“Isn’t this called money laundering?” asked Daniel.
“Can I answer that, Sara?”
“Go ahead, Jeff.”
“Actually, this is money laundering in a layered stage. Taseen is attempting to separate the illegally obtained money from its source through a series of financial transactions that makes it difficult to trace the origin. The currency exchange and the mules are a part of a process to hold and move illicit funds. Once the funds make their way back to Mexico via the mules, they are used to purchase huge amounts of consumer goods which are exported to Africa and China to be resold to generate cleansed cash for Genesis operations.”
Colonel Werner was quietly taking notes. Sara pointed out, “It was the Hawala activity that was the tip-off. Can anyone connect this to any information we received over the last twenty-four hours?”
Daniel raised his hand and Sara nodded for him to answer. “The British intelligence guy. Neil said they caught Roble transacting business in a warehouse near the container port of Djibouti. The military and intelligence agents uncovered a huge warehouse with millions of dollars of goods and currency traceable to Somalia piracy. Also, I remember him saying that Roble’s family controlled the Hawala finance system in the Horn of Africa. His family owns the money laundering operations in Djibouti City.”
“Exactly.”
Sara zoomed in on the image of Taseen and Khazin’s store in North Charleston. “Our satellite passed over this area where their businesses are and revealed these interesting objects on the roof.”
Colonel Werner chuckled, “Well, I will be darned. The same beach ball-like spheres as on the container ship. Yep…these guys are our sleepers.”
Sara continued. “The intelligence community and the Operation Oglethorpe commanders on both carrier strike groups were on the call this morning and they concurred. The order was given this morning to Naval Criminal Investigative Service in Charleston and local FBI. As a joint terrorism strike force, they are moving in as we speak.”
Colonel Werner patted Jeff and Daniel on their shoulders and pointed to two wide screens showing different views of a live satellite feed of two mobile units leaving Fort Stewart, heading north on Interstate 95 to Charleston. Sergeant Major Brent Woods commanded the Dragoon team assigned as elite escort for Taseen and Khazin. Colonel Werner issued orders to retrieve Taseen and Khazin and keep them alive at all cost.
Sergeant Major Woods and the group in Fort Stewart listened closely when Werner gave the mission plan. “Provide armored protection on the ground and air cover. The protection has to be seamless from North Charleston to the Fort Stewart terrorist containment facility. My concern is that the transport could be intercepted between Charleston and Fort Stewart and the Genesis operatives executed by civilian contracted assassins. Keep them alive for Harry and his team of interrogators.”
Sergeant Major Woods and the Dragoon team of twelve soldiers quietly approached the multilevel storefront in North Charleston in unmarked civilian cars. No one suspected that these harmless looking vehicles were hardened with bullet-proof glass and steel that could handle high-power military rifles. Woods barked the order through the multi-band voice communications integrated into the armored vests worn by each team member.
“Our orders are to capture these bastards alive but we have to prepare for a dogfight. Minutemen take sniper positions on the designated rooftops. The rest of you activate your helmets' navigation systems.”
The soldiers switched screens using the controls on their M4 Carbine .223 carbine rifles. The helmet-mounted display was used for zeroing the daylight video scope, capturing images and sending and receiving data to and from Colonel Werner’s Fort Stewart terrorist containment operations center. The soldiers approached the building. They had four targets at the specified coordinates being picked up on their tracking system.
Daniel commented, “It’s like watching a TV show.”
Colonel Werner growled, “Those two bastards are gonna wish it was.”
Taseen and Khazin’s business was on the second floor of a commercial building. The first floor was occupied by restaurants, dry-cleaners, and a game store. The Dragoons entered discreetly from the rear after disarming all of the alarm and surveillance systems. Taseen was completing a money transfer for a young couple when he realized the Dagagoons were entering the front door of the currency exchange.
A soldier from the right side of the door entered and moved to the right with his back to the wall. “Don't move,” he warned Taseen and the couple.
