Slant (28 page)

Bringing sex entertainment much-needed talent and style, the grimy adolescent

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and pushed into public acceptance by studio after studio. Most of the product went direct through ribes and sats into the private home.

And back up the link flew hundreds of billions of dollars.

Some say the sex industry, with its newfound acceptance, led the way for the Federalist Surge and the elitist Raphkind presidency, and all of its political horrors; it forced the moralist hand, which turned out to be corrupt, extreme, and ultimately dripping with gore. The failure of the conservative moralists to exhibit truly moral leadership created an anything-goes backlash

Every decade has brought new technologies and expanded audiences, and the same old same old, tarted up and occasionally even profundified, given artistic legit-imacy--that ancient much-masticated blue movie has rolled on, and on, lubricating the pipes of the great flow.

--The Kiss of X, Alive Contains a Lie

10

The advocate for the estate of Terence Crest sits beside Mary in the old, dignified brown and cream office of Seattle Oversight on the ground floor of Columbia Tower.

j

The Crest advocate, Selena Parmenter, is in her early thirties if appearances can be trusted, and she acts bored. She has said little to Mary as they wait for the deputy district director of Seattle Oversight, the honorable Clarens Lodge, to take his seat and listen to their appeals.

Oversight was created in the teens. The first states to use the procedure were California and Washington. With so much information on citizens recorded daily by vid, home monitors, fibe and satlink uploads, and neighborhood surveillance systems, a separate branch of the judiciary was established to hear appeals from those seeking to use that information for legal purposes.

Early abuses--and the far worse systematic abuse under the Raphkind pres-idency--has made the system painfully complex for all concerned. Each avenue of information has been wrapped in labyrinthine rules of legal engagement; and an appeal for release of data can be made only once a year for any given case.

The deputy district director enters and takes his seat behind the broad steel desk. Clarens Lodge is a small, boyish male in his late twenties, with thick black hair and a pixie expression that he tries with some success to make

/ SLANT 173

Terence Crest, recently deceased and with judgment of suicide as cause of death... All right, I've gone through the voir, let's hear the dire. Miz Parmenter?"

"Seattle PD has requested the private and protected apartment vid records of my client without compelling cause. Under Citizen Oversight Code twenty-seven c in Public Data Access, Washington State, Book Nine, amended Federal twenty-two c Book Nine, Public Defense must have clear evidence that a crime has been committed to even solicit private vid records. No crime has been committed; Mr. Crest has been presumed by our assigned medicals and by the state to have killed himself. Suicide has not been a crime in this state for thirty-seven years."

This appears to amuse Lodge. He tightens a beginning smile, completely out of place it seems to Mary, into a not very stern frown. "Miz Choy?"

"Seattle PD forensic medicals have stated that while the cause and time of death can be established with certainty, we have no way of knowing whether the death is suicide or homicide or even accidental. We believe that state judgment may be premature, and we are still investigating to establish motives and opportunities. We need to learn the circumstances and mental attitude of Mr. Crest in the hours before his death. We're also investigating the possible role of a visitor to Mr. Crest's home just prior to his death."

"You were investigating Mr. Crest on another matter before his death," Parmenter says. "Is that matter still pending?"

"It has been given a temporary open status until we can assemble a complete picture of Mr. Crest's situation."

"Temporary open status is hardly urgent," Parmenter says. "As you know, sir, temporary open implies all smoke and no fire, no real case at all."

The deputy director nods studiously. "Miz Choy, why should Oversight give Seattle PD access to the private records of a man who is not likely to be charged with any crime, since he is now dead, and the case is weak to begin with?"

Mary has been through Oversight hearings dozens of time in her career; she has never enjoyed them. Oversight, it seems to her, has become a kind of fiefdom for the least competent of an already pompous judiciary. She has never yet met a director or deputy director who impressed her. This director, she thinks, is perhaps the least impressive of all.

"The presence of a Miz Alice Grale needs to be explained, sir."

