Perception (19 page)

He sighed and took my
hand to help me up. “What’s the plan?”

“I have Liam’s chip.
It’s been deactivated, but if we can re-activate it, maybe we can read his
files, see who he was connected with.”

“Let’s see what we
can do.” We entered the house and walked quietly past his mother’s sleeping
form.

His virtual monitor
and keyboard were lit up on his desk, and I handed him Liam’s chip to scan.

Noah’s fingers raced
along the desk surface. “It shouldn’t take too long to reactivate.”

I took the time to
study his photo wall. “Your dad was a handsome man,” I said, looking back at
Noah. “You look a lot like him.”

“We were alike in
many ways. But not all ways.”

I tilted my head in
question. “How were you different?”

Noah lifted his chin.
“I try, and sometimes I really do feel the burning passion, the anger for the
cause, but I don’t know if I’ll ever feel it quite like he did. If it’s something
I could devote my life to.”

“Why do you do it
then?”

 “My family owns a
rustic little cabin on private land tucked along the border of the National
Forest. The place where he took us camping. My dad has an old dart board in the
back yard that hangs on a tree. It’s the old-fashioned kind with actual darts,
nothing virtual. I don’t even know if you can buy that kind anymore.

“When he first set it
up, he attached it to a large piece of plywood before nailing it to the tree.
That was for me. I was ten when we played our first game and I never hit the
target, always the plywood.”

Noah tapped his
fingers along his leg, and kept talking. “Dad was an expert at darts. He never
missed the bull’s-eye. Even though I was terrible at the game, I kept playing
it with him. Just because it was something that Dad and I did together. Jonathon
and Davis were too young, for this particular game, so it was
our
time.

“Dad would tell me
stories while we played, about his life, and life in general. He said it didn’t
matter if I never hit the bull’s-eye, only that I was trying.

“The year I turned
twelve, I asked him how he knew he was supposed to be a reverend when he grew
up.” He caught my eye before continuing, “You know what he said?”

I shook my head. “What?”

“He said, ‘The day I
hit the bull’s-eye, I knew.’”

Noah inhaled deeply. “I
didn’t get it then, but think I understand now. It’s the effort that shows the
way, and if you keep trying, one day the answer will be clear.”

“Did you ever hit the
bull’s-eye?” I asked.

Noah shook his head
sadly. “That was the last summer we went to the cabin. I haven’t played since.”

The computer chirped
announcing that Liam’s chip had been re-activated. A myriad of files lit up the
screen.

Noah gave his chair
to me. “I think you should be the one to dig here.”

I nodded, exchanging
seats with Noah, and started tapping away.

“What are you looking
for?” he said.

“I wish I knew. Information
on Liam and what he was trying to hide by removing and disabling his chip.
Somebody at Sleiman must’ve figured out what he knew.”

“And you think that’s
why he’s dead?”

“I don’t know. But I
don’t have anything else.”

I clicked through a
dozen or more files. “Here’s something. A hundred and fifty thousand dollars
moved to his account in one day. Certainly well above our daily allowance.”

“Where did it come
from?”

“A company called
Maverick Industries.”

“What kind of company
is that?”

I continued to type
and search. “I don’t know.” I pointed to the screen. “It’s linked to Sleiman.
The address is in the office tower in Sol City.”

“So someone from this
company was financing the experiment. For some reason they didn’t want anyone
else to know about it.”

“But who?” I said. “And
why?” I tapped some more then let out a small gasp.

“What?” Noah said.

“Grandpa V is listed on
the board of directors.”

“Of Maverick? What
does that mean?”

I shook my head. “Nothing
good, I’m sure. We have to try to get into the Maverick’s offices. Maybe
there’s something there that will explain it all.”

“The only problem is I
can’t get into Sol City.”

I waved Liam’s chip. “Yes,
you can.”

A grin took over
Noah’s face, and I knew I had impressed him.

“I suppose it’s worth
a try. But say I get though the gates, then what? You actually mean to break
and enter into an office in your grandfather’s building?”

“If that’s what we
need to do.”

Noah shook his head. “You
do realize they have security—alarms, cameras...”

“Isn’t that what your
hacker friend is for?

Noah sucked in a breath
through his teeth. “Anthony is pretty good, but he’s not that good. We’re
talking Sleiman here.”

“But couldn’t he just
dismantle the cameras in the Maverick offices? He wouldn’t have to do the whole
building. I’ll pay him well, make it worth his trouble.”

Noah tapped his ring
and the phone image appeared on his hand. “Anthony? I’ve got another job for
you if you’re game.”

Chapter 24

We spread out and
blended in with the foot traffic returning to Sol City. Saturdays were busier
than I would’ve guessed, but people still had reason to come and go. It was
mostly SCU students who had developed a curiosity for the outside and had time
off from their studies to explore.

I let Noah go first
to make sure there weren’t any problems. If there were, I was going to cause a
scene in the hopes that he could escape on foot.

My heart beat triple-time
as Noah reached the scanner. Heat spread through my chest as he opened his fist
carefully, hoping the item concealed inside would scan. I held my breath.

I watched the faces
of the guards. Was there a silent alarm? They weren’t reacting. Their bored
expressions were unchanged.

I let myself breathe.
He made it.

As agreed I passed
him without looking his way and remained six feet ahead of him until we were
well away from the gates. Once out of sight, I ran back to him, jumped into his
arms and wrapped my legs around his waist.

I whispered in his
ear, “We did it!”

He laughed as I
landed back on the ground. “Where to now, Miss Vanderveen?”

