No Strings Attached

by Julie Moffett

  My long brown hair was up in a bun and a pretentious fluffy white stole lay over the back of the chair. Slash had padded my butt considerably with some kind of funky underwear. I felt lopsided. I worried if I sat down too hard, the padding would shift and I would have a revolving butt.

  Slash chuckled. “I gave you a few extra wrinkles just for fun. You’re so pretty, I had to go overboard a bit to disguise you.”

  All the supplies and clothes Slash had bought had been thrift store finds or over-the-counter, but he had worked magic with the items at hand. I really looked about fifty years old. I turned away from the mirror, watching him as he added some padding around his stomach—giving him a wider girth—and buttoning his tuxedo shirt across it, holding it in place. His long hair was gray and tucked up and cleverly pinned to appear as if it was short. He had a thick gray mustache and matching eyebrows. I knew it was Slash and I hardly recognized him.

  “Wait. You think I’m pretty?”

  He looked up, surprised by my question. He slid his arms into a tuxedo jacket, buttoned one button around his middle with a bit of difficulty and strode across the room to me. He took both of my hands in his, his expression serious.

  “You’re the most beautiful girl in the world, cara.” He pressed a kiss against the palm of my right hand while keeping his brown eyes on mine. His fake mustache tickled my skin. “Now and in thirty years.”

  His eyes were full of emotion. I had to clear my throat to remove the lump that had formed there.

  “Well, you’re not so bad yourself, James. I think you look quite distinguished with those gray streaks in your hair.”

  He smiled and leaned forward, this time carefully pressing a kiss against my lips so as not to mess up the makeup he’d carefully applied. I closed my eyes and kissed him, forgetting we were getting ready to undertake a dangerous operation inside the Chinese Embassy and simply letting myself feel cherished by a man I loved, but didn’t always understand.

  After a moment, he lifted his mouth from mine. “Are you ready for this, Mrs. Smith?”

  “As ready as I’ll ever be, Mr. Smith.”

  “Excellent.” He slid the white stole around my shoulders, playing with it for a moment until it met his satisfaction.

  We went outside and Slash hailed a cab to the Chinese Embassy. The cabdriver dropped us off in front and Slash paid him and got out first, extending me a hand to help me out. I resisted the urge to rearrange my butt and took Slash’s arm instead. There were cabs lined up in front of and behind us with numerous well-dressed couples heading toward the lit-up entrance.

  “Don’t move so easily and quickly,” he murmured in my ear as we headed toward the front steps. “Remember, you aren’t twenty-five anymore.”

  My heart was beating in my throat, but Slash was completely calm and confident as we approached the entrance. My arm was safely tucked inside his arm, while his hand pressed against the small of my back, keeping us in contact. When we reached the steps, a man dressed in a tuxedo, with an earpiece and a cord snaking down his neck and disappearing beneath his jacket, politely requested our invitation.

  Slash handed it over. The man took it and pressed a scanner against the small bar code in the corner of the invitation. After a second, there was a small beep and the man returned the invitation to Slash, who tucked it back inside his jacket pocket.

  “Welcome to the Chinese Embassy, Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” he said. “Please proceed to the welcoming line. We are pleased you were able to make it.”

  I would have responded with a thank-you, but his last words were perfunctory. He was already examining the invitation of the couple behind us.

  I had a moment of panic when I realized we were going to have to go through a magnetometer. I tugged on Slash’s arm until he bent down. “Where’s your gun?” I murmured in his ear.

  “At the hotel. It’s okay.”

  I was thankful he was so calm because my heart was pounding. I put my purse on the conveyor belt and walked through the magnetometer. Slash followed without incident and we retrieved our personal belongings. I gripped his arm as we carefully climbed the steps and stood patiently in the receiving line that stretched out to the foyer to greet the Chinese ambassador and his wife. When we got close to the ambassador, another security guard requested our invitation.

