Chapter 43 Aaron
Aaron
Location: Government Coordination Center — Lisbon
Time: Evening
The building is glass.
Flags.
Soft lighting.
Polished floors.
The kind of place designed to look transparent.
It isn’t.
Security is polite.
Efficient.
Controlled.
I hate it.
Ronan walks beside me, already pulling feeds into a portable display.
“They’re nervous,” he murmurs.
“Good.”
We’re led into a conference room.
Large.
Neutral.
Deliberately impersonal.
Two intelligence representatives.
One Europol liaison.
And one man who doesn’t introduce himself.
He doesn’t have to.
Ronan leans slightly toward me.
“Oversight Council,” he murmurs. “One of the architects.”
Good.
I meet the man’s eyes.
No hesitation.
No respect offered.
“You’re holding Dr. Lark London,” I say.
Not a question.
A statement.
“She’s currently in a PJ command room,” the Europol liaison adds. “That won’t hold much longer.”
Of course it won’t.
They’re losing control.
“We’re prepared to offer conditional release into supervised technical custody,” the Oversight man continues.
I don’t sit right away.
I let the room wait.
Then I take my seat.
“She’s not your asset,” I say.
Flat.
Final.
“She’s the only one who can stop this,” he replies.
“And you’re the ones who framed her.”
A flicker.
Small.
But real.
“We’re past that,” he says. “Now we’re managing consequences.”
That’s how they see it.
Damage.
Containment.
Control.
I lean forward.
“You want her help,” I say, “you clear her name.”
“Not possible. Not yet.”
“Then you don’t get her.”
The room tightens.
Subtle.
But real.
“You don’t understand how big this is,” he says.
I smile.
Cold.
“Oh, I do.”
I lean in.
“That’s why I’m not letting you touch her.”
Silence.
Heavy.
“What do you propose?” he asks.
No hesitation.
“She works with Ronan.”
I gesture.
“Off your network. On our hardware.”
Let that land.
“With me in the room.”
Immediate reaction.
“That’s unacceptable.”
“Then enjoy the next funeral.”
Silence.
Long.
Measured.
Finally—
“If she runs—”
“She won’t,” I say.
Absolute.
“And if you try to cage her again,” I add, “this gets louder.”
A long pause.
Then—
“Bring her in.”