Barry took the small device he’d been wearing on a chain around his neck during the day’s route, slid it into an open slot — just like the woman with the money had shown him — and clicked “Upload Data”as soon as it appeared onscreen.

He’d expected to see one of those goofy progress bars like you see in the movies, but nothing happened. His palms started to itch. He rubbed them on his pants, wondering if he’d done something wrong, wondering if he’d been set up.

But after a few too-long moments, a screen popped up that said: “Upload complete. Erase data?”

He clicked yes, tossed the thumb drive into the trash like they told him to, and got out of there.

So yeah, Barry loved his job. But money was tight these days. And he had a family to feed.