Hard Wired Trilogy

by DeAnna Pearce

  He didn’t reply for a moment. Ari realized in that empty space how it could look to him. She may have been forced to say that to trap them.

  “Patrick. I promise it’s safe. Or as Sketchy would say, smooth as ice.” She used a familiar phrase to let him know she wasn’t under duress.

  “Where are you guys?”

  She turned to Tessa. “Where should he go?”

  “Tell him to go to reception and tell them that techno sucks. They’ll direct him to the right place.”

  Ari conveyed the directions, which didn’t faze him.

  “Really?” she turned to Tessa. “Techno sucks is your big password?”

  “Well, it does. Fake music isn’t music. No matter how mathematically precise it is. The perfection is in the mistakes. Everyone knows that.”

  Despite her aches and pains, Ari couldn’t contain her happiness. “I’ve missed you. You know that?”

  “Yeah. I’ve missed you too. Even if all you seem to be is giant drama. Life gets boring without you.”

  “I’ll take it as a compliment,” Ari laughed, frequently turning to look at Tessa to make sure this was real.

  They rode up to a top floor and headed to her office. With large screens and oversized chairs, it was well set up to game. Perfect for Tessa.

  Ari brushed a hand over a large sofa. “What have you been up to? I heard you’ve been out of your games for a while.”

  She gave a scoff. “I still check on it now and then, but never publicly. A bunch of posers, governments, and other weirdos took it over. Too bad. That world rocked. I’m working on a new one with a retro twist.” She took a seat in a black chair and kicked her boots up on the desk. “The real question is what have you been up to. I take it that your island vacation wasn’t as much of a paradise as we hoped.”

  “Not quite.” Ari filled her in on what happened in the past year that they had been apart. When she got to her current residence, she kept it vague.

  “This Patrick, the guy you’re staying with now, he’s safe?” Tessa didn’t sound concerned, but she watched Ari. “How did he make his money? Mansions don’t grow out of the ground. Not in the real, even for warpers.”

  “Not sure exactly.” Ari bit the inside of her cheek, deciding how much to say. She knew the team had side jobs, like hacking and insider trading, but Patrick kept her out of that. Trust was hard for her, but her options were limited. “But he’s a good guy. We do important work.”

  “Important work, huh?” The disbelief heavy was heavy in Tessa’s voice.

  “Yeah. There’s a few of us. It’s good.” Ari lifted her chin, hating that she had to justify her actions.

  “Hey, don’t worry about me. I don’t care if you’re making cartoon VRs for babies. I just want to make sure you’re safe and this guy is treating you right. You always have other options, okay?” Tessa leaned forward with her elbows on her knees with an earnestness in her demeanor Ari rarely saw.

  Ari glanced down at her tight hands and slowly released them. She looked back up to Tessa. “Thanks. That means a lot to me. Right now, I’m in a good place. Learning a ton about my abilities. I feel stronger than I ever have, and I still have a ways to go.”

  Tessa watched her for a minute. “Okay then. Let’s see this mystery man.”

  “Open,” Tessa said, and the door swooshed open to reveal Patrick in the doorway.

  Ari wondered how long Patrick had been waiting.

  “As long as you’re safe.”

  Patrick walked in with their bags. “She’s as safe as possible, considering.” He looked Ari over.

  “I’m good.” Ari was grateful none of her bruises could show.

  “Want a drink?” Tessa motioned to the machine on the counter.

  “No thanks.” He sat in the closest available chair, a fuzzy purple armchair.

  “Tessa, this is Patrick. Patrick, my best friend Tessa.”

  “Hi.” He appeared pleasant, but the tightness around his eyes appeared only when he was on edge.

  How could anyone look unhappy sitting in that chair? Ari took a mental picture of him in the purple fuzzy chair and smiled.

  He caught her gaze and narrowed his eyes. “I don’t think we should stay here for long.”

  “I agree,” Tessa interrupted. “I have a plane on the roof. We can leave as soon as you want.”

