Black Rose (The Project Book 9)

by Alex Lukeman

  "But couldn't someone with the right skills figure out the key by using some kind of pattern recognition program?" Selena asked.

  Stephanie nodded. "That's right on the money. They could, except that whoever writes the program adds in something called a padding scheme to prevent exactly that. It injects random factors into the equation. That makes the message almost impossible to crack unless you have the private key."

  "But you figured out how to do it," Lamont said.

  "I did," Stephanie said. "It got me into a lot of trouble. When I was eighteen I hacked into the Pentagon just for fun. Two days later the FBI showed up at my door. Scared the hell out of me."

  Everyone laughed.

  Stephanie smiled. "Anyway, it worked out. Instead of throwing me in jail they gave me a job with NSA. That's where Elizabeth found me."

  "That's a hell of a story," Ronnie said. "But I still don't understand how you do it."

  "You can't expect a Marine to understand stuff like that," Lamont said.

  Ronnie started to say something but Elizabeth cut him off.

  "Shall we get back to the purpose of this meeting? Steph, I like Nick's idea. Can you do it?"

  "I can get into Gutenberg's corporate computers," Stephanie said. "Those will be active all the time. His personal computers are a different story. I have to be able to intercept something when he's online. Then I can slip in a program that will let me access the computer any time it's turned on. From there I can break whatever encryption scheme that's running and read everything on it."

  "You said intercept something. Like an email?"

  "Yes."

  "Then why don't we send our pal Gutenberg a message?" Nick said. "When he responds, you'll have him."

  "That would work, but why would he respond?"

  "I guess it depends on what you say."

  "You could pretend to be someone he'd have to answer," Selena said.

  Steph looked thoughtful. "Once I'm into his bank's server, I could send him a message from one of his executives. It would look right. Gutenberg would think it was legitimate and answer it. The computer he used would be mine after that."

  "Keep it simple," Elizabeth said. "Once that's done, see what you can do about Krivi."

  "So now we wait and see what Steph comes up with?" Nick asked.

  "Now we wait," Elizabeth said.

  CHAPTER 29

  Stephanie bypassed the firewalls on Gutenberg's bank servers and sent an email to him. It appeared to come from the vice president of operations and required a reply. She'd tagged the message with an automatic alarm to alert her when Gutenberg answered. His response would be captured and traced back to his computer. He could hide his location in a hundred different ways, bounce the signal all over the world, but she would find him. Then she would only have to wait until he was online again to plant her Trojan horse.

  As it happened, she got lucky. She was sitting in her office thinking about the problem of Krivi Dass when the alarm signaled a hit.

  Got you, she thought.

  She had to work fast, before he signed off. Her fingers flew over her keyboard as she backtracked the signal through a dozen false Internet addresses to the source. She tapped a key. Seconds later her lines of code had burrowed into Gutenberg's secure, personal computer. She entered another command. The contents of Gutenberg's hard drive began transferring to Virginia. She had almost all of it before he shut down.

  She disconnected from the Internet and began looking at the files. A red warning notice flashed across her screen, triggered by a program she'd written to protect her laptop.

  UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS DETECTED. CONTINUE? Y/N

  The files she'd downloaded were isolated from any outside source. The security warning indicated an intruder on Gutenberg's computer, not hers. Someone else had been looking at the files at the same time she was.

  She entered Y and thought about what the warning notice meant.

  Given the level of security wrapped around Gutenberg's machine, whoever was watching him had to have a high level of experience dealing with sophisticated encryption schemes. Very few could do that. She could count the number of individuals who might be able to pull it off on one hand. The only other possibility was a government agency.

  Sooner or later, whoever had the skill to break into Gutenberg's computer would discover the program she'd planted to monitor his communications. If they were really good, they would trace the program back to Virginia. They would never break through the encryption protocols Stephanie had created to protect the Project computers. But they would know where those computers were.

  That was the bad news. The good news was that it worked both ways. With a little effort she could find out who was watching him and where they were, or at least where their server was located. She activated a digital hall of mirrors that would defeat any attempts to access her computer, went online and began following the trail. Ten minutes later she had her answer. She stood and went into Elizabeth's office.

  "Got a minute? Something's come up."

  "Come on in," Elizabeth said. "I was just thinking about Gutenberg and what we might do about him."

  Dark shadows under her eyes stood out on Elizabeth's milk white skin. Her elfin features seemed stressed, as if she were listening to an unpleasant sound she couldn't avoid.

  "Things just got a little more complicated," Stephanie said.

  "How so?"

  "I got into Gutenberg's computer and managed to download most of what was on it."

  "And?"

  "I don't know what's in those files yet, but I found a program a lot like mine. Someone else has the same idea we do."

  "Someone else is spying on him?" Elizabeth said. "Who is it?"

  "That's where it gets more complicated. It's someone working out of SVR headquarters in Yasenevo."

  "The Russians." Elizabeth sighed.

  "Yes. SVR is monitoring Gutenberg's computer just like I was."

  "Do they know you were there?"

  "They might," Stephanie said. "It depends on how they've got it set up on their end. I think we should assume they'll notice my trace. SVR will figure it out. They'll know it's us."

