✏️ The Littlest Spy

19. Qualified

"You're not an exotic weapons collector," Kane said, watching Brock's response calmly. "This is recon; you have no need to be carrying an antique carbine or something." Isadora found that she was on the edge of her seat; a situation she'd never had in her own lounge before. This was when she would learn if her desire to feel like a little kid occasionally was enough to exclude her from her mission, or even for the Agency to revoke its trust in her completely.

"That's not what I was thinking," Brock said. "I just had an idea for a hobby the Kleins might share. Something that will help them grow closer. But maybe something a little... unusual. We've spoken about it, but not reached a final decision. If Estelle agrees I'd like to order some extra items from the quartermaster. And add some sites to our social media papertrail as well."

"We can do that," Kane said, steepling his fingers. "What kind of hobby did you have in mind?"

"I'd rather not say, Sir," Brock said abruptly. "I'm aware that there are a lot of rumours among the staff at Millennium House. And Folker has friends among the crypto crew, people whose respect she needs to keep. I don't want anything in there that some desk jockey might think is funny, so this isn't going through the kingmakers. We'll order items direct to packing, and I trust my monitor to update the profiles on our legends."

Kane looked back and forth between the two, and then sighed. Isadora knew what Brock was getting at; and she felt a lot more confident when she realised that he was making a real effort to get Kane's approval without actually telling him; so that her secret could be kept out of the office rumour mill. He didn't need to do that, but he had. She wasn't even sure if she wanted to do this, but she seemed to be in a position to make it possible. She could talk about it with Brock later.

"I think it's a good idea, Sir," she said. "Something quirky might be memorable for our new neighbours, make it easier for them to pigeonhole us. And if Brock is thinking of what I think he's thinking, it would give us a legitimate cover for an instance or two of unusual behaviour. I'd hope to never be suspected at all; but at the same time, it's better to have an insurance policy. Right?"

When Kane's stare fell on her, she felt like he could see right through her. But she couldn't let him shut down Brock so easily. As he asked one question, and then another, she responded carefully and thoughtfully. Somehow, along the way, she went from deliberately-vague reassurances to actually lying about what Brock had in mind; though she couldn't have pointed at the dividing line between the two. She didn't even know if she actually agreed with Brock's plan, but she told herself that they would be able to discuss that later. If Kane said no, there was no option to change her mind.

Suddenly, Kane was asking the same kind of questions as before. Testing them on their legends, and on their ability to make up things they had never been taught. And that was another reason for Isadora to have second thoughts. When Brock had kept on talking about feeling like the character, rather than memorising the details, she hadn't been sure if he was just trying to cover up his weakness. But almost every question Kane asked was about things that weren't in the file; details that an operative might realistically be forced to answer on the spot while playing his role among strangers. Kane didn't ask about years of employment or anything like that. And the more questions he asked, the more Isaodra started to realise that he was asking questions that people might ask them. Neighbours, monkeys, enemies, it didn't matter. When it came to proving that they really were the people they claimed to be, nobody was going to ask them to remember all the numbers. But improvising was something they needed to know.

"Bernard," Kane asked, and for just a fraction of a second his grin looked like a crocodile snapping down on its prey. "Do you think any of your school friends would worry about your drinking problem if they saw you now?"