Chapter Text
Alex was awoken by the sound of Ian knocking on his bedroom door. The persistent tapping pulled him out of his dreams, and he blinked his eyes open groggily. His room was still pitch dark, not a stream of morning sunlight drifted into the room. With a groan, Alex rolled over and squinted at his alarm clock. The bright blue numbers glared back at him, 5:01, with stinging intensity.
He buried his face in his pillow, hopping to steal a few more minutes of sleep, but another rasp at the door made him sigh in defeat. This time, a soft but urgent hiss followed, “Alex”
“Yeah, Yeah, I’m up.”Alex responded, rolling himself out of bed, and shaking off the leg that got tangled in the bed covers. He staggered over to the doorway, turning on the bedroom light out of habit, and opening up the door a crack.
Ian stood there, still in his pyjamas but much more awake than Alex was. A blue steaming mug of tea was in his left hand, Alex could just faintly smell the sharp hue of Earl grey.
“Good Morning,” Ian greeted, a smile on his face, although there was the hint of urgency in his eyes “Get dressed. We leave in ten minutes. I don’t want to be running late.”
Alex squinted against the sudden brightness of the light, rubbing his eyes to clear away the last remnants of sleep. He glanced at Ian and then at the clock and realised he didn’t have a lot of time.
With a nod, Alex closed the door. He groaned again, rubbing a hand down his face. The action did make him feel a bit more awake even if he didn’t fully shake off the sleepiness. He moved over to his closet and grabbed the new suit that Ian had got him yesterday.
He laid it out on the bed for a moment as he gathered his underwear and socks. He glanced back at the suit. It felt serene, borderline unbelievable that this was happening. He was actually going to go to the bank! He was going to spend the day learning about Ian’s job. A small, excited smile crept onto his lips
He quickly got dressed. Trousers first, which fit him perfectly thanks to the modifications Mr. Hawthorn made yesterday. Then a white blouse, and finally the jacket. He grabbed his school tie, partly out of habit and partly because it was conveniently left on his bookshelf. It should be fine. No one at the bank should pick up on that small detail, well, no one but Ian. And, Alex didn’t think Ian would care.
Otherwise, the suit was unbelievably comfortable. There was something about the material that had a stretch to it. Alex supposed he could run a mile in it if he need to and remain comfortable the whole time.
He opened the door to the hallway. The lights were off; Ian was probably downstairs, or changing in his bedroom. That left Jack, who was still asleep in the room across from him. Alex tiptoed quietly across the hallway and slipped into the bathroom.
He stepped into the bathroom and was greeted by his reflection. It seemed like an older, more professional version of himself was staring back. Ian was right. The suit did make a difference.
He could very well picture himself grabbing his briefcase in the morning, getting in a car, and driving to a small cubical in a bank office somewhere. Well, that was what he was about to be doing anyway. No one would question him if he was walking around a bank or an office. He felt like he belonged. Plus- Mr. Hawthorn did an amazing job on the suit. Given Alex didn’t grow more wide then tall, he could easily see himself using this suit for job interviews or university in a few years.
He ran his bore-brissle hair bush underneath the sink wetting it, then he brushed back his hair in an attempt to tame the wild bed hair and make it look neat. He adjusted his tie in the mirror making sure it was straight.
He took a deep breath, shaking on any lingering nerves, and opened the bathroom door. Today felt special.
-
When Alex came down the steps, Ian was waiting at the door, looking wide wake and put together. Alex couldn’t help but feel envious; he felt sluggish, tired and a mess in comparison.
“Okay, are you ready?” Ian asked him as he opened the door.
Alex adjusted the sleeve of his jacket, admitting, “Yeah. I’m just a bit tired though.”
It was still dark outside, and the first ray’s of morning light were filtering in, giving the sky and the outside a light blue hue. Alex still didn’t understand how adults managed to wake before the sun did. It just seemed… depressing.
