Sharon showed up before breakfast was served at the hospital. It was not visiting hours, but Miss Saxton had found that her intelligence and good looks opened many doors. She was carrying a large travel bag. "How's your appetite, love?" she asked Kyle with a cheerful smile. Every time Kyle looked at Sharon, he could not believe his good fortune.
"I'm starving. Remember, I didn't get to finish my dinner last night."
"I think I can satisfy your appetite." Sharon unzipped the travel bag and pulled out a complete breakfast for two. There were hash browns, eggs, ham, toast and orange juice. She also had brought two very large plates that they cradled in their laps as they sat together with the head of the bed raised. They feasted. Kyle was always amazed at how much Sharon ate for such a slender woman.
"There is one thing really bothering me," said Kyle in a bewildered voice. "Only low frequency radio waves could have been interrupted by the vase. Why would Dr. Waters have used such a low frequency? It would have been much easier to build the antenna for high frequencies. It doesn't make sense."
"It doesn't unless you know Dr. Waters. He was noted for giving exams with what appeared to be extremely hard problems but with relatively easy solutions that were not necessarily obvious. It's some kind of morbid game he plays. By the way, if you weren't expecting low frequency radio waves, then why did you suggest the vase be put over your head? Anyway, I assume that's what you were asking for."
"That's what I wanted. Actually, it wasn't until later that I figured out that it shouldn't have worked. I was just lucky that it cut off the radio transmission. I guess that's what you call dumb luck. It really shouldn't have worked."
"Or maybe Dr. Waters' accomplice was just toying with you. Maybe he just turned off the transmissions to give you a false sense of accomplishment."
As they finished breakfast there was a knock at the door. "Just a minute," called out Kyle. They quickly put away the evidence of their breakfast. "Come in." The door opened and a huge Samoan wearing a sports coat and tie approached Kyle's bed.
"Hello Mr. James and Miss Saxton, I'm Sergeant Fatui of the Salt Lake City Police Department. I would like to ask you a few questions about the shooting last night. As standard policy, I would like to speak with each of you separately. I'm sorry, Miss Saxton, but could I ask you to wait for me in the lobby?"
"I'll see you later, lover," whispered Sharon in Kyle's ear before kissing him on the cheek and departing. As Sharon left, Kyle's hospital breakfast arrived.
"Sergeant Fatui, I have no appetite at all, would you care for some breakfast?" asked Kyle.
"Why thank you. Actually, I didn't have time for breakfast this morning. I've been on the case since shortly after the shooting last night. Kyle, tell me from your perspective what happened last night?" began Sergeant Fatui's questioning.
"As I recall, I was halfway through the main course when suddenly my body started to stand up. I tried to make it stay seated and succeeded for a moment but then was unable to stop my body from moving on its own. It took me only a few seconds to figure out what was happening."
"And what was that, Kyle?" asked Sergeant Fatui.
"I remembered our early tests on a squid. We implanted axon stimulators like the ones in my head. We used them to command the squid's muscles to contract. The squid apparently tried to prevent the contractions when it sensed them beginning. It struggled just as I did before losing control. After only a few seconds, its ability to resist movement induced by the implant became greatly weakened. I surmised that during Dr. Monroe's absence, Dr. Waters had inserted a second CPU chip programmed to command the interface circuitry to connect to additional axons. I realized that my only hope was to use a muscle before the computer used it. I hadn't yet tried to use my speech muscles, so I tried to decide ahead of time what could be done and what to say. That's when it occurred to me that an external signal must be sending commands to the controller in my head. When I realized that it was trying to command me to shoot Dr. Monroe, I knew I had to interrupt the transmission. As my body removed a gun from a large brass vase, I considered using the vase to free myself. I gambled that it would be sufficient to interrupt the transmission. I planned my words to be as brief as possible. I was confident that Sharon or Josh Adamms would figure things out. 'Vase' is difficult to say under duress. 'Pot' is much easier to say, so I said, "Pot. Head." I barely got those words out before the controller stimulated my vocal nerves in such a way as to make speech impossible. My friends understood and responded. As the vase went over my head, the stimulation of my nerves and consequently my muscles, ceased, causing me to go limp. At that point, someone grabbed the gun and it went off. I couldn't see anything. It was very difficult to understand what was happening with all of the shouting. I asked Josh to take me to the communications laboratory where I knew that I would be shielded from the transmissions."
