The Pyramid Chronicles: Tyche Point (#1)

Chapter Fifty-Four: By Any Other Name

The call, to James' relief, went to Claudia.

They sat across from each other in a small diner somewhere in northern California. James scanned the menu while Claudia was on the phone. She didn't talk much through the call, only jumping in on occasion to explain parts of what had happened at Delta Labs. She kept her voice and expression calm, but the occasional twitch of her fingers indicated she was far from it.

When she hung up, James lifted an eyebrow. "He didn't want to talk to Scorpion's science director?"

Claudia's face twisted in annoyance at James' sarcasm. "I thought you didn't care what secrets I kept from the altered, Director."

"I don't." James set the menu on the table. "I just don't see the point."

"Are you going to tell your new assistant the truth?" Claudia asked.

"At some point, maybe," James replied. "But she's not really my assistant. Just a new addition to the tech team."

"From what you told me, she's smart. Maybe too smart for her own good." Claudia's eyes narrowed. "What if she starts poking around where she shouldn't?"

"As long as I keep a steady stream of new information going her way, I don't think we have anything to worry about." James paused. "Besides, there's a pretty big difference between scraping the surface of SCI's temporary setup and hacking our systems. She's not getting in anywhere we don't want her."

"If you say so," Claudia muttered. "I still don't trust her, though. She was working with those other kids."

"She warned us they were going to SCI, tried to help me get the fragment, and took our side, in the end."

"So, you trust her?"

"For now," James said. "She does remind me of a younger version of you. I think she's a perfect fit for us."

A waitress walked up to their table. "Can I get you two started with something to drink?"

"Just water," Claudia told her.

"I'll have a water, too," James said.

As soon as she was gone, James turned back to Claudia and spoke in a lower voice. "You seemed concerned about Ash."

"He's acting up again. And I feel like it's getting more frequent." Claudia sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Ash is our best fighter, he just asks too many questions."

"Well, that's what the memory tech is for." James picked the menu back up. "Hm. Their omelettes look pretty good."

Claudia turned her head to stare out the window. Her fingers drummed against the table. "We didn't save any footage from the basement."

"No," James answered. "Why would we need it? We already identified the kids who rescued Eric."

"Wren mentioned that someone broke in." Claudia sighed. "She neglected to inform me of this until we were long gone, but I suppose it happened right before she left for SCI, so there wasn't exactly much time."

James kept his expression casual. "Did Wren mention what they looked like?"

"Well, she was altered. But Wren couldn't figure out what power she had, apparently." Claudia rolled her eyes.

Raveena. It had to be. They'd never asked Wren to experiment with her abilities, so it wasn't surprising Wren was unable to identify her. And the fact that Raveena had survived... It was incredible. What had she been up to the past few years? Why resurface now?

James decided against mentioning Raveena's apparent recovery to Claudia. Claudia was in a terrible enough mood as it was. Plus, she was already annoyed that James had no solid explanation for why Eric could still use pyrokinesis, after the lab's experiments with him years earlier.

But, if they could get their hands on Raveena again, maybe that side project could be salvaged.

Claudia's expression darkened even further. "I'm beginning to fear this whole Tyche Point operation did more harm than good."

"We got one new recruit," James reminded her. "And now, with the altered scattered, it will be easier to take them into Scorpion without drawing attention."

"I suppose that's true."

"And the fragment may be with those kids, but now that it's free from the earth, all we have to do is take it back from them," James said. "We outnumber them. They can only run for so long. Trust me, it won't be difficult."

"You're not the one managing an army of teenagers," Claudia muttered.

An amused smile touched James' lips. "I wouldn't call them an army."

"Not yet," Claudia said with a sigh. "But it's more than what our new enemies have."

The waitress returned with their glasses of water. James and Claudia gave her their orders, and she left again.

"Speaking of our new enemies," James said. "Do they have a name for themselves, yet?"