Jaya blended into the crowds on the streets in Serenity City as she made her way to a restaurant picked by her control. The name of the place was the Horseshoe. Apparently it was a steakhouse and had dark interior lighting. Also deep booths for privacy.
As she entered, she was immediately shown to a booth in the back of the restaurant where a man sat. He was 50's with brown hair and the look of a man that had seen and done a lot that maybe he shouldn't have in his time. His name was Alexander Conklin and he was her control.
"Hi, Alec," Jaya replied. "Nice seeing you. How's business?" It was the way they opened every conversation when they met in person.
"I'm good," he replied. "Business is booming."
"I bet it is," she replied.
There was a pause as the waiter came up. "May I take your orders?" he asked.
They both ordered lunch and drinks. It wasn't long before the waiter brought over their drinks, letting them know their lunch would be up soon. As he left, Alec looked at Jaya.
"Why haven't you gone back to the house on Parissean III?" he asked. "This was supposed to be a vacation spot. Not your new residence."
"What if I want it to be my new residence?" she asked. "Besides, Alec, isn't it better if I have more than one place? I'll be harder to track."
"But why here? There has to be a reason, Jaya. I know you better than anyone else does."
She looked into her drink and then back at him, her green eyes meeting his brown. "There's someone here I've met."
"Holy shit!" he said softly. "Do you understand what you're doing?! What kind of position you're placing him in, regardless of the position you're putting us in!"
"I can handle it," she replied.
"No, I don't think you can. Not if something were to go wrong," he said.
She was quiet as she took another sip of her drink. It wasn't like she hadn't thought about that every day.
"You really care about this guy?" Alec asked.
She nodded. With that he sighed.
"What's his name. I at least need to do a background on him."
"His name's Tyran. He runs the Starlight Inn on the outskirts of the city," she replied quietly. "It's not like I haven't thought about what could possibly happen, Alec. I do every day, but... he makes me feel alive again... Do you understand?"
With a sigh, Alec took her hand. "I do understand. But the deeper you fall, the more at risk you put him and yourself. You're going to lose your edge and you won't be able to do what has to be done. Jaya Bourne will start to disappear."
Jaya shook her head. "Impossible. Jaya Bourne will never disappear," she said softly, a sadness tinged her voice. "She's all that's left."
Alec gazed at her not knowing what else to say.
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