“Such dedication.”

Nadia jumped at Dr. Monnet’s voice. She turned and saw him standing in the doorway of the dry lab.

“You startled me.”

“Sorry,” he said, stepping toward her. “I came in to pick up a package and noticed that you were still logged in.”

“Just getting ready to leave, actually.”

“I won’t ask you if you’ve made any progress,” he said. “That would be absurd at this early stage… wouldn’t it?”

His last two words caught her by surprise. She studied him. Close up like this he looked tired. And well he should be if he’d been up all hours watching men punch each other as Jack had said.

But he seemed beyond tired—more like physically, mentally, and emotionally spent. And beneath the fatigue she sensed something akin to… desperation.

What is that hoodlum forcing you to do? she wondered. What hold does he have on you?

“Yes,” she told him. ‘Too early. I’ve only just finished reviewing your experiments. You covered a lot of ground.”

He nodded absently, almost morosely. “I tried everything I knew. That’s why you’re here. For a fresh perspective.”

Nadia looked down at the console and gathered up her notes to avoid facing him. How could she tell him she felt lost, that the things Jack had told her about his bizarre testing session in Brooklyn, and Doug’s discovery of the secret stock buyback were upsetting her, making it almost impossible to focus.

Monnet cleared his throat. “There’s another matter I need to discuss with you: Douglas Gleason.”

Nadia stiffened. Oh, God. Does he know about the hack?

“What about him?”

“Word has filtered back that he’s been in the research wing, even here in the dry lab with you. That’s against the rules, you know.”

Nadia relaxed and let out a breath. She turned to face him.

“I thought that only applied to people outside the company.” A lie… but a little one.

“No. I believe I made it clear that this area is restricted to research personnel only. Are you two… close? Is that why you’ve been letting him in?”

Dr. Monnet seemed so intent on her answer. Why?

Nadia decided not to reveal that Doug had been letting himself in, and she remembered how Doug had been wary about letting on that there was any romance between them.

“Close?” She managed a smile. “No. We’re just old friends.”

“Do you see each other often? Do you discuss your work?”

Where was this going? “He’s just a friend of the family.” Another lie. “We have lunch now and then. He’s just very interested in”—she almost said computers—”research. But I’m sure he’d never—”

“I am sure he wouldn’t either,” Dr. Monnet said quickly. Why did he suddenly look relieved? “But we must not forget that he’s a salesman, his business is talking, talking all day long, and one day in his enthusiasm he might slip and mention a product in a delicate stage of development. But… if he does not know about that product, he cannot slip. Do you see my point?”