  Slash handed it over. The guy scanned the invitation again and passed it down to a woman standing next to the ambassador. She whispered something in his ear and he nodded. When it was our turn for the meet and greet, the ambassador bent slightly and shook Slash’s hand.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” he said in accented English. “It is a pleasure to meet you. We are quite impressed with the ongoing activity of NICE and look forward to a lasting and fruitful cooperation between our countries on this very important matter of cybersecurity.”

  Somehow I managed to restrain myself from rolling my eyes as the ambassador shook my hand. I greeted his wife before being ushered by another man in a dark suit and an earpiece toward the coat check. After we handed over our coats, we were given name tags before entering the glittering ballroom.

  Actually, glittering was an understatement. The entire room dazzled with sparkling chandeliers, large glass doors and gilded mirrors encrusted with crystals. Tuxedoed men and women in shimmering finery stretched as far as my eyes could see. I had no idea how we would find Jiang Shi in this crowd, but I kept my eyes peeled anyway.

  A waiter dressed in a crisp white uniform offered Slash and me a glass of champagne and some caviar. I took a champagne flute to give me something to fiddle with if people started talking to me. Slash declined both items, presumably to keep his hands free at all times.

  Slash and I almost immediately got pulled into a conversation with a man who identified himself as Milton Hickman, a high-level cybersecurity official with the Department of Homeland Security. They were in the middle of a discussion about the Chinese efforts to fight corruption in the government and put an end to bribery, fraud and elitism among the ruling class.

  “We applaud your efforts to streamline and clean up your house, so to say,” Hickman was saying. “Now if only China would approach the issue of hacking with the same level of dedication, the problems between our two nations would be significantly lessened.”

  The Chinese official frowned. “I’m afraid making unfounded accusations is not only irresponsible, but unprofessional, Mr. Hickman.”

  “Which leads us to no progress on this front.”

  “I assure you, accusations and counteraccusations will not lead to a satisfactory resolution of the problem. China firmly opposes hacking. We have strict laws and regulations in place to prevent such activities from occurring.”

  Slash moved us on, but the exchange made me think. I wasn’t naive. The US wasn’t innocent by any stretch of the imagination—we were busy with our own hacking. Except I knew firsthand we played by legal and moral rules that China did not. Now that we’d been pushed against the wall, those rules were going out the window. We were going nuclear. What that meant in terms of the future of cyberspace remained unknown because we’d never gone there before. Once the bomb was dropped, so to speak, there was no pulling it back.

  We continued to move about the room, Slash maneuvering me among the guests, his left hand almost always on the small of my back keeping me calm. We stopped a few times and chatted with people. Actually Slash did the chatting. I just stood and smiled, nodding my head on occasion. No one gave me a second glance, which was just fine with me. Since I didn’t have to engage in meaningless conversation, I could actually do what we came for.

  Find Jiang Shi.

  Slash had stopped to speak with a Chinese man with a neatly trimmed mustache and sharp eyes. He identified himself as Liu Chunlin, Deputy Director of the Ministry of State Security. I smiled and tried to look invisible. It seemed to work because, after a brief nod
of his head at me, Chunlin turned his full attention to Slash.

  “So, Mr. Smith, what are your thoughts on the progress of cybersecurity between the US and China?” Chunlin asked. He inquired in a polite, perfunctory way, as if he’d been asking the same question to all the partygoers this evening.

  “I think that’s a difficult question,” Slash answered. “Cybersecurity is a multifaceted concept. In many ways, it is not unlike the Cold War. Our countries—the clear leaders on this playing field—are reaching a level of hostility and belligerence that hasn’t been seen in decades. There’s an inherent danger in pursuing such deadly policies regardless of which side you are on.”

  His straightforward answer sparked a flash of surprise and interest in Chunlin’s eyes. “That almost sounds like a warning. What might these dangers be, Mr. Smith?”

  “Actually, I would enjoy hearing your suppositions first.”