“One last thing,” Ian said, stopping them, “Due to Royal and Generals work with sensitive clientele, whatever you might observe you are not allowed to tell anyone. And, before we leave tonight we will have do sign some paperwork- something like an NDA.”
“Uh… whats an NDA?” Alex asked
“Non disclosure agreement,” Ian explained, “Its just legal jargon, to protect our clients. Its protocol."
“Right.” Alex said. There was a knot in his gut that something was weird. People don’t sign stuff like that when they just visit, right? And, what could Alex possibly see that was so important to remain hidden? He filed his questions to the back of his mind. He trusted Ian, if the paperwork was important then Alex would just do what he needed to do.
His excitement overshadowed any lingering doubts. He was very excited to go to Ian’s work. It was something that Tom and him have talked about for a while. Ian took his job way to seriously, yet, from what he had gathered, Ian was one of the more senior staff members. Between the free cars, the bank paying for their holiday’s abroad, Ian had to be doing something right.
Still, it was weird to see him suddenly so open about his job.
Ian closed and locked the house door with his key. Then they both walked quietly to the car. Ian walked the long way around the car, looking under the car and into the back windows before opening up his door. Once inside, he started the car, put his seat belt on, checked to see that Alex was wearing his, before carefully manoeuvring out of his parking space.
“I got a question,” Alex asked a few seconds later, “If I’m not allowed to tell anyone then how can I do my school assignment?”
“Common sense,” Ian suggested, “You can write about what happens in a bank, but just not who our clients are. You can say you helped with the deposit, but you can’t say the deposit was two million pounds. I can read over your assignment before you turn it in.”
“Okay.” Alex responded with a nod. He had no idea that banks were so secretive. Why should it matter if the Queen came into the bank and wanted two million pounds for a holiday? It really shouldn’t?
“We got a few extra minutes,” Ian added, “If you want we can get tea or coffee before we get there? The bank has a few break rooms, they do have these free vending machines for both. But, they are just… okay.”
“Still! Free?” Alex said, “now that’s fancy.”
“Well- There are some perks to my job,”Ian said with a chuckle. “So want to stop?”
“Neh- I’m good.” Alex responded, leaning his head against the window.
As the car sped through the waking city, Alex watched the buildings blur into streaks of light and shapes against the pre-dawn sky. The city around them was slowly waking up, with the early morning commuters starting to fill the streets. Alex’s eyelids felt heavy, and despite his best efforts to stay awake, the rhythmic hum of the engine and the gentle swaying of the car lulled him into drowsiness.
Alex must have dosed off again, because the next thing he knew, they were pulling into an underground car park. The sudden stop jolted him awake, and he blinked groggily, trying to orient himself.
“Ale-x?” Ian’s voice interrupted Alex’s groggy state. “Did you really fall asleep?” Ian asked, his lips curling into an amused smile.
“Maybe…”
“Well, if you went to bed at nine PM like I suggested, you would have been more awake now.”
“But… Thursday fun day,” Alex protested weakly in his tired state, but then he quickly amended it, “Tom and I played video games.”
Ian hummed knowingly, “How late?”
“11…” Alex lied.
“Alex.” Ian began with a warning tone, clearly seeing though the fib.
“One…” Alex admitted truthfully, “But then I went right to bed.”
“Four hours of sleep is not enough,” Ian said, as he put his car into park, “But, I digress. We are here.”
Alex looked around. The car park appeared much more polished than typical underground garages, with its neat layout and ample lighting. It seemed recently renovated. Alex couldn’t help but wonder about the wealth of the bank’s clients.
“This is Royal and General, right?” Alex asked, seeking clarification.
“This is the car park, yes.” Ian confirmed, “The rest of the bank is upstairs.”
“I mean… are your clients… royal?”
“Ah- yes.” Ian said, “Sometimes our clients involve… both parliament and the crown.”
