<P>"Won't that leave you to fend for yourself for a long time?"
<P>
<P>"I know what I'm up against." She pulled out a laptop from underneath the table. "I'll be in touch with Carson through this, but it has a very nifty feature in addition." She punched in something, then turned the computer around to show Tiberius the screen. He saw the scene in front of him repeating into infinity. "I have access to your Infolink." He shuddered.
<P>
<P>So she'll be inside my head, too. This is beyond Big Brother'...
<P>
<P>She turned the screen away from him and powered down the laptop. After she put it away she finished off her coffee.
<P>
<P>"This will take some getting used to, and I'm sure you're tired of hearing that," said Agent Long. "But that's why I'm here. Having a partner should make things a little easier. At least you can vent to someone, anyway." They shared a brief smile, and Tiberius realized that it had been a long time since he'd actually been able feel happy about anything. The moment wasn't meant to last, but he savored it as much as he could.