“So lemme ask again… who would pay for this?”.
The spectacled man leaned over the metal desk and looked me in the eyes. His eyes glimmering with expectation.

They’d been asking me questions like that for the past hour – where had I worked, what technology was I familiar with, why did I do the things I do, who was I working with… Blurred figures moved behind the stained glass as the time crept by. Every few questions they would backtrack to things I said before.

It looked like these guys had learned all their tricks from classic movie interrogations. I knew all their tricks, saw through their BS. Yet when Specs left the room, ostensibly to get some coffee, his good-cop partner saw his chance clear. Told me he appreciated the design of my plans, saw the intricate beauty. And as he had hoped, my guard lowered for just a moment. Let loose some detail of the job, followed by more praise.

Three years later, their product was all over town. The celofane wrap reflected my face from behind the store window.