CYPHER: A Dystopian Novel

by Barbara Winkes

  “I know it’s about time. Look, this is not about your brother. We’ve been given a chance for reforms that can change the face of the IdA, but we need to act. I want a press conference for tomorrow morning, before Drago is out on bail. I believe Ami can arrange that.”

  Ami opened her mouth to protest, but thought better of it. She began to realize the dimension of things about to happen. Each of them would have to rise above their own fears today. She searched Katlena’s gaze, wanting to ask her what was going to happen to Lily, but she didn’t dare do it in Noelle’s presence.

  Katlena gave her a nod that was probably meant to reassure.

  “Noelle, I want you to start working on that undercover op right now. I want an outline by tonight, possible candidates, approach, everything. Where are we on the protective detail for Lisa Jenkins?”

  “Everything is arranged. She is in a safe house.”

  “Good. The warrant is out on the husband, search of both their house and the apartment is finished. Any findings go straight to me.”

  “That leaves only one question. When are you going to tell everyone?”

  “Before Drago can, that much is for sure.” Katlena’s answer was instant, but Ami hadn’t missed the slight frown. “We need to get our ducks in a row, have something to present to each of our co-workers, and the public as well. There is something I need to do first though. Ami?”

  Ami followed her obediently even though she wasn’t sure how much more exposure she could take. This would have been the perfect day to call in sick. Not that cyphers could, technically. Katlena waited until she had sat down. Ami hoped this wasn’t a sign of more bad news to come and waited for instructions regarding the press conference she was supposed to organize.

  “I promised you information. After we’re done today, you can read your file, in my apartment. I have a copy. There’s something you need to know before, just in case all of this doesn’t work out like we hope it will. Drago told me about the sealed addendum before. Do you know anything about it?”

  Ami shook her head. This subject would only complicate things. She’d avoid it as long as possible.

  “What about the three-year-clause? You ever heard about it?”

  “Again, no. I’m sorry, but I thought this was really urgent?”

  “It is,” Katlena confirmed. She pulled herself a chair and sat across from Ami. “You know, those $20,000? I could give them to you right now, and it wouldn’t make a difference. We need a plan B for you.”

  “Why?” It was all too much to take in. Ami wasn’t sure she could follow anymore.

  “Because your identity went to somebody else three years after you signed the contract. I know it’s nuts, but that’s the way it is. Drago explained it to me before he went off the deep end.”

  “That means… I can never…” The realization hit her, that all of her attempts to help Lily or even Cara had been a mere delusion, those decisions all made for her years ago. She hadn’t even known. Without real ID, she could never leave the City.

  “No. That can’t be true. They promised me!”

  “We’ll get you out of this mess.”

  “I don’t believe you. Not even the IdA can do that!”

  Katlena shrugged. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know until a few days ago. It’s not something people talk about. There is something we can do though.”

  Ami stared at her in disbelief. At this point, it was hard to imagine there could be any options.

  “What would that be?”

  “Buy you a new identity. It’s $20,000 all the same, and I could pay for it. I can’t do anything without your consent though.”

  “That’s a first,” Ami said bitterly. “Wow. Somebody else living with my name, walking around with my passport?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  Ami leaned forward for a moment, on the verge of hyperventilating. The very organization that was most responsible for her misery was on the verge of radical reforms. Yet, Ami had nothing to fall back on. She could take Katlena’s offer. She’d have to start over completely, give up her name, everything she’d hoped for. That was, if Drago didn’t have another ace up his sleeve. She shuddered at the memory of his hands all over her.

  Katlena touched her cheek gently. “I know you’re hurting, but I swear we’ll hold the bastard responsible. We get this work done now, and we’ll figure out everything else later.”

  “Who is it?” Her voice sounded small, without hope. That was exactly how Ami felt. If she’d ever thought the system was eating her up before, this was so much worse. She’d been afraid of getting kicked out of the program, ending up on the streets. If it hadn’t been for Katlena, she might already be there.

