The Janus Discord (ONC2024)

Chapter 6

The car pulled abruptly to the curb, and Arthur hastily crossed from behind the news stand, sliding into the passenger seat as it sped away.

"How did they get suspicious?" The question sounded threatening.

"Don't bother giving me your big bad act, Lyle. They're professionals too. They did what we would do."

"So you learned nothing." The car swerved around traffic as if it was annoyed with the situation.

"I learned there are three of them now. A woman named Sheridan Wylie, and she's an operative as well."

"They'll be on the run again."

"Without transportation, from what I could tell."

Lyle tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. "If they are as professional as you say, they will have transportation. And our chances of finding them again just went off the chart." He sucked in his breath, irritated. "You should have taken them out."

"Devon was about to tell us the whole operation. It was an unprecedented opportunity." Arthur stared out the side window, gritting his teeth.

"Yes . . . one that didn't materialize."

"What about your trackers? Did they learn anything?"

"Yes." Lyle faced Arthur with a cold stare. "The price of failure."

******

Matt looked around nervously at the number of different people strolling on the boardwalk. Couples, arms entwined. Kids with dripping ice cream cones. Seniors in sun hats and sandals.

"Are we safe here?"

"Safer than where we were." Sheridan lay her head back and closed her eyes to the sun.

"What's Devon doing?"

"You have too many questions, Matt. Focus on what you might contribute to our predicament instead."

He stared across the water, his thoughts running over the past several days, and everything that happened to alter his life. This certainly wasn't the first time his life had altered. A silent snicker had him looking at Sheridan to make sure she didn't notice. His eyes fell to her long legs, stretched out in the sun, and back up her body, to find her watching him.

"That's not what I said to focus on."

"No, but it sure beats what you did ask." He tried a smile. "Have you been in this business long, Sheridan?"

His face and tone seemed genuinely sincere, and she hesitated snapping back at him.

"It's a simple question, I'm just curious." He persisted.

"Long enough to know the rules."

He pondered her words, and their suggestive reference. "Do you like the work?"

The laugh was genuine and she sat up, draping her arms over the back of the bench. "Skip the 'this is your life' routine, Constable. I'm not talking about my job, okay?"

"I wasn't prying, I was just making conversation."

"You want to make conversation, tell me about Matt Constable."

"You mean you don't already have a file on me?"

"Of course we do, but does your version match?"

A gull landed several feet away and pecked at a piece of discarded food, oblivious to the humans all around. Matt watched it as he thought about exactly how close his version was to their file.