Keening Country

by Seán O'Connor

  The guard in reception handed her a bottle of water, which she wasted no time uncapping and guzzling down, then proceeded to wipe the dribbles away from the side of her mouth. Without saying goodbye, she left the station, entered her car and checked her phone in the hope of an email reply from Shane. Why the fuck did we only have one phone? she moaned to herself, but supposed that they could never have planned for a situation like this before.

  The phone failed to connect, and she punched the steering wheel in frustration. What was the deal with the signal around here? With nowhere to go and with no way of contacting Shane, she decided a drive home was needed, just to check-in, regroup and then try and get answers from there.

  Abi’s concentration was broken by the sound of knuckles tapping against the passenger window. Startled, she turned her head to see a young woman signalling to her. She’d tried to ignore her, but the woman persisted and kept beckoning to her to open the window.

  “Call I help you?” Abi called through a slit in the glass.

  “You’re Melissa’s sister, aren’t you? Abigail, right?”

  “Who wants to know?”

  “I do. My name is Lucy Ward. I’m a friend of hers,” the woman answered, nervously looking around to see if she was overheard.

  Abi took a minute; her mind was swimming with a million thoughts. “She’s never mentioned you to me before.”

  “Please, can I come in or can we go somewhere where we can talk? I have some important information that might be of interest to you,” Lucy insisted.

  Abi looked around cautiously. Lucy appeared to be alone, almost in a state of distress. Her red hair was unkempt, unwashed and hung down around her shoulders. Her clothes looked like they hadn’t been changed or washed in days and her eyes stared into the car, wide and owl-like. With the flick of a switch, Abi unlocked the passenger door, allowing her to sit in the car. Trusting her gut instinct was all she had to go on.

  “Okay, Lucy, tell me, what’s this ‘important information’.”

  “I will. But, let’s drive away from these aerials and find somewhere we can talk.”

  “The aerials?”

  “Yeah, I’ll explain more later. We haven’t got much time. They’ll know we are here.”

  Abi looked at her in disbelief. She wanted answers about her sister’s demise, not to talk about aerials. “Seriously? No. Tell me about my sister. You said you were her friend? Then how come I’ve never heard of you?”

  “We worked together on the same project at One-X. Outside of the office we weren’t allowed to talk about it... they even made us sign non-disclosure agreements.”

  Abi assessed the strange woman sitting next to her and struggled to work out whether she was telling the truth. She certainly wasn’t acting as weird as old man Arthur or the hotel receptionist.

  “I’ve said too much,” Lucy continued, “please, let’s get away from the aerials and I’ll explain everything. I promise.”

  Abi trusted her gut, turned the key in the ignition, backed out of the car park and headed north along the coast road.

  The journey north took over two hours. Lucy didn’t say anything else until they were clear of the last aerial that was dotted along the road. With so much going on, Abi hadn’t noticed they were over the border in Northern Ireland.

  Lucy smiled and muttered, “Good thing they haven’t expanded into the UK. Yet…”

  “What? Who hasn’t? Can we discuss this madness? I’m miles from home, my sister and her husband are dead. What the fuck is going on here?” Abi asked, growing angry.

  “Okay, okay. Calm down. I just had to be sure we were safe.”

  “From who?”

  “Just pull over. Here is fine…”

  Abi pulled over the car and listened to Lucy’s story. She explained that One-X were not who they said they were and what she and Melissa had worked on was not what they thought it was. In the beginning, they’d been hired on temporary contracts as support staff, a low-level tech gig to get themselves valuable work experience. Everything seemed fine. Money was decent and they both were based in a nice modern office in Dublin City. But as the months went by, the support calls stopped coming in and management became more secretive about the project. At a performance review, they both chanced their arm and asked for more money – which was granted without question. They didn’t complain.

  “So, what happened the night before my sister died?” Abi asked. “She tried to call me.”

  “I’m getting to that. We were happy to plod along, easy work and good pay. Who wouldn’t want that, right?”

  “Sure…”

  “Well not your sister. She started hassling the management team about wanting to attend the team meetings. Career-girl talk, showing ambition, looks good to the company, right?”

  “I guess,” Abi answered.

  “Well not for One-X or whatever the fuck they are really called...”

  Lucy explained that Melissa’s lack of career progression was starting to get to her, especially when the pair of them had to repeat the mundane act of clocking in for a nine to five shift that involved nothing.

  “Don’t you see, Abi? It was a front. Something to make them look legitimate for when the auditors came knocking.”

  “I don’t follow. What were they covering up?”

  “That’s what Melissa found out. The project was disguised in the media as a national upgrade to the data network. You know, turbo speed broadband for everyone, everywhere.”

  Abi nodded. That much she was aware of at the very least.

  “But,” Lucy continued, “that’s not what the aerials are at all. Melissa hatched a plan to crash one of the big meetings. She thought if she could pick up on some of the current threads and write a report, then she could dazzle the bosses without them seeing her coming. She’d even planned to have a presentation ready to go and boasted to me about how she was going to make radical changes that would be better for the company… and her career, of course.”

  “She never made it to any of the meetings, did she?” Abi asked.

