The Games We Play

by Mark C. Wade

  She asked, “So, do you believe me?”

  “It’s something. I’ll pay the police chief a visit and see if I can get more information.”

  Henry knew Quillen was not going to like that he’d been meddling, but this really was something they should have known about if they were taking the investigation seriously. And he hadn’t even broken any laws to get the information…yet.

  Chapter 6

  “We are here, live at the police station. I’m going to try to get a few words from the police chief about the recent death of one of our own.”

  Henry pretended to not notice the strange scene as he walked past the entrance of the police department.

  Some person was dictating his every move into a microphone, and a crew of several people towed closely behind. The man had bleached blonde hair and a tall, lanky Nordic look to him. Those blue eyes had ice behind them and had probably broken more than a few hearts.

  Once he was out of view, Henry tried to look inconspicuous as he watched whatever this was.

  The guy stopped at the base of the cement steps leading into the building.

  He asked one of the crew members, “How were the levels on that?”

  “Looking good.”

  “Okay. I want to do my monologue here where I can get some of the ambient noises of the police station. I know we can edit it in later, but this seems more natural.”

  “Whenever you’re ready, Lukas.”

  Lukas took on a different tone and stance. His voice deepened.

  “Welcome to Ebb and Flow. The podcast for all things Eburnean Passage. This episode is a part of our ongoing special series on the recent malfunction of Zane Wolmark’s VR gear.”

  The heavy glass doors to the police station burst open suddenly. Lukas spun around and said, “Keep rolling. There he is.”

  Lukas barreled at Quillen, which Henry didn’t think was the smartest move. The guards with their giant guns wouldn’t be forgiving.

  As Henry suspected, one of the guards ran at Lukas and jumped onto him. Lukas plummeted to the ground with a strangled scream, and the guard pinned him there. Quillen barely batted an eye. He was probably used to these things happening.

  Lukas yelled, “I’m press! Let me go! I have a right to be here. Can I just get a quick statement from the chief of police?”

  The group of police with Quillen continued without comment, and when they were a safe distance away, the guard let Lukas up.

  Lukas narrated, “That was intense. I was just pinned to the ground by some guards. It seems they have something to hide. We’ll get to the bottom of this. Keep listening to Ebb and Flow for any, and all, breaking news about Eburnean Passage…and cut!”

  The people following Lukas broke out into a flurry of chatter. When it died down, Lukas said, “That was great guys. We’re going to go viral. I can feel it!”

  Henry wandered over to the group.

  He said, “Hey. You want the most up-to-date info on Zane?”

  Lukas puffed his chest out.

  “We’ve already got it. Who are you?”

  Henry said, “Fine. If you don’t want to talk to the private investigator on the case, you can keep doing whatever that was.”

  Henry spun as quickly as he could and started to walk away.

  Lukas yelled, “Wait! How can you get me access to that?”

  Henry stopped and smiled to himself before turning back. He handed this Lukas person his card and said, “I’m the person investigating it. Get in touch with my people to set up a time.”

  My people?

  Henry didn’t know what he was thinking. Quillen was going to kill him if he ever found out about this, but he couldn’t worry about that now. Henry wanted information, and this person probably had something useful only a devotee of the game would have.

  Lukas also wasn’t a suspect, and that would be a first for Henry.

  He gave Henry a glare that said he saw through the act and said, “I’ll do that.”

  Now that Quillen had left, Henry knew he wasn’t going to get a meeting with him anyway, so he went home. He had new research to do.

  Henry’s apartment felt so cold and empty, but cold and empty was better than the alternative—that constant worry that a job would put a loved one in harm’s way. One relationship ending that way was more than he’d wish on his worst enemy.

  Henry called out, “Ykülma, get me information on the radio program Ebb and Flow.”

  Her voice only ever sounded robotic when she seemed to be reading some information from another online source. Henry found this aspect of her programming creepy. It was like she was really talking to him the other times.

  “Ebb and Flow is a gaming podcast voiced by Lukas Isaksen, a twenty-six-year-old entrepreneur. The first episode aired two years ago. It releases twice a month. It has ranked below average among gaming and news podcasts with about 10,000 downloads per episode.

  “It peaked last year during a special series about how the VR gear might be causing brain cancer. After the podcast brought the study into the public eye, the study was discredited by a team of experts and eventually retracted.

  “The most recent episode is an anomaly. It has over a million downloads, and that number seems to be growing exponentially.”

  Henry said, “Interesting.”

  The wheels turned in Henry’s head. This was quite the lucky turn of events for his investigation. He revised his idea that Lukas was not a suspect.

  Henry didn’t want to look desperate, so now he had to wait to be contacted. There was no way Lukas would pass up such an interview.

  Henry looked around the apartment. The bed wasn’t made. Dirty clothes were strewn across the couch and on the floors. The counters had take-out containers and rotting food because he’d been too lazy to put the dishes in the dishwasher.

  He figured cleaning up would be a way to pass the time as he waited, but he was way too lazy for that. Instead, he shoved aside the mess on the couch and flipped on the TV. Henry scanned the channels trying to find out if any more information was being released on the news.

