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Jude nodded mutely, watching as the detective walked away.
Jude lifted a shaking hand to the door, knocking twice, then pushing the door
open. Elliot was in bed, watching television on his iPad. His face was mottled
purple and orange, one section of his cheek fading to greenish yellow like
rotten fruit. His hands were propped in front of him on a pillow, fingers
swaddled in gauze.

“Hey Elliot,” Jude said, forcing a bright grin. “You’re
looking good today!”

Elliot didn’t answer. He dropped the tablet and turned to
stare out at the snowy landscape beyond the glass. Jude followed his gaze.

On the other side of the window, a car with tinted windows
was pulling away from the curb.

If he didn’t
think
about the risks he was taking,
Jude was content. Things were good with his life. His job at the university was
a welcome relief from the hacking he did in his free time. With King’s project,
Jude had money in the bank, building interest. He had friends and a life that
was moving forward. The day was nearing when he could head off on his own.

If he didn’t
think
about the danger he was putting
Indigo in, Jude was happy. His relationship with her was beyond his
expectations. She never seemed to mind when he got busy for days at a time. She
was always there when things slowed, ready to show him how much she’d missed
him.

If he didn’t
think
about the people he was hacking,
Jude could pretend it didn’t matter. The names were just names, the faces
something abstract, like someone who existed in another time or place. Jude
thought of his job as numbers and bank accounts, not people at all.

Except for Fran Williams.

He left her file until last, working through one person at a
time, saving the details, and filing the same meticulous reports he’d done for
King.

“You started with the Police Commissioner yet?” Luca asked
him at their weekly meeting.

“Not yet,” Jude said, sliding a folder across the table,
“I’m working on it.”

“You should hurry up.  Mr. Fischer has his eye on her.
Leave the others for now.”

Jude nodded, eyes sliding over the busy coffeehouse crowd.
Patel was up at the counter, paying for two drinks. Jude dropped his gaze
before he could catch him watching.

“I… I’ll do what I can,” he muttered, “but there’s a lot to
be done.”

Patel arrived, handing Luca his coffee.

“There’s always a lot to be done, my friend,” he laughed,
standing up from the table. “But you should remember that if King is happy,
then
you
are happy.” His smile grew hard. “And if King is unhappy then…”

He left the rest unsaid.

Patel chuckled, and Luca reached into his pocket, dropping
an envelope on the table next to Jude’s elbow.

“Next time we meet,” Luca said, “I’ll want to hear what
you’ve found on Williams.”

Jude nodded, waiting as the two of them walked out of the
Starbucks.

If he didn’t
think
about the next time, he could
pretend this wasn’t happening.

: : :
: : : : : : :

Sanger’s team of agents infiltrated downtown, becoming
familiar faces on the street and blending into the crowds. A vehicle disguised
as a cable repair van moved along the boulevard while unmarked cars patrolled
the area. Some of the work led to dead ends: Alden’s computer, for instance,
was proving unexpectedly difficult to hack. Other initiatives had provided
unexpected results. Agent O’Brien had bumped into Elliot Baird, putting a trace
on him the day he’d been attacked. It had been recording when he’d been
assaulted less than a block from home, and the agents’ speedy response was the
reason that Baird had survived at all.

“Is the surveillance install complete?” Sanger asked.

The agent turned, nodding.

“My team got the video in this morning,” she replied. “We’ve
been recording since then.”

The agent gestured to the call-center, where two technicians
managed the audio and video capabilities. They’d been in the apartment next door
to the target an hour ago. Phone lines and cable were now connected, a video
feed set up in the ventilation ductwork.

“Audio hasn’t been confirmed,” she added. “We just need a
call to check it.”

“But the phone tap is ready?” Sanger asked.

She nodded.

“Like I said, just waiting for a call.”

The tech at the back of the surveillance van abruptly
turned.

“We’re in!” he called, lifting up the headphones and pulling
them on. “I’ve got an outgoing call right now!”

“Get the line secured,” the agent snapped.

“Recording…
now.
”

She reached out, flicking a switch. The screen snapped to
life, filling with a fish-eyed image of the interior of Marq Lopez’s living
room. Marq was sitting on the couch, laptop on his lap. Jude Alden stood in the
kitchen behind him, cell phone in hand.

