The Offer

'Welcome, please perform retina scan to confirm your identity,' a familiar voice read the message.

Arjen grinned and pointed at a device that looked like a smart home speaker.

'Just go and look at the camera,' he instructed.

'Is that Chantelle's voice?'

He nodded. I followed his instruction and was rewarded by Chantelle's voice stating.

'Welcome Louise. This is your first time logging in. Your initiation has not been confirmed. There will be limited access only.'

I was very surprised.

'What are my options?', I asked looking at Arjen.

'Another person is in the room, please confirm identity,' Chantelle stated.

Arjen walked to the home speaker and looked into the little camera.'

'Welcome Arjen, you are now logged in as a guide to Louise.'

'Ce please start management instruction sequence,' Arjen stated.

'Command is not available to guides.'

'Yes right. Louise could you please do this?'

I repeated the words Arjen had used earlier. The menu disappeared and the light went back to normal.

'Management instruction sequence will start in the master bedroom,' the speaker said: 'Please progress to the master bedroom. The guide may join.'

First we went to the kitchen to see if I could make us some coffee. I was surprised to see everything was properly clean and freshly stocked. Even the little rack with coffee capsules was ready for use. I looked at Arjen questioningly.

'Johanna warned the housekeepers you would be in today, so they made everything in order.'

'I thought the home was empty since they died. Why do other people have access to this home?'

'Security and housekeeping have access.'

I got the machine to make us fresh coffee.

'Why is there security?'

'It is worth protecting and conserving. You will know all of this soon enough. Let's take this coffee upstairs.'

In the master bedroom at first glance everything had remained the same. The double bed still dominated the room and the door to my dad's cupboard was slightly open because it was as usual overstuffed with his clothes and paperwork he had kept in there. It felt like they had just been here earlier today. The only thing different was the computer interface projected on the wall. A pop up welcomed me, and asked if I wanted to proceed with the introduction programme or wanted to cancel.

'The remote on your keychain is also a pointing device. Just keep the button pressed and point the laser. Double-click to confirm.'

I aimed the laser dot at the proceed button and double-clicked. The projection dimmed and a video of my mum appeared, clearly filmed in this room.

'Hi Louise, you are on your way for your initiation tonight. As you may have guessed by now not everything in the house you grew up in is as it seems. In fact the house is built as a façade needed to hide my other side from you and Jan. You may be wondering by now how I financed all of this. Don't worry about that. All was paid in full as my accounting team will confirm to you tomorrow.'

I clicked pause and looked at Arjen.

'Some things do not add up.'

'It is hard to find out your mother has been hiding things from you all your life.'

'You are distracting me. So the house is a façade to hide things from me and dad. Ce show me a complete map of this location.'

'I found a 3D map of Lianne's home base,' Ce answered.

I looked at the map in a form of bewilderment. It showed our plain terraced house in a block of 6 identical houses was in fact built on a huge deep underground basement and through that basement connected to 6 of the other houses in 3 of those same blocks. One of the garages was used as a secret car entrance to the basement. Not all houses were connected to the basement, only the direct neighbours on both sides, and the 4 houses at the corners of the blocks at the frontside and backside. The map looked a bit like a hidden castle.

'Is this real?'

'Sure, after this video I can show you around.'

'What is the purpose of this?'

'Mostly keeping the home base a secret.'

'Why does it exist?'

'Security and comfort. Lianne hid herself in plain sight, preventing her from ending up on top of the quote 500, the Dutch Forbes list.'

For minutes I just stared back and forth between Arjen and the projection of my mother. I was struck with complete surprise. My heart raced, my head completely overloaded. After some time my head cleared and things fell into place.

'Now it starts making sense. Lianne was loaded with secret money, no one knew about,' I said sarcastically.

Arjen ignored my sarcasm.

'That is it. She owned a huge family legacy that was collected since the 17^th century.'

'So you took her money and now you hired me to rub in the loss?'

'That has never been an option. We are mere caretakers and your guides.'

'But you are rich yourselves.'

'That is the illusion your mother created. You may remember we were hired as her assistants. We in fact still are. Your assistants to be precise.'

'What the fuck?'

