is Dr. Kalani, may I help you?” he said.
“Oh, hi, Doc. You don’t know me—obviously—but I know that you worked closely with a girl called Ariadne.”
The man’s eyes drooped slightly and a shadow crossed his face, relaxing all the muscles and instantly taking away his friendly demeanor, replacing it with the heavy weight of grief. “I was her supervisor. What’s this about?”
“I’m working with the IDE Agency and following up on her disappearance. I’m assuming you know about that already?”
Kalani nodded, dropped his head to his chest. The strain was clear from the tight worry lines on his balding forehead. He looked up and choked out, “Any news on her yet?”
“We’re working on it, Doctor.”
Kalani took a deep breath and sat up straight. “May I see your ID credentials?”
Mouse quickly spoofed a fake Agency ID, sent the record across to the doctor. It was a hastily made file with none of the encryption Mouse would usually spend longer incorporating. But it’d have to do.
The older man quickly scanned it, seemed convinced. “I already spoke with your colleagues. Has there been any news?”
“We’ll get to that. But first, can you tell me again what you know about her disappearance?”
He shrugged. “Like I told the other agents: I don’t know anything! I reported her missing as soon as she didn’t turn up for her dissertation meeting. I was expecting her, as it was her last assessment before I gave my final grade.”
“Can you tell me more about what she was working on?”
“I’m assuming you’ve commandeered her research by now?”
“We’re currently getting familiar with it. But it’d be quicker if you could tell us what you know.”
Kalani fidgeted on his office chair, seemed to weigh how much information to relinquish. Mouse waited patiently, not wanting to take the conversation off into a different direction.
“Basically,” the doctor said, “she and a group of others were working on a multicored, distributive, intelligently aware AI system. Its function was to manage the flow of information across networks. It was…brilliant…”
“And dangerous?”
Kalani’s face twisted and his voice rose. “No! Not at all. It was completely safe. Ariadne, myself, and the others had done extensive parameter testing and it never once broke its protocols.”
“Others? The other kids that have gone missing, too, right? They were all working on the same project?”
He exhaled deeply, his shoulders slumping. “Yes, I’m afraid so.”
“What happened to them, Doctor? What aren’t you telling us?”
His looked away, seemed to shrink down into his chair under the weight of some great truth. He dropped his head into his hands, mumbled something and when looked up, his eyes were reddened. “I don’t know,” he said, “I just don’t know!” He wiped the tears from his eyes. “It’s the truth. I told IDEA everything I know…”
“Everything?”
“What are you suggesting?” He looked down, broke eye contact.
Mouse had done enough face-to-face deals with shady characters to know the good doctor was hiding something, and his heart rate was jumping, too—clearly a sign of subterfuge. Mouse kept his eye on the man, waited, all the while running background checks and letting his gopher program spider its way through the man professor’s employment and financial records.
“I’m not suggesting anything, Dr. Kalani. Sometimes, it’s easy to forget to mention something that would be important,” he said to buy time while his code returned its findings. “It might seem insignificant or even trivial to you, but in this game, the slightest thing can break a case wide open. You want us to find her, right?”
“Of course I do! For Job’s sake, I’m going out of my mind with worry for those kids—and even for my own family. What if they come after me, too?”
“They?” Mouse asked. “Do you have an idea who might have taken these kids?”
He shook his
“Oh, hi, Doc. You don’t know me—obviously—but I know that you worked closely with a girl called Ariadne.”
The man’s eyes drooped slightly and a shadow crossed his face, relaxing all the muscles and instantly taking away his friendly demeanor, replacing it with the heavy weight of grief. “I was her supervisor. What’s this about?”
“I’m working with the IDE Agency and following up on her disappearance. I’m assuming you know about that already?”
Kalani nodded, dropped his head to his chest. The strain was clear from the tight worry lines on his balding forehead. He looked up and choked out, “Any news on her yet?”
“We’re working on it, Doctor.”
Kalani took a deep breath and sat up straight. “May I see your ID credentials?”
Mouse quickly spoofed a fake Agency ID, sent the record across to the doctor. It was a hastily made file with none of the encryption Mouse would usually spend longer incorporating. But it’d have to do.
The older man quickly scanned it, seemed convinced. “I already spoke with your colleagues. Has there been any news?”
“We’ll get to that. But first, can you tell me again what you know about her disappearance?”
He shrugged. “Like I told the other agents: I don’t know anything! I reported her missing as soon as she didn’t turn up for her dissertation meeting. I was expecting her, as it was her last assessment before I gave my final grade.”
“Can you tell me more about what she was working on?”
“I’m assuming you’ve commandeered her research by now?”
“We’re currently getting familiar with it. But it’d be quicker if you could tell us what you know.”
Kalani fidgeted on his office chair, seemed to weigh how much information to relinquish. Mouse waited patiently, not wanting to take the conversation off into a different direction.
“Basically,” the doctor said, “she and a group of others were working on a multicored, distributive, intelligently aware AI system. Its function was to manage the flow of information across networks. It was…brilliant…”
“And dangerous?”
Kalani’s face twisted and his voice rose. “No! Not at all. It was completely safe. Ariadne, myself, and the others had done extensive parameter testing and it never once broke its protocols.”
“Others? The other kids that have gone missing, too, right? They were all working on the same project?”
He exhaled deeply, his shoulders slumping. “Yes, I’m afraid so.”
“What happened to them, Doctor? What aren’t you telling us?”
His looked away, seemed to shrink down into his chair under the weight of some great truth. He dropped his head into his hands, mumbled something and when looked up, his eyes were reddened. “I don’t know,” he said, “I just don’t know!” He wiped the tears from his eyes. “It’s the truth. I told IDEA everything I know…”
“Everything?”
“What are you suggesting?” He looked down, broke eye contact.
Mouse had done enough face-to-face deals with shady characters to know the good doctor was hiding something, and his heart rate was jumping, too—clearly a sign of subterfuge. Mouse kept his eye on the man, waited, all the while running background checks and letting his gopher program spider its way through the man professor’s employment and financial records.
“I’m not suggesting anything, Dr. Kalani. Sometimes, it’s easy to forget to mention something that would be important,” he said to buy time while his code returned its findings. “It might seem insignificant or even trivial to you, but in this game, the slightest thing can break a case wide open. You want us to find her, right?”
“Of course I do! For Job’s sake, I’m going out of my mind with worry for those kids—and even for my own family. What if they come after me, too?”
“They?” Mouse asked. “Do you have an idea who might have taken these kids?”
He shook his
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