  The channels were surprisingly quiet on the topic, and he wondered if the Restin Corporation was paying hush money to keep the fear down.

  Fear meant fewer users, and fewer users would mean less money.

  Henry’s phone buzzed, and the screen read: Lukas.

  “Ykülma! Answer my phone and pretend to be my secretary.”

  “Yes, Henry. Currently downloading secretary AI. Download progress is at 2%.”

  “Fuck. You’re useless. Cancel that last request.”

  “I’m sorry to disappoint you.”

  Henry scowled to himself, no you’re not.

  Then he quickly answered the phone, “Yellow.”

  “Uh. Is this Henry Gallagher? This is Lukas Isaksen from Ebb and Flow.”

  Henry decided to toy with him a bit. “Yes…”

  “I’d like to set up a time to do an extended interview with you if you don’t mind.”

  “I’ll have to check with my schedule. I have a lot of people to meet with and evidence to examine, as you might imagine.”

  Lukas asked, “How about today?”

  That sneaky bastard was calling his bluff, but Henry didn’t want to wait either.

  “Sure.”

  “Meet me at the studio in ten minutes. It’s at 239400 Oreo™ Street.”

  Henry always pinpointed the exact moment the world went to shit as when corporations started buying street names as advertisements. The government ate the idea up. It was free money for infrastructure, and the corporations got permanent exposure: a win/win they called it.

  Except for anyone who had to use the street name for anything.

  “I’ll be there.” Henry hung up and said, “Ykülma, book me an autocab for the address he said.”

  She replied, “Already done.”

  Henry grabbed his black leather jacket and headed out the door. The driverless car was waiting on the corner by the time he
got down the stairs of the apartment complex. It zipped off, and Henry gasped. He knew they were safer than a real driver, but they always felt so reckless.

  The cab squealed around corners and down a few dangerously narrow alleyways before pulling up to an old, rundown building.

  It didn’t surprise Henry. The podcast didn’t have a lot of money to work with.

  Henry went into the building, and the inside was much nicer. It actually looked like a professional recording studio. Those strange, black foam soundproof panels were all over the place. High-tech gear and two large microphones sat on either side of a small table.

  Lukas was already seated at one of them, and he motioned for Henry to sit at the other.

  Henry asked, “What happened to going for an authentic sound?”

  “Yeah. That only works for short segments. I’m hoping this will be long. Are you ready?”

  “Sure.”

  Lukas nodded to some people behind a glass barrier, and he said, “I’m here with the private investigator into the case on Zane Wolmark’s death. What is your name?”

  Henry blanched. If this ever got out to Quillen, he’d be in some serious trouble. He didn’t think about the fact that he might have to give personal information in the interview.

  Henry said, “My name is Henry Gallagher. I’ve worked on many high-profile cases in the past.”

  “Very good. Let’s start with a fun question before digging into the specifics. What’s the most surprising thing you’ve come across so far in the investigation?”

  Henry gave Lukas a big smile, and he made sure the red light was on, indicating this was being recorded.

  Henry said, “Probably that you’re a suspect.”

  Lukas laughed, but in a nervous way.

  Lukas said, “Come on. You’re not going to give us anything?”

  Henry asked, “Isn’t it possible that you committed the murder, because you saw how popular your show became after a previous VR scare in the game?”

  Lukas laughed. “You can’t catch me off guard and get me to announce my guilt to the world. Do you realize that podcasts aren’t live? They aren’t radio. We edit it all together after the fact.”

  Henry said, “Oh.”

  He’d never listened to a podcast. He somehow always thought they were live radio stations, probably because of the word “cast” in the name.

  Lukas stood up.

  “You know what. I think this was a mistake. You came here to accuse me. Even if you are who you say you are, you probably aren’t allowed to give us any real information, because it would compromise the investigation.”

  Henry nodded in silence. He couldn’t believe he blew this, but he’d gotten what he came for.

  That laugh told him everything. Lukas was a real suspect. He had a good motive. Now he needed to figure out if he had the means of committing the crime.

  Chapter 7

  Henry grumbled to himself as he stood outside the restaurant. The chrome finishes and brightly lit room made him nauseous. He longed for the darkness and grime of the city, not these modern buildings that had become a cliché of themselves.

  It was funny. Henry used to watch old sci-fi movies about the future, and he always thought the futuristic look would seem dated. Now everyone had built structures that looked exactly like the movies had predicted.

  Henry paced the sidewalk for a few minutes. He couldn’t believe how nervous he was. He had tried dating Quillen in the past. It just didn’t work. They were completely different in ways that were not compatible.

  Why had Quillen asked him out tonight?

  “You’re going to wear a hole into the sidewalk.”

  Henry spun around to see who had said that. Quillen walked up to him. Henry almost didn’t recognize him without his uniform on. But those broad pects gave him away.

  A pang of desire grew in his balls. Quillen was the police chief, and he fit the part exactly: stern and domineering and built like a truck. Those days of passion they had in the past flooded back. Henry took a sharp breath in at the thought.

  Henry said, “You look nice.”

  Doh.