  “I’ve been meaning to find out. Once I do, I’ll tell you,” Katlena promised.

  “Can we go see her?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe. I know that there are things that you’re afraid of, but you need to understand, you’re not going to fall out of the program. I won’t let that happen.”

  Can you help me get my name back?

  It was probably too much, too ungrateful to ask for that, given the circumstances. Ami resigned herself to the fact that she wouldn’t be able to have a breakdown until much later.

  Chapter Twelve

  Katlena looked around the room where coworkers were going about their work quietly. Most inspectors were out on assignments. One woman made an irritated face at her computer. On the other side, Noelle was talking to two officers. Ami had been right to assume that Drago wasn’t much inclined to hit on the inspectors who carried a certain power in the IdA, but he didn’t think much of trying with the lesser-ranking colleagues. They’d have some support there. She believed most of the people working here, like everyone else in the City, wanted to live their lives in peace. A lot of them didn’t know Drago’s true colors, but once they did, they would support a new chief for the IdA who would lead the organization to more integrity.

  Ami looked up at her and Katlena forced what she hoped was a reassuring smile. Their search had turned up a woman living on the other side of town. The lease of her apartment and her car were registered to Ami Moore, and there was a footnote referring to 51308 transfer. It was all happening too soon. Katlena would have needed more time to gather support behind her, to expose Drago’s involvement in everything nobody wanted the IdA to be. If only she could turn up Paul Trenton. She had the feeling he would be willing to help, if not for Katlena’s sake, then to turn against Drago.

  She also needed to present some successes. Even though officers were staking out the apartment Jenkins had mentioned in the phone, nobody had seen him yet. Technically, she should be there. Never mind Drago’s orders. She was in charge of this operation either way. Meanwhile, Ami was looking at her with hope and longing in her eyes, still wanting her life and her daughter back.

  “This is what we do,” she said, trying to sound determined. “We’ll check on this woman. I need to do that anyway to see what forms we need to buy you a name, if necessary. Every contract has some extra clauses. Maybe that comes out in our favor and we can simply reverse it. I’ll have to go relieve the team that’s staking out Jenkins’ apartment. You don’t have to come.”

  Ami looked thoughtful. “My internship could include field work, right?”

  “It could, but I don’t like it. I don’t want to put you in danger. Any more danger, that is.”

  Ami shrugged. “Actually, I don’t think I’m safer anywhere else than being with you. I’d like to come if you don’t mind.”

  “If this works out, we could change some of the rules.” If only she wasn’t making promises she couldn’t keep.

  “Will that be too late for Cara?”

  Katlena never got to give an answer, because they were interrupted by Insa, Drago’s secretary. She looked at them with an air of disdain. Katlena knew immediately she was the wrong person to ask for help with Ami’s paperwork. The woman had been working with Drago for over ten years. She was loyal.

&
nbsp; “Drago wants to see you,” she said.

  “Well, he must know I’m kind of busy right now.” Katlena couldn’t help the jibe.

  “There hasn’t been a new chief of the IdA appointed yet. As it is, he will be cleared of all charges tomorrow at the latest.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that.” Ami flinched at the cold tone of Katlena’s voice. Insa stared back at her stubbornly.

  “The charges are quite serious.”

  “Brought up by her!” Insa spat the words. “Who cares about them anyway?”

  “Enough! Tell him I’ll go see him when I find the time. You can also tell him that I’ll make sure that no woman working in the IdA will ever have to worry about a chief who can’t keep it in his pants. Am I making myself clear, Insa?”

  Her face reddening, Insa nodded.

  When she was out of earshot, Katlena sighed. “Let’s let him stew for another half hour and see what we can find out about papers for you. You can wait in the car. I don’t intend to spend a long time with him.”

