She let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, good! That gives us time to pay Director Hall a visit to finalize my paperwork. Do you happen to know if she’s on-site today?”
Themoyashrugged. “I am not aware of her current itinerary. You might wish to check the offices.”
“Thanks.”
He gathered his things and left. I did my best to hide my elation at the serendipity of events. I could not have planned it better.
“Well, I guess we’re requisitioning a trip to the lake.” Timber picked up her phone and checked her weapon in its holster. “Come on. Let’s pay the director a visit while we have some time. It’s way overdue, anyway.”
To minimize my time out in the open, we got a ride from one of the AARO agents watching the cabin. The remaining three kept watch over our abode, so there wouldn’t be any unpleasant surprises when we returned.
To my surprise, the director had Timber’s paperwork ready when we got there. She explained that Timber’s security clearance had just come through, which allowed her to make Timber’s assignment as my guardian official. She handed Timber a slip of paper. Timber gasped when she opened it.
“Um … Director, I think someone fudged a decimal point here. This can’t be right.”
Director Hall smiled. “Oh, it’s right. You’ve already proven yourself a valuable asset; this just puts a number on that value.”
“I-I don’t know what to say …”
“A simple thank you will be enough.” She picked up a thick file. “Now to earn that decimal point. Here’s the file on the female Xalanite you asked about. It’s as complete as you’re going to get. Even I don’t have access to more than this.”
Timber nodded as she took the file. “Thank you, director. I’ll do my best.”
“I don’t doubt it. From what I understand, you’re … uniquely motivated to find the perp.”
Timber blushed, and with that we left the office. The agent gave us a ride back to the cabin, where everything seemed secure and in place. We sat on the couch, and Timber opened the laptop the AARO had issued for her use. A few clicks later, she sat back with a low whistle.
“Jesus, she wasn’t joking. They really did pay me that much.”
“Is it not enough?” I asked. “I can call Xalan and talk to my father if they are not compensating you correctly.” She had mentioned a misplaced decimal point …
“Oh, no! It’s plenty. More than any single paycheck I’ve ever gotten. I just don’t know what to do with this much money.”
“It is enough to live on, then? You will not be troubled?”
She patted my shoulder. “We’re good. Better than good. This will go a long way towards settling down. I might even be able to afford some college classes for you, if that’s still what you want to do.”
College … I had all but forgotten my desire to help provide for Timber. The point might be moot now with her making so much, but I still wanted to be able to contribute.
If my plan to catch the Xalanite assassin didn’t fail, of course. Before I could think about my future life on Earth with Timber, I had to consider the possibility that I could be killed at the lake if anything went wrong.
Timber’s voice brought me out of my musings.
“How much would nanites cost for me? Like, so I can understand your language.”
This question caught me off guard. “About twenty thousandkrin. Roughly three hundred US dollars, if I have the conversion right. Why?”
She rubbed her chin in thought. “Hmm. I might need to pay themoyaa visit, then.”
“You wish to be able to conduct your interrogations more efficiently?”
Timber leaned against my chest and rubbed my knee. “That, yes, but I also want to be able to communicate with you in your language. It’s only fair.”
I wrapped my arm around her shoulders. “I am touched that you feel this way. I hope you don’t think that I expect this of you, though. You don’t have to take nanites if it is not something you want to do.”
“Idowant them, really. For my job and for our relationship. Besides,” she grinned up at me, “I’ve always wanted to learn a second language.”
My hearts swelled with the love I had for this woman, which seemed to grow with every new revelation about her. To think she wanted foreign technology injected into her brain stem just to better be able to converse with me!
