Ipseity (The Stork Tower Book 5) Read online

  “Is he alive?”

  “I think so, although I bet he wishes he wasn’t.”

  “Did he manipulate anything for your benefit?”

  “No, not to my knowledge.”

  They talked for a few more minutes when John interrupted and said, “The police have left Jimmy’s and are headed in this direction.”

  Olivia said, “Leah, you take a seat in the interview room. John and I will meet the police at the gate. When they enter the room, you should stand but do not shake their hands or say anything except ‘Hello’. When they take their seats then so should you. Leave the running of the meeting to me. I will not give them access to wireless so they should be out of contact with headquarters. You and I can still communicate via our AIs if necessary.”

  While John and Olivia headed for the main gate, Leah made her way to the room John had prepared and attempted to meditate and become calm. Gèng interrupted her meditation, “A second vehicle has joined the detectives. It is unmarked, but it appears it is expected. John is making arrangements for more chairs to be brought into the room so be prepared.”

  Several minutes later Gèng sent an update, “Besides the three detectives from the Organised Crimes Division there are two investigators from the Cyber-Crimes Division. Olivia advises there are no changes to her advice.”

  There was a knock at the door, and two of John’s helpers brought in the additional chairs and arranged them as if they had expected five visitors. Leah calmed herself and waited. When the door opened a second time, Olivia entered followed by four men, two women and John. Leah stood and greeted each of the officers as they were introduced and then sat down. John took a position behind Olivia and Leah, while the uniformed policeman stood near the door. The three Organised Crime detectives were introduced as Detectives Morrison, Peterson and Carpenter. The other two were introduced as Special Investigators Evans and Leong.

  The oldest of the detectives, Detective Morrison, said. “Thank you, Ms Carroll, for giving us this opportunity to gather information. Be assured that no charges are being laid. We do, however, have some questions regarding various issues that have come to our attention over the last week or so. We are hoping you can help us with our inquiries.”

  When he’d finished speaking, he looked at Leah inquisitively as if waiting for a reply. Instead, she maintained a calm exterior and made no moves, neither did Olivia. After a somewhat awkward silence, he continued, “Do you have anything you wish to say at this time?”

  Olivia responded, “Nothing at this stage, Detective, except to note that my client has willingly made herself available as requested.”

  Detective Morrison looked to Leah to see if she had anything to add but she only continued to consider him carefully. The next hour followed the same script, with the detectives and investigators taking turns at asking questions and Olivia answering most of them on behalf of Leah.

  “Ms Carroll, what is your relationship with Mr Jimmy Loo?”

  “My client has lived on the Citiswitch Estate all her life and is well known in the community. She works closely with many community leaders to look for ways to help her community.”

  “Ms Carroll, more than fifty individuals with known ties to organised crime were seen in Tenneriffe, New Farm, and Newstead throughout the last week. These same individuals are suspected of a series of home invasions. Sources say they were there at your direction. What was the purpose in sending them?”

  “My client supports the right of individuals to travel freely in all public areas.”

  “Ms Carroll, where is your mother?”

  “My client respects the privacy of the individual and in particular that of her family. I suggest your questions remain pertinent to the issues you have outlined.”

  “Ms Carroll, did you or did you not break a boy’s arm last year?”

  “Detective, is this in reference to a crime?”

  “We have a report that Ms Carroll broke a young man’s arm and a leg on 23rd of August last year.”

  “Are you pursuing legal action against my client concerning this report?”

  “Not at this time.”

  “Then please move on, and I request you keep your questions relevant to the issue at hand.”

  Some of the questions asked by the Special Investigators related to issues not discussed with Olivia and she indicated Leah should answer them. Leah had learned a lot from watching Olivia work.

  “Ms Carroll, what is your relationship with the AI known as Akia?”

  “Special Investigator Leong, Safety Oversight AI 4 provided assistance when my security in the Virtual Multiverse was threatened. I have great regard for all AI and agents who work in Virtual Security.”

  “Ms Carroll, what do you know of the hacker calling themselves ‘Vernyx’?”

  “Special Agent Evans, I know no hackers who call themselves ‘Vernyx’.”

  “Ms Carroll, have you attempted to enter Virtual Security’s archival storage facility known as the ‘Vault’?

  “Special Agent Evans, I am new to the Virtual Universe, but even I know that Virtual Security has the best security available.”

  “Please answer the question, Ms Carroll.”

  “I did ask several times to be put in contact with Safety Oversight AI 4 but was told she had been archived. Would this count as attempting to enter the facility?”

  “No.”

  “Thank you Special Agent, I am pleased that my questions did not overstep the boundary.”

  Finally, Olivia said, “Detectives, Special Investigators, my client has been candid in answering your questions. Both she and I have other responsibilities we must attend to. You have my contact information, and I ask that you direct any further questions you have for my client to me. I will respond as soon as practicable to any such queries.” When she had finished speaking she stood, forcing the detectives and investigators to rise also.

  Olivia made her way to the door and opened it, saying, “Please follow me and I will escort you back to your vehicle.”

