Judge

Chapter 4

We slowly drive back home in the coupe, talking about ways to remain hidden from the government.

"I don't suppose you want to play I spy?"

"Only if you spy a way to be normal. I'm so worried, Ari. I just can't shake this terrible feeling. Like something is about to happen. I'm just being silly, of course, but the atmosphere is creepy." I think long and hard about what she's describing. It seems like we might be followed. I start checking in the rearview mirror and sure enough, a black Chevy SUV follows us wherever we go. I take a deep breath. Maybe it's nothing. I memorize the plates just in case. But when it keeps on following us after we turn off an exit, I tell Maddie quickly. The rest of the drive is pure monotony filled with tension. The looming threat of the black SUV energizes every moment. I decide it would be a good idea to take a side street. As we begin to trundle through the woods, I decide to stop and see if the car passes us.

I pull over slowly, and watch my left wing mirror. The Chevy stops as well, and soon a troop of four men in suits step out. I can see the bulge of pistols in their jackets. Gray wires connect their ears to mikes on their lapels. They array themselves in a line abreast, split like linemen in a four-front. The two men in the middle step forward. They look like they mean business. Impassable and solid, they might be intimidating if I didn't know that I could kill them all in about two seconds if they attack Maddie. I instinctively step in front of her, blocking the suits off from her. She frowns but stays behind me.

The agent second from right speaks. "Test one, I suggest you step aside."

"Not a chance in hell," I reply. "Who are you? What do you want?"

"The Secretary of Defense would like to speak with you. Both of you. If you refuse, we have orders to bring you in. Any way possible." The agent second from left is the one that speaks this time. They remain unmoving. I look back at Maddie. She gives a small nod, but keeps a closed-off expression that means she's cautious.

"All right." Maddie's voice sounds calm and even. I glance back at her.

"You sure?"

"Of course." Her tone is emotionless. She brushes past me and begins to slowly walk towards the four men, her footsteps slapping against the asphalt.

"Wait. What about my car? I have to park it and mark my location. Or we could follow you to D.C. in it." Maddie stops. I hope the car is what they let us take to the capital, not their black and menacing vehicle.

"Park it. We'll take you." I do as they say. I rush, because I'm uncomfortable with leaving Maddie outside with them. She would normally say that I'm silly and overprotective, but there's something I don't trust about them.

When I'm done, I get out, join them, and walk to the men with Maddie, who had stayed in the same position as before I parked. The middle agents step outside and the outer ones open the side doors of the SUV. Two agents climb in the back before the others usher us into the middle seat. Then they climb over into the driver seat and the passenger's. I lean over the tan leather of the middle seat.

"What do you think he's going to say?" I ask, genuinely interested.

"This is one of those moments you just need to be quiet. I'm sorry, but shut up until we get there," she replies sharply. I jerk back, hurt. I stare out the window and quiet down. I try to imagine Coldplay in my head, and the only song I can think of is "Trouble". Not the stupid Taylor Swift "Trouble", but one about a failed relationship by Coldplay. The lines run through my head.

"Oh no, I see... A spider web and it's tangled up with me.

And I lost my head... I thought of all the stupid things I'd said."

The ride seems endless. The minutes stretch until we hit I-270. Time speeds up when we get on the highway, still bound in silence.

When we hit Clara Barton Parkway, I start to get nervous. The tension builds with every second. My heart races. My pulse quickens. My breathing intensifies. My hands clenched and hardened into fists. The marble city slides by in the window.

I steal a glance at Maddie. She taps her fingers on her legs, still oddly emotionless. The SUV grinds to a halt. The energy in the air is palpable.

The car quickly turns off, and the agents in the front step out. They open the doors to our seats and wait, clearly expecting us to exit. I slide from the car and hustle around to the staircase, Maddie blank-faced and bordered by suits.

Our grim procession clatters up the zig zag staircase to the Pentagon.

The cool air rushes over my face as we push open the doors and march to an office with a dark wood desk, a presidential seal, and a small, sallow man with salt-and-pepper hair watching us intently.

Secretary of Defense Dillman.