The Adamas Blueprint

curiosity, and skepticism.

“In a minute. Turn here.”

“What?”

“I want to make sure you weren’t followed.”

“Are you kidding?”

“No. Then take the first left. Go!”

“All right,” Erica said in a voice normally reserved for small children telling you about their imaginary friends.

After another three turns, Kevin was satisfied that they were alone. “I know I must have sounded like a nut…”

“You still do.”

“Okay, I’m sounding like a nut. But I didn’t want to be stranded at that gas station.” He leaned back and closed his eyes, welcoming the rest, and then began to tell her about his encounter with Barnett and Kaplan. During the entire story, Erica didn’t say a word. Kevin was glad. The act of explaining what had happened helped to clarify the events in his mind. By the time he was finished, they were pulling into Romanelli's parking lot.

“Park in the back, out of sight,” Kevin said.

Erica pulled into a space in the almost empty lot. Turning off the engine, she said, “Why aren’t we at a police station? You said somebody tried to kill you.”

Kevin let out another sigh. “The police don’t believe me.”

“What? When did you talk to them?”

“After I called you, I called them and asked for Robley.”

“The detective who told you he didn’t know who Barnett and Kaplan were?”

“Right. I probably sounded like a nut to him, too. He said I could make a statement, but that’s about all. Maybe when they have the Mustang, they’ll believe me.” He looked at his watch. “I’m supposed to call him back in about ten minutes to see if they found it. One thing’s for sure, I’m not going down there until I know they’ll give me some protection.”

“Why not? What else can you do?”

“I can’t go home now. For all I know the police could be in on this. If those guys were cops, they’ll know where I am the minute I set foot in the station. And it’s possible they know who you are.”

“Is that why you wanted me to leave the townhouse?”

Kevin nodded. “Something bothered me about the conversation I had with Barnett and Kaplan, something that wasn’t right. It wasn’t until after the call from Robley that it sunk in. It was something Kaplan said. I told them about the message and the experiment, and then he asked me if I knew why someone would be interested in an experiment involving superconductivity.”

“So?”

“I hadn’t told them what kind of experiment it was. I had just told them we had conducted one. But Kaplan asked me specifically about superconductivity. He couldn’t have known that unless he’d heard you and me talking about it. The phone was bugged.”

“Come on, Kevin! Do you know how crazy this sounds?”

“Yes. And don’t say I’ve been watching too many movies. Besides, I know they heard your voice on the answering machine when I was hiding in the closet.”

Erica tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. “And you think they might have traced the phone call to my apartment.”

“I think it’s possible. For all we know, they could be over there right now.”

“This is crazy.”

“Tell me about it.”

“How about we continue this inside?” she said as she grabbed her purse. “It’s getting hot out here.”

* * *

Romanelli’s was one of the trendy new restaurants springing up around Houston with antique-looking knickknacks strewn about, bookshelves lining the walls, and so little light that identification of the food was difficult. The effect was supposed to be elegant privacy, but Kevin hated it. He just liked the fact that it was dark. As they entered, he saw that he’d been right to choose it. The lunch time rush hadn’t started yet, and most of the tables were empty. He asked the hostess for a dim booth in the far corner, close to the telephones.

They both ordered Diet Cokes and told the waiter they needed some time to examine the menu.

After the waiter left, Erica said in a lowered voice, “Are you sure these men were trying to kill you? You couldn’t have misunderstood?”

“I heard every word they said!” he exclaimed and then, realizing how loud he was, lowered his voice. “I know it was muffled in the closet, but I heard Barnett clearly. He said Kaplan should kill me if…” He looked at Erica’s concerned expression, and now he didn’t know if it was his safety she was worried about. “You don’t believe me.” The thought that she wouldn’t hadn’t occurred to him until this point.

“No, that’s not what I’m saying. I just want to make sure we have all the facts straight. Now, you said that this Barnett shot at you.”

He paused, not sure that he wanted to go on, angry that she even doubted him. But it was a fantastic story. He didn’t know if he would believe it if he hadn’t lived through it himself. And if she didn’t believe him, then the police wouldn’t either. He needed to convince her. “Either that or he blew out my window from fifty yards away with his finger.”

“But you didn’t hear any shots.”

“He must have been using a silencer. The car’s engine would have been loud enough to cover the sound.”

“How do you know that?”

Kevin shrugged. “I heard one at a shooting demonstration one time.” Erica gave him a puzzled look, but he didn’t elaborate. “Besides, I saw the bullet holes in the car door.”

“You could see them even with all the damage to the car?” she said.

“Yes.”

“Then why didn’t they just kill you in the apartment?”

She had a point. “I don’t know. I don’t even know why they would want to kill me in the first place. All I can figure is that it has something to do with the message from Dr. Ward and experiment NV117.”

“OK, let’s assume somebody was trying to kill you because of the email he sent you. Then the answer has to be there. What exactly did it say? Something about…”

“Shit!” Kevin said. “I totally forgot!” The printout. He still had it in his pocket. He dug out the crumpled and torn pieces of paper and flattened them on the table between them.

Erica furrowed her eyebrows and frowned as she read the message. Kevin focussed on the last line of the message and ran it over and over in his mind. DA483H3 is the… That had to be it. Nothing else told him anything. The code had to be the key.

“‘Is the’ what?” Erica said. “Are you sure he never used a code with you?”

“It could be anything for all I know. A combination, a locker number, something he mentioned to me once. But Ward was hiding this notebook from someone, and he was telling me how to find it. I’m sure of it. It has to be what these guys are after.”

“Or maybe they already have it and they didn’t want you to find out about it.”

“Then why would they ask me what the code means?” he asked, receiving only a shrug in reply.

Kevin looked at his watch. It was time to call Robley back.

Leaving the printout with Erica, he went to the phones and dialed the number Robley had given him.

“Detective Robley.”

“It’s Kevin Hamilton.”

“What are you trying to pull, Hamilton?”

This wasn’t the response Kevin was expecting. “What do you mean?”

“I checked with dispatch. Seems your Mustang was reported stolen at 9:30 this morning.”

“What!”