The Lethal Agent (The Extraction Files Book 2) (42 page)

LRF-FIC

SEPTEMBER 17, 2232

A sharp pain started in the back of her neck and radiated through her shoulders. A bright light shone overhead, so that even as she blinked, she could see vivid blue spots. Her back was pressed to an unforgiving metal surface.

Aida hurt everywhere.

Along the back of her neck, the pain crept into her head like a worm made of broken glass. It shredded everything it touched until she had to slam her eyes shut again. She pressed fingertips to her temples. After a few seconds, the pain receded.

Then, there was screaming. “Oh my god. Aida—”

The voice was familiar, Calvin—no, Vince—but it was shrill and damaged in a way she’d never heard from him.

“Are you all right? Are you hurt? Can you hear me?” he continued in rapid-fire.

Aida felt hands all over her—on her wrists, on her shoulders, on her forehead. When she blinked open her eyes, she was prepared for the pain, but this time, there was only the stark light of the clinic.

Vince stood silhouetted above her. His green eyes were darker than she’d ever seen.

“Since when do you believe in God?” she asked.

His frown faded into a smile, then unapologetic laughter. “Since you scared the shit out of me,” he said between laughs.

Tired and aching against the metal table, Aida pushed herself to sitting and swung her legs over the side.

“Hey, take it easy. Go slow,” he told her, refusing to let go of her hand.

“I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine. We need to do a full evaluation and see what happened. You—”

“What happened?” she asked as she pulled her hand from his.

Vince set his jaw. “What do you remember?”

Aida thought back and tried to piece it together. “Your name is Vince. You’re an agent of Dr. Arrenstein’s. He asked to put an alien bug in my brain, and I said yes. I saw Maggie pull them out of people, their ears and eyes and mouth. Some she had to cut open. I remember a noise, like a scream but different.”

“That’s probably for the best. You only missed the really horrible parts.”

“What horrible parts?”

“The part where you got infected and then didn’t wake up for more than a day. The part where you made us think you’d never wake up.”

“Did it work?”

Vince nodded and smiled a little. “You put in the code on the first try.”

“How is that possible?”

“The bugs wanted you to do it, I guess. They interact with your neurons. The Slight can manipulate memories. It’s possible you knew the code, but the memory was damaged, or that you never knew it, so the Slight supplied it. Either way, you had it.”

Aida wrinkled her nose. It felt dirty to be used as a puppet that way.

“Do you want me to tell you what it was?”

“What what was?”

“The code.”

Aida couldn’t think of a single reason why it would matter, but clearly he thought she should know. “Sure. What was it?”

Vince held up his tablet and showed her the display. On it she read: 6624519003-27.

“That was it? That was the access code Sal used?”

“Yes. I’m sure you recognized the first ten.”

“Of course. They’re my ID sequence.”

“What’s the 27 for?” Vince set the tablet in her lap and looked up at her as he waited for the answer.

“It’s for 2227.”

“The year you got married?”

Aida nodded. “It doesn’t make any sense. Sal wasn’t sentimental. He didn’t care about me that way. Why would he use—”

“Because he was. He cared about you as much as a Scholar could. As much as he thought he was allowed. And he had a bug in his brain manipulating him. Who knows what he would have been like on his own?”

“Bugs can’t change people that much. They’re still who they are.” Aida wouldn’t give the bugs credit for Sal’s shortcomings. He had been that way all his life. He’d been that way the day she married him. It was a disservice to him to think otherwise.

Vince pulled the acrylic cube from his pocket and handed it to her.

“I could always tell when you were infected. You’d tell me that you didn’t think the research mattered anymore. That you wanted to go back to Earth and start a family. You pressured Sal for a while, and I guess the bugs eventually thought it was best if you went. You were all set to go through with it.”

In her hand, encased in acrylic, was the only piece of Sal that remained. A single cell with his genetic code, a fine one at that.

“It’s not fair,” she said aloud. “He wanted this, too. He should be here. It’s not fair.”

“No. It isn’t fair. It isn’t fair that you did all that work and found a planet only to be forced to give it up. It isn’t fair you had a bug in your head over and over and over again. None of it is fair.” Vince held her hand between both of his and leaned down to kiss her wrist. Then, without warning he stood and walked away.

“Where are you going?” she called out as he reached the door.

“To pack my things. As it turns out, I’m grossly underqualified for my position.”

“But I need you.”

Vince shook his head. “You don’t need me. You’re brilliant, and you’ll have a team of the best researchers available.” He smiled and added, “I have complete faith in you.”

“Vince, wait.” Aida slid down from the table but had to clutch its edge. The room seemed to tilt as she stood.

He came back over to her, but only to help steady her. “I know what I did, Aida. I know that I lied and deceived you in every way possible. It was my job to be a Scholar, but I chose the rest. I made the decision to get close to you, and you have every right to hate me for that.”

“Vince—” she protested, but he was already gone.

Sal was gone, and now Vince, too. It was probably for the best. She could start over—start fresh with a new team and a new list of potential planets. Aida looked at the cube in her hand. It was for the best.

