PART VII
CHAPTER ONE
The birth of the 24th century witnessed a lot of things most of them being good things but there was one that showed that maybe it was time mankind looked for a home beyond Earth. What happens when a place that you call home is no longer suitable and conducive for you? Move away and search for a new home.
The year 2300, it was discovered that the Earth’s gravity was reducing and with it, it brought a whole set of problems. Over the months that followed, a space project plan was launched showing that need was the mother of invention. The project was to ferry humankind across the stars and it brought a new problem of its own since not everyone would be able to leave with the ship. Some are going to get abandoned and the struggle to get a space on the ship began hitting the whole world. Despite this, life continued and people learned to live around the now vertical world that they now lived in. Among many who had accepted this new vertical, weightless life as their own was Alex Stamford.
He has a family of his own and he had everything he could ask for after settling down to work as a junkyard mechanic. He fixes hover cars which might be salvageable and though the pay was not much, it kept his wife and two kids fed which was alright by him.
“Let me see you here as early as possible tomorrow,” Hammer, Alex’s boss told him.
“You’ve got it, boss,” Alex replied before leaving the shop.
He lived in the First District in a small apartment with his family. The Spaceship was due to take off in a matter of two weeks and he had already secured a small place on the ship for them. It had required him to call on contacts from a world he thought he left behind but he wasn’t going to stay on a planet that was dying with his family. They deserve the best life he can give them and he is going to make sure that they get it.
The Spaceship was placed in orbit and anyone could see it if they looked up at the sky. He had gotten their tickets and he plans to tell them when it is morning as they start to make preparations to take off. His wife, Gloria would no doubt be surprised and she was bound to ask questions something which he was not sure exactly how he will handle but it was not a bother to him. The kids were already asleep and Gloria was just about to turn in for the night when he walked in.
“And here I was thinking you were sleeping at the junkyard,” Gloria said.
“Leaving you guys alone unprotected?” Alex asked as he kissed his wife.
They had met six years ago when he had been a different man and a year after, he had abandoned that life, straightened up and married her. Their twins had followed ten months after their marriage and ever since then it has been joy and happiness for him.
“I have something to show you in the morning,” Alex told her.
“Can’t you show me now?” She asked.
“You won’t be able to sleep if I did and I need you well rested for tomorrow.”
Gloria looked at him closely before she smiled walking to the bed and getting beneath the covers. She knew that there was no way that she was going to be able to coax it out of him so she will just wait till morning then.
“Wash before you turn up to bed. I won’t have your smelly body here on the clean sheets.”
Alex laughed and walked over to the bathroom after checking up on Matt and Michelle who were sleeping in their rooms. His children were his pride and he was more than grateful to have them. Tomorrow morning, he was going to tell them that they would be getting on the Spaceship and traveling through the stars to the new planet that had been discovered in an Alpha Centaurus.
Something was wrong and it was obvious the minute he woke up. Gloria was not beside him in bed which was highly unusual because she was a late riser. There was no noise from the kids and their bedroom looked scattered.
“Gloria where are you?” Alex called out.
Could they have gone to the supermarket but it was not grocery day yet so why would they go out.
“There were several cases of drifting happening last night with several people being displaced from their home. The areas affected include the first five districts of the city.”
Turning to the news, Alex listened if there was any mention of what had happened in detail. He swiped up his commlink looking to see if there was further news and there were several but none of them were useful.
“Gloria should be with her commlink,” Alex said as he tried to connect to her.
Her commlink was not responding and Alex knew that it was not a good sign. There was no way that his wife and children could have vanished like that without a trait.
“Calm down Alex. You are overthinking all these. Gloria and the kids are safe probably somewhere and trying to get back home.”
Alex stepped out of their apartment and realized that everything was wrong. The buildings were standing alright but everything else was in odd positions. Hover cars lying on the side, dumpsters floating in the air. This was a serious mess but it was not his bother at the moment. Finding Gloria and his kids were his priority and he knew he had to go report at the Police Station so that they would put their name on the missing so that he would be notified when they got found. He was not going to like himself if something has happened to them and he wondered how he had slept all through what happened.
CHAPTER TWO
He had called in at his workplace to inform Hammer what had happened and Hammer told him that he could take the day off. Alex had waited for hours and now it was almost afternoon but he still hasn’t received any notifications about any of them being found. He tried contacting the police once again and this time an AI responded.
“How can I be of help Mr. Alex Stumford?”
“My wife, Gloria Stamford and kids, Matthew and Michelle Stamford are missing,” Alex stated.
“And have you reported them missing?”
“I have done that this morning about four and a half hours ago.”
