L'Gem

  Chapter Twelve

  Knight, Blade and Nev were having late afternoon 'morning' tea, when the mobile news vehicle pulled into the drive. Knight hit the control and Jace drove into the garage. Knight closed it behind them. An IS vehicle came around the corner before it was quite closed, but went past. Bance ran into the kitchen.

  "Comm connect Channel Forty-eight newsroom, Hammison."

  "Bance!"

  "We made it. Everyone else?"

  "All in. You were my scare. Too far away."

  "No, almost too far. It made it hard to comply. We may have had a half-second to spare. Comm out."

  "No news?"

  "IS updates only, no news vehicles on the street at sixteen our time, Knight."

  "You may have had a half-second. They were after you. Outrage the people."

  "We know. We knew a shortcut, a harvest road that's not on maps. We didn't want to look to see how fast Jace was driving down that mountain."

  "That includes me. I wouldn't have done it that fast in my car, but that thing's all-terrain and proved the value today. If there wasn't a chance we could get in, we'd have left that fortune in a field."

  "Hammison would have understood, Jace."

  "I know, Knight, but Silky would've cried. I was just trying for off the street, when I saw the garage door opening."

  "I kissed our little lucky wyvern twice."

  "Once before and once after I did."

  "I gave it one when I shut her off."

  "Comm Chief Dennon."

  "I'm glad you have company, Nev."

  "So are we. I suspect breakfast slowed things just long enough. Would you please feed the dogs again, and give them some of Grandma Neighbor's puppy treats for later?"

  "Sure will. I know where to get the treats."

  "Thank you. Comm out."

  "You think they gave us time?"

  "The garage door was almost closed, Bance. I think they may have been just far enough behind for you to get off the street. If they'd really wanted to catch you, they'd been right behind you and had a half-minute time difference."

  "These are little more civilized than most, or they couldn't keep their hands off people, but we're still working with negative numbers."

  "Answer comm. Hi, Danny."

  "They're there! Comm out."

  "Several people are worried. Comm guys."

  "They made it!"

  "Off a pounding heartbeat before, Case. Hit the trail, please."

  "I'm five sentences behind Stats. Comm out."

  Two women and a man ran through the front door and Nev, Knight and Blade got out of the way fast. After they'd grabbed and held on until the shakes went away, all three turned to look at them. Nev and Knight looked at Blade.

  "It's unanimous."

  "Comm Channel Forty-eight newsroom, Hammison."

  "Yes, Nev?"

  "I'd like to make arrangements to buy the thing in my garage. I want to upgrade some things you wouldn't and give it as a wedding present. 'Maybe a half-second' wasn't quite long enough for my nerves. We can make it a bit longer, if it ever happens again."

  "Whose wedding?"

  "From the clutches in my kitchen, it may be a triple, but I think Day and Jace may decide they like separate rooms most of the time. I plan to change the color, but give them nice decorations for it for daily wear."

  "It's an unusual gift, but appropriate, I think. Make sure we get a large group invitation. It's sold. I know what licensed dealer to do it through. I'll figure out what for and let you know the size of the dent, even in your bank account."

  "I'd like it to happen very fast."

  "I've got thirty years practice moving at your pace. I just never met any people in other professions who thought it was normal. Comm out."

  "I wouldn't have suggested that, Nev. I'm glad you did. Bance, I wouldn't have thought of marriage either, but I wasn't worried. I was terrified and desperate. I love you. I met and fell in love with the man of my dreams in one night. You're not even ready for the idea, but I've got the most reliable group opinion in existence backing my feeling."

  "Silky, we're getting married. Jace is still the perfect roommate for us. I need help getting you out of the house."

  "Probably."

  "I just… Comm Dancy Valley, Neardon farm."

  "Bance!"

  "Hi, Mom. I'm not going to bring her home yet, for obvious reasons, but I'm sure someone will pick up Grandmother's wedding gown for a little tailoring. This is Veronica, Ronnie. My mom and dad, Laurel and Dalor."

  "Hi, I was too scared not to inform him were getting married, as soon as they just made compliance. Since everyone else started making wedding plans, he obviously decided we're sure enough for him too."

