‘I meant the situation left us with no choice.’
‘Your knee-jerk reaction meant you lost my seat to the opposition.’
‘It was stained. Mother Teresa couldn’t have stopped that bloody seat from going to the opposition.’
‘Do I have to remind you, Diane, of the discussion we had some time ago during which I was told that upon my exoneration, I would be fast-tracked back into a seat at the table? And I don’t mean somewhere at the back of the room or on the periphery, but at theactualtable. If that means removing someone else and having me run in some little two-bit safe seat, then it is yet another sacrifice I am willing to make for the good of the party. That is what I am owed.’
‘That wasn’t a decision that was set in stone. You were never promised anything. All I am suggesting is that we let sleeping dogs lie for the time being. It might not be the best time for us to announce your return to politics so soon after your trial.’
‘At which I was acquitted.’
‘Yes, but at what cost? A lot of sensitive information was exposed in that process, which we would rather have kept quiet. Like it or not, your defence has done potentially irreparable damage to the party.’
Jack balled his fists and resisted the urge to shout down the telephone. ‘Surely you didn’t expect me to be your patsy in all of this? To spend the next eighteen years of my life behind bars for something you, our current PM, and others in the inner circle, sanctioned? If you did then you don’t know me at all. You only agreed to my return when you thought I was going to be found guilty, didn’t you? Well, I’m sorry to disappoint, but Jack Larsson doesn’t go down without a fight. And certainly not without taking others with me.’
‘Jack, perhaps we should speak another time when you are a little less …emotional?’
‘Or perhaps when you are ready to stop being a sanctimonious bitch?’
Instantly, he regretted his choice of words, but he could only be pushed so far. They reached an awkward stalemate.
‘I have recordings,’ Jack said soberly.
Diane’s tone was stern. ‘Perhaps you should self-censor now before you say something you might regret.’
But Jack knew that it was too late. He had shown his hand and he had nothing left to lose. ‘I have names, Diane. I have footage, satellite images, software programmes, dates, locations, witnesses. I have everything I need at my disposal to bring this Government to its knees.’
‘I’d think carefully about what you are about to do next.’
‘As should you,’ Jack replied, then removed his earpiece and hung up.
He drained the flask of whiskey and then threw it to the floor.How dare she speak to me like that?he thought.The party has no right to turn their back on me after all I’ve sacrificed for it. If they didn’t allow him back into the fold, they would suffer.
It wasn’t just the position that Jack craved, it was also the opportunity that came with it to use his power to line his own pockets. Despite the Hacker’s best efforts to bleed his accounts dry, Jack had been prepared. What the Hacker had encouraged the public to plunder amounted to less than a fifth of his overall wealth. The rest of his £70 million fortune was squirrelled away by asset management companies and venture capitalists in safe harbours including offshore renegade tax havens, hedge funds, trusts and shell companies and opaque holding firms. He remained an ultra high-net worth individual.
The majority of Jack’s fortune had been made at the beginning of the Road Revolution through investing in firms involved in vehicle production and offshoot industries. It was an illegal conflict of interest that, if discovered and exposed, would result in a life-long ban from politics and a lengthy custodial sentence. His unique position in driving the bill through parliament and convincing the public autonomous vehicles were a safe bet enabled him to cherry pick companies to invest in. Asphalt producers, manufacturers of electronic road signs, graphene engineers, opaque glass moulding, sonar and lidar software – his fingers were in many pies.
But their earning capacity was not infinite and at some point in the future, his dividends would decline. Jack had to identify a new income revenue that would bolster his already considerable fortune. It was Noah Harris and his brother Alex who gave him the idea.
They worked for an average-sized, family-run firm in the Midlands that one of Jack’s shell companies held a large stake in. Jack’s department was about to award it a contract for millions to develop software and cameras for emergency service vehicles. But when it came to Jack’sattention that the back door used by his operatives to manipulate AI had been discovered by the Harris brothers, he identified an opportunity. He was almost proud of the tenacity they showed.
They were not aware of its purpose, only that it existed and might provide an opportunity for hacking. But instead of sealing it up permanently, what if it were left for someone else to discover further down the line, Jack reasoned? After so many promises had been made as to how impenetrable the AI was, what impact might a hack have on the Road Revolution? The public’s trust would be lost. However, they would still need to use automobiles, so it stood to reason they would return to what they knew and trusted – Level one, two and three vehicles that they could control. Demand would soar.
It was a whole new potential revenue stream. Share prices in businesses providing the soon-to-be outdated components were already sinking as the vehicles were slowly phased out, so Jack struck while the iron was hot and made his investments. A cosmetic patch was placed over the back door; meanwhile to punish the Harris brothers for their discovery, he sold his shares in the firm and ensured their contract went abroad to India, which eventually forced its closure.
Then he sat back and waited for the inevitable.
The day itself and the extreme levels of death and destruction created by the Hackers took him by surprise. As did his discovery that the people behind it were the Harris brothers.
Jack took the accusations on the chin, allowing the Government to think he was its scapegoat for social cleansing, but knowing fine well that when it came to trial, he had people who could pay off enough jurors to secure his freedom. Reputations were lost and rebuilt all the time, Jack told himself, and his was no exception.
Jack vowed he would not allow the ingratitude of the deputy prime minister to ruin today, the start of the next chapter in his life. ‘Music,’ he said aloud, ‘I need some Nina.’
He scrolled through the entertainment system until he found the song that best reflected his mood. A moment later, Nina Simone’s fluctuating timbre told of a new dawn, a new day and a new life. It couldn’t be more fitting a sentiment, he thought, and for a moment, his eyes began to brim with tears. He brushed them away before they could fall.
Jack only became aware his vehicle had reached the M4 when his driver indicated they were pulling over and they made their way towards Heathrow. His bodyguard caught Jack’s eye when he tapped his finger to his ear. He watched as he nodded, then spoke to the driver. Jack turned down his music and used the intercom to talk. ‘Is there a problem, Marlon?’ he asked.
Before Marlon could respond, Jack spotted the car ahead containing two other members of his security team pulling over to the side of the road. Jack’s vehicle followed. ‘Marlon?’ he repeated but there was no response. There must be a fault in the communication system, he thought. He pressed the button to make the partition go down but nothing happened. He knocked against the glass before remembering it was completely soundproofed. Jack turned to see the third vehicle behind them also coming to a halt.
