Code Flicker

by Marlin Seigman

  “Ask her what?”

  “You know, pop the question. Ask her to marry him.”

  Sandy raised her eyebrows in surprise. “He told you that?’

  Jacob nodded. “I think he was going to ask the other night, but Evgeny contacted him before he could. So, I think he’ll do it tonight.”

  Sandy smiled. “He’s going to ask her to marry him. That’s so traditional and so cute.”

  “Cute is not a word I associate with Gomez.”

  “You think he’s nervous?”

  “Of course he is. Who wouldn’t be?”

  Sandy shot him a sideways glance.

  “What?”

  “Nothing,” Sandy said.

  “I mean come on. That’s a big thing, getting married.”

  “Well, if they love each other and think they want to spend the rest of their lives together, why not?”

  “Because of what you just said.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “If they think they want to spend the rest of their lives together. I would want to know for sure before I got married, and how the hell are you supposed to know that? I mean really know.”

  “You going to give me that shovel or just keep digging that hole,” Sandy said.

  Jacob started to answer, but to his relief, they reached the parking garage. “We’ll talk about this later,” he said.

  “Oh?”

  “God, I can’t win with you.”

  Sandy laughed. “That’s the first sensible thing you’ve said.”

  “What are you two laughing about?” Kat asked, holding open the door to the garage.

  “Nothing,” Jacob said.

  Jacob took the door from Kat and she walked ahead, joining Gomez. He noticed a shape in the back of her jacket near the small of her back. He looked at Gomez’s back, seeing the same shape outlined by his jacket.

  Jacob sped up, catching up with them. “Do you two have guns on you?”

  Gomez nodded.

  “Do you think that’s smart?”

  “If we don’t need them, it’s no big deal. If we do, you’ll be glad we have them. I don’t trust that Li guy any more than you do. I used to be able to trust Evgeny, but I don’t think we can now. I get a feeling he’s getting pressured by Li. That’s why I wanted to meet them at the top level. There will be a lot of people there, so I figure they won’t start anything. The guns are insurance,” Gomez said.

  Jacob looked at him. Gomez had been in more situations like this than Jacob. He had an instinct for them. “Well, I trust you.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Did you bring me one?”

  “No, so if shit starts, take cover. And get Sandy out of the way.”

  The top level of the parking garage was home to a small community of Steamers and Pigeon Eater and his pigeons. A dozen or so shacks built from eclectic materials covered what used to be parking spaces. Vertical gardens lined the edges of the parking garage, large container gardens lined the walkways between the shacks, outdoor stoves and grills dotted the area, and laundry dried from lines running between some of the shacks. Portable cell towers and solar cells took up space wherever they could be placed. In a far corner sat Pigeon Eater’s pigeon coops. The rows of coops almost mimicked the shacks and their gardens in their layout and building material. However, Pigeon Eater enclosed his entire area with chicken wire attached to a large wooden frame. Despite his efforts to keep the pigeons caged, several circled in the air above the parking garage, mingling with a few drones flying overhead. Pigeon Eater roamed around the enclosure, spreading feed for the pigeons, and the Steamers went about their business, ignoring the two SUVs sitting between the shacks and the pigeon coops. Evgeny, Mr. Li, Yuri, Chen, and two other SRS men stood next to the SUVs.

  Evgeny stepped forward when he saw Jacob and the others emerge from the stairwell near the Steamer’s shacks. “Gomez, Jacob, how are you doing?” he called.

  “Doing well,” Gomez said.

  “Well? That is all? What you did for us against the Aryan Brotherhood was wonderful. They are, what is the word, reeling?”

  “That’s the word,” Gomez said.

  “Finding a way to refund their customers was brilliant. A bonus. Don’t you agree Mr. Li?”

  “Yes,” Mr. Li said.

  “Thank you. It was Jacob's idea,” Gomez said.

  “Well, I understand that your entire team operated wonderfully,” Evgeny said.

  “Thank you,” Jacob said. “We just want our ID cards and credits, so we can get on with other projects.”

  Evgeny and Mr. Li exchanged a look.

