by Daley, Kathi
“But why have the contest at all? Do we know whether the sponsors are getting much, if anything, out of this whole event? I mean, they may be getting a bit of promotion, but even without the million-dollar prize they have to be putting out a bundle on transportation and lodging for what started out as a pool for a hundred teams.”
“They must be fishing,” Zak commented.
“Can you pull up the hacks for the previous rounds?” I asked. “This is the fourth place the contestants have traveled to.”
“I’m sure I can, but it might take some time. It seems as if they use a new database for every level of the contest. I’ll have to dig around to see what I can find.”
“Wait,” Zoe said. “Fishing for what?”
“I don’t know yet,” Zak admitted.
“Maybe they’re looking for a specific hacker and hope this series of events will reveal him or her,” I said.
“Or maybe they’re looking for a hacker with a specific skill set and the morning hacks are tests to whittle down the potential pool,” Zak added.
“Or maybe they’re gathering specific data that’s hidden among the contest-related hacks,” Zoe said as she caught on. “Like maybe they want account numbers from a specific bank, but instead of just finding a black hat and paying them to hack into the bank, they set up this competition where most of the hacks are fake so that when the real one pops up no one will be the wiser.”
I looked at Zak. “If you’d been playing this game for the past four weeks, solving fake hacks, wouldn’t you know it if they suddenly substituted a real one?”
“I would, but not everyone else would,” Zak answered. “The other element is the competition factor. If you’re in second place, or even third, and after all these long weeks you’re on the verge of winning a million dollars, would you report it if you came across a suspicious hack? Would you hesitate and not complete the hack when the grand prize was on the line? Or would you convince yourself that the bank or other site you were asked to hack into was only a fake, like all the others?”
I thought about it and realized how much of a lure the game provided. I’d only participated for a day and my goal wasn’t even to win the money, yet I found I really wanted to do well the next day to pull our team out of the basement.
“So what do we do?” I asked.
No one answered right away.
“I think for now we stay the course,” Zak eventually answered. “If there are real hacks on the agenda I have a feeling they’ll come later in the week. If Kimmy and Kenny are decoys, I suspect they’ll fall by the wayside before too long, leaving the top four or so teams in a race to the finish line. The competition will be intense at that point, but I think being fed a legitimate hack, if that’s what’s going on, will happen when emotions and adrenaline are high. I initially planned to hang back so as not to draw attention to our team, but now I think attention from anyone looking for someone to perform their hack could be a good thing. I say we knock it out of the park tomorrow and then regroup to see what happens.”
Zoe looked at me. “I think we might want to wait to call your brother. I know figuring out what happened to Cammy is your number one priority, but getting the police involved might get whoever’s behind this to pull back.”
“Wouldn’t that be a good thing?” I wondered.
Zak shook his head. “If there’s something larger at work here—and I want to remind you both that that’s purely speculation at this point—we need to figure out what it is. If we get the cops involved before whoever set this whole thing up makes their move, they’ll just regroup and try again. I don’t know yet what the endgame is, or even if there is one, but I have a bad feeling about this.”
I agreed not to call John just yet and Zak quickly went over the other six teams in the contest, spending the most time on the ones in second, third, and fourth place because it was his opinion the true leader would be hanging back there.
Zoe announced she was going to bed, and Zak, with a worried look on his face, announced he would be turning in as well. I poured myself a glass of wine and headed out onto the lanai. It was late and totally possible Luke had already gone to bed, but I was missing him, so I took out my phone and dialed his number.
“Luke Austin,” Luke answered. I could tell he was on speakerphone and, given the greeting, likely he hadn’t looked at his caller ID.
“Luke?”
“Lani. I’m sorry. I’m driving and didn’t look to see who was calling.”
“Where are you?”
“About ten minutes from the resort.”
“Resort? This resort?”
“If by this resort you mean the one at which you’re currently staying, then yes. I’m glad you called. I was going to call you when I got there to find out what room you’re in.”