  “A plane? For what?” Ari balked at Tessa’s affluence.

  “Well, I assumed you didn’t show up just to see my beautiful face. Did you want to see your family or just chit chat?”

  Ari started in surprise. Her family was that close?

  Standing, Patrick held a tightness in his shoulders. “How do we know your plane is safe?”

  “You don’t.” Tessa stepped towards him, challenging him by her posture. “But if I wanted to hurt Ari, I could have done it in several different ways since I knew about her power last year. I have money. I don’t need to use my friends to get more. Can you say the same?”

  Patrick stared at Tessa, as if trying to decide if he should trust her. Ari moved to stand in between them, trying to diffuse the situation. Patrick was used to being in charge, giving orders that people followed. Tessa hated anyone that even tried to tell her what to do. Ask any of her stepmoms.

  “I trust her, Patrick. That’s all that matters,” she told him.

  “Let’s go.” Tessa didn’t wait for his response as she headed out the door. “I have a place in the city. My security won’t talk, but this building is constantly watched.”

  Patrick stayed focused on Ari. “I trust your instincts. Just remember there is never enough paranoia for people like us.”

  “Got it.” They followed Tessa through several doors that required security retinal scans.

  After a short trip up a private elevator, they exited onto the roof. It wasn’t as open as she remembered. Small reflective mirrors on the edge of the building flashed an electric field that hid the roof from unwanted eyes. Tessa had mentioned it last time she was here.

  Ari stopped, remembering last year. With everything that happened, it felt so much longer ago. This was where her and Reed landed to drop off Marco and Tessa before continuing to the island. This was the last place she saw her brother.

  “Having second thoughts?” Patrick placed a hand on her shoulder.

  “No.” She shook her head and as they approached a small sleek plane. “Just old memories.”

  The thought of Reed weighed heavy on her stomach as Patrick stayed close. Even though she had made it clear there was nothing between them, part of her felt guilty. She wasn’t sure for what though. For her freedom, or that the choice he made to come with her last year cost him his world.

  Once on board, they buckled in. As if the plane was waiting for them, with the final click of Ari’s belt it surged upward.

  Ari leaned forward. “So is Marco and my mom close?”

  “Pretty close in this thing,” Tessa said, while putting directions into the plane’s computer.

  Ari pulled back. “Really? Where are they?”

  “Eight is Great.”

  “What’s that?”

  Patrick leaned forward. “A city whose name is a twist of the seven deadly sins. They think God left out one: virtual reality. The eighth deadly sin is the virtual world and Eight is Great.” His sarcasm was highlighted by a tight smile.

  “You really think that was the best place for them?” Ari asked Tessa, worried about her brother.

  “The best place to hide a needle is in a haystack.” Tessa finished on the screen and looked up. “What’s the problem?”

  Ari didn’t feel like spending ten minutes to list them. “Nothing. Just excited to see them.”

  “They have been doing well this last month. Just don’t be too surprised when you see them.” Tessa leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes.

  “Why?” Her anxiety curled in Ari’s stomach.

  “Don’t worry. Your brother is still getting used to things.”

  That stat
ement left her brain spinning the rest of the way to the city.

  Chapter 8

  It only took an hour to reach the city by plane. Patrick closed his eyes, but Ari could tell he was still awake. Tessa got Ari a drink and settled across from her. Glancing out the window, she watched the lights from the towns below flicker past.

  “Are you sure it’s safe to see them?” Ari had been wondering what they had been up to, but Tessa didn’t feel like getting into it.

  “They’re safe, Ari. I kept my promise. And I don’t make many promises, so feel blessed, okay.” Tessa pointed the bottle at her then took a swig.

  “I’m just nervous.” Once she found them, what was the next step? Visit once a year? Or maybe they would want to come back with her? Last time Marco didn’t want to come though. He liked to live his own life. Not that she blamed him.

  Nerves tumbled and twisted in her stomach.

