Page 12

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SEPTEMBER 9, 2022

Nemo

Jogging out the door and heading into the hallway, Nemo spoke out loud at normal volume. “Nemo, table for two, and I need a window seat.”

“Copy, Nemo. Need just a moment for Nova to scan the cameras and blueprints.”

Nemo waited, hands on hips. He wasn’t sure if he trusted this new AI program at the same level his brother did, but he did trust his brother.

Midas came over the airwaves. “Okay, here we go. You want to be creative and test the system out, or do you want to go the direct route?”

“We can give her a test run. If we run into a problem, we can always go back to direct.”

“All right, bro, here we go. Nova,” Midas spoke to his new program, “guide Nemo through the ventilation system to find the subject known as Haskell.”

“Acquiring target,” the smooth female voice replied. “Target Haskell acquired. Nemo, access the main elevator. When inside, select the Emergency Stop button. Remove the ceiling panel directly above you and ascend into the shaft. There, you will find an access panel in the ventilation system on the southern wall.”

“Whoa. That’s creepy.” He shook himself. “Copy that.”

Nemo jogged to the elevator, which was across from Cherry’s desk on the second-floor landing. She was sitting behind her desk, looking like she was hard at work on something on her screen, but Nemo knew her brain was definitely working overtime, just not at whatever was on the screen.

He tapped his ear once, muting his voice from Midas. “You okay, Cherry-girl?”

Cherry startled at his voice, then immediately fell back into her cool and collected state, which was her standard mode. “Yes, thank you, Nemo.”

“You know that once they’ve recovered from the excitement, they’re going to be on you about why you were with Haskell at that café and nobody knew about it?”

“Yes. I know. Nemo…” She bit her lip, a look of regret on her face. “Nemo, I would have told you at the very least, but she wouldn’t come in unless I promised not to. I honestly don’t think it meant she didn’t want to see you. I think it was more that she did, if that makes any sense.”

“While I certainly don’t like the fact that she extracted that promise, don’t stress yourself out about it. I’ll deal with that problem with her. It’s not your fault.” He winked saucily at Cherry. “All right. If you’re good, then I’m off to stalk a kitty cat.”

Her laugh was natural, even if her color was still off. “I think you might have met your match, Nemo. You’ve heard that herding cats is impossible. Catching them is even more so.”

He saluted her, tapped his ear to allow Midas to hear him again, and he punched the button for the elevator doors. They opened, and he disappeared inside.

Following Nova’s initial instructions, Nemo found himself facing the ventilation shaft in question. This one was much larger than the shaft he had traversed in Valencia with Haskell. If need be, he’d be able to sit upright inside it.

“Considering the size of the exit she used in the conference room and where I am now, the system must widen and narrow in places,” Nemo observed over the comms.

Nova answered his unasked question, “That is correct, Nemo. According to the building specifications, she is actually in a separate system. You are in the maintenance conduit for getting at electric, gas, water, and cable services. She is in the heating and cooling system itself. Unfortunately for her, she’s actually heading the wrong way. She went south at the first junction when she should have gone east, which means she is actually burying herself farther into the building. I can direct you to a place where she will eventually work her way to you. Which do you prefer—follow her or wait for her?”

“This is really going to take some getting used to,” Nemo mumbled under his breath. “I’ll cut off her escape route.”

“Very well,” the computer voice replied. “Continue to follow the shaft to the south. When you come to the first junction, you will need to proceed upward.”

Nemo arrived at the junction in less than a minute. Looking in the upward direction, he swore. “Of course, there couldn’t be a ladder.”

Nova apologized, “I am sorry for the inconvenience, Nemo. These conduits weren’t meant for people to crawl through them except in isolated circumstances. ”

“Is it my imagination, or is the up shaft smaller?”

“You are correct. It is meant to be an air shaft, not for a human to pass through.”

Midas interrupted, “You’re going to have to use your broken fin, so start swimming.”

“I am sorry, Nemo. Do you need fixing? I can recommend?—”

Midas chuckled. “No, Nova. Nemo is able to dislocate his shoulders at will due to an injury at birth. The broken fin is a reference to an animated fish in a Disney movie. The fish has a damaged fin that is smaller than the other fin.”

“I understand, Midas. Thank you for the explanation. I will retain this information for future communications.”

