Dan
"Tell me about this one." Sanchez turns the tablet to me. On the screen is one of my memes: a gorgeous blonde woman smiles out at the viewer. Her conservative white blouse is unbuttoned one button too far. She looks almost like a yoga mom, except for that extra swatch of skin. On the top it says: Sex work is honest work. And on the bottom it reads: Like and share if you agree we should have control over our own bodies.
I look up at Sanchez. "I'm pretty sure it's self-explanatory."
Her lips tighten, and her nostril's flare as she breathes in through her nose. "It went viral."
I glance at the tablet, to the statistics below the images. It was shared over 50,000 times and reached several million people. "Appears so," I agree.
"That's all you have to say?"
"You didn't ask me anything." I raise my brows, all innocent prisoner trying to be useful.
She narrows her gaze… so not going for the act. "How did you come up with it?"
I shrug. "The way I come up with anything." I smile. "I just keep trying until I get the results I want." Us in bed, whispering sweet nothings to each other.
Her jaw ticks with annoyance, as if she's read my mind and doesn't appreciate the sexual innuendo while at work. "Look," I relent, "I get that you're trying to pick apart how I did this, but it's not going to work that way."
"What do you mean?"
"I didn't do anything complicated. I just kept trying different things until I hit on stuff that worked. The more I threw at the wall, the more things stuck, and once I learned what stuck, it was easier to make new ones."
"Okay, so what sticks?"
"People feeling like their rights are being taken away. That life is unfair. I start with stuff anyone would agree with—so not this." I wave at the image. "Things like, 'Dogs are a man's best friend. Like and share if you think all dogs should be protected from harm.’"
"Okay..."
"Once I get them to like the page and begin to trust it, then I start to lean a little more in my direction. I'm not going after people who are pro-life with this meme. This is the language of pro-choice—women controlling their own bodies, whatever the purpose. And I target accordingly.
So, for what you want to do with the incels, we have to start with what they think is unfair. For example, ‘Women get custody of children 98 percent of the time in custody battles. Like and share if you agree men and women should have equal rights.’"
Sanchez sits back in her seat, nodding. "That is one of their complaints."
"Yeah, they think women are the ones with the advantage. They like the idea of things being 'fair.'" I use air quotes around fair. "But the thing is, the real key is targeting." Conseula nods. "Do you have an app for that?"
Her lips twitch into a small smile. "Maybe."
Our deal has been finalized—I get immunity, and she gets a campaign targeted to incels whose minds can be changed—but she is still holding back. "Let me take a look at it," I prod.
"When we get to our secure location."
"Where is that?"
"You'll find out once you're all healed up."
As if on cue, Dr. Travis walks in. Sanchez stands as though the headmaster just entered the classroom. I bet she went to Catholic school. I curse myself for the hundredth time for not researching her thoroughly—stupid. When she started the task force, I should have done a deep dive.
"Mr. Burke," Dr. Travis says, smiling, his gaze quickly shifting to the monitor on the far wall. He taps in his password and reads through the latest notes. "Looks like you're doing a lot better. Less meds today."
"That's right."
"Where is your pain at?"
"A five."
He nods, narrowing his eyes at the screen. "Okay, well, I know Ms. Sanchez wants you out of here as soon as possible."
"Yes," she agrees, crossing her arms over her chest.
"All your scans look good." He turns to me then. "You're lucky there wasn't more permanent damage."
"Yes," I agree, "but unlucky that I got beat up in the first place." I smile at him. Dr. Travis shrugs. Criminals get what criminals get, I guess.
He excuses himself to complete his rounds, and Sanchez sits back down, pulling the tablet close. "What are you going to do once I give you all my secrets?" I ask, a teasing tone to my voice. Even though we have a legal document between us, I want to know she will stand by it. That she will fight to make sure the US government doesn't try to just throw me in a hole when this is all over.
Her gaze flicks to mine. "That's in our agreement."
"So, you'll just let me walk away?"
She meets my gaze. "You're my asset, Dan. I take care of what's mine."
A shiver runs down my spine. I like that answer more than I should.