LRF CORRIDOR

SEPTEMBER 17, 2232

Three hours at FIC had been his fill. Theo set to meandering around the expansive corridors of the LRF. He couldn’t sit and watch Aida any more. And he couldn’t go back to his apartment. He wouldn’t risk interrupting Mable and Dasia.

So Theo walked. Round and round the facility he walked. Like an apparition, floating from department to department, never going in, never engaging, only watching.

Then he came upon a large viewing port. The Earth happened to be passing by, enlarged by the telescoping lenses of the port.

It was the blast craters that gave him pause. Europe was speckled with the brown and black scars of dome attacks. Dozens of cities damaged or erased entirely. Stockholm, Madrid, even Berlin.

Berlin hurt his heart most. It had survived so many wars, stood resilient in the face of nuclear war and Nazis. He’d kissed Mable in a hotel bathroom before their first international extraction.

And now the whole city was gone. Nothing more than a crater in the ground.

“This used to be one of my favorite views,” offered a deep voice.

Theo turned to see Director Filmore. His yellow beard was a stark contrast to the coal tone of his skin. He wore a pressed and fitted suit that gave him an air of prestige that rivaled Dr. Arrenstein.

“Good afternoon, Director.”

“Good afternoon, Dr. Kaufman. Though I suppose that isn’t your name, is it?” Director Filmore let his intimidating glare fade into a warm smile.

“I’m Theo Kaufman, but I’m not a doctor. I didn’t even last a day at the Academy.” Theo put both his hands on the railing and gazed out at the scarred planet.

“It used to be lovely. It was a beautiful blue planet once. Not all this brown and orange, but a bright, deep turquoise with indigos and cerulean. The sky was pale blue, and the forests were dense and green.”

Theo turned to look at the director. His eyes were distant as they stared out the viewing port.

“I’m sorry we couldn’t figure it out sooner.”

Director Filmore settled against the railing beside Theo. “It’s not your fault. The Earth was ruined centuries ago. It’s been dying since before you and I were born. It was dying before the war. Humans are terrible guests.”

“You think that’s why they did all this? To keep us from ruining their planet?”

The director nodded and explained, “Of course. They’ve seen what we did to our own world. They’ve seen our penchant for waste and possession. We’ve killed every species that didn’t directly contribute to our stomach, and even those are struggling. We can’t go on much longer like this, but the rest of the cosmos is under no obligation to host us until we figure it out.”

Theo couldn’t deny the ugly truth of it. There was too much evidence. The bugs had worked too hard to keep humans away. He couldn’t really blame them.

“Now we just have to figure out what we’re going to do.” Director Filmore tapped his palms against the metal railing.

Theo looked down and tried to think of what to say. One of the most powerful men alive reduced to nothing more than doubts and nostalgia. Theo didn’t know how to help him.

Then, his wristlet vibrated. On the screen, he read,
CALVIN HILL: AIDA AWAKE.

He reread the words several times to be sure he had them right before he breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn’t been too worried, but it was good to know she was all right.

Director Filmore’s tablet beeped with ecomm notification as Theo’s wristlet vibrated again.

SILAS ARRENSTEIN: MEETING IN FILMORE’S OFFICE.

“Apparently I have been summoned to a meeting in my own office,” the director said as he read his message.

“Yeah, me, too.”

“He’s really impossible, isn’t he?”

Theo laughed. “Dr. Arrenstein? Pretty much.”

They arrived at the director’s office less than five minutes later. Dr. Arrenstein sat in one of the plush office chairs and stood when they entered.

“What’s going on?” Director Filmore asked. He walked around the desk and sat in his office chair.

“Dr. Perkins is awake. There have been no reports of further attacks on Earth or its colonies. I think it’s time we discuss the roles of my agents going forward.”

Filmore sighed and pressed his fingertips together. “Abby stays.”

“Agreed.”

“I don’t have any opinion one way or another about the others. They’ve hid here long enough. They’re clearly capable. If you need them elsewhere, we can fill their positions. I’m sure there will be plenty of Scholars in need of new research opportunities.”

“We’ll leave it up to them, then.” Dr. Arrenstein turned and looked at Theo. “What do you want to do?”

For once, Theo knew what his answer was. He knew exactly how he would spend the rest of his life. It was the easiest question. “I want to go where Mable goes.”

Dr. Arrenstein rolled his eyes. “She got you good, Kaufman.”

“That’s fine with me.” He laughed and shrugged. There were worse things.

“Get her in here, then. Let’s get it figured out so I can make the arrangements.”

“Uh, well, she’s kind of busy at the moment.”

“She’s busy?” Dr. Arrenstein put his hands on his hips. “Fine, send an ecomm to Dasia.”

Theo laughed so hard he had to cover his mouth. “She’s busy, too.”

Dr. Arrenstein fumed until the realization settled over his face. “You knew?”

“Of course. I’ve spent more time with her than anyone else.”

“Fine, how about Vince? Or is he busy, too?”

Theo entered the message into his wristlet and sent it off. When his wristlet vibrated again, he thought it would be the response from Vince, but instead he read,
MAGGIE KAUFMAN: WHERE ARE YOU?

“Hey, so I would love to stay for this, but—”

Dr. Arrenstein only laughed. “Get out of here. And send her in when you’re done.”