Page 44 of Reaper
“So you found her in prison?”
“No, I found her on parole.I arrested her six years ago, before I came to DHS.She got out a few months ago and got a job working with the Geek Squad.It was the only computer job she could get after prison.”
“So I have an ex-con in my living room?”I asked.
“Oh, get over yourself, Harker.You’ve broken more laws than you even know about, and your uncle is one of the most prolific murderers in history.Besides, she’s the one who hacked into the Colosseum’s network and turned off your exploding necklace, so maybe give her the benefit of the doubt.”
“Oh, she’s got that and more.I just kinda want to know about the criminal background of the people I let near my cat is all.What’s with her getup?She looks like she gets carded buying cigarettes, but if she just got out of prison, there’s no way she’s as young as she looks.”
“She’s around thirty, as far as I recall, and I think there might be more to her than meets the eye.I don’t have any kind of magic, but something about her feels...different, somehow.”
I turned my gaze to the window and opened my Sight.Sure enough, there was an aura about our new computer whiz.It was unfamiliar, but didn’t seem malevolent.“She’s not completely human, but if she’s a demon, it’s not one I’ve ever seen before.She may be some type of Asian cryptid I’m not familiar with, or maybe she just had some kind of dealings with the supernatural that marked her somehow.But you’re right, she’s not your average K-pop stan.”
Becks’ eyes widened.“Quincy Harker, you never fail to surprise me.I had no idea you knew what a stan was.”
“Not only that, I know the song the term came from,” I said.I put on my best Mike Myers voice.“I’ve got layers, Rebecca.Layers.”
“Oh, God,” Becks groaned.“Not theShrekquotes.”
“My favorite philosopher,” I replied.“If you trust her, that’s good enough for me.Let’s get back inside and see if she’s hacked the Pentagon yet.”
Becks’ eyes went wide again.“Shit, I hope not.She does that again, and I’m gonna be so fired.”She sprang out of her chair and shot back inside.
Again?
* * *
An hour later, after lots of cursing and a promise from me to upgrade the building’s data infrastructure, Xia had something for us.I called Luke over, and he came into the living room in Burgundy silk pajamas with an honest-to-God smoking jacket on, looking like the nobility he used to be, except more like a parody of British aristocracy than one of Eastern Europe’s most bloodthirsty warrior counts in history.
“What the fuck are you wearing?”I asked, getting a snort of laughter from Becks.
“I wastryingto make a good first impression on our new team member, Quincy,” Luke replied, affronted.
“You’re Count Fucking Dracula,” I said, barely suppressing my laughter.“And you come in here looking like the new host ofMasterpiece Theatre?I don’t think you’re making the impression you think you’re making.”
“Oh, he’s totally making an impression, Harker,” Xia said.“As long as he’s going for kinda hot Grandpa Munster, he’s hitting the nail right on the head.”
Luke turned on his heel and vanished, literally moving faster than the eye could follow.In three seconds he was back, this time dressed more normally in charcoal slacks, black dress shoes, a crisp button-down shirt with cufflinks, and a watch that cost more than a lot of people’s cars.
“That’s better,” I said.Luke didn’t reply, just glared at me with a snarl that made lesser men piss themselves.I’d been getting that same dirty look since I was a teenager, so it had a lot less effect on me.
“What did you find, Xia?”Becks asked.
We all moved to gather around the new tech goddess, but she waved us off.“Let’s not with the whole crowding the genius thing.I got enough of that in the prison showers.I’ve patched into the TV so you can all just go sit on the couches and watch my magic.”
“How did you patch into my TV?”I asked, looking for the wires.
“You have a smart TV, Harker.I hacked it.Now go over there and sit on the couch like a good Luddite.”
“Okay, but if you’ve changed my Netflix password, I’m going to turn you into a frog.”
Becks gave Xia a reassuring smile.“He’s joking.He can’t actually turn you into a frog.He can throw you off the balcony, though.So don’t mess with his passwords.He has enough trouble remembering them as it is.”
“Got it,” Xia said, and I swear from the look on her face she was making a mental note to go back in and reset stuff the way I had it.
Once we were all settled, the screen on the wall came to life, and Xia started explaining what she’d learned about the Colosseum, who was fighting, who was betting, and who she thought might be the next step in figuring out who was running it.
35
