The Silver Six

by C. A. Gray

  “That makes sense,” I said slowly. “But I don’t know why they would have let you go in that case.”

  “Maybe I escaped. By that point I’d have been smarter than the lot of them,” he smiled at me sardonically.

  We all turned back to Alex, and for a long moment, nobody spoke. Finally Mom said, “We can use Alex to test your viruses against the Silver Six, Giovanni.”

  He nodded. “I know. I thought of that. But we’ve only got one of her. Once she’s gone, she’s gone.”

  “Can you reprogram her to be entirely on our side?” Mom asked. “I know she’s only been programmed to behave as if she hates us, but the bitterness act of hers is exhausting.”

  Giovanni glanced up at her, distracted. “Yes, that should be easy enough.”

  Mom added, “While you’re at it, can you disable the whole ‘using her body to get what she wants’ thing? It’s annoying.”

  Giovanni raised an eyebrow at Mom. “Are you sure you want me to? Depending on how we use her in the future, that might be valuable.”

  “Against whom?” Mom countered, hands on her hips. “This war is humans against robots, and that weapon only works against humans.”

  “Good point,” Giovanni murmured, and Liam made space for him as he scooted over to the netscreens, presumably to do as Mom asked.

  “Wait a minute,” I said, and everyone turned to look at me. “So it wasn’t Alex that blocked the upload of our film to the Commune, then. Who was it?”

  After a moment’s hesitation, Francis crossed to another netscreen and accessed the Commune again, then went into a screen I’d never seen before: the chat history.

  The name at the top of the list, from last night, was Ivan. I felt like I’d just swallowed a stone. Even before Francis opened the conversation, I knew what we were about to find.

  It was Andy.

  Chapter 32

  “How did he get on the Commune without even the access code?” I blurted.

  “Someone must have given it to him,” said Francis, “but they didn’t give him the blocking code too. Or if they did, he didn’t use it.”

  Mom actually swore at this, which was startling enough that all but Francis turned to look at her.

  “Is Ivan technical at all?” Francis went on flatly, ignoring her.

  Liam turned to look at me for the answer, eyebrows raised, so everyone else did too. I shook my head, dazed.

  “Not to my knowledge. Why?”

  “Good,” said Francis, though he didn’t explain further. He opened the chat history with Ivan, and everyone crowded around his screen at once.

  Liam now stood beside me, and murmured, “If Andy accessed the Commune without someone showing him the blocking code, he wouldn’t have disguised the LP address and it could be traced. But if Ivan doesn’t know that, and there’s nobody monitoring Ivan’s activities either, we’re probably still safe.”

  I looked up at him with undisguised dread, but didn’t have time to comment. Francis skimmed up to the very beginning of the chat history—which was apparently a few days ago. It read:

  Andy: Ivan? Is this really you? This is Andy!

  Ivan: OMG. No way. Where ARE you??? I heard something about a government hovercraft sweeping you away in Casa Linda or something… your parents are totally freaking out, they talk to me every day to see if I’ve heard anything!

  Liam groaned beside me when we got to this part, and my heart sank. This was a few days ago. Surely Ivan had told Andy’s parents about this conversation by now, then.

  Andy: Yeah, that happened. I’m not sure where I am, actually, it’s some underground compound owned by the Renegades. There’s all these tunnels connecting it to caves on the surface, and to abandoned corn silos. Tell my parents I’m fine. I’d say where I am, if I could contact them. And if I even knew.

  Ivan: The Renegades? You mean from that crazy meeting we went to in San Jose?

  Andy: Yeah, but this is ten times crazier. Jake and Julie and Becca are all here too.

  Ivan: That’s what we all figured, since Jake and Julie disappeared at the same time you did. And your parents said the hovercraft was near Becca’s house, which was apparently all torn apart, but nobody knew she’d been there too.

  Andy: she showed up that day. Jake and Julie and I went to get her from the Quantum Track station. You remember that guy Liam who did most of the talking at the San Jose meeting? He’s the one who showed up with the hovercraft and forced me to come with them because he said I was involved now.

