Terror Kid Page 4

  Aware of what his mother had said about not seeing him much, he decided to take a break and join his parents in the living room. It was Sunday night, his parents would normally be watching television together, but when he entered the room the television was on and Stefan was reading a newspaper on his own.

  ‘Where’s Mum?’ asked Rico.

  ‘She’s gone to bed. She’s so tired lately. Every time she stopped moving today she fell asleep. She works too hard.’

  ‘I know,’ said Rico, sitting down and picking up the TV remote control. ‘Is there anything good on?’

  ‘I don’t know. I haven’t been watching it.’

  Rico started flicking through the channels. He liked watching TV documentaries, but tonight there weren’t any, none that weren’t repeats that he’d already seen. Sunday night television was safe family viewing, films, game shows and talent contests. After he surfed through all the fifty-two Freeview channels he decided to watch BBC world news. He focused on the television, concentrating and trying to understand as much as he could of the issues of the day. It was more of the same. People demonstrating in New York against the shooting of an unarmed young man by vigilantes, women demonstrating for equality in Saudi Arabia, and the aboriginal people of Australia demanding better job opportunities. What really caught Rico’s attention was a report that was closer to home. The government was considering passing a new law that meant that all the public’s digital communications would be stored and made available to the government or the security agencies. Rico stopped listening to the programme and got lost in thought. He was instinctively against anyone storing his information; for him the Internet represented a space where information and ideas flowed freely, and things were only saved or shared when the creator of the content had chosen to do so.

  ‘I’m just reading about that,’ said Stefan. The government wants to know everything about you. It’s not good enough for them just to have a copy of your birth certificate, now they actually want a bit of your blood.’

  ‘It’s your DNA, Dad.’

  ‘I know. It’s the same thing. They got your DNA already.’

  ‘I know,’ said Rico. ‘The first time I got arrested they took it. They said they would destroy it but how do I know they will?’

  ‘They’re always watching you, always listening to you, and always taking your money. There’s no freedom.’

  Rico turned the television off and sank even deeper into thought. Stefan folded his newspaper and placed it on his lap.

  ‘You know what we need,’ said Stefan. ‘A workers’ revolution. The working class should rise up, the unions should unite, and we should just take over. We need mass strikes all over the country – the ruling class can’t rule without us, so we should put down our tools and take to the streets.’

  ‘That’s so old,’ said Rico. ‘The workers hardly have tools any more. It should be like, put down your laptops, or put down your smartphones. And as for taking to the streets, look, I go on demonstrations all the time – they’re important, but I know they hardly get noticed by those in power. They just stop the traffic for a while and then people go back to their jobs and get on with their lives. The new way should be cyber.’

  Stefan pointed to Rico. ‘Well, you know more about that cyber stuff than me. All I know is that something has to change, and if you look at history, change has only happened when people have taken to the streets. You were on the streets just last week.’

  ‘Yes,’ said Rico. ‘There were thousands of us, but I’m beginning to wonder what it changes. I’m fed up of pounding the streets, and speeches about the workers, the people and the unions. We’ve got to find another way.’

  ‘I agree,’ said Stefan. ‘I’m just not sure if you’re going to find it up there on your keyboard.’

  They both stayed quiet for a while, as if they were contemplating each other’s point of view. Then out of the blue, Stefan said, ‘Just over a week and it’s back to school then. Are you looking forward to it?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Really?’

  ‘Yes. What’s so strange about that?’

  ‘Nothing. I just thought you might want a longer holiday.’

  ‘I’ve got work to do, but I’m actually missing school a bit. There’s loads of friends I haven’t seen for a while.’

  ‘Talking about your friends,’ Stefan said, ‘how’s your friend Karima now?’

  ‘She’s OK,’ said Rico.

  ‘Good. I like her.’

  ‘Why do you like her so much?’ asked Rico.

  ‘She’s an individual, she’s different, and you suit each other,’ said Stefan, smiling.

