The Elders (Mind Dimensions #4)(32)

In the end, as much as I trust Bill, I decide to err on the side of caution and tell him only what the Super Pusher would already know, plus information that everyone on the Island will soon learn anyway. It should be relatively safe; if there’s one person who can keep a secret, it’s Bill.

So I proceed to tell him that the Elders want me to be the harbinger of peace between two groups whose blood I share. As I tell him all these things, his eyes get wider and wider, especially when I reveal my mixed heritage.

“You’re part Reader?” He stares at me. “But the rumors say it’s not possible.”

“Clearly the rumors are wrong.”

“I never gave it much thought. I mean, who would try to have a mixed-blood child? Not to mention how unlikely it is, statistically, for a Reader and a Guide to meet and fall in love. I haven’t met a single Reader in my life, so what’s the likelihood that the one I do meet turns out to be a woman and one I’d want to have a kid with, even if it wasn’t taboo, which it is?” With his one free hand, Bill rubs his temple as he often does during meetings at the fund.

“Yeah.” I walk up to the bookshelf and brush it with my fingers. It’s free of dust and impeccably polished, which makes it feel nice and smooth to the touch. “My story is a hard one for people to digest, that’s for sure. All things considered, you’re taking it surprisingly well.”

“I told you I thought you were one of the other guys, so this sort of confirms my initial gut feeling.” Done with his temple, Bill moves the large book he was holding from his left hand to his right.

“I still can’t believe you’d hire a Reader.” I eye the book he’s holding. I can only make out something about Statistical Analysis—classic Bill topic. “By the way, I usually just snoop around in the Mind Dimension to get you useful data for the fund. I only learned to Read recently, and I haven’t been back to work since.”

“Well, that’s about to change, I hope,” he says with a rare-for-Bill smile.

“Is it?” I try not to sound sly.

“Come now, Darren. That’s an amazingly useful skill. You know that when all of this blows over, I’ll want you to Read a few CEOs.”

“Sure.” I give him a wink. “If I make it into the office, we’ll discuss it.”

“At some point, we will discuss your absenteeism.” His eyes narrow. “And that of Bert’s.”

“I’m still amazed you haven’t fired me, or him.”

“He still does what I need remotely. With you, I think of it as a long-term investment. When you two do show up at the fund, my biggest concern is office morale. People’s feathers get ruffled when they see coworkers play hooky the way the two of you always do, but I solved that problem when I announced that you and Bert now work out of the newly established Brooklyn office.”

“We don’t have a Brooklyn office,” I say. “At least, we didn’t.”

“Exactly.” He places the book back on the shelf. “But your colleagues now think there is one. More importantly, they now think of that office as the ‘exile location’—the place where employees are sent when they constantly slack off.”

“Devious. Now stop changing the subject. Tell me why the Elders want you as an Ambassador.” I watch for his reaction to this question. In the unlikely event that he’s my suspect, he might give something away.

“It has to do with my connections. They’re taking the idea of ‘money makes the world go round’ a little too literally,” he says casually.

His answer isn’t suspicious. In fact, it makes a lot of sense. Even though I’m fuzzy about Ambassadors’ duties, the Elders can’t go wrong with choosing someone of Bill’s caliber. “Are you going to accept the position?” I ask.

“I’d rather not,” he says. “You know how busy I am.”

Bill is famous for arriving at the fund before the earliest bird gets in, and staying well after the last person leaves.

“I do, but will they take no for an answer?”

“They will when I tell them that I have a much better candidate than myself.”

“You do?”

“Liz Johnson. You know her well.”

“My shrink as an Ambassador?” I ask, stunned. “Why?”

“Many powerful people visit her couch,” Bill explains. “Not to mention the simple fact that she’s the personification of the social butterfly and knows every single Guide in at least a fifty-mile radius from Manhattan.”

“I wonder what she’ll think of this development.” I also fleetingly wonder if she could be the Super Pusher? That’s the most frightening thought. If she were, my enemy would know me better than even my friends and family. As soon as the thought comes to me, I dismiss it. I know her Guiding ‘tone of voice,’ and it’s not the same as that of the Super Pusher in the cops’ heads at the funeral.

“She’ll be thrilled, I’m sure.” His lips quirk wryly.

“What do Ambassadors actually do?” I ask. “I wasn’t clear on this.”

“I haven’t been officially told as of yet, but given who the previous New York Ambassador was, I can guess. Ambassadors look out for Guides’ interests. They influence regular people, the Unencumbered, to follow the general direction decided on at this island. Politics, economy, science—I suspect they have a hand in everything that matters in the world.”