Michael and I stood in an orchard. The heady fragrance of apple blossoms in the sunshine hung in the air. Swans floated on a lake nearby. Their passing caused the slightest ripple on the smooth glass surface. The water was as gray as Michael's eyes. He kissed me again. When he pulled away, I saw he was dressed in a crude tunic like the one the stained-glass angel wore. I was afraid to look at his face. Somehow I knew it held that same beatific gaze. "You're human!" I tried to tell him, but it was like I was speaking underwater. The sounds distorted, and seemed to float away.

He offered me a white lily. The sheen of dew sparkled deep in its alabaster throat.

"Remember me. Some things done in the name of love have a bitter edge, Deidre."

I looked up to see the face of Morningstar superimposed over Michael's smiling face. I looked down to find the lily in my hands. I didn't remember taking it. A blast of wind fluttered through my blue robes. I looked up to see a wheel of six wings spinning through the air. It was monstrous. The apparition seemed to stare at me with Michael's eyes. URGENT MESSAGE. The sunshine disappeared behind a dark thundercloud. Lightning flashed. I saw a silhouette of an enormous wing across the office wall. URGENT MESSAGE. Locusts plagued the Nile Valley. A red mark turned avenging angels away from the door. Michael's voice echoed, "I am the archangel Michael."

URGENT MESSAGE. I woke up with a start. Running my fingers through my tangled hair, I yawned. The afternoon sun was hazy. Fishing for my blouse, I found Michael's tee shirt instead. I let my fingers caress the edges of a small rip in the material fondly with the memory of our lovemaking. URGENT MESSAGE. Pulling the shirt over my head, I mentally triggered the go-ahead switch.

Mouse was sitting in an Egyptian cafe. The setting sun bathed the whitewashed walls in a pinkish glow. The place was filled with smoke and conversation. Mouse's usually pleasant face was twisted into a scowling frown.

Well, good afternoon, I said, even though I knew it was late in the evening Cairo time. I wiped the sleep from my eyes, and stifled another yawn.

Cut the crap, Dee, he said. You're holding out on me.

Reducing his image to a small window, I mentally placed it in the right corner of my vision. I shifted part of my concentration to finding my underwear. I don't know what you're talking about, Mouse.

I'm not saying I'm not impressed, but I'm dying to know who've you got doing your hack work. You boosted Daniel from jail, right? Very clever. He smiled. The expression was eerie on the page; it was almost too realistic. I swear I saw a cold fire behind Mouse's eyes. Maybe I wasn't talking to the page after all, but the real McCoy.

Mouse, is that you?

What? Of course it's me. After all this excitement, I've given you your own dedicated line, girlfriend. My page is out of the loop. Anyway, he's got plenty to do running mousenet. Now tell me – where are you hiding Danny boy? When you see him, tell him his sig file is all over this latest. Hot.

I missed something in the translation, Mouse. What are you talking about?

Well, someone must've sprung Danny out of the old loony bin. Who else could pull off a stunt like this?

I stopped my search and sat down hard on the cool wooden floor. My heart was racing. I had to struggle to keep my voice subvocal. Daniel escaped?

Cute, but innocence never played very well on you, girl. Who else could it be? Mouse shook his head, tipping his teacup in my direction in a salute. If it wasn't you, tell me who browned out New York?

You did. Even my electronic voice sounded unsure, as I asked, Didn't you?

Fifty-three cases of severe cybernetic trauma, you think I did that? He jabbed his thumb at his chest to emphasize his point.

Fifty-three cases ... I repeated, shell-shocked.

Traffic control blown, he ticked off the offenses on his fingers – brownouts in seven precincts, including backup generator failure across the board; FBI headquarters in DC hacked, seventeen local bureaus down; and New Jersey State Penitentiary blacked out. He waved his hands in exasperation. Ah, the brotherhood of police... I never counted on Daniel still having loyal friends after all this time. I suppose you had someone in the prison system, maybe the warden, and then there was your grand escape. I was sure you were tapped out of friends on the force. Mouse lifted the teacup to his mouth distractedly. A deep frown slashed his boyish face. How many people are on your side anyway? Who's doing the coordinating of that army?

Are they all right?

Mouse blinked. Setting his cup down slowly, he cocked his head at me curiously. Who?

The fifty-three cases.

Mouse's eyes scanned an invisible report. Two reported heart attacks. Ten dead and several people wounded in traffic accidents. All fifty-three cyber-trauma cases reported in stable condition. He pursed his lips, then a smile spread across his face. You could have done that yourself, Dee. What is it about you that always makes me give you free intel?

I shook my head mutely. My mouth twitched as I tried to smile back at Mouse's beaming grin.

Mouse stared at me, as if measuring me up. So ... he said slowly, you scrubbed the agents, eh? The way you boosted onto the LINK was awfully powerful, now that I think about it ... do you have some kind of new tech or something?

"I don't know ..." I finally found my voice. I also spotted my underwear across the room, but I didn't have the energy to retrieve it.

What? Subvocal, Dee. I didn't catch all of that.

Daniel ... did he escape? I had to know.

Mouse shook his head slowly from side to side. Barter, girlfriend. You already owe me for the hospital report.

I got up and crossed the room. You picked a fine time to start playing hardball, Mouse. Anyway, if I remember correctly, you still owe me. All I got from you about Angelucci and Morningstar was that Michael was no angel ... and I intelled that one myself. I glance over to where Michael lay sprawled. Definitely not an angel, I smiled. Before slipping into my underwear, I quickly constructed a mental image of them. I sent the visual to Mouse as an addendum.

Mouse raised his eyebrows appreciatively. Bonus! Don't think I'm not going to post that to your bulletin board. You know, you really need to take some time to construct a page, Dee, or at least get a better camera eye going. I'm getting tired of this shoddy work; I'm used to better from you.

You of all people know I don't have the time to devote to making an Al right now. Tell me about Daniel. You think he's out?

I don't know. The prison is still in chaos. Some people escaped, that much is certain, but nobody is making official reports on anything I can access. Frankly, Dee, I'm surprised you don't know. Are you saying you didn't black out the prison?

I thought back to how easily I hacked the FBI frequency. I'd blasted Dorshak and the FBI agents with barely a thought. Mouse was right. Jibril's tech must be more powerful than anything I'd ever seen or used before. "If I did, it was unconscious. Christ, what am I capable of?"

Mouse cursed in Arabic. I heard something, but it wasn't clear. Repeat?

Sorry. I need to think about all this, Mouse. And – I looked over at Michael – there's a lot going on this end. I need to call you back okay?

No, wait, Dee... I'm on my way there. I need to talk to you.

It has to wait. Sorry. I broke the LINK connection and mentally turned off the urgent message override command. I needed some time for uninterrupted thinking. Looking over at Michael, I smiled. He moaned and rolled over. My eyes followed the muscles as they rippled along his body ... just as they should. There was nothing unearthly about the man lying here, no. I shivered and hugged my arms around my waist, feeling the firmness of my hips.