The Infinity Mainframe (Tombs Rising Book 3)

by Robert Scott-Norton

  The desk man smiled a quick polite smile. “I’m not able to help you.” And then he looked around her and gestured for the next person to come forward. “Next.”

  But, Ruby wasn’t about to let this man give her the runaround. “Just to be clear, for my records, you’re wilfully obstructing a DRT investigation into the presence of a rogue telepath at this site. What’s your name?”

  The man plucked at the cuff of his shirt and gestured to the next person in line that they should back off. He looked at Ruby with an intensity that would have driven a less-driven individual away and for a moment, Ruby wondered whether he’d continue to resist. She needn’t have worried. The desk man swiped his HALO and spoke quickly and quietly to someone, turning his head so Ruby couldn’t hear the conversation. When he’d finished, he nodded at Ruby and gestured to a willowy lady with auburn hair hurrying across the room to the desk. When she neared, she struck out her hand.

  “Nice to see you, Miss Parry. I’m afraid I didn’t have time to speak to you at the OsMiTech event. I believe you dealt with my colleague.” The woman’s birdlike eyes scrutinised Ruby above angular cheekbones. Her cinnamon skin was impossibly smooth.

  Ruby shook the lady’s hand. “I didn’t catch your name.”

  “Julia Williams. I’m the Arts Centre manager.”

  “Perfect. You’ll be able to help.”

  Her mouth curled into a smile. “I hope so. I gather it’s to do with the rogue at the OsMiTech launch.”

  Ruby nodded.

  Julia's eyes glanced to the side, the first sign that she might be uncomfortable talking about this in the middle of the foyer. “Perhaps we should go somewhere more comfortable.”

  Comfortable to her meant private, but Ruby was OK with that. She would not get what she needed out here in the foyer. The security mainframe would be in the back offices, hidden away from the public. Even just getting past the main doors would be an accomplishment.

  Ruby followed Julia to a locked door at the back of the foyer then held her HALO to the access panel, and the door clunked open. Once through the doorway, Ruby relaxed. Maybe this would be easier than she thought. Julia led her to a small office along the corridor and gestured for her to step inside.

  “I’d like to thank you for dealing with the rogue so efficiently. It must be a difficult job,” Julia said.

  “It can be. But, it’s what we’re here for. I hope it didn’t disrupt the event too much.”

  Julia pursed her lips. “To be frank, Miss Parry, I don’t understand why you’re here at all. We’ve been as helpful as we can be. If you need more information from us, it should be directed through the police. As I understand it, they’re in charge of the investigation.”

  “The police is certainly one approach I can take. But they’re busy people and I’m working on a hunch at the moment.”

  Julia’s nose crinkled. “A hunch? You’re wasting my time with a hunch?”

  “It’s important that—”

  Julia sat on the edge of her desk. The frown lines etched on her forehead made her look ten years older. “Let me just stop you right there. I don’t think it’s appropriate that you’re throwing your weight around on the basis of a hunch. We’re busy people.”

  “Just think how much busier you’d be if I’d let that rogue telepath shoot Devan Oster on your premises.”

  Julia’s smile dropped. She hesitated before speaking. “But that didn’t happen.”

  “I made sure it didn’t happen. But, I’d like to know how he got into your organisation.”

  “My organisation? We’re an arts centre. It was your security he evaded.”

  “OsMiTech security, and the police, but I’m sure you understand how careless it looks that he got past your own security checks. Our records show that he stole credentials from a member of your serving staff. The man who’s position he replaced is under investigation by the police, but I think they’re missing something.”

  “And that is?”

  “Why nobody on your catering staff questioned the appearance of a newcomer going under the name of an existing worker.”

  Julia’s nostrils flared. “The catering staff was brought in specially for the event. They aren’t our employees.”

  “And who arranged that catering company?”

