Oba stared at him. “They are.”
“So what’s our next play?” Pierre said. He turned and saw Chester walking towards him. He looked different, his hair even longer and pulled back in a ponytail. Chester pulled out a chair and sat down with them. He didn’t look at Pierre, but Pierre knew something was different. Pierre realized it could only be one thing.
“Chester,” Pierre said. “Julie?”
Chester smiled. “Harbinger got me a date with her Friday night.”
This didn’t surprise Pierre. Girls had always liked Chester. It was just that Chester never noticed it. “That did it?” Pierre asked.
Chester dropped the smile, then pulled a bottle of Prozac out of his pocket. Pierre pulled his own bottle out of his pocket and looked at it.
“How much do I take?” He asked Dot.
“Two tablets a day,” Dot said.
He did so.
Oba finished his whiskey sour and said, “Well, good luck. Pierre, you’re working in the kitchen today. It’s ten o’clock. That means you’re an hour late.”
Pierre spent the day wishing he was dead. He obeyed orders from Foo in the kitchen. They were making Pad Kee Mow for fifty seven people. Pierre ate dinner with Dot. She said she wanted to sleep outside under the night sky.
The sky was clear and Dot had strands of hair down around her face making her more striking to Pierre than she had been as of late. Pierre felt a little better, as they lay down next to each other looking up at the stars.
“I should have gone to see them, my parents,” Pierre said. “Instead of staying at the treehouse. I made it about me. It should have been about them.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“No,” Pierre said. “It is. I’m Pure Pierre. It’s all about me. It’s my fault.”
Dot kissed him and they made love under the night sky. Pierre couldn’t stop thinking of the Josephine test and what Devin had said about him being “neurologically fucked.” He was so depressed that he didn’t notice if the Josephine test was affecting him or not. Nonetheless, he felt lifted out of some of his depression. When it was over Dot went and got them a blanket. She cuddled up next to him and she said, “What do you want me to tell your fan club? What do you want to do?”
“I’m gonna confront Saad. He killed my parents. He has it coming. I’m gonna kill him. And then I’m gonna be the one and only Pierre Morena. And I’ll be useful to Smith. I’ll be the one he’ll choose for the speech. I can help defeat Mindblown.”
“What about Devin? You only have two years to live.”
“I don’t care.”
“There’s something I didn’t tell you,” Dot flipped through The Rewarding Gamble and came to a page in the center. “When Genesis Smith wrote the letter to Barnaby Brown when Audric was first founded, he put a code in the letter. It was based on a number and a letter. The number was the line number. Then the letter was its place in the alphabet. So if it was the letter B that was the second letter in the line.”
Pierre found this confusing at first and tried to process it with an example. So if the number was three it was the third line. If the letter was D that was the fourth letter in the third line. Made sense.
Pierre sat up. “Maybe it’s the numbers and letters on the comp boards.” He remembered the photo on his phone he’d taken. “I took a photo of it.”
“How many numbers were there?”
Pierre pulled out his phone and said, “29. Okay, let’s try it. First was, 35 C.”
“So the thirty fifth line,” Dot said as she began counting. “Got it. Then C is the third letter in the alphabet. So it’s an E.”
“Then 36 A.”
“It’s an L,” Dot said.
“Twenty seven more to go,” Pierre said.
They went on like that, one letter after another. After they spelled Elijah Harbinger they realized they were on track. When they finished they looked at one another stunned. A smile crept up Dot’s face. It was a twenty seven letter code no one would ever guess. The letters spelled:
Elijah Harbinger is Genesis Smith.
That night, Pierre dreamed he and Dot were bathing in a lake of bliss. There was a sign posted that said “No trespassers,” and Pierre thought “this is love.” He’d had feelings for girls before, of course, but never anything like this. He’d never felt so alive in a dream, like he could touch the emotion with his fingertips, and feel it coursing through his veins. He awoke shocked half to death.
He felt the pain in his belly, the sadness, and the overwhelming urge to die. A second later, a bucket of ice cold water was dumped on his head. Dot awoke to the sound of Pierre gasping for breath and saying a variety of expletives. There were seventeen Karma subjects surrounding them on the blanket. Julie Little, Chester’s “only girl in the world,” was holding the bucket of water. The Karma subjects laughed. Pierre sat upright and saw Chester.
“Come on, playboy,” Chester said. “Oba said there’s no formality in misery. You wake up like that every day now.”
Pierre put his shirt on and surveyed the Karma subjects. Ethan Chadwick was among them. For the first time, Pierre wondered if Ethan’s sexuality had any part in his preoccupation with Pierre. He’d gone so far out of his way to create that bet with Pierre. But nonetheless, now, he met Pierre’s gaze and gave him a little nod. Pierre took it to mean the past was in the past and he also gathered Ethan was all business now and on his side. Pierre looked at Julie and turned to Chester. “Is this Julie?”
Chester nodded. “She came to see me yesterday. Harbinger elevated her opinion of me.” Pierre knew that had to be an understatement.
Pierre thought again of the dream he’d woken up from. He thought of Smith’s statement in The Financially Prudent World that said that in the reading of dreams, a science the Audric Compliant knew nothing about, love had to remain untouched. Something was different. He’d never before had a dream like that.
