STIRRING : chapter three
a new serial fiction
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chapter three
every night (when there was hot water), Josef would steam up the bathroom camera. then he’d retrieve the hidden trinket and hand it to the boy who would delight in receiving it. he would play with it — making it waddle back and forth, dipping it into the water, jumping, floating it amidst the suds. and the boy’s father would watch him, watch his smile.
Josef later told me Zechariah’s smile was like a glowing ember in a frozen field — that he would do anything to stoke it and keep it glowing, in hopes other embers might remember what it was like to be aflame.
“does he have friends?” Zechariah asked one night.
“friends?”
Zechariah held up the gray little creature, a mane of soapy lather sliding off its shoulder.
“do you mean more like him?”
Zechariah shrugged.
“well. i found him in a big wooden box. and there were other trinkets in there, but not like him.”
“like what, Papa?”
“well. little cars. little soldiers. other animals.”
“can you bring another, Papa?”
Josef considered this. getting this little guy past the guards and sentry robots already required a little bit of luck. he couldn’t rely on that again.
“we’ll see, son,” he said taking the animal from him and wiping it dry. “let’s bathe and get ready to sleep.”
Zechariah sulked, but obeyed. Josef put the gray curiosity back under the sink until the next hot bath.
as Josef slogged up the slushy steps of the factory the next morning, he noticed the device in Pyriev’s hand again. what was it? how did it work? it must be manufactured by someone, likely in this factory. could he find that person? and would they help him? or report him? he decided it best not to involve anyone else.
he arrived at his workbench under the big window. there was already a broken sentry robot on his desk. he took off his coat and sat down. removing the robot’s bottom plate, he paused and looked at the antennae inside.
what if he broke off all the antennae of every robot that came across his bench? no, that would be traced back to him. but maybe he could make a device similar to Pyriev’s? maybe not as sophisticated. but perhaps something that would cause enough interference to disrupt it.
Josef was startled by a thwack against the back of his chair. another large guard, Sergei was making his rounds.
“stop being lazy!”
Josef realized he’s just been sitting, staring into the robot. he quickly grabbed a spanner and began adjusting something, anything.
Sergei, who didn’t know a transistor from a resistor, huffed and moved on. Josef realized he’d have to keep up the appearance of working. in fact, there were expectations about the amount of work he was to complete each day. if he were to complete these things early in the day, then it’s possible he could spend time building his own contraption without much suspicion.
he pretended to adjust a motherboard screw as he stared at the antenna. they had leads going in and out. surely from one of these, he could discern the frequency at which they operated. he didn’t know much about radio communication, but he did understand it was waves moving through the air at a certain frequency. if he could get within the range, he could disrupt the signal, possibly causing the robot to malfunction. he’d need a multimeter, not part of his usual tool set, but he had seen one in the basement store room. if he could find a way to get down there, it would also give him a chance to snag another trinket for his son.
he scanned his workbench and saw a bin of odd-shaped screws. he looked around to make sure no one was watching, and poured the screws into his shirt pocket. then he motioned to his supervisor, Grigori.
“what is it.” Grigori was a weak, balding man who cared about the work they did the way a garden slug might care about a tavern fistfight.
“i need to refill my supplies.”
Grigori looked at his now-empty bin, then motioned to the shelves behind him. “just do it, then.” his breath stank of yeast from his morning drink.
“they’re special screws, sir. i’ll need to get them from storage.”
Grigori looked annoyed, but apparently didn’t feel like arguing. “just... don’t waste time.”
Josef nodded and headed to the stairs.
❊ ❊ ❊
by the end of the day, Josef had a working remote of his own. it was an antenna loosely fixed to a small board with short leads he could touch to a little battery he found. it didn’t do much, but the multimeter suggested it broadcast a quick burst of radio signal at a short distance. it whipped through the range from the antennae he’d tested. he hoped that would be enough to at least confuse the robot long enough for him to get away.
if it didn’t work, he’d be in great trouble — not just from the little red car in his pocket, but also from the makeshift remote constructed of stolen parts. but the great risk was worth it to him. his life was only worth living if his son could be happier than he.
on the way out of the factory, Josef breathed slowly, trying to calm his fluttering tummy. soon he was near the bottom of the steps. Pyriev watched them exit, his disdain for commoners baked into the leathery skin around his nostrils. a sentry robot tip-toed its pointy legs through the snow several yards away. maybe it would be too far to sense his contraband anyway.
but no such fortune, as the robot lit red and chirped as Josef was not but one stride from the bottom of the factory steps.
