authority to call them off, and neither do you.”
“Fine,”
I told him. Then I grabbed my cell phone and dialed Dominique’s direct line.
Dominique’s voice, laden with irritation, answered, “What?”
“Call
off the field team,” I said. “I need to do this by myself. All these people
will blow my cover.”
“We
need specialized information gathering,” Dominique said. “That’s what Newton is
there for. But we also need to keep you both safe. That is why the field team
is there.”
“I
can handle myself just fine,” I said. “We have to do this clean and simple.
Nightcrafters have skills you can’t even imagine, and the field team doesn’t
have the training for this kind of work. Adding more people to this is just
going to increase the likelihood that we get sniffed out.”
The
line went quiet, and after a few seconds of silence I was thinking that she had
hung up on me. Then she said, “Give the phone to Newton.”
I
handed the phone to Newton and he listened intently. He didn’t say a word for
several minutes, only muttering an occasional “mmhm” in agreement. Then he hung
up, shrugged, and turned to the field agents.
“You’re
all dismissed for now,” Newton said. “Stay ready, but stay out of Kal’s way
unless we call you.”
The
team members just nodded and left.
I
smiled. “Dominique decided I can do this on my own, eh?”
“Not
exactly,” Newton said as he started packing up his gear. “The field team is
dismissed, but I’ve been ordered to trail behind you while you investigate.”
“I
don’t need—”
“A
chaperone. I know,” Newton interjected. “But Dominique was very clear. We do
this together, or we both get in a heap of trouble.”
“Fine,”
I said. It pissed me off, but Newton’s company hadn’t been a bad thing so far,
and Dominique had compromised so I figured it was best not to push my
luck.
Newton
retrieved a pair of dark glasses from a case. They weren’t quite as dark as
sunglasses, but they did have a noticeable tint. “I’ll keep out of sight and
about fifty yards behind you. These glasses have a heads up display that will
show me the feed from your camera and sensor array. I’ll know where you are,
what you’re seeing, and what’s going on around you.”
“I’m
assuming you’ve gone through espionage training,” I said.
“I
did,” Newton said. “I have a lot more training than you, and I can handle
myself in the field. If there’s a weak
link here, it’s you and that little crash course they put you through. You’re
not going to get me killed, are you?”
“Don’t
worry,” I said. “If I do, I’ll just bring you back.”
Newton
paused, looked at me with wide eyes, and said, “You can do that?”
* * *
Once
Newton was ready and we both double-checked our gear, we went downstairs and
outside. The chilly night air sent a shiver through me. At least, I hoped it
was just the air, and not something else. I dipped into the Rift just a little
bit. There wasn’t anything strange going on, by Rift standards.
“Keep
in radio contact,” Newton said. “The camera in your hat also has a microphone
that will pick up everything you say, and it’s sensitive so you can just mutter
to yourself and I’ll hear you. Remember that I’ll be monitoring audio, video,
and sensor readings. At the first sign of trouble, I’m calling in the cavalry.”
“Sure
thing,” I said. I didn’t tell him that the “cavalry” was most likely going to
be very ineffective against experienced nightcrafters, and that I had no
intention of getting any other NATO people involved with this. I didn’t want
anybody’s death on my hands.
Newton
gave me a nod and I knew it was all up to me now. I pulled up my collar and
walked at a brisk pace. This town was pretty normal at sunset. It was a
Saturday so there was no commuter traffic and the streets and sidewalks were
occupied by casual people trying to make the most of a weekend. There
“Fine,”
I told him. Then I grabbed my cell phone and dialed Dominique’s direct line.
Dominique’s voice, laden with irritation, answered, “What?”
“Call
off the field team,” I said. “I need to do this by myself. All these people
will blow my cover.”
“We
need specialized information gathering,” Dominique said. “That’s what Newton is
there for. But we also need to keep you both safe. That is why the field team
is there.”
“I
can handle myself just fine,” I said. “We have to do this clean and simple.
Nightcrafters have skills you can’t even imagine, and the field team doesn’t
have the training for this kind of work. Adding more people to this is just
going to increase the likelihood that we get sniffed out.”
The
line went quiet, and after a few seconds of silence I was thinking that she had
hung up on me. Then she said, “Give the phone to Newton.”
I
handed the phone to Newton and he listened intently. He didn’t say a word for
several minutes, only muttering an occasional “mmhm” in agreement. Then he hung
up, shrugged, and turned to the field agents.
“You’re
all dismissed for now,” Newton said. “Stay ready, but stay out of Kal’s way
unless we call you.”
The
team members just nodded and left.
I
smiled. “Dominique decided I can do this on my own, eh?”
“Not
exactly,” Newton said as he started packing up his gear. “The field team is
dismissed, but I’ve been ordered to trail behind you while you investigate.”
“I
don’t need—”
“A
chaperone. I know,” Newton interjected. “But Dominique was very clear. We do
this together, or we both get in a heap of trouble.”
“Fine,”
I said. It pissed me off, but Newton’s company hadn’t been a bad thing so far,
and Dominique had compromised so I figured it was best not to push my
luck.
Newton
retrieved a pair of dark glasses from a case. They weren’t quite as dark as
sunglasses, but they did have a noticeable tint. “I’ll keep out of sight and
about fifty yards behind you. These glasses have a heads up display that will
show me the feed from your camera and sensor array. I’ll know where you are,
what you’re seeing, and what’s going on around you.”
“I’m
assuming you’ve gone through espionage training,” I said.
“I
did,” Newton said. “I have a lot more training than you, and I can handle
myself in the field. If there’s a weak
link here, it’s you and that little crash course they put you through. You’re
not going to get me killed, are you?”
“Don’t
worry,” I said. “If I do, I’ll just bring you back.”
Newton
paused, looked at me with wide eyes, and said, “You can do that?”
* * *
Once
Newton was ready and we both double-checked our gear, we went downstairs and
outside. The chilly night air sent a shiver through me. At least, I hoped it
was just the air, and not something else. I dipped into the Rift just a little
bit. There wasn’t anything strange going on, by Rift standards.
“Keep
in radio contact,” Newton said. “The camera in your hat also has a microphone
that will pick up everything you say, and it’s sensitive so you can just mutter
to yourself and I’ll hear you. Remember that I’ll be monitoring audio, video,
and sensor readings. At the first sign of trouble, I’m calling in the cavalry.”
“Sure
thing,” I said. I didn’t tell him that the “cavalry” was most likely going to
be very ineffective against experienced nightcrafters, and that I had no
intention of getting any other NATO people involved with this. I didn’t want
anybody’s death on my hands.
Newton
gave me a nod and I knew it was all up to me now. I pulled up my collar and
walked at a brisk pace. This town was pretty normal at sunset. It was a
Saturday so there was no commuter traffic and the streets and sidewalks were
occupied by casual people trying to make the most of a weekend. There
Similar Books