“Well,” Pierre said. “Elijah Harbinger is Genesis Smith.”
The group of them laughed and applauded. “No way,” Chester said.
Pierre nodded. “That’s why he wanted to know what I thought of the Gambler’s Argument. But Harbinger and I are at odds. If we want to influence the speech in our favor, I’ve got to kill Saad Price.”
It occurred to Pierre that his life had always been about being the one and only Pierre Morena. Some things didn’t change.
Pierre looked at Julie Little. Chester was right. She was beautiful. She looked like Chester and Pierre realized that Chester probably noticed that too. That made her special to him.
“Do you guys know what’s happening out there?” Julie said. “Thousands of people are depressed. And they are thinking it’s the people who bought Pierre Morena Orangina bottles.”
“How many thousands?” Pierre asked.
“Almost all of Audric,” Julie responded.
“One more reason we need access to the control room,” Chester said.
“Perhaps the code ‘Elijah Harbinger is Genesis Smith’ can influence people’s acceptors,”
Pierre said. “Get people out of the depression.”
“I think it’s incredibly severe,” Julie said.
Pierre nodded. “I got an idea.”
****
Pierre’s idea involved the screenwriters. In Audric, screenwriters could write a script and then use a computer to design live action based on photographs fairly effortlessly. The result looked as good as any movie from the twentieth century. It was done with computer animation and a host of facial expressions and movements preprogrammed into the compute
r and activated by artificial intelligence.
Pierre thought they could use television programming to lift people out of their depression. Television always had an effect on mood, but the screenwriters of Audric knew how to maximize its impact.
Before Audric had killed Will Sterling, who was trying to father too many children, the screenwriters crafted television programming about people similar to him. They explained all aspects of the debate and what viewers thought was transmitted back to Southwick. Only a select few high up in Audric knew that the consensus was that he deserved to live. In the interests of keeping the laws about birth control constant, they had opposed the consensus and murdered him.
Luckily, Oba knew John Warwick the lead screenwriter, and said he could call him. Pierre, Dot, and Chester sat around a phone and told Warwick about what happened since Pierre woke up in the infirmary. Warwick said it was a great story and he wanted all the details.
Warwick said, “they are Pierre Morena’s Orangina Bottles so the depression people are experiencing is associated with Pierre. In other words, the entire emotional crisis is strictly dependent on how people feel about Pierre’s story. It will only take five or six hours of programming to get people out of the depression.”
“What do you need from us?” Pierre said.
“I want your story. The whole story. You’re being recorded.”
For the next hour, Pierre, Dot, and Chester told their stories. Warwick asked a question every once in a while. When it was over Warwick said, “We’ll have programming up by tomorrow. It won’t be difficult to notify Audric of the television watching requisite. But we need Toll to sign off on it.”
“We’re going to Southwick Harbor,” Chester said. “Toll should be there. And we’ll get him to sign off on the television watching requisite.”
Pierre saw outside, a woman in white with a halo above her head. She walked past the
window and then out of sight. She looked like the woman at Gamblers and Guns, and Josephine who said they weren’t related. They must be triplets. “We’re gonna need someone who knows computers to go with you.”
“We have someone,” Chester said. “Gordy.”
“Where is he?” Pierre asked.
“He’s outside,” Oba said. “Didn’t want to come in after what happened between you two.”
“Tell him to come in,” Pierre said. “And I’m gonna need a gun, if I’m gonna kill Saad.”
“We have some,” Oba said. “You can have one.”
“Chester. You still got the card for the secret exit at the Sanitarium?” Pierre asked.
“Yeah. I put it under my Karma motif.” He pulled out the card. “Fits perfectly.”
“That’s a good place to smuggle it in,” Pierre said.
“What about increased security? Since Kalpana’s murder?” Chester asked.
“Hendrick knows Caleb killed Kalpana,” Pierre said. “He doesn’t care about the security. It’s just a computer chip anyways. They’re concerned with guns.”
“Get Ethan Chadwick to go. He can do it right,” Chester said.
“What makes you think that?”
“Trust me. You should have heard him plot in his Uncle’s houseboat. He’s got nerves of steel.”
****
Chester was right. Ethan handled himself like a professional.
“Welcome to Brighton’s Audric Sanitarium,” the Sanitarium clerk said. “Mr. Chadwick is it?”
“Yes.”
“Gotta scan you.”
Ethan placed his bag on the conveyor belt. “This Karma motif has some metal in it.”
“I’ll take that. I didn’t realize you were part of the Karma program.”
“Caleb Price inducted me a few days ago by my own request. That’s why I’m here. Resolve some of the stress from my last visit,” Ethan said. “Make new memories.”
“Sure. You’re all set. Room 15D. Just a floor above the cafeteria.” She stamped his hand with his room number in case he forgot. “I’m sure people will have a lot to talk to you about.”
Ethan smiled. “I’m sure they will.”