  Ivan: Wow. So what are you guys doing out there?

  Andy: I don’t know, they think Halpert is out to destroy the world or something, and they’re trying to stop him. They’ve got a bunch of ridiculous projects going at once, but I’m not helping with any of them. They just won’t let me leave. I’m a prisoner.

  Ivan: Because…?

  Andy: Because they think I’d be in danger, I guess. They’re nuts. Either that, or I’d ‘betray’ them.

  Ivan: Man. That sucks. But at least you’re there with Becca, right? That’s gotta help!

  I froze when I read this line, knowing everyone else was reading it at the same time.

  Andy: I don’t know. I used to like her, but she’s totally gone off the deep end. They’re making these counter-propaganda films to ‘tell people the truth’ or whatever.

  Ivan: Do you think they’ll work?

  Andy: I doubt it, but they’re all excited. There’s one being uploaded right now actually. It’ll probably hit netscreens near you in the next hour or so. You can see for yourself.

  Ivan: So cancel it!

  Andy: What? Why?

  Ivan: Because you’re the only one who can. Halpert has done more to help people than any Senate leader in world history, robot or otherwise. He’s fighting for healthcare and education, he’s instituted the Common Wage so nobody goes hungry, crime rates are way down, they’ve cut chronic disease by more than half. He’s a good guy! And I seriously doubt the Renegades can do anything with a film, but if they did manage to accomplish what they’re after, it would probably mean war. Dude, you can STOP a WAR just by deleting a file. How can you not do that?

  Andy: All right, all right, hold on.

  Andy: Okay. I canceled the upload.

  Ivan: Did you delete the file?

  Andy: No.

  Ivan: Well go delete it, otherwise they’ll just upload it again later!

  Andy: They’re gonna kill me.

  Ivan: STOPPING a WAR, dude. Besides, they won’t know it’s you.

  Andy: Fine, fine.

  Andy: Okay. Deleted.

  Giovanni swore aloud when we got to this part of the exchange, and I saw Liam turn his head up to look at the ceiling, letting out a long, measured breath.

  Ivan: Good job! Now let’s get you out of there. You said it’s an underground compound connected to abandoned corn silos, and there are caves in the area. That might be enough, but do you know anything else? Like what Quantum Track station is nearby?

  Andy: I think the nearest is Kansas City. It’s a couple hours away by car, though.

  Ivan: Okay, that narrows it down. I’ll tell your parents, and I’m sure they’ll tell the police. Hang in there man, we should have you out of there soon!

  That was the end of the conversation history. The last messages were from late last night.

  After a long silence, Mom said unnecessarily, “So, we’ve been compromised.” When no one replied to this, she went on, matter-of-fact as always, “The cameras on the silos that project the sky in the upstairs meeting room also have satellite tracking capabilities. They record air traffic in the area going back days. I’ll have Mack analyze it to give us an idea of how much time we have. But we’ll need to move out within twenty-four hours at the most.” She began to move toward the stairs, and then turned to look at me. “And Rebecca,” she added. “I’m afraid Madeline will need to be destroyed.”

  “What?” I gasped.
>
  “She’s dangerous,” Mom said flatly. “You can go up to your room and say goodbye, but then you will need to hand her over to be wiped clean and dismantled. We can’t take her with us.”

  I can hardly describe what I felt as I watched Mom vanish upstairs. Too many emotions in too short a period of time, I guess. I didn’t notice Liam approach until he put his hand on my shoulder and said softly, “Leave her with me. Trust me. I’ll come get her in a bit.”

  He didn’t wait for me to reply, but crossed back to Francis and Giovanni, speaking in low tones about his software to block all upgrades for bots: he thought he’d basically recreated what Alessandra the first had likely done, and wanted Francis to double-check it before they distributed it throughout the labyrinth. They talked about Jaguar, about how she was a ‘black box,’ but barring her intervention they thought this could work. In the midst of this conversation, I found my feet again, trudging up the stairs toward my room.

