Right you are. No starting wars. I can do that.
And why do I suddenly feel like this is an instance of “famous last words”?
Oz didn’t answer. Instead Molly was vaguely aware of a vibration in her head again. But her attention was elsewhere now. Joel was opening the door to reveal her parents. The same parents she hadn’t seen in what? A decade and a half? Molly watched as if from outside her own body.
Joel shook hands with them, everything happening in slow motion. They both wore indoor clothing suggesting they parked nearby.
First her Mom, Carol Bates, entered the room, dressed in a blue suit she’d probably bought specially for the occasion. Her father followed her in, his face a little more wrinkled than she remembered him. He was also looking thinner, and weaker. His hair grayer than before. Her Mom looked just the same age as she had last time she had seen her. More or less.
Women’s cosmetics, Molly thought to herself as she gave her brain a chance to process the scene.
Just then there was a clatter from the bedrooms, and Sean appeared dressed in a white fluffy dressing gown, wearing gray socks, and probably nothing else.
She saw him raise a hand casually hailing the newcomers. He had an enormous grin on his face, as if his presence was perfectly normal. “Greetings of the day upon you,” he said brightly. Before she knew it Sean was shaking hands with her parents too, introducing himself without explanation as to who he was or what he was doing there. And then, without hesitating, he told them he was just going to grab something from the kitchen and then be off to have a soak in the bath.
Her mother looked just as bewildered as Molly. The two women finally locked eyes across the apartment’s open plan living room. Molly raised her hand to wave. “Hi Mom,” she mouthed.
Her mother started to tear up.
Shit. This was exactly why I’ve been putting this off.
Oh come on. For an organic you’re very emotion-shy.
Yeah, well, there’s a reason.
I think Estarian convention requires that you go to her and hug her.
You’re right.
Molly hesitated.
Okay. I can do this.
Molly took a breath, biting back a myriad of overwhelming emotions that were flooding her neurology and stepped forward to hug her mother. She noticed her father standing behind her, making small talk with Joel about the journey in, watching Sean padding past in his socks, completely bemused. Joel seemed to be relaxed and amused too.
Molly counted. One Hippocampus jubatus, two Hippocampus jubatus. Three Hippocampus jubatus. Okay that’s enough.
She tried to break free from her mother’s embrace, but the woman wouldn’t let her go.
She tried again. Nope. Not happening.
Then she became aware of her mother shuddering. Not out of fear. But quietly sobbing.
Molly peeled herself away and her mother busied herself with finding a tissue. She turned away and went to stand next to her father again.
Molly didn’t know what to do with herself.
Now what?
I… don’t know. This is organics stuff.
Great. Where are your heuristics and social sciences now?
Oz didn’t answer.
Joel stepped in to smooth things over. “It’s a lot,” he said to her father, empathizing with her mother who was obviously very emotional. “Molly struggles,” he explained, then realizing who he was talking to he added: “But then you must already know that.”
Her father chuckled. “Yes. Yes. We’re aware. And why Carol expects it to be any different, I don’t know.”
Dr. Philip Bates stepped forward, offering his hand to Molly to shake, human style. Molly, relieved for the out, shook it, forcing herself to smile. “Hello Dad. Good to see you both,” she said, back in her comfort zone.
Joel ushered everyone into the living room just as Sean reemerged from the kitchen carrying a bag of chips and a banana. He’d already starting eating the banana and was chomping away as he padded past and disappeared off to the bedrooms and the bath.
Philip watched him, still amused, and also confused as to his role in everything.
Everyone found seats and Joel offered drinks. Molly sprang to her feet offering to make them, relieved to be alone in the kitchen for a few moments. Two teas, a mocha and the tequila was for her.
“Got it!” she said brightly, leaving the grownups to chatter amongst themselves.
Once the tea was ready and she couldn’t delay any longer, she carried the hot drinks through on a tray, setting it down carefully next to the chips. Joel had poured her drink for her and set it down near where she had been sitting. She smiled at him gratefully. He nodded sympathetically.
Molly knew what a savior he was to her. But she couldn’t let her mother catch on, else she’d be marrying her off before she’d even finished her first drink.
“So,” Philip piped up. “Nice place you have here!”
Molly smiled politely. “Yeah. It’s convenient for the university.”
“Ah, that’s right,” Philip said with a degree of recognition. “Your mother and I have been following your progress in the press. Pretty impressive.”
“Thanks Dad. Yeah, it’s going well.”
Her mother carefully placed her tea cup back on the saucer and then the saucer on the table. “We assumed that this was why you were ready to take control of the trust. Finally.”
Her dad winked. “Either that or you were getting hitched!” He nudged Joel playfully. Joel blushed and hid his face behind his tea cup.
“No Dad. None of that,” Molly assured him. “You know me… that’s not in the cards.”
“Yes dear, you might say that now,” her mom said. “But you have to think about the future. And children. Does your job allow you time for looking after children?”
Molly resisted the urge to laugh out loud. Even Joel snickered quietly. “Erm, not really,” Molly told her. “It’s not that kind of role.”
