Fool Me Once: a killer psychological thriller by Mark Gillespie

Author:Mark Gillespie [Gillespie, Mark]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Inkubator Books
Published: 2024-10-06T00:00:00+00:00

27

‘This doesn’t feel right,’ Jimmy says.

It just happens. He finally speaks up, and he’s not sure why or what triggered this sudden desire to make his voice heard. That’s what Jimmy tells himself, but in reality he knows exactly why he did it.

It’s Tina. Again.

About an hour ago, Allie sent him a photo of Tina sitting on the living-room floor, playing with her tablet. Lost in that world. Today, it’s games. Tomorrow, social media and then what?

Allie wrote a message alongside the photo – Tina misses you a lot. She even cried last night because you weren’t there.

The message caught Jimmy off guard, and he had to go for a five-minute bathroom break. He didn’t cry or anything like that, but he sat there on the toilet, feeling like his heart had been ripped out. God, it was awful being away from them like this.

He sent a love heart back to Allie and Tina, then tucked the phone into his pocket.

Jimmy poured some cold water on his face. Then he went back to the control room, sat on the couch and felt lightheaded. He was ready to move on, but there was something nagging away at him, and as much as he tried to ignore it, it wouldn’t leave him alone. How many kids around the world were losing themselves in games and social media and influencer stuff just like Tina? It was happening whether people liked it or not. Sure, it wasn’t perfect. But it was happening, and there had to be a better way of⁠—

C’mon, man, he urges himself. Get it together.

He looks at the centre screen.

A few hours have passed since the man with the limp was taken away in the back of a police car. Jimmy doesn’t know what happened to him. It won’t be pretty considering the guy was on the brink of derailing everything – the show, the incoming ad revenue and whatever else the Project was bringing home for those invested in its success. The shit certainly hit the fan after that near miss. Frantic calls were made. There was a lot of shouting. Not surprisingly, the higher-ups in the network have fast-forwarded the introduction of advertising. Tests have already begun on the livestream (skippable and non-skippable ads), and soon old-school ad breaks will be introduced into the network broadcast.

No announcements will be made. It’s happening, and it remains to be seen how the public will respond.

Jimmy’s not sure how much more he can take of this. What if it were Tina up there? What if this becomes a thing and fifteen or twenty years from now, it’s Tina up there? Thinking she’s someone else while the world watches and laughs and absorbs pop-up ads for toothpaste as they flash in the sidebar?

Joel’s talking to Helen about the livestream ‘pause’ ads when Jimmy speaks out. He’s telling her that if you pause the livestream, a static ad appears on the screen. Not intrusive at all, Joel says like it’s a noble thing he’s doing.

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