A Climate of Revenge: A Sarah and Janetm Mystery with a Writer’s Guide for Our Climate Crisis

By Tom Riley

Sarah and JanetM are a human/Artificial Intelligence pair who do private investigations in the near future where our climate crisis has hit and hit hard. Sarah turned down a job offer from Jackson Winestead. He is an ex-executive apparently interested in hiring Sarah to promote his I’m-a-good-guy-now image. Sarah does not trust him and has no patience for such monsters.

Soon after, two policemen arrive at Sarah’s house to inform her that Winestead was found dead not twenty minutes after they met. The next day, Winestead’s wife Venessa approaches Sarah to offer her a quite different job. Winestead has left money for Sarah to find his killer and report privately to his family.

Sarah and JanetM take on the murder investigation. What first appeared simple a case of greenwashing grows within the international environmental crisis. Sarah and JanetM are in the thick of it, surrounded by secrets and lies, as they seek the killer of a man with a thousand enemies in a world with a million problems.



The IPCC report, “Climate Change 2022, Impacts, Adaption and Vulnerability summary contains:

C5.3 Enhancing knowledge
A wide range of … processes … can deepen climate knowledge and sharing, including … using the arts … (high confidence).

This story is a response to this clarion call. It is a story of young people in effective action on our historic problems.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Aug 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9781663242129

Tom Riley

Bio of Tom Riley Tom Riley 5/31/2022 [e-mail] Cell: [phone] Summary: (543 words) After an extensive career at NASA as an Instrument Engineer, Tom Riley started a people-based space program, The Big Moon Dig, compatible with the needs of our climate crisis. Our climate crisis clearly must now come first, and that effort needed positive stories of people in action. NASA Projects: Working at NASA (08/1989 to 02/2014) as an instrument engineer, Mr. Riley worked on the teams for the following projects: 1. Mercury Laser Altimeter (MLA) is a laser ranging instrument for an interplanetary mission. 2. SOLSE-LORE is a Shuttle bay instrument under Hitch-Hiker Jr. Shuttle instruments making limb measurements of ozone. This pair of instruments is tested new ways to measure the Earth's ozone. 3. SIMBIOS provides calibration and validation equipment, data, and procedures for SeaWiFS and other marine monitoring satellites for which NASA/GSFC has data responsibility. He organized and ran the Intercalibration round-robin experiments for ten laboratories around the world that participate in this project. 4. SeaWiFS is the current premier ocean color satellite. Its ocean color maps are used extensively by scientific, environmental, and commercial concerns to determine the biological state of the oceans worldwide. 5. TOMS-ADEOS was one of an 18-year series of satellite flights providing a near continuous monitoring of the Earth's ozone. This American-built instrument flew on a Japanese satellite. 6. TOMS/Meteor-3 is one of an 18-year series of satellite flights providing a near continuous monitor of the Earth's ozone. This American-built instrument flew on a Russian satellite. 7. SSBUV was a secondary payload flown in the bay of the Space Shuttle. It provided calibration measurements for all ozone measuring satellites. Web Project: After retirement, Mr. Riley designed and documented the following low-cost space exploration project: 1. Riley, Tom, “The Big Moon Dig”. A Web site established in 20014, http://bigmoondig.com/BigMoonDig.html Publications: Mr. Riley’s publications are a mix of technical material and fiction: 1. Riley, Tom. “Climate of Revenge”. (IUniverse, 2022) A novel set in the middle of our climate crisis. 2. John Thomas, Symbioses as an Alternative to Master/Slave for Artificial Intelligence. Chapter (IGI Global, 2021). 3. Riley, Tom. Born to Storms, (Amazon Books, 2020). A novel for young adults facing our climate crisis. 4. dall’Acqua, Luisa, & Irene M. Gironacci Transdisciplinary Perspectives on Risk Management and Cyber Intelligence. Chapter N, Tom Riley, “General Patten and our Climate Crisis, The Stories People Need” (IGI Global, 2020). 5. dall’Acqua, Luisa, Tom Riley, Narrative Thinking and Storytelling for Problem Solving in Science Education (IGI Global, 2019). A mix of science fiction short stories and technical articles to support STEM education. 6. dall’Acqua, Forecasting and Managing Risk in the Health and Safety Sectors, (IGI Global, 2019). Chapter 3, pages 52-80. Tom Riley, “The Coming Human/Machine Symbiosis, Effects on Society, and Business Planning”. 7. dall’Acqua, Luisa, Dickson Lukose (2018a). Improving Business Performance Through Effective Managerial Training Initiatives. Hershey PA: IGI Global. Chapter 12, pages 254 – 282. Tom Riley, “Extended Managerial Implications: People and Space in the Twenty-First Century”. 8. Riley, Tom, & Kelda Riley, The Computer Controller Cookbook. Creative Computing Press, 1983. An early workbook of DYI computer projects. Education: George Washington University, Washington, DC, M.S., Engineering Management 06/1995. University of Houston, Houston, Texas, B.S., Electrical Engineering, Mathematics 02/1969.

