It's a fairly cold day in early February, and Alicia Grant is getting ready for school. Alicia is a senior at Notre Dame High School and a member of the computer club and school choir. She comes downstairs for breakfast and finds her mother sipping coffee and listening to the news. The anchorman, Mike Brentmore, is elaborating on the latest world and local news.

"At noon today, the senate will debate an agriculture relief bill aimed at farmers affected by last year's drought and a frigid winter. The adverse weather caused substantial monetary loss and minimally productive crops, resulting in price increases for produce, dairy, and meat. The bill would give subsidies to farmers whose crops were affected by the drought and a harsh winter that is far from over, with the goal of limiting the cost of food.

"In local news, a three-alarm fire broke out last night in the Logan section of Philadelphia, killing four and injuring three, including two firefighters. Investigators have determined that the blaze was caused by a faulty electric heater. The owner of the home, Rae Shawn Williams, died in the fire along with her two children, a boy of seven and a girl of six, and a friend named Roberto Alvarez. When we return, Gil Porter will have news of the Phillies as they prepare for spring training."

"Good morning, Mom," Alicia says cheerfully as she enters the kitchen.

"Good morning, dear. Your father called while you were in the shower. I told him you would call him back once you were dressed."

"Oh, really? Well, I don't think I have time to have a long conversation with him about anything he feels is important."

"Of course you do, Alicia. I don't have to go to work until much later, so I will gladly drop you off at school. Besides, it's too cold to wait out there for the bus today, so call your father while I finish breakfast."

"Mom, I really don't want to argue with him this morning. It always upsets you when we argue. I will call him after school."

"It's Thursday, and you know your father teaches late classes on Thursday. If you don't talk to him this morning, you won't be able to talk to him until tomorrow. And you and I both know this is probably about your birthday."

"Let me guess. He won't be able to come down for my birthday, so he wants to send me something special to make up for it ... again."

"I cannot understand why your father's students love him so much and his only daughter cannot stand to be in the same room with him."

"Maybe if I saw him half as much as his students did, I would."

"That is not at all fair, Alicia. You know very well that your father had no other choice than to take that job in Massachusetts. It was the opportunity of a lifetime, and it is what he has worked so hard for. You might as well be equally mad at me for staying here in New Jersey. Just like your father, I was not willing to give up my job and church to move out there. It's not at all what we wanted, but life has a way of not always going as we plan it to."

Alicia concedes to her mother's wishes and goes over to the phone to call her dad. Her mother begins to put breakfast on the table, humming a church hymn.

"Hello, my dear. How are you doing? I wasn't sure whether you would have time to call back."

"Hi, Daddy. I'm fine. How are you?"

"Much better now that I hear your voice. I miss you so much, pumpkin."

"Dad, I thought we agreed that you would not call me that anymore."

"Sorry, dear, but it's kind of a hard habit to break."

"Well, I'm quite sure a man of your intelligence could think of something a little less pathetic and more grown-up."

"I don't consider that term of endearment pathetic. It reminds me of how much you used to love picking out the perfect pumpkin for Halloween. Those times were always so special to me."

Alicia begins to get a little agitated at the direction the conversation is taking. "Dad, I have to go to school, and Mom is putting breakfast on the table. What is it that you want?"

"Well, I was just wondering what you wanted for your birthday and what plans you and your mother have made for that day. Can I be a part of the celebration, or is it too late for me to put my hat in the ring?"

"I think you should talk to Mom about that. All I know is Mom has agreed to take me and some girlfriends to the mall to do a little shopping. Other than that, we were just going to play the rest by ear."

"Well, I have nothing pressing here at the institute, and my work is on its way to the publisher, so I just thought it would be nice if I came down tomorrow night to spend the weekend with you two. What do you think about that, dear?"

"Like I said before, Dad, it would be better to talk to Mom about that. I don't mean to cut this conversation short, but if I don't get off this phone, I'm going to be late for school."

"Okay, sweetheart. Could you put your mother on?"

Without saying goodbye, Alicia walks over to her mother and hands her the phone. She sits down to start eating without looking at her. Mrs. Grant takes the phone and walks into the other room to talk to her husband, leaving Alicia at the table shaking her head and spreading strawberry preserves on her toast.

* * *

Location: Military base in Washington, DC; home office of General Edward Hargrove, commander of Defense Network Systems.

General Hargrove is in his office meeting with members of his staff when his secretary buzzes him.

"Yes, Gladys, what is it?"

"You have an urgent long-distance call from California, sir."

The general cuts the discussion short, informing his staff that the call is important and that they will resume after lunch. The staff members gather their belongings and make a swift departure. The general takes the call.

