Genesis Code, (Book 1, Genesis Series)

Chapter 31

On her second day in the new job, Laura needed a distraction. Her former colleagues on Level Four popped into her mind as she headed for the cafeteria on the second floor and grabbed a tray. She ordered beef stew and a glass of lemonade from one of the replicator machines, then searched the room for their table.

She spotted Chris and Janine huddled in their usual corner, and walked towards them. Chris noticed her first, then he leaned forward and whispered something to Janine who sat with her back to her. Laura glanced down at her purple Level Five uniform that must have looked more intimidating than it was.

She should have turned around.

But her pride, already hanging by a thread, forced her to keep going. At their table, Janine gave her a look that barely registered above frigid. No change there. Laura ignored it and set her tray down. If Janine wanted her gone, she'd have to say it to her face.

Neither of them spoke.

Why was she even here? Did she consider Janine the drama queen or Chris the sexist pig to be her friends? She could do better. Or could she? Laura hated admitting that her former colleagues were the closest thing to friendship she had in this place. She needed to hear her promotion was a good thing. She needed to hear from Chris that Haymarket was back on the transfer list.

So she plastered on a fake smile. 'Hi, guys. Mind if I join you?'

'Actually, we do,' said Janine. 'You can't be here.'

Chris's eyes slid to the roving camera that hovered around the room. Laura checked its location; at least it wasn't pointed in their direction. He kept his voice low. 'We can't be seen talking to you. You'll get us into trouble. Bugger off.' He shooed her away with his hand.

While their reaction didn't surprise her, Laura refused to leave. The silence on Level Five was making her crazy and she had to talk to someone.

She leaned in and lowered her voice. 'Look, I know what the rumours are, but they're just rumours, right? I mean how much trouble will we get into by just talking? We used to work together, for Christ's sake.'

Janine refused to look at her. Laura couldn't tell if it was jealousy or fear driving her cool attitude.

'Oh, shit,' said Chris. Laura turned around to see the roving camera on its way over to their table. 'See what you've gone and done now? You'd better talk your way out of it.'

'Yeah, you're good at getting what you want, aren't you?' said Janine.

Chris levelled a glare at Laura. 'If you give a crap about us, fix this.'

The camera moved in close. It scanned Laura's face. An electronic voice boomed through the device. 'Laura O'Halloran, you are Level Five. Please explain why you are speaking to Level Four employees.'

She straightened up, seeing her reflection in the golden ball. It was the first time she'd been this close to one of the shimmering cameras.

She cleared her throat as she considered her next line. It would be so easy to drop the pair in it, to save her skin; she owed them nothing.

Laura looked at them both, then at the camera.

'I was just asking—'

'Just asking what?' said the camera voice.

It was hard for her to talk to the AI camera, so she pretended some bald fat man operated it from a separate location.

'I wanted to know where the swipe cards for the machines were.' The cards reset the replication machines designed to run on cycles. At the end of a cycle, the quality of the food degraded enough that the machines needed a reboot. 'My stew has this weird metallic taste to it and I wanted to reset it.'

The camera scanned Chris's face, then Janine's. 'Don't you three know each other?'

'Yes,' said Laura. 'We used to work together on Level Four.'

'You're not supposed to talk to each other. I must report this.'

Laura caught the look of fear on Chris' face. She couldn't see Janine's but she sensed her coolness.

'I only asked them because I know them. I don't know anyone on Level Five yet, but I promise this will be the last time.'

She meant it. She was done with the pair.

The camera made a humming noise as it continued to hover in the air. 'The cards are to the side of the machines, where they always are.'

'Sorry, I didn't see them. I'll check again.'

It lingered on her face a little longer—or the fat bald man did—before moving away.

Without another word or a backward glance at Chris or Janine, she marched over to the machine. She reset the nearest one and ordered another stew. To keep up the charade, she dropped the original dish in one of the waste receptacle units.

Dozens of eyes were on her as she sat down with her food. Her anger at Chris and the imaginary camera operator absorbed all the flavour from the food as she ate. But mostly she was angry Janine for making her feel shit about herself. Her former colleagues had treated her like she was a dangerous criminal. Maybe she was, in their eyes. Laura wondered if the warnings she had received weren't just for her. Had her former colleagues also been threatened?

The last of her appetite vanished in her attempts to act normal. She forced down a gulp or two of lemonade that tasted more bitter than usual and took a rabbit-sized bite of her average-tasting stew. After an uncomfortable few minutes, she abandoned her lunch and went back to her workstation, immersing herself in her duties.

No further files appeared about Bill Taggart that day.