The Guardian Host-Resurrection-Book one of The Guardian Host Series

As I stepped into the office, I instantly noticed a tall man with black hair standing with his back to me, glancing through the window that overlooked the museum.

I quickly sized him up. He was wearing a black suit.

When I say a black suit, I mean everything he wore was black.

Talk about a flat sense of style.

Even though he was facing away from me, I could tell he had a slightly muscular frame beneath the suit. He was about my height.

Let’s see what this guy wants.

I made sure to close the door loud enough to get his attention.

He didn’t even acknowledge me.

There’s no way he didn’t hear that.

I cleared my throat.

That should do it.

He didn’t even flinch.

I was starting to become annoyed.

Time to set this guy straight.

I was about to speak when I heard his voice.

“Vincent Vandraken, I guess you do exist after all,” He said sarcastically.

He turned around to face me and interlocked his hands behind his back.

I sized him up from the front.

He seemed to be in his late twenties to early thirties. Surprisingly, he was not as ugly as I pictured in my head.

Black hair with a contemporary style parted on the left. Green eyes, chiseled chin, and clean shaved. White dress shirt and royal blue tie.

He looked like a model.

I’m starting to get jealous just looking at the guy.

If he were in a room full of women, they’d be all over him.

It makes me sick how attractive he is.

I wondered why anyone with his looks would pick a plain outfit.

Not only does he look better than me, but he’s sarcastic like me, too. That’s a lethal combination.

I gave him the best reply I could think of at the moment.

“Well, if I didn’t exist, you wouldn’t be here.”

He watched me with almost a glare as I reached my desk and sat down.

I can see why Gail got the creeps from this guy.

I played it cool and let him direct the conversation. I find out more information that way.

Keep talking, George Clooney.

“I have to say, you look fantastic for someone who’s over a hundred years old.”

He smiled condescendingly with his ultra-white and flawlessly aligned teeth.

My smile faded into a look of shock.

Wait a second, how does he know how old I am?

I felt a twinge of anxiety begin to crawl up my spine. I didn’t know how to respond, so I let him keep talking.

Let’s find out what he knows.

“So, tell me, what’s your secret to looking so youthful,” he asked with his perfect smile.

“Vincent, you have been discovered. Do not do anything physical to this man. I will keep you calm so your anxiety does not hinder your responses.”

I immediately felt a sense of calm as Volax took over my nervous system, making me feel as cool as a cucumber.

I tried to hide the fact that I was a little unnerved.

This guy knows which buttons to push.

I had to switch the flow of the conversation to gather as much information as possible from him.

I leaned forward, rested my arms on my desk, and smiled.

I was trying to appear as if he had nothing on me.

I motioned towards one of the leather chairs in front of my desk.

Time to get a name.

“Please have a seat, Mr.....”

He relaxed his arms and let them fall to his sides as he approached the chair.

“X. You can call me Mr. X.”

I let out a small chuckle.

Is this guy for real? What is he, some character from a sixties spy movie or something?

I waited for him to get comfortable before resuming the conversation. I didn’t want him to be distracted in any way.

He brought his right leg up, resting his ankle on his left thigh.

I hope you’re comfortable, Mr. X.

“X? You want to be called Mr. X,” I asked with a slight chuckle.

He didn’t say anything. He nodded slowly in agreement as he straightened his suit with his hands.

Okay, Mr. X, it is.

I was picking up a weird vibe from him.

“Okay, Mr. X. Where are you from?”

He relaxed a bit more and glanced at me with a slight smile.

“I’m from the Umbra Division of the government. We deal with things that are. How do I say this? Um, hard to believe.”

I sat back in my chair and relaxed more as I took in his reply.

I didn’t want to toss all my cards on the table yet.

Damn, his charisma is throwing me off.

I had to pry for more details. I needed to know what Mr. X knew about me.

“Okay, so what do you know about me?”

He smiled bigger, revealing his pearly whites again.

Does he have to smile all the time?

He momentarily looked up at the ceiling and let out a sigh that was more of a slight chuckle.

Oh, this guy is good.

His smile vanished as he looked at me, indicating our conversation no longer amused him.

I knew things were about to get serious.

Finally.

He locked eyes with me before speaking as if to intimidate me even more.

“Well, where do I begin? I know everything about you, Vincent, or should I call you the Guardian Host instead?”