  "You were right when you said it just got more complicated."

  Elizabeth picked up her pen and began tapping it on the desk.

  "If SVR is monitoring Gutenberg, they know he's the one who took those plague samples. Adam told Nick that it was Vysotsky's group that lost them. I know how Vysotsky thinks. He's going to want to get the samples back and extract revenge for his men. Plus his head's probably on the chopping block if he doesn't manage to contain this."

  "He's got some shot at coming up with the samples," Stephanie said.

  Elizabeth laid her pen down and pushed it away as if it might bite her. "Have you tapped into Krivi's computers yet?"

  "Not yet. I was considering the best way to go about it when Gutenberg went online."

  "We need to know what Krivi is doing," Elizabeth said. "I don't think AEON would release the plague without a vaccine to protect them. If any of the samples survived Zürich, he'll be manufacturing it. That would tell us it's still out there."

  "And if it is?"

  "We'll deal with that when we get to it."

  "I'd like to go through the files I downloaded from Gutenberg before I do anything about Krivi," Stephanie said.

  "All right," Elizabeth said. "In the meantime, I'll think about how we're going to deal with Vysotsky."

  "Is there some reason why Selena doesn't like the Russians?" Stephanie asked.

  "A lot of people don't like the Russians. Why do you ask?"

  "It's just that every time we talk about Russia her face shuts down, like she's trying to hide her thoughts or feelings. I didn't think anything of it the first time but then it happened again, more than once. I just wondered if you knew anything about it."

  "I can't think of any reason," Elizabeth said. "She was fine working with Korov."

  "It's probably nothing," Stephanie
said.

  CHAPTER 30

  The contents of Gutenberg's computer were a bombshell. Stephanie had just finished briefing everyone on what she had found and on the contents of his diary.

  "People like him make you wonder if there's any hope for the human race," Ronnie said. "How can someone write a business plan for killing millions of people?"

  "It's been done before," Nick said. "You ever hear of the Wannsee conference?"

  "No."

  "It was a meeting of high-ranking Nazis, where they planned the extermination of the Jews. A business meeting."

  Ronnie shook his head.

  "I think those names mentioned in Gutenberg's diary are the people running AEON," Elizabeth said.

  "There's nothing that tells us exactly who they are," Selena said. "We know about Gutenberg and Krivi. Why do you think the others are part of AEON?"

  "For one thing, each is wealthy and powerful and that's a requirement for membership in AEON's top tier. Take Kamarov, for example. Aside from the President Gorovsky, Kamarov is possibly the most powerful man in Russia. Nobody knows his real wealth. He has his hand in everything. Even the Russian Mafia stays clear of him."

  There it is again, Stephanie thought. As soon as Elizabeth mentioned Russia, Selena looked like she'd swallowed a lemon. Something's going on there.

  Elizabeth continued. "Thorvaldson is probably Aapo Thorvaldson, the shipping magnate. He's in the same money league as Gutenberg and Krivi. De Guillame could be the French Foreign Minister, although that's just an educated guess. Mitchell is a common name but it feels like he might be an American, judging from what Gutenberg wrote."

  "Lots of Mitchells out there," Ronnie said.

  "How many of them have the kind of money and clout the others carry?" Nick asked.

  "I can think of one," Selena said. "Senator Randolph Mitchell. He's rich and powerful and his political philosophy fits right in with AEON's goals."

  "I hope you're wrong," Elizabeth said.

  "What about the other one, Halifax?"

  "I'm not sure," Elizabeth said. "It could be the British Secretary of the Exchequer."

  "Oh, that's great," Lamont said. "We're up against three powerful government officials, a Nazi banker, a legal drug lord and two of the wealthiest men in the world. How about a partridge in a pear tree, just for fun?"

  "We don't know that Gutenberg is a Nazi," Elizabeth said.

  "If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck..."

  Nick said, "Clichés aside, what's our next move? We can't go after these men publicly."

  "We have one advantage," Elizabeth said. "They don't know that we know who they are."

  "The Russians have the same information we do, if Steph is right," Nick said. "That means they know Kamarov is an enemy of the regime. They might take care of him for us."

  "It's possible, but that still leaves the others. We might be able to work with Vysotsky on this. It's just like before, we have a mutual enemy."

  "The Russians are our enemy."

  Selena's voice was hard and flat. Everyone looked at her.

  "The only reason we were able to work with them before was because Korov proved himself our friend and we trusted him. He's dead. We can't trust Vysotsky or any of his people."

  "We don't have to trust them," Elizabeth said, "but if the devil himself was useful I'd make an agreement with him to stop Gutenberg and AEON."

  Selena sniffed. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

  Elizabeth was annoyed. "Let me worry about Vysotsky."

  "So what do you want us to do, Director?" Nick said.

  "Gutenberg's diary says they're going to release the plague to test it out. Until we know where, all we can do is monitor Gutenberg's computer and hope he reveals the location."

  "And when we know it?

  "Then you go in and stop them."