  * * * *

  “Inspector Cervantes. I always knew you had ambitions, but I must admit you surprised me with that, albeit amateur, effort of a hostile takeover. You know that a lot of high-ranking officials in the IdA are also family?”

  “Who, I am certain, will be thrilled to learn that there’s a sexual offender in their family. You can’t choose who you are related to, but you can certainly choose to fire someone who’s proven to be unfit for the job.”

  Drago smiled. It unnerved her. When people in holding behaved this smug, usually it was because they believed they had an advantage over the investigators.

  “You will never be able to take over the IdA, Katlena. There was a time when I thought you’d make a great assistant chief, able to take advice and guidance. I’m glad I learned the truth before it’s too late.”

  “I called on the Committee. They’re going to appoint a new chief shortly. If it’s not me, it certainly won’t be you.”

  Desperate times called for desperate measures. Katlena had never before dealt with the Committee all by herself. Every inspector was provided with a secure line, a number that changed monthly. She had been able to present her case and now had to keep things running while she was waiting for a word from them. At least two members of the Committee were Drago’s direct family. She had to take that risk. After what she’d seen in the archives, she couldn’t turn a blind eye.

  “You’re a very passionate woman, Katlena. It’s one of your better qualities, normally, but since you met the little whore, you’ve—”

  “Stop it!”

  “You’ve got it all backwards,” he went on, unimpressed. “You’re not thinking rationally. I can only imagine how she managed that, but it doesn’t matter. You can be sure the moment I get out of here, you’ll be sent to holding, and immediately stripped of all the comforts of your identity. Who will rescue you then? The girl with no name?”

  Despite her bravado, Katlena knew he didn’t exactly make empty threats. If she couldn’t prove to the Committee that she was able to lead the IdA, Drago might still pull some strings in the background and make her life a living hell. She was scared. She was also determined to make sure he didn’t find out.

  “Well, I appreciate the warning, then. I better make sure you don’t get out,” she said and walked out of the room without looking back, certain there was a grin on his face.

  Ami was waiting for her anxiously. “How did it go?”

  “As expected.” It wasn’t a lie. With the charges filed by Internal Affairs, there was the recommendation of a new chief, signed by Noelle. Hale was, as it seemed, still unaware of the changes to come, and Katlena preferred it that way. The Committee could go with that recommendation or not. Paul Trenton was on it and his wife, Drago’s niece, and his brother. Katlena didn’t know the other ones personally. There was one more woman, two other men. They probably knew more about her and what she’d done in the past few days. If they harbored the hate and deep mistrust for cyphers that Drago and Hale had shown, she was screwed.

  Katlena forced her mind away from the issue to the next that was just as burning—the final question of Ami’s identity.

  “Let’s pay ‘Ami Moore’ a visit, and remember, let me do the talking.”

  * * * *

  “Ami Moore?”

  The young woman who answered the door wasn’t exactly Ami’s twin. Her hair was a little longer and darker than Ami’s. Her height and figure were similar.

  “Yes. Is there something wrong?” she asked, her expression guarded.

  Ami couldn’t blame her. She’d be cautious, with reason, if a uniformed IdA inspector showed up at her door. She couldn’t stop staring at the woman, and the way “Ami Moore” glanced at her with unveiled suspicion told her that it showed.

  “Inspector Cervantes, IdA,” Katlena showed her badge. “This is my intern. We have a few questions regarding the papers you obtained two years ago.”

  There was a hint of fear in the woman’s brown eyes. “Why? It’s all legal, Ma’am.”

  “I’m sure it is. Can we come in for a moment? I’d like to take a look at the contract.”

  “Of course.”

  The woman’s apprehensive look said it was all but okay, but she stepped aside to let them in anyway. The apartment was more modest than Katlena’s, but even so it showed individual touches of its inhabitant, a lot more than Ami was allowed.

  “Ami Moore” opened a cabinet door, taking out a folder. “It’s all here, from when I was first approached, to the final signatures. They told me the girl would never make it back, and so they’d give it to someone who still could.”

