Hard Wired Trilogy

by DeAnna Pearce

  Nearby screens flashed news and security warnings as they walked through the large airport. She recognized one of the news programs and it hit her. She was home. Well, actually thousands of miles north of her home, but she was in the Americas, her home country.

  Then a warning flashed across the screen in big text. “Protect yourselves, by reporting suspicious behaviors. Report enemies on the state.” A sinking feeling in her stomach told her she was now one of the enemies of the state.

  “Can I help you?” A large guard moved in front of her, his bodycam obviously set in the center of his uniform.

  “No, we’re okay.” She couldn’t help but pull back, knowing the software would scan her features to match to the database.

  “Yeah, just heading off to meet the family.” Patrick was fast on his feet and pull her into a side hug. “In-laws, huh?”

  She followed his lead and turned her head into his chest. Without a clear view of the cam, she should be safer. But she knew it only took a moment to change that.

  The guard’s massive presence continued to loom over them for seconds that felt like minutes. “Be on your way,” he said with a dismissive tone and turned off in another direction.

  Ari exhaled a sigh of relief.

  Patrick held her for another second against his chest before letting go. “We better go.”

  As they left the airport, the sun shone high in the sky. It took a moment for Ari to remember what day it was, Wednesday. They took a car to Ryope Industries, where Tessa’s dad worked. Stepping out of the car, Ari strained to see the top of the building. Built with some type of reflective metal, a rainbow of colors danced on the metal depending on the angle of the sun.

  “We have time to get a bite before your interview.” Patrick pointed to a small cafe nearby.

  “Sounds great, I’d love to freshen up,” Ari said.

  They had both packed light, one bag each that sat under the table. She had a new outfit and enough toiletries to wipe away the smell and feeling of spending too much time on a plane.

  While she cleaned up, Patrick ordered coffee and food. Ari redid her makeup and hair. She skipped some of the prosthetic makeup pads as they were more visible up close. Yes, they would have cameras around town, but she could get away with big sunglasses to hide her face shape. She kept the contacts in, just in case. If any police asked questions, the contacts protected against retinal scans. Feeling like a new person since the flight, she joined Patrick at a table with coffee and pastries. Ari’s favorite. They sat in the shadow of the Ryope Industries building, going over their plan.

  “You think Tessa’s there?” Patrick asked. “I know she went underground, but that doesn’t mean she still isn’t there.”

  “Maybe. She was never very close with her father, though.”

  “If she’s not there, do you think he’ll remember you?”

  Ari struggled not to spit out her drink of coffee and she laughed. It was so loud people began to look. She reined in her response; maybe it was the jetlag. “Yeah,” she finally answered him. “I think I caused enough trouble in his daughter’s life, he’ll remember me. He may not be happy about me showing up, though. Especially if I have to break through security.”

  “We’ve traveled too far to worry about happy.” Patrick sipped his dark coffee.

  “True.”

  “I’m just not sure how going to an appointment for a grunt-level intern position is going to turn into meeting the CEO of the company?” Ari asked, the nerves of this assignment started creeping in, turning into a knot in her stomach.

  Joe had set Ari up with an interview with their marketing team. While Ari hoped to find Tessa or her father, Patrick planned on hacking their system nearby. If they could hack the employee logins, they would know for sure if Tessa was there.

  Patrick reassured her of the plan. “Get on a computer, and we’ll find out where they are. Being physically inside the building gives us an ability to break in easier. You’ve done these kind of missions for VisionTech before. You’ll be great.”

  “Inside a program, I have a bigger arsenal.”

  “You have more than you know here too.” He handed her the communication tab that stuck to the back of her ear and hid neatly under her hair.

  He set down his cup. “Putting it off won’t make it any easier.”

  “I really hoped Tessa would just walk out the front door but, alas, life is never that easy.” Ari took one last drink and stood to leave. “See you in a few.”

  He nodded.