  Chunlin took a sip of champagne and studied Slash and then me. “All right, then. Mass disruption, complete or partial shutdowns of the electronic highway, which in turn would mean a severe, if not complete, disruption in the supply chain resulting in food and water shortages. No electricity, no utilities, no functioning hospitals. Disease, death and eventually complete world chaos.”

  “Exactly.” Slash nodded. “The cyber nuclear choice is a dangerous one. One that would be far more detrimental to the world than an actual nuclear bomb now that we are so tightly interconnected with one another.”

  Chunlin considered. “I’m in full agreement with you, Mr. Smith. Forgive me for being presumptuous, but it sounds like you are suggesting a policy of mutual assured destruction.”

  “It does, doesn’t it?” Slash spoke mildly, but the significance of the words was not lost on Chunlin.

  Chunlin assessed Slash thoughtfully. “So, then, what’s your solution?”

  “Cyber détente.” Slash spread his hands. “A visible relaxation of tensions. We are both smart enough to know détente will not end conflict, competition or even confrontation between our countries, but it does offer us a less aggressive way to conduct our business with a shared goal as end game—mutual survival.”

  “Cyber détente,” Chunlin murmured.

  “Not such an unusual proposition. I assure you, there are still ways within this relaxation of tensions to pursue singular goals.”

  Chunlin stroked his mustache thoughtfully. “That’s quite a thought-provoking analysis, Mr. Smith.”

  “Actually, it’s fairly straightforward. I would go further to suggest you should keep a closer eye on certain cyber factions of yours that may be going places to which you aren’t aware and may not approve.”

  “Factions such as...?”

  “The Red Guest.”

  Chunlin visibly paled, but said, “I’m not familiar with this group.”

  He was totally lying. I’m not an expert on reading people, but even I could tell. His whole demeanor had changed and not for the better.

  Slash tipped his head. “Just mentioning it.”

  Chunlin stared at Slash’s name tag and then back at his face. “Mr. Smith, I would very much like to discuss this issue with you further. Will you be at the conference tomorrow?”

  “I’m afraid not.” Slash tucked my hand inside his elbow. “My duties take me elsewhere. But it was a pleasure making your acquaintance in person.”

  “In person?” Chunlin paused and stared at Slash. “We’ve met before?”

  “In a manner of speaking.” A smile touched Slash’s lips. “Enjoy your evening.”

  Chunlin bowed slightly, watching us as we moved away.

  “What the heck are you doing?” I whispered to Slash.

  “Planting a seed,” he murmured. “I’m not sure it will bear fruit, but I had the opportunity, so I took it.”

  “Okay, so while you negotiated world cyber peace, I found Jiang Shi.” I nudged him with my elbow. “Straight ahead, to the right. The guy talking to the woman in the red dress.”

  “Good work,” he murmured.

  We moved closer and Slash effortlessly inserted us into the conversation. After a quick round of introductions, the woman in the red dress moved away, leaving just the three of us.

  Shi looked bored and slightly annoyed that he was stuck with us. The way he watched the departing woman made me think we’d interrupted a conquest. Despite myself, I smiled.

  Shi took a drink and glanced at Slash’s name tag. “Mr. Smith. China welcomes the impact of organizations like yours on creating mutual beneficial cyber cooperation between our countries. The important strides we are making on this topic are of great interest to China.”

  Blah, blah, blah. He was spouting canned propaganda. It ticked me off more than it should have that he actually thought anyone at this party was stupid enough to buy it. In fact, Shi spoke so offhandedly, it bordered on rude.

  “Important strides such as the recent hack into the TSA with Skylight?” Slash said pleasantly. “Or Mudsling at the DHS? Or perhaps we could discuss the multiple attacks on IAD and SIGINT at the NSA of late?”

  It took a moment to sink in. Shi blinked and then stared at Slash and me in astonishment. After the initial shock subsided, he cocked his head. “Slash? Well, well. I’m certainly surprised to see you here.”