  “Yes, other projects,” Mr. Li said.

  Gomez said, “Yes, other projects after you give us the promised payment.”

  “Oh, you will have your payment, Gomez, is it?” Mr. Li said.

  “You know my damn name,” Gomez said, unable to hide his mounting anger.

  Mr. Li held his hands up, feigning apology. “Of course. No need to turn to violence.”

  “No one said anything about violence,” Jacob said. “We just want our payment.”

  “As you have said. I assure you, we have the ID cards.” He motioned to Evgeny who took an envelope out of his pocket and handed it to Gomez. “The credits,” Mr. Li continued, “are ready to be transferred.”

  Jacob looked at the SUVs. Yuri and Chen stood, looking ready to take action. The other two SRS men leaned against the front of one of the SUVs, equally alert.

  “Look, we had a deal, and you changed it once already,” Jacob said.

  “That is true Mr. Quince,” Mr. Li said.

  “Just call me Jacob. I don’t need your fake respect.”

  “Mr. Quince, you must understand, we have superiors…”

  “This already sounds like a line of bullshit,” Gomez said, his body tensing.

  The two SRS stood up straight, the relaxed expressions they wore gone. Yuri and Chen each took a step forward.

  Evgeny took a step between Gomez and Mr. Li. “Gomez, my friend, let us not be angry.”

  “Well, Evgeny, I think there’s a lot to be angry about right now.”

  Evgeny put his hand on Gomez’s shoulder. “Just hear us out. As an old friend, I ask you.”

  Gomez looked at Evgeny, then at Evgeny’s hand on his shoulder. Evgeny removed his hand and held it up as if to apologize.

  Jacob could see Gomez struggle to control his anger. “All right, what do you have to say?” Jacob asked, stepping forward, trying to defuse the situation.

  Mr. Li smiled. “As I was attempting to say, our superiors are concerned. We do appreciate what you have done for us recently, but we also understand that you did not do these things out of the kindness of your heart. You have performed these tasks for payment, and now, as you have said yourself, it is clear that this payment is to be utilized in some other, what did you say, project.”

  “I think what we do with our payment is our own business,” Jacob said.

  “Perhaps,” Mr. Li said. “However I, our superiors that is, believe that any project you may be involved in could be of our interest.”

  “It’s not,” Gomez said.

  “With all due respect, our interests are not determined by you. But that is neither here nor there. What I am trying to say is that we feel your little team would best be served to have an exclusive working relationship with us, and this project you are working on, whatever it is, should fall under our guidance. That way, anything you do will not be a threat to us.”

  Jacob stared at Mr. Li, who stared back.

  “How could we be a threat to you?”

  “Anyone who does not work with us is a threat, Mr. Quince. Surely you understand this?”

  “I don’t, and if you think our ‘little team’ is going to work with you again you’re crazy. So, just give us the rest of our payment and don’t contact us again.”

  Mr. Li was silent.

  Evgeny said, “Please reconsider this.”

  “Are you going to pay us or n
ot?” Gomez asked.

  “You will be rewarded nicely as our working relationship unfolds,” Mr. Li said.

  Gomez turned to Mr. Li. “Maybe you didn’t hear, we aren’t going to work with you again.”

  Again, Evgeny stepped between Mr. Li and Gomez. “Gomez,” he said, putting his hand on Gomez’s shoulder once more.

  Gomez quickly raised his arm to knock Evgeny’s hand away. Jacob watched one of the SRS men by the SUV moving in unison with Gomez’s arm, drawing his weapon from his jacket. On the edge of his vision, he saw Kat reaching around for her gun. An SRS man fired as Gomez twisted, pulling his gun from under his jacket.

  Chapter 28

  Kat yelled, “Go!”

  Jacob grabbed Sandy by the arm, running for the cover of the raised gardens.

  Gomez grabbed Mr. Li, holding the SRS man in a one-arm chokehold and firing.

  “Get cover!” Gomez said to Kat.

  Mr. Li, no longer surprised, elbowed Gomez. Gomez almost lost his grip, but he was bigger and stronger than Mr. Li and he held on, using the man as a shield. Undeterred, the SRS men continued to fire.

