Undetectable (Great Minds Thriller) Read Online Free Page A

still staring at him. “Not a school? Explain.”
     
    “It’s a brokerage. I ran tech at one of their subsidiary hedge funds for a few years.”
     
    “You were a broker?”
     
    “I created the trading algorithms for the fund. The system for telling the computers what and when to buy and sell. But sure, a broker.”
     
    “Whatever. You any good at it?”
     
    Jean tried to pipe in again. “Ronny. Honestly, now. Give the boy a few minutes to settle in first. You’ve got all year to be rude to him.”
     
    “It’s okay,” Kevin said. He turned back to Clemson, and he kept his expression steady. “Ronny,” he said slowly, “I was great at it.”
     
    “Uh-huh,” Ron said again. Still not convinced, his tone said. Or at least pretending not to be. “How old are you?”
     
    “Twenty-eight.”
     
    Ron smiled. “Twenty-eight,” he repeated. He said the number as though it left a bad taste in his mouth. “How wise you must be. How seasoned . Did you manage to put away any spare cash while you were busy ruling the world down on Wall Street?”
     
    Kevin affected ignorance. “Spare cash?”
     
    Clemson fell for it. He let a little laugh escape him. “Did you save anything, Kevin my boy? Because now you’re a teacher.”
     
    Kevin waited a moment before answering. “Oh, I understand now.” He kept his voice low. “You mean, do I have anything in the bank?”
     
    “Exactly, Kevin. Because you can’t just – ”
     
    “Two-point-five million,” Kevin said. And he shrugged. “Last I checked, that is. But I’ve been having a weird day, and it’s been a long while since I went over the portfolio. Could be up or down a few hundred thousand. You know how it goes.”
     
    Ron opened his mouth, then let it close. There was a drawn-out silence. Then Jean laughed. He threw his head back, put his hands up like a churchgoer in rapture, and laughed at the ceiling until there were tears in his eyes . It was a mischievous, delighted laugh. “Oh, I like this boy!” Jean sang out. He wiped his eyes and then pointed at Clemson, whose face had gone red. “This boy just took you home , Ronny. Took you home and put you in the drawer.”
     
    Ron was still staring at Kevin. He seemed to be weighing his options. “Bullshit,” he said finally.
     
    “I wouldn’t bullshit you, Ronny.”
     
    “You’ve got over two million dollars in the bank?”
     
    “I do.”
     
    “Right this minute?”
     
    “You want to go buy a boat with me or something? Commission a statue?”
     
    Ron sighed. All at once it became too much for him. He repositioned himself in his armchair, a process that involved considerable grunting and grimacing and coaxing of balky hip joints. Then he waved his hands in front of him as if he had just been forced to look at an offensive picture. The color was very bright in his cheeks. “The hell are you doing here, then?”
     
    Kevin smiled for the first time. “Like I said, Ron, I wouldn’t bullshit you. I don’t have the first fucking clue.”
     

Partial transcript from a closed hearing before the budget subcommittee for the Secret Service (New Initiatives Division)
     
    Department of Homeland Security
     
    September 17, 2011:
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Q: But Dr. Levoir , you of all people should know how carefully we control our annual financial distributions. Why should we consider these new techniques? There are currently no fewer than 14 programs slated for cutbacks, and yet you suggest that funding is now necessary for this unorthodox and completely untested initiative. We are not supermarket consumers here, Dr. Levoir – we are not drawn to the “new” label for its own sake. And you’ll concede, I think, that t errorism is nothing new.
     
     
     
    A: I agree in principle, Senator. But the meaning of that word has changed. Terrorism no longer means men with knives and bombs. It means men with anything . Men who will use whatever tools are available to accomplish their