"You need to tell us what you know about it," Daniel said.

Strom nodded and coughed, a deep, wracking sound. They all flinched, partly because they knew the feeling. Fresco found himself going for the bottle of water beside the bed and helping the man to drink.

Strom took it slow and still choked on the cold of it. While he struggled to recover, Genvieve made her objections clear and public.

"We can't trust him," she said, turning in place to meet the eyes of ...