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  “I understand you’re looking for me.” Slash spoke calmly although I could imagine he had vivid fantasies of smashing his fist into Shi’s face. Those fantasies certainly played through mine.

  “Indeed.” Shi turned his gaze on me. “I presume you are Ms. Carmichael.”

  I didn’t respond.

  “Clever coming here.” He glanced around the room. “Although I’m afraid it’s not a good place for a productive dialogue.”

  “Depends on your definition of productive.”

  “Somehow I have a feeling our definitions would be at odds.”

  “You’d be right. I came here for one reason, Shi. A last chance. Call off your dogs or this is war. It’s a place you don’t want to go and something you can’t stop.”

  “Your empty threats don’t concern me.” Shi snorted. “Your government doesn’t have the stomach or the talent for a war of this kind.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

  “You took my brother.” He leaned in close, his teeth clenched. “Release him or you will be sorry.”

  “You shouldn’t have sent Quon to get me in the first place,” Slash said coolly. “That’s on you...and the Red Guest.”

  “Where is he? Let him go.”

  “Why would I want to do that when he’s being so cooperative?” Slash smiled tightly. “Have you considered that maybe he doesn’t want to rejoin the Red Guest? Perhaps his older brother was a bit too controlling, too demanding. Couldn’t see his real talent or let it shine through. We aren’t making that mistake. We can offer him a lot more than you ever did.”

  “You’re lying.”

  “Am I? Then how did I know about Skylight or Mudsling?”

  Fire flashed in Shi’s eyes. “Does your government know what you’re doing?”

  “Does yours? Murder is pretty ugly business for a hacker. Especially when it involves high-ranking NSA officials. You were careless, Shi. You left a trail a mile wide leading right back to the Red Guest. I’d be exceptionally worried if I were you.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Slash waved an arm. “We’re done here, Shi. I’ll say it one more time. Back down or suffer the consequences.”

  “Don’t you dare threaten me.” He grabbed Slash’s forearm. “I will annihilate you. Completely.”

  Slash looked at Shi’s hand on his arm and then raised an icy gaze to Shi’s face. Whatever Shi saw in it caused him to quickly release Slash’s arm. I maneuv
ered between the two men, pressing a hand on each of their chests.

  “Gentlemen, not here,” I said in a low voice.

  A quick look around the room indicated the Chinese ambassador was looking our way and two Chinese security guards with earpieces were heading toward us.

  Shi stepped back. “This isn’t over,” he hissed and turned to walk away. “You’re a dead man.”

  “Let’s go,” Slash said, taking me by the elbow. “We’ve got to disappear and quickly.”

  We collected our coats and walked out into the cool spring air. We’d gone partway down the sidewalk when we collided with someone in a trench coat and a fedora.

  “Pardon me,” the figure said and then whispered, “Take a left at the next corner and meet me on International Drive. I’ve got a car waiting. You’ve got at least one tail on you, possibly more.”

  “Elvis?” I murmured in surprise as he walked past us.

  Slash yanked me forward and we kept walking in the opposite direction. I tried to spot our tail, but I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary.

  “Act normal,” Slash said.

  “I am acting normal,” I said.

  “Then quit looking around.” He pulled me sideways into a café. We passed through the tables and people sitting outside enjoying coffee under the lights and night air and went into the store.

  “What are you doing?” I hissed, “Elvis said to take the next left.”

  “We’ve got company. I’m taking a shortcut.”

  I hadn’t seen anyone, but apparently Slash had. We went right into the café and straight through the back, ignoring the yell of the astonished manager. Slash pushed opened the back door of the café and we entered an alley. His grip on my arm was tight.

  We came out onto the street where he took a hard left. The next block up I saw Elvis standing under a street lamp.

  “Hurry,” Slash urged even though I was already nearly running to keep up with his long strides.