I almost coughed with surprise but remained calm.

I smiled with my eyes gazing into his.

Talk about getting straight to the point.

I always say I like it when people get straight to the point, but damn, I wasn’t expecting that.

“He may know your identity, Vincent, but we still need to know everything he knows to assess this situation properly.”

I slapped my hands on the desk, throwing him off my blatant nervous reaction to his question.

“Well, you got me. Tell me, Mr. X, what else can you tell me about myself,” I asked sarcastically.

“Well done, Vincent.”

He relaxed his smile slightly and replied.

“You’re a hard one to nail down, Mr. Vandraken. It took us several decades to find out who you are. When The Guardian Host showed up, we scrambled around to find out who he was. We had a remarkable breakthrough when we thought we’d never figure it out.”

My curiosity was officially piqued.

I squinted at him to display my curiosity.

So they’ve been trying to discover who I was for over seventy years?

Either I was great at guarding my identity, or they were slow. I had to find out what the remarkable breakthrough was.

I folded my hands in front of me and leaned closer to him.

“So what did you find out?”

He smiled, but not large enough to show his teeth, like a smile of satisfaction.

“I know what happened in Roswell between you and that alien. I also know he gave you something; from the looks of things, it keeps you young and makes you powerful. I also know from watching news footage and the internet videos that you use that power to help people.”

My mouth probably opened wide enough for my chin to hit the desk as I heard him talk about Avlandrix giving me the pod.

Nobody knows about that but Avlandrix, Volax, and myself.

How the hell did he know about Avlandrix?

That’s more than just a breakthrough if you ask me.

Mr. X smiled at me as if he knew he had the upper hand as he waited for a response.

This guy just pushed the wrong button.

He knew too much.

I thought I should vaporize him with an energy sphere and sweep this encounter under the rug.

I was considering it.

He threw a monkey wrench smack dab in the center of everything I’d planned.

I should go ahead and…

“Vincent, vaporizing Mr. X is not a good idea. Think about it logically. He is from a Government agency. I am certain they know he is here. You cannot vaporize him.”

“I’m kidding, Volax. I wasn’t going to do it,” I replied telepathically.

I had to find out where the information came from.

He will spill the beans, or I will make him talk.

I cocked my head to the side and portrayed my confronting side.

“How do you know what happened in Roswell? I’ve never told a soul about that.”

“I know the answer to that question, Vincent. If his response directly correlates to my intuition, then we are in a great deal of trouble.”

What’s Volax talking about?

Before I could ask Volax what he was talking about, I directed my attention towards Mr. X as he planted his feet on the floor and rested his arms on my desk.

“We recovered the two space crafts that crashed in Roswell in 1947, along with four aliens. One survived for a few days, but we never got any information from him.”

Avlandrix! It had to be. He was the only living being on the ship.

His tone grew softer as he continued, “For the past seven decades, we’ve been piecing the space crafts together.”

“So, you’ve presumably got them put together by now, right,” I asked, knowing the answer.

“Yes. We’ve managed to reconstruct one complete ship using the parts from both. Last year, we figured out how to activate the power source to get it to come to life.”

“That is not a good thing for us, Vincent. Once the ship is powered, it sends a beacon signal to Volistan to show its location. I fear that the government finding out who we are is the least of our concerns.”

Oh, great. More freaking monkey wrenches. Is this ever going to end?

All my plans were spiraling out of control quicker than I could think.

See what happens when people waltz into your life and throw off the balance of things?

I still needed clarification about how he knew Avlandrix communicated with me. There’s only one way to find out.

“That still doesn’t explain how you knew it was me that talked to an alien.”

“Once the ship was powered up, we figured out how to use its recording device. We watched a holographic image of you and the alien interacting outside the ship. The damage was so severe that we couldn’t recover anything before that. The clip is only thirty seconds long, but it was long enough to get a facial recognition ID on you.”

“Vincent, find out if anyone has communicated to them from Volistan.”

I leaned forward and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly.

“Okay, now you know who I am and what I can do. What’s the government planning to do now, try to do some experiments on me or arrest me for operating without a permit or something? Because I can assure you, that’s not going to happen.”

Mr. X appeared nervous as he stood up and scanned the room as if looking for something.

He placed his right hand in his pocket and ran his left hand through his jet-black hair, letting out a small sigh.