The second soldier went in high, the third soldier low, weapons hot. The next three soldiers quickly entered, dropped to their knees and took aim at the targets.
The young women screamed, “We're sorry, please let us go.”
Sergeant Major Woods walked in. “Lower your weapons. Stay hot and tight.” He looked at the couple. “I will tell you this only one time. Leave now.”
The couple ran out of the store and headed for the stairs. There was dead silence as Sergeant Major Woods walked up to Taseen, looked him in the eyes and nodded at the darkened door that led to the back. “I am Sergeant Major Brent Woods of the United States Army. I am under direct orders to bring you in, dead or alive. Which will it be?”
Taseen shouted, “Allahu akbar!”
Sergeant Major Woods gave the order. “Clear the back room.” Four soldiers headed to the back room with guns drawn. Their sensors indicated someone was there. They assumed it was Khazin. The first soldier discovered that the room was small. He shouted, “Short room!” and the other soldiers stayed outside. He entered and grabbed Khazin and threw him out.
Sergeant Major Woods shouted, “You are now guests of the United States Army. Come with us now.”
Taseen yelled, “We have a legitimate business here. There is no paper trail, no contracts, no bank statements, nor transaction records for the IRS or Homeland Security to say we are illegal.”
“Where is that brother of yours, Ghaazi?” asks Sergeant Major Woods.
“You bastard, you leave my brother out of this.”
Sergeant Major Woods walked up to Taseen and hit him so hard, it knocked him across the room. Woods yelled, “Secure the hostages. Search the building and lock this place down until the FBI and naval intelligence get here.”
Colonel Werner was heard on all soldiers’ communications. “You did the deed, men. Great job. Now bring those boys to Harry.”
Jeff watched the events as they unfolded from the Fort Stewart terrorist containment operations center. He excitedly warned, “Colonel, no one can touch those beach balls, you hear? Sure, if a bird flies into one and knocks itself out, no problem. A high wind disturbs a ball and Genesis can verify it, no problem. Colonel Werner, tell your men do not attempt to touch or move anything on that roof. Do not allow repair people or technicians up there.”
Colonel Werner’s warning was heard on all soldier’s coms. “Do not attempt to dismantle or touch any apparatus or devices on that roof. You got me, soldiers?”
There was a roll-call of “Copy that, sir.”
Jeff excitedly asked, “Did they find the Apophis Tablet?”
Sara played cat and mouse. “I thought that they were guarding the satellite relays only.”
Jeff barked, “You're not that stupid, are you?”
Daniel yelled, “Jeff!”
Sara grinned. “That’s okay, let him express his feelings.”
Jeff warned the group, “If all else fails, we were told that a fail-safe would activate. We always knew someone else was here. We simply didn't know where. There is an Apophis Tablet somewhere. When I picked up the modified detonators from the Widowmaker, one of the last things he said to me was ‘By the way, tell your boys at Genesis that the extra one is on me.’ This led me to believe there is a seventh Apophis Tablet. If the boys in Charleston had it, it would make sense, since they could enter the proper codes by voice or retina, releasing the nuclear energy of the Hellburners, just in case Kyle, Jameela, or I were killed
or captured.”
Suddenly, the conference screen lit up. The announcement was “Satellite Link. National Security Agency, Fort Meade, Maryland.”
“Hello, Sara.”
“Hi, Shelby, I haven’t seen you since Annapolis last month.”
Sara had recruited Shelby for the NSA while she was a senior in college. She was top in her class in computer science, specializing in satellite communications. Shelby cut to the chase. “We have information that may enable Operation Oglethorpe to halt the impending terrorist threat.”
Sara laughed and said, in jest. “What took you guys so long?”
Shelby also laughed. “We are certainly happy to do our part. By the way, the Operation Oglethorpe commanders were briefed moments ago. I got to you and your group as soon as possible. Feel free to get coffee if you need to. I'll start with our contractors on the beltway.”