  "I'm just surprised, Mom, not unsure. It'll be a double wedding in the sculpture garden. Silky was informed he's getting married too. Jace is already plotting with Essa to reduce his denning tendency. I'm in love and I'll never get bored with the scenery either."

  "I never have, Bance. We know who Ronnie is. We also know you just met. My dad proposed to my mom half-an-hour after they did, Ronnie. They just finished the harvest before they got the license. His mom and I made our wedding plans when we were four and five, so people don't realize it was right after we met. We'll bring the gown. There will be seventeen of us coming. Find us, and Silky's twenty-one, beds. We'll be there in a half-hour. I'll call them."

  "Yes, Dad."

  "Comm out."

  "And I thought we moved fast."

  "My family will bring a wedding dress too, Essa."

  "Comm Lockton Holstead."

  "Hello, Bance."

  "Judge, Silky and I are both getting married. We hadn't set a date, just decided double in the sculpture garden. My dad said they'll be here, two entire families, with wedding gowns in a half-hour."

  "Your dad knows where it's going to 'localized' hail and how big the stones will be. Nineteen. License forms coming on screen. Put walls around those five sculptures, so no one hits them."

  "Thank you. We'll do it in front of the gates, so the neighbors who can't get in the garden can see."

  "Give them walls, too. Tell Tarn theirs is right after."

  As soon as the license forms were signed, Bance commed a jeweler. He and Silky described, then Ronnie and Essa did. The jeweler said she had the described and put hands on the pad for sizing. Since none was needed, she said she'd be where they were in ten minutes.

  Nev commed Danny. Bance commed the newsroom. Knight commed Tarn. Nev commed Mike and told him to comm Chal to team. Kendra commed them and said she and team had bed and parking logistics. Then Ronnie gave the three a brief. She finished it with the level eight punchline and three burst into laughter. Ronnie always found the best way to organize information.

  Bance told Knight he hadn't thought of relieving his curiosity as part of wedding preparations, but was glad it had been. It had started gnawing again when the judge said, "Tarn."

  People hit the neighborhood trail and things happened fast. Bance was moved again in minutes. Most of his things and clothes went into a spare bedroom in Ronnie's house. He didn't have any furniture that needed to be moved. Neither did Essa. Jason just took an overnighter to Day's. The entire backyard area of a block, except the sculpture garden, was rapidly 'walled and roofed.' The garden wouldn't be included in the reception.

  When families began to arrive, cars were directed to open garages and people led to their rooms. A driveway list was delivered to the newsroom. An LH made a delivery to Chal. The hotel from which it came was paid in cash. The reception goodies were the neighborhood's gift. Mike and Loren loved "working under a great chef in his kitchen," and nine neighbors', with staff in each.

  Tarn's family had a wedding gown, too, so three brides had fittings. Tarn was given the 'perfect' formal attire out of Bance's wide assortment and it was tailored. By eighteen twenty, when the judge arri
ved to conduct a brief rehearsal, a wedding cake was being assembled across several tables. Tables and chairs were still being delivered, but all buffet tables were prepared, for a reception for nearly a thousand. Jace was best man for two. Donce was best man for the other. Both had perfect.

  Rina had made a back door visit to a shop. Dawn and Danny had matching bridesmaid gowns. Kath's was a bit different. Stats and Day both raided Jace's closet. Bellin's father had brought his perfect to escort a bride.

  At eighteen thirty-one, a car was delivered. The saleswoman from their favorite lot didn't give Nev a bill for that one. She gave it to Jace. Nev got one for another vehicle. Her ride was her great-uncle. He had a document printer in his car and everything ready to submit. Grooms quickly signed, neither really noticing what they were signing. At eighteen thirty-six, documents printed. The gov licensing comp was extremely unbusy. What he'd signed registered when Jace gave Silky the documents.

  "You bought us a car!"

  "My wedding present, more to Essa than you. She'll remember what that thing in the garage is for. Bance, I didn't include you because they made it clear they want me here."

  "I understand, Jace. You decided you'd be borrowing your car from Essa in days."

  "Exactly. That car has a finicky comp. It doesn't have to be replaced but it can be irritating. You're paying for a stall in the boat house for the other vehicle too. Day's paying for dates for a while."

  "How bad?"

