The Benefactor

by Jake Aaron

  In the interim, Zeke privately asked John to join him and Keala upstairs. “My bedroom in five. I need to go to the attic.”

  Rejoining the other two, Zeke said, “Let’s all have two fingers to start. We’ll share with the others later.” He hoped this distracting, unconventional approach would help. He poured for John first, then Keala.

  Slowly recovering from shock, still-shaken John asked, “Where’d you get the fancy vodka? “It takes the edge off.” Zeke had opened the first of two bottles of Zyr Russian Vodka.

  John's eyes now teared at the loss of Susan.

  “I had to do a little searching, but I had always suspected Brock had stashed some of Cody’s liquor. Hope Cody doesn’t mind. He can have some later. Brock … . ” Zeke broke it off. He didn’t want his group to think he would ever speak badly of any of them. He knew a leader’s words were inevitably repeated. At that instant, there was a shout from downstairs.

  Looking out a front window, Keala alerted the group, “It’s Marsh and a lady! I’ll go get them.”

  At the gate, Keala explained the afternoon’s tragedy followed by, “I’m really glad you’re here. We need you.”

  As the three walked in from the gate, Marsh spoke more quickly than usual, “Keala, I’d like you to meet my better half, Jenny. She’s also my deputy. Every time I’m on horseback, she’s the same — following in the woods behind me. The only reason I’m still here. I owe her everything. You all do, too; you just don't know it.”

  Jenny: “Nice to meet you, Keala. Marsh decided it was time to introduce me to you.”

  *****

  Marsh and Jenny looked over the crime scenes with Zeke and John. Marsh dismissed John and conferred with Jenny and Zeke upstairs. They went over the facts. Marsh and Jenny reached agreement on the crimes and punishment.

  “Jenny, I’m sincerely grateful for your wise counsel on this. I’m glad we’re in agreement. I’ll sleep a helluva lot better, knowing my bias isn’t too much in control. I realize I have a preconceived notion of John as a good guy. Zeke, you heard us. You going to be able to live with this?”

  Downstairs at the kitchen table, the atmosphere was electric. Tension was still high after the triple homicides. Zeke saw the meeting as an opportunity to calm nerves and squelch rumors. “Cody,” he said, “we have you to thank for the ‘medicine.’ I guess we should have asked you first, but stealing your liquor seemed like a small thing after expropriating your house.”

  Cody was slightly off in offering a toast, “Vashe zrodovye!” That’s Italian for to your health.” Like the others, he was still dazed by the horrific deaths. He poured Marsh and Jenny doubles. Everyone else poured their own, except Karen. Jed poured her share into her chamomile tea when she pretended not to look.

  Jed: “You didn’t see that.”

  Karen: “I did not. And thank you!” She struggled to exhibit light heartedness. The equilibrium of the group needed to be more centered.

  Marsh looked everyone of the group in the eye. After he explained the deaths, Marsh added, “This is serious stuff. There was a regrettable cascade of events. One luxury we have here is swift justice. My deputy and I both agree that John is off the hook for his part today. Zeke says he can live with that. Can the rest of you?

  Cody had a mental chuckle over a jury deliberating after the verdict, but he didn’t disagree with the procedure, under the circumstances.

  Marsh’s piercing eyes polled all the eyes in the room. Each felt compelled to nod in agreement and whispered yes.

  Marsh: “Unless you have any objections, I suggest we get on with cleaning up. Jenny and I are sorry for your losses. John, we will sorely miss Susan. Lee, Anne, and Susan — rest in peace. I mean that. I will miss each one of them.”

  While most went upstairs to clean, Jenny pulled John aside for counseling.

  Meanwhile, Zeke asked Marsh to go outside with him for a walk.

  “Zeke, I sense you want to talk about why Susan stabbed Anne. You say Anne claimed to have killed Isis. I wondered why she seemed so upbeat on the way back from Hamilton — not like her. I just thought she was loopy from lack of sleep.”

