Chapter 4 Tempted by Survival

The elevator released them into a corridor so pristine that Emma worried her shoes would leave a mark. There was no sound except the hush of climate control and the distant click of Marcus's Italian leather oxfords.

He led her through a gauntlet of translucent doors, past people who pretended not to notice her, until they arrived at a conference room that looked as if it had been designed by an AI system obsessed with the concept of negative space.

A single glass table hovered in the center, surrounded by four ergonomic chairs. The walls were bare, except for a floor-to-ceiling window that presented the city like a 3D rendering, every building sharp enough to cut. There was no art, no family photos, not even a clock.

Emma took the chair Marcus indicated, arranging her portfolio in front of her. He set a sleek tablet on the table and folded his hands.

"Before we continue," he said, "I want to be clear about the expectations."

He watched her as if looking for a reason to stop.

Emma nodded, feeling the air in her lungs thin. "Of course."

"Alexander has driven away five tutors in the past year," Marcus began. "Three were credentialed psychologists. One was a former professor of advanced mathematics. The last was a retired navy officer. Each lasted less than six weeks."

Emma blinked, unsure if she was supposed to be impressed or terrified.

"Do you consider yourself resilient, Ms. Carter?"

She considered a joke-'No, I'm on my third nervous breakdown'-but decided this was not the room for it. "I don't give up easily."

Marcus swiped the tablet, calling up a file. "Your record suggests you sometimes form... unconventional attachments to your students."

Emma straightened, stung. "I try to treat them as people, not projects."

He arched an eyebrow. "Yet your relationships with authority figures appear... fraught."

"Not intentionally," Emma said. "But my job is to advocate for the kids. Sometimes that means pushing back."

He nodded, as if this confirmed a suspicion. "And how do you manage difficult personalities?"

Emma hesitated, searching for the safe answer, then remembered how little she had left to lose. "I listen first. Usually the trouble isn't about the assignment-it's about something deeper. If you can get them to trust you, the rest follows."

Marcus's face was unreadable, but his fingers drummed a slow rhythm on the glass.

He turned the tablet toward her, a spreadsheet lighting up the screen. "DawsonTech's education suite. We use it for all internal staff development and, lately, with Alexander. Have you seen it?"

Emma glanced at the grid-colored charts, progress meters, a video feed of a smiling AI tutor. "I've seen similar systems," she said. "But not this one."

He tapped the screen, and a sample module began to play: cartoon avatars, pop-up quizzes, badges for compliance. The program was clean, efficient, and utterly impersonal.

"We're developing a new version for gifted youth," Marcus said. "It can accelerate them through years of curriculum in months. But so far, Alexander refuses to engage."

Emma watched the simulation-a digital child solving math equations while a cartoon owl dispensed praise. She felt a twist of anger on behalf of the real boy hidden beneath the data.

"Do you want my honest opinion?" she asked.

Marcus inclined his head.

She took a breath. "This is impressive. But it prioritizes data collection over actual engagement. You're training kids to perform, not to think for themselves."

The words spilled out before she could call them back. She flushed, sure she had blown the interview in one breath.

Marcus's expression didn't change, but something in his posture loosened. "That's exactly what Mr. Dawson said," he replied.

Emma blinked, caught off-guard.

"He wants Alexander to find a mentor," Marcus continued. "Someone who understands the difference between compliance and creativity. But the mentor must be strong enough to stand up to both Alexander-and Mr. Dawson himself."

He reached into a slim leather folder and slid a contract across the table. "If you accept, the position is yours. Standard NDA applies. The compensation and living arrangements is what we discussed."

Emma thought of her shabby apartment, her neighbor's leaky ceiling, the landlord's never-quite-friendly notes. She thought of her cat, ungrateful but affectionate, and the way her world shrank every month as options dried up.

"Do I have a choice?" she asked.

Marcus's smile was as thin as a laser. "You always have a choice, Ms. Carter. But this is the only way it works."

He gathered his things, already half risen. "You don't need to decide now. Mr. Dawson would like to meet you before the offer is finalized, but the NDA must be signed before."

He moved to the door, then paused. "If you have any questions about the arrangement, ask them now."

Emma swallowed. She looked at the city below, the infinite network of streets and stories, and felt herself contracting to a single point.

"What happens if I fail?" she asked.

Marcus met her eyes, dark and unwavering. "For you, nothing. For Alexander, we try again. And again. Until we don't have to."

He left her with the contract and the empty glass table, sunlight carving a blade of white across the paper.

She picked up the pen. For a moment, she just held it, feeling its weight, and wondered if that was all that kept a person from drifting out of reach-something to sign, a line to cross, a promise not to let go.