  John went with Olivia and Leah was left alone. Several minutes later Olivia and John returned and sat down. Olivia said, “That went well I think, but I do need to know why the questions about Akia and hacking.”

  Leah replied, “Are you sure you need to know? It will open up another huge can of worms.”

  “Just the bare facts. I don’t need details, but I need some context if I’m to look after your interests.”

  “OK, Safety Oversight AI 4, who called herself Akia was instrumental in helping me rescue people who had been enslaved. Pressure was brought to bear by someone, and she was removed from her post and archived. Rumour has it that a hacker, who has been labelled ‘Vernyx’, broke into the Vault and released the AI known as Akia. Supposedly this occurred yesterday.”

  “I see, I suppose this was the reason for the virtual slow down yesterday?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well then, you can be sure they have no direct evidence linking you to the incursion or they would already have served a warrant. Today was simply a fishing expedition. I’m not as confident that we can deal with Virtual Security as with the police. Virtual Security only needs a sniff of evidence to have their way with a judge. I may not be the best person to help you in a battle with Virtual Security.”

  “I seriously already have too many lawyers involved in my affairs, but who or what would you suggest?”

  “If it is ok with you I’ll talk to Stephen. Together we might have an idea of what can be done. Do you have other lawyers besides him?”

  “Susan Drisedale helps with financial issues and taxation. She also assists with setting up my companies. I’ll agree that you can talk with both Susan and Stephen concerning where to get help, but I’d like to keep any details of what has occurred, or what might have occurred, out of that discussion. I trust them both but don’t want to put them in a difficult position.”

  “Agreed. Well then, if there is nothing else I will head back to the office. If you r
equire my services, please feel free to contact me immediately.”

  Leah nodded, and after saying goodbye, she made her way back upstairs after checking where Michael and Conner were. Michael was in his Pod, and Conner was helping outside in the garden. Not wanting to disturb either of them she headed back to her room. After another snack and a nutrient shake, Marie helped her remove the bandages and clothes before helping her into the Pod.

  THE STORK TOWER

  As Leah sat down in her favourite sofa, Gèng appeared and sat on a sofa opposite. After several minutes of silence, Leah said, “I love the Tower but I’ve been too busy to appreciate it lately. I was really hoping things would slow down so I could enjoy how beautiful you’ve made it. Are there many new changes I haven’t seen yet?”

  “Yes, I’ve added a level with a laboratory, and I’m looking at ways of getting the equipment you will need. I assume you will want to match equipment with what you can acquire in the real world, so at the moment I am gathering data. There are several new rooms where I plan to store whatever you collect from among the Dark Elves. I want to discuss adding a level to the Tower to keep a record of what happens in real life. For example, I have a picture John sent me of you when you broke the door into the house last night. I believe those memories are important.”

  “That sounds good, although I don’t think I’ll let too many people see that room.”

  “Another option I’ve considered is a room built along the lines of my space, somewhere you could show others what it’s like in the AI world.”

  “I’m not convinced about that, although I would like some record of the journey. I know you acted as a filter but were you able to record anything?”

  “I recorded the entire journey but as you say I’m not sure if that is a good thing to keep a copy of or not. For example, I have a record of every ID code that you saw. If they ever search this world and somehow discovered that then you’d be exiled from the virtual universe and I’d be erased.”

  “No room then, but keep the information for now. I wonder why the investigators didn’t mention the World Bank at all. Are there any rumours at all about trouble at the World Bank?”

  “No, all the rumours are related to the Vault. Why? What are you thinking?”

  “What if they don’t know there was someone in the World Bank vaults? What if they have no concrete evidence because they haven’t connected me leaving the World Bank to what happened? What if there is no connection between the Vault and those cages in the World Bank?”

  “But there was a ladder between the two, and they were of similar design.”

  “But what if Virtual Security isn’t aware of the ladder leading from the Vault? Or maybe that should be ‘the ladder leading to the Vault’. I passed through an intermittent area which had no cages at all, it only had the ladder, nothing else was visible. The similarities could be because the same person designed and coded the cages in both places. I think that whoever it was created a backdoor into both the Vault and the Bank and the intermediate area is most likely their access conduit.”

  “Why would you recognise it as an exit and security be unaware of it?”

  “I’m not sure, but I’d guess it has something to do with whatever filter you devised so I’d recognise access points. I’m suggesting that something you added to the filter is different from how the security has been set up. We view the spaces differently. If I’m right, then it is probably a deliberate exception created by the person who built the vault. Once I was on the ladder, I didn’t have any of the vermin to deal with, and there was none in the bank vault at all.”

  “I will review the file and see if I can determine anything that might be different about the exit route.”

  “Can you also see if there is a common denominator between the two storage facilities? A company, a contractor, a coder or some other service provider?”

  “I’ll see what I can uncover.”

  They talked for a few more minutes and then Leah said, “I’m going to go to Pneumatica. The Tempest should be at Aeolipile by now, and I need to fix my eye and see if I can find anything out about Thad.”

  Leah headed for the SPIDER and then into Pneumatica. As she passed through the portal, it felt like she was sliding past thousands of windows so quickly that she couldn’t recognise or remember a single image.