  Jacob got behind one of the gardens. Sandy took cover across from him. Kat followed, aiming behind her and firing. Jacob started to look for Gomez. A shot hit the garden bed near his head and he jumped back behind cover. The sound of Kat’s gun and bullets hitting the container garden filled his ears.

  Gomez came into view, slowly backing up. He still held Mr. Li, the SRS man’s legs and feet spread in front of his body at an odd angle as Gomez dragged him between the two raised gardens. When he was close enough, Gomez let Mr. Li drop, the dead man falling to the cement, his head bouncing on the impact. Gomez jumped behind the garden, stumbling into Jacob. Blood covered the front of Gomez’s jacket. Jacob couldn’t tell if it was Mr. Li’s or Gomez’s.

  Kat looked over at Gomez. “This is not how I planned my day to go,” she said. She popped up and fired twice.

  “Gomez,” Evgeny called. “We do not have to do this. It has already gone too far.”

  Gomez responded by firing in Evgeny’s direction.

  A whirring sound behind them drew Jacob’s attention. Two shadows made their way across the shacks, one large and one smaller, faster. He looked up. A drone and a helicopter. The drone hovered briefly, then darted toward the surface of the garage and opened fire on the SRS men. The helicopter came in closer, ropes dropping from its sides. The drone made another pass. Men in plain black security style uniforms exited the helicopter, descending on the ropes.

  Gomez sat, his back against the raised garden. Jacob knelt next to him.

  “Who the hell are they?” Gomez asked. His words were weak and breathless.

  “No idea,” Jacob said.

  Overhead, the drone flew back in the direction it had come. Four men in black ran past, guns raised and firing. Jacob tried to get a look at them, but couldn’t. One of them yelled, “Drop your weapons!”

  The firing stopped.

  Gomez coughed. Jacob turned back to him. He pulled Gomez’s jacket back. Blood soaked his shirt and pooled near the top of his pants.

  “Shit,” Jacob said.

  Kat and Sandy appeared next to them.

  “Gomez,” Kat said, a hint of panic in her voice.

  “I’ll be fine,” Gomez said. He winced.

  One of the men in black walked up. “Is he okay?”

  “We’ve got to get him to the hospital,” Sandy said, looking up at the man.

  “We can’t help you. We are on orders to detain these men.”

  Jacob stood. “Orders? From who?” he demanded.

  “I can’t divulge that information.” He motioned to the other three. They walked past with Evgeny, Yuri, and Chen in tow.

  “You’ve got to help us get him to the hospital,” Kat said.

  “Sorry, we have our orders.” He turned to follow the others.

  “Fuck your orders! He’s dying,” Jacob said.

  There was no response.

  “Go get the van, Jacob,” Sandy said calmly and forcefully.

  Jacob started running. The van was parked at the loading dock on the street level beside the garage. He ran to the covered stairwell, replaying those words in his mind, he’s dying he’s dying he’s dying. He ran down the stairs, jumping the last few on each half flight. On the second floor, he landed wrong, twisting his ankle and crashing into the wall. Ignoring the pain, he stood and ran down the remaining stairs.

  He got to the van and pressed his hand on the door, unlocking it. He started the van and switched the driving control to manual. As he pressed his foot on the gas, pain shot up his leg. He pulled into the street, causing an oncoming car to hit its brakes and swerve to miss him. In the garage, he whipped around the tight corners of each parking level, the screech of the wheels echoing with each turn.

  By the time he reached the roof, Pigeon Eater and a small crowd of Steamers were gathered around. Someone had brought bandages and applied them to Gomez’s wounds. The bandages were already soaked red with blood.

  “I’ll clear a space in the back,” Jacob said.

  He frantically moved computer parts, making an area large enough for Gomez.

  “Does anyone have any blankets we can lay down for him?” he called. “And one to carry him.”

  “I’ll get some,” a young Steamer girl said and ran off to one of the shacks.

