The location that Victoria had sent to him did not seem to be on the map that Lucas knew. Lucas was familiar with the map, but the location that Victoria had sent to him was not on it.
This place was not downtown. This place was not a satellite office either. The glass and steel buildings that he saw every day were not here.
The car ride took forty minutes. It took him away from the streets he knew and into a part of town. This is where the city gets really quiet, and the streets are lined with shadows and amber colored streetlights. There are warehouses here. Some old buildings have been turned into lofts. You can tell there is money around because of the fancy renovated buildings.
Lucas looked at the address one time to make sure it was correct. He wanted to be certain that the address was right. Lucas did not want to get lost, so he checked the address again.
Correct.
The building stood alone at the end of the block. It had a brick exterior that was restored. It did not stand out too much. The building had windows that reflected the evening sky. There was no sign on the building. There was no logo either. The building had a single entrance, and this entrance was illuminated by a warm and deliberate light. The evening sky was reflected in the windows of the building. The building's single entrance was the part of it that was well-lit.
He thought about this again when he was not at the office. He was off-site. This is what was on his mind, being off-site.
The man stopped for a moment before he went into the place. He was not sure if he should go in or not. The man took a breath, and then he stepped inside the room.
The door opened easily; it did not take much to open the door.
The inside of this place was really nice. It was simple. You could tell that was on purpose. They had wood floors, and the lighting was soft. There was some art on the walls, it looked like it cost a lot of money, but it was not trying to show off or anything. The whole space did not feel like an office; it felt more like someone's home, like someone with very particular tastes had picked out everything themselves.
"Lucas."
Her voice reached him before he actually saw her. The sound of her voice was really loud and clear. It reached him before he saw her coming towards him.
Victoria Hale was standing near the end of the room. She had taken off her jacket. Rolled up her sleeves a little bit. This made her look pretty casual. Victoria Hale held a tablet in one hand, and she was standing in a way. It looked like Victoria Hale had only been waiting for a short time.
She said that the person was on time. The woman told the person that they were punctual.
Lucas said, "I do not want to be late," and then he stopped walking after a few steps.
That is good. She smiled a bit. The fact that it is good really matters a lot more than people think it does.
She pointed to a couple of chairs that were facing each other. There was a table between the two chairs. You did not see a desk or anything that would get in the way. The seating area was the two chairs and the low table, between them.
Lucass pulse started to go up as he sat down in the seat that she showed him.
Victoria said this is not an evaluation; she knew what people were thinking. So people can feel better now.
The man let out a breath even though he did not mean to. He exhaled despite himself.
"Then… what is it?"
She was sitting across from him. She crossed one leg over the leg. It looked really easy for her to do that. She said, "A test".
That one word made his chest feel really tight.
He said what is this test for.
She looked at him for a bit, her eyes were thinking about something, not trying to catch him. They were careful and exact, taking in every detail of the man.
She said that what really matters is being discreet. You have to use your judgment. You have to be loyal to the people who are important to you, like your friends and family. She thought that discretion, judgment, and loyalty are important things to have.
Lucas nodded slowly. He said, "Those are really categories."
She said they are right. This is why most people do not succeed. They just fail. The thing is, most people fail at this.
She put the tablet on the table between them. Then she slid the tablet forward. The tablet was now right, in front of them.
Lucas did not touch it away. Lucas waited for a while before he even thought about touching it. The thing just stayed there. Lucas did not touch it immediately.
The man was worried. Said what happens if I fail. He really wanted to know what would happen if he did not succeed. The thought of failing was scary to him. He asked this question because he wanted to be prepared for anything that might happen. What happens if I fail he thought to himself. He wanted a real answer. The man was thinking about the possibilities. What would happen to him if he failed at this thing? He just wanted to know what would happen if I fail.
Victoria's lips curved into something that was not quite a smile. She said, "That depends on how you fail".
The man stopped for a moment, then he picked up the tablet.
The screen showed him a file with lots of information. It had names in it. It had records. It even had messages that people sent to each other inside the company. The file also had schedules for projects that he was not supposed to know about.
He was. His heart started to sink as he began to understand what was going on.
The man said this is something that's only for people inside. He said it very carefully.
"Yes."
"And confidential."
"Highly."
Lucas looked up. Said "Why did they pick me?"
Victoria leaned back a little. "You notice the things, the details that most people miss. You do not say more than you need to, you are quiet when you should be.. The Victoria thinks that you have not figured out how to want things without thinking about them first you have not learned to be reckless, with your wants to just go after the things you want without a second thought, the things that the Victoria is talking about these are the things that make her think you are different the details and the quiet and the not wanting things recklessly these are the things that the Victoria likes about you.
The last part of what happened really bothered him more than everything else that happened before that. The last part is what stayed on his mind.
The man asked what he was supposed to do. He wanted to know what was expected of him. What are they asking me to do he said.
She said we need to do a review. We have to look at everything. We have to analyze the information and identify any inconsistencies in the review.
"Inconsistencies in what?"
The woman said this about people. She said it like this: in people.
