The Six Story Fault
Page 2
“Wendell saw the note and Wendell got scared, afraid they’d be the ones punished this time. So Wendell washed the chalk away. Then, Wendell followed Mrs. Wilson off the roof. Because Wendell felt guilty, because Wendell wanted to destroy the day’s records, because at least one more thing.
“I have no doubt; when they saw Beth’s body, Wendell asked Hecata why. Who could resist the urge to know a thing like that? Hecata marked Wendell as a necessary cause, and Wendell judged themselves responsible.
“Well,” Bill said, “That’s it. The only theory I could come up with that answers every piece of evidence.”
“So,” Kurt said, “we call yesterday’s… Wendell in? Sweat the truth out of ‘em?”
“It’s ridiculous, but we don’t have clearance to do that. I guess. I don’t think we’ll have to. There’s one last bit of evidence that doesn’t fit.”
~ ~ ~ ~
Excerpt from The World of Science, an elementary school textbook:
A supercomputer is a computer that is super-fast and super powerful. Supercomputers are so special that we give them names, like people! Atlas was one of the first supercomputers. It was built in 1962, in England.
The supercomputers we use today are not like the first supercomputers. The first supercomputers, like Atlas, were one machine. They were all in the same place. Today our supercomputers use grid computing. That means they are computers made of many machines, in many different places.
Our supercomputers help us do a lot of amazing things. Each one has a name and an important job to do.
…
Another supercomputer we use today is Hecata. Hecata is a supercomputer that figures out why bad things happen. Hecata does not know every reason why a bad thing happens. But Hecata can find some things that needed to happen to cause a bad thing.
~ ~ ~ ~
Excerpt from the text of a Bill:
Sec. 2. Findings
Congress makes the following findings:
•Various high performance and high throughput government computer applications have proven fundamental to countless arenas of American life.
•Dedicated computer processing power has not become more affordable since the Inefficient Computer Spending Act was first enacted in 2XXX.
•The energy expenditure and hardware degradation caused by government use of processing power in otherwise dormant, privately owned devices remains far preferable to the enormous tax burden which dedicated government processing power would incur.
~ ~ ~ ~
April 14th, 1:28 pm
“There’s one last bit of evidence that doesn’t fit,” Bill said. “Kurt, have you left Frank alone since you two discovered the body? Besides when he was with me, I mean.”
“You know I always watch Frank’s back.”
“Yes, I do.”
Bill looked down.
“Frank should have been able to figure this out. Kurt, you’re his partner. You know he’s every bit the detective I am. On his worst day, Frank never would’ve been so far off track, not in a million years.”
“So?” Kurt Smit said. “Big deal! You’re the smartest. You want a trophy or what?”
“And I can’t say that I remember Frank ever taking a day off before. You want him off the streets, wait for the mob to cool off. The chief wants him to relax, get a little rest. But he never takes a day off.
“Frank,” Bill said, “you weren’t on vacation yesterday. You were Wendell yesterday.”
“Any more Billie-boy,” said Smit, “and the only talkin’ you do is gonna be in your sleep.”
“Frank still has the chalk, the transmitter and memory from Wendell’s head. He didn’t have a chance to ditch them, you were with him the whole time. Frank couldn’t have done anything but slip them into his pockets.”
Frank sunk his hand into a pocket. He dragged out a fist and opened it. In Frank’s hand was a broken piece of chalk and two silicon coins from Wendell’s Eye. Frank held out his hand to Kurt. Smit took the things.
“But that’s not quite true, is it Frank? Sure, Kurt was with you the whole time, but you’re a smart guy. You could’ve figured something out. And you had to have known I’d get all this. Why didn’t you run when they called me in, make some excuse and get away? Why did you take the chalk and the drives at all? It wasn’t just you, Frank. It was four thousand people. Acting as a Jurist, too. Nothing would have happened, no one would have blamed you.”
Frank brought out his handcuffs from the same jacket pocket.
“I blame me,” He said. “Should get caught. Get what’s coming to me. I saw it and I’m to blame. What I did to that woman -- it caused all this. I hadn’t, she’d still be alive. But I did. So she’s dead.”
“Maybe we should punish you,” said Bill, “But the rest of the Mass Intelligence deserves the same treatment. And don’t stop there Frank, blame everyone. Every single person who added to this, every single little nudge. So Beth’s still alive if she never meets Wendell. Beth Wilson is still alive today if a lot of things. If there’s no shooting, if she stays home yesterday, if her parents said “I love you” more. If, if, if.”
“Don’t know about anybody else. But I do know what I deserve.”
Frank Ravell pinched the cuffs tight around his wrists. He turned for the stairs, not bothering to miss the water. Frank let it seep through his soles. Smit followed.
Walking with Frank, Smit braced his friend, blaming McCoy.
Through the water, Frank Ravell marched, blaming himself.
On the rooftop, Bill counted clouds, blaming himself, the whole universe, and ev-ery one.
~ ~ ~ ~
April 13th, 5:54 pm
The cold metal bar parted Beth’s side. Particle wood crammed her knees. She thought the desk as Andy’s desk for this last six minutes.
Wendell stood a-front the class of one and their words echoed.
“I don’t remember what it was that I told him. I simply… don’t recall.”
“You would like it for me to tell you?”
“Please, oh please don’t. I don’t wish to, I can’t remember.”
“Well as just punishment yours is knowing the knowing that you made it. Cause yours is small and many there are unseen.”
“That can’t be. I must pay for this, I must. Don’t do this, please.”
“Judgments all are final.”
Six minutes passed, and Beth didn’t think the desk Andy’s any longer.
~ ~ ~ ~
Excerpt from an episode of Your World Today, original air time 4/19, 6pm :
…
Gregory Thomas: What role, would you say your parents played?
Andrew Baker: Huh. Right, no role.
Gregory Thomas: What about the, other kids at school? Didn’t they do anything to make you...?
Andrew Baker: They didn’t do nuthin’. Nobody did. I’m the guy right here. Me. How long you gonna go, this person, and that person. Just ask me. Andy, why did you kill, the other kids.
Gregory Thomas: Why did you?
Andrew Baker: For me. See, now everybody knows my name. Me, Andy Baker. Andy, Baker. Think for a sec, did you know, I am the most famous Andy Baker there ever was? Yeah?
Gregory Thomas: But Andy, we know, for one at least we know. If Beth Wilson, your teacher hadn’t said, I have the quote right here. “Andy, if you keep this kind of behavior up, you just won’t amount to much.” Now we know, if she hadn’t said that you would not, have done what you did. We know, we know there are, other reasons like that, too. Can you think, What else might have..?
Andrew Baker: Whatever. I did it, me. I. Who cares why? I, don’t even care what you say. I’m the one, the Andy Baker, me. I pulled the trigger so, I get the credit got it? Not some dumb teacher, you got it? Me! I claim, responsibility for all those kids I killed, me. Me, Andy Baker. Remember it.”
~ ~ ~ ~
On the rooftop, the time was six oh one and the date was April thirteenth, after Beth left and before Wendell arrived.
For this minute and part of another, the Brookfield rooftop talked. After, the words were washed away. But for this minute and change the roof spoke, in chalk.
“I am sorry,” the rooftop said. “I am to blame.”
###
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