Chapter 10 · Continued
Back to the Factory
Chris grinned. “Mission accomplished.”
Later that evening, Ganesh Varma stood behind the Moo Mart counter wiping down the coffee station while an old radio played somewhere in the back of the store.
The late crowd had finally thinned. An automatic pinsetter clattered faintly from the attached bowling lanes, and someone yelled at a washing machine in the laundromat.
Normal Saturday-night chaos.
Ganesh sighed and tossed the rag over his shoulder.
Then came a soft metallic thump against the front door.
Ganesh frowned toward the dark glass.
“What now?”
He crossed the store and unlocked the door.
The moment it opened, a battered yellow delivery bot rolled slowly inside and stopped in front of him.
Its status light blinked weakly.
“MOO MART DELIVERY SERVICES RESTORED.”
Ganesh stared.
Then pointed.
“Chester!”
The little robot emitted a cheerful ding.
Ganesh bent down to inspect the damage.
Scrapes covered Chester’s sides. One wheel housing was dented, and a hairline crack ran diagonally across the front camera lens.
Ganesh nudged the bot lightly with his foot.
“There you are,” he muttered. “You came back.”
He folded his arms, remembering the questions he had answered earlier that day.
“The police were here asking about you.”
Chester chirped proudly.
“MOO MART VALUES LAW ENFORCEMENT PARTNERSHIPS.”
“Yes, yes,” Ganesh grumbled. “They wanted to see your onboard pictures.”
That darkened his mood again.
Ganesh glanced nervously toward the front windows, although no one was outside. Ever since the news interview, he had been replaying his own words.
My bots were involved in the accident.
Stupid.
Very stupid.
Now there were police questions, insurance investigators, and the possibility of lawsuits.
No, thank you.
Ganesh rubbed his forehead. “You and I are keeping our mouths shut now.”
Chester beeped.
“MOO MART VALUES CUSTOMER PRIVACY.”
Ganesh pointed at him. “Exactly.”
He disappeared into the back room and returned carrying an old USB cable and a battered laptop.
“Come on.”
Chester followed him into the cramped storage room behind the counter. Boxes of frozen-yogurt mix, drink cups, napkins, and paper towels were stacked everywhere.
Ganesh connected the cable to Chester’s service panel and opened the diagnostic menu. He had no interest in discovering what the bot had recorded.
“Nope,” he muttered. “I do not want to know.”
He selected Factory Reset.
A warning filled the screen.
All stored data will be permanently erased.
Ganesh clicked Yes without hesitation.
“Plausible deniability,” he said proudly.
Progress bars began moving across the screen. Cached routes disappeared. Image files were deleted. Diagnostic logs were purged.
Ganesh never looked at any of them.