I get past the makeshift entrance and find myself in a decent sized room. Well, it is more of a void, a place that has been hollowed out as outdated subsystems were removed. The bare walls have been decorated with surprisingly well-done graffiti and a few anti-corporate posters. The space has been filled with random pieces of furniture, crates of supplies, and a few makeshift weapons racks.

There are well over a dozen people occupying the space; none of them appear on any social network, meaning that they are Untouchables. The ironic thing is that I am close to being one of them. Their response to the presence of me and Ashley is slow, they clearly didn’t expect to see us.

The surprised rebels start to react, reaching for weapons, but not drawing them. And then I see her, Jill. She is dressed in the plain, brandless clothing of an Untouchable. Her dishwater blond hair is tied back, to my shock she looks calm.

After all this time, I have finally seen her. She’s so close, but I can’t just grab her and run. And at this point I’m less than sure that I even want to. Ashley is holding her arms out like she is showing them that she is unarmed, but I know the truth, she is ready to attack.

I look around at the growing crowd, “You guys have really bad security, hell, you don’t even have a door!”

Mason approaches me, his hands are empty, “Everyone is welcome to come in. Untouchables stick together, we have nothing to worry about.”

His eyes are just as intense as they are in the photos from the police records. Mason is a man with a purpose, an all-consuming purpose that blinds him to any and all outside concerns. He speaks with a certainty that few are blessed with.

“Well I aint an Untouchable, at least not yet. I think you know why I am here.”

He studies me with interest, “Come on, sit down and we can talk.”

Ashley interjects, “I want to talk to her, make sure that she is alright.”

He gives her a once over, visibly writes her off as a Kawaiichen, “That’s fine by me. Go talk to her, she isn’t a prisoner.”

Ashley walks over to Jill. For a second I feel concern, wonder if I should let her wander off alone. But then I bitterly remember the fact that she is more than capable of taking care of herself.

Mason leads me to the middle of the room. Chairs and a sofa are arranged in a crude circle around a wooden coffee table. The chairs are surprisingly fancy, probably pulled out of some abandoned hotel. Mason sits down on the couch. A woman with a fade cut, an OD green tank top, fatigue pants, and a set of combat boots sits down in one of the fancy chairs. Her body is all whipcord muscles and tomboy scars. She looks like she could take most people in a fight. Her eyes are glued to me. “This is Toni,” Mason says, “Forgive her, she is highly motivated.”

I pull out my revolver before taking a seat, he doesn’t get mad, he gets that I am just being cautious. “What is all of this about?” I ask.

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“I want access to a multiplayer virtual world.”

You’ve got to be kidding me, “I know that you don’t have access to the corporate ones, but if you want to frag some people or mess around you can just make your own.”

“Don’t be a smart ass. This is a very special world, the Grotto, it is where the people that secretly control the world go to plot and plan.”

I do a quick search for it. The Grotto is a conspiracy theory, just as he said, it is supposedly where the elites go to hold their secret meetings. I don’t know if I should be amused or horrified. Next, he is going to start speculating on who really killed Tim Martin. “Now you are being the silly one,” I say with a chuckle. Toni looks like she wants to cut my head off.

He is undeterred, “I’m being serious. Contact Senator Tom Smith, tell him that I will trade access to the Grotto for the girl.”

This time I don’t need to do a search. Everyone knows who Tom Smith is. He is a high level Alpha Prime politician, easily the most prominent Pee Bee. Unlike the others, the Pee Bees and Alpha don’t have a set party. They are instructed to vote for whichever candidate seems like they will be the lesser of two evils. The Freedom party and the Liberty party will often fight over Alpha’s votes.

Smith is legitimately popular; I could see either party supporting a presidential campaign. He could do it, he could be the first ever member of the People of the Book to be president. And now I am being told that he is compromised. Is that what this has all been about, blackmailing one of the few senators that people actually like? Sure, he is high up on the totem pole, but would it really be worth all of this effort?

“What happened? I’m going to assume that it is about a sexual encounter.”

“Don’t worry about it. Once I get access to that virtual world you can have Jill.”

“How can you give her to me if you are handing her over to the senator?”

“I won’t. By that point it won’t matter,” he smiles, “I’m going the blow to whole thing open, expose them all.”

“A noble goal. Why don’t you contact the senator yourself?”

“It is proving to be more difficult than I thought. He is well guarded, and my unfortunate status isn’t helping things.”

I do a bit of quick checking. Senator Smith is known to like his historic VR simulations. Maybe it is the truth, maybe it is just a publicity thing, maybe it is a bit of both. It doesn’t really matter. If I can find him in a game, I can deliver Mason’s ultimatum, and I can be one step closer to ending this.

“Fine, I’ll do it. I need an out of the way place to stay.”

He points to a series of partitions that are made out of particle board and cloth, “You can use one of those rooms.”

I get up, suddenly very concerned about Ashley. After a few nervous seconds I spot her standing in a corner talking to Jill. I join them, Toni following close behind, but still saying nothing.

“I think that your friend wants to talk to you. It was nice meeting you, Ash,” Jill smiles at me warmly as she walks away. I didn’t even say a word to her. How the hell did I let her slip away like that?

I motion for Ashley to follow me. I find an unoccupied room, we enter, closing the curtain. The little room features a simple bed and a cheap dresser. It is just a place for someone to spend a night or two in.

I look at Ashley unsurely, “Well?”

“She went with Mason willingly. He told her that it was for a good cause, that she could help a lot of people.”

“From Mason’s point of view that is a completely true statement,” I fill her in on the revolutionary leader’s offer and my plan to get in touch with Smith.

She looks away, examining the flimsy looking wall, “What do you think?”

“I can use a proxy to hide my true identity from the company. But they might figure it out eventually. And then I’m all out, I become one of them.”

“What about her? You going to hand her over?”

“Don’t you want me to? After all, Mr. Burke is your boss.”

“And I know what could happen to her. If Mr. Burke, or whoever is controlling him, wants her silenced…”

“I know the risks, and I feel rotten about it. But if I don’t do as told, I could end up the same way.”