  “This is a stab in the dark. I can see what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to push some of the blame of that night onto my shoulders and I’m afraid it just isn’t going to stick. Rogue telepaths are your department’s responsibility. The reason he was out on the streets in the first place is because your department hadn’t done a good enough job in tracking him down earlier.”

  “I’ll cut to the chase, Julia.” Ruby smiled. “This is a serious breach of security. I’ve taken the liberty of looking through your employment records and I’ve picked up irregularities that warrant further investigation. I believe you’ve got rogue sympathisers working here.”

  “I don’t see how that could be possible.”

  “Oh, it’s possible all right. And you wouldn’t be the first organisation for this to have happen. We think this is just the edge of a much wider problem.”

  “Of sympathisers working in arts centres?” Scorn had entered her voice, and she tipped her head. Not convinced. Ruby’s mind was racing. She needed to pull this around. She couldn’t get this close only to have it lost by this woman.

  “This is the start. They get into the most innocuous of establishments, waiting for their instructions. They need to be somewhere and a valid employment record is a crucial stepping stone to their next assignment.”

  “Assignment?”

  “We’ve strongly suspected a connected group of unregistered teeps in the district. The security breach at the launch was just a simple sign of them flexing their muscles. A signal to the rest of the districts that their cell is operating effectively in this district. And what better way to show their power than by murdering Devan Oster in the middle of his biggest launch yet?”

  Julia’s cheeks were going red.

  Now we’re getting somewhere. Ruby considered her position. She needed to do all she could to keep this conversation private. The woman was embarrassed and scared that she’d done something wrong. Ruby had found the right buttons to push, it was just a case of keeping the pressure up.

  “I don’t want to get you into any trouble. The last thing you’d want is for OsMiTech security to get wind of us having this conversation. I’ve seen them in action and they’ll happily tear an organisation to shreds to get the information they need. We should conduct this investigation as quietly as possible. Let me do my job so I can report back to my boss and find a way through this where we all come out on top.”

  She gave Ruby a frosty look. “What do you need?”

  Excellent.

  “Somewhere to work and an access point; clearance to look through your security footage of that night.”

  “OK. I’ll sort it.” Julia moved some stuff aside from the only desk in the room and scanned her HALO over the access point. A keyboard and screen appeared on the desk, outlined in yellow lights. Julia tapped away at the virtual keyboard. “I’m creating a guest user account for you.” She gestured at the screen. “Here are the security feeds from the night of the OsMiTech event. You can access them all through here.”

  “Thank you. This is great.” But when it looked like Julia would hang around Ruby said, “I’d appreciate a little privacy, though. This might take a while and I’ll need to speak to some of my colleagues.”

  Julia looked a little surprised, but nodded agreeably and opened the office door. “I’ll be down the hall.”

  She left and closed the door. Ruby breathed a sigh of relief. In a tiny way, she felt sorry for her deceit, but guilt had no place in her investigation. It’s not as if she was being completely untruthful.

  She opened a stack on the screen and was greeted with a list of recorded feeds from that night. She pulled them wide with a gesture and the list became a set of prev
iew images all taken from the same security drone. Finding herself in the previews was difficult; she had to go into a few folders and watch several minutes of footage until she got a glimpse of herself talking with Nikoli shortly after arriving. The room was already busy and the queue at the bar long established. There was voice recording on the drones, and she tried turning the volume up on one recording only to find she couldn’t make out any conversations. The drone hadn’t been close enough to focus on any individuals—instead, they had been set to a crowd observation pattern, looking for irregularities in the crowd and alerting the security team to those as they happened.

  Not knowing how long she had to do this was stressful. She was counting on Julia's nervousness about being found to have been negligent in some fashion.

  Finding the feed with Devan’s entry gave her hope she’d get what she needed. Several drones were focused on his entry and she watched herself on screen, spilling champagne over her dress. And there was Candice lurking in the background behind Devan before being summoned forward. Whilst one camera stayed on her, the other followed Devan as he walked down the stairs into the main body of people. Guests reached out to him and patted him on the shoulder, or tried to shake his hand, but he kept his hands down and slipped through the masses like oil on a pond.

