Wednesday, April 19, 2023

WfW ~ the artisan's coins continue ...

 "Simon, do you think the coins are artificial?  Don't you have some type of metallurgy test or skill or some whatnot?"

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 "I'm not sure, Jack.  I mean, they sound like they are made from some sort of metal, but that doesn't mean they are authentic coins from the future.  It just means that someone created a mold, or a stamp and was able to create them. It's also possible that some sector of our financial operations that mints coins could have made a typo.  In this case, they would be just as valuable to collectors as if they were made in the future.  For example, what was that stamp of the airplane that was upside down?  Wasn't that worth a lot of money just because someone ran a few upside down?"

 "Can you test them to see what kind of metal it is?  Then if it turns out to be something that normal coins aren't made of, that would be a good indication that they are just some sort of prop for a movie or counterfeit and we can warn the local businesses."

 "I would think that local law enforcement is already doing that since they are aware of the coins, and I'm not sure they would be willing to involve us since the coins are now part of a homicide investigation."

 "True, but ..."

 Jack was cut off by a horrific scream coming from outside the office door.  We both jumped out of our chairs and rushed to the door, flinging it open to see Rose standing in the hallway, still screaming and jumping all over, waving her arms about her head frantically.  He grabbed her, pinning her arms to her sides, and dragged her back into the office.

 "What on earth is going on with you, Rose?  You nearly gave us both heart attacks!"

 "Where is it?  Where is it"

 "Where is what?  Rose, calm down!"

 "A spider!  A bug! A flying insect of some sort!  It has been following me for hours, buzzing around my head, then it finally got caught in my hair!  I think it is some kind of robot spy!  Some AI!!"

 Jack and I looked at each other over her head and smiled before Jack fell to the floor laughing so hard he was crying.

 "And so ... [hahahahahahaha] and so ... [hahahahahahahahahaha] oh my gosh, my stomach hurts ... [hahahahahahahahaha] and so the descent into chaos and lawlessness begins as ... [hahahahahahahahahaha] the midnight hour of humanity has come ... [bwahahahahahahaha] and the AI rise to power!"

 Rose looked down at him, glaring as if daggers could shoot out of her eyes.  She turned, stomping her feet, and slammed the office door behind her so hard that the glass panel with our names on it shattered.  Jack immediately stopped laughing and stood up.

 "Well, I don't think that was necessary."

~*~*~ Two Hours Later ~*~*~

 "Damn it." Jack slammed down his phone.  "The soonest any glass company within 50 miles can come to fix the window is going to be two weeks from next Wednesday! And... our insurance isn't going to pay for it because there was some kind of complaint against them so they are freezing all of their policies until it is resolved."

 "What?!?!  When did that happen?  Were we notified?"

 "No, because when it happened a month ago, they had to lay off all their office personnel until it gets resolved so no notices have been sent out.  The only reason I managed to reach someone on the phone was that the auditors are in there today going thru the books, and the manager thought it was the building security desk calling to tell him that the pizza he ordered was there."

 "Great.  I guess I'll head to the Lakeshore Lowe's and see if I can get a piece of plywood cut to fit the opening.  Can you work on making a sign to put on the front of it with our names on it so any prospective clients can find us?  I might also stop by the police station to see what the latest is on that murder, and whether or not they have any update on the authenticity of those coins."

 "Sounds good.  Let me know what you find out.  In the meantime, I got a lead on a missing biker who goes by the name of Moon that might somehow be involved in all this."

 "Really? How so?"

 "Well, don't laugh because we can't afford to replace any more glass windows, but one of his buddies called and said that for the past month or so he was acting pretty squirrely and talking about some strange men in black who were from the future being in town. Now he's been missing ever since the murder at the loft."

 I stifled a laugh. "Next we're going to get a new client that is a little talking pug named Frank who is wearing a black suit and sunglasses, right?"

 I could still hear him laughing on the 4th floor as the elevator hit the lobby.

Participating in Words for Wednesday, found here where T. Powell Coltrin Writes.


4 comments:

  1. This is either going to turn out to be an elaborate prank, or something really strange is going on. I'm enjoying the story immensely.

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  2. Oh my goodness! This could turn into a novel. What a great thing!

    Teresa

    T. Powell Coltrin Writes @ https://journalingwoman.blogspot.com

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  3. I love this continuing story and hope that Teresa's words next week allow you to create another installment.

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  4. Well done. I think if something buzzy landed in my hair I would react just like Rose did.

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