Page 39

“What do I do?” Piper moaned.

“So I did a search for images of Amanda and Lionel Harcourt while we were talking. This is what I can tell you; it’s not number one. They do look significantly younger this year than they did last year. I’m going to send those pictures over to your phone.”

Piper waited for her phone to ding, then swiped through. “Shit. Shit. Shit.”

“The guard is right. Now, Amanda Harcourt looks crazy similar to you. In dim light, I can see how he’d make the mistake,” Chanti said. “Next, I’m going to tell you that the spa is coming up as under development, and it should be ready in the next year. You won’t have FDA approval in the next year, right?”

“No, it should be years out.”

“It could still be excellent plastic surgery,” Chanti said. “And they might be establishing a surgical center at their spa. Keep that in mind as we speculate about their newfound youth.”

“If they did think they could use the formula, it could be that they’re getting everything in place, and they’re going to get things up and running, waiting for the FDA approval. And at that point, when it has a black box on it, because it causes cancer in people who don’t have the mutation, and it’s so dangerous in the reproductive cycle, then the Harcourts will know they can’t offer it at their spa.”

“Will they be around by then?” Chanti asked. “If they used the formula and they don’t have the mutation then—"

“No. You’re right. There’s a good chance that they’ll be—” Piper put her hand on her forehead. “That’s what’s happened. I feel it in my bones. I need to find out who had those shots. Scientists need to follow them medically. I need to know if they do get cancer. And if they need treatment, I need to make sure they get it. And as importantly, and yes, this is all speculation, and maybe I’m catastrophizing, but if anyone did take it, those people can’t reproduce.”

“The mother couldn’t she’d be dead. But yeah, a guy who took it, could impregnate a woman before he dies, which would be horrific. What do you want to do?” Chanti asked.

“That’s why I called you for your help figuring out what my next steps should be. I hate that I’m leaning into this, but could you do some tarot?”

“We can. But for the moment, let’s come up with a mundane strategy. We need to figure out if someone other than you accessed your files on the computer. Is that possible by looking at the history?” Chanti asked. “I can write some code, put it on a thumb drive, and you just plug it in. My code will do its thing, then you bring me back the USB to analyze.”

“Is there any chance I could be messing up their security by doing that?”

“I’m writing the code. Their face cream is safe,” Chanti said dryly. “You told me that it was an antiquated system. I mean, you’re not talking floppy disc antiquated, right?”

“It’s a clunky old-fashioned system. Something they developed just as the Internet was becoming a thing. When I was getting up and running on the system, Dad said the Harcourts and their security team were concerned about their proprietary information getting stolen or damaged through a virus. After all, they couldn’t file for patents since they’d have to reveal their secrets.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s a thing,” Chanti said.

“And more importantly, there was science—some of it good, some fine—and I’m sure there are some findings that might put the business in jeopardy if they were discovered.”

“If there are, that would be important to get out to the public.”

“Whistleblowing?” Piper asked.

Chanti was silent.

“I don’t know if I have access to any of that information. I can get to the files that are connected to the Alabaster Manor lab, not their R&D lab. That’s in Maryland.”

“So Alabaster Manor’s computer system is offline. We have to access it on site.”

“Very old school. The most old of old schools.”

“So that’s the plan. I’m going to make you a USB, and you’re going to take it in, and you’re going to let it do its work. It’s going to tell you when it’s done with a little green light. And then you’re going to take it out, put it in your pocket, and you’re going to bring it to me. We’re going to find out if anybody accessed your data other than you and when. You can only access it with your card, right?”

“With my badge? That’s right. I need to have my badge scanned to log into my stuff. But I can’t be the only one who can get into my stuff. Their computer security guy can get in. So if I got locked out somehow, and, I guess, if I died.”

“Shut up.”

“People die,” Piper said.

“Still. Shut up. Another thing to check: Don’t you keep controls on your formula?”

“What do you mean?” Piper asked.

“You know how much you made and how much was used. Unless there was an accident, you should know how many vials you have. Right?”