Deus Ex Human Revolution: Shadow's Showdown

Chapter 48: The High Noon.

Sorry for the delay. I was a bit blocked and did not want to force myself but the story is still going on! :) Thank you for your patience and staying with me! Stay safe! 💙💙💙💙

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Adam actually wanted to be dressed the way he usually went to work. He would choose a brown turtleneck sweater, combat pants, and sports shoes. After a moment of thought, he figured out Laura was right and his resignation would look more professional if he wore a shirt, tie and black jeans. So he took a deep breath before protesting again and decided to trust Laura instead of arguing.

"Can I use your computer?" he had asked before the hacker went into the kitchen. "I need to write a resignation, just in case."

"Of course," she replied walking over to the table under the window where her laptop lay.

A moment later she logged into her account and showed Adam where the shortcut to the text editor was. The Security Chief thanked her with a nod, then immediately plunged into thought. He didn't like writing official texts. He always felt it was horribly forced. He managed to create a couple of rather good sentences, after which he pressed his back more firmly into the backrest of the armchair. He immediately hissed in pain, forgetting about his injured arm. He waited a moment until the pain subsided and he was able to continue with the writing he had started. As his fingers were about to touch the keyboard again, a screen saver appeared on the rectangular surface. There would have been nothing special about it if he had seen fish in an aquarium or cats or anything like that. The violet eyes of a man with hair in dark chocolate colour were piercing him. Smiling Laura was Standing beside him, whom he was embracing over her shoulder with a prosthetic arm. It was Joe, the dead aug he'd seen in the alley. The caption on the photo proclaimed: 2010, Berlin. Instead of finishing his writing, Jensen started thinking about what Laura was doing in Germany at the time. He knew she had lived in Sweden and America, but she hadn't said a word about Berlin.

It took him several minutes to push these considerations to the later parts of his mind and return to his original intention. When he was done, he read the whole thing a few times and sent it to his company email account.

"Can I go with you to the company?" he heard an unexpected question, and when he turned his head he saw an outstretched hand holding a mug of cocoa.

"No," he replied firmly. "As things stand, no one can see you there with me. You need to regain your position first, and then you will officially return to the company."

The hacker gasped loudly, but it made no impression on Jensen. He found these childish attempts to manifest her displeasure annoying however he wanted to keep his word and be patient. After a few sips of cocoa, he mellowed immediately. Laura reminded him how childhood tasted and how much he missed being carefree.

"Sorry," he muttered. "I'm nervous about tomorrow's talk. I shouldn't have taken it out on you."

It was really about Joe, about that stupid picture he'd seen, and specifically who he actually was. Usually, he wasn't interested in the previous partners of the woman he was dating, but in Miss Werner's case, it was completely different. She was no ordinary woman but a walking puzzle and every piece of the puzzle was very important.

"Don't apologize. It's good that at least you're thinking sensibly," she said, kissing Adam on the temple. "Did you pick out a shirt?"

The man shook his head negatively. "Why don't you pick me something yourself?"