  Madeline watched me with an expression of eager anticipation when I reentered our room.

  “Well? Did you get what you wanted?”

  I just stared at her, a lump rising in my throat. How much can I stand to lose? I thought.

  “Rebecca? What’s wrong?”

  “Mom says you’re dangerous,” I said at last. “We have to dismantle you.”

  Madeline blinked at me. “I don’t understand.”

  My lower lip trembled. “Liam is coming to claim you in a few minutes. He’s going to take you apart. They’re just—” my voice caught, but I swallowed and finished, “—they’re just giving me enough time to say goodbye.”

  “But…” she stopped, and I could see her flashing eyes, running possibilities. “Didn’t I do good?”

  Two hot tears slipped over my cheeks in rapid succession, and I wiped them away hurriedly. “You did, you did,” I assured her. “We found out that Alex is the key, after all. Without you, we’d never have known that. And you’ve been the best friend a girl could ever ask for. I don’t know what I’m going to do without you—”

  Knock knock. “Rebecca?”

  I wiped my face again, set my jaw and opened the door, but barely looked at him. I heard as he crossed the threshold into my room, and I stooped down to wrap my arms around Madeline, one last time. I could feel her trembling in my arms—mimicking me to the last.

  “I love you,” I whispered to her, and more tears gushed from my eyes in brazen defiance of my will. I had to pry her arms away from me so that I could stand up, lifting and handing her to Liam. Since I couldn’t do that and wipe away my tears at the same time, I still avoided his eyes.

  He hesitated, but then took her from me. “Rebecca, there’s something I have to tell you—”

  “No, it’s fine,” I said shortly, wiping my face once I had the use of my hands again. I knew what he was going to say: he was going to ‘let me down easy,’ tell me I was a ‘great girl,’ but he and Val are together again, and he ‘never meant to hurt me or lead me on,’ and he ‘hoped we could still be friends.’ I couldn’t stand to hear any of it. Especially not now.

  “Let’s just move on,” I told him, my tone as clipped and hard as I could make it. “You don’t owe me anything.”

  “This isn’t about owing you—” he began, taking a step closer to me. But I cut him off as forcefully as I could.

  “Liam, really. Whatever it is, I don’t want to hear it. Just—take her and go!” My voice broke. I leaned forward to where Madeline was cradled in Liam’s arms, and kissed her cold forehead one last time. She let out a pitiful cry.

  Liam strode to the door after that, but instead of leaving, he shut it, and pressed the power button behind Madeline’s neck, setting her on the ground. Then he turned around to face me again.

  “What are you—!” I began, but he cut me off.

  “Okay. Under any other circumstances I’d do what you want and leave you alone. But this is my last chance. So you’re gonna listen, whether you like it or not. I found my brother Brian on Giovanni’s database, as a test subject. He’s been surgically altered, and he’s on the lunar station Goliath right now.”

  I stared at him. This was so far removed from what I’d expected him to say that I couldn’t begin to downshift that fast. All I managed was, “What?”

  “I’m going to General Specs to tell my father,” Liam went on inexorably. “I’m a wanted man, so won’t be able to get to Goliath without his help. I’d hoped to have more time and more proof to show him, but after that address last night, there’s no time to lose. The only person now who can stop Jaguar is my dad, and the only way I can think of to convince him to do it is to tell him what happened to Brian. And by the way, what you walked in on last night was Val saying goodbye. It was the first and only time we’ve kissed since she’s been here.”

  “You…” I wiped my face, processing. “But… you can’t! That’s… suicide, Liam!”

  He shrugged at me, his expression earnest. “If you’ve got any better ideas, I’d love to hear them.”

  “You won’t even get to your father before you’re arrested!”

  “I’ll use Francis’s glasses.”

  “And what, walk right into General Specs?” I demanded. “Everyone will recognize you instantly!”

  “I know.”

  We stared at each other for a long moment, as my heart raced and my mind spun.

  Liam was going to die. He was going to his death.

