******
The modules lasted for the rest of the day, breaking only for lunch. Vincent had to stave off sleep more times than he could count. The management modules would have been as good as a lullaby with a full night’s sleep. Without, they were tranquilizers. Still, they had been enough to distract him for a few hours, even if they didn’t actually teach him anything. Being a manager at Newsight seemed straightforward: don’t share sensitive (or nonsensitive) information with customers, employees, or your family, and do what your superiors tell you to do. Vincent felt better equipped now to keep large quantities of secrets than ever before.
“How were your modules?”
Jessica came up to him in the hall. Their Lenses had begun to blink white only a few minutes ago. The hall was filled with students preparing to leave for the evening.
“Good.” He didn’t think it would be a good idea to tell the truth. “How were yours?”
“Good,” said Jessica. She didn’t hide her lie as well as Vincent had.
“Should we try and get a transport?” asked Vincent.
“Not yet,” said Jessica. “We need to do something first.”
Vincent started to ask what, then stopped – Jessica had already turned away. He followed her, bewildered, down the hall back toward the classroom.
“Mr. Watts!”
The teacher turned around when Jessica called out. He was just leaving the room, locking the door behind him.
“Ms. Carlson?” he said back, brow raised. “How can I help you?”
“Ben and I were wondering if we could talk to you for a moment.”
Mr. Watts titled his head, unsure. “I suppose so,” he said. He unlocked the door he had just bolted. “What about?”
“Just a quick question,” said Jessica. Mr. Watts grunted at the unhelpful answer but continued to push back through the door nonetheless. He held it open for them as they followed behind, then closed it again. “What is this about?”
Vincent turned to Jessica to listen. He was just as curious as Mr. Watts.
“Well it’s actually about Ben,” said Jessica. Vincent frowned. “Since the two of you got off on the wrong foot, he wanted me to ask you for him.”
Mr. Watts turned to Vincent, wearing a questioning look. Vincent lowered his gaze, if only to hide his own confusion.
“Ok…” said Mr. Watts. “What is your brother’s question?”
Jessica glanced at Vincent, hesitant – though Vincent thought he could detect some acting – then back at Mr. Watts. “Well, he’s been really enjoying his modules lately,” she said. Vincent suppressed a laugh. “And he was wondering if there was any way he could take a kind of field trip. To the Newsight headquarters.”
Vincent looked up at her. It was his turn to wear the questioning look. Jessica was unreadable.
“A field trip?” said Mr. Watts. “And why is that?”
“Ben wants to learn from actual managers,” said Jessica. “The modules are great, but they don’t compare to being taught by real people.”
Mr. Watts grunted once again, but he seemed somewhat pleased. “The school corporation does overuse the modules,” he said. Then he paused, thinking. “Why can’t your father arrange for this?”
Vincent swiveled his head back to Jessica. He felt completely in the dark.
“We thought of that,” said Jessica. “Then this morning happened. Our father will be too busy with the hack to set anything up, and Ben was hoping he could do it as soon as possible.”
Mr. Watts pursed his lips, thinking once again. He turned to Vincent. “Is this true?”
Vincent looked to Jessica, then back to Mr. Watts. “Yes,” he said. He hoped he sounded far more confident than he felt.
“You didn’t strike me as so ambitious this morning,” said Mr. Watts, probing.
“I was just…shaken up,” said Vincent. He didn’t have to act now. “I’m sorry.”
Mr. Watts held his gaze for a few seconds longer, then began to nod. “It was frightening,” he said, then paused again. “I do have a connection in the Newsight. No one important, but he might be able to set you up a tour at the very least.”
“That would be great!” said Jessica. “If I could tag along, I think a tour would be valuable for me as well. From a security perspective, I mean.”
Mr. Watts looked at both of them for another few seconds, but his suspicion was melting. “All right,” he said. “I’ll see what I can do.” He readjusted his stance, facing his torso toward the door. It was their cue to leave.
“Thank you so much,” said Jessica. “We really appreciate it.” She elbowed Vincent, and he played along, nodding graciously.
“Of course,” said Mr. Watts. “I would never prevent you from receiving live instruction. I wish there was more of that, anyway.” He frowned, seeming to realize he had said too much. “But never mind that. I need to catch my transport.” He motioned for the door. Jessica thanked him once again, then led Vincent out of the room. When they were both in the hall, she started off at a brisk pace.
