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Lorenzo shrugged. “I don’t suppose anyone pays her much attention; she’ll probably be delighted by a real-life romantic encounter with a handsome young man, rather than just reading about them.”

“It won’t be real, though,” Alex said stubbornly. It was one thing to offer people sex, but this was the first time he’d been asked to deliver romance. He was appalled by the idea of fooling this woman, leading her along, and then offering her up for Tyler’s blackmail on a platter.

“No, but it’s your job to make it feel real.

” Lorenzo sighed. “Your orders are to spend day one on Rebecca. You’ll target her at the meet-and-greet on the Friday afternoon, then seduce her at the banquet in the evening and persuade her into a sexual encounter.

You must bring her up to your room, so the sex can be properly recorded.

Save Latham for day two. He’s a keen swimmer and will rise early to fit in a swim in the downstairs pool before he attends the morning conference sessions.

You need to get Rebecca out of your room early, so that you can be down at the pool in your very tight speedos, flirting with him, at seven a.m. on Saturday morning.

Mick will accompany you everywhere and show you where all these places are on the day.

Again, you’ll need to persuade Latham back to your room for a sexual encounter, because there are no smartwalls in the pool. Now, Solange…”

Alex drifted off, wondering how much this three-day conference was going to ruin the lives of the unsuspecting Rebecca Lang and Eric Latham.

However, he actually enjoyed one of the preparation days, when Tyler’s senior technical indie gave them a lecture on the engineering principles underlying the floating city project. He loved hearing about the design and development phases, and took copious notes.

“You’ll be talking to lots of people who do this stuff for a living,” the tech indie explained. “You must be able to hold a conversation with them and sound as if you understand the topic. You don’t have to be an expert – you just have to know enough to make small talk.”

There was that phrase again – “small talk”. Alex had never been at ease in large social gatherings without the aid of drugs or drink – neither of which would be available to him. After the floating city lecture, he turned to Solange and asked her advice on how to chat to strangers.

“It’s easy – you just smile and ask them questions about themselves – nothing too personal – and flatter them.

Always remember to flatter them,” she advised.

“Try to get them onto a subject they’re passionate about, and agree with them as much as possible.

Feign an interest, even if it’s the most boring topic on earth.

If someone loves fishing, say you’ve always been fascinated about what type of fish it’s most challenging to catch, for example, and then sit back and let them explain it to you. ”

“So basically, the art of small talk is lying your arse off,” Alex said.

She grinned. “If you like, yeah. You can do it, Alex – you’re very intelligent and well read – you can easily engage people in conversation about a topic they love. Just don’t…” She bit her lip.

“Don’t?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Well, don’t be sarcastic,” she said. “You can be quite cutting, especially with people who aren’t as bright as you are, which is most people. Also, the sullen, moody thing is only attractive when you’re off your head on croc in a student bar – it won’t go down so well with Tyler’s delegates.”

He nodded. At school, he’d learned to deliver cutting put-downs – often, it was his only defence against the bigger, stronger boys who’d bullied him.

He hadn’t been able to compete physically, but he’d always been able to deliver verbal smackdowns that helped restore some of his damaged self-esteem.

Now, it seemed that surly defence mechanism was more of a hindrance than a help.

He had to find a way to exchange superficial inanities in as charming a manner as possible instead.

The first day of the conference dawned on a cloudy October day. Lorenzo dressed him in a navy-blue three-piece business suit, red shirt, and navy-blue tie, with a red handkerchief sticking out of his breast pocket.

“Very handsome – every inch the dashing romantic hero Rebecca longs for,” Lorenzo told him approvingly.

Alex forced down his rising sense of guilt about seducing her. What choice did he have?

It was late afternoon. The guests had been arriving all day, and cocktails were being served in one of the larger conference suites.

Big Mick escorted them there, and Solange immediately set off after her prescribed target.

Alex quickly found Rebecca, wearing a big black dress and a set of pearls, standing to one side, looking a little lost.

“Hey…” He smiled at her. She looked startled to be noticed. “Everyone’s making small talk, and I’m crap at it,” he told her.

“God! Me too.” She gave a little laugh, and he grabbed a glass of wine off a passing waiter’s tray and handed it to her.

