by Terry Schott
The guy seems pretty calm despite losing that much cash.
“It’s not about losing the money, Victor. The debt represents much more than that.”
Victor frowned. That’s twice now he’s answered my unspoken questions. Is he reading my mind?
The corner of Nathan’s mouth seemed to twitch. “This is only the tip of the iceberg. The World Bank controls the entire globe. I stand to lose hundreds of trillions of dollars if this is not contained.”
Victor stood. “The president should be present for this meeting.”
Nathan laughed. “The president is off the grid, protected in a secret location.” He smirked. “The idiot has never been in power, anyway. Everyone answers to me, Victor, and there is no time for middlemen now.”
“I would need to hear that from my superior.”
Nathan sighed. “Fine. He’s in the ready room downstairs. See him on your way out. I like you, Victor. Most people are sheep. It’s not surprising, we’ve bred them to be exactly that. But you are more than that.”
“A wolf?”
Nathan laughed. “More like a shepherd.” Victor's mouth opened and Nathan shook his head. “That’s a compliment. One of the highest I give.” He paused, then chuckled. “I see you aren’t honoured enough to say thank you.”
“What am I doing here?”
“You will be reporting directly to me from now on. There is a special team that I direct and I would like you to join them. Two days ago, they were given the task of finding and eliminating the Harbinger. I think you could help.”
Victor nodded. “Does the team have a name?”
“They are called ‘the Forge’.”
37
Authorities are warning people to be on the lookout for stray e-mails attached to your account, specifically e-mails sent by the Harbinger. Turns out that the mastermind has found a way to put your computer to work for him. This may sound amusing, but the police warn it is no laughing matter. In order to remain above suspicion, contact your local law enforcement immediately should you discover e-mails in your outbox that you did not send.
Halbert Jehnson, Channel Two News
“No.”
“Come on, Luke, why not? It would be a ton of cash for the club.”
“You see the signature at the bottom of that offer?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s why the answer is no.”
“It’s likely not even the real guy. There are tons of e-mails claiming to be from him that aren’t.”
“And there are just as many out there where it does turn out to be him.”
“Can we put it to a vote?”
Luke sighed and let the paper fall to the desk. “It’s a waste of time.”
“Okay.”
“Look, why bother even taking the chance? None of us need as much cash as we did when everyone had mortgages and credit card debt.” He nodded toward the paper. “Our pal already took care of that for us.”
“Yeah.”
“Video games are our bread and butter. That’s how we came up. That’s what we’re known for.”
“We’re still doing the other things, though.”
Luke scowled and shook his head. “Anything else you need?”
“No.”
“Let me know when the new batch of videos are ready to post.”
“Okay.”
The door closed and Luke looked at his monitor. After a few seconds, he reached for the paper on his desk and, without looking, crumpled it into a ball and threw it behind his shoulder, his attention already on the monitor as it landed in the trash basket with a faint scratching sound.
***
Ariel touched Curtis’s shoulder and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek before taking a seat. He smiled and reached for his glass of scotch. “How did it go?”
“Good.” She picked up the menu.
“Anything I should know?”
“Nope.”
“We in New Orleans much longer?”
“Couple days if everything goes properly.”
“You’re so calm.”
She shrugged and looked up. “I know it’s cliché, but the crawfish gumbo here is out of this world.”
“That’s what the waiter said. I told him to keep an eye out for my girlfriend and to bring us two bowls when you got here.”
As if on cue, the waiter appeared with two bowls of steaming gumbo in his hands. Ariel smiled at Curtis as she leaned back to allow the waiter to place the bowl in front of her. When he left, she reached forward and grabbed Curtis’s hand. “You’re a sweetie.”
“Pfft.” A grin slowly appeared. “Well, I try.”
She leaned close to the bowl, closed her eyes, and inhaled. “Mmm, it smells incredible.”
Curtis watched her open her eyes and take a spoonful. She looked at him and smiled. “Heaven.”
He took a mouthful of the gumbo and smiled too. “Wow.”
Ariel reached for a roll in the basket and tore a hunk off, dipping it into her bowl. “I think he will try to take us as we exit the restaurant.”
“Okay.”
“I’m sorry, but I really think he’s gonna make his first move on you, babe.”
Curtis paused with the spoon near his lips. “I guess that makes sense.”
“The good news is I think he won’t kill you. He’ll want to use you to force my cooperation.”
“You nervous?”
“Normally I wouldn’t be.” She took a bite of the gumbo-soaked bread and looked at him. “But yeah, I’m nervous because you have to be part of this.”
“Hopefully just this once.”
“If it works out as we want, yeah.”
“I likely shouldn’t ask but . . .” He set his spoon down and wiped his lips with a napkin. “What kind of odds you giving that this turns out in our favour?”
“You’re right. You shouldn’t ask that.”
***
Aleksy watched them exit the restaurant from across the street. He waited until they were half a block away before he started to follow them.