"General Edward Hargrove speaking. How may I help you?" "

General, I need not remind you that this must be a secure line," the voice on the other end states.

"This is a secure line, sir. You may speak freely."

"Excellent. Have you recovered the documents yet?"

"My team recovered them and is in the process of determining which documents we need to destroy. The mission appears to be a success, sir."

"Appears? I was hoping for more than an appearance. I need to know that we can proceed with the next phase. We cannot make our next move without confirmation, General."

The general is a pale, burly man of six feet tall plus an inch. He wears a military-style buzz cut that's graying on the sides and a meticulously trimmed mustache that is also turning gray. Although he is fifty-three years old, he has managed to stay in pretty good shape.

"I will be meeting with the team later today to look over the discovery, including phone transmission intercepts and any postal service movements. I will call you with an update no later than fifteen hundred hours."

"Good. That is really good to hear. Will you complete the other task in time to meet me at the new location?"

"I should be finished here and arrive at the new location Sunday evening. I am not expected back here until Wednesday morning."

"Excellent. I'll introduce you to the newest members of our team. I do believe you will be impressed with what they have for you."

"I'm looking forward to our meeting, sir. I'll see you on Sunday."

"Sunday it is, General. You take care, and I await the update this afternoon."

"I am sure it will be an outstanding one, sir. Later."

The lawmakers vote, and the agricultural relief bill is passed. With the help of many charitable foundations and several corporations like the Illuminite Laboratories, a fund is established to give aid to all American farmers. Meanwhile, members of the strike team back from their mission deliver documents to General Hargrove in Washington, DC. The general meets the strike team at an undisclosed location seven miles southeast of the White House.

"Good day, gentlemen. What do you have to report?"

"General, we have gone over every inch of these documents, the hard drive, and fax machine, and we have found nothing related to the Perseus Program," Lieutenant Walthen replies with disappointment. "We have not been able to go back to the professor's quarters. His body has been discovered, and there are too many police, reporters, and crime scene investigators there. We do, however, have the residence under twenty-four-hour surveillance. We are watching everything brought out, and when the coast is clear, we will return one more time and remove everything not nailed down."

"It may be too late by then, Lieutenant. This professor was an upstanding member, so his murder will be classified as highly suspicious. The investigators will go through that place with a fine-toothed comb. Someone will have to answer for this murder. You and your men undoubtedly dropped the ball on this one, and my superiors will be extremely disappointed in your failed performance."

"All is not yet lost, General. We were able to intercept the professor's phone records, including the very last calls he made."

"And exactly who did the professor call last?"

"Dr. Malcolm Grant, a professor at MIT. Dr. Grant is a long- time colleague and friend of the professor. Would you like to hear the message he left Dr. Grant?" the lieutenant said, smiling.

The general walked over to the long conference table and sat down where a tape recorder was strategically placed at the head of the solid cherry table. The lieutenant began to play the message, standing in a proud and militant fashion. By the time the message came to an end, the general began to smile.

"Do you know if this Dr. Grant has received this message? Has he gone to the home or to the office of his colleague?"

"Not yet, but we now have him under surveillance. Where he goes, we go. It's obvious he has left the doctor with a clue to where the documents are. When he finds the documents, we will find him. Here's what I need to know from you general. What do we do about the good doctor?"

"You will do what must be done. Do I need to remind you and your team just how terribly important this is? This entire mission depends on the retrieval of those documents. Are we clear on all this, Lieutenant?"

"Crystal, General."

Location: Marlton, New Jersey; home of Kevin Kennedy, MIT graduate and computer hacker extraordinaire. Kevin currently works for a global communications company in Mount Holly and creates programs on the side to supplement his income.

Kevin is sitting at one of his six computers, running a program and typing feverishly at his keyboard with music blaring from his Nakamitchi system — compliments of a customer who brought it from Japan and traded it (to Kevin) for a program that the customer used to put a former employer out of business. Kevin created a pernicious program that fried the employers system, thereby causing him to lose extremely sensitive data, including payroll and personal finance information, which resulted in the employer filing for bankruptcy. For the past seven months, Kevin has been working on something new — a program so destructive on a global level that he could be sent to jail for the rest of his natural life if he was caught.

"Hey, Kevin!" his roommate shouts while banging on his bedroom door.

Kevin turns the music down and answers him, "Can't you see that I'm a little busy? What do you want?"

The mailman is at the door. He has something that only you can sign for."

Bursting out of his room, Kevin replied, "Well, why didn't you say that before? I've been waiting for this for days now!"

