He agrees

It's completely stupid--trespassing on government property, trying to get into a building with security cameras and alarms and who-knows-what-else. But all I can see at the moment is Lilah's hopeful face, front teeth biting down coyly on her lower lip. All I can feel is her fingers on my arm. Both of my heads are throbbing.

"O-okay, sure," I respond. "We can swing by there after the meal, when it's darker. But just to look around."

"Marvelous," she says. Suddenly, she's a lot friendlier. After the drinks arrive, she opens up a little more about her home life, her friends, even her cats. When the opportunity comes, I share some stuff about myself as well. It feels like we're building some rapport, but a voice in the back of my head won't stop warning me to watch out.

Once we've polished off our sandwiches and salads--and I've settled the bill with a good chunk out of my meager savings account--twilight has fallen. Lilah and I leave the cafe and walk the few blocks to the Bureau, close beside each other but not exactly arm-in-arm.

"See there?" I gesture when we arrive at our destination. The marble cladding along the entire front of the building is featureless, shining in the streetlights--no windows and only a single door, the front entrance. I try the handlebar a couple of times. "Locked."

"We could look around back," Lilah suggests, her voice low.

"That'd be suspicious," I say, but I allow her to drag me down the sidewalk and around the corner. The back side of the building is much harder to see--only lit by the moon--but there appear to be a number of windows at ground level. Suddenly, Lilah freezes and grips my arm tightly. "You see that?" she whispers right in my ear.

I nod. There's a lithe figure a few dozen meters ahead of us, dressed in all black, fiddling with one of the windows. They finally work it open and slip inside. It seems Lilah and I are not the only ones trying to break in. And this person came much better prepared. At the very least, they aren't wearing anything as reflective as my khakis or Lilah's blouse.

"Window's still open," I whisper back to Lilah. "Should we follow?"

She pats my hand enthusiastically, which I take as a yes. We approach cautiously. The corridor beyond the window is completely dark. I help Lilah hoist herself through the window, then follow, trying to make as little noise as possible.

Once we're inside, we sneak down the empty hallway. Through the dim illumination cast by an exit sign overhead, I can see a T-shaped junction ahead and--crouched indecisively against the side of the wall--the figure we saw earlier. They're looking around the corner and don't notice us approaching until Lilah daringly touches their shoulder.

The figure spins around, hands up, ready to attack. It's a woman! Her large eyes are fierce, and her red hair swirls around her shoulders. Now that I'm closer, I can see that her outfit isn't merely all black, it's also skintight--essentially a catsuit.

"Easy, easy," I say quietly. "I don't think you're supposed to be here, but we're not either. I'm Jake, and this is Lilah."

She relaxes slightly. "Anna. I'm Anna." She regards us suspiciously. "If you're not supposed to be here, then what are you doing? And why are you bothering me?"

"We were hoping to learn more about the assessment process," Lilah whispers. "What controls it, how it works."

"What a coincidence," mutters Anna. "I, too, am trying to learn this very thing. Perhaps we could team up? Three heads is better than one." Her eyes turn back to the intersection. "Though I don't suppose you know any better than I the way to go. Left or right?"