Daemon

better fit. Were his measurements in the Warmonk database, too?
    He had no idea what to do next.
    Suddenly the cell phone in his pocket warbled. He smiled to himself and pulled the phone out. He flipped it open. The LCD display read:
    Jane Doe
    He laughed ruefully, then answered it. ‘Okay, what’s the catch, Jane?’
    The familiar, clipped British voice responded. ‘
Hello, Mr Moze-ly. I kept my promise. Are you prepared to proceed?
’
    ‘I suppose I owe you now, is that it?’
    ‘
Remember that I am an interactive voice system, Mr Moze-ly. I cannot understand complete sentences. Please respond to my questions with a simple “yes” or “no
.”’
    ‘Riiiight.’
    ‘
“Yes” or “no” are the only valid responses. Do you understand?
’
    He sighed. ‘Yes.’
    ‘
You will notice a GPS map on the screen of your cell phone. It indicates your present position and a destination. Proceed on foot until your position and that of your destination match. I will know when you’ve arrived and will phone you. Do you understand?
’
    ‘Yes.’ He was about to ask what the hell this was all about, but he realized it was just a machine. Or at least someone acting like one – either way, they wouldn’t answer questions. She hung up on him.
Damn this stupid shit. Just tell me what you want
.
    He glanced at a local map displayed on the phone’s tiny LCD screen. He started walking. Behind him lay the massive prison walls, and to the right and left there lay only open prairie. Straight ahead lay the downscale little town that served the prison guards. Mosely walked across the parking lot.
    A few minutes later he was across the state highway and walking in a mixed-race blue-collar neighborhood. He came to a detached garage with a corrugated steel door. Graffiti roiled colorfully across the center of it. What was with kids nowadays? A good tag was at least
recognizable
.
    Suddenly the phone rang again. Mosely answered it. ‘’sup, Jane?’
    ‘
Mr Moze-ly, do you have the key?
’
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘
Use it to open the garage door. You will find the mechanism to the right. After opening the door, step inside and close it behind you. When the door is safely closed, hit the “one” key on your phone
.’
    Mosely stifled his growing irritation. This was dangerous and stupid and a million other bad things. He had cash in his pocket and he could just grab a car and run. But to where? He had no ID. He had no connections anymore.
    He looked around warily and proceeded to the garage door, pulling the key from his pocket as he walked. The lock was set into the right side of the door frame. He inserted the key and turned it. The garage door rose with a mechanical rattle. He stooped underneath after it had risen a few feet and immediately cast about for danger.
    It was a garage. A car of some type sat beneath a blue plastic tarp. Mosely looked around for the door switch. He found it just behind him and pounded the big white button. The door reversed direction. It closed in a few seconds. Mosely stood beneath a dim lightbulb in the sudden silence. The heat and humidity were stifling. He remembered she was still on the line, and he tapped the ‘1’ key, then listened.
    Her voice returned. ‘
Good. Uncover the vehicle. You will find it unlocked with the keys inside. Enter the car, and turn the ignition switch to the first position. This will give the car electrical power but will not start the engine
.’ The line went dead.
    Mosely closed the phone and tapped the edge of it to his chin, contemplating. FBI trap? Someone planning to frame him for a bank robbery or a drug deal? Which was it? He stood there for a few minutes. The more he contemplated it, the more it became apparent this was a trap. Still, if he played it smart, he might be able to pull off an escape yet. If nothing else, it was nice to know that someone thought he was worth all this trouble.
    He looked for a window to peer out of the garage, but there wasn’t any. Trapped and blind. The only light was the single bare bulb with a motion sensor above it. He craned his neckto see into the shadows on the other side of the covered vehicle. Nothing visible. He looked under the car. Still nothing.
    He put the phone away and wiped his sweating face. No way around it. He grabbed the edge of the plastic tarp and pulled it off to reveal the car. He stood staring at it for several moments.
    It was a shiny black Lexus LS460 sedan. It looked brand-new. A few years back Mosely