The seconds dragged by as Babel sat silently at the console. Lanier turned his attention back to Saigo, who stood near the corner of the room, hands at his sides where Lanier could see them. He could see Saigo’s mind racing to come up with a means of turning the situation to his advantage. He also noticed Babel’s gun lying on top of the console where he’d left it, forgotten. Lanier made his way over to the console and picked up the gun. Checking to see that the safety was on, he slung it by the strap over his shoulder, keeping the other Uzi trained on Saigo.