  Walking towards the tall building, Ari remembered the first time she met Tessa at her first day of school. Tessa had been gaming and could barely spare thirty seconds to acknowledge her new roommate. Tessa didn’t let people into her world easily, but if she did, she was loyal to the end. While at VisionTech, Tessa had even helped Ari funnel money to her family. Ari knew if she could find Tessa, she’d be fine. It was the finding part which was not guaranteed.

  Walking up to the receptionist, Ari was directed to one of the nearby screens to check in. Ari scanned her credentials. A picture of a pleasant woman appeared. “Welcome to Ryope Industries. Your appointment is on the tenth floor. Please go to the right for the elevators.” The image motioned with her arm to the right. “Have a nice day.”

  Ari stepped onto the crowded elevator, hoping to blend in. Arriving early to her interview, she hoped to meander unseen. Once on board, the tab behind her ear buzzed quietly. She pressed it, and Patrick’s voice entered her ear. Several people spoke to each other and some on their phones, so her conversation didn’t draw any undue attention.

  “Head up to the eighteenth,” Patrick said. “I pulled up their map with your temporary guest credentials.”

  Ari didn’t bother replying. The elevator stopped on almost every floor, with people getting off. As the tenth floor came and went, the crowd thinned considerably.

  “Going up to the fifteenth?” An older man motioned to the last highlighted button.

  Reading the panel, she noticed all floors over twenty required ID verification. “Actually, I’m on the eighteenth.” She leaned over and selected the level on the screen.

  “Huh?” The older man raised a heavy brow.

  She gave a small smile.

  “I’m Mitch.” He offered a hand.

  Ari took his hand in a firm shake and stared him right in the eye. “I’m Cyn.”

  “Nice to meet you, Cyn. Well, here’s my stop.” He left without a backwards glance.

  She exhaled once the doors closed, trying to shake out her nerves.

  “Cyn?” Patrick hissed in her ear. “I thought you were Stella for the interview?”

  “I forgot. Cyn will be my nickname. Stella Cyn, okay?”

  “You’re doing great,” Patrick spoke in her ear, and Ari couldn’t tell if he was being sarcastic or not.

  “Have you found her office on the map?” Ari asked him.

  “Not yet. From what you told me about her, I figured she’d be on this floor. We need a directory or free computer. We hack into some better information from the inside.”

  The elevator stopped at the eighteenth floor, and she exited.

  “Take your next left,” Patrick said.

  Turning around the corner, she found rows of cubicles with people bustling about. At the end of a hall, she turned left again which was the only option and continued forward with purpose. A few people glanced her way, but they quickly returned to their work.

  “Your next right should have a map of sorts.”

  As she turned another corner, she found the interactive map. It listed all the offices on their floor. It mentioned who was in, who was at lunch, that sort of thing.

  Scanning the map, she didn’t see Tessa’s name anywhere, not that Ari was surprised. Even if she was here, Tessa was not the type to have her name on a directory. The map offered other floors, but there were too many people to search one by one. She tried to access the directories on the upper floors, but they were locked. She wasn’t to
o surprised as she didn’t expect the VPs to have to report when they went to lunch, but she hoped it would at least mention who was on what floor.

  “There’s nothing here,” Ari finally admitted to Patrick. There had to be another way.

  “If you can find a computer, we can access a broader company directory, I bet.”

  Glancing around she found a couple of desks and computers unattended. While hacking wasn’t her specialty, Patrick knew enough to help her break through. With a quick look around, she took a place at a desk and touched the screen to awaken it.

  “I’m here,” she spoke to Patrick through the earpiece. “Help me get in.”

  “Okay, see the login method—”

  Someone approached down the hall, and Ari spun in the chair, ignoring the rest of his directions.

  “Can I help you?” A small woman in a tight fitting green dress entered the cubicle.

  “Actually, you can. I have an appointment but forgot where the office was.” Ari showed the woman a picture of the electronic appointment card on her HUB.

