Page 4 of Seductive Architect
Drew had his eyebrow raised. “I’ll bite. Which one?”
“Secret Identities Incorporated is a front forsuperheroes.” I had applied for the job, ready to close the case on this mystery. Arthur offering me a position programming an app that changed the way superheroes operated had been a shocker. I held out my finger and made a check mark. “I was right.”
“Ahem,” Arthur said. “Let’s put this conspiracy to bed. I wasnotharboring superheroes.”
I gestured to Drew. “He can literally change the color of objects.” I pointed to my forehead. “With hismind.”
“I had no superhero employees before the three of you. There wasn’t a conspiracy until you signed your contracts. You can’t say you were right when you made it happen.”
“Technicalities,” I mumbled. They might think I’m paranoid, but I call it being prepared.
Usually, I divided my time between research and video games. Slaying demons kept me distracted and gave me an excuse to adventure with other players. It had all come crashing down when a dwarf cleric wormed his way into my DMs. All a guy needs is a stout, bearded man willing to patch up the arrow holes in your chest. I should have known something was off. All the red flags were there. It reinforced my inability to connect with humans, and instead, I threw myself into uncovering the mysteries of Vanguard.
I frowned, still hurt that I lost my fuzzy cleric. It wasn’t the game I missed. It was the idea that someone out there gave a damn.
“Don’t be sad, friend!” Wyatt jumped to his feet, hands on his hips. “If you need a victory, I can be your alien invader.” He leaned forward, hand up to his mouth. With the loudest whisper possible, he added, “After work, of course.”
Wyatt, in his goofy over-the-top way, proved a point. As of right then, I had exposed nothing. Had I turned into one of those people wearing tinfoil hats? No. Due to my abilities, I watched the uncanny amount of information being collected from Vanguard citizens. Every purchase, every dinner, every midnight liaison was all captured and catalogued. In the wrong hands, this information could be used to destroy mankind. I felt it in my bones… none of us, me included, comprehended thewholestory.
Janet stood in the doorway to the break room. While Arthur didn’t intimidate, his twin was another story. Even next to the statuesque Wyatt, she held her ground. After working here for months, I couldn’t figure her out. Arthur described her as chaos personified, and I agreed. Or at least chaos with a devious grin. Underneath her radical persona, I bet there was an untold story.
“Did Wyatt just say he was going to conquer the world?” She sauntered over to Wyatt, jabbing a finger against his chiseled chest. “Do we have to have another sit-down with Human Resources?”
Wyatt frowned. “Not another training video. I get confused when you’re playing all the parts.” As the self-appointed Queen of Human Resources, she created a seriesof videos in which she played all the roles. Confusing? Yes. Amusing? Absolutely. Arthur tried to rein her in, but Janet wouldn’t be tamed.
“Janet!” Arthur growled. “No more videos. They have work to do.”
She rolled her eyes. Despite being twins, they looked nothing alike. Arthur’s dad bod and beard made him look like a generic bear. Janet, on the other hand, was a stocky woman, but more than willing to wieldthe ladiesto get what she wanted. No matter how perky she made her breasts, nobody here noticed. I think that’s why she harassed the employees at Synergy Research. At least there, her cleavage held power.
“Is that harassment?” She waited a moment. “No, really. Can I call that harassment? Maybe Arthur needs the workplace etiquette video?”
Drew snorted. “That’s my favorite. The part where she consents to touching her own butt… priceless.”
He gave up, throwing his arms in the air. Grabbing his cold coffee, he stormed out of the break room. It wouldn’t be a day at Secret Identities if Janet didn’t drive her brother from the room.
From down the hall, Arthur shouted. “Get to work. All of you!”
Wyatt and Drew headed to their offices. When I tried sliding by Janet, she thrust a hand against my chest. Without my suit, I only had the strength of a man with anaffinity for pizza and energy drinks. Stopping me dead in my tracks, she leaned her head out the door.
“It’s clear.”
“Clear?”
“I know they’re giving you a hard time.” She leaned in close enough that I could smell her tea tree shampoo. “You’re close to the truth.”
For a second, I thought she might be mocking me. Janet was either the only one who saw it too… or the best liar of all.
When she pulled back, I couldn’t get a read on her expression. Unlike machines, humans were complicated creatures who rarely said what they meant. Whatever program ran in their brain defied logic, and none more than Janet. Machines were easy to speak with; humans were another story.
“Are you serious?”
“Synergy. It screams corporate villainy. Even if Arthur’s boyfriend is the CEO.”
I thought about it for a second. I had my eye on them for a while. My surveillance might be on the wrong side of legal, but people traded freedom for safety. Then they complained when they didn’t see it coming. I wasn’t going to be the one who got comfortable. That’s whentheyget you.
“I’ve had my suspicions. If I were them, I’d hide in plain sight. But how would you know?”
Janet winked. “When I was with the F.B.I., I saw things.”
