Okay, last time on The Best Laid Plans...
While Casey and Ro were on their lunch date, Bucky examined Zee as best as he could, now that Zee's holomorphic image is now more solid than ever.
After lunch, Casey returned to work and Ro took a long walk to think about what happened the night before. Meanwhile, after Bucky left the apartment, Zee pondered over last night as well, remembering how Ro ended up in tears. He decided the best way to redeem himself, is to buy the dress Ro wears in his dreams...the same dress in a store window Ro notices during her walk. Zee has hidden the dress under the bed, keeping it a secret...unaware that Agent Jack of Brother's Day has been spying on him, and that Agent West of the NSA is monitoring Zee's cred card account.
Later, at the apartment, Ro's attempt to talk to Zee about last night ended up in tears...again. But Zee came to the rescue with his soothing words and gentle touch.
And Casey arrived home to see that Zee and Ro have come to terms with their relationship...
What happens now? Let's find out...
Chapter Nine
"Sir..., Sir... Shouldn't we be doing something?"
Agent West would give anything for the chance to bring in Zeta, and be the hero he should be... But that can't happen unless Commander Lemac stops staring at the evidence and gives him to go-ahead.
Commander Lemac, however, is not quite sure how to handle this. It's bad enough that a synthoid built on company time is given the will power to resign from the NSA, but now it wants to...get married? (This can't be happening. There must be some mistake. But what if it's true? I have to do something...anything...)
"Sir... If you like, I could gather some agents and we could go to San Francisco and..."
(...Except that!) "Wait a minute, West. Let's think this through. If we charge in after them, there's a good chance that they'll disappear again. It took us two years to find out about Dr. Selig making the module that started this whole mess in the first place. And quite frankly, I don't think we can afford the manpower, not while Titus Sweete is still at large. He seems to be lying low for now, but as long as we're trying to converge one of our remaining labs to carrying on with Dr. Selig's work, it's just a matter of time before Brother's Day makes their next move. No matter how much I'd like to get my hands on that module, Brother's Day takes top priority."
West tries his best to hide his disappointment. He knows if he says anything stupid now, he'll be fired for real. He clears his throat and asks, "So... Shall I continue surveillance, Sir?"
"Yes...at least for now. At least we know they're staying in San Francisco with Casey MacCurdy. That's Miss Rowen's brother, right? Well, keep me posted."
"Yes, Sir." Agent West makes his way out of Lemac's office, and as he returns to his desk, he still can't believe that Lemac won't allow him to check this out. (What's not to understand? When someone buys a wedding dress, it can only mean one thing! I can't believe Rowen will actually marry the robot. That's crazy, even for her!) Once at his desk, he puts Zeta's cred account back on the screen, and the wedding dress purchase seems to just jump out at him. West can't take his eyes of it. Suddenly he sees Zeta and Rowen exchanging their vows before a preacher, and then the robot carries Rowen away...
"West..."
A chill runs down his spine at the thought of them going on a honeymoon...
"Agent West!"
It takes a moment for West to recognize the black-haired, blue-eyed, ever- so-cheerful face in front of him. It's Samantha Jones. When she was transferred from the CIA last year, Bennet assigned to Project: Zeta. Bennet decided that if Zeta was using the net to locate Dr. Selig, then he would have to do the same to intercept him. It was Samantha Jones who discovered Bucky was hacking into NSA. Since then, she was voted 'most likely to replace Agent West'. West does not let that get to him. He knows he's career is hanging by a thread. But something about Samantha Jones bothers him. Was it her cheerful, happy-go-lucky attitude? Was it the praise she still gets for exposing Bucky? No. What really bothers him is that he can't help but notice that her long, black hair is the only difference between herself and Ro Rowen.
And West really, really hates Ro Rowen.
"Why so stressed, West? You look like you want to shoot the computer. What did the poor thing ever do to you?" She takes a quick glance at his computer screen. "Zeta? I thought Bennet gave up on that."
West sighs and says, "Bennet has, but Lemac has not. He wants to make sure Rowen does not blow our funding on shopping sprees before he can examine the module in Zeta's head. But I'd say she's already done that."
Jones grabs a nearby chair and sits next to West. "West... Is that a wedding dress on Zeta's cred account?"
"Afraid so."
"But, isn't Zeta a...?"
"A robot? Last time I checked, yes. But would you believe this is still not enough to resume the chase. I understand needing to put added security on the labs, but I can't believe that Lemac is willing to let this continue. They could be halfway to Vegas by now."
Samantha Jones moves her seat closer to the computer. "West, do you mind if I take a look at that?" Before West can answer, she grabs the mouse and scans the list. "Something doesn't add up. I mean, if you were going to marry someone, what's the very first thing you'd buy?"
West thinks about it for a moment and realizes that she's right. "You'd buy a ring to propose with."
"Exactly. But do you see an engagement ring anywhere?"
West grabs the mouse, scans the last few transactions and says, "No... All I see are...men's clothing?!"
Jones raises an eyebrow. "Is there a tux in there anywhere?"
"No sign of a tux. All I see are trousers, t-shirts, some jackets, shoes...and underwear?!"
"But I thought that Zeta has a built-in hologram program. He shouldn't need to wear real clothes...unless..."
"Unless what?"
"...Unless... Something's wrong with his holomorphics. Maybe it's malfunctioning, and he needs the clothes to cover himself in case it acts up. If that's the case, then he needs to have someone take a look at it."
"Maybe... But don't expect Zeta to come to us for a check-up. The last time we tried to fix him, he went totally berserk. Rush told me all about it."
"But you were on that team, weren't you? Where were you?"
"I was in hot pursuit of Ro. There Zeta was, destroying everything in his path, and then she infiltrated the base and actually managed to subdue him single-handedly. And sure enough, they disappeared together, as usual. Can you believe it?"
