Day Twenty
Saturday 12th September
Dan
I ran my hands over my eyes as I woke up with a start. I checked my watch to find it was quarter to two in the morning UK time. I still felt exhausted. Whoever had created that virus was a bloody genius, it was almost as if they’d seen my countermoves twenty steps ahead. It had taken Marv and I over twenty-four hours to totally eradicate it and rebuild our firewall, with additional safety measures in the event of another attack. What I couldn’t understand was that we’d traced it back to London, to Jessica’s computer as the point of origin. She was a great receptionist, but genius hacker? I seriously doubted it. The virus was like a fast-growing cancer, neatly compressed to lay dormant for twenty-four hours before expanding rapidly, exponentially, then surging through the systems to specifically attack my main frame here in Silicon Valley. There were only a few people in the world that I knew of that were capable of pulling that off, and they wouldn’t have come cheap. I got up and made my way to my en-suite on slightly shaky legs. I splashed some cold water on my face and brushed my teeth. I looked like hell. I hadn’t showered or shaved since Thursday morning, and I’d barely eaten, but I'd overdosed on caffeine to keep myself going.
I stripped off and jumped in the shower, leaving it as cold as possible to keep me awake. I hadn’t spoken to Ellie since I ran out on her on Thursday night. I hadn’t even had time to see the children, everything had happened so fast. Ringing her was my number one priority once I was dressed. Investigations as to how the virus got onto Jess’s computer could be carried out by the team from anywhere, I could assist on the jet on the way home if needed. I just wanted to get back to my family. I shook my head as I soaped up my body. I still couldn’t understand why the virus had been designed, other than to give me and my team a shitload of work and panic. Its sole purpose seemed to have been to destroy the firewall and all data on the mainframe, not to capture or feedback any files. A competitor would be mining for information, trying to keep abreast of what projects I was working on. If someone just wanted to put me out of business, then a simultaneous attack on my offsite backup server would have been required, but that hadn’t happened. It just didn’t make any sense at all. I washed my hair and turned off the shower, stepping out to grab a towel.
‘Fuck, Andy,’ I yelled, startled out of my wits to find him standing in my bathroom, holding out one of the slate bath towels. I snatched it out of his hands and quickly wrapped it around myself. I frowned as I looked at his face and he shifted uneasily on his feet. ‘What is it? Don’t tell me we’re under attack again?’
‘Not the computers, no, Sir,’ he replied with a shake of his head. He reached up and ran his hand over his mouth. ‘I'm sorry to barge in like this, but I heard you in the shower and knew that you’d want to know immediately.’
‘Know what?’ I demanded, swiping my wet hair back from my face. He looked to his right, towards the door, and I followed his gaze, my jaw dropping to see my best friend, Lucas. ‘Lucas, what the hell are you doing here?’
‘There’s no easy way to say this, Dan,’ he replied, shaking his head as he ran a hand through his hair. I frowned as I studied his face. His grey eyes looked full of sorrow and pity as he stood there. I felt a ball of acid forming in my throat. What the fuck had happened now? ‘No one could contact you, your phone’s obviously been turned off, so your mother rang Andy to fill him in, and he rang me as he wasn’t sure what to do. I told him to let you sleep, that there was nothing you could do, and I’d come over to break the news to you. So, if you’re going to take it out on anyone, you take it out on me, not him, ok?’
‘What fucking news?’ I yelled, fisting my hands in my hair, my mind racing with possibilities. Christ, I hoped my dad hadn’t had a heart attack. It happened a lot to guys who’d worked hard all of their lives, then suddenly retired. It was like their bodies couldn’t handle the sudden change of pace.
‘I’m so sorry, mate, but it looks like Ellie and Oliver have been abducted,’ he advised, shaking his head. I stared at him blankly for a moment, not sure that I’d heard him right. ‘Dan? Talk to me, did you hear me?’ He crossed the room and clasped my bicep.
‘What did you say?’ I asked. I was so tired, I was hearing things. Jenny and James were looking after Ellie and the children, nothing would have happened to them.
