And then a chillingly familiar voice comes through the radio.
“Someone get up to the roof and check on Anasova,” says Hannah Vale.
I swallow hard, my mouth suddenly dry.
“Well, crap,” I whisper.
“What?” asks Eames quietly. His face is grave.
“I stole these two radios so far,” I say. “From Bud and Anasova. I, uh, already dealt with them. It was only a matter of time until the others noticed. I tied up Bud and left him in the security office and went up to find Anasova on the roof.”
Eames seems to grasp the situation at once. “The others must know something is wrong,” he says. “Or they will very soon.”
I grimace. “Yeah.”
Up until this moment, I’ve had the advantage of going unnoticed. Once Vale realizes that her crew is being hunted, she may take… more drastic actions.
“Okay,” I whisper, mostly to myself. “Okay.”
This isn’t great, but I still have an advantage. They don’t know who I am; they don’t know where I am; they don’t know what I can do. If they’re smart—and I know they are—they’re going to have to treat me like I’m a deadly threat.
“They’re going to have to call off the search to find me,” I say. “Once they figure out that someone is taking them out.”
Which is good. If they’re looking for me, they’re not looking for Project Persephone. I flick my fingers, activating my ringware. I have a recording function in my visor, and I think I’ll want a record of what I’m going to do next.
Eames shifts on his feet, as though he yearns to move. “So what does that mean for us?”
“I believe,” I say, holding up the radio I stole from Bud, “it’s time to introduce myself.”
IDENTITY SECURITY DIVISION
WRAITH CASE STUDY: AUGUSTA PINE
TRANSCRIPT OF RADIO CONVERSATION
[Crackle of static]
AUGUSTA PINE
—lo? Hello? Anyone on this channel?
HANNAH VALE
Carla?
AUGUSTA PINE
[Fake buzzer sound] Ehh—wrong answer.
HANNAH VALE
Who the hell is this? How did you get on this channel?
AUGUSTA PINE
Well, it’s not really secure. All I had to do was press a button.
[Static]