He glanced at me with an expression suggesting he wanted to tell me something but was struggling to say it.

“We are in danger, Vincent. Not from Mr. X, but from a greater threat...”

As I listened to Volax, Mr. X started talking in a calmer voice.

“Once the ship was powered up, it must’ve activated a homing beacon or something because, within a few days, we received communication from an alien being. It appeared on a holographic screen and spoke in a weird language we didn’t understand.

The scientists couldn’t figure out what it was saying until they found a device in the ship that translated the communication telepathically.”

“Well, what did it say?”

“After asking a few questions, they found out you were here, and let’s just say that didn’t sit too well with them.”

“Go on.”

“They said they were sending alien soldiers to Earth to retrieve what belongs to them. The being made it abundantly clear that they have no regard for human life and would get what they wanted if they had to destroy the whole planet.”

What? Things couldn’t get any worse.

I was at a loss for words as I stared blankly at him.

“They told us they were on their way here to reclaim their guardian,” he said as he gave me a grim look.

“It will take them a significant amount of time to travel to Earth since they cannot teleport to any location that does not have a teleportation device already existing at their planned destination site. This information could be advantageous to us, allowing us to prepare for their arrival.”

I let out a sigh, not of relief but of frustration at the entire scenario.

So much for my plans, whoever said ‘planning makes perfect’ is an idiot.

There was no use hiding who I was in front of Mr. X.

I decided to probe Volax for some answers because I needed them.

I looked up at the ceiling and directed my question to Volax.

“How long do you think we have before they show up, pal?”

Mr. X replied, “From what they told me back at the….”

“I’m not talking to you,” I said, cutting him off mid-sentence.

Mr. X looked at me with a curious smile. “Wait a second! You’re talking to the guardian right now, aren’t you?”

He looked like an excited little boy as he asked me that question.

I shook my head ‘yes’ as I listened to Volax. I tried to ignore Mr. X, but he was suddenly acting like a kid.

“I estimate their arrival time to be approximately 60 to 70 years, depending on the rate of speed and projected travel path.”

Mr. X practically leaped towards my desk and excitedly slammed his hands on it. His eyes were wide with excitement as he leaned in closer to me.

“So, what does he sound like? What did he say?”

He only asked me two questions, but it felt like a hundred to me because I was trying to focus.

I was getting annoyed with his childish persistence. I looked at him and rolled my eyes as I leaned towards him.

This guy is losing his freaking marbles.

“He sounds like Darth Vader talking underwater, and he says we have about 60 years or more before they get here.”

He plopped back in his chair and immediately ran both hands through his hair as he smiled at me.

After about a second, his expression changed to confusion.

What’s his deal?

I could tell he was dumbfounded by my response about how long it would take for the aliens to arrive.

He cocked his head to the left and raised his eyebrows.

“Darth Vader underwater? Seriously? That’s what he sounds like?”

His demeanor changed from mister ‘high and mighty government agent’ into an actual human.

He’s human, after all.

When I thought his personality was equal to a bag of rocks, he proved me wrong.

Then it occurred to me. Mr. X was so interested in my description of what Volax sounded like he didn’t hear what I said about the timeframe.

“Did you hear what I just said? I said it would take them 60 years or more to get here.”

“Oh, I heard you. We already did the math back at the base and concluded it would take about the same time as you said or as the guardian said it would.”

I stood up and shot him an angry look.

“So, you’re telling me you knew how long it would take them to get here?”

“Affirmative,” he replied without blinking.

“Well, why are you here if you knew that already?”

He blinked a few times and shook his head to clear his mind.

“So what’s his name? What’s he look like?”

I couldn’t believe this jerk was avoiding my questions and was asking me about Volax.

This is the weirdest situation I’ve ever been in. Is this guy crazy or something?

I had to get his mind back on track because I needed to find out why he showed up at my office in the first place.

He stood up from his seat, and I could see the excitement in his eyes. He was clear about our conversation. He just wanted to know about Volax.

I figured that if I answered a few questions, I’d be able to get him back on track.

I ran my hands through my hair in frustration before I answered his question.

This guy doesn’t give up, does he?

“His name’s Volax, and he doesn’t look like anything.”

“Volax? That sounds like a space name.”

“Well, actually, I call him Volax for short. His real name’s Volaxion.”