‘It happened as they left the doctors. From what police could gather, James, and Jenny had no chance. Three masked guys took all four of them from the scene into an unmarked black van. I’m so sorry,’ he added, squeezing my arm. I blinked a few times, trying to process it.
‘Who was taken?’
‘Shit, mate, I think you’re in shock or something. Ellie, Oliver, James and Jenny. They’re all missing, the police think they were kidnapped, but there are no clues for them at the scene to follow up on. It looks like it was a team of professionals. Are you understanding me?’ He tilted his head to look me directly in the eyes.
‘Ellie and Oliver?’ I whispered, my heart starting to race as panic set in. He was telling me Ellie and my son had been taken?
‘Yes,’ he nodded.
‘Jonas and Eva?’
‘Safely at home with Brooke and Molly. Chris and the backup team are watching them.’
‘No,’ I snapped, shaking my head, bile rising in my throat. ‘No, this can’t be happening.’ I shook off Lucas’s grip and started pacing the bathroom, my fists clenched at my sides. ‘When? How long ago?’
‘They were taken a few hours ago, Sir,’ Andy confirmed solemnly.
‘Why the fuck didn’t anyone wake me up?’ I roared as I turned to face Andy. I was seething. Fury surged through my veins at the thought of what they’d gone through, what they were going through, while I was lying here like Sleeping fucking Beauty.
‘There was nothing you could have done,’ Lucas called, forcing me to whip my head around to scowl at him. ‘There’s nothing you can do until either the police find a clue or we get a ransom call. It was my call, I made the decision.’
‘It was a seriously bad fucking decision,’ I snapped, using every ounce of my self-control not to punch him. ‘What if it was Summer missing? Or little Logan? I’m so bloody angry I could ….’ I broke off and clenched my fists even tighter as my blood started to boil.
‘Hit me? Come on then, punch me. Let out some of your anger, because I need you to get over it and get your head in the game for when we get a call,’ he yelled. ‘Someone’s going to call wanting money and you need to focus on how we’re going to handle this and get them all back safely. Come on, Dan, hit me,’ Lucas taunted. I roared with anger, grabbed him by the throat, and slammed him back against the tiled wall, raising my bunched-up fist. All I could think of was my wife and child probably huddled up somewhere, terrified, two of my best friends as well, if they were even still alive. I swung my shoulder back and powered it forward again with another roar. My fist connected with the tiled wall to the side of Lucas’s head. I didn’t feel any pain even though I could see blood smeared on the broken tiles. I hit the wall again and again, feeling nothing externally, but inside I was being ripped apart. Why did this keep happening to me? Why was I continuously punished? My shoulders shook as my body jerked with a sob at the same time. All the money in the world, a highly trained security team, and I couldn’t even protect my own family. ‘I’ve got you mate, we’ll get through this together, ok?’ Lucas said quietly, pulling me into a hug and patting my back.
I grabbed him in a bear hug, burying my face in his shoulder as I tried to catch my breath. He was right, I wanted to rip the bathroom to pieces, I wanted to break things, I wanted to kill someone, but none of that was going to bring them back. This was no different from that virus attack, I needed to be focussed and in control. I was no use to anyone like this. Ellie needed me, I had to get my head in the game.
‘The jet’s on standby, we can head back to London immediately, Sir. I’ll go and lay some clothes out for you and let them know we’re on our
way,’ Andy stated. I slapped Lucas’s back, letting him know I was sorry and I appreciated what he’d done. He slapped mine before we let each other go, an unspoken bond passing between us as our eyes locked.
‘Do you think they’re still alive?’ I asked quietly, looking over my shoulder at Andy.
‘Yes, Sir. Without a doubt,’ he said confidently. ‘Someone taking them wants something in return. Money, technology, an exchange for you maybe. Until they contact you with demands, it’s not in their best interests to harm anyone.’
‘If it was you, if you were in charge of the people who took them, what would you do?’
‘I’d make my demands and if you didn’t meet them, I’d threaten to kill one of the hostages, Sir.’
‘And would you? Kill one of them?’ I asked, barely able to form the words as I imagined the worst-case scenario.