  “I, too, struggle with reading the types who tend to go internal, as I do. You couldn’t have known. Something else, Marsh: You know about our having no electricity? I might add I didn’t get a phone call this morning. My smartphone appears dead. Looks as if absurd Anne succeeded in taking down Isis.”

  “I noticed the lack of power myself,” Marsh said. I slipped, he thought. I hope Zeke didn’t notice. I still don’t feel comfortable about releasing any details about the compound. He tried to cover by speaking more loudly, “For what it’s worth, I didn’t get a text this morning either.”

  Zeke missed Marsh’s slip because he was debating whether to tell Marsh about the vote to fight. For the time being, that seemed to be overcome by events. He saved his words. Somewhere deep inside, he harbored the belief that he was somehow diminished by each word he spoke. There he felt he shared common ground with Marsh.

  *****

  Back at their compound, Marsh and Jenny entered the underground abode. Marsh stoked the fires in their bedroom and living room fireplaces. “Jen, I’m glad this place is below earth. The two fireplaces will probably heat the place fairly well — at least as much as we need.”

  “Marsh, I’m glad you like the ambience of firelight. You kept us ahead of the curve on keeping the place warm. As I recall, I didn’t want fires lit because we had nice central heating and air conditioning. Once again, the smartest man in the world!”

  “Jen, I think I just lucked out with that one, but thanks. Our freezers of food should be okay for a long time without electricity. I just hope it comes back. A layman couldn’t really blame Susan for taking Anne out. We civilized people are ill-prepared to survive without electricity and infrastructure. Fortunately, I’ve learned a few survival tricks from our groups. Anyway, Jen, we’re going to be okay. I’ll see to that.”

  “I know you will, Marsh. When life throws you a curve …”

  Marsh finished her words with his own, “… duck!” He laughed at his joke. “I don’t rightly remember how that phrase is supposed to go ... . I fault myself some for not alerting Zeke to Anne's possible erratic behaviour. Just didn't get far enough questioning her. I just didn't have enough ... . Anyway, dam water over the bridge, or however that old expression goes. Let’s have a couple shots of that 50-year-old scotch and think about tomorrow, tomorrow.”

  *****

  In the afterglow of the sunset, Zeke returned from a nature call. He marveled at the small tufts of clouds effortlessly hanging on the peaks of the Bitterroot Mountains. The setting reminded him of the ethereal wisps around the dimpled Koolau Mountains of Oahu, a perk of a consulting gig in Kailua. As he entered the house, he heard Jed and Karen discussing their situation.

  “Karen, I know you’re troubled about not helping those outside the fence more …”

  Karen: “I just have this nagging guilt over having so much, relatively, and folks out there starving and suffering. I try to keep busy. That helps. But I just wish I could do more …”

  Interrupting the couple, Zeke nodded at them, smiled, and went back outside on the front porch. He wanted to give Jed and Karen privacy. He also wasn’t ready to lose the calm he felt from watching the mesmerizing clouds on the mountains. The view through nature’s kaleidoscope had changed ever so slightly. It pushed out the everyday cares that Karen’s words had summoned up. He breathed deeply.

  His appreciation of nature was broken again by movement in the woods outside the gate. His first thought was that a deer was nearby. His second thought was that deer aren’t that noisy and graceless. He ran into the house.

  He called out, “All hands, grab your weapons! We’re under attack! Intruders on the west side of the fence. Milt, put one person on each of the other three ramparts in case they’re trying to flank us.”

  In the twilight, the Denton crew could see only the shadows of three people r
unning toward the fence with a ladder. At the western bulwark, Zeke had John and Jed on his left; and Keala, Cody, and Joan on his right. Milt had the eastern bulwark; Karen, the southern; and Julia, the northern.

  Zeke hollered at the intruders, “Hold it! We’re armed! Stop!” He fired a warning shot.

  The attackers continued. One aimed a rifle at Zeke while another braced the ladder for the third to climb. Zeke directed his fire team. Keala took out the would-be shooter. The climber aimed a pistol at Keala, only to be shot by Cody. The remaining attacker scrambled up the ladder. Jed and John fired at him at the same time. He and the ladder fell to the outside of the fence.