  A minute passed on the feed and then Devan reacted as someone shouted across the room at him. The drone pulled back and Ruby saw Nikoli. People had stopped their conversations and were staring at the man who’d been so impolite as to call out to their host. Devan walked to Nikoli and moved his mouth to the man’s ear and spoke. A moment later, Nikoli walked away from the party, following Devan to a room at the back of the event. The drone followed.

  Ruby’s heart was in her mouth, now parched. She was trembling as the emotions of that night came back to her. She willed the drone to continue its protocols and focus on Devan at the expense of losing footage of the rest of the party.

  And it did. The drone hovered much lower over the crowd than it had done since she’d started. Devan and Nikoli were heading for a private lounge followed by OsMiTech security. The doors closed behind them, and Ruby knew that the drone wouldn’t get through in time.

  But it did. A sudden burst of speed from its motors and it zipped through the closing gap after its targets. She would finally see what had been so important that Nikoli had caused a scene in the middle of Devan’s big event.

  Drone footage from 19 April 2115

  “You shouldn’t have done that,” Devan stood in the middle of the room and looked straight at Nikoli. The man was agitated, walking up and down, hands first deep in his pockets, then out again.

  “I didn’t want to, but you’ve been ignoring me.”

  “I’m a busy man.”

  Nikoli shook his head, exasperated. “I found the Nanosalve shipment records. Why are you stockpiling it?”

  “We’ve a legitimate reason for holding supplies. Our surgical unit needs it. Then there are the remnant keepers. Nothing suspicious.”

  “You’ve been trying to hide the true figures.”

  Devan laughed. “No one’s hiding anything.”

  “Even taking into account wastage, you’re bringing in at least ten times more than you’re using. What are you doing with it all?”

  Devan turned and strolled around the art exhibits. The drone zipped up to a corner of the room where it observed the scene unnoticed.

  “OsMiTech’s been good to you.”

  “This isn’t about me.”

  Devan moved behind a marble figurine of a woman brushing her flowing hair. He held Nikoli’s gaze and reached a hand to the figurine, tracing his fingers over the smooth surface. “You aren’t the only one in your department capable of doing your job. Maybe one of your colleagues should replace you. It might be the right thing to do, what with—”

  Nikoli stood his ground. Perhaps the alcohol had numbed his instinct too much. “I’ll file a report. Recommend an investigation.”

  Devan smiled. “How long have you been having an affair with my PA?”

  Nikoli just stopped like a switch had been flipped. Eventually, he laughed and turned away. “You’re talking rubbish.”

  “You’ve been sleeping with Candice Hart for the last five months. Sometimes at the campus boarding facilities, other times you’ve taken her out to hotels,” he said with relish dripping from his words. “And sometimes even in your office.” He wagged an admonishing finger.

  “You can’t prove anything.”

  “We both know that I can.” Devan sighed. “I’ve been thinking about you, Nikoli. You’re a good person, deep down, I can see that. But, what I think would benefit you most right now, is a change of scenery. From tomorrow morning, you’ll no longer be allowed on OsMiTech premises.”

  Nikoli ran his fingers through his hair. Ruby thought he would walk out, but Nikoli wasn’t taking Devan’s threats lying down. In a spurt of speed that surprised Ruby, Nikoli rushed at Devan, hands outstretched, reaching for his throat.

  But, Ruby had seen the object Devan had slipped out of a pocket and was now holding before him. She wanted to shout out a warning. Nikoli ran onto the stun gun. There was a sharp crackle and a spark of light and then Nikoli fell backwards. He reached for support and grabbed the pedestal with the marble statue. It saved him from falling to the floor.

  Devan smoothed his hair back into place. A quick adjustment of his tie and he looked immaculate. “We’re done here.”

