"Of course," David said. "That was rather transparent. Easy."
"Same basic logic as these. Ten different regions or sub-potentateships, as Carpathia likes to call them. We know them as kingdoms. Ten different prefixes, all related to Carpathia. I mean, the fact that one of them is 216 should have been your first clue."
"Don't tell me, Chang. I'll get it."
"Should have had it by now."
"You can lighten up on me. I don't know how I could have prevented this. Your little charade didn't help. Your sister is going to kill me. And, assuming you want out of here as badly as Ming wants you out and as badly as the other four believers want out, how did that help?"
"Can you believe my father and Moon thought I pitched a fit because I was afraid of needles?"
"I'm glad you didn't just scream out that you're a believer."
"Well, what am I now, Hassid?"
"You don't like to be called son-don't call me Hassid."
"Sorry. What's your pleasure?"
"Mr. Hassid or Director Hassid while we're in here. Once we're gone, Mr. or Brother will work."
"You sound like an old guy."
"That's because you're a young guy. As for what you are, with both marks you surely have to be in a special category."
"But all that stuff Dr. Ben-Judah writes about, choosing between the seal of God and the mark of the beast. I chose, and I got both. Now what?"
David sat shaking his head. Chang cocked his head and pursed his lips. "It isn't that I really don't know, Mr. Hassid. I just keep testing you. Are you not as bright as they think you are, or are you just short on sleep? Can't figure the prefixes, can't figure-"
"First, I'm not as bright as they think I am, but I might surprise you."
"I'm not trying to be disrespectful, sir. I'm really not. But you have already surprised me by how long it takes you to make things make sense."
"I've also been under unusual pressure for months, and worse the last couple of weeks."
"Yeah. I'm sorry about your, ah, were you engaged? Was she your fiancee?"
"Secretly, yes. Thanks."
"That would put anybody off track for a while. That's understandable."
"So, you're mad you got the mark, but you've already made some sense of it?"
Chang sat back and crossed his legs. "You know Ben-Judah personally, huh?" "Haven't met him, but we work together." "You have his phone number?" "Of course."
"Well, you might want to call him to confirm, or let me borrow the number and I'll talk to him myself…" "I don't think so."
"Fair enough. You call him then and see if I'm right. I'm a believer. That hasn't changed. The Bible says nothing can separate us from the love of Christ, and that has to include our own selves. And God says we're hidden in the hollow of his hand and that no one can pluck us out. I didn't choose the mark. It was forced on me. I see nothing but benefits."
"Then why the big scene?"
"I don't figure everything out immediately. I sure didn't want the mark. I was trying to figure a way to get out of it right up to the time they stuck me. I don't have to like it, but what's done is done, and a smart guy like you ought to be able to see the upside of this." "Tell me, oh great intellect."
"So mock me. Forget it. I shouldn't have to tell you anyway."
David stood and moved to the front of the desk and sat atop it, his knees inches from Chang's. "All right, listen. It's obvious you're a mental prodigy, mind like a steel trap, all that. I'd heard you were a Bible-memory freak, which is saying something when you can't risk being caught with one. All that from reading it on the Net?"
Chang nodded.
David continued. "I'm not hung up on being the smartest guy in the room no matter where I am. That didn't used to be so, especially when I was your age. I enjoyed not only overwhelming older people with my brain but letting them know that we both knew who was the king. You want me on the floor, kissing your feet? Fine. You're the best. You're smarter than I am. I'm a journeyman, a plugger compared to you. That what you want to hear? It doesn't bother me that you're a few steps ahead of me-it really doesn't. What bothers me is your assuming it bothers me, because it would bother you if the shoe were on the other foot. Then I get defensive, trying to prove it doesn't bother me, which only makes it appear that it does. You following this?"
Chang smiled. "Yeah, I got it."
"So enlighten me and quit trying to rub it in. What are you going to do with this 'advantage,' as you call it, being bi-loyal for lack of a better term? And how does acting angry with me help that cause, whatever it is?"
"Glad you asked. May I take it from the top?"
David nodded.
"First, I like the term. Bi-loyal. That's the way it appears. This forehead is going to really bother fellow believers. They can only assume the seal mark is fake, because no one would fake the mark of the beast. They're going to take some persuading, and if I were them, I might never trust me.
"But the Carpathia loyalists… they can't see the mark of God, and they have no reason to believe the loyalty mark is anything but what it appears. Therefore, I am free to live among them-buy and sell, come and go, even work here-without suspicion and-if I'm careful-without risk."
"You're good, Chang. But that last was very teenage thinking."
Chang appeared to think about that, then nodded his concession. "Maybe so. Too bad I won't have an old guy like you around to keep me from being too tempestuous and impulsive."
"I'm starting to feel ancient."
"You are, Director. Think about how few years you have left on this earth as we know it."
"Funny."
"Question is, how do you and your three friends get out of here, and how do I get your job?"
"You're not going to get my job."
"I could do it."
"Maybe you could, but not even Carpathia is foolhardy enough to risk that. You have to work your way up, and I have an idea who might take my spot anyway. You'd wind up working for him."
"That's too bad; if you're right."
"I'm right. You're so smart, have some common sense. They're not going to put a teenager in a director's chair.
They're just not. Think about it. I'm the youngest director now by eight years." " Congratulations."
"That's not the point. If you're going to stay here and be a better mole than I was-because the mark gives you unquestioned credibility-you have to be strategic. Pick your spots. Do what you can."
"Which is what, in your opinion?" "I can teach you everything I know before I leave." A smile played at Chang's lips. "What?" David said. "I know you're dying to say something."
"Just that you teaching me everything you know shouldn't take long. It's a joke. C'mon."
"A real comedian. Well, for as limited as I am, I'd like to think you'll be amazed by what I've done here and what I have in place. My biggest worry is that my remote access is only good for as long as they stay with the current system."
"You don't have to worry about that anymore," Chang said. "Because?" "I'll be here."
"But you're not going to be a director. It won't be your call what system they stay with or change to."
"But I can adapt what you've put in place to work with it, either way." "You probably could." "I know I could." David covered his mouth with a hand, thinking. Why hadn't he recognized the possibilities right away? "Some of your confidence is attractive. Part of it is off-putting."
"Most of it is an act, sir."
"Really?"
"Sure. The whole thing in here was an act. Pushing your buttons was just for fun. I'm just showing you how I'd fit in here. Be a little sarcastic, a little condescending. Tweak people. You think they're going to suspect I'm a Judah-ite?"