“Dutch courage?” he suggested.

She took it with a grateful smile. He snaffled a glass of fizzy water for himself – Drummond would descend if he dared to touch any alcohol.

Rebecca was sweet and shy, and Alex hated what he was about to do to her. Remembering Solange’s instructions, he chatted to her about her job, complimented her on her dress, and managed to keep the conversation going for a full hour until it was time for the delegates to leave.

“Will you be at the banquet tonight?” he asked.

She looked startled all over again. “Yes. It took me ages to find something to wear. I’ve got something I think will do, but I suspect I look awful in it…” She trailed off with a wince .

“I’m sure you’ll look beautiful,” he assured her. “Would you mind if I sit next to you this evening? I’ve enjoyed talking to you so much.”

“Really? Well, okay. I mean, of course!”

He smiled and shook her hand as she left, holding it a little too long and complimenting her soft, pale skin until she blushed.

“Christ, that was awful,” he confided to Solange when they returned to their suite to get changed for the evening event. “She was so nice. I need a shower. I feel dirty.”

“Will you be able to do it?” Solange asked. “Seduce her, I mean? Have sex with her?”

He paused on his way to the door. “I don’t know.

I suppose so. I don’t really have a choice, do I?

” He was about to leave when he turned back.

“You don’t suppose Tyler will do the clicky finger thing again in front of all these people, do you?

” he asked anxiously. “I keep waiting for it now, and I’m on edge all the time whenever I see him.

I’m scared that one day he’ll ask me to do something and I won’t have the courage.

I don’t know what’ll happen if I refuse – or who he’ll choose to hurt next time. ”

Solange gazed at him miserably. “I don’t know, Alex, but I don’t think he’ll click his fingers at you in front of all his honoured guests. It’s not something he’d want the wider world to know about, so you’re safe for the duration of the conference, at least.”

“Unlike poor Rebecca,” Alex murmured as he left the room.

A couple of hours later he stood in front of the mirror, freshly shaven and wearing a brand-new tux.

It had an elegant, expensive cut, and was finished off with a white shirt, black silk bow tie, and red cummerbund.

His ID tag was hidden by the high cut of the shirt collar.

He’d been told not to deny he was an IS if asked, but not to volunteer the information either – he was simply to say that he worked for Tyler Tech, on George Tyler’s personal staff.

He was to introduce himself as Alex, and if he was recognised as Alexander Lytton, he was to nod politely and change the subject.

He had put on weight since his trial, and he was much more muscular after months of healthy meals and enforced exercise.

So far, nobody had asked if Alex was Alexander Lytton, but he had noticed a few people staring at him intently, as if they weren’t quite sure.

“Exquisite, if I do say so myself,” Lorenzo said, brushing a non-existent piece of lint off Alex’s shoulder.

He studied himself in the mirror, performing his usual trick of finding some trace of himself in his reflection.

He discovered it in the cynical tilt of his head as he grimaced.

He thought of Rebecca, and how he was going to take her virginity and break her heart, and suddenly wished he couldn’t see anything of himself in the mirror. He didn’t want to be this person.

The banquet started with a drinks reception in the ballroom.

Lorenzo had settled on the green dress for Solange, who seemed uncharacteristically nervous as Mick escorted them down to the ballroom.

It gradually started to fill up with delegates; Alex stood by the bar with a glass of champagne, ready to greet Rebecca when she arrived.

He was surprised when Solange suddenly grasped him by the arm and steered him to one side, behind a huge potted palm.

“We can talk here. Tyler only uses the top few floors of the building for his own people. He rents the rest out as a conference facility with hotel rooms, so he hasn’t installed smartwall cameras down here,” she told him in a hushed, urgent tone.

“Uh, okay,” Alex responded blankly.

“There are some regular CCTV cameras, but they aren’t pointed this way, and I know where they all are.” She nodded at the far wall.

“Right. What’s going on, Solange?”

“I know a way for you to escape,” she said unexpectedly.

Alex blinked. “What?”

She dug her fingers into his arm. “Look, I know a way, but it has to be now, tonight, if you want to do it.”

“I don’t… What?” he said again.