Their pace was leisurely, exactly as it had been each day as reported from the half dozen different agents who had followed them since they had appeared in the Latin Quarter three days ago. He swiped open his phone and looked at the blue pulsing light on the street map. Of course it’s still tracking her. She won’t find the extra chip.
They began walking again and Aleksy continued to follow, waiting for the best place to make his move.
***
Ariel grabbed Curtis’s hand and leaned in to kiss him. “Okay, this is likely where it’s gonna happen.”
Curtis felt a thudding in his neck and a twinge in his head from the adrenaline surge. “Don’t be too long.”
“I won’t. And remember, he needs you alive to use against me.”
“I think he’s going to kill us both as quickly as he can to make sure he succeeds.”
“They need to make sure I haven’t left anything behind that can hurt them.”
“I doubt they care at this point.”
“If I’m wrong, then I’ll see you in the next life.”
Curtis pursed his lips and turned. He continued walking down the sidewalk while Ariel entered the store.
Seconds later, he was pulled backwards, an arm snaking tight around his throat.
“Don’t fight me and I’ll let you get some air,” a man’s voice said in his ear. “Tap my arm if you promise to behave.”
Curtis reached up and tapped the arm. The pressure lessened and he gasped for breath. The arm remained around his neck.
“Good boy. Now I’m pulling you backwards. Trust me, Curtis, as long as you do what I say, you won’t be hurt.”
Curtis followed his captor’s lead, not trying to turn his head. After a few moments, they were standing in an alley.
“Good stuff.” The man’s voice sounded encouraging. “Now we wait here until Ariel walks by. When she does, I will give you a little squeeze and you’re going to call for
her to come in here. Got it, pal?”
“Yes.”
“Good. And sound natural when you call her. If you try anything funny, I’ll snap your neck like a pretzel. You believe me, right?”
“I do.”
***
“Hey babe?”
Ariel stopped and turned to her left. “Curtis?”
“Yeah. Come look what I found in here.”
She entered the alley. “What’s so interesting in a filthy all—” She got close enough to see the man behind her boyfriend and stopped. “Looks like they sent the best after me, at least.”
Aleksy smiled as he peeked over Curtis’ shoulder. “Heya, Ariel.”
“How did you find me?”
“I’m sure you can guess.”
“There’s more than one chip.”
He nodded.
“Is there any good way out of this?”
“I would like to say yes, but you know I’d be lying.”
She sighed.
“Your boyfriend still has a chance to walk away.”
“How?”
“Give me your files.”
“I don’t have any.”
Aleksy laughed. “We all have a dossier on the illegal activities that they make us do. It’s our bargaining chip for living.”
“Are they even a concern anymore?” She shook her head. “The world is pretty messed up, and we both know it’s about to go from bad to worse. No one cares about a few covert ops that weren’t sanctioned.”
“Still.” He shrugged. “Shows compliance. I need something from ya, Ariel.”
“And you let Curtis go?”
“Absolutely.”
She looked from Aleksy to Curtis. Finally, she sighed and reached for her front pocket. “Fine.” She removed a jump drive and held it in front of her.
When Aleksy started to speak, Curtis made his move. Ariel grinned as her boyfriend’s right hand flew up, grabbing his attacker’s elbow and clamping it so tight she could see his knuckles whiten. Then he dropped to the ground, using the momentum to flip Aleksy forward flat onto his back. She sprinted forward and lashed out with the heel of her boot.
Aleksy struck the ground with a thud, her boot connecting with his temple and knocking him out.
Curtis stood and Ariel smiled up at him. “Think he was surprised?”
Ariel laughed. “It looks like it.”
38
Fay sat in her favourite chair and Scout sat on the couch to her right. They could hear Linda outside on the front porch, her words muffled but the tone of her voice modulating. Every few seconds, she would stroll past the window, facing away from them, the phone pressed against her ear and her other hand gesturing in the air.
Fay watched Linda walk past. When she was no longer in sight, she looked at Scout. “So, how’s school?”
“Haven’t been going much.”
“I was gonna say. Seems like you’ve been spending a lot of time with your G-ma and me.”
“She likes the help.”
“Kind of a drag, isn’t it? Following an old broad around to visit another old broad.”
Scout laughed. “Don’t talk like that!”
Fay chuckled. “Why not? It’s what we somehow ended up being.”
“You’re alive. I bet there are a lot of people you knew who can’t say the same thing.”
“That’s true.” Fay nodded. “Although, we sent a bunch of ‘em on when we were in our prime, your G-ma and I did.”
Scout’s eyes widened. “You killed people?”
“’Course we did.” Fay leaned forward and reached behind her, retrieving a small pillow from the back of her seat. She placed it on her lap and looked at him. Her expression changed. “Oh, wait a minute, you likely aren’t supposed to know about that.” She waved one hand. “Forget I mentioned it.”
“I can’t.”
“Then I lied.” She looked up at the ceiling and rolled her eyes. “I don’t know what I’m saying. Being old is making me confused.”