  Rico sat up swiftly. ‘Are you kidding? We’re good friends, but not like that.’

  ‘I know,’ replied Stefan. ‘I just really like her.’

  Rico and his dad talked a lot that night. It was the first time they had talked so long for months. By the time Rico got to his room he was thinking about government DNA storage, how to change the world, the purpose of school, and the state of his mother’s health. He had so much on his mind that he just went to bed and slept on it all.

  Chapter 10

  Job Done. Now What?

  After Rico had finished the website, he celebrated by going to Telford’s, where he worked, and buying himself the biggest external hard drive on the market and some other computer accessories. When he arrived in the shop Ana was on her phone talking to a friend about her birthday plans. It was all about going to a club on Broad Street and dancing into the early hours of the morning. As she spoke Rico smiled, and she smiled back, thinking that Rico was impressed by her party plans – but Rico was smiling because he was thinking of how her birthday was going to be better for reasons other than partying.

  After Rico had bought his goods, Mr Telford called him into his office.

  ‘A few more jobs have come in for you. Can you take a look at them before you go and tell me if you can fix them when you’re in on Saturday?’

  ‘No problem,’ replied Rico enthusiastically. ‘If I can’t do them all on Saturday and they’re not too big I can take some home and do them there.’

  Mr Telford smiled. ‘I tell you what, lad; you’re busier than me. If you carry on like this you’ll be buying me out. This place will mainly be a computer repair shop, and I’ll just sell a few bits and pieces in the corner.’

  ‘I don’t think so.’

  ‘I thought you said you’ve always wanted to have your own computer business?’

  ‘I do.’

  ‘Well, you’ve already got the business; all you need is premises, and if I retire there might be a chance of you taking over here.’

  Rico almost jumped with delight. ‘Are you serious?’

  ‘Of course I am,’ said Mr Telford. ‘But that’s a long way off yet. I’ve still got some life left in me, and you’ve still got to finish school. Now go and take a look at those jobs on your workbench.’

  Rico checked the jobs that had been left for him – they were all small ones that could be done on Saturday. He said goodbye to Mr Telford and Ana and began to walk towards the bus stop, but just thirty seconds into his walk he was joined by Speech.

  ‘Can you stop a minute?’ asked Speech.

  Rico looked at Speech and straight away he noticed that there was something wrong.

  ‘What’s up?’ asked Rico.

  ‘I’ve got a bit of a problem. How’s the website?

  ‘It’s done,’ said Rico.

  ‘Great. You haven’t said anything to her, have you?’

  ‘Hey, man. I told you I wouldn’t. Do you wanna see it?’

  ‘Yes,’ said Speech, but he didn’t sound as enthusiastic as Rico had expected.

  ‘OK then, put this web address in your phone.’

  Speech shouted, ‘I told you, I don’t have a phone!’

  ‘OK,’ said Rico. ‘Give me a pen and paper.’

  Speech handed Rico a small notebook with a pencil attached to it. Rico wrote down the address an
d handed it back.

  ‘If you log onto that web address and use that password you can see the site. Only you can see it now, it hasn’t gone live yet.’

  ‘Thanks,’ said Speech, with his head bowed.

  ‘What’s the matter?’ asked Rico, who was now beginning to get really concerned.

  ‘I was driving here, and I think I got flashed by a speed camera.’

  Rico laughed. ‘A speed camera. It’s not that bad. It’s not the end of the world.’

  ‘You don’t understand,’ said Speech, with his head still low. ‘I’ve already got nine points. You get three points for speeding, but if I get another three I’ll get banned, and I really can’t afford to get banned. My family rely on me. I need to drive.’

  ‘Just wait and see.’

  ‘I can’t wait and see,’ said Speech. ‘I can’t bear the waiting.’

  ‘But there’s nothing else you can do.’

  Speech thought for a moment. Then he raised his head and looked at Rico. ‘There’s something we can do, man. You can help me.’

  ‘How can I help you?’ asked Rico.