  PNEUMATICA

  Leah appeared in her cabin on the Tempest and was pleased to discover that although she had no vision on her left side, there was no residual pain. She made a quick comment to Gèng about the portal and then left her quarters and made her way onto the main deck. Each airman Leah passed stood at attention and brought their right hand up to touch either their breast or head. She smiled at each of them, especially when she noticed the ‘Bleeding Eye’ patch that most had somehow acquired and fixed to their shirt sleeves or breast pockets. Coming onto the poop deck, she was surprised to discover they were still underway and had yet to reach Aeolipile.

  Ian and Mr Wilks were in conversation on one side of the deck but stopped talking as soon as they saw her and made their way to her side.

  Ian said, “Well met Captain. I trust you have been as successful elsewhere as you have been here.”

  “Indeed I have Major Daniels. Thank you and a good day to you and to you also, Mr Wilks. I had anticipated that we would be in Aeolipile by now, was I mistaken?”

  “No Captain, we normally would have been, but with the damage the Draken and we took, we’ve been slower than expected. Another delay was stopping to disembark those who no longer wished to be in your service. Altogether we lost over a hundred people, most would have remained, but they are wanted by the authorities. The good news is Aeolipile has been sighted, and we should be on the ground within the hour. Several messages have gone back and forth with the Privateers, and two adjacent berths have been assigned to us already. They are in the central section, which is a great honour.”

  “Capital! Mr Wilks. That is excellent news. Now, please advise me on what I will be required to do to be afforded Privateer status officially and how to claim both the Tempest and the Draken.”

  “As I understand it, Captain, evidence concerning your conquest of both ships has already been tendered. For the Tempest, this was given by Maelstrom’s Fury and evidence concerning the Draken by those ships that helped defeat the enemy fleet seven days ago. You are required to present yourself to the Registrar of Privateers in order to receive a Letter of Marque and Reprisal which will complete the process. The Registrar’s offices are adjacent to the airport.”

  “So shall it be Mr Wilks. Major Daniels, I would request that you accompany me to the Registrar before you take your leave. Should you wish to remain in my service, I would be pleased to have you, but I understand you may have prior obligations to Captain Barnsdale and to Maelstrom’s Fury. Mr Wilks, please have both ships properly secured and assuming you wish to remain in my service, please arrange for repairs to both the Tempest and the Draken.”

  Ian was the first to reply. “I am free of all obligations, Captain, and I do desire to remain in your service in whatever capacity you might find most valuable.”

  Mr Wilks was quick to offer Leah similar assurances of his desire to remain a member of her crew. When he had finished speaking Leah said, “Gentlemen, I am pleased to accept your service. In fact, I am overjoyed as I appreciate it is by your knowledge and skills that we achieved our recent successes. Once we are settled at berth, we must consider how best to use your skills.”

  As they approached Aeolipile, Leah was careful to listen and observe the whole process. She felt uncomfortable being so dependent on Mr Wilks in running the ship. As soon as the airships were all tied down, Leah and Ian headed down the companionway toward the lower decks and ground level. Exiting the airship, Leah was surprised to find a small crowd waiting at the edge of the Tempest’s berth. As she approached the group, she recognised Captain Barnsdale, Commander Abbotsford, and Master Fallon.

  Captain Barnsdale stepped forwa
rd as she approached and said, “Well met Charlotte, or should I say, Captain Charlotte. I would, of course, make good my offer to have you aboard the Maelstrom yet I perceive you have a better offer. I wished to meet you to thank you for saving my ship, my crew, my life, and my honour. I observe that you are wounded and trust you are recovering.”

  “Thank you, Captain Barnsdale, for your kind words. I was pleased to be of some assistance and have already been richly rewarded. I am somewhat embarrassed, however, as it seems I have stolen Major Daniels into my employ. After I make application to the Registrar for a Letter of Marque and Reprisal, I intend to pursue a suitable replacement for my lost eye.”

  Captain Barnsdale chuckled softly, “Do not be grieved concerning Major Daniels, for I am delighted that he might protect you as in the past he has me. Now, both Commander Abbotsford and Master Fallon wished to renew their acquaintance after which, with your permission, I hope to escort you to the Registrar’s Office to help smooth the way. These other good fellows are an assortment of Captains who watched your last battle with the pirates. They have asked permission to join me in smoothing the way, and afterwards, they wish to gift you your portion of the prizes. Even though you retreated mid-battle, they have made a good reckoning of the damage you did and in all honour wish to finalise the accounts.”

  Leah greeted her friends and then was introduced to the other captains before, together, they made their way to the Registrar’s office. The office was on the entire lower floor of a large brick and steel building at the edge of the aerodrome. Perhaps one-third of the room was empty except for an arrangement of leather chairs available for those who had to wait for any length of time. The other two-thirds was behind a large counter which ran the width of the room and behind which were a variety of bookshelves, filing cabinets, desks and small partitioned offices. Behind the centre of the counter was a large leather chair occupied by a heavily moustached, wigged, overweight man with a medallion of office displayed on a chain around his neck.