‘No, Sir. I’d fake it, to make you think I had. It’s not in my nature to kill an unarmed, innocent person. I’ll go and get your things together,’ he nodded, turning and leaving the room. I swallowed and ran my hands over my eyes. I could read between the lines. Andy might be honourable, but that didn’t mean whoever had taken Ellie was.
‘She’s my world,’ I whispered, fighting the urge to cry. I was sick of feeling useless when it came to protecting the women in my life. There were only so many times I could fail before I lost all hope and sense of self.
‘I know, mate, I know exactly how you feel. If it was Summer, I’d be beside myself. Come on, let’s get you home to be with Jonas and Eva while we wait for news,’ he urged. I slowly lowered my hands and looked at my best friend, suddenly grateful he was with me right now.
‘You’re coming?’
‘You think I’d leave you now, when you need me the most? Summer’s coming too, she’s on her way to the jet with the baby.’
‘Thank you,’ I uttered, grabbing him into a hug again. ‘Thank you.’
‘It’s what you’d do for me, though I did think you were going to wreck this pretty face when you swung your fist. Were you aiming for the wall or for me?’
‘I thought I’d look more handsome next to you if you had a broken nose, good job I’m a shit judge of distance and got the tiles instead.’ Both of us laughed for a moment, then parted and a serious look passed between us. He nodded his acceptance of my version of an apology and I headed out to quickly dress in the jeans and shirt Andy had left out for me, swiping up the jumper that I’d need when we touched down again in London.
‘Ready?’ asked Andy as we left my suite.
‘I need to see Marv, then we can go,’ I confirmed, quickening my stride past the offices to the stairwell. I didn’t have time to wait for the lift down to the research and lab floor, stairs were faster. I keyed in the code and used my fingerprint and retina scan to access the room. Marv pretty much lived up to his name. He was a marvel. He was my right hand guy, having been with me from the start. His knowledge of my systems was almost comparable to my own. Where he excelled was managing on about three hours of sleep a night. How the guy did it was anyone’s guess, but he was already at his workstation, looking a hell of a lot brighter than I was.
‘Oliver,’ he nodded, jumping up. He scanned Andy and Lucas, then looked at me for permission to speak freely. I nodded my consent. ‘Andy’s filled me in. I’ve already checked the data for him.’
‘And?’ I asked hopefully.
‘Nothing,’ he replied, pulling a face.
‘What do you mean nothing?’ I asked, trying not to panic. ‘We spent years on this, it’s not failed once. There can’t be no data.’
‘You’re showing, he’s not. It’s not necessarily bad news, there could be a number of scenarios that would lead to it being offline, don’t assume the worst.’
‘I am fucking assuming the worst, Marv,’ I replied, starting to pace the floor again. ‘It’s my family, not a fucking project anymore.’
‘I’ll be monitoring it until it comes back online or you give me an update.’
‘I need to know the second it does, no matter what. No trying to shield me, Marv. Understood?’ I warned with a pointed finger. I didn’t have time to panic or think the worst, I needed to get home.
‘Understood, you can trust me. Go.’
‘Thank you,’ I grabbed his hand and shook it firmly, squeezing his shoulder.
‘Let me know the second you get them back safely. I’ll be praying for you all,’ he nodded. I gave him a tight-lipped smile and turned, indicating the exit for Lucas and Andy to follow. We hit the corridor at a fast pace as I turned on my phone and saw all of the missed calls. I listened to the messages as we headed to the lobby and out to the waiting limo. Most were my mother and Lucas, urging me to ring them back. A couple were from the police, asking me to do the same. There were no calls from Ellie. I didn’t even have a voice message from her saved so I could hear her. God, I wanted to hear her voice so badly right now. I settled into the limo, Lucas and Andy following, and Jordan my driver put his foot down as he sped towards the airport. Lucas was the first to break the silence.
‘What data isn’t online? What does it have to do with Ellie and Oliver?’ he asked. I dropped my head back against the cool leather headrest as I blew out a calming breath.
‘I’m not supposed to discuss it, I signed a highly confidential clause in the contract.’
‘Don’t give me that bullshit, Dan,’ he bit. ‘I want them back too.’
