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“Yeah, you know, this job. It’s funny, when Shan and I met in college, I was into some black hat bullshit. Nothing nefarious, mostly hacking into hard-to-break systems for fun. She knew everything about my antics and loved me anyway, but she always wanted me to go straight. Then I put on a white hat, started working for the government, and suddenly I couldn’t share this huge part of my life.” He shook his head. “I’m telling you, man, nothing kills a relationship faster than secrets. Honesty. It’s a gift.”
I nodded slowly. “I suppose it is. Later, Jensen.” I turned away from him and trudged toward TJ’s office, slowly going numb as my brilliant plan to bury my secret deeper and deeper until it no longer mattered evaporated at Jensen’s brutally inciteful words.
TJ’s office door opened. “Morning Prescott. Join us.” He held up his coffee mug. “I’m getting reinforcements, but I’ll be right back.”
“Sure thing.” I shook out my free hand, transferred my coffee cup, and shook out the other hand, willing feeling back into my fingers. I pasted on a smile and joined Bennet in the office.
The man who was both my boss and my best friend smiled and stood to greet me. His face dropped. “Shit, Prescott. I can tell two things. One, you finally got laid. And two, something is deeply wrong. I hope the two aren’t related.”
“Of course not,” I lied. “You’re wrong about what you think you know.”
He raised his eyebrows.
“About the second thing,” I said. “I’m just tired and still worried about Red. Bond. Samantha.”
“Okay,” he said. “I know who you’re worried about and why. And since I’m so happy you’ll be less of an asshole because of the first thing, I’ll even pretend you’re telling me the truth about the second thing. For now.”
TJ joined us and closed the office door behind him. “Have a seat, Prescott. We’re just shooting the shit about old times. Turns out Bennet and I crossed paths once in Kandahar.”
“Really?” I feigned interest. “Sometimes the army is a small world.”
As they picked up their conversation, I smiled, nodded, and even managed to contribute a few coherent thoughts, but it was all one more lie. If honesty was a gift, then dishonesty was a deep, black pit. Now that I’d lost my footing, I couldn’t stop falling.
