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"Do you have any idea of who it could be?"

"Not Marsha," Ryan responded "She has no genetic offspring I believe she has given all her loyalty to the Councilor I can’t narrow it any further"

The door opened then and Max walked in Sophia said, "Keep your ears and eyes open, Ryan Let lanced at Max, his expression opaque, his dress faultless--the perfect Psyon the surface "Do you have any further questions for me, Detective?"

He left as soon as Max shook his head "I believe hi Max in "I think he applied to work for Nikita because of Sascha"

Max tipped back his chair "Explain"

"It’s obvious his reconditioning didn’t work as well as everyone believes" Reaching out almost automatically, she pushed his chair back on all four feet "I think he’s hoping that since Nikita has a daughter who feels eo easier on hi stone and I’ cruel to the stone there"

Sophia had heard whispers of how Nikita had ascended to the Council--her sheer cold-blooded nature couldn’t be doubted "Yes"

"I hear a ‘but’ "

"She allowed her daughter to grow to adulthood, when it would’ve been far easier for Sascha to have had a fatal ‘accident’ in childhood," Sophia said, knowing he understood what she didn’t say, the parallels she’d drawn "And in the end, the reality , soet why he’d latch on to her," Max said, "but if Nikita’s the best he can do, the kid’s in serious trouble" He tapped the two printouts he’d just put on the table "We take Ryan and Marsha out--I’m with the kid on her loyalty, plus Sascha confirether when Chan died--and we’re left with Andre Tulane and Quentin Gareth" Tiny lines fanned out fros I want to check where those two are concerned"

"Including Tulane’s mysterious weekly appointments?"

Max nodded "He’s been very careful not to raise any red flags Could be a case of hiding in plain sight" It would, Max thought, require balls of steel to pull that off in Nikita’s territory

"If you don’t need o back to the aparth the PsyNet I have a few ideas"

He frowned "I don’t know much about the PsyNet, but what I do know tells e amount of pressure on you to be surrounded by so much data, sotoneed," she said, and he heard the thread of confusion in her tone, "so that shouldn’t be an issue"

"I don’t like it" His protective instincts burned a hot white flaave her pause "There is a risk, but--"

"Faith," Max interrupted, recalling the almost protective way the F-Psy had looked at Sophia "Call her Ask if she’ll spot you while you go diving through the Net"

"She’s a cardinal F-Psy," Sophia said "Her time is worth hundreds of thousands, if not ree to waste it on me?"

Max saw that she truly didn’t understand "Because DarkRiver’s come to consider me a friend" And the cats understood--even if they didn’t exactly approve--that Sophia was his Plus--"You got the s don’t forget things like that" He saw her absorb that, give a small nod

"I’ll call her--but doesn’t the fact that Faith saved our lives cancel out any obligation on their part?"

"It’s not obligation It’s about building bonds" Placing his hand on the back of her chair, hehis skin "Pro out because you’ve been taking risks"

Her expression never changed, but he could see stea out her ears "I aht into your head"

He wanted to kiss her

Kaleb walked into Nikita’s office to find her just ending a conversation with a tallbut a human Kaleb kneho the male was, of course He’d known all about Max Shannon almost the instant after Nikita requested hiood at his job, he was as tenacious and stubborn as a bloodhound