  Speech looked seriously at Rico. ‘The speed cameras are run by the Fixed Penalty Office. I don’t know if the camera caught me for sure, so I want you to just hack into their systems and see if I’m on their list.’

  ‘No way,’ said Rico. ‘I’m sure that’s illegal or something.’

  ‘Look. This is really important to me. I’ve got sick relatives up north that I have to look after, I’m the only one in my family in Birmingham who drives, and I’ve got young kids to look after. I’m not asking you do anything like mess about with stuff. Just go and see if my car registration is on their lists of fines pending. Just let me know and I’ll think about what to do next.’ Speech took a roll of money from his pocket. ‘Here’s £300. That’s how badly I need this, and I know you can do it.’

  Rico looked at the money, then he looked at Speech. ‘I’ll try, but if I get in I’m not going to do anything. I’m just going to have a look.’

  ‘That’s cool,’ said Speech, taking out his notebook again. He wrote down the car registration number, ripped out the page and handed it to Rico. ‘That’s the car reg. Just take a look for me. And here’s your money.’

  ‘No,’ said Rico. ‘I’m not doing this for your money. I guess I’m doing it for your family.’

  ‘Good man,’ said Speech. ‘I’ve got to go. I’ll find you in a couple of days.’

  ‘How?’

  ‘I’ll just find you,’ Speech said, walking away.

  That night Rico checked the website he had made for Ana and he could see by an internal counter that he had installed that Speech had visited the site. When he knew that his parents had settled down to watch TV, Rico went onto the Fixed Penalty Office website and started to look for weaknesses in their security. It didn’t take him long to get into the main servers, and then to generate passwords to get him deeper into restricted areas and to view pending speeding fines. He looked manually for Speech’s car registration number but he could not find it. Then he searched for it using his own software, but he still could not find it. Convinced that the car had not been flashed, Rico left the site, covered his tracks, and went to sleep.

  Chapter 11

  A Change of Mind

  ‘Rico. Rico.’

  Rico turned over in his bed.

  ‘Rico. Rico.’

  Rico turned over again. He knew that his parents had left for work, so this had to be a voice in his head. Or a character in his dream.

  ‘Rico. Rico. Wake up, brov – I’ll ring the bell if you don’t.’

  Rico sat up in his bed.

  ‘Rico. Come to the window.’

  It was only then that Rico realised that the voice was coming from the street outside, and that it was Karima. He got up. Wrapping himself in his duvet he went over and opened the window and shouted down as quietly as he could.

  ‘What’s up with you? It’s so early. What time is it, anyway?’

  ‘Almost nine,’ Karima shouted.

  ‘What you doing here so early?’

  ‘Hey, brov,’ Karima said, trying to sound reasonable. ‘You think it’s early cause you’ve been snoring for a few hours, and I think it’s late because I’ve been having fun all night. Anyway. I got a problem. Games console. Been on it all night, then it just crashed.’

  ‘So what do you want me to do?’

  ‘Fix it, brov. Do that rebooting, rejigging, reprogramming thing you do and make it all right for your sister.’

  ‘I don’t believe this,’ Rico sighed. ‘I’m coming down.’

  Rico opened the front door still wrapped in the duvet. Trying to hold it all together with one hand, he reached out with the other.

  ‘Give it to me. I’ll have a look at it later.’

  ‘Can’t you check it now?’

  ‘No way. Don’t you get it? I’m sleeping.’

  ‘Are you pleased to see me?’

  ‘Yes, but go away. I’m tired.’

  ‘Can I come in then?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Have you got any cake?’

  ‘No, I’ve got no cake, and I just said, I’m tired, now go away.’

  ‘No problem,’ Karima said, as if conceding. ‘Do you think you can fix it for this afternoon?’ She grinned.

  ‘I’ll try,’ said Rico. ‘If it’s a straightforward crash it shouldn’t be a problem.’

  ‘I’ll call you later then,’ said Karima as she turned and began to walk away, but Rico called her back.

  ‘Hey!’

  ‘What’s up?’

