Freedom Incorporated, Peter Tylee [literature books to read TXT] 📗

thinking about it made the corners of his lips curl. The case had been a designation-52, a UniForce case, which meant cops weren’t supposed to touch it. Dan hated the way that worked. Most cops did. UniForce acknowledged they were breaking the law, but nobody lifted a finger to stop them because of their political influence. Well… Dan clucked his tongue in his mouth. He remembered his Superintendent, his partner, and even his wife had warned him away. Katherine had begged him to forget about the case after she’d watched him pace their bedroom like a caged beast. But Dan knew there were some things he simply couldn’t ignore if he ever hoped to appease his ravenous conscience. So, despite the hellish 3am phone calls targeted to break his resolve, he pored over the case for seven weeks and tracked, then apprehended the assailant.

The bastard had turned out to be a UniForce operative. And boy was he pissed when I caught him. Dan didn’t enjoy thinking about it. The assassin was still a free man after UniForce bought a gaggle of lawyers and intimidated a handful of judges to protect the sensitive information in his head.

“You’re following in your grandfather’s footsteps?” Dan thought it was a particularly stupid thing to ask but nothing else came to mind and he wanted to smooth over the uneasy tension that’d settled in the car.

She mumbled something softly. Or perhaps it wasn’t a mumble. Perhaps it was her words fighting against the inward rush of highway air whistling past Dan’s shattered window. “Sorry, what was that?”

“I said I can’t.” Jen raised her voice above the din of turbulent air. “Nobody can. Don’t you get it yet? They’ve fixed it so that nobody can take his place.”

Dan had never given it much consideration. He’d always been laid-back and gone with the flow. Like most Australians I suppose. He’d never wanted to demonstrate against the corporations whose presence dominated all aspects of human life. He’d certainly never wanted to incite others to join a foolhardy crusade that was doomed to failure.

But now he was starting to think.

And he didn’t particularly enjoy the picture his mind was painting.

I’ve joined the oppressors. Part of him, the part that was still capable of feeling compassion, felt disgusted and gritty. He knew he was a cog in the massive engine that maintained the status quo, a tiny part of a machine that was so enormous he wasn’t sure whether he could fully comprehend its power. And, blissfully, he was unaware of the sacrifice it would take to halt the machine’s advance. Oh God… A stricken expression entered his otherwise composed demeanour. What would Katherine think? Even though she was gone, Dan was still mindful of her opinions and reactions. In that way, she was a powerful force in his life.

“I’m not a terrorist you know,” Jen said. She looked as if she was starting to relax, or perhaps she was just becoming resigned to her fate - whatever that might be.

“I never assumed you were.”

“But that’s the charge I’m probably facing,” she retorted. She wasn’t directing her anger at him, but she didn’t have a definite object to target. She was simply angry at ‘the system’. “I mean, technically speaking, I am a terrorist. That’s how scared they were of activists, they bundled the opposition in with the people who blew up planes and bombed embassies. Don’t you think that’s a little extreme?”

Dan knew she’d backed him into a corner. How could he disagree with that sort of logic? “Yes, I suppose it is.”

“Well I haven’t done any of that. I’d never touched a gun until today. I’ve never handled explosives, and I’ve never threatened anybody. All I want is to share my point of view - the same way corporations share theirs. That’s it. And for that I’ll either be sent to prison for the rest of my productive life, or executed… which might be preferable.”

“Hmm,” Dan replied. It was all he could manage while so deep in thought.

But Jen was just getting started. “What makes them think their message is so important, so correct, that they have the right to silence all opposing voices?” She clenched her hands into fists and frowned with such intense frustration that it bordered on madness. “They think they’re so fucking righteous! Or maybe they’re scared they’re wrong. Maybe deep down they’re afraid that if someone draws attention to it, people will demand change.” Jen sneered. “They’re terrified of change, I know that. But is it really worth killing for? They’ve killed so many already. They killed my grandfather. They killed his friends and colleagues. I’m sure that Raven freak has killed people. And how about you? Mr Daniel Sutherland?”

“It’s just Dan.”

“Okay. How many people have you killed, Just Dan?”

“I’ve never killed for UniForce.”

“Ha!” But Jen stopped her ridicule short when she saw the truth scrawled on his face. Although it was a guarded answer, she believed it. “Okay, well maybe you haven’t. But I’m sure you have friends who’ve killed for their corporate masters.”

“No. I have no friends.”

“Jesus, who are you? No friends? Sheesh!” But, again, she saw the truth on his face and caught a glimpse of his pain searing just beneath the surface. She softened her tone and said, “I’m sorry.”

Dan faked a smile; it looked strained. “That’s okay.”

“Hasn’t a company ever fucked you over?” Jen asked, pleading her case. She saw him as her judge, jury and executioner - if he so chose.

Dan nodded. “As a matter of fact, yes.” UniForce. Every time they sell my exclusive lists to the Raven.

