Icon

by Genevieve Valentine

  He sent a marker to Bonnaire, flagging her hesitation at the IA border for review. Was she wanted in another country, and couldn’t leave United States soil? (Wasn’t hard to imagine her wearing out her welcome somewhere.) Was everything all right, and this empty fishbowl of a calendar just what it meant to be powerful in a place that asked nothing else of you except to do as you were told?

  He didn’t buy it. Martine was lying low. He just didn’t know what for.

  “What did Li Zhao think of it? Am I looking for a pattern with Martine? What’s her plan?”

  Kate ooh, mm-hmm’ed like a nagging aunt. “Daniel, Li Zhao fainted from the excitement of it all, just as soon as she heard.”

  Dev snickered. “Li Zhao hasn’t—” he started, then paused before he said, “We don’t know if there’s a pattern yet.”

  Daniel imagined Kate waving Dev silent, wondered what exactly Li Zhao hadn’t, what plans he was excluded from.

  Martine conducted no business at all for two days, meeting other people only after the sun was down and she was wearing sequins like chain mail. Then, with the cameras on, she grinned and gnawed her cigarette and pulled back her hair so tight it scraped her skull. She’d go out in a knot of the Big Nine, and when they reached whatever ridiculously dim club it was, she’d leave them all in the VIP section and dance in the center of the crowd, eyes closed, where nobody could reach her.

  By the third night, he’d started sending emergency messages to Bo. Whatever this was, he wasn’t going to sit through it alone.

  This is the weirdest beat. I’m tailing a cloud

  Hold until further notice.

  Has Margot moved on anything? Feels like Martine’s waiting for something

  Negative, follow and hold.

  Has the boss gotten someone for this job yet?

  Negative.

  Have we heard from Suyana? Did Nicodema say anything?

  Negative.

  She’s going to another club, Bo. Request cover

  Cover unnecessary, follow and hold.

  Cover urgently requested, I can’t stay up until 3 a.m. again tailing her

  I’ll cover at 1:30. Give me coordinates.

  At Hypatia. May be forced to engage mark if cover not available by 1 a.m.

  Negative, follow and hold.

  Confirmed, visual contact maintained, I’m waving

  Not sure if you’re joking, given your track record.

  Fuck you

  She says hi

  This won’t get you removed from assignment early.

  Beg to differ, hope you’re showing the boss

  Bo, Martine’s beautiful, I want to marry her, I’ll send you a picture of us in a second we look really good

  Bo, I bought her a drink, that’s still professional, right?

  I’m going to go meet all her friends, when whatever news the boss is waiting for breaks, you let me know

  I’m going to go dance with Martine come find me when you get here

  We’re married now, we didn’t invite you

  Daniel, there’s news about Suyana.

  × × × × × × ×

  It wasn’t news. It was terrifying and all wrong, but it wasn’t news. News surprised you.

  Suyana had told him as much about seven months back, when he’d lost his temper—who knew why, it was the end of a short meeting, he hadn’t been patient even when she still looked like there was a soul inside her—and asked how she thought this fucking contract relationship was going to end.

  And she’d looked right at him (he’d turned an inch away from her, pressed his hand against his eye socket so hard it stung) and said, “Retirement.”

  A wretched word—a word years away—but it was a comfort. The worst wouldn’t happen; there wouldn’t be a wedding. There was never a wedding. Marriage was much too permanent a statement for two Faces in good standing. You wanted a life of international possibility that kept you exciting to the public, of use to your country, and sold magazines. You had a physical clause to protect each country from accusations of intent to tamper (like Faces were cars whose warranties had to be obeyed; he’d laughed when he read it). Marriage was for after no one cared who you were sleeping with.

  She’d looked like she doubted she’d make it that far. Daniel had tried to ignore it. That was seven months ago, when he’d had hope of success understanding her.

  This was just an engagement. It was a ring and official portraits and a few sets of candids of them at second base in a nightclub. It was a promise that would keep Suyana out from under suspicion, that was all.