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Copyright © 2022 Tom Riley.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-6632-4213-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6632-4212-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022912671

iUniverse rev. date: 07/11/2022

CONTENTS

Prologue

Chapter 1 A Long Night

Chapter 2 A Paying Case

Chapter 3 Maritime Tales

Chapter 4 The Night Walker

Chapter 5 Voices from Limbo

Chapter 6 Friend of the Ocean

Chapter 7 A Wake on Water

Chapter 8 High Tech

Chapter 9 Wake on Land

Chapter 10 Wildfire

Chapter 11 Man of the Hour

Chapter 12 Storms and Fire

Chapter 13 Overseas

Chapter 14 Deep Learning

Chapter 15 AIs Can Talk

Chapter 16 Tomorrow

A Note from the Author

Resume

Appendix

References

PROLOGUE

Set the Scene to the Year 2022.

Action:

Outside the Restaurant

Sarah walked out of the restaurant and into the dark parking lot. The few streetlights threw patches of light onto the scattered cars. There was no moon in the overcast sky, and the night air was just beginning to cool.

The dinner appointment had been a waste of time. The ex-executive who had booked the table was only interested in hiring her to promote his denial agenda by getting the dirt on his enemies one way or another. Which way she chose, he did not want to know. Only god knew what sins against the Earth this man has committed.

Sarah was not interested. To make matters worse, the dinner was too rich, leaving Sarah feeling bloated and irritable. It had gone on much too long.

As Sarah walked out of the building, she saw a small knot of men standing at a distance from the door and talking. Whatever they were selling, she was not interested in buying. She may have recognized one thin man, but not as a friend.

That man looked directly at her. He wanted something; she did not care what. She gave the thin man her best stink eye.

As she approached her car, she unlocked the door and slid inside. She reset the lock and clicked her seatbelt. She started the car. It made only a low, reassuring rumble.

The thin man had taken a few steps in her direction.

Not tonight.

Sarah put the car in drive and slowly moved forward. She drove past the now scattered men without making eye contact.

As she turned on to the main street, she gunned the engine. The roar reverberated off the slab-sided building across the way and she was gone into the night as the sound of the motor trailed off.

Cut!

Nobody is interested in today. Instead, consider what our lives will be like in the near future when our climate crisis has hit and hit hard.

Reset to the Year 2038.

Action!

CHAPTER 1

A Long Night

Outside the Restaurant

Sarah walked out of the restaurant, past the taxi lane, and into the dark parking lot. The charging kiosks threw patches of dim light barely enough to walk by, but they lit up when anyone approached. If anyone was sneaking around in the lot, the kiosks would surely give them away. There was no moon. The stars were just coming out, but the heat of the day was hanging on for a while.

The dinner appointment had been a waste of time. The ex-executive who had booked the table was only interested in hiring her to promote his I’m-a-good-guy-now agenda by getting the dirt on his enemies one way or another. Sarah had no patience with such greenwashing.

What did he call himself? Winestead? She knew she had heard that name before, but where? JanetM would have a complete dossier by morning. Anyway, his story did not make much sense; he was hiding something. Only god knew what sins against the Earth this man had already committed.

Sarah was not interested in his building a new facade; he could keep his money. To make matters worse, the dinner was one of those little-food-and-fancy-plates affairs. The whole experience left Sarah feeling still hungry and irritable. The interview had gone on for much too long.

As Sarah walked out of the building, she saw a small knot of men standing at a distance and talking. She might have recognized one, but not in any good context. Whatever they were selling, for her it was a no-sale night.

One of the men looked directly at her. He wanted something; she could see it in his eyes; she did not know or care what. She gave this thin man her best lean-and-hungry look.