'That too if you want to, but in general you will as of tomorrow be the most wealthy person in the Netherlands. You cannot tell anyone however, except the tax department and your most trusted staff.'

'Why has it to remain a secret?'

'Your ancestors have always made sure it was kept a secret. They wanted to live a life like normal people. They managed to remain low profile and live as they pleased.'

'Why couldn't dad know we were this rich?'

'Your dad was a brilliant scientist with a reputation of reliability and austerity. He would not have accepted the consequences of the wealth.'

'I don't get it and we will talk about that further later on, but now on with the programme.'

I started the video again. Mum in her own way confirmed the legacy that would be handed over to me the next day. She also urged me to be really careful telling it to anyone. She told me Arjen and Johanna were the only people the knew the truth about the ownership of Spaarman group.

After the video ended I sat down on the bed and looked at Arjen.

'So our roles are reversed now?' I asked.

'Yes they are, but unless you want to nothing will change.'

'I believe I need a hug,' I said.

Arjen sat next to me on the bed and wrapped his arm around me. I slunk my body against his.

'You are so tense,' he remarked.

'Does that surprise you?'

'It doesn't. Are you ok?'

'Sort of. Maybe I'll feel better if I start the tour. Do you know how to get started?'

'Some switches are a bit hidden. If you simultaneously press the remote and the room's light switch we will be able to start exploring.'

I got up and did as Arjen explained. Some heavy machinery started to work and then the wall to the neighbours house partly opened like a door. Arjen offered me his hand and led me through the door.

We came into onto an open floor where the neighbours were busy looking at CCTV footage from the neighbourhood. The door to my parents bedroom closed. They got up when we entered. Mr Joosten shook my hand.

'Welcome back miss Louise.'

'Louise, not a miss. Good to see you again,' I corrected him in a friendly tone.

'I am so sorry Louise. I am just so excited to have you around again. It will give us all a sense of purpose again.'

'What does he mean?', I asked while shaking his wives hand too.

'He means that since Lianne and Jan suddenly died the home base has been waiting for your return. It was in a sense hibernating. We were guarding it and keeping it in good shape, but nothing really happened. We hope some life will return.'

A memory of the day I came to pick up my belongings after my parents had died. All the neighbours that had lived around my parents came by to give their condolences. They all had seemed extraordinary struck by grief and expressed they regretted they could not join the funerals due to COVID restraints. I realised suddenly they all lived in the houses that are connected to the basement below the blocks. They all were staff like the Joosten's.

'Do you actually live here?', I asked?

'Yes. The top floor is our private area, as is the living room downstairs, and our private basement space below our home, level -1. Everything below -1 belongs to home base. All staff homes are set-up like this one.'

'And the people living in the houses not connected to the home base?'

'Just normal people, not working for us.'

'So they bought the house unaware of what my mother had going here?'

'Yes sure, it is one of our tasks to make sure they never find out.'

'So how many people are working here?'

'Total staff including gardening, cleaning, and security is 40 people.'

Thank you for the information. Where do we go now?'

Mr Joosten pointed at the door were I expected the toilet.

'Use the elevator.'

I opened the door and saw just a normal toilet. Arjen got in and sat down. He waved me inside and told me to lock the door. I couldn't help starting to giggle, but somehow managed to follow the instructions. Next step was to press the remote again. CE spoke again and told me to select a floor. I selected -2. The elevator started moving and brought us to the desired floor.

'Is that toilet actually functional?', I asked during the ride.

'Why, ehhm yes, do you need to go?'

'No, but it might be handy to know. Is the one next door also an elevator?'

'No, there is a door to the other neighbours in there though.'

'Serious?'

Arjen nodded.

'That house has Lianne's panic room, which she entered through that toilet.'

We got out and entered a largish hall with a single door. The hall was cozy and, had a couch and a tv. It was clearly meant for waiting. I opened the door and stepped into a dimly lit room. Arjen sat down on the cough.

'Aren't you joining me in there?'

'No, I am not allowed. This is an exclusive area for you. Enjoy.'