  The woman frowned. Her dark hair was pulled back into a high bun. With her attention to detail and precise mannerisms, if Ari was in a VR, she’d swear this woman was part of the program.

  “I wanted to make a good impression and not ask like an idiot.” She tried for an air-headed smile. “But here I am.”

  Finally using the HUB on her wrist, the woman scanned through several screens. The fact she didn’t just tell her where to go didn’t calm Ari’s nerves. She scanned the floor, looking for another exit, but nothing stood out.

  “Let me get you some help. They can escort you to the right place.”

  ‘To the right place’ could mean a lot of different things.

  Patrick overhearing their conversation, obviously thought the same thing. “Get out of there.”

  Ari worked on an excuse. “That’s okay. I’ll just call and set up a different time.”

  The woman watched Ari carefully, but said nothing.

  Ari waited for a second, then realized the woman wasn’t going to leave her alone. “I’ll just step over here to call.”

  Moving, she pretended to call. “Hey, Tessa,” she said to Patrick, knowing he would catch on. “I lost the directions to your office here.”

  Ari kept walking and pretending to speak to Tessa, hoping to lose the woman behind her. The reflection in the glass offices showed the woman following her and now on her own phone call. Her high hells tapped rhythmically on the stone floor.

  “Head back to the elevators. Go to the interview.” There was a serious edge to Patrick’s voice.

  Ari picked up her pace back to the elevators, all while continuing her pretend conversation with Tessa. “They have lots of helpful people here. One is just calling someone to escort me. I told them I don’t need it. Not when I can call you.”

  Thankfully, the elevator was open, and she pressed the tenth floor. The door shut just in time for her to see the assistant. The smile on her face made her think she wasn’t in the clear just yet.

  “I’m on the elevator,” she told Patrick.

  “Good. Go to your interview on tenth. I’ll be with you.”

  The doors opened on tenth, and two men stepped towards her.

  “Excuse me.” Ari tried to step around them to exit.

  They blocked her exit. “You’ll need to ride down with us, ma’am.”

  “Ma’am?” She was eighteen years old. No one had ever called her ma’am. “I have an interview I need to go to. I’ll already got lost once and if I hurry I won’t be late.”

  “Your interview has been canceled.” One of them stepped inside, pushing her back, while the other man hit a button. The doors closed and the elevator continued down.

  Looking up, she finally realized her mistake, though there was probably more than one. When she pretended to call, she used Tessa’s name. Ari’s appointment was with a different department for an intern. Would the assistant have been familiar enough with Tessa to call security on Ari? The man in front of her was easily over six foot with shoulders that said he lifted weights heavier than Ari. She swallowed any fear and remembered to stay in character.

  “What? My interview has been canceled? I needed that internship. Do you know how long it took me to come here?” Ari kept to her lies for as long as she could.

  “Someone overheard you calling for a Tessa?” He watched her carefully. “How do you know Tessa?”

  “He must have misheard me. I had an interview with the marketing team. I got lost.”

  “Don’t worry. We can straighten everything out,” one of the men said without looking at her.

  They stopped and with a quick glance at the panel, she realized they were in the basement. Ari didn’t even realize they had a basement.

  “Stay calm,” Patrick whispered in her ear. “At first chance excuse yourself to the restroom. There are stairwells at each end of the building. Take it up and you should be able to exit to the outside. Just stay—”

  The phone in her ear cut out, static replacing his voice. She didn’t dare bring attention to the piece in her ear. As she stepped out of the elevator with the two men, the static cut out. This had to be a dead zone or something.

  “This way.” The man motioned with a hand for her to turn. At least he didn’t restrain her.

  Nodding in compliance, she fought down her anger and tried to play the nervous girl. Not that she had to dig too far for that emotion. They couldn’t arrest her for getting lost in the building. Could they?

