The Operator

Shit, she is going to hang up. “Ma’am, I’d like to broach the subject of Michael again,” he blurted, cringing when she exhaled. There was a soft rustle of papers, and a faint “Thank you, Chris. May I have some privacy, please?” He held his breath, feet still on the worn carpet.

Finally she came back. “You know I value your instincts, Bill. What are your concerns?”

He sighed in relief, not caring whether she heard it. “Michael has continued to show himself as inventive and tenacious, becoming an even more valuable asset.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

Nervous, he began to pace again, trying to get that damned breathiness out of his voice. “His loyalty remains to himself, which I’ve begun to adjust accordingly,” he rushed to say before she could interrupt again. “His innate recklessness, however, is an increasing issue. Bringing Peri back has brought it to a head and it needs to be addressed.” He took a slow breath. It was time. It was more than time. “Decisively,” he added.

“You’ve made me aware of his tendencies,” Helen said, the clink of a teacup clear in the background. “You assured me they could be used.”

“They can,” he rushed, wiping his brow. His Opti ring caught his hair, sending a surprising jolt through him when it pulled free. “And this is why I’m bringing it to your attention. Dr. Denier is attempting to reverse-engineer the Evocane, a task that will take him at least two years and far more than the amount Peri escaped with. I can’t risk her. Not now. I’ve already arranged to get her a new, clean supply to give her the time she needs to come back to us willingly.”

The click of the teacup came again. “You think she will come back within the week?”

“Absolutely. We’re in an excellent position. She’s remembering herself, and once accelerated, she will eagerly stretch into a new, better skin. It was her reliance on an anchor she couldn’t trust that held her back, and with that gone, the lure of her past will be irresistible.”

“And you want me to . . . approve of your plan?” Helen questioned, and he almost panicked. The woman hated micromanaging. He’d only succeeded in making himself look weak.

“No, ma’am. My concern is Michael. He is the logical choice to get a new supply of Evocane to her without her suspicions rising. She wants to apprehend him for the CIA, and she will show just for that reason. My concern is that Michael might decide at the last moment to eliminate her.”

“Remove Michael from the program,” Helen said, and his eyes widened. “Find another way to get her Evocane to her.”

“Snuff him?” he exclaimed, scrambling to fix this. He needed Michael. It wouldn’t work without him. “Ma’am, there’s no need to eliminate Michael. He only needs—”

“No.” It was decisive, and Bill grimaced, scrambling for a way to bring this back. “I’m not risking my investment on a drafter’s jealous whims and paranoid delusions.”

She had nailed it perfectly, but he had to have Michael for the rest to work. “Ma’am.”

“Are you arguing with me, Bill?”

He wiped the sweat off his face, not liking it was there. “No, ma’am. But Michael has skills that Peri will never have and can’t be introduced at this late stage. The very same traits that make him unreliable and difficult to work with are extremely valuable and will dovetail into what Peri will balk at. I’m confident he can be brought back into line if I can make him feel valued. He is, for all his faults, a drafter.”

“Yet you don’t approve of his acceleration,” she stated, and he began breathing again.

“Not at this moment, no. If you could meet with him? He needs to be stroked, made to see what he’s in risk of losing. He’s exactly like Peri, obedient and willing. He just needs to see the benefits of playing within the rules.”

Helen was silent. He was asking for a lot. She appreciated a discreet distance. But like every rich brat he’d met, she had an ego larger than her bank accounts, and to tell her that she could sway someone he couldn’t might be enough.

“Ma’am, if you want to take him out of the program, I will do it myself this very afternoon, but I’d ask you to meet him first so you can see what I see. The boy has talent. He just needs someone he admires to look to. Someone he wants to please.”

Bill held his breath, waiting. It hinged now on a woman’s pride.

“Do you have an alternative way in place to get Peri her stopgap Evocane?” Helen asked, and Bill closed his eyes in relief.

“Yes. Her past anchor is willing to feign wanting asylum to get it to her.”

“Jack?” she asked, voice rising in surprise. “The one she tried to kill? Why would he risk helping her? She’d never believe that. I’d never believe that, and Peri is a smart girl.”

“She loved him, ma’am, to the point where she still talks to him when she’s alone. If Jack shows up unexpectedly asking for sanctuary, she’ll listen. Especially if he brings her current anchor with him to sanction it.

“Love,” Helen said with a laugh. “But I like the idea of Jack back in her life. It will bring her past directly into her present, reminding her of what she had been.”

“That was my thought, too,” he said softly. Helen was going for it. He could smell the salt of the East Coast already.

“Fine. I will see Michael. I have time this afternoon. You still fly out of Detroit, yes?”