“And did you do anything about it?” She eyed him curiously, wondering what other gems she’d glean from his expression. But Dan had erected his stony mask again, so she saw nothing. Yet she’d glimpsed something, twice, so she knew he had emotions. And that was good. Maybe I can still get out of this.

“No, I can’t-”

“There!” she exclaimed, triumphantly cutting him off. Then she smiled and added, “You see? They have all the power. They hold all the cards. You’re just living off scraps. When one of them fucks you over there’s nothing you can do. You just accept it and go on. And that is the world my grandfather was fighting to change.”

It was starting to make sense. But just as reason dawned, Dan felt as though an ocean of guilt was tossing him around like a tiny cork. Were my other targets the same? Am I just a corporate tool? Is apprehending these people really the right thing to do? For the first time since Katherine’s death, he wondered whether he’d be proud of his work when he met his almighty maker. If such a thing exists. The jury was still out on that issue. His microchip read ‘agnostic’ in the field reserved for religion. He wanted to believe. He’d wanted so desperately to believe in an afterlife since Katherine’s death. But how could he console the notion of a god with what was happening in the world? It was the same everywhere, droves of ex-believers were abandoning the world’s major religions and flocking to Xantex prescription houses instead. Why not? It was a faster fix than religion and didn’t require any painful soul-searching. Besides, Xantex had better commercials.

He crammed his chaotic thoughts behind the already-straining doors of mental discipline and refocused on his immediate concerns. What am I going to do with her? He found it curious - Jennifer Cameron was the first person he’d apprehended from his new list and he was thinking about letting her go. How the hell did that happen? At this rate he was going to lose a fortune. Yet, somehow, the importance of turning a profit was quickly losing its significance. What’s the point? He desperately needed something fresh in his life, some kind of purpose other than being a capitalist drone. What’s the point of having money if I have to sell my soul? The maths on that just didn’t add up.

Dan risked another look. She’s pretty. She did remind him of Katherine, no matter what he tried to tell himself. Not her looks, Katherine was taller and heavier and had a cute little gap between her front teeth. Yet there was something in the way Jen held herself, the way she spoke and the things she said. It pained him a little.

Finally, he admitted something he’d known deep down for several hours: I can’t turn her in. His decision came from a combination of many things, but he wisely decided against analysing it. Don’t examine it, Danny-boy. Just let it be. The logical part of his mind was throwing spasmodic tantrums but, for the first time in months, he’d thoroughly appeased his conscience.

Now I have to tell her, Dan thought with a slight pang of unease. He didn’t want her to think a few cheap words had convinced him to quit his job. But isn’t that essentially what just happened? Dan scowled and said irritably, “If I don’t turn you in, what should I do with you?”

Hope flared in Jen’s eyes. She sat straighter and licked her lips before hesitantly asking, “Are you serious?”

Dan nodded solemnly.

“So you’re not such an evil hunter after all,” Jen said, sighing with relief. Her words inadvertently stabbed a dagger into Dan’s already tender mind.

He recoiled in shock, but knew Jen hadn’t meant to cause him anguish. “It must be my turn to tell a story,” he said and cleared his throat. “Seven years ago there was a great man, a leader. He was admired by his followers and feared by his corporate enemies. His name was Mike Cameron.”

“This sounds familiar, didn’t-”

“Please let me finish.” Dan needed to get this off his chest. “Mike was assassinated by a UniForce agent and, although the murder wasn’t sanctioned by the WEF, the police couldn’t touch the case due to some tremendous political pressure. You’re one of the few people who might understand that. The pressure UniForce applied was like nothing else the investigating officer had ever experienced in his life.”

Jen did understand, or at least she thought she did. She knew what kind of heinous things corporations would stoop to in the name of preserving their control.

“The investigating officer nearly lost his job and UniForce tormented him for weeks. But he didn’t give up and eventually hauled the assassin’s arse in.”

Jen’s breath froze in her lungs as she grasped what he was trying to tell her. “It was you, wasn’t it?”

Dan nodded. “Yes.”

“But…” She was stunned, too stupefied to finish her thought.

“I’m sorry he got off Jen, I really am.”

Jen braved a wane smile. “Thank you,” she said, then paused to collect her wits. “I mean, thank you for everything you did.” Something seemed strangely out of place. How could this possibly be the same person? “But I don’t understand how you got into bounty hunting. I never would’ve guessed that someone who brought a UniForce assassin to justice” - she shuddered at the pitiful legal system that unashamedly bought and sold ‘justice’ on the open market - “would’ve started working for them.”

Dan clenched his jaw. “Maybe I’ll tell you someday.” But his tone told her that he probably wouldn’t. “I just wanted you to understand that I’m not a monster. I’ve never done anything illegal on behalf of UniForce; I’ve made sure of that.” He heaved a tired sigh. “And I won’t turn you in.” Maybe I’ll start screening targets and return only those who deserve it? But that was impossible, and he knew it. With UniForce double selling my lists, I’m barely breaking even. I can’t choose which targets to apprehend, I’d go bankrupt.

“Since you’re letting me go, I’d like to let Samantha know I’m