Euphrates is talking to Barry. He seems concerned but not really angry enough to throw anybody out. That might be because Trevor's acting as a sort of peacekeeper. I'm sure if I interjected it could calm things down, since this is supposed to be mine and Will's party after all, but I'm not sure if Barry's the type of guy I want to be sticking my neck out for just yet.
"I didn't have you pegged as the type to be attracted to the frat guys." That voice is the last thing I need to hear right now.
"And you don't seem like the type to have been invited," is my knee-jerk response. It's spectacularly bratty and I didn't mean for it to slip out like that. Regardless of my personal opinion of Steven Richards, he's my contact and we need a professional relationship.
Naturally, he rolls with it, which shouldn't annoy me, yet it does. "Heh. Well, I foiled your plan on that one, didn't I." His mood shifts on a dime. "By the way, next time you collar somebody, grab the nearest camera and make sure they see what you're doing. You didn't even get mentioned in a single write-up or report about Martin, and we could use the publicity."
"Then get a fucking PR agent," I reply icily. "Getting press has nothing to do with our job."
"It has everything to do with your job," Richards says, as condescending as a teacher correcting an unruly student. "Just ask your two new pals about the differences between living with a positive public image against a negative one."
Shit. He's got a point. I still don't see why this is our department, so I'll say so. "Why do we need good press, anyways? We've already assimilated, what does it matter what's on the front page of a newspaper?"
"It's not just the media," he explains. For a moment Richards actually seems unsure of how to say something, like he's considering whether he should level with me or not on what this is all about. Just for a moment. "The government's been sending a guy around to bitch up a storm about Strikeforce strategy in Thunder. This guy's been up my ass because they seem to think some heavy movers and shakers are descending upon the city...they're even expecting an opportunity to settle old scores left over from the Cold War. They believe Strikeforce is taking the threat lightly by sending a couple of greenhorns rather than more steel-jawed veterans like yours truly. And there you have it. It would save the whole organization from a nagging toothache if you managed to impress these guys enough to ease up a little."
This is a lot to take in all at once. Suddenly, both the bosses and the United States government are taking an extra special interest in our activities? As if we didn't have enough pressure! "What exactly is the government expecting to come to Thunder?"
Richards chuckles. "You'll know it when you see it. Sorry if this seems like a little much to drop on you in your first week, but hey, you're not the first to be baptized by fire." He calmly takes a drink from his cup and signals he's going back for a refill.
I figure I should disappear into the crowd lest Richards come back to torment me some more, only when I turn around Barry and Trevor are gone, leaving me back at square one. I glance around at the big crowd, thinking about what Richards said, and feel more paranoid than usual that someone or something is watching me right now...