“Pizza Palace,”
a crackly voice answered
. “What
can I get for you?”

“Adjust the feedback,” she hissed.

The tech at the sound controls twisted the knobs on the
mixing board, static fading.

“Yeah,”
Jude’s voice echoed
, “I’d like to order
two large pizzas, one pepperoni, one everything.”

The last crackles and feedback faded. All eyes in the van
were on the screen, watching as Jude Alden hung up the phone, the sound
dropping to the muffled audio of the ducted surveillance system.

“God bless the Patriot Act,” Sanger chuckled. “Now we just
need them to
do
something.”

: : :
: : : : : : :

Jude first noticed the clicking sound in the phone when he
was trying to adjust the wireless modem. Marq was working on his project again,
and Jude had his phone open to the modem manufacturer’s website, so he decided
to use the landline to call for pizza. The receiver kept clicking in and out
while he spoke, snapping into abrupt clarity just as he finished the order.
Jude glared at the phone in annoyance before hanging it back up.

“Hey, Marq,” he said. “Your phone’s on the fritz!”

“What’s that?” Marq asked. He kept programming, his body
hunched over the screen.

“Your phone,” Jude repeated, “it’s messed up.”

Marq grunted indifferently. With a scowl, Jude went back to
the task of adjusting the modem. He needed the internet to finish his work for
King.

: : :
: : : : : : :

Shireese and Indigo walked through the grocery store, side
by side. Shireese was the only one doing the shopping; Indigo was texting, smiling
to herself. As they reached the checkout, she turned off her phone, smiling.

“Done already?” Indigo said, glancing up.

“Time flies when you’re having fun,” Shireese said with a
wink. “I take it that was Jude?

Indigo sighed. Shireese was
always
trying to get
involved in her life, and while most times that was awesome, she didn’t like
the pressure. As they stepped up to the checkout, Indigo reached into the cart,
pulling out the peppers and carrots, placing them on the moving tray. Shireese
handed her a bag of organic beans.

“You can pretend he doesn’t matter to you,” Shireese said.
“Makes no difference to me. I was just wondering how things were going.”

Indigo dropped the bag on the counter, glaring. “Things are
fine,
with Jude,
”
she said. “You should learn to trust me a bit.”

Shireese smirked, and for a time they emptied the cart
without talking. The teenage boy behind the counter had just started pulling
items across the scale when Shireese cleared her throat. Indigo
knew
she
had been waiting to say something else. Her roommate was nothing if not
predictable.

“You told him the rest of your story yet?”

 “If there was a reason to, I would. But there’s not.”
Indigo slammed a can of corn down. “He’s fine and I’m fine and I want to leave
it at that!”

Shireese grumbled something under her breath that sounded a
lot like
“a lie”.

“What did you say?!?” Indigo snapped.

The boy at the counter glanced up, blinking.

“Nothing,” Shireese said with a weary sigh. “It’s your
life.”

Indigo stomped to the end of the counter, starting to bag
the groceries. “’Bout time you started remembering that,” she growled.

: : :
: : : : : : :

When Indigo arrived at O’Reilly’s, Jude was already there.
She sauntered through the room like she owned it, hips swaying in time to the
music. Tanis was in the corner warming up with her band, Shireese fiddling with
the speakers. The actual concert wouldn’t happen until ten. For now, the room
was almost empty. This place wasn’t Jude’s choice for drinks and dinner; it was
Indigo’s. The bar felt like her
,
and that made it easy. In tight jeans,
a black tank top and leather jacket, she felt strong and sexy. No man’s idea of
a woman, but her own.

“Wow,” Jude gasped as she reached his side. “You look…
amazing.”

“You’re easy to impress,” she laughed, sliding onto the
bench of the circular booth next to him. “I’m not even trying.”

He put an arm around her, pressing a kiss to her neck. “You
don’t have to try,” he whispered, “you’re perfect the way you are.”

“I’m
not,
” she giggled, shaking her head. “But I kinda
like that you think it.” She grinned. “It’s dumb but it’s awesome too.”

