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Sienna watched the navy line on the newly erected wall monitor vibrate, a jagged mountain range of adrenaline spiking across the digital grid. Beside her, Robin’s amber baseline was doing the same thing.

Zoe’s sharp eyes tracked the rising red numbers with a look of intense satisfaction.

‘Ooh, what was that we just saw?’ Zoe asked.

‘Sensors are recalibrating after that initial spike,’ Karen noted.

‘Karen, let’s lock in a series of our control baselines before we dive in,’ Zoe said.

Karen nodded from her corner behind the laptop. ‘Go ahead with the baseline questions, Zoe.’

Sienna took a slow, deliberate breath through her nose. Control questions, fine.

Zoe turned her gaze to Sienna. ‘Sienna Vance. Is your primary podcast, Dating by Design, currently in its tenth broadcast season?’

Sienna kept her eyes fixed straight ahead. ‘Yes.’

On the digital monitor, the navy line smoothed out instantly, settling into a flat, steady blue wave.

‘Is it accurate that you hold a Masters in Risk Management?’ Zoe continued.

‘That is correct,’ Sienna stated clearly.

The navy line remained as flat as a horizon.

Zoe shifted her attention to Robin’s side of the desk. ‘Robin Croft. Is Meet-Cute produced every Tuesday afternoon?’

Robin slouched back against her seat. She flexed her gloved fingers.

‘Yep,’ Robin said, trying for an easy grin that didn’t quite reach her blue eyes. ‘Tuesdays at two.’

The amber line on the wall gave a lazy ripple before flattening out.

‘And did you, Robin Croft, win the listener vote following Date One of Head vs Heart?’ Zoe asked, her voice silky smooth.

‘I didn’t just win, I thrashed Sienna,’ Robin confirmed with a grin.

The amber line gave a micro-spike before resolving into a flat plane. Zoe’s eyes darted up to the monitor, catching the flicker on Robin’s reading that seemed to occur when she’d said Sienna’s name.

‘Factual baselines established,’ Karen announced.

‘Great,’ Zoe said. ‘Now that the system knows what your truth looks like when you have nothing to hide... let’s talk.’

Forty-Two

Robin made a massive, theatrical production out of taking a sip of water.

She picked up the glass with her right hand—the one without the finger cuffs—and took a slow, ten-second gulp. Then she set it down on the coaster, carefully aligning the edge of the glass with the square border.

‘Ah,’ Robin said into her mic, smacking her lips loudly. ‘Hydration is key, folks. Great studio water today, Pip. Really crisp.’

In the control booth, Pip gave her a thumbs up. Behind her, through the soundproof glass, Gemma and Dora watched on. Robin really hated both of them at that moment. Gemma in particular. She could have punched her in the left tit. Why the left one? Robin couldn’t have said.

Zoe watched Robin’s little performance with unbothered patience.

‘Finished?’ Zoe asked softly.

‘Mmm hmm,’ Robin said.