Initus (Walking Shadows Book 5) Page 3

  “Are you serious? We’ll be credited and everything?” Fitz asks hopefully.

  “Absolutely,” Javi smiles. “You’ll still be minor players on the team, but I can always use more brains on the squad and Dr. Xi assures me that you three will be nothing but assets to the project. You’ll begin Monday. Fourth floor. 8am sharp.”

  I let out a squeal of delight and start dancing. I can’t help it! This wasn’t just grunt work, I’d be working on an actual team doing actual research in the precise field I’ve dreamed of working in!! I haven’t even finished my doctorate yet!

  “Is she okay?” Fitz murmurs to Jez.

  Jez tries to hide his laughter behind his hand. “I think so?”

  Javi’s eyes are wide, never having seen me so excited. It doesn’t happen often. I think the last time I lost my senses like this was when I landed this internship and before that when Marissa surprised me with VIP concert tickets for my high school graduation present.

  Drawing on all of my substantial amount of self-control I slowly force myself to calm down. I’d caused a spectacle but I am far too thrilled to care. “I’m sorry,” I grin, still vibrating.

  “Maybe you are the one I should be concerned about at dinner,” Fitz frowns.

  Jez slaps him on the back with a bark of laughter and I glare.

  “Dinner?” Javi asks.

  “Fitz invited Jez and I to have dinner with him and his father,” I explain.

  A strange expression crosses Javi’s face but it’s there and gone. “Sounds fun.”

  “Uh, no, it doesn’t,” Jez disagrees. “But I’m always happy to accept free food.” He snaps his head to the side to stare down Fitz. “It is free food, right? I can’t afford The Hamilton on my intern stipend.”

  Fitz looks insulted. “My father will take care of all expenses. How rude do you think I am? Making a guest pay for their own meal?”

  Jez holds his tongue and we exchange an awkward glance.

  “Monday at 8am on the fourth floor,” Javi reminds us, breaking the uncomfortable silence. “You’re not interns at summer camp anymore, kids. You’re on the fast track now.” He gives a us final nod and leaves to speak with the next table.

  I look between Fitz and Jez. “I still just want to scream and dance,” I confess as my feet start tapping on their toes wildly of their own accord.

  “Please don’t,” Fitz asks flatly.

  “We’re not at summer camp anymore, remember Morgan?” Jez reminds me with a smirk. “You gotta put on your big girl panties and act all serious now.”

  “Okay,” I agree solemnly. “But just one more dance!” I start wiggling and hopping around our work station while Fitz shakes his head and Jez laughs. I might, no I know I will feel embarrassed later but right now my dreams are coming true and I can’t suppress the need to celebrate.

  Four

  Transfixed in the mirror ensuring for the dozenth time that each hair is perfectly in place I jump at the loud knock on the door. Nodding encouragingly to myself I leave my reflection behind, grab my purse, and swing the door wide with a grin.

  “Hey Jez!”

  He looks me up and down. “Not bad, Travers.”

  I roll my eyes. “Not bad yourself. You look like a whole different person in a suit–” I break off with a laugh. “Same shoes. You couldn’t change them even for this?”

  He does a little dance in his bold, green Converse sneakers. “They’re my signature look! Jobs had his turtleneck and I have my shoes. Besides, if I didn’t put on shiny loafers for graduation, you can’t be surprised I’m not bothering just for some dinner.”

  “This is a dinner with the U.S. Secretary of State, Jez,” I emphasize slowly. “He’s pretty important.”

  “Only if you’re into politics,” he sighs. “Now come on or we’ll be late.”

  Locking my apartment, I quickly follow him to his car. Nothing fancy, in fact it has a few bad dents, but he loves the thing.

  “Still runs, I see.”

  He gives me a look. “Ha ha. I know it’s nothing like Fitz’s ride with self-drive navigation and whatever, but Gloria is my best friend and I won’t have you making fun of her.”

  “Your best friend?” I gasp in mock outrage.

  “Second best friend,” he corrects.

  “Well okay then,” I settle back into my seat mollified.

  Jez laughs and pulls out onto the street, making our way to downtown and the swanky restaurant that promises good food but no assurances on the company.