“Hey!” whispered Vincent. She glanced back at him but didn’t stop. “A field trip?” he asked.
“Yeah,” said Jessica, impatient. “Like the one you talked about. Now come on.” She turned forward once again and continued down the hall. Sighing, Vincent started after her. By the time they had gotten outside, Vincent had caught up.
“Do you know how to call a transport?” asked Jessica.
“No clue,” said Vincent. “Can you tell me why you just asked Mr. Watts to–”
“I think that one might be open,” said Jessica. She pointed to a pod hovering several meters away over the side of the street. “Let’s try it.” She took off once again, with Vincent left standing. Annoyed, but with no other option, Vincent followed.
“It says Ben and Lena Carlson,” said Jessica. Her eyes were out of focus, pointed at the pod. “Maybe Derek called us another one.”
Without waiting, she jumped inside. Vincent stayed out on the sidewalk.
“Come on,” she said. Then, seeing his irritated look: “I’ll tell you.”
Vincent looked around them at their classmates climbing into similar transports. He didn’t see how Jessica could tell him anything – assuming all this had something to do with their plan – but he couldn’t afford to cause a scene. He climbed up the transport ramp and let the door close behind him. He looked at Jessica expectantly.
“Ok,” she said. She paused dramatically. “It was a surprise.”
The words were hollow and Jessica’s expression was blank. Vincent waited for the punchline, but it didn’t come.
“Oh,” he said. “Thanks.” He looked at her for a moment, at her manufactured smile, but her expression was unreadable. Frustrated, he turned away. It had been naïve to think they could talk about anything important.
They were silent as the pod gained altitude in its typical, stomach-churning fashion. Vincent watched out the window for a while, then, when they started to get too high for his liking, he closed his eyes. He was starting to drift off when he felt something tracing along his spine. He turned around. Jessica was facing the window, but her left hand was closer to him than usual.
“What is it?” he asked.
Jessica turned to him, trying and failing to look innocent. “What’s what?” she said. Vincent tilted his head slightly, frowning. She nodded toward the window. “Keep looking.”
These words weren’t as hollow as the ones before. Frowning deeper still, Vincent turned back to the glass. They were still continuing to rise. Below them, he could see the squat, block-shaped building Annie had called the birthschool.
The tracing started again, and Vincent jumped. He didn’t turn around this time though. Something kept his eyes fixed out the window. It was Jessica’s finger. He could feel it now. She ran it down the center of his spine, slow and soft. The hairs on his arms started to rise. Then the pattern of the tracing changed: a half curl facing upward, a straight line under his shoulder blade
s. She paused after that before starting again, this time with a different pattern. Vincent narrowed his eyes, squinting as he looked out the window. He needed to concentrate – Jessica was drawing letters.
They rode like that in silence for almost a minute before Jessica lifted her finger from Vincent’s back. Vincent had lost track of some of the symbols, but he could piece the message together well enough: John. Identification.
It was the only thing the message could have been, but it was as unhelpful as Jessica’s other answers. They both already knew the plan was to find Brian’s brother, and the second word seemed completely random.
Vincent turned his gaze from the window and back to Jessica. She saw his confusion.
“What do you think about the hack?” she asked him. He could hear the prompting in her voice. She was trying to tell him something.
“I don’t know,” he said. “It’s scary, I guess.”
“Newsight has never been hacked before. How do you think it happened?”
Vincent’s frown endured for a moment longer, then began to fade.
John. Identification.
The eye prints. They had to have come straight from Newsight. What if John had infiltrated the HQ? What better way for him to serve the Order than to provide them with false identities? It was the perfect way to smuggle in supporters. He could send the prints to people like Kendra, people who had access to what little resistance that remained in the cities, and Kendra could send in recruits, even on accident. Newsight had been hacked. The hacker could only have been John.
Vincent felt the realization wash over him in an instant. Jessica’s field trip idea had been brilliant. The Newsight headquarters was the perfect place to begin their search.
“What do you think?” Jessica prompted him.
“I think you’re right,” he said.
Jessica nodded, smiling. Without another word, she turned back to the window. Vincent did the same. He stared out over the city with his eyes wide open this time. The place no longer seemed so large, so imposing. For the first time in days, they knew exactly where they needed to go.