Sara laughed again. “Don’t we always…don’t we always.”
“Well, we consulted with several private satellite technology contractors in the D.C. beltway. We consulted with specialists in satellite technology that disrupts or could be disruptive to vital satellite transmissions. The same technology used in the commercial jammers that medical centers, hotels, and retail stores use to block cell-phones could disrupt vital communications systems. The private contractors helped the NSA and NRO determine when incidents of interference begin, how long they will last, and the impact on the nation’s communications systems. We chose the company, Andromeda.”
“Why Andromeda?” asked Sara. “Did they get results?”
“I’ll answer both your questions. First, the company has drones that are built on a proprietary smart system that has never failed to provide the exact ground location of an interfering antenna or source. Not to mention that Andromeda has the highest defense clearance with the United States Defense Department.”
“Well, did you do what I taught you?”
“Yes, sir, commander, I threw everything we knew at them.”
“That's my girl.”
“Secondly, when the Andromeda head communication engineer looked at the images of the ten-foot beach ball receivers on the roof of the store and the similar ones on the ship, he immediately ordered their advanced communication drone in the air. As the drone operator entered the coordinates into the guidance system, he assured me that they were only sending a signal that would pick up radar signatures. He understood that the beach ball receivers were built to handle a level of noise. The drone will be within a range so as not to awake Apophis.”
Colonel Werner and Jeff sighed a long breath of relief. Sara looked at them and said, “Right.”
Shelby, obviously not a part of the original conversation, was curious. “Did I miss something?”
Sara laughed. “No Shelby…you can continue.”
“Okay, now to answer Sara’s second question. Andromeda got back to us some six hours later. Here's what they told us. They found the devil. He was in the details. Pin-pointing our problem is first to realize that it is not a problem, but simply sheer brilliance.”
“How so, Shelby?”
“Genesis is not interfering with our satellite. They are catching a ride on the satellite. But it’s kind of like taking a taxi ride. You have to first hail the taxi or get its attention to get in.”
Shelby displayed images of the Earth and its man-made satellite systems. “I know that Captain Parrish has given you a primer on satellite systems. The Admiral’s hunches are correct. They are using satellites in polar orbits.”
Shelby pointed to an image of one of the confiscated Tablets. “This is where Apophis is hailing the taxi. The Tablets send imagery that is picked up as National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency images used to chart the planet and provide timely, relevant, and accurate geospatial intelligence in support of national security.”
Colonel Werner was startled by this intelligence. “This cannot be. These are the same satellites that deliver the strategic intelligence that allows the president and national policymakers to make crucial decisions on counter-terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, and global political crises. This is the satellite system that was able to locate the Osama Bin-Laden compound, as well as determine how many people lived there, their genders, and even their heights.”
“I am afraid so, Colonel Werner. The intelligence has gone through many commuter verification checks to validate its authenticity. NASA was even brought in on this one.”
Sara asked, “How did they do this?”
“What we do know is that Apophis deploys military strength steganography to hide activation codes in plain sight on these images. This taxi takes us to a constellation of satellites that represent the most advanced military communications satellite system orbiting the earth. Apophis transmits this code to this constellation and now has the capacity to communicate with terminals installed on any military or commercial ship, submarine, aircraft, or land vehicles. Without knowing it, this bus has picked up a passenger and is providing this passenger secure, jam-resistant, worldwide communications, anywhere it needs to go.”
“So how do we stop the code or jam the signal?” asked Colonel Werner.
Shelby replied, “That question has been asked many times this morning, on many levels so high above my pay grade that it would give you a nosebleed.”
Everyone was worried. Really worried.
Colonel Werner looked at Jeff. Jeff shook his head and said, “It appears Genesis has us by the balls.”
Shelby countered, “Not yet, not yet. Both the scientists and military community are working on this and we will have a solution shortly. We do realize the time constraints, and we are assuming that the timetable may have been accelerated.”
