Andy: "Excellent. I'll get it from you before I leave here tonight."
Janet: "Elise Braxton phoned- I confirmed her meeting with you at 10:00. She seemed a bit on edge, but I assured her everything was still in order."

Andy: "That woman, I swear… if she wasn't one of the best in the area, I'd have her sent to an island somewhere."
Janet: "Emily Laine also phoned. She said she'd try calling back later."

For just a second, Janet thought she imagined Andy's face softening as a ghost of a smile flickered across it. As quickly as it came, it was gone again, replaced with the usual detached expression he was able to wear around her. As curious as she was, she stopped herself from wondering about it too much. After working for Stone for five years, she knew better than to ask questions.

Janet: "And lastly, Doctor Akira is waiting for you downstairs. Shall I send her up?"
Andy: "Please do. Thank you, Janet."

Janet nodded once before turning and leaving the office without another word, leaving Andy alone. His gaze fell momentarily on the framed photo sitting on his desk before he made his way over to the refrigerator for a drink. It was only quarter to ten and he was already feeling exhausted. He hoped Jade was bringing good news.

As if on cue, the elevator doors slid open.

Jade: "Hi! I was in the area and I thought I'd stop by."
Andy: "What brings you out here to the city? I'll assume this isn't a social call."

Jade's already big smile managed to get even bigger. She was across the room in a heartbeat, opening a laptop and placing it on an empty area of Andy's desk.

Jade: "Well sir, I thought you might like to know that I was able to determine that, while Markus Green is merely human, James Selwyn is definitely a vampire!"
Andy: "I assumed as much. How did you work it out for certain?"
Jade: "Blood samples."

Jade hoped beyond hope that he wouldn't ask her how she'd managed to gather the blood samples. She'd made up a story involving mosquitoes and nanotechnology, but honestly didn't know if he'd buy it. Without missing a beat, she pointed to the computer monitor, hoping to distract him from the question she could tell had already started forming.

Jade: "See this? This is a sample of James Selwyn's blood. These little whirly looking bits are the vampire virus."

As Andy moved in for a closer look, Jade felt her face flush. He was only there for a few seconds before leaning back again.

Andy: "Really great work, Jade."
Jade: "Thank you, sir. Also, I thought you'd like to know that Erebus is fully recovered now."
Andy: "Great! Is he ready for more experiments?"

Jade: "That's another thing I'd been working on, actually. I think I'm getting even closer to cracking the little problem with the sunlight. I was going to use him, but something in my stupid brother's spell really messed up his skin so I'm going to need some new vampires pretty soon."
Andy: "Xero hasn't finished the work on stabilizing the virus outside a human body, then?"
Jade: "No, sir."

Andy considered the information for a few seconds before responding.

Andy: "How would you rate his job performance lately, Jade?"
Jade: "Well, sir, to be honest… he's been a bit lacking."
Andy: "I see."

Jade: "I mean, I certainly don't want to get him in trouble, but it seems to me that he hasn't been doing as well as he could be to further your goals."
Andy: "I appreciate your honesty. What about Glass?"

Jade: "My brother is quite dedicated, and I hate to admit just how good he is at what he does. Don't tell him I said so."

Andy smiled, genuinely amused. Their sibling rivalry was paying off for him in ways he hadn't even been able to imagine back when he'd hired them. He'd been nervous about taking on a brother-sister team at first, but their work had been so outstanding he'd decided to take the risk.

Andy: "You two are quite the team. I'm glad you're on my side."
Jade: "Always, sir."

Before either had a chance to speak again, Janet was on the intercom.

Janet: "Sorry to interrupt, Mr. Stone, but your ten o'clock is here. Early."
Andy: "Go ahead and send her up, Janet."

Andy turned back to Jade.

Andy: "If there's nothing else-?"
Jade: "No, that's about it, really."
Andy: "Let me walk you to the elevator."

Jade: "Thanks for seeing me even though I didn't have an appointment or anything."
Andy: "I'm glad you dropped in. Keep up the good work."

The elevator doors slid open, and Jade traded places with the woman inside. She felt as though the woman hadn't even seen her, her eyes focused straight ahead on Mr. Stone. She was left with an all over creepy feeling as the doors closed.

Andy: "Miss Braxton, it's a pleasure to finally meet you in person."