"Well...yeah, I've been hearing about that for quite some time now. It sounds like she's got great potential. I think the only way we'll get Zeta back... is if we offered her a job." Jones pretends not to notice West's face turning pale. "I mean, think about it. She'd make a great agent. Not only has she shaken off the NSA, but everyone else who's tried to capture Zeta. Just imagine her taking on a terrorist. All we'd have to do is assign her a partner who knows the ins and outs of the NSA... Someone who could take her under his wing until she becomes a full-fledged agent... Someone...like...y..."
"You've got to be kidding!" West's outburst makes Jones nearly fall out of her chair. It was bad enough when Rowen made him look incompetent while she and Zeta were on the run. If she was to become an agent...or even worse, become his partner... "One of the country's most famous fugitives becomes an agent for the same people who went through hell just to hunt her down?! That's crazy, even for her. And besides, she's living off an unlimited cred card. She doesn't need to work."
Agent Jones decides to make a break for it while she can still walk. "Well, hang in there, West. It's just a matter of time before they buy something else. And then Commander Lemac will have to look into it. As for me, I have to get back to my desk."
"Is it safe to ask what you're assignment is?"
She whispers into his ear, "Actually, I've been assigned to go through Dr. Selig's files. Since Dr. Selig has no next of kin, the NSA was able to seize some of his belongings...mainly his computers and discs. Who knows? Maybe we'll find something on Zeta's conscience module. See ya." She heads down the hall, leaving West to brood over his mundane task.
MEANWHILE...
After sitting at his desk for almost a week, Titus Sweete was finally being summoned by B.D. Commander. He's been studying the Zeta file the whole time...and it's driving him nuts!
(I can't believe it! First they build robots to do jobs they don't have the guts to do themselves, and now we have Zeta, a robot that actually thinks it's a human?! And to top it all off, the crazy contraption manages to find a girlfriend who's even crazier. They both need reprogramming.)
But now B.D. Commander wants him to report to the dark room immediately. This can only mean one thing... He's got a plan. That robot is as good as gone.
Sweete stops just outside the dark room and takes a deep breath before entering. Even though the room is pitch black once he closes the door behind him, he clears his throat and says, "Titus Sweete reporting as ordered, Sir."
A light shines on a chair a few feet in front of him. Sweete does not have to be told that he is to sit right there. He does.
And then he hears, "Welcome, Agent Sweete. As you already know, I'm assigning you to the task of destroying the infiltration unit known as Zeta. I'm aware that you have been studying the information I gave you earlier, but some new events have come to my attention. It would appear that Zeta is making plans of his own."
Sweete raised an eyebrow. (What has that crazy robot done now?)
B.D. Commander continues, "I ordered Agent Jack to observe the robot and his little girlfriend for the past few days. It seems they've done quite a bit of shopping."
Another light shines on a table a few feet in front of him. Sweete gathers the file and returns to his seat. He opens the file, takes a quick glance down the list...and almost gags.
"I see you've noticed the highlighted items."
Sweete can not believe this. Marked off with a yellow marker were men's clothing...and a wedding dress! Sweete can't help but stand; he's too ticked off to sit down. "Sir... Sir... We can't... We've got to do something!"
"I couldn't agree more, Sweete. I shudder to think what could happen if we allow this to continue. That's why I have something else to show you." A spotlight shines on a door on the opposite wall. No matter how many times Sweete has been in this room, he can never say that he knows the room like the back of his hand. He's never seen that other door before.
And as the door opens, an old man in a wheelchair is pushed in by a large black man dressed like a hospital orderly. The orderly stops just a few feet away from the door, but it's not too far away for Sweete to recognize the orderly as Agent Curtis. And then he notices the old man. His arms and chest are strapped to the chair. And there's something about the man's face, despite being drooped forward. Sweete can only assume that he's been sedated. Curtis carefully lifts the man's face so Sweete can have a better look.
Sweete froze on the spot... It's Dr. Selig.
"Yes, Sweete," B.D. Commander says, "Dr. Eli Selig is alive. If you recall, the sub crew were ordered to flee from the Nosis once the bombs were detonated, no matter what. As the sub left the area, the captain noticed an escape pod being shot down. The captain decided to investigate, thinking that maybe it was you and your team in the pod, but instead it turned out to be Dr. Selig and his assistant. They've been my 'guests' since then, although I must say they've been quite uncooperative. I would have killed them myself if my agent at the NSA had not sent me a copy of Zeta's memory disc."
Sweete is at a loss for words. All this time he believed he had killed Dr. Selig. The NSA charged him with first-degree murder for it. This is why he's on the Most Wanted List. And now he finds out that his own boss has been hiding him here the whole time.
B.D. Commander continues, "As for Curtis... When he told me what happened at Edmunds' hotel room, you had already left. And you know that we could not risk contact after that. The NSA could have intercepted. So, I had him brought back here. And now that we have Dr. Selig, Curtis is his new 'bodyguard'. Curtis, you may return Dr. Selig to his room. I will speak to him once he's finished his nap."
Curtis wheels Dr. Selig back through the door. Once the door closes behind him, the spotlight turns off.
"But thanks to you, Sweete, the NSA thinks he's dead. No one is looking for him. We shall take full advantage of this. He's going to be our secret weapon against Zeta, whether he wants to or not. And once we're done with him, you can finish him off for good."
Sweete knows better than to raise his voice to the B.D. Commander. So no matter how ticked off he is about this, he holds his peace...for now.
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Even the shortest chapters are better than no chapters at all, wouldn't you agree? Sorry it's taking me so long to carry on, but don't worry... There's more to come.
Catch ya later!