“Person Friday then,” Werner corrected himself. “Aide-de-camp.”
Emerson turned to Riley. “What do you say, Miss Moon? Do you want to be my amanuensis?”
Riley had no clue what that meant. She made a mental note to look it up when she had the chance. She hoped it wasn’t just a fancy word for chauffeur.
“Is this a permanent reassignment?” Riley asked Werner.
“Absolutely not,” Werner said. “I’m sure this search will take only a few days, and you’ll be back at your desk.”
“We’ll begin tomorrow morning at seven o’clock at my house,” Emerson said to Riley.
Riley made an effort not to grimace. Seven o’clock in the morning? “Sure,” she said. “Seven o’clock. Do you want me to drive you home now?”
“Of course.”
“I need a moment with Moonbeam,” Werner said to Emerson.
Emerson turned on his heel and strode off to the elevator. “I’ll be at the car.”
Riley followed Werner into his office and waited until the door was closed before she spoke.
“Sir, I’m so sorry,” she said. “He insisted we come here.”
“You did the right thing. He needed reassurance that his assets were being protected. And now he’s going to be occupied by this wild goose chase, so it all worked out perfectly.”
“Do you think he can find Günter?”
“Not for a moment. Just keep me in the loop, and we’ll all be happy, Moonbeam.”
Riley squared her shoulders. She didn’t like being called Moonbeam. And she didn’t especially like her new assignment.
—
Werner watched Riley leave his office. He hoped he’d chosen wisely. She
had two advanced degrees from Harvard but no street cred. She needed Blane-Grunwald to pay off her loans and push her up the corporate ladder. He had her pegged as psychotically ambitious, and he was counting on her to sell her soul for a shot at the corner office. If it turned out otherwise, he might have to kill her.
—
Riley caught up with Emerson at the car. He was leaning against the right front quarter panel, eyes closed, lost in thought. Probably having an out-of-body experience, Riley thought. Or maybe he was convening with aliens from another solar system.
“Hey,” she said. “What’s up?”
“I’m waiting,” Emerson said.
“For?”
“For you.”
“Of course.”
She unlocked his door and ran around to the driver’s side. She plugged the key into the ignition and backed out of Günter’s space. “Just exactly what is it you expect me to do?” she asked.
“Drive my car.”
“Anything else?”
“I tend to forget details that aren’t important to me. I would expect you to remember them. You might even record them, amanuensis style.”