Alison dismissed the Network layer and tapped her windows back to clear. “I’ll call you when I’m ready to call you, Balfour. No sooner or later.”
“Yes, Chief Inspector.”
“Thank you for seeing me,” Kaiya said.
Alison peered at her. “For what – doing my job? You think you’re special or something?”
“Uh… no?” Kaiya ventured.
“What do you mean, ’no?’” Alison said. “The answer’s ‘yes.’ It’s a trick question, girl. The answer is always ‘yes.’”
Kaiya gave up on trying to understand Chief Inspector Alison Meer. “Thank you?” she ventured once more.
“You’re welcome,” Alison said. “And Joseph…”
He stopped near the door.
“I’m sorry.”
Joseph took a breath and nodded. “I know.”
Kaiya watched them. Alison’s demeanour had softened, albeit still hard.
“Life’s not fair, is it?” she said. “But you
