Minnesota

Tech

The waiter let them to a booth in the corner. “Give us a minute to settle down.” Thomas said. The waiter nodded.

Thomas sat close to Connie. “Was that awkward?” He glanced in Regina’s direction. Steve was getting up, phone in hand, unhappy grimace on his face.

            “Not sure.” She ran her hands over her skirt. “The waiter certainly seems to think something’s up. He’s fussing over him, like Steve is his boss.”

            “You know him?”

Connie nodded. “He’s her partner, both in and out of the bedroom.”

Thomas laughed. “And how well do you know her?”

            Connie paused; to lie or not to lie. She didn’t want to tell him how well she knew Regina. At the same time, she had to tell him something. Half-truth it is.

“Knowing her is too strong of a word. I happen to run into her during a caving trip in South Dakota. I don’t much care for her, she’s snobby.”

            “You cave? I didn't think you'd like that sort of thing.”

            She blushed. “Yeah, it was fun; for the record, I also fence.”

            Thomas moved closer until his face was inches away from hers. “You're full of surprises, aren't you?”

            Connie remembered their night together, the way his skin felt under her hand, his taste. She blushed. He caressed her hair, gently kissing her cheek. It feels like he’s thinking about that night, too.

But then he leaned back, his face somber. “Fencing, that’s with those thin blades, white body suits and helmets?”

“An epee mask.” She corrected.

            “When we searched Duane’s apartment we found things, certificates, and framed pictures of him wearing this outfit, this mask you call it. But nothing that indicates he’s still active in the sport. But it might not be his stuff. As I said before, I think it’s a front apartment, an address for the ‘officials.’”       

            “No, I’m pretty sure it’s his stuff. I saw him at a tournament not too long ago. A friend of mine attended a tournament here in Minneapolis. I was invited as his guest. Duane was there, as a fencer.”

            His green eyes studied her face. “Any chance you remember where that was?”

She nodded and pulled out her phone. “I can do one better. My friend sent me the name and directions.” She shook her phone at him, but he stared at her blankly. “Take out your phone and I’ll send you the info.” She explained.

“How?” He looked at his screen. Within seconds, the message appeared on his phone.

“Totally easy. I just shared it with. Your phone number is in my contact list, you know.”

Thomas grinned a boyish smile. “Yours is in mine.”

             Their flirting was interrupted by a discrete clearing of the throat. A waiter stood at their table. “Would you like to start with a bottle of wine?” It was a different waiter, older and, apparently, less patient than the previous one.

            “We can do better.” Connie answered. “I already know what I want to eat.” She glanced at Thomas. “Unless you need more time?” Thomas shook his head.

            Connie ordered Fettuccini Vongole, Thomas opted for the Filet Mignon. “White wine, dry?” He asked at Connie. She nodded.

            “Pinot Grigio?” The waiter asked. Thomas shrugged.

            “Yes, that would be perfect.” Connie answered. The waiter tapped his pad and walked off.

            “Efficient waiter. Must be straight from Italy. Hasn’t learned Americans need a bit more coddling.” Thomas laughed.

He turned to Connie. “Now, do explain why you were invited to a fencing tournament. Who’s that friend that has you travelling all the way from Washington for something so boring.”

            The waiter came back with the wine. He poured a taste for Thomas, waiting for his approval. Thomas handed Connie the glass. “You clearly know more about wine than I do.” She sipped, nodded.

When the waiter was done pouring wine and had left, Connie turned to Thomas. “Fencing is my thing. I only do it for fun, but Pete, my friend, takes it seriously. These tournaments happen once a year, they’re always hosted by an esteemed, old-blood, family. Getting invited as a fencer is a big deal. I was there to support him.”

            Thomas leaned back, wine glass in hand, sipping while studying Connie. “Caving, fencing, traveling. I’m beginning to think I’m out of your league. Am I Pete’s competition?”

            Connie laughed. “Pete’s gay.” She leaned toward him, kissing his cheek. “And I am definitely not out of your league. I do these things for fun. I like learning new stuff.”

            “Ah.” Thomas’ attention wandered to the table across the restaurant where Gina sat, talking on the phone. He furrowed his eyebrows as he watched Steve rejoin Gina. Why the interest in these two? How does he know her? And what tapes was she referring to?

            Before she could ask, the waiter arrived with their food. Steam rose from the plates. “I didn’t realize how hungry I was.” Her stomach growled as the smell of seafood wafted up.

She weaved strands of pasta onto her fork. “What tapes was she talking about?”

Thomas took a bite of broccoli. “I did the rounds around the Café the other day, stopped by stores and talked to people. Just gaging the reaction and seeing if there are any surveillance tapes available. I stopped by the newer buildings a few blocks down the road. To be honest, I didn’t even see the surveillance cameras. Regina, she’s apparently the boss there, came down and offered them. I don’t know if there’s anything on them, the tapes came and went straight to our tech department.”

She chewed, thinking. “This dark web thing, can you tell me more about it? I mean, I heard about it, but I’m not sure how it works. And how do you pay for something on the dark web?”

            Thomas laughed cynically while alternating a bite of meat with broccoli. “Have you heard of crypto currency?” She nodded. “That’s how it got started. The dark web had to create a way of paying without leaving a paper trail.” He sighed. “I don’t know the technical details, either, but it sounds like you get a link, a portal of sorts, to get to the dark web. From there, you browse just like you do on the regular web. I don’t know who keeps track of browsing on there, but someone keeps trend reports. That’s how we, and the perverts, know what to look for. Rumor has it that men are now at the same risk of being drugged and abducted as women and children are.  No one is safe these days.”

            She chewed her food, tasting each bite, as she listened to him. “Equality at its finest. Where do they get the money from?” Thomas looked at her, surprised.       

            “I mean, doesn’t it cost money to get the drugs, the cameras. How many people know how to post these things to the dark web? How do you make sure you’re not caught? It’s not that easy, you know, so someone must be paying money to someone for encryption, codes, pathways and such. Or did everyone wake up one morning, being a sadistic, raping, computer genius?”

            He leaned back. The filet mignon on his plate forgotten for the moment. “You are full of surprises, aren’t you?” She managed to give him an innocent smirk as response.

            Thomas still looked at her, his upper teeth gnawing on his lower lip, thinking. “To be honest, we can’t figure it out either. To the best of our knowledge, they keep moving. It also helps that there are thousands if not millions of amateurs out there that get off on the thrill of doing it once. We do have a theory about a connecting hub, a group or groups in charge of the security, but that’s something we can’t even put to the test. Best idea we have so far is that they are financing themselves with loans from friends, or a pre-payment for delivery. Kind of like the drug market works. But that’s only an idea, not even a theory yet.”

            Connie tilted her head. “Too many people, too many moving parts and if one of those parts breaks, there’s another right behind it to take its place.”

            “Not to mention that sudden death cleans things up nicely. The statistics on people disappearing each year are staggering.”

            She looked at him, surprised. It was the second time in as many months that someone commented on this topic. “I never realized how many people disappear. Don’t their remains show up at one point? Humans don’t disappear into thin air.”

            His eyes stared past her, back to Gina and Steve. Steve caught Thomas’ gaze and nodded.

            Thomas returned his attention to Connie and her question. “Most people believe that a dead body is easy to find. Obviously, that’s not true – not for the human body or the digi-trail. Both can be destroyed without too much effort.”