Scout laughed. “That’s not true.”
“Sure it is.” She grinned and opened her mouth to say something else, but the door opened and Linda stepped in, her lips pressed together.
“Oh, hey Linda,” Fay said. “I was just telling the boy some tall tales. Don’t worry, he knows they aren’t tru—”
“Later.” Linda pulled back her arm and threw the phone against the wall. The battery and its cover popped out and crashed onto the floor.
“Bad news?” Fay smirked.
“We’ve done enough for that little crusader. I should have told him no the last time he asked for our help.”
“Who are you talking about?”
“The only one we’ve been working for lately that makes me swear.”
Fay looked at Scout and smiled, tracing the shape of an H into the air. “What’s he want now?”
Linda strode past them and sat at her desk, opening her laptop. “Come and see.”
Fay put both hands on the arms of her chair and made a grunting sound as she stood and joined Scout, who had moved to stand behind her friend.
Linda was opening an e-mail. “Look at this.” She folded her arms and leaned back.
“Wow.” Fay shook her head. “If I could still whistle, I would.”
Scout frowned. “There are a bunch of words in the message that don’t seem to fit.”
“Read only those words. That’s the real message.”
Scout’s lips moved as he read the words slowly. Then he whistled.
“Thank you,” Fay said.
“That’s a joke, right?” Scout’s brows furrowed.
“Nope.” Linda tapped the screen. “The little bastard wants us to launch nukes.”
“At who?” Scout asked.
Fay shook her head. “At everyone.”
39
General Atticus Specter entered the ready room and saluted. President Jeremy Stone returned the gesture and pointed to the screen behind him. “We have received intel that the Russians are opening their missile bays.”
The General sat down and frowned. “How many?”
“All of them.”
“They are preparing for a first strike?”
“No.” The president shook his head. “It appears they are preparing to respond to ours.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Our missile bays opened five minutes before theirs.”
“Who ordered that?”
“No one.” The president nodded to a man sitting at the far end of the table, who stood and cleared his throat before speaking.
“A virus delivered to our mainframe caused the launch sequence to begin.”
The General’s eyes widened. “The science fiction writers called it. The world ends because of a stupid computer virus. Ridiculous.”
“No it won’t. Our security neutralized the virus quickly.”
“What’s that mean?”
The man smiled. “They won’t launch. The missiles need to cool down and then the doors will close.”
“Do the Russians know that?”
The man’s smile faded and he cleared his throat again. “They aren’t answering their phone.”
“They aren’t supposed to at this stage of the game.” The General held out his hand and snapped his fingers. His aide placed a ringing cell phone in his hand. He held it to his ear. A moment later, he spoke into the receiver. “This is General Atticus Specter. Hand the phone to your mistress immediately.”
The president frowned. “Who are you talking to?”
The General ignored him. “Hello, Lady. We have not initiated a strike against you. Tell your president to stand down, please.”
The General listened for a moment, then nodded. “Thank you. Yes, I agree, this was too close of a call. Absolutely.” His eyes darted toward the president’s. “I will agree to that on behalf of our leadership. Excellent. Always a pleasure speaking with you.” The General handed the phone to his aide, who turned it off and tucked it back
into his breast pocket.
“Well?” the president asked.
“Their missile doors will close once the heat signatures from ours fade.” He looked at the technician. “You were telling the truth? The missiles will not launch?”
“That’s right.”
Minutes passed.
“Our missile doors are closing,” the technician said.
A minute passed.
"The Russian doors are closing as well."
“Who did you speak with?” President Stone asked.
“The Lady.”
“The president’s wife?”
“No.” The president opened his mouth but the General interrupted him. “Sir, we can no longer risk this type of event happening due to computer failure.”
“The computers didn’t fail.” The technician’s tone was nasal. “There was a virus. We can’t contro—”
“Exactly,” the General said. “These types of events are uncontrollable. Next time we may not be so lucky. If I had not intervened, Russian nuclear missiles would be flying toward us. True or false?”
“True.”
“Take it offline.”
The president laughed. “There’s no way I can do that. I don’t have the authority.”
The General stood and his aide followed suit. “I do.” He moved to the exit.
“Where are you going?” President Stone frowned. "I have not dismissed you. Come back here and tell me what you’re up to.”
General Atticus Spectre, the Lord, ignored him and exited the room.
40
Ariel stood at the foot of the table, her arms crossed as she looked down at Aleksy’s still form. The room was dark, except for a long, rectangular fluorescent light suspended above the table. Aleksy was bound to the table by leather straps at the hands, feet, waist, and forehead. A skinny, short, bald man, with thin pale skin and knobby fingers stood near Aleksy’s head. He wore the blue-green scrubs of a doctor, but Curtis had been watching him since he entered the room. The man was not a doctor.
Aleksy moaned and his neck muscles strained as he tried to turn his head. His eyes opened, and then moved as much as they could to take in the surroundings. “Where am I?”