****
Gordy walked into Lonnie’s with Dot and into the section Pierre and Oba were seated in. He was wearing a black turtleneck and black jeans. He’d once told Pierre this was a tribute to Steve Jobs who was credited with most of the early technology that made the computers Gordy loved so much possible. He sat down at the table with them avoiding eye contact with Pierre. Pierre stared at him affectionately.
“Gordy,” Pierre said.
Gordy looked at him. “Yeah?”
Pierre shrugged. “What’s the news?”
Gordy swallowed. “They say the computer at Southwick is self-operating. But it’s a control room. They have people monitoring all of Audric. I’ve spoken to Max and he says he’s friends with one of the monitors. If we give the monitor the code, Max says he can help us get Anna Lee out of the machine. We can’t tell him the code over the phone. The computer would pick it up and Harbinger will know we know he’s Genesis Smith.”
“Good,” Pierre said. Pierre stood up and extended his hand to Gordy.
Gordy let a little smile lift his face. “We shaking hands now?”
“Yeah,” Pierre said. “We’re doing what we want.”
Gordy stood up and shook Pierre’s hand. “Max said he talked to The London Times and they said they’d be in touch with you. Should call you today or tomorrow.”
****
So Chester and Gordy were taking a train to Southwick Harbor. Engineers had designed a track that extended across the ocean to the harbor. Chester, Gordy, and three Karma subjects were making the trip. They sat there, hearts thumping, staring out the window, preparing themselves for the tour and to meet up with Edgar Toll.
The goal was to talk to Toll and tell him they were there because the Audric Experiment was at a cross roads, maybe even an end. Toll would allow the alert which would be given by phone, tablet, and the BIP telling everyone to watch television. People would watch enthralled as everyone wanted to know about Pierre. All of Audric would understand Pierre and his predicament, allowing the programming to lift them out of their depression.
It was up to Ethan to fulfill his responsibility on Pierre’s side of things. He’d need to meet Saad Price and make sure Pierre’s decision to kill him was the right one.
****
Saad Price was seated in the cafeteria in the Sanitarium eating a bowl of chicken soup. Ethan sat down across from him. “Ethan Chadwick,” Ethan said.
“Their letting bum bandits in here now, huh?” Saad said.
Ethan felt a flood of anger but told himself not to jump the gun. “Not interested in anything like that. Haven’t seen you around. Who are you?”
“Pierre Morena,” Saad said.
“I’ve seen the commercial. If you’re Pierre Morena than I’m Barnaby Brown.”
“We were switched at birth,” Saad took a sip of iced tea.
“Is that supposed to be funny?”
“Pierre Morena blew up a book store and murdered his therapist. Genesis Smith is going to give a speech. I’m the replacement. I don’t have an acceptor either.”
“It’s supposed to be the real Pierre Morena. You ever hear of the Destiny Proverb.”
Saad stared daggers at Ethan. “You’ve got more in that lump on your shoulders than I realized.”
“Radios aren’t difficult to come by.”
Saad nodded. “Anna Lee is gonna die. Everyone will know I have behavior problems. Show
s one can’t function well without an acceptor. I’m a better lesson than anything Pierre could be.”
“So who fell out a thirteen floor window?”
“No one. The London Times got a false story from David Thindrel. That’s what my Dad said. And I’ve been pretending I’m Pierre.”
“Pierre got locked in an ER Marine machine. Can’t even remember it. We need to go after Mindblown.”
Saad looked up quickly. “What do you know about Mindblown?”
“We know they exist. We know they need to be defeated.”
Saad stood up. “If I were you, I’d make sure we don’t see each other again. If we do you’ll find out just how good I am with explosives.”
Ethan took a sip of Saad’s iced tea thinking no one would miss him. Pierre was right. Saad needed to be killed.
****
The triangulation of blue light blazed into the sky, a symbol of the success of Audric, and visible from the train’s window. Chester stood up nervously as the train came to a stop. They walked to the train’s door and Chester and Gordy stepped out. They were barely a few feet out when a gun was shoved into Chester’s back. A gun pressed against Gordy’s right temple. It was the Audric Earnings Authority. They had some security after all. But the four of them hadn’t done anything wrong, Chester thought, until he realized his mistake. He’d been bugged. He’d been bugged the whole time.
He’d even known he was bugged when they were sitting in Ethan’s uncle’s houseboat. He’d totally forgotten. He felt his heart sink as he realized the scope of his error in judgment. Pierre.
Pierre felt the left pocket of his jacket where the gun was sitting. He tightened his belt and asked himself if there was anything he hadn’t thought of. He merely had to enter Edgar Toll Northeast, take the elevator to the aqueduct channel, and walk to the patch of grass. Ethan should be waiting for him at the Sanitarium. They’d find Saad and put a bullet in his head, then take the same route out that they’d come from. It was up to Audric to play the next card.
This was his second time in the parking lot of Edgar Toll Northeast. Last time, he’d been so worried he didn’t notice the first three paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence posted behind glass next to the door. If he had been told he’d be standing here again under these circumstances, he wouldn’t have believed it. He stopped for a moment, and breathed in deeply. He looked at the sky and said a small silent prayer, feeling tears come to his eyes, and set forth with a strong stride.