The Most Dangerous Dame

Moments later we were comfortably stationed on her earth-toned contemporary sofa, seated on opposite ends with our knees nearly touching. She gazed over the rim of her tiny gold-rimmed mug, her expression shrouded by steam. “Why are you looking at me like that, Mick?”

I sighed. “Fast changes, sweetheart. You’re a different lady than the one I spoke to just days ago. I expect that means you’ve come to grips with certain… events.”

She tilted her head slightly. “Certain events like my parents being brutally murdered only a few feet from where I hid? Yes, I’d say that I’ve come to grips with that.”

I sipped the coffee. It was bitter and black, just like her words. “Don’t mean to bring up painful memories.”

Her hand landed softly on mine like a dove that lost its way. “It’s ok, Mick. I can’t run away from the truth anymore. It happened, and I have to live with that.” Her eyes were free of tears, but the windows wept anyway as the storm streamed rain against their surface. It was eerily similar to the storm that raged the night she lost her parents, when I carried a frightened girl away from a scene of butchery into the lightning and stinging rain.

We sat there a few quiet moments, her hand lingering on top of mine while we sipped coffee and brewed in our thoughts. The rain fell on the righteous and the wicked, traffic whipped by, and people went about their business in the midst of it all. Somewhere out there Sophia Flacco’s murderer waited for the opportunity to strike again. But inside it felt as though we were the only two people left in the world. Moments like those are hard to come by and even harder to hold on to, so I didn’t want to spoil it by talking.

But just like coffee in tiny china mugs, it wasn’t meant to last.

“It’s funny.” She stared at the laser lines of air traffic whizzing by. “I remember so much more now.”

“How do you mean?”

She set her empty mug on the tray beside her. “A lot of new things have resurfaced. Things I forgot, but can’t see how. Before, I always thought I was born in New Haven. But now… I remember a train ride. I remember coming to the city. I was very young, but I remember.”

I hesitated for a second. “It’s your true memories resurfacing. When you came to the city you were implanted with mental suggestions that made you forget your past. Best guess is the trauma you endured must’ve bucked the implants. Mental programming is a fragile science, after all.”

She studied my face closely, as if trying to see whether or not I was yanking her chain. Her eyes widened. “Mick… you’re serious.”

I nodded reluctantly. “The truth is a bitter pill, Natasha. I’d lie about this to just about anyone, but I gotta give it to you square. The memory shuffle is a part of the admission into the Haven. Used to be a medical last resort for folks suffering from extreme trauma, but some bad eggs got hold of it and forced the labcoats to use it to influence everyone looking for residency in the city.”

I couldn’t blame her when she looked completely flummoxed. “But… why?”

“Control. Everything comes down to power and control. A few folks at the top of the pyramid want to stay there by making sure no one knows how badly they’re being stepped on. The gonzo part is that folks outside this Haven would kill for a chance to get in. They think it’s some sort of utopia where your sins are washed away and you get a new start at life. Joke’s on them.”

“So my parents… ” her words trailed off, unable to spill from her parted lips.

I nodded. “They made the deal. Whatever happened outside, they wanted to escape it bad enough to go through the process and lose their pasts.”

Natasha shook her head. “I… can’t believe it. It doesn’t even sound possible. Or ethical. There has to be laws against that type of tampering.”

“Laws don’t apply to New Haven. It’s outside the United Havens, a sovereign city that writes its own rules. That’s why the Service has tried so desperately to get agents inside. The UH wants nothing better than to take control of New Haven and all that comes with it.”

She cast her smoky gaze my direction. “So where do you fit in, Mick? How could you know all of this without being involved with the Service or the UH?”

I winced inwardly. I still wasn’t used to the return of the old Natasha, with her keen sense of logic I hadn’t encountered in a while. “Secrets are a part of my business, sweetheart. I can’t tell you everything. Too dangerous. There are folks out there who’d kill you just for knowing what I told you right now. You gotta promise to keep this to yourself, Natasha.”

When she hesitated, I leaned in closer. “I’m serious. You have no idea how tangled this gets, but it’s more than enough to hang us both real quick, and no one would care or lift a finger to do anything about it. I’m telling you because you deserve to know. But this stays between us, understand?”

Her expression grew solemn. “I understand, Mick. I won’t tell anyone.” She sighed, her eyes shimmering. “It’s just so unreal. We’re just a pair of lost souls, aren’t we?”