Chapter 10

JUDE HARRISON

Jude remained paralysed inside his vehicle, his hands clasped on either side of his head and his mouth open. He watched helplessly as the GPS map on his monitor calculated a destination he had no control over. The arrival time for an address in Scotland was in two hours and twenty-five minutes’

time.

In his head, he replayed the voice that moments ago had appeared through his speakers and informed him someone else was controlling his car. And if it were to be believed, he soon would be dead. He reached for the door release button but it didn’t work. He leaned over and tried the same with the other door, but again, nothing.

‘Okay, you’ve got me,’ he said aloud. ‘Whoever is doing this, you’ve had your fun. Can I have my car back, please?’ He awaited a response, but none came. Instead, the car continued driving in a direction he had not chosen for it.

‘Think, think,’ he muttered, before jabbing icon after icon on the screen of his dashboard, attempting to regain control of both the vehicle and programmed destination. But nothing he pressed made any difference.

‘Car, go online,’ he ordered, trusting the vehicle’s Operating System would allow him to open its user manual and override the navigational system.

‘Vehicle offline,’ it replied.

‘No,’ Jude commanded. ‘I need you to go online.’

‘Vehicle offline,’ the car repeated.

He ran through a list of alternative phrases hoping one might work.

‘System override,’ he said, ‘Pull vehicle over; Let the driver take control; Open owner manual.’ The car failed to respond to any. ‘Car, do as I fucking tell you!’ he yelled in frustration. After a pause, the OS responded.

‘No.’

Jude hesitated. He had never heard the car use that word before.

Typically, if his vehicle was unable to carry out an order, it was programmed to politely reply with an ‘I apologise, your request is not

possible at this time’, followed by an explanation. It had never been a point-blank refusal.

He grabbed an earpiece from his pocket and affixed it to make a telephone call. ‘Dial emergency services,’ he said.

‘No,’ the OS repeated.

Jude remembered that each time he entered the car, his phone automatically logged on to the vehicle’s Wi-Fi. He scrambled around until he found the accompanying handset in the glovebox. He devised a way to turn off Wi-Fi and reroute the phone to find a 5G signal. But the symbol to confirm it was connected vanished as soon as it appeared. ‘Signal jammed,’

it read. He took a deep breath and tried to look outside for help but the frosted glass windows remained.

Suddenly, his speakers came to life, startling him. This time the voice belonged to a woman. ‘Please, let us go,’ he heard her sob. ‘I haven’t done anything to you.’

Jude spoke tentatively. ‘Hello? Who is this?’

‘Who … who are you?’ she replied, with equal uncertainty.

‘Jude … Jude Harrison,’ he replied, ‘Something’s happening to my car.’

‘My name is Claire Arden and I’m inside a Skepter AR5, registration number FGY778. I was on my way to work when my car started driving in a different direction and a voice told me I was going to die. My phone won’t work – can you send someone to help me?’

‘I wish I could but I’m in the same boat as you,’ Jude replied. ‘I’m locked in my car and I can’t get out.’

‘I don’t understand?’ she replied. ‘Ben told me he’d taken out the full service and emergency plan. Aren’t you an operator?’

‘No, I’m sorry,’ said Jude. ‘I’ve tried everything I can think of but I can’t get my car to stop either.’

‘Why … why is this happening?’ she stammered. ‘What do they want from me? Do they want money? I haven’t got much but I can try and find some?’

‘Did someone tell you that your car had been hacked?’ he asked.

‘Yes.’

‘And did they ask you for money?’

‘No. All they said was that in two and a half hours, I was going to die.’

Her voice broke and Jude heard her crying again. ‘They said the same to me,’ he replied.

‘Who’s going to help us?’

‘I have no idea. I think we just have to wait until they tell us—’

‘Sam, what’s going on?’ A second distressed voice, a female one, came from nowhere and filled Jude’s car.

‘I don’t know, but please try and stay calm,’ came a third, this time male.

‘Hello!’ yelled both Claire and Jude together.

How many more of us are there? Jude thought. ‘Can you hear us?’ he asked.

‘Yes, who’s that?’ the man replied.

‘We are trapped in our cars and can’t get out, can you help us? Do you have access to a phone signal or Wi-Fi?’

‘No, my wife and I … someone has us locked inside …’

But before the male voice could continue, the dashboard in Jude’s vehicle turned on and he saw himself on the television monitor. He was being filmed face-on, from a camera embedded in his dashboard. Then smaller screens appeared with strangers’ faces inside. Jude counted five in total.

His heart was beating twenty to the dozen as he listened to the terror-stricken confusion of the others as they begged to be told what was happening to them.

Then, as quickly as they had arrived, they were muted, leaving him in an ominous silence again.