“I’m a government official; you can’t resist, or I’ll have to arrest you.”
“You’re not a cop.”
“Don’t need to be one to have handcuffs.”
I leaned back, studying the man. For anybody else, I’d be worried about giving them an honest opinion. People said they wanted honesty. In truth, they wanted to hear their version of honesty. Booker, on the other hand, I think he spent so much time studying people, he wanted me to test how firmly he put that mask in place.
“You dislike your job,” I said.
“He comes out swinging.” For a moment, I thought I’d already wedged my foot in my mouth. “Is this intuition, or do you have evidence?”
He had been trained to study his subjects. Maybe he took a psychology class or two and learned some interrogation techniques. His confidence made me think he never hid to protect himself. He didn’t go home exhausted every day from trying to read the room and make the puzzle pieces fit. While he focused his skill on one person, I had my own version, and I could read entire rooms.
I took a deep breath and took a leap of faith. “There’s no challenge in your interview. You go about it with a robotic methodology.” I sped up my speaking. “Fact. Everyinterview, you repeat the same technique in the same order with almost no variation. However, once you get a hint of something wrong, your demeanor changes. Fact, you were delighted to inspect the lab.” I spoke even faster as I neared the end of my breath. “I’m not sure if it’s because you were close to solving the mystery or because there was more mystery to uncover. You quote government regulations, but you’re quick to break the law. Fact. No law-abiding citizen keeps a lock pick set in their pocket.”
My hands smacked the table as I sucked in air. When I caught my breath, I could see his eyes widen. I had been so determined to impress… I should have spent a second longer debating if it was a good idea. The apology was already forming before our working relationship went sideways.
“I’m—”
“Not wrong.”
“Really?”
“Turnabout is fair play.” What? No, I didn’t need him to turn his skills on me. He grabbed his chair, coming closer to the table. He situated himself as he had with every interview. As he picked up the papers to do the usual shuffle and review, a classic tactic, he paused, a grin forming. “Drew is an easy person to understand. You’re amicable. Friendly. You are quick to mold yourself into what the situation needs.”
He had done a pretty good job. I liked to think of myself as?—
“But that’s not who you are.”
Shit.
“I don’t think I’ve met the real Drew yet.” I feared he’d reach across the table and tear the mask away. My heart thumped against my chest, and my pulse quickened until the blood in my ears pounded. “But I’d like to.”
Booker had a knack for making my pulse race and then calming my nerves as if he found my emotional light switch. It was a sweet sentiment, and I could see how this could go from a professional relationship to something friendlier. He might know I had a secret locked away, but like everybody else, if he discovered the truth, he’d run. Just the slip of the mask had sent things between us into a weird space.
“Someday.” Coy. While I hid awaythatpart of me from everybody, I had to wonder if Booker would be different. He didn’t press or force the situation. There was no prying, just an open invitation I filed away as a possibility.
“Got you, asshole.” As soon as he looked up from the paper, he waved it in the air. “Sorry. Not you. Right here.” He leaned across the table, sliding the papers in front of me. “See it?”
“It’s another lab log? I swear we’ve read so many of—” I saw it. Somebody had checked out Prototype X712 usingCypher’s name from the cybernetics lab. “They scheduled the removal for last night.”
“Cypher was a little occupied then.”
I checked my phone. “It was scheduled to be checked out… now. He might still be in the building.”
I could feel the excitement radiating from Booker. After being cooped up in the interview room all day, we were about to get a little more action. Hopefully, this time they didn’t have powers. If they were in the building, I knew a couple of superheroes who could help us. For now, I’d let Booker have his chase.
“Let’s go.”
“It’s quitting time, it’s going to be hard to?—”
I jumped to my feet. “Let’s go,” I said again. “I know somebody who can find him.”
Booker couldn’t lunge for the door any faster if he tried. Time to see if this dynamic duo could chase down another spy. Hopefully, it didn’t result in me having a breakdown. Though… if it meant him following me home.
“Daydream later,” he said. “We’ve got a job to do.”
I felt every word, ready to follow Booker into the disaster that awaited us.