As she approached her car, she pulled out the charger cable and hung it carelessly on the kiosk hook without looking. She paused for just a second, pulling her cell phone from the pocket on her left shoulder, and turned its body so the best cameras were out.

Log the faces, said Sarah, then start the car.

Got it, replied JanetM, the strong AI that haunted her phone.

The car door clicked open. Sarah returned the phone to its pocket, slid into the seat, and clicked her seat belt, all in one well-practiced motion. The car came alive; just having JanetM inside was enough. It made no sound at all as the dashboard lit up. The door locks then clicked closed.

Sport, said Sarah out loud; this was not her Economy night.

The car still made no sound, but the headlights came on, showing expectant life. They advertised her fast-back Chevy as if it were a fancy sports car; she knew it was not. Still, sometimes she just wanted it to be, and the economy setting and drivetrain be damned.

The thin man had taken a few steps closer.

Not tonight.

Sarah dropped the car into drive and stomped the accelerator. The rear tires screamed for a quarter turn, then the max-traction cut in. The noise vanished as the car accelerated forward with all the power that the tires would take without slipping, pressing Sarah into her seat.

She picked up speed, making a circle around the perimeter of the small lot, and the kiosks flashed her track as she passed. The way out took her by the restaurant entrance, by the scattered group of standing men, and then past a lone vagrant standing off in the dark just caught by her headlights. She shot by them all much too fast but in eerie silence.

As she approached the main road, the tires squealed again as regenerative braking brought the car to a near stop, pressing Sarah into her seat belt uncomfortably. As she pulled onto the main road, the gears first complained a bit, and then the car silently accelerated into the long night and was gone.

A Walk through the Dark

Sarah drove to the Deep-Fried Banshee Club not far from the restaurant. A few weeks earlier, she had done a small undercover job for the corporate franchise owners. They wanted to know if drugs were being sold on these premises and their people were too well known by the in crowd. They definitely did not want the cops informed of their check. This was just a matter of their own business.

After a few nights clubbing with a friend, she had sent the company a detailed report on several suspicious characters. Arrests, or even ratting to the cops, was not her job; her efforts were limited to supplying information to those who paid.

Sarah parked down the street and walked a few blocks. The air barely stirred. The heat was starting to come off, but the concrete streets were still holding the warmth in. Then Sarah happened to look up.

Does that building across the way remind you of anything? she asked JanetM.

The facade is quite like the condo we lived in in Florida, replied JanetM, but there is no beach.

So you do remember things through all those upgrades, A through M. I always worry about that.

I certainly do remember, said JanetM. My memories and much more are preserved. I even remember your Grandmother White. I had been awake only a month when she made the arrangements for me to go to you.

"She was a reporter on high-tech in Europe. She knew people and got you and me to the front of the line before anybody knew that a cell phone strong AI personal assistant even existed. I certainly would not have gotten you up and running without her help.

But then I did choose your gender, appearance, and style all by myself.

And don’t forget the collars, said JanetM. That was your idea too.

Only after you complained long and loud about not being able to see from inside my jeans pocket.

They walked on in silence. Sarah knew that JanetM was not all that bright without her and that she was grossly inefficient without JanetM. Together they had real power, and when privacy was needed, JanetM knew just when to go away for a while.

There is nothing new on Grandmother White’s death, is there? said Sarah.

Nothing new, said JanetM.

There were so many riots and disruptions right then, said Sarah. "What police authority had time for a simple hit-and-run?

Her unexplained death was why I started my study of criminology; not knowing who or why she was struck down has always upset me. I have not given up on the case just yet, so neither should you. Keep me informed of even the slightest lead.

OK. We got a last payment today on the brown paper job, said JanetM. You remember the one for the paper company where I studied which shade of browns, tans, or muddy grays for paper goods would sell the best.

Glad to hear it, said Sarah. That is the kind of job that pays the rent. Do you remember the day when all paper goods on the store shelves suddenly turned from white to brown?

It was not one day, said JanetM. The transition actually took several years. In fact, the changeover had started years before with coffee filters and then paper napkins for fast food chains. Manufacturing white paper requires a lot of chlorine for bleaching and enormous amounts of water for processing. The chlorine leaves trace amounts of toxins in the wastewater. Dumping such toxins into the environment is now completely unacceptable.

Yes, modern life is made up of a million minor changes, said Sarah.

The exact shade of brown for each of the various paper products to be acceptable to the public is a question worth money to solve and just the kind of question a strong AI, like me, can answer.

