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“Come now, Hawke. You can’t expect me to reveal all my secrets. What would be the fun in that?”
They were getting nowhere. Olivia grabbed Hawke’s hand below Iris’s line of sight. Years ago, she and Hawke had developed their own version of sign language. It was a sort of shorthand that only the two of them understood.
She pressed her thumb into the middle of his palm, which meant, Let me take over.
He squeezed her wrist, indicating he agreed.
“Very well, Iris,” Olivia said. “If you don’t want to talk about that, let’s talk about something else.”
“What else is there, my dear?”
“Let’s talk about my father.”
She actually looked mildly shocked. “You want to talk about Glen? Whatever for?”
“Was he part of this organization that you work for?”
“What organization do I work for, my dear?”
“You tell me. Did you ever work for MI6, or was that a cover?”
“What makes you think I don’t still work for them?”
“Because the purpose of MI6 is to protect England.”
“I’m one of the greatest patriots England has ever known.”
“Patriot? In what way?”
“I’m trying to save England.”
“Save it from what?”
“Total destruction.”
Before Olivia could comment, Iris went on, “You see, my dear, so many people live their lives unaware of the greater good. They think a certain way their entire life. The people I work for are able to see beyond the here and now. They see a future far beyond our mortal years.”
“Who are they? Other sociopaths such as yourself?”
Iris laughed, and it was a lovely trilling sound. Olivia remembered how Iris had once told her that she had practiced this kind of laugh for years. She had tried to get Olivia to mimic the laugh, but it wasn’t something she’d ever perfected.
“You have adopted some of your husband’s more unpleasant attributes, Olivia. Bluntness, especially in a woman, is not a good quality.”
“How should I ask you about your treasonous activities?”
“Your idea of treason is so narrow-minded. My actions might look questionable to the naïve and ill-informed, but I assure you, the cause I work for is most definitely not treasonous.”
“How so?”
“It’s simple, really. The people who employ me have a calling, a higher purpose than most anyone could understand.”
“And what is that purpose?”
“To make the world a better place.”
The idea that Iris Gates would want the world to be a better place was laughable, but Olivia kept the amusement out of her voice when she asked, “Better in what way?”
“Too many ways to count, my dear. Their ideals are lofty and quite sophisticated.”
