Interesting Times (Interesting Times #1) Read Free Page A

system had been
pushed into the corner of the room. Oliver couldn’t remember the last time
anyone had needed to use it. It had been purchased in the heady dot com days when everyone had been flush with cash, and had been gathering dust ever
since.
    “Very
good,” Mr. Teasdale said, looking carefully at the ceiling. “I notice no
security cameras in the room. None on the walls, and none in the ceiling. Is
that also your understanding, Mr. Jones?”
    Oliver
frowned. “No, not in the conference rooms.” He thought about it. “Ah…there are
some out front, in reception, and in the hallways. And on the trading floor, of
course, but not in here.” Was that a problem? Could that be why Teasdale was
here? “Do we need them?” Oliver asked. “I know the firm takes SEC regulations
very seriously, so if we’re violating some rule, I’m sure we’ll fix it right
away.”
    “Oh,
that’s quite all right.” Mr. Teasdale sat his briefcase down on the table and
opened it. “I suppose you’re wondering what all this is about?” he asked.
    “Of
course,” Oliver said.
    Mr.
Teasdale removed a small device the size and shape of a smartphone from his
briefcase. He thumbed a switch on its side and Oliver could hear it begin to
hum quietly.
    “What is
that?” Oliver asked. “Did you want to record our conversation? I should
probably ask Legal to join us, then.”
    “I’m not
going to record anything,” Mr. Teasdale said. “The whole point is not to. Hence
the question about the cameras.”
    “Then
what is that thing?” Oliver gestured at the device, which was humming louder
now. Wait a minute , he thought. What had Teasdale just said about not
recording anything?
    “You
know what a Taser is, I assume?” Mr. Teasdale asked.
    “Of
course I know what a Taser is.”
    “It’s a
bit like that,” Mr. Teasdale allowed. Then he pressed the end of the device
firmly against Oliver’s chest and pressed the trigger.
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 3
     
     
    Oliver
was thrown backward as if he had just been kicked by a horse. His skin burned.
He felt like his entire body had been dunked in gasoline and then set ablaze
all at once. Then, as quickly as it had come, the pain was gone. Oliver found
himself lying on the floor, numb. He was unable to move; his arms and legs felt
like they had the consistency of jelly.
    Mr.
Teasdale was standing over him. He looked down at Oliver with a gentle
expression. “I am sorry about that, Mr. Jones, but I do need you to be still
for the next part.”
    “Guh,”
Oliver said. His lips refused to form words and his tongue felt like it was the
size of a sweatsock.
    “Yes, I
suppose so,” nodded Mr. Teasdale. He went to the table and placed the Taser
device, or whatever it was, back in his briefcase, then removed a small
syringe. 
    What on
earth was going on? Oliver wanted to scream, to call out for security, or the
police, or anyone at all, but the wind had been knocked out of him and he could
barely make a sound.
    Mr.
Teasdale returned to where Oliver lay and knelt down carefully next to his legs.
He gently slipped off Oliver’s left shoe, followed by the sock. He glanced up
at Oliver’s questioning face. “Heart attack,” he said, holding up the syringe
so Oliver could see it. “Don’t worry, Mr. Jones. It won’t hurt.” Mr. Teasdale
frowned thoughtfully. “Well, that’s not exactly true. It will hurt quite a lot.
But it will be over very quickly.” He spread Oliver’s first and second toes apart
and aimed the syringe carefully at the web of skin between them.
    “I?”
Oliver asked.
    “Hmm?”
    Oliver
felt his skin beginning to tingle. Sensation was returning to his arms and
legs, albeit slowly. He couldn’t move his fingers, but he was able to force his
mouth to form one word: “Why?”
    “Oh,”
Mr. Teasdale nodded. “Why.” He shrugged. “I honestly have no idea. It’s just a
job, Mr. Jones.”
    Oliver
desperately tried to kick his left leg away from the other