"Where are you going?"
After ending the call, in which John had told her with an unusual degree of urgency, that he needed to talk to her, Danielle had suggested a meeting at the loggia.
"And what is it about this antique cell phone that you carry around with you all the time? I haven´t seen anyone use a thing like that in ages", Hayley kept on teasing.
"Don't worry, I'll be back soon. Just a little continuation of my speed date. That's what these kinds of cell phones are perfect for, unless you're keen to give all your secrets away in advance already", she let her colleague know with a wink. Relieved that she was born with a certain quick wittedness, she had made her way to the neighboring building.
"And you are sure about Cartright?", she had asked John after his short summary. Ignoring how the two men might have gotten the information, her focus belonged to the apparent danger her co-worker was still in.
"We assume so. It's why I need your help."
Danielle frowned.
"I'm happy to help if I can, but right now I don't know what that might look like."
"Finch and I are in no position to estimate how far Cartright would go. For now we can only assume the worst. We therefore need to know whether your colleague may have disclosed details of the launch that do not alone endanger her life. Unfortunately, she seems to see a threat in every stranger, so I can't get to her. You, on the other hand, are a longtime confidant. If anyone stands a chance of getting her to open up, it's likely to be someone of that status.
Unsure about whether John's assessment actually corresponded to reality, she paused for a moment.
"I can´t promise you anything. As you know, she became more and more reserved towards me as well, but I'll see what I can do", she finally replied before he updated her with the necessary information.
AFTERWARDS AT BREAK TIME
Watching Brianna leave the building for her lunch break, Danielle called John´s cellphone as agreed in advance. Admittedly, his explanations of whatever she'd gotten herself into hadn't helped to calm her.
"Hey, fancy a coffee?", she approached her worried looking co-worker with a coffee to go mug as she nodded to one of the off-center tree trunks that usually served as free seating on summer days.
"We haven't done that for far too long, but so close to an important appointment you have to clear your head."
Obviously unsure of Danielle's offensiveness, Brianna eventually gave in.
"A coffee won't hurt, I guess" she confirmed with a hint of a smile, before her unsteady gaze swept over the area again.
"You look like you're about to be jumped at", Danielle raised an eyebrow.
"If you only knew. Do you remember this alleged representative of Svensson? He ambushed me again last night. I'm telling you, there's something wrong with that guy."
Giving her counterpart a thoughtful look, Danielle realized it was time to lay the cards open.
"John is anything but your enemy. He is convinced that you are in danger, which is why he wants to help you", she intervened in a calm tone.
"John? You know that chap?" The sudden distrust in her colleague's eyes required no further words.
"How much did he pay you or what else is it that make you speak up for him?"
Taking a deep breath, Danielle brushed back a loose strand of her braid.
"I am not venal and even less am I stupid enough to fall for fairy tales. It may sound strange to you, but I knew John already before he contacted you."
Observing how a thought process was reflected in the face of her counterpart, she gave Brianna the time she needed.
"Well, even if would I believe you, what does he want from me?"
"He's convinced you've gotten into something you've lost control of. It's about the disclosure of your data to GeneX, for which you allegedly received a payment from ProPharm. However, the person you texted with is not who he says he is and you are in imminent danger."
The fear that suddenly creased the scientist's face made Danielle realize that what at first sounded like an absurd theory by John and Mr. Finch was in fact the truth.
"How do you know... how does he know?", Brianna uttered in a voiceless tone.
"Honestly, I don´t have a clue where he got his information from", she tried a helpless smile. "But now I know it's true."
Watching her co-worker bury her forehead into her hand, she eventually shook her head.
"At some point it all went in the wrong direction. It struck me as odd right away when ProPharm sent me the money from an anonymous account, but I figured they didn't want to make a big deal out of it. Who knows how these companies really work."
Wiping a tear from the corner of her eye, she added: "I hope you don't think that I wanted to enrich myself in an unfair way. I planned to invest the money in new projects that still don´t get enough funding. It might sound crazy to you, but when I know that I can have a positive impact on the course of a person's illness from my laboratory, it gives me a feeling of happiness that can't be compared to anything else in life."
Danielle nodded.
"Doing something meaningful to change the life of someone who isn´t able to do it on their own. I understand your motivation a lot better than you think."
For a moment there was a tense silence when she realized that trust could only be expected in return if she gave it first. Ignoring the queasy feeling in her stomach to open up to another person, she took a sip of her coffee.
"I'm going to quit", she suddenly contrasted in a determined voice.
The confused look on her counterparts face, made her smirk as she continued: "It may be a surprise to you, but actually I took the decision already longer than I wanted it to admit to myself."
"And if you think it can´t get any more crazy from here…", Brianna surprised with a smile.
"Well, I hope you know that I will miss you, but I also know how important it is to go for your purpose. It changes everything. So whatever it is that makes you happy, go and do it."
Danielle smiled. "I intend to. But that also includes protecting you. So do you trust me enough to believe me when I say you can trust John?"
Giving she Scientist another moment, she noticed a hesitation in her gaze.
"Do you trust him?", she eventually asked.
Considering the question for a moment, that was so simple yet so profound, she met Brianna with a steady gaze. Though she still wasn´t able to fully understand Johns motives, there was something about his attitude had made her open up to him more than once. With her captor's knife at her throat, she had trusted in his abilities but even more in his promise to protect her; a point for which she was grateful to this day.
"If needed, I entrust trust my life to him", she finally answered with a deep conviction in her voice.
For a few seconds she once again saw the thought process in her counterparts eyes, before she suddenly understood.
"He helped you too. That's how you know him", Brianna stated with a mixture of surprise and realization.
Unable to suppress a smile, Danielle nodded. "Without him I wouldn't be sitting here with you now."
"And I´d like to ensure you the same, but I'm only able to if you´re willing to help me", it was John's voice, who had followed their conversation via a mobile connection.
Exchanging a glance with the person whose expression settled on Danielle´s for a moment in an unreadable calm, it was Brianna's nod that drew her attention back to the actual task.
"Alright. Ask me anything you want to know. If I´m dead I won´t be a help to anyone, so it would be convenient to survive the launch", she stated with a hint of gallows humor before she took the last sip of her coffee. e asked, reaching for her cell phone.