Crowd: A Dystopian Social Network Thriller (Final Draft)

Locked-in

Rain and Sasha could chat in a nearby and separate room. No furniture, no shelves, just blank walls with dirty white paint covering whatever nasty messages lurked beneath. Two Red Block guys guarded the door and were busy looking grim and menacing.

They succeeded.

Rain couldn't suppress the shiver that had plagued her ever since entering this rundown building. She should have listened to her instincts.

Sasha told Graham to walk toward the corner and raised his voice. "What the hell is going here?"

White paint or dust particles stuck to Graham's sweaty skin as his face wrinkled. "It's not forbidden to talk, right? I'm a free man."

Rain's curiosity cut into Sasha's investigation. But she had to know. "Are these guys from the Red Block?"

"D'uh."

"Why are you advising them?" Sasha asked, taking control of the conversation again.

"You're consulting me, I'm consulting others. We all play our part."

"What are you consulting them about?"

Sasha stepped closer and penetrated Graham's private space. Rain feared he could do something stupid, but Sasha could contain his attitude. For now.

"Nothing special," Graham said but looked away. Another hint that he lied.

"They need a bit of organizational help and given my background as—" He stopped in mid-sentence, looking past Sasha's shoulder. The two masked Blockers seemed to freak him out.

"Continue."

"I'm consulting them on community organizing and rallying protestors."

"You mean you tell them how to riot."

"Don't give me this holier-than-you attitude," Graham said in his passive-aggressive voice. "You got your high ranks and Crowd privileges. Your fancy discounts and premium pay. I lost all of them because of one stupid scandal."

Playing the victim again. A common tactic when the culprits were involved in shady behavior but tried to blame someone else.

Rain chimed in, much to the dismay of Sasha. "Then why keep the ranking? You know you can just drop out."

Graham breathed heavily. His twitchy eyes shot between her and Sasha, as if deciding who of them was more menacing to him.

"How do they pay you?" Sasha asked.

Graham's tongue wetted his lips. Another unconscious gesture that meant he was conflicted about an issue. If only Rain could enter his mind and read his thoughts.

Rain wanted to tap his worries. Unlock his secrets and understand what in the world was going on here.

Sasha repeated Rain's words with more pressure. "If the ranking is that damaging for you, why don't you log out?"

Rain stood close to Sasha and felt his body energy. He tensed up and pulsated with raw energy. "Just answer us."

"Or what?"

Sasha grabbed his collar and pushed him against the wall. Rain extended her hand. "Sasha."

"Don't you fucking lie to us. We're risking our asses to come visit you out here."

"Didn't ask you to."

"It's our job you nut. Remember the first time you contacted Crowd for assistance? We're trying to help you rank high again."