“Well, since I’m
currently without personal transportation, it’s back to the Sol City public pod
system. It’s one I’m well acquainted with as Charlotte and I spent half our
lives on it.”

“Who’s Charlotte?”

“One of my closest
friends. She’s on vacation in Mexico, so she’s missed all the drama.”

“Does she know? About
Liam?”

“Yeah, I called her.”

I threaded my fingers
through his as we continued down a parkway path.

He glanced at our
entwined hands, his tanned fingers firmly grasping my pale ones. “Are you sure
this is okay to do here?”

“Why not?”

He shrugged. “It
might draw attention.”

I flicked my hair
back playfully. “I don’t care what people think. See? You’re rubbing off on me,
Brody.”

We waited at the transit
station until the next public pod arrived. Sol City transit didn’t have cash
machines, so I scanned my hand twice for both of us when we got on. The pod was
half empty and we had our choice of seating. I snuggled close to Noah.

“How long do you think
this will keep working?” He said, pointing to his pocket.

“Not long. I’m sure
my parents will deactivate it soon. The authorities will be monitoring its
usage, too, so we need to do this quickly.”

It was a risk to let
Noah do this, but I was ready to take the fall and count on my connections with
the Senator to get me out of any jam I might end up in.

The pod hummed along
stopping every few minutes to let people on and off. People stared at Noah, and
I stared back, until propriety made them turn away. The pod stopped again, and I
took in a quick breath as Isabelle and Serena boarded, both with arms filled
with shopping bags. They didn’t spot me until they’d taken the two empty seats
directly across from us.

“Zoe?” Isabelle said.

I felt like I’d been
caught smoking. I slowly pulled my hand away from Noah, and straightened my
back.

Isabelle eyed Noah up
and down, her blue eyes bulging, her mouth pulling down in disapproval. I could
feel Noah tensing up beside me.

“Where’s Jackson?”
Isabelle asked pointedly.

Serena elbowed her. “I
told you they broke up.”

“Is it true?”
Isabelle sounded amazed.

I nodded. “Yeah. It
just didn’t work out.”

“Wow, you guys were
together forever. If anything I thought this, uh, thing with Liam would’ve made
you closer.”

I glanced at Noah. He
stared straight ahead with a tight jaw and pinched lips.

“I don’t want to talk
about Jackson. Okay, Isabelle?”

Isabelle put a hand
to the side of her mouth and leaned forward as if this gesture would keep Noah
from hearing. She whispered, “What are you doing? Why are you with
him
?”

Isabelle’s eyes
darted to Noah. She probably remembered seeing him at my house, when he filled
in for Saundra in the past.

“He’s not deaf,
Isabelle, god. This is Noah. Noah, Isabelle and Serena are my friends from school.”

Noah lifted his chin
slightly but didn’t smile.

Isabelle smirked at
Serena. “Does this mean Jackson’s back on the market, then?”

Serena giggled. I
said nothing.

The pod slowed down. “This
is our stop,” I said, nudging Noah. He hopped off when the doors opened,
leaving me to say goodbye to my friends on my own.

I sprinted after him.
He was walking at high speed. “Noah, wait.”

He spun around. “I
don’t belong here. Don’t you see? I’ll never belong here.”

“Then I’ll leave.”

“No, you won’t.”

“Yes, I will. I’m not
like those girls. I’ve changed.”

“Is that why you were
so quick to let go of my hand? I thought you didn’t care what other people
thought.”

“They just caught me
off guard. I didn’t mean anything by it.”

He snorted and kept
walking.

“Noah, I’m sorry.” I
reached for his hand pulling him to a stop. I searched his dark brooding eyes,
looking for a hint of softness. “Forgive me?”

“Man, Zoe.”

I squeezed his hand.
“Please?”

His back relaxed, and
the corners of his mouth lifted. He pulled me into an embrace, his warm breath
caressing my neck. “You know we’re in for a hard road, right?”

“I know.”

He gazed up to the
ever-changing Sleiman Tower that loomed skyward in front of us. “Let’s do
whatever it is we came here to do so we can get the hell out again.”

I felt like I’d just
dodged a relationship bullet. “I agree. Have you heard from Anthony?”

“My ring’s buzzing
now.” He checked the message and shook his head, looking amazed. “Anthony says
he thinks he’s done it.” He glanced back up at me. “I don’t know, Zoe. It’s
risky.”

“Let’s just try. It’s
not a crime to walk through the office tower. Especially for me.”

The glass revolving
doors reminded me of a ride I went on at the Sol City Fair when I was younger.
It spit us out into a receiving room that could’ve been an echo chamber, with a
ceiling that expanded to the third floor.

Noah stood in front
of the building menu, which listed what companies resided on what floors. “It’s
on the thirty-second floor,” he whispered.

“Now we just need to
find out if Liam’s chip works in the elevator.”

We headed for the
elevators in the center of the room. They acted like the spine of the building.

“Just walk like you
own the place,” I said.

“The moment of truth.”
Noah pulled the chip from his front pocket and ran it under the scanner. It
beeped and flashed a red light.

Would the doors open,
or would we be denied? My nerves were little bugs biting me. Every breath I
took resounded in my chest like an alarm.

The doors slid open,
proving that my brother had authorization to enter the secured office area
above. We stepped inside, and I recited the name of the CEO. The elevator began
its long trek up. I reached for Noah’s hand and squeezed. Now that we were
riding the secure elevators with stolen authorization, we were officially breaking
the law. We didn’t dare say anything for fear of our conversation being
recorded. It was bad enough that our images were being monitored by the
elevator surveillance.