  When she came back, Sandy grabbed the blankets and lined the floor of the van with them. Jacob, Pigeon Eater, and two Steamers placed a blanket next to Gomez, putting him on it as carefully as they could. Gomez grunted in pain as they grabbed the corners of the blanket and lifted him. Kat got in the van first and helped guide him in. She took off her jacket and rolled it up to use as a pillow. Jacob pulled his code deck out of his jacket, scanned Gomez’s tattoo, and sent him some morphine code.

  “Thank you,” he said to Pigeon Eater and the Steamers and got in the driver's seat. Sandy got in next to him and he started back down the levels of the garage, taking the corners as fast as he thought he could without jostling Gomez too much.

  He tried to focus on the road and the cars in front of him, but the sounds of Gomez groaning in pain drew his focus away. He glanced at Sandy. Tears silently ran down her face.

  “We’ll get him there. We’ll get him there.”

  He wasn’t sure if he was trying to convince her, or convince himself.

  Chapter 29

  Jacob ran a red light, sending the van through an intersection, clipping the rear end of a car.

  “Damn it,” he said.

  “We’re almost there,” Sandy said.

  Jacob handed his code deck to Sandy. “Pull up a painkiller for me.”

  “Did you get hit?”

  “It’s my ankle. I twisted it. Pressing on the gas is starting to hurt,” he said, holding his forearm out for her to scan his tattoo.

  Sandy scanned the tattoo and sent the code.

  “Thanks.”

  He maneuvered the van around the other vehicles on the road, cutting in front of them, forcing their safety protocols to brake. He tried to drive as fast as he could without sending Gomez sliding into the shelves that lined the back of the van. He could feel his ankle swelling, pressing on the sides of his boot. It’s nothing, he told himself. The only thing that mattered was getting Gomez to the hospital. He tried to will his sense of urgency to the van’s engine to give it more power, more speed. But mixed with the urgency he felt was a sense of responsibility. Ultimately, he put Gomez in this situation, and he couldn’t help feeling responsible. If he had refused to Johnson’s offer, Gomez would have been celebrating his engagement to Kat. He wouldn’t be in the back of the van, bleeding. Dying. But Johnson had been right, Jacob was desperate, and he allowed that desperation to control him and lead his friends into danger.

  “He’s not going to die,” Sandy said.

  “He’s not going to die.” He repeated her words as if they were a life-affirming incantation.

  He
pulled into the parking lot of the hospital, ignoring the security guard stepping out to allow them entrance. In the side mirror, Jacob could see the guard running after the van. He steered through the lanes of the parking lot, pulling up to the ambulance drop off.

  He got out, running to the large glass doors, his adrenaline and the painkiller code keeping the throbbing in his ankle at bay.

  Stepping up to the reception desk, he said, “We need a gurney, my friend’s been shot,” he said.

  The nurse at the desk looked up. “You’re not allowed to park there. It’s for ambulances.”

  Two security guards approached from down the hall.

  “He’s dying. He needs help.”

  “Does your friend have his corporate insurance identification?” the nurse asked, disinterested.

  “I don’t know.”

  “This is a corporate hospital, and regulations state that no one can enter the hospital for treatment without the proper insurance.”

  “I don’t care. This was the closest hospital.”

  The nurse made a tsk sound and said, “Maybe you should take him to the community hospital.”

  “I told you, this was the closest hospital.”

  The security guards stepped next to Jacob.

  “Sir, you will have to move your van. This area is reserved for hospital approved ambulances,” one of the guards said.

  “I don’t give a damn. My friend's been shot. He needs a doctor.”

  The nurse looked at the guards. “I told him he would have to move. And that his friend needs the proper insurance or he has to go to a different hospital.”

  “And I told you, I don’t know if he has insurance, and we’re already here.”

  “You may purchase emergency insurance for fifty thousand credits. If your friend already has insurance, his company might refund you.”

  Jacob stared at the nurse.

  “I’ll be back,” he said.

  “Please move your van before returning,” the guard said.

  Jacob ran back down the hall. The large glass doors of the entrance opened and Johnson walked through.

  Jacob stopped.

  “I will take care of this, Mr. Quince,” Johnson said as he passed without looking at Jacob.