White Space Season 2

argument, just swiped her screen then leaned into her glass and whispered. “Mr. Kaiser, Stephen Anderson is here to see you … yes … at the front desk … now … that’s correct.”
    Allison nodded to whatever Kaiser was saying through the piece in her ear, then swiped the glass again to kill the call and turned her pretty eyes to Stephen.
    “Mr. Kaiser will see you know. His office is just … ”
    “I know where it is,” Stephen cut her off, then turned, shoved the glass door open, stormed down the hallway, and burst into Kaiser’s office.
    “Mr. Anderson,” Kaiser said, already standing from his side of the desk. His mechanical blue eye made a whir, dilating as it fixed on Stephen.
    Light brushed Kaiser’s scar and sent Stephen into a deep chill. He swallowed involuntarily, suddenly wanting to run. He pressed his feet harder into the floor, rooting himself in place. “We need to talk,” he said.
    “Yes, of course we do,” Kaiser smiled. “About your boy Milo yes?”
    “Yes,” Stephen said, trying not to stutter. “Wh … what you’re doing is wrong.”
    “Of course it is, Mr. Anderson, but no more wrong than what you do to earn your handsome check, and no more wrong than what your boy did to earn his consequence.”
    Kaiser turned to his monitor, squinting as if in study, then shook his head and returned his eyes to Stephen. “I’m sorry, Mr. Anderson, but there’s nothing I can do. Your son was caught consorting with known terrorists, that means people seeking to harm Conway Industries, and bring chaos to Hamilton Island. This is unacceptable, and as you’ve surely seen in your decorated yet inflated position, we cannot allow chaos to reign. There are consequences for actions which stray outside those borders which keep us safe. Your son has put us in jeopardy, and lest you forget, it’s my job to manage danger and curb risk on this island.”
    Kaiser was suddenly standing a foot from Stephen, a rough hand sitting hard on his shoulder. Stephen wanted to punch him.
    “I warned you, Mr. Anderson, I told you that we would activate your son’s chip.” Kaiser’s face soured, as if bearing no pleasure in duty. “But don’t worry, he won’t be on your watch screen, we’ll be assigning Milo to another Watcher. We would hate for there to be any conflict of interest.”
    Stephen fumed, wanting to lash out, strike Kaiser, hating that he was forced to stand there impotent. “Where is he?”
    “Safe. Getting his memories wiped. Let’s hope, for both your sakes, that it sticks, eh, Mr. Anderson? Or else, we’ll be forced to eliminate the threat.”
    He wanted to scream, but with hands dancing in little quivers at his side, all Stephen Anderson could say was, “OK.”

    * * * *

CHAPTER 7 — Cassidy Hughes and Jon Conway

CASSIDY

    They were still in The Hillside’s security room when Jon got the text from Brady.
    Cassidy watched as Jon took the call from Chief Brady — watched as his eyes told her more than all the words in the world.
    “We’ll be there soon,” he said, ending the call.
    She stared at him, shaking her head. “No,” she said.
    “They found a girl washed up by the pier, they want us to come look at her. Brady says he’s pretty sure it’s … ”
    He broke down.
    “No!” Cassidy repeated, this time in a scream.
    The world around her quit its existence, blurring into an angry vortex, swirling in fury to inhale all that she loved, everything she held dear.
    Cassidy felt as if someone had shoved an icy blade deep into her core, twisting it and burying it deeper by the turn. Worse than killing her, worse than killing Sarah, the blade had taken Emma.
    It’s killing my child.
    Then in the chaos, a moment of clear thought — my child? What the hell? She’s not my child. She’s Sarah’s.
    Sarah and Jon’s.
    For a moment’s flicker, Cassidy felt as if she had almost forgotten who she was. For a moment, which made no sense to her at all, she actually thought she was Sarah — feeling Sarah’s emotions, feeling Sarah’s connection to Emma as if it were her own.
    As the world found its shape around her, and Cassidy found herself hugging Jon, who himself was a wreck, she wished like hell that he hadn’t flushed her pills down the toilet.

    **

JON

    They arrived on Hamilton Island 90 minutes after getting the call, taking a cab from the docks to the hospital, where Chief Brady waited downstairs in the morgue. The medical examiner’s office was sending someone