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“I can just pop up and see him for a few minutes,” he told the private security guard. “I know the way. I have some test results to go over for the A/B run they did last week on the two new microbe trial vaccines. You in the loop on that?”
The guard, a kid barely out of his teens who proudly wore the standard-issue sidearm, said, “No, I’m not in the loop on that,” and went back to his coffee and computer screen on which Fi
Fi
“I know the feeling,” the other man said as he swiped his card through the slot and the doors closed. “What floor you want?” he asked.
“Fifth,” Fi
He got off on the fifth floor and found the door he wanted right next to the elevator bank. It also required a smart card for entry. He slipped inside a nearby bathroom and dabbed some water on his pants leg. When he heard the elevator ding, he opened the door to the bathroom, pretending to be rubbing his wet hands dry as the doors to the elevator slid open. The woman stepped off and swiped her card in the secure door as Fi
The woman glanced at him and smiled. “Looks like I beat you to it.”
Fi
The woman smiled again. “Bet that woke you up.”
“Oh, yeah,” said Fi
“You here to see anyone in particular?” she asked.
Fi
“Don’t I know it. Have a good one,” she added as she walked off.
Fi
Sam, the fat kid from his office, was up against the wall and the security guard was doing a very unprofessional pat-down. Any person who knew what he was doing could have taken the guard’s gun in a second with no trouble.
“What’s going on here,” Fi
“Spy!” the guard said. “Caught him red-handed. I’m calling the cops.”
Fi
The guard pointed his pistol at Sam’s broad back and shouted, “Stop!”
“Don’t,” Fi
“Son of a bitch!” Fi
CHAPTER 67
THE AMBULANCE PULLED AWAY thirty minutes later. After reaching Sam, Fi
Fi
“Thank God you were there, Harry,” Rivers said. “Otherwise he’d be dead.”
“Yeah, well, he wouldn’t have gotten shot if I hadn’t dragged him here.”
“They give us no money or time to train our guards,” Rivers complained. “They spend billions on the facility and security technology, but then they put a gun in the hands of a punk who’s earning ten bucks an hour. It makes no sense.”
Fi
He drove home and later took Patrick to baseball practice, silently watching his athletic middle child field all balls hit his way and later mercilessly pound the automated pitches in the batting cage. Fi
David said, “Hey, Pop, you coming to the soccer match on Friday afternoon? Coach is go
Fi
Mandy gave David some pocket money for when his class went downtown on their field trip the next morning. She took a small bite of food and looked over at her husband, who was obviously not mentally with them.
“Harry, you okay?”
He stirred. “Just some stuff at work.” There had been no news coverage of the incident, even though the police had been called, because Homeland Security had stepped in to put the kibosh on it. Having Fi
After di
He left the hospital and drove around for a while with the all-news radio station on. He finally turned it off after bad news became awful news and then moved on directly to terrible. What a world they were leaving for the next generation.