“That makes sense, sorry.” Alex replied, feeling a bit embarrassed. Royal was literally in the title.
“Don’t apologise for asking a question.” Ian reassured him, “So we will get you upstairs to HR, first then I’ll give you a short tour.”
“Sounds good.” Alex said eagerly. He was nervous but excited. He would finally see where Ian worked.
Ian grabbed his briefcase out of the backseat. He took a moment to gather his belongings, making sure he had everything he need for the day ahead. With a quick glance around the car to ensure nothing was left behind, he gave Alex the hand signal to move.
Alex, who had been fidgeting with his seat belt in anticipation, finally unbuckled it and opened his door.
Alex opened up his door, and they both stepped out. The cool, musty air of the underground rushed in, it was like any other underground car park, but something about it felt different.
Ian did a quick glance around the car park like he always did, to help him remember where he parked his car, before they moved to a metal door. Ian took out his badge, and scanned it against the scanner. Then he entered a code into the key pad and the door unlocked with a mechanical click.
Ian took a deep breath, straightened his tie, and looked down at Alex with a reassuring smile. Holding the door open for them, Ian gestured for Alex to go inside first. Once Alex had entered, Ian followed and walked over to the elevator panel, pressing the button to call it.
Instantly, Alex was impressed. The lobby’s interior was marble floors and walls with gold ascents. It was a stark contrast to the concrete outside. It wasn’t that big; with only a potted plant on a stand between the two lifts.
As, they waited for the lift to arrive, Alex heard the same mechanical sound locking the door behind them. He glanced backwards, and saw the same badge scanner, realising that you would need a badge to both enter and exit. Alex surveyed the the rest of the room. Apart from the lifts, there seemed to be no other way to leave. No emergency exit was visible, and there was no stair well, at least not to or from this lobby.
A chill went down Alex’s spine. Something about the setup didn’t sit right with him. He shook off the feeling. It’s just a bank, he reminded himself. A high-tech security bank, sure, but it’s just a bank.
It took a few seconds for the lift to arrive, it let out a soft, but pleasant ding on its arrival. The doors opened slowly, revealing an equally luxurious interior. As they stepped inside, Ian pressed the 10th floor. Alex saw that the control panel had 20 floors, and 5 sub floors. Did the underground car park go down five levels? If so… that did seem a bit excessive for employee parking.
Ian followed Alex’s glaze to the control panel.
“Oh, yeah,” Ian said, “The tenth floor has Human Resources, and my office is on the fifteenth floor.”
“Why so many floors?” Alex asked, “That seems a bit excessive for a bank.”
“Not only is this the main office for R&G, its also the HQ for- our international relations.” Ian responded, with a slight cough, almost like he was clearing his throat.
“You okay?” Alex turned at looked at him.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I just swallowed air wrong.” Ian said as the lift door opened on the tenth floor, “We need to stop by the security office to get your security badge. And, whatever you do, Alex, don’t take it off.”
“Yes, Sir.” Alex said, with just the slightest bite of sarcasm, which earned him a glare from Ian.
“Alex, I’m serious.”
“And, I was agreeing with you.”Alex said with a small shrug, “I get the need for the security badge.”
Ian sighed and led the way down the corridor.
Alex glanced around as they walked. Most of this floor was filled with office cubicles, but suprisingly, only a few were occupied by tired-looking employees. The rest sat empty, their desks neat and untouched. Alex paused for a second, struck by the emptiness of the building. The vast parking lots, numerous empty offices- it all seemed odd, unsettling even. Something was off.
Ian already had turned and kept walking down the corridor, leaving Alex behind. Hurrying to catch up, Alex jogged to match Ian’s pace.
Ian abruptly stopped at a door labelled “Security.” Alex, caught off guard in his hurry to catch up, nearly bumped into him.
“I thought you said HR was here?” Alex asked, puzzled.
