“We’ve interlocked with the power grid,” Younger told him. “If anything goes wrong with the rig we can switch over to the regular grid within a second or two. Hardly a flicker. Nobody would notice.”

Jake nodded, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Sure enough, Younger added, “Of course, Tomlinson will get the bill from the electric company.”

“Of course,” Jake murmured.

Jake thought about inviting Glynis to drive up to Lignite with him for the big day. Amy had rented rooms at the town’s hotel for him and other key people on Tomlinson’s staff. Jake wondered where Amy would be spending the night. With Tomlinson somewhere, he supposed.

Several times he picked up the phone to ask Glynis, and each time he decided against it. She thinks I’m a coward. Besides, she’ll want to be with Tim, not me.

So Jake drove to Lignite alone and checked in at the hotel. Somebody had given the old clapboard building a fresh coat of paint. The lobby still looked seedy, its carpeting threadbare, but there was a huge vase of fresh flowers just inside the revolving door and the desk clerk was a cute young woman with a bright cheerful smile.

The town was bustling with visitors. The streets were crowded with people walking up and down in the late afternoon sunshine: old men in faded uniforms, families with children clutching American flags in their fists, laughing teenagers sipping sodas and eating ice cream cones, their faces painted red, white, and blue. Parked cars lined the curbs, and several empty lots had been converted into parking areas for long lines of buses.

As Jake stood on the sidewalk outside the hotel, perspiring in the setting sun, he saw that Amy and her cohorts had done their job well. Lignite was swarming with eager, expectant visitors from all around the state. Half a dozen TV news vans were in view, reporters were interviewing people on the street.

Leverett Caldwell and Alice were strolling leisurely across the street. Lev spotted Jake and waved to him. Gesturing to the crowd swarming along the sidewalk, Lev made a circle of his thumb and forefinger. Good job, he was saying. Jake grinned like a schoolboy being praised by his teacher.