  CHAPTER 31

  The village of Sao Bendito was gripped with fear. Candles burned day and night in the church. There was always someone kneeling and beseeching God to remove the affliction He had sent upon them. If the villagers had known who was really responsible, they would have stopped praying and headed for the clinic with their machetes instead of their rosaries.

  The clinic was overwhelmed. Bodies lay everywhere, wherever there was space on the floor, or outside under an improvised shelter. By the time they got to the clinic they were already in the latter stages of the disease. No one lay there for long. A day, perhaps two, spent in the illusion of a possible cure and then they were carried off in a makeshift shroud and buried in a mass grave. Funerals were no longer held at the church. The priest had been an early victim. An ancient backhoe that had been the village pride and joy worked overtime digging pits to bury the bodies.

  Karl Schmidt looked out over the chaos and tried not to breathe the stench through the surgical mask hooked over his face. A woman lay coughing and moaning in pain on a makeshift bed on the floor of the clinic. He looked down at her and made a few notes in a small notebook he carried. He knew she would be dead before the day was out.

  The woman was nineteen years old and had been beautiful, only a week before. She lay in a pool of urine and blood, a ghastly shell of her former self. Cracked, black blotches that looked like poisonous flowers had spread over her body.

  Schmidt's scientific curiosity had gotten the better of him and he'd stayed longer than he'd planned. Besides, he had faith in the vaccine he'd developed. Even so, there was no need to push his luck. Sao Bendito was isolated but it was only a question of time before word got out and the area was quarantined by the government. He'd give it another day and then he was going back to Europe and civilization.

  Doctor Silva was away from the clinic, out on the Indian reservation where the plague had already killed hundreds. By the time he returned, Schmidt would be gone.

  There was nothing more to do here. He stepped out of the foul-smelling shack and into the clean, humid air of a sub-tropical morning and stripped off his mask. Schmidt took a deep breath and dropped the mask in a trashcan by the door. Somewhere a chorus of monkeys chattered. A flock of brilliantly colored parrots rose from the tops of the trees, the sun lighting up the vibrant red and gold and blue of their feathers. He watched them take flight.

  Schmidt took another deep breath and smiled. Yes, it was a beautiful day.

  CHAPTER 32

  "It's Brazil," Stephanie said. "They released the plague in a village called Sao Bendito. It's in a very remote area."

  "How did you find out?" Selena asked.

  "Krivi's scientist, Schmidt. He's in charge of the test. He emailed Gutenberg with a progress report and my program captured it. According to the email, everyone who didn't receive the vaccine is dying like flies. Schmidt used a free vaccination program in a clinic as a cover while he infected everyone."

  "I screwed up," Nick said. "We didn't get all the samples."

  "Don't blame yourself," Elizabeth said. "It figures they'd have them in more than one place in case something went wrong."

  "These people need to be put down," Stephanie said.

  "That's not like you, Steph."

  "If you read that email, you'll feel the same way," Stephanie said. "Schmidt talks about the suffering of these people as if they were lab rats."

  "For him, they are," Nick said.

  "Do we have any satellite shots of the area?" Elizabeth asked Stephanie.

  "We do, but they aren't very good. That area of the world isn't on the list for priority surveillance. I thought you might want to see the photos, so I got them ready."

  She touched a key on her laptop. The wall monitor across from Harker's desk came to life with a photograph of a small cluster of buildings in a vast sea of foliage. An unpaved road leading to the town ended in a square in front of the village church. To the north lay a vast area of rivers and grasslands dotted with scattered clusters of huts.

  "Zoom in on the town please, Stephanie," Elizabeth said.

  "Not much of a town," Lamont said.

/>   "Talk about the Third World," Ronnie said. "That place makes the boonies look like New York City."

  "Where's this clinic they're using?" Nick asked.

  "I'm not sure," Stephanie said.

  Harker pointed at the photograph. "There's activity around that shack on the north edge of town. That might be it. Steph, what's the big open area on the top of the photograph?"

  "An Indian reservation, set aside by the government. It's protected."

  "Not anymore," Nick said. "Not if they've let that stuff loose. It may be too late to stop them but we can close them down before they do any more damage."

  "It makes sense Gutenberg would choose a place like this," Selena said. "It's isolated, hard to get to. Away from prying eyes. My guess would be that the government wouldn't be in a big hurry to do something about illness on that reservation, even if they knew about it. Look at that country, it's perfect ranchland. There must be a lot of people who would like to see the Indians disappear."

  "Sounds familiar," Ronnie said.

  "I don't think they'd use a house or the church for a clinic," Nick said. "My bet is on that building as the primary target. If we're wrong, it shouldn't take long to find the right one."

  "How do you want to go in?" Lamont said.

  "We have to shut this down fast. There's only one way to get in there without losing a lot of time."

  "Airdrop," Ronnie said.

  "I don't see an alternative, but extraction's going to be hard."

  "I have a solution for that," Elizabeth said. "The Fourth Fleet is conducting exercises with the USS Carl Vinson off the coast of Guyana as we speak."

  "The super carrier?" Lamont said. "That is one mother of a ship."

  "That's the one. They have Ospreys on board. That aircraft has enough range to bring you out."