"You're welcome, Kevin," his roommate sarcastically replies as he follows Kevin downstairs. "You know, you can be a real jerk sometimes, especially when it comes to those computers of yours."

Kevin greets the mailman, shows his identification, and signs for the envelope. He checks the return address showing the Illuminite Laboratories and smiles. He walks into the kitchen and grabs a Red Bull energy drink from the refrigerator and prepares to return to his room.

"Hey, dude, are we still going to the comic book store, or is that letter going to change our plans?"

Kevin momentarily looks at his roommate, shakes his head, and walks to his bedroom.

"I guess that's a no on the comic books. I gotta find a more dependable friend," he mutters as he grabs his coat and heads out of the door.

Back in his room, Kevin locks his door and plops on the bed. He begins to open the envelope when a signal from one of his computers alerts him to the completion of a program. He walks over and confirms that the program is safely tucked away in his removable drive, and then he goes back to the bed. He opens the letter and begins to read it

Greetings, Mr. Kennedy,

I hope all is going well with you and your latest project. We are truly looking forward to viewing your work, and I believe I speak for all here at Illuminite when I say how fortunate we are to have you on our team. Your last projections were quite impressive, and we have every confidence that you will deliver that which you have promised. Your new quarters have been completed exactly to the specifications you requested. As promised, you will want for nothing here at Illuminite. The world will become your oyster. I have enclosed a check so you can settle all accounts in New Jersey, and the remainder of your student loan has already been taken care of. Not that any of that will matter once we put our new technologies on the market. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to call my number. Take care, and I look forward to hearing from you soon. P.S. Gabrielle can hardly wait to see you again.

Sincerely,

Brandon Brogan, CEO of Illuminite Laboratories

P.S. Gabrielle can hardly wait to see you again.

Kevin closes the letter and returns it to the envelope. He looks at the check and smiles so hard that every tooth is his mouth is visible.

"I haven't seen this many zeros since my calculus class," he says. "This world is truly going to hell."

Dr. Grant arrives at his wife and daughter's home at seven. His wife's car is not in the driveway, so Dr. Grant can only assume they are still shopping. He puts the car in the garage and closes the door. After about ten minutes — of pre-birthday preparation for his daughter — he enters the house and goes into the spare room he once used as an office. Nothing has really changed as far as the décor goes — a dark walnut desk, a shelf half-filled with books, and an old brown Naugahyde leather chair his wife promised him she would not throw away. He sits in the chair, happy that it still feels the same after all these years. He picks up the phone to dial his office voice mail when he hears his family enter the house.

Alicia and her mother, Alice, enter from the front door with bags from assorted stores. They talk and laugh about their little shopping excursion when Dr. Grant meets them in the kitchen.

"I gather the shopping went well. That is the one thing I miss more than anything — you two laughing, filling the house with joyous sound."

"Oh, Jesus!" Alice replies, extremely startled. "When did you get here? I thought we were going to meet you at the train station."

"Well, had you done that, I would not have been able to bring my baby her birthday gift."

"My what?" Alicia says, looking around for something too big to carry on a train. "What are you talking about, Dad?"

"Your gift, baby. It's in the garage."

"Oh, my God," Alicia says, shrieking as she runs to the garage. Dr. Grant smiles as Alice follows Alicia, turning to him with a cheerful smile, indicating her approval of his thoughtfulness.

Alicia is awestruck — speechless as she walks around a brand-new, shiny red 2016 Nissan Altima complete with custom rims and a medium cream leather interior. Alice's reaction seemed to mirror Alicia's.

"Well, what do you think of it, baby?"

Alicia looks to her dad, unable to say a word. She runs to him and gives him a hug — the kind she has not given him in a very long time. Tears begin to stream down both Alicia and her mother's face.

"With a hug like this, no words are necessary. Happy birthday, pumpkin. I know you no longer care for the nickname, but I haven't found one yet that quite does it for me."

Alicia looks up to her father with a look that told him the nickname was fine with her for now. Alice walks around the car and joins her family.

"Are we going to take it out for a test drive or get even mushier?"

"Alice, maybe you should, you know ... say a little prayer before she takes it out?" Dr. Grant says in an extremely uncomfortable tone.

Alice walks to the front of the car. "Dear Father in heaven, once again, You have shown my family how gracious and loving You are. Giving You the honor and glory has always been my will. I ask His grace to please continue to watch over my family and protect my daughter on the highways and byways as she travels in this new gift that only You could have made possible. These things we ask in Jesus's precious name. Amen."

The happy family loaded themselves in the car and head out on a brief maiden voyage while Dr. Grant makes a mental note to check his voice mail later.