18.98: An ONC 2023 Thriller

Chapter 1

THE PRESENT

Tonight, Liv Tandy broke one of her many self-prescribed rules. Without thinking about the repercussions, she answered a call from an unknown number. It was a lapse in judgement she regretted immediately.

"Hello?" While waiting for a response, she reminded herself not to say the word yes while on the call. She'd read about this; one innocuous word spoken to the wrong person could result in financial ruin. All a scammer had to do was record her affirmation and then use it to claim she'd consented to something she hadn't.

"You probably don't remember who I am." The caller had a deep voice, but it lilted up at the end of his sentence, as if he had forgotten his own identity and was hoping she'd clue him in.

"You'll have to give me a bit more information."

"Right." He let out a nervous laugh then cleared his throat. "I'm Graham. Graham Victor."

Not a scammer then, but possibly worse. Liv's hands began to tremble. She placed her phone on top of her fifties vintage linoleum table to avoid dropping it. Graham Victor calling her was neither something she'd expected nor a pleasant development.

"I'm Helina's brother."

"I know who you are." She tapped a shaking hand against her chest in hopes it would calm her racing heart. One two three. One two three. "What's this about?"

"It's about my sister." He drew out the last word like its two syllables were meant to be uttered in a sacred space. A sister, a shrine, consecrated ground. "This is going to be hard to explain."

She didn't doubt that. Anything to do with Helina tended to be complicated, and in Liv's opinion, also had a tendency to veer towards the less-than-holy. Liv slumped into one of her mismatched kitchen chairs. She stared at her phone while Graham spoke, but it was like listening to a physician detail treatment options after handing out a life-threatening diagnosis. Everything following the words "she's missing" lost meaning.

"And so, that's when I thought to call you, Liv."

At the sound of her name, Liv's attention bubbled back up to the surface. She'd heard him, but the context for what he said had been lost on her. "Why?"

A shuffling sound emanated from the phone, like Graham was moving around, possibly opening a door. "I'm in her room now. She's got all this equipment. You can imagine."

Yes, Liv could imagine. She'd seen it before and had some of the same tech herself.

"What does this have to do with me?"

"You have more knowledge about this stuff. Way more than I do. I mean, she taught me some things, but I'm no expert."

"Neither am I."

"Come on," he said in a light tone, as though he assumed she was joking. "I saw all the videos. You know your shit."

"I made those a long time ago." Almost as long ago as the last time she'd spoken to Helina. "I don't see how they could possibly apply now."

He cleared his throat again. "I'm not explaining myself very well, am I?"

"It's understandable. You're under a lot of stress." She tried to infuse her words with empathy, but they came out sounding flatter than she'd intended. Her emotions had been redirected and she wasn't sure Graham Victor warranted her rerouting them.

"No one is taking this seriously." His voice rose. "What's even worse is that I can't tell them what really happened to her."

Liv continued to tap over her palpitating heart. "Are you saying you know what happened?"