Nexus by Ramez Naam

back and her feet tied to the chair. She clung to that solidity.
     
    Wats exhaled slowly. How to convince these kids of what was necessary? "Listen, this woman will say anything to you to achieve her goals. She's lied from the beginning. She's going to keep on lying. Once the ERD have you in custody, you're theirs. You won't get a lawyer. They can do whatever they want to you, and you won't ever get out from under it. You understand?"
      He looked around the room. Ilya met his eyes. Rangan was nodding, his face pale. Kade still had his eyes on the ground. Wats could feel their emotions. Rangan: fear and anger. Ilya: defiance. Kade: guilt and self-doubt. He was reprimanding himself for creating this situation.
      "Kade. Sit up straight, my friend. It doesn't matter how we got here. We're here." Wats saw Kade nod at his words, felt the kid get fractionally more of a grip on his emotions. "Look, our getaway plans are solid. If we stay, they have us for sure. If we bolt right now, we have a chance. It's a deep dark hole or a chance at getting out. We've got to do the sensible thing."
      He paused, looking around. Rangan was ready. He didn't know what to make of Ilya and Kade's emotions.
      "OK, you all ready? Rangan, can you knock her out and leave her that way for a few hours?"
      "I'm not going," Kade said.
      Wats paused again. Then, "Kade, if you stay, it's over. You won't ever get free of them."
      Kade nodded. "I know. It's just… If we run, what happens to everyone else here? Antonio, Jessica, Andy… The volunteers that measured out the doses and hooked up the repeaters. Do we tell all of them to run too? They don't have fake passports. They don't have someplace to run to. They just get fucked. Hell, what about Tania, Wats?"
      Wats flushed. "If you stay here, you get fucked too," he replied.
      Kade shook his head. "Ilya's right. If they want me for something, then I have leverage. It's a bargaining chip. I can get other folks off the hook."
      "You have bigger things to attend to," Wats replied.
      Now Kade exuded anger. "That's a cop-out, Wats. We created this situation. It's our responsibility." He calmed himself, spoke more softly. "Actually, you know what? It's my responsibility." He shook his head.
      Wats let his breath out slowly again. He had to reach this kid. "Kade… It's important that you get out of here. All three of you. What you're doing here is powerful. It has potential. It can save a lot of lives. It can end wars. It's bigger than you. It's more important than just this party. You're more important."
      "I'm not more important than the hundred people out there," Kade said sharply.
      "Your work is."
      Ilya cut in. "Wats, we can't let the ends justify the means. These people haven't done anything wrong. We haven't done anything wrong. We have to fight. We can take this public, take it to the press…"
      Wats shook his head. So naïve. "Ilya, they're not going to let you, don't you see? You have no rights in this country, not as of tonight. They're not going to let you near the press. And even if they did, no one would care."
      Ilya stood her ground. "We have to try. We have to stand up and fight for what's right." She exuded resolve, defiance.
      This wasn't going to work, Wats saw. As much as he'd tried to educate them on the realities of the world, they wouldn't ever understand until they'd experienced it first hand.
      He turned to Kade.
      "Then give me the code," he said. "The design, the blueprints, the recipe, all of it. If you disappear, I'll get it out into the world."
      Kade shook his head. "It's not ready yet."
      "Kade, if you go to jail, it'll never get out. This may be your only chance left to make a difference with it."
      Kade kept shaking his head. "It's too easy to abuse. Look at what we're doing to her right now." He gestured towards the now blind and deaf ERD agent tied to the chair. "If we let it out now, people will get