flight.”
Gregor waved his hand. “Invisibility, then. She probably followed
you
. She might have followed you here.” He drummed his fingers on the top of his desk. “Nicolette, we’ll need to go downstairs later, and see…what repercussions this has caused. If the prognosis has changed.”
“Yep,” Nicolette said. “We’ll see how bad Mr. Z here has fucked us.”
“I was
not
followed,” Zealand said, through clenched teeth. “I am a professional. It is possible she saw me—Marla is a professional, too, after all—but she will not connect me with you.” In truth, Zealand didn’t think she’d noticed him at all. Marla’s footprints in the slush on the sidewalk had ended abruptly, so she hadn’t simply turned invisible. Unless she’d turned invisible
and
flown away, which seemed like a lot of unnecessary effort. Such behavior didn’t suit what he’d observed of Marla’s personality, either. If she thought someone was following her, she’d confront them. But Gregor was a skulker and deceiver by nature—hence his hiring of Zealand to secretly assassinate Marla—so it made sense he’d assume the same of others. “I only told you about Marla’s disappearance because you insisted I notify you of any irregularities. I am accustomed to more autonomy. You’re paying me for my skills—why don’t you try trusting them? Killing people is what I
do
.”
“He did kill Archibald Grace,” Nicolette said, kicking her heels against her stool. “I mean, that old guy was
twice
the badass Marla is.”
“Yes,” Gregor said, and then fell silent. After a moment, he sighed. “All right. Do proceed. I apologize for my…what do you call it, Nicolette?”
“Being a tight-assed control freak?” Nicolette said. She winked at Zealand, a friendly gesture which, coming from her, he found repellant. “Gregor’s heavily into precision, and that works for him, most of the time. But messy things have value, too.” She shook her mane of clinking, clattering hair. “So when are you going to take Marla out?”
“Tonight. Or tomorrow. Or two days from now. Better if no one knows for sure, not even me. You predict probable futures—surely you know the value of discretion.”
“Sooner is better,” Gregor said.
“It’s best if I know her patterns and routines, when she’s alone, when she’s at her most unguarded. She isn’t an ordinary target, after all. I don’t intend to become a victim myself. I’ve only been watching her for a week, but fear not, she seems remarkably consistent so far.”
“I’ve heard a rumor,” Gregor said. “Some of your old associates are in town looking for you?”
“Yes,” Zealand said. “It won’t interfere with our business.”
“See that it doesn’t.” Gregor dismissed him with a gesture.
Zealand left the office, scanning the hallway in both directions before hurrying to the elevators. Gregor’s security was formidable, but nothing a slow assassin couldn’t overcome. That was another reason to get this assignment over with quickly. The slow assassins were closing in on him. They’d been tacitly ignoring Zealand for years, but some recent business in Dublin had stirred them up again. He’d killed one of their operatives, and even though the murder had occurred in the course of other business, they were furious, and now he had to be more vigilant than usual.
As he rode down in the elevator, he wondered if he’d chosen to kill one of the slow assassins because, on some level, he
liked
having them on his trail, for the excitement. He was getting older, after all, and his life and work increasingly failed to entertain him. Zealand chose not to examine his motivations too closely. A man needed some secrets, even from himself.
Nicolette sat down on the edge of Gregor’s desk. “Think we should have killed him?”
Gregor sighed. “I feel like a man in a shark cage, Nicolette. I’m afraid to reach my arms outside for fear they’ll be bitten off. I thought
Gregor waved his hand. “Invisibility, then. She probably followed
you
. She might have followed you here.” He drummed his fingers on the top of his desk. “Nicolette, we’ll need to go downstairs later, and see…what repercussions this has caused. If the prognosis has changed.”
“Yep,” Nicolette said. “We’ll see how bad Mr. Z here has fucked us.”
“I was
not
followed,” Zealand said, through clenched teeth. “I am a professional. It is possible she saw me—Marla is a professional, too, after all—but she will not connect me with you.” In truth, Zealand didn’t think she’d noticed him at all. Marla’s footprints in the slush on the sidewalk had ended abruptly, so she hadn’t simply turned invisible. Unless she’d turned invisible
and
flown away, which seemed like a lot of unnecessary effort. Such behavior didn’t suit what he’d observed of Marla’s personality, either. If she thought someone was following her, she’d confront them. But Gregor was a skulker and deceiver by nature—hence his hiring of Zealand to secretly assassinate Marla—so it made sense he’d assume the same of others. “I only told you about Marla’s disappearance because you insisted I notify you of any irregularities. I am accustomed to more autonomy. You’re paying me for my skills—why don’t you try trusting them? Killing people is what I
do
.”
“He did kill Archibald Grace,” Nicolette said, kicking her heels against her stool. “I mean, that old guy was
twice
the badass Marla is.”
“Yes,” Gregor said, and then fell silent. After a moment, he sighed. “All right. Do proceed. I apologize for my…what do you call it, Nicolette?”
“Being a tight-assed control freak?” Nicolette said. She winked at Zealand, a friendly gesture which, coming from her, he found repellant. “Gregor’s heavily into precision, and that works for him, most of the time. But messy things have value, too.” She shook her mane of clinking, clattering hair. “So when are you going to take Marla out?”
“Tonight. Or tomorrow. Or two days from now. Better if no one knows for sure, not even me. You predict probable futures—surely you know the value of discretion.”
“Sooner is better,” Gregor said.
“It’s best if I know her patterns and routines, when she’s alone, when she’s at her most unguarded. She isn’t an ordinary target, after all. I don’t intend to become a victim myself. I’ve only been watching her for a week, but fear not, she seems remarkably consistent so far.”
“I’ve heard a rumor,” Gregor said. “Some of your old associates are in town looking for you?”
“Yes,” Zealand said. “It won’t interfere with our business.”
“See that it doesn’t.” Gregor dismissed him with a gesture.
Zealand left the office, scanning the hallway in both directions before hurrying to the elevators. Gregor’s security was formidable, but nothing a slow assassin couldn’t overcome. That was another reason to get this assignment over with quickly. The slow assassins were closing in on him. They’d been tacitly ignoring Zealand for years, but some recent business in Dublin had stirred them up again. He’d killed one of their operatives, and even though the murder had occurred in the course of other business, they were furious, and now he had to be more vigilant than usual.
As he rode down in the elevator, he wondered if he’d chosen to kill one of the slow assassins because, on some level, he
liked
having them on his trail, for the excitement. He was getting older, after all, and his life and work increasingly failed to entertain him. Zealand chose not to examine his motivations too closely. A man needed some secrets, even from himself.
Nicolette sat down on the edge of Gregor’s desk. “Think we should have killed him?”
Gregor sighed. “I feel like a man in a shark cage, Nicolette. I’m afraid to reach my arms outside for fear they’ll be bitten off. I thought
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