  It wasn’t until Patrick stilled her hand that she realized she had been picking a cuticle until it started to bleed.

  “It’ll be okay.” His hands remained on top of hers.

  It was uncanny how much he could read her emotions. Living with someone could do that, though. She nodded and folded her arms in front of her. Then decided to take a drink; the cold soda tasted good.

  Ari had been avoiding Tessa’s intent gaze since Patrick had touched her. But there was nothing to feel guilty about. Lifting her chin, she met Tessa’s scrutiny.

  “You need a tab?” Tessa asked casually. “Something to help you relax?”

  Not wanting to be inebriated in the slightest, she declined. “No. I’m good. Why don’t you tell me about the new world you’re working on?”

  Her friend paused for a moment, seeing more than Ari would like, but after a few seconds set down her drink. “Sure thing, as long as you both know this has already been copyrighted. No snapping your fingers and creating it one afternoon just to screw with my business plan.”

  “I could never do any world of yours justice,” Ari promised.

  Tessa glanced at Patrick, assuming he must be a warper as well.

  He placed a hand over his heart. “Cross my heart.”

  “Okay. It started with a dream about my current cat. Who wasn’t my cat at the time, but I found during a dice game…” Tessa continued talking more about her cat, which Ari figured was more of a jungle cat than a house cat.

  The time flew by as the girls discussed the ins and out of the game and repercussions of owning a cat that could claw your eyes out in your sleep.

  “Can’t you cage her at night or something? Lock her out of your room?”

  “I’d never cage something that beautiful and she’s already torn up a couple doors. I’ve tried to release her back into the wild, but she’s smarter than that. She knows I’ll give her the real stuff. My fish guy is loving it.”

  “I bet,” Ari laughed as the city’s bright lights came into view, a myriad of colors lighting up against the sunset. A city like this lived mostly at night.

  And just like that, her nerves returned, and she shifted in her seat. Would they be happy to see her or angry they were stuck here because of her? Either way, she just prayed they were okay. For their own protection, Tessa hadn’t spoken to them for a while. She assured Ari if there was a real problem, they knew how to get a hold of her.

  Tessa sat up as the plane approached and headed to the controls. A few minutes later, the small plane maneuvered through town. It found its landing on top of a hotel.

  “Does your dad own this?” Ari asked, as the plane landed.

  “No. I’m checking in under an alias. I don’t want anything connecting me at this point.” Tessa typed something into the controls.

  The door slid open, and they exited plane. The roof had a sleek jet-black landing pad with highlight marked for the walkways. There was a handful of other planes coming and going. They followed a couple to the elevator. She wore a dress that shimmered in dark jewel colors, and the man, several years older, wore an expensive suit like they were headed out on a date.

  Ari, Patrick, and Tessa remained silent as they traveled to the floor level. The hotel was nothing short of exquisite with its modern decor, but Ari didn’t expect any less. It didn’t faze her though. Her thoughts were racing with seeing her family. Would they have changed in over a year?

  Patrick reached for her hand and pulled her back gently.

  “What?” She turned back to find Tessa and him behind her.

  “Hurrying right now is drawing unwanted attention,” he said.

  Tessa reached them in a couple strides. “Slow the hell down, is how I would have put it. You don’t even know where you’re going.”

  “Sorry, just excited.” Ari let Tessa led them out of the hotel and into the warm night air. Quite a bit warmer than their place in the mountains. She dropped Patrick’s hand to take off her jacket.

  Outside the city looked like every other expensive VR-driven town. Flashy signs promising the world at your fingertips. It blurred past Ari, the only notice she gave was as she searched the faces of everyone walking by.

  Security guards were placed sporadically throughout the crowds. They stood out with their uniforms and large protective shields. As they approached, Ari turned to glance across the street.

  Once past, Ari turned to Tessa. “Is there always so many guards?”

  She nodded. “Crowd control mostly. Drunks coming from shows or fights getting riled up. Just avoid their cams and you’ll be fine.”

