Silberstein will come out of the building, and one of two things is going to happen.
He’s going to run. Or he’s going to freeze. I’m hoping for the latter.
I’m in a car he won’t recognize, and that will confuse him. If I can keep him from seeing me for long enough, I might be able to pull this off.
I wait for the door of the building to open.
It’s Silberstein. He’s alone.
He begins walking across the parking lot toward us.
I turn around so I’m facing Tanya, showing Silberstein the back of my head.
“Talk to me, Tanya.”
“About what?”
“Anything. We just need to be in conversation as he comes toward us. Then do what I tell you, okay?”
“Okay.”
I glance at Howard in the back. His eyes are clear and his energy is better. The drugs have worked their way out of his system. That’s good, because I’m going to need him in full form once we get inside.
“Look over my shoulder, Tanya. Is he walking toward us?”
“Yes.”
I make sure my window is lowered all the way. I relax my posture and let my shoulders move around as if I’m distracted and in conversation.
“Give me a countdown,” I say.
“What am I counting?” Tanya says.
“Number of steps until he reaches the car.”
“About twenty steps,” she says with a whisper.
“How does he look?”
“Confused.”
“Perfect.”
“Ten steps.”
“Whatever happens, I want you guys to stay calm,” I say.
Tanya lowers her voice. “He’s here in three, two—”
“Joshua?” I hear Silberstein say from outside the car.
I turn quickly, reach out and grab his belt buckle, and yank him hard up against the side of the car.
He gasps, startled, and tries to pull away.
He reaches down to free himself, and I grab him by the wrist and jerk him down until I can get hold of his shirt collar and pull his face close to mine.
“You know who I am,” I say.
He looks at me, and his pupils dilate.
“Yes,” he says.
I thought so. He wouldn’t have reacted the way he did in the lecture hall unless he knew me.
“If you know me, then you know what I can do,” I say.
I sense his fear. So it’s not just that he remembers me, he knows about The Program, too.
“You owe me,” I say.
“What do I owe you?”
“Information.”
“You want to know about your father,” he says.
“Right.”
“Who are these people with you?” he says. He looks at Howard and Tanya, suspicious. Maybe he thinks we’re a hit squad come for him. I can use his reaction to my advantage.
“You’re going to take us inside the facility,” I say.
“I can’t do that.”
“You have no choice.”
“They won’t let you in.”
“They already have. The guard thinks I’m your son. He believes you’re giving me and my friends a tour today.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Do you want to tell him or should I?”
“I still can’t take you inside,” he says.
I pull his head down farther, lean forward, and whisper in his ear.
“You will die now,” I say calmly. “Which means you won’t be around to see what happens to your family when I get back to Rochester.”
He gasps. “Okay,” he says. “I’ll do what you want.”
“Smile and wave first.”
I hang on to one wrist while he stands up and uses the other to wave to the guard, signaling that everything is okay.
“Do we understand each other?” I say.
“Absolutely,” Silberstein says. “Park up here on the right. I’ll take you in.”
If I let him go, he could do anything. Shout out, run for safety, trigger an alert—but I’m betting he won’t do any of those things.
So I let go of his wrist.
He walks ahead of us, indicating where to park.
“Are you guys ready?” I say.
Howard and Tanya nod.
“Game time. Follow my lead.”
“What did you whisper to him?” Tanya asks.
“Let’s just say I made a compelling argument why he should help us.”
“You told him you’d kick his ass, right?” Howard says.
I wink at Howard and slip on a baseball cap before I step out of the car. It’s nothing like a real disguise, but it may obscure my features enough to slow down any facial-recognition software linked to the cameras inside. It won’t keep a sophisticated system from recognizing me, but it might send a few false positives and buy us some time.
For a moment I regret bringing Howard and Tanya with me, exposing them to this level of danger after the things they’ve already been through.
But it’s too late for regrets now. It’s time for action.