The Ares Agenda

Prologue

Ace Engineering Building, Los Angeles, California, United States of America, Earth

His car was slick, black, and low, every angle oozing testosterone and speed. I didn't recognize the make or model, but it was obviously expensive and rare, a statement in itself. The driver was dressed to match, in a close-tailored black suit that shimmered when he moved. He was wearing dark glasses. In an underground carpark.

He was leaning against the front of the car, tapping in the air as he spoke on a phonecall, exuding professionalism and arrogance. This was the right place and time, so he must the person. It was kind of weird that I was being picked up for a job interview from my workplace carpark at 7 p.m.

He looked up, finishing his call, so I extended a hand.

"Rhea Horton, hi." I said.

"Nash." He shook my hand – firm, assertive.

"Nash," I repeated. "Is that a first name or a surname?"

His only reply was a sly grin. Olive skin and dark features suggested Asiatic background, but his vowel intonation was definitely Southern California. Nash could easily be a surname around here.

"Ah, I'm here about the job interview. Are you the right person to talk to?"

"I'm the driver, ma'am." He nodded to the car as the passenger door opened.

"Oh, thanks." I ducked to get in the low car, but banged my head anyway.

Nice Rhea, real smooth. Let's hope he is only the driver. First job interview in years, and I'm acting like a new graduate. University was ten years ago.

I took a deep breath to calm myself while he rounded the car to his own door. I had been working here at Ace Engineering for five years, and to be honest, I had replied to this job interview partly out of curiosity – it was one of the most brief and uninformative job postings I had ever seen.

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Senior Structural Engineer Wanted
A successful, market-leading company at the top of their industry is looking for a motivated candidate to head an offshore project investigating issues with structural steel. Structural engineering experience of ten or more years needed, and prior experience with forensic engineering would be a bonus. Contract is fixed-term for at least 24 months, with possible extension.
Excellent rate of pay, all expenses included.
Must be willing to travel abroad for an extended period.
Contact Janice at Snells-Beacham Recruiting with CV, @snellsbeachamrecruiting
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And that was it. No details about the company or location, or what the work involved – not even a list of job tasks. I tried researching who it might be, but they simply hadn't given enough detail; whoever it was, they were serious about their privacy. When I contacted her, Janice at the recruiting company was evasive and had obviously been told not to let anything on, which piqued my curiosity even further. And now this. Pick-up by a strange guy in a strange car at a strange time.

Perhaps this wasn't such a good idea.

But now I was sitting in the right-hand passenger seat, so it was a bit late to decline. The car had three seats, with the driver in the middle and slightly forward of the two passenger seats. The other seat was empty.

I had never seen a car with so much polish and shine. The interior was deep black. I didn't want to touch the panels in case I left fingerprints, although I figured it would almost certainly have an oleophobic nano-coating.

"Nice car." I commented, trying to avoid the silence getting awkward.

Nash said nothing, just looked through the mirror at me and smiled.