  ‘So what’s happening with you and your burning-up-the-city plan?’

  Karima laughed.

  ‘So, what’s happening?’ Rico insisted.

  ‘Nothing, brov. I listened to you, didn’t I. Like you said, they got me marked already, and I don’t wanna spend more time inside. I wanna be free, out here, with you. It’s like a life-change thing, you get me? So never mind the negativity, let’s play games and eat cake.’

  Rico smiled. He was relieved that Karima had changed her mind, and impressed with her attitude, but frustrated that he couldn’t tell her about his latest creative adventures, and about how much money he was making. He felt that he had to keep his side of the bargain with Speech and tell nobody, not even his closest friend. Rico could trust Karima with his money, his property, or to be there when he needed her, but he could not trust her with information. She just got too excited and talked too much.

  ‘It’s all good then,’ said Rico.

  ‘Yeah. It’s all good. See you later,’ Karima said before strutting off down the street as if she owned it.

  Rico crept back into bed but as soon as he woke up he got to work on Karima’s game console. He felt personal pride knowing that he had made her change her mind about trying to start another round of riots. He was sure that if she did she would simply have ended up spending a lot more time locked up. Working on the console was a welcome break from the more serious work he had been doing, but it didn’t last for long. It was an easy job, a simple case of reinstalling the programme. That evening, Karima came back to pick up her games console. It was now working perfectly.

  Chapter 12

  The Real Deal

  Rico did some small jobs for neighbours over the next couple of days, but he tried to take it easy and prepare mentally to go back to school. He went to work in the shop that Saturday, then after work, as he was walking to the bus stop, Speech appeared in the very same place he had done before. This time he looked like he was back to his normal self.

  ‘I had a look at Ana’s website. You’ve done a great job on it,’ said Speech. ‘She’s going to love it.’

  ‘When’s her birthday?’ Rico asked.

  ‘In six days. We’re almost there. So well done and thanks.’

  ‘No problem. I got her a great domain name and I’ve come up with a few tricks to make the site easy to find on search engines. Another thing. I checked yo
ur car and it’s not on there. I checked all the cars flashed by cameras in the last six months, and your car’s not there. So you have nothing to worry about.’

  ‘Thanks, man,’ said Speech, relieved. ‘That’s really taken a load off me. You’re a good kid. Look, I really need to talk to you.’

  ‘You’re talking to me now,’ said Rico.

  Speech took a step closer to Rico. ‘No. This is real talk.’

  ‘What is it with you?’ Rico said, stepping away. ‘You just appear out of nowhere and you always want to talk to me. What do you want now?’

  ‘Do you remember the subway where we spoke the first time we met?’

  ‘Yes,’ replied Rico.

  ‘Let’s meet there in twenty minutes,’ said Speech.

  ‘What’s wrong with just talking here?’

  ‘Trust me. We can’t talk about what I want to talk about here. This is big. Very big.’

  ‘I don’t know about big. It better be good,’ said Rico. ‘I’ll see you there in twenty minutes.’

  Speech walked off in one direction, Rico walked off in another. The subway wasn’t far. At normal walking speed he would have reached it in ten minutes, so he took his time, and he still arrived before Speech. He waited, and Speech turned up ten minutes late. Speech’s mood had changed again. This time he was serious. No smiles, no greetings, he just started talking.

  ‘You’re good at what you do. You care about stuff. You got locked up during the riots, didn’t you?’

  ‘Yes, but not for long. They had nothing on me.’

  ‘That doesn’t stop them. They got you on their books, they got your DNA, they got you, man,’ said Speech.

  ‘I know all that stuff. Big Brother and all that. It’s happening, I know, but there’s nothing we can do. If they’re watching us, we just have to make sure we’re watching them.’

  Speech nodded his head in agreement. ‘You’re damn smart, man. That’s why I like you. You know what’s going on. You got awareness, and you’ve raised your consciousness. A lot of kids your age haven’t. You’re intelligent, but you’re a bit soft.’