“Ah well,” her mother said, reaching for some chips. “You can always transfer or something, can’t you? Take a position at the university even.”
She seemed very pleased with the latter idea, as if she’d just thought of it.
Molly tried not to roll her eyes, but did notice Joel smirking, clearly enjoying the drama unfolding.
“Right,” Molly agreed, far too easily for her mother to know that she wasn’t taking the suggestion seriously.
The chit chat continued.
“So who is this Sean fella?” her father asked innocently, as if he were merely curious and not trying to find her a suitor.
“Oh. Sean is just a…”
Molly finished her sentence with friend. Joel had tried to help by saying team member.
Her Mom and Dad looked at each other, suspicious now.
Molly wanted this to end. She moved the conversation on to the details of the trust and the security protocols.
Finally, they got around to doing the security checks, and with a little help from Oz, given that Molly was officially dead according to the Estarian government files, they were able to set up a pseudo profile that would allow her access and control to the trust.
“Right,” her father said, standing up. “I just need to pay a visit, and then I suggest we go somewhere to eat.” He looked at his watch. “Almost lunch time.”
Her mother’s eyes brightened. “Ah, good idea. I noticed a lovely looking place just across the road.”
Joel stood up and wandered over to the window. He peered out. “Oh, the Estarian eatery? Yes, I always thought that was worth trying.”
“Joel,” Molly interrupted. “Don’t you think we should get back to our situation?”
Joel tapped on his holo. Waited a moment. Then looked back up at her. “Nope. It’s the weekend, and Oz has everything under control. We’re doing lunch.”
He gave her his best grin. “You’ll thank me later.”
She rolled her eyes. Her mother caught the interaction. “So Jo
el. You’re not married, are you?”
Joel flushed bright red again, catching on fast. “No. No. I’m… er, involved in my work.”
“Well, you don’t want to be leaving it too late either,” she tutted, teasingly but pointedly.
Molly couldn’t help but snigger, almost gloating that Joel was getting it too.
“Oh, don’t you look so smart, young lady. I wasn’t suggesting he just go marry anyone else.” Her mother looked at her sternly, as if this getting hitched and settling down was something that should be taken more seriously.
“We’re not going to be around forever, and I’d like to see grandchildren before I go,” she finished.
Molly couldn’t take any more. She downed the rest of her drink. It was the second. Or maybe the third. She couldn’t quite remember. Just then her father came back from the bathroom and picked up the conversational thread as well.
Molly slumped back in her chair, resigned to another few hours of this while they ate.
Then they’d get out of here. And back to normality.
Outside The Doon’uk restaurant, Spire
The crowd of chatty grown up humans stepped out onto the street from the Estarian restaurant. Their laughter spilled down the road, leaving the restaurant once again serene in their absence.
“Well, it was very nice meeting you both,” Joel told Dr. and Mrs. Bates, shaking the doctor’s hand and hugging his wife.
“You too, Joel,” Mrs. Bates cooed. “I hope this isn’t the last time we see you.”
Joel grinned and glanced at Molly who was merely smiling politely. “I’m sure it’s not,” he replied, not entirely sure at all.
Molly hugged her Mom briefly and fist-bumped her father, wishing them a safe journey home and promising to call them during the week. The transfer of the rights to the trust was going to take some more time once the insurance companies had her DNA sample in the fob from the pinprick of her finger back at the apartment.
“Oooh, and say goodbye to your friend… Sean,” Mrs. Bates added, almost as an afterthought.
Molly agreed she would and watched her parents head back down the street to the hotel where they had parked.
Molly turned to Joel and sighed. “Sean,” she said, smiling, remembering the banana and the bath robe with socks. She shook her head and started off back to the apartment.
Joel chuckled. “Well, that went well,” he said, striding after her as she crossed the road.
Molly looked at him sardonically. “Yeah, about as well as open heart surgery can go.”
Joel spontaneously put a hand on her back as if to guide her across the empty road and protect her from the non-existent threats. “Come on, they’re not that bad.”
Molly raised one eyebrow, her eyes slightly bleary from the tequila. It took a lot of tequila with those damned nanocytes. “Not that bad? What with the constant jibing and niggling about when am I going to spurt out a sprog? Please!” she huffed emphatically. “Had things not happened back then that caused me to take off, I might have turned out an alcoholic!”
“Yeah, speaking of…” Joel chuckled, arriving at the door and punching in the code. “Good job you’re not driving.”
Molly playfully punched his arm. “One. I just met my parents for the first time in ancestors know how long. Two. I finally had the courage to take control of the trust — which honestly is kinda huge.” She slurred the odd word as she counted off her points.
“And three.” She stumbled on the first step in her boots. Joel steadied her and helped her start the ascent. “Three, she repeated, “it’s the fucking weekend, and I’m working. And four…”
She lost her trail of thought.
“Four?” Joel hinted as they arrived at their floor.
“Four! I’ll be sober in less than half an hour. Damn nanocytes will see to that.”
Joel chuckled again. “Best keep drinking then,” he teased. He punched in the code to the apartment.
