The Goodbye Man
- Автор: Дивер Джеффри
- Серия: Colter Shaw #2
- Год: 2020
- Язык: английский
- Год: G. P. Putnam’s Sons
- ISBN: 978-0-525-53597-3
- Жанр: Другие детективы
Электронная книга - «The Goodbye Man». Краткое содержание книги:
Samuel beamed. “Plenty of time for that. And the fee? Credit card or check?”
Shaw withdrew a second check from his wallet, made it out and handed it to the man.
The tablet revolved toward Shaw, and Samuel indicated where he should sign with his finger.
He did so, hoping the device wasn’t set up to capture fingerprints.
“Now, make that phone call. And let’s get started!” Samuel slid a card toward Shaw. “This is an answering service. Twenty-four hours. Give this number to whoever you want. If there’s an emergency, he or she can call and leave a message. Somebody from the Assistance Unit will contact you.”
Shaw placed a call to one of Mack’s burner phones, one she never picked up. The answering message was the default; it gave no name, just the number — which was helpful now, in case Hugh or someone was listening in. Shaw left a message for his “mother.” He would be away for three weeks, getting some help he needed. He’d be out of touch for that time. He gave the Foundation’s answering service number. He said he loved her.
Samuel held out a hand, took the iPhone and, after powering it off, placed it in an envelope, which he then sealed.
“Do you have any other devices? Wristwatch — smart or conventional? A tablet, computer?... They’ll be coming up with iToothpicks one of these days,” Samuel said with a wry laugh.
“Just my laptop. It’s in my backpack. It’s off.”
“Good.” Samuel then added, “Your luggage will remain in storage for the time you’re here. You’ll be provided everything you need.”
That they were going to dress him rankled almost as much as the absence of communications gear.
Another envelope appeared, similar to the one his mobile had disappeared into. “You’ll need to leave your wallet, credit cards and cash too.” He tapped a red stripe seal on the envelope. “Everything will be safe in here.”
Because no one’s ever stolen a sealed envelope before.
“I can see you’re troubled, suspicious. Some of our Companions, like yourself, the independent ones, have trouble with the conformity and giving up control. Master Eli has spent hours and hours determining what’s best for all the Companions. He’s decided that anything that reminds us of our lives outside the camp is a distraction. We can’t have that. So, we’ll put all this in your backpack or gym bag.”
Shaw noted the reference to his specific pieces. And Samuel hadn’t asked for a key; he’d known they were unlocked.
“In our four years here, we haven’t had a single incident of theft. Now! Bet you’re dying to know! Let me give you an overview of what’s going on here. The ITP. You’ll be working with a trainer. For the first week, that will be me.”
Training. Speaking of dogs.
What was that part of the deprogrammer’s definition?
A cult has a mission to reform followers’ behaviors...
“There are three levels in the Process. You start out a Novice.” He handed Shaw an amulet, a thin blue metal infinity symbol, on the end of a black leather string. “Put this on and wear it at all times.”
Shaw had never worn a necklace. No jewelry in fact. He’d come close, once. That involved Margot. But in the end, his finger remained free of metal.
“Rule Three.” Shaw recited this without looking at the sheet.
“Ha! You’re a sharp one. Well, you start the Process as a Novice. The trainer decides when you’ll move on to the next level. That’s Apprentice. You’ll get a red amulet. Usually takes five, six days. Sometimes shorter, sometimes longer. After that, you’ll move up to the final level and become a Journeyman.
“Most of the expedited Companions like yourself consider advanced training after the ITP is over. You can move up to the next level, and become an IC–Inner Circle.” He tapped his own silver infinity symbol.
For, of course, another $7,500. Maybe more.
Samuel rose, as did Shaw. “One last matter. We don’t shake hands here. We don’t embrace.”
He moved his right hand, open, to his left shoulder. “It’s our greeting and our farewell. So much easier and more respectful, isn’t it? Do I kiss this woman, do I hug this man? Do I try a bone crusher handshake?” He now gave the gesture once more. Shaw reciprocated.
“Ah! Like you’ve been doing it all your life. Well, welcome to the Osiris Foundation, Novice Carter.”
Shaw sighed, like a reformed criminal suspicious that he was being robbed. “This better work.”
The back door opened and Adelle appeared, from where she’d apparently been waiting.
“Journeyman Adelle will show you to your dormitory.”
Why weren’t they Journeywomen?
“You can change, freshen up, relax. Dinner is served promptly from seven until eight. Attendance is mandatory.”
As he followed her out, Shaw paused, turned. “One question?”
“Yes?” Samuel asked.
“Your website doesn’t really say anything. What exactly does this Process do?”
With a dash of reverence in his voice, he said, “Nothing less than completely change your life... forever.”
23
Shaw and Adelle walked through the camp, over a gravel path. The place was now making him think of an army base, though one from the nineteenth century.
He noted a dozen people on the rustic grounds, carrying notebooks: a middle-aged couple, several men by themselves, all in their forties or fifties. They appeared to be businesspeople. He spotted a cluster of three women, all in their twenties, Shaw guessed, looking like cheerleaders returning from practice, especially in their matching blue and black uniforms; their skirts were short, above the knee. There were several men too, in the gray tunics of the Assistance Unit, all solidly built.
Shaw wondered about the light blue blouses and high-neck sweaters of a matching shade. Maybe because the color would be easily spotted in the forests and fields surrounding the camp. Not as obvious as orange but helpful for pursuers, in case that became necessary. This would have been an outrageous thought... if not for the vicious beating he’d just witnessed.
He noted several more men and women wearing the silver amulets, then more of the tunics, who wore no necklaces. How many of the Assistance Unit, he wondered, were like Hugh and his two thugs? Maybe most people here were like Samuel, intelligent, humorous and devoted to helping those who’d signed up to battle their daily woes. Maybe they were no different from, say, some workers at the internet companies he’d met on a recent job in Silicon Valley.
Shaw corrected himself; he’d thought: Hugh and his two thugs — and another person too.
He was walking beside her at the moment.
A golf cart passed. This was the only means of mechanized travel within the grounds. He spotted several of them, driven by those with the Assistance Unit, in their tunics, or by followers in the blue and black uniforms.
“How long have you been in the Foundation?” he asked Adelle.
“A few years.”
Silence.
“So you’re like full-time.”
“I’m on staff.”
“You like it, huh?”
“Master Eli is a genius in providing the best solutions to the problems we all face. I’m proud to be a part of it.”
He was curious about her personal life. An employee, she’d be here all summer. Despite Rule Six, the full-timers must have romantic relationships or at least the occasional liaison. Some might even be married. And what of the brunette on the roadside where Adam killed himself? Was she close to anyone?
Never miss an opportunity to gather relevant facts. They’re usually better tools and weapons than hammers and guns.