Israel Book Shop presents Chapter 24 of a new online serial novel, If Anyone Is Listening, by Esther Rapaport. Check back for a new chapter every week. Click here for previous chapters.
Copyright © Israel Bookshop Publications.
“Clarification with Roy Hand,” was the first line in the calendar of the CEO of CentraBank, Gene Preisler. Not just this morning, but every single morning for the past two weeks. The lights in the office went on when Gene opened the door at a quarter to five in the morning. He didn’t even get a chance to close the door behind him before Roy also entered.
“You sent me a message three minutes ago that there’s news,” Gene said, without sitting down, as he switched on his computer.
“That’s right,” the computer security officer replied. “And a minute ago I received a message from my colleagues at other banks that this new matter is affecting them as well.”
“And?”
“The hackers left a message…nine minutes ago.” He walked over to the computer on the CEO’s desk, and the huge screen on the opposite wall came to life with the message:
It’s a shame that now, instead of stopping and clarifying where you are going, you are becoming more frantic in your pursuit of materialism.
“What is this?” Gene stared at the letters. “Someone’s decided to preach to us?”
“It’s not ‘someone.’ Notice the scribble there after the words, at the end.”
“Their signature.”
“Or not. We have no idea who and how many people are behind this whole thing.”
“Has Charlie seen this yet?”
“I assume so.”
“Let him pass it on to his superiors. I have no strength for this anymore.” Gene sank into his chair, and then a second letter, sat up straight again. The journalists hovering around constantly could pounce on such a photo of despair. The fact that the hack was not only a problem with his business, but one that applied to the entire American government, made things better for him in a way, but on the other hand, much more complicated. The investigators were driving him nuts every minute with questions, conclusions, and declarations, especially since the theory they had latched onto seemed totally outlandish in his opinion.
“Do Charlie’s people still think this is China?”
“China is a huge word. Apparently, it is a group of hackers that may very well be sitting here in America, but are identified with China. They are likely receiving huge salaries for this.”
“So, you also think it’s China?”
“I’m not sure, but it’s a realistic assumption.”
“What about Iran?”
“In light of our relations with Iran right now, it’s less likely.”
“Russia?”
“Of course, we can blame everything on Putin too.” Roy nodded. “It’s also possible that one of the enemies of the United States sent this sentence just as a snarky jibe, but I personally think that it can give us a direction regarding who is behind the hack. For example, the hackers might be radical Muslims who love talking against American hedonism.”
Gene cut him off. “I’ve seen pictures of how their own leaders live. They are not exactly dying of starvation or sleeping on the floor.”
“True. But that doesn’t contradict the fact that this is what they preach. And whether they are Muslims or not, this statement is certainly typical of someone who, for radical, ideological reasons, decided to do what he did.” He paused when he heard the quiet ring of his phone, and checked the screen. “Here’s Charlie. Let’s hear if he has something new to add. I assume that this statement gave him and the FBI some new avenues to investigate… Hey, Charlie, good morning. I’m at Gene’s office now.”
***
Uncle Yankel, Mommy’s brother, was nine years older than her. He didn’t call often, but when he did, the conversation could last an hour or more.
“Mommy isn’t home,” Tzippy reported after she offered details about everyone, except Shimmy. She had no idea how up-to-date her uncle was about Shimmy’s trips to China, and she had no desire to listen to his piercing opinions about youngsters who go into business before they learn how to count money, and that clearly, they would be easy prey for swindlers. She also had no interest in updating him that Shimmy was actually stuck in China right now, and that he didn’t even have a normal hotel to stay in.
“She’s also not answering her phone,” Yankel said sternly, to the extent that Tzippy felt a need to apologize.
“There isn’t always reception in the place where she works.”
“But why is she there now? What time is it by you?”
“Three in the afternoon.”
“Nu?”
“See, Mommy’s employer is holding a three-day end-of-the-season sale, so the store opens earlier for these days.”
“Oy, she’s working very hard. Are you taking care of your mother, Tzippy?” Uncle Yankel sounded serious.
“Of course.”
“Of course? You know, you need to take care of her.”
“Right,” Tzippy said, not really feeling like she knew anything, actually. She felt more of a need to take care of her father than her mother; Mommy managed just fine.
“And what about your father? Is he home?”
“Yes, he’ll be leaving for kollel soon.” Or he’d stay home to learn; there were days when he wasn’t able to manage the stairs.
“Let me speak to him, please,” Uncle Yankel said, and Tzippy tried to remember when was the last time she’d heard Yankel and Tatty talking. She hardly remembered it happening, and for some reason, she felt a crawling itch on the back of her neck that made her feel very uneasy.