“Yeah,” Ian replied, turning slightly and pointing down the hallway behind him, “this whole floor. But, security deals with, uh… the badges.”
Alex nodded, noting that this was the third time Ian had stumbled in his conversations today. It raised a suspicion in Alex’s mind, but it shook it off, attributing it to Ian’s nerves about bringing him to work.
Ian opened the door, and Alex followed inside once again. The office was small, reminiscent of a doctor’s waiting room. A few chairs were scattered around, and there was a reception desk behind a plexiglass screen. Alex could see into the room behind the receptionist- a wall covered with monitors displaying various feeds.
However, what caught Alex off guard were the images on the screens. They showed the usual views- corridors, the exterior, and the car park- but also, inexplicably, what appeared to be empty cells. This wasn’t a prison.
“Alex, take a seat,” Ian instructed, pointing to one of the chairs.
Alex complied, settling into the chair. Ian leaned up against the plexiglass window with his legs crossed and his finger tapping gently on the counter top. It didn’t seem to be out of impatience, but possibly nerves, or perhaps Ian was tapping out a silent beat as he watied.
They waited in silence for only a few minutes before the door swung open. A woman wearing a bright yellow security jacket entered the room, her personality matched the colour of her jacket. Bright, and maybe just a bit too cheerful.
“Hello, Mr. Rider,” she greeted, her glaze shifting from Ian to Alex. “And you must be Alex.”
Alex stood up from his seat and walked over to stand beside Ian. He extended his hand, and she shook it quickly but firmly.
“We don’t really have job shadowing passes,” she explained to Ian. “We have visitor passes for important guests, and we have internship badges. Since you mentioned wanting Alex to get a feel for the front, let’s give him an internship badge.”
“That sounds good,” Ian agreed, giving Alex a pat on the back.
“Okay, we just need the standard information,” she continued, handing Alex a clipboard with a few pages on it.
Alex quickly scanned the clipboard. His name and age made sense, but the request for his height, eye colour, and hair colour struck him as a bit unusual. The spot at the bottom of the page for his finger prints seemed excessive. His eyes paused on the medical information page; they wanted his blood type and next of kin… what kind of forms were these?
“Blood type!?” Alex said, “I didn’t know this was a blood bank.”
“Give me that-!” Ian said, his tone perhaps was a bit too aggressive. “I’ll fill out all the information for you. Go with Ms.Harvey and get your photo taken for your badge.”
Alex handed the clipboard to Ian without protest. He shrugged and followed the woman, presumably Ms. Harvey, into the back room. They passed the wall of camera screens again, but she was moving too quickly for Alex to notice anything new. However, he did take note of a security guard attentively watching the feeds.
As they entered the room where photos were taken for badges, Alex noticed the setup reminded him of school picture day. A small stool was positioned in front of a white sheet. Ms. Harvey pointed towards the stool, and Alex sat down on it.
He stightend up his back as he sat down, trying his best to look photogenic.
“First time at the R&G bank?” She asked
“Neh-“ Alex responded, “I was here once or twice but I stayed in the lobby and waited for Ian to get out of work.”
“Ah that makes sense,” she said, as she adjusted the camera to match his height. “So, your what? Ian’s kid brother?”
“No,no.” Alex clarified, a small blush creeping onto his cheeks before he laughed, “He is my uncle but he hates to be called uncle.”
“Ah… your parents?”
“Ian’s brother but they both died when I was a baby.”
“Oh- I’m sorry,” Ms.Harvey said, “I heard about John Rider… he was one of our best.”
One of our best…. Alex didn’t know his father worked for the bank.
Ms. Harvey turned back to the camera, and focused it on him.
“Alright, just look straight at the camera and give me a natural smile,” she instructed. Alex did his best to comply, hoping the photo would turn out well despite his lingering nervousness. The flash went off, and it was done.
“Perfect,” Ms. Harvey said, checking the image on the screen, “It will take a few minutes to process. Here I’ll show you how we make the badges.”