Getting a bit numb from all the surprises tumbling over each other I just nodded and continued inside. The door locked behind me and the lights brightened a bit. Soft music started playing. I immediately recognised the song, for it was on top of my favourite playlist. Fletcher's Healing sounded a bit spooky here in this empty room. On each side was a white door, each marked with a number. I got to the door marked with number one. I tried the handle, felt a little delay and then it unlocked. The handle seemed to have fingerprint recognition.

'Hi Louise,' Chantelle's CE voice said, 'welcome in the diary room. This room helps you to keep track of the estate's day to day decisions. The room is controlled via a touch interface and voice commands. Please confirm owner status of the estate since December 22^nd 2019. A list 2 dates became visible on a large screen.'

I had an idea.

'CE please list the estate owner status since 1950.'

Two additional lines popped up. Both lines were dated over 20 years ago and were marked with a warning that they were done through manual input. The first line indicated my mother's 18^th birthday and showed the transfer by my grand mother to her. The second line indicated the day I was born and the acknowledgement of me being second in line to the estate heritage. The third line had been on the initial list already and was the day my mother died. It indicated automatic transfer of the estate to the custody protocol until initiation of the heiress. I clicked the button suggesting there were details to this line. A pop-up appeared.

'Mutation by: A. Spaarman, guardian, Reason: protocol override code: 666 death by pandemic. Death Certificate provided by Mr. J. Nachtleven, notary, on behalf of Louise Wenter, heiress.'

I clearly remembered notary Nachtleven. He had been very insensitive of my grief and very insistent on leaving the certificate on file with him. In the end he had arranged everything correctly. He had also taken care of selling the house when I decided I could not ever pay for the succession taxes. The sale had given me enough money to be able to finish university without large debts. The last line was dated for tomorrow. It read: Termination of guardian protocol, initiation confirmed and signed, status: in progress.

'CE How do I confirm?'

'Confirmation requires the heir to pass three tests, do you want to proceed?'

'Yes please.'

'Thank you. Test 1 is started.'

On the screen I was instructed to strip out of my clothes and put them in a basket next to the screen. I did as instructed and stood naked in the middle of the room. The screen instructed me to take some poses and a laser was used to scan every part of my body. Some of these poses were quite straining, but I managed to do them all to satisfaction of the scanning software. It seemed a 3D model of me was prepared in the computer. I wondered what the purpose of the scan was. I felt vulnerable under the care of this automated scanning process. After a few minutes the first part of the process was done. I was instructed to squat over an x-marked area on the floor. I noticed the middle of the x had a camera. On the screen I saw a close-up of my moist vagina, and anus. I couldn't help giggling over the lewd display. A new laser scan was being made. I wondered what kind of sick mind had devised this scanning procedure. After the scan a stool was raised from the floor and I was told I could sit down.

'Test 1 has succeeded, please wait for test 2 to start.'

A few seconds later CE instructed me to blindfold myself using the provided mask. I looked around and noticed my clothes in the basket were replaced by a soft black sleep mask. I got up and got the mask from the basket. When I turned to sit down again the stool had been retracted into the floor again.

'Please stand on the x wearing the blindfold.'

'CE why must I wear the blindfold?'

'The blindfold will prevent early disclosure and will heighten you senses.'

I felt scared about blinding myself. Goosebumps were visible on my skin.

'My sensors picked up some signals of fear. Please trust the process and put on the blindfold. There is no need for fear. I will also heat the room up a bit for the next phase.'

What the fuck, I thought, but decided to indeed trust the system. I placed the blindfold over my eyes and stood there in the silent room. Minutes I waited and nothing happened. I noticed the temperature changing. Then soft music started and I thought some of the air shifted and a the door opened. I had the idea something was rolled in. A hint of a perfume I associated with old women tickled my nose.

'Here you go,' a young voice whispered, 'steady. Are you okay?'

'I'll put your chair over there,' the young voice whispered again.

It was a wheelchair. An old woman was just brought into the room. She was standing close to me and I felt anxious about being naked around her.

'Dear Louise,' my mothers shaky hospital voice spoke over the music, 'when you hear this my worst fear has come true and I did not survive the virus. You were so sweet on the phone earlier today. I love you dearly and I wished I could be with you on initiation day, like my mother was at mine.'