  The publicity shit could go on for a year. Suyana planning a wedding. Suyana announcing a honeymoon destination they’d never see while ten thousand people dropped their magazines and dove for their phones to make bookings. Suyana taking the UARC photographers with her to try on wedding dresses for Magnus to look at and debate and decide on, while Daniel stood outside and watched without moving until it was all over.

  × × × × × × ×

  The third day, Grace came to visit Martine.

  Daniel stood across the street and watched her duck into Martine’s building, which required a staff badge at too many places for him to sneak around inside. He was debating the best way to make himself scarce and still be able to clock Grace’s departure when Martine lifted the shades on the living room window, seven floors up, and looked right at him.

  He tried not to laugh. Now Grace on top of it all. She’d probably already known. She’d probably seen him in Terrain a year ago when he made a scene with Suyana, and he imagined even Martine would be loath to keep a secret as choice as knowing where their biggest press leak was always coming from.

  Off to the side, beyond the scope of his temple camera, he waved waist-high.

  Grace raised her eyebrows and was smiling carefully in another direction as she pulled back and out of sight, calm and practiced as even Magnus could wish for. Martine stared until the shade was drawn. He couldn’t tell if it was a warning, or if there were some things she didn’t see the point in lying about any more.

  It was the marriage news that had required such an off-book meeting, he’d bet money on it. For all they pretended to be above the machinations of C-listers who needed to date somebody to score enough notice for their causes, Grace and Martine knew what it meant when the American Face was planning an alliance with a country that had risen so quickly through the ranks. Suyana was going to become an ally or a threat, and they were in there deciding which.

  “So, before you became a snap and were still crawling around after Suyana,” Kate’s voice came over the comm, “how many Faces did you actually introduce yourself to? Is this the end of the list, or are there twenty more who would wave at you if they saw you coming?”

  “As soon as it costs me a scoop instead of getting me better access to information, I’m sure Li Zhao will be very put out about it all,” Daniel said, and turned off the comm.

  Bo tapped him on the shoulder half an hour later.

  “You’re relieved,” he said. “They kept trying to tell you, but your connection was down. You can’t just take it off-line when you’re angry.” He looked like a disappointed schoolteacher, which was probably unfair, but so was asking Daniel to keep his comm on all the time if Kate was at the other end.

  Then he realized what it meant if Bo was here, and frowned. “So where’s Margot?”

  “At home. She’s covered. Kate apparently had some things to say about you, and I didn’t want to listen to it until your time was up. You’re off for the night.”

  “Oh.” Daniel’s mind was racing. Something was wrong. Someone was missing. “When does Suyana get back?”

  “She lands tomorrow morning, early. You’re back on duty six a.m., LaGuardia. Get some rest.” Bo’s mouth thinned to a single line. “And maybe work a little on keeping a safe distance.”

  “We can’t all be invisible,” he said.

  “It’s not their notice we’re worried about. It’s their handlers hunting u
s down.”

  We. Sure. Daniel tried to look solemn. “Okay. I’ll stay back from the happy couple. Grace is still up there. No idea if they have plans to leave—Martine’s schedule has been strange, but they’ve been seen in public recently enough that they might not need more visibility. Seventh floor, third window from the left.”

  Bo nodded, eyes already forward. “Get going. Keep in touch. We’ll call if something comes up.”

  Daniel slid on his baseball cap and took the route that approached Margot’s building from the park, where there were more crowds and better cover. Margot’s windows faced the courtyard and the garden, but the front door and the freight entrance both faced the street. Any coverage would come from there.

  Li Zhao was sitting at the coffee shop at the far corner, sipping on a cappuccino and pretending to read a book, and he knew the line of her back a block before he ever reached her.

  He’d thought she considered herself above fieldwork. He’d definitely thought she considered herself above a camera implant. He’d never for a moment imagined she’d ever leave Paris just to keep watch on someone who cut a trip a few days short. This whole story must be something pretty big.

