Chapter Text
Something snapped into place inside me. I sat up on the bed in my cell, suddenly attentive.
Kate had found me.
That was good, because it would spare us both the symptoms of familiar separation, which had been gradually intensifying but were now already beginning to ebb. On the other hand, it could also be bad, because if Kate had found me, she might try to rescue me, which would be a phenomenally stupid idea.
I tried my best to project "Don't do anything stupid" across our empathic link. I'm not sure if it went through.
Well, she was pretty smart, right? In theory, she was older and wiser than me, and could make good, non-stupid decisions without my help. Yeah. Absolutely.
Amy scooched up to me. "Hey, um, Mal…uh, if you're not going to drink that, is it okay if I…?"
She gestured at the fizzy orange potion I'd refused, on principle, to drink.
"It's just that the orange ones are my favorite," she added.
"Yeah. Go for it," I said. I was starting to get thirsty, and I knew I would have to drink something eventually, but I really didn't want to give them the satisfaction.
She guzzled the potion, and I tried to concentrate to glean something of Kate's mental state through our bond. We were both interrupted by a knock on the cell door.
Ben Smith's face appeared through the window. "Howdy," he said. "I'm here with some news that should make one of you happy."
I met his eyes and raised an eyebrow.
"Mallory Avalon, you're free to go," he said. There was a click, and the door unlocked.
"Just like that?"
"Just like that. It seems you have friends in high places."
I stood up, taking Amy's hand.
"Not her," he said sharply. "Just you."
Amy stamped her foot. "That's not fair! Why can't I go? I didn't do anything!"
I pointed an accusatory finger at him. "You said she could leave with me. You said it was only a matter of paperwork."
"That's absolutely correct," he said. His face was impassive. "As it happens, I have the forms right here for her release. And if I gave them to you to sign, you would ask me 'What's the catch?' and then I would tell you the catch, and you wouldn't sign them. Must we play out the charade?"
"I am not in the mood for whatever reverse-reverse-reverse psychology games you're trying to play," I snapped. "Just tell me the catch."
He opened the door, snapped his fingers, and a clipboard floated its way to me. "You can read the fine print for yourself if you like, but I'll tell you the short version. I can only release a prisoner into the custody of an authorized agent of OSC."
I crossed my arms. "So I would need to sign on with you first. Of course. You're using her to get to me. That's cold, Ben."
"Yes. Is it working?"
Amy looked up at me, her eyes watery. She was just a little kid. Was it worth leaving her in this dungeon for the sake of…what? My pride?
Dammit.
I sighed and took the clipboard. "Let me see that fine print."
He smiled. Smug bastard. "You'd only have to agree to become a junior provisional agent. The sole duty you'd be responsible for is reporting to us if she ever leaves your custody or suffers a major health issue. If you incur expenses related to her care, you can send us the receipts and we'll comp you."
Amy's eyes widened. She stood on her tiptoes and whispered in my ear, "Ask if that includes gold dust!"
"Does that include gold dust?" I asked. What did she need gold dust for? A dragon thing, I guess?
Ben nodded. "Within reason, yes. We're aware of how important precious metals are to a dragon's metabolism."
"Please say yes!" Amy whispered. "It's free gold! If they're offering to buy us stuff, I want to bleed them dry!"
I looked over the contract. It didn't seem too nefarious. I mean, I couldn't see any obvious nasty loopholes that would allow them to own my soul or whatever. There was a non-disclosure clause, but other than that, like…I wasn't a lawyer, but it looked fairly benign.
I sighed again.
"Hand me that pen."
"Well, well. I can't lie, I'm pleasantly surprised," said Ben, sending a black ballpoint pen floating over to me. I snatched it begrudgingly out of the air.
"Is this even going to hold up in court?" I pointed out, scrawling my name and today's date on the page. "I'm a minor, and you're a secret organization. Even assuming that I can legally enter into an employment contract, how can you enforce it when one of the parties to the contract doesn't officially exist?"
He shrugged. "If you think it's unenforceable, you're welcome to test that theory by breaking the terms."
"I want a pile of gold big enough so I can sleep on it like a bed," Amy said. "Mal, you'll tell them I need a pile of gold big enough to sleep on like a bed, right? Right?"