"Brainless" - Susan M. Bowes (best manga ereader .txt) 📗

aware of this fact. The senior Issacs was rarely far from his desk.

I’d been waiting to see Issacs for some time. Harry had finished his interviews and joined me. He sat beside me not showing an iota of impatient. I on the other hand was never a patient man and got up and started pacing. I was just about to demand an audience with him when his secretary finally announced that her boss was ready to see us.

“It’s about time,” I grumbled as we walked through the doorway and entered the office. There was a solid wall of windows that overlooked the city. I didn’t get too close as I’ve always held a fear of heights. Issacs invited me to sit and we walked over to his desk. I sat as far from the glass panels as I could.

“Have you made any progress in your investiga-tion detective?”

“Not much. Other than the synthetic flesh my sub-officer collected there isn’t much to go on. Your son was definitely murdered by a robot. My H.A.I.B. insists reprogramming was done to achieve this. The only other informa-tion we have is that your son was not murdered at the scene. His body was dumped there.”

“How do you know that?”

“There wasn’t enough blood. That’s why we’re here. I was hoping to gain some insight on your son’s whereabouts prior to the crime.”

“I’m afraid I can’t help you there. I didn’t keep tabs on him. We weren’t very close.”

“I didn’t realize that.”

“It’s no secret. Harold and I didn’t see eye to eye on certain matters; especially his loyalty to this corporation. But that is neither here nor there. I have no idea where or who Harold was with when he died. Perhaps you should check with some of his friends.”

“We’ve already checked with everyone he was acquainted with. I was hoping you could give me a name that might help in our investigation.”

“I wouldn’t know any of my son’s associates. As I said before I didn’t keep tabs on him. I was hoping he’d make some friends here. I have tried to get him interested in my work, but it was useless. I even threatened to cut him out of my will, but it did no good. His position is in name only.”

“There’s no one you can think of that he might have been with that night?”

“I don’t know his friends, but there are several unrespectable bars he frequented. You might check them out.”

“What bars?”

“You could try “The Fantasy Club.” He often frequented that establishment. I believe that is where he acquired the drugs he used. I hear it is located in the seamier part of our fair city.” Arthur Issacs then stood. “I’m afraid that’s all the information I can provide you with. You’ll have to excuse me. I’m extremely busy this morning.”

“Thank you for the info. It might be helpful.” I noticed the brush off.

“Good day Detective Fisher. You will keep me informed of your continuing investigation?”

“Of course,” I said as we were rushed to the door.

“There is one more question I need to ask,” my sub-officer said. “Was your son working on robotics on his own?”

“No. As I said before Harold wasn’t interested in robotics.”

Harry didn’t respond.

We exited the reception area and headed towards the elevators. Harry looked disturbed. I asked him what was wrong.

“He lied to us. The murder victim had metallic elements on his clothing that specifically came from H.A.I.B.’s. I thought this could’ve been from a struggle with the robot who had murdered him, but upon further investigation I discovered this element was imbedded deep in his hands and body. Traces were also found in his blood stream. Working closely on robots for a sustained period is the only way this can happen.”

“Maybe this occurred through contact with the employees of the company or even Issacs’ servants.”

“The amount in his blood could have only penetrated his system by means of close and constant contact; not merely by being in close proximity for a limited amount of time as Issacs’ suggested. I assure you the victim worked closely on robots for years.”

“Why didn’t you tell me this before?”

“I didn’t think it was important until now. I assumed he worked vigorously on projects at this corporation, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. If what his father said was true.”

***

He entered the bar and it took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust to the dark atmosphere. Harry was equipped with inferred and was able to see in the poorly lit environment. He had no trouble navigating his way through the darkness as I stumbled against a table. There were several women dancing naked on a stage centered in the room. That captured my immediate attention. I was always very fond of the female anatomy.

“This way sir,” Harry said as he stole my attention from the strippers.

We walked over to the bar. Two women were on top of the surface gyrating to the raucous music that blared loudly. The bartender came over and I produced my badge.

“What can I do for you?” the long, haired man asked.

I showed him a picture of Issacs. “Have you ever seen this man here before?”

“Sure. That’s Izzy.”

“Izzy?”

“Yeah, that’s what the girls nicknamed him. You know. Is he gonna pick me tonight? Izzy’s one of their favorites. They always fight over his attention. He pays very well for their services and always leaves me a big tip.”

“Their services?” I asked knowing full well what he meant. Though prostitution was still illegal after all these years it was just a minor offense. If caught soliciting you only had to pay a small fine.

