Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Hacker Zi ❯ Part Nine ( Chapter 9 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

DISCLAIMER: While Hacker Zi and its characters were created by me, some of the screen names were taken from actual people. Please DO NOT TRY TO CONTACT THEM. The story is purely fictional

The truth will set you free. So does lying enslave you? Are advertisers true to their word, do they fulfill their promises of a certain product being better than the rest, the money can buy happiness? He says we're slaves. Slaves to the lies that created us. Slaves to our materialistic values. Can money bring you happiness? Does it make you feel secure? No. But maybe having someone you love by your side, maybe that can give you that secure feeling?
So do I feel secure at his side? No. There's rage, and hate. But that feeling isn't there. Maybe....if she were at my side....would she feel secure? Would I?
David slowly opened his eyes. He was surrounded in darkness. The glow of the alarm clock told him it was the dead of night. Turning his head he saw that the other side was empty. He wasn't there. What a mess he was in.

“So why the need to call?”
“You're little friend is causing a lot of unnecessary fucking problems. His fucking case file is still open!”
“So, you're a cop. Close it.”
“That might have been possible if I had been on the case from the start, but now it'll be nearly impossible.”
“Those detectives can't have gotten much. Do you know what they have already?”
“A little fucking birdie, thats what they have! Apparently an ipod is missing from the bastards house and this Cross fellow thinks its enough to keep the case open.”
“.....a little birdie?”
“Someone is giving them information.”
“Virgil wouldn't be stupid enough to supply the cops with information. We monitor everyones computers.....but that still leaves a number of possibilities.”
“It has to be that fucking ipod. Does he have one on him?”
“No. He didn't have one on him at all after the suicide thing. It must have come up missing before he came to us.”
“Well whatever the case, Cross is getting his info somehow and his fucking sister gives him encouragement.”
“....encouraging? How?”
“She's been giving him some kind of subtle hints. He didn't go into much detail about it.”
“....what if she's receiving subtle hints as well?”
Rick stood from his chair and walked towards a small hallway. As he passed a table, he grabbed a gun that had been laying there. He made his way to the last door and slowly turned the handle. As it creaked open he entered and approached the bed. He heard someone rollover and sit up. Grabbing his shirt collar he pulled David out of bed and threw him against the wall. Rick then pressed the barrel of the gun against his neck. Michael watched from the doorway.
“So tell me David, where's the ipod?”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
He tried to play dumb, but he knew it was of no use. Thoughts entered his mind and lingered there no matter how hard he tried to dismiss them. They had found out about the ipod, or at least they knew of its existence. He now wondered if they knew what was on it. He wondered if they knew about the note, about Nick. The pressure of the gun barrel against his skin brought him back to his senses.
“The ipod. What did you do with it?”
“I gave it to a friend for safekeeping.”
“What was on it?”
“Stuff.”
Wrong answer. He knew it as soon as the words escaped his mouth. He waited for the clicking of the hammer and the trigger to be squeezed. He waited for the bullet to enter and exit his body so that his alleged suicide would become true. He hated living in this lie. He hated being away from his friends. But it never happened. Instead, he was hit in the stomach. He felt Ricks clenched fist make contact with his midsection and then nothing else. His senses began to blur and he fell to the ground. The last thing he saw before he blacked out was Ricks angry expression glaring down at him, and then darkness.

“So whats the plan?”
“We continue as scheduled.”
“And what do we do about this....setback?”
“What setback, Dane?”
Rick turned to look at his mentor, who glared back at him with menacing green eyes. He was a bit shorter than Rick, but somehow held more authority over him than anyone else. The mans clothes seemed to hang loosely over his small body. His hair was kept short, but was long enough for him to spike it.
“Your little friend could be supplying the police with information, or at least leaving them bread crumbs.”
“Impossible. I gave him vague details before he came to us.”
“But this ipod, we can't ignore it. Do we know who has it?”
“Its that girl, Nick.”
Rick and Dane both looked over. A woman and two men were sitting at a computer. One of them was turned toward their direction. He had dark black hair that rivaled Ricks, and deep blue eyes that were full of curiosity, or perhaps it was cleverness.
“Remember that time in the chatroom, someone using the handle Zi entered, then everyone left? I stayed behind. She was under the impression that your little pet was calling the shots. But Kai and I took care of it. We attacked her computer, but when she gets it back up and running we'll be able to monitor everything she does.”
“Good. And how's the virus coming along?”
“It'll still take a while, even with the three of us working on it nonstop it'll at least be another four months. Thats assuming everything goes according to plan and there aren't any....setbacks.”
“There's still the matter with Virgil.”
“What about him?”
“He's angry. The first stunt you pulled endangered the life of someone he cared about. Now you've gone and hurt him. When he comes after you, he won't hold back. He'll hit you with full force.”
“He'll have to find me first.”
“He has connections. Do you know the story behind his handle?”
“Why should I care?”
“Caring could be the difference between achieving your goals or ending up behind bars. He's a gray hat. He isn't a cracker, but he doesn't work for the police. He supplies both sides with information and watches from the sidelines. Back when the Gods were around he supplied a certain individual with information about them. Virgil helped this individual beat them at their own game. He taught your pet everything he knows. And pets usually return to their rightful owners.”
“Gray hat or not, we can take care of him, with the right opportunity. As for David, he won't be leaving anytime soon.”