  Zeke had the group stay in place behind the ramparts waiting for a possible surprise onslaught. He knew there was nothing scientific about his logic, but he realized it was a better plan than assuming the attack was over if it were not.

  After fifteen minutes of quiet, Zeke gathered everyone behind the western bulwark. “John, how about you and me taking the first fireguard shift tonight? We’ll need two on each shift for the time being. No telling how many bad actors Isis was keeping at bay for us before her demise. Makes you think!”

  That thinking took Zeke back to the biker attack on Meagan and later Denton. He wondered why Isis didn’t intervene those times. Could be the AI wasn’t far enough developed to stop the attack. Could be the AI hadn’t marshaled enough resources yet. Could be Meagan’s presence confused the AI. Could be …

  Zeke’s analysis stopped when Cody spoke for the group, “I miss Isis!”

  Zeke nodded at Cody and sent a small smile that said isn't it interesting that humans can only focus on a few facets of a situation at a time, without seeing the many? Cody nodded back with the same smile and apparent understanding.

  As they were about to head to the back of the house, Karen asked, “Zeke, I’d like to go check on the attackers. They could still be …”

  John said, “Karen, we can’t. It’s too dangerous. Given current conditions, we don’t have the resources anymore to care for a patient. Life is going to be very tough, even for the able bodied. I admire your willingness to help others. But consider that more others-in-need will come our way every day from the population centers. We can barely feed ourselves. How could we possibly feed them?” I know Zeke must tire of making the tough calls, he thought. I need to help with some of the load.

  Jed added, “Dear, not to pile on, but consider that everyone here was vetted. One exception might be Julia, whom I’m sure the AI checked out at some time. You can bet Marsh would have escorted her away if she didn’t pass a background check by the AI. We can’t be bringing in a Trojan horse.”

  Karen put her hands on her hips in mock indignation. “So, when is someone going to give me a reason why I shouldn’t go outside the fence to check on the bad guys?” She added a friendly smile in case someone missed her humor.

  Nephthys

  January 30

  As he and Keala dressed for breakfast, Zeke looked mournfully at his smartphone. “Nevermore!” he sighed.

  “Quoth the Raven?” She laughed. “Edgar Allan Poe would agree, but Keala says, ‘It is always darkest before the dawn, my dear!’”

  Zeke hugged her. “You speaking of yourself in third person is funnier than the quote. Thank you! Staying upbeat now is going to be even harder. It’s a long shot, but it occurred to me that Julia’s undergrad degree in computer programming might be key. If there is still power at the community college, and if she can undo the bugs Anne put into Isis’s program …”

  Keala forced more enthusiasm, “There you go! It’s worth a shot! I have to add one more if: if we can get Marsh to escort her over there. It’s still hazardous outside the fence. He and Jenny have a perfect record for transport.”

  “I had two courses in electricity before I went off on the industrial engineering track,” Zeke added. “I should go, too!” He paused. “That was joke, but not a very good one.”

  The two moved slowly toward their bedroom door as they tried to convince each other there was hope. Zeke’s trilling cell phone pulled the pall off their mood. He picked up the phone off of the oak dresser and pressed the Face Up app.

  “Hello, Zeke and Keala, this is Nephthys, sister of Isis …”

  Despite being startled, Zeke jumped in, “I — we are glad to see you! But who are you again?” He stared at an attractive figure on his cell.

  “Zeke, my father believed in having no single point of failure. He created a backup to Isis, named for her twin sister Nephthys. In mythology, my namesake was the goddess of magic, among other things. I know about the recent sad misfortunes at the Denton Ranch. My condolences on your losses.”

  Keala: “Thank you, Nephthys. Will we see Isis again? We fear Anne may have done her harm. We hope that is not the case.” She marveled that Nephthys was almost indistinguishable from Isis.

  The composed avatar before them replied, “Some minor repairs in code will bring Isis back to full function. Redundancy is not redundant; it is necessary. On that note, I will be sending some coding reference books for Julia to become familiar with before she does repairs on Isis. I should add that I will be the face you will see in the future.”