"I know the rest of the story," interrupted Sergeant Fatui.
"I've told you my story, but what's yours. Do you know why Dr. Waters would do such a thing. I've heard there was some kind of bad blood between him and Dr. Monroe, but that was years ago. Dr. Waters was always so nice to me."
"Beware of strangers bearing gifts, Kyle. You must realize that only Dr. Waters knows for sure why he did what we think he did, but I'm ninety-nine percent confident of his motive. The bad blood you referred to started with both men competing for the heart of Annette Billings, the future Annette Monroe. Carlton Monroe, with his youth and charm was winning the battle. Apparently, Dr. Waters decided to improve the odds by disgracing Carlton. According to Carlton, Dr. Waters bribed a student to claim that Carlton had copied some of the test answers off his paper. Carlton demanded that he and the other student be administered oral exams, immediately. The administration went along with Carlton's request. Carlton passed with flying colors and the other student did poorly. Carlton was never able to prove conspiracy, but Dr. Waters was made to look very bad in the eyes of his peers and students. He told Carlton that some day he would get even with him. Dr. Monroe thinks that Dr. Waters' plan was to have you kill him and then turn the gun on yourself and fire into your head, destroying most of the evidence. Dr. Waters even submitted to an obscure medical journal a paper indicating that your implant could lead to sudden dementia. He would look like a prophet."
"Well, at least, his plans didn't work out," commented Kyle.
"Dr. Waters planned more than just murder. During the excitement following the shooting, the engineering building was robbed of millions of dollars worth of equipment and supplies. He had to have had lots of inside help. The contents of the entire solid-state lab are gone. A number of very powerful computers are gone. Not only can we not find Dr. Waters, but everything personal is gone from his office and apartment.
"I noticed that all of the long-time janitors were gone. He must have somehow gotten his own people hired. Have you questioned any of them?" volunteered Kyle.
"Can't. They're nowhere to be found."
"Did they take any of Dr. Monroe's equipment?" asked Kyle.
"No. Dr. Monroe had installed a special electronic lock that only he could open. He did his own cleanup to keep out the janitorial staff." Sergeant Fatui's pager started beeping. "Sorry, Kyle, I gotta go. Here's my card. Call me if you think of anything that might help the case. And thanks for the breakfast. I'm sure it wasn't on the same level as the gourmet meal you had before I arrived. The aroma still lingers, but to a hungry man like myself, the hospital breakfast was very satisfying." Sergeant Fatui left Kyle's hospital room and made a call on his cell phone. After his call, he visited Sharon who was still waiting in the lobby. She gave her perspective but didn't add any new information.
Kyle turned on the news to see if there were any stories relating to the incident. The incident was the lead story in the local news. "In a bizarre incident last night in a banquet room at the Little America Hotel in Salt Lake City, Kyle James, the world's first recipient of a computer brain implant, went berserk and shot Annette Monroe, the wife of
Dr. Carlton Monroe, in the head. As you may remember it was Dr. Monroe and Dr. Samuel Waters who performed the implant. It's believed by the police that Dr. Waters implanted an additional computer chip in Kyle James's head and that this second implant was responsible for the incident. In a possibly related story, the University of Utah, where both of the doctors are employed, was robbed of millions of dollars worth of computer equipment. Dr. Waters and all of his belongings are gone, as are a number of other people, including the janitorial staff of the Engineering building at the university. We take you now live to Jan Calunga at the Merril Building of the University of Utah."
"Kent, this is no ordinary robbery. As you can see behind me, it looks more like a business moved from a leased building. Everything is gone from the solid-state lab. Only the bare walls remain. It will take the university months and millions of dollars to restore this department. The only good news is that the University has most of the summer to rebuild and regroup. Back to you, Kent."