When David opened his eyes the first thing he realized was that he was in another room. The room lacked windows, the only light source was from a bulb that hung from the ceiling like a spider on its web. This room was smaller than the other. The only place to sit comfortably was on the matress that lay on the ground. David didn't even bother trying the door. He figured Rick had locked him in, otherwise there'd be no reason to move him. For a while he just stared up at the ceiling, trying to ignore the small pain in his stomach. He couldn't tell if it was from hunger or from when Rick had hit him, but he wished the pain would go away.
At some point during his confinement he gave up on the ceiling and turned his attention toward the door. There was no way of knowing what time it was, but judging by the noises his stomach began to make, he assumed it had to have been late afternoon, or even later. When he saw a shadow move threw the gap in the door he didn't even budge. Then when he heard her voice he moved closer. His sister must have been told where he was. He seemed somewhat relieved to have human contact again, but at the same time he was glad his sister couldn't see him. He must have looked pitiful.
“David, its me.”
“What time is it?”
“Its around four. Are you hungry?”
“A little.”
What a lie he told. In truth, he was starving. At the mention of food his stomach began to moan again. He ignored it.
“I have an energy bar....do you want it?”
Before he could answer, the bar was passed through the door. His hand moved to open it, but he stopped himself. It would be best to save it for later. Tossing it on the mattress beside him, he turned his attention back to his sister.
“You shouldn't be here. Rick'll probably be pissed if he finds you here.”
“He's the one that told me where you were. What happened?”
“I did something he didn't like. I tried to stay connected to my past.....to my friends.”
There was a pause. David listened through the door as his sister began to cry. He could hear her sobs, even though she tried to silence them. Moving close to the door, he slid his hand through the small gap. A moment later he felt the tight grip of his sisters hand.
“....he...he could have killed you....why did you get mixed up in something like this?”
“.....its alright Netty. Nothing bad is going to happen to me. I promise.”
In truth, everything was far from alright. He was locked in a room with no means of escaping. To think he had given up his friends for something like this. He had hurt the ones he loved, and now it was coming back to haunt him.
“....I guess....I just wanted to get away....I felt like everyone was holding me back. When I met Rick over a year ago, he said there was a way to escape....to be free to do anything. But in reality, I was trading my freedom for a cage. Rick's words just seemed to mesmerize me. He knew exactly what he wanted to do, and he had the means to do it. But his words are as empty as an addicts promise to get better. It just can't happen. What a fool I was.”
“.....that guy at the computer store, why did he say he was disappointed in you? Who is he?”
“Virgil.....he taught me everything I know. He helped me a few years ago. He's neither good or bad. He's that one area where things become ambiguous. I managed to fit into that area, but after meeting Rick, I became a Black hat. A hacker to be hunted by his own kind. He was the closest thing I had to a 'father'.”
“Maybe he could help? I....I could contact him.....and....and tell him whats happened to you!”
“After I pressed a gun to his head? I'm as good as dead to him.”
“...but....but its worth a try....isn't it?!?”
“.....”
He felt her hand slip away as she stood and left. He was alone again. What would she do? What would Virgil do? David figured he'd turn his sister away, and laugh. Laugh at the pathetic state he had fallen into. Who could blame him, especially after the hell he had been put through?
Where would he be if he hadn't have met Rick? Would he be with his friends, with Nick? How would things have been if he had been on the other side, helping Virgil defeat Defiance? Tears came to his eyes as he began to look back at the way things were. As he was evaluating his life, he realized just how pitiful, how naive he truly was. To think that he had believed in Rick's empty words, in his hollow ideals.
And if he left? What then? Its not like Rick and the others would just let him leave, no. He wouldn't make it out of Defiance alone. Even with his sisters help, he was still at a disadvantage. And being locked in this room made things even more difficult, almost unbearable.
What would his friends think of him? What would Nick think? His fake suicide had put them all through hell, maybe even traumatized them. If he were to show up at their doorsteps, what would they say? How would they react? David wondered if he would be accepted by them....or would he be shunned for betraying their trust? For betraying their love?

