The Fold: A Novel Read Online Free Page B

any of them.”
    “So it’s all about high tech, but everyone’s using notepads and ballpoint pens?”
    “Remember how you had to turn in your phone at the desk?”
    Mike nodded.
    “They’re not big on laptops and tablets in these meetings. It’s a security thing.”
    “Cool. Can I keep the pen?”
    “Yes, you can keep the pen,” sighed Reggie. “It only cost the taxpayers seventeen dollars. Here, you can have mine, too.”
    “What about the notepad?”
    “Don’t be greedy.” He nodded to the front of the room. “Okay, pay attention. These are your new best friends.”
    Two men and a woman came through the door. The leader, an older black man with a trimmed goatee and a circle of gray hair around his scalp, glanced around the room and up at the board members. He walked with a dark cane in his right hand. It had a silver derby-style handle. He wore silver-rimmed glasses that pulled attention to his eyes. He hadn’t changed much since the photo for his book jacket.
    “Arthur Cross,” said Reggie, following Mike’s gaze. “He’s probably got the best idea of how this whole thing works, although they’ll all tell you it’s beyond any one person. That’s why you’re here.”
    “I still don’t know what ‘this’ is.”
    “Patience.”
    Cross looked across the room at Reggie and nodded politely. The woman with him shot Mike and Reggie a look that was only a few degrees away from a glare. She, Cross, and the other man sat down across from the board.
    “The blonde is Jamie Parker,” said Reggie. “Head programmer. She’s here today because their other physicist has the flu.”
    Her eyes were hazel, like Mike’s, though much narrower than his. Her hair reached past her shoulders, but was bound up in a sensible ponytail. She had on a tight black turtleneck over an equally tight body, somewhat concealed by a gray blazer.
    He realized he was staring because she was glaring back at him. Mike rubbed his temple and forced a few ants back behind their wall. “You said it wasn’t cryptography.”
    “It’s not.”
    “Or robots.”
    “It’s the twenty-first century,” said Reggie. “I don’t think I’ve got any projects under my umbrella that don’t have at least two programmers.” He tipped his chin to the woman. “Parker was a black hat at MIT, got in trouble with the feds, but they couldn’t prove anything. After she graduated they tried to hire her, and she more or less spit in their faces. Dropped out of sight for two years, and then Arthur found her at a hacker con and recruited her. Major chip on her shoulder.”
    Mike let his eyes drift to the other man. He had a long, weather-beaten face, and small eyes. His dyed-black hair was slicked back, and his face had a slack look to it that somehow seemed more practiced than genetic. He had lean limbs and perfect posture. It gave the impression of a tall man, even though he was only an inch over Parker. His suit was poorly fitting and almost definitely off-the-rack. It made Mike feel better about his own wardrobe.
    Mike nodded at the man. “Olaf Johansson.”
    “Olaf?”
    “Hey, talk to his parents. He’s Arthur’s partner. Double doctorates in physics and mathematics. Number cruncher. Very little imagination or sense of humor. You two should butt heads nicely.”
    “Is he related to Scarlett?”
    “Not to my knowledge.”
    “Has anyone told him he looks just like Humphrey Bogart?”
    “I tried,” said Reggie. “He didn’t know who I was talking about.”
    “How can he not know Bogart?”
    “I don’t think he’s seen
Casablanca.
”
    “You lie.”
    “Shut up and play with your pen. They’re ready to get started.”
    The dark-eyed, athletic woman started things. She had a pleasant voice. “So, Dr. Cross, perhaps you could give us a rundown on your project and where it currently stands?”
    Arthur nodded. “Well, as our reports explain, the Albuquerque Door began as the SETH Project. It was an attempt to create a viable method