Ramez Naam - Nexus

I won't be anyone's slave. No one.

And the ERD?

Ilya was right. He shouldn't have given Nexus 5 to them. He didn't trust them. That was the past. He wouldn't make the same mistake again. Had he actually thought of going to work for them, trying to change the system from the inside? No. He would just become another slave. He would find another way.

And Shu?

The same. Her goals attracted him, her promises captivated him. He wanted with all his being to join her. But her compromises were many. She was a tool of her country's military. And he wouldn't be a slave of the Chinese military any more than he would of the ERD.

He would find another way.

"…they would have come at us harder," Sam said. "They would have known that I was a field agent. They would have brought more firepower to bear, and started with me."

Nichols looked thoughtful.

Becker nodded. "OK, I agree that a leak is a lower likelihood. Let's focus on the organized crime angle, Shu, and Ananda. The dead assailants are our best evidence. Any data on them?"

Nichols shook his head. "No matches on face recognition, DNA, or prints."

"What about the fourth person?" Becker asked.

"Nothing so far," Nichols said. "We're running deep trawls now. If there's anything out there on any of them, we'll find it."

Becker looked down at his wrist. It was early afternoon on the US East Coast by now, Sam knew.

"OK," he said. "Good work, both of you. If there's one silver lining to this, Sam, it's that you've saved his life now. He'll be more in your debt. He's primed to trust you more. He's vulnerable now and he's gonna look to you for protection and guidance. Take advantage of that."

Sam felt something inside her twist. Trust? Is that what this was about?

Becker was continuing. "Nichols, I want you moving forward on all angles. This is a Pri 1 investigation now. Tap whatever resources you need. Sam, keep your chin up. You did good today. I want another report in eighteen hours."

"Sir," Sam said. "There's something else I'd like to discuss."

"OK," Becker said. "But make it quick. I have a meeting on the Hill shortly."

"Sir, I think we should abort the mission, or at least send Kade home."

"What?" Becker said.

"Sir, we've achieved the primary mission objective. Kade has an invitation to Shanghai, and Shu has practically offered him the job. In addition, he's a civilian, and his life may be in continued danger here."

"No," Becker said.

"But, sir," Sam protested. "The risk to Kade–"

"No, Agent Cataranes." Becker spoke with a flat finality. "Leaving now risks raising Shu's suspicions. And Prat-Nung is as important a target as Shu. This is the best lead we've had in three years. We have to take it."

"But, sir…"

"Agent!" Becker raised his voice.

Sam felt herself bristle. She pulled herself erect in the chair, said nothing.

"This isn't open for discussion," Becker said in a tone Sam knew too well. "We have an opportunity to get closer to PratNung. We're going to take it. If it is a trap, it's an even better opportunity to identify and neutralize the opposition. You and Lane, our asset , will be well protected. And we'll do absolutely nothing unusual, like sending the asset home days early , to raise Shu's suspicions. Am I making myself absolutely clear, Agent Cataranes? Special Agent Nichols?"

"Yes, sir," Sam said smartly.

"As crystal, sir," Nichols replied.

"Good. Becker out."

His face disappeared from the screen. Sam slumped in the chair.

Nichols' face drooped. "Sam, we'll bring security in tighter around you and Lane, starting immediately. Friday night… we'll have people stationed right there. Your support will be seconds away, I swear it. We won't leave you twisting in the wind on this."

Sam nodded sadly. "Thanks, Garrett. We can talk details later." She disconnected.

She dimmed the lights in the comms room, crossed her legs in the chair, put her hands lightly in her lap, focused on her breathing, tried to let her mind empty and peace come. A memory came instead. Nakamura.

She'd been nineteen, perhaps, a year or so into her training. He'd been in his mid thirties, the summer he told her he was leaving the ERD, transferring to the CIA.

"In this business, Sam, you have to remember that you're just one piece on the board."

"What do you mean?" she'd asked. Nakamura often spoke in metaphors.

"It's like chess. White against black. But it's not just one piece against another. It's sixteen pieces on a side. Many will fall, even on the winning side, before the game is over."

Sam had mulled that over. "You're saying that if I keep moving forward with this, my life is at risk. I could get killed doing fieldwork."

They'd been in DC, on the National Mall. Nakamura had paused to skip a rock across the reflecting pool, had taken his time with his words.

Sam had squinted behind dark shades in the bright sunlight, her newly enhanced eyes still sensitive to so much stimulus. Everything had hurt that summer. Already the viruses were spreading genes no human ancestor had ever carried through the cells of her body. Muscle fibers were lengthening to inhuman proportions and strengths. Neural ion channels and myelin sheaths were being transformed to speed nerve signals between brain and muscle. Reprogrammed bone cells were extruding organic carbon fiber webs to harden themselves against impact. Everything hurt, and she didn't care. She was going to save the world. She was going to save all the little girls.

Nakamura had skipped another rock, then spoken softly. "Sometimes dropping a piece is necessary in order to win," he'd said. "A sacrifice. A gambit. A trade for a more valuable piece. It's not just that you might be killed in this line of business. It's that you might be intentionally sacrificed or traded to further advance your side's position."

Sam had scoffed at that. "That's not how we play. We take care of our own."

Nakamura had grunted, said nothing.

They'd walked a bit more in silence. She remembered the intense heat of the sun. DC was so hot that summer.

Eventually she'd asked, "So what kind of pieces are we? Knights? Bishops?"

Nakamura had chuckled. "You, my young friend, are a pawn."

Sam came out of the reverie. She could feel Kade through the Nexus link on the phone, she realized. The Nexus felt stronger now. It was coming back together in her head.

She was troubled by the conversation with Becker. Not just because he'd scolded her. It was the notion that Kade might trust her more now as a side effect of the ambush. It was true. She'd felt it. The hostility had dropped. He felt honest gratitude that she'd saved his life. He'd felt comforted by her presence. That could only be an advantage to the mission.

In seeking to uncover the causes of an event, ask yourself: who stands to benefit from it? More wise, cynical words from Nakamura.

Becker stood to benefit from this, she thought. The mission did. The ERD did. Is there any chance this was a set-up? That I was meant to beat those guys? That it was all to play Kade? Were those men pawns, sacrificed in a larger gambit?

No. That was just paranoia talking. Surely just paranoia. Wasn't it?

26

MASKS

Kade was awake when she went back to the room. He opened his eyes as she entered. He felt much more settled than he had a few hours ago. He smiled at her.

Shit, Sam thought to herself.

"How're you feeling?" she asked.

Kade came up to a sitting position as he answered. "A lot better. Sorry about that freak out earlier. And thank you. You saved my life tonight."

"Just doing my job, Kade," Sam replied.

"Those guys in the alley. They exploded?"

Sam nodded.