“Aren’t you angry at them for leaving you,” Diosa inquired.
“Not at all. We have the pick of grad students and every year the committee has to pass up some promising talent,” described Frederick. “This creates an opportunity for the facility.”
Before they could say anything more, a pretty woman rushed up.
“Frederick. Tommy is being a dork,” she complained. “He is not listening when I clearly laid out the limitations of his parameters.”
“Candice. This is Diosa and Walden,” Frederick said. “Candice is our lead engineer for the materials division.”
“Oh, yes, sorry. Nice to meet you,” Candice uttered before returning to her topic. “Can you talk sense into him?”
“This is a party and you’re supposed to be enjoying yourself not working,” Frederick offered. “Why don’t you go and get a glass of punch.”
“You don’t have a glass,” Candice observed. Then she studied Diosa and Walden. “And you don’t have one either. Would you like a glass of punch?”
“That would be nice,” remarked Diosa.
“I’ll go with you,” Walden offered. “You can tell me about the limitations.”
“Do you know anything about ion shield permeation?”
“I’m behind on my reading, but the process of a polymer, either solid, liquid, or gas passing through an active ion flow is still a theory.”
“See, you understand,” Candice exclaimed. Taking Walden’s arm, she guided him away while talking. “It’s the molecular structure consisting chiefly of a large number of similar units…”
“She is very passionate about her job,” Diosa suggested. “And I can see the reason you call yourself a nerd herder.”
“Candice is a great engineer but lacks tact and social graces. She’s the type of person who goes directly at a challenge,” Frederick described. “No matter whose feelings get hurt.”
“I often run into those types in my job,” Diosa commented.
“You never did tell me what you do for a living.”
“Walden and I are troubleshooters for a large organization,” Diosa replied.
“That sounds exciting.”
“Not really,” Diosa lied. “Walden flies us to the site and he works the spreadsheets. I’m the one walking around looking for violations or people breaking the rules.”
“Your contusions tell a different story,” ventured Frederick. “They look painful.”
“Just an industrial accident,” she explained. “Missed a step and landed on my face.”
Walden and Candice returned holding glasses of punch. Candice was chatting away with Poet and the couple absentmindedly handed off the extra glasses. Then, still talking about engineering theory, they wandered off.
Diosa thought about her own mission statement. Was it Constabulary killer? Or maybe Spy buster? Or something else? It would depend on the next assignment from Eiko for Unrestricted Agent Alberich and Agent Geboren.
The End
A message for you from J. Clifton Slater
Thank you for making Call Sign Warlock a success. When I started this series, no one knew if you would embrace a woman warrior with a bionic eye and a loyal but, self-destructive partner. According to your e-mails, the team of Diosa and Walden have become a favorite read. Needless to say, your responses make me very happy.
Many of you have read my historical adventure series Clay Warrior Stories. For those of you who haven’t, the books follow a young, hot-headed swordsman through the Roman Republic in the years leading up to the First Punic War. Think of them as a fantasy set in real locations during actual historical events. If you are an eclectic reader like me, I believe you’ll enjoy the stories.
I write science fiction because I appreciate science and technology. Conversely, I write historical fiction due to a love of history and the progress of technology through the ages. To satisfy my interests, I write military adventure both future and ancient. The military part is obvious, Semper Fi. Thankfully, enough readers understood and have made my science fiction and historical fiction series popular.
Have comments or thoughts about my books? Please contact me. I answer each e-mail personally. [email protected]
Happy reading and all the best to you from Warlock, Poet, and me.
Salute,
J. Clifton Slater
Other series and books by J. Clifton Slater
Science Fiction:
Call Sign Warlock series
Op File Revenge
Op File Treason
Op File Sanction
Galactic Council Realm series
On Station
On Duty
On Guard
On Point
Historical Fiction
Clay Warrior Stories series
Clay Legionary
Spilled Blood
Bloody Water
Reluctant Siege
Brutal Diplomacy
Fortune Reigns
Op File Sanction Page 26