  It was nice to feel right about something.

  “Martine lives across from a jewelry store,” he said quietly, when he was close enough. “Suyana’s across from an office and a bank. I’d kill for a coffee shop cover.”

  “Goddammit,” said Kate over the comm, and when Li Zhao turned around, Daniel was still smiling.

  “Hey, boss.”

  Li Zhao was smiling too, that impeccable lipstick tipped up on one side. “Daniel. You look tired.”

  “You made me look after the Queen of the Night for two weeks, of course I’m tired.” He gestured at the farthest seat before he took it, as much warning as he was willing to give. In her office he’d never dare sit without being asked, but the streets of a neutral city felt like a compromise, and his legs were beginning to shake.

  “That’s why I sent Bo to relieve you.”

  “I’ve never been relieved and then told to go home. Do you know how suspicious that sounds?”

  She sighed. “I didn’t expect Bo to be quite that obvious about it, but that would explain why you’re here.”

  “Sure.” He grinned. “But not why you’re here.”

  “We have twenty-seven employees in New York. There’s been a lot of upheaval. I wanted to make sure nothing fell apart before Paris.”

  He was too aware of his lips against his teeth. “Yeah, but this is Margot’s place, not your office. I think Bo’s at Martine’s building because something’s going to happen soon, and you don’t want anyone else hunting your favorite big game.”

  Li Zhao finished her coffee and tucked her hair behind her ear, fingers pressing her temple.

  “Kate,” she said, “turn off the incoming sound on Daniel’s equipment. I’ll contact you to reactivate.”

  Of course her own equipment could be turned off locally. The benefits of running the place.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Thank you, Kate, that will be all.”

  “I’d be nicer to her,” he said after a few seconds. “She’s mean, but she’s loyal. She’s been helping you since you changed your name, right?”

  Li Zhao kept her eyes on the doors of Margot’s building, but she sat back a few inches in her chair, until Daniel could just see a sliver of her profile, and could tell when she looked at him because the white ice chip of her iris would turn suddenly black.

  “And don’t tell me—you know what name I changed it from.”

  What a flattering assumption. He wished Bo were here to listen to Daniel moving up in her estimation. He also wished he had an amazing theory, some detective work he could unfurl to make this moment actually worth it. But after a year of watching Suyana work, he’d learned the difference between noticing things and making connections—the latter was above his pay grade.

  Still, he could do what Suyana did, and suggest whatever would get the most out of the mark. Daniel should know how to do that; he’d watched Suyana do it enough.

  “No idea. But I figure Margot could probably tell me who you used to be, if she ever saw you.”

  Li Zhao shifted her weight slightly, uncrossing her ankles for more balance.

  “Probably not,” she said, after he’d given up hope of an answer. “I didn’t make it very long, and Margot doesn’t waste a lot of time on Faces who lack stamina.”

  He knew she’d been IA material—he’d known for a while—but hearing was always another thing.

  “I lasted eight months before China went to war with Russia. Nobody told me. My handler nearly fainted when she heard. And Russia had a trade agreement with Norway—it was a long time ago, I forget what it was, maybe a relationship contract or maybe just some understanding. Margot had gotten onto the Peacekeeping Committee already, before the war even broke out.”

  Daniel glanced up at the sleek tower. Margot was on the far side, free of any prying eyes. She planned ahead.

  “After it was over, the Peacekeeping Committee recommended the Faces from China and the Hong Kong Territories be retired, and no new ones be appointed for two years. While those seats were inactive, the Trade Committee passed as many sanctions as they could. Took us ten years to crawl out of that hole.”

  Daniel’s throat was dry. Suyana was in a plane flying across international lines, coming back to present herself as a threat to Margot.

  He managed, “As in, retired? Or . . .” There was another inflection you could give retired that meant something else entirely, but he couldn’t make his lips move. It didn’t matter. Her handler had taken her into the middle of nowhere a long time ago, and either Li Zhao had been sent to safety by a sympathetic soul, or her handler had tried to retire her, and he could guess how that had gone.