‘Neither of you breathes a word of this,’ I warned, sitting upright and twisting to face them. ‘What you hear now stays in the limo. Not even Summer, Lucas.’
‘You can trust me,’ he nodded.
‘Me too, Sir,’ added Andy. ‘But if it has to do with helping get everyone back, I need to know.’
‘I was contacted by the Ministry of Defence a few years ago to work on a classified project. So classified, even the British Government are unaware of its existence,’ I began as they both leaned forward, putting their elbows on their knees as they listened attentively. ‘In simple terms, I was asked to develop a programme that could fit into a non-toxic shell, smaller than a grain of rice. Similar to a Fitbit, it would read the data of its host and relay the results back to a central location to be monitored.’
‘The military want to check on their soldiers’ pulses and heart rates and body fat ratios without a physical exam?’ asked Lucas, looking confused.
‘That’s one of the bonuses of the system, but not its primary purpose.’
‘What is, Sir?’ enquired Andy.
‘It’s a GPS tracker, accurate to within a 10 yard radius. It was designed to secretly tag anyone that was of interest to them, so that they could monitor their movements across the globe, or know when they were deceased. Imagine how valuable that would have been in capturing some of the world’s leading terrorists sooner. Undercover forces are searching for some leaders now, spending untold amounts of money, with no idea if their target is even alive.’
‘Extremely valuable, but highly unethical,’ nodded Andy.
‘Exactly, which is why this was classified at the highest level. There would be outrage if it got out that this technology was in existence, even though it’s still in beta mode.’
‘Beta mode?’ questioned Lucas.
‘Test mode,’ volunteered Andy. ‘I’m assuming a couple of military personnel offered to be guinea pigs, for the data to be analysed for effectiveness before the project was given a green light.’
‘Your assumptions are pretty much correct,’ I confirmed. He was a smart cookie.
‘I get the reasoning and the benefits to having it, but how the hell do you convince people you want to track to stay still long enough to operate on them to implant it?’ Lucas asked, shaking his head.
‘You don’t, Lucas. My team came up with a delivery system even less painful than micro-chipping a pet. The latest chip we’ve condensed the system into is so tiny, it can be injected with something smaller than an Epi-pen. You’d simply have to walk past your subje
ct and jab them. They’d only feel the slightest of stings and would probably put it down to a bee or wasp. The hardest part is getting operatives far enough undercover to come into contact with the subjects you want to tag.’
‘Ok, forgive me for being stupid here, again, but what does this have to do with the abduction of Ellie?’ he frowned, then shook his head as he took in a shocked gasp of air, making me screw up my face. ‘Tell me you didn’t, Dan. Tell me you didn’t test this out on Ellie?’
‘No, on Ollie,’ I replied quietly, dropping my eyes to the floor. ‘He was one of the first two to have the prototype injected, it was slightly larger then.’
‘Jesus Christ,’ Lucas uttered. ‘Ellie seriously agreed for you to test out a piece of military hardware on her son? I know what Summer’s answer would be if I ran that past her, the words over, dead, and body being three of them, possibly with the odd swear word thrown in for good measure.’
‘She doesn’t know,’ I grimaced, waiting for a barrage of abuse from him. Instead I was met with silence. I looked up at them both. Andy’s face was stoic, I couldn’t read his thoughts, but Lucas looked horrified.
‘Why?’ he eventually asked.
‘For his safety,’ I replied. ‘I was warned that coming out of hiding when I got married would make me a target. I volunteered myself as one of the two test subjects.’
‘Jesus, Dan. I get you doing it, you’re an adult and you made an informed choice, but Oliver?’
‘Children are statistically the most vulnerable to be kidnapped. There’s a higher chance of success with an abduction of a child who can’t fight back. There’s also deeper empathy from parents, mothers in particular, plus added pressure to pay out from an outcry by the general public when a child’s involved,’ confirmed Andy, reiterating my arguments with Marv for taking one of the prototypes back to London to use on Oliver. ‘I agree with Mr. Davenport’s rationale, though not necessarily his decision to not involve Oliver’s mother in the process.’
31 Days of Autumn Page 22