Morgan looked at his phone screen and read the same three words for the fourth time that morning. "I'm busy. Talk to you later."
Claire's text from two days ago was still the last message in their conversation thread. This was very different from the long messages they used to send each other every day. He scrolled up through their history, watching how their communication got worse over time.
Three weeks ago, Claire would text him in the morning with random thoughts or questions. Two weeks ago, those messages started to come less often, and they were often cut off by "Council meeting tonight" or "Father Murphy needs help with something."
Last week, she sent them an apology message saying that she had to cancel their lunch plans because she had important Council business that couldn't wait. There was only silence, with short responses that felt more like duties than real communication.
Morgan put down his phone and rubbed his eyes. He was worn out from too many sleepless nights spent planning murders and watching the one person he thought he could trust slip away.
He had run into Claire twice in the past week, but both times it was by accident, not on purpose. The first time they met was outside the church after a public service.
She had dressed differently, more formally, and her clothes matched those of other Council members. Something more rigid and controlled had taken the place of her usual casual warmth.
When their eyes met in the crowd, she smiled, but it was the fake smile of someone who was being polite, not the real smile he remembered. The second time was even worse.
Morgan had seen her at a coffee shop, which was where they used to meet all the time. She sat with another member of the Council, and they talked very seriously with their heads bent together.
Claire's body language was tense and focused, and she looked like she was completely sure of what she was saying. She waved quickly when she saw Morgan watching from outside, then turned back to her friend and waved him away without thinking.
Morgan experienced a jolt in his stomach as he walked away. This was the same person who had held on to his arm at the first Council meeting, unsure and scared, silently wondering if she belonged there.
Now she fit in there like she had always been there, speaking their language and wearing their confidence like a second skin. He forced himself to get out of bed and get dressed in a robotic way so he could meet with Rachel Kim to talk about her most recent discoveries.
But he couldn't stop thinking about Claire, about the change that was happening too quickly for him to understand or stop. He had time to think on the way to Rachel's apartment, but thinking only made things worse.
Morgan kept a close eye on Claire's schedule, just like he did with possible assassination targets, noting patterns and changes with the same clinical detachment. Usually, she was either at church, having private meetings with Murphy, or going to hospitals and community centers with Sister Margaret.
That last bit made him sick to his stomach. Claire was now actively involved in recruitment, using her natural warmth and empathy to draw traumatized people into Murphy's orbit.
Once, he had seen her from a distance sitting with a family that was mourning and saying things that made their loss seem like divine selection instead of random tragedy. Rachel opened the door looking worn out but full of energy, which was a result of her obsessive research.
Her apartment looked like Morgan's war room, with papers and maps covering every surface. She said, "The pattern is even clearer now," without any introduction, and took him to her makeshift office.
"Check this out. Every big group of disappearances happens in the same places where people have practiced their faith."
"Churches, temples, shrines, and even informal community gathering places that are critical to religion."
Morgan reviewed the maps she had made and saw the connection in clear detail. Rachel had done an impressive job of gathering the right kind of evidence that could eventually show what was really going on. If she lived long enough to publish it the right way.
"This is good," Morgan said, keeping his voice calm even though what he was seeing was heavy. "Have you thought about what this means for the nature of the disappearances?"
Rachel's eyes lit up with joy when she realized that she could finally talk about what she had found with someone who understood. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about."
"The targeting makes it seem like there was intent, but I can't figure out how it works. It's not germs or the environment that are spreading it."
"It's almost like something is chosen based on what everyone believes rather than what each person believes."
They talked for another hour, and Morgan carefully led her thoughts to useful conclusions while avoiding anything that might make her a more immediate target. She was a piece on the chessboard that needed to stay alive until the right time.
He knew that calculation was cold, but he didn't have time for feelings right now. Morgan checked his phone without even thinking about it when he left Rachel's apartment.
Claire hasn't said anything. He wrote a message that was simple and not scary. "Want to get coffee tomorrow?"
"I miss our conversations." He looked at the words for a long time before sending them.
Three hours later, while he was looking over Margaret's schedule for possible weaknesses, he got a response. "Of course. Harbor Cafe at 3?"
Morgan said yes right away, feeling both hopeful and scared. This might be a chance to get through to her and break down whatever Murphy had been building up in her mind over the past few weeks. Or it could be proof that she was already lost.
...
Morgan got to Harbor Cafe fifteen minutes early the next day and got a table in the back corner where they could talk privately. At first, he didn't even recognize Claire when she walked in.
She wore dark, conservative clothes that made her look older and more serious. She had her hair pulled back tightly, and the way she moved made it look like she was following a script.
"Hey," she said as she sat down in the chair across from him.
Her smile was polite but not very friendly. It was the kind of smile you give to someone you know but don't really know. "I'm sorry I've been so busy."
"The Council has been very demanding lately.
"I understand," Morgan said, looking at her face to see if he could find any signs of the person he used to know. "I just wanted to see how you were doing."
"Check to see that everything is going well for you."
Claire's face lit up a little, but the excitement seemed off. "I'm actually doing really well."
"Better than I have in a long time."
"You know what? The Council has given me a reason to live."
"Finally, I feel like I'm part of something important."