  She raised her hand, asked for another coffee from the waiter when he arrived, smiled at him; her smile alone explained why the young man wouldn’t be staying long enough for a coffee of his own.

  When they were alone, she said, “Go home.”

  “I’m not tired.”

  “If you’re not there to cover Suyana at six a.m. when she lands, you’ve lost the assignment and I’ll give her to someone else. Don’t pretend—stop looking at me, watch the doors.”

  But he couldn’t move. The hair on the back of his neck was standing up. “You’re not following Margot just for the hope of some candid shots when some scandal breaks, are you?”

  The coffee came. Li Zhao shook two packets of sugar into it, took a sip, added another.

  “Li Zhao—”

  “She’s excellent. The best there’s been since the Assembly was formed, maybe. Born for it. She looks like the sun whenever you hand her a problem. Have you noticed?”

  He’d followed for a few hours once, a long time ago. “Yeah.”

  Li Zhao wiped her lipstick off the rim of the cup without looking at it, one clean swipe. The coffee was half gone.

  “But she made a mistake, building the Central Committee into such a monopoly and putting herself at the head. Now there are liaisons for agriculture and public relations and environmental concerns and peacekeeping who all do nothing. And the Intelligence scarecrow retired ten years back, and she thinks no one noticed when she started taking that over, but she’s wrong. A dictatorship only ever ends one way.”

  For the length of a breath, Daniel’s nose filled with the smell of glass cleaner from the audience balcony above the International Assembly audience hall, where he’d stood for the better part of a year at the far edge of the first row because that had the best view of Suyana’s seat, and it had the best view of Margot when she turned to look at Suyana like she was waiting for poison to take hold.

  “And that’s what we’re selling.”

  “The revolution will sell itself,” said Li Zhao. “People won’t even notice what it does to their countries. They’ll just read the news and look for relationships that appeal to them and m
ake bets about who wins.”

  And a year ago, Suyana had caught their attention out of nowhere when she made a move on the American Face, and Li Zhao got a glimpse of her ambition.

  “Wait. You think it’s going to be Suyana?”

  Li Zhao set down the coffee carefully and spared him a glance—as much as she could without losing the mark.

  “No. Whatever secret you two are keeping, it’s bigger than her place in the IA. She’ll be a martyr. She looks good for that.”

  A car drove by. It felt like the first car in a long time. How long had they been sitting in silence? The streets were wet; was it raining?

  “Does Bo know about all this?”

  “Of course. We have to be prepared to record whatever happens.”

  Of course—Bo knew exactly what had happened to Suyana, and who was behind it. He’d seen more than any of the rest of them had. And since then Bo had kept him in sight and in line, so he would be calm when the mutiny started and Daniel was following around the first person they expected to die.

  Kate didn’t know. Kate was sitting in a basement in Paris right now, in silence, waiting for the word that she could start listening again. Was she even waiting? He wouldn’t have waited for permission to listen in; Kate wouldn’t either. He had to get to her. Or to Dev–Dev might give in and tell him what he needed to know. Dev could help. Someone had to help.

  “Bullshit.”

  “Which part?”

  “You didn’t fly here from Paris just to take a few night shifts with Margot,” he said, and then halfway through he realized and finished, “Because you were already in New York.”

  Her smile was less victorious than it could have been. “I don’t think anything will happen until Paris, but after the last-minute arrangements, I thought something might be happening that Margot was trying to get away from. As it happened, she was making other plans, but still, it’s good to see New York again.”

  Other plans. He’d seen the pictures of Suyana accepting the proposal. Ethan looked almost as confused about why he was proposing as he looked confused about why she’d ever say yes. Suyana hadn’t looked confused, not for one second; when she’d reached up to kiss him afterward, she’d wrapped her arms so tight around his neck you couldn’t see her face at all.