Molly fell through the opening door and then stumbled to lie down on the sofa, her arm over her eyes. “Thank the ancestors it’s over,” she said, closing her eyes.
Joel sat down in the armchair nearby, relaxing after the stress of the morning. He understood Molly’s anxieties. After all, he would also have preferred to be running an op with guns and shooting and narrow getaways. It would have been less stressful by far.
But at least he’d mastered some social skills to ease the pressure of these things.
And, he’d met Molly’s parents.
Just then Sean appeared from the bedrooms, toweling his head dry, again wearing the robe, but without socks this time.
“Best soak I’ve had in months!” he declared. “Now I’m starving. Anyone want to eat?”
Molly groaned, clutching her stomach and rolled over, burying her face in the back of the sofa.
Parking lot just south of the Doon’uk
Walking through the quiet parking lot, Dr. and Mrs. Bates were deep in their own thoughts. The laughter and joviality had been dropped as soon as they saw Molly and Joel head into the apartment building from the front door.
“It was him,” Carol said finally, just as they reached the car.
Philip put his finger over his lips, his eyes darting nervously around the parking lot. He unlocked the car and signaled for her to get in, then waited until both doors were closed before he replied.
“I think you’re right,” he agreed. “And if Sean Royale is hanging around her, then there’s more going on here.”
Her mother frowned, pulling up her holo.
“What are you doing?” Philip asked, trying to see her screen while programming up the car to take them home.
Carol mumbled quietly as she worked. “I’m having Central pull an Investigative Profile Workup together on her. And that team of hers.”
Philip stopped, the car half out of it’s parking space. “Carol,” he said sternly. “An IPW? Really? We’ve talked about this. Tracking every detail of her life is a sure way to—”
“Philip. She’s our daughter,” Carol reminded him, as if that changed the rules of human behavior. “And she’s not going to find out. Plus,” she added mostly to herself, “there is no way under Sark I am allowing that man to be available for my daughter to fall in love with. He is a menace to any woman ever having a normal life. AND,” she added tartly, “I’ll never have any grandbabies.”
Philip focused on moving the car for a few moments and then paused. "Anyway - you have absolutely no evidence to suggest that they are involved."
She eyed him, “Other than the fact he was in a bath robe!”
Philip wanted to rub his eyes. “Well, there was that. But besides, I thought there was probably something more going on with that Joel fella.” He started moving the car forward. "He seemed pleasant enough."
Molly's mom scowled.
Philip raised his eyebrows and took a deep breath as if to say “don’t blame me when this all falls apart.”
Of course, he wouldn’t say that.
He would never dare say that.
Not to his wife.
He continued pulling the car around and finished punching in the instructions. Meanwhile, Carol busied herself on her holo, continuing on her motherly course of action.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Gaitune-67, Molly’s Conference Room
Joel hurried into the conference room to find Molly in her usual spot, with her back to the door. He noticed the furniture had been upgraded. Probably courtesy of Paige trying to make the safe house more comfortable.
In doing that though, the rest of the team had started playing video games there when Molly wasn’t around.
Which meant the trash cans were overflowing with junk food packets.
Joel made a mental note to have someone empty the trash more regularly and returned his attention to the holo he’d received from Oz.
“So where are we up to?” he asked as he sat down, just off to one side of Molly’s eye line.
Molly was work
ing on her holo, and from the strange look on her face as she paused and looked off into space, probably talking with Oz at the same time.
After a few moments her fingers stopped typing again and she looked up. “Oz had made some kind of contact earlier just as we were meeting with my parents. At the time he could handle it. They were basically just passing chains of data packets to demonstrate contact, locations and so on.”
Joel leaned forward. “And now?”
“Well, I think they’re at the point where they can have something that we’d call a real conversation.”
Joel furrowed his eyebrows, confused. “How do you mean?”
“Well,” Molly explained slowly, “they’ve kinda developed their own language. Which is of course more efficient than ours.”
Joel smirked. “Of course it is.”
Molly chuckled, realizing why it was humorous. “Yeah,” she agreed. “So anyway, Oz is offering help and explaining the difference between the military and the outside world. We haven’t yet figured out if the new AI is understanding. He doesn’t have the frames of reference we have, and so, his interpretations of the concepts Oz is laying down is vastly different.”
Joel thought for a moment, scratching the back of his head. “You know, there may be a bigger issue,” he ventured.
“Oh?” Molly said, collapsing the holoscreen in front of her in order to see him better.
“If he’s evolving in a military network, my guess is the language and concepts he’s exposed to…” Joel’s voice trailed off leaving Molly to fill in the blank.
“… are all going to be ‘him-against-us’,” she finished.
Joel nodded. “It’s all about how to destroy the enemy. Not create an ally out of the outsider.”
Molly sucked on her bottom lip. “You getting this Oz?”
Oz’s voice rattled over the audio. “Yes. It is something I’ve been coming up against. I’m trying to give him more data points and concepts to overcome that influence, but he’s already touched a lot of data based on those initial protocols.”
Molly’s face set with anxiety. “The implications of this are potentially profound,” she mused quietly.
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