Devon Alone III: Fragile Existence by Nicole Mayer

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DEVON ALONE - PART III
A Fragile Existence (2/5)
by Nicole Mayer

Squaring her shoulders, Devon calmly told her accountant, "I don't care how much it costs. I want the rights to that program."

"But Ms Adair..." he sputtered, "Why?" Devon wanted the Program, and the equipment that came with it for several reasons. Firstly, to show John Danziger the beach she promised. But more importantly, to ensure that Blalock's superiors, or Blalock himself if he recovered from the demotion, could never use it on other unsuspecting pawns in his game. She couldn't stop him from recreating the technology, but she could prevent the specific use of *her* G889.

Devon thought numbly,

"Just set up a meeting," ordered Devon. "I can negotiate..." "You realise that the Council has very little respect left for you," cautioned her accountant. "You may be rich, but your corporations were set up years ago. You haven't done anything notable lately."

"I don't care!" flared Devon. "This program already belongs to me. Now I'm going to make it legal."

The accountant turned to his computer, and worked busily for a few minutes.

"Okay, you're meeting with a Mr Morgan Martin this afternoon." "Morgan?"
"Do you know him?"
Devon started to say yes, but then realised she didn't. "I know *of* him," she amended, silently cursing her mind for still being confused.

"He's expecting you at eleven. Level 10-A, office 6.2. Ms Adair, I hope you know what you're doing." The accountant didn't really care about his employer's actions, but he was being paid a lot of money to advise her. A salary that could decrease if she shelled out millions for some VR program he'd never even heard of.

Devon didn't respond, but went to prepare herself for a negotiations. At precisely eleven hundred hours, she entered the office of Mr Morgan Martin. He was reclining in his chair, a pompous expression on his face.

"We meet again, Ms Adair," Morgan said. He didn't bother with formalities when dealing with 'the little people'. Morgan was on his way up in the Council, and was trying to emulate those he most admired. Those in control, those who had the power he craved...

"Mr Martin, I must apologise for my behaviour to you. I have been in trying circumstances, however, I have dealt with these in the appropriate manner; and they have no connection with today's transaction."

And it was true that Morgan Martin had never seen this side of Devon. Perfectly dressed, her face a mask, she was outwardly in control of her feelings and her situation. There was no way she was backing down.

Her negotiating was slick, even against one of the Council's most effective stumbling blocks. Within ten minutes, she had the rights to the Program, and an order preventing its use by any unauthorised person. Devon allowed herself a small amount of satisfaction, but she was not finished her mission yet.

Morgan reclined in his chair, a smile on his face. The Council had just gained a substantial credit from the sale, finances that could possibly be shared with him as he had personally executed the deal.

Besides, there was the other matter to consider as well, one that he wasn't even supposed to think about. Watching Devon as she seemed to struggle for words, he wondered exactly why the Council was so interested in her. Unofficially, of course. His instructions, instructions that did not even exist, had been to grant Ms Adair whatever she wanted without seeming too compliant. Morgan had briefly looked over her record, but still didn't quite see why she was considered a threat to the Council, one that had to be scrutinised with the utmost care until the time was right.

He jumped as he noticed that Devon had finally completed her silent musings and was addressing him once again. "Morgan, and I hope you don't mind that I call you that, but, well, I was sort of wondering...uh, you seem like an interesting person."

Morgan blinked. This he had not expected. Was she trying to acquire information from him? In that case, he had not only the duty to protect the Council, but also to investigate further into Devon Adair's situation.

"Devon," he replied, the emphasis on her name, "I'm not sure what you're leading up to." He placed his hands on the desk and looked directly into his eyes.

"Are you happy?" Devon suddenly burst out. Inwardly, she cringed at her choice of phrase, realising that she should have rehearsed this encounter before the actual meeting.

"Happy?" repeated Morgan. No one had ever asked him that before. That must be Devon's tactic - to throw him off balance so that he would accidentally reveal more. He took a controlled breath and replied, "I am content with my work, and look forward to the prospect of promotion."

"Yes, but are you happy?" asked Devon again. "Do you long for friendship? Do you dream of a time when you can be free from the mundane responsibilities of everyday life? Are you looking for love?"

"Devon," Morgan said flatly, "are you coming on to me?" "No!" she gasped, almost bursting into laughter. The day when she would see Morgan Martin in that kind of way would be the day she knew she was crazy. Or perhaps not...

Morgan looked her straight in the eye. "Then I really don't see what you're trying to say. You're wasting my time."

"No, Morgan, I'm not!" protested Devon. "I'm concerned about you."

"Concerned?" he scoffed. "We barely know each other." "That's true," admitted Devon, tiredly running a hand through her hair. "But I know what life is like in the Council. I know how you have to fight every step of the way, and how the rewards are few and far between."

Morgan was interested in spite of himself. "Is that why you abandoned the Eden Project?"

"Abandoned it?" asked Devon incredulously. "Is that the story everyone's been told?"

Morgan nodded in response. That was the 'official' scenario, anyway, but he suspected there was much more to it than that. Why else was the Council so interested, almost to the point of paranoia, in Devon Adair's life?

