Ramez Naam - Nexus

Neither Sam nor her support team observed the third tuk-tuk, which had followed the unidentified monk, nor the large darkskinned man in black clothing within it.

Across town, in his tiny rented room, Wats zoomed in on an image of a tall, bald, hook-nosed Thai in monk's robes. Who was this man? Why had he followed Kade and Cataranes? Whoever he was, he'd spooked the ERD. Two military types had arrived at the Prince Market Hotel half an hour ago. They were Thai men with the bulk of augmented muscle, wearing blazers in this heat, blazers large and loose enough to conceal weapons in. They were still there, sipping sparkling water in the lobby. Just two businessmen out late for some Perrier in a hotel lounge on a Monday night. Yeah, right.

He stared at the monk's picture again.

Who are you?

This was a complication. An unknown. Wats didn't like unknowns.

16

A SLIGHT CHANGE OF PLANS

Kade woke before the alarm. He looked at the clock. 5.47am. Too early by far. He rolled over, but sleep wouldn't come. Today was the day. He'd meet Shu for lunch. What would happen then? Would she offer him the postdoc? Would she ask him about Nexus?

Could she truly deliver on what her mind had hinted at? Wasn't that what he wanted?

Wats. Was he really here? Was there any way to reach him?

And Ananda. Had that been real? Had he imagined that? Was the monk running Nexus?

Kade tossed and turned. It was no good. His mind was spinning too much for sleep.

He rose and threw open the curtains. It was raining outside. It would be a muggy steamy rain, he was sure. Three hundred feet down from his window, Bangkok was alive. Traffic was a chaotic dance of scooters, tuk-tuk, taxis, and private cars zipping to and fro, barely avoiding collision. Pedestrians moved in rivers of human bodies down the sidewalks, holding cheap umbrellas or wearing cheaper clear plastic ponchos. Bicyclists pedaled in the rain between pedestrians and motorized traffic. Food stalls occupied every corner but one, selling noodles or sticky rice topped with mangoes. Steam rose from them. On the fourth corner stood a small temple. Even in the rain, Thai men and women streamed continually in and out of it, paying their morning respects to whatever Buddha or bodhisattva was within.

In other circumstances he would love to explore this exotic, confusing city.

He pulled open his slate, instead. There was a message from Ilya asking how his trip was going, a dozen threads within the lab on various topics, and a single message from Su-Yong Shu.

Kade,

An unavoidable conflict has come up with lunch. Could you do dinner tonight instead? My driver can pick you up at 7pm from your hotel.

Best,

SYS

Curious. Kade shrugged. He fired off a quick reply. 7pm at his hotel would be fine. He answered a few more messages, then showered and went down to breakfast.

Sam seemed unperturbed about Su-Yong Shu moving their plans for the day. She ran him through the plan for interacting with Shu twice over breakfast. Kade felt as ready as he was ever going to be. Sam seemed to agree.

The conference whizzed by in a blur of sessions and brief conversations. Neuro-Optics: Laser Based Neural Stimulation. Hilbert Transforms in Deciphering Neural Correlates of Emotion. Planning and Deliberative Structures: Neural Circuitry and Firing Patterns.

Coming out of the planning structures session and on his way to lunch, Kade caught something out of the corner of his eye and turned. There was Su-Yong Shu, walking towards the conference center exit, with none other than Professor Somdet Phra Ananda.

How very interesting. Could that have anything to do with the encounter he'd had with Ananda the night before? Kade shrugged. It was impossible to know.

At least I was bumped for someone important.

He ran into Sam at the last talk of the day: Understanding Volition: From Dopamine to Dynamic Systems. They sat together. Sam seemed focused on the talk.

Finally, the day's sessions were over. It was time to return to the hotel to meet Shu's driver. Sam would meet Kade later, at the neuroscience students mixer that Narong had invited them to. If they were interested, there was a smaller afterparty afterwards.

Sam reviewed the plan with Kade one more time on chat, then stood there while he suppressed his Nexus transmissions. Then it was done. He was on his own. He headed back to the hotel to freshen up and iron his one button-down shirt in preparation for his dinner with Su-Yong Shu.

Wats crouched in the alley with the maid. They were four blocks from the Prince Market Hotel. Hopefully that put them outside the ERD's surveillance cordon. Hopefully.

The rain had stopped, at least. Small blessing.

The maid was not telling him what he wanted to hear.

Mai me But , she was saying. No card.

Haa Nai Thung Khaya? he asked. Had she searched the garbage?

Chai . Yes, she'd searched the garbage.

Kang Laang taitiang? Under the bed?

Chai, chai.

Hong naam? Had she looked in the bathroom?

Chai, chai. Mai me But.

And so it went. The card wasn't anywhere in Kaden Lane's room. Could he have put it in his bag to fill out later? Why would he do that? Wats had known that there was a chance that Kade would miss the card entirely… But then it should have still been in the hotel room somewhere.

Could Cataranes have taken it? Why would she? Unless they'd detected it somehow?

He felt a chill. He'd put his name on that card. It had been a risk, but he'd deemed it necessary in order to convince Kade to accept the offer.

So the ERD might know he was here. So be it.

The maid was waiting impatiently, her hand outstretched for her payment. Wats counted out the bills. Two thousand baht. He put them in her hand but didn't let go. He locked her eyes with his.

Mee ngahn Pheum , he told her. He had more work for her. He flashed more money in his other hand.

The maid smiled, rubbed the bills he'd given her with her thumb, and nodded. Wats let her go, and she turned and was off.

He stayed there in the alley after she'd gone, idly playing with the data fob around his neck. What now? Should he make his move without Kade's consent? And what were the consequences? What were they holding over Kade's head? Who would suffer? He'd trade dozens of lives for the light that Nexus 5 could shed on the world. But was it Wats' place to make that decision? Would his friend welcome it?

Fuck. Two years ago he would have charged in, guns blazing, pulled Kade out of there whether his friend would thank him or not, and damn the consequences.

Now… We must all walk the path ourselves. We must all choose our own karma. We must all allow others to choose their own karma as well.

Kade had to choose. If at all possible. That's what Buddhism said. Every individual had to make their own choices in life. Wats couldn't impose what he thought was right on Kade, especially with so much in the balance. The ones who imposed their own will on others – they were the ones wrecking the world.

Wats just needed a way to communicate with Kade to make sure he knew he had the choice at all. He needed a way to do so without being picked up by any of the cameras or microphones he suspected Kade was covered in. Without words being overheard by the inevitable microphones on Kade's body. Without being picked up by the cameras in the conference center, the cameras in the hotel. Even the note had been a risk, a bet that invisibly small surveillance cams wouldn't be able to read the text.

He'd find a way.

And if he couldn't get confirmation one way or another? What if, in the course of Kade's seven-day visit to Thailand, Wats couldn't be sure that his friend knew the option of escape was even open? Or if the rest of the situation became too suspiciously sketchy before he had that confirmation?