Executive

…14

When people looked at Brian Woods, they all thought he had to be rich and extremely powerful. He radiated power in a manner that most people found intimidating. When he walked into a room, everyone felt the urge to stand up and greet him with respect, despite the fact he was only in his mid-forties. If he were to be seen driving an average, full-size sedan, everyone would agree that it must be a rental, because he just had to own a Mercedes S 600 customized by Brabus, or at least a Bentley.

Tall and slim, with deep black eyes and beautiful, yet masculine, features, Brian was turning heads ever since he could remember, but without becoming arrogant about it. A combination of class and charisma was making him successful in his work with The Agency. When Brian joined an organization as a vice president or CEO, one look and no one doubted that he belonged in a top executive role.

With his tie loosened and sleeves rolled up, he sat casually at his desk.

"We met briefly last week. I walked you to Tom's office for your interview, but we haven't had the chance to talk. Welcome aboard, Alex; it's a pleasure."

Alex took the hand he extended and gave it a confident shake, trying not to show how intimidated she felt. She couldn't help wondering why these remarkable people had chosen her to be a part of their team. She didn't feel all that special. Now, after one look at Brian, she felt like the ugly duckling.

"The pleasure is all mine," she said, and sat down.

"I will be training you on systems, communications, procedures, and emergency protocols. I will leave all the psyche-and-soul-related topics to Steve. Tom will come toward the end of your training to tell you a few things about observing things, clues and other stuff like that. Any questions so far?"

"None whatsoever." I didn't think men like these existed in reality. I thought you only saw them in movies.

"Then let's proceed." Brian turned toward the wall and projected the image of a small electronic device, photographed in the palm of someone's hand. "This is a communications device. It's usually in your car, therefore, you have to make sure the spot where you're parking isn't too deep underground, or it won't work.

It comes disguised in the climate control panel of your car. The reading for the temperature doubles as a reading showing the strength of the signal at a point in time and place. Let's say, for instance, you have the bad guy in the car, and he's getting talkative. All you have to do is start the heating or AC in your car; press and hold the fan button for two seconds; and we're receiving, monitoring live, and recording at the same time.

Meanwhile, the car's heating or AC will also be working. If the temperature reading shows two dashes instead of digits, your coverage is zero, and you need to get out of that spot in order for the system to work. If the temperature is blinking, you barely have any coverage; so you'll need to drive around until those degrees stop blinking."

"So, if my AC is off, the device does not communicate with you and does not record."

"It does not communicate with us," Brian said, "but it will record any noise it senses in the car. At the end of each day, you have the option to decide if those recordings are to be saved or discarded. If you have an emergency, and you need to get our attention to the communication in the car, turn on the air recycling after turning on the AC and holding the fan button for two seconds. That will ping our pagers with an emergency code. Any other questions?"

"Only one small detail," Alex said, feeling a little embarrassed, "my car has no climate control."

Brian gave her an all-knowing smile. "Oh, yes, it does."