  Twenty minutes later and a valet is dashing towards us to park Jez’s car. Fitz stands waiting for us by the front door with an anxious look on his face.

  “Hi Fitz,” I call with a little wave. The relief is obvious in his posture. “We’re not late are we?”

  “If you were, I’d know who to blame,” he smiles. “Shall we?” He offers me his elbow and I take it while Jez grumbles about never being late behind us.

  “Is your dad here yet?” I ask, unsure of what to say.

  “He isn’t a dad, he’s a father,” Fitz mumbles under his breath. Turning his sharp gaze towards me he warns, “Treat this like a business meeting. This isn’t a family get together, we aren’t friends, we’re associates and this is a business meeting.”

  His comment about not being friends makes my heart wince. Every time I think we’ve gotten past his walls he slams them back up.

  “He’s your d- father though,” Jez pipes up skeptically. “Why would we act like it’s a business meeting?”

  “You’ll see,” Fitz promises.

  He leads us past the maître d' towards a table where a man with greying temples rises gracefully from his chair. The expense of his crisp suit is obvious even to me.

  “Father, these are the other two members on my internship research team, Morgan Travers and Jezriel Knight,” he introduces us. “This is my father, Jonathan Rochester, U.S. Secretary of State.”

  “Honored to meet you, sir,” I smile shaking his hand.

  The man has a calculating demeanor and I beg myself not to sweat. I feel as if he’s sizing us up, gleaning our strengths and weaknesses, deciding how we can be used or discarded. I want to run; five-star food be damned.

  “Have a seat,” Mr. Rochester commands. Polite as his tone may be, it is undoubtedly a command.

  Fitz pulls out my chair for me and I fold my hands in my lap hoping they’ll stop trembling. How can one person make me so nervous?? I chance a peek at Jez and feel glad that he seems to be suffering from this man’s effect as well.

  “So, you work with my son at ZoiTech,” he begins.

  “Morgan graduated top of her class,” Fitz swoops in. “She can solve any problem Dr. Xi throws at her. And Jez has the most impressive and creative parallel logic solution abilities I’ve ever encountered.”

  I fight my blush and kick Jez’s foot to get him to pick up his jaw. Fitz has never spared so many complimentary words for either of us before, especially not Jez who is everything Fitz secretly envies: free-spirited, genuinely confident, and not living under anyone’s shadow or plagued by any rumors.

  “Sounds like it’s a good thing you have my name then,” Mr. Rochester remarks unkindly.

  Fitz’s jaw clenches and he stares hard at the tablecloth. As his hand begins to fiddle with one of the forks, I notice the friendship bracelet I’d made him peeking from beneath his sleeve. Not friends? Liar. The red, white, and blue strands steady me. He’s still wearing the bracelet I’d tied to his wrist saying it had to be worn until it fell apart on its own to make the friendship last forever. Jez’s is red, white, and green, while mine was woven from strands of sparkly white, green, and teal.

  I can’t imagine being raised by this intimidating man. Fitz’s coldness suddenly makes sense.

  “Oh we’d be lost without Fitz on our team,” I assure his father. “Jez and I have our specialties, but Fitz can do anything. He’s a natural leader and keeps us on task.”

  “Well I’m glad to hear he’s managed to m
ake himself useful,” Rochester smiles. “Of all his brothers he was always the one we were worried about.”

  I have to try very hard not to raise my hackles. “I wouldn’t worry about him. Working with Dr. Xi, he’ll be the one to change the world.”

  Fitz lifts his head to stare at me wide eyed. Clearing his throat he faces his father again. “Our team actually just received a promotion.”

  “Oh?”

  “Our designation is still that of interns, but Dr. Xi was impressed by our work and decided to place us on Dr. Ramsey’s research team. We’ll be working directly on his genetic healing project.”

  “Really?” At this Rochester seems genuinely interested. “So you’ll be working closely with Dr. Xi himself instead of sequestered in a closet. That’s certainly something worth mentioning. You may be seeing more of your father then.”

  Fitz’s brow scrunches in confusion. “What business do you have with Dr. Xi?”

  Rochester leans back, sipping his glass of water. “That’s classified. Now that you will have a part in the matter I should warn you, do not mess this up for me.”

