$ound Future$

Benny placed the Vaultone™ atop the ornate desk and stepped back with a weak grin. “Scored a couple of gems for ya, boss. Ugh, ugh.” He coughed.

“Gems.” Alice nodded, arms crossed.

Senator DeFranco eyed the contraption with greed in his beady eyes. He licked his lips. His jowls oozed above his white collar like walrus blubber.

“Nabbed this recording from a press briefing in late 2024,” Benny said, checking his notes. “Interesting stuff. ‘Taiwan makes the best chips.’ So AI is the power play if I’m investing.”

Alice shook her head. “Too bad we can’t.”

“It is.” Benny frowned.

“They’ll be okay, Ben,” she assured him with a firm look.

“Yeah—”

“And?” the senator broke in. “You got more for me or what?”

“All your sound bites are in there, sir,” Benny wheezed, gesturing at the device. He cleared his throat. “Trade chatter, news tickers, a street preacher predicting war from a soapbox. All raw audio. Plug in your decoder and hear for yourself.”

“Didn’t you have notes—before you two got all… sentimental?”

“Well, not exactly.” Benny squinted at his messy handwriting. “The pandemic thing, ya know? When was it? 2020? Seems like a goldmine, huh? You remember the bit, Alice?”

“The ten richest men double their fortunes in pandemic while incomes of 99 percent fall,” she said sourly.

“See, that could be you, sir. That’s why you hired us.”

“Yes, and why I agreed to our strange deal, Benjamin.” The Senator leaned forward in his chair.

Either the leather squeaked, or the man farted. Benny couldn’t tell. Everything smelled like shit since he’d started treatment.

“Anything else?” The senator queried.

Benny shrugged, holding back another cough. Alice looked disgusted.

“Your input has been… quite lucrative, Benjamin,” Senator DeFranco breathed. “Your family will be well provided for. As I’ve promised. Since the beginning.”

“And yours, too, Miss Alice. Your girls will want for nothing, I say again. The best care. Best education. All thanks to their ‘Sound-Thieving’ Mommy.” He pursed his fat, moist lips. “A woman who went forward in time and stole the truth for me. All for her children’s future. So sweet.”

He sighed. “What a fine deal we made. A world of opportunity—for them. In a future without you,” he said, dragging his eyes from Alice to Benny. “I’m… very sorry this is happening to you two. You’ve been so helpful. You will be… hard to replace… when the time comes.”

Alice scowled menacingly. “All that matters is you keep your end of the bargain,” she muttered.

“Alice, don’t.” Benny side-eyed his cohort. “Right. Hopefully, you can remember all this in eighteen years when it matters, Senator. We’ll be rooting for ya. From somewhere. I hope.”

“You’ve done well, thank you,” the man grumbled, reaching for the Vaultone.

“Take care of our kin,” Alice said with a serious nod.

“Aye,” Benny agreed. “Keep your word, boss… or we’ll eat ya.” He swallowed pointedly. “Remember, Time Zombies can’t control their appetite. Good luck with your futures.”