Alex stood up and followed her to her desk. The image of his face was already there on her computer screen.
“What to see something cool?” She asked, and before Alex could respond, she clicked on the photo of him. It scanned his face and suddenly, and it opened up a timestamped video in a separate window. He saw Ian and him in the underground car park. There was a green square around his face and a green square around Ian’s faces.
“So… this technology uses facial recognition?”
“Yeah!” She said, “Your one smart kid!”
I’m not a kid, Alex wanted to say, but he held back, not wanting to see rude. He was a teenager, after all, and the distinction mattered to him. Instead, he simply nodded, offering a polite smile instead.
“This is our camera system. Anyone authorized in our system will show up as a green square and we can pull up any camera with that person in it within an instance.”
“Neat!” Alex responded, finding it both a bit cool and unnerving at the same time, “What if I was not authorized?”
“Well- Then your face would show up with a grey square, and certain people in our system will show up with a red square.”
“That’s actually really cool.”
“Yeah!” She said, clicking on a document that displayed the internship badge template. She typed his name and moved his image into the designated spot. With a final click, she hit the print button.
And, suddenly the printer behind him buzzed to life. Alex turned slightly to watch as the machine whirred and clicked, producing his new badge.
“You can grab it if you want. The plastic will be warm to the touch, so be careful."
Alex walked over and picked it up. It was the coolest thing ever- a plastic card with his image and the word “INTERN” printed boldly across it. He turned it over in his hands, marveling at how official it looked. This little badge, filled him with excitement. It would give him the means to explore the bank, and finally see where Ian worked.
“Lanyard or badge reel?” Ms. Harvey asked.
“Uh, what’s cooler?”Alex responded, unsure.
“Hum…. Most of the guests and interns use the lanyard, but our agents use the badge reel. So if you really want to be cool and look all hip, I would go with the badge reel.”
“Badge reel then,” Alex decided.
Ms.Harvey nodded approvingly, reaching into her drawer and pulling out a badge reel. It was a small circle of plastic with a clip for his badge. Alex clipped it onto his belt, feeling a thrill of excitement.
He felt cool, in a James Bond kind of way.
She escorted Alex back over to Ian, who handed her the completed packet.
“He is all yours,” she said
“I’ll have him sign all the forms before we leave today,” Ian replied, “Should I hand them to you or someone up on seventeen?”
“Just bring them to me,” She said with a nod. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Thanks!” Ian said, putting his hand on Alex’s shoulder to direct him on where to head to next.
“Okay, now that the paperwork is mostly taken care of, I’ll give you a tour,” Ian said with a smile, his tone now more relaxed.
Alex nodded. They went back over to the lift where Ian pressed the button for the ground floor.
As the lift descended, the hum of the lift music was almost soothing. Alex leaned against the metal interior, watching as the digital display counted down.
“Customer service is on the second floor, and Mail is on the third floor.”
“What are the other 16 floors and 5 sub basements used for?” Alex asked, "That is a lot of floors..."
“Storage, meeting rooms, and offices.” Ian said with a shrug.
When the doors finally slid open they were greeted with an empty lobby. It spoke of both grandeur, with its gold and marble, and tradition, with its high classical ceilings and wooden teller booths.
The ground floor was much more of what Alex was expecting from a bank. The grand entrance way was adorned with intricate architectural details, polished wooden teller booths, mirrorlike marble floors, leather couches and vibrant chandeliers. The atmosphere was hushed, and dignified.
Alex understood at once. The people who used Royal and General for their banking were expecting this kind of splendour.
Ian gestured towards the empty lobby area. “This is the waiting area, and those are the teller booths.”
“Why is it so empty?” Alex asked, speaking for both the lobby and basically the rest of this place.
“Because the bank opens at 8.” Ian responded. Well, that explained why everything about this place felt uncanny, empty and unnerving. No one else was an over achiever, like Ian, and showed up to work two hours early. All of Alex’s worrying before was for nothing.
