“All right,” McCall said. “Let’s go and—”

The door slammed open and Vaill entered, still somewhat unsteady. His eyes were bloodshot, and the odor surrounding him said he had gotten sick.

“Sorry,” he muttered. “I’m fine. Let’s get on with this.”

“You sure?” McCall asked.

For a moment, Lou sensed the older agent was about to explode. Instead Vaill breathed in deeply through his nose, apologized again, and took a swig of Gatorade.

“Let’s get on with this.”

Lou looked for any signs suggesting a stroke, but clearly the man was improving. Vaill slid the folder over to him, and Lou, shrugging, opened it.

It contained a picture of Emily, extracted from her Facebook page, showing her with her two best girlfriends, both of whom Lou knew well. It was taken outside of Carlton Academy, with the girls’ arms draped around one another.

“What is this all about?” he exclaimed, pushing the sheet away as if it were on fire. The odd, distant look on Vaill’s face had now vanished, and it was as if the strange episode had never happened.

“It’s what you have at stake here, Lou,” he said.

“Why are you showing this to me? How dare you bring my daughter into this cesspool?”

“You don’t get it, do you?” Vaill said, on his feet once more. “Your daughter is a very big part of this. Listen to me, Lou. You’re facing some serious charges here. Chances are you’ll go away for a long time. Don’t do this to your kid. Think about it. We’re not your enemy. I told you about my wife. I was honest with you because I care. But we’ve got a job to do, and dammit, we’re gonna do it. So study that picture. My wife is dead, this girl is very much alive. You don’t want to ruin her life or humiliate her. You want to be around to take her to a ball game, go visit colleges, or whatever else lies ahead. And you’ll be able to do those things, too—but only if you cooperate. Give me a name. Where did you get the information about the bacteriophage?”

Lou stared at Emily’s image and touched it with his fingertip. He imagined only seeing her through the Plexiglas of some federal prison visitor’s room. Everyone knew of injustices done to innocent men and women by the vagaries or intentions of the government. He also knew that Humphrey would be useless without his help, and Cap would suffer as a result. Could he simply make up a name?

No chance.