Jake replied, “Not when I need to keep my wits about me.”

Leeds raised his head toward the ceiling and gave out a hearty laugh. “I see. You think you’re in the enemy camp so you want to be careful.”

Jake nodded.

Quite seriously, the senator said, “I’m not your enemy, son.”

You’re not my father, either, Jake said to himself.

Perez handed Jake a tall glass tinkling with ice cubes. “Club soda,” he said. “With lime.”

“Thanks.” Jake took a sip.

Senator Leeds stared at Jake for a long, silent moment. Then, “Jake, we have an awkward situation on our hands.”

“Awkward? How so?”

“You’ve convinced Tomlinson that this MHD business can get him votes, but the people running the MHD program don’t want anything to do with Tomlinson.”

“I guess that is kind of awkward,” Jake admitted.

“It would be best if you told Tomlinson to drop the MHD idea. It’s pie in the sky, anyway.”

“I don’t think so,” Jake replied. “I’ve looked into the technical details and—”

“Pie in the sky!” Leeds insisted. “You’ve gotten Tomlinson to promise more than he can deliver.”

With the ghost of a smile, Jake said, “Isn’t that fairly normal for a politician?”

Leeds’s face went dark for an instant. But he quickly recovered and countered, “I deliver for the people of this state. I bring home the bacon.”

The pork, Jake amended silently.

Leaning forward to tap Jake on the knee, Leeds added, “And I can deliver for you, too.”

“For me?”

“My sources at the university tell me you’re up for tenure this year.”

Jake blinked in surprise.

“I can get the committee to grant you tenure. You’d be the youngest member of the faculty to get it. Quite a feather in your cap, career-wise.”

For several moments Jake didn’t know what to say. He simply sat there, open-mouthed, while Leeds smiled knowingly at him.

“All you have to do,” the senator went on, “is tell Tomlinson that you were wrong about MHD. It won’t work. Not for a long time. Ten years, at least.”

“But I don’t think that’s true,” Jake heard himself reply.

Leeds glanced up at Perez, then said, “It’s true enough. Professor Sinclair himself told me.”

“But—”

“Listen, son. You’re not helping Tomlinson with this MHD crap. If he tries to make an issue of it I’ll smash him flat with the facts.”

Jake said nothing.

“But if you get Tomlinson to back off, I’ll get you tenure at the university. A favor for a favor. Deal?”

Leeds was smiling but there was no warmth in it. His eyes were crafty, searching.

“I…” Jake heard Lev’s voice in his head, warning him not to make a decision before he’d thought hard about it. Engage brain before putting foot in mouth, Lev would say.

“I’ll have to think about it,” he said.