When All Else Fails (A Push of a Button Novella)

Chapter Seven

SUPREME ONE PACED the floor of B702's office. He marched to one wall, spun on his heel, and marched to the other. Three times. Right about now, shouting—though hardly appropriate—would be a welcome improvement. But the greatest improvement would be finding and reacquiring Vivian McGayen. He needed her back safe in his grasp where he could keep her out of the mess with Auclaire.

She'd grown up with him. She knew him. So why couldn't she believe that Dane—no, he was B702 since Dane didn't really exist—didn't want her dead? He'd lose his mind if this kept up. She was his. That was the only plain, simple fact left anymore. That and the precise number of hours since she'd disappeared.

Disappeared under a minefield that should have blown them sky high. No one was willing to brave the minefield they'd disappeared under, and no one had answers. He cleared his throat. "Sir, with all due respect—"

Supreme One whirled to face him. "You lost the target and the McGayen girl! I thought you said you had it under control, B702. Are you in the habit of breaking your word?"

"I..."

A glare from his contact shut the excuses down. He swallowed and shook his head.

"Good. Then explain to me why you did so this time." The Supreme One's lips turned up in a twisted smile beneath his cowl. "And make it good. How well you lie this time determines how long you live."

"I misjudged the McGayen girl, sir. We were on good terms, so I assumed we'd discuss it like adults. Instead, she became angry and frightened, and she ran."

"So, not only did you let her out of your sight, but you also revealed your identity to her so she could blow your cover." Supreme One shook his head and lifted a hand to his shadowed face. "Because you've been such a loyal disciple of the cause, I will give you one more chance to fix this. Find the McGayen girl. Get rid of Auclaire. After that, I don't care what you have to do. You will force Vivian McGayen to join our side, and you will remove the false memories."

"But that would leave—"

"Nothing? Exactly. A blank slate to work with. Mostly. You'll have to take her to the Lab to have the memories she's made for herself removed." Supreme One turned his back to B702.

And in that moment, B702—no, Dane, he decided, because they weren't going to take away his name or anything else anymore—had to face his reality. Viv would never get out of this unharmed as he'd been promised. She would be wiped, married off to him, and turned into a good puppet for the cause. Maybe it was time to switch sides. Play to his own cause. It wasn't what he'd planned to do, but to save Vivian, it might be his only choice.

"Did you really think I wouldn't find out, Dane?" Supreme One spit his childhood name out like it was something putrid.

Dane winced and ducked his head. "No, sir. I just..."

"Didn't know how to tell me?"

"Precisely, sir. I had hoped to contain the situation on my own. You did request that I handle it, so I didn't want to bother you if I could fix it. I—"

Supreme One lifted a hand to his neck and pressed his button. Dane's throat closed up. Air came in and out, but no sound.

"I'm tired of the excuses, B702. You can have your voice back when you can refrain from giving excuses for your failures."

He banged a fist on the desk in a futile attempt to get Supreme One's attention back on him. It failed, of course. Supreme One ignored him and walked out. The office door slammed shut behind him. Dane let out a string of curses. All in his head now, thanks to his contact. His handler. Now there was a dirty word. Handler. As if he was some out-of-control animal that needed to be kept tame. He gritted his teeth. Yes, he needed to play to his own side. But until he got his voice back, he'd have to find a way to make Supreme One believe he was playing to their side. At the same time, he would find their weaknesses. Once he had those, he'd bring them down one at a time.