by Mel LeBrun
“Let's start with your name,” Dmitri said.
“We won't tell you anything.”
Martin looked over at the second man who, although he hadn't uttered one word, spoke volumes with his countenance. Perfectly terrified, he looked like he might be sick. A moment later, he was. Martin smiled.
“I don't think you can speak for your friend,” Martin said.
“Do not tell them anything!” the man shouted angrily.
Dmitri responded with a kick to his face, rendering him unconscious again. He and Martin then honed in on the obviously weaker link.
“What is your name?” Martin asked.
The man was reluctant to respond. He feared torture but also what would happen to him if he gave in and talked.
“My name is Nicolas,” Martin said. “And this is my friend, Walter.” He gestured to Dmitri who then smiled reassuringly. “What is your name?” Martin asked again.
“Ka ... Karl,” he stuttered.
Martin smiled warmly. “My father's name was Karl. It is nice to meet you. I'm sorry it is under these circumstances but we cannot change that now.”
Karl swallowed what little spit was in his mouth and looked around the barn avoiding eye contact. He felt like he might throw up again and was trying to hold it back.
“Would you like some water, Karl?” Dmitri asked.
Karl didn't answer. He closed his eyes, wishing it was all a bad dream. Dmitri went out to the car and returned with a bottle of water. He unscrewed the cap and held up up to Karl's lips. Needing the moisture and wanting to wash the taste of vomit from his mouth, Karl eagerly gulped it down.
“Look at me, Karl,” Martin said calmly.
Karl's head remained down and his eyes shut tight.
“Karl,” Martin said more forcefully this time. “Look at me.” It was not a request.
Karl slowly raised his eyes to look at Martin.
“There is no reason you need to be tortured. Do you understand me?”
Karl just looked like he was going to be sick again.
Martin continued. “We just need you to answer some questions. If you do that, we have no need to hurt you. You can go free.”
Karl scoffed at that. “You won't let me go free.”
“Well, you're right. Not right away. There is business we need to take care of here and we can't have you running back to your boss and telling him what we're up to. So you will remain a prisoner until we are done. But trust me. I don't want to kill you,” Martin assured him.
“I don't trust you.”
“I can appreciate that. But what choice do you have?” Martin reasoned.
Karl shook his head and closed his eyes. He didn't want to believe this was happening.
“Tell us what we want to know,” Dmitri said. “There is no reason for you to get hurt.”
Karl breathed heavily and clenched his jaw. “They will kill me.”
“What do you think we're going to do if you don't tell us what we want to know?” Martin asked.
“I don't know anything,” Karl insisted.
Martin cocked his head. “You don't really expect me to believe that do you?”
“Either way, I'm a dead man.”
“I'm sure we can work something out,” Dmitri said.
“Like what?” Karl asked.
“Let's see how helpful you are first. Then we'll see how helpful we want to be in return,” Martin answered.
Karl looked at them both trying to decide if he could risk trusting them. He finally decided to go the route that avoided being tortured. “What do you want to know?” he sighed.
“Where did they move the server?” Martin asked.
“I don't know.”
“That's not good enough.” Martin picked up a knife from among the tools the men had in their trunk.
“Wait, wait. Please. I don't know where they moved it to. But I know who does know.”
“Where can we find this person?”
“His name is Jacob Adler. He maintains the server. He likes to hang out downtown at The Gold Bar. He is probably there right now.”
After getting a description of Adler and his vehicle, Martin and Dmitri stepped outside the barn to talk privately.
“When they don't report back, someone will come looking,” Martin said.
“We should take them with us until we're sure we don't need them anymore,” Dmitri suggested.
“Any objections to drugging them?”
“Not from me,” Dmitri replied.
“All right, so we'll lock them in the trunk until we can acquire some sedatives and then find Adler?”
They had just loaded the men into the trunk when Martin's phone rang. It wasn't a number he recognized. He answered but didn't say anything.
A voice he did recognize came over the line. “Martin?”
“Tim. What are you doing? How did you get this number?”
“Michael gave it to me. I'm back in business.”
“What happened?”
“Director Douglas confronted me about Corvo's disappearance and I had to come clean. He's going to keep Thompson off our back.”
“Can you trust him?” Martin asked, not particularly trusting anyone himself.
“I've worked closely under him for five years. I'm confident we can.”
“I guess we don't have much choice now anyways.” Martin rubbed the back of his neck. “Any chance you could supply us with some sedatives to keep a few captives quiet?”
“I think I can arrange that.”
“Also, anything you can tell me about a Jacob Adler would be appreciated. He maintains Meier's server and lives in the area. They moved the server and we're hoping he can tell us where it is now.”
“Give me an hour. I'll see what I can dig up.”
“Thanks Tim. It's good to have you back.”
“It's good to be back.” Gatti grinned as he hung up the phone.
DMITRI AND Martin located the bar that Adler was known to frequent. His red Jetta was in the parking lot, but there were at least six men matching the physical description they were given by Karl. They couldn't discern who they should be watching.
