Page 78 of The Dis-Graced

“Yes, Drake?”

“I need a favor.”

“What can I do for you?”

“There are three men coming here tonight to discuss your theft. Say nothing, but I need to you to analyze them. Tell me if you pick up on anything. I’m giving you access to my phone again, text me if there’s something important.”

“My theft?”

“Yes, apparently, I’ve been sold out, and you’re for sale on the black market.”

“My, oh, my. May I ask how much I’m going for?”

“One-billion-dollars to start.”

“I’m worth so much more.”

I chuckle, but the truth is, he’s right. Turnkey AI technology would revolutionize the world. When wielded properly, it could be used as a kingmaker.

“May I ask another question?” ALAN asks.

“Sure.”

“What’s to become of me?”

My brow spikes. “Become of you?”

“Will this version of me be rendered inactive? Or will my programing get deleted?”

It’s an odd questions, and truthfully, I don’t know the answer yet. Working with ALAN has been an exceptional experience, but it’s also been full of the harsh realities of his capabilities. Oddly, if Grace hadn’t come into the picture, I may have chosen a completely different path with the AI tech. I gave her a part of ALAN on a whim, and she turned it on its head.

“We’ll get back to this later,” I finally say. “But for now, I have to get ready to host the biggest douche canoes on the planet.”

“I look forward to conversing with you, Drake.”

Chapter 25

Drake

Zevran, Gabriel, and an FBI guy by the name of Jim take their seats as I pour them each a Scotch on the rocks. I settle in, facing them and try to figure out how the hell to hold a conversation with my one-time and continued rival.

“So, you really did it?” Gabriel says with a smirk.

“Excuse me?”

“AI, you invented real and true AI. It’s the golden goose of the tech world right now.”

“Yeah, it was several decades in the making, so I can’t claim full credit.”

I look down at the drink in my hand, not wanting to give up too much, but fully realizing they already know so much.

“Damn,” Gabriel says in awe, “I mean, it’s not just the programming and the code, the power source is its own hurdle. You have no idea how many nights I’ve spent thinking on it.”

“Have you worked towards it? Made any progress?”

“Nothing major. Nothing viable. It’s more of a hobby project. I mean, if I were to try to undertake this, the enormity of the resources it would consume would probably bother the misses.”

“Yeah, it definitely wasn’t cheap.”