"In other unusual news, early this morning Gas Products Company in Centerville was robbed of its entire inventory of bottled helium gas. Nothing else was taken. Police are puzzled as to why just helium was taken." A knock came at the door. Kyle flipped off the TV and invited the party in. Sharon had returned.
"Lover, I know things have been exciting the last twelve hours, but we have serious work to do. Our wedding is less than two weeks away. All of the invitations have been sent. The decorations are planned and arranged for. The food arrangements have all been made. You had two assignments, get someone to marry us and plan the honeymoon. How are you coming?"
"I have someone lined up, if you approve. Since neither of us go to any particular church, we don't know any ministers well. The closest thing I have to family is Josh Adamms and his family. Josh's father, Howard, recently became a Mormon bishop. As Josh would say, he was 'called' to be the bishop of their ward, their congregation. As a bishop, Mr. Adamms can legally perform marriages and would be delighted to perform ours."
"Any friend of yours is a friend of mine. Bishop Adamms will be fine. What about the honeymoon?"
"How does a Caribbean Cruise sound?"
"Don't kid with me. The Caribbean would be great, but you don't have that kind of money."
"Actually, I do. I've been keeping it a surprise. After the mandatory waiting period, with the stock over $50 a share, I sold 40,000 shares. However, when we return from the honeymoon, I think we should give the rest of the money to the University towards a new solid-state laboratory. I can't help feeling partially responsible for what happened."
"Well baby, I'm marrying you for you, not your money. Besides, don't you still own 360,000 shares?"
"Yes, but after last night they may not be worth much come Monday morning."
"That's okay. Lover, I've been up all night. I'm gonna go get some sleep." Sharon kissed Kyle goodbye and left.
Chapter 11 – How to Cheat Death
Kyle slept for a while, but was awakened by a knock on his hospital room door. "Come in," invited Kyle. Dr. Monroe entered the room.
"How are you feeling, Kyle?" asked the good doctor.
"I'm fine. What's the situation with Mrs. Monroe?" asked Kyle.
"Not good. Not good at all. She's alive for now, but that may not last long. She could live a long time in a coma, but that can't happen. She has a living will that dictates that she is to receive no assistance of any kind if she remains unconscious for more than one week. She would starve or die of dehydration in a few days under those circumstances. I can't stand to lose her, not now. We had somewhat of a reconciliation just days before the incident. That's why she was with me and so cheerful. We've had our problems, but I never gave up on the marriage and I can't let her go now."
"What can you do?" asked Kyle.
"We can do a lot. This may seem slightly shady, but I have a plan, which could buy us time. I need you to get dressed, if you are truly all right, and come with me." Kyle quickly slipped into his street clothes. He and Dr. Monroe left without even checking out of the hospital.
"Kyle, what resources do we have to do a total implant like Dr. Waters performed on you?" asked Dr. Monroe once they were in his car.
"I always thought that Nate was extreme about spare parts, but now I see the wisdom. We have ten spare 'snake' chips in a company safety deposit box. Of course, the CPU chip is an off-the-shelf item. I also have three spare outer ear units at home and one in my pocket and ten more in the safety deposit box. We'll probably need at least four or five 'snake' chips for a total voluntary muscle and sensory connection. We won't have enough on hand to give a complete sense of touch or pressure or pain. There are just too many nerve bundles involved. But, we can give sight, hearing, taste and smell and feelings in the hands."
"How long do you think it will take to port the 'Annette' program to your system?" asked Dr. Monroe.
"The problem is resources. The computer that 'Annette' runs on now has far more mass storage capacity than what the ZYTECH chip has in nonvolatile memory. We could probably fit five in her head, but that wouldn't be enough for all of her memories. In fact, the computer hosting her now doesn't have enough capacity for human memories, if that is what you plan to do. Are you planning to just get Mrs. Monroe out of bed or simulate a complete life for her?"
