Chapter 27 end

The screen beeps, indicating that information has entered.The Phantom Man looked up from the report he was studying on the table and noticed that the call was coming in from a secure line. "Pick up the phone," he said, and the image of Paul Grayson came into view. The phantom man was a little surprised and blinked.He had thought his mission to infiltrate the Quary fleet had failed because two weeks had passed and he hadn't heard anything.He only needs to read the news to know the results of most of the Cerberus missions, but the media cannot cover the information in the borders of the wandering fleet.This made the Phantom Man seem as stupid and ignorant as the rest of the townspeople.

"Paul," he said, nodding slightly forward, "is the asset back?" "Her name is Gillian," Grayson replied, the hostility in his voice clear. "Okay, Gillian," the phantom man took a step back, but his voice was still indifferent. "How about the mission?" "The whole team is fucked. Glo, everyone." "except you." "I'm as good as dead," Grayson replied. "I'm just a ghost now. You'll never find me." "How is your daughter?" asked the Phantom Man. "How long will she survive as a fugitive? Being on the run is not the life she should be living. Bring her here, Paul, and we can talk about what to do about it." She's the best."

Grayson smiled. "She's not with me at all right now. She's on a Quary Deep Space Expedition ship in the center of an unexplored space at the edge of the galaxy. You'll never find her." As soon as the phantom man realized that the girl was no longer within his reach, he gritted his teeth lightly.The very fact that Grayson was willing to taunt him with this information made it impossible to track down Gillian.He relies on a constant stream of information from Cerberus informants on Council Worlds and the Terminus star system.Beyond this network, he is blind. "I thought you were loyal to our cause, Paul."

"I used to be," Grayson replied, "and then I saw what it was like to think like you, and I changed my mind again." The phantom man looked at the screen mockingly. "I'm in the business of saving lives, Paul. Human lives. You understood. But now it seems like you're suddenly saving your own soul." "I feel like my soul has gone too far, beyond salvation." "Then why are you still on the phone?" the phantom man demanded, with a hint of frustration in his voice. "I'm just giving you a warning," replied the man on the other side of the screen. "Stay away from Carrie Sanders. If you track her down, I'm going to the league and telling you everything I know."

The Phantom Man carefully studied the image on the video screen.He noticed the familiar traces—Greyson's bloodshot pupils and shimmering teeth after taking the red sand were gone.He knew the man wasn't bragging. "Is she worth so much to you?" "Is this important?" Grayson shot back. "She's worth nothing to you. Nothing compared to the dirty secrets I know. I think it's a good deal to trade my silence for her safety." .” "We will find you, Paul." The phantom man promised softly with threats. "Maybe," Paul admitted. "But that's not what I'm calling for. About Carrie Sanders—are we a deal?"

The Phantom Man took a moment to weigh Paul's offer, and nodded in acceptance.Losing Gillian set their biotic research back a decade, but Cerberus had too many other projects going on to risk everything.After a while, the image disappears and the phone hangs up. The Phantom Man didn't bother to track down the call - Grayson was too smart to leave a tail on something so simple.Instead, the phantom man just stared at the already blank screen, gritted his teeth, and then slowly let go.