“halt!” Pyriev barked, and everyone did.
the little robot crawled its way through the frozen statues of workers, all of whom were scared, whether they had reason to be or not.
deep in his coat pocket, Josef fumbled about, smashing the leads of his remote against the contacts of the battery. but the robot kept coming. he swapped the leads back and forth, unable to see exactly what he was doing in his pocket. he closed his eyes and hoped.
the robot stopped a few paces away and emitted a bitter tone. Josef looked at it out of the corner of his eye. the light turned off, and the robot’s body slowly lowered into the powdery snow.
Pyriev’s boots left deep holes in the drifts as he came over to inspect. the robot lie motionless in the cold crater it had made for itself. Pyriev turned and growled at everyone standing motionless. “go on! move it!”
and everyone did. especially Josef, who traded controlling his anxiety for containing his excitement.
❊ ❊ ❊
after dinner, Josef once again drew a hot bath for the boy. as the room filled with steam, he reached into his pocket and retrieved the little red car. Zechariah lit up once again and immediately took hold of it and began playing with it and the animal together.
on the bathroom floor, Josef leaned back against the sink cabinet and watched his son, finally able to relax and enjoy the risks he had taken.
realizing the camera was fogged, he took advantage of the opportunity and slipped his makeshift remote from his pocket. he inspected it while Zechariah made boyish animal growls and vehicle noises. the remote would need a casing. a better, tested battery. definitely a switch. it was a close call today, so he’d want to increase range, which would be hard with the little antenna.
mother knocked at the door. “Josef. no foolishness.”
Josef put his finger to his lips to silence the boy. “we must be quiet, boy. they might hear,” he said, pointing up to the camera above them.
“Mama hears,” Zechariah said giggling.
“yes, her, too.” Josef winked at him and took the toys, stowing them away in the hidden spot under the sink.
“how many can we hide under there, Papa?”
Josef looked at the space behind the box of cleaner then looked back at his boy. “let’s find out.”
the next morning, Katya bundled Zechariah in his thick coat. Josef plucked his coat from the peg by the door and slipped his arms through.
“i hope we have hot water for bath tonight, Papa,” Zechariah beamed up at his father.
Josef smiled back, a real smile, all the way to his eyes. it was nearly painful; Josef realized it had been a long time since he’d had a reason to truly smile about something. but he found this warmth seeping up inside him. the boy’s joy was infectious.
Katya, however, was not smiling. Josef’s smile disappeared when he met her icy glare. “now your son loves bath time.”
Josef could tell there was a lot of meaning unspoken, but he did not know how to respond. “it’s good to be clean.”
irritated, Katya furrowed her brow and pushed the little one out the door. Zechariah toddled down the walk toward the road, and Katya turned her attention back to her husband. she grabbed his coat and started buttoning it up as a reason to hinder him.
“i don’t know what’s going on with you two, but-- “ her hand brushed against his coat pocket, and she felt the weight of a sharp corner, the remote and battery in his pocket. she shot her eyes toward his, and he quickly grabbed her hand. as subtle as he could be, he shook his head, no.
Katya gritted her teeth, trying to pull her fingers from his. her pale cold face went pink with flush. she whispered, but firmly. “the things you do, they don’t affect you alone.”
“i know,” Josef said quietly, staring back at her glassy eyes. he wanted to tell her everything. everything he’d found. everything he’d done. everything he had planned. that he had counted the cost. but how could he? and risk being overheard? especially out here in the open.
footsteps indicated some guards a few houses down. their locked gaze fell apart, and Katya stepped aside. Josef stepped down the walk and through the low fence bounding their small yard.
as he latched the gate back, he witnessed Katya step inside, wiping a tear from her pale face as she shut the door.
Can’t wait for the next one 👍