If you meet me, have some sympathy 4

The bank was an enormous glass and steel affair, humming away in its efficient avarice. It was a useful operations base for our side but I missed the foggy days of starched shirts and bowler hats – greed had more style back then.

Luckily there was a senior officer on duty who found me a private room, although he was inquisitive and wouldn’t leave me in peace. I locked the door, powered up the terminal and started tapping away, letting my spirit seep into the worldwide web, negotiating its strange landscapes, all the time searching for the target and the tell-tale traces he would be leaving behind.

There’s no internet in Hell – the bosses don’t like that sort of set-up. I’d put together a restricted version for training purposes which was why I landed this mission (that and my competitor’s ‘accident’). I was uncertain about entering the real thing, but found it surprisingly easy.

HELLO SAM

I drew back with a shock. It was her alright, whispering to me through cyberspace. And there were her words on the screen as well. How could she …?

The enemy were suddenly all around me, holding me fast.

I’d forgotten just how good she was.