Grace Kingsley was having lunch with Brad Keels at the same restaurant they had met after the Latnok meeting. The classic art deco look and wood paneling provided a calm elegant environment for their meeting, which was, obviously less than calm. Grace, the well dressed, middle aged businesswoman was trying to reassure Keels, her bald headed companion, who was obviously agitated.

"Brad, you are getting ahead of yourself here, I have a plan to slow them down, to discourage them," Grace said. "There may not be anything to worry about. There's no need for drastic measures – at least not yet, anyway."

"I know you want to protect the boy," Keels said. "I understand that. But, understand this, Grace. I am not going to let them dig into my operations. I've made a lot of sensitive arrangements that could come apart if they go pawing around through them."

"We all have things at risk, Brad," Grace assured him. "We can get through this if we keep our heads."

"That's exactly what I'm trying to do," Keels said. "Keep my head." He jabbed at the table with his index finger for emphasis, "Look, I'm the one on the bubble here. If they start digging into our operations, it's going to be me they focus on first, you know that."

Grace said, "You're the one who decided that you wanted to play soldiers with private armies. I never thought that was a particularly wise game to play."

"You're never going to impose a modern democratic structure in those regions. The British demonstrated that," Keels said. "You have to destroy the tribal paradigm first. And war is the most efficient way to accomplish that goal. Historically it reforms society."

Grace sighed, "We've had this argument for years. You know what Adam thought of your theories."

"Adam was unrealistic," Keels said in frustration, "He wanted to 'change the world' without inconveniencing anyone. It can't be done."

"I'm not here to debate sociology with you, Brad," Grace said. "I just want us to manage the threat in a reasonable manner without destroying irreplaceable assets. That's how you do business."

"In the business I'm in, Grace," Keels said. "We understand about 'acceptable losses'. You often lose assets in an operation. You accept that and move on."

"If it comes to that, we will," Grace assured him. "We are not at that point, yet."

"And if we get to that point, will there be any way to undo the damage they've done?" Keels asked pointedly. "Will we have any warning before they drop a big packet of data on the boardroom table?"

"They'll work thorough Crossgate," Grace assured him. "Like any good administrator, he will distribute the information to the board for review before we meet. There will be a window of opportunity before the actual meeting."

"That's if they decide to work through the board," Keels objected. "What if they decide to go freelance? They didn't work though the board when they took out that project of yours and Cassidy's."

"They weren't on the board yet," Grace said. "Now that they are, they will happily follow its structure in making their case. We'll have time to react."

Keels snorted, "For you, the risk is that you might have to have legal battles, you might lose access to some of your funding sources. I understand you may think the risk is acceptable."

"There are potential criminal liabilities as well," Grace added. "We face serious risks."

"Well, if things go south for me, we could be talking about war crimes tribunals. That's an entirely different level of risk. Not to mention I've made commitments to some rather dangerous people," Keels said. He took a breath and let it out, "I know you want to protect the boy, Grace. But you made a good case that we could deal with the problem by eliminating the girl. Why not just do that now?"

"It would be a very risky step," Grace frowned. "If there was a mistake it would be disastrous."

"I deal with experts. I have resources that will make her disappear without a trace. There won't be any mistakes," Keels promised, coldly.

Grace shuddered slightly, "I don't want to get into that unless we absolutely have to."

"I think we are at the point where we have to take action," Keels insisted. "These things don't happen overnight, they take time to plan and prepare." He paused for a moment and then said, decisively, "I'm going to start setting up the op, choosing the personnel, getting the assets in place. I can't wait any longer."

"We haven't agreed to that," Grace said with alarm.

"We don't have to agree," Keels said, firmly. "We've cooperated voluntarily for years but I reserve the right to act independently to protect my interests." Noting Grace's reaction, he continued, firmly, "from any threat." After a moment, he relaxed and said placating, "I'm just putting assets in place, Grace. You'll have more time for your solution to work before I pull the trigger."