Free No Return (The Internal Defense Series) by Zoe Cannon

They should have given you a better position years ago.”
    “Yeah, but… not something like this. Everyone I’m working with is twice my age. We had a meeting this morning, and…” She shook her head. “They all have experience. They have ideas. All I could do was sit there and try to look like I knew what I was doing.”
    “Internal wouldn’t have chosen you if they didn’t think you could do it,” said Becca. “This is too important.”
    “I’ve been thinking about what Ramon said. It makes sense. They think it’ll make them look good if someone like me ends up bringing down that dissident group. But here’s what he didn’t say—what happens if the plan fails? What’s the story then?”
    Becca didn’t have an answer.
    “You want to know what I think?” Vivian looked at the camera. She lowered her voice. “I don’t think they’re trying to make themselves look good at all. I think they’re trying to protect themselves if something goes wrong. Think about it—if the idea fails, they can blame it on me. They can say I’m too young. That I’m inexperienced. That I don’t know what I’m doing. They could even—” She cut herself off, breath shallow, face pale.
    When she spoke again, her voice was barely a whisper. “They could call it dissident activity. They could say I was working against the plan from the beginning. That way, if it failed, it wouldn’t be their fault.”
    Becca opened her mouth to protest—then closed it again.
    It made a horrible amount of sense.
    Vivian probably didn’t even know how much sense it made. She didn’t know how often Internal executed innocent people because it suited the needs of Public Relations. If the program failed, Public Relations would want a scapegoat. And Internal was nothing if not pragmatic—if it came down to a choice between framing someone who had worked in Investigation for twenty years and had already proven their value, or sacrificing someone like Vivian instead…
    When she thought about it that way, it was obvious. Internal had set Vivian up. If the spies didn’t bring down the resistance—
    Becca went still as the implications hit her.
    If she succeeded, if she saved the resistance, Vivian didn’t stand a chance.
    And Becca had convinced her to take the job.
    Her stomach curdled. She pasted a reassuring smile onto her face. “Internal wouldn’t do that.”
    Vivian kept her voice low. “I’m not so sure. I mean, you know I don’t question Internal—it’s not like I’m a dissident—but it makes more sense than any other explanation I could come up with.”
    “I think you’re worrying too much. But even if you’re right, all that means is that you can’t give them the chance. Catch the dissidents for them. Make the plan work.”
    Empty words.
    Vivian would fail. She would fail, because Becca couldn’t let her win.
    Vivian stared down at the carpet. “I don’t know if I can.”
    “Of course you can.”
    You won’t.
    “You’ll prove them wrong. You’ll do what no one else could do.”
    I’m going to stop you.
    “You won’t be their scapegoat. You’ll be their hero.”
    You’re going to die.
    Vivian nodded. She squared her shoulders, a new light of resolve entering her eyes. “I’ll do it.” Her voice steadied. “I’ll make this program work. Whether they expect me to or not.”
    Becca reached up to the desk and grabbed Vivian’s cupcake. When Vivian took it, she raised her own in a toast. “To Vivian, hero of Investigation 212.”
    Vivian touched her cupcake to Becca’s. “To the end of the dissidents.”
    Becca took a giant frosting-laden bite. It tasted bitter in her mouth.
    She waited until she swallowed before she spoke. “Can you get us something to drink?”
    “Sure. I’ll be right back.” Vivian set her cupcake down on her desk and disappeared from the room.
    Becca sprang up from the floor.
    She glanced at the door. Vivian had closed it behind her. Good.
    She sat down in Vivian’s chair and