  "I don't save money, Bance. It was leftovers and there is enough left for everything but dates for a while. Since those probably won't be at clubs, I doubt Day will need to rework his budget."

  "Sure you two don't want to be included?"

  "We both know we're in the right place. We may rearrange someday, when Essa's building a playground in the front yard, but we already made the right commitment for us. Hammison thinks all three of us falling in love in one night is hilarious. If we all got married together, he'd still be giggling, when he sent us somewhere, in five years."

  "I just realized I don't want to 'move up to the big time,' any longer."

  "You never really did, Bance. You just knew people who said you could were right. Correcting their impression all local news reporters have that ambition wasn't necessary, and would have been time-consuming. Now you can just say this is a great place for kids to grow up and they won't need an explanation."

  The setting, the brides and the wedding were beautiful. The reception was wonderful. The newsroom crew gave recordings of them as their gift. Other gifts were invisibly delivered to the big house after dark.

  Blade had been right. The opinion was unanimous. The three were trusted, and needed. Doc Larry 'integrated' then into the reconstruction plan and smiled when every lump disappeared and the length-of-time prediction dropped to ten days.

  Local guests all left the reception in time to be 'in' by twenty-three thirty. It didn't last a great deal longer. At one twenty-three, the last table was added to the stack of things to be taken home after six. Backyards were un-walled and uncovered, but no one 'went outside' to do it. Paths were reconstructed as it was done. By one forty, the neighborhood trail no longer had travelers on it, but Danny had six guests. Not long after she got on the comp, they were all laughing.

  "They don't know what's happening anywhere!"

  "No, Dawn, they don't. Another plan backfired."

  "Comm monitoring is falling apart fast. They arranged it nicely for a program error to take the whole system down. Records wouldn't go with it, but access to them would."

  "They might dump level eight, Danny."

  "I don't think so, Knight. It would make the records in the main gov system the only ones they could get to, until they find a way to access their private database. That will be possible. I think that will keep them busy working on rebuilding the current system, instead of just replacing it. Since 'possible' won't be simple, I doubt they'll get it rebuilt in thirty days."

  "Can you set it for a time we'll all be visibly working on something in the garage, like fixing a finicky comp and at least starting work on the LH?"

  "I have to build an error trigger anyway. Right there. That series of primes is perfect. It's the type of thing good programmers construct safeguards against, when the system is essential. This system is now as likely to have a prime series command conflict develop as any other I've seen. It might even have it without assistance. It will be seventeen-seventeen-seventeen-point seventeen-seventeen-seventeen to infinity, on day seventeen-seventeen in system record. All I need to do is hook this… to this… to this, to assure it does."

  "They didn't do a conflict override, and I can see a half-dozen places one could develop in the link of audio and comm monitoring systems."

  "Yes, Nev, arranged nicely for a program error. So, at sixteen seventeen seventeen our time, full comm monitoring and keyword audio monitoring in public places will abruptly end. It will announce it has with a loud, but brief, burst of white noise. It'll fart in every listening ear."

  The six burst into laughter. All said goodnight and left. Danny tapped a message to the mine for distribution, then poured the last of the champagne from the partial bottle she'd brought home from the reception. She sat down in her favorite chair, put her feet up on the matching footstool and toasted herself.

  It hadn't taken long to set up to take advantage of the linking arrangement, just a little over nine hours, with Ronnie's help. She was sure it was the wedding present she really wanted, to call her mom and dad and introduce her new husband.

  She dictated a bit of story and sent it, which made a constructed comm call to Tarse, from her apt, then stretched and went to bed. She'd decided it would make the others nervous if they knew why IS had never noticed six were gone, when she decided to assure it, twenty-three days before they left.

  Their families didn't know anything, but they, especially Tarse's, had been through too much already. IS wasn't going to question any of them before it 'died.' She'd decided to kill it the day she found the court record, and learned Bard had been beaten so badly he'd have died without medical treatment, twice.

  Her to-kill list was quite short. Others had crossed off all the names but the one she didn't know. Soon, the turmoil in IS would give her that one. She figured Warkerdoll had a short life expectancy. His complaints about money not coming in should become an intolerable irritation within two days. She fell asleep and dreamed of the knight, the elf and the faery prince together. It was a warm dream.