I paused before I replied. “Why are you here? Not that I’m not happy about it, but I thought you weren’t coming until tomorrow. Didn’t your mom have some sort of a party planned for today?”
“She did,” Luke answered with a hint of hardness in his tone. “It’s a long story, but basically, her guests turned out to be a bunch of my old girlfriends who still live near the ranch and aren’t married. When I saw that her party was some sort of bizarre group date I packed up my stuff and caught the next plane to Hawaii.”
I frowned. “Your mother was trying to fix you up?”
“Yes.”
“So you left?”
“I did.”
“Isn’t she mad?”
“She is, but she’ll get over it. I’m just pulling into the resort parking lot.”
“We’re in a cottage. Zak thought it would be more conducive to strategy sessions. I’ll meet you on the sidewalk in front of the lot and show you where we are. And Luke…”
“Yeah?”
“I’m really glad you’re here.”
I got Luke settled into my room and went back out onto the lanai while he took a quick shower. My mood had lightened considerably the moment he walked into my arms. I could see he was exhausted and I knew we had a busy day ahead of us, so I figured I’d catch him up the best I could before we turned in.
Luke emerged from the cottage dressed in shorts and a soft tank. His hair was wet, his feet were bare, and he carried a glass of wine. He kissed me on the top of the head before sitting down on the lounge next to me.
“Do you want to talk about it?” I asked.
“Not even a tiny bit. I’d rather hear how things are going here.”
I filled him in the best I could, including our current theory that there was a real hack of some sort behind everything that had been going on. It was a smart idea to hide one among a whole lot of fakes, but I wondered exactly what was at stake for someone to create such an elaborate ruse and what Cammy must have stumbled onto.
“The theory seems plausible, but have you discussed other possibilities? We’ve learned by trial and error that it’s best not to become too myopic early on.”
I leaned my head back and looked up at the millions of stars dotting the night sky. “We did discuss the possibility that one of the other contestants had pushed Cammy. Team Honu was in second place up to her accident.”
“And now?”
“Dead last.”
Luke put his hand in mine. He gave it a squeeze and we sat in silence for a moment before he asked about the other players and the likelihood that they might have done such a thing.
“Kenny and Kimmy Carter are in first place. Zak thinks they’re being helped and most likely are only placeholders of some sort.”
“Does he think they know they are?” Luke asked.
I frowned. “I suppose if they really are placeholders they could be part of the ruse, but it’s also possible they have no idea what’s really going on and think they’re in first place legitimately.”
“If what you say about their getting extra help is true they’d have to be pretty dumb not to realize what’s happening.”
“Maybe. They might just think t
hey have an in or something. If Zak’s right, the Carters will be eliminated around midweek. If they aren’t in on it somehow, they’re in for a huge disappointment. I sort of feel sorry for them.”
Luke leaned over and kissed my cheek. “Who’s in second place now?”
“Ivan Babikov and Irina Yelstin, the American-born offspring of Russian parents. Both are tall and physically fit and have degrees in computer-related fields. Ivan specializes in cybersecurity and Zak feels that, like him, he’d most likely be able to pick out a real hack. Irina is involved in the development of business software. They’ve bounced back and forth between second and third place, with fourth place being their lowest ranking. Zak isn’t sure whether they’ll be fed the real hack, if that’s what’s on the agenda. On one hand, Ivan seems to be the most likely to be successful—second only to Zak, of course—but on the other, if he isn’t in on the whole thing, he’s also the second likeliest to figure out what’s going on. As far as Zak can tell with the limited amount of information he’s gathered so far, Ivan and Irina seem to have earned their points legitimately.”
“They seem like a team to keep an eye on. Were Ivan and Irina in third place at the time of Cammy’s accident?”
“They must have been, unless that was when they fell into fourth. We can ask Zak tomorrow. He has a good handle on who the true contenders are. Other than Ivan and Irina, the only team he spent much time talking about is the one currently in third place. Their names are listed as Hulk and Cracker, but Zak says their real names are Steve Brown and Larry Pintner.”
