"You don't expect me to survive the year."

Allie wanted to cringe away from the hostility in Galen's eyes, but she forced her expression to remain neutral. Ira had made it clear that if Galen was to stay out of prison, she would have to be the one guarding him, because he wasn't about to allocate any of his other staff to such a menial assignment. Allie knew he wouldn't last five minutes in a prison. It wasn't like he'd killed anyone, and she truly didn't believe he would. She was willing to bet her life on it.

She was hurt that he thought so little of her that he believed she'd kill him, but she wasn't surprised. After all, he'd hated her for a decade, with good reason. Just because he'd slept with her when he'd thought she was someone else didn't mean he'd give up ten years of loathing. He probably hated her even more now for fooling him, however necessary it might have been.

"Have you changed your mind already, Mr Tasker?" Ira called.

Galen dropped his gaze to his handcuffed wrists. "No."

The door hissed shut behind him, leaving Galen alone in the corridor with Allie. He looked ready to bolt.

"I can take the handcuffs off now, if you like," she said, pressing her thumb to the scan panel. The cuffs clicked open. She was relieved to see Violet hadn't fastened them too tightly The cuffs had left no red marks on Galen's wrists. "Your ID chip is now coded to mine. You'll have to stay within a certain distance of me, or both the Watch and I will receive an alert. You can still go to work and you'll have some privacy, just...oh, and if Col spots you near an unusual radiation source, it'll notify me, too." She took in his slumped shoulders and the way he wouldn't look at her. "Would you rather go to prison?"

"Ask me in a month," he said bitterly. "His high and mightiness in there said it's still a possibility."

Not if she had any say in it, Allie vowed. Ira would get nothing but good reports about Galen, if she had to mind control the man herself to make him behave.