“And, why did we need to get here so early?” Alex whinnied, wishing now he could get those three extra lovely hours of sleep.
“It’s easier to get a head start, plus I have a meeting at 9, that I can’t miss.”
Alex rolled his eyes.
“Do you see that last booth over there?” Ian asked, pointing out the last teller counter on the right side.
“Yeah?”Alex replied, his mood perking up, and he sent a curious glance at what Ian was pointing out. It was set about a foot ahead of the rest of the counters around it. It also seemed to be a bit more decorative. Alex wondered what it's use was. Was it something fun? Like a VIP line for the most important people? Or, did it serve fancy sweets to guests who were waiting in the lobby?
“That’s our foreign exchange window,” Ian explained with a hint of pride.
“Oh,” Alex said, not quite grasping the significance of it. It was a lot less... exciting then Alex thought it would be.
Ian smiled knowing, understanding Alex’s initial lack of excitement. “It’s where customers can exchange foreign currencies for local currency or vice versa. We handle international transactions there.” After a beat, Ian continued talking. “Lets keep moving, there is much more to see.”
Ian walked beside Alex, pointing out historical plaques and framed decor among the walls. This part of the ground floor almost reminded Alex of a museum. There was a small memorial for fallen soldiers. It was next to a splendid, peaceful indoor waterfall. A list of names, (some deliberately left blank) were engraved on the marble monument, starting with the second world war and continuing on to today. Ian paused here for a moment, silently thinking. Alex took the opportunity to admire the pretty waterfall, and the collection of coins people threw into it.
Following that, was a brief history of banking plastered on the wall; from ancient civilizations like Mesopotamia, who used merchants and traders, to the middle ages, when merchant banks facilitated trade across the silk road, to the industrial revolution, where banking expanded rapidly, fueling industrial growth. It even pointed out how the world wars, and subsequent global economic crisis shaped banking today.
Alex took pictures of the various infographic boards to use in his project. He just would need to ask his teacher how to properly cite “Bank infographic boards”.
“Over here,” Ian said, gesturing towards a row of offices in the back, “is where our finance department handles budgeting and financial reporting. They play a critical role in ensuring the banks financial health and stability.”
Alex nodded along, absorbing the information as they continued on their tour.
“This is where our front-line staff interact directly with our customers,” Ian explained, pointing out an area where a few employees were now busy setting up for the day. With the addition of a few live people, the bank was already starting to feel like an office and not some creepy empty building.
Ian kept walking, moving between each location quickly. When they finally stopped, they stopped at large open section of the building. There were a few rounded tables and booths, and what looked like a place to order food.
“This is our cafe," Ian said, pointing out the obvious, "Since its open to the public, unlike the staff rooms, you will have to pay for food here. The food is decent, and they serve pizza. I’ll give you twenty quid for lunch.”
“Wait- I thought we would get lunch together-“ Alex protested.
“Well- I got meetings in the morning till noon, then another meeting at fourteen hundred. Plus, there’s so much paperwork I need to catch up on paperwork. I doubt you want to just sit in my office room all day,” Ian explained, “So, I got you a job!”
“A job?”Alex echoed, uncertain.
“Yeah!” Ian grinned, clarifying gently “You’re here to job shadow.”
“But, I’m shadowing your job!” Alex insisted.
Ian shook his head with a knowing smile, “Trust me, you don’t really want to shadow my job.”
Alex huffed, and crossed his arms defiantly. “And what if I want to be a banker like you? I should know how to do the job, right?”
Ian looked over at Alex, his voice suddenly serious, “If you really want my job, they will train you. But, that is your choice to make one day when your much older.”
“What is your job?” Alex pressed on.
“International Manager Foreign Operations.”
“More jargon then,”Alex said feeling a bit defeated.
