Recovery and Redemption

A Prisoner of His Thoughts

ACME's director of personnel was sitting at a cafe in Paris reading a newspaper; when a soft voice from across the table had brought him back to the real world. She was speaking in French, ordering a salad, but even with her impeccable accent he would recognize that voice anywhere. Startled was not quite the sentiment he had felt at the moment, but nevertheless he was certainly surprised. Immediately he lowered his newspaper and found himself face to face with Carmen.

He was intrigued more than anything else. Her dark hair was braided over her left shoulder and she was wearing large sunglasses. The gray sweater dress she was wearing was simple and plain; a far cry from the bold colors she wore when on the job although she did maintain her trademark red heels. A subtle joke of hers, he knew. Hiding in plain sight always was one of her strengths.

"Paris is quite lovely this time of year I think." she said taking a sip of coffee and breaking the silence. For a moment Chase found himself wondering where she had gotten the cup.

"It is indeed." he replied after a moment.

" Pleasure." she said after a moment. Chase must have been giving her a strange look because a moment later she clarified. "You were wondering if I was here for business or pleasure. I can assure you, for whatever it is worth, you do not need to worry. I'm strictly a tourist this weekend."

She always had that knack for being able to get into his brain; she always had some idea what he was thinking. In a way it was kind of eerie, but she had started out as a detective.

"A tourist indeed?" Chase asked her skeptically. "You?"

"Everyone needs to recharge their batteries at some point Chase." Carmen replied with a smile. "Whether or not you care to believe it I do other things with my time. I do not spend every waking moment trying to foil your detectives."

Chase merely raised an eyebrow. "You merely create the illusion of it then?" he asked her folding up his newspaper and putting it away for good now.

"You could say a good portion of my job is sleight of hand, yes." Carmen replied with a wry smile.

"So as a tourist what brings you here today? Surely you know what a situation you must be putting yourself into. You are an extremely intelligent woman." Chase said. "So why on earth would you choose to walk right into the hands of ACME when you are not even on a job as it were?"

"You really think I am planning something right now?" she asked with a laugh. "How droll you are."

"I think you avoided my question." he said leaning forward and resting his chin on his hand.

"I have not walked into ACME's hands. I have walked into yours." she replied.

"That may just as well be the same thing though. I am the director of ACME, and you are putting yourself in a rather, shall we say, delicate position right now."

"Is it really the same thing though Chase?" Carmen asked leaning forward so that they were now eye to eye. The casual observer might have perceived the two of them to be lovers lost in one another's eyes at the moment. Chase was not entirely sure that they would have been off the mark.

"How is it not though?" Chase asked her leaning forward still so that now their conversation was a whisper. "I could easily cuff you right now and bring you into custody."

"You certainly could do that." She replied thoughtfully. "In fact I would not blame you if you did. However I do not think you will do it."

"Why not?"

"Being who you are, you are curious, almost morbidly so." She said both eyebrows raised. "You are wondering what it is that I am doing, and if I am plotting something nefarious."