controlledvariable | exsilium; ic inbox

[There's a delay of about five minutes before the next text.]

windowsill

[And there will indeed be a bottle of scotch balanced on his windowsill.]

[So the mysterious appearance of those handcuffs last week made it clear to him that Steph can and will break into his room For Reasons, but something about this is just... unnerving. He didn't hear a thing.]

You're a regular Santa Claus. If I stick my head out the window, will I see Rudolph and his glowing red nose?

[Because he's totally gonna stick his head out the window after he retrieves the bottle to see if he can detect any trace of her.

But he doubts it.]

[She's not sure what to do with the sudden reminder of Nick, not when she hasn't really thought about him since coming here.]

if you see me, i'm not doing my job right

[So, no, there's no sign of her.]

[Alas.

But hey — no one to judge him for drinking straight from the bottle, eh?]

Just like I didn't see you yesterday after you "left"?

[It's not that she couldn't have stuck around to chat, but this feels - safer, when she's not sure where they stand.]

if you saw me then it's because i decided to let you.

[Gosh, Saul.]

I'm not saying I saw you. I'm just saying I had a feeling you were there. Am I right?

of course i was there. i had to stick around.

[She had to make sure he was okay.]

[He looks at his tablet for a few minutes after that, thinking. And drinking. Then:]

How many people in this city do you have bugged?

do you really wanna know the answer to that?

I do.

[And again, after a few minutes, though whether she's just counting or deciding whether to tell him will forever remain a mystery.]

about twenty five, give or take.

[He doesn't know whether to believe her or not, but — if she's telling the truth, that's a good number. Could be better.]

How do you do it?

which part?

I guess "what do you use?" is a better question. Tracking device? Bugged outlets? Should I be checking my neck for strange bumps?

[It's hard to tell whether he's kidding or not.]

intradermal bugs are a little invasive even for us.

["Us" being Bats, of course.]

i've got an assortment of tracking devices, listening devices, and spy-cams, all about the size of a pinhead. most of the listening devices/cameras are activated by keywords, so i'm not spying all the time, just if someone says something suspicious or that means they might be in danger

[Comic book tech.]

Wow. Way fancier than what I had back home. Can I buy one off you?

i might give you something, depends what you want it for.

[Helena is actually going to kill her.]

To track Walter. Unless you already have one on him, in which case I'll have to ask you to take it off.

i'm sure we've had a conversation about how you're not my boss.

[Which... isn't an answer.]

how exactly do you plan to plant a tracking device?

Just because I'm not your boss doesn't mean I can't have a say in how involved you are with another client of mine, and you're already in way too deep for my comfort.

[BUT WHOSE FAULT IS THAT, JERK?]

You'd show me how, right?

it means you don't get to decide who i do and don't consider a threat.

[God Saul that question barely even deserves a response. As if it's anywhere near as simple as showing him how to do it.]

have you heard of the school of seven bells?

[She's going somewhere with this.]

[Whatever; he's not in the mood to argue, especially not when the argument involves Walter, so he'll let that go. For now.]

No. What is it?

it's an urban legend, a school for thieves, based off the idea that to learn how to pick-pocket, you tie seven bells to specific points on a jacket and learn to take someone's wallet without the bells making a sound.

i learned on a jacket with fifty bells.

you can't just show someone how to plant a tracking device.

[Welp.]

Point taken.

[She thought so.]

now are you going to ask nicely if i'll put the tracking info into your laptop so you can keep an eye on walter, too?

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text; heather that is not sleeping

text; I'm sleep-tagging...

text; I stopped tagging to make sure you slept

text; :|

text; well it worked, didn't it?

text; MAYBE...

text; I rest my case

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