“Yes,”Ian said, “It’s all a bit of jargon and other ‘in the know’ lingo. Don’t feel bad that you don’t get it, kiddo. It’s a lot for anyone to pick up on the first time.”
Alex huffed and crossed his arm.
“Come lets get you to the mail room.” Ian said, ending the conversation. He turned on his heels and leading the way back to the lifts. Alex followed closely.
They waited for a moment for the lift to arrive, once it did, the door slide open, revealing a man inside. He acknowledged the both of them, and moved over to the corner to make room for them. However, the man was staring directly at Alex. It made him feel a bit uncomfortable. Like a field mouse with a hawk circling above.
“Crawley!” Ian greeted as they got into the lift, Alex followed behind him closely unsure, “This is Alex.”
“What do you do here…Mr. Crawley?” Alex asked, timidly.
Crawley turned his sharp glare from Alex to Ian. “Depends on what you told him.”
“Just banking stuff,” Ian explained with a casual shrug.
Crawley nodded, then explained, “I handle the executive paperwork. When something needs to be brought to our boss I sort the paperwork and manage personnel. Often times, Jones does the more personal stuff, but I also handle important assets. “
It felt like more of that… jargon. But, Alex nodded along as if he understood it completely.
The lift dinged, indicating they were on the third floor. Alex was the first to leave it, glad to be out of that awkward encounter. But, to his surprise, Crawley excited the lift too. Alex had assumed that he was likely going to ride it all the way up to the top or at least one of the cooler floors.
“Ian… Can I talk to you for a second? Alone.” Crawley said pointedly, nodding his to his left.
“Alex, please wait here.”
“Fine.” Alex replied, crossing his arms and puffing his cheeks in annoyance as he leaned against the lobby’s wall.
He watched as Crawley and Ian walked down the hallway. He couldn’t help but feel a pang of curiosity mixed with irritation. What was so important that he couldn’t hear?
Crawley and Ian walked down the hallway till they were out of Alex’s earshot.
“Ian… why is your nephew here?” Crawley asked.
“I got it all worked out with the front staff. He will see that it’s a bank and nothing more. Its just a day.” Ian said, “He had this assignment from school, and, it was to job shadow a parent. I felt bad because… Alex does not have any. Jack works at our house, and well… he seemed to disappointed that this homework would have to be different then his peers.”
Crawley sighed, running a hand through his hair, “Ian, you know how sensitive things are around here. One slip-up and-“
“I know, I know,” Ian interrupted, a hint of frustration in his voice, “But I promise, I’ll keep a close eye on him. He won’t see anything he shouldn’t. It’s just one day.”
“Fine,” Crawley responded, thinking, “Did you tell Blunt?”
“No! No… I did not want him to… think Alex was actually interested in this job,” Ian said, shaking his head, “I want Alex to spend a weekend working for a bank, a real bank. Not a weekend playing spy.”
“Alright I can understand that.” Crawley said, “Since I ran into you, I wanted to remind you to bring the paperwork from the Russian assignment.”
“Is this the one Martin has been obsessing over?”
“Yep. The one and the same. ” Crawley nodded.
Ian shook his head, “Fine. I’ll bring it with me. Thank you for the reminder.”
They both walked back over to Alex, who was still waiting patiently, or perhaps boredly, as he picked at the dirt under his fingernails.
“All done with your secret meeting?” Alex quipped as Crawley and Ian approached.
Crawley shot Ian a glance, his expression unreadable.
“Yes, Alex.” Ian replied calmly, “It just was to talk about what I needed to bring to the meeting.”
Crawley pressed the lift call button again, and the doors opened. He stepped inside.
Alex felt Crawley’s eyes on him again, as the lift doors closed, sending another shiver of unease up his spine.
“I’ll introduce you to Parker in the Mail room.” Ian said, uncharacteristically cheerful, pulling Alex’s attention back to him, “then unfortunately I need to prepare for the 9am meeting.”