Jude began to laugh and Indigo reached out, taking the
half-empty beer bottle out of his hand, lifting it to her lips. He watched her drink
it. When she set it back on the table, his gaze was intent on her mouth. Indigo
grinned; Jude Alden’s thoughts were easy to read. Right now everything about
him was yelling ‘
sex’
, and she didn’t even mind. It felt good to be here
with him, to be herself. To not pretend.

“You want to order?” she asked. “They’ve got some really
great nachos, and ribs. But stay away from the wings.” She shuddered. “Certain
death. Learned that the hard way.”

“Certain death?” he scoffed.

Indigo shrugged. “Well, it’s cheap for a reason,” she said.
“But the nachos
are
good.”

“You choose,” Jude said, his fingers moving over her back.
“I’m just happy you’re here with me.”

Indigo picked up the menu, hiding her grin behind it. It was
stupid, she thought, how easy it was for him to make her happy. She peeked over
the lip of the page. Jude was smiling to himself, nodding along to the music.
She wondered if Marq was out tonight, or if she should risk taking him back to
her place. She shoved the thought guiltily away as soon as it arrived. She
didn’t
take men home. But lately she’d been breaking all her rules.

Jude looked over, catching her watching.

“What?”

“Nothing,” she said, dropping her eyes.

“You sure?”

“Yeah, just thinking about things.”

Jude’s fingers slid under her coat, moving against her tank
top.

“Things like what?”

He untucked the shirt, and Indigo smiled. Jude was
definitely
going to be taking her home.

“Oh, life stuff… school stuff,” she said with a shrug. That
was almost true.

“Your video done?”

“Not totally,” she admitted.

“Troubles with export?”

“No, no. The editing’s going okay, I guess,” she said. “It’s
just that I’ve been thinking about getting a bit more footage.” She dropped the
menu onto the table, sighing. “Not sure if I have time or not, but I might redo
a couple parts.”

The truth was, there was now a
new
gap in the story:
one that went from her teens to twenties. The project could be fudged, but
she’d spent enough time on it that she didn’t want it to be. Jude’s fingers
began rubbing circles into the bare skin of her back, leaving her sighing.

“If you want some help,” he said quietly, “I’d be happy to
come along.”

She frowned. There was a difference between being Indigo
here,
and being Indigo
there.
The rift between the two parts of her lives was
so vast even
she
couldn’t see across it sometimes.

“I’m not sure,” she said slowly. “I mean, I’d appreciate the
help and all, but—”

“Jude, my friend!” a familiar voice bellowed.

Indigo felt the room tilt precariously sideways, her
breathing sharpening as adrenaline flooded her limbs. Luca Brin, in a
pinstriped suit and red tie, was striding forward, Patel a shadow behind him.

“My God,” she whimpered, her back pressing up against the
booth.

Everything was happening too fast. Her mind was screaming
too many things for her to keep up:
Luca was in O’Reilly’s! Luca knew Jude!
Luca had seen her again! She had to run!
Her eyes darted from one corner of
the bar to the other. Shireese was still leaning over the speaker, Tanis
singing.

“I thought it was you!” Luca said, reaching the table. He
turned his attention on Indigo, eyes bright with humor. “Now
you
, I did
not expect to see here!”

For a half second, she didn’t know which role she was
supposed to play. She hovered in between then and now, terror leaving her mute.
In a single heartbeat, the moment passed. Luca reached out his hand, and she
fell back into the role she knew the best:
survivor
.

Indigo forced herself to smile coyly, extending her hand, waiting
while he pressed a kiss to her knuckles. She fought down the urge to recoil.

“Luca,” she said with a breathy giggle, “what a surprise to
see you here!”

He gave a hearty laugh, slapping Jude hard on the shoulder,
and settling into the horseshoe-shaped booth next to him. Jude’s skin was grey;
he looked like he was going to be sick. As Luca slid in, Jude’s hip bumped up
against Indigo. His eyes moved from her, to Patel, who was blocking the exit
from the booth on the other side, to Luca, and back. Indigo was still
struggling to figure out how he fit into all of this. It was like discovering
that everything she understood about the world was wrong.