Annette left her brother on the verge of crying again. After wiping the tears from her face, she went to her room and grabbed her backpack. It contained her laptop and cellphone, as well as her journal. She left her room, placing the straps on either shoulder, and headed for the door to the rundown schoolhouse. None of the others even glanced up as she left. Most were too busy with the virus, others, like Katrina, didn't have to ask where she was going. She watched the girls movements on her own laptop. Both the cellphone and laptop contained a tracking device. Rick was smart in placing one in every members phones and computers. Unfortunately for him, Annette was smarter.
Staying as far away from her true destination as possible, she headed for a bookstore. There she would leave her bag with a friend, and then take a bus to Virgil's store. As she entered the bookstore, she saw her friend working at the counter. The woman there had auburn hair that went past her shoulder blades and her glasses made her hazel eyes seem brighter. Upon seeing Annette, the woman left the counter, running over to give the girl a hug.
“I haven't seen you in a long time! How's school?”
“Great as usual. Listen...can I leave my bag with you? I'm going to be going downtown, into a bad neighborhood with my friends, we have an errand to run. Can I leave my bag here with you? I won't be gone long.”
“Of course you can. Do you have a cellphone you can take with you, in case something happens?”
“No, mine was stolen.”
An obvious lie. The woman however, just shook her head, then reached into her pocket and held her phone out to Annette. At first she was hesitant, but finally took it.
“Take it with you. The number to the store is on it, so just call if something comes up.”
“....thanks. I'll be sure to bring it back.”
Annette removed the bag from her shoulders and handed it to the woman. She then placed the phone inside her pocket and left the bookstore. Once outside she headed for the nearest bus stop. A few minutes later she was on her way to Virgil's store. She just hoped he was there.
When Annette entered the store, Virgil was sitting at the register. The look he gave her revealed that he was anything but amiable. Two others were in the back unpacking computer parts.
“You're one of the last people I expected to see here. What the fuck do you want.”
“Please....you have to help my brother.”
“I don't have to do shit, especially for that fucking son of a bitch.”
Both Nick and Ryan looked towards the register. This was a new side of him that Nick was seeing, Ryan on the other hand had been witness to this side only once, and the results weren't good. Putting the parts back in the box he headed for the register, motioning for Nick to stay where she was. By the time he reached Brandon, tears were already forming in the girls eyes.
“....please.....Rick could.....he....might kill him!”
Brandon didn't move. Ryan stayed far enough away to avoid any backlashes from his friend or the girl. He had never seen her before, but the name Rick was familiar to him. Could she be talking about a member of Defiance? The girls sudden movement brought him back to the present. She had exited the store without saying a word. After a moment Ryan turned to look at his friend.
“What a fine mess he's dragged me into.”
“....you mean Rick?”
“No.....Wolfy.”
“What!?! Well you can't just let him die! Otherwise, you'd be no better than a Black hat, you'd be down on Ricks level.”
“I know that, dammit!”
“So what are you going to do?”
“Stay here and watch the store with Nick. Don't tell her anything.”
Making sure his keys were in his pocket, he exited the store and went to his car, a red Cobalt. He then drove off in the direction the girl had ran. When he finally caught up to her, she was standing at the bus stop. Rolling down his window, he called out to her.”
“Get in the car.”
“Why? You made it clear that you didn't care what happened to him!!!”
“Just get in the fucking car and take me there, dammit!”
Reluctantly, the girl got in. An uneasy silence filled the car as they left the bus stop. Annette was too nervous to talk, too afraid. She had seen how violent the man could be when provoked, and she feared she had almost pushed him over the edge. Luckily, he was the one to break the silence first.
“Where is it?”
“Its at an old schoolhouse. Its in - “
“I know where you're talking about. So, where is he?”
“He's on the second floor. It looked dark, so I don't think there are any windows.”
Brandon tried to think back. There weren't many rooms without windows on the second floor. He recalled three, one of them being a small janitors closet. This meant that he could easily find him, but getting up there without being noticed would be difficult.
“Is anyone else on the second floor?”
“....not usually. Three of them are always at a computer, and the others sometimes leave for a bit, except for a woman on the first floor. She's always there. She monitors where we go.”
“So where does she think you are?”
“At a bookstore. I need to go back there, or at least be left somewhere. If I get caught....”
“Where's the bookstore?”
“Its down by a pizza place. Its called 'Book Express'.”
“...I know the place. I'll drop you off. Do I need to come back?”
“No. I'll be gone by the time you get him out.”
Brandon watched as the girl exited the car. After she had gone inside he drove off toward the schoolhouse. He had never expected to be helping him, or his sister to show up asking for the help. But he couldn't just leave him there. Even he admitted that it would be wrong.