Chapter 8: Answers
Saturday morning could not come soon enough. The rest of the week had dragged on and I don’t think I listened to more than two sentences in any class. Fortunately, most of my classmates were the same. I knew that I had to get back to the Marks, to try to find Austin again. The tricky thing was having a plausible excuse. I couldn’t just tell my dad I was going to the library. Since he was a lawyer, he needed evidence to confirm where I had been. I had gotten into the habit of buying things in case Dad ever wanted to check my debit list to verify my location. This time I made a pre-emptive strike.
I had Lacey leave a message for me at home about meeting for a project. Dad would be nosy enough to review the message. She didn’t say a time or where, so I could always see her later in the day and not be telling a lie. Well, sort of. Lacey thought I wanted to see Austin because I liked him. I wanted to see him because of the piece of paper I saw when I was a drone. And the shadow I saw in that building.
I started my walk, wary of flying drones and cameras on buildings. The streets were quiet today, but although I thought I heard a mechanical whirl a few times, I saw no spying drones. I guessed even machines rest on the weekends. After backtracking several times, my winding route eventually got me closer to the Marks. I smelled the aromas first, long before I saw any vendors. The air was thick with drones here — now I knew why they weren’t many on my streets enroute. All the action was here. I pulled my hoodie over my hair, letting the fabric cover most of my face.
I walked the Marks for a good hour, examining clothing, electronics and food stalls. Nothing carried the oddities of Lou’s stall. Despite his effort to overcharge me, I missed him. Soon the food smells became too much for me, and my stomach groaned in protest. I bought some meat skewers and sat on a rock wall facing the sun. The morning had been a bust so far — I’d thought Austin was a regular here. So far he was no-show, or maybe I was missing him in another part of the Marks. Some grease from the skewer dripped down the stick and onto the ground. A familiar shape came scurrying up beside me and sniffed the grease stain.
“Lola!” The little mechanical dog barked softly and rubbed against my leg. I stroked under her chin and her tail wagged happily.
“Don’t feed her any food! Or I’ll be cleaning her gears for weeks,” a familiar voice yelled from the crowd. Austin’s grin emerged as shook his hair out of his face.
“Honestly. As if I would feed her real food.”
“You’d be surprised.” Austin sat next to me. “Some people forget she’s not a real dog. A few old guys still look at her strangely, almost as if she reminds them of an old pet.” I motioned my skewer towards him in case he wanted a bite. He shook his head. “What brings you to the Marks today? Looking for more crazy objects?”
I put down my food. “I came looking for you. I need to talk to you about something. Can we go somewhere away from prying eyes?”
Austin jumped back in mock horror. “I don’t know what the girls in your school have been telling you, but I’m not that kind of guy,” he joked.
I blushed then slugged him on the shoulder. “That’s not what I meant! I need your help. Something happened this week. Something I think you’re involved with.”
“Sounds menacing,” Austin mocked, not really taking me seriously. “Let’s head over to my office.” He motioned to the alley. I rolled my eyes but followed him with Lola tailing behind me. The alleyway was shaded but busy. Several people walked past us, heading to the sellers. I scanned upward but saw no cameras or drones. Austin motioned to the ground. “Talk downward — makes it harder for them to read your lips.” We walked slowly. There was lots of ambient noise around us that forced me to speak up.
“You need to be truthful with me. I was with my father and was able to watch them chase after a runner firsthand.”
“What do you mean? Were you actually involved in the chase?” he asked. His interest seemed genuine.
“Kind of. You put a headpiece on and assume the role of the pursuing drones. It feels like you are actually there.”
“Guess you like catching the guilty. And here I thought you liked your shopkeeper friend.” Austin was teasing but I thought I could sense some anger in his voice. I pulled him towards me.
“Listen! This is important. When I inhabited the drone’s body, there was someone helping the runner. He specifically entered a building that was out of his way, like it was a meeting place. And when he got inside, a message was left to help him.”
“So? What does this have to do with me?” He turned his face away so I couldn’t read his expression. I made him look at me.
“I saw Lola there. Or at least I saw her shadow. Unless someone is controlling your dog, you know something about what is going on.”
Austin pulled my arm off him. “I heard your father was some big lawyer for Justice. Are you some spy for him?” He walked away.
“No, but you are making me so mad!” I yelled a bit too loudly. A couple walked by us, looking at me and then whispering to each other. “I’m not a spy, but I saw something at his office that I shouldn’t have.” Austin stopped and turned around.
“That’s pretty cryptic. What’d you mean?” I walked closer to him and whispered in his ear.
“My dad has footage of the crime. It didn’t match. Someone doctored the footage to incriminate Lou.” Austin looked at me as if I had grown a second head. I wasn’t sure if he believed me or if he thought I was trying to trap him.
“You are in a lot of trouble if that’s true,” he whispered back. “I bet you’re not supposed to see that footage — that’s only reviewed in the courts. And the footage is just a slam dunk to prove someone guilty. Does your dad know?”
I averted my eyes. “Oh my god, no. He’d kill me if I told him I reviewed his crime footage. Besides, he’d never believe me if I said it was doctored. He couldn’t understand that the justice system could be corrupted. It would shake his beliefs to the core.”
Austin considered my words. “Then I can’t help you. You want me to tell you about something that could endanger my life, but you won’t take any risks yourself.”
“Because I don’t understand what is going on! If the drones aren’t here to protect us, what are they doing?”
“I wish I could trust you. I really do. When you confront your father, ask him for some answers. Then come see me. If your information is useful, I’ll answer your question.” Austin slipped behind a group of men, heading back to the Marks. Lola barked at me and then chased after him. I decided not to pursue him. I had nothing more to say.
If I wanted to get answers, I was going to have to confront my father.