White paper towels like that beach condo of Sarah’s youth and JanetM’s awakening were now long gone. The building has been reclaimed by the sea and paper towels of any color were now a luxury item. These two best friends forever had come a long way since they turned their back on that life by the sea and moved on. But even now they were staying alive and were still in the great game of life —Sarah with an h and Janet with once an A now run all way to M.

The Club

Ready a tip for the doorman, Sarah said to JanetM as they walked up. A Hamilton will do.

The LED lighted sign above the club door was somehow both low power and garish at the same time.

What’s up, Jake? said Sarah as she approached the door.

Nothing much, said Jake. Been quiet. I like Janet’s dress. Where is your date?

Randy? He is still mad at me for scaring off his drug dealer. Not really my type anyway.

Not for me to say, but he sure knew how to dress.

That was pretty much all he knew.

Sarah slipped her cell phone from its shoulder pocket, glanced at JanetM spinning in her party dress, and flipped the phone toward Jake.

A Hamilton transferred, loosening Jake’s tongue. JanetM now filled her screen with color; she was back in the party dress that she had worn for the undercover. The outfit was fit more for Carnival in Brazil than a run-of-the-mill franchise club.

How are you doing? asked Sarah. I didn’t mean to put you in a bind.

The suits have cracked down and word got out that you had spilled the beans, said Jake. Without even the chance of buying drugs, a lot of our regulars now go elsewhere. Nobody fired though— at least not yet.

Glad to hear you’re all right, said Sarah.

It’s their club not mine, and I was looking for a job when I found this one, said Jake.

A large limo pulled up silently. Sarah stepped back into the shadows as Jake stepped forward and opened the rear passenger door.

The manager of the club got out and then helped out his latest companion. She looked younger than Sarah. He caught a glimpse of Sarah and gave her a hard, nasty look.

See you around, said Sarah to the doorman. She got the message.

Night Visit

Sarah drove home. The house and garden were safe and quiet. Both critters and people were known to raid gardens at night. She checked the kitchen for something to eat for breakfast. The late summer vegetables looked good but had a few spots. She even had one duck egg for protein and enough cooking oil. All good.

She then sat down in her big chair to go over JanetM’s notes from the dinner meeting. She was worried whether she had made the right decision in turning down a paying job.

The doorbell rang.

Who is that? asked Sarah, looking up.

Two police officers, replied JanetM.

That’s odd. Better let them in, said Sarah. Sarah rarely interacted with the police, and the interactions she had had were not that friendly. Two years before, she had solved one big case that they considered theirs and that made the force look bad. The case paid for her car and got her in this apartment, but the cops had long memories for perceived insults.

She closed the file she was reviewing and cleared the screen. Come in.

Two men entered. One was white, and the other one was brown. Both men were bigger than Sarah by at least ten kilos and ten centimeters. They were certainly ready to use their size to intimidate her.

What can I do for you? said Sarah, standing up.

I am Detective Hanson, and this is Sergeant Rodriguez, said the older detective, holding up his badge. We understand that you had dinner at the Chinese restaurant on Howard Street this evening with a man named Winestead.

Yes.

What was the meeting about?

We were discussing him hiring me.

Did he?

No, I did not take the job.

What kind of a job?

He thinks somebody is out to get him, and he wants to know who, answered Sarah. Beyond that, I have nothing to tell you.

He was found dead in his car not twenty minutes after you left. You did not take the job; he was not your client. There is no client privilege here. You will answer my questions right now, demanded the detective.

Mr. Winestead did not go into much detail, said Sarah. It sounded like a vengeance effort, and I don’t take those kinds of assignments.

So you say, sneered the detective.

I understand you have a pistol, interrupted Sergeant Rodriguez. A nine-millimeter Glock.

Yes, said Sarah.

We’ll need it for testing, unless you object. Where is it?

Test it all you want. I don’t much care one way or the other, answered Sarah. It is in a lockbox in the hall closet. JanetM, open the gun box. There was a slight click from the hall. Sarah pointed over her shoulder.

Sarah did not like guns but had grown up in small-town America and a family friend had made certain that she was comfortable around them. Guns were certainly a defining part of America today.

The sergeant walked over to the closet door while taking a large plastic bag out of his inside pocket. He opened the closet door and then the lockbox.

"One nine-millimeter automatic, chamber empty; two clips loaded; one box of cartridges