Growth (GAIA Trilogy Book 2) Read online

Page 11


  The V.P. Maintenance was a gnome-like man, short but very stocky who sported a full beard, no moustache and a buzz-cut hair do. He entered Helene's office diffidently and sat on the edge of the chair before her. He glanced once at Lowell and said, "What exactly do you want to know? And why?"

  Helene gave him a look that Lowell had come to know meant, "You have the wrong end of the stick. I ask the questions." In response to him she said, "Everything. Because."

  Maintenance, whose name was Otto, had the sense to smile at her wit and duck his head. Finally he said, "Everybody has to live somewhere. For a while we didn't even know they were there, but they are. They like it better and so do we."

  "How did that happen?" asked Helene.

  "We don't know. Somebody found that level and somehow got in. Over time the group formed. We first wanted to force them out and close it down but the question of where they would go had no good answers. The number of subsidized units in the building is small and always full. Many of those folks are borderline nuts and they wander the corridors muttering to themselves. Down Below they're happy. We make sure they have power and water and mostly leave them alone."

  Helene was thoughtful. "They have to eat, they have to get goods. How does that happen?"

  "Some of them interact with the world outside - bring in food and other stuff. They have a business that sorts old clothes and re-sells them. They don't all just hide away, though most do."

  Helene nodded briskly, "Okay. Thanks."

  Otto stood nervously, "Please don't broadcast this. We wouldn't want to upset the arrangements."

  Helene became hearty, "No, no. Don't worry. We don't want to upset the arrangements either."

  Otto ducked his head in thanks and left. Before the door closed behind him she was on the phone to Harrison asking him to come to her office. When he arrived she had Lowell tell him the story of his visit to the nether world and then told him Otto's version of the situation. Harrison's eyes were bright with interest. "When can we go to hook them up? I'll be glad to do it, I want a first hand look."

  Helene grinned at him, "I thought you'd find it interesting." To Lowell she said, "Call your girlfriend and make a date."

  Lowell started calling and Harrison wondered whether it was a blush he had seen on Lowell's face.

  "She says she can meet us in half an hour and bring us to their tech person."

  "Good," said Harrison. "I'll just get what I need and I'll meet you here in ten minutes."

  Mishi met them at the top of the staircase dressed in her shapeless suit and led them down the three flights. When she opened the door to Down Below Harrison was delighted. A world within a world! His academic mind was taking mental notes as rapidly as it could while they walked past tiny stores, tinier dwellings and lots of street life. Mishi took them to see her great grandmother again and left Harrison with her while she pulled Lowell away.

  "How do you do. I'm Harrison Barnes from Gaia."

  "How do you do. You can call me Granny, everyone else does. Now about becoming a Gaia Meeting Group - can you set us up?"

  "Yes, certainly, ma'am. Do you have a tech person?"

  "So to speak," the old woman cackled. "More tech than person but she gets the job done."

  "I'll only need about ten minutes of her time, but," Harrison paused, "could you tell me the history of this place? I'm fascinated."

  "As well you might be," she said. "History. Well, when this cube was built, fifty something years ago, a real attempt was made to deal with the homeless people, who, you might know, are always with us. Nothing worked. From the first day homeless people roamed the halls, sat in front of stores, used public restrooms. All very unsightly in the most modern building of its time."

  "The developers wouldn't like that."

  "Nobody liked it and the security guards were constantly pushing people out the doors. Where they sat and set up camps. Even more unsightly."

  "So?"

  "So one day a young thief ran from Security and somehow found this level. He got in and was astounded. Over the next several months he brought some of his friends down. It took several years for the word to spread but the space gradually filled."

  "What about infrastructure? Toilets, running water, electricity?"

  "This level is meant to be a shelter in times of catastrophe so it was fitted with all of that. We just had to modify a few things but it's all here."

  "And you say this is repeated throughout the city?"

  "Yes. Probably throughout the country by now. All these cubes have the same bones."

  "Amazing," said Harrison. "A hidden world."

  "Works for everyone. The Ups don't want to look at us and we don't want to mix with them. Ready to get to work?"

  "Oh, yes."

  "Then follow me."

  She led him through a rear door into another room and then into a third room which was clearly a maintenance node for power and communications. At the far end, in front of an array of screens, sat the fattest person Harrison had ever seen. She was seated on a huge motorized chair mounted on robo-car wheels. She easily weighed five hundred pounds thought Harrison, trying not to stare. The fat woman looked him in the eye and said, "Five hundred thirty two pounds, give or take a bag of cookies. What do you have?"

  Harrison showed her his screen and explained what had to be done. "You need an absolutely secure machine," he said. "If it isn't it won't be allowed onto the network."

  The fat lady grunted and reading the instructions performed the set-up routine. When she was done she tested the connection and gave Harrison a faint smile when the screen lit up with "Welcome to Gaia."

  "Well done," said Harrison. To the old lady he said, "All the instructions about managing a Meeting and setting up a Gaian organization are there. If you have questions you can contact me directly, but" he nodded at the fat lady, "I think it's well in hand."