They ordered drinks and tried to blend in while they waited to hear back from Gatti. He called a half hour later. Armed with additional intel and a photo, they were easily able to pick Adler out of the crowd. He was sitting at a table with a couple of friends drinking beer.
After observing him for a while in the bar, they decided to wait in the car for him to leave. An hour later, they watched as he said goodbye to his friends. As his car left the parking lot, they started to follow him. At the next red light, they bumped their car into his.
Martin got out cursing loudly and inspected his front bumper. Adler got out and angrily asked what Martin was doing so that he didn't see the red light. Martin apologized, but gave no explanation. After seeing that the only damage to his bumper was a minor scuff, Adler decided he would let it go and started to return to his vehicle. When he turned his back, Martin grabbed him in a choke hold. Adler began to struggle and tried to cry out, but he couldn't. Dmitri was ready to assist if necessary, but Martin was more than capable. In a few minutes, they were loading an unconscious Adler into the trunk of his own car.
SINCE RETURNING from Venezuela, Michael hadn't left Jessica's side at the hospital. Nervous that they would be discovered and someone would be sent to kill them, he kept constant watch. Josh came at night to stand guard so Michael could get some rest.
It was early in the morning. Michael was sipping coffee and watching Jessica sleep when his phone vibrated. He saw the number and answered.
“Yeah,” he answered.
“Hey, Michael,” Martin greeted him.
“What did you find?” Michael asked.
“Well, they moved the server. Not terribly surprising. We interrogated some men that tailed us from the apartment. That led us to a man named Jacob Adler. He's some IT guy who maintains Meier's server. He helped set it up in the new location
and he was kind enough to tell us its whereabouts.”
Michael grinned. “You make that sound so easy.”
“Dmitri did most of the heavy lifting.”
“I'd hate to be on the wrong end of his temper.”
Martin chuckled. “Me too. Anyway, is there anything Jess needs to know from this guy? We should ask him now while he's in a cooperative mood.”
“Hang on. I'll ask her.”
Michael gently stroked her hair and said her name. She sighed and opened her eyes.
“Hi.” She smiled and closed her eyes again.
“Hey, sweetheart. I have Martin on the line. What do you need to know about the server?”
“Um ...” She took a deep breath, trying to wake up. “What software is it running? When was it last updated? What security program are they using?”
Michael relayed the questions. The answers prompted more questions and eventually he just handed the phone to her and she spoke directly with Martin. After a very technical conversation that went completely over Michael's head, she seemed confident she knew everything she needed to hack into the server. She handed the phone back to Michael.
“Can I go back to bed now?” she asked.
“Are you going to remember all that?”
She closed her eyes and nodded her head. He pursed his lips and shook his head as he put the phone to his ear.
“You'd better keep him around for a while,” Michael suggested.
“Yeah. We're going to hang on to all of them until we're finished.”
“Good. Jess will need a day or two to prepare for her end. I'll start making travel arrangements for Josh and me.”
“See you in a few days then.”
Michael hung up and looked at Jessica as she slept peacefully. He then called Gatti.
“Tim. I need to be in Germany in a few days. Can you make arrangements for Josh and me?”
“Of course.”
“Also, I don't want Jess left alone.”
“I have an agent in Boston I know I can trust, Emmett Ryan. I'll send him to watch over her.”
“I appreciate it.”
“No problem, Michael. We'll take good care of her while you're gone.”
WHEN JESSICA woke again she requested her laptop and began preparations for hacking into the server. She tailor-made a virus that would force the server online as long as there was an open Internet connection and then would open a backdoor for her to gain remote access. Armed with the information provided by Adler, she created a dummy password screen that would mimic the real one. It would do nothing to decrypt the server but would send her the keycode, giving her access to the video files they needed to bring down Meier's support system. She handed Michael a flash drive.
“As long as there is an available Internet connection, all you need to do is insert this into the server. I'll take care of the rest.”
“How will I know if there is an open connection?”
“You'll have to bring a laptop with you. If all the connections are password protected, you'll need to hack one. I'll make sure you have what you need to do that.”
“Jess, I'm not a hacker. How am I going to do that?”
“It's really easy. I'll talk you through it. I imagine getting close enough to the server to use the flash drive will be significantly harder.”
Michael took a deep breath and nodded. “You might be right about that.”
Chapter 32
Michael and Josh picked up a white Opel Mokka that Gatti arranged for them and met up with Dmitri at a safe house Gatti provided for them just outside of Nuremberg, Germany. According to Adler, the server was moved about an hour north to a house in Bamberg, Germany. Martin and Dmitri had scoped out the location and confirmed that it was indeed where the server was now being housed. They took turns maintaining surveillance on the server in case it was moved again. Martin was keeping watch when Michael and Josh arrived. Dmitri showed them surveillance photos and schematics of the surrounding area. They were trying to plan their assault on the building when Martin called.
“There is a lot of activity at the house. I'm willing to bet they're preparing to move the server again.”
“Has anyone been trying to call the men you captured?” Michael asked Dmitri.
“I don't know. We took the batteries out of their phones so they couldn't be tracked.”
Michael nodded. “They're probably nervous after losing touch with their men, especially Adler.”