“That’s even better,” he replied with a smile that bared his white teeth.

He was about to ask me more questions, but I needed to change the subject.

His focus level was way below average. I knew I had to get his attention, so I did what I had to do.

I changed into the Guardian Host right in front of him.

By the look of surprise on his face, I knew I had his attention.

I’m a ‘get straight to the point’ kind of guy.

I levitated towards him.

He stumbled back a step, and the chair behind him caught the back of his legs, forcing him to flop back down in the chair.

His eyes widened, and his mouth hung open as he looked at me.

If he wasn’t scared before, he certainly is now.

I was sure I snapped him back to reality.

“If you knew how long it took, why did you come here,” I growled.

I could tell that the sound of my voice frightened him because of the way he gripped the arms of the chair.

I could see the white in his knuckles as he gripped it.

He leaned back so far in his chair that the front two legs lifted off the floor.

He couldn’t back up any further, or he’d end up on the floor.

I lowered myself until my feet rested on the floor. I stood directly in front of Mr. X and waited for a reply.

“I um...I came here to warn you. I mean, help you. Well, warn you and help you.”

I glared at him with my glowing green eyes and placed my gauntlet-covered hands on his wrists.

I leaned in closer so my face was about a foot away from his. I waited for him to continue, but he didn’t get the hint.

I could hear him breathing heavier as his eyes widened even more.

I noticed that his knuckles were white, and his fingernails were digging into the arms of the chair.

“Warn me about what?”

He inhaled sharply at the sound of my voice, then smiled at me.

He was looking at my face as if he were examining it. He let his breath out quickly before he started to chuckle, like someone who just discovered something he’d been searching for.

“Holy crap! You almost had me scared for a second! You’re even more intimidating in person, you know that?”

I couldn’t believe how fast his demeanor had changed.

Is he bipolar or something?

I had to admit that even though it was pretty amusing, I was still irritated that he wasn’t scared.

I wasn’t sure if he was fearless or just plain stupid, but it was entertaining.

Time for a new strategy.

I lifted the chair with him, pulling him closer to me so we were nose to nose.

Mr. X let out a high-pitched squeal, like someone having fun on a roller coaster ride.

He glanced down to see how high he was off the floor, then back at me as he laughed harder.

Okay, it’s official. Mr. X is certifiably insane.

I wasn’t sure what to do to get through to him anymore.

“I do not believe any form of intimidation will be effective with this man, Vincent. He is so fascinated with you that he cannot focus on anything else.”

I ignored Volax because I was frustrated. I

I’m starting to lose my patience.

“What do you want to warn me about?”

“I feel so weightless right now. This is awesome! You made me weightless, didn’t you?”

I slowly lowered the chair to the ground, resigning to the fact I couldn’t get through to him with any form of intimidation.

I had to try another approach.

I teleported behind my desk out of frustration. Mr. X let out a small chuckle after I teleported.

He stood up, taking a few steps towards my desk, smiling the entire time.

“That was awesome! I’ve waited my entire life for that! Sorry for my obnoxious behavior, but I was caught up in the moment.”

His smile slowly faded into a more serious look as I changed back to myself and sat down.

“Apology accepted,” I replied with a sigh of relief.

“Now, back to our discussion. What did you want to warn me about?”

He leaned over the desk and towards me slightly.

“The Umbra Division doesn’t exactly want to help you. They’re more interested in getting a hold of your abilities.”

“Is that a fact?”

“Oh yeah, that’s a fact,” he replied. “They’ve decided to be buddies with those turd-shaped aliens to get your powers. Those ugly things have a weapon that can separate you from your alien parasite, and they want to get their hands on it.

They’re making arrangements with those ‘chunk-a-poos’ to obtain one of those weapons to get to you first. They also plan to get a hold of your alien friend and use it for themselves.”

“Vincent, we now face multiple threats. Your government is a negligible opposition. However, the Dondravens are a considerable adversary. They have the uncanny ability to deceive any race that allies with them. I would calculate the odds of your government getting a splitter device in the negative numbers.”

I nodded in agreement with Volax’s statement.

I couldn’t believe the government I’ve defended with my abilities would turn on me so quickly.

But then again, it didn’t surprise me because they covered up the Roswell crash as soon as it happened.

I tensed my jaw in frustration as I leaned forward, resting my arms on my desk.