  Fitz barks a short laugh of disbelief. “What interest could you possibly have with genetic healing? That has nothing to do with the Secretary of State.”

  “The ability to modify human beings on a genetic level is of no interest to national security? Foreign alliances? The future of this nation?” his father challenges.

  My mind reels, spinning back to Connors O’Malley’s accusations. He’d mentioned suspicious government interest and hinted at all the unethical ways such a project could fall into. Why would Fitz’s father be so involved with Dr. Xi? Perhaps he simply thought it’d be a good P.R. endorsement…

  “We just want to help people,” I answer softly, my voice irritatingly uncertain.

  “You will,” Rochester smiles and it chills my veins.

  “Are you ready to order?” a waiter asks with impeccable timing.

  “Can I have a whisky?” Jez asks quickly. “A large one,” I hear him mutter under his breath.

  The clock strikes five o’clock and I begin cleaning up my work station. Work with Javi is consuming but I love it. We all do. Sure we don’t have as much time to goof off like we used to, but this is what we’ve all dreamed of doing so we take the intensity happily.

  “Ready to go, Morgan?” Jez asks.

  “Oh, I forgot to tell you! Javi asked me to pick up Sofia. He’ll be working late tonight.” I hang up my coat and clip my I.D. badge to my waistband before slinging my bag across my shoulders.

  “Ooo you get to take the little monster home, eh?” he teases. He adores Sofia. Whenever he comes to my sister’s house for holidays or get togethers, he is always happiest away from the boring adults playing any game Sofia can think up.

  “Yep. No boys allowed,” I declare haughtily.

  “No fair!”

  “No, you’re no fair,” I insist. “She loves you way more than her own aunt!”

  Jez grins with not an ounce of remorse. “Tell her I say hello.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” I wave. “Bye Fitz!”

  Fitz waves. “Don’t get bitten.”

  “You guys aren’t funny.”

  Sofia isn’t a biter or a monster. She’s the sweetest kid in the world, except for when she’s ingested too much sugar and then she has so much energy it is frightening.

  ZoiTech offers full childcare services and even offers paid maternity leave for both mothers and fathers. Dr. Xi believes children to be valuable and that the raising of kids shouldn’t be neglected in the slightest. Parental involvement is important to their development so he makes sure that although the parents will be busy working, they can stop by on their breaks to visit their kids and their kids don’t have to get off a school bus and sit in an empty home until their parents’ work shift is over.

  The elevator gives a cheery ping signifying I’ve reached the ground floor and I head towards the daycare center.

  “Oh! Dr. Xi, good evening,” I smile in surprise. As far as I was aware he doesn’t have any children of his own, but perhaps he enjoys checking in on those at the daycare center.

  “Good evening, Ms. Travers,” he nods calmly. “Here to pick up Sofia?”

  I don’t know why his knowing Sofia’s name surprises me but it does and I blink a few times before I manage a reply. “Uh, yes. Yes I am. Dr. Ramsey said he would be working late tonight.”

  “She is very passionate for someone her age,” Dr. Xi comments. “Intelligent, controlled…her critical thinking skills and reflexes have shown exponential promise.”

  His obvious pride in my niece sends an uncomfortable slither down my spine and I force a relaxed smile on my face to hide it. “Yes, she’s certainly something.”

  “She’s the future,” Dr. Xi corrects firmly. “Drive carefully, Ms. Travers.”

  With that he continues on his way and I shake myself. Daycare, I remind myself. Pushing aside whatever that had been, I enter the brightly colored room.

  A plump older woman with a lovely smile welcomes me and hands me the sign out sheet confirming that Dr. Ramsey had notified her of the pick-up change.

  “Anything to report?” I ask, not really expecting there to have been any behavioral issues. Sofia’s always had an easy time making friends.

  For a moment the woman’s brow pinches in a shadow of concern. “Sofia is a wonderful kid,” she begins.

  “But?”

  “She’s been growing more…um…” She gives me an apologetic glance. “I’m sorry, I’m not quite sure how to put this. She seems to be having something almost like mood swings? Not often, just…occasionally. I haven’t said anything, but…”

  “What happens during one of these mood swings?” I ask carefully.