  The fat woman said, "We're weird, not dumb."

  Harrison had tea with Granny and pumped her for stories of the history of Down Below until Lowell and Mishi returned, smiling and weary looking.

  "Okay," said Mishi. "I'll take you back now."

  Chapter 35

  Lucas was listening to Harrison's account of visiting Down Below and marveled at the excitement in his voice. Harrison described the shanty-town look of the place and the outlandish look of its inhabitants with the fervor of an anthropologist describing a new tribe of humans.

  "They use discarded materials for construction, they have an unofficial "government" and they've been under the radar for years. The most novel aspect though, is the collusion by the regular authorities. Since they're not bothering anyone else down there, and since they're not clustered in problematic spots up above, they've become the recipients of benign neglect. It's amazing for bureaucracy to show so much sense."

  Lucas said, "It sounds like the re-wilded lands. People are allowed to live there without much interference as well.

  "Hmm," said Harrison, "I hadn't thought of that but I see you're right. I'll have to research the roots of both situations..."

  His voice tapered off and Lucas recognized the signs of his grandfather's mind taking a tangent and leaving the world behind for a moment.

  "Can we rely on them not to harm Gaia? Can we use them do you think?"

  The questions brought Harrison back to the moment and he thought about it before answering. "I think they'll be a positive, and I do think you can use them in some intelligence capacity. They form a parallel universe with a novel view of the regular universe and apparently they're all through the cubes. When you communicate with the tech I worked with you can pose the question. I think she'd be open to it and would have some good input."

  "What's she like?" asked Lucas.

  "Big, fat and smart. Can't get around much physically so she spends her time exploring the networks. Certainly worth an outreach."

  Harrison went to Helene's office and waited until they could speak privately. He gave her a detailed report on what he
had learned and asked, "Has Lowell told you much about his visits?"

  "Well, he's given me a report. Why?"

  "What's he said about Mishi?"

  "Not much. He spoke more about her great grandmother. He was reticent about Mishi."

  "Well, she wasn't reticent about him."

  "How so?"

  "I can't be sure about his first visit but this time she dragged him away for an hour and when they returned they'd clearly been sexual. I suspect they were the first time as well."

  Helene smiled. "Well, he's such a good looking guy."

  "And she's a forceful young woman who reaches out for what she wants. I just thought you should know."

  "Thanks, I'll keep it in mind. What was your impression of the grandmother. Is she in charge?"

  "Not in any conventional sense, but she has a lot of influence with everybody. We were interrupted several times by people wanting her opinion. She's everyone's Granny."

  "Do you think I should meet with her? Being she's in the same building?"

  "It probably would be a good idea, sometime. We'd have to go to her though. She said she never goes out anymore."

  "Oh, I want to see it for myself anyway. I'll ask Lowell to arrange it," she said with a mischievous smile.

  Chapter 36

  Lowell was happy to arrange a meeting and Mishi was eager to set it up. Finding time in Helene's schedule was a far different story. After much back and forth Mishi asked, "When do you sleep?" and when Helene said "Late at night," Mishi responded, "Granny hardly ever sleeps. She hurts too much at night." Midnight was a good time it seemed and the following day was picked.

  "What does she hurt from?" asked Helene.

  "No one's sure and she won't see the doc and she won't take meds."

  Helene nodded. They arranged to meet at the top of the stairs at 11:45 and Mishi returned to Down Below. In preparation Helene consulted with her personal physician for a short course on probable causes of pain and a few remedies she could pass on for experiment. When the time came Harrison was asked to stay behind and Lowell was the only aide she took.

  "It might be dangerous," said Harrison.

  "I don't think so and I'll be able to accomplish more alone."

  Harrison was slightly miffed but had to agree. He had seen Helene in many similar situations and she invariably came out of meetings having acquired life-long friends.

  Mishi met them at the stairs and led them down to Granny's home where the old woman met them seated in a wheel chair next to a table set for tea for two. When Helene was settled across the table Granny waved the youngsters off. "Come back in an hour to check," she said and when they hurried off she said to Helene, "That ought to be enough for them and I won't have the strength for much more."

  The two women then proceeded to affairs of state which they began by exploring their pasts in search of connections and before long had identified several. Granny gave Helene a short history of Down Below and Helene proffered a history of Gaia.

  Helene asked about ways she could help through Gaia, "besides educating the children which we'll do regardless." She also outlined how Granny could help the Gaian movement through her connections. They decided that Mishi should spend half a day every weekday in the Gaia offices becoming familiar with their work. "I want her to be Gaia's liaison to Down Below."

  The idea pleased Granny who said, "She's smart, that one. She knows what she wants and goes and gets it. Don't tell her but she's my favorite."

  Helene nodded. "I know she's smart. That's why I want her. Would it be okay to take her to the Gathering? Will you need her here?"

  "I'll need somebody but there are others I can use. I'll be all right."

  After the business was settled Helene asked, "Do you mind telling me about your pain?" and Granny said, "Yes. I don't want to talk about it."

