact that she was a flight risk. Which technically she was, of course, but she had turned herself in. What good would that do if she only planned on breaking out. "How is everybody holding up?"

"She is currently, but I also wanted to catch up with you. Most people are okay," Phoebe said, choosing her words very carefully for a moment. People were okay, other than what had happened in the last 24 hours. "How are you?" she wondered, turning the conversation to the woman for a moment.

Right before Claire was about to elaborate on her meeting with the lawyer and the current state of affairs her brain caught up at the evasive answer. She was very familiar with those, she'd had to employ them quite a lot. Besides, her father had never been shy about employing evasive communication tactics either. "What do you mean, most people?"

"Um..." Phoebe bowed her head and took a deep breath. "There was an incident when Dash and I were guarding our little friend." She said, choosing her words slowly. "I only just came out of it, and the others disappeared." She finally finished explaining best she could, what had happened in the depths of the school. She did not want to say that Cam had been dead when he disappeared, despite her checking and confirming that he had been dead.

Silence.

"What.. what do you mean, disappeared?" Claire couldn't quite ask the questions she wanted to ask, she knew for certain that these calls were being recorded. Liana and her had been conversing about the goings on in the castle in the vaguest of terms as well. Both of them were probably hoping that the other understood what the hell was going on. "Which others?"

“Just Dash and our little friend. They have disappeared after there was a battle with an unknown operative who came to have a look around.” Phoebe explained quietly gripping the phone tighter as she tried to not just burst into tears on the phone and spill out exactly what happened in great detail and depth. She was better trained for this and she was using every bit of her Military Intelligent training.

"Disappeared how? What do you mean, Phoebe? Are they alright?" Claire felt a pressure building up inside her chest. If anything bad happened to Cameron she'd never forgive herself. The man had been so good to her and the Institute. She didn't know if the world could handle losing a man like him, she certainly couldn't. "And an operative? They broke into our home?"

“I do not know if they are okay. They are no longer in the castle.” The precog said closing her eyes firmly as she tried to form the words. “Yes an operative was found and attacked me and Dash on our guard duty in the catacombs.” She glanced up as saw Tom come in and leave a cup of tea for her before he quickly left the room again.

A clenched fist hit the metal desk. "My barrister has been in contact with Liana, please contact the firm. Anything you have in regards to this intrusion will help my case get cleared more quickly. It's all very shoddy already. Being held together by dubious legal claims at best." Claire rubbed her hand against her upper leg. The outburst had definitely hurt her more than it did the desk.

Phoebe closed her eyes at the sound that she could hear from the other end. “I will see what I can do around evidence.” The woman assured quickly. She was not sure what she had yet but she would find enough to get the woman out.”What legal claims do they have?” She asked.

"It's drummed up charges about aiding a known terrorist organisation, obstruction of justice, refusal to register." Claire pinched the bridge of her nose between thumb and index finger.

"The usual charges of usual scared and powerful people," Phoebe commented. "The irony of them sending in first a spy as a teacher and then some solider to explore the catacombs and office spaces," Phoebe said, shaking her head as she sat back in the chair feeling the weight of the situation resting on her.

"I've been working on my defence, this is the first time since, I think Wednesday, that I've spoken to someone other than my lawyer." Claire felt the headache intensify. She had greatly underestimated the toll it took on her being confined to this space.

Phoebe had not expected the questions when she had assumed that the woman had known all about the other situation. "Winfred? You do not know about it?" Phoebe paled more, wishing that Liana had told the woman about it, so she was not having to spring all the things on her.

"Winifred? He came highly recommended." Claire sighed, another name she had to take off her list. Whether it was wilful or not, the person that had recommended him was clearly compromised. "Do we know if he stole any sensitive information?"

"Not that I know of," Phoebe said quietly, wishing she had more answers. "They knew that we had secrets, but they did not know anything, which is why they sent someone to investigate and got to meet me and Cam." She stated sure of that. They had no idea what lay further in.

"A small consolation, at least." Claire remained purposefully vague being 100% sure that the conversation was being tapped. Either in the facility she was in or on the end of the Institute. "Thank you, Pheebs. I'll work with our lawyers to draft a public statement condemning the intrusion." She leaned forward at the small desk, head in her hand. "Take care of yourself, and the kids."

"Always," The woman said quietly back, and she held the phone in her grip, wishing there was more to say. There would be more time in the future when they got over this blip, she just knew it, she was holding onto the futures she could see where they would all come back together. "Keep hoping, Claire."

"Hope is never lost," Claire put the horn back on the receiver and leaned back in the uncomfortable seat. What had already felt like the longest week in her life had just gotten stretched even longer. Her gaze was steel. Her heart ached. She needed to get back to the privacy of her room before the levees would give way. She would not give them the satisfaction of seeing her broken.