  She stopped and turned to face the two guards. “I need to use the restroom.”

  “That can wait until later.”

  “Excuse me? I came here for an interview. That doesn’t mean you can force me to your basement. I have rights. I don’t think I care to work for an establishment like this. I’m leaving.” It was easy for Ari to pretend to be furious. Scared and angry aren’t as far apart as most people think.

  The men didn’t twitch or move an inch. “There have been death threats and averted attacks against this company. We take any trespassing seriously and will hand you over to the government as soon as we discover your motives.”

  “My motives were to get a job, which I no longer want.” She tried to push past them.

  They grabbed her arm hard enough to leave a bruise. “Trying to get on a computer that isn’t yours brings your motives into question. We wanted to do this the easy way, but I guess you opted to be more difficult.”

  Knowing things were just going to go downhill from here, Ari quickly twisted out of the guard’s hold. She struck fast, connecting with his throat. The other man stood behind his friend, blocking her from his grasp. She remembered one of her most important lessons about being overpowered and outmanned: when all else fails, run. Sprinting down the hall, she followed the twists and turns and wished for Patrick again to direct her to the exit. Her heart raced and she swore that she would train more.

  She didn’t see the stairwell until she passed it. When she turned to reach for the doorknob, the men slammed into her, taking her down. The heavy weight knocked her breath out of her, and she struggled under their weight. She wouldn’t go down without a fight.

  “Dammit,” a familiar voice sounded down the hall. “One guy comes with a gun and you guys think you can tackle anyone you want.”

  With each painful breath, Ari wondered if her rib was bruised or broken. Half her face ached as she remained on the floor, and her words came out weak. “Hey, Tessa. Long time.”

  Chapter 7

  “Hey, Beefcake, get off the girl.” Tessa sounded from above.

  The security guard rolled off in a swift graceful movement, and left Ari gasping for air. Now that she found Tessa, she pushed up to her knees and took a few moments to catch her breath. Tessa continued her tirade at the security guards, complete with colorful words and creative metaphors. Ari had missed her.

  Once they left, Tessa offered Ari a hand to stand.

  “Thanks.” Ari rubb
ed her sore shoulder. “You wouldn’t believe how hard it is to find you.”

  “Not as hard as it is to find you,” Tessa countered. Her hair had gotten shorter since Ari last saw it. Bubblegum pink colored the top of her head while the rest was shaved and bleached a white blonde.

  “You look like an ice cream cone.” Ari motioned to her hair.

  “All the better for people to underestimate me. It’s been a challenge working for good old dad.” If her hair looked like dessert, the rest appeared to be the poison parents would warn their kids about. Heavy earrings lined her lobes, along with a spike through her brow. She had a new tattoo on her shoulder and looked dressed for a rave, not work. Guess there were perks for working for family.

  “It’s good to see you.” Emotion bubbled up in Ari and she pulled her friend into a hug.

  Tessa squeezed her tight, before pulling back. “Don’t get all mushy on me now. Let’s get coffee and catch up.” She motioned for Ari to follow.

  “I have a friend outside who will be worried about me. Can we go out of the building?”

  “No.” Tessa kept walking. “Roids and Godzilla were right. It’s not safe for either of us. Call your friend and have him come here. Not that here is really safe. We’ve been having random searches by the government for months now.” She lifted her fingers in air quotes when she said random safety searches. “There have been some close calls for me. You’re lucky to catch me here when you did. My schedule is very random.”

  As Ari placed a gentle hand against her sore ribs, Ari didn’t feel lucky, but admitted to herself that the situation could have been much worse. They didn’t get on the elevators that Ari came down on but continued to a private lift in the back. Once out of the basement, a short buzz of static sounded in Ari’s ear.

  She pressed the piece in her ear. “Patrick, you there?”

  A loud exhale filled her ear. “Thank God. Where are you?”

  “Tessa found me with security. She says it’s not safe to go out. Want to come up?”