Chapter 1 The musty-sweet odor of concrete irritates my nostrils as I wait for the elevator doors in the parking garage to open. “Mr. Greenstone?” I ask each time a man emerges. I worry one of them will recognize me, even though the hood on my navy blue windbreaker covers most of my head and face. On the fifth opening, a stocky forty-something man dressed in a gray seersucker suit, bolo tie, and cowboy hat responds, “Yes?” I pause until three women who rode the elevator with him are out of earshot. “I’m Bere Baudin,” I whisper, lowering the hood. His broad face is expressionless, so I assume he doesn’t recognize me. “What can I do for you, Mr. Baudin?” My heart is pounding so hard I can feel it in my fingertips. I draw a deep breath. “I — I want you to kill me.” Greenstone stiffens his posture. “You what?” I glance around to see if anyone heard him. “Would you kill me, please?” He shrugs. “I’m sorry. You have the wrong person. I’m a stockbroker, not a killer. But I can refer you to a good therapist.” I chuckle. “Sorry, I should have mentioned that my father, Bryce Baudin, referred me to you.” “The professor?” I nod and am relieved he remembered my dad. “How is he?” Greenstone asks. “Missing.” “What?” Greenstone’s brow furrows. “My grandma and I haven’t heard from him in a couple of days. But he gave me a message to give to you.” I lean toward Greenstone and whisper in his ear, “‘Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.’ Now will you kill me, Mr. Greenstone?”