over the passing traffic. âSheâs too stubborn. It would just convince her she was on the right track. Harrietâs almost as bad. Sharonâs going to get herself killed and sheâs going to take my daughter with her. I canât let that happen.â
âWhatâs all this got to do with me?â Chi asked.
âIf the Scalps see me with her, or even with Harriet, itâll be taken as a sign. Theyâll think Iâve gotten involved. If thereâs even the slightest possibility that Sharon could quote me as a source theyâll ⦠Iâm too close to it all for them to take the chance. Theyâll decide on her disposal there and then. And maybe theyâll do me and Harriet in, too.
âBut if you show up, as one of Sharonâs sources, itâs an entirely different thing.â
âYeah?â Chi asked. âWhy is that?â
âBecause youâre a conspiracy theorist,â Robert told him, glancing at his watch and quickening his pace even further. âAnything you produce can be ridiculed by pointing to other things youâve written. You know: weaponized parasites, human mutants, aliens, all that malarkey. We donât worry about the likes of you.â
âExcuse me?â Chi responded with indignation.
âThatâs what you conspiracy nuts have never realized,â Robert grunted. âWe need oddballs like you. You poke around, finding some real facts from time to time, but even if itâs true, it wonât matter, because with the kind of nonsense you turn out, no one takes you seriously. Christ, the bigger the conspiracy you guys come up with, the better, as far as weâre concerned. Youâre our best defense when it comes to discrediting a dangerous story. So if youâre one of Sharonâs sources, then we can ridicule her too, by association. We can undermine her with her editors long before she can get a single word printed.
âThatâs why I contacted you, Chi. Iâm going to save my daughterâs life by using you to make a complete fool out of her girlfriend.â
Chapter 12: Damage Limitation
Chi had rarely experienced such rage. He wanted to throw himself at the old man, to smash his fists into that grimacing, wrinkled old face, to throw him to the ground and stomp on this horrible human being until heâd beaten the life out of him.
He didnât, of course. He wasnât the violent type, after all, and he suspected Robert would be more than able to fend off any attack and turn the hurt back on Chi. And then there was that photo theyâd sent him, a close-up of the back of his headâa message, to let Chi know he was being watched, to keep him in line. Still, it was sickening to learn that his only role in the biggest story heâd ever come across was to be the stooge in discrediting it.
âI wonât do it!â he exclaimed. âYou can shove it, Robert! Sheâs onto something and Iâm not going to help you bring her down.â
They were standing on the corner of a junction and Robert spun around and slammed Chi against the post of a traffic light.
âUnderstand this,â he snapped at the younger man. âKnowing the truth about the Scalpsâ operation will not make any difference to whatâs going onâit will just ensure that youâre removed from the picture. You, me, Sharon, Harriet ⦠and whoever else might get in the way.â
âHang on, youâre saying the Scalps might kill me now too?â
âThat photo was bloody warning, you fool! Ever since you got involvedââ
âYou mean ever since you got me involved !â Chi interrupted.
âAs I was saying, ever since you got involved, theyâve had to factor you into their calculations. Whether they rub you out or not depends on how much of a threat they think you are. The dumber you come across, the more likely youâll be considered
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