“Stay with us than Mr. Alex Stumford and you will be contacted when they are found.”
Breaking off the comm with the AI, Alex paced the room his nerve getting twitchy. He wondered if the twins were separated and scared and he won’t want something like that to happen. If something should happen to any of the three of them he was not going to forgive them. It is surprising how one could value other people’s safety above one’s one something that Alex had never thought he could do.
“Can’t wait here. I have to go search for them myself.”
Navigating around the city in its present situation was going to be a bit difficult but he wasn’t going to sit down watching while he has no idea where Gloria or the kids might be. It has been a while since he tracked down anyone but old skills like that rarely die and he was sure that he would be able to find them. He went to his wardrobe wearing a top and trousers ready to go out onto the street. People were advised to stay at home to avoid being injured or worse displaced but Alex was not concerned about that. The only thing on his mind was finding Gloria and his kids and he would have to start from the Assessment point in their block.
The points were created so that people could check if someone was discovered because of the traffic flow of information that would be going back and forth. Alex jogged to the Assessment point looking for the name of his family on the list but he could not find their name. The fact that their name was not on the list meant that they were not yet found and with each hour that pass, the fact that they were not found was not goofed news.
“Why are you here Alex?” Judith, a friend of Gloria asked him.
“I can’t find Gloria and the kids,” Alex replied.
Panic appeared on her face and she asked him if he had checked the Assessment point for their names and he told her that he had but their names were not there.
“Maybe their names would be in the next block. I have to go check it out.”
She wanted to tell him that the Assessment point was updated almost the same time but Alex was already moving away from her before she could tell him. She understands how he feels since she had lost her brother two months ago when something like this had happened. Gloria and the kids meant a lot to Alex and everyone who knew them was aware of that fact. She hopes that he finds them cause they were the world to him.
“I have no record of any Stamford in my record sir,” the officer at the last Assessment point told him.
He has been searching for two hours now making it six hours he reported missing and Alex was starting to lose his mind.
“Are you sure that they did not leave of their own will?” The officer asked.
Alex looked at him furiously and the officer was smart enough to move back away from Alex. Though he stood at barely 5’8, no one in their right mind will try to pick a fight with him because he had bulging muscles which showed clearly that he worked out.
“Where are you, Gloria?” Alex asked as he blew a hard breath.
The idea that they were injured was something that he could not avoid to bear and he knows that it is time he moves things up a notch. He had lived on the streets all his life before he gave it up for Gloria. It was time that he uses those skills to track them down and the first thing that came to his mind was an information broker.
Not legal and mostly done in secret, information brokers could check if there had been any digital action by anyone in a three-mile radius and their services were more reliable in times like this than the police ever could be. Alex walked away from the Assessment point heading towards the Seventh district. He knows of an information broker through a job he did a few months ago. The idea of Gloria leaving him was impossible to Alex but she could have left a digital footprint which the information broker would be able to find. This was the last resort but it would bring answers no doubt and that alone meant it was worth checking out.
The place was a normal tech shop but Alex knew that it was a front for the information broker. Alex does not care as the only thing on his mind was finding his family. He approached the girl at the counter who looked bored to death.
“How can I help you?” She asked.
Looking around to see if there was anyone close by and seeing that there was none, Alex told her he needed an information broker.
“We don’t do that here,” She replied not batting an eye. “Please it is urgent. I’m willing to pay extra. I need to find my wife and kids.”
She looked at him for a minute before pressing a button and an AI appeared on the desk.
“Confirm your identity with that AI and I will see if I can help you.”
Alex did as she had instructed and he waited as she considered whatever it was the AI brought for her.
“Alright head through that door and tell the man there that you are a 3210,” She said pointing at a faded door beside the shelf. Alex thanked her and went through the door. True to her words, there was a huge man right at the door.
“She told me to tell you that I am a 3210.”
The man raised an eyebrow then brought out an ID scanner to which Alex placed his thumb. The man looked at his ID confirming that it was truly him before letting him through the door. Alex stepped into what he realized was a tech farm judging by several people who were engrossed in virtual reality.
“How can I help you Alex Stamford,” A boy asked him. “I need to speak with the best information broker you’ve got.”
“You are speaking to him,” the boy replied.
He could not be more than eighteen years old or so and Alex did not like the idea of mixing with kids but all that was out the window at the moment.
“I need you to find if there is anything on three names for me.”
“Come along then,” the boy said and Alex followed him.
CHAPTER THREE
The room was small but not much space was needed by an information broker. The boy was acknowledged by the two girls in the room which meant he was indeed who he said he was.
