Azalea picks up her phone as the rent-a-car finally sputters to a halt, her attempt to follow Liz failing after a while chasing the hyper Ofanite.
Demiurge says "Okay. Liz is speeding off towards Pat's house, with Pat and Daimon piled into the back of her car."
Azalea dials the number of the tether.
The same woman as before replies, blithely, "Good afternoon. Bellman's Studios here. Can we help you?"
Azalea says "Alia here."
The voice converts abruptly to a healthy respect. "What can I do for you, madam?"
Azalea answers casually, "Just reporting in, since I've lost track of my mark for the moment."
There is the sound of some brief scribbling. "Can you summarise the movements so far, madam?"
Azalea says "'Here and there and everywhere' would be a pretty good summary; this woman never stops moving."
The voice says, "Did she stop anywhere in particular, madam?"
Azalea says "You know, I'm really not comfortable telling you all this, particularly over a cell phone. Cell phones can be tapped."
The voice hesitates. "Do you want to come in and report in person, madam?"
Azalea says "Not particularly. I just want to know whose boneheaded idea this was."
The voice says, very cautiously, "I believe that it was Mr Bellman's own idea that the people in question should be, ah, tagged. I also believe that we have had one fatality so far."
Azalea asks, incredulous, "We killed one of them already?"
The voice says, unhappily, "Ah, I think it's the other way round, madam."
<
Azalea says "Holy shit."
The voice says, less and less happily, "He's turned up in Trauma at the Tower, madam, it's been
reported."
Azalea's tone turns crisp, demanding. "What happened to him?"
The voice answers automatically. "I haven't been informed, madam, and I don't think he's out of
Trauma to answer yet. He was the one set to watching the Elohite of Judgement by the name of
Patrick Murphy."
The voice says, "Though the room he was in seems to have had the window and wall blown out
into the street."
Azalea mutters, "He was probably using the damned cellphones." Imperiously, "Somebody call
me and tell me when they find out what happened; I haven't any intention of ending up the same
way."
The voice says, nervously, "Yes, madam." It pauses. "Ah, madam, will you be reporting in later,
or coming in yourself?"
Azalea says "I guess it'll depend how long I live now, won't it."
The voice says, with the air of one caught between two stools, "Mr Bellman will be expecting a
progress report in soon, madam."
Azalea says "Yeah, me too. But I'm not going to use this phone, so you'll have to wait 'til my
mark goes somewhere I can find a public phone at."
The voice says, chastened, "Yes, madam. Is there anything else?"
Azalea says "No, not really."
The voice says, "Thank you, then, madam. Good day." She hangs up.
Azalea puts down her phone, rests her head on the steering wheel, and then hies herself away.
---