Secrecy and discretion, Lancaster Hill had written in 1939, are more important to a tactical revolutionary movement than numbers.

“Welcome all,” Eighty said. “Due to the unpredicted mutation of the Janus strain, the government’s efforts to develop an effective antibacterial treatment are languishing. We are seeing an acceleration of infections in hospitals caused by the bacteria, which has been labeled by the media as the Doomsday Germ. However, the microbe that our scientist, Seventy-one, initially discovered is no longer the same as the current incarnation of Janus. Correct me if I’m wrong, Nine, but it is clear that as things stand, earlier estimates of the potential for spread are low—actually quite low.”

Bacon made a mental note to cycle back to Nine, the analyst/strategist, who, by protocol, had been given her late predecessor’s number when she was first inducted some years before. Even without her verification, everyone on the board knew that Eighty’s assessment was correct. First though, Bacon wanted a report on how the government was responding to the increasing rate of spread, and whether they had concluded that the treatment guaranteed by the society was no longer effective.

“Forty-four,” he asked, “can you offer information on the government’s efforts to combat Janus?”

The center of the display flickered and filled with Forty-four’s distorted feed. In addition to secretly brokering the backroom deals to end the Janus attacks, Forty-four, a senior senator from Rhode Island, was the point man in dealing with the president and the secretary of Health and Human Services.

“As you know, Washington has formed a global consortium,” Forty-four said, “employing scientists from various disciplines, but nobody is pleased with the progress thus far. The good news is since Dr. Kazimi was brought in to work with us, the government’s efforts are being coordinated through the CDC, making it possible for Seventy-one to intentionally mislead the consortium wherever necessary. We believe we can continue this internal sabotage without risk of exposing Seventy-one’s affiliation with us.”

“I doubt these efforts will be necessary once the entitlements are revoked.” Speaking was Twenty-six, a specialist in mass psychology.

“Explain yourself,” Bacon said, switching the man to the center of the board members’ screens.