Free City Center, The by Simone Pond Page A

coding.”
    “She’s very familiar to me.” Morray stared at Ava for a few minutes, trying to refocus on the matter at hand. Was she, or was she not in contact with the Outsider? She seemed composed—no traces of guilt or defiance.
    “How has she been?” Morray asked.
    “Agreeable.”
    “What about her non-verbal cues?”
    “Clean. She believes she’s here for her protection.”
    “What about her most recent activity?”
    “We scrubbed her microchip. Data is missing from the time of the blackout yesterday, but we’re experiencing glitches throughout the city. We’ll keep working on it. In her dwelling unit we found some activity on her 2D tablet. Minor video conferencing.”
    “Who was she video conferencing?”
    “The same mid-level female she met for lunch. Delilah Seven.”
    “Anything seem unusual in their conversation?”
    “We could only retrieve a few segments, but what we heard was harmless. She also has some dark-market downloads. A few classic movies. But other than that, she’s clean.”
    “I’m intrigued with her interest for this Delilah. Why is she spending time with a lower rank? She’s a Successor Candidate. Has she no regard for social mores?” He pulled up her chart on the display monitor. “She’s a perplexing individual. Her scores are the highest, she wins every challenge, yet she doesn’t seem to follow the rules.”
    “I would assume she maintains contact with the mid-rank so she can obtain files from the dark-market. We know how women are about their movies,” Dickson said.
    “No matter how much coding manipulation and reprogramming we do, we can’t seem to remove the more menial human desires. That dark-market is an interesting beast.”
    “Would you like me to begin the next phase of interrogation?” Dickson asked.
    Morray walked to the observation window. He studied Ava. She was a beautiful specimen. But there was something underneath her flawless design. Something behind her eyes. A deeper awareness. Would a regular interrogation do any good? He had seen her scores. She was quite strategic. He’d have to work around her training. As much as he wanted to keep her from stress, he had to be sure she was clean. That meant something more intense than interrogation.
    “In your opinion, Dickson, do you think she interacted with the prisoner during the blackout?”
    “It’s hard to say.”
    “It’s your job to say something.”
    “I don’t see how someone of her social standing would risk her entire future by engaging with a known terrorist. To what purpose would that serve? She knows better.”
    “Is that a yes, or a no?”
    “No.”
    “Well, Dickson, I have a feeling there is something more to Miss Rhodes.” Morray continued observing Ava.
    “Do you want us to keep her in containment?”
    “Yes. Just a bit longer. What’s the status with the Outsider?”
    “He’s in containment across the hall. Still not talking. Not even at the highest levels of interrogation.”
    “Sedate him.”
    “What do you plan to do, sir?”
    “Put them in the same room and monitor their behavior.”
    “Chief, with all due respect, the trial is less than three hours away. Miss Rhodes needs to be presentable for the people.”
    “Just get the Outsider into sleep-like state and bring him into the room.”
    “As you wish, sir.” Planner Dickson exited the observation room.
    Morray relaxed in the lounger and focused on Ava. She readjusted her hair a couple of times in the mirror. In all his years administering the City Center, he had never seen such a powerful life force. Not in any of the previous generations. Somehow he had failed to notice the intricate details of Ava Rhodes. She had something special. Something he wanted all to himself.

The Escape
    The door to Ava’s containment room slid open and Planner Dickson entered. Ava stood up, assuming it was time to be released, but realized the game was just getting started. Two guards escorted in a very sluggish and sedated