Megalomania (Killswitch Book 3) by Warwick Eden

Author:Warwick Eden [Eden, Warwick]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-11-20T16:00:00+00:00

TWENTY

MACE, AGE 48

Mace chewed her lip as she looked out the window of Sekuriko’s office on the sixth floor, her shoulders tense with trepidation, her head furrowed with worry. Her wandering gaze paused at the small patch of green in front of the building. Against all odds, the clutch of young Dimaga in its middle had not succumbed to the hostile aridness of Tribhuvan. Instead, the trees had flourished and more than doubled their height within the space of the year just gone by. And now, in the fading evening light, their branches winked in and out in a defiant show of light, produced by the natural process of cellular automata.

Mace leant against the sill and watched the light show, letting the silence around her breathe. Even the Dimaga has managed to hang on, she thought to herself, whereas I on the other hand…

Gokran, the landlord was thinking of selling up as rents were no good here in Bukharan city. There were rumours circulating too, with some saying the council wanted to level this building and the one next door to erect a multiplex, one of those massive, multi-purpose buildings that could apparently house anything from a mall to shops, businesses, bars, restaurants and even a small hotel in each of its sprawling levels. “To re-energise commerce in the area,” a local councillor had said, “and to inject some much-needed capital.”

“Sekuriko Ltd can’t afford anywhere else,” said Mace. “I can’t afford anywhere else.” Mace lived upstairs, on top of the office where unbeknownst to Gokran, the office storeroom and toilet had been repurposed for residential use. “And I can’t live in Soumy’s charging closet like Jessie can,” she added.

“Is there anything I can do to help, Mace?” asked DeXA.

“You’re not supposed to interfere,” said Mace, shaking her head. “You can’t anyway. Your core protocols prevent it.”

“That is correct,” said DeXA, “but it’s not interfering if for example, hypothetically speaking, there happened to be, I don’t know… an environmental assessment report on this piece of land suggesting risk of arsenic contamination for example? Hypothetically speaking of course! Still, something like that might dampen landlord Gokran’s enthusiasm for selling up a little, don’t you think?”

“I’m not about to go there, DeXA,” said Mace. “Neither am I about wallow in self-pity. Sure, Jessie and I have been dealt some bad cards but I’m not going to feel sorry for myself or ask for anyone for a handout. Not even you.”

“But what will you do, Mace? You need to pay Gokran his rent this month, even if it is to dissuade him from looking into selling up.”

“I’m going to ask around for a loan,” said Mace. “A bridging loan. You know, just to tie us over until next month.”

“But you have no collateral, Mace,” DeXA pointed out. “I can tell you that to get a loan from the Monetary Authority of Tribhuvan, you will need some collateral. Oh, and two years’ proof of revenue to qualify.”

“Thanks for the info, DeXA,” said Mace, “but I was thinking more along the lines of an informal loan.

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