  He crossed the room to me, reached out and cupped my face in his hand, brushing away a tear with his thumb. Instinctively I leaned in and wrapped my arms around him, my heart thundering against his ribs. He squeezed, hard.

  “We can get a message though to your father,” I mumbled against his chest. “You don’t have to go in person…”

  Liam shook his head. “I considered that, but it would never even reach him. My father has so many gatekeepers…”

  “But you got a message through to Halpert himself!”

  “Only by pretending to be my father,” Liam reminded me, pulling away just far enough to look at my face. “Look, I know they’re going to arrest me—maybe before I ever get to Dad. But he’ll hear about it—everyone will hear about it, it’ll be all over the labyrinth the second I’m spotted. They won’t shoot me on site, I’m too high profile. They’ll hold a sham trial, at least, and in between getting arrested and the trial, Dad will come see me. I’ll tell him then.”

  I saw it all in my mind, as he described it. The prison cell. The sham trial. Death row.

  The execution.

  My chest constricted. I could barely breathe.

  And suddenly I knew: I loved him. I’d loved him all along.

  But what came out of my mouth was, “I’m going with you.”

  His expression shifted, and I felt all his muscles tighten. “What? No you’re not.”

  “Yes I am, I can help!” I insisted, “I can… be your distraction, help you get through—”

  “Absolutely not!” He let go of me now, glaring at me.

  “Or if they do arrest you, I can break you free!” I went on. “Francis got Alex out. Between you and me, we can figure that out…”

  “Out of the question! No way!”

  “You can’t stop me! I’m coming!”

  “This is crazy! Why?”

  “Because I love you!”

  He stared at me for a long time, and then closed his eyes. Too long.

  “Well. Say something,” I begged.

  He shook his head, and ran his hands through his hair. “I’m sorry. I don’t love you, Rebecca.”

  It felt like he’d punched me. I was too stricken to speak, and took a step away from him. He went on, not looking at me, his voice dull and flat, “I’m glad you finally figured out how you felt, but it’s too late. At least with Val, I always knew where I stood.”

  “Liam—” my voice broke, as he walked back to the door.

  “Next time you fall in love, do yourse
lf a favor, okay? Tell yourself, and then tell him. While you still can.”

  He opened the door, scooped up Madeline, and then he was gone.

  Chapter 33

  I fled to Julie’s room. It was the only safe place I could think to go. I flopped on her bed and poured out the whole story to her—including last night, seeing Val and Liam together, Madeline trying to help, Alex being synthetic, Andy’s betrayal, losing Madeline, Liam going to his father, telling Liam I loved him, and his horrible response. But I spent most of the story on the last part. She let me talk and cry, stroking my hair as I left a trail of snot on her pillow.

  “So…” she hesitated, and I knew she was trying to think of something encouraging to say. But there was nothing, and we both knew it. So she settled on, “Wow.” Then, “He actually said he didn’t love you?” When I nodded, she blinked, dazed. “I’m… shocked. Like, I can call it usually, you know? And I was sure!”

  Knock knock knock.

  Both our eyes went wide, and Julie gestured wordlessly for me to get into her bathroom. I scrambled up to obey, not even sure why I was hiding at this point. It wasn’t like Liam would come looking for me, after our last encounter…

  I pressed my ear to the bathroom door. It was Mack.

  “Julie, pack up, and once you’re done packing whatever you’re taking with you, we need you to help stock up the hovercraft. We’re heading out in less than eight hours.”

  “Eight?” Julie gasped. “Becca said twenty-four!”

  “Oh, so she’s talked to you already? Well, that speeds things up a bit. It was twenty-four, but I looked at the satellite tracking data, and there has been increased fly-over activity in the last twelve hours. It might be random, but we don’t want to risk it. The only reason we’re waiting eight hours is to give Rick and Nilesh time to get back with supplies. We sent them just to Sommersville by car, twenty minutes away from the west silo. We haven’t risked going into that city yet, but at this point, we’ll vacate soon anyway, and time is of the essence.”