"I *did not* give up on the Eden Project," vehemently spat Devon. "The Council didn't give me permission to go ahead with it. They've done some appalling things, you know..."

Her voice drifted off as terrifying memories she tried so desperately to suppress resurged into her mind. Staring at the woman, Morgan sensed the sadness within her. He knew it wasn't the Council's fault, no, the Council was all-powerful and knew what was best for everyone. He dreamed of the day when he, too, would sit in the chamber of directors.

Yet he couldn't help feeling one small fraction of sorrow for Devon Adair. She'd faced so much pain already, but had no idea of what was coming to her next. Morgan didn't exactly know either, but he had his suspicions plus the whisper that Devon Adair was extremely dangerous.

Quickly, Morgan pushed all thoughts of compassion from his mind.

"Ms Adair, your past really has nothing to do with me. I suggest that if you're going to continue in such a manner, you should leave."

"No, Morgan! If you'd listen to me, I'm sure we could, well, become friends..."

The man laughed mockingly. "Friendship is for fools. That's a lesson I learnt a long time ago, and I suggest you learn it too. Now if you're finished-"

"Please, Morgan?" Devon almost whispered. "Give me a chance?" Morgan stared blankly at her.

"Try and get away from this office once in a while. Go and meet some new people, not just those in the Council. Visit Earth if you have the opportunity."

"Earth? Why should I want to go down there?" whispered Devon's heart. "For the experience," said her voice.

Sighing heavily, Morgan finally offered, "I'll think about it."

"Make sure that you do," asserted Devon. "I promise you, there is so much more to life that you're missing out on..."

"I said I'll think about it," Morgan repeated. "Okay," said Devon softly, "Okay." She got up to leave, pausing briefly to shake Morgan's hand. He warily accepted the gesture and then she turned, allowing a brief smile to reach her lips. Devon had the Program and could ensure that no one ever used it again. Better than that, she had made progress with Morgan. Devon was determined to save him from the darkness within himself, but she knew it would take time. Time that she had.

There were advantages to being an outcast, after all.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The docking port was bustling. Teams of people worked heavy machinery in every direction, preparing for the arrival of the ship. After six long months of mining one of Jupiter's moons, it contained a wealth of valuable minerals to be used for a variety of means, not the least of which was building more stations for the ever-expanding population.

A siren suddenly sounded, signalling the imminent arrival of the ship. The area was cleared of workers bar those in pressurised suits as a portal slowly opened. The ship had already been through the first airlock so there was theoretically no danger, however, accidents throughout history proved that safety was better than taking unnecessary risks.

High above the bay, John Danziger stood alone by the viewport. He was disappointed that Devon hadn't showed up, for he genuinely liked the woman. She seemed a little strange, but that only made her more interesting and appealing to him. Again he wondered about the dark secrets of her past.

His attention was drawn again to the scene below as the ship majestically made its way into the docking port. In many cases, it was more practical to have a ship simply connect to the station via one docking tunnel, but this mining ship was primarily filled with ore. Retrieval had to be carried out by the easiest means possible, which in this case was landing the ship inside the breathable atmosphere of the stations.

The all clear siren rang out as the ship drew to a stop and workers immediately swarmed back into the bay. Hatches opened from every possible direction on the ship as tired, dirty miners began to exit.

Someone touched Danziger's arm. "Hey..." a soft voice said. He turned to see Devon Adair smiling sadly at him. "I came."

"Great to see you!" enthused Danziger. Beckoning for her to come over to the window, he said, "The ship's just docked. I expect to see Kassidy any moment now."

"That's good, I mean, that's great," amended Devon, swallowing hard. Her eyes scanned the bustling port below, searching for the one who was Kassidy, and wondering if she could guess correctly. A swarm of tired miners exited the ship - some running excitedly, others dragging their feet as they realised their lives were back to the dreary routines of the stations.

"There she is," pointed Danziger, his eyes lighting up as he recognised his wife.

Staring hard at the group of people, Devon asked, "Which one?" She caught sight of a head of wild, curly hair, and felt her heart jump a little. But just as quickly, she banished the thought, telling herself to stop looking for ghosts of the past in the real world. Her friends did not exist. She *had* to remember that, and remind herself every day.

Devon noticed another woman, one small and dark haired like herself. Was it possible that Danziger had fallen in love with someone who looked just like Devon? It would be the ultimate cosmic irony, Devon realised. She tapped Danziger's shoulder. "Is that her?"

Devon pointed, but the group of people disappeared underneath them.

"You'll meet her in a second, anyway," Danziger told Devon. He was smiling broadly, a sight not often enough seen on his stern face. "It won't take Kass long to race up to this level."

"Great," responded Devon, furtively moving herself closer to the man she believed she loved. First impressions always counted, and to Kassidy, Devon wanted to be someone in control. She realised that she *wanted* Kassidy to dislike her. Who better to play the rejected friend by a cruel, heartless wife than Devon?

"John!" someone shouted. He turned. Devon turned. Danziger opened his arms. Kassidy raced across to embrace him. Devon almost fainted.

Hugging John Danziger, *her* John Danziger, was Bess Martin.

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