"Coffeehouse Play"
"Buy a girl a drink?" Ferro asked Michele as the latter exited Passport Control at Fiumicino Airport.
"Ferro! What are you doing here?"
"I thought I'd save you cab fare or slumming on the train," Ferro said.
"How did you know my flight?"
"I have my sources. I also know a place where we can talk without worry of being overheard."
"What did you wish to talk about?" Michele asked.
"I think you're the one who needs to do the talking," Ferro noted.
Rather than connect on the A91 Autostrada to Rome, Ferro instead took the SS296 onramp and started driving south of the airport. She merged onto SS8 and drove to the coastal commune of Lido di Ostia. She drove right down to the water, parking in a No Parking zone and hanging a Polizia di Stato parking pass on the rear-view mirror.
They walked down a block and entered a bar, Ferro telling Michele to take a table on the second floor terrace. He did so and she appeared soon after with a tray holding two bottles of Nastro Azzurro lager and two large tulip glasses.
"Do they even let you drink in Dubai?" Ferro asked as she poured beer into her glass.
"While a Middle Eastern country, Dubai does allow public liquor consumption and it's actually known for it's nightlife," Michele noted as he did the same.
"Well at least Kara won't be bored," Ferro said with a knowing smile.
Michele tried to play dumb, but failed miserably. "Bored?" he asked.
"I hear you and Kara are leaving Section 2," Ferro noted. "And Italy," she added.
"Where did you hear that?" Michele asked, doing the same.
"I overheard Director Lorenzo and Jean Croce talking—well, arguing, really. Jean wasn't pleased."
"Jean is consumed by the death of his loved ones at the hands of Padania. He doesn't care about Italy–he cares about extracting revenge for what they did. His vendetta will never end because it requires the death of everyone connected to Padania. And their vendetta is now Lorenzo's and even Petris'. The goal now is to 'win', whatever that means, no matter the cost and no matter who is sacrificed. Lorenzo and Jean sent Beatrice and Silvia to their deaths and almost added Triela. Well, I refuse to sacrifice Kara."
"So it is true, then?" Ferro asked, though her tone was one of confirming a fact already known.
"Yes. Our last day is June 10th. Minister Petris didn't want to do it, but I successfully convinced her to make it happen. I take it she told Lorenzo and Lorenzo told Jean."
"I'm not surprised she resisted. In letting you and Kara leave, won't that just encourage the others to leave, as well?" Ferro asked.
"Jean will never leave and that ties Jose to his side. Plus, Henrietta is starting to suffer the same symptoms Angelica did before she died. I think Hillshire would considering taking Triela away, but Triela is suffering from the memory loss, as well. And she probably wouldn't leave Rico and Henrietta behind."
"So is this because you really feel Kara's life is in danger? Or is it because you're feeling self-conscious about being betrayed by Franca?" Ferro asked, deliberately using her pseudonym.
"Caterina and I betrayed each other by not being honest with each other: she because of her past and I because of my present. I can't talk with anyone about what I do. I have to lie to my family and my friends, creating these elaborate charades and personas. That takes a toll on a man's soul and psyche after awhile. Some people, like Alessandro, can lie as easily as breathing. I don't begrudge him that. Heck, at times I envy him. But it's not who I am nor who I wish to be.
"That being said, in the interest of truth, I'm doing it for Kara. When Claes called and said the Aston had blown-up with her in it, I was the one who died, at least inside. I took the bike because it was the fastest way to get there, but I seriously gave thought to taking the A1 north and never looking back. She's become such an integral and important part of my life that not having her beside me…"
"When Priscilla finds out, she's going to find it all very romantic, I am sure. The gallant handler taking his lovely cyborg off to create a new life together," Ferro noted with a smile.
"It's not like that between us. I think of her as my daughter," Michele said.
"But she likely doesn't think of you as her father," Ferro replied. "I remember how it felt to be 18, Michele. I might not actually have understood what love entails, but I thought I did. She's also at a disadvantage due to her biology. When they converted her, they made her sterile, but they didn't take out the plumbing, so to speak. Her body is flooded with hormones telling her she's ready to reproduce and society flooded her with messages telling her sex is one of the ways you show intimacy and love towards someone she cares about.
"Kara almost assuredly desires intimacy with you and she is trying to show it by kissing you and holding your hand and being next to you. It probably hurts her to be apart from you and especially when you spent time with other women like Caterina. She wonders if you seek them out because you feel she's too inexperienced to satisfy your needs. She wants to share your bed, even if it's only in the literal sense and not the metaphorical one. And when you allow her to do so, she presses up against you at night in an effort to claim you for herself. All people are selfish to one level or another and she doesn't want to share you."
"I'm either too old for this or not old enough," Michele sighed.
"Would you like my advice as a former teenage girl in love?" Ferro offered.
Michele motioned with his drink for her to continue.
"Acknowledge her feelings for you, even as you set firm boundaries as to how far those feelings will progress. She'll respect those boundaries both because of the conditioning and because she respects you."
They shared another beer and then Ferro drove them both back to the compound.
"Michele!" Claes exclaimed from the bed after she heard the knock and bid the person to enter Captain Raballo's old room.
"I'd like to speak with you, if I may," Michele asked.
"Uh, sure," Claes said. She closed her book and sat up on the edge of the bed while Michele took the desk chair.
"I've decided to leave Section 2," Michele informed her. "And I'm taking Kara with me."
Claes just stared at him.
"What do you mean 'leave'?" she asked after she recovered.
"You've commented on more than one occasion that I was 'too kind' for this type of work and you were right. I really am not cut out for this kind of life and I've been in over my head since I came here. When I thought Kara died, I realized how much she meant to me and I can't lose her, Claes. I just can't.
"I want to get her away from this and that means I need to get her away from Italy. I bought a place in Dubai a few years back. The building has recently been completed and it's both far enough away and close enough to Milan and Rome to serve as our new home, at least for awhile."
"But you told me without the conditioning medication, we'd die," Claes noted.
"I've made a deal with Minister Petris. The medical staff will provide Kara with conditioning medication and she will be allowed full access to the medical staff as necessary for check-ups and repair work."
"And what happens to me?" she asked, a hint of fear in her tone.
"I had Minister Petris promise me you would not be teamed with another handler, nor be re-conditioned. And you have the body of an adult now, which means you can do more than just read books from Mister Raballo's library and tend a herb garden."
"I don't understand."
"While you lack a formal secondary school education, you have followed the general curriculum of a liceo classico student. Therefore, while the pursuit of an actual laurea is impractical, you could still attend university classes and expand your knowledge."
"You're suggesting I attend university?" Claes said, her tone incredulous.
"My father is very good friends with the Dean of Admissions at the University of Milan and you would be welcome to use my apartment, since I'd prefer to leave it in the hands of someone I know and trust. Same with the Gallardo, which would allow you to commute between there and Rome to keep in touch with Triela and the other girls, as well as for medical checkups."
"This…this is all too much," Claes said, shaking her head as if to clear her mind of all the thoughts jumbling around.
"I'm sorry for throwing all this on you. But I'm not going to be here much longer and I don't have the luxury of planning everything out to the last detail. But I want you to know that you do have options, Claes, both inside and outside the Agency."