“Hulk and Cracker?” Luke asked.
“Hulk is this big guy, with a thick neck and huge muscles. He looks like the Incredible Hulk, only he isn’t green. Cracker is the complete opposite. He’s about five foot six, with shaggy dark hair, thick glasses, and a frame so skinny I doubt he weighs much more than I do. Zak says he’s a legit hacker who isn’t afraid to cross the line into the dark web. Zak thinks this is the team that’s most likely to be selected for the real hack, if that’s really what’s going on.”
Luke yawned as he reached his arms above his head. I could see the long day and five-hour time difference was getting to him. It was eleven o’clock Hawaii time now, which meant it was four in the morning in Texas. He must have been up for over twenty hours.
“Let’s turn in,” I said. “We wake up really early so we can get organized before the six a.m. email. The other four teams most likely won’t be in the final mix, so there’s no reason to discuss them at this point. If things change Zak can catch you up.”
Luke closed his eyes. I thought he had fallen asleep, but he opened his eyes and stood up. He pulled me to my feet and then into his arms, then kissed me slowly and gently on the lips.
“I missed you,” he whispered, so softly I almost missed it.
“I missed you too,” I replied, wrapping my arms around his neck. “So very much.”
Luke deepened the kiss, then took a step back. He took my hand and led me inside and into our room.
Chapter 6
Monday, May 1
When I awoke the next morning wrapped in Luke’s arms the last thing I wanted to do was get up. A quick glance at the bedside clock informed me that it was 4:50. If I wanted to have a chance to talk strategy with Zak and Zoe and also take a shower and grab some coffee, I was going to need to get up sooner rather than later. I closed my eyes and took several deep breaths, embracing the moment, before sliding out from under Luke’s weight. The poor guy was exhausted after traveling for most of the previous day.
“Lani?” he asked as I slipped a pair of shorts over my naked body.
“I’m here,” I whispered. “Go back to sleep. I need to meet with the others, but I know how tired you must be.”
Luke stared at me as I stood naked from the waist up. “Sleep isn’t the first thing that comes to mind.”
I smiled in the dark room. “There’s no time for that either, unfortunately. The contest begins at six. We need to be ready.”
“Okay. We can revisit the other this evening, but I’ll get up now.”
My breath caught in my throat as Luke flung off the covers, revealing his muscular form in the moonlit room. Damn, I’d missed him.
Realizing that my resolution not to slip back into bed was waning fast, I pulled a T-shirt over my head and went out into the common area. Zak was already at the computer, but I didn’t see Zoe.
“Zoe up?” I asked.
“On the lanai.”
I could see he was in the zone, so I poured myself a cup of black coffee and went through the sliding door to join my new friend. She was sitting in a lounge chair, holding a bottle of water and staring out at the sea. Her expression was serious, contemplative. She didn’t even seem to notice my approach as I went over to sit down next to her.
“Beautiful morning,” I said.
Zoe almost looked startled by my comment. She turned and said, “It is a lovely morning. The breeze is cool; any chance that means the daytime temperature will be a bit cooler than yesterday’s heat?”
“Maybe. I did hear there’s rain in the forecast. That usually cools things down a bit, although the increase in the humidity could cancel things out. I know it feels miserable when you aren’t used to the heat and humidity, but you do get used to it.”
Zoe just smiled.
“Luke showed up unexpectedly last night,” I told her.
“He did? How nice. Did he finish up his business in Texas early?”
“It turns out he did. That means we’ll have extra help today. I want to discuss things with Zak and Luke, but I was thinking maybe he could come with me today and you could stay behind with Zak. Not that you aren’t welcome to come too, of course, but you look tired. Wouldn’t a day of rest be welcome?”
Zoe leaned her head back against the lounge. “That does sound nice, if you’re sure you don’t need me. You know I’ll be there if you do, but Zak plans to stay behind doing the computer thing, so a day to get acclimated might be just what I need.”