  Zeke jumped awkwardly but assertively ahead, “Can we expect electricity today?”

  Nephthys leaned forward slightly, “The current members of the Denton Ranch have acted in good faith, despite the behavior of Anne. For this reason, you will get five hours of electricity today. Will you keep my trust?”

  Together, the Denton two answered in unison, “We will!”

  “I am glad to hear that,” Nephthys said. “One more thing, before I go. Expect delivery of a camera and microphone system an hour or two from now. I want you to mount the device inside the metal silo and connect it to an exterior antenna that is included. I’ll include a backup for each element of that system for redundancy. Please install the backup to run in parallel with the first system. No single point of failure! Let’s do a test of both systems by the end of the day.”

  The avatar signed off with no more discussion.

  Zeke’s mood dropped a notch when he heard the instruction that would erase the last known refuge for privacy — the Faraday-cage silo. Nephthys learned from Isis’ mistake, he told himself. Nephthys clearly plans to be more vigilant than Isis. She seems determined to monitor everything.

  *****

  After everyone was assembled for breakfast, Zeke showed little emotion as he recounted the conversation with Nephthys. He explained the new avatar looked identical to Isis with somewhat darker skin.

  Karen: “The Benefactor lives! Thank God! I wasn’t prepared to live in the Dark Ages …”

  Cody: “We get electricity!”

  “What’s up with this name, Nephthys?” Julia asked. She felt the unfamiliar admiring looks of everyone else , each still in awe of her newly revealed beauty.

  Cody explained, “Egyptian goddess of magic, sister of Isis. She was said to have enormous powers. While she had healing abilities, she could also destroy the pharaoh’s enemies with her breath of fire. Somewhat appropriate in this situation, I’d say, from her perspective.”

  “Dear me, Cody, is there some arcane fact you don’t know?” Joan laughed.

  Jed: “I may just be a simple Montana farmer, but I think I read the creator of the AI loud and clear: Humans, watch your step!”

  Julia added, “The creator was a shrewd dude. Into his complex creation, he built redundancy for survivability. More than impressive!”

  Milt: “You never appreciate what you have until you’ve lost it. I join Karen and Cody in being grateful for the return of electricity and, yes, the AI. If it’s a question of being watched all the time or surviving, I’ll take survival anytime.” He put his arm around the new Julia, who was far more attractive than any woman he had ever dated.

  Zeke said, “John, I wanted to say this first thing today, but events got in the way. To reiterate, we are all sorry for your loss of Susan. Let us know if there
is anything we can do to help, and if you feel like not doing chores today …”

  John: “Thanks, Zeke. I’ll be doing chores.” Looking around the table, he nodded and said, “Thanks to all of you. I know you miss Susan almost as much I do, and that’s a lot.”

  Zeke finished, “So Jed, you and I will need to set up the camera-mic systems in the silo sometime today. If any in the group are tempted to confer in the silo before that installation, don’t. It will look bad.” He smiled at the group to take the edge off his authoritative direction. He smiled inwardly at his knowledge of the human drive to do the forbidden or soon-to-be-forbidden — something else he took away from NMMI. He added, “Let’s all enjoy the day and be grateful for what we have.”

  *****

  At 8:00 AM, Zeke received a text with the coordinates of a flock of wild turkeys and its location on a digital map. Cody and Milt took bows and arrows and an enabled phone that showed the flock’s position real-time. They brought back three turkeys. They could have shot more, but they only took what they could use.

  While the hunters gutted the turkeys, Zeke led John into the silo, despite his earlier admonition to the group. “Well, John, this is the last burst of freedom of expression you and I will have for a while, perhaps ever …”

  “Listen, Zeke, for now let’s keep an even keel. Steady as we go. I’d like to think of the flux here as a potential distraction to Nephthys, but I think it’s probably a ripple in her ocean. I’m still behind you. I won’t give up on my principles, but my fight is on hold for the time being.”

  “Good to hear, John. Sorry about Susan, man. We all miss her. Well, quadcopters brought in the parts for turning this place into a sound booth, so I guess this was our last hurrah.”

  *****