Why is this happening? Just a few minutes ago, I was on top of the world with everything planned out, and now I’m at the center of an intergalactic war. So much for a happy life.

“So, I’m alone now because some desk jockeys want to steal Volax from me?”

“Yep. Umbra’s sure they can outsmart those brown turds and get that weapon.”

“We both know that’s never going to happen because those aliens are the smartest creatures in the universe, and they can smell a trap a galaxy away. Not only that, I can destroy any person I perceive as a threat to me, and they can’t stop me.”

Mr. X smiled and gestured to me with his hand.

“You know that, and I know that, but Umbra thinks they’re smarter than any man or alien that’s ever lived.”

“Well, I guess we’re gonna have to prove ’em wrong,” I replied with a devilish smile.

Mr. X smiled and winked at me.

“It won’t take much, I can promise you that,” he replied sarcastically.

He was starting to grow on me.

I’m starting to like this guy.

"Vincent, you are forgetting one thing. How can you be certain that Mr. X is on our side and not the side of our adversaries?”

I hadn’t thought about that because I’d been so caught up in the moment.

If it weren’t for Volax, I could’ve fallen into a government trap.

With both hands on my desk, I stood up and leaned in towards Mr. X.

It’s time to find out which side of the fence he’s on.

“There’s something I need to clear up,” I said in a severe tone. “How do I know you’re on my side and not theirs?”

He didn’t flinch a muscle and looked me straight in the eye with a serious expression.

“Because if I were on their side, I wouldn’t be talking to you right now. I would’ve waited until I had the device and shot you with it. There’s no question about that.”

The answer wasn’t what I was looking for, and I knew he could see that in my facial expression.

He stood up straight and put his hands on his hips.

I wanted to believe him, but I couldn’t.

“They don’t know I’m here. I’m supposed to observe you, watching your every move without making contact. I’m not too fond of their plan. I think it stinks, and I don’t want any part of it,” Mr. X said with conviction.

“I’ve seen what they’ve done to other alien races, and I don’t like it. You’re the only hope we have left. I don’t want to see it wasted on some know-it-all idiots who want everything for themselves, like some greedy pirates, leaving the rest of humanity to fend for themselves,” he said, using wild hand gestures. “I wouldn’t want my back-stabbing government to defend me, especially when they only do it for themselves.

Besides, if they do it to you, they’ll eventually do it to me. I know this planet needs to be protected, and I don’t see any other superheroes around here that can handle that!”

“He sounds sincere, but we must know if he is trustworthy. Vincent, if you can touch him physically, I can see if he’s telling us the truth. That is the only way to know if he is on our side.”

I looked at Mr. X with a serious face, like the kind you’d give if you were playing a poker game and wanted to find out if your opponent was bluffing.

I held my hand to him like I wanted him to shake it.

“Let me see your hand,” I demanded.

“My hand? What for?”

“I’ve gotta know if you’re telling me the truth. Now put your hand in mine.”

He chuckled as he slowly moved his right hand toward mine.

We’ll find out in a second.

“This is ridiculous. I’m telling you the truth.”

I didn’t flinch as I kept my right hand extended. I looked him in the eye, making sure I didn’t blink.

Volax had only used this ability several times, so I knew it had to be serious.

If Volax wants to know the truth, by God, I will make it happen.

Finally, he placed his hand in mine, and I held it firmly as I felt him try to pull away from me.

One of the abilities I’d received a year after merging with Volax was the unbreakable grip. I could grip something in my hands, and once I held it, it couldn’t be freed from my grip unless I allowed it to happen.

Volax could bond any object or person to my molecular structure, making it impossible to leave my grasp unless I let go of it.

I got you now, buddy. You’re not going anywhere.

Mr. X glanced down at our hands. He had a look of surprise on his face as the molecular bonding fused us.

I felt a slight buzzing in my head as Volax did his thing.

Here he goes.

It looked like Mr. X went into a trance.

His mouth gaped slightly, and he stared blankly at our hands as if frozen in animation.

I always get a kick out of seeing people’s faces when Volax enters their minds and roots around in there.

After a few seconds, I heard Volax’s voice.

"Vincent, He is telling the truth. His allegiance is with us and not Umbra. He will be a strong ally when the time comes. You may release him now.”

I let go of his hand, and he blinked quickly as the connection was severed.