  “Actually, she did, but the management team were having a presentation of their own. So, she stole one of the guest attendance badges and sat at the back,” Lucy continued, again looking around nervously in case someone was listening.

  “You’re fine. What did she learn?” Abi pressed.

  “The aerials. They can control people’s minds. Like shepherds herding sheep. They want to control the population.”

  Abi looked at her in disbelief. “Get out of here! You expect me to believe this nonsense?”

  “It’s not nonsense. Melissa called me afterwards, she told me what I just told you. Only she was convinced she was being watched. ‘They’re in my head,’ she kept repeating over and over.”

  Abi refused to believe it – no way could something so elaborate come into operation without anyone knowing. It had to be a conspiracy theory, a rumour. “And what about Edward?”

  “My guess is, they got him to do their dirty work.”

  “Well, Lucy, your story would make a good film. I’ll give you that,” Abi said dismissively. “Why seek me out?”

  “The last thing Melissa said to me before her call disconnected was to find you and tell you what happened.”

  “Why?”

  “Because you know her personal passwords. She didn’t want to tell me over the phone in case they were listening. She said if you could log me into her work computer, then I could steal the logs that the aerials transmit and we can go to the newspapers with the story.”

  “Her work computer? In the office in Dublin?”

  “Yeah. Once we have the logs, we can prove that the management issued the commands that caused her death.”

  Abi sat in silence, pondering her potential actions. The plan seemed solid enough, but her head spun at how outlandish the whole day had been. At the same time, what had she to lose? Melissa and Edward were dead. If Lucy was crazy, the worst
that would come of it would probably be a trespassing charge, though the fact Lucy had an access card went a long way to refuting that. But if Lucy was telling the truth, then she couldn’t let Melissa die for nothing, and they could put a stop to the aerials before the grid became fully operational.

  The drive south towards Dublin seemed to take an age and Abi thought hard about everything as she tried to piece all of the events together. Grief-stricken over Melissa’s loss as she was, she couldn’t rest without finding answers, especially if Edward hadn’t been responsible. Could she trust Lucy? She was a stranger after all… Her instincts drove her forward, and trusting Lucy had a big part to play in that decision.

  They approached the city around midnight. Abi noticed that the aerials had not been erected on the tight and narrow streets. Perhaps they were here in another form? Or maybe the project hadn’t reached the main urban districts yet? Either way, they had to try and expose what was happening.

  After ditching the car a few blocks away, the duo approached the building cautiously. Lucy struggled with the swipe card reader on the door, while Abi kept watch. In both directions, the street was deserted. The sound of the city hummed off in the distance with a mix of traffic and people. Her concentration was broken from the sound of the reader approving Lucy’s card. “Come on,” she whispered.

  Lucy led the way into the lift, selected the eighth floor and exhaled loudly as the doors closed behind them. “Are you nervous?” she said softly.

  “A bit,” Abi replied, “it all seems a little easy.”

  “At this time of night, there is no one here. My company rents this building and as part of the deal all staff required 24-hour access.”

  “I see.”

  The lift pinged, signalling their arrival. Together they emerged from the lift, Lucy leading the way through the corridors. “My office is just up here.”

  The door opened with a loud creak, fluorescent lights overhead struggled and blinked a few times before coming on. Abi was disappointed to see nothing more than a typical modern-day office. Beechwood tables, swivel chairs and a large window on the far side that overlooked the city.

  “That’s your sister’s PC there,” Lucy said, “come on, we need to be quick.”

  “Will logging in at this hour trigger any alarms or anything like that?” Abi asked.

  “No, it’ll be fine. Here’s her log-in screen. Enter the password,” Lucy asked, pushing herself away from the desk to allow Abi in.

  Abi’s mind went blank. Why would Melissa assume that she knew her password? She made two attempts, with no success. Abi rubbed her temples and muttered, “Think Abigail, think.”

  “We only get three attempts before the account locks,” Lucy stated.

  Then, like a lightbulb turning on, she had it. She remembered a dinner party a few months before. Abi and Shane hadn’t wanted to go, but attended at Melissa’s begging. On the night, Abi recalled Shane acting like a spoilt child who wanted to go home and, just like a frustrated mother with her infant in public, Abi gave him her phone to play with after dinner. His petulance was outstanding, but despite his carry on, an important piece of information grew clear in Abi’s mind. Melissa’s home Wi-Fi password. “Of course!” Abi shouted, delighted with the epiphany.

  “What?” Lucy asked. “You think you got it?”

  “I’d put my house on it being this…” Abi said and continued to input the series of letters and numbers into the password field – T3llMyWif3iL0veH3r!

  The screen unlocked and Abi laughed at the result.

  “You’re joking me?” Lucy exclaimed.

  “Ha, I knew it. She always joked about forcing Ed to type silly things so that he’d pay more attention to her and less on himself.” Abi laughed, smiling at Melissa’s personality shining from beyond the grave as she pushed herself out away from the desk, “Your turn to drive.”