“The names of the people you want to search on?” the boy asked.
“Gloria Stamford and her twins, Michelle and Matthew Stamford.”
“Why are you interested in them?”
“Because they are my wife and children and I can’t find them,” Alex replied in anger.
The boy looked away and started his work while Alex waited patiently. This place brought the grim memories that were of his childhood and he would like to leave as soon as he got what he came for.
“There is nothing about them at all. It’s as if they never existed before,” the boy replied. “Are you sure they exist?”
“What do you mean by there is no trace of them?” Alex asked. “That is my family you are talking about.”
The volume of his voice had the girls looking at him and Alex calmed down as he showed them pictures of Gloria and the twins to the boys.
“They are my family and we slept in the same house last night but I can’t find them this morning.”
Taking the picture, the boy did d a facial recognition on them and realized that they were real alright but every information about them had been wiped something which he told Alex.
“But how is that possible? You can’t just wipe off someone’s information like that or can you?”
“If you are damn good and I think this is something that smells of money. High-class money.”
Things were running out of hand quickly and Alex had no idea what to do now. So the reason why he was unable to find them was that any information about them had been wiped clean but by who and why? No one could come for his family since he made peace with everyone and he does not think anyone has enough money to do something like this.
“Like how much are we taking off?” Alex asked.
“A mil and half for the three of them,” the boy replied. “Whoever did this want any traces of them wiped completely clean.”
For a few minutes, Alex was silent as he was not sure of what to say exactly. A million and a half was no small money and whoever had done this was serious but why would anyone come after them. There was nothing special about any of them and Alex’s heart was heavy with pain as he wondered what kind of situation they were in.
“Can you trace where it came from or give me something I can work with.”
The boy smiled and started working right away while Alex watched. After a minute he looked up at Alex and said.
“I managed to bring a few things back but whoever did this did a thorough job. I got an address for you and I’ve sent it to your commlink.”
Alex wondered how he had gotten his commlink just as he received the address. He was not going to question the gift he had received and he asked the boy how much he was charging.
“You gave me something fun to do so it is at the house.”
Paying is a habit that Alex had learned from a boy and the fact that this boy was giving him the address free of charge surprised him.
“I’m grateful for your help,” Alex said rising.
The boy nodded as he led Alex out of the room and to the door where he left the tech farm. The man at the door paid him no attention and Alex walked out to the shop where the girl at the counter was standing. He looked at her and picked up a commlink to buy.
“You got what you wanted?” She asked.
“Yes I did thanks a lot,” He replied. He paid for the commlink and added a tip for her.
“Wow! Thanks for the tip.”
She had given him easy access something that he knew was unusual. He looked at the address where the digital data of Gloria and the twins had been deleted. Whoever was at that address knows something and he was going to get that information out of them either through beating or another means.
“So we are going to the Thirteenth district,” Alex said to himself.
The Thirteenth district is a business district and this does not smell well to Alex but he was not going to back down now not when he has a clue that might lead him to find where his wife and children were. He has to follow this lead no matter where it might lead him.
CHAPTER FOUR
The place belonged to Braxton Consolidate, whatever it was that they did. Getting inside was not going to be easy and there was no way he could find out exactly who had been responsible for wiping the data. He had come here but it does not look like he would be getting his answers easily. Anyone in the building could have done it and he won’t be able to find his family now.
“The boss asks for some strange request at times though,” One of the men who had gotten out of the building said.
“What did he ask you to do?” His partner asked him. “He told me to work on the digital data,” he started before he stopped.
The man’s brain must have just kicked in that he can’t mention what he had done in public since anyone could hear him. Well, it was too late since Alex had heard and he was going to get this man to tell him what he did. They were in the open so Alex knew he can’t follow them. It was already late at night and both men must have clocked out of their job. Wherever they were going was his destination as they will be able to tell him what he needed to know.
All night, Alex watched the man not from far as he drunk and he got worried thinking the man would not be able to tell him but he remembered the metabolizer that would be able to make the man straight. He relaxed and watched him all night waiting for the moment he would be able to pounce on him. He had grabbed a pill of the metabolizer on his way from the bar trailing after the man until he was alone then Alex moved in for the kill.
Shoving him into an alleyway, he shoved the metabolizer down his throat and waited for the pill to take its desired effect.
“Who are you and what do you want ?” The man asked groggily.
“Tell me about the digital data of a woman and her kids you deleted today,” Alex asked nicely.
The man has made his journey so easy that for that reason alone he wasn’t going to press him but he is going to get the information he needs out of him.
“I have no idea what you are saying.”
“Please we can do this the hard