  Ari would feel more comfortable if she could put her disguise back on. For now, avoidance will do. “How much longer?” she asked.

  “Not far.” Tessa motioned to take a right ahead.

  Several blocks later they turned down an alley. No, not an alley, but a small street. Like the large hotels were trying to push out the street as much as possible. Not somewhere Ari would like to be found alone at night.

  There in the back was a small building. As they got closer, Ari realized it was a church. The small spire was twenty feet high at least, but nothing compared to the other buildings. The red brick exterior looked aged. Ari wondered what this was a front for.

  They didn’t say anything, but just followed Tessa inside. The old door opened manually without a scan. The foyer smelled like dust and old books, with low ceilings. In the corner stood a statue of the Virgin Mary.

  “Is this a church?” Ari turned in a slow circle.

  “What did you think it was? I thought you actually had gone to church before,” Tessa said.

  “I have, but with you I thought it was maybe a front or something.”

  Tessa laughed. “This wasn’t my first idea, but your mom can be stubborn sometimes.”

  “True.” Ari had been dragged to church by her mom and abuela for the first ten years of her life. After her abuela died and her dad went in and out of VR comas, her mom had to work Sundays, and they stopped. Ari rubbed the chill from her arms. It had been years since she came to church or prayed. Years since she believed someone up there actually listened or cared, since her dad left.

  “This way,” Tessa said. “Unless you want to go to confession first.”

  “I’m coming.” Ari followed Tessa through the next door, into the chapel.

  Patrick stayed by her patiently, not saying a word.

  The chapel’s large ceiling gave the building a grand hallow feeling. A pulpit up at the front sat before a large statue of Christ. He held out empty pierced palms, his gaze tired and sad.

  A noise drew Ari’s gaze to the rows and rows of wooden pews. Down among the seats, someone was working and set down a hammer. He stood, dark hair falling into his face. With a familiar brush of his hand, he pushed aside his wavy hair and tucked it behind his ear. His face lit up as he recognized her.

  “‘Bout time you came back to church, sis. I’m sure you’ll have rosaries in the triple digits.” Marco smiled as he leaned against the pews.

  “I’m surprised the place didn’t start a flame when you steppe
d inside.” A warmth spread through her chest at the sight of her brother, and the banter felt natural.

  “Who’s to say it didn’t?” He cocked a familiar brow.

  She couldn’t keep it together anymore and rushed towards him.

  He picked her up in a big hug. “I’ve worried about you, little sis.”

  “Me too.” She held him tight, her heart ready to burst. She didn’t know how long they stayed like that. She only let go when she heard her name.

  “Ariana?” Her mother’s accent carried through the chapel like music.

  Air turned to find her mother, Cynthia, rushing towards them. She had lost weight, which she didn’t have much to lose. Her long hair was twisted into a familiar bun. Despite her small frame, she nearly tackled Marco and Ari as she wrapped them up in her arms.

  “Watch it, Mom. Don’t want to break Ari just when she returns,” Marco managed to say under their mom’s iron grip.

  Ari laughed and squeezed tighter. Her heart swelled, and her cheeks were wet with happy tears. After a long time, she finally felt hope.

  Chapter 9

  Their reunion was interrupted by a priest who needed to start mass. Their small party moved to Marco and Cynthia’s room in the back. The modest bedroom held two beds, two nightstands, and a small dresser. Ari’s room was bigger and better furnished. Guilt burrowed deeper at what her family must have gone through because of her.

  It took them a while to catch up on what had happened the last year. They stayed in their country as long as they could. When some mercenaries went after Marco inside a program, he knew it was time to leave. He reached out to Tessa who helped them relocate.

  “But why a church?” Ari turned to Tessa. It might seem safe, but was it really?

  “Churches are some of the few organizations that don’t have electronic monitoring, especially old churches like this. The government keeps out of them, which is rare,” Tessa explained, sitting in one of the folding chairs while she sipped a glass of wine.

  “Where did you find wine?” Ari glared at Tessa.