"Yes, there's a story going around in the ribes that she's involved," the deputy director muses. "But it should be her advocate seeking records to clear her name, and as far as I know, we have no such request." He looks to Par-menter. "What do you know about this woman's involvement? Apparently she was employed by Mr. Crest as a sex care provider..." He smiles openly at this polite phrasing and refers to his pad. "Agented by Wellspring Temps, specializing in entertainment... And you, Miz Parmenter, have frozen payments to her agency. Why?"

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Lodge grimaces. "Shaky, Miz Parmenter. My records indicate Mr. Crest put

his seal on the disbursal before he died. It was a legitimate transaction, and I suspect Wellspring, should they decide to press the matter, will receive their money, as will Miz Grale."

Parmenter says nothing to this.

Lodge frowns, and this time with more conviction. "Do you believe that

Miz Grale had some role in his death, perhaps in changing his mood, exacerbating the circumstances in what must have been a tense evening for him? Is that your reason to deny her just payment for services?"

"The estate does not believe that the quasi-legal business of prostitution--" "Sex care, please," Lodge insists, with a wry grin. "Last I dipped into the state code, it's fully legal and even licensed in most counties. Something to do with Business and Occupation taxes forty years ago. But you're too young to remember."

Mary is prepared to change her opinion about this deputy district director. Parmenter is not amused. "We must protect the interests of the estate's heirs, and Mrs. Crest did not file any authorization for her husband to spend substantial joint funds pending final settlement of their divorce--not that I represent the former Mrs. Crest--but this is all beside the main point, sir."

"Yes, yes, but the apartment vid will surely settle these issues, and may in

fact be requested by Wellspring in their case, should they decide to pursue it--and for seventy-five thousand dollars, I certainly would. An extraordinary amount of money for the services of a mere prostitute, don't you think?"

"The going rate is about five thousand for an evening," Mary says.

Lodge turns on a "Please," says. "My

her

with

look

of

mock

affront.

he

sensibilities are ar least as delicate as those of Miz Parmenter."

"We do find the circumstances irregular," Parmenter says reluctantly. "Irregular enough to contest payment, and I do not like to say more without conferring with the estate."

"Do you have a description of the vid?" Lodge asks.

Parmenter appears distinctly uncomfortable. "Advocates are prevented from releasing details about personal evidence in dispute," she says, "until Oversight rules to release it for legal purposes. You know that, sir."

"Miz Parmenter, I assume Mr. Crest kept a vid record of all his personal affairs, as so many important people do, though with many different motives, and I can't presume to guess what Mr. Cresr's motives were. But such systems, in my experience, keep at least a minimal visual-to-text log, transcribed by an

automated secretary. You have of course looked at this log?" "Yes, sir. It is vague as to details." "But what does it say, broadly?"

"It indicates the presence of two individuals in the apartment until Mr.

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"We alerted the medicals in Crest's building," Mary says. "The log must show the presence of SPD officers at that point."

"Appearing for an appointment with Mr. Crest to discuss this other case, now temporarily kept open," Lodge says. "A man has sex with a woman, whom he pays an inordinate amount of money, and then commits suicide. He's involved with shady investments... With companies or individuals who have negligently allowed young women to die in a horrible manner. He's a very

complex man, this Terence Crest."

"Yes, sir," Mary says.

"It seems to me," Lodge says, "that there are a number of compelling reasons to release these records to the SPD, specifically to Fourth Rank Mary Choy, to clear up these ambiguities."

"We do not agree, sir," Parmenter says, now very uneasy. "But if that is your pending judgment--"

"I believe it very well might be."

"Then I have been authorized by the estate to reveal a recently discovered.., ah... a modification to the circumstances of the records in question."

"Yes?" Lodge asks, raising his eyebrows.

"All vid and audio for that day have been retroactively erased by the machine keeping the apartment records."

"Erased?" Parmenter asks. Mary sits up straighter in her chair, prepared to be very interested, or perhaps officially angry.

"Without our knowledge until just before this meeting. The transcribed

record is intact but as I said, vague."

"Do you know why?"