The word lingered. It was a word that people said. Then it just stayed there. The word lingered in my mind for a time. I thought about the word a lot. The word lingered.
Lucas looked down at the tablet again. He saw that some names kept coming up in the transactions. The delays did not make sense. The approvals were given easily. Lucas thought about the names on the tablet the names that kept coming up in the transactions. He wondered why the delays were not consistent. The approvals for the transactions were granted smoothly, which seemed suspicious to Lucas.
The man said that he thinks someone is taking money from the company funds. He believes that someone is secretly taking the company's money, which's the companys funds.
Victoria said that she knows someone is there.
Lucas became really upset. "Then why do we not take this problem to the people who handle compliance or the legal team at our company?"
She said this quietly. The person who did this is being very careful. They are also protected. If we go through channels, they will find out. The person responsible will know what is happening.
He looked at her. "I will not?"
She smiled this time. "You will not be able to do that. Because Artificial Intelligence Systems like the one we are talking about are not something you know enough about yet to be a threat, to Artificial Intelligence Systems."
The feeling that something was implied hung in the air between them. It was the implication that made things feel really uncomfortable. The implication was just sitting there between them, making everything feel heavy.
Lucas said that this situation is very hard for him. He is having a time because of this. Lucas feels that he is stuck and does not know what to do. This is a problem for Lucas.
Victoria said that the way things get better is by being pushed. Being comfortable does not make people trust each other. It is the times that build trust. Victoria thinks that when people are under pressure, that is when they really learn to trust each other. The pressure is what makes people strong. That is what builds trust, not being comfortable. Victoria believes that people need to be pushed to really trust each other, and that is the nature of advancement, said Victoria.
Then there was silence.
Outside, a car drove by. Elsewhere in the building, the building had a soft clicking sound. It was probably the pipes. The room felt really cut off from everything outside the room. The building felt closed in as if it were separated from the rest of the world.
Lucas said this slowly if he does this, then what is going to happen after that? Lucas wants to know what happens next with this thing that Lucas is thinking of doing.
Victoria tilted her head. "If you do a job and succeed, then you will become someone that I can really count on, and you will become someone that Victoria can rely on."
If I do not?
Her eyes did not leave his eyes. "Then tonight never happened."
The man swallowed.
She stood up. Walked around the table, taking her time. When she stopped next to him, the smell of her perfume hit him again. The perfume smell was familiar, to him now he knew it away.
She told me that I think too much, but she said it in a soft voice. But when something really matters, I do not think much of what the woman said.
She put her hand on the back of his chair. She was not holding him back. She was not telling him what to do. The woman was there with her hand on the back of his chair.
She told me to take the tablet home. I will have forty-eight hours to look at it. I am not allowed to take any notes or look at anything. She wants me to use my instinct and logic to figure out what I think about the tablet. She wants my conclusions to be based on what I feel and what makes sense.
Lucas looked up at her. "What happens after that?"
Her fingers got a little tighter on the chair.
She said to me, "After that, we will see how useful the person is, how useful they really are, how useful you really are."
She took a step back. That was it, the moment was gone. She stepped back. Broke the moment cleanly. It was like she had turned her back on the thing. The moment was over. She had stepped back.
She said that she will arrange a pickup. The woman told the people that they can leave the place when they are ready to go. The secure pickup is what she will take care of.
Lucas stood up. He held the tablet really carefully in both of his hands. The tablet was something Lucas did not want to drop. Lucas was being very careful with the tablet.
The man stood at the door. He did not know what to do. He just stood there for a moment, not moving. The door was right in front of him. He hesitated.
The man said Victoria.
She looked up at the thing that was in front of her. The woman raised her eyes. She looked up.
This work assignment feels like much more than just something I have to do for my job. It feels like it is really getting to me. The work assignment is taking up a lot of my time. It is making me think about it even when I am not at work. I keep thinking about the work assignment. I am starting to feel like it is a big part of my life. The work assignment is not something I do from nine to five; it feels like it is more than that.
For a moment, something that did not make sense crossed her face.
The woman smiled.
"Because it is."
The man left before the woman could say anything. He just got up. Walked away. The woman wanted to talk to the man. He was already gone.
Lucas did not notice how tightly he was holding the tablet until his fingers started to hurt. Lucas was holding the tablet so tightly that his fingers began to feel pain. The tablet was still clutched in Lucas's hand.
The city outside felt different now. It was not as gentle as it used to be. Every person walking by seemed sharper and more aware of what was going on around them. The city outside was forgiving.
When he got to his apartment, his phone started ringing. His phone was ringing. It would not stop. He had just walked in the door. His phone buzzed again.
A message.
Victoria: You know, trust is something that people build over time quietly. It does not happen overnight; trust is built quietly.
He looked at the screen for a long time. The screen was what he was staring at. He just kept looking at the screen.
Then he locked the door, put the tablet on his desk, and it hit him. Something was really off. It was very clear to him:
This was not about catching a traitor.
It was about choosing a side. You had to pick a side and go with it. Choosing a side was a deal. The whole thing was about choosing a side.
And somewhere across the city, Victoria Hale watched the system she'd set in motion begin to turn.