Zoe had had so much energy a couple of weeks ago when Luke and I were in Ashton Falls. Her lethargy now could be the heat and humidity, which I knew she wasn’t accustomed to, I just hoped it wasn’t anything more than that. I knew myself it was no fun to be sick away from home.
By the time Zoe and I went inside Luke was up and talking with Zak, both looking at something on the computer screen. I poured myself a second cup of coffee, then sat down on the sofa just beyond the tables where we’d set up the computers. “Anything interesting?” I asked.
Luke turned to me. “Zak was just pointing out the various hacks the other teams were assigned yesterday. It seems odd that every team gets a different one.”
“I’ve ranked the hacks from one to ten in order of difficulty,” Zak said. “It’ll be interesting to see if they appear to be randomly assigned or if there’s some criteria used to determine who gets what.”
“If the hacks aren’t random the organizers would have a lot of control over which team ranks where on any given day,” I observed.
“Agreed.” Zak turned back to the computer screen and scanned the data in front of him. “One of the teams that was eliminated yesterday had been doing fairly well, but the hack they were assigned was brutal. The three hours it took them to get to the first clue set them up to come in dead last, which is exactly what happened.”
“What was their ranking before yesterday?” I asked.
“Fifth, but they’d been bopping around between fifth and third all along. Prior to yesterday’s debacle I would have said they had a chance of hanging around most of the week. If the competition is fixed someone seems to have wanted them gone for some reason.”
“Will you be able to tell after today if the hacks are randomly assigned?” I asked.
“Two data points will give us more information than I currently have, but it will take at least three to begin to make assumptions about what might be going on. If I were to guess, I’d say we’ll have a difficult
hack today. I have a feeling the folks who are observing all this want to figure out how good we are. As we briefly discussed yesterday, there are two ways to approach the situation, assuming I’m correct and our hack is a tough one. I can fumble around a bit so the organizers won’t be alerted to my real skill level, or I can dig in and show them what I really have.”
“Don’t you think they already know who you are?” Luke asked.
“I registered him as Zak Zorn,” I told Luke. “Zak created a fake identity to go with the name and contact information I provided. If they become suspicious I’m sure they’ll figure out who Zak really is, but we don’t think it will occur to them right off the bat that a famous software developer would enter a contest even if it is for a million-dollar grand prize. And Zak has been keeping a low profile here.”
“That makes sense,” Luke said. “Although if you give it your all with the hacks it won’t be long before they start digging around, and once they do they’re going to be suspicious about your real motivation for being here.”
“True,” Zak acknowledged.
“Maybe just take a middle road,” I suggested. “Complete the hack fast enough to give us a head start, but not so fast you arouse suspicion. At least not yet.”
Zak shrugged. “Whatever you think is fine by me.”
I glanced at Zoe, who was staring out the window. She really wasn’t acting at all like the woman I’d met in Ashton Falls. I saw Zak noticing Zoe’s faraway expression as well. He stood up, then wandered over to pause next to her. They exchanged a few words before Zoe went into the bedroom they shared.
“I guess she still isn’t feeling well,” Zak explained. “Maybe it’s a good thing she’s staying behind to rest.” Zak looked at his watch. “Five minutes to showtime. Are the two of you ready to head out once we get the clue?”
I nodded. “I have my backpack and an ice chest with some water and a few snacks. We’ll take the car Luke rented so you and Zoe can use my rental if you decide you want to go somewhere.”
We all stiffened as the contest computer dinged, indicating we had an email. Zak opened it and clicked on the link. He took a few minutes to surf around before announcing it was a tough one, as he’d expected, but he should be able to get past the security around it in about twenty minutes. I asked him how long it would take the average good-but-not-great hacker, and he said about an hour. We settled on having Zak get it done in forty minutes. He planned to use his false starts to try out a few theories he had and Luke and I left him to it, heading out to the little store on the resort property to pick up a few additional snacks for the day.