"We are assuming a malfunction in the machine--"

"A very convenient malfunction," Mary says.

Parmenter shakes her head vigorously. "Very inconvenient, actually, for the estate. It could create all kinds of mischief."

"No vid records?" Lodge looks stern. "You presume upon the dignity of this court, Miz Parmenter. Wouldn't you call it deceptive not to tell us this earlier?"

Parmenter looks as if her stomach is bothering her. She decides, once again, to say nothing.

"You've brought proof of these changed circumstances?"

"Tech confirmation. The vid, audio, and all bur medical and transcribed records for the day of Mr. Crest's death are blank."

Lodge leans back in his chair and shakes his head, again with a pixie smile. "My," he says. "Very awkward indeed."

"Sir, I amend my request to all of the available records," Mary says quickly,

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Parmenter accepts this without protest. There is really nothing more she can say; the judgment has been issued, and there is no appeal. But Mary does not have any idea what sort of shambling, crippled victory she has won. "We need to talk," she says to Parmenter in the hall outside. "I don't need to talk with you," Parmenter responds. "Vid recorders are supposed to be foolproof." "Not so, apparently. And don't go fishing in our offices for conspiracies. This is damned embarrassing." "I need the tech's file." "It's simple. The vid recorder has a link to Mr. Crest's pad, to allow him to deactivate it should he wish to. He did not deactivate it, but something worked its way through the pad after his death--time unknown--and broke through the vid system firewalls." "It was hacked?" "That's our best guess. I think you can imagine how tough it is to hack a billionaire's system. Listen, Miz Choy, we're lobe-sods here, just doing what the heirs need to have done to protect their interests. You have all that's left. My office had nothing to do with this, except to find it out too late to come up with a good defense. Don't drop a ton of bricks." Mary is inclined to believe her, but professionally can make no blanket pronouncements. "Please send--" "I know Nussbaum's sig," Parmenter says. "I was in lock and key before I moved to keyhole and private law. I have to go now. Anything else?" "Professionally, I should say thanks." e "It's nothing," Parmenter says, and then gives a small, pained laugh. "Really, nothing at all."

11

Denny Tower is a long crystal prism standing on one point, supported by four

cylindrical pillars that rise to intercept the facets of the base. The Workers Inc

Northwest central office for the Corridor fills ten floors in the pillar that rises

to meet the western slant of the tower, near the junction. Above the junc tion, the tower rises an additional twelve hundred feet, its top brushed this

late morning by a broken deck of smooth gray clouds. The tower's usual blue-

gray sheen has been modified to sunny gold to offset the gloomy and feature less sky. A I 'oil,mA ocnrr Martin Burke through the orientation and

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center. Workers Inc is very careful about providing access to this center. Temp agency records on clients are immune from Federal and Citizen Oversight; and the records in client tracking are the most comprehensive and critical of all.

In a real sense, for Workers Inc, this is the inner sanctum of a temple, where the physical and mental vital signs of millions are fed into living, continuously updated displays of immense power and subtlety. Martin has never been at the heart of one before.

"We get the inputs from house monitors, agency medicals, therapists, city and state proceedings," Carrilund explains as they enter the darkened display circle. "All household diagnostics, all procedures, work records and employer evaluations, and diary reports from our volunteer study clients, come here and are processed. Nobody can connect individuals with the data; that's forbidden. The whole system is protected by four INDAs instructed to code-lock the data if a hack should be attempted. Only the personal presence of the top worldwide executives of Workers Inc--about thirty in all--can unlock the data if that happens. We've never had a successful real hack. We've never even managed to irritate the system with test hacks."

Carrilund catches his faint smile and lifts one eyebrow. "Famous last words, you think?"

Martin folds his arms, looking around the dark circular room. "No, I was thinking about something else... As to the security, I really can't judge."

"We've offered a two million dollar reward to anyone who manages to get past the first firewall," Carrilund says with that brittle sort of pride Martin has often seen in players in an immense team effort. "There are nine walls beyond that, each equally difficult. Nobody's collected the reward.