The Leader by Ruth Ann Nordin

Chapter One

    Two months later...

    Devon knew it was a bad idea to come
here. He had no business tempting fate. As long as he stayed away,
she would most likely give up on her suicidal pursuit to find out
what was going on. And yet, he couldn’t stay away. Or maybe it
wasn’t that he couldn’t but more of the fact that he didn’t want
to.
    Whatever the case, one thing was for
sure: this was a bad idea. But that didn’t stop him from entering
the mall, nor did it stop him from stepping into the store where
she worked. His gaze drifted up to the camera set at the entrance.
No longer did the stores hide the fact that they had surveillance.
Now it was all in the open.
    Any pretense of privacy was being
eroded right in front of everyone, and very few people seemed to
notice or care. It was unfortunate. They were trading freedom for
security, and in the end, it would be their undoing. But this was
the aliens’ plan. How nicely it all fit into place.
    “ Can I help you?” a young
blond woman asked as she came up to him.
    He wondered if he should
ask for her co-worker or just “look”. But then, what would he look
for in the women’s section of a store? Finally, he said, “I have a
matter to discuss with someone who works here. She’s 5’4”, a light
brunette, probably in her early 30’s.” And
pretty. He willed that thought
away.
    “ Oh, you mean
Autumn.”
    So that was her name.
“Right.”
    “ She’s outside on a break.
She likes to smoke a lot.” She rolled her eyes and
giggled.
    “ Thank you,” he replied,
deciding that women as young as the woman in front of him had
limited appeal.
    His boss preferred those
types—probably because they weren’t smart enough to figure out what
a loser he was. But then, his boss didn’t want smart; he wanted
easy. And the type standing in front of him would fit the bill.
Sighing, Devon headed out of the mall through a doorway that wasn’t
blocked off by security. He found Autumn sitting alone on a bench a
few stores down and took his time in approaching her.
    She put out her cigarette but remained
sitting. She stared ahead, not seeming to be looking at anything in
particular. He wondered what she was thinking. He was aware that
they were being watched, but he’d been aware of that ever since he
started his job a good seventeen years ago, though he hadn’t been a
human guinea pig until seven years later.
    He stopped in front of her and
realized she had her eyes closed. “Autumn?”
    She jerked and sat up
straight.
    An amused smile crossed his face. “I
didn’t realize this bench was a good place to nap.”
    “ I’m not sleeping,” she
denied, even though it was apparent she was dozing off. She gave
him a good look. “What are you doing here?”
    He sat next to her. He would have
asked if he could, but he figured she’d say no. “I came to talk to
you. How have you been doing since the explosion?”
    Her eyebrows furrowed. “You have a lot
of nerve, you know that? You spent all that time warning me to
leave matters alone and now you’re digging them up?”
    “ I’m not digging anything
up. I just thought I’d ask a question.”
    “ What do you care? You set
a bomb, and three people died that day.”
    He shook his head. “I told them to
stay away from that plant. It’s not my fault they didn’t heed my
warning.”
    “ You’re amazing, really
amazing.” She pulled out a cigarette and lighter. He noted the
slight trembling of her hands. “One minute you’re telling me I
better watch what I say and where I go and the next, you’re
claiming to be a good Samaritan.”
    “ I’ve never claimed that.
The goal was to scare people, not harm anyone. Sometimes unpleasant
side effects are part of the job.” He mentally kicked himself. Why
was he telling her this? He knew better than to reveal anything
personal to anyone.
    “ I find it hard to believe
you care about anyone but yourself,” she muttered and lit up her
cigarette.
    “ Well, you’re