  Helene smiled and laid the remedies her doctor had supplied on the table between them.

  "This will help you sleep without it being too heavy. This will alleviate really acute pain and this will reduce inflammation. If you won't see a physician you can try these out yourself. Just take them sparingly at first. If anything helps let me know and I'll send more."

  Granny pursed her lips and nodded her thanks. A knock signaled Mishi and Lowell's return and when they came in the room, clothing disheveled and smiling, Granny said, "I want you to intern with the Gaians. Is that all right?"

  Mishi's broad smile answered the questions and arrangements were made.

  On the way up in the elevator Helene said to Lowell, "Besides the obvious what do you think of Mishi?"

  A blush was evident even under his dark skin but he took a breath and said, "Really smart and knows everyone and their business Down Below. She'll be a great liaison."

  Helene nodded, "And personally? What's happening between you?"

  "I wish I knew," said the young man ruefully, "I've never known a girl like her. She's in charge and as long as I do what she says I'm all right. I get the feeling that she might just walk away someday. Right now it's her life and I'm just a toy."

  "Oh, I think she sees you as more than just a toy."

  "Really?" his voice showed how much he wanted to believe that.

  "I think so. We'll just have to see."

  Helene marveled again at the power a smart, determined, attractive woman could wield over a man.

  "It's the hope of the species," she thought.

  Chapter 37

  Lucas was feeling a familiar fugue of emotions. On one set of strings the music of a job going smoothly was humming along - preparations for the Gathering at the venue were well in hand, additions to security at the ranch were proving to be an improvement and generally he was looking at an unbroken wall of security around Maeve and the children. But tugging at the levers of anxiety were formless fears and apprehensions.

  He was made uncomfortable and paranoid by these feelings, the more so since he had been well trained never to ignore them. His mentor at spy school made an especial point of it. "When a trained spy has a bad feeling there's almost always something to it. Your brain will note things unconsciously - it's your job to bring them to the surface. Your life, or others lives, may well depend on it."

  To deal with his uneasiness Lucas set off to walk the corridors to Sam's lair in the Security Section below ground and on the way to stop in at his own crew of coders. They tended the machines that trolled the networks and alerted to any mention of Gaia, Maeve, High Priestess and a long list of other key words or phrases.

  "Anything new?" he asked.

  He got a chorus of "No sirs" in response and one, "Umm, maybe."

  "What's that?"

  "Well, we're tracking the personnel of A4A except for two who have disappeared. I've been concentrating on them but there's nothing. None of their communication accounts have been used, no mention by their friends, nothing. It has to be deliberate and it bothers me."

  Lucas went to the coder's station and saw the images of two young people, a young man with a broad smile and a young woman of serious mien.

  "Forward the info on them and what you've done so far to Sam and me right away. And keep looking."

  "Yes sir."

  "Good work."

  "Thank you sir."

  "And make sure those files are added to the Do Not Allow Entry files at the venue."

  "Yes sir."

  He continued to Sam's office where the big man was methodically checking lists of people who had applied for tickets to the Gathering. When he saw Lucas he said, "We need an army to go through these lists. Preferably people in the same cities as the applicants. I've got over ten thousand from the New York area alone."

  They talked over the state of preparations and Lucas promised immediate help on the lists. He called Helene to pose the problem and asked if she had help or suggestions to offer."

  "Send me a link to the lists," she said, "and I'll see what I can do."

  Sam brought a holographic image of the venue to his screen and showed Luc
as what he thought was a vulnerability. "We don't scan for explosives until here," he pointed at a check point on the plaza, "but that's only two hundred feet from the main entrance. A bomb going off there would likely kill hundreds in the crowd and maybe compromise the entryway."

  "What do you think we should do?"

  "Move this checkpoint back a hundred yards and reinforce it with explosive resistant material."

  They discussed the problems the new siting offered but decided they were worth overcoming in the interests of safety.

  "And armed drones overhead," said Sam, "to take out any crazies."

  Lucas was nodding when Helene called back. "I have someone here who can check a lot of the list you sent but I want her checked out by Lucas first. Here's her information."

  Lucas looked at the photo of Fran, the extra large woman from Down Below in front of her bank of screens and the names she used on the network.

  "Doesn't look, umm, neat or clean," he said.

  Helene laughed and said, "I quote, we're weird, not stupid."

  Lucas grinned and said, "I'll get on it right away. We need good help, not good looking help."

  In an hour, after finding traces of Fran's fingers all over the network in very surprising places he called Helene and said, "She seems clean from our point of view and more importantly, competent and intelligent."

  "Good. My reading exactly."

  Chapter 38

  Lucas sent Fran the IDs of the two people from A4A who had disappeared to see if she could turn up anything where his cadre hadn't been able to. In two hours she messaged him, "Found something. What do you think?"

  The "something" she had found was a very large credit to the young woman's bank account which had gone in and been pulled out just two minutes later. The deposit had come from AR Enterprises and been transferred to an offshore numbered account. Fran had drawn attention to an accompanying note - "Get her," it said.