  “Well, she draws inward, becoming reserved, quiet, and her gaze seems more calculating, and when another child tries to intrude on what she believes is her territory she has a growing tendency to lash out, um, rather violently.”

  I can feel the utter disbelief on my face. “Sofia?”

  The woman nods uncomfortably. “I’m sure it’s just a phase, or perhaps there is something going on at home. She isn’t a troublemaker by any means and most of the time she enjoys playing with the other kids like always. Something just seems to be…different.”

  Puzzling over this for a moment I give her a distracted nod. “I’ll talk to her parents.”

  The woman presses a button, announcing I was there to pick up Sofia Ramsey, and the next moment one of the teachers, a woman not much younger than myself, appears escorting Sofia to the front desk. The change is instantly noticeable. Perhaps it’s because I don’t see my niece every day that the change seems stark, if I did perhaps it would have been too gradual to pick up on right away. The whimsical girl I remembered instead walks at an even pace holding the older girl’s hand, her face calm, her eyes measuring me. It’s unnerving to be sized up by a five-year old. But the moment is there then gone.

  “Hi Sofia!” I smile.

  She smiles back brightly. “Hi Auntie Mor!”

  “I’m going to take you home because your dad has to work late tonight, okay?” I hold out my hand and she transfers her grip from the young teacher to my own. “Do you want to stop to get ice-cream and ruin your dinner?”

  She tilts her head and I notice a small smudge of what I hope isn’t blood beneath her jaw. “Only if I can have extra sprinkles and you promise I won’t get into trouble with mom.”

  “Deal,” I laugh.

  We swing our clasped hands back and forth as our feet tap along the polished floor in the lobby. I wave to Dottie, the info desk Android, as I always do and we make our way through the parking lot to the small fleet of company cars employees are allowed to borrow. Normally interns are exempt from the privilege but Javi arranged one under his name for Sofia and I to use. I request a booster seat for Sofia, place the little girl’s backpack on the empty seat beside it, and strap her in securely.

  As I glance at Sof
ia in the rearview mirror, I notice the dark smudge again. “Hey Sofia, what’s that under your chin?”

  I’m pulling out of the lot and hit the breaks a touch too hard when she answers. “Tony’s blood.”

  “What?” I gasp.

  “He tried to take my dinosaur, but it’s my dinosaur. It wasn’t even one of the sharing toys, I brought it from my house.” Her face is pinched in harsh defense.

  “Did you…hit him?” I ask hesitantly.

  “I used words first,” she promises. “He wouldn’t listen.”

  “I’m not sure your mom would want me to reward you hitting Tony with ice-cream,” I sigh.

  “We apologized to each other,” Sofia assures me quickly. “Mrs. Lanny made us.”

  “Okay, fine. We’ll still get ice-cream, but no more hitting,” I tell her firmly. “If a kid isn’t being nice to you, get an adult to help, okay?”

  “Adults can’t solve everything,” she grumbles. “Tony won’t try to take my toys again.”

  Sofia once cried when Javi had accidentally stepped on a worm on the sidewalk. This Sofia was still an adorable child who loves ice-cream and dinosaurs, but there is something hard in her eyes now. I don’t think she’ll ever cry over a worm getting stepped on again.

  An unexpected impulse has me asking, “What did Dr. Xi say about you hitting Tony?”

  “Nothing, he just wrote something down.” A pause. “He likes to sit with us sometimes and write things down.”

  He did? I suppose the daycare offered a free view into developmental psychology, behavioral development, childhood social structures… Useful research, I guess, though I’m not entirely sure how related it is to our work at ZoiTech. Regardless, this Tony incident has an unyielding frown on my face and a small intuitive twist in my stomach.

  I make a mental note to speak with Marissa and Javi about it. Marissa will probably tell me I’m meddling, but at least they won’t be able to say I hadn’t tried to help if it turns out something is amiss. The lady at the front desk, I wish I’d paid attention to her name tag, had suggested maybe there was an issue at home that’s affecting Sofia this way. I’m not aware of anything wrong, surely if Javi and Marissa’s marriage was strained I’d notice, but their private life is private and Marissa doesn’t tell me everything.