Shelby had a radiant, enlightened look on her face, “The good news is that the satellite signals Apophis is sending are already being transmitted at various intervals to the military satellites and the sleeping pill keeps the bombs asleep. It is when the signal is not received that wakes the baby up with hunger. The code actually cuts the signal off at a certain time, hence triggering the event. If you jam Apophis’s signal, you create the event.”
Jeff interrupted Shelby. He jumped up and paced the floor. Colonel Werner motioned for the MP to leave him be. Jeff paced with his head hung down as if deep in thought but he talked out loud. “Now it makes sense. Kyle and I were in a meeting at Jameela’s hotel in Charleston several months ago. We were going over the logistics of the event, our part anyway. Jameela sought confirmation that we were in possession of our Apophis Tablets and gave us instructions to sign-in at a specific web address at…I think it was 7:04 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, on the Genesis encrypted server. We had to use our cellphone clocks to ensure accuracy in order to sign-in.”
Sara quickly prodded Jeff, “Cell phone networks use global positioning system satellites to send time information to cell phones. These GPS satellites use atomic clocks operated by the U.S. Navy…so where are you going with this?”
“Hang on Sara, hang on…let me think. You see, once we signed in, we had to follow information printed on a card Jameela gave us. This supposedly triggered a software update to allow Apophis to reconfigure our Tablets for the event. Jameela also said it enabled Genesis command to remotely activate our Apophis Tablets just in case we could not. Like if we were captured. Like I am now.”
I dare not respond to this, Sara thought. I am not going there.
To Sara’s relief, Jeff continued. “Jameela said we couldn't sign-in through a LAN line. She emphasized that we have to be wireless so we can ride several satellite signals to activate validation and configuration protocols. Jameela also warned us that from that point on if we didn't sign-in at the specified time, Genesis would assume the mission was compromised and our rescue protocol would be activated . . .”
Shelby interrupted. “Excuse me. Was that instruction written or digital?”
Sara thought, clever girl.
Jeff fired back, “It was written. We were instructed to be as
low tech in these matters as possible. Kyle and I were ordered to put a flame to them once we followed them.”
Shelby had a look of suspense. “Well, did you?”
There was an intense silence in the room. Sara noticed Jeff looking at Daniel nervously.
Jeff answered, “No. I was afraid I would need them again. I put them in Tony’s closet, knowing that if I needed them, I could call and he would read them to me. I figured no one would trace it to Tony. Even if they did you would need a rail-fence cipher to understand them.”
Daniel yelled, “So you're using my boy as a digital mule?”
Jeff pleaded for forgiveness. “I am so sorry, brother.”
Shelby tried to side-step the drama and pointed out that the web address and information printed on that card might point to the highway the taxi was on. “If we can figure this out, then we can send the code up the highway signal to make the bombs sleep even if Genesis’ signal is disrupted. Then we can disarm them on our terms.”
Colonel Werner issued a direct command to the MP. “I want two plainclothes MPs, Latino or African-American and preferably female, to go to Daniel’s house and get to that closet. Use whatever explanation is needed. At this point, I want the protection hardened around Daniel’s family, mother, and in-laws until this threat is over. The family’s safety takes priority over discretion at this point. It is imperative that we keep this man’s family safe. Go now.”
Daniel sensed a great sense of personal responsibility emanating from Colonel Werner. He smiled and gratefully said, “Thank you for your personal concern for my family.”
Sara suggested, “Colonel, we should have Jameela’s and Roble’s belongings and personal effects examined again now that we know what we're looking for.”
He nodded. “Make it so, commander.”
“Sara, just a second. I have new information.”
“Go ahead.”
“Over the last 24 hours, we have had our spysats pointed at the Genesis vessels traveling towards the United States. I want to show you updated photos of each crew and tell me what you think.”
Accelerant- Sixth Extinction Page 23