After a moment or two, he noticed his arm was still outstretched as if he were still gripping my hand.

He looked up at me, smiling nervously, as he put his hand in his pocket.

Gets them every time.

“So, how’d I do?”

“Well, you’re telling the truth, so welcome aboard,” I said with a smile as I offered my hand to shake his.

He looked at my hand and gestured towards it with his head.

“No thanks. I think I’ll keep it in my pocket this time.”

I returned my hand and put it in my pocket as I chuckled, realizing I’d just made a stupid move by offering him my hand again.

He’d be an idiot to take my hand after what Volax just did to him.

Although he knew I wouldn’t invade his mind again, he didn’t want to take any chances. I don’t blame him.

I gestured towards him with my chin.

“So, is your name really Mr. X?”

He chuckled. “No, I’d always wanted to be called Mr. X,” he said as he placed his other hand in his pocket. “It sounds pretty cool, right?”

“Mr. X, huh? That’s the best you could come up with? I mean, wouldn’t Agent Smith be a little more intimidating?”

“I could’ve used that name, but Mr. X has a ring to it, you know?”

I shrugged as I chuckled at his logic.

If he says so.

“So, Mr. X, what’s your real name?”

“My friends call me Jack. Call me Jack.”

” It seems we have made a new friend, Vincent. This friendship will be unlike any other that you have had in your lifetime.

I smiled because it’d been a while since I’d met someone I could call a friend.

I felt emotion swell inside me like I wanted to cry. It felt so good to meet someone I could call a friend finally.

The day’s not going that bad after all.

I extended my right hand for him to shake. I was sure he was just as emotional as I was.

“Nice to meet you, Jack,” I said, smiling at my new friend.

He glanced down at my hand, then back to my face. He cocked his head to the side and gave me a look as if to say, ‘You must be kidding.’

He took his hand out of his pocket and made a fist, bringing it close to my hand.

“How about a fist bump?”

He smiled as he held out his fist.

Why not.

I made a fist and gave him a slight bump.

“So, what’s the next step,” I asked after we bumped fists.

“When I get some new intel from our boys back at the lab, I’ll call you to update you. For now, it’s just business as usual. Here’s my card.”

He pulled a business card out of his pocket and handed it to me.

“My cell number’s on the back. Call me if you need anything.”

I grabbed the card and put it in my pocket as I smiled.

“Thanks again, Jack. Call me if you need anything, and I’ll be there for you. I don’t have many friends, but I take excellent care of the ones I do have.”

“The same goes for me.”

He brought his arm up and looked at his gold watch.

“It’s time for me to be Mr. X again, so I’ve gotta run.”

He turned and started walking towards the door behind him.

I watched him change his demeanor, physically transforming into the serious agent he was when I first saw him in my office.

Is there anything that’s not cool about him? He makes me sick.

“Till next time,” I said as he reached for the doorknob.

“Till next time,” he replied.

Then he looked at me and smiled. “Tell Volax that I said goodbye.”

Before I could reply, he had already shut the door and was gone.

“Will do,” I replied under my breath.

I walked over to the window overlooking the T-Rex and placed my hands behind me as I watched the people walking through the museum.

I sighed as I thought about what the future held for me.

Just like that, my whole world turned upside down.

I thought I had it all figured out, but I was wrong.

” Vincent, we have a lot of work to do to prepare for whoever may arrive on this planet to separate us and take me back to Volistan. We must avoid being separated because if the Dondravens merge with me, there will be no hope for your planet.

You will all be a slave to the most powerful alien race I have ever seen, and I will be powerless to save you. Unfortunately, I have to obey the will of my host, even if commanded to destroy you.”

I sighed again and closed my eyes, thinking about what that meant.

“Well then, we’ll have to ensure that doesn’t happen, pal. The world is counting on us.”

I turned from the window and walked towards the door of the office.

“Let’s go get a cup of coffee.”

“But you don’t drink coffee, Vincent.”

“I know that, Volax, but it’s not about the coffee,” I said with a smile as I opened the door.

“It’s about the person serving the coffee.”

“You must be referring to Sky.”

“Yep.”

“I understand. So, we will go to the coffee shop so that you can, as you say, put the moves on Sky.”

“Something like that,” I said with a chuckle as I walked out of my office, shutting the door behind me.