The bartender rolled his eyes. “Give us a break will ya? The gals are only trying to make a living.”

“I’m not gonna hassle them. Makes no difference to me how they earn their keep. But tell me. Why did Izzy pay for it when he could get any woman he wanted?”

“He didn’t want the involvement.”

“You are aware of who he is aren’t you?” I asked amazed that someone so rich had to pay for a woman’s affection. Maybe his old man did cut the kid’s funding off.

“Yeah. He’s been on the tube enough. Mostly we know who he is cause he’s always complaining about his old man. He gets sloshed and whines about something his father said or did. Says he can never do right by him.”

“Did he say what he does at the company?”

“Naw. He doesn’t spend a lot of time there. Got his own lab at home. Says he works on robots all the time. One of the girls Izzy spends a lot of time with said that he’d developed some new prototype for his father, but the old man dismissed it as useless.”

“Really? Tell me more.”

“Don’t know much more, but Sally’s almost finished with her routine if you want to ask her. She knows him better than anyone around here.”

I told the bartender that I wanted to talk to her and took a seat at the bar. Harry stood next to me as I ordered a beer. We both waited patiently while I ogled the dancers. When Sally stepped off the stage the bartender called her over. I introduced myself and asked what she knew about Issacs.

“He’s a lost soul.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Izzy tries so hard to get his father’s approval, but the prick won’t show him any affection. That’s why he started to hang here. Arthur Issacs doesn’t give a damned about his son. That poor sot is constantly drunk or high. He’s not much more than a robot himself thanks to his father.”

“The bartender said you know about some robot he was working on.”

“Yeah. Said he developed something exceptional. Said his father didn’t even look at the schematics. Dismissed his idea without a second thought. Why are you asking all these questions about Izzy?”

“You haven’t watched the tube?”

“No. Don’t get much spare time. When I do I generally catch up on the zzz’s.”

“Your friend was murdered last night.”

“No! Who would want to off Izzy? He never hurt anyone in his life.” Tears welled up in her eyes. She was obviously upset.

“Was he here last night? Did he leave with anyone?”

“Yeah. He seemed kinda nervous. I could tell something was bothering him. Kept looking towards the door like he was expecting somebody. Didn’t see him leave. I had to get back to work.”

“Do you think the other girls might have seen something?”

“You could ask, but I doubt it. We’re a little busy that time of night if you get my drift.”

“Yeah.” I told Harry to interview the other girls. No one had seen Harold leave. I thought it was quite odd that he’d been working on a prototype for his father. Issacs had indeed lied about his son’s interest in robotics. This mystery was deepening by the minute.


Chapter Three

- The Lab -


I was in the captain’s office bright and early the next morning. He was on the phone with his superiors. My boss wasn’t happy. Apparently our investigation was not moving rapidly enough for the mayor. He was a personal friend of Issacs. The captain slammed down the receiver and informed me that I had better close this case by week’s end if not sooner.

“It’s a complicated case sir,” I tried to explain.

“I don’t care how complicated it is. Solve it.”

“I’m doing everything I can to do that sir.”

“You’re not doing it fast enough. Isn’t your H.A.I.B. working properly? Do you need a newer model?”

“I don’t need a new robot. It’s just that the facts in this case aren’t very clear yet.”

“They better become clear soon otherwise you’ll be looking for another job. I don’t want to get another call from upstairs. Do you understand me?”

“Yes sir. I understand.”

“Good. Now get the hell out of my office.”

“Yes sir.”

“What did the captain want?” Harry asked me when I sulked back to my desk and flopped down in the chair.

“What do you think?” I snapped.

“I assume he’s not happy with our progress.”

“Your assumption is right. We’ve got to the end of the week to solve this thing or my ass is grass.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Don’t be sorry. Just help me solve this case.”

“I’ll do my best sir.”

I jumped up from my seat and grabbed my jacket. “Come on. We’ve got a lot to accomplish and very little time to do it.” Harry followed me as I rushed from the station.

We went back to “Future Robotics.” Harry was interviewing employees again while I cooled my heels in the reception area. I was getting angry. Issacs was making me wait an unusually long period. Harry exited the elevator and walked over. I asked if he’d learned anything new. He say no and asked if I had seen Issacs yet.

“No and I’m getting more impatient by the minute.” I stormed over to the reception desk, “Issacs does know I’m here doesn’t he? This is police business.”

“Yes sir. He’s aware you’re waiting. He has a very busy schedule this morning. I’m sure he’ll get