  Lucy didn’t hesitate, clicking and typing furiously at the workstation. She popped open Melissa’s drawer, removed a USB key, popped it into the PC and began a large transfer of files. “Shouldn’t take too long…”

  “Step away from the computer!” a voice screamed from the doorway. The girls turned to see a man standing with a gun pointed straight at them.

  “Inspector Deegan—,” Abi began.

  “Not one word, Abigail,” he snapped. And it was at this point Abi noticed that he seemed different from when she’d left him that morning. His eyes looked sunken in, with large black bags beneath each of them. His weight seemed to have radically dropped in a short period of time and he spoke in a monotone. “I’ve been following you two. What you are doing is trespassing and theft of private property.”

  “But Daniel, I’m just collecting my sister’s things,” Abi chanced.

  “You don’t fool me. We know all about your plan.”

  “We?”

  “Yes,” Deegan stated, “now back away from that PC and place your hands above your head.”

  Abi stepped forward, blocking Deegan’s view, while Lucy whipped the USB key from the PC and slyly slid it into her pocket. The inspector barked his orders again and warned them that if he had to order them again, he would open fire.

  They complied.

  Deegan marched the pair out to the corridor, standing them up against the wall. From his pocket, he removed two pairs of zip ties and proceeded to bind the girl’ arms behind their backs.

  “What’s going on here, Daniel?” Abi shouted, “this isn’t normal procedure!”

  Lucy turned to Abi, her eyes tear-filled and sad, “It’s over, Abigail. They caught us. And they are going to make us disappear.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “The logs on the PC. The aerials? They’re everywhere. The company, the government, it’s all a conspiracy and they eliminate everyone who learns the truth.”

  “Time to shut up now,” Deegan interrupted.

  “Don’t tell me to shut up!” Lucy barked back, but quickly found herself lying on the ground struggling to catch her breath.

  Abi stared in shock at Deegan as he raised his fist to her, almost daring her to speak so she’d receive the same shot to the stomach. Her mind raced. It all seemed like a bad dream. How could this be happening? A fucking zombie nation.

  Abi was seconds from admitting defeat when something down the corridor caught her attention – the USB key – Lucy had removed it from her pocked and tossed it down the hall.

  “Quick Abi. Grab it and get out of here!” Lucy screamed.

  Abi froze on the spot and watched Lucy spring to her feet and swiftly kick Deegan between the legs. The inspector moaned in pain as he dropped to his knees. Lucy screamed for Abi to go once again before lunging at Deegan and sinking her teeth into his neck, causing him to wail in agony.

  Abi didn’t hesitate. She took off down the hall, stopping to drop onto her knees and try to scoop up the key. Unable to see it, she couldn’t master her balance and kept fumbling about, while behind her Lucy continued biting.

  Abi managed to catch the key between her fingers, and without looking back made her way around the corner to the lift. Using her nose and tongue, she summoned the elevator. She watched the counter above the door as it slowly made its way up to their floor. From around the corner, screams echoed.

  A chime went off above the door and the lift opened, inviting Abi to jump inside. As she did, a gunshot echoed from around the corner. She screamed and pressed her back to the panel, frantically pressing the button for the ground floor. “Please close. Please, please.”

  The doors began to close, but when they got halfway, they shot back open. Probably an oversensitive sensor being triggered. She pressed the button again furiously.

  Down the corridor, Deegan shouted, “Abigail. Oh, Abigail. There is no escape. Once we all join them, the world will be a better place.”

  The doors began to close again and Deegan appeared on the other side. He raised his gun and pointed it at Abi. She screamed
in terror and jumped to the side. The gun fired, the bullet whizzed through the doors as they slammed shut, the impact shattering the mirror and causing shards of glass and splinters to rain down on Abi as she crouched and faced downward.

  The doors opened and she spilled out onto the ground floor. The coast was clear, for now. She had to think fast. Rolling onto her back, she grabbed hold of a large piece of the shattered mirror. Her feet wedged the door open to prevent Deegan from summoning the lift, then she shifted onto her side and proceeded to cut into the cable tie. It was a tricky process, but after what seemed liked forever, she managed to get her wrists free.

  Abi went straight for the exit, but as she grabbed hold of the handle, the monotone voice called from behind her.

  “Abigail,” Deegan called, “you need to come with me.”

  She turned to look into his dull eyes. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

  “What’s the plan, Abigail? You get out of the city? Contact the newspapers? Is that it? I’m afraid at this point, there is no going back. We are everywhere.”

  “Who’s we?” Abi begged – terrified by the pistol locked on her – her words echoing high above to the balconies that overlooked the lobby.

  “We are united. We are control. The system is live and cannot be stopped.”

  “The project?”

  “Yes.”

  “Melissa tried to stop it going live, didn’t she?” Abi asked.

  “I don’t know about that. All I know is, we command the aerials and together we all achieve… the perfect utopia. Like a colony of bees. Busy, hard working all for the one common goal.”

  “Fucking slaves! That’s all that has been achieved here,” Abi barked.

  “We are freer now than we ever were before, Abigail. Now come with me,” Deegan proclaimed. He stepped forward – holding his gun on her – and beckoned her to come and kneel before him.