how you knew what we were gonna do.”
Dean was looking a little pale. “Tamal patched my phone. He said it was secure again.”
McMann was watching us with a bored expression, like we weren’t even worthy of his contempt. We were roaches and he was just squashing us under his shoe. “But you planned this ridiculous caper within Promethean. You practically called me up and told me everything you were going to do.”
“You don’t have access to only our Promethean accounts,” Dean said. “You have the ability to access any user’s messages, don’t you?”
“Data is king,” McMann said. “I don’t sit around reading the inane conversations of average users. The majority of people are boring. Instead, algorithms mine the data for keywords that give me insight into the hearts and minds of the masses. I know what they’re talking about, what they’re afraid of, what will drive them to the voting booth to cast their ballots for me.”
I could feel Dean shaking beside me, though I couldn’t tell whether he was trembling with fear or rage. I was leaning hard on my anger because it was the only thing keeping me from collapsing.
“Do you even wanna be president?” I asked.
McMann laughed. “Not particularly. But it’s great for my stock prices. And as president, it will be easier to get legislation passed that’s favorable to me. Cheaper too.”
“All of this is so that you can get richer?” I asked.
“Money is how we keep score.”
I looked at Dean. He didn’t seem to have anything else to say, and I couldn’t stand to look at McMann for one minute longer without the risk of puking.
“What now?” I asked.
McMann seemed to consider our situation for a moment. “We have two choices. The first is that I call Secret Service, tell them that I caught you attempting to break into my room, and we cause a scene involving your parents. The debates would likely be canceled, which would be a shame.”
“What is the second option?” Dean asked. How he was managing to keep his voice so steady was a mystery to me.
“You leave with your tails tucked between your legs, keeping all of this to yourselves, I win the debate, then the election, and you boys go on with your lives.”
I raised my hand and said, “Is there a third choice?”
“No.”
Dean took my hand and pulled me toward the door. “We should go, Dre.”
“Are we really gonna let him get away with this shit?”
Dean’s shoulders slumped. “He already has.”
“Correct,” McMann said. He tossed Dean the bag with our phones in it. “You should leave now. I have a debate to prepare for.” He sat back down in front of his laptop as if his dismissal had caused us to cease to exist.
Dean opened the door, letting McMann’s assistant back in, and we left.
Dean
DRE AND I returned to our respective greenrooms and waited to be led to our seats where we would watch the debate. Mindy, Tamal, and I didn’t talk much, and I didn’t see my mother until our escort told us it was time.
“Dean.” My mother pulled me aside in the hallway and told Nora to give us a moment.
“Mom.”
My mother pursed her lips and stared hard at me, her face an unreadable mask. I didn’t know what to expect from her, and I was pretty certain nothing she could do would have shocked me. “You couldn’t have found a nice Republican boy to date? I’ve heard gossip the junior senator from Georgia’s got a son who might be your type.”
“Would it have mattered?” I asked.
“I do love you, Dean.”
“All of me or only the pieces your voters approve of?”
She looked like she was trying hard to blink back tears. Her lips moved as if she was going to say something, but before she could, Nora popped in and told us it was time.
Our escort herded us to another spot to wait, where we were joined by the Rosarios and Mel. There was a palpable tension between my mother and Dre’s father, but I didn’t see the point in pretending any longer. I made my way to Dre and took his hand, daring anyone to stop me.
Jackson McMann was the last to arrive, wearing that self-congratulatory smirk he wore in every photo. He had such a punchable face.
I squeezed Dre’s hand. He looked at me questioningly, and I nodded.
Dre cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention. “Mr. McMann?” he said. “There actually is a third option, and we choose that.”
“Excuse me?” he said. Confusion was