But before I do anything else, I stare at the email Ella sent me and hit reply.
You
You do know that I don’t take no for an answer?
I stare at the screen; it only takes a minute for her reply to come through.
Ella
Watch me
I read Ella’s message, and it stirs something deep within me—a wave of desire that comes with the distinct knowledge that I can’t have her. Not now, but I will.
Throughout the day, I am distracted.
I rarely curse, but lately, stress has led me to do so more often, and when I snap at my assistant the fourth time, I know I need to leave that behind once I arrive at my mother’s birthday party. My father will kill me if so much as hear me curse.
My mother’s birthday. Another thing on my list that distracts me. But first and foremost, my mind wanders off to Ella. Her smirk, her straightforwardness, her smile, the body, the shyness—though I am not sure how much of a mask that is, and there is also the fact that she says no to me continuously.
I meet with the lawyers, but I can’t focus. My mind is preoccupied with ideas for persuading Ella to sign the contract.
I nod without knowing what I agree to, as I plan my next move. I excuse myself for a moment to go to the bathroom and splash some cold water on my face, Doug following me from door to door.
For some moments, I stand there, leaning onto the wooden vanity top and glance at myself in the mirror.
“You need to focus,” I tell my mirror-self.
My eyes look tired, and the fine lines around them and my mouth deepen each week. Lack of sleep over the past weeks,months, or even years is showing on my skin. In three years, I will turn forty, and I can't let that be apparent on my face.
I push myself off and message my assistant on Slack to book the best dermatologist he can find before returning to the meeting. As I step through the door, I turn to Doug. I need to get Ella out of my mind.
“Get someone to watch her every move. I want to know what she likes, what she is into, what she hates, and what she yearns for. Put Zeus on her. I want a full profile, all the handles, search queries, everything.”
Doug cocks an eyebrow at me.
“Don’t,” I hiss at him. “I want her, and I need to know what I have to do to get her.”
“You could ask her,” Doug says, and I snort out in disbelief.
“Where would the fun be?” I ask as I open the meeting room door.
7
KAT
PLAYLIST: OUTRUN – WEARETHEGOOD, LYNNEA
The alarm on my sniffer tool blares as I see the network traffic flags go up, and the activity monitor shows a new process spin up on the sandboxed laptop I use as Ella Larsen.
Lilian is sending that spy tool after me.
I know it’s her, because I already made out the people following me whenever I leave the apartment, and I am prepared: Ghost traffic. Fake history. Sandboxing. Decoy behaviour.
I am intrigued by letting this play out as an experiment. If I can fool her, I can fool Zeus and, therefore, the government's tracking system. It is, in a sense, a test for any further jobs I’ll do, and I tell myself it justifies the idea to follow through with the entire Lilian thing after all. I’d also like to get my hands on Zeus.
The ghost traffic I let run is mainly the kinds of things Ella Larsen would search for: Job platforms, news from her home country, ways to make money online, and health questions. I fake some scrolling through social media and dating apps on the phone, add some route planning, and sprinkle in some self-help research.
I let it run for three days. Meanwhile, I match with a cute girl on a dating app and meet her. It’ll drive Lilian nuts, and it’s exactly what I need to provoke her next move.
