Omega(87)

                             I walked to Ariadne’s office, where the door stood open. I saw Ariadne through the viewing window, Eve standing just behind her, Kappler’s hands on her shoulders in a familiar way, pushing aside Ariadne’s red hair. Eve massaged her neck while Ariadne worked on the computer, her reading glasses perched on her nose.

                “Hey, Sienna,” I heard a voice call from behind me. I turned to see J.J. cutting through the main aisle of cubicles, heading toward me.

                “J.J.,” I said calmly. “What, are you too important to be allowed some shore leave?”

                “Yeah. This is the problem with being the linchpin of the Directorate’s electronic intelligence efforts...no time off.”

                “At least you’re fully appreciated for your efforts,” I said, trying to reassure him.

                “I think I’d rather have the time off.”

                I shrugged. “Going to Ariadne’s office?”

                “I am. I have news,” he said, nodding his head, but keeping an even keel, detached under those damned hipster glasses.

                “Of the life-shaking and earth-quaking variety or just run-of-the-mill?”

                “Maybe somewhere in between?” He held up his hands, either unknowing or uncaring, as we reached Ariadne’s office and he rapped his knuckles against the doorframe, causing Ariadne to jump in surprise and knock Eve’s hands off her shoulders.

                “What can I do for you two?” Ariadne said, trying to casually shuffle papers on her desk, as though she needed some sort of cover for Eve giving her a shoulder rub. J.J. and I exchanged a look, mostly amused, while Eve seemed to glow with a sort of annoying superiority.

                “He’s here with news of some variety,” I said. “I’m just here because I’m wandering aimlessly, not really sure what to do with myself while everyone else is battening down the hatches.”

                “Oh?” She looked at me over her reading glasses. “You seem much more relaxed than yesterday. Different, somehow.”



                             I stiffened. “Um. No. Same me.”

                “You sure?” She cocked her head at me, peering at me, squinting her eyes. “You seem different.”

                “Nope.” I shook my head. Gulp.

                She shook her head as though trying to clear it. “Okay. J.J.?”

                “Got some minor discrepancies I found here,” he said, holding up his tablet computer.

                “With the passports?” I asked, before Ariadne could.

                “Yeah,” he said with a downer tone and looking at the tablet. “We tracked the three coming in, but there’s not really been any movement on the others in that batch from the UK. A few of them look like they’ve been used in the last six months, but not anywhere local. One in Mombasa two weeks ago, one in Kolkata three months ago, another in Shenzen about nine months ago...” He shrugged. “No pattern I can detect.”

                “Shenzen is in China, isn’t it?” I asked.

                “Yeah,” J.J. said, looking up from the tablet. “Just across the harbor from Hong Kong, I think.”