Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 77961 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77961 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Howard C. Westminster passed away this morning, surrounded by family. Please respect their privacy in this trying time.
Did I kill him? Not directly. Is it my fault? Definitely partially.
I didn’t make him funnel company funds into his private account. I’m not the one that told him to store sex videos of him and his business partner on the work servers. He was the one that chose all of the things that made him decide it was easier to check out than to try and repair his life. But I’m the one that designed the system that made that information public, even if I didn’t know he existed until it was too late.
“If all information is available, none of it has power!” Dad's weird brand of capitalistic idealism makes him impossible to reason with. He truly believes that this is the future. That all secrets should be exposed for the good of mankind, but he also sees nothing wrong with stuffing his wallet on the disruption it will cause in the meantime. To the victor go the spoils.
I don't want this responsibility.
I glance over at Bull and Diesel, who are totally absorbed in their game. They don’t pay any attention when I go to my backpack and pull out a small circuit board with a USB plug on the end. Dad doesn’t know it, but with this one tiny dongle, I can—at least temporarily—stop the entire project.
At the risk of my career, my relationship with my father, and after this demonstration, the anger of very dangerous people.
A person died after our first official demonstration.
I need to move. Slamming the laptop shut, I stand up and shove the dongle back in my bag. “I'm going to the common room for a drink. I need a little change of scenery.” When Bull starts to get up, I put a hand on his shoulder. “It's fine. I’m not a prisoner, right? Watch your game. Shrapnel said he’d be there.”
He looks up at me with a scowl. “You don’t go wandering, and you don’t leave the building.”
“Yes, sir.” I salute.
“I like how you’re following our orders already.” Diesel grins, his blue eyes glittering with amusement.
“Yeah, that’s going to last.” Bull chuckles.
“I promise to behave. Just getting a soda and doing some biker watching.” I squeeze his shoulder, surprised at how solid the muscle is under there. “Jeeze, do you keep rocks under your shirt or something?”
“No, just in his head,” Diesel says. “When you get there, find Shrapnel first.”
Someone does a sports thing on the TV and the boys get distracted, pointing excitedly.
“Got it.” I close the door behind me, leaving them to it.
The common room seems to be gearing up for a party. I've gotten the impression the Screaming Eagles throw a lot of those, with or without a specific reason. The music isn't super loud yet, and people are just filtering in, a couple at a time, so for a biker hangout, it's still relatively quiet. Not that there isn't action. Someone's put porn on the big screen TV in the back, and if I'm not mistaken, that's Jasmine's bare back I see as she grinds on top of a guy with a bright red mullet while they both watch.
The whole place feels like an erotic amusement park, so it’s hard to feel shocked at any one thing. I’m more like a tourist from a small town on their first trip to a big city, marveling at all the tall buildings, or in this case, men.
A purple-haired woman is manning the bar together with Chef. She bumps her hip playfully into his as she moves past him. When he grumbles, “What the fuck, Jewel?” she just smiles.
She spots me and comes over as I slide onto one of the stools. “Hey there. I don't think we've met yet. You must be Rory.” Putting her forearms down on the bar, she leans over and looks at me with perfect smoky eyes. “You look like you need a drink. Are the boys treating you right? If not, just whisper in my ear and I’ll find you some new volunteers. A pretty new face like you would have plenty to choose from.”
“Thanks, but they’re fine. It’s just a heavy situation.” The sluts said Jewel was nice, and I see what they mean. She seems perfectly comfortable here, without anything to prove.
“You want to talk about it? Sometimes someone who's not involved can be a good sounding board.”
I shake my head and hope my smile doesn't look too tired. “Thanks, but I just want a soda, if that's okay. Have you seen Shrapnel?”
“Soda? Fuck that! Three margaritas, please!” Opal slides onto the stool next to me. “What is it they say? The best way to get over something is to get under something else?”
“That’s about men,” Cherry says as she joins us on my other side.