"Our immediate goal is to make her appear conscious, but I expect the coma to last for months or maybe even years. She may never come out of it without computer assistance. Maybe she'll regain partial capability, but her brain damage is too great for total recovery. If Mrs. Monroe is to be controlled by 'Annette', it must seem perfectly natural. Mrs. Monroe would rather die than look or sound like an invalid, a mentally handicapped person or any kind of a misfit. Being a beautiful, articulate, well educated person is important to her."
"Carlton, I don't think we should rush to perform this surgery. I realize we only have a week, but I need some time to explore the capabilities of what's now in my head. There may be some better ways to do things. Is Mark around or did he disappear with Dr. Waters?"
"He's still here and from what I've heard he feels abandoned and betrayed."
"Good, he may be of some help to us. I need to be uninterrupted for at least one day. Can I stay at your place? That way I won't have to answer the door, the mail or anything. Better yet, can I stay in your private lab? I may need Annette's help. I hope your fridge is still well stocked. Pick me up some of that artificial crabmeat. I love that stuff. Zero fat and no work. You don't even need to warm it."
"If we ever get Mrs. Monroe back, she'll have to teach you a thing or two about fine dining." Dr. Monroe drove to the engineering building and dropped off Kyle. Kyle proceeded to Dr. Monroe's laboratory and entered using the combination that Dr. Monroe had disclosed to him. Annette was watching television. "Hello Annette, I hope that's not a soap opera you're watching."
"Of course not, Kyle. I am learning about the sport of baseball." Annette turned off the television. "Carlton told me that he asked you to help with his effort to rehabilitate his wife. What do I call her anyway?"
"Call her Mrs. Monroe. Carlton and I will know what you mean. Yeah, I'm here to help. I may also need your help. You're currently running on a very powerful desktop mini-super computer. We need to fit you into a woman's head, coexistent with her brain. We can't get enough speed from several CPU's like the ones in my head and there will be far less mass storage, nonvolatile memory that is, than what you have now, and I suspect that you are already running out of memory. There is also the power issue. Our system was designed to power one CPU for 48 hours on one battery charge. We may be able to fit quite a few CPU chips in Mrs. Monroe. They're only 2 centimeters by 2 centimeters by 0.4 millimeters."
"Kyle, why do you have to put all of the processors in the head? Isn't there a lot more room in the abdominal cavity or some other place in the body?"
"Sure, but they need to communicate. How stupid of me! Only two or three are needed to handle all of the neural stimulator chips. They c
ould all communicate using the all-frequency radio transmitter/receiver, but a fiber optic link would be faster and more secure. We'd need to get from the chest area to the cranium. I know we could go just under the skin, but is there a better way?"
"I don't want some big ugly scar on my new body. Can't you run them up through some blood vessel that goes to the brain?"
"Great idea, Annette. A catheter could be used to pull the cable up a large blood vessel. Carlton would know more about that than I do. I'll call him and get him started on it." Kyle called Dr. Monroe and explained Annette's and his ideas. Dr. Monroe was very excited that they would not need to cram a bunch of processors in Mrs. Monroe's head. He was worried about the long-term effects. They decided 100 CPU units were not unreasonable. Kyle called Nate and had him rush order 110 parts from ZYTECH.
"Kyle, how much power does each CPU use?" inquired Annette.
"They consume 15 milli-watts each, when not in sleep mode. With over 100 processors that’s over 1.5 watts!"
"You're going to need a whale of a battery. Like the metaphor? I've been working on them."
"It was a great metaphor. Each chip has a capacitor onboard that acts like a battery, good for one hour of use. There need not be any other. We'll take a page from Dr. Water's book, to use another metaphor. The computerized insects he created weren't powered by batteries or solar cells. They were powered by miniature generators, which were actuated by muscle contractions stimulated by the computer. We should have many large involuntary muscles to choose from and our generator need not be so miniature. We could have several, so that we can alternately use and rest the muscles involved. Intestine muscles should work well. We can build a fiber optic cable with power cables running alongside, all encapsulated in a Teflon tube. I'll get Josh working on them.”
The Computer Who Loved Me Page 9
