Chapter 8 #2
A scientist walked by, his eyebrow raised. “He’s just joking.” Then I saw his face, that adorable smirk. “I think?” I mumbled.
Standing outside one of Synergy’s labs, I wanted to ask him if he had started either novel I had suggested.
It’d be perfectly normal for the only two people without lab coats to discuss literature from our childhood.
I had nearly worked up the courage to pick up where we left off when Ms. Keyes rounded the corner.
Despite Booker calling the meeting, she seemed surprised to see us.
“I know,” she started, “I couldn’t give you credit by name.
Booker, you know how the government likes to play it close to the chest. Drew, Arthur asked me to keep your name out of the media to protect your privacy.
” She stopped just shy of the lab door, her hand resting on the handle.
“But that’s not why you’re here, is it?”
Gesturing with her head, we followed her inside. Booker held the door open for me. “Ms. Keyes—”
“Catherine.”
He waited for the door to close. “Catherine, we believe there’s another mole in the company.”
Her back stiffened. “Excuse me?”
She leaned against a workbench. I couldn’t make sense of the room.
The lab had a robotic arm suspended from the ceiling and a reclined chair underneath.
I had seen more than a few supervillain lairs with the same setup.
Workbenches had computer screens, but otherwise it was immaculate. Did Synergy run experiments in here?
“It’s for DNA extraction,” she said. “Some of our volunteers have thicker skin than you or I. It requires mechanical assistance.” This was the exact place Wyatt had nightmares about. I’d have to remind Arthur to never send him over here for errands.
Booker didn’t seem as bothered as I was. “You have another mole. Our work isn’t done here. If you don’t mind, we want to get back to it.” His words didn’t leave room for negotiation.
“This isn’t good,” she mumbled. “Very not good. Are you sure? Dammit. I knew we should have waited for the press conference.”
It was the first time Catherine’s neutral face cracked. I wanted to assure her there was nothing to worry about. “We’ll just keep—”
“I just told Vanguard that we solved the problem. If this gets out, it’ll erode the public’s trust.”
“You’ve solved your public image problem,” Booker said. The warmth he exuded when he first walked in had vanished. He snapped back into his role as a government worker. “It doesn’t mean my job is done.”
Her eyes narrowed, and anger flashed across her face. “Where’s your proof?”
Booker reached into his pocket, pulling out the folded sheet of paper. As he started unfolding it, she snatched it from his hand. Her eyes darted back and forth, as if the first time reading didn’t make sense. The anger slid away.
“Who did this?”
I shrugged. “I thought it might be you.”
She shook her head. “I’d have used crafting scissors.”
“We can’t ignore this,” Booker said. “My bosses wouldn’t allow it.”
She handed the note back. She let out a steadying breath before turning around.
Based on our previous meetings, I could understand the anger, but getting choked up?
I expected another stare-down between them, and instead, she tipped her head back to protect her mascara.
Under duress, even the stoic human resources manager could crack.
“I’m going to lose my job.”
Was she crying?
I jumped to her defense. “You couldn’t have known. We assumed it was a single person. We’re just as at fault here.” When I eyed Booker, hoping for compassion, he didn’t seem as persuaded by her quiet outburst. “We all screwed up. But we can fix it.”
She had a quiet sniffle before her back straightened. With a slight shake of the shoulders, she turned around, her face returning to its default blank expression.
“I’m going to be honest.” Had she not been honest up to this point? “I’ve had to claw my way up the corporate chain. I moved to Synergy because it’s not like other companies. Ricardo is a decent person. If I get fired, hell, if the public catches wind of this, who’s going to get the blame?”
“The spy?”
She didn’t let his statement deter her. “In a fair world, maybe. In reality, it’s going to be the person who hired them. The person who put her face on camera, saying everything was fine. They’ll go to jail, but I’ll… let’s just say prison is the better of the two options.”
“We’ll keep it quiet,” I said. I gave Booker an elbow to the ribs. “He only has to report to his superiors. Who am I going to tell?”
She let the reality settle in before nodding her head.
My heart went out to her. At first, I thought she might be one of Orion’s robots or another artificial intelligence come to life.
Seeing her crack made her a little more human.
It might not be breaking bones and getting bloody, but at the end of the day, I wanted to protect the innocent.
If I got lucky, maybe there’d be another fight with a mad scientist.
“Of course. We need to protect Synergy. Is there anything that you need from me?”
Booker had gone oddly quiet. “Same process as before.”
She gave a slight nod. “I’ll go through the files again and see if anything stands out. Maybe Cypher had a collaborator?”
“Perhaps.”
The Booker from last night had left the room.
Poof. Gone. No discussing Nemo’s adventures or failed book reports.
It was almost as if I could see him pulling out the proverbial mask, pressing it to his face, and ensuring that the man underneath remained hidden.
I knew the routine well, and from this perspective, it came off as unsettling.
“We’re in this together.” I flashed a smile. “Do you want us to talk to Ricardo?”
She shook her head. “I appreciate it, truly. I do. You begin your work, and I’ll go break it to the boss that his company is filled with crooks.”
“Go, team.” I threw my arms up in the air.
Nobody seemed amused by my can-do attitude.
I shrank, stepping out of her way as she headed toward the door.
She took a moment to collect herself, checking her ponytail, adjusting her skirt, and taking a long, steadying breath.
She went out into the hall, her mask also firmly in place.
“I don’t like her.”
“I don’t need to be a—” I waved my hand at the operation area. “—robotic arm doctor to have figured that out.”
“Worse,” he said. “I don’t trust her. The emotion didn’t reach her eyes. Every word, an Oscar-worthy performance.”
With his occupation, I suspected it had been baked into his training. “She just wants to keep her job. I mean, it looks pretty bad for her.”
“That doesn’t set off alarms?” I couldn’t tell if he genuinely wanted my opinion or if he meant it rhetorically. Seconds passed before I realized he was waiting for an answer.
I coughed, straightening my spine and broadening my shoulders. “My professional opinion… as a veteran sleuth? She wouldn’t help us if she had something to hide.” My words didn’t seem to ease the tension on his face. “So far, everything that has gone wrong over here has been the scientists’ fault.”
He exhaled and held it before breathing in. “You’re right.”
I was?
“I don’t like her. But that’s not what the evidence is telling us.” His return to procedure was more like the man I first met in the office waiting room. “Ready to interview some more mad scientists, partner?”
He held out his hand, palm down. I hesitated, and he finally covered his. “Go, team.” It wasn’t grand or shouting from the rooftops, but the crooked grin was better than any pep talk. Did it have anything to do with the word partner?
Maybe a little.