I stared at Adrian's name until the letters blurred.
PROJECT MERIDIAN — CLOSED
AUTHORIZED BY: ADRIAN ROMANO
My first instinct was to confront him.
My second was to remember everything he'd said earlier.
Your father was involved in something before June 17.
I don't know exactly.
Ask Victoria about 2006.
Why would he send me toward 2006 if he had been the person who closed the project?
Unless he knew I would find his name.
Unless he wanted me to.
I leaned back in my chair.
For the first time, I wondered if Adrian had been leading me somewhere.
Not necessarily toward the truth.
Maybe toward whatever version of the truth he wanted me to see.
I closed the file.
Then opened it again.
I wasn't ready to trust my first conclusion.
There had to be another record.
There always was.