Nemo rolled his eyes. After muttering a few expletives, he wedged himself into a crouch just below the upward shaft. “Okay, get ready for a big bang,” he warned. Hunching his shoulders, Nemo swung his right shoulder as far forward as he could in the small space, then drove it backward hard against the wall behind him. There was a bang and a guttural interjection at the shock, but the action had the desired effect. Nemo’s right shoulder was now out of the socket. “You bastards are so lucky that working like this doesn’t hurt. Just gonna be sore as hell later.”

“No, but I know that taking them out of joint and putting them back in does hurt,” Midas mumbled, “so I appreciate the sacrifice. I’ll have Cherry get in touch with the masseuse.”

Nova interjected, “There are seven licensed massage therapists within one mile. Shall I make you an appointment?”

“Thank you, Nova,” Midas replied. “We have one on retainer.”

“You are welcome, Midas. If you change your mind, I will store the names and numbers for future reference.”

Nemo cracked his neck to the left and then to the right as a way to work through the initial discomfort. “Big bro, she needs some fine-tuning. Next thing you know, she’ll be ordering pizza.”

“If you are hungry, Nemo, there are four pizza delivery services within four blocks?—”

“No, thank you, Nova!” Nemo shook his head. “Gonna have to watch my language with her. She’s as bad as that Alexa thing.”

Midas chuckled. “Hey, she’s beta, little bro. Give her time. She’ll figure it out eventually. She's an AI, not human.”

“Okay, starting up the shaft.”

With only the sheer walls and his own body strength, Nemo wedged himself into the tight space, moving upward in small increments. His muscles burned with the bunching and pressure being placed against the walls as he used pressure and locked muscles to force his way up approximately twenty feet to the next junction.

“I would so kick ass at American Ninja ,” he grunted as he pulled himself into the wider conduit. “Since I can’t show my pretty face, I’d wear a costume like that guy who tried to do it as a T-Rex. Or Spider-Man.”

Nova popped in, “I would be happy to?—”

“No, thank you, Nova!” both brothers called out.

Midas sighed, and there was the sound of a key click over the airwaves. “Definitely need to work on that. Way too eager to help without direct questioning.”

BANG! A groan.

Nemo rubbed his shoulder, which was now back in its proper joint. “Don’t tell me I have to do that again today. Twice is enough.”

“No, little bro, I promise. You’re on her level now. Move the way you were going when you first got into the shaft, then turn left. You should cut her off as she dumps out from a pseudo-dead end.”

As he began moving into the cutoff position, he asked, “Can she back up or veer off this system?”

“Negative. She probably has one inch on all sides to work with. I gather she’s not claustrophobic. Only one way for her to go. Gonna nickname her ‘Shawshank,’” Midas joked. “I can only imagine the conversations you, Steel, and she could have.”

Nemo had made it fifteen feet forward to a junction that had a grate from the air ventilation system on the far wall. There were paths to the left, right, and back the way he came in the repair shafts. He sat down perpendicular to where she would exit, his back to the wall, knees pulled up toward his chest, elbows on his knees, hands dangling between them, and waited. “Gah. I feel like I’m in that movie Alien , and I don’t have my gun on me.”

“No worries. I’ll warn you if the big, scary monsters with acid saliva start moving in your direction.”

There was a silence that followed between the two brothers that didn’t have its normal ease. Midas was the one to break it. “So… her or no one, huh?”

Nemo listened for any scuffling sounds coming his way. He wasn’t sure how far away she was, but it was clear that sound would be magnified and travel well in the shafts. When he spoke, it was barely above a whisper, but he knew the links would pick it up. “She’s it. Always has been.”

Midas grunted. “I knew you were hung up on her. No one could possibly be as much of a manwhore as you’ve been otherwise.” He paused. “You know I’ll help any way I can.”

Nemo looked down at his hands. “What about your bet?”

“Not sure if you noticed, but I never placed one. Besides, I always bet on you. You always come first, little brother.”

Nemo smiled sadly .

And there’s the fuckin’ problem right there. He always put me ahead of everyone else, including himself. Legal or not. Right or not. If he knew how much of my past is because of that… But I would do it all again.

“Thanks, Midas, but I’d rather you didn’t help me this time around. Muting.”

Normally, in these types of situations, as he waited for something to happen, he’d be running scenarios on what to do if things didn’t go as intended. Since this was his kitty cat, he knew that no matter what he planned, she would always do the unexpected. She could get into anything and out of anything. He was more concerned about what she would do when she opened the end grate and saw him waiting.

He leaned his head back against the shaft wall and let his mind wander back to when he and his brother were just Sawyer and Kash, not dead men working for Tribe, and the day when a pint-sized pixie changed him forever.