“Okay, just a minute.” She carried the cordless to her parents’ bedroom. Tatty was sitting up in his bed. “Tatty, can you speak to Uncle Yankel?” she asked in Hebrew, even though she knew that her uncle understood her words.
Tatty glanced at his watch. “Okay,” he said, pressing on the speakerphone button and putting the phone on his night table. “Hi, Yankel, how are you?”
“We’re doing wonderfully, baruch Hashem, especially since my money was not in any of the banks that served as centers of terror.”
“Terror?”
“Sure, that’s one of the most logical assessments for what’s going on. Still, most people here have been affected in one way or another by this mess. What about you?”
“The savings accounts of both of my daughters are showing zero,” Tatty said. “Zahava didn’t tell you?”
“I haven’t spoken to her for nearly a month. I work very hard to support my family, Yaakov Shlomo—I don’t usually have time for chatting. So, what, their accounts are at zero? What are you doing about it?”
Tatty bit his lip as he stood up, and Tzippy didn’t know if it was because he was in pain or because of her uncle.
“What am I doing about it? I’m waiting for yeshuas Hashem.”
“And that’s it?”
“That’s everything.”
“Yes, but what about hishtadlus, Yaakov Shlomo? Zahava works hard, I hear. Already now she ran out to work, huh? What about her afternoon nap?”
“I hope she’ll make up for it tomorrow morning, when she has off.”
“You hope. Hoping is not enough. What about your marrieds?”
“Shimmy? Baruch Hashem, he’s doing fine. He’s in China right now.”
“In China! Oh, I met Baruch’s Gedalya—he told me something about that. And you just gave him permission to go?”
“He’s a big boy, Yankel.” Tatty took the phone from the night table and dragged his feet toward the door. “He doesn’t wait for me to give him permission before he goes places.”
“Maybe he is waiting for you to give him something else, Yaakov Shlomo. Do you know how much I give my marrieds, on the side? Every month, I slip them a few hundred dollars. Now, two of them need our help even more, because they had accounts in Bank of the States, and they’ve been left with nothing. It’s very hard here, Yaakov Shlomo. Even my bank, which hasn’t been affected, has become paranoid, and they barely release any money. All of America is crazy these days…”
“I hear.”
“Do you need to wash your hands, Tatty?” Tzippy mouthed the question, “Should I hold the phone for you?”
“I didn’t sleep,” he whispered back. “I couldn’t fall asleep, but thank you. Yes, Yankel, of course the situation by you is very hard. We are davening that everything should get back to normal very soon.”
“But it sounds like things are even harder by you, and it makes me crazy that you are not thinking about a practical way to get your family out of this situation. How is your leg, by the way?”
“We are deliberating about a certain surgery right now.” Tatty leaned on the hallway wall for support. “I probably need a knee replacement on the right leg, and perhaps also on the left.”
“I’m not sure that I could help you right now,” his brother-in-law said immediately.
“Don’t worry. I believe we will manage, b’ezras Hashem.”
“How will you manage? Zahava is going to add even more hours to her workday?”
“No, because even if she’d work the whole month straight, it wouldn’t cover a fifth of the cost of private surgery. We’ll probably go with something that our health fund offers. That will also cost a lot, but there’s no comparison. I’m trying to find a good doctor for it.”
“What, in Israel?”
“That’s probably our only option.”
“No, no,” Yankel protested emphatically. “No way. Come here, get on an American health insurance, and you’ll get help from our chessed organizations.”
“I spoke to Rabbi Potash’s organization.” Yaakov Shlomo rubbed his forehead. “They were very regretful, but they said they can’t commit to anything right now, not even half a ticket. It seems that some of the organizations are on the verge of collapse right now, unfortunately.”
“The truth is that there aren’t many flights going right now anyway,” Yankel said. “Too bad. It could have been a good opportunity for Zahava to get a break. She hasn’t been here in a long time, and I don’t know how much you notice, but traveling and things like that are important to her.”
“Actually, she might have an opportunity to travel to Turkey next week, with the owner of the store she works for. She’ll get to tour a bit there. I think she’s happy about it.”
“She’s flying to Turkey? Who’s paying for this?”
“She took a loan from her boss.”
“Are you in a position that you can take loans right now, Yaakov Shlomo?”
“My wife wants to fly,” Yaakov Shlomo said tersely, “and I know that these things are important to her.”
***
In all honesty, what is important to you in life? And how important to you are the needs of those around you? And to what extent do you take action for these needs, instead of just talking about it?
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