  Quillen shook his head and gave Henry his signature wide grin. “Henry, you know this isn’t a date. It’s for work. I was just too busy to meet you at the office today. Now come on.”

  Henry slouched into the restaurant.

  The thought shouldn’t have depressed him as much as it did. He couldn’t even bring himself to make fun of the metal fixtures hanging above each of the tables. They had some sort of faux grill and flame in them, and the robots would come to cook the food using the fixture at their table.

  It was like some new, American version of hibachi.

  The hostess robot greeted them with her strange voice. Henry missed the time when robots tried to be more human. Now that everyone was used to them, they had a more functional approach to design.

  Few robots used the old and awkward humanoid form anymore. They all lacked hands or arms or legs. This hunk of metal was basically a voice box with wheels. That was all that was needed to do her job.

  Quillen followed her to a table near the back. The chairs were basically white squares of cushion, and the tables were small circular individual objects. They, of course, had their hunk of metal dangling between them, obstructing their views of each other.

  Quillen tried to see Henry from around the metal cooker. He gave up and just dragged his white cushion around to sit next to Henry.

  The closeness of Quillen’s body sent a chill through him. The heat of Quillen’s arm aroused the skin on Henry’s shoulder.

  He reminded himself: this is not a date.

  Quillen said, “You probably know why we’re here.”

  Henry said, “Yeah.”

  “Basically, I’m giving you one more warning. I need you to not meddle in this investigation. I have the court order ready. I can give you the restraining order anytime I need to.”

  “What does it even say? That I can’t go into the game anymore?”

  Quillen calmly stated, “Yes.”

  “I don’t think that’s legal, but I have good information. Nyissa didn’t do it. Well, I guess I can’t say that for certain, but there are other suspects that are at least as worthy of consideration. What about Aeden, his roommate?”

  Quillen replied, “We don’t have enough to even arrest him, and talking to him in the game didn’t change that.”

  Henry said, “I have one more lead that you probably haven’t considered.”

  Quillen folded his arms, and his biceps bulged out obscenely. To be held down by those again…Henry shuddered.

  Quillen gave Henry an evil stare. “I’m listening.”

  “Have you heard of this podcast, whatever it’s called, Ebb and Flow, I think? I spoke to the person that runs it. He is quite a suspicious character. He needed something major to happen, like a murder, to make ends meet. The podcast was failing, and then after the murder, he started a segment specifically devoted to it. Now he’s like a millionaire.”

  Quillen said, “Henry, you have to bring me something better than that. These are just theories. And we have questioned him. He has an alibi.”

  Just then the creepy robot rolled up. Unlike the hostess, this one had a single long arm. It asked, “Would you like the usual?”

  Its arm poked at the simmering coals. Henry didn’t feel like deciding at that moment, so he said, “Sure.”

  Henry knew the drill. He pulled out his scan card. The robot made the scan for his ID, and some algorithms ran on a database. It would run a calculation using his past ordering behavior, the days of the week, his hormone levels, his mental state, and so on.

  The algorithm would know exactly the best choice for him at that moment.

  It said in its grating, mechanical voice, “Henry Gallagher. You will have the steak, rare. Is this acceptable?”

  “Yes.”

  The robot waited. After a time, Quillen said, “I’ll have the same.”

  The r
obot whirred off.

  Quillen said, “I can’t believe you let them track this stuff. I’m not giving them any information.”

  “Come on. You know they’re tracking you whether you want them to or not. They know you’re here. They know what you ordered.”

  “Yeah. At least I’m making them work for it.”

  Henry said, “How about we get some wine?”

  “Henry, I’m not getting drunk with you. And since when do you drink wine?”

  “I thought you’d be into it if it was wine. Isn’t that classier?”

  Quillen said, “There’s nothing classy about hitting on people with slurred speech. I’ve seen you in action, remember.”

  The words stung coming from Quillen.

  Their waiter robot came back with a tray of their raw steak. It had been divided up into little cubes and put onto metal skewers. The robot began the work of cooking the meat on the metal grating that served as a grill.

  They sat awkwardly in silence as the robot stabbed at the food and flipped it over.

  Henry said, “Bring us a bottle of red wine when you get the chance.”

  Quillen rolled his eyes. “It’s a robot. You don’t need to say things like ‘when you get the chance.’ It doesn’t have feelings.”

  Henry thought about Ykülma. It certainly seemed like she had feelings. Another robot was at the table with the wine before Henry could even finish the thought.

  It was perfect timing for the food. The skewers of meat were placed on plates in front of the two men.

  Henry went for the wine. He didn’t have much of an appetite, so he pushed the steak cubes around his plate trying to think of something else to talk about. Luckily, Quillen gulped back a huge sip of wine as well.

  Was he nervous?

  Quillen’s eyes seemed to sparkle for a moment, then he said, “You know, we’re not getting any younger.”

  “I thought this wasn’t a date.”

  “Henry. Come on. Why do you have to spoil everything? This isn’t easy for me.”

  Henry prodded, “So…this is a date?”

  “Forget it.”

  Henry didn’t want to forget it, and he drained the rest of his glass. That comforting feeling of not giving a shit washed over him.