I heard the old lady softly crying.

'This day is about getting connected, in touch with your emotions and your body. Today is about giving and receiving love. There is love in lust, like there is love in a intellectual connection I had with Jan. There is also love in care, like my mother gave me. Love like we shared together. Love in trust, like you now are giving. All my privileges are void, but your initiation will be in trusted hands. Please extend your hand to accept those trusted hands. Good luck Louise.'

I extended my hand and was met by a pair of shaky soft hands holding me.

'Grandma?', I asked.

'Yes dear, will you trust me today?', her sweet voice replied.

Tears were suddenly streaming. I nodded.

'I heard you were crying too,' I said.

'I miss Lianne a lot,' she answered, 'but today is about us.'

'Can I remove the mask, please.'

'Promise you will never speak of anything you see or hear today until the day I die.'

'Yes grandma, I promise.'

'I must warn you, you may be shocked.'

'Being in this with you is quite a shock already,' I said removing my blindfold.

I looked at grandma who was standing before me on her shaky legs but completely naked. Her old body was still in reasonable shape for someone her age. She was 88 at the time. Her skin was discoloured in places and scars from life were very visible. I was not shocked but felt a need to hug her. I wrapped my arms around her and noticed she was shaking.

'Are you cold?', I asked.

'Somewhat. I am not used to be naked anymore without someone to keep me warm.'

'CE increase the temperature to 25 degrees,' I commanded.

'Temperature will be increased to 25 degrees Celsius, current temperature is 22 degrees Celsius,' Chantelle's synthetic voice said.

'Please help me in my chair, I need to sit.'

I helped her to sit down.

'Now park me in the middle of the room and sit opposite to me.'

I did as she bid, but before I sat down I asked if she needed to have some blanket. I really did not want her to get a pneumonia.

'The nurse is waiting for me outside the door. She has a blanket.'

I stepped to the door.

'Wait Louise, we don't want to break protocol. Put on the blindfold.'

I followed her instructions.

'Computer thing, pause test 2 for my healths sake.'

CE's voice responded.

'Test paused. Nurse is notified.'

'I am running this show,' grandma said,' I can break the rules if I need to. You shouldn't.'

The door opened.

'Nurse, I am cold. Would you be so kind to bring me my blanket and that heat cushion thingie.'

The whole interruption just took like two minutes, but felt like forever. After grandma restarted the test she gave me permission to remove the blindfold again.

'Why are you naked grandma?'

'Your mother asked me the same question and I asked my mother the same. In our matriarchy the mother initiates her daughter in her future role. A lot will be asked of the daughter and the mother shows by her being naked she has no secrets for her after this ceremony. The mother will in fact hand over her reign over the estate to the daughter, her steward.'

'So until mum died she ruled the estate.'

'She was the heir, but reigning in my place.'

'And when she died Arjen and Johanna took over?'

Grandma laughed a amused laugh.

'I thought I already said I am running this. The executive power came back to me. Until I die you will rule the estate on my behalf, you will be the heir. But first you need to pass the tests.'

'But what is the Spaarman's role?'

'They are merely the actors playing the hermit billionaires. They work for us, know our secrets and are bound to keep all a secret. Their visibility enables us to remain invisible.'

I looked at her in a new light. Her body may have been fragile with old age but her mind seemed to be strong and independent. She had been dead serious.

'I have some questions for you,' grandma said.

I looked at her and nodded.

'You can ask me anything.'

'What is it like to be non-binary?'

'You know about me?'

'I know a lot, but most about you. I do not understand however. So what is the deal here?'

'There is no deal. I guess you have always felt sure you were a woman, have you?'

'Yes, ever since being a girl. You didn't?'

'Nope, never felt sure being a girl, nor being a boy either. When I matured I felt even more confused, my body said woman, but my identity shifted from man to woman several times a day.'

'But sexually?'

'I never had sex before the last few days. Never got interested in either women or men. I was asexual.'

'Just like your dad?'

'Probably, however Arjen and Johanna seem to have changed my world. I am really into them.'

'They are great lovers and teachers for you.'

'They are making me so horny all the time. I never felt like that before. I think I am bi-sexual now.'