  “We’re not done. I know about the tombs,” Nikoli said, coldly, still holding onto the pedestal for support.

  Devan stopped smiling. “You know nothing.”

  “Your tells are plastered all over your face. Whatever you’re doing down there, won’t be a secret for long.”

  “You’re delusional.”

  “I’m delusional? Because that suits your story so perfectly doesn’t it? You can dismiss the crazy ones.”

  “In your case, I don’t think you deserve even that much attention.”

  Nikoli stood up straight and tried to adjust his own jacket and tie. It didn’t go as smoothly as Devan—he looked terrible. He shoved his hands in his pockets. “You’re not the first. I’ve got proof it exists and I’ll share it with the world. Perhaps even on your new InfiniteYou network. Poetic don’t you think?”

  Devan shook his head. “Why don’t you come to OsMiTech tomorrow? I’ve some great psychiatrists who can look into your problem for you.”

  “Adjusters?”

  “Of course.”

  “No thanks.”

  Devan shrugged. “Not happy with anyone snooping around your mind, Nikoli?”

  “What?”

  Devan nodded and stepped closer to Nikoli. This close together their height difference was much more pronounced—Devan seemed to tower above Nikoli. “You heard me. You think I’m the only one with a secret worth sharing?”

  Nikoli was shaking.

  Devan continued, “I don’t care where you got your information about the tombs, but it’s faked. And now, this is how the rest of the night will pan out—pay close attention. I’m going to walk from this room and launch my new network. After the presentation, I’m going to have you flagged as a subversive. I will go back to my bed and sleep well. You will be explaining to your wife why you’re leaving your employment. You’ll request a transfer to a different district, far away from here. If you don’t do this, tomorrow, your wife will receive proof of your encounters with Ms Hart. The footage won’t leave any doubt as to how you’ve been spending those late nights away from home.”

  The colour drained from Nikoli’s face. “You wouldn’t do that.”

  “Yes, I would. And more. If you don’t comply, I’ll file a report about you being an unregistered telepath.”

  Ruby’s jaw went slack.

  Nikoli tried to feign surprise but his guard was down and Devan had struck so expertly that the possibility of denying it, didn’t occur to his brain. He stood, shoulders drooped, hands wringing in front of h
im. His mouth opened as if to speak but nothing came out.

  Devan stood staring at Nikoli. “Do you need me to repeat myself?”

  Slowly, almost imperceptibly at first, Nikoli shook his head. “How did you know?”

  Devan laughed. “Really? You work inside a building full of telepaths and you ask how I discovered you were one yourself. You’re no good at this. Whatever blocking patterns you’ve been paying for, you should ask for your money back.”

  “How long have you known?”

  “How long have you worked at OsMiTech?”

  “But, why… I don’t understand why you’d let me stay.”

  “At first I didn’t get why the department would try to sneak in a telepath to OsMiTech. You must have noticed the lack of access to anything interesting during those first few weeks. I was weighing up the problem. Considering what the implications would be if I were to expose you.

  “Then, I realised that you were using very poor blocking patterns and you were making no effort at all to reach beyond the boundaries I’d imposed. That didn’t seem to make any sense. You were a curiosity, a puzzle that needed solving. At the same time, I was checking our records. If you were a spy, your records would have been immaculate. I’ve dealt with other government spies and they singularly fail to create convincing background data for them. What they construct is so blindingly made up that a simpleton could spot it. Your background data, however, was genuine. Unless they’d suddenly upped their game I thought I’d have to accept you for the person you presented. A reasonably paid government worker with a secret to hide.

  “I had someone scan you to trigger your blocking patterns. Then we traced those to the market you bought them at. The lady running that stall knew all about you. She’d been fleecing you with sub-grade patterns for months. If you’d chosen to embrace your abilities rather than suppress them, you’d have realised that.”

  “Tell no one. Please.”

  “Why didn’t you come out when you had the opportunity?”

  “My wife would have left me. Her whole family would have disowned us.”