  “You were a cypher?” Katlena asked.

  “No, of course not,” the woman said, obviously offended. “How do you even…” She cleared her throat. “No.”

  “You didn’t hesitate taking a passport from one of them, did you?” Ami cut in, her heated tone prompting a warning gaze from Katlena.

  “I had some problems in school,” the woman said. “They found me in rehab and told me it was some new program—a new ID that would come with a clear record and credit, so I could find a job and a place to live.”

  “But—”

  Ami stopped herself short of blurting out her thoughts, because, she was sure, Katlena would have made her wait in the car.

  Leafing through the neat file, Katlena asked with a frown, “They promised you this would be permanent?”

  “What do you think?” Her tone was growing more defensive. “The Chief of the IdA signed it himself. I understand he always does that when a cypher’s ID has expired. He came up with the three-year-clause in the first place. What would they do with it anyway? They’re drug and sex addicts, and they have no ambition of ever—”

  She stopped abruptly, clutching her cheek.

  Ami held her own hand, her palm stinging, unsure of what had just happened.

  “You may wait for me in the car,” Katlena said in a scathing tone, “and you, Ms. Moore,” she addressed the impersonator, “are talking to the new chief of the IdA. Things are bound to change, which means that cases of ID transfers will be reopened. I’ll give you a fair warning. You might reconsider your choice of words for the person who made your new life this comfortable.”

  “Ami Moore” stared at her in disbelief, still clutching her cheek.

  “She hit me!”

  “She’s gonna face consequences for that. It’s not something you have to worry about.”

  Ami wasn’t sure whether she was impressed, annoyed or simply—what else was new— scared. No matter how much they both wanted long overdue reforms, it looked like you couldn’t run the IdA without some measure of intimidation. It worked on fake Ami Moore too.

  “I know you’re scared and angry,” Katlena said without preamble, as she sat in the driver’s seat. She wasn’t looking at Ami. “You’ve got reason to be. I know you probably had the worst week of your life, I get that, but you can’t keep doing things lik
e that. Maybe we’re lucky, and all goes well. The Committee votes against Drago, and the rebels might ease up on the City when they see that changes happen. We’ll get your name back, find your daughter and live happily ever after. We’re not there yet, Ami, not by a long shot.”

  “Do you want that, happily ever after?” Ami asked. “Because I can’t tell. I know you care, and I know that you’ve risked a lot for me. I’m sorry if I made it worse, but maybe I need a little bit more from you.”

  “What more? I challenged my boss, the chief of the IdA, over you. Granted, he’s a sexist jerk, but that doesn’t mean the deal can’t still blow up in my face. I don’t know what to tell you. I want this relationship. I think this number business is silly, but besides that, I don’t care what name you wear. I want to be with you.”

  “Maybe that’s where we still have a problem. I do care. That name is part of who I am.”

  “I’ll drop you off at home,” Katlena said. “I have some reading material for you, even though you’ve seen most of it.”

  “Thanks,” Ami mumbled. For the rest of the drive, they remained silent.

  * * * *

  Her vision blurred slightly as she read the documents that had determined the radical changes of her life, original Ami Moore becoming 51308. She’d been given a lot of literature before signing, securing her informed consent—only there was no way to be informed until you had lived it.

  Ami hadn’t planned on becoming pregnant at eighteen. The baby’s father had not been available, nor were her foster parents she’d been happy to leave the moment she could. Instead, there were the parents of her ex-boyfriend, wanting to avoid at all costs that they’d get back together over the pregnancy. They had come to visit Ami at home and had a long talk with her. She had to understand that she and the baby she was expecting presented a problem. There was a solution though, one that allowed her child to grow up wealthy while allowing her the option to be reunited in a few years.

  It had seemed like a good idea at the time. No one had told her about the three-year-clause, or the growing suspicion that Jean and Marcus Davidson might have become allies.