“What do you want to do?” Martin asked.
“We'll take it in transit,” Michael answered. “Will be easier that way anyway.”
“True,” Josh agreed. “But how are we going to get Roth's password then?”
“We'll leave some breadcrumbs for them to follow. When they recover the server, they'll want to check it.”
“How much time do you think we have?” Michael asked Martin.
“I'm not sure. They could move it within the hour.”
“We better get going then.” Michael turned to Dmitri. “What do you have for supplies?”
“One sniper, two assault, two twelve gauge, some frags, flashbangs and body armor.”
“Nice,” Michael remarked. “Courtesy of Luca?”
Dmitri nodded. “Yes.”
“How many vehicles do you have?” Josh asked.
“Three,” Dmitri answered. “One is ours, Martin has it. The other two are theirs.”
“Ours makes four. We'll use theirs for the assault and ours for the getaway,” Michael said.
“What's the plan?” Josh asked.
Michael grinned. “How's your driving record?”
MARTIN CALLED as the men carried the server out to a black Range Rover. Michael, Dmitri and Josh were still ten minutes out. Michael asked Martin to keep him updated on where the truck was. Martin informed him that there was one support vehicle, a Mercedes, following the Rover with two men in the Rover and two in the Mercedes. Martin pulled on the road behind them, keeping his distance to avoid suspicion. He knew it wouldn't take long for him to be spotted though. The men were no doubt already paranoid and after a few turns they were sure to notice him behind them.
They were approaching an intersection when Michael blew through the stoplight and plowed into the driver's side of the Range Rover. The damage to the Rover was minimal, but the Audi Michael drove was no longer operable. Michael jumped from the car and fired at the Rover with the assault rifle, taking out both front tires and turning the radiator into Swiss cheese. Martin came in behind the Mercedes and boxed them in. Before the men in the Mercedes could react, Dmitri came around the corner, stopping Adler's Jetta just in time to pin the driver's side door shut. Martin drew his gun and rushed to the Mercedes just as Josh came to a screeching halt in their Opel Mokka and jumped out with one of the shotguns. Josh fired into the engine of the Mercedes, disabling the car instantly. Armed with the other shotgun, Dmitri held the men in the Rover at bay. Surprised and unprepared for the level of aggression and firepower that Michael had brought with him, Meier's men immediately surrendered. While Dmitri, Josh and Michael held their guns on the men, Martin relieved them of the server. Michael tossed flashbangs into the backseats of the Rover and Mercedes as parting gifts. Unable to see or hear, the men could do nothing as Michael and his team made their getaway with the server.
They brought the server to a motel room they rented and had strategically left a receipt for in Adler's Jetta. After unloading it and getting a little help on the phone from Kevin to make sure they didn't mess anything up, they turned it on and plugged in the flash drive that Jessica had made. A few minutes later, Jessica gained full access to the server's contents. She cloned the information onto another server that Gatti acquired for them. The files were encrypted so there was nothing they could do with it until they got the key from Roth. She made a quick check to make sure the fake password screen she had created was close enough to the real one. There were a few minor discrepancies that would likely be indiscernible unless the screens wer
e compared side by side. Satisfied with her work, she then loaded the program she had created to make it appear that the server was operating normally along with the password application that would send her Roth's password as soon as he entered it. Her program would make the server appear offline even if it was actually online. It was created to find and connect to any open Internet connection, brute-force hacking its way if need be into protected networks, thus ensuring the server would come back online even if it was moved to a different location.
With the trap set, Martin and Dmitri left while Michael and Josh remained. If Meier's men were going to believe that they had recovered the server rather than it being given back to them, it needed to look like they were caught in the act.
“So,” Michael said. “You and Jinx. Never saw that coming.”
“Geez, Michael. Don't you think I have enough to be stressed about right now without you bringing that up?”
“Come on.” Michael grinned mercilessly. “She's great. You love her. You should be happy to find anyone who will put up with you.”
Josh took a deep breath and shook his head. He clearly didn't share Michael's lighthearted view.
The grin faded from Michael's lips. A few minutes passed before he spoke again. “She's not Hailey.”
Josh glowered at him. “I know that.”
“You sure about that?”
Josh just looked away making no reply. He hadn't always been a commitment-phobe. Back in his early years, Josh had a candy coated view of love and marriage. Like most young people, he imagined a fairy tale life for himself.
Hailey was Josh's first wife and a closely guarded secret. Of all the people in Josh's life now, Michael and Martin were the only ones who knew of her and they knew never to speak of her. Michael had tried to warn Josh back then that she was no good. He could see she was deceptive and, in his opinion, displayed sociopathic tendencies. Josh didn't see it and wouldn't listen. It put a huge strain on their friendship when Michael disclosed his true feelings about her. Josh almost stopped speaking with him.
Problems began immediately after they were married. She complained that Josh didn't make enough money. He couldn't afford to buy her the things she wanted. They fought and he ended up taking on a second job working nights as a bouncer to make her happy. Between his jobs with the military and the nightclub, he hardly saw her. While he was out working his fingers to the bone, she hooked up with a wealthy lawyer.