Free Criminal Minds (Fox Meridian Book 4) by Niall Teasdale

big chance, just like it’s hers. She’s committed to the project and I’m not stupid enough to ignore things which make our heroine more sympathetic to the audience. There are one or two people who think the idea of having a Sister as the protagonist is never going to work.’
    Fox shrugged. ‘Everyone has their prejudices. Asking Sam to consult was a nice move too. Shame you didn’t ask me to do the same on the cops.’
    Shark winced. ‘If I’d known you would have, I’d have asked.’
    ‘Honestly, I’m up to my eyeballs in legislation. I took the morning out to come down because I needed a break. Is Marie shooting today?’
    ‘Next scene. If we ever get this one wrapped. We always knew M. J. was going to be the make-or-break character for the production and we were worried about casting Marie. I’ll admit it. Untried actress, we had worries. She’s nailing the scenes, making M. J. work how we’d hoped, and she looks great in the costume.’
    ‘Yeah, I’ve seen her in the novices’ uniform. It’s the legs. Girl has legs to die for. When’s this due to stream?’
    ‘First of October, eleven p.m. slot. We’re screening it for some clients, ad sales, before then. That’s when we’ll really know if it’s going to work. If we can sell it to them, we can get repeat showings and on-demand slots, and prove that harder-hitting, more adult shows can work on the channel.’
    ‘Good luck,’ Fox said, watching the screen. She winced. ‘But get a consultant for the detective work next time, would you?’
    ~~~
    The storage room was dark and silent, and largely left that way. Hospitals always had things which were no longer needed, but maybe someone could use, sometime, probably just after Hell froze over. This was the place they ended up, deep in the basement.
    The sound, when it came, was sudden. Plastic ripped, rent apart by something sharp. Then there was rustling, a sharp snap, and footsteps in the darkness. The door opened and a tall figure stepped into the light beyond. He paused, checking the corridor, and then closed the door. And only then did he lift his right hand and watch the slim blades slip back into hiding in his fingertips.
    His head turned once more, examining the corridor. An illuminated sign, no v-tags buried away down here, indicated the way out and he set off toward it with a purpose. In the world above, there was work to be done, his work, the one and only purpose he had. In the world above, people were going to die.
     

Part Two: Jack
    New York Metro, 30 th September 2060.
    Sister Georgina Parton was in a good mood. Her last client, a financial consultant in one of the arcologies near JFK, had given her a good tip. Even if she had earned it, the guy had some interesting kinks to say the least, she was always pleased to make that much over the going rate. She would put a little extra into the chapter house funds this month. Her next client was a fit, very flexible, widow who would ask her to stay the night and lived in an apartment block a short walk from the vast spire she had come from. In ten minutes, Georgina would be drinking wine and getting ready for a night of enthusiastic sex.
    Smiling, she allowed the slideway to carry her to street level and started north at a brisk pace. The area here was fairly safe, though there were Sprawl regions to the west. It was best to keep your eyes open, and Georgina put her hand in her purse where she kept a can of antimugging spray. When she saw the man walking toward her on the street, she considered taking out the spray, just in case, but then she got a better look at him. Tall, holding himself erect, and dressed in a long black coat which looked expensive. In the light from a street lamp, she made out sharply creased trousers and the kind of high collar that was in fashion for the wealthier man this year. Not a sprawler: Georgina relaxed.
    She smiled, lifting her face, as the distance closed between them. The man smiled back. He was quite easy