Page 45 of The Revenge Game

And there’s no chance he was acting out his own pain on me, is there?

Would it make it better or worse if he was?

After all, the net result to me was still the same.

The following morning I leave a half-asleep, very amused Leo having breakfast in my kitchen to head to work. He appears to find Andrew the IT worker who has to clock in at eight-thirty a.m. incredibly entertaining.

In the office, Xander continues what appears to be a one-person show titledMost Productive Employee of the Yearwhile Adam watches from his desk with an expression that suggests he’s seriously considering calling HR to check if excessive enthusiasm counts as a workplace hazard.

I settle at my desk and open my inbox, which contains the usual urgent IT tickets about forgotten passwords.

My computer pings with a new email, and my heart does an annoying skip when I see it’s from Justin.

To: Drew Smith

From: Justin Morris

Subject: Breaking News—Technology Behaving!

Hey Drew,

Just wanted to report that my PowerPoint actually stayed a PowerPoint, my calendar is letting me schedule things outside the witching hour, and my email hasn’t developed a random fetish for troll porn. Should I be worried that my technology is being suspiciously well-behaved? Maybe it’s plotting something bigger…

I wrestle with the smile trying to overtake my lips. Justin’s humor still surprises me. But hey, didn’t I decide the other night that being friends with Justin might be the best way forward?

I quickly type out a reply.

To: Justin Morris

From: Drew Smith

Subject: Re: Breaking News—Technology Behaving!

As your designated IT guy, I feel professionally obligated to remind you that computers are a lot like Cassie and Tabitha. Just because they’re behaving doesn’t mean they’re not plotting something. Though, hopefully, any future rebellion will involve fewer explicit trolls and more cute cat videos.

But seriously, glad everything’s working. Try not to tempt fate by bragging about it too much. Computers can sense hubris.

To: Drew Smith

From: Justin Morris

Subject: Re: Re: Breaking News—Technology Behaving!

You’re right about computers sensing hubris. My laptop just made a noise I’ve never heard before. Either it’s plotting revenge, or it’s learned to purr. Given my luck lately, probably both.

To: Justin Morris

From: Drew Smith.

Subject: Re: Re: Breaking News—Technology Behaving!

At least it’s not distributing more images of trolls in intimate embraces to all of your contacts. I mean, how do you top troll porn? (Please don’t actually attempt to answer that question)

PS I promise this email contains no trolls, explicit or otherwise.

To: Drew Smith

From: Justin Morris