Chapter Nine: The Selection

Saturday, 10:30 p.m. — Margaret Whitmore's Private Office

Margaret sat alone in her office, reviewing a collection of confidential placement files.

Outside, the Dixon campus was quiet. The residential buildings glowed beneath the security lights.

She opened a locked drawer and removed a thick folder.

The label read:

THOMAS, STEVEN — ORIGINAL CANDIDATE FILE

She studied the photograph on the front.

Steve Thomas. Eighteen years old.

She remembered reviewing his application personally.

There had been hundreds of possible candidates, but Steve had stood out.

His circumstances made him particularly attractive to the institute's placement program.

No close family. Almost no friends. A relatively small physical frame. No obvious outside support network.

Margaret had made the decision herself.

She signed the original authorization.

"Welcome to Dixon, Stephanie," she whispered.

But she wasn't ready for anyone else to know how carefully she'd arranged Steve's arrival.

Meanwhile — The Residential Wing

Stephanie and Danielle were sitting together reviewing the photocopies Danielle had obtained.

"There's another file," Danielle said.

She placed a document on the table.

Stephanie recognized the photograph immediately.

"Michael Reynolds."

"Not anymore," Danielle replied. "Dixon calls her Michelle."

The placement record showed that Michelle had completed the program and had been assigned to the son of a wealthy United States senator from South Carolina.

"Do you think she's still there?" Stephanie asked.

"I think so. Look at the date."

The placement had taken place only eighteen months earlier.

Stephanie studied the document.

"Could she help us?"

"Maybe. She knows what happened to her. And she might have copies of the original records."

Stephanie began to understand that Michelle could be much more important than a missing resident.

She could be their way out.

Richard's invitation

On Sunday morning, Stephanie received an invitation to lunch with Richard.

Richard was waiting when she arrived.

He stood and pulled out her chair.

"Good morning, Stephanie."

"Good morning."

"I hope you don't mind. I thought we could spend some time together without my mother supervising everything."

Stephanie smiled slightly.

"That would be a change."

Richard laughed.

They discussed fashion, travel, and the social events he regularly attended.

He asked her what sort of clothes she preferred.

Stephanie was surprised by the question.

"I like elegant things. But I don't want somebody else deciding everything I wear."

Richard considered that.

"Fair enough. I like a woman who knows her own mind."

She looked at him.

"Do you?"

"More than you might think."

For a moment, their conversation felt surprisingly natural.

Stephanie wasn't ready to trust him, but she was beginning to see another side of the man who had requested her placement.

A warning from Danielle

That evening, Danielle approached Stephanie in the corridor.

"I've been thinking about Michelle."

"What about her?"

"If we can find her, we might be able to prove what Dixon did. But we need to be careful. Margaret won't let us interfere with one of her private placements."

Stephanie nodded.

"Then we'll have to be smarter than Margaret."

Neither noticed Mrs. Hargrove watching from the far end of the corridor.

She immediately went to report what she'd heard.

Back in her office, Margaret received a message.

RESIDENTS OF INTEREST: STEPHANIE THOMAS / DANIELLE MERCER

She opened Steve's original file again.

Beside his photograph was her handwritten authorization.

She ran a finger over the signature.

"Some things," she whispered, "are better left undiscovered."

The Missing Woman

Sunday, 8:45 p.m. — Stephanie's Residence

Stephanie sat at her dressing table, studying the photograph of Michelle Reynolds.

Danielle sat beside her.

"Do you think she's happy?" Stephanie asked.

"I don't know. Maybe she's found a way to survive. Maybe she's accepted the life Dixon gave her."

"Do you think she remembers who she was?"

"How could she forget?"

Danielle opened the placement file again.

There was a telephone number handwritten on the back.

"What's that?" Stephanie asked.

"I think it's an old contact number connected to her placement."

"Can we call it?"

"Not from here. Dixon monitors the residential telephones."

Stephanie looked at the number.

"Then we'll find another way."

Richard's Surprise

The following afternoon, a delivery arrived for Stephanie.

Inside were three designer outfits, a beautiful handbag, and a handwritten card.

The card read:

Stephanie,

I thought you might enjoy choosing something for our next dinner together. I would like to see you wearing something you genuinely love.

Richard.

Stephanie examined the clothes.

For the first time, she wondered what it would be like to choose her own wardrobe without someone standing over her.

Margaret's Decision

Across the campus, Margaret was having a private meeting with Mrs. Hargrove.

"Stephanie and Danielle are becoming too close," Margaret said.

"Would you like them separated?"

"Not yet. I want to know what they've discovered."

"And Richard?"

Margaret paused.

"Richard is becoming rather attached to this particular placement."

"Is that a problem?"

"Not necessarily. But I won't allow personal feelings to interfere with the institute's business."

She closed Stephanie's file.

"Find out what those two girls know about Michelle Reynolds."

A Secret Promise

That night, Stephanie showed Danielle Richard's card.

"He seems different when we're alone," Stephanie admitted.

"Different how?"

"Like he actually wants to know me."

Danielle smiled.

"Just be careful. Richard is still a Whitmore."

Stephanie nodded.

"I know."

She put the card away.

Then she looked at Michelle's photograph again.

"Whatever happens with Richard, I'm getting you home."

Danielle reached over and squeezed her hand.

"Then let's find Michelle."