Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer

I hop over the bulkhead into Room Six. After pushing the safety door to get it closed quickly, I turn to find a lot more people than should be here. They’re all staggering round with their hands over their ears.
Another screamer? I dive across to the crash panel and kill the speakers. Looking about, I see everyone looking relieved. After counting to ten in my head without anyone showing further signs of distress, I enable my ears, then shout.
“Somebody tell me what went wrong this time.”
There are shocked expressions and a lot more sideways glances than I like for a Lifekeeper Gathering. Most of them are between what I presume to be family members, and several are looking guilty.
“Okay, let’s try this. Everybody who’s not staff, please go to Rest Area Two. Mikael will guide you. I’ll be along soon.”
Our newest team member leads the relatives away. As the door swings shut, I turn to Andrea, then to Chas after she rolls her eyes then flicks her gaze his way.
The door closes.
“Mister Tolland. What did your clients not tell us?”
Chas looks unwell. I’m beginning to get a bad idea about what’s happened. When he fails to find his voice, I let my guess out.
“They didn’t get her permission, did they?”
I might as well have slapped him, but he’s not looking like the whole truth is out. What could be worse than uploading a dying patient without their permission?
“What else did they lie about, Chas?”
Now he looks sick. Still silent, though.
“Andrea, could you fill some gaps while Chas rediscovers words?”
She glares at him.
“Go wait in Rest Area One.”
What have I missed? Chas leaves, carefully closing the safety door behind him. That surprises me, too. He’s usually bullish, even when in the wrong. Checking the other staff, I see they’ve moved away to give the two of us a modicum of privacy – or to distance themselves from what’s about to be revealed.
Andrea sighs.
“The Candletons approached Chas with a problem. Etty Candleton left her entire inheritance to her favourite granddaughter, Susan. Cut out the whole family. Then Susan was left in a terminal coma after a car crash.”
I notice she specified Chas, not ‘us’ as in the company. Which can mean only one thing.
“How big a cut was he promised, and for what?”
She holds up a Lifekeeper drive.
“A quarter of a million to switch Susan for an obedient construct.”
“How did you intervene?”
“I came in early, checked his locker, found the drive. Verified the contents, then switched places and labels.”
So Chas loaded Susan instead of unloading her. Trick move, that. But –
“Why the screaming?”
She frowns.
“What I didn’t spot was the no-upload declaration her family had tampered with. I checked audit logging which revealed the hack, but only after the screaming started.”
“Susan, heiress of Candleton, didn’t want to be uploaded?”
“Correct. In the event of her death, her estate is to be divided amongst a long list of charities.”
“Has her physical self died?”
“Yes. Yesterday afternoon. The family were rushing to save her, or so we thought.”
I walk over to the crash console, insert my override key, and erase digital Susan.
“Rest in peace, miss.”
I turn to Andrea.
“Prepare a full dump of the whole thing. I’ll have Chas arrested. Quickest way to find the guilty family members.”
“He’ll confess, sure enough.” She shakes her head. “After they catch him, though. My mistake: he won’t be in Rest Area One.”
Good guess.